Archive for the ‘Opinions’ Category:
Eenie Meanie Minie Mo, Which OS Is Your Go?
Posted by: Peter Murphy on Sep 27 2008 - 15 viewsHow much choice do you want? On the one hand, I think “different strokes for different folks”, and we all like a choice, something to emphasise our individuality. We’ve done the whole I’m a Mac/PC thing, but Brandon mentioned that he’s also a Penguin.
What does that mean exactly, the big L, Linux based systems. Now a lot of the incredibly popular NetBooks, that are emerging are offering, a Linux, alternative, operating system. We’ve come a long way recently, from the traditional M$/Mac war, that a lot of us would relate to.
Think about the OS’s out there though, that serve our truly mobile lifestyle. start with Symbian/UIQ based systems, move to WinMo, add Mac OSX and now “Robby the Robot”(android), Oh and BlackBerry, and Palm, and that’s only the mobile phone extension of Mobile OS’s. From there we could go straight up to NetBooks, but there are categories of devices in that gap that we need to think about.
Mids and the UMPC.
One of the things that the need for mobility has done, is make developers focus on a less technically focused community, and start to make UI’s for the every day user, so this version of Ubuntu, for mobile, hopefully goes there!
The interface has been changed to cater for plenty finger use, where buttons are slightly larger while applications are launched in full screen glory at 1,024 x 600 resolution. Firefox has been taken out though, replaced by a default browser known as "Midbrowser" - it will be interesting to see how the user experience turns out, will it be similar to that of the iPhone?
Good info from Ubergizmo, and Tech Digest.
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Subscribe to the comments for this postGovernator kills texting while driving in Cali
Posted by: Brandon Steili on Sep 26 2008 - 16 views
Well finally someone realized that when you’re texting and driving you’re pretty much not looking at the road you’re driving on or the car in front of you. You might as well be drunk.
Insurers, bicyclists and cellphone companies backed the measure that Schwarzenegger signed Wednesday, as they did the ban on holding a cellphone while driving, which took effect July 1. The earlier law allows drivers to use cellphones only with hands-free devices such as headsets; another law prohibits drivers younger than 18 from using any kind of phone or texting device while behind the wheel.
“When somebody’s distracted,” said state Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), who wrote the new law, SB 28, and the earlier laws, “it puts not just the driver at risk but everybody else in the car and everybody else on the highway.”
So - if you were pissed off about the whole no talking without a hands free device in California, plan on having your day entirely ruined come January 1, 2009. Personally I wish this and the hands-free law was a federal mandate. Too many people in this country can’t drive worth a damn anyway … let alone when they think they can drive and talk/text at the same time. Truth hurts folks - I don’t care how well you think you can drive and text at the same time, you can’t. The multiple accidents per week I have to avoid because of people who try is proof of that fact.
via LA Times
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I wouldn’t want to spread ignorance - WinMo Appstore
Posted by: Brandon Steili on Sep 25 2008 - 54 views
So much for love thy neighbor. Look - I’m not one to get involved in petty bickering between sites and all that crap. Normally, I just go about my day, ignore the blah, blah, blah and do what I do. But I wanted to touch on something really quick. Elitism and overall assholishness.
Look, reality is almost none of us end up getting paid for this stuff. Sure some of us get “freebies” from vendors and developers - but even that comes with a cost because we end up spending a lot of time using the item, putting our thoughts together about the item and then putting virtual pen to paper for a review. I easily spend a few hours of my personal time per week just making posts and putting things together for reviews and I can guarantee others put a lot more time into it than I do, yet still don’t get a penny for their troubles.
So - please if you see something missing in a review or a post, feel free to let us know - but do so with it mind that:
So, what brought about this post? Well, so far as I can tell - nothing aimed specifically at us. I mean we’ve posted about the iPhone App Store, and we’ve posted about the lack of one for WinMo. But maybe we haven’t posted enough about how there are MULTIPLE solutions for buying applications and websites for Windows Mobile software. I mean you’ve got Handango InHand, PocketGear OTA SMS, and others. So while you may not have one specific solution, with all the bling of the iTunes App Store - you do have alternatives for WinMo and some of them have been around for quite some time.
Anyway as I mentioned, please if you see something that maybe we missed feel free to let us know in the comments and we’ll fix it. But at the same time, keep those points above in mind. We aren’t trying to spread ignorance… we’re just putting our thoughts on all things mobile out on the ‘net. I’m not going to post a link to what prompted this little mini rant because I personally respect the website and its owner, but suffice it to say I really want to:
And I Quote:
If you see more technology news sites or mobile phone reviewers spreading ignorance regarding Windows Mobile’s lack of an application store, feel free to send them here for a reality check
I don’t think that line was particularly necessary … and if it was the first such venom from this individual I’d have ignored it, however statements like this have become all too common in the mobile community and they need to stop. We’re here to help people make informed decisions and have some fun doing it. If your goals are anything different - maybe this isn’t the thing for you.
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The I’m A PC, Monkey Dance!
