Some noise about Google moving in on the navigation market, and threatening companies like TomTom with downloadable apps that do the same thing.
I can see the advantage, once device to do it all - but there are downsides to having the maps just in time rather than always available, it would be a shame to see independent devices die. They can probably keep themselves differentiated enough to survive, just as cameras just about have even though every phone is also a camera now.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Blair for EU Presidency
Although Labour are trying to make this look like a good idea to have our own man in the post, I've got to say NO!
Blair would probably like the irony of having an unelected post higher than Brown's current post (also unelected!), but this just will not do. A man of great integrity and personal honesty, we would not be having the 1997 Blair, but the tarnished 2009 man.
That is a little unfair, but for what is a chairmans role can we just find someone a little less controversial and low key?
Blair would probably like the irony of having an unelected post higher than Brown's current post (also unelected!), but this just will not do. A man of great integrity and personal honesty, we would not be having the 1997 Blair, but the tarnished 2009 man.
That is a little unfair, but for what is a chairmans role can we just find someone a little less controversial and low key?
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Podfather
Almost missed this great documentray on BBC4 with the stupidest ever title.
A really well presented history of one of the Intel founders Robert Noyce who died shortly after retiring in 1991. He was a pioneer of integrated circuits and really a founder of much of what Silicon Valley lives off today. In some ways in the right place at the right time, studying just as the transistor revolution was about to occur - he was a driven man, breaking away from a research group that could not see the point of the integrated circuit.
Working for Fairchild and then founding Intel, he took the fledgling company through some difficult times in the 60s and 70s. Classic lack of investment by the US saw Intel dropping out of memory production but staying the course with micro processors.
A really great history, I'd never heard of him like so many other people - but the industry owes him a huge debt.
A really well presented history of one of the Intel founders Robert Noyce who died shortly after retiring in 1991. He was a pioneer of integrated circuits and really a founder of much of what Silicon Valley lives off today. In some ways in the right place at the right time, studying just as the transistor revolution was about to occur - he was a driven man, breaking away from a research group that could not see the point of the integrated circuit.
Working for Fairchild and then founding Intel, he took the fledgling company through some difficult times in the 60s and 70s. Classic lack of investment by the US saw Intel dropping out of memory production but staying the course with micro processors.
A really great history, I'd never heard of him like so many other people - but the industry owes him a huge debt.
PM Podcast 23 October
Ok I listened to the PM's podcast:
(2) is shutting that stable door firmly after the horse went about 4 years ago, and it could be counter productive to those with huge mortgages who might feel they deserve a softer landing when they come to remortgage.
(3) I'd like to see him try!
(4) No hope in hell.
Not a bad listen, almost sounded grave and Churchillian.
- We're still in recession on this quarters figures
- Tightening up on lending practices (no unaffordable mortgages, no credit card cheques, no unrequested raises in credit card limits)
- Bank bonus action
- Limit protectionism to help recovery
(2) is shutting that stable door firmly after the horse went about 4 years ago, and it could be counter productive to those with huge mortgages who might feel they deserve a softer landing when they come to remortgage.
(3) I'd like to see him try!
(4) No hope in hell.
Not a bad listen, almost sounded grave and Churchillian.
World's Least Listened to Podcast
A new contender for this award, I did not know Downing Street had a podcast:
http://www.number10.gov.uk/
Yes it's Gordon! Still 10/10 for use of technology, and I am going to give it a try.
One interesting point is what about the archive of "old shows", no politician likes to be reminded of saying something that did not then occur. In this case I think Brown is just starting out, the only link I could find was to Tony Blair's dabbling in the medium!
http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page12045
June 2007, we were a different country then...
http://www.number10.gov.uk/
Yes it's Gordon! Still 10/10 for use of technology, and I am going to give it a try.
One interesting point is what about the archive of "old shows", no politician likes to be reminded of saying something that did not then occur. In this case I think Brown is just starting out, the only link I could find was to Tony Blair's dabbling in the medium!
http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page12045
June 2007, we were a different country then...
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Film: Rocky IV directed by Sylvester Stallone
Well a friend challenged me to watch this ridiculous film that has a cold war twist that is so overdone it was hard to take seriously in any way shape of form. Having seen it when he was much younger he always remembered what a good film it was, until he viewed again outside of the 80s and now as an adult.
