Did Apple Embrace the Cloud with iCloud, or Not?

Apple’s iCloud announcement can be read two different ways, it seems. Some say Apple's approach is more closed than open, more focused on device-based apps than cloud apps and actually is a private cloud, or a re-defined cloud. See iCloud and Apple’s truth.

Others disagree. "With iCloud, Apple is transforming the cloud from an almost tangible place that you visit to find your stuff, to a place that only exists in the background. It’s never seen. You never interact with it, your apps do — and you never realize it." See http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/08/apple-icloud-google-cloud/.

Apple is going after consumers who have absolutely no idea what the cloud is, and don’t care. Apple is saying they shouldn’t care.

Google seems to be aiming more for users who understand current computing paradigms and want to transition that knowledge to the future of computing, the cloud. Power users, if you will.

While the fundamentals are the same, Apple’s approach to the concept of the cloud is the opposite of their competitors. Apple’s belief is clearly that users will not and should not care how the cloud actually works.

Did Nokia Shoot Itself?

One false step and you’re dead. Or worse: You’re the walking dead. This is what awaits CEOs who mismanage a product transition and allow the existing revenue stream to run dry before the promising new product shows up.

The "Osborne Effect" is how some describe the problem. Osborne Computer Corporation in 1981 introduced a machine that was, in effect, the first commercially available portable computer, the Osborne 1. In 1983, the company announced two superior models in the works, the Executive and the Vixen.

Customers took his advice. They stopped buying the current model and waited…and waited… In 1985, the company ran out of cash and went bankrupt. Some would say Nokia is making the same mistake.

Transitions: The Nokia Way vs. The Microsoft Way | Monday Note

Facebook Dominates Social Sharing

ShareThis recently analyzed the sharing and clicking habits of over 300 million people per month who share links using a ShareThis button on more than a million websites, revealed that sharing now generates approximately 10 percent of all Internet traffic and 31 percent of referral traffic to sites from search and social.

Facebook comes out on top, accounting for 38 percent of all sharing referral traffic. This is compared to 17 percent of sharing referral traffic each for Twitter and email.

Facebook Dominates Social Sharing With 38% of Shares on the Web

Motorola Introduces "Televation" to Stream TV Around House

Motorola Mobility announced "Motorola Televation," a broadband device that works with a Wi-Fi router to allow consumers to watch live TV on a connected IP device anywhere around the home, whether they are preparing food in the kitchen or relaxing in the backyard.

According to Motorola’s 2010 Media Engagement Barometer research, Americans watch an average of 21 hours of video content a week and about 86 percent pay for TV service. Furthermore, in May 2011, Motorola conducted focus groups with consumers in the New York and Los Angeles metro markets. In many cases, consumers liked the idea of watching live TV somewhere other than a traditional family room and felt it would allow them to spend more time with loved ones if they had the ability to watch different programs in the same room.

Motorola Mobility Introduces Live Streaming Device For All the Other Screens in the Home

HP Working On Cloud Service For TouchPad

HP is reportedly working on an iCloud-like service for its new TouchPad tablet that will allow users to stream and download movies and music. Given that media consumption is a popular activity on tablets, if a brand wants to sell tablets, an in-house content storage, rental or purchase service is an obvious asset.

The service may work a lot like Sony's Qriocity, the service that allows users an all-you-can eat package of music and movies.

HP Working On Cloud Service For TouchPad

Google Chromebook Launch June 15

With so much attention focused on tablets, the new Google Chromebook is not likely to get as much attention from technology-forward observers, in part because of the "post-PC" thinking that now dominates much of the computing industry.



But tablets aren't always, maybe rarely, a fully functional substitute for a PC. Many tablets are used only at home or in offices where there is Wi-Fi connectivity, and primarily for light text entry such as email, and mostly for other forms of content consumption.



"Heavy lifting" in terms of content creation still occurs on PCs. But tablets have some advantages that Chromebook will also feature, for users who have "heavy lifting" chores and must rely on a PC. Chromebooks will boot up in eigher seconds, Google says.



If you talk to iPad users, one of the advantages quickly noted is that such devices boot up fast. The other issue is that Chromebooks are optimized for web use, cloud apps and storage, and will be most useful for people who do content creation, but "live on the web."



Chromebooks also will update automatically, when powered up and connected to Wi-Fi or 3G mobile networks.



read more here

Can Mobile Phones Interfere with Aircraft Safety?

A report by the International Air Transport Association, a trade group representing more 230 passenger and cargo airlines worldwide, documents 75 separate incidents of possible electronic interference that airline pilots and other crew members believed were linked to mobile phones and other electronic devices. The report covers the years 2003 to 2009 and is based on survey responses from 125 airlines that account for a quarter of the world's air traffic.

Twenty-six of the incidents in the report affected the flight controls, including the autopilot, autothrust and landing gear. Seventeen affected navigation systems, while 15 affected communication systems. Thirteen of the incidents produced electronic warnings, including “engine indications.” The type of personal device most often suspected in the incidents were cell phones, linked to four out of ten.

Can Mobile Phones Interfere with Aircraft Safety?