Francisco Inchauste prompted me to think about this point with his post on getfinch.com where he writes:

Simple products can be more powerful than so called “easy to use”, shortcut, gimmicky products. Simple products are not overdesigned, and many might find them to appear limited or underdesigned.

I completely agree.

To my local community-sponsored agriculture group,

We have had an on-again/off-again relationship during the past two years. I know that I’ve just been dipping my toe in the waters, hiding behind friends while we did our little dance. It just hasn’t been easy committing to Thursday afternoon visits, despite the romantic atmosphere of the gardens. I suppose I was afraid at first, of what you might ask of me.

But I realize you’ve treated me so well with your bounty. You’ve given me kale that crisps up beautifully in the oven, with a little olive oil and sea salt. I’ve been overwhelmed by the apples, luscious round globes that I gently saute into a delightfully lumpy applesauce. The garlic scapes in particular, my goodness; those things are powerful stuff in any dish! And of course, those petite, ripe strawberries are so much better than anything you could find under the harsh neon glow of the overly air-conditioned convenience peddlers.

Your farmers and volunteers consistently show up with a smile. The garden always greets me with a lovely fragrance. I’m ready to take the leap now. I’ll commit to the summer, to be all yours, every Thursday afternoon. I’ll sign up not just for the minimum 2 volunteer sessions, but even more! And most of all, I just want you to be around forever. If all it takes is a modest commitment on my part, then I’m in.

Love,
Andrew

PS. Please don’t be offended if I decline the sweet Japanese turnips. It’s just not my thing.

PPS. I love the updates on your site at http://stantonstreetcsa.wordpress.com/, keep it up!

• an unlocked iPhone 4S (my carrier made me jump through some hoops but it got done just fine, see the link below for more information)
• the micro-SIM card itself from OneSimCard (may be harder to find locally, so order online).
• a pin, paperclip, or tool to eject the iPhone micro-SIM card tray.
• a place to stash your regular carrier’s micro-SIM card.

Paying for OneSimCard usage

The OneSimCard product uses a pay-as-you-go system, meaning that you need to get set up with a balance before anything else. My card came with US$10 preloaded, but I expected to charge way more than that. While I was in Belgium for 5 days, I:

• made about 38 minutes worth of calls that cost about US$22,
• used about 56MB of data access that cost about US$46, and
• sent 9 SMS text messages that cost about US$4,
• which came to a total charge of US$72 in roaming fees.

I can’t recall my exact data usage, but I’m certain that, data-wise, I only sent a few emails, used Foursquare, viewed a few mobile sites, and uploaded a picture or two. At about $0.82 cents a megabyte in Belgium, be very careful about your apps and web access. As an alternative, be aggressive about finding WiFi hotspots that you can use safely. It’s more of a convenience thing than a good value, considering that data roaming rates vary across countries. As you travel, it’s fairly straightforward to add funds right from your phone as long as you set up “Automatic Recharge” or a balance in the “OneSimCard Money Fund”.

Activating the OneSimCard for use

Another nuance of the OneSimCard product is its activation steps. The procedures to get set up are scattered across the site but they are fairly straightforward themselves. To make it easier, I’ve compiled a quick walkthrough to handle calling, texting, and data access in the next two sections.

1. Setting up “compatibility mode” for calling and texting

Compatibility mode eliminates the need to prefix your calls with the string “*146″ for the majority of phones, and apparently is a requirement for the service to work on iPhone 4S devices.

To do this, on your iPhone, go to
1. Settings > Phone > SIM Applications > OneSimCard > Settings which is located at the bottom of the screen.
2. Agree with the resulting message message by tapping “Accept”.
3. Dial “1101″, and tap “OK”.
4. The screen will show “CC OptionX: ON” message.

2. Setting up GPRS data access

If you’re interested in using data access (accessing websites, online services, etc.) like I am, then make sure to go through these steps as well.

To get GPRS set up on your iPhone, go to
1. Settings > Network > Cellular Data Network
2. Set the APN field to “send.ee” and the User Name field to your Estonian cell phone number “3725XXXXXXX”
3. Turn Data Roaming to be “On”.
4. Reboot your device after putting in these settings.

Incoming and Outgoing Calls

The last thing to know about OneSimCard is its calling procedures. Unless you want to pay extra for a “Personal Extra Number” (or PEN) which allows folks from home to dial you directly using a local number, there are “Common Access Numbers” that folks can use to get in touch with you. The Common Access Numbers are numbers you can dial without incurring international charges before dialing your party. I found that the easiest way to set up friends and family were to help pre-program their phones with the CAN, a 4-second pause, and then my OneSimCard number. You’ll find a list of these numbers in the OneSimCard User Guide (see the link below). Otherwise, if folks call your OneSimCard number directly, they need to be prepared for extra charges if you haven’t set up a PEN (which itself is a monthly US$4.99 charge at the minimum).

