Tag: Technology

Be Careful What You Post Online

I’m sure some of you reading this enjoy the use of Facebook Places and Foursquare. I’m sure you also enjoy posting about future upcoming vacations and whatnot so your friends will be jealous of your sweet week in Hawaii. You’ve probably noticed by now that I don’t really post when I’ll be away. If there is some reason I’m unable to create new posts on here I’m vague as Hell as to why (maybe it’s a heavy work load, maybe it’s a vacation, who knows). This is the same reason I disable the ability for others on Facebook to check me into locations via Places and it’s because of smart assholes like these:

Nashua police are crediting an alert off-duty police officer who heard fireworks with cracking a burglary ring that targeted homes known to be empty because of Facebook postings.

Criminals being ever vigilant have been using peoples’ postings online to figure out when they were away from home so said criminals could break in and rob the domiciles. Granted most criminals are smart enough to watch a place to determine when a person goes to work or otherwise leaves home on a schedule but generally they can’t tell when somebody is leaving for an extended period of time. It’s information such as this that you never want to hand to the enemy.

DHS Network Security Failure

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) apparently doesn’t practice what they preach. The DHS is tasked with securing the computers and networks of other government agencies but are unable to security their own network. The United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) found 1,085 instances of security holes.

I guess good enough for government work has an all new meaning now.

More Android vs. iOS

Is it any surprise that I like Android as an operating system? Would you be shocked if I told you I despise Apple’s App Store practices and how they restrict iOS devices? If you answered yes to either of those questions you’re either new here or have problems comprehending what you read. In the first case let me say welcome and in the latter case let me question your intelligence.

I’ve made a few posts about my Android phone and a few posts criticizing Apple’s practices in regards to iOS. This post is quite an opposite because I must give Apple some serious credit where it is due, their support for older devices.

Apple does a pretty decent job of supporting old versions of the iPhone for some appreciable amount of time. For instance if you have the previous model of the iPhone you can install the newest version of iOS and get many of its features. This isn’t so true in the Android world. I have an HTC Evo 4G and a while ago HTC released Android 2.2 for the device. Unfortunately that update has some glaring issues, the biggest of which in my opinion is the inability to sync multiple GMail accounts. If you have two GMail accounts added to your Android phone only the primary one will sync automatically leaving you to manually refresh each other account. Couple this with non-functioning VPN and flaky Exchange support and you have a desperate need for a patch.

The problem is HTC has so far simply stated they are looking into the problem and have not released an fix. Why am I concerned? Because of the history most Android manufacturers have with dropping support for devices that aren’t that old. While an iPhone owner can expect to receive updates for a couple years after purchasing their phone most Android users are lucky to receive fixes for a full year. There are some exceptions such as Google’s Nexus One (which is no longer being sold to consumers) and Motorola’s Droid (which is obsolete) but for the most part it seems manufacturers are quick to drop support for their devices forcing you to either go without updates or upgrade to a new phone.

I will also note that Palm has done a great job at continuing to support the Pre and Pixi but that could be due to the simple fact those are the only two phones they have released. Previously they were fast to stop releasing updates for their Treos and PDAs.

Let me simple give Apple a big cudos

Kindle 3

My new Kindle 3 arrived last night and I must say it’s pretty sweet.

First thing to note about the new Kindle is the size, it’s notably smaller than the previous model. The screen itself remains the same size but the overall device size is smaller and the device is lighter. Of course to accomplish this shrinkage they removed the dedicated number keys on the keyboard and put them into the symbol menu which I’m not too wild about. The backside is no longer metal but a rubberized plastic making it easier to grip but at the cost of feeling slightly chintzier.

The new E Ink Pearl screen is fantastic. The improved contrast is noticeable the second you see the screen. On previous generation Kindles the background was kind of a very light gray. The new Pearl screen’s background is almost white making the text a little easier to read. Additionally the refresh rate of the screen is faster than the Kindle 2 by a notable amount.

Having both Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity is a plus for those outside of 3G coverage. I hooked mine up to my Wi-Fi access point to test it and it works perfectly fine. With that said I’ll probably just continue using the 3G network because it’s always there and has always worked well for me. Still it’s a nice feature and if you don’t spend a lot of time in areas with 3G Amazon does offer a Wi-Fi only version.

