A Rush & A Push & The Land Is Ours

In a virtual land grab in the e-content arena, Amazon’s finally launched their long-awaited eBook reader today.  It’s called Kindle and it retails for $399.  The page on Amazon is richly detailed and should give you a lot of information on the reader.   If you want a demo of it, Stephen Levy does one on Newsweek.com.  In the video, it appears in parts that he’s viewing Kindle through the famous Steve Jobs RDF, but admittedly, it does look like a great product.  It’s such a big deal, Jeff Bezos is even gracing the front page of Newsweek’s print edition.

Now, let’s say I am overcome with gadget lust and decide to go on Amazon click the buy button to get a Kindle into my hot little hand.  I have a reader coming!  But I need something to read.  I need CONTENT.  Scroll down the page on Amazon to see what’s available, I see that I can buy most books for $9.99.  Sheesh, that seems a little steep, but I will suck it up and take one for the team, for the good of the entire publishing industry.  What’s next?  Look there, it says you can get access to newspapers, magazines and even blogs on this thing!  And they cost how much?  It’s a case of nickel and diming you, and then you start to do the math and tally this all up.  Thankfully, I don’t have to as ZDNet did…

As I scrolled down through the product page I couldn’t help but start adding up how high the monthly fees for this thing could possibly be. There are monthly subscriptions for newspapers from US$9.99 to US$14.99, magazines at US$1.99 and US$2.99, blogs (yes free blogs) for US$0.99 each per month, and Word document and photo email attachment support for US$0.10 each. I think the device hardware is a bit steep to start with, but you could easily be paying a monthly subscription cost that dwarfs the hardware cost over a rather short period of time.

Yikes!  That’s what kills the acquisition of these gadgets for me.  The whole monthly subscription model dooms me every time when I try to make the case to Mr. IT that we should be early adopters.  Same reason why I still don’t have TiVo (I know I know).  Mr IT can’t handle the idea of yet another subscription that you have to pay for.  He gladly bought the iPod for me because for about 99% of what’s there, it’s stuff I had already, no monthly fee charged.  I’m not keen to pay $400 to have nothing on there, so I’d have to pony up for some content, and that just won’t be pretty. 

From the looks of the device, it’s a beauty and it hopefully will change our reading habits.  I’d love to say I’m jumping right on board.  But not for me, not yet, and not at that price.  Who knows if someone like an Audible might come on and bundle the readers with an all you can eat subscription kind of model?  That would work for me, and I probably would pay $400 for that kind of feature. 

 

Is It Really So Strange?

Today, for all of about a minute, the city where I work experienced a power outage. It was right before I was going to meet someone in the lobby to head out for a nice leisurely lunch. At first I thought some dufus just hit the light switch (located conveniently next to the door open button, this switch kills the lights on the entire floor - a handy feature for annoying all your co-workers) but then I realized my PC went out as well. The lights came back on and I thought nothing of it. I headed to the elevator bank and waited for a car to take me to the lobby. Others joined me, and soon we noticed that the light on the elevator call button had gone out and could not be re-lit. That’s when we got concerned. A co-worker who had a dentist appointment to get to decided to evoke the mantra of our product line (when the lifeboats come, step over all the bodies to get in!) and we headed for the emergency exits. We made it downstairs to see 3 fire trucks in the street and many firefighters in the lobby. I immediately called 2 co-workers who were upstairs, got one on the phone, and insisted she come downstairs. I had no idea if what was happening was life threatening, but I made a quick judgement. OK, I also asked her to bring my laptop, because apparently if the building is on fire, I save my laptop. Not my files, pictures of my children, or my blow up Dummies Man. No, the laptop won’t fry.

When she came down, most of the activity had subsided, but people were not being allowed back onto the elevators. There was no emergency, no alarms, and no evacuation in the building, so now I’m being mocked by othere for my actions. I wasn’t being Chicken Little and I certainly wasn’t in a state of panic. But having lived through various NYC related emergencies, from a fire in our building to the big blackout, I’ve decided that following the advice from the Worst Case Scenario guidebook isn’t always such a bad plan. It’s in no way comparable, but I think of the people in the WTC who were told to stay on their floors and not leave. Our emergency preparedness teams advises us to head down and out when faced with an unknown situation. What’s so strange about what I was doing?

The funny thing is the woman I was meeting for lunch is the one I was stuck in the 2003 blackout with. She and I worked in NJ, and she lived in a building right next to our office in NJ. We traveled into the city to go to the Prada sample sale, which those who know will tell you is the urban legend of all sample sales - but it was real! We never made it to the sale, as the moment we stepped foot out of the PATH trains to head to the subway, the lights went out. Something about our coming together, much like when the A’s play the Giants, sets the universe on it’s ear.  It’s better that we work in different departments now - keeps the chances of chaos down. 

