2010年8月17日星期二

Oracle sues Google: Looking for a piece of the mobile pie

By Christopher Dawson | August 13, 2010, 3:00am PDT

Summary: In what was a surprising turn of events for many in the tech community, Oracle filed a formal complaint of patent infringement against Google, demanding a jury trial and unspecified damages over the use of Java in their Android platform. So why now? Can they win? And what does it mean for Google and Java [...]

In what was a surprising turn of events for many in the tech community, Oracle filed a formal complaint of patent infringement against Google, demanding a jury trial and unspecified damages over the use of Java in their Android platform. So why now? Can they win? And what does it mean for Google and Java developers at large if they do?
It’s one thing to sue small fish into oblivion. Anyone remember Psystar? They went up against Apple selling dubiously-licensed Mac clones. They don’t sell Mac clones anymore. Big surprise.
Also see:

It’s another thing when a small fish sues a big fish. Big fish tend to have deep pockets that can, to the massive financial benefit of said small fish, make a lawsuit go away very quickly. Settlements, acquisitions, and licensing deals can all prove quite lucrative for the small fish with relatively small investments by the big fish, especially if the small fish actually has the intellectual property rights it brings to a court.
In both of these scenarios, there are serious financial incentives to file IP-related lawsuits. When a big fish sues a bigger fish over intellectual property rights that aren’t clearcut, there has to be a bigger picture, a corporate strategy that makes the financial and PR risks worth the potential gain. In this case, it’s mobile computing which, in case you haven’t noticed, is the future of both consumer and, in many ways, enterprise computing. Yeah, I’d say there’s an incentive here.
See related coverage:

Oracle bought Sun Microsystems in January of this year, acquiring all of their intellectual property (much of it related to Java) for a mere $7.4 billion dollars. There were more than a few analysts who thought that number was mighty high for a company on the verge of collapse and whose strongest IP (including much of Java) had been open sourced. Suddenly, though, the purchase price makes sense if Oracle plans to leverage its more obscure patents against the likes of Google and, in the process, be entitled to a share of its Android-related profits.
Interestingly, as the Wall Street Journal reported,

Google was widely assumed to have rights to use Java under a licensing agreement for Java…The suit is “very perplexing,” said Kim Polese, a former Sun manager…”Everyone is using Java.”
Sun was often criticized by investors for making little money on Java. Oracle, on the other hand, seems determined to wring more profit from Sun’s intellectual property…”Java is one of the crown jewels of the Sun acquisition,” said Ray Wang, an analyst with Altimeter Group. An Oracle injunction could block developers from building applications using the Android platform and shipments of Android phones, he said.

In fact, if Google can be a target, then any number of Java developers can potentially find themselves in Oracle’s crosshairs. However, I’m inclined to think that it’s no coincidence that research released this week shows drastic gains in Android popularity and manifold increases in Google mobile search (the real source of revenue behind Android, which is open source). If Oracle can force a deal with Google, it suddenly has at least a business class ticket on the mobile train and can even start looking at vertical markets that include mobile technologies.

So will Oracle win? A fair number of analysts believe that there will be some sort of licensing deal that comes out of this, although the size and scope may very well not be the windfall for which Oracle is looking. If Oracle wins, though, how much does Google lose? Google executives have repeatedly hung their hats upon the future of mobile, which means Android. Mobile search, mobile platforms, and mobile content will all be cash cows for Google long term. It remains to be seen how big a chunk, if any, Oracle will take out of that cow.
We’re looking at months of litigation for this to play out and neither company really stands to benefit from a quick settlement. Google, for its part, needs to demonstrate that there was no infringement to protect Android, future revenues, and, perhaps more importantly, the Java developers who make Android compelling. Oracle, on the other hand, wants more money than Google is likely to give without being ordered to do so by a jury. Oracle essentially asks for the destruction of code that leverages Java in Android, but it would be foolish to not take a major stake in future Android-related revenues instead if it can get them.
A complete copy of the complaint is here. Read it and talk back below - Do you think that Google really infringed on copyrights or is Oracle just coming late to the realization that mobile is a platform that can’t be ignored, even if you’re, well, Oracle?
See related coverage:

2010年8月12日星期四

Stupid mobile tricks: 7 stories of smartphone horror

By JR Raphael | Aug 12, 2010

For a device with "smart" in its name, a smartphone sure can help you do a lot of stupid things. Whether it's racking up thousands of dollars in international roaming fees or encouraging dozens of eye rolls with your misrouted voice dialing -- I'm looking at you, guy who calls Ben O'Lynn in accounting every time he means to call Bennigan's for lunch -- our modern-day mobile devices provide plenty of opportunities for tech-tinged embarrassment.

We tracked down seven of the most unfortunate smartphone disaster tales we could find. The stories are fun to laugh at now, but most of them were anything but amusing when they actually occurred. Some cost companies money; some cost employees their jobs. Others cost something even more difficult to recover: a slice of their victims' dignity.

So read on, and remember: It could have just as easily been you. (Note: Some of the names have been changed or withheld to protect the guilty.)

Smartphone horror story No. 1: The accidental autocorrect

When you think about it, letting a gadget guess what you want to say is really just asking for trouble.

"Scott," who works at a marketing and Web design firm, learned that the hard way. He was emailing back and forth with his brother, using some colorful language, when a message from a client came in to his phone.

The client's project had a four-letter acronym that started with a "c." It was just a letter or two off from a certain other four-letter "c" word -- yes, that one -- and as luck would have it, the more vulgar variation had made its way into the memory on Scott's phone.

"My brother and I exchange some pretty insulting emails, and like all smartphones, my phone remembers what I type in," he explains. "When I emailed the client back, it jumped in and swapped out the project's real acronym with that other 'c' word."

Scott fired off the email, not realizing it described his client's project as the "C--- project" (I'll let you fill in the blanks). The client -- who, naturally, happened to be especially conservative -- was appalled. He wrote back within minutes to let Scott know.

"I was mortified. I couldn't believe it went through that way," Scott says. "The worst part was trying to explain away the fact that I had used that word enough to get it in the phone's dictionary."

The moral: Never blindly trust a machine. Proofread everything, especially messages tapped out in a hurry. Otherwise, you might just end up calling a client a ... well, you know.

Smartphone horror story No. 2: There's an app for what?!

Smartphone apps have revolutionized the world of mobile business. With the right set of programs, you can stay connected to your company, keep up with important news, and maintain close contact with colleagues. Of course, with the wrong set of programs, you can land yourself in some seriously hot water.

We've all heard of a coworker getting caught with, shall we say, inappropriate materials on his work PC. But finding naughty stuff on someone's business-issued smartphone is still a relatively new phenomenon.

It certainly caught the folks at OneCall Manage off-guard. The agency works with corporations to analyze their workers' cell phones and spot any potentially problematic areas.

During a routine checkup with a major national company, the OneCall consultants found something that stood out. It was a game being played on a company device -- and it wasn't Pac-Man. In fact, the game was called Sexy Cougar, and no, it wasn't about mountain cats.

OneCall CEO Berylle Reynolds smiles when she thinks back on the discovery. It's a sharp contrast to the frowns that formed when Sexy Cougar first came to her agency's attention. "We had to go in and actually block all the phones to prevent the workers from downloading anything in the future," she says.

Oh yeah -- there's one more twist: "It wasn't just one person," Reynolds reveals. "There were four employees who had downloaded the Sexy Cougar game in the same office."

Hey, at least we know they weren't using iPhones.

The moral: Remember the old adage "Don't mix business with pleasure"? It applies just as much between a man and a smartphone as it does between a man and a woman. Don't forget it.

Smartphone horror story No. 3: The literal smartphone launch

Everyone loves a good startup story. When your company's history involves throwing expensive technology, however, sharing your roots can quickly turn dangerous. Just ask the guys from Mutual Mobile.

These days, Mutual Mobile is known for making apps focused on productivity -- things like Sales Report and Polycom for the iPhone. But in the beginning, the team had a slightly different focus.

Mutual Mobile's founders made their way into the mobile market by creating a little program called HangTime (Apple later removed it from the App Store). HangTime, if you've not heard of it, encouraged people to throw their precious iPhones into the air. The app measures how high the phones go and how long it takes for them to come back down. (Yes, really.)

Silly as it seems, HangTime showed the Mutual Mobile guys how lucrative a field that app development could be. They credit the creation with helping them expand their for-fun business into a full-time venture, and they frequently tell their clients the story. "It's generally well-received," says CEO John Arrow. "One time, it was too well-received."

That might be an understatement. On the ill-fated occasion, Arrow and his colleagues were meeting with a new enterprise client. After having some laughs over their HangTime history, the client caught them off-guard by downloading the app to his own phone and giving it a whirl -- right then and there, outside the Mutual Mobile offices.

"Before we knew it, our biggest client was throwing his iPhone in the air as high as he could," Arrow recalls. Arrow watched nervously as his new client's phone went up, up, and -- yep, you guessed it -- away. The device landed on the roof of the next building over.

"The worst part -- when it landed, we heard a splash," Arrow says.

Here's hoping the poor chap at least had insurance.

The moral: When it comes to mobile technology, be careful what you suggest. You never know when your amusing anecdote might inspire a client to toss his phone onto the roof -- literally or figuratively.

