The communication gap

My sister was in town over the weekend to do some research at the UM library. She's doing her dissertation. She was planning to write about (the lack of) communications skills of recent graduates and how to solve the problem. This has been a concern raised by both academicians and industry. Apparently graduates have not been able to perform well in interviews, and are unable to demonstrate suitable communications skills to potential employers. Which got me thinking - do they really lack communication skills? Or is it another matter altogether? Kids these days have access to an array of communications tools which were unavailable -- perhaps unimaginable -- ten years ago. They communicate via SMS, Instant Messaging, Email. Their communication is visual -- E-cards, Picture messages, smileys galore. Their communication is concise -- they can convey intent and emotion in 160 characters. Their communication is simultaneous -- they can connect to many friends and peers at the same time. And their communication is constant -- a conversation can last over hours and days. Is it any wonder that they don't communicate well with those who are not their peers? Talking to an older person would be a chore -- they don't have their usual tools and language to depend on. Perhaps, instead of blaming the graduates and students, we should learn how to speak their language. Perhaps we are ill-equipped to understand and manage this new generation.

What a Macworld!

What a brilliant, unexpected Macworld. After much outcry over the rumours of Apple charging for iApps (iMovie, iPhoto and iDVD), Steve Jobs turned it all around and even made fun of the rumour sites. And he did it masterfully - slowly revealing new, previously speculated on products (the new Safari web browser and the new versions of iApps - iPhoto2, iMovie3, iDVD2) and some hidden well from the public (intermediate level movie editing package Final Cut Express, presentation software Keynote). Hardly anyone expected the new Powerbooks - a high end one sporting a 17in screen (already dubbed by some as LapZilla) and the much-requested 12in aluminium "super iBook". The Powerbooks incorporated some long-delayed technology (built-in Bluetooth) and some unexpected ones (Firewire2 at 800Mbps, and Airport Extreme 802.11g at 54Mbps). Several nice touches are to be found : a keyboard that illuminates itself in dim lighting, anodised aluminum casing, upgraded internal antennas that match the iBook's Airport reception. Finally, many of the things that Apple has been working on has come together. The iApps have been bundled into an "Office for the Digital Lifestyle" - the iLife. Corny name, but try to come up with a better one! iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie and iDVD now work seamlessly together, apparently calling upon some "previously hidden features". Safari and Keystone are two newcomers that fit into the rest of Apple's home-grown applications. Previously, these were : Mail, Address Book, iCal, and iSync. Apple seems to be gradually weaning itself from dependency on Microsoft. The current suite of applications has only 2 more items missing : a word processor, and a spreadsheet application. Microsoft App Apple App Internet Explorer Safari Entourage Mail, Address Book, iCal, iSync Powerpoint Keynote Word n/a Excel n/a Another welcome announcement was Apple's own version of the X11 windowing system, now in beta. With this in place, Mac OS X now has the capability of running X applications alongside Classic, Cocoa and Carbon applications.