AIM To Go Away

Many people remember specific, weird things about September 11, 2001. For me, it was a headline about stamps tucked into the chaos.

As I started to absorb the horror of the day through TV and online news sources that Tuesday morning, I noticed an odd inflection point highlighted on the Washington Post's list of "Top News" links. While the first three stories were blaring headlines about the terrorist attacks, I remember clearly that the fourth was a news brief about the threat of postal stamp rate increase, the last trivial story published before all other news got pushed aside indefinitely.

I wanted to quickly share this lighthearted observation with my circle of friends, and in 2001 I only had one easy, surefire way to do that online. I brought up AOL Instant Messenger, opened the menu, and chose "Edit Profile." That's where I shared links to the Post's top four stories at the time and warned my friends not to miss the important postal news amid the other stuff going on (I also included a semi-apologetic note that I hoped the lighthearted joke would be a welcome distraction on such a dark day).

Looking back now, I realize that AIM profile was my first ephemeral blog. Going to college in the years before ubiquitous mobile text messaging and social media profiles, AIM's Away Messages and profile pages became a proto-social network for me and a group of peers looking for ways to keep easy tabs on each other. Friday's announcement that AIM would finally shut down after 20 years got me thinking about how we used it to share our status updates years before the online world would be dominated by Twitter, Facebook, and the constant newsfeed.

Nice to meet you, what’s your screen name?

My family got our first AOL account in 1996, when I was a freshman in high school. I don't recall using Instant Messaging for much in those days, aside from occasional consulting with colleagues working on my Super Mario Bros. fan site. My high school friends actually gravitated to ICQ and the school's Unix cluster to type messages to each other over dial-up modems.

When I started college in late 2000, though, everyone I met seemed to have an AOL "screen name," which by that point didn't require a paid AOL account. Sharing that screen name became more common than sharing a phone number when meeting someone new, and AIM quickly became the default way to talk to people when you didn't want to pick up the phone (which, for me, was most of the time).

It's hard to remember now just how freeing it was to be able to communicate instantly without the formality of an actual phone call. Carrying on multiple conversations at once, multitasking between chatting and "surfing the web," and pausing long enough to compose well-thought replies (but not so long that the recipient began to worry) were all brave new frontiers in communication through a much-too-heavy CRT monitor.

Using AIM also meant mastering the etiquette of the Away Message. In the days before we were all tethered to an Internet-enabled device 24/7, we used Away Messages to let others know that we couldn't respond to an Instant Message, while still leaving the computer online in order to receive messages that could be viewed later.

Users with Away Messages up appeared with a little yellow sticky note next to their screen

names on AIM's "Buddy List," showing that they were online but not actually around. If you sent a message to someone with an Away Message up, you'd get an instant response notifying you of that fact. You could also set up an Away Message to go up automatically if your computer was idle for too long, in case you stepped away from the computer without thinking.

Netflix Raises Prices

Netflix announced the first rises in monthly fees in two years on Thursday, hiking costs for two of its three main subscription plans as it spends heavily on its own original content.

The company's mid-range plan, which allows streaming on two devices at the same time, was increased to $10.99 per month from $9.99. nflx.it/2kpEiJk

The top-tier plan, which allows streaming on four screens in high definition, was raised to $13.99 per month from $11.99. The basic plan fee remained at $7.99.

Shares in the global streaming pioneer rose as much as 4.5 percent to a record high of $192.80.

“Most investors believe that Netflix is priced well below its value to consumers and want to see the management continue to increase monetization,” Rob Sanderson analyst at MKM Partners said.

In 2011, Netflix raised prices for some customers by as much as $6, causing more than 800,000 U.S. subscribers to desert the service. reut.rs/2knr67y

A more gradual move in 2014 did not provoke the same outrage.

Netflix is cheaper than many of its competitors despite the current price hike. HBO Now, the standalone streaming service of HBO that offers access to shows such as “Game of Thrones” and “Veep”, is priced at $14.99 a month, while Hulu prices its service without commercials at $11.99 per month.

“This price increase will likely be a revenue growth catalyst for the company,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Mahaney wrote in a client note. “The content, not price, is the leading churn/churn-back factor amongst Netflix subs.”

