Disqus - Latest Comments for bsaren

Re: Learn to Play: David Bowie's "Life on Mars" on Piano

Ben Saren — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 17:07:58 -0000

Next up, a theory breakdown of Mike Garson's Aladdin Sane solo! :)

Re: Dropsource Raises $5.3M

Ben Saren — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:43:02 -0000

Thank you Sergio!

Re: Behind-the-Scenes of Parody Video Group Vooza, the Tech Startup World’s Spinal Tap

Ben Saren — Wed, 26 Oct 2016 14:07:28 -0000

Refreshing

Re: My Favorite iOS Apps for Taking Notes with iPad Pro and Apple Pencil

Ben Saren — Mon, 29 Aug 2016 11:35:16 -0000

I'm just using the smart keyboard cover. I have the Pencil holder attached to the top left corner, so the pencil sits atop the iPad and cover, along the entire top. I was calculated about it, so when I open/close the case, use the keyboard, etc., without the pencil being in the way. Some people don't care for the kb, but I find it to be just fine.

Re: My Favorite iOS Apps for Taking Notes with iPad Pro and Apple Pencil

Ben Saren — Tue, 23 Aug 2016 11:05:30 -0000

FWIW: I would recommend this pen/stylus holder on Amazon. I just got one a couple weeks ago, and attached it to my Smart Keyboard case, and it works great. I had the same concern. I expect more from Apple, frankly, when it comes to things like this, but I'm happy with my solution. Check it out: https://www.amazon.com/gp/p...

Re: My Favorite iOS Apps for Taking Notes with iPad Pro and Apple Pencil

Ben Saren — Thu, 04 Aug 2016 13:03:59 -0000

Michael, it's been a few months. Are you still taking notes with your Apple pencil and iPad? I'm very interested to know. Considering buying one. Thanks.

Re: Electro Swing is the Worst Genre of Music in the World, Ever

Ben Saren — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 10:02:10 -0000

Angus, did something traumatic happen to you as a child? Perhaps at the very same moment that The Brian Setzer Orchestra's Jump Jive An' Wail was playing? So if you were being tortured, and had a choice of what music to be tortured to, you'd pick, say, Creed or Nickelback over this? Oh come on Angus. Catchy headline, but the "worst genre in the world, ever?" Really? Come on. That would imply that you put post-grunge, Bro-Country. Ska, EDM (I don't mean to offend anyone - to each his own! I ain't judgin') ahead of Electro Swing. If you were forced to choose, you'd choose Bro-Country over Electro Swing? I mean, Electro Swing is definitely not for me, but it's pretty harmless and frankly I find it refreshing that this style of music actually involves, what do you call them - instruments. Yeah, instruments! Brass, string, percussion - real instruments. And if this is a style of music that gets people to put down their headphones, and get together and dance - hey in this day and age, I find that too to be refreshing. Well, again, to each his own.

Re: How the Local Web Is Helping Neighbors Connect and Build Community

Ben Saren — Fri, 20 Jun 2014 10:27:16 -0000

Mike, you're one of my favorite thinkers in all things Local. I still cling to your idea of pan-local.

Re: 3 Models That VCs Are Buying in Local Tech

Ben Saren — Thu, 05 Jun 2014 09:26:08 -0000

I really enjoyed this panel. A few key take-aways, for me, were:

1) There's a big opportunity around "personal CRM" - that is, "if Macy's knew as much about you as Amazon did, imagine how that would change your shopping experience in retail, and how that'd make Macy's even more successful/profitable" (e.g., "40% of amazons sales is derived from recommendations").

2) The question is not about getting or creating hyperlocal content, its about getting "high-quality hyperlocal content really cheaply." Patch was described as an example of expensive content with debatable quality.

3) Pure content plays are not interesting investments and those kinds of businesses are "extremely hard" unless its feeding some other engine, like an ad engine or providing some kind of intelligence.

Re: Billy Corgan Shares Snippet of Experimental Solo LP, 'AEGEA'

Ben Saren — Fri, 16 May 2014 16:07:33 -0000

I'm definitely a Billy Corgan fan but this is analogous to a Jackson Pollock painting: is it art? I suppose it is. Is it skillful? I don't think so. That said, it's definitely not for me. #nothating

Re: Getting Back the Band Together for NextView’s Investment in BookBub

Ben Saren — Wed, 07 May 2014 08:52:32 -0000

Congrats! So will there be a reunion tour? Love the history to this but more so I like the sounds of BookBub. Just signed up for it, can't wait to give it a go. Great name.

Re: How Location Analytics Will Transform Offline Experiences

Ben Saren — Thu, 13 Mar 2014 12:12:58 -0000

This is very exciting stuff. Location is a largely neglected opportunity, and it's refreshing to see that not only are there innovations starting to address the opportunity, but that there's a real market opportunity.

Re: Futurist Michio Kaku On What Science Fiction Understands That Bioethicists Don’t

Ben Saren — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 15:00:03 -0000

In some ways that's what The Singularity leads to, ultimately. It's pretty far-out stuff!

Re: Futurist Michio Kaku On What Science Fiction Understands That Bioethicists Don’t

Ben Saren — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 10:35:12 -0000

Right, I hear that. I wasn't implying that Kaku was claiming it as his own, not at all, rather that the article itself didn't give mention of Kurzweil really being the first to articulate this very idea.

