~ One Plus One: Black screen of death ~

Until last night I had only heard & experienced blue screen of death, the famous fatal error on your Windows OS. It all changed when my 3 month old OnePlus One went completely dark. Double tapping or pressing the power button didn't wakeup the display nor the glow on softkeys. However, the notification light was glowing & the phone had about 65% battery. 

My wife noticed that something was wrong w/ my phone and when I explained what had happened, she taunted me saying that's why I never want to own a Chinese smartphone. 3 weeks ago she had told me about her colleague's experience, who switched from iPhone to One+, had similar issues. She got the issue resolved by visiting One+ Support Centre. Never found what the problem was with her device, am guessing mine was similar. The last thing I wanted to do find & visit the support centre. All this at 1am IST & didn't have energy to google on the issue.

Woke up today morning and the first thing I did was lookup "Black screen of death one plus one", lo and behold what do I see? I wasn't the first one to have experienced this. Many of them had already experienced & I knew there would be DIY solution.

Went through the official forums and was able to resolve the issue. Here are the steps:

1. Press both the power and volume up buttons for about 10 seconds. The phone will reboot and entered the "Fastboot" mode. Did wait for few mins thinking it will reboot, but didn't.
2. Next press both the power and volume low buttons for about 10 seconds. This time the phone rebooted in the standard boot cycle and started fine.

Not sure of the RCA (Root Cause Analysis) for this one. The last action I had performed yesterday before the phone slipping into the blank screen, was using the camera. Additional reading on the forums for similar issue didn't find yield any commonality. The use-case is diverse:

1. Just after a ending an voice call
2. While browsing
3. When the battery was very low < 9%
4. Processor strategy value
5. In my case, I had used the camera app without any issue

As you notice, there is common pattern which could cause the issue. Nor is there an official communication from OPO on the site.

@oneplus Experiencing black screen of death with my OnePlus. Any idea how to resolve it?
— Vivëk Köndür (@vevck) March 6, 2015

~ Smartphones & dumb people ~

If you haven't yet watched this movie then please do. Technology is a catalyst to make lives easier & simple. As with everything if you end up over doing a specific thing then you become an addict & need rehabilitation. 

So lookup & stare away from the display. Move away from "Always connected" in the virtual world to being with family & friends in the real world. We only have finite time to live, so enjoy it!

'Look Up' - A spoken word film for an online generation

~ Always connected ~

Off-late, have been getting into the mode of keeping my occupied w/ my smartphone when I am in a social gathering. Could be Twitter, Whatsapp, Path or Instagram. Observations regarding my behaviour from my fiancé often makes me slide the phone aside & have a conversation. 

I wasn't like that before, but over the recent months the app addiction has increased. Rather than blaming the technology or the device, its time to accept the short coming of myself. I could use the technology / device as a catalyst in making our lives simpler & better than turn me into Zombie. 

We all need to find balance that keep us sane and connected to the real world. We seem to be more interested in snapping moments on camera, sharing status messages, tweeting sporting events or music shows than ever before. Having conversations with people around is more fun than via social media apps. Definitely, the medium can't be blamed for the addiction we create for ourselves. As with every new invention, technology/device/gadget could be boon or bane based on how one adopts it!

Nick Bilton has a good piece in BITS

“Every experience is being mediated and conceived around how it can be captured and augmented by our devices,” said Mathias Crawford, a researcher in human-computer interactions and communications at Stanford University. “No place is this more apparent than our meals, where every portion leading up to, during and after a dining experience is being carved out by particular apps.”

People make dinner reservations on OpenTable; check in on Foursquare when they arrive at the restaurant; take a picture of their food to share on Instagram; post on Twitter a joke they hear during the meal; review the restaurant on Yelp; then, finally, coordinate a ride home using Uber. 

You be the judge & make the necessary changes in your lifestyle.

Additional reading: Information overload in a minute | Social engagement | Offline Paul | Smartphone: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

~ Wearable technology ~

"To convince people that they have to wear something, it has to be incredible," Cook said. "If we asked a room of 20-year olds to stand up if they're wearing a watch, I don't think anyone would stand up." 

If The Verge is to be believed then that above observation from Tim Cook, makes him a realist. Many of us don't wear watch these days unless for fashion statement. I wear them occasionally. Not sure if  Cook made such a statement to stop the trail leading to Apple's next wearable tech gadget, which could very well be a smart-watch.

