#deskstream

It’s been a busy start to the year for WorldDesk. We launched our first downloadable product in Las Vegas at the Consumer Electronics Show, showed WorldDesk running on a non-Windows OS in Barcelona at the Mobile World Congress and part of our team have just returned from South by Southwest (SXSW) in Texas where we gave an early peek of our new 64-bit release.

SXSW is a unique conference that combines original music, independent films and emerging technologies. This made for a diverse week socializing, (I should call this networking since I was there for work!) attending events and panel discussions.

One such panel was delivered by students from the MIT Media Lab. This was not a group I was overly familiar with but part of the charm of SXSW is that curiosity is both encouraged and rewarded. The MIT Media Lab is made-up of self-described outliers: academics that, despite their brilliance, don’t seem to naturally fit into any other faculty at MIT. Unconstrained by traditional assessment boundaries, this group of designers, engineers, artists and scientists work on specific projects that they believe might provide a technological breakthrough to impact on everyday life.

While each panelist in turn outlined details of their own, individual project, it was telling that they all, without fail, referenced what is the unofficial Mantra of the Media Labs: Demo or Die. No matter how brilliant, no matter how innovative, each project would be judged on the ability to bring it to demo.

The belief that building a demo was the only real way to validate a particular idea is something that is instilled with the team at WorldDesk. There are two distinct parts of any demo: build and show. For any project we’ve undertaken it starts of with that first build of the demo. Version 1 is mostly a mishmash of different third-party apps that are easily and immediately available. This “home brew” lacks any of the gleam of a final product but, most importantly, validates the core idea. WorldDesk for You  (that ran with the internal demo name Project Kickstarter) began life like this. It had none of the polish of our beta product (simple installation package, WorldDesk branding, automation, Dropbox integration etc.) but it made the crucial jump from “I can” to “I have”.

Of course there is no point in having a great demo (which I believe we have!) unless you get out there and show it to someone! The day after the MIT Panel I had a chance to put part of this theory into practice. Through a competitive application process WorldDesk was selected, as one of only twenty companies, to take part in the UK Demo day. This was an official SXSW event hosted by UK Trade & Investment and Thomson Reuters. After three hours of non-stop presenting to capital providers, media, industry contacts and potential clients, I left with a little better understanding on how best to communicate the WorldDesk offering. Practice does make perfect.

And that completes one demo cycle but is only one cycle. We’re already building our next demo, which we hope to be able to show you soon, because like all MIT Media Lab students we too have a motto: Demo or die.

At the launch of the iPad last year, Steve Jobs began his presentation with a simple question, “Is there room for a third category of device? Something that’s between a laptop and smartphone.” With sales of more than 15 million iPads by the release of the iPad 2 this year, it would seem the answer is yes.

A recent survey from Nielsen Co. found that tablets are dramatically changing the relationship between users and traditional computers. The survey found that 35% of tablet owners now use their desktop less or not at all, with 32% of laptop-users following a similar pattern.

There can be no doubt that tablets are the ‘sexiest’ thing to hit the technology market in the last 15 years. They’ve become a ‘must have’, with major uptake in even the most conservative of places; in courts, in hospitals and even in the Houses of Parliament. Personally, I'm the classic technophobe but the potential of full Excel and other MS Office suites finding their way on to tablets means I may yet become a convert.

I can't help but wonder if Microsoft's purchase of Skype signals what the next step in the tablet revolution will be. There can be no doubt that the move to ‘the cloud’ is fast becoming a priority for industry leaders such as Microsoft, Google and Apple. The Skype deal would suggest Microsoft have placed an even greater value on the potential of the cloud than anyone previously thought.

For future tablet devices, 'the cloud' will be key, helping to bridge that gap between the traditional desktop and the current tablet offering, such as the iPad. Is there room for a third category of device? I believe the answer is yes but only if it offers the best of both worlds; the flexibility of a smartphone with the functionality of a laptop.

In a product management strategy session with WorldDesk this week, we took some time to imagine what the next generation of computing technology might look like. Here are some early thoughts…

Make the mobile device the desktop not the other way around.

The tablet on the road can become the desktop in the office by adding docking technology.

The key ingredient to making the tablet truly next generation is adding cloud storage and the ability to sync with a connection.

Technology, like that being offered by Deskstream is key, allowing for thin client technology that provides:

                (a) watertight security

                (b) full remote management

                (c) an ability to fully clone a device in minutes

                (d) and an ability to wipe the tablet remotely

Include 4G connectivity and work with the cell phone providers to give full mobile capability on the road, while leveraging a service such as Skype where wireless is available.

Finally, offer all this for a fixed monthly fee.

We're currently working on a prototype that combines all of the above, a genuine next generation platform that will harness 'the cloud' in a effort to truly change how we see and use technology. I wonder if Mr Gates, with his purchase of Skype, is thinking along the very same lines.

- Danny Moore