simon-may.com

The coolest one box Media Center ever

simonster — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:30:00 +0000

Great design is something I’m into, I love things looking beautiful and I’m a believer in the need for form to follow (actually to lead) function. Having come across this it’s something I just had to share.

The image on the left is a one box media center (notice the small m & c) that incorporates everything you need (one obvious exception) to enjoy your entertainment experience. The one box incorporates the speaker, the TV, the media player – BluRay and all the wires and fuss. That’s superb design.

Oh yeah and it turns into the picture below, and it can even store your CDs and DVDs in original format.

The only thing that would make this better is if it actually held a Media Center.

It’s from a collection by Boxetti that includes beds, offices and kitchens all collapsible to boxes. Perfect if your a serious minimalist or live in a very small house or even a container.

The price tag is only Euro 5520 or about $7550 or £4989

So, has anyone developed something similar themselves?

[via Doornob]

Hi pigeons, here’s the cat…

simonster — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:12:52 +0000

Ok I was watching Steve B speech at Washington U yesterday and heard this…it shocked me a little and I tweeted it…people picked it up and found it interesting so here it is, it’s take from Microsoft’s transcript of the event:

In the case of the TV we've got both strategies. We actually have a TV implementation in some senses built into Windows. It works really well for small screen TVs that you might call a PC, but for that big screen device here's a piece of hardware that we build, there's no diversity. You get exactly the Xboxes that we build for you. We may have more form factors in the future that are designed for various price points and options, but we think it's going to important.

Now to say something about this. It doesn’t matter folks. He was addressing a question about strategy and placing things in boxes that most people understand and he’d just show off SkyTV on the Xbox. Steve was demonstrating how far ahead of the pack they are with their TV strategy and with Media Center being a poster boy (yes the above quote does that) it’s not going anywhere any time soon. It might change a bit, I dunno.

What I do know is that we have the best TV experience anywhere and I love Media Center.

(controversially I also think Steve B is doing a great job leading Microsoft’s leaders – this is the best Microsoft yet)

Windows Phone 7 Series Applications

simonster — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:03:00 +0000

Microsoft must hate developers…that’s what I’m seeing lots of today. The crux of the issue being that it’s been confirmed that Windows Mobile x (we’ll come to that) applications don’t run on Windows Phone 7 Series devices. Well I have two words for that “Thank you Microsoft” followed by “thank you, thank you ,thank you,thank you, thank you !”

This folks is a good thing, for everyone, even developers and here’s why:

Developing for mobile is about developing for the use experience

If you think you’re developing something for another reason (other than money and for that see below) then you need your eyes tested! The user experience for Windows Phone 7 is wildly different from Windows Mobile and different from other platforms. No one is gonna want that cruddy app that you need a stylus for, no one wants to look at a UI developed in the 90’s that’s evolved like a snail.

From experience, developing an application for mobile is about getting the user experience right, everything else is limited by what you can do with your finger and a small screen. Of course it’s not at all limited because there’s such a rich sensor environment going on, but that requires some innovation and that requires stepping back and looking at the big picture. In Windows Mobile there was a need to build things to a minimum spec and that spec was basically set back in the 90’s.

We have a new spec, a new UI and a new experience and

Customers want a congruent experience

Doesn’t it feel nice when stuff just works together? We love it when stuff looks like Media Center when we launch it from there, when it behaves in the same, predictable way. We get cool stuff that pushes us forward like Media Browser but at it’s core it’s still “on message” with the user experience of Media Center. It’s the same with iPhone, buttons look similar between apps and everything looks nice. Hey it’s the same with books, they look slightly different – that’s down the editor and designer and writer – but they have the same basic way of working.

Windows Mobile lost it. Sense UI on a HD2 is lovely, really cool, until you drop back to Windows Mobile. Then it feels disjointed. This cannot be allowed with Windows Phone 7 Series or it’s bye bye.

Microsoft wants tons of developers

And it’s not doing anything to push them away, other than say, “go do it better” and that’s what customers want. Microsoft has the best developer community on the planet! They offer a true, multi-dimensional platform that covers everything you need using a set of core principles that transcends the tools, the language and by extension most barriers to entry into the platform.

Tons of developers = tons of ideas = tons of innovation = cool stuff!

Customers and Microsoft want innovation

I left Windows Mobile because the developers did – at least the ones that matter did. All the cool stuff went to iPhone…it’s now beginning to go to Android. They were new platforms. The cool dev’s will be back because those other areas now have millions of apps and

Developers want to make money

Or they want fame, they want kudos, recognition something – I wanted eyeballs. By operating in saturated markets (iPhone, Android soon) new developers don’t really get a look in…you need to start with a business plan and then an idea to make money there now. Don’t get me wrong, people do still make it, but it’s hard. For a while Windows Phone 7 Series apps will be easy pickings.

