#oh to live in a world without programmed failure in electronics

[theninjamouse]

My earbud case is absolutely refusing to charge, dead as a doornail with only a week left of camp to order a new pair and hope it gets here before I have to go on my cross country flight.

But perhaps most tragic of all, I'll have to very, VERY carefully perform surgery on my cute little Napstablook sticker

It's held on so well, I just know even if I manage to move it, it won't stick nearly as well

And this is why I get sticker anxiety

[lihimsidhe]

Full Review: https://youtu.be/nMBgmV3QMwY

Summary

Stories Untold is a sci fi psychological horror adventure game released in 2017 by the studio No Code Lt and published by Devolver Digital.(1) Adventure games are characterized by exploring, puzzle solving, and narrative interactions with game characters. (2) The ‘adventure’ label hails from the 1st known adventure game Colossal Cave Adventure developed during the 1970’s. (3). In Stories Untold the player will do mostly 3 things: enter text into a writing prompt and hope what they entered progresses the game forward (text adventure), click around the environment to find interactive elements and utilize these elements in a specific order (point and click), and do some very light exploration.

Stories Untold’s origins lay in Ludum Dare; an event where game developers around the world challenge themselves to make a game from scratch in just a few days aka a ‘game jam’. (4)  House Abandon was the product of such a game jam. (5)  House Abandon would prove to be so well received that it is the very spark that would grow to become Stories Untold. (6).  House Abandon became just one of the four stories featured in Stories Untold.

Each story has the player assume the role of an unidentified person using various electronic equipment ranging from locations that include an abandoned house, a laboratory, and a remote radio station in a blizzard. There is a fourth chapter but to explain its location and tasks can easily wade deep into spoiler territory.  

It’s very difficult to reveal if this game attempts to execute on a specific message or not without spoilers. So treading as carefully as I can I will say that yes there is a message to be found here. A tragic takeaway that can hit hard for some players who put in the work to leave no narrative stone unturned.

Analysis

Disclaimer: I’m not a fan of puzzle games, or puzzles in games. They too often devolve into ‘guess what the developer was thinking’. More on this in a bit.  Back to the regularly scheduled program:

The development studio behind Stories Untold, No Code Ltd, describes the game as the following:

“Four Stories. One Nightmare.

From the prototype 'The House Abandon' comes the critically acclaimed, and BAFTA winning, 'Stories Untold', the latest madness from No Code. Four short stories, tied together in a complex web of psychological-horror, intense visuals and genre-bending adventures.” How does this game execute on these selling points? Let’s address the last line first: genre-bending adventures. In my playthrough I walked in expecting a fairly basic adventure game with excellent presentation and left having experienced that same notion.  This is all to say that Stories Untold, as far as I can tell, is not bending any genres.

The text adventure portion of Stories Untold doesn’t make a noticeable departure from one of the earliest text entry experiences ELIZA; a program created in the 1970’s that simulates a psychologist by responding to a user’s text entries (7).  In fact after having played around with some ELIZA clones online (8) I’d say that Stories Untold actually underdelivers in this genre compared to ELIZA that was developed nearly fifty years ago. Point and click began with the game Enchanted Scepters in 1984 released on the Mac (9). In that game you do much the same as you do in Stories Untold: Moving your cursor to find an interactive point that hopefully drives the game forward. An activity unfavorably described as ‘pixel hunting’. 

While I do concede that Stories Untold executes well enough on its mechanics would I also concede it is genre bending?  Absolutely not.  Mechanically speaking it falls very strictly within its genre.

As for the intense visuals the game advertises it has? I’m strongly inclined to agree.  This game’s visuals are a love letter to the 80’s. It’s as if the game reached into the past and brought a portion of that era forward in time both temporally and visually. 

Stories Untold also executes on psychological-horror aspects as well. There were times I was genuinely frightened both via jump scares and/or the dense atmosphere the game draws the player into. This game evoked feelings of fear, mystery, and foreboding of what was behind the next event.

“It is up to the designer to provide the appropriate information to make the product understandable and usable. Most important is the provision of a good conceptual model that guides the user when things go wrong.” (10) -Don Norman

The promise of a text adventure sounds great on paper: enter some text and the game reacts to what one entered driving the player’s progress forward. Just the thought of that fills my mind with excitement at being able to utilize my conversational skills I’ve learned in life to interact with a game sounds incredible The thing is, and the reason I’m personally not a fan of puzzle games is that they almost always seem like playing a game of ‘guess what the developer was thinking’ instead of the player applying their common sense to solve a puzzle.

If for example in a text adventure game you are trying to walk around a house you simply typing ‘walk around the house’ may or may not work. Perhaps the developer perceived ‘walk into yard’ as walking around the house. For me this creates a schism where it stops being about me vs the game and instead becomes a battle of how my exact wording for doing something very simple differs in verbage in how the developer would write it. So instead of walking around the house and losing myself in the story I’m now trying to guess what the developer thinks are the right words to say.  What compounds this here is that the feedback is binary; either what I typed works or it doesn’t and I get the equivalent of an error message that doesn’t offer any guidance on exactly what the developer was thinking. This ‘guess what the developer was thinking’ issue wasn’t as pronounced in the point and click sections of the game. These were almost always tests on one’s observational skills and parsing over every little detail until the path forward reveals itself.  Some of the puzzles I was willing to endure and some… I just looked up a walkthrough to solve them so I could get back to enjoying the game’s incredible atmosphere. The crazy thing about Stories Untold is me as a player desperately trying to scrutinize every little detail to move forward shares a strong connection to the game’s narrative.  I really appreciate that despite my misgivings with this game’s puzzles.

As for the game’s narrative itself… I say I left the game mostly satisfied. Throughout the game the music, visuals, and gameplay really got my mind racing with the possibilities of the world that was spilling out before me. “Where could this story be leading?”, I excitedly pondered.  And sometimes I was even afraid the game would provide an answer.  Seeing how it was resolved was a bit underwhelming.  I won’t lie.  I went from a mind racing with possibilities to a flat, “Oh it’s that? Well that’s something I guess.”

If there was one thing I wish this game did differently it would have been to have focused entirely on the text entry mechanic presented in House Abandon. I said before I went and played with some ELIZA programs online and I loved that there was no failure state. The conversation just continued even if the code emulating a human would sometimes spout nonsense. I don’t expect anyone, let alone Stories Untold, to conjure up a fully realized artificial intelligence to amuse me for my 3 hour adventure game. But I can’t help but muse about a more realized text entry loop.

