Sony, what were you thinking?

I've been following with interest the debacle of Sony BMG distributing CDs containing a rootkit. Note that they have tentatively settled the first round of suits, as reported in this Yahoo! News headline. Upon first reading about the rootkit on Mark Russinovich's Sysinternals blog, I immediately checked my collection to see if I'd bought any of the offending discs. I had one on order, and promptly cancelled the order. I'm sure I wasn't the only consumer to do so!

I can't help but wonder what the heck they were thinking! Did they know they were distributing a rootkit? Did they really expect that their spyware wouldn't be discovered? Did they not comprehend that they were using spyware? and finally--Was it worth it? (I bet I know the answer to that last question.)

Wine recommendations

I am not a wine expert. I enjoy wine and have spent about 10 years finding a handful of wines that I like. My criteria for choosing wine: it tastes good to me and is consistently good on subsequent purchases. Although I spent a couple of years as a member of a "wine of the month" club, I found all of my favorites through the recommendation of friends.

My favorites:

• Stag's Leap Chardonnay - It used to be very difficult to find this wine, as most cases were reserved for restaurant sales. Now you can buy directly from the winery at www.stagsleap.com or from www.wine.com.
• Swanson Vineyards Sangiovese or Swanson vineyards Merlot - The Sangiovese is difficult to find, but well worth it. The Merlot is consistently good and widely available. www.swansonvineyards.com, www.wine.com, or your local wine shop.
• Mirassou White Burgundy or Mirassou Chardonnay - The White Burgundy is difficult to find, but the Chardonnay is widely available. www.mirassou.com, www.wine.com, or your local wine shop or grocer.

I look forward to trying the Swanson Rosato over the New Year's weekend, and hope to find another favorite. Again, I'm no connoisseur, but I know what I like.

More good predictions

Vinnie Mirchandani has posted some great predictions on his blog, deal architect. I liked them for a number of reasons:

1. They aren't focused on Yahoo or Google. I'm so tired of that.
2. He considers the effects of globalization (one of my current favorite topics).
3. He makes predictions around outsourcing, and I work for a major outsourcing company.

I'm in violent disagreement with his #4 prediction, however.

4) An infrastructure vendor - likely Dell or Sun (as it tries to redefine
itself) - will introduce infrastructure outsourcing at aggressive, "utility"
price points to cover a wide range of network, database, desktop and other
services. In its hype cycle for outsourcing Gartner defines infrastructure
outsourcing as one of the most mature. As systems management automation and
offsite, shared labor models mature, an efficient services "supply chain"
becomes much more viable.

I just don't see either Dell or Sun being in position to pull it off in 2006 or 2007. But I'm wildly enthusiastic about prediction #5, which I think is right on target.

5) A generation of “appligators” will emerge - small systems integrators
which specialize in innovation areas like web services or telemetry and willing
to work with clients in small, intense teams. We will not be able to tell till
2007 if they are of a more modest breed than their predecessors, the Scients,
Viants around the ebiz boom in late 90s.

Alas, I don't see #6 as much of a prediction. It's already happening. But check out his blog entry for yourself. Very insightful and well done.

Reading the predictions for 2006

Yes, it's the time of year for lists! We've finished up with Christmas lists. Worked our way through our "returns" list. Now it's time for:

1. Best of 2005 lists
2. 2006 resolutions lists
3. 2006 predictions lists

I really enjoy reading the predictions and stumbled across a nice list by Nicholas Carr on his Rough Type blog. Check it out and enjoy. I particularly like #1 and #5. Both are just too intriguing, no?

1. A free online game, supported by advertising and product placement,
becomes widely popular, threatening the traditional business model of the
gaming
industry.

5. Hitachi, Fujitsu or Lenovo buys Sun Microsystems.

I'm going to keep looking and compile a "best of" predictions list. Of course, the fun will come in December 2006, when we compare predicted to actual.

