Tech in the Trenches

Carl T. Holscher fights for the customers.

Author: Carl Page 100 of 152

Copy of A

By

On June 6, 2014

In Observations

New for the sake of new.

I’m done with tech news. I don’t care about what Apple is going to do. I don’t care what Microsoft is planning. I couldn’t begin to care about Android. I don’t care about any of it.

You know when we’ll see the new iPhone? When Apple releases it! Know when the best new Android phone will be out? The moment you buy the latest best new Android phone.

Wii. Xbox. PlayStation. Who Cares?

I want to play games. I don’t care about the platform they’re on. I want to use my phone and my computer. I don’t care what it says on the tin.

I’m so tired of the endless speculation. I’m exhausted by the battles of X vs. Y when there’s really nothing amazing about either option.

They’re different.

The Apple Tech Bloggers have been particularly exhausting. Nothing is worth the level of scrutiny devoted to Apple. It is the same thing as celebrity worship.

Watching TMZ for the latest celebrity photo and endlessly droning on about Apple is the same thing. Who cares?! Why waste so many words, blurry photos and speculation about a computer?

Step out of the Techo Chamber. It’s not worth it.

This is what Apple makes

By

On June 4, 2014

In Observations

There is no shortage of words written about apple. No shortage of pundits proclaiming they know Apple and what they should do. But this simple series of tweets from Ben Alexander is the best thing I’ve been written about Apple in a very long time.

Everything else is just infrastructure. The feeling you have now is what they make.

That’s Apple. It’s not Macs or iPhones or iCloud. It’s not a music store, app store or physical stores. It’s not about chasing the latest trends and filling every possible product category with something for people to buy. Apple is selling you experiences. They’re selling you the feeling of making an app when you never thought you could. They’re selling you a great camera living in your pocket with the power to share your photos with anyone from anywhere. They’re selling you home movies and memories preserved and shared.

Apple is selling you experience. As Ben said, everything else is just infrastructure.

Can I get a jump?

By

On May 30, 2014

In Observations

Sunday was a long day. My wife and I had walked around Niagara Falls on the Canadian side all day. We covered about 15 miles and explored the immediate area on foot.

We visited a casino (a great place for a free Coke and some relief from the heat). We went through a haunted house that didn’t result in a single jump scare. And I spook easily. We went through the Guinness World Record museum. It was a total bust. We saw room after room of plaques talking about the world records, but very little in the way of art or artifacts from those records.

We went through a wooden maze. I don’t know why I agreed to it. They always look fun. But given my inability to navigate around my neighborhood, I don’t know why I think places where I’m purposefully lost would be fun. That’s my entire life!

The highlight of the day may have been the Niagara SkyWheel. A huge Ferris Wheel that towers 175 feet over the area. From the SkyWheel we were able to see Niagara Falls from a whole different perspective. It was neat seeing the attractions from the sky.

Niagara Falls from the SkyWheel
After exploring the area, and doing our part to give to the local economy, we returned to our car. It was getting dark and we wanted to rest our feet before the evening’s fireworks.

As we approached the quickly emptying field-turned-parking lot, I was flagged down by two older men. They asked in a thick Indian accent if I had jumper cables. I did. I always have jumper cables. Ever since I got my first car and was given jumper cables for it, I’ve dutifully kept them at the ready.

I spun the car around, hooked up the cables and got their car going for them on the first try. They thanked me profusely and we parted ways.

My wife asked the question I had thought too, “Who goes on a trip out-of-state without jumper cables?” A better question. Who drives around without jumper cables at all?

This is the third time this year I’ve jumped someone who did not have cables. And each time I find it curious. How can you not have jumper cables? If I’m stranded in a parking lot, especially in a place foreign to me, relying on the help of strangers, I’m going to surely have the one tool I need to do the job.

If you do not have jumper cables right this very moment, stop reading and go buy these. They are $11.10 with free Prime shipping on Amazon. Go buy them. Put them in your car. Stick them next to your spare tire.

