AB~News - A line began to form at the Apple Store here on the eve of the iPhone 4S release, as is often the case around the world during the company's product launches.
At the front of this particular line Thursday, Steve Wozniak sits in a Pico armchair, sipping Diet Dr Pepper and scanning e-mails from his white iPad.
The Apple co-founder, who gets a paycheck of "a couple hundred dollars every two weeks" and still maintains his status as employee No. 1 in company records, hasn't been able to stay put for long. Crowds of Apple fans, family friends and people who have seen him riding his Segway around the neighborhood stop to say hi, take pictures and ask for his autograph.
"I'll be taking a thousand pictures," Wozniak whispered with a smile. "I'm going to sit down and see if I can get a little e-mail done, because there's no way I'm going to get it all done today."
Seconds later, an enthusiastic man in a yellow polo shirt positioned his two kids near the computer legend and pleaded for him to pose. Wozniak immediately sprang to his feet with a grin on his face.
People brought iPhones, iPods and iPads for Wozniak to sign with a marker. "Now your phone is not going to be worth as much when you sell it," Wozniak said to one woman before signing her iPhone 4.
Fans gave Wozniak their condolences over the late Steve Jobs, the Apple co-founder who died last week. Flowers, partially eaten apples and notes were laid in front of Apple Stores around the world, including this one, where the memorial was set just a few feet from Wozniak's spot in line.
Wozniak explained that sending flowers or onetime celebrations are the kinds of traditions he and Jobs agreed were unnecessary. However, he talked openly about how much he misses his high-school pal, with whom he built a technology empire.
Wozniak acknowledged that he could have easily made one phone call to Apple and gotten the phone he's waiting in line for, but he didn't. He has yet to play with an iPhone 4S or its Siri voice-controlled assistant. He has said previously that he does not ask colleagues about products in development because he does not want to ruin the surprise for himself.
Steve Wozniak autographed fans' Apple products outside the Los Gatos store.
"I want to get mine along with the millions of other fans," Wozniak said. "I just want to be able to talk to my phone."
Analysts have expressed disappointment in the iPhone 4S, but Wozniak, who looks forward to every new Apple device, is especially animated when discussing it. Over the past year, he has not been shy about his anticipation for voice-assist technology, like the new 4S tool called Siri.
People who say they have waited in lines behind Wozniak during past Apple releases have written spiteful messages online claiming he had used his celebrity to cut in line just before the stores opened. Wozniak said that he is usually further back in line at these events but that fans in front of him insist that he get his devices first.
On Thursday, there is no dispute about Wozniak's place in line. His Segway, which he rode from his nearby home, is parked in a corner near the store's entrance. Wozniak arrived about noon, and he plans to stay overnight in order to get the new iPhone first, he said.
Fifteen minutes after Wozniak arrived, Parth Dhebar, 17, showed up. He first met Wozniak last year in line at a nearby store during the launch of the original iPad. Wozniak and the high school student kept in touch by e-mail and Facebook, and they were third and fourth in line to buy the iPhone 4.
At the iPad launch, Wozniak taught Dhebar how to ride a Segway.
"Mall security was like, 'You shouldn't be Segwaying in here,' but nobody is going to say no to Woz, obviously," said Dhebar, who develops iPhone applications. "He does it because he wants to, not for publicity reasons."
Reporters and cameramen were among the people approaching Wozniak on Thursday. By 7 p.m. Pacific, about a dozen people had set up chairs behind Wozniak, and his wife, Janet Hill, joined. Wozniak said he had already ordered two iPhones to be delivered to his home; he's in line to buy one for his wife.
Before then, a policeman asked Wozniak quietly whether he would need anything and whether the celebrity planned to stay all night. Wozniak said that he was but that he might take a jog around the block at 3 a.m.
"The line is doing nicely," Wozniak said after surveying the area.
Fans gathered around Steve Wozniak to chat briefly with the computer legend.
Some in the queue came out solely because Wozniak was here, which they learned from updates on his Twitter and Foursquare profiles. Joe Hewitt, a prominent Silicon Valley software developer, also tweeted this afternoon when he spotted Wozniak in line.
Mohamad Jawad, a graduate student at Santa Clara University, took the bus after seeing Wozniak's tweet. David Gandy, a furniture designer who is looking to change jobs, said he came to soak up some inspiration from Wozniak.
"I came out here just so I can hang out with Woz for 18 hours," said Gandy, who lives in the nearby city of Campbell. "I've been watching him get harassed all day."
Wozniak designed the original Apple computers, his major triumph, but he is recognized by many people nowadays for his short-lived appearance in 2009 on the ABC show "Dancing with the Stars."
