Archive for December, 2007
Microsoft Launches YouTube Channel to Promote Vista, Gets Flamed
December 30th, 2007
Microsoft has launched a YouTube channel to promote Vista and Live. The only problem for them is that they’re getting flamed by users in the comments. The majority of comments on all their videos talk about Vista sucking and how Apple rules. From a PR perspective, is it better to get your promotional videos out there next to which are “user testimonials” disparaging your product and promoting your competition or doing nothing at all? Seems like a flawed strategy if you ask me.
Sphere: Related ContentIs Best Buy SIRIUS?
December 29th, 2007
How’s this for a post-Christmas sale? Best Buy is offering a $50 SIRIUS gift card for a bargain price of $55. That’s right, they’re charging $5 more than the gift card is worth. On what planet does that make sense? Keep in mind these guys are the country’s largest electronics retailers. I personally feel the company preys off of the public’s naiveté of technology and consumer electronics. The company has had a miserable year PR wise within the technology community. Some highlights include:
- Geek Squad Stealing Customer’s Porn
- Lawsuit Alleging that in In Store Kiosks Show Different Pricing Than the Best Buy Site
- Complete Cluelessness about HD
- Open Box Items Costing More Than New Items
- …and who knows about countless others
Gift card story via Consumerist.com.
Sphere: Related ContentGetting MySQL Running in Leopard
December 25th, 2007
I upgraded to Leopard about a month ago and knew I’d have issues starting MySQL (which I installed in Tiger) from previous experiences getting it to start at work. The MySQL starter in the System Preferences in Leopard silently fails and won’t start MySQL. Following the instructions provided on the TomatoCheese blog, I was able to get everything running by doing the following (I didn’t archive Tiger, I simply upgraded to Leopard):
- Copied the MySQL launchd configuration file provided by TomatoCheese blog to /Library/LaunchDaemons (that’s the root library, not your user library).
- Made sure the owner of MySQL was “mysql”:
sudo chown -R mysql /usr/local/mysql. - Started mysql using the command:
sudo launchctl load /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.mysql.mysqld.plist. - I then created a start and stop application using the method described in the comments by opening Script Editor and creating a start application (I changed the code slightly since the provided code didn’t seem to work):
do shell script "sudo launchctl load /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.mysql.mysqld.plist" with administrator privileges(use “unload” for the stop version).
MySQL appears to be aware of the problem but who knows when it will be fixed.
Sphere: Related ContentUsing the Blackberry 8800 as a Modem on my Mac
December 25th, 2007
I finally got around to tethering my Blackberry 8800 to my Mac (on Leopard using AT&T). I’ve had the 8800 for awhile now but for some reason, never got around to actually pairing it so I could use the Internet while traveling through the bluetooth connection. The process was fairly painless after I figured out how to actually connect to the phone. I think Apple may have changed the process slightly in Leopard since the instructions I’ve come across have differed a little from what I actually had to do. The steps I took were basically as follows:
- Pair the Mac with the phone (make sure the Blackberry is discoverable by going to Settings > Bluetooth > Options and remember to make it not discoverable once you’re done).
- Copy the script located at Fibble.org to /Library/Modem Scripts (that’s your Mac’s root library, not your user library).
- Open System Preferences > Network and select Bluetooth and copy the settings from my screenshot (the password is “CINGULAR1″).
- Hit “Connect” and you should be done.
The connection speed seems decent (like an old dial-up modem) and should be fast enough for checking email and news while I’m on the road.
If you need help, check out this thread at fibble.org.
Sphere: Related ContentChristmas Lights Roundup
December 25th, 2007
When Carson Williams hooked up Light-O-Rama lighting controllers to his house in 2005 and set them to music from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, he started a Christmas light craze that continues to this day. Miller even used his video for a beer commercial. This year, it seems like more and more people have followed Carson’s lead and have gone all out on synchronized lighting and holiday music. Below are some of my favorites. I wonder if next year we’ll start seeing more products that actually target this market since an increasing number of people seem to want to put on a show. In the meantime, Carson has turned his fame into a business where he helps others hook up their holiday lights.
- Lindsay Lights - This family has more than 70,000 LEDs hooked up and synchronized to two songs. He offers a live stream of the house with the music track and an FM signal for people driving by. If you’re reading this after he takes the lights down or you want to find out more about his setup, you can visit his site at lindsaylights.com.
- Funny-blog.com - Funny-blog.com has three videos from an unknown (at least to me) person’s house. These are probably the best sequences and music that I’ve seen this holiday season.
- RV Edition - This man decked up his RV this year.
If you don’t get your fix from those three samples, check out Light-O-Rama’s 2006 customer videos.
Happy Holidays!
Sphere: Related ContentThe Beeb Tells Time Old School Style
December 19th, 2007
The BBC recently debuted a new design of their site (in beta form of course) and curiously, they have an analog (or is it analogue for them?) clock at the top right of their page. Why on earth would you put an analog clock on your site? Since where have you been at a computer that didn’t have a clock built into the OS and why analog? Really bizarre if you ask me.
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