Author: Wade Roush

Between 2007 and 2014, I was a staff editor for Xconomy in Boston and San Francisco. Since 2008 I've been writing a weekly opinion/review column called VOX: The Voice of Xperience. (From 2008 to 2013 the column was known as World Wide Wade.) I've been writing about science and technology professionally since 1994. Before joining Xconomy in 2007, I was a staff member at MIT’s Technology Review from 2001 to 2006, serving as senior editor, San Francisco bureau chief, and executive editor of TechnologyReview.com. Before that, I was the Boston bureau reporter for Science, managing editor of supercomputing publications at NASA Ames Research Center, and Web editor at e-book pioneer NuvoMedia. I have a B.A. in the history of science from Harvard College and a PhD in the history and social study of science and technology from MIT. I've published articles in Science, Technology Review, IEEE Spectrum, Encyclopaedia Brittanica, Technology and Culture, Alaska Airlines Magazine, and World Business, and I've been a guest of NPR, CNN, CNBC, NECN, WGBH and the PBS NewsHour. I'm a frequent conference participant and enjoy opportunities to moderate panel discussions and on-stage chats. My personal site: waderoush.com My social media coordinates: Twitter: @wroush Facebook: facebook.com/wade.roush LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/waderoush Google+ : google.com/+WadeRoush YouTube: youtube.com/wroush1967 Flickr: flickr.com/photos/wroush/ Pinterest: pinterest.com/waderoush/

Why It’s Crazy for Authors to Keep Their Books Off the Kindle

In June, I wrote a column about the problem of “On Demand Disorder“—my name for the narrowing of vision that can occur when people get addicted to the instant experiences available over the Internet and other digital media. If you only listen to the music you can find on iTunes or Pandora or Last.fm, if … Continue reading “Why It’s Crazy for Authors to Keep Their Books Off the Kindle”

Acquia on Why Web Publishers Love Drupal—And How the Startup Balances Business With Belonging to an Open-Source Community

So you want to be a Web publisher? First you’ll need the modern equivalent of a printing press: a content management system (CMS). There are many to choose from, each with its own committed proponents. If you’re a big company, you might spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on an enterprise-class system like EMC’s Documentum. … Continue reading “Acquia on Why Web Publishers Love Drupal—And How the Startup Balances Business With Belonging to an Open-Source Community”

With Funding from OVP, Novomer Works to Make Diapers and Other Plastic Goodies from Carbon Gases

Carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide get a bad rap. Sure, the first is a silent killer that binds to hemoglobin and suffocates people in burning buildings, and the second is poisoning our atmosphere and driving global temperatures out of control. But did you know that they can also be used to make plastic? Back in … Continue reading “With Funding from OVP, Novomer Works to Make Diapers and Other Plastic Goodies from Carbon Gases”

Jake Shapiro on PRX and the iPhone App That Could Change Public Radio’s Future

At first, the mission of the Public Radio Exchange was simple enough: Create an online clearinghouse for news-and-culture radio programming where public radio stations would have an easier time shopping for shows and independent producers would have a better shot at getting their stuff on the air. PRX launched that system in 2003, and it’s … Continue reading “Jake Shapiro on PRX and the iPhone App That Could Change Public Radio’s Future”

Xconomy Goes Mobile at m.xconomy.com

We’re happy to announce that there’s now an easier to way to read Xconomy on your mobile phone. Go to http://m.xconomy.com for the new mobile-friendly version of our site, which we’ve simplified for easy navigation on small screens. All the usual content is there: our Boston, San Diego, and Seattle news stories, along with Xconomist … Continue reading “Xconomy Goes Mobile at m.xconomy.com”

OVP Leads $14M Novomer Round

According to an announcement expected this Wednesday, Kirkland, WA-based OVP Venture Partners is the lead funder in a $14 million Series B venture round for Boston-based Novomer, which is developing ways to manufacture “green” polymers from renewable materials such as carbon dioxide. The startup, which we profiled in November 2007, was founded in Ithaca, NY, … Continue reading “OVP Leads $14M Novomer Round”

