January 2007 Archives

I had an absolutely amazing time at the weekend, but thanks to a punishing schedule of flights (one 4am start followed by two consecutive 5am flights) I'm still too exhausted to even think about it, let alone write anything down. I've experienced jet lag before, but this is on another level altogether. It was worth it though - I had the chance to see far more of India that I thought possible when I began this trip, and don't worry though, I took plenty of photographs along the way and I'll share them, along with some stories from the past few days, when I get back.

In the meantime I've just had a vivid reminder of how small the world can be. A mobile phone just went off from a few cubicles over. The ringtone? None other than the theme from Battle of the Planets. For all the cultural differences I've experienced over the last week, it's remarkable how many similarities are shared.

Anyway, a couple more amusing signs I noticed before I part: "Dr Bahal's Super Special Homeopathy" made me smile as did an enormous sign for "Fun Republic". It appeared to be a mall/cineplex combination, but I couldn't help but think of the People's Fun Republic of North Korea (led by the Super Special Happy Fun Kim Jong Il). I giggled quite a bit at that thought, although I admit that jet lag may have played it's part...

I felt cheated as I stood on the beach.

It was a strange experience being there, so very different from a British beach. In my native country the sands would be covered by large numbers of parents lounging around, basking in the sunlight and watching their children tear around the beach, paddling in the water, or building sandcastles (I confess my memories here may be tinted by my own childhood). Here the beach was filled with entirely with movement. Couples wandered along the shoreline arm in arm, and children playing football or cricket seemed the most prevalent types, but sunbathers were entirely absent (how shocked my Mum would be) and virtually no-one stood still.

Save for myself perhaps.

I'd wandered a little way down the shore, placing some distance between myself and the crowds. Not that I minded them, just that I'm generally more comfortable out of a crowd than within. I stood there, with the teaming mass of people behind me, watching the sun continuing it's decline, waiting for the ocean to swallow it whole. The moment never arrived. Instead the sun vanished into a bank of smog a few degrees above the horizon.

I'd noted the smog earlier in the day. Any building more than a mile away was transformed into a hazy grey shadow in the distance, but the effect on the sun was considerably more dramatic... and far removed from the spectacular sunset for which I'd been hoping.

Disappointed, I turned my back on the missing sun and vanished into the madness of the crowds.

I'm not sure if culture shock has set in, or if I'm completely blase about this whole affair thanks the awareness of the rest of the world provided by modern media. Perhaps because of that, the cultural differences I've noticed most have been on a somewhat smaller scale. The huge variety of fonts used on car licence plates, for example. Serifed fonts on licence plates look very wrong to my eyes. And I couldn't help buy derive some amusement at various billboards I've passed. A sign advertising "Monsoon-proof reception rooms" drove home some meteorological differences, and another proclaiming "Thousands of successful marriages arranged" raised one noticeable cultural divergence.

It's really been an exhausting trip so far - for obvious reasons for the most part. Jet lag coupled with several unwelcome phone calls in the middle of the night have left me badly in need of a good nights sleep, something which I should really be attempting to accomplish now (it's few minutes after midnight here. Oddly, Mumbai is five and 1/2 hours ahead of the UK - I've never ventured anywhere with a half hour time difference before). I've taken the precautionary measure of unplugging the hotel phone and with that I'll bid you all a good night as I try to achieve the same.

I'm sitting on my ledge once more, legs stretched out in front of me. It's a comfortable position and the sun-warmed marble surface is pleasant beneath my rump. It's a welcome counterpoint to the icy chill I felt upon entering my overly air conditioned hotel room.

The sun is low in the sky over my right shoulder, it's bright glare reflecting off the ever shifting surface of the nearby ocean. The beach looks inviting although busy. In the fading daylight I see far more than I managed last night. I cannot say whether it is what I expected or not. Perhaps it is neither.

Beneath me a group of six men, identically clad in green t-shirts and red trousers parade in single file. On each of their shoulders appears to be mounted a small candelabra whose purpose I can only guess.

The traffic outside is in full flow. Swarms of three wheeled taxis in fearsome yellow and black livery buzz around larger cars, horns tooting angrily. I do not believe it is possible to drive in Mumbai without a fully functioning car horn. Their sound is persistent although the strange chorus they form seems less cacophonous than it ought.

