Calidude
Apr 16, 04:58 PM
Sure it is. I find your particular brand of narrow-mindedness offensive. Therefore it is an affront.
...and with that you have nothing to offer me anymore... Goodbye...
Definition of AFFRONT
1
obsolete : a hostile encounter
2
: a deliberate offense : insult <an affront to his dignity>
derrick rose wallpaper black
Black And White Roses
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
Black and White Rose 2431x1818
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
derrick rose wallpaper black
...and with that you have nothing to offer me anymore... Goodbye...
Definition of AFFRONT
1
obsolete : a hostile encounter
2
: a deliberate offense : insult <an affront to his dignity>
abrooks
Nov 23, 05:44 PM
Think Secret (http://notes.thinksecret.com/secretnotes/0611blackfridaynote.shtml) appears to disagree, but I'm sure they just made it up :rolleyes:
chrmjenkins
Apr 15, 03:44 PM
What gives the bad impression is that, since is a 3D rendering, it doesn't have lens distortion (because the guy "forgot" about it). Real lenses always gives you some barrel distortion because they are curved, and the standard camera in a 3D software is always just straight 3 point perspective. When you put it in an angle that gives too much perspective it looks strange.
Specially the first image, is a good 3D, but is not realistic enough to be perceived as a photo because of:
1- Lack of lens distortion
2- Very linear noise, obviously applied.
3- Un-natural light
4- Not so realistic dynamic range and exposure
5- Shadows are too smooth for that kind of flash-light
6- Light is too uniform
7- The model is good, but you can see that there are some hard edges that are not natural.
8- Doesn't have any camera meta-data. (he "forgot" to fake that also)
and a few other minor things... but yeah, it's a very good 3D work!:)
if you want to do a little test with your abilities to tell if it's cg or not:
http://area.autodesk.com/fakeorfoto/challenge
a little to easy though... ;)
I got 11 of 12 (the bear), so I trust my own judgment that this is fake as can be.
It can't be all metal. Otherwise it will have some serious signal issues.
The titanium iphone mod shows it can be done. http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/24/the-titanium-iphone-is-real-really-real-video/
Specially the first image, is a good 3D, but is not realistic enough to be perceived as a photo because of:
1- Lack of lens distortion
2- Very linear noise, obviously applied.
3- Un-natural light
4- Not so realistic dynamic range and exposure
5- Shadows are too smooth for that kind of flash-light
6- Light is too uniform
7- The model is good, but you can see that there are some hard edges that are not natural.
8- Doesn't have any camera meta-data. (he "forgot" to fake that also)
and a few other minor things... but yeah, it's a very good 3D work!:)
if you want to do a little test with your abilities to tell if it's cg or not:
http://area.autodesk.com/fakeorfoto/challenge
a little to easy though... ;)
I got 11 of 12 (the bear), so I trust my own judgment that this is fake as can be.
It can't be all metal. Otherwise it will have some serious signal issues.
The titanium iphone mod shows it can be done. http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/24/the-titanium-iphone-is-real-really-real-video/
ankit
Oct 28, 03:25 PM
Whenever I hear the OSS crowd scream "Software should be FREE!" I translate that to mean "I refuse to pay someone for their work, thus I will STEAL it"!
You have no idea what "free" means, do you? Free software has absolutely nothing to do with the money you pay to obtain it. Commercial software that you would pay thousands of dollars for can be a perfectly good example of "free" software.
You have no idea what "free" means, do you? Free software has absolutely nothing to do with the money you pay to obtain it. Commercial software that you would pay thousands of dollars for can be a perfectly good example of "free" software.
Multimedia
Oct 4, 12:21 PM
I'm afraid the new Intel Apple is going to be the same as the old PPC Apple.
Apple, (in the past), always blamed slow implementation of new processors and long shipping wait times on low Motorola or IBM processor yields.
Now Apple doesn't have the same excuse with Intel but I bet we don't see a Merom MBP or an Octo-MacPro until MacWorld SF or later.
