Computer Commercials

Here's a collection of classic computer commercials from over the past years. Amazingly enough, there are some Commodore's in there. Including a classic VIC 20 ad with William Shatner proclaiming the "wonder computer of the 1980's".

http://blogs.pcworld.com/techlog/archives/002950.html

The Most Untold Story in the History of Computers

If you want to know more about the history of computers than the shallow Apple vs Microsoft story most books, websites and movies dwell on, take a look at The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Commodore. Here's a review from Slashdot.

Almost everyone recognizes the name, but most realize the scale and impact that Commodore had in the computer industry. First computer sold in retail, first computer to sell more than a million, first computer with multitasking, full-color graphics and video.

Every time I see a mention of Commodore, the C64 or Amiga computers, I get nostalgic for those days when I was making 3d animations while everyone else was either drawing 1-bit graphics in MacPaint or doing whatever DOS & Windows 3.1 did. The only things comparable were six figure Silicon Graphics workstations.

One year Commodore made a billion dollars. Not too much later, the company filed for bankruptcy and was liquidated. The technology and brand name traded hands several times, and there were several attempts to revive it. But Commodore had lost its greatest asset- the people who designed and used it. As people were laid off or left, they spread to startups and other companies, their talents diluted in the giant ocean of the technology industry.

As a user (VIC, 64, 128, A500, A2500, A1200) and former employee, I am grateful to have experienced Commodore from both sides. I learned to program in BASIC and Assembly. I made really cool graphics and animations. And I worked with some really innovative and dedicated people (I still do, actually).

You can get a taste of the nostalgia at the Amiga Forever website.

XBOX 360

It's a game console, no it's a PC. Maybe a little both, but definitely made user friendly enough to fit in the game console market. I only wish PCs were this easy to set up and use.

It comes with a wireless controller. That's neat but with a load of batteries, it's kinda heavy. The XBox itself is also heavy, and the power supply is huge. When on, you can hear the fan running. It's a PC in game console disguise.

The controller has feedback, which is a nice added feature. It rumbles when you drive off the road or get shot in games.

The output works with a custom cable that lets you choose either composite or component video. The component can be either 720p or 1080i. Both look really nice. Since all XBoxes are the same, game designers can all work on a narrowed down spec and focus on quality instead of compatibility. The result is truly astonishing image quality and smoothness.

Mine came with Need for Speed. It's pretty cool. I've tried the demo for Ridge Racer 6 and I think I like that better.

I also have Gears of War, which is a must-have for the XBox 360. It's hard to control but I'm getting it. It must be good, after all there are over 2 million sold.

There's this thing called "XBox Live" which is supposed to be an online community. It's mostly a place where you can get demos, videos and other downloads. It has potential but needs more selections. There are both free and paid membership available. You can also get classic arcade games like Frogger, Pacman and Defender, which are fun and nostalgic to play.

I've tried out demos of current/upcoming games. The process of downloading and playing them is so much more convenient that a PC. There's no installation, downloads queue in the background and you get a little pop-up letting you know when they're ready to play.

But where's the community? There's no chat, bbs or similar thing. The closest is blowing up strangers in Battlefield: Modern Combat. How about a Sims or Second Life kind of place?

There are also some nice media features. It can play music, video or show pics from your PC, using extra software on your PC. You can use Windows Media Center Edition, Windows Media Player 11 (with Vista) or install the Zune software which is an iTunes ripoff.

It's pretty picky about file formats. Not all the WMVs I tried worked, like ones generated by Beyond TV's ShowSqueeze feature. And it doesn't work with video shared from another PC- the files show up but won't play. That was using a UNC path- I haven't tried mapping a drive yet.

I hear the XBox 360 is doing well against PS3 and Wii. I can see why. It's a good solid game system. The games aren't as innovative as Nintendo's, but they suite my tastes. I hope they can do more with the "community" thing.

Panasonic 50" Plasma

After the past few years dreaming about a plasma screen, we finally decided to get one.

I did some research, reading both magazine and user reviews, I found the Panasonic models to get consistently good ratings. I'm pretty familiar with their industrial models since I work in the Digital Signage industry, so that also gave me a good feeling about spending a considerable amount of money on a big screen.

I picked the TH-50PX60U. I also considered the 42 inch model, but Fran said "just go with the 50" so how could I argue? :)

There's also a newer model, the 600 series. It has better audio, a cable card slot and VGA input. But I didn't think that was worth $500 more.

Buying a competitive product like a plasma, digital camera or PC requires good timing and persistence. Prices for this screen varied wildly from below $2000 to over $3000. When I saw a sale at Best Buy for $1999, we jumped on it. This turned out to be a good deal, as it's now going for around $2500.

As an aside, it's interesting to see who really makes plasmas. Not all companies make the products they put their name on. Some buy from others, some make their own. Here a useful article about this.

Another big consideration is Plasma vs LCD. On one hand, LCD the newer of the two technologies. It has higher res, usually has VGA and DVI inputs and is much brighter.

But all that extra detail is not really noticeable from a distance (ie: your sofa). And because LCDs are based on a back-light to illuminate the screen, they can look washed out in dark scenes.

Plasmas have richer color, but are not as bright. If you dim the lights, they're fine. Burn-in is not as much an issue anymore- new models have better engineering and anti-burn-in features. But most of the basic models lack VGA input. Fortunately ours has HDMI and you can use a DVI to HDMI cable with your PC.

