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February 26 Sun supports linux - another direct hit on Redhat business?Wow, I just read that Sun's going to support Linux installations on similar way as Oracle declared himself on Red Hat distributions...
I see that the pie is smaller and smaller for Redhat and maybe it's a good moment to start looking for new business fundamentals than support only.
Interesting, that Redhat doesn't recognize it as competitive.
source [Polish Computerworld (paper) issue 5/751] February 23 Security side of AppleI just checked Polish website of Computerworld. I found there an info about security patch for Mac OS 10.3.9. Coverage of 36 security holes include also leaks in graphical files processing.
It reminds me the beginning of previous year where MS published KB hotfixes for jpg proccessing. Funny.. so it's not only Microsoft who was vulnerable for this technique. Word 2007 for bloggersAnyway.. I just wanted to say that last two posts have been sent from Word 2007. See it yourself on below picture. Web 2.0 commentsI just read one interesting article in local (Polish) Computerworld (Issue 5/751) about Web 2.0. My own comment on that is: it might be true. If so learning from mistakes a person who is smart enough should observe dynamically how and when to earn on the stock of most dynamic Web 2.0 companies and know when to quit before their stocks starts to fall down J Second thing I noticed is that this time Web 2.0 might be too big for small players and big companies like Google, Microsoft and other which might have interest in Web 2.0 can find funds and strength to be successful. My own comment on that is: I believe that from the lessons of current Web and potential of the next gen both groups can benefit easily. I believe that it's just a signal of interesting times we live all the time J I mean, history shows up that Netscape almost doesn't exist in current technological world. Position I believe Netscape should have actually holds Google. Microsoft is used to fight with dangers to its market all times. You name the company and year where some initiatives were strategic. Small companies every year show up their sharp teeth. Honestly Google started to be a big player from a garage company in recent times. It's a proof to me that small companies can all the time be global players – good idea and time for that is only critical. In that article I read about two ideas which I personally really like. First comes from Buzz Logic company which wants to make a blog tracking system which will help to manage real influence between bloggers and their influence on the market through their readers (per category, vertical, area and whatever distinction you want). Second solution from the article is about hardware. Concept I suppose old as old are cyberpunk movies and novels – electronic paper. Some plastic alike soft surface with electronic stuff on it (like browser) and your favorite newspaper let's say in water-proof e-paper which you could read in your bathtub also J Home of the future is closer and closer to us, prepare your wallets J February 18 Adobe Acrobat killing softwareWow.. I just found a freebie software with a functionality similar to full Adobe Acrobat (pdf export and virtual printer to save print into a pdf document).
If you like PDFs and you just suffer of nice software to generate it (beside for example Office 2007 plug-in which saves documents directly into PDF or XPS also) you can go there: http://www.primopdf.com/ and check it yourself II7 resources - recent articles worth checkingIf you're interested in the latest IIS (7) on Windows Vista - below two articles can be really usefull to check:
February 13 3GSM World CongressIs anybody of you readers attending this: http://3gsmworldcongress.com/index.asp?
I'm just curious if there was any crucial next gen Windows Mobile (Crossbow) platform presentation? I've heard some rumours but I'm not sure :> February 06 Connected business application based on OfficeSome time ago I wondered why for Infopath Forms Server and Excel Forms Server is for Sharepoint.
Why customer would need additional CAL extending standard CAL for these functionalities.
Now I've seen the demo where I could only respond WOW.
Imagine that you have a sharepoint site where there is some data and chart from embedded Excelspread.
You make some query in that sharepoint site, change some basic data and what's next.
Next is another role - a business manager who just opened a server stored excel file document, changed some basic data and chart (also changing graphical interpretation of it) and saved.
If you go back to the user who just looks at the sharepoint site you can see that all changes in that document are automatically reflected in all excel forms included there so that data changes and chart visualization is automatically updated.
Later on we can see some another forms based application that pops up a word document for you with some predefined template and fields to fill up. They can be connected with that excel definition also where that business manager can design some complex calculation in cells and where it's coded that cell C1 is input and D15 is output for that document.
here we go.. you have one field where you input some number and in another field in word document you get the result from stored calculation model in excel spreadsheet.
Do you get the idea? Lets imagine situation that our beloved business manager wants to redesign the calculation just keeping the input and output cells positions and without any change all word documents that go out with that forms connection have it automatically updated also.
That's where Excel/Infopath Forms potential lays. I was impressed. After going back Poland I wanna make some more tests and maybe a demo myself to be more practical in this tech-babbling Security context of your favourite "query" engineCan you tell me how many security critical patches Oracle released lately? I'm lost counting generally...
How many security holes have been found in SQL Server 2005 up to date? I can tell you -> none. February 05 Techready 4 kicked off!So it's started. About 7000 people in Washington State Convention center.
Steve's made nice keynote and of course showed American spirit adding several "Superbowl" alike metaphores to the message :)
It was really fun to watch him and listen live :> totally new experience comparing to some limited in media feeling broadcast streams.
