Not everyone loves Apple. In fact a lot of people loathe the company for reasons both compelling and idiotic. But mention of Apple almost invariably elicits an unusually strong reaction one way or the other. This in itself explains why so much is written about Apple in the media. People who love the company will read along to bask in the glory and possibility of a new earth-shattering way to give up their money and ignore/transcend their immediate surroundings; people who hate the company will follow along so they know what to rail against, to identify that which threatens their values or worldview, and to plan ahead for a day when a more suitable, somehow less evil global corporation can provide them with a reasonable copy. In between the extremes, plenty of intelligent and rational people find other reasons to follow Apple’s every move. Educators and policy-makers, journalists and media companies, graphic/web/industrial/fashion designers, software developers, artists, authors and musicians, activists and advocates, enterprise IT managers and small business owners alike; all have something at stake because they all accept the premise that Apple is leading the way forward (not to assign a moral or prognostic value to that particular direction).
Read the rest of this entry »
I spend a lot of time reading and posting (on Twitter and elsewhere) about the politics of the Internet, particularly issues regarding online speech and the open architecture of the web. I am vocal about my positions on many “offline” political matters as well, and try to back them up with action, but there’s something about advocating for the web that feels more communal, more urgent, and maybe ultimately, more effective. I don’t mean this…
Mecha-Zuck ruthlessly semantifies your profile By now, everyone has heard about the latest round of FaceBook updates. Without a doubt, some of the changes are really cool and lots of folks will love the way that certain websites will seamlessly adapt their content to suit their tastes and preferences (based on FaceBook profile information). After all, who doesn’t want more relevance on the web? We can also expect just about every major content provider to…
I will rarely address current events on this site, but a friend of mine in PA sent me a link to a completely ridiculous story from KDKA TV News Pittsburgh, a CBS affiliate. Hit the break for the video and the full story, annotated with my first hand clarifications. If you think Fox News is the only one towing the right wing agenda, think again. Luckily, these dupes are so roundly unconcerned with journalistic standards…
