Each week I write a column for my wine blog on the drinks / cocktails shown on that week’s new episode of Mad Men. Lately, the marketing folks at AMC have been making it a bit difficult for me, as they seem to have permanently placed a bottle of Canadian Club in Don’s office, replacing the bourbon and rye of past seasons. So this week, I chose to be inspired by an ad (how perfect) I glimpsed for a new show-related app. It’s worth sharing here on bub.blicio.us as well, home of all things fun and gadgety combined.

The app doesn’t exist (yet) for Android and I don’t have an iPhone. However, I do have an iPad, so I downloaded AMC Mad Men Cocktail Culture and started to play. The game is sized for the iPhone, but unlike some other apps, copes well with the 2x sizing for iPad. The app is restricted by age, so keep that in mind. Can’t have the kiddies downloading the cocktail guide, you know. It is a cocktail guide, but it’s also a game.

You get one “drink” for free – Betty’s vodka gimlet. The point of the game is to mix the drinks, including shaking your iDevice and pouring, using the correct amount of each ingredients. The novice level pretty much tells you what goes into the drink and then you just need to remember. The expert level expects you to know.

I like that the game tells you where or who to associate the drink with in the show. For instance, Betty has had a vodka gimlet when out with Don and when she went to pick up a guy in a bar.

In order to score points you have to use the accelerometer in the phone to pour the exact amount of vodka, which is fun. If a shaker is required, you have to shake the phone, and so on.

At the end of it all, assuming you have made a successful cocktail, you can tip your iDevice and “drink” your creation.

The game really is fun and it does include recipes, which could be useful on the spot, but off the top you can only access the vodka gimlet. To view and play the 20 other cocktails (including a Manhattan, Tom Collins, and Old Fashioned), you need to pay $1.99. I have mixed emotions about this. In essence, you’re paying AMC and iTunes $1.99 to be marketed to. On the other hand, if Don Draper were working for Ogilvie or BBDO in 2010, he’d probably think that was a great idea. It does sort of work with the show.

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Cheers!
Tweet Michelle @writetechnology, send her technology news at michelle[at]writetech[dot]net, visit her wine blog when you’re thirsty, and drop by one of her day jobs.

Is Google working on a television initiative? There are reports of a possible deal between Google, Sony and Intel, which would be towards the creation of a device that connects to the internet and runs Google’s Android platform. Turning television sets into computers by default, and running a platform that is also in the process of penetrating the mobile market is one way in which traditional media can regain a foothold.

Is this the way in which television finally contends with the internet? By joining forces? For the past few years, the differentiating lines amongst consumer electronics has been getting fainter. The functions of cameras, television sets, radios, computers and cell phones are being fitted into a single device, unifying our multiple media access points.

Finding a way to incorporate more on-demand media options, which can be run through the internet, is another monetization option for brands. Finding another way into the homes of consumers, traditional and new media sectors can act as targeted ad channels. The continued support of these distribution channels will lend some relief to areas such as broadcast television. Cable and satellite companies have been prepping for this era for some time as well, moving into bundled packages providing several data and communication services.

All of this enables the television to run the internet as well as a computer, as well as additional platforms upon which applications can be run. In doing so, the application economy will be encouraged as it expands into yet another media sector.

Interesting stuff, to say the least. Yet Google’s platform is still relatively young and unregulated. On mobile phones, Android still has its own shortcomings when compared to standards such as Apple’s platform. Open-source, Android comes with a slew of potential pitfalls when considering its expansion at this stage in its development. As Apple provides an example for how consumers may react to certain content, the unrestricted accessibility of certain content through Android is a concern Google will need to deal with.

Nevertheless, it seems important for Google to continue to create a presence across many consumer electronics. Finding a way to gt those devices to talk to each other is how Google continues to become a unifying factor for consumers, steadily making it a viable option for an application economy.

Google is talking about offering first-run TV shows on YouTube for a fee, similar to the Amazon or iTunes model.  For $1.99, you could view the latest episode of your favorite show, the day after it aired on network television.

