CaoCao
Apr 17, 02:25 PM
I doubt Lee missed your point; maybe your point is just undefendable. For example, explain how you can prove that adding a bit of content about modern history will somehow force something else out of the curriculum. That there are a finite amount of class hours isn't good enough.
As we march through history, we have to condense more and more of it into a class. It wasn't that long ago that we added the space program to our description of modern history. Then JFK. MLK. Civil rights. Space shuttles. John Hinckley Jr. Fall of communism. Berlin Wall. Iraq. 9/11. Tsunamis. Egypt. What did these things take the place of or force out of the curriculum?
Incidentally, when I came through school many years ago, it was mentioned that Einstein was a Jew. It's not irrelevant - it's part of his story and part of who he was. In my classes, it wasn't swept under the rug, but neither was it mentioned "first" nor did it make me want to convert to Judaism. Adding a facet to our understanding of a person in history is not promotion.
You really don't get that it's not promotion. There is a big swath of gray area between promotion and concealment. The GLBT struggle for equality is part of our culture whether you are involved in it or not. It should be entered into the records.
Adding those decreased time for other things, ideally World History and American History would be 1.5 years. JFK gets summarized as the first Catholic to get elected to president, led the disastrous Bay of Pigs and then got shot, ignoring the Peace Corps and the Space Program. John Hinckley Jr. isn't in the textbooks at all, IIRC he tried to kill Reagan and there was something about Jodi Foster
No one is saying it is, except for you. Nothing is being placed above anything else. There is no order of importance.
I'd prefer he be remembered for both, as they were both part of him. It's important for gay kids, like other kids, to know there are people just like them who have done great things. They're called role models. Why that bothers you is beyond me.
Yes indeed. But why we differ is puzzling to me.
There is a finite amount of time, the more ways you slice it the smaller the pieces get
So a gay should see Turing and strive to be as good a mathematician as Turing? Why shouldn't they strive to be the best mathematician there is?
Everybody stop doing stuff.
History's all full now.
Or we can make more time for history
I don't think you understand the thrust of this law. It's not about creating a separate class on gay rights, it's about incorporating gay people into existing history lessons. You mention Oppenheimer. Unless, I'm mistaken, the fact that he was a jew is mentioned in most history books. The same with Einstein. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was a pretty big deal, as were the US internment camps for Japanese-Americans during WWII. The Act and the camps are pretty self-explanatory. They were directed at a specific ethnic group of people. Gay accomplishments and persecution has mostly been swept under the rug.
Harvey Milk wasn't shot because he was gay, he was shot because he defeated a very disturbed man in an election. But, the fact that he was gay is pretty important.
The story of America is a story of minorities.
So the Pink Triangles of the Holocaust are irrelevant?
Wow, I don't know what to say. People of distinction aren't simply born that way, one's upbringing and the time in which they came of age play an enormous role. Any number of American industrialists were driven by adverse events during their formative years. Those events are almost always touched on. Being gay for most of human history has been pretty difficult. To not touch on that is really stupid and shows a bias that when it comes to history, should not be shown.
In American studies we didn't even mention the Manhattan Project, we didn't cover discrimination against the Chinese, we spent five minutes on the morality of Japanese Internment camps, but we didn't go why they interned them.
Harvey Milk wasn't shot because he beat Dan White in an election, Dan White resigned the position of supervisor because he felt the salary wasn't enough, but within a couple days he wanted his job back, he blamed Milk for not letting him have his job back and White jumped off the deep end.
The Holocaust was summarized as the Nazis were evil, they gassed, burned and worked to death lots of Jews, the Nazis were bad m'kay?
They're not in the records?
Come on, guy. Does it really matter if somebody were gay? I thought people of a liberal mindset are supposed to be "colorblind" or what have you, yet all of a sudden their sexuality, which has nothing to do with their achievements, should be made an important part of history?
How hypocritical.
If you set out the best negro x you have already flunked the matriculation exam for the entrance to the university of integration.
You do realize that homosexuality is not new and in fact was prevalent throughout ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt. It wasn't until Christianity took root and became prevalent that homosexuality was looked down upon. You can thank religion for that (Leviticus 18:22). So in fact, for most of human history homosexuality was seen as no different from heterosexuality.
