Joshua Kors – Thumbs Down
Joshua Kors writes about “Why I’m Returning My iMac.” He goes through a long list of grievances, almost all of which could be remedied with some decent problems solving skills, or at least a simple Google search. For Example:
Turns out there’s a video camera embedded in the screen, and before I could boot her up for the very first time, she wanted to take my picture. For “identity purposes,” she said. I stumbled to the bathroom, brushed my hair (and my teeth), exchanged my raggedy Raiders t-shirt for a professionally ironed button-up and returned to my desk, smirking at the turn of events. My old PC didn’t care if I called the Pentagon in my bathrobe. My iMac apparently had registered with Match.com.
Um – this can be skipped, or he could use a default picture that comes pre-installed for your account.
I had an article to write, but the only word processor I could find on my iMac was TextEdit, essentially a stripped-down version of Notepad.
He should have bought Microsoft Word while he was at the Apple Store, not to mention that TextEdit has way more features than Notepad does.
I booted up my bank account before realizing the Mac keyboard had no number pad
He could have plugged in your old keyboard via USB.
and was heartsick to learn that the thesaurus WordWeb, every author’s best friend, didn’t work on Mac’s OS. Neither did Ipswitch FTP, my file-uploader. Some headaches I expected. I knew that, unlike a PC, I wouldn’t be able to connect one computer to another and transfer over my documents. Instead I had to use my external hard drive, like a makeshift canoe, to migrate my articles, music and videos from one computer to the next.
I’m sure that some people reading this article will have their opinions of Macs tainted by the author. Unfortunately, the problem wasn’t with the computer, but with the user himself.
I think my cousin @ADSchneider sums it up best with his tweet about the article: “I really wish that this was supposed to be satire… If this guy’s a web designer, then I’m an astronaut”
Gap Logo – Thumbs Down
UPDATE: Gap went back to their old logo, which was probably their best way out of this mess. I doubt this was an orchestrated stunt, but I don’t think it is impossible that it was. Read more about the switch back at AdAge.com
There’s been a bunch of buzz around the Gap logo recently (and not the good kind). Without any sort of announcement, on Monday, they changed their iconic, classic logo from this:
To this generic, uninspired logo:
In my senior year at Boston College, I took a class in Photoshop and there was one student that lacked either the motivation or skill (possibly both) to put together any decent projects. The Gap logo looks like something he would produce. I can even imagine our sarcastic teacher commenting on it during the assignment review period at the beginning of every class.
“Okay, lets check this one out now. Hmm… What did you do here? You spelled out Gap in a basic font. Okay… Then what’s this over here? A gradient box, huh?…..Interesting stuff Jerry*”
After everyone started ripping on the new Gap logo online, Gap posted this message on their Facebook page:
Thanks for everyone’s input on the new logo! We’ve had the same logo for 20+ years, and this is just one of the things we’re changing. We know this logo created a lot of buzz and we’re thrilled to see passionate debates unfolding! So much so we’re asking you to share your designs. We love our version, but we’d like to see other ideas. Stay tuned for details in the next few days on this crowd sourcing project.
I have no idea how they could ‘love’ their version, but I’m really interested to see where they go from here. Will they force the new ugly logo down everyone’s throats? I can’t imagine they will really take someone else’s idea from their ‘crowd sourcing project.’ Will they go back the old one?
What if Gap is pulling a Joaquin Phoenix on us all and is going to elaborate measures all for a publicity stunt? I doubt that’s the case, but an interesting (sinister) possibility to consider. They did get people to start talking about Gap when no one cared about it before.
More fun with the gap logo:
Follow @OldGapLogo and @GapLogo on Twitter.
Make your own crappy logo: Crap Logo Yourself
*Jerry is not his real name
Thumbs Down – Record-Breaking Night Benched
This past Saturday night, Zydrunas Ilgauskas had the opportunity to break the Cleveland Cavaliers franchise record of most games played in a Cavaliers uniform (724 games) when the Cavaliers hosted the Dallas Mavericks. However, Coach Mike Brown “mistakenly” benched Z for the whole game, saying that he used a smaller, quicker lineup to counter the speed and play of the Mavericks.
Really?? Coach Brown, you went with a smaller lineup to match the smaller lineup that the Mavericks put out there? You couldn’t sub in Z for a play, a single play, an inbounds play, a play with 5 seconds left in the quarter to save another player from committing another foul??? Really? That’s what Danny Green does every game for the Cavaliers and you should have at least used Z in a similar way…at least. You should have started him to begin with.
As a result, Ilgauskas received the first “Did Not Play- Coach’s Decision” in his entire 11 year career.
Really?? On the night that a player is supposed to break the franchise record for games played for that franchise, he gets his first ever DNP for a coach’s decision?? Really Coach Brown?? Talk about irony.
It was reported that Ilgauskas was so upset about not playing in the first half that he asked the coach to not play him at all in the second half. Way to go Coach. Upset the one man who has been through all of the ups and downs of the team for 11 years, all of the turmoil, all of your recent success, that he requests to not play. Good work. Luckily, the Cavaliers host the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday so Ilgauskas will still be able to break the record at home. Coach Brown should start Z, call the first play for Z to pop out and drop an 18-footer, and then call a timeout so that Z can receive the standing ovation that he rightfully deserves. And, during this timeout, Coach Brown should deliver an apology video immediately followed by a congratulatory video on the jumbotron.
Microsoft Trying To Be Cool – Thumbs Down
I’m sure you have seen a YouTube video of a cool flash mob. Even some “flash mob” type commercials, obviously for a brand, are still entertaining (the T-Mobile video of people singing in London comes to mind).
I bet you have also been inside an Apple Store to try out or buy some of their products.
Well, Microsoft decided to put these two things together (an Apple store and a “flash mob” type of event with their employees) in an uninspiring display of song and dance at the Microsoft Store in Mission Viejo:
This is what the original poster of the video said on his blog: Mid way through our visit the entire store broke out into song. Now I have seen this gimmick before at Coldstone Creamery and I know how they have been criticized in the media for it, but here it did not seem forced nor contrived, I would honestly say that this was the staff letting go, having some fun and not taking the brand all to seriously.
Really?? I think it looks both forced and contrived.
He also said this about the look of the store: I guess I have been disconnected from the platform for quite a while because I did not even realize that Microsoft had store but I have heard so many great things about Windows 7 I just had to check it out. I half expected the store to be a bland uninspiring cheap knockoff of an Apple Store, but WOW was I in for a surprise.
Really?? To me, the store looks exactly like an Apple Store. If I didn’t know it was a Microsoft Store, I would think it was selling iPhones and MacBooks. All the details seem the same – right down to the t-shirts and lanyards the employees are wearing.
In summary and in conclusion, the video of the Microsoft employees breaking out into dance has a 1.5 star rating on YouTube. I’m surprised it isn’t lower.
(Check out the original blog post, and commentary on Engadget)
