Roaming & Pillaging

It seems the stink from carrier pricing schemes in regards to roaming charges is starting to be smelt by everybody, because in Europe the EU is starting to investigate such charges and will make a list public of what people are getting charged when they're roaming (since it generally remains a mystery to customers who roam) -- with the goal of helping people select the better carrier when they are roaming (I guess).

I remember back in 1999, when I went back to the Seattle area with my GSM phone from Prague -- OMFG. GSM was available (by VoiceStream at that time) ... even if nobody knew what it was ... and with my pre-paid SIM card (with about 20 dollars credit), I could generally manage to send SMSs to friends in Prague (and they to me) for a 2-week stay, and I generally had credit left. It seemed, everytime I came back, I could do less and less. What's worse, I used up 10 dollars of credit in like 5 minutes on a train in Germany -- the "neighbor" of the Czech Republic. I dn't know if it was Deutsche Telkom murdering me or if it was the Czech carrier I was using (I'm guessing a little bit of both). All I know is after I used up all my credit, added more, I REFUSED calls from abroad -- they were simply too much. To this day, I still do -- even if I have a contract from a different carrier ... prices for calling are STILL out of this world (SMS'ing is a bit more reasonable).

What I find funny is it has taken so long for people to say something (Europeans are generally used to getting screwed by their Socialist governments, so it's nothing new -- I still find it funny that I pay "by the pulse" to make public calls from HOME!) -- but what is worse, is that mobile carriers act more like cartels -- the prices they have generally ARE because of AGREEMENT between them all. Sure, they have different programs, but when it comes down to it, calling "per minute" isn't much different nor is "per SMS" pricing -- only their packages and promotions differ. Unless it's regulated (which, lets be honest, NEVER WORKS) somehow, the prices will remain the same. Carriers know that Euros go SOUTH during the summer (warm), so prices go up -- it's basic economics (supply and demand, but in this case, supply never runs out -- just demand increases). I don't know the roaming charges in Norway, but I'm guessing Italians visiting Oslo pay less than Norweigans visiting Rome .... just a guess.

The only "true" way to let market forces dictate pricing would to be have a SIM card that could connect to ANY carrier at anytime .... that way, you might use carrier XYZ during the weekend, ABC during roaming, and QRS during weekdays -- all because of better pricing. The technology is there -- it's just locked when you're in the "native" area of your SIM card -- the EU should just force "open sims" -- that'd be fun :-) (obvioulsy, carriers would charge more to open sims than to "customers" -- so, maybe there is no hope?)

Ooh, the new Jellingspot website is getting there -- you guys (I hope) won't be disappointed -- hang in there -- I'm slow! But, the Windows version if ready for you guys :-)

Servers Migrated...

Ok, I've migrated the midletsoft.com, jellingspot.net, and jellingspot.com servers to new boxes ... they're ready to be beat to death now. Now, this long 4th of July weekend, I will work on finishing the new websites and I hope by the end of next week (next weekend max) you'll see what I hope is the beginning of a new period in mobile content exchange ... time will tell. Get ready for the fun to start ...

Silence is a virtue, except if the UN takes over ICANN

I know I have been quiet, but the Windows version of Jellingspot is done, the new site is almost ready to go, and then it's "go live" time! Yippie! So, hang in there ... once we've launched, I'll post more.

In the meantime (and on a whole other note), here is a VERY good (and very important, please read) article about the impending (possible) take over of ICANN by the United Nations ... CEO Elliot Noss of Tucows drops the hammer:

READ HERE

5GHz Computers?

Well, I just had to bring this to your attention -- while you probably won't see this in Wal-Mart anytime soon, check it:

http://www.tomshardware.com/cpu/20031230/

Clocked at 5GHz at -190 c .... you go boyzzzzzzz..... ;-)

Jellingspot for Windows ...

Just a quick notice, if any bloggers out there want to try out the Windows version of Jellingspot, write to info {at} midletsoft {dot} com, tell us the hardware you're going to use (which of these phones, BT USB device, and type of processor you have), and we will send you the link. We'll go public with the link soon, but need to finish the new page -- in the meantime, some of you guys can crash test it if you want ... the more feedback, the better. This will only come with the AdPusher and TextBroadcast services ... the more powerful fServer service will have to wait (few bugs to work out on the Windows version -- you can always try the Linux version if you want to test this service...)