$6M Alms for Zendesk

Boston-based Zendesk, which sells a software-as-a-service system for customer support management used by Twitter and many other companies, has raised $6 million in Series B funding, according to an announcement circulated today. New investor Benchmark Capital of Menlo Park, CA, led the round, and Waltham’s Charles River Ventures participated pro rata. “Two of our portfolio … Continue reading “$6M Alms for Zendesk”

Innocentive Raises $7M—One More Time—to Keep Building Problem-Solving Network

In a development that may cause déjà vu for anyone who read my May 2008 story about Waltham, MA-based Innocentive raising approximately $7 million as part of a Series B funding round, Innocentive has raised approximately $7 million as part of a Series B funding round. Again. This time around, it’s $7.3 million, in a … Continue reading “Innocentive Raises $7M—One More Time—to Keep Building Problem-Solving Network”

Dark Day for Digital Photo Services: PicMe, BubbleShare, Riya Fade to Black

In an online photo mini-apocalypse, three Web 2.0-era photo sharing and management services—BubbleShare, Riya, and PicMe—announced late this week that they’re shutting down operations. The closings aren’t entirely coincidental. Greg Raiz of Raizlabs, the Cambridge, MA-based software development house that built PicMe, says he accelerated plans to mothball and hopefully sell the application after he … Continue reading “Dark Day for Digital Photo Services: PicMe, BubbleShare, Riya Fade to Black”

Startups Give E-mail a Big Boost on the iPhone with ReMail and GPush

As a device for managing your e-mail, the Apple iPhone isn’t bad, but it does have a few quirks and limitations. This week, I want to write about two brand-new applications that work around those failings, making the iPhone into a far more powerful tool for staying connected. The first app grabbed my attention because … Continue reading “Startups Give E-mail a Big Boost on the iPhone with ReMail and GPush”

Greentech Media Refreshes Its Venture Coffers

Regulatory documents filed yesterday show that Cambridge, MA-based Greentech Media, which covers cleantech innovation through an online news site, market research, and events, has collected $825,000 of a planned $1.25 million equity funding round. Contacted by Xconomy, Greentech Media’s president and CEO Scott Clavenna says the money is an extension of the $2.75 million Series … Continue reading “Greentech Media Refreshes Its Venture Coffers”

93 More Layoffs at Sonus

Sonus Networks (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SONS]]), the Westford, MA-based maker of voice-over-IP software and equipment for wireless, cable, and telephone companies, announced today that it has cut 93 workers, or approximately 10 percent of its global workforce. Richard Nottenburg, Sonus’s CEO and president, called the layoffs “the final phase of the restructuring initiative we began at the … Continue reading “93 More Layoffs at Sonus”

Vitality, Connecting Pill Bottles to the Internet, Nudges People to Remember Their Meds

If you’re the kind of person who needs a little help remembering to take your prescription meds, Cambridge, MA-based Vitality might have just the technology you need. It’s a wireless, Internet-connected medicine bottle cap that blinks and plays a tune when it’s time to down your pills. The company’s “GlowCaps” system, which goes on sale … Continue reading “Vitality, Connecting Pill Bottles to the Internet, Nudges People to Remember Their Meds”

Jules Pieri of The Daily Grommet Wants to Make You Think Outside the Retail Big Box

Last month I wrote about the Daily Grommet, an e-commerce startup in Lexington, MA, whose website features one cool new product or service—a “grommet,” to use the company’s term—every weekday. Far from being yet another automated online store, the Daily Grommet puts its own staff members on camera to record short, homey, informally edited videos … Continue reading “Jules Pieri of The Daily Grommet Wants to Make You Think Outside the Retail Big Box”

VMware Drinks Up SpringSource

VMware (NYSE: [[ticker:VMW]]), the Palo Alto, CA-based virtualization subsidiary of Hopkinton, MA-based information management giant EMC (NYSE: [[ticker:EMC]]), said yesterday that it has agreed to acquire SpringSource for $420 million in cash and stock. The San Mateo company makes tools used by developers to write Java software. The deal, VMware’s largest acquisition to date, has … Continue reading “VMware Drinks Up SpringSource”

