What’s on your mind?

[Apple fanboy]

Job interview: I think it went well.

Medical Bill: I do not owe anything! Woot!

Mom: Doctor cancelled tune in two weeks from now.

iMac: it seems like it’s stuck on the start up, researching now. Glad I had access to my emails etc.

So a mixed bag then!

Packing up my daughters room today as she won’t be coming back. Dismantling her bed was very sad. It’s now an empty shell of a room ready for painting and will be our new study. The old study will become our junk room.

Also my sore neck. Just had a shower to see if that helps. My stretches and painkillers aren’t helping.

 

[kazmac]

So a mixed bag then!

Packing up my daughters room today as she won’t be coming back. Dismantling her bed was very sad. It’s now an empty shell of a room ready for painting and will be our new study. The old study will become our junk room.

Also my sore neck. Just had a shower to see if that helps. My stretches and painkillers aren’t helping.

Sorry to hear about the pain (both back and situation with your daughter).

Hope you will feel better soon.

 

[0388631]

I am trying to understand if the fact that I am less thrilled (that is, actually bored) about consumer technology (esp. smartphones and tablets) is due to the products themselves being less exciting or me being on the verge of my 40's.

It's being on the verge of your 40s.

Also because the YoY explosive growth in speed and function has devolved into who can come up with a retro idea that makes little sense but increases the price of whatever you're buying. Closest exciting tech I've witnessed is Zen architecture.

 

[AngerDanger]

How there was a time when CES hosted many folks with a bunch of slick USB devices to show off (a small fan… that you have to snake around into one of your few USB ports?! OMG ). Then a couple years later, all these devices had Bluetooth and an accompanying app. Now everything is HomeKit compatible.

I am trying to understand if the fact that I am less thrilled (that is, actually bored) about consumer technology (esp. smartphones and tablets) is due to the products themselves being less exciting or me being on the verge of my 40's.

You've gotten a couple different answers, but I'd wager that it has more to do with the former. I'm in my early twenties and feel similarly. With each year that passes, the improvements made to mobile devices are smaller as these devices mature.

To some degree, I really don't mind; this way, I can use a phone that's a few years old and works perfectly for me without having to spend upwards of a grand on a phone I'd probably enjoy less. This way many are less enticed to upgrade yearly.

In 2007, we went from phones that struggled with text and email to small computer/phone/iPods with excellent interfaces. It's going to be a little while before a similarly versatile product is introduced and the year-over-year progress is reset.

 

[yaxomoxay]

How there was a time when CES hosted many folks with a bunch of slick USB devices to show off (a small fan… that you have to snake around into one of your few USB ports?! OMG ). Then a couple years later, all these devices had Bluetooth and an accompanying app. Now everything is HomeKit compatible.


You've gotten a couple different answers, but I'd wager that it has more to do with the former. I'm in my early twenties and feel similarly. With each year that passes, the improvements made to mobile devices are smaller as these devices mature.

To some degree, I really don't mind; this way, I can use a phone that's a few years old and works perfectly for me without having to spend upwards of a grand on a phone I'd probably enjoy less. This way many are less enticed to upgrade yearly.

In 2007, we went from phones that struggled with text and email to small computer/phone/iPods with excellent interfaces. It's going to be a little while before a similarly versatile product is introduced and the year-over-year progress is reset.

Do you think that we've reached the peak of Silicon Valley's transformational nature?
I grew up with computers and technology - literally when I came home after birth a couple of Apple II and III's were at home; always had multiple computers at home, from Vic-20 to C64, to original Mac, to Amiga, to Spectrum, to IBM PC's etc. and I never felt that new products were meh-ish.
I was somewhat excited by the iPhone X, which I think is a good product, but I have to admit that I don't see any product on the horizon that would blow my mind.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

So a mixed bag then!

Packing up my daughters room today as she won’t be coming back. Dismantling her bed was very sad. It’s now an empty shell of a room ready for painting and will be our new study. The old study will become our junk room.

Also my sore neck. Just had a shower to see if that helps. My stretches and painkillers aren’t helping.

Good luck with it.

Yes, I can well imagine that dismantling her bed was an occasion for sadness, and memories, just as was the case when my mother's special bed was dismantled a few weeks ago.

 

[AngerDanger]

Do you think that we've reached the peak of Silicon Valley's transformational nature?
I grew up with computers and technology - literally when I came home after birth a couple of Apple II and III's were at home; always had multiple computers at home, from Vic-20 to C64, to original Mac, to Amiga, to Spectrum, to IBM PC's etc. and I never felt that new products were meh-ish.
I was somewhat excited by the iPhone X, which I think is a good product, but I have to admit that I don't see any product on the horizon that would blow my mind.

Nah.