Anyone taking bets!I'm not betting. But I think the C2D MB & MBPs will come out before Thanksgiving November 23. I can see them holding out on the Dual Clovertown Mac Pro for dramatic purposes in the January 9 SteveNote. But they will be a full two months behind the shipping date if they do, which would confirm your fear which I can fully understand.
Seems like they have not figured out how to turn on a dime or have make a conscious decision to not try and keep up with the latest ASAP and just poke along to the beat of their own weird drum. I feel a little bit hostage to their slow release pace. But perhaps we can't really understand what goes on behind the curtain and should cut them more slack. :)
After all, they were spot on with the rapid release of the C2D iMacs a month ago. Maybe we're all being irrationally and prematurely impatient.
Apple, (in the past), always blamed slow implementation of new processors and long shipping wait times on low Motorola or IBM processor yields.
Now Apple doesn't have the same excuse with Intel but I bet we don't see a Merom MBP or an Octo-MacPro until MacWorld SF or later.
Anyone taking bets!I'm not betting. But I think the C2D MB & MBPs will come out before Thanksgiving November 23. I can see them holding out on the Dual Clovertown Mac Pro for dramatic purposes in the January 9 SteveNote. But they will be a full two months behind the shipping date if they do, which would confirm your fear which I can fully understand.
Seems like they have not figured out how to turn on a dime or have make a conscious decision to not try and keep up with the latest ASAP and just poke along to the beat of their own weird drum. I feel a little bit hostage to their slow release pace. But perhaps we can't really understand what goes on behind the curtain and should cut them more slack. :)
After all, they were spot on with the rapid release of the C2D iMacs a month ago. Maybe we're all being irrationally and prematurely impatient.
yamato
Sep 12, 07:50 AM
Also Italian Music store reports IT IS Showtime The iTunes Store is been updating message... Can`t wait!! But an eventually Video Store will be available only in USA as almost usual?
Prof.
Apr 5, 04:19 PM
Note from Apple, inc.:
iAd Gallery will come preinstalled in every future iPhone, iPod, and iPad. For existing customers, iAd Gallery will be added to iOS 5. It will be impossible to delete. If you do delete it, your warranty will be void.
Thank you for your cooperation.
:apple:
iAd Gallery will come preinstalled in every future iPhone, iPod, and iPad. For existing customers, iAd Gallery will be added to iOS 5. It will be impossible to delete. If you do delete it, your warranty will be void.
Thank you for your cooperation.
:apple:
minnesotamacman
Sep 12, 08:06 AM
Think they will close the store this morning to update the laptop line??? or will they do it when they close the store during the live session?
Stori
Jan 15, 05:13 PM
Pretty much standard procedure from apple. Although i was dissapointed with one thing...NO "ONE MORE THING".....:eek:
apart from that, expect the usual complaints...and take a look at the price of a macbookair with a SSD! :eek:
im happy though, my SR macbook is still top of the range! and justifys me buying it in december :D
I was looking forward to finding a replacement for my aging 12" PB but the Macbook Air is not that replacement... Size is the factor and all the 13" Apples are too big to lug around on a regular basis irespective of weight.
....and If you think that US prices are bad, look at what I would have to pay....
13" Macbook Air 1.6 80gig drive $A2499 ($US2200) actual US price $US1799
13" Macbook Air1.8 64 gig solid state A$4438 ($US3900) actual US price3098
ie a whopping 22-26% more......... of course it comes with free shipping....and as included in price, they must be shipping from the Planet Apple , somewhere outside the Galaxyor maybe the Australian prices were just pulled "out of the air' ;)
apart from that, expect the usual complaints...and take a look at the price of a macbookair with a SSD! :eek:
im happy though, my SR macbook is still top of the range! and justifys me buying it in december :D
I was looking forward to finding a replacement for my aging 12" PB but the Macbook Air is not that replacement... Size is the factor and all the 13" Apples are too big to lug around on a regular basis irespective of weight.
....and If you think that US prices are bad, look at what I would have to pay....
