More exploding laptop craziness

Busy day at work, so I don't have a whole lot of time (the fact that I'm even posting this while I'm at work should be illuminating.)

There's a chance that I'm going to be on the CBS Evening News tonight (OK, pause to let impending wave of hysteria pass. There. Let's continue.)

Dell announced it was recalling 4.1 million laptop batteries, which set up a perfect storm of followup for our media activity last month (see here, here, here, here, here and here for more background.) We released an updated press release - Dell Computer Battery Recall Highlights Need for Action by Computing Industry says Info-Tech Research Group - and then the fun began.

In addition to the CBS hit (!) I've been interviewed by the New York Times, the L.A. Times, CTV, CTV NewsNet, and CFRB, among others.

I'll post links and stuff later on. Back to interviews...

Update @ 8:40 p.m. OK, it was on CBS. It seemed somewhat surreal to be watching a clip of myself on American network television. I've been on television before, but this seemed completely otherworldly. Does that make sense?

The piece is available from the CBS News web site. Click here to go to the Video Archives page, then scroll down to Computer Battery Recall. Click the Play button - I suspect you'll need Real Media playback software installed on your PC.

More web content on CBS: the network has uploaded an extended clip of me talking about the issue. From the link above, select CBS Evening News, then scoll down to Laptop Hazard. The original report by Cyntha Bowers, Computer Battery Recall, is also available from this list.

The CTV NewsNet piece with Dan Matheson aired late this afternoon. The article on CTV's site is Dell recall stems from production flaw: experts. An updated link is here. The link to the video can be found here. I've added the video link to the sidebar as well, and will add more as they become available online.

Update @ 9:05 p.m. Marketplace - an American Public Media program - aired a piece entitled Is your laptop safe? The previous link is to the script. The link to the sound file (Real Media format) is here. The reporter was Janet Babin.

Update @ 11:18 p.m. CTV News has aired the piece by reporter Jed Kahane. The direct link is here. They've also placed a link to it on the article page and consolidated their content with the NewsNet material. They also tossed in a picture of me. Isn't that neat?

More stuff...

• The Los Angeles Times. Fire-Risky Batteries Part of Daily Life. Byline Dawn C. Chmielewski, Staff Writer. Piece also cross-posted in the Chicago Tribune, KTLA the Rockford (IL) Register Star, the Daily Herald (Everett, WA), the China Post and Gulf News in the UAE.
  
• The Tampa Tribune. Dell Battery Recall Raises Questions. Byline Richard Mullins.
• The Toronto Star. Possible hazard on planes raised. Byline David Bruser, Business Reporter.
  
• Red Herring. Dude, You're Getting a Recall.
• The Kansas City Star. Dell battery recall a wakeup call, research firm says.
• The Kansas City Star. Electronics industry faulted after Dell recall: It has been slow to act on potential problems with laptop batteries, researchers say. Byline David Hayes.
• IT World Canada. Dell battery recall a warning to computer industry, says analyst: Levy dubs after-the-fact recalls a 'band-aid solution'. Byline Ernest DaSilva.
  
• SearchCIO.com. Battery recall has upside for Dell. Byline Linda Tucci, Senior News Writer for TechTarget. Also crossposted to ComputerWeekly, SearchMobileComputing, and SearchCRM.
  
• InformationWeek. Dell Recall Shows Laptops Becoming A Risky Business: Some industry watchers are calling for stricter standards for how to cool the tightly packed devices. Byline Antone Gonsalves. Article also posted to CRN, iTnews Australia and TechWeb.
• The News and Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina). Good batteries can go bad. Byline Anne Krishnan, Staff Writer. Also picked up by the Wichita Eagle/Kansas.com and the Indisnapolist Star (headline: Take steps to prolong the life of your laptop.)
  
• Agence France-Presse. Analysis: Dell endures a nightmare week. (Printed in the Taipei Times.) Also posted to Fin24 in South Africa, Week of hell for Dell and the Jamaica Observer.
  
• Tekrati, the Industry Analyst Reporter. Re-post of original press release.
• Tekrati. Battery Recall Tests the Mettle of Analysts, Too. Byline Barbara French. This is quite possibly my favorite response to this issue, as it absolutely validates everything my firm and I have done. We've gone against the herd, risked vilification by folks who called us scaremongers, and essentially carved our own path on an issue that we felt was critically important to the industry. I read stuff like this and I feel incredibly good about what I do for a living.
  
• itBusiness.ca. Shane Schick has written an excellent editorial about Info-Tech's position through this entire process. Can we say vindication? Looks like I owe someone a lunch! The piece is entitled Blame it on the battery.
  

I'll keep adding as it hits the Net, so check back soon. I promise I'll make it fun.