Tags: #JohnnieWalker #DoubleBlack #WhitChicDreams #Whiskey #Instagram
80′s, 90′s, 00′s Live Band Shows I can write home about….
By Mikail in uncategorized80′s:
- REM (cerca 86 – Free ticket, Vanderbilt – Hassan’s first proper rock concert)*
- Natalie Merchant (she had a leg cast. Opened up for REM)
- ACDC (somewhere in Nashville)
- Foghat (somewhere in Nashville)
- Free (somewhere in Nashville, could have been the same concert as Foghat)
- John Cougar (MTSU)
- U2 (MTSU)
- Tina Turner (MTSU)
- Ravi Shankar (MTSU)
- Hoppy Vaughn and the Weasels (Main Street/Murfreesboro)
- Judson Spence (Main Street/Murfreesboro)
- Government Cheese (Main Street/Murfreesboro)
*REM did gigs at Main Street/Murfreesboro, Tennessee, while hitting the university circuit, then big arenas in the 90′s)
90′s
NOTHING…
- wait…B.B. King (Jazz Fest Montreal, 1996). I think…
- cant remember much from the 90′s?
2000′s
- Jamiroquai (a number)
- Gotan Project (2003?)
- The Wall (Dubai, forgot his name)
- Santana (2008 Dubai)
- Scorpions (2008? Dubai)
- Eric Clapton (Yas-Abu Dhabi, 2011?)
- Rolling Stones (Amsterdam, cerca 2007?)
- Red Hot Chili Peppers (Beirut 2012)
- Radiohead (Amsterdam 2012. Just remembered: Jonny Greenwod, guitarist, had a leg cast?)
- Creed (Yas-Abu Dhabi, 2012. It was all about the last song)
Will keep updating this one….
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InstaMoney by Instagram!
By Mikail in InstagramMy take on the Instagram fiasco: to be clear, they’ve already issued a statement that ‘we won’t sell your photos’….but here’s what should be happening:
This is a great opportunity for making ‘scrumps’ out of a hobby and for photographer wanabees (me included). Drum roll….: I’d love it for Instagram to sell any of my photos (with my permission of course) and they give me a cut. Voila. End of story. Make everyone some money…even better…allow part of the proceeds to go to some charitable organisation or something of that sort.
So I say…sell them photos and Give us Some of that InstaMoney Instagram. We won’t complain!
TweetTags: Instagram, InstaMoney, Money, Photography
Apple TV: Apple’s Hobby is Now Apple’s Future
By Mikail in uncategorizedBeing an inconsistent blogger and all, figured this topic justifies a few words on what Apple TV should be…
Besides the content deals Apple is constantly going after, an article on CNN Money got me more thinking about what we could expect next for the gadget that’s no longer a ‘hobby’, but the future of Apple. Apple TV could evolve into Cupertino’s future gadget that corners content, ecommerce, entertainment and much much more (Here’s the article that got me started: 11 features Apple’s TV must have http://money.cnn.com/gallery/technology/2012/08/17/apple-tv-features.fortune/3.html)
Here are some more features that should make it to the Apple TV….drum roll…12) Apple Store, thats www.apple.com. They’ve got my credit card and my Aramex Shop and Ship details so why can’t I just browse & buy from the Apple TV interface? which leads to 13) eTail Apps for buying goods online from other eTailers via the Apple TV…this can happen too…Apple doesn’t have to charge 30% commission on this model though (as they do with the App store right now)….maybe a transactional cost to cover their payment gateway charges plus revenue sharing on price of goods (Amazon style)…etc…and the iTunes gift card will work wonders here too….Apple’s own currency. No credit card, no problem….and here’s the best one, or what I believe Apple should be doing right now…14) Make an OEM deal with all the big TV brands such as Sony, Samsung, etc…license the damn hardware into their systems and get another input channel called Apple TV (in addition to AV1, AV2, AV3, PC, etc..)…getting their remotes to pair is a given.
TweetTags: Apple TV, apps, aramex, Channel, Content, ecommerce, OEM, Samsung, shop and ship, Sony
Fog in Love With Dubai
By Mikail in PhotographyTags: Dubai, Dubai Marina, Fog, JLT, Jumeirah Lake Tower, Sheikh Zayed Road, Sunrise, SZR
cleaning windows at emirates terminal in dubai
By Mikail in uncategorizedCaught these hard workers on my way out of Dubai….looked like puppets;)
TweetTags: Dubai, emirates terminal, puppet masters, window cleaners
iReady for anyPad-anApp-aCloud : old school ideas ready for Now & More…
By Mikail in uncategorizedYes…we’re all ready for a pad, a tab, a screen that makes us do stuff, but without the sense of driving a loaded computer. The technology’s been out there for years…Tablet PC anyone? so what made those touchscreen, touchy touchy nicey nicey devices suddenly ready for the masses…2 things…Apps and Cloud computing….repeat after me…Apps and Cloud Computing…that’s what made them light, nondependent on full blown software, and storage of course…Apple relaunched the buzz for a device that was invented many moons ago, and relaunched it because Apple new all the important ingredients were perfectly aligned for mainstream adoption…(yes, timing is everything).
