iPad

iPad

iPad compared to the Kindle and the iPhone

CLICK ME FOR THE iPad VIDEO

Now for some specs(Taken from the Apple Website):

Click for Tech Specs

Okay. Now I can get on to my analysis for this big screened more powerful than an iPhone but not an iPhone-iPod Touch thing. I can’t call this a tablet computer. Simply put, it runs the iPhone operating system so you are limited to the amount of multi-tasking, running more than one app, and apps that you can actually run. This does not run a full fledged version of OS X. I guess that last statement would be redundant seeing as I already mentioned that the iPad runs the iPhone operating system(OS 3.1.(whatever)-soon to be 3.2). This is the iPad’s first limitation. You cannot multi-task on this device because it does not allow for applications running in the background. The biggest area I see this affecting is the gaming aspect and internet browsing experience. In a game on the iPhone, if you get a text message or an e-mail you have to exit the game, ending your current progress, then switch to the “messaging” application, then switch back. Same goes for the internet browsing experience. If you are social and receive more than one text message or e-mail a day, I could see this posing an annoying problem. I know that the iPad does not support text messaging, I just used that as an example. The fact that the iPad uses the iPhone OS also limits you to the apps available only to the iPhone. Yes, yes, I know there are 140,000 apps(yes, you can buy then from the app store, just like the iPhone/iPod. Commence freakout)available, and there is pretty much an app for everything, but think about something simple like a word document. If you get a word document as an attachment and need to edit it, what do you do? I mean you have this “tablet computer” but you cant edit a word document and e-mail it back to the sender or forward it on to someone new? That could pose to be a massive problem for a lot of people. The screen looks absolutely astonishing in all the videos. It’s about 10 inches(9.7 to be exact and nerdy) and displays a 1024×768 resolution, not bad. From the videos and comments, everyone can and does agree that the screen is awesome. It’s also got a 1GHz Apple A4 processor to handle all the iPhone OS needs. Plently of power for what it does, seeing as the OS runs on a small ARM processor and does alright on there, so I can imagine that it is pretty responsible and “loads” things/apps/videos/movies/photos very quickly. Did I mention it’s sexy? Oh, I almost forgot. It’s sexy. The whole front of the iPad is glass, while the back is aluminum and very iPhone 1G style. This thing will turn heads when you whip it out in public(if you ever actually buy one, getting to that).

So now that I have highlighted what this “thing” is I can start with my thoughts(in no random order). This is the fun part.

• Is this revolutionary? Yes and No. Yes because no one has ever tried something like this; putting the iPhone OS on a device other than the iPhone/iPod and sending it into the mainstream. That is pretty much the only reason it is revolutionary. Others may argue that it is setting a new standard for “tablet” manufactures and that makes it revolutionary, but I just call it normal since Apple has been doing that since the MacBook era. Plus this really is not a computer! It is just a device. A overpowered iPod with a big screen! There really is not anything like it(more on this below). It’s not revolutionary for the same reason it is revolutionary(if that makes any sense). I can already do this on my iPhone, iPod, MacBook, and PC, so whats the point(more on this below). I guess it could also be argued that it is revolutionary because its the first of its kind. But what is it?
• What is it? Netbook? No. Tablet PC? No. iPhone? Kinda. Laptop? Definitely not. I am going to dub this a media slate. I mean, you can almost do everything you can do on a netbook on the iPad, but you cant do everything. Like flash. You can’t view flash web pages or play flash games! You can’t edit word docs on the fly. You can’t edit your photos. You can’t edit music. You can’t write on it with a stylus. But you can watch movies, play games, view photos, e-mail, and browse the web. So it is a netbook, but its not. The iPad is not a tablet PC. There is no stylus, multitasking, heavy processing, or anything else that you can do on a tablet running Windows 7. Granted, there are not many out yet, but I have a feeling everyone was waiting to see what kind of bomb Apple would drop today, and it seems like it was just  a small grenade. Give the PC manufactures some time to figure if there is even a market for the tablet. I mean there is nothing like the iPad on the market and that is a good thing because it is the only player for what it does. I think that once PC manufactures start spitting out Windows 7 tablets, apple will change their approach or just phase out the iPad. Who knows. I do know that Apple always has a plan. I guess that I really don’t know what to call the iPad other than “the iPad.” There is nothing like it, and that is good and bad.
• Why do we need this?Who is it for? I feel like these two questions are closely related only because they have to do with the demographic of the customer base. These are two questions I really have no answer for. It scares the hell out of me. I have no idea what I would do with an iPad and I think that the majority of consumers are asking the same question. If I were to buy one I would sit it on my nightstand so I could check my e-mail, update my calender, post to twitter, check my facebook, check my stocks, and read the top news stories of the day before I go to bed. Am I willing to pay $500.00 for that? I don’t know yet. I don’t understand the point of this device. I have a laptop, desktop(2), and an iPhone. So really I have 4 devices that can do what the iPad does, each one offering a different way and style of doing the tasks mentioned. I get my e-mails, stock quotes, news stories, twitter, and facebook on all 4 devices already, so what do I need a fifth for? Again, I have no idea. I know college students and business people cant use it because you can’t really take notes with it efficiently without a stylus, and you cant really write up your lab reports/word documents in an efficient way. So in the end you end up buying a MacBook(I think I just struck gold here) to do all the things you can’t do with the iPad. Is the iPad just a filler for the price gap/void between the iPhone and the MacBook line? Maybe! Maybe this is just a way to introduce people to the Apple line without them having to spend a full $999.99 to get the full “computing” experience. You don’t get the “computing” experience with the iPad, but I am sure that most consumers will draw that conclusion and think that the iPad is a tablet computer.  I was expecting Steve Jobs to make me want the iPad in his keynote, but in reality it just made me wonder more about what the heck the thing is for and why I need it! This same idea has sparked a ton of debate on forums, message boards, blogs, and news sites and I feel like everyone is just waiting. Waiting to see what this shiny new “tablet/slate/pad/notepad/whatever” iPad thing can be actually used for.

