Category Archives: Blog

Blog, Technology 4 Comments

The iPad Killer! Well, kind of…

With all this talk about the iPad, I thought I might as well chime in with my two cents worth.  I, along with most folks, were eagerly awaiting the reveal of the iPad.  And for those of us who aren’t Apple Fanboys, the iPad is alittle bit of a let down.  I was expecting a very useful and user friendly tablet.  That not exactly what we got.  The iPad has several pros, don’t get me wrong.  Let me run through my list very quickly:

PROS:
1) Size-It’s extremely compact and light.
2) Display-Very bright, good resolution, responsive.
3) Interface-The iPhone OS is a great platform for mobile computing.

CONS:
1) No Front Facing Camera-Having the ability to do video calls seems like an obvious use.
2) Alternate Input Methods-As a tablet, Apple really needs to have some sort of Pen accessory that can write on the capacitive touch screen for quick note taking, etc…
3) I/O Ports-Pushing the 30Pin iPod connector only is not a good idea.  I really need a USB port for jump drives, an SD card slot, an HDMI port for video output and possibly a 4pin Firewire port.  These would open up worlds of usefulness.

Those are my three major gripes.  Without those, this device is not much different than my iPhone (oh, wait, my phone has a CAMERA!!!).  So if Apple just wants us to use this for entertainment and reading (I don’t read, by the way, and if I do read long manuals, white papers, etc… I print them), then they have cut their market way down, and I’ll stick with my iPhone only. 

Now, several of you are saying, “Oh, he’s a PC guys… Blah, Blah, Blah…”.  Yes, I work in a PC environment, but I’m open to whatever hardware/software gets the job done best.  And quite frankly, the iPad doesn’t fulfill any need for me. 

My Needs:
1) Tablet for note taking, basic word processing, spreadsheets, remote desktop, FULL web (including flash)
2) Must be able to store files, and be transferred via USB drive
3) RJ-45 ethernet jack would be great for troubleshooting networks
4) Good battery life (5 Hours Minimum)

So, is there a PC alternative, and iPad killer, so to speak?
Not yet, but a company called ExoPC has a good start.  The ExoPC has your standard netbook specs (Even though Steve Jobs hates netbooks, he seems to have made a pretty lame one…), runs Windows 7, and has all the I/O ports you could want, plus a very similar display to the iPad.  It will cost around $799 when it is released.  Their website is in french, but here is a link to the google translated version.  If you speak French… I apologize.

The ExoPC – Google Translated Version

Will I get an iPad?
Probably not.  My cardinal rule of technology is, “NEVER BUY FIRST GENERATION!”.  There will be a ton of bugs worked out in this version.  Perhaps they might even listen to some of us who want the Front Facing Camera added, along with the HDMI, etc…  Whatever they do.  The next version will be a better product.  I doubt it will get any cheaper.  The price points for the iPad are very good, even if it isn’t the product I was hoping for. 

In closing.  iPad=Big (Not as great) iPhone.  ExoPC=More what I’m looking for in a tablet.

Oh, and I’m not even going to touch the whole Adobe Flash thing.  We all know the iPhone and iPad should support it, one day Apple will wake up and listen… Then again, they never listened to us before, so why start now. 

There is a side by side comparison on ExoPc’s website as well.  You can get the translated version here.

The ExoPC compared to iPad and Archos 6
(translated)

And to be fair…  Here is the link to all thing Apple iPad.  I guess you could say this is the iPad’s pad…  Maybe not.

The Apple iPad, everything you need to know.

Blog Comments Disabled

Web Protection/Security Tip

The below widget is from trendmicro.com I love trendmicro. They are great security software company. Their prices are better than just about anyone I’ve found. We use their enterprise software at work and it does a great job and runs very lightly in the background. I hate security software that bogs down the computer. They have a great little tool to check website for threats. You can just type the URL in the box below to search for threats on websites you might not be sure about. Not to say the content might not be questionable. They are just saying that you shouldn’t get a virus from that website.

Blog, Pictures, Technology 1 Comment

Sad moment…

I opened my laptop Saturday morning only to hear stomach turning crack. It was possibly the second sadest technology moment of my life. Second only to my getting in the lake with my week old iPhone 3GS in my pocket. Kayce said my face was hilarious and it looks like my screen was shot several times. It is my work computer but it is way out of warranty. Dell is checking on a replacement display. Sad day.

Blog, Technology Comments Disabled

Adobe Flash iPhone Blockade

I was looking at my blog on my iPhone to see what my mobile theme looked like and I saw the “flash player required” button… Nothing new, everyone knows that smart phones don’t do flash… But when I accidently hit it it took me to the following adobe page:
——–
Flash Player not available for your device

Apple restricts use of technologies required by products like Flash Player. Until Apple eliminates these restrictions, Adobe cannot provide Flash Player for the iPhone or iPod Touch.

Copyright © 2009 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.
———–
I’d never seen that before. Interesting to say the least. I’m a huge adobe fan. I think they’ve done about everything right with there software brands. I live in CS4 now. I’ve been using Photoshop for almost 10 years. I love adobe. Please apple, please allow flash on the iPhone!

