Perhaps you should actually research US plans before you criticize. I use T-Mobile, and purchased an unlocked Note 2. They sent me a sim card for free. I pay them 50 a month for unlimited talk and text, with NO data plan (I use wifi). I could have gotten the phone on contract and paid less, or I could make make my existing plan cheaper by getting limited minutes or text. I could go prepay. I could choose a whole other company if I want. The only real difference between the US and European markets is that in the US, you can choose to let a cell phone company screw you over in exchange for a lower up front hardware price. Sounds pretty free to me.
There was a story just a few months ago about iOS apps doing the exact same thing. There was even a lawsuit filed at the beginning of 2011. I think people put way too much stock in the iOS approval process.
The smaller carriers just buy their capacity from the larger carriers. Boost mobile doesn't actually have any towers, so they buy space from Sprint (I think). So it isn't really as competitive as it sounds.
So were they prioritizing design and engineering when they released the iphone without several pieces of basic functionality like: folders, copy/paste, changing backgrounds, OTA updates, etc? Granted, they fixed it later, but it shows that Apple has come to prioritize design over functionality. Don't kid yourself.
It's not that they won't or can't learn anything new, it's that learning a new language takes time. That's time that could be spent coding and making money.
That isn't a problem or a bug, gmail was designed that way. I use that particular feature for filtering mail. I just put the dot in a different place depending on who I am providing the email address to. You can then set up filters based on the incoming mail address. I think its pretty handy.
Will this box somehow record video data as well? Lots of accidents are caused by people running stop lights/signs. Better record the inside of the car too just to be sure the driver wasn't texting or anything. While they are at it, they should probably record audio data as well. Seriously though, where does it end?
With the exception of software, everything you are citing came about due to consumer demand. Most people don't want a stick shift. Most laymen feel that if there fridge/washer/drier/etc. is connected to the internet, it will make their lives more efficient. It's not as if the industry doesn't spend millions on market research and sales pattern analysis. The industries, no matter which one, will sell consumers what they want (or at least what a consumer thinks they want). They determine this either through market research or through actual sales. The same doesn't always apply to software because "average people" don't really understand software all that well. Even if something comes with a feature you don't like "standard", you are always welcome to use something else. You can buy a car with a manual transmission, you can buy appliances that aren't internet connected, and you don't have to use Adobe products to read PDFs.
It's less about the people and more about Congress being owned by corporations. They would never do anything to upset their overlords, less they risk not getting enough "donations" to win the next election. This is the same reason the T-Mobile sale will go through. Even though it's not good for the consumer, AT&T has donated ALOT of money over the past few years. I'm sure someone will scratch their backs.
Companies patent the painfully obvious (and lots of prior art) all the time. Apple has a patent on multi-touch, so I don't really see much of a difference. I will agree that the system is broken. Patents like these should have never been allowed in the first place, but if you are going to allow large companies to get away with it, then everyone should get away with it.
Re-usable doesn't always mean less waste. You need to compare how much material, energy, and effort is used in every step to make an apt comparison. Who is to say that washing a dirty cloth diaper is less wasteful than using a disposable diaper? I'm not saying one way or the other, but it's something to consider.
The government doesn't have to regulate this. If there is a demand for non-smoking pubs, they will exist. That is the beauty of the free market. Before indoor smoking was banned in my state, there were many restaurants that were entirely non-smoking. It should be up to the establishment to decide if they want to allow smoking or not.
I feel that Apple's real secret weapon is their marketing. Apple is very good at making their products appear cool, and perception means more than reality to your standard, non-techie user. A laymen friend of mine told me the other day that he wants an iPad. When I asked him why, his answer was: "because it's cool". I questioned him further. He said he could use it to watch movies at work. That was the best reason he could come up with. It would be easy to dismiss if I hadn't heard this "it's cool" reasoning over and over again. A lot of people want Apple, but most of them don't even know WHY they want it. Good marketing isn't easy to accomplish, but Apple has done a good job of finding the right formula. That, and on the rare occasions I watch prime-time TV (It's usually when I visit my parents; That damn thing is always on.) Almost every commercial break has an Apple commercial of some kind. A combination of repetition and slick looking commercials has convinced many people that Apple has the "coolest" products, and they can be cool too, if only they had one.
No, not farms exactly, but there is a planet where brushes occur naturally. I think it's close to Squornshellous Zeta, the native planet of the mattress.
Most Android based phones offer systems that actually work too.
Also to your point, try upgrading an old iphone to the latest iOS and "report experience." A quick Google search reveals scores of complaints about speed and responsiveness. Any time you put new software on old hardware, you will probably have issues.
Not true. Apple pulled several apps from their store over the past year for harvesting data from users without their knowledge or permission. It barely registered with the mainstream media. C-net covered it though.
Slashdot Mirror
At least this time the original creator is involved. Perhaps there is hope.
A roadblock is the absolute best we can hope for at this point.
Perhaps you should actually research US plans before you criticize. I use T-Mobile, and purchased an unlocked Note 2. They sent me a sim card for free. I pay them 50 a month for unlimited talk and text, with NO data plan (I use wifi). I could have gotten the phone on contract and paid less, or I could make make my existing plan cheaper by getting limited minutes or text. I could go prepay. I could choose a whole other company if I want. The only real difference between the US and European markets is that in the US, you can choose to let a cell phone company screw you over in exchange for a lower up front hardware price. Sounds pretty free to me.
