check out the round corners !

I'll post a spoiler-free link for this one just like I did last month's iPod event as soon as Macrumors creates the forum. For now, here are all the details from Macworld:

Apple is turning its attention to its notebook line of computers, as the company announced a special event being held in Cupertino on October 14 at 10:00 am.

“The spotlight turns to notebooks,” reads the invitation sent to select media on Thursday, announcing next week’s event. No other information was given, but it’s obvious what Apple will be announcing next week.

The event to introduce new notebooks comes just over a month from when the company rolled out new iPods. The “Let’s Rock” event saw a new iPod nano, iPod touch and iTunes 8, among other things.

The release of new notebooks will set Apple up with a new computers, iPods and iPhones before the lucrative holiday shopping season.

One of the things Todd mentions is the Steve Jobs false heart attach reports. We here at allvoices take a dim view of people submitting false reports.  At the same time,  we don't believe that one person has he right to decide what should and should not be reported. Instead,  allvoices takes a different view of citizen journalism. We let you the community decide.  We don't edit your pieces. We don't decide what can and can not be posted on the site. You might say we are community journalism instead of vigilante journalism.

I talked to Sanjay Sood, allvoices CTO, about this and he offered the following:

While it's true that allvoices does not have human editors accepting and rejecting user reports, we believe that the proper technology and community input can provide the necessary validation.  Just as journalists validate their stories via multiple sources, the allvoices system can automatically validate a users contribution against thousands of traditional news sites.  Just as you judge the news you receive by the reputation of the source and reporter, the allvoices system considers the past actions of contributors (if any) to handle and verify a new report.  The allvoices community, like your friends, helps you vet what to believe and what is just false.  allvoices is all about building perspective and context around the news that matters to our users without the barriers of the traditional media.

We have four mechanisms that let community members add their voice to the news: Flagging,  voicing up or down, adding 

Flagging lets you mark a piece as inappropriate for the site or the story. If you want to learn more about flagging, check out Flagging stories… Voicing up or down an item on the site allows you to share whether you think this piece belongs here or not. Try not to think of these two buttons as whether or not you agree with the item. Instead, think of these buttons as your "review" of the item. Is it a good item which others should view? Or, is it something people should disregard?

Flagging and using the voice up and down buttons are quick ways to express your opinion and help to validate information. If you have something to say about the item, comment on it. You can comment on a report from its main page. If you have a comment on a related item (blog, image, or video), you can click that item and then comment on it directly. Commenting on items keeps the conversation going and growing. It helps us all to learn from each other and validate what is being said.

The last way you can voice your news is to add your own news. This can be a related item like a blog, a video, or an image. Or - you can write your own news story and let the system link the two together.

No matter how you add your voice to the news, know that we are depending on you and your fellow community members to help us verify the news you read here. We believe that by taking down the walls that block your voice, we can all work together to make everyone better informed.

Quando si cita Apple, automaticamente ci viene in mente la figura di Steve Jobs, colui che tiene le redini dell'azienda. Molti dimenticano però lo "zio" Steve Wozniak, noto con il nomignolo "Woz", co-fondatore di Apple nel 1976.

Woz è un personaggio eccentrico, seppur fuori dall'azienda, ne è sempre il fan numero uno e continua a dimostrarlo con gli "sfottò" rivolti al suo amico Steve.

Se Steve è un conservatore, Woz è l'opposto: ama la tecnologia e odia le restrizioni, difatti possiede un iPhone con Jailbrake ed è molto soddisfatto del suo "innocente hack" tanto da consigliarne ironicamente l'utilizzo. Ovviamente non poteva tacere sulle restrizioni di App Store e sul "circolo di vita" di iPod...

Difatti eccolo di ritorno: Woz ha rilasciato alcune dichiarazioni al quotidiano "The Telegraph", pronosticando che il ciclo di iPod ha fatto il suo corso: il piccolo lettore multimediale Apple con ghiera sarebbe quindi destinato ad estinguersi nel giro di qualche anno, un po' quanto è successo con il declino del Walkman negli anni '90.

Ma non solo, prevedibilmente la palla passa ad iPhone, lo considera "troppo chiuso" e perciò "incapace di assicurare ai consumatori di farci tutto ciò che desiderano".