All things considered, it really comes down to personal taste. Go to a store and look at the same video on both types of screens and decide for yourself. Make sure you see both HD as well as standard video to see how it treats detail and up-scaling.

Here's a good review with suggestions for the best settings. Apparently the default settings are are over-saturated which makes for a nice demo in the show room, but not easy on the eyes when watching movies at home. A little adjustment and you're good to go. BTW, you have to make the same adjustments for EVERY input. They each keep separate memory of visual settings.


The TH-50PX60U has plenty of connectors. 2 sets of Component, 2 HDMI, S-Video, Composite. The speakers are not very powerful, but do a pretty good job at surround sound simulation.


The built-in tuner handles SD and ATSC signals. I picked up an amplified HD antenna at Best Buy and can get the major local networks (CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX) and a few other stations in HD. The HD versions of hit shows like Lost are just awesome to look at. It's even more amazing that these broadcast signals are free!


The remote is pretty basic, and works as a universal remote for VCRs, DVDs, etc.

Palm Treo 680

I thought I wouldn't go back to Palm. But I did.

I liked the software but, the hardware always had issues (not very sturdy, short battery life). Not to mention Palm having changed their name to PalmOne. That was just lame.

My last Palm was the Zire 72. Overall it was good. The screen was big and readable. But it didn't have a keyboard, so I had to scratch-type using the Graffiti handwriting recognition feature. But worse there was no battery backup, so when the battery runs out, everything goes. It only took two times for that to happen for me to give up on the Zire altogether.

The Treo 650 was tempting. 2nd generation, perfecting on the Treo 600. Phone as well as PDA. But I know people who have problems with voice quality and crashes. Most smart phones have issues or design flaws, but they're getting better as a whole. The Treo 700 came out, but only on Verizon. I'm on Cingular, and I want GSM so I can use the device overseas.

Then came the Treo 680.

It's smaller than other Treos but still bigger than most phones. It seems like they've worked out most of the rough edges from the 600 and 650. Palm is targeting this phone at non-techies, so it must be reliable and easy to use. I want that, plus all the potential of PalmOS and the cool but simple Palm PDA apps (Calendar, Contacts, Memo, Todo).

Other smart phones I considered:

• Nokia E70 & E62 - I like Nokia alot. I think they spend alot of attention to usability. But I'd heard the Symbian OS used in their higher end models was sluggish. I tried it out and it is. Apps take too long to load and respond to actions. Not for me. Plus these devices don't have a touchscreen and rely solely on a four-way mini joystick.
  
• Windows Mobile - Pro: Same OS as your PC. Con: Same OS as your PC.
  
• Blackberry - Strong email client, but not much else. I like that there are many apps for PalmOS.
  

Treo 680 pros:

• Good screen. Decent size, bright and readable.
  
• Keyboard. A little small, but hey it's a mobile device.
  
• It doesn't lose everything when the battery runs out. Yay!!
  
• Great PalmOS and included apps. The GUI could use a little pizazz, but it works. And it's fast (compared to Symbian).
• The email and browser work pretty well. It ain't a desktop, but for me it eliminates the need for a mini-notebook. I was pleasantly surprised when I was able to download and play a podcast from TWiT. It was even able to listen to live streaming audio from a local radio station, KFI 640. (Yes, I'm a Laporte fan.)

Like all Palm devices, you can either use the included Palm Desktop software or sync with Outlook. I find the Palm software a little lacking (and hard to access unless you're always at the PC it's installed on), and Outlook is a resource hog. Fortunately there are other choices- you can sync with Yahoo, for instance. That gives you online access anywhere, via the Web or Treo. Yahoo uses a program called Intellisync which uses the Palm software to sync, but lets you edit your contacts, calendar, etc. in your My Yahoo account.

I also configured my Nokia Bluetooth headset to work with it. Piece of cake. And dial-up networking with my Dell Inspiron 9400. That was not as easy, but once you get it set up you can get connected quickly.

Treo 680 Cons:

• The battery runs out fast. Real fast! Like 2 days with minimal use. Pretty lame, but I can live with it.
• The camera is awful. But it's better than the one I had in my Nokia 6820. :)
• No WiFi. But do you really need it? What could you possibly want to do on that tiny screen that would require such bandwidth?
• The case seems fragile. I hope I don't ever drop it because it feels like it would shatter into a million pieces.
  

Issues:
Not all phones are perfect. I did have a few problems where call volume was too low. But the next call was okay. Also it seemed to lose bluetooth settings once, but has worked fine ever since.

Size comparison: My old Nokia 6820 and Treo 680.

Airport Express

The AirPort Express. This is one funky device. It has an ethernet port, USB and an audio out. And it's wireless (WiFi).

What is it? For Mac users mostly, it's a wireless router. Just without the line of blinking lights. Only one status light. Green is good. Red is bad.

But for Mac and PC, it can also act as remote speakers via WiFi/LAN.

Huh?

Yeah, you plug it into your home stereo, set up networking and run iTunes. iTunes sees it and lets you route audio via your network to the Airport.

Why would you use this instead of just plugging your iPod into the stereo? Well, it lets you use iTunes to pick music, which is easier to use than the iPod (more geared to mobile use). And if you happen to have a huge music library that's bigger than your iPod hard drive, you don't have to choose which songs to use from the whole collection. Just play it all. And it's cheaper than a new iPod.

Since it's networked, you can start something playing at your computer, then "move" the music to another room, or play it both locally and remotely. Pretty cool.

