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Test Post From HTC Thunderbolt

2011-03-23T22:27:00.001-04:00

The green is definitely green, the orange not so much.

How Did I Do With Last Years Technology Predictions?

2011-01-06T13:07:00.000-05:00

How Did I Do With Last Years Technology Predictions?Prior to CES 2011 I sat down and listened to my video from last year regarding 2010: Year of the UMPC… Finally!!! to see how well I had done with my prediction(s). From a big picture point of view I think I hit it bang on, a lot of the technology news for 2010 was about the impact of tablets in the tech market, they just weren’t running a Microsoft operating system! The biggest impact was made by Apple’s iPad but by late in the year the iPad was being given a run for its money by a number of Android devices most notable the Samsung Galaxy Tab although Marco Arment makes a very good point, its about the user experience/adoption not the technology itself.

I didn’t fare as well (to put it mildly) on my other predictions about technologies that would be included in tablet devices;

The creation of content without a keyboard- Even though voice input technology to assist with creation of content exists and works fairly well I suspect we still feel a little bit self conscious about dictating i.e. talking to ourselves. With the decline of the use of secretaries in the workplace perhaps the art of dictation has ben lost. Since the iPad did not include any cameras the creation of video content using tablets was also a non-starter, however this prediction may be salvaged during 2011 by users of Android tablets with cameras and the rumored inclusion of a camera in Apple’s next release of the iPad.
Wireless docking station – this hasn’t been necessary due to the “lighter” operating systems used in tablet devices which don’t support viewing on multiple monitors, external storage devices, and other peripherals typically associated with a PC.
Wireless charging – basically manufacturers really fell down here, this is available for phones, although primarily as a 3rd party add-on and hasn’t really been adopted by any manufacturers other than Palm.

Blogger Labels: Technology,Predictions,UMPC,tablets,Microsoft,Apple,Android,Galaxy,Palm,iPad

While writing this, I was listening to "Michael Tozzi’s ijazzglobal.com".

Welcome, 2011

2011-01-01T22:13:00.001-05:00

It is the start of a new year and as of tomorrow the start of a new for me personally which means it is time to think about starting some new practices and resetting/re-committing to some old ones.

Things I Need To Focus On;

I’ve never been very good at keeping track of tasks and staying on top of them so that is on of the things I want to work on this year. As part of that I am trying to focus on priority management on a daily basis, putting things into a matrix that looks at importance and urgency.

	Urgent	Not-Urgent
Important
Not-Important

Part of my strategy this year is to make better use of gadgets to help me stay on top of things. I’m using Tasks in MS Outlook and linking that that to Appigo’s ToDo application on the iPad.

One of my key goals this year is a change in my work role. For a while now, due to a re-alignment caused by a review of corporate Span & Control, I’ve been an individual contributor but I miss managing staff. I’m a big fan of Manager Tools and spent a lot of time during the past year re-listening to the majority of the Manager Tools and Career Tools podcasts. As always the more times I listen to these podcasts the the more I gain from them and I would like to put what I have learned into practice. This may mean leaving my current employer if I cannot find a suitable role internally.

(Re-)Developing Some Key Skills;

My role hasn’t required me to due much “writing to persuade” and for lack of practice I find I have lost that skill. I spent part of last year reading The Minto Pyramid Principle: Logic in Writing, Thinking, & Problem Solving by Barbara Minto. I didn’t finish it but need to re-dedicate myself to finishing it and putting its principle’s into practice. I ordered my own copy via Amazon today so that I don’t have to keep the county library’s copy out for an extended period of time.

The Minto Pyramid Principle: Logic in Writing, Thinking, & Problem Solving

Education

For the past couple of year’s I’ve also wanted to take an MBA, but with one daughter just graduated from college and a second one just starting there isn’t room in the budget for me to pursue that at the moment. I’m also not entirely convinced of an MBA’s ability to pay for itself, particularly in my current role. Just because I’m not able to pursue a degree at the moment doesn’t mean that I shouldn’t pursue the knowledge. To that end I intend to ensure my reading includes books listed in the Personal MBA Reading List.

Blogging

For the past several years I’ve had a number of blogs including this one. I have posted sporadically but recognize that, even just as my own record, I should post on a regular basis. This year I would hope to post regularly to this blog as well as another one I keep for Information Security Issues.

The above list isn’t an exhaustive list of what I hope to do this year in terms of personal development but if, with everything else that is going on this year, I can accomplish 80% of the above I will have done well.

While writing this, I was listening to "iPad Today 21: Holiday Shopping Apps, Spirits, Boutiques, Goodreader, 4.2 Goodness!" by Leo Laporte and Sarah Lane (I’m running my own personal iPad Today Marathon this weekend).

Blogger Labels: Pyramid Principle,Manager Tools,goals,Career,Skills,Amazon,Education,degree

Test post from iPad

2010-07-12T12:40:00.001-04:00

I am using BlogWriter which is an iPhone app. This would be much better on the iPad if it supported screen rotation.

Tools Don’t Make The (Project) Manager.

2010-03-13T23:03:00.004-05:00

It seems that a “twitterview” is creating quite a tempest in a teapot among some members of the project management community who regularly express themselves on the Internet. For those of you who haven’t heard of it a twitterview is simply an interview, i.e. question, answer, question answer, done via twitter. The interesting part is that the question and the answer are limited to 140 characters (well not really since a question can be asked or answered in multiple tweets by the same person). Trying to ask or answer a question in 140 characters can however be quite challenging, it requires that the person tweeting, be it the questioner or the responder, has to be clear and concise.

The twitterview between Geoff Crane (@PapercutPM) who I have mentioned here earlier and Jhaymee Wilson (@TheGreenPM) caused a stir with Glen Alleman which caused him to post an article on his blog Herding Cats. Glen raised the question of whether twitter is an effective means of communication, and I’m going to jump in and express my opinion.

Is Twitter a “serious adult communication” tool?

When I initially started using it I didn’t see the value of twitter, it seemed like a broadcast only medium, and for some that is all it will ever be. Twitter is a tool and whether or not it is effective or not depends on the person using it As management guru Peter Drucker said communication is what the listener does and twitter may actually be a more effective tool for ensuring communication than other tools such as e-mail or even the phone. Unlike e-mail twitter lends itself much more to being a real-time conversation mechanism and by the very nature of its 140 character limit it allows (almost demands) interruption of the “talker” by the “listener”. We’ve all been on conference calls where someone starts down a train of thought and talks, seemingly without taking a breathe, for many minutes before stopping to see if there are any comments or questions. All of us listening on the phone have been painfully aware that for some time one or more members of the “audience” have been trying to interrupt to ask a question or express a view. E-mail is the equivalent of the conversation that goes on without interruption, the speaker can ramble on for sentences, paragraphs or pages trying to express themselves with no feedback from their intended audience. In twitter its very difficult for this to happen. Twitter by its nature of limiting the speaker to 140 characters forces the speaker to look at the screen occasionally where any responses will show up, and the limitation of 140 characters requires that the user think about the choice of words that they use to express themselves.

