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Saturday, November 28, 2009
Copy & Paste on Motorola Droid A855 - menu key icon doesn't match documentation
The Verizon Droid Quick Tips and Tricks guide appears to use an older menu icon than was used on the released model. The menu key icon shown below in an excerpt from the documentation (four squares in a 2x2 grid, with the upper left filled) appears to have been replaced by four horizontal lines, the top one being slightly longer suggesting a drop down list.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Still Giving Thanks... Peter Gomes interview on NPR's Here & Now
my Dad carving the turkey- Nov 26, 2009Yesterday, while driving to Plymouth, for Thanksgiving dinner with my family, we heard a terrific interview on NPR's Here and Now with Peter Gomes, a well known Baptist preacher and Harvard professor, who like me, grew up in Plymouth. He was the first African-American member of the Pilgrim Society and the Old Colony Club. Gomes got involved with the Pilgrim Society from a young age, despite warnings from his father that the pilgrims were not his people and they don't really like you. One of the best moments of the interview is Rev. Gomes' description of being questioned by president of the Pilgrim Society, Ellis W. Brewster, while working a summer job at the Pilgrim Society front desk. "Are you a member of the Pilgrim Society?" Brewster asked. "No Sir," Gomes replied, expecting to be fired on the spot. "Well we can't have non-members working here," said Brewster reaching into his pocket and handing Gomes a life membership in the Pilgrim Society, which Brewster had signed himself. Gomes went on to become president of the Pilgrim Society which he has been involved with for over 40 years.
Here and Now host, Robin Young and Gomes discussed the parallels between the Pilgrim's escape from oppression, crossing the ocean, entering into the promised land and the Moses story described by Bruce Feiler in his book, America’s Prophet Moses and the American Story. This is a universal human story of escaping oppression, being faithful to God, seeking the promised land, which has many parallels in history including the underground railroad, and the civil rights struggle. Ironically, Moses never actually entered the promised land. The Pilgrims were more fortunate. Although I grew up in Plymouth, and thought I was familiar with pilgrim history, I found this interpretation facsinating.
I get choked up by the Thanksgiving re-broadcast of Robin Young's visit with her now-late uncle, Lachlan McLachlyn Field, to see the migrating snow geese at the Dead Creek refuge in Addison, Vermont. Although we've heard this interveiw each Thanksgiving for many years, I'll never tire of it. Robin's Uncle Lach passed away in 2004 at the age of 91.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
My Motorola Droid... Day 1 first thoughts
I got a Motorola Droid from Verizon today. I wanted mobile email and web access and looked at the iPhone, but we have better coverage where I live from Verizon than AT&T, so I went with the Droid.
I didn't have much time to play with it, but I tried out the Navigator. It worked pretty well, although just after I got in the car, I got a notification GPS signal lost. It took a few minutes to recover from that. The spoken directions were clear enough, although not quite as clear as VJ's Garmin Nuvi. It made corrections as appropriate when I didn't follow the route. The GPS navigation mode runs down the battery, and I didn't buy the car charger because I thought my Motorola USB auto charger would work with it but the micro USB connector is half again as thin as the mini pug. I see Motorola has a Mini to Micro USB adapter cable for less than $2, but I'll have to find a better deal on shipping. I had to wait in a waiting room for a little while, and it was very cool to be able to hop online with the wireless web.
Dell Mobile is offering an attractive price on the Droid ($119.99 with a 2 year contract). However, I got mine from Verizon, because I have a family plan with 3 lines. The "new every 2" credit from my old Verizon plan made it almost the same price, and it was a lot less complicated to just deal with Verizon instead of Verizon & Dell. I've been shopping for phones for several weeks. We found out recently that VJ is eligible for an employee discount, that makes Verizon more attractive than my employee discount with AT&T.
I was most disappointed when the sales guy said he couldn't print out the total for the plan until after the contract was signed... until I insisted that we weren't signing anything until seeing the total, then he found a way.
My first impression with the Verizon "Droid" leather case/belt clip MOTA855CAS which says right on the box, "fits Droid by Motorola" was underwhelming when I figured out that the micro USB charger plug is half covered by the spine of the case, so you can't leave it in the case while charging the battery (which looks like it could be often with the Droid). I think I'll be taking back the case when I find something better.
More later on the user experience, and how my fat fingers are adapting to the keyboard(s)
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
I didn't have much time to play with it, but I tried out the Navigator. It worked pretty well, although just after I got in the car, I got a notification GPS signal lost. It took a few minutes to recover from that. The spoken directions were clear enough, although not quite as clear as VJ's Garmin Nuvi. It made corrections as appropriate when I didn't follow the route. The GPS navigation mode runs down the battery, and I didn't buy the car charger because I thought my Motorola USB auto charger would work with it but the micro USB connector is half again as thin as the mini pug. I see Motorola has a Mini to Micro USB adapter cable for less than $2, but I'll have to find a better deal on shipping. I had to wait in a waiting room for a little while, and it was very cool to be able to hop online with the wireless web.
