spliff monkey

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spliff monkey
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  • No need for 4K display on Apple's iPhone 7 because of screen quality, expert claims

    What's the point of a 4K ~5" screen anyway? As noted, there are many ways to make a better screen than just packing more pixels in there. Is 4K on a 5" screen really a droid/ Samsung feature? While I do like my 4k TV because I sit quite close. 10 Bit RGB color makes the bigger difference. I basically "can't see" the pixels on my iPhone as it is. Not sure how "MORE PIXELS" makes a better phone anyway except maybe for some one who doesn't know any better, bragging to another friend (who also doesn't know any better) that their phone is measurably superior to another. I don't even waste my disputing it with Droid fans. They go down that road of "well, droid does x better". And I just nod my head and say of course it does. ;) 
    redraider11zroger73baconstangmike1stevehcaliwlymdoozydozenDeelronjbdragon
  • Apple proposes flat streaming music royalties for songwriters, at the expense of Spotify, YouTube

    RickeyP21 said:
    Poor Apple. "Only" making $45 million per year for playing someone else's content. However do you stay in business with your over priced laptops and $800 iPhone sales. I know, why don't you screw over music fans everywhere and force them to pay your over priced fees instead of using better products like Spotify!
    Free was never the model. Radio Stations, restaurants and bars all pay royalties. Why people like you feel entitled to free stuff is beyond me. Do you refuse to pay for newspapers and magazines because they have ads in them? Or maybe you're going to give up paying for cable because networks also make you watch ads? Or maybe you haven't noticed how ad free services come at substantial premiums or in the case of public tv are subsidized. I suppose you could use OTA TV and Radio to support your argument, but TV ads were placed at massive premiums to cover production costs (unlike radio) and radio paid far lower royalties than Apple is proposing in the hopes that it would promote the artists concerts and record sales. Two COMPLETELY different scenarios. You don't have the opportunity in either case to constantly replay and effectively own the content with OTA, whereas you do with a digital archive. I suppose Spotify could turn its app into a radio station, but then it wouldn't be Spotify as we know it and would resemble streaming radio from the late 90's. 

    With respect to apple's profits. It's actually pretty surprising that they're willing to offer the service for the little profit it actually yields. Handing over $7 for every $10 subscription is generous to both the content providers and Apple's customers especially considering the resources they have to allocate to make those streams available. Most companies would make you pay a subscription AND listen to ads. 
    doozydozenlostkiwicommand_fbadmonkcornchipredgeminipabaconstangmagman1979indyfxjony0
  • Apple silicon Mac documentation suggests third-party GPU support in danger

    KITA said:
    rob53 said:
    The A12Z Bionic is up to 8 GPU cores. The Most powerful and expensive GPUs have cores in the thousands. What would it take for Apple to create its own separate 500 core GPU SoC or maybe only a 100 core GPU with the ability to use several of them in a blade setup. There's nothing stopping Apple, other than patents, from making whatever they want to any way they want to. Look at the Mac Pro. It's a fantastic workstation. 
    The Mac Pro is not a fantastic workstation,


    Of course you don’t have to spend $14k on one. I purchased one for my studio for about $7500 including some aftermarket upgrades. I’ve owned many Macs since the time they used to be beige and the new MacPro is basically the absolute best Mac ever built. The performance is top notch (it’s not always just about benchmarks) and there are a slew of other reasons you failed to even include in your “analysis” like noise level(which is basically 0 ), top notch components, build quality and materials, overall design (the slip cover chassis is brilliant), expansion options and aesthetics.
    Rayz2016KidGlovesjdb8167watto_cobra
  • Didi Chuxing president says Apple deal closed in 22 days, talks in progress in several areas

    Having a little firsthand knowledge of the depths of corruption at work in China, I may be one of the few here who views this entanglement with a politically-connected Chinese business with skepticism. In my experience, foreign money invested in unaccountable Chinese companies tends to suddenly vanish with little recourse. I see Tim's reliance on China for Apple growth as riskier and riskier. What happens when Trump becomes president and opens up a full on trade war with China? The odds that Apple will be punished increase severely.
    When Trump is president and a trade war. Seriously? EVERY company in the USA will be dependent on the rest of the world for further growth. That's just the way it is. North America is a saturated market. Let's not make a mountain out of a mole here. Apple bought a 5% stake in a foreign company. Big deal. Other than it being a sign (similar to investment in India) that Apple has made in roads in a very protective economy. this isn't a huge risk for Apple. America will never enter a trade war with China. It would be ultimate disaster for economies world wide. And no one (not even his own advisors) would recommend it. Trump talks out of the side of his mouth to win votes. 99% of his promises cannot be met. He's an ignorant bafoon who throws comments into the wild to see how people react, retracts them when people call him out or continues to spoon feed drivel to the uneducated reactionary masses.
    cintospaxmancalibattiato1981rob53bb-15singularityfastasleepdoozydozenmoreck
  • Who will deliver useful AI to the masses?

