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"No time is no excuse"

2 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

From 37 Signals' Rework:

"When you want something bad enough, you make the time- regardless of your other obligations. The truth is most people just don't want it bad enough. Then they protect their ego with the excuse of time. Don't let yourself off the hook with excuses. It's entirely your responsibility to make your dreams come true.
Besides, the perfect time never arrives. You're always too young or old or busy or broke or something else. If you constantly fret about timing things perfectly, they'll never happen."





World Cup

3 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Rumo ao Hexa!!!!


As You Climb, Remember to Lift

3 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

I was walking home from my gym in Harlem last week, when I overheard an African American man say the following to whom I presumed to be his girlfriend on the the other side of the phone: "White women got money, they sure got money. But don't worry, I will never leave my Nubian queens."


My first thought- an article I read in the Huffington Post by my soon to be professor at Dartmouth, Dr. Ella Bell:

"Excluding vehicles, single black women have a median wealth of $100. Hispanic women do a little better at $120. To put it bluntly, the average black woman has only 100 bucks to her name.

Compare this to the median wealth of single white women: $41,500. This is not a typo. Single black and Hispanic women have a tiny fraction of a penny for every dollar of wealth owned by white women.

...The bottom line is the majority of women of color in this country are living paycheck to paycheck with no safety net. Most black and Hispanic women -- and the children and loved ones we take care of -- are one check stub away from financial disaster."

Fruits of long-term race and gender discrimination, as well as lack of generational wealth (wills, estates, other assets that are passed down). But the point is, this is a problem that needs attention. Your attention.

One of my concerns is the implications this has to the ability for women of color to move beyond the poverty that surrounds them, by means of, let's say, a college or master's degree.

Today I was privileged to meet with the principal of The Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, along with other UA staff members and some wonderful colleagues, to explore corporate partnerships to enable the next generation of women of color to seize opportunities in technology. (Please stay tuned for updates!) Although technology is a booming industry, you will find a very small representation of women, blacks and Latinos in it. I'm ready to do my part, how about you?

In the words of Dr. Ella Bell: "Even as all of us climb, we must remember to lift."


Scary Goals

3 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

"Far better to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory, not defeat." Theodore Roosevelt, 1899


Yesterday some of my colleagues presented on how they pursued goals that they thought may have been too big for them to tackle.
One of them spoke on how a new year's resolution led her to complete her first half marathon, and another one spoke on how in spite of her busy schedule as a full time employee and mother of two, her desire for social change led her to a 9 month leadership program, CORO.

I love to hear about stories of pursuits of what Jim Collins calls BHAGS- Big Hairy Audacious Goals- which are btw, distinctively clear and compelling.

Which BHAG are you pursuing now? How about your company? Is it big enough to infuse a healthy dose of fear into your loins?

Check out Henry Ford's goal in 1907: "To build a motor car for the great multitude...It will be so low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one...The horse will have disappeared from our highways, the automobile will be taken for granted."

Fourth Gen iPhone

4 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


So an Apple Engineer walks into a bar, has a few German ales, and leaves his 4th Gen iPhone behind. The real deal! The phone ends up with Gizmodo, who is later contacted by an Apple lawyer demanding the phone back.


The most exciting feature, if you ask me, is the video chat camera. At last!!

Check it out: http://gizmodo.com/5520164/this-is-apples-next-iphone


iPad- Bring on the Competition

5 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life




Archos 5 Internet Tablet (great price and large high resolution screen)

Asus T91mt Eee PC (great price and battery life)

HP Slate (slick and has Flash!)

Panasonic Toughbook H1 Field (nice handle, great durability, but older look and 'tough' price tag)


Source: cnnmoney.com, archos.com, asus.com, hp.com, panasonic.com

How Fortune 100 Companies are Using Social Media

6 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


According to a recent study by Burson-Marsteller, 79 percent of the largest Fortune 100 companies are using social media tools.

The study found that 65 percent of the largest 100 international companies have active accounts on Twitter, 54 percent have a Facebook fan page, 50 percent have a YouTube channel, and one-third (33 percent) have corporate blogs. Only 20 percent of the major international companies are engaging with stakeholders via all four platforms.