13" Macbook Air 1.6 80gig drive $A2499 ($US2200) actual US price $US1799
13" Macbook Air1.8 64 gig solid state A$4438 ($US3900) actual US price3098
ie a whopping 22-26% more......... of course it comes with free shipping....and as included in price, they must be shipping from the Planet Apple , somewhere outside the Galaxyor maybe the Australian prices were just pulled "out of the air' ;)
Cassie
Jan 13, 02:01 PM
Actually he's right! I just tilt my PowerBook screen and can read the white on color #FAFAFA with no problem :-)
I have CRT, so HA! Besides, all you havr to do is highlight it anyway.
I have CRT, so HA! Besides, all you havr to do is highlight it anyway.
mcmlxix
Apr 5, 04:50 PM
�iAd Gallery is a free download.� I would certainly hope so.
Could you imagine a TV channel that is nothing but ads? In a way QVC/HSN are a little bit like that. I just hope iAD Gallery won�t be hawking porcelain figurines, food dehydrators, and authentic, genuine, faux diamonelle rings.
Oh yeah�what would I do oo oo for a Klondike Bar.
Could you imagine a TV channel that is nothing but ads? In a way QVC/HSN are a little bit like that. I just hope iAD Gallery won�t be hawking porcelain figurines, food dehydrators, and authentic, genuine, faux diamonelle rings.
Oh yeah�what would I do oo oo for a Klondike Bar.
MattInOz
Sep 30, 02:31 AM
The prototyping lab :rolleyes:
Well the options are:-
The small room in the garage.
The basement/gallery
One of the two out buildings. which don't have plans in this group.
But look like a pool house and a guest house.
Well the options are:-
The small room in the garage.
The basement/gallery
One of the two out buildings. which don't have plans in this group.
But look like a pool house and a guest house.
noservice2001
Nov 23, 04:40 PM
i was just wondering if this would update...
aafuss1
Sep 12, 04:08 AM
A Invader ZIM or TV show themed iPod (imagine having the sigs of your favourite iTMS TV show's star on a iPod).
Will there be a musical guest, like with 2005.
Will there be a musical guest, like with 2005.
parkds
Sep 28, 01:36 PM
Having been into Jobs NYC apartment before it got sold to Bono, this is about the type of design I would expect. Clean, efficient, stark. Wonder if it will have black granite floors throughout, like his NYC abode did, with every outdoor surface being heated.
Uragon
Nov 17, 11:23 AM
I think Digitimes always comes out with an exaggerated news to cover-up for something new....ahem.. that is completely different
KnightWRX
Apr 8, 01:08 PM
It's still pretty ******.
If I walk into a Best Buy and to buy a product that's for sale, knowing full well they have it in stock but they just want to "hold it" for something, I'd be pissed.
I walked into Best Buy to buy a PS3 with Metal Gear Solid a few years ago when that was the "bundle of the month". The guy said he had one but couldn't sell it without a PSP.
He hadn't even finished his sentence that I was sitting in my car driving away.
No need to get emotional, they don't want my money, they don't get it. I bought it at Toys R' Us instead. I still shop at Best Buy to this day if they have what I want and will sell it to me. If they don't, no harm done, I walk away.
Apple should dump BB base on their "search" practice alone. If you go to BB and search for iPad, BB doesn't show iPad. It shows the options to select iPad or many other tablets. If you search "Sony LCD", you will get "Sony LCD' and not other brands.:rolleyes:
Yeah, how evil of them! Showing a page where you can either get the "iPad! The one and only! or some of these other tablet thingies no one cares about". I actually thought the opposite, that page was a major case of "sucking up to Apple".
If I walk into a Best Buy and to buy a product that's for sale, knowing full well they have it in stock but they just want to "hold it" for something, I'd be pissed.
I walked into Best Buy to buy a PS3 with Metal Gear Solid a few years ago when that was the "bundle of the month". The guy said he had one but couldn't sell it without a PSP.
He hadn't even finished his sentence that I was sitting in my car driving away.
No need to get emotional, they don't want my money, they don't get it. I bought it at Toys R' Us instead. I still shop at Best Buy to this day if they have what I want and will sell it to me. If they don't, no harm done, I walk away.