Posted by: Peter Murphy on Sep 21 2008 - 16 viewsThe “I’m a PC” line of commercials, are a refreshing move by Microsoft, and highlight the strength of the platform. Let’s face it most people cut their computing teeth on a Micro$oft based system, and system loyalty, whether it be driven by apathy (sticking with what’s familiar, not wanting to experience a new OS learning curve, or discount years of specialisation, and therefore expertise). Then they go and spoil it with this! Click on the photo, or the link below to go to the I’m A PC page and view the Ballmer shenanigans.
http://imapc.lifewithoutwalls.com/?icid=realpc
The over the top styling’s of Ballmer don’t do a lot for me, although the Seinfeld/Gates advertisements left me cold as well.
When it comes down to the nitty gritty though, you must applaud the quality of the overall marketing package, that M$ have put together, and I will have to admit at this point that I’m a PC. I have to admit that M$ have done the best job ever of presenting their platform as cool and rugged, and the stereotype of the computer geek, proliferated in the Mac ads is far away from the images Microsoft are presenting now.
Now we are seeing a slicker, cooler and well much more rugged presentation of the PC/M$ OS. Depicting a much better metaphorical representation of what the OS can do for you ie; open a window to the world. The Windows revolution, or more pertinently, make over, is obviously designed to overcome the years of, well, undesirable impressions, of PC users. You know get a cool haircut and a netbook and you’re up there in the mobile tech world.
With all of the info seemingly focused on highlighting M$’s huge market share, and the proliferation of netbook PC’s, that are somehow dependent on an almost superceded OS.
I’m still sporting XP, upgrading to Vista, is not an option, it doesn’t, or isn’t as user friendly, IMHO,
The fact is though, we are not seeing Windows Mobile development, in any significant way, “slowly slowly catchee monkey” seems to be the ethos there.
I thought I do a construct of an Apple/PC advertisement, but Microsoft have done it.
Have a look at the “I’m a PC website“
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The Story continues and befuddles!
Posted by: Peter Murphy on Sep 12 2008 - 39 views
This new Microsoft campaign, is really vague, and I suppose that is what gives it power, and draws attention to it. All of us are expecting a defining statement, where as, we get tidbits. What is fascinating is where this will go? The tag to the latest inclusion to this Microsoft saga was about “connectivity” and the failure of Seinfeld and Gates, to really connect with the family they are billeted with, may amount to some innovative ease of personal networking, initiative.
I’m only guessing here, I really don’t get where this is going, obviously we are going to have to follow a long string of commercials, which may be the culmination of Bill’s childhood dreams to be a Hollywood star, to realise the culmination of this media campaign.
Anyone else getting a Woody Allen vibe from Bill in the already posted videos?
For me, I want the news and I want it now, and this sort of campaign leaves me nothing to work with, or look forward to, or want to have. It’s as fake and uninformative as the Knock Off pictured above.
It would be nice if Microsoft would be straight up and tell us what they’ve got!
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Sell your soul for an iPhone? on AT&T
Posted by: Peter Murphy on Sep 09 2008 - 22 views
Well even your soul may not be enough to get you an iPhone from AT&T, apparently souls aren’t worth that much anymore. Especially if you’re dealing with what essentially, is a monopoly. One of our good friends, Jack Cook posted an article @ Experience Mobility, and it highlights the flaws in the union between Apple and AT&T, it also brings to the forefront, the lack of understanding that most mobile users have of the contracts they submit themselves to when they sign up for a service from any provider. I’m really astounded that AT&T have policies like this in place, but it’s the nature of the game at this point, isn’t it?
Mike Elgin over at ComputerWorld, came across a hurdle with his service provider, that well, makes my blood curdle. A loyal user, that has committed his whole family to the service provider, made to jump through hoops, for a new device.
After months of cajoling, I finally convinced my wife to buy an iPhone. She went to the local AT&T store today, and was actually turned down. She is, apparently, "upgrade ineligible." She asked if there was any price at which should could buy it, and they said no.
In a lot of ways, we are manipulated, by our mobile dependency, and our lack of understanding of what we sign up for. The conundrum is “I can’t afford to not be connected” and the price you’ll pay to be connected. Then it becomes a little more complicated. Human error is a factor, I recently went through something similair. In a way we are, somehow compliant with our service providers, in a way that only denotes a submissive relationship, that only demonstrates our lack of understanding of what we sign up for, let’s face it we are not all lawyers.
It begs the question are we addicted to connectivity, can we do without an internet connection, not device based.
- Apple and/or AT&T act like everyone is a rabid fanboy. But many people, like my wife, are current Windows and BlackBerry users who are merely toying with the idea of becoming Apple customers. When these fence-sitters finally muster up the interest to go give an Apple product a try, and are met with resistance, incompetence and something that feels like Apple snobbery, much more is being lost than a single iPhone purchase. My wife needs a new laptop, too, and might have loved the iPhone and made a total, lifelong conversion to iPhone, and Macs, too. Now she’s got a broken phone and needs to upgrade and will probably just get another BlackBerry because she harbors ill will toward Apple. We’re also now thinking about switching carriers. We’ll have to file this one in the "FAIL" category.
In really simple ways, the iPhone has changed the mobile environment, some good (well lot’s good) and some bad. Maybe one of the good things is a heads up about looking into your contract a little bit further.
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