07.04.07
Posted in Nintendo DS, Reviews at 7:08 pm by Nate Smith
What a great concept! What a disapointing execution. Maybe there just isn’t enought processor to render web pages in the little machine. Hard to believe since the Nintendo DS plays games so well. Maybe the Opera code doesn’t port to the DS very well?
I had been looking forward to the browser for the Nintendo DS for quite some time, it seemed like such an obvious application, but now that I have had a chance to use it I am disapointed. It is very slow and leaves something to be desired. I have used other “crippled” devices to browse the web - like Blackberry and the Nokia 7600. I prefer the Nokia to the DS browser. The handwriting technology is good and the compromises made to fit the small screen seem acceptable, but the whole experience is too slow.
I like the idea of a small web browser, but devices like the Nokia and the DS browser always bring me back to a full size computer for the videos, flash and the speed as well as the screen size.
Maybe they will try again or a 3rd party will succeed where Nintendo did not…. this time.
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07.03.07
Posted in rant at 8:40 am by Nate Smith
{Phone rings}
Me: Hello?
Them: Hi, how are you doing today, got any big plans for the holiday?
Me: Who am I talking to?
There was a time when people answered the phone and were greeted by somebody introducing themselves. This courtesy seems to have gone. People call other people and expect to be known by their voice. Telemarketers expect to be able to pick up a conversation instantly. Forget it guy, who the heck are you and why do you want my time?! Where did the common courtesy go?
Way back, in the old days of the 1970’s and before, if a call came in from anywhere that wasn’t local (in-town) it was “long distance” and it got a special respect because long distance calls were expensive. You tried not to keep the caller waiting. Back then you could usually tell from the sound of the call if it was long distance or not. Sometimes there were crackles and pops and sometimes the voice sounded distant or poorly amplified. It just wasn’t always possible to identify somebody by their voice, and manners were still in regular practice. Even today, not all phones have CallerID and even on the phones that do the CallerID transmitted to them often lies.
When people call me I insist that they identify themselves first. It’s a common courtesy.
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