CF2 TechNotes Blog » Consumer Technology

iPhone Apps? I Got ‘Em

curtis_franklin — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:16:02 +0000

The great thing (and the terrible thing) about the iPhone is that it gives me the chance to play with a bunch of new applications. I’ve got to admit that most of the ones I’ve been using are for putting information up on the web — iBlogger (from the same people who wrote Ecto, the tool I use to blog from my desktop), Pixelpipe (for sending photos from my iPhone to Flickr), Facebook (yeah), and TweetDeck (the same platform I use for Tweeting from my desktop). With these, I can do much of my daily work from the phone if I can’t put my hands on my laptop to make things happen.

I’ve also grabbed a couple of things that help me keep information moving between the iPhone and the Macbook Pro. Evernote is a wonderful cloud application for keeping notes and information available regardless of where you are, and Bento is a super little database that I use for information that’s a bit more structured — my health info and notes on tutoring sessions, for example.

All in all, I’m really pleased with the iPhone — it’s one of the few tech purchases of the last few years that hasn’t carried some regret with it. Now, if I can start keeping up with my Microsoft Office docs on the phone, I’ll be set…

The Technology of Sticky Notes

curtis_franklin — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 18:12:05 +0000

Sometimes, folks help you see traditional technology in an entirely new way. I’ve been shown the possibilities of sticky notes in ways I never thought possible.

EepyBird’s Sticky Note experiment from Eepybird on Vimeo.

Keeping in mind that these are the same folks who brought us dancing fountains crafted from Diet Coke and Mentos, I have to say I’m seriously impressed by the work, here. I can’t even imagine what they might do with a good stapler…

A New Gig

curtis_franklin — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 13:49:33 +0000

No, it doesn’t replace the InfoWorld job, but it’s an addition: I’m the new technology columnist for the Gainesville Sun, our local newspaper here in the land of ‘gators. You can see the inaugural column here. I’ll be writing about a mix of things (and I’d love suggestions), with technology for families, students, and small businesses getting the heaviest roles in the rotation.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a bunch of stuff to write, edit, read, and record. For some reason, my life seems to be getting busy…

Better Photos

curtis_franklin — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 04:29:31 +0000

One of the skills I need to improve is my photography. I do get some decent shots, but the ratio of good to bad isn’t as great as I’d like. I found a link to the Nikon Digital Learning Center, and found what looks like a very helpful group of folks. I’m looking forward to getting some help and learning to take better photos–who knows, the improvement might be enough to help me get higher grades on my photo projects.

An Old Friend

curtis_franklin — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 04:37:58 +0000

You know, there’s something nice about re-discovering an old friend. Since I moved over to Vista, I’ve been using Internet Explorer as my browser. Microsoft has done a good job of making it better with each major release, but it’s still not as stable as I’d like, and it can be terribly sluggish at times. Last week, I downloaded Apple’s Safari browser and have been, on the whole, underwhelmed. The one good thing Safari did for me was to make me re-think FireFox. The good folks at LifeHacker are big fans, but I’d been away from it for a few months. I have to say it works beautifully under Vista. Fast, stable, and customizable–I think I’ve found software to make me happy.

An Early Father’s Day

curtis_franklin — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 04:26:04 +0000

The latest project around the house is a new master bedroom closet. Carol planned it and has been managing the project–I’m supplying the muscle. I’d been wanting to upgrade my chop saw, and this project provided the perfect opportunity. We decided that an early Father’s Day gift was in order, so Carol got me this Hitachi dual-bevel miter saw. I’ll admit that the big reason for choosing the Green Monster was the price–it was nearly $200 less than the Dewalt and Ridgid saws at the Home Depot. So far, though, I’ve been pleased with the performance. It’s easy to adjust, square and accurate on the angles and bevels. The only complaint I have is the dust collection system. It doesn’t really collect the dust. It’s more that it splits the stream of sawdust coming off the blade and collects the little bit that sticks to the outside of the bag. I’m going to spend some time trying to adjust it, but even if it doesn’t get better it only bothers me so much. I’m a happy camper with this one–look out, crown moulding.

More Vista

curtis_franklin — Thu, 10 May 2007 04:11:24 +0000

Vista is, in many ways, like a new puppy: I enjoy taking it out, but I’m always on the lookout for stray puddles on the carpet. I’m working on a set of tests down at the university, and today was the first trip to the lab with the new Vista machine. On the whole, I was pleased. My laptop recognized the university wireless network, properly complained about a certificate, and asked just how vulnerable I wanted to be while I was there. Good stuff. On the other hand, I needed to download a file and Vista worked hard to keep me from storing it where I wanted.

