In the history of home entertainment, few stories are as fraught with ambition and failure as the tale of the RCA Videodisc. This relic from the early 80s serves as a fascinating case study of technology that almost was. Let’s…
This past week we celebrated the birthday of William Shatner, Star Trek’s the legendary captain, so it’s fitting to talk about moving at warp speed—not in space, but in the realm of product design. Just as Captain Kirk explored the…
Crossposted on Linkedin. Effective product management is akin to conducting an orchestra; it’s about creating harmony between strategy, execution, and leadership. As a product manager, you are the maestro, ensuring every section – from engineering to marketing – plays its…
An expansion of an earlier Linkedin post by yours truly. The job’s Design. Product Design. If you scan my blog you will note I’m a big fan of James Bond. I’ve seen all the films (countless times), and have a…
I asked ChatGPT to create a plot for the next James Bond film, with some seed ideas. The results? Not bad… Title: “Digital Tempest” Synopsis: In the heart of New Zealand’s serene landscapes, a groundbreaking technological revolution is underway, led…
To make sure my product design team is in a “good place”, I continuously focus on three key questions: The current answers are: While my team is producing quality designs in a timely manner, there’s always room for improvement in…
So the Writers Guild of America is on strike, and one of the main sticking points is the use of AI for writing. If a strike took place a year ago, this would not be a factor or an issue,…
Crossposted from LinkedIn. My LinkedIn feed is filled with connections and near-connections who have been laid off. Many are from my former employer #Microsoft. It was a dream job for me, and it pained me to leave (the travel was…
My company’s products support a range of different customers – from sales people wanting insights to existing or potential customers to recruiters who want to find the right candidates. Our focus is helping companies hit their numbers and succeed, powered…
I love arcades. When I was growing up in Pinson, Alabama, I used to walk to downtown every Saturday to spend my allowance. Pinson didn’t have a classic “Mayberry” main street, but it wasn’t far off. There was a pharmacy…
Pro-tips on tech gear from a former Microsoftie: Unless you are a hardcore gamer or doing incredibly detailed 3D modeling with your computer, DON’T BUY NEW. Around five years ago I decided to jump off the upgrade wheel, especially when…
I’m always looking forward. I do this because the past is prologue. You can’t change it. Decisions made are done – Learn from mistakes, and the days to come provide ample opportunities to do things different. And better. Except… I’m…
Way back in 2013, I was a vocal advocate for a start-up company named Aereo. Aereo streamed local television stations using mini-antennas that customers “rented”. The service also provided DVR capability, so users not only could watch a local channel…
One advantage to working with large corporations around the world during my tenure at Microsoft is I have been exposed to many different corporate cultures in action. It may be an oversimplication, but I look at these multiple cultures through…
Repost of my New Year article for Content Science Review, please check them out! It’s hard to believe, but 2020 is almost upon us, wrapping up a decade of significant change in the technology space. For UX practitioners there are…
Writer Dorothy (D.C.) Fontana passed away this week at the age of 80. Fontana was a pioneering female screenwriter in the (then) male-dominated field of television. She started writing scripts for Star Trek, but then crafted great narratives for dozens…