Stardust Global Ventures

Ken and Sheryl just recorded a podcast on how hyperconnectivity has pitfalls as well as some of the potential future ways we see it evolving.

Tonight we talked about use for parents, students and educational possibilities. We also discussed how it isn’t always a good fit, such as during productive times when the blink of a light from an IM program or the sound of a voice in your ear on a phone is a distraction to accomplishment.

As always, Ken and Sheryl went off topic and discussed how having guests join them may be an addition to future podcasts, and are asking for women in Unified Communications to step up and create a pool of potential guests to further the discussion on why women are so apparently absent from this industry.

If you have questions or comments, please feel free to drop either of us a note at stardust@stardustglobalventures.com or reply to this post.

We look forward to hearing from all of you. We want to help others feel comfortable as technology enters our lives more completely, not only in our work but in our daily endeavors.

When Geeks Collide – The Chronicles of Sheryl & Ken

Technorati Tags: podcast, ken camp, sheryl breuker, geeks collide, stardust global ventures,

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We’ve been talking a bit lately about something we really enjoy, but don’t get to do often enough – tag teaming. We don’t really mean ganging up on people, but when we go to a trade show or conference we do almost every interview as a team. One or the other of us may lead, but we’re paired together doing it.

Sheryl’s been doing her Incidental Interviews for quite a while, and they’re almost all her and one guest. Ken’s been doing Realtime Unified Communications Community podcasts, and has had multiple guests on occasion, but again, they’ve been Ken interviewing someone.

Several months ago, Sheryl invited me to join her and do an Incidental Interview with Randal Schwartz. That was last September, nearly a year ago. At that point, a few people knew us together, but we weren’t the team we are today. Ok, in our minds we were, but we hadn’t really tested how well we work together. The interview with Randal was a load of fun, and we’ve just recently been talking about needing to do more of those.

We did a voting poll and only a few of you responded. So this time we’re just going to ask the question. Who would you like us to interview as a team, and why? If you just give us a who and no why, we’ll probably ignore it. We want to know why you find people interesting and get a sense of what you want us to help learn about them.

Please leave a comment or send us an email.

I’m not sure thanking my friend Om for this is the right wording, but he posted No, Seriously: Microsoft Patents Page Up & Page Down and I couldn’t resist reading.

From U.S. Patent #7,414,666 awarded to Microsoft –

Method and system for navigating paginated content in page-based increments

A method and system in a document viewer for scrolling a substantially exact increment in a document, such as one page, regardless of whether the zoom is such that some, all or one page is currently being viewed. In one implementation, pressing a Page Down or Page Up keyboard key/button allows a user to begin at any starting vertical location within a page, and navigate to that same location on the next or previous page.

For example, if a user is viewing a page starting in a viewing area from the middle of that page and ending at the bottom, a Page Down command will cause the next page to be shown in the viewing area starting at the middle of the next page and ending at the bottom of the next page. Similar behavior occurs when there is more than one column of pages being displayed in a row.

I’m not sure how to react and keep it family-safe. Excuse me?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

I’ve got two grown sons and I’m an incredibly proud Dad. I don’t tell either of them often enough how proud of them I am. But I have to ask of #2 son (he’s a Director at Microsoft these days), what the heck to the patent lawyers in Redmond do, and is anyone with half a brain running the show over there?

This is one of the most clearcut abuses of common sense I’ve ever seen anywhere. It’s time for a good smack!

Last week we got a message about something new, and I want to share this on two different levels. It was an email asking about our professional opinion of something Toshiba is doing at www.laptopexperts.net.

Toshiba, has recently launched a laptop help forum called “Answers from Laptop Experts” which has been seeking out technology experts to help answer questions from laptop owners regardless of make, model, and manufacturer. They even try to answer questions about Apple computers.

The question posed to us was “Do you think this is a good move for their brand, to open up to an entire industry vertical instead of just their own customer-base?”

I responded, but I expect Sheryl to weigh in before long too. She’s got a more well-rounded view than I of many things. Here’s an excerpt of what I said.

Sheryl and I found your email, and the laptopexperts.net idea interesting and quite viable. In the industry we often talk of open standards, but this approach by Toshiba of openness to laptops as a category presents an “open to all (but sponsored by Toshiba)” image that I think plays nicely, and could be positioned well as a variation of social responsibility, especially if they slant towards mobility and hyperconnectedness (laptops being vital) as part of the message.

Keep in mind that we were asked an opinion about the idea and approach by the company, M80, that is helping lead this program for Toshiba. And being curious types, we did a bit of digging. This was driven by the fact that Nico from M80 posed a thoughtful query and really did his homework before approaching. That’s not a common thing in the email Sheryl and I receive. It made an impression. Here’s what we found -

A company who takes social media seriously and responsibly when it comes to marketing and publicity is helping Toshiba develop an open solution to, not Toshiba problems, but laptop problems. I naturally extended the idea of laptops into the whole concept of hyperconnectivity and how we use an array of mobility tools to stay connected.

