Topic #1: We started off with the TED Conference.The conference and website are subtitled "Inspired talks by the world's greatest thinkers and doers", and there are some truly amazing videos up there this week. Have you seen any of the remarkable video coming out that event this week? Two of my favorites are educator Roy Gould previewing Microsoft's World Wide Telescope, and Steve Jurvetson talking about his weekend hobby "Model Rocketry".
Topic #2: A week ago a US judge certified a class action suit against Microsoft that claimed Microsoft knowingly allowed computers to be labeled Windows Vista Capable in the fall of 2006, despite the fact that the hardware being sold would never be capable of running the most desired Windows Vista features, like the AeroGlass interface. This morning, damaging internal emails were published on the Seattle Post Intelligencer website, which show that Microsoft employees were debating this campaign pretty extensively among themselves at the time. One of the claims being made is that Intel pressured them to lower the requirements so that Intel could make it's quarter. We discuss where the guilt actually lies… Is it with Microsoft for misleading with it's logo program, Intel for pressuring Microsoft to lower requirements, the PC manufacturers who took Microsoft incentives to put the logo on the PC… or the consumer for not doing enough homework before buying the PC?
Topic #3: Yesterday blogs were aflutter over an announcement that Apple would hold an iPhone Software Roadmap event on March 6. Clearly a big deal. By late in the day, however, BusinessWeek columnist Peter Burrows had written a piece basically saying that this was the start of a war between Apple and RIM for the consumer. We discuss who Apple's target is… RIM, Nokia, or Microsoft?
Alec Saunders is the Vice President of Developer Relations for BlackBerry make Research in Motion. This is his personal blog, with his personal viewpoints. Prior to this Alec was the CEO and co-founder of Calliflower — the easiest way to hold a meeting, online, on a conference call, or on the go. A double-decade veteran of product management and marketing, he spent nine years at Microsoft where he helped launch Windows 95, the first two versions of Internet Explorer, the Universal Plug and Play initiative, the push into home markets, opt-in email marketing and what might well go down in history as the very first direct email list ever.
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Re #2: I don't know where the blame lies. However, I don't think it can be with the consumer. Many ?(most)? consumers don't know enough to do the kind of research you suggest and, in my opinion, should not need to!
I certainly agree, although the responsibility seems to have fallen to the consumer