I'm pretty certain that this is first time the DMCA has been mentioned in the Sunday comics.

Hopefully, it'll do some good.

AOL is discontinuing support for the Netscape Browser as of Feb 1, 2008.

I've used Netscape since the days of 0.7 ("Wow! Tables! Cool!") and continued to use it during the dark days of late 90's/early 2000's when all around me were using IE.

The fact is, though, that Firefox is a better browser than Netscape, and AOL is right to let the ol' girl slip quietly away like this.

Still gonna miss it, though. It's the end of an era.

Any digital media strategy that doesn't take the iPod into account is doomed.

It's like trying to compete in the office productivity area with programs that don't read/write MS Office docments. It's just not going to be successful.

Period.

Next question.

Admit it, accept it, and move on.

Wal-Mart learned this lesson the hard way, NBC/Universal is in the midst of learning it, and Amazon.com is benefiting from their pain and the pain of Microsoft, Realplayer, et al and doing it the right way. (Note: It's been said that wisdom is the ability to learn from the mistakes of others. Amazon.com is doing this smarter than any other player out there right now. They're the real competitor for Apple and iTunes, not Microsoft.)

If you want to be competitive and have DRM on your files, you have to use iTunes. If you want to be competitive without going through iTunes, you have to ditch the DRM.

Not a hard problem to understand. Not hard at all.

Trying to explain to my non-geek friends why more megapixels doesn't always mean better image quality is an ongoing frustration for me.

Fortunately, there's this website to help show the way.

It's simple: More pixels on a smaller chip = Less data per sensor = Higher probability of errors = More noise = Uglier photos.

We now know who "A Photo Editor" is, and he's good. I've enjoyed the visual style of both magazines for quite some time now, and it's good to find out that the person behind the endlessly engaging "A Photo Editor" blog is truly a top-notch professional.

Good luck with whatever's next in life, Rob.

73%How Addicted to Apple Are You?

I guess the fact I took the test on my work PC saved me from total fanboyhood.

I love rangefinder cameras. I love the calmness they force on me when I shoot. I love their light weight, quiet operation and innocuous appearance.

Had an XA, a Canonet and a Contax G. Never had a Leica, though. Sure do want one.

And this ain't helpin'.

... and don't buy a Bluetooth mouse for an XP machine that doesn't already have a Bluetooth driver pre-installed.

Trust me on this.

"The internet is an entirely new economy. It’s not built on big. It’s built on a mass of smalls."

- Jeff Jarvis

John Moore takes a look at the "No Photos Allowed" policy of major retailers, and makes some great points.

"...it can get silly and seemingly ridiculous when retailers confront well-meaning customers (like Conrad) from taking photos. It happens a lot … like here, here, and here. I especially love the irony of the Apple store that told an in-store customer he wasn’t allowed to take a photo using his iPhone."

"As Seth said … customers taking photos is part of the deal when you deliver remarkable customer experiences. So its about time for retailers to learn this lesson and solve for dissuading potential thieves with policies and activities other than prohibiting customers from taking photos."

It seems to me that if you want customers to have a memorable experience in your store, you should allow them to capture the memories on their cameraphones and take it with them and share with others.

I have to agree with those who say "Good bye and good riddance!"

I can't recall one good shopping experience in the 10+ years they were in the Valley. The difference between shopping at a Best Buy or CompUSA and shopping at an Apple Store is just one more reason why Apple users are so loyal to their brand.