Via All about Mobile Life I found Tomi Ahonen's great post Mobile the 7th Mass Media is to internet like TV is to radio.

What I found beautiful was Tomi's ability to focus on the benefits, instead of the inherent limitations of mobile. Too much of the current discussion about mobile applications and services focuses on the limitations of mobile: how to scale down "real" stuff to the limited mobile domain. But guess what? It's not about scaling down or replicating traditional Internet or TV experiences to mobile. It's about understanding the unique benefits of mobile, and building something truly great with them.

The same thing happened a decade ago with the Internet: some pople focused on the benefits of the Internet, others on the limitations compared with the traditional mass media. Guess which people won?

Back to Tomi's post.

Quote:

Don't look at limitations, comparing mobile to TV or the internet. Think of the possibilities and develop the mass media beyond what has existed before.

Abridged quote:

Mobile is superior: Has 5 elements that are unique
1. the first truly personal mass media
2. the first always-on mass media
3. the first always-carried mass media
4. the first mass media with a built-in payment mechanism
5. offers the media audience the input tool, at the point of creative impulse

Dear Nokia colleagues and S60 developers out there: do yourself a favor and read Tomi's post in full.

Thoughts?

Last Friday, Hasseraze Chamamod asked kindly:

I have a nokia N73 and I would be grateful to you if you could suggest me some more extra applications that can be valuable to me

Sure thing. (sorry about the late reply)

To begin with, I have divided this shortlist of add-on applications and services to 7 categories. A couple of years ago, the category (b) 3rd party consumer apps was probably the most interesting one. For some reason, however, I find myself using stuff from the other categories, especially the (a) Nokia add-on stuff and (c) Internet stuff much more than traditional 3rd party apps. I wonder is it just me or is this a trend?

Now, let me introduce - tadadadaa:

Tommi's shortlist of S60 add-on stuff worth interest (February 2007)

a) Nokia add-on stuff
- Smart2go a.k.a. Nokia Maps
- Nokia Podcasting
- Nokia Mobile Search (get the latest version)
- WidSets
- Barcode Reader (not that useful yet, but loads of potential)
- Download! Client a.k.a. Nokia Catalogs

b) 3rd party consumer apps
- Y-Browser
- Handy Weather
- AutoLock
- DivX player
- ShoZu
- Calcium

c) Internet stuff
- Google Reader (using desktop version and mobile version simultaneously)
- Google Maps and GMail mobile
- Yahoo! Go
- Gizmo project
- Fring
- FON

d) Enterprise software
- Nokia Intellisync Mobile Suite 8.0, especially Nokia Intellisync Wireless Email

e) Operator and other local services (for people living in Finland)
- YTV reittiopas, mobile version
- Finnish TV guide in mobile-friendly format

f) Open source apps
- Internet Radio
- OggPlay

g) Applications for industry insiders
- Screenshot 2
- Best Taskman

Curiously, operator specific applications and services are missing totally from my mobile user experience. But that's just me, a Nokia and Internet focused guy from Finland.

Warning: if you don’t have a flat-fee plan, or a generous employer paying your bills, look out for the data charges!

Other good shortlists:
AAS: S60 3rd Edition Essentials [updated]
OSNews: Top Ten Freeware Applications for Symbian S60 3rdEdition
3-Lib: S60 3rd Edition freeware

What are your favorites? What interesting stuff did I miss from categories a...g?

Remember when I raved about Open C making S60 development easier?

Now, my dear developer friends at US, Forum Nokia is going to organize three Open C Roadshow events, for you to learn more and to network. Gratis, of course.

The registration is now open:
- Seattle, Washington (March 12, 2007)
- San Jose, California (March 14, 2007
- Boston, Massachusetts (March 16, 2007)

Please spread the word!

Screenshot from Nokia N95.

In March 2006, I proudly wrote an overview post titled Taking a new Nokia S60 device into use - not a pain it used to be, describing what we had done for making it easy to take a new Nokia S60 device into use.

