Thursday, September 28, 2006

Two words: Yeah Right!


I stumbled upon this article the other day and couldn't help but chuckle to myself a little. If I had a nickle for ever chump that came along with ill-produced 'facts' predicting Apple's doom, well, I wouldn't have to be doing this homework assignment right now 'cause I'd be rich. Why is it that when something becomes so big, triumphs all odds, and shatters all sales records ever to come out of the industry; people have to get up on their soapbox predicting imminent defeat?

With over 80% of the portable MP3 player market share, Apple's iPod isn't going to be 'losing its cool' anytime soon.

The article lists history of outdated portable music players including the Sony Walkman. We all know why the Walkman went the way of the recycle bin, because it played CASSETTE TAPES! So unless this genius thinks MP3 media is going to be replaced by some new miracle compressed audio format, other than AAC, then his basis for the entire article is pretty much unfounded.

The author writes, "Apple's signature pocket device with white earphones may simply have become too common to be cool." That's the worst logic I've ever heard in my life. The very reason the iPod is as commonplace as it is today is partially because of its cool factor.

He predicts sales falling at an unprecedented rate. Sure they were falling, it had been nearly six months since Apple had updated the iPod product line. This is a simple business model that elementary school students should be able to understand... How this guy is writing a news article with such frail supporting information is beyond me.

Monday, September 25, 2006

Newspapers... why?


When asked to post about online versus print news, I was actually pretty interested to complete the assignment. I've always looked down on newspapers. They're large, bulky, and cumbersome... not to mention the fact that your hands are covered with ink when you're finished with 'em. How old fashioned can you get? And another thing: why does it seem like whenever I pick up a newspaper and start reading headlines, I'm not learning anything NEW!? It seems to me that everything I'm reading happened yesterday.

So needless to say, I entered into this assignment with a somewhat biased viewpoint.

As you've probably guessed by now, I don't have a newspaper subscription, so I decided to bring some change with me to school and pick up the day's edition of the San Jose Mercury News. I cruised over to the nearest newspaper stand, pumped in my twenty-five cent-ers, grabbed a copy and was on my way. Seemed harmless enough... I was actually quite satisfied with the experience. Until I took a few steps to a close-by park bench and actually started to dive into the thing. All hell broke loose as I opened up the paper and advertisements, entertainment guides, and a million other little leaflets began dumping all over the ground and blowing away with the wind. And you thought pop up ads were annoying... As I scrambled to gather up all my little runaways, I eyed a trash can a few steps away. I turned immediately and tossed my new papery friends into the giant circular file. Okay, back to today's news. One thing I actually did like about the paper was the layout of the front page. It was very easy to see what was most important today (according to the editors), and you could tell what was in the rest of the paper, at a glance, by scanning down the sidebar on the left hand side. However, finding the story within the paper was a completely different task. Folding, unfolding, flipping over, setting aside, and getting pretty close to giving up were just a few things that came along with 'reading the news.' After about twenty minutes of this, I really did feel like I read a few good stories. But there was plenty of information I came across that I already knew: sports scores, weather forecasts, stock reports, and even some of the front page stories.

Well, I decided I was done with that for a while; so I stuffed my newspaper, with my ink-laden hands, inside my backpack and was on my way. Mission: accomplished.

A few hours later, after I had finished my day at school, it was time to go the online way. I pulled my nice compact little iBook out and logged on. Within seconds, I was on the Mercury's website. In order to view some complete stories they asked me to log-in, and after I did so I was on my way. It was clean, concise, up to date, and ink free! Could it get any better? Within no time at all I noticed the first difference. Remember those main headlines I read just that morning in the newspaper? Well now, only a few hours later on the website, they were bumped down to give room to NEWER, more important happenings. Meanwhile, that same newspaper was being purchased all over town as 'news!' I felt sorry for the people who might have just then, at that moment, been pumping in their quarters to a newspaper stand for outdated information.

The website was much easier to navigate than the giant newspaper. With only a click here or a click there, I was reading stories that I wanted in seconds. I didn't have to sort through a bunch of articles side by side. I didn't have to pull open and unfold a bunch of pages. I clicked, I read, and I was informed. No fuss. No muss. Just 100% news absorption.

