This has been an absolutely insane last 5 months for me with a lot happening at the Wayside Theatre where I work. When I say insane, I’m not too far from the literal truth there. In addition thing are, as always, hot and heavy here at GBM as well. Somewhere in there I find time for a few moments of life away from work and the occasional moments for relaxation. A lot of things are changing for me at the theatre as we head into this next season and that will also change my workflow quite a bit.

As I always do, when I’m running through life at 120 miles per hour, I’m constantly re-examining what is working and what is not working for me on a variety of levels. So, I’ve been thinking about how I work and the tools I use when I’m mobile. I’ve been tossing around various scenarios that will keep me productive, and also happy, as I move into yet another season (this will be my 10th) at Wayside Theatre. For what it is worth, here is a sketch of my thinking as I’m re-evaluating.

This week I’ve been lucky enough to test out several different Tablet PCs during rehearsals for our production of Driving Miss Daisy that starts performances at Wayside Theatre today. Tablet PCs, (and UMPCs for that matter), are all about note taking for me. During rehearsals I am constantly taking notes. I’ll be blogging more about my experiences with the various devices (Lenovo ThinkPad X61, Motion F5, Fujitsu P1620) and note taking software in this next week.

Last night at rehearsal though one of our staff was looking over my shoulder when I had the Motion F5 in my lap and noticed the screen smudges. They asked me if it was broken.

I’ve become accustomed (obviously too accustomed) to the smudges on the Lenovo ThinkPad when I’m in note taking mode and I guess I’ve learned to ignore them. Both the Motion and the Lenovo have a ViewAnywhere technology on their screens. Lenovo calls theirs SuperView and whatever the coating is that supposedly lets you view the screen in bright light conditions leads to the smudgy deposits that fill the screen. It is unsightly, and I’ve found the pen actually starting to drag as it passes through some of the gunk.

Again, I’ve gotten used to this, and thanks to the Shwamee Microfiber cleaning cloth I use, I’ve gotten into a routine of cleaning the screen each night or morning. But my colleague’s “is it broken?” comment drew a new picture for me last night.

Think about this OEMs. Someone sees someone using your product and decides to take a closer look. They see that smudged up screen. That can’t be a favorable impression. The explanations of why the smudges are so apparent also can’t do much to make that first impression go away when the explanation begins with “oh, that’s the technology that lets you view the screen in bright light conditions,” especially when those greasy deposits do nothing but reflect light.

This isn’t just a usability or a technology issue, it is also a marketing issue. OEM’s would be wise to look for a better way if they want potential customers to see a clear path to purchasing their product.

I’ve been running crazy lately with an insane schedule. Thankfully that’s about to end soon. The one thing I don’t need when I’m literally only turning the computer on for a few minutes a day to get some work done is a deluge of CRAPWARE and a bunch of update notices. Last night was a perfect example.

I got in after a day where I hadn’t touched a computer during the entire span. I knew I was going to have far too much email to plow through, and that Google Reader was going to have a tremendous back log. When I opened up my Tablet PC the first thing I was greeted with was that CRAPWARE like notice that Apple wanted to throw the new version of Safari on my machine. Immediately after swearing at that pop-up, Firefox (my browser of choice) popped up a notice that it had an update ready and was ready to close out and update.

Now, I realize that an update is completely unknowing, uncaring, and insensitive to how and what a user is doing on their computer at any given moment. But this quick double whammy just ticked me off to no end. I had email downloading and was already responding to a few, and things were already bogging down.

As I keep reminding folks about CRAPWARE, my whole theory on that comes from my grandfather and his definition of a weed. Essentially, a weed is anything that is growing where you don’t want it to. CRAPWARE is like a weed, even (in the case of Firefox) when you have to plug a security hole. The Apple Safari thing is something else entirely. It is unwanted, unneeded, and necessary for Apple to keep trying to stick it on my system. Stop that CRAPWARE crap now.

