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@SocialMedia_NOW Robert Scoble: @edchi I love Riedel wine glasses but they break so easily. If you look at them wro... http://twitter.com/Scoblei...
Robert Scoble: @edchi I love Riedel wine glasses but they break so easily. If you look at them wrong they break. Th... http://twitter.com/Scoblei...
10 Top New Web Services of 2009 (From My Perspective) - http://blog.louisgray.com/2009...
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Last year, I highlighted ten top Web services that debuted in the year, from Socialmedian to BackType and Feedly. Not an all-encompassing list, blogging colleague Robert Scoble asked if "I was right", adding on a few of his own. With 2009 coming to a close, I thought it made sense to highlight some of my own personal favorites which are gaining traction. Keep in mind that I am not ranking these services necessarily in a most important to least important order, and I am ignoring some other top services (for example, Foursquare, which launched in March, or some Zynga properties), due to my own non-use. As with 2008, many services debuted in 2009 that were not stand-alone services, but instead, hooked into existing environments, like Twitter and Facebook, or the iPhone. 1) Pubsubhubbub 2009 was all about real-time and moving data more quickly from place to place. No technology or service better epitomized that than Pubsubhubbub, an open protocol engineered from a team of Googlers who...
I sense a theme here... #FFmas
Bebekvegebelik, ha3rvey (Ho)^3, Roberto Bonini and 5 other people liked this
Louis Gray and Robert Scoble.
- Polly Potter
AHAHAAHAHAHAH
- Jeremy (quasimodo)
Ruh-roh.
- Louis Gray
Looks like Alex Scoble loves to argue even when he's on his hone... (from Cristo) : Looks like Alex Scoble love.. http://newsgang.net/item...
artduane: Robert Scoble: RT @steverubel: Amazon.com offers 1,290 MP3 song downloads for… http://goo.gl/fb/7bIG http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
artduane: You: artduane: Robert Scoble: @AaronStrout yeah but if you think of it as a… http://goo.gl/fb/W9yX http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
artduane: Robert Scoble: RT @VOKLE: Thanks @Scobleizer! RT @MehdiLamloum The Vokle app… http://goo.gl/fb/qDfn http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
artduane: Robert Scoble: @superpuppy yup. You hit on one reason @foursquare is superior. http://goo.gl/fb/UVcA http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
Why isn't there a wifi chip in every [high end]] appliance? Refrigerators, stoves, cooktops, microwaves, dishwashers, coffee makers, washers, and dryers should all have wifi or bluetooth chips along with simple APIs for controlling them and getting status.
Red Label, Steven Perez, Morton Fox and 19 other people liked this
I had a similar thought many years ago about why all appliances don't have built-in atomic clocks. Of course, if they had internet now, they wouldn't necessarily need the clock receiver.
- LogEx
Because they are like $25 a pop. There's also the configuration issue of how to configure a small cheap device with connection info like passwords, etc. For devices without wall socket power there's also serious power issues. I'm encountering this issue with something I'm working on.
- Todd Hoff
Todd, I'm assuming AC powered appliances. I'm also thinking about appliances that cost thousands of dollars, so putting an extra $25 part in shouldn't be an issue. The configuration problem is interesting, but I'm sure it could be solved with some kind of discovery mode. Either that or just use bluetooth.
- Cristo
Bluetooth is unfortunately expensive also. With wifi I'm assuming it goes through a wireless router out to the internet, not sure how bluetooth would work. And I'm not aware of a discovery mode because you would want security which requires selecting a security type, protocol, and password. But if it's in an expensive appliance then they'll have a display so it's more doable. We could...
more...
- Todd Hoff
Although going out to the Internet is cool, I think most of the usage would be on the LAN. I don't actually care if it's wifi, bluetooth, zigbee, or z-wave. I just want to control and monitor these expensive home appliances through web interfaces and apps on the computer, as well as remote controls and touch screens. I repeat, I don't think cost is the issue here, I think it's the mindset of the manufacturers and consumers that needs to change. I believe it will change, I just don't know when.
