The plight of the tech industry

Posted on June 18th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

As I’m sitting here, I was thinking about something and thought I should give you a quick take on my thoughts.

The tech industry has a problem.  An incredibly serious problem.  Sure, it’s the one industry that is carrying us into the next decade, is providing us with many of the benefits of life, and generally means more than most others, but we’re being overrun by a bunch of idiots who know nothing.  And to make matters worse, those idiots are people that are in a position to make important decisions about the life and death of this industry.

Think about it: how many times have we been forced to put up with crap from lawmakers, CEOs, and plain, old fools?   I don’t think it’s possible to truly calculate how many times we’ve been screwed over by these people and how many times we’ve been forced to sit back and wait for something (anything) to happen.

Case in point: the XM-Sirius merger.  Sure, there are some people that believe it’s not a good idea, but I’ve got some news for them: it’s exactly what we need.  It’ll not only provide us with a viable alternative to terrestrial radio, but it could (and should) be the future of radio as we know it.  But with the rules the FCC chairman put into place and his insistence on minority channels, I can’t help but wonder where the hell they get off?  Why should we be taking some of the new company’s competitive advantage away while leaving Clear Channel’s in place?

It doesn’t make sense.

The tech industry is under fire from all sides and unless you wake up and figure that out, we’re going to get hammered even worse as time goes on.  The time is now.  Work needs to be done and time needs to be offered to stop this industry from getting screwed over by a bunch of know-nothings.

The truth hurts.

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Filed under: General

Surpise! I’m not so good at Wii Fit

Posted on June 5th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

 Ashley in Central Park

Was there any doubt that the one game that actually requires some skill, I’m just not good at?  Sure, I can beat GTA IV and work my way through a Zelda game with ease.  But when it comes to balance?  Chalk it up to my love of tech or something because brothers and sisters, I just can’t perform.

And to make matters worse, I watched Ashley wax the floor with me.  Not only did she take me for a ride I won’t soon forget, she did it in such a way that made me feel like less of Wii Fit player and more like a downright loser.

Now I should note that I do well on the strength exercises, but when it comes to balance and yoga?  I might as well skip it before I even think of doing it again.

Long live Wii Fit and my inability to play half the game!

Now on to something that I’m a bit more adept at — sleeping.

Oh wait, one more thing: have you noticed that I’m updating more often now?  Expect it every day from here on out.  I envision this blog to be the inside look into what’s going on in my personal life, so definitely come back each day to check it out.  Even better, subscribe the RSS to make your life just a little easier.

Until then, I’ll see you all on Twitter, Plurk, or just about any other flavor of the year that comes across my desk.

Later.

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Filed under: General

So I’m Trying This Site Design Instead

Posted on June 5th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

What’s the verdict on this one folks?  Does it look better than the other?  Do you like it?  What would you like changed?  What you like added?

Please let me know in the comments!

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Filed under: Announcements

The design of this site sucks

Posted on June 5th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

So here’s the deal: the design of this site sucks….bad.  I need help to make it look better and have a bunch of ideas for what I would like to see here.  Any ideas on how I can go about doing that?  Any help in the comments would be GREATLY appreciated.
Don

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Filed under: Announcements

Gone camping

Posted on April 10th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

So it should be said that I will be leaving tomorrow morning for a weekend camping trip and coming back on Sunday.  A friend and I will be heading out to Western NY to trudge into the woods and live off the fat of the land, as they say back in town.  We should have a good time.

Last night, we went down to Dick’s Sporting Goods and picked up our fishing licenses and, well, BB gun pistols that were simply too awesome to pass up.  I bought a holster to go with it because I want to be like John Wayne.  It’s fantastic.  Before that, we bought some bait to catch some trout and bass on Seneca Lake.

If you see two fools out in the middle of the lake trying like hell to catch something (anything), feel free to say hi and hang out.  Saturday night we’ll be going wine tasting and kickin’ back some cold ones, so if you live in the area, let me know and maybe we can have an impromptu meetup.

All in all, we should have a pretty great time.

Oh and before I forget — there will NOT be an update to the Digital Home tomorrow, as we’ll be travelling by then.  It will be back in all its glory on Monday though.

I also hope to take some pics out there and post them somewhere for you to check out.  I hope at least one of them shows me holding a 10-pound bass or something — that would make my day.

Until then, I’ve gone camping.

Later.

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Filed under: Everyday stuff

My foray into social networking

Posted on April 9th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

So it’s been a while since I’ve written anything on the site and quite a few things have been going on.  First, I guess I should say that I no longer write for NewTeeVee.  I worked with Om Malik, Carolyn Pritchard and Liz Gannes for quite a while over at NewTeeVee, but I left the site on amicable terms last week.  I wish them all the best in their future endeavors and hope everything goes well for all parties involved.

I also have been quite busy working on a slew of new projects — four to be exact.  Unfortunately, the “powers that be” aren’t allowing me to talk about any of these projects, but I can say with all certainty that you’ll like each and every one of them.  That said, I would urge you to have patience.  In this business, I’ve quickly learned that nothing happens overnight and you’re forced to wait forever just to tell people something is going to happen.  Of course, as I write this, there’s a good chance I’ll be able to announce one of them tomorrow, so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.

I’ve been getting numerous emails about my future endeavors and allow me to say that it will in no way jeopardize the relationship I have with the places I currently write.  The Digital Home and its sister podcast will be alive and well and my IT World column will continue to strike fear in the hearts of executives; don’t you worry about a thing.  Regardless, I think you’ll really enjoy what we have planned and I’m looking forward to bringing it to you sooner rather than later.