So, here’s a simple plea. If companies are going to insist on invading my work-flow, do it quietly. If I open your app (or service) chances are I’m doing it to get some work done, not help you cover up a flaw, install an enhancement, (in most cases with less than explanatory change logs or details available for me to make a choice), or install an application I don’t want. Don’t pop up a window that forces me to take action. Make an announcement that the world will pick up on, or allow me to let this happen relatively quietly. I don’t care that you have the latest and greatest, or that you are playing catch up because your code is insufficient and thus vulnerable to other Malware that is out there. Well, yeah, I do care, but I want to care on my own time.

I’m going to start sending these companies some CRAPWARE myself. I will send them invoices for the time I’m spending doing updates and getting rid of this stuff. I’m sure they will get dismissed, but each invoice will have to be dealt with by some accounting acolyte before it can be dismissed and guess what? That will cost them time and money. My time is valuable. Their CRAPWARE is not.

Mike Elgan writes an interesting piece in Computerworld on the cell phone-PC Connection that, if nothing else, points up just how much of an interesting transition we are in out here in mobile land. His thesis is that PC makers, especially those rushing to join the handheld market, should make cell phones work better with PCs rather than just adding new features that most users don’t take advantage of anyway.

Two examples from the article stand out for me:

He argues, well, that quite a few cell phones can serve as broadband modems, and that most users don’t take advantage of this. I think one of the reasons for that is the complexity that exists in doing so. But Elgan goes further and points to some interesting “awareness” technology that would let the computer know when you’re close by or not, that was abandoned because of a lack of hardware support.

In the second example, he points to solutions that avoid syncing in the current traditional sense, but instead lets you use the cell phone as your document/data transport device to move from location to location, having your data and your mobility at the same time. Intriguingly, this seems to ignore the entire movement to “the cloud” where your data resides out there somewhere and you can access it from any device, anytime, assuming of course you have connectivity. As we keep moving higher and higher into the cloud we’re moving more and more away from the traditional syncing methods. Business and the enterprise is still the long term key here, and watching that transition take place is fascinating. I created quite a stir with my “game over” post on Apple and its recent announcements. If you’re paying attention, Apple is working to bridge the enterprise and consumer markets as it carries us further and further into the cloud (or is that the Air?). Loren Heiny has some interesting thoughts on this as well.

I’m going to be writing more on this in the coming weeks, but I’ve really been enjoying working with the Beta of Evernote’s Web solution that allows me to collect data and seamlessly have it synced between my Tablet PC, my desktop, and my handheld. For me, personally, it is a game changer and I think that is the type of game we’re all headed for in the future. Provided, again, that you have connectivity.

Rob is still having difficulties downloading the iPhone SDK, probably because the servers are slammed, and yesterday he posted that “Apple grabbed the UMPC/Mid Market and took it away.” I have to agree with my friend and colleague and even go further. Apple opened a big door with the announcement and shut quite a few others in the process. Apple not only took the UMPC/MID market away, it will own mobile for some time to come, with everyone else playing catch up. The race to the top is over. Now everyone else can scramble to figure out who is number two.

Here’s why I think this. We’ve only seen teasers of what the Apple SDK will unlock for the future. And the teasers certainly make you want the entire show. The ability to have push email and sync with Microsoft Exchange is huge and will open the floodgates into the enterprise. We won’t see this in play until this summer but Steve Jobs, once again succeeds in sucking the oxygen out of the PR cycles throughout the spring. But come June, the mother of all converged devices will be available. And it will be available in several segments.

For those that want the boutique coolness, it will be there. For those that want it for business, it will be there. For those who want to play games, it will be there. For those that want to develop and push the envelope of the mobile experience, it will be there.

Media, SMS, phone, applications, business apps, GPS, games, you name it, you’ll have it all on the iPhone, and a lot of it on the iPod Touch, both of which will fit into your pocket. What Microsoft, Intel, and VIA are working to accomplish with UMPCs and MIDs, Apple is about to deliver. Timing is everything and Apple is not only out of the gate first, but is about to enter the final turn.