But anyway point most important at company.. to be People Ready has been again highlighted very well.
okay. next entry is again about Seattle (it's for my friends not to say that I'm only speaking corpo-talks) :) February 03 Guy Kawasaki's Art of the EvangelismYesterday I was attending a training about evangelism wher Guy Kawasaki provided a keynote.
Marvelous speech and it was really amazing to see so much complete person. January 24 Urban Story: How Steve Jobs saved Apple back in late 90'tiesHeh..
Some time ago I had a conversation who told me that several years ago when Apple was almost bankrupt Microsoft purchased some Apple's stock to save the company.. so callled "investment" as he explained me was mostly to have a prioprietary software competitor on the market still ;)
Sounded funny because most of my friends who are Mac-friends also like to tell a story about Steve Jobs genius and the story about his going away and coming back and that's the main reason why Apple still exists and does well - Steve Jobs' technological and creative genius.
Hehe.. here we go. I laughed initially at that "rumour" because with my limited news-wire I didn't know that simply.
Yet today I was just browsing the net and accidentally found half of a year old article at below URL:
where I got to know more details about Steve Jobs genius. Beside obvious subject of the article which is little bit outdated right now I figured out below information:
"Remember Steve Jobs' first days back at Apple in 1997 as Interim-CEO-for-Life? Trying to save the company, Steve got Bill Gates to invest $150 million in Apple and promise to keep Mac Office going for a few more years in exchange for a five-year patent cross-licensing agreement? The idea in everyone's mind, of course, was that Microsoft would grab lots of Apple technology, which they probably did, and it quite specifically ended an Apple patent infringement suit against Microsoft. But I'm told that the exchange wasn't totally one-way, that Apple, in turn, got some legal right to the Windows API.
That agreement ran for five years, from August, 1997 to August 2002. Even though it has since expired, the rights it conferred at the time still lie with the respective companies. Whatever Microsoft grabbed from Apple they can still use, they just aren't able to grab anything developed since August 2002. Same for Apple using Microsoft technology like that in Office X. But Windows XP shipped October 25, 2001: 10 months before the agreement expired." so that's the Steve Jobs' genius huh? :) Getting Bill Gates' money to the company.
Tricky isn't it? :)
Pimp up your XP with Windows Vista technology boostHello,
Many of you still propably consider if buying Vista is worthy.
If you have still doubts and you're lucky owners of Windows XP there is some middle-layer solution for you.
Some technology with less or more compatibility issues and limitations are available on XP.
Limitations are mostly related to the loose integration between them (Vista is comprehend solution which just include them).
So first of all foundamental technologies:
1) Desktop Search - Windows Desktop Search 3.0 (same engine as on Vista) is available for XP users
2) .NET Framework 3.0 (formelly known as WinFX)
3) Look and Feel of Vista (including Sidebar)
http://www.windowsxlive.net/ - Vista Transformation Pack, latest version is really powerfull
Having these installed your XP will look definitively different (more close to Vista) you'll have desktop search engine to compare with Google Desktop if you want according to the reliability, availability and performance.
Finally 3 fundamental development technologies of Vista -> Windows Presentation Foundation, Windows Workflow Foundation and Windows Communication Foundation is available for you so if some vendor shows up really nice application which referenced .NET 3.0 it's nice chance that you'll be able to run it on XP (if only Vendor didn't use Vista critical features that are not available on XP).
Finally if you're a developer you can go to download.microsoft.com and check out these three W*F components tools for Visual Studio and try yourself Xaml/WPF application and other concepts on your Windows XP.
Finally if you really like what you have you can finally have some judgment if better integrated with several still new features and quite new brand operating system isn't exactly for your needs. :) January 19 GDConf 07Eh..
I observe the agenda and feedback people give after this conference and I have to say.. If you only can try it.
I'm not able to do it still, but in dreams :) yep.. I'd be wonderful. Bill Gates on Xbox 360 strategyquoting the interview you can find there:
Q: How is the Xbox 360 strategy working out?
A: It’s working perfectly. We wanted to be the guy with the small box that costs less. We wanted to have the most compelling or better than anyone else’s box. We wanted to have the most games. We wanted to play to our software strength, and tools and online. We wanted to get most respects, except for the online capability, we wanted to swap positions with Sony. We wanted to not be a year late, not be a big box, not be a more expensive box. How are we doing on that? I think it's really nice summary of that last year period and the prospect for next years.
Short, confident and straightforward.
Still I'm not sure about that online capability. I mean no doubt xbox is perfect but me personally - having fun with anonymous dumbasses over the net. I'm not sure... ;-) I like more gaming with my friends and shout at them with the sentences I know I can shout at the moment.
Spirit is in knowing your oponent, not beating him simply.
But regardless of anything I personally think ans as I observer around me, yes.. Bill you're right and Sony once again.. sorry to say.. you're still in the middle of nowhere. January 18 Sideshow devices - how to code it?Some time ago I saw nice presentation of really cool usage of Sideshow devices compatible with Windows Vista.
In current (January 2007) issue of MSDN Magazine you can find really nice article which can explain you some basic capacities of the technology behind.
