Ghost in the machine. I want to touch my MacBook Pro.

Must touch the screen. I must!

It happened again.

An alert went off on my computer and my hand reflexively reached up towards the screen to silence it.

I stopped myself, as I realized that my MacBook Pro does not have a touch screen.

While I avoided adding another smudged fingerprint to my collection of errant touch-my-screen attempts, my aborted impulse revealed a long standing desire – for a touch screen MacBook.

Mind you, this is a brand new machine.

I got it less than a month ago, but it’s got no touch screen.

When I heard that the Pixel, the new Chromebook by Google had one, I was miffed.

The Pixel has me hating on my MacBook Pro. Damn Chromebooks!

Google?

Chromebook?

Touchscreen?

Laptop?

The thought was incomprehensible.

Pangs of jealously racked me.

The sensation was unbearable.

Another alert went off on my laptop.

In my blind rage, I jammed my finger into the screen – again.

Will I never learn?

My rage gave pause to a temporary moment of reflection.

How is it that the greatest tech company in the world doesn’t have a touch screen laptop?

But upstart new jack entrants to the game and booty throwaway device manufacturers do?

Sure, there are other Windows based touchscreen laptops.

But who wants some third party laptop by Lenovo or a Dell?

Yeah, the Surface is like a touch screen laptop.

But it’s an inelegant and clunky Windows tablet (with a keyboard).

The Surface Pro has me hating my MacBook Pro. Damn Surface!

And who the hell wants that buggy piece of crap (aka not-a-Mac)?

No one, that’s who.

The fact that lesser device makers have touchscreen laptops in the market never seemed to bother me before.

But an Android notebook running Chrome and Google’s suite of integrated apps?

That’s gotten under my skin.

I mean reeeaaally Apple?

What’s so hard about adding a touch screen to your line of laptops?

If an old school NEC POS machine can have a keyboard and a touch screen, why can’t I?

C’mon Apple! Even dinosaurs have touch screens.

If Acer can make a touch screen laptop – ACER! – why can’t you?

And I know I’m not the only one with this desire.

I’ve seen mad other people stupidly jamming fingers into screens desperately trying to depress untouchable icons.

In this new fangled world of smartphones and tablets, touch and gesturing has become a norm.

People are used to touching screens.

Everywhere you turn, there are touchable screens: MTA, Redbox, ATM machines (and the aforementioned booty throwaway machines).

Why then, are our MacBooks still stuck in the stone ages?

Free our screens, damn it!

I demand it!

Apple, don’t let Steve Jobs’ stubborn shortsightedness rule you from beyond the grave.

Tim Cook, grow some cojones and stop living in a dead man’s shadow.

Think for yourself!

Know ye this: I shall not buy another MacBook unless and until said MacBook includes a touchscreen.

There. I said it.

Now make it so!

Is Social the Future of Television? You Better Believe It!

Have you heard of YouToo?

YouToo. Be On TV.

YouToo is the world’s first social tv network allowing viewers to interact with one another over a national cable television network.

Youtoo claims to be “the next frontier of social networking” because it’s both a social network and a television network which uses “advanced technology that makes them work together.”

What about Trendrr?

Trendrr. More signal. Less noise.

Trendrr is a tech solution that helps content producers process and understand the multiple streams of data from television, online, and social media, and put that data to use.

Trendrr measures the social media activities tied to television broadcasts, and the increasingly significant impact that social has on brands and audiences.

You must have heard of Revolt, right?

Sean Combs is launching a new network called Revolt.

Revolt is the new music video cable network of Sean “P Diddy” Combs that’s slated to launch next year on Comcast.

With a focus on artists, Revolt’s mission is to revolutionize the way artists are promoted using social as a platform.

These are just a few of the brands that are focusing on ‘social television‘ the intersection of television, social media, connected devices and audiences.

So what does it all mean?

It means that there is a growing nexus between television and social interaction, and businesses are paying attention.

The recent record-breaking numbers in viewership and social chatter with the Super Bowl, Grammy Awards and the Oscars, aptly demonstrates this point.

More importantly, the availability of low-priced, more powerful smartphones and tablets, means that more people will have the ability to take advantage of these intersections.

Connected devices make it even easier for brands to interact with their audiences, regardless of whether they’re in front of traditional television screens or not.

It also creates opportunities for brands to engage audiences in ways that simply didn’t exist as recent as a year ago.

Twitter hashtags, on-screen QR codes, text calls-to-action, voting and integrated mobile apps are just a few of the methods television programmers have embraced to become more social.

Home shopping networks, like HSN, have been leading the way for years, giving shoppers the ability to browse for products and make purchases from the convenience of their couches, home computers or mobile phones.

I suspect that this trend will continue well into the conceivable future, which will undoubtedly provide even greater opportunities for brands to interact ‘socially’ with their audiences.