Around the time that Mark Zuckerberg was testifying before Congress regarding the Cambridge Analytica scandal, I shared an article from the Facebook page of a local TV news affiliate which mostly centered around discussing the extent of the damage. For some reason though, the news station decided to include with the article link, a photo of Zuckerberg, captioned with the question: "WOULD YOU PAY FOR FACEBOOK?" By sharing this article with my Facebook friends, I quickly discovered two things:
1) most people don't bother reading more than the post's headline or looking at the photo, and
2) a surprising number of my Facebook friends (even those whom I'd describe as fiscally conservative) have a very strong entitlement mentality when it comes to services that depend on internet access.
I was genuinely shocked at the number of comments on the post which ranged from a simple 'No' to a flat-out dismissal of the suggestion that they pay for something like Facebook since they're "already paying for internet."
Is this really the mindset of most internet users? If so, it's no wonder the advent of broadband internet turned out to be such a slobberknocker to the chin of the entertainment industry.
Apparently, to most users, paying to access the internet should entitle you to unbridled access to the contents of any other device connected to the internet. Except for Netflix. But even in the case of Netflix, many no doubt would not (and in fact, do not) have a problem sharing a friend's sign-on credentials.
It just seems baffling to me that someone could be fine with the fact that Amazon won't ship them say, a pair of shoes unless they you know, pay for them first, but how dare HBO force a non-subscriber to go buy the latest episode of Game Of Thrones from iTunes! Those greedy bastards!
This is the entitlement mentality of the new, internet-connected masses, and the entertainment/service industries found themselves in a position in which they had to sink or swim. So, they did what they had to do when the customer either won't pay or can't do so in a convenient manner: they brought in advertisers to help keep the lights on. Only problem is, internet advertisers aren't satisfied merely showing people ads. They wanted something in return. Namely, your personal data, so that they could allegedly market their products and services to you "more effectively."
And when advertisers started suffering negative PR as a result of having their ads associated with controversial content, they started demanding the authority to censor the site's content. Actually, except for a few loudmouth advertisers with their own political agendas, that's not exactly accurate. The more accurate picture is much worse. Most advertisers don't want the authority to censor, seeing as how that's a whole new bag of problems on its own. What they want is a pre-sanitized, safe-space for both advertisers and users. And guess what? Money talks.
So, that's the state of today's internet. Users are too stingy to pay directly for what they use, therefore, their personal data gets sold off to the highest bidder (to do God-knows-what with it) while social networks rid their platforms of anything remotely offensive - or interesting.
"Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss."
2018/05/03
2018/02/10
Initial Impressions: Samsung Note 8
Admittedly, I've not had much time to play around with it but now that I finally own a phone with curved screen edges, my response is pretty much the same as it was three years ago when I chose the Samsung Note 4 over its asymmetrically-curved new sister, the Note Edge: 'Why?'
That question is made all the more difficult to answer since it's essentially mandatory that the first thing one do after acquiring such a device is shoe-horn it into an overpriced plastic case that hides all but the faintest hint of the phone's most unique feature.
This is the feature Samsung ranked higher in value than the convenience-ensuring, privacy-protecting and PR-catastrophe-preventing qualities made possible by a removable battery? Something that looks cool until you have to cover it up to keep it from breaking?
Most of my working adult life has been spent either carrying or working with others who carry two-way radios (aka: walkie-talkies). One of two things typically happens when your radio battery dies. Either you swap out battery packs or (if the battery isn't removable) you swap out radios. You don't just plug it in to charge and "go silent" for the next 30-60 minutes.
Given that the technological requirements (not to mention hardware costs) aren't yet at the point where we can simply swap out one phone for another in less time than is required for a pee break, it seems pretty reasonable to assume that either your phone's battery should be swappable or your phone should be expendable enough to go hour-long stretches without it. Put another way, to quote the strip-club boss from Kill Bill vol. 2:
"What are you trying to convince me of exactly, that you're as useless as an a--hole right here? [points to elbow] Well, guess what, buddy... I think you just f---ing convinced me."