Conclusion

As I mentioned before, the OneSimCard turned out to be a great solution to my needs. It was a highly convenient way to stay connected. However, it has certain caveats that you have to bear in mind in terms of cost, setup, and incoming calls. If you travel internationally to a range of countries, the OneSimCard should be high on your list. However, if you only end up travelling to a limited set of countries, it might be worth looking for cheaper alternatives.

Links

Where’s Estonia? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonia
Unlocking a Verizon iPhone 4S through customer service: https://community.verizonwireless.com/thread/696707?start=0&tstart=0
OneSimCard: http://www.onesimcard.com/
OneSimCard data rates: https://www.onesimcard.com/cell-phone-rates/
OneSimCard user guide: http://www.onesimcard.com/doc/OneSimCard-User-Guide.pdf
Removing your iPhone micro-SIM card tray: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1438

In terms of my first objective (expectations), I found it valuable to know what other product managers might use as a baseline for their job. These expectations and frameworks are not necessarily vouched for by other professionals, but they’re useful to get everyone talking in the same language. I’ve found that the product management function varies widely across different companies, and Pragmatic Marketing offers a kind of jumping-off point so that you can at least understand what you’re responsible for, as compared to other roles at a given company.

With respect to content, Pragmatic Marketing really offered some well-formed truisms that are very useful to any product manager’s day-to-day work. To paraphrase a few key ones:

• The people who build will win.
• If you don’t do the job, some one else will (often to your product’s detriment).
• Your objective as a product manager is to solve for problems, and then create products for those problems. Never just create products for their own sake.

The rest of the content was uneven given Pragmatic Marketing’s incentive to sell you more courses. I wanted the course to include more extensive discussion and work on roadmap development and requirements writing. It would have added two days onto the schedule, but would have warranted both the duration and a higher price. I could write a few posts about the truisms above to save you some time and money. But if you can get your company to pay for the course, it’s not a bad investment. On a scale of 1 (like ) to 5 (like the best TED talks), I’d rate it a 3.5.

An article on TUAW about the history of the MacBook Air prompted me to think back in early 2010, when I was comparison shopping for a lightweight laptop. My search had come down to four choices:

• the Toshiba Portégé M800,
• the Panasonic Y5,
• the Lenovo ThinkPad X301, and
• the MacBook Air.

At the time, these light-weight machines were premium-priced products that were selling between $2000 and $3000. So only after painfully extended deliberation did I order the Lenovo X301 because of its inclusion of the DVD drive. However, Lenovo cancelled my order in the spring of 2010. And that has made all the difference.

I have always despised that convention unique to PCs of appending a bunch of numbers to the name. Fittingly enough, I would have been fine just choosing the MacBook Air on that criteria alone. But practically, I wanted a very light machine with as minimal a power brick as possible. And I could not make that personal compromise about my DVD drive very easily. The funny thing is that I ended up buying a SuperDrive, trying not to make that compromise at all. I used it once since I purchased it. Smart compromise, Apple.

To round out the experience, the support for my MacBook Air has been fantastic, with only one battery issue between the two machines I owned (side note: I was a bit impetuous when the late 2010 MacBook Air refresh came out with the 4GB of RAM that I really wanted in order to run VMWare smoothly).

I have been asked about my favorite product before, and it is hands down my MacBook Air. I choose to remember that the past was filled with backache and heavy messenger bags loaded up with power adapters and extra batteries. I know that a better way exists, and that the right compromises were hard to accept but necessary for each of our sakes. Looking forward to 2012, I want to make products that solve people’s problems and to make the right compromises in the process. It will be a tough road, but definitely worth traveling.

Addendum: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/15/the-macbook-air-four-years-later/

I just don’t understand why the idea of web properties sponsored by advertising continues to be news. In fact, this quote from Alicia Eler from RWW sums it up pretty well:

If you pay for a product, you’re a customer. If you don’t, you’re the product. On Facebook, you are the product.

It’s applicable to just about any product or service you do not pay for. From a product management standpoint, every feature introduced is intended to maximize the value of the product. If the relationship is such that you’re paying, then the product is attempting to improve its value to you.

Conversely, if you are the product, then value is being squeezed from you. Incidentally, the advertisers are the consumer in this model. If you think that’s nefarious or shady, try an alternative. And if you find that hard to swallow, remember that the juice presser that’s squeezing you is deliberately very hard to leave.

If Samsung is not willing to extend the life of its hardware for its customers, won’t those customers be less willing to buy Samsung again? Won’t those customers just be dissatisfied with Samsung? I’ve used customer satisfaction metrics in the past to qualify areas of improvement in live products, and with Samsung’s situation, I would do exactly the same thing. Based on this J.D. Power and Associates report issued only recently, performance and ease of operation were identified as two top customer satisfaction factors. And certainly, both can be addressed by both hardware and software changes.

Samsung probably weighed the ROI of developing new hardware as opposed to the ROI of developing a version of TouchWiz on top of Ice Cream Sandwich. Given that Samsung is supposed to have a competitive advantage in terms of hardware development, I can imagine that they concluded that making a new phone is simply more profitable than investing resources into extending the life of the Galaxy S. To me, that’s a shame since it leaves current customers in the cold.

