Beyond Binary

Amazon said late Friday that it recalled two Kindle e-books because the publisher lacked the rights to the book. However, in the future, it says it won't pull already downloaded material from customers' devices.

The removal of two George Orwell books from the accounts of those who had already purchased them sparked an outcry from customers, bloggers, and mainstream media outlets.

"These books were added to our catalog using our self-service platform by a third-party who did not have the rights to the books," Amazon spokesman Drew Herdener said in an e-mail. "When we were notified of this by the rights holder, we removed the illegal copies from our systems and from customers' devices, and refunded customers."

Herdener said Amazon won't handle things the same way in the future. "We are changing our systems so that in the future we will not remove books from customers' devices in these circumstances."

Some said that Amazon's move appeared to violate its own terms of service.

Updated 2:20 p.m. PDT, with comment from Microsoft and at 2:35 with more details on where that draft came from.

For those who want to find out what all the cloud-computing fuss is about, a copy of the Open Cloud Manifesto is now online.

After a flowery introduction, the document talks about a couple of key concepts, including the ability for data and applications from one cloud vendor to be able to be ported to another cloud vendor. It also calls for interoperability from one cloud vendor to another, as well as consistent ways to meter and monitor performance and usage.

"Without standards, the ability to bring systems back in-house or choose another cloud provider will be limited by proprietary interfaces. Once an organization builds or ports a system to use a cloud provider's offerings, bringing that system back in-house will be difficult and expensive," the manifesto states.

It ends by issuing six principles of an "Open Cloud."

1. Cloud providers must work together to ensure that the challenges to cloud adoption (security, integration, portability, interoperability, governance/management, metering/monitoring) are addressed through open collaboration and the appropriate use of standards.

2. Cloud providers must not use their market position to lock customers into their particular platforms and limiting (sic) their choice of providers.

3. Cloud providers must use and adopt existing standards wherever appropriate. The IT industry has invested heavily in existing standards and standards organizations; there is no need to duplicate or reinvent them.

4. When new standards (or adjustments to existing standards) are needed, we must be judicious and pragmatic to avoid creating too many standards. We must ensure that standards promote innovation and do not inhibit it.

5. Any community effort around the open cloud should be driven by customer needs, not merely the technical needs of cloud providers, and should be tested or verified against real customer requirements.

6. Cloud-computing standards organizations, advocacy groups, and communities should work together and stay coordinated, making sure that efforts do not conflict or overlap.

While the goals all sound laudable, it's easy to see how this might prove challenging for those with existing cloud platforms, folks like Amazon and Microsoft.

Still, the document's authors suggest that there is room for discussion.

"This document is meant to begin the conversation, not define it," the manifesto says in its conclusion. Well, it has certainly done that.

Update: I had a chance to speak Friday afternoon with Steven Martin, the senior director who wrote Microsoft's initial blog post taking issue with the manifesto and the way it was developed.

In a telephone interview, Martin didn't point to any specific clause that Microsoft disagreed with, but said there were areas whose intent the software maker would have needed to better understand before signing.

Martin said IBM approached Microsoft about joining, but only after the document was finalized and the company had already started briefing press and analysts.

"I think a reasonable person could question the motive there," he said, suggesting that the fact Microsoft was approached at all strikes him as more of a PR tactic than anything else.

That said, Martin said Microsoft would like to be a part of the dialogue. He noted that the company was subsequently invited to a meeting of some cloud-computing participants to take place on Monday as part of a cloud-computing conference.

"We have accepted that invitation and we will participate," Martin said. "If there is meaningful dialogue, it is something we will want to play a role in. Hopefully we will use that as a chance to restart that conversation."

As for the origins of that document we saw online, it was apparently posted by the Thinking Out Cloud blog.

"I received the document from four different sources and am under no obligation to keep it secret, so I am happy to publish it here for the first time," Thinking Out Cloud said on its site.

Updated with a link to the Open Cloud Manifesto document.

The cloud-computing field may be in its infancy, but there is a fight breaking out at the preschool.

A group of Web services providers, reportedly including IBM, is set to unveil a "manifesto" next week that lays out a number of principles for open cloud computing. Two of the biggest names in the field, though, say they aren't signing on.

Microsoft posted blog message to that effect on Wednesday night, while Amazon.com on Friday said it, too, is not among the companies signing the document.