Consider yourself a pre-Beta tester if you ask for the link ... so, be nice if you have problems .... report them.

Surgical Sales vs. Community Development ...

Recently, I had a very good discussion with a pretty successful Sales guy about ways which Jellingspot should be pitched (since the Windows version will be on the site shortly...) ... naturally, being a sales guy, he's of the opinion that starting with large organizations who can thus push the product down the chain is the way to start, whereas my vision is to build a much larger user base and pick of smaller sales as the community grows and once the user base is larger, then hit up larger franchises, etc...

Both have their goods and bads and I'm not blind to them. For starters, being an unfunded company, getting a few (but large) customers would really help with accelerating development since their initial investment goes toward building and improving the product. Consider it "seed money" from them ... you give them a competative advantage ... a change agent as it's called, they tend to invest into you (since you're doing them a favor, even if your technology isn't mainstream ... doesn't generally matter, since these types of customers are of the Innovator class anyway). The problem with this approach is that you can then become slaves to these few companies, and while making money, the product itself can become neglected, and eventually, some other similar product with more vigor might surplant you. Having only time and an extremly large amount of my personal time involved in our product (no investors to pay back...), I'm not in a hurry to be enslaved (however, a few big customers also help nab additional customers ... kinda a bowling pin approach -- hit the first head right, and other customers/pins begin to fall).

The second approach (which I favor) is the "community" approach, which is to build up the user base FIRST and worry about the money later. Obviously, Jellingspot works fine ... it's not a concept technology but something people are using everyday now ... the problem is, it still needs some polishing and some new features we have planned just haven't made it in yet (time/resources...) ... our goal (soon) is to simply make it available to the community to use it .... period. We'll make steady improvements, but while the community uses it, we'll get feedback, and can make necessary changes when needed. The more people that use it, the better ... if people are using it, there is more reason for locations to install it, etc.... the chicken vs. egg argument is always coming up, and the best way to really get to the chicken or the egg is to get users. This also quickly helps you dominate (from a user perspective) the market ... just imagine now: You go to some location, each "big customer" has their own point server solutions (Jellingspot, Bluepulse, Kameleon, etc...) .... that is essentially 3 different client applications you have to have on your phone ... even being a phone geek, I'm not sure I'd even install 3 different ones. Since Jellingspot is not tied to any specific hardware solution, it would be foolish for us to ignore the greatest distribution tool on the planet (the Internet) to spread Jellingspot around the planet. This is what we're gonna do. Unfortunately, this industry is still in its infancy ... there is not going to be any compatibility between solutions (mainly because they're all a bit different ... however, if something gets similar, we'd be willing to make our application cross-compatiable ...) anytime soon, so expect a lot of cools things from different people, but expect to have a few apps on your phone until the industry consolidates itself ...

It's gonna get exciting soon ... stay tuned!

Nokia Sensor ...

Well, it seems Nokia is always doing something last, but since they have the hardware and a massive market, looks like their Sensor application might just move "toothing" (P2P Proximity Social Interaction) into the mainstream. Unfortunately, they don't have the app for my N-Gage or 7650 so I can test it ... which doesn't make munch sense (maybe they're trying to drive new phones?), but IMO this is the kinda application that can really change how people interact. Just the otherday, some 13 year old girl was bluejacking everybody on a tram in Prague (I of course accepted the incoming .jpg ... it was the X-ray of Homer Simpson's brain) ... normally I'm the one doing it to everybody else, but this time I got it... seems like this sorta thing could become fun with such an application ....

Of course, I have already written about these apps before ... MobiLuck, CrowdSurfer, ProxiDating, and even my own (started, but not finished) P2P Proximity applications have been around for a while, but seems Nokia just might have the power to make it mainstream. Looks like we'll find out ... now if I can only get it working on my 7650 (Yeah, I know, I'm old school ... but Nokia (here comes the catch) doesn't make a S-E P900 client ... guess I gotta test it some otherway.

[ Technorati Tags: Bluetooth Nokia Sensor
bluejacking Social Networking ]

Bluetooth vs. UWB: No more ...

While I never really believed the hype some corners yapped about (whether it was Bluetooth vs. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth vs. wUSB, Bluetooth vs. [Add Technology]), this is good news for both Bluetooth and UWB in particular and the industry as a whole:

I am excited to inform you that the Bluetooth SIG will be announcing its intent to work with Ultra-wideband (UWB) developers to combine the strengths of both technologies. The uniting of WPAN will enable high-speed applications, reduce fragmentation and bring organizations together for the greater good of short range wireless technologies. The ultimate goal is to work towards an architecture that allows devices to take advantage of UWB data rates for scenarios requiring that speed while maintaining backward compatibly with both existing Bluetooth devices on the market and future products not requiring the higher data rate.

