Apple - That's what I said!

Rumors are flying about a new Apple device. Some say the new product will be a mysterious device known as the brick. Some suggest it will be a new rev of Apple TV. And, while I don't necessarily buy that a webcast will happen on Tuesday, as is rumored on a number of sites, I do love to see popular blogs like GigaOm echoing my sentiments regarding the next rev of Apple TV.

Alistair Croll's article on GigaOm is great. He is dead-on with his list of features. The TiVo functionality is a must-have if the device is to be massively successful (although Jobs' biases may never allow this feature to come to pass). I also love Alistair's addition of video conferencing. I was begging for this feature when the Apple TV and the Mac mini first came out; however, since then, I have stopped thinking of conferencing as a potential feature for Apple TV. But, Alistair is right. The time is now.

While it has not yet gone completely mainstream, consumer video conferencing technology is quite good these days. And, using it is a new experience all together. It fills a different void than a phone call. You don't feel as though you are talking to your loved ones; you feel as though you are in their home, sitting with them and chatting. It is a terrific cure for homesickness or missing someone who has been away for some time. It really is amazing, and it's quite good for the soul to see your loved one's faces live over video.

If Apple added video conferencing to Apple TV and brought back an external iSight, enabling people to video conference over their big screen TVs, they would change the world. This stuff would go mainstream within a year. Not only would those who are tech savvy buy this product for their home, they would also buy it and hook it up for their parents. Apple would have a blockbuster, recession-proof product on their hands.

Apple, again, build this product! (I'll even relax on the blu-ray.) Apple TV + TiVo + iChat + a new external iSight. (Given what Apple can do with a tiny form-factor limited camera these days, imagine what they could do with a new external camera without those limits!)

37signals Secret to Making Money

The guys at 37signals are lightening rods to say the least. They are revered by many. Called arrogant by some. And, just plain called jackasses by others. But, one thing you can't argue with is they got flair. Well, over simplified flair.

Here is a great video of David Heinemeier's talk from Paul Graham's Startup School. It is great food for thought for anyone thinking of starting the next great web company. I particularly love David's concept that there just aren't enough people trying to make nice little Italian restaurants on the web. It's a clever analogy. It's also nice that David's humor translates a little better in video than it does in print.

Yammer - Twitter Ripoff? So what?

Some tech writers out there are complaining today because Yammer won the TechCrunch50 and, in their minds, is a blatant ripoff of Twitter. ...Yeah, and? Yammer is a useful and cool product. I do not side with these folks. Okay, yeah, it looks a hell of a lot like Twitter. But, it was an internal tool first, so you can't really blame them for some resemblance. More importantly, are you guys really worried about Yammer stealing Twitter's pie? Twitter has enough problems to worry about with their massive consumer popularity. Trust me, Twitter's management is a hell of a lot more worried about keeping their service up than they are about tackling the enterprise.

Yammer/Geni did a great job adapting the micro-blogging idea to the enterprise. Let them bask in their success. As a guy who has used enterprise wikis before, this is a needed solution - far too many existing tools are just too heavy and cumbersome. I hope Benioff buys this thing for a ton.

9/11 - Remembering

This morning, I was surprised to see that many flags were not flying at half mast. ...This seems like the 9/11 that the world forgot, doesn't it? If, like me, you are feeling that there is not enough notice being paid, check out the following link:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/09/11/911.day/index.html#cnnSTCVideo

It's a nice set of videos in which people are remembering the tragedy. Send it to someone you know who would appreciate it.

Finally, Innovation.

I recently visited an old colleague of mine and she used the term manic to describe the nature of being a venture capitalist - or at least, the nature of deal sourcing. Her use of the term really hit home with me. That is exactly how it feels to be a deal-sourcer at a venture capital firm. One day, you're at the height of professional excitement, chasing down the next great whatever. The next, you're at the lowest of lows, wondering if you'll ever see innovation again. Boy, with TechCrunch 50 and DEMO this week, wow... It's been one of those weeks. (Yeah, I mean the bad kind.)

Company after company rolled across those stages and I thought: are you kidding me? You guys think this is going to change the world? You guys think this will be worth money to someone???

I have to admit - I like Yammer (post on that next). So, that was a bit of an uptick. But, let's be honest, Yammer is not the stuff of innovative dreams. And, post Yammer, boy was that a dry spell. Until yesterday.

What happened yesterday? I saw three pretty awesome, innovative companies. I will list them in their order of real innovation.

1) Atmosphir - Atmosphir is the real deal: world-changing awesomeness. Atmosphir allows users to create video games as easily as if they were building with legos. Well... probably not quite that easily, but that is the great marketing pitch that the company has thought up. Basically, Atmosphir allows kids (and adults) to build levels for their friends to try. It is collaborative gaming where the game, in some sense, is making the game. It truly is the social web meets gaming, and it is awesome. I talked about this idea with a boss of mine years ago, and I am a true believer. Atmosphir will be huge.

