Alan wrote a good backgrounder to Metcalfe’s law: “A Short discussion on Metcalfe’s Law for Social Networks.” If you haven’t come across Metcalfe’s Law before, here is the basic background. When Metcalfe (of Ethernet and 3Com fame) started playing with computer networks, he saw that the value of the network was related to the number […]
My last visit to the Tuttle Club was unexpectedly fruitful. After the crowds had cleared, Spinvox lead a very thought provoking session on “The Future of Voice”. It touched on many things that are dear to my heart. I have been involved in communications technology for over 30 years, and in that time much has changed. However, all my reminiscing about acoustic couplers and the founders of Apple inc hacking phone networks is pushed to the back of my mind as I think about the future ahead.
Today I can pick up a phone and call anyone I know, anywhere on the planet. Many of us have known no different all our lives.
I have been pondering the ideal size of a community of late – be it a company (successful companies are communities too), a circle of friends or the user base for a wiki or a forum. Of course, I am not the first to ponder the question, nor will I be the last. Paul Graham […]
One of the key skills for knowledge workers is good, if not superb, reading speed. Even though print media is in decline, we have more, rather than less to get through. E-mails, wiki pages, white papers and documents all scream ‘read me’. Yet there is a great deal of misinformation about speed reading around. Many […]
I haven’t mentioned PowerPoint or presenting in a while, potentially because I am increasingly speaking without the use of slides these days. However, a recent trade show visit put it firmly back on my radar, as I took to the stage and also caught some other speakers. Needless to say, the trip spawned a top […]
I spent this week working at VoiceCon in Orlando, Florida. The big theme of the show was unified communications, adding video and integrating software applications with telephony. I was struck by how far communications technology has come in just the last few years. The days of POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) seem numbered, as the […]
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