This game has 12 total achievements to earn. (11)  Since the game utilizes a level select system, there are no missable achievements.  Most achievements are earned by just progressing through the game.  The ones that aren’t awarded in this manner are obtained by light exploration and finding some collectibles. All in all very easy to 100% in one sitting.

Significance

Stories Untold has received several notable awards (12) including British Academy of Film and Television Arts Game of the Year in 2017 (13).

Steam Reviews has it sitting at ‘very positive’(1)  while Metacritic has it at a 7.0/10 user score. (14)

It has sold at least over 100,000 copies on Steam (15). If Steam sales remained roughly the same on the other platforms it was ported to (Nintendo Switch, Playstation, Xbox) that would imply at least a few hundred thousand people have decided to enter the world this game provides. While adventure games have drastically changed since the days of Colossal Cave Adventure with games like The Walking Dead and Until Dawn, text adventures have mostly fallen out of mainstream gaming discourse. For that reason the fact that Stories Untold managed to break through in the way it did favors it being a touchstone for many adventure and text adventure games going forward.

Recommendation

Ask yourself the following: Do you like arbitrary puzzles?  Do you mind some psychological horror in your entertainment?  Do you ever wish you could just play through chapters in your favorite book? If you answered yes to both these questions then this game was made for you.  

What if you’re like me and you can barely stand puzzles in games because they seem to evoke a ‘guess what the developer was thinking’ type of feeling? 

I would still recommend this game.  The reality of the game is that it can be completed in just a few hours.  When you get stuck, look up a guide, solve your roadblock, and get back to enjoying this game’s stellar atmosphere.  It’s really worth experiencing. Especially if you lived through and/or are a fan of the 80’s

If you’re completely puzzle adverse but still enjoy interactive narrative?  It might be worth looking up a playthrough or livestream.

Sources

1. Dev & Publisher: Stories Untold on Steam (steampowered.com)

2. Adventure Game Def: https://www.britannica.com/topic/electronic-adventure-game

3. colossal cave adventure: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossal_Cave_Adventure

4. ludum dare: https://ldjam.com

5. game jam: http://www.nocodestudio.com/development-updates/2016/9/5/the-house-abandon

6. dev interview: https://www.pcgamer.com/crafting-the-unique-genre-defying-horror-of-stories-untold/

7. ELIZA (origins): https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00146-018-0825-9

8. ELIZA (interactable): http://psych.fullerton.edu/mbirnbaum/psych101/eliza.htm

9. 1st point click game: https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2011/01/history-of-graphic-adventures/

10. Don Norman: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E257T6C/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_2BZA3S6D0KPFSKXFKHVM

11. Achievement List: Steam Community :: Stories Untold :: LihimSidhe

12. Various Awards: http://www.nocodestudio.com/nocodegames

13. BAFTA: https://www.bafta.org/media-centre/press-releases/british-academy-scotland-awards-2017-winners-announced

14. Metacritic: https://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/stories-untold

15. sales: http://www.nocodestudio.com/development-updates/2017/9/21/stories-untold-news-patch-indiecade-awards

[toldnews-blog]

New Post has been published on https://toldnews.com/technology/tech-were-using-from-bubble-memory-to-hot-spots-and-a-fly-rod/

Tech We’re Using: From Bubble Memory to Hot Spots and a Fly Rod

How do New York Times journalists use technology in their jobs and in their personal lives? David E. Sanger, a national security correspondent based in Washington, discussed the tech he’s using.

You previously were a bureau chief for The Times in Japan, one of your many roles for the newspaper. When you arrived in Tokyo in the late 1980s, what tech were you equipped with?

In retrospect, nothing very impressive. Our “portable” computers weighed about the same as an electric typewriter, had a tiny cathode-ray tube screen that showed a paragraph or two at most and stored stories on magnetic bubble memory, which in the 1980s was supposed to replace hard drives.

Needless to say, it was a technology whose time never arrived. Oh, and the computer had two black rubber cups on the top. You put the handset of a hard-line phone into them and dialed up a computer in New York to transmit at the astoundingly slow speed of 300 bits per second. Half the time we had to give up and call the dictation room, where someone would type out the story that you read to them.

When we gave up on bubble memory computers and moved to the first laptops, I sent a note to New York asking what to do with these dinosaurs. The answer I got back was: Your office looks out over Tokyo Bay. Figure it out.

So today the technology is lots faster, but perhaps not a lot more reliable. What’s the worst tech failure you’ve suffered?

Naturally, things die when deadlines are tightest. There was the time I was rushing off the back stairs of Air Force One in the Middle East with an open laptop, story half-written and late to the editing desk, and managed to drop my computer 20 feet on the tarmac. (Not good.) I’ve had modems die in Egypt, and the blue screen of death crawl across my laptop in India. Power supplies don’t like variable current — I’ve melted my share.

This has all made me focus intently on what NASA calls “mission-critical components.” If you can’t file your story — or record video, or connect up with “The Daily’’ — you might as well not be there.

So I travel with a laptop and a backup iPad with a keyboard, so there is always a way to write. I take two phones — and two booster battery packs. I carry an AT&T portable hot spot, and still I’ve had to fall back at times on the built-in Wi-Fi hot spot on my iPhone. Oh, and a Logitech camera that allows me to do TV hits over a Skype connection without using the built-in pinhole camera in the laptop.

So my backpack weighs plenty — and my wife and our sons think carrying it everywhere is faintly ridiculous. Until they run out of cellphone power.

You’d think that belt-and-suspenders approach would cover everything. It doesn’t. In Hanoi, Vietnam, this year for a summit meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong-un, we were, as my colleague Edward Wong put it, “comms cursed.”

Lots of things failed. It didn’t help that I was staying in the Metropole hotel, where the meeting was being held, and security personnel blanketed the lobby with a cellphone suppression technology that keeps terrorists from detonating bombs remotely. Turns out it also keeps reporters from updating their stories on the web.

You published your third book, “The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage and Fear in the Cyber Age,” last year. It’s a geopolitical look at how nations are using cyberweapons, and not just for espionage. Ever been a target?

I’m afraid that if you are in my line of work — writing about the intersection of technology, spying, cybersabotage and national power — you attract attention from intelligence services.

In Beijing in 2017 with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, I made the mistake of looking up something about the Tiananmen Square massacre from my hotel room, over a portable hot spot. Big mistake. The hot spot stopped working. I couldn’t revive it in Japan, or back at home. We later determined that Chinese intelligence had fried the firmware.

