I'm getting ready to go to Mexico to participate in a Habitat for Humanity "Build 40 homes in 40 days" Lenten house build. I have most everything packed and am checking it twice. I'm taking my digital camera (of course to document EVERYTHING!) and an extra 1GB SD memory card (in case the first acts up). I'm taking my small laptop (the Lenovo Vista bomb). It just weighs less and and takes up less space. We'll be downloading our pictures at night and then burning DVDs or CDs at trips end. I'll have my Palm Pilot for playing music on the plane and contacts and calendar. I've decided not to take my cell phone since it won't work in Mexico and I don't need another thing to keep track of. I would lose my head if not attached.
Along with the above items I'm taking a USB ry card reader (my Lenovo will only take SD or MMC cards), extra battery and charger for my Canon digital camera, a small optical travel mouse and cables to handle most situations (Ethernet & Telephone). Of course we need the Lenovo battery charger.
Low tech items include a flashlight, water bottle, sunglasses, book and umbrella. I use my Ogio Backpack that has plenty of rum for my laptop, and all the other technology stuff. It has my Spanish/English dictionary and my airplane socks (experience travellers know what those are). I love all this fits in a backpack that can easily be stowed in the overhead compartment leaving my feet uncrushed.
I'll let you know when I get back (March 2) what the state of Mexican Technology in the boonies is like!
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
#118 - Cleaning up your new PC - death to Bloatware
So you just paid big bucks (hey in this day they are all big bucks!) for your brand spanking new PC. Its now yours to work with and enjoy over the next 3-4 years. But wait! As soon as you turn it on you notice some programs, make that lots of programs, that you don't know what they are and what they are doing on your PC. Well there is the trial ware - trial versions of software that expire in 30 or 60 days out. Antivirus and Office products make up this batch. Then there is the software that is the limited version of the software. Utilities like PC Doctor and Diskeeper make up this group. Lastly there are programs you have no idea what they do or why they are on your PC. This Mac ad really gets the point: http://movies.apple.com/movies/us/apple/getamac/apple-getamac-fat_480x376.mov
This addition of software you didn't specifically ask for has been going on for years. Lately it has got way out of control. All the programs install resident versions for updates, checking out your Internet browsing and generally tying up your memory. Loverly! The first thing I do on a new PC is to get rid of as many of these extras as I can. I also get rid of every trial program that I can find. If you want to try something you'll just download it from the web. I use a program called PCDecrapifier (no kidding that's what it is called) that makes the cleanup a bit easier. Download it here: http://www.pcdecrapifier.com/download
Here are some of the worst actors:
MS Office 60 day trial
Symantec Internet Security
McAfee Antivirus
WordPerfect Office
PC Doctor
Network Magic
Any toolbar but GoogleTool bar
Any desktop search engine
All photo programs
I hear that Dell gets $20 per PC to put them on. I wonder if they would charge $20 more per PC to leave them off?
This addition of software you didn't specifically ask for has been going on for years. Lately it has got way out of control. All the programs install resident versions for updates, checking out your Internet browsing and generally tying up your memory. Loverly! The first thing I do on a new PC is to get rid of as many of these extras as I can. I also get rid of every trial program that I can find. If you want to try something you'll just download it from the web. I use a program called PCDecrapifier (no kidding that's what it is called) that makes the cleanup a bit easier. Download it here: http://www.pcdecrapifier.com/download
Here are some of the worst actors:
MS Office 60 day trial
Symantec Internet Security
McAfee Antivirus
WordPerfect Office
PC Doctor
Network Magic
Any toolbar but GoogleTool bar
Any desktop search engine
All photo programs
I hear that Dell gets $20 per PC to put them on. I wonder if they would charge $20 more per PC to leave them off?
Monday, February 4, 2008
#117 - Wireless future
Technology definitely has taken a wireless route. We remember how excited we were when we first put in our home wireless router. Amazingly we still have that router (its a Linksys) though we have put big antennas on it and hacked the software for more range. We can now find out the latest on global warming from the comfort of our patio. There are plenty of new items on the wireless front that warrants a look from the "Technology Blog"!
Printers now come with wireless technology. You can set a printer up anywhere in the house or office and share it with everyone on your network. Wireless printers cost just a bit more so if you have a wireless network and need to replace your printer this might be a good upgrade.
The more expensive digital cameras have wireless built in so that you can send your pictures to your PC at a push of a button. We've seen some close up and really DO NOT like this technology. First it comes at a pretty high premium and the set up to get the pictures in the right place with the right names is not that good. I'd wait on this bit of high tech wizardry.
Next is wireless charging. With this technology you would be able to put your pocket devices (cell phone, PDA, MP3 player, even a laptop) on a special pad and it would charge them. The most promising of this breed uses inductive charging. Essentially the pad matches the resonance of your battery in close proximity (on the pad) and charging begins. No more plugging in those combersome power bricks everywhere. This great technology may be out by year end.
The last wireless technology is one I've thought of, but didn't know how to implement. How would you like to place your new 52" LCD/Plasma TV anywhere in the house and not worry about that cable/satellite wire? Wireless High-Definition Interface (WHDI) uses a transmitter to send 1080p high def video signal from a DVD player, game console or setup box up to 100 feet wirelessly. Its been shown at recent electronic trade shows so it should be at Best Buy soon.
Printers now come with wireless technology. You can set a printer up anywhere in the house or office and share it with everyone on your network. Wireless printers cost just a bit more so if you have a wireless network and need to replace your printer this might be a good upgrade.
The more expensive digital cameras have wireless built in so that you can send your pictures to your PC at a push of a button. We've seen some close up and really DO NOT like this technology. First it comes at a pretty high premium and the set up to get the pictures in the right place with the right names is not that good. I'd wait on this bit of high tech wizardry.
Next is wireless charging. With this technology you would be able to put your pocket devices (cell phone, PDA, MP3 player, even a laptop) on a special pad and it would charge them. The most promising of this breed uses inductive charging. Essentially the pad matches the resonance of your battery in close proximity (on the pad) and charging begins. No more plugging in those combersome power bricks everywhere. This great technology may be out by year end.
The last wireless technology is one I've thought of, but didn't know how to implement. How would you like to place your new 52" LCD/Plasma TV anywhere in the house and not worry about that cable/satellite wire? Wireless High-Definition Interface (WHDI) uses a transmitter to send 1080p high def video signal from a DVD player, game console or setup box up to 100 feet wirelessly. Its been shown at recent electronic trade shows so it should be at Best Buy soon.
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