So what is my verdict? I don’t have one. The iPad has confused me. I can’t wrap my head around why anyone would need something like this and why Apple would even want to produce this. I am genuinely stumped. I love Apple(and think that the team that they have is just amazing, truly, awesome. I strive to be like Jobs, Jony, and the other members of the Apple executive team every day.)  and I am a fanboy, but if the iPad is stumping a fanboy(not just me, check macrumors.com for more examples of people like me) then how is the average consumer supposed to figure out if he or she wants an iPad?  If you need something to just access your media, and do the most basic tasks(I mean the MOST basic) then you can drop the $500.00 on the iPad and feel good about yourself. Otherwise I feel like a lot of people are only going to feel remorse and confusion when they open one of these sexy little piece of glass, aluminum and silicone up and press that little black clicky button on the top to be greeted by the iPhone/iPod OS.

Anyway.

School is back in session and I’m going to go ahead and say that my schedule is awesome. I start class at 10:30 on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and I’m out at 12:20. Tuesdays are a bit more complicated.I have a block of two classes and a lab from 11:30am- 3:20, then I have a 4ish hour break until 7pm. I then have a class from 7:00pm-9:30pm. Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues in Computing. Should be a good class. I really enjoyed the professor last night(that sounded really, really wrong). I said yesterday that I would explain why It is ironic that I am in a computer ethics class. Simply put, I have not been the most ethical person with my owner personal computing. Since I was 13(ish) I have been torrential(read: downloading ) copyrighted material. This is not legal at all and since I recived two warnings about copyright infringement, I stopped(well, sort-of). Let this be a lesson to all of you. Don’t download movies, go buy them(or rent). The movie industry deserves the money and is really cracking down on people who bootleg and share movies. So save yourself the headache and go grab the DVD, or even better the Blu-Ray and enjoy a legitimate copy of the movie.

What else..

I took and awesome 4 hour nap today after I worked out. Oh! It is my mom’s birthday! Happy Birthday Mama!

Music.

I have been listening to some pretty interesting stuff. The Kooks especially. I really like them, totally chill, but not so chill that it’s boring.  State Radio. I think I have said something about them in an earlier post, but I still like them a lot. Pretty Lights. Awesome. Girl Talk. Also awesome. That’s just some stuff I have really been listening to recently. I recommend them.

Pretty Lights- Random Album, Just picked it.

The Kooks- Random Picture

State Radio-Random Promo Image

Girl Talk- Random Album

More Tomorrow. Homework Time.

To start, I have some exciting news. I made the deans list for high academic performance at school. I guess my 3.536 GPA helped. I really am a nerd. Thats okay, I accept it.

More exciting news that I have is that I got a new backpack. Yes. I am really excited about this for no good reason. It was sort-of(read: definitely) an impulse buy. Some type of Northface that I picked up for a pretty steep price(thinking about it makes me cringe). I hope it lasts me through the rest of my college career, just like the backpack I had for 8 years made it with me through middle school and high school. Lets hope the Northface is as good as the one I had before.

