Ok, I’m salivating. This new Motion tablet has it all. First, I’m a power-user, my little LE-1600 is often screaming “mercy!” from my multi-tasking ways — but this new duo-core model offers an upgrade to 4Gigs of memory. That’s enough to keep even me quiet for a few months. (more…)
Kevin Tofel, over on JKontheRun featured the news that the latest Motion Computer for the medical industry had been unveiled. (How did I MISS that one? — thanks for the heads up, Kevin!)
What’s so cool about this new offering?The new Motion C5 Tablet PC has a built in RFID – radio frequency technology (for wrist ID bands), and something I’ve been wanting on my own Tablet PC — a built in camera! It also has a “disinfectable” semi-sealed interface (something I could PROBABLY use on mine, considering how grimy it gets), and a metal internal frame and a grab-handle at the top.
The white chassis is iPodesque, but cool. What doesn’t it have? A touch screen. I’d imagine that having a touch screen like the one they offer for other service industry use would be welcome (if not almost essential) in this environment.
The new C5 still awaits FCC approval before being sold, but it’s a nice new offering from my favorite Tablet PC manufacturer.
My hubby picked me up a copy of Sims Life Stories for Valentines day, and I must admit I’ve really enjoying my new little Sims. As a long-time player of Sims and Sims 2 (I have had ALL the expansion packs), I’m still happy with this “toned down” version of the game. Why? Because it does something the other versions have never done…Unlike the predecessors, this Sims can play in a window! Now, this means that doing online “poking about” — I was also “Simming” in a window on my second monitor. As a natural multi-tasker, I must say I love that ability. I love it enough to put up with less.
I also like that the “fears” have been removed, that I no longer have to pay those blasted bills (or deal with the collectors, when my simmies forgot). I do miss being able to send my simmies to college. Ironically, I don’t really miss the ability to open a business (I guess I have enough of that in my real life — go figure!).
What if the current problems I’m always ranting about in the public education system in Kentucky were suddenly gone? What if there was a way to provide an excellent online alternative and what if that alternative was free?
Consider the current new wave of “open source education” options online…A group of universities, worldwide have joined together to form the Open Courseware Consortium a group of higher education organizations willing to share their coursework, syllabuses and class notes online — for public view — for free. Pretty amazing new turn in the formerly un-shared information from universities and institutions including Harvard Law School, MIT, Notre Dame, Johns Hopkins, etc.
In addition, I’ve found the following online, opensource educational resources:
EA Games has just announced a new mobile-friendly game, based on the famous Sims2 model. The company has announced three games, marketed under the umbrella of Sims Life Stories.
The first one is called Life Stories, is due out in February. The second, Life Stories Pets is due out this summer. The third is the one I most anticipate (probably because I’m such a huge “Lost” fan) called Castaway Stories.
But what do I look forward to most with this new offering?…
The fact that it will play in a window!!! So I can do other things while my Sims are living their lives. For those not currently Sims2 fans… you probably can’t understand the importance of this. For those who are… ISN’T THAT COOL?!?!
I just finished the fairly daunting task of rebuilding my Tablet PC.
When I bought it, I spent months doing what I do… pushing the limits and trying out everything. Now, I needed to fix the damage done by installing and uninstalling a plethora of programs — I needed to regen the system for the new year.
Now that the task is mostly complete (I still have to install some small things that will undoubtedly bite my butt over the next few days — there always is).
I thought that some other new Tablet PC
I don’t have all the cool tablet power tools or even the PowerToys for XP installed now. I’ve skipped most of the games and the extras. When you are working with a small hard drive, you need to guard your space for essential data.
I’ve tried to do a bit of financial planning in the final days of 2006. Armed with my financial statements for the business, the most recent stub from my husband’s work (with YTD figures), and my mileage, expenses, and medical information, I began my work…
Last year, being unexpectedly surprised by the “taxes owed” column of
the 1040 form, my hubby and I decided to bump up (dramatically) the
amount he had withheld rather than doing quarterly estimated taxes. We dramatically over-estimated our tax bill for 2006 and hubby tried hard all year to not complain too loudly that he was bringing home less than 35% of his paycheck each payday.