One of the problems with using twitter to have a conversation is that it’s like trying to have a conversation in a loud noisy bar. There are multiple conversations about things that have nothing to do with your subject going on all around you and it can be difficult to separate your discussion from the others. In order to ignore all the other chatter you have to put on a filter, usually in the form of a unique #hashtag, and you may want to even consider some specialized tools such as Bettween (http://www.bettween.com/) or Tweetchat (http://www.tweetchat.com/) The limitation with specialized tools like Bettween is that if they thread the conversation based on username rather than hashtag and you can miss that someone else is trying to join the conversation. Tweetchat solves this problem by following the hashtag rather than the username but if your hashtag isn’t unique or too many people join the conversation it can be hard to follow.

My conclusion is that twitter is just a tool and like most tools it works best when used for the job it was intended for by its designer, in skilled hands it can be effectively and creatively used to do truly amazing things, and in a pinch it can be pressed into service by the unskilled to do things it was never intended for… it just won’t give the best results.

Project Management (PM) 2.0

Mixed in with the topic of twitter as a serious communications tools was the issue of PM2.0, which the Wikipedia entry on the subject refers to as “social project management”, a concept in which project management moves away from a centralized control approach to a decentralized collaborative environment. While Web 2.0 tools can play a part in this approach they won’t likely be a driving force in the leap from a traditional (PM1.0) environment to a PM2.0 methodology. Although there is some overlap between Web 2.0 (collaborative) tools such as twitter and PM2.0 practices these 2 things should not be confused. The driving force in changing project management will be the success of PM2.0 projects, which will only occur if project teams can adapt a changing management style, not the tools the project managers use. Having worked in groups where corporate culture mandated trying to trying to adapt away an authoritarian management style to a collaborative style I can tell you that this is a huge change for all involved and I haven’t seen it be particularly effective. In fact it often leads to a form of paralysis and weakness where decisions take significantly longer and are often based on the “lowest common denominator” solution. If PM2.0 is to succeed it will require a significant change in standard project management behavior, moving away from High D (dominant) management behavior towards a style requiring High I (influential) behavior in order to move tasks and the overall project forward.

Although I have been, and am currently actively involved as, a Subject Matter Expert (SME) in numerous projects, my work responsibilities don’t call for me to be project manager. I can (and hope to this year) learn the necessary material to allow me to take and pass the PMP exam. Even though I am High D passing the exam won’t necessarily make me a project manager, at least not a great one, but it will indicate that I know something about project management. There are a lot of project managers (with and without PMP certification) out there, the best ones aren’t necessarily certified or authoritarian, but they are leader’s with an great mix if behaviors that include the ability to master High C (conscientious), High D (dominant) and High I (influential) behaviors in order to get the job done and whether a project is run using the PM1.0 or PM2.0 concept these managers will get the job done.

Technorati Tags: Twiter,PMP

While writing this, I was listening to "Michael Tozzi’s ijazzglobal.com"

Advancing your career requires networking.

2010-03-01T08:49:00.001-05:00

Technorati Tags: Networking,Connecting

As part of my ongoing quest to keep my career moving I picked up a copy of Who Gets Promoted, Who Doesn't and Why Ten Things You'd Better Do If You Want to Get Ahead by Donald Asher. I’m only a few chapters in but I just ran across this line “Book learners – those who primarily get their information from static media – often don’t become fast track careerists,”. This makes me wonder if reading this book is really the right thing to do ;-) but also serves to reinforce the valuable advice in the Manager-Tools podcast series, advancing your career requires you to meet people and build your network.

As a high D high C (as defined by DiSC profiling) the behavior I naturally exhibit is not conducive to building a network and unfortunately it has taken me longer that is best for my career to learn this. By networking I am not talking about a list of people in a book or on a website or computer somewhere, I am talking about a group of people whom I actually know something about. For my network I prefer whenever possible to have actually met the person, or at least spoken to them on the phone. I have a few people in my network whose face I have never seen or whose voice I have never heard but most of those I have had some extended contact with via e-mail of some other communication method. For those that don’t fit any of the above it’s time I reached out and got to know something more about them.

What are you doing to build your network?

Snowstorm cripples Eastern Seaboard

2010-02-06T14:39:00.001-05:00

The extent of snow in my area of northern New Jersey! All the white stuff you see here is from earlier this week. Other areas of the eastern seaboard are not fairing so well http://wickedstageact2.typepad.com/life_on_the_wicked_stage_/2010/02/snow-oh-no.html

2010: Year of the UMPC… Finally!!!

2010-01-10T20:14:00.002-05:00

One of the major “themes” at CES 2010 has been the introduction of numerous table/slate devices. My thought on these devices and what we can’t expect this year can be found in this video.

Gadget Bag Re-Hash Part 2: Extended Trips

2009-11-01T12:13:00.001-05:00

This post is part of a series I’m doing to;
a) document my equipment and how I use it, as well as determine what changes I should make to it,
b) put together an entry for the Skooba Design “Master of the Digital Universe” contest.

The Bag
In an earlier post I detailed my “Everyday Gear Bag” which is the shoulder bag portion a Consumer Electronics Show (CES) backpack that unzips from the main portion of the backpack. Both halves are pictured below, separately and zipped together.

For the most part the backpack portion is made up of three zippered compartments and two side mesh pockets.

The smallest zippered compartment is on the top of the bag right next to your body when you are wearing it. The compartment is intended to hold a personal media device such as an MP3 player and could hold a small CD player. A small grommet like opening in the top of the bag can be used to connect headphones for listening while wearing the backpack.

A somewhat larger compartment (compartment #2 in this photo) is on the back (farthest away from your body) of the backpack. This compartment has a zipper across the top of it and measures roughly 8 inches across and 10 inches tall and about 3 inches deep.

The largest compartment of the backpack is accessed by a two-way zipper that runs from one side of the backpack up and over the top and then down the other side. This compartment is roughly 15 inches across X 18 inches tall X 6 inches deep and is divided in 2 by a padded partition that is approximately 2/3 the height of the compartment.

To help keep things organized in the main compartment I sewed (yes I am a multi-talented individual) a custom insert that with a stiff spine and numerous compartments on both sides (front and back) to hold all my necessities. The compartments are enclosed using flaps sealed with Velcro.The various compartments are noted in these Flickr photos of the front and back of the organizer.

In addition to creating the organizer I also made a couple of minor modifications to the backpack itself. At the top of each of mesh pockets on the sides of the backpack I added some metal grommets and some webbing material which allowed me to run a piece of shock cord to help hold the pockets closed or to securely hold items such as a water bottle to prevent them from falling out. I also added a chest strap and plastic buckles which are used to help hold the shoulder straps together when the backpack is heavily loaded.

