WisconsInnovation

LuminAID: An Inflatable Solar Light -- IndieGoGo

2011-12-27T10:59:00.001-06:00

Image via CrunchBaseCrowdsourcing is a effective way to get the visibility and funding needed to launch a great idea. Like Kickstarter, Indiegogo a crowdfunding social site, requires the entrepreneur to provide details on the project - I think this works best with a video as well as text based details and images. In the case of LuminAid, they have all three.

They had some additional help through other social channels. They had a friend who leveraged the blogger community and was successful in getting the product featured on the gadget blog, Gizmodo and several others.

The ran a promotional campaign on FaceBook, and have chosen to maintain a business page for the product. In the effort of sustainability of a social business effort, these two are students or recently graduated but are responding actively to commentors on the page. Their website is current with a regular blog for updates.

The also made use of email as an outreach campaign, but the information doesn't indicate if this was done to a purchased mailing list or contacts shared via Columbia University who holds the patent and licensees it back.

According to Open Forum interview

“From there, the word spread and we raised $10,000 in six days,” says Stork.

In the end, they have a wonderful and useful product that can truly make a difference in a disaster relief situation and beyond. Their product brief on Indiegogo was direct and to the point - it clearly outlined the problem and their solution. The choice of video and images were excellent and helped extend the impact.

Even though the campaign for funding is over, I want to buy some to help others. What do you think?

LuminAID: An Inflatable Solar Light -- IndieGoGo: LuminAID: Give Light, Get Light

About the Project

LuminAID Lab is proud to introduce the LuminAID light: a solar-rechargeable, inflatable lamp that packs flat and inflates to create a lightweight, waterproof lantern. Safe, sustainable, and portable, the LuminAID light provides up to six hours of LED light, ideal for disaster relief situations, recreational use outdoors, or in the home as an extra light source. Our mission: make light more affordable, sustainable, and available for everyone.

Crowdsourced Tattoo Design!

2011-12-22T11:36:00.006-06:00

Createmytattoo.com is a site with a concept similar to 99designs we heard about in class. Users describe their tattoo idea and enter a contest where 10 or more designers will compete to come up with the best idea. Like 99designs, you can give designers feedback and they can tweak their designs so you get exactly what you want! This goes to show that crowdsourcing can be used for just about anything we can imagine. This is an exceptionally creative use, and I'm interested to see where innovators take this concept in the future!

New Bill Threatens Innovation

2011-12-15T17:01:00.005-06:00

A few new pieces of legislation, PROTECT IP Act and SOPA, are currently being voted on in the House this week. Although these bills are meant to stop online piracy, they have the potential to seriously change the internet and stifle innovation. I don't want to push a political agenda on anyone so I recommend doing your own research. Here is one article that I found helpful and fairly unbiased.

The future, it turns out, starts in 2020

2011-12-13T17:41:00.001-06:00

The New York Times recently published an article about a crowd sourced timeline from Science Times of what people predict to be reality in the coming years. Think cancer will ever be cured? The timeline predicts that will happen in 2023. How about making cash illegal? Readers predicted this will also happen within our lifetime, 2056. Finally, everyone's favorite, artificial intelligence. According to the timeline this will happen by 2063. Here are some other predictions the timeline made:

2012: COMPUTER ON A CHIP
2013: ELECTRONIC INK
2019: ONLINE SCIENCE
2019: UNIVERSAL MEDICAL DATABASE
2022: HALO OF DATA

2024: PRACTICAL ROBOT CARS

2026: PROGRAMMABLE ORGANISMS

2031: FULL LIFE RECORDING

2039: DIGITAL ‘LIFE’ AND EVOLUTION
2056: CASH IS OUTLAWED
2058: CYBERNETIC INTELLIGENCE

2060: FLYING CARS
2063: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
2114: MEMORY BACKUP
2259: COLLECTIVE LEARNING

This is a great example of how firms are using open source publishing and incorporates how innovation will change our lives going forward. It is a pretty interesting timeline and something fun to think about.

Open Source Software Example: "HP to Open-Source Its WebOS Mobile Platform"

2011-12-12T09:25:00.003-06:00

This is an interesting article about HP's failed attempts at developing a lasting WebOS mobile platform. Instead of scrapping the WebOS mobile platform, HP has decided to open-source its development. I think this could be a successful move for the company. Unable to develop an attractive, lucrative WebOS mobile platform on their own, open-sourcing the project may be just what the company needs.

2011-12-11T16:57:00.005-06:00

Social Business is the biggest thing to happen to enterprise software in many years. Jive brings the innovations of the social consumer web to the enterprise. You get the great social features and user experience you love in your favorite consumer apps – while at the same time meeting stringent IT requirements. Jive allows you to:

Use powerful tools and applications for sharing, collaboration and relationship building: blogs, activity streams, status updates, messaging, polling, profiles, and more.

Meet less, hold fewer conference calls, and even put an end to reply-all.

Rapidly find answers, people, expertise, conversations, and documents needed to make decisions and take action.

Harness the collective intelligence of your organization, partners, and customers for innovation and competitive advantage.

Leverage external customer communities to slash support costs, enhance marketing efforts, and crowdsource innovation.

Jive brings together the features of social networking, collaboration tools and community software to deliver the richest user experience for every type of Social Business network.

Twitter Joins Facebook, Google, Launches 'Brand Pages' for Marketers | Digital - Advertising Age

2011-12-11T11:24:00.000-06:00

Twitter Joins Facebook, Google, Launches 'Brand Pages' for Marketers | Digital - Advertising Age: Twitter is looking to strengthen its relationship with advertisers by launching brand pages that will be unveiled today as part of a more comprehensive redesign.

Twitter's existing brand pages have been under the radar, especially compared with the buildup around Google brand pages, which were launched last month. But Chief Revenue Officer Adam Bain said that he's spent the better part of the past year meeting with chief marketing officers, and brand pages were a recurring and frequent request.

Wendy's Note: Nope I wasn't on the list of partners to get access to the Brand Pages but I did get on the #newnewtwitter version right away. This really isn't innovation, its also ran to copy Google+ and Facebook. I am waiting for Twitter to really take the next big leap to incorporate the next new idea. Something that someone hasn't done yet.

Here are the companies who were in the initial launch:

Twitter is launching brand pages with 21 marketers: American Express, Best Buy, Bing, Chevrolet, Coca-Cola, Dell , Disney, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, JetBlue, Kia, McDonald's, Nike , PepsiCo, Staples, Verizon Communications Wireless, NYSE Euronext, Heineken, Subway and Paramount Pictures, specifically for the release of "Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol." It has also partnered with some charities and individuals that it hasn't disclosed.

Do you suppose the only way for innovation is to create a new brand and separate from the existing Twitter?

Innovation is Everyone's Job

2011-12-11T10:22:00.003-06:00

Why are so many companies struggling to innovate today? This Harvard Business Review blog entry by Ron Ashkenas attempts to inform managers of the importance of having every employee in a working to innovate. Ashkenas believes, "organizations require innovation on all fronts." This means moving outside simply innovating the main product. To do this, he believes firms need to have all their employees, including sales, supply chain, packaging, etc., seek new ways to innovate on their processes.
This is crowd-sourcing the employees for innovations in the company. Shouldn't employees already be doing this? The problem appears to be that firms only encourage engineers and scientists to innovate, leaving other employees to follow their normal methods.
To solve this problem, Ashkenas recommends three steps for building a culture of innovation:
1) Identify and implement an innovation in your area
2) Once employees have confidence that they can innovate incrementally, work together to identify a more ambitions innovation.
3) Make an atmosphere that encourages people to develop and experiment with new ideas
By successfully completing these three steps, a manager can crowd-source their employees for innovations just as many user innovation companies would source from their customers.

Kindle Fire Hacked Already

2011-12-10T18:17:00.003-06:00

Hacking and modifying software is becoming more popular than ever. According to a recent story in Wired, the new Android software which is set to run on the Kindle Fire has been hacked already, even prior to its official release. This story really shows how eager the hacker community is to solve their own problems and contribute to open-source initiatives.

Fonera Global Wifi

2011-12-10T15:28:00.006-06:00

Fonera Fon is a hotspot router that allows people to share their internet connection in exchange for free WiFi at locations across the world -- but there's more. By sharing your connection you can make money; the more people that join your network, the more money you make. Here's a video if you want to learn more. It is a pretty interesting concept. I am a huge supporter of free global wifi, as I'm sure many of you are. It seems through various blogs people are indeed making money using the Fon Router.

Dropbox

2011-12-10T08:46:00.005-06:00

While writing our final research paper for another class this week, my group members and I decided to use an application called "Dropbox" to share files and edit our paper. Dropbox allows users to "drop" any file or document into a designated folder that is then synced with Dropbox's internet service and to any other of the user's computers/devises. These files can also be shared with other users who have Dropbox, and are invited to join a "folder."

I had never heard of this before, so I did some digging to find out how it was started. The story is rather interesting. The founder, Drew Houston, used to forget his USB drive when he was a student at MIT, and therefore never had everything he needed for class. So he tried to solve his problem. Once he figured out how to share files through an application, he decided to market it to other people with similar problems. In its infancy, Steve Jobs tried to buy Dropbox, and Houston actually declined his offer, even though Jobs was his hero. Steve Jobs was bitter, and told him that Dropbox was "a feature, not a product," and would therefore need to be backed by a large company or it would fail. Houston was determined to make his startup work, and he succeeded, as Dropbox is currently valued at over $1 billion. There is also Dropbox applications for smartphones, and you can access the application from any computer by going to its website.