However, Tim Cook feels that the market for wearable computing is "interesting & profound" which is ripe for exploration by many companies. When asked about Google Glasses, here is what he had to say 

"It’s probably not likely to be a mass market item. It’s probably more likely to appeal to certain markets,” Cook said. I'm interested in a great product. I wear glasses because I have to. People generally want glasses to reflect their fashion, style, etc. So this is difficult from a mainstream point of view. I think the wrist is natural. I think there are other things in this space that could be interesting. Sensors are exploding. It will become clearer over time.

I feel that with ever expanding world of technology & manufacturing we are just churning out more smart devices for the same purpose - mobility & function. Lot of smart devices which are already in the market - Smartphone, Music Player, Tablet, Laptop - overlap the feature set over form factor. I have a music player, smartphone & macbook. The most I use during my day would be - Smartphone, Macbook, Musicplayer - in the order which is mentioned, when it comes to mobility. The pattern would resonate with most who own more than one mobile device. I feel people would prefer owing one unified device {carry/wear} over many devices for same feature set. 

There are already many next gen devices out there & also talking shoes, which is beginning to shape the ground for the next big thing - Bionic Technology - for the masses.

If you think Bionic technology is in nascent stage then you should watch this video to open your mind ;)

Additional Reading: Full transcript of the interview with Tim Cook at D11 | Tim Cook interview from AllThingsDigital | High resolution configurable bionic eye | Bionic eye gets better | Terminator Hands | 9 bits of scary Terminator tech that already exist

~ Knowledge never goes obsolete ~

In the era of Information Age where information is available at your finger tips. Adoption of mobile applications, by metropolitans, for carrying out daily chores has fueled the growth of Smartphones in the last 5 years. Many of us, at some point of time, cannot recall a person or place or information without reaching out to our smartphones. Feel that by constant leveraging of devices, we are getting dumb on some of the basic functions in offline world. Didn't know about Hippocampus region existed in our brains and was responsible for memory & spatial navigation.

Knowledge never goes obsolete. As we embrace new technologies for convenience, do  keep learning & don't outsource it to an app & become an handicap. An interesting talk by Ken Jennings: Watson, Jeopardy and me, the obsolete know-it-all 

~ Social Engagement ~

Social engagement these days happen through a diverse stream of channels. Some of the common methods of engagement being messaging {Gtalk | Skype | Whatsapp | SMS}, Emails, Social Networks {Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, G+}. 

Facebook has funded an IDC research on how Smartphones have had an impact on our lives. The report 'Always Connected - How Smartphones And Social Keep Us Engaged' throws up some interesting behavioural patterns, stats & how mobile apps are driving those changes. 

• Half of total US population uses Smartphones i.e 155.1 Million people (2012)
• Primary usage: Text/Message, Talk, Message on FB. All of them are direct communication.
• Highest levels of engagement happens during Friday through Sunday, with the peak on Sunday.
• Top 10 Apps: Email, FB, Web browsing, Games, Maps, Photos, Search, Local Search, News/Sports, TV/Video
• Wake up call: Within the first 15 minutes of waking up, 4 out of 5 smartphone owners are checking their phones.
• 79% of respondents have their phone on or near them for all but up to 2 hours of their waking day.
• Social Apps play a very significant role during Social Events.
• Average daily time spent on Facebook: 32 mins 51 secs
• Average daily time spent communicating on smartphone: 131 mins 43 secs
• Who we are most connected to via Smartphone + Facebook - Friends, Spouse/Parnter/GF/BF, Parents, extended family, colleagues/classmates, children, community.

*Note: The report is based on the online survey of iPhone & Android smartphone users in the U.S. 

I do agree that these tools have helped us connect with friends who are separated by time zones or distance. How about those who live in the same city & yet not meet friends. Most of us claim that we do not have time. Rather than lack of time, I feel we lack at effective Time Management & priorities. Time is just an alibi for our own short coming ;)

Go offline! Plan & meet your friend in the city. Surprise them.

Update 31 Mar 13: 

If you have noticed the Facebook profile picture updates among the circle of friends. The campaign is a for the support of future of same-sex marriage in the United States by HRC. Ever wondered how many people have taken part in this online civil rights movement or what the Big Data tells us. Facebook has the insights into the week long campaign. FastCo Design | Facebook 

~ Touch screen generation ~

A friend posted the - Designing for the touch screen generation—think pop ups - article on facebook.

They are called the touch screen generation. They have high expectations, low to zero patience for static content on a digital platform, and they are the most finger happy group to come along ever. Let’s get ready to design for them.

