Just my *OPINION* on Apple over the years.

1)      OK, sorry, Hope the following doesn’t rub anyone the wrong way.

2)      I apologize in advance if I get my facts wrong; I think that the “gest” of what I am saying is accurate, at least from My Perspective.

3)      Jobs Created Apple

a)      Made pretty fonts (Stanford Speech)

4)      Jobs ousted

i)        Company almost disappeared

ii)       Made their own O/S

iii)     Made their own hardware

5)      Jobs back

i)        FIRST GLIMPSE of Mac Marketing Machine – “A5 chip so powerful, they can’t sell them outside the country because they can be used for smart bombs.” Or some derivative of that. Sure you can say this was Meme but the reality is that companies push Meme or we never hear about it. (Just my opinion)

ii)       Attempts to fix their O/S – has trouble.

6)      §  Creates the Cat line of OS’s Total reboot on their O/S

i)        Hardware is insufficient and cost prohibitive to continue in house

7)      § APPLE now uses the same hardware that everyone else does.  But doesn’t even use the good stuff, Where is the Mac with the i7 Extreme Edition?

i)        Ultra-portable and lightweight devices emerge

8)      § New OS for portables, iOS?

9)      § Apple Marketing in full swing.

a)      “No one has ever done this before” meaning NO ONE at Apple ever has before. Tablets and Touchscreens go back to late 70’s?

i)        Cut and Paste on mobile devices, RIM did that since Jump Street.

ii)       Ability to resize windows from any corner, Windows 3.1 did that right?

iii)     IOS 5 brought the “Notification” pull down; I have had this since Android 1.6 (My first droid device, 3 years ago?)

b)      I love how Apple says they are the first for so many things when in reality they are just re-treading things.

i)        Desktop Products are being molded to fit closer and closer to the new “mobile” iOS.

c)       Jobs gone

i)        No more direction from the real Genius behind the company. (His passing is sincerely a loss for us all, he drove Apple and made the market more competitive, it is a shame he is gone before he grew old.)

10)   §  They will execute his “5-10” plans , probably poorly

i)        Portable devices and desktop will merge together, “Ultra-Laptops” which are really tablets big enough to house robust laptop components but still skinned like an iPad.

11)   § Everyone will follow suite. (Toshiba, Sony, etc…)

i)        When this well runs dry, Apple will be gone. Or at least take on a form that none of us will recognize.

b)      I know I sound angry, and I am a little. Apple marketing is awesome. They convince people that they have done something FIRST and BETTER than anyone else could have ever done it. The reality is that in years past hurdle costs and economic feasibility of certain products simply wasn’t what it is today. They are not innovators, they are clever opportunists.

And the Royal Wedding is over....

It was a very nice ceremony indeed. As I watch the wedding I kept thinking, "we in the states have Kim K and Lindsey. What is wrong with us?" I guess that is it, English have their monarchy and we have our celebrity figures.



At a time when the English economy is believed to be heading down the same path of the United States in the last couple years, I wonder if the real motivation behind this was to occupy to hearts and minds of the masses.



Well, it will be at least a week or two before this event dies down. I am sure the planners of this event have successive photo opps and such that will keep this at the top of the brim.

I never do this, but I can't help myself this time....

I got a satisfaction survey in my Inbox today. When I gave Dodge a terrible review in their survey, I was prompted to give them some details as to why I felt the way I did. Below is the email I typed up. Perhaps I am unreasonable? I don't know but what I can tell you is that in this case, asking me to fill out a survey has just upset me all over again. So here it is - My emailed response back to Dodge about my $25,000.00 2008 Dodge Ram 1500 QuadCab with the "Premium Sound" and Hemi.

Why am I not MORE likely to recommend Dodge?

Well, this is my third Dodge and not until THIS Dodge did I feel this way. My first two Dodge
Vehicles were great. Exactly what I believe a car should be. In my opinion, a
car should be reliable, of moderate comfort to me and passengers and somewhat
appealing to look at. My latest Dodge is only appealing to look at. Inside the
truck lurks a nagging and persistent problem that 2 of your Dealerships could
not resolve and that I must NOW live with throughout the rest of my time with
this truck. Something so small has metamorphosed into a problem so big that
there is not one occasion I get into my Dodge that I am able to escape it. As such,
it has generally ruined 2 of the 3 things I personally look for in a vehicle.  That lurking beast is the car stereo! I have
taken the truck to 2 dealerships a total of 4 times to have the speakers
throughout the truck replaced. They continue to "blow-out" and the
dealerships lead me to believe that I am the problem. Even when my settings are
such that the music I listen to sounds nothing like it should? I had one
dealership customer service representative get into my truck and tell me, “It
sounds fine to me.” The only problem with that diagnosis is that IT ISN’T YOUR
VEHICLE and THE OWNER THINKS IT SOUNDS LIKE CRAP!!! “Premium Sound” my foot!