I also like the new color. I’ve never been a big fan of white devices. It’s not that I hate white devices I just don’t like how they look as much. When I purchase a device I want it to be blacker than the blackest black times infinity. Well the new Kindle is graphite which is close enough to black for me to give it the head nod.

Ultimately I only have on real complaint, collections don’t sync. One of the best features of the last Kindle firmware update was the ability to put books into collections. This greatly cleans up the book selection screen which without collections ends up being something like seven or eight pages long for me. With collections I have two pages worth of stuff to dig through. Sadly when I redownloaded my books they did not go into the collections I placed them in on my Kindle 2 meaning I had to manually re-add them all to their proper collections. Really that’s a slight annoyance but it’s something I’d like to see changed in the future.

Overall I think it’s a great device and a good upgrade. Is it work upgrading to if you already have a Kindle 2? Probably not. All the new features are evolutionary instead of revolutionary meaning you probably aren’t going to notice a heck of a lot of difference. If you’re happy with your Kindle 2 you can comfortably remain on it as there are no new features that will blow you away. The improved screen is very nice through and with the upgrade if you plan on selling your current Kindle (I don’t think the improved screen itself is worth $189.00).

So why did I upgrade? Because I’m a device whore that’s why. I saw something new and shiny which meant I had to have it.

My Thoughts on Apple’s Product Announcements

Because I’m sure you’re very interested in what I think… OK maybe not but this is my site so I’m going to post my thoughts anyways.

The new iPod Shuffle… meh. I never really found a use for a device that randomly plays from a selection of songs. Don’t get me wrong I have my music players on shuffle most of the time but I also have the ability to listen to songs in order when I chose.

The new iPod Nano… meh. It’s a tiny touch screen device. Of course the touch screen means you can no longer have it sitting in your pocket and skip songs by reaching in and clicking the button.

The new iPod Touch… kind of neat. A full iPhone without having the phone internals or the nicer rear facing camera is a novel idea. It would be a good references platform for anybody wanting to develop iPhone software but no wanting to buy the phone and accompanying contract.

The Apple TV… bleh. I’m not a fan of paying $0.99 to rent a television who and $4.99 to rent a new release movie. Likewise the steaming support is most likely only going to support the few formats that iTunes does which are few and far between. The ability to stream NetFlix is pretty cool if you don’t already have an Xbox 360 to do it.

iTunes 10… meh. Social networking for music? Man I wish somebody would have thought that one up before.

Overall I wasn’t impressed with anything announced. Everything was evolutionary (nothing wrong with that granted) except the Apple TV and that was ruined to me the second they said it was going to work on a rental only model. I will say if I ever decide to start developing iPhone software I may get an iPod Touch as reference hardware but I don’t see that happening anytime soon (if ever).

Impressive Sony E-Book Reader Update

With all the posts I do about Amazon’s Kindle (of which my new one should arrive today) and Barnes and Nobel’s Nook I often forget to even mention Sony’s lineup of e-book readers. This is mostly because Sony’s line has had a major drawback, it requires syncing with a desktop computer using their software that only works on Windows. The only time I run Windows is via a virtual machine. Some time ago Sony introduced the Reader Daily Edition that included 3G capabilities allowing you to untether from your desktop but by that time the Kindle already had a solid foot in the door.

Today Sony announced some impressive updates to their Reader lineup. Namely all three models now have touch screens, E Ink Pearl (the same screen used in the new Kindles), and the Daily Edition now supports Wi-Fi (because everybody else was doing it). But one major speed bump lies between Sony and relevance, price. The Reader Pocket Edition, their cheapest device, comes in at $179.00. At this price it includes no connectivity options except tethering it to a computer. For $189.00 you can get the Kindle with both 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity and for $199.00 you can get the Barnes and Nobel Nook with the same. The only Sony Reader with connectivity options (both Wi-Fi and 3G) is the Daily Edition which comes in at $299.00.