A mass of pigeons collect atop an enormous placard opposite advertising a brand of scottish whiskey. The sign too is yellow and black. It does not appear angry and I do not suspect of any connection with the strange tricycle taxis. Scooters wheel by. On the back of one I spy a mother in a verdant sari carrying her child. She and child seem precariously mounted, though her face is a vision of serenity.

My day was less long than I feared. A late start after a sleepless night combined with an early finish has left me feeling at something of a loose end instead. My throat is slightly sore. I talked a lot today. It's possible I'm being generous to myself. Rambled may be the more appropriate term. Still some ground was covered and some foundations laid and I can claim some productivity accomplished. Some. My hosts were polite and generous in the extreme. I found myself at a loss for a proper response to the bouquet of flowers I received upon stepping into the office. And what I initially took to be the offer of a brief tour around the city on Saturday has transmuted into a weekend long adventure to a different city altogether with more flights and more hotels to look forward to.

I said "thank you" a lot today.

The hotel in which I'm staying masks it's opulently large windows with a pair of heavy set curtains behind which is found a convenient ledge on which to perch and watch this new part of the world pass by. I'm sitting there now, visible to the world only by the light emanating from my laptop. I wonder if anyone has noticed my shadow figure in the window?

It's three o'clock in the morning local time or nine 30 in my natural time zone. Working at home has gifted me with the habit of late nights which means my body is currently rebelling against the very notion of sleep at what it perceives as such an early hour.

Outside a baby is crying. I can't see it, but there are still numerous figures flitting about beyond my window even now. I can see the airport control tower in the distance, and the gentle roar of aeroplanes disturb the quiet every now and then.

Outside a man is setting a fire in a small brazier in front of what looks like, but may or may not actually be, a temporary shrine made out of bits of wood and cloth and paper. Beyond him waves crash on what I assume to be yellow sands if the hotel brochure is to be trusted. Two men walking down the street are revealed to be a single man accompanied only by his shadow against the wall.

Inside a mosquito whines by my ear, reminding me that I've yet to make use of the insect repellent I bought in preparation for the trip.

Outside a dog is standing in the middle of the road. In what little time I've been here I've come to recognise dogs as a familiar sight. Alone and in packs they seemed to dominate the road along the short route from the airport.

Time passes.

The baby has stopped crying. The man, his fire and his shrine have gone. The dog can no longer be seen. Figures appear and disappear still in the dark, though fewer in number now. I'm still awake.

Tomorrow shall be a long day.

I just spend 10 minutes on the phone to a ticket office in New York ordering tickets for Spamalot (not for my good self alas, but a gift for my brother and his wife who are visiting next month).

The person I spoke to on the phone had the most monotone voice I've ever encountered. I suspect boredom probably paid a part, since I'm quite sure he was reading from a script of some sort. At one point he said "we are pleased to accept American Express" and I interrupted to say "I hope you're also happy to accept Mastercard" and he continued after I finished scarcely missing a beat.

Someone should really track this guy down and snap him up for film and tv work. His voice is comedy gold I swear. At the end of the conversation he asked if there was anything else he could help me with. It took all my strength of will not to ask him to say "Bueller".

I put down the phone and immediately burst into a fit of giggles.

I really need to get my link blog working again. In the meantime however, here's a link to genuinely fascinating display technology - the Jeep waterfall.

No, I'm not actually going to Coventry. That particular destination is something of a personal bugbear of mine. I know people who ventured to all manner of exotic destinations on business trips, from Australia to Disney World (the latter not being terribly exotic, but still rather fun). The furthest afield I've been sent is Coventry, a place, let me reassure you, which wouldn't know exotic if it jumped up and down on it's head whilst pouring brightly coloured cocktails (with those little paper umbrella's which we all know signify far flung destinations) down it's front and singing "I'm exotic" at the top of it's lungs. Coventry != exotic, just in case you weren't paying attention. And I've always been shipped there when it's least convenient for me. Always. I spent one birthday trapped in a windowless warehouse in Coventry. It wasn't fun.

Still, it looks as though I can finally put my travails in Coventry behind me. Come Monday morning, I'll winging my way to the slightly more alluring destination of Mumbai. Yes, that Mumbai - formerly Bombay, population some 13 million, thriving hub of technology etc. In India. I could go into all sorts of banal details as to why (yadda yadda yadda outsourcing etc.), but it doesn't really matter. There's a whole new continent awaiting my arrival! I'll be there for two weeks, the first with my manager, the latter on my own. It's all been organised in a bit of a rush. A leaflet from the GP helpfully recommended receiving inoculations 2 months before reaching India, which makes my five days look somewhat meagre. Still the nurse at the clinic was rather blase about the whole affair and seemed reassuringly confident that the jabs she cheerfully stuck me with would do their job regardless.