Stop and consider for a minute, the total cost of ownership (TCO) of your smartphone. Most people pay between $35-$75/month for service, another $10-$40/month for the 'lease' or phone payment itself, plus maybe you're paying a monthly fee for what I call sloppy-seconds insurance (that's where you pay $11/month and if your phone breaks, they replace it with a previously repaired device).
That's between $45 and $115 a month (or $1.50-$3.83 per day) for something that even the manufacturer thinks is so non-essential that you should be able to leave it parked on a charger at least once or twice a day.
Maybe that's why two of the smartest men I know still use flip-phones.
2017/06/03
First Impression: Gab
After spending a few months using the new social network Gab (gab.ai), I think I have a better understanding of why so many in the tech and media sectors hate it, and why anyone who cares about free expression should create an account there.
Gab contains a lot of offensive opinions. It’s not uncommon to see a post that cites information that isn’t 100% accurate, or omits certain details in order to remain consistent with the OP’s views. Some of the links shared by users lead to ‘racist-feeling’ websites. There’s also no shortage of jokes that would earn you a visit to the Human Resources office if you repeated them around the wrong coworker. Oddly enough, I haven’t seen much by way of pornography on Gab. I definitely can’t say the same for Twitter.
There is an app-based version of Gab in the Google Play store but it’s so early in development that for now, I prefer the mobile version of the website. Unfortunately, there is no Gab app in Apple’s store. Apparently, Apple has recently implemented (or chooses to selectively enforce) a rule that prohibits social networking apps if it’s possible to find user-submitted content on those networks which Apple deems offensive. I assume there's some sort of grandfather clause that permits Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and others to remain in the store despite equally offensive content. That, or Apple has some sort of backroom deal with the others that prevents them from being banned.
To describe Gab as ‘censorship-free’ is obviously misleading. Any website that is truly censorship-free is probably in violation of multiple nations’ laws regarding drugs, prostitution, pedophilia, etc. Plus, I’d imagine that a truly censorship-free website would remain that way right up until the site owner got doxxed by one of his/her users.
The difference (as far as I can tell) between Gab and other social networks is that Gab doesn’t cave to pressure to censor unpopular or even inaccurate views. It gives YOU the tools to decide what YOU want to see. And that’s one of the things that made the internet so special from the jump.
If you had a proclivity for the nerdy and were around when the internet first became available to the masses, you can probably remember the magic. Unlike print media, radio or television, the internet allowed YOU to decide what was interesting. No more force-fed, advertiser-approved, boring content.
But something changed, didn’t it? The Googles of the world subtly transitioned from being a service that made a few bucks by helping you find what you were looking for, to morphing into a cyber-gatekeeper of homogenized content. As with so many other things in life, in an effort to make the internet safe, we made it boring. We made it less of a threat to the status quo.
I was lucky enough to grow up with an internet that exposed you to different ideas and information. My kid is growing up with an internet that allows you to pay for coffee without touching your wallet. There’s no good reason that both can’t coexist. Thankfully, there are still people like those at Gab who seem to care about preserving that old magic - a magic that’s just as likely to expand your mind as hurt your feelings. Like the saying goes, "no pain, no gain."
2014/12/22
Samsung Galaxy Note Edge
I had a chance to play around with the Galaxy Note Edge and here are some of my thoughts.
All of the reviews I've seen so far on the Galaxy Note Edge seem to agree that the extra convenience afforded by that curved edge is more or less nullified since it makes the phone more awkward and difficult to hold - especially for lefties and ambidextrous users.
Which brings me once again to my biggest gripe with Android: those touch-activated Menu and Back keys straddling the Home button. For me at least, these virtual buttons make Android phones (especially the bigger ones) more difficult to operate with one hand. Not only that but a lot of times when I hand my phone to somebody to show them something, the first thing they do is accidentally tap one of these keys, either popping up a menu or kicking us out of the app we were using.
