The really scary part is the budget required to build this white elephant: $900k for construction with an additional $50k a month in maintenance and utilities.
[Via Gizmodo]
]]>Enjoy the MacBook pR0n. Visit my Flickr gallery for more photos.
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MovableType, which this very blog you're reading is published on, is the granddaddy of blogging platforms and once reigned supreme in its time. That is until an upstart open source platform called WordPress came along and took the online world by storm. SixApart hopes it can make up for lost ground by reaching out to developers and making its software free. They're moving in the right direction, but WordPress is now a major contender they will have to confront.
What better way to spend an hour by speaking to a barely comprehensible Indian tech repeat a cryptic 200-digit Activation key back to me, than having to retype the whole sequence over again after misinterpreting his broken english. Remind me again what the advantage is to Windows Genuine Advantage, and who benefits? Certainly not I.
The really comical part to all of this is that Microsoft's product activation is designed to combat software piracy, but in the end it does more to lock out legitimate users like myself rather than pirates who easily find ways to circumvent the system. Thanks for killing an hour of my productivity, Microsoft.
]]>One of the unfortunate side effects of being addicted to technology is the accumulation of gadgets that pile up as the months and years go by. My desk has become a sordid gadget museum - a living testament to my mobile madness. With so many smartphones already spilling out of my pockets (not a pretty sight), and the impending launch of Apple's new iPhone, now is the perfect time to find happy homes for my little plastic pals. So I'm eBaying the whole lot.
Among the treasure chest of goodies are my Nokia E61 (one of my favorite smartphones), a Crimson Treo 680, HP iPaq rx1950 Pocket PC, HTC S620, and Palm TX handheld. All of these units were extremely well cared for and are in pristine condition. The Treo 680 is less than three months old and still has that new car smell.
You can jump to each auction listing by clicking through the revolving widget below. Good luck and happy bidding. :)
Websites utilize all manner of multimedia to advertise services, evolving from the classis banner ad to more advanced flash-based motion imagery. Most of these forms of online advertising are just plain awful, but the worst by far is those darned annoying Flash-based ads that spontaneously blast you with audio. I can't even begin to count the number of times I was startled out of my chair (and underpants) late at night when loading some random webpage, when suddenly a voice comes blasting through my speakers..."CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'VE BEEN SELECTED TO RECEIVE A FREE IPOD!". Scary.
It's bad enough when this happens while I'm using a Mac, forcing me to turn down the volume settings from the keyboard. But on a typical PC I scramble to find the volume knob on my external speakers before arousing disapproving looks from nearby co-workers.
What really irritates me, aside from the annoying nature of these boisterous ads, is how ineffective they serve their functions. Advertisers foolishly assume such ads will entice viewers to click on them and read more about the services they offer. WRONG! What happens with most users, such as my case, is they simply move on to another webpage. In fact, annoying web ads have the exact opposite intended effect upon casual viewers. Instead of luring customers, they detour them. And yet advertisers still pursue us with noisy animated Flash-based ads.
Will they never learn?
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A new study conducted by PiperJaffray shows that iPhone is already gaining iconic status, with more than 85% of 500 students surveyed having knowledge of the iPhone. Even more surprising, 25% of of those same students show an interest in purchasing the iPhone, despite its steep $500 entry price point. Hey, 500 out of millions of unsurveyed students can't be wrong. Expect a sharp increase in teenage prostitution to follow.
Source: AppleInsider
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I give you Tux 500: A Community Powered Linux Marketing Program.
"Our goal is simple: we want to collect community donations to enter a Linux sponsored car in the 2007 Indianapolis 500. We need your help!"
This is the dumbest, and subsequently desperate, idea I've heard. Only a reclusive basement dwelling Linux fanatic could dream up such daft "marketing" ideas.
Where to start?
First, even if this project succeeds in achieving primary sponsorship, the number on this car should be ZERO, because that's the amount of impact this ploy will have on the public. Neither TV viewers nor spectators watching the event will know what the hell Linux is. I mean, seriously... are you guys really this clueless? To think that sponsoring an Indy race car will somehow promote Linux adoption? Reality: The viewers will assume Linux to be some yet unheard of corporate sponsor. "Linux? What's that? Is that the company that make furnaces?"
Don't count on race car fans all over North America rushing to DesktopLinux.org to download a copy of Ubuntu, upon seeing this Penguin adorned car. Not happening.
Second, what I find even more pathetic (and disturbing) is the vast sum of money wasted that could have gone to a worthy endeavor. I'm sure a number of charities could put this money to good use, engaged in something that will impact lives. Like..oh, I don't know.. feeding the impoverished, providing shelter for the homeless, Cancer research, etc.
Nuts to that! Let's waste thousands of dollars sponsoring a fucking race car in a redneck motor sport. If this is the only path to Linux success, both the OS and the car deserve to crash in a fiery wreck.
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If you are a YouTube junky like me, this free application is an invaluable tool for copying video content to your hard drive for playback on portable devices. GetTube works with any Flash-based video sites, and additionally converts Flash video to MP4 or MP3 (audio only).
Please, download responsibly. ;-)
Apple disclosed total iPod sales volumes to date, revealing that over 100 Million units have been sold since the little white music player that changed the world was first launched.
Apple today announced that the 100 millionth iPod® has been sold, making the iPod the fastest selling music player in history. The first iPod was sold five and a half years ago, in November 2001, and since then Apple has introduced more than 10 new iPod models, including five generations of iPod, two generations of iPod mini, two generations of iPod nano and two generations of iPod shuffle. Along with iTunes® and the iTunes online music store, the iPod has transformed how tens of millions of music lovers acquire, manage and listen to their music.
Congratulations Apple.
Source: Press Release
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Just when you thought your three month old Mac Pro was safe from obsolescence, Apple pulls the rug out from under your workstation. Today the company announced its long awaited dual quad-core system based on Intel's new "Clovertown" Xeon processors. That's four cores on a single die, totalling eight cores, for those of you whom are math challenged. I barely use the full potential my single quad core Mac Pro offers, let alone 8 bloody cores! Still, I can see real world applications for video professionals and science fields.
If you want one be prepared for sticker shock. The "entry level" 8-core model starts at $3,298. Fortunately standard dual-core models based on Intel "Woodcrest" Xeon remains available starting at a reasonable $2,200.
Jump to the link.
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]]>For those who have never been to or beheld the spectacle of an Apple Store opening, you really should watch this video to get an idea of the experience at these gala events. Lines that span a quarter mile...people camping out at midnight to be first in line...the feeling of euphoria as your turn in the queue arrives to finally enter the store. Amazing.
Be on the look out for several celebs shopping amongst the crowd, like James Woods and Kevin Bacon, to name a few.
MacBook users…are you looking for a better solution that tells you everything you ever wanted to know about your battery, including its original capacity when it left the factory? Look no further. CoconutBattery is your answer.What is coconutBattery, you ask? I’ll let its developers explain…
coconutBattery isn't just a tool which shows you only the current charge of your battery - it also shows you the current maximum capacity of it in relation to the original capacity your battery had as it left the factory.
You also get information about the battery-loadcycles (how often did you fully load your battery), the current charger (coconutBattery even warns you if you plugged in a wrong charger for your Notebook) and last but not least information about the age of your Mac.
Sounds great. And it’s free! Though I do highly recommend generously donating money to the folks behind this software, if only a few bucks.
You’ll be glad you did. Tell them Kent sent you