For anyone interested in the impact that technology is having on our youth, Frontline’s episode titled: “digital_nation” cannot be missed. It tracks students as they traverse the digital landscape – mobile devices in hand – to the beat of a multi-tasking electronic quickstep.
While listening to the student’s comments on their supposed deftness – being able to simultaneously ingest a lecture, check twitter, update facebook and respond to email – one can only marvel at such hubris. When these MIT student’s , no less, are confronted with the real data, it is made painfully clear that this generation is in trouble.
It is also troubling, the ways that the military is seducing our teens, through the use of video games, into the armed forces.
So it seems like Steve is being tricky. I had previously written that a mistake had occurred as Steve Jobs navigated to the NY Times website and the Flash content didn’t work, during the iPad debue. It has been pointed out that this was no mistake. Judging from Steve’s attention to detail, this argument certainly has merit.
What was really going on behind the curtain? Well, it turns out, it was all orchestrated. It appears that Apple is dissatisfied with Flash performance and is making a push for HTML5 as a replacement. He was simply planting the seed in the minds of the viewers.
This could be a risky strategy. All it would take is another vender to come along with a compelling tablet running flash and the plan would fall apart.
Apple, once again, has done a phenomenal job at taking an existing, dormant technology and transformed it into a lust-worthy item.
Yesterday Apple announced the iPad. It had the been the focus of attention of media for months. Everyone speculating its physical layout and the impact that it could potentially have on the technology industry. I was certainly blown away by the possibilities of such a device. Watching the keynote address, Steve, in typical form, sold us on the dream of being able to own the ultimate mobile device. The iTunes store, the App store, the new iBook store would all be integrated into an online browsing Shangri-La. With flourishing multi-touch gestures, we will be able to navigate the likes of the New York Times with such ease and pleasure… Oops!
What just happened? Did you catch that? As he flipped to one of the NYT pages that characteristic blue cube reared its ugly head, indicating that all was not well. For those with moderate technical savvy (just about everyone in the audience) the dreaded revelation was made clear for all to see. Flash had, once again, been left out of the ultimate mobile device.
I have heard all the excuses. I love you Steve, but there is no longer any plausible argument (other than stubbornness) why you continue to exclude flash support from you mobile browsers. Flash is everywhere. How can you have a pleasurable browsing experience if you can’t view flash content?
Come on Steve. Do you see that elephant in the corner?
As an avid gawker of the low end pro video recorder market some interesting trends seem to be emerging. There are also some puzzling scenarios unfolding between competing companies.
Panasonic pretty much paved the way for affordable quality video recording with the DVX100. They went on to introduce one of the first cameras (the HVX200) to offer solid state recording. Sony has been leading the charge over the past few years with the EX1, an excellent cam with a large processor also storing to solid state. Canon… Hmm!
What is really going on in the Canon camp? To date Canon has offered nothing in the solid state market. They clearly have the technology. Take a peak down the ladder and you will see the consumer (arguably prosumer) HF-S11 sporting a 1/2 sensor and all types of goodies including a lanc adapter (usually found in more professional models). And don’t forget what’s happening on their DSLR side. The Canon 5D Mark II has proven to be a game changer for filmmakers looking for the filmic look at an affordable price. So, what’s up Canon?
There is a company called RED owned by Oakley (that’s right, Oakley glasses) who is steadily creating some powerful cameras that’s making the big boys scratch their heads. The RED One has a huge chip, interchangeable lenses and solid state acquisition. They have also announced the release of the Scarlet, a smaller and more affordable version of the RED One.
So this is what I’m thinking: Canon is waiting for the release of the Scarlet, then they will the respond with the death blow. It with be the Frankenstein creation: the combination of their video and DSLR technology – solid state, 35mm chip size, interchangeable lenses (making use of their huge inventory) all at an affordable price.
That’s it! Sony/Panasonic/RED pack your bags, go home, there’s nothing more to see.
If only one had a crystal ball, the future would be clear and our decisions would not be missteps. Such is the case for TomTom and Garmin, two of the bigger players in the GPS market. Both are faced with the behemoth Google, in the form of Android 2.0. Motorola released the Droid with has turn by turn navigation with real street views. And guess what? It’s free. That pesky price that has companies quaking in their, proverbial, boots.
If only they had know. All those R&D dollars. What a difference a day makes.
