Monthly Archives: July 2016

Life Lessons from the Road

Kelly Brown riding in the Portland to Seattle ClassicEarlier this month I rode in the Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic. That is 205 miles in the saddle over two days, although some choose to complete it in one day. I have done this ride before so I knew what to expect. Two days on the bike gives me a lot of time for reflection and I would like to share, particularly with AIM students, some of those thoughts. I call them lessons from the road, which applies to my time in the saddle and throughout my life in general. Hopefully they resonate with you as well.

Don’t Quit Until You’re Done

For those of us who choose to do the ride over two days, there are various towns where you can camp overnight. The official center point is the 102-mile mark and riders can camp there at a small college. Others, like me, opt to put in a few more miles on the first day and stay at the 120-mile mark, which makes for a much easier second day.

That night I ate with fellow riders and I repeatedly heard, “Oh, that last 20 miles almost did me in.” They set out that morning knowing full well they were going to ride the longer distance so it should not have been a surprise. After talking to many of them, it dawned on me that they mentally finished at the halfway point when everyone was cheering and congratulating them for a job well done. For the last 20 miles they were riding in body only, having already finished for the day in mind and spirit.

How many times in our lives do we do the same thing? We set an attainable goal for ourselves and then we quit mentally before we are finished. We try to coast for the last 20 miles or the last class or the last effort that needs all of our concentration. I am going to always try to finish strong and I challenge you to do the same.

Watch Out for Those Around You

In this ride they cap registration at 10,000 so there are always fellow riders around you. It is not as bad as a Tour de France peloton but sometimes the distance between wheels can be measured in inches. It can take a lot of concentration to watch out for others, but the reward is a safe ride. I came upon more than one accident involving multiple riders so I know the risk.

As in cycling, it makes sense to watch out for others as we pass through life. Not necessarily out of a sense of danger but in the spirit of lending a hand. Do you ever notice a fellow student struggling and reach out to try and help? Do you try to help young people, or perhaps the elderly, during your day? Sometimes others struggle with tasks that seem routine to us so it never hurts to lend a hand.

Enjoy the Scenery

One of the most important lessons I learned during those hours in the saddle is to enjoy the scenery. I am not the fastest rider and I often hear the phrase “passing on your left.” While I will most likely never finish first in any of these rides, I definitely take the time to enjoy the scenery. Each mile brings a different view and, while pavement is not very interesting to look at nature, people and architecture definitely are. Whether high up on a bridge or deep in a forest, there is always something interesting to see.

Life can be hard and finishing a degree program can be hard, but I think it is important to look up every once in awhile and take in the scenery. It helps to put everything else in perspective.

Thoughts

These are my thoughts from the road. Finish strong, help others, and enjoy the scenery along the way. Do you have any life lessons that you have picked up on your journey? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

Pokemon Go and the Future of Augmented Reality

Photograph of a smart phone screen with an active Pokemon Go game.Augmented reality took a big leap forward this month with the release of Pokemon Go from Niantic Labs and partner Nintendo. This game has become very popular and has drawn praise and criticism from different groups. Many are excited about getting players young and old out of the house, but some are concerned about the potential security problems when the lines are blurred between the virtual and real worlds. Personally, I am fascinated by the social implications of this technology and its potential benefits in gaming and extended professional scenarios.

Pokemon Go

Pokemon Go requires players to chase Pokemon cartoon characters in the real world using a smart phone. It uses the smartphone camera and clock to overlay one of 151 characters in real places such as the city, the beach, the forest or in buildings. The player must collect these characters wherever they may be. Water characters can only be collected near waterways and night fairies can only be collected at night. The game has become so popular that Darwin police in Northern Australia have alerted players that they do not need to come into the police station to catch a particular character:

For those budding Pokemon Trainers out there using Pokemon Go — whilst the Darwin Police Station may feature as a Pokestop, please be advised that you don’t actually have to step inside in order to gain the pokeballs. It’s also a good idea to look up, away from your phone and both ways before crossing the street. That Sandshrew isn’t going anywhere fast. Stay safe and catch ’em all!

This is not the first augmented reality game, but so far it’s the most popular. Niantic released a similar game called Ingress in 2015. Pokemon Go uses the same database of features and is basically Ingress using Nintendo characters.

Recent History

Niantic Labs was a Google creation but spun off last fall during the Alphabet restructuring. The original intent by Google was to build things on top of the incredible mapping technology that they already have. Think about Google Maps, Google Earth, and Google Street View. They have a comprehensive database of geo coordinates, so it makes sense to augment (no pun intended) that work with a game. This is a great example of an innovation extension.

My Interest

I have seen similar application research recently in the field of education. The premise is that if young people could be enticed to go to a park or a museum or into the forest, they could learn about the features of that location and earn tokens at the same time. Basically, this is the gamification of nature or history. I have written about this topic before, but I am all in favor of enticing people to go outdoors, whether to search for cartoon characters or for solitude away from the stress and distractions of everyday life.