Let’s face, it the UMPC platform is quickly receding. The MID platform is still to come and is unproven. Not only has Apple loaded up their devices with potential for all segments, they’ve come in under the magic $600 price point. Intriguingly, there’s news today that last year’s great hope on the UMPC front, the HTC Shift, is finally beginning to ship in the US, but at a price point of over $1600.

With Venture Capital funding support for developers, Apple has also kickstarted an entirely new developer class, and that will be huge as well. Apple sees the long view in this. Big time. The iPhone we know today, and the version of the hardware we will probably know for the next year or two is only the beginning, and from where I sit, there are a lot of companies that would have liked to have had that as their version 1.0.

Small, $600 or under, always connected, media and the web at your fingertips, and access to your communications. I seem to remember that as the promise of the UMPC a short time ago. UMPC, we hardly knew you.

Game over.

Post Script: As I said, game over. If Apple wanted to put the last nail in the coffin of all of its other competitors, it would steal a page from Amazon’s book. Ditch the old way of thinking about connectivity charges and user fees (or is that usury?) and offer up the versions yet to come with Amazon’s connectivity model.

This is certainly disappointing news, but something tells me the story is just starting to get told. Steve Jobs, in a major slap at Adobe, has said that Adobe’s Flash Player just isn’t good enough for the iPhone.

Here’s the disappointing part. Apple has said since the hype days that the iPhone delivers the real Internet in its (and now iPod Touch) browser, staking out turf that sets it apart from other mobile operating systems. Because of all of the excitement about the iPhone, most folks kinda, sorta looked the other way, and I believe the assumption was that Flash would show up eventually (you know, unessential things like cut and paste). Well, unless Steve Jobs has something up his sleeve, I think we can say bye-bye to the “real Internet” thing for awhile now. It is a shame too. Using my iPod Touch, I’ve become quite attached to mobile web surfing on that device, and being able to view in Flash would only make it a better experience.

But in the high stakes game that Jobs is obviously playing with Adobe there could be other things in the works on the cusp of the eagerly anticipated release of the iPhone SDK. Could this be an opening for Microsoft and its Silverlight platform? Does, as Loren Heiny speculates, Steve Jobs have something else up his sleeve?

Who really knows, but I think a lot of users are feeling pretty bummed about this. I’m sure Adobe is as well.

This has been a trying several weeks for me and it looks like that is going to continue for a number of weeks to come. We’re in the final throes of our major theatre renovation. I’ve had to step in and take over directing our Education Department’s production of Romeo and Juliet. As if that wasn’t enough, we’re at the crucial point of hiring and casting for our next season. And, we’re also in some intense negotiations to continue operating our second venue that we opened so we could perform while our theatre was under renovation. Every day brings new challenges and new wrinkles to any of the above mentioned tasks, as well as the continuation of the successful run of our current show.

Normally I’m able to stay on top of quite a few things at once in my multi-tasking world, and how I use technology makes a lot of that possible. Lately though I seem to be losing ground and I find that even my mobile arsenal isn’t helping cut through the chaos. Here are a couple of examples.

Yeah, this is a rant and it is probably a bit off topic for our usual coverage here. But I’ll try and make it relevant. AllTel is proudly announcing a new voice mail service called VoiceMail Max. The purpose? It will now allow customers to customize their voicemail greetings with celebrity voices.

Here’s my point. I understand mobile companies and OEM’s work hard to come up with products and services that lend the perception of value to their customers. Nothing wrong with that. But, IMHO, we see far too much of this kind of silly development on things that are nothing more than polished up fru-fru that quickly fades away. The same can be said of companies, like Asus, that spend resources developing their own little proprietary apps for their devices that do nothing more than fill up the machine with CRAPWARE. Most of that kind of CRAPWARE quickly gets uninstalled, so why bother adding it in the first place.

I’d much rather see these companies devote those resources into better products, better service, and indeed into better customer service, than I would continue on the path of providing silly add ons. That’s where the real value is with a customer, not in some silly service or application.

