Unfortunately it's in closed beta.  Ping me here for an invite.

Update:  Sorry all, this was a bad joke on my part but I think underscores ludicrous names that are popping up.  I used the Web 2.0 logo maker and ran a Mary Poppins reference through it, all Web 2.0 style.

Gizmodo has detailed the official AT&T response to what is happening right now with what's being called, "The iPocalypse".  Basically it appears the hordes are trying to update iTunes and iPhone 1.x devices to the 2.0 firmware which requires re-authentication at the same time all AT&T stores are trying to do the same.   Friends in NYC reported 1.5-2hrs to activate in AT&T stores per person before they scrapped plans for in-store activation and are sending users home with promises you'll be able to activate at home.  But unfortunately, the dialog box at right is what all of we purchasers worldwide are being greeted with instead.

To add insult to injury, if you're upgrading an existing line to the new iPhone, your old SIM card is deactivated before you leave the store.  Normally this whole thing would just be a minor nuisance but now I'm without a functioning mobile phone with no idea when it will be back.  So I paid ~$300 plus giving AT&T a free day's worth of my monthly fees due to service outage.  If this keeps up, AT&T better credit my account for lack of available service. 

I'm really surprised there's been no official response from Apple after hours since this issue arose.  Perhaps they're hoping the Apple PR halo effect will enact a cone of silence and this too will be forgotten/ignored.  A couple of sarcastic comments about enterprise scalability are sure to be made, Apple will tout unprecedented demand and the populist press will note only a few minor issues

Chris, you were right to stay home.  Meh.

Update: Authorization servers appear to be working now.  Updating now.

Update2: Andru Edwards and the crew at GearLive detail their snafus with activation.  Looks like my issues were small in comparison.

My son was recently named a finalist in a recent photo competition - voting ends Thursday with the winners to be announced during the Duvall Days parade next week which he will be participating in.  So I'm asking for your votes.

Voting closes this 4pm PST Thursday. Each person is allowed to vote once a day, but there is no restriction on getting family and friends to vote from all over the country. That is where you come in. Please copy/paste #14 below and email to laurie@serendipitypics.com once a day thru Thursday. Ryan appreciates your votes!

All entries can be viewed at http://www.serendipitypics.com/portraits.

Please copy/paste this list into your email vote:

3-4 years = #14

As for the pic - my son had his first "big boy bike crash" the day before.  My wife and the photog thought the band-aids would work well in the pic.  I agree.

If he wins, I'll post a picture of me in the same pose after crashing my bike.  Sorry, won't shave my head this time :)

Image Copyright (C)Serendipity Pictures

This sounded too strange to be true. I really like Charlie's interviews and the fact that he went on-air without a healthy dose of makeup to cover the black eye makes the story all the better.  Would I do the same for my Dell m1330? Maybe...

This is the funniest video I've seen in ages.  And for the record, yes that's actually the conference calling system we use.  And admittedly yes, I've done the same groove out. 

Probably more inside joke than anything but my 4 yo keeps asking "Play it again Dad, play it again!"

Kudos to the guys from Nashville.  Glad to see the fun is still alive.

I just got back from Costco where I got Blue Harvest for $12.99 after the $10 instant discount. 

This image sums it all up:

No iTunes exclusive - these kinds of digital copies have been made available for WMP users for years (WMV-HD anyone?) The difference is in how it gets perceived reported by the press who are covering Apple.

Don't get me wrong- I'm glad to have both.  But this is a parity play by Fox.

By popular demand, Bill Gates' last day at the office video, courtesy of Channel 10.

Bonus points if you can name all the cameos and the song he's playing on Guitar Hero. ;)

Bill's Last Day: The CES Keynote video
/p>

Jake's got some great guidance here for those of you going to this year's CES.  After 7 years of attendance, I'm sitting this one out and going to watch from afar.  A few more suggestions:

1.  Bring a 3 prong Multi-Outlet Adapter - you know, one of those little doo-dads that turns one 3-prong plug into three.  Now, when you get to McCarran airport and can't find an outlet during your flight delay, you can share with a spare.

