Book launch: Futuretainment by Mike Walsh, Sydney, 1 December 2009

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Book launch: Futuretainment by Mike Walsh, Sydney, 1 December 2009

2 December 2009

Last night Mike Walsh launched his new book Futuretainment – which looks at the future of media and marketing – at the Hotel CBD in Sydney. He spoke with technology journalist Brad Howarth, and offered a few of his insights into advertising and marketing, particularly in Asia, together with a couple of trend predictions for 2010.

People born after 1994 are digital “naturals”. They have never lived in a world without web browsers.
“Naturals” have never known a time when they cannot access decent content somewhere online.
Content producers and creators (copy-righters) such as musicians are effectively marketers.
Musicians, for example, encourage “content theft”… they don\’t make revenue from recorded music, that comes from sales of merchandise, live performances, etc.
Social networks drive TV programming. People increasingly watch what is forwarded to them (videos, links to videos).
Viewers are deciding what they will watch, not the TV networks.
How will content producers make money? Become a celebrity… cue Ashton Kutcher and his declaration to become “the next new-media mogul“.
Japan excels at producing content for mobile phones.
The Chinese know how to make money with social networks. QQ, a Chinese variation of Facebook, made US$1 billion last year.
In Korea people watch more TV shows on mobile phones than a television.
Digital consumers in Asia are generally very tech savvy, have access to unlimited bandwidth, and have little regard for copyright.
Ninety per cent of Chinese internet users have broadband, which is considerably faster than that available in Australia.
Augmented reality will put consumers in control by way of real time product and service reviews and critiques.

Originally published Wednesday 2 December 2009, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.

Babies’ names are not carried far and wide by the internet

3 July 2009

Interesting premise, the rise of the internet, and even globalisation, has not quite created the global village that many people predicted it would.

At least this is the opinion of two researchers at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, after studying names given to babies since 1995. They found naming trends tended to remain local rather global, despite the rise of email and the ability to spread ideas, and share information, quickly online.

The two researchers’ study of the spread of new names was prompted by their discovery that the relationship between the number of private e-mails sent in America and the distance between sender and recipient falls off far more steeply than they expected. People are overwhelmingly e-mailing others in the same city, rather than those far away.

Originally published Friday 3 July 2009.

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legacy, technology, trends

Rebekah Horne of MySpace Australia, talks to Mike Walsh at Fourth Estate Domain

17 June 2009

Rebekah Horne is the Australian head of MySpace, and Vice President of Fox Interactive Media. She also oversees the IGN, Rotten Tomatoes, and Ask Men websites.

Last night she spoke to Mike Walsh as part of the Fourth Estate Domain On the Couch interview series, in Sydney. Here’s some of what we heard.

Yes, Horne has a MySpace profile, and refers to social networking rival, Facebook, as “the other site”, or “F Book”…
78 per cent of the MySpace audience in Australia is 18 or over.
MySpace memberships grew six per cent in March compared with 3.6 per cent growth for Facebook.
There are some 40,000 Australian bands on MySpace, both signed and unsigned acts.
MySpace widget, or application, developers have been guaranteed recompense for their work, being the revenue generated from ads associated with their widget.
Australia is a great market for creative content producers, but producing a video series for Web TV, such as quarterlife, is still expensive, and it can cost in the order of $200,000 to produce a series of three to five minute “webisodes”.
The recently launched MySpace TV is interested in hearing from creative content producers who have ideas.
MySpace Mobile is “going gangbusters” receiving two million page impressions out of a total of one billion impressions for mobile.
PlayStation Portable is the most popular device used to access MySpace Mobile.

Originally published Wednesday 17 June 2009, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.

So, this is why there are so many spammers

7 October 2008

While email systems make a breeze of distributing spam messages en masse, the medium has another not so apparent benefit, it makes being deceptive or untruthful far easier. Something, seemingly, not so simple to accomplish in face-to-face, or even in handwritten, communications.

Experts have long known that it is easier to lie in writing than in real life, where deception is made more difficult by physical prompts such as eye contact. But psychological tests conducted by business professors at Rutgers, Lehigh and DePaul universities in the US found people are significantly more likely to lie in emails than in handwritten documents.

I mean, could you look someone in the eye and tell them “your pills could augment their extension”, for example? No: better you send them an email.

Originally published Tuesday 7 October 2008, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.

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legacy, psychology, technology

Presenting Injader: content management for everyone

29 September 2008

Sydney IT manager and software developer Ben Barden is the creator of Injader, an open source content management system (CMS) for websites and blogs, and an Australian made alternative for the likes of WordPress or Movable Type.

Update: Injader is no longer available.

Originally published Monday 29 September 2008.

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blogs, design, legacy, technology

A review of the Sony Ericsson C902 Cyber-shot phone

27 September 2008

The crew at Sony Ericsson recently gave me one of their newest mobile phones, the C902 Cyber-shot to call my own for a couple of months.