Yes that will deliver some dross – wobbly boobies apps probably – but hey at least it’s using the accelerometer and who’s to say that the student who develops it won’t take it into an app at that makes your driving safer (idea there if someone wants to run with it). The real question though is one that’s been bugging me for a while.

Who do you trust?

There have been cases of phishing apps in the Android market place. Their open model isn’t working there. Apple actually have this right, and it annoys developers massively. They test everything, on an Apple device you can be 90% sure that the app will work and won’t do something naughty like steal your info. On Windows Mobile right now you can’t.

I could, I won’t and I’ve not, right now write an application that would steal your stuff. Do I need to access every nook and cranny on your phone to do it? No.

Windows Phone 7 Series is all about the cloud, like Steve B said yesterday. As a result your identity is in the cloud, all I need is to write an application that asks for your Facebook username and password, or your Twitter username and password, or something and then sends it back to me. Simples. On Windows Mobile anyone could just get it and install the CAB file. They’d have to trust where they got it from, and frankly some are good and some are bad sources.

Trust is absent, it needs to come back.

Epilogue

So do you still think not being able to use TwitterMyFlicker on your Windows Phone 7 Series phone is a bad thing? I don’t. Giving developers a fresh start, a new competitive field where they can innovate and be damned is critical here. Giving customers the best experience is critical to the developer experience and I’m gonna embrace this new challenge…when I find the time.

Slow posting effort

Simon — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 13:13:11 +0000

My posting has slowed recently as life has sped up. I get married April 2 and go on honeymoon from April 5, getting there is tough as house renovations need to meet that deadline too so that our Aussie guests have a place to sleep. The day job is kicking off with 2 major Six Sigma improvement projects at the same time and I’ve got new personal time work projects at the inception phase too.

Big posts will be slow for a while, smaller ones and items should keep up, as will Twitter.

Other stuff you might like here

HP EliteBook 2740p

Simon — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:45:58 +0000

Uncrate have short piece on the very nice looking HP EliteBook 2740p notebook and tablet. I’ve love my TX2 for quite some time, and this looks like it’s from the same stable.

Frankly I want to try one now….

Other stuff you might like here

Sky Player deal

simonster — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 11:41:21 +0000

Just spotted this and it’s worth sharing. UK Money saving site Quidco (get an account and you’ll make loads of money – I do) have got a deal on SkyPlayer at the moment. You can get 3 months for the price of 2 and £20 cash back through the site, the total saving is about £55 give or take and it’s a nice way to try the service (it will cost you about £38.50 a month I think) and it works on your 360 and Media Center (although the content differs).

Apple Wireless Keyboard with Windows 7

Simon — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:23:02 +0000

James has a superb step by step on how to make one of the best looking keyboards work with Windows 7. I’m jealous he owns one.

How to pair an Apple Wireless Keyboard with Windows 7

Other stuff you might like here

Logitech, this is wrong…

Simon — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 09:54:09 +0000

Firstly let me say, I’m usually a giant fan Logitech’s products they have superb build quality and excellent performance, I love my Harmony Remote and Squeezebox and the webcams are really well designed. Second I never really post negative opinions but if I’m not writing about it there’s probably a reason.

This post is about something that goes against both of the above.

On the left is a survey screen that appeared on my PC today, I’ve just installed some Logitech software for video conferencing – which I won’t be talking about. On the left is a very deceptive survey screen; I’ve highlighted why.

You see that red outline, it’s around a button that’s “active” i.e. you can click it but Logitech have taken the step of making the text gray to convince you to click “Take Survey”. This is underhand it’s bad UI design and, Mr Glenn Rodgers, Director Customer Experience, I feel ashamed FOR YOU that you’re name is on this.

This is a bad customer experience. It’s poor, unprincipled UI design designed to deceive the user, no designed to deceive your customer into giving you information.

Other stuff you might like here

How 3D Works

simonster — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 11:47:00 +0000

One of my favourite blogs is DataViz, they’re experts in Infoporn. This is a superb rendering of how the various forms of 3D work; in case you need to know.

[updated so that you can read the darn thing!]

13 days to move from Windows 7 RC

simonster — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 10:46:00 +0000

I started getting these, as expected, a couple of days ago. It’s a guess but lots of others are receiving them now too so I thought I’d take the opportunity to remind people about what’s going to happen:

http://simon-may.com/windows-7/windows-7-rc-has-15-days-left/

I’ve already got my RTM key ready to go, but don’t have time for a rebuild before the end of the month so you can follow here to see what happens….

-- Simon May