So, the number of people being buried with their cell phones is increasing. I’m not quite sure what to make of this, but to be sure, it says something about our need for connectedness, our interest in gadgets, and what we love the most…
While the tradition of bringing items with you to the grave is ancient, new technology allows for significantly more unique, if not morose, aspects of life:
Ring tones have even become a sort of 21st century funeral tribute, says Defort of American Funeral Director magazine.
“Some people will call the deceased just as they’re lowering the coffin into the ground,” he says. “It’ll be prearranged and you’ll hear a faint ring. It’s like the new version of ‘Taps’ for people who are identified as being on the phone all the time.”
The Student Working Group will allow for the an open discussion into student perceptions of technology from a broad perspective, but will also provide critically valuable insights into the expectations, needs and wants of students for mobile access to University tools, resources and services. Comments? (0)
The convergence of handheld media technologies, i.e. Voice, text, video, audio, with multi-channelled communication mechanisms, i.e. Telephony, sms, email, web and so forth, is both engaging and intimidating. One challenge is to determine how to best integrate, prioritize and allign these elements in a manner that is both valuable and accessible. Comments? (0)
Tony Cripps presents a great argument as to why they should:
The mobile handset giant is intent on becoming a major web player in its own right and Ovi (the umbrella for its web applications and services), as we see it today, is only the start. There’s a clear imperative coming from Espoo for Nokia to become part of the fabric of the Internet and not just to build on the foundations laid by others.
As a starter, Nokia will make its Nokia Maps API available to third parties. While not unique (Google Maps API is already out there), Nokia has significant assets to bring to mapping, not least through its acquisition of Navteq. And there are plans to expose further Nokia services to web developers, although it won’t be drawn on them as yet.
continuing. . .
Yahoo’s convergence story, however, is perhaps the strongest. The company has quietly put together a compelling, yet grounded, approach to extending its brand value and influence beyond the desktop, to mobile and consumer electronics, through initiatives such as Yahoo! Go, oneConnect, Blueprint and Widget Engine.
In addition, Yahoo has something else that may actually be more vital to Nokia’s future development - a major brand in the US. Indeed, despite its current financial woes, Yahoo remains a prime web destination in the US, having only lost its lead over Google in April, according to ComScore.
All of which should make it an attractive acquisition target for Nokia; a bargain, if not actually cheap.
According to Gartner Analyst Alex Winogradoff, the big telecom carriers (AT&T, Verizon et al) should selectively partner with Google instead of fighting the Search/Ad/Map/Mobile OS/(Drunk) Email (filtering)/Office Document Company.
“The issue is … to what degree Google destroys [the carriers'] business case and business model, Winogradoff said. “It’s more in the new service categories [such as entertainment, SaaS and cloud computing] where the carriers’ future growth expectations may be severely impacted if they don’t find a solution in partnering with Google.”
This reflects on a point I have been posing over at SHUmobile which is that ultimately, the device you use won’t matter as much as the features and functionality it has. Whether you have an iPhone, or a HTC Fuze or a Storm, the services that are integrated with your devcice will make it more valuable than a competing device.
That said, however, I’m less than excited about Winogradoff’s other projection about Google….
“For Google, it’s all about access,” Winogradoff said. “Google is not interested in competing as much as loosening the ties that bind. They want to be the store and source for all the world’s information, as in all roads lead through Google … Everybody gets sucked into its maelstrom.”
It has occured to me that moblogging might best be introduced by using asides, rather than primary posts. As most blogs are no longer an overview of an individual's online activities, the prospect of non-technical users writing more lengthy articles or entries using a mobile device are slim to none. However, if moblogging can be linked to a specific aside style or purpose, there might be more traction for utilizing more extensive mobile device blogging tools. Comments? (0)
In trying to rebuild Third Owl, I am trying to integrate research from some of my projects at work. One of these projects is a developing mobile infrastructure and platform, and I will be experimenting with methods of integrating mobile technologies, web 2.0 services and tools, social networking and academic work.
While the content of these posts may not always reflect this, my primary focus is to examine various means of communication, various communication methods, messaging types and information sharing to help identify opportunities for simplifying the unification of tech based tools for purposeful, large scale deployments.
