# Modern Family - Connection Lost - 2/25/2015 *spoilers*



## DevdogAZ (Apr 16, 2003)

Wow, that was a very interesting episode. I heard an interview with Steve Levitan and he talked about how the whole episode was filmed on iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks. I'm surprised at how good the video quality was. And the way they wrote the story in such a way that it could be filmed like that and make sense was great.

I knew it was going to turn out that Haley had lost her phone, but they did a good job of having all the clues seem legit.

Loved that Claire's bookmark for porn takes her to her Pinterest page for "Organization Porn."


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## Alfer (Aug 7, 2003)

I agree, it was unique and overall well done. It's a sad commentary on what many folks are actually like these days. Meaning constantly "connected online".


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## DUDE_NJX (Feb 12, 2003)

Alfer said:


> I agree, it was unique and overall well done. It's a sad commentary on what many folks are actually like these days. Meaning constantly "connected online".


... he posted on an internet forum. 

What's sad about it?


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## Alfer (Aug 7, 2003)

DUDE_NJX said:


> ... he posted on an internet forum.
> 
> What's sad about it?


LOL.

Just saying that I bet there a lot of families out there that all sit staring at their tablets and phones all hours of the day and night and if they need to talk to someone (who may be in the next room even) would rather sit there and text/Facetime them rather then get up and talk.

Or those folks (lots of woman it seems) that the minute they leave work start yacking on their phones for the whole car ride home.


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## mwhip (Jul 22, 2002)

I didn't think it was particularly interesting or innovative. All four locations they used no one moved from their spot so there was nothing to really coordinate. Plus I think the story totally stunk. It was just taking the shots they shot and hand them to a CGI company to add all the computer pieces and done. Nothing special.


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## pmyers (Jan 4, 2001)

Wasn't my favorite episode. I wonder how much Apple paid for that?


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## midas (Jun 1, 2000)

I enjoyed it. Of course the had to knock the old guy (Jay) being befuddled by the technology. And I can't believe that nobody ran away with either Dylan's phone or Claire's laptop when they handed it to someone else. 

And being from Chicago, the Garrett popcorn bit was funny. And it is available at O'Hare.


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## mwhip (Jul 22, 2002)

pmyers said:


> Wasn't my favorite episode. I wonder how much Apple paid for that?


That was my thought too. Plus good thing no one in that family wants an Android they wouldn't be able to communicate. OK maybe Haley should look into that. LOL


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

Alfer said:


> Just saying that I bet there a lot of families out there that all sit staring at their tablets and phones all hours of the day and night and if they need to talk to someone (who may be in the next room even) would rather sit there and text/Facetime them rather then get up and talk.


Every interaction shown in the episode was to/from Claire, who was _out of town_.


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

pmyers said:


> I wonder how much Apple paid for that?


Apple provided some support for the production, but they didn't pay for the story or anything. Co-creator Steve Levitan came up with the concept himself.


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

I really enjoyed it. Yet more evidence that Claire is the worst person in the world. 

I'll be at O'Hare on Friday. I look forward to using the apparently gigabit internet service they have there.  The only other real liberty the production took that I could spot is that FaceTime does not have a multiparty calling mode as shown in the episode.


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## pdhenry (Feb 28, 2005)

mwhip said:


> It was just taking the shots they shot and hand them to a CGI company to add all the computer pieces and done. Nothing special.


Did you miss the bit in the OP where it (supposedly) was all done more or less as presented?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2015-02-25/why-modern-family-loves-apple


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## NJChris (May 11, 2001)

I loved this episode. There were so many little things happening that if you blinked you would miss it.

For me, I'd put this up there with the Las Vegas episode (one of my favorites).


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

I went into this expecting to be disappointed by an Apple promo. Was pleasantly surprised by a very funny story, and well made. Lots of lol moments. I thought the way they tied the various apps (video chat, browser, txt, etc) into the story line was cute & unique.

