Author: Joe Wilcox

Apple by Joe WilcoxApr 9, 20158:45 pm

Apple Watch Social Sentiments Slump

As the clock passes Midnight and takes us into April 10, Apple Watch preorders begin. Sales start two weeks later. The buzz is big, but will actual demand be? Argus Insights, an analyst firm that is new to me, doesn’t see strong sales ahead. The metrics are interesting: 7.8 million social interactions and 65K online reviews about wearables.

“Though the Apple Watch will of course be successful, we don’t see the product to be wildly successful”, John Feland, Argus founder, says in a statement. I reviewed the firm’s report, which data is from September 2014 to end of March 2015, and it’s interesting reading. The question, and Apple Watch sales likely will answer: Is online social buzz a means for predicting a product’s success?

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 9, 20156:44 am

Flickr a Day 99: ‘Surfer’

Sports photography should be more than the shooter with the longest lens capturing one good photo from many taken with continuous shutter. Today’s selection, captured by Terence Kearns on May 9, 2008, is atypical of surfing […]

Apple by Joe WilcoxApr 8, 201512:03 pm

The Verge on Apple Watch

I am impressed with The Verge’s magazine-like presentation for the web, and the Apple Watch review is exceptional example. Presentation in PC browser or either of my Androids, Nexus 6 or 9, freshly flows from graphics to text overlay to paragraphs of experiential writing. Format, using the device during one day and fine touch of battery icon and time per major graphic, beautifully fits content and context.

Last month’s NeimanLab post “This is my next step: How The Verge wants to grow beyond tech blogging” spotlights changes ahead. “What The Verge has been doing the past six months, and will be doing for the next six, is turning itself into a site that covers pop culture, science, and even cars with the same voice they’ve trained on the world of technology”, NeimanLab assistant editor Justin Ellis explains. The Apple Watch review, posted today with a scad of others, illuminates transition underway. What impresses is writer Nilay Patel’s apparent honesty about the device’s benefits and shortcomings.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 8, 20156:54 am

Flickr a Day 98: ‘NgaNga’

Dramatic is my reaction to this protest shot from Freedom II Andres, in Makati City, Philippines, on Oct. 4, 2013. The second “Million People March” rallied against the country’s so-called pork-barrel scam that a Philippine Daily Inquirer investigative series exposed about two months earlier.

The photographer’s name is appropriate for a protest shot like this one, and spotlights his family heritage. The second of four sons, “we are all named Freedom“, he explains, “simply because our father was one of the student-activists of his time in the 1970s, when Filipinos fought against the dictatorship of then president Ferdinand Marcos”.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 7, 20156:41 am

Flickr a Day 97: ‘Stranger Portrait No. 44’

I post today’s selection with sense of angst, and not for the first time in this series—whenever the photographer is absent online for sometime, which appears to be the situation with Chris Zerbes. His website generates a DNS error, the most recent status on his Facebook photography page is June 2013, and the last dated Flickr pic is October of that year.

I came to Chris’ photostream by way of this image discovered when searching Flickr for “Berlin”. The graffiti and model shot was my first choice until finding self-titled “Stranger Portrait No. 44” being used or referenced by several sites and subsequently my taking a closer look at the album/set from which it comes. The 68-pic collection is most interesting from No. 37, when he begins giving some backstory about the subject and/or his shooting technique.

Society by Joe WilcoxApr 6, 20158:46 pm

Rolling Stone Story Undergoes Brutal Forensic Analysis

The symbolism is recognizable, but as what depends on the eventual outcome. Dateline April 5, 2015, Easter Sunday, “Rolling Stone and UVA: The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Report” posted to the magazine’s website. The holiday celebrates Jesus Christ’s resurrection, following crucifixion. The Washington Post and several other organizations crucified Rolling Stone in December 2014 for long-form news story “A Rape on Campus”. The exhaustive autopsy of the story’s reporting and publication is another another crucifixion, arriving on a day that celebrates resurrection, salvation. Will RS have the one by voluntarily inviting the other?