The Gear
The small compartment on top of the backpack seldom holds equipment but is a great place to stash some high protein snack (my favorites are Payday bars and beef jerky) or perhaps some M&Ms or extra Kleenex packs.

Compartment #2 (the mid-size one) holds a CD case with recovery disks for my laptop and DVDs with install files for required applications in addition to my travel router, a Motorola WR850G along with its wall wart and a 6 foot Ethernet cable. The original Motorola firmware has been replaced with OpenWRT. OpenWRT allows me to use the router as a standard wireless access point (WAP) when the only internet connection available is a wired port, or as a wireless bridge when only wireless is available and I need to connect up devices that only have wired Ethernet capability. And on those rare occasions when the only strong wireless signal is not at a point in the room where it is convenient to work (i.e. standing in front of a window) I can configure the router to act as a wireless repeater rebroadcasting the wireless signal throughout my work area.

The main compartment holds the organizer insert and on occasion a second laptop (the power brick and mouse can be accommodated in the spare accessory compartments of the organizer). The organizer is intended to hold the technology items that I feel I need for creature comfort and disaster recovery when away from base for extended periods. Creature comforts means a small four outlet power bar to stretch the capabilities of the one available outlet found in most hotel rooms, as well as a Logic3 i-Station iPod dock with powered speakers and a sub-woofer and my Nintendo DS Lite and a handful of games (Brain Boost, Big Brain Academy, Brain Age) to keep my mind sharp. There is also Asphalt 2, Metroid, Super Mario, Lego Stare Wars and Star Trek Tactical Assault for those times when my brain is just numb. Also tucked into my DS case is a small wall wart. A couple of WD Passport drives allow me to backup my laptop no matte where I am (important stuff does get created just at home!) and to have large media files such as movies available for entertainment.

I also have a small (but very stable and substantial) desktop tripod for those times when I want a picture but no one is available to take it. This is a great little tripod, I’ve actually used it to hold a larger video camera (from about 1997) stable. I initially ran across one of these about five years ago and when I ran across them again in a surplus store bought a couple more for $2.00 a piece. I also carry a couple of 12 foot Ethernet cables which I can use with the router to create a small ad-hoc workgroup network for collaboration or demonstrations which require computers to be networked. In additional to a wall wart for my work BlackBerry I have several small zippered pouches which contain various small components and accessories.

The pouch labeled iPod contains a wall wart with a retractable cable, a Griffin iTalk and Griffin lapel microphone for recording directly to my iPod, an iPod Photo adapter to allow dumping photos from my camera to my iPod, a 6 foot audio cable with 3.5mm stereo plugs on both ends, and an audio adapter - 3.5mm jack to 2 RCA plugs.

The “cables” pouch is filled with a RJ-11 (telephone) splitter, a FireWire retractable cable and 2 6 wire to 4 wire adapters, a 4 port unpowered USB hub, 2 USB retractable cables and a variety of adapters for the USB cables (USB-RJ45, USB-RJ45 crossover, USB-RJ11, USB-USB mini, USB Type A-USB Type BUBS Type A-USB Mini-A, USB Type A male-USB Type A male). Also included is a USB to USB Micro-B cable to connect my Kodak C533 to a computer for transfer of any pictures stored in the cameras internal memory. This happens on occasion when I inadvertently hit the SD card and don’t realize it is still in the camera bit no longer engaged.

A pouched marked “Webcam” now holds the wall wart and remote control for the Logic3 iStation. The last pouch, “Tools” holds a Leatherman multi-tool, small straight and Philips screwdrivers and a 10 foot tape measure.When flying I have to remember to move this pouch to my checked luggage, or remove it all together if I won’t be checking any luggage.

For overseas trips a Brookstone “world adapter kit” finds its way into one of the miscellaneous accessory pockets in the organizer insert.

One other organizational note. In the pictures you will note that orange tends to be a color that shows up over and over (all the bags, the Ethernet cables, the Velcro cable ties). In addition to being my favorite color it also makes equipment identification very easy when I am working with others and we all have equipment out. It also makes equipment stand out against a dark background or in a dimly lit room.

Technorati Tags: Gear Bag,Equipment

While writing this, I was listening to "JAZZRADIO.com - Latin Jazz" on iTunes radio

I’ve been working remotely for over a year

2009-10-21T18:59:00.001-04:00

I just published a post in which I linked back to a previous post. In looking a some of my older posts I was shocked to realize that I’ve been working “remotely” for well over a year.

In this case working remotely means that I spend the majority of my time outside of a company office. During that time I’ve worked as both a manager of staff and an individual contributor.

As a manager I managed a small group that worked with staff supporting data centers around the globe and guided them through a process we created which allowed them to demonstrate compliance with ISO 27001 (Information technology — Security techniques — Information security management systems — Requirements) and become certified under that standard. This was no small feat as it involved 25 different data centers globally and in the case of 2 regions the scope was expanded to include the entire technology support operation in those regions. This process took nearly a year to organize, plan, and document and was implemented in under 11 months. When the dust had settled and all the audits were completed and the reports submitted there had been no nonconformities found during any of the audits. Around the middle of this project I began to transition my staff to allow then to work outside the office 2 days a week and by the end of the project they were working remotely 3 days a week. Because of the varying time zones involved in a global project like this the ability to work outside the office made working a more flexible schedule more palatable as well, which was particularly important when working with the Asian region where their work day does not overlap that of workers on the US eastern seaboard.

This year I turned the BAU process and the team over to another manager and became involved in ensuring a clean and secure divestiture of two of our foreign divisions to two other companies. The difficult part of this project was not to be removing these users from our environment, but rather, since we sold the divisions to companies we contracted with to perform the services these division previously performed, to remove them from our network but provide a safe, secure way for them to perform the same services while on the other companies’ networks and connecting to ours. To date we are winding up the divestiture of the smaller division and the solution we implemented for them serves as the prototype for the larger division and for future divestitures where the divested entity will need to access our environment for an extended period. Since nearly all of the work to divest the smaller entity took place in Asia the flexibility of working from home greatly enhanced my attitude. For status calls during Asia’s evening I was able to roll out of bed in the early hours of my morning, grab some caffeine (I like mine cold, carbonated, and in a can or bottle) and head straight to my desk in my home office. Working this way has also allowed me to attend, virtually, day long work shops held during the daylight hours in Asia. And where I’ve had to attend a meeting in the middle of my night (their day) I’ve set my alarm, gotten up, joined the meeting and at the conclusion gone back to bed. The real bonus though is that if I have been up especially early I can set my alarm and grab a couple of hours sleep during the day. My management and my peers are well aware of the hours I am keeping and understand when I tell them I am going off line for a few hours.

Obviously this has been a win for the company in that it has allowed me to be involved in projects around the globe without damaging my morale by dragging me out of bed in the middle of the night or early morning and then requiring me to make the commute to work to attend more meetings or worse yet wake up extra early because I need to be in the office before the first meeting starts because I have back to back to back meetings. In addition to this I save wear and tear on my car, save on gas and don’t spend a horrendous amount on lunches. It has however also increased my utility bills (more hours of heat in the winter and cooling in the summer).

