Multitouch, Multiscreen iPhone Pong:
via TUAW
Thursday, May 29, 2008
iPhone Navigator?
Possible surprises up Steve's sleeve on June 9?
Love the quote from the GPS president:
iPhone Nano, GPS Are More Important to Apple Than 3G: Analysis
Love the quote from the GPS president:
iPhone Nano, GPS Are More Important to Apple Than 3G: Analysis
I recently sat down with the president of a GPS navigation system manufacturer to ask him how he felt about the prospect of a GPS-enabled iPhone. "Scared [expletive]-less," he said.
Yet the iPhone has the potential to leverage true GPS functionality better than any other device. It already has a large, 3.5-in touchscreen interface, external speakers and an elegant Google Maps interface. All you'd need to add to a GPS-enabled iPhone is a suction-cup windshield bracket (sold separately, of course), and you'd have a fully-functional, pocket-portable car navigation device. People already pay hundreds of dollars in droves for this increasingly popular segment of devices, and the iPhone could essentially challenge an entire product category with one add-on feature.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Redefining Spoilers
Warning: This post contains a mild speculative spoiler for the TV show Lost. By "speculative" I mean it isn't a true reveal based on a leaked source, but it turns into a discussion on how a show like Lost may be "redefining" the concept of a spoiler. I think it's relatively tame, but read on at your own risk.
As many of you know, I'm spoiler averse when it comes to TV shows. I don't even watch the "Next week on..." upcoming episode trailers as I feel they give too much away. I can't even count the number of times I've gone running from a room with my ears covered when a commercial for an upcoming episode appears during a sporting event.
This is especially true when it comes to Lost. The show is so deeply layered that part of the fun is putting the pieces together and speculating as to where they are going with it, but actually "knowing" is a whole different story. There was a big controversy last year when the plot twists of the season finale were revealed online prematurely, and it's starting up again with alleged spoilers of this season's finale starting to crop up online as well.
One of my favorite spoiler-free Lost sites recently entered the controversy. Lostpedia is a wiki dedicated exclusively to the characters, episodes, and situations of Lost. An absolutely brilliant idea to help people keep track of the overlaps and connections between characters. It wouldn't make sense to do this for a lot of shows, but with so many overlapping flashbacks, flashforwards, and parallel storylines the site becomes invaluable.
The admins of the site do an excellent job of setting spoiler free ground rules. The actual articles can only include factual accounts of episodes that have aired. Spoilers are relegated to separate "theory" and "discussion" tabs on the Wiki, keeping the articles themselves clean for anyone who wants to catch up and/or refresh their memory.
Of course, with any community driven wiki project the site is primarily self policed. There was a recent situation where one bad apple posted finale spoilers right in the middle of an unrelated article without warning, triggering a big debate on spoilers. I respect the right of a curious public to post and seek out spoilers to their favorite shows, but only if they are in their proper place. Warnings and hidden text ensure people know what they are getting into; an ambush in a site that is supposed to be "clean" is another thing altogether.
On the main page of Lostpedia, they also post Lost-related news articles. Updates on the writers strike, interviews with the cast and creators, a synopsis of the video game, etc. All well and good since the blurbs are pretty neutral and there is a clear warning if the outgoing link to the article may contain spoilers.
Which is why I was slightly annoyed at the most recent article posted to the main page:
(This ends my preamble, and I'm now moving on to the "What is a spoiler?" question promised above. Turn back now if you want to be kept completely pure.)
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Matthew Fox keeps quiet on 'Lost' ending
As I said I truly appreciate the job the Lostpedia folks do in trying to keep a clean environment to the best of their ability. It's a fairly well known fact that the cast doesn't know how the show is going to end. So the reveal that one actor does know begs the question of "Why does he know?," which leads me to believe it must be important to the plot and how he's playing his character NOW to set up how it will end. And since Lost is starting to introduce time travel fairly heavily into the plot, I think I know where this is heading. Awesome, but less awesome than if I were surprised by it.
But is this defined as a "spoiler" by traditional definitions? Not really, but extending the umbrella to include "information not learned from the show itself" would place it in this category. Maybe it's just how my mind works. Technically I suppose the fact that I learned that nobody knows the ending paired with the correction that one actor does is what did me in. But in today's day and age you'd really need a full on media blackout to ensure a totally pure experience. And that would mean turning off the Internet :(
Hopefully I'm wrong and this will be little more than a red herring caused by my overactive synapses. But regardless, it's interesting how a show like Lost can redefine television and redefine the definition of "spoiler" at the same time.
PS: This post is loosely based on a ranty comment I submitted to the Lostpedia Blog shortly after reading the above linked article. The admins seem to have chosen not to publish my comment (probably wise of them in hindsight if what I'm guessing does prove to be spoiler-esque), but I felt it was a thought provoking enough situation to repurpose here.