Now:
Hint…let’s stop trying to squeeze our brain in justifying ‘but it doesn’t have a USB for an external hard drive’, mind you, some of the recently released pads do have a USB so we can feel ‘physically connected’ to an external storage device…but won’t really need it (enter the likes of Dropbox)…because that’s not where the technology is heading….think of the ‘pad’ as a ‘thing’ that simply accesses stuff hosted somewhere else, accessible from anywhere….this is what ‘tab computing’ is all about…we just need a console…that’s what the hype is all about…a console…some will make it sleek and sexy…others might make it durable and can morph into an Nespresso machine…but again…that’s not what it’s all about….its all about the apps and the cloud….because the technology is Now for us to finally use…and all the means and tools are now here to make us adopt it.
Question: do I really want a pad to read and view stuff, play games, email, surf, not necessarily…I’ll probably choose to use it as a command center to make stuff happen all around me, my TV, my stereo, my electric switch, my web, synch it with my work computer/mobile…and if all fails…use it as a boring monitor (read a book, watch a movie…yes..when I’m on the go..but that’s utter boring rot!)…I’ll load what ever apps out there that’ll make me do & control things from my ‘magic console’.
More:
Nicholas Negroponte’s ‘Being Digital’, 1996, a must read…I recall a section in there about how computers will become obsolete…all software solutions and storage will be hosted ‘somewhere’…you just need the console to engage…a touch screen? Extension: Heck, some loonies have already developed the feedback touch screen (it feels you back) and wait ’till that holo-touch technology comes out (I’m sure its out there, but not cheap…hologram displays you can touch and make them do stuff…and if it’s not out there…someone better develop ‘em soon)…a display pops up in thin air…when you want it…anywhere you want it…and ‘touch’…we’ve seen ‘in-tangible keyboards’…some have bought them…go a step further…just ‘think it’…and you can access anything you want….how about some of that crazy science coming out from brain research with MRI’s? go figure…but get ready…it’s coming soon.
Enjoy it and don’t fear it…because we’re Now…and we’re Ready!
Finale: Haven’t quiet decided on which pad to buy yet…funny enough…this dude is not pro touch screen…maybe he should wait for the ‘think-screen’…
TweetTags: apple, apps, cloud computing, dropbox, ipad, nicholas negroponte, now, technology, touch screen
Exciting journey into the secret world of ‘Knockoffs’ #counterfeitgoods
By Mikail in uncategorizedBeen hearing about this place for years….and of all people, from visitors. You walk into the shop….then you go past 3 secret doors (not kidding)…one of them even requires a password & swipe card….nicely concealed…to be part of the deco….I took two snapshots and was nervous…what if the dude is working for another dude and that dude reports to another dude…etc…it might have lead me all the way to some big dude at a factory in China…and then…that dude decides to counterfeit me and send me as souvenirs to my family and friends….
Anyways…most of the counterfeit goods are hand bags…prices vary from USD 90 onwards…personally…I couldn’t even notice the difference between a fake LV and the original….its not the tourist trap stuff you find displayed on the street corners of Europe…..
- Prada, Gucci, Hermes, LV
- LV
- Prada, Gucci, Hermes, LV
- LV
Popular knock-offs: LV, Prada, Gucci, Dior & of course Hermes in the hand bags category. In the wallets section: Mont Blanc and LV. Here’s the interesting bit. When asked about the price for a fake LV belt, first thing he asked ‘with or without packaging’…because they are Original Packaging and cost him serious dosh! Question: your customers are residents? Answer: no, primarily visitors and lots of them from Russia.
For the record: The hospitality & customer service surpasses that of anything I’ve ever experienced at any luxury boutique in the world…the man just wants to make a living and keep his ‘secret customers’ happy….
It was exciting to experience the underworld of counterfeit goods…being walked through all these secret doors did give me a sense of adventure…and it made my weekend…
Note: my apologies for the bad quality of the pictures…took them in a rush while the shop owner was bringing out more stuff from the back to show…and my apologies for my writing style (remember, I never said I could write)…but this is one heck of real-world story I wanted to share with you all.
TweetTags: counterfeit goods, Cucci, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Mont Blanc, Prada
Why the iPad is more than just hype: Carlos Camarero and his iPad.
By Mikail in uncategorizedInterview with Carlos Camarero (now retired), previously board member of Rank Xerox Europe.
Hi Carlos. I see you have bought an iPad. What I’m trying to understand is why someone who’s been ‘anti web’ and tech for years, finally decided to take the leap?
Answer: my son Cucho (also Carlos) showed it to me once and I was convinced its just what I needed.
Question: so what do you use it for exactly?
Answer: newspapers, purchasing of tickets online and email…
Question: how come it took you years to submit to the web?
Answer: yeah..the iPad made it ‘idiot proof’. I’m 66 and I needed something easy, plug and play, without the bullshit (I’m serious, that’s how he communicates).
Question: what do you think of Apple/Steve jobs?
Answer: he’s f—ing marketing genius! He finds the right product for the right people. You know the iPad has made apple numb 1 in market value, because of the iPad. Only this product will generate 10B profits a year. This product is a bloody telephone. The quality of display/resolution is phenomenal. I’m always connected because of I’m using the 3g version. I don’t need more than this. The 8hrs battery life is amazing!
Thank you Mr. Carlos Camarero. Now let’s move on to something less digital…seafood in Galecia Spain is iGood!
TweetTags: apple, ipad, steve jobs, xerox