Apple should dump BB base on their "search" practice alone. If you go to BB and search for iPad, BB doesn't show iPad. It shows the options to select iPad or many other tablets. If you search "Sony LCD", you will get "Sony LCD' and not other brands.:rolleyes:
Yeah, how evil of them! Showing a page where you can either get the "iPad! The one and only! or some of these other tablet thingies no one cares about". I actually thought the opposite, that page was a major case of "sucking up to Apple".
Night Spring
Apr 27, 02:00 PM
IE9 on Win7. Buttons currently working with no purple box.
airforce1
May 2, 12:00 PM
Nothing is being removed they are changing the cache limit. And do you really think Apple is tracking 120+ million users....
unless you where asleep, every single device was tracked, whether or not Apple themselves collected the info is like asking if the CIA eavesdrops on every single US citizen, answer is no, but the history of the devices unique ID, locations can help connect via remote desktop and collect political views, which was what Apple is really been questioned about by Congress,
Who ever claims they have nothing to hide is full of BS, its not that you have anything to hide, access to the Unique Device ID can also help the perpetrator remotely use the device, internet, access bank and other private information with out the users knowledge, and they paid allot for the device unlike some of the free Social networking services who took advantages of bugs in the past until it was proven intentional to fish info too,
So until you accomplices prove what exactly was the purpose behind this with hardware and transitional data readings no one can say Apple is innocent, as it is they are due in court over year now and just mentioned today that they will respond to this, Maybe Steve was not sick after all and had a ball listening to Gates or Microsoft, or wall street taking the hike along with them.
unless you where asleep, every single device was tracked, whether or not Apple themselves collected the info is like asking if the CIA eavesdrops on every single US citizen, answer is no, but the history of the devices unique ID, locations can help connect via remote desktop and collect political views, which was what Apple is really been questioned about by Congress,
Who ever claims they have nothing to hide is full of BS, its not that you have anything to hide, access to the Unique Device ID can also help the perpetrator remotely use the device, internet, access bank and other private information with out the users knowledge, and they paid allot for the device unlike some of the free Social networking services who took advantages of bugs in the past until it was proven intentional to fish info too,
So until you accomplices prove what exactly was the purpose behind this with hardware and transitional data readings no one can say Apple is innocent, as it is they are due in court over year now and just mentioned today that they will respond to this, Maybe Steve was not sick after all and had a ball listening to Gates or Microsoft, or wall street taking the hike along with them.
Mattie Num Nums
Apr 8, 02:49 PM
I'm a current employee at Best Buy and thought I'd offer my two cents on a few issues.
First, I don't really like Best Buy. I got a job there to work for around 4 hours a week to get the generous discount. It's particularly generous when dealing with open-box items. Even so, I am miserable leading up to heading in and I do not enjoy the time that I spend there. Thankfully, I have a good full-time job plus a lot of side work and I'm planning on quitting in the next month or so as the thrill of the discount has long worn off.
That said, I have no problem being very open and honest about Best Buy and my experiences there.
In regards to the iPad situation, I haven't been in since this issue came up and won't be in for awhile, so I don't really know what the buzz is on this matter exactly. I do know that they wouldn't put a freeze on selling new iPad 2 stock if they regularly had it for a random promotion, if only for the very reason that many think caused the initial problem: quota.
I'm betting 1 of 2 things happened:
1) They did indeed get in trouble with Apple for something. Sure, it's possible, and it's the easiest reasonable conclusion. I don't know why this would be though, and I'm skeptical about the whole hording thing. And again, this is coming from someone who has access to the inventory systems and all the places that would hide "horded" iPads. Plus, I have a good enough relationship with multiple managers (ones who know the score about Best Buy in an objective world...) who would be honest about this with me.
Generally speaking, when they say there are no iPads for sale, there are no iPads for sale. It's really that simple. Demand is real, and supply is lacking. When we have them for sale, they're in the cages, and this would occur after passing through the pre-order system. White Verizon iPads tend to be the ones most often available, usually just a couple, and they're gone almost immediately all the same.
