I think the iPad is a bad idea

Posted by Brian in apple on January 28th, 2010

For months now, there’s been speculation that Apple would release a product that competed against netbooks on price and functionality. For that same amount of time, Apple denied this saying that netbooks didn’t offer an acceptable experience for customers. Yesterday they released a tablet computer that is at the same price point as a netbook. This may seem contradictory, but it isn’t. This product isn’t designed to compete with netbooks directly. It’s a shot at Amazon’s Kindle.

At first glance, this may seem surprising but Apple, the company known for innovation, has released an oversized iPod Touch that really doesn’t offer anything compelling.

During the announcement, Steve Jobs said, “Now, some people thought that was a netbook—the problem is that netbooks aren’t better than anything!”

  • … except my netbook runs Skype and has a built in webcam and mic.
  • … except that my netbook’s bluetooth and/or USB connection allows me to tether to my phone.
  • … except my netbook can run Silverlight and Flash (maybe not great, but it works well enough).
  • … except my netbook has an SD slot and USB.
  • … except my netbook has a 160 GB hard drive.
  • … except my netbook can multitask and run apps simultaneously.
  • … except my netbook only cost $435 and can do all of that.

When viewed in this light, it’s obvious Apple wasn’t targeting the netbook market at all. This isn’t surprising; Apple’s reasoning is that if you want a “cheap” Macbook, get the $999 starter model. The model has sold very well for Apple and it was unlikely they’d cannibalize it.

If it can’t handle the most basic functions of even a $200 netbook, then what does it do well?

Audio/Video? 720p video is okay but the display doesn’t have the 16:9 dimensions that are standard on just about every TV made. No support for Flash or Silverlight means no Hulu or Netflix On-Demand. Regardless of what you think of Flash and Silverlight, not including support for them on something you’re trying to pass off as a netbook competitor is unforgivable. Apple can’t blame the performance of the CPU since they designed it. No, Netflix and Hulu compete with iTunes so there’s your reason for the snub right there. 64 GB of storage is going to be painfully small for this device if it were meant to compete with netbooks (yes I know many netbooks have the same or less amount of storage, but actual HD’s are options on netbooks).

The lack of a webcam is truly odd. First they keep putting low quality cameras on the iPhones and then refuse to put any on the iPod Touch or its oversized brother. Why?

The answer to all of this is that Apple didn’t like seeing Amazon own the digital print space. This is a Kindle competitor pure and simple. Sure there’s an iPhone Kindle app but Amazon profits from the book sales, not Apple. If folks buy the iPad and use it in a netbook-lite fashion, so much the better but Apple wants you to buy print content on it.

You can add a keyboard to the iPad, but why would you? If you’re going to do that then just get a netbook.

I own an iPhone, an iPod Touch, an iMac, and a netbook. My iMac suits all of my desktop computing needs. When I’m not at my iMac, which is often, the iPhone does most of what I want. When I travel or just need a slightly more desktop-like experience, the netbook hits the spot because I have all of the features listed above at a sub-$500 price point with a keyboard that’s 92% the size of a normal keyboard … much like Apple’s Bluetooth keyboard. Even if it wasn’t a Hackintosh and ran Windows 7 or Ubuntu that’d still be true.

As much as I’d like to get excited about this device, I can’t. The thing I’ve liked most about Apple’s products is that many times they seem like creative solutions to computing paradigms we take for granted. This feels like a solution to a problem that doesn’t impact me– Amazon’s success.

I’m sure they’ll sell a billion of these things and in retrospect my comments will be about as spot on as the guy who said that horseless buggies would never take off. As with the iPhone, I’ll at least wait until the second iteration before I would even consider jumping on to this bandwagon.

