TJ O’Connor | TJ O'Connor

The Importance of Delivery

April 21, 2010 By TJ O'Connor View Comments

I’ve been thinking a lot about the phrase “Content is King”. I agree that one of the keys to a successful online strategy is creating content actually worth reading. However, isn’t it important that people actually SEE your content?

In other words: it’s all about delivery.

Print / Newspaper
Over the last decade, we have seen a decline in traditional newspaper sales and a spike in readership of online blog sites. Is this because of poor content? No. It is mainly a function of delivery and cost. Why would I trudge down to the newsstand when I can get all the news I need delivered to my laptop? Or, why even open my laptop if I can just get it delivered directly to my iPhone? The same concept applies to the new e-book readers such as the Kindle, Nook, and the much anticipated iPad. These small devices make the concept of lugging around a bag full of heavy books seem absurd in comparison.

Television / Video
Over the next ten years, I think we will see a major decline in traditional cable/satellite devices, as the major networks move toward delivery via the internet and mobile devices. As of right now, I can watch most of the shows on-demand, or have them delivered to me via iTunes, essentially making my cable box useless. Soon we will begin to see proprietary set-top boxes replaced with small inexpensive computers running Boxee or a similar program.

On-Demand
Netflix understands the concept of multiple delivery platforms, and has embraced it fully. Netflix Watch-It-Now allows Netflix subscribers to view on-demand movies and TV shows, some of which are currently running in primetime (Netflix picks up the NBC show Heroes the day after it is broadcast). As of today, Netflix will deliver this on-demand content via a slew of devices, including web browser, game consoles (XBox, PS3, Wii), Roku (a proprietary streaming player), Blu-Ray players, and internet connected TVs.

Content is King? Sure.

But a king without subjects isn’t very powerful, don’t you agree?

Photo credit: Tom Raftery

Filed Under: Business, Featured, Mobile, Web 2.0 Tagged With: Boxee, Cable, Delivery, Netflix, TV

Companies Not Ready for IPv6

February 3, 2010 By TJ O'Connor View Comments

In a recent article from IPv6 Now, they reveal that less than 10% of all IPv4 addresses remain unallocated, and predict it will be less than 3 years before we run out for good. With the expiration date approaching, companies running their own network need to be prepared.

Exponential Growth

When the internet began, a system was created for identifying machines on a network, called the Internet Protocol. Similar to telephone numbers, this system provides a unique address for every computer connected to the internet.

The addresses are structured as a set of four numbers, each number can range from 0-255, e.g. 192.168.1.100. This 32-bit address creates approx 4 billion (4.3 x 109) unique combinations.

With the exponential growth of the internet, we are rapidly approaching the 4 billion user capacity.

Technology is Short Lived

With technology (and most concepts in general), it is often difficult for people to look past the immediate future to anticipate the long term need. My favorite example of this is a quote from Bill Gates:

“… I felt like I was providing enough freedom for 10 years. That is, a move from 64k to 640k felt like something that would last a great deal of time. Well, it didn’t – it took about only 6 years before people started to see that as a real problem.”

A similar example of this can be found in a 2003 ZDNet article in which Paul Wilson, director general of APNIC (Asia Pacific Network Information Centre), stated that the shortage of IP Addresses is “misinformation”, and that the current system would be enough for 20 years.

In both of these cases, they knew exactly what to anticipate, they just expected the changes to take longer to happen.

New Technology Already Exists

In 1998, a new protocol was developed called IPv6. This new protocol can handle up to 340 undecillion (3.4 x 1038) addresses. While it seems like this is the answer we have been looking for, there is still one problem: Internet Protocol is implemented in hardware, not software.

This means that is isn’t as simple as running the latest patch or upgrade to get everything fixed. In some cases, companies will have to replace their entire infrastructure to support these new standards.

Even consumers will likely need to replace their own networks, as many modern-day routers and modems do not support the new protocol.

Recent Developments

Comcast, one of the United States’ largest internet providers, is taking the lead in this space, stating “in order for 2011 to represent the start of widespread adoption, critical work such as our trials must be conducted in 2010″.

Google is attacking the switch from the other end, providing an IPv6 version of the Google website for users to test out their connection.

Once major players such as these get involved, it is only a matter of time before the industry as a whole takes a big step forward.

Are you ready for the switch?

Photo Credit: Bruno Girin

Filed Under: Business, Featured Tagged With: IPv4, IPv6, Network

How Cloud Computing is Changing The Enterprise

January 13, 2010 By TJ O'Connor View Comments

In 2009, many companies began to integrate cloud computing into their daily operations (whether they know it or not). The main concept behind cloud computing is the delivery of computing resources over the Internet, as opposed to a physical machine.

Several aspects of the cloud are extremely appealing to the enterprise, especially smaller companies who can be more adaptable in their choice of technology.