2) Grockit - Grockit is a collaborative, fun environment where people can prep for tests. Think test prep meets game show, where you play with and help other people. Doesn't sound fun or useful? Watch the video. They say their vision goes beyond test prep, but... whatever. Moving beyond test prep doesn't matter. TP is a LARGE market. Five bills large.

So, what do I love about this company? First, it seems to be a great product and the collaborative nature brings some real innovation to the marketplace. Second, I love that the judges on this panel at TechCrunch50 had no idea what to do with these guys. They were like, "So, you're going to have to do this or that to get me and my wife on there." Dude. DUDE. This is not for you and your wife. ...Clearly, Scoble has not been training for a standardized test in quite some time. First, test prep is boring as shit, so anything you can do to liven it up is great. Second, if you are an adult and your livelihood depends on a certain test, you are ALWAYS looking for fresh questions. Test questions that come with your book or course get less useful when you start remembering the answers. Grockit will provide test-preppers another source for this valuable content.

Grockit is fun. It's easy to drop in on for five minutes here and there. It provides free extra practice questions. And, it also gives users access to free kickass tutors (the other players who are successful test takers). For all these reasons, this service will be a huge success.

3) Playce - This company scores a little lower on the innovation scale. It is cool and it is innovative. But, IE only? And, it's not a download, but wait... you have to download ActiveX? ...So, besides the minor gripes, what is Playce? Basically, it's an in-browser, badass video game environment that mirrors the real world (e.g. NYC or SF or Paris or wherever). It's a platform company that will allow developers to build games in their world. The graphics are pretty incredible. I just hope it catches on as a platform for developers and not a planning tool for terrorists...

So, there you have it. Finally, some soul satisfying innovation! Good job on finding three, Michael. The rest of those companies... Sorry, but I just don't think they matter. ...Not even typing by making lines across a virtual keyboard. ...Yeah, not even a little. Sorry.

What do you think THIS does to a guy's ego?

Kevin Rose seems like a pretty good dude. I've watched DIGGNATION. I've seen him at a Crushpad event. I like the Apple rumors he likes to propagate. Bottom line - he seems nice enough.

But, holy smokes: www.twitter.com/kevinrose. 62,345 followers! Are you f-ing kidding me??? I mean, that's larger than the population of the city of Palo Alto (roughly 61,200). And, no kidding, every time you hit refresh the count goes up. Basically, there is a small town of Americans follow Kevin Rose's every twitter tweet. What do you think that does to a dude's ego? Shit, if I had 62,000 followers, I'd probably start demanding sacrifices or something. I mean, that's definitely enough people to do some damage. "Bow down to Tekno, little man! Now go turn over that car." ...Seriously though, call me old fashion, but that's a lot of people tuning in to what Kevin just had for lunch. It's pretty insane.

This whole tech celebrity phenomena is an interesting one - for many reasons. But this statistic just fascinates me. Twitter enables an incredible form of voyeurism. And, it is equally incredible that so many people are into it.

Tekno needs a twitter page, although my life may not be as exciting as Kevin Rose's. My lunch options are not nearly as interesting.

By the way, 62,348.

Apple: Make this product!

All right. Enough screwing around. On the eve of Apple announcing yet another rev to its iPod product line, I have had it. Let's have some real innovation. I am tired of having a TiVo and an Apple TV. TiVo has offered a great solution, but has failed to innovate. Apple, you offer Apple TV, another great solution, but purposely keep it limited. Come on, guys! There is no reason why you can't provide a DVR. Get over this religious belief that all content has to come through iTunes! People want cable. People want a DVR. Provide it to them and the living room and the next decade are yours.

Apple, you want to change the world again? You want to add billions to your market cap? (...I know I'm tired of your shares hanging sub $180.) Make this product: Apple TV + Apple DVR + Blu-ray. Every household that owns one or more iPods would buy this device. Steve-O, you would be the uncontested Master of the Living Room and Apple would clench its spot as the Microsoft of this generation. As Dan Lyon's points out here, we all know you're a monopolist at heart, baby. Reach on out and grab it.

Consumer Intelligence: The Future of E-commerce

Hugh Crean – E-tailing needs you!

Since the ‘90s, BI has been revolutionizing the way many companies do business. By analyzing customer, transaction, and operational data, these systems have enabled companies to spot trends that would have been otherwise invisible and make break-through discovers about their businesses and their customers. For many users of business intelligence, these discoveries have lead to both increased revenues and profits. Now, I believe we are on the verge of another kind of intelligence revolution. This time the revolution is in what I call CI, or Consumer Intelligence.

