Windows 7 Beta Users: Please Take Our Survey

Back on January 9th, Microsoft released a beta version of Windows 7 that was free to anyone who was interested enough to installand try it. That was long enough ago for some of those users to have logged lots of time in this rough draft of the new OS and formed strong, well-informed opinions about its pros, cons, and bottom line.

Hence this survey. If you’ve used the beta, well ask you some questions about specific features and the OS in general, and we’ll use what we learn as raw data for an upcoming article. There are no right or wrong answers–just be honest.

What if you haven’t used the Windows 7 beta? You can still take the survey if you like–we just have fewer questions for you.

Thanks for participating–and please tell any friends you think might be interested. We’ll keep the survey open through 12pm noon PT on Friday, February 27th. Simply click the link below and the survey will start–you don’t even have to leave this page.

Comcast OnDemand Goes Online

Silicon Alley Insider’s Dan Frommer has posted a worthwhile read on Comcast’s upcoming Internet TV service, which is due later this year. It’s tentatively called OnDemand Online, and it sounds like it’ll be a rough equivalent of the company’s OnDemand cable service, featuring content from cable channels and available only to Comcast subscribers. It’s in addition to the company’s Hulu-like Fancast site, which focuses on free content from broadcast channels.

It’s impossible to think about OnDemand Online without obsessing over this week’s removal of Hulu from Boxee, the software that lets you watch Internet TV on a TV. Some observers wonder if cable companies were behind Hulu’s request that Boxee cease streaming its programming. I have no idea whether Comcast was involved, it would be a bummer to think that the company was trying to pre-empt competition for its new service by strongarming it out of action. Internet-based streaming is going to provide increasingly stiff competition for Comcast and other cable companies over the next few years, and while it makes perfect sense for Comcast to jump into the game, I gnash my teeth at the thought that it could be a fait accompli that it will dominate Internet TV in the same way it dominates cable…

Still. The. Most. Boring. Apple. Rumor. Ever.

Earlier today, I wrote about the photo of what purported to be a next-generation Mac Mini, and noted that some pundits were saying that there were telltale signs that it was a Photoshopped fakearoo. Now a video has emerged that shows the system being spun around so it’s visible from all sides.  It, too, could be a hoax, of course…although you’d think that anyone with the energy to put into fraud on this scale would come up with something more scintillating. (Howsabout a Mini with HDMI and Blu-Ray, for instance? Or a MacBook Mini?)

Anyhow, I remain fascinated by the fact that the possibility of an additional USB connector and other changes in port configurations are enough to set off a flurry of Apple-gossip coverage. In the interest of giving the people what they want, I therefore present you with this modified next-generation Mac Mini spyshot of my own (which I debuted this over on my Twitter feed). Sorry, no video…

Watch Out, Windows: Here Comes Android?

Bloomberg is reporting that Eee PC titan Asus is playing around with the idea of building a netbook that runs Android, Google’s Linux-based operating system. Android is debuting on phones–HTC just announced the Magic, the second Android handset–but Google says the OS could power computers, too.

Android is designed for devices without a lot of computing horsepower, and manufacturers don’t have to pay Google a license fee–two qualities that might conceivably make it a formidable competitor to Windows on netbooks. But it’s not immediately clear–at least to me–why Android would be a better match for netbooks than Ubuntu, the Linux that Asus and other netbook vendors already use. [CORRECTION: Janet Rae-Dupree reminds me that Asus uses Xandros, not Ubuntu.] Ubuntu already has a PC-style user interface, and it’s compatible with an array of applications; Android would need work on both fronts before it was ready to run on netbooks. And even then, it might end up looking…a lot like Ubuntu.

Ultimately, I don’t think it would make much sense for Asus or any other hardware manufacturer to pour resources into trying to make Android netbook-friendly. You’d want Google in on the project, and I don’t know just how intriguing the company finds the idea of putting its OS on fairly traditional computing devices. I do think, however, that it would make sense for Google to finish the work of making Android a truly compelling iPhone OS alternative before it takes on Windows. (On the T-Mobile G1, the first Android handset to ship, the OS is neat…but it feels like a rough draft. Maybe it should sport a Google-style “BETA” disclaimer every time you turn your phone on.)

One of the more interesting questions in the whole world of tech right now is the fate of Android. It’s bursting with promise, and it wouldn’t stun me to see it become the most widely-used smartphone OS at some point…at the very least, that scenario seems about as plausible as any other. And if Google wants netbook manufacturers to give Android a try, it can presumably make it happen.