We Don’t Need No Stinking Hardware

Software as a Service (SaaS) is the use of a system (generally a web application) within a managed environment, rather than installed on local servers. This allows you to get up and running immediately without having to worry about the underlying technology.

Last year, while working for CrossTech Partners, we developed a SaaS-based content management system called ExgenexCMS. Using the SaaS approach, we were able to get the client database provisioned and the basic website up and running within hours.

For clients that do not have a server environment or internal IT resources, this is an ideal situation.

The Way of the Google

Over the last few years Google Apps has evolved to mimic the functionality of the Microsoft Office suite. We use several of their tools for collaboration, including the Docs and Spreadsheets. (If you haven’t edited a Google Spreadsheet at the same time as someone else and seen their changes in real time, it is pretty cool). Since we are often traveling, it is important that we have tools that all users can interact with, regardless of location or platform.

Interestingly enough, this week Google made an announcement this week that they will working with several partners to straddle the desktop-cloud divide. While I’m sure Google developed these applications to compete with (read “replace”) Microsoft Office, they are smart enough to realize that large companies aren’t going to ditch their legacy systems…unless they bridge the gap.

It will be interesting to see which how long it takes for companies to stop straddling and to dive headfirst into the cloud.

Let’s Get Virtual

For me, one of the best parts of the entire cloud movement has been virtual machines. A virtual machine is exactly like a normal computer (with processor, memory, storage, and operating system), but is doesn’t live in a physical box. Several virtual machines can live within a single box, or could spread across a server farm.

We have been using virtual machines in our server room for a few years now, and I cannot praise it enough. Before virtualization, it would take us hours to get a new server ready for production. Now, we can simply clone one of our existing machines and have a fully functional web or database server up and running within minutes.

Whether it is building a web-based application or virtualizing your server room, there are many ways in which you can use cloud computing to improve and supplement your existing technology environment.

Photo Credit: ancawonka

Filed Under: Business, Content Management, Web 2.0 Tagged With: Cloud, Google, SaaS, Virtualization

Browser Check: Firefox 3.5 Is King as IE6 Hangs On

December 24, 2009 By TJ O'Connor View Comments

According to StatCounter, Firefox 3.5 is now the world’s most popular web browser, with a global market share of 22%.

chart

Source: StatCounter Global Stats – Browser Version Market Share

Internet Explorer 7 started out 2009 with 41%, but has since dropped to 21%, getting edged out by its open source competitor.

So what does this change for designers and developers?

Well…nothing

IE6 Just Won’t Die

To the dismay of just about every CSS developer, IE6 (a browser that launched in 2001), is still hanging on with a market share of 14%. This wouldn’t be such a bad thing, were it not for the fact that IE6 doesn’t abide by some of the most common web standards, such as transparent PNG Images and other CSS rules (see the box model bug).

Despite continuing campaigns to end the browser once and for all (including ie6nomore.com, ie6update.com, and others), it still remains an active part of the internet population, and a thorn in the side of CSS developers.

Some would argue that most of this IE6 retention comes from the corporate world, where users aren’t allowed to install new applications or upgrade existing ones. I have seen lots of web architects defending the continued use of IE6 because they are running applications that rely on integration with SharePoint or some other Microsoft system.

Like these developers, I come from the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” school of thought, but isn’t there a happy medium here?

Can’t large corporations continue use of IE6, but also install a more standards compliant browser like Safari?

Can YOU Pass The Acid Test?

Acid3 Test

Over the last few years, web standards have become an important player in the battle for browser dominance. A set of web-based compliance tests known as the Acid Tests have been developed to assist software developers in creating standards compliant browsers.

Acid3, the latest version of the test, expands on the mainly CSS-based Acid2 to include tests for HTML5 and other JavaScript functionality that will play a big role in the next generation of web applications.

Interestingly enough, the only browser that completely passes the test is Safari, which only holds a 3% market share. Firefox 3.5 scores a commendable (but still “failing”) 93/100, while Internet Explorer 9.0 scored a 32/100. This is to be expected, given the fact the tests were purposefully written so that every browser failed initially, and they are based on draft W3C standards that are not yet “official”.

The Future Is Now

As we head into 2010, we will see the next generation of browsers work towards standards compliance, which will help designers and developers focus on the user experience instead of messing around with CSS hacks for a certain browser version.

I understand that most users could care less about standards-compliance, but whether they know it or not, their choice of browser is helping to nudge other companies (read Microsoft) towards standards compliance and a consistent web experience for everyone.

Now, if only we could get rid of IE6….

Photo credit: Preston Kemp.

Filed Under: Business, Web 2.0 Tagged With: AID, Browser, Chrome, Firefox, IE6, IE7, IE8, Microsoft, Mozilla, Safari

The Importance of Delivery