johnporcaro: mktg@large

Your Kid Could Create the next Halo Game

Well, maybe not the next "Halo," but he or she could be well on their way to creating a fun PC or Xbox 360 game with Kodu, a free set of fun tools from Microsoft.  And for the competitive kids out there, there's real money up for grabs! 

From readwriteweb:

Microsoft is releasing a new version of its Kodu Game Lab today, and it's also kicking off its Kodu Cup Competition for students ages 9 to 17. The competition asks kids to design their own video game using Kodu, and the winners will compete for a $5000 prize for themselves, along with $5000 for their school and a trip to the worldwide finals of Microsoft's Imagine Cup competition.

Check out this short video with a brief introduction.  Then download the tools, and get playing!

 

Do Violent Videogames Affect Your Kid's Behavior?

Do violent videogames affect your kid's behavior?  Rio Wave, writing for Helium, asks Do video games influence your child's actions? His response:

"The short answer is yes, video games do in fact influence the behavior of children, however not nearly to the extent that the media claims. Really everything in the media influences children in one way or another, and the truth of the matter is that there are way more things being aimed towards children that have far worse effects on children then pixilated violence. The worst these kids ever do is act out their video games during play, it’s no different than playing cops and robbers."

 I have been involved in the videogame industry for 15 years, and I have been playing videogames for 30 years (some violent), so I have some experience in this area.  This is a picture of my youngest daughter playing the Xbox 360 about a month before it official shipped in 2005. 

I agree with most of his article, but my "short answer" would be NO.  But like all absolute statements, there are always some qualifications. 

If someone is already prone to violence, videogames might give a child ideas and tactics that they might not have thought of on their own.  Same could be said of TV shows, movies, books, even stories told by friends and family. 

Videogames can be something that a child uses to escape "the real world," just like TV, books, or hanging out alone in a bedroom.  The truth is, I've seen my kids become more social as they play online. As they play even non-violent games, I see them planning strategies, learning teamwork skills, handling pressure, losing gracefully, and working together with friends.

Videogames are part of our culture, especially with our kids.  If they're not playing them in your home, they're playing them at a friend's house.  Rather than lumping all videogames into bad vs. good, it's best for parents to be mindful of what their kids are playing. 

There are good tools parents can use, from parental controls on a game console (you can block games with certain ratings, or even limit the time kids can play per day or week), to watching what games your child is playing from their public or local gaming profile.  You should even take time to play games with them, to get a good idea of what a game is like, and what your child is like when they're playing them.

The ESA (Entertainment Software Association) has come up with the ESRB ratings sytem, and they enforce it among game manufacturers and retailers.  They also have some good tips for parents at their website, including A Parent's Guide to Video Games, Parental Controls and Online Safety (English). 

Another great site for parents is What They Play, a great site created to help parents learn about every videogame their kids might be playing.  They have a newsletter, and even a podcast.  Check it out. 

How to Avoid Becoming a Failed Gaming Parent

My friend Brian Crecente writes a great post called Confessions of A Failed Gaming Parent on Kotaku, a popular videogame website. 

He did everything right: He uses the parental controls built into the Xbox 360, and he uses a password to allow content he finds appropriate for his 9 year old.  But his son outsmarted him by getting him to allow him to play Modern Warfare 2 when his parents thought he was doing something else (making maps in Halo 3).   It’s tough to keep track of everything, I know it’s hard to monitor what my kids are doing all the time, no matter how hard we try.

From Brian:

   Eventually, we caught him in the act.

It's a reminder that as parents we have to remain constantly vigilant. Something Microsoft gets. It's part of the reason, it seems, that the company is rolling out even more robust parental controls come this fall.

He then offers more details on the Family Center coming out on the Xbox this fall:

You can, under the new system, divvy out an allowance of points that can be spent on Xbox 360 games, avatars and add-ons. You will also be able to track exactly what all four account holders are doing through an online monitor. The family plan will also include regular discounts geared toward families, like maybe a price cut for a game like Uno on Xbox Live.

What intrigues me most about the Family Center is that activity monitor, which can show you what games are being played by each account holder and for how long.

Read more about what’s coming in the rest of the article on Kotaku. 

Cub Scouts Videogame Belt Loop?

Yep, it's true. Looks like the Cub Scouts are getting with the times, adding awards for learning the important (and fun) points about videogames.  As a father of two cub scouts, I like how this award teaches both the responsibility of gaming safely, and trying new games. 

