Macenstein’s “Mac Chick of the Month” (February 2007): Teemaree
Posted by Dr. Macenstein
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| “As for my iPod, I listen to it every day. I even got the cabling in my car hooked up to plug it directly into my system while I’m driving. “ |
To see more of Teemaree, check out the following links!
www.teemaree.com (official website)
www.dynamitejive.com
www.myspace.com/teemaree
Do you think you or someone you know would make a great “Mac Chick of the Month”? Send us an e-mail, or check out our application guide here or on our MySpace page for details.
Due to popular demand, we are proud to offer a Mac Chick of the Month desktop wallpaper to enhance the beauty of YOUR Mac.
Click
to download.
Awww, aren’t they cute! Apple releases colorful iPod Shuffles
Posted by Dr. Macenstein
Apple today released some colorful updates to their iPod Shuffle line. In addition to Apple’s standard silver, there are now pink, orange, green, and blue models available for your Valentine’s Day shopping pleasure. The updates seem to be solely cosmetic though, as the capacity still tops out at 1GB, and the feature set and price seem identical to last year’s models (well, they DO have those swell new earbuds). The new shuffles are priced at $79, and available now from the Apple Store.
Free on iTunes: Vortex Demo (first free iPod game)
Posted by Helper Monkey
Apple today made history by adding an iPod game to the list of free downloads from the iTunes store. The game, “Vortex“, is being offered in “demo” mode for free. The Demo contains the first 2 fully playable levels of the 360° brick-bashing game (think Breakout, developed by Steve Wozniak, but rounder).
The 22MB download requires a 5th generation iPod and software update 1.2 or later (we still have no idea why you can’t play these games in iTunes).You can download the Vortex Demo here.
USATODAY: Verizon passed on the iPhone
Posted by Dr. Macenstein
When the iPhone was announced earlier this month, many Verizon customers complained at being left out in the cold. Apple’s exclusive deal with Cingular meant Verizon (and other companies) would be unable to offer the iPhone for at least 2 years, a fact that has many of their customers contemplating jumping ship.
However, according to USATODAY, Verizon was actually approached before Cingular, but turned Apple down after hearing the long list of demands and relatively few benefits that Apple offered in the deal.
While Cingular and Apple are not discussing the terms of their deal, Verizon’s VP Jim Gerace says Apple wanted not only total control over the distribution, sales, and service of the iPhone, but also a cut of monthly subscription fees. Verizon felt a deal with Apple would alienate a large portion of its other retail partners, such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy and other smaller retailers who offer Verizon Wireless phones and plans.
Where are they now? Interview with “Switcher Girl” Ellen Feiss
“I’m Ellen Feiss and I’m a student”. Back in the Spring of 2002, those words launched one of Apple’s more memorable, if not effective, ad campaigns. Known as the “Switcher” ads, the spots featured real people telling real stories of being fed up with the hassles of PC ownership, and their subsequent relief upon switching to the Mac. By far the most popular of the ads from this series starred Ellen Feiss, a 14-year-old girl who ended up in the commercial totally by chance. While other “switchers” quickly fell into obscurity, Ellen grew into an overnight internet cult hero of sorts, her fame spurred largely by the rumor she was high during the filming of her spot. Sites selling merchandise with her image sprung up on CafePress shops across the web, and fan sites declared their undying love for her.
Ellen recently started college, but not before taking a year off to star in an independent foreign film entitled Bed and Breakfast. We caught up with Ellen to see what she thinks of those Switcher Ads five years later, how she feels about acting, internet fame, and what she thinks about her image being on a Frisbee.
Macenstein: Hi Ellen. Thanks for taking the time to meet with us. The last time most of us saw you, you were what, 14? What have you been up to?
Ellen: Well. I finished high school, got accepted to college and then got a call from the Bed and Breakfast director. I decided to go to France in August and put college off. Two free tickets to Europe later I would say it was worth it for me, I’m not sure how they feel about it.
Macenstein: Why’s that? Do you think the movie didn’t turn out well?
Ellen: I think it’s ridiculous. It doesn’t really make sense. But it was really fun to make and the other actors are, in reality, very talented. The crew was also incredibly impressive and on to better things. I think it was just a fun silly project and perhaps somewhat of a joke for everyone.
Macenstein: Where can someone see it? There’s very little info on IMDB.com other than a 2006 release date.
Ellen: Contact Screenrunner, the production office if you want to buy a copy.
