As I look back, it’s been filled with many different events, achievements, and faults.

A quick glimpse:

• D.L. moved to Toronto.
• Working at a startup has been an eye-opening experience. Getting exposed to all the aspects of a business from the ground up has been great.
• My YouTube channel (BluechipJ) is approaching 400,000 views.
• I helped two friends start their businesses (more to come).
• I completed 5 photography courses at Humber and am 1 away from my certificate.

As I reserve more energy for writing, both professionally (Sympatico’s Sync-Blog and CanadaHiFi) and personally, I’ll be relaunching both websites (blog and photography) in the coming weeks.

Stay tuned!

Unfortunately, due to the disjointed nature of Rogers’ system, I won’t be getting my X10 until next week. This is despite the fact that I’ve already walked into a RogersPlus store and bought one.

If they weren’t the only carrier selling the phone, I’d have spent my money elsewhere. So much for competition and open markets… (BestBuy does have it, but not in white.)

Before the X10′s launch, Rogers announced a pre-order campaign for new customers and an upgrade program for existing customers. Unfortunately, since I upgraded to the X1 last June, I don’t qualify for a hardware upgrade.

This means that I have to buy the phone on a “month-to-month” ($499) which is cheaper than buying the phone outright ($549). Sounds simple enough except as I found out, after numerous phone calls to their call centre and two separate visits to RogersPlus stores, as an existing customer not doing an upgrade, I can’t buy it in-store.

Apparently, their own stores/dealers do not have access to account info such as notes, loyalty rewards or other details beyond the basic information. I am now forced to wait 3-5 business days for Rogers to courier the phone to me from their Toronto/Mississauga warehouse which is literally within an hour of my house.

Fine, then earlier in the month, they should have let me pre-order as an existing customer so I’d have the phone today… Wait, that’d make too much sense and therefore, can’t be done. The X10 wasn’t in the system until today, launch day… so existing customers who aren’t eligible for hardware upgrades can’t even place an order until today.

So much for rewarding loyal customers (my account is a 15+ year account)…

Rogers, get your act together.

Here goes nothing!

Good things from all-you-can-eat sushi. :p

I packed my recently purchased D300 along with my trusty D200 as well as my Sony TZ and set off for a day of vehicle premieres, press events, and the best part, avoiding the massive crowds.

This year’s show was called “The Vision” and reflected upon the last decade of automotive history as well as showcasing the future of vehicular transportation.

A whole slew of issues had/continue to impact the automotive landscape: the recession, restructuring, plant closings, changes in consumer preferences, environmental impact, brand consolidation (I’ll miss you Pontiac – Hummer, not so much) and let’s not forget massive recalls (an analysis of Akio Toyoda’s bow).

Technology continues to enhance/detract from the automotive experience. While improvements such as dual-clutch gearboxes increases fuel economy while decreasing shift times, some safety features, such as blind-spot detection, are turning driving from an experience into a task.

Doing laundry is a “task” (or more aptly, a chore). While many (if not the vast majority) of drivers treat driving as a necessary action to get them from point A to point B, driving should be more than that. For something that’s so fundamentally a part of (North American) life (I support public transit too, but that’s a whole other entry), drivers treat it with such casual disregard.

My track instructor uses this analogy: “When you’re playing hockey, you’re thinking about the game, your opponents, your teammates, etc. but when you’re driving, you’re also thinking about the game, what’s for dinner, etc.”

A recent study has shown that drivers are distracted simply by talking to other passengers in the vehicle!

Actually, “drivers” is the wrong word. “Operators” is much more accurate. People are no longer drivers. They’re simply operators of machines. A Ford design engineer lamented that cars are becoming increasingly complex machines in the hands of decreasingly skilled operators.

Where’s the connection? Where is the “joy” of driving?

Discounting the exotics and supercars, there seem to be fewer companies creating vehicles that engage the driver and have relegated themselves to creating utilitarian machines whose sole (or soul) purpose is to ferry the occupants from one point to another as monotonously as possible.

