November 24th, 2009

For The First Time in Ages, I Agree With Apple

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 1:26 pm

Categories: Apple, Business, Desktop, General, Hardware Infrastructure, Personal Technology

Tags: Hewlett-Packard Co., OEM, Apple Inc., Laptop Computer, Notebooks, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets, Jason Perlow

Is this how you work? Then don’t get angry at your OEM when they invalidate your warranty when you send your PC in for service.

Yesterday our own Apple Core blogger Jason O’Grady reported that Apple has now adopted a policy of voiding warrantees on equipment if it has been exposed to smoke. Needless to say the smokers have been angry.

To Apple, I say this: I agree with you, and I think every single hardware OEM and consumer electronics company should follow suit.

To the smokers, I say tough noogies, take your rotten cancer sticks with you and please swallow a truckload of Altoids down your creosote reeking maw before you get in close proximity of me, or I will throw up in your face.

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November 8th, 2009

In Smartphone Wars, Darwinism Triumphs Over Intelligent Design

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 5:17 pm

Categories: Apple, Business, Google, Linux, Open Source, Personal Technology, Web Technology, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Google Inc., Research In Motion Ltd., Google Android, Phone, Smart Phone, Verizon Communications Inc., Intelligent Design, RIM BlackBerry, Messaging

With the release of the Verizon Droid, the smartphone market now has two apex predators with advanced, feature rich mobile embedded operating systems. There’s no room for smaller or less evolved players, and survival of the fittest in the war of the handsets may very well mean industry and carrier consolidation.

At around 8PM Friday evening, I walked into the Route 4 Paramus, New Jersey Verizon corporate store and walked up to the counter and said two words: “DROID Me.”

The store was busy, but there were plenty of demo units and lots of staff around — a far cry from the iFAIL experience I had when I first attempted and failed to purchase my wife an iPhone 3G at AT&T’s Fort Lee, New Jersey store during its launch in early July of 2008.

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November 2nd, 2009

Psystar: From Hell's Heart, I Stab at Thee!

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 9:09 am

Categories: Apple, Business, Desktop, Software Infrastructure

Tags: Apple Macintosh, Apple Inc., Psystar, Star Trek, Desktops, Apple Mac OS, Hardware, Operating Systems, Software, Jason Perlow

Much like Khan detonated the unstable doomsday “Genesis Device” in Star Trek II before his defeat at the hands of Captain Kirk and crew, Miami-based Psystar’s last deed may very well be to inflict as many casualties on Apple Computer as possible before it dies. (Photo: Paramount Pictures)

In two weeks, last April’s blockbuster re-imagining of the classic Star Trek series and characters will be available on Blu-Ray, on November 17th. Since buying my Blu-Ray player I’ve only bought a few HD discs, saving my purchases for those films I really am a big fan of and am likely to watch multiple times. Star Trek will be one of those films, and I can’t wait to see it again on my home theater system.

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October 18th, 2009

DROID aims to make Apple iAnnoyed

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 9:36 am

Categories: Apple, Business, Open Source, Personal Technology, Software Infrastructure, iPhone

Tags:

As Wuher the scowling bartender said in Star Wars, AT&T Wireless and Apple doesn’t “serve their kind in here”, but the DROIDs are coming, like it or not.

Verizon recently launched its DROID Does web and TV campaign which is a preview of their upcoming Motorola DROID, their long-awaited iPhone-killer running Google’s Android 2.0 smartphone operating system.

Many carriers and device manufacturers have claimed to have iPhone-killers. They tried and failed to unseat the giant, which has a huge following of users and a massive application store. But right now, at least in the United States, iPhone is tied to AT&T Wireless, which has been riddled with 3G coverage problems, much to the frustration of the company’s subscribers. And if Verizon’s recent actions are any indication, iPhone is likely to stay where it is.

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October 9th, 2009

Frugal Friday: The Software of Stallman, Psystar/Apple, Parallels

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 7:37 pm

Categories: Apple, Desktop, Enterprise Computing, Free operating systems, General, Hardware Infrastructure, Linux, Open Source, Podcast, Server, Software Infrastructure, Virtualization

Tags: Software, Apple Inc., Psystar, Podcasts, Tools & Techniques, Cloud Computing, Storage Management, Virtualization, Utility Computing, Internet

Frugal Networker Ken Hess and I discuss Ken’s interview with Richard Stallman, Psystar’s newly announced OEM Licensing program for Mac Cloning, the greater implications of hardware and software vendor tie-in, and talk with Jamison Moore of Parallels, the virtualization company.

Click Here to listen to the October 9, 2009 Frugal Friday Podcast.

Disclaimer: The postings and opinions expressed in this podcast are my own and don’t necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions.

October 5th, 2009

Psystar's Thermopylae: The Nightmare Hypervisor Arrives

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 3:54 pm

Categories: Apple, Desktop, General, Hardware Infrastructure, Open Source, Software Infrastructure, Virtualization

Tags: Hypervisor, Apple Inc., Psystar, Cloud Computing, Virtualization, Storage Management, Utility Computing, Litigation, Desktops, Hardware

Miami, Florida-based Psystar, which is currently under litigation from Apple for producing Mac-compatible clones and is counter litigating the company for monopolistic practices, has announced that they are OEM licensing their virtualization technology and ICAP so that any PC vendor may easily produce Mac clones.

