Seven years ago this week I published my first online commentary piece. The topic was the predicted death of the Linux desktop brought on by the demise of Eazel, the original developer of GNOME’s Nautilus file manager. A lot has happened since that time, but not precisely how I would have predicted it would. Let’s review.
In the coming months, Serenity Systems and Mensys will be offering the latest release of eComStation, 2.0. This is the new name and face on the venerable OS/2. It's all too easy to find websites discussing the history of OS/2, articles that walk through the installation process, and lists of drivers, software, and so forth. Despite the ardent love for OS/2 one finds in the user groups, it remains a fairly small niche operating system. This has little to do with the technical merits or demerits of OS/2.
Comparisons between iPhone and the Wii have already been fairly abundant simply because the two have arguably garnered the top spots in “electronic gadget mindshare” for at least a year each. But looking at the demos today, I think the iPhone could be on its way to being the Wii of portable devices – literally.
The MacBook Air is, at first glance – or really any glance – one of the most impressive looking little laptops ever to appear. Anyone who hauls a laptop around a lot would be hard pressed not to be excited about the prospect of a good, lightweight laptop with a full sized keyboard. For me, the easy to carry PowerBook 12” has long served as my trusty mobile companion and I was excited about the idea of a lighter, newer model to follow in its path. Having seen the MacBook Air, it seems in many ways to be the true successor to my PowerBook – but if I were shopping today, a MacBook Pro would get my money.
It’s that time of year again. If you are at all interested in the trends of technology in the next year, January is the time to learn what is coming up. And not at the CES mind you – these years, the future shows up at MacWorld. Last year it was the iPhone, which managed to shake an industry that had never faced Apple before and start a major shift in the way cell phone development is done. What will this year bring? Tim puts his money on more devices coming out of the Apple-AT&T partnership, for one thing.
Few would deny that Apple's ill-fated Newton PDA was ahead of its time. While it would take a few more years and a few smart decisions by the company then known as Palm Computing to make a PDA that worked really well (the first Pilot), Apple was clearly on to something. Though Steve Jobs assassinated the device nearly a decade ago, it seems perhaps he has — in not so many words — started to bring it back to life.
Dear Steve, so you've reached the big one million mark. There were a lot of doubters, but I knew you could do it all along. The iPhone exemplifies Apple's “think different” attitude, and that has helped it to fill a need that was really being ignored. This is Apple's chance to introduce many people to its philosophy of creativity and ease-of-use. But that leads us to an obvious question: why on earth are you making it so hard to do something as typical (and potentially creative) as creating custom ring tones — not to even mention adding applications?
I have in my possession one of the most coveted items of the year, and certainly the most talked about of this day. Yes, that would be an iPhone. In Apple’s usual style of quiet elegance, the box sits there revealing little (as if there was much that has not already been revealed through months of slow leaks of rumors). It is nearly begging me to open it, much like its call beckoned me into the AT&T Mobility store earlier this evening despite my better judgment. I have it, but do I open it?
By now, most people have heard about XM and Sirius's so-called “merger of equals” that would, if successful, eliminate competition in the satellite radio industry. Although satellite radio remains enough of a non-essential item that the post-merger company will still have to “compete” for subscribers, it is hard to imagine that this will be good for consumers. Even a cursory analysis of the good and bad will show that it is in the consumer’s interest for the FCC to stick to its guns and prohibit the merger.
Steve Jobs is known for being able to pull a rabbit out of his hat fairly regularly – far more regularly, anyway, than almost any other CEO. Like most Mac users, I find myself anxiously awaiting the likely announcement of the Apple phone tomorrow. Given the hype though, I wonder if Apple can actually win with this upcoming keynote.