At the brief look I took, M80 is the kind of company that shows the way to a new generation of marketing and publicity. There aren’t a lot of companies doing that well. Certainly our pal Andy does that well at Comunicano. Another good friend who does a great job is Neil Vineberg. We talk in the industry, especially the bloggers, about how poorly the PR industry deals with the evolving social media world, but there are people getting it right. M80’s client list includes Cisco, Ford, Microsoft, Warner Bros and several others.

To me that says some companies are trying to get it right, and they’re listening to advisors who are also getting it right byt giving solid, responsible counsel. The idea of embracing not a customer base, but a community of interest really gets straight to the core of social networking. Some companies are beginning to actually engage in conversations in real two-way dialogue, and they’re trying to contribute value.

Toshiba, aiming at laptop users, is pointed at the community of interest I’ll call road warriors. They have other interest besides just laptops, but laptop computers are a fundamental part of their life. Toshiba’s demonstrating social responsibility in a new way, and yes, they’re doing some smart marketing in the process.

This is really just the start of a conversation. Perhaps it’s another fork in the road of some conversations we’ve already been having. If you’re a laptop expert in any area, go join in that social network here. They’re looking for help from all of us. I know a good many of you reading this qualify and can easily contribute a solution or two.

And for our industry friends in social media, public relations and the online world, how does this conversation involve you? We’re all part of the solution here, and I think we need to acknowledge those doing smart things while we keep pressing forward, demanding more.

Technorati Tags: social media, social media marketing, advertising, public relations, PR

I had an interesting call from our good friend Alec Saunders yesterday. He had seen my post on my experience on one of his Calliflower conference calls. He was disturbed and wanted to talk about it.

Of course, as it was 24 hours since I had written it, my original post, while still pertinent had undergone in my mind a few changes. Evaluation is a key ingredient to the way I live my life, and writing is no exception. I suppose it’s why I have never been a writer. I’m not sure I could ever be completely happy with anything, as very likely I would re-write incessantly. C’est la vie!

The chat Alec and I had was interesting because it really stirred some thoughts I had with regard to an awareness that has dawned on me recently. I suppose I should go back ever so slightly and explain what it was I asked Alec so this isn’t nearly as disjointed as it might otherwise sound!

After our discussion, Alec and I got off our call and went about life. When I came back to my PC, he sent a quick note to me thanking me for my honesty etc. In the interim I had a brainstorm and suggested Alec bring some women on as guests. He replied saying he would talk to some of his BlogHer friends and see if he could get them on a call.

So, this is where I left off and this is what occurred to me later.

First, BlogHer, great as it is, is an established group of women, not necessarily exclusively involved in communications or even technology other than the fact that they are acknowledged there. I don’t personally have any involvement with them, but know very well who they are. They are a great representation of women in the online business world.

Second, and more importantly to me, I realized I wasn’t specific enough, probably because I hadn’t come up with a way to articulate what it was I really wanted.

After the conversation I realized what I really wanted was to hear from and see women from the tech and communications community of the same caliber as Dan York, Jon Arnold, or even Ken.

This will not be an easy task to achieve, and it’s really the big question behind all of this for me. I’d really like to know who are the women of communications, and where are they?

Maybe I’m just oblivious. If I am, someone point me to the group of women that can even meet by half the number of men involved in this industry. That’s all. According to Alec they exist.

Show me. I’ll gladly tuck that tail right back between my legs, apologizing profusely. I’ve gotten quite good at that. Until then, allow me to wallow in self-pity for the lack of women in communications and hope that someday they will not have to fight quite so hard to be heard.

~S

Technorati Tags: BlogHer, Alec Saunders, Dan York, Jon Arnold, Ken Camp, calliflower, unified communications, technology

Several people have asked just what it is we do here at Stardust Global Ventures. Our lives have been so busy with multiple moves and projects in progress that we haven’t taken time to hone the description of our services until now. This is from Our Services page.

At Stardust Global Ventures, one of our primary goals is to help others. While we don’t engage in what’s commonly called personal coaching, we do offer personal coaching for your business with our unique involvement and ideas. Just as we reach for our stars and realize our dreams together, we can help you reach your dreams and succeed in new ways.

We offer a number of different consultative services to help you improve your business, increase your visibility, and reach for your personal dreams. Our clients range from entrepreneurial startups to Fortune 100 companies. Geography knows no boundaries, and our network of clients and resources spans the universe.

