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Crumbs, I wasn’t expecting this. I mentioned in my last post about my misgivings regarding the practical design and usability issues around Google Wave beta. But the last thing I was expecting – at least so soon after birth – was ‘calling it a day’. This points to the fact that Google’s team has probably known for sometime that the basic framework was relatively unusable – and perhaps misconceived from the beginning

Anyway, you wont find me knocking them for trying out innovations like this in public – then also calling it a day in public. That’s how such a powerful global corporate presence should do it in the 21^st century. Think of ‘concept cars’ – they never made it to the road but many innovations therein found their way into mass production vehicles that did.

So well done Google for thinking of it, trying it out, and stopping it. Onto the next WOW idea please!

For months and months colleagues in the new media industry have been banging on about the latest BIG NEW THING just round the corner waiting to pounce and take over our collective consciousness (Twitter was the last one remember). This time it is Google Wave. This was previewed last year in a presentation now famous in Geekdom by the incredibly gifted development team also responsible for no less than Google Maps!

Google call it a ‘personal communication and collaboration tool’. A sort of mix of Facebook, Twitter, Email and Google docs, but with most of the action happening in real-time. Imagine seeing people’s tweets, emails and updates as they write and then being able to join in. (This takes time to explain so if you are interested here is one of the better talk-throughs).

Well its not quite here yet, the beta is not due until later this year. Yet there is already considerable polorisation of opinions about its value, ranging from a ‘this is the future’ Twitter-Killer ready to replace your email through to an ‘expression of the very worst that the social web has to offer’.

At present only a select few are testing Wave and most of these are computer technicians. I know quite a few of these and their comments tend to be quite similar, “I am finding it all very complex to use - but when I get my head around it I think it will be awesome. However the flow of information can be overwhelming”.

Now that quote is from a very talented technical director for a media company. I see him most days immersed in a wall of green code - you know, one of those guys in Hollywood movies that switch off power-stations from their laptops. This is the crux of the problem I have with the Wave - if HE of all people finds it complicated and overwhelming, then heaven help the rest of us!

A core foundation stone of Web 2.0 is that the tools are comparatively easy for ordinary digital consumers to learn and manage information - RSS , easy to use widgets, simple task flows. This platform shows a great deal of promise - and Google do say that it is definitely a work in progress - but if they don’t hugely simplify the user experience to fit closer to how human consciousness works with information and people, it will end up as just a highly innovative concept that got half-way towards a really game changing meta-application.

Remember, Google took over the web partly though the hyper-minimalist simplicity of the likes of the Google home page and more recently Google maps which are a dream to use, so I have some confidence that they have the insight and skills to get this right.

Very soon the government will be producing its full ‘Digital Britain‘ report - its aim to help the UK be at the forefront of the global digital economy — “At a minimum this report seeks to bring both focus and stimulus to this sector”.

In January it produced the interim, which while helpful seemed mainly concerned with technical infrastructure and broadband speeds. Yes, there was talk of Britain’s world-class game designers, content providers and new media innovators — but in comparison to all the ‘pipe talk’ it was all quite woolly and vague  — almost as if they didn’t quite understand what they were talking about. Quite scary!

To concentrate on infrastructure is about as much use as a trying to generate a housing boom by focussing on the productivity of brick manufacturers. Yes we can alway use more bandwidth, but that battle is almost won with UK connectivity having been transformed over the last five years. And with clever technology we are increasingly able to do more with less.

This report, especially in these difficult times, should be honing in on how to further support British innovation to build world class competitive digital business in new media, TV, music, and advertising - the creative industries.

Anthony Lilley who as Chair of the UK digital content forum puts it bluntly: “Should we be the most innovative nation, should we be creating the most saleable content and services, or do we just want nice pipes?”

This issue is vital for the public sector also. With the huge cuts in spending expected over the next few years, digital innovation is one obvious route to driving costs down and creating spectacular gains in reach, productivity, engagement and democratic participation.

More hopefully, the Communications, Technology and Broadcast Minister Lord Stephen Carter who authored the interim says that the full report will contain much more balance. Let us hope so, this is a vital publication that should not be allowed to become a damp squib.