Bisexuality was not uncommon, pure homosexuality was still rare and being penetrated was looked down upon because you weren't being the man in the relationship
As we march through history, we have to condense more and more of it into a class. It wasn't that long ago that we added the space program to our description of modern history. Then JFK. MLK. Civil rights. Space shuttles. John Hinckley Jr. Fall of communism. Berlin Wall. Iraq. 9/11. Tsunamis. Egypt. What did these things take the place of or force out of the curriculum?
Incidentally, when I came through school many years ago, it was mentioned that Einstein was a Jew. It's not irrelevant - it's part of his story and part of who he was. In my classes, it wasn't swept under the rug, but neither was it mentioned "first" nor did it make me want to convert to Judaism. Adding a facet to our understanding of a person in history is not promotion.
You really don't get that it's not promotion. There is a big swath of gray area between promotion and concealment. The GLBT struggle for equality is part of our culture whether you are involved in it or not. It should be entered into the records.
Adding those decreased time for other things, ideally World History and American History would be 1.5 years. JFK gets summarized as the first Catholic to get elected to president, led the disastrous Bay of Pigs and then got shot, ignoring the Peace Corps and the Space Program. John Hinckley Jr. isn't in the textbooks at all, IIRC he tried to kill Reagan and there was something about Jodi Foster
No one is saying it is, except for you. Nothing is being placed above anything else. There is no order of importance.
I'd prefer he be remembered for both, as they were both part of him. It's important for gay kids, like other kids, to know there are people just like them who have done great things. They're called role models. Why that bothers you is beyond me.
Yes indeed. But why we differ is puzzling to me.
There is a finite amount of time, the more ways you slice it the smaller the pieces get
So a gay should see Turing and strive to be as good a mathematician as Turing? Why shouldn't they strive to be the best mathematician there is?
Everybody stop doing stuff.
History's all full now.
Or we can make more time for history
I don't think you understand the thrust of this law. It's not about creating a separate class on gay rights, it's about incorporating gay people into existing history lessons. You mention Oppenheimer. Unless, I'm mistaken, the fact that he was a jew is mentioned in most history books. The same with Einstein. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was a pretty big deal, as were the US internment camps for Japanese-Americans during WWII. The Act and the camps are pretty self-explanatory. They were directed at a specific ethnic group of people. Gay accomplishments and persecution has mostly been swept under the rug.
Harvey Milk wasn't shot because he was gay, he was shot because he defeated a very disturbed man in an election. But, the fact that he was gay is pretty important.
The story of America is a story of minorities.
So the Pink Triangles of the Holocaust are irrelevant?
Wow, I don't know what to say. People of distinction aren't simply born that way, one's upbringing and the time in which they came of age play an enormous role. Any number of American industrialists were driven by adverse events during their formative years. Those events are almost always touched on. Being gay for most of human history has been pretty difficult. To not touch on that is really stupid and shows a bias that when it comes to history, should not be shown.
In American studies we didn't even mention the Manhattan Project, we didn't cover discrimination against the Chinese, we spent five minutes on the morality of Japanese Internment camps, but we didn't go why they interned them.
Harvey Milk wasn't shot because he beat Dan White in an election, Dan White resigned the position of supervisor because he felt the salary wasn't enough, but within a couple days he wanted his job back, he blamed Milk for not letting him have his job back and White jumped off the deep end.
The Holocaust was summarized as the Nazis were evil, they gassed, burned and worked to death lots of Jews, the Nazis were bad m'kay?
They're not in the records?
Come on, guy. Does it really matter if somebody were gay? I thought people of a liberal mindset are supposed to be "colorblind" or what have you, yet all of a sudden their sexuality, which has nothing to do with their achievements, should be made an important part of history?
How hypocritical.
If you set out the best negro x you have already flunked the matriculation exam for the entrance to the university of integration.
You do realize that homosexuality is not new and in fact was prevalent throughout ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt. It wasn't until Christianity took root and became prevalent that homosexuality was looked down upon. You can thank religion for that (Leviticus 18:22). So in fact, for most of human history homosexuality was seen as no different from heterosexuality.
Bisexuality was not uncommon, pure homosexuality was still rare and being penetrated was looked down upon because you weren't being the man in the relationship
xVeinx
Apr 29, 01:58 PM
These naysayers have been moaning and groaning about iOS forever. They will continue to do so forever. In the meantime the rest of the world will get on with using some great software (many of it free) and getting a lot of things done.