Although consumer-based social media tools are evidently making credible gains, the fact that the Fortune 100 do not utilize multiple tools may very well be a sign of how these tools have not yet gained significant corporate acceptance. This may highlight an opportunity big companies have in using the social Web to get ahead of competitors.

Here's a copy of the full report and an accompanying power point presentation.


Source: NYTimes, Burson-Marsteller

IDEO's CEO on the Importance of Thinking Big about Design

6 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Wireless Charging

6 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

The Post-Crisis Consumer

6 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Digital Price Tags

6 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Coming soon, to a market near you...



http://money.cnn.com/2009/11/16/smallbusiness/goodbye_price_tags.fsb/index.htm

Innovation and Business Value

7 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Lenny Mendonca, a director in McKinsey’s San Francisco office, interviewed Prith Banerjee, director of HP Labs. Mr. Banerjee discusses how he has tried to align long-range innovation projects with the current business plans and vision of the company. He also talks about the value of localizing research talent, the importance of measuring innovation, and the evolving role of corporate research labs.




Source: McKinsey Quarterly

Innovation in Emerging Markets and their Application in Developed Markets

7 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

iPhone still with AT&T but 3G internet calls are allowed

7 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

We have all heard enough about iPad by now. So I will proceed to more exciting news. Apple is unlocking the ability for the iPhone (and iPad) to be used as web phones. Hurray! It updated the iPhone software development kit on Wednesday to allow internet phone apps to work on the 3G network.

Although this does not mean that iPhone users will be able to switch from AT&T at this very moment, it is certainly a sign of progress. A sign of a brighter future in which consumer will have more provider options, cheaper calls and eventually better service.

The quality of internet calls over 3G are still a little shaky, and would probably get worse with congestion before it gets better. It will probably be much more popular when telecom companies roll out their faster fourth-generation networks (aka Long Term Evolution).

Previously, the only way to use VOIP iPhone apps over 3G was by hacking the phone.

Apple and AT&T had a secret agreement to ban apps that would let iPhone users make phone calls using the 3G data connection to prevent cutting into AT&T’s profits. That agreement was revealed in summer of 2009 when the FCC asked Apple and AT&T to explain why Google’s Voice app was rejected from the iPhone store.

At the same time, Apple is not enabling true 3G openness, because most phones’ SIM cards won’t fit in the iPad micro SIM slot.

The move won’t necessarily change things for the famously rejected Google Voice app for the iPhone. Google Voice lets users channel all their calls through a single Google Voice number, which offers cheap international calls, free long-distance calls, free text messaging and voicemail transcription.


Source: Wired Magazine

Project Natal: Where You Are Your Controller

7 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Well, I already know what I want for Christmas!

Natal is Microsoft's “no-controller” control system for the Xbox. A 3-D camera recognition system turns your body movements into movements on the screen for your avatar.

The camera will “capture” real life items to use in the games and use voice recognition to start a movie playing.

In addition to a variety of games, Natal gives us Milo, a virtual friend who can recognize you and have a chat. Milo, is Cute, in a creepy kind of way (but my kids are still going on play dates with real people!).

Assuming Microsoft delivers everything it promises, X-Box just may overtake the Wii.

Amazing stuff.


iPhone App Helps Man Survive Haiti Earthquake

7 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

McKQ: Good Boss, Bad Times

8 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Great insight from Robert Sutton, author and Stanford management professor, on how to be a good boss in today's difficult climate.

http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/App_Themes/v2.0/swf/external_player.swf

Introducing...3D TVs!

8 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Google's Nexus One On Sale

8 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life



Today, Google unveiled its much anticipated Nexus One smart phone. Woohoo!!

It has a 3.7-inch touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera, wi-fi connectivity, accelerometer, compass, and more. The phone runs on the latest version of Android OS, Android 2.1, also made by Google.

But perhaps the most exciting news is that Nexus One will be able to run on any telephone service provider. T-Mobile is the initial service provider, selling you the phone for $179 with a two-year contract. You can buy the same phone unlocked for $529.

Source: CNNTech

Google Goggles

8 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Google Goggles (now say it five times, as fast as you can) is breaking some grounds on mobile web search. When you take a picture on Google Goggles, that picture becomes the query against a database of billions of images.


