10 Random Thoughts On 12-24-08

Here's my thoughts for this week:

1. Will 2009 be the last year of the mechanical hard drive ?
2. Every year is some sort of a milestone but 2009 will be special - my 30 year college (UMass Amherst ) graduation anniversary and my oldest graduating from high school - time flies doesn't it?
3. How long will it be before we are calling ADSL legacy technology?
4. Still no word from Obama on who his FCC chairman will be.
5. Let's see - a Patriots win combined with either a Miami or Baltimore loss means playoffs for New England.
6. Will 2009 be the year of Android?
7. Have you tried Chrome yet? You should.
8. Can we crawl out of this economic meltdown? We always have and I believe we always will.
9. My heart and prayers go out to a colleague and family who lost their 12 year old this past fall.
10. Happy Holidays - wishing lots of enjoyment with family and friends.
11. Number 11 because it is Christmas Eve - if you do nothing else today.... read Tom Friedman's December 23 NYT Column Time to Reboot America
    

Have fun. Take time. Be safe.

Another Day After in New England

Last February 4th I wrote about the day after the Super Bowl in a post titled New England the Day After. The New England Patriots had just lost to the Giants and most of the people I ran into looked like zombies - eyes glazed over in looks of disbelief. Today is not much better for Patriots fans. Quarterback Tom Brady took a hit to the leg in the first quarter of yesterdays game with the Chiefs and blew out his knee. Most reports right now are saying it is a torn ACL and he will be out for the season.



Matt Cassel came in for Brady and played well enough for the Patriots to win the game yesterday. It looks like they are bringing in Chris Simms who will likely be picked up as third string quarterback behind Kevin O'Connell.

In the February post I described an interview I had listened to with Patriots owner Robert Kraft on WEEI radio. One particular quote from Kraft stuck in my head and it is still there "With every crisis comes opportunity if it is managed right".

There's 52 other players on the team besides Brady - we'll see how they handle this one.

New England the Day After

Since maybe week 6 of the NFL season (right around when the Red Sox won the World Series) we've experienced a blur of analysis, hype and confidence regarding the New England Patriots. The past two weeks especially were non-stop leading up to the Super Bowl. Plans were being made for a Duck Boat Victory Parade in Boston on Tuesday with concern about the streets being clogged and people not being able to get to the polls to vote on Super Tuesday. The Boston Globe was pre-selling a book titled 19-0: The Historic Championship Season of New England's Unbeatable Patriots. Radio talk stations, newspapers, TV sports commentary, web discussion forums - all were non-stop about how dominant the Patriots would be in the game......

The aftermath..... I think there are a few lessons here for my kids and myself:

Overconfidence - Whether the Patriots players were guilty of it or not - many writers, broadcasters and fans were. Not good. If you start to believe hype it's eventually going to get you.

Preparation - The Giants were better prepared and played a better game.

Ignoring the Hype - Not listening to the majority - Giants once again.

Not Quiting and Believing in Yourself - of course the Giants!

And, with regards to the Patriots team - losing with dignity and respect for themselves and the other team. From what I have seen there have been no temper tantrums by the players or coaches and only praise for the Giants and the way they played the game.

I listened to a great interview with Patriots owner Robert Kraft, last week on WEEI radio. One particular quote sticks in my head and I'll likely remember it and be using it for a long time "With every crisis comes opportunity if it is managed right".

Is losing a football game a crisis in today's world? It's certainly not for me or the people I'm in contact with every day. It probably is for Robert Kraft and the Patriots organization though. Are the best lessons still to come in New England? Time will tell.

I'll get back to writing about technology tomorrow.

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My 2008 Top 12 Prediction List

2007 was a busy year and things do not look like they will slow down in 2008. Here's my personal top 12 predictions for the year in no particular order:

1. Apple announces new 3G iPhone at MacWorld. 3G service will be switchable to conserve battery. New iPhone will also have at least internal storage with SD Card slot.
2. First generation Google Phone will be OK but just OK as the bugs get worked out. However.......... just wait for the second generation!
3. Patriots go undefeated and win Super Bowl - how can I resist this one?!
4. Verizon northern states (Maine, Vermont and New Hamshire) sale to Fairpoint Communications is halted by one of the 3 states.
5. Google wins 700 MHz spectrum auction. First Google "telephone" trucks appear on Bay area highways.
6. Celtics win NBA championship - this one is a stretch!
7. Verizon offers 100 Mbps symmetrical data service to FiOS customers
8. Google Docs, Spreadsheet and Presenter webware become available offline.
9. Microsoft goes on buying and marketing spree in an effort to keep up with Google's webware applications.
10. Red Sox win American League pennant but are upset in the World Series.
11. Comcast launches DOCSIS 3.0 100 Mbps data service to compete with Verizon's 100 Mbps FiOS service.
12. Video and image search will go mainstream..... watch for my video podcast interview with Atalasoft President Bill Bither coming soon - it's been shot and is being edited now!

As much as I love hockey I'll skip the Bruins this year....... Looking at these 12 - minus the Sox, Patriots and the Celtics - the web has become the development platform of choice with high bandwidth access and availability required on any connected device......... You ain't developin' if it won't run in a web browser!

Happy New Year!