From hol-owner Tue Mar 7 12:42:35 1995 Return-Path: owner-HOL Received: from localhost (daemon@localhost) (fnord) by nando.yak.net (8.6.5/8.6.5) id MAA18928 for hol-out31415; Tue, 7 Mar 1995 12:42:35 -0800 Received: from localhost (daemon@localhost) (fnord) by nando.yak.net (8.6.5/8.6.5) id MAA18922 for hol; Tue, 7 Mar 1995 12:42:22 -0800 Received: via =-=-=-=-= from carlson@odin.net for hol@hungary.yak.net (hol) Received: from odin.net (root@omega.odin.net [193.130.116.3]) (fnord) by nando (8.6.5/8.6.5) with ESMTP id MAA18749 for ; Tue, 7 Mar 1995 12:39:22 -0800 Received: from [193.130.116.13] by odin.net with SMTP (8.6.10/1.2-btv) id VAA11092; Tue, 7 Mar 1995 21:51:37 GMT Message-Id: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Tue, 7 Mar 1995 21:34:12 +0100 To: hol@hungary.yak.net From: carlson@odin.net (Steven Carlson) Subject: (HOL) INNOVATION, 6 March 1995 Sender: owner-HOL@hungary.yak.net Precedence: bulk Reply-To: HOL@hungary.yak.net I had my doubts, but this has turned into an amazing publication. It's not free, but you can get a trial subscription. Check the end of this post for details. =steve= ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Because time and information are your most valuable assets, Innovation offers a weekly summary of trends, strategies, and innovations in business and technology, giving you an executive briefing on ideas for the future. It is written by John Gehl and Suzanne Douglas. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TRENDS Technologies For Tomorrow Advertise Everywhere -- Just Do It. The Give And Take Of The Digital Age The Next Wave In Computer Customer Complaints Document Management Systems Put Life Into Paperwork Food And Beverages In The Pink, In '95 STRATEGIES Is The Message Really The Message? Engineering Of Customer Experiences Computerized Irrigation Spurs Vineyard Output Strategic Decisions: Find A Niche And Find A Home Untangling Technobabble INNOVATIONS Fast Boat Could Revolutionize Shipping Business Rx For Sick Buildings Sniffing Out Success ... With High-Tech Smelling 1994 Medical Advances Parts Catalogs Come Alive ... As Chunks Of Software Corn-Fed Taurus On The Way The Ultimate Radar Scrambler ***********TRENDS************ TECHNOLOGIES FOR TOMORROW The next decade will bring computers that fit in your pocket, insulin pumps that can be inserted in diabetics' bodies, and anti-aging creams that really work, according to Battelle Technology Management Group. The major overall trend in all fields, from medicine to electronics, will be miniaturization. Battelle's top ten for 2005 are: (1) genome mapping -- enabling doctors to predict who will get what disease; (2) supermaterials -- rugged, adaptable building materials for communications, energy, transit; (3) compact energy sources -- powerful, long-lasting batteries and fuel cells; (4) high-definition TV -- digital video for cinema-quality viewing; (5) handheld electronic devices -- phone, fax and computer in the palm of your hand; (6) smart manufacturing systems -- sensor-driven assembly lines; (7) anti-aging products -- creams that really erase wrinkles, genetic tinkering to slow aging; (8) targeted medical treatments -- focused on the ailment only, reduced side effects; (9) hybrid fuel vehicles -- lower emissions, better mileage, higher performance; (10) edutainment -- educational games and computerized simulations for learning. (Business Week 2/6/95 p.6) ADVERTISE EVERYWHERE -- JUST DO IT. In the film "The Horse's Mouth," the painter-hero played by Alec Guinness couldn't see a blank wall without wanting to fill it up with paint. Advertisers tend to feel the same way, which explains why MacDonald's Corporation struck a $5.5 million deal with Georgia Institute of Technology to put its logo on the floor of Georgia Tech's basketball coliseum, on the exterior of the building, and on tickets and promotional materials. Georgia Tech is a unit of the state of Georgia's university system, and the state's attorney general has nixed the deal, saying it violates the state constitution. (Atlanta Constitution 3/3/95 A1) However, the trend toward "advertising everywhere" will no doubt continue, and cultural critic Tom Vanderbilt complains of "the advertised life" and quotes with disdain an advertising executive who looks forward to an interactive future in which "programming and advertising become interchangeable, as consumers are living in a perpetual marketing event." (Baffler No.6 p.145) THE GIVE AND TAKE OF THE DIGITAL AGE The Economist (Feb. 11) reports