November 2010
Current: Does the future hold a digital-age... →
Any new funds routed through a reformed corporation should come with conditions. One should be that that PBS, NPR, and their member stations have incentives to work across digital media, and to embrace local reporting to a much greater degree than they do now (which is not much, overall; only 478 of the 901 stations airing NPR programming have staff of any kind, and only a fraction of those have a...
Quarterback derby the conversation during two-week... →
The Cleveland Browns are halfway through the 14 days between their seventh and eighth games of the 2010 season.
The layoff has only enhanced conversation about who the starting quarterback should be among rookieColt McCoy, and the veterans who have been sidelined with ankle injuries — Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace.
The Browns are 2-5. McCoy made his NFL debut in Cleveland’s...
Tractors Are Vintage, but Ready for Dirty Work -... →
Though tractors live a rugged life, the farmer’s reliance on them to earn a living assured a reasonable degree of mechanical care, so many survive. And they were designed for hard work.
“These tractors were made to be overhauled — no planned obsolescence,” said Dan Steiner, a supplier of restoration parts in Lennon, Mich.
As a result, when huge new machines were developed to work increasingly...
October 2010
“The limited availability has created ardent McRib hunters, lovers of the...”
– McDonald’s Rolls out McRib Sandwich Nationwide - Advertising Age
“I’ve now been using my new 13” Macbook Air for three days, and I...”
– Shane
“Today we got my mother-in-law her first iPhone. It was fun setting everything...”
– Shane
The Talk Show #14: Bubble Gum Apps on 5by5 →
EPISODE NOTES
Special guests Marco Arment and Craig Hockenberry join hosts John Gruber and Dan Benjamin to discuss Apple’s new App Store, Flash, and more.
EPISODE LINKS
UPDATE 3-Western Digital warns of iPad hit, weak holidays | Reuters
Faronics Deep Freeze Mac – ABSOLUTE Workstation Integrity
Vertical Forest :: YouTube5 – HTML5 Converter for YouTube videos
Steven Frank – When I heard that...
Our Government Can’t Prevent A Digital 9-11:... →
The chasm between government and entrepreneur couldn’t be wider. All of the government officials I talked to were open to change and seemed eager to embrace new technologies; yet they had no idea where to start or how to get around their own bureaucracy.
Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., are located three thousand miles apart in space and light years apart in concept. Technology managers in...
The McRib is Back (Early) -- Taste Test -... →
McDonald’s almost got one by us. Earlier this month, we announced that the McRib would be returning to menus for a short time only, starting November 2nd. But we kept spotting massive McRib ads posted in the windows of various McDonald’s locations, and our curiosity spiked. So we hit the McRib locator, made a couple of phone calls, and it was confirmed: McDonald’s has sent the...
Marco.org: The Mac App Store isn't for today's Mac... →
marco:
Much of what made the App Store so compelling to developers will begin to apply to Mac software with the Mac App Store:
Most Mac owners will be encouraged from prominent places on their Macs to buy apps. The potential audience is huge, and will be much easier to reach.
Payment processing will be much simpler.
Software websites won’t need nearly as much functionality.
Two of the most...
“While Apple’s success with its mobile iOS platform is credited with...”
– AppleInsider | Apple’s iOS pushes Microsoft to dial down Silverlight for HTML5
AppleInsider | IDC: Apple passes RIM to become No.... →
A new IDC report shows strong iPhone sales have pushed Apple past Research in Motion, making the iPhone-maker the world’s fourth-largest mobile phone seller in the third quarter of 2010.
'Fortune' Adds Its Voice to Verizon iPhone... →
In a lengthy profile of Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg published today, Fortune adds its voice to the chorus of confirmations and takes a look at the relationship between Apple and Verizon.
The next step, the iPhone, remains shrouded in secrecy, and neither company will discuss it. But people familiar with its development say it is a fait accompli. Verizon, sources say, will sell its own...
“I set the machine up, and I put in a fresh tape. I go to bed as usual with my...”
– Keith Richards on how he came up with “Satisfaction” in a dream (via austinkleon)
Scrivener 2.0 Public Preview Available For Free... →
Next Monday is November 1st and for us would-be wordsmiths, that date has special import as the first day of National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. Over the next thirty days, tens of thousands of would-be novelists will smash out as much prose as they can, trying to finish the first draft of a short, complete novel before the clock strikes midnight on November 30th.
In order to help...
Ten Tips to Make Your World a Little More Swedish ... →
1. Work hard every day that you work and be modest. 2. Prioritize your private life and refuse to compromise it away for work. 3. Tell uncomfortable truths and skip the jargon. 4. Always innovate. If it has been done before do it differently or don’t do it at all. 5. Collaborate and give credit where credit is due. 6. If you’ve got that sweet corner office turn it into your...
“Owners of Apple’s new 11-inch MacBook Air will not have to remove the...”
– AppleInsider | TSA clears Apple’s 11-inch MacBook Air to stay in carry-on at airports
“I’ve been testing both versions, but especially the 11.6-inch model, and I...”
– Walt Mossberg Reviews the New MacBook Air - Mac Rumors
Apple in Early-Stage Negotiations to Acquire... →
TechCrunch reports that Apple and Swedish music streaming service Spotify have been engaging in very early-stage discussions about a possible acquisition by Apple. Discussions have apparently yet to progress beyond the feeling-out stage, however, with no firm offers on the table at this time. As recently as earlier this month, Apple had been rumored to be trying to torpedo Spotify’s...
Goodbye, MacBook Pro. The New MacBook Air Is That... →
When I wrote up my initial thoughts, it was after only a few hours of usage. I hadn’t even used it outside the house yet. But now I have. I’ve used it almost everywhere I’ve been for just about a week now. There’s no question in my mind that this has replaced my MacBook Pro as my go-to machine.
But here’s the really crazy thing. It’s not just the size of the thing that I love so much (I have...
Watchkateoplis:
Jonathan Franzen talks about Freedom; the complexity of his friendship with David Foster Wallace, whose suicide partly triggered the book; and the ‘dull, throbbing anxiety’ of America’s liberal left: “America is almost a rogue state.” via/@DaveAtNorth
New MacBook Airs Are Apple’s Most Profitable... →
One of the little secrets that has made Apple the most profitable company in tech is their ability to achieve high margins on their gizmos, but the new MacBook Airs might set a record even for Apple: according to analysts who have estimated its bill of materials, the entry-level, 11.6-inch MacBook Air costs only $718 to make.
That means that for every 11.6-inch MacBook Air Apple sells, they...
Current: Public Media: Ombudsman tries to convince... →
In today’s (Oct. 26) column, PBS Ombudsman Michael Getler attempts to remind folks that “PBS is not NPR, that Juan Williams does not work for PBS, that PBS did not fire him, and that both organizations, while part of public broadcasting in this country, are separate organizations and separate public media entities.” Yes, in the wake of Williams’ termination from pubradio,...