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My Favorite Tech of 2009

Posted by Brian in technology, web on January 2nd, 2010

Inspired by Michael Arrington’s yearly list, I figured I’d take stock of those technologies I used the most in 2009:

GMail

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, GMail made desktop email irrelevant in addition to forcing other free webmail providers to step up their game. Between the web interface, a great iPhone interface that effectively mimics the web interface, and IMAP access there’s no other email client I would use. I’ll also throw in Google Calendar and Google Contacts as well simply because of the free, automatic syncing with the iPhone.

iPhone 3GS

Speaking of which, despite its imperfections like Apple’s idiotic app approval policies, it’s the computing device I use more than any other since it’s always with me. I’ve probably spent nearly $200 in the App Store in 2009 and I only had an iPhone for 9 of the 12 months of 2009.

Facebook

I never thought I’d use this and I find the walled-garden approach of the site to be AOL’ish, but I can’t deny how useful this has become in keeping touch with folks. I should have put Twitter on the list because I use it all the time, but Twitter doesn’t have the reach for my network of friends that Facebook does. Simply put, Facebook is the site even my parents use and Twitter isn’t. I post something to Twitter and one or two folks may see it. I post something on Facebook and I get a ton of comments.

Google Reader

Without it, I would find it impossible to keep up with what’s going on in the world. It’s also the biggest timesuck in my life … even more than the XBox 360.

CrossLoop

VNC in a tidy, easy-to-use package. I make all my family members install this as it’s my go-to tech support conduit. It makes connecting to another person’s computer a snap as it’s dead simple to use and it’s cross platform.

Skype

I bought many of my relatives webcams and installed this on their computers. If I want to talk to them and still see them, I can. I video chat with my brother in Mississippi the most.

Dropbox

My impetus for using this initially was being able to keep files that I use for helping my parents with their various technologies in easy reach. For example, I have images of their TV remotes and AV setup that I can access from anywhere including my iPhone. The 2 GB they provide for free is sufficient for now, though I wish their premium plans were a little more affordable.

Delicious

Without Delicious, I’d forget half the things I see on the Internet.

Google Voice

Automatic transcription of voicemail, the ability to block unwanted callers, and the ability to send text messages from the web. If Apple would only allow the app into the App Store, though I have high hopes for the Voicecentral Black Swan edition.

Tomato

I breathed new life into my old routers with this software. I now have a consistent interface across all my networking equipment and I’ve just installed TomatoVPN so that I can connect to my home network from anywhere.

SABnzbd+

The easiest to use Usenet client ever. I use it everyday.

PlayOn and ORB

With PlayOn, I stream my movie collection to my PS3 and XBox 360’s. With ORB, I do stream it to my iPhone.

Wordpress

It’s powering this blog, so I guess I have to put it on the list :-)

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Christmas Came Early This Year

Posted by Brian in apple, computers, osx, tech toys, wendie on December 13th, 2009

Wendie made me go down to Lenox Mall today knowing that I dislike malls and knowing that I outright avoid them during the pre-Christmas rush. As we browsed at Williams-Sonoma, she told me that she’d planned on getting me an iMac, but would need me to pick it out. She’d planned to be sneaky to find out what I wanted but would rather just do it the right easy way.

We go to the Apple Store and I decide I want a 27″ iMac with an Intel Core i7 processor. I ask the guy working there if they have any. He says they don’t but that if I order now I might be able to get it in time for Christmas. He questioned why I wanted an i7 instead of an i5 but if I’m getting a computer to use for 3-5 years, I try for the highest specs I can get at the time I buy it.

Since he couldn’t sell me an i7, I left and ordered it from Apple’s online store.

Here are the specs:

  • 2.8GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7
  • 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2×2GB
  • 1TB Serial ATA Drive
  • ATI Radeon HD 4850 512MB
  • 8x double-layer SuperDrive
  • Apple Magic Mouse
  • Apple Wireless Keyboard

I also bought an Apple Remote. I made my iMac purchase using one of Discover Card’s affiliate links so I get 5% cash back on the purchase … which should cover about 75% of the sales tax they charged me. Once ordered, I immediately hit crucial.com and got myself another 4 GB of RAM for about $65 less than Apple was charging. Time to pick up VMware Fusion to go with this copy of Windows 7 Ultimate and I should be all set for the New Year!