This products is in an infant stage, still at Google Labs, and is currently available only on Andriod 1.6 and above.

If You've Been Waiting for Apple's Tablet...

9 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

If you are a bit tired of the wait for the the rumored Apple Tablet, check out JooJoo. It does not offer everything we speculate the Tablet will, but Joojoo's price may be significantly lower than the Tablet and the experience satisfying to those who are primarily interested in using a touch screen gadget to search the web.


The 411:

- On sale staring December 11th

- Price tag of US$499

- 12.1-inch diagonal 720p capacitive touch screen

- 1366x768-pixel resolution

- Runs a proprietary Linux-based operating system

- 4GB of cache memory

- Undisclosed processor

- Thinner than a MacBook Air

- Built-in camera

- Microphone

- Speakers

- One USB port

- A card slot

- One button: the power switch

- The browser supports Flash and other standard HTML extensions, but it won't run non-Web apps (e.g.: No Skype)

- Solely focused on running the Web


source: CNET.com

2010 Top Web Trends

9 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


Pete Cashmore, founder and CEO of Mashable predicts the top 10 web trends for 2010:

  1. Real-time ramps up- including real-time collaboration
  2. Location sharing services- our whereabouts may optionally be appended to every Tweet, blog comment, photo or video we post.
  3. Augmented Reality- e.g.: Layar
  4. Content curation- filters to prevent information overload
  5. Cloud computing
  6. Internet TV and Movies
  7. Convergence conundrum- while many of our gadgets are folded into our smartphones, task-specific devices gain popularity, such as e-readers and flip video cameras
  8. Social gaming- FarmVille on Facebook allegedly has more active users than does Twitter
  9. Mobile Payments
  10. Fame abundance, privacy scarcity
Source: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/12/03/cashmore.web.trends.2010/index.html

Fitness Gadgets

10 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life



I tend to kick-off my Saturdays with an intense fitness workout. And this weekend was no different. As a spinner, I was disappointed when I walked into my gym 10 minutes after the last spinning session of the day had started. So I walked to the individual spinning bikes to make my own workout routine.

To my surprise, I noticed two new spinning bikes with different monitors connected to the them. One of these bikes had a puddle of water (probably sweat) under it. To your average gym non-enthusiast, that may be disgusting and perhaps even scary. But to me, it was a good sign- a challenge I was more than willing to face! And I am so glad I did. The eSpinner gave me one heck of a workout- even better than many of the actual spinning classes I've taken lately.

If you'd like to try this fitness gadget for yourself, or perhaps simply understand what it is that makes this bike so efficient, check out the second item on the video linked below.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid16457163001?bctid=44924776001

Do You Have One of the Best Jobs in America?

10 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

CnnMoney.com has recently posted a list of what it deems as the best jobs in America. It has evaluated the jobs by pay and growth prospect. Job growth is estimated for 2006-2016 from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

If you're an undecided student in college or would like to use a period of unemployment to make a strategic career move, you may find this particularly helpful.


Rank/ Job Title/10 yr Job Growth Forecast



1 Systems Engineer 45%
2 Physician Assistant 27%
3 College Professor 23%
4 Nurse Practitioner 23%
5 Information Technology Project Manager 16%
6 Certified Public Accountant 18%
7 Physical Therapist 27%
8 Computer/Network Security Consultant 27%
9 Intelligence Analyst 15%
10 Sales Director 10%
11 Anesthesiologist 14%
12 Software Developer 28%
13 Pharmacist 22%
14 Occupational Therapist 23%
15 Nurse Anesthetist 23%
16 Software Product Manager 28%
17 Business Analyst, IT 29%
18 Attorney/Lawyer 11%
19 Physician/General Practice 14%
20 Human Resources Manager 13%
21 Senior Financial Analyst 34%
22 Physician/Obstetrician/Gynecologist 14%
23 Clinical Psychologist 16%
24 Psychiatrist 14%
25 Veterinarian 35%
26 Marketing Manager 14%
27 Speech-Language Pathologist 11%
28 Technical Writer 20%
29 Finance Director 13%
30 Telecommunications Network Engineer 53%
31 Director of Communications 17%
32 Hotel General Manager 12%
33 Securities Trader 25%
34 Account Executive 10%
35 Education/Training Consultant 22%
36 Corporate Paralegal 22%
37 Quality Control Engineer 20%
38 Manufacturing Engineer 20%
39 Computer Software Program Manager 28%
40 Applications Systems Analyst 29%
41 Senior Internal Auditor 18%
42 Commercial Property Manager 15%
43 Creative Director 26%
44 Pharmaceuticals Sales Representative 12%
45 Associate - Investment Banking 34%
46 Training & Development Manager 16%
47 Product Marketing Manager 14%
48 Quality Assurance Manager 16%
49 Financial Research Analyst 34%
50 Outside Sales Representative 12%


