Book Recommendations on Data Science

In my predictions for this year, I said that data science was going to be big. I case you’re a new entrant in this field, here are a few book recommendations and they’re also free (for now) if you have a Kindle. If you’re in Nigeria and you are wondering how to get a Kindle, here’s my guide on how to do this.

Enjoy.

January 14, 2012  Leave a comment

Here comes the Raspberry Pi

I realize there’s been a lot of excite about Raspberry Pi on several geek channels on the web. I didn’t realize until I decided to check it out and now I just can’t contain my excitement.

According to the Raspberry Pi FAQ:

The Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized computer that plugs into your TV and a keyboard. It’s a capable little PC which can be used for many of the things your desktop PC does, like spreadsheets, word-processing and games. It also plays high-definition video. We want to see it being used by kids all over the world to learn programming.

What’s amazing about the Raspberry Pi is that you get a fully-functional computer (excluding input and output devices) for ₦4000 ($25). What more is that the computer can be plugged directly into a TV and with any cheap USB keyboard, you have a fully functioning computer. Even though I don’t see this really appealing to folks that can afford high-end widescreen laptops, this reduces the barrier of entry for those who can’t afford expensive laptops/desktops and sorry it wouldn’t run Windows.

I think we are looking at technology that will finally include those who have been formerly excluded from the digital age. Raspberry Pi is still just an onboard computer and at a stage where entrepreneurs can package it properly into devices that are more useful.

January 13, 2012  1 Comment

Mobile Analytics is broken and how to fix it

I’ve been seeing this all too often on our geographic places crowd-sourcing app CrowdPOInt. I check Google Analytics and I can’t find traffic generated by my own mobile device and after much enquiry I realise that mobile web analytics (just like desktop web analytics) also relies on the browser being able to load a one pixel (or transparent) image being served by the analytics engine. If the browser doesn’t load this image, then that hit isn’t tracked.

This is a big problem for mobile browsers that have loading of images turned off. The best solution for now is to have your mobile applications directly intervene by triggering the tracking on behalf of the mobile browser.

A better solution would involve requiring the mobile browser to load some other asset like blank css stylesheets or javascript files and performing the tracking on such hits.

January 6, 2012  2 Comments

Top 10 technology predictions for 2012

Here are my top 10 technology predictions for this year, 2012. I’ve arranged them in no particular order.

1. Mobile Money will become ubiquitous
Believe it or not, mobile money, even though a relatively new concept in Nigeria, will gain a lot of traction this year.

2. E-commerce will boom
There are way too many factors that will ensure the flourishing of e-commerce in the country this year. From the policies put in place by the Central Bank to the introduction of mobile money, this sector is set to take off. If you are an investor or entrepreneur, you must start making your investments and keeping a close eye on this one.

3. Collaboration will be key
One problem we were successfully able to diagnose in the tech community last year is that there are too many people working in silos and the key to our flourishing and ultimate survival will be to collaborate. Enough said.

4. More HTML5 innovation
HTML5 was one of the biggest news of 2011. However, we’ve only began to scratch the surface on what this technology is capable of delivering. Watch out for more innovation this technology will bring. If you didn’t pick up this technology last year, it’s not late yet to hop on.

5. Opera Mini/Mobile will become more HTML5 compatible
Opera’s mobile browsers are awesome and very popular. The only limitation is it’s HTML5 capabilities. This year will see that browser come of age.

6. Data science will become even more relevant
Data science is responsible for the algorithms that enable social networks make relevant suggestions to you. More and more online services will become dependent on the value data sciences provide.

7. We’ll do everything on the cloud
It’s becoming a reality already. The most important software your computer will need will be the browser as our lives move closer and closer to being wholly cloud-based.

8. Decentralized social networks will gain more popularity
Open standards, open APIs and open source will spur the development of decentralized social networks as more people take control of their online privacy.

9. Mobile marketing will become as important and popular as traditional Internet marketing.

10. Android smartphones will gain mainstream popularity
A lot of people will disagree with me but wait until Chinese mobile phone manufacturers switch to using Android, which will be a smart move.

January 2, 2012  4 Comments

Here’s how to get your Kindle Fire from Nigeria

I got a Kindle Fire a few weeks back and @pystar asked me how I did it. This post is a step by step process on how to go about getting one.

The most important part of the process is getting an Amazon.com account. The next step is adding your debit/credit card to your account. This card will be billed for your purchases on the site. I’ve only gotten a dollar denominated debit card to work on the site so it’s not likely that your naira-denominated debit card will work (my trials with the GTB Naira MasterCard are yet to work). Another important point to note is that your billing address will be the address you used while opening your bank account).

Once you’ve completed the steps above, you can purchase your kindle from the Amazon.com website. The only wrinkle is that Amazon.com will only ship kindles within the US. This is where a freight forwarding company comes in. I use Impex Worldwide for my freight forwarding needs. Essentially, they would give you a shipping address within the US. Anything shipped in your name to this address will be forwarded to their warehouse in Nigeria. Impexworldwide will send you a text message when your shipment arrives and provide instructions on how to pay and collect your shipment. You should visit their website for instructions on how to use their service.

You don’t have to even contact Impex before placing your order. Simply make your order and instruct Amazon.com to ship to your customized address, which will be similar to:

Tim Akinbo LAG,
Impexworldwide Inc. [My Phone No.],
4000 Bordentown Ave Unit 26,
Sayreville, NJ 08872

Phone: +1-732-698-9008

Once your order is completed, Amazon will charge your card and ship your kindle to Impex. Once it arrives Nigeria, they’ll inform you and you can then go and claim your shipment.

December 31, 2011  9 Comments

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