Aside from all that stuff, I’ve also entered the world of social networking in a big way.  In the past week, I’ve joined Facebook, Last.fm, Friendfeed and Xbox Live (my name is Dondigital13 if you want to play), along with my existing memberships on Twitter and Pownce.  So far, I’ve enjoyed using each and every one of these services and I’m really starting to get into the whole social networking thing.  Believe it or not, I think it’s pretty neat.

I also want to take this time to thank you all for your continued support.  Although I can’t give exact numbers (they don’t like that kind of stuff), I can say that everywhere I write and talk is being enjoyed by so many more people than I ever thought possible.  It’s a great feeling as a writer to know that that many people are willing and excited to read your work everyday and I appreciate each and every person.  Trust me, if it weren’t for the readers, I wouldn’t be working in this business and living such an exciting life.

Thank you.

And on that note, I’ll be signing off for today.  I hope to update this almost daily from here on out — I know, I know, I’ve been promising that for a while but I’m really going to do it this time.

Thanks (again) for reading.

Later.

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Filed under: Everyday stuff

IT World — Making It Personal

Posted on March 3rd, 2008 by Don Reisinger

So the official announcement will be made within the next couple of days, but I thought I would tell you all here so you’re prepared.  Starting this Thursday, March 6th, I will be a regular weekly columnist for IT World where I will opine on Personal Technology and the industry as a whole in my column, Making It Personal.

Historically, IT World has been geared towards IT professionals, but I am coming in to take a more consumer-facing stance and offer some hard-hitting opinions on a variety of topics.

The column will run each Thursday on the IT World website and eventually (we’re still waiting on approval) I’ll be recording a weekly 10- to 15-minute podcast to give you my take on that week’s column in audio format.  And no, it won’t be me reading the column, it’ll be me ranting about the topics.

Oh and in case you’re worried, this will have no impact on the other writing or columns I do elsewhere.  This is just another column I’ll be writing and hopefully another destination of yours on Thursdays.

I also wanted to take this moment to thank you all for reading my work.  Over the past few years, my career has exploded and I only have you to thank.  If it weren’t for your fierce loyalty and dedication to reading my rants, my dream of doing this stuff for a living would have never come true.  So, it is with my humblest thanks that I welcome you to a whole new column over at IT World.

Get ready to “Make It Personal” later this week.

Later.

-Don

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Filed under: Announcements

A long day that will get longer

Posted on February 11th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

CooperSo today started off with a bang and sort of petered out as the day went on, which was extremely disappointing.  I don’t know what it is, but when I want emails to come in, they simply don’t and when I don’t, I get hit with a monsoon.  Weird.

I’m trying to update this more often (Really, I am!).  Today I was planning on writing a couple of entries in here, but I needed to bring the dog to the vet — he may have a torn ligament in his back right knee, but we’re trying some drugs first to see if that will work.  Let’s hope so.  Aside from that, I saw a huge growth in the number of Twitter followers today, which was weird and unexpected.  Does anyone have any idea why?

In a few hours, I’ll be making my way to a wake for my uncle’s brother.  Those are always uncomfortable.  Oh well.  I guess that’s life.  Besides that, you have to go to people’s wakes or else they won’t go to yours.  Thanks, Yogi.

So, like I said, I’ll be trying to update this more often as the hours become days and the days become weeks.  Give me some time though — this website has been up for months and I still have about 5 posts.

Yikes.

We’ll build up though, for sure.

I also hope to have some special announcements for everyone soon, which you can find here in the coming days.  I’m basically trying to do more and do it more efficiently, if you’re looking for a hint.  If not, take a hike.

Later.

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Filed under: Everyday stuff

Is it time for another computer?

Posted on January 31st, 2008 by Don Reisinger

Another computer?

So as I sit here on my 24-inch iMac, looking over at my MacBook and a custom-built PC behind it, I’m wondering if I should buy another laptop.  Why you ask?  It’s simple really — I’m a tech addict.  Don’t believe me?  Here’s a quick list of just some of the things I bought in the last month:

  • Nintendo DS (new one)
  • D-Link router
  • 50-inch HDTV from Panasonic
  •  Nikon D40 for those less-than special moments
  • A Sony PSP

And the list can go on forever.  When will it ever end?

My justification for the new laptop is my new podcast called The Digital Home Podcast.  I have a dual-computer set up right now and I’m thinking I need something a bit more powerful than my MacBook to do all of my work on.  To make matters worse, some of the schemes I have afoot may require even more processing power.

So I’ll leave it up to you — what should I do?  Should I buy a new, more powerful computer?  If so, should I get a Mac or PC?  After that, what do you suggest?  I want something extremely powerful.

Ugh.  The plight of a tech addict.

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Filed under: Everyday stuff

The Sega Saturn sucked

Posted on January 30th, 2008 by Don Reisinger

Sorry, but my most recent column on CNET didn’t go over too well with the commenters.  Oh well, I’m used to that.  Either way, it looks like the Sega fanboys are still out in force and all they really want to do is take everyone who beats up their favorite company to task.  As for me?  I couldn’t care less.  The darn thing was a piece of crap that ruined the company.  And just to make them happy, it’s true — I did (and still do) love my Dreamcast.  Honestly, I wish Kalinske never made that stupid blunder of releasing the console on the day of the announcement and I wish Sega would make another console.

Chances of that happening?  Slim and none.

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Filed under: Everyday stuff

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