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zoetmb
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  • 24 years after original iMac, there's still big demand for floppies

    zoetmbzoetmb
    Back in the day, apps were efficient and wrote small files.  Early word processor documents were only slightly larger than the number of characters in the document. 

    Overhead in today’s files is enormous.  I can’t believe anyone can accomplish anything today with a 140K floppy or 800K 3.5” drive.   

    I’ve still got some Apple ][ software and OS discs.  Many years ago, someone gave me an Apple ][c, but I couldn’t get the drive working. 

    For all the taxes we pay and for the size of the military budget, it’s absurd that they still have such old equipment and software in use.    I suppose the government is still running a lot of MS-DOS as well.  
    dewmewatto_cobra

  • Apple's features graveyard: Once heavily marketed, now gone

    zoetmbzoetmb
    sflagel said:
    This is not a long list, and some of it is a bit daft. Not supporting headphone jack and Intel chips? Why not include: not supporting CD-ROM, 30-pin connector, VGA Port? I miss Front Row the most, and Automator.
    Everyone will miss different things that they found useful to them.    I only "accept" the loss of the headphone jack because I can use a traditional headphone with a dongle (on the iPhone).   I will not use Bluetooth earbuds, both because I don't want Bluetooth passing through my brain and because I refuse to buy any product in which the batteries can't be user replaced.  Using a device in which the rechargeable batteries eventually die and can't be replaced is both a scam and bad for the environment.   (Yes, I know it's the same in the Mac, but I have no choice there.) 

    And I actually still use CD-ROM.   I run a site that contains much audio and it's useful for some of the contributors to ship CD's rather than dropbox the large files.  Also, I have a record collection of over 2000 albums which I do not want to re-buy on Apple Music (or subscribe) and CD is a useful method of transferring them over.    

    But I completely understand people who have no use for those things.   Different strokes for different folks and all that.    

    The fact remains though that when Apple chose to remove the DVD/CD drive from the Mac, it wasn't because of declining use of that technology at the time (and Apple never supported Blu-ray, which they should have).   It was simply because Ive wanted to have a thinner case.  
    muthuk_vanalingamnumenoreanbaconstang

  • Apple continuing full-court press against retail unionization efforts

    zoetmbzoetmb
    It’s really quite simple:  if Apple wants to keep the union out, rather than hype or threats, all they need to do is up the pay scale. 

    Apple is known for paying their corporate, marketing, engineering and other such workers well, but their retail workers lousy. 

    In expensive cities like NYC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Dallas and others, it’s impossible to live on less than $22 an hour, IMO.   Minimum wage in NYC is now $15/hr and a company with Apple’s profits can afford to pay substantially more.   Apple thinks nothing of spending $millions to redo a glass cube or staircase.  They need to treat their employees well. 

    If not, they’ll either face unionization or they’ll play the ugly game that Starbucks and some other chains are playing and close stores. 

    Unions are a mixed bag.  There’s positives and negatives.  I was personally in a union twice and that worked out pretty well.  But in another more creative position, when there was talk of unionizing, I probably would have voted against it had it come to that.  

    In general, if it’s a job where you have many people doing the same thing and one doesn’t have a way to stand out to get raises or be promoted, then a union can be helpful.  But if one is far better than an average employee, then a union can hold you back because it’s far more likely that raises and promotions are based on schedules and seniority and not the quality of one’s work. 
    dewmemuthuk_vanalingam

  • Disney+ to hike prices, introduce ad-supported tier in December

    zoetmbzoetmb
    This is just greed. Disney+ already generates about $11b in subscriber revenue that they don’t have to share with theaters or international distributors.  That’s far more than they ever made from theatrical.    Do they really want to match Netflix for the percentage of people who are canceling?

    In spite of owning the former 20th C Fox (although only the post-1984(?) library, there isn’t really all that much content there.  After your kids watch all the Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars films for the umpteenth time, there’s not much else. 

    I predict huge cancellation levels.  Disney’s CEO seems intent on destroying the company.  The parks are becoming an overcrowded and vastly overpriced disaster and their biggest fans are getting really pissed off. 

    williamlondonchadbagwatto_cobra

  • Apple kept Ben Stiller in the dark over 'Severance' viewership

    zoetmbzoetmb
    macgui said:
    JonyArhendts said:
    Apple is claiming privacy for a reason…
    Yes, they don't want competition to know their numbers. It's just Cook saying 'We've had the best season ever... We've sold the most [insert various Apple products here]. They give some figures during their quarterly report but lump several products or categories together with no individual breakdowns.

    It should be no surprise that nobody outside of Apple, is going to get hard numbers returned where competition is keenly felt. Apple may not be a key player in the streaming business, lacking a catalog of shows equal to Netflix or HBO. That's a good reason for keeping there inside baseball inside. Maybe they don't want their content providers thinking "I can do better at HBO" or whoever.
     
    But I think Stiller realizes that it's not really Apple kept Stiller in the dark but that Apple keeps everybody in the dark. The Ted Lasso camp probably doesn't get those numbers either, but I think they're ok with that.
    Apple doesn’t provide unit numbers anymore on their quarterly reports, but they do provide revenue numbers (not by model, but by product line) and by applying an average price to those numbers, one can reasonably calculate approximate units. 

    As for AppleTV, it is buried in “Services”, but industry estimates put them at 25 to 40 million subscribers vs. 130m for Disney+.  

    As for the info that producers get, it should be no surprise because it was probably spelled out in the production contract.   Since there’s no advertising, demographic data isn’t all that relevant.   Would Stiller change the story if he knew that it was mainly 30-somethings watching the show vs. 50-somethings?

    The show got renewed so it obviously means Apple considered the show positively.  Even Apple doesn’t really know which shows drive subs. 
    watto_cobra