OT: Sony - just as dumb as Pentax

bmattock said:
"Sony a". Sorry, I think that is a terrible name. At least with the Nikon example, I know that it is pronounced EFF-EMM-THREE-AAA (long a). I don't think it is "EFF-EMM-THREE-AH (short a). A Sony 'a'? Is that a Sony "AAA" or a Sony "AH"? Or do I spell it "a" and pronounce it "Alpha"?
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Good point. Sony is going to have to "alternatively" name their product as "alpha" (i.e. spell it out). But it's not "Sony a", it's "Sony α".

(You don't say "N" when you say "PI", for 3.14159...etcetc)

bmattock said:
Hard to say, and even more importantly these days - hard to search for. Google is the future - embrace it.
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The future?? I've embraced the past since 1999; been doing it since before it became a verb.
 
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gabrielma said:
The future?? I've embraced the past since 1999; been doing it since before it became a verb.
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But only recently did Google become self-aware and begin to issue orders. And I, for one, welcome our new search-engine overlord.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
Google is watching me.
 
bmattock said:
But only recently did Google become self-aware and begin to issue orders. And I, for one, welcome our new search-engine overlord.
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ah. :p I won't go there. The overlord's lord is ... :bang:
 
XAos said:
Sorry - but it somehow seemed appropriate to the thread - as I just watched "Men in Black." Remember the twins?
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LoL yes I remember the twins-

For me and my familiars Bob is more accessible - Robert can be a bit "precious"
 
Lifted from the Pentax forum on DPReview:

I believe the "*ist" nomenclature was a creative idea from Pentax Japan to denote the versatility of the initial pentax DSLR systems. As in ART*ist, JOURNAL*ist, PUR*ist, or PERFECTION*ist... you get it. Maybe the general idea was to be a name that can encompass every aspect of photography, they leave it up the individual to define their own photography. Kind of Zen, New Age, but I'd Definitely welcome the return to a more classic nomenclature like K1D, K100D, or K1000D, or even as simple as "D"
 
I don't see why the name of the system matters. I don't care if the DSLR is called stinky doo-doo, if it takes amazing photos I'll just cover up the name with a piece of electrical tape.
Oh, and by the way, the *ist is pronounced IST, exactly like it's spelled
This thread doesn't make me too happy. You're all bashing my primary SLR because it has a weird name. Big whoop :/
 
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Hey, I'm not bashing - I love my *ist DS, and I know Bill uses one too. I'm just amused that I wasn't able to work out that explanation for myself! Shows I'm a linear thinker.
 
bmattock said:
Or do I spell it "a" and pronounce it "Alpha"?

Hard to say, and even more importantly these days - hard to search for. Google is the future - embrace it. Google recognition and findability is an essential part of any marketing effort. Their marketing flaks should know that well.
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Try actually searching Google for "Sony α" and see what happens. Several hits come easily near the top of the search list... "Konica Minolta and Sony Agree to Jointly Develop Digital SLR Cameras ... *2 “α-7 DIGITAL is marketed as “Maxxum 7D” in North America and “Dynax 7D” in other ..." :)
 
Yes, I also have a *ist DS. And I love it. The name is stupid. Not just too cutesy for words, but also useless for searching on the 'net. Say I'm looking for accessories - it is easier to find Nikon FM3 accessories than it is Pentax *ist DS. In fact, I usually just search for Pentax DSLR.

And the Sony a is even more stupid. 'a' is an actual word in English, and so common that it is totally disregarded by most search engines, even if you put it in quotes.

Dumb, dumb, dumb. All in the name of being 'hip'.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
Dougg said:
Try actually searching Google for "Sony α" and see what happens. Several hits come easily near the top of the search list... "Konica Minolta and Sony Agree to Jointly Develop Digital SLR Cameras ... *2 “α-7 DIGITAL is marketed as “Maxxum 7D” in North America and “Dynax 7D” in other ..." :)
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I did. I got a lot of junk at the top that had nothing to do with the Sony a. And what you're getting is only due to the story being topical. When the a is old news, you won't be able to find it with dynamite. Now do a search for Maxxum. Ha. Game set and match.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
jano said:
Well, on the bright side, it'll stick their camera at the top of an alphabetical list. Of course, some people may just tell them to stick it up.. uhm.. I better not finish :D

Despite the name, I'm looking forward to see what kind of fun stuff Sony will produce now with DSLRs. They are huge in electronics so I'm hoping something innovative. Maybe I'm just too positive today :p
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Yeah, and all their crap will be propietary, when you install their software on your PC it will mark images for tracking, report back to Sony surreptitiously, restrict copying of your own captures, and the software will not work on some machines but will work on others. But it will be Sony, and everyone knows that's good, right?
 