While this has worked out well for both the company and myself in terms of productivity gains I’m not sure they have yet been able to realize the savings they had hoped for in terms of their real estate costs. Most of my colleagues are working in the office 2 days a week which means the company should have been able to see a savings of 50% in our floor space requirements (not accounting for “public” spaces and shared facilities such as conference and break rooms). There are however still issues of space consolidation and ultimately the non-renewal of leases or sub-letting and sale of space to be dealt with. Over the long term however the company could see a a significant cost savings from employees working remotely.

The major nagging question I currently have is whether I will ever be willing to go back to a 5 day a week, 9-5 office job.

Gadget Bag Re-Hash Part 1: My everyday bag

2009-10-19T20:24:00.001-04:00

It appears it’s time to update the “What’s In My Gear Bag” post, particularly in light of the Skooba Design “Master of the Digital Universe” contest.

I have 2 bags, my everyday bag which I take to work or when I think I’m going to need some substantial connectivity when I’m away or on 1-2 day trips , and my going away for a week or more bag.

Although I work for a single employer, I am typically in the office only one day per work. Most days I work from my home office or if I am feeling like I need a change of scenery I grab my day bag and head for the local library or a coffee shop where I can take advantage of cheap or free wireless.

The bag itself is the shoulder bag portion a Consumer Electronics Show (CES) backpack that unzips from the main portion of the backpack. I initially bought on eBay with only a vague idea of what it looked like because I am partial to the color orange (did you notice all the orange Velcro cable wraps?)I’ve added a couple of minor modifications (sewn rings and snaps into an inner compartment to help hold things in place, and added some re-enforcement to high stress areas around the handle). After 2 years of almost constant use its starting to show some wear and tear as evidenced by the torn mesh of the outer pocket. The material on one of the internal dividers is also ripped and some parts of the fabric on the outer portion of the bag are also getting thin. Despite all this I have yet to find a bag that is easier to access and better suited to my everyday needs. For you jkontherun fans this is the same bag Kevin refers to in his April 30, 2009 Web Worker Daily post What’s In Your Bag, Kevin C. Tofel?

Although I could make my load lighter by using the same devices for both work and personal use, for the most part I tend not to overlap my personal and work life in terms of data and services. This means that I carry a Blackberry that is dedicated to work e-mail and a Windows Mobile 6.1 based Samsung i910 Omnia cell phone that I also use for my personal e-mail. In addition to these two devices, a Marware iPod case with a 60BG iPod Photo, iPod wired remote and iPod ear buds go with me everywhere.

Go to Flickr to see this photo with identifying notes.

My primary PC is a Lenovo X61 Tablet (Core 2 Duo 1.6GHz, 4GB memory 500GB HD)which serves as the central platform to host and charge all of the above devices when I am on the road. When in laptop mode I use it with a Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 which can be used as a remote controller when presenting. A Caselogic 6 Capacity USB Drive Shuttle is used to hold the necessary cables to connect the Blackberry Samsung Omnia, and iPod to the Thinkpad. In addition it holds the FM radio antenna for the Omnia. a retractable audio/video output cable for the iPod, the USB soundcard for the Logitech headset (next paragraph) and 4 SanDisk micro thumb drives. An outside mesh pouch holds a Secure Computing Safeword card for authenticating to the corporate network.

Additional tech includes the power adapter for the Lenovo, a ten foot UTP Ethernet cable ,a Microsoft LifeCam NX-6000 for videoconferencing, and a Logitech Premium Notebook Headset with a Seidio adapter that lets me convert a standard PC headset/microphone with 2 3.5mm plugs to a single 2.5mm plug for use with a cell phone. This combination performs far better as a phone headset than any other headset I have ever tried.

Rounding out the contents of my bag are a Boorum & Pease record book I use to keep my notes at work (if you want to know why a guy with a tablet PC uses a paper notebook see my Old School post), a Moleskine Pocket notebook to jot down quick ideas not related to work, pen, pencil, eraser stick, highlighters, and Sharpie in the obligatory geek pocket protector, a pair of double ended whiteboard markers, my passport, and a cheque book. Also tucked inside my bag are a small Maglite on a keychain with the key for my docking station and a microfiber cloth to try and remove fingerprints from my touch screen devices.

On the shoulder strap of my bag are two camera cases. One holds a Kodak EasyShare C533 (5 megapixel) digital camera with a 1 GB SD Card and the other holds a variety of personal hygiene item (folding toothbrush, dental floss, nail clipper, Chapstick, Tylenol, Motrin, gum and Kleenex).

This setup packs everything I need on a regular basis into a very compact, relatively light, load that I take practically everywhere. And despite the small size there is still enough spare space to tuck in a collapsible umbrella on rainy days.

Technorati Tags: Gearbag Equipment

While writing this, I was listening to "JAZZRADIO.com - Latin Jazz" in iTunes radio.

Tablet of the Future (PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

2009-09-22T23:24:00.001-04:00

There has been a lot of noise lately about a potential Apple tablet. What’s really funny are some of the comments on the Apple focus blog sites about how recent news about a tablet from Microsoft is an attempt by Microsoft to copy Apple and enter the tablet market. For those of us who have been using tablets for awhile this is hilarious. Microsoft has had tablet extensions since Windows 2000 and produced a special version of XP with designed specifically for OEMs of tablet PCs.

Now comes word that Microsoft has a tablet under development that uses 2 screens with a hinged spine to allow it to close like a book. Its generating a lot of excitement as something new, but for those who have been following the tablet scene for a while it seems familiar. If you need a hint check out Ken Hinckley’s blog post from October 1, 2008. Ken talks about and shows off in pictures his “Codex” made from 2 OQO model 2 PCs and running a customized interface based on InkSiene. I loved this from the moment I first read about it and even considered creating my own primitive version using 2 TC1100’s.

Since I am sorely lacking in programming skills my intent was to use off the shelf products to create a system small networked system that I could take to meetings, using the left side (I’m right handed) to control connectivity with the outside world and running Internet Connection Sharing to connect to the second via wired Ethernet. Besides controlling connectivity to the outside world the left side would primarily function as a “consumer” of information, holding a repository of reference material viewed using e-book readers, PDF Annotator (for reading and marking up PDF files), and viewers for Microsoft Office files. The right side would be where I would take notes using OneNote and create content, primarily using Microsoft Office applications.

Both units would be carried inside a custom portfolio case which would also serve to house the Ethernet cable connecting the 2 devices, as well as a USB cable to be used to connect to my Windows Smartphone for 3G connectivity, and dual power jacks to allow both machines to be charges while still in the portfolio.

The prototype leaked via Gizmodo site is far slicker than anything I could have put together and appears to be a direct descendent of Ken Hinckley’s Codex prototype. Release of this by Microsoft would be a huge step forward for the tablet PC, are you listening Microsoft?

