Hey Guys,

Sorry for not posting at all lately, I’ve been busy with stuff. I’m rushing to put the finishing touches on a few scripts, as well as do a bit of soul searching to figure out what sort of careers I want to pursue. I’ve never really had an interest in professional programming - so I probably won’t go on much further with that. Actually to be honest I’m not sure if I’m going to pursue anything that has to do with computer management/administration either - I enjoy doing it as a hobby but I know I’d get burned out ASAP if I did it professionally.

So, it’s tough. On the one hand I’m really good at computer junk and I’ve been going it since I was literally 6, but on the other hand I can’t stand being “forced” to do it - as would be the case in a professional career. It’s a fun hobby - and heck even little freelancing jobs here and there to net me an extra $50 are nice - but I just don’t know if I am interested in doing big scripts and programs.

Oh well. Time to go enjoy the lovely 70-80 degree New York weather (with low humidity).

*begin random thought*
P.S. You know what’s amazing - I just went 24 hours without checking my e-mail. That’s the first time since I was 13. That was almost 6 years ago.
*end random though*

Apparently Psystar was a bit of a joke, at least according to Gizmodo. Who knows, their address keeps and changing and the addresses seem pretty bogus. If it’s true - cool. If it’s fake - well that sucks, I was just beginning to like them.

Oh, and if you’re wondering I’ll be sticking to what I said yesterday - unless Apple changes their EULA and ends their monopolistic practices or unless someone pays me a shit load of money to do OS X development my next computer won’t be a Mac. Virtually every program I use (besides games) has a ported version or an equivalent program on OS X, Windows, and Linux. In the end it doesn’t really matter what I use. Gimme a keyboard, a computer, a monitor, an Internet connection, and some Coca-Cola and I’ll be happy.

A few days ago I mentioned I’ve been having some issues with Firefox 2.0.0.13 crashing. It seems like a few of you guys are having similar issues, and Kyle Kinnaman kindly posted the link to the 2.0.0.12 download.

Instead of downgrading to a previous version, I tried disabling all plugins except the needed ones: Duplicate Bookmark Finder, Adblock Plus, Linky, and Tab to Window. I’m not sure which plugin I disabled did the trick, but I have not had Firefox crash since I wrote that post.

Here’s the plugins I disabled:

• Firebug
• Search Status
• StumbleUpon
• Yslow

If you have one of them why not turn it off and see if it does the trick? I’ve gone on various flash sites and it has yet to crash (before it crashed whenever I went on Youtube or other video sites). The only thing I haven’t tried is Java.

My dad just sent me an e-mail entitled “Ignorance is bliss.” It contained a link to a press release about Pizza Hut’s Pizza Mia. According to the press release the Pizza Mia is great tasting and is a better value than other cheap pizzas at other fast food places.

Umm… sure. We got three Pizza Mias a few months back and they were alright, but were quite disappointing. Not only is there no sauce on the things, but they also skimp on the cheese and pepperoni (one of ours only had 5 pieces of pepperoni on the entire thing!). The little bit of sauce they put on them is incredibly sugary - it tasted like I was eating tomato flavored candy. Pizza Mia’s are a good filler food if your low on cash… but they seriously aren’t “great tasting” by any stretch of the imagination (or even when compared to other fast food). Maybe I’m just spoiled because I live in a house with a good cook, but I just don’t see how anyone with at least one taste bud can call them “great tasting”.

The press release has got to be the most lame BS I have seen in my entire life.

Ignorance is bliss, indeed.

And if this isn’t the most random post on the planet, then I can’t even imagine what is.

Over the past couple of days news has broke of a company that offers a low-cost computer they claim to be OS X compatible. Many Apple fans have already said Psystar, the company behind the computer, will fail. I won’t really say whether or not they will fail because I honestly don’t know, however, I will say they could easily start the first true Apple EULA battle.

For the past few years many companies such as Apple and Microsoft have snuck incredibly anti-competitive clauses into their end user license agreements. Such limited EULAs do nothing but hurt the tech industry by limiting choices and killing innovation. Apple, for instance, does not allow you to run OS X on any non Apple computers. I don’t know what hardcore Apple fans would call that - but personally I’d call that A) abusing the contract and copyright laws, and B) having a monopolistic spirit. Shall we pull out the dictionary?

Straight from Webster:

Main Entry: mo·nop·o·ly Listen to the pronunciation of monopoly
Pronunciation: \mə-ˈnä-p(ə-)lē\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural mo·nop·o·lies
Etymology: Latin monopolium, from Greek monopōlion, from mon- + pōlein to sell
Date: 1534

1 : exclusive ownership through legal privilege, command of supply, or concerted action
2 : exclusive possession or control
3 : a commodity controlled by one party
4 : one that has a monopoly

Indeed, I would say a company who forces users to use software only on their system a monopoly. I am generally all for the free market (yay capitalism!) - but this is one of those cases where some sort of intervention is needed. When a company blocks out any chance for competition they are a monopoly, plain and simple.

I personally don’t think they should be forced to support all products, but I also don’t think they should be allowed to make their customers into criminals just because they want to shop around for computers. That would be like a company who packages sliced pepperoni making it illegal to use the pepperoni on anything other than their brand of pizza dough, pizza sauce, and mozzarella cheese. It is just silly.

Even if Apple allowed users to use OS X on third party hardware, most users would still choose to buy a Mac for the simple reason that it will “just work”. The reason the clones in the 90s caused so many problems was because Apple was so mangled and every chunk of hardware they sold was grossly overpriced and they refused to compete. Nowadays Apple is organized much better, and they have demonstrated on a few occasions their willingness to change prices to more market-friendly levels. Now they just need to end their anti-competitive attitude, and they might become a halfway decent company.

I’m sure there’s probably a few people reading this who are thinking “if you don’t like it don’t buy Macs, that’s how the free market works, right?” Well, that is true. I totally agree, if you hate a product don’t use it. If you hate a company don’t use their products. Take your money elsewhere. Plain and simple.

Unfortunately most users are not willing to put their money where their mouth is. Personally, unless Apple changes I won’t be buying a Mac as my next computer - and I’ve been using them for 12 years. Apple has lost my faith by repeatedly demonstrating just how anti-competitive they are.

They blame everyone else for their own problems. If a company made a OS X compatible computer and Apple lost millions as a result of bad hardware sales, they would cry like a baby and blame the other company (think clones) instead of blaming themselves for not being competitive enough.

If Apple doesn’t start making big changes to their business model of “our way or the highway” they will be in jeopardy of losing many more loyal customers in the coming years. I guarantee it.

If you have an intelligent non-fanboy thought to add to this discussion, please feel free to leave a comment. If you are a fanboy please remember I’ve used Macs since before I was 6, but I also use Windows and several Linux distros on a daily basis.