The environmental impact is now a looming, conscious thread in everyone’s minds and for good reason. Yet that doesn’t mean that we have to switch to 1.6L engines and drive around in Smarts. While I continue to debate the actual positive environmental impact of hybrids (due to their manufacturing and raw materials), at least they’ve got people thinking in the right direction and research & development progressing towards a solution.

Displays were not subdued or cheaper than previous years so despite the economic conditions, manufacturers were still taking advantage of the huge marketing exposure that the Autoshow brings them. A few notable exceptions however like Porsche (though Pfaff Tuning filled in for them), were absent.

Walking around during media day meant seeing manufacturers training the representatives, which unlike American, European or import car shows aren’t blatant pin-ups; seeing Minister of Industry Tony Clement and his entourage being led around by Dennis DesRosiers, the automotive analyst; and being allowed inside the display areas and cars.

A couple of models from Sharp Magazine for Men were posing too. Turns out Lawrence Yap, an excellent automotive journalist, used to work for Sharp.

The Mercedes SLS AMG with its gullwing doors makes quite the backdrop.

[My colour corrected image [left]. Original on the right.]
[Thanks to Ste Ho for the original photo. www.shutterlit.com]

Audi introduced a new flagship sedan:

As well as the R8 V10 5.2L Spyder (convertible):

The seatbelts have microphones sewn into them for use with the car’s Bluetooth handsfree system to allow wind-free conversations even with the top down.

BMW introduced their new flagship “ActiveHybrid” sedan as well as the new Z4:

After the BMW presentation, the CEO hops into the Mini Beachcomber concept and drives over to the Mini display:

Mercedes was showing off their latest in safety in the S-Class with a really cool simulator:

The system will alert the driver when there’s 3.5 seconds left before impact (enough time to stop, swerve), brake up to 40% when there’s 2.5 seconds left (to lessen the impact) and fully brake the car when there’s 1.5 seconds left (accident unavoidable). It tensions up the seatbelts, moves the seats accordingly, moves the active head restraints, and other actions to try to mitigate the force of the impact. During my tests in it, it reduced impact energy by 40%-60%.

Everyone remember E_k = ½ * M * V² ? The energy a moving object possesses is a product of the square of its velocity. Double the speed, quadruple the energy.

Features such as radar cruise control, night vision, lane departure detection, blind spot detection and “pre”-accident safety systems are slowly trickling down from the flagship luxo-barges and are now in the entry-level luxury vehicles as well as everyday vehicles. Ford’s Sync system is quite impressive and is available in almost all their vehicles too.

Also present was a bright orange Tesla Roadster with California plates.

The next few years will definitely see a shift from the horsepower war to fuel economy, but with technologies such as turbocharging, start-stop, regenerative braking, and mild/full hybrids, (at least some) cars will continue to offer drivers more than just a way to get around town.

I got home that evening sore and tired. My arms and legs ached but it was good day. To cover all the press events (each one’s 15-20 minutes apart) really requires two people. Another consideration is high-definition video. Hopefully by this summer, I’ll have a 720p-capable D3s. (The difference between 720p and 1080p at a distance of 4+ ft. isn’t noticeable by 90% of people unless it’s on a 50” or larger screen.)

Vote for my photo of the X6M at Autoshow.ca!

LINKS:

Facebook Gallery 1 / Gallery 2

Menalto Gallery (High Resolution)

YouTube Videos

At work, I handle the online presence, social media campaign and analyze the KPI (key performance indicators) of my employer’s brand. In an age of instant communication, one little snafu can quickly snowball into a PR nightmare.

While companies don’t have to be actively engaged online, they should at the very least be monitoring what is said about their brand/reputation and products/services.

I was recently very impressed by the responses I received from two distinct and totally unrelated companies: CIBC & Saputo.

Customer relation win #1: Last week, we bought a bag of Neilson TruTaste milk with the usual groceries. While I’m not the biggest fan of milk, I still drink the daily cup(s) and get it over with. My parents use it in cooking as well as with their coffee. We’ve been buying this specific brand for a while due to its taste.

Unfortunately, when some of this batch was heated in a saucepan, it started to separate. Gross.