Joint development between Bluetooth technology and UWB is the fastest and most economical pathway for both technologies to meet the future demands of manufacturers and end users. This collaboration of technologies will allow manufacturers to maintain existing Bluetooth core values like low power, low cost and unique ad hoc connectivity. At the same time the WPAN user experience will be improved by offering applications with higher data rates, which will make new scenarios and enhancing existing scenarios possible. Bluetooth wireless technologys brand equity, market penetration, and technical and organizational maturity will allow UWB to skip costly time-intensive obstacles in technology and market development by joining forces with a technology that is past that stage.

We are aware that challenges still exist - two UWB technologies, the need for global regulatory approval, as well as interference, interoperability and testing protocols - but, we are certain that this architecture is the best move for the wireless community as a whole. Not only do companies want to leverage investments in Bluetooth technology, but 250 million consumers have also made an investment in Bluetooth technology and will want those devices to work with future high data rate WPAN products.

The SIG and its over 3,400 members should be proud of their past accomplishments and look towards future ones. This public announcement will be the first step in a process to make this effort, and its benefits, a reality. The past has shown that the Bluetooth SIG members and staff can work together successfully to further the technology through programs and initiatives like the new qualification program and testing tools. We will continue to work together in coming months to estimate the timing and requirements necessary to achieve these cooperative goals. As our first priority we will keep its members abreast of all major milestones that occur related to this work.

Sincerely,

Michael Foley Ph.D.
Executive Director

-----------------------

Not Earth shattering, but it does give hope to extend Jellingspot to every single PC on the planet with (eventual) native support for wireless technologies compatiable with our technology.... that can't be a bad thing, can it?

[ Technorati Tags: Bluetooth UWB wUSB
Zigbee Wi-Fi ]

Alive and well .... in GPL Hell

Yeah, it has been a few weeks since my last post ... just busy as heck. First, the Windows stuff is done. It's working (small bugs, I hope releasing it to the public will help us tune things a bit) ... we will release it to some pre-Beta early adpators soon (people who have been waiting for a while) ... I've just been writing some "copyright" stuff for some of the open source stuff we've written (which works with some GPL components we've used). I need to make sure all of the GPL software stuff we've used to get Jellingspot working on Windows has all of the proper disclaimers, copyright info, etc.... and we need to comment, add our copyright info, etc... to those things we've written from scratch. All of it will be released once we go public. Let me say from the outset that the GPL community is pretty wacky ... I've never seen so many zealots in one place. My original view of the GPL community as a "take a penny give a penny" bunch was completely warped ... many of the people in that community (not the stuff we're using, thank god) are nothing but bullies and vultures ... the GPL is more like a pyramid scam than anything. But, I digress.

Also, we're exploring running Jellingspot from a CD (with a Linux distro), so that you can pop in a CD on your Windows PC and use Jellingspot (if that CD boots into that Linux distro ran off that disk) ... I've been reading bunches, but if anybody knows some good distributions to use for this, drop me a line! Basically, we wanna make some image availble on our website, so you can just burn that Linux image to disk, and go ... otherwise, Linux is worthless for most people, since they cannot install, re-compile the kernel, etc... it's crazy (however, our larger customers have dedicated system admins for this, so it's fine -- but, you definately cannot conquer the world riding on the back of Linux). Speaking of Linux, this is why it will NEVER be usuable like Windows, because it's basically open source -- it's meeting the needs its individual developers, not REAL users (ie... the masses) ... I've seen "little" improvement in the last 7 years or so on usability ... pretty poor if you ask me.

Mobile Music & I-Tunes Theory

I'm what you call a regular user of Real's Rhapsody ... my brother pays for the service, and I generally log in and use his service while he's sleeping (since I'm +9 hours ahead of him) .... toward the end of my work day, I generally get a " *Ping* User has logged in from another location" followed by an IM from him saying, "Get off my Rhapsody." It's a pretty cool service ... he pays I think 9.99 USD per month or something and can listen online to any (900,000 choices) song as he wants. Seemingly, it's much better than iTunes, as you get some pidly 30 music previews then gotta pay 99 cents per song in some crappy ACC format. Real allows you to burn Rhapsody songs for 79 cents (not sure what format, probably Real's).

