I'm a Dan Fan

I like Danica. 

Small car, big attitude!

Taken & posted by iPhone 3G

iPad - It's so easy your Granny could use it!

The goal of many designers who create user interfaces for computer programs is to make program X so easy to use that anyone's grandparent could use it intuitively. A computer so easy it's like a TV or a radio; just turn it on and the next step is obvious. Send email? Click this! See pictures, read a blog, read a magazine, read a newspaper, listen to music, watch a movie, check the TV schedule, get turn by turn directions to anyplace in any city, play a game, write a journal, etc... all one click away and easy to recognize. Computing so obvious and far removed from computing we know today. It's more like - just turning it on. All that and more looks to be coming in the new iBook. Sure, power users, uber geeks, and eternal tinkerers, will never be happy with a device like that. They may have one as just another gadget in their collection, but most real techies will keep their 'real' computers for a long time to come. "You can have my when you pry it from my carpal tunnel inflicted hands!" Me too!

But my wife who loves reading the kids blogs, listening to music, and reading books, will LOVE this device. She could care less what RAM is, and even less about how much is installed. She has no desire whatsoever to know the difference between a Celeron and a Core i7 CPU. Does that make her stupid? Hell no, shes an RN and made A's in school... It's just that EVERYONE chooses what they do and don't want to know about. I'm the same way about TV's. Most geeks ogle and Google over every little spec on all the new-tech TV's coming out - I could care less. I look at a display and say, "that looks good to me." I just don't care about whether it's plasma or LCD or whatever. But I still want to own and use a TV.

The iPad is getting a lot of speculative bad pre-reviews by a lot of talking tech-heads, many of whom I believe are missing the point. This is a device for consumers who want to be connected to family and friends and never worry if their anti-virus software is up to date, or how to install new software.This is for anyone who wants to pick up the device from the table next to their easy chair and browse a few headlines, check the evenings TV schedule, send a quick email.

I'm sure Bose and others will create a docking station with great sounding speakers... imagine a mini-home theater and music video station! How about a dash mount for the car and the ultimate GPS screen! I know that there was not a camera in the debut, but we all know there will be - then we will have an ultimate two (or more) way video communication device using chat or voice, even Skype! Games? Holy cow look at the popularity of iPhone games and multiply that by a 4x larger screen! I think the game play with the motion sensors will be much better on a larger screen, allowing better control because you'll have more to see and reference for your movements.

When I first saw the iPad unveiled and about ten minutes into the presentation, I was not impressed. The more I read, learn, and think about it though, I think it will have a very useful spot in our family life. And it will free up my 'real' computer for me to use more often!

"ONLY" 9 Million

Only $9,000,000.00? How in the hell will he ever get by on that?

These beep beep beep bankers and their beep beep can all go to mother beep beep as far as I care! BEEP them all!

In the article they say "Goldman Chief’s Bonus Seen by Some as Show of Restraint" Somebody please beep beep restrain my fat beep!

Super Geek

Steve Wozniak, undoubtedly one of the smartest and most innovative people of my generation. I like everything about him. The level of knowledge and imagination he's demonstrated rarely coexist in one person. He is my all time favorite geek, right after Eater, of course.

iThink iMay iThink iMight

I am a computer guy... have been since 1979. Since then I have used UNIX, CP/M, DOS, GEM, Windows, OS/2, and Linux. The one popular OS I've never used is Mac OS (or Mac OS X). I am ready to try it out. I want to see for myself if the Apple tax is worth it. If not, I'll have a great laptop I can load Linux on that will last a long time.

I am 90% sure I want to go with the 15" MacBook Pro, not sure if I'll take the processor or RAM upgrade yet. In addition, I think we'll try the iPad once it comes out. I believe Wendy would love it.

Why?

I have had the iPhone 3G for one year now, this month. It still looks like new, it still works like new, and still blows my mind with how useful and fun it is to use. I take it everywhere, I use it for everything. I feel like I have a Star Trek worthy tool with me at all times. It can guide me from anywhere to anywhere, driving or walking. I can reserve movies with a couple clicks at a Red Box or buy tickets at Fandango on the spur of the moment. I can read any news any where, major publications like USA Today, New York Times. I can tap into any news network, communicate with anyone in my social media network in half a dozen different ways at any time. People I specify can "find" or track me with GPS wherever I go, as long as I'm carrying my iPhone. I can check for any business such as a restaurant or a product such as a Book, and the iPhone will not only tell me the closest place it's available, but the cheapest as well, and the GPS will guide me there. I can snap a photo of any book cover and get a synopsis and rating of the book. I can park in the great outer reaches of a crowded mall and the iPhone will guide me back to my car. I can scan a bar code of any product for price shopping and comparison.

It would be a shorter list if I listed what the iPhone can not do for me.And there's a wife for that.

Speaking of Wendy, I can see her now, curled up in her chair with her iPad, browsing the kids latest videos and photos, reading her novel of the month while listening to one of her Donnie Osmond albums. Maybe, just maybe, she may even start to use email! Many times while watching a movie or program we'll wonder about what some actors name is or what they played in before - well there would be an app for that on the convenient iPad sitting right there next to her.

It's small, light, has long battery life, easy to use. You can browse your TV schedule without flipping through the TV screen menus or program pages, and probably will be able to use it as a remote control even.

As much as I love Linux and open source, as easy as it would be to settle for Windows 7, and even as cheap as I am, I think it's worth the risk of paying a little more, for what some say is the best laptop made.

I never would have considered it had it not been for the iPhone. Maybe that's the genius of Apple marketing.

Good Morning!

I’ve been waking up feeling vibrant and energetic lately. The only problem is it’s happening between 3:00 and 4:00 AM.