Especially funny when Phil (who's worth every Emmy he wins) wouldn't know where someone was, and we could see them in the background. Or Claire faking a breaking-up connection, stuttering and freezing, while people are walking normally in the background. But then this is typical MF style humor.


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## Regina (Mar 30, 2003)

Cam: Now, Lily, what have I told you about being selfish? Auntie Claire needs to talk to other Daddy about something...just as soon as she gets me my popcorn!!!!

Mitch: Who is this handsome Yentl-Man??? 

BA HA HA HA!


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

Regina said:


> Mitch: Who is this handsome Yentl-Man???


And later Claire signs off with "See you later Babs". :up:


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

Another line, so good but went by so quick. I really should rewatch this episode:

Dylan: "It's like we share a brain!"

Alex: "Oh, who has it now?"


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

DevdogAZ said:


> I'm surprised at how good the video quality was.


All of the computer interface was a render. They were worried that things would get too fuzzy if they used the actual Mac screen resolution, so they hired a motion graphics guy who did a 4x mockup of the entire interface and that's what they shot. So we were looking at a fake version of Mac OS X Yosemite the entire time. (Interestingly, they started work on this before Yosemite came out. They had to keep going back and re-doing pieces of their UI renders as Apple would tweak the appearance of Yosemite during the beta period.)


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## DevdogAZ (Apr 16, 2003)

pmyers said:


> Wasn't my favorite episode. I wonder how much Apple paid for that?


Levitan said Apple provided six iPhones since they needed ones with fresh batteries and full storage capacity, but that they didn't pay for anything else. It wasn't designed to promote Apple, it was just supposed to be an interesting idea for an episode.

Levitan also said that shooting this episode was much faster - it only took two days of primary shooting whereas most episodes take five.


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

cmontyburns said:


> All of the computer interface was a render. They were worried that things would get too fuzzy if they used the actual Mac screen resolution, so they hired a motion graphics guy who did a 4x mockup of the entire interface and that's what they shot. So we were looking at a fake version of Mac OS X Yosemite the entire time. (Interestingly, they started work on this before Yosemite came out. They had to keep going back and re-doing pieces of their UI renders as Apple would tweak the appearance of Yosemite during the beta period.)


I assumed Devdog was talking about the actual video they shot, not the computer interface.

I don't watch the show, but it was on when I turned on my TV last night, and I was sucked in. I loved it.


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## DevdogAZ (Apr 16, 2003)

cmontyburns said:


> All of the computer interface was a render. They were worried that things would get too fuzzy if they used the actual Mac screen resolution, so they hired a motion graphics guy who did a 4x mockup of the entire interface and that's what they shot. So we were looking at a fake version of Mac OS X Yosemite the entire time. (Interestingly, they started work on this before Yosemite came out. They had to keep going back and re-doing pieces of their UI renders as Apple would tweak the appearance of Yosemite during the beta period.)


When I said I was impressed with the image quality, I was talking about the images with the people being shot on iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks.

That is an interesting tidbit about the graphics on Claire's computer, though. Thanks.


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

astrohip said:


> Another line, so good but went by so quick.


(Phil and Claire, discussing the possibility that Haley is pregnant)

Phil: "Let's not jump to any conclusions."

Claire: "Let's review. She's been irritable, she went to chapel in Vegas in the middle of the night, and most suspicious of all, SHE BOUGHT A BOOK!"

Phil: "Oh no!"


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

DevdogAZ said:


> When I said I was impressed with the image quality, I was talking about the images with the people being shot on iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks.


Ah. Ha ha. When I started watching it, my first thought was to wonder how they made the graphics so sharp.


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

DevdogAZ said:


> Levitan also said that shooting this episode was much faster - it only took two days of primary shooting whereas most episodes take five.


Not surprising, since they didn't have to take the time to re-shoot from multiple camera angles. Plus, many of the scenes pretty much had to be shot "straight through," and some of the camera angles were doubled up (like Phil's and Alex's cameras).


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## Langree (Apr 29, 2004)

Apple has had a long standing relationship with MF, a whole episode was centered on getting Phil an iPad for his birthday, and it aired right around the time of the actual release.