Re: Futurist Michio Kaku On What Science Fiction Understands That Bioethicists Don’t

Ben Saren — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 09:44:25 -0000

Is this idea really attributable to Dr. Kaku, or is it attributable to Ray Kurzweil? I believe this is an essential part of Kurzweil's Singularity theory, which, in part, posits that once our consciousness is untethered from our physical selves that we can be anywhere and everywhere and are essentially only limited by the speed of light. I'm not trying to take anything away from Dr. Kaku, but I'm pretty sure this idea belongs to Kurzweil.

Re: Things We Loved This Month: September’s Smartest Stuff

Ben Saren — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 08:31:43 -0000

Wondering if the author, and the Gadget Lab Staff, use DACs when listening to music on their computers, with high quality headphones/speakers. Especially for lossless audio listening, etc. If so, what do you recommend?

Re: Ben Saren: Summer Gadget Spotlight

Ben Saren — Tue, 27 Aug 2013 13:12:23 -0000

Hi Virginia, thanks for your comment and my apologies for the tardy reply. That's a very revealing review, for sure. And while I'm certainly not a fan of toxins or insect killers, I suppose it's a reasonable trade-off to consider in light of what diseases insects carry and transmit. And in consideration of other methods of repelling (or in this case killing) insects, spraying toxic insect repellant on my skin and clothes surely can't be good for us, or children, or pets. I'd love to find an organic, harmless, humane method for repelling mosquitos, and no doubt smarter people than me are in laboratories researching exactly that, especially for the third-world, where deadly malaria is rampant. There are some very interesting replies to that review too, certainly a variety of opinions on the chemical in question, its apparent ubiquity, and the degree to which its harmful. Good of you to do your homework, and thank you for sharing. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns, I'm more than happy to help where I can.

Re: Ben Saren: Gadget Spotlight

Ben Saren — Tue, 27 Aug 2013 13:06:27 -0000

Haidar, so sorry for the late response. I hope my reply is still timely. I suspect that for some people the Paperwhite is small, but it's important to note that you can adjust the size of the text your reading. So even if it is physically small, that shouldn't impact the user experience too much. Another factor I like about it's small physical size is how light and portable it is. I can tuck it neatly into my carry-on luggage when I fly, or into my backpack when I'm biking around. If you end up buying one, I'd be interested in hearing what your experience is with it after a few weeks of usage. Please keep me posted. And don't hesitate to reach out again with any questions. Thanks for your comment.

Re: Angry Nerd: Edward Snowden Coverage Proves Media Has No Clue How Computers Work

Ben Saren — Thu, 15 Aug 2013 17:06:43 -0000

I can't stand the sound effects you hear computers make, even smartphones, in TV shoes and movies. Like, every little click, display, and action on a computer makes these clever little noises. And it's happening with smartphones now. Like on Dexter - he has an iPhone but his phone makes these sounds that iPhone's can't make. I guess he must have a really awesome app or something. It makes me nuts! Bleep. Blip. Blip. I WISH I could get those noises on my computer, I'd feel like a really productive and just all 'round awesome computer user.

Re: You Can Be Very Abrasive!

Ben Saren — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 09:14:18 -0000

Wow, thank you Peter, very kind and generous words.

Re: You Can Be Very Abrasive!

Ben Saren — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 18:56:45 -0000

Thank you, Drew.

Re: You Can Be Very Abrasive!

Ben Saren — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 08:36:27 -0000

Hey Aless! A trip to the Middle East would almost certainly be a detour. Ha! Sorry I couldn't resist the joke. All kidding aside that depends on a lot of things, but let's see what we can do in the fall (presumably when it's cooler there too). Let's take this to Facebook. Thanks for kind words cuz! :)

Re: The Hidden Monopoly That Is Secretly Ruining Retail

Ben Saren — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 11:45:01 -0000

Great article Seth. Love the perspective and vision. Wondering what your thoughts are on the infrastructure itself. The reason it's called "interchange" is literally because old-school processors would literally meet up at highway interchanges and exchange payment slips. It would take days, even weeks, for credit cards to be processed. I'm oversimplifying a bit but the point is made. Things have obviously changed, the infrastructure is made up of ones and zeros. But my question is, isn't there some pretty awesome value to the infrastructure? Isn't it kind of awesome that a merchant can get an auth back on a consumer's credit card in under 3 seconds? Isn't it also kind of awesome that a merchant can get a settlement and deposit into their bank account often 24 hours later? The infrastructure is like the national highway system, no? Sure, the tolls can seem unreasonable, but if you want to get from point-A to point-B efficiently and in a regulated and maintained environment (speed limits, safety requirements, maintenance, emergency services, policing, etc.) isn't the toll worth it? And to be clear, I'm not defending the card networks, nor their fees - only pointing out what the fundamental value is in the infrastructure. Would love your 2 cents. Or should we make that 2 basis points? :)

Re: Innovation Hub 1/19/13: New Year, New Gadgets

Ben Saren — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 11:42:54 -0000

Hi Robert, thanks for the great feedback, I'll share it with Kara. Glad to hear you're interested in the Canon EOS M. Let me know if I can answer any questions for you too.

Re: Product Support / XPAND YOUniversal Electronic 3D Eyewear / Panasonic VT50 (2012) not detecting YOUniversal

Ben Saren — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 20:56:41 -0000

Hi there, I own a pair of the YOUniversal glasses but I can't seem to get them to work with my brand new Panasonic VT50 (2012). Is there a known problem? Please advise. Also, I don't own a Windows computer so is there a way to update firmware with a Mac?

Please advise.

Thank you.