Setup was a little tricky. The first time around the device just went dead. I thought I had killed it. But I found the reset button and tried again and it's been working ever since.

Dell Inspiron 9400: Bye bye desktop

I've been a Dell Inspiron owner for quite a few years now. 7500, 8200, 9300 and now the 9400.

But like most notebook owners, I had to keep a desktop PC around for heavy duty stuff like 3d animation rendering, editing video and playing games. But with the 9400, the notebook has just about caught up with the desktop. The latest Intel Core 2 Duo processor and NVidia bring the notebook really close to the realm of desktop performance. I still have a mini-tower, but use it alot less now.

My Inspiron Specs:

• Core 2 Duo processor T7200 (4MB/2.00GHz/667MHz)
• 17 inch Wide Screen XGA+ Display
• 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 533MHz
• 256MB NVIDIA GeForce Go 7900 GS
  
• 100GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive (fast drive plus fast bus speed)
  
• Windows XP Professional
• Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem
  
• Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 Internal Wireless (B & G)
  
• 80 WHr 9-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery (upgraded from standard battery)
  
• Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Internal (for wireless mouse and cellphone-as-modem)

The screen is the same as the 9300 I had last year. Like then, I went for the lower res option of 1440x900 (vs 1920x1200). I struggled over the decision to go with a smaller screen this time. The 17" wide model is huge compared to other notebooks, and it's hard to find a case or backpack that fits it (even some that are advertised for 17" screens didn't fit-- I recommend brining your notebook to the store when shopping for a case). But as a desktop replacement, the big screen is the right choice.

At the time the graphics selection was between a lower end ATI chipset and a high end NVidia. Naturally I went with high end, but would have done so anyway regardless of which chip it was.

The 100GB drive was a good balance of cost/storage/speed. I'd rather have a smaller faster drive than a slow big one. You can always add external drives anyway.

The keyboard feels really good. I prefer it to a regular keyboard actually.

Connectors:

• 6 USB (more than enough- 4 here 2 on the side)
• Both RGB & DVI (nice!)
• 1 S-Video

I've hooked it up to our new plasma screen with a DVI to HDMI cable. It looked excellent. You can find DVI to HDMI cables for around $30-40 at most computer stores.

• Two more USBs
• CD/DVD R/W
  

• 1 Firewire (mini connector)
• SD-Card (useful w/digital cameras)
• Mini audio in/out (standard)

Ordering from Dell.com is fun, since you get to customize the features. While building your Dell it always gives a super conservative delivery time. Only after you make the purchase does it give an accurate date which is always sooner than the estimated one.

Palm's new strategy

Well I have all but given up on my Zire 72. I allowed the battery to run out again (before trying the backup software) and it got completely reset. Since I've stopped using it, I haven't really missed it. Especially all the time it took to keep it running and in sync.

My wife Fran has the Treo 650. It has several improvements over the Zire like a QWERTY keyboard, more memory and wireless HotSync. But it crashes alot and she sounds like she's calling from Sealab 2021 most of the time.

I've been a long time fan of PalmOS, and I hate to abandon it. There aren't any good alternatives either. Windows Mobile is okay, but people say it's lowsy for the phone part of the smart-phone. Nokia now has the E62, which is a decent contender with the Symbian OS.

I just read this article on TreoCentral about Palm's upcoming Treo 680. It's not a more advanced model, but a more stylish and user-friendly one. The article's author believes that Palm is not just trying to get a bigger slice of the smartphone pie, it's trying to make a bigger pie by attracting new users. I hope he's right.

In the meantime, I'll hold on to my Nokia 6820.

Can't talk while driving, but flying is okay.

From Yahoo News:

California on Friday banned motorists from talking on cell phones unless they use a headset or speakerphone, although the law will not take effect until July 1, 2008, to allow time to educate the public.

Violators will be fined $20 the first time they are caught and $50 the second time. The new law makes exemptions for those placing emergency calls while driving.

Several other states, including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, have similar bans. California, with 37 million people, is the most populous U.S. state.

But then on The Economist:

Last week Ryanair, a European low-cost carrier, announced that it would equip its entire fleet of Boeing 737s with small base stations, called picocells, provided by OnAir, a technology company backed by Airbus, Europe's aviation giant. The picocells will use satellite links to allow mobile phones to be used during flight without interfering with ground-based networks. (Such interference, rather than safety concerns, is the primary reason that in-flight use of mobile phones is banned at the moment.) Taking a cut of the resulting revenues will help Ryanair to keep its ticket prices down, according to Michael O'Leary, the firm's boss.

According to the latest survey, released by OnAir this week, 80% of airline passengers approve of the idea of being able to use telephones on aircraft, even if they do not plan to do so themselves. Indeed, only 54% of business travellers and 41% of leisure travellers said they would switch their phones on during a flight. One reason is cost: George Cooper, the boss of OnAir, says that at prices above $3 per minute, “demand drops off considerably”, according to the firm's research. He expects $2.50 per minute to be the norm when services based on his firm's technology are launched by Air France, Ryanair, bmi and TAP Portugal. But OnAir will then cut its prices by 10% a year for five years, he says.

Previous surveys have painted a less rosy picture. One survey of young mobile-phone users, carried out last year by IDC and SMS.ac, a mobile portal, found that 64% of young people favoured in-flight texting, and only 11% liked the idea of making calls. And 82% of respondents agreed with the statement “I don't want people talking on their phones during flights.”

