Monday, August 04, 2014

IoT: $25 Firefox OS phone

Abusing phones to make the internet of things – Jan Jongboom:

"Firefox OS phone is a handset that’s cheaper (25$) than a bare-bone Raspberry Pi, that includes a ton of sensors, GPS, network connectivity, a battery and a screen. And on top of that it’s running the Gecko render engine that has APIs to access all that goodness."



If sold as a DIY device, it could be a best seller...

Quotes: Elon Musk (Tesla Motors, SpaceX, Solar City)

5 Radical Business Quotes From Tesla Motors, Inc.'s Elon Musk (TSLA)


Heart matters. "[My biggest mistake is probably] weighing too much on someone's talent and not someone's personality. I think it matters whether someone has a good heart."

Do it anyway. "If something is important enough, even if the odds are against you, you should still do it ."

Success may be a more likely outcome than you think. "The first step is to establish that something is possible; then probability will occur."

Reason from "first principles." "I think it's also important to reason from first principles rather than by analogy."What are first principles? "First principles is kind of a physics way of looking at the world. What that really means is you kind of boil things down to the most fundamental truths... and then reason up from there."

Seek out negative feedback. "You want to be extra rigorous about making the best possible thing you can. Find everything that's wrong with it, and fix it. Seek negative feedback, particularly from friends."

Star Ship Netflix customer service

This Netflix employee just raised the bar for awesome customer service (screenshot) | VentureBeat | OffBeat | by Tom Cheredar:

"...Netflix service rep Michael responded by introducing himself as “Captain Mike of the good ship Netflix” and then asked which member of the crew he was speaking with. “Lieutenant” Norm took the bait, responding as if he was a ranking Star Fleet officer from Star Trek

...
The company has a history of engaging with people like people,which is far different from the pre-approved robotic responses you’re likely to get from customer service reps at other publicly traded companies. "




Zappos is changing the world of customer service... one good company at a time