August 28, 2008
02:55 pm
Why I need two beers this afternoon
7:48am. I'm listening to Morning Edition and driving south on 101 in North San Jose. There's a length of what looks like fire hose in my lane, the second from the right, so I move over one lane to the left.
My car explodes.
Or so it seemed for a few moments. I've never experienced an air bag "deployment" before -- that sounds so quiet and uneventful. In fact, it's an instantaneous explosion and a mass of white fabric in your face. (And weirdness: my inside wrist was burned and blistered by the airbag. Scary.)
I had no idea what happened. I regained my senses pretty quickly and moved to the left shoulder, but was puzzled by the lack another car in front of me or behind me, which I assumed I had hit. The car was filled with smoke and my first instinct was that it was on fire, so I got out of it on the side of the freeway. That's when I saw it.
A flat tire.
What? All this over a flat tire?
Then another car came over to the shoulder behind me. A good samaritan, I thought. But then I noticed he had a flat, too.
And then, another car pulled over. And another. And another. In all, about a dozen cars were pulled off on the shoulders, and finally a CHP officer came up, stopping traffic to look for whatever it was we had all hit.
This happened, that happened, I stood around, I shook a bit, I whined on the cell phone, and then the CHP officer told me he thought it might be a piece of a FORKLIFT. Bwah?
The burly female assistance truck driver helped everyone in turn to put on their spare tire, but when she got to my car she was unable to budge the damaged one. I was told to call for a tow. I was also told to go ahead and get my car off the freeway, so I gingerly eased it up the exit ramp that was literally a few feet away from the incident.
How do I know who to call? My insurance agent wasn't in yet so I had no recommendations and had no idea what to do. Turns out that I have the Audi Roadside Assistance program, which was a nice surprise. Unfortunately, it took them an hour and a half after I called to get to me, sitting in my car in the heat with a couple of guys watching me from plastic lawn chairs who didn't speak any English.
After I made it to the Audi dealer, they presented me with an estimate for $890 just to assess the damage, of which I'll owe $500 as a deductible. Then I was chastised by my insurance agent for going to the dealer.
And she told me that my premium, thanks to this little incident in which I wasn't at fault, is going to go up $300 a year. After almost 20 years accident-free. Lovely.
So, whoever left that debris in the roadway already owes me $800 and nothing has even been repaired yet.
I don't think anyone will likely begrudge me a second beer this afternoon. Will you?
7:48am. I'm listening to Morning Edition and driving south on 101 in North San Jose. There's a length of what looks like fire hose in my lane, the second from the right, so I move over one lane to the left.
My car explodes.
Or so it seemed for a few moments. I've never experienced an air bag "deployment" before -- that sounds so quiet and uneventful. In fact, it's an instantaneous explosion and a mass of white fabric in your face. (And weirdness: my inside wrist was burned and blistered by the airbag. Scary.)
I had no idea what happened. I regained my senses pretty quickly and moved to the left shoulder, but was puzzled by the lack another car in front of me or behind me, which I assumed I had hit. The car was filled with smoke and my first instinct was that it was on fire, so I got out of it on the side of the freeway. That's when I saw it.
A flat tire.
What? All this over a flat tire?
Then another car came over to the shoulder behind me. A good samaritan, I thought. But then I noticed he had a flat, too.
And then, another car pulled over. And another. And another. In all, about a dozen cars were pulled off on the shoulders, and finally a CHP officer came up, stopping traffic to look for whatever it was we had all hit.
This happened, that happened, I stood around, I shook a bit, I whined on the cell phone, and then the CHP officer told me he thought it might be a piece of a FORKLIFT. Bwah?
The burly female assistance truck driver helped everyone in turn to put on their spare tire, but when she got to my car she was unable to budge the damaged one. I was told to call for a tow. I was also told to go ahead and get my car off the freeway, so I gingerly eased it up the exit ramp that was literally a few feet away from the incident.
How do I know who to call? My insurance agent wasn't in yet so I had no recommendations and had no idea what to do. Turns out that I have the Audi Roadside Assistance program, which was a nice surprise. Unfortunately, it took them an hour and a half after I called to get to me, sitting in my car in the heat with a couple of guys watching me from plastic lawn chairs who didn't speak any English.
After I made it to the Audi dealer, they presented me with an estimate for $890 just to assess the damage, of which I'll owe $500 as a deductible. Then I was chastised by my insurance agent for going to the dealer.
And she told me that my premium, thanks to this little incident in which I wasn't at fault, is going to go up $300 a year. After almost 20 years accident-free. Lovely.
So, whoever left that debris in the roadway already owes me $800 and nothing has even been repaired yet.
I don't think anyone will likely begrudge me a second beer this afternoon. Will you?
posted by Gene Cowan | category Life... Don't talk to me about life.
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August 27, 2008
05:45 pm
This has been preying on my mind
Ahem. I'm just sayin'.