Smartphone horror story No. 4: The case of the disappearing data

For a mobile road warrior, the smartphone is an invaluable weapon. And when that weapon fails, all bets are off.

Tom McClintock knows the feeling. McClintock, a partner with marketing firm NSI Partners, was traveling to meet an important client when the unthinkable occurred: His smartphone, which contained all the files he needed for his meeting, stopped working.

"I'd passed through airport security, and suddenly, the phone died with no explanation," McClintock says. "I realized I'd forgotten to pack my sync cable, too, so I couldn't even connect it to my netbook to try to access the data that way."

McClintock thought fast. He called his assistant and arranged to have her dash to the airport with the cable, figuring he'd find a way to download the files off his phone once he landed. But with the clock ticking and his flight rapidly approaching, things were looking iffier by the minute.

When McClintock's assistant finally arrived, he didn't have time to make it out of the terminal and back through security again. Amazingly, the airline -- yes, those same people who scowl when you ask for a second bag of peanuts -- offered to have an agent grab the cable and bring it to McClintock's gate. He got it moments before his flight started boarding.

The moral: Never rely on a single source for important data, especially when traveling on business. Bring backups -- or, better yet, store your files in the cloud -- and you'll never have to worry about crashing and burning midway through a journey again.

Smartphone horror story No. 5: The data dollar disaster

Talk may be cheap, but data sure isn't -- at least, not when your company uses capped plans and you shatter the limit.

Blake Bookstaff of CharterJets.com depends on his business's BlackBerry to keep in touch wherever he roams. He's no data hog, though: Bookstaff has only a certain amount of data he can transfer within his company's plan. If he goes over that amount, each additional megabyte costs a pretty penny.

One month, Bookstaff noticed something strange on his smartphone: an icon indicating the device was sending and receiving data far more than it normally did. He didn't think much of it and went about his day-to-day work. Weeks later, he got wind of the month's total bill -- and it practically knocked the wind out of him.

"The bill came in, and it was several hundred dollars more [than usual]," Bookstaff says. "Whatever was happening with my BlackBerry went way over my data usage allotment."

Bookstaff figures his phone started syncing data at regular intervals -- something he didn't typically allow it to do. As he discovered, one tiny setting can lead to one massive charge on the corporate account.

The moral: Unless your limits are sky-high, keep close tabs on your data and minute usage throughout the month. Whether it's a mistakenly toggled setting or some unexpected international-travel surcharge, it's all too easy to stack up accidental fees and end up with a nasty surprise.

Smartphone horror story No. 6: The sleeping smartphone

Let's face it: Corporate conference calls can be pretty damn dull. So maybe it shouldn't come as a total shock that even our smartphones sometimes fall asleep midsession.

As the president of Wireless Communications Alliance, David T. Witkowski relies on his wireless phone for all of his communication needs. He regularly uses his Motorola Droid's speakerphone to help an entire room take part in a conversation.

The problem: Occasionally, the Droid fails to wake up after its screen goes dark during a call. And because the phone doesn't have a hard-wired button to end a call, this leaves Witkowski with no easy way to hang up.

"Normally I just wait until the other person drops off, which terminates the call and clears the problem," he says.

One time, that work-around plan didn't work so well. Witkowski was in the room with some clients, chatting with their customers via his Droid. His end of the conversation concluded, and the customers asked him to disconnect so that they could continue speaking privately on their own. Unfortunately, Witkowski's phone had decided to take a little nap.

"So there I am, trying to hang up the call, and the customers are saying, 'Are you still on the line?'" he remembers. "Very embarrassing, especially given that I'm the president of a 4,000-member wireless industry alliance. Of all people, I shouldn't be struggling with my phone."

The moral: No piece of technology is 100 percent dependable. Sometimes, a good old-fashioned landline -- or, if all else fails, a call-ending sledgehammer -- can go a long way.

Smartphone horror story No. 7: When a smartphone makes a splash

Our final smartphone horror story gives a whole new meaning to the idea of a dropped call.

Robert Van Gool is one busy dude. His company, Gonzo Games, strives to create viral video games for a range of different electronic platforms. There's always work to be done, and Van Gool uses every minute he can to get ahead.

That means he's frequently multitasking, and not in the way you might be thinking: Van Gool, you see, sometimes takes care of business while -- er -- taking care of business. You know, a very personal kind of business.

One day, Van Gool was chatting with his lead game developer from his secondary office, so to speak, when something went terribly wrong. "The phone slipped out of my hand and plopped into the toilet, big splash and all," he confesses.

The porcelain gods were evidently watching out for Van Gool that day: His phone miraculously survived and even maintained its connection. His conversation, however, didn't fare quite so well.

"I gingerly pulled it out and realized my developer was still on the line, still talking!" Van Gool says. "I had to hang up on him, as there was no way I was going to put that phone to my ear."

The moral: Even in our culture of constant connection, some places should remain sacred from communication. Do the world a favor: When you enter the john, put down the damn phone. Your colleagues -- and your fellow restroom users -- will thank you.

InfoWorld (US)

Microsoft Research shows off a prototype 'Menlo' mobile phone

By Mary Jo Foley | August 8, 2010, 9:17am PDT

Summary: Microsoft researchers have published a photo of a prototype Microsoft ‘Menlo’ phone and have shared information about a new sample application codenamed “Greenfield” that is running on it.

For the past few months, I’ve been trying to piece together what Microsoft codename “Menlo” is. My tipsters described it as a project by Microsoft Researchers to investigate new operating system possibilities in the mobile space.

One of the research papers I mentioned in my original blog post about Menlo has now been published. (Thanks to reader Charon of Ma-Config.com for the tip about the paper’s availability.)
Lo and behold, there’s more in that paper, entitled “User Experiences with Activity-Based Navigation on Mobile Devices,” about Menlo. From that paper:

“Menlo is a prototype mobile device with a capacitive touch screen (4.1‖ diagonal, 800×480) running Microsoft Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 which incorporates a Bosch BMA150 3-axis accelerometer and Bosch BMP085 digital pressure sensor (barometer).”

(Microsoft included an image of a Menlo device in the paper, which I’ve included at right.)
Running on top of the Menlo platform is a new Microsoft Research Silverlight application codenamed “Greenfield,” which is a sensor-centric program allowing users to retrace their footsteps when seeking to find their cars.
Galen Hunt, the Microsoft researcher in charge of the cross-divisional Menlo project, mentioned in his LinkedIn profile that he “negotiated production of custom phone prototypes, designed and implemented major kernel and OS components, implemented runtime and compiler features, and wrote code for demo” as part of his Menlo work.
(Hunt also is the leader of Microsoft’s Singularity project. Singularity is a microkernel operating system which Microsoft Research has made available for license. Singularity also was/is the heart of Microsoft’s Midori distributed operating system incubation project.)
I mentioned in my original blog post a few of the other Microsoft researchers working on Menlo. The new paper on Greenfield/Menlo lists some others, including a couple of user-interface specialists and senosr researchers. Amy Karlson, who is listed as one of the authors of the paper, also is working on Microsoft Research’s “Courier.” (No, no the cancelled dual-screen Courier; the Courier phone-based file exchange system that is one of the projects of MSR’s Cross-Device User Experience team. This team is focused on understanding how to make PC-phone experiences more seamless.)
So what to make of all this? I don’t think Microsoft is going to build its own Menlo phone. (Been there, done that with the failed Kin.) I do think the Menlo team is continuing to focus on a new mobile operating system — not just the existing Windows Embedded Compact-based ones — that will work on a variety of processors.
Anyone else have more Menlo information (or guesses) to share?

2010年8月7日星期六

Cycle Tour around HK Aug 2010

Cycle Tour around HK Aug 2010

17 Aug 2010
Tai Tong Park from YL
Trip Dist: 12.82 km
Trip Time: 0:45:58 (17:00 - 18:00)
Avg Speed: 16.74 kmh
Max: 55.84 kmh

14 Aug 2010
Tai Tong Park from YL
Trip Dist: 32.88 km
Trip Time: 1:52.52 (17:35 - 21:45)
Avg Speed: 17.48 kmh
Max: 51.77 kmh

10 Aug 2010
Tai Tong Park from YL
Trip Dist: 23.38 km
Trip Time: 1:34:20 (17:35 - 22:10)
Avg Speed: 14.87 kmh
Max: 59.10 kmh

7 Aug 2010
Tai Tong Park from YL
Trip Dist: 34.74 km
Trip Time: 2:15:03 (18:00 - 22:10)
Avg Speed: 15.43 kmh
Max: 48.28 kmh

2 Aug 2010
Tai Tong Park from YL
Trip Dist: 28.41 km
Trip Time: 1:58.09 (17:35 - 22:10, Dinner at Tai Fat Restaurant (奶茶王))
Avg Speed: 14.42 kmh
Max: 49.44 kmh

2010年8月5日星期四

黃毅力力筆從心：你吹咩，我係有病的「好人」！

9年前，我打你一拳，罰款了事，不用坐監；兩年前，我踢你一腳，判處社會服務令，不用坐監；而今年，我在鏡頭前摑你一巴，只判感化與停牌，都不用坐監！雖然你陀鐵「點三八手槍」，但我「陀」着的叫「特權」－－－阿叔是司法界高層，舅父又是大有錢佬，「吹咩」！我危險駕駛、醉酒駕駛、襲警都不用受牢獄之苦，因為我患病，除了鬱躁症外，更患有「有錢佬特權病」，「吹咩」！你有12粒子彈護身，我有「五指神功」護體，「吹咩」？

