Nov 19 2008
Quick post for all our geeky friends…
First, Apple posted a new HD Star Trek trailer… the movie is looking pretty good so far.
And lastly, Rafe Needleman wrote a nice post on cnet.com about testing network connectivity in Space.
With those 2 links and a cup of Joe, any geek is ready to start the mid-week morning!
Nov 17 2008
Heard about Motrin Moms?
So Motrin (yeah, the pain reliever) just a little headache today courtesy of Twitter. They launched a new ad campaign targeting the pains of moms… however… the campaign did not sit well. Not well at all.
Mothers took offense to the add (perhaps the claims that carrying a baby is in fashion now) and posted complaints on twitter. Motrin ended up blogging an apology:
McNeil Meets Twitter - We Hear You
November 17th, 2008
By Kathy Widmer, Vice President of Marketing, McNeil Consumer Healthcare
This weekend, a lot was said about Motrin on Twitter and in the blogosphere. Unfortunately, it was not the kind of conversation that we here at McNeil had hoped to be at the center of.
For those who haven’t been following this, it all began when we ran an advertisement online over the weekend that talked about babywearing - which is a term that we used to describe carrying a child in a sling or wrap.
It was meant to engender sympathy and appreciation for all that parents do for their kids, but did so through an attempt at humor that missed the mark and many moms found offensive.
Now as you can imagine, we certainly didn’t mean to offend moms through our advertising. As a mom of three girls, I understand many of the comments made and agree that we know what’s best for our kids and for ourselves.
On behalf of McNeil, I’m sorry if you found this advertisement insulting. We are are in the process of removing it from our website. Unfortunately, it will take longer for us to remove this advertisement from magazines as several are currently on newsstands and in distribution.
One bright spot is that we have learned through this process - in particular, the importance of paying close attention to the conversations that are taking place online. It has also brought home the importance of taking a broader look at what we say and how it may be interpreted
Our take? Very interesting on how Twitter can create quick impact… now it’s time to move on to something better… like the economy, Darfur, domestic violence, or anything else.
Links:
Nov 17 2008
The Wall Street Journal reports this morning the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) has filed Insider Trading charges against Mark Cuban. The charges reportedly stem from unloading shares of Mamma.com (after learning of a private offering funding).
The SEC believes that Cuban allegedly sold his 6% ownership just before a public announcement which saw shares of Mamma.com drop 10%. The sale of shares saved Cuban around $750k.
For more info, go directly to the source and read the Wall Street Journal’s post.
Mark Cuban is the owner of the Dallas Mavericks and Chairman of HDNet. Appropriately, his post recent blog post is titled, “I hate to lose.“
Nov 12 2008
Ok, this blog does not deal with VoIP, but while we’re talking about security vulnerabilities…
A University of Florida College of Dentistry server containing sensitive patient information was compromised; providing access to more than 344,000 current and former patient records. What type of information? Names, birthdays, social security numbers, addresses, were just some of the information compromised.
The Gainesville Sun states:
While UF officials have no evidence the intruder used the information for fraudulent purposes, letters were mailed to 336,234 people who had information on the system to alert them. The university lacked mailing addresses for nearly 8,250 additional patients with data on the server and is seeking help in locating them.
A hotline, 866-783-5883, has been established for patient inquiries.
Although the FBI and Police are investigating, the University of Florida needs to raise their hand and say “My bad.” As an institution of higher learning, the Univeristy prides itself on leading the way. Having a security breach to sensitive systems that’s noticed only during an upgrade is consistent with and organization that places a low value on the privacy of their “clients.” From a hospital this would be unacceptable. But from the “flagship” of the State University System of Florida, it’s truly inadmissible.
