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Bruce "Tog" Tognazzini, founder of the Apple Human Interface Group, former Apple Human Interface Evangelist, and all around Human Interface god, weighs in on the iPhone. Along the way we get a lesson in how to think about design, a peek at the future of interfaces, & some fascinating insights into Apple from a man who was an insider. Tog is always a must read and his review of the iPhone is the most thought-provoking and insightful that I have seen. My only gripe is that Tog doesn't publish very often…

Barack Obama announces his "Presidential Exploratory Comittee" , the latest euphemism for he is running for President. I wish him well, I suspect we are in for a very bruising presidential election. 

Barack is an incredible guy, he is quite likeable and may give all comers a real run for their money. His life has been a classic immigrant's tale of overcoming. Born to a white mother and a black immigrant father from Kenya, he epitomizes what is best in America. His embrace of the African-American experience will garner him support from the African American community (although there appears to be murmurs that the traditional African American leaders like Al Sharpton & Jesse Jackson may not approve) and his championing of traditional American values will win him many white supporters (not to mention more than a few Republican defectors sick of the cesspool the party has become). Hopefully he will be able to live up to the ideals he frequently talks about, he has a real chance at changing the face of Washington.

Obama's oft mentioned weaknesses, his inexperience and youth, may also turn into his greatest strengths and allow him to differentiate himself from the typical calcified Washington political hack. If he is elected (or even if he wins the primary) it could signal the handover of power to a new generation, similar to Clinton's win in 1992. How different? Anyone's guess at this point, although honesty will hopefully play a big part (in a brilliant move Obama has publicly admitted to using cocaine in his teenage years to "push questions of who I was out of my mind", how is that for honesty). Another similarity with Clinton is that they both have the ability to mesmerize an audience, Obama's keynote at the 2004 Democratic Convention was a superb example of that. It is absolutely critical that Obama use the momentum he now has to educate the people as to his plans for America, in particular Iraq & the war on terror, and resist knee-jerk responses.

John Edwards has announced and now Obama has made the presidential race just a little more crowded. Lets hope they stick to the high road.

Just caught this on Ars Technica, first pirated HD DVD movie has been spotted on BitTorrent. Coming on the earlier news that HD DVD keys had been compromised this is huge. The pirated movie is Serenity made available as a .EVO file of approximately 20GB. What next? Will they revoke the keys? The implications of what happens now is going to define the next few years in struggle between technology and the content producers, lawyers start y'er engines!

Fascinating piece in the Atlantic Monthly on the birth of a new political party, Unity '08 . What do they stand for? In their own words :

Unity08 divides issues facing the country into two categories: Crucial Issues – on which America’s future safety and welfare depend; and Important Issues – which, while vital to some, will not, in our judgment, determine the fate or future of the United States.

In our opinion, Crucial Issues include: Global terrorism, our national debt, our dependence on foreign oil, the emergence of India and China as strategic competitors and/or allies, nuclear proliferation, global climate change, the corruption of Washington’s lobbying system, the education of our young, the health care of all, and the disappearance of the American Dream for so many of our people.

By contrast, we consider gun control, abortion and gay marriage important issues, worthy of debate and discussion in a free society, but not issues that should dominate or even crowd our national agenda.

In our opinion – since the disintegration of the Soviet Union – our political system seems to have focused more attention on the “important issues” than the “crucial issues.” One result: The political parties have been built to address the interests of their “base” but have failed to address the realities that impact most Americans.

Wow, sounds like they might have their priorities right. I will be watching this quite closely, it will be a refreshing day if they stick close to their founding principles and the American people support them. They may even get my vote.

It has been an absolutely crazy last few weeks with the holidays, fund-raising for a new venture, and preparing for and attending CES. Hopefully we can get back to our regularly scheduled program soon.