Dell Mobile is offering an attractive price on the Droid ($119.99 with a 2 year contract). However, I got mine from Verizon, because I have a family plan with 3 lines. The "new every 2" credit from my old Verizon plan made it almost the same price, and it was a lot less complicated to just deal with Verizon instead of Verizon & Dell. I've been shopping for phones for several weeks. We found out recently that VJ is eligible for an employee discount, that makes Verizon more attractive than my employee discount with AT&T.
I was most disappointed when the sales guy said he couldn't print out the total for the plan until after the contract was signed... until I insisted that we weren't signing anything until seeing the total, then he found a way.
My first impression with the Verizon "Droid" leather case/belt clip MOTA855CAS which says right on the box, "fits Droid by Motorola" was underwhelming when I figured out that the micro USB charger plug is half covered by the spine of the case, so you can't leave it in the case while charging the battery (which looks like it could be often with the Droid). I think I'll be taking back the case when I find something better.
More later on the user experience, and how my fat fingers are adapting to the keyboard(s)
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Pricing & Licensing Roundtable at ProductCamp Boston Nov 2009
I spent a great day at the Microsoft R&D Center in Cambridge on Saturday, Nov. 9 collaborating informally with about 150 product managers and marketing professionals at ProductCamp Boston. This was the 2nd ProductCamp event in Boston, and another huge success.
I organized a session on Software Pricing & Licensing. I want to thank Jim Geisman founder of Software Pricing Partners, and Amy Konary Research Director at IDC for providing their expert perspective. About 15 people participated in the Pricing & Licensing session, and 11 expressed an interest in setting up a local online networking group as a place to gather and collaborate further. (I've been asked by the BPMA board to do this within the general forum while membership on our new online community builds up - once that reaches a critical mass, we'll split it out into a separate subgroup.)
You can download the slides from my session here in pdf format. The slides include links to some good pricing books and online resources.
my favorite highlights of the day at ProductCamp include:
Steve Johnson's Keynote on managing your career using the Pragmatic Framework
John Monsour's (of Zig Zag Marketing) session: How Product Mgmt. & Product Mktg. Can Drive Company, Market & Product Strategy.
Alan Armstrong (of eigenworks) session: Credibility and Authority for Product Management & Product Marketing: Practical steps. Alan has a great tag line: "NAIL IT THEN SCALE IT".
My Flickr photoset from the day is here.
I want to extend a big Thank-You to Brooks Rutledge for his extraordinary dedication, effort, and leadership in organizing this event which provides a huge value to participants. Also, thanks to the ProductCamp Sponsors for making the day possible.
I organized a session on Software Pricing & Licensing. I want to thank Jim Geisman founder of Software Pricing Partners, and Amy Konary Research Director at IDC for providing their expert perspective. About 15 people participated in the Pricing & Licensing session, and 11 expressed an interest in setting up a local online networking group as a place to gather and collaborate further. (I've been asked by the BPMA board to do this within the general forum while membership on our new online community builds up - once that reaches a critical mass, we'll split it out into a separate subgroup.)
You can download the slides from my session here in pdf format. The slides include links to some good pricing books and online resources.
my favorite highlights of the day at ProductCamp include:
Steve Johnson's Keynote on managing your career using the Pragmatic Framework
John Monsour's (of Zig Zag Marketing) session: How Product Mgmt. & Product Mktg. Can Drive Company, Market & Product Strategy.
Alan Armstrong (of eigenworks) session: Credibility and Authority for Product Management & Product Marketing: Practical steps. Alan has a great tag line: "NAIL IT THEN SCALE IT".My Flickr photoset from the day is here.
I want to extend a big Thank-You to Brooks Rutledge for his extraordinary dedication, effort, and leadership in organizing this event which provides a huge value to participants. Also, thanks to the ProductCamp Sponsors for making the day possible.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
revised FTC endorsement guidelines require bloggers to disclose "freebies"
On Oct 5 the Federal Trade Commission announced revisions to the guidance it gives advertisers on how to keep their endorsement and testimonial ads in line with the FTC Act. The changes affect testimonial advertisements, celebrity endorsements and bloggers.
