8th of November: World Usability Day "Make life easy" 

Swiss UPA, the Swiss chapter of the Usability Professional Association proposes to ease access to free public wireless networks using a specific sign ((o)) that would help users to detect easy to use wireless networks. 

Today, before getting online using a wireless device, users have first to find an user-friendly wireless access point and then try to connect to it.

The user has to detect which wireless networks are available from his location and check if they are public and free of charge. Often wireless network names do not inform the visitor if the access to the network is free or not. The wireless access point might not be protected but once connected users are redirected to a page where they will be invited to purchase access rights.

Swiss UPS also highlight the fact that once connected to a free and public wireless network, it is not uncommon to reach an authentication page before getting access to the Internet. This procedure has 2 main disadvantage:

• Some authentication pages cannot be completed when using a Smartphone or a PDA.
• Some services such email, Instant Messaging, VoIP, etc… do not require the use of a browser and users cannot pass easily through this authentication method.

To make users' life easier, Swiss UPS proposes to include at the beginning of the SSID (Service Set Identifier which broadcasts the name of the wireless network) of public and free wireless networks the  following distinctive sign:  ((0))

Usage of the sign ((o)) is free and open to all individuals, collectivities and organizations which operate a WiFi network respecting  Swiss UPA usability charter.

More about Swiss UPA (in German), UPA International (English) and about World Usability Day

Source: Canard WiFi 

Tags: 2007, access, art, blog, ces, ergonomic, find, free, ia, im, International, internet, IT World, lan, light, location, network, nomadcom.net, online, pda, phone, public, services, smartphone, swiss, swiss upa, Telecommunications, upa, USA, usability, usage, user, wifi, wireless, world, wp, www

76% of 1200 American consumers who participated to Digital Life America - Holiday 2007 Edition survey have included at least one digital lifestyle product on their wish list.

1. flat screen high definition TV set - 35% (men 37% - women 33%)
2. laptop (windows) - 20% (21% - 19%)
3. digital camera - 17% (16% - 18%)
4. desktop PC - 14% (13% - 15%)
5. GPS navigation unit for the car - 10% (11% - 10%)
6. cell phone - 10% (9% - 12%)
7. digital video camera - 9% (8% - 11%)
8. Nintendo Wii - 9% (8% - 9%)
9. Sony PS3 - 7%
10. Blu-ray or HD-DVD player - 6%

First Apple product (laptop) is on rank 11 (9 among women) buzz maker iPhone is 15. Survey participants clearly prefers laptop to desktop computers.

Unfortunately the survey doesn't reveal details about the type of cell phone ("simple" ones or smartphone) and I'm surprised to not ear anything about MP3 players nor PDA. Not trendy anymore or everybody already has one ?

What your wish list would be made of ?

source: Solutions Research Group. 

Tags: 2007, apple, arc, art, blog, camera, christmas, computer, computers, digital, digital life, im, iphone, lan, laptop, list, nomadcom.net, nyt, pda, phone, screen, search, simple, smartphone, sony, space, survey, trend, video, windows, wishlist, wp, www

Et voilà! As foreseen, my S620 is now running on Windows Mobile 6. 

Quick review:

The upgrade procedure was straight forward. 3-4 mins for the installation of the upgrade package and then about 5 mins to wait for the S620 to restart and finish the installation of Windows Mobile 6.

First impressions:

• No major changes on user's interface
• Predictive writing method (T9) working rather well. Definitively an improvement
• Calendar with a better view of your schedule at a glance
• More Alarm options, but still rather limited
• Improved wireless connection (faster link establishment) and better GPRS stability
• No improvement on memory management and closing running applications
• It seems that power management has improved (but perhaps just an impression)
• Can't say if the Smartphone is faster on WM6 than on WM5. Nothing significant.

More will follow, as soon as I will get familiarized with WM6.

Tags: 2007, art, blog, connection, fon, htc, ia, ict, im, install, King, lan, Management, memory, MIT, mobile, Mobile Communications, nomadcom.net, phone, power, press, release, review, S620, screen, smartphone, space, Telecommunications, upgrade, user, windows, windows mobile 6, wireless, WM5, WM6, wp