This story illustrates how companies were not addressing a user need - a way to share files between computers or over the internet in an easy way - and how an individual took it upon himself to develop the next big thing while solving a problem through user-innovation. Houston made his product simple enough that the average person could use it, and helped solve many frustrations with file sharing. I am very thankful for his wonderful invention and how it is helping me with my class projects!

3D Printing Software on the Rise as 3D Printer Costs Decline

2011-12-07T21:34:00.005-06:00

In class we have talked a lot about 3D printers and have experienced one first-hand. More and more, 3D Printers in the last few years have materialized in the marketplace, and consequently prices have dropped. Along with this desktop manufacturing revolution, the software that goes along with such a machine is beginning to prosper as well. An example of 3D printing software is from a company called Autodesk. Here is an article from The New York Times concerning Autodesk and some of its software, as well as its announcement to offer its consumer software free of charge to bolster awareness and hopefully improve the software itself.

Dance vs. PowerPoint

2011-12-06T23:48:00.003-06:00

While we are still in the midst of our class presentations, I thought our class would enjoy this TED Talk on using Dance to convey a message instead of using PowerPoint. This is certainly an innovative presentation itself, but the idea is even more remarkable. The speaker (John Bohannon) claims that by using PowerPoint, we are distracted by pictures and reading words on a slide and never fully understand the message. Do you think dance can convey any idea, or does it have limits? When watching the video, do you find the dancers just as distracting as a PowerPoint? Read some of the comments to get an idea of what other experts (dancers, scientists, etc.) think!

Gifts From The Future

2011-12-02T13:44:00.004-06:00

As we embrace the holiday season, we begin thinking about gifts to give family, friends, and other loved ones in our lives. This article highlights several technological advancements of 2012 that may be deemed the perfect gift for another, or maybe even yourself. Although new to the market and quite expensive, the question is whether these inventive product offerings will take to the market and become commonplace in the household or merely become lost in the multitude of product offerings, some of which are much cheaper to purchase?

How Lego Embraced User Innovation

2011-11-29T13:19:00.005-06:00

This article does a good job of outlining how Lego struggled with the notion of opening up its innovation model and listening to its adult customers. Similar to Microsoft and hackers of the Kinect, Lego had to decide, "Do we sue them or embrace it," when faced with hackers of their Mindstorms products. Ultimately Lego embraced user innovation and saved their company. This article also discusses how adults have left high paying jobs to become "Lego Ambassadors" or Lego artists and make their own designs.

How to Help Brands Innovate With Social Media

2011-11-25T15:05:00.003-06:00

I recommend watching this video interview by host Erik Michielsen of CaptureYourFlag.com. It's interesting to hear Mike talk about his battles with larger B2C companies about engagement with social media for innovation and how they have changed their perspective. Two years ago, they were thinking that social media was a flyby tactic. Now they have changed their minds and are using more avenues to integrate into the entire product cycle.
Today, in working within the B2B space and with many manufacturers who have technical products, the same story resurfaces.

What they say is, "It's a waste of time and resources. It's an incredible time sink. That is our intellectual property we might be sharing. " Ironically, in the same breath those same companies tell me that they rely on word-of-mouth, referrals, and relationships to get the work they do. Strange that the statistics show that 90% of B2B executives refer to online networks for recommendations of companies and products to work with.

What is your experience?

Tumblr Going Through Users To Fight SOPA

2011-11-20T13:03:00.004-06:00

This article discusses how Tumblr, a blogger website, allowed their users to sign up and receive phone calls from company employees who informed the users on various talking points of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). Afterwards, the users were connected to their U.S. representatives to voice their opinion on the act. SOPA, if passed, has the potential to severely limit the amount and type of information Tumblr, and other websites such as Youtube and Reddit, would be allowed to post on their site. This move by Tumblr to employ users to fight this act rather than typical corporate lobbying is an innovative approach utilizing customer collaboration.

Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

2011-11-19T13:26:00.003-06:00

Can you think of examples of innovation we have discussed in class that could have been improved or weakened based on the environmental elements of the context?

In one of my classes, The Management of Teams (MHR 401), we are discussing creativity in teams. One of the most important factors for accomplishing effective creativity is the environment in which teams operate. Although it is not a new concept for firms to be interested in innovation, growth, and high performance, many companies are beginning to go about such success in a different manner: collaboration. Regardless of the individuals, resources, and tasks, it is difficult to effectively and efficiently collaborate without a supportive environment.

In New Product Development, we frequently discuss examples of innovation that may seem a bit out of our reach at the moment, but collaboration within the business environment is something that should be of interest to everyone with previous work experience or in the midst of a job search. If you're interested in learning more about different tactics companies are using to generate teamwork and collaboration in the business environment, check out "Wikinomics: How mass collaboration changes everything" (http://www.wikinomics.com/book/).

Wisconsin Innovations

2011-11-19T13:10:00.006-06:00

The Wisconsin Historical Museum has a new exhibit, "Wisconsin Innovations: From the Iconic to the Unexpected." I plan to go before the semester is over, and you should too! Did you know that the typewriter was invented in Wisconsin, as well as the answering machine? I sure didn't! Innovations from the Badger State have changed our lives in more ways than we know.

Admission is only $4.

Madison Region Community and Economic Development Blog - Advance Now - Thrive

2011-11-18T12:11:00.002-06:00

Image via WikipediaIf you haven't had a chance to review this report done by Thrive you should to see how Madison faired.> WS

Madison Region Community and Economic Development Blog - Advance Now - Thrive: State of the Madison Region

Most Innovative Companies

2011-11-16T15:26:00.001-06:00

Here is a link to an article published by The Economist on the nation's most innovative companies and what industries the operate in.

How Microsoft Learned to Stop Worrying and (Almost) Love Open Source

2011-11-04T17:23:00.007-05:00

Here is an interesting article from Wired.com discussing how Microsoft transitioned from comparing open source software with a "malignant cancer" to embracing and starting its open source division.As we discussed in class, this shows that open source programmers aren't living out of their mom's basements anymore. I found it interesting when it says that Linux isn't their main competitor anymore, but rather Google.

Apple Software Becomes Open Source

2011-10-28T09:55:00.006-05:00

It's interesting to see that a tech firm as powerful as Apple, who is notorious for closed software programs like OSX, has joined the open source movement. Apple recently made their software for compressing music files open source.

Article: Apple Lossless Audio Codec Project Becomes Open Source

What is Apple's goal? Why did they make this program open source?

Computing for Cheap- The Wave of the Future?

2011-10-25T19:44:00.003-05:00

With technology's advancement, the internet is become available to more people each day. As of March 31, 2011, Over 2 billion people were connected to the internet.

Soon, there may be even more people connected to the world wide web. This invention, called the Raspberry Pi, is a functional $25 computer that runs on Linux and is the size of a USB drive. Granted, one would still need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse of their own, but this is extremely cheap and could be extremely practical.

I was skeptical of how well this "ultra-low-cost" computer would work, but then I found some videos such as this, showing it can run computer games and apparently output 1080p video.

What do you think? Could Raspberry Pi make an impact on the world?

Infographic: The Most Valuable Digital Consumers | Nielsen Wire

2011-10-21T18:44:00.001-05:00

Infographic: The Most Valuable Digital Consumers | Nielsen Wire

If you like statistics that might support your push to move your company into the social/mobile/local space, print this infographic and take it to your executive team or business owner.

Innovation Gone Wrong?

2011-10-19T14:57:00.012-05:00

In early October, leading Japanese toilet manufacturer TOTO unveiled its latest innovation: a motorcycle that runs on human waste. How? Well, the seat of the bike is literally a toilet, fully equipped with a roll of toilet paper too. The company says that the waste is turned into biofuel which powers the machine.

Any buyers? Doubtful. Regardless of the intentions of this initiative, it is a reminder that ideas need to be tested and evaluated before heading to market.

White House Uses Designing Model to Solve Problems?

2011-10-19T14:20:00.010-05:00

Dear White House: Please Tell us the Truth About E.T.
Petitioners Seek Everything From Boosting Raw Milk Sales to Legalizing Pot
By LAURA MECKLER

Check out the article above to see how our government is using the ideas of crowdsourcing to help determine what people really want.

People can submit petitions for anything they feel is a large issue of today. Petitions are asking for a large range of things from legalizing marijuana to finding out the truth about E.T. The government has posted about 200 of these petitions online for the public to view. It's interesting to see niche interests get attention this way. The White House intends to form a committee to evaluate each petition. Could this be a form of designing applied to government?

NBC's Education Nation - Innovation Challenge

2011-10-06T10:03:00.004-05:00

From September 25-27, I had the opportunity to travel to New York City for NBC's Education Nation Summit as a representative of my student organization, Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda. About 250 of the nation's educators, professionals, politicians, and leaders (as well as a few studens) convened from around the country to discuss our current educational system and what we can do to improve it. More information about the event can be found here.