Not sure if letting them play Halo 3 over Xbox LIVE negates all that goodness, but helping them get this award is a start... 

Jason Buffington, aka XboxDad offers details on his blog post Yes, there is a Video Game belt-loop for Cub Scouts:

Yes, there is a new belt loop to encourage cub scouts (1st – 4th grade) to learn more about video gaming.  Notice, that it is recognized for “learning” – it is considered an Academic belt loop, not a sports belt loop.  So, the emphasis isn’t about playing a video game, compared with going outside for any other game or activity. [...]

For the Video Game belt loop, here are the learning objectives:

•  Explain why it is important to have a rating system for video games. Check your video games to be sure they are right for your age.
• With an adult, create a schedule for you to do things that includes your chores, homework, and video gaming. Do your best to follow this schedule.
• Learn to play a new video game that is approved by your parent, guardian, or teacher.

Are Your Kids (almost) Ready for the Computer?

My kids are a bit older, but my youngest is just becoming curious about why her big sister and brothers are always "on the Internet."  She likes the time she spends on Spelling City.  Our older kids use IXL, and spend too much time watching The Annoying Orange or (the equally annoying) Fred on YouTube.  Could be worse, I guess.

Jenna Hatfield writes a weekly Technology Column for Mom Central, and offers a review of a site called Zoodles that might be the solution for your kids.  I'm going to set it up for mine, and see how they like it.

From the article Zoodles - fun, safe and educational gaming for kids

"The goal of Zoodles is to provide a safe place to play and learn online. They have created a kid-friendly browser that strips out things like URL bars and back buttons as well as the (accidental) ability to visit sites that aren't exactly kid appropriate. The browser then uses your parental settings and child's age information to pull interesting, educational and fun games from all over the net into what Zoodles calls a “playground” for your child. The games that are incorporated are based on your child's ability, whether they're advanced or behind for their age.

I recently made an account for my oldest son. I am pleased with the browser in a way I can't adequately describe. Previously I had installed bookmarks to his favorite (me-approved) sites on the top of his browser. The problem was that he could still go wherever he wanted, click on ads and occasionally mess up his own settings. I love that he can't do that with Zoodles. Furthermore, I'm enjoying the fact that I can make sure he's spending the majority of his time on reading-based games right now. We're working on reading skills right now and I love that we can use games to help us along. "

How do you make sure your kids are safe online?  What things should I watch out for with kids ages 8-14? 

Robotic Rubik

Joi points to an article by archaeological conservator, programmer, and Lego aficionado JP Brown. JP has built a lego model with a computer interface that will solve a Rubik's Cube.

I remember Rubik's Cubes were popular back in the late 70's. As a high-school kid, I bought a book to learn the patterns required to solve the puzzle, and spent hours mastering the craft. I was a geek even back then.

The whole idea of robotics doing the work of humans isn't anything new. I grew up reading Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clark. My grandfather worked for an engineering company that built some of the first manufacturing robots.

Tom Peters brings up something interesting in Re-Imagine! He argues that just like manufacturing jobs have been replaced by robots, Information Work will be replaced by Artificial Intelligence over the next decades. With better systems to measure, analyze, and report business processes, it's not a wonder that many "middle manager" jobs will be unnecessary in the future.

Seeing this Lego robot doing both physical and intellectual tasks really brings home that point to me.

Marketing After Crossing The Chasm

Okay, this is one of those posts where I have to remind everyone that this is MY PERSONAL OPINION, and I don't speak for Microsoft officially here. I don't work in the Windows group. I'm not all that technical. And of course I make no warrantees, expressed or implied (whatever that means).

One of my favorite bloggers, Halley Suitt, just posted a rant on Halley's Comment called "Upgrade = Downgrade Per Usual." She outlines her frustration with upgrading her Windows system, and it really struck a chord with me. She writes:

"I decided to risk it. I ran the upgrade thing and it told me there were 6 applications that needed updates. It also told me some COMPLETELY INDECIPHERABLE TECHNICAL-MARKETING-BLAH-BLAH thing about needing the "Exclusive Service Package" and of course that this must be done first.

I had no idea (NOR WANTED TO KNOW) what the hell their Exclusive Service Package (or whatever the obscure language was) did or why I needed it. Also the word "exclusive" was confusing to me -- what's exclusive about it -- do I have to pay for it? Is it exclusive to only certain customers? What the hell is "exclusive service" -- an 800 number with a non-Bangalorean person on the other end?

