Archive for December, 2007

The 25th Anniversary of Commodore 64

Monday, December 17th, 2007

When I was a teenager, Commodore 64 was my first computer, as it was for a generation. Great for gaming, it also had some serious features, like BASIC programming, Assembler, or even a modem to connect to the boards of those times. I even remember composing music with the Commodore 64, ...

iPhone: Friend or Foe? Can Mobile Operators avoid turning into pipes?

Saturday, December 15th, 2007

There are two major conflicting trends in Telecommunications : 1) Internet driven: the intelligence and applications move to the end-devices (Smartphones, laptops, Servers...) 2) Telcos driven: Operators need to retain control of the Services delivered through their networks On example of these two trends are: Skype vs IMS. Skype corresponds to trend 1). The ...

Video: Linux MCE vs Microsoft MCE and other alternatives

Friday, December 14th, 2007

Two more impressive videos to enjoy with the possibilities of Linux MCE. Many people will be reluctant to move to linux because of lack of official support. Yet you can get tons of support from the many Linux Forums. On the other side, other options fighting to be the center of home ...

Linux MCE Video Demo: Impressive!

Friday, December 14th, 2007

You can download this video in high-def with the text sharp and readable: http://wiki.linuxmce.com/index.php/Video Running on Kubuntu, Linux MCE is probably the most advance Media center in the market, and probably the best option for your digital home... if you are a Linux savvy. I must admit that installation for the ...

Larry Page’s Commencement Speech at the 2005 University of Michigan

Friday, December 14th, 2007

Coming from Larry Page, co-founder of Google, this is a phenomenal speech that inspires all us engineers and entrepreneurs to change the World. Here is a transcript of the speech. It is worth reading. Highlights from Larry:  "...doing bigger things is easier than doing smaller things. I know that sounds really strange but ...

Music Industry subsidized by Spanish Government

Wednesday, December 12th, 2007

While the worldwide music industry realizes that times have changed, and adapts to new customer habits to consume music,  the Government in Spain decided to tax electronic devices, as well as recordable DVD/CDs. The rational is that all these devices (iPods, Cameras, Copiers, etc) can be used for illegal purposes, and therefore whether you ...

Will iPhone succeed in Japan?

Tuesday, December 11th, 2007

No doubt, iPod is extremely successful in Japan, being one of the top selling iTunes stores. When iTunes Japan opened in August 2005, it sold one million songs in four days!! No wonder why the price of iPod in Japan is lower than in many other markets. The Japanese do ...

Japanese ebooks on mobile handsets

Monday, December 10th, 2007

TechCrunch reported a few days ago the success of "mobile phone ebooks" in Japan. See article I often fly to Tokyo for work. People there commute mainly on train. Japan has the best railway system in the world. Trains are so punctual you can actually use them to set your watch ...

Japan, Globalization and Telecoms

Saturday, December 8th, 2007

I have been in Tokyo this week, almost 2 years after I spent a few months living there. The Telecom market has evolved specially in mobile, with eMobile as a new 3G player and with Vodafone, unable to cope with the specificities of the market, selling their Japanese operations ...

Time to be freed from Microsoft

Tuesday, December 4th, 2007

No doubt that Vista flaws are somehow helping promote Open Source and Linux. Many users annoyed by the problems with Vista (HW and SW incompatibilities, WMP database corrupt..) are turning to see if Linux can be an alternative for them. I have nothing against Microsoft. I do admire Bill Gates and ...