Macenstein: Take us back to that Switcher ad shoot. I understand you were not actually supposed to even be in the ads, you were actually just a friend of the Director’s (Errol Morris) son and just happened to stop by the set?
Ellen: That’s true. I was friends with his son Hamilton in high school and a few friends and I went with him to watch him make his ad. The two other girls I was with that day also made ads. We were asked to when we got there. What I was wearing in the ad was what I had worn to school that day.
Macenstein: So, were you really a Mac user at the time?
Ellen: Yes. I still have the same powerbook G4 at school with me.
Macenstein: Really? Apple never offered you any free gear?
Ellen: I got a free iPod.
Macenstein: So, that “beep, beep, beep” story was 100% true? How soon after your dad’s PC “ate” your paper did you force him to get you a Mac?
Ellen: The story is true, the 15-page paper was about the history of Chinatowns in America and I wrote it for my 8th grade history class. My parents bought my sister and I the G4 to share the next year.
Macenstein: So how did that shoot work? Was it all just stream-of-consciousness, or did they give you a script or direction of some kind? Multiple takes, etc.?
Ellen: The camera Errol used you could see his face in. So while he interviewed me, I was looking at him, and into the camera the whole time. The commercial was engineered for non-actors. It was literally an interview about my computer. He asked me questions to get me to tell him stories.
Macenstein: You achieved a sort of “instant internet celebrity” based on your Switcher ads that didn’t seem to fall upon any of the other “Switchers”. What do you think it was about your ads that made you a stand out?
Ellen: I don’t know? Because people thought I was stoned, because there aren’t that many young girls in computer commercials.
Macenstein: So back in 2002, you were just a regular kid, no agent, no manager etc. How soon after your ad aired did Hollywood call?
Ellen: Quickly. I got all the calls within a month or two. The “movie” I was ultimately in called 3 years after I shot the commercial. Everything else was all at the same time and fizzled out within the first year after the ad had finished airing. The online stuff has, obviously since we’re doing this, surprisingly held out.
Macenstein: What was the best thing to come out of appearing in the Apple ads?
Ellen: Making the movie, Bed and Breakfast, was really fun. The film itself is really not a reflection of all the great people that worked on it. I enjoyed the shooting immensely. It’s something I would do again even though I don’t consider myself an actress. Plus I then lived in France for free for most of the next year. A lot of astounding things have come out of that 30 second spot.
Macenstein: And the worst (aside from this interview)?
Ellen: Being “famous” in high school isn’t fun. I got bitter pretty quickly. For some reason people lose their sense of what’s appropriate social conduct when you have any kind of celebrity persona. People would come up to me and say really rude things that they either thought or they had read someone else had said. People for some reason have an urge to tell you what they think about you and your fame. You feel relatively powerless.
Macenstein: You seem to have a large male following, even to this day. Does it creep you out that they are, in effect, into a 14-year-old Ellen Feiss?
Ellen: It was creepy from the beginning. It was always one of the worst aspects about the whole thing. I was famous but not that famous. It’s not like I had to get a body guard, but my parents stopped letting me go out alone for a while. It was an annoying balance and the constant commentary I was constantly reminded of pissed me off. Plus a lot of my fame seemed to me to be based on the fact that I seemed to be a vulnerable (stoned) young girl. That is never who I was or am. I don’t want that kind of gendered fame and I was never proud of the fact that a bunch of dudes on the internet thought I was hot, or ugly or stoned or stupid or any of the other things people talked about. That being said, a lot of my fans have turned out to be nice, intelligent Mac using people. Mostly men but a few women too.
Macenstein: So aside from the positive experience of making the movie, do you wish you had not made the ads?
Ellen: No. I think ultimately the benefits have outweighed the negatives. Plus it has been so long I don’t know what my life would have been like had none of it ever happened.
Macenstein: You were actually offered guest spots on both Letterman and Leno following the success of those ads, yet you turned them both down. Why?
Ellen: Because it seemed like I would be the guy with the talking cat on the show. I would be the side guest the host would make fun of and then move on to the real celebrity guest. Mostly I didn’t do it because I was told my fame would escalate. My then agent told me there would probubly be people outside my house if i did the talk shows. I didn’t see any real acting jobs or cool things/opportunities coming out of that, especially because going on the talk shows would be categorizing myself as a stoner computer chick. It didn’t seem worth it to me.