If you followed Rob Bushway this weekend on Twitter you probably caught his adventures in an Apple Store and his falling in love with a MacBook Air. As far as I know Rob has reisted the urge to pull the trigger. So far. Also of note is an excellent think piece blogged by Loren Heiny on The Incremental Blogger about how perceptions might be shifting now that folks can grasp the Air in their hands. Here’s a quote:

I’m reading more and more about people proudly showing off their new Air laptops with resounding acceptance.  People like the lightness, the sleekness, the accessibility. The other stuff–you know the high performance stuff–is just not needed in this type of computer.

Yes, the tide it turning.

And my guess is that as thin and mobile become more “in” in the Apple world, so will it be in the Tablet space. And maybe, just maybe Tablets will make it back into retail. They’ll become cool for students to own. They’ll become acceptable as a lead laptop. The market will grow.

I like the jist of what Loren is pointing too, and I would hope he is correct once this plays out in the future. My hesitation is that I think it is far too early to tell if what Loren is predicting/wishing for will happen or not. While I think the early adopters early postive thoughts about the Air will carry some sway, my guess is a few months from now we’ll have a better assessment of how much the impact of the MacBook Air will have. Will it help turn the tide with Tablet PCs. Again, I would hope so.

We’ve talked in the past about the blurring lines (and horrible branding) when it comes to mobile devices like MIDs, UMPCs, and the like. It looks like those blurry lines are going to continue to become even more fuzzy from the Personal Media Player (PMP) sector. Electronista is reporting that Archos is readying a new PMP that includes 3G connectivity that allows access to the web using the Opera browser.

Some have already called the iPhone (yours truly included) the first MID, and some are really enjoying using the iPod Touch in the same way, when WiFi is available, (again, that’s the case here.) So media players as web browsers is nothing really new. I am increasingly thinking that the blurry lines defining these devices is largely irrelevant as far as the consumer is concerned. And it seems that those making and marketing these devices feel the same. Given that the focus for UMPC and MID development centers on consuming media and web browsing, as long as the consumer is getting what they need from a small device does it really matter?

Of course the question will come down to marketing. It always does. 

Thoughts?

Here comes a crazy mobile week. The big trip this week is to head to Memphis for auditions at the UPTA conference. That’s a 5 day conference where we will audition over 600 actors and then interview about 200 or so for possible jobs in our next season which begins in June. More on that later. (Note some of the links in this post are affiliate.)

In the State Capitol

But before we head off to UPTA, I am spending a day doing some political lobbying on behalf of the Arts in our state (and my theatre in particular.) I, and other members of my team, leave this afternoon to head to Richmond. (We’re leaving early enough so we can get into our hotel and watch the Super Bowl.) Early tomorrow morning, we’re off to the state capitol and a day full of appointments. We’ll be using our mobile phones (both voice and text messaging) to keep in touch throughout the day, as appointments often change due to the legislators’ schedules. I’ve planned out the day in MindManager and will be using my Tablet PC to keep track of our progress throughout the day. It will be a fast moving day and interestingly enough most of the work will come in the follow up that we have to do the next day, so keeping accurate records of conversations is a must.

On to the Auditions

Mid-week we head off to the UPTA conference. For this conference (and another one in March) we basically carry a small office with us. The tools I’ll be using will be the Lenovo ThinkPad X61 Tablet PC, the HTC Mogul, the Canon Pixma i90 Printer, a LogiTech webcam, and, for brief bits of relaxation, the iPod Touch. I’ll also be carrying a video camera to tape some auditions. I primarily use OneNote 2007 in keeping track of interviews and auditions. I’ve chronicled how I do that in the past, but it has been awhile, so I’ll be updating my process some this year. It has been a successful method of keeping track of actors and interviewees.

Twitter: A Different Communication Method?

