[Design] Off topic: where are we heading? Google and Adobe plans

[Daniel Vareika]

The Power point slides of Google presentation with comments (that should 
not have slide out) finally re-appeared on the web.

You can download them here:
http://paul.kedrosky.com/archives/002797.html

cheers,

Daniel

Daniel Vareika wrote:
>  From what I have been listening in the web it seems clear that Google 
> on one side wants the regular PC to be just a thin client, and that they 
> will hold all the data.
> 
> Think of it for a minute:
> They have already released gmail, google talk, IM atached to gmail, 
> calenedaring is clearly coming, now there is a write product in the 
> rummor mill, gdrive (disk drive on the web.
> 
> Google Write?:
> http://gigaom.com/2006/03/08/google-writely-in-talks/
> http://www.writely.com/
> 
> Also please note that they have many interesting people, among them Andy 
> Hertzfeld (no need to say who he is and his personal interests), has 
> hired also Ben Goodger (Firefox lead developer).
> 
> On the other hand they have been buying all this dark fiber.
> 
> But on the other end we have Adobe, a regular software publishing 
> enterprise that in an interview has said that they bought Macromedia 
> only for Flash, and the plan is to make an integration between Flash and 
> PDF to make a thin client (the interface, a rich experience) for any app 
> (more or less).
> 
> Read interesting article (may need free registration - worth reading):
> http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/index.cfm?fa=viewArticle&id=1399
> 
> Extract 1:
> **********
> Knowledge at Wharton: Let's start with the basic question: What was the 
> primary motivation behind the acquisition of Macromedia?
> 
> Chizen: Flash.
> 
> Knowledge at Wharton: That simple?
> 
> Chizen: The combination of [Acrobat's] PDF [file format] and the Adobe 
> Reader with Flash's SWF [file format] and the Flash Player enables us to 
> create an "engagement platform." Think of it as a layer or a vehicle in 
> which anybody can present information that could be engaged with in an 
> interactive, compelling, reliable, relatively secure way -- across all 
> kinds of devices, all kinds of operating systems. If you look at the 
> success that Adobe has had with Adobe Reader and the ubiquitous nature 
> of that client combined with what Macromedia has done with the Flash 
> Player -- especially on non-PC devices -- that puts us in a position 
> that is probably better than anybody else's.
> 
> Knowledge at Wharton: You have published a few things about combining HTML, 
> PDF and Flash's SWF format -- and you have mentioned this Adobe 
> engagement platform. But there's still a fair amount of confusion about 
> exactly what that is. Can you give any details about what it will or 
> will not do?
> 
> Chizen:  We won't do a browser. But we do think that there are 
> applications that need to run on the [user's desktop] client [software] 
> that need to work in both a connected and a non-connected fashion, that 
> require the richness of Flash, the reliability, the relative security, 
> the layout capabilities of PDF -- but also need to consume HTML. Imagine 
> a ubiquitous client that allows you to do all three of those -- and then 
> a series of programming tools, like [Adobe's] Flex, making it easy for 
> anyone to develop applications for this ubiquitous client.
> 
> Knowledge at Wharton: So this would be a desktop runtime environment?
> 
> Chizen: That's a good way of thinking about it, yes.
> 
> 
> Extract 2:
> **********
> Knowledge at Wharton: You mentioned the mobile space. This has been a big 
> focus for the former Macromedia. Adobe had moved into that space with 
> some PDF penetration. How do you see that space playing out, in 
> particular as contrasted with the engagement platform where we are 
> talking about a richer, fuller, larger desktop client?
> 
> Chizen: Just think of it as a "mini engagement platform." You already 
> have agreements with most of the mobile manufacturers with Flash Lite. 
> In some markets where you have fast, high speed bandwidth from the 
> carrier, like Japan -- where you have third generation phones and even 
> fourth generation phones -- they are actually including the Adobe Reader 
> because both the networks and the devices are capable of that type of 
> content.
> 
> What you will see us do is focus on taking what we are doing with the 
> engagement platform and shrinking it down. In reality, we will start 
> small and build it up. And you will see a mini engagement platform on 
> all of these clients.
> 
> Now, the speed of the network and the capability of the device will 
> determine how big that footprint can be. Clearly, today, on most of the 
> mobile phones it needs to be relatively small. But these devices will 
> become more and more powerful and you will see many, especially in 
> emerging markets, bypass the PC and go right to these devices.
> 
> So our goal is to get our engagement platform, or the "light" version of 
> it, on these devices. You will see us add mobile capabilities in our 
> existing authoring products the way that Macromedia has done with Flash 
> authoring and its emulators. But you will also see us come out with 
> servers like FlashCast, where you can actually push data right to these 
> phones or consumer electronic devices.
> 
> 
> Extract 3:
> **********
> The Future: Adobe Everywhere?
> 
> Knowledge at Wharton: We started off talking about what your priorities 
> were for the next six months or so, and we have gone a little further 
> out now. Let's jump further ahead. Acrobat itself is about twelve and a 
> half years old. Netscape's IPO was just a little more than 10 years ago. 
> Where do you think we will be 10 years from now? What will the computing 
> platform look like and how is Adobe positioned?
> 
> Chizen: If we execute appropriately we will be the engagement platform, 
> or the layer, on top of anything that has an LCD display, any computing 
> device -- everything from a refrigerator to an automobile to a video 
> game to a computer to a mobile phone.
> 
> Our software [will be] delivered as a service, either charging the 
> consumer directly, the network provider directly or using an advertising 
> model.
> 
> I believe Adobe's focus will continue to be on those applications that 
> help people and organizations in areas where the presentation of the 
> information makes a difference. We have always been about helping people 
> with their ideas, and sharing their ideas and information in a visual, 
> graphical, reliable way. That will be true 10 years from now.
> 
> If I think about Adobe, we have revolutionized the world -- and when I 
> say "Adobe" today, that's inclusive of Macromedia. Just about everything 
> you look at -- a label, a movie you go to, a video on the web, a 
> billboard, a sign when you get off the airplane -- was probably touched 
> by a piece of Adobe software.
> 
> By having that engagement platform we could do more of this into the 
> future. [We can] make our customers' lives easier and make the user's 
> experience that much more interesting. All of us are being bombarded 
> with information. I want a great experience, even if I am filling out a 
> boring mortgage application or a tax form. I want a great experience. 
> Ten years from now we will be providing that.
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