TechCrunch.com: Detroit Needs A Statue of RoboCop! Best Kickstarter Project Yet.

Awesome!  They're using Kickstarter to try to raise $50,000 for a statue of RoboCop in Detroit.  They're over a third of the way there.

Maybe they'll be able to put it near the Stargate that I saw during a trip a couple of weeks ago.

NYTimes.com: A Bully Finds a Pulpit on the Web

A shocking story about how a certain web retailer does business.  It's 8 pages long, but worth the read.

Google has already responded by changing their web algorithm to account for his business strategy.

NYTimes.com: Google Acts to Demote Distasteful Web Sellers

Bloomberg.com: Google 2.4% Rate Shows How $60 Billion Lost to Tax Loopholes

So much for not doing evil. 

For the benefit of the shareholders, corporations are sending jobs overseas and using foreign subsidiaries to avoid paying taxes.

GamaSutra.com: Angry Birds Dev Announces 2M Android Downloads

The Android version, which Rovio said achieved 1 million downloads in its first day, is ad-supported and free to download. Rovio said via Twitter that "paid apps have not done very well on Android," but the company also tweeted that the Android version's next update will introduce a "paid ad-free version."

Paid apps don't do well but free ad supported ones do well?  I think Google could care less about paid apps since their whole business model is about selling ads.

It's going to be hotter than heck tomorrow, but if you're looking for something outdoors to do, try blueberry picking at Rouster's Apple House in Milford.  We went several weekends ago and had a fun time picking over 25 pounds of blueberries.  We ate a lot of them fresh and then froze the rest for smoothies and pancakes for the rest of the year.

It's a fun family thing with lots of kids around.  These days with most of us living in the city, it's nice to see where your food comes from.

At $2.50/lb you don't really save money, but you do have the satisfaction of finding blueberries that are sweeter and larger than what you find at the store.

Check Rouster's schedule for blueberry picking dates and times.


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

UPDATE: Google has changed the default behavior, removing the background picture.  Hopefully it stays as a user controllable option.

This is a photo of how Google collected some images for Google Maps Street View in Paris.  Kind of an interesting mix of high and low tech.

Time.com: Why You'll See Tons of "New and Improved" Products Soon

Call it the recession lesson. The downturn caused many newly thrifty consumers to detour into the world of cheap toilet paper, store brand shampoos, and other generic necessities. And you know what these consumers discovered? The cheaper stuff isn't half-bad. Often, the cheaper stuff clearly gives more bang for the buck. So why would consumers ever go back to paying significantly more money for something that does basically the same job?
...
Because they're having trouble competing in straight-up face-offs with generic products, the manufacturers are rolling out new items--or rather, "new and improved" items.
...
P&G, the world's biggest ad spender, plans a 20% increase in "consumer impressions," or instances when consumers see its ads, during the fiscal year ending June 30. The Cincinnati-based maker of Pampers diapers, Crest toothpaste and Pantene shampoo says it will introduce 30% more "significant" innovations in products this year.

It will be interesting to see what P&G thinks these "significant" innovations are.  Unless there's true noticeable improvement, I don't think that some minor changes, a new label, and an advertising campaign is really going to win back customers.  The recession has cut pretty deeply and the old way of doing things might not work this time.

Related article:
Time.com: Making P&G New and Improved (2008 interview with Former CEO A.G. Lafley

Here are some of my iPad first impressions after using it all weekend.

iPad Hardware
Size
Most people's reaction when they first see it is that it's smaller than they expected.  But, after you use it, it seems to be the right size.  I find it solidly built, maybe a bit heavier than I would like.  Most of the time I have it resting against something, my belly, the desk, the bed, etc.

Screen
The screen is sharp and beautiful, but picks up fingerprints like crazy.  Fingerprints are a lot more noticeable than on the iPhone.  I think I'm going to have to invest in some lint-free cloths to wipe down the screen.  The cloth that I used over the weekend wasn't quite lint free and now I have dust on the edges of the iPad case. 

The screen is extremely glossy so glare can also be an issue.  I might try buying a matte screen protector to cut down on glare and fingerprints.

Speaker
The speaker is louder than I expected and works well for watching videos.

Battery Life
The battery life is so long that I don't really think about charging it.  Normally when I use my Macbook Pro, I'm always thinking about when or where I can plug it back in. But with my iPad, I wouldn't be afraid to head out for the day leaving the charger and cords at home.

The iPad won't recharge when connected to my Macbook Pro or my Mac Pro.  Both of my computers are a few years old and do not provide enough power through the USB ports to charge the iPad.  The small iPod charger did charge iPad battery overnight, but probably slower than the 10V charger it comes with.

Apple Case
I like the Apple case a lot.  It's got a nice rubberized feeling when holding it in your hands.  I haven't used the stand much, but it feels a little wobbly when I've tried it.  The case is matte and seems to pick up dirt pretty easily.  (between the screen and the case, I'm beginning to think my place is really dusty.)

Software

Safari
Safari for the iPad is a killer app like it was for the iPhone.  But it is some much nicer with the extra real estate.  It's amazing to see the difference in web pages between this and the iPhone.  It's so good that you wonder why some companies are bothering creating iPad apps for their websites.

Some sites that do work, have a few problems.  The Google Reader RSS website seems slow and somehow less responsive.  The Google Reader website has multiple columns that require the use of a two finger motion to get the columns to scroll.

Twitter client
I've tried both Tweetdeck and Twitteriffic.  I like how Tweetdeck shows multiple columns by I don't like how it wastes half the screen for the Tweetdeck icon.

eBay App
eBay tried to differentiate their app from the website by showing for sale items in gallery format- like a store.  I find this app totally unusable without having the ability of showing search results as lists.  I also don't like the fact that it does have the saved searches from the website.  I'd much rather use the eBay web page than this.

Scrabble
Scrabble looks amazing.  Problem is that the iPad keeps beating me.  If you have iPhones or iPod touches, you can download an App that allows you to use your iPhone as a letter tray while using the iPad as the board.

Marvel Comics App
It shows comics in two ways, traditional panels or a more cinematic, frame by frame way.  This is one you really need to see.  Comics can be bought through the App for $2.00 a comic.  If they every came out with a Netflix like monthly fee, this might be worth it.  Otherwise, I'll pass.

Numbers
Haven't played with this much, because getting files in and out seems a little awkward.