- Cristo
I view the control plane being more in the cloud than local, so internet connectivity is important.
- Todd Hoff
Todd, why is having your home control in the cloud critical? I want control to be primarily in my local server closet, with the option of reaching it from outside in a secure way. I don't want everything to stop working because the cable company pulls the plug on my Internet access for 3 days.
- Cristo
Once they're cheap enough to embed without significantly altering the price they will be in everything.
- Chrimmus Tad
I don't want a local server closet that I have to maintain and upgrade and fix. I've been working hard to get rid of servers. As a producer I also don't want to make a native app or deal with software upgrades and every customer's hardware problems. That kills profitability. It could be accessible over the cell network so you always have two connection paths (more expensive).
- Todd Hoff
Todd, that might work for some people, but it's definitely not what I'm trying to do personally. I want all the control in my hands, and I want to go out to Best Buy or order something online and install it into my media closet. Having to rely on a cloud-based 3rd party would be hellish to me.
- Cristo
The cell network would be great data and command path for devices, but they are like $10 a month so it's not generally practicable. I would imagine a tethered phone could be used as a router in emergencies, but I'm not sure how that work yet.
- Todd Hoff
Dealing with incompatible device after incompatible device is hellish for me. So each to their own I guess.
- Todd Hoff
Well, I've got a blu ray player, 2 TiVos, 2 Apple TVs, a Mac Mini, an Xbox 360 and a Wii hooked up in my media closet as source devices. I think it will be a while before we see all that functionality in the cloud.
- Cristo
My refrigerator is automatic. I don't control it. Cooking requires precision control. I'm not in another room, I'm right there right now. Dishwashers are more or less automatic, as are washers and dryers. I'm having a really hard time imagining what you're remote controlling in any of these devices.
- Jason Wehmhoener
Jason, ah use cases. I love it. 1) I want to push a button from upstairs to make a cup of espresso downstairs in the kitchen. It only saves a minute, but it makes me happy. 2) I also want the underfloor heating to turn on and be warm when I walk down to get my coffee. 3) I want all the clocks on appliances synced so I don't have to set them. They need to change properly for daylight saving, and when the power is cycled.
- Cristo
4) The dishwasher, washer and dryer should all be able to notify me on my computer screen that they are done. Ideally there is a countdown display of when they will be done.
- Cristo
5) The oven should also be able to tell me when the correct temperature has been researched, should have a camera inside it, control/monitor timer info, and change modes (e.g. convection vs conventional oven)
- Cristo
6) The wine fridge should have inventory control.
- Cristo
7) The cooktop should allow me to monitor whether water has reached boiling and other long-term events. In addition, I should be able to see if it's on when I'm not home (and turn it off in case we left it on accidentally).
- Cristo
I think you're going to need some robotic control to put the food in and out of the oven, the laundry in and out of the washer & dryer, etc. You could just put cameras in these rooms and see when things are done.
- LogEx
LogEx, our washer & dryer is in our downstairs bathroom. I don't think a camera in there would be appealing to most people. :) I'm definitely interested in robots though.
- Cristo
Of course, one of the dangers of doing something cool and trying to automate everything is you'll always have people who are assuming you are just lazy and should get off your fat ass and do it manually. Of course, the same could be said for using written mail instead of email, or a sliderule instead of a computer.
- Cristo
1) I'm a little more old school with my espresso. I actually want a less automatic machine so that I can get more crema. 2) that's interesting. I would have assumed a thermostat would be sufficient, but I guess this is more related to actual usage than constant temperature. I like it. 3) The clock thing is good, I agree 4) notification, nice. good idea. 5) more notification, cool. 6)...
more...
- Jason Wehmhoener
Also, I think Bluetooth is probably a better idea than WIFI. If you need to go to the cloud, that should be handled by your home server, not each device. My firewall has enough problems without adding 72 more internal ip addresses.
