iPad competition not serious

Google this week updated its Honeycomb operating system for the Motorola Xoom tablet to version 3.1., according to zdnet.com.

The Xoom was launched with a great deal of expectation but landed with a thud, very much like other tablets hoping to compete with Apple's iPad.

The main problem here seems to be timing, as Apple has a huge headstart on other tablet makers. Branding also seems to be a difficulty for iPad competitors, as so far only Apple has demonstrated a strong demand for its tablet or pad product.

Apple would do well not to get too comfortable, however. As I've said before, the first tablet to appear that is priced significantly lower than the iPad and that solves a specific need well could become a strong seller also. No one is likely to push the iPad aside, but there is plenty of room for creativity in this area.

-Zdnet also reviewed an attractive service this week called Ninite. The site makes installing several programs at one time very simple and powerful. Basically, you select several programs you desire from a list, and Ninite builds a custom installer program to do all the work for you. I have not tried the service yet, but if it works as described, it's a huge timesaver for those of us who need to keep several programs current and updated.

-My email service of choice for some time has been Aweber. Anyone who uses bulk email services can appreciate it for its excellent customer support and great rate of delivered emails to list members.

Some time back, Aweber announced a new API, basically a hook that allows other services to hook seamlessly into Aweber to accomplish specific tasks. This week I received an email announcing that the API had been targeted to make setting up an Aweber sign-up form on a Facebook page very simple.

We're all familiar with web forms requesting our email address and other information. While this has been possible on Facebook for some time, Aweber has taken quite a bit of the work out of making this happen. Anyone using Facebook pages can appreciate this as Facebook can be difficult and very time-consuming to set up properly for a business. The new tool sets up a sign-up form with its own tab and can be customized by the user to a great extent.

I received an interesting email recently from a reader on a rant about Lady Gaga, the popular entertainer. He explained that he was very frustrated that the general public seems to prefer fluff over quality. While I agree that does often seem to be the case, I offered the observation that that is not the case with this particular artist.

I believe that anyone wanting to sell a product or create a following would do well to study Lady Gaga. First of all, she is a talented musician and has shown a genius at connecting with her public. She uses variety to constantly surprise everyone who follows her, and she is attentive and responsive to publicity. While I cannot agree with everything she says and does, I do have to give her credit for assertively promoting herself as a brand and for being on call to respond to what her fans want.

Email Donnie Jenkins at donniejenkins@yahoo.com.

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