Bezos apologized for Kindle delays

[lovebeta]

Right at the frontpage of Amazon.com

I think the letter is pretty hollow though.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by lovebeta

Right at the frontpage of Amazon.com

I think the letter is pretty hollow though.

What do you expect him to do? The delay isn't Amazon's fault - it's down to the limited manufacturing capacity of the screen manufacturer, PVI in Taiwan.

[jacksonunit]

I guess my experience is not the norm but I got mine in EXACTLY two weeks from the time I clicked "Agree".

I put in a reservation for a Smart ForTwo car last September and the company has been selling them to people without reservations since January!

I don't buy the "creating buzz" theory. I really do think this is a supply side problem caused by using speculation on foriegn supplied parts. It will clear up soon.

The earth is flat, but there are so many bumps it makes it hard to tell.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by jacksonunit

I don't buy the "creating buzz" theory. I really do think this is a supply side problem caused by using speculation on foriegn supplied parts. It will clear up soon.

All the parts of the Kindle are "foreign supplied". Like all the eInk devices, it's manufactured in Taiwan or China.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by jacksonunit

I put in a reservation for a Smart ForTwo car last September and the company has been selling them to people without reservations since January!

And on their site they are still taking reservations. I was thinking of getting one, but waiting till the mortage is paid off first.

Now, my new target is an air car from ZeroPolutionMotors... it is said to be expected for 2010, which is about when my mortage should be gone.

(I have vowed they my next car with use/support an alternate fuel or get over 50MGP... so I have high hopes for the 100mph (or more) air car.)

BOb

PS: Sorry off topic.

[KlondikeGeoff]

Originally Posted by HarryT

All the parts of the Kindle are "foreign supplied".

Ah, ha! That explains the stupid placement of the on/off and wireless switches being on the back.

[NatCh]

Originally Posted by KlondikeGeoff

Ah, ha! That explains the stupid placement of the on/off and wireless switches being on the back.

I can assure you that we "Americans" are quite capable of putting things in stupid places too. Some of the light switches in various places I've lived are prime examples, and I don't think we're importing houses quite yet.

[jacksonunit]

My house was imported from Middle Earth so all the light switches are operated by magic.

[KlondikeGeoff]

Originally Posted by NatCh

I can assure you that we "Americans" are quite capable of putting things in stupid places too. Some of the light switches in various places I've lived are prime examples, and I don't think we're importing houses quite yet.

You're right, of course. For years and years, the power switch on computers and printers was on the back too. However, somebody finally learned (excepting Amazon.)

[NatCh]

Originally Posted by jacksonunit

My house was imported from Middle Earth so all the light switches are operated by magic.

Flown in on magic carpets, I s'pose?

Originally Posted by KlondikeGeoff

You're right, of course. For years and years, the power switch on computers and printers was on the back too. However, somebody finally learned (excepting Amazon.)

The one that still gets me when I think about it (though I'm used to it now and usually don't) is the power symbols on power switches: On is a line and off is a circle.

I suppose that made sense to whoever came up with it and implemented it, but from an electronic/electrical perspective, it's backwards. The circle, being a closed figure, is more representative of a circuit that's on -- they call them circuits because they only work when they're "closed." Whereas the line is more like a circuit when it's off because the ends aren't touching and it's an open figure, just like a circuit when it's off is "open."

So if you know anything about circuits and try to decide based solely on the symbols themselves which is which, you're going to arrive at a conclusion that is simple, logical and wrong.

Since most of the world either doesn't know enough about circuits, or doesn't think things through like that ... or some combination of the two, and we've all gotten used to it over the last ten years or so since they started using it, it works well enough. That is, as long as malcontents like myself don't get reminded of how it's all backwards and work themselves into a froth over it yet again.

[NatCh]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Now, my new target is an air car from ZeroPollutionMotors... it is said to be expected for 2010, which is about when my mortage should be gone.

Those are very interesting, and promising, actually.

I didn't really get what they were doing until I watched the videos, though. The Discovery Channel narrator made a bone-headed comment about one day maybe the air that runs the motor that runs the compressor that compresses the air will get us true perpetual motion. It's interesting that a guy who works with the Discovery Channel would know the word but not know such a comment would open him to ridicule.

Maybe it was an artifact of the writer's strike, I've noticed some other really bad comments in other things like that lately.

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by NatCh

The one that still gets me when I think about it (though I'm used to it now and usually don't) is the power symbols on power switches: On is a line and off is a circle.

Actually, one symbol is zero and the other symbol is one. Power (on and off) is a binary state, so someone decided to use a binary symbol.

I've seen it for I don't know how long, but I didn't figure out what they meant until early 2007.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by NatCh

Flown in on magic carpets, I s'pose?

The one that still gets me when I think about it (though I'm used to it now and usually don't) is the power symbols on power switches: On is a line and off is a circle.

I suppose that made sense to whoever came up with it and implemented it, but from an electronic/electrical perspective, it's backwards. The circle, being a closed figure, is more representative of a circuit that's on -- they call them circuits because they only work when they're "closed." Whereas the line is more like a circuit when it's off because the ends aren't touching and it's an open figure, just like a circuit when it's off is "open."

Well, it is not really a line and a circle. This is the digital age and it is a 1 and a 0. 1 is on while 0 is off.

Dale

[Oh, Why Not?]

And here I thought it was the machine making a rude gesture at me for my clumsiness with buttons.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by Oh, Why Not?

And here I thought it was the machine making a rude gesture at me for my clumsiness with buttons.

When a computer only uses 1's and 0's it might be difficult to imagine how it would make a rude gesture but now I have a picture.