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## DevdogAZ (Apr 16, 2003)

Langree said:


> Apple has had a long standing relationship with MF, a whole episode was centered on getting Phil an iPad for his birthday, and it aired right around the time of the actual release.


Again, that was simply an episode idea that the show creators came up with because they are big Apple fans. I don't think Apple paid for anything more than the typical "promotional consideration" that Apple pays for in LOTS of TV shows.


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## busyba (Feb 5, 2003)

I really liked this episode, but I just wanted to mention something about the previous episode, for which I can't seem to find a thread...

When the crazy girl in first class whipped out the stinky cheeses, I immediately though about Evaporated and her encounter on the plane with the rotten tuna crotch girl.


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## Langree (Apr 29, 2004)

DevdogAZ said:


> Again, that was simply an episode idea that the show creators came up with because they are big Apple fans. I don't think Apple paid for anything more than the typical "promotional consideration" that Apple pays for in LOTS of TV shows.


Not saying they paid, but they have a working relationship with Apple, and have had Apple products take center stage for an episode before.

Apple doesn't need to pay, those episodes drive up interest in the products because it goes beyond seeing the Apple icon on the cover of a laptop. (promotional consideration).

It truly was free advertising for the i-line of products.


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## Azlen (Nov 25, 2002)

astrohip said:


> Another line, so good but went by so quick. I really should rewatch this episode:
> 
> Dylan: "It's like we share a brain!"
> 
> Alex: "Oh, who has it now?"


At least the second Alex to say that in a sitcom. Alex Keaton said the same line in Family Ties.


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## JYoung (Jan 16, 2002)

Langree said:


> Not saying they paid, but they have a working relationship with Apple, and have had Apple products take center stage for an episode before.
> 
> Apple doesn't need to pay, those episodes drive up interest in the products because it goes beyond seeing the Apple icon on the cover of a laptop. (promotional consideration).
> 
> It truly was free advertising for the i-line of products.


Sure it was.
But the question is, was it an interesting plot device to tell a story and was it organic to the story?

I like this a lot better than paid product advertisements on other shows where the characters rattle off all of the product points that the marketing people want out there. (I'm looking at you, Bones.)

Here, I think that Modern Family took a well used plot and put an interesting spin on it as well as having fit into the show organically.


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

I'm as opposite an Apple fanboy as there is. I'm a 100% Android user, Windows user, Google-centric data user, yada yada.

Having said that, I had -zero- problem with this episode. As JYoung says, the key is "is it organic to the story?". The answer is 100% yes. It wasn't an Apple ad, it was a sitcom story where technology was plot-centric,and the fact they were Apple devices was meaningless.

We should be debating what lines were funny, not the devices they played out on...


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

Easter eggs...

https://tv.yahoo.com/blogs/tv-news/modern-family-connection-lost-easter-eggs-photos-011616093.html


> "Connection Lost," Wednesday night's filmed-entirely-on-Apple-products-like-iPhones episode of Modern Family, not only made TV history, but is filled with it.
> 
> "It's loaded with little bits, visual jokes, and [show] history for people who want to stop, freeze it, look at it, and read everything," said co-creator/executive producer Steven Levitan during a press Q&A in Los Angeles earlier this month that followed a screening of the installment, which all takes place on Claire's computer screen. He then warned, "There is probably more going on than people can take in on one viewing. It's cool if it takes you a couple times to get every little detail. You're not catching every single thing."
> 
> ...


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## JYoung (Jan 16, 2002)

midas said:


> I enjoyed it. Of course the had to knock the old guy (Jay) being befuddled by the technology.


Have you _met_ my parents?



mwhip said:


> That was my thought too. Plus good thing no one in that family wants an Android they wouldn't be able to communicate. OK maybe Haley should look into that. LOL


Over Phil's dead body.


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## pdhenry (Feb 28, 2005)

astrohip said:


> Easter eggs...


