Prophetic Words

It may be a bit obvious, but there's something about W.B. Yeats' The Second Coming that rings truer today than it should.

Also, after watching Keith Olberman's outstanding and fiery oration on the Bush administration from September 25, I went and found the rest of the Abraham Lincoln's speech he references:

Is it doubted, then, that the plan I propose, if adopted, would shorten the war, and thus lessen its expenditure of money and of blood? Is it doubted that it would restore the national authority and national prosperity, and perpetuate both indefinitely? Is it doubted that we here--Congress and Executive--can secure its adoption? Will not the good people respond to a united, and earnest appeal from us? Can we, can they, by any other means, so certainly, or so speedily, assure these vital objects? We can succeed only by concert. It is not "can any of us imagine better?" but, "can we all do better?" The dogmas of the quiet past, are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise -- with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.
Fellow-citizens, we cannot escape history. We of this Congress and this administration, will be remembered in spite of ourselves. No personal significance, or insignificance, can spare one or another of us. The fiery trial through which we pass, will light us down, in honor or dishonor, to the latest generation. We say we are for the Union. The world will not forget that we say this. We know how to save the Union. The world knows we do know how to save it. We -- even we here -- hold the power, and bear the responsibility. In giving freedom to the slave, we assure freedom to the free -- honorable alike in what we give, and what we preserve. We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of earth. Other means may succeed; this could not fail. The way is plain, peaceful, generous, just -- a way which, if followed, the world will forever applaud, and God must forever bless.
- Abraham Lincoln, Annual Remarks to Congress, December 1, 1862.

Swearing in Latin

I can't believe I never noticed this before, but Wikipedia has an entry on swearing in Latin. Useful? No. Fun, in an intellectual sort of way? Yes!

A big nod to Jason Kottke for finding this one.


Link.

Keep Trying Scoble, You're Bound to Think of Something

Microsoft gets so much grief for copying, I think, because they're so blatant and bad at it. They're like Gus Van Sant remaking Hitchcock’s Psycho: the camera angles are the same, but the spirit is dead. Meanwhile, Apple takes ideas and makes them (like 3M!) better, reinventing the idea with their own particular style.
Robert Scoble thinks this is unfair. Frankly, if I were a former Microsoft blogger with his insight into the company I'd probably feel the same way. Often times Microsoft has taken an Apple idea and made a cardboard copy, but Apple's not exactly the innocent waif either, fast user switching being a great example.
However, I think his comparison between the Xbox 360 and the upcoming "iTV" to be ill conceived. The Xbox is a computer, thinner than normal, but nonetheless inside the case is everything you would expect from a gaming machine. However, iTV is different, it's a discrete device that ties into ability the rest of the network should already have. The iTV has more in common with a Sonos and is really an evolution of Apple's Airport Express.
The difference is subtle, but important.

Microsoft is making another version of the MCE box: a complex system capable of a myriad of different tasks; Apple is making a toaster. A toaster that plays video.

[Update:] Apparently, Apple's been working on an idea similar to the iTV as early as the mid-90s; the device was the "Set Top Box." Microsoft gets a cookie for the XBox and the implementation, but I still think Scoble needs a better example than this one.

Napster Begs for Mercy

Already widely reported but fun in light of Orlowski's rambling about subscription services, Napster is looking for a bail-out according to the NYTimes. (Tip to DaringFireball for the link.)

Apparently, BusinessWeek thinks Creative would be a great partner, because two guys who can't swim is always better than one.

Details Confound Register Writer

Andrew Orlowski’s latest article “The iPod’s Achilles Heel? It’s er [sic]…Readers Digest?” manages to be almost completely wrong about the growing business of digital music. Orlowski believes that the subscription model, already an abject failure despite the backing of Real, Sony, and Microsoft under the “PlaysForSure” label, will suddenly be resurrected by Microsoft’s Zune player. However, while this idea is interesting, Orlowski makes the grave mistake of using the success of eMusic as his support, and this is just plain wrong.

eMusic has been a surprise hit among digital music purveyors, second only to iTunes in sales. According to this USA Today article, eMusic accounts for 11% of the market, while Apple seizes nearly 70% (the rest is divvied up among perennial losers Napster, Real, and MSN Music; Sony’s Connect is hidden by a rounding error.) What’s most fascinating about eMusic’s success is not only do they cater to independent bands, but they have managed this success without DRM. And, this is very, very important detail that Orlowski has utterly ignored.

An eMusic customer pays $14.99 a month for 65 downloads for a “Plus” subscription or $19.99 for a “Premium” subscription. Once a song is downloaded it can be played on any device and burned innumerable times. This is completely different from the competing subscription services where songs are locked the minute the subscription ends, and extra charges are assessed to burn the song to a CD or move the file to a portable player.

This is a vital difference, users don’t want to rent their music, they want to own it, and any system that gives them this ability it going to do far better than any current subscription service. Really, eMusic is just a different way of charging for the same bits.

Orlowski also manages to be completely wrong about the economics of digital downloads, he writes:

“iTunes doesn't generate money for anyone except Apple. Broadband providers, PC manufacturers, insurance companies, and the battery-replacement services have all profited in some way from the iPod's success - but no one in the music value chain. Steve Jobs doesn't even leave crumbs on the table.”

That’s why the labels signed a new deal with Apple apparently, they like losing money.

Although, according to this Billboard article (PDF warning), the labels are actually taking 65 cents for every song, meaning that while Apple bears the costs of servers, bandwidth, and the staff necessary to maintain the iTunes site, the music labels merely have to hand over digital content. Really, it seems the labels are getting more than a fair deal, and I think it’s a good thing that not only does Apple and the music labels make money, but the success of the iPod/iTunes/iTunes Store triumvirate has create a micro-economy based on cases, accessories, and even batteries.

Lastly, although eMusic’s CEO David Pakman takes a cheap shot at the iPod, he should realize that the iPod’s massive sales help him as well, because eMusic’s songs work on the iPod just as easily as songs from the iTunes Store. After all, “a rising tide lifts all boats.” Consumers hunting for content can happen upon eMusic and use both services equally, grabbing the unusual from eMusic and that Top 40 ohrwrum from iTunes.

iTunes 7

Things to Like About iTunes 7:

• Cover Flow.
  
• Downloading Album Art
  
• Gapless Playback.
  
• The revamped sidebar, including the new icons, but especially the new broken-out categories for movies, TV shows, and podcasts.
  
• Gapless Playback. I know I already said it, but I love that I can listen to Kind of Blue and Delicate Sound of Thunder without the annoying pauses.

Something to Dislike:

• Cover Flow shows displays some albums using a single image, other albums have an image for each-and-every song. Somehow I’ve fixed this on a few albums, but I can’t figure out what I did.

An Inevitable and Necessary Post

September 11 is a bitter day, a sullen and grey ache. Politicians are propping up their image with their response to the anniversary, and I go to lunch with my wife, I send emails to friends, and I hope for better days.

Later that night, I notice the spot-lights spearing the sky, creating a nebulous glow in the clouds, and shafts of blue light that flicker with the fluttering of bats drawn by the moveable feast of insects in the light.