Forbes Column 2009: Silencing India

I am on my way back from India, writing from the Singapore airport lounge. I think we missed to highlight my last Forbes column, Silencing India, which discusses the serious problem of noise pollution in India.

Have a look. Someone in the comments suggests banning cars altogether. Perhaps unrealistic, but reducing the number of cars on the streets of India’s metros is certainly a necessity. Smart cards, congestion taxes and new street designs are all tools that, if applied as part of a comprehensive traffic management solution, can improve the quality of life in Indian cities.

From Laid-off Engineer To Successful Startup CEO: Michelle Munson of Aspera (Part 5)

SM: You were able to find a starting point in the open source community?

MM: I found a good model from a different domain that we experimented with, and it worked well. That was the point at which we started making the protocol. >>>

Designs of The Week: The Best Interactive Website Designs

By guest authors Charles W. Bush and Kathy Hwang of 3Strand Innovation, a brand, design and business consultancy

The following websites seem to have bottled the “magic” surprise factors of curiosity, intimacy, humor or shock. They are some of our favorite examples of how strong an impact you can have on your customers by paying close attention to how you design their experience with your website. Surprise is one of the hardest components to add to design, but our philosophy at 3Strand is that this particular ingredient can make the difference between a website that is just another place that’s trying to sell something and a website that gets passed around virally from friend to friend. Plus, we think these sites are just plain fun and geeky. >>>

From Laid-off Engineer To Successful Startup CEO: Michelle Munson of Aspera (Part 4)

SM: What was the problem the digital media companies were facing that you wanted to solve?

MM: I knew it was a problem in application layer networking, which was something I had always had an interest in. I liked the theoretical underpinnings of it. I could see there was a layer which was unsolved. >>>

From Laid-off Engineer To Successful Startup CEO: Michelle Munson of Aspera (Part 3)

SM: Concepts coming before their time happens a lot here in Silicon Valley.

MM: It sure does. However, it was my first real experience in a startup with a peer group I was excited about. Partly because of my inquisitive nature, they used to send me out to customers as well. I gained a lot of exposure to customers. >>>

From Laid-off Engineer To Successful Startup CEO: Michelle Munson of Aspera (Part 2)

SM: How large did the ISP become?

MM: It was not very impressive. It had 700–800 subscribers and was entirely local. It was nothing like a serious business. >>>

From Laid-off Engineer To Successful Startup CEO: Michelle Munson of Aspera (Part 1)

Michelle Munson is CEO of Aspera, a company she began after being laid off. Aspera was her realization that she could not only control her own career path but also create jobs for other people in a culture she established. This story is great inspiration for the thousands who have been let go by their employers.

SM: Michelle, where does your story begin?

MM: I grew up in Kansas, on a farm. My family is a five-generation farm family that raises Angus cattle as well as wheat, corn and soybeans. >>>

Building The Small Business CRM Solution: CircleDog CEO Charlie Crystle (Part 6)

SM: Operating under a traditional software licensing model, are you seeing any recurring revenues?

CC: We do have support, but I also should point out that we are rolling out our online services such as online donations and email marketing. This year the non-profit side is profitable. >>>