A very interesting part of the entire two-day summit was the competition hosted by NBC which featured three different student teams that had proposed new, innovative ideas for the classroom - the Innovation Challenge. The winning team, Class Dojo, won $75,000 from Citi based on their interactive program allowing teachers to better control behavior in the classroom. It was very interesting.

Another speaker at the event, Sal Khan, founder of the Khan Academy, really mirrored exactly what we talked about in class regarding user innovation. His story is unique. His cousins had problems with math so he started out by tutoring them. However, as busy students, they didn't always have time to meet, so Khan would record his lectures and upload them to YouTube for them to view later. His videos started to get very popular (millions of views).

Khan now has over 2,800 videos ranging from remedial addition to advanced calculus. He is operating as a non-profit by choice. His videos take the 'shame' that students could have by asking the same questions over and over again. They can now watch his videos dozens of times until they understand it.

I thought these were simply genius, and I wasn't expecting to see much innovation at this conference. It really was a great experience, and I loved my first trip to NYC!

Woot: How it came to be

2011-10-04T10:29:00.004-05:00

This article is about how Matt Rutledge came up with the website, Woot, which sells products in small bursts and prides itself on being absolutely, painfully honest with its customers.

Matt Rutledge launched Woot.com based on a simple concept: The site would sell only one product a day until the inventory ran out or the clock struck midnight, whichever came first. Rutledge saw it as a way to unload overstocked merchandise from his Dallas-based wholesale consumer electronics business. From the start, the site prided itself on honesty: If a vacuum cleaner was a putrid shade of green, Woot said so. Soon people came to the site just to read the snarky product descriptions. Today, Woot has four sites, 1.5 million registered members, and sales of $117.4 million.

3D Scanner Evolution

2011-10-02T15:47:00.009-05:00

Microsoft has finally come to accept tinkering with the Xbox Kinect technology. Microsoft's customers have been doing for awhile and it is now embracing it with a new research project KinectFusion. Hackers and Hobbyists have been tinkering with the Kinect since it came out. Microsoft is now realizing that it can gain from its customers contributions and it can revolutionize the way we produce 3-D images.

Better Ideas Through Failure

2011-09-29T10:04:00.003-05:00

This recent article from the WSJ suggests that amid worries that we are becoming less innovative, some companies, such as P&G, are rewarding employees for their mistakes or questionable risks.

Interesting List of Open Source Leaders

2011-09-26T11:33:00.001-05:00

After reviewing the latest and greatest presentations posted on social product development, I followed an interesting path that led to Aaron Roe Fulkerson (@roebot) and then on to a post on his Corporate Blog for MindTouch called "The Most Powerful Voices in Open Source" (2010).

I enjoy lists and this type of analysis to shorten my curve to finding the thought leaders in new areas of interest. The list is diverse in terms of global leaders. But is open source always just applied to tech and programming?

In past posts, we shared links and interview with Local Motors who is working in an environment of open source, crowdsourcing and cocreating in the automotive space. They are sharing designs, drawings and modifications. I am looking for more companies not in the tech space solely who are part of the Open Source or Open Innovation space.

Can we build a wiki to share? Does a list like this exist?

Build COOL Cars With Local Motors

2011-08-23T11:19:00.002-05:00

I had a chance to interview a number of people at Local Motors including the Community Manager, Ariel Ferreira and John Rogers the CEO. The acronym they use for the business is COOL and is explained in this interview.

Of note is the fact that John Rogers indicated that they built the business based on a Co Creation process. It seems to be working quite well for cars.

Where Open Source Innovation Can Change the World

2011-08-22T10:54:00.004-05:00

This is an IBM video that shares how open source innovation and sharing of data helped the chocolate industry, the City of Dubai, and improved the survival rate of premature babies. Don't get me wrong, its certainly a promo piece for IBM, but the stories are worth it. I found myself watching the entire 15 minute video.

Co-created Military Vehicle

2011-08-05T14:42:00.000-05:00

The US Department of Defense is know for, among other things, being a poor steward of taxpayer dollars. Remember the $1,000 toilet seat? Wary of these types of cost over-runs, the Defense Department's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) decided to try something a bit different by asking individuals, rather than corporations, to design its newest combat vehicle. Teaming up with Local Motors, DAPRA sponsored a design competition open to anyone in the world. With a prize offering of $7,500 (about 8 toilet seats), this competition received over 150 design submissions. The winning design, the FLYPMode by Victor Garcia went from concept to prototype in less than six months! This is yet another example, of how innovation by individuals can meet or exceed the innovation by firms.

Kickstarter.com - fund raising for creative projects

2011-07-13T15:48:00.000-05:00

One of the new social sites that provides a unique way to fund ideas and dreams to fruition is Kickstarter.com. While the site is focused on creative projects proposed by designers, artists. theatrical, film makers etc, the concept of the site is certainly one that could carry over into more technical products. My guess is that a site already exists, I just haven't stumbled on it yet.

I recently met Rob Barros, a Minneapolis based film maker doing a documentary on John Howe, The Architect. Howe is little known, even having done over 50% of the drawings for Frank Lloyd Wright's projects. Barros used Kickstarter to post his project with a movie trailer, description of the project, description of what the money would be used for. Then sent out emails, shared with a Facebook page and it went viral enough to raise the needed $9K for the project in 2 months.

I interviewed Rob while in Phoenix, where he was on site doing some filming, about what this meant to the success of the project in this blog post on funding of creative projects with social media.

I believe incubators and more concepts like this are what will help entrepreneurs in the early stage of forming companies, or selling a product idea to someone else. Madison would do well to step up the incubator concept like Milwaukee, Boston, and Palo Alto CA, to keep our inventors and creatives in our local area.

What are some social communities you know about that help entrepreneurs get started?

Reality...Augmented?

2011-02-22T22:26:00.012-06:00

Although augmented reality technology has been around for a while, it appears as if it's going to be taking a huge leap in the very near future. According to an article by Wired, gaming giant Nintendo has been developing and is in the finalizing stages of launching a series of augmented reality games. A list of the potential games is given toward the end of the article.

More curious than the release of the games are the marketing implications affiliated with said release. How, in the future, will this spill over into our day-to-day lives, if at all? How will this affect the way people collect and gather information? Is this, in fact, an "augmented" reality, or does it come at the sacrifice of personal interaction? Only time will tell.

What makes an expert?

2011-02-22T07:32:00.005-06:00

Noreena Hertz discusses the idea of ignorance in following experts and the value of non-expert ideas and opinions. If you can become an expert overtime, experts can become average thinkers as well. I agree with Noreena that we need to be cautious and aware of what we believe to be true, and what we believe to be expert sources. Is it safe to follow the advice of an "expert?" Does classification of an expert evolve as fast as expertise and knowledge in the industry?

Xbox 360 Kinect Hack Could Save Lives

2011-01-20T08:54:00.004-06:00

Here's a good example of tinkering a program's code to help do your job more effectively. Unfortunately, Microsoft's Kinect is not open sourced and therefore must be hacked in order to edit the code.

"Hacking Microsoft’s Kinect seems to be a worldwide fad right now, but this latest repurposing might be the most practical ever. A group of graduate engineering students at the University of Washington have hacked a Kinect so it can help doctors perform surgery.

University of Washington’s newspaper, The Daily, details the students' work, which involved writing new code for Microsoft’s Kinect that allowed it to interface with their robotic equipment and basically send feedback about a patient’s body position back through the system. Because of this tracking, the students were able to workout where important internal organs were and prevent the machines from cutting too deep.

“We could define basically a force field around, say, a liver,” said Howard Chizeck, University of Washington’s professor of electrical engineering. “If the surgeon got too close, he would run into that force field and it would protect the object he didn’t want to cut.”

Google Chrome for a Cause

2010-12-17T22:01:00.002-06:00

What better way to spread holiday cheer to those that need it most than downloading Google Chrome! Not what you expected? Well, Google Chrome has a new promotion that for every tab opened in Google Chrome between December 15th and 19th, they will donate to the charity of your choice (out of a given 5 options). This is a great opportunity for people to give without having to leave their couches and computers, but it's also an incredible marketing ploy for Google Chrome! This is something that other websites could take note of in order to increase webpage views, however, most don't have the extraordinary power that Google possesses. All in all, it's pretty impressive, so I hope some of you out there will try it out!

Toyota Ideas for Good

2010-12-15T15:11:00.002-06:00

Many of you may have seen the Toyota commercial where a mother talks about how she is more confident with her son's safety playing football due to Toyota technology regarding head injuries. If you haven't, you can watch it here. This commercial is part of a new Toyota campaign called "Ideas For Good". There are 3 steps to becoming part of Ideas For Good. A contributor first picks from five different Toyota technologies. They then think of a creative way to improve our lives using that technology, unrelated to cars. The last step involves the users sharing their big ideas online to make the world a better place. I thought this sounded similar to something we might learn in class and it turns out the challenge is a collaboration between InnoCentive and Toyota. There is one winner for each of the five technologies, and they get to pick from a new 2011 Prius, Venza, or Highlander Hybrid. It's amazing to me that one of the world's most successful car companies is asking the general public to contribute in order to change the way we think about car technology. What do you think? Is Toyota Ideas for Good a step forward for the car industry?