Ma non c'è molto da stupirsi della franchezza delle dichiarazioni di Woz, non è nuovo a queste cose, è sempre stato un personaggio schietto e riflessivo riguardo i propri prodotti e le novità. Ma non poteva mancare l'ennesimo sfottò difatti zio Woz non si stupirebbe nel vedere un futuro iWatch...

Ecco il link all'intervista originale in inglese.

Por medio de AppleWeblog me entero que Apple ha confirmado un evento el 14 de Octubre en San Francisco. La invitación que se ha enviado a la prensa se muestra arriba, sabemos con claridad que se presentará la nueva generación de portátiles.

[Vía: AppleWeblog]

Here is the inflammatory post about Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple Inc. 

Steve Jobs was rushed to the ER just a few hours ago after suffering a major heart attack. I have an insider who tells me that paramedics were called after Steve claimed to be suffering from severe chest pains and shortness of breath. My source has opted to remain anonymous, but he is quite reliable. I haven't seen anything about this anywhere else yet, and as of right now, I have no further information, so I thought this would be a good place to start. If anyone else has more information, please share it.

Two and one-half hours later, the rumour was picked up by Silicon Alley Insider and spread through the Net.  The Financial Blog acknowledged the story was unconfirmed and that its reporters were checking on it.  However, within minutes of the SAI post, Apple's stock started to drop and continued to fall until SAI was able to confirm the story was false. 

The fiasco has raised important questions about so-called 'citizen journalism.'  At the very least, CNN must do a better job in screening content that appears on iReport. What is more disturbing is the lame rationalization by the editor of Silicon Alley Insider, Henry Blodget, who says he would make the same decision again; namely, publish information from an anonymous single source. This is incredibly irresponsible and amounts to nothing more than gossip-mongering. 

I applaud media organizations who are more concerned about getting it right, rather than first. Unfortunately, Silicon Alley Insider is not one of them!

So it's confirmed...On Tuesday, October 14th, we will hear from Apple...and the spotlight will be on their notebooks. Above are some leaked photos of what we might see come Tuesday...

Se confirman los rumores sobre los que venimos hablando durante semanas: El próximo 14 de Octubre se celebrará en San Francisco un evento especial de Apple, con el punto de mira puesto en los portátiles… Y ésta vez, según la imagen de la invitación, lo dejan bien claro.

La información proviene de Engadget, quienes aseguran que Apple ha comenzado a repartir las invitaciones hoy mismo...

¡Se aceptan apuestas!

Engadget seems to be the first to release info on Apple's latest event, "Notebook". October 14th may shed some light on rumors of the long awaited, ever necessary Macbook Pro refresh, which may feature an alleged top-secret Apple Brick Technology, which would case the laptop in a single sheet of metal.

Since when did Apple's clean white visage go mysteriously black?

[Image Via Engadget and Gizmodo]

It's becoming clear, at least to some Apple watchers, that Oct. 14 will come and go without On Thursday, Apple e-mailed reporters with invitations for the rumored show-and-tell at which Steve Jobs is supposed to introduce a new line of MacBooks -- the aging notebook computers that now account for 30% of Apple's quarterly revenue. (See All eyes on the MacBook.)

But we're getting close, judging by the frequency with which spy photos are starting to emerge. There's even a leaked price list that has Apple selling MacBooks for as low as $800 (see below).

The latest set of pictures, posted by a Taiwanese blogger at Apple.pro and republished by MacRumors, may very well be fakes, but they are consistent with reports that Apple has switched to a new manufacturing process that carves the shells of its notebooks out of a single "brick" of aluminum. (See Has Steve Jobs built a secret MacBook factory?)

Accompanied by Chinese characters that, roughly translated, invite readers to look at "three mystical pictures transmitted greatly peacefully," the photos purport to show "the fable joins MacBook which the aluminum shell helps the C shell."  (link)

The photos are pasted below in their original form:

Note that although these images are similar in several respects to the image at right, posted earlier in the week by Engadget, they are clearly from different machines (or different Photoshop sessions). For example, the space between the keyboard holes and the outer edge of the computer in this image is wider than in the images above.

