Not my practice blog, by Scott Knaster

Mostly blogging elsewhere right now

Hey, come check out a bunch of wacky Silicon Valley stories over here. It's fun! You'll like it!

Jan 29, 2014 11:16:05 PM

24 Hours Enterprises returns this weekend

We're doing the 24 Hours Of thing again! Follow @24HoTVS and @24HoTVb on Twitter to join the fun. Or meet us in Las Vegas in person. And check out http://24hoursoftv.blogspot.com/ for details.

Feb 24, 2012 9:27:21 AM

Tablets are just a fad. Just like computers.

I think it's odd to even have to argue against the recent wave of opinion that says tablets are just a fad. Of course tablets are not a fad. So why do tech journalists and computer execs say this? One reason is the geek blind spot: most of the key advantages of tablets aren't evident or interesting to people who use computers for 8 hours a day and are experts at using them. These are features like:

Instant power on and sleep.
Incredibly easy software installation that rarely goes wrong.
Automatic (Android) or nearly automatic (iOS) app updates.
Relatively painless system software updates.
Far fewer error and failure modes than with computer operating systems.

If you use a computer all day, every day, you're already used to the way computers work - including the crappy parts. So when something comes along that replaces much of the crappy, you might not notice. But your non-technical neighbor will.

Mar 30, 2011 10:09:10 PM

A new blog for SONIC Drive-In

Longtime readers of this blog, if any, know about its bizarre relationship with SONIC Drive-In. Now one of SONIC's most devoted fans, who also happens to be my cohort at 24 Hours Enterprises, has created superbSONIC, documenting one man's obsession with SONIC in great detail. I recommend you read it daily. WIth your strawberry limeade.

Jan 16, 2011 6:33:15 PM

2010 Giants: think greedy

It's been two full months since the World Series ended, and we San Francisco Giants fans are still blissed out. When the Giants won it all, it was as if a protective glaze coated everything about the team. Juan Uribe left for the Dodgers? Oh well. Tickets for opening day will be expensive and impossible to get? Well, that's the price of success.

Yes, everything is perfect...or is it? In the wonderful wake of the championship season, I couldn't help but think of a few -- just a few -- things that could have been even better. At the risk of offending the baseball gods by sounding ungrateful, which I swear I'm not, here are a few fun changes I would have made to this magical season.

Unfinished business. Whacking the Braves was fun, but the Giants did that in '02 also. Beating the heavily favored two-time defending champion Phillies was cool. But we had no playoff history with them. On the other hand, we still owe the Cardinals and Marlins for past painful playoff defeats. And the Cardinals offered a two-for-one deal, as we'd get to crush Tony Larussa too. As for another two-fer...
Beat the Yankees. This would have been great because it would (a) avenge 1962 and (b) c'mon, it's the Yankees! Instead we settled for dominating the team that knocked the Yanks out. Not too shabby.
Win at home. Clinching the World Series at home would have been a beautiful thing. The party would have started immediately and continued through the parade, which would have been the next day. The Giants got to celebrate only their division title at home, and that was a blast.
Sweep the World Series. The Series was not close. My favorite quick stat: Texas had 29 hits; the Giants had 29 runs. Without Mitch Moreland's homer in game 3, this Series could have been even more dominating: a Giants sweep. And if they had swept, they would...
Win the World Series on Halloween. What more perfect ending could there be for a black and orange team from a crazy city where Halloween is already the biggest holiday of the year?

I'm so grateful for the Giants 2010 season. I'm a lifelong sports fan, and this is the first time one of my teams has ever won it all. So I feel a little dirty for having written this. But I love baseball and drama, so I couldn't help trying to improve the script just a little.

Jan 2, 2011 10:37:56 PM