Business. I worked at a Sears Essentials as a seasonal/winter job/extra cash job and the store closed on Sunday(yesterday). As weird as this sounds, I will miss working there. The hilarious  employees, insane screaming Hispanic customers(not being racist, I swear), random people asking “tell me how much?” and the random people who would call the store asking for “khaki pants with a 32 inseam and 34 length.” So in commemoration of Sears Essentials Palatine I am just going to list a bunch of random phrases that I heard:

• “Whats my price?”
• “You tell me how much?”
• “Erm.. I do not want. No bueno.”
• “Hola.”
• “Bueno.”
• “VATTTTTT CHUUU MEANN?!”
• “diwaali muubaarak”(what?)
• “How am I supposed to pick up the fridge if I don’t have a car to put it in? “
• “You guys are closing because of how you treat customers”
• “Are you going to f@$%&*! sell me this blanket?!”

Good luck to all employees and I wish everyone the best.

So as I am typing this, my e-mail shows I have a new message. Read it:

Welcome to Social, Ethical, and Legal Issues in Computing.

Before tomorrow’s class, it would be helpful if you could read §4.1 of the textbook, Sara Baase’s Gift of Fire, on “intellectual property”. As you read it, keep in mind the example of music “file sharing”.

After that, you are encouraged to start reading §1.2; however, §1.2 is a lengthy section and you don’t need to finish it by tomorrow.

Two things. It is ironic that I am in a class about social, legal, and ethical issues in computing. Read tomorrows post to find out why. The second thing is that I ordered my books earlier last week, and the book that this professor is talking about is nowhere to be seen. No good. Also(I guess I am adding in a third thing) who the heck assigns a reading assignment the day before class? Just something random that I thought I would toss in there.  Should be an interesting class. Stay tuned for more on it.

The Google Phone. This thing is just a freaking monster. Also known as the Nexus One. I would pick one up if it didn’t have a $530.00 price tag, if I didn’t already have an iPhone, and if I didn’t have to run and invest in a business. They are sexy and super nerdy and awesome. I feel like Google might just be a bit late to the game, though. That’s okay. They are still going to kick some ass with the Nexus One. I have yet to actually physically play with one, or see anyone with one, but I am hoping that I will be able to pick one up in a few months depending on how long my iPhone lives.

But wait..Microsoft? Just read this at Tech Crunch: http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2010/01/18/everything-you-need-to-know-about-windows-mobile-7/#comment-464698

MWC is a few weeks away – it starts on February 15 – and we’re expecting to see a new version of Windows Mobile, version 7, to be launched with hardware soon to follow. We’ve heard some rumors about potential improvements over the current 6.x codebase, but a developer has told us that this new version is so distant from the old WinMo that it is almost unrecognizable. The worst part? It is completely non-backwards compatible, meaning all WinMo apps are about go extinct.

First, WinMo 7 is essentially a copy of the Zune HD’s kernel. It comes in one screen size and will work best on OLED devices. Microsoft will give official specs to hardware makers and force them to comply or else refuse them access to the OS. This includes a regimented screen and RAM size as well as a minimum processor speed.

If you haven’t guessed, Microsoft is about to get all Apple up in this piece.

The UI looks just like the Zune HD’s with some phone controls built-in. The HD has defined the interface and the use case here, so expect a capacitive multi-touch screen with plenty of media controls.

Now for the nuts and bolts: WinMo 7 has no background processing and will use an Apple-like notification service. There is no system resource access and no threaded processes. In fact, there is no customization at all.

WinMo 7 will not run 6.x code. End of story. It is based on Silverlight and .Net. Everything save a few basic programs will not work under WinMo 7. There is no expectation that this will be a “business device” and the focus is currently on games including some XBox Live functionality for gaming and messaging. There will be a Microsoft App store with an easy approval process.

There is no visual voicemail, probably for patent reasons. As for developers, they’re kind of pissed. As far as we can tell they’re not quite sure they want to take the steps necessary to move over to the new platform. This is a Hail Mary pass and could mean huge changes in the WinMo ecosystem. This could also mean Zune sync software for the Mac, something that we expected when pigs flew.

Special thanks to our fearless tipster.

Okay. So this post might be full of fail and bullshit, but it does show that Microsoft is once again last to the mobile device game. No surprise here. I had a Samsung Blackjack and Blackjack II, both very good phones- if they were not running Windows Mobile(WinMo). WinMo has always been sketchy and buggy but I think everyone has already come to accept that. I just hope they can get their act together with it  because I kinda like Microsoft after seeing what they could do with Windows 7.  I think everyone(you know who you are) should cut them some slack since they have downsized their WinMo development team and shifted their main focus to Cloud Computing Technologies and other neat things. I don’t think WinMo has ever generated enough revenue for Microsoft, which could be a direct result of why it is always so consistently sketchy. Oh well.

