For years I tried (and generally succeeded) to use the same computer at home and at work. At my current job I have a company laptop that is different than my home computer. This presented a problem with managing my browser bookmarks that I hadn’t had in years. I also need to use Internet Explorer for work stuff but I like to use Firefox whenever I can. Switching between the two setups was a bit frustrating. I recently downloaded Xmarks. It solved the issue of syncing bookmarks between browsers and computers. I liked how easy it was to setup and use I already have it on all my computers. I am liking web sites / applications that let me take my data with me on whatever computer I want and everything is synced up!
Technology
New Headphones
I felt horrible after work, but I forced myself to run the errands I had to before collapsing. I got a hair cut since I really needed one and that always makes me feel better. This time it did a little but the cold didn’t magically go away. Dam cold. On my way home I ran over to the Apple Store. I needed to replace my Bose in ear headphones. I am kinda pissed that a $99 pair of head phones broke. I can only hear out of one ear sometimes. I did have them for almost two years (or so I think), so I didn’t go shopping for another brand. I liked the bose ones overall so I got another pair. I do bang them up so I think I got my moneys worth, or I am just saying that to justify buying another pair. I just know if I had to go another day with the Apple headphones I was going to go crazy!
Bye Grandcentral, Hello Google Voice
I have been using Grand Central since December 2006. When it was announced I thought it was the perfect idea that solved most of the issues I had with multiple phone numbers that I have been trying to solve since 1996! Grand Central had great promise but two issues I had with it prevented it from being the solution I wanted it to be. The first issue was simply the quality of the calls recieved via Grand Central. For me at least the performance was hit or miss. I couldn’t rely on it as my main inbound phone number because I got burned so many times by call quality issues. The other issue I had was that Grand Central required you to press 1 once you picked up a call. The options it offered (1 to answer a call, 4 to record, and other options to send to Voice Mail or listen in on the VM) were nice, but 99% of the time I pressed 1 to answer the call. On a smart phone such as my iPhone it was a pain to find the virtual keypad and press one. It was even worse if I was using a headset. They never offered an option to turn off that requirement to press an number when you answered a call, until now.
Google bought Grand Central what seems like ages ago and nothing ever happened with the service. I was happy to keep using my Grand Central number as the default number I gave out when signing up for something or to a doctors office, the pharmacy, etc but I still used my mobile number as the main number I gave out. Recently at work I started using Grand Central as my main contact number and my mobile as my backup since I move around allot but people still get my mobile to reach me on. This week Google announced the release of Google Voice, aka the relaunch and upgrade of Grand Central. I patiently waited until my account told me I can upgrade to the new Google Voice. So far I am very impressed. My major technical issue regarding having to always press the keypad to start a call has been resolved. I now have the option of turning that off, so I did. I also liked the SMS functions, and the ability to leverage my existing GMail contacts. The transcribe feature is nice, but just bells and whistles to me for now.
I am hoping that the quality of the calls are consistent with the new Google Voice. If they are, it is an almost perfect solution for me. I look forward to using it more over the next few weeks to put it through its paces. It took google a while to get this update out, but so far it seems worth the wait!
The New New iMac
Last Wednsday I broke down and ordered one of the new iMac’s that were announced on 3/3. This was both a planned and impulse purchase at the same time. It was an inpulse purchase since I wasn’t planning on taking any action just yet, but I had been planning getting something. My issue has been that for about a year I have wanted something bigger than the 23″ Cinema Display I had. I deffered purchase for months because none of the computers I had could power such a display. Then I got a new Macbook in November that could power the 30″ display. I didn’t go right out and buy one since first it is an expensive piece of hardware, second the adapters to power the display on the Macbook were backordered. By the time the cable was availible the big rumor was (and still is) that Apple will announce new displays. So yet again I waited, until they announced new iMac’s. Now I was torn on what to do. Do I spent allot more and get a huge display but have a slower computer, or go for the all in one really fast computer?