that although the technology revolution has resulted in some workers losing their jobs to machines, the overall balance sheet is favorable, with more jobs being created than lost. Most at risk are telephone operators, postal workers, bank tellers and other workers performing repetitive tasks that can be easily automated. But the new high-tech, knowledge-based industries are creating more jobs, and at the same time these high-tech workers are creating demands for other kinds of workers -- jobs such as gardening, cooking and childcare will experience strong growth in the near future. (Investor's Business Daily 2/28/95 A4) THE NEXT WAVE IN COMPUTER CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS As home computer users who bought their machines years ago begin to upgrade to multimedia-capable power and memory, look for a new tidal wave of customer complaints when things go wrong. "The problem will get worse over the next few months as users start trying to do new things with their computers, like install new software or upgrade the hardware," says an expert on software support at Dataquest. In the past year, calls to third party computer support lines have doubled, as high-tech gadgetry has far outstripped the technical competence of the average user. The complaint overload is having an effect on the folks at the other end of the line, too: "Some groups have installed punching bags so their techs can go smack the hell out of it," says a customer support consultant. (Forbes 3/13/95 p.101) DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS PUT LIFE INTO PAPERWORK The trend toward paperless office systems got bogged down by paperwork and seemed headed for the shredder, but a new surge of systems activity focuses less on eliminating paper than on animating the work the document deals with (e.g., by supplying the processes necessary to complete an insurance claim to be programmed into the document itself). New "document management systems" not only feature storage and retrieval capabilities but also processing capabilities, so that workflow and document management are integrated. As a result, documents become instruments of action rather than mere reports on what has taken place. This new way of thinking about what a document is has emerged from disciplines such as business process reengineering and workflow automation. (Financial Times Review 3/1/95 p.4) FOOD AND BEVERAGES IN THE PINK, IN '95 The National Food Processors Association predicts one of this year's hottest trends will be pink food and beverages. (Remember blue last year?) Get set for a run on guava puree, which food processors will use to add rosy color and a tropical flavor to juices, yogurt drinks and other beverages. (Investor's Business Daily 3/3/95 A3) *********STRATEGIES********** IS THE MESSAGE REALLY THE MESSAGE? Nicholas Negroponte's new book, "Being Digital," says, "Computing isn't about computing anymore; it's about living." Declaring the age of Marshall McLuhan past, Negroponte asserts, "The medium is not the message in a digital world." Rather, "the message is the message," and the job at hand is how to decode it from its many media forms. But the growing popularity of online services seems to contradict this viewpoint, says Mark Stahlman, the president of New Media Associates: "The medium (online service) is the message and the audience (the subscriber) is the content." As America Online's CEO is fond of saying, "Our business is to package our subscribers and sell them back to themselves." Stahlman's conclusion: "New media requires fundamentally new notions about what it means to be human in a digital age." (Information Week 3/6/95 p.73) ENGINEERING OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES It was a successful operation, but the patient died; it was a great product, but the customer won't ever buy it again ... because the company had done nothing to engineer the customer's actual experience. Two of the geniuses of "experience engineering" were Walt Disney and Ray Kroc. Disney theme parks use frequently painted sidewalks to give high-maintenance and cleanliness clues; post ride "wait" times that are regularly bettered in practice; and play visual architectural tricks to give visitors the illusion of an endless array of attractions when they arrive at the park yet the promise of a quick exit when they are ready to go home. MacDonald's was conceived as a place that sells customer experiences rather than just hamburgers; founder Ray Kroc made the kitchen visible to customers to