Frustration Friday: Museum of Bad ideas

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I want a museum of bad ideas.

I want a museum (online or off) that is truly dedicated to the "it seemed like a good idea at the time" crowd of innovations, technologies, and so forth.  I don't just want snarky articles and annual "worst ofs," I want a shrine in concrete or pixels to the truly egregious ideas that people really thought were the next big thing.  I also want it as soon as possible.

I want this, because I both want to look back, and because I want a place to remind me of stupid stuff I've believed.  I figure everyone out there that tries and predicts things needs this.

One of the things we do here is predict the future.  Now Bonnie and I do pretty well, but we've made some real mistakes (remember when I thought the iPad was more slow burn?  Yeah, I keep reminding myself).  These mistakes would be easier to stop if there was one place to go to marinate myself in the well-meaning stupidity of the past.

Thus I want the Museum of Bad Ideas.

See, here's the thing.  I have plenty of ideas, and I know instinctively that some part of them are really awful.  I have plenty of theories of the future which I share endlessly here, and I know some will be near-mythical levels of dumb.  I'm just not sure, at the time, when I'm a genius and when I'm mistaking "enthralled with an idea" or "head up my ass" for "genius."

I figure If *I* fear that I'm being stupid, others do.  Those that don't fear being stupid, well, they're great for creating exhibits.

So, I think this museum is a great idea.

Of course my fear?  My fear is I'm wrong and this is a dumb idea.

– Steven Savage

Ecosystems: Effects On Careers

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Last column I discussed how ecosystems in technology – those unified technology products like Apple makes and everyone else wants to make – are a big trend in tech.  Considering recent news and developments, I'd say the existence of this trend is fairly obvious.  What is not always obvious is what it means for we progeeks and our careers and ambitions.

Wanting to cover the career impact because, hey it's what I do, I'll look at different areas of work and media and how ecosystems impact them.  This "divided up" method should make organizing and communicating my thoughts easier.  If I miss anything while doing it this way, call me on it.

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News Of The Day 2/15/2011

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Sad News, Joanne Siegel, wife of Jerry Siegel and model for Lois Lane passed away at the age of 93

Economics/Geekonomics:
MERS lacks right to transfer mortgages. Why do you care? The company behind MERS holds half of all US mortgages and was created to assist with mortgage transfers (and of course get around mortgage paperwork). In short, it's processes don't comply with the law, a ton of banks and loan agencies used them, and this can screw up transfers, foreclosures, everything.

Gee, people behind derivatives trading wouldn't engage in Astroturfing, would they? Stupid question, they would. A lot of people make a lot of money – and screwed a lot up – and are afraid of new regulation. Remember new regulation may not just stop some transactions, it might just dig up old things . . .

Geek Law:
The Righthaven case could make things more complicated for media companies, depending on how the decision goes. never thought about this, probably worth reading.

Cleantech/Greentech:
WOW. Brightsource raises $89.6 million. They're working on a solar thermal plant in the Mojave. That's a lot of cash for an interesting venture. Oakland is not exactly the idea workplace for people (neither is the Mojave), but man that's a LOT of money . . .

Soldagim, which makes self-tinting windows (which also help control temperature and building environment) raises $10 million. Sweet little piece of technology. They also got a loan to put a factor in Missisippi. Smart people, good tech – it might not be sexy, but I like what I see here. Resume-worthy.

Mobile:
Tango, which makes a 3G/4G video calling app raised $8.7 million. They've got a slick product there, and it scales well. I suspect they'll probably get bought by someone, but it may be a place to get into for the benefits (and the buyout oppos). Resume-worthy.

Publishing:
Looks like Apple really does want a 30% cut of subscriptions under many conditions. This is something I'm both uncomfortable with, yet also understand – as Apple's logic seems to be they're why the person got the app in the first place. At the same time 30% seems like an awful lot. This is more aggressive than I expected, and I think it's a bad move for Apple. Read the whole thing to get the picture.

Social Media:
Ads that allow you to 'Like' and share them? Maybe it's the technophile in me, but I like this idea from RadiumOne. Sure they used to be someone else, but I really think this is idea is clever, and at least someone is rethinking Ads. Let's see how they do – and you may want to give them a reuse.

Technology:
GetJar, which has its own App store on many platforms, raised $25 million. Sounds resume-worthy.

HTC (the guys who are investing in OnLive), launches a powerful 7" Android tablet.

Video Games:
Zynga is still trying to raise funds, and they're going to some big names (Fidelity, T. Rowe). After Goldman got a piece of Facebook, I'd certainly consider a piece of Zynga (which does make things).

Pokemon card game goes online. I didn't see this coming, interesting to see.

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY: How are people going to react to Apple's pricing?

– Steven Savage