Windows Everywhere

(Source: http://blogs-images.forbes.com/erikkain/files/2012/02/6201.Win8Logo_01_thumb_23669D8A.jpg)

I've been especially excited lately. Excited in a way that I haven't truly been since 2007 when the iPhone was introduced. I was thirteen, almost fourteen, and it was a really big deal to me then. Exciting. Wonderful. Magical even; and most of all it fueled my childlike wonder. A short amount of time has gone by and the iPhone has set itself as the de facto standard for quality. Sam(e)sung calls it 'obvious,' so obviously they did it first right? Wrong! Dishonesty is rampant in almost every design in smartphones today. The hardware... oh the hardware.

(Source: http://tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/samsung_phones_before_after_iphone.jpg?w=640)

Phones didn't have the standard 3.5 mm headphone jacks that we have today... until the iPhone. The standards we have today in the hardware of our phones is almost exclusively thanks to Apple.

Android itself is a rip of the iPhone software, and a great deal of the 'features' that it has over the iPhone started with the iPhone! The Jailbreak community was a sort of wild testing ground for Apple. They could see what really worked and what didn't.

Wifi-Sync? Jailbreak, then Android, then Apple.
Third party apps (and Appstore)? Jailbreak, then Android, then Apple (mostly, not the third party Appstore).
Lock screen Widgets? Jailbreak, then Android, then Apple.
Multitasking
Custom wallpapers
Volume button shutter release
Video out
Wifi hotspot tethering
Folders
Bluetooth keyboard support
Copy and paste
APPS

(Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-steal-jailbreak-2011-6#improved-notifications-1)

(Source: http://cdn2.digitaltrends.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Android_before_after_iphone.jpg)

All thanks to Apple's jailbreak community. Just because it isn't officially Apple's and they play cat-and-mouse, doesn't mean they don't get some credit. Yes, the innovation ultimately goes to the jailbreak developers... and Apple for making something capable and worth developing for. Something worth making even more fantastic than it is right now. A device that is better than when you first bought it. That is a practice that only Apple implements right now. Obvious right? Then why doesn't everyone do it and stop copying the real innovators.

Which brings me to the point that I've been thinking about incessantly for months. Windows. Windows Everywhere. Microsoft's push for a unified and supportable ecosystem. Phone, gaming, laptop, desktop, tablet: all unified through their cloud services and seamless. An old idea, but one that hasn't yet been fully realized; I think they may pull it off. I'm excited to no end. I obsess over any and every Windows rumor now, something that used to be reserved for Anything Apple. I love Apple products for a few simple reasons: I enjoy using them, they work and are stable, they will always, always, ALWAYS be better than when I first bought them. Simplicity and elegance that I can bond with on an emotional level. Like it or not, we bond with our devices; they have our lives on them.

Windows 8

Live tiles what a great idea! They're like the widget fad but actually usable and useful at a glance.

An introductory video to Windows 8

Surface

Note: Unsourced images are screenshots from Microsoft.com and their other product websites.

Xbox

Unified UI across all platforms

(Source: http://i1-news.softpedia-static.com/images/news2/E3-2011-Xbox-360-Gets-TV-Subscription-New-Dashboard-More-Kinect-Features-6.jpg)

Awesome games

Windows Phone 8

Phones that I don't immediately think, 'That's either an iPhone or some Android phone.'

Good Marketing Campaign

Good selection of quality, non-spammy apps (I'm looking at you Google Play! Phones shouldn't need Anti-virus software!!!)

A budget phone with good build quality

And Good Specs!

A flagship phone that makes me excited

And doesn't leave me disappointed!

A usable online website with useful information

And a light, fast, but still powerful Appstore The iTunes software makes me cringe there is so much bloat. Windows Phone 8 Appstore is clean, light, and lightning fast.