Another factor in the equation though is processing shipments. I saw someone noted that after an open-box controversy between two customers, the manager was able to procure a new iPad 2 for a disappointed customer when apparently there were none for sale. Well, there probably weren't. He either bumped someone back on the pre-order list to be nice to the pissed off customer in the store or perhaps a shipment came in on the truck that had yet to be processed and he worked it out with the ops team to get them to process one so he could get it out. Oftentimes the managers do actually try to make the customer happy, even if it's somewhat unreasonable. The ops guys have their procedures, and it's rarely slimy in intent so much as rooted in overall efficiency, so sometimes a shipment won't go to the floor for sales until the next day because the processing takes time. If the manager pushes to work something out in that situation, the manager is doing you a favor and pissing off some ops guys to do so.
Anyways, on to the 2nd scenario...
2) This is what I'd really venture to bet is the problem: the pre-order system is a huge mess. It was a rush job authorized by corporate at the last minute and handled by less-than-informed employees who were also in a rush. From day 1 it was clear that problems were going to creep up, and they absolutely have. Nobody in store is happy about it. The employees don't like telling customers that they have to wait on a pre-order list, they don't like the 48 hour pickup window, they don't like having to deal with customers pissing and moaning and crying about conspiracy theories when only a 64 GB white Verizon iPad 2 is available once in a blue moon when a pre-order turns it down. It's not fun, for anyone, and unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about it.
So what I'm guessing is really happening is that Best Buy is just digging out of this pre-order mess as fast as possible and skipping anything else until they get past the ramifications of a stupid decision. Considering there's little to skip seeing as supply is so low and we rarely have the most in-demand models available anyways, it's easier for them to just bow out of this for a couple of weeks and in a sense re-launch the normal sales when supplies are less constrained and they don't have a stupid pre-order process hanging over their heads. It's a cut and dry move that will allow them to gear up again in a more normal, focused way. Considering how things have gone there in the last month in dealing with anything iPad related, this might be the best decision for them.
All in all, Best Buy is Best Buy: a brick and mortar retailer lost in an internet-connected world. Best Buy isn't nearly as evil as they are lost and longing for the 20th century. Sure, there's a lot of margin on accessories, but it's because there's more often than not no margin on anything else. They don't make much money at all on TV's and Computers anymore. If they're on sale, and at Best Buy, almost everything is always "On Sale," it's likely at cost or within a few dollars of cost. There's little margin in the shrinking physical media world either. The only departments with major products that have margin still are appliances and for certain stores, musical instruments. This is why Best Buy will likely be dead in 5 years if they don't drastically change their business model. They did a better job at adapting to the new world than other electronics chains, but they haven't done nearly enough. It's not an easy business at this point though as it has as much to do with dealing with suppliers suffering the same pinch and customers who want to have it all but don't want to pay for it.
Also, in regards to stupid employees and sleazy mangers, yeah, they do exist. But more employees know their stuff than you might think. And there are quite a few managers who actually do care about trying to do a good job and help the customer.
As far as the employees, the biggest shock to me after working at Best Buy was realizing that so much of the supposed employee ignorance has more to do with incessantly having to dumb things down to the most absurd of levels with customers. 90% of the people who come in are nice people who just don't know much of anything about what they're buying. You have to learn to communicate on their level and not over-complicate things for them. It's easy to get stuck in that default mode and you have to actively snap yourself out of it on the rare occasion when you get customers who can actually hold their own in a conversation about the technology. And make no mistake, it's a huge relief for most of us when that happens because most of us that work there actually are pretty excited about the technology.
Now on the other hand, sleazy managers and supervisors can screw so much of this up. While most of the employees aren't making a career out of working at Best Buy, the sups and managers typically are on some level at least, and it takes a certain, umm, level of person to get, err, stuck, yes, at that level if you know what I mean. There's a lot of inconsistency in these types of people. If you get good ones though, they tend to hire good employees and foster a good environment for customers. My store has good management. It's the only thing that makes it remotely tolerable to me. The employees actually know their stuff and are honest with the customers. They also work as a team because the management pushes it and thankfully we don't have commission to muck things up. And customers do love us for it. You'd be shocked by how often a selling relationship turns into a friendship practically at our particular store. We get invited out after work all the time. Honesty goes a long ways, and when you're helping people save money by making sure they make a smart decision for their needs, it goes a long ways. And our managers are objective enough (and not locked into Best Buy corporate brainwash mode) to know that the only thing Best Buy has to offer over Amazon is the possibility of a good customer service experience. They do all they reasonably can to ensure that it happens.