No, I am not talking about the exceptional TV series finally being screened nationally in the UK. I am referring to the relaunch of Wired UK magazine this week which has suddenly returned from the dead after 10 years. (Left: The first 1995 edition)

People I talk to either too young to remember, or were not caught up in the early days of the dot-com bubble, think it bizarre that a magazine originally birthed alongside the Internet and covering all things ‘cyberculture’ should emerge - let alone re-emerge - as a PAPER publication!

Despite being a member of what I guess is their target audience, I find the U.S. based version of Wired really quite dense (it really does require commitment). However it managed to escape the technology bust by digging deep into the original spirit of the brand and focused on innovation, culture change and globalisation. This has enabled them to outlast industry competitors such as The Red Herring, Business 2.0, and New Media Magazine.

But why this, why now?

Some people are saying it is brave to launch in the middle of the downturn, while others say this is a safe bet as digital is forecast to continue growing despite the crunch.

Either way it will be interesting to see how it fares and particularly if it can capture the post credit crunch zeitgeist hopes for a new green and hi-tech world. It is quite bizarre that the last edition in 1999 had a front page feature named ‘Bankers behaving badly’!

What do you think? A welcome return of a lost friend or 10 years too late?

I had numerous people email me this news item about Second Life this morning. It is one of the frequent articles talking down or trivialising Second Life, the online virtual world. Maybe it is because 3D worlds are more obviously connected in people’s minds to gaming environments, but it seems to take more than its fair share of criticism from people who really don’t ‘get’ it.

I find the best way to understand the value of metaverses like Second Life - and what works and doesn’t work - is little different from the social web as a whole. Once you have got over the WOW factor of developing your own avatar and the ability to walk, fly or teleport to an almost infinite number of environments. If by then you have not engaged in any meaningful dialogue, relationship building, or found another source of self expression, connection or ongoing interest, then like thousands of others you will probably end up thinking ‘what is the point of this?’

However if you have participated and become an active member of the community with the extra dynamics that a 3D virtual world provide (for example proximity and simulation) then your experience will be completely different.

As a tax payer, I am glad that government departments are experimenting with comparatively very low cost systems to investigate if there is value - financial or otherwise - in engaging with these large scale communities. I remember the very early days of the Internet and have seen how what seems extraordinary and exotic today, can become commonplace and essential tomorrow. If they don’t investigate emerging platforms we will soon be moaning about why the public sector has again fallen so far behind the technological curve when it comes to the dramatic gains in productivity, efficiency and capability experienced by increasingly web savvy consumers.

Second Life requires a powerful PC with an advanced graphics card and decent broadband connection. It is not easy compared to the likes of Facebook - Second Life has a notoriously steep learning curve, especially to master the valuable physical and community building tools. There is still some considerable way to go yet.

But despite this the 3D web is coming whether we like it or not, and the smart people are learning early lessons on Second Life in anticipation of other more accessible and usable alternatives already in development.

Double click to go full-screen.

This neat little piece from Jive is for the launch of their new edition of Clearspace now named Jive SBS (Social Business Software) and is certainly putting the cat amongst the enterprise 2.0 pigeons! This is one of the first enterprise level systems that has a truly credible suite of usable social media tools with an engine integrating them all together. There are many other options emerging on to the market but for me Jive SBS is clearly in the lead with full marks for digital engagement tools - a very powerful offering.

A high percentage of large scale organisations across the world have their electronic communications systems entwined with either Microsoft, IBM or Oracle. Despite this, Jive software has already been adopted by 15% of Fortune 500 companies - and this before the recent update.

Due to legacy systems there will still be a strong preference - especially from IT departments - for using Microsoft’s Sharepoint 2007 (MOSS) platform. Sharepoint has some powerful and highly configurable Web 2.0 tools to add to what is still essentially software based on a document management model.

However, Jive SBS is corporate software for the Facebook generation where software is a commodity and the challenge for implementation has people, community, engagement, collaboration and personal choice centre stage - not the technology.