Given my love of taking photos, I’ve been waiting for a chance to try out the phone’s five mega-pixel camera up at the nearby UNSW campus (where I have a stack of shots from my digital camera to base comparisons on), but to date Sydney’s topsy-turvy weather has thwarted me.

August is statistically Sydney’s driest month, but a clear sunny day, ideal for the outdoor shots I want, continues to elude me whenever I plan to be on the uni campus. Never mind, maybe next week.

Back to the C902. Mobile phones have continued to evolve far beyond being a simple telephone, and the C902 is the latest in this line of development. I have more than the means to simply phone or text home to say I’m running late, sitting comfortably and unobtrusively, in my shirt pocket.

I can send and receive email. Surf the net (reminding me that I need to create a dedicated mobile device stylesheet for disassociated), participate in conference calls, organise my calendar and tasks (I’ve long since dispensed with a paper diary), film and view video clips, listen to the radio or MP3s, and of course take photos.

It’s certainly a stylish piece of equipment, and the black finish complete with the silver-grey trim, makes for a uber-appealing tool that permits me to take off into the wide blue yonder for days at a time without having to worry about being out of the loop.

Anyway a few observations to date:

Battery life

So far I have no qualms with the C902 battery. Mobile phone battery life is truly a case of “your mileage may vary” with any phone though. Some weeks my usage has been higher than others, and I’ve needed to recharge the battery after three days.

Another week passed before a recharge was required, with only a few short calls, but the phone was on stand-by the whole time.

Reception

I’ve found reception to be very clear, and even if I’m walking alongside a busy road, or in an area where reception is not so strong, I can still hear a caller’s voice quite clearly.

Mind you I haven’t used the phone away from inner Sydney yet, so can’t comment on reception in rural, or more remote, areas.

Keypad

The keypad is rather compact, and sometimes I press the wrong key. My current phone is a Motorola MOTOKRZR K1 and I find its keypad easier to use. I do have oversize hands though so this may not be a problem for everyone.

I also appreciate that that “clam shell” type phones do have a little more handset real estate, or room, to allow for slightly wider keypad buttons, as opposed to “candy bar” type phones such as the C902.

Text messaging

Despite my fat fingers text messaging with the C902 is simple and straightforward. I especially like what I call the “multi-choice predictive text function”. The C902 will offer several suggestions as to which word, or part of, you wish to use, as you are typing. This took some getting used to, but now I am finding it quite useful.

Screen Icons

I was a little confused by some of the icons appearing on the phone’s screen display, particularly a U-shaped like red arrow. Was it some sort of warning?

A browse of the phone’s manual failed to turn up a legend, or explanation, of screen icons. I have since deduced however that the icon is a “withheld”, or missed call, indicator.

Another initial puzzle was an “H” icon ¹ which was present on some occasions but not others. I noticed it would vanish from the screen if I stepped into a lift, or was in an underground car park, so I assume it is a “strong signal” indicator.

Security

One little gripe I have is with phone security, or lack of.

While the C902 does feature a keypad lock, this really only guards against accidentally dialling a number while the phone is in your pocket or bag. In comparison the MOTOKRZR K1 has a PIN activated phone lock, meaning I can’t do anything with the phone until I tap in a PIN code.

It’s an extra layer of security I appreciate. If the C902 does have such a phone lock, its activation eludes me.

Computer synchronisation

I was quickly and easily able to synchronise the phone to my laptop by way of the C902’s “PC Suite” software, which is included on the DVD that comes with the phone.

I can transfer photos and videos from the phone to my local drive, manage my contacts/phone book, appointments, and task lists, and best of all, send SMS text messages via the computer keyboard, something I appreciate no matter how big a phone’s keypad is.

Summary to date

Aside from the points I make about understanding screen icons and security, I am enjoying using this phone.

A “quick reference” page in the operating manual addressing points such as screen icons and phone security would be useful, as I consider these primary to the phone’s use, as opposed to, say, the camera, which strikes me as being a secondary function, and something I would expect to have to read more about before using.

Where are all the girls in IT?

8 August 2008

IT consultancy Thoughtworks Australia has launched a new initiative aimed at encouraging more girls and young women to pursue careers in technology, Girls in IT (website no longer online).

The big questions are, why are girls not interested in studying technology subjects at school, and, what can be done to motivate them to do so?

Women account for less than 15% of the people working in technology in Australia, and 52% of the total population. Girls are just not choosing to study technology-related subjects. Findings from a study conducted by the NSW Department of Women reveal that 35% of Year 8 girls choose ICT subjects compared to only 17% of girls in Year 10, a 50% decline in take up.

Girls in IT also aims to “influence the influencers” through getting parents, teachers, and careers advisers, excited about IT careers.

Originally published Friday 8 August 2008. Updated Sunday 8 May 2022.