Read some of the other comments in this post. There is plenty of evidence that the welfare system is broken.
I really hope so, but not to make Obama look bad. They should obstruct his "agenda" because it is the wrong direction for the country.
I think the next wave of movies is based on board games. I know there is a Candyland and a Battleship in the works.
This, and other account lock-out issues, are good examples of why Google+ is still an invite only, BETA service. Everyone can calm down now.
Here is a link. The issue isn't android specific. I could provide a few more, but I'm sure everyone knows how to use google.
http://gigaom.com/apple/many-iphone-apps-share-your-private-data/
There was a story just a few months ago about iOS apps doing the exact same thing. There was even a lawsuit filed at the beginning of 2011. I think people put way too much stock in the iOS approval process.
The smaller carriers just buy their capacity from the larger carriers. Boost mobile doesn't actually have any towers, so they buy space from Sprint (I think). So it isn't really as competitive as it sounds.
So were they prioritizing design and engineering when they released the iphone without several pieces of basic functionality like: folders, copy/paste, changing backgrounds, OTA updates, etc? Granted, they fixed it later, but it shows that Apple has come to prioritize design over functionality. Don't kid yourself.
It's not that they won't or can't learn anything new, it's that learning a new language takes time. That's time that could be spent coding and making money.
That isn't a problem or a bug, gmail was designed that way. I use that particular feature for filtering mail. I just put the dot in a different place depending on who I am providing the email address to. You can then set up filters based on the incoming mail address. I think its pretty handy.
Will this box somehow record video data as well? Lots of accidents are caused by people running stop lights/signs. Better record the inside of the car too just to be sure the driver wasn't texting or anything. While they are at it, they should probably record audio data as well.
Seriously though, where does it end?
Ummm... /.
You are on
Most of us probably don't call support that often.
A lot of us ARE support.
With the exception of software, everything you are citing came about due to consumer demand. Most people don't want a stick shift. Most laymen feel that if there fridge/washer/drier/etc. is connected to the internet, it will make their lives more efficient. It's not as if the industry doesn't spend millions on market research and sales pattern analysis. The industries, no matter which one, will sell consumers what they want (or at least what a consumer thinks they want). They determine this either through market research or through actual sales. The same doesn't always apply to software because "average people" don't really understand software all that well.
Even if something comes with a feature you don't like "standard", you are always welcome to use something else. You can buy a car with a manual transmission, you can buy appliances that aren't internet connected, and you don't have to use Adobe products to read PDFs.
It's less about the people and more about Congress being owned by corporations. They would never do anything to upset their overlords, less they risk not getting enough "donations" to win the next election. This is the same reason the T-Mobile sale will go through. Even though it's not good for the consumer, AT&T has donated ALOT of money over the past few years. I'm sure someone will scratch their backs.
Companies patent the painfully obvious (and lots of prior art) all the time. Apple has a patent on multi-touch, so I don't really see much of a difference. I will agree that the system is broken. Patents like these should have never been allowed in the first place, but if you are going to allow large companies to get away with it, then everyone should get away with it.
Re-usable doesn't always mean less waste. You need to compare how much material, energy, and effort is used in every step to make an apt comparison. Who is to say that washing a dirty cloth diaper is less wasteful than using a disposable diaper? I'm not saying one way or the other, but it's something to consider.
The government doesn't have to regulate this. If there is a demand for non-smoking pubs, they will exist. That is the beauty of the free market. Before indoor smoking was banned in my state, there were many restaurants that were entirely non-smoking. It should be up to the establishment to decide if they want to allow smoking or not.
I feel that Apple's real secret weapon is their marketing. Apple is very good at making their products appear cool, and perception means more than reality to your standard, non-techie user. A laymen friend of mine told me the other day that he wants an iPad. When I asked him why, his answer was: "because it's cool". I questioned him further. He said he could use it to watch movies at work. That was the best reason he could come up with. It would be easy to dismiss if I hadn't heard this "it's cool" reasoning over and over again. A lot of people want Apple, but most of them don't even know WHY they want it. Good marketing isn't easy to accomplish, but Apple has done a good job of finding the right formula. That, and on the rare occasions I watch prime-time TV (It's usually when I visit my parents; That damn thing is always on.) Almost every commercial break has an Apple commercial of some kind. A combination of repetition and slick looking commercials has convinced many people that Apple has the "coolest" products, and they can be cool too, if only they had one.
No, not farms exactly, but there is a planet where brushes occur naturally. I think it's close to Squornshellous Zeta, the native planet of the mattress.
Someone should tell them that not every computer NEEDS to be attached to a network all the time.
Most Android based phones offer systems that actually work too.
Also to your point, try upgrading an old iphone to the latest iOS and "report experience." A quick Google search reveals scores of complaints about speed and responsiveness. Any time you put new software on old hardware, you will probably have issues.
Not true. Apple pulled several apps from their store over the past year for harvesting data from users without their knowledge or permission. It barely registered with the mainstream media. C-net covered it though.