Tools for Living

Lenovo Thinkpad Edge - This might be my favourire notebook ever

2012-01-25T23:34:00.000-08:00

There is a plethora of laptops being offered to consumers these days as well as tablets. I frankly think in Australia and NZ people are being offered really poor products in their local retailers such as Dick Smith, Harvey Norman, Noel Leeming, and others. I ended up buying a laptop in the Philippines - a Lenovo Thinkpad Edge. This was after I mistakenly bought a Sony Vaio. The mistake was neglecting a 'key' keyboard feature. Usually I will test the keys; but on this occasion I did not notice the small Shift key. Now most models will have a Shift key on both sides of the laptop. However if you are left-handed, you might not appreciate that this key is often smaller than on the right.

Another annoying attribute of many brands (Acer, Toshiba, Samsung, and others) is that they offer you an array of keys on the right side of the keyboard. These will only make it hard for you to type fast, and result in miskey strokes, as well as reducing the size of the keys. If you are anything like me, you will never use these keys. Another important feature is the size of the backspace key. You want also as big as possible if you make typing mistakes, it becomes the most important key to find.

The Acer keyboards also have this annoyingly thin key design which means if you are typing fast, you might actually lift a key off. I've had this happen before, where you get your finger stuck under a key. Avoid those designs. My AWARD for the best keyboard and all-round design is the Lenovo Thinkpad - I bought the Edge, but also take a look at their website for the T-series and X-series. I wanted to find one for my partner. But the thing to do is to look at overseas stores for close-up photos. You can see the Dell-like shopping cart in New Zealand and Australia.

You might struggle to find these computers in-store. This is not because they are poor products; its because the retailers want to offer you rubbish that they can get the highest mark-ups on, and knowing that, once you open the seal, you are stuck with it. Don't make this mistake. Test the keyboard. Write a letter as you would - listen to music as you would.

I personally love that you can get a 9-cell version, a Solid-State-Drive (160Gb) version, as well as a thinner 16mm version. They now have i-7 versions; mine is 1-3. But I paid just P28,000 (USD560) in the Philippines last year, so no problem.

These are of course not the only features to look for. I want a high-capacity drive, wifi, don't need a built-in CD-ROM, so buy an external drive to use with all future computers because its only for loading software. In fact, I'd say they will soon shift to USD sticks for loading software. You want 3+ USD ports; and notice where the fan is. Probably the only negative feature of my Lenovo is the location of the fan. It does not burn my hand, but noticeably hot. I guess the small navigation and delete keys are a little annoying. Small things really.

In fairness, the T-series from Lenovo might be better, but after wasting money on a Sony Vaio, which have failed in the consistency stakes, I was not prepared to buy an expensive one.

I'm not into tablets; I think a waste of money unless you read a lot of books. I fully expect to read books on computer or a phone. There is no room for a 'hybrid' middling device in my life. Just a waste.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Best value cell phone - its a Samsung

2012-01-02T15:49:00.000-08:00

My partner and I are always using our electronic appliances. Recently, we bought an Android-based Samsung I5503T cell phone in New Zealand for $NZ150 inclusive of a SIM card and pre-paid SMS & call credits from Telecom NZ for 6 months. This places the phone cost at just over $NZ100 we thought. The nice qualities about this phone was its Android software, its great sound playing music off YouTube, great Wifi connectivity, good design. Skype Mobile worked well. Just I prefer a QWERTY keyboard (as a writer).

Now, there are three problems with this phone:

1. The small sized battery - the result of which is short battery life - you could be charging it up every day for higher volume use. This is unacceptable to me. I am a writer; I write a lot of notes, so I want good battery life.

2. The lack of QWERTY keyboard - if you do a lot of typing you will want the QWERTY keyboard because screen-based keyboards do not offer the same 'tippled' board for better selectivity and control over your choice. If you have big fingers you could push '5' five times when you really wanted '6'. Not good. If you have small fingers however, or you want the phone only to read books,to telephone or play music, then you might be ok. The swivel screen gives you bigger keys in landscape mode, but still its a problem.

3. The phone size - The Telephone manufacturers are obsessed with size and power. Designed by macho-men you might think. This is a problem with only Nokia seems to understand because Nokia seems to be the only company under-powering their phones for longer battery life, whilst offering larger batteries than the likes of others. The other problem is screen size. I personally resent the need to have a cellphone, a tablet and a laptop. The tablet is really an 'unnecessary hybrid' of the other two. For this reason, I want a bigger screen, or a Nokia E61i/E5 size phone (with my much preferred QWERTY keyboard). Nokia could move towards a slightly even bigger phone than the E61i and I would still be able to fit it into my pocket....preferably with a slightly larger battery given the extra size.

I fully expect a phone of this design in future. The Nokia E61i is a little small on screen size to read books. I tried and I had to reduce the page to 61% in order to read it...it was barely legible. A slightly better resolution and a slightly larger screen will make all the difference.

If you want the QWERTY keyboard, you might like our choice of the Sony Ericsson Mini-Pro (??) reviewed before. This similarly had a small battery, but it did have the slid-out QWERTY keyboard. I personally don't like slide-out keyboards because they are often lose, and tend to have poor balance in the hand. This is because you are not always standing up when you write. I often right lying down.

Only update if you need to. I'm staying with my Nokia E5 until I get my next well-designed Android-based, QWERTY phone. I've lost confidence in Nokia's software, though it meets my immediate needs. They are moving to Windows; but I'd prefer Android....but I might adopt Windows if version 8 is ok. I can live with Windows; I use it for my computing.

Tablets are a flash in the pan...not functional enough. All you can do is read on them. The shallow lives of some people.

Here is another cell phone to consider - the LG-GW620 - it has the slide-out keyboard, but check to see if its well balanced when you are lying down, standing, sitting, etc. Battery life has been questioned...because I'd say its a small battery. But you have to like its 5-row QWERTY keyboard with independent numeric and navigation keys. That's one over Nokia E5.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Protecting your computer or smartphone from theft

2011-07-11T16:29:00.000-07:00

Protecting your smartphone from theft - here are some good tips.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Music or study guide

2011-07-05T17:28:00.000-07:00

Study or work can be difficult - though often we make it harder for ourselves than it need be, by not creating a 'no fail' environment. Music is a great motivator or for just relaxing ourselves. There are a great many songs you can download. I stumbled upon this music at YouTube. But there is this website which highlights a tool which allows you to run this music non-stop, so you concentration need not be broken until you achieve your goal. It does not sound like a continuous stream of music though because the file has not been edited to be seamless.

Give it ago! This is a favourite piece for me. I can imagine sitting at some piano bar listening to this!

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Computer or cell phone tracking software

2011-06-01T22:16:00.000-07:00

There is a suite of free computer tracking softwares available online which allow you to track usage of computers. Consider the applications of this software:

1. Tracking the online or offline usage of a shared computer - Say you want to monitor the usage of your kids, the illicit or deceitful behaviour of your partner.

2. Track usage of employees - You might want to make sure that your staff are working during employment hours; and not using your computer for personal use, or at least not unreasonably so. This is particularly a useful tool for home-based contractors, or for projects which are difficult to time.

3. The theft of your computer - If you purchase or use the right software, you might be able to track the use of your computer once stolen by a thief, and thus allow you to recover it. Read this story.

4. The recovery of lost data - I am not aware of a product which does this; but it would be nice to think that there will eventually be a product which allows logging of your keystrokes in real time, so that if you have a computer crash, your data is recoverable in real time from an external server. i.e. Their server accumulates a log which is dumped to an email sent to your computer. PS: I think I just gave someone an idea for a great computer...or is Microsoft finally making a stable OS that I didn't know about???