Not only do we audition and interview at the conference, but I also do much of my ongoing work for the theatre there as well. In essence a big portion of our office moves to Memphis for the week. Communication is the key as we have a number of big pressing issues (we’re in the middle of renovating the theatre) and there are some issues coming up that we know in advance are going to require relatively immediate responses by me. Auditions are like attending a public event. Cell phones are turned off for courtesy (if an auditor’s cell phone goes off during the audition he/she pays the fee for that actor’s audition!) but the WiFi is plentiful. We are going to try something different this trip as far as a communication method. In the past we’ve used SMS messaging at these events when the folks back home have to reach me. But the buzz of a cell phone in stun mode can still distract. So, I’m going to be using the iPod Touch to follow direct messages from the home office on Twitter. I could just as easily use the HTC Mogul for that, but I’m experimenting, and I want to see if the Touch will do the trick here. We’ll see how that works.

It should be an interesting, but exhausting period of time. As a side note, my participation here on GBM will be light during the auditions. I’m also trying out a couple of new (to me) gadgets and accessories and if all goes well, I’ll be reporting about that either from the road, or after I return.

Microsoft Windows Vista is celebrating birthday number one today on the anniversary of the public release. You can certainly say it has been a controversial first year. Vista has taken its knocks from many quarters, certainly from the mobile sector, but it has also continued to grow in terms of sales. If you follow the industry news, it looks like there is a growing trend that is moving beyond the “knocks” into the “Vista isn’t all that bad” column. That said, there is still a large chorus that wants to see Vista branded as a Windows ME type failure and move on. Some even say Vista is the best promotion that Windows XP has ever had. Recent confusing stories of a potential 2009 release of Windows 7 certainly doesn’t help. The final release of SP1 is supposedly just around the corner and there is a lot of emphasis and interest to see how well that changes the matter and the perceptions.

From a Tablet PC perspective, Vista certainly offered some great advances, (check out our GBM InkShows on Tablet PC features in Vista) and in many ways ushered Touch into the picture. Unfortunately, from my perspective, the big hope of making Tablet PC functionality available across the board by rolling it all into Vista (the bits are there, all you need is the hardware) didn’t yield the hoped for increase in interest and development of new Tablet PCs from OEMs. That is a marketing failure as much as it is anything else, as you need to look really closely in any of the hype about Vista to know that improved Tablet PC functionality is a feature.

If it seems that Vista has been around for longer than a year that is because it has. In the roll up to the final release to consumers, the various release candidates, the release to business customers, and of course the delays, were all covered breathlessly, and it seems, endlessly (certainly here on the pages of GBM), and rightly so.

TEO developer Josh Einstein has waged a one man campaign in the GBM Forums and comments throughout the year defending the OS from some of the charges leveled against it, and done so admirably, especially as it relates to issues that might be caused by drivers and hardware from Microsoft hardware and software partners. He’s raised some excellent points along the way and in our small world here, put the focus where it needs to be in some cases. In the final analysis though, the fact that Josh has felt the need to do so, demonstrates that Microsoft missed the boat by not being proactive in discussing and addressing some of the issues that caused concern. But then that seem to be the “accepted way of things” when it comes to talking about issues with operating systems and new releases. I think the large turnover inside Microsoft, shortly after Vista’s release, also had some impact on this as well, and if you ask me the timing of those moves was not only questionable, but in some cases damaging.

So, it has been a bumpy ride in Vista’s first year. In my one man’s opinion, there is still a lot to learn, still room for improvement, and there are still some questions unanswered. While Vista and some of its attendant issues have given me some headaches, I’ve used it almost exclusively since the fall of 2006 and continue to do so. For better or worse. Mostly better.

What are your thoughts?

James Martin of PC World is focusing on small mobile computers in a recent article, including everything from MIDs to UMPCs, to the new MacBook Air. He certainly covers a range of devices within the portable class and offers some interesting pros and cons. He also poses a number of good questions that users should ask before heading off with a mobile device in hand. But I think he’s missing one key question. What are your connectivity options?

Connectivity is one of the pillars that mobile computing is built on and you don’t see a device these days without some sort of option built in ranging from WiFi to WWAN, to the various ports that allow you to add on a modem of some sort, or BlueTooth that enables you to tether up, depending on your wireless carriers restrictions.