I paused it to read so I'm not sure they displayed it long enough but there's a good one in the first paragraph of the application essay.


Spoiler



"Mom, I know you're not reading this..."


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

pdhenry said:


> I paused it to read so I'm not sure they displayed it long enough but there's a good one in the first paragraph of the application essay.
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> ...


I noticed that one, but barely -- freaking ABC put an advertising bug on the screen directly over that spot for one of their other shows. I had to pause and carefully rewind/FF to get to some frames without the bug where I could read the whole essay, including that previously-occluded joke. The worst part about covering it up is that this bit completely sells a second joke, Claire's response to Haley in chat at the very end.


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## tlc (May 30, 2002)

NJChris said:


> I loved this episode. There were so many little things happening that if you blinked you would miss it.


It was good, but I found it a little exhausting to watch. I would not watch a show that did that every week.



cmontyburns said:


> All of the computer interface was a render. They were worried that things would get too fuzzy if they used the actual Mac screen resolution, so they hired a motion graphics guy who did a 4x mockup of the entire interface and that's what they shot. So we were looking at a fake version of Mac OS X Yosemite the entire time. (Interestingly, they started work on this before Yosemite came out. They had to keep going back and re-doing pieces of their UI renders as Apple would tweak the appearance of Yosemite during the beta period.)


So "filmed on iPhones" means the videos in the FaceTime windows, not the view of Claire's MacBook that zoomed in and out really well? I thought everything was moving suspiciously fast. Her mousing was exceptionally good.


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

It's a breath of fresh air from almost all other shows on TV that go to great lengths to hide, tape over, blur out or otherwise obscure real brands in real life. I'm so sick of it, it' annoys me so much.. especially the blurring things that are completely innocuous .. it really puts me out of the show thinking about the corporate lawyers that created this situation in the fist place. So what if they brand isn't paying for the exposure or product placement.. just use the real life products. Mythbusters is the biggest offender of this... there's not a single brand or company name on anything ever exposed. Even the plastic jersey barriers they used on the road courses have the real rental company all taped over, as do all the cranes and heavy equipment they use. WTF?

ETA: Real brands used on this MF episode:
Apple
Amazon
Google
Facebook
Yahoo
Halo/XBOX
that chicago popcorn
O'Hare airport (instead some generic "airport")
ABC (well, that one's obvious)

Any others I missed?


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

I'm curious if that was actually a terminal at O'Hare. (Not that it was filmed there; they could've just taken a picture, blown it up, and put it behind her as a backdrop.)


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## robojerk (Jun 13, 2006)

Isn't ABC owned by Disney, whome Steve Jobs had an ownership stake of after they bought Pixar? I can imagine Disney and Apple have some overlap on their biggest share holders.


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## pdhenry (Feb 28, 2005)

Hank said:


> Any others I missed?


I don't have the episode any more but the website where she hurriedly bought Cam's birthday shirt.


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

LoadStar said:


> I'm curious if that was actually a terminal at O'Hare. (Not that it was filmed there; they could've just taken a picture, blown it up, and put it behind her as a backdrop.)


I would have to look at it again, but it looked to me like one of the United Club lounges there (or inspired by it) -- both the backdrop and where Claire was sitting. In at least one of the lounges there they have a bar-style long table along one wall lined with single seats. That looked to me like where she was sitting, with her back to the main part of the lounge. The older woman next to her who slid in and out of the shot a couple of times would have been sitting next to her at the "bar".


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

robojerk said:


> Isn't ABC owned by Disney, whome Steve Jobs had an ownership stake of after they bought Pixar? I can imagine Disney and Apple have some overlap on their biggest share holders.


...such as Steve Jobs's widow, who is Disney's largest shareholder. But again, this episode was not prompted by Apple. MF Steve Levitan came up with the concept on his own.


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

cmontyburns said:


> I would have to look at it again, but it looked to me like one of the United Club lounges there (or inspired by it) -- both the backdrop and where Claire was sitting. In at least one of the lounges there they have a bar-style long table along one wall lined with single seats. That looked to me like where she was sitting, with her back to the main part of the lounge. The older woman next to her who slid in and out of the shot a couple of times would have been sitting next to her at the "bar".


