Also bei uns in der Gegend sind die "Freien Wähler" bestens bekannt. Im benachbarten Landkreis Kitzingen sollen sie auch 16% geholt haben (Landrätin ist von den FW). Sind oft ehemalige CSUler, die am big brother Netzwerk gescheitert sind. Eigentlich wollten sie ja auch keine Partei sein... - Alex von Halem
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I like most apple products. But a healthy competition is alwyas a good thing and I'm looking forward to finding out what Android's apparently truly open developers' platform will do, also in terms of how apple will handle situations like this in the future. But then: apple never was open source, was it? - Alex von Halem
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Alex: major parts of Mac OS X (and consequently, iPhone OS) are open source projects, including the core, Darwin. - Mark Trapp
Its a tough situation. People routinely write apps that are far better than Microsofts own offering and then run it on Microsofts OS. Does Microsoft complain, no. In saying that there is a line in the sand here that Apple just crossed in preventing further distribution of the app even outwidth the App Store. I would not like to be developing under those conditions for any platform. - Roberto Bonini
Mark: thanks for the info. It just seems that apple is pursuing a very "closed" approach to the app store. But like the cited article says: it *is* their app store. And I guess they're making good money with it. Can't blame 'em - Alex von Halem
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or rather, wasn't it the apps that gave Facebook it's growth traction over myspace? FB needs to engage with Slide, RockYou and other key developers and resolve this - Bill Sanders
You mean those annoying little addons that try to getyou to send each other fake presents and stuff? I would love a facebook without all that crap. - Alex von Halem
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I sure hope not. There are some genuinely useful apps out there, such as Mobyko. - Baxter Tocher
Wenn soziale Netzwerke überhaupt mit geografischen Orten / Institutionen des öffentlichen Lebens verglichen werden könnten: SchülerVZ wäre der Kiez (oder die Raucherecke hinter dem Pausenhof). - Alex von Halem
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Ich wage die Behauptung, dass mehr Schüler in Social Networks sind als in der Raucherecke ;-) - Benedikt Koehler
Up until this March, I was saying "If they come out with a tablet, I'm buying it on opening day"; but I just bought a $3k MacBook Pro, so I think I'll have to wait for revision two now. ;) - James Williams (willia4)
Maybe that'll finally get my AAPL going back in the positive direction! - Tad - the Meme Maker
the computer that I have now works just fine, thanks. - ::Kristen::
it's my birthday a few days before, so i'm selling every gift I get and buying one if they release it. - Zee from WeDoCreative
Although part of me flinches at the idea of losing half of my desktop space to a keyboard every time I want to type, and I spend a lot of time typing, I have to assume that they anticipated that issue and have some kind of context-sensitive zooming similar to what's sported by Safari on the iPhone. - Akiva Moskovitz
I would, but I think the interface would be more like the iPhone interface than pure OS X. I also don't think it'll be released Oct 14th, they may announce their intention but it won't be released. - Lee McFadden
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Another thought, it'll be a killer for posture. Either you have to have it propped up on your knees, you'll always be looking straight down, or you'll have to carry around some kind of stand which almost defeats the purpose of such a slim device to begin with. - Akiva Moskovitz
Akiva - I'll assume that they just aren't going to release one (as much as I would love it). This rumor is what? Decades old? - James Williams (willia4)
No. I really don't think I'd like a touch-screen computer. Touch-screen phone is fine, but not computer. - Joey Gibson
Of course I'd buy one. I'm an Apple fanboi! - Sparky
So what, James? I can't discuss my opinion of the rumor? What are you?! Some kind of FASCIST?!@$!~ - Akiva Moskovitz
Not only am I boring, but my money tree died years ago. I don't have the funds to blow on something like this when I have serious bills to pay. - ::Kristen::
I'd rather see a proper 12" portable first. - abacab
I will say that these mockups are gorgeous and I really wish Apple would do one. - James Williams (willia4)
This is the only mac I would be interested in buying... just hoping the news turns out to be true and that I can get some cash together for it - alphaxion