前天早上，我一如既往聽着「晨光第一線」－一個有益身心、充滿正能量的節目，既可以聽到主持人嘻嘻哈哈，同時又能帶出一些社會及人生的真道理，其中一句「Reward and punishment are the wall of the city」，便道出了法律賞罰分明，正是社會的基礎及基石。

這讓我回想起在過去48小時裏，不論是坐在茶餐廳，與客戶午膳，在家中與兒女聊天，又或在辦公室內同事間的閒談，都不難發現，此刻已是全城陷入公憤，對於終審法院常任法官包致金的侄女Amina Mariam Bokhary，第3度襲警又輕判，實在氣憤難平，唔係「大細超」，你信唔信？

而我在收看電視新聞之時，就更對主審法官判刑所持的理據與判詞的思路感到費解。法官判詞指出，他處以輕判的原因有四。

首先，是因她「家境優秀」，這當然啦，她的阿叔是終審法院常任法官，舅父又是香港交易所主席夏佳理，更剛剛拿取了「荷蘭水蓋」(「大紫荊勳章」)！

第二，是她「受過良好教育」，從她曾犯刑毀、涉嫌藏毒，到危險駕駛、拒絕提供酒精呼氣樣本、特別是襲警、與感化官「溝通」等，都足已看得出，她所受的教育不只是「良好」，而完全是「超班」！

第三，法官又指她本身沒有「暴力傾向」，這個亦沒錯，因她還未至於把警員打死吧！

最後的原因是，因為她「有病」，這個我都明白，因為她所患的，根本就是挑戰香港法律的「特權病」！

判刑的理據，主要基於其今次的感化報告，卻沒有思量法律最重要的精神，那就是看得見的公道，看得見的公平；而更重要的，是她已有連續3次襲警的紀錄，男警她要打，女警她又踢，在鏡頭前她更出手掌摑。為何仍能以一句「有病」就可以把所有刑責都推諉呢？如果真的是「有病」的話，大概是我們的司法制度出了毛病－「大細超」病才對！或許主審法官可以一錘定音，就中國的做法般，放她去火星「保外就醫」罷了！

我們香港市民並非因為「憎人富貴」，不滿她的判刑太輕而需要洩憤，而我驚訝的是，其判詞的邏輯性與量刑基礎，以及主審法官的公義性都讓人質疑。

到底香港法治的精神，除了獨立，還有公正嗎？量刑的尺度，是否有參考她過往的紀錄？每數年她都會醉酒犯案一次，而法官有否翻看她過去3次的感化報告，何以都是相類似的結果－－－她是一個沒有暴力傾向的「好人」，可是卻又總做出暴力行為－－－襲警呢？

從這案件所見，刑罰似乎更像是由感化官去量刑，多於由法官去判決。這樣的量刑處理、判詞內的邏輯和思路，才是真正令我憤怒的原因，這個判決為社會及執法人員帶來許多思想上的矛盾，也對警隊的士氣及前線的執勤人員，帶來一個重大的打擊，更是對香港司法制度摑了狠狠的一記耳光。

要知道，香港警察不是給「病人」洩憤的箭靶，我們的司法制度，也不是給「病人」逃避責任的一個安全網。這次，她掌摑了香港的執法人員，而那個判刑，卻掌摑了香港的司法制度的正義！幸好，在這樣的制度下，我們香港還有着不偏不倚、不畏強權的傳媒敢於說實話，也有一眾「無病」的香港人用思想、持平的心去判斷這單案件的對與錯、懲罰的輕與重。

後記：

律政司已決定就事件提出覆核，希望最終的結果，能證明到香港的司法制度不單具獨立性，而且還有真正的公平與公義。就讓我們香港人拭目以待吧！

每日金句：不要被環境去改變你，你要去改變環境。

黃毅力

2010年7月23日星期五

Analyst: 11 million iPad-like tablets in 2010

By Lexton Snol | Jul 23, 2010

11 million tablets, led by Apple's iPad, are expected to be sold by the end of 2010. This is three times the estimate ABI Research made just six months ago.

"Our forecast of 11 million media tablet shipments in 2010 is based both on the broader availability of the iPad and on the delayed introduction of competing products," said ABI Research principal analyst Jeff Orr.

"Assuming that competing tablets from other vendors do arrive in the second half of the year as expected, we believe that the iPad will account for a significant portion - but not all - of the projected 11 million units," said Orr. "To capitalize on the usual fourth quarter sales boom, other tablets need to reach retailers' shelves by early September."

Orr suggested that the media tablet segment is still far short of a "mass market" and that a market size justifying that term probably won't be reached before 2013. Much depends on Apple's distribution reach, which is still quite limited, and the relative success of its eventual competitors.

A number of competing tablets were to have been launched by now, but the global recession, implementation of the most suitable operating system, and the challenge of matching the iPad's user experience have all caused delays.

"The buzz around tablets has implications for other parts of the consumer electronics market," Orr continued.

"In particular, the surge in interest in media tablets is impacting the MID (Mobile Internet Device) category. Most of the volume that we've projected for the MID category since 2007 is now being taken over by other device form factors: media tablets, but also smartphones, which are assuming more and more of the functionality that was envisioned for these 'non-voice handsets'."

PC Advisor (UK)

Sharp, Lenovo to join the tablet war this year

By Michael Kan, Martyn Williams, and Dan Nystedt | Jul 21, 2010

Both Sharp and Lenovo are set to introduce their tablet devices within the year.

After releasing its own handset to compete with Apple's iPhone, Lenovo looks like it may be preparing to take on the iPad. The Chinese company plans on releasing its own tablet PC at the end of the year.

The device will be called the "LePad" and will use the Android mobile operating system, according to recent comments made by Liu Jun, senior vice president and president at Lenovo's Consumer Business Group, and confirmed by the company.

The product's development comes as Lenovo's chairman said earlier this month that Apple CEO Steve Job hasn't been focused on the Chinese market. "If Apple were to spend the same effort on the Chinese consumer as we do, (Lenovo) would be in trouble," Liu Chuanzhi told the Financial Times.

This year, Lenovo began selling its own smart phone called "LePhone." The company has said in the past Lenovo's strategy is to "win" in China before Lenovo begins selling the phone abroad. Lenovo also believes the mobile Internet hardware and services could become 10 to 20 percent of the company's business over these next five years.

Other Chinese companies have also developed their own tablets, with some even billing their devices as imitation iPads. But Lenovo would be one of the larger companies to take on building such a device.

"Lenovo has a strong brand name that resonates with local buyers. That's something that's in their favor," said Bryan Ma, associate vice president for IDC Asia-Pacific, of the company's plans.

IDC predicted that in 2011, shipments for media tablets will rise to 1 million for both China and Taiwan combined. In 2014, that number is expected to grow to 4 million. But how the tablet market in China will develop still remains to be seen, Ma added.

"There are still questions about what applications are (these tablets) going to be used for. What kind of interest will they attract," he said.

e-book from Sharp

Japan's Sharp also announced Tuesday its plans to enter the increasingly competitive e-book reader market later this year with a device that can read a new e-publishing file format of its own.

The company will launch an e-book reader in Japan before the end of the year and is also working towards a launch outside of Japan. The device, which has not yet been detailed by the company, is likely to hit the US after Japan and Sharp said it is already in launch talks with Verizon Wireless.

Despite the growing popularity of e-books, the market remains split between several electronic publishing file formats. Amazon.com's Kindle uses a proprietary format and isn't compatible with the ePub format used in many other devices.

Sharp's e-book readers will read files in a new version of XMDF (ever-eXtending Mobile Document Format), a format developed by Sharp and used in some of its previous devices.

The new version adds support for multimedia data and will allow audio and video to be embedded into e-book pages.

The original version of XMDF was accepted into the international standard for e-publishing (IEC62448), although its use remains largely confined to Japan.

Readers for the XMDF format are available for Windows PCs, Sharp electronic dictionaries, handheld PCs, cell phones and Sharp's Aquos televisions. Sharp runs an online store for XMDF-format electronic books that has over 29,000 titles from several major Japanese publishers.

Sharp said it has yet to decide if its reader will support other formats in addition to XMDF.

Amazon Kindle sales defy iPad after price cut

Despite the noise made by the ongoing phased launch of iPads in different countries, Amazon has success in driving up its Kindle sales after dropping the price to US$189.

"We've reached a tipping point with the new price of Kindle--the growth rate of Kindle device unit sales has tripled since we lowered the price from $259 to $189," said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, in a statement Monday.

The company said millions of people are already reading e-books on Kindles, but it did not name an exact number of Kindles sold.

Apple last month said it had already sold 3 million iPads.

Speculation on whether the iPad would kick Kindle off the market started after Apple announced its first 1 million iPads sold, in just 28 days. At the time, Apple also said that over 1.5 million e-books had already been downloaded from the new iBookstore. The hefty volume of downloads prompted forecasts that Amazon.com's e-book sales would take a hit.

Amazon on Monday said its sales of Kindle books have overtaken hardcover book sales.

The number of Kindle books (e-books) sold by Amazon.com has outpaced the number of hardcover books 143 to 100 over the past three months, the company said, and it has sold three times as many Kindle books in the first half of this year as compared to the first half of last year.