I have been told by other car stereo shops that there is
fault within the system in my truck and time and time again, the dealership
replaced the damaged speakers, slapped it all back together and insisted that
there was no problem. Well, now I am out of warranty and not inclined to pay to
have the speakers replaced on my own, so I have adjusted the settings to
eliminate all bass from the stereo and leave the volume at or below a third of
its normal range. What is most sickening is that even while listening to TALK
RADIO the speakers blew out one time. So, NOW, EVERY TIME I get into my truck,
I am unable to enjoy one of the most rudimentary pleasures one can experience
in their vehicle. Something as simple as enjoying my favorite radio station is
a creature comfort not found in my Dodge. My 2008 Quad Cab Dodge Ram 1500 with a
Hemi is evidence that with all the engineering genius down at Dodge, something
as simple as the stereo missed the mark. You might say, “Matt, that isn’t our
stereo.” My reply would be simple. “It’s in my Dodge, and you chose not to
stand behind it.”

In today’s Global Marketplace I would think that customer
satisfaction would rule the day. At Dodge it doesn’t. You know, each of those
times I took my truck in I had to call the dealership day after day to get
feedback on the repair. Quality of work, Customer Service, communication – Not present
at the Dealerships I went to. It was almost like I was at the post office. The
attitude appeared to be, “The work keeps coming so who cares!?” No urgency, no
dedication to delivering on what was promised to the customer even when what
WAS promised was a simple “Phone call later today to let you know what the
status is.”

I remember just when my truck went out of warranty. My wife
and I discussed our experience so far with the truck. It has been so dumb! No
transmission problem, no engine problem. The stupid stinking stereo is all we
are talking about. I told my wife, the truck retails for 25k and the stereo has
been such a HUGE problem. The Stereo! It is like the Mouse and Lion in the
Jungle. Only this time instead of the Mouse setting the lion free from the
trap, he stuck around and made annoying sounds until the lion went insane.

So while I am not sure who all will read this, one thing I
am certain of is that when you are done reading this you will finish your day
and go get into your car to go home and will probably enjoy listening to whatever
station it is you enjoy while I will be sitting in my 25 thousand dollar truck,
stuck in traffic, listening to a radio station that sounds like it is coming
through a tin can because all the bass tones are removed in fear of blowing out
the $400 dollar each “Premium Sound” speakers found throughout my truck and
counting the days until I can sell this PIECE OF SHIT Dodge and find another
Brand to invest in.

By the way, I am going to be posting this on my blog, I will
send out a Tweet from my twitter account with the hash tags #Dodge #Stereo so
that anytime people search for #Dodge on Twitter, this article will appear.
Give it a try.

You know....what if.....

Much like so many of us are participating in Twitter these days what if there were ;one day;  a "market place" for labor that we all participated in? I know we do now but we don't really, we look for a job and conduct ourselves under the banner of a company. In my example you know, you tweet about what it is you do, a continuous stream , a sort of , "letting your little light shine" if you will. Then a third party, some independent body would come in , evaluate you , then "verify" you. "This person is who they say they are." Then people could conduct business with you with confidence. A BBB for the new age of technology. No more traditional companies, no more "big bidness" making selfish decisions for itself. No more of the nastiness we all as worker bees hate without looking you in the face and telling you why these changes are needed? People working together , doing business. What if.....

I guess I am doing something right....

Today when I logged in to my RexRaveR Blog I had a couple more comments then usual. They were spam but all the same. Looks like I showed up on some new radars. Even if they are internet spam bot radars. :)

Just a thought...

When did it become so popular to bash the US?

Got this in an email. Thought it was worth sharing.

Let me start off by saying, I really do not like chain emails and the like. That being said, I recieved this email from a good friend and although it is of the typical interweb theater In this Christmas season I felt it garnered enough merit to put out on my blog. So in a sea of little lights adrift in the dark vast of the internet I am placing this poem. For at least a moment I have read this poem, acknowledged the validity of the meaning and wanted to make it available for others to see.