Capturing Family History

2009-07-30T20:03:00.001-04:00

Over the years I have collected my fair share of cast off technology. Recently while cleaning out the basement I came across a piece of forgotten hardware and combined it with a newer piece of technology to capture some of my families past for future generations.

The cast off technology consisted of a device called an Elmo TransVideo 35 (Slide Film-To-Video Converter TRV-35) which looks very much like a Kodak Carousel slide projector. Rather than displaying a slide on an external screen the slide is projected onto a CCD inside the unit where is is converted to composite (NTSC) video. By combining this with a Diamond One Touch DVD Creator I am able to capture 35mm slides as still digital images in either .jpg or .bmp formats.

Using the still image capture function I was able to capture images of hundreds of slides taken by my father and sister and will be able to share these with members of my families current generations as well as preserving them for future generations.

I am also in the process of capturing 8mm films that I came across during my clean up efforts using a 8mm projector and another cast off, a Panasonic 5100 HS (High Sensitivity) video camera which is connected to the Diamond One Touch. The Diamond One Touch allows me to capture composite video in a variety of MPEG video formats (MPEG 4/2/1). My initial attempts were done using NTSC video but I want to try S-Video as well since the camera supports it.

My next project will be to figure out how to ‘rip” vinyl albums into mp3 files WITHOUT having to manually enter all the metadata associated with the songs. The challenge will be to find software that will separate the single audio file (one side of a vinyl album) into the individual songs and based on the artist and album title look up the metadata in an online database such as Gracenote and then apply it to the individual mp3 files. If anyone has any experience or suggestions I’d appreciate their input.

New Hardware

2009-01-28T09:47:00.001-05:00

Its been a while since I last updated this blog. I recently got some “new” hardware (an HP TC 1100) and upgraded my cell phone to a Samsung Omnia.

The TC1100 was a pre-Christmas purchase from e-Bay. This is THE classic convertible PC design able to separate fro its keyboard and become a slate. Its small and relatively light and has OK battery life (approx 3 hours on a new OEM battery). Its great for using around the house in slate mode.

Unfortunately my trusty XV6700 Windows mobile phone became unusable due to a problem with the headset jack. When driving I use a headset adapter which allows me to use a standard PC headset with the phone. This provides a mute switch as well as a volume control in the headset cable that I can control via touch rather than using the controls on the phone screen. When I unplugged the handset the small mechanical switch inside the phone did not switch on the phone speaker which meant I couldn’t hear anyone when I answered the phone. Given the option of spending over $150 for a repair I took advantage of Verizon’s upgrade plan and got the Samsung Omnia.

I’m still getting used to some of the differences between the XV6700 and the Omnia. The loss of a physical keyboard is taking some getting used to but is only a minor inconvenience. The biggest issue I am having is that my primary purpose for having this device is to have a phone, but the default user interface doesn’t lend itself to making phone calls using a predefined list. When I press the “call” button I am presented with the dial pad and a list of my most recent calls but no way to open my contacts or show a “favorites” list. The default interface for Windows Mobile is Samsungs Widget application. Its taking me a while to get used to the touch interface and using a finger swipe to scroll. The biggest issue it that to use an application you have to move it from the widget bar to the desktop in order to run it. Due to these two issues I’ll be looking for a replacement interface/shell to use on this phone.

Dear Google; What are you thinking……

2008-10-17T10:17:00.001-04:00

Dear Google;

I opened my personalized Google home page last night to discover that some one had stolen my precious screen real estate. All of my Google gadgets that I rely on daily were scrunched towards the right side of the screen because the nice clean tab line which ran across the top of the screen was now running down the left side of my screen.

I thought perhaps I had somehow messed up my configuration when playing with my gadgets and searched in vain for the setting to let me change it back. Eventually I went looking for help and stumbled across a Google post about new features http://www.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=107482&topic=13918

This leads me to wonder just how much Google understands the computer market place. Laptops (traditionally smaller screens than desktops) are now outselling desktops. Recently the laptop market has been swept along with netbooks (lighter, smaller versions of laptops with screens which are cheaper and have a smaller overall resolution that laptops). Ultimately this means that screen space to display the things consumers want to see is a valuable commodity.

And into this market Google introduces… a menu system that consumes significantly more screen real estate than the previous version.

BTW: This new menu system has evidently impacted things like the Google finance pages and added the need for an additional click in order to get basic information for the stocks I follow, something I do numerous times a day.

Come on Google, what were/are you thinking?

Ramblings

2008-08-24T20:50:00.001-04:00

As time goes on I'm getting reconciled to the idea of working remotely for the majority of my week. I've been able to spruce up my work area in the house and in my off hours have been wading through multiple years of accumulated "stuff". I've sent several garbage cans of junk to the local landfill but have managed to try my best to recycle. Old books and "fine" paper, as well as cardboard have gone to the recycling center and I presented the local library with a couple of boxes of empty CD cases so that they can replace the damaged cases for their loaners. I find myself going to the library about every second day to borrow some new music to have playing in the background to supplement Pandora.

Unfortunately it sounds like Pandora is on the ropes. According to a Washington Post article cited by jkOnTheRun, the Copyright Royalty Board in March, 2007, drastically raised royalty rates (including 17 months' of retroactive payments) for Internet (streaming) radio stations. This is going to basically kill my ability to listen to... are you ready... freestyle. I'd never heard of this genre before I was introduced to it by a co-worker, and the only other source I have at the moment is WKTU in NYC. Unfortunately the FM reception in the house is not that great and listening to their stream over the net is abysmal (I hate the gaps left by commercials they can't play over the Internet).

Although I can't use them for work (information Security issues don't ya know) I've been playing with some Internet collaboration tools which could be really useful if I ever get the cash to go back to school for an MBA. At one time I had thought about setting up a SharePoint server to work on things collaboratively but the licensing fees are prohibitive. I also looked at using a hosting service but that too turned out to be cost prohibitive given a $40K per year tuition. However using Microsoft office Live Workspace in conjunction with Windows Live would be an acceptable solution (that would be even better with support for OneNote... Are you listening Microsoft). If you don't want to be tied to Microsoft Office then a Google account making use of Google Apps would work just as well.

As it is now my office solution is Microsoft Office with SharePoint which works quite well. I can reach out to my team with IM using Microsoft Communicator but the one piece we are missing is an on-line collaboration/presentation system although I've been told we're working on hosting our own internal LiveMeeting servers that would do the trick.

Day 2 - I have to come up with flashier titles for these posts

2008-08-13T23:31:00.001-04:00

Its not easy keeping a work mind set when you're working from your house. Its easy to get caught up in errands that you might normally take a half day off to accomplish. Yesterday I booked an appointment to get the windshield replaced in my car, they guaranteed they's show up between 8AM and 3PM (and I thought the cable company was bad, at least their window is only 4 hours). The tech showed up in the morning and by noon it was done, but with a warning not to drive it for at least an hour, not to remove the tape tacking the trim in place until tomorrow morning, and not to wash it for at least a week (not a problem since it needs bodywork after being clipped by a run away 4X4 and none of the local car washes will take it).