Macenstein: Now, you actually made 2 ads, but the 2nd one (“I love my
G4“) was never officially released. Were both shot the same day, or did they ask you to come back and shoot a second based on the success of the first?
Ellen: Both were taken from the 20 minute interview / stream-of-consciousness I did initially.
Macenstein: Do you still get recognized today?
Ellen: I got recognized last year in NYC. But not frequently.
Macenstein: Has any one ever asked you to sign their laptop or iPod or anything?
Ellen: I signed a printed still of the ad once.
Macenstein: You recently started college. Did word of your “celebrity” follow you there?
Ellen: Actually no. I don’t mention it unless someone specifically asks me about it. No one figured it out until a month into school someone Googled me for another reason.
Macenstein: So, in that short film, Bed And Breakfast, you star as one-half of an American couple searching for a friend across France. How did you land that job? Were you actively seeking acting roles?
Ellen: I was in my last year of high school and the director called me after having Googled me, found the name of my school somehow, called the school and got my home phone number. This disgusted me at first. It took him 2 and 1/2 months to convince me to do the unpaid role. My flight, ticket and housing were paid for though. He had seen the commercial and wanted me for this particular part-mostly because there is a scene where I trip on mushrooms in it. Plus it’s a short movie, he thought the internet star power would help. I never officially began looking for roles. Right after the commercial aired, I had an agent, but I would have had to move to LA to really attempt any kind of career. Acting was never something I was actively interested in. But i do like it.
Macenstein: Did you have a problem taking the role at first because of the drug theme?
Ellen: I didn’t read the script-so I didn’t know about the scene beforehand, but furthermore I don’t care about being depicted taking drugs.It took them 2 months to convince me because I didn’t want to put off college for two weeks of shooting. Plus, they got my number in an illegitimate way so that took a while to convince me they weren’t illegitmate as well.
Macenstein:That’s a pretty brave thing to do, going to Europe at 18 to do a film with a stranger who found you on the internet. Without any real acting experience, and no script, what convinced you you could handle the part?
Ellen: I got nervous once I was there and on set, but when I decided to do it, my performance in it wasn’t really a concern for me. I thought about it as: they chose me, so if they don’t like how it turns out, that’s not my problem. They know I have no acting experience, it’s their risk. I think ultimately I did ok.
Macenstein: I read that after the Apple ads aired, Apple sort of advised you to not try to capitalize on your celebrity, and sort of fade away. Why do you think that was?
Ellen: A multinational company obviously doesn’t want to be associated with weed. Their instructions made me want to capitalize on it though.
Macenstein: So as far as you know, your friends who did the ads with you did not get those same instructions from Apple? You were singled out because of the “stoner” moniker?
Ellen: Hamilton’s ad was the only ad besides mine that was picked up. The other two girls I was with, their ads never aired. Apple was advising me not to take acting roles, not to go on the talk shows, so they were talking specifically to me.
Macenstein: Soon after your Switch Ad aired, there were T-Shirts, coffee mugs, etc. with your image for sale all over the internet on sites put up by your fans, as well as folks out to make a quick buck. Those sites seem to be largely gone now. Did you (or your agent) have to go after them, or did Apple do that for you?
Ellen: Apple did that for itself. My image in that commercial belongs to them. The money from Ellen Frisbees and alarm clocks would have to partially go to Apple.
Macenstein: Do you have a MySpace site? There is one called “http://myspace.com/ellenfeiss”
Ellen: i don’t have a MySpace.
Macenstein: There are 131,000 returns on a Google search for you. What’s it like to still have fan sites and folks pretending to be you on MySpace? Do you ever miss your anonymity?
Ellen: It’s not present in my day-to-day life, so I don’t think about it unless someone asks. Plus I rarely meet fans.
Macenstein: A large part of your mythology seems to stem from the internet’s obsession with the idea that you were “high” during the filming of your Switch ad. We’ve read past interviews where you attribute your slightly dazed look and red eyes to a late night shooting and your allergy medicine. That all seems perfectly plausible. However, you are now in college… Ever tried marijuana?
Ellen: I was not high during the ad. But I have smoked weed. Is that really surprising? You just had to ask.
Macenstein: So what are you majoring in at college?
Ellen: Photography/video or women’s studies.
Macenstein: Are you contemplating a show-biz career of any sort?
Ellen: Not really.
Macenstein: You met Steve Jobs after the debut of your spot at the 2002 MacWorld. What was your impression?
Ellen: I don’t really remember, it was very brief.
Macenstein: What do you think of the newly announced Apple iPhone?
