http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk An infuriatingly infrequently updated reflection on the Internet, the US, and life in general Sun, 21 Sep 2008 06:01:23 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I mentioned about a month ago how I was considering setting up a second blog so I could more easily separate my personal and professional life. And yesterday, twice, I was reminded that there is a bit of an unusual overlap when I spoke to two people: one, the spokesman ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/11/16/how-to-avoid-learning-a-little-too-much-about-kierens-life/ My copy of iWoz arrived from Amazon this morning and I am mildly excited about reading it - much more than I thought I would be. The book is selling itself as the first account of Apple founder Steve Wozniak's view of this peculiar computer company. The blurb in the book ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/09/25/iwoz-apple-from-the-other-side/ There is an ongoing fuss about the flat-fee of iTunes. Apple dominance of the MP3 player market with the iPod and it's very close tie-in with iTunes has meant that the computer company has been able to tell the music industry what to do so far. And in Steve Jobs' ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/05/04/why-itunes-pricing-has-to-change/ There's a lot of fuss around podcasts, but with each iteration of technology that hands production control to the individual, we are finding that it takes less time for high-quality content to appear. I remember when the Internet was slagged off because it was just full of dorky Americans with ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/03/21/the-bbc-podcasts-and-the-future-of-tv/ I’m taking a few days off writing the Sex.com book to cover what I believe to be a very important meeting in Geneva. In fact, I write this from a hotel room in Geneva within spitting distance of the main train, tram, hotel, shop square called Cornavin.Starting 10am tomorrow, for ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/02/15/a-ringside-seat-at-the-future-of-the-internet/ I love this. A new band is rocketing up the charts, is set to become the fastest-ever something and the biggest-selling something else. And it has all been done by word of mouth.Yes, the Arctic Monkeys have come from nowhere, there are a symbol of the new Internet world where ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/01/24/arctic-monkeys-stars-just-by-word-of-mouth-and-200-press-articles/ I've been pondering Apple's latest moves - namely, the shift to Intel processors and the various new and updated products that Jobs announced this week - and it struck me that Apple may be developing things *too fast*. Obviously that sounds ridiculous in the context of the IT industry, but ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/01/12/is-apple-developing-too-fast/ I've never really understood the collective madness that surrounds Steve Jobs keynotes. The Apple CEO is undoubtedly charismatic, and he does a great job of turning the already obsessive Mac maniacs into a frothing mass of excitement, but his announcements are starting to pick up a dangerous momentum all of ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2006/01/11/this-years-jobsapple-fairground-ride/ Piece of mine in The Guardian today about the iPod and how Apple's history shows that the company may soon cock it all up and become just a bit player. It's a shame the article was so short - 1,200 words - because the first draft covered the whole ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2005/11/03/will-apple-make-the-same-mistakes-again-with-the-ipod/ Okay, this is really good news. Despite my reservations about the new video iPod - particularly the fact that Jobs' obsession with making it small has given it a ridiculous two-hour battery life - it turns out that Apple has fixed my main bugbear with all iPods - recording quality. ... http://kierenmccarthy.co.uk/2005/10/20/ipod-can-finally-record-decent-audio/