Ok, just to totally nit-pick.. when Claire got up to buy the popcorn, she was gone for like 15-20 seconds tops.. no way she got in and out of a United lounge, and bought the can. That could only work if she was literally sitting next to the kiosk.  But yeah, I know, this is a TV show. 

The backdrop did look like, to me, the main concourse B or C by the girders at the ceiling level in the background. Will have to re-watch tonight.


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## midas (Jun 1, 2000)

Hank said:


> Ok, just to totally nit-pick.. when Claire got up to buy the popcorn, she was gone for like 15-20 seconds tops.. no way she got in and out of a United lounge, and bought the can. That could only work if she was literally sitting next to the kiosk.  But yeah, I know, this is a TV show.
> 
> The backdrop did look like, to me, the main concourse B or C by the girders at the ceiling level in the background. Will have to re-watch tonight.


OK, Garretts Popcorn is in Terminal 3, Concourse H by Gate H2.

Now that's a nit-pick


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## JYoung (Jan 16, 2002)

LoadStar said:


> Not surprising, since they didn't have to take the time to re-shoot from multiple camera angles. Plus, many of the scenes pretty much had to be shot "straight through," and some of the camera angles were doubled up (like Phil's and Alex's cameras).


Come to think of it, the episode was probably a big budget saver as well in that it was probably far cheaper to do than the average Modern Family episode.

As you said, they didn't have to do multiple reshoots so shooting production was extremely streamlined saving three extra days in shooting.

All scenes were shot on existing sets except for Claire at the airport which was probably achieved with a simple backdrop.

I think that there were only two guest star speaking roles, Dylan and the lady traveler (unless I missed Adam DeVine being credited for the picture of Andy) so below average actor expense.

The biggest non standard expense would have been for the aforementioned renderer putting everything together on the fake Macbook screen which I'm guessing comes at a cheaper rate than CGI.
(Well, it's not like they had to process complex 3D models.)

So this could have been a really cheap episode to do.


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

midas said:


> OK, Garretts Popcorn is in Terminal 3, Concourse H by Gate H2.
> 
> Now that's a nit-pick


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

Hank said:


> The backdrop did look like, to me, the main concourse B or C by the girders at the ceiling level in the background. Will have to re-watch tonight.


I was just looking at some screen grabs online, and I was too focused in my initial watching on where she might be sitting (i.e. the table). Looking at the background, it's definitely not representative of a United Club.


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## DevdogAZ (Apr 16, 2003)

JYoung said:


> Come to think of it, the episode was probably a big budget saver as well in that it was probably far cheaper to do than the average Modern Family episode.
> 
> As you said, they didn't have to do multiple reshoots so shooting production was extremely streamlined saving three extra days in shooting. All scenes were shot on existing sets except for Claire at the airport which was probably achieved with a simple backdrop.
> 
> ...


It probably would have saved them money, but in the interview I heard, Levitan said that the show has a policy that they pay their crew for a full shoot regardless of whether they finish early or not. So while there probably was some cost savings, the biggest expense - labor - was the same.


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## GoHalos (Aug 30, 2006)

Hank said:


> Ok, just to totally nit-pick.. when Claire got up to buy the popcorn, she was gone for like 15-20 seconds tops.. no way she got in and out of a United lounge, and bought the can. That could only work if she was literally sitting next to the kiosk.  But yeah, I know, this is a TV show.
> 
> The backdrop did look like, to me, the main concourse B or C by the girders at the ceiling level in the background. Will have to re-watch tonight.





midas said:


> OK, Garretts Popcorn is in Terminal 3, Concourse H by Gate H2.
> 
> Now that's a nit-pick


Garrett's also has a store in United's Terminal 1, Concourse B. I often pick up a small bag of the "Chicago Mix" for my wife when I'm flying home. :up:


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## GoHalos (Aug 30, 2006)

Here's a picture of the Terminal 1 location, including the girders that Hank was referring to.


