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30 November 2004

i-Mode goes to Europe

NTT DoCoMo, in partnership with mmO2 plc, that they will be extending their i-Mode mobile data services into the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Germany. According to the DoCoMo press release, English and Irish services are slated to begin in the second half of 2005, with German rollout planned for Spring 2006.

I have been spouting off about this for over a year to anyone who will listen, and now my wishes are beginning to come true. This move will definitely give Vodafone and their recent Vodafone live! 3G program a run for its money, and it will further strengthen DoCoMo's position as a dominant force in the global mobile industry.

It seems that O2 needed this deal, considering they are the runner-up in the UK market, and Vodafone's 3G launch spans across the majority of Europe. DoCoMo also needs to continue to make bold moves into foreign markets in order to grow beyond their current role as an extremely strong yet land-locked company.

Personally I would like to see DoCoMo increase their visibility in the US market. Their investment in ATT Wireless hasn't borne much fruit aside from a minimal 3G launch in small pockets of ATT's coverage. Vodafone could stand to increase their brand visibility in the US market, mostly because I dread hearing about Verizon Wireless and the next feature-stripped handset.

If mobile customers in the US will wake up and begin to demand handset portability from their providers, then hopefully we can push GSM into a more dominant position, which would soften the ground for a proper global market.

23 November 2004

Sketchy work conditions at EA

The Electronic Arts slogan Challenge Everything, apparently extends to include the limits of their employees as well as their software development. Read the NY Times piece on the subject, which references an amazing blog post from the spouse of an EA employee.

Dolphins are awesome

In case anyone needed reassurance of this, I submit to you the following:

Flipper was a badass crime-solving porpoise, Bones in Johnny Mnemonic was a cypher mammal with Ice-T as his best friend, and of who can forget Debbie's hand raised pseudo-baby from Sealab 2021.

This CNN piece further confirms what amazing animals dolphins are. Apparently they protected a family of Kiwi swimmers from impending shark attack.

All of this, plus they have sex for fun.

My English Teacher...

...Is really cool.

She's a pro surfer! Check out her bio from Essential Surf Company.

20 November 2004

Two Japanese films that everyone should see/own

These films have consumed my attention recently, and I will own them before the month is out. First, for obscene violence, Mach!!!!!!!! Trailer / Amazon.jp Second, for the best cell-shading ever, Appleseed. Trailer / Amazon.jp

18 November 2004

Holiday Shopping

Amazon has compiled a list of DVDs priced at 7.99! Buy me!

17 November 2004

Top Five

Amazing shit I've found this evening while on lunch from slingin' Pods: Big Baby Jesus, aka Old Dirty Bastard, dead at 35. His location of death signals his true love. The Museum of Media History cira 2014. Very creepy ending, though I do like the Googlezon logo a lot, and I'd like to see them merge. Build your own HiDef Personal Video Recorder. I think I'm going to have to construct this franken-console just to have an alternative to the broadcast flag mandate. Kottke tutorials photo time panoramas. This technique makes me want to pick up a proper d'slr in time for snowboarding season. Senate stock picks outperformed the market by 12 percent over five years. I'm not really concerned about the pointers this study will make towards criminalizing a number of the US Congress, I just want to start following their picks.

13 November 2004

You See The Ring...Again

The Ring Two looks awesome. Somehow, in spite of all the rave around the genre with films like The Grudge and White Noise that have been released, this one still maintains more class for me.

11 November 2004

Awesome Apple Employees

McFaul and I did some digging in AppleDirectory after lunch today, as we were curious about which Apple employees are responsible for iPod Belt Clip and iPod Socks, the two most-recent additions to the iPod accessories family.

Yea I know, curiosity killed the cat, but fcuk that we ain't no cats. Well, perhaps in the Sammy Davis Jr. slash Dennis Miller 'cool cat' sense, but not felines.

Anyhoo, just in case any of you were wondering, the two beautiful people responsible for clippy cases and fabric cases/socks are Earl Case and Julie Socks, respectively.

Parking buddies

Parking buddies

Just left Cupertino after having lunch with McFaul. Walked to my car and who parked next to me? Take a good guess before you peek at the answer.

10 November 2004

Narcoleptic Salarymen

Narcoleptic Salarymen

Some would call it sad, and point to the social issues surrounding a
culture that works its people too hard.

I simply feel that the image of passed-out Asians in good suits is hilarious! However you feel, please enjoy this gallery of sleepy Japanese businessmen!

06 November 2004

My shirt is awesome!

My shirt is awesome!

Everyone's at the theater tonight seeing the movie. Silly fools, I've
already started pimping the brand.

05 November 2004

The Morning After

A guy just walked by me singing, 'The Best Is Yet To Come' and I almost threw up.

While I am unable to organize my thoughts, here are some people who have:

Dan Gillmor's ejournal. Good stuff, realistic also.

OK, so it's not exactly, "...some people..." but I will keep updating this as the fires on the net are put out. Punch Reload for more in the coming weeks, and in the meantime punch anything else.

03 November 2004

Nog on the Blog

Nog on the Blog

Today was pretty shitty, but tonight is grand!

The wrong guy won the Presidential election, Tito pissed on my leg, and a girl at work called me chubby.

No matter though, for on this eve of Wednesday Eggnog is for sale at 7-Eleven. Rejoice my friends, for the holiday caloric invasion has begun!

01 November 2004

Seeing The Incredibles

Seeing The Incredibles

Just saw The Incredibles at PIXAR. I didn't type the name because it's tremendous, I typed it that way because it's proper.

Fantastic movie, both in story and in technics. The story was the most entertaining one yet, with great writing and characters. Voice acting on the parts of Holly Hunter and Jason Lee was excellent.

Being on the list at PIXAR was surreal. Nestled right off the freeway, across the street from Emeryville Civic Center, the gate commands a significant presence. Their's is quite possibly the most beautiful corporate campus in history. Formerly the Del Monte Cannery, the wide open space has been finished in the most exquisite hardwood and brick.

The main area was decorated with production illustrations, character sculptures, and even family photos of the Incredibles on honeymoon and other such cute bits. We were able to wander the halls after the show and take in every little sketch.

Finally, this evening has been so special that I want to thank some people. Thank you two Fruitshop and Bonkie for joining me on such a ubercool geek outting. Thank you to Johann for sharing your tiny bed so I could have the energy to stay up for this and to Sndgeek for being the name in the credits I am so proud to know.

Finally, thank you Dad for extending your invitation. You are the best and I love you.