There are two problems:

1. You might be breaking the law in your country by tracking your computer use; even if you own the computer. You might even be put in the position where your partner files a law suit against you for violation of his privacy even though he/she cheated. The reason is that your state/country might have a (silly) no-fault attitude to extra-marital activity.

2. Making sure that your software emails a report to your online email so that you can monitor the computer use from Gmail, Yahoo, etc. This will make it useful to recover your computer. As soon as the thief goes online he will allow his keystrokes to be recorded online. This will allow you to get his photo, passwords, etc, which will help you identify him.

3. Find a reliable website to download this software from. i.e. CNET.com is a site I trust. There is a list of popular downloads at this site - at the bottom of the page. Some of them are free.

I suspect all computers will come with such tools in future. There is similar software available for cell phones, with the more obvious benefits of preventing the theft of your phone. The problem is that the thief might perform a reset to manufacturer settings before you can track them down. Hopefully they attempt to do this from home, so you can track them down. I searched Google for possible contenders and found:

1. Livephonetracking.com - see here.

2. BuddyWay GPS - see here or here.

3. Gympse - see here.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Internet tools to improve your web experience

2011-04-29T19:51:00.000-07:00

The following is a list of tools you can use to improve your online experience.

1. Broadband speed test: Check out this test tool to determine your upload and download speed, so you can compare your package with others. see http://speedtest.net/

2. Shorter URLs: There are various websites around which allow you to create short URLs for websites like Twitter which limit you to a 140-character limit. See www.tinyurl.com and search google for others.

3. Online sounds to relax: Sounds of running water, etc. See SoundSleeping.com. This is a really cool tool because you can actually set the volume controls and overlay different sounds. It is so easy to play, and you can leave it to play on your browser tab whilst you work elsewhere.

4. I will think of others.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

How to respond during an earthquake

2011-03-22T15:40:00.000-07:00

Where to Go During an Earthquake

Remember that stuff about hiding under a table or standing in a doorway? Well, forget it! This is a real eye opener. It could save your life someday.

EXTRACT FROM DOUG COPP'S ARTICLE ON 'THE TRIANGLE OF LIFE'

My name is Doug Copp I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the American Rescue Team International (ARTI ), the world's most experienced rescue team. The information in this article will save lives in an earthquake.

I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a member of many rescue teams from many countries. I was the United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation for two years, and have worked at every major disaster in the world since 1985, except for simultaneous disasters.

The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under its desk. Every child was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene -- unnecessary.

Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings falling upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects, leaving a space or void next to them - NOT under them. This space is what I call the 'triangle of life'. The larger the object, the stronger, the less it will compact. The less the object compacts, the larger the void, the greater the probability that the person who is using this void for safety will not be injured. The next time you watch collapsed buildings, on television, count the 'triangles' you see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most common shape, you will see, in a collapsed building.

TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY

1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' when building collapse are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed.

2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position. You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next to a bed, next to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but leave a void next to it.

3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during an earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake. If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created. Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.

4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can achieve a much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a sign on the back of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down on the floor, next to the bottom of the bed during an earthquake.

5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next to a sofa, or large chair.

6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam falls sideways you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed!

7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building). The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each other until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away from the stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be damaged. Even if the stairs are not collapsed by the earthquake, they may collapse later when overloaded by fleeing people. They should always be checked for safety, even when the rest of the building is not damaged.

8) Get near the outer walls of buildings or outside of them if possible - It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the building the greater the probability that your escape route will be blocked.

9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what happened with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They were all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have survived if they had been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that had columns fall directly across them.

10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact. Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.

Spread the word and save someone's life...

The entire world is experiencing natural calamities, so be prepared!

'We are but angels with one wing, it takes two to fly'

In 1996 we made a film, which proved my survival methodology to be correct. The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul, University of Istanbul Case Productions and ARTI cooperated to film this practical, scientific test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20 mannequins inside. Ten mannequins did 'duck and cover,' and ten mannequins I used in my 'triangle of life' survival method. After the simulated earthquake collapse we crawled through the rubble and entered the building to film and document the results. The film, in which I practiced my survival techniques under directly observable, scientific conditions , relevant to building collapse, showed there would have been zero percent survival for those doing duck and cover.

There would likely have been 100 percent survivability for people using my method of the 'triangle of life.' This film has been seen by millions of viewers on television in Turkey and the rest of Europe, and it was seen in the USA , Canada and Latin America on the TV program Real TV.

Subject: Save your life with "The Triangle of Life"

"Triangle of Life":

Without listening or reading, simply by looking at the following self-explanatory photos, you can learn more than in a thousand words about how to protect yourself during a major earthquake...

If you are inside a vehicle, come out and sit or lie down next to it. If something falls on the vehicle, it will leave an empty space along the sides. See below:

Source：國際救援小組（ARTI），網址：http://www.amerrescue.org/

American Rescue Team International（ARTI）is said to be the World's most experienced rescue team and disaster management-mitigation organization.

Still a Nokia phone - its integration guys!

2011-02-05T11:25:00.001-08:00

A smartphone is critical to me as a writer. There was a time when I would write notes on little pieces of paper and I would lose them, or they would go through the washing machine, and often I could not even read my own writing, as I tried to write in fine print to maximise my note taking ability. A smartphone is great. It is always with me, and I know when its not there too. The benefits:

1. I don't have to re-type up my notes. I merely upload or email them to myself

2. I can fully develop the idea; if not immediately, then more productively, whilst I am out at some cafe or waiting for my GF to shop.

3. I can edit the notes, I can add to them, even if from days earlier.

4. Its a backup, until I backup my hard disk

5. Its solid-state memory - more reliable than my 'spinning' HDD

This brings us to the question of what phone to buy. I have looked around the market, and I must say that I am not happy with any of them. The front contenders are:

1. Nokia E63 - This is a great phone, its a shame that Nokia has yet to upgrade it. Its old technology and whilst it is similar to the E61i, which has not been continued (i.e. much loved), it offers many of the same features. I see this as a temporary phone until a better one comes out

The appeal of this phone to me is that unlike the N71 and N72, it has decent size QWERTY keys. This phone has an old processor which I found a little slow.

2. Sony Ericsson - This phone has all the specs, so on the face of it, it looks like a great phone. The problem is that it has 1/2 the battery life of the Nokia phone. The problem is that the Sony phone attempts to minimise its footprint and sacrifices battery life. This is a sad gimmick because customers have clearly voted and made battery life an important feature. Two days is not good enough if that is the 'starting life'. Within 1-2 years you will be needing a new battery as it will last a day. The other problem I had was the crappy software pre-loaded. In order to get a sense of the Android range, you would have to void your warranty. I frankly don't consider software a compelling point of different. All operating systems will offer the software you need....the market is that deep. The greater problem for me was the difficulty of the integration of hardware and software. The Sony-Ericsson is not intuitive like the Nokia.

For these reasons, and the fact that the nokia is just $NZ299, I would be looking at the 'old solution' Nokia E63 if I was desperate for a phone, otherwise I would be waiting for a replacement for this phone...unless some other manufacturer comes out with a phone with different battery life. The other types of phones in the same class are of course Blackberry, but I'm inclined to stay with the majors. i.e. Symbian, Android and Microsoft. Blackberry makes sense for another year if you are a terrorist needing encryption.

