The Second Annual Life On The Wicked Stage Ink Blot Awards

In preparing for The Second Annual Wicked Stage Ink Blot Awards, I realized that it would be tough to write anything better about my motivation for creating them than I did in year one. What I wrote then is still more than an appropriate chronicle of my thoughts and feelings. 

I created The Life On The Wicked Stage Ink Blot Awards as a celebration. Yes, it's a celebration of the 1 year anniversary of this blog. But it is more than that. It is a celebration of a community that I have come to know and admire. The Tableteers that make up the Tablet PC Community are an amazing collection of individuals who know and work with the Tablet PC platform. They are fiercely protective of it, insatiably curious about advancing it, very intelligent, often wickedly funny, at one time very forgiving and patient, and in the same breath, scathingly critical when the need arises. They are also exceedingly willing to evangelize the platform to anyone who will listen, and in my humble opinion, have helped keep the spotlight on The Tablet PC in ways that may, in the long run, prove to be responsible for keeping the platform thriving. 

That all remains true, certainly, but the Tabletscape, like everything else, has evolved in a year. It actually has a name, The Tabletscape coined by James Kendrick. It now includes not only Ultra-Mobile PCs, but more things mobile. Ink is now side by side with touch. Those changes will continue and I hope we will continue to see growth. 

In the last year, we’ve witnessed the invasion of the Down Under Tableteers. Marc Orchant, while still occasionally blogging about Tablet PCs, now is an exec at Foldera and a blogger on ZDNet blogging about all sorts of productivity categories. Kevin Tofel has joined up with James Kendrick, the All Father of Tablet PCs, and they have formed a formidable team on jkOnTheRun. Tablet PC Buzz has had its ups and downs (it is down again at present, sadly) and we’ve seen a rash of new sites and new folks covering the UMPC market. (Is there a site anywhere that CTitanic is not writing for?) Podcasts (should we use that word?) and video reviews are a part of the scene in a big way, and I have to say, I really enjoy doing and watching the Inkshows we provide at GottaBeMobile.com, which has become a real and invaluable resource for the community and a new home for me. 

At launch last year, multiple Ink Blot Award winner, Mark Sumocat Sumimoto quickly nicknamed them The Blotties, which seems more than appropriate. So whether you call them the Blotties, or Ink Blot Awards, it makes no difference as to the fun I hope you have with the list. As before, there are no rules for inclusion, save my own. Recognition here comes simply from things that struck my fancy, or I think merit attention for one reason or the other. Yes, there are some "Best of Breed" awards here, and yes, there are some that are included just for the pure fun of it. Perhaps there are one or two included for ignominy as well. Who knows? Whatever the reason, I congratulate those who received a Blottie, (or is that those who were blotted) and look forward to the day that we can perhaps have this little celebration while getting blotto over the Blotties. 

So, sound the trumpets, cue the drum roll and the dancing girls. Take the jump and enjoy The Second Annual Life on the Wicked Stage Ink Blot Awards.

Repeats and Retiring A Few Honors

Yes, it is probably too early to be retiring a few awards, given that this is only year two of the dang things, but what the hey, no one is going to top these anyway.

• Most Obnoxious Tableteer Laugh: Tie-Robert Scoble and myself. (The only reason it is a tie is Scoble's laugh is heard more than mine.) 
• Best and Most Frequent Use Of The Word "Cool" in a Tablet PC Blog Post or Podcast: James Kendrick 
• Best First Family Of Tablet PCs: The Heiny's 
• Best Tablet PC Batman Fan: Marc Orchant

And now for the rest:

• Best Tablet PC Software Site: Tablet PC Post 
• Best Tablet PC Software released in 2006: TEO 3.0 
• Best Tablet PC Developer To Expose The Difficulties For Developing For The Tablet PC: Josh Einstein 
• Most Consistent and Most Creative Ink Blogger: Mark Sumocat Sumimoto 
• Most Dogged and Determined Tableteer Attempting To Get Vista on a UMPC: Kevin Tofel 
• Best Tablet PC Video Diva Act: James Kendrick in jkOnTheRun Mobile Media Edition #25 
• Most Tireless UMPC Coverage: CTitanic 
• Best Early Virtual Vista Coverage Allowing Us All To Live Vicariously: Tie-Colin Walker and Pete Wright 
• Best New Tablet PC Artist I Discovered This Year: Roy Blumenthal (Artwork here) 
• Best Mobile Podcast: MobileTech Roundup 
• Best Podcast Blooper: Kevin Tofel on MobileTech Roundup # 42 
• Best Example of Coining a Lousy Acronym: Kevin Tofel for UMPSIE 
• Best Book about Blogging: Robert Scoble and Shel Israel for Naked Conversations 
• Best MindManager Blogger: Jason Dorko of DorkoTech 
• Best Wacky Name for a Tablet PC Blog: DorkoTech 
• Best Tablet PC Cartoon Artist Who Hardly Ever Talks About His Tablet PC: Hugh MacLeod 
• Best Main Stream Tech Writer Convert To Liking Tablet PCs: Cisco Cheng of PC Magazine 
• Most Explosive Mobile Tech Company: Sony 
• Most Dangerous RootKit Purveyor: Sony 
• Best Kids Do Podcasting and Shame All The Adults Who Are Trying: Neek Talk 
• Best I Love Jensen Harris's Blogging But I Just Have To Create A Table Of Contents So I Can Find What I Want: Patrick Schmid   
• Most Prolific and On the Edge Down Under Tableteer that Microsoft Should Clone and Use for Evangelism: Hugo Ortega 
• Best Tablet PC Application No One Talks About Even Though It Allows You To Delete That Hog of an App, Adobe Acrobat: BlueBeam Revu (See the Inkshow here) 
• Most Often Posted Topic In The Blogosphere in 2006: Temporary Post Used For Style Detection (08f8524f-9850-43bc-b04r-df5add38do79)
• Most Thoughtful Blogger and Blogosphere Commentator: Michael Parekh 
• Best Bitch Slapping Fight In The Blogosphere Over Something That Is Inevitable Anyway, Pay Per Post: Tie-Jason Calacanis and Pete Wright 
• Best Tablet PC Software About To Be Released: OneNote 2007 
• Best I'm Trying To Start A Fight Between The Tablet PC Guys and the New Kids On The Block, The UMPC Guys: Ultranauts 
• Best Community Spirit Bar None: Dennis Rice for attempting to resurrect Tablet PC Buzz when it was down, during the week GottaBeMobile.com was about to launch its own forums 
• Best New Tablet PC Developer: Ed Holloway for the Ink Blog Plug-in and Ink Search Tool 
• Best All Father of Tablet PCs: James Kendrick (What's an All Father anyway?) 
• Best  Nick Name Giver to Tableteers: Mark Sumocat Sumimoto 
• Best Mobile Tech Blog To Reach 3 Million Visitors and 10,000 Comments: jkOnTheRun 
• Best Coiner of the Term Tabletscape: James Kendrick 
• Best Man of Many Tablet PCs: Rob Bushway 
• Best I Bounce When I Do Inkshows Because I'm So Excited: Matt Faulkner 
• Best Example of a Marketing Department That Needs Replacing: The team who came up with Microsoft 2007 Office system with the small 's' 
• Best Example of How Not To Set Expectations Too High So As Not To Give Your Product A Black Eye Out of the Chute While Forgetting to Talk About Key Points Like Why UMPCS Don't Come With Keyboards: The Team Who Launched the Origami Viral Campaign. 
• Best I've Got More Pictures Of The Asus R2H UMPC Than Anybody: Josh Bancroft 
• Best Surreal Podcast: The Gillmor Gang. (Anyone who can use Samuel Beckett and Bob Dylan as references in a podcast that gets published in 5 or more parts, threatens in reverse Beckett-like fashion that each show is the last one and still makes me laugh, and keeps my attention deserves to win something.)
• Best Tablet PC and UMPC Blogger for 2006: Tie-Craig Pringle and Kevin Tofel 
• Best Site CTitanic Is Not Blogging For: GottaBeMobile.com 
• Best German Tablet PC Site: BlogVogel 
• Best French Tablet PC and UMPC Site: Tablet PC Corner   
• Best Tableteer Bill Clinton Look-a-like: Dennis Rice 
• Best Mashup Site To Find Tablet PC News But Usually Only On The Weekends When Everyone Else In The Tech Industry Is Not Blogging: Techmeme 
• Best I Want A Large Screen Tablet PC So I'll Fake One In A Photo: Eric Mack 
• Best Check Out This Portable Battery Solution: Eric Mack 
• Most Appreciated Microsoft Team Working On Vista: The Tablet PC Team
• Most Statistics and Pictures Per Tablet PC Review: TabletPCReviewSpot.com
• Most Intriguing Tablet PC Developer: Loren Heiny 
• Best UMPC Coverage: Carrypad 
• Best Annual Wish List For Santa That Makes All Geeks Think About Committing Crimes To Purchase All The Cool Gadgets: Linda Epstein of TabletPC2.com 
• Best New Community Resource For Tablet PCs and UMPCs: WNewquay's TabletWiki 
• Best Example Of Mobile Tech Vaporware: DualCor cPC 
• Best Tablet PC Demo In A Restroom (at least the only one blogged about): Josh Bancroft 
• Best Starter of a Pornographic Trend In UMPC Blogging: Kevin Tofel for his Naked Q1 Pictures