Of course, this isn’t the first time the University of Florida has allowed access to sensitive data. As we said on June 12th:
The time for excuses is over. After all, our hero Benjamin Franklin used to say, “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.“
Nov 11 2008
snom introduced a new VoIP phone recently, the snom 820. We’re always excited to see new VoIP telephones enter the SIP market, especially ones that easily integrate with Asterisk and multiple VoIP solutions. And with built in WiFi, this phone looks to be a great addition to any deployment.
snom markets the 820 as reflecting “the 8 experience:”
The snom 820 is a new step in combining high class telephony with an extraordinary design. The snom 820 is the beginning of a superior line of business VoIP phones. It´s extraordinary elegance and performance combines both: latest technology and well known snom features. The snom 820 is an amazing experience for everybody who is used to the basic world of telephony.
The telephone boasts an impressive array of features such as:
Pricing seems to range from $375.00 - $500.00.
Nov 10 2008
Within a week of announcing store closures, Circuit City has now filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Cnet.com reports the store recently negotiated a 1.1 billion “debtor-in-possession revolving credit” to assist with working capital for the chain.
After closing 150 stores and providing massive lay-offs, the bankruptcy was almost a certainty.
Nov 06 2008
CNet news reported a new method for cracking common WiFi encryption. The new method targets the WPA (or Wi-Fi Protected Access) method of securing wireless networks. Unlike past exploits, this new method reportedly does not use dictionary attacks and can be performed in less than 15 minutes.
WEP (or Wired Equivalent Privacy), the other common encryption for WiFi, also contains many security vulnerabilities. Recently, known issues in WEP security were exploited to commit the largest data breach in US History. The target? Wireless cash registers secured with WEP.
Current recommendations suggest using WPA2 when securing wireless networks.
Nov 06 2008
Hotspot users, there’s a new merger in town. Andy Abramson at VoIP Watch shares his views on the new merger. He also uses the word Machiavellian. Very nice.
Nov 05 2008
Microsoft Response Point is the Microsoft version of VoIP. Do you sense a bit of sarcasm? Honestly, we don’t know. We will not use this post to feed the Microsoft vs. Linux debate. Instead we will use a “historical perspective” to explain our position and then move on…
Start Historical Perspective
The vast majority of VoIP solutions are built on top of a linux operating system. This translates to the stereotype of a rather large, geeky individual (have you seen the photo of Patrick and Fred?), installing the VoIP system, configuring phones, drinking caffeine, cursing at users, reconfiguring phones, talking about comic books, drinking more caffeine, and then working more on the VoIP system. When finished, the end result is generally a very stable and well run system. A system that works so well, that people are willing to listen to Fred and Patrick (uh… we mean our geeky friend) talk about comic books; simply because the phone system (and network) run so well.
Enter Microsoft. Microsoft tries (and sometimes succeeds) in making products that a non-geek can implement. Through graphical user interfaces (GUIs), they allow the Microsoft user to point, click, and essentially “program” their needs into the Microsoft solution. For small businesses, without a geek on hand (or time on hand), the Microsoft solution can sometimes handle all of their needs and provide an excellent solution.
Yes… geeks are divided. Some geeks hate Microsoft as if Microsoft were the Space 1999 to their Star Trek. Other geeks, have evolved into more tolerant creatures; agreeing to disagree and live together with nice TCP/IP connected handshake. Sure, if you have a custom situation and wish to code a phone system to work specifically as you wish, you’re going to want to talk to some geeks. If you’re a small business, with let’s say 50 or less phones, and want a phone system for your office, Microsoft Response Point may be very helpful and also save you some money.
End Historical Perspective
Recently, VoIP Supply announced they will be offering the complete line of Microsoft Response Point small business VoIP phone systems from Aastra, D-Link, and Quanta. VoIP Supply even has a nice page for it on their website: http://www.voipsupply.com/phone-systems/response-point.
If you know an office looking for a simple, easy-to-use small business phone system, have them talk with the folks at VoIP Supply and see if the Microsoft Response Point system is a good fit.
As for us? We’re ready to talk about The Avengers movie coming out in less than 2 years.
Nov 03 2008
The Wall Street Journal reported today that Circuit City is considering closing at least 150 stores in an attempt to avoid filing bankruptcy. The plan also includes the elimination of thousands of jobs.
For those who look for silver linings, the closing stores will be planning a liquidation sale of on-hand merchandise.
Update: cnet is already saying good-bye to Circuit City