I'd sure like to think I'd consider one if it had the power of a MB yet the functionality of a next gen tablet. On the keyboard comments, I'd think the soft keyboard would be available for anytime typing, but for dedicated typing you'd use some kind of wireless hardware option with the computer propped up. Very cool. - Jeremy Hall
I guess it would depend on the price. Touch would be great, not necessarily the touch "keyboard" though. I, too, would prefer a wireless real keyboard as an addition. - Alex von Halem
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This is somthing that needs doing. I'd definately try my hardest to get one. - Roberto Bonini
Apple & other manufacturers would make a packet off external mice, keyboard etc...no doubt at all. - Zee from WeDoCreative
Dell Inspiron. I have a 6400. Works great. Core Duo. 5:30 to 6 hour battery life if I turn everything off save the screen and be draconian on the Power Saver settings. Vista runs great on it. - Roberto Bonini
Macbook refresh coming next month, wait for that. Unless you plan on going PC, then I would go intel based HP. - Mathew Ballard
my currrent laptop is a Dell Inspiron 6000 which has been a great workhorse. In a perfect world, i'd wipe a new laptop clean of Vista and install XP. Sadly, that won't happen. Maybe Vista will move me closer to Mac-ville? Thanks for the advice FF'ers! - Shawna Benson
every PC laptop I've owned (seven of varying manufacturers and price points) and every PC laptop I have ever seen meatspace friends own has invariably been INCREDIBLY frustrating or a lemon. broad claim, I know, but still. - Michael J. Cohen (mjc)
seen a handful of macs that were lemons or frustrating too. just to balance that out. - Michael J. Cohen (mjc)
I love Macs, but I've never had any trouble with a PC that I didn't cause. Yes, they do crash more, but that is because of the OS *cough*Vista*cough* and not the PC itself. Hell there are people running OSX on PCs and they are loving it. - Mathew Ballard
my first job out of college was pc support, so BSOD doesn't really scare me anymore. I can fix my own problems or rebuild. Sucks, but I'm used to it. Now, in college I was using Macs (of course) but I went years without touching one - Totally freaked out trying to use a friend's macbook last week because I couldn't remember single button navigation. - Shawna Benson
In my experience as an IT type person, all laptops have at least a 5% failure rate within the first 6 months. In my opinion, Lenovo still makes some of the most solid laptops. Driver issues are actually the biggest pain with any laptops running Windows, particularly if you dock/undock your laptop often. - Alex "Chameleon" Scoble
@Shawna fixing and rebuilding wastes WAY too much of your time, and time is money. - Michael J. Cohen (mjc)
mjc: you are correct. Thankfully, my laptop has had exactly 2 problems in the 4 years i've owned it: 1) the battery no longer charges and 2) my '7' key came off and I can't put it back on, though I have tried. :) - Shawna Benson
it very much depends on 2 things... what you want to use it for and what your budget is. Figure out the answer to them and you will know what to look for - alphaxion
Again, thanks everyone for the help -- you are all awesome! - Shawna Benson
What was your price range? Macbook refurbs aren't that pricy and they are covered under the warrantee. $899 for C2D now, probably even less after the refresh next month. I've bought 3 Mac refurb laptops over the years and been very happy with each one (and run XP under Boot Camp). - Chris Weiss
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seroiusly the macbook core duo is a great processor- and it beats hte pants off of the last few PC notebooks I've had (I've had them all!). I do understand if you have software for PC and can't make the shift. Still, when the new macbooks come out the old ones (the one I've had for 2 yrs!) will dive in price, and be a better per-component buy, as they are wicked fast and sturdy. and quiet. My last IBM was nicknamed the 747 by friends in the laptop chip biz! - anna awesomesauce
I second @Chris Weiss on refurbs, I usually buy those. The warranty is good and saves you a few 100. Got my iPhone that way, before they were cheap! Check MacRumors. - anna awesomesauce
"In Mrs. Palin, Mr. Obama faces a political phenomenon who has altered the election's dynamics. Americans have rarely seen someone who immediately connects with large numbers of voters at such a visceral level. Mrs. Palin may be the first vice presidential candidate since Lyndon B. Johnson to change an election's outcome. If Mr. Obama keeps attacking her, the odds of Gov. Palin becoming Vice President Palin increase significantly." - Russellreno
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Agreed. The Democrats lose the election if it becomes about Sarah Palin, rather than the economy, Iraq, energy, education, and constitutional freedoms. - Chris Baskind