- Jason Wehmhoener
Jason, you may be right about wifi not being the best solution. Have you heard of Zigbee or Z-wave?
- Cristo
This reminds me of Will Smiths rant in I,Robot.....
- Roberto Bonini
Yeah, zigbee is seriously cool. when you mentioned it before i commented with a couple zigbee hacking links. I haven't heard of z-wave.
- Jason Wehmhoener
Roberto, can you refresh our memories. I don't want to subject myself to watching that again.
- Cristo
Because people don't want to pay $10 more for a web enabled coffee maker.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, yeah because then my espresso machine would cost $5010.
- Cristo
Todd, Crestron sells systems that cost more than $50,000. Price is relative, and in the home automation market just being able to do something at any price is often difficult.
- Cristo
The bit where he's talking about his toaster having feelings.....
- Roberto Bonini
Chris, you need to start thinking like a marketing guy who has to get the most sales for the lowest cost and not like Chris "I want to do cool things with my house" White. Companies don't make stuff for you. They don't make stuff for you, because you aren't the lowest common denominator and are not low maintenance. Any company that marketed directly to you would most likely go out of business in less than a year.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, I'm not posting on friendfeed to share my marketing ideas.
- Cristo
You asked a marketing question, it's not a design one.
- Alex Scoble
My mistake was asking a question that Alex Scoble would respond to. Apparently his being on his honeymoon doesn't keep him off friendfeed. :)
- Cristo
Your mistake was thinking like an engineer when asking a marketing question.
- Alex Scoble
Instead of asking why not, you should have wrote "I wish that every appliance had a wifi chip"
- Alex Scoble
And being on holiday doesn't mellow Alex one bit :)
- Roberto Bonini
Hehe, Roberto...this is true. :)
- Alex Scoble
I guarantee that if there is a market for Crestron and Control4 control systems, as well as Miele and Subzero class appliances, than there is a market for putting network and control capability into those same high-end appliances.
- Cristo
Yes sure, you can pay Crestron big money to do it.
- Alex Scoble
It isn't however, in the business interest of most small appliance makers to add cost to their wares that consumers won't currently pay for.
- Alex Scoble
I don't care about most appliance makers, I only care about the high-end ones that I want to use. It's minimal cost for them compared to the overall price.
- Cristo
Again, that's not the question you asked. Which is why you got the answer you got that you didn't like.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, so are you an expert on high-end appliances now? You've fully researched that market?
- Cristo
You are succeeding in arguing for the sake of arguing, but failing to provide useful insight.
- Cristo
You didn't ask a question about high end appliances. Which is why your conversation has failed. Please re-ask your question in a new thread and try again. You won't get the desired result in this thread.
- Alex Scoble
Read my previous comment.
- Cristo
I added [high end] to the original question so that Alex can now provide an answer. He had a literal block and was unable to process any further. Damn low-powered out-of-date language processors.
- Cristo
Answer is still basically the same. Because not enough people want the additional complexity of a wifi enabled device. If I buy a high end stove, I just want it to work. I don't want to have to worry that some engineer put in a bug in the wifi software that will shut down my stove at an inappropriate time. Not everything needs to be so complex that you can monitor it from a central location.
- Alex Scoble
And Todd Hoff already gave you many other answers like security concerns. Not to mention the impact of that many wireless devices in the home would have on your main computer's connection or the humans living in the house. Oh and some devices like microwaves would be nigh impossible with current frequencies to do wifi since they significantly degrade signal strength when in use.
- Alex Scoble
I see. So it's okay that our military uses network technology for mission critical operations, but we're afraid of bugs in our stove software? Also, I use my laptop right next to my Microwave while it's on with no disturbance at all. And the network load for these appliances would be ridiculously low, so I'm not sure what you're talking about in terms of affecting other computers.
- Cristo
You mean the military that used unencrypted links for control of UAVs? Very poor example.
