Steve Jobs iDropKicks Google and Adobe
Shortly after the iPad announcement, Apple CEO Steve Jobs held a townhall with his employees as he does after many of the big product releases. He addressed Adobe, Flash, Android and many other hot topics. I’ll skip past all the background to Jobs eye-opening spear aimed at Google.
This don’t be evil mantra: “It’s bulls***.”
Here are a few other interesting quotes from the meeting attributed to Jobs.
About Adobe:
They are lazy, Jobs says. They have all this potential to do interesting things but they just refuse to do it. They don’t do anything with the approaches that Apple is taking, like Carbon. Apple does not support Flash because it is so buggy, he says. Whenever a Mac crashes more often than not it’s because of Flash. No one will be using Flash, he says. The world is moving to HTML5.
On Google:
We did not enter the search business, Jobs said. They entered the phone business. Make no mistake they want to kill the iPhone. We won’t let them, he says.
Read the whole article over at Wired.com
Movie Review: (500) Days of Summer
(500) Days of Summer
Rated PG-13
Runtime: 95 minutes
Directed by Marc Webb
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel
Nominated for 2010 Golden Globe Best Picture – Comedy or Musical
This semi-indie romantic comedy starts right off with the narrator saying “This is a story of boy meets girl. But you should know up front, this is not a love story.” An interesting beginning as we generally assume a romantic comedy is about the events leading to the characters getting together. This one seems to be about the events that lead them apart.
From my perspective you will either really like this movie, or be really bored by it. My opinion is that it depends on what types of relationships you have been in in the past and your feeling on love and fate. For those who have had pretty stable relationships or married their high school sweet heart, there’s a good chance this movie is just about two obnoxious main characters.
But for the rest of us, who never can seem to figure out exactly what it is that makes a relationship work (if anything), this movie was written to speak to you. But then again, with the characters being so different, it may speak to guys and girls differently. It spoke to me and I identified with much of it.
The movie is slightly indie in that it tells the plot out of order. Sometimes this doesn’t work for me, but it works fairly well here. It doesn’t seem to tell it completely backwards, so it gets a bit confusing at a few parts. It also mixes a few random artistic choices, like inserting a singing scene, some hand-drawn art on the screen, and a mini-documentary in the middle of the movie. Again, normally I’m not a big fan of total randomness, but it wasn’t too distracting here.
The film also features a great soundtrack. I couldn’t figure out where to talk about it so I just put it here.
There is no plot per se, but more a series of events telling a simple story. The two main characters do a good job, and the supporting cast was great. I found the lead male to be a well written character who I empathized with, but I found his love interest to be a bit stereotypical and I really didn’t like her as a person. But, again, that’s sometimes how love blinds us and we only see the good but ignore the bad things in people.
If you’ve ever met someone and after one conversation like “I love hiking too!” and thought you were destined to be together forever. Or if you are the opposite, and believe that fate and love doesn’t really exist, and you just do your best with what you’ve got – then there’s something in this movie you can relate to and something you’ll learn.
It’s a romance with little romance, a comedy with little comedy, and an indie that isn’t too indie. Sounds like an underwhelming effort, but for me, it was a pretty good film and got me thinking much more than any romantic comedy I’ve ever seen. The irony is that in the film it discusses how mainstream greeting cards, pop songs, and movies have shaped our perception of love.
Maybe not the best date flick, but then again since most relationships aren’t like the movies, maybe it is the best kind of date flick.
* * * stars out of 4
An interesting news update, the director of this movie was recently chosen to direct the new Spider-Man reboot.
What others are saying
You’re going to hear a lot about 500 Days of Summer over the next few months. All of the good stuff is true. Any bad stuff you hear is not. – Film Threat
Visually witty, flawlessly played romantic comedy. – Chicago Reader
Something seldom seen: an original romantic comedy. – LA Times
For all its rhetorical whimsy and hipster dressings, (500) Days of Summer is a thoroughly conservative affair, as culturally and romantically status quo as any Jennifer Aniston vehicle. – NPR
iPad vs. Stone
The guy who did the smarmy iPhone vs. Stone is back, and finds — again — that in the battle between a stone and Apple’s latest technology feature to feature, it’s a draw.
Bin Laden Campaigns for Nobel Peace Prize?
In an odd statement sent today, Osama Bin Laden sent a message about a new evil of the United States – and the best way to bring us down. This time, though, it comes straight out of An Inconvenient Truth. Bin Laden is now on record as being very concerned about Global Warming.
I type as I sit here waiting for the blizzard of 2010 to hit the East.
Much like the Al Goracle, Bin Laden sees the United States as the cause of this weather chaos, and his plan to stop it is to bring down our industry a bit. The last time someone spoke with such boldness, they won a Nobel Peace Prize. And if you are concerned that the little terrorism side of him would hurt his chances, Yassar Arafat would disagree.
