Tech Overload: Who Really Cares?

There's been a lot of news recently about the mythical white iPhone 4 being released. It's almost a year late, and the iPhone has sold gangbusters while being available only in black. So why all the hubbub?

Who really cares?

Is it just the tech journalists, who need things to write about?

Is it Apple, who is dealing with the embarrassment of failing to deliver on a promise of the white model?

Is it the component manufacturers, who were allegedly the cause of the White iPhone delay?

Wo really cares?

It sure isn't the average person, who wants a quality product and won't get caught up in the color. People bought purple Gamecubes and they bought black iPhones. To the tune of 3 million.

Who really cares? When the white iPhone drops, the tech blogs will make a big deal out of it but I doubt many other people will

Tech on TV: Story Reigns Supreme

Fringe, one of my favorite current TV shows, is starting to cross over into the danger zone. This zone consists of TV producers who try to use some kind of tech, fancy or not, as a crutch to carry a weak episode.

The most glaring example is the Simpsons 3D episode. Without the 3D, it would be a fairly boring episode. With the 3D, it's a fairly boring episode made even worse by the distracting graphical effects. Even though the Simpsons is still on, episodes like the 3D one marked a downfall of the quality of the show.

Poor Fringe. They decided to have half of the show as an animated comic, which is just annoying and distracting to a viewer. It did nothing to advance the story, which was a less than stellar Inception ripoff. If you haven't seen it yet I won't spoil it for you, but it does extend the storyline of William Bell inhabiting Olivia's consciousness.

I wouldn't mind this use of tech if the stories behind them were strong. It seems like content creators see the tech and slack off on the actual content that the tech is applied to. Preferably, they would draft the story first as usual, and then add the tech later. The story should stand alone.

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Quick Post: I'm Profiled in The Examiner

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The Philadelphia Examiner has a story about yours truly regarding my participation in the upcoming NASA Tweetup. Check it out!

Philadelphia Local to Tweet at Shuttle Launch (written by Stephen Thompson)

Over 4,100 Twitter users entered NASA’s Tweetup for a chance to tweet at the last launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavour, scheduled for April 29, 2011.  One of the 150 selected was Shareef Jackson (@shareefjackson).  Here is what he has to say about his experience so far.

Tech at Work: Cubicle Wars


I've recently had the pleasure of losing my office and being placed in a cube as part of an "open office" initiative. Surprisingly, I love my new area. I'm near a window with plenty of natural light, and I've already met more people from just walking around since I don't have the option to squirrel away in an office. Still, I've had to adapt my technology to fit this new open environment. A few examples are below:


1) Headset:
I take a large amount of conference calls, and nothing is worse than twisting your neck and tiring out your arm by holding up a phone for several hours. In my office, I used speakerphone often. I accomplish the same with a headset - I can go handsfree during a call and easily drive a presentation or look up any key info during a call. Of course, I look like an absolute dork with a headset on - but it's better than leaving work with a stiff neck!

2) Privacy Screen:
Even though I sit in a corner near a window, people still walk past. Usually they are trying to find someone's office and get lost, or they're just stopping by to comment on how stupid I look with my headset on. Either way, I need to hide my screen from others, especially when I'm working on something confidential. I didn't have to worry about this with an office at all, although I do have a separate privacy screen for traveling, I'm sure you've noticed some businessperson working on sides in an airplane, for all to see.

3) Earbuds:
There's nothing during a hard day like closing your office door and throwing some music on. Now that I'm a cube dweller, earbuds are a must to regain my sanity. The key is to have one bud in the ear that's farthest from the cube opening that people walk by. I also keep the volume very low so that colleagues don't have to "Anyone? Bueller?" me to get my attention.


I'm sure there are more tech adaptations that I'll have to make as time goes on, I'm still new to this world!

Cutting The Cord

 

I hate the fact that I have to subscribe to cable. I'm on the lowest possible plan, and even with that I only watch a few channels. Between iTunes, Netflix, and Hulu, most of my shows are covered. There are only a few reasons that I stuck with cable - live news and live sports.

ESPN took a big step to solving the latter issue by releasing a streaming app. I can stream live ESPN to my iPad, which augments the NBA league pass subscription that I can also watch on my iPad. Oh wait, the ESPN app only works with certain cable providers, and Comcast is not included.

Damn these companies! Why don't they want my money? I'd gladly pay extra to be able to stream the channels I want to my tablet and phone. I'm pretty sure companies like ESPN are all for this, if it wasn't for the contracts that have them tied up with the cable providers. I'd love to see one of the agreements in plain English. I'm sure it boils down to: "We own you. Don't try anything funny".

Within 5 years, they kind of a la carte streaming will be available. The question is, who will win the race? The old media cable providers with their resistance to change? Or will a new player swoop in and deliver what the people want? Time will tell, but I bet the only way that old media will be swayed is if they are brought into this new world kicking and screaming. Kind of like the music industry, who argued for years against online music and mp3s in particular.

They'll learn sooner or later.