iPhone

Re-thinking my mobile tech

Rick
3 min read

Right now, I carry an iPhone, an Asus EeePC netbook (running Ubuntu 10.04 NBR) on a daily work day basis. When I travel, I carry the iPhone and usually the EeePC. I also own a 13″ Toshiba laptop that I dual boot Ubuntu and Windows 7, but I only use the Toshiba only for teaching and presentations.

My thought process is:

Should I sell both the Toshiba and the netbook and get a thinner, lighter laptop?
Just sell the netbook and stay with the Toshiba?
Sell the netbook and get an iPad or one of the upcoming iPad competitors running other operating systems?
Sell the Toshiba and the netbook, and get a slightly bigger netbook to replace both devices?

As a traveling tech trainer and troubleshooter, my netbook is extremely handy to have with me when Read More »Re-thinking my mobile tech

Cellular coverage at big events

Rick
1 min read

This weekend, I had the opportunity to take my son to the Sundance Film Festival. We are doing it on a shoestring by standing in line for stand-by and wait-list tickets and camping in our VW van at an RV park. So far, it has been great fun…except for cell coverage.

No matter what carrier folks use, they are complaining about slow network speeds, dropped calls, and inability to send texts. This isn’t unique to Sundance or Park City, Utah. Almost any time a largeRead More »Cellular coverage at big events

How to transfer your iTunes library & playlists to a new computer

Rick
3 min read

If you use an iPod, iTouch, or iPhone and plan on getting a new computer, you will want to read this article! OR, if you use any of these devices and want to make sure your library stays safe, you will want to read this article!

Yesterday, I helped a customer setup a new Windows 7 computer and transfer email, favorites, and other data from his old Windows XP computer. Turns out that he also needed to move his iTunes library of more than 8,000 songs and almost 150 playlists!

There isn’t too much I panic about when I arrive at a customer’s home or office, but moving large, customized iTunes libraries is something that does get me a little nervous. In the past, I have had to open an iTunes XML file in a word processor and then use find and replace to enter the path to the storage location on the new computer. It was extremely difficult and tedious.

I am happy to report that I successfully transferred the entire 36 gigabyte library and playlists usingRead More »How to transfer your iTunes library & playlists to a new computer

iPhone continues to amaze me

Rick
6 min read

iPhone continues to amaze me

Actually, I should say the developers who use the tools made available by the iPhone technologies amaze me. I just returned from a short weekend trip with some golf buddies and downloaded a relatively new application called Golfshot from golfshot.com. The application combines the GPS and touch-screen capabilities of the iPhone into an incredibley easy and intuitive way to keep score on the course, plan shots, and make your way around a course. When playing golf on new courses, this technology helps quite a bit.

When GPS started to creep into golf carts and then into expensive handhelds, I was unsure of its place in the golf game. However, a friend of mine reminded me that on almost any course, you can purchase a yardage book. A yardage book gives a golfer a paper form of what a GPS does in digital form…yardages, elevations, and other information.

Golfshot catalouges a large a majority of the golf courses in the United States and is expanding quickly. When I arrived at our first Chicago golf course (again, I never played in Chicago before), all I did was turn the iPhone on, tap the Golfshot application and within seconds, the application found my location and showed me the golf courses nearest me from closest to furthest away. I tapped the course I was at and selected the tees I would be playing from and within a few more seconds, I was presented with the yardage, an aerial view and GPS distances of various landmarks for the first hole. GPS distances are achieved through special flags the golf course uses to transmit its location.

In addition to the yardage and landmark info, at the end of each hole, I can very quickly tap in my score, number of putts, which club I used on the tee, whether I hit the fairway, number of shots out of sand, and if I incurred any penalties. This can be done in literally 15-20 seconds because of the magnificent job the Golfshot programmers did on designing the interface.

As a statistic and tech junkie, I was blown away by the data and charts the program automatically tracks and tallies for me the more I use the program. The only problem I see with the progra is that it increases my desire to want to golf more often…requiring more time (and money) that I have at the moment. But for golfers who enjoy tracking their rounds and their golf games and receive on-course geographic assitance, this $30 application is nothing short of amazing.

Actually, I should say the developers who use the tools made available by the iPhone technologies amaze me.

I just returned from a short weekend trip with some golf buddies and had downloaded a relatively new application called Golfshot from golfshot.com for the trip. The application combines the GPS and touch-screen capabilities of the iPhone into an incredibley easy and intuitive way to keep score on the course, plan shots, and make your way around a course. When playing golf on new courses, this technology helps make the day a little more enjoyable by not being surprised to see a body of water or ravine or sand trap around a corner or over a hill. All things that caddies do for professional golfers and young caddies used to do for all golfers in yesteryear.

When GPS started to creep into golf carts and then into expensive handhelds, I was unsure of Read More »

7 Tech items I would take to college

Rick
1 min read

I graduated from college almost 10 years before computers started being a main stream college accessory. I would love to be a student again not only because I enjoy learning, but I would love to have access to the technologies today’s students use every day.

The most advanced piece of tech I used in college was the HP 41 CV programmable calculator with the magnetic card strip reader attachment. I loved that calculator, and to this day, it is the only kind of machine I have truly programmed. Yikes, sorry for the geek flashback.

If I was going to college this fall, I would take and useRead More »7 Tech items I would take to college

My iPhone applications after 10 months

Rick
2 min read

iphoneapps — Click photo for full size view

From 1997 through August of 2008, I used only Palm based handheld organizers then the Visor Phone, Palm Treo 300, Treo 600, and Treo 755p. I purchased an iPhone in August of 2008 because the iPhone proved itself in its short year of existence to be a valuable product, added the ability to allow third party applications, and gained access to the faster cellular networks. With very few exceptions, I couldn’t be happier and haven’t missed my old Palm products.

