Former Apple SVP Ron Johnson Recounts Early Days of Apple Retail Stores [Mac Blog]
Former Apple retail chief Ron Johnson spoke earlier this year at his alma mater Stanford University and talked about the early years of Apple retail stores (via ifoAppleStore). Johnson oversaw the development of the Apple Store and is credited with creating the company’s distinctive retail experience.
After joining Apple in 2000, Johnson was given complete control over the company’s retail project by then-CEO Steve Jobs. The first Apple Stores featured high-speed Internet connections to attract new customers and were originally designed to create a sense of community among Apple users, not necessarily sell products.
“It was a pure play,” Johnson said of the store design. “There was really no compromise on any of the intuition. And I think that’s how the Apple stores connected (with visitors).” Even today, he said, people go to the stores, “just to go. They don’t go to buy. There are so many reasons to come.”
Johnson joined Apple as Senior Vice President of Retail Operations in January 2000 and remained in that role until 2011, when he departed for a CEO position at J.C. Penney. Under his leadership, Apple’s retail operations exploded, generating over a $1 billion in annual sales within two years and eventually leading all U.S. retailers in terms of monetary sales per square foot.
Johnson was succeeded by Dixons’ John Browett, who served as Apple’s retail chief for a short seven months. Apple’s retail operations, which now include 425 retail stores in 16 countries worldwide, are now under the leadership of former Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts, who joined Apple earlier this year. Ahrendts is best known for her transformation of Burberry from a struggling retailer into a global fashion powerhouse.
Prominent climate change skeptic claims he’s been ‘banned’ by the BBC
A prominent climate change skeptic in the UK, Nigel Lawson, believes that the BBC has blacklisted him under a “quasi-Stalinist” policy of censorship. In an editorial written for the Daily Mail, the one-time chancellor claims that the Corporation is in cahoots with the Green Party, to the point where its editorial impartiality has been compromised. All of this stems from a radio debate in February between Lawson and Sir Brian Hoskins — a veteran scientist whose views on the threat of climate change are in line with the rest of the scientific community. After the broadcast, the BBC received numerous complaints saying that a non-scientist like Lawson had no place taking part in a discussion concerning climate change. Subsequently, the Corporation’s leaders have agreed that it’s no longer worth giving equal prominence to dissenting voices given the overwhelming evidence in favor of climate change. Still, if you’d like to listen to the original radio debate for yourself, we’ve embedded it after the break.
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Filed under: Science
Via: The Telegraph
Source: BBC Trust (.PDF), Daily Mail
See how digital effects put the spectacle into ‘Game of Thrones’
Game of Thrones has a healthy $6 million-per-episode budget, but that’s still nothing compared to the average Michael Bay blockbuster — especially for the special effects needed to fill in the magic (and gore). That’s where the creativity of effects house Mackevision comes in. If an epic shot can’t be done “practically” in camera, characters are filmed against a green screen or threadbare set. Then, elements like terrain, castles, crowds of soldiers and even CG water are added. As you can see in the video below, with a touch of artful compositing, lighting, shading and color-timing, the result is a seamless final shot. If there’s any money left over, they may even add a dragon or three.
Filed under: Misc, Home Entertainment, HD
Via: Pocket-lint
Source: Mackevision (Vimeo)
Microsoft’s ‘Project Spark’ game creator headed for October release
Microsoft’s Project Spark has already been available to early testers for the better part of four months, but gamers have been kept in the dark over when it’ll finally go on general sale. Until today. The company has announced that the retail version of its game-creation title will hit Xbox One and PC in October as part of a phased worldwide rollout. It’ll be available first in the Americas on October 7th, then make its way to Asia-Pacific countries on October 9th before hitting Europe on October 10th. Microsoft is pricing the Project Spark Starter Pack for Xbox One at $39.99/£29.99 and will include packs full of sounds, effects, animations, props and “advanced creator features” that will help you create a virtual world that you (and hopefully others) can be proud of. It’ll also feature the first sci-fi pack Galaxies: First Contact, Champions Quest: Void Storm, special characters and the first episode of what the developers are calling an “epic campaign adventure.” The good news is that there’s plenty of time enjoy the open beta , check the source links below to get involved (and earn achievements in the process).
Filed under: Gaming, HD, Microsoft
Source: Project Spark (Xbox One), (Windows 8.1)
Sony’s Xperia Z1 Compact finally comes to the US
When we reviewed Sony’s Xperia Z1 Compact, we concluded that it’s exactly what a miniature flagship should be: big features in a small package. But despite the handset’s many merits, Sony hasn’t so far managed to offer it through any carriers in the US. Instead, starting today, it’s selling the Z1 Compact direct from its own webiste, for a price of $550. The device is unlocked, of course, so at least you get the choice of whichever GSM carrier takes your fancy — although its LTE bands don’t make it especially friendly with AT&T.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony
Via: Android and Me
Source: Sony
Vodafone Germany memo seems to confirm Sony Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact by end of September
The disparity between the announcement date and actual release date of smartphones can sometimes be frustrating, but it’s always welcome when devices are available soon after their official announcements. It appears this might be the case for the Sony Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact which Vodafone Germany has suggested in an internal memo to its employees. The memo describes an initiative that challenges employees to sell phones and accrue points for each phone sold, and the initiative runs from July 1st to September 30th; this presumably implies that the Sony Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact are going to be available before the end of September and after their announcement at IFA 2014.
