Minnov8

Showcasing Minnesota Technology Innovation

Minnov8 Gang 132 – Hot Enough for ‘Ya?

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The Gang (minus Graeme) talks about the hottest stories of the week from NASA and the last shuttle launch; Apple’s blow-out quarter (as well as Google’s); Google+; Microsoft earnings; and much more. We only mention the stifling heat that passed us over this past week, instead focusing on the acceleration this summer of hot announcements even we are having a hard time staying on top of as a group!

Hosts: Steve Borsch, Tim Elliott & Phil Wilson (Graeme Thickins is off this week).
Music: “Running from the Law” by Mean Gene Kelton & the DieHards via Music Alley.

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The Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 48:23 — 28.5MB)

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Discussed during the show:

Upcoming Events: WordPressMSP on July 28th on Gravity Forms; CoCoMSP Kickoff Party on Saturday, July 30th (note slow link…be patient)

Minnov8 Gang Podcast 131 – Deals Baby!

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The Gang talks with Joseph Rueter, entrepreneur and co-founder of Deals.by (formerly “Locate My Deal”), the “Search Engine for Deals Near You“. Also discussed are numerous developments this past week and what it means for you.

Hosts: Steve Borsch, Tim Elliott, Graeme Thickins & Phil Wilson.
Music: “Blue n Boogie” by Norman Hedman’s Tropique via the podsafe Music Alley.

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The Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:03:10 — 36.9MB)

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Discussed during the show:

Upcoming Events:

Minnov8 Gang Podcast 130 – Tablets, Schmablets

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Minnov8 Gang podcast imageWe talk Google+ and Google’s design changes, bring on our guest, Tom Sweeney, to discuss his startup Visiting Ours, and talk tablets. 2011 was projected by many to be the “year of the tablet” and it’s certainly shaping up to be just that…the year when the dramatic changeover from a PC-centric world to one of mobile devices accelerates dramatically.

Hosts: Steve Borsch, Tim Elliott, Graeme Thickins, Phil Wilson, & Julio Ojeda Zapata
Music: “Just Got to Boogie” by Matt Thorpe via the podsafe Music Alley.

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The Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 59:56 — 34.7MB)

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Discussed during the show:

Upcoming Events:

Newsbytes for Tuesday, May 4, 2010

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Newsbytes graphicNewsbytes is a collection of links to articles and posts from around the ‘net of interest to Minnov8 readers:

  • Governor Pawlenty says Minnesota needs to be more competitive. Healthy state economies will play a critical role in future job creation, but Minnesota does not rank among the nation’s top 10 “growth performers,” according to a U.S. Chamber of Commerce study rolled out Monday by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Minnesota iPhone App Developers Talk iPad and OS 4

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I’m having so much freaking fun with my iPad, I almost forgot to post this week.  I started asking my developer friends about it almost as soon as I got mine last Saturday, so I’ve had this post brewing for days now.  Then, I’m finally about ready to post it, and Apple goes and holds its “sneak-peek” media event yesterday.  So, natch, I had to ask some of them for their reaction to that, too.

Here we go, then — five experienced Minnesota mobile app developers tell me, straight up, what’s up with iPad as relates to them.  And, after that,  I include some great insights from a couple of them about iPhone OS 4 — coming this summer for the iPhone, and soon after for the iPad. (Bring it on, Uncle Stevie!)

Joe Sriver, Founder, DoApp Inc. Joe, will your company be developing iPad apps?

“Yes, we do have plans for the iPad, first for our real estate product, then our other products. No ‘made for iPad’ apps are in the store from DoApp on day one, though.  But I did preorder an iPad for the team.”  In a story our friend Julio Ojeda-Zapata wrote in the PioneerPress on April 2, we learned that DoApp was frantically at work on the iPad version of it’s “Home Kenex” app, which is for home buyers and real estate agents.  Maps can be positioned alongside lists or photos of homes to make navigation easier and more intuitive than the cramped iPhone screen allows, said the story, facilitating better house comparisons.  iPad becomes “a coffee table-type of thing, with people in their agents’ offices cruising for properties on the device,” said the story, quoting DoApp’s Wade Beavers.  GPS capability will be added in an upcoming version of the iPad, so home buyers or agents will be able to pull up listings in their vicinity and “drive effortlessly towards them using satellite navigation.”