As many of you know, I'm spoiler averse when it comes to TV shows. I don't even watch the "Next week on..." upcoming episode trailers as I feel they give too much away. I can't even count the number of times I've gone running from a room with my ears covered when a commercial for an upcoming episode appears during a sporting event.
This is especially true when it comes to Lost. The show is so deeply layered that part of the fun is putting the pieces together and speculating as to where they are going with it, but actually "knowing" is a whole different story. There was a big controversy last year when the plot twists of the season finale were revealed online prematurely, and it's starting up again with alleged spoilers of this season's finale starting to crop up online as well.
One of my favorite spoiler-free Lost sites recently entered the controversy. Lostpedia is a wiki dedicated exclusively to the characters, episodes, and situations of Lost. An absolutely brilliant idea to help people keep track of the overlaps and connections between characters. It wouldn't make sense to do this for a lot of shows, but with so many overlapping flashbacks, flashforwards, and parallel storylines the site becomes invaluable.
The admins of the site do an excellent job of setting spoiler free ground rules. The actual articles can only include factual accounts of episodes that have aired. Spoilers are relegated to separate "theory" and "discussion" tabs on the Wiki, keeping the articles themselves clean for anyone who wants to catch up and/or refresh their memory.
Of course, with any community driven wiki project the site is primarily self policed. There was a recent situation where one bad apple posted finale spoilers right in the middle of an unrelated article without warning, triggering a big debate on spoilers. I respect the right of a curious public to post and seek out spoilers to their favorite shows, but only if they are in their proper place. Warnings and hidden text ensure people know what they are getting into; an ambush in a site that is supposed to be "clean" is another thing altogether.
On the main page of Lostpedia, they also post Lost-related news articles. Updates on the writers strike, interviews with the cast and creators, a synopsis of the video game, etc. All well and good since the blurbs are pretty neutral and there is a clear warning if the outgoing link to the article may contain spoilers.
Which is why I was slightly annoyed at the most recent article posted to the main page:
(This ends my preamble, and I'm now moving on to the "What is a spoiler?" question promised above. Turn back now if you want to be kept completely pure.)
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Matthew Fox keeps quiet on 'Lost' ending
Matthew Fox has claimed that he is the only actor on Lost to know how the show will end. Fox confirmed the news to the Daily Mirror and revealed that fellow cast members probe him for answers: "Yes, it’s true. They understand I can't talk about it, but sometimes they’ll ask, just hoping I’ll blurt it out."
As I said I truly appreciate the job the Lostpedia folks do in trying to keep a clean environment to the best of their ability. It's a fairly well known fact that the cast doesn't know how the show is going to end. So the reveal that one actor does know begs the question of "Why does he know?," which leads me to believe it must be important to the plot and how he's playing his character NOW to set up how it will end. And since Lost is starting to introduce time travel fairly heavily into the plot, I think I know where this is heading. Awesome, but less awesome than if I were surprised by it.
But is this defined as a "spoiler" by traditional definitions? Not really, but extending the umbrella to include "information not learned from the show itself" would place it in this category. Maybe it's just how my mind works. Technically I suppose the fact that I learned that nobody knows the ending paired with the correction that one actor does is what did me in. But in today's day and age you'd really need a full on media blackout to ensure a totally pure experience. And that would mean turning off the Internet :(
Hopefully I'm wrong and this will be little more than a red herring caused by my overactive synapses. But regardless, it's interesting how a show like Lost can redefine television and redefine the definition of "spoiler" at the same time.
PS: This post is loosely based on a ranty comment I submitted to the Lostpedia Blog shortly after reading the above linked article. The admins seem to have chosen not to publish my comment (probably wise of them in hindsight if what I'm guessing does prove to be spoiler-esque), but I felt it was a thought provoking enough situation to repurpose here.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Pilgrimage
I've just returned from a four-day holiday in the Greater SF Bay area (where fellow TowForm contributor BoRyan was my gracious host), with the pilgrimage-like goal of exploring every rail system found there; a full trip report with all its minutiae is outside the scope of this blog, but within the scope of this blog (with 15 posts tagged 'maps') will be a later post reviewing a few of the many transit maps I collected.
While waiting for that, behold the accompanying two pictures, taken personally by me during side-pilgrimages of this trip. :)
While waiting for that, behold the accompanying two pictures, taken personally by me during side-pilgrimages of this trip. :)
Saturday, May 24, 2008
This sounds familiar...
iPhone-A-Friend
n. The act of using a regular cell phone to get information by calling someone who is sitting at a computer and can surf the internet by proxy.
"We are hopelessly lost. I'll just use my iPhone-a-friend and my mom can get us directions from Google Maps."
"When are you going to get a real iPhone, you cheap ass?"
via UrbanDictionary
n. The act of using a regular cell phone to get information by calling someone who is sitting at a computer and can surf the internet by proxy.
"We are hopelessly lost. I'll just use my iPhone-a-friend and my mom can get us directions from Google Maps."