Trius said:
Yeah, and all their crap will be propietary, when you install their software on your PC it will mark images for tracking, report back to Sony surreptitiously, restrict copying of your own captures, and the software will not work on some machines but will work on others. But it will be Sony, and everyone knows that's good, right?
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All true, but fortunately, they say they will support the CF memory cards that the Maxxum 5D does/did. Since I run Linux anyway, none of the software matters to me. Just a memory card reader and The GIMP with UFRAW and I'm straight. Sony, Pentax, Minolta, it's all the same to me.

Open source software is so nice.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
bmattock said:
I did. I got a lot of junk at the top that had nothing to do with the Sony a. And what you're getting is only due to the story being topical. When the a is old news, you won't be able to find it with dynamite. Now do a search for Maxxum. Ha. Game set and match.
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Hi Bill -- If you searched for "Sony a" you will certainly get a lot of what you're not looking for. I rather suspect you did NOT search for "Sony α"... If you had, you'd find the very first reference is relevant, including the brief quote I supplied. Google is dumb; it doen't find what you mean, only what you type in. :)
 
Dougg said:
Hi Bill -- If you searched for "Sony a" you will certainly get a lot of what you're not looking for. I rather suspect you did NOT search for "Sony α"... If you had, you'd find the very first reference is relevant, including the brief quote I supplied. Google is dumb; it doen't find what you mean, only what you type in. :)
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Doug, please trust me when I say I was writing regular expressions and teaching librarians how to do internet searches before there was a world-wide-web. I'm an early adopter, my first Usenet post is dated 1991, my first dialup internet account was in 1985. I was there when Yahoo was created, and way before Google. I know how to use it.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q="sony+a"&btnG=Search

Returns a Newsweek story on the Sony spyware debacle.
A 1997 story on the Sony Navicam (whatever that is).
Remote Control for Sony A/V equipment

And so on. The first mention of the Sony a is...ah, after four pages I gave up. None that I saw.

Now, could I have crafted a query expression that would have found just what I wanted? You bet. At least I think I could. But I won't bother. And why should I? I'm the consumer. If Sony wants to advertise to me, they can find me, or make it very easy for me to find them. A findable Google search does that.

Joe Sixpack is not a Googlemeister. They type in "Beer and Boobs" and carry on with their porn or whatever. If Sony wants to sell to them, they need to be easily found in a simple brain-dead Google search. Simple as that.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=maxxum&btnG=Search

A Google search for one word - Maxxum - gets me exactly what I'm searching for - and that's the point.

Sony is being incredibly stupid. And there you go.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks
 
bmattock said:
Ford Mustang. Chevy Nova. Nikon FM3a. Olympus XA. Put brackets around them and search, you'll find them quickly.
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Well, maybe I wouldn't find the Saleen replica of Parnelli Jones' 1970 Boss 302 'stang that I was drooling over this afternoon, but, point taken.

As dumb-sounding as "Maxxum" was, a Google search for just the word "Maxxum" brings back exactly what you think it would.
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Agreed. Just make sure you're typing in Maxxum, as opposed to Maxxim. Otherwise you'll wind up with a lot more than a letter's difference. :p


- Barrett
 
kyle said:
How exactly do you pronounce *ist?
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As I recall from a Pentax handout at the time of introduction, the spoken name is "Star-ist D" (the asterisk supposedly representing a star...look, they made it up, not me). Yes, I thought – and still think – Pentax was being a bit too clever for their own good. But I'm biased: the last good-though-slightly-unusual camera name, IMO, was Hexar.


- Barrett
 
The saddest thing is that at a minimum they wasted the equivilent of 1 person's lifetime in meetings to decide to go with the "Alpha". At the max, they dished out big bucks for someone to tell them the same thing.

The best news is I have a Sony Credit card for my expense account, guess who is going to get an Alpha for free ;)

Mark
 
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