Michael Sampson on Making Collaboration Work

Moving from Windows 7 to Windows 8 - Free Tool from Laplink

Laplink Software released a free tool for moving from Windows 7 to Windows 8, for testing:

"PCmover Windows 8 is available now as a free download on Laplink’s website and can be used to perform an unlimited number of migrations at no charge prior to July 2012.

Beta Assistant provides a unique solution that allows users to move selected programs, files and settings from a Windows 7 or Windows 8 machine into a new machine running Windows 8. PCmover is the number one best-selling migration software in the world and is the only software that moves installed programs (as well as files, settings and user profiles) from an old PC to a new one. Unlike PCmover, Microsoft’s Windows Easy Transfer has never supported the process of migrating installed apps. Without PCmover, users must find old CDs, re-download applications, and locate serial numbers and keys to manually install programs when setting up a new PC."

Read more: Laplink Releases Free Windows® 8 Testing Tool

Mountain Lion More Phone-Like: Simplicity, Security, Syncing

Pete outlines three advantages of desktop computers becoming more phone like, with the first being simplicity. He notes the downside too:

"The main reason Apple wants to make Macs work like the iPhone and iPad is simple. Or rather, simplicity.

Despite decades of innovation and the invention of the graphical user interface, computers remain too confusing and complex for the majority of people.

While more powerful software with complex functionality will continue to exist for highly technical users, most consumers want a device that's easy to use and intuitive.
The rise of the iPad and iPhone prove that there's huge demand for such simplicity, and that desktops too will need to become more streamlined.

The downside of simplicity? Simple systems are often less "open" and provide less freedom to try new things: Tasks are either easy to complete (because the developers thought of that use case) or not possible at all."

Read more: CNN

Mac OS X 10.8 - Mountain Lion

Apple released early information about the next edition of Mac OS X:

"Well, don’t look now, but Mountain Lion brings even more of the iPhone/iPad features to the Mac. The juiciest payoff here is the suite of Mac apps that now mimic what’s on the iPhone/iPad, like Reminders, Notes, Messages and Game Center. Through your free iCloud account, all of these apps are synced instantly and smoothly across all your Apple gadgets. On the Mac, you type a reminder to yourself; it appears simultaneously on your iPhone.

Notes is cool: you can add photos to your notes, or change the font styles and sizes. (The font and size changes sync over to your iPhone/iPad, but not photos.) You can also pin a note to your desktop to make sure it grabs your attention.

Messages is particularly awesome. Now you can type little messages — or shoot photos or videos — to anyone else with an iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or Mountain Lion Mac, right from your computer. These may feel like text messages, but they’re free and don’t involve the cellphone company. And because everything is synced up, you see the same conversation thread on all your gadgets. If you started a chat with your boss on the phone, you can get home from work, sit down at your Mac and see the whole transcript so far.

This new Messages app replaces the venerable iChat. Or, actually, adds onto it; all the old iChat features are still there. And you can download an early version of this app from Apple’s Web site."

Read more: Apple's Mountain Lion Makes the Mac More Like the iPad

G-Shock Watch with Phone Integration

Casio announced (but hasn't yet released) a new watch that integrates with a phone via Bluetooth:

"Your watch can vibrate when you get a call, text or e-mail and show the person’s name, even if your phone is in your purse or briefcase. The G-Shock can help you find a phone lost in your sofa by making it chirp loudly. It can also beep at you if you leave the phone behind in, say, a restaurant.

This arrangement makes a huge amount of sense. How many times have you complained that you missed a call because you didn’t feel the phone’s feeble vibrating in your pocket? Now you won’t be able to miss it; the vibration takes place right on your wrist. (You tap twice on the watch’s face to send the call to voice mail.)

You know how cellphones set themselves automatically as you travel from time zone to time zone, courtesy of the cellular network? Well, now your watch can set itself, too, since it’s talking wirelessly with your phone."

Note that (a) it's not available yet, and (b) phones that support the forthcoming watch are ... thin on the ground. Eg., the iPhone 4S supports it in theory, but not yet in practice.

Read more: A New G-Shock Watch Awaits a New Bluetooth

SeV Transformer Jacket

SeV launched the Transformer Jacket that switches from jacket to vest via magnets:

"The Transformer Jacket's 12 powerful rare-earth magnets allow you to transform from jacket to vest in the blink of an eye...and back again just as easily. We call it our TEC-MAGTM system, and it's unlike anything you've seen before. With 20 pockets (the iPad fits in all sizes) and clear-touch fabric for easy cell phone use, this jacket has everything you expect from SeV with the addition of this one revolutionary feature. It's reminiscent of the magnetic iPad smart cover, as one early reviewer pointed out."

Windows 8 - It Matters

David from ZDNet argues that Windows 8 matters for real work:

"Listen, forget about smartphones and tablets for five minutes, will ya? I want to talk to you about real computers, computers that do actual work, not just play Angry Birds and help you check in when you’re at Starbucks again.