Anyway, what is INTERESTING is that no client side application (a dumb downed version) has been made for PPC or Symbian based devices ... with EDGE/3G pretty much starting to hit a slow stride, I most certainly wouldn't mind draining a bit of my device's battery to pick any song I'd want to listen to on my phone/PDA ... why not. You don't even need a lot of space to stream songs ... Maybe it's just me but that would be pretty cool. Who the hell (besides Apple freaks) want to buy some over-priced Mp3 player and then pay 99 cents per song? Sure, people are doing it, but I bet if Real had their own player with such a service (and say, Bluetooth in their player to connect to a phones's GPRS/EDGE/3G connection), that'd be awsome and would murder Apple on the spot (ok, not murder, as Apple's marketing folks are awsome).

Again, all of this goes back to Platforms (Windows/Symbian) vs. Hardware (Mac/iPod) ... Nokia didn't learn much with the N-Gage (hardware, instead of a platform), it seems Sony with the PSP is gonna go pretty much the same route ... one day, maybe they'll all get it right. This is why I'm still crossing my fingers for Symbian. Time will tell.

[ Technorati Tags: Bluetooth Mac iPod
Mobile Music Mp3 Players ]

10mb to 2GB email via SMS...

Not all that interesting, but might have been something cool for Hotmail to do to sell "premium" email accounts ... Czech protal Seznam.cz has been offering free email accounts for the last 6-7 years .... you get a simple 10mb account (available via POP3 or IMAP, however....) for free just by signing up. Well, they've up'ed the act and offer premium accounts that come with 2GB of storage and allow you to send 13mb attachments.

The cool thing about it, is that they just didn't upgrade all 4 million of their users ... if you wanna upgrade, you gotta send a Premium SMS for 3kc (about 13 cents USD) to get it activated. It's obvious they're not trying to make extra money off this, but it's a good way to upgrade only those who WANT the space. Even though I don't use my Seznam account all that much, I sent my SMS -- it costs basically nothing and I'm juiced with 2GB now.... how cool is that.

Compare that with Microsoft's Hotmail Plus premium account $19.95 USD per year .... you basically get the same storage (2GB), ok, fine ... but you gotta pay with credit card. There is nothing impulsive about that, and I'm not keen on giving them my credit card -- they should just charge a premium SMS (and lower their price abit, since they'll never compete with Google's gmail) ....

It just goes to show that many US tech companies are still very primative when it comes to mobile technologies ... in the Czech Republic, you can join almost any online chat, make donations, etc.. all via premium SMS ... it's an old technology, but allows for impulse buys and is generally easy to use ... not sure why people haven't jumped all over it yet. Strange.

Jellingspot in Action

Well, today I was doing my rounds at the Novy Smichov Shopping Center where we have our Project Novy Smichov under full steam with our Jellingspot Data Server ... I decided to make a quick video (Mp4 Format) of a Jellingspot in action with my P900 ... so please excuse the video quality .. you can't see much, but you can hear a cool "bling" (kinda like the "bling" in Monthy Pyton's film "The Meaning of Life," if you know what I'm talking about...). Once we go live with our 5th store (Palace Cinemas is on deck ... see title graphic), we will make a more professional video you can actually see. This video just shows our Adpusher service in action -- basically, once you connect via a phone with Bluetooth (and our client application), ads will rotate on your screen (in this case, game screen shots from JRC Gaming, one of our customers) ... you can save these ads to your phone's inbox and MMS/Bluetooth/IrDA them to your friends ... or whatever you want.

Also, for those of you out there who haven't noticed much activity on the Jellingspot website, it's because a new website is under construction ... our super bad ass designer Alexander fires me a few new samples every few days ... here is the latest sample. It has all kinds of little flash enhancements all over it, but it's not too robust -- so, we'll see. We want to launch it when we have the Windows stack complete, which I can say is basically done. Once everything is in place, we're gonna come all at once -- and it's coming soon, so stay tuned.

