Archive for March, 2009
warning »
Tuesday, March 17th, 2009
They offer suggestions, where to stay, to eat, to party. They recount their banal times there, ignoring my blank stare response. But they didn’t warn me.
Many rows back there’s a large group, yelling to each other between rows. One of them yells louder about her four dollar and fifty cent bag of snacks. This, apparently, is outrageous while standard for airport pricing.
To my right, a young couple looks to be doing homework. He’s dressed professionally with an inexpensive notebook computer. She’s skeletal, reading a textbook and looks frightened. (more…)
your thoughts: FB overhaul »
Monday, March 16th, 2009
CrunchBase
That’s right. I’m trying something different. I’m asking you for your thoughts instead of dousing you with mine. Take a quick second and leave your short answers below or @- me on Twitter.
What do you think of the new look of Facebook? Please provide your reasons for feeling as you do and be as brief or verbose as you see fit. (Who has that kind of time, though, right?)
Note: I’ll be relaying my feelings later this week. Also, for those replying via twt, I’ll copy your comments into this post for review later.
@katlikewrites: It’s bogus. As a first-generation FB user (summer 04). However, my mom did call me last night ranting about needing a FB tutorial.
august »
Friday, March 13th, 2009
August
In the genre of personal transition or dot-com hysteria, August is sort of enticing. It’s forced cool is desperate. Overall, it’s beige. But… the period-piece-ness is awesome.
It’s set in 2001. Tom (the CEO of an interweb company), Josh, his brother (the developer), and other bit players run a company locked in the market and desperate for capitol. There’s an offer from a large company with no interweb presence. (Hi-jinx ensue.)
A speech Tom (Josh Hartnett) throws down could have easily been made at CATFOA or MacWorld this year. The cloud, interweb democracy and connectivity dreams were all there eight years ago. That they have yet to be realized is depressing.
(I’m confusing myself. How did Scott Bakula do it?)
Why the delay? A lag? Halted development? Unready technology? The movie offers it’s own reasons, commenting on the current interweb community of the past. It gives credit to the revolutionaries and alludes to the cultural shift to cowardice.*
What LandShark (the imaginary company) does is purposefully vague. The concepts invoked (digital revolution, collective voice, unified space) are real and were. Only now we have the technology to utilize it.
If only they would have made a worthwhile film, instead of something akin to Noise (<rant>car alarms!</rant>). Maybe it would have been able to resonate and inspire instead of proving (again) that Hartnett has no depth (only good in Lucky # Slevin) and flicks about rich failures teach no lessons.
For more proof the ideas of our age were of the last, here are AT&T (now at&t) predictions from 1993. (Creepy.)
* Innovations slowed after 9-11 outside the surveillance or weapons sectors.
how to beat a depre— uh, recession… »
Thursday, March 12th, 2009
Image via Wikipedia
… ignore the hell out of it. A close friend was laid off recently. Credit interest, unemployment and foreclosure rates are all on the rise. Yet, I can’t stop looking up different ways to configure a Macbook. (Go figure.)
Likely configuration:
- 13″ unibody
- 2.4ghz processor (core duo)
- 4gb RAM
- SSD of unknown size
- OS X snow leopard
The portability and flexibility… mmm… it’s all so intoxicating. It’s a slight boost in processor (plus, the ability to use virtual PC), double the memory and space and a light, compact and durable machine. (And how hipster chic is the Genius Bar, right?)
When I bought my current machine, I rarely carried it around and was looking for a multimedia desktop replacement. Soon after, I started traveling and working on multiple things in multiple places. Unfortunate.
Apple has slowly eroded all my arguments against with each release. The price of a Macbook is more reasonable than the Pro offerings, the unibody is cooler in the lap, the core duos can run Windows better than PCs, etc. At this point, it’s not even a fair fight.
The world may be going to shit but I’ll be riding the Apocalyptic horses with all the cool kid snobs. Now I just have to wait for Snow Leopard to be released sometime this summer… (impatient!)
a woman’s world is horrifying »
Wednesday, March 11th, 2009
For those that read my take on JCPenny’s “Doghouse” campaign, my reaction to the new Frito Lay‘s campaign should be obvious. Still, that won’t stop me (in spite of your silent protests).
What is “A Woman’s World?” Seems it should look something like the real world. If this is the case, after the introductory video, the real world is terrifying. Take a peek at the “Meet the Girls” section (if you hate yourself).
here you’ll find the professional, the artist, the rich one and the mom. The campaign makes Sex and the City or Charlie’s Angels look like militant feminist movements. Quotes like “secret shame: hides how much she spends on shopping from her husband” turn mild stereotype cuts into festering, infected wounds.
Oh well. Many that should be most offended will laugh at this, probably while buying chips. The world will be a happier (desolate) place. Or… we turn the conversation against this sexist uncreative.
Complain on Twitter, boycott the product or just tell your friends you’re not a simplified archetype. There are millions out there that don’t fit this mold and the interwebs finally give them voice. Frito Lay tossing out this candy-coated degradation shouldn’t be tolerated in the age of forums, tweets, comment threads and blogs.
Companies need to realize we can’t be force fed they’re unnecessary, near-harmful or useless products. But will they? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Right, Frito Lay? And (because I’m a pessimist) I can’t imagine a MotrinMom reaction to this (even if there should be). People never react as strongly the second time.
The more we ignore pathetic campaigns, disregard them as jokes or insignificant, the longer we wallow.
More here and here (ugh). Thanks @katlikewrites for the tip.