Bill Heyman, Founder and Lead Developer, CodeMorphic. Bill, what apps are you doing for iPad?  Redoing any of your existing ones?

“No existing apps.  What we’re doing are new ones for various clients.  Unfortunately, I’m not at liberty to say what they are.  I’m also working on a new game app I’m publishing myself, but I’m not ready to submit it yet. I’ll let you know when it’s getting close.”

I assume you now have an iPad in your possession? “Yes, I had one delivered to me while on vacation in Arizona this week.”

What are you finding in regard to how well your iPhone apps work on iPad? “They seem to work fine.
”

What about landscape mode?  Are you concerned that apps should work either way on iPad? “Apple has basically told developers that they MUST support rotation in their iPad apps.  Unfortunately, it can be a major PITA to support it well, but developers are going to have to bite the bullet now.
”

Any other comment? “I think iBooks is the killer feature of the iPad.  There’s been talk about the iPad developer gold rush, but no discussion about the author and independent content provider gold rush.  It’s going to happen — and I think it could be every bit as exciting as some of the apps.” …  [Read More…]

Google’s High-Fiber City: Why Not Duluth?

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I can see the signs now as I tool into to town on I-35…Welcome to Duluth, Now With More Fiber!

You may not know it but the clock is clicking down to Google’s deadline, March 26th, for nominations of cities interested in being their laboratory for an “ultra high-speed fiber network”. In fact, that clock can be found at the top of the page at GoogleTwinPorts.com, just one of the assets in Duluth’s well choreographed campaign to become a high-fiber community.

According to Google, the city chosen will be built out with a fiber network that will deliver “Internet speeds more than 100 times faster than what most Americans have access to today, over 1 gigabit per second” at a “competitive price”. And it will provide that network to anywhere from 50,000 to 500,000 people in the chosen community. It’s all part of their plan “to experiment with new ways to help make Internet access better, and faster for everyone”.

Oh sure, there have been more than a few cities that have made very public pushes to be chosen for this slice of web-surfing nirvana, but none have done it with quite as much panache as our own Duluth.

They have dedicated a website, Facebook page, Twitter page, and YouTube Channel to the cause. There’s a Fiber Business Idea award being offered, web badges, a coloring contest, a pledge to sign, Google Fest on March 20th and there’s even a movie in the offing. (No details on the plot…hopefully a romantic comedy…there aren’t enough of those, ya know.)

Then there’s the celebrities…Hey Topeka, Kansas we’ll see your Mayor renaming the city to Google, KS for a month and raise you a State Senator.

The most recent addition of voices to the campaign is Minnesota State Senator Al Franken.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2i_piWVXuc&feature=player_embedded

The fact is that Mr. Franken, back in his days working with Tom Davis, was the “Duluth Answer Man” in a series of commercials for the city. Here’s a little known fact: Franken filmed these commercials just two years ago. Boy those Senate bids can age a guy. (OK, not a fact. He actually filmed them in the 80’s). In the video he even credits Google with freeing him from his duties as the Answer Man so that he could join the Senate.

Details of when Google will announce which city will be the recipient of all this fiber are still a bit sketchy. Their website only goes as far as saying “We plan to announce a target community or target communities this year.” When would the network be up and running once a community…no…once Duluth is chosen? Google gives no time frame.

Needless to say, though vague,  the Google initiative is an exciting one. Hopefully, like the FCC Broadband Plan, it will yield a low cost way to bring a bigger pipe to all of the US…not just one city. Our collective digital future, with all its applications, opportunities and business ventures, really depends on it.

In the meantime, a city on the shores of Lake Superior can dream, as well as showcase it’s innovative community…and have a lot fun doing it.

Minnov8 Gang 69: “We don’t need no stinkin’ badges!”