So, I wanted to do a bit of figuring before the December 31st deadline for making any necessary purchases, etc. And what I found shocked me. We scrimped this year. We made a respectable amount of money… more than we have ever made (collectively and individually) in any year prior, too.
We both stared at the gross totals with awe. Funny, I thought, I don’t recall any fancy vacations, any extraordinary jewelry, any shiny new cars or any major investments. What I recall is us scraping so we wouldn’t have to worry about taxes this year. What I recall was an expectation of a refund at the end of the year and no worries there, even if the bills accrued for medical and standard expenses were larger than anticipated for this year.
What I did NOT expect was a figure to be missing in the “refund” slot and a LARGE figure in the “Taxes owed” box. Now, granted this was a quick calculation. Granted, I may have overlooked something (and will go through it all again, once my tears dry and I get brave again). And I pray that I’ve missed something huge — but right now I’m too disgusted to review it all. We OWE? Geeze! This is nuts!
Ok, I did it. While I was working on another computer, I converted the
Sims 2 Pets expansion pack to a virtual CD (using Virtual Drive 9.0).
Now, I have a great little smooth-running copy of Sims 2 Pets running
on my Tablet PC.
I’ve been hoarding a great little site that helps me to get any template I may ever need for OneNote… and it’s time to bring it out of the closet.
I tripped across this site several months back, but it took awhile to determine how to convert this “paper lovers” site from a “print it out on your printer and stick it in your paper organizer” resource to a digital resource to use with my own Tablet PC and my OneNote program.
The way my Adobe came packaged (version 7.0 Professional), it’s not particularly “Tablet PC Friendly.” I want to be able to “mark up” a PDF with my stylus the same way I would mark up a paper copy with a red ink pen.
As a writer and a marketing specialist, my clients often send me documents and marketing materials in PDF format for my review. And, when mobile, it’s the format I prefer. But it’s not that simple to mark up these PDFs and send them back to a client with recommendations with a stylus. And, it should be!
I noticed, while cruising over at JKOnTheRun, that there are programs especially designed for Tablet users who want this functionality.
In particular, they mentioned PDF Annotator: (http://www.ograhl.com/en/pdfannotator/index.php). If you don’t have the full version of Adobe, I’m sure this thing would be worth its weight in gold (and the fairly hefty price — $50–for a small piece of software that serves only one function.)
But, with my current sizable investment in the Adobe Software, I wanted to figure out how to do the same thing with existing software. I hate having duplications in software functionality. It’s wasteful!
And, I’m happy to report, I found the way…
I love Firefox. I despise IE. I use IE only long enough to ensure that my own webs and my client’s site resolve properly using that browser. Then, lickety-split, I’m back to FireFox where I can browse in tabs, where I can worry less about security issues, where I can customize my browser to serve me the way I work, and where I can be a part of a community of software developers and users that create objects for their peers. It’s a geeky community, but an enjoyable one.
Yeah, I know the new IE 7.0 offers its own “tabbed” browsing, but they are too late to this party, IMHO.
I could wax poetic about Firefox for hours (I’m verbose that way, at times…)
But, rather than doing that, I thought you may be interested in what Firefox add-ons I use and why I love them. That way, if you want to give Firefox a spin, you will know some of the bells and whistles you can add. And, if you already adore Firefox, you can peruse a list of “must have” add-ins that are tried and true (and won’t crash your Internet sessions).
Or, perhaps… you would prefer to see some of the top Ad ons — the ones I’ve tried and found to be true? Well here they are…
I’m mulling over my current cell phone bill and I’m wondering… was it a good idea to give up the Treo and go with a separate phone and my Tablet PC? Now, don’t get me wrong. I’ll never give up my Tablet PC. It will have to be pried from my cold fingers… ahem… unless something cooler and better and faster and smaller comes along in the near future… but I digress.
