Wouldn't the opposite be just as bewildering then? There really is no difference between buying a Hermes dress and buying Dickies overalls, right? Each item makes a statement and each person is well aware of the statement it makes. Both can be bought for practical reasons. Both make comments on social placement. Both help people identify themselves. Both help find/identify suitable mates.
I too find it so hard to believe people spend so much on apparel, but that thought is no different than people finding it odd that I spend so little. Of course, some items are easy to liquidate and others are not.
I'd put it another way and say that generic quality brands merely inherit their social placement, whereas luxury brands actively seek it. The latter is a bandaid for a character flaw.
One of my friends has two kids - 4 and 7 - who live with their grandparents in Malaysia as they "can't afford schooling in Singapore." The truth is that it allows them to maintain their image with an LV shoe-rack and a Gucci bag cupboard. He recently changed his Whatsapp image to a photo of his new $1K Hermes belt - they see their children twice a year.
>There really is no difference between buying a Hermes dress and buying Dickies overalls, right?
There would be an aesthetic difference. But status symbols are about more than just aesthetics. It's not like you need to buy overpriced brands just to get things that look good. In fact, the existence of the fake goods this site is trying to weed out proves that.
This is my point. People have value systems and brands and styles can be a part of that. An inability to identify with someone buying overpriced goods does not make the judgement process any different that their inability to identify with the practicality of buying things at a fair price that look good.
But the judgement process is different. You can only tell which brand is better if you've heard of the brands. It's an external judgement, internalized. But you can make an aesthetic judgement even if you've been living under a rock.
I think under the circumstances it may actually put a smile on peoples faces. They are probably already in a good mood and the right mindset for something like this.
This was a relatively common tactic in Chicago a few years ago, done by restaurants and a band if I remember correctly. Heading to your car on your way to work in the morning and finding a fake ticket that ended up being, as you say, junk mail, really made people angry. I am pretty sure the city got involved people were so mad.
I have been wanting an app that does this for a VERY long time. Ever since reading Letters From a Stoic and The Happiness Hypothesis, my life's resolution has been to be happier than I was yesterday.
I, similar to codegeek, always envisioned something simpler. Just three emoticons:
:( :| :)
Numbers may be more accurate, more quantitative, or what have you, but I think this is about being honest with yourself and not allowing yourself off the hook, "well, at least today was an 8". No. I want every day to be a 10!
Personally, I think trying to account for every emotion or mood possible would defeat the goal.
I remember in 2000 or 2001 a company in Chicago negotiated with Ameritech to put hotspots on the top of telephone poles around the city for something like $3/mo. The deal ended up falling through... I think too many parties had to get involved that it just became a nightmare to deal with.
The video is too professional and very dry. Show the app being used with some really clever use cases, people having a good time passing their creations around. Sell the emotional side of it, not the utility.
One suggestion, your examples photos should have people in them. I am much more inclined to share a photo of a creature about to chomp off my girlfriends head than of saucers flying over Chicago. People mostly use their camera phones to take group photos and portraits, so I think it will help creatively dictate what images you will offer.
In the U.S. teachers are responsible for compiling 5-8 lesson plans a day. Multiply that number by the number of school days. Each lesson plan then needs to meet specific requirements that varies between state.
It goes without saying seasoned teachers will have a cache of lesson plans that they can, and do, pass along or sell. Why should one not be allowed to profit on the labor they already expended for an incredible service to other teachers?
This has already been "adopted widely", for decades, and the teacher-lesson-plan-community is an incredibly active and vibrant one. The countless lesson plan networks, online/offline, free/paid, are an invaluable service to teachers.
I find the negativity odd, that we as hackers, who create, build on, share, and sell our toolsets, would have a problem with this.
Yes. Investors believe Facebook's value perception will catch up with its reality, since they are currently out of whack. They believe the current imbalance is in their favor. It's the only way to make money investing.
I completely agree. The more competitors, the more fragmentation, the better for Dropbox.
Something primitive in me starts to kick in when this occurs. I start to question the trustworthiness, validity, and longevity of "other services", which in turn only bolsters who I know best, or even just first. Everything else becomes the proverbial Brand X.
People sign contracts in their daily lives and in a variety of situations. Particularly hackers who are likely to work on a contract basis.
The valuable lesson here is that one should not feel shy about calling attention to the contents of a contract nor suggesting a change.
I remember years ago I was looking for an apartment through an apartment finding service. That wanted me to sign a contract that stated I would would be "fined" if I were to rent ANY apartment outside their service. I quickly called attention to it and asked them to print out a new version. They agreed.
I too find it so hard to believe people spend so much on apparel, but that thought is no different than people finding it odd that I spend so little. Of course, some items are easy to liquidate and others are not.