E-Business Cards

11 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


Are you ready to move your good old business card to the digital era? If you are, then great, get ready to have some fun. If not, check out these apps anyway. They may be nice additions to your paper cards.

Unfortunately, the digital options available today require the users to be on the same platform. Perhaps we will see one of these applications as a true replacemnent to the paper business cards once this changes.


For the recent grad

DubMeNow

For the budding entrepreneur

BusinessCard2

For the frequent conference attendee

CloudContacts

For the technophobe

Wordpress theme

For the tweet-minded

TwtBizCard

For the iPhone addict

Bump

BeamMe

SnapDat

For the social network queen (or king)

Retaggr

For those who miss Tamagotchis

Poken

I will admit that Poken is actually my favorite application (even though I was never into the Tamagochi craze). Imagine arriving at a conference in which every participant receives a Poken upon arrival and proceeds to use it when networking. How convenient and fun!

But had I been really job hunting, I would most likely give less emphasis to style entertainment and more emphasis to practicality and reach.


Source: cnn.com

Quirky Ideas

11 months ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

After 22-yr-old Ben Kaufman achieved great success with Mophie, an iPod accessories company he created, Ben started Kluster, a company that made Mophie's collaborative brainpower its business. Ben consequently became a poster boy for inventors aspiring to bring their ideas to life. This occurrence inspired Ben to create Quirky, a company that may have uncovered the solution to bringing any product idea to life and putting it into the hands of consumers. It's part process, part platform, part awesomeness. Check it out:



Digital Camera with Built-In Projector

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Nikon Europe has announced the introduction of the world's first compact digital camera with a built-in projector.

The S1000pj projects images and videos up to 40 inches in size with a VGA resolution and a maximum distance of 2 meters. The camera is supplied with a remote control and stand for ease of use. It is also a 12.1 megapixel shooter, has an optical 5x zoom and the firm’s Best Shot Selector, which takes 10 shots every time the shutter is pressed and automatically saves the best one.

The camera will be in the market next month for about $430. Not bad, considering all the features it offers.

Now I can appreciate technology that is not only cool, but also useful. Not something you can always take for granted.







Fastest-Growing Techs

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

According to a recent article on Fortune Magazine, these are the fastest growing technology performers in the world.

1. Research in Motion

2. Sigma Designs

3. Sohu.com

4. Ebix

5. Millicom International Cellular

6. Open Text

7. Pegasystems

8. ANSYS

9. Apple

10. AsiaInfo Holdings

Are you surprised?


Source Article

Google Voice and Its Improved Mobile App

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Today, Google is unveiling an improved Google Voice mobile app. Unfortunately for many of us, it's only available for BlackBerrys and Android phones.

Here are a few highlights:

1) In the previous version of the mobile app, users had to type in numbers they wanted to call, rather than accessing them directly from their address books. But now, users can make calls directly from their phones.

2) Recipients of the Google Voice mobile calls or text messages will see the user’s Google Voice number, instead of his/her mobile phone number.

3) Cheap international calls. Rates start at $0.02/minute. Watch out Skype!




For those of you not familiar with Google Voice, it gives you one phone number for all your phones, voicemail as easy as email, and many calling features for free.

If you're interested in giving it a try, you will have to sign up to receive a Google invitation for your number.

World's First Consumer 3-D Digicam

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Courtesy of Peter Parks / AFP / Getty Images


Fujifilm, the company that brought you the first fully digital still camera, is once again, bringing excitement to the snapshot business.

