Up On the Roof…

I’ve been stranded in a snow storm due to bad tires and it was no fun. 360′s across the highway, car slipping from lane to lane. It’s something you do once and make sure you’re prepared for from that point on. So I empathize with this driver, who’s car was left on the road two days after this storm. Hopefully everyone made it out okay. I had to exit and u-turn to snap these photos. Check out the license plate in the last shot…

CANTBEL8 – click image to zoom in.

I just read Google’s blog today and was surprised to learn that an Italian court convicted some Google employees that, according to the post, had nothing to do with an uploaded video and weren’t aware of its existence, until it was taken down.

The video depicted a bullying attack and the perpetrators we’re found and charged. So, if a person uploads anything that violates privacy law in Italy, the website that hosts the uploaded video, will face charges as well.

Its a ridiculous ruling by the Italian court. Why did they stop at Google? Why not take it further? Why not the camcorder manufacturer?
the tape company?
the battery that powered the thing?
the electric company that powered the PC that uploaded the video?
the ISP that allowed it to be uploaded in the first place?
the ISP that allowed it to be downloaded for replay? etc.

Another point, if Google hadn’t provided a platform for hosting the video, there’s the possibility that the authorities would not have found out about the original crime and the criminals would have gone unpunished?

I wonder what the thought process was behind the justice’s decision? Would it have been better to sweep negative events like this under the rug? Read more about it here.

I highly recommend iTunes U (University). If you’ve never heard about it its certainly worth a look. You can find it inside the iTunes Store. iTunes U is a repository of free online multimedia courses including K-12, under grad and graduate courses, not to mention a variety of higher learning in wide range of subjects.

Tonight I stumbled upon a trove of “old” television commercials. They’re there as part of Duke University’s AdViews. The collection, many from the golden age of advertising, have been digitized from 16mm film “…for use in research, teaching and private study” according to the page description.

I didn’t count (or watch) them all, but there seems to be well over a thousand available there now. Among my favorites are 249 different toilet tissue spots by Proctor and Gamble. If you were around in the 70′s you couldn’t help but watch Mr. Whipple and all of the fuss around squeezing the Charmin. Enjoy!

When the Bill Murray movie comes on I can’t help but watch it. I watch it over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. It’s not that I Tivo or DVR it and I don’t have it on BluRay. I blame the cable channels for putting it on and trapping me.

I’m hooked on other movies too. Back to the Future was on last night. Sure enough, I watched it through to the very end, to the displeasure of everyone else at home.

Happy Groundhog Day!

During Apple’s media event today, there was discussion around the new device and who’d use it.

I can see some appeal for use in the medical field, although medical apps or device connections were not covered at all today. With a large screen, it’s better at charts, photos, graphics (x-rays) than an iPhone ever could be. See also Upcoming Apple Tablet is Generating Significant Hype — Will it affect Healthcare? on MedPage Today.

What about home use? The iPad was designed for games, iBooks, movies, etc. So, the home user is in the sweet spot of the iPad’s target user.

iPad vs Kindle. With a $499 entry level iPad, the prices are close enough to make potential Kindle purchasers consider an iPad. Current prices are $259 for the 6″ Kindle and $489 for the 9.7″ Kindle DX (a match for the iPad screen size). I think the answer pretty clear here; the iPad wins. For me its as simple as “Color” vs “Black and White” TV.

Business Users? The iPad makes a great presentation device thanks to Read Full Post