Summary of this week:

Online education continues to grow.
The economy is struggly? Several examples of an economic boom.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday - Friday - Saturday - Sunday

Monday January 5, 2009

I try to avoid the Apple rumors, but... Maybe an iMac with a 28" screen. That would be interesting. I would like to be able to connect extra monitors to my current iMac.

Online education continues to grow. Traditional colleges are engaging in this. That is a good idea for them as otherwise they would go the way of the newspapers.

Speaking of newspapers, here is yet another prediction of their imminent demise.

Now this may rescue journalism or be the final blow to kill it - data mining in the public interest.

Lenovo introduces its newest portable computers. One IdeaPad has a 16" screen (that is large), but is only 1" thick (that is thin). This is an interesting combination.

Here is another new Lenovo product - an all-in-one desktop computer. Quite stylish.

Michael Arrington lists the products he cannot live without in 2009. These are all software or web sites. Funny, how can he access any of these without a piece of hardware? Maybe just an oversight.

Freescale (formerly part of Motorola) will introduce a processor with the goal of sub-$200 really small portable computers. Keep the competition flowing.

WiTricity (wireless electricity) may be coming our way. This would be a great advancement in electronics. I am not sure if it will work across the spectrum of appliances.

Here is a great blog title from Jeff Atwood "Are you creating Micromanagement Zombies?" I feel that he is misusing the term "micromanagement." Micromanagement is a good management practice if used properly. It is when managers focus in as tight as a laser beam on the critical aspect of a product or project. What most of us disdain is better-termed "nit picking management." That is where a manager tries to pick nits (tiny eggs of some tiny animal that infests human hair) everywhere. Disastrous.

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Tuesday January 6, 2009

HP is introducing a new "ultraportable" computer (what does that mean other than you hold the computer in the palm of one hand?). The news is that it will use a processor from AMD.

In other HP news, HP is launching a set of new, lower-cost computers at CES.

In still other HP news, HP comes out with the Mini-2140. Yet another evolution of the really small portable computer. This one uses the Intel Atom processor.

This 13-year-old in Scotland has started his own online business. His overhead is low.

The economy is struggling? Online video watching went up 40% in one year.

The economy is struggling? Not video game console sales.

The economy is struggling? Piracy is killing the entertainment industry? 2008 was a record year for the U.S. film industry.

Motorola is selling a cell phone made from recycled plastic water bottles. Good for Motorola. Bad for those people making plastic water bottles and those people buying cases of plastic water bottles with water in them.

SanDisk's new thumb drives have backup software built in. Nice touch. Concentrate on how people use things, not just on things.

I find this funny. The Onion News Network video that digs at Apple.

I think there is something to this idea of local power generation. This "new" concept is as old as the wheel turned by a stream and the water pump turned by the wind. The small nuclear reactors? Why not?

Here is a look at the new book "Philanthrocapitalism." The concept is that the rich can turn this mess around worldwide. Of course they can as long as they stop trying to do it by getting elected and raising taxes. Just use the money you already have to do things directly.

I like Weinberg's disucssion on testing in his blog today. One point that he makes is to ask how much a software error costs the users when deciding how much effort to put into finding and fixing the error. I have used that concept for years. It just doesn't make sense to spend a lot of resources on something when the user merely reboots his computer once a year (cost = two minutes for one person).

Obama has nominated Leon Panetta to be the next Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He has no experience in intelligence. I don't know what to make of this. There must be a hidden message somewhere, because on the surface this is plain silly.

Here is a proposed tax on cows because they emit greenhouse gases. It would be funny, but these people are serious about this. The result will be higher food prices, notably milk. Hmmm, food is one thing that even poor people buy. Hmmmm.

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Wednesday January 7, 2009

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Thursday January 8, 2009

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Friday January 9, 2009

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Saturday January 10, 2009

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Sunday January 11, 2009

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