The FinePix Real 3D System (its tentative name) is a 10-megapixel cam that utilizes two lenses, spaced about the same distance apart as human eyes, which allow for the taking of simultaneous photos of the same scene from different angles. When the two images are presented slightly to the right and left eyes of a viewer, that person's brain combines them into a single image, resulting in the illusion of depth.

The camera offers two viewing options: your picture can pop off the screen or print. In other words, one of the options is a 3-D LCD eight-inch picture frame and the other option is 3-D prints, which are made with a clear plastic overlay that acts as a kind of 3-D lens. In addition, Fujifilm plans to launch an online service that will make 3-D prints for consumers.

The camera is expected to debut in Japan this summer and in the U.S. and Europe in September. It will cost around $600, the picture frame will cost several hundred dollars, and the price of the 3-D prints is uncertain. And in case you're wondering, the camera is not much bigger or heavier than some conventional digicams.

Although the 3-D pictures may not be a big competition for the "plain'" pictures as we know them, the 3-D capability undoubtedly brings a new fun element to picture taking. Personally, I'm sufficiently entertained by iPhoto '09. But who knows, I might consider making the purchase when comes down in a couple of years.


Source: Time.com

How to Use your iPhone's Internet on your Mac

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Out of all the features with the 3.0 iPhone software upgrade, there's really only one that blew my mind: Tethering, connecting a device that can access the Internet to another device that cannot. Basically, you access Internet on your Mac computer through the Internet you're paying for your phone.

However, this feature is apparently dormant on the iPhone until ATT manages to build up its network to support such a boost in demand.

So if this feature is not being offered by ATT, why am I excited about it? I'm glad you asked. I'm excited because with a little bit of what I affectionately call 'legal hacking', you can tether today!

P.s.: I wrote this blog entry through tethering. The speed was pretty darn good.

Step by step (for Mac):

1. Use FIREFOX to download file ATT_US.ipcc

2. Make sure to QUIT iTunes

3. Open Terminal and type "defaults write com.apple.iTunes carrier-testing -bool TRUE" (without the “ “). Then hit enter.

4. Open iTunes, select your phone and press "check for updates" while holding down the 'Alt' key on your keyboard. You will be prompted to select a file. Select the ATT_US.ipcc file.

5. Sync your phone

6. After you load the file, make sure you restart the phone

7. Pat yourself on the back; you're tethering!









Supermarket Coupons for Your Cell Phone

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


nytimes.com

A mobile marketing company in Chicago called Samplesaint developed technology that allows supermarket scanners read the image of a coupon bar code from the display of any cell phone. Coupons are sent directly to consumers through text message. Once coupons are used, they are automatically removed from the cell phones.

This technology will be used this month in a joint trial with Unilever at a ShopRite supermarket in NJ.

I've never really used supermarket coupons before, but I would be willing to try this out. My only concern would be text spam from the supermarket. This is of course assuming that I would one day give up on Freshdirect.

Bing.com- Microsoft's New Search Engine

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

I'm not ready to give up Google for Bing just yet. But it looks interesting.

The TED Commandments

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

I've seen many presentations on interesting material being delivered in not so interesting ways. It's always a bummer. But I'm yet to have this kind of experience with a TED speech. Sure, TED speakers are accomplished professionals professionals; but I think you all know that impressive accomplishments are not necessarily accompanied by impressive communication skills.

I ran into some ting today that made me think that the caliber of TED's speeches may have something to do with TED's recipe for speech delivery. Every person scheduled to speak at TED apparently receives a rock in the mail, with the TED speakers' guidelines printed on it.


1. Thou shalt not simply trot out thy usual shtick
2. Thou shalt dream a great dream, or show forth a wondrous new thing, or share something thou hast never shared before
3. Thou shalt reveal thy curiosity and thy passion
4. Thou shalt tell a story
5. Thou shalt freely comment on the utterances of other speakers for the sake of blessed connection and exquisite controversy
6. Thou shalt not flaunt thine Ego. Be thou vulnerable. Speak of thy failure as well as thy success.
7. Thou shalt not sell from the stage: neither thy company, thy goods, thy writings, nor thy desperate need for funding; lest thou be cast aside into outer darkness.
8. Thou shalt remember all the while: laughter is good.
9. Thou shalt not read thy speech.
10. Thou shalt not steal the time of them that follow thee.