We are Hyperconnectivity Evangelists. We live it. We eat it. We breathe it. We are hyperconnected every day of our lives. For us hyperconnectivity means that we use tools – online tools, mobility tools, technology tools – to maintain and share a common space in our world. Just as we live together and share space in our home, we use tools to extend that sharing when we’re apart. When we’re together at home, we don’t talk constantly, but we do share the physical space. We simply use technology tools to carry that into all aspects of our life together. We believe that the technology and communications tools of today are changing how we interact as people and that what we call hyperconnectedness is becoming a way of life that will permeate society in the years ahead.

We are the First Couple of Technology. We are enthusiastic and animated evangelists for those people, products and services that support the coming changes associated with hyperconnectivity. If you share this vision of the future, and want to know how you can move into the future of hyperconnectivity, we are your solution team!

Embracing Social Media – If your company needs help in embracing the world of the web in new ways, from blogging to podcasts, video to webinars, presence and availability to simply joining the conversation, we provide coaching and guidance to help you step out of the old traditional business mode into the future, real-time interactive community. We deliver this through a series of consultative meetings or conference calls, providing ongoing strategic guidance and coaching as your efforts gain momentum.

Public Speaking - We offer a variety of speaking services. Whether it’s a keynote address for your sales team, panel moderation at a seminar or motivational sessions to energize your team, after all, we are a dynamic duo – the first couple of technology. There’s no other team that interacts with each other and our audience the way we do. We will help bring your team together in an enthusiastic and lively session. Fun is at the core of what we do.

Blogger & Media Relations – We are not a public relations company. if you’ve seen any of the media and blogger relations programs that are being used, and wondered how to reach out to implement or launch your own program, we can help. We’ve been active members of this media and blogging community for many years. Our connections and contacts are diverse and worldwide. We can collaborate with you and your PR team to raise your visbility.

Podcasting? Of course. Video? Why not? When it comes to using Internet media for content delivery, we’re your team!

Strategic Business & Technical Writing – We write in collaboration with our publisher, but we also engage in projects with our clients worldwide. Our writing ranges from bit-level technical details to strategic business visions and plans.

Please contact either of us at any time to learn more by emailing us at stardust@stardustglobalventures.com.

Earlier this morning Sheryl wrote …with my tail between my legs. If you haven’t read it yet, you really should go do so now. Go ahead and do so now. It’s ok. Clicking the link will open a new window and you can come back here afterwards. Go.

A long time ago, in a very tongue-in-cheek post, I used this cartoon. it had circulated the web a number of times.

It was a time when talk of women in technology was the high-toned meme of the day and I was one of those men who deemed myself enlightened. I wasn’t part of the good old boys network. I’d never do such a thing.

Bunk and poppycock. Now, a few years later, I see myself as much a part of that as ever, with only a renewed awareness that I don’t listen well and I talk over people. And in the technology sector, we men seem to almost all do that to a large…to a huge extent. Yes, my good friends and colleagues across the industry, this means you too. (Quit shrugging and get out of denial. I do mean you. You’re a male like me and we all do it still.)

Sheryl and I have an intensely personal relationship. How could we not? We live together and plan on marrying. We spend all of our days and nights together. We are intermingled in a special and magical way I could never share with another.

It’s through that personal bond between us that I’ve recently been smacked with clue-by-four myself. I’ve realized just how badly I listen. I too easily pretend to listen but don’t hear. That’s caused some rough moments at times. It’s unfair. Unjust. It’s simply wrong.

In our heads we openly acknowledge that everyone has knowledge, opinion and value to bring to the conversation. But in our circles of technology, we too easily and too often shut outsiders out. It’s been hard for me at many times to see Sheryl as any kind of an outsider, yet this morning, I too was on that call and saw what she saw.

She made valuable comments that were totally ignored. I made minor comments, and they were immediately echoed and acknowledged. Why? Testicles and testosterone can’t be the only reason.

It’s a societal issue that has long been of interest to me, yet something I’ve let slip down the attention chain to being overlooked. Sheryl’s post was a bit of a wakeup call for me, and a reminder that it’s something she and I must focus our efforts on as Stardust Global Ventures really engages in some important consulting work projects. It must be part of our essence as a team.

Make no mistake, we are a team of equals. If I take over conversation as a bucketmouth, I expect you, readers, friends, colleagues and all, to take me to task and be sure to listen to Sheryl closely. She brings incredible value to our efforts in ways I could never find without her.

Today, I’m not proud to be a white male. Not at all. Today that demographic group took a hard knock as we showed just how deeply ingrained our heritage of misogyny and egocentricity is. I’m focusing on improving that. I’m going to ask Sheryl to slap me in the head when I slip. Who’s going to slap you in the head? Don’t let it be a guy. That would simply carry our shameful behavior on into the future.