Blog, Family Comments Disabled

Christmas Eve thoughts

I had so many thoughts running through my head, I figured I had better get then out. Oh and excuse the mistakes, I’m posting from my phone. I just finished one of my favorite Christmas Eves ever. Nothing special, just a collection of little things, moments that I think I’ll hold on to for a long time.

First, I cooked dinner for Kayce’s family, 26+ men, women, and children. Let me backup and explain why…

2 years ago, we had just finished Christmas eve worship and everyone was going to Wendy’s, of all places, to get food before going to Teri’s (Kayce’s Aunt, who hosts most all family events). Most of the older children spend the night and we all have a standing request with Santa that everyone’s presents be delivered there. So, I, having been used to Christmas Eve dinner all my life, was appalled at the idea of going to Wendy’s for dinner. We instead go home to open a few family gifts and then head over to Teri’s. I looked everywhere for some other resturant, finally coming to grips with the fact that we had to eat somewhere, but could find none. Wendy’s was it! So we pull to the back of a very long line, and waited. We finally get to order at 8pm, and the guy in the box says, “sorry, we just closed”. Seriously! So we have four very hungry people in this car and no food in sight. We go to Teri’s and start calling resturants. May I interject, once and for all, Christmas Eve is NOT a holiday! Why do these places shut down for a non holiday! I’ve worked it plenty of times. Anyway… We finally find that the only place open is the China Buffet, and we place our order. It was truly a scene from A Christmas Story, Fa ra ra ra ra, and Merry Christmas!

So, that is why I had to cook dinner. I was simply ensuring that no one would have to go to Wendy’s or the China Buffet. However, I had never cooked a full meal for so many people. It took me 8 hours, but I did it. The menu consisted of:
1 Ham, roasted with a mustard/brown sugar glaze
8 pounds of candied carrotts
6 pounds of green beans
10 pounds of mashed potatos
Fried apples
Gravy
Yeast rolls
Chocolate Cappacino Trifle

It turned out well, everything was done in time and was served hot. No small feat considering I only had one pot big enough to hold all that food. I had to cook one thing at a time. It was really fun!! Really. I can’t wait to do it again it again next year. Sure beats Wendy’s.

Cooking dinner took me pretty much all day, but it was fun. The boys were around, sometimes too much around and Kayce and I just enjoy being home and off from work. Much more relaxed around here.

We made it to church on time, which rarely happens, and had a wonderful time in worship at First Baptist. So, that made the day great on its own. In addition Christmas time just brings up so many great oppurtunities to talk to Parker about God, which is one of my most treasured gifts of being a parent, we had several of these moments today.

After church, the wind upset our plans slightly and for a brief moment we thought everyone was coming go our house for dinner, because Teri’s power was out. We opted for dinner by candlelight, which was great, if you ask me. Very Christmas-y.

But the best moment of the day came when we opened some presents at home alone. Parker was able to “go shopping” at preschool and buy gifts for Me, Kayce and Carson. He took his money, and picked the gifts himself. He told us what they were as soon as he got in the car that day, but nothing could’ve been sweeter than his face when we actually opened them. I will forever have that moment etched in my mind. The first gift Parker gave me on his own was a screwdriver. It wasn’t the gift that choked me up, it was nothing special on it’s own, rather it was the small glimpse of how he sees me and what he thinks of me. In this case it was really the thought that counted. I do pride myself on being able to fix almost anything and Parker knows that as evidenced by his gift. My “handiness” is a huge part of who I am. I’m always shocked and then reminded of how much his little eyes and ears take in. I’m overjoyed by his gift, because it shows me what kind of person he thinks I am and that our ideas of me match up pretty well. In other words, my son knows who I am.

In closing this ridiculously long post…

Merry Christmas! Remember our Savior was born this day. Why shouldn’t we be merry?!

Blog, Family, Pictures Comments Disabled

Life Pictures, part 4 (I think…)

Just started looking through my phone pictures and figured it was time for another installment of my random life. I enjoy the camera in my phone more than just about any other piece of technology. It allows me to capture those little random moments in life that I would probably forget otherwise. So, you might not enjoy these as much as I do, but hey… This blog is more for me than you anyway!

Announcement, Blog 2 Comments

The Stay Awake Cam-Help Me!

I didn’t go to sleep last night (most because I’m an idoit) in part because I believe I have a form of OCD that makes want to complete or finish things (nothing to complicated, of course).  So, I started watching Season 1 of The Office on Netflix.  Which is pretty funny, and I’m not sure why I never started watching it. But reguardless, I was sucked in and since the first season was appearntly only 6 episodes long, I started into the second season.  Due to my self diagnoised aiglment (don’t mock me) I didn’t sleep, becuase I just couldn’t stop in the middle of a season, when there were only 24 or so episodes to watch.  That’s just lazy, right?  So, I watched all night and here I am still awake after almost 24 hours.  Enjoy watching me suffer and drink alot of coffee today.  Feel free to chime in on the chat if you see me drifting… Thanks in advance for the help at staying awake and on task! Unlike, what I’m doing right now, which is completely off task.

1 … 7 8 9 10 11 … 21