Nike at SXSW
Here's a quick recap of Nike at SXSW 2012 and my Nike+ FuelBand setup errors I encountered and my work arounds, including correspondence from Nike support.
Image: Jimmy Fallon opens SXSW 2012 Digital Sport Panel
Jimmy Fallon's opening 3 minute introduction to the SXSW 2012 Digital Sport Panel panelists was funnier than some other whole one hour comedy keynotes.
Everyone on the Digital Sport Panel was interesting, but Nike VP of Digital Sport, Stefan Olander, a Matthew McConaughey look-a-like (according to Fallon, and very accurate), was most impressive.
As the panel description said: Audience members joined
Nike for a discussion around how data and statistics motivate in the sports in which we participate, in the music that moves us, in the games we play.The key topic was the new Nike+ FuelBand.
It was my first time hearing about the Nike+ FuelBand and was intrigued at how Nike was thinking about connecting activity to feedback and online social networks.
I'm always interested in the future of things, and Nike sure did sound like they had it figured out.
I'd been by the huge Nike area in downtown Austin and was impressed by their video wall. Here's a show of it when it was all red.
Image: Nike Area at SXSW
The wall had lots of scrolling and moving images displayed on it, and inside was a sports field.
Across the street was a line at the Old Spaghetti Factory restaurant where people stood in line to buy the Nike+ Fuel bands.
Then I saw a tweet from my friend asking if anyone could get him one. Turn out that they were recently released and in short supply. SXSW was a good spot to pick one up before they are in full stock in stores and online this summer.
So I went back over and bought one for CC, one for me and one for my wife Carol.
There are three sizes, Small, medium, and large, which all can be adjusted.
Inside the old Spaghetti Warehouse, Nike had turned the location into what looked like a cool club, with a live DJ.
There was even a Vevo area with a sponsored 'bar' where you get get free nonalcoholic drinks.
Image: Vevo Bar at SXSW
The Nike FuelBand was on display at table tops that had digital surfaces where you could learn more. The Nike people were fun and helpful and on my first day there I was helped by Candice, or Candy. You can call her either. ;-)
Image: Nike+ Fuel Band at #sxsw
I got two that day and had to go back the next day at 8:00 to get a small since they were in short supply.
They could help you set it up or you could do it at home. I did my two at home.
Nike+ FuelBand Setup Errors and Work Arounds
In case anyone else has the same errors that I had here are some tips I figured out and help I got from Nike support, who were very helpful during the setup process.
The Nike+ FuelBand support area has a lot of great videos and help, buy I encountered some issues that were not addressed online, so I wanted to post them here to help others that might encounter the same issues.
Error - Registering with Twitter will send all your activity to Twitter
When you register you can log in throughout Facebook or twitter. If you log on with twitter, on the next screen you get a message that all your activity will be shared through twitter. That really should be an option you choose during registration or later.
My Solution:
I clicked BACK and SIGNED UP a NEW account. No twitter connection at this time.
After that I got a system error pop up.
Error - CANNOT DESERIALIZE
I got this error when trying to register:
Error: CANNOT DESERIALIZE THE OBJECT FROM THE REQUEST. EXCEPTION :: COM.THOUGHTWORKS.XSTREAM.IO.STREAMEXCEPTION: : ORG.CODEHAUS.JETTISON.JSON.JSONEXCEPTION: EXPECTED A ',' OR '}' AT CHARACTER 344 OF {"USER":{"MEMBERSHIPID":"...My Solution:
I reregistered without connecting twitter, and entered a different email address. then it worked.
Error - Page is hung on "set your daily goal screen"
Page is hung on "set your daily goal screen" after entering goals and clicking next.
My Solution:
I fixed this one by I going to another computer, and the installation completed.
But it never opened up the profile page, so I went to it my self from the browser, and saw that the profile was actually all set up.
I added a profile photo and it looks like it's ready to go.
FYI, Nike support sent me these suggestions:
Clearing cache and cookies is a simple troubleshooting step that resolves many minor site issues. We’ve included web addresses that contain instructions to clear cache and cookies in some of the more popular web browsers below. If you’re using a different web browser, you can probably find the instructions for clearing cache and cookies in your browser’s “Help” section.
1. To learn how to clear the cache and cookies for Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Apple Safari go here:
http://www.wikihow.com/Clear-Your-Browser's-Cache
2. To clear the Flash Player cookies, follow these steps:
* Go to http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager07.html
* In the Visited Websites box, find and select nikerunning.nike.com and nikeplus.nike.com
* Click, "Delete Website," then click "Confirm."
Sometimes, in troubleshooting Nike+ issues, it’s helpful to change your default browser. Here are instructions for selecting several popular browsers as your default browser.
Mozilla Firefox (free download at Mozilla.com)
• Go to Firefox (upper left-hand corner) > Options.
• Select the “Advanced” tab.
• Under “System Defaults,” click the “Check Now” button to see if Firefox is the default browser on startup.
• You should now see a dialog box asking, “Firefox is not currently set as your default browser. Would you like to make it your default browser?” Click “Yes.”
Internet Explorer (free download at Microsoft.com)
• Click Tools (upper left-hand corner) > Options.
• Click the “Programs” tab.
• Under “Default web browser, click “Make Default” next to “Internet Explorer is not the default web browser.”
Google Chrome (free download at Google.com)
• Click the wrench-shaped icon in the upper right-hand corner and select “Options.”
• Click “Basics” in the left-hand navigation menu.
• Scroll down to “Default browser” and click “Make Google Chrome my default browser.”
Safari (free download at Apple.com)
• Click Tools (the gear-shaped icon in the upper right-hand corner) > Preferences.
• Under “Default web browser,” use the drop-down menu to select Safari.
• Close or click away from the dialog box to lock in your settings change.
Error - "error returned from nike+"
Trying to connect to Nike_ I get the error: "error returned from nike+" Try again
When I go into settings is see: Username: Pending
My Solution:
I reset to factory defaults. That fixed it.
Nike+ Connect: Stat Loop
Error - TIME and FUEL
I couldn't figure out how to click on Time or Fuel Nike+ Connect to to get those stats to display.
My Solution:
It turns out that the time and fuel are turned on by default and can't be changed. Why show a greed out checkbox? Leads the user to believe that if they do something, they'll have Acces to those greyed out check boxes. Can they?
I understand that this is all fairly new. I how some user interface tweaks, system maintenance and document ion can help people over the registration hurdle.
Out for a Walk
After all this I took a walk with the FuelBand on and it gave me these stats from my walk.
Image: Nike+ FuelBand: 1st Jamaica Pond Walk #counts
Image pages with stats are very well done.
After using the Nike+ FuelBand for half a day, I can see how it can be used to motivate you to get up and move. I'm looking forward to seeing the stats and also looking forward to seeing new uses for the band as they open up the development API.
By the way, pressing the button once displays the current time. I never thought I'd ever wear a watch again, since my iPhone has the time and it's always on me, but it's more convenient to press the button on the Nike+ FuelBand to see the time, then to have to pull my iPhone out of my pocket. Funny.
Here's a Nike+ Fuel Band Key Guide to help you understand how the button works on the Nike+ FuelBand
Disclosure:
After hearing all about Nike, and how they see the future, I sold UGG (DECK), and invested in the company. They are more than just a sneaker company.