But again, this simply isn't the case everywhere at all, and it so often boils down to the luck of the draw on management. Good managers hire good people leading to good teams leading to generally happy customers and good sales. Bad managers hire their dumb friends, play games with customers, lie, cheat, and usually they don't put up good numbers.
At the end of the day though, the good stores and the bad stores are equally screwed because the industry is a mess, the world is changing, and Best Buy corporate utterly and completely lacks the talent and leadership to be innovative in the 21st century. They refuse to reasonably acknowledge change, they're too scared to piss off manufacturers who have lines all across the store that vary dramatically when it comes to success and quality, and they're wildly inconsistent and disorganized with their processes and as they put it, "solutions." As said, if things don't drastically change, and I don't believe they will without a major shift in leadership, they'll be dead in 5 years. It's a sinking ship. I'll be happy to be out of there.
Again, I don't think they're near as evil and corrupt as they are just lost. When you're lost, things can get confusing real fast. Bear in mind that oftentimes when employees appear aloof, they're probably confused because corporate changes things all the time and does little to help keep us informed of these changes. Also, don't mistake conspiracy theories for sheer stupidity. Like we saw in this whole conversation, people will say some wild things. It's easy to think it from the outside. I can assure you from the inside, that oftentimes what looks like scheming and maneuvering is really just disorganization, stupidity and/or confusion due to the muddled processes and the ever-foggy way in which corporate outlines these processes.
I don't blame people for not liking Best Buy. I don't like them either. Just go easy on the guys on the floor and in the back. Unless they're the total goof-off employees which do exist, what you're pissed about is probably not their fault at all.
As a former BBY employee I can tell you a few things that are flawed.
#1 no former or current Best Buy employee would call themselves BBemployee, BBYEmployee would seem more likely. I know its stupid but it is the culture of Best Buy to shorten it to BBY.
#2 You would have no clue if Best Buy was in trouble. As a simple Blue Shirt or even a Black Shirt you would not have this information passed down to you.
#3 Your rant show that you either hate Best Buy for personal reasons or possibly a former employee who has a huge vendetta against the company.
#4 Your rant does nothing to support this discussion.
First, I don't really like Best Buy. I got a job there to work for around 4 hours a week to get the generous discount. It's particularly generous when dealing with open-box items. Even so, I am miserable leading up to heading in and I do not enjoy the time that I spend there. Thankfully, I have a good full-time job plus a lot of side work and I'm planning on quitting in the next month or so as the thrill of the discount has long worn off.
That said, I have no problem being very open and honest about Best Buy and my experiences there.
In regards to the iPad situation, I haven't been in since this issue came up and won't be in for awhile, so I don't really know what the buzz is on this matter exactly. I do know that they wouldn't put a freeze on selling new iPad 2 stock if they regularly had it for a random promotion, if only for the very reason that many think caused the initial problem: quota.
I'm betting 1 of 2 things happened:
1) They did indeed get in trouble with Apple for something. Sure, it's possible, and it's the easiest reasonable conclusion. I don't know why this would be though, and I'm skeptical about the whole hording thing. And again, this is coming from someone who has access to the inventory systems and all the places that would hide "horded" iPads. Plus, I have a good enough relationship with multiple managers (ones who know the score about Best Buy in an objective world...) who would be honest about this with me.
Generally speaking, when they say there are no iPads for sale, there are no iPads for sale. It's really that simple. Demand is real, and supply is lacking. When we have them for sale, they're in the cages, and this would occur after passing through the pre-order system. White Verizon iPads tend to be the ones most often available, usually just a couple, and they're gone almost immediately all the same.