impress them with its cleanliness and entertain them with the choreography of the employees. The goal of customer experience engineering is to identify and analyze subtle "performance clues" that signal customer acceptance or rejection. For example, a nursing home that received poor ratings for cleanliness because of disinfectant odors ("it must be dirty to require disinfectant"), improved its evaluation only when a neutral scent was used; a pleasant scent was just as bad as the disinfectant smell because it was interpreted as a "cover-up" clue. (Marketing Management v.3, n.3 p.9) COMPUTERIZED IRRIGATION SPURS VINEYARD OUTPUT A new technology developed by Australian cotton growers takes the guesswork out of irrigating vineyards -- a process that is largely trial-and-error, with emphasis on the latter, according to one winemaker. The problem is, it's difficult for grape growers to determine the optimal amount of water for their crops until they've already gone too far. The Australians have developed computerized "neutron probes," which are stuck in the ground at regular intervals and measure hydrogen atoms. Since water is the only source of hydrogen in soil, the atom count is a pretty good measurement of water content. The data then goes to a computer, which calculates an irrigation schedule for that location. "Our vines are like thirsty men crawling in the desert. We want them to have enough water to stay alive, but not enough to stop and open a casino," says the VP of Cakebread Cellars. (Investor's Business Daily 2/28/95 A8) STRATEGIC DECISIONS: FIND A NICHE AND FIND A HOME Belgian-born software company TechGnosis found its niche in "middleware" that allows different kinds of computer systems (e.g., PC, Mac, Unix or mainframe) to talk with each other, a goal that's especially important for corporations that are the products of mergers with other companies. But TechGnosis resettled in the U.S. after finding the European market inhospitable because of the different languages, currencies, forms of marketing and advertising. TechGnosis's CEO says: "If I have a market in the U.S., I have 200 to 250 million guys all speaking the same language, all paying in dollars, and all reading the same magazines. The natural hub of the industry is the United States. Whether the Japanese or the Europeans like to hear this or not, it's the truth." (Wall Street Journal 3/3/95 A5D) UNTANGLING TECHNOBABBLE If you're drowning in alphabet soup, puzzling over acronyms such as ATM, ISDN, PBX, SMDS, and T-1s, take heart. Now there's "Newton's Telecom Dictionary" -- a 1,000-page-plus tome that provides down-to-earth definitions for thousands of terms in telecommunications and related fields such as computer networking. The resource book is priced at $24.95. For more information, call 800-542-7279. (Inc. Feb.'95 p.120) **********INNOVATIONS******** FAST BOAT COULD REVOLUTIONIZE SHIPPING BUSINESS High-priced or time-sensitive goods (autos, computers, medical supplies, perishable goods, etc.) could be moved across the Atlantic in less than four days (half the time it takes current freighters) using superfast cargo ships built by American investors from designs purchased from a British marine engineering firm. The design, which uses "semi-planing monohull technology," causing the vessel to be lifted from the rear, has previously been used on yachts and ferries, but never on cargo ships. The investors hope they can do for the ocean cargo business what FedEx did for the package shipping business. (Washington Times Weekly 2/27-3/5/95 p.13) Rx FOR SICK BUILDINGS Poor ventilation and bacteria build-up in air ducts have resulted in an epidemic of sick buildings. Up until now, the only known remedy has been ripping out and replacing the entire ventilation system, something building owners are reluctant to do. But now a University of Florida engineering professor has developed a simple, inexpensive cure: a system that forces air in the ventilation system through a filter coated with titanium dioxide -- a common chemical power used in toothpaste -- and then zaps it with ultraviolet light. The process breaks down all volatile organic compounds in the air and kills bacteria in the ductwork. The system is easily installed in existing ducts, or incorporated into new construction. (Business Week 3/6/95 p.58) SNIFFING OUT SUCCESS ... WITH HIGH-TECH SMELLING Electronic noses are invading industry, helping researchers at GM to pinpoint the "new car" smell that buyers love, and replacing human armpit sniffers in deodorant