Your collective feedback was neatly summarized in May 2006, by Rafe in his Nokia N91 review:

One thing Nokia, especially with its S60 devices, is starting to get really good at is the out of the box experience for the new user. ... These tools have received incremental improvement over the last year or so and I would now rate them as excellent. ... I think the emphasis should now be on building awareness of these tools. For the Data Transfer application it is especially important since it should be one of the first thing a new user takes advantage of. Perhaps a similar message to the Tutorial application could be shown the first time the device starts?

Exactly.

Now, latest Nokia S60 devices have a dedicated Welcome application, which provides a visible launching place for first-use applications, such as Setting Wizard, Data Transfer, and Tutorial. This "umbrella application" is automatically launched at the first bootup of the device.

How do you like this new approach? What would you like to have in the Welcome application? How could we keep it simple and smooth, while providing all the relevant stuff?

As always, I'll make sure that the team will hear your feedback. As always, they are 100% free to implement or not to implement whatever you suggest here. As always, many thanks in advance for your comments.

Wow! Thanks for your questions. Here are my quick answers, based on 3 days of intensive N95 usage:

Is it good?

Oh, yeah.

Why?

Of course, N95 has all kinds of new functionality that makes gadget-freaks drool, but I think that's not the point. More importantly, N95 is everything that advertisers have promised us during the last decade. Sure, Nokia 7110 gave us Internet in 1999, Nokia 5510 gave us music and entertainment in 2001, and Nokia 7650 gave us camera in 2001. But now, finally, it's really here, and it's really good.

Could you please shoot some pictures/video, so I can see how it works in real life?

Sorry, no. It's a proto, and I'm not sure if it has the final hardware. Based on my experiences, the quality is absolutely great, but I want to be sure not to give you false impressions. Please wait for real reviews, from independent reviewers.

I'd also be interested in your trying VOIP

Ok, I'll try.

Which version of 1) Symbian OS 2) S60 3) ARM processor they have? Do they have RealPlayer? What multimedia formats they support and what resolutions?

Check the fact sheets here, here and here.

It would be interesting to understand their battery life in the real world.

Again, this is a proto, so nothing definite can be said. During the testing period, however, I have charged it once a day.

The battery life sure is a tricky question. N95 is an absolutely marvelous device, and it attracts you use it more than any other device I have used before. Naturally, the more you use it, the faster it runs out of battery. Let me put it this way: when you buy a car, do you ask how long, time-wise, does the gas tank last? Probably not, because it depends on how much you drive and the way you drive. Using the car analogy, I would say that N95 is an energy-efficient sports car, which makes you want to drive, and drive fast. That is, the gas tank lasts relatively long, considering the amount of driving.

Were the bananas included in the package or do they come as an accessory?

The banana is available as an accessory for $24.99. Just send me your credit card details.

Is it true that 3rd party applications can't use gps in gps enabled smartphones?

No. As Jukka explains, it's just that some 3rd party apps have been done in a wrong way, and they try to locate the GPS device through Bluetooth. Update: Alexander says that 3rd party applications that are not Symbian-signed can't use built-in GPS. I'm not an expert on this topic; sorry if my comment was inaccurate.

Does it have continuous autofocus video?

Based on quick testing, I think it does. But I might be wrong. Anyone to confirm?Update: I did Stefan's test: the video quality was good, but I think it didn't do continuous autofocus. In any case, I think we shouldn't have this level of discussions with proto devices...

How much should I beg and to whom to get those for testing too?

Heh, I have no idea. I think some bloggers get the devices for test drive through Nokia blogger relations program, which I think is somehow related to Nseries WOM world blog. But as a developer, I would ask Forum Nokia.

Jukka Eklund, the original S60 Multimedia blogger, heard me begging gadgets and sent me a little gift:

From left: my afternoon snack, Nokia 6110 Navigator, N75, N76 (with my nose reflecting from the mirror), and N95.

Thank you Jukka!!

Heh, LazyWeb seemed to work this time. But I'll try to get officially into the proto loop asap, so that we can have more enlightened discussions about the latest S60 devices in the future.