Turbine Collects $6.6M of $50M Round for Role-Playing Empire

Turbine, the Westwood, MA-based maker of online role-playing games profiled here last week, has obtained $6.57 million of a planned $50 million Series D round of financing from its venture funders, according to a document filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The funding was first reported by Dan Primack at PE Hub. So … Continue reading “Turbine Collects $6.6M of $50M Round for Role-Playing Empire”

$2.5M for Akademos

Akademos, a Norwalk, CT-based startup that sells used college textbooks and course materials through online bookstores, has raised $2.5 million in equity funding, according to documents filed August 4 with the Securities and Exhange Commission. Kohlberg Ventures of Portola Valley, CA, provided the funding, according to a press release circulated today, and Kohlberg partner Bill … Continue reading “$2.5M for Akademos”

In Bold Move Toward Free Online Fantasy Gaming, Turbine Prepares to Throw Open the Gates to Dungeons & Dragons

Few major media markets are as lopsided as the online swords-and-sorcery game genre. World of Warcraft, owned by the Activision Blizzard division of Vivendi SA, has a population of 12 million players, each paying at least $12.99 per month to go on group quests for virtual treasure and glory. Westwood, MA-based Turbine, the maker of … Continue reading “In Bold Move Toward Free Online Fantasy Gaming, Turbine Prepares to Throw Open the Gates to Dungeons & Dragons”

Apperian Raises $1 Million

Boston-based Apperian, founded by Apple veterans as a development shop for enterprise-oriented iPhone applications, has closed a $1 million Series A venture round led by CommonAngels of Lexington, MA, according to an announcement circulated today. “We have been incredibly impressed by the team as well as their customers’ vision and passion for the possibilities on … Continue reading “Apperian Raises $1 Million”

RXi Announces $8.3M Offering

Worcester, MA-based RXi Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RXII]]) said today it is raising $8.3 million in working capital through a stock offering that’s expected to close on August 4. The company, which is developing drugs based on RNA interference for the treatment of conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, is selling about 2.4 million shares of common stock … Continue reading “RXi Announces $8.3M Offering”

Netezza Pursues Broader Customer Base with Cheaper Data Storage Technology

The reality in the IT world, as one executive at Marlborough, MA-based Netezza (NYSE: [[ticker:NZ]]) puts it, is that “the cost of adding more data to disks is getting closer to zero every day.” That’s not great news if your traditional business is selling high-performing servers at $60,000 per terabyte. So to keep growing, Netezza … Continue reading “Netezza Pursues Broader Customer Base with Cheaper Data Storage Technology”

Shareaholic Becomes the Link-Sharing Tool of Choice—And Builds a Vast Database on Social Media Behavior

Blogging is about active sharing. I’ve known this on an intellectual level for years, but working for Xconomy has made the idea very real to me. My stories reach far more readers if I take a few extra minutes every day to share the items with my e-mail contacts and Twitter followers, and to submit … Continue reading “Shareaholic Becomes the Link-Sharing Tool of Choice—And Builds a Vast Database on Social Media Behavior”

MBTA Data Helps Google Users Get Around Boston

At a press conference in the bustling lobby of Boston’s South Station this morning, Google and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (known to locals as the “T”) announced that they’ve collaborated to make route and schedule information for all T trains and buses available inside Google Maps. It’s all information that’s already online at the … Continue reading “MBTA Data Helps Google Users Get Around Boston”

Making Carbon Credits Count: World Energy Upgrades Green Exchange Marketplace

If you worry about contributing to global warming–and who doesn’t?—there’s more than one way to go green. You can take actions to reduce your carbon footprint,which, for a big company, might mean doing things like building a LEED-certified office building or buying hybrid vehicles for your corporate fleet. Or you can buy carbon offsets, also … Continue reading “Making Carbon Credits Count: World Energy Upgrades Green Exchange Marketplace”

Patrick Administration Questions the Case for Changing Noncompetes; Community Reacts

[Updated with extensive comments—see pages 2 and 3] In a message posted yesterday on his “Mass Innovation” blog, Massachusetts Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Gregory Bialecki says the case for outlawing noncompete clauses in employment contracts in the state is not yet “sufficiently proven” for Governor Deval Patrick’s administration to throw its weight behind … Continue reading “Patrick Administration Questions the Case for Changing Noncompetes; Community Reacts”