Comments

[Colin Walker]

Thanks for the tied award Warner :) although I think Pete should get it as most of my posts were on the old version of my blog so no onger available.

[shel israel]

Thanks for citing our book Naked Conversations. However, I think Robert wins hands down for obnoxious Tableteer.

[Kevin C. Tofel]

First, I'd like to thank the Wicked Stage Academy as well the Foreign Press Association. Next....wait...why is the music starting; I've only just begun!!! *hurries off-stage but shouts*: Thank you Warner!!! :)

[Pete Wrigh]

I'd like to thank my parents, my colleagues, my wife.... :)

Seriously awesome Warner - thanks so very much for the award mate. :)

[jk]

Thanks once again Warner, for your tireless efforts in recognizing those of us who truly deserve it.

Just kidding, of course. :)

Given the rise of the UMPC I am promoting the Tabletscape be changed to the Slatescape. Sounds better, too.

Thanks again Warner!

[jk]

I almost forgot- I'd like to thank my dog, Oreo, for thinking I am the greatest thing on Planet Earth, no matter what. It's a cool feeling, to quote Jack Handey.

[Mark Sumimoto (Sumocat)]

What's an All-father? You know, like Odin, Lord of Asgard, except less divine and more cartoony.

[Hugo Ortega]

I'd like to thank my Mom, Dad, and all the Tablets that crossed my hands this year. I'd like to dedicate my award to MAC users who still live without a Tablet...don't know how they can!

You're a star WC, thanks for the shoutout.

[Achim]

I would like to thank my family, especially my father, without him I would have never gotten a taplet pc and would still be writing my blog with an old-fashioned keyboard. Ok, I know, without my father I wouldn't be living at all, but you get the point :-)

I just wish I had had any competitors ...

[Bob Heiny]

Thanks, Warner, for recognizing Tablet PC and Ultra Mobile PC efforts of Joan (known to many beyond our family in the Tablet community as "Mom") and my family. We're all proud to associate with the mobile PC community and look forward to seeing ya'll again at CES and other mobile/Tablet PC gatherings. We especially like the constructive, can-do, let's get-it-done, there-we-did-it attitude. Ink on!

[Mark Polino, CPA]

I would add, best Rhyming Tablet App for TEO Three Oh. Alternatively, best Tablet App that sounds like a droid.

[Jason Dorko]

I know you made this post quite some time ago but recent conditions have prevented me from reviewing it up until now!

I would just like to say thank you very much for the awards and I can't tell you how grateful I truly am for your acknowledgments. Congrats to all the other winners as well!