Today long time VoIP pioneer 8×8 (the company formerly known as Packet8) made another in their ongoing acquisitions to bolster feature set, capabilities and likely to acquire more talent. They purchased MarianaIQ (MIQ) a company which has been around since 2013 in the AI space. AI is the next battleground in telecom, and just like … Read more
When Starbucks first arrived on the scene I’ll admit I was a bit late to the party. When it came to coffee I was more of an after a meal coffee person, not a coffee addict. In reality, it was Wi-Fi that got me hooked on Starbucks. I would spend time locating the Wi-Fi locations … Read more
Tomorrow something very special is happening to. I'm being inducted into the AAHA's Hall of Fame. I'm already the youngest ever Director Emeritus since 1988 and now will become the youngest ever Hall of Fame inductee….but given how early I started, well, this should be no surprise. Thirty years ago I "retired" from the … Read more
As a child I would go to the library often with my dad. Back then, the library was like being in a house of worship. Silence was the golden rule. Sure there were a few places where people could talk but those were few and far between. That said, when I was in high school, … Read more
A few days ago I wrote about the changes with Google search algorithm. The folks at Revvim have now come forward with a new video series called Workshop Wednesday, designed to help digital marketers uncover and better understand the challenges their facing. In this week's video Matt LeBaron goes into detail about the importance of … Read more
A private equity firm, Searchlight, is buying Mitel for 2 Billion dollars reports TechCrunch. This is no surprise but clearly the buy of Shoretel helped as the cloud focus of Shortel is the direction where things are heading, while Mitel has a large list of legacy telco customers. It's an interesting buyout by a PE … Read more
This weekend I ventured up to Lompoc and the 36th Annual Santa Barbara Vintners Festival. Having been to previous events as far back the early 90s the event, the participants and the attendees has clearly changed, as has the tone of the event over the years. The crowd was more local. The tone more subdued. … Read more
Tercero Wines Larry Schaffer is a long time wine industry renegade. He doesn't make wine for critics. He doesn't chase scores and he epitomizes the spirit of a Rhone Ranger. That's why every time I get the chance to taste something that isn't only oh so Rhoney from him, I jump at it. Yesterday I … Read more
I grew up in Philadelphia and was a regular guest of many friends who were members of The Union League, Racquet Club, Rittenhouse Club and The Locust Club back in the 70's and 80s. Back then, the Union League was THE power broker club and was "Men Only" until the mid 80's just like the … Read more
I started this blog long before the concept of Working From Home, Working in Coffeeshops, Co-Working or anything more than the concept of teleworking was the way it was described. There was no WeWork. No SecondHome. I used Regus locations all over the world as I needed to, and still do. Having a UPS store … Read more
