Mouse Detective
Well-Known Member
Didn't many of the artifacts from Adventurers Club end up in Trader Sams?
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Spirited News and Observations and Opinions ...
- Thread starter WDW1974
- Start date
Didn't many of the artifacts from Adventurers Club end up in Trader Sams?
Virtual Toad
Well-Known Member
Scuttle
Well-Known Member
You had to use the Miami Dolphins as an example... Damn you! Lol
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
I think you would be STUNNED at what I have on the laptop I am typing on right now. I am not impressed with Disney's OR Universal security protocols.
That is another HUGE concern of Disney. Many DVCers don't have buyers remorse (plenty do, but that's another story). They love their resorts and enjoy vacationing there. But an alarming number have decided to visit WDW as a resort and never set foot in its theme parks or maybe do so for 1-2-3 days of a 10-day or longer vacation. There's a reason why Disney offered PAPs for $399 (or less than what they charge for renewals of regular Charter APs like mine ... meaning my 31 years of loyalty means nothing, but that also is another story) this fall. I predict that number will only grow. And unlike hotel rentals, DVC is largely paid upfront (even if you pay it out, I believe, you do like a car loan, not a mortgage). So having the Burkes from Wakefield, MA visiting Saratoga Springs in a Grand Villa for 10 nights in February means absolutely nothing if they just use it as a vacation home and go to the Space Center and their APs for UNI/IOA and visit the beaches ... maybe try Discovery Cove. The more Disney allows its product to grow stale while the competition spends billions on actual attractions, the more you're going to see DVCers decide to just stay at their resorts.
Only gonna get worse. ... What's next a BOGO AP deal for DVCers?
I think it would be a crime against FL to destroy those Gardens for anything.
Funny, but I am old enough to recall when Cypress Gardens was considered on par with WDW as a locale to spend a day. You could even buy tickets for CG at WDW for sometime in the 1970s.
Haven't seen the show in years and have heard nothing good about it at all.
But plans are for the show to go on ... indoors too, which I do think will take something away from it.
How is it that IOA can offer me a filet for $16.99 with sides and add me some tasty soup for $2.99 and then give me a discount (percentage depends on whether it's AP/AAA/TM) on that and still be in business?
Oh yeah, Disney has a different business model that opts to absolutely gouge bumpkin guests into paying absurd prices for food or making them stay at its resorts and pay for the 'value' of its dining plan.
DCL is considering expanding again. Just one ship this time, likely.
I do wonder how that fits with porting all four ships in Florida in 2014, and all doing VERY, VERY, VERY tired itineraries.
HenryMystic
Well-Known Member
And don't tell anyone, but you can walk into the Crew's Cup Lounge next door and order something from Yachtsman's menu with no wait and no PS BS ... or just order the steak they have on their menu, which is high quality and comes from the same kitchen was $23.99 when I was just there (just try to find a steak on ANY Disney menu for that!)
P.S. Probably shouldn't have placed that out there because it is one of WDW's best-kept secrets and one they absolutely do NOT want you to know ... much like the steaks at the Captain's Grille next door also come from Yachtsman at much lower price points.
Next Big Thing
Well-Known Member
Is there anything more to this Trader Sams rumor than just some DVC people on facebook talking about it coming? @WDW1974 @marni1971 @Disneyhead'71
yoyoflamingo
Well-Known Member
Not saying anything about the quality, but believe it or not, there's a quick service offering a steak dinner, the Liberty Inn: 6 oz New York Strip Steak - with red wine butter, roasted potatoes, and steamed broccoli $10.69.
Lee
Adventurer
I'll get you my email so you can shoot that stuff right over. I'm having a bit of a dry spell, myself...
the.dreamfinder
Well-Known Member
Lil Fort
Well-Known Member
I have been following this thread along with the other threads on this board about the MagicBands, MyMagic+, FP+ and NextGen and I have to say that I am utterly fascinated by whole thing. Not the technology (well, that too...), but rather with the general response to the project even in the light of the potential privacy issues. When @WDW1974 started putting all of the pieces out there and the big picture started coming into focus for me, I was alarmed to say the least and I thought that the vast majority of others would be too. When it became apparent that that was not the case, I started wondering why, and the wheels in my little brain started turning... I have come to the conclusion that this may very well go down as one of the most successful social engineering experiments ever conducted.