That really sums up my experience with Vista, so far: Lots of good stuff with a lot of little annoyances thrown in to keep me from being enthusiastic. I’ll agree that it is, on balance, an improvement over Windows XP. I wish the 64-bit version was readily available (and usable) right now, but I’ll limp along with the junior version. With everything I’ve been through on the switch to Vista, though, there is one thing I’m confident of: If Apple released a version of the Macintosh OS that would run on my laptop I’d switch in a heartbeat. I’m confident I’m not alone in this. Apple should be listening.

Vista Continues

curtis_franklin — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 04:41:24 +0000

After a week of working with Vista I can say that I’m…still here. I can’t say that I’m thrilled with Vista, because I’m not, really. There’s the sort of “did I just survive that!?!” one often gets after a particularly reckless motorcycle stunt, but it’s not the kind of thrill you generally want in a business setting. There are some interesting things going on, but I should set this up just a bit…

I got my copy of Vista through the Express Upgrade program. My Gateway laptop, ordered in late November, shipped with XP, but I jumped through the hoops necessary to get my disc sent on its way. It arrived in due time, I backed up all my data files, and the Great Upgrade began.

I decided, against Microsoft’s advice, to try the update (rather than the clean install) for my first installation attempt. Big mistake. There’s nothing like a looping Blue Screen of Death in an OS install to get your attention. After an hour or so of trying to get the installation process to fix itself I gave up and did the clean install. Much better.

Vista comes alive, and it’s first impression time: Hmm, they seem to have given me a new toolbar. I’m a fan of the Google sidebar, so I look at the Microsoft version and spend about ten minutes with it before downloading Google.

Getting things set up was relatively straight forward, though it took a while before I got the MTU issue settled. I run a screwy custom MTU on my home network (thanks, BellSouth), and getting the new value established took a while. It was finally done, though, and I could start using the system.

First note: I’d been told that Office 2007 ran faster under Vista than under XP. My impression is that this is true, tbough the difference in performance isn’t nearly as great as I’d like. Perhaps if I work up the courage to upgrade to Vista 64…

More later, but it’s late. I’ll be back soon.

Preparing for Travel

curtis_franklin — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 20:33:46 +0000

We’re going to be going to Kyoto later this year so Carol can attend a conference, and we’ve started thinking about the software that will help us get ready for the trip, or be more productive while we’re there. The first task is to learn something about the language. We’ve looked at the Rosetta Stone software for Spanish and found it worthwhile, so we’re going to try Rosetta Stone software. We’ll see whether the software can help with what seems to me (a single-language guy) to be a difficult language to learn.

Has Anyone Seen my TARDIS?

curtis_franklin — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 02:50:05 +0000

Earlier this week I wrote about my adventures in Daylight Saving Time. In that post I mentioned that the Cingular support site said that my Samsung Blackjack didn’t need an update–that everything should be fine. That turned out not to be the case; I found the necessary patches and fixed my system. All worked out just fine.

Today, March 15, I received a text message from Cingular letting me know that we are going to change to Daylight Saving Time on March 11. Oh yes, my Blackjack will need a software update last Sunday. When I went to check this out on the Cingular Support Page, I found that the page had been updated to say that, yes indeed, I will need to update my Blackjack on or before the 11th.

I draw several lessons from this. First, it’s to Cingular’s credit that they did eventually figure it out and deliver correct information to their customers–I’m going to assume that other Blackjack owners got a similar message in their in-box today. Next, in a company the size of Cingular/AT&T you’d think they could find someone who has mastered verb tenses. They need some work on the whole past/present/future thing. Finally, while I give them credit for eventually sending out correct information, why wasn’t it available, oh, last Saturday (March 10th)? It’s not like this whole Daylight Saving Time were some last-minute surprise tossed at the phone company. There were announcements about this. It was in all the larger papers.

Of course, I shouldn’t complain too loudly, since Cingular is far from the only small business to have trouble with the shift to Daylight Saving Time. Yesterday when I flew back from San Francisco our Delta Air Lines 767 gave us the local time at our destination. Yep, their clock hadn’t gotten its new marching orders. It’s hard to explain just how much confidence that gave me as we soared into the sky. It was enough to make me forget all about my cell phone…