Real Kato Blog: 2010 November

It's hard to be a Michigan football fan sometimes. It's bad enough having to watch the team lose. But the most tiring thing is explaining to people why we're losing. No one cares about how young the team is, how we've been riddled with injuries, how we're still recovering from coaching transitions... no, they just care about MOAR WINS KTHXBAI.

I find it's similarly hard to be a user of Apple products. I'm tired of defending Apple against people who say things like "Apple should cut all of its prices in half" or "Apple should let other PC makers license their OS", as if Apple had no interest in actually making profits. I'm tired of explaining how the iPhone is not doomed even if Android is enjoying some success.

And it's hard to be a Democrat. It is exhausting to refute Tea Party nonsense all the time. I'm astounded that I have to explain to people all the ways that Sarah Palin is wrong about things. And I think I no longer have the energy to tell people that global warming is a reality even if it was cold today.

But yet I am all of these things: Michigan fan, Apple user, Democrat. I am a Michigan fan even if they lose, because that's what it means to be a true fan. I use Apple products even when the company is being torn apart for overblown reports of iPhone antenna issues, because Apple simply makes better products. And I'm a Democrat even when Tea Party activists seem to be grabbing all the headlines, because there are principles that I believe in.

Michigan lost to Wisconsin today. Most people expected that outcome, but during the game, the Internets were full of comments along the lines of "OMG FIRE RICHROD NOW". But still, as a fan, I persevere.

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Posted by Ken in: politics, sports, techwatch

Apple Announcement Tomorrow

Monday, 2010 November 15 - 11:14 pm

Apple put a teaser on its home page today; apparently there'll be a big announcement tomorrow at 10 a.m. EST. Apple promises it'll be a day "that you'll never forget."

Speculation is rampant. The consensus prediction is that the Beatles catalog will finally be available on iTunes. Other predictions from the media:

You'll be able to store your iTunes library in the cloud (using Apple's giant new data center in North Carolina)
iTunes will be integrated with Facebook
iTunes will allow 90-second previews

My personal hope is that Apple will announce content deals with all the major broadcast and cable networks for AppleTV content, such that we can all finally ditch our cable subscriptions. Or, that Apple will announce its own cellular network so we can ditch AT&T. Neither of those is likely to come true, but one can hope. Apple also has a huge hoard of cash, so a major acquisition is a possibility... but mergers are hard to keep secret, what with board negotiations and SEC reporting regulations and all.

The Beatles announcement seems the most probable; the other possibilities don't seem worthy of the hype. We'll see in twelve hours.

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Posted by Ken in: techwatch

Pellet Mills? Really?

Monday, 2010 November 8 - 10:39 pm

So I spent today cleaning up some comment spam for "pellet mills". Really? I mean, I can understand the desire for trying to drive search engine traffic for your replica handbags and your Vytorin, but are there really that many people who are searching on the Internet for ways to make tiny pellets for their wood-burning stoves? Huh. Techmomogy is weird.

Now, I wonder how many Google searches will lead to this post? I'd better close comments on it right away.

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Posted by Ken in: site-business, techwatch

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