Micropayment II

Last time I bloggt about micropayments I mentioned paypal only in a subordinate clause.
But yesterday paypal announced that they will soon offer a special service for micropayments. 

The advantage of paypal's service is, that they already have the infrastructure to make successful payments for both, buyer and seller. Many web users (included me) have already a proofed account, paypal has access to my bank data and I can easily load money on my account.
The success of the new model will depend from the charges every paying will cost. For payments less then 12$ there is not longer the fee of 0.35€ + 1,9%, but only 0,04€ + 5%.
Practically this means, if you pay 1€ for a virtual good you not longer pay 0,369€ (0,35 + 0,019) but only 0,09 € (0,04 + 0,05).
That makes micro payments a lot more attractive then it was before, if you pay only 9% instead of 36% charge.

Build car-pools with GPS

As the weather turns into rain me and my bike will have a hard time... As I don't have a car it's time to think about rain-alternatives. Advantage of the bike compared to the bus is, that it's riding when I want, in heavy traffic like at the mornings on the way to CIT it's faster, punctually and it's for free.
But what about longer tracks, 10, 20, 50km? Bus and Train seem to be a good alternative, but they are expensive. That's why in Germany there is a community called "Drive-with-me" (www.mitfahrzentrale.de), a domain which organizes car pools to get cheap from city A to B. But get a ride needs a lot of organization, people come late, the car is already full, you have to decide 3days earlier where to go, etc...

Some students from Darmstadt developed now the plattform flinc.org, which uses smartphones and GPS data to find the perfect ride. The system is much more flexible and can reduce the number of cars.

As I used car pools in Germany I think it's really a good alternative for both, driver and passenger. If enough people are registered you can decide very shortterm, if you want to pick up people or if you prefer to ride alone. And as passenger you can plan shortterm-trips without planing 3 days before.

Project Describtion Emerging Technology

The Project will consist of three parts: 

1.      Concept Realapp

One of the goals in the project is to create a real working app on an iPhone. This app should support the creative process in teams by adapting the creative technique “visual synectics”

The app will give you randomly pictures and the user should type in three words, which describe the mood of the picture. These words will then be displayed and give an new view on a topic, e.g. what has “summer” to do with our problem, how can summer help to solve the problem?

The app should start with a randomly picture and requires a textIn-field, a “save word”-button, a “new picture” button.

As the app is very basic I will first start with only one word per picture. If this works very fast I will try to add 2 more words. When all the words (in the first version after one, in a second version after three) are typed in, the app skips to a new screen where you can see just the picture and the words you typed in.

As the app is only one part of the project it keeps very simple. In an advanced version you could add a “Save”-function and the possibility to load your own pictures into the app.

I will first develop a paper prototype and after testing it start the developement in X-Code.

2.      Concept of a Teamwork App

The main part of the project will be the development of a concept. First there will be 2-3 interviews done with people working in creative industries. Based on this I want to figure out what the needs of an app could be. It should be the perfect app which includes everything. It could be unrealistic, it’s more a collection of ideas. This app should support brainstorming and creative thinking. 

Ideas:

Creative Techniques. Brainstorming,

Polls (which using the accelemeter)

Sending results to dropbox and emailaccounts.

Combine iPhone and iApp. iPhone as remote for iPad display

Work together in one room or in different rooms.

Possible Tools in the app

BRAINSTORMING: Paint your letter at the iPad where you want to write and type text with your iPhone.

Others can comment text be clicking it… 

iLike Function makes text bigger.

Touch text with your iPhone. Choose between comment or iLike or don’t like

VISUAL SYNECTICS: one basic of the brainstorming. See other app…

PUPLIC POLLS: up to four answers, laying iPhones on/at iPad

ANONYME POLLS: 4 Buttons at iPhone…

SEND: upload brainstorming to dropbox or emailaccount

3.      Clickable Dummie

Finally the concept should be realized in a clickable dummie. This will be very basic and just show some the functions of the app. Maybe also just a paper prototype.

Homemade Spacecraft

Today I will deal with a very interesting kind of emerging technology. Or better a mashup of old technlogies combined to a new one. This entry won't have 100words, just watch the video and enjoy:


Homemade Spacecraft from Luke Geissbuhler on Vimeo.

Microsoft presents Cloud Computing Office for Companies

This week Microsoft presents a new office which allows companies to work in a cloud. That is another step towards mobile offices because you have access to your software and all your data from all over the world. 

Cloud computing is one of the trends in Gartner's chart that's on the very end of it's "peak of inflated expectations".

The Office 365 combines the normal office with SharePoint Online, Exchange Online and Lync Online with the cloud.