If he can’t win the peace prize, Senator Bin Laden could be in the future if he ran as a Democrat. Ok, ok….that’s a little extreme. Though he blames Bush and corporations for climate change, wants us to join Kyoto, sides with the Palestinians in the middle east, and is an avid fan of Noam Chomsky.
Bin Laden notes that ‘Noam Chomsky (the US academic and political commentator) was correct when he compared the US policies to those of the Mafia.”
The recording hasn’t been confirmed, so it may all be a hoax. But the irony is that the hoax is on us (if you’ve paid attention to the past few month’s ClimateGate, HimalayanGate, and uh..IPCCgate )… and even Osama’s alleged idea to bring the country to its knees isn’t too far off from Cap and Trade.
Other excerpts from An Inconvenient Beard
Talk about climate change is not an ideological luxury but a reality,’ he said.
‘All of the industrialised countries, especially the big ones, bear responsibility for the global warming crisis.’
He added that while wealthy nations had agreed to the Kyoto Protocol that binds them to emission targets, former U.S. President George W Bush had later rejected such limitations before Congress in deference to big business.
The United States never ratified the existing Kyoto Protocol, whose present commitments expire in 2012, and has said it will not sign up to an extended Kyoto Protocol, preferring a new agreement.
If it wasn’t already, the science is definitely now settled.
The Real iPad
I have no idea why this is funny. But it kind of is.
The iPad Bust?
After months (technically almost a decade) of rumors and hype, Steve Jobs revealed Apple’s latest creation…the somewhat poorly named iPad.
If you’re interested in the full tech specs and details, click over to Gizmodo’s full rundown.
While some were just interested, I was keenly watching as I approach the purchase of a new laptop. With Netbooks, smartphones, and the quickly disappearing desktop, I thought this may be just the ticket for something portable to do media, non-work stuff wherever. Even if it wasn’t a full laptop, a few key features would have had me being a “first adopter ” of a product for the first time in my life. Even though with Apple that’s a notoriously bad idea.
After the curtains went down on Steve Jobs presentation, the somewhat tepid applause of the crowd echoed my own thoughts. “Man, what a dumb name.” Just kidding, but the iPhone-like enthusiasm was gone. Not a evolution or a revolution, but more of a “rebel-lution” with Steve Jobs once again trying to buck the trends and kill the Kindle, desktops, newspapers, portable stereos, and even laptops in one swing. Just because he can.
The Good, the Bad, and the Huh?
If you use a regular phone, don’t have a Kindle, and don’t do much on your laptop, this might be the perfect coffee house partner or in-flight movie machine. It’s everything that’s great about the iPhone with a new, speedy Apple 1GHz “A4″ chip that gives 10 hours a battery life (with apparently super speed), greatly enhanced standard apps, and a new world of iPad apps (while still playing your iPhone/iPod apps).
But that’s the problem, really. It’s just a big, fast iPhone with cooler apps. Unfortunately, being a mammoth size but using the same concept, it loses some of what’s best about the iPhone. Pocket-sized, and a touch keyboard isn’t so bad when you can hold both sides of it and still reach the keys.
At a surprisingly entry-level price on par with netbooks, Apple may have barked up the wrong tree. I’d gladly pay the rumored $1,000 price if it had a front-facing camera, HDMI output for watching movies from the internet, and Flash support for all those webpages it says are so amazing.
Which brings me back to the iPhone. The iPhone is lacking in a few key areas, and the iPad has the same weaknesses. In addition, though, the iPad isn’t supposed to be a pocket gadget. The iPhone would never try to replace your regular computer, but the iPad is just as far away.
No multi-tasking? I hate it on the iPhone and it would kill my enjoyment of an iPad. Want to do Facebook chat and work in the new iWork applications announced today? No can do. Maybe stream some Pandora too? Might want to have an iPhone and an iPad handy.
In addition, such a robust device for multimedia doesn’t come with any standard outputs? You have to buy a line of accessories and there’s only one output aside from headphones.
And speaking of accessories, I’m generally not an accessory guy, but to use the apparently bulky and cumbersome touch screen, I’d have to have the docking station/keyboard accessory. I’d also have the whole set of previously mentioned adapters, so I hope they’re adding an iSatchel soon. That $500 price tag is quickly going to be $650.
Aside from being the size of a frisbee, the unibody construction is beautiful. But if I want that, multi-tasking, full media capabilties, a keyboard, and a better operating system than the iPhone 3.2 software, I already found it on sale at Best Buy.