The US Kindle Store has more than 630,000 books for sale and another 1.8 million free out-of-copyright e-books.

The company excluded the number of free Kindle books from the other figures.

Kindle devices differ from iPads mainly in their screens, capabilities, battery life, price and weight. Kindles use e-reader screens which are normally monochrome or black and white, have no backlight, and are meant to mimic the experience of reading a normal book. The screens are low power, giving e-readers weeks of battery life, compared to up to 10-hours of battery power for an iPad. iPads use LCD technology in their touchscreens and have LED (light emitting diode) backlights, which require more power. Software is tweaked to make text easier on the eyes to read. The iPad is also a small computer with Internet and video capabilities, in addition to its use for e-books.

Finally, the $189 Kindle weighs 10.2 ounces, compared to the lowest cost iPad, $499, which weighs 24 ounces.

IDG News Service

2010年7月20日星期二

How long will OEM tails wag the Google Android dog?

By Dana Blankenhorn | July 16, 2010, 6:20am PDT

Summary: Google and its leading OEM are working at cross purposes. Google says open, the OEM says close.

Google’s Android project is unique in computing history. The idea is to run a hardware ecosystem based on the principles of the Linux software ecosystem.

There is a Linux for every taste. There are Linux distros aimed at the cloud, at servers, at desktops and at handhelds. They’re all Linux, but your support and experience come from the distro. There’s a Linux Standard Base, but the distro doesn’t have to follow it.

What this means on the ground is that OEMs like HTC and Motorola are similar to Red Hat, Novell and Ubuntu. They control your horizontal and they control your vertical.

But Google, unlike the penguin, is a big name brand. Google has an image and a reputation in the market that’s bigger than, say, Linus Torvalds’. Google’s top people have many more zeroes in their net worth than, say, Jim Zemlin.

This puts Google’s name out there in ways it can’t control, another thing that makes this business case study unique. When an OEM succeeds Google benefits. When it angers people Google will, I think, get some of the blowback.

Take for example the Motorola Droid X. By all accounts a huge hit. People are buying Motorola stock and Verizon is catching up with AT&T. It’s being compared favorably with the iPhone.

What can go wrong?

Just this. Motorola included something called eFuse. It runs at boot and shuts down the phone if it finds something it doesn’t like. If you try to tamper with or “mod” the phone (as the kids say) it turns your Droid into a brick.

“Real” hackers (and some are more real than others) insist there’s a way around this. But regular people are just angry. One reviewer has already turned thumbs down on the phone because of it.

Why is there so much instant blowback on a feature Motorola has been putting into its phones for ages? Possibly because of Google’s own AppInventor, which earlier this week held out the promise of everyone, not just the digerati, happily hacking their phones and creating their own applications.

In other words, Google and its leading OEM are working at cross purposes. Google says open, the OEM says close.

How long before this contradiction starts hurting Google? Well, the stories about wild DroidX success and angry DroidX bricking blowback came out within 24 hours of each other.

My guess is not long.

2010年7月19日星期一

For HP, three slate, tablet operating systems is a crowd

By Larry Dignan | July 15, 2010, 6:24am PDT

Summary: Hewlett Packard has reportedly shelved plans for an Android tablet device in 2010 as it works through its increasingly muddled mobile OS picture.

Hewlett Packard has reportedly shelved plans for an Android tablet device in 2010 as it works through its increasingly muddled mobile OS picture.

John Paczkowski at AllThingsD reports that HP has tabled plans for an Android tablet PC—at least for now.

Since HP recently completed its acquisition of Palm, the move makes a lot of sense. Here are the OSes that may play into HP’s slate plans.

WebOS: HP executives have repeatedly said the Palm acquisition was about much more than smartphones. The Palm deal was really about tablets and a wide range of devices. HP sees a mobile stack across multiple devices. Simply put, HP is doubling down on the WebOS and most pre-Palm plans for tablet PCs and slates are up in the air.

Microsoft Windows 7: Windows 7 slates will hit the market and Microsoft has other lightweight operating systems on tap. Microsoft’s grand mobile plan is muddled to say the least, but HP will give the software giant some time. Why? HP and Microsoft have too many valuable partnerships elsewhere. HP will play ball with Microsoft-powered slates.

Android: You don’t spend $1.2 billion on Palm and then go with Android to power your devices. HP may ultimately have an Android flavored device, but where’s the differentiation? Everyone and their mother will have an Android tablet. HP will keep a toe in the Android market, but clearly sees the WebOS as its mobile meal ticket.
Given those moving parts, HP’s move to table Android only makes business sense so it can focus.

2010年7月18日星期日

Apple's 'Antennagate' mea culpa - free case until Sept 30 (Updated)

By Jason D. O'Grady | July 16, 2010, 10:40am PDT

Summary: After being dogged by problems with the iPhone 4, Apple today held a press conference announcing what it hopes will solve the problem for good.
As the NYTimes predicted, Apple didn’t issue a sweeping recall. Instead I can summarize Apple’s response in five words “free case until September 30.”
Apple noted that you can get a free [...]

After being dogged by problems with the iPhone 4, Apple today held a press conference announcing what it hopes will solve the problem for good.

As the NYTimes predicted, Apple didn’t issue a sweeping recall. Instead I can summarize Apple’s response in five words “free case until September 30.”

Apple noted that you can get a free bumper case (or a refund if you’ve already purchased one) and that since they can’t make bumpers fast enough, you’ll be able to select from a choice of cases on the Apple website starting late next week.

iPhone 4 customers still have the option of returning the phone for a full refund, with no restocking fee within 30 days.

Apple also announced that the White iPhone is going to start shipping at the end of July and that its bringing the iPhone to 17 more countries on July 30, including:

Australia
Austria
Belgium
Canada
Denmark
Finland
Hong Kong
Ireland
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Norway
New Zealand
Singapore
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland

After the presentation portion of press conference Apple’s Tim Cook and Bob Mansfield joined Steve Jobs to answer questions (courtesy of Engadget)…

Q1: Are you doing anything else to address the issue? Perhaps changing hardware?

Steve: You know, the 3GS has the same problem. We’re getting reports from customers that this is better than the 3GS. So I don’t know changing the antenna design would help — I don’t know what our next antenna design will look like.

Q2: I can’t get my Bold to drop right now, maybe you can show me how to do it?

Steve: You may not see it in certain areas.

Q3: You showed people almost covering the entire phone in their hand, but on the iPhone 4 it can happen with just a touch. Can you explain that difference?

Bob: When you touch the phone, you put yourself between the signal and your phone, so when you touch that spot you can attenuate the signal, and if you grip it with your whole hand, you can attenuate it even more. We don’t build phones with an antenna on top…

Q4: Were you told about the design before the phone was released?

Steve: Are you talking about the Bloomberg article? That’s total bullshit,” and we’ve challenged them to show proof that that. If anyone had said this thing has problems, we would have dispatched people to deal with that issue.

Whoa strong words!

Q5: Are you willing to make an apology to investors?

Steve: You know we hear from customers who love this phone and have a great experience with it, and we’re doing a lot to help them with any issues they’re seeing. To investors, you know, you invest in the company we are, so if the stock goes down $5… I don’t think I owe them an apology.

Wow, just wow. I think that Steve could have handled that better.

Q6: Do you think you’re making users choose between form and function?

Steve: No, we strive to do both. For instance, we make the phone smaller, so it fits well in your pocket… the Retina Display… it’s like a fine printed book, it blows away other displays. It costs a little more, but we made it work. The iPhone 4 is an exterior antenna, so it doesn’t live inside the case, we have a larger battery for better battery life. We try to have our cake and eat it too, we try to have great design and great performance.

Q7: Will there be refunds for AT&T contracts?

A: I believe so, yes.

Q8: On the September 30th date, is that to let people know that you’ll have to buy a case?

Steve: Not really, we’ll reevaluate then. Maybe we’ll have a better idea. Maybe Eminem will come out with a band-aid that goes over the corner and everyone will want that.

Ok, that’s just hilarious. Clearly Steve takes Antennagate very personally.

Q9: Will the refund include third party cases?

A: There’s a very small number of third party cases out there. So no.

Q10: Well it’s interesting, there aren’t any cases out there, and it’s hard to get cases now. If the third-party case buyers can produce a receipt, why not give them one?

Steve: It’s really simple, if we tell people what our next product is, they stop buying our current products. Sometimes websites buy stolen property and they get out there… and case makers have a history of showing off their new cases for our new products. The case vendors haven’t had a history of helping to keep our work under wraps.

Q11: Do any of you use the cases? I don’t.

Steve: Well I don’t. And I get better reception, I hold it like this [death grip] and never see problems.

Another snappy answer! Clearly Steve still holds a major grudge against Gizmodo — as evidenced by Giz not receiving an invitation to today’s event.

Q12: Would you have done anything differently knowing what you know now?