A few years ago I began seeing that big red banner over my email account that declared: “We have detected a state-sponsored attacker seeking to obtain your data.” That could be anyone: Russians who didn’t like our investigations into the 2016 presidential election and subsequent hacks; Chinese People’s Liberation Army officers who didn’t care for our work exposing Unit 61398, which stole intellectual property; North Koreans who didn’t like our coverage of the Sony hack, the Bangladeshi central bank cyberheist or the cyberattacks on their missiles.

And I’ve survived enough F.B.I. leak investigations to become mildly paranoid about our own government.

So what do you use to protect yourself?

There is no permanent technological solution to hacking, data manipulation and, soon, deep fakes — like climate change, this is a problem we have to manage. Ultimately, we will need a mix of technology, political agreements and retaliatory responses that establish that attacks are not cost-free.

That said, I’m a big fan of Google’s Advanced Protection program. It uses a combination of a key that fits in a USB slot (with a button that must be pressed) and a Bluetooth dongle, each registered to your computer or cellphone. Try to get access to someone’s accounts on a computer without that hardware present and you don’t get in.

If you were cyber king for a day, what mandates would you issue?

First, I’d ban the use of any voting machine that doesn’t rely on a hand-marked paper ballot, so there is something to count later. I’d require encryption for all personal information that you are asked turn over, including when I hand my passport to a hotel clerk. (Hear that, Marriott? It’s time.)

And I’d make it illegal to have Social Security numbers used as an identifier on any electronic document, site, app or password combination. It’s the one number in your life you simply cannot change, without extraordinary effort. It was never intended to be used as a secure identifier. So let’s not try.

What favorite cool technology do you always take with you?

Sanity-preservation devices that cut me off from the world, from editors and from the complaints of presidents, secretaries of state and national security officials. The three most vital: Bose noise-canceling headphones, a small shortwave radio and a seven-piece, four-weight fly rod that breaks down to fit in a tube under a foot long.

When the weather warms up, I carry the rod in that overloaded backpack along with a reel and a box of flies. No batteries required. I’ve been known to sneak out of hotels in early-morning hours to cast into rivers, harbors, ponds, you name it. I don’t even care if nothing’s biting — the casting is therapeutic.

Don’t tell the bosses, O.K.?

[tmntreasures]

We have to break up... (Donatello)

Prompt:

   It was an unfortunate circumstance, but it was simply inevitable. College was pricey in New York and takes a long time to complete, especially for what you wanted to go for. But there was a small glimmer of hope; there was a community college in your home town that cut the completion time in half and was still accredited.

   There was just one problem: your hometown was six states away.

   This unfortunately made the possibility of a long distance relationship an impossible option. Although you would be living with family, you felt like you had an obligation to contribute to the household and would be working during your summer and holiday breaks; and of course the turtles couldn't just hop on a plane to see you either, especially with your college being so far away. There wouldn't even be anytime for the two of you to communicate online either; there was the time zone difference to worry about, plus the turtle's patrols were always irregular and hard to schedule around, especially if they happened to run into a Foot patrol. Then there was the possibility of enemies finding out where you were. If they were to hack into one of your e-mails and find out where you were currently living, there would be no way the turtles could come save you. You would be putting yourself and your family in danger. There was no other option...

   You had to break up.

Donatello:

   His lean body was silhouetted against the illuminated screens. He seemed to be focused on three things at once, his hands flying across the multiple keyboards. At first you had thought the amount of electronics he had was a little much, but now you have come to realize each one served an important purpose. His ability to multitask and problem solve was amazing; that combined with his stubbornness made him a force to be reckoned with. It was just one of many things you admired and would hate about him soon.

   You were dreading telling him the bad news, knowing the genius mutant to try to find a way around the problem. It had to be done, however, and you stopped behind his chair.

   “Hey, Donnie?�� You asked a little tentatively. A part of you hoped he would tell you he was too busy. Perhaps he was in the middle of tracking some shady Foot activity and could not be disturbed?

   Donatello turned to look at you from around the seat, “Hey you!” His cheeks pushed his glasses up ever so slightly as he smiled. “I didn't even hear you come in,” He stood so he could get a better look at you, though his attention quickly returned to the blinking screens. “What's up? Did you wanna hang out?”

   “Well, I actually want to talk.” You could see him nod but he made no move to look at you.

   “Uh-huh. Okay, sure. What about?” His fingers flew across the keyboards expertly before he finally hit one button. The screens flickered off and he turned to face you. The smile on his face looked sadder than before and the realization hit you.

   He knew.

   An aggravated sigh escaped you. You hated it when he kept tabs on your internet activity. He claimed it was to make sure the Foot could not get into your computer, but you knew he also used it to snoop around. Though he used it for positive reasons most of the time, like what you would like more on your birthday; but there had been times where he crossed the line. Looking at your college search history definitely crossed one of those lines.

   “I think you might have an idea already,” You sighed and crossed your arms.

   His eyes widened before they shifted around the room. His shoulders shrugged slightly as his head nodded, showing admission of his guilt. “Sort of,” he motioned for you to come over as he kept speaking. “I mean, I get why you want to go there. It looks cheap, you'll finish in half the time if you went to a college around here. And did it look like you had family there?”

   You stopped and stared at his shell, surprised at how much he knew. “Well...yeah, actually,” the two of you went to your usual spot. He sat in a rusty lawn chair while you hopped on a ledge, making him only slightly shorter than you.

   “Well it sounds like you have it all figured out,” He breathed. You could see his green brow furrow and his brown eyes dart about. Thoughts were clearly being bounced around in that overactive brain of his. “You should go for it.” He finally looked up and smiled at you.

   For a moment you felt a sense of relief wash over you. But this was not why you came down to see him. There had been so many choices when you first started looking at colleges, but once you realized you would have to pay either expensive rent or be in debt for most of your life, the number of colleges you could apply to dwindled slowly. Eventually you found the best option was a community college out in Colorado. You would be gone for three years, but there was just one problem...

   “Donatello,” you started. Your fingers began to fidget nervously as the words got stuck in your throat. Why did he have to be so nice about all this? It would be so much easier if he was upset, right?

   He held his three-fingered hands up and shook them a little. “No, no. Don't worry about me. I know you'll probably want to spend time with your family on the holidays,” One of his hands rested on your knee comfortingly. “But I can wait for you to get off in the summer.”

   “That's the thing,” your own hand laid on top of his. “I'll be working over the summer. I'm not just gonna live with them without contributing something to the house.”