I'm glad Apple is pushing things forward. The last thing I want to see is OS X stagnate. Since we are now in the post-PC era, ideas from iOS are precisely what need to be explored. It won't be too many more years from now when the majority of consumer-level computing devices will be tablets running iOS-type gestures. It will be the expected thing to be able to support finger gestures to do common tasks. Any OS that cannot handle this will be considered old-fashioned.
Apple is doing the right thing by getting the future into OS X. They don't want to be left behind.
In another sense, the direction of the consumer PC/tablet/etc. will be where Apple takes it. They can play off of their successes with the iPad and iPhone and use that to shift the market to devices where Apple has a substantial amount of IP, experience, and expertise. It's one thing to be an alternative, as opposed to a shift where everything else becomes a (less desirable) alternative. That's where Apple is trying to go. Obviously not everyone agrees, but they have thus far made substantial inroads. Apple is increasingly a consumer-focussed company, so the utility of an interface in OS X, for instance, may suffer in it's usability for the "power user." It's hard to say though how much compromise will be made, as the dramatic changes in Final Cut Pro's upcoming release indicate a continued commitment to at least one sub-group of power users.
I'm glad Apple is pushing things forward. The last thing I want to see is OS X stagnate. Since we are now in the post-PC era, ideas from iOS are precisely what need to be explored. It won't be too many more years from now when the majority of consumer-level computing devices will be tablets running iOS-type gestures. It will be the expected thing to be able to support finger gestures to do common tasks. Any OS that cannot handle this will be considered old-fashioned.
Apple is doing the right thing by getting the future into OS X. They don't want to be left behind.
In another sense, the direction of the consumer PC/tablet/etc. will be where Apple takes it. They can play off of their successes with the iPad and iPhone and use that to shift the market to devices where Apple has a substantial amount of IP, experience, and expertise. It's one thing to be an alternative, as opposed to a shift where everything else becomes a (less desirable) alternative. That's where Apple is trying to go. Obviously not everyone agrees, but they have thus far made substantial inroads. Apple is increasingly a consumer-focussed company, so the utility of an interface in OS X, for instance, may suffer in it's usability for the "power user." It's hard to say though how much compromise will be made, as the dramatic changes in Final Cut Pro's upcoming release indicate a continued commitment to at least one sub-group of power users.
Huntn
Mar 4, 11:00 AM
Firing incompetent teachers sounds like a great idea, but it doesn't require unions to be disbanded to achieve.
Unfortunately, it does.
It does not.
Unfortunately, it does.
It does not.
Willis
Dec 13, 05:51 PM
need more than a grain of salt for this. These rumours come and go all the time. I doubt it will happen. In the summer? yes, but not now
AlBDamned
Nov 10, 07:39 PM
FFA was the only multiplayer mode worth playing in MW2. The rest sucked. Honestly Infinity Ward lost the plot after CoD 2 since then they have been well below par.
I guess we'll have to agree to disagree... The objective games in MW2 are great IMHO. Black Ops looks and feels ***** in comparison.
I guess we'll have to agree to disagree... The objective games in MW2 are great IMHO. Black Ops looks and feels ***** in comparison.
Yannick
Oct 19, 10:04 AM
I would love to know what the worldwide figure is for Apple market percentage. I know it says here that its not in the top 5, hence no available data, but it would be interesting to see, particularly here in the UK, as the amount of people I know who have switched in the last year has been huge!!
+1
It would be very interesting to see international figures and national figures.
+1
It would be very interesting to see international figures and national figures.
macteo
Apr 29, 03:55 PM
Yeah, I preferred the iOS scrollbars, and the slider buttons.
Why Apple did it?
Why Apple did it?
fxtech
Mar 29, 05:09 PM
I don't have much confidence in developers who eschew the App Store for their applications anyways, as in almost all cases it is a bad business move. I appreciate the business savvy of developers and companies who realize what a real advantage the app store model is, especially if you have a strong product.
That's pretty narrow minded of you. We sell a successful product for $1000 that uses an advanced licensing system for large facilities to "float" licenses between machines. The "App Store model" would be a horrible move for both us and our customers. Fortunately, since the people who need our tools already know about them (and would likely never turn to the app store to find such tools anyway), this isn't a big deal.
