NYConvergence

Best of New York 2010 Winners Announced

Tech teams and leaders from state agencies and local governments were selected by the Center for Digital Government to receive the Best of New York awards. These annual awards recognize contributions, best practices, and work of distinction in information technology.

Award winners include:

• Timothy C. Idoni, Westchester County Clerk, Excellence in Leadership Award
• Estelle Council, Information Technology Specialist, NYS Division of Parole, Excellence in IT Operations, Support and Service Award
• Don Welsh, Lead Database Administrator, NYS Office of Cyber Security, Excellence in IT Operations, Support and Service Award
• Quincin Gonjon, Senior I.T. Associate/Internet Security Officer, Queensborough Community College – CUNY, Excellence in IT Operations, Support and Service Award

For a full list of award winners, please see the link below.

Center for Digital Government

CUNY And IBM To Open Unique School In NYC

According to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the City University of New York and IBM will open a unique school that merges high school with two years of college.This will allow students, who will also be first in line for a job at IBM, to earn an associate's degree.

The mayor also proposed to do away with automatic teacher tenure and the state law that requires schools to buy printed textbooks rather than use digital content. "That may be good for the business textbook industry but it's really a bad deal for our students in this day and age," Bloomberg said.

Associated Press

Goldsmith Recommends an iPad for Every City Worker

In a recent speech rallying against the perils of bureaucracy in the city government, NYC deputy mayor Stephen Goldsmith recommended that a way to cut through the process and gridlock is for every city worker to have an iPad or equivalent device.

According to Crain's New York Business he said "That iPad ought to tell them which buildings to inspect, which kids to evaluate, which decisions to make,” he said. It will collect data, too."

Crain's New York Business (subscription required)

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> Mayor Bloomberg Ditches Index Cards for iPad

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Bloomberg Businessweek Takes a Look at Flat World

Flat World, a startup company based in Westchester County,  was recently profiled in Bloomberg Businessweek as part of a growing trend of tech companies who are providing alternatives to high priced college textbooks.  On Flat World, students can purchase textbooks in several formats, including an audio book version, a paperback version that can be ordered online (and then printed for users) or they can access free online access to the book. 

According to the article, Flat World seems to be a company in the right place at the right time, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics data found that "the class of 2010 will pay 32% more for textbooks than did students four years ago."   The company also said they make no money off the free online versions of the books, but that students who use them usually make a purchase on the site. 

Bloomberg Businessweek

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> Flat World Lets Students Access Books Online

Gadget Thefts Up on Subway

According to police, thieves have been snatching more and more gadgets from the hands of NYC subway riders. While above ground larcenies are down 8%, there were 118 grand larcenies in the New York City this August, 14.6% more than last year. NYPD Spokesman Paul Browne said to The Wall Street Journal that it isn't uncommon to see a trend in robberies of new items, notably the iPhone 4 and new generations of iPods.

Raymond Diaz, chief of the NYPD's transit bureau, also warned that people sitting or standing near subway doors holding a gadget were more vulnerable to thieves snatching the item and running of the train just before the doors close. 

The Wall Street Journal

E-Book Disruption Means Smaller Incomes for Authors

The digital revolution that is disrupting the book industry's economic model is having a negative impact on the careers of literary writers, The Wall Street Journal said. Priced much lower than hardcovers, e-books generate less income for publishers, who, at the same time, are buying fewer titles. Most new authors getting published are being offered smaller advances, and at the same time, e-book royalties are only a little more than half what the author might make from a hardcover sale.

"In the same way that cheap digital downloads mean fewer bands can earn a living from record company deals, fewer literary authors will be able to support themselves as e-books win acceptance," agents and publishers told the Journal.

The Wall Street Journal

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> Barnes & Noble Under Pressure from E-books

NY Times Says Thumbs Up to Tech-Filled Das Rheingold

The New York Times reviewed the debut of Robert LaPage's technology filled production of Das Rheingold at The Metropolitan Opera, reporting that LaPage received a mostly enthusiastic ovation with scattered boos. The machine that dominates the staging worked, for the most part, The Times reported, and when the planks rose to create a wall of water for the maidens to rest on, video images of stones and pebbles created the desired effect.

The computer-controlled video technology did its job, creating magical moments, such as when slaves were sweating over molten posts of gold, and the wall above them was "alive with shifting russet, earthen and blazing yellow colors." Only one mechanical glitch marred the performance, when planks did not move into place to form the rainbow bridge of Valhalla.

The New York Times

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> NY Met Production of "Das Rheingold" Goes Interactive

Verizon FIOS Still Rolling Out Network in NYC

Although Verizon Communications said it stopped seeking new markets for FIOS TV, the company continues to seek customers in New York, and is rolling out fiber to reach specific network-buildout targets mandated in its franchise agreements. In NYC, FIOS must have all premises in NY's five boroughs connected by 2014. FIOS now passes around 1.8 million homes and businesses or 58% of the approximately 3.1 million households in the city.

The next hurdle for Verizon will be connecting multiple dwelling units, which require individual negotiations with property owners or co-op boards, who may already have a marketing agreement in place with a competitor and, in some cases, are being paid fees for those deals.

Multichannel News

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> FiOS Services Delayed in Manhattan

Confab in NYC Brings 3D Movie Industry Together

The 3D Experience, a three day event featuring discussions, executive presentations, and 3D movie screenings, took place last weekend at AMC Theaters Empire 25 on Times Square. While execs primarily acted as cheerleaders for the new technology, Imax's Richard Gelfond, urged industry restraint, saying not every 3D movie works. Some tech innovations were highlighted. Hewlett-Packard tech VP Phil McKinney said the company is developing an image capture system capable of double-wide aspect ratio images of 22 feet across. 

In a research note BTIG Research's Richard Greenfield pointed out that while box office revenue is up 4% this year largely due to 3D, attendance is actually down. Some tech issues still have to be sorted, from image capture and conversion to projection systems and eye ware needs. Even so, studios have been increasing their 3D output.

Hollywood Reporter

Gaming Site SkillAddiction Meets with New York Angels

Raymond Williams, a Navy petty officer who served three tours in the Middle East, met with early stage investor consortium New York Angels last week, looking for funding for SkillAddiction, an online casual gaming community,  where players compete for cash and prizes.

The site, developed in a Syracuse University dorm, now has 47,000 users and is popular among middle aged women looking for mental exercise and stimulation. SkillAddiction wants $900,000 to hire marketing and technology experts and expand into mobile.

Crain's New York Business

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> Advertising Downplayed at NY Games Conference

Could the Subway be the New Facebook?

29 year-old Solomon Lederer, a Morgan Stanley software developer, is changing the way people view NYC subway “performers.”  Unlike the normal subway interruption of someone asking you to buy a candy bar or singing a song that no one cares to care, Lederer is starting and initiative to use the subway as a networking tool.   Lederer has the idea “that we can do some kind of exchange or networking on the subway so that we can get more of what we want and possibly give more of what we can give.”

Lederer has already received emails from interviews to dates and has gotten positive feedback on his blog.  He believes that connecting people on the subway ill open new opportunities and if nothing else, make the monotonous commute a bit more interesting. 

The Wall Street Journal

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> 'The Social Network' Kicks Off The New York Film Festival

> New Social Network for Entertainment Industry Launches