So in conclusion, I remain a fan of the Nokia E series of phones, and will happily wait for the next version. Their hardware is far superior - battery life - software-hardware integration is superior. The ease of using these is far better. Sadly, Nokia has failed in my view with the N-series. They were bulky, and the keys were too small. I guess they might appeal for small 'feminine' Asian hands. But for a Westerner with big hands (et al) you need a E-series phone to get the QWERTY experience (keyboard), and I recommend it for those writers and business folk who need to be able to type up content in any location.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

New applications for old products

2010-03-12T02:18:00.000-08:00

There are numerous blogs which explore alternative uses for the things we throw away. I am a hoarder of things because I don't like to waste things. I am always trying to think of ways to reuse things which would otherwise become waste. If you are similarly minded, then you might like this website. If you are also too buzy like me, you are probably hoarding a lot of stuff as well.
I have a years supply of plastic milk bottles and cardboard cereal boxes.
Country towns are great this way. I note that a lot of the people selling jam in town are using old jam jars which people bring along.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Asus-Garmin designed Nuvifone A50 review

2010-02-23T20:18:00.000-08:00

Here is an interesting development in smartphones - a partnership between Asus and Garmin. This phone would find a market with the outdoor enthusiast if it was more durable. At the moment I am clinging on to my Nokia E61i, waiting for the next well designed phone. Sadly Nokia disappointed with the Nokia E71. I even warned them that consumers would have a problem with ever-smaller keypads. Anyway, they didn't listen, so I'm looking for a new supplier.

The problem with the Asus-Garmin designed Nuvifone A50 is that its short of one important spec - its kind of an outdoors phone, but its built to never leave the car. Herein lies the problem. This phone ought to be waterproof to 10metres and more durable , much like Garmin's range of GPS devices, so I could take it anywhere. Anyway, I'll keep waiting. It wouldn't take me much to desert the Windows Operating System, as I'm already off it for mobile communications. Hard to live without excel and Word though.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Which netbook to buy? Product comparison & review

2009-12-03T01:14:00.000-08:00

I am always interested in the latest netbooks so when I see a review like this one from Time, I take an interest. I broadly agree with their top three choices. I ended up buying the Toshiba NB200/2005. I did not like the keyboard when I bought it, but I am slowly getting used to it. The problem with these smaller netbooks is that its easy to knock them, so you trigger a HDD protection feature. I think if you don't need to upgrade yet, then you will be better off waiting for the next generation of netbooks which I suspect will be better in several ways:
1. Offering globally integrated, seamless telecommunications - whether through Skype or Google.
2. Offering a solid state, high capacity hard drive for better data protection and far longer battery use, say 15-20 hours.
3. Offering better sound & cameras
4. Better keyboard design and USB locations
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Toshiba NB200 netbook review

2009-10-30T21:05:00.000-07:00

I am always on the lookout for new computer devices that allow me to work more efficiently. Of course we like to buy cheap as well, but most of all we need basic functuality and good design. Having just purchased a Toshiba NB200 over the internet for just $NZ610, I'd have to say you get what you pay for. The problems I find with this computer are:

1. The keyboard design is shockingly bad. The 'Alt' key is too small. Better to have one big one than two small ones. The backspace key just doesn't sit right with me. I always seem to be hitting the wrong one '\'. The feel of the keyboard is terrible too, though I do manage to get a few letters out before I stumble. My fingers seem to slide too easily over the keys. Unlike some Sony models, the keys are not 'rimmed' to give some traction on keys.

2. The arrangement of USB ports is bad. I was not happy having three of these right up the front sides of the computer. I want them at the back.

3. The hard disk protection utility appears too sensitive. Just placing a USB memory stick in the computer is enough to start the utility.

The computer has decent HDD space of 160Gb, reasonable memory of 1Gb considering its running Windows Xp. It was a special deal so I got a free 6-cell battery, so I get plenty of battery life. The screen is fine. I might yet grow to like this computer, but I just cannot see myself getting used to it. It seems probable that the unit was discounted because its running the old Win Xp operating system. Or have reviews been poor? I think it must have been a sentimental purchase for me because I really loved my Toshiba Libereto I bought 15 years ago. I would be using that computer today if it could be upgraded.

The other computer we looked at was the Sony W series. We were interested in a solid state hard drive, though I must say I was not overly pleased with its design either. A 5-star computer remains elusive.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Vaio P Pocket Sized Notebook closer to perfection

2009-09-16T03:40:00.001-07:00

About 10 years ago I had a mini-laptop which closely resembles some of the mini-notebooks that are becoming available today. The Toshiba Libereto was a product ahead of its time. The Toshiba office in Tokyo even had a museum showing the models. People were coming in to upgrade it because they liked it. The product had a small but loyal following. Back in those days the hardware was pretty sluggish. Today the specs offer much greater speed, but there were several features which I particularly liked about the Libereto:
1. The tracking ball was on the right side lid of the computer, next to the LCD display
2. All the superfluous drives were external, which meant you had a very light, compact computer
3. I was able to pick up a really good leather bag in Vietnam suited to this computer. I have been keeping this bag for my next model.

The latest copy by Sony 10 years later is the Vaio Pocket Sized (P-series) Notebook has a 8" screen, an Intel Z520 Atom 1.6GHz processor, 2GB of RAM and 128G-256GB solid state drive. The unit is clearly designed with speed in mind. This is a durable beast since SSD's have no moving parts, ensuring greater security for your data. The SSD is the same drive as in your smartphone. You also get GPS, WiFi (802.11n), Bluetooth and WWAN, a LAN connector, a headphone jack, a multi-card reader and 2 USB 2.0 ports, a 5Mp webcam.
Probably the worst feature is the tracking ball in the centre of the keyboard. I was prefer it if they used Toshiba's idea of a tracking pad on the screen. This was an innovative pressure pad which worked really well. It will be disappointing to use the Sony ball. There is a built-in 3G phone, but it works for Verizon only. The computer is about 60% of the size of a standard computer.
The standard battery offers a 4 hour battery life, doubling to 8 hours if you obtain a second battery. The power demand is 68watts, which is quite high, so expect better battery life in future with competitors. The unit is shipped with Windows Vista.
Having used this type of computer I can tell you they are really good for travelling. Of course the features and connectivity are so much better today that the dial-up I had to tolerate, though I still long for that Toshiba tracking pressure pad. I'll be watching for the Toshiba solution!
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Recovering deleted files from USB flash drives

2009-07-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

I just deleted a folder accidentally from a USB flash drive connected to my computer. There are several reasons why I prefer to use a flash drive to a HDD drive:
1. They have better durability because they have no moving parts
2. They can more easily backup and move between computers

I did not know until now that any deleted files are not recorded in the Recycle Bin, which means when I accidentally deleted a folder, I needed a tool to recover my lost files. There are several programs available. These are the steps:
1. Do not attempt to do anything before you do this. If you start recreating or deleting files, you could be hindering your chances of recovering your desired files.
2. Download Recuva software from www.coastalcomputerconnections.com/downloads.html
3. Install the software
4. Run the application from your desktop
5. Having identified the files you want to recover, press the RECOVER button.

Its really simple. You can search by date, quality of residual file, or the file name. I suggest doing all three.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Solid State Drives (SSDs)

2009-07-15T16:20:00.000-07:00

If you are in the market for a computer my advise is that you cannot go past the solid-state drive based computers which are starting to enter the market. We have yet to see a really outstanding machine. I viewed one last week which came close, but it suffered from a bad sound system. There are a number of things you want to look for on such a computer:
1. Memory: About 100Gb of SSD memory would be adequate because you will eventually be able to substitute it will USB-based flash drives as the capacity of those units improves
2. Flexibility - make sure that the unit is easily upgradable, that the main components are easily accessed
3. Keyboard: Some mini-laptops and micro-laptops can sacrifice on keyboard layout. I find it annoying that the DELETE key gets smaller, or the shift key. You really want to type on the thing as if you were using it. If you cannot get used to it in 30 minutes you probably never will.
4. Sound system: I want to hear the sound of music and videos on my computer to establish how good the computer is for VOIP, TV, music, etc. I prefer a built-in microphone too because those headsets are designed to break.
5. USB slots: I want three USB slots at least, and four would be better when you consider that you might like to swap or backup data between drives in future. More important still is the need for those slots to be located in the right position. I use the mouse on the right side, so I want this side free of USB slots. I also don't want a DVD device because the only time I use them is for installing software. In time, software will come on flash drives anyway.
6. Windows 7: The Vista operating system is a joke. With it we actually lost basic functionality. Maybe Win& will redeem the MS crowd. Anyway stay with Win Xp for now; and hope for a better Win7.
7. Battery life: I want a mimimum of 4 hours of battery life, which means you want a 6-cell battery on a small laptop, and more for a larger computer.
8. Optional extras: I want the power for adding discretionary functionality as external devices. For instance, the DVD can be external capacity.
9. Wifi: I want to be able to use my mini-laptop at coffee shops around the world.
10. No extra software: I'm tired of computer manufacturers who place a lot of crap on your computer. I don't want all these extras which are going to slow down my computer.