Meanwhile, Duncan Riley at The Inquisitor claims to have got his hands on an official price list for the new machines. According to his source:

"Apple retail stores have been given price sheets that list 12 price points for the new range, with prices between $800-$3100. Current lines only have 8 price points, 3 Macbooks starting at $1099, 3 Macbook Pros and 2 Macbook Airs." (link)

Riley adds that Apple retail outlets usually receive price lists 10 days before products hit the market, which would push the launch date into the third week of October. Several commentators dispute Riley's 10-day rule and suggest that we shouldn't expect to see the new machines before November.

Why would anyone with inside information share it with these rumor sites, given the speed and severity with which Apple (AAPL) punishes leakers? You have to wonder. Foxconn, Apple's Taiwanese manufacturing partner, is said to be even more strict about these things, which may explain the cryptic message posted below the Apple.com images:

下班後小心別被磚塊打

This, according to Babel Fish, roughly translates as:

"After getting off work, careful be not projected on by the brick bat."

Risale a venerdì scorso l'ultima "speculazione bomba" sulla salute del CEO di Apple Steve Jobs. Una notizia che ha certamente scosso gli animi in borsa, nessuno difatti pare staccarsi dall'immagine del papà di Apple, dando l'azienda quasi come fosse sorretta da un unico uomo.

iReuters, un sito della CNN ha dato la notizia su di un presunto attacco cardiaco ai danni di Steve Jobs, con tanto di ricovero d'urgenza. La notizia, fortunatamente è stata smentita poco dopo da uno dei portavoci di Apple tramite un comunicato stampa.

Tanto la notizia è rimasta online, tanto AAPL è sceso in borsa e in un periodo in cui la crisi finanziaria sta dilaniando i mercati globali, questo ha comunque un suo peso.

La SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) ha infatti aperto un'inchiesta a riguardo, l'accusa sarebbe di "speculazione", ovvero vige il dubbio che tale notizia, sia stata in realtà una mossa scorretta da parte di alcuni "speculatori" ai danni di Apple, per poter comprare le azioni a basso costo e poi poterle rivendere in futuro a prezzo più alto. Dando per scontato che l'azienda si rimetterà in sesto (come ha sempre fatto), ecco che l'affare andrebbe compiuto. A questo si aggiunge il "peso" dei possibili "speculatori": ci andrebbe di mezzo la CNN (che ha dichiarato di essere estranea alla vicenda)...

AAPL sotto i 100 $

Il limite psicologico è stato toccato: APPL in soli due mesi è passata dai 180 $ per azione a 89.79 $, ben al di sotto dei 100 dollari. Tale minimo è stato raggiunto a Maggio del 2007.

Sono giorni duri per la borsa mondiale, in un momento di crisi di tale portata, si pensa maggiormente a tutto ciò che concerne i beni di prima necessità, l'informatica è difatti vista quale un "genere di lusso" ed ovviamente, i settori tecnologici ne stanno pagando le spese. Non c'è da stupirsi infatti se tali risultati arrivano senza una ragione ben precisa, dal suo canto Apple ha poco da temere per ciò che riguarda le vendite dei prodotti, nonostante un ovvio e pronosticato calo per i Mac, chi deve pensarci due volte sono in realtà gli investitori ed è proprio a loro che lanciamo un'appello: Non affidate i vostri pochi risparmi alla buona salute di un'azienda in un periodo così difficile.

Steve Jobs durante una conferenza stampa nel corso dell'anno dichiarò: "Non do molto peso alla borsa, se facciamo un buon lavoro verremo premiati".

iPhone 3G Vola

Dopo il consistente numero di iPhone 3G venduti e i nuovi riconoscimenti ai British Technology Awards ecco una buona notizia per tutti gli amanti del Melafonino: iPhone è il secondo telefonino più diffuso in America, al primo posto resta inchiodato l'ormai "vecchietto" Motorola Razr V3.

Un ottimo traguardo quindi per il "piccolo tablet" di casa Apple, che in poco più di un anno dalla sua commercializzazione è riuscito a salire agli onori della tecnologia mobile, acquistando sempre più consensi da parte del pubblico con grandi margini di soddisfazione.

iPod 4G 4 GB: ora anche in Italia

Dopo il "mistero di iPod nano 4 GB", dello stock limitato e la latente ufficializzazione della loro esistenza da parte di Apple, i piccoli lettori mp3 si apprestano ad essere venduti anche in Italia.