We checked the other bags and while there was no off-putting odour or taste, its viscosity was thicker than usual. Down the drain it went.

While there is no contact info on the bag itself, similar to other products with a “Questions? Call 1-888-xxx-xxxx”, I am one with Google and a few minutes later, sent off an email through their website.

I detailed the retail location, lot # found on the plastic bag enclosure and details of the incident. This was Sunday night.

As I prepared to leave work on Monday afternoon, I received an email from a “Customer Relations Co-ordinator”, thanking me for bringing the issue to their attention and assuring me that the cows responsible had been put to pasture relevant quality control personnel had been notified and would look into it immediately.

I was also told that coupons for their products would be arriving in the mail shortly.

Time from incident to resolution: <24 hours.

Customer relation win #2: First, a little context. A few weeks back, I had to update my banking information with CIBC. I walked into my home branch on a slow Saturday afternoon armed with my passport and driver’s license. After a short wait, I was brought in to see a personal banker, who started asking me security questions and other details.

When I was asked about my address, things started going downhill. Since I only recently graduated, my mailing address has changed multiple times over the past few years. However, my permanent address was stayed the same for over 5 years.

The personal banker started raising her voice and accusing me of giving her false information, to which I replied, “You’re asking the wrong questions. Be more precise.” She then proceeded to look up my account details, saying that there are a lot of discrepancies and that it would be flagged. I would need additional paperwork to prove I was who I was. She calls in someone more senior, who repeats the same conditions.

Seriously? Have there been a rash of fake Canadian passports?

Pissed that I was being yelled at, I collected my documents and told them I’d be back. I drove home and gathered a handful of Revenue Canada documents. Maybe next they’ll accuse me of being a criminal that files tax returns!

I get back there, sitting in the waiting area, giving the personal banker a very annoyed glare until I’m finally called in. She then proceeds to photocopy all my paperwork and review my account details, making all the necessary changes.

While CIBC has a very prominent sign stating that if you’re not completely satisfied with your visit to speak to a manager, I wasn’t about to waste the rest of my day. I made a mental note to post to the world something about my experience. A few days later, I saw a tweet about a similar experience someone had and echoed their sentiments. This was also Sunday (10th) night.

Today, at work, I receive a phone call from CIBC’s customer relations department. They tell me that they have a group that monitors the Internet for anything CIBC-related and had seen my tweets. They wanted to talk to me about the incident. I casually explain all the details and they apologize for my bad experience. They say they’ll contact the branch manager with the details and use it as a training scenario and thank me for my time.

At first, I was shocked that a chartered bank was reading my tweets — though mostly because I had previously applied to jobs at CIBC — but then I was impressed that they were being proactive about it.

Time from incident to resolution: 3 business days.

Companies can no longer afford to sit on the sidelines as more and more people surf the Interwebs.

While none of these experiences were epic enough to warrant anything more than a sternly worded email, I know that if I had really been slighted by a company, I would not hesitate to let my friends, family and online network know. It takes $10 to register a domain like www.blahblahsucks.com

In the past, I’ve convinced many people to not purchase products from a certain company, going as far as telling random strangers in electronics retailers my (expert) opinion.

From an engineering standpoint, their products are nothing more than overhyped, overpriced gimmicks. On the consumer side, the company’s corporate behaviour is the equivalent of the RIAA.

While consumer complaints and stories haven’t changed, the Internet has created a whole new paradigm in the way people buy, review and connect. You’re a lot more likely to trust your network than a stranger on the Internet.

Kudos to the companies adapting to the changing paradigm. Good luck to those that aren’t — you’ll need it.

Nikon vs. Canon, pirates vs. ninjas, Intel vs. AMD, Nintendo vs. Sega [never say never...], and arguably the most heated and well-known technology rivalry of all, PC vs. Mac.

Growing up, I learned DOS, moved onto Windows and despite all the exposure to Macs in school and through photography, could never see a legitimate reason to switch sides.