- Alex Scoble
It's not about network load, it's about the amount of channels and frequencies available. If you get that many devices on a current wifi network at the same time, the network will fail.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, no it won't. Have you been to a coffee shop lately? How many appliances do you think I'm talking about? I'm guessing less than ten for me. I have that many wireless devices already in the house.
- Cristo
And no, I wasn't talking about the UAVs. I was speaking in general of technology and communication. I trust there are engineers that can build embedded software that won't meltdown. There are already computer chips in these high-end appliances, so your scenario could happen already.
- Cristo
My scenario is greatly exacerbated by devices that can be controlled remotely. I wouldn't trust consumer electronics companies to build proper security in to their devices. So yeah, have fun with any teenager with half a brain getting control of your house and making stuff unusable. I'll stick with regular appliances that just work.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, you might want to stop using a cell phone too then.
- Cristo
Sorry, but the security for cell phones is pretty good, particularly when you are using a Blackberry and their servers where email and stuff is sent encrypted.
- Alex Scoble
What kind of companies build cell phones, Alex? Would you describe them as "consumer electronics companies"?
- Cristo
Cell phone companies.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, ever been to CES? You should go one year and argue with a bunch of people. :)
- Cristo
Definitely a case of "hey, let's argue for argument's sake"
- Chieze Okoye
No, I don't bother with trade shows for the most part. Although it would be nice to go one year just to listen to a bunch of loudspeakers.
- Alex Scoble
Chieze, it certainly wasn't my original intent.
- Cristo
I know, I read through the whole thing (and actually I agree with the thrust of what you're saying). More wireless standards options for home automation is a Good Thing (TM).
- Chieze Okoye
Looks like Alex Scoble loves to argue even when he's on his honeymoon! :)
Morton Fox, Mona Nomura, Roberto Bonini and 6 other people liked this
You write threads that demand it. I can't let you walk around with such a lack of knowledge even if I'm in Jamaica.
- Alex Scoble
You two on the same thread is a FF spectator sport for me. Love it.
- SAM
Lack of knowledge, Alex? I'm schooling you.
- Cristo
SAM, good to know someone's entertained. :)
- Cristo
You aren't schooling me. Your lack of knowledge on automation and management is why you write posts and then don't like the response you get.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, I'm leaning towards others for my automation education. No offense. :)
- Cristo
And you still won't get to where you want to go by yourself. No offense.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, so are you in the "only installers can do it" camp or the "it isn't worth doing" camp?
- Cristo
Only installers can do it. I worked for a building management system installer and know what goes in to building automation. It is very unlikely that someone who hasn't gone through an extensive amount of training on the subject could do it. It takes a lot of knowledge over many disciplines to do this sort of work. So while I don't doubt that it will keep you occupied, at the end of the day you are going to have to turn to an installation company to get what you want done.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, would you have said the same for the multi-zone media work I've done?
- Cristo
No...different ballgame completely. Although even there you had to have someone do the wiring and wall patchwork.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, yes I hire people to do work for me using my design. What is wrong with that? I suppose if I did the drywalling myself, you'd complain that I didn't manufacture it.
- Cristo
Well, I think that you'll find that you'll have to take more of a backseat when having someone automate your house. And hopefully you find a very patient installer because you will be very high maintenance on this particular project.
- Alex Scoble
Alex, can you tell me what can be automated and how?
- Cristo
I don't even believe this is a real project, I think it's just an excuse to talk about money and different cables
- Andrizzle Gizzle
Andrizzle, you got it all figured out. Not only that, but itblogger is just another one of my accounts.
- Cristo
man I fucking knew you were into Domo
- Andrizzle Gizzle
Yup, I've got one in my pants now.
- Cristo
Can you, Chris?
- Alex Scoble
Alex, why would I ask if I knew? I'm not testing you, I'm seeing whether there is anything worth automating. Seems like much of what I want to do can't be done.
