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  OK, it's time to give away more goodies from my trip to the States.
I was going to have a contest about Macs in Education, but given the
fact that Schools are out at the moment, the timing of that isn't the
best (I'll do that next). Instead, I'm calling for opinion pieces to go
into the "Local Voices" section.
The prize has to be seen to be believed. Everyone that comes round to
my house takes one look at it and says "What is it?" and at Christmas
when I handed one out for a Christmas present, everyone in the room
stopped to see it in action. What is it that is so amazing? Well
actually it's just a picnic bag...but it's an Apple picnic bag...and
nothing Apple does is plain and simple.
 The bag (you could call it a drinks bag or wine cooler bag too I guess)
looks amazing. When you first see it, it's unzipped and completely
flat. The black outer area is padded and ribbed, and the inside covered
with water-proofing and a pocket that hangs loose in its unzipped
state.
What most people find puzzling is how it all goes together,
given that the sides are curved....that's where the fun comes in. As
the bag is zipped up along both sides, the zips' curves link in to become
the sides of the case and the picnic bag is formed, complete with a
zipped top. You can pack all your food in, use the pocket area for
specific items and of course....when you get to your destination, unzip
and lie the whole thing out flat as a surface to keep your food sitting
on. All very very cool indeed and...well....now that I think about
it....why the heck am I giving it away??!!
OK, sorry, I've calmed down again now....so here's the contest....
We all know that most of us have an opinion or two about Mac-related
issues, so I'd like to hear them. In short, the contest is for you to
submit a piece to the "Local Voices" section of the site. Don't forget
though, this section isn't just for people that want to let off some
steam (although you can if you want)...it's about hearing the voice of
Mac users in this country. Some examples of things you might like to
write about....
-
Something you're not (or are) happy with, with regards the state of Macs
-
A piece on why Macs are great
-
A bit about your life and experiences as a Mac user in New Zealand
-
Your thoughts on the direction Apple have to take next or chances they missed out on
Basically anything that says "I think or feel"....the more interesting the
piece the more likely you are to win. And in an unusual twist, it will
be the other people that submit entries that will decide if you get the
cool bag (see later for details).
Of course, if you are going to voice an opinion, common decency still
applies. We're not after personal attacks or anything but well-balanced
arguments. If you have a concern or criticism (heck, even if it is
about this site) then please make sure you attack the argument and not
the person. I may also try encourage people to take up their right to
reply in these cases too.
So remember it's an opinion piece and you are entitled to an opinion, but not to flog someone in public ;-)
Please also remember that this is not an opportunity to promote or talk about a product...reviews and advertising are for that.
Oh....and there is a second prize. It's a silver, clip keychain that
comes in its own little box and was also purchased by me at the Apple
Company Store.  It has a nice oval part to it with an etched-on Apple logo and a (I'm
no good at this describing stuff part!) hook where you can latch on
a huge amount of keys. All very trendy indeed! (Oh, and you just get one...I just took it out of its box to photograph it once)
Rules
- Entries close midnight, Saturday evening, February 26th 2005
-
Everyone in NZ can enter....'cept me. Overseas users of the site are
welcome to contribute entries, but prizes will only be shipped to a NZ
address.
- You can enter once only and your entry should be around 700 to 1000
words. You are welcome to submit images also, but note that this is an
opinion piece...not an article. (Note - Feel free to send me the start
of your piece if you just want to make sure you are on the right track)
-
Entries should be emailed to
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
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Entries can be submitted as an email, Word document or Appleworks
file. You may be asked to resubmit better images if you include any,
but this will not affect your chances of winning.
-
You'll be asked to provide a brief bio to go with the piece if it is
accepted. It is preferred that you include a photo of yourself, but
this is not compulsory.
-
Submissions must be entirely your own work and must not breach copyright or intellectual property right in any way.
-
By your submission you grant NZMac.com the right to make publicly
available the submitted content as they see fit (such as posted on the
web site) and take full responsibility for the content of your entry.
Your name will be included, but email addresses will not be listed in
the article.
-
Submitting your content does not guarantee that it will be posted on
the NZMac.com site. If it is not posted, you are not eligible to win a
prize
-
We reserve the right to reject any submission without explanation.
-
We reserve the right to edit your submission
-
Submitted and accepted pieces will be posted on the site as they are
received. Posting gives no indication as to whether an entrant will be
successful in winning the competition.
- The judges decision are final (see below on how it will be judged) and no discussion will be entered into
- The prize is not exchangeable for cash
Judging
-
Once the contest closing date has passed, every person who has had an
opinion piece posted will form part of the judging panel. Each person
will be required to rank the opinion pieces (other than their own) in
order, from the highest mark to the lowest (so for 6 entries, it would
be 6 down to 1 for example). Once these points are all collated, a
first and second prize-winner will be announced.
-
Philip Roy will only cast a final judging decision in case of a tie.
If it is really close, he may call upon the entrants again.
Good luck and email me (
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
) if you have any questions.
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