I'm part of that 82%.

New Dell Battery

Monday this week I got a new Dell Battery for my Inspiron 9300. It came with a return-shipping label, so I put the old battery in and sent it back. Done. Couldn't have been easier. Didn't cost anything either. Thanks Dell!!!!

In Defense of Dell

Something about the general press and public is people who like to see a successful person or company fail.

I've been a Dell user for years, and have had great experience with their products. I've had Dell notebooks forever, from the 7500 (Pentium II), 8200 (Pentium 4) and now 9300 (Pentium M).

I've also had a Dell DJ, but switched to the iPod recently. Not because it's better, but to get features like photo and video.

Dell always has great prices for their products. Their specials are drool-worthy. But you have to know how to work their site because similar models are available in the Home, Small Business, etc. sections and you may be able to get more memory or a free monitor with a PC in one area for the same PC being sold for full price in another. Then there's the Dell Outlet where you can get refurbished models at even bigger discounts. I've purchased my notebooks this way, and also got PCs for my parents at great prices.

I've also had great experience with their customer service. In one case I ordered a docking station that came with the wrong power supply for my model and they shipped me a new one for free. I was also able to order an upgrade graphics card for my 8200, something you can't normally do for a notebook.

I know there are people who have Dell horror stories, but every company has problems. I'm sure you'll find equal numbers of both horror and happy stories for HP, Sony, Apple, etc. I've been lucky so far, but I don't expect to not have any problems. It just depends on whether you get a defective model, or who answers your call.

Ironically people are saying that Dell's "failure" with the battery recall is making way for competitors like HP to succeed. It wasn't too long ago that everyone was shining the spotlight on HP for their "failed" HP-Compaq merger, saying they wouldn't last long.

People like to watch successes turn to failures. It's a sort of morbid curiosity similar to slowing down to watch a car accident, or following celebrities who make public blunders. I try to stay focused on good news, myself.

Loving Life with Beyond TV

After almost six months, I'm still loving Beyond TV. Who needs Tivo if you have a PC with big hard drive and a TV Tuner card?

I record all my favorite shows automatically. Some shows I record every episode that airs on any channel, some only new episodes. Or I'll spot a movie I want and record that- if it's already started, Beyond TV can find it airing again in the next 30 days.

Just like people I know who have Tivos, I no longer just channel surf. I now run Beyond TV and watch any one of my favorite shows, each of which has several episodes recorded. It's kinda like podcasts. You can watch the latest episode of TWiT, or re-watch the "What is a Podcast" episode of Ask A Ninja.

Even with a reasonably big HD, space can run low. At the compression level I've chosen, an hour show takes 2 gigabytes. Like Tivo and other PVRs, Beyond TV has auto-delete rules like "delete when I'm runing out of space" and "manually delete only."

I've also discovered some other features I'm just tapping into. It has an option to auto-convert recorded shows to a more compressed format like WMV or DivX so you can take them with you on a notebook or watch over your WiFi network.

I've also noticed that Beyond TV has a built-in web server that lets you browse and watch recorded shows from another PC. The other alternatives would be to just share the folder that contains your recorded shows, or buy an additional Beyond TV client app designed to work over a network. I may do that anyway- the interface is really nice and easy to read from a distance.

Great app. I hope they keep it around and don't get sued like some of the PVR companies have recently.

Garmin Nuvi 350

The past few months I've been GPS hunting.

The big names in the biz are Garmin, Magellan & TomTom. Other big name electronics firms like Philips and Sony have entered the market, but I wanted to go with a company that had more experience with the application. I've had a Garmin eTrex Legend for a few years, so I had my eye on a Garmen model like the Streepilot. TomTom also looked pretty cool.

There was a sale at the local Fry's Electronics a few weeks ago- a really good deal too. $599 for the Garmin Nuvi 350 which normally goes for $700-900. Five other people were already lined up behind the sales guy opening the cabinet to see if there were any units left.

I purchased the additional warranty by Fry's, by the way. I usually don't go for that kind of stuff. Usually by the time something breaks, it's time to get something completely different. But for a portable device like a GPS, the odds were higher that it could get dropped or damaged in shorter time.

It has really good maps preinstalled, and has a search by name/type that so far has found just about everything I've tried. Restaraunts, stores, etc. And it gives great directions, viewable from a 3D perspective or straight down.

A voice gives turn-by-turn narration, and it calculates re-routes if you miss a turn. The speech is recognizable, and warns first when a turn is coming up, then again when it's time.

You can choose language and accent like English, American, Australian, etc. There's even a language translator (But how good can it be? I'll have to try it some time).

Reviews say it syncs quickly with satellites. It does. You can set a "home" preset location, that you can choose to navigate to/from. Plus there are favorites & recent searches that are stored.

The Nuvi has a bunch of extra features like MP3 & audiobook playback and a picture viewer (via SD card slot). Nice, but they're not why i bought the device and I don't know how much I'll use them. It does have a handy converter tool though.

The next model up, the 360, has Bluetooth for syncing data with a PC and acting as a wireless speakerphone for your mobile phone. Yet another feature what would be nice, but not worth the extra cost.

So far I haven't had a chance to really try it it out in a place where I needed it. I used it to find a nearby Starbucks while driving around Las Vegas (worked like a charm) and also found a Geocache while hiking. I'm sure I get a chance to find a place or get un-lost eventually.