And I’m not quite understanding the 3G version. If I’m sitting around somewhere, I probably have Wi-Fi. If you’re driving or walking around, you’ll probably stand out with your ginormous iPad. Google Maps looks great. I’m sure your friends will think you’re pretty awesome when you whip that out in the car as everyone awkwardly gets directions on their iPhones. Bonus – it’s still AT&T 3G. Joy.
I’m enjoying my iPhone, and I’ll be starting my MacBook Pro shopping right away.
Verdict: It looks like a giant iPhone with more speed and better features, and all the weaknesses. The price tag is enticing if you don’t get the 3G version..but if you get the needed accessories and size upgrades, it quickly nears the price of a decent laptop, even a MacBook entry level.
I see what Steve Jobs was going for here…the ultimate chill media gadget that brings back size lost in an iPhone and bridges the gap to the cumbersome laptop. This isn’t it..but his dream will likely be realized with some tweaking.
Much like the first generation iPhone, in two years I think we’ll look back and see what a good idea this is. For now it’s probably as dumb as the name sounds.
* Available in 30 days for the WiFi version, 60 days for the 3G version. iPad no-contract plans $14.99 or $29.99 a month for unlimited data.
The most disappointing thing about today besides the lack of the iPad being a giant iPhone, was that the rumored iTunes unlimited TV streaming plans, new iLife software, or Verizon iPhone announcements were completely absent.
The Buzz
Official Apple iPad site page with new versions of calendar, photos, books, etc.
8 things that suck about the iPad at Gizmodo.
Hoping it would be a great portable blogging device. Probably not says HotAir.
First non-Apple iPad Accessories Announced at Gizmodo
Full iPad event video with Steve Jobs at engadget.com
Hands-on iPad video footage at engadget.
Customizable home screen wallpaper. Lucky me. Apple’s dirty little secret on why they leave out basic features on your device they could’ve easily put in. Not going to work this time…..well it would be nice to have a non-black background….
Jim Gaffigan: Beyond the Pale on Netflix
I thought I’d do some quick reviews of movies that are available on demand for Netflix. The pickins are a little slim, but if you’re like me you forget to mail back the movies you just watched for about 3 weeks. I think I just mailed back a movie that I had gotten when it was a new release – Ghostbusters II.
This week, I watched stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan’s Beyond the Pale on Netflix instant watch. If you’re looking for some decent comedy, it’s solid the whole way through. You’ll recognize Gaffigan but you won’t be able to put your finger on where. He plays side roles in a lot of comedies, TV shows, and late night shows. He was also the guy in Super Troopers that was the recipient of the “meow” game.
Gaffigan’s style of humor is fairly dry, and is astonishingly “clean.” He mostly jokes about food and himself. In fact, about 80% of the routine is about food. Some great stuff, though, including his famous “Hot Pockets” sketch. You’ll be laughing out loud..especially if you’ve lived off Hot Pockets at some time in your life.
He also does this odd thing where he says what the audience is thinking in the middle of his bit and its pretty funny as well.
His routine is filmed in Chicago’s historic Vic Theater and runs a brisk 72 minutes. Though there are only a few true gut busters, there aren’t really any dull moments. There’s something in there for everyone, especially if you find it disturbing what, and how much, we eat as Americans.
If you’re looking for a good laugh any day of the week, you could definitely do worse.
* * * out of 4 stars
Check out a scene from the act below…one of the few not about food.
Netflix Streams A Punch in Face
Netflix, of which I’m a big fan, took another hit from the movie studios today. While it looked to be the reasonable answer to the digital age in movies as iTunes was to music, apparently they won’t be going about this without a fight.
You may recall recently, new releases are beginning to be removed from Netflix. Now, one of the cornerstones of their streaming business…Starz Play on Netflix (which allows you to see relatively new releases anytime via the internet for no extra charge) may be about to lose Disney and Dreamworks films.
Not that either of these is a death knell, but once studios realize they control the deal, the rest will follow suit and it’ll be no more new releases in the mail and no more decent streaming movies either. And we know what that means. Lonely Wednesday nights watching She’s All That for the eighth time.
Check out all the details at Gizmodo.com
Disney’s currently in negotiations with Starz for the rights to its movies over the next few years, and it wants a lot more money from people who watch Starz online—like through Netflix—and if things go badly, it could mean no more Disney or Dreamworks movies on Netflix streaming (full article link).
Stay Warm with the Cult Classic “Out Cold”
For almost every holiday or season, I have a movie tradition that sort of kicks it off. One of the few I hadn’t found one for was winter itself. This winter, in particular, I was needing some themed escapism while my face regained feeling. Christmas pretty much takes all the good movies for winter, so what was left?
Somehow I missed it at the time, but the 2001 flick “Out Cold” was the perfect answer.