The fact is, I could check my email and do a bit of web surfing on the Treo for $19.00 per month (with Cingular). And now, I’ve got to have this MEGA dataplan to use my Tablet PC from anywhere.
I prefer the Tablet PC. I like the full screen, the ability to actually do work on that full screen and to maintain a size ration as well as a complete program pack that’s identical to the one I use at the office, even when I’m not at the office. I love not having to sync things. I love having this system set up so that my Tablet PC is my main machine, with a server at the office and a 500 gig hard drive that can either reside on my desk in Serenity or travel with me in a laptop bag for longer journeys.
But the cost… whew!
The good folks at Motion Computing offer several keyboard options for the LE1600 Tablet PC that I use… but I really like my own solution. I was at Best Buy the other day and noticed that they had some pretty cool new keyboards. Since I wear out a keyboard about once a year… yes I said WEAR OUT a keyboard… it was time for me to look for the next victim.
I tend to type the numbers and letters right off the key faces. My last keyboard, an ergonomic type from Microsoft, lasted longer than most because they keys were imprinted rather than just “painted on” like most are.
But, I wanted a wireless option. And, I have difficult with most wireless keyboards because I out-type them and that causes the little things to go into a buffer zone wherin I have to sit and wait for my keyboard to catch up so I can see where I am. I recently bought a cheap option for under $30 at Walmart, but it didn’t keep up and it kept tying up my program waiting for it.
But, there was this pretty new model at Best Buy… and although I wasn’t too hot on the keyboard in the beginning, I fell in love the first time I wrapped my right hand around the mouse. It fit me like a glove. Now I will say it’s not a good option for lefties — it’s custom-fitted for a right hand — but if you are right handed and you like a full featured mouse and a more-than-full-featured keyboard, and you want to go wireless… this is your answer.
The keyboard is the Logitech Wireless Bluetooth Desktop MX 5000 Laser 
I’ve only had mine for a couple weeks, and I use it when I convert my Tablet into my primary computer (I use pen and inking technology when I’m on the road to keep my load light). But I must say I’m impressed so far.
There is still a bit of lag on typing, but not as much as I’ve seen with other wireless keyboards. And, unlike others, this one catches up pretty quickly and I don’t have to stop and wait on it. It will catch up in a burst whether I keep typing or not. There are features I’ve not even touched yet, but I can say that I like the quick launch keys and the media keys.
If I’m rocking out, blowing off some steam and blogging when a client calls, all I have to do is push the onboard “mute” button or hit the “play/pause” button to have immediate silence to answer the phone like a professional. No more fumbling around to try to shut things down, I merely hit the button while reaching for the phone with the other hand. The digital display is pretty cool too, although I’m not sure I’ll ever use it to full potential.
All that said about the keyboard… the most amazing thing about this desktop set is the mouse. It’s pure silk. It fits like it was made for my hand and it offers advanced tilt-wheel technology. It’s rechargeable (when I remember to dock it at night) and carries a good long charge (for when I forget to dock it at night). The battery indicator is on top, which makes it easy to prevent a low power surprise in the middle of a project. And the laser is pin-point accurate — better than any mouse tracking I’ve ever seen. And… it doesn’t seem to care what surface I use — even highly reflective surfaces work fine.
I had nearly resigned myself to a mousepad again — and I despise those little things. But with this new mouse, I’m mouse-pad-free and intend to stay that way. I don’t need any additional clutter on my desk.
So, if you decide you need a new mouse and keyboard, try the Logitech Cordless Bluetooth Desktop MX 5000 Laser
If you want to read a good, old fashioned book — complete with sepia pages and pencil-marked book numbers from old library systems…but you are often on the road and simply can’t carry any more weight than you currently do…
I have a great solution!
There’s a website that permits you to view full color books (including nice lithograph illustrations) on your Tablet PC or laptop… You just push a button and the pages turn just like the old fashioned kind of books… not the same “scrolling” function you see in most ebook readers.http://www.openlibrary.org/
Their selection is still rather limited, but you could always volunteer to scan in and upload some of the old classics you currently have, or you could do a recording of the reading of any of the books they don’t already have with an audio-option.