I'm excited because there is something new that is worth entrusting my digital life on. The iPhone is still very trustworthy and I love it. It works, it's fast, it has a ton of great ideas, but if everything works out like we've been promised I will switch to Windows. It's just that great.


For all of these reasons, This Is My Next: Nokia Lumia 920.

The Moongate Interview: Lifetech Co-CEOs on Finances

236 Years On, Lifetech Is In Trouble

By Loren Jewkes

Recently I was given the opportunity to sit down with the CO-CEOs of a respected old company, Lifetech. The current pair is Rarry Heid and Raul Pyan; they don't seem to get along well as they constantly bicker. The only person they seem to be more annoyed with than each other is me. After asking a few baseline questions to get a read on them, I delved into their financial standing. Rarry Heid immediately starts boasting about his company’s spending habits. The company has recently proposed an even bigger and more wasteful budget than in years past. He and Raul Pyan have compromised on a spending budget of $375, 450. After pushing him repeatedly for his business’ income he relents and gives me a figure of $246, 530. The first warning bells start to sound; they are loud and demanding. His company is in the red to the tune of $128,920 every single year. When asked how long the deficit spending has been going on, Rarry gives a snarky and childish response. He says “what are you doing, writing a book? ‘Cause this is a mystery story, leave this chapter out!” He is happy, however, to relay his businesses debt at an astronomical and rapidly increasing $1,537,180. A debt over $1.5 million seems impossible to pay back for any company that doesn’t even bring in $250,000 a year before expenses.

Rarry gives a smug look and relays the terms of his Co-CEO position stating “Our board of directors only requires me to furnish their homes, remodel their kitchens every few years, and take care of their manicured lawns. It’d be a shame to let all of our hard work and money go to waste. We have met their terms for years, and I don’t think we need to change anything in that respect. In light of the recent economic downturn we’ve even made some hard budget cuts too. We’ve had to cut our annual company zoo trip, movie night, and the complimentary employee T-shirts and hats! That zoo trip means the world to Priscilla. She just loves those cute little penguins!” Skeptical, I ask “have your cuts been enough to make you profitable again?” Raul interjects saying “the cuts we’ve made have taken a real hit on employee morale. I don’t think we can cut any more out of the budget. It has been very difficult for us.” “But are you profitable,” I ask once more. “We have made a full $3,850 cut to our proposed budget for next year.” Rarry then replies “no, we have not turned a profit but by the year 2019 we believe with further budget cuts, like the ones we have instated for next year’s budget, our budget will be completely balanced. Our product prices will have to go up of course to help offset our budget cuts. We have the problem under control.”

The problem does not seem to be under control. They cannot possibly pay the utilities, let alone their employees. How the lights are even on during the interview is a perplexing question. After hastily asking the pair where they get the money necessary to pay their bills I receive a nonchalant response. “The money?” Raul shrugs, “We get it from this great Chinese man that we’ve gotten to know. He loans us money whenever we ask for it and all we have to do is trade him stock and IOUs with interest. He doesn’t even make us pay him very much every year! He just visits with these big guys occasionally. Like those bouncers that stand outside of those cool clubs we go to. But he’s not a loan shark. No way, he’s a respectable man who runs a business. We actually buy most of our products from him and sell them to our customers. It’s a very good relationship for us because we’re his biggest customer. No one else will buy his products so you could say we’re too big to fail. He helps us out.” With that, the pair cuts the interview and will not answer any more questions.

The Federal Government employs about 8,885,000 people.
The United States spends $3,754,500 trillion a year.
United States tax revenue is $2,465,300 trillion a year.
The United States national debt is $15,371,800 trillion.
The proposed budget cuts are only $385 billion for next year.

Half-truths

I've noticed that abstract and vagueness is used to tell half truths all the time. 

Half-truth - Noun - A statement, especially one intended to deceive, that omits some of the facts necessary for a full description or account.

