Dell IdeaStorm
Encyclopedia
Dell IdeaStorm is a website
launched by Dell
on February 16, 2007 to allow Dell "to gauge which ideas are most important and most relevant to" the public.
After registering, users are able to add articles, promote them, demote them and comment on them. Articles can also be demoted, and a "vote half life" system is used to stop older ideas which are no longer receiving votes from appearing on the popular ideas page. Dell also modifies the half life vote to prop up ideas which they feel need more exposure, as they did for the poll asking which topics Michael Dell would be more important to cover at the 2007 LinuxWorld conference. As articles are promoted, their score is increased, allowing Dell to rank which suggestions and requests are considered most important by the website's users. A page is maintained to demonstrate how Dell is acting upon the suggestions, the page is only changed when the status of an idea changes to IMPLEMENTED, no information is provided as to which ideas are being acted on till then. The idea process involves much discussion which at time leads to more ideas, yet Dell continues to remove comments (besides comments which are in bad taste) which leads to confusion as the thought process of the comments is left disjointed and nonsensical at times. Voting has come under scrutiny with some members voting with more than one account, which generated the termed "double dippers", Dell has added some measures to help discourage this but is still working on preventing it.
Originally, the most popular suggestions concerned the inclusion of free software
and operating system
s in a Dell computer system. These suggestions were numerous, but were subsequently merged into a single "article". Due to popular demand, Dell quickly moved to survey customers on their preferred Linux distribution
s. On May 24, 2007, Dell started selling three computer systems with Ubuntu
7.04 preinstalled. The article requesting Linux systems eventually moved down the list to be replaced by newer ideas, such as a request to sell the Ubuntu systems internationally.
Other popular suggestions include requests for Dell's technical support
telephone line
s to be based in the USA (and other countries in which Dell computers are sold) and operated by people who speak and understand English
well
, as opposed to being based outside the USA or operated by foreigner
s who do not speak and understand English well; and that Dell's website be improved. Various improvements and changes in the style, design, and hardware
of Dell's products have also been requested. Current popular suggestions also concern such issues as preinstalled software being optional and reinstallation CDs being provided at no extra cost.
According to Dell Ideastorm's Terms of Services, a posted idea will grant Dell royalty free license to use and implement it without compensation to the originator. Participants should be aware of this before posting any ideas.
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
launched by Dell
Dell
Dell, Inc. is an American multinational information technology corporation based in 1 Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas, United States, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Bearing the name of its founder, Michael Dell, the company is one of the largest...
on February 16, 2007 to allow Dell "to gauge which ideas are most important and most relevant to" the public.
After registering, users are able to add articles, promote them, demote them and comment on them. Articles can also be demoted, and a "vote half life" system is used to stop older ideas which are no longer receiving votes from appearing on the popular ideas page. Dell also modifies the half life vote to prop up ideas which they feel need more exposure, as they did for the poll asking which topics Michael Dell would be more important to cover at the 2007 LinuxWorld conference. As articles are promoted, their score is increased, allowing Dell to rank which suggestions and requests are considered most important by the website's users. A page is maintained to demonstrate how Dell is acting upon the suggestions, the page is only changed when the status of an idea changes to IMPLEMENTED, no information is provided as to which ideas are being acted on till then. The idea process involves much discussion which at time leads to more ideas, yet Dell continues to remove comments (besides comments which are in bad taste) which leads to confusion as the thought process of the comments is left disjointed and nonsensical at times. Voting has come under scrutiny with some members voting with more than one account, which generated the termed "double dippers", Dell has added some measures to help discourage this but is still working on preventing it.
Originally, the most popular suggestions concerned the inclusion of free software
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
and operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
s in a Dell computer system. These suggestions were numerous, but were subsequently merged into a single "article". Due to popular demand, Dell quickly moved to survey customers on their preferred Linux distribution
Linux distribution
A Linux distribution is a member of the family of Unix-like operating systems built on top of the Linux kernel. Such distributions are operating systems including a large collection of software applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, media players, and database applications...
s. On May 24, 2007, Dell started selling three computer systems with Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
7.04 preinstalled. The article requesting Linux systems eventually moved down the list to be replaced by newer ideas, such as a request to sell the Ubuntu systems internationally.
Other popular suggestions include requests for Dell's technical support
Technical support
Technical support or tech support refers to a range of services by which enterprises provide assistance to users of technology products such as mobile phones, televisions, computers, software products or other electronic or mechanical goods...
telephone line
Telephone line
A telephone line or telephone circuit is a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system...
s to be based in the USA (and other countries in which Dell computers are sold) and operated by people who speak and understand English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
well
Fluency
Fluency is the property of a person or of a system that delivers information quickly and with expertise.-Speech:...
, as opposed to being based outside the USA or operated by foreigner
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
s who do not speak and understand English well; and that Dell's website be improved. Various improvements and changes in the style, design, and hardware
Computer hardware
Personal computer hardware are component devices which are typically installed into or peripheral to a computer case to create a personal computer upon which system software is installed including a firmware interface such as a BIOS and an operating system which supports application software that...
of Dell's products have also been requested. Current popular suggestions also concern such issues as preinstalled software being optional and reinstallation CDs being provided at no extra cost.
According to Dell Ideastorm's Terms of Services, a posted idea will grant Dell royalty free license to use and implement it without compensation to the originator. Participants should be aware of this before posting any ideas.