Lenovo and EMC Offer Deals for the Stupid

ITworld’s story EMC, “Lenovo Offers Unlimited SMB Backup Service” sounds like a great deal for Lenovo laptop buyers until you get out a calculator. Turns out the deal will cost Lenovo users an extra $24.30 per year. Don’t you feel Lenovo’s and EMC’s love for you? Or is that for your money?

Buy a Lenovo SL laptop, be a small business, and you get this special “deal.”

Why All the Wireless Printers?

Tipping point for my aggravation about the rush to wireless print: a new Epson press release about special printers for “the smallest of small businesses.” You guessed it, the leading printer in the offering is wireless.

Here’s what I know: wireless connections will always be slower and less secure than wired connections. Period.

The Olympics Are Censored – What Did You Expect?

This is another for the “technology WAS broken by idiots” pile. It seems high-minded journalists are just now discovering that the promised full access to the Internet for those covering the Olympics will not be delivered. They’re whining and crying and saying Chinese officials promised them full access without censorship, and now it seems various “problems” are blocking that access. Oh, grow up.

Of course the Olympics are censored – China remains

Verizon Sucks

** Update 8/1/08, 3:15pm: my in-laws finally have phone service. It only took four hours on hold and two visits from a Verizon tech, but they do have phones once again. **

Verizon renamed themselves away from GTE (at least in the Texas area) to get away from their decades-old stigma of lousy phone service multiplied by lousier customer service. New names don’t help any more than painting your 1972 Pinto a new color will turn it into a 2008 Mustang. Terrible service and worthless management can’t be painted over.

Toshiba Laptops Brick Themselves

Brick? Aggressive iPhone users eager to escape the clutches of ATT’s wireless stranglehold on iPhone service in the US download some tricky bits to modify their phones. Apple responds by turning those phones into bricks whenever they update the iPhone software. Imagine how much fun you could have with your laptop if it decided to assign itself a password one night, giving you a “Password=” prompt the next time you booted it. Even more fun, there is no correct password you can guess to access your laptop, excuse me, brick, no matter how hard you try.

If you own a Toshiba Satellite or Tecra laptop, get ready to play the “My laptop is now a brick” game.

Microsoft’s “Cram Vista Down Their Throats” Campaign

“The time of worry is over” says Microsoft, according to MS expert Mary-Jo Foley on ZDNet. No, “the pain spreads to all” starts now says me, based on all my previous experience watching Microsoft move to control a new area. Microsoft tried to be polite about their new under-performing Vista operating system, but now the gloves are off and they’re cramming it down our throats, no matter what.

XP support, while officially continuing, has been getting blasted

Geek Squad With Guns

File this under “Technology WAS Broken” because this is another example of idiots breaking technology. Why do we let politicians loose on the street without supervision?

You know how Texas loves guns? Better not piss of your computer tech

Enough with Windows 7 FUD

Is anyone else already sick of the fear, uncertainty, and doubt Microsoft is already sowing about Windows 7 or whatever will follow Vista? I’m not sure if I’m more disgusted with Microsoft for not having the courage to support Vista (or the brains to do it right during development) or the trade press falling all over themselves swallowing the garbage Microsoft hands out. Maybe I’m more disgusted with the press. Yes, definitely. Microsoft’s job is to sell products, and the press’ is to report objectively on the market. They’re not doing so when they fill the air with rehashed Microsoft “next Windows” propaganda.

New Article for Network World

My most recent feature story, Whatever Happened to Artificial Intelligence? is now up on Network World’s front page. You can also see the discussion on SlashDot here.Always great to write a feature story, and even better when people like it. Hop onto either site and say your bit.

Linux Video Support Sucks

Let me be fair – when a Windows XP update blew away my video driver a few years ago, causing me to struggle for a couple of days then reformat and reload, I complained. Now that Ubuntu, the leading Linux operating system according to many observers more knowledgeable about the inner workings of that market than I, blew away my video driver and caused me to struggle then reformat and reload, I proclaim loudly that Linux video support sucks.

My Linux complaints go beyond Ubuntu, and beyond just driver