   His hand began to slowly squeeze your knee. The shock was apparent on his face and his lips twitched as he tried to think of a response. “Oh...well,” He caught sight of one of his many electronics and huffed proudly. “Well, that's still fine. Because we live in the technological phase of the twenty-first century!” There was a little smirk on his face; it was the same look he had whenever he figured out a definite solution to a problem. Or anytime he won in a game.

   “We'll just face-time, or text, or send e-mails if neither of us are available.” He lifted a finger the moment you tried to open your mouth to speak. “Time-zones don't matter when you have the internet!”

   A frown began to form on your face. Did he truly think those options never crossed your mind? They were the first ones you thought of. “Yeah, but...what if someone tracks our calls Donnie?” Now the real argument was about to begin. “Or hacks into my e-mail? What if they track me down that way?”

   There was a fleeting moment of fear in his eyes but his mouth was already in motion. “I'll just program a firewall for you.”

   “What if they get around it?” You started and frowned when he snorted in disbelief.

   “C'mon, you know the Foot aren't exactly the sharpest knives in the drawer. They have a hard time getting past the security system I made when I was ten.” He was confident in his work. Everything he created he put his full attention in to, knowing one wrong wire could mean the failure of a mission.

   There was no doubt in your mind he would create the best firewalls the world has ever seen, but the risk of someone finding out where you were was too great. The Foot Clan may not be smart but they had a lot of money.

   “Donnie, if they find out where I'm at it's not just me in danger,” your voice cracked. “My family could get hurt. If the Foot ever got a hold of my family I...I don't know if I could still keep your secret anymore.”

   Silence overcame him. He understood why you would give away the location of the lair if your family got involved. If he were in your position he would do the same, there was no doubt about it. But he was positive he could make something to hide your location. There was always a way.

   “Donnie.”

   The sound of your voice was what snapped the turtle out of his world. You sounded so stern, so serious; except your eyes told a different story. They glistened more as the light reflected off of the still-forming tears. The realization of what you were going to say slowly dawned on him.

   “Wait.” Donatello never realized just how hard his voice could sound until now. Unfortunately, it only made you want to speak faster.

   “I can't keep up a relationship with you when I go.”

   “No. N-no you can,” Sweat began to form on his face, making his glasses slide down. “I swear, the firewall will work. Trust me! I'll even update it every month!”

   Your heart twisted at how much he was trying. Your hand squeezed his wrist, hoping it would calm him down in some way. “I do trust you. It's the Foot that I'm afraid of.”

   He shook his head and looked away; but you had to know he was listening. You grabbed the side of his face with your free hand and turned his head so you could look him in the eye.

   “I'll be six states away, Donatello. I won't be able to go to you for help if something happens!”

   “Then call me if something does!” He raised his voice slightly. He just could not understand it. Programming was like breathing for him; there would be no way anyone would be able to find you. How were you having a hard time understanding that?

   You huffed at him and crossed your arms defiantly. This was the stubbornness you knew and admired sometimes; once he was set on being right it was hard to convince him otherwise without physical proof. “And if they kill me after they get what they want?”

   His shoulders shrugged and grumbled, “Well you could use that logic right now! Why are you suddenly so worried about it now?”

   “Because my family will get involved!” You shouted. The realization finally hit him but you kept going, making sure he knew the full extent of it. “If it was just me, then fine. I would gladly take the risk for you. But I'll be with my family there! If the Foot find them because of one mistake...!” You stopped to wipe the tears that had fallen on your cheeks. “It's not fair to them,” you whimpered, trying not to cry already.

   For now, he was done. You were clearly upset and he did not want to push you or himself any further today. There was just one thing he had to know.

   “So,” He leaned back in his chair, his hands rubbing the top of his head as his eyes stared at the ceiling. The muscles in his throat tightened but he had to force the question out. “Are we still gonna hang out? Before you go that is?”

   You stared at him, wishing he would look at you. “If that's okay with you,” you mumbled loud enough for him to hear.

   He nodded quickly and felt the salty sting of tears. “Yeah. I'd like that.”

   “Okay,” you managed to whisper as you stood. Short sentences meant he was done speaking; of course it would usually be when he was looking at a computer screen, his mind trying to decipher whatever equation he was transfixed on. You wiped the dust from your rear and shrugged at him, “I'll text you tomorrow then. I got a lot of packing to get started on.”

   His jaw clenched at the mention of moving. “Have fun,” he snapped a little as he stood up. Donatello did not even attempt to look at you as he walked back to his set-up. His fingers started to flick as they turned the large system on and you knew that was your cue to go.

   With heavy foot-steps you made your way out of the lair, hoping tomorrow would be a little better. –

   For the first couple of days, you and Donatello did some typical date nights. The two of you watched movies, a couple episodes of your favorite shows, and even explored the city at night for a bit. One day, you had a great idea for a date. Your parents were going out for the night which meant you could have the large mutant inside of your apartment. You were going to make this a damn near perfect date, or at least a good one.

   Spending time with Donatello these past couple of days has put you behind on your packing schedule. It's gotten bad enough that you were not sure if you would be able to spend anymore time with the ninja turtle. Tonight had to be a good night. For his sake.

   Donatello was shaking with excitement as he stood in front of your bedroom window. This would be the first time he would be able to roam freely throughout your place instead of being secluded to your bedroom. Not that he did not like your bedroom, but the rest of your home was something else entirely. Plus, the two of you were going to make pizza for dinner.

   Hand made pizza? Free roam of your apartment? You clearly had something planned tonight and he had a feeling he knew what.

   One green finger tapped on the window a little louder than he normally would have. For a moment there was nothing, but soon he heard your feet tapping on the floor as you approached. Your door squeaked open before you popped into sight. The smile on your face made him feel warm inside. He would miss seeing it in person, but after tonight he might not miss it as much.

   You let him in and were surprised by the kiss he gave you. The smile on his face made your heart flutter and you forgot for a second that this might be the last time you see him.

   “You gonna give me a tour?” He beamed.

   “Of course!” You grabbed his hand and lead him through the apartment. You watched as he stared at every picture on the wall, even pointing out pictures of yourself when you were a kid. You told him a couple of stories about your childhood and in turn he would tell a few from his. It was the first time in a while you two were able to open up without a tense air hovering around one of you.

   Eventually you made it to the kitchen where you washed your hands and got started. You were both making your own mini pizzas. Donatello favored the vegetarian toppings while you decorated yours with your favorite. Soon both circular pieces of food were put in the oven and the timer was set.

   All you had to do was wait now.

   “Oh yeah!” You snapped your fingers. “I almost forgot. I got you something!” The grin on your face made your cheeks hurt. You figured since you guys had been having a good couple of days, that you would get him something small.