I worked until 1 PM then headed to the state inspection station to get it re-inspected (hence the need for a new windshield). I had had it inspected a couple of weeks ago to make sure that it would pass with the the carnage to the passenger side left by the 4X4, and the only reason it failed was a crack in the windshield. This should be easy, show them the previous inspection paperwork, show them the new windshield and sail right through. It was not to be,the re-inspection line was the longest so I was directed to another line with about 5 cars ahead of me. There were 2 guys running it and they got me through in reasonable time, considering everyone else in the line was getting a full inspection, and in what turned out to be about the same amount of time the re-inspection line would have taken. Despite the efficiency of the inspectors it still took longer than I had budgeted for. Hopefully I'll get better at this as time goes on.

Why my car can't go through the Car Wash

A couple of weeks ago while at the shop for new brakes, my car was side swiped by a runaway 4X4 being unloaded from a flat bed. Its always a good idea to make sure that the vehicle on the flat bed is secured by chains or the tow cable BEFORE you tilt the bed to unload it. It was a Saturday and the flat bed driver didn't have the courtesy to leave a note. Fortunately the gas jockeys at the gas station across the road were good enough to phone the shop and leave a message describing what happened. For some reason the flat bed driver is no longer employed by the towing company. Because this involved the insurance companies for the shop where the work was being done, and the towing company (who wanted me to go after the insurance company for the 4X4 owner since it was his vehicle that hit mine) its taking a while to get a check. BTW my car is consider a "total loss" by the insurance company.

Day 1 - Not bad but not as good as it gets

2008-08-12T23:17:00.000-04:00

I spent yesterday working from home with more success than I had envisioned. My family will still need some time to adapt to my being here during the day meaning I'm working. Its a little tougher right now since its summer vacation for my kids and while they get it they don't really GET IT. The same goes for my wife. The only one who isn't going to understand is our dog who stays at my side and occasionally lays her head in my lap and looks at me with big brown eyes to say "play with me".

The first inconvenience I ran into was the lack of a snack machine when the munchies hit around mid-morning. Its not that we don't have any munchies in the house, its that they are all huge bags and I'm horrible at portion control. I resolved that at lunch time when I ran to the local Shoprite (grocery store) and picked up an assortment of snacks in the "100 calorie" size. In the same trip I stopped at the library and picked up some CDs so I'd have something new playing in the background. I suspect I'll be dropping in once or twice a week just to pick up something new and expand my listening tastes.

Technical issues: At work I use a WYSE thin client with 2 monitors and I'm told that when I connect to the server farm at work from my home computer a dual monitor setup will allow me to spread my desktop over 2 monitors as well. I've got a couple of LCD monitors connected to my Vista desktop via an ATI All-In-Wonder 2006 video card but I just can't get it to display both screens using the JAVA thin client software that emulates my WYSE thin client. I have a sneaking suspicion that it is related to how the video card treats the 2 monitor set-up. On my WYSE terminal at work I can configure the monitors to act as a single large monitor (clicking the maximize icon in the top right corner of a window causes the window to fill both monitors) or as 2 monitors (clicking maximize causes the window to completely cover the monitor it is currently running on but not both). My guess is that the ATI card treats my setup as 2 monitors and when the JAVA client starts it maximizes to a single screen. I can't find a setting anywhere in the ATI configuration utility. I use to love ATI products but have been less than happy ever since I bought a pair of these All-In-Wonder cards with the intent of using then under VISTA. Even though they were advertised as being VISTA compatible (what a nasty phrase) and evidently were fully functional under the VISTA Betas only the video out works under the Gold (release) version of VISTA so I can't use the TV tuners or the other video inputs which is why I bought VISTA Ultimate. I'll stop here before I go into a full fledged rant on "planned obsolescence" of functioning computer hardware.

Brand New Day

2008-08-11T21:09:00.001-04:00

Today is the start of a new adventure. "Big Bank" decided a while ago that they needed to cut expenses and began to move ahead with plans to allow staff to telecommute 3 days per week (potentially expanding to 4 or even 5 days in the future). By having employees work less than half of their time in the office there is the ability to share physical office workspace. My management is looking to lead the way, so while we don't have all the answer's in place regarding technology solutions and what expenses are covered, we're forging ahead and will work out the bugs as we go and share them with those who follow us.

Over the past week I've been sanitizing my office space, removing pictures and mementos of past accomplishments, as well as personal technology enhancements. I've gotten everything that I will need day to day into my "road warrior" bag. Any reference documents I need are either on the corporate network or on my laptop in an effort to go paperless. The process of cleaning out my cubicle did have some psychological impact. I've always regarded many of the people I work with as a sort of extended family. Eights hours or more a day in the office results in a certain amount of loyalty and trust between staff and managers and face to face communication has been an important part of building those relationships. Packing up felt a bit like moving out and leaving family behind. It will be interesting to see what the impact of working remotely is on the relationship with both my staff and my management.

At the moment we are working on a buddy system where I'll have a dedicated space that I share with someone whose schedule complements mine. I'll be working Mondays and Thursdays in my dedicated office space and and the rest of the time from somewhere else, for the time being that means from my house. Management hasn't yet determined the appropriate technology solution so at the moment we are using our own PCs as I/O devices to connect to a remote access solution. Combined with a software package that lets me talk to our phone switch and manage/redirect my extension I can work from anyplace I have connectivity and a phone.

I'm perhaps a little better equipped than some of my compatriots since I have a personal laptop equipped with wireless. Coupled with my cell phone this means I can work from the house, the library, or even the local Starbucks. Since I can use my cell phone as a modem for my laptop its possible that by using Skype's In and Out services (my phone won't allow simultaneous voice and data service) I could even work from anyplace I can get a cell signal.

Although I've infrequently worked remotely for a day or so this new paradigm will require a number of changes on my part. Tomorrow is the first "official" day from an alternate location so stay tuned.

A typical NJ winter storm

2008-02-13T11:13:00.000-05:00

Today we are getting what I have come

to regard as a fairly typical northern

NJ winter storm. It started last night as

snow and overnight turned to rain.

Most of the schools are open after a two

hour delay but the buses are not running.

The salt trucks have been out but the

streets are wet and if the temperature

drops the roads will ice up.

I'm heading into work shortly to prepare

for a call tomorrow morning but hope to

be home before the roads freeze.

New ink blogging tool!

2008-01-22T21:09:00.000-05:00

It's been far too long since I wrote in this blog,

but I found anew tool today. It's an extension

to live writer that lets me blog in ink!!!