Thats it for tonight. Thanks for reading, more tomorrow.

Right, so I left off with me skiing, boredom during winter break, and other “ventures” that I was “planning.”

I’m going to try and write(read:type) this in some sort of chronological order, with some random ideas/theories/comments thrown in between(or as I write).

Holidays. Merry extremely belated Christmas/Kwanzaa/Hanuka/New Years to all those who celebrate. I celebrated  with my family(read: mom’s side) and for the first time ever Christmas Eve was at our house. Traditionally we had Christmas Eve at my grandparents(mother’s parents house), but since my grandfather(RIP, Dido) passed away, I think it was decided that we were going to have it at our house. Good thing I was working most of the day(Sears Holdings Corp) because when I came home it was chaotic and tensions were high with both my mom and my grandmother(mother&daughter) in the kitchen. At least the traditional Ukrainian food was good. Unfortunately I ended up getting sick and being stuck in bed after dinner and into Christmas Day.

Vacation. Part of the reason I didn’t have time to write a post was because we were traveling.We drove to Florida. It was a good time other than the fact that I was drowsing in my own mucus, having spontaneous bloody noses, and the mid/high 40 degree weather and rain. I would do it again, except to Aspen.

Free WiFi in hotels.

I am going to go ahead and address this issue now because I have been thinking about it since the day we got to our hotel in Orlando and I feel like it would be entertaining for anyone to read. The hotel we stayed at in Orlando charged 10 bucks a day for freaking WiFi and WIRED! The reader should note that this was an upscale hotel and not a craphole motel that has not been updated or renovated in 40 years.  But wait. Even those little crapholes provide complimentary WiFi! The nightly rate at the hotel we stayed at was ~300 dollars a night(note: we needed two rooms since there we 5 of us) . No free WiFi. “Complimentary muffins” in the morning. That pretty much sums up what we got. No WiFi. On the way back we stayed at a Country Inn(never, ever, ever stay there) and get free WiFi for ~115 a night(again, we needed two rooms). Think about that. It is absolute trash for a hotel to charge anyone for WiFi or internet access. If I can go to a Holiday Inn and pay half or more for my room, but get complimentary internet why would I even bother to go to an even more upscale place and spend 100 dollars a week for internet? My take. This might make a few people angry. Internet is becoming an necessity for most(note that I wrote MOST) people. Most do casual surfing, business, and other things on the internet when they are away on vacation. No, I’m not mad because I couldn’t watch mah pR0nZ while I was on vacation. Thats just weird. Back to the original idea. The hotel industry has done something smart and use free WiFi as a marketing point when it was a “new” and “emerging” technology. Charging people for the internet is like charging them every time they run the water. Granted, excess water usage will get you a higher room rate(ask me how I know that), but that is still completely irrelevant. If the hotel provides free WiFi, the hotel also has every right to regulate, throttle, cut, and ban users from the use of the hotel Internets! I know Holiday Inn will kick you off after you use to much bandwidth or are doing insane streaming(again, ask me how I know this) so how can this even be a question of how much bandwidth with 1,200 users take up? It’s not. I think at the end of the day it is a question of the quality of the management of the hotel or chain. As soon as competitors start switching to free WiFi, a manager or someone in the corporate office should know that the time is soon coming and that maybe they should get ahead of the game and switch over too! It would be a smart marketing move. Beat your competitors to the punch. But some places still refuse to give free WiFi? How could this be of any benefit to them?Its not. No one uses it. I just used my iPhone 3Gs and I was okay for Facebook, Twitter and my e-mails.  Is it a sign of the(economic) times? No. People who can’t afford 10 dollars for internet a day are not going to stay in a hotel that charges 300 a night when they could stay at a Holiday Inn and burn that 200 somewhere else(and get free WiFi!). But the rich will pay for it, right?! Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! In fact, a millionaire will not pay for the internet. Why? Because true millionaires know where they should not spend their money. In the September 2008 Issue of Smart Money there was an article published titled “10 Things Millionaires Won’t Tell You.” Number two was this:

“I shop at Wal-Mart…”  About 80 percent of all the millionaires interviewed say they spend with a middle class mind-set. “That means buying luxury items on sale, hunting for bargains- even clipping coupons”

10 Dollar-a-day slow internet is not a bargain. That answers that question pretty thoroughly. I could quote half of an interesting book I am reading now but I think I will refrain. Bottom line is that most millionaires(again, using MOST because this does not apply to all!) live way below their actual means, simply because it is financially safe(read: less risky) to do so. So who buys the 10 dollar-a day slow internet then? The stupid ones who don’t know better! Simple as that. Some people just do not understand that you can go to Starbucks across the street and check the news, weather and your e-mails for free! Whats my point? Please do not buy internet or WiFi from a hotel unless you are in a life threatening situation. End of that story.