2.  Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate - drink 2x as much water as you think you need.  Stop by the grocery store in Las Vegas and stock up or you'll pay $$$$ elsewhere. We used to get palettes of water at the local store and bring them into LVCC for the booth staff.

3.  Bring Mints for you and others - you're sure to encounter others who after last night's bender didn't rush home and brush their teeth.  A polite offering of a mint as you take one can often improve the persons outlook - with you and others.

4.  Bring Airborne - Placebo effect or actual benefit,it doesn't taste bad and can help ensure you're more in balance beyond vitamin B suggested by Jake.  I'm also a fan of melatonin if you're from a different time zone.

Hope that helps, as always be sure to share your CES war stories and tips here.

Update: Even more great suggestions from LiveDigitally's Jeremy Toeman here.

CES Survival Guide - 7 Tips For a Successful Consumer Electronic Show ~ Jake Ludington’s Digital Lifestyle

It would look like this.

"Jackass" is the name of the hit MTV television show and two subsequent blockbuster movies starring a band of merry mischief-makers playing physical pranks on each other, themselves, and about anything with a pulse claiming to be a human.  I'll admit to renting Jackass 2 and snickering to myself one weekend when the house was quiet, my family away doing something more productive.

Then comes news that Blockbuster will premiere the third installment - Jackass 2.5 as the first full-length feature on the Web exclusively using Microsoft Silverlight  between December 19th and December 31st to audiences 17 years or older at www.blockbuster.jackassworld.com.  All you need is the one-time 1.5MB Silverlight plug-in and IE, Firefox, or Safari on Windows or Mac.

This is exciting to see as it marks another milestone in how users are shifting to consume their media online as well as through traditional outlets.   The content may not appeal to all, but definitely has a loyal following among its fans.

With this release, Blockbuster and Paramount are joining many other companies including MLB.com, BMW (Germany), Sony Ericsson (Japan), Baidu (#1 search site in PRC), NBA.com, Entertainment Tonight (CBS/Paramount) and UVNTV.com in their use of Silverlight.  Check out the latest examples being updated regularly at http://silverlight.net/Showcase/

I'm getting reports of AT&T Blackjack users passing out from holding their breath waiting for the Windows Mobile 6 update to be released by Samsung.  If you believe what you read in the forums, AT&T reps are quietly noting that the software is done, and Samsung needs to release it.  Last April, a ROM image "Leaked" out of AT&T that appeared to be nearly done.  So where is it? 

Plenty of conspiracy stories running around in the over 2000 posts on the topic on HowardForums, some report Samsung is waiting for the Blackjack II (now shipping with WM6) to have a period of exclusivity before issuing the update for existing Blackjack users.  This seems a little far-fetched but you never know.  In the meantime, AT&T ended up shutting down the WM6/Blackjack forums in October and merging all WM6 discussion due the natives getting unecessarily restless.  It's been nearly eight months since the announcement was made, ten months since WM6 was released and the Blackjackers are feeling jacked.

Latest thread on AT&T is going strong here.  The watch continues on one of the worst customer communication experiences I've seen in years.

AT&T Windows Mobile 6 for Treo 750 goes live! | The Boy Genius Report

Introducing a new addition to the ADM family - Tristan Alexander, born July 6th 2007, a whopping 10lb 3oz.  He arrived a day early as mom went into labor instead of waiting for the planned 7.7.07 c-section. He's already asserting his independence. Both mom and baby are doing fine as is little brother.

Ready for my Closeup

Big Feet

A big brother moment

All pictures were taken with a Nikon D200. The surgery was filmed on a Canon HV20 1080i HD camera (ok, there's the gadget part).   Thanks to all for their well wishes via facebook and email (sean_alexander on that hotmail site) - I'm sharing with Mom.  We're likely to leave the hospital today -

I've been pretty heads down meeting with partners the past week so time to gome up for air.  Scott Guthrie, the General Manager for "WPF/E" among other things had an opportunity to do a guest spot on Red vs. Blue- the runaway hit machinima series choreographed in Halo 2.  The Channel 9 team even did a fun WPF/E-based player for it as well.

Check it out here.

Ouch and double ouch.