You may be asking yourself why I chose such a loaded term as 'social engineering', but let's look at the definition of the term: Social engineering is the art of manipulating people into performing actions or divulging information. Now... most folks are at least somewhat aprehensive if not downright fearful about clicking on a link in an email that looks like it came from your bank (and since the source of the email is most likely an identity theif, your reaction is correct), but what if the manipulation was being done by someone you have loved and trusted since childhood, someone like Mickey Mouse?
Again you may say that manipulation is a loaded term, but let's take a look at what NextGen is all about. There are basically two parts (that we know of) to NextGen. A very sophisticated data mining project and what I will call 'the cool stuff' - MagicBands, the MyMagic+ apps and FP+. Now put yourself in the boardroom at Disney and ask yourself which came first, the need for data or the desire to give their guests cool stuff? Did the execs at Disney say, "We want to give our guests some cool stuff, but what are we going to do with it?", or did they say, "We need to get more information from our guests and make them plan their day down to the last minute. How are we going to do it?" As much as we all would like to think that the execs at Disney just wanted to give us a more magical experience, I am skeptical that is the case.
So out of the need for more information, the seeds for NextGen were planted. It's not surprising to me that all of the cool stuff is very technical in nature. Folks these days just love their gadgets, present company included. As a person who works with technology on a daily basis, I find that while folks love their gadgets, most don't understand them. This is apparent every time a friend of mine gets a new cellphone, computer or iPad and the questions start flying. While most can send texts, make phone calls and use facebook and the internet, their eyes glaze over when it comes to discussing even the basic concepts of security or maintenance for their device. That's OK though, because it's cool stuff and they know they can come to me if there is a problem.
The combination of the love of cool stuff and the lack of knowledge about said cool stuff is the object used in the manipulation. The average Disney guest doesn't even know what RFID stands for, let alone how it works. They just know that the cool bracelet that Disney is giving them will get them into their room and get them fastpasses so they can ride their favorite rides without waiting in line. Not only that, but Disney is giving them a cool new app that they can use to do all kinds of great things like get even more fastpasses or change them whenever they want to. And look! I can make dining reservations from my phone! Does all of the cool stuff sound like theme park Nirvana to you? Then you may want to look over your shoulder, because you just clicked the proverbial link in the email that looks like it came from your bank.
Just like you have the right (and hopefully the good sense) not to click the link in the email, you also will most likely have the right not to participate in NextGen (the details on how this would work are still not clear), but if you choose not to opt in, then you don't get the cool stuff. Disney is hoping that by dangling their low hanging techy fruit in front of you that you will willingly give up your personal information, and many will do it without even knowing what they have done. Fine print... nah! This is Disney! I don't need to read the fine print!
That is what their $2 billion dollar gamble is all about - that they will be able to manipulate you into divulging your personal information and planning every minute of your day so they can better manage their staff. Their hand is a strong one. Most of their guests are 'low information consumers' who either don't understand or worse yet, will proudly proclaim that they don't care to understand the technology that they are so fond of. Many of the others understand the technology but are lothe to admit that Disney may have anything but the best of intentions. There are also a great number who don't care one way or another. Then there is the minority who does care, present company included. As I have said about NextGen before, the whole thing doesn't seem very magical to me...
I'm going to bed now, so I will get off of my soapbox and give this thread back to @WDW1974. Even if you don't agree with me, I hope that I have at least given you something to think about...
You may be asking yourself why I chose such a loaded term as 'social engineering', but let's look at the definition of the term: Social engineering is the art of manipulating people into performing actions or divulging information. Now... most folks are at least somewhat aprehensive if not downright fearful about clicking on a link in an email that looks like it came from your bank (and since the source of the email is most likely an identity theif, your reaction is correct), but what if the manipulation was being done by someone you have loved and trusted since childhood, someone like Mickey Mouse?
Again you may say that manipulation is a loaded term, but let's take a look at what NextGen is all about. There are basically two parts (that we know of) to NextGen. A very sophisticated data mining project and what I will call 'the cool stuff' - MagicBands, the MyMagic+ apps and FP+. Now put yourself in the boardroom at Disney and ask yourself which came first, the need for data or the desire to give their guests cool stuff? Did the execs at Disney say, "We want to give our guests some cool stuff, but what are we going to do with it?", or did they say, "We need to get more information from our guests and make them plan their day down to the last minute. How are we going to do it?" As much as we all would like to think that the execs at Disney just wanted to give us a more magical experience, I am skeptical that is the case.