Names You Need To Know in 2011: RockMelt, the Social Browser

2010-12-15T14:57:00.003-06:00

I found this article very interesting and thought it was relevant to post it on the blog. RockMelt is the newest Internet browser (Safari, Firefox, IE, Google Chrome) and it offers some really innovative features. Instead of having the go to a social networking site like Facebook or Twitter, RockMelt has sidebars with these applications already built in. While you surf the Web at your leisure, you can simultaneously access all features of Facebook (chat, posts, photos, etc.) and Twitter. You can also subscribe to other websites like CNN or NYTimes. Whenever a new article is written, you receive a notification. RockMelt brings the media to you rather than you having to go out and search for it. I encourage everyone to check it out. Currently it is invite only, but send me (Evan Diamond) a Facebook message and I can send invitations. Thanks!

Media Molecule Aims to Revolutionize the Video Game Industry, Again.

2010-12-15T14:28:00.005-06:00

On October 27, 2008, a new video game called LittleBigPlanet was released on the Playstation 3 vidieo game console. Developed by an innovative group of developers at Media Molecule studios, this game took an entirely new approach to gaming by giving the players full control over their gaming experience. Players were given all of the tools that the developers at Media Molecule used to build the game so that they were able to create their own levels. In this manner, players were able to cater their gaming experience to their own tastes. Furthermore, by being able to share your creations with other players around the world, LittleBigPlanet created a sense of community that is unrivaled by any other video game--this community has already built over 3 MILLION LEVELS, and remember that this was purely for their own satisfaction and pleasure.

While earlier games had given players similar creation tools, the experience in LittleBigPlanet was much more refined and user-friendly, which is why the game saw such great success and sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide.

Now, in 2010, Media Molecule is getting ready to completely revolutionize the video game industry once more. Recognizing the success of LittleBigPlanet (LBP), Media Molecule is prepping to release its successor, LittleBigPlanet 2 (LBP2) , by the end of this year. Arguably more so than LBP, LBP2 is offering players unlimited capabilities in creating their own gaming experience. LBP was marketed as a "platforming game," but LBP2 is being marketed as a "platform for games." I'll explain:

LBP certainly gave users the ability to innovate and contribute their creations to the rest of the LBP community. However, their creation tools were limited to a 2D plane--everything in the level design had to be built around this side-scrolling, 2D game platform. Now, with LBP2, Media Molecule is removing this limitation, giving users FULL control over the creation process, in 360 degree 3D environments. Imagine the possibilities this provides to creators...they can essentially replicate any other gaming experience that exists, spanning across a variety of genres. Thus, in LBP2, expect to see not only side-scrolling platform gameplay, but racing, first-person shooter, role-playing, adventure, puzzle, strategy, sports, arcade, and any other gameplay types that the LBP community can think of.

Conceivably, this unlimited ability to create video game experiences in LBP2 could change the way developers approach the video game creation process. If LBP2 is as successful as LBP (or more so), this type of game could take over a large part of the market. Imagine if there were only one type of video game--one with an open platform--and its users created all the various types of games that currently exist on their own. For example, if I were in the mood for a sports game one day, I could just create it and then play it. The next day, I could create a puzzle game, play it, and so on.

Whether or not this trend would be a good thing or not is up for debate. The video game industry would become completely homogeneous, with the initial content in video games varying only in their titles and themes. Some might argue that this would limit the quality of games, since everyday users do not possess the same expertise and skill in creating video games as do professional developers. On the other hand, others might argue that this could improve the variety of gaming experiences, since the collective imagination of all the players would vastly surpass the creative capabilities of a select group of developers.

Either way, it will be extremely exciting to see what people create when LBP2 is released this year.

Texts From Last Night

2010-12-12T18:22:00.003-06:00

Textsfromlastnight.com is a wonderful reminder that user innovation can take place even when the contributors are operating at less then optimal mental capacity. Users send in their entertaining text messages to the sites editors, who then decide whether or not the text is worthy of publication on their site. The funny thing is, these texts are likely remembered far more clearly by the readers of the site than the people who originally sent them. The site has recently expanded into the t-shirt business, selling t-shirts bearing the text from last night that you wish. They have also put out a book showcasing the most profound texts. It looks like all the dumb things you say while under the influence do have value after all!

Reddit.com

2010-12-12T17:54:00.004-06:00

I remember we talked a little about digg.com in class. I recently stumbled across reddit.com and found it similar to digg. Users submit links that they find interesting and people upvote or downvote it depending on if they like it or not. The links with the most votes get moved to the top. Everyone can check it out at reddit.com

Co-Creating Dress Shirts

2010-12-12T14:32:00.003-06:00

I came across a business news article that mentioned this site and decided to check it out. Blank-label.com is a co-creation site that lets users design their own dress shirts (at the moment, only men's shirts are offered, though). First, you pick the fabric of your shirt, and then the style of the cuffs, collar, placket, pocket and shoulders. Next, you can individualize buttons, create a monogram, and design a label. Finally, you get to individualize sleeve length, collar size and fit preference. Shirts start at $55 and add-ons cost and additional $2-$12.

Overall, the site is well-designed and the whole creation process is really easy and user-friendly. I think a great next step for the company would be to introduce a women's shirt as this is an idea that I could see appealing to a lot of women.

Is your creation edible? Now you can create your cake and eat it too!

2010-12-11T15:05:00.005-06:00

In my opinion, cooking is a form of innovation. I happened to stumble upon this concept of "incubator kitchens" while researching for a paper and it really reminded me of Sector 67. Incubator kitchens are kind of like the food version of a tech shop, where people pay for use of a commercial kitchen to produce things and innovate. Incubator kitchens help entrepreneurs to start up small food businesses by providing "on-demand" use of a commercial kitchen with kitchen equipment at an affordable cost. The incubators can also provide marketing and technical assistance to get products and businesses up and running. Madison doesn't currently have an incubator kitchen, but there are plans underway to develop one here.
I'm glad that there are toolkits available for ordinary people who might not have the resources in their kitchens or in their pockets to create wonderful (and edible) works of art.

Here's the link to the article

I'm Dreaming of a Green Christmas

2010-12-09T23:35:00.003-06:00

Imagine how many trees are cut down and sold to be decorated in living rooms across America every Christmas season. I recently saw a story on the news where companies across America are making it possible to buy a potted Christmas tree that can be picked up and replanted after the holiday. I can't think of anything better than helping the environment and not having dead pine needles all over the living room. Check out the short video on this "growing" trend.

Is the future of automotives finally here?

2010-12-09T18:58:00.004-06:00

No the picture to the left is not a sports car pumping gas, it's actually the new Tesla Roadster 2.5 hooked up to an outlet. The Roadster is a high performance fully electric car being rolled out in the near future. The car gets over 200 miles in a single charge, and can go from 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds!

Over the past decade it has seemed like new car technologies; plug-in hybrids, fully electric cars, and the ever highly touted fuel cell cars, have been continually hyped but when it comes to rolling them out into production, it always seems like they are just a few more years off from actually being produced. Much of this hype and then continual disappointment has lead a green enthusiast like myself to become increasingly skeptical of when the "future" of green cars would actually arrive. But with the production of the Roadster it looks like we have finally reached that point. The main barrier to widespread sales of electric vehicles is the perception about lack of performance, combined with high prices.

The Roadster proves that electric cars don't have to sacrifice functionality and style to be environmentally friendly, but even the cheapest Roadster sells for a staggering $57,000! What gives me hope though, is that the large auto manufacturers like Ford, Toyota, Nissan and GM will all be releasing much more reasonably priced plug-in hybrids, or fully electric vehicles in 2011 and 2012.

Is the future of car innovation finally here, by all estimates it looks to be a resounding yes!

Innovative Ideas

2010-12-09T18:26:00.004-06:00

When going through the course recap one thing really struck me. What I believe all of us really enjoyed, and definitely something we will all take away from MKT 440, are all of the stories that we heard about. This could be a form of innovation discussed in class, or more likely, a cool innovative product that we watched a video of or discussed. It really makes one realize how many creative people there are out there, and that not all good ideas have to come from the corporate sector. In fact, it seems that many of the best ideas come from innovative individuals who identify a problem they have in their own lives and seek out a way to fix it. Here's a link to a website that has photos of what are definitely consumer created products. And while I don't know what the functionality of many of them are, and realize that many will never hit the market, it's refreshing to see all of these creative ideas, and I got a kick out of it.

Refereein'novation

2010-12-09T11:57:00.003-06:00

There has been a lot of controversy of late about refereeing and umpiring in professional sports. Let's look at baseball specifically. In 2010, Armando Galarraga of the Detroit Tigers had a perfect game ruined on an obvious blown call by umpire Jim Joyce. Joyce called the runner safe, when instant replay clearly showed that he was out. However, according to the rules implemented in 2008, instant replay in baseball can only be used to determine: whether a home run was fair or foul, whether the ball actually left the field, or whether the ball was subject to fan interference. This week was the annual Winter Meetings in Orlando, Florida and instant replay was certainly discussed. If commissioner (and UW-Madison alum) Bud Selig decides to implement instant replay on safe/out or ball/strike calls, it will be truly innovative to the National Pastime. Personally, I like where the game is at. Baseball should not have a replay system but, that is just my opinion. What do you think? Is it time to innovate baseball?