Lightwave 9 Launch Party

Newtek introduced the latest version of Lightwave recently. They celebrated with a party at the Spider Club in Los Angeles.

There were live demos being shown. Lots of mingling. I got the feeling everybody knew each other.

A demo video was shown with interviews and highlights of the new features.


CG industry pioneer Ron Thornton received an award for his contributions.

Fry's 2.0

After bicycling in Ventura, we stopped by at the newest location for Fry's Electronics. Since I always shop at the one near me in Woodland Hills, this was a huge surpise inside. No theme, like Alice in Wonderland or Science Fiction. But it did have a really really nice cafe. I always wanted a geek-oriented shop with coffee. And this is it. :)

What if you don't have a backup?

If you have a hard disk with important data that you don't back up, you're taking a big risk. I know, who has the time to do backups?

Sometimes Murphy's Law strikes before you get a chance. I had a drive that was a bit old and was starting to go.

I searched the web for data recovery products and services. There are companies that specialize in recovering lost drives that have been formatted, crashed or smashed. Those are expensive.

I decided to try out Data Rescue PC. It has a free version that tells you what it can recover, and it showed I could get back the majority of my files. I bought the full version, which makes a bootable CD. It's good to have a 2nd drive you can copy files to, rather than restore to the same drive that got you in trouble in the first place.

I hooked up a newly formatted drive & booted the Data Rescue CD. It takes a while to scan your bad drive, but if you can get your files back it's worth the wait. After a scan, it can save the scan results (another reason to have a good drive connected) so you can restore some files now, and others later.

It will rate the files it finds with a probability of whether it can successfully restore them. If your drive does go bad, don't mess around with recovery tools that try to fix it. I'd prefer a non-invasive program, which is why I chose Data Rescue.

Data Rescue performed as advertized. There were some files that didn't make it, but the majority survived. Whew!

I've learned my lesson- I'm backing up my new drive!

Leo Sighting

Leo Laporte is a radio/TV/podcast celebrity who hosts a number of shows on technology and computers. He has a great personality and is fun to listen to. We happened to hear he was broacasting live from a camera store in Westwood, so we decided to pop in.

You can hear Leo in his weekly broadcast TWiT (This Week in Tech). It's the #1 tech podcast on iTunes.

Crow vs Tokyo

From Australian IT:

Wily crows disconnect wired Tokyo

TOKYO'S futuristic image as the world's most technologically advanced broadband internet-enabled city is under attack from a vicious but decidedly low-tech foe: the crow.

Their destructive and unpredictable behaviour during the May-to-June mating season is always problematic for the Japanese capital. But this year the aggressive ink-black birds have created a new headache by developing a taste for fibre-optic internet cable.

In the past six weeks, hundreds of homes and offices have been left without high-speed internet services after the crows discovered that broadband cable can be pecked into usable strips more easily than power cables or telephone copper wire.

Crows have discovered that the broadband cables, which are strung from telegraph poles across Tokyo, are the perfect consistency for building nests.

Although the birds' appetite for fibre-optic cable was spotted last year, broadband service providers have begun reporting a sharp surge in instances of cable-pecking, in line with the rising population of crows.

Crows are drawn to Tokyo because of the large quantities of discarded food available. Every year there are reports of the birds attacking domestic pets or small children.

Why do backups?

Backups are a pain to do. I have Acronis True Image. Every month I boot from a CD created by True Image and back up our two home PCs to external USB drives. It takes hours to run, but it's worth it.

Yesterday we accidentally deleted some important photo files, and Acronis was put to the test. I mounted the backed up image as a drive, and got back the files I needed. Didn't have to run a full restore or anything complicated.

We have thousands of photos of vacations, family, scenery, etc. I'd hate to lose all of that. That's why I do backups.

But being able to quickly retrieve a file from a backup is incredibly valuable. I always thought of backups as being something you never (hopefully) have to use. I have bad memories of flaky tape drives that took forever to restore from. True Image has certainly made my impression of backups alot brighter.

Nokia BH-200

I have a Nokia 6820 phone, which has Bluetooth. I've seen alot of people with wireless headsets, walking around talking into thin air. If it weren't for the thing in their ear with a blinking light you'd think they're crazy. I couldn't use one in public, but driving would be great. So I started shopping.

Nokia lists the HS-26W and HS-11W on their website, but I had trouble finding it. The local Best Buy had a BH200, which is still Nokia. It looked cool, so I got it.

It paired with phone without problem. You scan for devices with your phone, then enter a key code to lock it to your phone.

It was hard to tell how it would fit on my ear, but it did, and comfortably. It's easy to turn on and off with a single button. It makes different sounds for each so you know which one you just did.

The sound quality is pretty good. It could be a little louder (but maybe that's a good thing). Battery life seems okay, but I haven't used it enough to know. It comes with a charger. The battery is not removable, which is not great.

I'm not sure how this model compares to the others, but it works. That was my main criteria.

Seagate 100GB USB

I carry a home-built USB/FW drive for extra storage. It's fast, but bulky. I also have a 1 GB SanDisk Cruiser, which I highly recommend. But it's not big enough to hold the kinds of work files I'm dealing with these days. I need something somewhere between the two.

My choice: a Seagate Portable HD. It's USB2, powered by USB so no extra power supply to lug around. It's smaller than my clunky FW drive. I would have gone with the Western Digital Passport drive, but the local Best Buy had the Seagate at 100GB and the WD's were 40 and 60's.