I love my BlackJack and you can't have it back Steve. For those who enjoy frankenphones with unusual ringtones, you can have your very own iPhone ringtone courtesy of Gizmodo.com. 

As an early adopter of NetFlix, I've written many times here about how good the service is was.  Over the holidays however, that all went horribly, horribly wrong.  My wife and I use NetFlix in spurts- some months we're busy doing something else and don't watch any, then when the TV season goes into hiatus, we catch up on movies.

I've done my part to help their ratings system- my wife and I have collectively rated nearly 400 movies over the years. 

So what did NetFlix do to cause me to switch to Blockbuster's Total Access? 

It started with two out of five discs rented in the last month being cracked.  We're not talking a little crack, we're talking a full 1mm from the edge. I reported both, and noticed it took a longer time than usual to get a replacement of one (the other I didn't request a replacement).  It's embarassing when you have to explain to your in-laws why at a key point in the plot of a movie, you can't watch the rest, nor get another disc during the remainder of their trip because NetFlix is too slow.

Prior to sending the movies back, I moved three movies to the top of my queue.  All were available and I had always received movies listed at the top.  What did I get in return?  Movies from the bottom of my queue.  We're talking over a dozen movies down.  There's no possible way all of the  movies above it were checked out, and I checked!  Like the lint that congregates under your bed, these movies had collected at the bottom of our queue and we had forgotten about them.

David Pogue wrote about NetFlix's great customer service last year.  It's true, I've had nothing but good experiences when reporting a lost disc (and returned later to be credited).  Then Michael Arrington wrote about how NetFlix's complicated algorithms punish frequent users of the service.  I rented more movies during the holidays (vacation?) after literally multiple months of not renting any. 

Somehow, like Arrington, I got "NetFlixed":

Netflixed  /netflicksed/  –adjective

1. punished due to regular usage of services paid-for

2. twisted; awry, as in the condition of discs when received

3. Slang. extracting highest possible profit out of customer by artificially adjusting service offerings to penalize usage.

It looks like the algorithm uses a 30-60 day usage window to enable throttling and doesn't take into account months of pure profit they reaped from me when I wasn't using the service.  Perhaps I'm being punished for reporting two out of three shipped discs being cracked.  How is that my fault?

I tried contacting NetFlix  and have yet to get a response other than, "Sorry, we get a lot of mail".  No problem.  Unsubscribed.

So I've dropped NetFlix as of today, and moved to Blockbuster's Total Access where I also get a free movie on the spot when I return a DVD in-store instead of via mail (we have one by our gym).  They also have a great selection of HD-DVDs and Blu-Ray titles.  Now I just need a Media Center-enabled UI for Blockbuster's service (as I have for NetFlix via the community) and my world is complete.

Congratuations NetFlix- by mis-managing customer expectations you've replaced my prior disdain for Blockbuster's glassy-eyed checkout clerk and late fees with a new disdain for your business practices.

One of the many reasons I like Flickr. 

Ahh yes, the wonderful days of business travel.  It's 9:20pm on Friday in San Jose and we're still waiting for Alaska to put a new starter in our MD-80's left engine.  Nothing like pulling away from the gate and finding the engine won't turn over.  Somehow I don't think a fire starter will solve this one.

Working and wifi'ing back in the terminal (still waiting for a replacement plane or part from SFO, whichever comes first), I saw the #1 link on Digg is Microsoft's own Laura Foy, with her spoof of Justin Timberlake's, "SexyBack" called, "I'm bringing XBOX back".  I miss these kinds of spoofs- nice to see Windows Vista isn't the only team doing it.  Now I'm just waiting for Windows Live to start shooting gerbils through a bulls-eye (my father still laughs about that one, sick but funny).

Back to the flight delays.  One of these days, flight crews will realize that the 20 or 30 people on the plane with smartphones are getting more accurate departure status and timing information from the airlines' own website while sitting IN the plane than what they're being told by the crew that's supposed to be flying the plane. Crowd control is one thing, not knowing your audience (and insulting them in the process) is another. C'est la vie!

This one was sent to me by a friend.

"Suburban Auto Group is an auto dealership located about 20 miles east of Portland , Oregon , but they came up with a series of world-class commercials when they invented the trunk monkey."