I personally become more and more convinced by cloud computing cause I don't need to bring my laptop to university anymore. With the use of dropbox I have access to my data from every computer with internet connection, so I don't care if I'm working at my PC at home, in the library or at the MACs in our classroom... And if my laptop crashes, I still have a save backup of all my data.

Gartner Hype Cycle 2010

Gartner just released its annual hype cycle, a hypothesis of the coming trends.

Gartner's chart is based on the assumption that new technologies first get into a hype. Then the fall down, because the expectations were to high and the customers are disappointed. After that stage they reach a realistic level. 

Believing his thesis the top topics in the next months are speech-to-speech translation. Internet-TV is still with google-TV at its very beginning. 

Very interesting for me is that virtual worlds, first a big hype are reached the bottom of the expectations, so it seems to get up again.

Let's see how it will develop until next year...

moving homepage to social network

Almost every company has a facebook-account. Some, especially in media have a twitter account too. 

A few companies gave up their normal webpage and use only facebook, like the German version of the men's journal "FHM" with their site fhm-online.de. 

Facebook with its possibility to embed pictures, galleries and videos seems to offer almost the same possibilities like a self-made homepage. And you can get a lot more direct feedback, word of mouth-marketing when you post funny or interesting things. 

On the other hand it's a big step, to give up the own homepage totally. What if facebook blocks your site? What if facebook is down?

Back to the roots...

The argentine Agency Kamchatka goes even a step further and moved their homepage completely to twitter. It's sounds incredible, but it works far well, the handling and the structure of the site is easy understandable and you find all the necessary information. But I guess only an agency can move to such an extreme but very interesting step, might not working for a normal company...

http://twitter.com/kchtk_E

This video explains how the site works: 

Kamchatka Site Demo from Kamchatka on Vimeo.

Statusupdates of Organs on Phone

The Dutch research organisation IMEC presented a new bodynetwork system, which can connect your organs with your mobile, and e.g. forward a message to your doctor.
"The system converts IMEC's ultra-low-power electrocardiogram sensors into wireless nodes in a short-range network, transmitting physiological data to a hub – the patient's cellphone. From there, the readings can be forwarded to doctors via a Wi-Fi or 3G connection." (Graham Rohe, 2010)


This might be alarming, but if you are in a high-risk group for maybe heart-attacks, it can be really important to use those system.
They way the system works remembers me to the andruino-sensors, which are of course not as precise, but to get a general understanding how such things can be done it might be really useful.

Google Cars

Todays entry is again about google. But this time, very unusual, it's about google and cars. Yes, cars.
Like many universities and research companies google developed a car robot which can drive without any driver. And it drove about 140,000 miles...
Again, this development is not new, there were concepts like this even 10years ago. But it's the first time, that a private company, or better, a private internet company deals with the aspect of traffic. Then those robot cars are not only made for the driver, which can relax and read newspaper while his car is driving him to work, it will made the streets more secure. When central computers see, where all the cars are, traffic jams can dramatically be reduced, accidents will hardly happen...

But especially for me as German I have to ask the question if I really want the car drive for me, cause cardriving for me is not work but fun. If you have those robot in your car, there should be the possibility to turn it of, that you can drive by yourself....

facebook places

Todays emerging technologies deals with the start of the facebook-service "places"

Facebook places can show your friends in facebook, where you are right now by using the GPS data of your mobile.
The idea is not new, google started the same service called google latitude in February 2009. But until this week, it was more a service for nerds and internet freaks. With the start of facebooks places, the location based service will arrive millions of users, which use facebook with their mobile.
The importance of a special app using the possibilities of the mobile are at least as important as the development of the normal homepage.
Sometimes I really think I miss something, when I use facebook "just" with my browser...

Street View started in Europe

The last week google started its new service street view all over Europe... All over Europe? No, the leading nation of privacy, Germany, still blocks this service, because thousands of house owners are concerned because of the privacy at their homes...
In other parts of Europe, e.g. in Cork, it's a really handy application...

Streetview in Cork. You can choose every point at the streets...  (View this Example here)

...and navigate through the street, turn around and see every direction...

And in Germany?

No, the pictures are not live and yes, everyone else can make a picture of your house and put it in the internet. So that's what google is using at the moment. Their are even in my very small home town, which only has about 1,000 inhabitants dozens of single pictures which show you the streets, but not in the comfortable and smooth way like google street view does... So google linked them all into google maps, so it almost looks like street, but only almost...

In Germany you can also watch the streets, but only from several points. (View this example here)

The navigation on the streets is missing, therefor you can choose nearby pictures at the left corner.