It's a really interesting question. I think it's tempting to look at the smartphone/watch as the realization of an ideal initially only glimpsed in '70s microcomputers. By doing that, you could say the iPhone itself was only a minor improvement over previous handheld computers, making the improvements of the last decade seem marginal.

But there's a sort of feedback loop between people and their technology. New tech leads to new desires (leading again to new tech), so it's possible that the next breakthrough will solve a problem we haven't thought of yet.

There's an oft misattributed and misremembered quote from the mid 1800s about how progress was so rapid it seemed to indicate there was an end quickly approaching. Imagine trying to explain biometric unlocking to people fro that time. ("The advancement … from year to year … seems to presage … that period when human improvement must end.")

As for products on the horizon, one need not think further than all the things we still haven't achieved. Hell, even self-driving cars continue to elude us along with generalized AI, biomechanics, brain implants, matter reclaiming, and better…

Spoiler: …prosthetics.

I recently watched a TED Talk in which machine learning combined with prosthetics was able to give people the ability to walk again. The machine learned from normal walking patterns and remaining muscle groups, so there was little to no learning curve for amputees. They put them on and just… walked, often shedding tears of joy.

Dunno if it'll come from Silicon Valley specifically, but advancements made therein show that, of the 7.5 billion people alive, it only takes two and a garage to usher in the next breakthrough in technology.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

As for products on the horizon, one need not think further than all the things we still haven't achieved. Hell, even self-driving cars continue to elude us along with generalized AI, biomechanics, brain implants, matter reclaiming, and better…

Self-drive cars don't much interest me - even as an intellectual challenge.

Instead, I would very much like to see tech aimed at bettering the lot of many of the basic problems of the world which would improve the quality of life of countless millions; stuff such as access to clean drinking water; access to sanitary products for girls (and women), and so on.

Dunno if it'll come from Silicon Valley specifically, but advancements made therein show that, of the 7.5 billion people alive, it only takes two and a garage to usher in the next breakthrough in technology.

Yes, but unless what the "two in the garage" invent can be shown to have an attractive, widely used (and easily used) function, and reason for being, it will remain a niche product for nerds.

 

[AngerDanger]

Self-drive cars don't much interest me - even as an intellectual challenge.

You know, me neither. I don't even know if they make sense on a larger scale; a lot of people accept them as inevitable, but I don't know who stands to benefit most from them and who has the money to fund them.

Instead, I would very much like to see tech aimed at bettering the lot of many of the basic problems of the world which would improve the quality of life of countless millions; stuff such as access to clean drinking water; access to sanitary products for girls (and women), and so on.

Absolutely. My OP mentioned matter reclamation and providing mobility to the immobile. Sanitary products are also of immense importance.

Yes, but unless what the "two in the garage" invent can be shown to have an attractive, widely used (and easily used) function, and reason for being, it will remain a niche product for nerds.

Yeah… I kind of assumed that was a given. Their offering will also need to be priced low enough to be affordable, it can't look too visually intimidating, and it'll need to be operable within temperatures that don't harm users. I don't know what other qualifiers I should add.

 

[0388631]

Sanitation in third world countries is crucial. Didn't Bill Gates invest in a company making waste water into drinkable water and using gas byproduct as a fuel source?

 

[Gutwrench]

What’s everyone doing for Valentines Day? Will you stay home, go out together?

 

[Apple fanboy]

What’s everyone doing for Valentines Day? Will you stay home, go out together?

Just ignore it?
Probably work late. I should have caught up on some work last night, but was tired and went to bed.

Time for a shower and an early start.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

What’s everyone doing for Valentines Day? Will you stay home, go out together?

Ignore it.

One of the best treatments of Valentine's Day that I have ever read was that described by J K Rowling in Chamber of Secrets.

 

[Mefisto]

What’s everyone doing for Valentines Day? Will you stay home, go out together?

First work, and when I get home I'm finally going to have the Blade Runner -double feature I've been wanting to have for some time now. Whisky will be involved.

Sent a few texts to important friends, and replied to the ones I got because why not. Currently happily single so no pressure to do much of anything out of the ordinary. Come to think of it even in relationships past there has rarely been a need to do anything "special" on this day, it's easier to spread it all out throughout the year and not stress on a single day. Past partners have luckily agreed.

 

[arkitect]

What’s everyone doing for Valentines Day? Will you stay home, go out together?

My husband works in London — he should be back around 10pm tonight.
He has picked up a miserable flu on the tube…

I've got work to do.

So pretty much just another week day.

I do find Valentine's Day extraordinarily irritating though — just another way for shops to get into people's wallets.

"Show them how much you love them."

How about… every day?
[doublepost=1550143098][/doublepost]

Self-drive cars don't much interest me - even as an intellectual challenge.

