Unwanted Commentary

I feel like I’m the only person in the world that is completely unimpressed by the Apple iPad. In fact I already hate the thing. Every way I look at it I’m completely unimpressed, from the name of the thing, the way it looks, to the way that it’s another device in which Apple further restricts the way you can use a computer.

The name, seriously, iPad? That’s the best they could do, how much money did they spend on that gem? And I’m not even talking about the humorous references to feminine hygiene products, though that in and of itself should have been red flag enough (some PUNE intended). Think about it, how many pleasant references to a pad can you think of? Mouse pad, I’m sorry but I’ve seen far too many nasty, grimy mouse pads for that to be a pleasant concept, not only that but it invokes a mental trigger about something that either wears out quickly, or is a cheap, gimmicky give away you get at trade shows. Other pads? well that name just conjures up images of something you either wipe something up with, scrub stuff off with, or set under something to keep it from getting dirty. It certainly does not conjure up something I want spend $300 plus bucks on.

The design? That couldn’t be a worse looking piece of crap if I’d pinched it out of my culo myself. Well, maybe that’s overly harsh, but it looks so pedestrian, so plain, so boring, and the screen shots of the display looked so vapid that I could nearly see the drool dripping out of the corner. It does not entice me. The iPhone is a great device, but when you blow it up to that size it begins to look decidedly dull, and that’s what it the iPad looks like. An iPhone with a glandular problem, but without the perks of being able to make a call on the thing, or take a picture.

So it’s supposed to be more of a computer then? Well it doesn’t include a webcam, and the storage limits are ridiculously small while at the same time ridiculously overpriced. It’s a locked down device that can’t use Flash, and despite what you may think of Flash, it’s a pretty necessary component if you want to really enjoy the bulk of what’s out on the Internet now-a-days. Instead you’ll be beholden to Apple’s iStore, and what Apple’s iGestapo decides you can and can’t enjoy on your iPad. The whole concept seems wrong, and the worse part of it is that this damn thing is probably going to sell like mad as all the iMepple mew and bah into line to buy it, and then everything that comes out afterwards is going to be just like the friggin thing. Then we’re stuck with this kind of crap forever.

I’m sorry, but I can do all the crap that the iPad does on my $200 netbook, and have more memory and storage space for my trouble. I can watch movies, listen to music, play Flash games, install whatever I like whenever I like. The thing is super light, has a keyboard, and it’s a real computer. If I want a small, not quite a computer, I can use my iPhone. Well I guess I can’t paw the damn thing to death, but all this touch screen crap seems over blown to me.

Or, I dunno, whatever.

Posted by Jeff at 10:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Despite what most Americans think, that the United States is the best country in the world, we seem to come up rather short in a lot of areas. One of those areas has been in the department of equal rights for people who just happen to like those of the same sex. Now we seem to have an opportunity to at long last put ourselves on par with most of the rest of the civilized countries on the planet, and allow homosexuals to openly serve their country in the military. On a whim I queried the Internet to see if I could find a list of countries who allow gays to openly serve in their military, and of course Wikipedia has a rather exhaustive list. Click here for said list.

It’s a bit revealing that some of the countries on that list have managed to deal with this issue and not disintegrate into a vortex of chaos. What’s even more telling is who we’re on the list with. I actually wonder with some doubt that we’ll be able to pull it off, but c’mon it’s 2010, and with so many challenges facing the U.S. can’t we treat this as the non-issue that it is? Maybe once this is done we can move forward on the government issuing marriage licenses to homosexual couples.

Posted by Jeff at 08:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So I've been told that the big fund raising shindig for Haiti pulled in a record $58 million dollars, and I applaud that because I'm going to guess that most of it came from regular work-a-day folks throwing in their $10 and $25 donations. The report also mentioned that over 100 entertainers pitched in to shake their proverbial money-makers for the show, and that's when I started thinking that $58 million, while impressive, seems a paltry amount. From the stand point of the unwashed masses that's an amazing accomplishment and a real testament to the generosity of the common person, but if I was a celebrity looking at that number would make me cringe a little. Hell, if each celebrity/entertainer/whatever had given a bit over $500,000 then they could have easily matched the telethon. How can you go out and cajole people to give money when you've given so little yourself. I guess I'm speaking a bit out of turn though, as I'm sure many celebrities have given graciously, and some have, but I know they all haven't. Madonna herself only gave out $250K, and that just seems a little insulting.

In a certain light you shouldn't complain I guess. Any generosity is good generosity, but I think this puts a big spot light on a fundamental problem with our society.

Posted by Jeff at 09:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thoughts on the Texas and Alabama game last night. No doubt about it, this was a hard game to watch. Now I don’t bleed burnt orange or anything, but I was pulling for Texas to win even though I would have been very pleased to have seen a well played game no matter who won.

It was disappointing to see Colt McCoy go down so early in the game. This was beyond a devastating blow for the Longhorns, and the chances of them winning without him were pretty low. Bottom line is he doesn’t go out of the game the game is very different. I don’t like to jump to conclusions and say that Texas wins with McCoy, because I have to imagine that Alabama had plans in place to contain him. The fact that Texas had to settle for that first field goal is a bit of an indication that Colt wouldn’t have his way with them.

Both coaches made some ridiculous calls. Alabama’s fake punt cost them only three points, and Mack Browns shuffle pass with 15 seconds left in the half cost them the game. Texas doesn’t make that mistake I think they win the ball game, but still hard to say. I think Alabama rested in the third, maybe thinking they’d already won, and not expecting Garrett Gilbert to get his legs so quickly.

And what can you say about Gilbert? I have to really applaud the boy’s spirit, after being put into an almost possible situation, getting knocked around and making some terrible mistakes he stepped up and made a game of it. It was a brave and admirable performance on his part, and watching him battle back was a real highlight of the evening. I think if the Texas receivers had stepped up their game a little bit and held on to some balls, because I saw a lot of dropped very catchable balls, then we get a different game. I think Texas hadn’t even thought about idea of McCoy getting injured, because they didn’t seem to know what to do with Gilbert in the game, and maybe with some different play calling he could have gotten his legs a little faster. But you can’t fault Texas too much, they lost the head of their team, and that had to put them all into a bit of shock that unfortunately took the rest of the half to recover from, and by that time they were down 24-6. That’s a long row to hoe no matter how you look at it.

I don’t think Texas has anything to be ashamed of, and they don’t need to make excuses. They took a knockout blow very early in the game and then hung around until the end, putting themselves awfully close to being able to win it.

Posted by Jeff at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've been trying to catch up on some of my RSS feeds. The Rude Pundit has touched on some things in this entry that fuse with my experiences traveling to Mexico with very little ability to comprehend Spanish. All at once I'm immersed into a world that I can't understand, and doesn't understand me. I can't use my iPhone, I can't access the Internet, and the television has only three or four stations. And I find that you are forced to notice people a little bit more, even though you can't talk to them on a meaningful level. It's a good feeling, being disconnected that way, and you go looking for things to do, you go outside and enjoy the sunshine, or you watch baby goats be born. You make a decision to shovel goat crap into a trailer, then spread that goat crap on a field. You pick up hay for six hours. For the most part I find all of this liberating, and there's a certain freedom to thought and action that's addictive. The community becomes very immediate, and I see people walk up and down the street, they stop and talk to each other. They sit outside their doors and watch the world go by, talking with the passersby...

Posted by Jeff at 02:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)