I nuovi iPod nano 4G da 4 GB, sono infatti apparsi nei cartelloni pubblicitari di MediaWorld con dicitura "esclusiva per l'Italia": il prezzo, ovviamente, è da tiratura limitata, poichè Apple stessa ne ha confermato lo stop della produzione per concentrarsi sui modelli ufficiali da 8 e 16 GB.

I nuovi iPod nano 4GB sono disponibili in tutte le colorazioni (a parte Black) a questo indirizzo. Il prezzo è di 119 € (contando che con 20 euro in più potete averlo al doppio della memoria). Decisamente da "collezionista".

Se avete perso la prima parte di "Tutto ciò che non vi abbiamo detto" cliccate qua.

Mike Arrington reported the latest stock drop, it now stands at $13 after turning down $31 from Microsoft. With the markets in turmoil everything is down good and bad. But while most tech stocks will come back stronger Yahoo will not make it.

The basic problem is management. As CEO the buck stops with Jerry Yang. He is not a leader and it shows. He is constantly looking over his shoulder and conducting reviews. In this position a leader should know what needs to be done, have a plan and get on with it.

You can get away with muddled management in a truly great company. I don't have that much more faith in Eric Schmidt, the money machine was in place when he got on board and he has done not much except ride it. Google has such a great business that it doesn't matter that the rest of their plans go off half cock. You can't get away with it in a company that is in trouble. Great leaders can turn around ailing companies. Look at Steve Jobs, Apple was on the floor when he went back, arguably in a worse position than Yahoo was in when Yang took back the reins, and it skyrocketed after he went back. Say what you like about him but Steve Jobs knows where he is going, when he went back to Apple he didn't need 100 days to sort it out. He knew what to do before he arrived.

Din categoria serioase, se distinge cel al lui Steve Jobs. Luati-va 15 minute din viata, ca sa il ascultati! E considerat cel mai bun discurs de acest fel tinut vreodata. Seful Apple povesteste studentilor de la Stanford trei momente decisive din viata sa. Omul pe care il stim din prezentarile Mac-urilor, are un discurs teribil de inteligent si plin de substanta. Contine lectii de viata, de care poti sa uiti cand alergi dupa un apartament cu 2 camere in cartier rezidential si Seria 5 in leasing:

Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Mai romantat, dar la fel de frumos e discursului lui J. K. Rowling, femeia care a scris Harry Potter si a castigat trilioane de urma lui. Ea vorbeste despre beneficiile esecului si importanta imaginatiei:

So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged.

Un altul care mi-a placut mult, e cel al lui Brian Kenny, jurnalist sportiv pentru ESPN. Sunt multe chestii de invatat si de la el. Cum ar fi asta: If you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room.

Iar pentru cei dintre voi, mandri ca au terminat profesionala, care inca mai cred ca discursul asta s-a intamplat, wake the fuck up.

Acum, cele de caterinca. N-or fi avand prea multe invataminte, dar s-ar putea sa cazi de pe scaun de ras. Culmea e ca toate sunt intr-un fel legate de Harvard. Primul e cel al lui Conan O’Brien, prezentatorul care o sa il inlocuiasca pe Jay Leno in cateva saptamani. Discursul e de la o universitate aflata la cateva sute de metri de casa sa, dar omul chiar a absolvit Harvardul ceea ce e remarcabil. Contine o gramada de aluzii si e amuzant mai degraba la modul subtil.

Urmeaza cele care doar se desfasoara la Harvard si sunt tinute de tot felul de legende ale comediei. Cel mai celebru ar fi al lui Will Ferrell – care practic inseamna 25 de minute de ras convulsiv. Talladega Nights, Anchor Man, Will Ferrell. Enough said.

Mai e Sascha Baron Cohen aka AliG, cu un speech hilar, pseudo-ignorant si vulgar. Cine a vazut interviul lui AliG cu Victoria si Beckham, care e genial, cam stie la ce sa se astepte

My personal favourite e cel al creatorului Family Guy, Seth MacFarlane, care e fabulos, si prin continut si prin vocea legendara a autorului. Pe final, devine Quagmire si le zice femeilor de la Harvard: You are by far the toughest to get into. Enjoy!