Although the smartphone industry is still maturing, this move could be interpreted as the inflection point where commodification of Android hardware is simply standard operating procedure, in contrast to the typical Apple iOS hardware lifecycle. Considering that it’s easier and cheaper for consumers to realize value in new software on their existing phones as opposed to setting their apps, preferences, and data on a new phone, I wonder if this will be a hard lesson for Samsung to learn in short order.

When it comes to product development, a customer on your books is worth more than two who are just browsing around. And I’d bet that customer on your books will be more likely to buy from you again, as long as you don’t treat them like dirt.

Over the past 4 years, I’ve been taking on more responsibility for the family’s Thanksgiving meal. I really enjoy the process and think of it as a showcase for recipes and techniques that I hone throughout the year. That said, there’s about 30 minutes or so right before the guests arrive, where I become highly stressed. After all, there’s plenty to worry about in terms of the food presentation, how guests will actually be served, whether there’s enough wine and refreshments, and of course the inevitable stain on your shirt that you need to clean ASAP!

So this year, I thought I’d take a little time to rethink what I do during Thanksgiving and incorporate those lessons into my preparation next year. Who knows, you might be able to take something away too!

Lesson #1 – Prototype and prep your recipes as much as possible beforehand!

This year’s menu featured a range of dishes, which included:

1. corn consommé,
2. goat cheese tart with mixed salad greens,
3. short ribs with pumpkin puree,
4. roast pork fried rice,
5. a vegetable casserole,
6. whole roast turkey with sweet potato fries, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and gravy, and
7. various desserts including an almond pear tart, mixed fruit, and cookies.

In my case, the corn consomme and the goat cheese tarts were all new for me. I left the corn consomme to the night before, and it took me nearly 2 hours to boil, strain, skim, and repeat without knowing whether it would turn out right. In contrast, I tested the goat cheese tarts a week ahead, and knew exactly how the recipe would react in the oven, where I might have made a mistake, and how to serve it. Knowing how your recipes would turn out definitely helps keep the stress down.

Lesson #2 – Keep your knives sharp and clean!

Good knives are crucial to helping you carve a turkey easily and quickly on Thanksgiving. In case you need a tutorial on doing it the right way, Alton Brown is a favorite reference with this Good Eats clip on YouTube. And of course, there’s plenty of other things you’ll need to chop, dice, and slice throughout your prep. Don’t forget the bandages too, for the occasional nick.

Lesson #3 – Time your dishes to be made the night before as much as possible.

Out of all the dishes listed above, not a single one needed to be made the day of Thanksgiving aside from the turkey! So why not make everything the night before? Save yourself the hot kitchen and focus on entertaining during Thanksgiving day.

Lesson #4 – Enlist good help!

I couldn’t possibly have done everything by myself, which includes plating, presentation, serving, bartending, and cleaning. And if anything, I was fortunate to focus on cooking alone. I am absolutely grateful to my helpers who took care of everything else!

Lesson #5 – If you don’t enjoy making Thanksgiving dinner, don’t do it!

I know I’ll do it again next year because I love cooking! But if you want a break from the heat, try rotating the responsibility to someone else and call it being the guest chef! It’s far easier to backseat cook, and serves as a source of pride for someone who thinks they can’t cook. You’ll be able to take it easy and help someone learn to cook at the same time!

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to reflect with friends and family about the fortunes of the past year. Happy holidays, dear reader!

As a product guy, minimum viable product is one important method with which to organize product development efforts, and to maximize the amount of benefit derived from scarce engineering, development, and management resources. In agile development circles, Product Owners work with the team to consciously choose to release “MVPs” frequently, or release a bunch of them together in an integrated package or manner. My take is that “minimum viable product” is the set of features that satisfy the core needs of your target champion audience and provides the team with the greatest return in both actionable feedback and revenue/revenue potential. More than one can go live at a time!

To work backwards a little, agile development and Scrum in particular derive big benefits from thinking in this manner. The reason being that minimum viable product first forces you to think about a set of features, functionality, and fixes that make sense together, and offer your users the greatest benefit. Then, once you arrange things into a bundle, you look for areas where it’s possible to make them bite-sized for the team to work with and to execute on. Let’s say that you end up with 3 minimal viable “products”; that may simply correlate to three distinct milestone dates throughout a calendar year. But not all of them have to go to market immediately, not all of them have to be released as soon as they’re individually done!

Oftentimes, the driving force for product people to tie one minimum viable product to a release is the urge to get something to market ASAP. I say that you ought to resist that urge with all your might! It’s not about the “smallest kernel of your core idea” but rather, how you help your team build a great product iteration that goes to market successfully. It is up to the product folks to exercise some discipline and patience about what exactly constitutes minimum viable product. Anticipating how your users will be delighted by a single button versus a single experience makes all the difference in the world.

In conclusion, for all you product folks out there: Minimum viable product is the set of features that satisfy the core needs of your target champion audience and provides the team with the greatest return in both actionable feedback and revenue/revenue potential. Bundle multiple MVPs if you think the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.