"When are you going to get a real iPhone, you cheap ass?"
via UrbanDictionary
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
118.com Ask Us Anything
Yet another iNetNow:
Found this on Wikipedia (via nested tangents, read below for that...also, in the following quote, material between [] is added by this post's author for clarity and amusement):
Sure enough...it is described here:
I wish them well. I like this idea wherever it appears, which is why I enjoy AskMeNow, and mourn iNetNow and Voce.
For your amusement (perhaps I should make this a separate post) I found all this through one of my famous mental/wikipedia nested tangents:
Found this on Wikipedia (via nested tangents, read below for that...also, in the following quote, material between [] is added by this post's author for clarity and amusement):
Since May 2008, 118118 [a British directory assistance provider, coincidentally a subsidiary of InfoNXX] has introduced a service where you are able to call and ask any question you want and their info team will find you the answer. From "How tall is the Eiffel Tower?", to "What Bars are open late at night?"
Sure enough...it is described here:
When it comes to finding numbers, we’re the professionals. But that’s not all we can do for you. We can find as many numbers as you need in one call and we’ll put you straight through if you don’t have a pen. We can even tell you what films are on at your local cinema and give you show times. We can tell you what time your next train leaves or let you know what the nearest tube station to your destination is.
In summary, we can
- give you all the numbers you ask for during any call
- find you the business you want and tell you how close it is
- expertly search for business numbers or addresses even if you only have a small amount of information
- put you straight through to the number you want
- tell you what’s on and locate your cinema, give you the times and even tell you who’s in each movie
- give you departure and arrival times from the national train timetable
- tell you the nearest train or tube station to your destination
- give you directions over the phone to wherever you need to go
And if you call us from a mobile, we’ll always text you the numbers you need and for free, so there’s no extra charge and you don’t have the usual scramble for a pen and paper.
It’s no wonder we’re the most called number in the UK every day.
I wish them well. I like this idea wherever it appears, which is why I enjoy AskMeNow, and mourn iNetNow and Voce.
For your amusement (perhaps I should make this a separate post) I found all this through one of my famous mental/wikipedia nested tangents:
- I was listening to the first track of Vico C's Vivo, which begins with appears to be a short sample of the same song as used as the background music of the commercial I'd previously known as 'that Honda Rube Goldberg commercial'.
- I suddenly wanted to watch this commecial, since I never get tired of it, so I googled 'honda rube goldberg', and found it has a Wikipedia article, where I found out:
- Its name is 'Cog';
- That song is "Rapper's delight" by The Sugarhill Gang
- It's inspired or been spoofed by other commercials, including one for 118118.
- Naturally, I went to the Wikipedia article for 118118, where I found out about Ask Us Anything.
I should put a dummy entry in my HOSTS file for en.wikipedia.org so I get work done.
Monday, May 19, 2008
McCainpedia
Democrats Launch McCainpedia
Politically I think this is slightly dirty but necessary.
Comedically I think it's hilarious, and the irony that the Democrats are taking the democracy out of the wiki only makes it funnier.
The web connoisseur in me says either call it something else, or make it a standard, fully editable wiki with a slightly stronger registration policy in place and zero tolerance to ban users by IP who vandalize or violate terms.
And while you're at it, do one for Hilary and Obama too that can be cross linked between parties and issues. Equal time for the 21st Century, and let the smart mobs shake out the true facts.
McCainpedia
PS: For the record, I predict someone will put up equivalents for the Democratic candidates by the weekend.
Politically I think this is slightly dirty but necessary.
Comedically I think it's hilarious, and the irony that the Democrats are taking the democracy out of the wiki only makes it funnier.
The web connoisseur in me says either call it something else, or make it a standard, fully editable wiki with a slightly stronger registration policy in place and zero tolerance to ban users by IP who vandalize or violate terms.
And while you're at it, do one for Hilary and Obama too that can be cross linked between parties and issues. Equal time for the 21st Century, and let the smart mobs shake out the true facts.
McCainpedia
PS: For the record, I predict someone will put up equivalents for the Democratic candidates by the weekend.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
How Apple is changing DRM
Cool article on how the insistence on DRM by record labels drove Apple to dominance, and how Apple might change the rules to stay on top now that the labels are leaning towards no DRM.
How Apple is changing DRM
How Apple is changing DRM
Friday, May 16, 2008
Location-based services may be coming to an iPhone near you
rumored to be coming this June, will include and take advantage of a
lot of location based services. One service already out there but in
beta is BrightKite. Seems to be a robust form of the old AT&T friend
finder. The whole idea of a location aware, truly web connected device
opens up some enormous possibilities. Location based
Google AdSense anyone?
[Via Ars Technica]
Thursday, May 15, 2008
True Fans
Neat article on the secret to thriving as an independent artist.
1000 True Fans
Other than aim for a blockbuster hit, what can an artist do to escape the long tail?