Fly Eyes Inspire a 3D Camera?

2010-12-08T20:07:00.006-06:00

After listening to a presentation in one of my other classes about 3D TV, I googled the topic and came across this...a 3D Camera?! Personally, I like my standard TV and camera, but this invention seems to open a whole new realm of possibilities! In the article it talks about how these devices would allow users to do the impossible and gives examples of its users being able to "walk on the soccer field" and "stand where the goalkeeper is."

Confused? I was too while reading the article, but check out the video because it clearly explains how the gadget works and what it will be able to do.

Do-It-Yourself DNA Sequencing

2010-12-08T19:53:00.005-06:00

Typically, the equipment necessary for performing DNA diagnostic testing would cost about $500,000. However, a small company called Ion Torrent has developed a "desktop" DNA sequencing chip that sells for around $50,000. I found it very interesting that the inventors essentially modified or "tinkered" with semi conductor chips that are already able to be mass produced cheaply, in order to make an affordable machine. The article mentions that at this new low price, money-strapped hospitals around the world will now be able to afford these machines and perform DNA diagnostic testing. It is also mentioned that the semi conductor chip used in the machine is proprietary. If the chip is eventually made open-source, I would imagine the price of this technology would quickly plummet further as more and more individuals could collaborate on the design.
Check out the article for yourself!

Innovative Ways to Use Social Media in Your Job Search

2010-12-08T19:23:00.003-06:00

This subject is particularly relevant for most the students on this blog because we are either looking for jobs/internships or have been recently hired...

I found an article at www.bankrate.com about innovative job search strategies. One of the strategies that was mentioned was using Facebook to connect with potential employers. One freelance writer placed an advertisement on Facebook in which she simply said 'I want to work for Harper Collins, can you help me?' Along with the ad she included a link that took the reader directly to her resume. Although the writer didn't get a gig with Harper Collins, she did get connected with about 100 people in a 2 week span, and even received a job offer from one. Instead of searching for someone who would take her, she instead had potential employers doing the work and looking at her qualfications and connecting her.

I think that the article and innovative strategy to find a job is thought provoking. Obviously this is not the most direct way into a specific company, but it is a creative way to potentially meet someone in the industry, or network with people who know people. At the very least it shows that perhaps trying something new in the job search and wandering off the beaten path can be a good thing, as it is a way to sepate yourself from the other 100 resumes in a dusty pile in the Recruiting Directors office.

shirt.woot.com

2010-12-08T13:03:00.004-06:00

I stumbled across this site recently and found that it is similar to Threadless.com They have users contribute artwork to be made into T-shirts and then there are contests to see which T-shirt well received. The pricing is pretty similar to Threadless. Also, Woot.com sells other products such as toys, daily deals, and wine. I believe the wine is mostly made by users, trying to promote their brand.

LEGO Revived Its Brand!

2010-12-08T11:27:00.004-06:00

This article relates to our class because it talks about LEGO, and the challenges the company created by changing strategies throughout the years. One point in the article describes how Lego let its designers and customers "run free" with designs, only to find that these new designs required additional capital in new parts and were far from "kid friendly". LEGO needed to realize its customer and strategy, and has managed to revive its brand by doing so.

The iPhone Can Save a Life!

2010-12-06T21:42:00.005-06:00

Although this is the first story I have read about the IPhone acting as a safety device, apparently it is becoming a common thing. The article points out how it taught a basketball coach along with a Haitian earthquake survivor how to save a life in a pressure packed situation. This could lead to a lot more individuals learning activities such as CPR due to the accessibility and not needing to take a class. This will hopefully lead to even better apps and hopefully make the world a safer place.

First TV, Now Ebooks...Google does everything!

2010-12-06T17:41:00.001-06:00

Its seems as if Google has launched yet another technology application to compete with an established competitor. Just as Google TV and attempts to infiltrate social media Google has officially opened an e-bookstore to compete with Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Apple. In partnership with Sony and over 4,000 publishers the Google bookstore will offer more than 3 million books including millions for free. Google has made apps compatible with smartphones, e-readers and PCs so, in theory, a person could read a book on his/her e-reader at home, then on their phone on the way to the office and finally at the computer when they get there. Although this isn't really considered innovation because it isn't an original concept, there is a sense that whenever Google does something it is looking to one-up the companies that occupied the market before them. Time will tell how much importance the market will place on Google's brand name compared to the already established e-readers like Amazon's Kindle. Did Google make meaningful enough improvements to the concept to draw customers away from Amazon or bring former skeptics into the market?

Crowd Sourced News

2010-12-05T23:48:00.002-06:00

Global For Me is an interesting idea - a website that provides 'crowd sourced news'. How it works is that it allows users to post story ideas. The stories can be able anything (within reason) that a user is interested in being reported. Once a story is suggested and approved, a reporter is commisioned to seek out the information on the story, and publishes a full report within 30 days on the story.

Global For Me definitely seems like an interesting and innovative idea, though from searching the site it seemed that there are some inherent problems with it. First of all, it requires the submitter to provide compensation for his story. This makes me wary that it may be some sort of internet scam, or that a user may end up paying for a story that is subpar. Additionally, the website seemed to indicate that a group of users could work together to commission a story they are interested, though when I clicked on a link to past stories, I was given an error message.

Though Global For Me may not turn out to be 'the one,' the idea is intriguing and certainly has value. Most everyone reads some sort of news (be it entertainment, sports, finances, local, etc) in a variety of forms (newspapers, online, magazines). One problem though is that all this news being published is selected by the major companies for the most part! This gives a voice to each and every user, and lets them have the ability to say what stories are important to them. This is beneficial to everyone, as people will be more interested in reading a news source that addresses their interests, which in turn makes the publishers bank accounts more full. Hopefully Global For Me or some other company can figure out the right business model to take advantage of this idea

Open Sourcing Your Television

2010-12-05T22:06:00.008-06:00

Google recently launched a new television platform (Google TV) that will replace channel surfing with Google searching. Google TV allows users to search their available television programs and the web at the same time. There are currently three ways to buy Google TV. Sony has come out with an internet TV and an internet Blu-ray player. The third way, and my favorite is The Logitech Revue. The Revue has a full keyboard equipped with a mouse pad.

There are two things that really stick out to me about Google TV and the future of our living rooms. The first is that Google plans to release Google TV as open source software in the near future. In my opinion, this will ultimately lead to more pirating of television shows and movies. The small inconvenience of waiting for ads to play will be altered and removed from TV by computer programmers around the world. The best thing about opening the source code to the public is that itcan utilize the most powerful computer engineering team on the planet. I personally can't code a thing, but I am excited to see more open source software being released. It improves the quality of the program, not only by listening to user feedback, but also letting them take action to resolve their own problems. The second thing is that Google is building an App Store. Until recently the only thing our televisions did was watch the channels you paid for. Now there are televisions that are able to watch youtube, use pandora, and stream netflix. You can also use your android or iphone as a remote control for some of them. These are just the beginning of the apps that will improve our television experience. Soon enough our television and computer will be fully integrated.

The Appeal of Groupon

2010-12-05T21:11:00.004-06:00

Oprah loves it, Google wanted to buy it (for 6 billion dollars), and it may be the fastest-growing company ever. Groupon is a two-year old company that offers a different deal-of-the-day to registered users of Groupon.com. The deals that Groupon offers are typically for 50% off at a local retailer; whether or not the deal is offered depends on how many users sign up for it. The interesting part is that Groupon keeps about half of all revenues from sales and by utilizing Groupon, retailers are often giving away their products at a loss. For example, if Groupon offers a $200 credit to a local retailer for only $100, that retailer only gets only $50.

So why would a retailer want to use Groupon? According to this article, there are three reasons: 1)When you get someone inside the door, they're likely to spend more than the Groupon value. 2)People bring their friends. And 3) first time customers are likely to become repeat customers.

Although Groupon's business model isn't particularly innovative, the company is innovating the way retailers reach new customers and markets. Groupon mainly works with small businesses that don't yet have a solid customer base, so reaching new customers is essential to their success--even if it means taking on a bit of a loss.

Given Groupon's massive success and easy-to-copy business model, similar sites have been quick to emerge and are eager to offer consumers even better deals than Groupon. It will be interesting to see how long Groupon can maintain its success and whether or not they can continue to innovate relations between retailers and consumers.

Outsourcing Art

2010-12-05T17:17:00.005-06:00

An interesting example of artists utilizing a community to co-create art was recently featured in Esquire magazine. A project entitled "Ten Thousand Cents" paid 1 cent to 10,000 individuals, working in isolation, to draw a fraction of the overall project. However, the individuals did not know what the end project was supposed to be. The end result, as you can see, is a pretty good looking $100 bill!

Two key factors helped the project succeed. First, the 10,000 "artists" who worked on the project were sourced through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Mechanical Turk is based upon the idea that even in a world of incredible computing power, humans are still better at performing certain tasks. Examples include identifying pictures, transcribe audio recordings, or in this case, creating art. Mechanical Turk allows users to submit projects they need help with (the Requestors) and others to be compensated for completing the tasks (the Workers), in a model reminiscent of InnoCentive's brokering strategy.