I use my iPhone for many more functions than just the phone. So almost a year later, I took the following screen shot of the additional software I have added to the iPhone (some of it free, some of it purchased). I added 42 applications to my iPhone so far. Of these 42, I use maybe 8 of them regularly, and the rest sparingly.

After looking over this list, most of my apps are free ones. That could mean I’m either one cheap SOB or there are some excellent free applications out there. The answer is probably somewhere in the middle.

Here’s the breakdown:Read More »My iPhone applications after 10 months

How to add a web application to the iPhone home screen – Video Tip

Rick
1 min read

Popular demand (among new iPhone users) prompted me to add this quick, yet helpful iPhone tip. Don’t worry non-iPhone users…there is a tip for you at the end of the article…keep reading or skip to the end!

To add a web page or application you frequently use to your iPhone home screen:

Start Safari
Navigate to the page you want to add
Tap the Add Bookmark button at the bottom of the screen (+ sign)
Tap Add to Home Screen
Type the name you want to attach to the bookmark or accept what is given
Tap Add in the upper right hand corner

That’s it, easy, but extremely handy!Watch the short video below to see this tip in action.

Customizing your iPhone home screen – Video Tip

Rick
2 min read

This is a pretty specific tip for a relatively new device, but with WalMart now carrying iPhones more and more people will want and need to learn how to take advantage of their investment. The iPhone is a wonderful little tool…IF you learn how to use it and make it work for you.

One of the first things you can do with any piece of technology is customize it to fit your needs. With the iPhone, learning to customize the interface makes the unit more usable for you. This week, I show iPhone users how to customize the location of their icons on the iPhone launch screen or home screen.

Touch and hold your finger on any icon
When the icons start to jiggle, take your finger off the icon.
Now you can drag any icon to any position by touching and dragging it to a new location or even a new screen by dragging it to the left or right edge of the screen.
You can also drag the default icons off the toolbar at the bottom and drag the ones you use most often to the toolbar
When you are finished moving your icons to positions that work best for you, push the button at the bottom of your iPhone.

As always, these tips make more sense by watching the video! And even if you aren’t an iPhone user, I think you will find it interesting to see the kind of tech that can be found in a phone today.

Treo, what Treo?

Rick
3 min read

iPhone 3G Screen Shot After two solid months of using my iPhone 3G, I decided it was time for a short update. As many of you know, I used a Palm device for many years, ending with the Treo from 2003 through this August. When the first iPhone came out, I was intrigued, but thought Apple missed the boat, for me, by not utilizing the fastest cellular data network and not allowing 3rd party applications. When they announced the new iPhone last January and finally released it this summer, they had added the fast cellular network service and opened the system for third party development. It caught my attention in a big way this as it has 7 million other new iPhone 3G owners since its release in July.

Overall, the iPhone has performed wonderfully and with the exception of no cut, copy and paste (when Apple? when?) it has performed admirably. I have been able to duplicate all the functions I used the Treo for, and added many new capabilities. I use the phone the most…after all, it is a cell phone. The visual voice mail system that lets you pick which message to listen to first or have the ability to visually pause, rewind or fast forward voice mail is stunningly implemented and makes managing voice mail much easier.

For extra applications, I settled on SplashID to manage my passwords, Grocery Zen to create shopping lists (I get through the store in at least 25% less time now), Now Playing to look up movie times, Pandora for listening to music (don’t have much time to do this, but it works well), Woot On! to check the daily Woot, but especially helpful when there is a Woot Off, WeDict for a dictionary, Wikipanion for great mobile access to Wikipedia, SportsTap keeps me up to date on sports I follow, Units application for converting volume, length, weight, etc. I also downloaded and occasionally use Word Warp, Sudoku, Tris (tetris clone), reMovem, and Blocks Classic for quick games. For future travel, I downloaded the mobile versions of Yelp and Hotels.com.

The built-in email application works well, and I use it daily in addition to browsing the web. The iPhone truly has exceeded

My pick for the best technology currently available

Rick
3 min read

Editors note: Of course, I’m going to exempt smartphones (my current favorite is the iPhone 3G) because these are necessary to 21st century living.

Next to the smartphone, my vote for best technology currently available is the Digital Video Recorder (DVR). A DVR replaces the venerable VHS recorder for recording television programming. DVR’s use hard drives to record the programming digitally and require about a tenth of the knowledge necessary to program a VCR. The hard drives can record from 40 HD hours to almost 200 hours of programming. With DVR’s, there is never a tape to change or rewind, and the quality of the recording is flawless no matter how many times you watch it.

Another plus with DVR’s is their advanced fast forward feature. All DVR’s have a skip button on the remote that skips 30-60 seconds in one push. Does that time period sound familiar? Yes, it’s the length of a commercial. When watching a sitcom, most commercial breaks last about 3 to 4 minutes…a few quick presses of the DVR’s skip button and you are watching the next segment. A 30 minute program can be finished in about 19 minutes…I’ll take 11 minutes wherever I can get them. And a one hour crime drama can be over in about 40 minutes!

Sorry Oprah and Dr. Phil fans, daytime talk shows cannot be recorded with a DVR.*

Right now my family is recording nearly 18 hours of Olympic programming every day, but we can watch all that in about 4 hours or so by using the variable speed of the DVR’s fast forward feature. Very helpful to skip through boring soccer matches or 50 KM race walking at 300X speed. But because the recordings are digital, you can actually keep track of the action and