Gear Bags Part 2

2007-09-30T10:49:00.000-04:00

My "Take It All Because You Never Know What You'll Need" Bag

CaseLogic Hard Drive Case
Western Digital Passport 120GB HardDrive
2 X 15 ft ethernet cables

4 Outlet Power Bar with a 1 foot cord, useful for providing extra outlets in hotel rooms.
Camera Tripod
Blackberry travel charger (USB)
Nintendo DS case
- Nintendo DS
- Nintendo Wall wart
- Nintendo Games

Motorola WR850G wireless broadband router, firmware flashed with DD-WRT to act as a wi-fi router or a bridge (its amazing how many "business" hotels don't have wi-fi but provide only a wired connection)
Overseas power adapter plugs
Cable lock

Cable bags

iPOD

-Apple iPod Camera Connector
-Griffin iTalk Voice Recorder
-Griffin Lapel Microphone
-Griffin Earbuds (use in noisy environments)
-iPOD travel power adapter w/USB output
-Retractable USB to iPOD cord
-3 Ft long 3.5mm (1/8 in) plug to3.5mm (1/8 in)plug stereo cable

-Cables
-4 port USB hub
-RJ-11 phone line splitter
-2 retractable USB cables (1X AM-AM, 1X AM-AF) with adapters
-RJ-45 X2
-RJ-45 Crossover
-RJ-11 X2
-USB AM-AM adapter
-USB AM - mini adapter
-USB AM-AB adapter

-Tools
-Leatherman
-Small flat blade screwdriver
-10 Ft measuring tape

Future Consideration

There are a number of things I'd like to add or upgrade to try and enhance my mobile environment.

A new "Everyday" bag. The CES backpack was a promotional item and wasn't made to stand up to the use I've given the shoulder bag. I'd like to find a replacement so that I can retire it before it deteriorates too badly. If I can find an everyday replacement the shoulder bag can go into semi-retirement and become a permanent part of the "Take Everything" team. I've seen a couple of nice (and affordable) bags but they are either too big causing the X61 to slide around more than I'd like or too small (the 8 cell battery on the X61 makes it just too big, if I was willing to go with a shorter battery life and use the 4 cell battery it would definitely fit.

Microsoft LifeCam NX-6000 - This looks to be a great little web-cam. What endears it to me is the ability to close it up so that you know its not transmitting, the high resolution ( the ability to take still pictures at 8 mega pixels and shoot video at 2 mega pixels). The fact that its really small when closed is also a big plus.

ASUS R2H UMPC - I'd like to see it with a faster processor but I'm looking for it to fill the portable gap for when I'm out and about and want a small tablet. Additionally the built-in GPS makes it ideal for use in the car and the TV-out makes it a portable media center to supplement my iPOD Photo.

Gear Bags

2007-09-23T21:14:00.000-04:00

So its been a while since I posted anything to this blog but I've been wanting for some time to do a "gadget bag" posting, originally, and more recently inspired by James Kendrick over at jkOnTheRun.com. For several years now I've found the podcasts James participates in (Mobile Tech Roundup - with Kevin C. Tofel and Matt Miller, and On The Run With Tablet PCs with Marc Orchant) to be quite interesting and through them I started reading the jkOnTheRun blog.

In addition to the 2 bags mentioned in detail below there are the things I carry with me all the time, a 2GB USB memory stick from MicroCenter, a 1GB SanDisk Ultra II USB/SD memory stick, and a Zebra F301 Compact pen. When in business dress I geek out and add a Foray .06mm ballpoint pen, a yellow highlighter, an Extend .5mm mechanical pencil and a Pentel Click eraser, along with a Moleskine
Cahier Pocket Ruled Journal for jotting down quick notes. My mainstay for personal Internet connectivity (at least in the continental US) is my Verizon XV6700 with an EVDO data plan. This keeps me connected to my e-mail and allows me to browse the web and IM when needed, in addition to making phone calls. When used with my tablet PC I can tether via USB cable or BlueTooth and get high speed Internet connectivity. For work related connectivity I carry the much less useful BlackBerry 8700C.

Basically I have 2 bags, my "Everyday" bag, and my "Take It All Because You Never Know What You'll Need" bag. Both bags are part of the backpack handed out at the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. I didn't attend CES but I'm partial to the color orange and these caught my attention when I was reading blog coverage of the show, so I bought one on eBay. The backpack is quite roomy and there is a small section that unzips from the main bag to become a shoulder bag with 3 compartments. The shoulder bag is my "Everyday" bag and zips back onto the main backpack to become part of my "Take It All" bag. In order to keep the "Take It All" bag organized I created a custom insert for it (more on that later).

My "Everyday" Bag

My Everyday bag is just that, the bag that goes with me (almost) everyday. It has the essentials to get me online and computing pretty much no matter where I am. In addition it carries some necessary paper based products, i.e. a Record book with 150 numbered pages (see my "Old School" post) and various papers I might need on any given night just to keep up on work related reading. In a pinch I can remove the Record book and work related papers and add the Ultrabase with DVD writer.

○ Lenovo X61 Tablet (MultiTouch)
○ X61 Power Adapter
○ Microsoft Wireless Notebook Presenter Mouse 8000 (Bluetooth)
○ Logitech Premium Notebook Headset
○ Seidio MICROPHONE/SPEAKER AUDIO ADAPTOR (allows me to use a PC headset such as the Logitech above as a phone headset. This combination works MUCH better than any of the other bundled or aftermarket headsets I've ever used.
○ 10 ft Ethernet cable
○ MarWare iPOD case
§ iPOD 60GB Photo and ear buds
§ iPOD wired remote
○ 3M Microfiber cloth
○ CaseLogic 6 Capacity USB Drive Shuttle holding
§ Safeword Platinum (for accessing work VPN and web portal)
§ Motorola M500 Bluetooth Headset
§ MediaGear XtraDrive SD adapter (also used to store a micro SD to SD adapter)
§ Extra Battery for my XV6700
§ MiniSD to SD adapter (the XV6700 uses MiniSD cards)
§ A 128MB BioStik (finger print protected USB drive for personal info)
§ A miniature yellow highlighter
§ Purple Post-It flages
§ Retractable USB - iPOD cable
§ Retractable USB - mini-USB cable (for Syncing/Charging XV6700 and BlackBerry)
§ Retractable Belkin iPOD audio cable (allows me to play my iPOD through a stereo or TV audio input)
○ CaseLogic 2 Capacity USB Drive Shuttle X 2
§ 1GB Ativa USB stick
§ 1GB SanDisk Cruzer mini USB stick (bootable XP image)
§ 2GB Sandisk Cruzer Micro USB stick

○ Personal Hygiene
§ Folding toothbrush
§ Dental Floss
§ Dental Pick/Brush
§ Motrin
§ Lip Balm
§ Kleenex pocket Pack

○ Misc
§ Passport
§ Cheque book
§ Moleskine Cahier Pocket Squared Journal
§ Sharpie mini Accent (Yellow)
§ Sharpie mini Accent (Pink)
§ Sharpie mini (Black)
§ Mini RSVP pen
§ Maglite Solitaire (single AAA battery)

Mounted on the shoulder strap for easy access are;

○ CaseLogic Camera Case
§ Kodak EasyShare C533 camera

○ CaseLogic Camera Case
§ Dentyne Ice gum
§ Dentyne Fire gum
§ Wet Ones Anti-Bacterial towelettes (singles)
§ Lubriderm Lotion
§ Chap Stick
§ Ear buds/microphone for XV6700

2006-12-30T09:51:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Marc Orchant at http://blogs.zdnet.com/Orchant/ I have discovered that I am a superhero. It's a little disturbiing to find Catwoman and Supergirl so far up my list though.

