Koo’s Corner

Update 9/26 In just one day of being posted I have already received several pointers on how to better utilize my Mac.  Aduim is sweet and my work email is now configured. Thanks!

Before this summer started, I had pretty much no ties to Apple. I did have an Ipod, but it had been collecting dust for about a year. With my Verizon contract expiring in May and the Iphone release in June, I was mentally preparing to slowly migrate my PC way of life to Mac/Apple products.

3 months later, the Iphone is my most favorite possession and I have recently replaced my personal laptop with one of the new Imac’s. Here are some random thoughts about the process and its affects on my life.

Why Iphone?
It was time that I got a web enabled cell phone that had a lot of functionality. I needed a phone that could browse the web in a pinch and that received email. Work might have been willing to splurge on a Blackberry, but I was completely intrigued by the Iphone.

I read every single thing I could before the launch, and when June 30th rolled around I was 100% committed to buying the Iphone. To me it came down to being simple to use and full of a lot of great functionality that I knew I would use (photos, video, music, phone, email, internet)

Pros:
- Email and web are easy and reliable
- Widgets like stock, weather, and calculator are easy to use and come in handy
- I enjoy having great photos pop up when my friends call
- the visual voicemail is great. I no longer have to spend time going through voicemails in order I got them. I also have the ability to rewind, pause, and fast forward through messages. Saves me a lot of time
- When bored I can browse the web, watch youtube, watch personal videos, go through photos, or listen to music.
- The user interface and technology behind the touch screen get high marks from me

Cons:
Some of the more geeky electronics experts have some legitimate gripes but for someone like me here is what pisses me off.

-Cannot send text messages to multiple people
- Cannot view multimedia text messages on phone.. (you get them but than have to check online)
- Copy and Paste would be huge
- GPS would be sweet but you can’t have everything
- No Flash video
- Blackberry owners always ask to play with it and dream of what could have been

Bottom line:

I Love this phone and would probably be suckered into giving Apple even more money if a new version had a couple other cool bells and whistles that this one didn’t.

Why Imac?
Work provides me with a laptop so I no longer needed a laptop as my personal computer. My personal laptop was beginning to fizzle out on me so it was time to buy a new computer. I heard great things about the new Imac’s and did some further investigation. My taste in electronics and women have three wants that overlap.

1) Low maintenance
2) Look good
3) Be dependable

On all three levels the Imac fit the bill. I was impressed with their appearance and reasoned that with Microsoft Office I could do pretty much everything on a Mac that I could on a PC and would be able to utilize movies, photos, and music better on a MAC.

Pros:

- Speed and performance is great. Takes 30 seconds to boot up. No weird pop ups or anything.
- It actually burns cds. Its my belief that 75% of PC disk burners break down in under 24 months.
- Appearance. Display looks good. Only a power cord with no other cables behind computer.
- Operating system is sleeker and more stable
- Ordering photos from Apple was really easy and pretty economical

Cons:
- Aim crashes all the time. Kind of disappointing.
- Microsoft Office was really expensive and kind of sucks to be honest.
- I have yet to successfully configure my work email to Entourage or Mac mail. I usually do this pretty easily in Outlook
- Although I downloaded Windows Media player and some Quicktime wmv player, a lot of wmv files will not play for me. No rhyme or reason and pretty frustrating.
- No thumbnail previews of photos or movies

Bottom Line:

Still adjusting but in time I believe in time this will be a smart purchase. If I could play all wmv files, have a stable AIM, and utilize my work email I would probably be singing the Imac’s praises. When I work from home I am not sure if the Mac holds me back with the weird Microsoft office and inability to receive non web based email. Hopefully soon I won’t have to ponder this.

Funny and simple.

The below video is taken from the post game press conference of the Oklahoma State vs Texas Tech game. This was one of the best games of the entire weekend but oddly Mike Gundy did not want to discuss his teams’ triumph but rather express his rage in an article written by a local reporter. Jenni Carlson is the reporter who gets absolutely ridiculed in the video. Her column was about the benching of the Cowboys starting quarterback Bobby Reid and can be found here

College athletics and the media have had seemingly more tenuous relationships of late. Recruiting and college specific websites like scout.com and rivals.com have pushed the envelope in many regards on how they choose to cover collegiate athletics. Reporters are using unsubstantiated resources such as myspace, facebook, and website message boards to provide inside “competitive knowledge” for their subscribers. The subscribers seem to have put a lot of importance on sources for inside information which has further put fuel on the fire.

I currently serve in a part time role to the most popular website covering Ohio State athletics, bucknuts.com. I have to say that bucknuts, has gone to great lengths to foster a working relationship with Ohio State and this is something that I am very proud and aware of. Our main competitor who I actually initially started my part time writing career with, has a semi anonymous employee who has been deemed “the chosen one” for all inside information. Often he is able to scoop stories with his large network of contacts and sources, but does it come at a price?

This anonymous employee (won’t identify himself) is somewhat of a hero figure to the website subscribers due to his ability to obtain and share news and inside information of the Ohio State football team. While he is revered by some Ohio State fans, the coaching staff have been seen cussing in anger when his online alias is mentioned in front of them.

Is the posting of his inside information unethical as it divulges information that is known to be sensitive and private? Or is it just resourceful reporting of what subscribers are really paying for? I too find myself pondering this as I want to be in “the know” but am troubled by the fact that the leadership that steers the Ohio State football team views him somewhat as a unethical saboteur/second guesser/gossip queen. While he keeps his inside information in the form of message board discussion and not published articles, this again is a similar case to Carlson in the fact that lines are being blurred in how, what, and when is being reported in respect to collegiate athletic programs and their passionate fan bases.

