Communications of the ACM
The blog archive provides access to past blog postings from Communications of the ACM and other sources by date.
November 2010
From The Eponymous Pickle
Holographic Videoconferencing?
Long suggested, but still not here. Some steps in the right direction described in Technology Review. Is it really required to do rich communications? I have been of the opinion that it is necessary only if you need to share…
From The Computing Community Consortium Blog
GENI: Toward the Future of Global Networking
From The Eponymous Pickle
Shop Saavy Scanning App Update
I just took a quick look at the ShopSavvy barcode scanning app on my IPhone 4. I had reviewed it previously versus RedLaser. The new update and user interface is far easier to use versus previous versions and works quickly…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Self-Scanning at Carrefour
Carrefour in Belgium is offering a self-scan personal scanner device for shoppers in Beligium. First I have seen Caffefour do this. I still think that the future of this kind of capability is in the use of Smart Phones that…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Where Augmented Reality is Going
An interesting and informative piece on the direction of augmented reality ideas. I do see this as a kind of application, especially in retail, that we will see more often on the mobile platform, since we can choose our reality…
From The Female Perspective of Computer Science
Passion and Problem Solving
There's a new theme over at Comp Sci Woman about what we love, and I wrote the first post for it:
There are two things I love the most about computer science: the ability to connect it with whatever your passion is, and the…From Schneier on Security
Did the FBI Invent the D.C. Bomb Plot?
Last week the police arrested Farooque Ahmed for plotting a terrorist attack on the D.C. Metro system. However, it's not clear how much of the plot was his idea and how much was the idea of some paid FBI informants:
The indictment…From Wild WebMink
links for 2010-11-03
FSF position on GPLv2 and current App Store terms "To summarize: * The App Store terms apply to GPLed software in the App Store. * Those terms force strict Usage Rules on customers that prohibit many activities that are allowed…
From Putting People First
Computational objects with information shadows
Mike Kuniavsky, writer, designer, researcher and entrepreneur and co-founder of both ThingM, an electronic hardware design, development and manufacturing company, and Adaptive Path, has written a new book: “Smart Things: Ubiquitous…
From Wild WebMink
DRM Essay
My essay explaining why DRM (Digital Restriction Measures) are toxic to culture is now available in the Essays section.
From The Eponymous Pickle
The Buying Brain
The Buying Brain: Secrets for Selling to the Subconscious Mind, by A. K. Pradeep, Pradeep is the CEO of probably the best known neuromarketing company: Neurofocus, in part owned by Nielsen. Just in the process of reading this…
From The Computing Community Consortium Blog
Paul Debevec wins Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Scientific and Engineering Award
Congratulations to Paul Debevec — Research Associate Professor & Associate Director of Graphics Research at the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies — who won an Academy Award earlier this year…
From The Eponymous Pickle
Making a Robot Dance
In the IEEE Spectrum. An insightful article about how to make a humanoid robot dance. I am not sure the goal of any robot should be to make a robot more human, the but challenge is interesting in itself.
From Putting People First
IDEA 2010, an information architecture conference
Last month the Information Architecture Institute, a non-profit volunteer organization dedicated to advancing and promoting information architecture, held its yearly conference IDEA where UX professionals can exchange insights…
From Computer Science Teachers Association
Video Gamer: A Piece of the K-12 Pipeline
I traveled up the coast of North Carolina to a town called New Bern and had an opportunity to attend the North Carolina Art Education Association Professional Development Conference thanks to an invite from the Art Specialist…
From Wild WebMink
? Community Escrow
I’ve written previously about the freedom to leave, but there’s another value delivered by the liberties open source provides, one which it would even be worth paying extra to get. When your vendor changes direction, what do…
From Daniel Lemire's Blog
How do search engines handle special characters? Should you care?
Matt Cutts is Google’s search engine optimization expert. He runs a great YouTube channel called Google Webmaster Central.
From Computational Complexity
The revolution will be DVRed
(There are TWO theory day events in NY this semester: Thu Nov 11. and Fri Nov 12.)
BILL: Will you be going to the RALLY TO RESTORE SANITY AND/OR FEAR? (See also here.) It will be the event that defines this generation!!!!…From Schneier on Security
Dan Geer on "Cybersecurity and National Policy"
Those with either an engineering or management background are aware that one cannot optimize everything at once
From Putting People FirstLost the remote? Another reason to use an app
TV viewing habits are changing as more Internet and on-demand content
From Computer Science Teacher - Thoughts and Information From Alfred ThompsonTeaching real-world programming
The title of this post is borrowed from an article at the MIT (original article at Teaching real-world programming) about a programming course at MIT that uses professional software developers to help mentor students. The professionals…
From Putting People FirstEthnographic study on impact of social tools on sales
An in-depth ethnographic study of the social media habits of Blacksburg, VA, the first internet wired town in the world, demonstrates the power of consumer endorsed goods and services on sales, according to a study by OgilvyOne…
From Putting People FirstSmartphone form factor
In a previous TechRepublic column, Debra Littlejohn Shinder stated that hardware design and features are some of the many criteria to consider when deciding which smartphone model is best for you. One aspect of hardware design…
From Putting People FirstExposing the magic of design
Jon Kolko has published on UXMatters a sample chapter of his forthcoming book, Exposing the Magic of Design: A Practitioner
From Putting People FirstStorytelling for UX, an interview with Whitney Quesenbery and Kevin Brooks
Daniel Szuc spoke with Whitney Quesenbery and Kevin Brooks about their new book Storytelling for User Experience: Crafting Stories for Better Design. “Daniel: Why the book? Whitney: Because thinking about user experience as a…
From Putting People FirstIndia: Land of many cell phones, fewer toilets
Ravi Nessman reports from Mumbai, India. “The Mumbai slum of Rafiq Nagar has no clean water for its shacks made of ripped tarp and bamboo. No garbage pickup along the rocky, pocked earth that serves as a road. No power except…
From Putting People FirstThe future of wired retail
In a 2010 survey of U.S. consumers conducted by Buzzback Market Research, findings showed that 88 percent of shoppers are more likely to choose a company that gives them the ability to interact via online, mobile or self-service…
From Putting People FirstHow the shift to mobile is revolutionising online news design
At the recent European Information Architecture Summit in Paris, Oliver Reichenstein, who has done several web design projects for Swiss newspapers, talked about how the traditional layout of the paper was very much wedded to…
From Putting People FirstReflections on iPad usability
The former design director for the New York Times has written a blog post giving his thoughts on magazine apps for the iPad (something he clearly gets asked about a lot), reports Mathew Ingram on GigaOm. The bottom line? He hates…
From The Eponymous PickleInteractive Donut Charts
The Donut chart is discussed in the Junk Charts blog. A donut chart is a kind slightly re-designed pie chart. I agree that this could have been done much more simply. The author talks about the misleading interactive aspects…