Ahem. I'm just sayin'.
02:38 pm
Del Martin
Phyllis Lyon, right, and Del Martin cut their wedding cake in June. Photo by Noah Berger, special to the San Francisco Chronicle
Del Martin's life spanned an amazing societal change, and she was instrumental in shaping that change. I have lived a life significantly devoid of direct discrimination because of brave pioneers, activists like Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon who not only spoke up, but lived their lives defiantly. All of us, gay or straight, owe them both a debt of gratitude for changing the world.
Phyllis Lyon, right, and Del Martin cut their wedding cake in June. Photo by Noah Berger, special to the San Francisco Chronicle
Lesbian rights pioneer Del Martin dies
Rachel Gordon, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
(08-27) 14:37 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Del Martin, a lesbian rights pioneer who took part in one of California's first same-sex weddings, died today in San Francisco after a long period of declining health. She was 87.
Ms. Martin's political activism began more than five decades ago when in 1955 she co-founded a ground-breaking lesbian rights organization, Daughters of Bilitis, named after a book of lesbian love poetry. On June 16, she and her partner of 55 years, Phyllis Lyon, were married at San Francisco City Hall by Mayor Gavin Newsom.
"Her last act of activism was her most personal - marrying the love of her life," said Kate Kendell, a long-time friend of the couple and executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
Ms. Martin died this morning at UCSF Hospice, nearly two weeks after she was admitted with a broken arm.
"Ever since I met Del 55 years ago, I could never imagine a day would come when she wouldn't be by my side," Lyon said in a statement issued by the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "I am so lucky to have known her, loved her and been her partner in all things.
"I also never imagined there would be a day that we would actually be able to get married," Lyon said. "I am devastated, but I take some solace in knowing we were able to enjoy the ultimate rite of love and commitment before she passed."
Ms. Martin had been in ailing health for some time, weakened to the point where she was pushed in a wheelchair to her wedding ceremony. In an interview in her hillside Noe Valley home just days before she wed, Ms. Martin described as fortunate the timing of the California Supreme Court decision that gave gays and lesbians the right to marry.
"We're not getting younger," she said.
Ms. Martin and Lyon were plaintiffs in the lawsuit that got the state ban on same-sex marriage lifted. They were married minutes after the ruling took effect.
Four years ago, when San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom allowed marriage licenses to be issued to gay and lesbian couples in San Francisco in defiance of state law, Ms. Lyon and Lyon were the first of some 4,000 same-sex couples to wed. Those marriages were later nullified by the state's high court but paved the way for the successful legal challenge.
"We would never have marriage equality in California if it weren't for Del and Phyllis," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the San Francisco Democrat. "They fought and triumphed in many battles, beginning when they first bought a home together in San Francisco in 1955."
Pelosi called the death of Ms. Martin "a great loss for me personally and for our entire community."
Newsom, who said Ms. Martin "laid the groundwork for all those who want a life of dignity," ordered the flags at City Hall and the rainbow gay-pride flag on Market Streets to be flown at half-staff until sunset Thursday.
Ms. Martin's activist reach extended into the feminist movement, when she became the first open lesbian to serve on the board of directors of the National Organization of Women, and she helped spearhead a successful campaign to get the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its roster of mental illnesses.
In 1995, Sen. Dianne Feinstein named her as a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging, where she and Lyon, a delegate appointed by Pelosi, focused attention on the needs of aging gays and lesbians.
Ms. Martin, whose given name was Dorothy but who went by Del, was born in San Francisco on May 5, 1921. Her first marriage, at age 19, was brief, but produced a daughter, Kendra Mon, who lives in Petaluma. She is also survived by two grandchildren.
Friends and family plan to hold a public tribute to Ms. Martin in the near future. Details have not been set.
[San Francisco Chronicle]
Del Martin's life spanned an amazing societal change, and she was instrumental in shaping that change. I have lived a life significantly devoid of direct discrimination because of brave pioneers, activists like Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon who not only spoke up, but lived their lives defiantly. All of us, gay or straight, owe them both a debt of gratitude for changing the world.
posted by Gene Cowan | category Life... Don't talk to me about life.
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August 23, 2008
02:58 pm
Greetings from the shelter
The little box which served up this page to you is now living in a datacenter in downtown San Jose, much closer to the genecowan.com world headquarters than its previous location. The building has an interesting history and is a great example of recycling architecture instead of tearing it down and starting again -- very carbon friendly. It's connected to the old Westinghouse warehouse, which is a beautiful example of 1930s architecture in decay.
The building was built in 1943 as the Joseph George Liquor Distribution Company. In the early 1960s it was designated as a Civil Defense Air Raid Bomb Shelter -- the cold war is very much in evidence here in San Jose, as the old DEW Line Radar tower on top of Mt. Umunhun is clearly visible from everywhere in the valley as a reminder.