The Seagate comes with a double-headed USB cable, which is supposedly required on older PCs that don't have enough power on a single cable. So far I haven't needed it. The speed is good and it's pretty quiet.

I'd recommend the Seagate, but check out the Western Digital- it's smaller.

Let's hear it for the kids!

From CNN.com...

Teen's discovery could save millions of lives

E. coli poisoning is a huge problem in Third World countries, mostly due to poor sanitation. Millions of kids die every year from the severe diarrhea it causes. There is no quick cure, because most available shots require refrigeration.

For years, scientists have been working to find what can kill E. coli. Well, finally, someone found it. It turns out there is a good bacteria in yogurt that secretes a protein that kills E. coli. We know this now because a very smart, hard-working researcher discovered it...at the ripe old age of 13.

Serena Fasano, now 16 years old, earned a patent recently on her discovery, so we thought we'd interview her on "360." We learned Serena has spent countless hours of her free time in a lab and that she's very, very bright. She's also a normal high school kid with lots of friends. Yet, this "normal" kid's after-school activities could soon save the lives of millions of children.

What were you doing during your teen years? Actually, don't answer that. Better question is -- were you in a lab every day after school and on weekends looking for medical discoveries? Exactly.

---

From CBC News...

Students invent natural way to purify polluted water

HALIFAX - Scallop shells can be used to clean up polluted water, three teenagers in Halifax have discovered.

James Beaton-Johnson, Elias Fares and Amy Trottier began their award-winning research as Grade 12 students. They say the shells can be used to clean up contaminated rivers, lakes and even Halifax Harbour. The trio got the idea from a documentary about a Japanese fish farmer who tossed oyster shells into a pond and found it cleared the dirty water.

The students at J.L. Ilsley high school began experimenting with scallop shells immersed in dirty dish water. The water cleared in 24 hours.

Elias Fares, James Beaton-Johnson and Amy Trottier claimed second prize in the Aventis Biotech ChallengeCourtesy: BioNova The students then used their inexpensive, user-friendly method to improve the water quality on the MacIntosh Run, a river flowing through their school property.

They discovered the shells' shape and chemical makeup neutralizes pH and also helps filter out coliform bacteria, sediment and heavy metals.

Researchers at the National Research Council's Institute for Marine Biosciences say they don't know of anyone else doing similar research. The project has already won prizes at three science fairs.

Halifax Mayor Peter Kelly was so impressed with the students' research that he offered them summer jobs testing their method on the municipal water system. Their method successfully cleaned the water.

Next week, they'll present their project at the World Youth Parliament for Water in Quebec City. The conference brings together 100 teens from 30 countries to reflect on water management.

The students have applied to patent their water-cleaning method, and they are writing up their findings for a scientific journal. All three plan to study science at university.

BeyondTV

For a while I've had a Hauppague PVR 150 card. It lets you watch or record TV from your cable feed. The software that came with it is crude, but works. It has a scheduler, but you have to manually enter the dates for each show you want to record. If you forget it, you miss it.

Everyone I know who has a Tivo says it changes the way you watch TV. You only watch your favorite shows because they are always being recorded, and waiting for you to see. I like that concept, but didn't want to buy another device to do it.

I was looking at alternative software for my PVR card. There are a couple options out there. The one that stood out the most was Beyond TV by Snapstream. Other options are MythTV and SageTV.

BeyondTV has a Tivo-like interface. The only thing missing is the little cartoon character. You can even can use a remote (sold separately), but a wireless keyboard works pretty well too.

It has a built-in TV guide, updated via internet. That works pretty well. You can scroll through channels and get descriptions for anything that's on.

But Beyond TV really shines in how it records. You can either pick shows from teh guide or look them up by name. Then you get to choose whether to record just one episode, new ones, or any ones that happen to play. This is the feature I most wanted from Tivo. It even has rules to determine when it can delete old shows to make room for new ones.

And, I didn't notice this until recently, it records in the background- cool!. The Happauge software always popped up when it was recording.

The interface is very similar most set-top boxes, which makes it a little funny running it on a PC. I could see it would work better if I had it on an extra PC connected to the TV, just like a set-top. I don't know why someone isn't selling it bundled like this. There are bundles available w/software + tv tuner card, but you have to install it yourself.

My Yahoo

I've started using My Yahoo as a general contact/info tool. I'm reluctant to use my yahoo email so I don't start attracting huge amounts of spam, which I get on my Hotmail account.

Yahoo has great sync features. I imported everything from my Palm, imported bookmarks from IE, and was able to combine contact lists I've had in separate places. You can export everything too, so you don't feel locked in.

The My Yahoo home page is pretty well layed out. The graphics could be better but it loads fast. I have TV listings, movies, weather reports, plus my favorite RSS feeds from Digg, Techbargains, etc.

I use the Calendar feature alot, for both personal and business schedules. That way I can keep them from conflicting with each other. The calendar is connected to a Tasks List, so you can give things deadlines that show up on the calendar.

I know many people are gaga over anything Google. Some of their stuff is impressive, but the appearance leaves ALOT to be desired. Not that it's sparse- that's what I like about Yahoo versus, say, MSN. It's just really awkward. It's not designed at all. Yahoo got the right combination of form and function.

Buffalo Terastation

After a laptop crash last year, I've become paranoid about losing data. I copy important files to multiple computers and assembled several D.I.Y. external USB HD's (thanks to generous rebates from Western Digital, et al). This distributed method of backup seems alot more reliable than putting everything in one place. But it does make collaborative projects (not to mention finding old files) a little cumbersome.