There’s not much else to go on besides that information, but it’s interesting that selling Samsung phones only gives 1 point, presumably due to the higher demand of their devices, whereas the memo says that the Sony Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact are worth 1.5 points each. Here’s to hoping that the Sony Xperia Z3, and particularly the Z3 Compact, are available in more places by the end of September than the hardly available Z1 Compact.
What do you think about the Sony Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact being available so soon after the announcement? Are you excited about these devices? Let us know your opinion.
Source: Caschys Blog via Xperia Blog
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UK joins the US in banning uncharged devices from flights
A few days ago, the US Government announced that all airline passengers with personal electronics would be required to turn their gadgets on in order to demonstrate that they work. Now, the Department for Transport has announced that those same regulations will also be applied to flights in and out of the UK. According to The Telegraph, you’re more likely to be asked to turn on your smartphone on flights to the Middle East and Asia than others, but all travelers are advised to make sure their gadgets are fully charged before arriving at the airport. On the upside, if your device has suddenly lost its charge, you’ll be able to leave your hardware with British Airways staff for safe keeping until you return.
[Image credit: John Moore/Getty Images]
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Transportation
Via: The Telegraph
Source: Department for Transport
Google, Microsoft and Instagram rush to fix Flash flaw that could steal your data
Yet another critical security flaw has been found for Adobe’s notoriously sieve-like Flash plug-in, this time by Google Engineer Michele Spagnuolo. His exploit tool, called “Rosetta Flash” is just a proof of concept, but could allow hackers to steal your cookies and other data using malicious Flash .SWF files. The exploit is well known in the security community, but had been left unfixed until now as nobody had found a way to harness it for evil. So how does this affect you? Many companies like Twitter, Microsoft, Google and Instagram have already patched their sites, but beware of others that may still be vulnerable. Adobe now has a fix, and if you use Chrome or Internet Explorer 10 or 11, your browser should automatically update soon with the latest versions of Flash, 14.0.0.145 (check your version here). However, if you have a browser like Firefox, you may want to grab the latest Flash version from Adobe directly (watch out for unwanted add-ons with pre-checked boxes). Finally, if you use apps like Tweetdeck or Pandora, you’ll need to update Adobe AIR — that should happen automatically, but the latest version is 14.0.0.137 for Windows, Mac and Android.
Filed under: Internet
Via: Krebson Security
Source: Michele Spagnuolo, Adobe
Methane-powered rocket wants to conquer space on the cheap
It seems like most things come in threes: celebrity deaths, game console makers and, well, apparently privatized space-faring companies too. On that note, FireFly Space Systems (which includes former SpaceX and Virgin Galactic employees) has recently shown off its first rocket, appropriately dubbed “Alpha,” and the outfit claims it’s a bit different from the likes of what we’ve seen before. FireFly says that its vessel uses an engine that’s more aerodynamic and thus more efficient than a traditional rocket’s bell-shaped blasters. Another differentiator is the type of fuel is uses — methane. This serves a few purposes. Namely, it reduces weight because the fuel itself is used to pressurize the engine as opposed to the typical helium, and it apparently simplifies design as well. Moreover, methane is relatively inexpensive; it’s the same stuff used to heat houses after all. According to NewScientist, the goal is to provide a low-cost platform for launching clusters of small satellites used for, among other things, providing broadband internet.
FireFly says that getting one of its low-Earth-orbit rockets into the atmosphere will cost “around $8 or $9 million.” A bit over the SpaceX Falcon 1′s $6.7 million to be sure, but hopefully the Alpha won’t take four tries to reach orbit its first time.
FIR Presentation 14 0703 from PJ King on Vimeo.
Filed under: Transportation, Alt
Via: NewScientist
Source: Firefly Space Systems (1), (2), Vimeo
Nintendo’s 3DS gets its first streaming game this September
We’ve seen quite a bit of game streaming on PlayStation-branded products, but it looks like Sony will gain some possibly unexpected competition. In Japan, at least. When Nintendo 3DS owners in the region play Dragon Quest X Online (DQXO) come its September 4th launch, they won’t be popping a cartridge into the system. No, like the massively multiplayer online (MMO) game’s mobile version, DQXO on Nintendo’s handheld will use streaming tech along the lines of PlayStation Now or OnLive instead of playing from a local cart or internal storage. As Tiny Cartridge reports, you won’t be able to play in 3D as a result, and you’ll constantly need a WiFi connection to access the game — considering that this is an MMO, that should be expected anyway. However, if you’d rather lay down your cash for a physical bit of DQ gear instead, well, there’s always this Metal Slime smartphone.
Via: Tiny Cartridge
Source: 4Gamer (Japanese)
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