Macs were are overpriced, lack a wide user base, application diversity, and their “user-friendliness” treats the user like a 5-year old learning their ABCs. (While I won’t argue that PCs Windows could be easier to use, most, if not all, problems are user-created but I’ll save that for a “Jeremy’s Guide to IT” post later.)

The only reason I bring this up is because recently, someone tried vehemently to convince me that my computing experience would be more enjoyable on a Mac. I gave them an amused look, similar to the look most people give when watching dumbed-down Celebrity Jeopardy, along with the pity that accompanies it when the celebrities win laughably small amounts of money for their charities.

A few weeks ago, I was at the Student Life Expo, working at the Intel booth. The Apple booth was right beside us and their bright orange displays and t-shirts were a nice contrast to our blue. On my last day, I commented to a greying, pushing-40s Apple booth guy that his stock iPod Shuffle earbuds are crap and that he spend the $20 or more and buy decent ones. I then showed him my inner-ear earphones from Shure.

His first comment, “I don’t like how those type of earphones feel.”
Valid. My earphones came with 4 different types of sleeves in varying sizes. Finding a good fit shouldn’t be an issue.

My reply, “You should still invest in decent earphones.”
His reply, “Meh. With these, I don’t have to take my iPod out of my pocket.”

At that point, I probably had the “You’ve got to be kidding me” look. I’m talking about sound quality and your counterargument is that you can leave your MP3 player in your pocket. At that point, I knew there was no point arguing with this guy. First, he’s a middle-aged man whose hearing range is limited anyways. Second, he’s a middle-aged man working a booth for a university fair for high-school seniors. I’ll leave it at that.

Whenever you read the comments on technology blogs of Apple/PC/smartphone related stories, there are always comparisons being drawn between Apple & PC/Nokia/Sony-Ericsson/etc. The Mac fans overwhelming end up sounding like smug, “I know better than you”, brainwashed zombies. There was even a Simpsons episode about it.

UPDATE: A survey about iPhone users was just published. The results are as expected: not flattering.

There’s a reason why the John Hodgman/Justin Long commercials are getting stupid and tired. All the “reasons” that the ads try to bring up have long been resolved and it is akin to the misperception that consumers have about diesel vehicles.

Back to the “Why you should switch to Macs” debate.

Price: They tried to convince me that the total cost of ownership is lower. Their reasoning was that on Craigslist, their 1 year old Mac laptop sells for more than a PC laptop purchased a year ago. Even taking into account depreciation and obsolescence, when something is more expensive to being with, it’ll be worth more after the same amount of time. Unless you’re playing the latest games, there is no need to upgrade. Productivity applications don’t require that much computing power. My dad’s desktop is a computer I built over 3 years ago. Why don’t you upgrade your Mac? Oh wait…

Spyware/viruses: Macs get viruses too. As for PCs, there are dozens of FREE antivirus programs out there. Microsoft’s “Security Essentials” has been getting excellent reviews. It’s also only 4MB. PC users who don’t properly setup their computer deserve what they get. Really. Most people use computers on a daily basis. Take 10 minutes and learn how to actually use/maintain one. A little effort goes a long way.

99% of the time, the PC didn’t break. YOU did something. You clicked on something, said “Yes” to some plug-in/Facebook application/”You’re the 100^th visitor! Click here to claim your prize!”/etc. and installed a malicious piece of software.

It’s YOUR FAULT. This opens up the whole “They should make PCs easier to use!” door, but that’s a shallow argument, at best. For something that most people use every day, there’s no excuse. Learn to use it properly. Alt+Tab! Windows Key + D! This isn’t rocket surgery.

Ease-of-use: Using a Mac, I keep forgetting that there’s no right-click. Despite the shortcuts and supposedly user-friendly interface, everything but the most basic functions are hidden or convoluted. In their effort to cut off all the sharp corners and make everything round and “safety pencil & circle of paper”-like, it seems like they’ve gone so far backwards.

The argument ended and I went back to my Sony TZ. Sure, it isn’t a Macbook Air, but at least it’s lighter, has a removable battery, optical drive, and a higher resolution screen…

I’ll soon be posting on www.sync-blog.com!
One of my friends mused, “Watch out world… Jeremy now has a legitimate venue to tell you just how bad he thinks you and your technology really is!”