[ Technorati Tags: Jellingspot Proximity Servers Gaming
Bluetooth Marketing ]

PSP & Ad-Hoc Gaming

Well, it seems talk about the Sony PSP has blown all over the place ... and for some reason I just don't get it. I mean, from a gaming point of view, it's just following the same "curve" of gaming consoles getting better from a (mainly) graphics point of view ... having owned an Atari Lynx back in the OLD SKOOL days (it rocked by the way, Blue Lightning was all that, and a bag of peanuts), it's not like it's getting "more portable" -- seems just the opposite. What seems to be happening (like with phones and PDAs) is a convergence of technologies ... so, instead of just a gaming console, you can now listen to MP3s, movies, surf the web ... it's not really doing anything special or new. Worse, in the case of the PSP, is that most of these "cooler" functions are hacks ... seeminly not intended to be open ... people are bragging about hacking the PSP to use IRC, etc... that's cool if you're a geek (hands up!), but is it really gonna impress the Early/Late majority? Why in Godzilla's name didn't the PSP just come with a browser option pre-installed (like Opera or a dumbed down Firefox), movie player, etc.... why does everything have to be hacked? Seems like a rather stupid move on Sony's part ... if your device can do it, why limit it?

Then there is talk about playing against other people -- which I think is cool, but the N-Gage has been doing it for 2 years ... and now, all of a sudden, it's a big deal? (granted, if you can play via Wi-Fi through your network against somebody playing on their LAN at home, that's an improvement) All of the hype just doesn't excite me ... I'm not really seeing innovation -- I'm just seeing technologies being mixed (which I like by the way) into one device ...

Does this mean that, PSP 2 might include a GSM module, so you can make phone calls? The days of propritary systems are coming to an end (anybody ever heard of a PC?) ... there needs to be an open platform on such devices .... and then we can go crazy. The N-Gage had the opportunity, but chained themselves to one game deck .... the PSP is essentially the same ... somebody, BIG, needs to come out and "license" a platform (Microsoft, are you listening?) that works one multiple phones .... do what the N-Gage failed to do, and rule the world...

Anyway, whatever the case -- backing up real quick to Ad-Hoc gaming -- the N-Gage has been doing it, the PSP is now doing it (with a different standard ... sound familiar?) ... what's next? Ad-Hoc gaming is gonna be big -- MARK MY WORD -- Nokia is pushing it hard on a "dead man walking" device (clemency would be the N-Gage jumping back as a platform) ... Sony will eventually start pushing this feature harder as well or its fans will. In fact, what I'm saying now has already been spoken about in a bit different form by others (Russell Beattie's comments HERE come to mind for starters).

Anyway, hype is good, but too much is a big turn off ... especially for the larger markets -- you can't hype up a device that you've gotta hack. That's rule number #1. Do you think Paris Hilton is gonna hack her own? However, get that out of the way, and somebody is gonna (actually, already is) make a lot of money.

[ Technorati Tags: Wi-Fi Sony PSP
Ad-Hoc Gaming Proximity ]

The Horror of Moving

Well, you can see I haven't posted much lately -- OMFG, moving is getting harder and harder as I live over here in Europe ... mainly because 1. the longer I'm here, the more stuff I accumulate, and 2. I'm getting older (28), so lifting 200lb boxes just aren't tossed around anymore like paper (yeah, right) ...

Having lots of computers and tech toys in your flat is cool, but when you have to move them ... that's when the sucking begins. And then once you move in, there is the issue of buying MORE stuff ... a lot of tech toys I've been eyeing are now on hold as I pay back Mr. Creditor for lending me money to purchase more furniture, etc...

The good news is, I had cable broadband plugged back in the DAY I signed the contract -- so naturally, the first thing I had working in my flat was my computer on the net... I am such a geek.

Anyway, I've got a load of unpacking and cleaning to do still, so it may be a few days before I start posting meaningful (I hope) comments again ... in the meantime, looks like Europe and North America are starting to get some good weather, so those of you there go out and enjoy it!

Phallic Technology

Today's post isn't about wireless technology, but wired -- more specifically, about switches (and I'm not talking networking technologies). What in Hades am I talking about? The Pomlazka. The preferred weapon of choice that Czech males utilize against their female counterparts to celebrate Velikonoce (Easter/Ostara). On Velikonoce, any fair young maiden is fair game ... a whack on the butt to help her get pregnant. The pomlazka represents the phallic symbol, the "ribbons" symbolizing the regenerative force in nature (ie... sperm). While most Czechs seemingly don't know these details (I'm not only a wireless freak .... I do have other hobbies :-), what they DO know is that on Easter they get to chase women and whack'em. It's fun, too ... you can do it in packs ... or, sniper style. Whatever the case, if you're lucky enough to find a female walking around (they're not stupid, they know what day to stay indoors), and you whack her, she's supposed to give you a colored egg in return (obviously a return fertility symbol). Of course, whacking people is generally done in villages, where people at least know your family -- don't try it in the big cities, as I did ... I didn't get an egg in return, I got something verbal.