The revised Guides include examples to illustrate the principle that “material connections” (payments or free products) between advertisers and endorsers – connections that consumers would not expect – must be disclosed. The examples address what constitutes an endorsement when the message is conveyed by bloggers or other “word-of-mouth” marketers. The revised Guides specify that while decisions will be reached on a case-by-case basis, the post of a blogger who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product is considered an endorsement. Thus, bloggers who make an endorsement must disclose the material connections they share with the seller of the product or service.
The Guides are administrative interpretations of the law intended to help advertisers comply with the FTC Act; they are not binding law themselves. In any law enforcement action challenging the allegedly deceptive use of testimonials or endorsements, the Commission would have the burden of proving that the challenged conduct violates the FTC Act.
Here are examples citing bloggers related to endorsements and disclosure of material connections
Expert endorsements.
Example 8: A consumer who regularly purchases a particular brand of dog food decides one day to purchase a new, more expensive brand made by the same manufacturer. She writes in her personal blog that the change in diet has made her dog’s fur noticeably softer and shinier, and that in her opinion, the new food definitely is worth the extra money. This posting would not be deemed an endorsement under the Guides.
Assume that rather than purchase the dog food with her own money, the consumer gets it for free because the store routinely tracks her purchases and its computer has generated a coupon for a free trial bag of this new brand. Again, her posting would not be deemed an endorsement under the Guides.
Assume now that the consumer joins a network marketing program under which she periodically receives various products about which she can write reviews if she wants to do so. If she receives a free bag of the new dog food through this program, her positive review would be considered an endorsement under the Guides.
Disclosure of material connections.
Example 7: A college student who has earned a reputation as a video game expert maintains a personal weblog or “blog” where he posts entries about his gaming experiences. Readers of his blog frequently seek his opinions about video game hardware and software. As it has done in the past, the manufacturer of a newly released video game system sends the student a free copy of the system and asks him to write about it on his blog. He tests the new gaming system and writes a favorable review. Because his review is disseminated via a form of consumer-generated media in which his relationship to the advertiser is not inherently obvious, readers are unlikely to know that he has received the video game system free of charge in exchange for his review of the product, and given the value of the video game system, this fact likely would materially affect the credibility they attach to his endorsement. Accordingly, the blogger should clearly and conspicuously disclose that he received the gaming system free of charge. The manufacturer should advise him at the time it provides the gaming system that this connection should be
disclosed, and it should have procedures in place to try to monitor his postings for compliance.
Example 8: An online message board designated for discussions of new music download technology is frequented by MP3 player enthusiasts. They exchange information about new products, utilities, and the functionality of numerous playback devices. Unbeknownst to the message board community, an employee of a leading playback device manufacturer has been posting messages on the discussion board promoting the manufacturer’s product. Knowledge of this poster’s employment likely would affect the weight or credibility of her endorsement. Therefore, the poster should clearly and conspicuously disclose her relationship to the manufacturer to members and readers of the message board.
Example 9: A young man signs up to be part of a “street team” program in which points are awarded each time a team member talks to his or her friends about a particular advertiser’s products. Team members can then exchange their points for prizes, such as concert tickets or electronics. These incentives would materially affect the weight or credibility of the team member’s endorsements. They should be clearly and conspicuously disclosed, and the advertiser should take steps to ensure that these disclosures are being provided.
You can download the new FTC guidelines here. (pdf)
In the interest of full disclosure, last April, I blogged about Pam Slim's book Escape Cubicle Nation, that I received at no cost.
The revised Guides include examples to illustrate the principle that “material connections” (payments or free products) between advertisers and endorsers – connections that consumers would not expect – must be disclosed. The examples address what constitutes an endorsement when the message is conveyed by bloggers or other “word-of-mouth” marketers. The revised Guides specify that while decisions will be reached on a case-by-case basis, the post of a blogger who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product is considered an endorsement. Thus, bloggers who make an endorsement must disclose the material connections they share with the seller of the product or service.
The Guides are administrative interpretations of the law intended to help advertisers comply with the FTC Act; they are not binding law themselves. In any law enforcement action challenging the allegedly deceptive use of testimonials or endorsements, the Commission would have the burden of proving that the challenged conduct violates the FTC Act.
Here are examples citing bloggers related to endorsements and disclosure of material connections
Expert endorsements.
Example 8: A consumer who regularly purchases a particular brand of dog food decides one day to purchase a new, more expensive brand made by the same manufacturer. She writes in her personal blog that the change in diet has made her dog’s fur noticeably softer and shinier, and that in her opinion, the new food definitely is worth the extra money. This posting would not be deemed an endorsement under the Guides.
Assume that rather than purchase the dog food with her own money, the consumer gets it for free because the store routinely tracks her purchases and its computer has generated a coupon for a free trial bag of this new brand. Again, her posting would not be deemed an endorsement under the Guides.