 

Crabby Old Man...



What do you see nurses? . . .. . . What do you see?

What are you thinking . . . . . when you're looking at me?

A crabby old man . . . . . not very wise,

Uncertain of habit . . . . . with faraway eyes?



Who dribbles his food . . . . . and makes no reply.

When you say in a loud voice . . . . . 'I do wish you'd try!'

Who seems not to notice .. . . . . the things that you do.

And forever is losing . . . . . A sock or shoe?



Who, resisting or not . . . . . lets you do as you will,

With
bathing and feeding . . . . . The long day to fill?

Is that what you're thinking? . . . . . Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse . . . . . you're not looking at me.



I'll tell you who I am. . . . . . As I sit here so still,

As I do at your bidding, . . . . . as I eat at your will.

I'm a small child of Ten . . . . .. with a father and mother,

Brothers and sisters . . . . . who love one another.



A young boy of Sixteen . . . . with wings on his feet.

Dreaming that soon now . . . . . a lover he'll meet.

A groom soon at Twenty . . . . . my heart gives a leap.

Remembering, the vows . . . . . that I promised to keep.



At Twenty-Five, now . . . .. . I have young of my own.

Who need me to guide . . . . . And a secure happy home.

A man of Thirty . . . . . My young now grown fast,

Bound to each other . . . . . With ties that should last.



At Forty, my young sons . . .. . . have grown and are gone,

But my woman's beside me . . . . . to see I don't mourn.

At Fifty, once more, babies play 'round my knee,

Again, we know children . . . . . My loved one and me.



Dark days are upon me . . . . . my wife is now dead.

I look at the future . . . . . shudder with dread.

For my young are all rearing . . . . . young of their own.

And I think of the years .. . . . . and the love that I've known.



I'm now an old man . . . . .. and nature is cruel.

Tis jest to make old age . . . . . look like a fool.

The body, it crumbles . . . . . grace and vigor, depart.

There is now a stone . . . . where I once had a heart.



But inside this old carcass . . . . . a young guy still dwells,

And now and again . . . . . my battered heart swells.

I remember the joys . . . . . I remember the pain.

And I'm loving and living . . . . . life over again.



I think of the years, all too few . . . . . gone too fast.

And accept the stark fact . . . . that nothing can last.

So open your eyes, people . . . . . open and see.

Not a crabby old man . . . . Look closer . .. . see ME!!

 

Random Thoughts.....

Are cities becoming a series of systems meant to keep a labor force under control and plentiful? Really seeing the worst of big business these days. So many heads have rolled simply to increase profits by a few percent. Now we are NOT talking about changing the ink color on a PNL Statement from Red to Black, we are talking about incrementing the % Profit positivly to improve stock holder returns, in the short term.

I am glad to see Obama attempting to stimulate small business. Small business it seems will be the salvation of the US Economy. Who else is hiring?

Thoughts on them Texans vs. Who Dats....

Here we go again....

Topic: Social Networking and Interpersonal communications
My Disclaimer, This is really a quick dump of a steam of thoughts that are going through my mind as I write this out. I typed up a quick timeline and then just let the words come out on their own. Still in draft form.
Evaluate Communication
• The Message (What is being conveyed?)
o Types of Messages
 Verbal - this is spoken word.
 Non Verbal – this is traditionally considered to be body language.
o Content
 Implied messages vs. Literal Messages - What does the message say vs. what it was intended to say? Is the audience bias enough to miss the real meaning of the message or could the message have been framed better as to not have the meaning misconceived?
 Tone – this is the overall feeling of the message. The position the message seems to come from.
 Accuracy of content – the accuracy of the content here is referring to the validity of the message content. Can we trust the message for instance?
 Relevance to subject matter – Relevance here really is the message as it relates to the overall exchange.
o Audience
 Intended - this is the recipient of the message that was originally intended by the author of the exchange or the original construct the message exists within.
 Unintended – This is the receiving group that is in possession of the message as a result of some unforeseen circumstance.
o The environment the message exists in
 Setting of the exchange
• Face to face etc….
o The players in the exchange
 Players in the communication exchange
• Relationship between the participants
• How does this fit into typical Maxims and norms
• Are these players engaged in an un-natural exchange
o The delivery method employed
 Sending and receiving messages
• Sending
• Receiving
• Barriers
o

Just a thought....

Seriously, graphing using college algebra, not as much fun as you would think.