Fan To Pro - The Blog of Professional Geekery

Facebook Preparing IPO. Maybe

Get the maybe-latest here.  There's speculation on timetables which really says very little.

I still want to keep this in people's minds because how the IPO goes is going to effect other IPOs, market valuations, VC investments and more.  This may not be a good effect, but it will be a effect.

- Steven Savage

Career Thoughts on the Post-PC/CorpTechPocalypse Era

Yesterday I discussed that I felt the decline of the PC was related strongly to the decline of Corporate IT.  But what does it mean for your career, my fellow progeek?  I figured I'd collect my random thoughts to see if it gave you ideas, or caused panic.  Or something.

The CorpTechPocalypse And The Post PC World?

Last week, I noted that some say Apple had their first post-PC quarter - and that this isn't suprising.  In fact, ilke the "CorpTechPocalypse", the slow dying of IT departments, this is a completely predictable trend.  In fact, I think they're the same thing.

Really, the dying of the average IT department is pretty much the same reason that companies are aiming for a post-PC market.

(Now I agree with our own Scott that it's not a post-PC world in that the world will forget PC's.  I view what's coming as a world where the PC's role shrinks considerably.  But I call it Post-PC as the other term I heard, "PC Plus," doesn't cut it for me)

So what are these similarities?

Blow Your Mind: Should Apple Buy Hollywood?

Think about it.

- Steven Savage

Nitendo To Launch Own Network

Well, it finally happened - Nintendo is doing its own network.  Not clear if it's in time for the Wii U launch or what, but a welcome addition to the company.  Well, in short, it's a needed one.

Of course details seem scarce, but let's be honest - Nintendo has to do this to keep up.  It's not something new, it's something they have no choice but to do.

Now a few things:

• Is this going to be a minimal-network or are they going to do anything different with it?  Nintendo's "do different" ability has served them well in the past (you think we'd have Kinect without the Wii?).  They may leave people unimpressed or suddenly have competitors scrambling to keep up.
• They may use this to steal the thunder of competitors.  Watch when the announcements occur.
• How much is made - and how much has to be built.  There may be job opportunities here.
• How do you get things distributed between this new network?  Developers should keep up on this.

- Steven Savage

 

 

Behold 3D Printing: Bow Before It

The BBC has an awesome report on 3D printers at CES.  If you're not familiar with 3D Printing allow me to mock you.

It's looking like we have several companies working on home 3D printers - which means affordable ways to basically make plastic stuff at home off of your computer.  Try and wrap your mind around that idea - for $2000 you can make stuff off your computer.  All those times you glossy-printed fanart are nothing compared to this.

With more than one company in play here, I think it's inevitable that we're going to see 3D printers in the home (in fact the BBC article helps explain the simplicity of some of the tech).  So I'm trying to imagine the impact of this, and of course that means BULLET POINTS.

Games, Persistence, The Cloud, The Future

If you play MMOs, if you're using cloud storage for games (as we're moving towards), think for a moment how long a "game" will survive.  Your collection of memory sticks and outdated save cards is nothing compared to the way gaming is going.  I see it entirely possible that game data will survive for years, for more than a decade, in some situations.

This likely possibility is something those of us who play and make games and media should be seriously considering.

• MMO's will have to decide what to do with old data - and also the fact that each inactive account may yet become income producing.
• If anyone remembers the way some Metal Gear games used save files, those old save files could be used in so many ways in other games - or sequels.
• What happens when a game gets re-released?  What do you do with save files floating around in the cloud?
• When a game gets a sequel/spinoff years later after whatever legal/ethical/company fooaraw delays it save files that can be used for extras, bonuses, etc. may still be out there.
• With all the ways to use old save and game information, what are the legal limits of what data you can use?
• * What legal rights does a company have to use data saved under previous games?

If you're a programmer or producer in gaming, a lot of potential opportunities and challenges are coming just due to sheer persistence of data.  Some of these could be trouble - and many could be opportunities.

- Steven Savage

 

Mobile Phones, Computers, And Trends

So we look in wonder at Mobile Phones.  They're gaming devices, they're cameras, they're electronic wallets.  Oh, and occasionally they're phones as well, when you're not texting or Twittering or throwing birds into pigs.

The mobile market seems captivating and enchanting to us as we marvel at all the things phones can do.

Well, yes, I am impressed with mobile phones, but I'm not impressed with all this functionality anymore.  Why?

The Battlelines in SOPA Get Clearer

Looks like the whole SOPA mess is heating up, and we're seeing some pretty deep lines in the sand get drawn.  The list that came out

• Paul Graham of YCombinator has disinvited SOPA supporters to his YCombinator's Demo Days.  Take it from a Silicon Valley Guy, that's a real slap.
• GoDaddy being part of the pro-SOPA crowd was apparently a surprise (and disappointment) to many.  Ben Huh, the CEO and founder of Cheezburger network is threatening to pull all of their domains from GoDaddy - in fact it's mentioned on one of his sites.  There's talk of a mass moving of domains on Reddit.  Also GoDaddy's position on SOPA is stated at their website, but as they're reposts that seem more like political statements than addressing concerns I'm not exactly confident they get how angry people are (or they don't care).
• As people dig into SOPA it's inadvisability is making it even more of a laughingstock.  Say, the fact it could ban software the Navy made to get around censorship.  People are digging into it even deeper, and with the rage and the time on their hands, expect more to come (there's already anti-SOPA plugins for Firefox).

That single list has produced quite the reaction - and I doubt we're done yet.  Actually, I think it's probably tame as it's the holiday season.

So analysis

• Of course keep following this.
• A mass movement of domains out of GoDaddy could become serious since, well, GoDaddy pretty much handles domains.  They've had past controversies, but this could mark them in a destructive manner, especially if their support goes "meme" or inspires people to dig up dirt on them.  If you work there you'll want to watch this carefully as it may affect your job.
• The GoDaddy issue may inspire other registrars to take sides (my guess is "not supporting SOPA" is a good bet).
• We'll see more battleines be drawn I'm sure.  The awareness is increasing - as is the anger - and the list that was released gives people viable targets for their rage (especially if any of those companies were ones they hated beforehand).  The entire SOPA mess has "gone meme" - and it also means it won't go away even if SOPA goes away.
• This is revealing something I've suspected for awhile but have had trouble articulating - there are some businesses for whom openeness/communication/freedom are built into their business model, and others where it's at best optional.  We're seeing a battle of approaches to business here (among many other things).  Hey, you economics writers could do a lot with this.

- Steven Savage

Who Supports SOPA? A Handy List

For those of you keeping up on the SOPA mess (which should be all of you), here's s list of companies supporting SOPA and their contact information.

Some of these are not surprisng.  Some I've never heard of - but there's a few I didn't expect.  GoDaddy was especially shocking, but so is Marvel Entertainment (who I normally figured didn't get into this).

- Steven Savage