Goobi's Soggy Shit

There it is. I previously had a glass table, about three and a half feet wide, thinking that would keep things ‘minimal’. I only later realised what a difference size plays in having a minimal workflow. Having empty pockets of air on the sides of my desk was of no use. Add to that the bars of the desk were always constraining my movements.

So I decided to fit it with a granite slab, wall to wall, instead. Luckily, out here in India marble and granite is oh holy cheap. The 8 foot wide-3 foot deep slab cost me just Rs. 2500—including transporting it home. I then painted my previously orange and blue walls to bright white, all by myself (wait, the paint was done before the slab came, but let’s not get into specifics).

I like how my desk is looking now. It’s massive, so I can do anything I want on it. It’s freedom. I know I won’t clutter it up with junk, since I don’t have any papers and whatnot. Besides, that’s what the metal trashcan at the bottom is for. The Audioengine speakers look fantastic on it. Magic Mouse works like magic on the surface. I only wish I had a wireless keyboard. And even if I keep things lying around on the desk (iPhone, camera, wallet), they’re all so spaced out it feels like they were meant to be there.

But what’s that ugly white thing in the middle, you might ask. That’s my four year old 2Ghz Core Duo iMac, the first of the Intels. And it’s not ugly; it’s beautiful. I know, I know, Apple has gone through two revisions since, but I have absolutely no reason to switch. It’s fast enough for everything, runs the latest and greatest of software, and I have absolutely no crashes or errors to deal with (I guess Apple had better quality control back then). For all intents and purposes, it looks and feels new.

The biggest change in my workspace though, is I now also have a PC on my desk. Where PC stands for Personal Cat.

The iPhone was released two years ago, and while it was considered revolutionary by any measure, it did garner a large number of iPhone haters. They laughed that the iPhone was missing out on copy-paste, a 10 year old technology MMS, and video recording. “Even my Nokia 1234 can do video recording!”. Apple of course continued selling millions of iPhones to those who really appreciated the iPhone for what it was.

After the announcement of the iPhone 3G S (where S stands for Speed) I took a look at the guided tour video. A few minutes into the video and it’s clear why Apple waited till they released the iPhone 3G S before enabling video recording. The video is crystal clear 30 frames per second video. I’ve seen mobile phones recording video, and they are nothing compared to the quality of the iPhone 3G S. I’ve even seen video recording on the current iPhone via Jailbreaking, and it has always been jerky and unsatisfactory. This is definitely not a software issue, as it requires a faster processor and better camera lens.

That’s not all. The hardware is only part of the story. The 3G S also edits video so you can trim it to just the amount you want. Now I’m not sure whether Nokias and Samsungs do this kind of on phone editing, but I’m sure as hell it can’t be as simple and effortless. What’s more, you can instantly upload it to YouTube or MobileMe. This kind of integration is definitely going to cut into the sales of handheld video recorders like the Flip.

My point is that Apple does things when the time is right. If they had focussed on having every feature that other phones had, they would never have been able to release the revolutionary phone they did two years ago. Development takes time, and dedicating resources in the right places is what has made the iPhone what it is: Awesome.

I’m trying hard not to buy the 3G S, but I fear I will succumb to it in the end.