Nice, huh? Even nicer if you are trying to live in a small space.
And another great book and story site is: http://www.fairytalescollection.com/
If only I had found this kind of resource way back in 1988, when I did my undergraduate thesis on fairytales!
In their quest to improve the handwriting recognition of their software products, Evernote has opened up the collection of handwriting samples to the general public.
I submitted my own a few days ago, and got my acceptance and the key to download my free software this afternoon!
Now that I know it’s all legit and they are still turning this around… I thought I’d share it with others.
So, if you want to get your own handwriting software package (you have your option of two), read on…
Go to the Evernote.com site: http://www.evernote.com/pub/training/
Follow the directions and write the sentences, scan or take a good digital image (like I did with my cool little camera) and send it to the company. If you are accepted, they will send you a link like they sent me.
Now, don’t let lousy handwriting deter you… after all, they accepted mine! (and it’s like chicken-scratches… made by a drunken chicken… you get the idea)
I finally took the leap… it’s been a couple of weeks now and I’ve been so busy that I haven’t really given my new little guy much undivided attention, but I must say, I’m enjoying the new addition… a Motion Computing Tablet PC – LE1600.
As I’ve said before, I don’t think the UMPC’s are quite ready for the workout I give my equipment. I know that the battery life on those machines is sub-standard, whereas the battery life on this little guy has been great so far. Depending on my use (heavy hard drive use and music/video use shortens life somewhat), my tablet runs 2-3 hours on the standard battery. That’s actual time, not “manufacturer expectation talk” (which is, in my experience, considerably less battery time than advertised on most models.)
There is an extended battery available for this little guy that’s supposed to bump breathing time for it up to the 7-9 hour range. I’ll get one of those soon, but for now, I’m so busy with clients that I’ve not had time to properly play and determine if I’ll need it. (more…)
The health problems that I thought were fixed have returned, and the timing kinda sucks, since I’m still out in the Rockies. But, I’m taking this time to do a bit more research on the Tablet PC I’ve been salivating over for several months and I’ve discovered (and been reading like mad about) the new UMPC products (Ultra-Mobile Personal Computers). Computing is an exciting field at the moment. Things are really “hopping” and I’m fascinated with the new breakthroughs. Now, I think I know why I’ve not already purchased the Tablet PC.
The Tablet is the first Technology advance/toy that I’ve wanted for an extended period of time that I’ve NOT purchased. Usually, I’ll salivate for a week or so, then bite the bullet and buy the device. Not so this time. And now I think I know why…
If you want to learn more about UMPCs as a general “class” of machines, you can visit the Microsoft site. If you want to learn a bit more about the individual models of UMPCs, you may want to hit some of the user and fan sites that are springing up all over. For instance, I found the following sites in my perusing last night when I couldn’t sleep:
http://umpc.com/
http://www.umpcbuzz.com/
You may also want to check out the following news release – http://www.mil-embedded.com/news/db/?2873 - the first mention of a “rugged” UMPC for the Military market, which makes all kinds of sense to me.
One device the OQO can be reviewed online here. And the Samsung device is now available (but on backorder) at BestBuy.com. You can read the PDF Owner’s Manual online to get the details. However, that model is a Celeron chip and the memory and HD space is lower than some of the other options available on, for instance, the EO by TabletKiosk. And, although the batterylife of the EO-V7110 seems to be problematic in the first release, the rest of the reviews on this particular little gem are pretty exciting. See a review here. What turns my crank about this one? It’s a Centrino chip for starters. (I despise celeron anything) Then try a 100 GB HD – at 7200 speed! (an upgrade, of course) or a 160 GB HD (at 5400 – for the same price) *decisions, decisions* and up to 1GB DDR2 SODIMM! (also an upgrade). But that means I’d have a pretty cool little mobile Tablet PC with a touch screen, 100 GB of fast-access storage space (or 160 gigs running a bit slower) and a mass amount of onboard RAM in something that I can slip into a smallish purse – or the side of my backpack when I’m on the road. HEAVEN! :O)
For those of you that don’t need or want a “souped-up” version, you can get one of these little beauties for under $1K. (My version more than doubles the price.) But another big reason that I think these little beauties will sell is a lower price point than the current tablet PCs and a price point more “in keeping” with the current laptop market — but adding the additional size and functionality convenience factors.
