Posts Tagged apple
Posted on August 17, 2010 by Miller
no Flash - get it?
I, like many other iPhone and iPad users am still disappointed that Flash still hasn’t made its way onto those devices. Yes, I’m aware of ‘Frash’ but the big thing that’s missing in that package is the ability to play Flash Video - which is really all I care about (#iwantowatchTheDailyShow).
But what I’m really sick of is the whining on both Apple and Adobe’s part. Apple complains that flash is a closed, antiquated system (see Jobs’ open letter - Thoughts on Flash), and Adobe complains that basically Apple is the one who is using a closed system and basically doesn’t support Flash out of a grudge - and they’re moving on.
Hey Adobe - have some faith in your users. It amazes me that Adobe has just thrown their arms up. If they believe so strongly in Flash’s need to be on iDevices - just build it. Build it as an app or a plugin. And let the market decide (I can’t believe I said that, being a bleeding heart liberal). As someone who helps develop websites and other web based solutions, the lack of even a public beta also makes me less likely to suggest anything Flash based to clients. I recognize how many flash-disabled devices there are out there and by giving up plans to develop a solution, Adobe also is not giving anyone an incentive to continue to use their technology.
Between the U.S. Copyright Office officially sanctioning jailbreaking your phone and the ease at which you can do so thanks to jailbreakme.com - there’s now nothing preventing you from (legally) getting your iPhone to run flash. Just Adobe (well, and a little bit of Apple).
There are also plenty of avenues for distribution via Cydia or Rock that could bring an official Adobe Flash plugin to millions of users, should they choose to install it. Hell, I (and I’m sure many others) would gladly fork over a few bucks for the privilage of having flash capability (especially on my iPad). For the first time, Adobe could actually make money by distributing what has traditionally been a free plugin.
So I guess this is my open letter to Adobe. Put your money and your devs where you mouth is. Don’t take your ball, whine and go home. Like any other business, if you build a product that kicks-ass people will download it - they’ll even tell their friends. Again, have faith in your community. If Adobe truly believes that they have a great product, they should stand behind it and let the community decide. Maybe if they build it, we will come….and download.
Posted on June 15, 2010 by Miller
Have you ever seen Shit My Dad Says on Twitter? Check it out. Go ahead. I’ll wait. Really funny stuff. Justin Hepburn, who set up the account as a place to share his father’s snippets of wisdom, currently has 1.4million followers, a TV deal, and a new book which is a collection of stories and essays (also called Sh*t My Dad Says).
I’ve checked out the preview on Amazon for the book and decided that it was something that would make for a quick and fun summer read.
I also picked up an iPad a few weeks ago and have been very impressed by how many things I use it for (full review coming next week). What I haven’t really spent a lot of time with is buying / reading full length books on it from the iBooks store. At the risk of not enjoying the experience, I figured Sh*t My Dad Says would be a good starter book.
However, the iBooks store currently doesn’t stock it. Not that big of a deal, right? I’ve heard that you can just grab a Kindle app and purchase / read any Kindle books on your iPad.
But here’s what I found when I went to Amazon to purchase the Kindle version:
Notice anything strange?
Here’s a quick observation on the difference between bytes and binding…
If you look hard, you’ll see that the new hardcover edition is priced at $8.79 and the Kindle edition (digital download) is $9.99. A brand new, hardcover book should NEVER cost more than an e-edition. Ever. Call me cheap, but the cost associated with moving a couple megabytes of text is infinitely smaller than the cost of printing and shipping a hardcover book. Never mind the antiquated royalty system between publishers and authors, I’m not going to touch that here. The whole purpose of e-readers is to (hopefully) do for reading what iTunes did for music (granted, there are some bad byproducts to this system as well) by making it convenient, instant, scalable, and cost effective.
But as the model stands right now, I think e-books in their current form and pricing structure are majorly flawed, no matter how cool the reading device is. Amazon is asking me to pay more for what is essentially the same experience as a paper book (without being able to share it with someone else when I’m done - another rant altogether).
Publishers need to either charge less because consumers recognize that there is substantially less cost involved with distribution and substantially more restrictions when it comes to sharing an e-book vs. a paper book - OR make the e-book a completely different experience than the paper book- one that is worth a premium price. How? I can think of a few ways:
- Ability to share chapters or the whole book with friends after completing it.