Technorati Tags: men, women, realtionships, women in technology, misogyny, discrimination, glass ceiling, clue-by-four

In our house, video is part of our daily lives. I don’t mean entertainment video. I mean video phone and conference calls. And video between Sheryl and I. Our conversation about video and it’s importance, coupled with how it ties into mobility has been pretty anumated for the past day or two as we also wrapped up a piece entitled Mobility of the Future – What Lies Ahead as part of the next eJournal series here in our Digital Library.

Yesterday Sheryl wrote a post about video here that made a couple of important points. First she said this about how video will and is changing our lives –

Another thought I have with regard to video is that as we stop heading out the door to work, socializing with our coworkers, we are going to need ways to connect with each other since we’ll spend less time together physically. Video makes it possible for us to still have the contact with others that the humans crave. Human beings seek comfort from other humans. It’s the way we’re designed. It’s our nature to socialize and commune together. Segregation is not our way. Video really will help as our culture makes the changes it is clearly going to make.

And she closed with this -

For those of you skeptics, GET OVER IT! It’s day that’s not long in coming. You can either complain and squawk about how the world is changing and you’ll never use things like that, or you can accept that you already are, everytime you use an atm or a computer to pay a bill, even signing a receipt at a store that just took your debit card/credit card. It is coming, it is here, and Video is in line to really blow your mind.

In short, Sheryl and I believe strongly that video is more than a fad or novelty. It’s an integral and vital part of our daily lives. We see it as a technology that’s growing in importance and creating a tidal wave of adoption.

This morning, our friend Andy Abramson added his voice to the importance of video with Video Conferencing to See Wider Adoption Say CIO’s. Andy cited a CNW Group report by Robert Half Technologies that really drives the point home for business use of video in a big way. Here’s a capture:

It really hammers home that more businesses already use video than do not. If you’ve watched the trends longer term, you’ll note that the number of those who don’t use or plan to use was much higher in the past. The momentum is shifting.

This reports also demonstrates an observation that’s bothered me for quite some time. Enterprise business all wanted to jump on the Web 2.0 bandwagon. Mostly this was because they saw a way t tout their hip and cool factor. They didn’t really understand Web 2.0 any more than they understand some things that are such a compelling part of today’s winning business. That only 33% of CIOs surveyed use collaboration workspace tools today is an appalling demonstration of lethargy and complacency on the part of technology managers engaging to lead the way to doing business better.

If you were CEO of a company and saw those answers from your CIO, would he still be your CIO tomorrow? Think about that. The CIO is a pivotal leader in how technology is used to advance a company, yet here’s a survey from a group of CIOs (ok, only 270 CIOs in Canada) who are managing via the ostrich method to a large degree, by ignoring and avoiding change.

Yet, even the ostrich CIO is embracing video as something that simply must be part of business. Liek Sheryl said, get over it. Video is here, it’s real and it’s a vital part of our lives. If you aren’t using it today, you’re already behind and falling farther behind. Is that where you want your business sitting in the competitive spectrum?

Technorati Tags: Sheryl Breuker, Andy Abramson, video, unified communicatoins. Robert Half Technologies, CIO study, technology adoption

I learned some interesting things this morning while sitting in on a conference call where I actually had some thoughts and opinions. It wasn’t a very nice observation, but a valuable lesson, nonetheless.

I was on a call with a variety of men, up to 17 different men at various times. As the lone female voice I learned how difficult it is to be heard when mens voices are louder. I learned how easy it is to be overlooked by a group of intelligent men who are larger than life, used to scrapping and vying for center stage. I learned that even when I tried to say something, frequently my points were not taken seriously or merely overlooked. Why?

Why is maybe not as simple to conclude as it might seem. It could be because I am a female and not as used to asserting myself. It could be lack of experience. it could be so many things but my thoughts are a little less clear. I really suspect it’s because of something very simple, something we learn at a much younger age and pay little attention to.

When we’re kids we gravitate to our same sex. We learn to interact with our ‘own kind’, before we learn to interact with the opposite sex. When we do start interacting with the opposite sex we do it in very different ways. Men pay attention to women in the initial for how they look, or how they move. Women do much the same. By the time we start hearing each other, we’ve already established ourselves as interesting, not because we had anything at all to say, but because we are attracted on some other level. Which means, ultimately, we don’t have to really hear the other person at all. With same sex relationships, it is far more important to have something to say and we learn much younger how to speak to that group and be heard.

This morning Ken and I were sitting on a call that initially was discussing the iPhone versus a variety of Nokia devices. I caught a few comments and forced my way into the conversation, quickly making a point and backing out.

After that topic wore itself out we moved on to game piracy, a topic I actually know something about and have interest in. However on that particular topic I tried and tried to get involved in the conversation and couldn’t make any headway at all.