   The tall turtle's eyes lit up when you handed him the little purple box. His cheeks burned a little at the nice gesture, “Aww, you didn't have to do that.” After he took the lid off he pulled out the little turtle-shaped USB light. A smile crossed his face and he gave you an amused look. “A turtle? Really?”

   You smiled back and shrugged. “Well yeah. So you don't forget your roots,” you teased. As your hip bumped into his you added, “And also so you won't forget me.”

   He slid the USB into one of his pockets and paused at what you said. For a moment he thought you were just being sentimental, but the tone of your voice filled him with doubt. “How could I forget you?” He chuckled, feeling the dread that seemed to weigh his stomach down.

   The confusion that spread across his face made you frown. “Well, three years is a long time, Donnie.”

   “But...” For once he found it hard to speak. A lump formed in his throat as he realized what this was. “So...we're not going to try long-distance?”

   You let out a sympathetic sigh and rubbed your forehead. “Donnie, no. I already told you, I can't put my family in danger like that.”

   The turtle began to slump and you could see the joy drain out of him. “I thought...I dunno,” He rubbed the top of his head quickly and grumbled. “I don't know. Being invited to your apartment, making pizza together. It was all really great so I thought you were gonna say we can give it a shot.” He shrugged and began listing off the statistical success of long-distance relationships. “Thirty-two and a half percent of college relationships are long distance.”

   “Donnie...” You pleaded but he kept going.

   “Forty percent of them break-up...” His speech started to slow down. “...and seventy percent of all failed long distance relationships are due to unplanned changes.” He did not stop until you touched his arm.

   Big brown eyes stared at you through the lenses of his glasses. They darted about, taking in every curve of your face, every strand of hair, every shade of color in your eyes. “This is the last time we get to hang out, isn't it?”

   “It might be,” You admitted. “I fell behind on my packing.”

   He made a loud sniffling noise and wiped at his snout. Of course this was it. Why else would you have gone through so much effort to make this special? Not that he did not appreciate the effort; it just was not what he was prepared for. He braced himself against the counter and stared at the ground. “Can I see you the day you leave?”

   “Of course you can,” You breathed; already your hand was on his wet cheek.    It was amazing to you, how this giant, mutant, turtle looked so defenseless. You had witnessed first hand his prowess on the battlefield; he was able to take on waves of enemies without breaking a sweat, yet here he was. Weakened and vulnerable in the middle of your kitchen. It broke your heart seeing him this way.

   First his hand was over yours, then it slowly grasped your forearm and began to tug you forward. You complied and found yourself pressed against his hard chest; those lean, yet massive, arms of his already wrapped around your shoulders. You buried your face into the crook of his neck as the two of you embraced one another.

   BZZZZZzzzttTTT!

    The piercing sound of the alarm made both of you jump and return to reality. You both stepped away from each other after Donatello turned off the buzzing machine.

   For the remainder of the night, you two were silent. -    Donatello waited for you in the alley behind your home. The early morning sun shone brightly in the sky, creating the perfect shadows for him to hide in.

   Not being able to see the past couple of days had given him plenty of time to think about the whole situation. He used the time to do more extensive research on the college you were enrolled in and investigated the crime rate in the neighborhood you would be living in. The college was fantastic for what it was, and the place you were staying at was in a low-crime area; it was indeed safer than most places in New York. It was during this research that he admitted defeat. It truly would be unfair to your family to risk their lives just for your relationship.

   After all, this would not be the first thing you would have to leave him behind for. You had a human life that required certain responsibilities out of you; responsibilities that he did not have to worry about or ever expect to think about. It would be selfish and unfair of him to ask you to stay for his sake. It was a hurtful conclusion, but if this meant you would have a good future then so be it. In the end, he only wanted you to be happy.

   When you finally emerged in the alley your good-byes were mutual. You hugged, you cried, you kissed, and said “I love you” for the last time.

   Donatello had waited for the sound of the truck driving away to disappear before he returned to the lair. The first thing he did was go to his large set-up and booted every tower and monitor there. The first thing he did was check your social media pages.

   Every single one mentioned how nervous you were about starting college and how you would miss your dearest friends in New York. He sighed longingly, knowing this would be the closest thing he would have to you. No matter what, he would not contact you, but he would still keep tabs.

   As a precaution, of course.

[slrlounge1]

My Experience with Apple as a Photographer and Creative Professional…

Disclaimer

Okay. Before I get started, let me say that I feel like the most unlucky person when it comes to electronics and major purchases. But, even with my bad luck, perhaps you will find this experience odd and worth sharing. What you are about to read is not doctored or manipulated to get more views, it’s simply my experience this past year with Apple products.

In the past, I respected and held Apple in high regard. However, I am by no means a “fanboy” of anything. I will use whatever it takes to get the job done, and I will tell you the pros and the cons of the tools I use. This is not a sponsored article, nor would Apple pay me to write this. They’d probably pay me not to. But that’s exactly why I feel it is important to share my experience using the new iMac Pro, MacBook Pro, and iPhone X. Here is a quick video that sums up my troubles:

Born Of PC

I was always a fan of Apple’s iPhone and iPad, but up until a year ago, I was by and large a PC user. Almost my entire world belonged in PC. It’s what I’d known since my teenage years, dividing my time between building my own computers, programming, and working at CompUSA (I really loved that job). I really loved PC for all the typical reasons. They are generally cheaper with plenty of DIY options for upgrades and more. Outside of that reason, I wasn’t particularly married to either side of the PC vs. Apple fence.

Over the years, I found myself having less and less time to build, modify and troubleshoot my own rigs. On top of that, Apple was consistently providing more reasons that made it possible to justify switching ecosystems. I loved their software to hardware integrations and the performance of Apple operating systems. A seamless experience between mobile and desktop seemed wonderful. On top of that, there was the App Store. However, what I appreciated most was the fact that their hardware/software systems were of the utmost quality and extremely reliable. At least, that was my perception.

Either way, less than a year ago (late 2017), I had enough motivation and justification to completely make the switch.

Swallowing The Bitter Cost Pill

When jumping into the Apple universe of products, we each have to accept the fact that we’re going to spend significantly more money than we would on other devices. For comparable performance results between a PC and an Apple, expect to pay 25-50% more on the Apple side of the spectrum. It’s no doubt a significant difference in price. However, we can accept this price difference more easily when we consider Apple’s sleek design, solid build quality, reliability, display quality, OS ecosystem, and more. That is until we can no longer expect those things from Apple. That’s where I stand today.

Let’s jump into the story.