It also had that anti-customer tone of "you know you have to do this before you do that, of course" except I had no idea WHAT applications were being upgraded (there was a spagetti pile of words I couldn't make heads nor tails of) and why I might have to do one first or not. Shouldn't the software guys who are so keen on these being done in some order, SIMPLY DO THEM IN ORDER, ALL ON THEIR OWN. Why are they asking me to do that? Oh, yeah, I forgot, because I'm a PhD in Computer Science with nothing to do for the next 5 hours -- NOT!!!!!"

The ironic thing is, the whole "Windows Update" thing is supposed to make it easier to keep things updated, not harder.

I'm hopeful that future versions of Windows (including the periodic Service Packs like SP2) will make the whole user experience more intuitive, for both advanced and beginning users. The newest SP2 (now in beta) does make some progress in making Windows Update easier--though there's always room for improvement when it comes to making things elegant.

Something I've found interesting (culturally speaking) about marketing is that I'm finding some people in this industry struggling with the fact that we're marketing to a different audience now. When a lot of our most senior marketers were hired, Operating Systems (and PC's) were sold to early adopters, technically-savvy "end users", systems admins, corporate IT groups, people who wanted us to talk in bits and bytes and speeds and feeds. Now that 80% of households have PCs, and nearly everyone has a PC on their desk at work, our customers are very, very different than they were just a few years ago.

From Geoffrey Moore's "Crossing the Chasm" model, PC's (and operating systems and applications) have moved past the top of the adoption curve, and even to the tail, where a significant (thank goodness not a majority) of users are pragmatics and reluctants. They want to see things work in a very different way than early adopters, even the early majority. (I joke with Halley and put her at the end of the tail--she writes about it in Worthwhile).

Music is a great example for me. Don't make me fill out preferences and click boxes and save files and choose bit rates. I want a freaking jukebox that plays a CD when I pop it in.

Media Player 9 is very, very cool. And a lot better than version 8. If you haven't downloaded it, I highly recommend it. It should do what Halley was asking. But how can we make the whole experience better for those who aren't enthusiasts or geeks? In case you haven't noticed, Windows XP is a whole lot easier to use than Windows 95 is. And I hope Longhorn will take us even further.

In the meantime, I want to say THANKS for the rant. I hope it furthers the cause of those of us reminding people to remember we have a lot of different customers, not just geeks.

FWIW, I don't know what COMPLETELY INDECIPHERABLE TECHNICAL-MARKETING-BLAH-BLAH means most of the time either.

Oh, ya. When you get stuck, ask your kids. Chances are, they'll know what to do...

Instant Messaging at Work

One of the things my team is responsible for is collaboration between employees in our division. As part of our rollout of SharePoint 2.0, we’re encouraging employees to use Windows Messenger. Those already using Instant Messaging get why it’s a good thing. Increasingly, I’m able to get things done using Messenger at my desk or in meetings, rather than using email. In fact, I’m monitoring incoming email less and less, and relying on IM more and more.

Those that have been using IM for a while know there’s a separate set of rules for instant messaging. And it’s pretty easy to spot those that are new to it by the way they use it. So how should IM be used in businesses?

David S. Marshak, Sr. VP and Sr. Consultant, Patricia Seybold Group recently addressed this exact topic, in an article called Instant Messaging at Work: Key Policies and Practices for Leveraging IM in Business.

“More and more businesses are beginning to see the use of instant messaging (IM) as an interesting—if not compelling—way to make their organizations more responsive and effective. By using IM, particularly its presence-awareness features, companies can significantly reduce the time it takes to deal with customer issues, sometimes resolving them in real time. Effective use of IM can also eliminate much of the internal churning (emails, voice mails, walks past someone’s office) it takes for one employee to get information and assistance from another. And for many companies, IM provides a direct mode of communications with their customers—a mode that enables far closer relationships than we’ve seen since electronic communications became the norm.”

David recommends that companies establish policies in several areas: Expectations of privacy and responsiveness; Logging in; Availability; and Courtesy and Respect. I’ll summarize many of his thoughts (I’ve starred those), and add a few of my own.