The Other Side of Outsourcing

Someone has uploaded the Discovery Channel documentary, The Other Side of Outsourcing, to YouTube. Narrated by Thomas Friedman, this video is well worth watching. Friedman introduces us to two sides of India--the high tech alongside the devastatingly poor. These extremes coexist within minutes of each other, and highlight the great emotional debate about globalization.

While some view globalization as overwhelmingly positive, there are just as many who view it as a trend that makes the poor poorer. I believe there is truth to both. The trick is to create the right programs that enable the disenfranchised residents of developing countries to participate in the global economy. Unfortunately, politics more often triumphs over conscience and common sense. But perhaps the very tool that fuels globalization--the Internet--will prove to be the platform for change.

TiVo's Wireless G USB Adapter

TiVo has come out with their own wireless adapter for their Series 2 box. $49.99 each. Why is this good? Unless you use a broadband connection, your TiVo uses a phone line to download programming each day. So with a wireless adapter, you can leverage your existing broadband connection and forget the phone line. Is this really new? Well, a TiVo branded wireless adapter is new. But www.weaknees.com has been selling USB wireless network adapters for the Series 2 TiVo for quite some time. $49/each.

RSS coming to Outlook

Michael Affronti, Microsoft's Outlook Program Manager, has blogged some good info about the coming RSS aggregation in the next version of Outlook. I think we've all heard that RSS was coming to Outlook, but didn't have the details. While his post may not answer all of your questions, it will certainly give you a good idea of the plan. I like it. Having my RSS feeds in the same location as my e-mail will be a convenience. I currently use Newsgator so I can access my feeds from any machine, but will certainly consider the switch.

The Strangeness of Dreams

Those of you who know me are aware that I have some strange dreams from time to time. There was the one where I had a black cat stuck on my head... the one about snakes... the one about falling down the stairs... and the recurring dreams about missing my final exams or coming up one credit short at highschool graduation.

But recently I had a dream about a friend I hadn't seen in several years. In 2001, I moved away from the neighborhood where I'd lived for 17 years and lost touch with many of my neighbors. I hadn't seen Linda in 4 years, but I recently I had a dream that included her. Several days ago, I found out that Linda died in early December. I am so saddened by her passing. She had a vibrant personality, a beautiful smile, and a wonderful laugh. She was so proud of her son Aaron! Initially, I was disconcerted about having dreamed of Linda near the time of her death. But now I'm comforted by my odd little nocturnal remembrance. Comforted, yet I don't pretend to understand...

Goals challenge for 2006

I am a goal setter. Several years ago I stumbled upon the power of writing down my goals and the steps required to achieve them. It has been rewarding—and sometimes amusing!—to go back in later years and review those goals and my progress. There is much to be said for living a life by design, rather than a life by default. (I’d credit someone else for those words, but I’ve read them so many places I don’t know where to begin.) This year, I even put goal setting on my Christmas list—I asked my son and daughter-in-law to take time to think about and write down their goals as a family as a Christmas gift to me. But it’s really a thinly disguised gift to themselves.

Although simply writing down your goals is sufficient, I prefer to work a little harder at mine. I write down a list of goals, then go back and put some action items toward my top three goals. And I now write all of this in a spiral notebook that I've dedicated to that purpose. When I'm really concentrating on a particular goal, I spend time each day rewriting my goal and the associated action items--just a few minutes each morning to maintain my focus.

There are a number of good books available on goal setting and resolutions, but I believe the best is Goals, by Brian Tracy. It's available in print, digital download, and audio. I have all of these versions, as I go back to this book several times a year for a refresher. Obviously, I can't recommend it highly enough.

