Mobile Imagineering
May 30, 2007Nothing you do for today is likely to survive progress. To make it survive, you need to think ahead, into the future, imagine the way things could/will be done then.
Then develop solutions for that today.
Why do I bring this up?
Many “mobility products” today tend to address present day needs. We tend to take the desktop paradigm, and build products around it. We take present-day situations, and then try to invent a better mousetrap.
From my perspective, that is wrong. The desktop is a paradigm beaten to death, and if you look closely, it has never attained the kind of traction that …
Linux Compatible Equipment
March 20, 2006The most common question I see on mailing lists is”I bought XYZ recently, and now I can’t get it working under Linux. Can anyone help me?”
Given the fact that Linux is only a second priority for most vendors when it comes to driver support (especially for consumer items), wouldn’t it have made sense to check whether the item you are about to purchase is supported under Linux before you spend your money?
I have used digital cameras, scanners, PDAs, printers, network cards, modems and what not for years. I use brandname stuff, cheapo stuff, brand new stuff, age old …
Participating
I have been driving (and been driven by) a number of communities over the past decade.And one thing that continues to amaze me is the effort it takes to get people to participate in any meaningful fashion.
When I ran my BBS, I was constantly trying to make people stop downloading files, and getting them to start messaging in the forums.
Today, with the Internet becoming the world’s biggest BBS, and with countless mailing lists, web forums and other modes of mass communication, I find that just about everyone likes to stay in “lurk” mode - i.e. read-only.
Then, when a community dies …
IT Slowdown in India
This is an old article that I wrote in May of 2001 - many months before 9/11. I was quite shocked when I re-read it recently, only to find that half a decade later, it is as relevant as it was when I first wrote it.
Since one of the reasons for this site is for it to be a single place where one can find all my old articles, I am moving it here. –ac
I have been quite vocal with my reservations about India’s “techno slavery” approach to IT business, and I definitely haven’t made any friends at …
COMversations Update
March 19, 2006It’s been a long time since anything happened here - but that is about to change.
First and foremost - a new interface - I decided to dump my old homebrew stuff and switch to WordPress. This will allow for comments, some additional stuff, and make my management job easier, so that I can concentrate on the writing.
A note about comment moderation: while this site allows (and encourages) comments, they are moderated, and comments will not appear until one of the site admins clears it. If you feel that this violates your personal rights, note that you don’t have any …
Mobile Connectivity
April 15, 2005Now if there is one thing that scares me, it is loss of connectivity for any period of time. Whether via my notebook or my PDA - if I am not connected, I feel lost.
I need not have worried.
Sitting in the train, I was able to stay online for almost the entire trip, without having to pay a single penny more than I normally would. In fact, even when I reached Calicut, and there were issues with the campus WiFi (I could connect in the corridor, but not in the room), I had connectivity whenever I needed it.
On the way …
The Corporate Eyeball Trap
January 17, 2005Bruce Perens spoke about some of the threats facing Linux. He specifically pointed at things like software patents, which he rightfully identified as a real danger to any form of innovation and growth in Linux.
However, it isn’t the only one. There is another one - sneakily creeping up on the Open Source world, ready to bite - something I call the “Corporate Eyeball Trap”.
Allow me to give you some background first.
The whole Linux and Open Source thing has been growing by leaps and bounds since the early 1990s. Pushed by people who cared about the software and its freedom, …
WiFi Q&A
July 1, 2004As wireless networking becomes more and more interesting to organisations, the questions naturally start flowing. Here’s a list of questions from IS managers of mid-size companies-and some answers.
We already have a wired network fully in place. Does it make sense to consider Wi-Fi?
Your should consider Wi-Fi if you have laptop users who need to carry their laptops into common areas, like conference rooms, where wireless is far more convenient than wired access; or if you have executives who travel across offices and want connectivity in another office. Even with just one or two laptop users, the low cost of Wi-Fi …
Dataquest to publish my articles
April 26, 2004DataQuest has acquired the rights to publish my articles, starting from the May 2004 issue (whether May 1st or May 15th I am not sure about), and you will able to read my articles in their printed issue twice a month.
As part of the agreement, I have agreed to “lag” my articles online by a month, which means that my articles that appear in DataQuest will appear only a month later on this site. This is a fair enough.
The other piece of good news is that all this gave me a major incentive to write even more, and there …
Why Bookshops will die
October 9, 2003My friend walked into this shop, looking for a particular book that he had read about. This bookshop (spread over multiple floors), is typical of its kind - rows and rows of shelves, stacks of books, generally classified into broad topics (Fiction, Science, Art, etc.). Customers wander into the relevant section, and search for their book, bring it to the counter, and pay for it.
He couldn’t immediately find it, so he asked the sales personnel to help him. They in turn asked him for the exact name of the book, the publisher’s name, etc. - all information that my friend …
older posts »