For a basic word processor and entertainment system, that is all I need.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Cheapest domain names in Australia & NZ

2009-05-25T18:51:00.001-07:00

If you are looking for the cheapest domain names in Australia and NZ, I recommend the Crazydomains website. Note that they have cheaper domain names than websites in NZ; probably because of their larger turnover. When you are selecting a domain name give it a lot of thought because it can make all the difference in the world in several respects:
1. Cost of retaining the domain name
2. Your search ranking (relevance) according to the Google search methodology
3. Corporate credibility - better names convey credibility than a cheaper name which no one else wanted.

If you want to know more about the Google rankings refer to www.lvdconsulting.com.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Sony Ericsson Xperia™ X1 vs Nokia E71, E61i Smartphone Review

2009-05-02T18:28:00.000-07:00

This is a smartphone released by Sony Ericsson. I used to love Sony products, but then about 6-8 years ago they went off and did really stupid things. I can guess they centralised their design people somewhere. Regardless, from that point everything has been very bad. The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 is an alternative to the Nokia E71. I actually have the precursor Nokia E61i. Nokia first released the E61, and I guess after complaints, they added wifi and a more powerful processor to the same unit. I love my E61i, but it is not without its problems.
1. I have trouble hearing people
2. The camera is not very good quality - but ok for me. The issue is you can't see how good the pictures are on-screen, until you get home and look at them on your computer.
3. The slow processor - I can type faster than it can think - which says nice things about the keyboard, but a negative for the processor.

Now, when I bought there were a few contenders from Nokia alone. Nokia has a model that looks very similar to the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 - I think its the N95 model. Anyway, the problem with the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 and Nokia N95 is that they are too bulky, the have the ugly and non-functional sliding keyboard.

For this reason I would stay clear of these models and go for the Nokia E71 - unless you have small figures. I don't. It really suits Asians or women with small fingers for that reason. The problem is not enough space between the keys, so you push the wrong buttons. Caucasians like me have to satisfy themselves with the Nokia E61i for now, or you might look at the Blackberry. But if I understand the Blackberry correctly, you need to sign up for a contract with them, and I prefer unlocked phones so that I can simply pick up a pre-paid (usually Vodafone) SIM card in every country I go to. I believe there are a limited number of countries serviced by Blackerry. But you will need to do your research on Blackberry.
I would also want to know if they have lifted the processor speed for the Nokia E71. I am awaiting a E61i upgrade - same design - just more powerful.

I might also mention that I dropped my Nokia in the toilet for about 5 seconds and it still worked. The unit is so well-built that it really is hardy. I've dropped it a few times as well. One time I kind of fumbled mid-air and accidentally pushed it away about 5m on the road, but it lived to tell the story. Most useful device I've ever had I believe. I recommend this device for writers. I can read books on it, but I have to reduce the book to 61% size. A little tight, but I can't imagine a bigger phone, so maybe eBooks need tighter formatting.

In conclusion the aspects I don't like about the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 are:
1. The slide-type keyboards are bad because:
a. Poor weight distribution
b. The upper sliding screen gets in the way of the top keys of the keyboard.
c. the unit is bulky because it slides

For more info see:
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665702060

The features are otherwise similar to the E71. The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 does have Windows CE I believe, so that's also a good thing, but I suspect Nokia has as well in the new models. Sorry, more research needed.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Learning how to sell online

2009-03-14T14:00:00.000-07:00

A lot of my postings on this site are for equipment or devices that make our lives easier. On this occasion I want to recommend a set of eBooks produced by my partner Leah DeGuzman. Leah has been involved in online product marketing for almost 10 years. These days if you are building a business, you are likely wondering how to sell your products or services online.
Leah has written a guide to help people to develop a cost-effective web presence. She has a number of staff in the Philippines who develop the sites for you, which helps to keep your costs down. She can also provide support for you if you want to set up a site, but we recommend you spare yourself the hassle and restrict your effort to website design input, since most people want to offer some direction.

Leah is also working on a second book which will teach you how to improve the search rankings of your website. Its not enough to post articles, you actually have to spend some time promiting your site. We offer suggestions on how you can do that, or once again, she has people working for her that can do it for you if you want to give priority to other activities.

Sites That Sell - Buy this eBook!

We all learn at our own pace. Some of us were fortune to learn in a family or company certain skills from a very young age, so we developed them like a 2nd skin. Others have to learn those skills later or risk falling behind. Sometimes those skill-deficiencies stop us from achieving what we want. In effect they act as barriers holding us back. What we need are tools to help us jump over such hurdles.
If you are considering setting up your own business, then in all likelihood you will be seeking to establish a website to sell your products & services. If you would like to know how to set up an impressive sales-orientated website...read on!

Sites that Sell! View the table of contents or buy this eBook at our online store for just $US19.95.

Online maps of the world

2009-02-13T10:04:00.001-08:00

Need maps of the world for your cell phone, smartphone or just a paper copy you can print off the internet. Then take a look at this online street map. The problem of course in some countries is that the data coverage is poor, but since increasingly more people have GPS devices, the data will grow through collaboration. Of course probably the best source of data is Google Maps for the time being.
If you decide to get a dedicated GPS device I would get a Garmin Etrex Cx. If you want this feature on your cell phone, then I'd wait for the Nokia E61 to be updated. If you are Asian or a women with small fingers, you might be able to cope with the Nokia E71. Personally I would wait for the next phone in this series which will likely have more capacities, including stand-alone GPS tracking features when you are on cell towers, or satellite tracking when you are off cell towers. My belief is that in a few years the device will use both data sources simultaneously for a far more harmonious experience.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Blue Ray - the next data format

2009-01-15T19:24:00.000-08:00

The film studios and home entertainment equipment manufacturers are all supporting the development of the new blu-ray format. The implication is that if you are intending to buy any equipment you might want to pay a premium for a blu-ray compatible product, or defer such an expenditure. For more details to help you answer such questions, I will refer you to the following website that discusses the blu-ray technology.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Dell Inspiron Mini 9 - now available in NZ

2009-01-13T16:11:00.000-08:00

Dell has recently started selling a new mini-laptop in NZ which is not a bad offering. The basic unit is just $NZ699 - though with Dell's pricing plan the costs quickly add up with extras, so if its your first computer, and you need those extras, then the price quickly increases. This is of course Dell's bait advertising. Its like buying a beat up Holden and needing to fix it up. But these plans do offer flexibility.
The basic version suits people travelling around the world or touring around NZ. The reason its a great travel computer because it is lightweight - it weights just over one kilogram, it has a solid state memory, so there is no spinning drive which has moving parts, which means its more robust for outdoor use. i.e. Its the type of drive they use in your PDA.
I do have some problems with this unit. The battery life is just 3-4 hours, which means in practice its probably just 2 hours. Its a 4-cell battery. Of course you could always buy another. It has a 1.6GHz processor, but given the slow 1Gb RAM, its not going to optimise on processing speed. The solid state drive has a memory of just 16Gb - which is not very much for anything. If memory sticks were offering better capacity, this would not be an obstacle, but you might just be carrying around a portable HDD as well, which are heavy and not very robust. Wifi is optional, but it should be a standard feature. It does have a web-cam which might come in handy.
This is a pretty decent computer for a reasonable price if you don't need a lot of memory or battery life. I would however like a 2nd battery option, or longer battery life before I buy. They do offer finance, which might be important to some people.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Free anti-virus software