So out of the need for more information, the seeds for NextGen were planted. It's not surprising to me that all of the cool stuff is very technical in nature. Folks these days just love their gadgets, present company included. As a person who works with technology on a daily basis, I find that while folks love their gadgets, most don't understand them. This is apparent every time a friend of mine gets a new cellphone, computer or iPad and the questions start flying. While most can send texts, make phone calls and use facebook and the internet, their eyes glaze over when it comes to discussing even the basic concepts of security or maintenance for their device. That's OK though, because it's cool stuff and they know they can come to me if there is a problem.
The combination of the love of cool stuff and the lack of knowledge about said cool stuff is the object used in the manipulation. The average Disney guest doesn't even know what RFID stands for, let alone how it works. They just know that the cool bracelet that Disney is giving them will get them into their room and get them fastpasses so they can ride their favorite rides without waiting in line. Not only that, but Disney is giving them a cool new app that they can use to do all kinds of great things like get even more fastpasses or change them whenever they want to. And look! I can make dining reservations from my phone! Does all of the cool stuff sound like theme park Nirvana to you? Then you may want to look over your shoulder, because you just clicked the proverbial link in the email that looks like it came from your bank.
Just like you have the right (and hopefully the good sense) not to click the link in the email, you also will most likely have the right not to participate in NextGen (the details on how this would work are still not clear), but if you choose not to opt in, then you don't get the cool stuff. Disney is hoping that by dangling their low hanging techy fruit in front of you that you will willingly give up your personal information, and many will do it without even knowing what they have done. Fine print... nah! This is Disney! I don't need to read the fine print!
That is what their $2 billion dollar gamble is all about - that they will be able to manipulate you into divulging your personal information and planning every minute of your day so they can better manage their staff. Their hand is a strong one. Most of their guests are 'low information consumers' who either don't understand or worse yet, will proudly proclaim that they don't care to understand the technology that they are so fond of. Many of the others understand the technology but are lothe to admit that Disney may have anything but the best of intentions. There are also a great number who don't care one way or another. Then there is the minority who does care, present company included. As I have said about NextGen before, the whole thing doesn't seem very magical to me...
I'm going to bed now, so I will get off of my soapbox and give this thread back to @WDW1974. Even if you don't agree with me, I hope that I have at least given you something to think about...
Not likely.
For a man of many words, and you have written thousands on this topic alone, I -- along with the engineers of NEXT GEN -- often need cull a mere sentence if not a phrase to tug at the root of why you are here.
Let me give you a hypothetical, as much as I don't like them ... If you are a fisherman whose life is sustained by only what he can catch on that hook of his, would you head out into the ocean on a raft of your own making (and not the way kewl one they made on Lost, either!) or would you drop that line in the well-stocked pond in your own backyard?
Being as we both know you're a smart guy, let's say you're going to go with the second choice. Because when it comes down to it, I didn't really present you with a choice. Continuing with said hypothetical, what if someone had the entire draft proposal for what is now known as NEXT GEN before them? What if NEXT GEN is largely nothing more than a grand scheme at datamining to an extent that no one beyond the federal government has ever attempted (yeah, for this argument's sake we'll take all those kewl toys and apps and extra FPs etc out of the discussion because they're like pinstriping on the side of a racecar)?
Now, instead of a fisherman, let's say the man with the hook is an expert on datamining and the technology behind it and the intent of it. I can see why (in this hypothetical) the lure of what I have posted could be perceived as simply too much to resist. I, on the other hand, know better than to bite on that hook.
Besides, if I did bite, you'd need a much bigger boat (yeah, UNI FANS rejoice, a Jaws reference!)
The biggest problem of fishing in the most convenient pond is that its blessing is also its curse. It's small, it's stocked and everybody knows where it's located.
We can move on now. For those interested in discussing NEXT GEN, I hope that's what follows ... as to your alluding about your life being out on the Web, that is your choice. I find it to be ill-advised. I am not an expert on datamining. Can you say the same?
So true. Most people worry that folks might catch a naughty picture or video on their computers ... and folks like us just worry about plan and blueprints and memos and emails and proposals.
I haven't heard it. I think it's totally a rumour and a wish now, but I also think it's very likely to wind up here if they can figure a way to have a larger venue and also not be overrun by locals.