Although the two experiences were drastically different, there were a couple similarities to note as well. First of all, the front page of the website was actually laid out quite similar to the newspaper. Main stories and large headlines were in the middle with a large typeface, and the sidebar on the left with different sections was there too. Instead of having to turn pages though, you just had to click anything in that sidebar and your were taken to your page, instantly. The online version contained ads as well. However, they didn't jump out of the website and scatter all over the ground sending you in a mad anti-littering dash. They stayed neat and tidy somewhere on each page. They left you alone as long as you didn't bother them. And that's the way we liked it.

Overall, there were two main differences I noticed between the two forms of media. First was user friendliness. There was just no comparison with how easy and painless the website was to navigate, read, and view. The second was timeliness. Sure some of the stuff in the newspaper was 'new to me,' but who are we kidding... none of the information was actually 'new.'

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

What if the Internet were a real place?

The other day I was relaxing in front of the television enjoying an extremely humorous episode of Chappelle's Show. Now, if you've ever seen the show before you know firsthand that Dave Chappelle brings an element of truth into each of his sketches, shedding comedic light on all sorts of topics. From Lil' John to a blind African-American white supremacist, there really is no limit as to how far this show will go. This particular sketch stood out to me because it was about something most of us deal with nearly every day: the Internet. Most businesses today would barely stay alive without it. Most students use it all the time, whether it be for homework, entertainment, or staying in touch with friends. However, sometimes there's a lot of scum we have to sort through before we can actually get what we need. Sure it's annoying, but it's there... and there's nothing we can do about it. Right? Well, what if the Internet were a real place, and not just something we could close with the click of a button? Would we stick around as long as we do? Would we drudge through miles of crap to get our information? I think it wouldn't be tolerated as much as it is today. We'd definitely see many more guidelines and regulations, and would probably not have nearly the amount of information at our fingertips as we do now. But would it be worth it? You be the judge...

Chappelle's Show
If the Internet Was a Real Place
www.comedycentral.com
Buy Chappelle's Show DVDsBlack ComedyTrue Hollywood Story

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Propoganda in Society


It may be much more often than we realize that we come in contact with some type of propaganda. It is described by Wikipedia as, "a specific type of message presentation directly aimed at influencing the opinions or behavior of people, rather than impartially providing information." When I think of propaganda, one thing in particular jumps out in my mind: Political Ad Campaigns. With mud slinging so blatant you can almost taste it, these TV, radio, or print ads are the lowest of the low, in my opinion. With virtually zero neutrality and only one viewpoint, these ads are definitely NOT aimed at helping the voter make an informed and non-bias vote specifically based on the issues. They're all about "who did this," and "who did that." After a certain point, I just feel like NONE of the candidates are good enough for the job. With accusations of "Flip-Flopping" on the issues, low attendance records, or even some deep dark secret in their past, there really is no limit as to how low these ads will go.

As a voter myself, I know that when I make a decision I like to know what the candidate stands for. What are their beliefs, where do they stand on the issues, and what are their plans while in office? I could care less about who can sling the most mud at an opposing official. If anything, I would NOT vote for someone just because of their inability to stick with this issues. A good old fashioned debate is what I'd like to see.

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

From Start to Finish


Books to me, and the memories they spark, will stay with me for the rest of my life. Although I don't read as much as I'd like to these days, whenever I find the time to actually sit down and start reading I am reminded of why reading makes me feel the way it does. Something about it enlightens you, challenges you, and touches your heart. It can make you happy, sad, angry, frustrated, confused, or simply comforted. I'll never forget the first book I read from start to finish: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I had never found so many thoughts and ideas flying throughout my mind and soul during the course of that reading than I had throughout my entire life. My mind was instantly taken away from the world I was in and placed right inside the mind of Huck Finn. I was mesmerized literally after the first five minutes. I couldn't explain the feeling it gave me, it was something I never knew existed. It wasn't like a movie, it wasn't like listening to music, and it definitely wasn't like watching TV. "It's only words on paper," I said to myself. How could something so dull and lifeless have so much intellectual flavor. I was surprised, in the best way possible. I'll never forget, I was so enriched in this book that I had turned my room into a giant fort with pillows and blankets everywhere... I was Huck Finn and I was the one embarking on all the adventures. In my opinion, no other form of media can do that. Sure we'll pass books down to our young ones and relatives, but that's not what is important. What's important is that we'll be giving them something that will feed their mind and soul in ways that an afternoon in front of the TV set could never even dream of accomplishing.