In July of 2008, in my piece entitled “Psystar’s Thermopylae won’t end Apple’s Clone Nightmare” I wrote the following during the heat of the inital phases of the Psystar vs. Apple imbroglio:

“…If I were Psystar, I’d poison pill the entire situation for Apple by making all of the ICAP they created to build the systems — sans the Apple OS X software itself — available on a public website. Then Apple will have a huge mess on their hands.

Such a thing doesn’t exist now, but give it a year, and Nightmare Hypervisor will rise from the depths to bite a chunk out of Apple’s juicy flesh

Let’s face it — virtualization is eventually going to make the hardware dependent eccentricities of OS X and Mac’s feeble attempts at DRM meaningless..”

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September 11th, 2009

Frugal Friday: Barbecue! Apple 2009 iPod refresh, CodePlex Foundation, Microsoft Best Buy Shenanigans, Schooner Information Technology

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 7:28 pm

Categories: Apple, Business, Enterprise Computing, Hardware Infrastructure, Microsoft, Networking, Personal Technology, Podcast, Server, Software Infrastructure, Web Technology

Tags: Best Buy Co. Inc., Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp., Schooner Information Technology, Microsoft Windows 7, Podcasts, Marketing Research, Internet, Marketing, Jason Perlow

Frugal Networker Ken Hess and I talk about the joys of Carolina and Texas Barbecue, the Fall 2009 Apple iPod launch event, the new Microsoft-created CodePlex Foundation, the recent exposure of Microsoft’s Best Buy 2009 retail marketing plans for Windows 7 and speak with Dr. John Busch, Co-Founder of Schooner Information Technology, the memcached and MySQL acceleration appliance company.

Click Here to Listen to the September 11, 2009 Frugal Friday Podcast

September 9th, 2009

Microsoft needs Windows Wizards, not Mac Attacks

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 7:54 pm

Categories: Apple, Business, Desktop, General, Microsoft, Personal Technology

Tags: Best Buy Co. Inc., Apple Macintosh, PC, Microsoft Corp., Sales, Attack, Desktops, Microsoft Windows, Hardware, Operating Systems

Microsoft’s current planned marketing strategy for Windows 7 includes a grass roots retail effort by Best Buy sales staff  which will attempt to persuade potential systems buyers to purchase new PCs preloaded with the new Microsoft OS instead of Macs. But what it really needs is to deploy an army of “Windows Wizards” to demonstrate the new OS at its best, not to slam the competition with “Mac Attacks”.

My colleagues Mary Jo Foley and Adrian Kingsley-Hughes wrote today about the plans that Microsoft has in place to train retail sales staff at Best Buy how to position PCs with Windows 7 for prospective systems buyers against Apple’s Macintosh systems and of all things, Linux.

This sort of grassroots negative campaigning against the Mac and Linux is really not the way Microsoft should address buyers in the upcoming year and holiday season. Just like negative political campaign advertising and grassroots door to door stomping, it often leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth and comes off as completely without class. Worst case, it has even been known to even backfire as a campaign technique. From the perspective of effective sales and marketing tactics, at best I would classify this as bottom feeding.

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September 4th, 2009

Frugal Friday: Media Outrageousness, Snow Leopard Woes, Mac Virtualization, VMWorld 2009, EU kiboshes Oracle/Sun, Brocade

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 7:15 pm

Categories: Apple, Business, Enterprise Computing, Hardware Infrastructure, Networking, Podcast, Server, Software Infrastructure, VMWare, Virtualization

Tags: Apple Macintosh, Oracle Corp., Sun Microsystems Inc., Brocade Communications Systems Inc., Media, European Union, Cloud Computing, Virtualization, Storage Management, Server Virtualization

Frugal Networker Ken Hess and I discuss the new “outrageous” trend in media and blogging, problems with the Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6 upgrade, Mac Server virtualization, the European Union temporarily halting the Oracle/Sun Merger, reduced attendance at VMWorld 2009, and talk with Harry Petty, Vice President of Marketing for Brocade, the Ethernet/LAN and SAN switching solutions company.

Click Here to Listen to the September 4, 2009 Frugal Friday Podcast

August 30th, 2009

Apple's Snow Leopard Completely Blows It Virtually

Posted by Jason Perlow @ 8:21 pm

Categories: Apple, Business, Desktop, Enterprise Computing, Hardware Infrastructure, Linux, Microsoft, Open Source, Server, Software Infrastructure, VMWare, Virtualization, Web Technology

Tags: Apple Macintosh, Apple Mac OS X V10.6 Snow Leopard, Operating System, Server, Apple Inc., Apple Mac OS X, Operating Systems, Linux, Apple Mac OS, Desktops

Built-in Hypervisor-based virtualization and paravirtualizized kernels are  now de rigueur  with every major x86-based enterprise OS on the planet, including on Linux, on all major UNIX OSes, and even on Windows Server. But on Mac OS X Snow Leopard, it’s nowhere to be found.

I have said on numerous occasions that Apple has missed the boat when it comes to enterprise adoption. This is sad, really, when you consider how good an operating system Mac OS X really is, in that it is the only UNIX-based OS that really could have had any chance in displacing the status quo of Windows and Microsoft hegemony in large enterprise environments with a “full stack” for end-user acceptance as a desktop OS. Consumers may enjoy its niche status, but In the enterprise, Apple is a “Coulda Been” contender of unfulfilled potential.

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