Ice Cavern Studios

[I started this after Macworld of 2007, I thought it would be good to bring it back]

Before you read this, please read this.

Eric Burns makes an interesting note about the MACWorld keynote. There really wasn’t anything about…I don’t know…Macintosh computers? Seriously, at the conference that was the unveiling of so many major computer releases (Original TiBook in January of 2001?), and is supposed to be about the Mac, where were the computer announcements? Where was the…you know…Mac? Gone.

Computers were an afterthought. And apparently, computers aren’t the big thing at Apple either. They dropped “Computer” from their company name. They’re Apple Inc, now. Apple Computers is dead.

Stop to think about that for a second. Has that sunk in yet? It’s ok, I’ll wait a bit longer.

That’s right, Apple Computer, the company that changed how we look at computers, who’s machines my generation grew up using in schools, no longer exsists. This is now Apple Inc. Maker of the IPod, the IPhone and the company that runs the iTunes Music Store.

Without much fanfare, Apple has smoothly turned themselves into a consumer electronics company. They are like a sleeker, hipper Sony. They make computers, but it isn’t their primary business anymore.

One could say the writing has been on the wall for a while. Increased pushing of the iPod at various conventions; the major shift in revenue and profit no longer coming from the computer devision. Even Apple’s pulling out of the PowerPC camp and using Intel for it’s computers (and then making it easy to install Windows on them). It feels in a way like Apple is now just putting up a token fight, but they are more concerned with other areas.

I wonder when the iPod went from a device to try and get people hooked into Apple’s computers, to the device that was the flagship for the company. I wonder what kind of computer announcements Apple will make in the future. What is the future of the Mac OS?

I decided to bring this back. This past WWDC makes me really wonder.

Gadgets, Technology

So it’s been a while since I’ve been able to blog (or do much of anything) from the train. I had some problems with the latest version of my phone’s OS and connecting with OS X. Of course, now, I’m using the windows laptop I got from work and it seems to be having no problems at all. Yeah, my whole Apple fascination is rapidly going away. Oh man, I’m seriously drinking the Kool Aid, aren’t I?

Gadgets, Technology, The Internet

Ok, so I just realized how much I’ve been spoiled by the XBox 360 and it’s online community stuff. Because of the gamercard, things like MyGamerCard.net and 360 Voice are possible, and damnit, I demand this from more of my devices. Or at least, I don’t know, my Wii. Or how about my Zune? My blog needs more hooks to these things for me, and I can’t because there currently isn’t anything in place, and…and…I want it.

Seriously, I never realized how spoiled I have become till I realized I wanted to put what my Mii on my site. Suddenly I couldn’t do that. There’s no slick and awesome way of including my favorite Zune tracks in an email signature (I actually see my gamercard tags in email signatures at work). The Zune thing I find truly funny since the slogan is “Join the Social” Sure, I raved about this when I first go the 360, but I kind of just took it for granted. All this community stuff…I need it. I expect it.

I understand that there are people who don’t want that level of information to be available about them, but there are privacy settings for just that reason. I, on the other hand, like letting people know what I like to play and listen to. Shoot, I actively blog about it.

You have me hooked, XBox Division, you have me truly hooked.

Gadgets, Geekdom, Nintendo Wii, Software, Technology, The Internet, Video Games, XBox 360

So for those of you who don’t know what that means, I recently purchased a Zune. What’s a zune? It’s the Microsoft personal digital media device. Basically, imagine a video ipod but made by Microsoft. That’s basically what it is, and after having it for about 5 days, I’m really impressed by it.

Firstly, the hardware itself is pretty sweet. The screen looks awesome and the interface is really slick. It also has a nice feel which I prefer to the iPod since it’s not metal. Since I’m going from a fourth generation iPod, the size of the Zune isn’t that big a deal. It’s bigger than a current gen iPod and definitely bigger than a Nano, but it’s still smaller than my DS lite, so it’s fine. I’m not sure about the battery life right now because I tend to keep it charged, but at some point, I figure I’ll have an idea how good it is for me. I’m also a fan of having my photos on the device; it lets me view pictures of good times when I’m feeling down. (Which has been awesome) Now all I need are some videos.

What really gets me psyched about the whole thing is actually the software, or more specifically, the Zune marketplace. For $15 a month, I will have unlimited download access to a great library of music. While I have to keep paying to keep the music, that’s basically the price of one album a month, I can listen to a whole lot more. This will definitely help when my friend Dan asks, “Have you heard , yet?” So now I can just download it and hear it. And it’s all legal. (I’ll discuss the DRM subscription thing at some point)

But yes, I’ve joined the social. I’m a big fan. I’m not sure how cool the wireless stuff will be, but I’ve heard that it will get better from a friend on the team. So for now, this thing is awesome.

Digital Copyright, Gadgets, Geekdom, Music, Technology, The Internet

1. Cingular has got to go. My reception up and down the east coast sucked. Hard. Seriously, when traveling from DC to Boston, I should always have perfectly clear reception. And dropped calls? Oh hells no. But what did I have on my trip? The same crappy service I get here in all the time. How is this possible? It’s the most populated area of the country. My patience with Cingular is growing shorter and shorter.

2. The T’s new Charlie Ticket machines? They’re beginning to win me over. Today, in about 60 seconds, I was able to purchase my monthly commuter rail pass. Seriously, if I went up to the ticket window, it would take like three to four minutes. It was awesome. Now if only all of the stations would move to them and get rid of the half and half situation we have now. Consider this my partial endorsement of the new system.

3. Why are my computers choosing now to die? Can anyone explain this to me? My powerbook’s network adapter is broken and my dvd-rom drive stopped working. My Windows box has become a weee bit unstable and randomly crashes, not to mention that it doesn’t always boot. And my raid array is having trouble sending data across the wire, and I think the machine is just in it’s dying days. I mean, i know my youngest machine is 2 years, but man, this is just not a good time for this to happen. Or maybe it is. I get replacing everything at once will at least let me have a unified solution, but still. This sucks. I don’t think I can afford to go to Kumori-con now since I have to buy a lot of computer equipment. Awesome.

Gadgets, Technology