Dyve Goes Deeper
November 13, 2010
DeepDyve has expanded the content on its interesting content rental service.
DeepDyve was launched in 2005 as a place for professionals in the fields of science, medicine, social science, humanities and information technology to rent the scholarly materials they wouldn’t have access to otherwise. The company asserts:
DeepDyve is continuing to advance its mission of providing affordable and convenient access to scientific and scholarly research articles for the tens of millions of users who are unaffiliated with a large institution.
In general only professionals who are tied to a large institution are able to use the big research engines that generate the most relevant information; DeepDyve is changing all of that by making available more than 30 million articles from thousands of reputable journals. At $9.99 a month it’s practically a steal and perfect for the start-up or individuals who need to learn more about a particular subject.
Leslie Radcliff, November 13, 2010
Freebie
Alpha Spy for US
November 12, 2010
According to the article “One Spy to Rule Them All: Top Spook Launches Push for Real Power” James Clapper, the director of national intelligence has reach a preliminary agreement with Defense Secretary Robert Gates over the control of $53.1 billion dollars of the intelligence budget. I noted this passage in the write up:
You might think the director of national intelligence actually runs the spy world. But that would make too much sense. In fact, as long as there’s been a “community” of spy agencies, the Defense Department has kept the intelligence budget (now totaling $80.1 billion annually) under the military thumb.
This will allow Clapper the ability to direct funds to spying operations that take priority and deny the funding of unsuccessful projects. This ends up being a win-win situation for all parties involved. Clapper gains monetary control over his domain, Gates doesn’t have to worry about $53.1 billion dollars when he has to cut the defense budget, and the American people are able to see a greater transparency within government functions.
My view. Sigh.
Leslie Radcliff, November 12, 2010
Freebie
IBM Wants an Intuitive Internet
November 12, 2010
Yep, and I want a million dollars.
In “IBM Outlines Vision of a More Intuitive Internet” the researchers at the IMB Centre for Advanced Studies (CAS) have been conducting research on how to make a more ‘intuitive’ Internet. I’m not sure about you, but I don’t necessarily want an internet that can read my mind…..I’m just saying.
Researchers are trying to create a way to make the little things in life easier, for example; making reservations and paying bills by setting up automatic notifications.
The Internet will move beyond the present paradigm where people are responsible for the initiating and managing their own manual navigation of the Web, to a ‘personalized Web,’ functioning as a platform of services and resources that are dynamically and automatically configured to suit each person’s individual goals, tasks and concerns, in a way that person wants.
Please, correct me if I’m wrong but don’t we already have automatic notification and withdrawal programs? My bills were paid via automatic withdrawal this week…..so why do I need the internet to do it for me?
They want the Internet to work for people not vice versa….Well, in my book it already does, it’s called an iPhone. You can pay bills AND make reservations at your favorite dining locale. For an example of an intuitive Web site, navigate to www.ibm.com. Now try to find the FRU for a NetFinity 5500 case fan.
Leslie Radcliff, November 12, 2010
Freebie
Java: With a Double Shot of Confusion
November 12, 2010
The idea of open source makes sense. A community adds bits and bytes. Gathered together, the software comes without the iron maiden, the thumb screws, and the leg irons provided by vendors of proprietary software. A company licensing open source can make fixes but the goal is to give back. Utopia? Almost.
I will be the first to admit that I don’t understand the various open source licenses. That’s okay. Others do. What has baffled me is what could happen as Oracle tries to cope with its various open source demons. My view is that Oracle wants money. If open source software can contribute lots of dough to Oracle, Oracle would be okay with open source. The focus is money expressed in terms of customer control, software control, and competitor control.
I read “Apache Declares War on Oracle over Java.” I am now even more confused. The write up is fine. What’s giving me a headache is the prospect of lots of craziness. If open source is going to gain traction in the enterprise, “war” increases uncertainty. If there is one thing that the enterprise big wigs loathe, it is uncertainty in my opinion.