My thinking here is that more and more the assumption is being made that WiFi will be available somewhere, and if not, smart users will have other options at the ready. While both may be true, recent experiences are proving that the promise of being always connected isn’t always something you can rely on. As an example, I’m seeing folks at the current Demo Conference complaining that the WiFi is down. While those that have an EVDO option available are sending some info out of the conference, I look shortly to hear that the EVDO bandwidth is clogged up. In fact, though I would recommend that you not rely on a WiFi only device, and have another method of connecting in your arsenal, even with a second option, you should also know that you can have less than optimal results depending on the circumstances.

My point is simple, while picking the right mobile device is a task that needs to match the needs of the user with the right device, users need to also consider the current state of over the air connectivity, and the options a device offers before making that decision. And the vast majority of those cases, (including WiFi connectivity at hotels and the like) add cost to the user that are not insignificant. In fact, today, I think buying a mobile device without figuring in the costs of connectivity is in some ways comparable to buying a new car without paying attention to the potential fuel consumption.

I’m pleased to say that the devices and gadgets I took to CES 2008 (and the annual family pilgrimage to Chicago and Wisconsin) worked well for the demands (both work and fun) that I placed on them. That said, some things worked better for me than others. For a look at the mobile kit I carried check out this post. (Some links below are affiliate links.)

Successes

Lenovo ThinkPad X61 Tablet PC: My old standby served me very well during the entire three weeks. Whether I was blogging, doing a little work, answering email, or what have you, it worked like a charm. Producing video on the fly (and we cranked out a lot) was a breeze using the ThinkPad.

The Sprint (HTC) Mogul: In many ways this was my go to device on this trip. Whether checking my feeds using Google Reader, checking email, or tethering it up to the Lenovo ThinkPad X61 for broadband coverage it served well. It also worked well as a phone.  After the recent ROM update the battery life on the Mogul was exceptional. With heavy usage all day, I did not have to pull out the extra battery once.

iPod Touch: This was an early Christmas present and in many ways I was getting to know it during the trip. When WiFi was available and accessible (not always the same thing-more on that later) it was a joy to catch up on feeds and my Gmail using this device. I’ve resisted buying an iPhone simply because the AT&T service is so poor where I live, but I’ve got to say that after using the iPod Touch for a few weeks, I can really see the allure and value that an iPhone has. Sure, I can get most of that functionality with the Mogul, but the Touch/iphone interface is a joy to use. In addition to Internet activity, the iPod Touch performed very well as a media player. I had ripped a few DVDs down and carried them along and was able to watch a move and listen to a few podcasts on the flight from Chicago to Vegas without a hitch.

Thin may be in and beautiful but the compromises one has to make to be ultra-thin and beautiful can lead to some pretty tough and perhaps unhealthy lifestyle choices for fashion models and now mobile users. While the MacBook Air may indeed be the thinnest portable yet and quite pretty to look at, this fashion show stops dead on the runway for me with the the non-user replaceable battery.

I just don’t think the folks in Cupertino really thought this one through. Batteries are the food that nourishes our mobile devices and keeps them running. Call me paranoid and old fashioned, but I travel with an extra battery when I’m on the road. (I travel with extra other things as well, having a backup scenario is a key part of my being mobile.) I know others do as well. While five hours might be enough to get a user through most days, my experience tells me it won’t in my situation. A five hour battery life (and we all know that five hours on announcement day usually translates to something less in the real world) would not have sufficed at CES as an example, and I found myself changing batteries each day while there. The same is true for my other travels and on the road work.

I’m a big believer in the WNewquay school of thought on batteries. We should think of them as consumables that will indeed be consumed and need replacing. No problems there. While the offer of free labor to replace a battery is a nice gesture, that is all it is, if like I, you don’t live within shouting distance of an Apple Store. Do you know anyone who is going to be comfortable shipping their mobile precious off for a battery replacement for a few days? I don’t.