It’s still tough to tell, however, just how committed to Android Google is, and how persistent it’ll be if the OS isn’t an immediate success with obvious benefits to the company. Anyone want to hazard any guesses about where Android will be, say, two years from now? Will it exist in any form in a decade?

5Words for February 20th, 2009

Let’s get newsy, shall we?

Found: Atlantis. In Google Earth!

Intuit questions Mint user claims.

Greeeeaaaaat: Conficker worm variant appears.

Is this leopard a clue?

CBS and Hulu are squabbling.

Pirate Bay: YouTube pirates more.

Apple kills 20-inch display.

Senior citizen shoots analog TV.

NetFlix may offer streaming subscriptions.

Asus might make Android netbooks.

Apple: Buying all Samsung’s memory?

Hackers bump Xbox Live players.

Most. Boring. Apple. Rumor. Ever.

Weird but true: Writing the guide to judging Apple rumors which I posted last week was both cathartic and disillusioning. Ultimately, it left me feeling that the best response to about seventy percent of Apple-related gossip is to ignore it: Chances are that it’s wrong, and devoting even a little time to thinking and writing about it is a waste of perfectly good brain cells and electrons. Better to devote energy to that minority of scuttlebutt that rings true–and even then, it makes sense to regard it from a safe, dispassionate distance, being careful to avoid being sucked into any frenzies that may break out.

Tonight, though, there’s buzz about a rumor which I find kinda fascinating…because it’s so damn boring. MacRumors and AppleInsider have posted a photo that purports to be the backside of a new Mac Mini:

If the photo’s legit, all it tells us is that the new Mini has five USB ports, Mini-DVI and Mini-DisplayPort, and FireWire 800, among other connectors. If you can summon the energy to be excited by any of this, you’re a more dedicated Mac fan than I am…or maybe you’re just hungry for any available scrap of pseudo-news about the Mini, a computer which has seen no hardware upgrades of any sort since August of 2007, and whose basic industrial design is unchanged since it first appeared more than four years ago.

Actually, the most notable thing about the photo may be the possibility that it’s fake. 9 to 5 Mac and other sites are theorizing that there are telltale signs that it’s a not terribly artful bit of Photoshopping. (Note to self: If you ever go rogue and start whipping up Apple-related hoaxes, at least make ‘em interesting ones.)

Rumors about a new Mac Mini have been particularly rampant for eons, ranging from one that has it encased in black plastic to one that said there won’t be a new Mac Mini. The only way this particular zit will get popped is when Apple upgrades the machine (or discontinues it, although that seems unlikely in a day when there’s presumably a pretty good market for a low-cost Mac).

I think there’s a good chance there will be news of some sort about new Macs within the next few weeks, but I’m not going to hazard any guesses about whether it’ll include a new Mac Mini–or, if it does, just how many USB ports that machine will offer…

Can’t Anyone Do Tech Retailing Right?

These are strange times for the retailing of computers and other technology products. Some of the most venerable and best-known names in the business are going out of business, or severely contracting: Sixty-year-old Circuit City is much of the way through the liquidation sale that will end with the closure of all its U.S. stores, a year after CompUSA nearly died before being acquired by TigerDirect and retreating to the U.S. southeast. That leaves Best Buy as the sole nationwide, full-service retail outfit focused on the selling of a wide variety of consumer electronics products. (I’m counting RadioShack as being something less than a full-service retailer, given the limited floor space of its outlets and its emphasis on accessories, cables, and other odds n’ ends.)

And yet Microsoft has just announced plans to open its own stores and help other sellers promote Microsoft products, presumably inspired in part by the phenomenal, unexpected success of the Apple Stores. You gotta think, however, that the company isn’t diving into technology retailing because the market is booming so much as because it’s so anemic. My guess is that Microsoft figures that the computer merchants of America are doing a mediocre job of explaining its products, and that it must therefore step in and try to get it right. Just like Apple did when it decided to play storekeeper a few years ago.

On some level, it would have been more startling if CompUSA and Circuit City had thrived than if they’d fallen on hard times. The history of consumer-electronics retailing in America is pock-marked with once-famous names that were forced to call it quits. And even though the currently dismal state of the economy may have dealt Circuit City may have dealt Circuit City its death blow, I can’t help but come back to one depressing thought: Circuit City collapsed because it didn’t do enough to earn the loyalty of busy, intelligent shoppers. And neither did the majority of electronics retailers that have ever existed. Their failure to do so inevitably led to their failure, period.