Steve: Well, of course the Consumer Reports stuff was bad, and of course we would have liked to get on this sooner. We just got this data. We just learned what was going on. We’re an engineering company. We think like engineers. We love it, we think it’s the right way to solve real problems. I don’t think that’s going to change, and the way we love our customers isn’t going to change. Maybe it’s human nature — when you’re doing well, people want to tear you down. I see it happening with Google, people trying to tear them down. And I don’t understand it… what would you prefer? That we were a korean company, that we were here in America leading the world with these products… maybe it’s just that people want to get eyeballs on their sites. We’ve been around for 34 years… haven’t we earned the credibility and the trust of the press? I think we have that from our users. I didn’t see it exhibited by some of the press as this was blown so far out of proportion. I’m not saying we didn’t make a mistake — we didn’t know that it would have these issues, we didn’t know we were putting a bull’s eye on the phone… but this has been so overblown. But to see how we could do better is going to take some time.

Q13: Is there a hardware redesign in this generation that could fix this problem?

A: You can go on the web and look at pictures of Nokia phones that ship with stickers on the back that say “don’t touch here” — you can go on YouTube and see these. We should you three phones today, all good phones. So right now the state of the art of the entire industry is that no one has solved this problem. Would I like Apple to be first? Yes. Can we make it better right now? Maybe, we’ll see.

Steve: But not everyone is seeing this — a small number encounter it. For those customers we’ll get them a case, and if that doesn’t work, we’ll get them a full refund. And we’ll continue to work on antennas that don’t have this problem. But I think we’re where the rest of industry is right now.

Q14: Was a recall ever up for discussion?

Steve: We get email from people all over the world about issues. We’re really serious about this. We try to figure this out. We come out to their places with test equipment, we want to see logs. We try to get the info and figure it out…
Bob: For the record, we told them we were coming first.
Steve: And we didn’t break down any doors.

Where to start? Poor form. Making jokes about the raid on Jason Chen’s house? Tacky and arrogant.

Q15:What kind of impact do you think this will have on sales?

Tim: We’ll hold financial stuff for our Q2 results call next week.

Q16: Engadget asked if there was possibility of a software fix (based on the NYT article stating an inside source claimed there could be a fix of that type coming.)

Steve had a long answer largely dismissing the question. Then Scott Forstall asked for a mic, and he said that the statement in the Times was “patently false.”

Q17: I’d like to know if the handset has any role in congestion management… the congestion problem, it didn’t get better with the iPhone 4. Does the stack play no role at all in the management of congestion?

Steve: I’d let Scott take this in a second, but first, when AT&T wants to add a cell tower in Texas, it takes about three weeks… when they want to add one in SF, it takes three years. That’s the single biggest problem they’re having. They’re spending a lot expanding their networks, and our data rates are way better on the iPhone 4, but AT&T has to expand its network, and that’s a long process. I know because we’re constantly asking about it. They’re trying really hard, and sometimes I think they should enlist the support of the users in the community.

More soon…
Photo: Engadget

2010年7月17日星期六

iOS 4.0.1 作業系統終於釋出
iPhone 4 收訊問題仍未有解決

文: David Chiu / 新聞中心 2010-07-16

Apple 香港時間 16 日凌晨時終於釋出 iOS 4.0.1 版本，由於有指 iPhone4 的掉格問題主要是出於軟件問題，此次受到業者及眾多 iPhone 用家的關注，而 iOS 4.0.1 中主要修正的問題為 iPhone 訊號顯示格數問題，令人聯想到 iPhone4 的掉格問題是否會因此而得到修正。

根據外國網站 Anandtech 的測試指出，舊版 iOS 中滿格的收訊強度為 -91dB 至 -51dB+ （相差 40dB ），四格為 -101dB 至 -91dB （相差 10dB ），三格為 -103dB 至 -101dB （相差 2dB ），二格為 -107dB 至 -103dB （相差 4dB ），一格至零格為 -113dB 至 -107dB （相差 6dB ），訊號顯示的分佈並不平均。

在更新 iOS 4.0.1 後，訊號由 -76dB 至 -51dB+ （相差 25dB ）將顯示為滿格，四格為 -87dB 至 -76dB （相差 11dB ），三格為 -98dB 至 -87dB （相差 11dB ），二格為 -107dB 至 -98dB （相差 9dB ），一格至零格為 -121dB 至 -107dB （相差 14dB ），格數與訊號強度的對應明顯比舊版合理。

iOS 4 與 iOS 4.0.1 （及 iOS 4.1 ）訊號及顯示格數對比（ From Anandtech ）

單純根據上圖可以預期大部分 iPhone 用家更新 iOS 4.0.1 後，會發覺手機顯示的訊號格數比舊版為少，因此這次的調整或會對用家造成一定的困惑，但顯示格數變少並不代表 iPhone 的收訊能力有分別，反而可以令用家更準確地了解所處地點的收訊情況，最少用家不會在訊號不足時卻誤以為收訊良好。

根據最新的測試顯示， iPhone4 即使升級到新版 iOS 4.0.1 ，仍會出現收訊能力下降的問題，跌幅約為 24dB ，只是基於顯示方式調整的關係，格數下跌應不多於三格，使到收訊問題「看起來」沒先前的嚴重，但實際上並未有真正解決有關問題，若這便是 Apple 早前所說的解決方案，無異於掩耳盜鈴、欺騙不知情的用家。

不過，日前有用家指出在 Apple 更換新的 iPhone 後，發現新機的邊框加上了一層塗層，收訊問題似乎因此消失，未知 Apple 是否會以增加塗層的方法解決收訊問題，若然則塗層的堅固度及耐久度有待証明。

目前有關 iPhone4 的收訊問題，相信要留待香港時間 17 日凌晨在 Apple 加州總部召開的特別記者會後，才可以有進一步的消息，期望 Apple 方面可以交出一個能被外界接受的方案，真正的面對有關問題，撤底地解決收訊問題造成的不良影響。

2010年7月16日星期五

IBM: We are responsible for DBS system failure

By Sumner Lemon | Jul 15, 2010

IBM took responsibility for a major IT system failure suffered by DBS Bank in Singapore on July 5, saying an employee's error caused the outage.

In a statement released Tuesday, IBM said problems started when software monitoring tools detected "instability" within DBS Bank's storage system. While the storage system remained "fully functional," IBM employees initiated a recovery process to fix the issue.

"Unfortunately, a failure to apply the correct procedure inadvertently caused the service outage," IBM said, adding that no data was lost.

The outage knocked DBS' IT systems offline for seven hours, leaving customers unable to withdraw money from automatic teller machines. All of the bank's commercial and consumer banking systems were affected, although no data was lost, the bank said at the time.

Much of DBS' IT systems are managed by IBM under a S$1.2 billion (US$868 million) outsourcing agreement signed in 2002.

IBM and DBS are taking steps to prevent a repeat of the July 5 system failure.

IBM has "taken steps to enhance training of our personnel related to current procedures and brought in experts from our global team to provide further assistance," the statement said. In addition, IBM and DBS are taking "additional actions to increase the resiliency and redundancy of this part of DBS' infrastructure," it said.

A DBS spokeswoman didn't immediately reply to an e-mail seeking comment on the IBM statement.

IDG News Service (Singapore Bureau)

Microsoft exec: iPhone 4 is Apple's Vista

By Gregg Keizer | Jul 16, 2010

A top Microsoft executive on Wednesday compared Apple's iPhone 4 to his own company's problem-plagued Vista operating system.

"It looks like the iPhone 4 might be their Vista, and I'm okay with that," said Kevin Turner, Microsoft's chief operating officer, in a keynote speech at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC), which runs through Thursday in Washington, D.C.

The successor to Windows XP, Vista launched in early 2007 and was heavily criticized by users, and in a series of e-mails that became public during a class-action lawsuit, even by the company's own senior executives. The consensus, deserved or not, has become that Vista was one of Microsoft's worst operating systems.

Earlier in his talk, Turner poked fun at the reception problems that have dogged Apple's iPhone 4 since its June 24 launch. "One of the things I want to make sure you know today is that you're going to be able to use a Windows Phone 7 and not have to worry about how you're holding it to make a phone call," Turner said, referring to the Microsoft mobile operating system set to debut on smartphones this fall.

Complaints about the iPhone 4's call reception surfaced within hours of its release to retail, as buyers griped that touching the external antenna -- embedded in a steel band that encircles the case -- often dropped calls or caused the signal strength indicator to plummet. Apple acknowledged that holding the iPhone 4 could weaken the cellular signal, then a week later claimed that the iPhone 4's signal formula was flawed and promised to update the software.

Others have called for Apple to make good.

Late Tuesday, Consumer Reports magazine, which on Monday told buyers it would not recommend the iPhone 4 -- a first for the publication, which has given its "Recommended" label to all previous iPhones -- said it was Apple's responsibility to "provide the fix -- at no extra cost to consumers."

Saying that it was wrong for Apple to put the onus on iPhone 4 customers -- Apple told users to "avoid gripping it in the lower left corner" or "use one of the many available cases" -- Consumer Reports urged the Cupertino, Calif. company to provide a free case to people who buy or have bought the smartphone.

"We insist that Apple pays for the fix, not consumers," said Mike Gikas, the magazine's senior electronics editor, in an interview yesterday. "The best solution would be for Apple to issue a case with the iPhone 4, or give consumers a credit at its online store for one."

Besides mocking Apple's iPhone, Turner also touted Windows Phone 7, now slated to reach retail in the US this November on a number of smartphone models.

The iPhone's position isn't unassailable, Turner argued. "We're back in the game," he said. "And this game is not over."

