Future shock

Ok, I’ll admit it — I think the iPad is going to be a huge success. Not because it has some whiz-bang feature or gizmo that makes it better than any of the competitors. No, I think it will succeed because it’s completely different. Apple is trying to solve a problem that’s been plaguing “the [...]

Virtual file management with dropbox

Wouldn’t it be nice if your files magically followed you from one computer to another? Even to your phone? Across different operating systems, like from a Mac to your PC?
If this sounds like something you want to try, give dropbox a go. Dropbox creates a virtual folder on each of your computers — anything you [...]

Evernote

Have you discovered Evernote yet? I’ve become very impressed with this simple catch-all for ideas, notes, events, even your favorite wine. Essentially, it can capture just about any content, including web pages, PDF files, documents, text clippings, photos, and email messages. The real power of Evernote is, at least for me, twofold:

It’s cross platform, working [...]

Is Email Marketing Still a Viable Marketing Channel?

This was just too funny. I use Postini to keep my mailbox clear of junk mail (and I’ve got to say, it does a fantastic job — and, you can now use Postini with your Google mail account). The Postini service sends me an email every morning with a nicely organized summary of messages that [...]

Finally, definitive iCal to iPhone syncing

With the iPhone OS 3.1 and later, we’ve got better options. So what is the real scoop on syncing all of our digital calendars, from Google to OS/X iCal to your holiday calendar subscription?

A little scifi story

I tap the screen on my phone, and tell it “buy cream cheese at the market.”
The next day, when I walk into the market, my phone pings and reminds me to pick up some cream cheese. It knows this because the last time I was near the market, I tagged the location. My phone also [...]

Snow Leopard headache

Being the helpless technologist I am, I had to install Snow Leopard (OS/X 10.6) the day it shipped. Actually I’ve been looking forward to this release for some time — a release almost entirely focused on making the operating system more stable, faster and more compact. How novel! Of the handful of new features coming [...]

…Sorry, my phone crashed

This problem continually occurs on my iPhone (along with the dropped call problem). All of the solutions presented here are for fiddlers. A phone is an appliance. Apple sold it to zillions because it is carefree. Download a sexy app and use it. Not go to a GENIUS BAR (puke) or reload, or reset, or fiddle, or or or.

Samsung SSD awesomeness

Alright I’m rarely sucked in by this much geekery, but in this case… I appreciate the work! These guys took 24 256GB SSD drives and assembled them into a massive, memory-based RAID array. Flash forward maybe 10 years and we’ll all have this in our laptops!

Open source testing

We use HP’s QuickTest Pro (formerly Mercury QTP) for much of our automated regression testing. Unfortunately, QTP is a pricey piece of software, with a cost in the vicinity of $7,500 per user license. While it is a state-of-the-art automation system, at this price tag it comes with quite a barrier to entry — at [...]

It’s solid!

I’m impressed. The day of the purely solid state consumer laptop is rapidly approaching:
Toshiba on Thursday announced another big step in the industry-wide adoption of solid state drives—the first 2.5-inch 512GB SSD. The drive will make its public debut at CES in January.
The company will also be debuting a number of different capacity SSD drives—64-, [...]

Too much social networking

Gah. How am I ever supposed to keep up with flickr, facebook, myspace, linkedin and whatever else comes along? I just don’t have time for this — even if I just try to keep one or two going. You know, there would be a fantastic market for some little application that synchronizes all of them… [...]