The catch? It’s a streaming video. Unlike iTunes or Amazon, you have to watch it as a streaming video. The video won’t reside on your hard drive.

Sources say the site’s negotiations with the networks and studios that own the shows are preliminary. But both sides seem optimistic, since models for such deals already exist. No comment from YouTube.

The biggest stumbling block may be consumers. That’s because Google (GOOG) is talking about streaming the shows instead of letting consumers download them to their computers, as both Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) do. But the networks and studios, which control pricing, will want to sell the streamed shows at the same price as downloads; they fear that offering them at a different price will force them to go back and rework their existing deals.

Executives at YouTube and TV insist that the disparity is simply a perception problem and cite studies showing that most people who download TV episodes only watch them once, anyway. But that’s a tough sell.

Now, the reason I will occasionally buy shows from iTunes is that I then have the freedom to watch them on my phone, my iPod, my TV, or my laptop. I can watch the show on an airplane because it’s local to my device. Personally, I hate the idea of paying $1.99 for streaming content. So until they figure things out, I’ll definitely stick to free Hulu for the television that I miss and downloading episodes from iTunes for television on the go.

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Cheers!
Tweet Michelle @writetechnology, send her technology news at michelle[at]writetech[dot]net, visit her wine blog when you’re thirsty, and drop by her day job.

Last night as my husband was Tivo-ing through the football game and the commercials, I saw an Apple ad go by. We stopped, clicked back a few frames, and watched. It says something about an ad campaign when you stop fast forwarding and make an effort to view the commercial.

Apparently two new Apple ads debuted last night. I’m entertained by the ads, as I always have been. I enjoy John Hodgman and Justin Long – and last night, David Puddy, er, Patrick Warburton. The actors make me smile. I’m also entertained by the Seinfeld thing. Remember when Jerry did those strange commercials for Microsoft? Now we have Puddy shilling for Apple. I find it funny.

The ads seem to have received mixed reviews, however, as some people are just tired of the shtick.

Gizmodo: The ad reiterates the same played-out message we’ve heard in dozens of these ads: PCs get viruses, crash, push your grandparents down the stairs, whatever, so go buy a Mac and be hip or something. Apple’s amassing a really funny cast here; even Justin Long was great in Zack and Miri Make a Porno, and tossing Patrick Warburton in there could have been a golden opportunity to be, you know, funny instead of just smug. Too bad Apple seems content to stick with the status quo.

Cult of Mac: The ad isn’t funny, just like the rest of the ailing series. This joke has definitely run its course. Like Sieinfield itself, it’s time for Apple to pull the plug.

The ads directly target the Microsoft “Laptop Hunters” campaign, using girls who are similar to Microsoft’s (and now HP‘s) Lauren. The campaign drives home the fact that Macs are generally virus-free. Now, I know that most of you are smart enough to avoid viruses on your PCs, but that’s you. Every week, we have a different PC in our house that belongs to a member of our family. We’re always stripping them of viruses and malware. I hope my family watches these commercials. I could do with less computer fixing.

Below find both ads embedded from YouTube:

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Cheers!

Tweet Michelle @writetechnology, send her technology news at michelle[at]writetech[dot]net, visit her wine blog when you’re thirsty, and drop by her day job.

Actually, this is sort of brilliant.

In the same way as pilots are often available as free [promotional] downloads on iTunes, you can now download the pilot script of Showtime’s new “Nurse Jackie” starring Edit Falco. The free download is available through August 31.

It’s a different way of looking at things – and to a degree, it might also be grabbing a slightly different audience.Or maybe not. After all, if you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, you can install the Kindle App and access the pilot script as well.

According to Ad Age, Showtime is also giving you scheduling information and displaying banner ads on Amazon’s site.

Working with its media shop, Omnicom Group’s OMD, Showtime will use banner ads throughout Amazon.com and on the Kindle storefront to promote the free download, which will be available until Aug. 31. Along with cover art and a title page, the script comes with show scheduling information and a call to action urging readers to visit Sho.com to watch the premiere of “Nurse Jackie.”