Anything you would like to know about these particular devices?

Disclaimer: For some reason, I happen to be 100% completely uninformed about Nokia's plans related to mobile TV. Therefore, I think I can write my personal opinions about mobile TV quite openly, as I'm - bizarrely - completely incapable of leaking our trade secrets. Sometimes, it seems, ignorance is bliss.

It all started last Monday, with Nokia launching Nokia N77, the mobile TV enabled S60 device, with a punch line Live TV when you want it.

The S60 pundits, however, were a bit skeptical:
- Steve Litchfield from AAS: Do people REALLY want mobile TV?
- Symbian Guru a.k.a. Ricky Cadden: Do You Really WANT To Watch Mobile TV?

I think both of them raised valid points, but also partly missed some stuff that I find exciting in the mobile TV evolution path. I’ll respond briefly to the top-3 points in Steve’s critique against mobile TV:

1. You need your eyes, ears, hands, and attention for mobile TV, which makes you a very easy target for muggers

Well, I quite often check my emails and Google Reader RSS feeds, while listening to music with Nokia N73. Never been mugged. How is the situation different with video/TV?

2. Where on earth are customers going to watch?

As Krisse already commented, I’d assume that you could use it in the same places as mobile web browsing, games, or email. According to user studies, the most common place is, well, you know.

3. For better user experience (for you, or your kids) you should just rip your DVDs

I’d give this technology first a chance to prove itself, before making that judgement. With some imagination and innovative spirit, I think it could prove worthy.

So what do I think about mobile TV myself?

Basically, I agree with the commentators in that if you try to replicate the traditional TV experience directly to mobile context, you are bound to fail. Have you noticed that PVRs, YouTubes, video podcasts and bittorrents of the world are already disrupting the traditional TV? I think you can be pretty darn sure that these forces won’t be absent from the mobile TV ecosystem.

Let’s think a bit more open-mindedly for a second.

What would you think would happen if you cross-pollinated:
- mobile device (Nokia S60 device, of course)
- effective wireless broadcast technology called DVB-H
- PVR functionality (= personal video recorder)
- YouTube or video podcast kind of content
- live feedback channel
- TV-Out

I bet it would be something cool.

How do you see the future of mobile TV - or whatever you want to call it - yourself?

Wohoo! The beta version of Smart2go application a.k.a Nokia Maps is finally available for download. As far as I understood, it's the same as the built-in one in N95. For other devices, you need a bluetooth GPS module to make full use of the app, but you can do the basic stuff even without one. Go try it! What do you think about this application?

Oh, and the updated version of Nokia Mobile Search app is also available, including the ability to search for stuff stored on your device. Unfortunately, I had some problems with installing this app to my Nokia N73 (I'm suspecting that upgrading built-in apps might be trickier than thought). Does it work for you properly?

I decided already not to post rants about Nokia websites anymore, but... whose idea was it to add background music and sound effects to Nokia.com and Nseries.com*?

I thought this was the cardinal sin of web design. Trust me, it ain't particularly nice to listen to Pandora.com or Last.FM and navigate Nokia websites at the same time.

Tommi's wish list for Nokia websites:
- no sound, please
- pages linkable
- pages linkable with permalinks (so that incoming links wouldn't be broken every now and then)
- make them work with our own devices = S60 browser
- make them searchable
- RSS everywhere
- don't misuse Flash (also related to the three previous points)

I'm getting a bit tired of ranting about Nokia websites, and I assume that you are getting tired too. Do you want me to keep doing it, or just leave it be?

* = thanks for adding RSS and cleaning up the website. It looks now much nicer. But I'm still worried about many things, especially the fact that you can't link to the pages (by the way, this makes the "digg" feature also pointless). Anyway, I think you have the right direction, but still a couple of miles to go.

