Game changing vs. Feminine hyigene

iPad... first thing that came to my mind... WTF where they thinking when they named this game changing piece if hardware? iPad congers up images of a "sanitary" napkin with a moisture sensor attached to a "hi-tech" pair of grungies with a twitter account that tweets the fact that the "Aunt Flow" has arrived! Now you see why this is an "explicit" blog! :-p

On a more serious note, I DO believe that this product will be a game changer. I've heard a lot of the detractions about it, but even my 10 year old can see where it fills a need. I predict that the iPad, provided the price comes down a little (knock $200 off the price and you'll sell the shit out of them, Steve!), will be the "textbook" of the future! It has what a student needs to fit perfectly into this small, but essential niche! No, it doesn't have Flash... No it doesn't multi-task... BUT, it does have the needed power and abilities to replace hard copy books and paper in the classroom! The larger form factor, ebook store, and the addition of iWork(Apple's version of Microsoft Office), lends it perfectly to this application. Built in WiFi allows it to connect and interact with the active and smart boards that are so prevalent in the modern classroom. Picture this... a student arrives a school, goes to their desk, grabs their iPad and checks the in room email for that day's assignments and then uploads their homework and then proceeds to watch the interactive video that their teacher made and uploaded to YouTube giving them a list of links and information about their upcoming digital presentation on the different aspects of government. The child has a question, so they email the teacher asking for additional info and resources! The class is getting kind of unruly, so suddenly it pushes up on everyone's iPad... a pop quiz on last nights homework. Li'l Johnny failed to do his homework, so the teacher remotely screen captures his "my dog ate my homework" excuse and forwards the image to her personal account and his parents via email. After lunch, via the ceiling mounted webcam and DLP projector the whole class does a group chat, via iChat, with a class of similar age in Japan, for the intercontinental, cross-cultural project that they are working on together. Suzy, the more advanced student in the class, having finished all the days assignments, pulls up one of the iTunesU videos that the teacher emailed her to help keep her engaged and learning. After the students have gone home, the teacher grades the day's work and and uploads the grades to the class' website for everyone's parents to see their child's progress. Realizing the he needs some additional help, Li'l Freddie pops up on the teacher's iChat and asks her for a little additional tutoring on that night's assignments.

See how it can all work together?! A secondary spin on the benefits... the environment! Being all digital, just think of all the trees that can be saved by not publishing text books or using paper in the classroom! Just think of the landfill space that can be saved! The ever expensive ink saved! Therefore the money saved!

Yes, there is the initial expense and logistics of deployment and professional development training, but in the long run, the savings will far surpass the upfront funding! Face it folks, we are lagging behind in developing technology for our children. Computers are here to stay! They are integrated into EVERY aspect of our lives, whether you realize it or not!

So to bring it back around to the initial topic... While the iPad wasn't the be all end all that the fanboys and geeks were hoping for, it still carries the form factor a LONG way towards the future. Maybe Adobe and Apple will work out their differences... Maybe they won't have to (HTML5)... Maybe by the time of it's release, the iPad will have the ability to multi-task... maybe, not... This I don't know! What I do know is that, without having to hack it, the iPad has pushed the ebook reader well beyond being just that!

Just a thought...

Okay, so I haven't gotten to the commentary on the tech and auto shows... it'll be there eventually! Sick kids and the start of a new semester has kind of put a damper on my research. Well, that and WoW!

So, having a need to go pull money off a credit card and deposit it in the bank, I had this thought... You should get a VPN with your bank account! With all the security issues surrounding online banking transactions, this seems like a feasible solution. Albeit, an expensive solution, from the bank's stand point, but it would offer a much more secure connection to our information. Plus, I think that I should be able to transfer money from 2 non-adjoined accounts from the comfort of my couch, computer chair, toilet, or whatever your seating of choice is! A VPN would help facilitate this. Why is it I can use my card to order any number of things online, but cannot make a cash transfer from it to my account? Now, I'm talking about my State issued unemployment card, that I'm supposed to use to pay my bills, but none of the utility companies around here seem to want to honor, because it's a "pre-paid" card. Funny that it works (better at times)just as good as my bank issed debit card anywhere else. It just seems odd that the very folks I am supposed to be using the monies to pay, won't accept it! So I end up driving (uses gas ($$$)) to an ATM, withdrawing the money (which the card issuer charges money for!!), then driving (MORE GAS! And who's bright idea was it to ONLY have a drive up ATM AT the bank!!)around to go into the bank to deposit it, so I can use my bank issued card to pay the bills! Yes, I could do the bureaucratic song and dance to get it switched to direct deposit, but why, if it can be transferred from the card as a debit, can't I transfer it to my account... wait for it... ONLINE!

I guess I'm just ranting, because I don't want to have to go out in the rain and waste the gas to be able to do what this stupid card was designed for me to do! Although, I still think, while logistically it would be a nightmare at first, an individual VPN tied to my primary account would be a safer (for me anyway!) and more efficient means of conducting my online transactions. Yes, it would cut into those massive profit margins, initially, but I feel like the greater security that could be afforded to their customers would be worth the headache!

Just my little spin on a problem that I have that could be remedied using presently available technologies.

L8r T8rz
argosytech

Too much shit!

At this point in a new year, there is just that... too much shit going on! CES, NAIAS, etc., there is just too much information for this old guy to process and keep up with! So I'm going to default to some "trusted" sources to aggregate the mass on information and hit the perceived "high spots". I'll come in a little later and add some personalized commentary to it after I get some class work done!

So here ya go:

NAIAS: North American International Auto Show via leftlanenews.com. Be sure and watch the video!

CES: Consumer Electronics Show via popularmechanics.com

The announcement of the upcoming Apple unveiling via @TUAW via Twitter

Like I said, given the completion of some school work I'll dial it in a little!

L8r T8rz
argosytech

What to do, what to do!

A blog... it should be focused and factual and about something that you are really "into", to be successful, right? Well... I'm "into" so many things, that it's hard to nail down one specific enough to be that "successful" topic that catapults you to the top of the heap. So for now... I'm just going to hit and miss and be random about the many things that brighten my day or my week or even a couple of seconds. Yup... I gots a fuckin mouth on me which is why there is an "explicit" warning before you actually get here. Seriously, though, I doubt that I will be "explicit" on here, sans the language that I use that "THEY" have deemed inappropriate for general consumption. So... away we go!

EDIT

So I wanted to give y'all a little taste of the stuff I'm "into, since the opening there is a little vague. So here's a couple links:

Powermat charging system

toolmonger

Just a little sampling. More to follow...