It’s an interesting take on mobile. Oh, and in case you thought they were just focusing on the Kindle, you can download a 30-minute edited version of the show, plus behind-the-scenes action, on iTunes.

Taking a page from Google’s playbook, Hulu today launched Hulu Labs. According to Hulu, the Labs are “a place to try out experimental projects … and share your feedback while they’re still in development.”

It’s a great idea, and they started big.

Hulu Desktop: Hulu has taken video viewing out of the browser and onto the desktop. With native applications built for Mac and for PC, you can now use Windows Media Center remote controls or Apple remote controls, allowing you to navigate Hulu’s entire library with just six buttons.  It’s also handy without the remote controls. I’ve had various episodes of Kitchen Confidential playing in the background on my machine all day. Download

Video Panel Designer: Now when you embed a Hulu clip into your site, you can customize its appearance.

Recommendations: Hulu has now added recommendations based on shows you’ve watched and rated. You need to have a Hulu account to have recommendations, but they’re pretty accurate. Based on my love of quirky sitcoms, Hulu recommended 30 Rock.

Time-Based Browsing: I think this is the best of the new experimental features. You can now quickly scan videos grouped by original air date. As Hulu puts it, “whether you’re a TV junkie who remembers shows by the day of week they air, a budding media anthropologist curious to study TV’s evolution across the decades, or just a user in search of timely news clips, time-based browsing is another way to easily find more videos on Hulu.”

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Contact Michelle with news, stories, events, and more.
Email: michelle[at]writetech[dot]net
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Twitter tends to be all over the tech news for days at a time. More often than not, it’s over interesting, but silly things. There was all sorts of confusion over the “Twitter TV show” yesterday.  In a series of clarifying posts, Biz Stone has stated that you don’t have to worry. Twitter is not becoming a reality show. Instead, he says,

Some Hollywood folks are developing something that leverages Twitter and they are extremely enthusiastic as evidenced by all the media hubbub yesterday and today. We have little to do with their efforts but we wish them success.

After the social-networking service Twitter announced Monday it was in talks to develop an unscripted series based on the site, two of the service’s most prolific users have expressed fear that such a jump would mean an unfair intrusion on their lives.

Really? Just using Twitter isn’t allowing everyone into your lives? I suppose the difference is the amount of control you have over what you publish yourself. That said, I’ve always called Twitter permission-based stalking. People laugh, but it’s true. You’re allowing people into your lives with every follow and every tweet. The opt-out? Well, you can be selective about it with a private account or you can just not tweet.  Of course, once you’ve campaigned for over 1 million followers to read your tweets, I’m not sure opting out is still an option.

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Contact Michelle with news, stories, events, and more.
Email: michelle[at]writetech[dot]net
Twitter: @writetechnology, Friendfeed: michellel
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by Michelle Lentz

Oh no! You’re on the road to Grandma’s house for Thanksgiving turkey and you realize – you forgot to tell your Tivo to record the Peanuts Thanksgiving Special. After all, what’s a holiday without Snoopy?

Tivo to the rescue.

Yesterday on MobileCrunch I read about the new Mobile Tivo site at http://m.tivo.com. You need an internet-enabled phone and an internet-enabled Tivo. That’s it – you’re all set. The new site, which is in beta, allows you to search, view, record, set your preferred DVR, and more.

As I said, the site is in Beta. I seemed to run into a wall whenever I tried to assign a show to my DVR. We’ll see if it actually worked (and if I end up with a Snoopy Thanksgiving special). The site is new, so give them some time. It’s a great idea though. I fully admit to having used both my Blackberry and my iPhone at different points to access the full Tivo site and program a show remotely. I’m such the TV junkie.

Cheers!

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Contact Michelle with your news, apps, and events via email at michelle[at]writetech.net, Twitter, Pownce, or FriendFeed. Visit Michelle at Wine-Girl.net and Write Technology.