July 30th, 2008 Al Kalter
Sharing a name with someone else is not a unique experience. Certainly, those with common names must get used to it. I have friends named Scott Smith and Gary Williams and Dennis White, and long ago, they must have realized that there were others in the world with the same name. Some people bring it on themselves, giving their offspring the same label that their parents gave to them. These “Jr.’s” and ‘II’s” and “III’s” no doubt had to deal with confused phone callers throughout their youth, and I often wonder why any such person would perpetuate that. Of course, no one took it to a further extreme than George Foreman. In my case, however, I just happen to share a name with someone who is, to some degree, famous.
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July 22nd, 2008 Al Kalter
It was 107 degrees outside yesterday evening. That’s what I was told by the electronic time and temperature sign in front of a local real estate office. Seems like it would be hard enough to sell houses these days without telling people that they are in an oven, but this particular sign seems to always read several degrees higher than reality. Maybe the wiring is overheating, or the surface is absorbing the heat. But that wouldn’t explain why their clock function is an hour ahead, would it? “Buy or sell your house with us, because we don’t know what time it is or how hot it is!” Or maybe what they’re saying is, “We’ll exaggerate anything to have your business.” I wonder.
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July 18th, 2008 Al Kalter
For many years, I was on the outside, looking in. Like several others in the APPX community, my first exposure to our products came more than 25 years ago, and I spent many years working as a reseller and providing software solutions to the customers of Speed II and APPX. But in 1999, my position and my perspective changed, when I came to work for APPX Software, Inc., and while I’m not directly involved in the R&D aspect of the business, I have found it interesting to view that process from inside the castle walls, and to gain an understanding of just what it takes to put out a major software release.
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July 14th, 2008 Al Kalter
When I was about 15, I was hooked on TV. Not uncommon, I know, but I could tell you exactly which shows were on at what time on each day of the week. I’ll grant you that those were the days of three networks and a total of about seven available stations, so this was no gigantic mental accomplishment. But still, life revolved around the TV schedule, until a year or two later, when I broke away, and pledged that I would never be a slave to TV again. For the most part, I’ve upheld that pledge ever since.
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July 9th, 2008 Al Kalter
Would my credibility suffer in admitting that I read the “Miss Manners” column when it appears every other day in our newspaper? Did I have any credibility to start with? It’s not exactly like reading the “Dear Abby” stuff, where I think one takes comfort in realizing that there are people who are making worse decisions and asking stupider questions than, in most cases, we would. Miss Manners expertly injects a bit of humor and a twinge of sarcasm while addressing etiquette-related issues that often seem trivial at best. Sometimes, though I find myself disagreeing with her response (in a civilized manner, of course). Let me provide an example.
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July 7th, 2008 Al Kalter
John McEnroe called it the best match he’s ever seen. Sports anchors everywhere today are leading with, or at least giving lots of airtime to, the Wimbledon final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. They’re calling it a classic, and, in fact, ESPN Classic is re-airing it today as an oxymoronic Instant Classic. Even as a non-fan of tennis, I found myself transfixed by this competition, as the momentum seemed to go back and forth, each player giving his best, yet still capable of making many unforced errors (a tennis term that is rather blunt, though accurate). I shared the sentiment of the Centre Court crowd, hoping that it would continue on, and recognizing that not only Nadal, but all who watched were indeed winners.
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July 1st, 2008 Al Kalter
I’ve started wondering why the phrase “Home Sweet Home” is so strongly reflected in sports. The actual physical benefits and rules advantages would appear to be minimal at best. And yet, home teams are usually favored, they win more than they lose, and betting lines include an uptick for the home team. Why should this be the case? What kind of boost does the home team really get, and couldn’t it be bottled somehow for the visitors? Read the rest of this entry »
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