What is CI? Well, it’s very much like business intelligence. CI collects data for its users so they can spot trends, make valuable discovers, and take informed action. Unlike BI, however, CI is used by consumers to monitor data related to their personal lives. Also, unlike BI, in order to be successful, solution providers must do more than provide data and trend-spotting – they must recommend simple, informed actions. Buy. Sell. Hold. Change your behavior in this area or that one. …All actions that will make/save you money or enhance your life somehow.

Examples of such solutions are FareCast (www.farecast.com) in the travel space, Mint (www.mint.com) in personal finance, and greenbox (www.getgreenbox.com) in consumer energy consumption. All of these solutions allow consumers to see data that, in some sense, has always been there, but has been unavailable to date. FareCast gives insight into future ticket prices by analyzing past airfare prices. Mint helps users see the whole picture of their finances by allowing them to see all their accounts (credit cards, checkings and savings accounts, and investment accounts) in one view. Greenbox allows users to see real-time information on their personal energy consumption. And, they all suggest action: buy the ticket now, get a lower interest rate, turnoff your computer while you’re gone. The recommendations from each of these services are so powerful that they can literally save you thousands of dollars a year. And, in many cases, such as with greenbox, they can help you be a better person. (…So, I’m a believer – sue me.)

With these sorts of savings and improvements available, CI-based services have sprouted up in many areas, from fitness (Nike+) to real estate (Zillow). However, there is one obvious area where I think companies are missing the mark: retailing. I am currently using a great service in this space called Shop It To Me (www.shopittome.com). Shop It To Me is a personal shopping service that emails sale items to its users daily, bi-weekly, or weekly, depending on the users’ preferences. The service asks users for their favorite brands and sizes and only emails out sale items that match the consumers' specifications. Every time you click through, you know the item is a brand you like and it’s available in your size. You also know just how much you are saving. It is a great service. However, it is only the first step. Why only clothes? And, why not move beyond brand, size, and today’s offers?

Here’s the service I want. If and when it exists, please let me know. ...I’m a 30 year old guy who is going to make a lot of purchases, both significant and insignificant, over the next five years. I am going to buy 2 large flat screen televisions, a new desktop computer, a new kitchen table, a bar (not a local watering hole – one of these), a wine fridge, a new couch, and probably a bunch of other appliances (not to mention a house, a couple cars, and a bunch of baby shit). I am also going to buy a bunch of clothes, books, and other knickknacks. In all cases, just as Shop It To Me and existing shopping engines have hit on, there are a number of possible vendors – Pottery Barn OR Crate and Barrel, Vizio OR Sharp, J.Crew OR Banana Republic, etc. I don’t really care which one I get, as long as it’s one of my approved brands and it’s a deal. Additionally, I don’t simply want the best price today, as is provided by current shopping engines. And, I certainly don’t want to make all these purchases right now (insolvency = bad).

Here is what I want. I want this service to live in time. I want to be able to put in all these products and all the necessary specifications (color, size, etc.), and I want the service to track their prices. Not only that, I want it to reach out to me and say, “Tekno, you asked me to ping you when I found an approved 40” LCD 40% off the average price for your approved brand list. Here it is. Click here for more information or click here to buy.” Or, I want it to tell me, “Tekno, you told me to find a 40” LCD at 40% off. After reviewing the data, I have found achieving that discount to be unlikely. Here is one at 37% off. Click here for more information or click here to buy.” The future of e-tailing is this: a system that lives in time with all of your requirements, knows and understands historical prices and makes predictions about future prices, and pings you when something is a fit for your desired discount or is at its lowest likely price.

Hugh, your talents are wasted. Leave Microsoft and start this company!

Welcome!

Welcome to Teknologue. I am your host, Tekno. I’ve created this blog to gather and share my thoughts on Technology, Silicon Valley, and maybe Venture Capital. If you like what I have to say, keep on coming back - I promise fresh content and interesting stuff. If not, well… uh, enjoy Tech Crunch.

A little about me… I used to work at a top-tier venture capital firm. I am a graduate of a top business school. And, I am not - dunh dunh DUNH - an engineer.

[Screeching record, Crickets, Etc.]

Coders and entrepreneurs, unbunch your panties. Everything will be cool; trust me.

…Where was I? I live in SF. I am married. …So, I am not looking for a lady teknophile. I am, however, looking for a dog - one that would really call into question whether Mrs. Tekno was a beard or not. Or, at least, I would be looking for a dog if my landlord were not bigoted against the canine persuasion.

So, why Tekno? Why not! 1) It’s more fun than my real name. 2) I may just work for or be trying to work for one of the tech firms or VC firms that I talk about on this blog. I’m not really sweating anonymity, however. So, if this thing gets popular, feel free to figure me out. Shouldn’t be that hard to do, and, at some point, I will definitely put my name on this thing.

Anyway… Thank you very much for reading this. Hopefully Teknologue will make you think and make your day a little more enjoyable.

-Tekno