2009-01-01T16:08:00.000-08:00

There is no reason why you need to pay for anti-virus software. This is a choice you make if you are not discerning about the money you spend. You might think that software vendors deserve the fee you pay, but rest assured they are doing very well given that a great many people are paying $50 to $90 a year for software.
There are a number of vendors. Most offer a free intro period after which they invite you to pay for an upgrade. My advice is - uninstall the free version and then download it again. Failing that you can find another vendor. The intent of course is for them to find a new revenue model that charges others rather than you. My intent is not to rip you off, but for the cost to reflect value and competitive pressures. Free product is a way of avoiding advertising expenses. Having got you, their intent is to entrap you, by making you think you need to download a 'paid' version with a few extra features. You really only need the basic software.
Some of the 'paid' anti-virus software around is actually more trouble than its worth. I started out paying for Norton, but it was so resource hungry. Then I used MicroTrend's product, then Avast, and more recently AVG. Sometimes it can be hard to find a free version, so we have provided some links for you. Try searching Google for 'free anti-virus software':
1. AVG - free version
2. Avast - 60 day free version
3. Micro Trend - 30 day free trial
4. Norton - 15 day free trial

I dare say these companies sell your registration details to advertising companies, though I am not sure about their policy. The best strategy is to download AVG since it offers the best terms, and thereafter if you seem to have any problem you can download the others to remove a virus that AVG has a trouble removing, or pay for a premium version. This strategy worked for me.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Best GPS software for active people

2008-10-11T19:35:00.000-07:00

I have had a handheld Global Positioning System (GPS) for some years now. I love them. They are so useful. Let me explain why:
1. Looking at real estate - I can record a location for any interesting properties I look at, which is useful. I have used it to measure whether the property I am looking at is really the one on the cadastral maps, as well as to confirm property boundaries. Yes, it is that accurate. Mine is as good as +/- 8m accuracy. Newer models are even better.
2. Canoeing - I can record a track and any interesting points like rapids & their grade as I go down a river.
3. Mountain biking - I can record my route, interesting points, elevations, speeds, as I travel around
4. Driving or 4WD'ing - This is another good use, though you need to make sure the device is near a window. Newer devices have even better satellite reception. I have used my device on trains, cars, bikes, in all types of topography. They can struggle a little in steep river gorges on overcast days, particularly when you are moving at 100kmph. They struggle in Japan on trains if you are going through a lot of tunnels in mountain areas. but otherwise they are great. The last problem is the need to ensure you recharge your batteries, otherwise you could be up Shit Creek and not know where in your rectum you are exactly. Its good to know!
5. Mountain climbing - This is another application so you can use it to get back to base on a different route if you like.

More generally they are move flexible than maps because they give you what you need. Maps give more info, but are less manageable, folding out a big sheet. There is a role for both, but a GPS is more compact and flexible if you get one with a high memory capacity, and good waterproofing in rain or river swamping.

The big benefit is the fact that satellite use and software is free. Once you pay for the device (say $200-300) for the better Garmin devices you can get free (easy to use software) from EasyGPS and there is no need to sign up for satellite use. Bear in mind the satellites used for GPS devices are different from those pseudo-GPS capabilities you can get on some cell phones. They are using the triangulation capabilities of the phone to locate you using cell phone towers. That is great and accurate for city locations. Just there are 2 problems with that. In most countries you will pay high download charges, so you will likely not use it unless you are pissed or too needy for some companionship from friends. I can see this being useful in Tokyo looking for some small bar in the middle of nowhere, but in Sydney going to the regular...no benefit. The other problem is its not really a global solution. You will likely find you can't get the service so readily overseas, and you will pay. The other problem is that its a city-only function, and for the large part its a capability you want in the countryside I think. I can use my satellite GPS in any country without restriction. I love it. Its a guys toy.
I was using Garmin's Waypoint Manager before. The problem was my software is in Japan, so stuck in Australia not being able to download the software, going back to the Philippines soon for another trip around the Philippines, and I need a solution. The solution is EasyGPS, free to download off the internet any time. Cool!
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Google I-phone promises more

2008-09-29T22:06:00.000-07:00

Google has released a new mobile phone to compete with iPhone, and my favourite the Nokia E61i. These are all similar class phones. The Google phone will win the war I suspect because it will integrate some nice features. I can see where this is going:
1. Integration of email, internet experience
2. Standard features like music, wifi, camera, etc
3. GPS-facilitated advertising revenues

So how would this work? Well, you would be walking down the street and your phone would vibrate. Why? Because the global positioning system in the phone will tell you that there is some special sale on in the area you are based on triangulation between the three nearest cellphone towers. You tolerate these advertisements because Google has partnered with a number of telcos around the world, so its able to offer discounted internet services, or maybe even 'free' if you lock yourself into a 2 year contract.

This is a new side for advertising. Google of course already does context-based advertising with its keyword-based adwords placements. In this case the context is geographic position. It makes you think just how far Google can go. Well of course competitors can emerge, but its seems none can match the level of integration of Google. The exception is Microsoft-Yahoo, but they are looking very tired. It seems probable that hardware will become incidental to the software which drives them.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Dell offers another mini-laptop

2008-09-08T18:54:00.000-07:00

Dell is the latest entrant into the mini-laptop market. Manufacturers are taking another look at this market since it was abandoned by Toshiba in the early 1990s. At the time the mini-laptop experience was less appealing. For example, these early models were slow, required a dial-up modem attachment, but having had a Toshiba ‘Libereto’ in those days, I can tell you they were a very practical mobile computer. Today’s computers have some compelling advantages:
1. Solid state memory makes them more rugged. You can now take them camping with you.
2. They have far more powerful processors
3. They have seemless wireless use rather than dial-up modems
I would not however buy one until they are truly mobile. The two features that are missing from all models are:
1. Greater memory capacity
2. Longer battery life. Dell is talking 4 hours. When they start talking 7 hours I will listen.
One needs to type away on these units to determine how useful they are. You will hate the experience if the keys are too small, poorly positioned. One folly of the Libereto was the small ‘backspace’ key. I did however love having the trackball/pad on the right side of the display screen. Of course its nice having the option of a mouse, but this allowed me to work in airport lounges and use the trackball whilst also steadying the computer.
I think the problem with these mini-laptops will be trying to find a place as a 2nd computer. I think they are better suited to kids, non-internet-savy adults who don’t have a need for a main home computer. The reason I say this is because for mobile note-taking, reading an eBook, I would much prefer a Nokia E61i because it is has a practical computer size screen, sufficiently large enough keys (for Caucasian fingers) to type notes, and its a phone and much else besides. For girls & Asians will small fingers, the Nokia E70 is even better. Its upgrade I can’t use, but its screen is too small. I am looking for an upgrade to the Nokia E61i. Don’t change the screen, keys, just add a more powerful processor, a better resolution camera and add better Word editing software. This is where a lot of the business/internet-savvy mobile market will be going. The idea of a mini-laptop really suffers from an identity crisis, and I think the hybrid will only suit the non-serious user. Which is find, they will find great joy in these devices when they meet my spec criteria. The other problem is finding a place to use these devices. We need more places where people can go to enjoy a coffee shop which actually has freely available internet. Too many of these wireless links are locked these days. Its worse in the West than in Asia.
Anyway, if you want the latest Dell, here are the specs. Mind you I think I would wait, ot take a look at the mind-size Acer as a preferred option at this point. For business/serious users, the Nokia E61i is the better option. Mind you the Apple i-phone has just displaced it with its phone. I would wait for a response from Nokia. An upgrade of the E61i could not be too far off. The last upgrade was really very superficial. The Dell Inspiron Mini 9 retails for $US400 in the USA, or $A599 in Australia. It has a 16GB solid-state drive,as well as webcam, wifi and Bluetooth. The Mini 9 weighs 1kg compared to 2.7kg for a typical Dell laptop. It is sold with a Linux or Windows-XP operating system. It includes a 1.6GHz Intel processor, 1GB of system memory. The Mini 9 does not include a built-in wireless broadband modem but Dell says it is working on building the feature into future revisions.
Look at the competition - Asus, HP, Acer, MSI and Lenovo – as they all have sub-$600 portable computers. The Acer is a reasonable choice too, but I would be inclined to wait for better models, and depending on your lifestyle, take a look at the smartphones from Nokia and Apple (I-phone), who are the leaders in their market.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Fuel efficient cars

