lego & random MAZ on 24 Oct 2007
Monthly Archive for "October 2007"
random MAZ on 23 Oct 2007
Katrina: The aftermath
Remains of a business
Front steps of home
Submerged car
Pants rack in a women’s store
Fridge on the street
apple & ipod & random MAZ on 23 Oct 2007
Happy Sixth Birthday, iPod
“It’s hard to believe that six years ago to this very day, the iPod was officially brought into the world at a Steve Jobs Special Event. In six years, we’ve seen 1,000 songs in your pocket become ever more affordable, and as hard-disk technology has progressed, so too has the number of songs an iPod can hold”
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN0SVBCJqLs]
funny & random MAZ on 23 Oct 2007
How to cause a crash
apple & microsoft MAZ on 23 Oct 2007
Top Five Reasons that Leopard will be Apple’s tipping point
“Moments ago I finished reading John Markoff’s New York Time’s piece entitled, “As Apple Gains PC Market Share, Jobs Talks of a Decade of Upgrades” and it added to my belief that the introduction of Leopard this Friday is going to mark the tipping point of Apple’s acceleration in the PC marketplace (disclaimer: I own a fair number of shares in Apple).
Much analysis and opinion has swirled around this coming OS upgrade — most positive and pleased with features — but I’m going to point out what I see as a deeper meaning behind some of the top features and why a tipping point will occur:
1) Time Machine: We all have the best intentions to backup but most of us just don’t. Now that many of us have both a desktop, a laptop, an iPod and many an iPhone too, keeping everything in sync is a friggin’ nightmare. As more new form factors arrive (like the rumored Mac tablet/multi-touch device/ultralight portable), keeping our data synchronized is going to be even more challenging. From what I’ve seen and played with in the developer version, this is going to be a laughingly simple backup and sync that normal non-techies will adore.
2) iChat: I just cannot emphasize enough what a game-changer this could be. Every single day I connect with someone that wants to show me something or have me show them. Videos, presentations, web sites and more are shared but it just isn’t easy. I have an atypical ability to communicate with all the available tools at my fingertips, but almost everyone I connect with gets frustrated because they can’t return the favor.
3) Parental Controls: If you don’t have kids (and especially a teenage boy like I do!) this isn’t a big deal perhaps, but the ease of setting this up, controlling access and some level of filtering is fantastic. I’ve actually delayed a purchase of a 3rd party application that does much of this in order to use Leopard’s…it’s that good.
4) Boot Camp: Though I run Parallels on my Mac with Windows XP installed, I’ve discovered that I almost NEVER USE WINDOWS for anything. There was a period of time where I absolutely required it, but as I write this I’m struggling to figure out what’s out there that I can’t do on my Mac. Still, I’ve loaded even old PC games in Parallels and it’s just too slow. My son and his pals are pumped for Leopard (two of them are PC users whose parents will buy a Mac but wouldn’t use a beta Boot Camp pre-Leopard) since they’ll be using the reboot-into-Windows capability to load the machine with games. This will be a game-changer (pun intended) since all PC games will run in a PC environment and a Mac can now be two machines for the price of one!
5) Dashcode: For power users and web developers, I believe this is going to be THE biggest and most important feature in Leopard. Why? Imagine libraries of thousands of widgets as well as every creator of application functionality has widgets as part of what they deliver. Most people don’t know what widgets are and don’t care. But for those that do, this extremely simple method of creating them is going to change delivery of applications and information on the Web.”
cars & funny & random MAZ on 22 Oct 2007
Prius limo
“It’s a shame that Ford don’t offer the S-Max in North America, because then this Prius enthusiast wouldn’t have had to go to all this trouble. You see, he created the FrankenPrius from two halves of two damaged Prii in order to create a 6-seater with decent fuel economy. Ford’s S-Max offers available seating for seven and in diesel form, gets better economy than even a standard Prius.”
apple & financial MAZ on 22 Oct 2007
Working at Apple….
“Day one at my new job. Sporting white headphones, I am plugged into a computer watching Ridley Scott’s awe-inspiring “1984″ Macintosh ad, reviewing the company history, and getting pumped up about my new workplace. Like most of my coworkers, I’m already a loyal fan of the company, so starting this job will take my interest to the next level. I’m working as a Mac specialist at the Apple Store.
