Alex Leiphart

The Draw of Apple Stores

Despite my negative post about the Genius Bars in Apple Stores, I still love the Apple Store itself. It’s more than just a retail store — it’s a place where people come to hang out and socialize with others, a place where people come to work, and of course the best place to appreciate the design of Apple, both of their products and stores.

Apple Stores have such an amazing culture and environment that fascinates me. When you pass by an Apple Store, it’s hard to forgo paying a quick visit inside.

I’ve done a lot of thinking about this, and I’ve concluded that there isn’t just one thing that draws me to an Apple Store. It’s the combination between the wonderful spontanaity of visiting one, the possibility that I might see a few people I know and could converse with, and the diverse culture that seems to always lie within the store.

I think, above all, though, my favorite thing to see is how Apple is influencing our culture today, and how wide their target market is. I love seeing a little kid finding joy in a game on the iPod touch or an older lady that’s been a Mac user since 1984 waiting for help at a Genius Bar.

29. January 2012 · apple store

The ALEX Podcast: Sunday Afternoon

I had some extra time this Sunday afternoon, so I thought I would record a quick podcast. You can listen to it here.

In this episode I talked about the Nespresso Aeroccino and how to get started with coffee. I also talked about my favorite new music, including Mat Kearney’s new album, Young Love. Lastly, I mentioned my new camera, the Fujifilm Finepix X10, which I love.

22. January 2012 · podcast

The Change in Apple’s Genius Bar

Walking into an Apple Store Genius Bar appointment even two short years ago was an exciting and fun experience. I knew I wouldn’t have to wait more than five minutes to talk to a Genius, and I knew my problem would be fixed.

In between waiting for an update to install or a diagnosis to finish, I was able to make conversation with the Genius. We’d often talk about things that were of mutual interest to us, and as a customer I appreciated this personal interaction. It’s one of the many things that the Apple Store is known best for.

The past many visits to the Genius Bar unfortunately haven’t been this enjoyable. Half of the time when I walked into the store, I had to look around for a staff member in order to check-in for my appointment, for which I arrived five minutes early for. After checking in, it was at least another 15-20 minutes minimum after my scheduled appointment time until I was able to talk to a Genius.

Since Apple typically overbooks the Genius Bar, the Genius that was helping me was also helping two other customers. This made me feel rushed and pressured, and there was no time nor opportunity for even a quick personal chat with the Genius.

Today’s Genius Bar verses the Genius Bar of two years ago is one that is a lot less personal, and a whole lot more rushed and overbooked. I don’t like it, and nor does anyone else.

I understand that Apple is experiencing a major growth period right now, but that’s no excuse to let the service in their retail stores to dramatically decrease.

21. January 2012 · genius bar

I Love Pinterest

For a while, I had a bulletin cork board hung in my room where I would pin up interesting things I saw on magazines or websites. When people would visit my room, they’d instantly get a glimpse of what I was interested in. It was a neat way, I thought, for people to learn more about me. Over time, as more and more items were pinned to the board, I was able to see how my interests changed.

I would also look at the board reguarly to spark ideas and inspiration. My favorite environment to work in is one that’s filled with things that interest and inspire me. It helps inspire and motivate my work.

When I first heard about Pinterest, I dismissed as just another no-name social network to fill a small bit of space on the internet. A few days ago, I had heard enough positive talk about it that I decided to give Pinterest a chance, via an email invite since the service is still in invite-only beta.

The site instantly intrigued me after I signed up. I spent the next three hours browsing and using the site. It’s set up in a neat way, and a similar way to my bulletin board in which I could “pin” any item or post that I found interesting to my virtual “boards”. Each board is essesntially its own category or interest that you can pin items to. Any user can “re-pin” or like any other pin on the site.

I feel Pinterest is filling an empty void on the internet. There are plenty of sites out there where I can share what’s on my mind, there are plenty of sites where I can share and edit photos and videos, but there’s no good website to curate a collection of my interests and inspirations. Until Pinterest.

I really love Pinterest. It’s refreshing to use a social network that is unqiue and isn’t a complete copy of all the others. If you’d like to try out Pinterest, you’ll need an invite to do so. Luckily, I have a few invites I can give out.

If you’d like an invite, simply send an email to alex@alexleiphart.me or send me a reply on Twitter, @alexleiphart.

30. December 2011

A Guide to the Different Types of Coffee Drinks

Continuing my series about coffee on The Geeks Companion, I talk about the various kinds of coffee drinks and detail the differences between each one.