Fry's Electronics had a rebate on the Buffalo Terastation, a single device for network attached storage (big storage). It's a file server in a box.

It's conveniently accessible from Windows or Mac and can even do FTP. You can set up separate secure shares with user accounts and groups, all set up with a web-based admin page.

You get 4 250GB drives and can configure them in different ways:
-• Standard - 4x 250GB drives (aka Raid-0)
-• Spanning - 1 1TB drive
-• Mirroring - 500MB with a 500MB mirror (aka Raid-1)
-• RAID-5 - 1 750MB drive with parity

Learn about RAID Arrays on the Wikipedia.

The best option (and the default) is Raid-5 which gives you the best of both speed and redundancy. If one drive fails, you can replace it and your files are still intact. And the RAID architecture means you have 4 hard drives working in tandem.

It also has cool lights on the front cover.

Key Features
-• Four operational modes: Standard, Spanning, Mirroring and RAID 5
-• Removable hard drive rack to allow quick swapping of hard drives should a drive fail
-• Advanced RAID system to continually check hard drive performance
-• 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet port and Jumbo Frame capability for higher transfer speeds
-• Heat-release conscious design with smart layout and ventilation supply
-• Memeo™ Easy Backup Software Included
-• Large silent fan to release HDD heat effectively and quietly
-• Four USB 2.0 ports, allowing 4 simultaneous USB connections
-• Built-in print server for sharing and managing a USB printer on the network
-• Built-in FTP server functionality
-• Easy setup wizard and management through intuitive web interface

I'll still use the external drives for backups, but the Terastation will be my new place for active and recent projects.

If I could buy a laptop today...

...I'd get a Sony Vaio VGN-TX670P.

It's really compact (err, I have a Dell Inspiron 9300, so anything else is compact), has not just Bluetooth & Wi-Fi, but GPRS cellular built-in. It also has a double-layer DVD burner (usually a DVD or CD drive is external on such a small unit). And it supposedly has great battery life.

Here's a review on CNET.

If the price gives you sticker shock, then check out the Dell Inspiron 710M. Also small and well equipped. Just not as cool looking and no cellular.

Panasonic DMC LX1

I've been holding out for an 8 megapixel camera to replace my 3.1 mp Niking Coolpix 885. The 885 has been my trusty camera for a few years now, and I'd be incline to keep it a little longer. But I was keeping my eyes open for a cool 8 mp just in case... And one did.

This is not just a standard point and shoot either. It's pretty unique in that it's CCD is actually 16:9, and it crops the image to achieve 4:3 or 3:2 aspects. Most cameras are the other way around, so you lose resolution if you want to get a panoramic shot. This one is designed for panoramic. (Note: If you do select 3:2 or 4:3 you are getting 7MP not 8.)


It has both manual settings and tons of presets including indoor, fireworks, sports, night sky, etc. There are also settings for Apeture Priority and Shutter Priority.

The size is not too big-- somewhere between the Canon and Casio point-and-shoots and a DSLR. The battery is supposed to last 3-4 hours, which is great.


Here's a good review:
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2005_reviews/lx1.html

iPod Nano

We already caught the iPod bug with our first 60GB iPod. Now the Nano. It's too cool to pass up, and it is very light which is great for workouts at the gym and hiking outdoors. Just make sure to get a protective sleeve you can keep it in to prevent the face from getting scratched.

I picked the 4GB one to get the most songs. In iTunes I created a Smart Playlist with a 3GB max to leave room for podcasts and extra songs.

See the previous post about the iPod and iTunes.

iPod

iPods seem to be everywhere. They are, according to Apple who claims over 80% market share. They're easy to spot by their white earbuds. They have cool commercials with catchy music. And Steve Jobs can make anything look amazing, and does this well with every new iPod model.
We already have two Dell DJs, but the iPod has always had the allure of sleeker design and more elegant functionality. We went with Dell at the time because it was cheaper and it seemed the iPod was more hype than value. That was until I saw one in person.

A friend showed us his video iPod. It feels great in your hand. The screen is really bright. The "click wheel" is nice, but it's all hype. Our DJ's three buttons (back, play/pause, forward) and scroll wheel do the trick too.

But there are plenty of other features that make it a compelling device. The way it handles podcasts is very nice, and iTunes beats any companion application I've seen for other MP3 players. It was so great feeding the CD drive with our music library, ending up with 2000+ songs totaling 6.2 days of continuous playback. Put that on shuffle play and you're set.

iTunes lets you make "Smart Playlists" that group songs by Artist, Album, date, etc. And if you get new music, it's automatically added to any Smart Playlist it matches.

The iTunes music store has a pretty decent collection, and at 99 cents, a good song is hard to pass up. If you want more independent artists, go to eMusic. They have standard MP3s that will play on any device.

This new iPod also plays video. I admit the screen is too small for serious viewing, but it works for podcasts and showing funny commercials we've downloaded to our friends and family. You can get a cable to hook up to a TV set. And the quality is not bad.

It doesn't last forever on continuous play, but it does an admirable job at stretching battery life. The screen dims after a set timeout. It even turns off automatically if it's not connected to a headphone or live input. We've left it plugged in to a tape adapter in our car, gone to lunch and came back to find it had shut off instead of running out of juice.

