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LordBodak

90 karma · joined February 27, 2011

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LordBodak··on Why I Hate Android
People would be fighting for unlocking laws like that in the US, if it actually mattered. The only providers that use SIM cards are T-Mobile and AT&T, and they use different 3G frequencies so most phones aren't (fully) compatible between them anyway. Europe has choice, the US doesn't really. You choose a provider, you're stuck with their phone options, for the most part.
LordBodak··on Amazon Has Drastically Changed the Way I Read
This is the missing piece for me. I still want to own the physical book, but I would love the convenience of being able to load a bunch of books on my Kindle and take it on a trip or something.

Plus, think of the lock-in that the stores are missing out on. As a Kindle owner, if Amazon offered me bundles, I would probably never buy another book at Barnes & Noble.

LordBodak··on Why Google+ will become Google's only product
People were invested in Myspace with updates, photos, page customizations, etc. Now they're all on Facebook. There's no reason to believe they won't move again if the right feature set comes along.
LordBodak··on [dead]
Felt it in Norfolk, VA. Entire building shook.
LordBodak··on Poll: Do you use Google Reader on a daily basis?
I love Google Reader! For Android users, I highly recommend D7 Reader - https://sites.google.com/site/d7reader/

It's quite a bit better than the official app.

LordBodak··on OS X Lion’s Internet Recovery tool is one more nail in the DVD’s coffin
This works great until 10 years down the road you pick up an old Mac at a thrift store and discover that the internet recovery for Lion has been ended and the newer OS's aren't supported by the hardware.
LordBodak··on Facebook Basically Owns Zynga
This might not have been so bad if the IPO had happened before Google+ premiered, when Facebook looked unstoppable.
LordBodak··on What Google+ needs to do to be awesome
APIs for third party apps. I already use Seesmic to watch my twitter and Facebook feeds, but with G+ I have to use another app.
LordBodak··on What We Lose With the End of the Shuttle Program
The Shuttle fails in its primary objective, that of being a "reusable" vehicle. I attended a presentation by a NASA employee that explained the Shuttle process from landing to launch, and I was amazed at how much of the craft is replaced. I think we would have been far better off extending the Apollo program to new missions, similar to the Soyuz (which is still flying although much improved from the moon landing era).
LordBodak··on A Technophobe Adopts the iPad 2
Maybe Apple could make FaceTime an open standard, like Steve stated they would when it was first introduced.
LordBodak··on "The Best of edw519" is now free. Reverse Happy Birthday
I would love a copy as well, if you don't mind.
LordBodak··on Hating on Candyland: Why most games for kids are awful
If you lose the instructions then the odds are there are many other rules you're not following.
LordBodak··on Hating on Candyland: Why most games for kids are awful
Well, every set I've ever had came with extras, and the number you're supposed to use is printed right there in the instructions.
LordBodak··on Hating on Candyland: Why most games for kids are awful
The limitation on housing is the key to the game's structure. Most people don't seem to play it this way (letting players build hotels if they have the money, regardless of the number of actual plastic houses remaining), and it screws the game up. Not to mention house rules like "free parking" artificially adding money to the game.
LordBodak··on FBI seized PokerStars.com, FullTiltPoker.com, UB.com,... domain names
The poker sites domains have already been seized.
LordBodak··on Android app reinstalls not as easy as can be
AppBrain works really well for this. You still have to do some clicking, but not nearly as much.
LordBodak··on Cisco To Shut Down Flip Video Business; Will Give Pink Slips To 550 Employees
Flip built an interesting product, but it just doesn't offer anything anymore.

I came close to buying one a number of times, but never pulled the trigger because it would have been another device to carry and I wasn't sure how much I'd really use it.

Now, both my phone and my iPod Touch offer everything the Flip did, and I'm already carrying them around with me.

LordBodak··on As Schools Shift to Google Apps, Blind Students Object
Google should be fixing some of these accessibility issues themselves. As for the actual GMail client though... nothing prevents the user from using the third-party client of their choice, so nothing has really changed from before.
LordBodak··on Wozniak: Tablet is the PC for 'normal people'
One concern I would have, with more people using iPads instead of computers, is the middle of the night "I dropped my iPad and now it won't turn on, how do I save my data?" call. Apple really needs to get on the ball with some sort of backup that doesn't require plugging it into a PC.
LordBodak··on A Design Critique of the iPhone
I think the author is referring to the "slide to unlock" explanation, with a reference to the infamous Win95 "Click here to Begin" that used to appear above the start button.

I don't necessarily agree that it's a horrible design decision, but it is very unlike Apple to invent a control that needs on-screen instructions instead of just being intuitive.

LordBodak··on US Senators ask Apple to pull DUI checkpoint apps
I don't have an iPhone, so I won't be buying it.
LordBodak··on US Senators ask Apple to pull DUI checkpoint apps
The average speed trap doesn't affect traffic (unless you happen to be the person pulled over). DUI checkpoints often have miles of stopped cars waiting to go through.
LordBodak··on AT&T aggressively moving against unauthorized tethering
AT&T is actually segmenting both, though.

Non-smartphone $15 Smartphone $25 Smartphone + tethering $45

LordBodak··on AT&T aggressively moving against unauthorized tethering
That depends on your definition of "can't." Technology-wise, yes, if the phone supports it. Terms of service-wise, no, but that's true of the smartphone plans also, they've just never enforced it before.
LordBodak··on AT&T aggressively moving against unauthorized tethering
AT&T already does that; non-smartphone users still have an option for $15/mo unlimited data ($10/mo if on certain family plans)