I just read the review of the new Palm Centro at TreoCentral.com. It sounds wonderful. I was very excited to hear about it when it was announced, but after reading the review, I feel that it is a device that would change my life. I have used the Palm Treo 600, 650 and 700p. Each new generation has been better than the last. My only complaints about the Treo have been over form factor. It already does more and does it better than any other converged device on the market.
A few months ago, I discovered Business 2.0, a small magazine in the Time empire. I have read every issue since over and over again in the room where I do most of my reading.
I have bought the past few issues off the stands. I bought the October issue with every intent of filling out the subscription card this month replacing my Popular Photography subscription. I was very disappointed to read the banner across the top of the October Issue – "Collectors Item: Our Final Issue."
Apple products are beautiful and functional. Many people brag about their iPod or Mac’s stability, but there is a good reason that Macs are so stable. Apple is very restrictive as to what others are allowed to do with their systems.
For example, if you have a iPod, you can only use iTunes if you want to sync music to it. If you have another brand of media player, it will not work with iTunes.
Most standard hardware such as keyboards, mice and printers are compatable with both Macs and PCs, but when it comes to software, Apple has some very strict standards that developers must meet and money must exchange hands to apply for Apple approval.
I helped a broadband user cancel (yet keep) his AOL account today. Over a year ago, AOL stopped charging users who wanted to use their service over broadband. However, they did not tell their members about this change and continued charging them.
My client was still paying $23.95 per month for AOL. The conversation went kind of like this:
ME: Are you still paying for AOL?
HIM: Yes.
ME: How much?
HIM: $24 per month.
ME: You know that AOL is free now for broadband users.
HIM: Really? How is the free service different?
ME: It’s not. It’s exactly the same service, they just don’t charge you for it.
HIM: Why are they still charging me $24 per month?
ME: Because you haven’t asked them not to.
A customer of mine commented earlier in the week that he was “amazed” at my knowledge of computers. I thanked him then replied that all of my knowledge could fit in the head of a thimble. And it’s true. Many days I stew over how much more I would like to know and learn about computers, technology, programming (which I know butkus about), web design, and web marketing.
One reason I have been successful in supporting people and their computers is that I stick to the basics. Similar to cars, unless you REALLY know what you are doing and you don’t mind spending HOURS and HOURS troubleshooting a glitch, computers shouldn’t be expected to handle anything you dish out. Here are my five simple rules to living in harmony with your computer or any technology gadget.
I think that electronics aren’t as well made as they used to be. Correction: I know that electronics aren’t as well made as they used to be.
Not only are products more fragile and flimsy but repair costs are rising. Both of these facts have caused me to reconsider my opinion of extended warranties.
Not all extended warranties are a good deal, but I used to feel that they were almost always a waste of money. Lately though I have had to help people with products that were just barely out of their one year warranty.
Adding an additional year onto most products costs less than $100. A dead hard drive, motherboard, processor or video card in a computer’s second year of life can easily cost more than $100.
If I was independently wealthy, I would give discounts to customers with Windows Vista. Alas, I am not independently wealthy and my business supports my family, so I charge for time I spend in a client’s office or home. One customer , today, could have saved 30-40% off their bill had they bought one of the few remaining laptops with Windows XP.
For every Apple device that becomes a standard there is a Sony technology that becomes obsolete. Apple and Sony both got off to a great start in the early 80s. Apple introduced the Mac and Sony gave us the Walkman.
From that point on, Apple has had only a handful of market failures and Sony has had nothing but. Sony announced their latest casualty this week by discontinuing their proprietary ATRAC audio compression file format.
While the rest of the world committed to MP3 and WMA or Apple’s music format for iTunes, Sony made up their own format only supported by their devices. Sony saw Apple succeeding with their own format and device and figured they could do the same.
I really love English Bulldogs. Recently I became aware of a common pet scam that is based on every other over seas Internet scam. Someone from Cameroon posts a desired breed up for a ridiculously low price. He/she asks for money plus shipping. You never get the dog. Here is my recent correspondence with one such scammer. I have resorted… Read More »Fun with Cameroon Pet Scams
All-in-one printers have dropped so low in price the last couple of years that it poses a dilemma when the machine goes on the fritz. Decent all-in-ones can be found for right at $100 and some as low as $79. When one starts to malfunction, you need to really evaluate how much time and money is too much to spend on an inexpensive piece of equipment.
My thought is that if your printer cost around $100-125 new, I wouldn’t spend more than 1/2 that amount to get it fixed. If you are under warranty, by all means push the manufacturer for a fix. But once it is out of warranty, think long and hard on how much time and money is too much for the printer.