"You were awesome on 'Dancing with the Stars!' " said one fan, who had her picture taken with Wozniak. "So good! I voted for you."
Wozniak quipped, "It's the one show I like on TV." He doesn't watch television, he adds. He spends a great deal of time responding to fan mail.
original article here
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Why video gamers are a great fit at the gym
AB~News - "For the first 26 years of my life, I had no idea what exercise was," Fitocracy user Michael Perry says. Fitocracy uses video game techniques to encourage exercise"Glued to Games" authors say motivation is similar in fitness, gamesCommunity around online games, or fitness, satisfies a psychological need
They've been trained to focus for weeks at a time on a single goal. They know how to clearly identify obstacles and form step-by-step plans to overcome them.
They're obsessed with improving specific skills but judge success only by overall progress made in the world they've decided to conquer -- as realistic or fantastical as it may be.
It's precisely these traits that make video-gamers great bodybuilders.
Take a moment to laugh, if you must. Now hear us out.
Brian Wang and Dick Talens were the stereotypical video-gamers in high school. One was scrawny, the other fat. They grew up playing marathon sessions of "EverQuest" and "Counter-Strike."
"I literally would wake up and play all day, eating intermittently," Talens said. "OK, when I say intermittently, I mean eating a lot."
Dick Talens weighed 230 pounds in high school before becoming a body builder.
But by the time the men met at the University of Pennsylvania in 2004, they had traded an obsession with video gaming for an obsession with weight-lifting. As they shared stories at the gym, they realized their healthy transformation had been easier for them than for most.
Why? Because they were -- and would always be -- gamers.
"People don't realize that video games are an expression of personality," Talens said. "There's certain qualities that people have. They're obsessed with improving the stat sheets, getting to the next level; they pay a lot of attention to detail. Guys who play ('World of Warcraft') ... are very intense about whatever they do. They can turn that addiction and all its characteristics into fitness."
It's a theory they're taking to the bank. Talens and Wang are the co-founders of Fitocracy, a website that's turning gaming geeks into fitness geeks. The site has 70,000 users in its beta version and hopes to open to the 60,000 on a waiting list in the next couple months.
Fitocracy members can "level up" by earning points for their workouts. New levels unlock special challenges or "quests" that are designed to push users out of their comfort zones. For example, a runner might have to do yoga, or a bodybuilder might have to tackle a 5K.
Brian Wang grew up playing hours of "StarCraft" and "Counter-Strike."
Still, one has to wonder: What would make a virtual warrior trade in his sword and shield for a pair of dumbbells? The same thing that got him interested in playing video games in the first place, Dr. Scott Rigby says.
Rigby and Dr. Richard Ryan are co-authors of the book "Glued to Games: How Video Games Draw Us In and Hold Us Spellbound." As experts on human motivation, they have identified basic psychological needs -- similar to physical needs like food, water and sleep -- that video games satisfy.
First, Ryan says, is the need to feel competent. In real life, you get the chance to "level up" only once every couple years: like when you earn a promotion at work or get married. In games, you always know what you have to do to get to the next level.
"In video games, you're constantly getting information about your achievements and (learning) how to do things better," Ryan says. "There's an opportunity to develop a mastery that's very much a key motivator."
That translates well to fitness, where tracking your accomplishments enables you to progress quicker. You know you've improved when you run an extra mile or dead lift another 50 pounds.
Guys who play WoW ... are very intense about whatever they do. They can turn that addiction and all its characteristics into fitness.
Fitocracy co-founder Dick Talens
A second motivator in video games is the feeling of freedom and autonomy, Rigby says. People like to know they have control over their future. In video games, you can choose your path, the skills you want to improve, even your outfit. Making the same choices in your fitness regimen helps you feel empowered.
"Games make the goals really clear," Rigby said. "You have to run from point A to point B, deliver a message, kill this bad guy. You have a very clear sense of 'If I just do these steps, I will succeed.' And let's call them quests because it sounds heroic. And who doesn't want to feel like a hero?"
Fitocracy user Michael Perry says that what's most important to him is the community on the website, which resembles that of his favorite online game, "World of Warcraft." In any massively multiplayer online role-playing game, you work with other players to conquer enemies. Your team expects you to show up and do what needs to be done. He gets the same sense of accountability from the members on Fitocracy.
"When I was playing WoW all the time, I had to make sure everything I was doing was right. I researched it down to the T. I made sure I was hitting spells right at the right time. I wouldn't miss a raid," Perry said. "I think that translates really well to exercise and bodybuilding because you have to have that level of knowledge, (and) you have to have that commitment."
