Recently in technology Category

I was reading some of the great coverage by the CBC of the iPhone launch and found myself raising an eyebrow. Down near the bottom of the article is a section headed "Only Italy more expensive than Canada." I've seen this in many stories where the cost of the iPhone is presented at Voice Plan + Data Plan + System Access Fee multiplied by 36 months.

The reason I raised my eyebrow was that I already have a Voice Plan, I already pay the System Access Fee, but I don't have a Data Plan. So for me the 'cost' of going to an iPhone is the incremental cost of adding the Data Plan + the handset itself.

From most of the coverage I've seen the people buying the iPhone already have a cellphone. So they are already paying something every month. I would also wager than it's highly unlikely these people will do away with a cellphone completely in the next three years.  So whilst I think the 3 year contract is appalling , I think you have to be carefull when doing the price comparison that you don't base your analysis on a false premis.

Personally, if you want to knock the whole idea of an iPhone, doing these cost comparisons is not the best approach. The cost of the handset itself is not significant, $300 is a couple of meals out, it's really the extra $30 per month plus taxes. If I was a completely new customer, i.e. not only new to the Network, but never had a cellphone before, then maybe there's some value in these cost comparisons.

I've not taken the plunge yet on buying an iPhone - I'm still doing the math. One cost which hasn't been mentioned is that many people took over 8 hours (and a horrible experience it was) to get their iPhone and get it activated. Normally the only time I wait that long is at an Airport, where I have no control over the device! Here though, if I was self employed and charged my time out at $100 per hour, getting my hands on an iPhone yesterday just cost me $800 of billable time!

I'll keep working on my math, find answers to questions like "I already pay extra for caller display on my existing plan, will that work for the iPhone?' and watch the stories which will come over the next few weeks.

I've been on LinkedIn since early 2004, when I started using it to connect with people in Vancouver. At that time I was planning a reconnaissance trip to the city, ahead of emigrating from the UK. LinkedIn put me in touch with lots of good people and I went on to meet a bunch of them during my visit. The contacts I made were very very helpful and a number have become the closest of my Canadian Friends, since we arrived as permanent residents in the summer of 2005.

My use of LinkedIn was for the longest time unchanged. I believed that it was a numbers game and the more connections you had the more likely you were to get a few that were of value. Of course that statement 'of value' is the interesting point. What does it mean? My general approach to networking has always been to look for what I can offer my network, rather than what I can take from it. What is 'of value' changes over time and although LinkedIn was helpful in the building stages of my network, especially in Vancouver - I had for a few months been rethinking my approach.

My 'policy' so to speak was to be generous in who I connected with, i.e. I didn't really mind if I knew them or not. Some I had brief email discussions with, but generally I didn't. Apart from a mass invite activity I did in 2004/2005 I've only actually invited people recently that I'd met, so change was on the cards. As LinkedIn added to their offering I started following a feed of my network's activity. Increasingly this has become frustrating.

Most of the updates etc I was reading came from people that quite honestly, I didn't really know. Consequently they were of little interest. What would be of interest would be a feed from people I did really know. That feed I would like to read.

So without pretending I have some highly intellectual plan I decided to reduce my LinkedIn network to what I thought of as connections which I have some kind of connection with. LinkedIn of course is a bit clunky when it comes to removing contacts, but I've finally finished my first pass. Below are the Before/After numbers:

Measure                              Before               After     Reduction

Connections                         1,615                 362            78%

2 Degrees away               489,100            126,800          74%

3 Degrees away            8,230,600         5,150,500         37%

Total contactable         8,721,300         5,277,700         29%

It's interesting to note that the more extended the network, the less impact this has had.  Is this the right strategy going forward? Time will tell, but for now it feels better and just maybe I can start looking at my connections and taking more of interest in what they are all up to.

Note: Due to the number of connections I removed, it's entirely possible I deleted some that I meant to keep. If you are reading this and think you are one of them, let me know!

 

The other day my wife and I were discussing the idea that as people become more famous/successful they have less time for the people who made them famous/successful in the first place.  A couple of days later I had reason to question this.

For years I've been reading Robert X Cringely's column. These days of course I follow the rss. When I first read it, about the same time as the Triumph of the Nerds aired in the UK, Mr. Cringely had a really nice feature. Years later, i.e. now I appreciate it more as I think of my Toastmasters speeches and storytelling more widely.

The column would start with something that his wife said/did then go off into the core topic (rumours of a takeover, new product or whatever), then at the end conclude by circling back to whatever it was his wife mentioned/did. For me, sometimes the column was not in my field of interest, but I read on anticipating the conclusion.

Being a wired world we live in I decided the other day to buzz an email off to him. As usual, with these things I did not expect a reply. To my delight 'Bob' - I feel I can call him that based on how he signed the email - reminding me that this was 1987-95 when he did that. Wow! Over 10 years ago it stopped! Bob also mentioned he didn't think it was really appropriate for his current column, which is a shame.