The other crucial part of the project was that the 10,000 artists utilized a toolkit that provided online drawing capabilities (basic brushes, paint buckets, color swatches, etc.) to assist those lacking artistic abilities, enabling them to contribute. Overall, this project was a interesting look into the power of crowdsourcing, noting that some projects can be performed faster, cheaper, and more efficiently utilizing a large number of users working in isolation. Ten Thousand Cents really embodies an adage we all know: "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts."

Color schemes for all my friends!

2010-12-05T16:50:00.004-06:00

My mom is a painter, and for that reason the colors of the walls in my house change almost as often as the season. It certainly keeps things interesting, but not everyone has their own personal stash of Sherwin-Williams color fans. If perhaps you're looking for a new fun and funky color scheme for whatever reason, this website has just made your life a whole lot easier. You can also see what the color scheme would look like to all your color blind friends. Maybe someday you'll be able to find and compare colors online and have them sent straight to the paint store?

How Mobile Photos Will Shape The Future of Marketing

2010-12-05T15:13:00.007-06:00

Do you currently own a smartphone with a camera? You probably use that camera to send picture messages to friends or post photos to Facebook. What if you could use your camera to instantly search for any information about an object, product, or location?

Google, Amazon, and many other companies are currently working on a new technology that could revolutionize the way we search for information. The idea is that you could snap a picture and instantly be able to access search information about the objects in the picture. For example, you could be on a vacation and take a picture of a monument to instantly view information on the name and history of the monument etc. You could also be in a store and take a picture of a pair of shoes to instantly see product ratings and other online vendors selling the same item.

What do you think about this technology? Do you think this would change the way you search for information?

Prezi.com

2010-12-03T10:27:00.004-06:00

In my internship last summer I was asked to use a new form of technology to put together a presentation for the marketing team. I am, as I’m sure everyone else is, accustomed to power point so I was a bit leery. After a few hours on prezi.com, however, I found that I really liked the presentation style. A Prezi is an image based story board approach to presenting information. It is supposed to be more digestible for the audience and easier to map out ideas for the creator. PowerPoint is so ingrained in how we present that I think branching out to new ways of presenting information is incredibly innovative and worth a look. I highly recommend prezi.com.

What do you buy your BOSS for the Holidays?

2010-12-02T10:22:00.003-06:00

A lot of people have issues finding a good not too personal but not too generic holiday gift for their bosses. The Wall Street Journal wrote an article featuring Young Yun from American Express and tips for how to find the perfect gift.

1) Listen throughout the year for tidbits about what they like. Ex: Your boss likes to cook and likes a certain restaurant... Gift basket with sauces from that restaurant and how to use them

2) If you haven't been listening for useful bits of information, a little facebook--- "searching" doesn't hurt either. Google, facebook, twitter, and even foursquare can tell you a lot about the person AND can lead you to a great gift idea!

3) People like to eat - even better if its something they can share with their team!

4) Flowers are okay, but not the best idea

5) Avoid anything prepackaged

And that's your Holiday gift advice!

Need for ticketing innovation

2010-11-28T15:41:00.004-06:00

A recent article in Wired magazine titled, “Everyone Hates Ticketmaster- But No One Can Take It Down,” highlights the struggles that startups are having in cracking into the lucrative ticketing business. Ticketmaster is the unquestioned giant in the ticketing industry, and despite its lack of innovation and how despised it is among consumers, it continues to dominate the industry while facing only minor threats from competitors. While new online ticketing companies like Ticketfly and Veritix are slowly gaining business, they still face an uphill battle in challenging Ticketmaster’s dominance.
This is a sobering reality, as one would think that Ticketmaster’s widespread unpopularity due to gouging customers on ticket prices would lead to an innovative upstart to begin to seriously cut into their market share. This hasn’t happened and it is vital to examine this when one discusses the possibilities of innovation, especially in relation to challenging the established corporate structure. What becomes evident when reading this article on Wired, is that individual consumers have very little power in changing the dynamics of this industry. Ticketmaster is able to continue to reap huge profits because it provides concert and sporting venues with what they want, high margins on ticket prices. Ticketmaster can continue to charge exorbitantly high prices as long as they are benefitting the concert and sporting venues that host these events. Because of the nature of the industry, it is the venues, rather than the end consumers who ultimately dictate which ticket provider is used. Thus, until widespread boycotts are organized by disillusioned concert goers, or venues decide to take an ethical stand against such high “service fees” being charged to consumers, it looks as if Ticketmaster is here to stay.

LEGO Build Together

2010-11-26T20:21:00.004-06:00

I was watching TV before and came across this commercial for LEGO build together. It got me thinking about our LEGO exercise, and how many of us did not think that it was such a good idea. Some said they did not see fathers and sons being able to work together on the computer program, and some said that they could not see kids buying their creations online and rebuilding them. This new ad campaign (called Build Together), shows a father and son working on a LEGO project. I think that this was put into place as a way to reinforce the idea of a father building with his son, or a son building with his father. It seems to me that LEGO was well-aware of the difficulties we were raising as a class, and as a result, but these commercials into place.

Co-Created Abortion?

2010-11-25T16:49:00.004-06:00

Abortion is a highly politicized topic with important ramifications. The decision to abort a pregnancy is extremely personal in nature and one that typically entails substantial anguish. Well, that was then; this is now. Pete and Alisha Arnold of Apple Valley, Minnesota, who are currently struggling with this difficult dilemma, have decided to elicit the power of the Internet to help them reach a decision. They have created a blog for their unborn child (birthornot.com) and are asking for your help. On this blog, you can learn more about them, see an ultrasound image of their unborn baby ("Wiggles") and vote whether or not they should have an abortion. Their tagline claims, "You can vote and choose whether we abort or keep our unborn child." They claim that they will follow the wisdom of the crowd (The final day for votes is December 9). In essence, they appear to be engaged in co-creating an abortion. Is this democracy in action or an example of really bad parenting?

Computers That Bridge the Gap Between Virtual and Real Worlds

2010-11-23T10:38:00.006-06:00

An Intel researcher, Beverly Harrison, is designing computers that bridge the virtual and real worlds. Harrison feels there is a better way to interact with computers besides, "logging into the box." Read about the projects Harrison is currently working on in this article.
Do you think human-computer interactions, such as the ones described in this article, could become commonplace and part of our daily lives in the future?

3D Printing

2010-11-22T21:37:00.008-06:00

Here are some pictures I took during last week's class on 3D printing. I hope these come out okay, but if not you can e-mail me and I can send them over. I know this is just my opinion, but I feel like I am speaking for the class in saying that this was one of the most interesting and entertaining lectures I have ever attended at the UW. Thanks for an awesome class, Prof. Aric!

Collaboration... of DANCERS

2010-11-22T13:26:00.006-06:00

Madison Dance Conference(MDC) is the largest dance collaboration ever on the UW-Madison campus and probably the largest across all campuses. It is a collaboration of 16 dance-oriented student organizations. The premise is a celebration of all forms of dance. MDC teaches lessons and on the final night has performances from all the dance groups. Here's the catch--groups pair up to do fusion dance performances. For example this year include mixes like the Irish step dancers dancing with break dancers and salsa dancers with bhangra crew. MDC for this year was yesterday, November 21, 2010. There were over 600 attendees, 8 performances, social dancing, and lessons. For more information check out the website. The video will be posted soon. You should watch it because it was awesome.

DIY Toolkits Extend to Airplanes

2010-11-20T15:38:00.003-06:00

Recently posted on wired.com, an article discusses the DIY toolkits now available for people interested in building airplanes. Like the subtitle of the article says, it really is from toolkit to takeoff in two-weeks. At the hangar outside of Seattle, you can work on your plane with assistance from on-hand professionals to increase time efficiency and to meet FAA regulations (the "51%rule discussed in the article). The hangar provides all the tools and instructions you'll need; they even lay out the tools for the day before you arrive each day! This reminded me of working process of Local Motors, and yet the risk factor of the final product in this case seems much greater. Taking my life into my own hands on the road is one thing, but up in the air? I'm not sure I would have the guts, but kudos to all the customers worldwide who have participated in such an adventure.

Father & Son send Iphone Into Space

2010-11-20T12:40:00.000-06:00

In a burst of science-is-fun educational invention, a Brooklyn dad built a carrier for an iPhone (the current model) and an HD video camera, out of a takeout box, tied it to a weather balloon, and let it go with the camera running. It reached a height of nineteen miles, or about 100,000 feet, which is high enough to show the earth's curvature and a black sky above the atmosphere. At that height, the low pressure means that the helium expanded and the balloons burst, whereupon the little cushioned capsule came down, down, down — and landed 30 miles outside New York, signaling to its owners via the iPhone's GPS, whereupon they went and picked it up. The resulting six minutes of rivetingly weird film are sure to make Mythbusters fans weep with joy.

Video can be found here:

Tenth Anniversary of Wikipedia

2010-11-18T14:03:00.005-06:00

Jimmy Wales, one of the co-founders of Wikipedia talks in this video about the last ten years of Wikipedia and the growth he expects to see. It's an interesting and enlightening interview that sheds light on new projects like opening a new office in India. One thing I found very interesting was explaining how he believes Wikipedia formed because of the dotcom crash of the 1990s. I never thought about how consumer innovation really started to blossom from this event. Check it out!