 

More fun with slow sync flash

Last night, I had the pleasure of seeing The Police in concert at Madison Square Garden here in NY.  Never mind the fact that this was my 3rd Police concert this year (I admit it, I’ve been a super crazy fan since I was 12).  This was their Halloween concert.  Each seat had a postcard from the band and a mask (doesn’t quite make up for sky-high ticket prices) on it, to remind you that you shouldn’t be at a concert, you should be taking your kids trick or treating (or was that just Mr. IT doing that?). 

The band themselves dressed in costume, as you can see below.  I used slow sync flash and super zoom for these two shots.  There are more, but you get the drift.  The woman next to me took about 40 shots, all blurry.  If only she had known!

This was from “Roxanne” - hard to get the video screens and the band in the same shot, and have them both look good:

This one was from the end of the show. 

I’ve taken pictures at all three shows, but these came out the best.  Yes, our seats were much better.  But I think fiddling with ISO and zoom and slow sync makes a difference.

As far as the costumes, Sting was interviewed on Today Tuesday and said he would be in a costume with tights and a codpiece.  As you can see, he brought it.  Andy was charming as Charlie Chaplin.  I have no idea what type of Egyptian zombie Stewart was trying to be, but there were amusing moments at the beginning of him pulling off his cape because he couldn’t drum with it.  Makes me wonder if he tried it on before he got there.

While I am on the subject, I have some suggestions for people attending future shows by The Police, in addition to other artists cashing in reuniting for tours:

1. People who look like they are 50+ accountants should not lip sync/air guitar/dance.  Ever.  I have some videos of this infraction from last night that are amusing enough for YouTube.  I was cracking up so much I cried my makeup off.

2. If you are a 50+ accountant, and someone asks you to sit down, because there is no one in front of you dancing, take the hint.  We have your best interests at heart. 

3. Don’t cuddle during “Every Breath You Take.”  It’s a creepy song, not a love song.  Sting wrote it about his marriage dissolving.   I remember some friends used it as a wedding song.  A bad omen, if you ask me.  Ick.

4. No one should dance to “King of Pain”.  Ever.  It’s got no beat, and you really can’t dance to it.

Used wisely, this advice should enhance any concert going experience.

 

The Mommy “Wars”

I just got done reading The Mommy Wars by Leslie Morgan Steiner.  Normally, these books are like brussels sprouts to me - don’t like them, don’t want them, keep them as far away from me as possible.  This is surprising to many of my friends and co-workers, but I have my reasons.  I happen to live in a community where I rarely feel like there are any conflicts between stay-at-home-moms and “working” moms.  In our town, we have women who used to have careers outside of the house and now don’t.  We have women returning to the workforce after taking time to stay home with their kids.   It’s a little of everything, and I rarely feel any judgements.  OK, that’s not to say when a parent shows up 30 minutes late to pick up their kid from a birthday party that there isn’t a bit of buzz.  But that’s about it. 

I’ve faced the whole “you work?” battle much more at work than anywhere else, and surprise, more from men than from women.  Here’s a great example - some time ago, a memo went around that a woman was leaving her job to be a “full-time mom.”  I was taken aback by that.  Was the implication that those of us who worked were “part-time moms”?  Because I have a c-section scar that brands me as a mom 24/7.  Was this person, a male person I might add, implying that I was less of a mom because I was pursuing a career? I whipped the note back at him with these comments and more sprinkled around it. He replied that he didn’t write the note, his boss did, and he couldn’t care less about what choices women were making these days. Fair enough. So I sent it to his boss and asked him what was behind his choice of words. In truth, I should have let it go there, but no, I persisted. The boss never responded, and when I asked him in person, I was told to give him a break, and that’s exactly what she was doing. He stopped short of suggesting that my bare feet retreat back into the kitchen, but that’s what it felt like.