TechCrunch announced this afternoon that it was being sued by Earthcomber, a service that helps you find the local things and places you love. According to Michael Arrington of TechCrunch, this lawsuit is completely unjustified and may even have resulted from a simple miscommunication between himself and Earthcomber president, Jim Brady. 

What caught my attention, however, is how Arrington handled the situation, as well as TechCrunch readers. After reading the title "Earthcomber Sues TechCrunch Out of Spite, Pisses Me Off Personally" one can continue to read and find several other passionate phrases such as "I’m not going to go into a lot of detail on the specifics of the patent claims, other than that they are absurd, since our lawyers have asked me not to," "I’ve asked our attorneys to spend whatever it takes to kill this lawsuit, and to find a way to counter sue this guy into the stone age," and finally "I would rather run TechCrunch into the ground and go out of business than let this guy win." 

As a reader of TechCrunch myself, I understand Arrington's viewpoints and completely agree with his justifications. However, I wonder if this response is a positive use of communication with an audience or a negative one. Although there is a need to address the lawsuit itself, did Arrington cross the line with his anger towards Brady? Or does it simply not matter for a business that has a large number of loyal followers?

By scrolling down to the reader comments, you will find a great deal of support for Arrington's statements which illustrates the number of like-minded individuals behind TechCrunch. Is this example then void of what we consider acceptable business behavior, or is Arrington correct in his public rant against Earthcomber?

Responding to how another recent Apple rumor (remember the first one?) piped through an unverified iReport portal on CNN, was being framed as the downside of citizen journalism, Jarvis used this as a 'teaching moment' to remind us of the need for media skepticism.

"Mistakes - let alone rumors and lies - go out live and the public has to learn to judge the news more skeptically. The truth is, they always have. But now rather than ignoring their skepticism, we need to encourage it and educate people to think this way. Call it media literacy."

Truth is, most people expect the media to be fact-checked and error free. They don't buy into the definition that the media is 'the first rough draft of history' and all that.

People often complain about the typos and non-adherence to the style-guide, but don't always howl about the skewered facts. I find the absence of 'absolute truth' across the board, in The Economist and NPR, Drudge and talk radio. That's the bargain I make when I subscribe to them.

At best the journalists (professional, amateur, networked or otherwise) can only give you one version of the truth. They may be our filters, but we need to also install our own.

YouTube - Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address

Quite poignant, in my opinion:

PALO ALTO, California -- Steve Jobs told Stanford University graduates Sunday that dropping out of college was one of the best decisions he ever made because it forced him to be innovative -- even when it came to finding enough money for dinner.

In an unusually candid commencement speech, Apple Computer's CEO also told the almost 5,000 graduates that his bout with a rare form of pancreatic cancer reemphasized the need to live each day to the fullest.

"Your time is limited so don't let it be wasted living someone else's life," Jobs said to a packed stadium of graduates, alumni and family.

(Quote from "Live, Jobs Tells Stanford Grads")

My Mac Book Pro

Handicaps have set me a reeling

Seems my learning style is all mucked

If I cannot live up to the plan here

I mine as well give up!

“Put simply so you’ll understand it

Your brain has a processing problem

An abstract way of reasoning

Don’t worry we’ll get to the bottom”

They’ve called it slight dyslexia

An inability to read very well

I tried hard to focus upon each line

Yet the letters would not sit still

And with that came another

More- a dyslexia of thought

My ideas now all flying around

To one place how could they be brought?

So I gathered my thoughts onto paper

Who care’s if my spellings a crock!

Yet here lied a much deeper problem

My notes seemed to always get lost!

But then I found a solution

 In a surreal monitor screen

Yet let’s not to forget the brains inside

 A duo processor so sleek & quite keen!!

Its accessible memory was better than mine

For a hard drive it did contain

No longer having to try so hard

I now knew I was not insane!

Not only did it help me to focus

It spelled my wrong words right

The words not seeming to jump around

My thoughts being always in sight!