I was asked to comment these rants by two well-known bloggers and self-confessed Nokia/S60 fans, who are starting to get desperate about the lack of availability of Nokia/S60 devices in the USA:
- Symbian Guru: Nokia Might As Well Pull Out Of The US Market
- Darla Mack: Are US Consumers Not Smart Enough For A Smartphone?

Sigh... What can I say? Frankly, I think the situation sucks. Nokia wants to sell devices in the US, and people in the US want to buy our devices - but the seller and the buyer don't meet. But why? Honestly, I don't understand why. Of course, I have heard all kinds of reasons, but still, my mind refuses to understand it.

Somebody wiser than me: please comment. Ricky and Darla are among our best customers in the USA, and I think they would deserve a proper answer.

Ps. both Ricky and Darla made an appeal to our CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo. Most probably, OPK doesn't have time to engage in blog conversations, but I'd like to see if somebody in higher ranks could comment.

Here's a wonderful, wonderful post by Michael Mace, my favorite blogger about mobile strategy: The rise of the information ecosystem: How mobile devices, personal computing, media, and the Internet all fit together

Quote:

The idea that those industries are merging has been around for years -- I remember a colleague making that argument at Apple back in the early 1990s. But I think "merging" or "convergence" isn't the right metaphor. What's emerging is more like a tropical jungle where a rare tree is the favorite roost of a bat that's fed on by a mosquito whose larvae are eaten by a fish that secretes the cure to cancer in its skin. Everything's connected in subtle ways that we don't understand.

The diagram shows why mobile devices can no longer stand alone as a separate industry. As soon as they get any data capabilities, they're embedded in the larger ecosystem. Want to add apps to a mobile device? You need to understand the trends driving PC and Internet app development. Want to tie your customers to you more closely? Make sure you know how online communities form (and why most of them fail). Want to play content on a mobile? Don't link yourself too closely to a content company that was part of the old ecosystem -- you might be pulled down by the suction when it sinks.

Wonderful.

Off-topic

My former boss's boss Mika Leppinen went hands-on coding with Python and ported a podcasting application called gPodder to Nokia Internet Tablet (you know, the Linux thingy). Interestingly, this experimental project became relatively popular in the Linux circles, so that the podcasting godfather Adam Curry eventually picked up the story, and raved about it in his Daily Source Code podcast #542 (direct link to MP3).

Nice work, Mika!! I think it's way cool and admirable to see senior managers doing stuff like this: not necessarily coding, but boldly trying something truly-hands-on related to their work.

Worth following suit.

Update: Mika said that N800 is an excellent hacker device, and that he wishes that people would join this open-source project of his.

Via AAS, I found the link for watching today's Nokia launches at 3GSM live. Right now, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo and Antti Vasara are presenting the long-awaited S60 based communicator, Nokia E90 Communicator.

Hooray!! ...for Nokia E90
Hooray!! ...for the other cool announcements
Hooray!! ...for the fact that the webcast is really nice

Now, how to make the webcast even better? Some quick ideas: let's upload it somewhere as podcast and video podcast, for off-line viewing or listening - either with iPods or our own devices. And let's upload the highlights of it to YouTube etc, for people to comment and to spread the word. And next time, let's open a live comment backchannel for the people watching the webcast. And of course, let's make it work properly on Firefox.

How about it?

Some of you have been giving me hard time about the fact that you can't create subfolders in S60. Now, Jouni has told that it's finally possible in S60 3rd Edition FP2. And for the others, somebody has just submitted a 6-step hack at Nokia Support Discussions Board: How to create Sub-Folders!

I'm amazed: how on earth did this guy figure it out?

(thanks Petri for the link)

Last Friday, I posted a rant about silly web design mistakes in "Nokia at 3GSM" web site. Well, the situation seems to be even worse: our 3GSM email newsletter reveals the email addresses of everybody in the distribution list.

From: 3GSMBarcelona@nokia.com [mailto:3GSMBarcelona@nokia.com]
Sent: 8 februarie 2007 15:42
To: (~1000 email addresses in clear text)

I'm not in a position to apologize on behalf of Nokia, but personally, I'm appalled. You don't do this. You simply don't. If we do something like this, how do we expect people to trust us taking good care of their personal data?