If you’re even the least bit interested in the vast world of coffee, I recommend you read this article. And if you’re the least bit geeky, you’ll love the site.

23. December 2011

The Personal Network

Path is truly the first “personal” network out there. Instead of sharing updates with anyone who wants to read them, Path is about capturing and sharing life’s moments with your closest friends and family.

Twitter and Facebook put a strong emphasis on quantity rather than quality. The number of followers or friends a user has is promintently displayed on their profile. It’s really just a place to show off.

Path is different.

The average follower on Twitter probably wouldn’t care that I just arrived home from a trip or am out eating at a restaurant my close friend recommended to me. The average friend on Path probably would be interested in that.

Path is about quality and real human interactions. It feels more personal and genuine. A user is limited to only 150 friends, which requires a little bit more thought about who you’ll add to your friend list. Naturally, you’ll be more inclined to friend people that are closer to you (i.e. close friends and family), and because of that, you’ll find yourself capturing and sharing more personal moments on Path.

I also like that I can post private moments that no one else can see. It’s a way to curate your own private journal. I don’t use the feature that often, but it’s nice when I want to jot down a quick thought or idea.

There are occassional times when I do want to share a moment with all my Facebook friends and/or Twitter followers. There’s an option for that, but you’ll notice that the share buttons are hidden and hard to find. They’re meant to be hidden to further the idea that Path is designed for more personal, closer conections and moments.

So many social networks have tried to create a sense of personality and real human interaction. Path is the only network that has succeeded in doing such.

If you’re still not convinced, Path’s promotional video does a great job at conveying what it’s all about.

21. December 2011 · social networks

Make Your Own Latte

I recently had the honor of writing a guest post on Devir Kahan’s The Geek’s Companion about how to make a great homemade latte.

The site is fairly new, but is packed full of interesting and insightful information for the everyday geek. Go over and check it out.

16. December 2011

Apple's Grand Central Store

If there’s one place I visit the next time I’m in New York, it’ll be the new Apple Store at Grand Central Station. I’m all for sleek, modern, and all-glass store fronts, but there’s something to be said about the vintage look of the Grand Central store.

Go check out the store page for Grand Central on Apple’s website. The pictures are great.

14. December 2011 · vintage

On Siri, Google, and the Lost Thought

Increasingly, artificial intelligence technology like Siri is become more prevalent in our world today. In many instances, it’s very helpful and convenient to have a “personal assistant” ready to answer your every question at any time. But when does artificial intelligence become too much? That’s a line that hasn’t really been defined yet.

Before Siri, Google, and other related technologies, to find an answer to a question, one must take time to search for the answer, and along the way learning new skills and information. There’s an intimate thought process that takes place when an answer has to be found without technology’s help, and that thought process is lost when technology like Google and Siri is used.

Today, in schools across the world, standards are being dummied-down because of the wealth of information available freely on the internet at our fingertips. Advanced problem solving skills aren’t being taught as much in schools anymore. But what happens when the internet suddenly ‘goes out’ for a day and we have to rely on ourselves to solve problems and answer questions?

Think of camping. No service or internet access. You seem to be able to solve every problem and answer every question you come across without the help of technology. It may take a little longer, but you feel as if you’ve accomplished something at the end, and during the entire process you learned additional skills and information.

Technology can be beneficial in many ways, but in some cases it will stunt abstract and creative thinking. It will prevent us from having the ability to solve problems on our own. Plain and simple, that isn’t good.

28. November 2011

The UP by Jawbone

I spend roughly eight to ten hours a day sitting down at a desk, which makes for little physical activity. It’s not that I don’t want to get out and exercise, it’s just that my time is occupied with other things during the day. At night, I’ll spend my hours “plugged-in” working, which results in a very late bedtime.

The former are all problems I admit to, and quite frankly are all problems I need to solve and take care of. While I’m certainly capable of solving these problems on my own, a little motivation from technology can help—and that’s where the UP comes in.

I’m all for improving my fitness, eating, and sleeping habits by wearing a simple wristband. Instead of having to log what I do, and input information, I can wear the UP and forget about it.

I also have the ability to view my reports and track my progress on my iPhone. Even though the software looks to be sub-par, it’s still very easy, quick, and convenient—which seems to be an obstacle for other similar competing programs and devices.

I don’t have the device in hand yet, but by the looks of the reviews I’ve read, I think it could potentially work really well. I’m very eager to get one.

UPDATE: Many have reported that their UP has become a brick, and in result Jawbone has ceased sales of the UP until all the problems are solved. Looks like I won’t be buying one.

14. November 2011

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