Rigby says the community around online games, or fitness, satisfies one of the last psychological needs: relationships.
"There's a social component to it. ... You're relying on each other. You really need the other person to watch your back and vice versa," he said. "(Games) build in a sense of 'I matter to others; others matter to me.' "
Michael Perry said he was heavy all of his life before he started weight-lifting.
Of course, motivation isn't restricted to video gamers. Everyone has these basic intrinsic psychological needs and can apply them to fitness. Gamers just have an easier time learning the language.
"What video game players have is a certain understanding for how these sort of fitness structures are built: goal-setting, progression, etc." Rigby said. "In other words, it's a world that they know."
Take Vin Diesel, one of the buffest men in Hollywood. Diesel used to play "D&D" on his days off as a bouncer in one of New York's nightclubs.
He contributed the foreword for the book "30 Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons," writing, "We were all drawn to the game because it allowed us to become these characters, vastly different in appearance and in actions, but what kept us hooked was the search for the character that represented our higher self."
A quest -- to look different, to act stronger, to be better. Sound familiar?
original article here
They've been trained to focus for weeks at a time on a single goal. They know how to clearly identify obstacles and form step-by-step plans to overcome them.
They're obsessed with improving specific skills but judge success only by overall progress made in the world they've decided to conquer -- as realistic or fantastical as it may be.
It's precisely these traits that make video-gamers great bodybuilders.
Take a moment to laugh, if you must. Now hear us out.
Brian Wang and Dick Talens were the stereotypical video-gamers in high school. One was scrawny, the other fat. They grew up playing marathon sessions of "EverQuest" and "Counter-Strike."
"I literally would wake up and play all day, eating intermittently," Talens said. "OK, when I say intermittently, I mean eating a lot."
Dick Talens weighed 230 pounds in high school before becoming a body builder.
But by the time the men met at the University of Pennsylvania in 2004, they had traded an obsession with video gaming for an obsession with weight-lifting. As they shared stories at the gym, they realized their healthy transformation had been easier for them than for most.
Why? Because they were -- and would always be -- gamers.
"People don't realize that video games are an expression of personality," Talens said. "There's certain qualities that people have. They're obsessed with improving the stat sheets, getting to the next level; they pay a lot of attention to detail. Guys who play ('World of Warcraft') ... are very intense about whatever they do. They can turn that addiction and all its characteristics into fitness."
It's a theory they're taking to the bank. Talens and Wang are the co-founders of Fitocracy, a website that's turning gaming geeks into fitness geeks. The site has 70,000 users in its beta version and hopes to open to the 60,000 on a waiting list in the next couple months.
Fitocracy members can "level up" by earning points for their workouts. New levels unlock special challenges or "quests" that are designed to push users out of their comfort zones. For example, a runner might have to do yoga, or a bodybuilder might have to tackle a 5K.
Brian Wang grew up playing hours of "StarCraft" and "Counter-Strike."
Still, one has to wonder: What would make a virtual warrior trade in his sword and shield for a pair of dumbbells? The same thing that got him interested in playing video games in the first place, Dr. Scott Rigby says.
Rigby and Dr. Richard Ryan are co-authors of the book "Glued to Games: How Video Games Draw Us In and Hold Us Spellbound." As experts on human motivation, they have identified basic psychological needs -- similar to physical needs like food, water and sleep -- that video games satisfy.
First, Ryan says, is the need to feel competent. In real life, you get the chance to "level up" only once every couple years: like when you earn a promotion at work or get married. In games, you always know what you have to do to get to the next level.
"In video games, you're constantly getting information about your achievements and (learning) how to do things better," Ryan says. "There's an opportunity to develop a mastery that's very much a key motivator."
That translates well to fitness, where tracking your accomplishments enables you to progress quicker. You know you've improved when you run an extra mile or dead lift another 50 pounds.
Guys who play WoW ... are very intense about whatever they do. They can turn that addiction and all its characteristics into fitness.
Fitocracy co-founder Dick Talens
A second motivator in video games is the feeling of freedom and autonomy, Rigby says. People like to know they have control over their future. In video games, you can choose your path, the skills you want to improve, even your outfit. Making the same choices in your fitness regimen helps you feel empowered.
"Games make the goals really clear," Rigby said. "You have to run from point A to point B, deliver a message, kill this bad guy. You have a very clear sense of 'If I just do these steps, I will succeed.' And let's call them quests because it sounds heroic. And who doesn't want to feel like a hero?"
