[snowwrestler]

> The kids knew sign language?

No, but neither did the author so he couldn't tell they were making signs up.

> The kids went and bought stuff (incl laptops) at multiple stores?

No, it just says they browsed other stores.

> And wasn't there a long line at Apple? How'd they make it to so many other stores?

Apple lines are product-specific. If there is a line to buy the new iPhone, you can still go in and buy other products. That is why they manage those lines the way they do.

> The kids physically go to the store to buy school computers?

Sure, why not? Private schools can do things however they want.

> The kids are such good actors that they fooled the author & all other salespeople?

How hard is it to act deaf?

> A teacher would actually allow kids to pretend that they're disabled?

Sure, if the point is to give them a taste of what social interactions feel like to disabled people.

> No bulk discount or pre-arranged deal?

Speaking of unbelievable...this is Apple, right? Not known for their eagerness to cut a deal.

> All other employees in the mall were mean to deaf kids?

Not mean, but maybe not too psyched to have to deal with them.

> Author doesn't remember which Apple product was debuting?

Or maybe they don't want to reveal the exact timing of the story, which naming the product release would do to the day.

> I hate to be "that guy" -- but this story is most likely fiction.

We just had a story on here the other day about a gay couple who found their son in the subway. Life is strange sometimes.

I don't understand why someone would lie about this. For HN karma?

[Kylekramer]

I am guessing the author pulled a Broder/Tesla situation on this story. Gist may be true, but the details were fuzzed for a better story/self aggrandizement. I particularly don't buy the whole "You were the only nice person to these poor 'deaf' children all day" angle. I have worked fairly often with people in the deaf and blind communities and if anything they complain that people treat them too kindly in general and not as a normal person.

As for a reason why the author would lie, a quick persual of his site makes it pretty clear he is trying to kickstart his career in the Apple blogger niche. Story like this may be a good way to get it started.

[jd007]

> No, but neither did the author so he couldn't tell they were making signs up.

I'm sure a bunch of high school students' pretend sign language would be quite easy to spot for a decently intelligent adult, especially if you have to interact with them one by one.

> No, it just says they browsed other stores.

Explains a bit about why other stores were not as nice to them then, if they didn't actually buy anything...

> How hard is it to act deaf?

I'd say pretty damn hard if you were in high school, in a group, on a field trip.

> Speaking of unbelievable...this is Apple, right? Not known for their eagerness to cut a deal.

Apple does give bulk discounts, and if it's for a school I'm sure they should be in a program like that instead of paying retail.

> I don't understand why someone would lie about this.

People just do, for various reasons. Some you may understand, some you may not, but that doesn't change the fact that people do lie (especially for HN karma :P)

[joycer]

I had a similar situation while working at a hostel.

A couple walked into my hostel and they were both just beaming these beautiful smiles. They were the kind of people who are just so happy to be on vacation it makes me happy to tell them all of the crazy shit they can enjoy in the city. I stood up and beamed a smile back to them asking them if they were there to check in or if they needed a reservation. They looked at each other, then me, and started to sign.

I panic'd... My mother was friends with a guy who lived in a retirement home because a grenade had taken his eyes in world war two and I often spent time with him and became acquainted with the blind and the nuance of interacting such that we could both make sure we were completely understood, but there have been very few interactions in my life with deaf people and so at this moment in the hostel I was simply unprepared.

The couple saw my panic and laughed and the guy signed using his finger a as a pencil and his other palm as a notebook.

No shit! Write it down. I got us some paper and everything was smooth from there. I got them a room, a deal, and told them where the best place to catch some romance in the city was.

The writer's reaction and feelings toward the interaction mirrored my own quite well. I can believe it, but if it is a fiction, at least it is an accurate one.

[DoublePlusWill]

Joycer if you see this just thought I'd tell you you're hell banned. It looks like you've been hell banned since the very beginning. I thought this comment was good and you should know. I can't reply to your message either, no one can.

[Hansi]

I agree, maybe he dramatized it a little bit to make the story more interesting but I can't see the story as a whole being anything other that plausible.

I worked for Apple for about three years a while back and served maybe five or six deaf people over that time opting for TextEdit or a small paper pad for communication in all but one of those situations where the customer's daughter came along and translated his signing for me.

[thinklarge]

I'd also like to add that this may have been a class of students who were in a sign-language class...

I did an experiment similar to this in highschool where we were supposed to go without hearing, sight, or speech for a few days. The specifics are fuzzed but there were a lot of kids walking around with things covering their eyes.

It was a cool little experiment and it sounds like this teacher took it a little further. It also sounds like most good stories that I know, mostly fact but a little fiction in there to spice it up rather than saying... well shit I just don't remember that detail...

[protomyth]

Apple does cut deals on batches of computers, but if the student is keeping the device then it is individual orders at the student rate.

[brackin]

Apple does offer about 10% off for bulk discounts (between 5 - 12% roughly). They may have not known, been signed up or just let students choose themselves.

[aluhut]

The most obvious reason would be advertisement.