Grow Your Own...Car

2010-11-17T20:41:00.007-06:00

I saw this and instantly thought of Local Motors. To my surprise it is actually the new Biome concept car by Mercedes-Benz. The theme is "growing" your own car from start to finish in a "nursery" using a Symbiosis system. The results will be a unique and specialized car for each driver since no two cars will ever be the same.

Sample Mania, Part 2

2010-11-17T12:35:00.006-06:00

Girl Talk, a "musician" discussed during our talk on tinkering, has just released yet another studio album entitled "All Day" that is available as a free download via his record label, Illegal Art. A large tour to back the album includes a stop in Madison on Monday, March 7. If you haven't seen Gregg Gillis live, definitely check it out (and grab your ticket SOON). Dance party!

The Groundswell

2010-11-17T12:14:00.003-06:00

I had an internship last summer at Robert W. Baird & Co. in the marketing and communications department. Baird is a financial company that works mostly with customers in their 60’s. I spent most of my summer reading about mutual funds and diversification but I was also asked to read the book “Groundswell.” The book included a lot of examples about user innovation that we used in class (like LEGO Digital Designer) but also had some suggestions for companies like Baird who think they are immune to the innovation in the business world. I thought it was a pretty interesting book—especially if it has big financial companies reading it for help—so I thought I’d recommend it.

Even Insurance Is Starting to Innovate!

2010-11-15T22:51:00.007-06:00

Although this isn't all that cool to most individuals, it is quite a big breakthrough in a field that is very straightforward and lacks a lot of innovation. Skygrid teamed up with American Family Insurance to offer a new Ipad app that allows its customers to walk through a variety of homes and learn about possible exposures based on the area they live. This is just the first step to eventually offering a lot more in depth online appraisals of individual homes and eventually saving a lot of customers and businesses a lot of time trying to figure out what type of insurance they should buy.

Repo Men

2010-11-15T14:22:00.004-06:00

After learning about the innovation of producing body parts, I thought of a movie that I recently saw, Repo Men. It gives a chilling interpretation of the consequences of placing organs on the market.

Hey Google, meet TV.

2010-11-14T20:47:00.002-06:00

I'll be honest, I'm wasting time on the computer right now, with the TV on in the background. One of my favorite features of the up and coming Google TV is picture in picture: browse the internet, do some searches, all while your show is playing in the bottom right corner- now that's multi-tasking.

I haven't decided yet if this is actually as cool as it sounds. It's easy enough to plug a laptop into a TV and do a lot of the same things. Plus, Hulu and many network channels have yet to make an App for Google TV, so the sites and access to their free shows are blocked until further notice.
I definitely think this is the future of television but it's not quite there yet.

Google TV Review

The Future of Microfinancing

2010-11-14T20:16:00.003-06:00

In just the past six years Kiva, an online microfinancing provider has managed to raise over $171 million dollars to help 445,000 entrepreneurs in 54 developing countries! Microfinancing is the process where local banks or lenders provide small loans to impoverished small business owners in developing countries, who would not be able to receive financing otherwise. What has been found, is because of the great debt these small business owners feel to the lenders, the repayment rates are much higher than bank repayment rates are.
What Kiva is doing, is connecting entrepreneurs in developing countries to lenders, primarily located in the United States. Entrepreneurs, or the local microfinancing institution they are working through, post a description of their proposed project and a brief bio about the person, group or family. Then lenders can search Kiva's website and look at all of these various projects in need of financing, and can select which ones they would like to loan their money to.
This project has been incredibly successful and helped enrich the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. I think it really shows some of the positive power of innovation to generate greater social welfare worldwide.
Below is a link to Kiva's website where you can learn more, and even make a loan today!

http://www.kiva.org/

What is ethical when it comes to tinkering with patent protected Hardware?

2010-11-10T10:39:00.003-06:00

What is ethical when it comes to tinkering with patent protected hardware? Is it different for hardware than it is for software? This article introduces Adafruit which is a company that sells DIY electronic kits and open source software. They are searching for programmers capable of hacking the new Microsoft Kinect device. Adafruit is offering a $2,000 reward to programmers that can produce drivers that will unlock the devices RGB camera, a depth-sensor, four microphones and motorized pivot. Microsoft is not supporting their efforts to unlock the device and has mentioned the possibility of a lawsuit. The situation is similar to the launch of Linux, but on a much smaller scale. Software giant Microsoft is trying to control the uses of its product, but creative programmers see potential for more functionality.

Microsoft fosters a containment culture. I think that if Microsoft allowed their customers to modify their hardware products they would see growth in sales. They need to capitalize on the modifications that their users are going to make regardless of their support.

I read an article yesterday about an undercover officer who videotaped a college student modifying an Xbox 360. The student was charging $60 for a modification on the Xbox that would allow you to download old school games to the hard drive. He is facing up to 10 years in prison. I think that something is very wrong with our laws if they are going to sentence a creative college student to 10 years in prison for making the Xbox better than it was.

GE's New YouTube Campaign

2010-11-09T12:34:00.000-06:00

In an effort to increase publicity for their green initiative "Ecomagination," GE is marketing in an unusual way...to a nontraditional group of consumers. In their campaign, "Tag Your Green," GE encourages younger consumers to let people know what environmental responsibility means to them. The site provides several interactive methods and suggestions as to how these younger consumers can engage in the campaign, citing YouTube, Flickr, and Facebook as possibilities.

In addition to the "Tag Your Green" Website, GE has also recruited YouTube "cewebrities" popular with teenagers and younger consumers to create videos advertising the campaign. The YouTube cewebrities posted videos whose goal was " [...] encouraging their fans to engage with the idea [of green living] by asking fans to come up with their own inventive ways to make nice with the environment." Fan videos and ideas are then posted and recognized on the "Tag Your Green" website. Michelle Phan (a cewebrity who offers beauty advice) posted this video as a part of the campaign.

By encouraging youth to innovate and collaborate with GE initiatives, GE hopes to expose future customers to their brand in an engaging manner early on.

Socially-Powered Browser

2010-11-08T21:01:00.010-06:00

Backed by Netscape, the new social media-based browser "RockMelt" was launched today. The browser, developed conjointly by innovators Tim Howes and Eric Vishria (in complete secrecy), has been dubbed a "social browser" and holds the intention of "build[ing] your online connections into your Web browsing experience." As social media and the social nature of the Internet has crescendoed, Howes and Vishria noted that many users spend the vast majority of their online time interacting with sites like Facebook and Twitter. Consequentially, the browser seeks to integrate user profiles into the browsing experience.

A major concern with the browser is privacy - in order to use the browser, one must log in with his or her Facebook or Twitter account access information and give RockMelt permission to access listed information (including newsfeed, chat, friend list, profile information, photos, and more). Although the creators claim privacy is of utmost importance and that "they do not store personal information about users or track what they do online," I foresee a lot of potential users initially being turned off (even though the software is free). What do you think?

Changing Education Paradigms

2010-11-08T17:52:00.006-06:00

In this YouTube clip, Sir Ken Robinson, a world-renowned education and creativity expert discusses the modern paradigm of education in an RSA Animate production. This caricatured interpretation of our nation's obsession with the "ADHD epidemic" explains why our standardized system of educating children should be taken in a different direction.
Robinson explains that our education is modeled on the concept of industrialization; we need to move away from this production line mentality. This runs parallel to the evolving concepts of product development and consumer co-creation that we talk about in class. Children should be encouraged to learn by expressing their ideas and understanding that there are a lot of possible answers to the questions they face. Robinson says "most great learning happens in groups," and that classroom cheating should be simply labeled as collaboration. The consumer world is changing, so the same concept should trickle down into our educational models.

Dunkin'novation

2010-11-08T13:08:00.003-06:00

Last week, Dunkin' Donuts introduced a new food item, Sausage Pancake Bites. These items sound like a normal breakfast item, but for a chain that has prided itself on donuts (especially Munchkins), people have been drawing the comparison between the pancake bites and Munchkins. Many websites have dubbed these items as "Meat Munchkins," which do not sound too appetizing. I personally do not think these items will last on the menu, especially if the term "Meat Munchkin" sticks. Innovative? Yes; but successful? Probably not. To see a video of a brave man trying one of these "Meat Munchkins," click here.

SomethingToGive.org

2010-11-03T22:41:00.006-05:00

Something to Give is the vision of Andy McRea stemming from the belief that increased community involvement is a powerful solution to many social problems we face in the USA. The mission is to create a social network of people giving their time as a volunteer or an opportunity, experience, or reward. A common reason why people do not volunteer is because of the "what's in it for me" mentality. Something to give allows volunteers to earn credits by volunteering hours for certain organizations and they can win rewards posted by other people!

This is extremely new and it is not even launched yet. They hope to be up and running in 6-9months. It will start in SeattleThe website up right now is just a mock of what the real one will be. They are looking for volunteers, financial donors for start up, and contributors of rewards and experiences.

Why Open Source is Good for Business

2010-11-02T21:36:00.004-05:00

After completing the open-source case on Linux last week, I discovered this article which features an interview with Dries Buytaert, the founder of the open-source software project, Drupal. The volunteer project has grown immensely since its beginnings in 2000 and is used by big names such as The White House, Harvard, and MTV.