Another factor in the equation though is processing shipments. I saw someone noted that after an open-box controversy between two customers, the manager was able to procure a new iPad 2 for a disappointed customer when apparently there were none for sale. Well, there probably weren't. He either bumped someone back on the pre-order list to be nice to the pissed off customer in the store or perhaps a shipment came in on the truck that had yet to be processed and he worked it out with the ops team to get them to process one so he could get it out. Oftentimes the managers do actually try to make the customer happy, even if it's somewhat unreasonable. The ops guys have their procedures, and it's rarely slimy in intent so much as rooted in overall efficiency, so sometimes a shipment won't go to the floor for sales until the next day because the processing takes time. If the manager pushes to work something out in that situation, the manager is doing you a favor and pissing off some ops guys to do so.
Anyways, on to the 2nd scenario...
2) This is what I'd really venture to bet is the problem: the pre-order system is a huge mess. It was a rush job authorized by corporate at the last minute and handled by less-than-informed employees who were also in a rush. From day 1 it was clear that problems were going to creep up, and they absolutely have. Nobody in store is happy about it. The employees don't like telling customers that they have to wait on a pre-order list, they don't like the 48 hour pickup window, they don't like having to deal with customers pissing and moaning and crying about conspiracy theories when only a 64 GB white Verizon iPad 2 is available once in a blue moon when a pre-order turns it down. It's not fun, for anyone, and unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about it.
So what I'm guessing is really happening is that Best Buy is just digging out of this pre-order mess as fast as possible and skipping anything else until they get past the ramifications of a stupid decision. Considering there's little to skip seeing as supply is so low and we rarely have the most in-demand models available anyways, it's easier for them to just bow out of this for a couple of weeks and in a sense re-launch the normal sales when supplies are less constrained and they don't have a stupid pre-order process hanging over their heads. It's a cut and dry move that will allow them to gear up again in a more normal, focused way. Considering how things have gone there in the last month in dealing with anything iPad related, this might be the best decision for them.
All in all, Best Buy is Best Buy: a brick and mortar retailer lost in an internet-connected world. Best Buy isn't nearly as evil as they are lost and longing for the 20th century. Sure, there's a lot of margin on accessories, but it's because there's more often than not no margin on anything else. They don't make much money at all on TV's and Computers anymore. If they're on sale, and at Best Buy, almost everything is always "On Sale," it's likely at cost or within a few dollars of cost. There's little margin in the shrinking physical media world either. The only departments with major products that have margin still are appliances and for certain stores, musical instruments. This is why Best Buy will likely be dead in 5 years if they don't drastically change their business model. They did a better job at adapting to the new world than other electronics chains, but they haven't done nearly enough. It's not an easy business at this point though as it has as much to do with dealing with suppliers suffering the same pinch and customers who want to have it all but don't want to pay for it.
Also, in regards to stupid employees and sleazy mangers, yeah, they do exist. But more employees know their stuff than you might think. And there are quite a few managers who actually do care about trying to do a good job and help the customer.
As far as the employees, the biggest shock to me after working at Best Buy was realizing that so much of the supposed employee ignorance has more to do with incessantly having to dumb things down to the most absurd of levels with customers. 90% of the people who come in are nice people who just don't know much of anything about what they're buying. You have to learn to communicate on their level and not over-complicate things for them. It's easy to get stuck in that default mode and you have to actively snap yourself out of it on the rare occasion when you get customers who can actually hold their own in a conversation about the technology. And make no mistake, it's a huge relief for most of us when that happens because most of us that work there actually are pretty excited about the technology.
Now on the other hand, sleazy managers and supervisors can screw so much of this up. While most of the employees aren't making a career out of working at Best Buy, the sups and managers typically are on some level at least, and it takes a certain, umm, level of person to get, err, stuck, yes, at that level if you know what I mean. There's a lot of inconsistency in these types of people. If you get good ones though, they tend to hire good employees and foster a good environment for customers. My store has good management. It's the only thing that makes it remotely tolerable to me. The employees actually know their stuff and are honest with the customers. They also work as a team because the management pushes it and thankfully we don't have commission to muck things up. And customers do love us for it. You'd be shocked by how often a selling relationship turns into a friendship practically at our particular store. We get invited out after work all the time. Honesty goes a long ways, and when you're helping people save money by making sure they make a smart decision for their needs, it goes a long ways. And our managers are objective enough (and not locked into Best Buy corporate brainwash mode) to know that the only thing Best Buy has to offer over Amazon is the possibility of a good customer service experience. They do all they reasonably can to ensure that it happens.