I have 11 reasons why I am more than convinced that the touch screen generation is very much here and fully engaged with all things digital. Touching comes intuitively. Reacting quickly is the next step. Impatience is the rule. Short concentration spans are the test. And they are not going to grow out of the “touch that screen and get results mode” anytime soon.

Those 11 reasons are my 11 grandchildren—-three girls and eight boys aged 2 1/2 to 14 years. They are my living laboratory. I am the proud and curious grandpa who listens to their requests for “can I have your iPad for a few minutes?“ or, even more daring, “will I get an iPad for my birthday?“.

My observations

It will take a while to go completely paperless here in India. Also observed that many of my friends have read at least one ebook last year. 

Definitely our focus (attentions spans) & patience has decreased to a large extent. The sheer amount of dissimilar thoughts {Updates from - Sports, Technology, Photography, News, Rants, Status, etc } one goes through in a span of 60 seconds, is crazy, if one remains on Twitter Timeline.

~ Next Gen Devices ~

The future of technology is heading towards integrating computing with regular consumer oriented devices, to make the daily chores easy. 

We have been hearing a lot about Smarter Homes & Cities. Smarter Home, is more or a networked world of Refrigerator, Washing machine, Climate control, Lighting control, et al, being controlled the way one wants through a pre-configured settings or via a Smartphone application.

There are many companies who already offer these lifestyle solutions. However, these solutions are still not affordable for most of us. There are companies who are making affordable Next Generation products, some of them have been adopted many people. While some of the products, like Google Glass, is still trying to find the middle ground of how to remain unobtrusive.

Following are some of the products which are interesting, by their own. We could build interesting mashups via integration.

UP

 

MYO

LEAP

GLASS

NEST

Let me know if you are aware of other smart devices out there.

~ Socially Me ~

The life of an technophile living anywhere today, is expressing those moments of emotion as a constant stream of data to various Social Networks - FB, Twitter, Instagram, Path, G+. The power of smartphones & data connectivity has exploded into data bomb. Will not be surprised, if the Governments tomorrow are not elected by tweets :) 

I personally use all of those networks for various means:

1. Instagram: For clicking moments when am travelling & without my DSLR around. 
2. Path: For places  - restaurants, movies, leisure - all for audit trail purpose. 
3. G+: For sharing information w/ co-workers on various news items - tech, political, football.
4. G+Messenger: For 3 months, have been using it mostly to connect with Gooners who are spread across the globe. We share the latest updates, rants, news or anything to do with ArsenalFC. Happened to meet few of them in Bangalore & watched the Arsenal vs Manchester United game with Bangalore Gunners. This week we were amongst the first to have Arsenal FC Fans G+ Community.
5. Twitter: Consuming or sharing instant updates about anything under the sun which I like.
6. FB:  Updates from college friends, (ex)colleagues, travel, interests, etc.
7. Last.fm: For scrobbling songs.
8. Also there are numerous tech blogs which I follow on a daily basis.
9. Using LinkedIn more often over the last 2 weeks. Most of you who are connected would have noticed the activity :P
10. Youtube subscriptions are active, but not regular.

By now you have figured out how much of information over-load I go through in a day from various apps at various point of time. This definitely isn't good when you are working or otherwise. Your attention span takes a BIG hit & distracts from your task. Off-late {for the past 2 months} have made  conscious effort about how & when I use - Twitter & FB. I check them during lunch / tea breaks & post dinner, during weekdays. On weekends, my usage of Twitter & FB is high; considering football games.

The trigger for the post was this article by Roger Cohen - Thanks for not sharing, on NYT. 

Like everything else in life, when it comes to usage, technology too has its share of pros & cons. Instead of blaming - technology, smartphone, social networks, information overload - for not having enough time for loved ones or pursuing your hobby or reading a book or going for walk or run or meeting friends, etc. It boils down to the individuals' approach on maintaing the balance in the eco-system of life. Be it virtual or real, we still have control over ourselves. The day hasn't arrived yet, where machines have taken over & we have limited options. It isn't far, surely gonna happen. But till then, we are the masters of our own lives & we can maintain a healthy balance. Be the judge the next time when you are about to share or like something w/ the rest of the world :)

Take a look at the Socially Awkward Infographic. 

Image source: DigitalQuarters

Update: 26 Jan 13

If you are a developer, then I recommend you read Christian Grobmeier post 'The 10 rules of Zen programming' This should definitely help one focus & achieve more in the age of social distraction {Twitter, FB, Whatsapp, Emails, SMS, et al}