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

Langree said:


> It truly was free advertising for the i-line of products.


Do you complain every time you see a DELL or Sony monitor in a TV shot? Are they paying for promotion?

(This reference is more joking, but IIRC, in the OJ trial, you saw the back of a DELL monitor basically constantly.)

BTW, she minimized windows a LOT more than I suspect most people actually do. (I do it a lot, but I also have a zillion windows open right now too..)


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## midas (Jun 1, 2000)

GoHalos said:


> Garrett's also has a store in United's Terminal 1, Concourse B. I often pick up a small bag of the "Chicago Mix" for my wife when I'm flying home. :up:


That just shows how lazy I am 

I went to the Garretts web site because I wasn't even sure if they had stands at O'Hare. The map on the website only shows the Terminal 3 stand. I never even bothered to look further down on the page where they listed the locations.


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## NJChris (May 11, 2001)

mattack said:


> BTW, she minimized windows a LOT more than I suspect most people actually do. (I do it a lot, but I also have a zillion windows open right now too..)


 We are talking about anal Claire. I think she would do that.


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

Ok, some more brands I spotted:

Pintrest (the "porn" page)
RalphLauren.com

And below is a photo of the background where Clair was sitting.

This was right after she left to get the popcorn. Which, BTW took he exactly 21 seconds. That's some fast commerce, there, Claire!

So clearly the regular terminal area, not United Lounge. While I spent two years flying through O'Hare twice a week in the late 90's, I don't know if this is actually O'hare.


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## mwhip (Jul 22, 2002)

OK is WiFi at O'Hare free? 

Best WiFi I have ever encountered at an airport is in Chattanooga. It's free and it is blazing fast due to the city being a gigacity. I did a speed test just for fun and was getting 500 up and 500 down.


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## kdelande (Dec 17, 2001)

midas said:


> OK, Garretts Popcorn is in Terminal 3, Concourse H by Gate H2.
> 
> Now that's a nit-pick


Also Terminal 1, Gate 9

ETA: Damn, I smeeked!


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## milo99 (Oct 14, 2002)

did others catch at the beginning of the ep where we see the Haley video where she said the ate pickles and peanut butter and almost threw up from the smell of the trash?

my wife immediately said - "is she pregnant?!" so when all the other stuff was coming up, like the book, we weren't sure if it was a ruse or not.


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## robojerk (Jun 13, 2006)

Hank said:


> This was right after she left to get the popcorn. Which, BTW took he exactly 21 seconds. That's some fast commerce, there, Claire!


She used Apple Pay obviously....
Remembered her typing in the beginning about how she lost or damaged her phone in the beginning of the episode. Cash?


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## GoHalos (Aug 30, 2006)

Hank said:


> This was right after she left to get the popcorn. Which, BTW took he exactly 21 seconds. That's some fast commerce, there, Claire!


Not to mention that Garrett's normally has a line!


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## spartanstew (Feb 24, 2002)

tlc said:


> It was good, but I found it a little exhausting to watch. I would not watch a show that did that every week.


Agreed. I thought it was clever and well done, but didn't particularly enjoy the story as a whole as much as I usually enjoy the episodes.


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## Cainebj (Nov 11, 2006)

I mostly sat there thinking my computer can do that?


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

kdelande said:


> Also Terminal 1, Gate 9


I just walked by it 30 minutes ago. I wouldn't have given it a second look if not for this episode and this thread.


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## CorgiMom28 (Jan 7, 2007)

Cainebj said:


> I mostly sat there thinking my computer can do that?


Haha! Me too!


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## DUDE_NJX (Feb 12, 2003)

Multiple simultaneous FaceTime calls are a fantasy, right?


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

For now, yes. I wouldn't put it past Apple to try to replicate this eventually though.