Should've pointed out that the piece was by Karl Rove. 'Nuff said. - steplow is Steve
This viewpoint, even if it was written by Karl Rove, resonates with me. - Robert Scoble
Holy crap. Karl Rove can make up his own reality and spread it via WSJ. Squillions of businessfolks are going to read this and remember it and tell their friends. I'm glad WSJ puts in the sidebar and footnote that reveal Rove's political leanings. - Daniel J. Pritchett
But he's right. Palin cannot become the subject of this election. The subject is that GOP junta has run the country like a banana republic for eight years, and now says the next four would be different if we return them to the White House. - Chris Baskind
I agree Robert - the campaign has completely changed, she may be president in 4 years, keep that in mind - Jason Kintzler
@AlexScoble No you can't ~wags tongue~ ;) - Peter Simard
Love the Obama quote about how him running for president counts as experience points that qualify him for President. By that logic, Al Sharpton is qualified. - Mark Jaquith
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Love him or hate him Rove's political acumen is unparalleled. - Peter Simard
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Obama running against McCain? - Jeff P. Henderson
With Palin on the GOP ticket,the experience question is moot. Enough. - Chris Reed
Yeah, she's the most experienced of all of them - Peter Simard
OK, lets here some discussion about issues from the candidates now. - Jeff P. Henderson
Jeff, you wouldn't think it, the way he's been going after her specifically. - Mark Jaquith
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I'm not going to honor Karl Rove by responding line by line to his drivel. Either party can write articles like that, they never give a full picture. Maybe it just comes down to values for me, ie., I don't share hers, although perhaps the Undecideds do. - Marko Bon
Consider the source. Karl Rove. Obama hasn't been going after Palin. Rove wants him to. - Mark Logan
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I can't believe I just wasted my time reading this propaganda. I further can't believe the Wall Street Journal chose to publish it. - Carlton Northern
It's evident that Palin was selected to counter Obama. GOP musta figured folks might not vote for McCain, but they will vote for Palin. Definitlely cynical. Possibly successful. - MikeAmundsen
I agree with Rove on this. Obama just needs to stay clear of Palin. - Russellreno
It is interesting to see how peoples views are clouded by preconceived political ideas. - Zach Scott
I'm not surprised that the WSJ printed it. They are just catering to their customers, most of whom are conservative. - Alex "Chameleon" Scoble
@Zach Your preconceived notions about people's views is interesting. - Mattb4rd
WSJ = Ruport Murdoch = Fox News = Karl Rove's Boss - Darrell Bell
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Enough is enough! Less political garbage - more debate on issues. I'll start - do you believe in trickle down economics? - AJ Kohn
yep, Palin is the 'red meat' for Dems. Palin is cast as the 'victim' that the left-wing media abuses, that the liberals denegrate, and the democrats don't understand. great story for running a campaign. and the Dems have a hard time keeping away from it. like others said, Palin is not the election issue. the GOP/McCain is. any press on Palin is press *not* covering GOP/McCain. Dems need to figure out how to make her a non-issue. - MikeAmundsen
@alex It's obviously just an opinion piece. Don't be too scared of opinion. :) - Mattb4rd
Karl Rove should talk about failure of Bush Admin instead of Obama - imran
It's funny how an inexperienced Democrat can be a "change agent" but an inexperienced Republican is a "bad Disney movie". :| - John Denver
You're right @AlexScoble, Yes We Can! - Paula Moore
No, it's a fact that trickle down economics hasn't worked for the bulk of Americans. It results in the rich getting richer at a faster rate than anyone else. It doesn't pull us up all equally. - Alex "Chameleon" Scoble
"I hate him, therefore he's wrong" is a logical fallacy. Democrats ignore Karl Rove at their peril; he is an absolute political genius. A stinking, slimy weasel, but a political genius nonetheless. - llebpmaC nelG
it's true, if this becomes about Palin, we Dems are screwed. But Obama and Biden *have* been talking about issues. The Repubs can't win on issues, so they take random quotes out of context and try to refocus it on Palin. Look at what they did with "lipstick on a pig." The media is complicit in this. - Victor Ganata
I think Rove makes some good points here. The question is, why is he giving free advice to the enemy? My thought: he's trying to reverse psychologize the Obama ticket into taking on Palin. It's win-win for him; if they take his advice, he can claim victory, if they don't McCain might win. - John
