Would a ruggedised netbook sell?

Extremely rugged laptops take a lot of abuse in stride, but tend do cost over $5000. I wonder if a hardy, ruggedised netbook would sell well to people who need some computing on the go in adverse conditions, but nothing too demanding. It would end up costing about the same as a regular laptop, but would take much more of a beating.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - The down side would be that you can't do much with it.
PPS - And people might not expect to pay even that much for such low power.

Friday Zombie Blogging - Brisbane Zombie Walk sets record

This year's Brisbane Zombie Walk actually set a world record with an estimated 5000 participants. Go Brisbane! Unfortunately, despite being in town at the time, I was not able to participate myself.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - The organisers may have to start paying for a police presence next year.
PPS - So that's going to make it harder to run.

Single-serving Berocca

Some Berocca samples were being handed out at the train station the other day. A new product with an interesting design, it's a single Berocca dissolving vitamin tablet in the lid of a bottle of water. As you open the bottle, a cutter in the lid opens the foil and the tablet drops down into the water to dissolve. Clever and convenient, I thought. They'll probably sell a few of those.

Then I thought about it in terms of cost: you'll pay something upwards of $3 for this, I assume, while you can get a whole tube (15 tablets) for $9. Not value for money. Then I further realised that all this amounts to a heck of a lot of packaging for a single tablet of Berocca.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - I think it's a bit wasteful.
PPS - But if the people pay, it will stick around.

TransLink still has no map integration

What I don't understand about the TransLink (public transport) website and journey planner is that they have GPS coordinates for their bus stops, train stations and ferry jetties, but don't have links to Google Maps for them. You look for transport from here to here, and you get your options, but it won't tell you where exactly those stops are.

What I think would work well as a mobile GPS application is public transport tracking. You plan a journey on the website and it gets sent to your phone as a series of GPS coordinates in a map application. As you travel along, the stops are ticked off and you can tell when you are nearing your stop. Alternatively, you could set the application to trigger an alarm when you get to your destination so you don't have to look at the screen, or you could even sleep until your stop comes up.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - Someone somewhere has probably done this.
PPS - Or someone is working on it.

Ask for genuine Microsoft software

"Ask for genuine Microsoft software" says the Windows Genuine Advantage prompt. Let's think about what will happen if you ask for genuine software. If you're asking a legitimate vendor, they will say yes, of course this software is a genuine, legitimate copy. If, on the other hand, you are asking an illegitimate vendor who is selling counterfeit copies of Windows, they will say yes, of course this software is a genuine, legitimate copy. Nobody, whether good or bad, is going to tell you that they are selling you a pirated copy of Windows under those circumstances, so telling your customers to "ask for genuine Microsoft software" is going to do exactly squat to prevent piracy and bootlegging.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - The only advantage to Windows Genuine Advantage is to Microsoft.
PPS - And software can't go from being "dangerous" to "safe" by entering a registration code.

Good-enough computing

We are definitely entering an era of "good enough" computing. Netbooks that work well enough to get internet access over wi-fi and are light enough to carry just about everywhere satisfy 90% of people's needs 90% of the time. Microsoft Office 2003 is quite sufficient for 90% of the population. Windows XP is working fine for most things, thanks. Network speeds are good enough for games and video. What we need now are longer-lasting batteries, lower power demands from components and longer range from wireless networking or cheaper mobile broadband.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - The 802.11n wireless network standard has just been ratified.
PPS - I'm not sure whether it has better range, but it is faster than the previous one.

The lost "how to be annoying" list

In first-year uni or thereabouts I wrote a list of about 80 items titled "How to be annoying, list 3". It was inspired by two other lists of "how to be annoying", and I wish I'd saved it because now I can't find it anywhere. It did the rounds among my friends, but I don't think it ever went viral or escaped our own circle. That, plus the presence of plenty of other lists with the same title, means I will probably never recover it. Pity.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - If anyone still has a copy, or finds one, I'd love to get it again.
PPS - No rush. I've waited this long.

Friday Zombie Blogging - Scooby Doo drawing

I quite like this drawing of the Scooby Doo gang (somewhat reduced) as a zombie-fighting team.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - Apparently only Velma and Scooby have made it this far.
PPS - The "RIP" heart on the van is a nice touch.

iPod pedometer

The latest iPod Nano includes a pedometer application by default, which is something I thought about some time ago. An advanced pedometer with a calendar and clock can relieve you of the need to write down your step counts or reset the device daily. It makes more sense that way from an ease of use point of view, but I won't get an iPod Nano just for that. The problem is having to carry it everywhere and leave it on all the time. The only thing I do that with is my phone, which kind of makes the point for buying a smarter phone, not an iPod.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - For now, my regular old pedometer does just fine.
PPS - And I expect it will continue to do so.

Environment-oblivious autonomous Audi

An autonomous car that is not environment-aware cannot be on the road with anything else. It may be able to tell where it is via GPS, but if it can't tell where hazards are, then it's only good for driving alone on unobstructed roads. That's my problem with Audi's effort for Pike's Peak. It might win a timed robot car race when it's the only thing on the road, but put one person accidentally on that road and it will merrily plough them down and continue on its way none the wiser. With another car on the road, it has no hope.

Mokalus of Borg

PS - I consider it interesting research but ultimately a dead-end.
PPS - Though I guess it could be slowed down and incorporated into other cars.