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education, legacy, technology

Arthur C Clarke’s Newspad RSS news aggregator

30 May 2008

Author and futurist Arthur C Clarke is credited with predicting the emergence of a number of technologies, including a tablet-like device called a “Newspad”, which could serve the latest news stories from electronic versions of newspapers.

So far more has been said about comparing the Newspad to PDAs or Tablet PCs, but the Newpad also worked in a very similar way to today’s news aggregators, or RSS feed readers.

In the novelised version of 2001: A Space Odyssey, (chapter title “Moon Shuttle”, pg 66-67) Dr Heywood Floyd, chairman of the US National Council of Astronautics, spends time reading on his Newspad, while traveling to the Moon.

Floyd sometimes wondered if the Newspad, and the fantastic technology behind it, was the last word in man’s quest for perfect communications. Here he was, far out in space, speeding away from Earth at thousands of miles an hour, yet in a few milliseconds he could see the headlines of any newspaper he pleased. (That very word “newspaper,” of course, was an anachronistic hangover into the age of electronics.) The text was updated automatically on every hour; even if one read only the English versions, one could spend an entire lifetime doing nothing but absorbing the ever-changing flow of information from the news satellites.

Not only did Arthur C. Clarke predict PDAs and Tablet PCs, he also foresaw the emergence of news aggregators, and RSS technology.

Originally published Friday 30 May 2008.

Progress? Coming soon, the disassociated WordPress blog

13 May 2007

The wordpressing (my new favourite word) of disassociated is well under way. It’ll be a while before anything happens though, as I’m trying to convert four years of static HTML file blog entries into a format I can upload to a WordPress database.

It’s not all cut and paste work. There’s quite a bit of formatting still to do. Redundant CSS styles and HTML tags need to be removed (to say nothing of dead links, but later for those), and there’s still the risk it won’t work. It should though.

As part of the redesign I have created (and uploaded) photos to a new-ish Flickr page, so go check it out. More photos will be added as I go. Bye for now…

Originally published Sunday 13 May 2007.

Creed Chris O’Hanlon, on the couch, with Mike Walsh, Sydney, October 2003

8 October 2003

Dot-com flamboyance, and web design world domination, are terms synonymous with Australian entrepreneur Creed Chris O’Hanlon. Spike Networks, the web design company O’Hanlon co-founded in 1994, quickly expanded from its base in the Sydney suburb of Double Bay, into Asia, Japan, and the United States, thanks to the backing of numerous venture capitalists.

But Spike didn’t just do extravagant, and expensive, websites. At the height of the dot-com folly, Spike was even operating a radio station.

As with most things dot-com though, Spike came tumbling down in spectacular fashion, although O’Hanlon had left the company long beforehand. Workers (including someone I knew personally) lost jobs, investors were out of pocket by millions, while the rest of us were left wondering how so little could have come of so much hype.

Not helping matters were the stories that began emerging of the indulgent lifestyle led by O’Hanlon, during his time as boss. No expense was spared. Five star hotels, first class airline travel, and gourmet dining the world over, you name it. Then there was the extramarital affair with a Spike employee, which later resulted in allegations of sexual harassment.

So when an email from The Domain, a local media and technology professionals networking event arrived the other week, inviting me to see O’Hanlon speak, I knew I didn’t want to miss out. He would be talking to Australian futurist and speaker Mike Walsh, at the Hotel CBD, in downtown Sydney, as part of Domain’s On the Couch interview series.

Those expecting to see O’Hanlon pelted with projectiles however, would have been disappointed.

This despite Walsh pointing out O’Hanlon, in wearing a red shirt, had readied himself for any rotten tomatoes that might be thrown his way. In the end, the Spike co-founder only had to field a total of three audience questions, none of which related to dubious past activities, business or otherwise. Strategically, O’Hanlon headed off any acrimony, by admitting at the onset the “terrible” things he was accused of, were, “unfortunately true”.

Instead he offered an array of insights into online media and communications in general. He has been working as a consultant in Japan for a well known car manufacturer in recent times, and spoke of how mobile phones had changed the previously rigidly structured fashion in which the Japanese communicated with each other. O’Hanlon also spoke of the death of copyright, and the dearth of ideas when it comes to conceiving creative advertising campaigns for electronic media.

He also mentioned the upcoming publication of a book he is writing, which we were told would be titled The Zen of Failure. If nothing else, all of this shows that there are always opportunities to turn failure into, if not success, at least money. The right attitude is also useful, especially when trying to turn around a tide of negative perception. The gift of the gab, that is, the ability to sound intelligent, articulate, and well worded, is also somewhat useful.

Originally published Wednesday 8 October 2003, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.

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Showing all posts about technology

Battery life

Reception

Keypad

Text messaging

Screen Icons

Security

Computer synchronisation

Summary to date

Further reading and reviews