Computerworld (US)

Gartner: Dell still lags behind Acer

By Sumner Lemon | Jul 16, 2010

The race for the No. 2 spot among PC vendors may be to close to call, with analyst firms disagreeing over whether or not Dell lagged behind rival Acer during the second quarter.

On Wednesday, IDC reported that Dell retook the second spot from Acer during the second quarter. But Gartner disagreed, saying Acer maintained its lead over Dell. Both firms reported that the Taiwanese PC vendor overtook Dell during the third quarter of 2009.

Gartner reported that Acer shipped nearly 10.8 million desktops and laptops during the second quarter of 2010, compared to Dell shipments of 10.3 million units. Those numbers gave the companies a 13 percent and 12.4 percent share of the market, respectively. HP was the top seller, shipping almost 14.5 million desktops and laptops during the period, Gartner said.

IDC's estimates were close. The analyst firm said Dell shipped 10.6 million units during the second quarter of 2010, compared to 10.2 million units for Acer. IDC gave Dell a 13 percent share of the market, with Acer claiming 12.6 percent.

Like Gartner, IDC said HP shipped more PCs than anyone else, with shipments of almost 14.8 million units.

Although Dell's shipments didn't top Acer by Gartner's count, the firm said the Round Rock, Texas, PC maker's sales were rising in tandem with an uptick in commercial demand for PCs.

"Uptake in the professional PC market secured Dell's PC business, but the consumer market was still a challenge for the company," Gartner said.

IDG News Service (Singapore Bureau)

2010年7月15日星期四

Windows XP: Kill it, bin it, upgrade it

By Zack Whittaker | July 13, 2010, 12:24pm PDT

Summary: Even though Windows XP, now 10 years old, will be available to some until 2015, it’s time to upgrade and there’s simply no excuse not to.

Windows XP is old, outdated, insecure in comparison to modern day operating systems, and frankly it’s a relic from the millennium which has gone well past its sell-by date.
It’s the sour, emulsifying yogurt of the technology world, basically.

Sure, three-quarters of all PCs still run Windows XP, but coupled with the fact that the average age of a PC is nearly five years old, I’m surprised these machines aren’t still run by mice running on a wheel on the inside.

I hate to side up to Microsoft’s messages here but on a selfish point, it’s no longer what it’s cracked up to be. While Windows XP has been given another reprieve until 2015, Windows 7 SP1 has been recently released giving those in the enterprise the reliability and security they didn’t feel they could get from the initial release.

Internet Explorer 9 might push the balance as Adrian Kingsley-Hughes points out, seeing as the next-generation web browser won’t be made available for XP users. Even though IE still holds the majority market-share, there’s no reason why say Firefox users could jump ship and move to the latest Ubuntu edition?

But these arguments are superficial frankly. I doubt you could find one person to give a single, good reason to convince every single XP user to upgrade to a newer alternative. If such a golden key answer was indeed possible, surely every operating system manufacturer would have used it long ago.

In a nutshell, XP is not “Generation Y” anymore. It hasn’t been for a long time. If you’re still desperate to use it - and why, I would love to know - you can still have it in Windows 7 as well as run it on Linux with WINE.

But, even though Windows XP Mode may well give you the application compatibility, it pretty much leaves the door open for suicide bombers by simply being there in the first place.
This coming semester when, or if, you buy yourself a new laptop - you’ll be saddled with Windows 7 no doubt. Unless you’re going for a netbook, then keep with the times and make the leap. Even then, there’s no reason not to jump aboard the Linux train.

At least it’s not like the latest iPhone which has been stuffed up from the start; XP was good while it lasted but it’s time to pull the plug and ditch it for the latest and greatest.

Is it time XP was laid to rest?

2010年7月14日星期三

健康 = 生活習慣

健康 = 生活習慣

很多時大家都用忙、超忙、得閒死唔得閒病來形容自己真(?)的太忙，連休息時間都沒有，哪有時間做運動。本人同意香港人為兩餐而忙過不停，但忙碌和做運動本是兩件事，大家理須成章把忙碌 => 冇時間 => 不可能做運動。哈哈！為什麽這樣？為何不可？

忙碌 => 冇時間 => 不可能吃飯，
忙碌 => 冇時間 => 不可能打機，
忙碌 => 冇時間 => 不可能shopping。

這只是比如，不是方程式，更不是絕對正確的，但我們就是給自己這個借口。懶惰會成為習慣，用借口也會養成習慣。本人在此不是想教訓斥責大家，而是想給大家一個醒覺的溫馨提示。由生活的小節中，大家都可以給自己一些段練，行樓梯、行多一段路，雖然算不上運動，但至少給沒有運動的自己—些突破，凡是由小小的開始，便可打破借口。說到行樓梯，小弟每日大大小小約行有—百多級樓梯，每日乘西鐵又轉乘東涌線，再加港島線，不論是自動電梯或梯級 (小弟多數選擇後者)，行上行落 (港鐵是希望大家站立自動電梯)，有了一些動力，才可以延續。不要考慮太多，由自己的生活習慣，找出活動的借口，推進延續的運動。

健康是由適量的運動建立，運動由良好的生活習慣改善。

HP designer on your next laptop: greater personalization, mobility, efficiency

By Melanie D.G. Kaplan | July 13, 2010, 2:00am PDT

They go to the Milan furniture show, follow fashion trends and hire color consultants to learn what shades you’ll be coveting two years from now. They’re the designers in HP’s Personal Systems Group, and once they lock into a design, it’s only about 30 to 36 weeks until production.

I recently talked to Stacy Wolff, the group’s director of notebook design, about materials, form versus function and the design process for HP’s Envy series.

When you’re designing a laptop, you have to factor in things like durability, thinness, materials and packaging. What’s your formula for balancing form and function?

I would say we have a very organic process. A lot of companies have a pre-described minimalism; I’d say HP is a bit more fluid. We have so many brands and tiers. Looking at form versus function, we have a very strong form DNA–which we’ve heard from a lot of folks who review our products.

Our design philosophy and approach is MUSE: Materials, Usability, Sensory and Experience. The “M” is all about balance between form and function.

Does the formula change as you move into higher-end products?

As you go high end, you have a little more latitude to drive the more pristine, precise form. The function within is more hidden and allows you to reach your design goals more.
To some degree you have to look at it like [what happened] at the turn of the century: They built buildings with reinforced concrete, and then new steels came into place, and then the architects became very form-driven. If you look at some of the theaters out there—Disney theaters–it’s really about form. Function is a component.

HP Pavilion dv5 (Sonoma Red)

What kind of new materials are you using?

We’ve stayed more plastic in our mass area. We use bonding between aluminum and magnesium in our Envy Consumer and Elite Book for Business Notebooks, where we want to achieve low chassis weight with outstanding structure and durability.
It’s a two-level benefit. The dual metal, constructed like an airplane wing, gives you a great structure. But it’s also better from an energy consumption standpoint. To make it, we mold magnesium and then wrap it with a thin skin of aluminum. It’s done within minutes, which is more efficient in overall energy used to make a part.

What frustrates you about laptops and the limitations of materials?

It’s always a balance. I don’t think there’s a true frustration. For any designer, the technology that’s within always has its limitations. As a user you want to buy a product with the highest-end processor and want it to be thin and light, but the higher the processor the greater the thermal and the Z-height. The pain point of users is always that balance between greatest technology, best performance and having the thinnest, lightest product out there.

What things do consumers say they want, versus what they’re willing to spend money on?

HP looks at different segments, from brand techies to everyday consumers to soccer moms. Each demographic has a certain thing that appeals to them.
What we’ve found in certain segments, for the thing people really like or had strong feelings about, they had no issue spending money. The Vivienne Tam exercises we went through—it was a product that sold at a premium, and we sold out of it. The end user’s perception about that offering was so strong that price became a lesser factor in buying that product. HP’s approach is about a portfolio offering, so we have many products at an entry price point, but at the same time, we’re bringing in new approaches, new technologies.

HP Pavilion dm4

How do you pick colors and patterns, and does it follow other color trends?

We have a design center here in Houston, folks in Cupertino [Calif.] and in Taipei. Each of the designers do trend and product research. We will hit shows—Milan furniture show, Dwell convention in L.A. We look at the influences on the public and outer factors that influence what people buy and what they look for. In 2006 we introduced IMD [In Mold Decoration, a process that transfers ink from a carrier sheet to the plastic, “tattooing” the plastic]. That came after a designer went to Milan and was inspired to look at the product in a different way. The Vivienne Tam and Tord Boontje special editions–that’s from looking at artists and trends. The key thing here is HP was the first computer company to completely shift to this new process and popularized it for the industry.

Color: We have independent consultants here and in Europe who give us a trend forecasts. We put our pallets together on an annual basis. We tend to go one to two years out. Technology-wise, things happen fairly quickly when you’re talking about what’s in the PC.

What are some of the next trends?

Greater degrees of personalization–not what you might see from some of our competitors, but being a participant with HP in really crafting the right product for them, in technology as well as the skin.

We see the great permeation of mobility: form factors that are thinner , lighter, more mobile and less traditional.
We also continue to look at how we design future pieces that make things more efficient, both in terms of production and materials/chemicals used and the amount of energy needed to use the product.

HP ENVY 14

Let’s take the Envy series. Tell me about the process you went through, from sketches to prototypes to manufacturing.