testing. IBM is working on a "nose on a chip" that could be incorporated into its computers. The machines use certain polymers that act as spongy sensors, absorbing vapors and comparing them with a "scent" database. Per machine prices are still high -- about $50,000 -- but as sales volume rises, costs will come down. Future applications include medicine -- breath analysis over the phone to detect diabetes, liver and kidney ailments; food production -- to sniff out any bad ingredients before they go into the mix; quality control -- the U.S. Food and Drug Administration uses a high-tech smeller for inspecting and grading fish at the dock. (Wall Street Journal 3/1/95 B1) 1994 MEDICAL ADVANCES Harvard Medical School's Health Letter says that 1994's most important medical advance was the isolation of thrombopoietin, the gene for the hormone that induces bone marrow cells to mature and fragment into platelets (which are essential for clotting). Genetically engineered thrombopoietin would be a boon to cancer patients and other individuals at risk for life-threatening bleeding due to low platelet count. Another finding with major long-range implications for human health: the discovery that nearly everyone who has ever had a heart attack or stroke, or suffers from angina, or has undergone coronary artery bypass surgery, should take one-half to one aspirin tablet daily unless he or she is allergic to the drug. (Harvard Health Letter March 1995 p.1) PARTS CATALOGS COME ALIVE ... AS CHUNKS OF SOFTWARE It may signal the end of printed parts catalogs for architects, engineers and even consumers. Autodesk, a leader in software for computer aided design, has 2.5 million designers who use its AutoCad program, and most of them must specify parts from other manufacturers that will be used in the products they are designing. Now, in a significant diversification move, the company will begin publishing digital drawings of those parts as chunks of software that can be incorporated by design professionals as buildings blocks for their own designs. These software building blocks could represent such things as windows, appliances, wallpaper, furniture, etc., all of which could be easily changed in size or color. (Wall Street Journal 3/3/95 B6) CORN-FED TAURUS ON THE WAY Ford Motor Co. will put an ethanol-powered Taurus on the road early next year, becoming the first U.S. automaker to produce an ethanol vehicle specifically for widespread operation. The Taurus will run on E-85 fuel (85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) but can use unleaded gasoline if ethanol isn't available. (Miami Herald 2/28/95 C1) THE ULTIMATE RADAR SCRAMBLER The Mirage 2000 is a legal passive radar scrambler that operates by changing the radar gun's Doppler wave pattern from smooth and regular to erratic and unpredictable. The overstimulated machine then produces a display that's either totally inaccurate or blank. (Wired March '95 p.59) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (C) Innovation is copyrighted, 1995, by NewsScan, Inc., all rights reserved; -- however, please feel free to forward sample copies to your friends! Innovation is published weekly, with individual subscriptions available at $15 a year. Site licenses are also available. For a trial copy of Innovation, type the word "subscribe" in the body (not subject!) of a message to: innovation-request@NewsScan.com To pay by VISA, Mastercard, Discover or American Express, send us your name, card number, and expiration date. To pay by check, simply make your check payable to NewsScan, Inc. (and print your e-mail address on the check). International subscribers should pay in U.S. funds by credit card, international money order, or check drawn on a U.S. bank. Our address is: NewsScan, Inc., P.O. Box 15010, Atlanta, GA. 30333-0010 To reach us: Comments@NewsScan.com, 404-371-1853 (voice), or 404-371-8057 (fax). We appreciate your interest and support and would like to hear from you. -- John Gehl & Suzanne Douglas ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --- Steven Carlson Moderator/Publisher - hungary-online Critical Mass Media Inc. Internet trainer, consultant [+361] 133-4647 in Budapest, Hungary carlson@odin.net ############# # This message to HOL@hungary.yak.net # was from carlson@odin.net (Steven Carlson) # # To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe" to # An announcement-only subscription (less volume) is available # at # Send mail to for more information, # or to if you need human assistance. #############