One solution is to find 1,000 True Fans. While some artists have discovered this path without calling it that, I think it is worth trying to formalize. The gist of 1,000 True Fans can be stated simply:
A creator, such as an artist, musician, photographer, craftsperson, performer, animator, designer, videomaker, or author - in other words, anyone producing works of art - needs to acquire only 1,000 True Fans to make a living.
1000 True Fans
Other than aim for a blockbuster hit, what can an artist do to escape the long tail?
One solution is to find 1,000 True Fans. While some artists have discovered this path without calling it that, I think it is worth trying to formalize. The gist of 1,000 True Fans can be stated simply:
A creator, such as an artist, musician, photographer, craftsperson, performer, animator, designer, videomaker, or author - in other words, anyone producing works of art - needs to acquire only 1,000 True Fans to make a living.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Adventures in Public Transportation
We went to see Mason Jennings play in Santa Monica last night. (Actually at Barnum Hall on the Santa Monica High School campus...odd venue.) Since my wife works in Westwood and we live on the east side, it made more sense for me to take the bus to her office than to go crosstown in two cars.
I know that public transportation in LA (especially the bus) has a bad reputation, but I was pleasantly surprised. Got on at Vermont & Sunset and arrived in front of UCLA 55 minutes later. The bus has a tv screen showing news, trivia, games, and ads. There's also a map (powered by MSN) with GPS that always shows you where you are and announces the next stops. It was on time and relatively clean, though the comfort of the seats left a little to be desired. Riders were mostly students, though that probably had more to do with the route and the time of day (I rode at 4:30pm).
The trip planner on the website was also relatively impressive. Granted it could have a little better error correction and navigation, but not having to enter a city and using a / between intersections is pretty brilliant. I'm surprised the mapping engines haven't picked this up as the standard instead of fumbling around with thethe mishmash of &/and/+ that they always have. Also surprised we didn't pick this up for the surfboard, as for me it's much more fast and natural to type a / without looking than & or +.
I know that public transportation in LA (especially the bus) has a bad reputation, but I was pleasantly surprised. Got on at Vermont & Sunset and arrived in front of UCLA 55 minutes later. The bus has a tv screen showing news, trivia, games, and ads. There's also a map (powered by MSN) with GPS that always shows you where you are and announces the next stops. It was on time and relatively clean, though the comfort of the seats left a little to be desired. Riders were mostly students, though that probably had more to do with the route and the time of day (I rode at 4:30pm).
The trip planner on the website was also relatively impressive. Granted it could have a little better error correction and navigation, but not having to enter a city and using a / between intersections is pretty brilliant. I'm surprised the mapping engines haven't picked this up as the standard instead of fumbling around with thethe mishmash of &/and/+ that they always have. Also surprised we didn't pick this up for the surfboard, as for me it's much more fast and natural to type a / without looking than & or +.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
International Harassment, or Why AT&T Still Puts $$$ Ahead of Customer Service
Warning: Rant ahead...
Woke up at 6:30 this morning to a call on my cell. It was too early, so I let it go. Immediately rang again, but had stopped by the time I got to the phone. Immediately rang again in my hand. I noticed an unfamiliar 503 area code. Though normally I let numbers I don't know go to voicemail, I figured three in a row might be an emergency so I picked up anyways. The caller said something in Spanish. I said "wrong number" and hung up.
Mildly annoyed at the early hour, I figured I could still salvage some sleep. Seconds later it rang again. "Numero incorrecto. No hablo español" I barked in elementary Spanish that I hoped was pretty close to accurate. 10 seconds later it rang again.
Now both angry and intrigued, I got up and Googled the area code. Portland, OR.
I tried Googling the full number to get a name to go with my prank caller, at which point I realized something was odd. The number had too many digits. It wasn't Portland. It was an international call from El Salvador!
After a total of 7 calls between 6:32 and 6:35 (2 answered, 3 ignored, 2 sent to voicemail with a minute plus of silence and background noise as the message) it finally stopped and I went back to bed.
It started up again at 8:02am with 9 in a row, a short break, then 15 more between 8:25 and 8:50. These again had a mix of long blank voicemails, hangups, and long pleas to leave me alone obtained via Google Language Tools.
I thought I finally got through to them with the phrase: "Si usted llamar a este número de nuevo, estoy llamando a la policÃa. ¿Entiendes?" (which translates to "If you call this number again, I am calling the police. Do you understand?"). Nope. 13 more from 10:11 to 10:13. 1 more at 11:06. 8 more from 1:46 to 1:49.
When the phone rang at 1:59 I answered it ready to explode, but it was my sister asking if I knew anyone who wanted her extra Red Sox tickets. The text message to my Boston friends was only half composed when another call came in. I repeated my Spanish phrase about calling the police from memory before the caller started laughing at me.
Ready to jump out a window, I finally decided to call AT&T and have them block the incoming number for me via the switch. We used to have to call Cingular/AT&T and other carrier partners to have this performed quite a bit at Voce. It usually required a trouble ticket with a 24 hour turnaround time and tier 2 assistance, but it was definitely doable. At the rate this was going I'd be able to deal with the possibility of a long turnaround time if I knew an end was near.