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@AlexScoble, is it a fact? I credit much of the economic boom of the '90s to Reagan's economic policies. Reagan let the rich keep their money and, no, it didn't do much for everyone else at the time. However, there were no good investment opportunities in the '80s, so the rich horded their cash. Then, when the WWW (and other technology-related industries) took off in the '90s, the rich invested and everyone else benefited. - J. McConnell
Good thing that Obama and Biden are totally doing the grassroots thing. The media generally fails to provide substantive coverage of what they're doing, and what they're doing is really resonating with a lot of people. Anecdotally, everyone I know is voting for Obama, and i'm in freakin' San Diego, certainly one of the most conservative cities in the country. People really aren't as stupid as the Republicans and the media want you to believe. When you're getting screwed hard enough, you pay attention. - Victor Ganata
The thing I find most interesting is that Karl Rove once helped determine policy from the inside the Bush Administration. Now Mr. Rove works in media now. He gets to help to form and shape public opinion now. The WSJ and Fox News are his platforms for doing so. Am I the only one that finds scary? He has managed to cover all of the bases for promoting his school of thought. - Darrell Bell
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They've got Palin doing all the PR gigs, have hardly seen McCain in the past week. The Democrats need to (and I want them to) play smart. - Chris Dahl
Yeah, those reps aren't as stupid as we thought, eh? Of course it was the only viable opportunity and seems to be working. so far. - Alex von Halem
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Tagged both this debate and the story with Delicious. - Roberto Bonini
I agree with Alex on trickle down economics. The gap between rich and poor is wider than ever, in part because of this practice. And at it base you need to think about it this way. If you were to give WalMart a tax-break, would they increase employee wages? - AJ Kohn
Alex, have you ever considered that the rich may be rich because they are smarter and make good decisions? Stupid broke people, if given a lot of money, will soon be broke again. "Life is hard. It's harder when you're stupid" - John Wayne - Mattb4rd
But...um...he's NOT running against Palin. Are the mass electorate really that stupid? - Steve
LOL that's laughable Matt...there are plenty of stupid people with money. You don't necessarily need intelligence to make money. To think that you do is laughable, just as it's laughable to assume that you need intelligence to get a degree. If our problem with poverty was as easy as that it would have been fixed long ago. - Alex "Chameleon" Scoble
The hype usually wears off 30 days after the convention. - Bob
@AJ Kohn, I'm not disagreeing that trickle down economics might not work, I'm wondering aloud if it should be considered a "fact" that it doesn't work. In your example, I don't think it's fair to ask if Walmart would increase employee wages if given a task break. The fair question is, given a tax break, would Walmart invest that money in a way that benefits the many more than if the government had taken it in taxes? - J. McConnell
Alex: Laugh this off too, if you will: Socialism has failed every time is has been tried. - Mattb4rd
I dunno, Europe seems to be doing OK, doesn't it? I mean, they're currency is certainly stronger than ours is right now. - Victor Ganata
I think Rove may be wrong on two points here. First, Obama hasn't been devoting significant time on attacks on Palin. Second, the contention that Palin is popular may not be true. Her negative poll numbers are higher than her positives. Her appeal may prove to be narrow and short-lived. - Mark Logan
Bells, Trombone, and Violin. I sucked at all of them. - Bored
Bassoon, alto, tenor and bari sax. Marimbas and other percussion in marching band (so I could just stand on the sidelines and not march). Marched in Mississippi State University band - that was awesome - got to play in the HUGE stadiums of the SEC... - Tad - the Meme Maker
I had to choose betwixt my last year of Little League or joining the band in the fifth grade. If ever there was a thing to hold against my parents, that would be it ;) - Michael W. May
Randy: unfortunately, no. Once I got into college I didn't have the time to keep it up (not to mention the Atlanta Youth Symphony left me in the dust!) - Stupid Emoo (aka Tina)
Bass in concert, jazz and stage bands (along with the band formed with a bunch a friends think we were it and could take on the world with our awful Pantera covers). - Patricia Hanrahan
