Tech Post #10

Snoozing And Losing: A Blockbuster Failure

This article is about the collapse of Blockbuster. In the beginning, Blockbuster had overtaken the local movie stores; "Goliath didn’t just beat David, he obliterated him simply by showing up — and then danced on his grave while entertaining his children." They thought they were unbeatable; however, Dish Network is now "buying Blockbuster’s assets out of bankruptcy court for around $230 million — in cash." Blockbuster's fall should be no surprise according to the article because they had plenty of time to combat Netflix. Netflix slowly grew and grew with not even a glance from Blockbuster until it was too late. "It wasn’t until 2004 — six years after Netflix launched — that Blockbuster realized it needed to enter the online DVD rental-by-mail space. By then, Netflix was already turning a profit and Redbox had just launched. Blockbuster was already dead — they just didn’t realize it yet." Blockbuster's fall from its reign is "such a great example of a company resting on its laurels and getting blindsided. But it’s hardly even fair to call it a “blindsiding”. Blockbuster probably could have done dozens of things to counter the rise of Netflix in that initial six year space." This goes to show that other big guns like Microsoft, Google, Apple, etc. may seem unbeatable but in reality they aren't if they don't keep up with the changing times. 
I chose this article because I grew up going to Blockbuster, and I thought it was interesting to see why Blockbuster fell so hard. I feel as if this will effect culture today it is showing how other big companies need to keep changing and evolving in order to stay on top.
Here is the link to the full article: http://techcrunch.com/2011/04/06/make-it-a-blockbuster-night/

Tech Post #9

South Park Scares You Into Reading Apple’s Terms And Conditions

I found this article on Tech Crunch, and it was about a recent episode of South Park. This article talks about how when you download a new version of iTunes, you have to agree to the terms of service. Most people just scroll to the bottom and click agree because who wants to read a document that is at least 50 pages in length. In the South Park episode, it shows an extreme (non-plausible) situation that occurred when one of the characters didn't read the terms of service. Although the show was just poking fun at this topic, I feel as if it made a good point. I know that there are many people who don't read the terms of service that pop up when you are trying to download something because I am one of those people. I know the situation in the show couldn't occur but who knows what you could be agreeing to when we don't read the terms of service before we agree to them. I feel as if this could effect today's society because even though the show was poking fun at the outrageous lengths of terms of service documents and what could happen when you don't read them, it still proved a good point and could make people think twice about clicking agree without reading what they are agreeing to. I also feel that this show and other shows could raise awareness, in a sense, about changes we need to make in our lives that revolve around technology.
Here is the link for the whole article: http://techcrunch.com/2011/04/28/south-park-scares-you-into-reading-apples-terms-and-conditions/

Tech Post #8

First Impressions Of The Nintendo 3DS: 3D Done Right
I found this article on TechCrunch, and its about the new Nintendo 3DS. The article says this new DS has a lot of potential because the various new features it has. One of the new features is the “suspend mode” for games that allows you to drop into Nintendo’s communication and photo interface to take pictures and send notes." The communication and photo interface features are similar to those of the iPod touch. Many people wondered what the quality of the 3D was going to be like, and it seems that "the 3D play is immersive and exciting. It is, in short, revolutionary." One of the other features is "a pedometer as well as a unique StreetPass system that lets the 3DS interact with other consoles as you walk by them in the street." You can also take 3D photos with the dual front camera thats on the DS. However, there are some concerns such as the "3D may be too much for little eyes" and it may cause eye-strain.
I chose this article because I think the new 3D technology is interesting, and I grew up playing on Nintendo's GameBoy. This new Nintendo 3DS is just another advance in the 3D world, and it is creating competition for the iPod touch. With the invention of this new DS, "Nintendo has changed the landscape when it comes to handheld gaming."

Here is the link to the full article: http://www.crunchgear.com/2011/03/17/first-impressions-of-the-nintendo-3ds-3d-done-right/

Tech Post #7

Path Fully Embraces Facebook And Busts Out Lenses For Pictures And Video — Including Premium Ones