Bob's done some very cool things, which I've read or followed over the years and doubtless more I will discover in future. His email to me probably took less than 10 secs, nothing to him I'm sure. But this simple act sets him apart from many others and gives me another good reason to continue to reading his column.

It's also another reason I should listen to my wife a little more. In our discussion she told me I was being overly cynical and on this occasion (only!) I have to agree with her.

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Tonight I attended a CMABC Lower Mainland Chapter 'Speaker's Series' Presentation intoduced by Michael Brown, CMA at the offices of Visible Strategies. Speaking on the subject above was CEO, Colin Grant a tall Scotsman who moved to Vancouver a few months before 9/11 in 2001.

Colin started off with a very entertaining 3 min summary of the rise and fall of traditional business models. As I undertstand it, the whole idea of $$$ as the goal is long gone. Business has to take a holistic approach to how it manages it's affairs. Naturally this leads into a discussion around climate change, environmental drivers and how these will dictate the way companies will have to act in future.

It used to be that it cost money to go green, one of Colin's assertions is that companies will HAVE to go green as it will cost money NOT to. Of course forward thinking companies have already worked this out. Enter Novex Couriers, a local same day courier company whose CEO Robert Safrata was next up.

Novex are very interesting, a courier company that last week won an award for ecoFreight Transportation from the Globe Foundation of Canada.  It was amazing to hear how environmentally aware this company is. In fact you can see it for yourself on their website by taking a look at how Novex is managed through see-it™; a product/service provided by Visible Strategies. 

I thought this was fascinating and a refreshingly different way to manage a business. Grant explained how when showing this to a potential new client, they can very quickly get something up into see-it™ in a couple of hours. Impressive stuff and judging by their client list something that is growing.

According to Grant the first thing to do is workout where you want your company to be, then work out how you can get there. According to Safrata, one major step in this is an Environmental Audit. Just make sure you don't end up with another glossy brochure style lump of paper that nobody reads and gets filed in a drawer! Some of the challenges of this are difficult, but according Safrata that is exciting! That is why we are managers - we have to work out how to solve these things! Personally having watched Al Gore's most recent presentation over on Ted, this stuff is critical, but we do have a great opportunity.

We can be the generation that really does save the planet, or more accurately, save the human race. The planet will continue come what may.      

Tags: AlGore, "Climate Change, "Colin Grant, "Public Speaking, "Speaker's Series, "Visible Strategies, CEO, CMA, cmabc, environment, holistic, man, portrait, presentation, see-it, strategic, strategy, "Rob Safrata, Novex, "Novex Couriers, Michael Brown CMA

If you read my previous post regarding my broken Nikon P5100 you may remember that the man at Kerrisdale Cameras told me it would be 4-6 weeks before I received it back. So imagine my surprise when I picked up a voicemail on Saturday informing me that it was ready for collection!

I went up today, which is 2 weeks and 2 days since I took it in, to collect the camera. I'm pleased to report that the man who helped me today (a different one to last time) was efficient and bordering on friendly. There was no charge and I was straight out into the sun we've enjoyed this weekend playing with my new (ok, nearly new), toy.

The zoom switch is back as good as new and having had a couple of weeks with my old Nikon P2, it's certainly a welcome return. The P2 is a reasonable camera, but without a viewfinder and image stabalisation, I found it somewhat restrictive.

I am pleased that Nikon Canada seem to have turned around, what was probably a simple repair, quickly. Kerrisdale Cameras did their bit as well and I'm back to normal just at the right time. Last week I attended an Apple World Tour about their software package called Aperture. This really rocks! So with what feels like a new camera and new software I'm back to having fun with photography! Check out my flickr page if you'd like to see the results!

Tags: nikon, kerrisdalecameras, aperture, flickr, nikonp5100, p5100, nikonp2, p2, repair, apple

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This is my second attempt to write this blog post. So inspired by Duane's post tonight I'm prepared to try again!

Back in September last year I went to Kerrisdale Cameras and purchased a new digital camera, the Nikon P5100. I've been fairly happy with the camera, although my recent project to photograph crows every day this year has brought one of it's biggest weaknesses into sharp focus (be it slowly!). But this isn't about the camera.

In the last couple of weeks the zoom button started getting sticky and then locking in position. It got progressively worse and last Friday I took it back to Kerrisdale Cameras. What followed is a classic example of why retail customer service in this town has such a bad name.

Unlike when I purchased the camera (and spent over $800 in the store on the camera, extra battery, case etc - I even got a 'Digital Camera Bonus Pack') the reception I received was decidedly cold.