Although I don’t think these devices are perfected by any stretch, I think this is a whole new breed of device that mesh pretty closely to my definition of ideal. I also believe with a better battery life, that it may be a perfect choice for real estate professionals, agents and brokers — as well as techno loving writers such as…. ME! These little devices have the advantages of the “write-on” screen of the tablet PC operating system and the connectivity required of most brokers and agents in the field.
As these become a little less obscure and blend more into the mainstream, I fully expect these devices (labeled Origimi Devices) to become the mobile professional’s best friend. I also expect a serious upswing of adoption by the teen and early 20’s market for entertainment devices with the bonuses of online connectivity and office/classroom productivity. With the capability of keyboard and larger monitor, these devices may even become the “main computer” for many folks. The touch-screen also allows thumb-input for when you don’t have the time or desire to hook up a keyboard.
For now, keep an eye on these new devices… exciting things are happening in the mobile world!
Although I don’t use my Treo for everything like I once did… (I know I can, if it’s needed, but I don’t make a habit of trying to run my entire business from my phone)… I still rely on it for many “above and beyond” functions. Among those functions that I use on a “many times a day” basis, is the eWallet. I have both the desktop and the Palm version and I swear by them. In fact, when I met with a client for all-day consulting session on Saturday, the use of a password wallet came up. She said that she just set all her passwords the same, to keep it easy to remember… being the security freak that I am, I pitched a mini-fit!
I told her that keeping things secure is something that is required in our modern, digital world… and that being able to look up those little bits of information was essential…
I even recommended the eWallet program for her, despite the fact that she doesn’t own a Treo. I suggested she get the desktop version. I love mine. It’s what helps me keep things all organized and straight. And… I can backup the data (still password protected) onto a portable hard drive, my backup external drives, or even a thumbdrive.
It makes looking up the information (that I need many times a day) quick and easy.
For me, it’s an essential application — both on my desktop and on my Treo. Then today, moments ago, I got an email announcing a new upgrade to the program, and inviting me to come download my own free. I love vendors that give me free upgrades and treat me like a valued customer. It helps me to feel that my business is appreciated. The new version adds 256-bit RC4 key encryption for a more secure lock-down of my personal information.
So, if you are interested in learning more about the eWallet program, visit them at: www.iliumsoft.com. I no longer use their other programs (ListPro and DockWare Pro) but I can’t imagine running my business, keeping up with my software serial numbers, my essential personal information and the slew of online username/password combinations without this little gem.
And, for those of you using the 700w — they also offer a windows mobile version! A flavor for every appetite!
I’ve had a few agents contact me lately about the Treo VS the Tablet PC products.
Tablets may be a bit off the Treo topic, but they are dead-on the mobility issue…and, it’s something I’ve been looking at myself lately… trying to decide if a tablet makes sense for me, and if it’s a “now” item or a “soon” item on my wish list.
What I’m dying to see, what I’ve been scouring the reviews, the “upcoming products” and the other geeky sites and pubs to find is a truly great tablet PC.
Not just any old tablet — I want one that will work for me and that I can recommend to my clients. For me, it would have to have…An extraordinary battery life.
One of the things I love about my Treo is the number of hours I can work on it and the ease with which I can plop in a new battery. Now, on a Tablet, I’d like to have the battery last all day and be hot-swappable. I don’t like to “power down” and reboot. I hate it. And most PCs (unlike the Treo, again) take so blasted long to boot, that it makes me crazy. I’m not a patient woman. ‘Nuff said.
It would have to run decent graphics. (more…)
As the fall marches forward, I’m in a dismal state of disorganization. The old “it must get worse before it gets better” goes double for me right now. I spent the weekend reorganizing my computer. (more…)
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