Thoughts

Games like Pokemon Go could be the first of many popular augmented reality games. While there are still some bugs to be worked out, the technology is promising. Have you played Pokemon Go? Do you think this is a passing fad or the beginning of a new reality? Let me know your thoughts.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

Customer Data: The New Capital

Fingerprint weighted against a dollar sign.Sports Authority, a retail chain of sporting goods stores, recently filed for bankruptcy and sold off all of their assets. One of the highest bids was for their name, e-commerce site and customer data, bought by rival Dick’s Sporting Goods for $15 million. In contrast, a package of several store leases went for only $8 million and naming rights to Sports Authority Field, also known as Mile High Stadium, home of the Denver Broncos, is still on the auction block. It appears that customer information is the new desired capital, but what does that say about our privacy and the use of our personal information? Is it truly for sale to the highest bidder? Did we actually agree to that?

Privacy Policies

The Sports Authority privacy policy states, “We may transfer your personal information in the event of a corporate sale, merger, acquisition, dissolution or similar event.” Information collected and stored at the Sports Authority website includes full name, street address, e-mail address, telephone number, credit card number, and credit card expiration date. This is not unique to Sports Authority; other online retailers collect the same information and include a similar caveat in their privacy policies. It is up to the consumer to read and understand that clause and decide whether it is worth the risk.

Relationships

When signing up for rewards programs I agree to hand over my personal information, regardless of whether I read the privacy policy or not, but I expect our relationship to end if the company is dissolved. In the case of Sports Authority, my intended relationship was with them and not with Dick’s Sporting Goods or someone else. Is there a step in the process that lets me break off the deal should I not want to be solicited by the highest bidder?

Thoughts

With value on customer data comes responsibility to customers who have disclosed their information and expect at least a minimum of privacy and discretion. Privacy advocates are watching these developments closely. They are concerned that the new owners will not adhere to the original privacy agreement and will use the customer information in ways not originally agreed upon.

Let me know your thoughts on buying and selling customer information. It is not a new idea. I have received solicitations from car dealers for years based on information available from the division of motor vehicles. What is new is how easy it is to collect, buy, and sell this information and the amount of associated customer information collected, which can be put up for sale to the highest bidder.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.

Brexit and the Technology Industry

Puzzle with the national flag of great Britain and European Union on a world map background.The recent decision by Britain to exit the European Union (Brexit) has people asking a lot of questions. Some analysts are pondering British technology regulations and the state of the technology industry post European Union. There are surprising implications that perhaps have not been considered but probably would not have made a difference in the vote.

Silicon Roundabout

An area in East London has been dubbed Silicon Roundabout for the concentration of high-tech firms, particularly start-ups. In a 2013 Guardian article, director of Twilio Europe James Parton cites reasons for locating a hub in London, “…London was a natural choice for our first office outside of the U.S. Language, accessibility to rest of Europe, a vibrant start-up ecosystem, the financial market, talent and flexible business conditions were all contributing factors.” Other areas of Britain have attracted high-tech heavyweights and start-ups alike.

With Brexit, some of those desirable qualities could disappear. Accessibility to the single EU market is in jeopardy, which could result in less than favorable trade arrangements and higher tariffs for companies operating in an independent Britain. A recent BBC article suggests that Berlin, for example, will actively court those tech start-ups and venture capitalists that have been pouring money into Britain. In making her pitch, Cordelia Yzer, Berlin Senator for Commerce and Technology, said, “They are welcome, their talent is more than welcome. It’s a great place to live and we also speak English. Berlin is a place where their dreams can come true.”

High Finance

Another potential issue for tech firms in Britain is access to capital. Start-ups in particular, but all tech firms in general, are capital-intensive operations mainly used for talent and equipment. A recent Reuters article reports that Standard and Poors and Fitch Rating recently dropped their credit rating for the country. This could make it harder or more expensive for companies to borrow capital for expansion or for a start-up. These companies could consider other EU centers such as Berlin or Paris, where funds are less expensive.

Data Privacy

The EU and the U.S. are working on the latest changes to their data privacy agreement. The EU has some of the toughest privacy laws in the world with Germany and France leading the charge in areas such as “the right to be forgotten,” which require companies such as Google to erase all internet history of an individual upon their request. Britain has pushed for less stringent regulations but it remains to be seen whether they will still abide by the EU-U.S. data privacy agreement. That brings up the question of whether data flowing through Britain will still adhere to those standards, or will it be less secure?

Thoughts

The exit is still being planned, though EU countries are pushing to get it done sooner rather than later. With the separation come questions for high-tech companies and consumers. These will be sorted out over time and I will be watching the developments with interest. Can you think of any tech benefits or drawbacks to a post-EU Britain? Let me know your thoughts.

Author Kelly BrownAbout Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown is an IT professional and assistant professor of practice for the UO Applied Information Management Master’s Degree Program. He writes about IT and business topics that keep him up at night.