Eventually the building became -- ready for this? -- the Enron data center. And the implosion of that company meant that the current owner got a world-class data center cheap.
For the geeky among you, my server is now a half mile away from MAE West, the main access point of the internet for the west coast, which is located smack in the middle of downtown San Jose. (If you're wondering, it's the shiny gold building on Market and Post.) And it is only two blocks away from the international node connection. Yay! Zippy connections! One hopes.
I had no idea these places were within walking distance of my house. Such is Silicon Valley, I suppose.
And thus ends our geekiness for the day.
The little box which served up this page to you is now living in a datacenter in downtown San Jose, much closer to the genecowan.com world headquarters than its previous location. The building has an interesting history and is a great example of recycling architecture instead of tearing it down and starting again -- very carbon friendly. It's connected to the old Westinghouse warehouse, which is a beautiful example of 1930s architecture in decay.
The building was built in 1943 as the Joseph George Liquor Distribution Company. In the early 1960s it was designated as a Civil Defense Air Raid Bomb Shelter -- the cold war is very much in evidence here in San Jose, as the old DEW Line Radar tower on top of Mt. Umunhun is clearly visible from everywhere in the valley as a reminder.
Eventually the building became -- ready for this? -- the Enron data center. And the implosion of that company meant that the current owner got a world-class data center cheap.
For the geeky among you, my server is now a half mile away from MAE West, the main access point of the internet for the west coast, which is located smack in the middle of downtown San Jose. (If you're wondering, it's the shiny gold building on Market and Post.) And it is only two blocks away from the international node connection. Yay! Zippy connections! One hopes.
I had no idea these places were within walking distance of my house. Such is Silicon Valley, I suppose.
And thus ends our geekiness for the day.
August 22, 2008
06:44 pm
As long as he doesn’t get married
Bwah? Is this real?
There has got to be more to the demographics of this poll. We're talking about an electorate that worries about a candidate's income, what kind of underwear they wear, their wife's job, the number of houses they own... and they think that 60% of Americans would vote for a gay president?
Kind of makes you wonder: it's okay to elect a gay person to the highest office in the country, but dammit -- they shouldn't be allowed to marry. Ever.
Bwah? Is this real?
More than six in ten U.S. voters say they could support an openly gay candidate for president of the United States, and 70% say they’d support the appointment of an openly gay cabinet secretary, according to a new nationwide poll from Zogby International.
Sixty-six percent of poll respondents said they could support an openly gay vice-presidential candidate, while 69% said a gay candidate for U.S. Senate could get their vote. The poll of 1,089 adults was conducted August 13 to 15 for the Gay & Lesbian Leadership Institute (GLLI), a non-partisan leadership development organization. [Victory Fund]
There has got to be more to the demographics of this poll. We're talking about an electorate that worries about a candidate's income, what kind of underwear they wear, their wife's job, the number of houses they own... and they think that 60% of Americans would vote for a gay president?
Kind of makes you wonder: it's okay to elect a gay person to the highest office in the country, but dammit -- they shouldn't be allowed to marry. Ever.
posted by Gene Cowan | category Right = Wrong
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02:03 pm
Saddle up for a bumpy ride, pardner
Well... $4 million is chump change to the Republican elite.
And anyone can go on vacation to Hawaii at a private beach resort. What's wrong with that? Hell, two of my neighbors have been to Hawaii in the last few months, and they don't own houses at all.
And as for a million-dollar mansion... well, a million dollars doesn't go very far, mansion or not. My 830sf house in San Jose cost more than a half million. So frankly, if Barack Obama purchased a million-dollar mansion, I applaud his ability to pinch pennies and find a bargain.
Nothing is funnier than a guy who owns not just a total of eight properties, but an estate, calling the other guy an elitist. This campaign is really gonna be a wild Rovian ride of hypocrisy, isn't it?
"Does a guy who made more than $4 million last year, just got back from vacation on a private beach in Hawaii and bought his own million-dollar mansion with the help of a convicted felon really want to get into a debate about houses?" asked McCain spokesman Brian Rogers.
Well... $4 million is chump change to the Republican elite.
And anyone can go on vacation to Hawaii at a private beach resort. What's wrong with that? Hell, two of my neighbors have been to Hawaii in the last few months, and they don't own houses at all.
And as for a million-dollar mansion... well, a million dollars doesn't go very far, mansion or not. My 830sf house in San Jose cost more than a half million. So frankly, if Barack Obama purchased a million-dollar mansion, I applaud his ability to pinch pennies and find a bargain.
Nothing is funnier than a guy who owns not just a total of eight properties, but an estate, calling the other guy an elitist. This campaign is really gonna be a wild Rovian ride of hypocrisy, isn't it?
posted by Gene Cowan | category Right = Wrong
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August 20, 2008
11:46 am
Made especially for you
Over on MacRumors there's a thread about someone who found photos on his new iPhone -- photos of the factory in China where it was built, focusing on a single female worker there. Despite all the misgivings about having our stuff built in China and the images it conjures of sweatshops and harsh working conditions, these pictures look like they could have been taken at any high tech facility -- cute Asian girl in a clean suit grinning and posing for the camera in a brightly lit environment.