Here we go if you want to learn quickly how to make basic sideshow device application:
Enjoy :) Just to switch the topic to Business Inteligence for a whileWhen I travelled to the office today I just reminded myself how hard it was to find a photographer in the city to take a picture for my VISA to USA. I walked some time ago a very nice distance without a success.
Then not to risk failure again I checked first phone book with company names accross the city and found one.
It reminded me that taking that picture costed me 20PLN ($5) and it didn't look like they've had many customers these days.
That's no suprise I couldn't find any common photographer (not mentioning exlusive ones where only dedicated extra-paid sessions could be done for really amazing money).
If you have one customer like me even daily for 20 work days a month simple calculation shows up that income is about 400PLN.
It's lower than the minimal salary rate allowed by local law.
ok, lets have 2 customers daily, it's about 800PLN. Still shit not money.
Even if you have 5 customers daily it looks like about 2000PLN.
Ok.. some in Poland would say that it's nice income already.
But if you're an owner of the POS and you have to pay rents for your office. You have some assets to mantain and other costs it's damn shitty.
Then I realized that with all my approach for service-based life everywhere where it's possible an alternative comes to mind which I called "Service Matching".
Here where Business Intelligence comes to mind.
Lets imagine that you live as me in bigger city (more than 1M citizen). and for example easily in your surrounding live about 200k people.
Lets imagine that half of them would be interested so 100k.
Okay.. next step: Each of these persons pays 1PLN monthly just to have warrantied that if they needed they would go to the photographer and take/make pictures for free on some kind of "member card" basis.
I believe that not everybody every day would like to use this service so the balance could be achieved.
But if we give all this money to the photographer - each single user is happy because 1PLN less doesn't push you into poverty.
And with the budget of 100000PLN monthly for the photographer I suppose he can afford really nice studio and pay 10 persons to be at the office to keep the balance for these 100k customers (as a base).
All groups could be happy. They have budget to function and not get bancrupt and live properly. Customers who are members could make occassionally pictures for ID, passport, whatever reason, 25 pictures from last holiday for free.
If any customer comes from the street simply pays the market rate.
I suppose it could be possible to make a business plan to make it profitable.
And where BI is.. okay let's imagine that there is a middle layer.
A company called "Service Matching".
Where you pay 10PLN monthly and fill the questionaire what kind of services you're interested in.
Matcher looks for the companies that could provide the service. Checks region of living to be close to his customers.
Negotiates prices, take maybe 1zl from each for maintaing matching service and has two databases.
One of customers who have some prefferences and second vendors accross the city who are willing to take the service for some group of customers where the balance between profit and service level could be accomplished.
I suppose for that 10PLN budget monthly and about 200k custsomers matching agent could have nice life and bugdet to run the company.
Customers could easily be fullfilled with 3-4 services based on above scenario and it could simply work with minimal staff needed with good BI solution that makes whole algorithmics...
If somebody could provide me free annual access for the services like photographer and barber if I need only for monthly fee like 5PLN I suppose I'd sign the deal.
If there were 100k people like me I suppose both services could make nice business having monthly budget 200k each considering that last 1PLN goes to the matching agent.
But it's just wandering of course.. :)
PS3 prizes in EU.. wow.. looks like you were right ToreadI just read another article on Gamasutra:
It looks like one of my friends was right about ~630EUR price for PS3 in Europe.
I mean they explain it that in whole EU should be cheaper and Ireland has this price for their higher VAT tax (21%)
Considering that Poland has VAT 22% here it should be even more expensive.
I can imagine reaction right now reminding myself on discussions about X360 prices in Poland.
Product was 1 year after rest of EU and more expensive still than obtaining it from Germany and or by for example www.dvdcrave.com from Australia (still PAL zone)
Heh... I see ironical comments right now like "oh looks like we Poles are f* rich if we can afford consoles and stuff more expensive than our other EU fellows".
Heh.. will see :>
If you preffer to read about it in Polish with additional commentary you can go also to my friend's blog Polygamia January 17 Sony response to the financial results on sold units? Also on flamewarsHeh.. I dunno why but all this looks more and more like medial-bullshit..
Two days ago some analyst group reported that Sony missed 25% in their sales goal for CY06.
It's obvios that they missed it but 2 weeks later after New Year's Eve today I just read some update which might be crucial to my yesterday's entry:
Here you can read that they already reached 2MLN units. No details so who knows if it's sold, distributed, shipped or whatever.
2 days after media attacked from various sources after that report you can find in my previous log.
I've been talking with my friends today.. and more and more I think that it's going to be a total crazyness of loyal positioning of fans..
I'm little bit tired of it.. It's sad only that sometimes it's hard to avoid this kind of discussions...
So comments are freely welcome but now I'm trying to find my own distance...
I'm still owning my PS2, I have fun of it.. Still pleanty of killer games on waiting list. Sure they don't look like sweet-hits on x360 in HD but who cares.. I have my entertainment.
I all the time delay buying x360 also.. reason.. I don't need to spend 400EUR just for one game I can play downstairs at my office in my spare time on stand and/or at my friend's place on occasional "gaming parties" :)
Consumption just to stash items on shelves and observe dust layers on it ain't sexy for me anymore.
Or maybe I'm in winter depression :)
It can be also possible |
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