The answer has always been for me to go modular. Get a laptop, KVM and maybe a desktop. I actually owned several iMac’s since I started using Mac’s. Each time I ended up selling them or returning one of them because I wanted more options than an all in one offered. So as I write this post from my new 24″ iMac I have to wonder, did I make the same mistake in buying an all in one again for the 3rd time? My own answer to that question is I am not sure, but I hope not. The reason I think now is the time for a nice fast desktop is that since last year when I hatched my plan for wanting a larger 30″ display my situation has changed slightly. My previous jobs have not cared if I used my Powerbook or Macbook. Partsearch even bought me a Macbook Pro to use, so I was always using the same machine at work and home. That made sense that I had a desktop setup at home that accommodated that. An all in one computer didn’t really do that. My current job issued me a windows laptop. Now I am hearing that I can probably do a non standard build and actually use a Macbook, I haven’t really wanted to test that theory. That means I keep my work and home computers separate. This is the first time in years that I have had to do that. Since I bought my latest Macbook in October it has been used off of its stand maybe 4 times. That for me was the deciding factor that I don’t need a personal laptop. For the times I want a portable that is not work issued I do have the netbook.
So I made my decision. I went with the all in one iMac. It is fast, and at some point when RAM gets a bit cheaper I can fill it with 8gig’s of memory. My Firewire 800 Drobo is plugged right into it, and it is FAST! For now I think the added cost and slower computer that would be used didn’t make the 30″ display viable for me. If money was no object I would of course go for a Mac Pro, but unfortunately it isn’t.
For now I am very happy with my choice!
The Laptop Upgrade
I got a new laptop at work today. I am switching from a Thinkpad T61 to a Dell Latitude D430. The 430 is not as fast as the Thinkpad, but it is only 3lbs. Since I am never in the same place two days in a row working it is worth the performance loss to get the portability. I am not a huge fan of the fact that the build I get has XP on it but so did the Thinkpad so I am not complaining that much. I had to spend what little free time I had today moving my stuff onto the new computer so I can give back the old one. I guess it is being repurposed right away. The jury is still out on how good the Latitude is. My D420 at Redcats wasn’t horrible, so I am hopeful this guy is pretty good.
Netbook Update
I have had my HP Mini 1000 for about a month and a half now and so far I haven’t had the urge to get rid of it. On the surface that doesn’t sound like a stellar endorsement, but from me it is. The netbook hasn’t changed my life or anything close to it. I am not really even using it for the main reason I got it. I ended up returning the wireless USB card so I don’t lug the netbook around with me everywhere allong with my work computer. What I do use the netbook for is light typing around the house, or when I don’t want or need to carry a regular laptop around I throw it in my bag. It was cheap enough so I don’t regret keeping it and using it like this. It is a nice to have and when I need it I am very grateful I have it.
The screen size prevents me from using it much more than I currently do. That is partly due to the screen being small, and my eyes being not so perfect. The keyboard still kicks ass, and the wifi and bluetooth actually work without any major complications. That is not something I could say for previous bluetooth experiences with Windows XP.
I just recently paired my Jawbone 2 bluetooth headset with the Mini 1000 to use Skype 4.0 on it. I never really used the Jawbone even-though as bluetooth headsets go it was expensive. It is also the best rated bluetooth headset I could find, but I never fit in my ear. I just read a kick ass review by someone at Cnet. The fix was so simple it was almost funny. They suggested putting a Jabra ear gel on the earpiece. I had one from an old Jabra headset and the instructions worked flawlessly. The headset now fits snug on my ear. I will use it with the Mini 1000 for a bit so I can make Skype calls on it. I want to try that out vs my Mac the next time I work from home. I am curious about the call quality differences between the latest Mac version of Skype and the new 4.0 version for Windows.
iPod Dock’s
For a while I have wanted to get a set of speakers I can plug in my iPod or iPhone 3G into. I haven’t gotten one yet for several reasons. The biggest one is that I have been encasing my iPod and iPhone in protective skins. They are great to protect the easily scratched devices (come on apple) but the downside is that with these cases the devices will not fit into any devices made for them. Last week I noticed my brand new (less than a month old) case was flaking its finish off. I read a review that this was possible so I rolled the dice when buying it, but since the case started falling apart I took the phone out of the case for a bit. I noticed that even though these cases don’t add too much bulk, it felt like it did. When I held the “naked” phone in my hands and used it, I was surprised how much sleeker it felt. I the remembered that all of my Treo’s never were in cases when they were in my pocket. I do have concern that the back of the phone will scratch up, but I think I will leave the cases off the phone for a while.
With no case preventing me from buying a dock or a speaker dock for my phone I started looking for a decent speaker set. The timing was perfect because recently I have wanted to listen to music in my bedroom. Now I have to put headphones on and that is a pain. My research has show me that there are tons of options. My research of reviews also showed me that many consumer electronic companies don’t get consumers. People if you make a device specifically for a GSM phone don’t suggest that you put the phone in airplane mode to avoid the feedback sound you get from speakers when the phone is plugged in. That isn’t a viable option, just a cheesy work around.