Continue reading this story…

IBM Delivers High Speed Internet Over Power Lines

Just days after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was signed into law, today IBM announced that it successfully delivered broadband Internet service to rural areas over power lines. With $7 billion allocated to high speed Internet service, the Recovery Act is a boon for companies like IBM.

Big Blue’s timing might be serendipitous, but it is certainly on message. IBM is touting its relationships with rural electric cooperatives in Alabama, Indiana, Michigan and Virginia, as well as the cost-effectiveness of its solution. The deployments were subsidized by the Rural Development Program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Electric power lines may also be a better alternative than wireless services for areas that have hilly terrain, and are more cost effective per mile than DSL telephone service, IBM’s Raymond Blair, director of advanced networks, told the New York Times.

I can’t help but think back to the push for electrification in rural areas after the Great Depression, and the role that played in modernizing undeveloped areas of the United States. Decades later, with the electric grid laid, IBM is saying that government subsidies will permit utilities to cover sparsely populated areas that may otherwise remain unserviced.

Indeed, there may be pent up demand for high speed services. IBM’s Blair noted that a rural utility cooperative in Michigan signed up 5,000 customers within two weeks. My brother lives in an area that is not serviced by cable, and I’m certain that he would jump at the opportunity to sign up for broadband.

My take is that electric power line data transmission will likely be part of a mix of broadband solutions. Different technologies will be better suited for specific regions, and government officials, working in partnership with companies including IBM will work it out over time. It goes without saying that there will be glitches and cost overruns along the way, but when all is said and done, broadband Internet will be significantly more accessible than it is today.

Help Me Decide Which Netbook to Buy!

Time for a new Technologizer feature! In theory, people come to sites like this one to seek wisdom about technology. The truth, of course, is that there are a lot more of you than there are of us Technologizer bloggers–and collectively (and, in many cases, individually) you know more about this stuff than we do.

Enter “Technologizer Wants You,” in which we’ll cheerfully and selfishly seek your thoughts as we make tech-related decisions.

Such as the one which is on my mind now: Which netbook should I get? For years, I was a fan of undersized notebooks (such as this Fujitsu). When I started toting a Mac, I bought the smallest one that Apple offered–the 12-inch PowerBook, which at the time seemed large to me. Then Apple discontinued it and replaced it with a heftier model, the 13-inch MacBook. And last year, when I mostly stopped using desktop computers for day-to-day work, I switched to Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Pro in the interest of more screen real estate and additional pixels. (In Photoshop and other graphics applications, bigger is definitely better.)

But with netbooks so cheap, I’m now tempted to buy one as a second laptop, for use when lugging around 15 inches and 5+ pounds of notebook is a burden. Here’s what I’d like to buy in a netbook:

–10 or more inches of screen (8.9″ is just too squinty)
–1GB of RAM
–Windows XP (although I may put Windows 7 on it eventually)
–A decent-sized touchpad with the buttons below (which rules out HP’s otherwise appealing Minis, which put the buttons on the sides, where my fingers and thumbs have trouble finding them)
–The more battery life the better (which means a six-cell battery)
–Draft-N Wi-Fi would be a plus

Price? A deal is always nice, but I’m willing to pay more for the right netbook, and even the priciest one I might buy will likely be the cheapest notebook I’ve ever purchased…

I have a few brands and models in mind, but before I mention ‘em, I’ll just ask you: Which netbook should I buy? Advice welcome from both netbook owners and other folks who, like me, are still in research mode. I promise to let you know what I decide…

Mobile World Congress: What If the iPhone Didn’t Exist?

I had a good time at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, but as big and bustling as the show was, it did feel a little like a donut: It was defined by a large hole at its center. That hole would be Apple, the one significant phone manufacturer who–as is its wont–chose not to show up.

Look at the major new phones introduced at the event, and you see iPhone inspiration almost everywhere, from hardware design to interface color schemes. Nokia and Microsoft both introduced apps stores that echo Apple’s app store. After I submerged myself in all this for a few days, I began to wonder: Just what would Mobile World Congress–and the smartphone biz in general–be like Steve Jobs and Apple had examined the cell phone market a few years ago and, after careful consideration, decided to keep out of it?

A few thoughts about that scenario after the jump.

Continue reading this story…

5Words for February 19th, 2009

Wanna hear this morning’s news?

The Pre will have games.

Dell attacks Psion’s “Netbook” trademark.

iPhone turn-by-turn GPS.

Yelp accused: Suppressing negative reviews?

Dismantling 17-inch MacBook Pro.

$50 for unlimited phone calls.

Google demos iPhone offline Gmail.

Dell debuts Mini 10 Netbook.

Google Street View case dismissed.