I've already formulated my goals for 2006, but I'm spending some time refining them this week. Here's a sample of the goals that are currently on my list:

• Write another book in 2006.
• Organize my craft/hobby room.
• Earn my CISSP credential.
• Complete the patent process for my AD Maturity Model.
• Lose weight. (This one makes the list every year. My goal should be to not need it on my list in 2007!)
• Complete my college degree by year end 2007. (This one requires massive action in 2006, so it makes my list now)

So now I've put these goals into the public domain, and by making them public I feel a bit more pressure to accomplish them. I'll post occasional updates, and look back at this time next year to see how it went. My next steps will be to elaborate on each of these goals, creating action items that will move me in the right direction. Just going through this exercise boosts my confidence about achieving the goals. And reviewing the list of action items every day keeps me focused on getting the work done.

For those of you who are inclined, I hope I've encouraged you to reach for a new goal in 2006. Please share it with me, and I'll be your cheerleader throughout the year to help encourage you toward success!

French anti-Americanism not quite what it seems?

Did you boycott french fries and give up French wines? A lot of Americans have been angry with France since the early days of the war in Iraq. Myself included. (Although I only gave up the french fries because I joined Weight Watchers.) And the French have always seemed quite disdainful of Americans.

Anyway, I stumbled across this article by Howard French of The NY Times on his site A Glimpse of the World. According to French, France quarrels with America because we are so much alike! Read it--it's a good article. I may just schedule a trip to France this spring after all.

Bought a new TiVo!

I couldn't resist the current sale price on TiVo and bought a new one. I've had my Series 1 TiVo since shortly after the product hit the market. And yes, I've hacked it with a larger hard drive and a new IR device. (If you're interested in upgrading your TiVo or buying replacement parts, WeaKnees is a reputable place to buy and offers great service.)

But I've now succumbed to the lure of the Series 2 TiVo, complete with a wireless adapter and a USB port. I didn't buy a huge drive--just the standard model--because I'm not a big TV watcher but I am particular about what I watch. At the current sale prices, you can pick up a new TiVo for $49.

Oh my gosh--I'm Sock Mom again!

I just noticed that since my post yesterday about sending socks to my son in Iraq, all of my Google ads are pointing out places to buy....yep, you guessed it...socks! I'm never, ever going to live it down now, am I?

Attention Thomas Friedman fans

Are you a fan of Thomas Friedman, NY Times columnist and author of The World is Flat and The Lexus and the Olive Tree? If you read here regularly, you know that I am. I've read his last 3 books and enjoyed them immensely. He has a knack for aggregating global economic and political information and relating it's relevance to your own community. I heard Friedman speak during a visit to EDS in Plano, TX last month, and found him to be very personable and engaging. So if you're interested, I noticed that he'll be appearing on Book TV the morning of December 24. Check here for the details--2005 National Book Festival: Thomas Friedman

Gear for the troops

Those of you who know me well understand that I have a keen appreciation for our military and their current mission in Iraq. As an American, and as a Mom, it drives me crazy to think that our government would ever send soldiers to the field with substandard equipment. My son assures me he had everything he needed, and then some. Maybe he was right--check this post on Engadget about the new air conditioned vests. I know a few Marines who would've appreciated one of those!

While we're on the topic of provisioning the troops, I'll confess to my own major wierdness while my son was deployed. I tried, but I did not handle it gracefully. I heard horror stories about troops that didn't receive the right gear, so I bought him a few things...the very best and coolest goggles, the moisture wicking undershirts, and socks. Lots and lots of socks.

I believe that was the first indicator of my mental meltdown. After reading an article about troops getting terrible foot infections from living in their combat boots, I went online to find the very best socks. I ordered 2 dozen, then found out they were back ordered. I found another source and ordered 2 dozen more. Same story. I found yet another source and finally got the socks shipped to my son in the field. All of them. Over a three week period I sent him 6 dozen pairs of high quality socks specially made for combat boots, in the color preferred by the Marine Corps. Every time I wrote to him I asked, "Do you need more socks?" He thought I was nuts, but was too respectful to say so. Many months later, when he had returned home and settled in, I found out that I had become known within his unit as 'Sock Mom'. He had more socks than he needed. He had been selling them to the other guys for $10/pair. (I paid $13/pair, plus shipping.)