Socialists, communists, tyrants: they all use deception to gain power. They lump in the apathetic and the desperate with the extremists to create a following and thus power. Phrases such as 'all of us,' 'people,' 'they,' or 'we,' are all used to vaguely describe a group. The phrases put people that do not necessarily agree with the speaker together and influences the audience. The audience then feels they need to follow the counsel of the speaker. Using vaguely worded and unmeasurable words with only a part of the truth is deception; plain and simple, it is lying and wrong.

Regrets Vs. Mistakes

Regret - noun - feeling of loss or sorrow

Mistake - noun - error in judgment, action, or belief

For me personally, there is a huge difference between the two words. I've made many mistakes that I do not regret, and many regrets that weren't mistakes. I feel no loss or sorrow for myself, but I did make some errors in judgement. Oh well, life goes on. Live and learn and all that. No remorse :)

A Restoration of Our Character

The past few years I've heard a great deal about a revolution. In music, TV, news, and daily interactions: people want change. What I fundamentally disagree with is their meaning of 'change.' Where some mean a complete revolution, others mean minor changes. I am in neither group.
I am for a restoration of our country. We don't need to "fundamentally change America" (Obama). We do not need socialism or communism (though that is the direction I believe we are headed). We need a restoration to our constitutional roots. We need to end: unfunded mandates; career politicians; over the top political correctness (not tact); the everyone-is-a-winner childhood indoctrination. When everyone is a winner, no one wins; social security; kinsian economics; and unneeded government regulation. Put bluntly, we need to clean house. Every. Single. Vote. Counts.

The Jungle: A Socialist’s Depiction of 1900 Chicago

Loren Jewkes

Myers Period 5 College Prep

Literary Analysis #4

29 February 2012

The Jungle: A Socialist’s Depiction of 1900 Chicago

The turn of the twentieth century is  a time of corruption and greed.  H. G. Wells illustrates the social and political climate when he writes, “The Social Contract is nothing more or less than a vast conspiracy of human beings to lie and humbug themselves and one another of the general Good.  Lies are the mortar that bind the savage individual man into the social masonry.”  Many political reformists emerge during the era, all trying to solve certain problems.  Most reformists focus on one or two issues, women’s suffrage for instance, or larger goals such as African-American civil rights.  A select few choose to focus on all problems in the country with a complete rewriting of the United States constitution.  Upton Sinclair was one of these reformists. He strives to first reform the country, and then the fundamental writing of the constitution. Upton Sinclair’s realist approach and socialism based depiction of the meatpacking industry produces dreary, hopeless, cogent, and corrupt imagery.

Death to political correctness!

My speech class is probably the least productive class in my day. My teacher makes a comment every couple of sentences to make everything she says politically correct. Honestly, we know you aren't trying to offend anyone. I'm not saying just speak without thinking at all , but going overboard is unnecessary and downright distracting. Words are words and some are harsher than others, but of they're correct please don't go looking for a sugarcoated word or phrase. I will lose any desire to talk to you. Tact is good, political correctness is not. Obsession over never offending anyone is distracting and unnecessary.

Proposed U.S. Budget for Fiscal Year 2013

Family

Family Spending - $37,545.

Family Income - $24,653.

Family Debt - $153,718.

Family Budget Cuts - $385.

Is it time to bankrupt the family???

United States

U.S. Spending - $3,754,500,000,000

U.S. Tax Revenues - $2,465,300,000,000

U.S. Debt - $15,371,800,000,000

U.S. Budget Cuts - $385,000,000,000

Is it time to bankrupt the nation???

A video in the same vein, that is well worth the watch. It's only three minutes: aka the length of a song.

