Quote of the Day

 A very interesting (and forward thinking) approach for a carrier...

"...I mean shifting our focus from building connections, to create amazing interactive and personalized experiences that transcend devices, platforms, content and networks..."
        ~ Rob Bruce, President of Rogers Communications

Mindblowing Stats from Cisco's VNI Forecast

Some interesting new stats from CISCO's annual Virtual Networking Index....the 2 that really jumped out at me though were:

*Residential*

  - Globally, Online Music is expected to be the most highly penetrated
  residential Internet service ―in 2011 there were 1.1 billion users (63
  percent of residential Internet users); in 2016 there are forecast to be
  1.8 billion users (79 percent of residential Internet users).

*Global File Sharing*

  - By 2016, global peer-to-peer traffic is projected to account for 54
  percent of global consumer Internet file sharing traffic, down from 77
  percent in 2011. On a quantity basis, however, the amount of peer-to-peer
  traffic is expected to increase from a rate of 4.6 exabytes per month in
  2011 to 10 exabytes per month by 2016.

MIRACAST makes content sharing easier!

Last week, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced that it's finalizing it's certification program for Wi-Fi devices to support display applications, and that it has defined a new mark to designate products that have passed certification. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Miracast devices make use of a Wi-Fi connection to deliver audio and video content from one device to another, without cables or a connection to an existing Wi-Fi network. These devices connect directly, so you can do things like watch videos from a smartphone on a big screen television or share a laptop screen with the conference room projector to collaborate in real-time. Televisions, set-top boxes, notebooks, handsets and tablets are among the device types which will be certified.

A Birthday Reflection from SPARKPEOPLE

"What matters most in life is often viewed as peripheral to the things that we usually focus on.  Passion takes a backseat to production, wellness to working and balance to busyness.  The old adage that "life is not a dress rehearsal" is so true and yet we act to the contrary by putting off what is truly important or indulging in things that are not.  

On your birthday, stop focusing on your age and start meditating on your life at this exact moment.  How can you make it better?  During the next year, reshuffle your priorities.  Spend more time with family and friends, take care of your body and health by eating well and exercising regularly, and offer to help others in need.  Discover what matters most to you, and make your daily life into a true reflection of those ideas, beliefs and attitudes..."

Digital Media Primer For Geeks

Christopher 'Monty' Montgomery from Xiph.org

Today, I stumbled onto an awesome video by the open source Pholks over at Xiph.org and it was so good that I had to share it with everyone!

It's narrated by one of my new geek heroes named Christopher 'Monty' Montgomery (who btw - is quite good on camera) and the superb video is worth watching more than once to let the plethora of information really sink in.  I really appreciate the humor that he throws in and the educational aspect of the technical data is not boring in the slightest thanks to his un-intimidating style.  In essence, the video "presents the technical foundations of modern digital media via a half-hour fire-hose of information." 

To be honest, I thought I already knew a lot of the basics, but apparently there is so much more to it all - especially digital video.  Personally, I really like the way he ties basic telephonic/broadcast history with accepted scientific theory and fast forwards the evolution and quagmire of standards into the story line, poignantly simplifying the essential, BIG topics everyone should comprehend before claiming to be a digital media geek..

It's well worth the listen, trust me.  Also, it's quite apropos and impressive that the entire production was shot and edited on open source software :-)

Some Impressive Apple Stats

"...According to Apple, more than 315 million iOS devices have sold as of Jan. 24. Apple's cloud-based music service iCloud with iTunes Match launched in November, and has garnered 85 million users. There are now 225 million active iTunes users and 20 million songs on iTunes. Users have downloaded 16 billion songs from iTunes, and Christmas Day 2011 alone saw more than 140 million downloads from iTunes. (Source: Billboard)..."

I wonder if these numbers are US only though....?

Do We Really Need a Next-Gen Audio Standard...?

Apparently, Neil Young is looking for a wealthy sponsor to help invent/promote a new hi-fi digital format that lets listeners experience more of a studio playback experience

So....while I'm waiting to win the lottery to help him with this commendable quest...are there any takers out there?

Seriously though , while vinyl is still very cool, and I agree mp3 is outdated, how many average people complain about the fidelity of CD/DVD's or quality rips made from them?

While philosophically I agree with the concept of pursuing the most realistic preservation and dissemination of the "realness" and magic in the bits,  the sad truth (and reality that we live in) is that today/tomorrow's generations consider the fidelity of download stores and streaming options "good enough."

What say you....?

CES 2012 Musings

I recently attended the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), held January 10-12th in Las Vegas. Although attendance has waned in the last few years, this year was a strong showing with over 150,000 attendees and ~20,000 new products that were introduced.

On Day 1, against my better judgement, I took a meeting away from the Convention Center, and even though I left the show floor reasonably early at 3pm (show closes at 6pm), taking the monorail was probably not the best idea, although the cab line was even longer.  Lesson learned for next year - either stay on the show floor OR stay on the strip.  Otherwise, there's too much wasted time going back & forth.