In fact, I want to talk to you about Windows computers.

Windows. You remember Microsoft Windows, right? That’s the operating system, that as of January 2012, is used on 92.03% of all non-phone and non-tablet computers.

Windows is important. Very, very important."

He outlines his reasons for this view as:
- Many people still need a "real" computer, not a smartphone or tablet.
- Tablets are too locked down and constrained for doing "real" work.
- Windows is better than Mac and Linux for "real" work (for various business- and philosophical reasons).
- Many people will upgrade to Windows 8, and Microsoft will earn a lot of money from it.

Bad Timing - Oracle to Acquire Taleo (and the latter will lose focus?)

With SAP's acquisition of SuccessFactors, Taleo used a late January 2012 edition of BusinessWeek to call attention to its continued focus on customers, rather than its own pending M&A (see ad above - click for a larger image as required).

And then in early February, Oracle announced its plans to acquire Taleo:

"Oracle (NSDQ:ORCL) plans to acquire Taleo, a developer of cloud-based human resource management applications, for $1.9 billion, Oracle said Thursday.

The move comes as SAP awaits permission from a U.S. government committee to complete its $3.4 billion acquisition of SuccessFactors, a competing supplier of cloud-based human capital management applications.

Oracle will pay $46 per share for Dublin, Calif.-based Taleo, putting the acquisition price at $1.9 billion, net of Taleo's cash and debt. The companies said the deal is subject to approvals from Taleo shareholders and regulatory authorities and is expected to close by midyear."

Bad timing. I guess the message is that the world needs yet another talent management partner who remains independent.

Rethinking Public Service Delivery in New Zealand

The current government in New Zealand is rethinking how to deliver public services, and where new technology can make a difference:

"Technology will replace face-to-face contact as the Government continues its squeeze on the public service.

Prime Minister John Key has met executives from internet giant Google as plans to shake up the public sector gather steam.

Virtual jobs will replace staff as the sector moves away from frontline services to call centres and online interaction.

Mr Key said yesterday that people wanted to use their smartphones to apply for passports and other tasks, rather than wait in line in offices.

"It really doesn't matter if there is a street frontage there ... We are living in an age where kids have iPads and smartphones. That's the modern generation ... and they actually don't want to walk in, for the most part, and be in a very long queue and be waiting for a long time."

He foreshadowed more mergers and job losses, as the Government continues its quest to slash $1 billion from the state sector. More than 2500 public service jobs have been cut in the past three years.

Mr Key will outline proposals in a keynote speech later this month. He would "make no apology" for trying to make the public service more efficient."

Bravo! Where people are needed to deliver services, let them do so. Where new technological approaches are possible that streamline the delivery of public services, we should make a move. Continuing with inefficient processes with their roots in 20 year old thinking is not good.

Friday February 10 - No Internet for 23 Hours

My local internet service provider had "issues" with providing internet services yesterday. We had no connectivity for 23 hours - from 0700 Friday to 0600 Saturday. I rang them a few times, but apart from "we sent people to investigate," there was no further information available - cause of fault, timing for resolution, etc - even 8 hours after the said people had been sent out.

But it's working again. :-)

NextPage Acquired by Proofpoint - New Information Governance Solution Available

Back in 2005 in the days of Shared Spaces Research & Consulting, I really liked the work done by NextPage on reducing document chaos (see here and here - although the latter link through doesn't work anymore). NextPage redirected its focus in the subsequent years, and while it did cool and necessary work around document compliance, it had moved out of the area of direct interest for me.

Anyway, Proofpoint recently announced it acquired NextPage, and it has a new information governance solution available based on the NextPage technology:

"Proofpoint Enterprise Governance uses patented, Digital Thread technology to fingerprint documents and track their versions and destinations across disparate systems. This technology is available via the cloud and is expected to be an integrated component of Proofpoint's cloud-based platform and application suite.
"Today information is everywhere. It's not just in central repositories, but on laptops and desktops, cloud-based file sharing services, SharePoint and other collaboration systems," said Gary Steele, CEO of Proofpoint, Inc. "Effectively securing, retaining and discovering this proliferation of content is a tremendous challenge for virtually all enterprises today. With Proofpoint Enterprise Governance, enterprises can now fingerprint and track information across disparate systems, enabling proactive information governance for compliance, data retention and eDiscovery."
Proofpoint Enterprise Governance helps enterprises control the legal and financial risks and eDiscovery costs related to unstructured information by defining and enforcing enterprise information governance policies. Proofpoint Enterprise Governance also helps to improve document policy compliance, and reduce retention costs by identifying and disposing of documents that are no longer needed."

Read more: Proofpoint Extends its Enterprise Archiving and Governance Solutions with the Introduction of Proofpoint Enterprise Governance