Herein you’ll find articles on a very wide variety of topics about technology in the consumer space (mostly) and items of personal interest to me. I have also participated in and created several podcasts most notably Pragmatic and Causality and all of my podcasts can be found at The Engineered Network.
The “New” iPad Doesn’t Work on 4G in Australia: Part 2
In late March I went into depth about the ACCC case against Apple and the new iPad that Apple was advertising as having a 4G capable model. I encourage readers to go back over that article before reading on.
This week Apple took their labelling changes further with their online store now calling the new iPad + 4G the iPad + Cellular. This is a global change and appears on every Apple website I checked around the world.
Clearly Apple is responding to the ACCC and the also pressure from the UK ASA (Advertising Standards Authority). The change is welcome and a step in the right direction.
Before wrapping this up I’d like to add an interesting footnote. In Australia, people don’t call mobile devices “cellular” devices: we say “Mobile Phone” NOT “Cellular Phone” like North Americans do. That’s okay though: we know what they mean…
OS Ten: No It's OS X
I’ve been pulled up on occasion on The Exastential Podcast for referring to Apples desktop OS, OS X, as literally O-S-X instead of “OS Ten”. The thing is that I learned the name of it when I was building Hackintoshes before I ever listened to an Apple keynote or ever walked into an Apple Store or ever talked to anyone else with a Mac. I simply got used to saying it O-S-X and like any accent or regional dialect it just stuck.
Naturally people that have followed the Mac since System 6, System 7, OS 8, OS 9 and now OS X it’s natural enough for them to say OS 10. Then again I didn’t see Apple calling their earlier operating systems OS VI, OS VII, OS VIII and OS IX respectively. Why introduce Roman Numerals for the 10th version? How long has it been since Rome fell apart?
I also note that Apple released Xcode for programming in OS X and they do not pronounce it Ten Code.
I therefore propose this: To anyone that complains that OS X must be called OS Ten, whenever they refer to Xcode I will correct them that it must be referred to it as Ten Code for consistency. What’s that you say? Apple weren’t consistent?!
Here’s another thing: why do people get so hung up on how technical jargon is pronounced. If you know what I’m talking about then simply nod don’t argue about how I said it. Do you ask a foreigner who speaks your language as their second language to repeat what they’ve said until they pronounce it right or do you just nod? Yeah, I thought so.
For those readers that say: “Well Apple pronounce it this way and the word came from them first so you have to say it their way” I therefore submit that all Americans must now start pronouncing Tomato correctly - oh, I mean as per the English custom. What’s that you say my dear American reader? Yeah, I thought so. For the record - I wouldn’t either…
Companies And Inspiration
Before I begin this somewhat controversial post, I’d like to say that what an individual finds inspiring is their own business. What I’m about to write is not a judgement on those who are inspired and if you have found inspiration in the “Welcome to Apple” card then please stop reading now.
I love Apple products - in general. I think the world is a better place for their existence. I however also believe that they are just another company. Companies are motivated by money and only money. No company survives without revenue and therefore companies must extract value and profit from their products and their employees.
To make money companies can make products or services and to compete with other companies they need to get the best value and performance from their employees. That comes down to motivation. Some people are motivated by money alone. Others enjoy the fringe benefits some companies offer. Others find inspiration in that what they do makes a difference. This is where the “Welcome To Apple” message comes into play.
The inspiration card you are given when you start working at Apple reads as follows:
“There’s work and there’s your life’s work. The kind of work that has your fingerprints all over it. The kind of work that you’d never compromise on. That you’d sacrifice a weekend for. You can do that kind of work at Apple. People don’t come here to play it safe. They come here to swim in the deep end. They want their work to add up to something. Something big. Something that couldn’t happen anywhere else. Welcome to Apple.”
Every tweet I’ve seen and blog post says that the vast majority of people find this inspirational. Where they see inspiration I see Human Resources (HR) spin. I see a motivational message. I see HR channelling the current popularity of the company into words to encourage working overtime. I see promises of working on big things that may or may not see the light of day. In short, I see a method of motivating employees with something intangible. It’s an example of genuine HR genius that I personally wouldn’t swallow but evidently many do.
I may be an eternal cynic because I can’t see the inspiration. Perhaps that means I’m not cut out to work at Apple. Not everyone that works at Apple would be inspired by this message and it’s okay if you’re not inspired like me and this is what actually bugs me: it’s not the message itself but peoples reaction to it - especially those NOT working there.
It has been my observation that a great many people look for inspiration in everything that Apple does. I think that people need to stop idolising Apple and everything they do and remember that they are company at the top of their game; but they are just a company.
Enjoy their products - I know I do - but never forget what they are and what they want.
Kids iMacs at Apple Stores Replaced with iPads
When I visited the Apple Store in Chermside last weekend I noticed something odd. I told my 4 year old: “Go play on the kids iMacs” whilst I tracked down the adaptor I was after. Imagine my surprise when the two tables, each with two iMacs on them had been replaced by four iPads mounted in their place on each table.
Historically my kids would rarely get a seat as one out of the four iMacs was usually locked out or off or otherwise unusable. Of the other three iMacs there was usually a children’s queue (that is to say the kids loitered in the general area waiting for a turn) and sometimes they would get a go.
Now with iPads all four on each table were in use and there were still kids waiting.
I’d say it was a smart move and a sign of the importance of tablets in our future.