trombone and guitar. still play the guitar, and have made WAY too much crap with Logic. really want a Roland GK-2a so I can get some serious work done though... - Michael J. Cohen (mjc)
I played Alto Saxophone at Prospect High School in its marching band for several years. - Robert Scoble
No chance in hell. I acquired ALL my skills AFTER high school. - Alex von Halem
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clarinet (concert season) and mellophone (marching french horn). - Lindsay Donaghe
I did a half semester of snare drum in 6th grade before moving to a private school, does that count? Don't think I ever performed. - Daniel J. Pritchett
My sister was, she played the cymbals. - Justin Korn
I played cowbell. I am not making this up. - Mitch Wagner
Flute in high school and piccolo in the Stanford Band. - Shannon Jiménez
Stubborn enough to answer, even though I dated band members and sang in the choir. - MiniMage LightBlueRanger
I can't change it. I get an error when I try. - Robert Scoble
Robert - ask Paul. The database is probably having heart failure cause you have 18k followers. <joke>I think tech startups should get Scoble insurance, no?<joke/> - Roberto Bonini
For not forgeting my ideas(*) (specially for blog posts but also for anything else) I use two of the many GTD apps in Ubuntu. Tomboy notes and Sticky notes. (*=also for searching them and keep an eye on them.). As soon as I have done one of them I simply delete it if it's not important. If it is though, I simply write in the title --DONE--. :-) - Apostolos Papadopoulos
del.icio.us... but it is getting slow with the new v - AnotherⓃⓄⒶⒽ
Oh, I was using Jott for my "while driving" epiphanies. Today it said "that option is not a part of your plan" or something so I promptly removed Jott from my address book. I liked Jott, but I don't have spare cash this year. - Daniel J. Pritchett
Obama significantly so before the Biden pick, less so after. We're kinda screwed either way. - abacab
I'm pretty sure McCain has someone print out his email so he can read it, so... - Matthew Davidson
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Louis - Think trending would be an understatement where FF is concerned. Noticed the NY Post endorsed McCain this morning. No comment from me other than i think it's goin' right down to the wire. Commercials here in PA are running every fifteen minutes from both campaigns ... It's unreal ... and in between, each hour, the new Microsoft commercial :) - Charlie Anzman
Me, personally? As a fan of tech, Obama. I feel like he actually understands what his tech policy is - not what was told to him by his handlers. - Shawn Farner
All - very salient points... I would tend to agree this election will be close and I can't remember a presidential election that was a landslide since Reagan.... where both popular and electoral majority spoke clearly... I wonder what it means to have a country that has been so closely divided on issues for the past few elections? - ChangeForge | Ken Stewart
+1 Matthew... That's hilarious. I am a fan of McCain, being a former Marine myself- but I don't think he is "with it". I often smirk when I see him reading a speech on the podium while you know he has to have teleprompters in front of him. - ChangeForge | Ken Stewart
Tech points have to go to Obama. At least he uses a team that seems to know what they're doing. McCain? You can probably forget it. But what does the Hockey Mom have to offer in terms of tech???? - Alex von Halem
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Alex, Lipstick? No, I'm kidding... I suppose you bring up an interesting point: We often choose candidates that represent our interests (and so we should). By your comment, might I assume you believe this as well? - ChangeForge | Ken Stewart
@ChangeForge Sure. We all have to be able to IDENTIFY. But "interests" change and in politics I think it's important to keep the "big picture" (the future for our kids) in mind.. yaddayaddayadda But yes, I do think it is important if I feel I can "gel" with a candidate. - Alex von Halem
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Changeforge, do you think McCain's voting record on veterans issues represents your interests? - Bruce Lewis
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Bruce, McCain reminds me of an old, crusty, battle axe of a commanding officer I once had. He even sounds like him, looks like him, and makes gestures like him. Its uncanny. Needless to say, this guy had us out doing what I thought was really mindless stuff, but what I figured out was the unit came together in a way you never would've thought. In my brief review of his voting history, I'm not overly impressed.. If I must be honest - I fear elections have become a choice of lesser evils... sadly. - ChangeForge | Ken Stewart
“Would you say that Tech-types are more apt to follow Obama or McCain?” - Yes. Yes I would. - Slippy Lane
