Linked List: November 1, 2011

Tuesday, 1 November 2011

CNet: The Inside Story of How Microsoft Killed Its Courier Tablet ★

Interesting reporting by Jay Greene for CNet, but I’m not buying it that Courier was near completion. This, to me, is damning:

When Courier died, there was not a single prototype that contained all of the attributes of the vision: the industrial design, the screen performance, the software experience, the correct weight, and the battery life. Those existed individually, created in parallel to keep the development process moving quickly. Those prototypes wouldn’t have come together into a single unit until very late in the development process, perhaps weeks before manufacturing, which is common for cutting-edge consumer electronics design. But on the team, there was little doubt that they were moving quickly toward that final prototype.

“We were on the cusp of something really big,” said one Courier team member.

One prototype that looks right, one with the right screen, one that has the right software, one that has the right weight, and one with the right battery life. Just mash them all together in a few weeks and you’re done. Sure.

Google Kills Its Other Plus ★

Andy Baio on a recent change to Google’s web search — the removal of the longstanding and beloved by search nerds + operator:

Google wouldn’t disclose exactly why they phased it out, though it seems obvious that they’re paving the way for Google+ profile searches. When Google+ launched, instead of adopting Twitter’s @reply syntax, they coined their own format for mentioning people — adding a plus to the beginning of a name — triggering the future conflict with the + operator.

So not only has the push for Google+ resulted in the removal of sharing features from a mid-level Google property like Google Reader, but it’s altering the feature set of Google’s bread-and-butter flagship product: web search.

Samsung Asks for iPhone 4S Source Code ★

Oonagh Reidy, reporting for Smart Office:

In Federal court today Samsung counsel Cynthia Cochrane said her client would need the source code for the iPhone 4S and agreements Apple had with major carriers Vodafone, Telstra and Optus in order to make a legal case for a ban before the court.

First Samsung wanted to see the unreleased “iPhone 5” and “iPad 3”, now they want the iOS source code and Apple’s carrier agreements. I see we’ve arrived at the “grasping at straws in desperation” part of the dispute.

iPhone 4S Arrives in Hong Kong and South Korea on November 11 ★

This is the soonest-after-launch that an iPhone has hit these countries.

‘Kinect Effect’ ★

This is better (it’s human and emotional, with music to match), and the Kinect is a legitimate hit product, but still, read the fine print: “Depictions are visionary”. Now the coolest things Microsoft has shown us for Kinect are things you can’t actually do with it.

(Apple has fine print too, yes. In the new Siri ads: “Sequences shortened.” They make her seem faster than she really is, but show you only real things you can actually do. Today.)

Why Microsoft’s Vision of the Future Is Dead on Arrival ★

John Pavlus:

What “future of” tech/design videos need is a little less Minority Report and a little more Alien. Director Ridley Scott famously told his production designers to make Alien’s spaceship and costumes look roughed-up, slightly messy, and above all, lived in. Otherwise, it just isn’t believable enough to see yourself in — which is a design problem that both horror movies and corporate promos need to solve. Microsoft’s film is probably going viral as we speak, but imagine how much more reach it would have if it dared to depict a guy stuck in a meeting that sucked, or using his smartphone in an airport that was full of noisy assholes and long lines, or searching his touchscreen-enabled smart refrigerator for a quick meal because his kids are bouncing off the walls and he’s bone-tired from a long day at work?

‘Mommy Doesn’t Wear Her Wedding Ring on Business Trips’ ★

Josh Farmer deconstructs Microsoft’s “Future Visions” concept video:

There is no difference between a tap that selects, records, enters a chat, or backtracks. And no one is confused about this.

This is what I mean about making fake bullshit rather than real things. When you’re designing a science fiction UI, you can yadda-yadda-yadda over all the little details that would be involved in designing something real — a cohesive and complete system. When you’re designing a real UI, the little details are everything.

(Thanks to Joe Clark.)

‘BlackBerry Future Visions’ ★

Like Microsoft, but with worse music, far less clever ideas, and more neckties.

Native Gmail iPhone App? ★

MG Siegler:

Google is on the verge of launching their native Gmail app, multiple sources tell me. In fact, I believe it has already been submitted to Apple for review. If it gets approved, it should be out soon. And I think it’s going to be approved.

Apple Releases GarageBand for iPhone and iPod Touch ★

Ambitious indeed.

Five Minutes on The Verge ★

Related to the last: a brief interview by Josh Topolsky with yours truly.

Welcome to The Verge ★

Josh Topolsky and crew launch The Verge. These kids have a chance.