Of course Sony can point to their touch screen but that really doesn’t enhance the experience enough to justify the massive increase in price. E Ink displays are slow meaning you aren’t going to get instant feedback when you do something that requires the screen to change. Even with a touch screen you’re not going to be able to scroll down through a book on the Sony Reader as you can with your web browser on a smart phone. If you try to flick the page down the entire screen will take a noticeable fraction of a second to refresh. It’s not that big of a deal really but it means the addition of touch screen controls really isn’t going to add anything over the hard button controls the Kindle uses. The Nook has the second LCD touch screen that avoids the Sony Reader’s problem as LCD’s refresh faster than the human brain can notice making it appear instant.

Still the addition of a touch screen E Ink display is pretty cool and I have to had Sony some credit on that.

Rail Mounted Power

This is a neat idea that doesn’t seem to actually solve the problem it’s designed to. The Firearm Blog brought to our attention the Rifle Integrated Power Rail (RIPR). It’s pretty simple, a battery that provides power to rail mounted accessories through the rails. It seems like a novel idea since you’d no longer be required to carry additional batteries for every accessory on your rifle.

Of course there’s also the major downside; if the RIPR fails all of your accessories go down. This seems to eliminate and advantage considering the following:

We’re not that worried about a RIPR battery going tits up. You would of course carry spares with you. We’re more worried about the plug-in unit/rail (into which the RIPR battery is inserted) failing. If that goes down, you’re done–unless you have spare batteries for the individual accessories, of course.

So now you carry additional RIPR batteries as well as batteries for your individual accessories. That seems to add weight to both the rifle and your load out. Convergence is good in some situations and not so hot in others. Having a small portable computer in your pocket that can make phone calls, listen to music, browse the Internet, and act as a GPS navigator. The reason such devices work well is because losing all of those functions is a nuisance.

Convergence doesn’t work so well when redundancy is critical. For instance a RAID 5 array on a server prevents a system from dying if any single hard drive fails. RAID 0 on the other hand means your entire server will die if any single drive dies. The reason servers generally use RAID 5 is because having the entire system go down if a single drive fails is not acceptable. Once the system is down anything that relies on that server is now useless. The same would go for the RIPR, if it fails every power-using accessory on your gun dies. If these accessories include a flashlight or some kind of night optic requiring power your rifle is now pretty useless in the dark. Personally given the size of the RIPR and the fact that you would still need to carry batteries for individual accessories I feel it’s a solution in search of a problem.

I Can’t Tell You How Many Times I’ve Wanted to Do This

Just read the first paragraph of this article:

A Salt Lake City mortgage company employee allegedly got drunk, opened fired on his firm’s computer server with a .45-caliber automatic, and then told police someone had stolen his gun and caused the damage.

Minus the getting drunk and accusing somebody stole my gun this paragraph really describes one of my dreams, shooting a server. Of course I wouldn’t lie about what happened unlike this drunkard mentioned in the story:

A probable cause statement alleges that Campbell told police he had been “mugged, assaulted with his own firearm and drugged” by a mystery assailant.

Yeah because that’s certainly a believable story. Pro tip here, if you’re going to make up a story in an attempt to lie to the police make it a believable one. Better yet don’t have a gun one you while you’re drunk.

Burn Your Recyclables

Regardless of the fact that many recyclable products require more energy to recycle and create new again it seems Cleveland is going to force you to recycle:

The chips will allow city workers to monitor how often residents roll carts to the curb for collection. If a chip show a recyclable cart hasn’t been brought to the curb in weeks, a trash supervisor will sort through the trash for recyclables.

Trash carts containing more than 10 percent recyclable material could lead to a $100 fine, according to Waste Collection Commissioner Ronnie Owens. Recyclables include glass, metal cans, plastic bottles, paper and cardboard.

Yup that’s right if you don’t roll out your recyclables container enough a trash inspector will dig through your rubbish bin and fine you if they find too many things in there that could be recycled. I think it would be smart to start burning all of your recyclables. Why? Because I, like many Americans, have a problem with authority (that’s a good thing). If you try to make me do something I’m going to do the opposite just to spite your ass. Hence if I lived in Cleavland I’d now be burning every recyclable item I had just so I could avoid bringing that bin out and waste the trash inspectors time when he digs through it and finds nothing.