You are Superman

Superman		65%
Spider-Man		65%
Catwoman		65%
Supergirl		57%
Green Lantern		55%
Batman		50%
Iron Man		50%
Robin		47%
The Flash		45%
Wonder Woman		37%
Hulk		25%

You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

But it seems I might have a split peronality since I'm also a Super-Villian;

I am The Joker

The Joker		67%
Lex Luthor		66%
Mr. Freeze		60%
Magneto		59%
Dr. Doom		58%
Riddler		57%
Apocalypse		56%
Green Goblin		51%
Kingpin		48%
Venom		45%
Juggernaut		43%
Mystique		35%
Catwoman		34%
Dark Phoenix		32%
Poison Ivy		30%
Two-Face		27%

The Clown Prince of Crime. You are a brilliant mastermind but are criminally insane. You love to joke around while accomplishing the task at hand.

Click here to take the "Which Super Villain are you?" quiz...

I hired a Maid (MemMaid)

2006-12-06T08:59:00.000-05:00

A couple of days ago Moby started notifying me that he was low on memory. Extremely low, to the point of barely being able to run. I needede to delete files and make space in Moby's internal memory. So off I went, looking here and looking there, finding some small files but not making any real progress. There had to be a better way. Off I went to Handango where I found MemMaid. Five minutes later MemMaid had given me back over 10 Megabytes of data.

That was all I needed to make me part with some hard earned cash, although surprisingly little, and within a day had received the registration codes from the author.

I'm very happy with the service provided and will have the maid in once a week to clean up after me. Highly recommended.

Christening My XV6700

2006-11-29T19:06:00.000-05:00

Being new to having a PDA of my own (I also carry a BlackBerry for work, but it is VERY controlled) I've been trying out software and figuring out ways to integrate it into my life.

My first rule was; No work information goes on my personal device! That seemed fairly straight forward since my work machine can be difficult to install software on. We use a packaging system that has managed to munge the MSI (Microsoft Installer) for XP pretty badly under XP so even though I have administrative rights I can't install most "non-packaged" software on my PC. Because I work in an industry that is highly regulated (see my November 26, 2006 post) and e-mail from the office system can be considered corporate information and subject to regulatory review, I want to be very clear about delineating personal and corporate e-mail so that there is no reason for anyone at work to go poking around on my home systems. Besides, I don't want my personal inbox filling up with stuff I'm already receiving at work.

E-mail proved to be the easy part to keep separate. I'm running the Office 2007 Beta at home and when I plugged the XV6700 in to sync with my desktop I was invited to install OneNote for Windows Mobile. I accepted. Now I've played with OneNote on the desktop a bit and it was OK, but when I put it on the XV6700 (I'm going to have to give it a name, XV6700 is just too formal) I started to realize the potential of OneNote. Rather than carrying a pad of paper or my laptop to meetings at work I carry the XV6700 in my shirt pocket and just pull it out and make notes. I have a long way to go to get my input speed up since I haven't written cursively in years (my teacher's gave up on the notion of me ever writing anything legible and were quite happy to accept hand printed papers). I've had to be very careful to make sure I comply with corporate policies (I'm only allowed to keep sensitive information on a non-corporate device) but so far it hasn't been a problem. I like the fact that I can keep different sections for different projects. One thing that would be useful and I either haven't figure it out yet or it doesn't exist is the ability to insert the current date and time on Moby (I just named my XV6700) when I'm adding notes. I'll need to look into getting One Note "wrapped" and on my work PC.

Will Moby change the way I work? Definitely, but probably not as much as he would if I used him exclusively for work. They tell me we are looking at supplementing our BlackBerry devices with Windows Mobile (although that seems to have died down since RIM settled with NTP), but just in case we do, is it considered too geek to wear two XV6700s on my belt at the same time?

Old School

2006-11-26T22:26:00.000-05:00

I'm hoping that my XV6700 will help revolutionize the way I work but there is still a problem. I work in the financial industry for an international corporation. As such we are heavily regulated by the U.S. regulators as well as a regulatory agencies in the contries we have a presence in. Regulators, and lawyers, don't like the use of electronic notes when it comes to providing evidence of what was done/said since electronic records are easily modified unless they are immediately written to WORM (Write Once Read Many) media to provide evidence that the original is unaltered. This is very important when trying to establish what was done/said, or at least what your interpretation of what was done/said.

For that reason I, and many of the people I work with still rely on written (or in my case, printed) notes in a hardcover, numbered page, record book. This type of thing is much harder to modify/alter. That requires someone with good counterfeiting skills to duplicate the author's handwriting and would likely require copying the entire book. The bound hard cover format and the numbered pages make it difficult, if not damn near impossible to add/remove pages and or information. This type of notebook with comprehensive notes can be very important when dealing with employee reviews or regulatory questions/investigation.

Until such time as smeone comes up with a program to take my notes and write them into a file which I can old read or add to sequentially I'll probably still have to keep using my Boorum & Pease R-150 record book for meeting notes and issues.

The Second Post

2006-11-25T17:20:00.000-05:00

Now is the moment of truth, can I really blog from my XV6700? If you see this post the answer is YES.

The Inaugural Post

2006-11-25T17:14:00.000-05:00

For the past six months or so I've been thinking I wanted to try my hand at blogging, give myself the opportunity to let the world know what I think. So why has it taken so long to get started? I could tell its because I haven't thought of anything I wanted to say, but that would be lying. There have been times I've wanted to say something... right here, right now... and by the time I got to a computer I didn't feel this huge need to say it any more.

So what has changed? My technology. I am now the proud owner of a Verizon XV6700 (and the associated Verizon bill for a data service), on which I have loaded, among other things, a copy of PocketBlogger. The theory is that when I have something to say, now I can say it... right here, right now... without the excuse of waiting until I get home. So will I blog or will I become a "blog-fader"? Only time will tell but you will be able to witness the answer here.

So what will this blog contain? Well the reason I names it what I did is that I hope to keep track of all the things in my life that aren't working (and use this to figure out how to make them work if possible). But its also a place to record all the things that do work. Its easy to have things go wrong and to look back at your life and remember all the negative things, it can be harder to look back and remember all the positive things. This blog will help me remember the negative (not that I need any help with that), as well as the positive, and hopefully provide a pick me up when things aren't going well.

So here we go.....