I just realized how long I spent typing up that little rant. That was nice, but I have some other things to do. Check back tomorrow for more entertaining blog posts about my experience as a cashier at Sears during a liquidation. Lulz will ensue.

Winter is my favorite season. Why? Skiing. Everyone I talk to thinks that it is lame that I ski so, I’m going to go ahead and clear some things up here. I really enjoy freestyle/park skiing almost as much as I enjoy the everyday downhill skiing. Have I been out west? No. Will I go out west this year? A very strong yes. So for your amusement, I’m going to go ahead and post some videos up and the type of skiing I enjoy. Am I this good? Not at all. Maybe next season when I get my gear situated. The ski season has just begun in the Midwest and so far I have been out twice, soon to be three times. I plan on hitting the slopes as much as possible this year and working on some stuff that I feel I need to improve on (read: work on skiing switch(backwards)).Turns out that icy conditions left me with a tweaked up face and wrist and feeling pretty sore. I hit a box and my sub-par garbage bindings decided to give out as I landed switch(read: backwards) coming off of the box. While landing on some ice, my right ski popped off, causing my left ski to slide out from under me when the toe of my boot stuck into the ground. Resulting in me landing on my face and my left wrist. The result? Pain. I tore up my face pretty good and it still feels like I got punched a few times(yes, I know what it feels like to get punched). Hopefully It will heal up and let me sleep on my left side sometime soon.

My face after my slight mishap. Note the red spots all over(those were bleeding).

In other news.
I found this hilarious.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WTVC-TV) – A 4-year-old boy, beer in hand, is accused of stealing Christmas presents from his neighbors. It’s a strange story, but also a sad one.

April Wright is 21 years old and is going through a divorce with her husband who is in jail. She says she is not sure how her 4-year-old managed to get out of the house, open a beer, and steal the neighbors presents from under their tree. Now she’s just glad he’s okay and says she won’t let it happen again.

The child, Hayden Wright, was found around 1:45 am Tuesday, wandering the streets of his neighborhood. In a police reports, officers said he was wearing a little girl’s dress and drinking a beer. The police report says the child had to be taken to the hospital to be treated for alcohol consumption.

April Wright said, “Biggest concern was him being out there, getting kidnapped, getting run over, the alcohol, having to have his stomach pumped.”

Wright says she woke up that night at 1:45 am and panicked when she found Hayden was gone. She says she put safety devices on all the doors so her kids couldn’t get out, but Hayden was able to break the safety device off the doorknob and get outside.

Once out, Wright says her four year old followed his father’s footsteps and was found on Blue Spruce Road, drinking.

“He runs away trying to find his father,” she said. “He wants to get in trouble so he can go to jail because that’s where his daddy is.”

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office report says Hayden rang the doorbell a few houses down and the neighbor answered, finding the child holding a partially consumeed 12-ounce beer.

Wright said, “He got it out of my father’s cooler in the back and how he got it open I don’t understand because it was one of those tab beers.”

But it doesn’t stop there. The report said Hayden then snuck into a neighbor’s house through an unlocked front door, and stole five wrapped Christmas gifts. One was a girl’s brown dress which Hayden was wearing when police found him.

“Going to the neighbor’s house and taking their presents, very embarrassing,” said April.

She admits she was not just embarrassed, but scared, and rushed to the hospital that night with Hayden. She said she tries to be a good mother and loves her son, but now feels like a failure.

“Kids do things like this and it’s out of your control, you can do the best you can as a mother, everyone makes mistakes, it was an honest mistake,” she said.

Wright did meet with child protective services today who told her she will get to keep custody of Hayden.

Source: http://www.newschannel9.com/news/year-987196-old-christmas.html

I just have two questions for the mother here…

1. How do you not hear your kid smashing the safety locks on the door knobs or handles?(must be a heavy sleeper?)
2. How does the kid know how to open the beer without a bottle opener? (my best guess is that he was left home with daddy for a while..)

In all seriousness. This is really sad. It really is. At the same time its a prime example of terrible parenting! How can you neglect your son to the point where he wants to break out of the house, steal Christmas presents, down a brew(or half of one), and run around in a dress?! I’ll let the reader draw their own conclusions.

Microsoft gets sued for Bing name.

There are those who believe that Microsoft came up with the name Bing for its refreshed search engine after staring at the word “Bingo” for several days and then removing the last letter.

However, a small entity in St. Louis has decided that the name Bing was, is and always should be, theirs.