Don’t worry world. I always strive to be objective and thorough.
Plus, I’ve always got my own blog to rant and yell.

So what’s happened in the past few weeks? A picture is worth a thousand words… and videos even more.

Two friends told me I had to experience FanExpo. While never a big anime fan, I am into science fiction and got my Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles DVDs signed by Thomas Dekker!

It was amazing seeing some of the intricate costumes as well as the exhibits, signings & screenings.

[jwplayer config=\”Default\” file=”http://jeremy.phantn.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/droids_conv.flv” width=”480″ height=”360″ autostart=”false” />

Disney is also re-releasing Tron! From the previews, it looks amazing!

[jwplayer config=\”Default\” file=”http://jeremy.phantn.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/tron_conv.flv” width=”480″ height=”360″ autostart=”false” />

Between random IT calls & traffic surveys with LEA, I spent a weekend in the SkyWalk, working the Intel Booth promoting www.greatcomputing.ca, a tool that asks questions and then searches Canadian retailers for appropriate laptops/desktops/etc.

But all was not fun and games. For some reason, I had a really bad allergic reaction. Unfortunately, I don’t yet know why.

Last, but certainly not least, I’m now working with a U.S. vehicle broker who is taking advantage of the skyrocketing Canadian dollar. One of my boss’ favourite terms: “value-chain disruptor”. The company has found a niche and is taking advantage of it by disrupting the traditional business model.The potential is HUGE and hopefully I will be a part of something game-changing!

Plus, I get to work with cars, Internet-related technologies, economics & business!

As the summer comes to a close and some of those around me begin their preparations for back-to-school, it’s an oddly freeing yet simultaneously disconcerting feeling to not know what I’ll be doing a month from now.

While some people have questioned the prudence (and possibly sanity) of my decision to turn down my first real, full-time job offer back in June, looking back on my summer, I don’t have any regrets. How else would I have ended up on a Staples flyer for Intel?

Hopefully in the next few weeks, I’ll start getting some callbacks from the various technology and consumer products companies I’ve applied to. Until then, I’ll do what I’ve always done: IT and technical consulting. People keep breaking things and I keep fixing them. It’s an endless cycle.

Sony, WIND Mobile, Mercer, Rogers, VANOC, Toyota…

As I continue my job search, I’m somewhat dismayed at the treatment of candidates by various employers. The biggest excuse is the “economy” and this excuse is constantly used to try to justify why they’re not offering certain levels of compensation or benefits.

What a load of crock.

Somehow, they expect someone to dance, sing AND juggle [metaphorically] for 10, sometimes 20% less than market rate. Some haven’t even clued in that minimum wage in Ontario is now $9.50 [2009/03/31].

Without going into macroeconomics, consumer spending (which is still down) and statistics, the Canadian economy isn’t doing that badly. It wasn’t doing that badly to begin with! Unless you’re a (auto/parts) manufacturer or in finance, arguably, the only major difficulty of the past year is/was access to credit/loans.

The Bank of Canada says the recession is OVER! Indicators are all recovering.

If there’s one adage that always holds true, it’s “You get what you pay for.” If I was running a business, I’d be scooping up all the displaced talent right now. There was a recent article about how more students are now going into science, engineering & other innovation-related fields instead of finance and business. Maybe now, North America can reserve the decline in research & development.

The search continues!

One of my friends in BC was the one that told me! I then rushed to the Staples.ca site to look it up.

I’m on the back page!!! Page 16! I’ve even got my own link: www.staples.ca/jeremy/

The text:

Captain Portability

Jeremy creates tons of documents and is constantly doing online research for school. Since he carries his computer and books around with him all day, he needs something small and light.

Technology Needs: Portability

Solution: For portability, Jeremy needs a small laptop. If he also wants the larger workspace and richer entertainment experience of a bigger screen size, he could supplement his laptop with a monitor kept at home.

Find the right laptop for school at www.staples.ca/jeremy/

Time to go to the local Staples and pick one up. :p