2008-06-05T18:17:00.000-07:00

There was an amazing story on CNN about some engineers in the USA who have developed a fuel-efficient 3-wheeled vehicle that runs on hybrid or electric. The hybrid version was getting 250 miles to the gallon, thats good enough fuel economy to travel across the USA on a tank of fuel. This is not the typical car design. It is relatively roomy, and there is no doubt that its aerodynamic design.#, modest weight and small engine account for the significant efficiency. The question is - why can engineers build such a vehicle in a garage but well-resourced car manufacturers are doing nothing. To be sure car manufacturers are really not prepared to stretch themselves because of the high of fitting out and retooling their car plants. With high energy prices, the design of a car becomes more important. The need for some quantifiable measure of a car becomes important. People need an algorithm which would allow them to input details on their pattern of use. eg. Car buyers would need to tell a vehicle retailer their required typical and maximum load carrying capacity, their typical and maximum required daily travel distance, as well as driving conditions. These are the factors pertinent to determining the real cost of driving a car. Say we only need a vehicle to carry 500kg of goods twice a year for camping holidays. Maybe you can swap your far with a neighbour to achieve that rather than wasting energy on a larger van. That is the information people need to make intelligent economic decisions. Would people care if oil fell back to $US60/barrel? I doubt it would fall so low. OPEC would readily prevent such a fall by cutting production and developing countries are likely to re-ignite their strong growth in coming years.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Mini laptops - the Cloudbook by Everex

2008-06-01T18:53:00.000-07:00

Its been some years since I bought my first mini-laptop for $A1600. That was the Toshiba Libereto. It has a 5.1 inch active matrix display, but on specs its dwarfed by the latest offering. I used to travel around Asis on business, typing up my notes from meetings on this small screen. The keyboard was great for typing with one hand. Amazing how fast i could type. The great aspect about the Libereto was the carry bag I bought in Vietnam, the small size, the fact that a lot of the accessories like CD-ROM, floppy drive and ports were external. That was around 1996.
Now I want a totally different spec list, but its hard to move forward until the technocrats solve the software problem. We love MS because of its features, but having solved its stability problems, MS Office is just too bloted to use on mini-laptops, and Linux does not handle enough applications, so compatibility problems. Eventually these issues will die. I am actually moving in another direction. I bought a standard cheap Acer computer, and I instead use my Nokia E61i as a mobile solution. The typepad is a great size for typing on the go, and I just download data and image files to my laptop periodically.

I have looked at the Asus mini-laptops and whilst they have their benefits, like a solid-state memory, they use Linux, and are rather slow. The latest Cloudbook from Everest is cheaper still at P19,000 (USD400), but its got a less rugged standard HDD. The memory is mobile friendly at 30Gb, and its light 0.9kg. It can run Win XP, but it would be a snails crawl. The keypad is ok. Like the Libereto, they place the touchpad (instead of trackball) to the right of the screen. Importantly it has 2 USB ports and a SD card reader. The implication I guess is that you can always have various memory sticks added to your computer if you needed extra memory.

But it I was to compare like with like, its not like we have progressed very far. The problem is a combination of software and hardware. I want a more powerful mini-laptop, a capable and stable Win-type application with a low memory drag. Most importantly we want USB drives, wifi, modem, lightness, compact, great keyboard layout and at least 60Gb of memory. That is a liveable solution. I dont know why manufacturers lost focus. Toshiba was on a great path with Libereto. It has taken them 10 years to re-visit the concept. In the meantime I will stick to my Nokia. Oh, did I mention I want my computer to be waterproof to 500 metres :)

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Software downgrades - Windows Xp, Vista or Linux

2008-03-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

Having just bought a new computer with a Microsoft Vista operating system, I have the following suggestions to make. Trial the operating system online before buying because I didn't like it at all, save one benefit.... Stability. Even that point is in question. i dont know whether Vista is more stable or just Microsoft Office Word 2007 is more stable. My points of concern:
1. Word 2007 is so different I have no idea where anything is anymore. The only logic has been ditched, so I cant find anything. Thats just not my type of upgrade. What good are features if you can't find them. The selling point of Windows was familiarity and features. If I can't find features then they may as well never existed. They designed a new software platform, so I need not use their platform. The implication is - Why do I need them anymore? This seems to be the biggest compelling reason to stay with Win Xp, or to migrate to Linux
2. The positive of Word 2007 is its stability, and as a writer, that is no small feature. I used to find files would start being corrupted when I approached 50 pages, and worse if there are alot of images, etc. With Word 2007 I'm currently working on a file 111 pages with heaps of images, with only a few stability glitches above 100 pages, and with seamless recovery.
3. I like that Windows Explorer allows me the option of replacing or duplicating replicated files. i am always upgrading the wrong one so its nice to be able to check duplicates before upgrading. The problem is the Win Explorer interface is less useable.
4. Excel 2007 is pretty well the same, but I note some problems. This is a big problem! I cant copy tabulated data off the internet into an excel spreadsheet. There is however a work-around. you can copy the data into MS Works (if you have it), then copy it into Excel.

They are the issues I have discovered so far. My advice is to stay with Win Xp for now. I would like to try the Word 2007 application on Win Xp to see if the stability problem is with Xp or Word 2003. Its been a while since my last upgrade. Well I'm mixed at this point whether these products are upgrades. Some significant flaws in marketing strategy here. Really bad decisions coming out of Microsoft, and surprisingly they are deciding to withdrawal Xp from the market in June'08. Wow!
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

The best offering in mini-laptops

2008-03-27T17:54:00.000-07:00

I have just bought a new Acer Aspire 2920 laptop with the Core 2 Duo Intel processor. The unit cost me P57,000 in the Philippines, thats $US1200. After using it a week I'd have to say its a pretty good computer. I am particularly fond of the keyboard. The big problem with the Acer is the poor battery life. As long as I can get access to a power point in a coffee shop I guess its not a problem. But what I've noticed about coffee shops is that they only have so many power points. With the growing popularity of laptop computers we are seeing a declining opportunity to use the coffee shop as a workplace unless you have a long life battery. You really need 5-6 hours to get a decent amount of work done. The best battery life I've seen to date is on my GF's Sony Vaio TX850G. It is a mini-laptop, but I personally didnt like the keyboard style with the flat keys. I used to have a Sony and I used to like their keyboard.

I am really pleased to see computer manufacturers moving towards smaller, lighter computers. I had a Toshiba Libereto computer 8 years ago, and I thought it was the greatest thing since sliced cheese. It was a great unit for pulling out at airports, it was light, packed away neatly in a leather carry bag I bought in Vietnam. I still have that unit, but its too slow and there is no possibility of upgrading it.

