Robin Blandford
Video of Dot Conf Talk
Posted on July 28, 2010
We must be doing something right!
Great response on Twitter yesterday after our talk at Dot Conf. Thanks to Ciara Mac Mahon for the photo!
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mbehan: Loving the presentation by decisions for heroes. Too many ppl shy away from awesomeness #dotconf
@Dan_ONeill: Those who left #dotconf early. I reckon missed close to best talk of day = decisions4heroes.
AnnieCorriveau: @robinb I loved your talk at #dotconf - the notebook definitely is key! ;)
BrianGreene: #dotconf top talks (for me) inspriational heading. @marklittlenews@destraynor @robinb
level5design: Also inspiring talk by Robin Blandford @robinb from 'Decisions for Heros' at #dotconf - create thick value
kevindevine: well done everyone involved at #dotconf. Inspiring talk from @robinbat the end
ManAboutCouch: Superb stuff from @robinb. Audience engrossed and now enthused. #dotconf
Rowan_Manahan: Hugely enjoying @robinb's presentation at #dotconf - saw him do his stuff at TEDx Smurfit and he's getting better with each iteration
darraghdoyle: Laughed out loud at @robinb's presentation at #dotconf - his first piece of advice "buy a really expensive notebook - you'll value it."
coryannj: Had to leave #dotconf early, but tuning into the livestream for @robinb's talk - should be good!
Penhire: Though I like & admire @robinb a whole bunch, uncomfortable with some of the way he sees the world (of enterprise). Need to examine why!
JoanMulvihill: #dotconf great speakers and so perfect to finish on DecisionsForHeroes
carmelg88: Huge congratulations to @robinb and @dmaccobb for executing an engaging and enlightening presentation yesterday. *Claps
Dan_ONeill: Loving this. How web technology helps in the real world. #dotconfreally interesting idea. And great idea process too.
mbehan: Loving the presentation by decisions for heroes. Too many ppl shy away from awesomeness #dotconf
niamhsmith: #dotconf the guys from Decisions For Heroes are up next
Posted on July 23, 2010
Audio from my 20% Time Question to Eric Schmidt
Eric Schmidt is the CEO of Google. He spoke at the Guardian Activate conference and I got the chance to ask him a question. He had spoken about the Google 20% time programme which allows employees to work on whatever problem they want for 20% of their time. I asked Eric, what he works on in his 20%.
The FT covered it here (spotted by my uncle and aunt).
Thanks to David Scanlon for pointing me in the direction of the recording.
Posted on July 7, 2010
Speaker at National College of Ireland dot conf
I will be speaking at the National College of Ireland dot conf in association with the Irish Internet Association on Thursday July 22nd.
Delighted to see this time, I'll speaking alongside some great friends too.
Posted on June 30, 2010
Same stage as Eric Schmidt
I didn't think I'd be sharing the same stage and audience as Google CEO Eric Schmidt any time soon. Looks like I was wrong!
Posted on June 26, 2010
My Guardian video interview
Robin Blandford of Decisions for Heroes talks about putting technology to work in the real world to solve real human problems.
Posted on June 22, 2010
We Need An Iconic Change
I've been searching for a good icon in D4H to symbolize an unsaved incident report. Normally when I do this, I research what others are using in their imagery and labeling so it is intuitive.
I uncovered something interesting I have never thought about. Why do we still use a '3.5 inch Floppy Disk' as the icon for saving? We've come a long way from saving files as you edit them to an external floppy - so why has this icon travelled with us?
Wikipedia says:
Floppy disks are also, unlike hard disks, handled and seen; even a novice user can identify a floppy disk. Because of all these factors, the image of the floppy disk has become a metaphor for saving data, and the floppy disk symbol is often seen in programs on buttons and other user interface elements related to saving files, even though such disks are obsolete
It's interesting though, that tools like Google Docs - which couldn't be further from saving to a floppy disk also use this symbology for saving data in the cloud.
The last consumer floppy disk drives were manufactured around 2007, and for a while before that they stopped appearing in new models. There will come a point (and we're not far from it at all!) where new generations will have never seen a floppy disk.
So will this icon become meaningless?
Posted on June 12, 2010
Design without physical limits
Kno thought "Let's replace the text book" and started out with solving the technical problem of two tablets joined together to mimic the pages of a text book. While it's a beautiful product, it's wrong. I'll place a solid bet that the way to disrupt this market it to start re-thinking from the start and the goal.
The goal isn't to have a text book, the goal is to "transfer information" in a method that is linear, but can be referenced later for study. A method that can be used as a study aid for lecturers and teachers, and move at the same pace and format as classes.
If I set you that goal today - with limitless boundaries, you would not come up with a text book.
This product is going to sell itself short - it'll be a mediocre hit. It's not the text books that need to change - it's the method education that needs to change.
-Robin.
Posted on June 4, 2010
Because it's there
The photo above is the 'second step' on the Everest summit block - a fitting image. George Mallory who died on that first ill-fated possible summit attempt on Everest is famously quoted as having replied to the question "Why do you want to climb Mount Everest?" with the retort "Because it's there", which have been called "the most famous three words in mountaineering".
Well, they're becoming the most famous 3 words in technology. Unfortunately.
As the cost of implementation falls, the tech race speeds up. We're now at rates of innovation we've never seen before. It's fast isn't it!
Every day we see more and more and more companies launching products "Because they can". Unfortunately, "Because the technology is there". Before you you even drop a dime into the product development budget (R&D is different - I mean real selling products) you need to ask - "What problem am I solving?", "What pain am I preventing or curing?".
The worst thing you can do, is to say "This is cool" - and then go find a problem for it to apply to. A technology solution "Because it's there".
Today, videos are emerging of the Dell Streak tablet - and you can see in this demo by the President of Communication Solutions for Dell (this is a big deal - this is HIS baby) that he hasn't a clue what it's for. They launched it "Because they could".
He says: "This is the largest device that's an internet device, that fits in your top pocket - and that was really the whole design point.".
It's too big to be a phone, it's too small to do any work on. It doesn't have a place. If you watch that video, the President of the device is having to make up uses for it on the spot - he doesn't even know what it's for.
"Obviously it's a great productivity tool, corporate email, corporate directory - you can get your calendar on there". So this is targeted towards corporate IT depts now? They are to buy these touchscreen keyboard devices for their employees rather than Blackberry's?
"It's a great speaker phone", only because it's too big to hold to your ear. When you've got 100% cell phone penetration, who's going to buy this as a speaker phone?
"It does Youtube, and Facebook, and Twitter - in realtime while you're traveling" Hold on, I thought you said Corporate Email? Anyway - my phone already does this.
"It's absolutely a Kid Magnet as well, with great games and TV shows, and pull up different 'stuff'." - are you telling me a kid would prefer this over a game console (or iPhone/iPod Touch)? And what is stuff?
He even gets asked at the end, "Can you give a specific application for this device?" with a response of (let me who you some more technology), "What I think it's really cool is this front facing camera."
For people to be motivated to take their wallet out and buy something - it has to hit a need (even just a need to be cool or trendy is fine - but a need). There is zero product design or user experience thinking been put into this - the tech department rolled something out, who handed it on to the product design department, who handed it on to the marketing dept, who have handed it on to the sales dept.
Where these companies go wrong is it needed to start with the Sales & Design Dept's. and end up in the Tech Dept. trying to find a way to build what will sell. Oh yeh, it'll be around $630 too.
Take this as a failure lesson learnt and ask yourself about your product - have we started with the 'Sales Dept.' rather than the 'Tech Dept.'?