After navigating an overcomplicated phone tree and waiting on hold for slightly less than I anticipated I was connected to Christina. I explained my tale to her and asked if she could have the number blocked; she said she'd certainly figure something out and diligently started her research. After a few minutes I decided to reveal that I used to work for an AT&T MVNO and it was fairly standard to do this via tier 2 but it wasn't a function of the Telegence system. She said she was reading something about it but thought they might not have that ability anymore.
A few more minutes went by and a brief time on hold, after which Christina came back and told me it was not possible to have it blocked on the switch, but I could subscribe to a new Smart Limits parental control product they had that would allow me to restrict incoming calls. Her suggestion was to activate Smart Limits for the number in question, but only for a couple weeks hoping they'd get the idea and/or get bored of pranking me. I said that would work for me so long as she could credit my bill for the prorated $4.99 for the new feature, deciding not to point out that the existence of this feature contradicts the "it's impossible to block a number" statement, instead changing it to "It's impossible to block a number for free."
She said that wasn't within her authority, but she'd ask a manager and under the circumstances it would probably be possible. After a brief stint on hold she came back to tell me unfortunately the fee couldn't be waived since I do have the free option of ignoring the call, thus it wouldn't be reasonable to provide me the credit. Personally I could care less about the 5 bucks (actually more like $2 if I only kept the feature for 10 days), but on principal I wasn't going to budge. Also, ignoring the calls wasn't really a "Free" option, as AT&T dings you for airtime whenever you check your voicemail. She agreed and went back to the manager...and was promptly shot down again. This time I was told that the option was free since I could check my voicemail from a landline free of charge (even though I don't have a landline), and thus policy couldn't be broken in this case. (In full disclosure, I also thought that I was docked minutes when a call was sent to voicemail even if I didn't answer, but she corrected me that this is only true when roaming internationally, not domestically.)
I told Christina that I appreciated her help and knew she was just doing her job, but found it ridiculous that AT&T cared more about making $5 then helping out a loyal customer with perfect payment history and no complaints on an overpriced plan. She asked me if I was asked to take a survey would I say she solved my problem; I told her I'd say she was excellent but her employer was questionable as usual.
I understand policies exist for a reason. And I know that a good number of customers will try to game them anytime they can. If I had a recurrent prank calling problem involving multiple numbers or if I was complaining about a stalker or a jilted ex who wouldn't stop bothering me I can see the company holding firm to a degree. But there is gray area in everything, and each example should be viewed on a case by case basis. 60 calls from the same international number in 6+ hours sounds like extenuating circumstances, and you won't waive less than five damn dollars off of someone's bill one time for them to try out a brand new cash cow of a feature for 2 weeks? You've got to be kidding me.
PS: Ironically, it's now 3:30 and I haven't received a call from the bad number in over 90 minutes. Maybe Christina did block it for me afterall...
PPS: Why am I protecting the identity of a foreign prank caller? The number in question is 50379118478
PPPS: Looking at my AT&T account and looking at my live bill, it's dropping the last digit from the number to make it appear to be domestic. Ironically enough, in this configuration it's also labeled as a free Mobile to Mobile call :)
PPPPS: And yes, I do feel better after writing this.
[END RANT]
Woke up at 6:30 this morning to a call on my cell. It was too early, so I let it go. Immediately rang again, but had stopped by the time I got to the phone. Immediately rang again in my hand. I noticed an unfamiliar 503 area code. Though normally I let numbers I don't know go to voicemail, I figured three in a row might be an emergency so I picked up anyways. The caller said something in Spanish. I said "wrong number" and hung up.
Mildly annoyed at the early hour, I figured I could still salvage some sleep. Seconds later it rang again. "Numero incorrecto. No hablo español" I barked in elementary Spanish that I hoped was pretty close to accurate. 10 seconds later it rang again.
Now both angry and intrigued, I got up and Googled the area code. Portland, OR.
I tried Googling the full number to get a name to go with my prank caller, at which point I realized something was odd. The number had too many digits. It wasn't Portland. It was an international call from El Salvador!
After a total of 7 calls between 6:32 and 6:35 (2 answered, 3 ignored, 2 sent to voicemail with a minute plus of silence and background noise as the message) it finally stopped and I went back to bed.
It started up again at 8:02am with 9 in a row, a short break, then 15 more between 8:25 and 8:50. These again had a mix of long blank voicemails, hangups, and long pleas to leave me alone obtained via Google Language Tools.
I thought I finally got through to them with the phrase: "Si usted llamar a este número de nuevo, estoy llamando a la policÃa. ¿Entiendes?" (which translates to "If you call this number again, I am calling the police. Do you understand?"). Nope. 13 more from 10:11 to 10:13. 1 more at 11:06. 8 more from 1:46 to 1:49.