We have a team of boy-girl. We have both sexes on the team and folks from around the world, so it’s multi-cultural. When we start a program we start it as a group sit-down effort. Before that, we allow the designers to go off on excursions; we’re going to non-traditional areas to determine what is the next thing—it’s research we find or get from the outside consultant.
We go fairly quickly from sketch to something dimensional. With mobile products, we look at them from a 360-degree approach. It’s so important to hold it in your hand to understand how your body reacts to what you’ve created.

From there, we go to an outward validation mode. It’s a very cross-disciplinary team, and we look at: Did we make some right decisions? Wrong decisions? Then we go to various sites around the world to share designs and vet out—were our assumptions correct? We don’t want it to be a beauty contest, but if we’re chasing something that’s a thin and light product, I might give people in a session different shapes to see what they perceive as thinner and lighter.
It’s maybe three to four months of design and research. Once we have locked into a design, it’s a bullet train. It’s around 30 to 36 weeks to production. The fresher, the newer the technology, it’s amazing the appetite of consumers. The technology is a driving factor.

For all the products?

The netbook space doesn’t generate Moores’s Law. What you see there is the fusion of fashion and design.

The Mini space, or netbook space, it’s become more about ergonomic, and really compelling design. When we did IMD—using technology and fashion together–with Vivienne Tam, Sex and the City–it’s more about lifestyle, more about providing good functionality. In our research, we saw a number of these netbooks in the market, borrowing from the Asian mindset: super small screen and keyboard. So we put a bigger keyboard in with a smaller display. From that, users and reviewers said that HP is a more comfortable, better solution than anything out there. So function drove form. We knew this would be a great mobile communication device

HP Mini 210 (Preppy Pink)

What laptops do you use at work and home?

I am an avid user of our Envy line–Envy 13. It’s an ideal product for me. Its screen is twice as bright as anything out there, it has a comfortable keyboard and a slice battery, which doubles your run time. But at the same time, I might pair that up with a tablet PC, so I can notate on drawings and sketch out something; I tend to have a couple PCs with me at all times.

At home, I tend to go a little larger–our 17-inch product. It has a beautiful aluminum case and a full-size keyboard. It becomes a center point for my home.

I went on vacation recently and brought a pink plaid Mini [210] for myself and my daughter and wife. It was a great product and quite fashionable for a pre-teen girl.

And for you?

I have no problem wearing a pink shirt or carrying a pink plaid Mini.
Images: HP

Apple's iPhone 4 antenna flap: Overblown, hubris or simple testing mistake?

By Larry Dignan | July 14, 2010, 5:22am PDT

Summary: The iPhone 4 antenna issue becoming a major headache for Apple, but larger questions remain. Is Apple too cocky, handling a skirmish with Consumer Reports well or in denial about overlooking a design flaw in its testing?

With the iPhone 4 antenna issue becoming a major headache for Apple, analysts are busy handicapping the costs of a potential recall, which observers like Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster deem “highly unlikely.” But the larger questions are whether Apple is too cocky for its own good or handling a skirmish with Consumer Reports properly since the antenna flap may be overblown.

In recent days, it has been an interesting duel between Consumer Reports and Apple. Apple has admitted that there is an antenna reception problem on its iPhone 4, but told customers that the fix is to hold the phone the right way—when you touch the antenna, reception dies. Consumer Reports and other testers have documented signal degradation when touching the lower left portion of the device, bridging the iPhone’s antennas. A bumper case (right) fixes the problem. Update: Apple is holding a press conference Friday most likely to address the iPhone 4 issues.

Consumer Reports verified that there’s a hardware issue and has called on Apple to fix the iPhone 4. Duct tape seems to help.

Simply put, Consumer Reports says “we think it’s the company’s responsibility to provide the fix—at no extra cost to consumers.” Typically, Consumer Reports’ recommendations are gold and companies don’t mess with the publication’s findings. In most cases, product companies respond to the concerns in an open and public fashion. Every once in a while Consumer Reports is off, but its track record is solid.

Apple hasn’t given much of a response. After all, it’s still moving a lot of iPhone 4s. Macquarie analyst Phil Cusick says in a research note:

While we do not see any evidence of a slowdown in sales and our checks indicate almost no returns, the antenna issue could become a public relations problem and potentially impact Apple’s sterling brand image.

In the meantime, analysts have been handicapping the costs of a recall or providing a bumper case free of charge. Bottom line is that the expense is negligible. To wit:

Piper Jaffray’s Munster says Apple could give away bumper cases that it sells for $29. Giving away a case for free at $5 each would run about $178.5 million for every iPhone 4 over the next year. That equates to 1 percent of operating income.
According to CNet News, Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi pegs a recall at $1.5 billion. Like Munster, Sacconaghi says that a recall isn’t likely.
The cheapest option for Apple is to do nothing. Munster explains:

A second is option is for Apple to do nothing; as we’ve mentioned, we estimate that only 25% of iPhone users are periodically affected by the issue, and Apple could weather the storm by letting the current demand for the iPhone speak for itself.

Delivering bumper cases would be the easiest option. Apple could keep customers and Consumer Reports, which accounts for a lot of word-of-mouth marketing, happy. The issue here is that Apple would have to admit there’s a real design problem with the iPhone 4.
That brings us to the hubris issue. Sacconaghi says that Apple’s limited disclosure about Steve Jobs health, the attack on Adobe’s Flash and skirmish with Gizmodo over a lost iPhone add up over time. Meanwhile, Apple’s argument that customers need to hold the iPhone 4 a different way doesn’t go over well.
Munster isn’t so sure. He thinks the iPhone 4 flap is overblown. In fact, Apple probably just made a testing mistake. Munster notes:

We believe Apple field tests every iPhone model. However, recall that the lost iPhone 4 prototype was disguised as an older model iPhone with a case. Given its proclivity to secrecy, it is possible that Apple required all test units to have a case, which would render the issue undetectable. In other words, Apple may never have known the problem existed on test units in the field because they all had cases on them.

At this juncture, there are good arguments to be made for all sides. Apple can be too cocky. The iPhone 4 flap could very well be overblown. But it’s clear that Apple needs to do something. Risking a brand over what could be fixed with a case doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Related:

我的世博遊歷續集

於上海舉行的世博會，早前曾經傳出遊人太多大排長龍的新聞；相反作為傳媒的我，卻能幸運地避免排隊之苦，現在回想起來真的有點不好意思。繼之前一晚參觀瑞士館後，今天我們再走進其他展館，感覺一下不同的寰宇風情。

撰文、攝影：史永貞
(adrianswada@gmail.com)
鳴謝：瑞士旅遊局

昨天從午到晚，我們都在上海世博的瑞士館內，歡度了一段歡樂時光。今天我們則走進其他展館，感受一下其他地方的風情。身為香港傳媒的我們，首先被分配到瑞典館參觀。走到裏面一瞥……感覺着實很有親切感，有些東西好像在你我家中都可找到。噢，原來展館內用上宜家傢俬作道具，難怪這裏會有「家的感覺」，試問今時今日有幾多個香港家庭是沒有宜家的蹤影？

雨天反比晴天更快進館

離開瑞典館，就是我們的自由時間，可以自行參觀其他的歐洲園區展館。如是者我跟一位行家與人潮一同在雨中排隊進入芬蘭館、丹麥館。受天雨所賜，我們竟然每次只花了15分鐘，就可以進入兩館，證明雨天反比晴天更適合遊世博。

瑞典有宜家，芬蘭又有甚麼？當然是Nokia！芬蘭館有一個玩意，讓每個參觀者先拍一幅頭像照，然後即時用藍芽傳到一面用Nokia手機拼合的牆上，經過處理，如同Andy Warhol畫作的頭像就會逐格展示出來，算是我今天參觀的展館中，最具誠意的一個。因為展館把哥本哈根海岸「長居」的美人魚，請到上海成為駐館大使，因此成為大家瘋狂拍照的對象。原來這裏還有單車讓大家遊歷展館，可惜因雨天而暫停，這也是不用大排長龍的原因。

城市生活面面觀

國家館之外，我們也踏足了城市最佳實踐區展館，在同一屋簷下，觀看到巴黎、大阪、布拉格、日內瓦、蘇黎世、巴塞爾等城市的發展，最驚喜的是瑞士「三城」日內瓦、蘇黎世、巴塞爾，以環形銀幕和噴水玩意，聯合展示「三城」如何在日常生活上改善水質。而最搞笑的算是巴黎，從頭到尾都只見到老佛爺百貨的東西，不說還以為是一個廣告展示區呢！

上海世博門票

香港市民可事先到中旅社或透過世博電話專線(2998 7010)訂購，指定日票價HK$237、平日票價HK$189。

上海自由行套票

包括上海航空或中國東方航空來回香港及上海經濟客位機票、兩夜酒店住宿及早餐，價錢由HK$1,370起(兩位起計)，查詢：2998 7888 / www.ctshk.com (香港中旅社)

我的世博遊歷

幾乎每天，都可以從報章雜誌以至電視，看到上海世博的介紹和最新消息，談論得熱熾熾，猶如登長城一般 ││不到世博非好漢！這次我一連兩天做了「世博好漢」，見識了繼京奧之後，廿一世紀全中國人民都熱烈期待的盛事。