Update: Buying the boxed version of VMware Fusion on Amazon was $10 less than buying the digital distribution version directly from VMware. Shame on you, VMware! I was able to use a $50 gift certificate I got for Christmas on Amazon so I essentially only had to pay $19 for VMware Fusion!

I was quite surprised by Wendie’s generosity and thoughtfulness. She is truly a great wife. Now I have to get her something better than this for Christmas. Argh!

Update #2: Since getting the computer, I’ve installed the following:

I’m now taking all of my external hard drives and converting them from NTFS to HFS+ and installing the beta of HFS+ for Windows by Paragon Software on my old Windows PC.

Reviews: Wired.com, tuaw.com, and Apple Reviews.

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Usenet HOWTO

Posted by Brian in computers, howto on December 4th, 2009

Usenet was what turned me on to the Internet back in 1994. As far as I was concerned, in 1994, Usenet was the Internet. Everything from fandom to discussions to pilfered software could be found there. Usenet also got me interested in UNIX because, at that time, the only way I could use it was to do so through the school’s IRIX-running SGI Indy systems. After a while, I only accessed Usenet through Deja News and later through its successor Google Groups.

For the last three or four years, I’ve been a BitTorrent junkie. I’ve been seeking an alternative so I decided to turn to Usenet for the first time in almost 15 years. If you want to jump in to Usenet, here’s a simple way to do it. This is not intended to be a comprehensive guide by any means, only a primer on how to get started with Usenet.

Premise: You want to be able to find software, media, or files on Usenet and download them. You will need a Usenet provider, an NZB provider, and a fully-featured newsreader.

Usenet provider: SuperNews

My requirements were unlimited downloads, SSL connections, and decent retention time. Out of all the providers out there, I narrowed my choices to Giganews, Easynews, and Supernews.  Giganews had the best reputation but at $30 a month it’s way too pricey. Easynews was similarly priced but wasn’t as full featured as Giganews. SuperNews offered unlimited bandwidth, SSL connectivity, 350 days of retention, and 3o simultaneous connections for $11.99 a month. I signed up on a promotional deal for $9.99 a month. Winner: Supernews

NZB Provider: NZBMatrix

NZB’s are, in layman’s terms, a ‘direct link’ to where you can find specific items on Usenet. The provider I was considering using was Newzbin. The downside of Newzbin is that you have to be referred by an existing user and then you have to periodically buy credits. While the former wasn’t a problem since I have plenty of friends who would refer me, the latter was a bit annoying. One of my friends told me about NZBMatrix which required no referral and a one-time fee of about $32. Winner: NZBMatrix

Newsreader: SABnzbd+

Usenet without a newsreader is like the web with no browser. You have to have one. Back in my day, I used TIN or PINE which are extremely primitive compared to what you’d need to get anything out of Usenet today. My friends all recommended Newsleecher hands-down. Newsleecher is about $20 a year. While that’s a reasonable price, I wanted something that required a one-time payment versus recurring payments. Of course, free would be better than either of those options. In my research, I found SABnzbd+. While the name of that software doesn’t roll off the tongue, it is free software (GPL), cross platform (written in Python), and handles post-processing for files … all you have to do is feed it NZB’s. Sold! Winner: SABnzbd+

Putting it all together

Once you’ve installed SABnzbd+, you simply open a browser, login to NZBMatrix, search for something, save the resulting NZB file, then feed it into SABnzbd+. That’s it.

SABnzbd+ is configurable and has many features that I’ve not even touched on. For my purposes, this simple use case has been sufficient.

My total investment is about ~$150 in the first year and ~$120 after that

DISCLAIMER: I am in no way endorsing piracy. What you do with this knowledge is up to you. I pay for satellite TV, all the movie channels, a Netflix subscription, two satellite radio subscriptions, XBox Live, and all my music comes from Amazon MP3 or iTunes. I also buy all of my own software. I fully support the entertainment and software industries. You should too.