According to Ars Technica, Bing Information Design! has designs on some compensation from Microsoft, as it has used the delightful term, followed by a slightly less delightful exclamation point, ala Yahoo, since 2000.

Even to the most bleary eyes, Bing Information Design’s Web site does not immediately stir confusion with Bing the search engine. Bing Information Design is “dedicated to taking tough, hard-to-define concepts and boiling them down into simple, easy-to-understand ideas.”

So perhaps there might be those who would prefer a few pictures that would engender easy-to-understand ideas that might explain one thing: how could anyone confuse a massively promoted search engine from Microsoft with a minimally known company whose two founders “have over 25 years of experience in design, illustration, branding, information architecture and publishing”?

Bing Information Design’s lawsuit says that Microsoft’s Bing “causes confusion with regard to the relationship between the plaintiff and the defendant, confuses the public with regard to the origin of the plaintiff’s services and dilutes the value of the plaintiff’s trademark.”

The lawsuit also suggests that Microsoft knew of the St. Louis Bing and that therefore Bing deserves “actual and punitive damages, including having Microsoft pay for corrective advertising to remedy the confusion it caused.”

I am sure that many an ad agency would leap at the opportunity to create a campaign that says “Bing. The Decision Engine Decisively Not from St. Louis. And Decisively Lacking an Exclamation Point.”

A Microsoft spokesperson told Ars Technica: “We believe this suit to be without merit and we do not believe there is any confusion in the marketplace with regard to the complainant’s offerings and Microsoft’s Bing.”

It will be interesting to see what proof of marketplace confusion Bing Information Design’s lawyers might offer. Has there truly been consternation in Missouri? Have people walked into Bing Information Design’s offices expecting to find Steve Ballmer chewing on some ideas?

It will be also interesting to hear whose fine decision it was to put that lovely exclamation point after the Bing in the St. Louis company’s name.

One should always have sympathy with the small fish in the big sea. But is this a slightly gratuitous attempt by Bing Information Design to gain a little cha-ching? One awaits the full evidence with an exclamation point in one’s heart.

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10419357-71.html

I really have no sympathy for this little company, but I guess they are going to get what they wanted. Publicity. You don’t go after a multi-billion dollar company for something like this. Is there a copyright/trademark infringement issue here? It appears so. I could be wrong though. I am going to have to agree with Microsoft on this one. There really is no merit; the little family owned business is in a completely different market and has nothing to do with search(read:decision) engines! If this was an international company then I could see how the advertising could cause confusion, but this just sounds like a small “mom and pop” web design company looking for some extra cash during this garbage economy. If the word “Bing” is really messing up this little companies “marketing campaign” and causing “confusion” then I think that they might want to re-think how they market their service. This should get interesting.

New ventures.

1. Opening a car wash- Really?  Yes. Not just a run-of-the-mill car wash more of  a high-end detail center. Is there room for profit? Sure. Moving about 350 cars a month would make me a decent amount of money. More on this later.
2. Web Development- This is something I am really looking into. Designing and flash and building websites in Dream weaver could get me somewhere. Maybe getting into database management and marketing websites etc..
3. iPhone App Development- This is something that I should have gotten into earlier. Unfortunately its a little late for this now, but there is potential if I can come up with a really awesome app(read: Geo location or something). Who knows.
4. Stock Market- Already doing this. Bad time except for some penny stocks that jump 200% some days.
5. Sticking with a “real job”- Tempting, but I’m not sure that I like working for the bare minimum wage and expected to be doing the work of someone getting paid double. Add in the fact that you always have some lazy manager (Sears, Best Buy) and you get a lousy experience.

Just a general overview.

So that just took me a few hours to figure out. Wrote up some business plans, everything shows some decent promise. Who knows.

I also came up with a Christmas list(read: what every nerd should have), per the request of my mother(In no real order):

Nixon Newton Watch:
This thing is just awesome.

Nixon Netwon watch

Apple MacBook Pro:
I’ve had the same MacBook for 3 years, its time for an update.

Oakley Crowbars:
Sick-nasty Ski Goggles.

Crowbars

Beats By Dr. Dre:
Everyone has em’, so why not?

Beats By Dr. Dre

That’s pretty much all I can think of right now. I have been fortunate enough to be able to get what I want when I want it. The only thing that I really need on that list  is the Oakley Crowbar goggles. I think the watch would be nice too. The Headphones and MacBook are just fillers I guess.

]]> http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/2009/12/15/winter-break-boredom/feed/ 0 paulstasiuk nixonnewtonA116250 Macbook Pro Crowbar Beats http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/schools-out/ http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/schools-out/#comments Sat, 12 Dec 2009 05:19:09 +0000 paulstasiuk http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/?p=11 Continue reading →]]>

Pretend those are college students wearing winter coats. Just do it.