I found a ton of devices that had an equal amount of options. I find it funny that what I finally set my eyes on is the most basic of systems. I am debating on buying the Bose SoundDock Series II. The only downside I read in reviews is that it lacks features that other cheaper models might offer. Again, consumer electronic companies (in my opinion) don’t get it. Do you need to throw in all these features that many wont use to sell devices? I want to plug in my iPhone 3G and listen to crap on it through good speakers. I want to charge said iPhone in the speaker system, and maybe access the unit via a remote. This isn’t a radio, or an alarm clock, or whatever other features people want to creap in there. I know others might want those features but it is over kill for me. I want good sound. The iPhone 3G will work fine in the Bose system because they said they shielded the unit from the GSM frequencies that cause interference. It might be on the pricey side for what it does but I am tempted to go and get one. Jayson has the older model and loves it. It is a Bose after all. I don’t typically take name brands for granted, but they have lived up to their name for me so far!
So this story ends with me going to the Apple store last night and buying the Bose system. I also bought an iPhone dock for my computer. It drives me crazy that I have cables lying all over the place for my iPhone on my desk. Without the case I can plug the phone into a cradle and one more piece of clutter is off my desk.
Printing
I find myself spending money this weekend on a printer and all the accessories that go with it (extra ink, paper, etc) even though I avoid printing at all costs. I currently own an HP LaserJet 1200 that I bought way back in 2002. Back then I couldn’t stand to use an ink jet printer. The Laser Jet still prints black and white copies perfectly 6 years later. That is the problem. It prints black and white copies only. If don’t print much, but more and more the things I have wanted to print are in color. I have recently been thinking about upgrading one of the oldest pieces of gear that I have.
I looked at color laser printers, but decided not to go that route. HP had a nice one that wasn’t much more than what I ended up spending but it was a huge workgroup printer. Laser Toner also would be really expensive especially since I don’t print that much. I looked at several multi function printers and ended up buying an HP OfficeJet J6480. It got really good reviews from Cnet. I liked that it could be used as a flat bed scanner, and it had wireless networking. Both functions I wanted and it worked with my Mac. It wasn’t the cheapest multi-function printer out there, but it had some of the best reviews and the wifi was the final deciding factor for me. I should hopefully have it by mid week.
iLife 2009
I have been using iPhoto as my photo editing and archiving software of choice for several years now, and although it isn’t perfect it is the best that I have found. Earlier this week I got iLife 09 specifically for iPhoto 09. The two main features that got my curiosity peaked is the faces and GPS features. With my iPhone I am capturing the GPS coordinates of all my camera photos so the GPS feature in iPhoto seems cool. I am still a bit gun shy to post GPS coordinates on all my photos to Flickr, but for me to have them and publish to my friends is cool.
The really interesting feature in iPhoto 09 is Faces. That is what is hopefully worth the cost of the software. I have been tagging and labeling my entire photo album for a while. It is always a work in progress. With the Faces function I can label all my photos in one shot. As I write this post I am letting iPhoto scan my library to look for faces. Hopefully it will be easy to label after that.
The one downside I have with iPhoto is that all the photo detail (EXIF) data is not stored in the photo. That means if I export a photo it won’t have any tagged details that I put in iPhoto. Since I am a fan of data portability I don’t like that. Since I have started using iPhoto I keep a copy of all photos I put into iPhoto in a separate folder in case I have problems with my iPhoto files. I am glad I did this since I already have damaged my iPhone DB once and had to restore a several months old version. Without my regular backup I would have been out of luck.
So far the new version of the app looks decent, but I am not so sure if it is worth the cost? Only time will determine that.
Internet Explorer
I find it really funny that everyone is saying Internet Explorer has lost market share. I just read that Cnet reported that IE’s market share has dropped to 67.55%. I am sort of happy about that. I don’t use Internet Explorer that much. I like Firefox, Safari, and Chrome wasn’t so bad when I tried it out. I like options, so when one browser is overwhelmingly dominant it isn’t good. What I still don’t understand is that if IE’s market share is under 70% why are sites and applications still only made to work with it? Many Cisco devices, and internet portals I have tried just don’t work the same with other browsers. I mention Cisco devices since they are an example I am personally exposed to, but there are tons of examples of sites and appliances writing for IE only. Everyone needs to wake up and see that 1/3 of the word doesn’t use that browser!
For me Firefox 3.x is the default browser on both Windows and Mac for me!