Technomage Blog

iPhone

Like every self respecting geek I needed to get my iPhone on launch day. After waiting for 3 hours at an AT&T store I found out there were half as many phones as the people in line when I arrived! The wait was not that unpleasant actually. They took a list of people as they arrived and only required people to wait in order starting at about 5:45. So I got dinner, and had a chance to read a book for a bit before being on my feet for the last 2 hours. The people in line were interesting company, and the only real annoyance was the way AT&T handled the situation. They obviously were trying to grab as many sales as possible rather than letting them "get away" to an Apple store. So some people may have been willing to give them a name and wait for drop shipppment. Most of us were not. After calling the local apple store (we have 2), it turned out they had no line any longer and plenty of stock. A short drive later I had my iPhone and all was well with the work/wait. The device is so good in fact that we picked up one for my wife this morning. Unlike any other smartphone on the market we see this as being able to help organize our lives, not just be a phone with a few cool features.

So now I need to start developing the apps that we see as worthy of this tool and that will let us keep our lives organized and free of mundane tasks that were never worth doing on a computer that sat at home, or in a laptop bag. The fact that we have the iPhone with us at all times makes it uniquely able to take over those common tasks like grocery lists, to dos, expenses, and money management. We already have design ideas for several of these that will exploit the unique aspects of the iPhone and its constant availability.

Posted 6/30/2007

Welcome

Starting a new company is always exciting and terrifying. Fortunately we have done this before, and know what to expect. Making payroll, setting up a web presence, meeting client needs, and actually having some time to write code, all play their part. It does feel good though to be out on our own again, not dependent on someone else to do it right, or to see things we see. Fear of responsibility is not one of our failings, which is why we can do this. Being accountable is not the same as being dependent. One has power the other does not. Corporate jobs are fine for a change when we get weary of having to go find the next project, but are not good as a steady diet.

Posted 6/15/2007