Whatever the case, Christian, pagan, or any other variety in between, but sure to send the folks you like a "Happy Ostara/Easter/Velikonoce" via SMS (see, the wireless bent to this post) -- Spring time has arrived, it's time to pull the sandals out from their long winter hibernation ...

Ad-Hoc Social Networking: Jambo

I have obviously plugged the Ad-Hoc Social Networking application scene out there a few times (and even threw my own company's hat into the ring) -- MobiLuck, ProxiDating, CrowdSurfer -- up until now have all been Bluetooth wireless technology based solutions. However, Jambo Networks is the first (that I know of) solution that uses Wi-Fi to search for and interact with other Jambo users with this wireless standard.

As with the previously mentioned Bluetooth solutions, the premise is still the same: Network with people in your immediate area (in the case of Wi-Fi, other people can be more than 100m away): get their interests, find out their marital status, and basically find an easier way to hook up with somebody (either for personal or business reasons) in your immediate area.

My problem with Wi-Fi vs. Bluetooth in these ad-hoc solutions is that phones are not Wi-Fi enabled generally, and therefore you're more dependant upon PDAs (which I guess is fine) or notebooks. Not everybody has a PDA or Notebook, but almost everybody has a phone. Additionally, those with notebooks are generally not going have their notebooks up and running while walking down the street or hanging out at a bar or club. Therefore, wide spread use is going to be a bit more limited (in their demos, they have a university as an ideal spot, and to this I agree ... in the library it would be useful, or to hook up with all of those fine chicks in your Computer Science classes, if you know what I mean ... :p).

Let me know if anybody can download it -- what I hate MORE THAN ANYTHING is to go to some site, and then have to sign up before I can get any application (I think) ... I won't be signing up anytime soon ...

[ Technorati Tags: Bluetooth wi-fi Jambo
Ad-Hoc Proximity ]

ADSL or Cable?

Well, I'm moving into a plusher flat, finally, after 2 years of living in a human hamster box (38m2) ... so, I may be a little quiet the next few days, as I'll be moving and migrating my Cable connection over to the new flat ... you'd be amazed how hard this can be.

In Prague, the real estate people are just now getting a clue on how to sell flats via "Ooh, this flat has bandwidth." Generally, before I go see a flat, I know which street it's on so I look up the address on cable provider's site to see if I can get broadband over cable ... it's not so easy, as it's not available everywhere -- so, I generally LOOK for flats on such streets (doesn't mean the building/house has been wired up, though). If I don't see cable, then I have to back up to ADSL -- and I can generally only check this if I have the phone number of the flat (or one in that building) ... a common run through looks like this:

Me (in mangled Czech): Does this flat have cable?

Realitor: It has SAT TV.

Me: No, no, I don't care about TV -- I need cable Internet.

Realitor: Why, you have a phone for Dial-up

Me: Dial-up sucks ass (ok, I don't say that) ... No, dial-up is very slow, I need a broadband connection

Realitor: What's that?

Me: Does this flat have cable?

You get the drift ... now, ADSL is also available, but it's more expensive and slower (and, while available pretty much everywhere, that's still not always the case).

Prices look like this:

Cable: 3mbit Down / 512kbit up = 1500kc (about 67 USD)

ADSL: 1mbit Down / 256kbit up = 2000kc (about 90 USD)

Both generally have a 15-20 GB data limit per month ....

3 times slower and 1/4 more expensive -- f--k that.

This thus means, unlike people who look for flats first, and then worry about that stuff later, my main criterion is: Can I get Cable or ADSL here ... if I can't, no matter how nice and cheap the flat is, they're not getting a sale -- ADSL only flats must be a good deal ... if it has cable, it has a good chance of getting taken by me -- that's just the way it goes ...

