KeithBarrett Online

The web is moving rapidly toward real-time. Real-time display of messages, real-time display of posts and comments, real-time status updates from friends, disposable chats, even real-time video.

The future and strength of the Internet is in providing and spreading information instantly. Some institutions will push to capitalize on delaying information (for example stock quotes, law enforcement, and government), but in the long term this will have limited success. When every person is armed with a pocket computer and instant access to the world, you can’t hide much.

What’s not quite there yet is real-time search, because that has a dependency on the real-time notification of content publishing, which too is lacking.
…Read more about Real-Time Search

Microsoft launched a search engine – Bing. They call it a “decision engine”, but it really is a search engine, trying to capture and/or crawl the web with the goal that it can return a good result to your query.

Google is so popular and well known that it became a verb to “Google” something. Why would anyone not using some sort of revolutionary new technology try to compete with Google in the search engine market? Because Microsoft is big in size and Google does not own that entire market. To capture even 1% of the search engine market can potentially produce millions in profit. …Read more about Microsoft Bing

Paradiso 37 is a new restaurant on Walt Disney World Pleasure Island, occupying the what use to be the shops and Missing Link food service next to the Adventurers Club. My wife, a friend, and I went there to experience it during it’s soft opening. At that time you could not book a reservation in the Disney Reservation system so only walk-ups were possible.

The name Paradiso 37 refers to the 37 countries in North, Central and South America, and for the 37 varieties of tequila they offer (and display). The decor is very nice; offering a mixture of bar, table, water views, and outdoor dining. One wall is a glass garage door that looks like it can be opened. At night they advertise live music out by the water way.
…Read more about Disney World Paradiso 37

Panasonic released a notice that their camera firmware will force consumers to only use Panasonic batteries, continuing a trend of applying technology to prevent consumer freedom.

I remember when software license keys first appeared in the early 1980s. I was working at Digital Equipment Corporation at the time and had to deal with entering these long hexadecimal number sequences for unlocking functionality that existed just a day before without them. Until that point people simply bought software and owned it. If you needed it on 3 computers, you bought 3 copies. Computer networking changed that. …Read more about Using Technology Against The Consumer

Microsoft published a “fact sheet” comparing a short list of features in IE8 with other browsers. My first thought reading this was that they must think their customers are idiots. INFOWORLD wrote an article saying just that. Robert Cringely also has an article warning about major issues with IE8.
…Read more about IE8 Get The Facts Campaign

Twitter has already had it’s first virus, ID squatters, SPAM, and impostors. Two other Twitter events I’ve been keeping an eye out for are their first public spectacle because someone (i.e. a celebrity or politician) wants to wrestle away their name ID from someone else, and their first lawsuit regarding identity, copyright or content. Well they both happened at the same time, from one person. …Read more about Twitter Creates Verified ID Service

When fellow Information Technologists and software developers find out I work at Disney World, many ask me for advice on how to get hired here. Some tell me they’ve tried for years. I understand why it’s hard, and I understand why it’s desirable. I love working for Disney. The relationships I’ve formed and park experiences alone have given me a lifetime of memories in a few short years. Disney World has all the aspects of a small city, which means you are exposed to many lines of business including technology, food & beverage, merchandise, customer service, financial systems, point-of-sale and ticketing to name just a few. It’s also a unique opportunity to see how technology and business units operate end-to-end, rather than just becoming an expert in the particular technology available at your current employer.

Here is some general information which you may find useful. …Read more about Disney World IT Jobs

In case you missed it, on June 12th all televisions stations in the USA finally switched from analog signals to digital. As expected, there was a lot of last minute chaos as people suddenly faced with no more waiting time flooded government offices with requests for discount coupons or help desk assistance.

For most of the population not located near major cities and use to receiving a weak signal, this will seem like a bad idea. Instead of being able to watch their slightly snowy picture, they will get nothing at all or a picture that keeps cutting out. …Read more about RIP Analog TV