It also held in it great resource

Any questions? (With me there were lots)

I’d just google in some very choice words

And knowledge to me here was brought!

Oh how I miss my Mac Book Pro

My brain it was able to tap

We had become such an exultant team

Where e’r I went— it sat on my lap!

Eloyce M Witzel

2/27/08

Dear Steve Jobs,

I only have dreams of my mac book pro, I gave mine to my son Jason to take with him to a university in Michigan.  While working there at his job, it was stolen from out of his backpack.

I come from an extended family of Mac users, I’ll never accept anything less.  Now at age 45 I am going back to college.  I’m  writing a book, and have started a blog which includes more of my poetry, along with some of my art and music   My husband Eddy is working on his PHD.  All is not lost though; we share a Mac Mini attached to my desk at home. In it is my whole life.

Perhaps you might be interested in my poem.  We could negotiate a trade…  An iphone and a laptop for my poem...

Until then,

Eloyce Witzel

Los medios y, sobre todo, los periodistas de profesión se quejan de la facilidad con la que los bloggers desempeñan una labor cercana a la del periodista desde casa, apelando a la falta de rigor informativo, escasos conocimientos en la materia y nula experiencia laboral. Vamos, que cualquier hijo de vecino podría ser un periodista si se estudiase las cinco "W" y la pirámide invertida (nada más lejos de la realidad, por otra parte). Sin embargo, si no quieren que su ya de por sí mala imagen empeore aún más, los medios deberían dejar de aprovecharse del trabajo de otros para rellenar sus espacios televisivos y en prensa. ¿Por qué gastarse una pasta en tener un corresponsal en Cuba para cubrir el paso del huracán Ike, si podemos usar la crónica de alguien que la haya vivido en sus carnes? ¿O por qué mandar un reportero a cubrir una noticia si podemos tirar de Youtube y poner el vídeo pixelado y con sonido enlatado en televisión?

Esta tendencia consistente en "repartirse el trabajo entre todos" se lleva viendo desde hace tiempo en la publicidad. Muchas marcas importantes ahorran en gastos dejando que sea el público el que trabaje y diseñe un logo para la empresa o la sintonía de un spot publicitario. Ojo, no estoy hablando de concursos, donde hay un premio en metálico para el ganador, sino de que la marca se queda con los derechos de la canción que uno ha compuesto y el único premio es escucharla durante diez segundos en el intermedio de Los Simpsons.

¿Democratización de la cultura o aprovecharse del trabajo de otros?

En un afán por querer acercar la "industria cultural" de Horkheimer al pueblo, puede que estemos en una etapa en la que el consumidor se convierta además en creador del producto, pero sin llegar a ver un duro.

Que es esto de "periodismo ciudadano", presionados por la competencia de blogs y publicaciones independientes en la red, cada vez más medios de comunicación "tradicionales" recurren a la participación ciudadana para mantener su audiencia.

Ese medio "tradicional" llamado CNN tiene a su servicio una página de "periodismo ciudadano" llamada iReport en la cual se origino el bulo.

Esperemos que no vuelva a pasar porque este tipo de noticias crean desplomes de acciones en empresas.

A phony "news" brief by a CNN "ireporter" (citizen journalist) stating that the Apple CEO had suffered a massive heart attack caused the company losses of more than $14 billion on Wall Street in a matter of minutes.  It also has prompted j-scholars, journos, and wanna-be-journos to bash and more closely examine an undertaking that has far too long hovered under journalism's radar.  As the headlines of related blog posts and stories explained: "Steve Jobs Is Not Dying: Why Citizen Journalism  Doesn't Work"; "New Media Feels Heat After Apple Misstep"; and "Jobs Rumor Debacle Besmirches Citizen Journalism."

Besmirched, I say!  Enter CU-Boulder's J-School.  Through a McCormick Grant, faculty and students will work to help right the wrongs and shortcomings of citizen journalism, the field's suddenly shameful stepcousin.  According to a basic press release:

The Web-based "Resolving Door" project will invite reader-participants to describe local problems, which other reader-participants will be encouraged to research and help solve. . . . Student journalists working on the project will create a series of online tutorials by which novice citizen-journalists can learn how to upload information using a number of different media.