Same here.
Besides, driving in the back lanes of Cornwall or Devon, barely wide enough for a vehicle, let alone the inevitable farm vehicle you meet coming the other way — it is going to be a massive challenge for any AI to figure out those little nuances… like empathy for instance. Nudging out of the way, just enough to let the other car pass without yourself falling into a mud ditch.

I can see the "Chelsea Tractors" in face-offs. My computer says, "No way am I backing off!"
[doublepost=1550143225][/doublepost]

it's easier to spread it all out throughout the year and not stress on a single day. Past partners have luckily agreed.

19 years ago in the first flush of our relationship, then, yes… cards and flowers and chocolates and all the soppy stuff. But we were young and stupid back then.

Now a comfy night on the sofa does fine.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Sent a few texts to important friends, and replied to the ones I got because why not. Currently happily single so no pressure to do much of anything out of the ordinary. Come to think of it even in relationships past there has rarely been a need to do anything "special" on this day, it's easier to spread it all out throughout the year and not stress on a single day. Past partners have luckily agreed.

My husband works in London — he should be back around 10pm tonight.
He has picked up a miserable flu on the tube…

I've got work to do.

So pretty much just another week day.

I do find Valentine's Day extraordinarily irritating though — just another way for shops to get into people's wallets.

"Show them how much you love them."

How about… every day?

Agree completely with you both.

 

[kazmac]

Happy Valentines Day everyone whether you celebrate or not.

I bought cards/lottery tix for mom, and her dear friend who has gone above and beyond helping her.

Me: Hopefully get a movie watch in (I have such a backlog), and thinking about another job I applied to very early this morning.

As far as tech, higher prices with disposable, sloppy builds are what’s dampening my enthusiasm. As much as I’d love a 6 core Mac, I’ll have to pass on the Mini and MBPs (because of build/QC issues and price), so it looks like I’ll be buying a 2017 high-end 21.5” iMac.

No interest in self driving cars, and I reached peak phone with the iPhone 5. Not much else besides computers and art-based software interests me.

I quite like my Surface Laptop a lot, but the keyboard and touchpad are murder on my arthritic wrists and it boasts too small a screen: though I will practice Excel and Word on it. Just proves I need to stay desktop inclined. I hope my flip flopping is over for now.

 

[Gutwrench]

Happy Valentines Day everyone whether you celebrate or not.

I bought cards/lottery tix for mom, and her dear friend who has gone above and beyond helping her.

Me: Hopefully get a movie watch in (I have such a backlog), and thinking about another job I applied to very early this morning.

As far as tech, higher prices with disposable, sloppy builds are what’s dampening my enthusiasm. As much as I’d love a 6 core Mac, I’ll have to pass on the Mini and MBPs (because of build/QC issues and price), so it looks like I’ll be buying a 2017 high-end 21.5” iMac.

No interest in self driving cars, and I reached peak phone with the iPhone 5. Not much else besides computers and art-based software interests me.

I quite like my Surface Laptop a lot, but the keyboard and touchpad are murder on my arthritic wrists and it boasts too small a screen: though I will practice Excel and Word on it. Just proves I need to stay desktop inclined. I hope my flip flopping is over for now.

The only thing getting plowed here today is my driveway.

 

[0388631]

You could always get plastered and plow your head into drywall. The big one, that is.

Rain suspended for a mere 10 minutes I was able to move some things under better cover and setup a quick tarp with "scaffolding." Got in and put the kettle on just to then witness the rain ramp up and.... I'd be poetic but it's as if the skies just experienced pure liquid diarrhea.

 

[arkitect]

On my mind…

A nice mild February.
Started off with snow on the 1st, but since then it's been above 10°C by midday.

Windows open, birds chirping.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

On my mind…

A nice mild February.
Started off with snow on the 1st, but since then it's been above 10°C by midday.

Windows open, birds chirping.

And daffodils.

I must say that my heart lifts and that I love to see them when they appear.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

My mother was a terrific gardener - with a real flair and creative eye for what worked in terms of colour and form and tone and texture. Each year her garden was different, imaginatively so, and not too tamed, for she liked a little wildness, there, too.

She used to say that gardening was "food for the soul" and, especially, after my father died, she derived great comfort - therapeutic comfort, and creative satisfaction - from gardening.

However, to please me, in spring, she would always plant a few daffodils, because I love them.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

My first back massage since September. Sheer bliss.

 

[yaxomoxay]

Soundtrack to capture the mood of the day:

 

[Mefisto]

My first back massage since September. Sheer bliss.

Just a couple of days ago it occured to me that I've never gotten a real, professional massage. Considering I'm, mostly because of work, starting to resemble a walking question mark I think the time to get one is nigh.

So thanks for bringing it up, I need to start doing some research.