The camera has to go back to Nikon. It was explained that I had the option of taking it to Nikon myself (no kidding!), or letting them send it. First they told me how close Richmond was, which I found patronising, then they told me they only send to Nikon once a week and that would not be until next Wednesday. Then I was told it would be 'assessed' to see whether the 'damage' was caused by an impact. They did concede there was no sign of an impact, and they understood that I was unhappy that I would be without a camera for six weeks.

What they didn't do - was DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT!!!! I was an unhappy customer, yet I was made to feel a victim. I was damn lucky they'd even let me in the shop and I should be grateful for even being spoken to, let alone anything else!

My problem you see is that my previous camera a Nikon Coolpix 5400 was purchased back in the UK from an establishment called Grays of Westminster. A store where, in a rare case of English boastfulness "The Kind of Service which Legends are Made." This is a store which sells only Nikon, and to some of the most successful and famous photographers in the world (Heather Angel comes to mind). Heather, I am sure spends Thousands of those English Pounds in Grays of Westminster. When I went in I wanted a point and shoot!

As it happened the morning I went in to buy it they had just sold the last one. No problem, said the assistant, he would call the store up the street (a competitor - think Future Shop), and if they had one he would pop down there and get it for me. He recommended a nice local restaurant I could maybe catch some lunch whilst he went down there! I was unfortunately in a rush, so he promised to courier it to my home that afternoon, I'd have it in the morning. And so I did.

I feel Kerrisdale too has the kind of service which legends are made, just not the same kind. This was a $400 Camera, why did they not just replace it (regardless of it being 6 months old)? or give me a store credit which would have enabled me to be up and taking pictures again 6 weeks ahead of the current plan? Maybe offer to lend me a camera? Give me a cheap digital camera to 'keep me going' but show some willingness to relate to ME, their customer.

When I purchased the camera I also purchased a $120 filter for my Leftantler's camera (a Nikon D70s). The D70s is getting a bit old now, maybe I'm looking to replace it (or add to the system), maybe a new D80, D200 or D300.  This is partly true, the only thing being timing. Photography is a growing part our lives, I want to build a good relationship with a local supplier. Yet, absolutely nothing about the experience on Friday, encourages me to purchase a single item from their store in the future.

To return to Duane's story, if this were Futureshop I wouldn't have the same expectations (maybe), but this is a specialist store, in business since 1961. I expected more.

Tags: Nikon, P5100, KerrisdaleCameras, GraysofWestminster, HeatherAngel, DuaneStorey, customerservice

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This was one of the fun things that was part of Photocamp at today's Moosecamp. There was a couple of hours of photo related presentations, covering a wide range of subjects and later in the day the opportunity to have some fun with Light Painting. I was the first up :-)

Tags: photography, goddesspiral, lightpainting, moosecamp, photocamp  northernvoice, nv08, Northern Voice 2008

Today I had the great pleasure of being a judge at the CaseIT 2008 Competition. This is an undergraduate business case competition which has been running since 2004. This year the competition took on a truly global dimension, with teams from South Africa, Singapore, Denmark, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Canada and the US.

The day started with a Judges briefing. The case study which we had been sent earlier in the week centred on the dating site called Plenty of Fish. This site was setup, and is run, by one individual: Markus Frind and seems to have achieved notable success, with $10M of Revenue p.a. with practically no cost. The question is/was whether or not this is sustainable and what Markus should do next.

The competitors were given 24 hours to prepare their presentations and locked away for that time. They did have a laptop and internet access which was very carefully monitored with all sorts of restrictions on what they could and could not look at. This was a very interesting case, addressing topics which are very much in vogue, social networking, online dating and of course, sustainability.

The structure of the day was that first of all the teams were divided in to four rooms, with 4 teams presenting in each room. The timing was strict, 20 minutes for the presentation and 10 minutes of questions. The Judges had a few minutes to ponder before the next team came in. One team from each then went through to the second round where they presented again, this time to all the judges.

As an additional step, following the second round was a lightning round, where four questions were asked and the teams given 60 seconds to prepare a response and 2 mins to answer. All in a big room, with all the judges and all the teams together.

After all this the judges got together and decided who was 1st / 2nd and 3rd. The subject line gives the game away of course, but in all seriousness all the competitors today deserve a lot credit. I know there is a whole circuit of these case competitions and some of the teams were very well practiced, but I have to admire all the participants who stood up there today. Without exception it was clear that they had put a lot of work into this, and standing in front of folk like myself must have been very daunting for them.

In terms of the presentations themselves, it was interesting to see the mix of time spent on presenting the situation and then the recommended actions. Too much on the former, too little on the latter. The standard of presenting was surprisingly good with a good deal less umms and ahhs than you might expect, the majority of the presentations also had a good structure. Generally I think there were too many words on too many slides and not enough pictures, but maybe I'm splitting hairs.