Click on EACH one of the links below…

Trunk Monkey 1

Trunk Monkey 2

Trunk Monkey 3

Trunk Monkey 4

Trunk Monkey 5

Trunk Monkey 6

You just have to  love Weird Al.  Whatever you do, Don't Download this Song!  Classic.

Forget Mike's TechCrunch party last night.  The party to go to is tonight - Chris Pirillo, my neighbor Randy and I are going to see "Snakes on a Plane" tonight.  Chris has already seen it.  He's practicing lines right now.  My wife thinks I've been insufferable about this movie.  If you want to join us, 8:00pm showing at Lincoln Square in Bellevue, WA. Seriously, Chris is running lines...

Soa@(&#$&(@P!

My boss made me do it.  Seriously.  My boss wants me to blog about the Aquagate, saying it's the coolest MP3 player he's ever seen.  It's annual review time at Microsoft so I will humor him.  Matteo Thun has partnered with Villeroy & Boch to bring this showering/steaming class cube that has been buzzing around the Internet. From their product material:

Thanks to the possibility of playing MP3-files or listening to your favourite radio programme, you can now relax and at the same time enjoy your favourite music during a refreshing shower or vitalising steam bath. Hot mist from above, cold mist at head-height, a ‘cool down’ programme that offers you coolness from top to toe, aroma and light therapy, a rain shower or a Scottish shower are all part of the extremely luxurious equipment level.

Aquagate™ is fitted with four delightful automatic programmes in which all functions are harmoniously combined. For a conscious and healthy life the Wake up, Relax, Fitness and Feel good programmes provide perfect relaxation at the right time of the day. The central gate of the Aquagate™ is available in the stylish materials teak-wood, pure Italian limestone and aluminium in a champagne-metallic colour. The cabin can be placed free-standing, but will also make an unprecedented impression as a design-icon in your bathroom against a wall or in a corner. The Aquagate™ is available in two spacious sizes: 90 x 100 cm and 100 x 130 cm. In our special Aquagate™ brochure you can read everything about the endless possibilities of the Aquagate™.

They had me at Steam shower, they lost me at Scottish shower.  But I like the way they spell "programme" so I'm happy enough.  An LCD display, USB port for loading MP3s.  Too bad there's no WiFi.  This thing would be bad-ass with WiFi enabled access to your music library.  Villeroy and Boch, I'm willing to beta test, just leave the Scotsman at home please. ;)

Sometimes a mashup of two existing ideas just makes sense.  For example, let's mash up two of the most popular Windows Sidebar Gadgets (or Widgets) - a clock and a photo sideshow.  After seeing The Human Clock on Time's Top 50 Web Sites it's occurred to me that this would make a great Gadget for Windows Sidebar with a human element.  Imagine a clock that shows original pictures from around the world, each incorporating the time in a unique way.  It should be super-simple to write (I'm just a little busy with other projects right now <g>).  Anyone want to write it (with the author's permission of course).

No, seriously I love the revisionist history tact Apple is taking in their "PC Guy" video from the WorldWide Developer Conference.  Yep, I'll link to it too.  At the beginning of the "wink wink" comments about Vista, they mention Vista's Gadget feature vs. Apple Widgets.  Funny - Apple was inspired by Konfabulator Yahoo Widgets enough to what... dare say you... copy it?  Name for name? Years after Konfabulator's release?  The concept isn't new- Microsoft Research did a paper on it in 2000, well pre-dating either product.  Then they make a statement about Windows Gadgets (which in full disclosure, I helped to name for Vista prior to Google shipping their dashboard) :). 

A few days ago, I called up the guy in charge of Windows Sidebar to congratulate him on the Apple video.  Apparently the competition thinks enough of the feature to slam it.  Like it or not, a good idea is a good idea, and I won't get bent out of shape when OSX SP3 Leopard is made available for download for purchase and includes some features inspired by Vista.  Windows XP has the feature Apple calls Spaces too, but it's a powertoy. It's been available since 2005, mentioned in Wikipedia for some time and it's a free download for Windows customers.