Assume now that the consumer joins a network marketing program under which she periodically receives various products about which she can write reviews if she wants to do so. If she receives a free bag of the new dog food through this program, her positive review would be considered an endorsement under the Guides.
Disclosure of material connections.
Example 7: A college student who has earned a reputation as a video game expert maintains a personal weblog or “blog” where he posts entries about his gaming experiences. Readers of his blog frequently seek his opinions about video game hardware and software. As it has done in the past, the manufacturer of a newly released video game system sends the student a free copy of the system and asks him to write about it on his blog. He tests the new gaming system and writes a favorable review. Because his review is disseminated via a form of consumer-generated media in which his relationship to the advertiser is not inherently obvious, readers are unlikely to know that he has received the video game system free of charge in exchange for his review of the product, and given the value of the video game system, this fact likely would materially affect the credibility they attach to his endorsement. Accordingly, the blogger should clearly and conspicuously disclose that he received the gaming system free of charge. The manufacturer should advise him at the time it provides the gaming system that this connection should be
disclosed, and it should have procedures in place to try to monitor his postings for compliance.
Example 8: An online message board designated for discussions of new music download technology is frequented by MP3 player enthusiasts. They exchange information about new products, utilities, and the functionality of numerous playback devices. Unbeknownst to the message board community, an employee of a leading playback device manufacturer has been posting messages on the discussion board promoting the manufacturer’s product. Knowledge of this poster’s employment likely would affect the weight or credibility of her endorsement. Therefore, the poster should clearly and conspicuously disclose her relationship to the manufacturer to members and readers of the message board.
Example 9: A young man signs up to be part of a “street team” program in which points are awarded each time a team member talks to his or her friends about a particular advertiser’s products. Team members can then exchange their points for prizes, such as concert tickets or electronics. These incentives would materially affect the weight or credibility of the team member’s endorsements. They should be clearly and conspicuously disclosed, and the advertiser should take steps to ensure that these disclosures are being provided.
You can download the new FTC guidelines here. (pdf)
In the interest of full disclosure, last April, I blogged about Pam Slim's book Escape Cubicle Nation, that I received at no cost.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
An irresistable upsell - leaves money on the table
I had to refurbish the utility trailer that I use to clean up the autumn leaves from my yard. I stopped in Home Depot to pick up a 1" spade drill bit. I already have a set of spade bits, but my 1" bit was just worn out. I expected to buy a single bit which was priced at $4.69/EA.
I noticed a 3 piece set adjacent to the individual bits at such a bargain price, I simply couldn't pass it up. The package of 3 bits, which included the 1", a 3/4" and a 1/2 inch, was priced at $5.97.
Those are all sizes that I use and my drills are usually dull, but I wasn't looking to replace them today. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to pick up two new bits for an additional $1.28 . The 1/2" and 3/4" bits were priced at $4.19 and $3.70 each. The cost of the 2 extra bits in the bundle was 16% of the individual pieces.
From a differentiation perspective, the shanks on the set are a little shorter than the individual bits. The shank length makes very little difference to me, this will only affect very rare instances when trying to drill through stock that's more than about 4" thick. In fact when I'm using my drill press, the shorter shanks are often easier to work with.
I have to wonder what Irwin and Home Depot were thinking when they priced this set. Here are some ideas:
Best,
Chuck
I noticed a 3 piece set adjacent to the individual bits at such a bargain price, I simply couldn't pass it up. The package of 3 bits, which included the 1", a 3/4" and a 1/2 inch, was priced at $5.97.
Those are all sizes that I use and my drills are usually dull, but I wasn't looking to replace them today. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to pick up two new bits for an additional $1.28 . The 1/2" and 3/4" bits were priced at $4.19 and $3.70 each. The cost of the 2 extra bits in the bundle was 16% of the individual pieces.From a differentiation perspective, the shanks on the set are a little shorter than the individual bits. The shank length makes very little difference to me, this will only affect very rare instances when trying to drill through stock that's more than about 4" thick. In fact when I'm using my drill press, the shorter shanks are often easier to work with.
I have to wonder what Irwin and Home Depot were thinking when they priced this set. Here are some ideas:
- It's definitely cheaper to package and deliver 3 bits on one card than one product per card.
- Manufacturing cost is a very small fraction of the retail price.
- Home Depot also offers Rigid auger bits which are a little more expensive than the spade bits. Home Depot sells the 1" diameter Rigid auger bit for $5.97. The Auger bits are promoted as 6x faster than a spade bit, and re-sharpenable. I'm not sure if Irwin was trying to grab more market share by differentiating from the higher Rigid price point.
Best,
Chuck
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