Linked List: June 1, 2016

Wednesday, 1 June 2016

Mary Meeker’s 2016 Internet Trends Report 

Meeker’s annual report is much-celebrated and her track record on these reports is simply amazing — but I find a 238-slide deck to be a terrible way to communicate. There’s gold in here, but damn if it isn’t misery to find it. It’s like having to sit through an interminable PowerPoint presentation by yourself. It’s better just to watch the video of her presentation.

A few things I spotted:

  • Slide 45 — On money spent by advertisers vs. time spent by people, print is still over-represented (by tradition) and mobile is still under-represented (novelty).
  • Slide 99 — Meeker’s list of monthly active users for messaging services doesn’t include iMessage. I think it should.
  • The series of slides starting at 111: “Re-imagining human/computer interfaces — voice and transportation”.
Chinese Government Issues Theme Park Etiquette Guide After Shanghai Disneyland Is Trashed 

Ken Storey, reporting for Orlando Weekly:

After an incredibly rough opening that included children defecating in the bushes and people carving graffiti on lampposts, the Chinese government has now issued an etiquette guide for visitors of Shanghai Disneyland. […]

The six rules include; throwing garbage into trash cans, protecting public property, don’t damage flowers or gardens, don’t lay down on the grass, don’t jump queues, and to overall “maintain decorum” (that means no Brazilian soccer chanting in line).

At this point, the guide is simply that, a guide, but there has been some talk in Shanghai of keeping records of violators and “public shaming.”

Jiminy.

Paul Thurrott: Microsoft’s Upgrade Deceptions Are Undermining Windows 10 

Paul Thurrott:

Last week, Microsoft silently changed Get Windows 10 yet again. And this time, it has gone beyond the social engineering scheme that has been fooling people into inadvertently upgrading to Windows 10 for months. This time, it actually changed the behavior of the window that appears so that if you click the “Close” window box, you are actually agreeing to the upgrade. Without you knowing what just happened.

Previously, closing this window would correctly signal that you do not want the upgrade. So Microsoft didn’t change the wording in the window. It didn’t make an “Upgrade now” button bigger, or a non-existent “don’t ever upgrade” button smaller. It pulled a switcheroonie. It’s like going out to your car in the morning and discovering that the gas pedal now applies the brakes, while the brake pedal washes the windshield. Have a fun commute!

Continuing decades-long proof that the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence.

Mark Gurman Is Leaving 9to5Mac 

Dave Smith, writing for Tech Insider:

9to5Mac founder Seth Weintraub told Tech Insider the move from 9to5Mac was “amicable” and “years in the works.”

Neither Weintraub nor Gurman could confirm where Gurman would be working next, or what his role will be, but Weintraub did say he would be working for a big name media publication. Gurman also confirmed plans to move to San Francisco to start his new gig, which will still include reporting and breaking news about Apple, among other companies. He will officially start work in July. […]

Gurman said the move was about exposure and pursuing new opportunities. Weintraub added that his 9to5 brand, while big and growing, doesn’t “offer the wider breadth of industry coverage and TV opportunities that Mark deserves.”

Based on the above description, a lot of people are guessing CNBC. I bet that’s because they forget that Bloomberg has a TV channel.

Update, a few hours later: Like I said, Bloomberg. Was not a very well-kept secret amongst us gossipy media types.