"Like other ideas on standards and practices, we'll review this one," Amazon said in a statement. "Ideas on openness and standards have been talked about for years in Web services. And we do believe standards will continue to evolve in the cloud-computing space. But what we've heard from customers thus far, customers who are really committed to using the cloud, is that the best way to illustrate openness and customer flexibility is by what you actually provide and deliver for them."

Amazon noted that over the past three years, it has made its Web services available on different operating systems and programming languages.

Microsoft, for its part, said there were some things it agreed with in the manifesto, but others that were either too vague or did not reflect its interests. The company also objected to the fact that it was shown the document just last weekend, not allowed to make changes, and given just 48 hours to decide whether to sign.

"We were admittedly disappointed by the lack of openness in the development of the (Open) Cloud Manifesto," Microsoft's Steven Martin wrote in the blog post. "What we heard was that there was no desire to discuss, much less implement, enhancements to the document, despite the fact that we have learned through direct experience. Very recently, we were privately shown a copy of the document, warned that it was a secret, and told that it must be signed 'as is,' without modifications or additional input."

Martin wrote that "it appears to us that one company, or just a few companies, would prefer to control the evolution of cloud computing, as opposed to reaching a consensus across key stakeholders (including cloud users) through an 'open' process."

Although the document has yet to be released, one of its proponents, Enomaly's Reuven Cohen, has said it will be will be released on Monday. In a blog post, Cohen suggests that there will be at least a dozen signatories of the document, including "several of the largest technology companies."

"The manifesto does not speak to application code or licensing but instead to the fundamental principles that the Internet was founded upon--an open platform available to all," Cohen said. "It is a call to action for the worldwide cloud community to get involved and embrace the principles of the open cloud."

Cohen also posted a follow-up blog thanking Microsoft for the attention generated by the rejection of the manifesto.

"In one move, Microsoft has provided more visibility to our cloud interoperability effort than all our previous efforts combined," Cohen wrote.

As for the manifesto itself, we'll have to wait until Monday to see it, but Cohen's blog and this site give some idea where they are headed.

Update at 1:30 p.m. Friday: Turns out, the manifesto is even more open than we thought. We found it online here. For more information on the Open Cloud Manifesto, read our first take.

When I misplaced my Kindle last year, I not only lost the device, but also any means of reading several e-books that I was in the middle of.

That all changed on Wednesday. My Kindle is no closer to home, but by downloading the new Kindle app for the iPhone (which also works on my iPod Touch), I was able to recover access to my virtual library. Not only that, but thanks to Whispersync, I was able to start reading right where I left off. Whispersync is Amazon's technology for keeping one's place in a book across multiple Kindles or cell phones.

Although I don't think the "I lost my Kindle" crowd is the target market, I must say it was very satisfying to wake up Wednesday once again having access to books that had seemed lost.

The experience highlights both the pros and cons of the "digital locker" approach taken by Amazon with Kindle content. Although some have criticized the fact that one can't resell or give away their Kindle books, the site does provide other aspects of true ownership. In this case, I didn't need to re-buy anything and as soon as I entered my account information, I had access to every book I had purchased for the Kindle. (Periodicals don't work on the iPhone or iPod Touch.)

As for reading on the iPod Touch (or iPhone), I found it quite acceptable for my 15-minute public transit commute to work. The iPod's small size makes it easy to read on a crowded train. One can even hold the iPod and flip pages in one hand while hanging on to a handrail with the other hand.

That said, I'm not sure I won't go out and buy a Kindle 2 eventually. The iPod Touch reading experience, while fine for short bursts, isn't the easy-on-the-eyes phenomenon I had with the Kindle. It's harder to buy books and I can't read newspapers or magazines. Also, I suspect it will do a number on my iPod's battery.

At the same time, I won't be deleting that iPod app even if I do replace my Kindle. The option of reading on my iPod will help for my commute to work and for those trips where I can't bear to carry an extra device.

Ultimately, the end result is likely to be that I will just be reading (and buying) more electronic books. And, in the end, that's exactly what Amazon wants.

SEATTLE--Amazon wanted to make the Kindle 2 hot, but not too hot.

It gave it a slimmer design and more storage, but there are a lot of things Amazon could have added, but didn't. Things like a color display not only would make the device pricier and give it a shorter battery life, but would also make the gadget uncomfortable to hold.

"One of the great things about Kindle is it doesn't ever get hot," Amazon Vice President Ian Freed said in an interview at Amazon's downtown office here. That's important, Freed said, given that the company has one main goal with the Kindle--making the product as invisible to users as possible when they are reading.

