TSA's Enhanced Security Spurs US 'Airport Rage' !

Now that TSA is rolling out these ultra-revealing imagers across the country in an attempt to uncover hidden threats like the so-called "undies bomb" found on a Detroit-bound flight last Christmas.

The agency and the scanners’ manufacturers insist they’ve installed features and instituted procedures that will make passenger embarrassments impossible. But the larger question is whether the TSA’s tech-centric approach to security makes sense at all.

Even the most modest of us would probably agree to a brief flash of quasi-nudity if it would really ensure a safe flight. That’s not the deal the TSA is offering. Instead, the agency is asking for Rolando Negrin-style revelations in exchange for incremental, ineffable security improvements against particular kinds of concealed weapons.

It’s the same kind of trade-off TSA implicitly provided when it ordered us to take off our sneakers (to stop shoe bombs), and to chuck our water bottles (to prevent liquid explosives). Security guru and scanner-suit plaintiff Bruce Schneier calls it “magical thinking…. Descend on what the terrorists happened to do last time, and we’ll all be safe. As if they won’t think of something else.”

Which, of course, they invariably do. Attackers are already starting to smuggle weapons in body cavities, going where even the most adroit body scanners do not tread.

New TSA chief John Pistole says the agency has to shift from a threat-driven outfit into an “intelligence-driven” organization. There are some signs that such a move may be afoot.

On the night in late October that Saudi intelligence tipped the American government off to a plot to blow up planes using explosive packed in printer cartridges, Pistole got a call from White House counterrrorism czar John Brennan. The TSA was then able to give new marching orders to everyone from air marshals to cargo inspectors. An agency team was even dispatched to Yemen, where the bombs originated.

It all seemed shockingly logical for an agency that generally appears to be anything but. The quick response to intelligence and targeted security measures could provide a partial template for future action. The next step would be questioning passengers and employing more elaborate sensors when travelers’ behavior or specific threats warrant — instead of making us all get digitally nude.

Update: How’s the naked scanner story impacting America’s image around the world? This new video from Taiwan’s next media animation offers a clue.

youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBL3ux1o0tM&feature=player_embedded#!

RIM’s Playbook is Making its Move !

RIM’s new Playbook video has the iPad community on edge. It’s a look at what is to be a real competitive market, and things just may get dirty! Have you seen the video? If not have a look during the next break:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s72rGDUn2uo&feature=player_embedded

Happy Birthday Motorola Droid

Today marks the 1-year anniversary/birthday of the Motorola Droid. When we look back at the success of the Android platform over the last 12 months, a lot of the credit goes straight to the device that was the inspiration behind the current Android phone and Tablet line-up. The phone that took off with a brilliant marketing campaign, a huge holiday push, and as a choice for those not wanting to go to a certain other smartphone is one that shall never be forgotten.

Happy birthday Droid. We still love ya.

Android, One Mobile OS To Rule Them All

With Android moving onto tablets there is just no stopping this mobile operating system. As we celebrate Android's 2nd birthday I'm pleasantly surprised at how fast this OS was adopted. It's amazing the amount of buzz generated. Android based phones have surpassed all sales expectations and there is no end in sight. So what did Google do right and what are their next steps in securing their mobile empire... (Rubbing hands together rapidly)

What did Google do right -- just about everything. Google purchased a small company with a slick mobile OS and pampered and supported it though the initial transition phase into Google. Then they ensured success with an approach freedom, flexibility and openness. This was a simple recipe for success.

Next Google sunk bundles into marketing and quickly found mobile providers and hardware OEM’s to get one board. Once HTC and T-Mobile were in the game the odds for success went up dramatically. And once we saw the first release of combined hardware and software we were all surprised at what a solid package it was. Certainly not perfect, but none the less solid. It was instantly attractive to the technically savvy due to its open and free OS. Most young developers love freedom and they especially love free SDK’s and phones. Google started giving them out by the pallets and within months the apps started popping up.

Google quickly set up the Android AppStore with guidelines that makes Apple blush. Ah – how free and open it was, no big brother Apple monitoring, censoring and basically heavy handed controlling of everything. This brought even more developers- and they were coming on board in hordes.

Once the Hardware OEM’s got wind of a good mobile OS they could use for free – well, it’s not hard to figure out what happened next.

To be continued:

iPad - is it all that?

