If you’re here for the Famous Pug, he’s found a new, permanent, ad-free home here.

After a 6 month sabbatical to allow all the pug lovers to get their fill, I am now antsy to get back to jotting down notes and putting disparate tech ideas together. I promise: New posts soon.

Check out this incredible concept devise by Nokia. This seriously shows the power of incorporating nanotechnology with current technology.

Here’s the pug; back by popular demand, and an assist from Google AdSense.

*Update (8-3-08): Since I have gotten some click through on Google AdSense, I will give you all a direct link to the Pug with no ads. Feel free to change your bookmarks. Thanks for the wild ride. Enjoy.

If you’re here looking for the new screen cleaner, I’ve regrettably had to remove the file. I had sent it to a few friends, but I’m now getting >400 hits per day on that file alone. The server is a production server, so I really can’t take that much of a performance hit without it affecting my ability to feed my family. I waited as long as I could before pulling the file. Sorry guys.

I saw this news story this morning.

If we fire anyone, it should be the News Reporter, not the Fire Chief. This story is only based off of a sensational headline. It’s ludicrous to think that we shouldn’t have our fire department studying nasty crashes, so that they can know what to do to save people from nasty crashes. Not everyone in the world has the luxury of being a prude

“I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use.”
- Galileo Galilei

What are four letters, that when given as an acronym, bring up scathing emotion in most everyone? RIAA! If it doesn’t bring up scathing emotions in you, check out their recent headlines to see what kind of organization it is. I know only a few companies that punish their customers [1], and get away with it [2]… and all but the RIAA is either a monopoly, or a public utility (monopolies in their own right).

[1] The judgment, now being appealed, was for $222,000 ($9,250 per song).
[2] Thomas is among 20,000 people the RIAA has sued, and was the first to go to trial.

The problem is that they’re holding on to an outdated business model. Gone are the days when one would sample a song on the radio, then purchase the record for personal use. Now there many ways to get introduced to an artist, and just as many ways to contribute financially to their success. Instead of adapting, they’re retaliating.

Enter iTunes Music Store. iTMS is the most popular platform for online, digital music sales. Songs for a buck. Since iTMS has entered the scene, the iTMS has sold over 3 billion songs. iTMS still makes some of the big players nervous, and has also been one of the leaders in DRM free music.

Hold on, I’m making a fast turn: I believe that Apple should become a record label.

Apple already has a distribution platform in iTunes and the iTMS. Apple also has production software in Apple Logic Studio, Apple Logic Express, and Apple Garage Band (free with new macs or part of Apple iLife). By becoming a record label, Apple becomes a one-stop-shop for recording music, labeling music, and distributing music.

This would be perfect for up-and-coming artists. For every kid that becomes a rock star; how many hundreds, or thousands, never got the chance? If Apple only took the runner-up, that the current record labels discarded, they would double a multibillion dollar market.

More importantly, how many very talented musicians are out there that don’t have a career in music? Tons! They’ve got jobs, families, responsibilities, mortgages, et-cetera, et-cetera, et-cetera. And when they want to “get away”, they go in the attic or basement or garage and play some music. I know several of them personally. They’re not going to duck out of their responsibilities, on the off-chance that they may strike it big. But if they could record/edit in Logic Studio, upload to their iTMS account, and get a percentage of anything that sells… I’m thinking that many of them would do just that!

What about quality content? If anyone can be a signed musician, then who will decide what music is good, and what music is crap? Duh! The consumers. Record Labels have no clue what quality music is anymore, they’re too busy suing their customers. However, there is a type of media around today, where anyone can post content, good or bad, and the consumers determine which is quality content, and which is crap. Podcasts! When someone goes to the Podcast section of the iTMS, it is flooded with high quality content. This person would have to do some digging to get to the crappy content. Who made such a system? Apple, of course.

Profit Central! We’re talking about a 100% profit, split between the artist and Apple. Currently Apple sends much of the $.99 per song back to the record label, and the label hands a small stipend back to the artist. Apple wouldn’t have to shell out for things like the other record labels. No need buying equipment, backup singers, studio time, busses, etc. These are the grass roots type. They’ve already invested in a Mac with Logic Studio and created several great songs and have a small fan base. Perhaps they started with a MySpace page and now they’re looking to sell a couple songs for profit to pay for their hobby. Anyway, there’s sure to be a swarm of Venture Capitalists standing by for those musicians that would prefer a large sum up front in return for lower profits from each song.

Now, by becoming a record label, Apple runs a high risk of alienating the other record labels that currently sell their music on iTMS. iTMS cannot live without music to sell. But those record labels would also lose their source of digital music distribution. Right now, the record labels are courting iTMS for the coveted spots on home pages and the New Music Tuesdays email. That could all change if Apple went from vendor to competitor.

On the legal front: Apple Inc. just changed their name from Apple Computer, and they recently came to an agreement with Apple Corp. This is no little thing, in and of itself. Apple Corp has been fighting Apple Inc. since the 80’s. Now, all of the sudden, in 2007, Apple Corp gives up all of it’s rights to Apple Inc. to have some of those rights “leased” back to Apple Corp [3]. This completely frees Apple Inc. up to be a record label.

Perhaps they’re already planning what I’m recommending. What do you all think?

“Never ask a man what computer he uses.
If it’s a Mac, he’ll tell you.
If it’s not, why embarrass him?”
- Tom Clancy

“If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.”
- Napoleon Hill

“Software cannot replace common sense”
-Timothy Humphrey

(is it wrong to quote yourself?!?)