I can only hope she isn't fired or worse now that the images are on the net; in fact, it would be a rather cool experiment if Apple would ask the workers to take pictures of themselves and put them on each phone. When the phone is first activated, the picture could pop up as an Easter Egg, showing the person -- the human being -- who assembled it for you. Wouldn't that be cool for a lot of products? Not an abstract little tag saying "inspected by no. 12", but a photo of an actual person who assembled, built, mixed, cooked, and made your product. (Lush does something like this, their employees stick little cartoons of themselves on each product they make.)
Who sewed your shirt? Harvested your coffee? Picked your tomatoes?
Over on MacRumors there's a thread about someone who found photos on his new iPhone -- photos of the factory in China where it was built, focusing on a single female worker there. Despite all the misgivings about having our stuff built in China and the images it conjures of sweatshops and harsh working conditions, these pictures look like they could have been taken at any high tech facility -- cute Asian girl in a clean suit grinning and posing for the camera in a brightly lit environment.
I can only hope she isn't fired or worse now that the images are on the net; in fact, it would be a rather cool experiment if Apple would ask the workers to take pictures of themselves and put them on each phone. When the phone is first activated, the picture could pop up as an Easter Egg, showing the person -- the human being -- who assembled it for you. Wouldn't that be cool for a lot of products? Not an abstract little tag saying "inspected by no. 12", but a photo of an actual person who assembled, built, mixed, cooked, and made your product. (Lush does something like this, their employees stick little cartoons of themselves on each product they make.)
Who sewed your shirt? Harvested your coffee? Picked your tomatoes?
August 19, 2008
08:04 am
Pining for the 1G
For the last month, people using Apple's iPhone 3G -- including me -- have bemoaned its poor 3G connectivity. I had plenty of trouble getting a decent signal with the previous phone, but the new one is far worse, to the point of not being able to use it as a phone at all.
Yesterday Apple released a firmware update with the cryptic and unhelpful description "bug fixes." There's always a placebo effect around these updates, as people claim that their phone is faster, the colors brighter, and the sky bluer. Usually they're dead wrong.
When I installed the update I only noticed two changes: first, my GPS stopped working entirely (it finally came back this morning, mysteriously) and second, the 3G was not improved.
But I'm not entirely sure I agree with those who claim it's an Apple problem. I wrote about this a little before, theorizing that the problem lies in old thinking from the phone companies. Back when the build out of the cell network was planned, they never fathomed that people might want to use cellular phones in their homes. Back then, phones were either installed in cars permanently or were "portable" as big bags with batteries. The phone company assumed that we'd use our landline phones at home and never envisioned that mobile phones would be small enough to fit in our pockets and would supplant the land line. So, when they built the infrastructure they concentrated on highways.
This seemed plausible to me just from my personal experience trying to use my phone; today I decided to perform an unscientific experiment. I logged my signal strength during my morning commute and discovered that the results jibe exactly with my hypothesis:
And when I sit at my desk, I often get no signal at all.
While I do believe that the iPhone is less capable of locking on to a good signal then other phones, I think it is clear that the major problem here is two-fold, on the part of AT&T: first, they tend to cover highways but not neighborhoods. Second, the frequency they use is unable to penetrate the smallest of buildings -- from my one-story, wood-frame bungalow in downtown to a glass-walled warehouse type office near the freeway. I have yet to find any building that 3G can penetrate around here, which tends to make the whole system pointless. In an era where people usually have to go outside to smoke, we now increasingly find that people have to go outside to make a phone call.
This is 2008, by the way. Funny how technology is often so disappointing, isn't it?
Addendum, 4:30pm: Driving home along the same route this afternoon, I got the 5 bars of 3G pretty consistently when on Interstate 101. Despite that beautiful, full signal I was unable to make calls. I tried 5 times to call someone, each time I was greeted by a "Call Failed" message. The 6th time I got through. So, even with a full 3G signal, I can't make calls? Lovely.
For the last month, people using Apple's iPhone 3G -- including me -- have bemoaned its poor 3G connectivity. I had plenty of trouble getting a decent signal with the previous phone, but the new one is far worse, to the point of not being able to use it as a phone at all.
Yesterday Apple released a firmware update with the cryptic and unhelpful description "bug fixes." There's always a placebo effect around these updates, as people claim that their phone is faster, the colors brighter, and the sky bluer. Usually they're dead wrong.
When I installed the update I only noticed two changes: first, my GPS stopped working entirely (it finally came back this morning, mysteriously) and second, the 3G was not improved.