The all-physical buttons on the Galaxy S5 Active gave me hope that of all the Android OEMs, Samsung was the one to finally come to its senses, but now it seems they've taken this flawed touch-key philosophy and applied it to the entire right-hand side of a phone as well. And if that's not bad enough, they have the audacity to charge a premium for the inconvenience.
I was almost ecstatic to see Samsung adopt the flat edge design for the Note 4 (and I still think Apple was insane for abandoning it on the iPhone 6 and 6+). A device on which nearly all of its face is touch-activated needs to have a solid way to grip and hold it without inadvertently activating something, and to me, the Galaxy Note Edge is a step back in that regard. I just wish smartphone manufacturers would stop obsessing about ways to reduce thickness and focus more on making phones more comfortable, ergonomic and durable.
All of the reviews I've seen so far on the Galaxy Note Edge seem to agree that the extra convenience afforded by that curved edge is more or less nullified since it makes the phone more awkward and difficult to hold - especially for lefties and ambidextrous users.
Which brings me once again to my biggest gripe with Android: those touch-activated Menu and Back keys straddling the Home button. For me at least, these virtual buttons make Android phones (especially the bigger ones) more difficult to operate with one hand. Not only that but a lot of times when I hand my phone to somebody to show them something, the first thing they do is accidentally tap one of these keys, either popping up a menu or kicking us out of the app we were using.
The all-physical buttons on the Galaxy S5 Active gave me hope that of all the Android OEMs, Samsung was the one to finally come to its senses, but now it seems they've taken this flawed touch-key philosophy and applied it to the entire right-hand side of a phone as well. And if that's not bad enough, they have the audacity to charge a premium for the inconvenience.
I was almost ecstatic to see Samsung adopt the flat edge design for the Note 4 (and I still think Apple was insane for abandoning it on the iPhone 6 and 6+). A device on which nearly all of its face is touch-activated needs to have a solid way to grip and hold it without inadvertently activating something, and to me, the Galaxy Note Edge is a step back in that regard. I just wish smartphone manufacturers would stop obsessing about ways to reduce thickness and focus more on making phones more comfortable, ergonomic and durable.
2014/10/03
The Downside Of Using Social Media For Troubleshooting
For the past couple of months, one of our cars - a 1999 Honda - has been giving us trouble. It idles rough and struggles to get up to speed. My father-in-law checked it out and changed the spark plugs but the problem remained. Thankfully, we have two other somewhat functional vehicles, so we parked the Honda and asked friends, family and coworkers for advice either on how to fix it or where to take it.
After a couple months of using a gas-guzzling 4WD as the alternate daily driver, I finally made the decision to bite the bullet and pay a professional mechanic to fix the Honda. Keep in mind that doing so required me to drop off the car at the shop after work and get a ride home after my wife got off work. And since the shop was closed by the time I got there, it also required me to sacrifice the next day's lunch break to drop off the key and tell them about the symptoms.
Yesterday I got a call from the shop telling me what they found and how much it would cost to fix. And then I made the mistake of revealing this info to family, coworkers and Facebook friends, etc. Suddenly I had shade tree mechanics falling out of the sky opining on how easy that problem is to fix and how badly I got screwed by the shop. How could it be that in the two months the car sat parked in the driveway - nary a peep from anyone, but I pay someone to fix it and suddenly everybody's an expert?
Needless to say, some of the comments (both in-person and online) made me feel like a certified dumbass. I'm sure most of them weren't trying to make me feel bad, they were simply taking the opportunity to stroke their own ego. And that's okay. If you're the kind of person who knows how to work on your own car and has the time, tools and facilities to do so, more power to you. Far too many of us lack any kind of skill set these days. Just remember that none of us is a master of ALL trades.
After I had a few hours to cool off, it dawned on me that some of the very same people riding my ass about paying too much for an auto repair are the same folks I've seen break down and buy a new TV because they didn't have the motivation to crack the manual and learn how the TV or remote works. People who won't hesitate to spend $500-$1,000 to replace a smartphone, tablet or laptop when the problem could have been corrected by reinstalling the operating system.
