IdeaStorm: Ideas in Action

• Weekly Recap 5-7-08

  Thu. May. 08, 2008
  by Dawn Lacallade, Idea Gal

  It has been a busy week for us around Ideastorm!  Here are a couple of the "usual" updates and a couple of new components thanks to Jervis' wonderful suggestions.

  The Usual- The happenings of the week.

  As you scroll down you will see the more detailed review of the Ideastorm contributions to the newly announced XPS 730.  Man, you guys are great designers!  In the continued pursuit of cleaning up old ideas, we updated webcams and graphics cards.  Robert_P has been joining the discussion for several weeks as the Small Business Liaison and this week he chimed in on the debate about Dell Small Business Vs Dell Home.  The past several weeks have shown us in both Dell sites as well as broadly across the blogosphere that the desire to keep XP is as hot as ever.  Dell has responded with an update on how we will continue to offer XP.  Last but probably most intriguing is the launch of Dell's newest blog last week.  Yourblog is a place where you can drive the agenda and even author blogs for Dell.  We would love to have you contribute! 

  How about some introductions to the Community team at Dell?  This week we launched the beginning phase of a bio page on the all of the usual suspects. 

  In the outside world, we have been watching a growing debate about the uses of Ideastorm like sites for various business uses for several weeks in this update.  Most recently there has been a growing list of companies getting involved in creating new platforms to host these sites and a hot debate about the merit of these companies.  

  Welcome to new users!

  The Ideastorm would like to welcome all of the 200+ new users we saw last week!  We noticed a couple of new users who jumped in head first like sa2008 who had 1 idea, 11 comments, 8 votes and jamesmoroni1 who had 3 ideas, 7 votes!  We had more than 75 new ideas last week and had several ideas that gained much momentum. 

  Gaining Momentum-  Ideas on the up and up

  Did you catch the recent news that Dell is moving away from our build to order infinite configuration model?  Ideastorm users continued to find this idea was of much concern.  I am sure no one missed the patriotic streak we had on Ideastorm last week.  It began and quickly spread to showed that patriotic colors take many forms.  We also saw an idea that shared the need for less gain some speed. 

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• Don't Eliminate XP Just Yet

  Thu. May. 01, 2008
  by Caroline Dietz, IdeaStorm Manager
  We heard you loud and clear on bringing the Windows XP option back to our Dell consumer PC offerings. Based on your feedback, the following Dell consumer systems with Windows XP are now immediately available on Dell.com:

  Dell Inspiron: 1405, 1705, 1505, 1501 Dell Dimension: E520, E521

  These systems offer two flavors of Windows XP - Home and Pro. We appreciate the continued feedback from the IdeaStorm community. Keep ‘em coming! (4-18-07)
  

  Update 4-15-08: We are also offering XP for Small Business Customers which you can read more about here.

  Update 5-1-08: Unsure about XP End of Life or the Vista Downgrade? Check out this post from Jenni Doane, Global SMB Software Manager.   

  Back to the idea:  Don't Eliminate XP Just Yet
  

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• XPS 730: You Voted for It

  Thu. May. 01, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  Last year the XPS team asked the IdeaStorm community to help choose the look of a clear side panel for a future gaming desktop system.

     Concept 1                                                     Concept 2 - WINNER
  

                                                                
    

  Of the two choices, the community made it clear which option they wanted most. This feedback from the Dell community helped the XPS team finalize the look for the XPS 730, launched today.

  IdeaStorm users eaglewonj and rrf985 liked the second concept best since kept true to the XPS branding and more than 760 other users voted for the concept as well.

  For more details on the XPS 730, check out the post from Anne Camden on our newest blog focusing on personal technology www.direct2dell.com/yourblog. Anne's post also includes vlogs on H2C cooling, overclocking and a system overview.

  A big thanks goes out to all the IdeaStorm users who voted on these ideas and all the other great suggestions on the site. We continue to listen to what you have to say and look forward to putting even more ideas into action.