Official Nokia spokespersons and people behind the site: please do something and fast.

Ps. I'll send email to some of my contacts asap.

Update: It seems that the particular subcontractor that developed the website is not the same one to blame for the email blunder. My apologies for blaming the website creators. But I don't take back my strong words: I think this kind of privacy blunders are unacceptable, regardless of whose fault it technically speaking is.

Along with S60 3rd Edition FP2, Nokia has just announced the availability of something great called Open C. Quote from the press release:

Development of applications and services for S60 devices will be faster and more cost-efficient as S60 brings a major extension to the C++ development environment with Open C. This introduction brings the familiar standard C function libraries to S60 software, supporting increased productivity and improved time-to-market of applications. With Open C, developers can reuse existing code and focus on the mobility aspects of their applications.

Symbian recently introduced four of the basic POSIX libraries on Symbian OS. With Open C, S60 is extending the reach and implementing five additional C libraries for an optimized solution to migrate open source and desktop applications to S60 on Symbian OS. Open C libraries are part of the S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 and will be integrated into the publicly available software development kits.

I believe this could be a big thing. Huge.

Let me explain.

Question: Why is it so great?

Open C is great basically for three reasons:
- It makes S60 development easier for current S60 developers
- It makes starting S60 development significantly easier for the millions of C++ developers out there
- It makes porting existing applications (e.g. open source and desktop apps) to S60 significantly easier

I think Open C effort has a fighting chance to increase the number of active S60 developers by an order of magnitude. Consequently, I think we'll see truckloads of interesting new S60 applications in the future.

Question: oh my god, are you breaking (again) the S60 compatibility?

No. Applications developed with Open C will work in all S60 3rd Edition devices. If I understood correctly, the Open C parts can be included with some kind of plugin in the sis package, so that they work in older devices.

Question: Yay!! What should I do now?

If you are developer, read more from Forum Nokia. (I'll update this page when the page is up and I find the link)

If you are a blogger, please spread the word!

If you are "just a regular" S60 user, answer this: Which open source project would you like to see ported to S60?

Everybody: what do you think about the whole thing? The team behind Open C initiative is eagerly waiting for your feedback...

Jouni a.k.a. MRKTNGman just wrote an excellent piece about S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2. Quote:

S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 was announced today. I have been marketing responsible of the release and finally it's possible to talk publicly about this fortcoming release.

Thanks Jouni. I so much prefer your overview (with human language, pictures, commenting opportunity, etc) compared with the official (more sterile) press releases. I guess press releases and blog releases complement nicely each other.

If you have any questions, ask Jouni! He's da man.

Last week, an Israeli-based company called LocatioNet Systems Ltd. released a free* GPS navigation application/service called amAze:

amAze is a first of its kind free navigation and local search service. It is free to download and use and it contains the maps of over 15 European countries and North America.

Oh, sounds good. Must try it. Advertising-based business models are so hot these days.

How to get started:
1. register at amAze
2. download the client by pointing your S60 Web browser** to wap.amazegps.com
3. start the app and login.

Wait! For some reason, I couldn't log in:
Urgh. I'm sure I have the right username and password. What did I do wrong? Does it work for you?

Update***
And it works:

I couldn't get GPS working, but I suspect there's something wrong with my GPS module - it hasn't worked properly lately. According to the comments, the GPS part should work just fine.

Anyway, amAze looks like a neat application/service, and a sign of wonderful free (=ad-supported) mobile services to emerge in the future.

* = of course, you have to pay for the data traffic, unless you have a flat-fee plan
** = I tried to download it also with the Services browser on my N73, but it didn't work.
*** = apparently, you can't use numbers and other special characters in your password (?)

A first-time S60 user called Steven Wittens has written an insightful Nokia N73 review. Nokia people: go check it out. The author defines himself as web developer, engineer, and geek. So if he finds something in our devices or in S60 awkward, I think we should listen.