That's pretty narrow minded of you. We sell a successful product for $1000 that uses an advanced licensing system for large facilities to "float" licenses between machines. The "App Store model" would be a horrible move for both us and our customers. Fortunately, since the people who need our tools already know about them (and would likely never turn to the app store to find such tools anyway), this isn't a big deal.
Eidorian
Nov 16, 02:50 PM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86#Manufacturers
Hopefully Apple will stick with the best for now. (Intel) I've seen the promises AMD has but it's leaning toward 4x4 to compete with Intel. What's on the lower end for the average user when a Core 2 beats the pants off of what AMD has out.
Hopefully Apple will stick with the best for now. (Intel) I've seen the promises AMD has but it's leaning toward 4x4 to compete with Intel. What's on the lower end for the average user when a Core 2 beats the pants off of what AMD has out.
ilflyya
Jan 12, 11:54 PM
This prank lacked class and seems to be a great way to lose credibility and access to other events. I've never seen someone shoot themselves in the foot like this. Am I now supposed to believe anything they have to say? How do I know what they put out isn't a prank?
iphone3gs16gb
Apr 21, 10:55 AM
arn,
What are we to do with people who will abuse of this new feature?
What are we to do with people who will abuse of this new feature?
173080
Oct 7, 08:09 PM
Wonder what the stairway leads to?
Heaven. Oh wait... :D
Heaven. Oh wait... :D
machappymeal
Aug 23, 08:31 AM
thesheep
Do you not feel you should push for the latest spec one as it may well affect any possible re-sale value in the future?
Do you not feel you should push for the latest spec one as it may well affect any possible re-sale value in the future?
arn
Oct 10, 06:43 PM
moved to page 1, not because I necessarily think it was accurate, but because it's gotten wide exposure already and also that while Engadget generally has very low-standards for publishing rumors, this time they are claiming it's reliable...
we'll see...
arn
we'll see...
arn
IJ Reilly
Oct 19, 03:26 PM
The most likely scenario is somewhere in the middle... Vista will get mixed reviews, but will be viewed a a very significant improvement over XP, and Leopard will be a significant improvement over Tiger, but will only have a few features that Vista lacks, and some of the upgraders-in-waiting will take the plunge, but the more conservative will stick with the devil-they-know. As a result, the number of OS X installs will continue to grow, but it won't break the crucial 10% market share that makes it a 'mainstream' OS.
FWIW, the Mac was considered marginal by its critics even when the Mac's market share was close to 15%, so I would not bank on it being suddenly declared "mainstream." Growth is important if only because it suggests the sustainability of the platform to those who might otherwise doubt it, but I don't think there's any magic number that can be expected to shift the perception of the Mac in the minds of the public.
My sense is that the current growth in market share is in large part the iPod halo effect finally happening. People are walking into Apple stores to buy iPods. They carry that Apple logo around their pockets for awhile, and gradually come to the realization that Apple is cool. Apple is really cool now, and this counts for a lot. This is one reason I think Vista won't matter much to Apple, if only because no matter what Microsoft does, no matter how hard they try, and no matter how many features they deliver with Vista, Microsoft will never, ever be cool. In fact, their entire image is the antithesis of cool. It's an image they've cultivated -- like IBM before them: dull, but always there. You don't change that with one OS release. I don't think even Xbox did that for them.
This is Apple's moment. They're looking at a string of green lights right down the road. It sure will be interesting to see how far they go.
FWIW, the Mac was considered marginal by its critics even when the Mac's market share was close to 15%, so I would not bank on it being suddenly declared "mainstream." Growth is important if only because it suggests the sustainability of the platform to those who might otherwise doubt it, but I don't think there's any magic number that can be expected to shift the perception of the Mac in the minds of the public.
My sense is that the current growth in market share is in large part the iPod halo effect finally happening. People are walking into Apple stores to buy iPods. They carry that Apple logo around their pockets for awhile, and gradually come to the realization that Apple is cool. Apple is really cool now, and this counts for a lot. This is one reason I think Vista won't matter much to Apple, if only because no matter what Microsoft does, no matter how hard they try, and no matter how many features they deliver with Vista, Microsoft will never, ever be cool. In fact, their entire image is the antithesis of cool. It's an image they've cultivated -- like IBM before them: dull, but always there. You don't change that with one OS release. I don't think even Xbox did that for them.
This is Apple's moment. They're looking at a string of green lights right down the road. It sure will be interesting to see how far they go.
Joshuarocks
Apr 8, 07:36 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.