It is forces of good versus evil stuff, but so unsubtle. Also the fight scenes are like with any Rocky, he manages to take more punishment in an entire fight that any other boxer would see in an entire career.
Reading about it on IMDB, Stallone's authenticity did improve for me where some of the scenes were real boxing and he was almost fatally injured in one of the shoots. Still not the sort of film you want to die making.
A lowly 3/10 now we are outside of the 1980s.
It is forces of good versus evil stuff, but so unsubtle. Also the fight scenes are like with any Rocky, he manages to take more punishment in an entire fight that any other boxer would see in an entire career.
Reading about it on IMDB, Stallone's authenticity did improve for me where some of the scenes were real boxing and he was almost fatally injured in one of the shoots. Still not the sort of film you want to die making.
A lowly 3/10 now we are outside of the 1980s.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Watch England Play Ukraine
Live on the internet, 4.99 if you order ahead, 11.99 on the night and only 1 million subscribers can watch.
If IPTV is ever to succeed you definitely cannot limit the number of people that can view your event! I understand the reasons for doing it, but as a business model it is kind of having to price your customers out of the market to scale the demand.
Still I expect it will be a flop of an event, it will be interesting to know how many actually watched the game in this form...
If IPTV is ever to succeed you definitely cannot limit the number of people that can view your event! I understand the reasons for doing it, but as a business model it is kind of having to price your customers out of the market to scale the demand.
Still I expect it will be a flop of an event, it will be interesting to know how many actually watched the game in this form...
Obama Nobel Prize
Much as I think he is a potential great president this is definitely a little too soon! Still it shows the power of a good speech, and also the benefit of following a lightweight Bush presidency that did much to harm America's image overseas.
I also think he know this is the case, but it would be hard to turn it down. I hope this is the motivation to pursue some of the things he has spoken of in terms of making the world a more peaceful place.
I also think he know this is the case, but it would be hard to turn it down. I hope this is the motivation to pursue some of the things he has spoken of in terms of making the world a more peaceful place.
Mirco Men
Rather sadly I'd been looking forward to this look back at the micro computer boom of the 1980s. I did not think I would learn much however but I was wrong.
A very interesting history of the two companies Acorn and Sinclair. Sinclair is portrayed perhaps a little unfairly as a driven inventor whose ultimate aim is to produce an electric vehicle. Something we know he all did with bad results. I did not know the link between Curry and Sinclair and the early days of Sinclair Radionics being bailed out by the national enterprise board.
Still a classic British story of pioneering but failing to take share in the final market, i.e. the PC dominated world of today.
A very interesting history of the two companies Acorn and Sinclair. Sinclair is portrayed perhaps a little unfairly as a driven inventor whose ultimate aim is to produce an electric vehicle. Something we know he all did with bad results. I did not know the link between Curry and Sinclair and the early days of Sinclair Radionics being bailed out by the national enterprise board.
Still a classic British story of pioneering but failing to take share in the final market, i.e. the PC dominated world of today.
Friday, October 2, 2009
BAE Serious Fraud Office
This topic is back on the agenda. From what I have read it is about some shady deals in the companies past. Back in 2006 it was agreed not to pursue the inquiry because of national interests.
The company probably has done a lot of clean up their act - and also the practices of years ago simply do not work now. Of course I can never forgive them for Windows on warships - but that is more a technical gripe.
They do keep engineering jobs going in this country and we do pay a lot of our taxes through defence spending to this company. The biggest scandal in recent years has to be the cost overruns on some projects (submarines, Type 45, aircraft carriers) and not so much corrupt business deals.
It will interesting to see how this progresses.
The company probably has done a lot of clean up their act - and also the practices of years ago simply do not work now. Of course I can never forgive them for Windows on warships - but that is more a technical gripe.
They do keep engineering jobs going in this country and we do pay a lot of our taxes through defence spending to this company. The biggest scandal in recent years has to be the cost overruns on some projects (submarines, Type 45, aircraft carriers) and not so much corrupt business deals.
It will interesting to see how this progresses.
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