- Cristo
@Scobleizer In hopes that u will read this; happy holidays to the Scoble family at half moon bay, SF CA USA ;-). Health & Security 4 2010.
artduane: Robert Scoble: @AaronStrout yeah but if you think of it as a book then $13… http://goo.gl/fb/kp5g http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
artduane: Robert Scoble: @HowToMakeMyBlog you need to get a better client. The new RT… http://goo.gl/fb/7f3v http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
artduane: Robert Scoble: RT @louisgray: Anybody who is not already following… http://goo.gl/fb/sYtv http://br.st/3Za - http://twitter.com/artduan...
Il futuro di FF (Scoble rulez)
Posted via email from maxilprof’s posterous | Comment »
- maxilprof
@SocialMedia_NOW Robert Scoble: Facebook experiment yesterday. 1,115 clicked on Apple Tablet link. 523 clicked on i... http://twitter.com/Scoblei...
Il futuro di FF (Scoble rulez) http://maxilprof.posterous.com/il-futu...
Il futuro di FF (Scoble rulez) - Posted via email from maxilprof’s posterous | Comment » http://maxilprof.tumblr.com/post...
Il futuro di FF (Scoble rulez) - http://maxilprof.posterous.com/il-futu...
I think Scoble is right about Friendfeed finding its second wind next year. Yeah, it's niche and a bit of a geek tool, but a good tool, it is.
Alternating Reality Books, Kamilah Gill, Stephen Mack and 15 other people liked this
I wouldn't be surprised if people adopted it for its aggregation and search features only. You'll see a lot of people pulling in data but not participating.
- Akiva Moskovitz
Agreed. Just yesterday my boss was asking "what is lifestreaming". He's interested. And Akiva, that comment was valuable just for the use of the word 'aggregation'. I'll pull it for "use that word in a sentence" the next time I use "aggregation" :) (sometimes tired of explaining its meaning...but only sometimes, usually patient)
- Melanie Reed
Yeah, it really shines in that way. FF offers superior aggregation and very natural conversation, for those who want it. I still find a dedicated RSS client more efficient for the way I work (I use Fever). But it's close, and would meet the needs of a lot of people. FF is a great hub to tie together your other SM outposts.
- Chris Baskind
I like his method - come up with 20 or so predictions, and if one hits everyone says "Scoble was right!". Its been a great conversation tool, but an even better one for aggregation. But until more people understand what this is, and how useful it can be, it will remain shy of mainstream (for this purpose) outside of the geek crowd.
- jcunwired
Chris, Amen! "FF is a great hub to tie together your other SM outposts"
- Melanie Reed
I'm usually the last one to say "Scoble is right!" Here, though, I think he's correct. SM is getting complicated, if you use more than one service. FF helps tie them together. There are other ways, but this remains a pretty elegant solution.
- Chris Baskind
I love FriendFeed and truly hope Scoble's right!!! :)
- Susan Beebe
Robert said that? *checks date* Oh yes, I suppose it was about time to swing back to FF being great again...#tryingnottobeahumbug #failing #notcaring
- WorldofHiglet
hahahaha
- Chris Baskind
Actually, I remember Robert ranting that FF was going to die because it wouldn't be actively developed anymore. It looks to me as if they might use FF to test features that might find their way to Facebook. I replied that the shovel hasn't changed much in the past few years, and people still use it -- because it works. It's well-suited to the job. So here I am, giving FF a whirl again....
more...
- Chris Baskind
went to pick up something that was being held, and said that Laurie called it in. The store almost didn't release it to me because it had actually been called in by Laura. Betcha Bob Scoble & Lou Gray don't have this problem...
Scoble's brother is in Negril
RT @building43 Gillmor Gang Archives – 22DEC09 http://www.building43.com/realtim... Robert Scoble, Andrew Keen, Gabe Rivera, Kevin Marks, and Steve Gillmor
And basically every other post from Scoble this morning.
- Akiva Moskovitz
Thanks.
- Paul Buchheit
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