Anyhow, why did I read this book? It was a gift from a friend who thought it was “right up my alley,” so I felt obligated to at least crack the binding. This friend reads this blog sporadically, so I don’t want to come out and say, “Wrong way alley, babe.”  But I’m a lot more interested in double teaming on Eric Clapton and Pattie Boyd’s dueling tomes than I am reading a “I’m right because I stay home with my kids” vs. “I’m right because I am a good career role model for my kids.”  Let’s face it, the majority of our kids are doing all right, and by our I mean both SAHM and working moms’ kids.  This book did have a little of I’m right, no I’m right, so that bothered me.  At the same time, it did present almost every viewpoint that was out there, so in the end I felt that it made me more sympathetic to ALL moms.  Something happens when you become a parent that changes you forever.  We know that the decisions we make will impact our children for better or for worse, so we struggle with them.  We have only to look at our kids and find a single fault to be ready to place the blame on a decision that we made.  Worse, at times others find those faults in our kids and blame us and our decisions.  But the truth is stuff happens, and it’s not always something that can be blamed on the fact that mom had a job and wasn’t home to make cookies.  Or vice versa.  By calling this book “Wars”, the author implies that there are sides to be taken.  When in reality there is one side, and that’s for our kids and what’s best for them. 

Overall though, I was disappointed that a woman had to dredge up the whole “mommy wars” angle. The book was an OK read, but do we need yet another book in the media drawing a divide where there really shouldn’t be one? In the end, we are a lot more supportive of each other than the media gives us credit for. And that’s what the story should be.

 

Best of Both Worlds…(yeah, not quite!)

Here’s an interesting article in the WSJ.com about the Hannah Montana tour controversy.  They make a good point about why the ticket sellout is getting so much press:

People involved in the tour say that tensions are running particularly high over the Hannah Montana tour because many of the parents who are trying to secure tickets for their children are buying their first concert tickets in years, and thus are unaware of how difficult the Internet has made getting tickets to hot concert tours. On top of that, many parents are wary of disappointing children to whom they have promised tickets.

I have to say, in the past 3 years, I’ve gotten tickets to Yankee playoff games, Bruce Springsteen, The Police, and U2…yet I come up short with Hannah. Plus, little IT never knew that tickets were a possibility.  So the last paragraph doesn’t really apply to me.  The whole thing still boggles the mind, tho.  Ticket brokers getting better access, tickets going on sale on sites like stubhub.com moments after they sold out at Ticketmaster…unreal. 

There was also an article in the NY Times today about the same issue.  A reliable source tells me “Inside Edition”will also be doing a story about it tomorrow or Tuesday.  More about that in my next blog entry…

 

Old school vs. new

Anyone with a daughter aged 6-12 knows how popular Hannah Montana is.  Recently, Hannah/Miley Cyrus concert dates were announced.  Many parents of my daughter’s friends were all abuzz about getting tickets, planning which date was best, figuring out what venues were most accessible, etc.  I partnered with a friend and we decided to join MileyWorld so we could get a pre-sale code and buy tickets early. Great plan, huh? Except within 5 minutes, the pre-sale sold out and we were without tickets. We then set our sites on the sale to the general public. I never thought of it, but my friend pondered going to our local Ticketmaster outlet and getting a lottery number, but figured that online would be faster, better and in the end, more productive. In the end, we were left without tickets. I got a “no seats are available that meet your request” 2 minutes after the sale started. I had two computers going, but still, no luck. Other parents reported the same luck. However, our friend who went to the Ticketmaster outlet got tickets at 10:10, a full 10 minutes after they went on sale. So who was smarter? Who learned a lesson? I did. Old school can sometimes be the way to go. Next time, I’m sending the Mr. to Ticketmaster to camp out, and I’m going online to hedge my bet. And I will remember that the computer and the Internet is not always the answer to everything.

On the bright side, I don’t have to go hear Hannah/Miley. Plus, the kids never even knew we had this plan in action, so there is no disappoint them.

 

Beantown: Living on the Edge!

Remind me not to bring my blinking LED jewelery to Boston next time I visit.  An MIT student dressed as a circuit board for career day (I’m well aware that’s an easy target for a nerd joke, but I was a history major and we did geeky things like dressing up as historical figures, so I can’t really make fun of that) was arrested at Logan Airport when she walked in to pick up her boyfriend. This is the same city that went into lockdown when Cartoon Network promo devices were scattered around on roadways. I won’t even mention the Patriots cheating scandal, but my theory is the stress of having the Yankees breathing down the collective necks of the Red Sox is getting to everyone and causing crazy behavior. This is the time of the year that I usually break out in hives due to pennant stress. I understand, and I am here to help. My advice for Bostonians is to sit down, take a breath, and open a Sam Adams. Maybe two. Think before you react. Think before you steal your competitors plays. Think before you go to the airport dressed like something that could be construed as a bomb. The city will be a better place for everyone.