Cupertino, We Have  A Problem

iPhone X

My business partner convinced me to jump into the new iPhone X upon release. Don’t get me wrong, Justin didn’t twist my arm. I’m always game for an upgrade. But, immediately upon receiving the new phone, I was frustrated by the fact that it felt as though Apple took a step backward in usability. The lack of a home button, the swiping left and right and from corners, all felt more difficult. Even getting the phone to flip on and recognize my face seemed more cumbersome than the simple home button design. Not to mention the new button layout leading to all sorts of wonderful screenshot mistakes. Still, I was game for learning the new design. However, even today, almost a year later, I still find the iPhone 7/8 to offer a better user experience.

Regardless, that was a small issue. Let’s get to the bigger one. Within roughly two weeks of using my new iPhone X, the smartphone started having issues. It would often freeze and crash. Very soon after, it completely died. I took it in for service and they said that it had a logic board failure. Then, they replaced the iPhone X without hassle. The Apple store is wonderful in that department. I also appreciated being able to take the phone into a store rather than having to mail it in for service. I made an appointment at the Genius Bar and they took care of it. Not a big deal.

Unfortunately, the issues haven’t stopped. The phone still crashes quite often. The OS is buggy, sometimes turning on and freezing for minutes. Now, with only a few months of use, my vibrate on/off toggle is also stuck.

Oh, by the way, my phone also fails to connect to the internet quite often. Despite having a full LTE signal (as you can see above), I can make calls, but I can’t send/receive data. T-Mobile and Apple do this amazing thing where they blame each other for the errors. T-Mobile says it’s the phone, Apple says it’s T-Mobile’s service. Odd, considering we have five iPhone Xs on the T-Mobile plan, and mine seems to be the only one having data issues. I’m siding with T-Mobile on this one.

No biggie, though; it’s just a phone, and AppleCare will take care of this latest issue. I just have to make the time to go get my third iPhone X back to the store. Something I’ve yet to do. Let’s move on.

MacBook Pro

In late 2017, I purchased a new MacBook Pro, which represents my first major step into the Apple ecosystem. This was the 2017 MacBook Pro and I purchased it nearly fully upgraded. It came equipped with a two-terabyte hard drive, as well as the fastest processor available at the time, 16 gigs of RAM, etc. I think the only additional option was a four-terabyte SSD. This required an amount of money that I wasn’t willing to pay.

Needless to say, this was an expensive piece of hardware. With Apple Care, I was looking to pay around $5,000 for this laptop, compared to $3,000-$4,000 for a comparable high-end PC. But, the price didn’t matter. I knew I was getting a reliable machine that I could use for live broadcasts, content creation and presentations with both CreativeLive and SLR Lounge. I expected a machine that could keep up with my need to edit images/video as I was preparing over 3,000 keynote slides over the next several months.

Unfortunately, a reliable machine is not what I received. Within a week of using the computer, I started noticing strange issues. For example, the mouse would regularly stutter; as I would move the trackpad, my mouse and keyboard would freeze temporarily as you can see in this video.

Later, depending on which USB-C ports were in use, the machine wouldn’t even start up which you can see here.

Shortly after, the laptop also started freezing and crashing on occasion. At the time, it was no more than a little odd considering it was a brand new machine and that it was an Apple. “Perhaps I just got a bad unit,” I thought to myself.

I took it to the Genius Bar to evaluate the situation. A day or two later, they said, “Your logic board is going bad and we need to replace it.” Just like before, when I took in my iPhone X, they replaced the logic board and it seemed like I had a new machine. Minus a day or so worth of time, I was back up and running. Sadly, within about week or two, it started having the same issues. This time, however, I started seeing other issues as well, like a graphics card failure. Here’s a video of the second machine.

Usually, when experiencing an issue with your computer, you can shut down the system or restart it. When I tried to do that here, the system went into a crazy, pixilated matrix view and it wouldn’t shut down properly.

Two different Apple MacBook Pros (2017 on the left, 2018 on the right), each with the same problem.

When I returned once more to the Genius Bar, they informed me that the logic board was failing again. They replaced the MacBook Pro, again. After having been replaced twice, it seemed to be operating pretty well until recently, when it started having the same issues once again as shown below.

I am on my third MacBook Pro, and it’s still not without problems. But, wait, you’ll find out that it gets even worse. For now, let’s move on to the iMac Pro.

iMac Pro

In January 2018, I made the final switch of upgrading my workstation to the iMac Pro. For the new workstation, I bought a specced out version of iMac Pro for roughly $7,000 with AppleCare. That represents a significant premium for what you’re actually getting. It has a beautiful screen and a beautiful design, but even then, you’d only spend $4,000-$5,000 on the PC side for the equivalent of $7,000 worth of Apple hardware. Again, I justified the premium because I wanted the quality and seamless experience Apple was known for.

In less than two weeks from the time I received the iMac Pro, I started experiencing the same exact stutter issues that I had with my MacBook Pro. Once again, I called into tech support. The cursor would freeze and stutter as you can see in the video above. Early on, it happened only upon startup. Within a few weeks, it started occurring during regular use of the computer as shown below.

While my MacBook Pro was in service, I had to make the iMac Pro work as it was my only machine. When I got my third MacBook Pro back, I finally reached out to Apple Support regarding the iMac Pro. This is where things went further south.

The Mysterious Disappearance Of Apple Support

I reached Apple Support fairly easily. I was quickly given an Apple Case Support person who was assigned to my case from beginning to end. She ran system analytics and other diagnostic before stating that she would need to send the information to the engineers for analysis. She told me they would be in touch within the next week. Meanwhile, the $7,000 iMac Pro sat on my desk as it would freeze/stutter too often to be used.

Keep in mind that during this time, I was using my MacBook Pro as my primary machine. I purchased external monitors just to be able to work more efficiently. Needing more screen real estate as I was creating content for the Complete Business Workshop, which we are currently releasing! (shameless plug).

At this point, taking the MacBook Pro or iMac Pro onto a production set was causing me severe anxiety. We always film with an in-studio audience, or via live online broadcasts. During each presentation and production event, I was constantly worried about the machines crashing or stuttering mid-presentation. My worries were justified when it did indeed happen. Oh, and by the way, the MacBook Pro we are currently editing this article on is also stuttering through nearly every word we type.