I could say it was because I’m a woman. Maybe it was. I could say it was because the men were all so passionate about it, and maybe that is true as well. What I think, honestly, I wasn’t loud enough. I don’t speak to a GROUP of men in a way that they can hear. My points, while maybe of value, couldn’t be seen or heard because the men had become more raucous and energized. I wasn’t dynamic or forceful enough.

I realized with this how difficult it is for women to be seen as important in the world of VoIP and technology. Oh, certainly many of them are eye candy, but how many are taken seriously? How many are truly viewed as players in this world dominated by men? I’m not talking about the many PR women. Those women are accepted, but they aren’t seen as needing to have anything to say in the industry. They are viewed as eye candy and that is frequently why they are young and gorgeous.

Ken knew I was disturbed and suggested I offer myself as a guest host once a month. He did that having received a letter from our host about how he wanted to diversify and get other people to occasionally share in hosting of his show. I had a couple of thoughts, neither made me happy and are probably just sour grapes in all honesty.

First, I wasn’t sent the letter requesting friends to offer their services as host, and yet, of the two of us, I am the one in attendance on these calls most frequently. Over looked? Maybe. Non existent? Who knows.

Second, I realized after this mornings call, I don’t have the pull needed to gain an audience or enough female friends to really give credence to why women are actually valuable in this male dominated industry. That annoyed me, but I can’t change it overnight. That requires time and something I may not actually see in my life online anytime soon.

In summary, I guess this is rather muddled and not succinct enough to make a statement anyone of any importance will read. Now…I am making a judgment and it may not be valid because who am I to say that someone reading my post is less valuable than someone I want to read it? Still, I think we have a long way to go before women truly have a foothold in the VoIP industry and tech sector in any real way, other than as booth babes, or figure heads. It’s not a very nice sentiment, but it is my opinion. I’m probably far too new to this world to be viewed as anything other than Ken’s woman, someone who will be tolerated, and when the arguments are calm, and numbers low, allowed to be a part of things. And who am I to say they should do anything else? What recommends me as someone of any value in this industry? I’m just a woman seriously interested in learning something that a year ago I knew less about than I do today.

Vive la Différence!

Technorati Tags: women in technology, glass ceiling, opinion, rant, relationships, men and women, VoIP, men are from mars women are from venus

As many of you know, Ken and I have promoted ourselves as a hyper-connected couple. Many of you know what that means because you’ve seen it in action. Some of you may guess at what it means, and some of you can’t fathom it.

This morning, while on a Squawkbox call, aka calliflower, one of the off-topics after the show was about how people use skype. Jim Courtney mentioned a man he knows who was very homesick, missing his wife while on a business trip, and what he and his wife did was set up a skype video call while he was gone, and that way they slept together even though they were apart.

I can share with you that Ken and I have not done that, yet, largely, I suppose, because we have yet to spend a night apart. However, should the time arise and that occur, chances are pretty good we would do the same. We’ve certainly done other things that many of our friends find excessive.

On another calliflower call, yesterday, Alec Saunders asked what we all felt the future of video is, really asking if we think there is a future. This made me think about video and my perspective.

A few years ago I couldn’t have imagined being so comfortable with video. For many people in my life that would still be the case. Most of those people don’t live their lives as publicly as I do. Of course when I say publicly I mean that I put video online, am constantly being photographed and having pictures of me posted somewhere, but also because I join conference calls and video calls where any number of people I don’t know may watch.

Besides that I guess my thoughts on video are due to the fairly large segment of internet users who regularly use or watch internet video. That is something that has changed over time.

At lunch today, Ken and I had a discussion about this which really goes back to when audio technology was first being used in a mainstream way. Back then, people used tools like freetel where if you had a fast enough connection and a computer capable of handling it, you were lucky to get half duplex, or rather cb radio type connectivity where only one person at a time could talk, holding the spacebar down to speak and releasing it for your second caller to have a turn. Shortly there after full duplex came out and the world has never looked back.

As audio services advanced, group calls became possible. With that, the next obvious evolution was video. Users demanded it.

The interesting thing with video is that in my experience, the driving force of many of these technologies are porn makers and users. I have many ideas about that, but it’s pretty clear they were the beginning instigaters and that’s born out by the millions of people who simply clicked what they thought an honest link only to get a porn popup inviting, and then later, forcing them to go to a site they didn’t intend visiting.

Now video has reached a stage where the early adopters are starting to wonder how to use it for business purposes. Not just as a toy few have the ability to use, but as an actual tool that helps business and telecommuting a reality that actually works.

Examples of video in telecommuting start from a friend of mine, Peter Csathy, CEO of SightSpeed. I interviewed Peter a year ago, and one of the first things I learned is that he is a telecommuter. Peter lives in San Diego but SightSpeed offices are located in Berkeley.