    AI could be a useful tool for certain tasks, but trying to cram it into literally everything has turned the otherwise useful tool into hyper advanced spyware.  Overpromising capabilities and features has lead to disappointment for corporate users who rely on accurate information and for the general user, we are now awash in AI slop. AI creativity is dull, boring, predictable and unworthy of interest accept by the dullest and most boring people who lack imagination and standards. 

    Apple has the right idea all along about how to approach "AI", as a tool that can streamline tedious tasks, but everyone else has been milked dry of their billions by snake oil salesmen promising the replace humans and human creativity and they're just beginning to see that they will only be met with disappointment. 
    tmaywilliamlondonDAalsethdanoxBart Ywatto_cobra
  • Apple launches new Apple TV 4K with A12 Bionic CPU, redesigned Siri remote

    neillwd said:
    Hate the remote.
    Came here to say exactly that. It reminds me of the old remotes before they used a touch pad. I dread “click, click, clicking” around m the screen rather than just a swipe which can get me to the other side of the screen in a single gesture. 

    Thought I was the only one who liked and understood what the touch remote accomplished. 
    williamlondonStrangeDaysionicleBeatswatto_cobra
  • Apple's 'Mother Nature' sketch was a complete dud, and didn't belong in the iPhone 15 even...

    Corporate/ keynote writers are not and never have been part of the WGA William. Get your facts straight before you spout off nonsense.
    williamhronnFileMakerFeller9secondkox2
  • Despite what you may have heard, don't write off the iMac just yet

    The imac has always been an entry level computer for starters. It’s a college computer, a kids computer and office computer. 

    Only briefly did Apple toy with the idea of maxing it out for pros and enthusiasts and it turns out most preferred a headless mac ALA mac mini or mac studio because no pro or prosumer would want to replace their monitor every time they upgrade their computer. 

    Anyone complaining about the cables is being ridiculous. Between the mac studio or mac mini and the monitor there is ONE cable and the monitor serves as your hub. You can hide the box easily under the desk or on a shelf. 

    Why would you complain about a 1/8” audio jack on the imac or random USB cables when you have thunderbolt? Literally every accessory at this point is available with thunderbolt or USB-C. Upgrade. You’ll be thankful you did. 
    williamlondonmacxpresswatto_cobra
  • Adobe fixes Premiere Pro bug that blew out some MacBook Pro speakers

    I say this is primarily Apples fault.

    The amplifier circuitry that drives the speakers should have had some sort of protection built in to limit the maximum amount of power that could be sent to the speakers.
    From a liability standpoint this is my so easy. While without a doubt a good idea, nothing requires such a protection mechanism from Apple. Therefore, you can argue that the damage it is the consequence of a defect of Adobe’s software which makes them liable. 
    However, I’m not sure what the fine print of the EULA says. I’d be surprised if they wouldn’t have some CYA passages in it to this effect. 
    Undoubtly, as a token of excellent customer service, Apple and Adobe might - separately or jointly - nite the bullet and comepansate affected users. 

    It is standard practice in the electronics industry to put protections in place for any component that could possibly be damaged by some unforeseen issue.

    We have current and temperature protections for lithium batteries/charging circuits, current limiting for LED lights, thermal throttling for processors and so on. Apple is usually on top of things, but this time they made a mistake.
    While I’m aware about the standard practice, I don’t k ow regarding this specific case. What’s state of the art regarding speakers? Do others manufacturers protect them against overload? Or can you kill any speaker with the “right” input?
    You can kill any speaker with the incorrect input. Too much power, impedance mismatch etc. can both lead to blown speakers. I have personally never seen a speaker than is built to prevent such a thing on the input side. I have seen “circuit breakers “ that trip but only for the power supply if they are powered speakers. The wrong audio input will still destroy even the best studio speaker and its common that engineers who listen to their tracks at high volume eventually blow out their speakers. So you don’t even have to go that wild to create a failure and it totally effects too end speakers. 
    dysamoriawonkothesane
  • Big Tech-funded TV facing a 'schism' in production styles claims Jon Stewart

    entropys said:
    Writing by committee is no doubt a key factor in the malaise plaguing Hollywood these days. That and risk averse studios doing remakes, sequels and having series run way beyond their use by date.  
    Tell me you’re an ill informed idiot without saying you’re an ill informed idiot. 

    You don’t work in TV or Movies, but you have all of the answers huh? That’s an astounding ego you have there. 
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