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Ray Ozzie: “Apps don’t make your phone special.”

Posted by Brian in cell phones, technology on November 18th, 2009

I like Ray Ozzie. He’s a smart guy and he’s responsible for some pretty cool stuff at Microsoft. However, when he says that “apps don’t make your phone special” … well, I have to disagree. Why are companies like RIM spinning up their own App Stores? I’ve spent well over $125 in nine months on various applications for my iPhone compared to $0 for the four previous years I was using a BlackBerry. He points out that mobile development is cheap so if an app is good, it will appear on every phone. Maybe, maybe not. The audience has to be there first. It’s odd to see Apple dominating in this space when they have such a ridiculous approval process for the App Store.

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Fire of Brazil review

Posted by Brian in dining on October 25th, 2009

I went to Fire of Brazil in Dunwoody GA last night and I left a little disappointed.  I’m a big fan of churrascarias and I’ve eaten at Fogo de Chao in Atlanta and Texas de Brazil in Memphis. I looked forward to eating at Fire of Brazil because it’s closer to me than Fogo and I like the area that it’s in. In a nutshell here’s where Fire of Brail differed from the other two and where they lost points with me:

  • No sushi or lobster bisque at the salad bar plus the spread just wasn’t quite the same
  • No cheese bread
  • Rice instead of garlic mashed potatoes

I started to call them out for frying bananas instead of plantains, but it turns out they all serve only fried bananas. I will say that it wasn’t nearly as crowded as the other two which is a plus but it left me a little annoyed that it was missing those little touches.

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Hulu determined to destroy itself

Posted by Brian in day-ruiners, web on October 25th, 2009

Hulu to charge for content in 2010 – I like Hulu, the website that allows you to legally watch current TV shows and older movies from Fox, NBC Universal, and ABC (Disney). You endure just a handful of ads per TV show or movie and you get a reasonable viewing experience. Whereas I used to resort to BitTorrent and Usenet to find episodes of TV shows, Hulu largely invalidated the need to hunt down shows off the Internet. Hulu allowed me to legally time-shift and they still got me to watch ads. Perfect for them and convenient for me. No longer content to keep what’s worked for them in the past going, Hulu wishes to charge for content starting next year. I’ll reserve judgment until I see what they come up with but I don’t think this is a good idea.

If Hulu does start to charge, this is what they should change:

  • Stop blocking services like Boxee. If you want to start getting paid then stop the senseless blocking of companies who are trying to drive people to your services. Of course I’ve been using PlayOn to circumvent your efforts to keep your service off my TV. Integrate with PlayStation Network or XBox Live. Get your service on as many devices as possible. Give me an iPhone app already.
  • Stop the ridiculous “We can only post 5 trailing episodes of the season” nonsense. Give me entire seasons at my fingertips.
  • Stop the whole “We can only post episodes 8 days after they air” nonsense.
  • Upgrade your “hi-def” option from 480p to 720p. Figure out a way to make that happen.
  • No more commercials. I guess it wasn’t enough that I watched every ad so now  I don’t want to see any ads.
  • Open up the library already. Don’t take shows in and out of rotation. Let me have access to everything you have.

I already pay for TV with Dish Network. I don’t really want to pay for watching things on the Internet as well.

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Drop(box) it like it’s hot

Posted by Brian in computers, technology on October 13th, 2009

Why do I find Dropbox useful? As my parents progress in age, their proficiency with electronics diminishes. Their TV’s get more complicated and they are not as capable of remembering complex sequences. Every time my parents are forced to upgrade their tech (e.g. a dead TV or a new satellite receiver that causes a hardware refresh) I get them to give me the make and model of the new equipment. I download the manuals to PDF format and put them in Dropbox. With the Dropbox iPhone app, I can pull up the manuals anywhere. Inevitably, I get a phone call requesting how to use a TV or make it do something it did previously when I’m not at home or near a PC. I also have their DSL modem manual as well as a manual for troubleshooting their home network (i.e. router + DSL modem) complete with pictures and diagrams I made. This comes in handy when my brother needs to drop by and play remote tech support.

I wonder if my use case for Dropbox is unusual.

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What is sci-fi?

Posted by Brian in sci-fi on October 13th, 2009

Writer Charles Stross writes about why he hates Star Trek. In a nutshell it goes like this:

  • Solving a problem with science should make for a compelling story but most sci-fi treates the “sci” part as incidental.
  • Most sci-fi, including Star Trek, is a cliche ridden soap opera.
  • There’s no sense of danger; every episode hits “the big reset button” which negates any sense of worry or continuity for the sake of the narrative (except for BSG)
  • And finally “the protagonists don’t tell us anything interesting about the human condition under science fictional circumstances.”

All of these are true to some extent, but can mostly be chalked up to the limitations of the medium. Sure these shows are to sci-fi as Applebee’s is to any five-star restaurant but that doesn’t make them unwatchable. If every week you had to use science to come up with a solution to some seemingly insurmountable problem, you’d essentially have MacGyver in space (wait, wasn’t that called Stargate SG-1?) though there were some episodes of Star Trek where you essentially had such a scenario.

It never really bothered me that the science was mostly incidental in Star Trek and that the focus was on the characters and interpersonal relationships. That would be a requirement for any compelling narrative. The critically acclaimed BSG went the same route.

The ‘big reset button’ is a thoroughly valid complaint and it was one of the things that BSG handled very well even if the ending managed to retroactively ruin my respect for the show.

The last point he made isn’t entirely true as BSG made it the focus of their show and while ST:TNG didn’t delve deeply into the culture of the Federation, it was examined from time to time. Star Trek was about exploration and while the juxtaposition of the Federation’s ideals with other cultures was often the focus of many episodes, it never really touched on what it meant to live in the near-utopia that the Federation was supposed to embody.

Three years ago I made a list of 12 ST:TNG episodes and 15 ST:DS9 episodes that were, in my opinion, the best of both series. They may be light sci-fi, but it was still compelling TV.

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The next Hackintosh

Posted by Brian in computers, hackintosh on October 13th, 2009

About six months ago, I bought a Dell Mini 9 and installed OSX on it. I really liked it and used it a lot … I even took it to Vegas this summer when I spoke at the HP Software Universe. The only thing I didn’t like was the keyboard because it was a bit on the small side. Recently, I discovered the Dell Mini 10v. All of the hardware is supported by Snow Leopard and its keyboard is 92% the size of a normal keyboard. Fully loaded (160 GB HD, Bluetooth, 802.11 g/n, 6-cell battery, 1.3M webcam) ran me about ~$370. After selling my Mini 9 on eBay, I picked up the Mini 10v.

Pros:

  • A keyboard I can type comfortably on; no more USB keyboard or Bluetooth dongled keyboard
  • A slightly bigger screen than the Mini 9
  • Full OSX compatibility, just like the 9
  • $90 cheaper than my Mini 9 from six months ago

Cons:

  • No preconfigured option to upgrade your RAM. 1 GB was all that I could get them to sell me. I was able to buy a 2 GB DIMM from Crucial for about $35. Not only could I not buy a higher preconfigured amount of RAM from Dell, but to add RAM I had to completely disassemble the laptop and stick the RAM on the underside of the motherboard. Doable but tedious and unnecessary. Dell, why’d you put the wifi chip on the laptop’s only posterior hatch?

The install method for OSX has been simplified somewhat by the NetbookInstaller project. It was much easier to install this time. Of course, it was easier for me to prep the media since I already had a Mac this time. Afterwards I used a combination of Xslimmer and Monolingual to really slim down my install.

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