承蒙瑞士旅遊局的招待，6月中有機會跟大班中港台澳的媒體，一行近百人到上海世博的瑞士館，參加一個招待大中華地區媒體的「包館」聚會 (對，這天正午後瑞士館不對外開放，只有我們在遊玩)。
說到底，我自己對世博的興趣不算很大：一方面，作為一個可以周遊列國的旅遊撰稿人，已經有很多機會親身遊歷，用不着透過大型LED螢幕、視聽系統看環宇風情；另一方面，看罷林林總總負面報道，對安排、秩序、交通、人民素質都有扣分的感覺。再加上每天近30萬進場人次、愈來愈酷熱的天氣等種種因素…… 光想一想，都嚇得我有點怕。
不過，既然一場來到，主辦單位自然不會待慢我們。烈日之下，遠處一大群民眾慢慢排隊進園，而我們就可以頸掛瑞士館的VIP通行證靜悄悄入場(不過也得要持160人民幣的入場票才可入場)，雖然好像很卑鄙……不過要在32度高溫下曬着、渾身冒汗等待着的話，也得卑鄙一回！
連環乘坐四次小吊車
沒興趣還沒興趣，一場進入了世博園區，也會像劉姥姥走入大觀園一樣，眼睛不停溜轉看這看那，冀望在短暫的時間內可以看到多個國家館。而然，既然瑞士旅遊局作東，也得要花多一點時間留在瑞士館一看究竟。
根據一些非正式的統計，在歐洲各國館區內，瑞士館是最受參觀者歡迎的三甲之一。依我的觀察所得知，瑞士館之所以可以成為三甲之一，並不是因為館內的大型投影瑞士山峰風光，或者是LED瑞士人互動生活講解，而是從館內一直引伸到館外屋頂的奇特交通工具──小吊車！坐在這些小吊車上，從館的底部穿越鋪滿松柏、帶着幽幽綠草芳香的圓塔，慢慢爬升到屋頂上的人工草原上。可以在吊車上，速遊這段瑞士山丘縮景的同時，還可以居高眺望歐洲各國展館的風光。我們乘坐的時候正值烈日已經西沉、天邊還散逸點點橙黃色餘暉……美極！不過我很貪心，趁今天不用跟一般民眾爭先恐後，就沒有下吊車玩了一圈一圈又一圈……一共四圈，黃昏到天黑的漸變風景都給我看到了！平時？連上小吊車都要等一個小時呢！

另類傳統表演氣氛高漲
入黑後，平時擠滿人群排隊的瑞士館大堂，變身成為一個晚宴會場，讓我們可品嘗一頓從食物、飲品、廚子到侍應都是從瑞士空運到來的瑞士美饌，當然少不了我自己很喜歡的rosti薯餅、別具濃郁香草味道的香腸。
不過，食物再精采也不及當晚的表演來得充滿驚喜──從瑞士遠渡重洋而來的三人組合，演奏瑞士的傳統樂器Alphorn阿爾卑斯號角。對，就是那些趕牛羊用的長長號角，不過吹奏的不是一般看到穿民族服的叔叔，而是打扮風騷的女號角手，以blues和jazz的手法吹出極富時代感的新演瑞士音樂……她吹得動作和音韻都萬般婀娜，絕對不是「對牛吹角」！(待續)

上海世博門票　︱香港市民可事先到中旅社或透過世博電話專線(2998 7010)訂購，指定日票價HK$237、平日票價HK$189。
上海自由行套票︱包括上海航空或中國東方航空來回香港及上海經濟客位機票、兩夜酒店住宿及早餐，價錢由HK$1,370起(兩位起計)，查詢：2998 7888 / www.ctshk.com (香港中旅社 )

黃毅力力筆從心：「12課」之終極篇

今年全新的《CEO實戰日記2：人生重要的軟硬實力》，背後具有特別的意義，因它將是我送給女兒出國讀書前的一份禮物。

記得第一天送女兒上學，是她小學一年級的開課日，蹦蹦跳跳的小妹妹，帶着童真的笑容，背着重如大石的書包，彷彿還是昨天的事；一眨眼，她已是個長得亭亭玉立、穿着高跟鞋的女生。她18歲的生日剛慶祝過，卻又離她赴美留學之期不遠，正因如此，我特意叫女兒在近一個月來天天到我的拉麵店「日丁一保」上班，以做暑期工為名，其實是珍惜時間，即使她已不用上課，我仍要她上班，好待我們又可以天天早上一起出門，給我重溫每天送他們上學的時光。

上班的途中，車子走在風景怡人的山路，猶如人生的命運，迂迴曲折，充滿起伏，我一邊駕車，一邊跟女兒談天說地，爭取時間給她上課，每天一課很重要的「軟實力及硬實力」，教她如何在未來的生活及學習中靈活運用，希望提升她的智慧及實戰能力，即使獨個兒在國外仍能好好地生活與成長。於是，我也將教導給女兒的12個課題結集成書，放進這本《CEO實戰日記2》中與所有讀者分享。

去年的《12課》十分成功，更有一位老師來信賜我很寶貴的意見，特別是日記及《12課》的開始是9月，也是學校的新學期(Academic Year)，他說售價169元的日記本，即使內容超過4萬字，但對普羅大眾來說也實在太昂貴了。他的看法我很贊同，故此我決定將今年的《CEO實戰日記 2》定價為89元。如此大的減幅，對於曾經給我信任及支持，以169元購得去年出版的《12課》的讀者，我答應給他們額外的折扣優惠。

任何讀者只要將手上《12課》9月3日的一篇剪下來，於本年7月21日起拿到我們富利堡陳列室或書展的攤位，可以89元拿走兩本新的《CEO實戰日記2》，即是每本只售44元半。我希望用優惠價與讀者們以書會友，將多出來的一本送贈給你所關愛的、重視的、你希望他們作出改變的人，再互相提醒，透過每月課題跟着改變。這是我對提供意見的老師一種最實在的回應。衷心多謝你，趙老師！

如學校有意集體訂購，訂量50本或以上的「校園破格價」是每本49元；如其他讀者欲訂購10本或以上，優惠價是每本60元。而這本新的《CEO 實戰日記》，內容是著重人生的軟、硬實力的應用，包括談判、改善、人際智力、領導才能、創新與創意、個人自律、性格與命運、平衡的藝術、洞察力、當下的力量、時機把握及創造和推銷術等12個課題；不論是學生又或職場中人，相信對你們都能有所啓發和幫助。

希望我的實戰智慧、可行方法及良好習慣，能透過這本全新的實戰日記，在九月開始的新學年給大家帶來新的學習方式及新思維。如有查詢及預訂，歡迎寫電郵給我或致電2588 0662。

每日金句：要生命過癮，先要對生命上癮！

黃毅力

Consumer report: Don't buy Apple's iPhone 4

By Gregg Keizer | Jul 14, 2010

Consumer Reports magazine said on Monday that it won't recommend Apple's iPhone 4 because of major reception issues when users touch the external antenna.

One analyst called the publication's conclusion a "black eye" for Apple.

"When your finger or hand touches a spot on the phone's lower left side -- an easy thing, especially for lefties -- the signal can significantly degrade enough to cause you to lose your connection altogether if you're in an area with a weak signal," said Mike Gikas, the publication's senior electronics editor in a blog post Monday .

Consumer Reports non-recommendation -- "Due to this problem, we can't recommend the iPhone 4," Gikas said -- is the latest in a series of knocks against the iPhone 4 over reception problems.

Complaints from consumers about the iPhone 4 dropping calls surfaced within hours of the smartphone 's launch last month. Apple quickly acknowledged that holding the iPhone 4 can diminish the signal but offered only generic advice, telling users to "avoid gripping it in the lower left corner" or "use one of the many available cases."

A week later, Apple admitted that the iPhone 4's signal strength formula was flawed and promised to update the software. Consumer Reports's Gikas dismissed that explanation as a red herring. "Our findings call into question the recent claim by Apple that the iPhone 4's signal-strength issues were largely an optical illusion caused by faulty software," he said.

The magazine tested three iPhone 4s in its radio frequency (RF) isolation chamber, where a cell tower emulator was used to simulate real-world signals. Gikas said that the publication's engineers also tested several other AT&T phones in the chamber, including the iPhone 3GS and the Palm Pre. "None of those phones had the signal-loss problems of the iPhone 4," he said.

Gikas said that the tests hinted that "AT&T's network might not be the primary suspect" in the iPhone 4 woes, quashing talk by some that the U.S. carrier is largely at fault.

"Consumer Reports carries some weight," said Jack Gold, an analyst at J. Gold Associates. "But I'm not sure how many people are actually reading it. Certainly, not many 20-somethings are."

Still, the magazine's testing and conclusion is bad for Apple on several levels. "This is a black eye for Apple," Gold said. "Now people can say, 'See, we told you it has reception problems.'"

Gold speculated that the antenna issue either escaped Apple's notice, or that the company knew of it and still released the iPhone 4. "This is basic cell phone 101," he said, referring to testing Apple should have done prior to launching the smartphone. "RF [radio frequency] is a sort of like black magic, so in order to make sure [handsets] work, cell phone makers have beta devices in the real world running around." But Apple, with its fondness for security, may have skimped on that part of its pre-release testing.

Consumer Reports also concluded that covering the antenna gap -- the small scores in the steel band near the bottom of each side of the iPhone 4 -- with duct tape or another thick, non-conductive material helps reduce the reception problem. "It may not be pretty, but it works," said Gikas.