The discipline of having to prepare at short notice for an important presentation is a good discipline to learn. Being able to successfully analyse and interpret data, come up with a strategy and then communicate it are all key skills the students will benefit from in later years. Add to this that many of them had travelled half way round the world and still had to go back and make all their normal term/course deadlines made the whole thing even more impressive.

These students are the future CEOs, CTOs, leaders, Prime Ministers or Presidents. They will be running the world when I'm old and grey (which is probably far sooner than I was planning!). I came away greatly encouraged by this and more so inspired. As one of the speakers mentioned at the Awards Dinner, when I was an undergraduate the most I could organise was an anxiety attack, let alone the job these teams did in the competition.

So congratulations to SFU, who came away with 1st prize. As a judge I had no idea which team was which, until after the placings had been settled. For the record Singapore came second, Calgary third. I also enjoyed the Awards Dinner which had a great buzz. A very enjoyable end to a very enjoyable day - I hope I get invited back next year!

It's not very often I write about my employer. I have a little rule I follow which precludes this most of the time. Tonight is an exception though.

Earlier this week I received an email from Antonio Perez, the CEO of Kodak. I should say I wasn't alone as all employees received it I believe. Attached was a voicemail message that Donald Trump had left encouraging us to watch tonight's episode of Celebrity Apprentice.

I was greatly interested by this for a number of reasons. I remember watching the Apprentice back in the UK when Sir Alan Sugar was Donald Trump and really enjoyed the show. In the past I did watch one of Donald Trump series mainly I might add, so I could actually see something of who this Mr. Trump was. Again I enjoyed the show. However, I'm probably done with this now and the idea of a celebrity version did not really jump at me. I was a fan of the very first Celebrity Fame Academy back in 2003 - mainly driven by the participation of Ulrika Johnson at that time, but to use a phrase I've heard a lot recently, this idea has probably jumped the shark.

Add to this the fact that fellow Vancouver blogger Alan Yu has been doing a write up of the show this time, as he's done before and also read one of Mr. Trump's books which he reviewed chapter by chapter. Throw in the Kodak connection and you have a reasonable case for me to watch. Luckily the Canucks game was on the East coast so there was no clash!

The concept of the show followed the traditional approach. The products came from Kodak's Consumer Products division, which is making some excellent products. Case in point is this review of Kodak cameras from the recent CES in Las Vegas.

Back to the show ... for $150 bucks the printer featured is a really competitive deal, especially when you combine this with cost of the Ink which works out 50% less than it's competitors.

I'll leave Alan to let you know what happened at the end but for me I enjoyed the Kodak connection. Good job guys!

As for the programme itself, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Donald Trump seemed to be enjoying himself. Maybe it's the nature of this show - i.e. celebrity/charity etc but he did, if I can say this out loud, come across a lot more human than I've seen him previously. So the show was good, my problem was with the ad breaks. These make it really hard to watch anything - just when you think you are getting into something you suddenly realise that what you are getting into is women's sanitary products and/or a 20 secs snippet of a completely different show - very frustrating!

I can't say I will watch the Apprentice again, but I will re-aquaint myself with the Consumer Products division. I understand over at Kodak HQ in Rochester the employees were organising Apprentice watching parties for tonight - I hope they had as much fun as I did watching the show ....

Tonight I had the pleasure of attending the closing panel of the Canadian Financing Forum West. The event was put on by Dave Thomas of Rocket Builders. Credit to Dave for what was a cracking event. As the Forum's website says:

"The Canadian Financing Forum matches North American Corporate and VC investors with serious entrepreneurs looking to build world-class technology companies."

Basically a bunch of people looking for money able to present to a bunch of people with money. I was invited through New Ventures BC and the company I co-mentored last year, Teampages was presenting. Alas I arrived too late to see the presentation, but I did catch up with Mike Tan and was pleased to hear his business continues to do very well.

The highlight of the afternoon/evening for me was the Panel who discussed Web 2.0 type questions posed to them by a sad (and sick I understand) Paul Kedrosky. Lot's of healthy stuff here which I must blog about at some point including whether Facebook was done? Reading the press today I see that my favourite application on Facebook, Scrabulous may be under threat! That leaves the status updates as the other main reason I go to the site and made me think I should maybe concentrate on Twitter instead!

The reception to round the event off allowed me the opportunity to reconnect with some faces I'd not seen for a while and meet some new folk. Amongst them folk from Contigo, Chrysalix, Eqo.

This was a good opener for me to 2008, good networking, interesting people and presentations. Next week sees the Vancouver Enterprise Forum kick off, the CMA Breakfast Networking I host for the CMA Members and then Launch Party, which Danny Robinson of Strutta mentioned today.

Vancouver is an interesting place right now and at this time of year there is no shortage of things to take our minds away from the somewhat indifferent weather. Enjoy everyone!