This one is too good not to share.

What if Microsoft invented the iPod?

The dismal ratings for the recently closed Winter Olympics are yet another example of how technology continues to change the way we experience things and what things we choose to experience.

Dave Zirin talks about some of the specifics in The Nation online, but I think he's missing a larger point.

Technology has changed our expectations of how we should get news of what's going on in the world, whether it's events in Iraq or events on and around the ski slopes of Turin. The neatly pre-packaged presentation of NBC was perfect for last century. Doesn't work anymore. We want to watch our sports, on our schedule, without the inane commentary or the "editing out" of anything that NBC decided well in advance wasn't worthy of even filming, let alone showing.

The technology is there to deliver it. Like Microsoft (see my previous entry), NBC has decided what we want, how we want it, and how we will receive it. They don't realize that their game doesn't work anymore. For now, their excuse to themselves is that there just isn't all that much American interest in mostly European-dominated sports, espeically as we had no particularly strong performers. I wonder if they'll still be using that excuse for the summer Olympics in two years, or if they will manage to actually figure it out by then.

I suspect not. "Doing it right" will increasingly mean "doing without the expensive distributor in the middle." And when that happens, who needs NBC?

-btc

Once again, I've been away for a while. Thanks to Cody for getting me to post something here for a change.

Sadly, the ongoing job of marketing my consulting services, doing projects and dealing with a couple of small injuries has had too much of my attention.

Rather than post weak analysis or opinions here -- as I've occasionally done in the past -- I've been a bit silent.

Hoping to have a bit of a chance to write more over the next month, as I will finally be off in my favorite spot in Utah for some necessary unwinding and time to consider and document new thoughts.

-btc

I've been chatting with Cody about a debate he's been having over at RealMoney about corporate demand for phones with cameras. He's making the point (that I agree with) that many companies just don't want them. William Gabrielski is saying it's high time that Blackberry finally included a phone.

I've done a bit of research on these things in the past, and while not all my info is 100% current, here's what I've found, and why I have to throw in my hat with Cody's side of the discussion:

Who doesn't want camera phones?

Somehow I managed to get myself onto an online focus group for something Microsoft is calling it's "Work Essentials" online service.

As far as I can tell, the idea is that Microsoft Office users like me would use this online service to get all sorts of extra templates, tips, etc. that would help us do our jobs. And Microsoft is very interested in what kind of stuff we would want out there, and how they could best communicate to us about it.

There are lots of problems with their approach.