1. Load the client when you’re online and working. Collaborative software doesn’t work if everyone doesn’t use it.*
2. Use the Status features of your client: Available, Busy, In a Meeting, On the Phone, etc.* David’s got some great tips on this topic.
3. If “available,” reply promptly (David recommends 2-10 minutes, depending on your business). *
4. It’s okay to say “I’ll reply later” or “Sorry, not now.” *
5. If you leave a message, and someone becomes “busy” without responding, and you get your question answered, reply “never mind”*
6. If you have more than a simple request (“is the document you sent final?”), “knock” by saying “got a minute?” or something similar.*
7. Don’t use IM to replace email. If you need to include more than a line of text, use email.
8. Don’t use email to replace IM. If it’s a quick question (“ready for lunch?”), don’t clog up their Inbox.
9. Don’t be too chatty. If a conversation is taking more than a few responses back and forth, pick up the phone.
10. Don’t be afraid to end the conversation if you got your answer. “Instant” messaging should be quick in and quick out.
11. It’s good to end the conversation with “bye” or “cya” or whatever you choose.*
12. If someone’s typing (you can usually see they are with a status indicator), wait for their response before changing the conversation.*
13. You might choose to turn off “notify when someone comes online” unless there’s a need. As the technology gets widely adopted, you may get a bunch of these, and if everyone’s online, you won’t need to see their status until you need to IM them.
14. I have separate clients for work (Windows Messenger) and personal (MSN Messenger). I have both running at work (though when really busy I’ll only have work client running), but on weekends, I only load my personal client.

I’m sure there’s a lot more to this, and if you have tips, let me know!

In the meantime, you can IM me at johnporcaro@hotmail.com (or my work email if you’re using Windows Messenger behind the Microsoft firewall).

Getting Things Done!

Thanks largely in part to fellow blogger Robert Scoble, David Allen (along with his associates Eric Mack and Jason Womak) has a blog! I'm looking forward to supplanting one of the only newsletters I actually read with a daily RSS dose of GTD goodness.

I'll start this post by crying HELP! I've managed to (once again) dig myself into a 544-email deep Inbox hole, but I'm determined to process everything by the end of the day!

In the David Allen Productivity Principles newsletter I just got, I read with fascination an article written by Julie Daniel, called "Keeping Your Inbox Real". She outlines six common types of email she sees in her client's Inboxes:

"First of all there is the e-mail that they’ve read and there’s no action associated with it and they don’t need to keep it for reference. It shouldn’t really be in there any more because it’s finished with and it should have been deleted. But… they haven’t got round to deleting it yet. So, for now, it’s just sitting there…

Second is the e-mail that they’ve read and there’s no action associated with it but they think they may need to refer back to it at some later date. That one really shouldn’t be in there any more either because it should be filed away somewhere. But…they haven’t got around to filing it away yet. So, for now, just sitting there…

Third is the e-mail that they’ve read and they’ve decided there is an action on it but they haven’t quite decided what that action is yet. The e-mail is parked there as a reminder that they need to do something about it… once they figure out just exactly what it is that they want to do. So, for now, it’s just sitting there…

Fourth is the e-mail that they’ve read and they’ve decided that there is an action on it and they have actually decided what it is that they want to do but they just haven’t quite got round to doing that action yet. The e-mail is parked there as a reminder that, when they get some time in between all those meetings that they have to go to, they really need to do that action that they’ve decided to do. So, for now, it’s just sitting there…

Fifth is the e-mail that they’ve read and they’ve figured out what it was that they needed to do about it AND they’ve actually done that action. But now someone owes them a reply and so the e-mail is parked there as a reminder that they have done something but the game isn’t over yet because somebody owes them something back and they might need to chase it. And if they lose sight of the e-mail they might forget that the thing isn’t finished yet. So, for now, it’s just sitting there…

Sixth – and this is the only type of e-mail that really belongs in an in-box – is the one they haven’t read yet.

WOW! No wonder most people’s brains hurt when they look at their in-box."

Microsoft Insider Live

I just caught the latest Microsoft Insider Live on Tech TV. Excuse me while I crank the amp up to 11, but this show just keeps getting better and better.

My team managed the predecessor to this show, Microsoft Extreme. We'd rent out movie theaters across the US, and do a two-hour simulcast on a Saturday morning. A few years ago, we were challenged to increase attendance while cutting costs, and we came up with the idea to do a pilot on Tech TV. I miss having all those customers in one place, but we are able to reach a lot more people with the TV show.

The creator/producer of the Insider website and Newsletter and the creator/producer of Extreme and the Insider Live TV show moved to different groups about a year ago, but continue to improve their programs.

The latest 30-minute show is on cable TV, and can be seen online. It shows off some of the coolest features of Office 2003, including Outlook and One Note. I like the new show format, and even though this is flat-out "marketing" for Office, I learned a lot by watching. Check it out!