There's nothing wrong with having a self-sufficient attitude but we all need to remember that it's physically impossible for any of us to become proficient at using/maintaining/repairing every single tool/device that we use on a daily basis. There's also nothing wrong with a guy who is good at fixing X but horrible at fixing Y to trade his time and labor (sometimes, in the form of money) to another guy who may be great at fixing Y but may be a total idiot when it comes to X. It's called voluntary exchange of goods and services (you may know it by its evil nickname: the free market), and it's absolutely essential to human survival.
After a couple months of using a gas-guzzling 4WD as the alternate daily driver, I finally made the decision to bite the bullet and pay a professional mechanic to fix the Honda. Keep in mind that doing so required me to drop off the car at the shop after work and get a ride home after my wife got off work. And since the shop was closed by the time I got there, it also required me to sacrifice the next day's lunch break to drop off the key and tell them about the symptoms.
Yesterday I got a call from the shop telling me what they found and how much it would cost to fix. And then I made the mistake of revealing this info to family, coworkers and Facebook friends, etc. Suddenly I had shade tree mechanics falling out of the sky opining on how easy that problem is to fix and how badly I got screwed by the shop. How could it be that in the two months the car sat parked in the driveway - nary a peep from anyone, but I pay someone to fix it and suddenly everybody's an expert?
Needless to say, some of the comments (both in-person and online) made me feel like a certified dumbass. I'm sure most of them weren't trying to make me feel bad, they were simply taking the opportunity to stroke their own ego. And that's okay. If you're the kind of person who knows how to work on your own car and has the time, tools and facilities to do so, more power to you. Far too many of us lack any kind of skill set these days. Just remember that none of us is a master of ALL trades.
After I had a few hours to cool off, it dawned on me that some of the very same people riding my ass about paying too much for an auto repair are the same folks I've seen break down and buy a new TV because they didn't have the motivation to crack the manual and learn how the TV or remote works. People who won't hesitate to spend $500-$1,000 to replace a smartphone, tablet or laptop when the problem could have been corrected by reinstalling the operating system.
There's nothing wrong with having a self-sufficient attitude but we all need to remember that it's physically impossible for any of us to become proficient at using/maintaining/repairing every single tool/device that we use on a daily basis. There's also nothing wrong with a guy who is good at fixing X but horrible at fixing Y to trade his time and labor (sometimes, in the form of money) to another guy who may be great at fixing Y but may be a total idiot when it comes to X. It's called voluntary exchange of goods and services (you may know it by its evil nickname: the free market), and it's absolutely essential to human survival.
2014/08/03
Win8 App Store, Laptops, Desktops and Tablets - Oh My!
Looks like some shady stuff may be going on in the Windows 8 app store. There's an app for $1.49 called Google Chrome Browser but the listed developer isn't Google. One called Adobe Flash Player for $2.49 but it's not issued by Adobe.
And while I'm thinking about it, why do we need standalone Mac/PC apps for services (like Facebook, Twitter or YouTube) that were designed to run inside a web browser?
If the future of the laptop/desktop OS is to mimic our smartphones, why not just give people a wireless keyboard/trackpad to go with their tablet... and HDMI-out for when they need a bigger display... and some sort of overpriced case gizmo that can support the tablet, keyboard and trackpad for when they want to prop it all up on their laps. You see where I'm going with this, right? Maybe just buy a laptop and be done with it instead of allowing these guys to nickel-and-dime you into the poorhouse?
I still maintain that the most useful function of the tablet was to encourage laptop manufacturers to increase battery life and decrease start-up/resume times. Before the iPad, most laptops were little more than portable desktops/thigh-warmers but with recent improvements in performance and technology, I can't make a good argument for why a tablet would be preferential to a laptop for the average Joe - especially when he already owns a smartphone.
And while I'm thinking about it, why do we need standalone Mac/PC apps for services (like Facebook, Twitter or YouTube) that were designed to run inside a web browser?