Ellen: Sounds expensive.
Macenstein: Ok, we’ve taken up far too much of your time already. Let’s wrap this up with a quick lighting round to get to know Ellen Feiss:
What’s on your iPod right now?
Ellen: Nelly Furtado, Sleater Kinney, The Organ, Patti Smith, Sassie.
What’s your favorite movie?
Ellen:Bed and Breakfast. psych! anything with Diane Keaton.
What’s your favorite book?
Ellen:The Happening by Annie Ernaux
What’s your favorite TV show?
Ellen:Next, The L Word.
Currently single or taken?
Ellen: No comment
Do you currently own a Mac now?
Ellen:Same computer I had when I made the ad. G4
Macenstein: Thanks again for taking the time to answer our questions and update our readers on what you’ve been up to. It really is an honor to speak to a Mac-icon.
Ellen: Oh stop. No big deal.
“Mac Rumor Site” Catfight
Posted by Dr. Macenstein
It looks like a new “hot chick” has transferred to Mac Rumor High, and is stealing all the other girl’s boyfriends. At least, that is what appears to be happening, according to Apple Recon.
The site launched just before Macworld this month and has rocketed to the top of the Mac-O-Sphere based on their exclusive reports of a February 20th event which they claim will herald the debut of iLife ‘07, iWork ‘07, new Mac Pros, and OS X 10.5 Leopard. No other rumor sites seem to have picked up on this particular piece of info, and Apple Recon is now claiming the response of those sites is that of jealousy. Specifically, they feel MacShrine and MacSlash in particular have not shown them the proper respect, pointing to Apple Recon’s unproven track record in an attempt to throw a little cold water on this hot rumor.
While we have no real opinion on the validity of matter, having more or less gotten out of the rumor aspect of the Mac scene after having received countless bogus tips from anonymous source after anonymous source (which as luck would have it, also happens to be the source of Apple Recon’s rumor). However, we here at Macenstein hope that the Apple Recon story proves to be true. Not so much because we need all that new gear before March, but we would love to see another Apple rumor site out there with legitimate sources and juicy details. Currently, AppleInsider seems to be the only real source of consistent good dirt on Apple’s upcoming plans.
In defense of the other, more established sites out there, Apple Recon does have a little proving to do before it earns some street cred. In response to MacShrine’s claims of “no known accuracy”, Apple Recon says “apparently they didn’t do their homework to see how many of the Macworld announcements we got dead right”. A quick look at those predictions, however, and you see Macworld forecasts of : Full screen iPods…with 120GB drives, xBox Live-like games on the iTV (they did not guess the name change), “iTV” support for Google and YouTube videos, iLife ‘07 and iWork ‘07, 8 Core Mac Pros, and a MacBook Duo. As for the iPhone, one of the few things Apple did announce, they specifically say it WON’T make an appearance at Macworld. They actually got EVERY SINGLE ONE of their predictions wrong. (However, we did too, more or less, and so did the majority of the Mac sites. This was a very tuff Macworld to predict, with hardly any of the traditional consumer updates).
Now, in defense of Apple Recon, these were just “predictions”, not info claimed to be from anonymous sources in the “know”, as the alleged February 20th event is alleged to be. However for the life of us we can’t see why Apple Recon points to those predictions as proof they have any inside knowledge.
The most important thing for Apple Recon here is getting the date right (Feb 20th). All the things Apple Recon says Apple will announce on February 20th are things everyone KNOWS are coming eventually. Apple said in their conference call that iLife will ship this quarter, we all know Apple will release 8-core Mac Pros soon (Intel shipped 8-core chips to ALL PC manufacturers who wanted them starting January 7th, so Apple will not let another company offer 8-core workstations without one of its own for very long). The only real surprise would be if Apple Recon’s claim of a Leopard release holds true, as no other rumor site has mentioned anything close to a February release date.
Time will tell
So in just under four weeks we shall see if Apple Recon is the real deal or just some drunk frat boys looking for 15 minutes of fame. Perhaps our first hint will come even sooner, as Apple Recon claims that this Monday they will have details of a new bit of Apple software that, again, no other rumor site has picked up on yet. If true, we are very excited to keep reading these exclusive reports that seem to even have AppleInsider beat. If not, Apple Recon will likely find itself grouped with such lovable Mac Vapor-rumor sites as MacOSRumors, a site they bash (and rightly so) for consistently false info with vague timetables.