For some odd reason I spend a lot of time researching/contemplating Generation Y’s unique upbringing and pending impact on the world. Down the road I wouldn’t mind specializing in Generation Y media and marketing concepts. Anyways I stumbled upon the below video. David Gillette is new to me but I am quickly becoming a big fan. I think their is an unprecedented amount of “20’s angst” as Gen Y comes to age and hits the real world. This video really sums it up nicely

  I will be traveling Wednesday-Sunday as well as the 24th-26th this month. There is a lot going on at the company I work for as well as a lot of stuff brewing on the Bucknuts.com front. I will be covering the game on Saturday on the field taking photos, interviewing players, and developing stories. My time will be thin the next 2 weeks but here are some items I hope to bring you in the near future.

- New weekly column called “Article of the Week”. Pretty much I link an article that I think is interesting and informative.

- Blu-Ray vs DVD HD perspective

- My Apple conversion

- Superbad review (loved it)

- College football info

- Vudu launches sweet new product. Will I buy it?

 2 commercials this week really impressed me. First prize goes to the Madden “Field Generals” ad which many people call the Madden “Life got in the way”. Madden’s popularity as a video game really hit an upsurge in the late 90’s and continued through the new millenium. Many young Gen X and older Gen Y Madden enthusiasts have since hit the job market and taken on new exciting “real world” responsibilities.

Sadly many of us including myself have had to move on from the days of ordering pizza, missing class, and finding new social engagements to mix with drinking. Madden’s popularity in my opinion has also suffered from some lackluster video game console launches as well as below average product releases (still baffled I couldn’t draft my own team in 2007). With that being said this commercial is a nostalgic reminder of a past time that is on life support. For me it rings true as I actually bought Madden a week ago and it still lays in its wrapper.

Apple’s new Ipod nano commercial also gets some kudos. I am aware its not overwhelmingly awesome, but it just kind of comes off as smooth. The fact that I have an Iphone and for a second in time was trying to think of a reason to get a Nano says something. Probably not something that everyone will agree with but I think it’s affective.

Below is a link to my weekly Column on bucknuts, Koo’s News.

http://www.bucknuts.com/news/story.php?article=1633

Although the first half is OSU focused, the second half of the article is a good read for all college football fans. Without a doubt the game that has most fans excited is the the showdown between LSU and Virginia Tech although there a handful of other interesting showdowns to keep an eye on Saturday.

VS.

  This weeks commercial of the week goes to the new Miller High life commercial titled $11.50 Hamburger.

Although I have never met anyone on this earth who has this beer in their top five beers, the commercial does a great job portraying the High Life as being the beer for the average joe. It seems this decade has seen a Yuppy resurgence,  a trend this ad successfully pokes fun of.  The result is an effective comical ad that is likely to resonate with many viewers.

You can imagine I am writing this with a shit-eating grin on my face. Today something historic happened in the world of college football where Div 1 AA Appalachian State shocked the world by beating 5th ranked Michigan in the Big House.

Never before had a D1 AA team beaten a ranked team, but the Mountaineers stood tall and delivered the greatest college football upset of all time. I am not alone when I say this, as the national media has scratched their heads all night trying to identify one game in the entire history of college football that matches the level of surprise and shock as Michigan’s loss today.

( Pictures of the Appalachian State coming back to town after the game)

I had the pleasure of taking in this great game. Appalachian State had a great second quarter which is usually where great teams pull away from inferior competition. Taking a 28-14 lead, Appalachian Stat seemingly began to wilt as chances to break the game game wide open went uncapitalized on. In particular a dropped wide open touchdown right in the hands, a missed field goal, and 2 second half turnovers allowed Michigan to sieze momentum and close the gap.

Despite an ill advised interception by Henne in the 4th quarter, the Wolverines were able to take the lead 32-31 and forced a turnover to get possession of the ball around midfield with just over four minutes left. With under 2 minutes left Michigan attempted a field goal to extend their lead. The Mountaineers not only blocked that kick, but subsequently marched down to kick the potential game winning field goal. Oddly the Mountaineers opted to kick the FG with 30 seconds left rather than risking not being able to run the FG unit on for a last second attempt. This move almost cost them the game as Chad Henne hooked with Mario Manningham with six seconds left for a deep strike that setup a field goal attempt for a trailing Michigan team.

Inexplicably Michigan was a short field goal away from escaping the greatest college football upset of all time. The game that was supposed to be a 40 point + blowout would end on the third field goal attempt in the two minutes of the game.

In a clip that will be forever be etched in college football history, Appalachian State blocked the game winning attempt and actually returned it to the 10 yardline as the clock ran down, preserving the most improbable , shocking, and historic upset in college football history.

Chad Henne, Mike Hart, and Jake Long came back to Michigan purely because they believed they could win a national championship with the team they had. With no wins vs Ohio State or in bowl games, Chad Henne and the rest of 2004 Michigan class are on the verge of becoming the most underachieving group of Michigan recruits ever. I leave you now with two clips. 1) A closer look at the University that shocked the world (very funny) 2) An in depth look at why Michigan is so under achieving (also funny).

1)

2)

If I were in a state that had legal gambling my money would be on the below teams.

+1 1/2 vs Notre Dame

-6 1/2 vs Toledo

+ 21 1/2 vs Nebraska

-9 vs SMU