It'll be work for the most part, but there will be a little time for sightseeing - a weekend at the very least and I believe that one of the days we're out there is a public holiday. My Mum was rather excited on my behalf, especially when she discovered just how many beaches border the city (rather a lot is the answer). I don't care for such things quite as much as my Mum, but she'll no doubt be pleased to hear that I'm booked into a hotel by the beach - only because it was the cheapest option mind. The more expensive hotels were vetoed by work apparently, but there's a swimming pool, a gym and wi-fi which is enough to satisfy my modest requirements. Hopefully air-conditioning comes as standard. The daytime temperatures have been hovering at just over 30 degrees centigrade out there recently, which is a touch too much on the warm side for my liking, and a heat for which my current wardrobe is best described as wholly inadequate. A spot of shopping for white t-shirts is in order this weekend methinks.

Fun, fun, fun in the sun, sun, sun.

Hopefully

So another Jobsian keynote speech has come and gone and the world is abuzz trying to determine if the emperor has any clothes.

I'm undecided. Rather than unleashing a raft of products and pretty much the whole world expected, Jobs instead focused on just two: the previously announced iTV - now renamed Apple TV in what I take as a sign of things to come - and the much speculated over iPhone, actually called iPhone despite the trademark being held elsewhere strangely enough.

Somewhat to my surprise, the iPhone does indeed feature a hitherto unforeseen twist to make the masses immediately fall in lust with it. It's a Mac. Well, that is to say it runs OS X - which is tantamount to the same thing these days - with a rather beautiful interface glued on top. It's fair to say that there's nothing quite like it on the market today. Jobs was quick to rave over the interface which is dependant on a touch screen - I'll hold off full judgement on that until I've had a chance to play with one in person, which may be some time off, given that the device is scheduled for a Q4 launch in Europe.

The first question that needs to be asked is: What is it? Aside from the Apple tv Jobs initially announced 3 products at the keynote. A widescreen iPod, a mobile phone, and an internet communicator. Tellingly, the audience was audibly less enthused by the prospect of a portable internet device. However, that wag Steve was merely joshing with the crowd. What he was in fact describing was a single device, combining all of the above functionality. For my part, I'm still trying to work out whether the iPhone is more or less than the sum of it's parts.

I've seen it called a convergence device. Which is true. It packs a great deal of functionality into a small space. All well and good, but to me it smacks of the kitchen sink mentality which has infected Sony of late. The PSP and PS3 are great examples of products which have attempted to do too much, launched at too high a price point, and proceeded to please nobody in particular. I worry that Apple is going down the same route. The iPod's success was a combination of exemplary design which performed a straightforward function and did so with remarkable grace. Whereas other companies sought to compete by adding swathes of features, Apple continued to stress simplicity over all else. The iPhone represents a remarkable turnaround. I'm not sure whether it's offering praise or damnation to describe the iPhone as "ambitious".

And I must 'fess up. If I were to pick a single prediction I'd made to come true, it would have been that we would not see a touchscreen iPod. For all the virtues that a touchscreen interface may have, it's the one feature of the iPhone that convinces me least. I genuinely believed that Apple would retain some variation of the iPod's clickwheel design. It's an interface that works and works well. Touchscreens, on the other hand... hmm. I've always had very mixed experiences with touchscreens. It's quite possible that this is because touchscreens I've used in the past have been lacking and that Apple have got it right. I'm prepared to believe that in part. The whizzy demonstrations and the prospect of innovative multi-touch input have convinced me that this is something new, but my primary concerns remain. The lack of tactile feedback is probably the biggest single issue. If the onscreen keyboard, with predictive features and automatic corrections facility, allows faster input than a keypad then Apple may indeed be onto something. If not, well, then it raises the prospect of a device with a superior feature set to both an iPod and a mobile phone but which is less usable that either individual device. One classic example - when being used as an iPod, how easy is it to control when stowed away in a pocket? I can easily get at the controls of my nano without having to take it out and look at the screen. I can't see how the same will be true of the iPhone.