For bonus credit, go buy a Juno Jumpr. This lovely little brick will charge your gadgets and jumpstart your car. Buy the brick, keep it in your bag to make sure your phone has power and use it to get your car going .

Sure, it is expensive to buy these things. Not jumper cables, there is no excuse for not having jumper cables. But there are other expensive tools. But when you need them, they’re worth every penny you paid for them.

Be prepared. Don’t rely on the kindness and preparedness of strangers. Be the good Samaritan. Help people with your jumper cables. And when you need a jump, you’ll be prepared.

These poor guys were stuck hundreds of miles from home. They didn’t have the proper tool. They had to not only find someone to help them, but also someone who had jumper cables.

Don’t leave yourself unprepared. Have the tools you need. And jumper cables!

NY skyline

Today’s Random Idea – Obituaries for those killed in action movies

By

On May 29, 2014

In Observations

For every action movie there is a huge death count. For an hour of film, there are countless deaths. Mostly in the wake of the heroes brave struggle against evil.

Sometimes, the hero’s love-interest, trusted friend or family member pays the ultimate price. But what about all of those people who are randomly killed during the movie who aren’t the star? They’re minding their own business. They’re going about their life oblivious to the epic battle raging up ahead. They board a bus or a train unaware the fate of the world hangs in the balance a few blocks again.

What about the guy driving home from work being crushed under falling debris? How about the woman zapped by a laser beam from an alien weapon? How many people are crushed under the weight of a giant, rampaging lizard?

Who writes their stories?

Theodore Robert Melkavich, 39, was killed today when part of the Empire State Building crushed his car as he drove home from his job at a local florist. He is survived by wife Linda and two pet parakeets, Maude and Earl.

Jordan Smith Johnson, 22, was incinerated when a last blast from a retreating alien cruise struck him as he waited to cross the street at the corner of 9th and Lee. He lived alone and has no relatives.

Ruth Barbara Caruso, 14, was crushed under the tail of Godzilla as it went rampaging through central park. She was playing in a sandbox when all of the sudden, the creature emerged, raced through the park, crushing her and 13 other children with its tail. Her parents, Ronald and Gwendolyn were also killed in the attack.

Listen

By

On May 28, 2014

In Observations

I love The Pastry Box Project. It’s the best addition I’ve made to my reading list this year. Catching up on it, I read Jeff Eaton’s piece Listen or GTFO. He writes,

Sure, some white men. But not all, obviously. As I prepared to jump into the conversation — to help clarify that not all of us were determined to hog the spotlight, that we were excited to help — I did something uncharacteristic.

I shut the fuck up.

I shut the fuck up, and I tried to listen.

…

Defending ourselves is always easier than listening to difficult truths.

…

Perhaps, just maybe, it’s time for us to quiet down and listen to the people who have to live it.

We may not know all the answers, but we can stop pretending it’s someone else’s problem. We can listen.

I am a straight, white male. I’m also 6’5″ and 350 lbs. I’m a mountain of a man and about as alpha a male as I can get without being in proper shape with rippling muscles.

I see how my wife is treated. I see how my friends are treated. I see how women around me are treated. I don’t try to defend men. We are the problem. We are the cause of the pain and anger and hurt. We are the cause and we are the solution. Period. It’s not someone else’s problem. It’s our problem to solve.

What is the solution? I don’t know. This is where we all need to shut up and listen. Listen to women. Listen to our wives and girlfriends. Listen to our friends. Our mothers. Our sisters. Our grandmothers and if they’re still with us, great-grandmothers. This isn’t a new problem. This is a long-held, deeply rooted problem.

It’s not one we’re going to fix in a week or a month or even a generation. It’s bigger than all of us. We can start taking small steps. And the first step is to listen.

Talk to the women in your life. Ask them, what is it like going through your day? What is riding a bus or driving a car with the windows down like? What about walking down the street on a hot day?

How does it make you feel? Start there. And Yes, all women have a story to share. Listen to their stories. If you’re a women, share your story. We can seek solutions when we start to listen.

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