

Apple to Provide Live Video Streaming of September 1 Event - PeterRosdahl
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2010/08/31alert.html

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houseabsolute
I love how unambiguous Apple is about their feelings on their own products in
press releases. Consider Microsoft:

> Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in
> software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize
> their full potential.

Now Apple:

> Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS
> X, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music
> revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple is reinventing the
> mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently
> introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and
> computing devices.

Love or hate, they've left their mark on this place.

~~~
petercooper
Though there are only two opinionated words in there: calling the iPad
"magical" and their computers the "best"

To me, though, those two opinions seem no sillier than Microsoft's claim that
their software helps people "realize their full potential."

~~~
sp332
Oh come on, you're not even trying :-)

Microsoft's sentence is a compromise written by a committee. Apple's identity
statement is beautiful (even if you don't agree with it) and I would be
shocked if there were more than 3 people involved in the whole process of its
creation.

Each sentence starts by drawing focus to an ideal of the company, and then
mentions products Apple makes according to that ideal.

1\. "Designs" instead of "makes" shifts the emphasis immediately to the
abstract, away from the mechanical process of assembly. There's a contrast
drawn between the "personal" computers and the "professional" software.
"Personal" describes what the computer _is_ , all the time. "Professional" is
just what the computer might _do_ , and it goes away when you're done with it.

2\. "Leads" would be a weasel word when relating to some market segment, but
not when it's paired with "revolution." Apple styles itself as a moral leader,
not a business leader. "iPods" and "iTunes" are mentioned separately,
maintaining the being/doing dichotomy.

3a. Abstract "reinventing" is the goal here, even though physical phones are
the medium. The author realized that claiming to also lead this revolution
would sound redundant, but couldn't resist using the word "revolution". So he
used the adjective form "revolutionary". This is someone whose aesthetic
sensibilities, acute though they are, can only minutely deflect his drive to
get the word out about these revolutions.

3b. All the verbs so far have been ongoing ( _present progressive_ ). The past
and future are relegated to the last half of the last sentence. "Has...
introduced" is technically _past perfect_ but the adverb "recently" pulls it
back toward the present. Even "the future" in this sentence is merely a noun,
preceded by the present progressive verb "is defining." "The future of mobile
media and computing devices" is the only category of product hanging without
an Apple product to exemplify it. In this statement of identity, the distant
past does not exist and the future is not fixed.

I typed all this at midnight, so it isn't very good or very thorough. But you
get the idea :-)

~~~
houseabsolute
In the spirit of picking things apart (because it is fun and edifying), let's
talk about Microsoft's attempt.

> Founded in 1975, Microsoft

Nobody cares when you were founded. Now I think your company is old and out of
date.

> (Nasdaq “MSFT”)

Nobody cares. If they did, they'd use Google Finance to find out.

> is the worldwide leader

Brrraaap. Worldwide and leader are both banned words. Also, are you really a
world-wide leader if your market cap is trailing your biggest competitor? I
guess that depends how you define it . . .

> in software, services and solutions

Oh, God, not solutions. Services is almost as bad.

> that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

This is sufficiently abstract that it could not possibly offend nor inspire
anyone. I've never bought something because it helped me "realize my
potential." I've bought things to smash noobs, yes, or to hack on sweet
projects, or to write the next great American novel. But never to realize my
full potential. This phrase belongs on the back of a self-help book.

~~~
wallflower
To be fair, Microsoft has done a very good job of working towards
actualization of their original very audacious mission statement.

"I want to have a computer on every desk and in every home, all running
Microsoft software." - Bill Gates

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ugh
Neat, the live stream returns. Does anyone know when they stopped doing that?
It will be interesting to see whether the stream holds up or crumbles.

Steve Jobs had problems accessing the web on the new iPhone during his last
presentation because of all the devices with wifi and the mifis in the
audience. Could the live stream be a reaction to that? (With a live stream in
place larger parts of the press will probably be ok with stricter rules with
regard to wifi or mifi usage. If the stream holds up all the live blogging is
kinda pointless.)

~~~
Zev
_..larger parts of the press will probably be ok with stricter rules with
regard to wifi or mifi usage.._

I don't think they'll be happy. _If the stream holds up all the live blogging
is kinda pointless_ hits the nail on the head as to why.

~~~
ugh
You might just be right. Large parts of the tech press probably aren’t happy
that they can now pay much more attention and do critical and profound write
ups afterwards. They would much rather just transcribe every word Jobs says
and frantically upload photos :-)

(It probably costs the tech sites a lot of page views, so I can certainly
understand why they wouldn’t be happy about it.)

~~~
Zev
_Large parts of the tech press probably aren’t happy that they can now pay
much more attention and do critical and profound write ups afterwards._

They're journalists. Their job is to gather information. I'd be surprised if
the only way a site like Ars Technica or TUAW could get information is by
waiting for a stream from Apple. The point of videos is for everyone else who
isn't a journalist and didn't get invited to a special event. Not to help
journalists do their work.

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chaosmachine
_"Viewing requires either a Mac® running Safari® on Mac OS® X version 10.6
Snow Leopard®, an iPhone® or iPod touch® running iOS 3.0 or higher, or an
iPad™."_

I guess windows and linux users need not apply.

~~~
pufuwozu
Pretty funny how that sentence is preceded by "based on open standards".

~~~
houseabsolute
It could simply be that no one else has implemented those open standards.
Apple isn't responsible for adding support to other platforms, so it's
technically accurate if the standards are indeed open, regardless of whether
other people have chosen to implement them.

~~~
awa
So why do people go after Microsoft when one can save to .docx format which is
based on a real open standard

~~~
houseabsolute
I don't have much first-hand knowledge of that subject, but here is what I
have read.

docx:

    
    
       * Is horrifically complicated.
       * Is not likely to ever be completely implemented by any third party.
       * Does not accurately describe the behavior of MS Office.
       * Was rammed through the standards process in a way that demonstrated partisanship more than technical merit.
    

Whereas this offering by Apple does not seem to exhibit any of those
properties.

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awa
It seems that people using windows or linux won't be able to watch the live
stream which would be broadcasted on service based on "open standards"

Quote from the release: "Apple® will broadcast its September 1 event online
using Apple’s industry-leading HTTP Live Streaming, which is based on open
standards. Viewing requires either a Mac® running Safari® on Mac OS® X version
10.6 Snow Leopard®, an iPhone® or iPod touch® running iOS 3.0 or higher, or an
iPad™"

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miguelpais
Amazing, they completely turn that first paragraph into a huge oxymoron.

Let's see, we have this beautiful HTTP Live Streaming technology based on
_open standards_ but somehow it can only be appreciated on a Mac or iPhone...

This must be one of those standards hated by everyone else...

~~~
patrickaljord
And it'll probably make use of an 'open' codec patented to hell, in other
words, it's open if you buy apple.

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djacobs
Is it just me, or are there more (R) and TM symbols in this press release than
is usual for Apple PR?

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mml
Appletv?

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marze
Does anyone think the (rumored) new touch screen iPod Nano with be capable of
running "Nano apps"?