Proximity Content Distribution: Kameleon

Well, I was gonna mention these guys a few weeks ago, but just haven't had the time ... it seems like "Proximity Server" solutions are now a dime a dozen in the race -- however, NONE have taken any signifant leap forward in becoming mass deployed. Kameleon is another player who utilizes Bluetooth wireless technology to send out"push" URLs of content. In other words, although they require, like previous solutions, the use of a specific client-side application to receive content, they do nothing more than send out "WAP Push" like URLs of content related to the specific location, and then via your GPRS/EDGE/3G connection, you download the information. Can this then be called a point or proximity server, since it doesn't do a whole lot of serving? Well, that's another issue altogether.

Basically, it works like this -- you see their logo on some billboard (say, some poster promoting the new release of an albulm from your favorite artist) ... you fire up their client application on your phone, and a URL is pushed to your phone via a small "tag" like device hidden in the billboard ... you then click on that pushed URL and your Opera / Native brower opens up on your phone / PDA and you're transported (via GPRS/EDGE/3G) to content relating to that poster -- MP3 sample clip, discography, or a link to buy tickets to their concert coming to town in a few weeks. It's a nice concept. The carrier-tyrants will love it -- it'll help drive up data use on their networks, advertisers will love it, because it gives a more dynamic feeling to their brand/product ... but, will users like it? Will they want to pay those GPRS/EDGE/3G costs to down load a 1mb or so clip? It'd cost about 1 dollar in the Czech Republic -- I know more in the USA and the UK. People generally aren't all that thrilled to PAY for advertising sent to them ... but, as data plans move down in price, and "unlimited" plans come into being (and become cheaper), this just might have a future. Note, I believe Nokia's solution which I previously discussed works in a similar fashion.

Check out Kameleon's site ...

[ Technorati Tags: Bluetooth Wireless Kameleon
Symbian Proximity ]

CeBIT & Skype: Brass Balls

I'm not going to summerize what's going on at CeBIT (I completely forgot about CeBIT this year -- so, I guess I'm not going ...) but, one post that caught my attention came from Niklas Zennström, CEO and co-founder of Skype ... check out his bold statements: He's got big brass balls ... Now, I thought Jellingspot might make carriers pay for their in-your-face hubris, bullying, and insolence to humanity -- but, looks like Skype is gonna kick'em into the dirt. Just imagine, using Skype via Jellingspot ... that'd be a cool service ... not just notebooks at Hot-Spots, but your mobile phones, via Bluetooth wireless technology, using Skype (and a location's internet connection) to make phone calls ... Hey, Niklas, give me a call ... let's bury the carriers once and for all (unless they get a more cooperative attitude and stop screwing content and applications developers in the mobile world) ....

[ Technorati Tags: Skype CeBIT Jellingspot
VoIP Tyrants ]

Skype on Symbian: The Killer App

Gotcha! At least, all you RSS feed readers ... I WISH Skype worked on my Series 60 Symbian phone, but as of yet, it's still a no go. I have written them a few times pushing the idea ... if it works on my brother's Pocket PC 2003 powered Dell Axim, why couldn't it work on my N-Gage or P-900, or at least my business partner's Nokia 6630? After all, if bandwidth is the only consideration (my hypothesis), the 6630's EDGE/3G connection should suffice. Here in the Czech Republic, 2 of the 3 carriers offer EDGE, so I have a download rate (not sure on the upload, actually) in theory of 100 - 150kbps, certainly enough for Skype. If Skype wanted to take over the world, getting a client on Symbian, even if it's not as fancy as its desktop brothers, would certainly be the first step in doning so. Skype, what are you waiting for man? If you're not in the know-how to get it done, open up your communication protocol Jabber style, and let the community do it for you ...

Now, would Skype last on your phone -- who knows, carriers most certainly would try to protect "their interest" (but then, at least in the USA, we could sue the hell out of them for blocking the Skype port) ... check out this Oskar (carrier in the Czech Republic) document, which shows you which ports your GPRS/EDGE connection can acess. Obviously, Skype isn't on phones yet, but seemingly, if I try to connect via my EDGE connection (connected to my notebook via Bluetooth wireless technology), can I still access skype? I don't have an EDGE phone, but I'll ask business partner if he can get access via T-Mobile's connection in the Czech Republic -- if not, that's whack. BTW, does anybody know which port Skype run over?

Anyway, in the next few days, I might just set up a petition for people to sign to pressure Skype to go Symbian -- who is with me? :-)

Update: T-Mobile isn't offering EDGE in the Czech Republic until April -- so, I'm gonna have to wait -- anybody else out there have an EDGE connection they can test (via a notebook or something) to see if your carrier will let you use Skype?

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