Back to the iMac Pro. After a week of waiting without any follow-up, I reached out to my caseworker. I could not get a hold of her, but I did leave a message and informed her about the status of my iMac Pro. She never responded, and I couldn’t get ahold of anyone who could help solve the issue. I soon found myself busy with productions for clients, Creative Live, and SLR Lounge. All of which took me out of the studio for a couple of weeks. When I got back, I still hadn’t heard back regarding the iMac Pro. In total, I sent four follow-up emails starting on March 23rd going to April 8th, and none of them had been responded to. The final email was sent to an escalated Case Manager to show them my experience (which we will discuss shortly).

Eventually, I just made an appointment with the Genius Bar and took the machine into the store. Apple of South Coast Plaza said that they needed a bit of time to run diagnostics, so I left it there. There was no loaner, despite the experience I had thus far. I was left without an office workstation while they attempted to fix the situation. During that time, it was back to using the MacBook Pro as a primary machine. Something that I am not a fan of considering it’s far more efficient to work from a more powerful desktop. A week later, I was informed that the issue was software related and that I’d have my computer back soon.

I relayed my doubts to them about the issue being software related. “If it’s just a software issue, why is it experiencing the same problems as my MacBook Pro?” I asked. I described to them the same stuttering, crashes, and graphics card failures, which mirrored what happened on the MacBook Pro when its logic board went out, not once, but twice.

Regardless, they repeated that it’s just a software issue and they told me I’d have my computer the next day. When the next day rolled around, they called to confirm that it was indeed a hardware issue, not a software issue. The said that the computer would soon be back with the engineers in Cupertino, and would take a few more days to complete. It took close to three weeks before I could get the iMac Pro back into my office, fixed and ready to go. And guess what? They had to replace the logic board and internal components once again.

Unfortunately, the story isn’t even over. The instant that I first turned the computer back on, I could see that my information had been wiped (this wasn’t the problem). The problem was that upon startup, it required an Apple ID set to an administrator Apple account that I wasn’t given the password to. Nobody from the store explained this. I soon found myself back on the phone again, calling Apple support, who then called the specific store at South Coast Plaza to provide me the password. Later that day, I was contacted and given that password to log in.  At that point, I had to log in, restore my account, then remove the administrative account manually. Typically, Apple support has always returned the machine ready to restore via Time Machine. 

Finally, A Breakthrough In Customer Service

After getting my computer setup, I reached out to customer service to let them know that I needed to talk to somebody about my overall experience with Apple. They sent me to a manager and I explained everything that’s happened. That’s when I also forwarded along the ghosted email correspondence. I also calmly shared with her my experience with my iPhone X, MacBook Pro and now iMac Pro.

In return, she responded with regret and asked, “Well, are there any products that you would like in the Apple store?” I initially declined the offer. I told her, “I kind of own what I want already. The only thing I don’t have is the HomePod, but not sure if I want that.” She then said, “How about I send you out a HomePod to thank you and compensate you for your troubles?” I explained the countless hours through the year that have been wasted on tech support. She responded back that sending me a HomePod was the best that could be done.

Honestly, I was grateful that they were willing to do even that. Few companies would do anything to acknowledge such an experience. So, that’s a small plus there. I knew there was nothing that could truly compensate me for my time or experience over the year. I accepted the HomePod, and just hoped this whole thing was done.

Apple HomePod

For those asking, “how was the HomePod.” Well, I don’t have much positive to report there. The speaker sounds great. It looks nice. But, beyond that, you shouldn’t be expecting much else. The HomePod is tricky to set up with the iMac Pro and once online, Siri can’t really do much. She can’t even play Spotify as she responds with ���I’m sorry, I can’t do that” and requests that you use iTunes instead. Unfortunately, Siri has a long way to catch up to Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant.

It was in that moment, listening to this glorified speaker that I began wondering, “Where has Apple gone in their quality and product development? Where is the Apple that we all once knew?”

If Only It Were Over

I so desperately wished this was the end of this article, and of my experience. Unfortunately, it’s not. If you think I want to write/post more, you are wrong.

My third MacBook Pro is now experiencing the same issues that lead up to each of the previous logic board failures as can be seen here.

In addition, the iMac Pro has begun stuttering, freezing and crashing just as it did prior to being replaced. Now, it’s simply a matter of time before each machine stops working entirely, and has to go back to be serviced again.

Now, you won’t believe this part. I had an opportunity to upgrade to the 2018 MacBook Pro. A family member, knowing the issues with my 2017 model agreed to purchase it from me since it’s still so new and has AppleCare. So I bought the 2018 MacBook Pro. Can you guess what’s happened? Yep, already started to see issues with the 2018 MacBook Pro as can be seen in this image. This was, by the way, the same shutdown screen that we previously showed side-by-side on the 2017 model above. I see this lovely image every time I shut down the laptop.

Do I feel stupid? Yes. I feel like the idiot who’s made the same mistake repeatedly while giving Apple the benefit of the doubt that they clearly don’t deserve. Since publishing this piece my business partner, Justin, has had yet ANOTHER logic board failure on this iPhone X… I can’t make this stuff up.

Conclusion

Apple, as I once knew it, no longer exists in my mind today. In my opinion, the company that we all looked at as the pinnacle of innovation and quality control, is quickly vanishing.

If Apple were reading this right now, I would say that at a point in time I very much understood why someone would pay the extra money to buy Apple products. I understood what came with the Apple brand and you could say at that time that “you get what you pay for.” But today, that understanding,  quality, reliability, and goodwill behind the Apple brand have been completely eroded away. At least, in my experience.

When Steve Jobs passed away, I had my doubts about whether the company would continue to do what it did so well. Year after year, we’ve seen product lines receive modest updates as Apple throws out marketing terms like “revolutionary” for a touch bar that is anything but. Premature and underdeveloped products are released to capitalize on Apple’s goodwill (the HomePod). In the least, I expected Apple to keep up with the quality and reliability of the products that they have come to be known for. Unfortunately, it seems that year after year, quality control has dwindled as well.

On top of this, Apple’s product lines have expanded and become more complex. This goes directly against Steve Jobs mission to always simplify and focus on their core products and customers. Don’t get me wrong, I do appreciate the Bluetooth AirPods. These were sold to me from a salesperson quoting a Steve Jobs line of “they just work.” Well, they work, most of the time. Sometimes I have to put them into the back into the base, reconnect, take them in and out of my ear, and after all of this… “they just work.” But, like all Apple products, when they work, I sure do love them.

Today, I buy AppleCare on every Apple Product I purchase. It’s not because I want it, it’s because I’m fearful that everything I’m going to buy is going to fail. This is a deceptive consumer practice. Apple has made each of us pay $300-$500 more for each product we buy because like me, other people are afraid that a day past their warranty they will fail, and they do! 

