Recently a friend of mine launched CleverNever.com, a fun little web site where users can post humorous answers to a new question every few days.
Logging in is a snap; simply click the sign in link and you’ll be signed in seamlessly via Facebook, without the need to remember yet another username or password. Take a look and try to post the answer that gets the most votes. Rumor has it that winners receive a prize.
Keep in mind though it is more or less in beta testing, so even if it seems quirky or outdated at times it is not dead!
Thanks to devices like the iPad and continued success of the iPhone, Apple’s popularity seems to be skyrocketing these days, at least in a transient way. Their ever-present marketing continues to convince people that their products are the end-all, be-all, who then give little regard for potentially better, often cheaper devices. Sure their mobile devices are pretty cool, but there are other options out there. Especially in the personal computer world, if you want an easy, minimized computing experience, Apple is certainly not the only solution, nor are they automatically better than everything else by any means.
Some time ago while waiting for a humanities class to begin, a student initiated a conversation about purchasing computers. I bit my tongue so I could hear the unblemished outcome. Sure enough, a Mac user piped up and proceeded to give the usual speech about how he/she never has viruses and just loves his/her Macbook Pro more than anything, especially evil Windows computers. The funny thing is, all this person seems to do is play flash games (yes, kind of ironic given the battle between Apple and Adobe), check e-mail and use Microsoft Word. Um, I’m pretty sure you don’t need a $2,000+ computer to do that. A $400-500 HP aluminum body laptop would be just as good for that. Oh yeah, and the HP has an easily-removable battery and can play Blu-Ray movies if you opt to upgrade the optical drive. Utilizing common web-sense while surfing, I don’t remember having a virus or blue-screen on my PC in the last few years.
My university recently renovated its computer store. Upon completion, I found that for some reason it had simply been turned into half of an Apple store (you know, lots of room for like three items, strong white lighting THX-1138 style, etc.). Eh, they better have either received a ton of money from Apple to do that, because if not it is just a hopeless display of Apple-tardedness, *sigh*. Some people make the generic excuse that Apples are better for graphics and stuff. Nope, Adobe Suite works just as well on PC, AVID is great like Final Cut Pro, and my laptop’s GPU “pwns” the one used in any current Apple computer.
Points that further communicate my rant:
Apple moved to Intel-based (read: PC) hardware a few years ago… the only difference is the OS and subsequent hardware restriction, and Linux (free) beats them all for secure, general usage anyway.
Apples cannot play Blu-Rays because Steve Jobs apparently doesn’t like them.
Apple users are constantly at the mercy of Steve Jobs and his desire for excessive control and restriction.
Spending money on any number of PC manufacturers will often get you worlds more hardware for the buck than the same amount spent on an Apple computer, and they’ll occasionally throw in an extended warranty without robbing your wallet for additional cash.
Try building your own computer for use with MacOS. Sure it can be done taking painful measures and possibly putting up with limited functionality, but if Steve Jobs had his way it would explode in your face and you’d be thrown in bottomless pit.
Try installing a ton of great PC-only programs out there on MacOS without using virtualization (especially those useful in the IT world).
I shouldn’t even need to mention trying to play real games on MacOS.
In conclusion, I [sort of] apologize for going off on a PC fan-boy rant. All I want to communicate to everyone is that Apple products are not better than everything just because it is Apple. I think the following video summarizes my frustration at people who want everything that Steve Jobs says is awesome. If you like Apple, fine. Just like it for the right reasons and don’t just spout off what you’ve been programmed to say.
You hurriedly travel home to open the new HDTV you just purchased. After connecting the countless wires and expensive components, you fire up your new machine to watch your favorite Blu-Ray movie. At first glance, everything is crisp and glorious, but then, something just doesn’t look right… what could it be?
Have you ever noticed on certain newer HDTVs that movies and some television shows look “too real,” as if they were shot with a home video HD camcorder? This irritating phenomenon that catches many HDTV owners off guard is called the “soap opera effect,” and happens because of “enhanced” refresh rates, extra interpolated frames and other gimmicky settings. Sure it looks great for the football game, but it effectively eliminates the beautifully crafted and color-corrected look that help make movies so captivating.
Thankfully, there is a fix (at least, for most televisions). Simply navigate into the television’s video settings (there may be a unique menu for every input) and look for settings called something like AMP (Auto-motion Plus), motion enhancement, cinema mode, etc, and turn them off. These settings often find themselves in the “Advanced” section of the picture or video menu. This may require some experimentation, but when you turn off the correct setting(s), the difference will be obvious to those with cinematically-attuned eyes.
The effects produced by these settings aren’t all bad, however. In fact, some people even prefer the overly realistic look. You should also consider leaving it on for any broadcast, cable or satellite television inputs unless you often watch movies on them.
Posted by N. Palmer 
