A few weeks ago the White House reached out to Kickstarter to help raise money for Syrian refugees.
On one hand, this is very commendable (Kickstarter is donating 100% of their fee) and I think it’s great if individuals can donate but I can’t help but think that this request came from the U.S. government. A government that spends over $600 billion a year on defense.
How about the U.S. government throw a few billion to the Syrian refugees?
I’m not sure if this is going to affect more companies, but there appears to be some deflation going on in the tech world.
The Gilt Groupe is cutting 45 jobs ‘Amid A Quest For Profit‘. Money, money, need more money. Money. Then Evernote lays off 47 people and closes 3 offices in effort to build a more focused team. That damn focus! We lost it with all these extra people around! Who the fuck hired them, anyway?! GroupOn is cutting 1,100 jobs worldwide as part of a restructuring of its international operations. They had structure and now they’re restructuring it. Again, humans getting in the way.
Re/code also notes investor slowdown in 2015:
New data from Thomson Reuters and the National Venture Capital Association’s Fundraising Report show that VC firms raised $4.4 billion in the third quarter of 2015. That’s a 59 percent decrease from the second quarter and a 33 percent decrease from the third quarter of last year.
People in the world. Doing stuff with money.
Update: Twitter Is Planning Company-Wide Layoffs for Next Week
Elon Musk with the smack talk to the German press:
In response to claims that Apple is poaching key members of Tesla staff to work on its long-rumoured self-driving car project, Musk joked: “Important engineers? They have hired people we’ve fired. We always jokingly call Apple the Tesla Graveyard.” But just to make sure that his comments weren’t entirely dismissed as harmless CEO-style jostling, he added: “If you don’t make it at Tesla, you go work at Apple. I’m not kidding.”
I love the smack talk that happens at the top of the corporate food chain.
It reminds me of when Steve Jobs was on stage with Bill Gates at an AllThingsD Conference and compared iTunes on Windows, “like giving someone ice water in hell.”
That Jobs quote is from 2007. Given the confusing klusterfuck iTunes is right now in 2015, I hardly think of it as a glass of ice water. Even in 2007, iTunes was more like a glass of luke warm water.
Now look at me with the iTunes smack talk. Where did that come from?
I wasn’t planning that.
I love Jay Leno. I love him for different reasons. I love his YouTube show. I love his car collection. I love his enthusiasm for cars. I love his knowledge of cars. I loved that he worked at a car shop as a kid. I love that he’s from New York.
I also love his lack of pretension.
Here’s a quick screen grab from the promo for the series premiere of his new show on NBC, Jay Leno’s Garage:
Make up? No.
Comb your hair? No.
You going take off that stupid blue shirt? No.
Jay doesn’t give a fuck and I love that.
Vlad Savov on Google’s new Nexus phones:
I’ve spent the past couple of days desperately trying to puzzle out the purpose behind Google’s newly announced Nexus 5X and 6P smartphones. Unlike predecessors such as the Nexus One and Nexus 5, these phones don’t have a clear reason for being, and are not in themselves terribly unique. That’s led me (and others) to question Google’s overall aim with the Nexus line of pure Android smartphones, and I think I’ve finally arrived at an answer. The Nexus program is not so much about carrier independence or purity of Android design as it is about presenting Google in an overwhelmingly positive light. In other words, Google, the ultimate ad seller, sells Nexus phones as ads for itself.
Think about how different Apple and Google are. Google knows there’s no chance in hell they’ll ever have a blockbuster hit with their own phones and Apple sells their phones to pull in 92% of all smartphone profits.
I also love this MarketWatch headline (via Daring Fireball):
Google unveils everything Apple launched, only cheaper
Sounds about right.
Microsoft’s flagship NYC store opens at the end of October:
Microsoft is opening its first flagship store in New York City later next month. Located just a few blocks away from Apple’s iconic cube on Fifth Avenue, Microsoft’s new retail location will replace an old Fendi store at 677 Fifth Avenue and serve as the company’s first full retail store in Manhattan. “These flagship stores have been in the making for six years,” explains David Porter, Microsoft’s head of retail and online stores. “We are eager to open our doors to those in Manhattan. The five-floor, 22,269 square foot location will be a premier venue to learn about, experience and shop for the products and services from Microsoft and our partners.”
Guys, it’s time to end the charade.
Focus on what you do best—software.
I still contend the animated GIF is one of the most important mediums of expression in the 21st century.
Animated superhero logos by Christian Tailor
via Quipsologies
The drinking of tears is called lachryphagy, as shown in this photo of butterflies drinking turtle tears:
Get a room, you guys.
Photo credit: amalavida.tv
Without the bass, The Dead Weather would be nothing.
via Twitter
Over at Pitchfork, Jazz Monroe on an email Steve Albini wrote that was turned into a billboard:
Diagonal label boss Oscar Powell also releases music as Powell via XL. His latest single, “Insomniac”, (coming soon on XL), features a vocal sample from Steve Albini that dates to his time fronting Big Black. Ahead of its release, Powell emailed Albini to get sample clearance and explain how much Big Black’s music meant to him. However, as the Quietus reports, Albini gave more than his approval—he also included a long rant on how much he hates dance music.
If you don’t know who Steve Albini is, here’s a bit:
As of 2008, Albini is most active as a record producer; however, he dislikes the term and prefers to receive no credit on album sleeves or notes. When credited, he prefers the term “recording engineer.”
Albini estimated that he has engineered the recording of 1,500 albums, mostly by obscure musicians, in 2004. More prominent artists that Albini has worked with include: Foxy Shazam, Nirvana, Pixies, The Breeders, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Mogwai, The Jesus Lizard, Don Caballero, PJ Harvey, The Wedding Present, Joanna Newsom, Superchunk, Low, Dirty Three, Jawbreaker, Neurosis, Cloud Nothings, Bush, Chevelle, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, Helmet, Fred Schneider, The Stooges, Owls, Manic Street Preachers, Jarvis Cocker, The Cribs, The Fleshtones, Nina Nastasia, The Frames, The Membranes, Cheap Trick, Motorpsycho, Slint, mclusky, Labradford, Veruca Salt, Zao, and The Auteurs.
The dude is no joke.
Fake traffic has become a commodity. There’s malware for generating it and brokers who sell it. Some companies pay for it intentionally, some accidentally, and some prefer not to ask where their traffic comes from. It’s given rise to an industry of countermeasures, which inspire counter-countermeasures. “It’s like a game of whack-a-mole,” says Fernando Arriola, vice president for media and integration at ConAgra Foods. Consumers, meanwhile, to the extent they pay attention to targeted ads at all, hate them: The top paid iPhone app on Apple’s App Store is an ad blocker.
—Bloomberg: The Fake Traffic Schemes That Are Rotting the Internet
Guess what: Blackberry still makes phones and apparently their CEO doesn’t know how to use them:
Last week, BlackBerry confirmed plans to launch the Priv: an Android-powered slider smartphone that it says combines the best features of Google’s mobile OS with “BlackBerry security and productivity.” It’s a sensible selling point, but as this hands-on with the Priv featuring BlackBerry CEO John Chen shows, the Android operating system isn’t familiar territory for the company. Chen repeatedly says that the Priv “runs Google,” and falters during the demonstration, opening up Chrome (which is slow to respond) before closing the app when realizing the phone isn’t logged in to a Google account.
Hey Chen, at least act like you give a shit.
