OT:Dell computers

[Fairlight]

Only Bill Campbell would say something like:
> Essentially the problem is that the metal border of the iPhone contains
> the antennae, and touching it in the wrong place with an ugly bag of
> water (the human) degrades RF signal.  Touch any antenna, and similar
> effects will be seen.

Well I'd call that poor design.  Anyone with a brain and past teenage level
of education and world-experience should know that adding two or more
points of contact between an antenna and the human body will result in
signal attenuation.  So it was piss-poor "engineering" that resulted in the
band being placed where it would come into direct contact with the hands in
the first place.  Then it was piss-poor QA that didn't crowd-test the phone
and observe user habits on how the phone is held, assuming they insisted on
persisting with this design in the first place even though they should have
known better.

And from what Bob said about the gap (and what I read about "avoiding the
black strip" in an article that I read last night), it's obvious they knew
they needed to make some special accomodation for twin antennas.  So again,
poor engineering, and lousy QA.

Then to blame the users for their cascade of failures...  Well that's
just lousy customer service and poor ethics.  It's great PR though--the
non-fanboys can blast it but they'd never buy one, and the true fanboys
don't care if the thing comes half-working.  So the company gets more
exposure in the press either way.  Then, due to their stance, they'll
probably release a new hardware revision to address the problem and charge
an upgrade fee (or just plain make you buy it).  It's kind of like third
world politics, where you create a power vacuum, then fill that vacuum.
Create a need for a solution, then provide that solution at a cost, in this
case.  Lovely revenue stream ethics.

Even if the entire thing is "just" an innocent oversight on the engineering
and QA side, the leaked documents and Jobs' own statements and attitude
show him to be even more arrogant that I ever imagined (he's starting to
make Gates look like a charmer--and I saw the interview where Gates didn't
like a question and abruptly terminated the interview with prejudice on
20/20 or Dateline, one of those types of programs).  The company isn't
looking any better, but in this economy, who's going to stand up to him and
risk the bread lines?

FWIW, I don't have an iPhone, but I hold my phone in a manner where that
exact spot would run across my pinky finger, which I use to brace the
bottom of my Samsung Solstice.

> I don't have an iPhone yet, but I would never have any device
> like this without some kind of case to protect it when (not if) I
> drop it.

The reviews I've read say that the screen is great, but extremely prone to
scratches and even breaking.  Cases are advised.  Which begs the question,
why don't they come with a case in the first place?  Oh, that's right...the
faster people ruin the phones, the faster you can tell them it's their
fault, not covered, and sell them a new one.  Revenue stream ethics.

> So far I've avoided the iPhone largely because it requires AT&T,
> but it looks like Verizon may have them shortly.  Until then, I'll

Where have -you- been reading?  There were rumours that Verizon would get
them, but the last articles I read said that was highly unlikely, and then
another said that Apple re-upped their contract with AT&T, nixing plans
formally for other carriers. 

> have to use my ancient Motorola flip phone or my iPod Touch with
> Skype and my Verizon MiFi 2200 3G wireless access point.  The
> seamless synchronization with my laptop, desktop, and iTouch of
> contacts, calendar, and OmniFocus Getting Things Done makes the
> iTouch the first truly usable PDA device I've seen since first
> trying the Palm years ago.

Never had a Palm.  I don't go mobile enough to justify a pure PDA.  Won't
do flip-phones because that introduces more moving parts that can be
over-stressed and break.  Ditto to slide-out keyboard phones.  I consider
the Solstice ideal because it has a touchscreen qwerty if you turn in on
its side.  No extra moving parts.

I'm thinking about Skype, strictly so I can point my Google Phone number at
it and then use my computer mic/speakers for the phone instead of...a
phone, crooked in one shoulder.  The $60/yr is the thing putting me off of
SkypeIn, in this economy.  I may splurge if a project I'm working on goes
through, though.  I don't need the actual rest of the features--Google
Voice does everything I need in that regard.  I simply want incoming-only
telco network->PC telephony software (no additional hardware).
Incoming-only works fine, due to the way Google Voice handles outgoing
calls...it calls you, then calls the other party.  So I don't need another
outbound.

Anyhow...I digress...  Long couple of days.

mark->
-- 
Audio panton, cogito singularis,