The only "Worst Buy" I am against is the one in Owings Mills, MD where they discriminated against me just because of a small disability. Pending a court case with corporate on this matter.. and I used to work for them back in 2005 and left them on a great note. Eligible for re-hire.. then tried to go back to them(Owings Mills) and the manager was very disrespectful and also discriminatory.
I plan to have that store shut down permanently.
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.
The only "Worst Buy" I am against is the one in Owings Mills, MD where they discriminated against me just because of a small disability. Pending a court case with corporate on this matter.. and I used to work for them back in 2005 and left them on a great note. Eligible for re-hire.. then tried to go back to them(Owings Mills) and the manager was very disrespectful and also discriminatory.
I plan to have that store shut down permanently.
mkrishnan
Sep 8, 11:30 AM
HAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAHAHAHA
wait, your name is michael bolton?
:p ;) :D
If it was, I'm pretty sure Bush would somehow be responsible.
http://www.my-smileys.de/smileys2/schacka_2.gif
wait, your name is michael bolton?
:p ;) :D
If it was, I'm pretty sure Bush would somehow be responsible.
http://www.my-smileys.de/smileys2/schacka_2.gif
ariel
Sep 25, 11:15 AM
I need something more with more power than iPhoto, and would love to be able to batch edit, and Watermark (can Aperture even do this ? )
Yes Aperture can apply your watermark on export. You can do all sorts of bulk edits as well with the lift/stamp tool etc.
Yes Aperture can apply your watermark on export. You can do all sorts of bulk edits as well with the lift/stamp tool etc.
Dr Kevorkian94
Apr 22, 10:08 PM
They should change everything if not to just confuse people. Lol
jjrtiger
May 2, 09:39 AM
Not that I really care about the tracking services...but I wonder if Apple will skip the 3G again with this update...
akm3
Sep 29, 12:18 AM
WTH? Whoever wrote this clearly doesn't have any idea about what has been going on in architecture in, oh, the past 150 years. I met Peter Bohlin last year and we got to talking about his design strategies. He's been doing similar work throughout his career, even before BCJ (then Bohlin Powell) was founded in 1965. Check out Japanese architecture from the past 1,500 years.
As an architecture major and architectural history minor I find this comment to be Jobs-worship. Thinking that nobody else could come up with the concept of a simple and sophisticated design is just asinine.
My rant aside, I love the floor plan and can't wait to see some elevations/perspectives. Go BCJ!
Also, on a side note, BCJ is the firm that designed Bill Gates' house...
Bill Gates copying Steve AGAIN, just earlier than usual this time... (!) (<-- That's a sarcasm mark)
As an architecture major and architectural history minor I find this comment to be Jobs-worship. Thinking that nobody else could come up with the concept of a simple and sophisticated design is just asinine.
My rant aside, I love the floor plan and can't wait to see some elevations/perspectives. Go BCJ!
Also, on a side note, BCJ is the firm that designed Bill Gates' house...
Bill Gates copying Steve AGAIN, just earlier than usual this time... (!) (<-- That's a sarcasm mark)
PinkyMacGodess
Oct 6, 09:23 PM
Well if Verizon hadn't been so crazy to try to corn hole Apple over the features of the iPhone and cause Apple to walk from the discussions, it would be a nearly bankrupt AT&T with their nose pressed against the glass saying that the iPhone sucks...
Sure, I have issues with AT&T's service. Sure there are times when I use AT&T's name in vain. I swore more when I found out that my Verizon phone with bluetooth would have more features on someone elses cell phone network and that the 'brain drain' at Verizon ordered certain features removed from the phone on their network! Yeah, Verizon has ZERO room to talk. They coulda had the iPhone... Hah!
Sure, I have issues with AT&T's service. Sure there are times when I use AT&T's name in vain. I swore more when I found out that my Verizon phone with bluetooth would have more features on someone elses cell phone network and that the 'brain drain' at Verizon ordered certain features removed from the phone on their network! Yeah, Verizon has ZERO room to talk. They coulda had the iPhone... Hah!
SilentPanda
Apr 21, 10:48 AM
Am I meant to be able to rate my own post?
If you click the down arrow on your own post, it should just delete the post IMO.
If you click the down arrow on your own post, it should just delete the post IMO.
Polo5
Oct 6, 10:13 AM
could i move in with you steve? :p