If the future of the laptop/desktop OS is to mimic our smartphones, why not just give people a wireless keyboard/trackpad to go with their tablet... and HDMI-out for when they need a bigger display... and some sort of overpriced case gizmo that can support the tablet, keyboard and trackpad for when they want to prop it all up on their laps. You see where I'm going with this, right? Maybe just buy a laptop and be done with it instead of allowing these guys to nickel-and-dime you into the poorhouse?
I still maintain that the most useful function of the tablet was to encourage laptop manufacturers to increase battery life and decrease start-up/resume times. Before the iPad, most laptops were little more than portable desktops/thigh-warmers but with recent improvements in performance and technology, I can't make a good argument for why a tablet would be preferential to a laptop for the average Joe - especially when he already owns a smartphone.
2014/07/27
Windows 8.1 on MacBook Pro
It's been about a week since I installed Windows 8.1 on my 'Late 2011' 13" MacBook Pro. Here's a little review.
First let's clear up some confusion. Basically, there are two ways to install Windows on a computer: a fresh, new install which requires a full version of Windows, or the cheaper 'upgrade' version which requires you to have a licensed, compatible version of Windows already installed on your machine. If you don't already have Windows installed on your Mac, you'll need the full version. I paid about $126 for the full version of Windows 8.1 at Best Buy.
To add to the confusion, the last few versions of Windows (going back to at least XP) have been broken up into a basic consumer version called 'Home' or 'Premium' (or something similar), and a version called 'Professional'. The 'Professional' version costs about $200 and according to the comparison chart, it didn't really offer anything extra that I couldn't live without. Contrary to what your Best Buy salesperson may tell you, the installation of Windows on a Mac does not require the Professional version. Buyer beware!
The other thing I needed for the install was a USB stick for installing Windows hardware drivers. I never did find any minimum size specs listed for the USB stick but mine only had 2 GB of free space and everything worked fine. The first thing that you'll need to do is plug the empty USB stick into your Mac and format it to the FAT filesystem (this will allow both OS X and Windows 8.1 the ability to read/write to the stick).
Now go online and find instructions for installing/running Boot Camp and Windows on your Mac. Read Apple's tips before beginning so that you'll understand the process and know what to expect. The short version is that you'll use Boot Camp to partition your Mac's hard drive, download and install the necessary driver files onto the USB stick, and dedicate space for the installation of Windows. Once the Windows installation is complete, you'll hold down the Option key during reboot or power-up to choose whether you want to run OS X or Windows.
As far as installing Windows goes, this was one of the simplest installs I've ever done. All of the hardware drivers were on the USB stick so there was no barrage of third party installers competing to get their stuff installed and set up.
The bad news...
If, like myself, you'd planned to install Windows 8.1 on your pre-Retina MacBook primarily so you could take advantage of Windows' ability to adjust your display's DPI settings to do a system-wide increase of the size of icons, text, etc, forget about it. The option is grayed out. This option is only available when the MacBook is connected to my 24" 1920x1080 external monitor.
The Thunderbolt port does work on the Windows side but it isn't hot-swappable (it requires a reboot to begin working).
Battery life isn't quite as good on the Windows side. The MacBook's fan runs a bit more as well. Display brightness seems a little harder to adjust. Same for the keyboard backlight.
The Boot Camp Control Panel (in the bottom right next to the clock) is essential for adjusting settings for things like the built-in keyboard and trackpad.
After digging around in Windows 8.1's settings, I have yet to find a button or icon to turn off (or on, for that matter) the Bluetooth radio. It says it's on and searching for devices but gives no option to switch it off when not needed. I haven't had a chance to try using Bluetooth or the FaceTime camera, so I can't comment further on these options.
All in all, Windows on a Mac is interesting to say the least. The new Start Screen (it's not just a Start Menu anymore) takes some getting used to. Had I known that like OS X, Windows 8 wouldn't allow me to adjust the built-in display's DPI setting, I probably wouldn't have bothered. There a few minor things that prevent me from giving up Windows entirely but my biggest disappointment with OS X is how small it renders buttons and text throughout the OS. Seriously, trying to read a fine-print EULA on a Mac is like trying to read the last line on an optometrist's eye chart... from the parking lot!