My favorite commandments are 1, 3, 4 and 5. I hope you put them to good use!

Smartest Search Engine?

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Wolfram Alpha is expected to be open to the general public sometime this month (some say as soon as this weekend). Good stuff. I can't wait to use it.

Mobile App Trends

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

CTIA's (The International Association for the Wireless Telecommunications) is currenlt hosting its annual wireless show. Speakers includes the likes of Al Gore, Robert Bach (President at Microsoft), Robert Dotson (T-Mobile's CEO) , Ivan Seidenberg (Verizon's CEO).

Some notable mobile trends emerged in the show. The main ones are remote content management, integrated communications, and mobile VoIP calling. Very interesting stuff! 

Check out this article for more details.

Touch Screen Phone for the Blind (and you)

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

One of Google's Open Source projects, Eyes-Free, is enabling eyes-free use of mobile devices running Android. Now the glassy screen of a touch-sreen phone will be accessible to the blind. The phone will also be useful to anyone who may need to operate a phone without looking at the screen. Hopefully, that doesn't translate into more careless driving out there!


Do You Appreciate Technology?

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life



Happy friday everyone!                                                                            

Tata Nano: World's Smallest and Cheapest Car

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

What makes the Nano so small and cheap? I’m glad you asked: a lack of air conditioning and air bag, wind-down windows, manual steering, a 43mph engine, plastic welding and bodywork made of sheet-metal and plastic.

Tata is hoping that the Nano will take a chunk form India's bike market; sighting 700 million bike sales last year. 



Diversity vs. Affirmative Action

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


My buddy, Jessica Carter, wrote a great article on the difference of Diversity and Affirmitive Action. Check it out:

"The concepts of diversity and affirmative action are often confused with each other, but there are substantial differences between the two.

The term “affirmative action” was initially used in Executive Order No. 10925, signed in 1961 by John F. Kennedy.  The Order required that federal contractors “take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.”  The Order was later expanded by Lyndon Johnson in 1967, to include women.

Affirmative action is part of a panoply of laws, regulations, and agencies that were designed to remedy socio-historical inequities, and are generally limited to addressing historical discrimination against groups such as women and people of color. It is undergirded by the notion of societal responsibility, so that in the same manner that society perpetuated discrimination against these groups, so too society must be responsible for rectifying its previous discrimination against them. It is important to understand that affirmative action is as much of a legal matter as equal employment opportunity, and that it is rooted in issues related to historical discrimination, not just present-day inequities.

Diversity, on the other hand, is a more inclusive concept and includes people of various religions, marital status, sexual orientation, economic status, and a variety of other different states of being.  It is undergirded by the notion that organizations benefit most when they leverage the abilities of all of their employees, and implicitly positions discrimination as an impediment to organizational profitability and productivity.  Rather than being rooted in the law, diversity is a strategic business imperative, which continues to increase in importance as distinctions among people become more prevalent in the workplace.

Diversity and affirmative action deal with issues related to discrimination, but in different ways.  Affirmative action is a legal redress of historical discrimination, while diversity views discrimination as an impediment to company profitability. They are complementary in function, but different in their origins and goals."


Picture courtesy of  *charminglyBohemian on Flickr.

World's Most Energy Efficient Desktop?

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

                                                                             Courtesy of Apple.com



Yesterday, Apple unveiled its new desktop product line. All the new machines meet the requirements for Energy Star 5.0 certification, which kicks in this summer. Apple Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook claimed in a statement that the new Mac Mini is the world's most energy efficient desktop.

The Mini uses the new Nvidia GeForce 9400M integrated graphics chip, which is expected to improve graphics performance as much as fivefold. Price for the Mini (w/o monitor) ranges from $599 (1GB RAM, 120GB hard drive) to $799 (2GB RAM, 320GB hard drive).


Source Info: cnet.com, cnn.com, apple.com

Microsoft TechFest '09

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Social Desktop





Some cool improvements on the Surface. If it ever makes its way into the market...



For more info on TechFest.