But again, this simply isn't the case everywhere at all, and it so often boils down to the luck of the draw on management. Good managers hire good people leading to good teams leading to generally happy customers and good sales. Bad managers hire their dumb friends, play games with customers, lie, cheat, and usually they don't put up good numbers.
At the end of the day though, the good stores and the bad stores are equally screwed because the industry is a mess, the world is changing, and Best Buy corporate utterly and completely lacks the talent and leadership to be innovative in the 21st century. They refuse to reasonably acknowledge change, they're too scared to piss off manufacturers who have lines all across the store that vary dramatically when it comes to success and quality, and they're wildly inconsistent and disorganized with their processes and as they put it, "solutions." As said, if things don't drastically change, and I don't believe they will without a major shift in leadership, they'll be dead in 5 years. It's a sinking ship. I'll be happy to be out of there.
Again, I don't think they're near as evil and corrupt as they are just lost. When you're lost, things can get confusing real fast. Bear in mind that oftentimes when employees appear aloof, they're probably confused because corporate changes things all the time and does little to help keep us informed of these changes. Also, don't mistake conspiracy theories for sheer stupidity. Like we saw in this whole conversation, people will say some wild things. It's easy to think it from the outside. I can assure you from the inside, that oftentimes what looks like scheming and maneuvering is really just disorganization, stupidity and/or confusion due to the muddled processes and the ever-foggy way in which corporate outlines these processes.
I don't blame people for not liking Best Buy. I don't like them either. Just go easy on the guys on the floor and in the back. Unless they're the total goof-off employees which do exist, what you're pissed about is probably not their fault at all.
As a former BBY employee I can tell you a few things that are flawed.
#1 no former or current Best Buy employee would call themselves BBemployee, BBYEmployee would seem more likely. I know its stupid but it is the culture of Best Buy to shorten it to BBY.
#2 You would have no clue if Best Buy was in trouble. As a simple Blue Shirt or even a Black Shirt you would not have this information passed down to you.
#3 Your rant show that you either hate Best Buy for personal reasons or possibly a former employee who has a huge vendetta against the company.
#4 Your rant does nothing to support this discussion.
SciFrog
May 10, 05:16 PM
Seing your "adventures", no way I would ever try to do anything on a custom rig...
AndroidfoLife
Apr 15, 09:35 PM
They were "called" smart phones. But the iphone defined the direction the iphones of the future would take.
iPhone did nothing new. It just took some popular features and combined them. It was more of a game changer due to it being made by apple.
iPhone did nothing new. It just took some popular features and combined them. It was more of a game changer due to it being made by apple.
emw
Aug 9, 12:09 PM
Does this superior colour management include the horrendous pink colour casts the 23" ACD is notorious for?This has been a continual problem with the 23". With decent color management you can "fix" the cast by changing the RGB values sent to the monitor in an effort to counterbalance the pink. This has limitations, however, and tends to impact the overall consistency of color reproduction.
Most color-savvy companies will agree that the 20" and especially the 30" are more suited to color-managed workflows. Hopefully this new generation fixes that.
Most color-savvy companies will agree that the 20" and especially the 30" are more suited to color-managed workflows. Hopefully this new generation fixes that.
Umbongo
Nov 17, 01:50 PM
yes they could. We are not talking about zillion CPU's here. AMD could satisfy Apple's demands just fine.
The only evidence I've seen for AMD's ability to produce chips is that currently they are struggling to meet the market's needs after the deal with Dell. I think it is a fair assumption that AMD's ability to supply Apple was taken into account when the Intel decision was being looked at.
The only evidence I've seen for AMD's ability to produce chips is that currently they are struggling to meet the market's needs after the deal with Dell. I think it is a fair assumption that AMD's ability to supply Apple was taken into account when the Intel decision was being looked at.