Towards the end of the article, Mr. Buytaert addresses the issue of commercialization within the open-source community. Obviously we have discussed this topic in class and it was interesting to get an outsider view on the matter. Mr. Buytaert explains that by ensuring that the leadership and decision-making parts of the project are not influenced by commercial interests, the project remains in a healthy balance. The project is driven commercially, but directed democratically. Open-source companies struggling with commercialization may want to start taking notes...

Japanese Android Looks Human

2010-11-01T21:40:00.004-05:00

An innovative robotics company, Kokoro, introduced a new Japanese android that strongly resembles a human nurse. The newly released android looks incredibly life-like and even tested by some hospitals in Japan. The purpose of this "nurse" is to provide patients with some company as they spend time on their hospital beds; they only sit beside the patient as the patient undergoes various tests. Heres a link to the video that demonstrates its movements.

PitchInnovation

2010-11-01T20:06:00.004-05:00

When we think of innovators, we usually think of inventors, or businessmen. Most people do not think of athletes. I am here to tell you that there might be a new innovator in the world of sports, pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. The origins of such classic pitches as the four seam fastball and the classic curveball are unknown, but recently, pitchers have been finding new ways to throw the ball. In the 1930s, Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell perfected the screwball (the anti-slider), in the late 1970s, Hall of Famer Bruce Sutter created and perfected the splitter (a dropping fastball), and in the 1990s, future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera invented the cutter (a breaking fastball). Now, in the 2010s, Matsuzaka could be working on inventing and perfecting the "gyroball." Unknown to most American baseball fans, this mysterious pitch creates a spin on the ball with an axis of spin in line with the direction of the throw (like an American football). If perfected, Matsuzaka could continue his career with the Boston Red Sox with as dominating numbers as the innovators Hubbell, Sutter, and Rivera put up before him.

To watch video of Matsuzaka throwing the alleged "gyroball," click here.

Mitsubishi Live Drive

2010-11-01T10:35:00.003-05:00

Starting today (11/1) through November 11, Mitsubishi is offering customers the ability to test drive their all-new Outlander Sport vehicle. The real innovation comes in that Mitsubishi is allowing you to do this test drive, live, over the internet. The user is in complete control of the vehicle from the comfort of his/her own home. This experience is sure to be a very unique experience for buyers in the market for a new car. However, this is likely to serve as a purely promotional campaign as it is unlikely that this will replace real test driving. Check it out here

Community Beer!

2010-11-01T10:29:00.005-05:00

This would happen first in Wisconsin. A new brewery with ingredients coming from the surrounding community right here in Madison. Subscribing to be a community supported beer member (CSB) comes at a cost but will be well worth the money. What a beautiful innovation! Check out the article here

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T18:31:00.008-05:00

If Memorial Library's stacks aren't creepy enough, try hitting them up on Halloween eve (as I'm currently doing). Anyway, this online pumpkin carving site is pretty slick and allows users to order gifts with submitted designs on them. Happy Halloween, and yay to discounted candy at Walgreens tomorrow!

PS: The day isn't complete without this. Peace.

Why Consumers Engage in Virtual New Product Developments Initiated by Producers

2010-10-28T13:27:00.005-05:00

In lecture, we have discussed the various forms of user innovation and consumer involvement. We have explored the different forms of user innovation, engaged in our own user innovation and discussed the different processes in which we do participate in. However, what is the underlying reason as to why we do it? What are the motivations? In class we touched on this topic a bit, but this article explores it much more and gives different insights on this idea.

This article (by Johann Füller at the University of Innsbruck) discusses the intrinsic and extrinsic motivations that consumers go through when participating in product development, as well as identifying eleven basic motivations felt by consumers. The article describes a study done to determine these motivations and outlines the results and their significance.

I found this article intriguing because I could identify with many of the motivations when I was completing my class exercises. As you read this article, think about what motivations you identified with most during the exercises you did (Jones Soda, Lego Design, Wikipedia, etc.). Enjoy!

Open Source Innovation in Entertainment

2010-10-26T20:15:00.006-05:00

Here's a really cool example (www.hitrecord.org) of open source innovation in the entertainment industry. It brings together artists of all kinds: actors, graphic artists, musicians, writers, composers, etc. This is just more proof that open source isn't just for software... it can be applied to anything! Check out a video below explaining the process and check out the website.

The Battle between Microsoft and Open Source

2010-10-26T14:04:00.004-05:00

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/4834.html

I came across this article and thought that it would be extremely helpful for those people who are writing their Case Report about the Linux case. It's very relevant to our course material for this week.
Basically, the article highlights the benefits of both Microsoft and Linux-type software. The authors conclude that it is unlikely that one of the systems will force the other one out. However, they explore the different situations that could arise that could potentially make this happen.
Parts of the article get a little detailed and hard to follow, but for the most part it is very informative. The most interesting part to me was the section that discusses how Microsoft could benefit from piracy when that piracy is from people who would not buy Microsoft to begin with. This is because Microsoft is not losing sales to them, yet they are still increasing the value of the system and moving users away from Linux.
Anyway, hope you enjoy because I did!

Collaboration and Co-Creation Here to Stay

2010-10-25T21:12:00.004-05:00

Customer collaboration and co-creation are relatively new ideas. However, as we have seen in class and through readings, more and more companies are taking on these practices and many new companies are solely based off these practices. Gaurav Bhalla, a strategy, innovation, and marketing professional with global experience, examined how customer collaboration and co-creation are becoming mainstream business practices. The ideas are being featured in many conferences around the world with companies like Local Motors being in the spotlight. Further, nonprofit organizations and government agencies are taking advantage of these strategies. See Global Pulse 2010, which was put into place after Obama's speech delivered to the Muslim world in Cairo. It was "a 3 day online collaboration and global conversation" attracting participants from over 155 countries resulting in about 10,000 ideas and opinions. We see here that this idea of collaboration and co-creation can span across cultures. The best part about it- all of us can contribute in any which way. Raj Shah, a key organizer of Global Pulse 2010 quotes, "By listening to each other and collaborating, each of us can become an agent of change and contribute to innovative and sustainable solutions to local and international challenges."

Co-created Story

2010-10-25T14:57:00.003-05:00

Today in class, we engaged in a collaborating exercise by co-creating a story about our class. The inspiration for this was Penguin Publishing's A Million Penguins initiative (in Spring 2007). Here is what each section produced. What do you think?

Section 1 (11:00)

Marketing 440 is an undergraduate marketing class taught at the Wisconsin School of Business. This class consists of lots of interesting case studies about new product development and is taught by Aric. He likes to enhance our learning by blasting music before class using Wisconsin favorites such as Teach Me How to Bucky. Aric is also a closet Packer fan. Today we are discussing collaboration, and it is difficult for me to understand because we keep talking about aliens. What the hell is that about? Now Aric is claiming to be an expert on Extra-Terrestrial life, which he is!! What's next? Is he an alien? Is that how he is such an expert? His hair is definitely out of this world... I don't believe anyone would question the expertise of a man wearing a flannel. One time, I was walking to class, and to my surprise, Aric was on crutches claiming he "hurt" his knee playing basketball...but we all know that he hurt it climbing out of his spaceship. He keeps saying that he goes to these conventions to lecture but how do we know that he is not flying off to his homeland to deliver the news to his alien comrades that he has successfully convinced his human students to believe that he too was a human just like them. Stupid University of Wisconsin students... Now that he has accomplished this step, he must next get the students to love the Packers. Now back to the beginning. One day, the unassuming Aric was ghost-riding his whip to class when, all of a sudden, he realized he doesn't know what ghost-riding is.

Section 2 (1:00)

Marketing 440, aka Venture Creation, is an undergraduate marketing class taught at the Wisconsin School of Business. MKT 440 uses real world examples and does not depend on text books. We watch videos of bisson, Aerosmith, and UFO conspiracies. YouTube has been a stand-in "text-book" for the class. These videos have shown us that Aerosmith and Run DMC were leading the way which "tinkering," one of the many co-creation techniques we've been learning about. Other than watching videos we also do some exercises in class, which enables everyone to get involved while creating user innovation. These exercises might not seem like homework, but somehow they also tie into what we are learning. So far, we have contributed to MyStarbucksIdea.com, submitted photos to Jones Soda, and made our own Lego designs. One other requirement of the class is to analyze and write about one of four case studies presented in class. Case studies focus on companies including InnoCentive, Threadless, Local Motors and Linix, all of which rely heavily upon user innovation in their business models. Along with exercises and cases studies, we will also have the opportunity to interact with new innovative ideas and companies in a group project. As a class we will create something new using a MakerBot, a 3D printer. Right now we are watching a video of Yochai Benkler! His beard is out of control! This guy has one of the most boring voices ever. He sounds almost like the guy from eye drops commercial--Ben Stein. We should teach him how to Bucky.

Square Coke Bottles

2010-10-19T19:57:00.004-05:00

I know this is a few days behind, but last week we talked about tinkering and changing attributes of the Coca-Cola cans. This is a design by a student who came up with a more environmentally-friendly square Coke bottle. Here's what it looks like. I wonder if they'll use it?

WisconsInnovation

LuminAID: An Inflatable Solar Light -- IndieGoGo

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