One of the things Peter shared with me, and I have stated this a few times because I find it to be a very profound idea, is that telecommuting, and really business of all kinds, begins with a trust factor. In business, in relationships, trust is huge! Now, you can have trust without visual communications because to say otherwise would mean the blind population could never trust, and I’m not going there! It takes longer to establish, but it is possible.

When you are trying to establish yourself a a viable commodity, you need to come across as trustworthy. That is much easier to guage when you can see the person, view the body language we all take so for granted, and have a face to face conversation with someone. Video conferencing makes that possible without actually physically being in the same space. Especially today with more bandwidth and faster connections. It’s not the jerky motion from the earlier days of video.

I believe video will truly impact our lives in ways we have yet to consider. I also think the naysayers of today will fairly quickly become so used to it they won’t know how they did life before video.

Let’s face it, who of us hasn’t had a video call of some sort? I use it regularly. I talk to my family, I talk to friends, we share from long distances changes in each others lives. It’s truly a ground breaker.

Another thought I have with regard to video is that as we stop heading out the door to work, socializing with our coworkers, we are going to need ways to connect with each other since we’ll spend less time together physically. Video makes it possible for us to still have the contact with others that the humans crave. Human beings seek comfort from other humans. It’s the way we’re designed. It’s our nature to socialize and commune together. Segregation is not our way. Video really will help as our culture makes the changes it is clearly going to make.

I know many people will scoff at, or disagree with my thoughts. I for one am excited about the changes that are happening. Will they all be good? Probably not. They never have been. TV is an example of that. Video is the bridge to help us stay connected and all it takes is a little familiarizing for us to understand it’s not like being on TV. It’s more like sharing the same space. We used to visit in the same room. This will make it so we still are.

And just so you think I didn’t go off on a tangent, forgetting to share how Ken and I are connected, today is a prime example of what we value about technology. Ken went to work with his Nokia N800 and I stayed home with mine. As he pulled out of the driveway I called him on my BlackBerry curve. We both had our jawbones on our ear and we talked as he made his way to his office.

Once he arrived at work, Ken took his N800 out and turned it on, I turned mine on and we opened the camera and started a gtalk call. Gtalk on the Nokia tablets is unique. it has a video function. We kept that call up off and on, as wifi connectivity allowed, throughout the day. We also had our computers on, connected with various internet applications, sending email and talking as we both went about our day. The great thing about using these tools is the video! We get to see and share the aspects of the day with each other. I can no longer imagine life without them.

For those of you skeptics, GET OVER IT! It’s day that’s not long in coming. You can either complain and squawk about how the world is changing and you’ll never use things like that, or you can accept that you already are, everytime you use an atm or a computer to pay a bill, even signing a receipt at a store that just took your debit card/credit card. It is coming, it is here, and Video is in line to really blow your mind.

Ken posed the question in his post as to whether or not ringtones have value in or out of a business setting. My thoughts are probably not nearly as detailed as Ken’s but I do have thoughts about it.

First, playing devil’s advocate, let me say that there is a segment of business that requires you to answer a phone, being on call etc. A good case in point was when Ken worked for the State. His department implemented the necessity of answering a call during emergency or on call status. What happened after that was people putting that range of numbers to have a ring, still setting all others to vibrate etc. So for business, especially in an on call situation, one can see how there may actually be a use for a ringtone specific to an emergency situation.

As for other situations, I can see I probably don’t have a great enough imagination to come up with why there may be valid reasons to use ringtones. I only know that a wide range of people clearly see them as important.

On a personal note, I guess I can see as important a time when if you have a child with special needs, a caregiver or school official should have easy access to you. If, as Ken suggests, everyone is on vibrate or silent, that would seriously impede the ability of such a person to reach you in a time of emergency. Again, that is one time it may be important enough to have a specific ringtone to notify you there is an emergency.

For the rest, unless someone can give me a reason I have not thought of, I see no purpose other than distraction or to announce, “Hey, listen to how cool I am for my really neat ringtone.” That can’t be discounted because a huge number of people equate ringtones with status. This is a sentiment that eludes me.

In my world, not unlike what Ken pointed out, I am on a number of calls that should not be interrupted by silly ringtones. I think in most cases this holds true.

When I am in a theater, sitting in a nice restaurant, or even in the local market, I have no interest in someone announcing they are recieving a call from someone I will forever associate with the Nutcracker or Sugar Plum Faerie. It seems quite ludicrous to me. I will clearly be annoyed enough simply by being forced to hear the conversation as people tend to speak too loudly on a mobile device anyway. But I’ll save that rant for another post.

I don’t know if this answered your question, Ken, but it seems to me there are some valid reasons to have a ringtone. The problem is that many people use them just because, with no thought or rationale behind it other than to point to themselves as being rather distinct for having done exactly what the vast majority of the population does. Interesting conundrum, wouldn’t you say?