 

In da club

There’s this new trend that is disturbing me greatly.  Each time, it seems, that tickets for a concert I am interested in are getting ready to go on sale, there’s a “presale” for members of the artist’s faux fan club.  Most of these shows sell out so quickly that there isn’t a chance to get tickets unless you are in the club.  U2 started this a few years ago, and I got really burned because I was in the fan club only to get the tickets, but didn’t get them because the shows sold out so quickly.  The Police continued the trend, which worked better because you could buy the fan club membership at the time you purchased the tickets, meaning you would not be stuck with a club membership if you didn’t get seats.  I had to submit here, because those who know me know that there is no way I would have missed seeing the Police. 

 The latest artist to torture me in this regard?  Miley Cyrus.  If you’re asking who she is, you don’t have a 6-13 year old girl, or don’t watch much of the Disney Channel.  Miley’s Hannah Montana: Best of Both Worlds tour tickets are going in a presale to MileyWorld members 2 days before an actual onsale date.  The fan club is not hugely expensive ($29.99) and it does seem to offer other options to kids, including an online community (because with Webkinz, Club Penguin, and Barbie World, I really need another community like I need a hole in my head). Still, it bothers me that these add ons come on top of the so-called “convenience fees” charged by Ticketmaster. Why can’t they just right price these tickets to begin with and dispense with the gimicks.

On another note, if you are the parent of a tween girl, you may or may not be aware that the hottest selling Halloween costumes this year are:

Hannah Montana
High School Musical generic cheerleader
HSM Sharpay
HSM Gabriella

If your kinder is looking to be one of these, buy now. I had to go to 5 stores to find a Hannah last night. And another 2 to get the friggin’ wig that does not come with the costume. Whatever happened to the box costumes from my childhood, the ones with the plastic masks and capes? I loved those!

 

Apple says “Thanks for your support!”

I have to admit it - I love my iPod.  I’ve tried other portable audio devices and nothing comes close.  At the same time, I’m not in the Cult of Apple.  No kool aid has been consumed, no blood oath taken.  Which is why I’m chuckling just a little bit thinking about all those “fans” who had to have the new iPhone first.  Just had to have it.  And now, 10 weeks later, the company is dropping the price by $100 and phasing out the higher end model. Way to thank your customer base for coming out to support your product launch!  I’d be feeling pretty goofy right now if I had bought an iPhone.  I swore I would wait at least until my cell phone contract went the way of all flesh, which is in about six months, so I’m not affected.  Even Fake Steve is admitting that this isn’t the nicest thing that could have happened to the customer. 

 

I like books as much as the next person, but this is ridiculous

On my Facebook page, I have links to three book library/social networking applications. Two I found on Facebook, Books iRead and Visual Bookshelf. I believe they are both unique applications to the Facebook platform. The third is Good Reads, and I joined that as a separate website and found a plug in that made it a widget on my Facebook page. Then, here on “Confessions”, I have a link to Library Thing. Help! Am I really expected to keep up posting the meager few books I read in my oh-so-precious free time on 4 sites? Something has to give. Here’s what I have determined so far, but remember, I am in the preliminary stages of this social experiment:

1. Visual Bookself presents itself best on the Facebook page. It’s easy to add books here, and I like the feature that recommends another book that you might be interested in, based on the one that you select to go on your bookshelf. On the negative side, it doesn’t prompt you for a review or rating, so it’s easy to forget to put that in. Also, it’s search function is based on Amazon.com’s database.

2. Books iRead also makes it pretty simple to add books to your shelf. It prompts you to review each book, and has a neat feature that allows you to select books you want to read, and then compare them against the shelves of your friends to see if anyone has the book so you can borrow it. I’m a book hound, and the more books I can borrow, either from friends or the library, the better. You should see my house. Regardless….this site also allows you to “chuck a book” at a friend, which from a book marketer’s point of view, is a very cool promotion possibility. They seem to have more going for them in terms of functionality, so I’m going to play around a bit more and see if I can create groups that are appropriate for some of my products.

3. Good Reads is a social networking site for book lovers. I haven’t gone into much depth here, but there seem to be a good amount of options available to users. I’d like to spend a little more time here, because I think they have a lot to offer readers as well as book marketers. I also like that the work here can be widgeted onto my Facebook page. Besides, CLM is featured in every single email I get from the site, so it’s got to be quality.

4. Library Thing - on the whole, I am really not impressed with this site. The feel of it is very clinical, and the interface does not come naturally to me. I’m not able to network within it as effectively as I can on GoodReads. Plus, I cannot upload my books to my website (WordPress is not supporting Library Thing) or Facebook so the site is pretty useless to me overall. Library Thing - not a keeper for me at this rate.

I’d be interested to see what others think of any of these applications, either from experience using them, exploring the interface, or look and feel alone.