"The most important thing for the Kindle to do is to disappear," Freed said. That was the goal with the first device and was also a key factor in deciding what would go in the sequel, which started shipping on Monday. There are the obvious factors, like the thinner, sleeker design. But there are also things like an improved cellular modem. As a result, Kindle users will find themselves out of range in fewer places to get updates or buy a new book.

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Computer sales on Amazon.com are not exactly a proxy for the broader retail market. Still, I do think it is noteworthy that of the top 20 best-selling laptops on Thursday evening, just one was running Windows Vista.

That one is an HP mini-notebook that ranked No. 18, trailing behind a gaggle of Macs and Netbooks running either Windows XP or Linux.

On the plus side for Redmond, 10 of the top 20 machines were running some flavor of Windows. And, as I mentioned, Amazon is not a true barometer.

Apple's market share, while growing isn't exactly neck and neck with Microsoft's. And Netbooks, while a rising trend, aren't completely taking over the market.

But while the numbers are skewed the trends are worth paying attention to. Two of the hottest parts of the PC market are the areas where Windows faces its stiffest competition.

The Amazon sales trend was noted earlier Thursday by MacDailyNews, though they used a slightly different measurement.

Amazon said on Wednesday that it plans to offer its cloud computing customers the option of running Microsoft's Windows Server operating system as well as its SQL Server database.

Starting sometime this fall, Amazon said that customers of its EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) service will be able to run Windows, in addition to the Unix-based options currently available. Amazon is currently conducting a private beta test of the new Microsoft-based options.

"The ability to run a Windows environment within Amazon EC2 has been one of our most requested features, and we are excited to be able to provide this capability," Amazon said in a blog posting. "Our goal is to support any and all of the programming models, operating systems and database servers that you need for building applications on our cloud computing platform."

The company said that EC2 running Windows Server or SQL Server will be useful for running ASP.NET Web sites, media transcoding and other Windows-based applications.

Microsoft, meanwhile, is expected to talk more about the ability to write applications directly to its Live Mesh service at its Professional Developers Conference, which takes place at the end of this month.

As I made the usual morning slog through my in-box Monday, I was about to skip past a news release touting a back-to-school promotion for Live Search Cashback, when I noticed one of the featured deals was on a ThinkPad tablet PC from electronic shoe retailer Zappos.com.

Thinking for sure it was a typo, I went to harass the person who sent me the release. The funny thing is, it really is Zappos selling that tablet computer. I missed it when Zappos expanded from high heels to high tech.

While the departure sounds strange, Zappos certainly wouldn't be the first online retailer to go well beyond its initial category. As we all know, Amazon was the world's largest bookstore before it moved into groceries, sporting goods, and basically anything they can put in a box (and even a few things that don't need a box).

The key was Amazon had a logistics system that worked better than anyone else's. I have no idea how efficient Zappos system is, since I still buy my shoes the old-fashioned way. However, my co-workers tell me they are amazingly fast at getting your order to you and, well, they do have cool robots.

As for that Live Search Cashback promotion, some of the participants, like Zappos, are offering double their usual cash-back percentage during August to those who place their order after going through Microsoft's site.

April is apparently coming early this year.

Microsoft has abruptly changed its tune on when Service Pack 1 will start showing up on retail shelves. Microsoft said it has started shipping the full retail versions of the product as of Tuesday (in addition to making it available for download). That means that Amazon.com is indeed going to be able to start sending out copies on Wednesday, as it had billed on its Web site.

As of Monday, Microsoft told CNET News.com that retail boxed copies would not be available until "as soon as April." Apparently that information was inaccurate.

"Initially, we targeted April as a conservative estimate for Windows Vista SP1 retail availability for full packaged product," Microsoft said in a new statement on Tuesday. "We were actually able to ship sooner than originally anticipated--today, in fact. Customers should expect to see Windows Vista SP1 (boxed copies) online and on store shelves as soon as retailers can make them available--in Amazon's case, starting tomorrow."

As far as when SP1 shows up preloaded on new PCs, Microsoft apparently still thinks that will take until next month in most cases.

"We released Windows Vista SP1 to manufacturers on February 4," Microsoft said. "Since then, retailers have been working to build PCs with Windows Vista SP1 and make them available to consumers as soon as possible. Based on what we understand from our partners in retail and OEMs, April is our best estimate for availability for PCs with SP1. However, there will be certain exceptions based on individual companies' distribution models."