Mathcad Inventor Reveals New Startup’s True Ambition—Numbers That Mean More and Don’t Make Mistakes

Engineering may be a numbers-driven profession, but it’s the context surrounding the numbers that makes all the difference. NASA learned that the hard way in September 1999. Engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory programmed thrusters on the Mars Climate Orbiter, which was designed to take up a permanent orbit around the Red Planet, to expect … Continue reading “Mathcad Inventor Reveals New Startup’s True Ambition—Numbers That Mean More and Don’t Make Mistakes”

Massachusetts Has “One Foot in the 21st Century, One Foot in the 18th,” Says Attorney General Coakley

In an informal discussion with technology leaders from industry and academia this morning at Microsoft’s New England Research and Development Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley and staff members from her office covered a range of issues affecting technology businesses and consumers, from cybercrime to the need to overhaul the state’s laws regarding … Continue reading “Massachusetts Has “One Foot in the 21st Century, One Foot in the 18th,” Says Attorney General Coakley”

Phase Forward Acquires Maaguzi

Phase Forward (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PFWD]]), the Waltham, MA-based maker of software used by pharmaceutical companies to manage data collection and analysis during clinical trials, said today that it has acquired Indianapolis, IN-based Maaguzi for $11 million in cash. Maaguzi operates a Web-based service used to collect data reported directly by patients. Phase Forward also reported today … Continue reading “Phase Forward Acquires Maaguzi”

Rayspan Raises $12.5 Million from Sequoia, Khosla Ventures

San Diego-based Rayspan said today that it has collected $12.5 million in Series B funding to finance its work on advanced materials that could be used to make smaller, more sensitive, and more versatile antennas for mobile devices. Existing investor Sequoia Capital of Menlo Park, CA, provided part of the money, with the rest coming … Continue reading “Rayspan Raises $12.5 Million from Sequoia, Khosla Ventures”

Silverlink Makes A Science of Healthcare Communication

When Merck recalled its arthritis drug Vioxx on September 30, 2004, Connecticut-based online pharmacy FamilyMeds wasted no time notifying customers. Within three hours after the recall was announced, an automated telephone system began calling Vioxx users to inform them about the change. But there was a twist—to comply with the federal healthcare privacy law known … Continue reading “Silverlink Makes A Science of Healthcare Communication”

The Fastest Growing Startups in Boston, Seattle, and SoCal

Behind the stubborn economic clouds, there may be a few hints of blue sky. A few companies, in other words, are hiring rather than firing—and a new report from StartUpHire, a Vienna, VA-based job board that specializes in advertising open positions at venture-backed startups, has the lowdown on which ones (see the lists below). As … Continue reading “The Fastest Growing Startups in Boston, Seattle, and SoCal”

Project Tuva or Bust: How Microsoft’s Spin on Feynman Could Change the Way We Learn

“I don’t know what’s the matter with people: they don’t learn by understanding, they learn by some other way—by rote or something,” physicist Richard Feynman once said. “Their knowledge is so fragile!” Maybe Feynman’s brain was big enough to simply “learn by understanding”—sucking in and comprehending complex realities in a single glance. But what I … Continue reading “Project Tuva or Bust: How Microsoft’s Spin on Feynman Could Change the Way We Learn”

Amazon’s Acquisition of Zappos Is “A Good Thing for Kiva,” Says Robot Company’s CEO

Much of the buzz about Amazon’s surprise announcement yesterday that it is acquiring popular online shoe retailer Zappos for more than $900 million is about whether the Las Vegas-based company really needed to sell, or was pressured to do so by its main venture backer, Sequoia Capital. But the first thing I wondered when I … Continue reading “Amazon’s Acquisition of Zappos Is “A Good Thing for Kiva,” Says Robot Company’s CEO”

The Big Idea at Acme Packet: Smoothing the Way for Voice and Video on the Internet

You’re an unfunded early-stage startup and your sole venture backer sends you a check for millions of dollars. Unfortunately, it’s made out to the wrong company name, so you can’t deposit it. What do you do? You change your name, of course. That’s how Primary Networks became Acme Packet. The Burlington, MA, maker of Internet … Continue reading “The Big Idea at Acme Packet: Smoothing the Way for Voice and Video on the Internet”

