the NeoCommunicator

The Content Management System Illusion

Jeff — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 18:41:29 +0000

I’ve been asked quite a bit lately about Content Management Systems (CMS) for website maintenance. The general comment is that “it costs too much just to have a name changed” or phone number, or email address, etc. Most site owners feel these changes are quick and should be inexpensive to make. Enter the CMS, touted as the snake-oil cure all for the internet age. Yes! You can add pages, make updates, put up video, photos, files, and more! And it’s just as easy as Word or Email! Well, I’m here to tell you… it just ain’t so. At least not yet.

(...)
Read the rest of The Content Management System Illusion (749 words)

Copyright © 2010 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: CMS, content management, sharepoint, wordpress

Adobe Flash 10.1: One Player to rule them all! (except Apple)

Jeff — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:44:15 +0000

Last week Adobe announced Flash Player 10.1. With the release somewhere in the first half of 2010, Flash Player 10.1 is the first runtime release of the Open Screen Project. 10.1 unifies the Flash platform across “smartphones, smartbooks, netbooks, PCs and other Internet-connected devices, allowing content created using the Adobe Flash Platform to reach users wherever they are.” Adobe’s press release states that “the browser-based runtime enables millions of designers and developers to reuse code and assets and reduce the cost of creating, testing and deploying content across different operating systems and browsers.” This is a big deal. Let’s figure what it all means.

(...)
Read the rest of Adobe Flash 10.1: One Player to rule them all! (except Apple) (599 words)

Copyright © 2009 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: acrobat connect, android, Flash, Flash 10.1, flash iPhone, iPhone, mobile flash platform, Open Screen Project

Windows 7 arrives in October! So what?

Jeff — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 13:32:25 +0000

Microsoft is scheduled to release Windows 7 on the 22nd of October. The replacement for the less-than-popular Vista. The initial reviews and information provided on Windows 7 look promising. An updated interface with improved usability, a more functional task bar, less restrictive security measures… it all sounds good.

So, what does a new operating system (OS) mean to you, the strategic communications professional and/or site owner? Let’s find out…

(...)
Read the rest of Windows 7 arrives in October! So what? (452 words)

Augmented Reality: The world as we see it is about to change

Jeff — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 20:01:15 +0000

Though in its infancy, Augmented Reality (AR) has arrived. iPhone AR apps are now available and some unbelievably smart people over at Seattle’s University of Washington have even prototyped contact lenses with circuitry built in! This new tech, combined with always-connected Internet access, will literally change the way we see the world.

(...)
Read the rest of Augmented Reality: The world as we see it is about to change (594 words)

Copyright © 2009 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: AR, augmented reality, iPhone Apps, virtual reality

Web usage statistics – IE6 hanging on

Jeff — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 16:01:12 +0000

Welcome back, friends! Let’s see what’s happening on the web!

Since the last web usage stats post, an industry point to note is the favorable market response to netbooks. This response, while not showing much influence in the stats today, may have some impact in the future. There are a two reasons for this. First, netbooks are shipping with Windows XP as opposed to Vista. This will most likely change in October with the release of Windows 7, but for now, XP usage is getting an extra boost. The second reason, one that will last well past October, is the new screen resolutions that netbooks are introducing. Again, current stats aren’t showing anything significant yet, but 1024 x 600 or 1366 x 768 (for some newer models) are screen resolutions to keep on the radar. Especially if you’re targeting that young, hip crowd.

That said, let’s dive into the charts and see what we’ve found.

(...)
Read the rest of Web usage statistics – IE6 hanging on (387 words)

Copyright © 2009 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: browser stats, die, ie6, ie8, operating system usage stats, resolution usage stats, web usage

Twitter is down… Has the world stopped spinning?

Jeff — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:40:12 +0000

It’s 10am EST and Twitter has been down since about 9:15 or so. What is one to do? Surely Facebook will be the natural alternative, but who wants to limit their pondering to just one social networking outlet?

By coincidence, I was just reading a post on Read Write Web on the potential dangers od cloud computing. How many businesses suffer when the king of 140 characters goes down? Would anyone care if MySpace went down?

These are the questions of our times. A highly-aware society with our fingers on the pulse of the news. We can’t wait for any offical confirmation. If it comes up as a trending topic on Twitter, it must be true! Now, we have to wallow in the alternative universe of actual news sites… What are we? Barbarians?

(...)
Read the rest of Twitter is down… Has the world stopped spinning? (330 words)

Copyright © 2009 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Cloud Computing, Social Media, Social Networking, twitter

Welcome to Google Voice!

Jeff — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:45:23 +0000

Today I won the lottery and received my long-awaited Google Voice invitation. Voice is Google’s new cloud-integrated telephone forwarding and consolidation service. You obtain a new phone number, then link all of your other phones to it. When someone calls your Google Voice number, all of your assigned phones ring.

One of Voice’s best features is that voicemail is transcribed. The transcription and audio file are sent to your Voice account where you can then review and manage them as you please.

Being Google, you have a fairly decent amount of customization that comes along with your Voice account. You can define which of your phones ring based on who’s calling, block less desirable callers, and record custom greetings for different callers or groups.

(...)
Read the rest of Welcome to Google Voice! (716 words)

Copyright © 2009 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: google voice, internet phone service, voice

What happened to Usability?

Jeff — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 14:10:42 +0000

I just spent way too long updating my Facebook profile. I created a specific “Family and Close Friends” group who can see my personal contact information and then applied that group to the specific content. Sounds simple enough, right? Not so much.

With all the new technology being developed at hyper-sonic speed, has everyone forgotten about Usability? Or at least the one or two User Experience Engineers on staff who are overwhelmed, underutilized, and / or disregarded?

Let’s just cover the basics for those not in the know. Usability is the ease with which your user can use the tools available to achieve their goal. Note that I said their goal. You may want your user to sign up for your email notifications or complete a survey, but those are your goals.

(...)
Read the rest of What happened to Usability? (743 words)

Copyright © 2009 the NeoCommunicator | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: experience engineers, usability, usability concepts, usability standards, user experience, user-centered design

Google Announces Lightweight Chrome OS

Jeff — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:20:51 +0000

On July 7th, search engine giant Google announced the Google Chrome Operating System (OS). Google has already successfully produced office administrative tools, including the very successful Gmail cloud-based email service. But an OS is an entirely different animal. Compatibility with third-party software and hardware is a challenge that Google hasn’t experienced yet.

I’ve had a Gmail account for years, and have been using Google Docs for the last few months. While these tools are fine for the basics of what they do, I often find myself longing for more robust features. It also appears that the various development teams at Google don’t talk very much, since functionality is not as seamless between applications as it should be. The basic concept of seamless integration of Google’s existing technology into the OS will be vital to its success.

(...)
Read the rest of Google Announces Lightweight Chrome OS (421 words)

The fragile Internet – How one man took down the web

Jeff — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:38:52 +0000

Last week we witnessed a unprecedented Internet event. The sudden death of Michael Jackson (MJ) literally took down several news and social networking sites for a short time.

This overload, and ultimately the failure, was preceded by another newsworthy event. The world was still entranced by the events unfolding in Iran and the results of its election. It became quite public that Twitter had become the most up-to-date source of news, beating out major news networks. News giants were still reeling from the knockout punch of being days behind in their reporting. And just as the pieces of this new landscape puzzle were being put together, the MJ news hit. Of course, it should be noted that the Iranian government was censoring outgoing news and it was impossible to tell if the news being tweeted was legitimate.

(...)
Read the rest of The fragile Internet – How one man took down the web (271 words)