Back in the old days when I was a computer support guy, I used to advise people to always protect their systems with a full on-line UPS “in case, for example, the cleaners knock the power plug out or use it to power their vacuum cleaner”. Well guess what? Today the cleaners came to the house I am currently house-sitting and began cleaning around my workstation, where I was busy in the middle of some important work on the computer. POW! - the screen goes blank…..they knocked the power plug out of the wall and everything on the power strip went out.
Steve - you need to take some of your own medicine, methinks! - ha! ha!
My Sequoia is one year old today and Toyota sent me a Birthday card! This is an example of the (usually lots of small) differences that set great companies apart from merely competent ones. I know that this is just marketing, but for the few cents it cost them, why don’t ALL companies do this?
“Please call us if there is ever anything we can do” - Lovely!
Does your car company do this? Your camera company? Your TV company? Yeah……riiighhht! 
Steve Jobs sent the following internal email to Apple employees on Monday August 4th 2008:
Team,
The launch of MobileMe was not our finest hour. There are several things we could have done better:
– MobileMe was simply not up to Apple’s standards – it clearly needed more time and testing.
– Rather than launch MobileMe as a monolithic service, we could have launched over-the-air syncing with iPhone to begin with, followed by the web applications one by one – Mail first, followed 30 days later (if things went well with Mail) by Calendar, then 30 days later by Contacts.
– It was a mistake to launch MobileMe at the same time as iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 software and the App Store. We all had more than enough to do, and MobileMe could have been delayed without consequence.
We are taking many steps to learn from this experience so that we can grow MobileMe into a service that our customers will love. One step that I can share with you today is that the MobileMe team will now report to Eddy Cue, who will lead all of our internet services – iTunes, the App Store and, starting today, MobileMe. Eddy’s new title will be Vice President, Internet Services and he will now report directly to me.
The MobileMe launch clearly demonstrates that we have more to learn about Internet services. And learn we will. The vision of MobileMe is both exciting and ambitious, and we will press on to make it a service we are all proud of by the end of this year.
Steve
I like the idea of MobileMe - I am a long-time .mac subscriber and even though the experience with MobileMe has been rocky for me, I just know the performance and stability will get much beter over time. The ability to keep all your mail, contacts and calendar in the cloud and have it sync with all your computers and mobile devices is a FANTASTIC idea, and I am hoping that Apple will capitalize on that. I’m sure they will. Just one more facet that makes the Apple experience so compelling.
If you have a compact digital camera and are looking to buy your first digital SLR to take the next step up in photo quality and versatility, LOOK NO FURTHER! :-) We have been using Nikon’s 6-Megapixel D40 starter SLR since it was introduced a couple of years ago, and it is a stunner. Even better, you can get your hands on one of these babies at Best Buy for $475.00, complete with a genuine 18-55 Nikon zoom lens - an absolute steal - WOW!
Things that you will notice compared to a compact camera include:
- Much faster start-up time: the camera is ready to take a photograph the instant you turn it on.
- Much better battery life - the battery on the D40 goes on and on and on through hundreds of shots - waaaaay longer than a regular compact point and shoot camera
- Much better photo quality - due to better quality lenses that let more light in
- Much greater versatility - the D40 provides a full range of image-taking controls, right from fully-automatic through shutter and aperture-priority modes to fully manual.
- Greater range of system expandability - you can expand your picture taking opportunities by adding external flashguns, additional prime and zoom lenses, wireless controls, and a whole host of other accessories.
Although there are many players in the digital SLR marketplace nowadays, serious photographers usually limit their choices to either Canon or Nikon cameras and lenses. Canon and Nikon make the best glass and have been in the camera making business for a very long time with many dedicated professional users - they can be relied upon t make a really serious product. Canon also make some very good entry-level SLRsand you can’t really go wrong choosing one - it’s just that we have experience with Nikon Digital since the D70 in 2003 and know these cameras produce excellent results.
It is important to try out both Nikon and Canon before you decide which to buy, as whatever you choose will more or less dedicate you to that manufacturer in terms of future purchases of lenses and accessories. We find that Nikon cameras have better ergonomics and are well-balanced and easy to hold. They all feel very sturdy and made to last a long time. Some of the Canons are not as easy to hold and look to be more flimsily made from lower-grade plastics.
If you have a little more money, the Nikon D60 is worth considering at $665.00, as it has a vibration reduction lens (this means that hand-held pictures remain sharp longer), 10 Megapixels and a nifty sensor cleaning system. The body, controls and ergonomics are exactly the same as the D40 though - the D60 uses the SAME body as the D40.
Don’t be fooled by Megapixels, though. you really don’t need a lot of Megapixels to produce stunning photographs if the camera’s optics and picture-taking electronics are up to par. The results from the D40 will far exceed anyone’s expectations unless you’re making really large prints. Results are more than good enough for viewing on your computer or the web or making 8 x 11 prints from your desktop printer. We definitely do not think that the $210 extra the D60 costs is worth it - get the D40. You could use $100 of that extra $200 to buy a great external flashgun like the Nikon SB400!
This will really improve your indoor flash photography because you can bounce the flash off the ceiling instead of straight in someone’s face, resulting in less red-eye and a much softer, more natural feel.