Prior to using my GF's Sony I was playing around with a Dell. It has a short (1.7hr) battery life, better sound system, a well-designed keyboard, but it was a big laptop to lug around. Dell are always going to be comptetitive. They have a rival in Australia called Pioneer Computers, who offer a similar website interface which allows you to select the operating system, and other components. The best option to my surprise might be the Pioneer Computers Australia DreamBook Light CE26 mini-laptop. The specs on this unit are pretty good. See www.pioneercomputers.com.au/products/configure.asp?c1=3&c2=12&id=2434. There are several positives for this unit:
1. You can elect to buy a higher capacity battery offering up to 6 hours battery life. I found this on a website review, though I dont see the option on their website so you will need to call. Every mobile warrior needs longer battery life.

I was able to build a DreamBook Light CE26 mini-laptop for $1039 with the following specs:
Processor VIA C7M Nano Processor 1.2Ghz Display 7” WXGA (800x480) TFT LCD Display Graphics Integrated VIA Graphics NB Memory 1GB (1 x 1GB) 667MHz DDR2 RAM 1.8" Hard Disk 60GB Ultra-ATA Hard Drive HD Partition Single Partition Integrated Options 802.11B/G Wireless Module USB Optical Drive None Operating System Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic Warranty Options Pioneer DreamCare 1 Year Return-to-Base Warranty Carry Bag No Carry Bag Production Lead Time Standard Order, Ready in 3-5 Working Days Freight Australian Air Express. This however excludes the longer life 9-cell battery.

Asus have a highly regarded mini-laptop out at just $US500, however it has some drawbacks for serious computer users. It can only use the Linux operating system since it only has 16Mb of HDD memory, so its not readily upgradable. The computer will quickly become dated. I am not a technician, but maybe the HDD memory can be upgraded later?? The other big problem was the poor battery life. I do like the fact that this computer has solid state memory. It makes the computer more tolerant of bumps and bruises since it has no moving parts.

Ideally I would love to see the Dream Light with a solid state computer memory option, so I can carry it around on my mountain bike and not have to worry about falling over and breaking my computer on some trail. you will need to inquire about the longer memory option and how this connects. Of course I'd prefer to have a built in battery pack, but maybe external is ok.

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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Mobile phone - solutions in times of emergency

2007-12-07T16:38:00.000-08:00

There are a few things that your mobile phone can do that might prove useful in an emergency.
1. Emergency telephone: Your cell phone can be used to dial an international emergency number. If you find yourself out of coverage area of your mobile network and there is an
emergency, dial 112 and the cell phone will search for any available network in range to
establish the emergency connection. This number (112) can be dialed even if the keypad is locked.
2. Emergency car access: If you have locked your keys in your car, you might still be able to open your car. This trick will only work if you have access to a mobile phone (anyone's) and your car uses an electronic car lock and you have a spare car key at home. You can call home to get someone to press the unlock button close to the phone. Your car will be able to detect the sound waves, and your car or trunk will open. Ensure you hold your cell phone close to your car door. This trick will save someone having to drive the spare set of keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote" for your car.
3. Spare Cell phone battery: Its common to run out of battery power on your phone at critical times. But the Nokia phones have a backup option for such contingencies. Every Nokia phone has a reserve battery. If your cell battery is very low, and you need to make an emergency or important call, you can activate the reserve battery by pressing the keys *3370#. Your cell will restart powered by the reserve battery and the phone will show a 50% increase in battery. This
reserve will be recharged the next time you charge your primary cell phone battery.
4. Disabling your cell phone: If you dont like having your cell phone stolen, here is how you can payback the perpetrator. Plan ahead! If you record the serial number of the cell phone, you can disable your stolen cell phone, even if they have changed the SIM card. To find out the serial number, type in the following keys: *#06#. Your 15-digit serial number will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your cell phone. Write it down so if ever your phone is stolen, you can phone your network provider and give them this code. They can then block your handsets access, so the thief cannot use the phone even if they change the SIM card. I wonder however if they can still use the phone overseas with a different network provider?

Looking for a good portable laptop? Try the Dell XPS M1330

2007-12-07T08:40:00.000-08:00

My Sony Vaio has finally had its day so I'm looking for a new one. I'd have to say the old unit was pretty reliable but the latest Sony designs really miss the mark. I might have said the same for any number of competitors however I have come across a good one :)

Dell's latest laptop - the XPS M1330 - seems to hit the mark. The design doesn't grab me, but the unit is pretty feature rich for such a cheap laptop. The basic unit sells for $US999 in the USA.
See http://www.dell.com/content/products/category.aspx/xpsnb?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&~ck=bt. It is thin, lightweight, and it has a long battery life. Consider it comes with:
1. Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5250 (2MB cache/1.5GHz/667Mhz FSB) - good enough
2. Genuine Windows Vista™ Home Premium Edition - puke! Downgrade to Windows XP
3. 1GB4 Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - a little low, I prefer 2GB
4. 120GB2 SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM) - fine, get a backup drive
5. CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW Drive)
6. Intel® Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100
7. Dell Wireless 1490 802.11a/g Mini-Card
8. 37Whr Lithium Ion Battery (4 cell) - too small upgrade to 9cell battery for added life
9. 1Yr In-Home Service,5 Parts + Labor,24x7 Phone Support - good enough

The next question is how to get my hands on one? Looking at the Australian website, I wont be going back there to get one, as the price is almost double at $A1,899. Same in Singapore.
See www1.ap.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/xpsnb_m1330?c=au&l=en&s=bsd&cs=aubsd1. But nice - its cheap in Japan at just Y100,150 - see www1.jp.dell.com/content/products/results.aspx/notebooks?~ck=anav&c=jp&l=ja&s=bsd&cs=jpbsd1&a=23845~0~129106&navla=23845~0~129106. The next question is how to get one? Its to cold to go to Japan until April. Hmm? The other issue is whether I can get an English OS? Hmmm...the Japanese take pride in being difficult whilst appearing helpful. Ok I give up.