- The ability to annotate pages, add hyperlinks and share notes with everyone else who has bought that ebook.
- Enable book club style features where every reader can interact with other readers in real time through the book, commenting and suggesting other books.
- Allow for authors to have Q and As IN the book or allow users to peel back pages to see earlier drafts.
Things like this would differentiate the ebook experience, provide a kick ass way of interacting with other readers and essentially make each book come with its own built-in online community (not to mention sell a lot more Kindles, Nooks and iPads so more people could take part in that experience). Need more? Seth Godin has another awesome idea for a paperback Kindle.
Am I asking for too much here? Do you think the problem is that the tech is in its infancy at the moment, or do you blame the publishers (or authors)? Do you have an e-reader device and has it made you read more - if so, how would you weigh in on the pricing, buying experience? Fire away in the comments, please.
Posted on January 27, 2009 by Miller
Read a great article in Wired today:
Why Cloud Computing Still Doesn’t Work and how Google will Fix It - full article
I agree that the systems that would allow us to truly work in the cloud just suck at the moment (particularly in the mobile data transfer department). BUT I take issue to say that people aren’t already taking the first steps in moving to the cloud (for better or worse).
I think people are already moving to the cloud via social media tools. I have friends whose only copies of their digital photos are on Flickr or Facebook, and to me that seems like a mistake (even though Flickr will store full-res versions).
I’ll echo the point of some other comments in that what happens when a Google Data Center gets hacked, or a web service folds unexpectedly (anyone that got Circuit City gift cards this holiday season will know what I mean)?
There’s talk of a GDrive coming in 2009 that would either put all your docs on Google’s servers so that you can access them anywhere, or that it would be a piece of hardware that would ‘mirror’ your drive on their servers, keeping the most updated copies in each drive.
I love the idea of having things everywhere, but am not so keen on having copies of all my data on a 3rd party’s server . (I know, we already do that with email, photos, etc, but having EVERYTHING there puts a little too much trust in a web service). I want my content accessible. But I want to own it. I want the control.
Furthermore, I don’t think we need a Google Drive to manage this for us. If you want to mirror your drives on the cloud, lets focus on a software based solution. Let’s innovate. Once again, I think Apple’s getting on the right track (and monetizing it) with their Mobile Me services. Has anyone reading this used it? Is it any good for docs? Leave a comment.
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Miller
I read a great article on TechCrunch this morning that got me thinking about finding customers. It talked about how Apple is just rocking the marketplace even in a recession and that one of their strengths is the small width of products that they produce:
Apple made $10 billion last year and their simple product line is the key. Look at it. There really aren’t that many products: One cellphone, four iPods, three notebooks, and three desktop computers. Now look at HP’s, Dell’s, or even Garmin and TomTom’s product lines. Apple does something different and hopefully others are taking notes.
Makes sense. How many GPS units does Garmin make? 82. Really. Apple makes only a handful of versions of its products, but packs the hell out of the available features in that unit. Another excerpt:
Consumers hate choices. They say they love them, but have you ever stood in front of a wall of plasmas and LCDs with a random person? I have and did for years at Circuit City. They get overwhelmed by the amount of options, but Apple has made it easy but producing top-notch products that are easily available. The iPhone at Wal-Mart makes sense as it doesn’t require a salesman to sell the hottest phone on the market.
I have to add a couple of thoughts though. First, I agree that consumers hate choices….to a point. I think America’s economy is so massive because people want choice in that they want to find products and services that help them express themselves, and express their personality. So in that sense, choice is good. But I do agree with the arguement that no one needs 82 choices of GPS.
But there also is a certain illusion of choice. When there are so many options, the space between the differentiations is so small it can be barely noticable. But it can be effective. Look at how many times Taco Bell can re-package Corn, beans, beef, and sour cream into products.
Second, Apple innovates. When they focus on a product, they build things that are different in so many ways from what already exists. They create things that are remarkable. They create products that don’t even need salespeople. The community and the identity of that community that Apple helped build is one that is a growing niche. That is, they are not afraid to build premium products that ‘are not for YOU.’ They’re not for everyone. They are, however, built for a niche that has a cool factor. A community that a lot of people want to be a part of.
My point is that granted, the simplicity factor saves resources and allows them to focus on making a handful of kick ass products. But simplicity isn’t the answer by itself. I would argue that its simplicity combined with innovation, and a good understanding of communities that allow it to shine.