Fitocracy user Michael Perry says that what's most important to him is the community on the website, which resembles that of his favorite online game, "World of Warcraft." In any massively multiplayer online role-playing game, you work with other players to conquer enemies. Your team expects you to show up and do what needs to be done. He gets the same sense of accountability from the members on Fitocracy.
"When I was playing WoW all the time, I had to make sure everything I was doing was right. I researched it down to the T. I made sure I was hitting spells right at the right time. I wouldn't miss a raid," Perry said. "I think that translates really well to exercise and bodybuilding because you have to have that level of knowledge, (and) you have to have that commitment."
Rigby says the community around online games, or fitness, satisfies one of the last psychological needs: relationships.
"There's a social component to it. ... You're relying on each other. You really need the other person to watch your back and vice versa," he said. "(Games) build in a sense of 'I matter to others; others matter to me.' "
Michael Perry said he was heavy all of his life before he started weight-lifting.
Of course, motivation isn't restricted to video gamers. Everyone has these basic intrinsic psychological needs and can apply them to fitness. Gamers just have an easier time learning the language.
"What video game players have is a certain understanding for how these sort of fitness structures are built: goal-setting, progression, etc." Rigby said. "In other words, it's a world that they know."
Take Vin Diesel, one of the buffest men in Hollywood. Diesel used to play "D&D" on his days off as a bouncer in one of New York's nightclubs.
He contributed the foreword for the book "30 Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons," writing, "We were all drawn to the game because it allowed us to become these characters, vastly different in appearance and in actions, but what kept us hooked was the search for the character that represented our higher self."
A quest -- to look different, to act stronger, to be better. Sound familiar?
original article here
BlackBerry fans: RIM is chipping away our faith
.AB~News- Some BlackBerry fans are fed up after a recent network outage that knocked out e-mail and Messenger access.A RIM outage this week sparked some outrage among BlackBerry customersRIM faces competitive pressure, most recently from the iPhone 4SBlackBerry addicts are threatening to ditch their longtime phone of choice
The love affair between BlackBerry devotees and their mobile communicators is becoming strained, and some of them made the quarrel very public this week after a service outage.
Fans often discuss the intimate details about why they are attached at the hip to smartphones made by Research in Motion -- the clack-clack of the tiny keys, the feel of the trackball or square pad on their thumbs, the informative indicator light calling out for attention. They affectionately call it the "CrackBerry."
After the recent outage, which RIM says was caused by a server error, some longtime BlackBerry users are writing goodbye letters on blogs, and on message boards operated and frequented by the CrackBerry collective. Richie, a British member of a Web forum called CrackBerry, summed up the concerns, saying RIM has been "chipping away our faith" in the company's ability to satisfy customers.
In interviews with reporters, RIM executives issued apologies, which they also made public in a recorded video, but they avoided questions about whether they planned to offer incentives as compensation for the millions of customers affected by the outage. RIM did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.
By comparison, after Sony restored its network this summer following a lengthy outage, the company compensated users of its subscription service, and gave free games and movie rentals to all users.
Netflix has offered small discounts to customers affected by technical troubles.
Despite RIM's lack of public comment, an AT&T customer in Cleveland wrote on the CrackBerry message boards that he received a credit on his bill when he called to complain about the outage.
RIM customers still holding onto their faith in the company should pay close attention to a conference being held in San Francisco next week. The pressure on BlackBerry from competitors is mounting, and RIM's promised next-generation models, with dual-core processors and large touchscreens, are overdue.
A CrackBerry forum member, posting under the alias N8star, says he is giving up his BlackBerry Torch 9850 "after years of being treated like a battered spouse by RIM," he wrote. His wife urged him to switch to an iPhone, and he says he will acquiesce.
Jim Kerstetter, the executive editor for technology website CNET, published an editorial on Thursday titled "RIM, you're dead to me now." He writes that he has defended BlackBerry, despite the lack of multimedia features, but that the recent outage has spurred him to switch phones and operating systems.
RIM still has a comfortable hold on corporate buyers, who snap up large orders for employees. Security experts tend to trust BlackBerry more than other smartphone platforms.
However, even tech departments in companies are becoming more lenient on this policy. David Hurst, who was waiting in line to buy an iPhone 4S for his wife at a store in Atlanta, said her company "has finally approved for her to switch from BlackBerry to iPhone, and her BlackBerry is just falling apart."
In the now crucial mobile-consumer market, Google and Apple both lead BlackBerry in sales, a trend expected to continue into the crucial holiday shopping season. A combined 69% of smartphone buyers say they plan to get either an Android phone or iPhone, while only 8% indicated that BlackBerry was at the top of their shopping lists, according to an NPD study from this summer.