Universal Cell Phone Chargers by 2012

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


The GSMA (Groupe Speciale Mobile Association), which represents more than 750 of the world's cell phone operators, announced today that it has closed at a deal with the world's leading handset makers, to come up with a universal phone charger using Micro-USB technology. GSMA promises that by 2012 most cell phones will use the same kind of connector to charge their batteries.



The GSMA hopes the initiative will slash the greenhouse gases that result from the manufacture and transport of chargers by 13.6 and 21.8 million tonnes each year. In addition, GSMA CEO, Rob Conway, said that the GSMA will push cell phone manufacturers to develop chargers that consume about 50 percent less power.

According to GSMA, companies which have signed up to the plan include 3 Group, AT&T, KTF, LG, mobilkom austria, Motorola, Nokia, Orange, Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Telecom Italia, Telefónica, Telenor, Telstra, T-Mobile and Vodafone.

----------------------------
1) This charger would eliminate a chronic user frustration and help the environment; great! But what took them so long?
2) Apple is not on the list. From a user perspective (although I'm not trying to speak on behalf of my fellow iPhone geeks), that does not disappoint me. Everywehere I go, I seem to have easy access to a computer and someone's iPod cable, which = cell phone charger. 

Thanks to cnn.com and cnet.com

The Message and the Audience

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

I moved to a new office in my building a couple of months ago. This morning, I decided it was finally time to get rid of the card box that's been staring at me from the corner of my office since I moved.


As I was removing paperwork from the box, I ran into some interesting notes from 'Structuring the Message', a courses I took in my company.  The notes referenced the importance of being very mindful of who is your audience when you prepare a message. Good stuff.

Careerbuilder Builder Super Bowl Commercial
Careerbuilder seems to know the audience it's targeting, but is that audience realistic? Does the company have a target audience significant enough to justify the $3 million investment?
With about 500,000 jobs slashed last month alone in the USA and a very uncertain economic future...who is looking to leave a job today for higher employment satisfaction? 



Target 'A New Day' Commercial
In contrast, when I was watching TV last night, I saw a Target commercial that I think is much more 'on target' for today's economy. Which one of you has not found a way to be a little more prudent with your money? I'd say Target has a more realistic audience, and has done a good job of structuring the message to it with this commercial.



From a User's Perspective

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Cooper uses 'The Drawing Board'- a cool series of narrated slide shows that walks a persona through a scenario- to look at the world from the perspective of users and their goals. This highlights a lot of bad interactions in a user's daily life, which in turn stimulates discussions about how technology can alleviate some of the frustrations caused by these bad interactions.

I'm a big proponent of investing time in knowing users so that we can accurately target their needs. And as such, I strongly recommend that you check out this short video. Besides the fun pictures, this presentation really drives the idea home.


The Drawing Board: Commuter Buddy from Cooper Journal on Vimeo.

My Kind of Diversity

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

I thought it would be interesting to learn how many people ‘like me’ (same gender and ethnicity) are part of the newest entering classes of the top ten EMBA programs in the USA.


Here is what I learned:


Data drawn from BusinessWeek.com's EMBA profiles published on 11/13/08.


Here are the questions I have:

  1. What could these schools be doing better to attract and retain Hispanic women?

  2. Should we imply that because of these low numbers it would be easier for Hispanic women to enter these programs, or are these numbers a reflection of how circumstances make it harder for Hispanic women to thrive in these environments? Or is it neither?

  3. How can I, and you, impact our communities so that today, or 5, 10, 15 years down the line, there are more Hispanic women pursuing such a prestigious degree? Should we care?

According to the 2008 Census, there are 46.7 million Hispanics in the USA, about 15% of the total population. This population is projected to nearly triple from 2008 through 2050.

Electric Bandages?

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


Bandage plus voltage. 


First Projector-Phones

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life

Samsung's The Show: Built-in projector, 3.2-inch OLED screen, digital TV tuner, five-megapixel camera. There are also suspicions that the phone will allow users to to tune in and record digital TV broadcasts, and make video calls. Will premier in Korea.








Logic Bolt: Packaged with a built-in projector, PowerPoint, Excel and Word. Future versions promise to have the entire Windows Mobile Software pack and full video-conferencing capabilities. Expected to be available at T-Mobile for $100 with a two-year contract.





Watch out BlackBerry.

Mildew on Clothes? Twitter can help!