I posted this on the Realtime Unified Communications Community earlier, but thinking about it, I’m reposting a variation here because you’re largely different set of readers who come here.

I know I’m often very opinionated. Bullheaded or pigheaded Sheryl might say; and she’d be right. And I’m probably too free with those opinions. Ok, Sheryl would say bucketmouth, and she’d be right there too. But here’s something that’s been on my mind of late.

Anyone who has followed us much knows that I have a lot of connections, close and not so close friends, all throughout the telecom industry. I’ve spent 30 years in that industry, but also been active as a writer and analyst in that space for quite a while. These friends work for a range of companies very large enterprises, legacy telcos and new breed carriers to small startup companies and innovators across the really broad universe of technology. And while they’re greatly focused on unified communications, they aren’t all. Some are simply contacts in other industries with whom I share common interests. And some are simply new friends Sheryl and I have made as we delve deeper and deeper into communications and social media.

I’ve been doing a very informal survey of co-workers, friends and colleagues for a while now. And the topic in question is mostly observable without even asking a question if you spend much time around people. I’ve been paying close attention to their mobile phone habits. And there’s one that is just a huge question mark for me – what do you do about ringtones? Do you use them? Do you care? Would you bother?

Ringtones represent an industry that’s pretty big. There’s a lot of money made selling ringtones cheap. When I see the numbers that little segment brings it, it’s truly mind-boggling. Yet in my universe, they not only don’t have a place, they’re downright inappropriate.

I’ve carried multiple cell phones for a long time – for years. And the only ringtones I use are silent and vibrate. Occasionally in the car I used to turn on a ringer, but with a bluetooth headset, and handsfree laws in many places today, even that’s just pointless.

I spend innumerable hours in meetings and on conference calls. Every person I know in business does. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a small business or large one. Sheryl’s on conference calls and the like all day long some days. Interacting with people at every turn is what we do. In our business world, it’s widely accepted and assumed that common courtesy dictates phones be set to vibrate or on silent. And they’re set that way all the time, not just during meetings.

Sheryl and I chuckle on those rare occasions when we go to a movie and the “please silence you cell phone” screen comes up. Why would our cell phones not be quietly in vibrate mode in the first place?

Is it simply a matter of manners that some of us don’t inflict our choice of ringtone song of the day on those around us? I know ringtones are quite popular with younger generations, but I don’t think it’s a generational thing either. I know plenty of young people who have no interest in or use for ringtones. They’re as interested in discretion and privacy as the most jaded baby boomers in business.

Today we get not just audio ringtones, but depending on your phone, video as an option too. And what cell phone doesn’t have an address book that lets you associate a picture with the caller?

Sheryl and I talk on the phone a lot. A lot. I think I’ll write a piece soon detailing a bit more about that. I’m working up a case study of us for an article now. I know at a glance it’s her because her picture pops on the screen. It’s a simple phone feature. But do I need Stardust (our theme song) intruding in a meeting or when I’m in the men’s room? Or a video of her gorgeous face saying “hi baby, it’s me. Answer the phone.”

I don’t write about the ringtone companies I know of on any of the places I write. Not even the ones that are ventures of friends because I see it as a pointless dying business segment with absolutely no future. I find ringtones a huge nuisance, and I think it’s incredibly rude to inflict my taste in music on others. I don’t like it when you make me listen to your favorite song any more than I want to listen to you argue with your girlfriend at the table next two me while Sheryl and I are enjoying a nice dinner.

I’d really like to hear your thoughts on ringtones. Agree or disagree? Say so. Think I’m missing the boat? Show me the light. Please feel free to comment. Sheryl, you weigh in too baby. I want to know what you think and I’ll forget to ask. hehehe

Technorati Tags: ringtones, mobility, cell phones

I’ve been blogging for a very long time now, I guess. I started writing on blogs in 2000. Much of that time and energy has been about technology related topics. And over the course of those years, I’ve worked with a lot of different people in the public relations world. Some I count as good friends, and some are just passing spammers who blast me with email press releases.

Neil Vineberg is one I count as a personal friend. We’ve met in real life, talk on the phone regularly, and are friends in a number of online centers of interest. He’s an incredibly smart guy, gifted musician, and someone to whom I listen.

Neil dropped me a note this morning about the blog post he wrote. I’m taking the liberty of reposting the entire post before I comment. I think it’s one of the more worthwhile reads on this topic that I’ve seen in quite some time. It’s also a subject that Neil and I have talked about several times.

Which is Worse: Poor PR Execution or a Corrupt Blogosphere?
Here is my response to Michael Arrington’s piece in TechCrunch titled The PR Roadblock on the Road to Blissful Blogging.