When the phone rang at 1:59 I answered it ready to explode, but it was my sister asking if I knew anyone who wanted her extra Red Sox tickets. The text message to my Boston friends was only half composed when another call came in. I repeated my Spanish phrase about calling the police from memory before the caller started laughing at me.
Ready to jump out a window, I finally decided to call AT&T and have them block the incoming number for me via the switch. We used to have to call Cingular/AT&T and other carrier partners to have this performed quite a bit at Voce. It usually required a trouble ticket with a 24 hour turnaround time and tier 2 assistance, but it was definitely doable. At the rate this was going I'd be able to deal with the possibility of a long turnaround time if I knew an end was near.
After navigating an overcomplicated phone tree and waiting on hold for slightly less than I anticipated I was connected to Christina. I explained my tale to her and asked if she could have the number blocked; she said she'd certainly figure something out and diligently started her research. After a few minutes I decided to reveal that I used to work for an AT&T MVNO and it was fairly standard to do this via tier 2 but it wasn't a function of the Telegence system. She said she was reading something about it but thought they might not have that ability anymore.
A few more minutes went by and a brief time on hold, after which Christina came back and told me it was not possible to have it blocked on the switch, but I could subscribe to a new Smart Limits parental control product they had that would allow me to restrict incoming calls. Her suggestion was to activate Smart Limits for the number in question, but only for a couple weeks hoping they'd get the idea and/or get bored of pranking me. I said that would work for me so long as she could credit my bill for the prorated $4.99 for the new feature, deciding not to point out that the existence of this feature contradicts the "it's impossible to block a number" statement, instead changing it to "It's impossible to block a number for free."
She said that wasn't within her authority, but she'd ask a manager and under the circumstances it would probably be possible. After a brief stint on hold she came back to tell me unfortunately the fee couldn't be waived since I do have the free option of ignoring the call, thus it wouldn't be reasonable to provide me the credit. Personally I could care less about the 5 bucks (actually more like $2 if I only kept the feature for 10 days), but on principal I wasn't going to budge. Also, ignoring the calls wasn't really a "Free" option, as AT&T dings you for airtime whenever you check your voicemail. She agreed and went back to the manager...and was promptly shot down again. This time I was told that the option was free since I could check my voicemail from a landline free of charge (even though I don't have a landline), and thus policy couldn't be broken in this case. (In full disclosure, I also thought that I was docked minutes when a call was sent to voicemail even if I didn't answer, but she corrected me that this is only true when roaming internationally, not domestically.)
I told Christina that I appreciated her help and knew she was just doing her job, but found it ridiculous that AT&T cared more about making $5 then helping out a loyal customer with perfect payment history and no complaints on an overpriced plan. She asked me if I was asked to take a survey would I say she solved my problem; I told her I'd say she was excellent but her employer was questionable as usual.
I understand policies exist for a reason. And I know that a good number of customers will try to game them anytime they can. If I had a recurrent prank calling problem involving multiple numbers or if I was complaining about a stalker or a jilted ex who wouldn't stop bothering me I can see the company holding firm to a degree. But there is gray area in everything, and each example should be viewed on a case by case basis. 60 calls from the same international number in 6+ hours sounds like extenuating circumstances, and you won't waive less than five damn dollars off of someone's bill one time for them to try out a brand new cash cow of a feature for 2 weeks? You've got to be kidding me.
PS: Ironically, it's now 3:30 and I haven't received a call from the bad number in over 90 minutes. Maybe Christina did block it for me afterall...
PPS: Why am I protecting the identity of a foreign prank caller? The number in question is 50379118478
PPPS: Looking at my AT&T account and looking at my live bill, it's dropping the last digit from the number to make it appear to be domestic. Ironically enough, in this configuration it's also labeled as a free Mobile to Mobile call :)
PPPPS: And yes, I do feel better after writing this.
[END RANT]
Trapped In An Elevator
Not meaning to go blog crazy, just finding a plethora of cool stuff.
Check out this time-lapse security camera video of a guy trapped in an elevator for 41 hours. Keep your eye on the box at the upper right.
TRAPPED IN AN ELEVATOR
I love the very end when they presumably put up an "Out of Order" sign.
Check out this time-lapse security camera video of a guy trapped in an elevator for 41 hours. Keep your eye on the box at the upper right.
TRAPPED IN AN ELEVATOR
I love the very end when they presumably put up an "Out of Order" sign.
Shoeless
Fascinating NPR story on the conspiracy of footwear, and why we don't need it.
Feet Hurt? Stop Wearing Shoes
Most interesting bit of trivia:
Full, multipage version of the article here:
How We're Wrecking Our Feet With Every Step We Take
Feet Hurt? Stop Wearing Shoes
Most interesting bit of trivia:
"In the Middle Ages, people began wearing shoes with higher heels to avoid stepping in other people's excrement. Today, high heels are considered sexy."
Full, multipage version of the article here:
How We're Wrecking Our Feet With Every Step We Take
Monday, April 21, 2008
Roll Your Own CNN Shirt
CNN.com has this weird new store where you can order a t-shirt with a news headline on it.