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## efilippi (Jul 24, 2001)

It bugs me that every time one sees a video chat on tv, the person being viewed is always looking straight into the camera/the person on the other end of the chat. Every time I've tried to do it, the person I'm viewing seems to be looking at something on the desk top, because of the placement of the camera. I try looking at the camera so the other person gets a natural view of me, but then I can't see them. Bah.

Off topic but not really since this show is so dependent on video chats, is there any way to do a chat and make it look right? I once had a little camera on a stalk that I could place so it was smack in the middle of my screen, and that was pretty good. But all builti in cameras result in the downward looking view.

This should be in the 'annoy' thread so I'll copy it over there.


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

efilippi said:


> It bugs me that every time one sees a video chat on tv, the person being viewed is always looking straight into the camera/the person on the other end of the chat. Every time I've tried to do it, the person I'm viewing seems to be looking at something on the desk top, because of the placement of the camera. I try looking at the camera so the other person gets a natural view of me, but then I can't see them. Bah.
> 
> Off topic but not really since this show is so dependent on video chats, is there any way to do a chat and make it look right? I once had a little camera on a stalk that I could place so it was smack in the middle of my screen, and that was pretty good. But all builti in cameras result in the downward looking view.
> 
> This should be in the 'annoy' thread so I'll copy it over there.


You're right, and it's something I've mentioned to people who need to do video conferencing, particularly for interviews. Even with built-in cameras on laptops, the difference in gaze is slight, but noticeable on the other end.

You can correct for it by putting the camera in front of the screen, like you did, but that kind of defeats the purpose. If you move the video window to directly under the camera, it helps, but the best way is really just train yourself to look dead-on at the camera lens. Once you practice a bit, it's not that hard to get into that habit.


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## justapixel (Sep 27, 2001)

I've had an iPhone since 2007 and I have never once used Facetime! Everybody I know is an Android user, so I Skype.

That was pretty cool episode though, I really enjoyed it. My husband deletes everything instantly, I would have liked to have seen it twice to catch some of the jokes.


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

justapixel said:


> I've had an iPhone since 2007 and I have never once used Facetime! Everybody I know is an Android user, so I Skype.


Well, you're not alone... since nobody could use Facetime until 2010 when the first front-facing camera were available on the iPhone 4!!


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## justapixel (Sep 27, 2001)

Hank said:


> Well, you're not alone... since nobody could use Facetime until 2010 when the first front-facing camera were available on the iPhone 4!!


LOL.


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## jamesl (Jul 12, 2012)

Hank said:


> Well, you're not alone... since nobody could use Facetime until 2010 when the first front-facing camera were available on the iPhone 4!!


http://www.nerdeky.com/history/sony-ericsson-z1010-–-world’s-first-phone-front-facing-camera
Sony Ericsson Z1010 - World's First Phone with a Front-Facing Camera

"The Japanese Multinational company introduced this smartphone in the Q4 of 2003 ..."


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

Still can't run FaceTime which was my point. Not that iPhone was the first phone with a FFC. Since we're really only talking about the Apple ecosystem here.


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## markz (Oct 22, 2002)

astrohip said:


> I'm as opposite an Apple fanboy as there is. I'm a 100% Android user, Windows user, Google-centric data user, yada yada.
> 
> Having said that, I had -zero- problem with this episode. As JYoung says, the key is "is it organic to the story?". The answer is 100% yes. It wasn't an Apple ad, it was a sitcom story where technology was plot-centric,and the fact they were Apple devices was meaningless.
> 
> We should be debating what lines were funny, not the devices they played out on...


Same with my wife & I. And we enjoyed this episode too. We never once even mentioned the name Apple while watching it either.


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## ducker (Feb 21, 2006)

found this episode amusing and a very good snapshot of communication in 2015 between family members.

it completely delivered for me.


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## DavidJL (Feb 21, 2006)

I just watched it for the first time, will watch again and freeze a few frames when I get a chance. I like most of their episodes but really enjoyed this one. For those who deleted but want to watch again, free Hulu has it until 4/2.


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## RGM1138 (Oct 6, 1999)

I just got around to watching this today. I lol'd a bunch of times. I couldn't believe how fast they were snapping their lines out.