But I'm not entirely sure I agree with those who claim it's an Apple problem. I wrote about this a little before, theorizing that the problem lies in old thinking from the phone companies. Back when the build out of the cell network was planned, they never fathomed that people might want to use cellular phones in their homes. Back then, phones were either installed in cars permanently or were "portable" as big bags with batteries. The phone company assumed that we'd use our landline phones at home and never envisioned that mobile phones would be small enough to fit in our pockets and would supplant the land line. So, when they built the infrastructure they concentrated on highways.
This seemed plausible to me just from my personal experience trying to use my phone; today I decided to perform an unscientific experiment. I logged my signal strength during my morning commute and discovered that the results jibe exactly with my hypothesis:
- One block from my house, on a residential street one block away from I-800 in downtown San Jose: No Service
- At the entrance ramp to I-800 in downtown San Jose: 5 bars, NO data connection. (This wasn't a temporary thing, it persisted for a while.)
- On I-880 in downtown San Jose, near the airport: 4 bars, 3G
- At the I-880/101 interchange: 5 bars, 3G
- At the I-101/280 interchange: 4 bars, 3G
- Exit ramp, I-101 and Blossom Hill Road, South San Jose: 1 bar, 3G
- Outside the front door of my office in South San Jose, about half a mile from I-101: 1 bar, 3G
- Just inside the front door of my office, a single-story building with floor to ceiling glass in the lobby: 1 bar, EDGE
And when I sit at my desk, I often get no signal at all.
While I do believe that the iPhone is less capable of locking on to a good signal then other phones, I think it is clear that the major problem here is two-fold, on the part of AT&T: first, they tend to cover highways but not neighborhoods. Second, the frequency they use is unable to penetrate the smallest of buildings -- from my one-story, wood-frame bungalow in downtown to a glass-walled warehouse type office near the freeway. I have yet to find any building that 3G can penetrate around here, which tends to make the whole system pointless. In an era where people usually have to go outside to smoke, we now increasingly find that people have to go outside to make a phone call.
This is 2008, by the way. Funny how technology is often so disappointing, isn't it?
Addendum, 4:30pm: Driving home along the same route this afternoon, I got the 5 bars of 3G pretty consistently when on Interstate 101. Despite that beautiful, full signal I was unable to make calls. I tried 5 times to call someone, each time I was greeted by a "Call Failed" message. The 6th time I got through. So, even with a full 3G signal, I can't make calls? Lovely.
posted by Gene Cowan | category The War with the Customer
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August 18, 2008
03:49 pm
Dreams of a starving artist
Dear lord, I desperately wish I had the money to create an art installation like this. I dream of doing cool stuff like this and making it interactive, imbuing it with a little intelligence to generate art on the fly as people wander by...
Dear lord, I desperately wish I had the money to create an art installation like this. I dream of doing cool stuff like this and making it interactive, imbuing it with a little intelligence to generate art on the fly as people wander by...
01:38 pm
How to win clients and influence designers
I've been working on a redesign and relaunch of a website for the last 4 or 5 months, so this entry was embargoed until today -- it should appear once that site is launched publicly.
A couple of weeks ago someone obviously leaked the development site because I received a bizarre, unsolicited, and frankly obnoxious email from some "design" company. The very fact that they were trolling for business by criticizing our design shows that they need a primer on marketing.
First, let me clue you in on the site. Here's how my predecessor designed it.
And here's my redesign.
Now, let's see what the geniuses at Pacific Web Solutions had to say about it.
I'm glad they didn't mention grammar and spelling, because that would have been one irony too many.
Their comments about design would be laughable in any instance, but the fact that they are making judgments about the users and "business models" without any knowledge about our audience whatsoever is hilarious.
And I can't help wondering what the "much more" is.
Now, just for more grins, what say we take a look at their idea of a well-designed site? 2004. Way to keep up to date there.
I've been working on a redesign and relaunch of a website for the last 4 or 5 months, so this entry was embargoed until today -- it should appear once that site is launched publicly.
A couple of weeks ago someone obviously leaked the development site because I received a bizarre, unsolicited, and frankly obnoxious email from some "design" company. The very fact that they were trolling for business by criticizing our design shows that they need a primer on marketing.
First, let me clue you in on the site. Here's how my predecessor designed it.
And here's my redesign.
Now, let's see what the geniuses at Pacific Web Solutions had to say about it.
To whom it may concern,
Some recommendations for your website as we\'re web professional
service. A friend of mind sent me a link to your company website
http://dev.appraisalworld.com which looks different from the actual
http://www.appraisalworld.com. Here are our comments for the site, we hope it
helps you improve.
First of all, all yellow and blue blocks really throw the users off.
Second, all fonts are too big for regular browser at normal resolutions.
It looks like kinder garden here.
Third, if your company is supporting different business models such as
Lenders, Appraisers, Homeowners, why don\'t you design easy navigations
right on the top or dropdown menu for each business models. And those
models should be on top menu, not at the bottom of each page like what
it is now.