What happens between now and Christmas is the most important time for a very large sector of our economy: The National Retail Federation predicts almost $475 billion will pass between customers and merchants this holiday season, and whether such notable brands as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Gap (NYSE:GPS), Home Depot (NYSE:HD), Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX), and many others think 2007 was a good year or a bad one comes down to this fourth-quarter finish line. The people most responsible for that success are, in many ways, their retail-store employees.
You can only learn so much about frontline employees as a customer, or even as a reporter. I knew that to find out how the best companies train and indoctrinate employees, I’d have to become one myself. In what wound up as a two-year undercover project, I took a series of entry-level retail jobs, becoming that critical employee who represents the company’s face. I did it to better understand the world of commerce and the corporate cultures that drive it. In the process, I learned that Apple Stores, with their aura of cool, were in fact living up to their mission to “reinvent retail” and setting a high bar for other companies in the retail world.
I knew I’d have competition when I applied at the Apple Store, but I also knew store managers hire from the ranks of the brand’s fans. Apple is surely a rare bird–few companies have such a broad and committed following, let alone frontline employees who revere its CEO. (When I worked at Gap, then-CEO Paul Pressler showed up in the store and coworkers knew he was a bigwig but didn’t realize he was the boss.)
But even companies that have devotees don’t always look as hard for passion as they should. On its hiring application, Starbucks asked briefly about my interest in coffee (”What do you like about coffee?”) but left it at that………”
apple & iphone MAZ on 21 Oct 2007
Out Of A Coma, Into The Apple Store
“Geoff Evila miraculously recovered from a four month coma after a near fatal car accident that took place in early June this year during a road trip to Las Vegas. Weeks after his amazing recovery Evila learned that the iPhone had been launched to overwhelming success. Before his accident Geoff had planned to camp out in line for his very own iPhone, but without any warning everything suddenly went black. Geoff realized that he had some catching up to do as he began to put the pieces of his life back together. Geoff’s closest friend Steve Denots asked the local Apple Store in Chandler, Arizona to create a huge scene for Geoff Evila when he arrived last week to purchase his iPhone, similar to the high energy scene that took place on June 29 when the iPhone was released. Denots told the Apple Store staff Geoff’s harrowing story of recovery and carefully designed the event to be a surprise for Evila. “I was so psyched that the store agreed to play along,” said Denots “Geoff was blown away, he limped through the store holding up his iPhone proud as can be while everyone cheered him on. I had the old Geoff back except now with a better phone, his last Verizon phone sucked.”
Though Geoff Evila is recovering brilliantly, Denots did not have the courage to inform his best friend that the Apple Store scene was a set up. “Geoff believes it’s real, so that makes it real,” said Denots “I’m just glad to have him back alive and well.” Denots told The iPhone Savior that Geoff is enjoying his new phone despite his struggle with small motor movement which represents the final hurdle in Evila’s recovery. For Geoff Evila, life has become a whole lot better waking up to the iPhone. You would have to be in a coma to believe otherwise.”
funny & random MAZ on 21 Oct 2007
Invisible mirror
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lv0-ftyMKE]
random MAZ on 20 Oct 2007
1:1 scale replica of Optimus Prime
How is it possible to be as kick-ass as a real living superhero without actually being one? There is only one answer to this; owning/driving an Optimus Prime Peterbilt 1:1 Scale Replica
apple & at&t & cellphones & financial & iphone & news & telecommunications MAZ on 19 Oct 2007
Analyst: iPhone AT&T’s top selling device, #4 in US sales
“Researchers for Strategy Analytics claim that the iPhone could become the best-selling handset in the US within the next six months. In addition, the handset has already become the best selling device for AT&T, according to reports. “The iPhone has become AT&T’s top selling device, commanding some 13 per cent of AT&T’s overall handset sales, and the fourth top selling handset in the US market,” said Barry Gilbert, vice president of the Strategy Analytics BuyerTRAX programs. “Although the iPhone hasn’t had an expansionary impact in the market, the iPhone has quickly assumed a leading market share position and raised the ante for smart devices. The sales trajectory we are observing with the iPhone could make it the top selling device in the US over the next 1-2 quarters.” The current best-selling handset, the Motorola RAZR V3, has seen its lead diminished recently, according to Strategy Analytics.”
