Year: 2012

On ‘Jack’s Diary’

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Having a kid with cancer sucks. Talking to them about it sucks just as hard.

Thankfully, there are a lot of good resources out there for such conversations, including a new ebook out for the iPad:

Jack’s Diary is an interactive, illustrated story about a little boy’s courage and determination during a confusing and frightening time. The book is a colourful and engaging way to learn about cancer, treatment and getting life back to normal. Animations bring to life and add an element of fun to what can be a difficult subject to discuss with children.

The book has pop-overs, videos and more, all designed to help explain cancer, treatment and life afterwards.

While this book is aimed at leukemia patients, it’s well-worth a look for any parents in similar situations.

It’s available on the iBooks Store for $4. Part of the proceeds go to leukemia research.

Upheld

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In a 5–4 decision, the Supreme Court today voted to uphold “Obamacare,” a set of laws concerning Americans’ access to healthcare.[1]

(The actual name is the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.”)

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, citing Congress’s power to tax as being legal ground to uphold the laws.

By upholding PPACA, the Supreme Court has allowed the federal government to enforce things like protection for children with preexisting conditions, the patient’s bill of rights and more.

Most friction surrounding PPACA has to do with the “individual mandate.” This section of the Act requires (starting in 2014) that most people “be enrolled in a health insurance plan that meets basic minimum standards.” Those who do not will be required to pay a tax. However, the government also says:

You won’t have to pay an assessment if you have very low income and coverage is unaffordable to you, or for other reasons including your religious beliefs. You can also apply for a waiver asking not to pay an assessment if you don’t qualify automatically.

While time will tell how easy it is to get a waiver, I understand that this makes some people upset.

There are lots of other provisions in the law, of course, and they can be reviewed here.

You can read the entire document on the Supreme Court’s website..

It’s a good day for America.

  1. As a sidebar, CNN screwed up big time covering the story. The race to be first can be rough.  ↩

On The Minimal Mac Book

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Patrick Rhone:

Now, I wish to be very clear about what this is. Every single item in this book exists on the site as it stands — right now — for free. I have simply done the hard work for you; which is going through nearly 2000 updates and compiling the best posts, essays, and quotes into a couple of hundred pages. I then had these professionally edited and the cover, layout, and design done to make it an attractive and easy to read book.

Minimal Mac is one of those sites that is in my “Must-Read” folder in Google Reader. Even though I’ve been reading from the very beginning, I can’t wait to tap through this book, remembering some great posts from my buddy Patrick.

On the Nexus 7

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Today at its I/O conference, Google unveiled the Nexus 7.

While we won’t know for sure until mid-July when it ships, this devices seems physically very much like the Fire, but maybe faster. It’s 7-inches,, black with a front-facing camera. That said, I do think the device is nicer looking than The Fire, which is based on the Blackberry Playbook’s hardware.

Google has clearly aimed at the Kindle Fire with this device. The Fire, of course, runs a forked version of Android controlled by Amazon.

At $199 for the 8GB version (with a 16GB option for $249), it’s priced the same as the Kindle Fire. At the event, Google pressed the content deals its put in place to get users access to books, magazines, movies and music.

(Of note, the 8 GB iPod touch is also $199.)

Both Amazon and Google are pitching these devices not as computer-replacements, but content hubs. Apple, on the other hand, wants users to think of the iPad in both ways.

In short, the Nexus 7 isn’t competing with the iPad directly. While the low price point may lure some customers, I think Amazon has more to be nervous about than Apple.