For winter break, that is. What a relief. Finals are finally over so now I can catch up on sleep,actually post to this blog, enjoy a social life, and pursue miscellaneous ventures. Should be a good time.

Right, so on to something interesting..

So I am pretty excited about a few movies. To list a few:

Public Enemies is out on DVD, to those who have yet to see it, go get it! It’s really good. Iron Man 2 is just going to be awesome. Tony Stark is the man.

Ski Season! Skiing is one of my favorite hobbies. Planning on going this weekend, but everywhere is going to be jam packed which just makes skiing a chore instead of any fun. Plus its ~3 degrees outside last time I checked, so frostbite would be imminent. Planning on Devils Head or Cascade next weekend, though. I park/freestyle as much as possible but still enjoy some good downhill and powder.

In other news..

Mac vs. PC.  I get asked the same question every time I tell someone I am a Computer Science major. “So tell me, which is better, a Mac or a PC?” Shortly followed by, “What are you?” I wish I could answer really fast and say “I am a PCandaMac!” and then just walk away. Since I am always so serious, I start babbling about some techno-mumbo-jumbo and usually the person asking the question becomes uninterested or realizes that he or she has no idea what I am talking about and just interrupts and says “Well, I hope school is going well for you!” Good conversation. Every. Single. Time.  So I am going to take the next how every many words to clear up this once and for all.

To start, I use both a Mac and a PC, both are great, I love Windows 7(and XP, not Vista), as much as I like OS X Leopard. I even run windows on my Mac(Gasp!). Now, the only Mac(s) I would consider buying are any of the MacBook’s or MacBook Pros. Simply put, they are gorgeous, functions, a bit pricey, light, have beautiful  displays, boot in ~30 seconds, and can do basically everything an every day user and most power users need. I have had a white MacBook for 3 years and counting now, and it has served me great. If you want something elegant, powerful(for the most part), and compact, get yourself a 15″ MacBook Pro, completely decked out, and don’t buy another computer for 4 years. Seriously. It is everything you will ever need from a laptop, and most desktops. For power on the go, graphics design, video editing, and photo editing, the MacBook pro is more than enough for most. I do all that on my standard MacBook, granted it gets a little warm and shuts off occasionally, but hey, it’s still kickin’.  For a desktop, I would never ever buy a Mac. Never. Sure, the iMacs are gorgeous works of art and have amazing displays, but the “dollar to power” ratio is just completely off. If you want a desktop, get yourself a Del or an HP. No joke.Or have someone like me build you the damn thing and save a few hundred dollars and get something that is upgradable. Without heavy modification and voiding the warranty, an iMac is not upgradable. So, if you want a desktop, get a pre-built from Dell or HP with a 24″ display and Windows 7, and you will never look back. Viruses. It really irks me when people bring up the whole virus debate with Macs and PCs. Yes, there are viruses for Macs. Actually, there are only 4 or 5 known, but there are still viruses. Get this though. When you surf the web responsibly, have a firewall, anti-virus software, and have anti-spyware software, the chances of you getting a virus on your PC are reduced to almost zero. Yep. It’s true. So for all those who want to get a Mac to tame your shady internet surfing,; you’re just going to end up with a bunch of garbage on your desktop, in folders and in random places because of all the ad’s you click on, or all the inappropriate content you view. Simple, really. Macs never crash or slow down. Wrong, very very very wrong. Go buy a Mac and install Microsoft Word on it. Nightmare. I reboot my MacBook almost every night, and run a defrag on it every 2 months. The difference is in how OS X manages its file system. In normal people talk; Macs manage the data more efficently than windows.  There’s a catch. If you have a windows machine, follow these steps: my computer>right click on primary drive> properties> utilities> defrag. Tinker with the defrag utility, if you can, I recommend setting it up to run once a week, maybe Sunday nights when no one is going to be on the machine. For an even better solution see: DeFraggler. This is great software that has an interactive scheduler for your defrags. Setting up defrags every week will keep your machine in top notch working order and never allow your machine to slow down or lag because of fragmented files.

So now that I addressed all the common points of what people bring up to me, I guess I should give an answer. What is better? Neither. Get a Linux box. Just kidding. If you want a quality laptop, pick yourself up a MacBook or MacBook Pro. Otherwise stick with a Dell or HP, or custom build with Windows 7, good anti-virus, and scheduled maintenance.

Some music I have been listening to:

Bloc Party- Not just this album.

MSTRKRFT- Great Stuff.

State Radio- Again, not just this album. Really chill stuff.

