PRINCE2 Gets An Update For 2009

The UK’s most widely used Project Management methodology and framework; PRINCE2, is getting an update for 2009.

The name will remain the same but there are some clear enhancements and changes to the method.

PRINCE2 has previously gone through two major changes – in 2002 and 2005.  The new changes are based around creating a simpler and clearer model that, evidence has shown, will contribute to the delivery of successful projects.

The crux of the new changes:

• 7 new basic principles which are universal and self-validating
• These principles are universal and can be applied in any scenario
• The 8 processes have been reduced to 7
• Sub-processes have been removed and replaced by activities
• These activities describe what needs to be done, when and by whom
• The confusing sub-process diagrams have been removed
• The 8 components have been replaced by 7 Key Themes
• These Key Themes are areas that continually need to be addressed: Business Case, Organisation, Plans, Risk, Progress, Quality, and Issues & Changes
• There will be 2 Core Texts to accompany the method
• The “PRINCE2 in Practice: Managing a Project” text will be the sole source of information for the PRINCE2 Foundation and Practitioner syllabuses
• The “PRINCE2 in Practice: Directing a Project” text is aimed at senior managers and project board members and will provide a role specific guidance on how to oversee projects being managed using PRINCE2
• The terminology has been updated to be aligned with other products

In Summary

The new 2009 PRINCE2 will provide a more streamlined, simpler and more customisable method to be applied to projects.  Clear clarification on roles and responsibilities is enforced and the language of the new methodology is easier to understand, ensuring project managers have a better set of tools with which to deliver projects on time, within budget and to the correct quality criteria.

Netvibes Integrates Multiple Personalised Pages

I’m a massive fan of Netvibes (and have been for what seems donkeys ages), I think they were the original platform to create a personalised landing page for users to integrate all their news, information and feeds (please correct me if I’m wrong!).

Their latest upgrade is to add Multiple Personalised Pages (MPPs).  This basically means that you can have an unlimited amount of tabs categorised into an unlimited amount of pages, ensuring that all your content can be managed and structured into any logical format that you want!

This, I believe, is a great step forward for the progression of Netvibes as the limitations in one page with many tabs has always been a frustration for me and many others.  You can set up your personal page, your “social” page, your business page – anything you want – and manage a range of content, widgets, feeds etc. in a fast and super efficient manner.

It is also a massive boost for Enterprise clients (and branded microsites such as The Daily Influence by Ogilvy) who can now structure masses of data into a page for each area of the business e.g. IT, Marketing, Digital, HR, Finance…the possibilities go on.

The only issue now is that, at this point in time – 20:56 on 27th May 09, the Netvibes server is running amazingly slow!  I guess this is down to all the Netvibes users trying out the new feature and creating millions of extra pages!

I’ll have to wait a few days to set up all my tabs into their new pages.

Thanks,
Tony

YouTube users uploading 20 hours of video every minute

YouTube have recently pushed this crazy statistic out of the door: 20 hours of video footage is uploaded to YouTube every 60 seconds.

In fact, just in the time it took me to write up this article, 40 hours of rubbish video was added to the site…

Interestingly, this news comes only a few months after it was discovered that in the United States, more searches are made on YouTube than on the whole of Yahoo.

Don’t get me wrong – there is a lot of funny and good video on YouTube, but I think the majority of it is complete garbage and should be removed as quickly as it can be uploaded!

Australian Online Shoppers Expect to Spend More in 2009

Despite the current economic conditions, online spending in Australia is set to increase by 12 percent in 2009. Research recently conducted by Celsius Research, on behalf of Shopping.com, found Australian shoppers spent an average of $1,097 buying products online in 2008, with the forecast for 2009 set to defy the offline recessionary trends.

The Celsius Research showed 54% of those surveyed value the ease of their shopping experience on their chosen site, followed closely by price. Comparison shopping sites – which feature offers from a large selection of retailers – have also proven popular because they do the hard work for you making the shopping experience more efficient and enjoyable.

Ministry of Sound relaunches D2C website

The new Ministry of Sound website

A good friend of mine worked on this project and I think it deserves some serious merit.

Following the collapse of their previous service provider; Trinity Street, MOS set up an internal team to build and manage their own platform.  The amazing point to all this is that they have everything up and running in 6 weeks – a great achievement considering it’s an eCommerce engine with blogs, editorial content and a much improved design!

Well done to all those who were involved.

Read the full article.

Staggering Facebook Facts

In researching the Social Network arena for some new projects we’re looking at getting into, I came across two interesting articles about how staggeringly enormous Facebook (and other social sites) have become.

The first article was published on ClickZ and goes into detail on how many and who is using Facebook:

Mind-Blowing Facebook Stats and What To Do With Them

The second article was published on TechCrunch and covers the top runners and riders in the photo-sharing service – again some jaw-dropping figures when you think about it:

Who Has The Most Photos Of Them All? Hint: It Is Not Facebook

I’m Still Alive!

I’ve had so much on over the last few weeks that I’ve neglected some of the articles I was in the process of typing up for addition to Project Cake.

Fear not my technical colleagues – there is a light at the end of the tunnel and hopefully I will have some more articles up for next week, I’ve got a few very important projects to finish off this week and then I can get back to normal again!

First Impressions of Windows 7 Beta

A beta is bound to have glitches, but Windows 7 has left a good overall first impression.

It strikes users as faster and lighter than Windows Vista, and has improved on important consumer areas like home networking and media sharing.

The interface has some interesting new features but it may take a while – and perhaps some tweaking – to get used to them.

Read the full article.

Microsoft’s Mouseless Revolt

Windows 7 touch screen technology

Microsoft has developed a touchscreen operating system that could signal the end of the computer mouse.

Windows 7, a test version of which will be available from today, is part of Microsoft’s attempts to restore its reputation for innovation and to catch up with Apple, whose touch-screen iPhone has been a huge success.

Microsoft says the new version of its software could revolutionise the way we use computers, The Australian reports, paving the way for touch-screen monitors in every home. About a billion people around the world use Windows software.

Read the full article.

Personally, I think this is a great idea for some scenarios and circumstances, but there is a reason why the humble mouse and keyboard have been around for so long – THEY WORK!

I’ve seen prototypes for touch screen technology used in a wide variety of situations – some work and some don’t, and I think this is the crux of the matter.  As long as Microsoft and the companies who are going to employ this new technology use it for specific actions based on it’s strengths then I think it will be adopted and used actively in the future.

On the other hand, if companies use it just because it is new and they want to be seen as on the “bleeding-edge” of technology then they are missing the point.

First and foremost is the Human/Computer Interaction and User Experience.  If any new technology does not meet the requirements from these two areas then the technology should not be used.

Nokia N96 Review

The new Nokia N96

I currently have an N95 and use most of the applications and services available to me.  I heard a lot of hype regarding the N96 model so I jumped at the chance to have a play with one and put a personal review up online.

I’ve heard all the negative stories re: the N95 and I must admit my first N95 was poor – rubbish battery life, an eternity to load up a few applications and it wasn’t the toughest of mobiles.  The 2nd N95 (and current phone) is much better though and fixes all the issues mentioned above, so maybe some are just put together better.

As I didn’t have any other phones handy to compare with the N96, I used my N95.

Read more