Startup School: The Xconomy Guide to Venture Incubators, 2009 Edition

Technology entrepreneurship can be a lonely road. Not only do you have to convince a few friends or colleagues to work hundred-hour weeks for the next several years in support of your wild idea, but you’ve got to make it past the elevator pitch with at least one funder, and then prove that your idea … Continue reading “Startup School: The Xconomy Guide to Venture Incubators, 2009 Edition”

Pangea’s Quiver of Quizzes for the Social Media and ‘Brand Hacking’ Era

Are you smarter than Paris Hilton? If you could know the exact time, date, and location of your death, would you want to know? Which Harry Potter character are you? If you could only have one home gaming system for the rest of your life, which one would you pick? It wouldn’t be hard to … Continue reading “Pangea’s Quiver of Quizzes for the Social Media and ‘Brand Hacking’ Era”

Azuki Systems Builds Swimsuit iPhone App for Sports Illustrated

Being neither heterosexual nor much of a sports fan, I’ve never quite understood the annual excitement generated by the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. But lots of folks out there will no doubt be glad to hear that the swimsuit models, like everything else these days, are now available as an iPhone app. Azuki Systems, the … Continue reading “Azuki Systems Builds Swimsuit iPhone App for Sports Illustrated”

$3.5M Tranche for HealthEdge Software

[Updated and corrected, 3:15 p.m., July 21, 2009] Regulatory documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday indicate that HealthEdge Software of Burlington, MA, has collected $3.5 million in venture financing. Ray Desrochers, HealthEdge’s chief operating officer, said the funds represent the third tranche of a $13 million venture round announced last year from … Continue reading “$3.5M Tranche for HealthEdge Software”

Go2Media Gets $3M

Boston-based mobile publisher Go2Media said yesterday that it has closed a $3 million funding round led by General Catalyst Partners of Cambridge. The company also said 2.5 million mobile phone users accessed its personalized entertainment guide in June, making it what the company called “the most visited entertainment guide on mobile.”

Akiba Raises $6.5M for Virtualization

According to regulatory documents filed yesterday, stealth Boston startup Akiba has closed a $6.53 million Series A venture capital round with participation by North Bridge Venture Partners and Foundation Capital. The company describes itself as developing a virtualization technology that makes it easier to manage relational databases in cloud-computing environments.

Compromise Bill Would Allow, But Scale Back, Noncompete Agreements in Massachusetts

A new draft bill that would limit but not outlaw noncompete agreements in employment contracts in Massachusetts is being floated by two members of the state’s House of Representatives. The bill combines elements of separate bills introduced earlier this year by Representatives William Brownsberger of the 24th Middlesex district and Lori Ehrlich of the 8th … Continue reading “Compromise Bill Would Allow, But Scale Back, Noncompete Agreements in Massachusetts”

$8M Second Round for Acquia

Andover, MA-based Acquia, which sells a commercial version of the open-source Drupal content management system, has raised $8 million in new working capital, according to a regulatory filing published Friday. A spokesperson told Mass High Tech that investors North Bridge Venture Partners and Sigma Partners, who also participated in Acquia’s $7 million first funding round … Continue reading “$8M Second Round for Acquia”

HP Acquires Ibrix

Hewlett-Packard of Palo Alto, CA, will acquire Billerica, MA-based Ibrix, HP said in an announcement today. The nine-year-old company, with 53 employees, makes software used by large enterprises such as AOL, Pixar, and Blizzard Entertainment to manage network file servers holding petabytes of data. The financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. PE Hub reports … Continue reading “HP Acquires Ibrix”

Nitro Investors Get $23M in Sapient Stock

A regulatory filing published yesterday showed that Boston, MA-based marketing and technology consultancy Sapient (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SAPE]]) had issued company shares worth $23.4 million in a private stock offering. According to the company, the shares were part of Sapient’s purchase last month of Nitro, an international advertising firm, for approximately $50 million in cash and stock. … Continue reading “Nitro Investors Get $23M in Sapient Stock”