maybe a lot of people don't understand the OPENMOKO(personal think). they just think it's a free mobile, a open source project like others. i will Translate this mail to Chinese. let them know what the NEO be. (i can't write article like this : )
Wolfgang talked to me about john meada. Unfortunately, I check the Internet, in China there is only one book, <the laws of simplicity>. i saw the book. I like NEO, because it is free of mobile phones, is a linux phone. then i met Wolfgang, I feel the NEO is more than a phone. the idear of neo is a artifact. the neo is a kind of life style. Sean Moss-Pultz wrote: > Dear Community > > I am in Columbia. Drinking local coffee (yes Paola your coffee is the > best in the world) and thinking with the early morning clarity only > those blessed with jag-lag can understand. > > Yesterday was an amazing day. After a morning walk around the government > buildings and many beautiful museums of Bogota, we went up into the > mountainous region of Monserrate. To get to the top of this cityscape > icon and pilgrimage destination you have three choices: A gravity > defying train, a somewhat stable cable car, or climbing. Pilgrims prefer > the latter; but, perhaps due to the long delays of FreeRunner, my sense > of urgency even here was overwhelming, I chose the cable car. > > For almost two years now I have told the story of Openmoko. Ascending > that mountain provided me with a brief moment where, like my new view of > Bogota, I was able to look at things from the outside. A moment long > enough to rethink the way in which I told our story. I realized that > evangelizing the impact of digital technologies is not enough. We must > take charge of them. The story of Openmoko needs to be a story of us > changing our "open source reality". For this is the opportunity > presented to us now. > > Think: The collapse of so many hi tech companies on our stock exchanges > has humbled many. Creators within the digital world -- no matter how > novel and exciting -- will have no value unless they impact the material > world directly. > > So this is my call to all of us today. Our work must begin to impact the > material world. We have the tools. We have the knowledge. We must use > our knowledge to transcend the digital world. > > People use heroes as touchstones to help them surmount their challenges. > John Maeda has been a hero of mine ever since I first discovered my love > for combining art and computers. I encourage you all to learn more about > this incredibly creative person. His "Laws of Simplicity" would be a > good place to start. For projects like ours, these are indeed guiding > lights. > > Let me share one of his "laws" with you today; it's the tenth one: > > "Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious, and adding the > meaningful." > > Hardly a day goes by for me without thinking about this elegant idea. > The smart phone has become too complex. Our challenge is to make it > simple and wise. > > Yes I am well aware of the distance between us and this goal. The > complexity of our system pains me as much as I'm sure it pains you. But > starting today, I hope we can become more conscious and more focused on > simplicity and wisdom. > > We have been hard at work subtracting the obvious from our current > architectures. Our new framework initiative > (http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/OpenmokoFramework), is all about > simplicity achieved through a complexity of thought and design. But > Maeda insists that we must add meaning. Removing the obvious is not > enough. So then, what meaningful for a smart phone? What exactly can we > add that hasn't been added before? > > Today let me share two concepts. The first stems from a genre of design > called "reactive graphics". Pressed to come up with an explanation of > how this differs from interactive graphics, I would say the following: > Reactive design engages the viewer at an almost instinctual level, > rather than just the communication level found in interactive designs. > This has a profound effect on how an individual views technology. > "Reactivity" is, in my opinion, the key ingredient for making computers > feel more human. All living organisms react. When our Neos begin to > react to the environment around them, they will feel more alive to > normal people. This is comforting. This is a simple way for us to impact > the material world. > > Meeting interesting people with creative ideas is perhaps the most > rewarding part of my job. Last night, while fighting off the > less-than-helpful side of jet-lag, I had an great conversation with my > new Columbian friend, Offray, about how Openmoko can better impact our > daily lives. The Neo, to him, is a social cognition node -- an artifact > -- where we can balance the power of the individual with that of the > group within the mobile world. > > Here comes the second concept: Artifacts, he explained, have values > embedded within, but sometimes they are not explicit. Our challenge, he > said, is how to make this explicit. > > Start with things people are familiar with and find new ways to make > them more qualitative, says Offray. Take SMS, he continues, instead of > just plain text, why not send special compressed messages, readable only > by Neos. We can use these as enablers to change mobile ecosystems. Hack > their network to embed more freedoms for normal people. Add more > meaning. Transform our Neo into an artifact. > > These are only two concepts. Many more exist. Together, we must start a > conscious exploration of simple ways to impact the material world around > us. Exactly where this will lead us is unclear. But we must begin. > > Whenever I talk publicly about Openmoko, or so it seems, the following > question is asked: How can you compete again the giants of this > industry? For most of us, I'd like to think, the answer is obvious. > Instead of answering, I usually return their question: How can they > compete against us? > > Openmoko is the collective creation of amateurs working on exactly what > we love. They are professions, some doing what they love, most working > towards the next paycheck. > > At certain times, the amateur has a distinct advantage over the > professional. A professional knows what they can deliver, and rarely > goes beyond it. An amateur has no concept of their limitations and > usually goes well beyond them. Experience teaches us our limits. When we > have learned that and become complacent, we are finished, because our > work can be calculated and measured. Our work ceases to be a weapon. > > Now is such a time. Let us ignore limitations. Let us create new > technologies that breed new ways of thinking. Let us impact the material > world. > > Thousands of FreeRunners have been loaded into planes and fired around > the world. Many of our distributors have already begun shipping. In > about another week, Steve and Harry will announce the opening of our own > webshop. > > I plan to start a new blog, sharing stories of how our Neos impact the > material world. If you have something you would like to share, please > email me directly. I would love to weave your ideas in our collective story. > > Thank you, from the the bottom of my heart, for all your incredible > support and patience. I know the delays have been long. But now we are > ready. Let us run free and impact the material world. > > > Sincerely, > > > Sean (one very excited amateur) > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Openmoko community mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community _______________________________________________ Openmoko community mailing list [email protected] http://lists.openmoko.org/mailman/listinfo/community