Via Ring Nokia

I just bumped into a newish blog called Future Watch Blog, which states:

In 2007, the N-Gage experience will evolve. ... The Future Watch site is about that transformation, and our blog is at the heart of the Future Watch site. Brought to you by the talented team that created the N-Gage Arena ... it’s a place where we can have a two-way chat with you about the exciting transformations in our mobile, connected lives.

Subscribed. Let's see if this gets interesting.

The site says that the blog is a Nokia sponsored resource, and in many places it is referred to as the official N-Gage blog. Hmmm.... I thought I knew every Nokia blogger, or at least the official and semi-official ones. Do you know who is writing this? Are ikona, Karl L. and Pinkie Nokia people or externals? What is the purpose of the site: create buzz or establish a 2-way dialogue between the N-Gage team and N-Gage enthusiasts?

Via Engadget Mobile

Nokia Nseries CES blog was bad, but it seems that our Nokia at 3GSM site is even worse.

Key problems:
- pages are not linkable
- can't press browser back button
- copy-pasting text is disabled
- no RSS
- misuse of Flash slows down navigation

Seriously, folks. This is not funny anymore. This is not what an Internet company does. How do we expect people to follow what's happening? By subscribing to our email ads? Yeah, right. How do we expect people to spread the word? By every day checking the site for updates, and then copying the relevant piece of text manually? Dream on.

No intention to offend anybody personally, but right now we are, as a company, making a fool of ourselves.

Luckily, we still have 10 days to fix this.

Via: Ring-Nokia

Christian Linholm (former Nokia director, former Yahoo! VP) just posted an excellent piece titled "Nokia N95 is really a leap ahead for the mobile industry", in which he captures the significance of N95:

...as an exciting device:

it is the most existing mobile device I have used in years. It has everything. ... It does produce spontaneous WOWs.

...as an engineering effort:

For anyone who makes phones, the N95 must be a source of stress. The sheer level of complexity to engineer this device would make most engineers have sweat pearls in the forehead. This is the most sophisticated gizmo at 120g ever engineered. Congrats guys, my hat off.

...and as a manifestation of a bigger revolution:

As an outsider I am constantly surprised by the seemingly acceleration of utility in some many domains. When I put the N95 next to my wife’s 6682, they seem to be from a different decade, and it is only two years ago. The N95 to me is yet again proof that we are living a mobile revolution that is about to transform society in a profound way.

Me. One. Thank you.

A couple of weeks ago, Nokia released the enterprise-focused Team Suite application for Eseries devices through Nokia Catalogs client. A bit later, somebody extracted the sis file, and put it available for all S60 3rd Edition devices. Seeing this sequence of events a bit odd, Steve Litchfield raised a valid question:

"Nokia, how about putting some of these apps (Team Suite, Search, etc.) on the actual Support download pages?"

Good point. Anyone?

The problem in nutshell: the users, or at least the bloggers, don't seem to understand Nokia's approach to artificially limit certain S60 applications to certain devices. Of course, some apps, such as Barcode Reader, have special technical requirements, like high-quality camera. But others, such as Search and Podcasting, apparently have none.

Why certain applications are officially limited to certain devices, I dunno. But I think it is mostly aspirations for software-based differentiation (which is perfectly acceptable and wise), with a pinch of Conway's Law (which as a reason would be just dumb).

Worth thinking about.

I thought I was doing just fine with my N73, but I'm increasingly starting to miss WiFi, as I need to test the latest wonderful - but data hungry - S60 applications. The latest one was pitched by Florian:

I think it might interest you and other eddicteds that FON (you know, this huge WiFi Community out there) has launched a beta testing for their Symbian smart client that will connect you to all FONspots which are already over 75.000 worldwide! If you are interested, send an email to client-betatesting (at) fon.com.

LazyWeb request: dear Nokia proto-overlords and word-of-mouth marketers: would you have an extra N95 to loan me? And if I'm a really nice boy, would you be willing to loan me (and other S60 bloggers) test units of our latest gadgets in the future?