Sk-etchbook

I saw a episode of Click recently and they were reviewing Windows 7. After the previously over-hyped and subsequent flop that was Vista it looks like the guys at Microsoft have been busy. With the increasing popularity of Apple products and a dwindling market share it seems blatantly obvious that MS are frantically trying to shake both the clunky/crashy/ugly aspects of their products and the geeky/cheapy/boring image they have.

I can imagine it now. Many a heated meeting at Microsoft HQ, fat men in suits, people getting fired, hired and forcefully retired. Pitches & power words, "blue sky thinking", "outside the box" and similar phrases been said far to often. Big money been thrown at a big problem. Who do we know that's "cool", that's "hip"? Bring in the agencies, the advertisers and the marketers, the Trinny, Susannas and Goks to provide an extreme makeover to the ultimate nerd.

Did it work?

Well I must say the "I'm a PC" advertisement was a good move. The Apple commercials were a direct mockery of PC's with a slight hint of school ground bullying going on. The personalization of the product and the heightened emphasis been placed upon PC's commonality and user base within society boosts their credibility. The similar tone or inferred response to the "I'm a Mac" ads has an element of standing up to the bully along with displaying a sense of humor. Wise move also as it's damn near impossible to make a joke of someone if they're already laughing at themselves. So hats off on advertising, wouldn't say there would be any detrimental effect to Apple but PC's can walk away with their head held high.

OK, damage control sorted now the hard part.

After the issues with Vista MS need to ensure this launch is smooth as possible, technical bugs need to be a minimum, it needs to run fast and look good. Some of the major problems with Vista involved drivers not working so people could no longer use printers, cameras and other external devises. This was a problem which used to be quite apparent with Macs not supporting external devices however I have to say I have had a mac for about four years and everything has been supported or plug-in and play on the Mac. The PC has sometimes required installing programs, updating software, restarting several times, slapping my thigh and pulling a funny face. Yes I would have to admit my preference is towards Macs, I find the platform to be more stable, run faster, the file/GUI hierarchy makes more sense and the usability is more intuitive and efficient. Usability is something I believe Apple do extremely well, you can tell a lot of thought has gone in to every aspect. Apart from the stupid-one-button-mouse that is.

Anyway on that point Windows 7 and usability. My first thoughts are to say copycats! They have rejigged the start menu and quick launch menu to create something very similar to the dock. There are also added ways to navigate between window which are very similar to expose and command+tab. There is a built in touch navigation like you get on the iPhone and you can tell they trying to soup up their "we're cool" image by looking at the new selection of built in screen savers.

Image source & more info

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The European Future Technologies Conference and Exhibition is a new European forum dedicated to frontier research in future and emerging information technologies. More than 700 scientists, policy-makers, industry representatives and science journalists convened over 3 days to discuss today's frontier science, tomorrow's technologies and the impact of both on tomorrow's society.

Science Beyond Fiction

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One of the tasks involved with getting the reseller account set up was configuring Hostpay, this is their inbuilt e-commerce system. Once you have specified the type of account, price and any add-ons or domains to offer then your customers can purchase online. Activation is done automatically by their robots.

You can use several different payment gatways. I have set up separate accounts with Google Checkout and PayPal, the latter I have used personally. I've never used Google Checkout before but I'm going to see how it goes, can't say I'm a big fan of PayPal, having a 5 day wait to transfer funds is a pain in the donkey.

Am probably going to look at replacing the Hostpay system with a custom buit cart when I get time but for speed it will do for now.

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Here is a small sample of some of the categories and options which needed to be configured when setting up a reseller account. I was expecting a bit of effort to be involved but trawling through all these settings is verging on the ridiculous. I suppose I shall be grateful for the degree of customization available eventually but it is a trauma setting all the functionality and pricing for each hosting package never mind editing all the associated admin, management, accounting and branding involved.

There are a ton of templates, image libraries and bricabrac available to offer punters with the accounts but I think there a bit of a con. They look good on the obligatory comparison charts allowing you to have ticks against the incredible amount of services you offer but there not very good. In fact there hideous, I definitely wouldn't charge for any of the included templates.

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The New New Economy: More Startups, Fewer Giants, Infinite Opportunity

The New Socialism: Global Collectivist Society Is Coming Online

"Bill Gates once derided open source advocates with the worst epithet a capitalist can muster. These folks, he said, were a "new modern-day sort of communists," a malevolent force bent on destroying the monopolistic incentive that helps support the American dream."

Fascinating articles resonating some of the issues I covered in my essay recently. The public awareness of false values instilled by industries persistent marketing tactics does seem to be on the rise. People are talking to each other, teaching themselves and working together. The availability of knowledge and technology made possible by the internet is an incredible advancement for humanity as a whole and is a formidable threat to big business. It is taken as gospel that in any highly competitive market whatever you offer eventually someone will find a way to offer the same thing for free. "Same" however is not the right word, similar is more appropriate and this is important. Open Source or free is no threat to any business so long as you are better in some form. Whatever you provide it must be effective, you must give people what they want and do it in the most streamlined way possible.

Looking at free products or Open Source software is great, it is free market research, just the same as looking at your competitors. You can see what the majority like, dislike and what is useful. This information is priceless, armed with this you then just need to look at your target audience, improve on the formula and tailor it to meet their specific needs. The free market is admittedly a large market but it is a separate entity from the premium market. If your product is worth paying for people will and whats more by specifically targeting this segment of the market you are also establishing a more stable cash flow. After all the free market consumers want to pay little or nothing for products and price is likely to be a bigger issue.

By targeting the people happy to pay extra for a better product you are tapping a much more reliable income, consumers willing to spend on luxury not necessity. Simple notion yet hard work. As previously mentioned people now talk, reviews and forums tell consumers who is good, bad and ugly in the market place. To compete you have to be good and stay good, listen to your customers and give them what they want. On a slight tangent you also need to remember who your targeting when you create your Brand, website and marketing. If you cover your web site and leaflets with "Call now for a FREE quote" or "FREE CONSULTATION" you may entice a few more leads but are they going to be the type of client you want? People with expendable income tend to place less emphasis on cost and expect not to pay for quotes or consultations anyway.

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Why Brand your company?

Microsoft - What does your compant stand for?

A successful image is the foundation of every successful company

One of the most important assets you can develop for your business is a powerful brand

Brand Strategy

Branding Your Business

Why do I need a web site?

Get the right website for your business

Top Reasons to Get a website

Top 13 reasons to get a web site

Internet and Email marketing guide for web sites

18 reasons for having a web site

SEO & marketing outcomes

Why Use SEO?

Why use SEO?

The Benefits of SEO

What use is marketing?

Direct marketing: the basics

How to Use Marketing to Add Value to Your Company

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Taken from Sqidspot

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