Forth, the 3 yellow blocks represent 3 business models on the front page
look like a skate board to me. This is not the way website attract
viewers. It\'s more like brochure or weekly newsletter design styles.
Fith, the website has too many colors like candy bars. The top is
stretched to both ends, the bottom is not.
And much more, but for now I hope that could help you improve a little
bit on your new site.
Best regards,
Team at pacificwebsolutions.com
I'm glad they didn't mention grammar and spelling, because that would have been one irony too many.
Their comments about design would be laughable in any instance, but the fact that they are making judgments about the users and "business models" without any knowledge about our audience whatsoever is hilarious.
And I can't help wondering what the "much more" is.
Now, just for more grins, what say we take a look at their idea of a well-designed site? 2004. Way to keep up to date there.
posted by Gene Cowan | category General Annoyances
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August 17, 2008
01:31 pm
Trailer Park Typo
Dear Logo:
Unless you're referring to Brother Boy's ersatz breasts, I think the correct phrase is "Sneak Peeks."
Love, Gene
Dear Logo:
Unless you're referring to Brother Boy's ersatz breasts, I think the correct phrase is "Sneak Peeks."
Love, Gene
posted by Gene Cowan | category General Annoyances
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August 16, 2008
10:39 am
No hurry. Just wondering.
Dear Apple,
When are you going to fix this window bug in Safari? You know, the bug that's been around since 2003?
Just wonderin'.
Love, Gene
Dear Apple,When are you going to fix this window bug in Safari? You know, the bug that's been around since 2003?
Just wonderin'.
Love, Gene
posted by Gene Cowan | category General Annoyances
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10:22 am
The market works wonders. Just like with gas.
I'm not really leftist enough to want the government regulating every aspect of business nor do I think price controls would be a good idea, but really -- the way companies are gouging consumers left and right is getting crazy. Yeah, the idea is that the market will adjust because consumers will simply not pay, but when it comes to staples of life and monopolies (despite the supposed "choice" in phone companies and power companies, there's still only one player in these industries) the rising prices and ridiculous fees are getting unbearable.
I'm not really leftist enough to want the government regulating every aspect of business nor do I think price controls would be a good idea, but really -- the way companies are gouging consumers left and right is getting crazy. Yeah, the idea is that the market will adjust because consumers will simply not pay, but when it comes to staples of life and monopolies (despite the supposed "choice" in phone companies and power companies, there's still only one player in these industries) the rising prices and ridiculous fees are getting unbearable.
A couple of years ago, state regulators granted phone companies the freedom to price services pretty much as they pleased. The rationale officials gave at the time was that a competitive marketplace would keep prices low for consumers.
In fact, the California Public Utilities Commission's Division of Ratepayer Advocates found in a report last month that "significant rate increases" have occurred since then and recommended a return to price controls until more research could be done.
From 1984 to 1998, Pacific Bell (which would become SBC, which would become AT&T) allowed five free 411 calls per month. All additional calls were 25 cents each.
AT&T now charges $1.50 to look up local numbers and $1.99 for all others.
"The marketplace changes and you have to change your offerings," said John Britton, an AT&T spokesman.
He declined to elaborate on how the changing marketplace has forced AT&T to further reduce the number of free 411 calls customers get.
Perhaps he was referring to the fact that Verizon Communications Inc. used to offer four free 411 calls monthly, but in April it cut that to zero. Verizon charges 95 cents to look up local numbers and $1.50 for all others.
Whatever else, the changing marketplace has been lucrative for Verizon and AT&T.
Since price controls were lifted in 2006, the Division of Ratepayer Advocates found, AT&T has increased the average price of three-minute daytime local calls by 34%, evening calls by 92% and nighttime and weekend calls by 233%.
AT&T's fee for call waiting is now 86% more expensive, and the charge not to have your name printed in the phone book has gone up 346%, the agency found.
In a recent briefing for investors, AT&T boasted that its average monthly revenue per primary household line "ramped steadily over the past several quarters," to $60.16 in the first quarter of 2008 from $57.08 a year earlier.
The company pocketed $11.95 billion in profit last year, up more than 62% from a year before.
[LA Times]
posted by Gene Cowan | category The War with the Customer
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comment on this entry (1 comments) | permalink | digg it
August 15, 2008
12:05 pm
On Network Integration
Social networks, that is.
I've been playing with a bunch of them lately, signing up for accounts all over the place trying to figure out what I like and what is useful. Here's a little report on the top four I'm sticking with lately, having discarded several others as useless or annoying.
Since I carry my iPhone everywhere, these conclusions are based in some part on usefulness or capabilities on the phone.
Twitter
It seems like this is the service I use most, and its ubiquitous nature means that all the other services integrate with it in some way.
