Category: Let It Out

Something or something getting to you? “Let it out” here.

Apple Wants To Approve Free Giveaways

Yes, you read that correctly.  Apple, the company behind iPod, iPad, iArm (not a real product, yet), iPhone, etc.  Has issued a doc stating that anyone wishing to give a free iPads for example, in lots of 250 or more.  Must get approval from Apple.  Image that?

Assume I wanted to buy every student in my old high school an iPad.  That is more than 250 students.  I will need to contact Apple first, even though I am paying for the devices and in noway using a discount from Apple.

Fortunately, I am a nut case and don’t support Apple by using any of its products.  I found this story here:

Apple Nixes iPad Giveaways

Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday June 01, @07:34PM
from the too-good-for-free dept.
KingSkippus writes “According to a story at CNN, Apple has begun enforcing third party promotion guidelines (PDF) that, among other things, restricts organizations from giving away iPads, using the word ‘free’ to describe any Apple products in a prominent manner, or promoting giveaways of iPod Touches in lots of less than 250 and with Apple’s explicit approval.”

Libya

I hear about the fighting in Libya and of course the USA participation in the UN resolution.  However, I haven’t seen much on TV about what is happening there.  The following images changed that for me.

I went thought them partly to know what is going on there and to face the fact of what war is, regardless of the intent.  I know war is bloody and ugly, but sometimes I forget because I don’t what a lot of TV.  Not that TV is showing much of what is going on in any of our wars.  I also wanted to see pics to remind myself of how much better my life is, even if I am stuck behind a desk and computer screen all day.

It really is sad that a few people in this world can may the lives of so many quite miserable.  The suffering humans experience at the hand of other humans, is right up there with the worst nature sometime causes.

View at your own discretion.

$323B for 2,443 Fighter Jets

I picked up this story from Gizmodo and was wondering.  How exactly are we able to spurge on things like this, when we a deficit that reaching for the sky?

“The USAF’s fighter from the future made its first air show flight over the weekend, wowing audiences at Andrews’ Air Force Base. Get a good look! You paid for ’em—the F-35 is the most expensive military program ever. The Pentagon’s plan is to buy 2,443 of them—prized for their stealth capabilities—from Lockheed Martin, at a cool $323 billion. Lookin’ good, dudes.”

Here is a novel idea, if it going to cost us this much to be prepare or even protect ourselves, we might has well pay people to be our friends.  And I know we are already doing that with a few countries.

Times They Are A Changing – Black Box For Vehicles

This is so crazy, if it ever where to happen, that I am just going to post as is from Slashdot.

Mandatory Automotive Black Boxes May Be On the Way

Posted by timothy on Tuesday May 24, @08:17AM
from the pesky-privacy-laws-be-damned dept.
Attila Dimedici writes “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expected to announce a new regulation requiring all vehicles to contain a ‘black box.’ Not only that, but the devices would be designed to make it difficult (possibly illegal) to modify what information these devices collect or to disbale them even though the courts have ruled that the owner of the vehicle owns the data. The courts have also ruled that authorities may access that data (to what degree and whether a warrant is necessary depends on the state).”

Bees Are Democratic And Better Politicians Than Humans

One thing we have in the US Congress, is the idea of a “filerbuster“.  You can read that for yourself, but here is a key part of it, “it is the right of an individual to extend debate, allowing a lone member to delay or entirely prevent a vote on a given proposal”.

So what about it?  It means quite simply, that regardless of how good, or even great, a bill is.  It can be stopped cold by a bull-headed, determined, misguided, passionate, … and so on individual.  That sucks, and it is frankly, stupid to have such a procedure.  Why would we allow such a silly thing that could derail a good bill?

So it was interesting to me, to listen to this story about how bees vote.   When deciding on where to build a new home, the bees involved in that process vote on their choice.  No one bee can hijack the voting no matter how passionate it is about a new home choice.  Amazingly, the simply solution to prevent any one bee from showing too much passion, limit how long they can vote.

Imagine that?  Just limit how long a person can make an argument and you don’t have to worry about the best orator, the most passionate, or  the person with the most stamina monipolizing the ‘floor’.  This is not a surprising solution, since we have term limits for the exact same reasons.  Just surprising we don’t apply a working pattern in other places.

For The People – Senate Blocks Bill Repealing $2B In Oil Tax Breaks

I can only thing that the Senate did this for us, the people.  Really?  They block a bill repealing $2B in Oil tax breaks?   At a time when they  squabble over 30B in social and educational program, they have the nerves to block this bill.  $2B would help, especially when the oil companies are pulling in some serious profits and we are stuck with $4 a gallon for gas.  Talk about fiscal responsibility.  I don’t see how these guys have a moral leg to stand on.  I don’t know how they look at themselves in the mirror.

A Scientific Look At Why Certains Bugs Us

I heard this story on NPR about a book which examines some reasons why certain things bugs us.  Like a buzzing sound of a mosquito around our head, finger on a chalk board, hearing one side of a phone conversation, etc.

There are some simply things that annoy me too, but no need to let anyone know just how weird I am.  So I won’t say anything about my annoyances.  🙂

What The Hell Is Planking?

I should be more sadden by this story of some guy dying from ‘planking‘.  But I am more alarmed that people are doing some crazy thing just for a few minutes of fame on the Internet, be it YouTube or FaceBook.

I wasn’t aware there was something called ‘planking’ and that this was some new craze.  What the hell is wrong with young people today?

Speed Demon – TomTom Has You Tagged

Apparently, some models TomTom GPS sends your GPS data back to the central office.  TomTom then feed this back to local government and law enforcement authorities.

Now they say they will stop doing that.  I think they should be sued.  They should have put some note in plain sight, saying that using this device may provide your speed to the police.  If you are thinking that speeding is against the law, it kills, etc.  You won’t get an argument from me, but I don’t think companies should be providing information about your behavior to law enforcement without you first knowing that could happen.

Saw this story over at Slashdot.

 

GPS Maker TomTom Submits Your Speed Data To Police

Posted by timothy on Thursday April 28, @01:58PM
from the put-your-speed-trap-riiiiight-here dept.
An anonymous reader writes “The GPS systems in TomTom’s Live range all feature built-in 3G data cards, which feed location and route information back to a central server. According to CNET, this data, along with users’ speed information, is being made available to local governments and the police.” From the article: “Knowing the cops can see where you’re driving and how fast you’re going is eye-opening stuff, but TomTom says the data is anonymous and can never be traced back to an individual user or device. Ordinarily, we’d be reassured by this, but we recall Apple saying something similar before the location-tracking excrement hit the phone-carrying fan.”

Apple Can Track Every iPhone User

If I had an iPhone, I would be mad as hell and would probably try to get rid of it soon.  I am an Android user and it is not as smooth now, as the iPhone.  But man do I love it openness.

Saw this on Slashdot:

Apple Logging Locations of All iPhone Users

Posted by CmdrTaco on Wednesday April 20, @10:16AM
from the are-you-scared-yet dept.
An anonymous reader writes “The Guardian reports that researchers have found a hidden file on all iPhones, iPads and any computers to which they synchronize, logging timestamped latitude and longitude coordinates of the user since June 2010. A tool is available on their website to check on your own.”