No Hard and Fast Rules for When to Make an App Open Source

telecommatt | June 30, 2008
This article raises a valuable question. At what point is it better for the application to keep the source closed? I think that the answer is in the type of community the application generates around itself. This is regardless of the size of the app or the audience. You can’t measure the size of the user base and say, “Well, it’s time to go open source.” Instead, you have to look at the momentum within the community, however small that community may be.
clipped from feedly

Those are just a handful of examples of apps going open source, but there are many more. Of course, this isn’t to ignore the fact that Sourceforge does quite well, it’s just to raise the question - does open sourcing a niche web app really encourage more development? When the community is so small, if the creator doesn’t continue to work on the app, how does the app really fare? And has a favorite app of yours ever been abandoned?

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Matt’s Cuppa Diigo Post 06/30/2008

telecommatt |

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Can We Succeed as Experts in the Age of the Internet?

telecommatt | June 29, 2008
I’m trying to wrap my mind around this post. It’s quite lengthy, but I guarantee you it will make you think.

Thing is, I’m not sure I completely agree. Does adding additional features really reduce the audience? Is it true that those who overspecialize in today’s world will not do well? What if the reverse is true?

For example, take an application that has very few features. All resources are focuses on two (two being an arbitrary small number) specific tasks. On it’s release, only people who need to perform those tasks will benefit from the application. Now add sixteen features and you’ve got sixteen times the likelihood of someone needing the application.

Think of all the social applications with open API’s. I’m using Clipmarks to post to my Wordpress blog, which will notify my Twitter followers of a new post, send an email to my subscribers, and provide an RSS feed for various news readers. My audience is expanded exponentially with each new feature that is tied into these open API’s.

Where I can see the scenario in the Mashable article taking place is in so-called expert applications. Perhaps there should be a distinction made between features and advanced or expert features, where deeper education regarding the problem being addressed is required to create a solution.

I see both of these scenarios happening simultaneously in many environments. My own workplace is a great example. The database application I maintain is extremely feature-rich. There are many modular pieces aimed at helping many intertwined but separate groups complete their job functions. By adding modular chunks to the application, we are able quickly accommodate a broader audience. At the same time, adding expert features to each module reduces the audience size of that module, but not of the application itself.

So, back to the question, do experts no longer matter in the days of the internet? How can that be the case, when the amount and depth of data available has increased exponentially? Simple put, I believe that there will no less need for experts in the information age. As above, both scenarios are occurring simultaneously. There is also the question of who will create the applications that reach the broadest audience? Wouldn’t it be someone with a very indepth and specialized knowledge of the problem being addressed? And wouldn’t they need features available to them to create a solution built that is for a broad audience?
clipped from mashable.com

Features, I’ve recently come to realize, can be obstacles. Problems. The more powerful an application is, the more specialized it is, and thus with increased power its intended audience shrinks, and ironically, it becomes more, not less, vulnerable to competition.

Specialization, traditionally, is a good thing. But, as Alexander Bard and Jan Söderqvist argue in their Netocracy, those who overspecialize will not do very well in the age of the Internet. Want to succeed? Be influential in as many important networks as possible, they argue.

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Environmentally Friend;y Virtual Bubble Wrap

telecommatt |
Relieve stress while raising the stress level of the people on the cubes near you with virtual bubble wrap.

On an eco-friendly note, birds can’t choke or drown in virtual bubble wrap…
clipped from www.downloadsquad.com
When we were kids, the best thing about getting a package in the mail was the bubble wrap that came in the box. Now that we’re a bit older, and we can appreciate everything else that comes along with the bubble wrap, it doesn’t mean we don’t still get a kick out of finding every last little bubble to pop. Now, if you want to get your hands on some bubble wrap, you don’t have to wait until your next package arrives. Any time you feel the itch to pop, just go here.
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Matt’s Cuppa Diigo Post 06/29/2008

telecommatt |

  • Freeware Tools and Utilities for Windows

    Pages and pages of small freeware utilities for system-related tasks

    tags: freeware, utilities, windows, software, password

  • The Best-ever Freeware Utilities List | Gizmo’s Tech Support Alert

    “A kind of Wikipedia® for Freeware”

    There are a lot of great freeware products out there. Many are as good as or better than their commercial alternatives. But with so many great free products how do you find the best?

    That’s what we do at this site: in each program class we select the “best of the best.”

    This is a community based site with over 60 volunteer editors. If you disagree with the editors’ choices please add your suggestions for the benefit of others.

    tags: software, freeware

  • Drop.io: Simple Private Sharing

    Drop.io enables you to create simple private sharing points called “drops.”