This may be an acceptable, although still not a welcome, scenario and business plan for iPhones and iPods, because the thinking goes most users will opt for the newest device when the battery needs a make over. But I don’t think that logic flows through to a $1700 portable computer purchase.

I’ve got to feel comfortable knowing I can keep my portable devices well fed and juiced up when I need to, otherwise the hunger pangs set in and they faint dead away, just when I need them to strut their stuff. Heck most mobile devices start sounding like the plant in Little Shop of Horrors screaming Feed Me with any real heavy usage.

I applaud the pretty design choices and the desire to get thinner and lighter. But when I look at the pretty pictures, it makes me ask the same questions that I ask when I see razor thin models on a runway. Is what you give up to be that thin and stylish really worth the compromise when it comes to practical living?

Apologies to Nelson Algren for morphing the title.

For what it is worth here are some of my thoughts and impressions on CES 2008. Insane. Fun. Exhilarating. Enlightening. Frustrating. Confusion. Stupid. Big Gambles. In the end not as much substance as I would have liked to see. That’s how I’d quickly characterize this year’s CES 2008 from my perspective. Here are some extensions on those thoughts.

Insane.

The definition of insanity is pursuing the same path hoping for a different result. Lots of that happens at CES no matter your perspective. Everyone is hoping their product catches everyone’s imagination, every writer/podcaster/video blogger hopes they find it first. This year’s CES was largely a rehash of things we already knew about, technologies that we already are working with, and dressing those things up as something new and exciting. When there was something new (MIDs) we got to see prototypes of promises yet to come. When you do get a chance to talk with someone about something that is exciting and still to come, it is so far off that you can’t talk about it. With all of that insanity would I do it again? You bet. Call me insane.

Gizmodo thought they’d be clever in that old hacker prankster way at CES. They took the TV-B-Gone clicker that will allow you to turn off a TV screen and basically shut down any screen they could find at CES. I think the laughs lasted about 10 seconds before the word got out. Can you imagine the folks responsible for those displays and the folks who supervise them trying to deal with the issue? This was decidedly not a cool thing to do, I don’t care who thought of the idea. Wonder what the Gizmodo folks would say if someone had figured out how to pull the plug on their coverage of the event?

The ramifications could ripple far beyond the prank. There are calls to ban Gizmodo from CES, and at the least I imagine they’ll get a chiller reception at a few booths next year if they are allowed in. Here’s hoping this won’t blow back on other bloggers as well, although I fear it might. The lame apology that was issued is just that lame, as they wish they could have shut down the largest screen display on the floor. Classless. Stupid. Not cool.

Here’s my take, hunches, best guesses, and coin flips for 2008.

• Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) will dominate the conversation for the first half of the year. What happens in the 2^nd half is anybody’s guess.
• Call it Ultra-Mobile PC, call it UMPC, call it Origami. Call it what you will, but by the end of 2008 call it in its dying throes. The ultra mobile vision will remain, but in other devices. 
• Unlike Rob, I don’t see Dell re-evaluating their price point on the XT Tablet PC so soon. The high price point is consistent with the markets they have been targeting from the beginning. If the prices drop it will be a year from now at the earliest.
• Apple will not market a Tablet PC in 2008.  Instead it will be a communication device that takes advantage of the iPhone’s features as well as the Back to My Mac features for users to grab their data on the road. Because it will have a touch interface and be able to take advantage of InkWell, Tablet PC aficionados will call it a failure.
• Touch will again be a dominate feature and news story. The real question is will anyone develop an application that makes it more than a fancy way to play media, turn pages, or manipulate photos. Or is that enough?
• Multi-touch is still a ways off. Someone, somewhere, needs to develop a real use for it on the Tablet PC and mobile devices.
• With the exception of the MID and whatever Apple will do in 2008, next year’s headlines will be about technologies that change or provide new content delivery methods, similar to the Amazon Kindle.
• Microsoft’s marketing will continue to be mediocre at best and miss the mark more than it will hit.
• DRM will continue to cripple operating systems and content delivery methods. Most consumers won’t notice. Those that do will root for Amazon, Walmart, and Independent music producers to keep putting the pressure on.
• New releases of new products across the board will slow down in 2008. Some consumers will remember Apple’s iPhone price drop form 2007, companies will try to get a better handle on delivery inadequacies. Consumers are starting to notice that their voices can be heard, and companies will start to slow things down a bit, to hopefully improve on what they eventually release.
• The word “open” will get bandied around a lot. As in Google’s efforts to make mobile devices more open with its Google Android mobile OS. The word open will lose all meaning in the marketing miasma.
• OneNote 2007 will continue to remain a secret.
• The Asus Eee PC story is just getting started. It will have much more impact in 2008.
• The companies to watch in the mobile space who will have the greatest impact will be Apple, Nokia, HTC, Asus, and Google.
• HP, Toshiba, and Lenovo will continue to dominate the consumer Tablet PC space, although we probably won’t see anything really new until 2009. Fujitsu nees to make some noise here.
• Inking on Tablet PCs will continue to remain the ultimate niche in a niche product.
• There will be a major Internet outage or Bot Attack in 2008, prompting all sorts of chaos and howling. This will lead to a renewed interest in client apps vs. the cloud.