  Link Back to the Ideas: Now You Choose - Concept 1 ; Now You Choose - Concept 2 

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• Weekly Recap 4-30-08

  Wed. Apr. 30, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  This past week, the IdeaStorm community received updates on several support-related suggestions. Kay_s posted a fairly candid response to how we have improved our chat wait times. Also, andrea_l, the DellConnect program manager, weighed in on several DellConnect ideas talking about what we offer, downloading, optimization and pre-installation (launching May 1).

  We've seen a bunch of IdeaStormers on Twitter over the past several weeks. So, for all tweeting, you can follow the most recent IdeaStorm ideas http://twitter.com/IdeaStorm and all our Ideas in Action updates http://twitter.com/IdeaStormAction via Twitter.

  In the world of online news, IdeaStorm was called out as a "good first step" in incorporating Web 2.0 technology beyond blogs and wikis (Who Are The Web 2.5 Winners?).

  It's been almost two months since we started the Weekly Recap. Let us know what else you would like to read about.

   

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• Weekly Recap 4-23-08

  Wed. Apr. 23, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  Another great week on IdeaStorm! Since the last update we've had another seven Ideas in Action.

  It has been a very green week for us (as you could probably tell by our new banner). Our resident Dell environment guru todd_d has been busy informing the community about what being green means to Dell. The community learned more about how we have changed our packaging and what we do around Dell campuses to be green.
  

  Two popular ideas from last year were also updated and are no longer In Progress but Implemented. Toni_d updated the community about the new and expanded photo gallery, and the beta passed for Assistance Seeker that allows customers to browse new systems by need not price. As well, hope_l talked about the role of our Experience Design team in one of the most popular design ideas.

  And, in case the IdeaStorm community wasn't feeling loved enough, here are a couple nice call-outs!

  New Dell Vostro Laptop Range Driven Customer Feedback

  What's next for Dell customer service
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• Environmentally-friendly packaging

  Mon. Apr. 21, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  It's great to see all of the "green" ideas popping up on IdeaStorm! We are part of the ReGeneration and continue to make protecting the environment part of the core of Dell. Over the past several months you've probably noticed several comments from todd_d, our environment liaison. We made a lot of progress in 2006 and 2007 towards our goals for environmentally-friendly packaging and being the Greenest Technology Company.

  IdeaStorm members ewagnerjr2000 and nboyle both suggested that we look into greener packing materials. Over the past several years we have expanded our materials portfolio to include more environmentally-friendly materials and reduce the total overall materials we use (less cardboard, wood, plastic and paper). As part of this process we review packaging materials and test each of them to make sure our products will still be protected on their way to the customer.

  So when we make a choice as to what material to use, we look at the test results, the environmental impact, the cost and other factors before making the decision. For the past four years we've been able to capitalize on changes to our packaging methods (like multipack and slipsheets) and materials to reduce packaging waste by one million pounds or more every year.

  Check out the environmental responsibility section of our sustainability report and review pages 55-56 for more information on what we're doing to optimize packaging for our customers and the Earth. Stay tuned for FY08's sustainability report coming out later this year and continue to tell us your ideas on being even greener.

  Link back to packaging ideas: Biodegradable packing materials ; Use less packaging materials than any other company

   

  Link back to ideas on Dell being Green: Dell Staff can help the environment ; Do a Dell "protecting the environment ad campaign ; Dell tries to save the environment
  

   

   

   

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• Weekly Recap 4-16-08

  Wed. Apr. 16, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  The past week has been rather exciting for the IdeaStorm team. With the completion of our idea management pilot, we've engaged in several great discussions with business leaders about how learn from, and engage with, the IdeaStorm community.

  Also, seven of the all-time highest voted ideas on IdeaStorm received a status update from two of our experts on Linux and software.

  Jeremy_f filled in the community on the latest software options (There should be an option of having no trialware on all computers | No extra software option) and security enhancements (Child-friendly environment to protect parent's files).

  John_h gave a lot of great insight on several hot Linux topics - hardware compatibility (Provide Linux compatibility information on all products up front), drivers (Make XP Linux drivers available for all model even if only Vista is preinstalled), and expanding our scope (Become the OpenSource OEM |  Stripped down fast Linux_Box). Also john_h, along with matt_d, talked with Todd Weiss of Computerworld about Dell's Linux program.