The price hikes will only be in the United States and will start taking effect from mid-November, depending on users’ billing cycles.

MSFT Headset

At its Windows Mixed Reality event today, Microsoft made a slew of announcements, including that it has a new partner: Samsung. The South Korean company is developing its own Windows Mixed Reality headset dubbed the Samsung HMD Odyssey. Shipping on November 6, the headset will be available in a bundle with motion controllers for $499.

“When we began designing and engineering the Samsung HMD Odyssey with Microsoft, there was only one goal in mind, create a high performing headset that’s easy to set up and can transport people to the incredible world of virtual reality,” Alanna Cotton, vice president and general manager at Samsung Electronics America, said in a statement. “Samsung is committed to working across platforms to build cutting-edge technology, and we’re excited to partner with Microsoft to shape the future of virtual reality.”

The Odyssey features dual AMOLED displays, built-in spatial AKG headphones, inside-out tracking, a built-in microphone, and motion controllers. Samsung promises the following specifcations:

• Display: Dual 3.5″ AMOLED 1,440 x 1,600 @90/60Hz
• Interface: HDMI2.0 + USB 3.0 Interface Bound Cable (4m Length)
• Lens: Single Fresnel
• Field of View: Φ66, FOV 110º, 6.7X
• IPD: 60-72mm Range
• Camera: 6 DOF Camera x 2
• Sensor: Accelerometer(6 Axis), Gyrometer(6 Axis), Compass(3 Axis), Proximity Sensor, IPD Sensor
• Acoustics: 2 MIC Support, Cortana, Built-in AKG Headphone
• Control & Function: Volume, IPD Adjustment
• Dimension: 202mm(W) x 131.5mm(D) x 111mm(H)
• Weight: 645g

And the controllers:

• Control & Function: Touchpad (Clickable), Menu button, Windows/Controller power button, Trigger, Thumbstick, Indicator light
• Sensor: Accelerometer(6 Axis), Gyrometer(6 Axis),
• Compass(3 Axis)
• Battery: AAA Battery x 2ea
• Dimensions: 154.2 x 119.1 x 119.1mm
• Weight: 160g

MSFT Zune is Finally Gone

Microsoft is saying buh-bye to its streaming music and download service, Groove Music.

As of Dec. 31 the subscription service will no longer exist, the company said on Monday. Instead, Microsoft said it's partnering with rival service Spotify.  Anyone with a subscription to Groove will be able to move their curated playlists and collection from Groove to Spotify. As part of the transition, qualified Groove Music Pass users will also be able to receive 60 days of Spotify Premium for free.

Groove was Microsoft's attempt to compete against popular streaming services from rivals like Apple and Google. But the service never took off. Groove, which had been renamed in 2015, was the last vestige of its failed Zune music playerlegacy, which ultimately lost out to Apple's iPod and the Apple iTunes store. Microsoft had hoped to breathe new life into the service that allowed customers to stream music, as well as play downloaded music from Microsoft's OneDrive cloud storage service.

Microsoft had already been working with Spotify to provide access to that streaming app through Windows 10 and the Xbox One platform. Even though Groove Music won't be offering streaming music starting next year, users will still be able to access local MP3 files and music stored in OneDrive.

Vuzix VR Glasses

By Bayle Emlein

For two decades Vuzix has been a leader in the design and manufacture of wearable display devices. This put them in position to be a leading supplier of Smart-Glasses, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies and products for both consumer and enterprise markets. The current flagship is Blade 3000 Smart Sunglasses. Navigate outdoors without squinting against a screen whited out in glare; take pictures and answer your phone hands free. The haptic notice vibration in this device makes so much more sense than on something can park in your bag. Wearing the Blade, you’ll look like what passes for a normal person on the street and they won’t muss your hair any more than any sunglasses would.

Both the 3000 and the M300 series are based on the Intel Atom processor. Vuzix M300 Smart Glasses deliver a “hands free” digital world, providing data collection and information access. The heads-up display has applications in many aspects of business including industrial, medical, retail, supply chain, and remote help desk.

