I just finished reading this kind of a sappy emotional writeup about how/why a Wired reporter loves Apple so much. I’ve been thinking about this same theme - why do people feel so strongly about certain products, companies or services and literally hate others (competitors, etc), especially in the cold realm of technology? I agree with Momus (Wired writer) that everyone wants to be on a winning team and to be a part of something bigger, meaningful and important. He makes references to hints of spirituality in this era of features, buttons and hardware. People LOVE “meaning” over features. What was so interesting about last week was how MacWeek and CES competed side by side and literally no products from CES (MILLIONS of them) garnered any attention compared to the iPhone.

Engadget’s article about keynote presentations also shows an interesting point - that Job’s Keynote was a lot easier linguistically for people to understand. Jobs was at a fifth grade reading level, whereas Dell and Gates were talking to high school students. As far as appealing to emotions, Jobs clearly won hands down. He was easier to understand and his products, iPhone especially, solved emotionally charged issues (like WHY is my Smartphone so hard to use?)

After watching the presentation, I felt oddly compelled to finally post a series of complaints on a Treo blog (Treo vs iPhone) about all of the little annoying problems I’ve faced with the Treo. Problems I took for granted until the iPhone proved that I shouldn’t. What’s even weirder is the feeling of satisfaction I had once I properly vented.

It’s really quite amazing to think about how much emotional time we spend with our “screens” - my laptop and cellphone are around more than my kids. I associate my laptop with music (iTunes library), memories (iPhoto slideshows of our ski trip), news and information (CNN and blogs), and relaxation (missed episodes of favorite TV shows that got past my Tivo box). It connects me to people (email, iChat, iSight) and to my past conversations and future tasks (CRM system). These weird little tools are attaching themselves to every part of my day and are definitely NOT just pieces of hardware and software. So when the iPhone rolls out, I fully expect to feel yet another level deeper of a connection.

Microsoft recently rolled out the Zune with a tagline of “Welcome to the Social”, yet failed to offer a product or an experience that people actually care about. The process of making people feel more connected is REALLY tricky, but quite amazing when it’s done properly. So I commend Apple on yet another important milestone. Nicely done. Now release the phone, m’kay?

Regards,
Bill

As we all get back to the grind, after a (hopefully) relaxing holiday, we thought it would be a good time to give a quick hello and let everyone know what we have been up to here at Wiredrive. We realize that is has been a while, so bear with us as we reflect back on some of the great events of ’06.

First off, was the Boards Summit, back in late October. Wiredrive was in attendance, and even threw a party at the Knitting Factory. I wanted to rent a hot dog cart, to really make it an authentic New York experience, but apparently the neighbors aren’t big fans of the knitting factory, and having partygoers devouring hot dogs out on the street wouldn’t go over very well, so that idea was nixed and I had to settle for Ball Park franks in the comfort of my home. Maybe next year, you never know. The party was a smash, as evident by our bar tab, and we can’t wait to do it again. Check out some pics below.

The second cool event that capped 2006 was the very impressive AICP Holiday Party, held at the very cool Vanguard nightclub in good old Hollywood. AICP outdid themselves, once again, featuring not only an excellent venue, but also a DJ set by the Crystal Method and a great crowd. When we weren’t dancing, we were schmoozing, and when the rooms had been schmoozed out, we ate finger foods and sipped cocktails. Not a bad way to spend a Thursday night before the Holidays arrived. Take a look at some of these pics to see the Wiredrive crew in action.

In addition to partying, we’ve also been working hard, preparing to launch Wiredrive 2.0 upon the eager masses. Our wonderful clients have been providing us with feature requests and feedback, and we have been burning the midnight oil to provide all the features that we can to the new system. Trust us, it will be worth the wait.
Finally, in celebration of the new year, I wanted to mention a few things that I am looking forward to, that already have me excited about the coming year:

The Transformers Movie: Any male who grew up in the 80’s knows why this is going to be awesome. And the big budget blockbuster nature of this version of the movie is like revisiting my childhood on steroids.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: See above.

The Sopranos Final Season: There go my Sunday nights. After an anticlimactic Season 6, I’m expecting a lot of shooting and some great plot twists.

A New Radiohead Album: Thom Yorke’s Album was better than 90% of the records that came out last year, but it’s still not the same.

The Hollywood Bowl Summer Concert Series: The best way to spend a Sunday night during the summer. It could be the Milwaukee Kazoo Collective playing, I’d still have a great time.

What are you readers anticipating this year?