A very interesting read…
DNA Storage?
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Author Archives: Atlanta B.A.
Teaching an old dog new tricks: How to fix Microsoft – CNN.com
Teaching an old dog new tricks: How to fix Microsoft – CNN.com.
This is an interesting article, but it doesn’t touch on one of the main problems that MS has… people no longer trust it.
Take me for example. Two cases:
1- I am looking at creating a site for my consulting company and it was suggested to me to use MS’s application Web Matrix. My first reaction was “Microsoft? My PC will be stuffed with bloatware”. But I went ahead and tried to install it. Sure enough, “XXXXX is required to run this application. Do you want to install?” CONSTANTLY over the next two hours. I finally gave up and uninstalled.
2- I’m a geek, so I’m a PC gamer. I saw in PC Gamer magazine that Microsoft Flight is now free. I remember enjoying the game years back so I decided to be brave and try to download it. It failed on me THREE TIMES due to “network issues” before I gave up again.
Speaking of, the author says “Who cares about the desktop?” Answer: me and every other PC gamer out there. From what we’ve heard rumored around the campfire, Windows 8 will not be our friend.
Just my $.02.
Redbox wants to start streaming before Santa comes
Finally, a story not about the new iPhone. Question: is Netflix and Amazon Prime successful enough to warrant another player in that space?
The Redbox Instant by Verizon joint venture wants to have its Netflix (s NFLX) competitor up and running in time for the holidays, according to a Bloomberg report. A Verizon (s VZ) exec told the news agency that the service is currently being tested by 500 of its employees, and that there is going to be a short public beta test before it finally launches between late November and mid-December.
The Bloomberg story also revealed a few more interesting details about the joint venture’s business model. Apparently, Redbox and Verizon are going to pay rights holders per subscriber. That’s different from Netflix, which regularly spends many millions of dollars to license titles for a set amount of time.
Paying per subscriber will minimize the the startup costs of the new venture, but it also means that customers likely will have fewer content options. Netflix is now regularly betting big…
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Gartner predicts raft of fake online reviews by 2014
I’ve noticed this more and more lately. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t trust any rating with less than 200 reviews to back it up.
A recent spate of fake online reviews is just the beginning of a trend, according to Gartner(s it) research.
The book publishing world was roiled by the recent disclosure that self-published author John Locke bought Amazon reviews and author Stephen Leather used “sock puppet” accounts to build online buzz for his books, as GigaOM’s Laura Owen reported earlier. This kerfuffle comes after months of reports about too-good-or-bad-to-be-true restaurant and other reviews on Yelp and other online review sites.
Well, get ready, because it’s just the beginning, according to Gartner, which expects that 10 to 15 percent of all online reviews will be paid for by companies within two years. As companies seek to cash in on consumer time spent on online review sites, Facebook(s fb) and Twitter, it’s not surprising that companies would try to steer consumer perception of their products.
According to a statement by Gartner senior research analyst…
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Why School? TED ebook author rethinks education when information is everywhere.
The man makes some good points, but I immediately had two questions.
1- Wiki?? Seriously?? We are prepared to use Wiki as a source to replace schools? I don’t even let my daughter quote Wiki as a source in her 7th grade papers. Sure, I recommend that she search it, but only to get the list of sources on the bottom of the page.
2- Education is only one function of schools. The other important function is socialization- teaching one how to deal with different personality types. I’ve known a few home-schooled kids and while they were very well read and educated they were also sadly lacking in the basic social skills. They just had no experience in being a part of a huge, varied community.
Let’s face it- we all learned who we are and how we deal with the nastier type of person in high school, not when we got into the business world.
What Obama’s iPad Says About the Future of News on Paper
Very interesting piece, but not sure that it’s news. Remember that this is the guy the Secret Service had a fight with about giving up his cell phone (a fight Obama won). This is a guy who is roughly my age and I can’t imagine relying on pulp-and-ink sources for my news. The only question I would have is security. You can’t tell me that the iPad pictured is not Target Number One for every hacker in the world.
Can a school get your kid’s Facebook password? Judge says no
I don’t have a Facebook account, primarily because the idea of living my personal life online sounds like the worst idea since Jarts. However, its cases like this that had me thinking about going to law school to focus on Internet Law. I cannot see how in the world the school could think they had the right to demand access to this kid’s account.
Side note: for those of you under 30- Jarts was a “toy” that consisted of six two-foot long darts with SHARP STEEL tips and two hula hoops. The idea was to play it kind of like horseshoes, but with LETHAL STEEL SPIKES.
“Happy 8th Birthday, Bobby. Now take this lethal mini-spear and hurl it across the yard. Try not to puncture your other guests. Have fun!!!”
How far can a school go in punishing students for what they do on Facebook? One Minnesota middle school crossed the line, leading a federal judge to say it violated one girl’s basic rights.
The case involves a 12-year-old girl who used Facebook (s fb) to diss the hall monitor, writing “[I hate] a Kathy person at school because [Kathy] was mean to me.” She also used the social network to talk about “naughty things” with a boy. When one of her “friends” ratted on her, the girl wrote on her Facebook wall, “I want to know who the f%$# told on me.”
Three school officials, including a counselor and a taser-wearing cop, came down hard. They interrogated her in an office and badgered the sobbing girl until she handed over her passwords. They proceeded to go through her Facebook and email accounts to find the “naughty” discussion she had with the boy.
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Annoying PC Magazine Layout
I was researching tools to use for my new business and stumbled on a list of the “Top 25 Small Business Apps” on the PC Magazine site.
I was looking through it and was quickly distracted by the layout of the article.
See below:
The report provides a brief description of the application and a screen shot, all very useful.
However, they have it backwards. The screenshot comes first and then the text. This means that a user has to scroll up (usually past the page break) in order to look at the image to see what the description is referencing. It would have been so much easier if the screen shot was below the text.
There is also one VERY annoying thing on this site… the new version of the marketing pop-up.
This little box appeared and disappeared every minute or so at the bottom of the screen.
Aren’t we past this intrusive, pushy marketing strategy by now?
Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler in stable condition – CNN.com
Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler in stable condition – CNN.com.
I’ve been a pro wrestling fan since I was a little kid and my dad and I spend every Saturday afternoon watching “Championship Wrestling from Florida” with Gordon Solie. I realize it’s “fake”- but excuse me if I prefer my violence fake and controlled.
I was watching RAW live when this happened and you immediately knew that something was horribly wrong. It was a very uncomfortable watch and the entire back half of the show was people going thru the motions for the live crowd while waiting for news updates.
The comments in this CNN article are nothing short of absolutely disgusting and it only reconfirms why I no longer participate in any online forums or discussions. Trolls rule.
You’re in my thoughts, Jerry. I pray that one day I’ll get to hear that familiar music as you walk down to the announce table.
Cowardly Administration
Nothing to do with UI… just shocked at how cowardly FAMU comes across in this piece.
Red Paint Usability Blog 