I'm an early adopter of all things tech. I love to play with, modify, and mess with new technology. I've been in the technology business for over twenty years and am still passionate. In many ways- I'm lucky, and have the benefit of getting most of my tech free via my employers.

Rarely, I'll jump on new tech and pay for it out of my own pocket. I only do this when I find something truly intriguing. For me the iPad was just too interesting to pass up.

I picked up the ipad the first week it came out here in Germany and have had an honest opportunity to put it through its paces. I travel a lot and am able to give any mobile technology a solid usability test in the field. For the iPad- the results were very good.

At first I thought the ipad might just turn out to be a well-designed info-consumable, and not really a good tool. To my surprise, I have been able to write, present, take notes, transfer files and basically everything I do with my notebook- but in a light and extremely transportable device. Everything-- is a bit of an exaggeration; I am still unable to print with ease, though I can use most Wi-Fi/Bluetooth printers. Sadly, there are not many floating around the offices of my firm. So I tend to create or modify the document on the ipad. And using dropbox or email, send it to a device connected to a printer- then print it. I must say that there are solid office based applications for the ipad, and the ones from Apple are currently the slickest of them all. Apple just released a good update which made usability between MS Office and Apple iWorks a pleasure. "Pages," is simply dreamy and so easy to use and create. "Numbers," is functional (as it should be). And "Keynote," is wonderful. All in all, I am productive on the ipad. A quick note; the keyboard takes a couple of hours to get used to, but it is very versitile and I can type at about

Where the ipad shines is keeping you busy while in the train or on the plane. Like I said, I travel a lot. My current employer has me underway in a train (mind you, a super-fast luxury train) a couple days a week. I often have to travel to Berlin, Hamburg or Fulda. All these trips can be between 3-5 hours depending on the point of embarkation. Usually I try and get some quick work done and spend the initial hour or two very productively. After the productive time I then have some time to waste, and this is where the ipad rules. Its beautiful 9.7 inch HD screen was truly designed for movies and games.

Games are a point where the ipad really shines. There are thousands of 'em- and literally hundreds are great quality and good fun. The ipad is a truly awesome game platform, and you can spend hours of fun due to the ipads double lithium approach, yes I said double. Apple, in its wisdom, realized that the one thing holding mobile devices back were their battery life. With this in mind they added a second huge battery to the innards of the ipad offering an unchallenged 10-12 hours of usage. Yes, and it is true, you get 10-12 hours of usage. My experience during the last two months is basic usage I get 10 hours easy. Movie and game time depending on the game is between 7 and 9 hours. A heavy 3d game need more processor power and eats more bat. But generally you can play for hours and watch movies for 10 hours on a single charge.

What else do I love to do on the road: reading. As a writer I need a solid device to read docs, periodicals and books. The ipad does this so well. Magazines just shine and include smart interactive material. Books are also a solid reading experience with little eye fatigue. Generally, the ipad is a wonderful device, and I am getting more and more attached to it. I find it replacing many other tools and even other forms of media. I usually purchase magazines and like to hold them and turn the pages. My rucksack often has a National Geographic, Wired and other news based magazines in it. Currently, I have the ipad. Yep, that’s it. The thing has most of my mags in a great format and what I don't have in magazines, I can get through news readers like Pulse (which I love)..

All in all, the last couple of months have been wonder weeks of having everything I need in one small-slick package. And my little ipad is changing and growing every day. It becomes more personalized as my usage changes and as new applications come out that resolve other issues, needs and tools.

If you have been debating getting an ipad, then wait no longer, this thing Rocks!

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Back form the US

Dear all, we have returned from our adventure in North America. We're tired, but happy that we were able to visit so much family and see so many nice locations.

I'll try and post some photos from our trip soon.

Android Games Getting Better - No Memory ?

As Android phones receive the wonderful game ports from iphone, we see the need to directly address the SD card. These new games are just amazing, with wonderful graphics and fast action play. They are also between 10 and 20 Mb in size.

With our 256 Mb limitation we desperately need SD access to ensure room for more games on one device. If I put 3-4 games on my Droid / Milestone I run out of space because my standard apps also take up space. This limitation needs to be addressed immediately!

The iphone can address all of it’s memory making it a great game tool. We have the same, if not faster speed and 3-D chip set, our screens are better, but we can only address the damn 256Mb.

Google, get busy and fix this major issue!