Gary Robinson's Rants

Rob Glaser makes RealNetworks - Apple alliance appeal

RealNetworks made a direct appeal last week to Apple Computer, its Internet music rival, suggesting that the two companies form a common front against Microsoft in the digital music business.   The offer to create a "tactical alliance" was made on April 9 by Rob Glaser, chief executive of RealNetworks, the Seattle-based Internet music and video service, in an e-mail message to Steve Jobs, Apple's chairman.   But if an alliance with Apple could not be struck, Glaser strongly hinted in the e-mail message that he might be forced to form a partnership with Microsoft to pursue "very interesting opportunities" because support for Microsoft's media-playing software seems to be growing. [NY Times via MacInTouch]

Amazon's A9 search engine

John Battelle has posted a discussion and review of Amazon's new search engine: a9.com. From the article:"What makes this particularly noteworthy is that A9 is built quite literally on top of Google. In short, Amazon has taken the best of Google, and made it, to my mind, a lot better. Sound familiar? Yup, it's what Google did to Yahoo, Yahoo to Netscape...you get the picture." [Slashdot]

iTunes Music Store profitable

This is news:

The iTunes Music Store generated a "small profit" for the quarter, according to Apple. [MacInTouch]

The general impression has been that the store was losing money and making up for it with iPod sales.

My latest Iraq rant

...may be found in by clicking the "comment" link on this blog post, preferably after reading the post. ;)

Scientists Create "Water" That Isn't Wet

This is pretty amazing. A clear fluid that you can submerge a powered-on laptop in without damaging it; a book also comes out just fine. It's to be used to put out fires. Don't miss the slideshow (thanks Slashdot).

Microsoft settles patent lawsuit for $440MM

"In the latest in a series of moves to clear up legal issues, Microsoft Corp. (MSFT, news) has agreed to pay $440 million to InterTrust Technologies Corp. (ITRU, news) to settle a broad patent suit that had cast a cloud over Microsoft's plans in digital media, Monday's Wall Street Journal reported.

The deal gives the software giant a license to InterTrust's large portfolio of patents in technology for protecting music, movies and other digital content against unauthorized copying." [Dow Jones thanks to Macintouch]

More Google vs. Microsoft

"An article at SearchEngineWatch states that Google and Yahoo have become as almost parts of the operating system, a 'layer' above Linux, Windows or Mac OS. Another article at Kottke.org says that Google is building a a huge computer with a custom operating system that everyone on earth can have an account on. Some people predicts that, after Gmail, Google could start a new instant message service or even its own electronic currency." [Slashdot]
If they get many millions of users using any one of them, they'll be in fine shape, and my naysaying will be proven wrong. Their lead in top-notch searching capabilities got them many millions of "eyeballs" (as they were called during the Internet boom) but search isn't enough to keep those eyeballs forever because there is nothing to stop people from using the first comparably good competitor that comes along. The other services described in the Slashdot entry quoted above are much more sticky. The question remains "Can they convert enough users to these other services before Microsoft chooses to make something at least as good and build it into Windows?" The "Google operating system" is an interesting idea. Again it's something Microsoft can do -- it already has the code needed for running Windows apps remotely. After working on scalability, which I'm sure they are working on already, it could sell access to a massive server network running that service.

It keeps coming back to the question of how Microsoft will choose to respond. Google needs to create these kinds of services, but that is not a sufficient condition for achieving their aims. They also need Microsoft to choose not to respond directly using capabilities that are well within Microsoft's reach.

However, Microsoft wants to stay as big as it is, and get bigger. Lower-priced competition from the likes of Google and Lindows will probably force the prices that can be charged for operating systems, whether the apps are run locally or remotely, waaay down, probably greatly decreasing Microsoft's income. Google may be able to end up with a fine business -- though much smaller than Microsoft's current business -- if they can convert users.

As a side note, Transpose is now making use of a virtual dedicated server at Hard Hat Hosting. For $10.49 per month, gives us our own virtual Linux box supplying email and other services. Especially when we consider the fact that maintenance is up to Hard Hat, it is very significantly cheaper than running a box in our offices for those services. We are very happy (so far) with our decision to use it.

If Google had offered a similarly-priced similar service, we probably would have gone with it rather than Hard Hat, just because we would assume that a company the size of Google would be a bit less likely to go out of business and leave its customer's hanging.

Tony Blair and George W. Bush

Andrew Sullivan's blog is a must-read today; it quotes extensively from Tony Blair's response to current events in Iraq. Blair is about 10 times more articulate than Bush. We can't we have a Blair running for the top office in this country? I feel like crying. The Blair quotes are an absolute must-read if you're at all willing to look at the "neocon" position on Iraq.

Sullivan also points to a piece which describes what would have happened if Bush had made the only response to the Presidential Daily Briefing memo, "Bin Laden determined to attack inside the U.S.," that would have had a decent chance of making a difference -- attacking Afghanistan to disrupt the Al Qaeda camps. Of course, Bush would have been impeached by those who are denouncing him now for inaction. And those who who have joined us in our post-9/11 military actions would have also condemned him. A perfect piece.

Google desktop

"Will Google's new, free e-mail system, Gmail, be just the first of many things we'll see in a new Google desktop? If so, Microsoft could have a lot more to worry about than just Web search," search engine pundit Danny Sullivan wrote in his Search Engine Watch newsletter this week. [News.com]

Desktop apps are inherently more responsible and usable than browser-based apps. Microsoft has every opportunity to mimic the good things offered by Google's systems, but on the desktop, in more-responsive software that comes with the computer. No one can say they don't have the resources or skill to do it. Or that they don't have the business smarts to turn on a dime to deal with a threat.

That doesn't mean they will do so in this case, of course.

More from the News.com story:

A Google executive downplayed the looming threat of search competition from Microsoft, saying his company doesn't expect to see a credible product from the software giant for years.

"Rather than worry about some big promise coming down five years from now, we need to focus on innovation now," Salar Kamangar, product development director at Google, said Wednesday on a panel at Stanford Business School's first annual technology conference.

If a major part of Google's strategy is to assume that Microsoft can't develop credible search in less than five years, that's nothing but dumb arrogance, and dumb arrogance is not a strategy that inspires confidence.

iTMS downloads costing more than the CD?

To see the future of online music prices, look no further than "Fly or Die," the new album by rock-meets-hip-hop trio N.E.R.D.   For months, digital-music services have been touting albums for $9.99 to entice more people to buy online. But Apple Computer Inc.'s iTunes Music Store has been charging $16.99 for "Fly or Die," while Roxio Inc.'s Napster service sells the 12-song collection for $13.99. Both prices are higher than the $13.49 that Amazon.com charges for the CD itself. The same pricing shifts are showing up on albums by a growing slate of artists, from Shakira to Bob Dylan. [Wall Street Journal, thanks to MacInTouch]