SvN points out that you can screw with the URL to make it say whatever you want it to say. So...
Anyone remember which website we used to be able to do that with? Was it Pronto, or maybe Lycos411?
SvN points out that you can screw with the URL to make it say whatever you want it to say. So...
Anyone remember which website we used to be able to do that with? Was it Pronto, or maybe Lycos411?
My first (clumsy) Apple Store purchase: Airport Extreme (N)
While most readers will know that I am far from being a MacOS convert (though I do appreciate the fact that MacOS X is now Unix-like, as opposed to proprietary previous versions), I do actually own Apple products:
An older (B/G) Airport Express, which I originally bought (not at an Apple Store, but [I think] at Fry's) because I'd read it could extend my Linksys-powered home wireless network, but then saw extensive use with AirTunes first by the developers at Voce, then by me at home;
An iPod shuffle, given to all Voce employees at Christmas 2006, which saw heavy use as my PMP until succeeded by my BlackJack II (see my previous post).
However mildly unenthused I may otherwise be about Apple, kudos to them for one of the least expensive and most user-friendly implementations of 802.11n, namely the latest generation of Airport.
As my first step into the 802.11n world, I went on April 5 to my local Apple Store and got an Airport Extreme (N) and another (newer) Airport Express (N).
First, for your amusement, a description of this first-ever visit to an Apple Store (I'd walked by, of course, making various gestures): I'd read the reviews and made my mind up, so I just had to pick up one of each and pay. Due to the well-laid-out store, the former was easy. The latter is where I came out as a clumsy Apple newbie. I looked this way and that for the cashiers. After two full rotations, a salesperson came over and asked if I needed help. 'Yes, where is the checkout, please?' 'Here on my belt!' and produced a small hand-held touch-screen POS. I didn't examine it too closely, but it was clearly neither an iPhone nor an iPod touch. It would be sweet irony if it were a Windows-Mobile-powered Pocket PC. 'Would you like your receipt printed, or emailed, or both?' 'Both please, apple(at)chuljin.com.' At first, the same blank stare as when Borders cashiers look up my Borders Rewards account by its email address borders[at]chuljin.com. Catch-all email isn't quite catching on, pun intended. Finally, I couldn't figure out how to carry the bag. Once I did, I thought it was a really cool bag.
Now the reviews:
Airport Extreme: Setting this up was simplicity itself. It was never going to be my main router (nor indeed even route); I was going to just use it as an ethernet switch and 802.11n(-only) access point. The configuration wizard had a 'path' for precisely this need. I soon added a USB hard drive, which it also then quickly and easily (but securely) shared out. Fortunately, it exposes any drive[s] as Samba shares, so you don't even have to have the Airport software installed to use them (but if you do have it installed, it thoughtfully automatically maps them for you).
Airport Express: Since I didn't have anything else supporting 802.11n (though I'll soon upgrade the internal cards in my laptops), and I didn't want the Extreme to be like the first person who had a telephone, I also got an Express. This is where the wheels came off (a little). I configured it to join the Extreme's new N-only network, and after it updated and rebooted, it had the happy green light, but could be seen by neither the configuration utility nor AirTunes on computers on the separate (but all-bridged-together) G network unless the Extreme was in N(G-compatible) mode. But I wanted the Extreme on 5Ghz (N5 or N[A-compatible]) mode (to take advantage of the less-crowded new airspace), so I gave up and joined it to my existing Linksys-powered G network. Otherwise, it works great, just like my Express 'G' I know and love. It even accounts for latency, it seems: I tried sending audio from iTunes (via 'Multiple Speakers') to the new Express, connected to my stereo, the old Express, connected to a pair of computer speakers, and my laptop's internal speakers, and the audio at all three was in lock-step. Whole-house audio, anyone? I admit a little disappointment at the N-vanishing issue, but still, it's a killer product, with a new feature I might eventually use, for no more than the original cost.
I recommend them both.
Samsung BlackJack II, and a related mild indictment of AskMeNow
When, for reasons well-known to some readers of this blog, I suddenly needed to find a new mobile carrier on February 1, I decided to return to the AT&T fold.
Because, from their point of view, it would be a new contract, I was entitled to new-customer pricing on devices, so I decided to rediscover my madness for Windows Mobile with a Samsung BlackJack II, which I quite recommend unless one has a need for an esoteric feature it doesn't have.
For me, the coolest feature was the built-in GPS, which works out of the box with (for example) Google Maps Mobile. Since I was actually more interested in more technical GPS information than moving maps, I soon installed GPS Skinner, and later gpsVP. The GPS feature has now become just about my favorite toy ever.
How does this relate to AskMeNow?
Early in my GPS experience, I was motionless in downtown LA and one or the other of those applications reported my altitude at several hundred feet, which seemed high to me (in retrospect, I think because it hadn't fully triangulated).