We here at Macenstein love an underdog, and personally, we can’t wait for Monday!
Aspyr updates Civilization IV, Civ IV Warlords
Posted by Helper Monkey
Aspyr has released updates for both Civilization IV, and Civilizaion IV Warlords. The 14MB and 22MB updates are recommended for all users, and contain the following fixes:
Adds cross-compatibility with PC’s through Gamespy®
- Fixes sound errors in the tutorial when played in 10.3.9
- Fixes blackscreen window when loading game from tutorial on an Intel Mac
- Fixes crash in German tutorial
- Fixed Fog of War effect
- Fixes terrain issue on GeForce 7300 cards
- Fixed issue where portraits would not appear when using a GeForce 6800 in Mac OS 10.3.9
- Fixed tutorial terrain issues on GeForce 5200 and 7300 cards
“TOP SECRET” Leopard details for sale on eBay
Posted by Helper Monkey
Are you having trouble waiting for Leopard to be officially released this Spring? Did Steve’s promises of features so secret, he could not reveal them at last year’s WWDC set your mind racing to the point where you are losing sleep? Well, if you have more than $10.50 (the current high bid) you can find out all the topmost secretest of secret features in Apple’s upcoming OS release!
Portuguese eBay member “gio_di” ( a self-proclaimed “Mac user / expert / fan since 15 years!”) is offering a video which he/she claims explains “the new revolution coming from Apple into the life of everybody of us. ”
WOW. Everybody of us? This sounds BIG!
If the broken English, foreign origin, low feedback rating, and PayPal-only payment methods do not scare you off, you apparently can be the first to know both “the ‘TOP SECRET’ features of the upcoming Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard and the new revolutionary Macs that will come together.”
It would seem from that line gio_di also knows a thing or two about the upcoming hardware that Leopard will be running. When asked how he came across this information, he writes “Connecting the dots…”
Sounds good enough for us!
While many may be skeptical, gio_di assures us all that this video is NOT simply a copy of the WWDC ‘06 keynote speech. He also makes a point to say that as part of the deal, he will post the video on YouTube 1 hour before the official announcement is made as proof to the world it is authentic. And don’t worry, he says this is all “100% GARANTEED [sic]“, complete with a “FULL REFUND POLICY” (We’re not sure if that means a they offer a full refund, or just they have a poilcy which may or may not state they give 100% refunds. We’re betting on the latter).
As a Mac site, we’d be fools NOT to bid. However, where in the world are WE going to come up with $11? So, looks like we’ll just have to wait to learn about Leopard’s new features like the rest of the world (with the exception of Portugal). But if you decide to bid, please drop us a line. We’d love to see the video which “contains an exhaustive explanation of the next big thing, it will have an impact and a risonance [sic] similar to the 1984 Macintosh revolution, and will change the world, again. ”
Thanks to faithful Macenstein reader F-RAM for the tip.
Apple’s iPhone drives up traffic as much as 5900% at many Mac sites… just not ours
Posted by Helper Monkey
If the buzz on the web is any indication of future sales, Apple’s iPhone is likely to bring in a good chunk of change to Apple come the 2nd Quarter of this year.
According to Alexa.com, which ranks the popularity of the over 100,000,000 sites now on the web, Mac sites saw a huge surge in viewership earlier this month due largely to the public’s fascination with the iPhone. The site Macrumorslive.com, which provided live coverage of Apple’s Macworld Keynote, saw a jump of 5,900%, and went from being the 200,764th most popular site, to being the 2,834th most popular site. Similarly, the iPhone Concept Blog jumped from number 112,739, to number 3,826, an increase of 2,900%. (Perhaps most shocking is Macrumorslve.com was ranked 200,764th to begin with, as it is only updated about 4 times a year during special live Apple events.)
Apple Inc. saw a jump as well, of course, rising to number 45 from number 76 (a 60% increase). As for us, well, unfortunately we saw no surge at all, and in fact had a 12% decrease (maybe we should have photoshoped some iPhone mockups). Oh well. Macenstien is now ranked at 99, 372. That still puts us in the top 0.9% of all sites on the internet, and more popular than over 99,999,999 other sites. Now, if only that translated into making money somehow…
I’ve never been more proud to be an American
Posted by Dr. Macenstein
I know this has nothing to do with the Mac, but I just found this video to be so awesome, I just had to share it. Thanks to faithful Macenstein reader The McMANUS for sending it in!
(Warning, slight profanity.)