As it stands, I will use these products until they quit and AppleCare has expired. From there, unless Apple has changed, I have no reason to stick to a platform that has caused me so much more grief than the world of PC.

This has been my experience without bias or exaggeration. I will continue to always be open about my experiences with each of these companies and their products. I will also say that it’s not all negative. Beyond the hardware issues I’ve faced this year, I can honestly say that I love Apple’s ecosystem consisting of their OS, App Store, and software suite. In my mind, this is a huge reason to stay with the platform, if they can get everything else back on track. I genuinely hope that they are able to do so.

Discussion

My question to you all, is when does all the Apple goodwill end? Recently, Apple became the world’s first trillion-dollar company. Most of that accomplishment seems to be due to the ecosystem and world created by its past founders, engineers, and designers.

Today, Apple continues to reap profits on the efforts, much of which was put in over a decade prior. Meanwhile, in recent years it seems as their product, its quality, and overall service seem to have dwindled. Yet,  we continue to reward this and I wonder why? What are they doing today to keep you happy as a consumer? What is Apple doing right now, to justify spending time waiting in a line to give them your money, or buying every newly updated product?

I didn’t write this article to bash Apple as a company. I still love Apple, and I appreciate the vision that Steve Jobs had for the brand. I wrote this article to hopefully create a dialogue that can lead to positive change within a company many of us creatives love. I firmly believe that Apple products and hardware used to be far more reliable than it is today. It’s something that I am hoping will change.

This is where I’d love to hear your experiences. Negative and positive. Let’s dismiss the inner fanboy/fangirl and have some real talk. As always, please keep it civil.

This was my experience, how about the rest of you?

  from SLR Lounge https://www.slrlounge.com/my-experience-with-apple-as-a-photographer-and-creative-professional/ via IFTTT

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Digital Marketing News: Pinterest PPC, Facebook Sets

Need help understanding Machine Learning? We now reside in an age where machines may teach themselves without human intervention. Sound scary? It ought to. Scary astonishing that is. From advertisements to interstellar space travel programs for machine learning expand. Find out how it will change the entire world, and what Machine Learning is, how it functions.     Infographic.

Google’s New AI Is Much Better at Growing AI compared to Company’s Engineers.   Google CEO Sundar Pichai says that his group has achieved “AI beginning” together with AutoML. AutoML is an artificial intelligence that could help out with the introduction of different AIs. By automating a number of the procedure, machine could be made by AutoML.   Futurism

Survey: 37 percent of internet retailers began vacation preparations earlier this season. Just how early you ask? 1 to 4 months earlier than 2016 according to a poll by BigCommerce. Retailers are more optimistic along with early. 88% anticipate a rise in vacation revenue.     Advertising Land

Oh pleasure (sarcasm) Facebook is bringing paywalls to Instant Articles into your cell feed.   It is reasonable that by simply introducing subscriptions Facebook would like to help publishers since more individuals than ever before are receiving their news from media. And it is beginning on cellular telephone.     The following Web

Digital Video Marketing Is Still A 135 Billion Industry In The U.S. Alone, Study Finds. Video recording, production, hosting, distribution, staffing and analytics is big business! In contrast, advertisers are expected to spend $83 billion on electronic advertisements and $71 billion on TV commercials (a total of $154 billion) in the U.S. this season.   Forbes

Firms are now able to register to add booking buttons for their Google local outcomes.  Google has finally added a feature to allow you easily add a ‘book online’ button into your local business on Google Maps or Google Search. Some companies might not even need a site.   Lookup Engine Land

Breeze is turning into programmatic advertisements for Snapchat shows.   Advertisers may make programmatic purchases on Snap Ads — 10-second vertical video units — round the program’s public accounts, Snapchat-curated live tales and Discover publisher stations and Snapchat shows.   Digiday

As Amazon Prime Organizing 90 Million, Online Holiday Spending To Surpass Brick-And-Mortar.  Deloitte predicts folks will do 51% of the holiday spending online, making it the first time it might surpass in-store spending. One of high-income families that number jumps to 57 percent. Headed into the mall anyone? Pass.  MediaPost

Facebook formally rolls out its discovery-focused ‘Research Feed’. The Explore Feed is currently fully rolled out on cellular and beginning to show for desktop users.   In case you didn’t know, the Explore Feed is to help Facebook users discover more information beyond Pages you already follow and articles from friends, across the networking that is social.     TechCrunch

Google Attribution Rolls From Thousands Of Marketers.  Google is rolling out an attribution model it introduced in May, hammering the stage together with machine learning. Google Attribution is always to help marketers analyze how funnel clicks and interactions impact conversions . MediaPost

Facebook Is Testing a Pinterest-Like Feature Called Sets.  Oh look, Facebook has taken a break from imitating Snapchat and LinkedIn to imitate Pinterest. Facebook is currently Sets, groups that include videos, photographs, status updates and links, and that may be shared with pals that are particular or all friends.   AdWeek

Snapchat dangles referral visitors with link sharing from different apps. That is such foreign exchange for me, however, go ahead, read on anyway: You can now discuss links from other apps via the iOS talk sheet, allowing you to send a personal message with the URL to one or several folks. And rather than just turning location discussing on or off forever, you now can choose to hide in “Ghost Mode” for 3 or more 24 hours.   TechCrunch

Pinterest moves into paid search: What you will need to know.    Pinterest Advertising Manager is available to all companies who have started an account and uploaded at least one . It’s time to fire up those experimental paid search budgets.     Search Engine Watch

The B2B CMO’s Growth Strategy Turns Audience-Centric Over Product-Centric. B2B CMOs across the globe are focusing on new buyers and new markets on new offerings in regards to their expansion strategies, a new study from SiriusDecisions has discovered. A improved client experience is regarded to have the biggest influence on growth strategies in the next 2 decades.     MarketingCharts

This morning I will be linking a sold out crowd   to observe the 100th Social Media Breakfast Minneapolis St. Paul (SMBMSP Number100) event. The plan is a panel with Greg Swan and Jennifer Kane moderated by Mykl Roventine. We are going to be speaking about what has changed since the event began in 2008 (founded by Rick Mahn) and what classes we’ve learned as well as thoughts looking forward. I have a feeling it’ll be a group of stories about failures, successes along with the universe that social media is becoming.   If you’re reading this post early on Friday, you can follow the event from 8-10am CT on Twitter with the hashtag #smbmsp100

What is the top digital marketing news story for you this week?

Make sure you remain tuned until the next week when we’ll be discussing most of marketing that is new news reports. Check out the video summary that is Entire on YouTube with Josh and Tiffani.

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