That’s pretty much all I can muster tonight. More to come in the following days.

]]> http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/schools-out/feed/ 0 paulstasiuk No more school 500x_ironmanposterwhiplashhires_01 Picture 1 Picture 2 Picture 4 Sick. Backflip Bloc Party MSTRKRFT State Radio http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/rant/ http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/rant/#comments Thu, 10 Dec 2009 06:49:02 +0000 paulstasiuk http://paulstasiuk.wordpress.com/?p=9 Continue reading →]]> Mine as well start this blog off with something interesting..

So I have been studying for about 5 hours at this point for my introduction to computing final and I came across something interesting. First off, I am a Computer Science major/Business Admin minor at Loyola Univ. Chicago. Great school. Love every aspect of going to it. This has nothing to do with the professor or the T/A’s and is not meant to bash anyone or the curriculum at LUC.  Back to the rant.

Part of this intro to computing class is programming. Now, I have been programming  on/off since my sophomore year in high school in C++, Java, and some HTML(Read: very little). As a “programmer” we are taught that programming is basically broken down into three steps:

1. Design
2. Production/Programming
3. Debugging/Testing

These ideas are constantly hammered into our heads and something that we are supposed to carry with us for the rest of our college and professional careers. As I study for my final exam I come across 4 bullet points that I have condensed to show the general idea of what we are supposed to know:

• Be able to hand write a program/function using miscellaneous(specified in the study guide) features in python. The initial design steps need not be written just the program/function.

Hand write? No initial steps? Where is the debugging? Nothing there. Why would they consistently hammer into our heads that debugging and design are such important features of programming, then not test us on our ability to design and debug the program?! I have no idea. I really don’t and this bothers me. I think that we should be able to design, program, and debug. Otherwise, don’t bother testing us on the material! I guess in the “real world” we just sit down and type up a function in word pad, not test it, send it off and move on to something else? Guess so. Is the administration worried that we are all going to cheat if we can use a computer and debug and test our program? Maybe. I guess that it would be pretty difficult to tell if we cheated or not if half the programs that were turned in are identical. Are they worried that we are going to rely to much on technology to find out errors? Give me break. If you cant program, then you cant program. If you can program, then you can. There is no middle ground. Its either you got it down, or you don’t. If you don’t, then you cheat and get busted. End of story. Kinda. If the administration wants us to write out programs by hand, then they should at least not take points off for forgetting a colon, or not using the correct syntax for a Boolean expression(read: math and logic). Human error and stress comes into play on finals and we are gaurenteed to loose an absurd amount of points because we forgot to add a colon. Non-nerds, stop reading here.Quick example:

def main():
age = input (“Please input your age:”)
age= int(age)
if (age< 21)
print (“You cant drink. Stick to water. Or consider getting a fake.”)
if(age>=21)
print(“You can drink. Have a beer.”)
else:
print (“You are a miserable failure. Re-run this, and input a number.”)

Now I know that half the people who read this aren’t going to understand what that means but its pretty  self explanatory. If you input an age of 21 or older, you get a response that you can drink. Those who input an age of under 21  get a response that they cannot. If they input anything else, it should either give an error or call the user a miserable failure. A perfectly good program right? Wrong. If I was to write something like that on a test it would get ~4 points knocked off. Not a lot right? multiply that by 4 programs with the same error. That is already ~12 points off. On a 100 point exam that brings you to an 88 already. The difference between an A and B. How should it be written? Changes in bold.

def main():
age = input (“Please input your age:”)
age= int(age)
if (age< 21):<– need colon.
print (“You cant drink. Stick to water. Or consider getting a fake.”)
if(age>=21):<– need colon.
print(“You can drink. Have a beer.”)
else:
print (“You are a miserable failure. Re-run this, and input a number.”)

Two colons.Technically the program wouldn’t run, but it is perfectly written. A 10 second debug would tell me that I forgot the colons, and I am done and passing with flying colors. Instead, tomorrow(or in around 8 hours and 20 minutes) I will be loosing points for forgetting a colon, or a comma, or writing something in shorthand. In my eyes this is unfair to those who know how to write programs. People can disagree and say that someone who can write a program doesn’t make syntax errors, but I will be hard pressed to find any human who might miss a key while they quickly write a string of code, or just miss something blatantly obvious, or just leave something out all together. There is no way that someone can write a perfect function(read:program) over and over again and not make ANY mistakes with their syntax or structure. //endrant.

In other news…

I have been to a lot of  Pretty Lights. Those of you who have never head of him should check out http://www.prettylightsmusic.com/. Hes got some great stuff.

I hope you all enjoy reading! Ill post something new up very soon.