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Opportunity and growth is all around us and glimmers of it are appearing in the web, mobile and other tech spaces. But are you willing to take the risks, explore and deal with all the obstacles in the way of you seeking riches?

In the movie The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Humphrey Bogart’s character Dobbs, and two other gringos, embark in to Mexico to find gold in the Sierra Madres, an area in great flux and riddled with banditos, but policed by the Federales. In one of the signature lines in the movie the banditos, trying to convince Dobbs and his cronies that they’re Federales, say, “Badges? We ain’t got no badges! We don’t need no badges! I don’t have to show you any stinking badges!” (usually misquoted as “We don’t need no stinkin’ badges!“). There are several moral and philosophical questions in the movie and Dobbs dies, the banditos are killed by the Federales, the gold is lost and thus the analogy might as clear as mud: chasing opportunities won’t be easy but they’re out there; barriers and obstacles (and bandits) stand in your way; but we thought exploring opportunistic thoughts in this podcast was worthwhile.

Special Guest: For part of the podcast, Meg Canada joins us to talk about libraries, the iPad and more. Meg is a senior librarian for Web Services and Training at Hennepin County Library and currently coordinates public training and  social media efforts for the library. She volunteers helping with the Unsummit, recently presented at MinneWebCon, and is a regular contributor to Social Media Breakfast.

Hosts: Steve Borsch, Tim Elliott, Graeme Thickins and Phil Wilson.
Music: “Santa Maria” by Will Kriski from Music Alley, purveyor of podsafe tunes.

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The Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 56:44 — 32.9MB)

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Discussed during the show:

+ Past Events: CloudCampMSP (see Minnov8’s coverage here); IgniteMPLS; Social Media Breakfast;

+ Upcoming Events: Mobile March; MIMA; DEMO; SxSWi; MinneWebCon

+ Mobile: MixMobi; WordPress mobile plugins (Mobile Edition; WPTouch); Square (mobile commerce)

+ Devices: Apple iPad; Microsoft Courier; Dell Slate

+ Other: Google pagerank to require speedier websites?; Hacker News.

Minnov8 Gang 67: Is Google Buzz a Taser or Cupid’s Arrow?

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Hosts: Steve Borsch, Tim Elliott and Phil Wilson (Graeme is off this week)
Music: Mean Gene Kelton and the Diehards and the tune is “Running from the Law”. From the podsafe music network Music Alley.

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The Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 55:58 — 32.6MB)

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+ Google Buzz
+ Greg Litman (WCCO News & Sports producer) post on Arik Hanson’s blog
+ Juicy Lucy controversy
+ Phil’s video interview with Chris Brogan: “Catching Up With Chris”
+ Garrick Van Buren‘s Cullect.com
+ Steve’s post about Where are you paying attention?
+ Sarah Lacy controversy at SXSW & Danah Boyd’s Web 2.0 Expo speech and Twitter debacle
+ Craig Neal from Heartland Circle and his Art of Convening
+ Steve’s post about MSNBC’s awesome Super Tuesday primary coverage
+ The perfect valentine for social media folks to their sweetie: a “broquet” (a bacon bouquet)
+ What’s up with St. Valentine and how did we get to the point of giving cards, flowers and chocolate? (bonus link: History of Valentine’s Day)

 

Minnesota Apple Watchers React to Steve Jobs’ Rant

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So, if you haven’t seen the news Wired broke late Saturday (updated Sunday afternoon) about Steve Jobs going off on Google and Adobe at the Apple all-employee meeting, here it is:  Google’s ‘Don’t Be Evil’ Mantra is ‘Bullshit,’ Adobe Is Lazy: Apple’s Steve Jobs.

Here’s an excerpt:

“After a big public announcement of the sort Apple had this week for the iPad, CEO Steve Jobs often takes time in the day or two afterwards to have a Town Hall at One Infinite Loop, making himself available for questions from employees bold enough to stand up and take one right between the eyes.

