Doing (lot) more with your iPod !

Well... Aditya finally refused to allow Sumeet to experiment with his

iPod, but for those of you ready to experiment, try porting Linux (not
the full-fledged version, but uClinux) on your iPods. It allows you to
play video too apparently! Check out http://ipodlinux.org !!

The iPod has an ARM7TDMI processor, which does not have a MMU so you can't port your standard Linux on it, but uClinux works pretty fine! Another thought, and I will need to give some time to it, before I will know if it works out or not, is trying to connect the iPod to my cell through USB, for connectivity (over an EDGE network), load Skype inside the iPod, and see if I can make a call!

The thin / thick access-switch debate (with respect to wireless LAN in the enterprise)

Introduction:

As per Symbol (www.symbol.com) there is a new and better way to implement a wireless local area network (WLAN) in the enterprise — the Wireless Switch with overlay architecture. This approach involves overlaying a centrally controlled and managed wireless LAN switch and "thin" access ports onto an Ethernet foundation. Compared to the traditional "thick" access point wireless network, Symbol's "thin" approach delivers greater scalability, manageability, accessibility, reliability, and a lower total cost of ownership (TCO).

Arguments .... "for" :

(source: http://www.symbol.com) Thought Leadership / Advice: Many enterprises have installed wireless LANs using the traditional access point-based architecture with add-on products to provide additional management and security features. This approach does not deliver a complete, integrated solution for managing and securing a wireless LAN — nor does it provide switching functionality to integrate the wired and wireless network.

Although a traditional wireless network with "thick" access points may look like a switched-wireless network with "thin" access points on paper, the functionality is not the same. "Thick" access points are still "smart" entities that require configuration, management and support. In addition, the few additional services that these devices provide adds significant time and labor costs because of the installation, configuration and administration that they require.

However, the innovative overlay architecture of the Symbol Wireless Switch provides more functionality along with a variety of management and switching features — all without additional cost or network overhead. As the central point of aggregation for access ports on the network, the Wireless Switch enables network administrators to effectively manage and secure a WLAN while lowering the total cost of ownership.

Arguments .... "against" :

All thick access devices can be configured through a web-interface. It takes a day or two to write code, which can configure multiple devices from different vendors (maybe take 2-3 different varieties) , through a single interface. Buying softwares from multiple third parties is usually cheaper, rather than getting dependent on a single vendor. Add to this the cost of proprietary hardware (Symbol's thin access ports), cost of maintenance (expensive spares etc) and your TCO actually shoots up. The trend anyways seems to be in favour of distributed intelligence, and p2p networks.. and of late Skype enabled wifi access-points!

Tips for the first VC Meeting (inputs from Ed Sim)

( Article source: http://www.beyondvc.com/2005/11/tips_for_the_fi.html)

I had a meeting last week where an entrepreneur insisted on showing me a demo first. He was scrambling around asking for wireless keys and looking for ethernet jacks, while I sat there and tried to engage him in conversation. He lost my interest right then and there. As I started to think more about it, I thought it would be helpful to share some of my thoughts on how to make the first VC pitch a better experience for all participants.

1. Be flexible: Have an agenda but listen to and know your audience. If the VC wants to run a meeting a certain way, be flexible, and go with the flow. I have seen many a pitch where an entrepreneur comes in with an agenda and wants to go through each powerpoint slide in excruciating detail. These meetings typically do not last very long as I wonder what it would be like working with that person or for that person. Deal with questions as they come up, not later. VCs can be impatient at times, and it really bothers me when an entrepreneur says, "Let's wait until slide 15" especially when you are just on slide 3. Meetings have a rhythm so be in sych with your audience. Startups require entrepreneurs to be agile and adept to respond to quickly changing market needs. If you are too engrossed with following every powerpoint slide, it makes me wonder how flexible you will be in responding to market conditions.

2. Have a well-honed elevator pitch: If you can't explain to me succinctly what your product does, what problem it solves, and how you will make money then I wonder how you will explain it to your customers. Don't worry, I want to see your baby in action, but save the demo for later as I want to hear you articulate these points first.

3. The Slide Deck: make it short and sweet, 15-20 slides will do. However, the best meetings happen when we never even touch the slide deck and end up in a free form conversation about the team, product, business, and market. Many times, I have even found myself brainstorming with the entrepreneur about other revenue opportunities and go-to-market strategies - I just love those types of meetings.

4. Listen and ask questions: try to get feedback about your business and the opportunity. The meeting is not a one-way street. Make sure you figure out if you like me, my firm, and my style as much as I am looking for a similar fit. Remember, it is a competitive market out there, and I need to sell my value add to you as well. Asks lots of questions - be open to feedback but do not be afraid to respectfully disagree. Not all of the feedback you receive will be right and many times it will be wrong, but take all the data you can so you can be better prepared for the next VC pitch.

4. The Demo: First, if you have any web-based business, I would hope that you have the wherewithal to have an alpha version running. As we all know it is cheap to start a company, and if you have not taken the first steps to get a product/service up and running, I am going to wonder whether you have the technical know-how to make it happen or the passion and risk-seeking behavior to be an entrepreneur. I love it when entrepreneurs have sunk some of their own money into their business or substantial amounts of time to turn their dream into reality. This shows me a real level of commitment. With respect to the demo, I like them live, but as Bob Rosenschein once told me, there are 20 things that can happen in a demo, 19 of which can go wrong. So be prepared and have a cached version of your service to walk through.

5. Next steps: In any meeting, never forget to ask about the next steps. What is the VC firm's process, when will they expect to get back to you, is there any more information that you can provide, etc...

A couple of other points to add:

Pre-meeting: Research the VC, the firm and get to know the types of investments that he/she likes to make, that the firm likes to make, and what is currently in their portfolio. Google is a great resource, look for VC blogs, and talk to others that may have pitched the VC and the firm recently. We need to sell to you as much as you need to sell to us.

A couple of don'ts: don't be late, don't be arrogant, and don't ask for an NDA before you start the pitch

Happy pitching!