Lenovo making jumbo-sized netbooks?

Sprint loses a million customers.

Denial of Class Action for “Vista Capable” Suit Could Be a Bad Thing–For Microsoft

I’ll preface this with the fact that I am not a legal expert by any means, however at face value the denial of class action status in the ongoing lawsuit over Microsoft’s “Vista Capable” program may actually prove to be more problematic for Redmond in the long run.

The gist of the suit, led by consumer Dianne Kelley, accused Microsoft of labeling computers that could only run the most basic version of Vista — which does not include any of the user interface enhancements — as capable of running the OS fully, thus defrauding consumers.

Seattle US District Court Judge Marsha Pechman has ruled that the individual cases could proceed, however she would not grant class action status because universal harm to all consumers who bought “Vista Capable”-marked PCs could not be proven.

Microsoft had attempted to have the case dismissed, however Pechman denied that motion.

So, how is this problematic to Microsoft? If Kelley and company end up prevailing, it could set a precedent for other jilted consumers to sue, entangling Redmond further in the legal morass.

In class action suits, typically the only beneficiaries of significant settlements are the chief plaintiffs. The members of the class-action, who technically could be considered plaintiffs in their own right, usually get a significantly smaller settlement in exchange for the stripping of their rights to sue.

Here, Microsoft is getting no protection at all. Thus, it keeps the door open for additional folks to press their luck in the courts: here’s where a negative judgment may have been the best solution.

So while some may be saying the thunder may have been taken out of this case, I think it may have made Microsoft’s problems regarding this not-too-well-thought-out program potentially worse.

Microsoft: Windows CE is Closer to End-of-Life than Windows

On Monday, Microsoft debuted its long-awaited Windows Mobile 6.5 update at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. But as Microsoft moves forward with its “Midori” operating system incubation project, the longevity of Windows CE–the platform that Windows Mobile is based on–is in doubt, according to internal company documents viewed by Technologizer.

The documents refer to a “general sense that Windows CE is far, far closer to its end-of-life than Windows.” Indeed, Microsoft does not believe that the existing ecosystem of Windows CE devices, applications, third-party developers, and customers will force it to continue developing Windows CE indefinitely. “The device space is evolving fast enough that legacy support is less of a concern (than it would be to migrate users from the existing Windows code base,” it noted.

Midori is a componentized, Internet-centric operating system being architected from the ground up by a team led by Eric Rudder, senior vice president for technical strategy at Microsoft. Last summer, I reported that Microsoft was considering creating a layered, thin platform for mobile devices out of it–a product which could replace Windows Mobile over the long haul.

In such a scenario, Microsoft might end up with variants of one basic OS platform–Midori–on both traditional PCs and other mobile devices. The caveat is that Microsoft remains uncertain how far the company can go with a single codebase at Midori’s core.

According to the internal Microsoft documents, “There’s a limit on the hardware range that can be addressed with a single codebase, no matter how factored and substitutable the components. The litmus test of whether a device is too small to support with code may be if it can download code. Even if we cannot execute our code on tiny devices (light switches & smart sand), we may be able to extend our model to those devices, in the form of naming, the protocol for remote calls, etc.”

The documents noted that a general-purpose device OS must be carefully designed to be reconfigurable into myriad of configurations. That is not impossible to accomplish–Apple did it successfully with OS X, which powers both Macs and iPhones. Microsoft’s Visual Studio development tools are being updated with Application Lifecycle Management that will make it easier for it to create multiple versions of Windows based on the same codebase (assuming that Microsoft uses Visual Studio to develop Midori).

As I previously disclosed, Midori is designed to have a single framework for all device types called Resource Management Infrastructure (RMI). RMI is designed to manage and monitor I/O bandwidth, memory, power, and other resources, and to take them into account as it schedules tasks for processing. Microsoft believes that Midori’s power-based scheduling would be a good fit for mobile devices.

“I think we’re about to deluged over the next few years with Mobile Internet Devices as Intel pushes the Atom chip and AMD rushes to catch up,” Forrester Research principal analyst Jeffrey Hammond told me. That would seem an interesting place for Midori as the hardware is pretty similar [to traditional PC design], but power and form factor are different.’

Microsoft Reportedly Keen on Wii-Killing Motion Cam

Here’s a fun little rumor:  Microsoft is said to be mulling an acquisition of 3DV Systems, an Israeli company that makes “virtual reality” imaging technology for digital cameras. The implication is that advanced motion controls are coming to the Xbox 360, or perhaps Microsoft’s next console.