What of the hardware itself? I'm not immediately blown away by the industrial design, which seems rather plain and lacking in flair, but I'm sure I'd feel differently with the device in my hand. Apple have yet to say a great deal about the specs of the device. I'm most curious about the processor. I suppose it's possible that it's running one of Intel's low power core chips, but I can't help but believe Apple would have made mention of this if it had been the case. Even the Apple TV is known to run on an Intel processor. Could the iPhone possible be running an ARM variant? We know OS X can be recompiled for alternate processor architectures after all, and in the low power arena, ARM have long ruled supreme. Given the unique interface of the device, I don't see any reason why binary compatibility should be necessary.

What did strike me is that some of the other hardware specs are somewhat on the meagre side. The base model features 4Gb and at the higher end there's 8Gb. Generous enough for a slim line portable music player at present, but with a Q4 launch date, this will quickly be superseded by other portable music players. And that's not taking into account that the storage space will presumably be used for both media and applications. 3G is notable by it's absence and a 2 mega pixel camera isn't exactly state of the art these days. Battery life is something of an unknown quantity too. Apple quote 5 hours usage, or 16 hours for purely audio playback. Apple have a reasonable record on quoting battery life, unlike most mobile phone manufacturers, but I'm slightly confused as to why the all important measure of standby-time for the phone function is absent. I'm sure it's a detail that will be filled in in time, but it's an important figure to miss off.

I suppose the last thing that needs mentioning is price. $499 for the 4Gb model and $599 for the 8Gb. At the top end of what I would have predicted. Of course, that doesn't take into account that a 2 year subscription to Cingular is also part of the package. Definitely a less attractive option than a sim free model at the same price. The US and European phone markets differ significantly, and I'm certain we'll see these prices heavily subsidised by carriers for the European launch.

Will it succeed? As I said, I remain skeptical. It may well be an attractive device, but at the moment it's not enough to make me want one. I may well be the exception, however. From the initial reactions I've read, there are great many people out there salivating to get their hands on one, and the accompanying media frenzy means I have little doubt that Apple will fufil their target of shipping 10 million iPhones within a year achieving their modest 1% of the mobile phone market. To judge from the 8% bump in Apple's stock price, others almost certainly agree...

Judging by the voluminous over-caffinated outpourings from tech-journalists and bloggers across the globe, Macworld 2007 is nearly upon us. There's nothing quite like a pending Jobs keynote to bring out the pundit in all of us. Even the broadsheets have been chiming in on the hype as everyone tries to predict what the ever-secretive Apple will come up with next.

It really is testimony to Apple's skill at manipulating the media that the hype attending the company in recent years has only increased. I thought it would have peaked several years ago, but was soon proven wrong. Instead Apple continues to reinvent itself as a latter-day Sony, as that particular company spirals into increasing insignificance.

Can Apple do any wrong? Follow the press and it seems unlikely you would draw that conclusion. Me? I'll join those bucking the trend and say that Apple are overdue for a mis-step. Much as I like Apple (typing this as I am I my rather lovely new Macbook Pro), the level of hype surrounding the company and Jobs has reached ludicrous proportions. In some ways, regardless of what the company trots out tomorrow, the keynote can only come as a disappointment - unless of course Jobs unveils a cure for cancer, which again, to judge from what has been written, some would not put past him. I'm sure we'll see a range of solid products from Apple, but I'll be surprised if we see anything truly unexpected or revolutionary tomorrow.

Unusually for Apple, they've already hinted at what is to come, announcing last year the forthcoming iTV (final name TBD) a media appliance designed to do for video downloading what the combination of the iPod and iTunes did for audio. I was curious at the time as to why Apple announce the product so early. CES, the Consumer Electronics Show, running in Las Vegas this week brought the answer: wall to wall internet tv. If the raft of product announcements coming out of CES so far mean anything at all, big things are being predicted for IPTV. Apple rather cannily stole much of the limelight months in advance, rather than just looking like another company picking over the same scraps as everyone else. Not that some companies aren't doing a better job than others. Microsoft is definitely the one to watch in this area. By announcing IPTV software for the xbox360, Microsoft have created a potential audience of 10 million overnight, a figure even Apple will envy. Of course, the primary difference is that Microsoft plans to leave it to it's partners to deal with the content, an approach with which Apple is unlikely to be happy.

My hunch, along with several others, is that Apple will release several LCD tv's to accompany the iTV. In my estimation, such a push into the consumer electronics industry (outside of the audio line) is long overdue for Apple. Their brand is in the ascendent, their product design and attention to detail unmatched and they can command the sort of premiums that will see their products installed in every fashionable living room across the world. All that's been missing so far have been the products. An Apple branded tv will be a start.

