I guarantee I will write an IPhone App

You heard it hear first. I am going to write an IPhone App. I'm not sure when, but it will happen over the next 3 - 6 months. So before the end of the EMIS program. Now you may be wondering why I'm going to do this. The obvious answer is that I'm a dork that likes to write code. The other reason is I think that these mobile applications will become increasingly important to the corporate enterprise. Blackberries, Online Scheduling, and Cell Phones have made individuals increasingly productive. Creating powerful and (do i dare say it) user friendly applications can allow companies to capture important information in real time in order to enable business decisions.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-9958320-37.html

Apple's Industrial Design Echoes Value of Usability and Web 2.0

http://gizmodo.com/392020/apples-top-designer-explains-design

This is a short article that interviews the Senior Vice President of Industrial Design from Apple. Not to much content but it has a great quote from Jonathan Ive. His team is responsible for the IMac, IPod, and IPhone. Pretty good resume if you ask me.

"I'm not driven by making a cultural impact. That's just a consequence of taking a remarkably powerful technology and making it relevant. My goal is simply to try to make products that really are meaningful to people."

This really isn't all that different then what IT has failed to do in many cases. Take the internet, software, and computers and apply it in a "relevant" way to solve problems. Some of the most powerful applications are the most simple. It certainly goes without saying that User Interface design and usability should not be the afterthought that it normally is. Web 2.0 is just a piece of that. Industrial design, human cognitive response, and visual accuity have only been applied in a few instances to develop a truly interactive software application. I think the industry should focus on this more. God knows I've used SAP enough times to curse the low priority that the user interface gets. SAP can order me a new spaceship, build a detailed WBS, track my EVM towards completion, route all invoices and payments at the same time. But only if your smart enough to know that Shift + F8 is "execute".

Apple Keyboard - Like IPod touch

Interesting how Apple is really jumping back into the Market Place. I went to an Apple store over the weekend and was pretty blown away by their product line. I've been a life long PC guy cause I used to love to build computers and take them apart and all. The more complex and lets face it, SMALLER, the machines get that really doesn't happen much anymore.

If you throw the XP/VISTA issue and that the Macs can run XP, I think you're going to see a larger market share for Apple computers. Here is an article showing the release of a Multi-Touch Apple Keyboard. I'd love to have one of these things for my computer now. Could be a cheaper alternative to the push for touch screen monitors.

http://www.crunchgear.com/2008/05/17/a-rumor-apple-to-release-multitouch-keyboard-for-apple-tv/

One thing is for sure. For larger companies and for the CIO's "enterprise level" PC purchase decision, Macintosh is still seen as a risk. Companies like EDS, NG, and Booz Allen all have ingrained experts, desktop images, and long term supplier contracts. I don't think these companies will be the first to try the Macs. The first adopters will most likely come from the corporate sector where art and presentation are larger. Publishing, Entertainment Industry, Sports Marketing, maybe even Law Firms. Government and IT companies will be the last to go. Of course there are some government organizations already using them, but they are being used out of necessity within those organizational units and are not the chosen platform for employee computing.

One last note. Google must be loving Apple's resurgence and Microsoft's stumbling. The door has certainly been left open. But they both have a long way to go.