A Critical Response to “Bad to the Last Drop”

Loren Jewkes

Myers/ Period 5 College Prep

Essay #3: Response to an Argument

15 February 2012

A Critical Response to “Bad to the Last Drop”

“Ounce for ounce, [bottled water] costs more than gasoline, even at today’s high gasoline prices; depending on the brand, it costs 250 to 10,000 times more than tap water” (Standage). Bottled water has no real health benefits in the developed world. In a nation such as the United states, selling water to individuals who complain about four-dollar a gallon gasoline seems absurd. In “Bad to the Last Drop” written by Tom Standage and published in The New York Times bottled water’s disadvantages are shown. Standage describes the advantages and disadvantages of bottled water in the developed world, but he fails to address the positive economic effects of bottled water, and the political obstacles of aid.

Barack Obama: Why I Will Not Be Voting For Him

The President of our country should be trustworthy. Unfortunately, Barack Obama has said many things and failed to stick to his word. To be honest, it seems to me that his word means very little to him as he has promised many things just to turn around and break those promises; we expect the President of the United States to give us the truth - misguided as our expectations may be - but when he gives false information does the media's trust in him waver? Nope. The media is just as infatuated as ever with headlines today, such as Obama grants 10 states leeway on education law, and Obama defends gay rights record. Singing the praises of a liar and a cheat... great.

Voting: Not Based on the Issues

Voting is a tricky issue, and voter's reasons for voting aren't what they should be. Voting for Obama just because he is black or for Romney just because he is Mormon doesn't help the country. Voting should be based on similarity to personal beliefs. Religion, race, or party should not be the sole reason for electing a candidate.

The Externalization of Memory

"The advent of the Internet, with sophisticated algorithmic search engines, has made accessing information as easy as lifting a finger. No longer do we have to make costly efforts to find the things we want. We can “Google” the old classmate, find articles online, or look up the actor who was on the tip of our tongue. The results of four studies suggest that when faced with difficult questions, people are primed to think about computers and that when people expect to have future access to information, they have lower rates of recall of the information itself and enhanced recall instead for where to access it. The Internet has become a primary form of external or transactive memory, where information is stored collectively outside ourselves" (sciencemag.org/content/333/6043/776).

11 things that occurred to me on New Years Eve

I've been sitting in Utah with my family for New Years and have realized a few things.

Contrast of Ignorance and Intelligence In Of Mice And Men

Loren Jewkes
Myers/ Period 5 College Prep
Critical Analysis #2
5 January 2011

Contrast of Ignorance and Intelligence

          A reasoning mind is the most important attribute any person can have; without it societies crumble and cease to exist. Reason is a discussed theme in Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck. The book is set in the West on a farm during the Great Depression. The two main characters, Lennie and George, are living in California and working as hired hands. However, they are two different kinds of workers, as Lennie has a slow mind while George has one that is fast. Comparison of Lennie’s ignorance and inability to reason, with George’s intelligence and ability to reason creates contrast between the characters.

A Rhetorical Analysis of Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement Speech

Loren Jewkes
Myers/ Period 5 College Prep
Rhetorical Analysis #2
7 December 2011

A Rhetorical Analysis of Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement Speech

          Steve Jobs is successful even though he is not a college graduate, and has an unstable and unorthodox beginning to his life. He uses his background to play upon his rhetorical strategies in his Stanford commencement address. While speaking to the new Stanford graduates, Jobs uses love and loss as universal emotions common to all humans. He aims to convince the grads to use their intuition and follow their hearts to become happy. He also uses repetitive structures and speaks on adversity as a means for growth. Jobs relates emotional and structurally repetitive life experiences to encourage the Stanford graduates to pursue their passions.

A Critical Analysis of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four

Loren Jewkes
Myers
College Prep
22 November 2011

A Critical Analysis of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four

          “Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two makes four. If that is granted, all else follows” (Orwell 81). Rationalization and using logic to dispel lies is the foundation of freedom. The sanctity of the mind and of the individual require freedom from the lies of an untruthful past and present. Only what the collective knows is important when it is in power; without the ability to freely think and believe, it no longer matters what the individual knows. George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four showcases an oppressive government’s struggles with human unorthodoxy through his use of detailed descriptions of the human mind’s thoughts.