I enjoy Twitter because it is easy to use, and the limit to message length brings with it a challenge to be pithy and amusing in a succinct way. I enjoy reading Tweets from witty people I don't know, although it is sometimes difficult to find them. Twitter seems to have pretty good APIs so that other sites interoperate nicely. When it's working.
Facebook
The major drawback to Facebook is the constant, sometimes annoying poking and prodding of notifications and interaction. It only takes a small list of friends to exponentially spiral out of control with incessant badgering from various applications. I don't spend much time on Facebook and I feel like I am slighting people if I don't respond to their various silly requests for virtual plants or animated Muppets or games I have no interest in or time for. Still, Facebook seems to be the place to be, and I have already reconnected with people I knew decades ago. It's not going to rekindle any old friendships, really, but it is certainly interesting.
I can't seem to find a way to eliminate some content from my page that I don't really want -- for instance, when some of the, ahem, younger people in my friends list post up questionable pics or profanity-laden commentary. The only option seems to be to remove them as friends completely.
Wish I could put an RSS feed into my Facebook profile so my most recent blog entries could be seen.
My Twitter account automatically updates my Facebook status, which is a bonus when you have multiple networking accounts.
Facebook could be the perfect hub for all these other services but there are still gaps.
Loopt
The killer function of Loopt is the location mechanism. It uses the location services within my phone so I can just tap and update my whereabouts with no fuss or muss. It has privacy features, but only black or white. You can see me or not, there's no levels to it.
Only friends who are Loopt users can get my updates on their phones, and since it is not a free service on every carrier, I only have one friend which makes it pointless. It doesn't seem like I will ever have the critical mass of friends necessary to make this useful.
I have added Loopt to my Facebook profile, but it doesn't have any privacy levels -- just on or off. It can't be set to show different levels of granularity when it comes to my location, so everyone knows exactly where I am.
Brightkite
I think I like this better than Loopt, because it offers different privacy levels. Friends can see my accurate location, while the general public can see a more general location.
It allows me to browse people who are in the area and it is Twitter-like in that I can read messages and follow interesting people.
If BrightKite would release an iPhone app that automatically accesses my phone's location services, I would definitely dump Loopt. Having to type in an address and search before doing anything is a real drag.
BrightKite also posts my "check-ins" to Twitter, and I can customize what information it includes (meaning I can restrict my exact location when sending it out to the general public).
Conclusion
It seems clear that the one system I use the most is Twitter. It has low overhead requirements as well as low bandwidth requirements in terms of my brain power and time. It has become necessary that any other social apps I use update my Twitter account and each other rather than force me to visit each different app to post updates. Sync is very important to me. What I really want is a single app that allows me to update these various sites, with my automatically discovered location, and lets me upload a photo if I want. I think that I would be comfortable keeping all these various services if they interoperated just a little bit more easily. They each have one feature I like, but none have every feature I want.
Speaking of integration, here's something on my wish list: I want to have my Twitter feed appear here in the main part of the blog, right in the timeline with the rest of my entries. I have yet to find a way to do this; does anyone know of a way to have Twitter post my tweets using Blogger or Metaweblog APIs?
Social networks, that is.
I've been playing with a bunch of them lately, signing up for accounts all over the place trying to figure out what I like and what is useful. Here's a little report on the top four I'm sticking with lately, having discarded several others as useless or annoying.
Since I carry my iPhone everywhere, these conclusions are based in some part on usefulness or capabilities on the phone.
It seems like this is the service I use most, and its ubiquitous nature means that all the other services integrate with it in some way.
I enjoy Twitter because it is easy to use, and the limit to message length brings with it a challenge to be pithy and amusing in a succinct way. I enjoy reading Tweets from witty people I don't know, although it is sometimes difficult to find them. Twitter seems to have pretty good APIs so that other sites interoperate nicely. When it's working.
The major drawback to Facebook is the constant, sometimes annoying poking and prodding of notifications and interaction. It only takes a small list of friends to exponentially spiral out of control with incessant badgering from various applications. I don't spend much time on Facebook and I feel like I am slighting people if I don't respond to their various silly requests for virtual plants or animated Muppets or games I have no interest in or time for. Still, Facebook seems to be the place to be, and I have already reconnected with people I knew decades ago. It's not going to rekindle any old friendships, really, but it is certainly interesting.
I can't seem to find a way to eliminate some content from my page that I don't really want -- for instance, when some of the, ahem, younger people in my friends list post up questionable pics or profanity-laden commentary. The only option seems to be to remove them as friends completely.
Wish I could put an RSS feed into my Facebook profile so my most recent blog entries could be seen.
My Twitter account automatically updates my Facebook status, which is a bonus when you have multiple networking accounts.
Facebook could be the perfect hub for all these other services but there are still gaps.
Loopt
The killer function of Loopt is the location mechanism. It uses the location services within my phone so I can just tap and update my whereabouts with no fuss or muss. It has privacy features, but only black or white. You can see me or not, there's no levels to it.