Microsoft isn’t about to get into the PC manufacturing business but they are definitely exerting a stronger influence on their partners. What is being dubbed the “Signature PC”, gives customers an experience that is carefully crafted by Microsoft. This includes Windows Live suite, Security Essentials, Zune jukebox, Bing 3D Maps software, Adobe Flash Player and Acrobat Reader. Bing will be the default browser in Internet Explorer 8.
This strategy has worked Apple and the benefits are not lost on Microsoft’s marketing department. I am pleased to see Microsoft taking control of their brand.
Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired and recent author of the book “Free”, proposes that the most effective price is no price at all. Public libraries have always embraced this model. So what’s new?
Libraries are now expanding their horizons to cyberspace in its electronic variant. It is now possible for borrowers to check out an e-book, which will be made available for two to three weeks after which it expires, all taking place on the internet. Only a limited number of copies are made available therefore customers will have to wait in line for titles to become available. There are even some electronic readers, such as the Sony Reader, which are compatible with this format (Amazon’s Kindle, is not). This begs the question: “Why purchase when it can be acquired for free?”
The free model has frightened the publishing industry. There has to be a way to monetize “Free”
The coming of the tablet seems to be the story that we keep hearing and inevitably leads to disappointment. All the major players have their feet in the pool but few waves are being created.
Take a look at the specs of the latest buzz-maker from Microsoft. They are featuring a book-like device, opening into two 7-inch screens. Why? This just shows a lack of creativity and an inability to stretch their imagination. Once again, everyone will wait around for Apple to get the ball rolling then attempt to climb aboard. It will be too late. Let the iPhone be a lesson.
Maybe the problem is, we are calling it the “tablet”. It doesn’t, exactly, inspire forward thinking.
Representative Joe Wilson, Republican of South Carolina, had an outburst calling President Obama a lier. It is our position at Podratic that “one outburst deserves another” (from a dear friend of mine whose sentiments I share):
What a tremendous amount of disrespect for the President of the United States. What a grand show of racism, and, in turn, vitriol. I love watching Joe Wilson, Rush Limbaugh and the bigoted crowds claiming to be proud Americans, simply implode, because they can’t fathom a Black person who is Ivy League-educated, articulate, smart, accomplished and most of all, IN POWER OF THE MOST POEWRFUL NATION in the world. I LOVE IT. A good 10% of hard working Americans make too much for Medicaid, but are too poor to afford health care. Others have health care through their employers, but self-ration because it’s just too expensive. The deficit Obama inherited occurred under the Republican watch. What’s more, the shrill Tea Party supporters who believe market forces can better provide health care clearly have missed the news that OUR government had to bail out “the market” with massive stimulus to the banking and auto industry and anyone who knows their history is aware this wasn’t the first time. I’m not even 45 and I remember Chrysler’s Lee Iacocca with his hand out, and government intervention with failing SNLs in the 1980s. So much for the supposedly superior and efficient free market that can’t get through much more than two decades without a government hand out. Ha, ha. Continue to stew Joe Wilson. You and your rabid, racist, selfish, spiritually corrupt, mindless supporters—who to boot are probably 1 paycheck away from foreclosure due to the policies of the Right, but would rather lose their homes than admit a Black man has a better plan for us all. For many years, all you’ve had to cling to is your white skin. It’s no coincidence that all the detractors who converged on the Beltway were white. It must be very hard to see a Black man who is smarter, more decent, full of grace, and moral than you.
Maureen Dowd of the New York Times, would also like to chime in.
With very little fanfare, Apple introduced its latest iteration of, what was considered to be, an already fabulous operating system. Mac OS X Snow Leopard takes the operating system rollout in a whole different direction. In the past one would expect many “Lust-worthy” features (as described by Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal).
At first glance you would think that nothing had changed. After installation take a closer look at your hard drive’s free space. In my case I was able to reclaim 15GB on my laptop. That was, indeed, a welcome sight. Just stick to the diet plan and we will all be happy.
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If only one had a crystal ball, the future would be clear and our decisions would not be missteps. Such is the case for TomTom and Garmin, two of the bigger players in the GPS market. Both are faced with the behemoth Google, in the form of Android 2.0. Motorola released the Droid with has turn by turn navigation with real street views. And guess what? It’s free. That pesky price that has companies quaking in their, proverbial, boots.
