TuxRunner

Well it’s about time!  I don’t know what the hold-up was with shipping this device, but it appears as if my order status on my Dell order for the Nokia N900 has finally changed from “in production” to “shipped” tonight.  Apparently I should expect it tomorrow some time.  I still think that Nokia was caught off guard with the demand for this device.  They didn’t really target it at the general public.  It was intended for early adopters, tech folks, and developers really.  But when the specs of the operating system and hardware came out, I think it caught some good press and started to gain popularity.

Honestly, as we’ve seen in the past, this process of coming out with a hot device and then having a very limited supply has worked quite well for many other companies.  Nintendo had a lot of trouble keeping the Wii stocked on shelves the first year it was out, and has since been one of the top selling console game systems.  Amazon had the same happen with the Kindle.  They weren’t making enough of them fast enough to keep up with the demand.  The Wii was sub-par compared to its competitors, and the Kindle just had some really odd design flaws.  Regardless, they both are highly successful.  It’s possible that this is just a strategy these two companies took to boost the desire of their products but purposely limiting production. (continue reading…)

I kicked back for a short moment at work today and thought about what make some of these newer cell phones and mobile computing devices so interesting.  Why do we want to have all this power in such a small device?  What makes carrying around a netbook better than lugging around a 15″ laptop?  Why buy an Internet tablet or a mobile phone that can browse the web just as well as a full desktop computer could?

Simple.  Freedom!  The ability to go anywhere and do anything.  It’s all about being able to do things that you used to only be able to do on a computer on your desk at home.  It’s all about taking your music with you, watching your movies and shows on the go, chatting with your friends on social network websites, sharing photos and videos of the places and people you’re visiting. (continue reading…)

My evil plan is coming together nicely!  Muwahahah.  Linux everywhere!  I went to Best Buy and preordered a Motorola Droid for the wife today.  She should be able to get it by November 6th on their launch date.  I couldn’t help but get caught by all the great reviews I was reading on it, and the fact that it’s very similar in features to the Nokia n900 I’m awaiting shipment of.

So that’ll make two new cell phones (or, er…pocket computer in my case) that are on their way both running Linux under the hood.  I love how this OS is permeating the market and no one even really knows it.  Tivo’s, Archos, Android handsets, Palm Pre, n900…it’s really all over and no one even knows it.  Dare I say that eventually the Microsoft Mobile OS’s, iPhone’s, and Symbian’s of the world will become the minority in the mobile handset world.  Linux will in one form or another dominate.  It’s inevitable.