No matter what happens in this “war”, the damage is done. Procurement teams are likely to see vendors with proprietary software as less uncertain. Who cares if the stuff is more expensive, certainty may be more important. The implications of this “war” is boosted by Google’s legal action on the US Department of the Interior. Microsoft won a deal, and now I think Microsoft and other vendors of proprietary software delivered with an assortment of chains and leg irons may be perceived as less risky than some open source options.
Stephen E Arnold, November 12, 2010
Freebie
Step
Google Will Not Clone Facebook
November 12, 2010
“Report: Google Social Efforts Won’t Compete with Facebook” told me what I concluded. Here’s the key passage that I circled with my trusty old school yellow Magic Marker:
“We’re not working on a social network platform that’s just going to be another social network platform,” Hugo Barra, Google’s head of mobile product, said during the Monaco Media Forum. “We do think that social is an ingredient for success for any app going forward, search and advertising being probably the best two examples that I would mention. So that’s how we’re thinking about the problem.” Rumors were circulating over the summer that Google was building a social network called “Google Me” thanks to a tweet from Digg co-founder Kevin Rose and a blog post from former Facebook executive Adam D’Angelo. However, no Google-backed Facebook killer has been announced.
Let’s assume this is accurate.
I was wondering if anyone else got a pesky e-mail from Google. In “Google Buzz Was An $8.5-Million Disaster. Why Can’t Google Do Social?” , we learn simply that Internet empires like Google can invade millions of people’s privacy and get away with nothing but a slap on the wrist.
It seems like the hot trend right now for tech companies that make privacy mistakes is to settle with a big payment to set up an educational fund.
Eight and a half million dollars is chump change to a corporation as big as Google. And to top it off, they’ve not had to pay out anything to anyone who was affected by the problem. Google Buzz has assaulted the privacy of its users, now they are responsible for ‘educating’ users about privacy on the internet. Does this NOT make sense to anyone else?
Hello! Wasn’t it the users who discovered their privacy was being invaded? Google didn’t catch that one right off the bat.
With each piece of evidence, the Google makes it becomes increasingly clear to me that the Math Club is socially challenged.
Leslie Radcliff, November 12, 2010
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Google on the Path to Ruin
November 11, 2010
I almost broke into song. The tune from The Music Man echoed. Harold Hill, the scam artist with a fatal weakness for hot librarians, sings:
But just as I say it takes judgment, brains and maturity
to score in a balk-line game
I say that any boob can take and shove a ball in a pocket
And I call that sloth,
the first big step on the road to the depths of degradation…
Super pundit and media debunker John C. Dvorak identifies a sour not at Google. Navigate to “Google’s Inevitable Ruin Begins.” Here’s the passage that caught my attention:
Does Google think it needs to add these dreadful features because Bing is breathing down its neck? It must, since the changes to the image page are right out of Bing. Curiously, the old MSN Live Search did it better than Bing. Meanwhile Yahoo, which licenses the Bing engine, has maintained more practical image results and is now superior to both Google and Bing. Go figure! It doesn’t take a genius to see that Google is beginning to make huge judgment errors. And I can assure you, this image fiasco isn’t a mere or minor diversion. It’s a sign of bad things to come. An omen.
Harsh. The Google, as I recall, is all about speed. Google has been adamant that its service is fast. My view is that “controlled chaos” is producing some interesting outputs. The Google has made mistakes before. Remember Web Accelerator or Buzz?
The decline of Google, based on my analyses of Google technical documents and patent applications, began in the fall of 2006 and accelerated in the first half of 2007. By July 2007, the Google was having to work the sails to keep the crew’s controlled chaos in check. Management failed. What’s unfolding now is little more than visible signs that a systemic problem is disrupting functions.
Forget Google’s wacky Girafa-inspired page preview. Forget the dorky image display. Ignore the silly Google Instant. Focus on the problems of Google’s big plays. Steve jobs won’t let me forget that Android is fractured compared to Apple’s iOS. I learned first hand that the new Google TV is a geek’s delight. Anyone over 65 will be flummoxed by the options. I am 66 and was clueless at Best Buy last week end. Google is taking the Department of Interior to court. Now that’s a move that will inspire procurement teams to do what Google wants in my opinion. Google joked that those offended by Street View to move. Ha ha ha. The UK officials are not amused. Google is fighting legal battles on many fronts. I gave up trying to keep track.