  And, if you didn't see the post already, we had a new Idea in Action this week for Small and Medium Business. Also, when you get a chance, check out their new blog that kelly_c manages.

  Until next week--

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• Vostro Lineup Redesign

  Tue. Apr. 15, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  The small business community has spoken, and we've listened. Less than a year after the launch of our Vostro line of laptops and desktops, we have made several enhancements based on customer feedback we received. IdeaStorm member liraco suggested that we add a 7200 RPM hard drive option to the Vostro 1500 about a month after the launch. And, back in October of last year, ojisan recommended that we make a more compact Vostro laptop. As of today we are offering a 13.3" Vostro laptop that weighs 20 percent less than the Vostro 1400 and the option to have a 7200 RPM hard drive in the lighter, redesigned 1510. Click here to read more about the lineup on the new SMB blog and keep up the great ideas!

  Link back to the ideas: Vostro 1500 with 7200 RPM hard drive option ; Addition of 13.3 to Vostro notebook line

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• Update on IdeaStorm 4-7-08

  Mon. Apr. 07, 2008
  by Dawn Lacallade, Idea Gal

  Everyone - I wanted give an update on the improvements we’ve been working toward this year. In February I first shared a plan to jump-start IdeaStorm into the second year. Kara, Jackie and I have all been hard at work to make these changes. So, I would like to take a moment to discuss the status of our plan.

  Technology:  Over the past couple months our team and Salesforce.com have been spending a lot of quality time together building the best possible platform for IdeaStorm. This includes two distinct components:

  · Continued Site Enhancements: This includes both improvements to the user interface and some of the process improvements below. Recently we launched the status bars to clearly show which ideas we have taken action on. Look for more visual improvements to come over the next several months.

  · The not so visible (but every bit as important) Idea Management platform: We just finished our pilot of Salesforce.com’s exciting project for us to improve the management of ideas to make sure they get to every corner of Dell. Our first priority with this functionality is to work on catching up with the 9k ideas. A huge step in the right direction to get responses to the ideas that matter most to the community.

  Staffing and Participation:  As I mentioned in the last update, we have the same full time staff of Kara, Dawn and Jackie as well as a host of consistent contributors like Matt_D, John_H, Jesse_L, Chris_B, Chris_M, etc... In addition, we are bringing in new experts every day to comment on ideas in their area of expertise.

  Process Improvement: Through designing our new Idea Management tool we have structured and refined the process of evaluating ideas. In addition, we are initiating a “house-cleaning” of the previous year’s ideas. This process includes: reducing the overall number of status tag options, merging ideas to eliminate duplicates, and continuing to update the community on the top ideas of all-time and ideas that are tagged as “Under Review.” It has taken time to migrate everything from our existing process to the new one, but it was well worth it.

  We are excited by the progress made over the past two months and hope you are enjoying the changes as we tackle these projects. Thanks for hanging in with us!

  Dawn

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• Weekly Recap: 4-2-08

  Wed. Apr. 02, 2008
  by Kara Krautter, IdeaStorm Communication

  You may have noticed that last week was fairly quiet on IdeaStorm. No, we weren't avoiding you. Instead, the team was busy launching the pilot for our new idea management program. With this new program, we have a more efficient and effective way to push the top ideas to the right departments inside of Dell. Now, not just the ideas on the front page will be reviewed by Dell, but more of the popular ideas throughout all categories will have greater visibility. 

  Today we've added a few new features to the site including a link to Storm Room and a way to directly contact our moderator, Jackie. At the top of the IdeaStorm page, you will find links to important information about the site as well as ways to keep in touch with the IdeaStorm team. If you have a pressing issue or question about how to use the site, registration or your account, click on the ‘contact moderator' link to get in touch with Jackie. Also, the link name for our moderator's blog has changed since there are many ways you can 'talk with the moderator' via: comments on the blog, Storm Room or email. As a reminder, the moderator's blog is the place to get the latest on important site information, updates, and maintenance.

  IdeaStorm continues to be in the news as more companies begin to see the value in listening to customers, and the Web 2.0 community continues to chat about driving business innovation.

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