Just as we started to get used to iTunes being the Grand Central Station for the majority of digital music purchases for the foreseeable future, barging uninvited into Apple’s party comes a quite stunning application called Spotify.

Spotify offers free and legal access to a huge library of music. All you need to do is create an account and download the player, available for both PCs and Macs - even the iPhone. There are other tools provided such as the ability to collaborate when creating playlists, and importantly for business they are now adding podcasts, but it is its simplicy that counts.

I have been using the application as I work on my laptop for a few weeks and find its ease of use truly compelling - it really does have an (original) Google like usability.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you ever wanted a better example of the case for pocket-able video to convey practical but complex information and insight, quickly and efficiently, look no further than the heat of the dying moments of the Cup Final on Sunday.

At full-time and with a penalty shoot-out imminent, Ben Foster the Manchester United goalkeeper instead of grouping together with the rest of the team for a morale boost - was seen walking to the back of his net and plugging in his iPod! My immediate reaction was to assume he was going to listen to some hard-core heavy metal or such like to ‘wind himself up’ for the shoot-out.

However it transpires that Ben was watching videos of how the other side took their penalties! (Presumably it was an iPod Touch or and iPhone - anyone know?). One of the backroom staff had put a video pack together for this very eventuality. Foster said. “It’s an amazing tool to have, it means you can brush up straightaway”. Manchester United won the shoot out 4-1.

UPDATE March 10th: Matt Dickinson reports in The Times today…
“The use of iPods as training tools by Manchester United does not extend only to penalty shoot-outs. The players are offered bespoke highlight clips, cut for them by in-house staff, that can be downloaded straight to MP3 players or laptops and taken home for perusal after a game.”

This innovative, albeit obvious, use of mobile media for learning raises great possibilities for parallel situations. Think - modern apprenticeships, engineering, health and safety, medical surgery etc?

Facebook is seeing explosive growth in the 35-54 year age group with 276% growth during a recent 6 month sample. The 55+ demographic is not far behind with a 193% increase in the same period. The Generation Y 18-24 year olds now make up only 40.8% which is down sharply from 53.8% only six months ago. This snapshot is U.S based but the trend is similar across the wider community.

Anyway, I really don’t favour terms like ‘Generation Y’ that stereotype age with particular behaviours - it is often the exceptions that give the critical insights. Typically Talent Smoothie describes Gen Y as, “Highly motivated. Discerning. Questioning. Innovative. Ethical. They’re redefining the way organisations interact with their people. And they’re the next generation of leaders”

I prefer to say that those who exhibit those attitudes and behaviours and have captured the spirit and progressive culture of the new electronically connected world are Gen Y - at any age. Surely we have to include the likes of Stephen Fry, Steve Jobs or Barack Obama?

Tracey Emin is one of my favourite artists, ever since she won me over years ago at Sensation. I find her work profoundly prophetic. My favourite is her ‘Sparrow on a Stick‘ sculpture for Liverpool - a wonderful gift to the city that will grow in stature over the years. But now when I look at her famous tent ‘Everyone I have ever slept with‘ or ‘My bed‘, I see a 3D portend of MySpace or FaceBook pages (I can hear my colleagues shouting ‘Well you would James wouldn’t you!”).

Her article in The Independent today was wide open, honest and self-giving as usual. Within it lay a interesting story…

“Most mornings I wake up about 6am. These days, i have a flask of hot tea by my bed; I turn on Radio 3, crush three pillows underneath my neck and lean my head back at a 45 degree angle. I roll my eyes into the back of my skull, as far as possible. I then stretch out my hand, knowing that i should pick up my book but I always pick up my BlackBerry. I have this thing called the 6am club. There are a handful of people whom I can text or email at 6am, and they will reply to me immediately. Their thoughts will not be minor; they will be weighty, profound and somewhat philosophical. This is the morning time when the darkness is outside, but we still have the fantastic feeling of being alert in our womb-like nests. It’s a safe place from which to send out these deep thoughts.”

Mobile, personal, networked, creative and intimate - the sort of thing I was anticipating last year and expecting to hear first from someone using an iPhone, but here we see it on a BlackBerry.

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