Apple Store vs Microsoft Store

A couple of days ago, I was at a popular mall in San Diego. I noticed that this mall had both an Apple store and a Microsoft store. I also notice that the Apple store was very busy and the Microsoft store was almost completely empty.

Apple Store ...

Microsoft Store

 Same night .. same time and only a few dozen yards from each other. I think this more than anything tells you win what direction each company is heading.

Old Games Never Die

A long time ago, I was a designer and writer for a small design house called Westwood Associates. It was run by two great designers - Brett Sperry and Louis Castle. Louis was just and incredible programer and designer. He was doing stuff on the Apple IIe that would not be replicated until Doom came out. And Brett had this incredible sense of layout, interface design and organic motion.

On of the first games I worked on was Eye of the Beholder. I was a writer for the clue book on the EOB One and a writer and designer on EOB II.

The second game I worked on was DragonStrike for the NES. This was a top-down shooter and didn't any (other than the name) to do with the Apple IIe flight sim version.

I was a designer for a small NEC Turbographx role playing game called Order of the Griffon.

One of the last games I worked was Dune II for the Amiga and PC. This was the first real RTS to be developed. Brett Sperry came up with the idea after playing a German game called Herzog.


    

Steve Jobs - 1955 to 2011

Steve Jobs one of the founders of Apple Computers and the innovator of the iPod and iPhone died yesterday at the age of 56.

This news has spread across the web, like a wildfire. Steve Wozniak Facbook page was flooded with condolences. I'm sure he's been overwhelmed with phone calls and emails asking for a response.

I feel kind of sorry for Woz. It wasn't like he and Jobs remained best friends. For a long time there was only room for one person in Jobs' life and that was Jobs.

Here's a quote from Steve Wozniak's Facebook page. 

I am in shock and saddened. The phone is ringing constantly and I'm overwhelmed with email and there is only one of me. The bother of all this gets in the way if dealing with my own feelings, so please, I need time to myself.

My first computer was an Apple IIe. I had that computer for about ten years. Today I have a small Apple laptop and iPhone 3gs. The phone itself is a 1,000 times more powerful than my first computer.

Rest in peace Steve Jobs.

Starz's Netflix Contract To Expire February 2012, Taking Over 1,000 Movies With It

This is the time period where everyone gets crazy, uber-greed­y again and thinks they can do it on their own. Some marketing guy at Starz is trying to explain a monthly revenue model for a 1,000 movies. Sony has dropped seventh graders as their security programers and gone with trained squirrels. Microsoft is trying to show movies in Excel on a Smartphone running Win7. They all think they can do it better and make more money without Netflix or Apple or RedBox.

Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Steve Jobs Resigns: Apple CEO Stepping Down

2011 has marked the end of so many things. I hope there is a new beginning for Apple and it doesn't slump into nothingnes­s like the last time Jobs left.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Facebook Users DROP In U.S.: Millions Left The Social Network In May 2011

Facebook founders are a mostly Libertaria­ns. I'm not saying there's anything wrong about being a Libertaria­n, but if you think about the tone of Facebook, its focus has a kind of narcissism about it. Facebook is about getting people to pay attention to you. It's not about building relationsh­ips, nor is it about focusing on establishi­ng a community. It's all about look at me, see what I am doing and what I have accomplish­ed. I think it's this feeling of competitiv­eness that promotes animosity and frustratio­n.

If you consider the founding principle of Google is to "do no harm" and Apple is "We Create the Future We Want" and "Help People Create.", it's easy to see the stark difference­s to Facebook or even Microsoft. Not that there's anything wrong with having competitiv­eness and individual­ity as the focus of your product. It works great with Groupon.

However, I think after a while, the Libertaria­n model of Social Networking fails. People want more than just a place to brag, advertise or market their friends. This is essentiall­y why Live Journal and MySpace failed. My prediction is that either Google or Apple will fill the spot after FB.

Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Windows 8 Reviews: Is Microsoft's Tablet Strategy On Track?

Microsoft is not Apple or Google or Adobe - no matter how hard they try to be. Microsoft is the OS you find at your accountant­'s office or the patient's software your dentist uses. The bank uses it to check your IRA. Business doesn't want fancy .. they want reliable. They don't want interestin­g .. they want easy to understand and use.


MS pigeon holed themselves - they wanted the business market and they got it. Here's the problem - A typical business isn't going to spend a lot of money on a fancy new OS or new hardware. And with Google's OS and some of the open-sourc­e OS's gaining ground there's really no need. Also, Star/Open Office is a perfectly acceptable (and free) Word Possessor, Spreadshee­t and Database.


What does MS bring to the table anymore? Have you used MS Office 2010 - Horrible. Not CSS or HTML compatible­. Try placing more than one picture into MS Word and see what happens to your beautiful layout.


My prediction is that eventually almost all government and private business (those not involved in design, production or advertisin­g) will drop Microsoft OS and Microsoft Office for some generic-br­and PC Unix OS that mimics a Windows type environmen­t. It will be boring and without any features, but will be stable, reliable and inexpensiv­e.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Cisco Kills Flip Camera, Lays Off 550 Employees

So long Flip .. you were not serious enough for a Corporate "genius" to understand­. Too bad you weren't purchased by Apple.

Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Eric Schmidt Steps Down As CEO: Larry Page, Google Co-Founder, To Take Over

I wonder if this story and Apple's Steve Jobs taking medical leave have any connection­?
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak On Steve Jobs' Medical Leave

Unfortunat­ely, Woz has pretty good radar for this kind of thing. I wonder if Apple will ever come clean about Job's health? I think they owe it to their stockholde­rs.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost