August 2008

So I keep seeing headlines about the iPhone's "killer app". Does it exist? Which one is it?

BusinessWeek writes about The Search for the Killer iPhone App.

Over at TechCrunch, Erick Schonfeld takes on this topic in his article, iPhone Apps: One Month And 60 Million Downloads Later. But Not One Of Them Is A Killer App.

I'm glad he figures out the answer to this question of what the killer app(s) is(are).

And I’m not the only one who thinks that these apps are going to hit a saturation point real soon. And then it will become clear that the killer apps on the iPhone are the same as on your computer: email and the browser.

There's a few ways I could answer this question.

One answer is that the iPhone itself is the killer application. The way Google Maps integrates with Contacts which integrates with Calendar which integrates with Mail which integrates with Photos and Camera.

The fact that I can get an email from my friend Bryan, click on his name, get taken to his contact page, select his mobile number to call him, and while I'm on the phone with him, click on his address to find out where his apartment is, and then go back to his contact page to get the URL to his site so I can read his most recent entry.

That's the killer app for me. All of it. Together.

The other way I could answer the question is - the App Store is the killer app.

To reference my first answer above, the iPhone has solved integrated communications. Every other app is just along for the ride and will be inherently derivative, only able to tap into the various Core Services (email, browser, maps, media playback) and since the App Store is the gatekeeper to all the apps, it's the most popular application, by design.

Now that I think about it, 'The App Store' is a very appropriate name, since what you're getting with most of the apps is just that - an appetizer.

The iPhone is the whole meal.

UPDATE: iPhonic also has similar thoughts on the killer app topic too

From TED.com:

Cards that fly all over the table, spill onto the floor, and disappear beneath a laser beam. Welcome to the chaotic and flabbergasting magical world of Lennart Green, grand master of close-up card trickery.

...Swedish card trick maestro Lennart Green has been baffling audiences for years with card tricks that seem barely under control. In 1991 he won the grand prize in close-up card magic from the International Federation of Magic Societies (FISM), sometimes called the "Olympics of magic." He might've won it in 1985 also, except his act of seemingly impossible cardplay fooled even the judges.

Jam3Media (via ChangeTheThought)

With Holy Ghost Power? Really?

I mean ...really?

I was walking through my old neighborhood in the East Village on Sunday when I spotted an amazing Federer-Nadal poster amidst the usually paste-ups of gritty ads and promotions:

NYTimes.com does it again with a great data visualization on the Olympics:

After a long time of head scratching, I've finally discovered why all my screenshots on my brand 24-inch iMac G5 at my last job as well as those done on my current Powerbook G5 came out fuzzy.

Blame the Wacom tablet. Actually, the tablet isn't at fault - blame the damn pen!

I found the solution on this Apple Support page discussion thread.

Below are 2 screengrabs - the first is done with the Wacom pen, the second is done with the Wacom mouse (used on top of the tablet). The method I'm using to screengrab is: Shift-Ctrl-Apple-4. This key combo allows you to just grab a section of the screen.

Interactive designers out there will know that this technique is quick and dirty and indispensable while working under tight deadlines. It's also necessary if you're using images from Flickr (FPO) where the person disables the ability to download images.

Apple just posted a new Get a Mac commercial.

"fear of switching is the foundation of customer loyalty for PCs"

Ten bucks says Chiat Day got that line from Jobs.

some tasty links I've found recently:

Hot Meteor (via StyleGala.com)

Darden Studio (via Zeldman.com)

Flickr: High-speed photography

Engadget: 1000 Microsoft engineers to code Windows 7

I don't even need this pull quote, but I'll paste it in anyway:

The 1,000-strong engineering team is comprised of 25 different feature teams each made up of about 40 persons on average.

Sounds like efficiency to me.

I can't wait to see how Windows 7 turns out.

I have this rule, well, it's more of a guideline than a rule ...regarding social media. Facebook specifically.

This is the guideline:

When I get a friend request from someone on Facebook (or maybe LinkedIn, recruiters love to connect to you so they can comb through potential leads), I usually will add that person. More times than not, I know, or knew the person. I usually like to see more than the default message text. I like to see something personal, something that tells me this person really wants to connect to me (I'm old-fashioned, I know).

After around 6 months (hell even 3), if that person has not added any value to my life, or contributed in some way, I delete them from my friends.

I know what you're thinking, yes, I'm pretty badass.

When I say 'contribute' this means at the very least, posting interesting status messages*, or great photographs, or addictive Youtube videos.

This doesn't include asking me to be a vampire or werewolf.

*The art of a good status message can be traced back to when good away messages on AIM were the mark of a good online person. This topic is wonderfully exhausted in the book, Where There's A Will, There's Away... Messages: A 21st Century Guide to the Art of Absence (disclosure - the author is my brother).

Dell's Zing hopes to rival Apple in ecosystem, launch two players early next year

From the article:

Dell's hoping to partner up with Apple's rivals to build a new ecosystem that will create better interoperation between PMPs, phones, cars, satellite radios and the multitude of online music stores out there. From the looks of things, that ecosystem is in good hands: with the acquisition of Zing's Tim Bucher, formerly of Apple fame, and the 120 person team he's built to help Dell put Apple in its place.

So, let me get this straight. Apple has created the most successful media management software (iTunes) and the highest selling media player (iPod) through a closed-source ecosystem where they tightly develop and integrate both these ends (software and hardware) - BUT somehow, Dell hopes to do this through partnering with a bunch of other "rivals" (oooooh) in hopes of creating a better alternative?

Listen, this isn't like Voltron. Dell's not going start connecting itself with other companies to form a MegaTechBot and wield its blazing sword of mediocrity at the evil Apple.

Based on my subway ride every morning, people seem to really, really, really like iPods. And iPhones. I think maybe they use Apple products because Apple focuses on making technology that people like to use. Crazy idea I know.

I also love the fact there are still some people DYING for Apple 'challengers'. It's not impossible people. Apple is not perfect by any means. If these companies start focusing on making great products and turn their attention off of Apple, they just might end up giving Apple a run for their money. Ah the beauty of paradoxes.

See, when I grew up, Muppets were still Muppets. They drank whiskey and smoked cigarettes and sang about gambling with Kenny Rogers.

Not like the pussy Millennial generation today, whose parents worship them and shield them from every possible danger and temptation in the world.

Fumes from the Combustion Chamber might be less frequent here since I've started my role as an associate creative director at Roundarch. I'm now working with executive creative director Rie Norregaard and the multi-talented Victor Brunetti on building out a great creative department here in our New York office.

When I do produce fumes, you will see a healthy amount related to data visualization, as this is going to be an area of focus in my new role.

Oh and we're looking for talented junior and mid level interactive designers. Talent trumps experience and technical skills for this role. If you know how to design, we'll bring up to speed on tech chops.

If you're interested in joining a great team, hit me up at: mike.mulvey@gmail.com

I like seeing examples (however small) of data visualization helping out in the understanding of an article.

While this article is very easy to understand, the diagram distills is excellently and simply.

screengrab from Fortune: Analyst: 3 million iPhones sold in first month