He's been home now since April, and I have slowly come to realize just how nutty I was during that deployment. I'm doing much better now... But it doesn't take much to send me right back to that stomach clenching, heart-in-my-throat feeling that I lived with for too many months.

Top IT Trends of 2005?

When I saw the headline for an InfoWorld article 2005's top 10 moments in IT, I really anticipated something meaty. I have to say that I was disappointed. The author describes these events as "earth shaking". Some are...some aren't. For example:

Vapor Without the Ware Oct. 4: The Web 2.0 buzz proved so compelling,
Google (Profile, Products, Articles) and Sun made a high-profile, nearly substance-free announcement hinting that Google might one day distribute a thin client version of Sun’s OpenOffice. Shortly thereafter, Microsoft felt driven to announce its Live Software initiative, a software-as-a-service plan that was almost as thin on details.

Hello? Didn't you just say these were non-events? Hardly the stuff for the top events of 2005. In my view, software-as-a-service is a continuing trend. Microsoft has been heading that direction for a number of years, as have Google, Yahoo, and a host of others. We're starting to see some promising results, and those have been labeled "Web 2.0". Again, not big news for 2005. The delay in SOX compliance doesn't seem earth-shaking, nor does the release of two new Microsoft products--even if they are SQL Server and Visual Studio 2005.

And finally, while The World is Flat is undoubtedly one of my favorite books, I hardly think that it "dragged the dark issues of outsourcing into the light". (Outsourcing doesn't automatically equate to off-shoring American jobs, although that is often the case. Further, why do we think it's okay to be "global corporations" but not "global employers"? After all, a global company should employ people around the globe, right?)

I do agree that the RFID compliance mandated by Walmart and DoD is big. As is the vote in Massachusetts to adopt Open Document Format (that is really, really big). But much of the rest of the list doesn't seem terribly well thought out.

Foiled by... Play-Doh???

Oh my! Saw this post on Engadget and thought it was a scream. Someone has found a way to cirumvent fingerprint scanners using Play-Doh. I'm sure it isn't as simple as it reads, but we do take our technology so seriously. And to be foiled by Play-Doh is almost insulting, isn't it? Doh!

A sweet device: DualCor cPC

Greg Hughes posted info on a really super looking new device--the DualCor cPC. When docked, you use it like a PC, undock and it becomes a SmartPhone. Santa, is it too late to change my Christmas list?!

Trends to watch for 2006

Small Business Trends has an interesting article, Futurist Watts Wacker’s Trends to Watch in 2006. Several of the trends are pretty straight-forward, but one in particular caught my attention:

"The global culture will ramp up. But the global culture is not the same as the American culture exported overseas. Recognize that America is only one player in the development of the global culture. The global culture is a megatrend. It will be at its apex in 2008 when China hosts the Olympics. Business needs to be prepared for this blended culture that crosses country boundaries."

So just how does business prepare for the pending global culture? Now that, my friends, is a big question. Anyone have pertinent thoughts to share on this topic?

Writely

I saw a post by Greg Hughes last week that talked about Writely, a new word processing collaboration tool. Writely is free, at least for now while it is in beta, and looks very promising. No client side code to download--it's browser based. I plan to try it out with my co-author as we work through a book project.

Book Addiction, Site Personalization, and a Mashup Idea

I believe I've read somewhere that before you can deal with an addiction you must first "own" it. Here goes: I am addicted to books. I love books. I crave them. Technology books, mysteries, current events, geology (yes, it's true), writing references...

So there you have it. I probably keep Amazon.com afloat. I no longer want to calculate my yearly spend (although I have my Quicken account set up to do just that, I can't make myself look any longer). Amazon is highly adept at personalization. They make it too easy for me to buy from them: 1-click ordering, premier shipping, and personalized recommendations are just a few of the tools that make it too easy to buy.