Others took shots at OSX when it was late to arrive, and didn't include features like DVD playback.  Vista will ship when it's ready and include advanced features such as digital cable HDTV PVR and enhanced home networking that makes it super-simple to set up and even diagnose when a WiFi router or other component goes on the fritz (happening a lot since I upgraded my WiFi- another story). Yet my Powerbook consistently decides to drop connection after ~5 minutes of access (WEP is enabled and authenticated). My wife on her Tablet PC right next to me?  She's still online.

For me, I welcome Apple's ads. The prevailing sentiment outside Microsoft circles?  Go to the "Nascar Nation" and I hear "That Bill Gates guy gives billions to help poor people".  What do they say about the Apple ads?  You be the judge  This is one PR battle I actually look forward to seeing more of.

Update: Paul Thurrott has his own thoughts here.  As does Engadget's Ross Rubin. And in the Apple camp, Daniel Eran. All in all, I think it's fun and not worth getting bent out of shape over. Satire is satire.  Apple's just trying to pull a Colbert/Wikigate (Video on YouTube).

Last night, I had the opportunity to have dinner with Jeremy Toeman, VP of Sling Media and a group of folks from the Windows Mobile team.  I had a fantastic time- this was the first time Jeremy and I had met in person and we clicked.  I've been a reader of his blog for some time at www.livedigitally.com which he does for fun on the side as I do this site.  We both use Shure headphones.  We both like to smoke... BBQ (gotcha!).  We both love Slingbox.  He set up my new HTC Breeze aka MTeoR aka Qtek 8600 with his own home account for testing (sustained 140kbps over EDGE in Bellevue WA).  I was getting 14fps which was truly watchable.  His wife called up shortly thereafter because he was fighting with her on the same TV for control.  Uhoh- glad he was at the controls :).  No marital tiff here, he just apologized and said he was doing a demo.

I forgot to take a picture, but as an owner and fan of the iRiver Clix, I gave him my launch jacket as a thank you for all the good (Windows Media) work that went into the Slingbox.  I love my slingbox and with my new super fast cell phone, I'm sure to enjoy it on more wifely excursions.

Special thanks to Jonathan.  I've officially been out-gadgeted. Of course, now my boss wants a Slingbox as well. :)

Remember those annoying little tamagotchi keychain games that were all the rage in the last 90's?  The goal was to raise your little animal by hitting buttons to feed or train it.  Jeremy Toeman points to what I call "Analog Tamagotchi"- real plants and cactii on a keychain.  Just a little water every few days.  Eventually these can be moved to pots to become full-sized.  Or you could just kill it like I do most of my plants and carry around a plant corpse, noting you're too busy to water it.

Source: LIVEdigitally » Blog Archive » Who’da Think it? - 5

I can't believe I'm actually excited about this.  The iCup arrives at Microsoft and I can't wait to get some fresh joe at the office that doesn't cost me $5 a cup.  Be sure to check out their video.

(Courtesy Jeff Sandquist, Duncan, and Adam)

From the "Don't believe everything you read on the Internet" file, Anything but iPod is reporting has been relaying a rumor that an iRiver Clix 4GB version is expected next week.  The apparent source of said rumor is an hourly-wage employee at a major retail chain.  I've helped to train said types of employees in a former life and I can tell you these guys are the last ones I would trust to have inside skinny on product releases or even how to market them. 

Case in point: I was recently forwarded pictures of a major retailer placing multiple Apple iPods in the PlaysforSure section of one of their stores, in demo stations with security wire and PlaysforSure logos, all of which was likely an honest mistake by a sales employee/manager type, but is highly deceptive to consumers.

So is a 4GB Clix coming next week?  I checked with our friends at iRiver and while they don't normally speak about future product plans, I can tell you a 4GB version is not expected to be released next week.  What about the week after?  Come on guys, I'm not going to do that to you.  If you're in the market for a Clix, now is a good time to buy.  If a 4GB comes out, you can always put your existing device up on eBay or Windows Live Expo (which just launched) and sell it there.

I've expressed my desire for a 4GB as have many customers via forums and contacting iRiver and Reigncom (their parent company) directly, but there is no news to communicate at this time.  If this changes, I will report it here from a confirmed source. :)