This time, the big topics included Google and Adobe — no surprises there… And the absence of Adobe Flash support on the iPhone for three years and counting, and now on the iPad, is either celebrated by users as a poke in the eye of one of the web’s most dextrous tools, or the most over-rated and overused crutch for decent design.

Jobs, characteristically, did not mince words as he spoke to the assembled, according to a person who was there who could not be named because this person is not authorized by Apple to speak with the press.

On Google: We did not enter the search business, Jobs said. They entered the phone business. Make no mistake they want to kill the iPhone. We won’t let them, he says. Someone else asks something on a different topic, but there’s no getting Jobs off this rant. I want to go back to that other question first and say one more thing, he says. This don’t be evil mantra: “It’s bullshit.” Audience roars.

About Adobe: They are lazy, Jobs says. They have all this potential to do interesting things but they just refuse to do it. They don’t do anything with the approaches that Apple is taking, like Carbon. Apple does not support Flash because it is so buggy, he says. Whenever a Mac crashes more often than not it’s because of Flash. No one will be using Flash, he says. The world is moving to HTML5.”

I decided to ask three local observers with a special perspective on Apple for their reaction. Two of them are former Apple employees, the other a 26-year user of both Apple and Adobe technologies. …  [Read More…]

Minnov8 Gang Podcast 48: Pushbuttons & Voice

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pushbuttonThis Week’s Show Hosts: Steve Borsch, Phil Wilson and Julio Ojeda Zapata (Tim Elliott and Graeme Thickins are off today). Music by Chuck Willis from Music Alley, purveyor of podsafe tunes.

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The Podcast

Podcast: Download (Duration: 53:14 — 30.9MB)

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Discussed during the show notes:

+ Topics:
– The Pushbutton Web ( http://dashes.com/anil/2009/07/the-pushbutton-web-realtime-becomes-real.html ). Is this just a way for people to throw stuff up against the wall and see what sticks, or a fundamentally new way of inputting content that will be useful?
The “PBWeb” is really all about the shift in tools (like what I talked about at my SMBMSP preso at Deluxe) and how we can use them to deliver our content in a “publish once, distribute everywhere” model. Posterous.com, PixelPipe.com and plugins for WordPress like tWPter (http://www.bochgoch.com/page/plugin/wp_twptter/) and then the announcement by Typepad that they’re enabling microblogging (http://everything.typepad.com/blog/2009/08/the-best-of-both-worlds-microblogging-on-typepad.html) means that everyone is recognizing the need for us to publish short bursts in a microblogging way
(My SMBMSP talk)
– Themes are appearing like the Prologue Theme, P2. Prologue is a WordPress theme that turns your WordPress blog into a Twitter-like tool for organizing groups or whatever: http://p2demo.wordpress.com/
– Upcoming Microsoft retail stores. Is this smart, or is the company not capable of original ideas?: http://microsoftjobsblog.com/blog/microsoft-retail-stores-we-re-hiring/
photos: http://gizmodo.com/5322328/leak-inside-the-microsoft-store-with-wall+sized-screens-and-the-answers-bar/gallery/
– Twitter location-based tweeting. A good thing or a bad thing? http://blog.twitter.com/2009/08/location-location-location.html
– WHAT IS WITH THE SUDDEN UPTICK IN TWITTER, SKYPE AND EMAIL PORN JUST THIS WEEK!?! Not only have I been getting inundated with stuff, so have many others whom I follow.
– MIMA Summit; Pranah; SMBMSP next week at the State Fair
Google Insight & Google Trends & Alerts

+ The Pushbutton Web, a concept article by Anil Dash about a “publish once, distribute everywhere” model:

+ Upcoming Microsoft retail stores and that they’re hiring for them. Also, the Gizmodo ‘leak’ of a presentation/plan done for Microsoft on the store concept

+ Google Voice, Apple & AT&T controversy with the Federal Communications Commission asking for clarification on Apple disallowing Google Voice in the iPhone App Store. Apple’s, Google’s and AT&T’s respective responses.

+ MIMA Summit; and the Social Media Breakfast (SMBMSP) next week at the State Fair.