Out Cold is a goof-ball comedy along the lines of American Pie (but PG-13 raunchy) that has reached cult status over the years (though did little in the theater). It is expected these movies will have no plot, or the same plot as 100 other throwaway comedies. I was happily proven wrong.
You’ll immediately recognize a lot of the cast from today, including the bearded guy from The Hangover, and Pam’s old fiance from The Office. The film, set in Alaska, starts off with a great snowboarding extravaganza and revolves around a small ski lodge getting taken over by an evil corporation. The plot of every movie since 1981, but they handle it nicely.
The rest of the film has a mix of subtle humor with insane antics, surrounded by mountains of snow the entire time. The characters are likable, and the handling of the “love story” is fairly surprising.
For anyone in their late 20s or early 30s, the soundtrack is a straight rip of your CD collection from 8 years ago, featuring Eve 6, Jack Johnson, Foo Fighters, Jimmy Eat World, Sum 41…and most importantly Wang Chung.
Be sure to check it out this winter, especially with a group of friends if it’s cold outside. Add some Winter Ale and you’re almost guaranteed to have a smashing winter solstice.
Be sure to see the outtakes after the credits, they are one of the best parts of the movie. You didn’t think they landed all those amazing snowboarding scenes on the first try did you?
3 out of 4 stars
Craidio Music Wintry Mix + Workout Ratings
Updated: Workout ratings based on if the song’s worth putting on your power mix at the gym. Based on rhythm not necessarily speed.
As the twice in a lifetime freeze sets in…. we’ve all wanted to bundle up with some music and movies. Unfortunately, nothing too hot is spinning right now on the record player, but I found a few decent tunes to at least get me through until February. If you’re looking for music in all the wrong places…this is probably one of them as well..but give them a shot.
Winter 2009/2010 Music Wintry Mix
30 Second to Mars – This is War (* 1/2 out of 4 stars)
Used to be a big fan of 30 Seconds to Mars, but this latest release just isn’t doing it for me. Less and less edgy each album, and just sort of whiny now.
Workout Rating: * * 1/2 out of 4 stars
Coldplay – Lost! (* * * out of 4 stars)
Classic Coldplay sound…smooth and moving. Not worse or better than their previous efforts. A good thing.
Workout Rating: * * 1/2 out of 4 stars
Laura Veirs – July Flame (* * * out of 4 stars)
Not quite haunting enough to make you crash your car as you stare out the window, but will make you begin to relax and enjoy a calm world around you for a few fleeting minutes. Unfortunately the song offers no payoff and meanders a bit.
Workout Rating: * 1/2 out of 4 stars
Dead By Sunrise – Let Down (* * 1/2 out of 4 stars)
If you could picture a Linkin Park song without the supporting band driven by only the lead singer..it’s just like that. It is also his side band, so to be expected. Not bad.
Workout Rating: * * 1/2 out of 4 stars
The Avett Brothers – Die Die Die (* * * 1/2 out of 4 stars) and I and Love and You (* * * out of 4 stars)
Apparently I’m late on the Avett Brothers bandwagon…but their folk/rock melodies are very addictive. Not for your workout, or if you’re having a bad day (it will make it worse) but truly quality music and deep lyrics. These two songs above are from their newest and previous album.
Workout Rating: * 1/2 out of 4 stars
The Veils – Sit Down by the Fire (* * * out of 4 stars)
Very slow, lots of piano, sounds european. I likes. Great vocals, a building rhythm, and an easy listen for the winter days you’re staring out the window looking for Spring.
Workout Rating: * * * out of 4 stars
Metric – Gold Guns Girls (* * 1/2 out of 4 stars)
If you like women-singing, electric inspired rock with a buzzing beat, Metric always comes through. A stellar effort, though not their best.
Workout Rating: * * * 1/2 out of 4 stars
Lady GaGa – Bad Romance (* * * out of 4 stars)
I wish I wasn’t entranced by Lady GaGa…but her songs grow on me…and this one has oddly interesting lyrics and a multi-dimensional beat mixing strange pop singing with great melody singing. I don’t like Madonna, but Lady GaGa is probably the new Madonna.
Workout Rating: * * * 1/2 out of 4 stars
Phoenix – 1901 (* * * out of 4 stars)
You’ll feel like you’re in American Eagle looking at jeans as the store station is blasting. I’m pretty sure this is on their regular rotation. Straight up alternative rock, pretty decent but nothing special.
Workout Rating: * * * * out of 4 stars
Transmit Now – Tarantism (Let’s Go Out Tonight) / (* * 1/2 out of four stars)
Standard pop/rock. Decent singing. Somewhat substandard lyrics.
Workout Rating: * * * out of 4 stars
>> To see Fall 2009 mix with updated workout ratings, click here.