“A Rape on Campus” spotlights the alleged sexual assault of a University of Virginia student identified as Jackie. The investigative report paints a campus culture of acceptable assault without reproach or reprisal. But the veracity of Jackie’s account later collapsed. Rolling Stone sought outside examination, which by itself demonstrates just how strongly the magazine strives to report responsibly.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 6, 20156:49 am

Flickr a Day 96: ‘Stranger 2/100 – The Constant Gardener’

The second of three random street portraits comes from the photographer simply known as ταηjεεr. The image is among his contributions to the 100 Strangers Flickr Group, which we met yesterday. The project’s challenge: To become a better shooter and improve social skills. Subject storytelling is part of the process.

Self-titled “Stranger 2/100 – The Constant Gardener” refers to Mohammad Nurul Huq, who “works as a Site Caretaker for the historic Lalbagh Fort in Dhaka, Bangladesh”, ταηjεεr explains. “What intrigued me most was how extremely proud he was for his work. His eyes lit up as he proudly announced that every taka he ever earned was absolutely honest”. The government employee is from Shariyatpur.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 5, 20157:37 am

Flickr a Day 95: ‘Stranger 51/100 | Easter Parade in New York’

We celebrate the second major Christian holiday with the first of three random street portraits. Michael Tapp captured the photo for the 100 Strangers Flickr Group, which ethos states: “Take at least 100 photographs of 100 people you don’t know. Approach anyone or a group of people, ask for permission to both take a photo of them and to post it to this group. Get to know your stranger/s. Who are they? What is their life like?”

The 100 Strangers project challenges a photographer to “step out of your comfort zone and into a new level of portrait photography”. As I write, there are 10,500 group members. From my experience as a working journalist, approaching random people for comment, photo, or video is a learning process that’s difficulty increases as you age. Youth and appearance are assets that can put anyone at ease.

Society by Joe WilcoxApr 4, 201512:00 pm

Comic-Con Heroes: The Departure

They say the end is only the beginning. Today’s installment ends serialization of my ebook Comic-Con Heroes: The Fans Who Make the Greatest Show on Earth. On July 8, 2015, after my current commitment with Amazon KDP Select ends, the tome’s release into the public domain begins—as promised. I plan to make copies available here, from Bunny Bows Press, and most likely Smashwords. I am still working out final logistics. Free also means removing the book from Amazon, which doesn’t permit the option. I am exploring a one-cent alternative.

A week ago, I posted the last of the dozen profiles, in order of appearance: The Dark Knight, The Fighter, The Collectors, The Academic, The Nerd Culturist, The Writer,The Bicyclists, The Heroine, The Time Lord, The Volunteer, The Vendor, and The Millennial.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 4, 20157:26 am

Flickr a Day 94: ‘These Boots Were Made For Walking’

Photos of doors or windows are passé, but some are nevertheless attention-getting, which is my reaction to todays selection from Susanne Nilsson. The Swedish photographer, who joined Flickr in November 2010, is more a shooter of […]

Society by Joe WilcoxApr 3, 201510:45 pm

My Goddamn Problem

Three months ago, I commanded: “Writers, Own Your Content!“. Some of my best tech-industry news and analysis is gone from the Web—six years of posts—because of corporation changes; one employer was acquired, while the other restructured. The sites I managed vanished. Now I defy good SEO practice and double post content to my work website and to my personal one. Art typically is different, and headlines are never the same.

Reader reaction to one recent headline just shocks me, and makes me chuckle.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 3, 20157:19 am

Flickr a Day 93: Somber Salute

What introduction is appropriate for someone with about 150,000 images posted to Flickr? None. Choosing anything from such vast collection is an overwhelming task, so I let the photographer’s preferred storytelling style guide me. Elvert Barnes describes himself “as […]