My biggest laugh was "Tell her I'm in the shower!" And when Haley came stumbling out of the bedroom. And, I liked Claire doing the last minute gift order while talking to Mitchell.

I imagine there was a lot of post production on the Facebook pages and other graphics.

Can you actually IM from a Mac?

Think I'll hang onto this ep and watch it again in a week or so.


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## Bierboy (Jun 12, 2004)

RGM1138 said:


> ...Can you actually IM from a Mac?...


 you're kidding...right??


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## RGM1138 (Oct 6, 1999)

Bierboy said:


> you're kidding...right??


No, I'm not.


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## cmontyburns (Nov 14, 2001)

RGM1138 said:


> No, I'm not.


Yes, you can IM from a Mac. For the last twenty years or so.

Almost everything this episode showed was Mac-native capability. The only bit of fakery was multi-party FaceTime calls, which do not exist.


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## Bierboy (Jun 12, 2004)

RGM1138 said:


> No, I'm not.


Wow....


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

RGM1138 said:


> Can you actually IM from a Mac?


Out of curiosity: what would make you think that you _couldn't_ IM from a Mac?


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## efilippi (Jul 24, 2001)

I can't speak for rgm but I think of IM as something that was done in AOL or something. And it was usually a proprietary thing and didn't cross platforms. I haven't sent an IM in years so don't pay attention to how it works now.


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## RGM1138 (Oct 6, 1999)

cmontyburns said:


> Yes, you can IM from a Mac. For the last twenty years or so.
> 
> Almost everything this episode showed was Mac-native capability. The only bit of fakery was multi-party FaceTime calls, which do not exist.


Thank you.


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## RGM1138 (Oct 6, 1999)

LoadStar said:


> Out of curiosity: what would make you think that you _couldn't_ IM from a Mac?


Well, I didn't know for sure. The last time I used an Apple computer was over 20 years ago, and it was part of an Avid editing system.

I assumed it might have that function, both being Apple products, but I've never seen it in action.


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## Bierboy (Jun 12, 2004)

You could IM using an AOL app for the Mac almost from day one....


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## aindik (Jan 23, 2002)

Is there a difference between "texting" and "IMing," and, if so, which one is iMessage?


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

It's blurred. *I* believe that texting and iMessage are integrated on Apple devices (like iPhones, etc), but using IM is different, where both parties need to use the same (or compatible) apps -- AOL, Skype, Trillian, ICQ, Google Hangouts, etc. Some apps can crossover different networks to make it more like texting or iMessage, though.


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## DevdogAZ (Apr 16, 2003)

Yes, what they were doing in this episode was using iMessage, which is basically just texting between Apple devices. Whether someone considers that to be "IM" depends on each person's individual definition of IM.


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

iMessage is an instant messenger client. It also happens to function as a replacement for SMS, and also happens to have an SMS gateway. In the end, though, it is entirely an instant messenger client.


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## Bierboy (Jun 12, 2004)

What's elegant about it now is that you can send/receive SMS texts to non-Mac users with your Mac/iPad/iPod and not just your iPhone...


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## madscientist (Nov 12, 2003)

For what it's worth, Google Hangouts can be used by any XMPP client for IMing: I use Pidgin and it works fine with Google Hangouts folks. Not the video chat, of course.


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## GoHalos (Aug 30, 2006)

Hank said:


> Ok, some more brands I spotted:
> 
> Pintrest (the "porn" page)
> RalphLauren.com
> ...


I was in the United terminal at O'Hare last week, and can confirm that the picture above is not from that terminal.

The seats in the United terminal are light blue, while these appear to be black. Also, there are no monitor stands like the one shown in this picuture. As I was traveling to DFW the week before, I snapped this picture, which shows a similar monitor stand.


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## Hank (May 31, 2000)

I found a little "behind the scenes" video:

https://amp.twimg.com/v/b16d984f-34dc-4834-a7a4-ff6924c1c54c


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