    The service has no email signup and no “accounts.” Each drop is private, and only as accessible as you choose to deliberately make it. Create multiple drops, add any type of media, and share or subscribe as you want. To make a drop just click the big red button that says ‘drop it’

    tags: filesharing, storage, sharing, drop

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Remember When Floppy DIsks Were Useful?

telecommatt | June 28, 2008
Now you can use your old floppy disks to store stuff again!
clipped from lifehacker.com

floppypenholder1.png Instead of throwing out those old floppy disks, grab a couple of zip ties and turn them into a roomy, DIY pen holder that pays homage to the old school method of data storage. Do-it-yourselfer completegeek posts the straightforward step-by-step. In short, drill a couple of holes into the disks, fasten them together with zip ties, and trim off extra length with scissors. Easy-peasy, with nifty results! Photo by matthew.shelton.
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Top 10 mind mapping tools

telecommatt |
I love mindmapping. It’s such an awesome way to free yourself from traditional systematic, top-to-bottom style thinking. I’ve noticed that the number of free mindmapping tools out there is just exploding. When I first started to use the concept, there was MindManager by MindJet. And that was pretty much it. And it wasn’t free by any means. We’ve come a long way from there, and “there” wasn’t all that long ago.

Thanks Mohir
clipped from en.onsoftware.com
Create mindmaps
Mind maps - also known as concept maps - are visual diagrams used to represent ideas and tasks relating to a given topic. They come in especially handy when you need to generate and manage ideas for a work project, because having a visual representation of all available concepts helps you organize the necessary workflow in a more optimized way.
Check out this list with the best mind mapping software apps out there.
  • MindManager - capture ideas from several sources and create mind maps with them
    		•
  • MindGenius - easy, intuitive mindmapping tool for everyone
    		•
  • FreeMind - a mind map tool based on Java
    		•
  • MindPad - create colorful, complete mind maps
    		•
  • Visual Mind - mind map tool with a flexible graphic interface
    		•
  • NovaMind - conduct brainstorming sessions and create mindmaps with their outcome
    		•
  • CMapTools - free mindmapping tool with exporting capabilities
    		•
  • Cayra - an open-source mind map program with basic functionalities
    		•
  • ConceptDrawMindmap - professional tool to create concept maps
    		•
    Mindomo
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    Matt’s Cuppa Tech Tip: Detect Malware with HiJackThis

    telecommatt |
    Unfortunately, it’s no longer good enough to have antivirus software installed on your PC, even if it’s up to date. There is little guarantee that the next website you visit won’t shove some little malware pill down your computers throat. (Okay, that’s a little dramatic, but still…)

    Free utility HiJackThis is one of the best ways to tell if you’ve been, well, hijacked. The bad news is that you need a degree in computer science to know what to do with the results. The good news is that the websites below, which were probably written by people with degrees in computer science, can tell you what you need to know about your HiJackThis log file and they’ll do it for free.
    clipped from www.techsupportalert.com
    1.3 Easy Way to Detect
    Infections
    In
    the editorial column in issue #157, I suggested that
    you submit a HiJackThis log of your computer to free
    security forums to identify possible malware
    infections. Several users wrote in to say that many
    forums no longer provide this service. Here’s an
    alternative that’s quicker and simpler, though not
    quite as accurate: Use a web service that will analyze
    your HiJackThis log using an automated technique. I
    know of two such services. All you have to do is paste
    your HJT log to the website and the results come back
    within seconds. Of the two sites, I found the analysis
    from the first site more informative.
    http://www.hijackthis.de
    http://hjt.networktechs.com/
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    Tweeple I Met At Twebinar

    telecommatt |

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    Who Will Really Benefit By Generic TLD’s?

    telecommatt | June 27, 2008
    I admit that I’m a bit pessimistic about this. I’m not seeing how it helps the grow of the internet to suddenly be able to have a website at www.yoursite.coke. Especially with the cost of registering such a TLD in the 6 figures, who is this going to benefit other than large multinationals and domain squatters?

    Now that the internet is so intertwined with what we do, there’s got to be tons of things that will be affected by the introduction of these new TLDs (not to mention domains in cyrillic script) that we take for granted today. What do you think? Will this make the world wide web a better place?
    clipped from www.computerworld.com
    ICANN votes to expand top-level domain names

    Generic TLDs could appear by the end of 2009; registrars divided over merits

    “The introduction of new TLDs will provide more choices, but it is yet to be seen if these choices will provide domain names our customers will want,” said Steven Vine, deputy general counsel at Register.com, in an e-mail. “Additionally, the rules for these TLDs are yet to be finalized, and there are risks that if the right framework is not developed, we may see a repeat of mistakes of the past. For example, as we have learned, in order to maintain a competitive marketplace, we must prevent unfair advantages among registrars.”
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