This year I didn't walk the floor very much, as I had back to back meetings every day, but I did get a sense of what was buzzing from my social media feeds and the blogs, etc. (My iPhone was the most important item besides my wallet).  Besides this being the last year for Microsoft to Keynote, one couldn't help to notice how touch is out now and gestures are in (i.e., wave & voice). Two other predominant trends this year we're the proliferation of wireless automotive infotainment and connected healthcare & wellness products.  The low cost sensors that are now available make the collecting and monitoring of bio-metric data - not only affordable - but seamless with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC and 3G/4G.

The last meeting of the last day of the show, was actually my favorite.  We met with an innovative software company who hired legendary, world-renowned music producer/mixer/engineer Jack Joseph Puig to be their Director of Creative Innovation, which sounds like a really cool gig.  Anyway, when we walked into the suite, I immediately recognized him and was stoked to not only have the opportunity to meet with him and his colleagues to discuss business, but posing with him was the cherry on top!  That memorable highlight will be hard to beat next year...but I'm already looking forward to the next one!

Todd Beals and Jack Joseph Puig

What Are The Next Form Factors in CE Products?

According to Sarah Rotman Epps, Senior Analyst at Forrester Research, there are some cool new form factors we should be watching for to get commercialized/productized in the next couple years.

1. Wearables
2. Embedded Devices
3. Surfaces
4. Flexible Display
5. Miniprojectors

Personally, I think Health & Fitness products are beginning to drive real demand for "wearables".  What do you think?   Do people really want to track their bio-metric data and monitor lifestyle behavior?  And based on what's hitting the market now, are the manufacturing suppliers and R&D labs in tune with what consumers really want out of their wireless gadgets?

The Social Media Probook

Looking for some cool new social media resources? Then look no further than The Social Media Probook (#Probook), launched a few months ago from Eloqua and JESS3. It’s a 42-page free eBook collaboratively written by a cross-section of social marketers from brands and agencies, analysts, and social support professionals across both business-to-business and business-to-consumer industries.  (Thanks to Sarah Evans for the tip!)

The #Probook was developed to respond to issues organizations are dealing with right now. A few of the topics covered include:

·         Social operational models for businesses

·         Critical elements for scaling social globally

·         Practical uses for geo (location-based apps)

·         10 “rules” for social advertising

Web version: http://media.eloqua.com/documents/ProBook.pdf

Print version: http://media.eloqua.com/documents/ProBook-Print.pdf

The Grass Is Always Greener...

I know that a lot of my Hoosier friends & colleagues often wonder why I moved from sunny Florida to Indianapolis 5 years ago, especially since I’m such a water person, but after 30 years in the Sunshine state, it seemed like the time was right for ‘change.’  And as much as I like the seasons here, the reduced traffic and the slower, simpler life, I’ve often found myself daydreaming about moving again…to get near the ocean again…to be near more culture.  So you can imagine my surprise when I recently read that CNN Money Magazine just named the City of Westfield one of the best places to live in America.  In fact, Westfield was ranked #48 out of 100 – and #1 among all other Indiana cities!

 

I’ve always said that, “It’s a great place to raise a family and enjoy a bigger house for less money”, but I had no idea that all the other variables in the equation caused it to rank so high.  So, the next time you hear me complain about being landlocked or “stuck” in Indiana, please remind me about the Blessings of making so many wonderful new friends, being able to afford a finished basement to entertain guests & family, the great schools, the upcoming Grand Park Sports Complex, the World-class jazz clubs and all the friendly neighbors/residents in our awesome neighborhood at Maple Knoll…

 

Just sayin’……

A Principal of Good Design

Here’s a great quote I saw recently  in the NY Times w/r/t Apple’s chief designer Jonathan Ive’s successful approach…."Good design is as little design as possible - less but better - because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials. Back to purity, back to simplicity." -Dieter Rams, 10 Principles of Good Design

Habla Espanol?

Apparently, "new 2010 census data shows that Hispanics are the second largest group in the US, at more than 50 million and 16.3% of the population.  It's grown 43% since the 2000 survey and is the fastest growing sector of the population."  (thanks Audio4cast!)

I Lost 50 lbs in 6 months !!

OK, today is pretty exciting for me as I hit my goal weight of "175" after losing 50 pounds in 6 months and I feel great!! Many of you are asking how I did it and the answer is simple. Go to: MySecretToWellness.com and opt-in to find out how easy it is to control your weight and improve your health. (Praises to God for giving me the willpower, thanks to Stefany for being such a great coach - and a special Shout Out to Dr. Wayne Scott Andersen!!)

TechCrunch Disrupt: Interactive Sheet Music for iPads

San Francisco’s annual technology conference TechCrunch Disrupt recently ended and one of the coolest companies I read about in attendance was Tonara, who makes  sheet music available for iPads.  As musicians played on stage, an interactive bar moved along to show their exact place in the sheet music – AND - the pages turned automatically.  Very cool!  According to the NY Times Blog, “Musicians brought on stage showed how the technology coped with multiple people playing different instruments simultaneously. Banging in the background did not seem to confuse the software.  The judges, however, dismissed sheet music as a small market and questioned whether the company could get rights to contemporary music. A show of hands by the musically inclined in the audience, however, showed that there was at least some potential market.”