I found this article on TechCrunch, and it's about the upates to the iPhone app calle Path. Path is a photo sharing app that before these updates only allowed you to share your photos with your Path friends. The Path update included: "Facebook sharing, lenses, an activity stream, and a new friend suggestion tool." The main update was the ability of Facebook sharing which "allows you to publish moments to your Facebook Wall, the next logical step" after sharing the photos with your Path friends.  When you Facebook share, Path will automatically set the privacy setting so that only your Path friends can see the album, but you can switch the privacy setting so that all your friends can see the album. This update is very key because it "extends the reach of Path by leveraging the largest social network on the planet, which Path co-founder Dave Morin happened to work at for several years. “I’ve been calling it ‘harmony’ with Facebook,” Morin says of the new options." The other main update is the lenses which will work with both pictures and videos. "To begin with, Path will offer four lenses for free: Pro, Ansel, Instant, and Diana. And three for $0.99: Old Time, The Grid, and 8-Bit. Morin says it’s more of an experiment at this point and less of an actual business model. “But, we see a long term revenue opportunity in premium expression through virtual goods like this,” he says." Path also wants to continue to make new lenses for people to choose from.

I pick this article people I love photography, and I think this is a really awesome iPhone app. I love how you can pick different lenses to shoot both pictures and videos with even though its not real camera. I think this will impact culture because it expanding the biggest social network, Facebook. It is also allowing more people to shoot creative photographs with different lenses with little to no photography knowledge.

 

Here is the link to the full article: http://techcrunch.com/2011/03/11/path-facebook-lenses/

Tech Post #6

RedRover Allows Parents To Make Play Dates On The Fly

I found this article on TechCrunch, and its about a social network called RedRover. This new social is "a private social network for parents to research and share everything from child-friendly restaurants to the closest hospitals in an emergency as well as schedule play dates." If you use this network you "can check-in to locations, or publicize plans to friends within the app. Users are encouraged to leave their tips, thoughts or “their 2cents” for each other." This app is considered to be more private because it doesn't include Facebook connect, so you have to invite friends to join your specific network through email. Now the question that arises is with "privacy is a natural concern for parents, I’m not sure if creating a new social network is the answer"? I chose this article because it seemed interesting that a social network would be created just for parents that allowed them to help schedule their kids' lives in a sense. I think this could impact culture because it will affect how plans are scheduled and kept track; maybe one day this will be done all virtually through social networks like this.

Here is the link to the full article: http://techcrunch.com/2011/02/28/redrover-allows-parents-to-make-play-dates-on-the-fly/

Tech Post #5

I Will Check My Phone At Dinner And You Will Deal With It

I found this article on TechCrunch, and it's about texting at the dinner table at restaurants. Now days if you look around a restaurant, you can find multiple people texting because it is becoming the norm even though older generations have the view that "you shouldn’t check your phone at the dinner table." However, "the situation has sort of reversed itself: you feel awkward if everyone else is using their phones and you’re not." Eventually when using your phone at dinner table "fully becomes the norm, there will no longer be the same stigma attached to checking your phone at a restaurant." Some people view texting while at dinner to be rude because they feel as if you are ignoring the others around you, while others consider it to less rude than talking on the phone since you are not making any noise. Even though some peole think that texting at dinner is rude, others feel as if it adds to the conversation by being able to look up facts and statistics, and it could spark conversations on what applications on are certain phones. I feel as if this will affect culture as this becomes more and more of a norm because it's changing the way people interact with each other at social gatherings, especially dinner. I chose this article because I tend to text a lot at dinner while my parents tell me not to which contines to show the different views of older and younger generations.

 

Here is the link for the article: http://techcrunch.com/2011/02/21/phones-at-dinner/

Tech Post #4

Why a War Photographer Shot an Award-Winning Photo With a $2 iPhone App

I found this article on Gizmodo, and it's about "NYT photographer Damon Winter's award-winning photograph, shot with iPhone app Hipstamatic." Once a photo is taken with this application it is processed with "a color balance shift, the burning of predetermined areas of the frame and increased contrast." People are uneasy about photos being taken with programs like this because they feel as if it is inauthentic. Their criticism was "that using a special effects app transformed the picture from a legitimate work of photojournalism to mere photography." While some people criticize this form of photography, others ask the question "how is using Hipstamatic different from using a lens with an extremely shallow depth-of-field and applying heavy vignetting or using an actual Holga camera or special film stock to produce a desired effect, often for aesthetics at the expense of pure documentation?" So the question is what do you think?

I chose this article because I love photography, and I couldn't believe this photo was taken with an Iphone. I think this will impact our culture because it will change the way photography is viewed and how it is "authentically" shot.

Here is the link to the full article: http://gizmodo.com/#!5758350/why-a-war-photographer-shot-an-award+winning-photo-with-a-2-iphone-app