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

That ol' ball and chain...

Without the record companies, many musicians would be left without the big advertising dollars that come along with those record contracts. But what about the bright side: freedom to do what you want. Along with those big dollars, record companies also initiate a lot of control into the creative aspects of a band. The sound, the image, the attitude,; in short... the things that make a band a band.
Without a record company dragging me down, what would I do to get my music to my fans? How would I make the money to keep on keepin' on? Well, the answer to me seems quite simple: to the fans! As a musician, you have to be willing to travel to where the interest is. Back in the Jazz days when American music was making it's burst into the popular scene, musicians would go on "tour," as it were, to make a name for themselves. Nicknamed the "Chitland Circuit," artists would make stops in every little town they could and play gigs. Back then there was no such thing as record companies like we know them today, so people had to just get out there and make their stuff known.

Without a record company today. We would see things much similar now as they did then. We'd see a larger variety of music, we'd see more hardworking artists, we'd see passion in music, we'd see more art, and less of an industry. Technology these days allows even the smallest of bands to record their own stuff with decent sound. Many beginning artists sell their music for cheap or even give it away for free to create a buzz. The larger the band gets, the more people would be willing to pay for these CDs or MP3s at live shows or events.

So in the end, although we'd see much less grandiose shows and pristine music recordings, we would see and hear much more music from the hands of the artists... and that's what music was meant for in the first place, right?

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

It depends on what the meaning of the words 'is' is...

We've all had that debate. You know, the one that never ends in any type of solution. Let's just call it "To steal, or not to steal." "But wait now", you might say, "who says it's stealing in the first place?" Well believe it or not, downloading just one song off any Peer to Peer application is literally by law considered stealing. Ripping one song off of a friends CD is by law considered stealing. People have been charged, and convicted of "stealing music."



Long gone are the days when Napster was originated. Every song you could even think of... even if you had never owned the CD in your life... it was yours for the taking... free of charge. Gone were the days of having to buy a whole CD for that one single you loved... gone were the days where you couldn't preview before you buy. Right? Wrong.

Within only a short time, Napster was taken to trial and found guilty of copyright infringement by record companies. Napster was shut down almost immediately following. The bandwagon of "music for free" advocates were livid. "You mean I actually have to PAY for my music again?"

Well in a sense, they never were 'allowed' by any law to download artists' material free of charge. It's always been exactly what it is now: stealing.

So where is Napster now? Are there legal alternatives to 'stealing?' And most importantly, what can I do if I still feel like stealing? Because let's be honest... sometimes a song really just isn't worth paying for right?

Well Napster is back (owned by software company Roxio), and believe it or not, bigger than ever. With a two million song catalog and over 500,000 paying subscribers... it definitely is a player in the online music scene. For $14.95 a month, you can download an unlimited amount of those 2,000,000 songs and have access to them all offline. There is a very large 'but,' however. The very second you stop paying that monthly fee... POOF! Your entire music library you so diligently downloaded is now no longer yours.

Many critics believe that this is what makes other music stores so much more appealing. No subscription service, download what you want, and OWN it forever. Some would rather keep stealing with programs like LimeWire, Kazaa, and the like.

Although the saga is far from over, many believe Napster is still far from the top and has quite a lot of catching up to do before it's considered a threat to other music stores like Apple Computer's iTunes.

Friday, September 01, 2006

Advertising Age - The Emmys

I recently finished reading Simon Dumenco's humorous account of various Emmy campaign mailings. In short, he described these mailings as desperate, uninformative, and sometimes just plain tacky. I couldn't agree with him more. The tactics some campaigners took reminded me of politicians, only worse - a lot worse. At least politicians tend to include some type of information about WHY they think you should vote for them. These Emmy campaigns included cheesy packaging, cliché notes, and lots of free stuff. The Emmys, in my opinion, should be awarded to those with the best acting performance, not to the one who simply can mail out the most goodies to the voters.

The point Dumenco made in the article, however, provided a great explanation. Award shows in general, let alone the Emmys, are beginning to lose popularity amongst viewers. The scheduling of the awards show, according to experts, couldn't have been made at a worse time. So although campaigners were reduced to near tele-marketer status, one may still be able to sympathize with the challenges associated with the widespread lack of interest.