I decided, instead of Googling, to Ask AskMeNow Now.
Me to AskMeNow, 3/11 5:54pm: 'What is the altitude of Los Angeles?'
Me to AskMeNow, 3/11 6:47pm: 'What is the altitude of Los Angeles?'
I guess their NLP didn't get the point. I almost repeated it, prefaced with 'Cmon, this is easy, ', but waited until:
Me to AskMeNow, 3/12 3:26pm: 'What is the altitude of Los Angeles?'
And at last, AskMeNow to Me, 3/12 3:29pm:
Los Angeles, CA
Elevation: 5ft/1m
73.1 ?F / 22.8 ?C
Clear
...and that seems a bit low (but probably is just the minimum altitude for LA, which is horizontally huge), but the mild indictment is that it took three questions over two days to get the answer.
I suspect some sort of AI fields easy obvious questions, sending the others to humans (cf. Pronto and iNetNow), and this happened to all three questions, the first two getting lost in the 'human queue'. AskMeNow, GetTheAnswerLaterIfAtAll. I *love* automation, but some things just need a human touch.
Because, from their point of view, it would be a new contract, I was entitled to new-customer pricing on devices, so I decided to rediscover my madness for Windows Mobile with a Samsung BlackJack II, which I quite recommend unless one has a need for an esoteric feature it doesn't have.
For me, the coolest feature was the built-in GPS, which works out of the box with (for example) Google Maps Mobile. Since I was actually more interested in more technical GPS information than moving maps, I soon installed GPS Skinner, and later gpsVP. The GPS feature has now become just about my favorite toy ever.
How does this relate to AskMeNow?
Early in my GPS experience, I was motionless in downtown LA and one or the other of those applications reported my altitude at several hundred feet, which seemed high to me (in retrospect, I think because it hadn't fully triangulated).
I decided, instead of Googling, to Ask AskMeNow Now.
Me to AskMeNow, 3/11 5:54pm: 'What is the altitude of Los Angeles?'
Me to AskMeNow, 3/11 6:47pm: 'What is the altitude of Los Angeles?'
I guess their NLP didn't get the point. I almost repeated it, prefaced with 'Cmon, this is easy, ', but waited until:
Me to AskMeNow, 3/12 3:26pm: 'What is the altitude of Los Angeles?'
And at last, AskMeNow to Me, 3/12 3:29pm:
Los Angeles, CA
Elevation: 5ft/1m
73.1 ?F / 22.8 ?C
Clear
...and that seems a bit low (but probably is just the minimum altitude for LA, which is horizontally huge), but the mild indictment is that it took three questions over two days to get the answer.
I suspect some sort of AI fields easy obvious questions, sending the others to humans (cf. Pronto and iNetNow), and this happened to all three questions, the first two getting lost in the 'human queue'. AskMeNow, GetTheAnswerLaterIfAtAll. I *love* automation, but some things just need a human touch.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Crawling The 'Deep' Web
Interesting and valuable, though I'm surprised it took someone this long to try...
Google Spiders to Start Crawling The 'Deep' Web
Google Spiders to Start Crawling The 'Deep' Web
For text boxes, our computers automatically choose words from the site that has the form; for select menus, check boxes, and radio buttons on the form, we choose from among the values of the HTML. Having chosen the values for each input, we generate and then try to crawl URLs that correspond to a possible query a user may have made.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Single Click Directions
Never thought I'd be giving Microsoft kudos for a mapping feature (I've been a little resentful since they killed Line-Drive directions when they bought MapBlast), but here's something so obvious it's brilliant:
One-Click Directions to a business from common starting freeways and/or cardinal directions.
The ending text of "This is the last intersection, and this next one is too far" is also a nice touch.
(It still has that impersonal Microsoft feel to it though. I mean, have you ever heard anyone call it the Rosa Parks freeway in real life?)
How long until Google and Yahoo copy this? I say before May 1 for Google. Yahoo is a tough call; they keep saying they don't need Microsoft in these merger talks, making it a slippery slope to steal the feature.
One-Click Directions to a business from common starting freeways and/or cardinal directions.
The ending text of "This is the last intersection, and this next one is too far" is also a nice touch.
(It still has that impersonal Microsoft feel to it though. I mean, have you ever heard anyone call it the Rosa Parks freeway in real life?)
How long until Google and Yahoo copy this? I say before May 1 for Google. Yahoo is a tough call; they keep saying they don't need Microsoft in these merger talks, making it a slippery slope to steal the feature.
Monday, April 07, 2008
Disagreement Hierarchy
How to Disagree
DH0. Name-calling.
DH1. Ad Hominem.
DH3. Contradiction.
DH4. Counterargument.
DH5. Refutation.
DH6. Refuting the Central Point.
via SvN
DH0. Name-calling.
DH1. Ad Hominem.
DH3. Contradiction.
DH4. Counterargument.
DH5. Refutation.
DH6. Refuting the Central Point.
via SvN
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