At the end of the year google want to start the ''real'' streetview in Germany too.
 Until that I use the censored version to view my village and get homesick...

how flattr can reform micropayments in the web

As I'm a media economics I want to deal with the questions of micro payments today.
Still many distributers in the web have to problem, that they can't earn money with their products in terms of blog entries, videos, songs. Small pieces of content, users would pay for, but only small amounts below 1€, mostly only 10cent.
On the other hands it's difficult for banks to deal with such small amounts in a efficient way. The gap has to be filled by companies, who select those small payments and distribute them, when there is a bigger amount.
Appstore/Itunes
The most successful example is for sure iTunes and the Appstore of apple. Most songs and apps are available for 0,99€. The registered user pays a monthly bill, depending from how much content he downloaded. The developer on the other hand get's 70% of the sales, when he reaches a sum of 200€ of income.
Paypal
Another possibility is paypal. It's linked to your bank-account, so you can deposit money and then pay very small amounts for downloads.
Flattr
Flattr is a really new idea, used mainly for blogs, texts and articles. It works like the PRD for music, but on an volentary basis. Bloggers and Readers can register and pay a monthly fee. If you read an article and you like it, you can flattr it (if the blogwriter is also registered). At the end of the month, flattr counts, how many times the flattr button on your blog has been clicked and you get the sum of it on your bank account.






Flattr's problem so far is, that mainly bloggers registered for it. It's more a redistribution of money in the bloggers community. As you also have to pay is blogger, it's only a big deal for blogs with many readers, otherwise you will pay more then you earn.
But if also people outside of that community use flattr, it may become very successful.

Foundation for Media Research

Today we heard a lecture about the possibility of making career in research.
To be honest, the referee Stephen O'Reilly presented more the work of the Framework Programm of the European Union, but it showed up an intesting field for later jobs.
When doing media studies you wouldn't thing, that there is much classical academic research, developements are more made by companies like google or apple, or even small companies, starting with just one product like twitter.

The target group of Mr. O'Reilly's presentations were young researches, who want to apply for research foundation. The European Union founded the Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development back in the 80s, and midwhile it's the 7th round of it. The budget is 50billion euro, "spent on grants to research actors all over Europe and beyond, in order to co-finance research, technological development and demonstration projects." (European Union, 2010)

The foundation is set in three categories, FET Proactive, FET Flagship and FET Open. The Proactive-Programm should build something really new, Flagship is the massive foundation of one huge project and FET Open, which is the most interesting for us Masterstudents is an very open foundation, where several smaller project were support with amounts between 1-2 Mio. €. In comparism to the other foundation there are no strict guidelines, what the outcome should be about. Although it's easy to apply for it.

Conclusion
Summerized I think this program is not really relevant for our studies or master projects right now, but it's worth to think about the possibility to start the profession in research.

TV News? Too late...

Since the landing of a plane in the hudson river it's not that new, that twitter, flickr or even youtube are faster then the classical tv-stations with providing pictures.
But to shoot video and stream it live in the web is very new. Reasons for that is othe technical improvement of cameras in mobiles and data flat rates, which allow a fast streaming.
So what happened?
In Stuttgart, Germany, the German Railway Company decided together with the Government and the Politics of the city to rebuild the main station, which actually is a terminus, under the earth to create a through station.
The project will cost about 6 billion €. To much for a a few trains saving 4minutes of time, many of Stuttgart inhabitants think. So in the last week there were a lot of demonstrations with up to 100.000 people.
Last Thursday some ancient trees in the park next to the main stations should be cut of. Thousands of people came into the park to occupy the affected area. The police had to clear the area in a very rough way. Where the TV cameras were in a quite secure distance, some demonstrates streamed the hard clampdown of the police directly into the web, on platforms like bambuse, which is even live, or in short clips on youtube.



Youtube and other video platforms exist for a while, but the live streaming of videos via mobile phone to reach an audience are new. By spread about twitter and facebook one or two streams reached a big audience.

Posting in Facebook linking to the Live-Stream.

Second Post says: Parksaver-Alarm: Waterguns roll on, Police occupys the park, policemen on horses against pupils, batons used!

That authentic movies put a big pressure to the Politics, who told the police to work in that hard way with the protesters

The classical TV stations could provide first pictures in the evening, 5-6 hours after the clearing of the police happened... Too late for the new generation of internet users.

Links:
Livestreams from the mobile general: bambuse.com

Link used in facebook: bambuser.com/channel/tilman36/broadcast/1053155

Explaining the project Stuttgart21: wikipedia.org/Stuttgart_21