Speaking of tape adapters, we had to go with that option because the two FM Tuners we tried (Belkin & Radio Shack) both failed to get a clear signal, especially in city areas.

Another nice feature is how you can set the iPod to autosynch to your music library and just download everything new. No more comparing lists of files to see which ones you haven't downloaded yet.

It also lets you keeps podcasts and audio books separate from music so they don't show up in shuffle play.

I've been listening to a few podcasts on flights. It really helps pass the time. My favorites are DL.TV, Digg Nation, TWiT, LOSTCasts, The Official LOST Podcast, Battlestar Galactica Podcast, PhotoShop TV and Ask a Ninja.

Bottom Line: It is just another MP3 player after all, but definitely a good one. If you can afford an iPod, get it. If not, you're still going to be happy with a Creative Zen or Dell DJ, but I think the simplicity and automated features of the iPod give it a longer life of use. We've tried other MP3 players in the past (iRiver) where a bad interface and crappy software just made us give up on the thing. I think I'll be using my iPod for a long time.

Compaq V2000

We were looking for a basic notebook for "around the house"-- something light enough to carry from room to room or even outside. Our music library is on our desktop PC, and iTunes lets you play songs over a network, so this notebook could also double as a portable jukebox.

If you watch Techbargains long enough, every once in a while a great deal shows up. I was hoping for a Dell, but an offer too good to refuse showed up at Staples for a Compaq V2000. It had everything a decent notebook should have- adequate CPU (1.4Ghz Celeron, not a speed demon) and memory (256MB), good screen (1280x768 LCD, Intel 915 chipset), storage (60GB) and wireless (WiFi B & G). All for just under $500. Even the store manager commented on the deal when she was called over to authorize the purchase.

By ordering at the store instead of online you save on shipping charges. The PC is shipped to the store, so be sure to keep checking in to see when it arrives so you can pick it up.

The overall feel is good. Not too flimsy, but still light. The battery lasts long enough to browse the web, check email and listen to podcasts from our desktop PC without worrying about getting cut off. Since we keep it around the house we can charge it when it's not in use.

Now that Win XP handles stand-by and hibernate properly (compared to Win 2k), you can just pop it open, check if that episode of My Name is Earl was really shot at your old high school, then just close the lid and put it away.

Plasma vs LCD

Tom's Hardware has a great article on Plasma & LCD, how they compare today and in the future.

Bottom line: Plasma is getting cheaper, but LCD has more potential. Expect Plasma to fade away when LCD prices drop to lower levels.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/03/09/lcd_or_plasma_/index.html

Backpack

The Inspiron 9300 is big. Friggin' huge.

It won't fit into my beloved Trager Transcontinental Laptop backpack. So I had to go shopping.

Here's where I was looking:
www.newegg.com
www.rei.com
www.amazon.com
www.ebags.com

And here's what I found:

REI Big Byte Computer Bag - $59.00
Too small! The name says "big", but it's not big enough. I recommend bringing your notebook to a store to try it out. Otherwise you'll end up returning alot of bags that claim to have room for a 17" notebook, but don't fit the 9300.

REI Vertical Computer Brief - $90.00
Also too small.

Samsonite Sport backpack Model - $46.88
Too big. This would definitely not fit under the seat in front of me on an airplane. This is starting to sound like Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

OGIO Metro - $49.99
Close but not quite. The notebook sleeve on the back side is too small, even though the specs say it can take a 17" notebook.

Targus 17" XL Notebook Backpack - $59.35
Ahhhh, just right! And it looks pretty nice too.


Key features:

• Padded notebook compartment snugly fits 17" Inspiron 9300
  
• Compartment for papers/files
• Compartment with net pocket
  
• Side water bottle pocket
  
• Protective side pocket safe for sunglasses
  
• Audio player sleeve with line-out porthole for headphones
• Lots of other little pockets
• Strong grip top handle and back straps

Where did it find it? Best Buy! Just happened to spot it at the store.

The 9300 fits just perfectly.

Heavy-duty straps.

Palm Battery Strikes Again

My Palm Zire 72 died again. Crap!

Just a few days without charging, and it went back to factory settings and erased everything. I've just about had it.

So, I took a break from my Zire. When I get around to setting it up again, I'll be prepared. I bought Backup Buddy from www.bluenomad.com. Backup Buddy can backup to either a PC or SD memory card (that's my choice). Unlike HotSync, it backs up everything- like a snapshot of the Palm's memory. I'll post again when I have a chance to try it out.

I've had my eye on the Treo 650 for a while (not the 700). The Palm TX looks pretty tempting too. But I'll give my Zire 72 another chance with Backup Buddy.

Dell 2005FPW LCD

At work I do alot of graphic design and animation for the 16:9 video format. But I only have 4:3 CRTs. So when the right deal came up I sprung for the 16:9 Dell 20" LCD. (Spotted on www.techbargains.com).

Key features:

• 20.1-inch, Wide Aspect (16:9) Active Matrix TFT
• 1680x1050 Pixels
• 300 cd/m² Brightness, 600:1 Contrast Ratio
• 12 millisecond response time
• VGA / DVI-D / S-Video / Composite
  
• USB 2.0 Ports (why not?)
• PIP (picture in picture) and PBP (picture by picture) (only with S-Video & Composite)
• Adjustable height & rotation (very cool!)

Nice clean design.

Go portrait mode for less vertical scrolling.

What else can I say? It looks really good. Highly recommended.