The report comes from Haartez, a respectable Israeli newspaper, but lacks sources or quotes. Microsoft is reportedly offering $35 million to acquire 3DV — not a fantastic deal considering the company has already raised $38.6 million. Some investors would lose out if the report comes to fruition.

3DV made news at the end of 2007 when it unveiled the ZCam. Unlike the Playstation’s EyeToy and the Xbox Live Vision camera, which only read location in two dimensions, the ZCam detects depth as well. VentureBeat’s Dean Takahashi, who also wrote about the Haaretz report, said from first-hand experience that the ZCam is “much more” accurate than the Wii’s motion controllers.

It’s obvious why Microsoft might be interested in the technology; now that everyone’s seen how much money the Wii is making, console makers are questioning the old video game model of thumbplay. A device that allows players to punch toward the screen with their fists or flap their arms to make avatars fly sounds fun, and therefore lucrative. It’s not a carbon copy of the Wii, but it’s a similar enough to make for healthy competition with Nintendo.

I don’t doubt that Microsoft is considering various motion control technologies for video games. Entertainment division president Robbie Bach hinted along those lines when he said it’ll take more than something “faster and prettier” to lure consumers the next time around. But rumors come and go about current generation motion controllers, and speculation on the Xbox 720 (or, for that matter, whether it’ll be called that) isn’t a rarity either. It’s a little early to say how the ZCam will play into Microsoft’s future gaming plans, if at all.

Hulu Gives Boxee the Boot. Thanks, Hollywood!

Okay, now this just stinks: Boxee, the cool software that lets you pipe Internet TV and other digital media onto a TV set, is doing away with its support for Hulu, the most significant purveyor of streaming versions of broadcast TV programming. I take the move personally, since I recently bought an Apple TV in large part to run Boxee on it, and in particular to watch Hulu.

But I’m not mad at Boxee (who’s in a tough spot, and whose support for Hulu was unofficial rather than based on a partnership), and I don’t think I’m irked with Hulu, either. The latter company’s blog is explaining that its content providers were ticked off over their stuff being available on Hulu and therefore forced the issue. Minor kudos to Hulu for addressing what’s happening on the blog rather than pretending that it’s not a big deal for Boxee fans.

(Side note: I don’t know whether there’s any connection between this and the news that Ed Oswald reported on earlier today involving Hulu programming disappearing from TV.com.)

The instinctive response, of course, is to start slamming those content providers as clueless Hollywood types who don’t get the Internet and hate their TV-consuming customers. And it is a shame that they’re depriving Boxee users of their stuff: If the whole business model of Hulu involves monetizing TV by supporting it with ads, you’d think that Boxee eyeballs would be just as valuable as any others that watch those ads. Maybe more so, given that anybody who’s an early adopter of Boxee is likely a particularly hardcore TV fan.

Neither Boxee’s nor Hulu’s commentary on this development explains why content owners don’t want their shows on Boxee. My guess is that A) they’re uneasy with having stuff show up in an environment they don’t control; and B) they’re still not comfortable with Internet TV showing up on TV, where it competes more directly with the old-fashioned broadcast incarnations of the same programs. As well-done as Hulu is, I suspect that it’s still a pretty lousy advertising medium compared to prime time. (The Hulu shows I catch, at least, are often supported by public-service messages rather than big-name sponsors.)

Spo short-term, I’m disgruntled over not being able to watch Hulu on Boxee; long-term, my question is this: Do Hulu’s content providers have a problem with Boxee in particular or Hulu-on-a-TV in general? My hope is that Hulu is actively working on other means of bringing its nifty service to the living room; if Hollywood is short-sighted enough to nix that, then by all means let the name-calling begin.

And hey, does anyone want to buy a slightly-used Apple TV?

MagicJack: The No-Brainer Money Saver

I just saved $320 by cancelling an extra phone line and signing up with magicJack. It works as advertised; I like it; and it’s a keeper. I also have tips to make magicJack better, and if you’re intrigued, hack into it. (Fair warning: My magicJack review is long, way more than I usually allocate for one newsletter.)

Making the Switch to magicJack

I used to have three phone lines, and for years I needed all of them. But with almost all of my communication through e-mail, I decided to dump one and replace it with a magicJack. And save myself about $320 a year.

You plug the magicJack into a free USB port, then plug your phone line into the gizmo. Now you can make free calls with VoIP — they’re routed through the Internet. (The magicJack comes with a 6-inch USB extension cable in case it interferes with other devices plugged into your USB ports.)

Plug one end into a USB port and connect the other end to your standard phone.

Continue reading this story…