RIM is "struggling to compete against Apple and Android," NPD analyst Linda Barrabee said in a phone interview. "The outage comes at a really opportune time. ... You've got, during the same week, the availability of the iPhone 4S."
Among the dedicated Apple followers who lined up outside stores around the world to buy the new iPhone on Friday, some reluctant people waiting at stores told CNN that they were there because they believed BlackBerry was too far behind the technological curve.
Outside the Apple Store in Los Gatos, California, a few spots behind Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in line, Karol McBrian held a spot for her son. She is a longtime BlackBerry user, but she said she is changing allegiances. She will be inheriting her son's iPhone 4.
Teresa Sparks, a 41-year-old nurse in Atlanta, waited in a line across the country from McBrian to buy her iPhone, which will replace a BlackBerry. She is especially excited about Siri, the voice-assistant technology that Apple has promoted heavily. "I don't know who made it; I don't care," she said. "I just want the personal assistant."
original article here
The love affair between BlackBerry devotees and their mobile communicators is becoming strained, and some of them made the quarrel very public this week after a service outage.
Fans often discuss the intimate details about why they are attached at the hip to smartphones made by Research in Motion -- the clack-clack of the tiny keys, the feel of the trackball or square pad on their thumbs, the informative indicator light calling out for attention. They affectionately call it the "CrackBerry."
After the recent outage, which RIM says was caused by a server error, some longtime BlackBerry users are writing goodbye letters on blogs, and on message boards operated and frequented by the CrackBerry collective. Richie, a British member of a Web forum called CrackBerry, summed up the concerns, saying RIM has been "chipping away our faith" in the company's ability to satisfy customers.
In interviews with reporters, RIM executives issued apologies, which they also made public in a recorded video, but they avoided questions about whether they planned to offer incentives as compensation for the millions of customers affected by the outage. RIM did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.
By comparison, after Sony restored its network this summer following a lengthy outage, the company compensated users of its subscription service, and gave free games and movie rentals to all users.
Netflix has offered small discounts to customers affected by technical troubles.
Despite RIM's lack of public comment, an AT&T customer in Cleveland wrote on the CrackBerry message boards that he received a credit on his bill when he called to complain about the outage.
RIM customers still holding onto their faith in the company should pay close attention to a conference being held in San Francisco next week. The pressure on BlackBerry from competitors is mounting, and RIM's promised next-generation models, with dual-core processors and large touchscreens, are overdue.
A CrackBerry forum member, posting under the alias N8star, says he is giving up his BlackBerry Torch 9850 "after years of being treated like a battered spouse by RIM," he wrote. His wife urged him to switch to an iPhone, and he says he will acquiesce.
Jim Kerstetter, the executive editor for technology website CNET, published an editorial on Thursday titled "RIM, you're dead to me now." He writes that he has defended BlackBerry, despite the lack of multimedia features, but that the recent outage has spurred him to switch phones and operating systems.
RIM still has a comfortable hold on corporate buyers, who snap up large orders for employees. Security experts tend to trust BlackBerry more than other smartphone platforms.
However, even tech departments in companies are becoming more lenient on this policy. David Hurst, who was waiting in line to buy an iPhone 4S for his wife at a store in Atlanta, said her company "has finally approved for her to switch from BlackBerry to iPhone, and her BlackBerry is just falling apart."
In the now crucial mobile-consumer market, Google and Apple both lead BlackBerry in sales, a trend expected to continue into the crucial holiday shopping season. A combined 69% of smartphone buyers say they plan to get either an Android phone or iPhone, while only 8% indicated that BlackBerry was at the top of their shopping lists, according to an NPD study from this summer.
RIM is "struggling to compete against Apple and Android," NPD analyst Linda Barrabee said in a phone interview. "The outage comes at a really opportune time. ... You've got, during the same week, the availability of the iPhone 4S."
Among the dedicated Apple followers who lined up outside stores around the world to buy the new iPhone on Friday, some reluctant people waiting at stores told CNN that they were there because they believed BlackBerry was too far behind the technological curve.
Outside the Apple Store in Los Gatos, California, a few spots behind Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in line, Karol McBrian held a spot for her son. She is a longtime BlackBerry user, but she said she is changing allegiances. She will be inheriting her son's iPhone 4.
Teresa Sparks, a 41-year-old nurse in Atlanta, waited in a line across the country from McBrian to buy her iPhone, which will replace a BlackBerry. She is especially excited about Siri, the voice-assistant technology that Apple has promoted heavily. "I don't know who made it; I don't care," she said. "I just want the personal assistant."
original article here
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