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WINDOWS VS FORD

bill_gates_01At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, “If Ford had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon.”

In response to Bill’s comments, Ford issued a press release stating:

If Ford had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics (and I just love this part):

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash……… twice a day.

2.. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3… Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.

4…. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5….. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive – but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6…… The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single “This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation” warning light.

7……. The airbag system would ask, “Are you sure?” before deploying.

8…….. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9……… Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

10………. You’d have to press the “Start” button to turn the engine off.

by Robert Shaw West Brand Futurist/Commander in Chief

Photo Credit: courtesy of www.microsoft.com and www.ford.com.

Content Credit: Originally delivered as a chain email, author unknown

 

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15-YEAR-OLD FORTELLS A FACEBOOK DECLINE

Like most 15-year-olds, my daughter is totally connected. Text and Facebook are her lifelines, or so I thought.  In spring, around the time of the pending Facebook IPO, I noticed a conspicuous absence in her Facebook activity. With a busy school and activity schedule I thought it nothing more than a function of available time.
I couldn’t have been more wrong. She and her friends have simply discovered social platforms that better fit the way they live – mobile. Instagram…take a picture, share it, 20 minutes later there are 65 “likes.” Pretty apt name. Twitter…group conversations and connections to peer group topics.  Pinterest…personal expression of self as individuals. What words can’t capture. Beautiful boards. Very revealing.
That’s the holy trinity for now. Along with ever-present text. This new world of social media supports her, not vice versa. And yes there is still some Facebook activity. But for her generation it is no longer the sun. Look around for yourself. There may be a world beyond Facebook. So far, I like what I see.

And now for the science. Two articles that prompted this post. The first is about Instagram: http://read.bi/OuFuVy  The second is about Pinterest: http://bit.ly/PApcZP  Both articles reinforce the utility of these relatively new offerings.

by Dwayne Fry Brand Futurist/Commander Strategic Ops

Photo Credit: courtesy of www.tgdaily.com, Has Facebook started its inevitable decline?

JUST BROWSING

Google introduced a new browser this month offering users “improved speed and responsiveness, a more powerful JavaScript engine known as V8 and improved protection from ‘rogue’ sites.”

“While its functionality looks easy and well thought out, I feel they missed a great opportunity to add some sense of design to the overall look of the new site. To me it looks ‘corporate blue’.”

by David Avis Brand Futurist The Republik Corporal Creative Ops

Video source: ZDNet Video/CNET

WHO WILL RULE THE NEW INTERNET?

“The winners of the platform wars stand to make billions selling devices, selling eyeballs to advertisers, selling services such as music, movies, even computer power on demand. Yet the outcome here is far more important than who makes the most money. The future of the Internet—how we get information, how we communicate with one another and, most important, who controls it—is at stake.” Josh Quittner/San Francisco.

From here.

“The underlying question is: Are the users of the Internet actually in the driver’s seat or are the 800-pound gorilla businesses jockeying behind the scenes the one’s truly controlling the outcome?”

by Sam Knoll Brand Futurist The Republik Commander Analytic Ops

Photo Credit: via Time Inc.

WAITING FOR THE OTHER SHOE TO DROP…

Japanese brand Onitsuka Tiger introduced this year a sneaker vending machine in the UK. Although the idea is not new, Japan has had ’em for a while now, the debut marks the UK’s first sneaker vending machine. More here and here.

“Hmmm, wonder what’s next? Vending machines for cars? Spouses? Pets…?”

by David Smith The Republik

Photo Credit: © Onitsuka Tiger