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OSCON (O’Reilly Open Source Convention) and Ubuntu Live (the first convention devoted to the Ubuntu Linux based operating system) both take place this week - the week of July 23 - in Portland, Oregon. (more…)

A friend and software developer Phil Davis asked me for general advice on how to start a software company. Phil is a long time software consultant who has developed some really innovative software solutions for both public and private sector clients.

Phil uses a broad spectrum of tools and technologies to deliver solutions though he and I often talk about Runtime Revolution, a rapid application development environment for delivering cross-platform applications: develop software under one operating system but deliver on multiple operating systems. Valentina for Revolution is available as an external local database as well as an embedded server solution.

I’m going to begin a series of posts, just like the How to Kill Your Software Company series that will eventually get posted into the semi-permanent pages of this site.

The Supreme Court finding of Leegin v PSKS over manufacturers setting prices will have little impact in the computer software and hardware markets because many anti-competitive practices have been in effect for years. (more…)

Fans of the Apple Mac Mini have banded together to petition Apple to continue to update the Mac Mini. The Mac Mini is a small, consumer oriented version of the Macintosh computer. It has a very small form factor that is exactly compatible with the Apple TV. This little computer has a far greater potential for use outside of just being an entry level machine. Its small form factor lends itself to being a very stackable, portable server, especially with attached network drives. (more…)

Apple released Quicktime 7.2 today. This release is highly desirable since it adds full screen viewing of video, a feature long missing from the general release of Quicktime and widely available in free video players from other companies. Previously you had to purchase Quicktime Pro from Apple for $29.99 to get this functionality. This is an interesting study in forcing end users to upgrade by requirement. (more…)

I visited the Washington Square Mall Apple Store on 4th of July and had an opportunity to join a small crowd of people playing with the iPhone. Two things struck me about the iPhone - how bright and beautiful the screen is compared to so many Windows Mobile based phones, and how dependent the iPhone is on third party services such as You Tube and Google Maps to give it additional value. I did not find the interface to Google Maps as helpful or usable as I would have liked, given how slow the input method is. But Im sure a third party will come up with a small, full keyboard to supplement inputting addresses that wouldn’t otherwise be available by whatever synchronization method is used. I almost never buy first generation hardware but the iPhone gives every indication of not being just another first generation product. (more…)

When I started Proactive International, we exclusively focussed on creating and expanding international distribution channels. We took on e-on software as a client while Vue 2 was still around and Vue 3 was in preparation. This introduced me to the business of licensing 3D content into the prosumer market. This resulted in the creation of our Meshbox Design division .

Although software consumes content, the businesses are fundamentally different. Software is all about highly productive process - and content is the fruit of that process. The intellectual property issues are entirely different and at times, conflicting- the hottest point of conflict: digital rights management and the motion picture industry. Software enables you to display, modify and expand your enjoyment of the content offered by the motion picture industry.

At the same time, as IP holders, the motion picture industry wants to maximize every opportunity to get more money for more uses of the same IP with as little additional work as possible and they are getting more and more clever about it. Look at the endless re-releases of movies - plain initial releases, director’s release, extended release, ultimate release. In each case, a little more content is added to the bill of materials (aka “BOMs”) of the new release, and under new skus. In other words, they want to repurpose the content yet again to create new products that by being unique, you could not possibly get the idea that you already licensed them.

The moral of this story is that, if you are a software vendor and want to license a popular culture character or clever preexisting piece of music, the IP owner will likely present you with a detailed license agreement that puts limits on your use of the character or music you are not accustomed to in the software business. This isn’t insanity - its to be expected.