Well, I’m not sure if it is an “Ultimate” challenge or not, because I really am only checking out three devices here, but play along.

There are a lot of closet Stall Surfers out there. You know who you are. In fact, it is, in my considered opinion, one of the reasons that folks love mobile devices so much is the opportunity for a bit of Stall Surfing. Forget all the talk about making you more productive at work. It is all about being able to cruise the Internet, read an eBook, or check email in those very private moments. With the advent of touch devices, even those touchy about the subject are coming out of the closet on this issue. And don’t feign modesty here. You know I’m talking to you.

Time for my annual Christmas Wish List of things I’d like to see for Tablet PC, UMPC, and Mobile PC users. (Here’s a link to last year’s.) These aren’t gadgets I’d like to see under mine or anyone’s tree, nor are they predictions. Instead these are things I’d like to see happen. As always, I’m an impatient old elf, when it comes to these sorts of things.

I’d like to see the many solutions we have floating around for coordinating our life “in the cloud” with our life “on the desktop” advance to a point where we all might feel a little more comfortable.

I’d like to see Intel come up with a better marketing strategy, and clearer communication strategy, for and about its chip speeds. The average user has a hard enough time figuring out what’s what these days. When yesterday’s chip speed compared to today’s is really meaningless, somebody needs to spell it out a bit more clearly.

I’d like to see UMPC makers (and MID makers for that matter) recognize the importance of Inking and come out with a UMPC  (or MID) that allows accurate note taking ability. There is need for a small device that can do more than play media, show pictures, and manipulate icons with a touch interface.

I’d like to see small mobile device makers quit thinking about the stylus as a throw in, and actually design one that is comfortable and efficient to use.

I’d like to see the CEO’s of the companies that keep coming up with these tiny keyboards for mobile devices be forced to use them for at least 90 days before they sign off on the design.

I’d like to see the rush to advertising on everything in order to provide free software and services slow down a little bit. I’m just asking here, but do you know anyone who has ever clicked on an ad? I don’t.

I’d like to see the good folks at Dell who think the pricing of the new Latitude XT is a good bargain reexamine their thoughts on this, and quickly.

I’d like to see Amazon, Apple, and other on-line music vendors who launched DRM free efforts succeed in a big way. DRM is still a curse and slows so much of everything down.

I’d like to see Apple come out with a Tablet this year, sooner rather than later.

I’d like to see Microsoft figure out just how woeful its marketing efforts are and put in a major course correction here. Now, please.

I’d like to see mobile computer OEMs take a lesson from Asus and the Eee PC, (and also jkk’s moding by adding a touch screen to it.) These price points don’t have to be so high.

I’d still like to see more direct Inking in the operating system.

I’d like to see Google’s push to open up in mobile connectivity succeed in a big way.

Oh, and as always, whirled peas.

What’s on your Christmas Wish List?