The Vuzix M300 is an ergonomically designed and rugged wearable computer with most of the features of a smartphone, including Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity. Pre-installed apps can be used to manage your calendar and clock features. The HD camera records, stores, plays back still pictures and video. Running on an Android operating system enables the M300 to take advantage of existing Android apps as well as developer resources for the creation of custom apps.

TomTom Quits Too

TomTom has announced that it’s laying off 136 employees as part of a restructuring process that involves shifting the company’s focus to its mapping and navigation business.

Of the 136 jobs lost, 57 will be in TomTom’s native Netherlands, the company added, while other affected countries include the U.S. and Taiwan.

When TomTom announced its Q2 results back in July, the Dutch tech firm reported strong overall numbers for its automotive and licensing businesses, however, revenue from its consumer products arm, which includes a host of watches and fitness bands, fell 20 percent. The company suggested it would consequently be moving away from consumers sports products. “We are not satisfied with the progress we are making (in sports),” said TomTom CEO Harold Goddijn at the time.

With 4,700 employees globally, this round of layoffs represents less than 3 percent of TomTom’s workforce, but it does indicate where the company’s core strengths lie.

Founded in 1991, TomTom is best known for its GPS-powered services and devices, including dedicated satellite navigation units for cars, and the company is one of the major global online mapping platforms, alongside Google Maps, Here, and OpenStreetMap. It also offers a number of other services, such as telematics to help businesses manage their fleet of vehicles, as well as automotive services that include maps for self-driving cars, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), and parking data. And this, it seems, is where TomTom sees its future.

Wear art thou?

While the wearables market continues on an upward trajectory, with IDC recently reporting that the sector grew by 10.3 percent in Q2 2017, TomTom isn’t a major player in the field. The likes of Apple, Fitbit, and China’s Xiaomi are making strides, while Garmin, Fossil, Samsung, and others are tussling it out for mindshare. Consumer hardware is an expensive endeavor, and with so much competition already, TomTom’s shift away from the market should come as little surprise.

TomTom’s shares never quite recovered from the advent of smartphones, which ushered in cheap navigation services for everyone. From its peak of around $65 per share in 2007, the company’s value plummeted to less than $3 within two years — a period in which both Google and Apple entered the smartphone world in a big way.

Apple Acquires Regalnd

Apple has acquired a small French startup called Regaind, according to multiple sources. As always, Apple is very quiet when it comes to acquisitions, but it’s always interesting to learn more about Apple’s interests.

We’ve reached out to Apple and the company sent us the following statement: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”

This is Apple’s standard statement to confirm an acquisition. From what I understand, Apple acquired Regaind earlier this year. The company had raised a bit less than $500,000 (€400,000) from Side Capital.

Regaind has been working on a computer vision API to analyze the content of photos. Apple added intelligent search to the Photos app on your iPhone a couple of years ago. For instance, you can search for “sunset” or “dog” to get photos of sunsets and your dog.

In order to do this, Apple analyzes your photo library when you’re sleeping. When you plug your iPhone to a charger and you’re not using your iPhone, your device is doing some computing to figure out what’s inside your photos.

Regaind goes one step further and can tell you the technical and aesthetic values of your photos. For instance, if you shoot a bunch of photos in burst mode, Regaind could automatically find the best shot and use it as the main shot in your photo library. Regaind could also hide duplicates.

With this technology, Apple could improve the Memories tab in the Photos app. iOS automatically creates albums based on events, location and more. With Regaind, iOS could also look for photos that are visually similar, surface the best shot as a cover art and create a recap video with the best shots.

Interestingly, Regaind also analyzes your face to determine your gender, age and emotion. It’s unclear if Apple had enough time to leverage Regaind with iOS 11. Apple may have combined Regaind technology with the new Face ID sensor in the iPhone X to reinforce animoji facial expressions for instance. And I’m sure there will be more to come.

It’s also unclear if Apple plans to get Regaind’s model to work on Apple’s devices directly. Apple has recently reiterated its focus on privacy, so it’s going to be interesting to learn more about Apple’s integration of Regaind’s technology when it comes to privacy.