The digital Black Death has taken root. The critters with the disease scurried into Google’s nest four years ago. Management doctors are needed. Is there an emergency room big enough for Googzilla?
Stephen E Arnold, November 11, 2010
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Cisco Systems, an Open Source Poster Child, on the Hot Seat
November 11, 2010
Cisco Systems has a number of interesting initiatives underway. The company has worked with open source search technology, and I found the demonstration compelling. But use of open source search is not what makes Wall Street happy. “Cisco Earnings: Challenges Multiply, Outlook Disappoints” describes the Cisco situation this way:
But in a call with analysts, he was clear about “challenges” that the company is facing, notably government spending, service providers and Europe. Globally, orders in the public sector segment were up 6 percent and that growth in U.S. federal government and emerging markets was “solid.” Orders from U.S. state governments, however, were down about 25 percent. Likewise, European governments, which have seen their budgets “reduced dramatically” is down. And the company expects that the trends will continue for the next couple of quarters. In terms of the service provider business, the segment saw a growth rate of 8 percent from a year ago but that US was down 2 percent. Specifically, cable operators were a challenging area, with orders down more than 30 percent. Drilling down further, the set-top business is down 40 percent in orders.
our question: Is Cisco’s use of open source an offensive or defensive measure. If the firm were rolling in dough like Apple, Google, or Microsoft, would the company be so keen on open source? I don’t know the answer, but the ZDNet crew made it clear to me that Cisco has to kick in the turbocharger. Wall Street does not know Lucene from Solr. Wall Street wants growth and profits. That’s the American way. This year Ask.com and Convera bit the dust. Both failed the revenue and profit test. Will Cisco get back on track with or without open source? Next update in 12 weeks.
Stephen E Arnold, November 11, 2010
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Oracle Search Still Not Working
November 11, 2010
I know you think that SES11g is the best darned search system in the world. Like the Microsoft offering, SES11g has some interesting characteristics and a fascinating history. With sufficient resources, SES11g can search and retrieve.
However, this article addresses a different Oracle search. Navigate to “Desperately Seeking The CEO: Oracle Said To Hire Detectives To Find Apotheker.” Discover that Oracle cannot locate HP’s Leo Apotheker. Oracle wants Mr. Apotheker in order to get him to the court room. Excitement, Oracle hopes, will ensue. SAP already admitted that it made a misstep. Mr. Apotheker’s appearance will be like whipped cream on a hot fudge confection. Hey, SAP said it had stumbled, but it was just business.
According to the write up:
HP has said that Oracle’s efforts to get Apotheker to testify are interfering with his CEO duties and has called Oracle’s actions "harassment." The dispute is souring relations between one-time allies Oracle and HP.
My thought is to stuff known information about Mr. Leo into an Oracle database. Use Oracle’s business intelligence tools to crunch the data. Query the data sets with SES22g. Look at the outputs and go fetch Mr. Apotheker. Oh, I guess this did not work. Private contractors are looking for Mr. Apotheker the way I have had to hunt for certain data in Oracle tables. Manual stuff. Expensive. Doesn’t always work either. Rats. Might make a good movie, “Where in the World Is Leo Apotheker?”
Stephen E Arnold,November 11, 2010
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Kelby Media Group: Clueless Marketers or Marketing Einsteins?
November 11, 2010
The dear old Wall Street Journal used to spam me to become a subscriber. The problem was that I was a subscriber. I don’t need two copies of the rag here at the goose pond. One’s enough.
I called the WSJ. I finally decided to collect their annoying spam emails and write about them in this blog. I think the highlight of my description of the WSJ as a clueless marketer was my reproduction of a series of offers that showed the WSJ was cutting prices to get subscribers. Remember. I was a subscriber. Finally, the WSJ either revised their mailing list or got tired of my pointing out their significant track record as clueless marketers. You can see some of my verbal musings here.
Now I have another outfit spamming me—Kelby Media Group and a bevy of related firms. Am I lucky or what? I have called the office several times, and to the firm’s credit, I spoke with the same kind human. Removing me from the email list was expertise she apparently has yet to master.