Only friends who are Loopt users can get my updates on their phones, and since it is not a free service on every carrier, I only have one friend which makes it pointless. It doesn't seem like I will ever have the critical mass of friends necessary to make this useful.
I have added Loopt to my Facebook profile, but it doesn't have any privacy levels -- just on or off. It can't be set to show different levels of granularity when it comes to my location, so everyone knows exactly where I am.
Brightkite
I think I like this better than Loopt, because it offers different privacy levels. Friends can see my accurate location, while the general public can see a more general location.
It allows me to browse people who are in the area and it is Twitter-like in that I can read messages and follow interesting people.
If BrightKite would release an iPhone app that automatically accesses my phone's location services, I would definitely dump Loopt. Having to type in an address and search before doing anything is a real drag.
BrightKite also posts my "check-ins" to Twitter, and I can customize what information it includes (meaning I can restrict my exact location when sending it out to the general public).
Conclusion
It seems clear that the one system I use the most is Twitter. It has low overhead requirements as well as low bandwidth requirements in terms of my brain power and time. It has become necessary that any other social apps I use update my Twitter account and each other rather than force me to visit each different app to post updates. Sync is very important to me. What I really want is a single app that allows me to update these various sites, with my automatically discovered location, and lets me upload a photo if I want. I think that I would be comfortable keeping all these various services if they interoperated just a little bit more easily. They each have one feature I like, but none have every feature I want.
Speaking of integration, here's something on my wish list: I want to have my Twitter feed appear here in the main part of the blog, right in the timeline with the rest of my entries. I have yet to find a way to do this; does anyone know of a way to have Twitter post my tweets using Blogger or Metaweblog APIs?
August 14, 2008
12:54 pm
In commiseration with Mac
I've been enjoying reading the trials of Mac as she fires and hires, and herewith I present a sampling of the resumes we've received here at my office recently. After I read the first one boasting of high-level skills with "Spreadsheat, Word Processer" I knew that we had a treasure trove of comedy just waiting to be unleashed. For your amusement, a cross-section of what's out there in the employment pool.
And from the department of unfulfilled expectations:
I've been enjoying reading the trials of Mac as she fires and hires, and herewith I present a sampling of the resumes we've received here at my office recently. After I read the first one boasting of high-level skills with "Spreadsheat, Word Processer" I knew that we had a treasure trove of comedy just waiting to be unleashed. For your amusement, a cross-section of what's out there in the employment pool.
- I am confident that my skills, qualifications and experience will definitely make me a good candidate for this job. If you feel the same, it will be in my best interest to go forward and schedule an interview with you so we can have a brief exchange of words.
- I am writing to express my interest in the position of xxxName of Positionxxx. I feel very confident that my qualifications will enable me to meet the high standards established by your organization.
- I am attaching my resume. Please go through it.
Looking forward for a great reply. - To Whom It May Concern,
I am writing to express my interest in a teaching position with children that may be severely mentally disabled.
(The open position is Customer Service Representative for a software company.) - I would welcome the opportunity for a personal interview to further discuss my qualifications. Take also into consideration my location. I feel my arrival on time will be of no concern.
I'm looking from a pay of at least the minimum $11/hour. I hope you take my resume into deep consideration. - OBJECTIVE: Seeking a position within an organization where I will be able to contribute to the company’s success, and where achievements are recognized.
(Good luck.) - SUMMERY OF QUALIFICATIONS
(One assumes that spelling is not on that list.) - Objective
To work for an organization where I am able to enjoy working with others, help others, and continue growing as an individual; seeking employment to gain more experience and knowledge in the any field of employment, by a recognized company.
(Recognized by whom, I wonder?) - Sales experience, sales consultant, beauty consultant, people person, aesthetic graduate, excellent communication skills, very friendly, enjoy helping others, a fast leaner, and up to date on OSHA REGULATIONS as well as up to date on CALIFORNIA STATE BROAD RULES AND REGULATIONS
- I JUST SEEN THE JOB OPPORTUNITY YOUR COMPANY POSTED ONJOB BOARD. I KNOW THAT I DONT HAVE MUCH EXPERIENCE IN THE FIELD BUT IM A MOTIVATED PERSON TO LEARN AND WORK. IM VERY DRIVEN TO LEARN KNEW THINGS AND ACCOMPLISH MY TASK. RIGHT NOW I AM AN AA BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION STUDENT AND I AM GRADUATING IN AUGUST OF 2009. I REALLY WANT TO WORK IN THIS FIELD SO I CAN GET MY CAREER STARTED. WELL HERE IS MY RESUME. THANK YOU!!
- I have learned many valuable traits from owning me own business and working for others that will assist me in any working environment.
- Subject: Resume Submissions To LG Swim Club And Others
(Um, we're not a swim club.)
And from the department of unfulfilled expectations:
- OBJECTIVE: Seeking a challenging career in the Customer Service environment