In the past, there were two reasons someone might want a bigger computer display: to increase space on the desktop for multiple windows, or to increase the size of everything on the screen. Sadly, it seems that us folks in the latter camp have been abandoned. Oh well, live and learn. At least I'm once again able to batch-rename files without the need to google a refresher on how to create a Workflow.
First let's clear up some confusion. Basically, there are two ways to install Windows on a computer: a fresh, new install which requires a full version of Windows, or the cheaper 'upgrade' version which requires you to have a licensed, compatible version of Windows already installed on your machine. If you don't already have Windows installed on your Mac, you'll need the full version. I paid about $126 for the full version of Windows 8.1 at Best Buy.
To add to the confusion, the last few versions of Windows (going back to at least XP) have been broken up into a basic consumer version called 'Home' or 'Premium' (or something similar), and a version called 'Professional'. The 'Professional' version costs about $200 and according to the comparison chart, it didn't really offer anything extra that I couldn't live without. Contrary to what your Best Buy salesperson may tell you, the installation of Windows on a Mac does not require the Professional version. Buyer beware!
The other thing I needed for the install was a USB stick for installing Windows hardware drivers. I never did find any minimum size specs listed for the USB stick but mine only had 2 GB of free space and everything worked fine. The first thing that you'll need to do is plug the empty USB stick into your Mac and format it to the FAT filesystem (this will allow both OS X and Windows 8.1 the ability to read/write to the stick).
Now go online and find instructions for installing/running Boot Camp and Windows on your Mac. Read Apple's tips before beginning so that you'll understand the process and know what to expect. The short version is that you'll use Boot Camp to partition your Mac's hard drive, download and install the necessary driver files onto the USB stick, and dedicate space for the installation of Windows. Once the Windows installation is complete, you'll hold down the Option key during reboot or power-up to choose whether you want to run OS X or Windows.
As far as installing Windows goes, this was one of the simplest installs I've ever done. All of the hardware drivers were on the USB stick so there was no barrage of third party installers competing to get their stuff installed and set up.
The bad news...
If, like myself, you'd planned to install Windows 8.1 on your pre-Retina MacBook primarily so you could take advantage of Windows' ability to adjust your display's DPI settings to do a system-wide increase of the size of icons, text, etc, forget about it. The option is grayed out. This option is only available when the MacBook is connected to my 24" 1920x1080 external monitor.
The Thunderbolt port does work on the Windows side but it isn't hot-swappable (it requires a reboot to begin working).
Battery life isn't quite as good on the Windows side. The MacBook's fan runs a bit more as well. Display brightness seems a little harder to adjust. Same for the keyboard backlight.
The Boot Camp Control Panel (in the bottom right next to the clock) is essential for adjusting settings for things like the built-in keyboard and trackpad.
After digging around in Windows 8.1's settings, I have yet to find a button or icon to turn off (or on, for that matter) the Bluetooth radio. It says it's on and searching for devices but gives no option to switch it off when not needed. I haven't had a chance to try using Bluetooth or the FaceTime camera, so I can't comment further on these options.
All in all, Windows on a Mac is interesting to say the least. The new Start Screen (it's not just a Start Menu anymore) takes some getting used to. Had I known that like OS X, Windows 8 wouldn't allow me to adjust the built-in display's DPI setting, I probably wouldn't have bothered. There a few minor things that prevent me from giving up Windows entirely but my biggest disappointment with OS X is how small it renders buttons and text throughout the OS. Seriously, trying to read a fine-print EULA on a Mac is like trying to read the last line on an optometrist's eye chart... from the parking lot!
In the past, there were two reasons someone might want a bigger computer display: to increase space on the desktop for multiple windows, or to increase the size of everything on the screen. Sadly, it seems that us folks in the latter camp have been abandoned. Oh well, live and learn. At least I'm once again able to batch-rename files without the need to google a refresher on how to create a Workflow.
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