As for the iPhone (again name TBD)... well, there are really only 3 scenario's on the table. Apple introduce it tomorrow and everyone is stunned. Apple introduce it and everyone is apathetic. Apple don't introduce it. One of the first two options is most likely - Apple's stock will take a noticeable dip if they don't after all and it's too big a market for Apple to ignore. The current trend for convergence mean that if Apple don't do something now, they're likely to be seen as a follower rather than in the leadership role with which they've grown so comfortable. Honestly, it's a product I find myself rather ambivalent about. The worst case scenario is that it's a phone and it's an iPod and it's exactly what people have been predicting Apple would produce for the better part of a year. Yes, it may have a lickable interface and industrial design to die for, but that's the least of what we expect from Apple these days. The best case scenario is that it features a unique, hitherto unforeseen twist that will make everyone sit and fall in immediate lust. But how likely is this? Again, I doubt that Apple can possibly produce a product to match the hype frenzy into which the media has been whipping itself. Even a solid product is likely to be seen as a disappointment as a result.

The same is true for the long awaited video iPod. Let me put one rumour to rest. We will not see an iPod with a virtual scroll wheel tomorrow. I don't care how many people want it, it's a bad idea. A finger print smeared and sweat marked screen is not what I'd prefer to watch video on, thank you very much, and the same is true for most people if only they'd stop and think about it. Some other iPod derivation is definitely likely however, and a larger screen will almost certainly play a part.

What other products are on the table? Mac Pro's with 8 cores courtesy of Intel's latest quad core processors are a certainty, but almost too dull to be worthy of much attention tomorrow. My belief is that we'll see variations of existing products but sporting a makeover, my best guess being that black will make a comeback to Apple's high end product range. I think Apple have been teasing us with this for a while down in the consumer range. The high end Macbook's (not pros) and iPod nanos for example all sport a natty black livery and I think this will make it to the high end. Anodized black aluminium Macbook Pro perhaps? It would make sense, given that the laptop market has increasingly followed Apple's trend towards silver or coloured enclosures. A return to a high quality black finish would be a bit of a zig where others have zagged. Perhaps OS X will receive a visual overhaul to go along with it. Certainly I think Apple will make further OS X 10.5 announcements giving them a solid riposte to Vista.

Like I said earlier, though, don't believe the hype.

Although.. having said that, looking back at last year, it seems that most of Apples efforts were given over to their transitioning to x86 processors. In terms of hardware alone, it was a good year for Apple, regardless of the fact that we didn't see many - if any - exciting new products from the company. Have they been saving their energies for big things this year? Apple certainly want us to believe that. Their banner for Macworld boldly states "the first 30 years were just the beginning". Is it true? I'm not sure - I can already feel Job's reality distortion field beginning to kick in, which makes it difficult to judge these things objectively. I'll be tuned into the blog feeds tomorrow to find out though. And I shan't be the only one...

I have little care for New Years resolutions (and of course, Happy New Year to you all!), but there are a few things I want to achieve this year. I almost got an unexpectedly early start on one of them by attempting to resign on Tuesday morning, but a sudden burst of creativity on work related projects following my decision prompted me to recant (my un-resignation was swiftly accepted, which was nice). Impending unemployment has a way of focusing the mind I've found

Anyway, amongst my list of things that aren't quite resolutions are a few remaining flat issues that need resolving. There aren't many of them, and I've been quite content to live with things as they are over the last year, but it's about time I dotted my i's and crossed my few remaining t's. I started with a spot of shopping in the sales for new doorknobs. Hardly the most exciting of purchases with which to begin the year I know, but I really do loath the knobs on my current doorknobs. They're pseudo-brass style things that are quite out of keeping with the rest of the flat and are long overdue for replacement. Strangely, the replacements I bought are a bit of an odd choice. In other circumstances I would have merrily passed them over, since they're not quite to my tastes. Why on earth did I buy them then? Well, mostly because they actually reflect me, or an aspect of my life, being formed from acrylic spheres roughly 2" in diameter. That might not mean much, but they're essentially built out of slightly smaller versions of the balls I use when contact juggling, a fact which amused me no end. I also like the fact that they actually say something about me, since I worry a little that the interior of my flat, despite the attention I've lavished on it, is somewhat anonymous. I'm quite looking forward to getting them fitted.

Of course, I realised when I got home that I don't really like my doors either, so I'm holding off until I find some doors I like...

Perfectionist? Me? I don't know what you're talking about...