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


Ryan Rose, The TiVo senior programmer from San Jose, hacked his 25-year-old washing machine to send a message to Twitter whenever his laudry is done.

After some attention from various blogs and news articles, Rose's washing machine has 407 followers on Twitter -- meaning 407 people hear about it every time he does laundry.

After reading the article on this machine, a few things flashed across my mind:

1) Don't judge an appliance by its appearance

2) I want my washer and oven to do the same

3) Alan Kay's quote: "The easiest way to predict the future is to invent it."


Walk-through of hack: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkMXpKmRXvU
Wash Status: http://twitter.com/pimpy3wash

Source information courtesy of LATimes.com
Image courtesy of eddy1210 on YouTube

Technology and the Economic Stimulus Plan

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


The economic stimulus plan presented by House Democrats this month calls for $37 billion of high-tech spending in the following areas: computerizing medical records, creating smarted technical grids and spending high-speed Internet access in rural and undeserved areas.

Obama's transition team asserted that the investment in those three areas could produce more than 900,000 jobs in the first year alone. These jobs, according to John Irons from the Economic Policy Institute, would range from the implementation to the adoption of these technologies locally, spanning a spectrum of skills and income levels, in addition to not being outsourced offshore.

Advocates say that the appeal goes beyond the stimulus, building a platform for productivity gains and long-term growth. The high-tech investments can be the equivalent of federal financing for highways in the 1950s, they say, which fostered the growth of businesses such as automakers and retail chains.

Critics argue that while these projects are worthy of the long term, they should not be part of the recovery plan. The problem is that not every investment in the technology field fits the standard of the initiatives that are to be included in the plan. The standard, according to Blair Levin, former technology advisor to Obama's transition team, is that the initiative be “timely, targeted and temporary,” while also creating jobs.

Stanford economist, Robert E. Hall says that the government should not pour money into those areas, as competent suppliers would be in short supply and get increased incomes, benefiting mostly individuals companies, rather than the economy as a whole.
Substantial investment in technology is clearly necessary to keep the USA competitive. But do you think it belongs in the recovery plan?

Source information courtesy of NYT.com
Image courtesy of MashGet on Flickr

















Sweet Indulgence

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life


Optoma has developed an enticing new toy that I would have loved to have back in my traveling days as a consultant. Pk-101 is a 4 oz, 0.6 by 2 inches projector that can be hooked up to any media device.

The other day, when I was struggling to get the projector to work in one of our conference rooms, I just longed for the day when a standard laptop would have its own projector. But PK-101 has given me new aspirations. What I really want is to run presentations from a web app in my mobile device. Now, THAT's mobility.

Image courtesy of CNN.com.

Training with a Budget of $0.

about 1 year ago | Erika Santos: Santos on Technology and Life




Times are tough. Budgets are trim. Specially when it comes to training.



So I decided to increase my skillset inhouse. Having been a Product Owner on different SCRUM teams for about a year, I've come to truly trust the process. And now, it's time for more of it.

My idea is to be coached by a colleague on becoming a SCRUM Master (SM) while coaching a colleague on becoming a Product Owner (PO). Meanwhile, I've also joined a work initiative that allows me to be a SM in a project in which we will develop a tool internal to our department (low risk).

The skills of a PO and a SM are distinct, but of course, complementary. So regardless of what path I take in the upcoming year, I am certain that I will be a greater contributor to my teams for better understanding the SM role.

If anyone out there is also interested in learning more about being a SM, below is some information I found very helpful.

Courtesy of Pete Behrens
SM Key Responsibilities:
  1. Facilitating effective meetings (not necessarily running them, but ensuring that they are focused on the right things, and that team members are engaged)
  2. Coaching (in action, by doing)
  3. Agile Leadership (getting team to self organize)
  4. Organizational Development (removing impediments, exerting influence, navigating through bureaucracy)
SM Traits:
  • Understanding of SCRUM rich enough to be able to educate others about it
  • Making project/activities 'about the team'
  • Facilitating- Engaging team members in decision making

Suggested Reading:
  • Artful Making by Robert Austin and Lee Devin
  • Managing for Excellence by David L. Bradford and Allan R. Cohen

Image courtesy of weddingssc1 on Flickr.