I pointed out that I was no longer interested in receiving a magazine about Photoshop and I was not at all interested in training, videos, books, or yip yap about Adobe. I want to be kind because according to a blog by a person allegedly named Scott Kelby, someone at this outfit has a black belt in Taw Kwondo. Yikes. I am fearful of becoming Thanksgiving Day’s goose if this is true.
Check out this ad I received on November 10, 2010:
Is this psychological manipulation or psychological silliness? I don’t know. I just don’t want to receive this type of email—leggy girls, etc. I guess as a former customer, my desires are irrelevant.
My clicking pointed me at Kelbytraining.com, an “official” looking trade associations called the National Association of Photoshop Professionals, and something called KelbyMediaGroup. A bit of poking around revealed that the training, the apparent not-for-profit operation, and the KelbyMediaGroup operate from Oldsmar, Florida. This outfit describes itself as “the force behind creatives.” Huh? Is this like police hard force, police soft force, Obi-Wan Kenobi force, or egotistically-fueled force. I am okay with force. I do like to know if the force is real or delusional. I also located some interesting reviews of The Book for Guys Who Don’t Want Kids (Hardcover), which may have been authored by the founder of the Kelby group.
Don’t get me wrong.
I have fond memories of Florida and some Floridians. on my last visit, I enjoyed many unusual sites such as folks my age driving huge luxury cars at slow speeds with windows rolled up and fur coats tight around their chins, looking hungrily for restaurant signs advertising an early bird special in neon. I noted the warnings about various swamp creatures who gobble pets and small children with some frequency. I recalled the opportunity to enjoy news items about Florida’s colorful political leaders and their penchant for chad. I even enjoyed my work for one of the fascinating units of the “new” Department of Defense at the air base plopped on prime real estate in lovely Tampa, which is America’s answer to Paris in my opinion. (Now that group defined “force” pretty clearly, and I don’t think there are too many creatives dabbling in color palettes on most working days.)
The emailings to me forces me to now associate Florida in general and Oldsmar in particular with the KelbyMediaGroup, an outfit that proudly displays a link to “unsubscribe or update your email address” on its mailings to me. I also admire the logo of the vendor who provides this fine, yet somewhat inept service, SubscriberMail. The problem is that the system does not record my preference. I keep getting emails from this Kelby outfit. Is the group clueless marketers or marketing Einsteins? I don’t know. Sure is annoying to me, though.
The Photoshop User magazine once was semi-useful in my opinion. Now I see the the editorial focus as really fuzzy. The publication talks a lot about experts. I think “experts” are useful. Now your mileage may vary. You may want to join a not-for-profit housed in lovely Oldsmar, Florida. You may want to receive lots of email from and about “experts”. You may enjoy Florida, its wildlife, high life, and low life. You can learn all about the”leading provider of education and information for creative professionals worldwide” here. Or you can call the office and talk to the gentle souls who have demonstrated marketing expertise that trumped the clueless Wall Street Journal: 813.749.4000. Here’s a Wikipedia bio of the alleged founder of the group. I generally believe everything I read in Wikipedia. Don’t you?
Net net: Great email marketing has been redefined. A benefit of sorts I suppose.
Stephen E Arnold, November 11, 2010
Freebie, unlike some of the events from certain poobah-fueled outfits that mix “association” goodness with down home email marketing.
Intel Stream 4 Now Available
November 10, 2010
The fourth podcast in the Intel Stream series is now available for download from ArnoldIT.com. This week, Dr. Tyra Oldham, LAND SDS and Stephen E Arnold discuss IBM’s surprising additions to Cognos 10, open source business intelligence, neuromarketing and sentiment analysis, and the upside and downside of blog content, and more. This week’s show features an interview with Oleg Shilovitsky, CEO and co-founder of Inforbix. His firm has pioneered a search and content processing solution for manufacturing and design engineering firms. You can read an interview with Mr. Shilovitsky in the Search Wizards Speaks section of the ArnoldIT.com Web log.
Stephen E Arnold, November 10, 2010
Sponsored by LAND SDS and ArnoldIT.com.
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