tech
Learning by Shipping
Former Windows executive Steven Sinofsky, explaining the name of his new blog:
The title comes from something impressed upon me early in my career, which is that learning as an engineer comes from the process of starting, then finishing, and iterating on products–getting products to market and putting the broad feedback loop to work.
Funny, that’s why I picked this website’s name. Great minds… Although I would have called it “Learn by Shipping.” That -ing after “learn” is bugging me.
Still bugging me.
Verizon Activated 3.1 Million iPhones In Q3 2012, But Only 651K Were iPhone 5s
Verizon Activated 3.1 Million iPhones In Q3 2012, But Only 651K Were iPhone 5s
MG Siegler, commenting on the TechCrunch post by Chris Velazco, linked above:
In other words, the iPhone 5 was on sale for just nine days before the quarter ended. And it was supply-constrained the whole time.
Mr. Siegler and Mr. Velazco pointed out the nine-day sales window the iPhone 5 had before these quarterly numbers were announced, but neither came right out and said what I find to be the most impressive expression of it:
Verizon activated over 72,000 iPhone 5s per day during the nine days ending the quarter.
SoftBank buys 70% stake in Sprint
SoftBank buys 70% stake in Sprint
Michael J. De La Merced and Neil Gough, in The New York Times:
In a statement on Monday, SoftBank, a big Japanese telecommunications company, said it would pay $8 billion to buy newly issued Sprint stock worth about $5.25 a share. It will then pay $12.1 billion to buy existing stock from other investors at $7.30 a share, a premium to current levels.
This could be a very big deal. Sprint just became a strong third place again to Verizon and AT&T.
Twitter forced to turn over protester's deleted tweets
Twitter forced to turn over protester’s deleted tweets
Mike Isaac, writing at All Things D:
In the end, the New York DA and the judge used a legal maneuver to put pressure on Twitter, threatening to hold the company in contempt of court and levy steep fines if it didn’t hand over the data.
You can’t say they didn’t try.
They have even appealed the judge’s threat to hold them in contempt. The envelope—yes, a physical envelope—containing the tweets at issue will remain sealed until that appeal is complete.
I’ve said it before: it may not be a good time to be a third-party Twitter developer, but the company truly goes to bat for its users when it’s appropriate.
Apple's Comfortable Middle
Hamish McKenzie, writing at PandoDaily :
With two product launches in a row that show Apple is merely keeping pace with innovation rather than leading it, the world’s most valuable company will start to seem mortal.
I disagree.
For the record, I’m usually on board with Mr. McKenzie’s analyses, and I think he’s right that the iPhone 5 doesn’t restore the staggering lead Apple once had in smartphone innovation. I just don’t agree that there is any probable circumstance in which the iPhone 5 marks the beginning of the end of Apple’s dominance. I want him to be right, but I believe it will take action on the part of Apple’s competitors, rather than mere inaction from Cupertino, to catalyze that descent from the pinnacle.
I want to see something truly threaten Apple’s dominance: it would be good for consumers and even good for Apple, potentially motivating just the sort of next-generation innovation everyone wishes we saw with the iPhone 5. But Android is peddled in an ever-changing array of hardware of wildly varying quality, its interface often marred by manufacturer “improvements” and carrier-mandated bloatware, with no cohesive or remotely predictable software upgrade schedule.
Yes, it’s customizable, “open” (depending on how you define the term), and a provider of competitive pressure. In fact, Android, the OS, in its pristine Jelly Bean state on glorious hardware, is functional and gorgeous. But Android, the experience and, for lack of a better word, the brand, is truly a mess.
Then, there is the iPhone.
Apple tried for years to make things people loved. They succeeded. Now they are in the business of making improvements on the things they make that people love. And they’re succeeding there, too.
Whether or not they revolutionize TV next, and whether or not they drastically refresh iOS in the next couple of years, I think they’re still comfortably in the middle of their dominance, and at the top of their game.
Cloud startup aims to make “dumb” cell phones smart
Cloud startup aims to make “dumb” cell phones smart
Sean Gallagher reports at Ars Technica on biNu, a company developing an asynchronous, server-side smartphone emulator in Java. The system’s low-bandwidth, high-security nature makes it a perfect fit for countries where the next iPhone is out of reach.
Read Gallagher’s article for the details. This is far more exciting to me than the next iPhone. Networked mobile computing technology is still in its infancy when it comes to worldwide availability and adoption. Clever technology like biNu’s may help change that.
Apple's Secrets Revealed at Trial
Apple’s Secrets Revealed at Trial
Ian Sherr, writing for the Wall Street Journal:
In cross-examination, Mr. Forstall said Eddy Cue, now head of Apple’s Internet services efforts, had used a 7-inch Samsung tablet for a time, and sent an email to Chief Executive Tim Cook that he believed “there will be a 7-inch market and we should do one.”
While the rumor mill is still citing anonymous sources, this quote, for me, seals the deal. If Apple thinks there is a market (and at least one of its high-ranking executives does), and Apple thinks it can dominate that market (and they already dominate the ~10 inch tablet market), Apple will enter that market.
Don't believe the 'Apple invests in Twitter' hype
Don’t believe the ‘Apple invests in Twitter’ hype
In fact, an Apple investment in Twitter is painted as something Twitter can take or leave, but a partnership Apple desperately needs.
Tim Carmody makes a great point in this piece.