Tag Archives: Business

20 Decision that Made History

Posted on by

Fortune Magazine recently released their list of the 20 best and worst decisions in business history. It’s a very interesting read, and the article mixes brilliant business decisions with some really foolish mistakes.

The list coincides well with Apple’s recent decision to move to Intel chips in future hardware. I am starting to feel a bit more positive about Apple’s decision (not sure why), but unfortunately, I don’t yet have the gift of hindsight. Who knows how the decision will reported in the press ten years from now.

It would be interesting to put together a list of best and worst decisions/implementations/ideas in the history of educational technology or related to the integration of educational technology in schools. I think there have been a number of stumbles along the way, but also many triumphs. Generally, I think it’s still getting better … but always, a moving target. Wanna start a list?

Update: Reading OLDaily today, I noticed James Farmer’s post “Open Source in Education – Something Has Got to Change“, and of course, anyone that knows me, knows that this area is my passion. I especially appreciate the passage, “I *despise* the way education is turning into a cash cow for vendors. We should be spending what little money we have on teachers, genuinely valuable resources and teaching and learning”. Allright, so now I have #1 on my list.

#1: Wasting money on commercial applications (as opposed to good open source applications) where such money could be put into acquiring and supporting valuable human resources (i.e., teachers).

Fundable.org

Posted on by

Fundable.org has recently been launched, and is based on an interesting concept that mixes the power of social networks with purchasing capital. Basically, Fundable allows groups of individuals to collectively purchase goods or services with the understanding that if not enough money is collected, all money is refunded.

Two examples that are currently active include an open source programmer who is willing to update and GPL his software for OS 10.4 if he can raise $100, and a tube amplifier maker who hopes to sell a batch of his custom product. Other examples from the site can be found here. There are several interesting ideas.

I am not sure how well this will do, as no transaction has yet been completed. However, I think it has potential.

IBM Joins the Sakai Project

Posted on by

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Sakai, it’s a an open source collaboration and learning environment (CLE) geared for higher education. The origins of the project come from the University of Michigan and Indiana University, but now involves over 70 schools around the world.

Well now it looks like IBM has become a corporate sponsor of the project. While I always have mixed feelings about a large corporate entity coming in to support open products, institutions that have been resisting the adoption of open products such as Sakai may be able to reconsider.

And IBM has a few nice things to say about open source software:
“IBM believes the open-source movement is leading to the next major paradigm shift in the software industry. We think it is important to view the role of open source in the more holistic form of an ‘open approach’ overall. Together, open source, open standards and open architecture form a powerful combination for the creation of the next generation of applications.”

Yea … duh!