During my evening commute yesterday, I was pondering my Amazon fed book addiction. I concluded that willpower isn't going to solve my problem, but maybe technology can. Amazon, how about implementing spending limits, much like the credit card industry uses? No? Ok, how about allowing me to set a monthly Amazon.com spending budget? Hmmm...still determined to be my enabler? Or, alternatively, how about a subscription that allows me to prepay a set amount per month? That would encourage me to spend my monthly allotment with care! (This works for me on Audible.com. Oh, did I forget to mention that audio books and digital books are part of my weakness as well?)

Since I doubt that Amazon is interested in voluntarily limiting my expenditures at their site, what I need is a mashup...something that will allow me to use Quicken, or a similar personal finance tool, to impose a ceiling on my monthly Amazon spending. This new tool should allow me to impose preset override limitations as well, such as:

• forcing me to wait 48 hours before a budget increase could go into affect (the equivalent of freezing a credit card in a block of ice)
• preventing me from raising my spending limit without the approval of a self determined "enforcer" (the equivalent of a note from mom?)

Obviously, the tool should work on other online shopping sites as well, and ideally enable me to manage my budget for a number of sites. Would I subscribe to this service? Absolutely. Until then, maybe I'll find a book or two on willpower...

The Core vs. The Gap in a Flat World

Much of my reading during 2005 has been devoted to books on globalization. Thomas Friedman’s The World is Flat is awesomely readable—a book that generates a lot of interesting discussion. I also like The Pentagon’s New Map and Blueprint for Action: A Future Worth Creating, by Thomas P.M. Barnett. Although the authors come from widely disparate backgrounds, (Friedman is a Pulitzer Prize winning columnist with the NY Times; Barnett is a military strategist and advisor to the Pentagon) the books complement each other well.

Barnett explains that, from the Pentagon’s perspective, the world is now comprised of Core states and Gap states. The Core states participate in the global economy and exhibit relatively stable political structure. The Gap states do not. And the Gap states are those that ultimately enable terrorists. Friedman’s explanation of globalization brings the world a bit closer to your living room. He views a flat world, where Bethesda and Bangalore are virtual next door neighbors and an IT worker in Texas competes for jobs with IT workers in China, India, Brazil, and other countries. (As an IT worker in Texas, I assure you he’s 100 percent correct!) As Barnett writes in Blueprint for Action, “The goals of winning the war on terrorism and expanding globalization are two sides of the same coin.”

I'm a media-fed American, and tend to believe that the United States should immediately and dramatically reduce our reliance on oil from the Middle East. Invest instead in alternative energy R&D. Save the planet and quit putting money into the hands of nations who incubate terrorism. Perhaps this is a knee-jerk reaction to the hatred and violence directed at us from that region. Nevertheless, it’s the way I feel and, I suspect, an opinion shared by many Americans. So I was caught off-guard by Barnett’s assertion that “calls for America to radically reduce its dependency on foreign oil are misguided in the extreme, because working to reduce our economic leverage in the region rather than increase it will only force us to rely all the more on military solutions over the long haul.” Barnett makes some good points to support his opinion, but two weeks after reading that comment, I’m still working to digest it. I’m trying to be open minded, but I just don’t agree. Of course, he’s the military strategist and I’m the mom from Texas…

An important sub-topic in the overall discussion of globalization is that of education reform in the United States. America is falling behind in the race to produce new scientists and engineers. Thus fewer Americans are qualified for the choice jobs that can now be filled by a qualified worker from any part of the world. So now I’m reading Richard Florida’s The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent. I’ve got quite a few years left until retirement, and I darned sure plan to remain in a well paying job. (I enjoy my TiVo, my Rio Carbon, and my iPaq phone—and I plan to enjoy the next generation of gadgetry as well.) As a parent and grandparent, I also want to see my family thrive and prosper in the decades to come. My goal is to answer the question, “What can I, as an individual, do to promote education reform in my community.” Stay tuned as I search for answers.