I happen to be one of the busy PR guys who passes on most of my prospects because the model is weak, the folks running the company are young, or I think the offering has little chance of winning. When I do engage, our clients generally do well and success, historically, can include a financial event.

PR is transitioning from the pitch to a conversation. And just about everyone in a startup has a role to play in getting the word out. Whether you need PR counsel or not on day 1 depends on how skillful you are as a communicator and marketer, how PR is intended to drive your business metrics, and whether or not you want to dedicate your valuable time and resources to managing outbound and inbound media relationships. Personally, I’m all about building the companies I represent and I’m often vested in them, so I prefer the proactive PR role.

I disagree entirely with the notion that a startup should wait to hire PR help until media/bloggers start calling you. When you’re ready to fly, get some help from PR counsel who adds intelligence, experience and strategic insight to your game.

Now lets turn the conversation around to tech bloggers who write about every company that knocks on their door, who read the PR lingo and conduct zero due diligence on the viability of the business model, and then shoot out a story. The strength of community is that people talk. The weakness is that some stories appear based on personal friendships, rather than real reporting. When bloggers float stories because someone is your friend, we’re all screwed. When bloggers dedicate editorial to sponsors without indicating it’s a paid placement, we’re uninformed. And when bloggers are vested in companies being reporting on, we’re in deep trouble. Because then the blogosphere becomes corrupt and that is worse than poor PR execution.

I’d love to see intelligence prevail and this conversation is a good start. In the end, it’s business and we’re all in this together for the kinds of shared successes that make for more fun, productive lives.

While I certainly know of Michael Arrington and Techcrunch, I confess I rarely read it. It’s simply not my cup of tea. Arriington and I disagree on many topics and I find his viewpoint to often be wildly out of touch with reality other than for the few inside his personal circle. We run in different circles, so that’s not intended as a criticism. We simply don’t resonate very often. That said, I had to click the link in Neil’s post to see what it was he’s responding to. My reaction and comments are to what Neil said, not Arrington.

First, I’m going to support what Neil said about himself and add to it. He’s one of the sharpest and most polished PR pros I have ever worked with. He’s a pleasure to work with and a valuable asset to any company he engages. He has stringent criteria for accepting clients, and he doesn’t waste their time any more than he lets them waste his. I highly respect Neils ethics.

I agree that PR is transitioning from a pitch to a conversation. I’d lean toward saying it already has. Sure, I get pitched all the time. I mostly ignore pitches, but engage in conversations. For me personally, it’s about relationships.

Neil’s points about tech bloggers hit close to home. I am one and many of my friends are. But rather than being defensive, I have to agree with him. There’s a real danger for bloggers of being sucked into the idea of gaining fame and fortune (or karma, whuffie, or whatever you choose to call it) through our connections. Tech bloggers are a very symbiotic group. Sometimes we help each other. Sometimes we’re an echo chamber saying the same thing over and over. It’s a double-edged sword to be sure.

As one of the early bloggers, I recall countless conversations about honesty, integrity and what we came to call authentic voice in blogging. It’s easy to write and be yourself for some of us. For others, it’s harder. The influence of our friends, (yes we become friends with may of the tech sector people we encounter) can sway us to be overly kind, and sometimes downright gushy about things we might otherwise view with a healthy dose of skepticism.

I know this is a trap I fall into on occasion. But I also know that I will avoid simply gushing over something I don’t believe. If I come out on here as strongly supporting, in favor of, or impressed by something, it’s not because it’s a friend or I’m being paid. It’s because I believe it. And sometimes I’ll ask hard questions, of those people who are friends as well as those I don’t really know. And many times, I’ll say nothing.

It’s a safe bet, if there’s a company you’re seeing lots of hype about and I don’t mention it, that I’ve either not found it compelling, or I have unanswered questions and am simply saying nothing. Sometimes, saying nothing says a lot.

Neil is absolutely on the mark in saying that when bloggers are being paid to write about something, they should openly say so. I firmly believe in full disclosure. My writing as the resident editor on the Realtime Unified Communications Community is well known and documented as being paid. It’s paid by the publisher, not by any sponsor. In fact, for the past two years, the publisher has been sponsoring the community without funding from an outside company. When I write papers for a paid client, I openly share that. I think disclosure and authenticity are important.

I realize this post is a bit off the normal path, but I read a lot of blogs and find the ones that resonate with me most are the ones I deem authentic. There’s a lot of brouhaha going around for a long time now about mainstream media and journalists vs. bloggers. I don’t claim to be a journalist. While I do personally adhere to some journalistic principles. I think we’re very different in many ways too.

Apparently today is a day for a little self examination.

Added – For another great post on the subject, see John Furrier’s Yes PR is Changing – Get Used to It – It’s About Dialog + Collaboration = Transactions

Technorati Tags: technology blogging, public relations, PR, full disclosure, authentic voice