Amazon releases an electronic book reader

2007-11-19T21:22:00.000-08:00

Amazon.com has announced the release of a new electronic book reader dubbed ‘Kindle’. The book-size device will retail for $US400, and it will be able to download up to 200 books, magazines and newspapers using a built-in wireless Internet connection. Whilst the device is feature-rich, it is not without its limits. Consider the following:
1. Basic utility: The device is the size and weight of a paperback, so it burdens us with another device apart from our cellphone and laptop, maybe iPod, not to mention books that don’t come in electronic formats.
2. Styling: The device is incredibly ugly. It looks like something out of the 1970s. No colour, no styling, just big buttons when small ones could have permitted a larger screen. It is comfortable to hold and use, but then so is a toaster.
3. Dimensions: The reader is the size of a physical book, making it bulky to carry. A more plausible device would be a smartphone like the Nokia E61i wih the added benefit of a larger ‘landscape’ screen with the ‘electronic ink’ Amazon has adopted. So might Nokia have been a ‘smart’ partner. A Nokia E61i fits into my coat or trouser pocket with ease – the Kindle does not, and it weighs a hefty 300g weight. Being thinner than a book is a poor standard of comparison.
4. Useability: Font size can be adjusted to make content more readable. The battery life is reasonable at 1week.
5. Readability: A big plus of the device is the ‘electronic ink’ that replicates the ink particles used in books and newspapers, making it easier to read ebooks. The reader uses reflected light like ordinary paper as opposed to backlight used in other LCD displays, that cause eye strain and glare. But this is the same ‘ink technology’ used by the older Sony Reader.
6. Content: Amazon is offering some 90,000 books through its Kindle Store, including over 100 best-sellers for about $US10, plus Kindle customers will be able to download and read the first chapter of most Kindle books for free, so unless you read only best sellers and historical textbooks you might be disappointed with the content available. Will things improve? Well that’s up to the publishers and authors – not Amazon. Most ebook rights remain ‘locked’ by publishers. Amazon will also offer subscriptions ($15 per month) to major newspapers and magazines including The NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Time and Fortune, Le Monde, Frankfurter Allgemeine and The Irish Times. But its hardly worth paying for newspaper subscriptions when the bulk of the information is available free on media websites and through RSS syndication.
7. Digital Rights Managament (DRM): Kindle’s digital rights management (DRM) ties content downloaded to the Kindle or family members with shared devices under a family account. So you can’t use the Kindle to share a book with a friend unless you are prepared to lend them your device. You can’t loose a book you download because the book rights are attached to the device registered under your account.
8. Supported File Formats: The Kindle device runs on a Linux platform, and the proprietary reader supports TXT files (ie. Notepad) and a Amazon proprietary format (.AZW). Some other files formats, such as Microsoft Word, can be read after using a conversion tool that involves emailing your document to Amazon. There is a $.10 per file fee if the conversion uses the Sprint network, however you can connect for free using a USB connection between Kindle and your PC. Acrobat PDF files are not supported on the Kindle or via the proprietary conversion tool. Given the widespread use of PDF for academic texts, presentations, and eBooks, it's a big negative. Even Sony’s Reader handles PDFs. Mind you there is likely to be some nifty hacking tools on the WWW to allow you to convert any files into a readable format. But they aren’t making it easy. Wouldn’t a reader want a devcie that can read or download content from a multitude of sites on the internet in the most common (PDF) format.
9. Connectivity: The Kindle comes with unlimited web surfing capability along with access to the Amazon bookstore, but most buyers will already have access to unlimited internet through a larger screen home or office PC. Amazon (Whispernet) uses of the Sprint’s network seems shortsighted because Amazon will be subsidising user access and its limited to US customers. What about global connectivity and customers. Pity there is no wifi, but hopefully Kindle #2 will offer global Wimax connectivity. Whispernet offers users free access to a high-speed ‘EVDO’ data network used by many cell networks. Since Amazon is waiving an online connection and usage fee, they will be expecting to recoup these subsidies on the freight savings. Customers will only pay for the device and content downloaded to the device.
10. Competition: The Kindle is better than the failed Sony Reader, but the DRM is more restrictive and the design far less elegant. The Sony reader required synchronsing with a computer to download content, whilst Kindle offers direct bookstore access for free.
11. Pricing: The unit is very expensive given its limited functionality, though not surprising given its specialised use. Expect prices to fall to push Amazon book sales. Afterall the device is intended to facilitate more book sales, so Amazon would be happy just to cover its manufacturing costs. The biggest problem perhaps is the price given that the buyer is paying for a monopolistic proprietary solution that makes the buyer a captive buyer of Amazon books. Sony offers a comparable device without the synchronicity, but with more open reading formats books as well as the option of buying PDF file formats from other sites.
Strategic position
With this device, Amazon has entered the device manufacturing market. Its purpose of course is to draw incremental sales to its online book sales. This device is a failed strategy. It should have been looking at a multi-faceted smartphone device. A Nokia E-series device on steriods, with a larger, ‘landscape’ screen’ in its chosen ‘electronic ink’ format.
Certainly the Kindle is not shaping up as a competitor to iPod, and that’s exactly where Amazon is vulnerable because Amazon is not the only online bookstore, and there is no reason why a device by Apple or others can’t affiliate with an online bookstore like Inghams. The bookstore or the device can drive sales - so I’d bet on a competing device by a manufacturer in future using WiMAX.
Given the high subscription fees and the easy of reading/scanning a broadsheet, I cant see the Kindle grabbing any of the newspaper market either, even if they lowered th price of online content because they are already offeirng it free.
Conclusion
There will be ‘bookies’ that need to have a Kindle, if they are not grossed out by the design. I think these devices will continue to fail as long as DRM is too restrictive and the book reading function is not integrated in with mainstrea communication functions. I’d be looking for a Nokia or Apple product to break ground in this market. As it stands I can almost read a book on a Nokia E61i at 67% resolution in portrait, so a larger screen in landscape would do wonders. But at a lower entry price I could be tempted to buy a Kindle, if only to read the first chapter of the Amazon’s non-fiction book collection. I might stop at that however. Why pay for content when its offered free on a central website. The positive aspect of the reader is its seemless integation and wireless connection with your home, office computer and the internet to share content. You can buy books from your computer or the device itself.
Nevetheless the Kindle is a lame duck that will fail to make any market impact. Content management is too restrictive, the wireless option inflexible for users and Amazon. I advice buyers to wait for a Nokia-like smartphone with better integrated features, which already have price parity with the Kindle. I believe Amazon will eventually drop the Sprint option and will embrace the global WIMAX standard.

Great software tools

2007-11-11T16:01:00.000-08:00

I was reinstalling my HDD today after contracting a virus. In my infinite wisdom I had concluded that viruses were a thing of the past since Microsoft had now patched up its operating system. Little did I know the new way malicious viruses were being spread – through PDA devices, cell phones, smartphones, etc. I was on a bus in Manila on my way to the airport when someone called ‘Susan’ was sending me a message on Bluetooth to my smartphone. What seemed like innocent fun turned into a virus attacking my HDD the next time I synchronized my files with my computer. So beware! In that different context, I was not expecting a virus. Anyway, here is a list of my software tools:
1. Anti-Virus Software: There are several, though its best to opt for a good one which is free:
a. Avasta – see www.download.com
b. AVG – see www.download.com or http://free.grisoft.com/doc/2/us/frt/0
c. TrendMicro – free online scan
2. Bourse Data – see www.boursedata.com for ASX (Australia) charting software
3. Windows Xp – I’m not installing Vista – waiting for a better version of Linux
4. MS Office – any version in the last 5 years is good enough
5. Adobe Acrobat Reader 7.0: Source http://www.download.com/3000-2378-10000062.html - free software to read proprietary PDF files.
6. Google Products: They have some useful products:
a. Gtalk: This is VOIP software for peer-2-peer chat for free – source: www.google.com/talk
b. Gmaps: this is for viewing satellite and street maps from the internet. Source: www.symbian-freeware.com/download-google-maps.html for Symbion OS on your smartphone.
7. CMC Markets: They have software for trading stocks, forex, commodities if you are a member. Source: www.cmcmarkets.com.au
8. IMG2GPS: This software allows you to upload IMG-format maps into your GPS. Source: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/mdipol/img2gps/
9. Global Mapper 7: This software to view, merge, import and export a large variety of vector, raster, and elevation data sets. Source: www.softpedia.com/get/Others/Home-Education/Global-Mapper.shtml - free trial version.
10. PTgui 6.0.3: This program lets you stitch raster maps together. Trial software. Source: www.softpedia.com/get/Multimedia/Graphic/Digital-Photo-Tools/PTGui.shtml
11. Mapsource: This software came with my Garmin GPS device. Not sure if its freeware? Maybe $30 download?
12. Oziexplorer 3.95.4N: This software is considered one of the better products, allowing you to overlay your waypoints from a GPS to raster (BMP) file, create & edit the waypoints & tracks, and then to upload them to your GPS. See www.softpedia.com/get/Science-CAD/OziExplorer.shtml.
13. Magictracer 2.0: This software offers raster to vector conversion. Map conversions are generally not good if you are using shaded maps. Pen outline maps will be easy though as it easily detects lines. Variants might give you an outline. Source: www.softpedia.com/get/Multimedia/Graphic/Graphic-Others/MagicTracer.shtml.
14. Regional Maps: This vector and raster maps are available. Vector maps can be uploaded to your GPS if they are in the right format, so use the software suggested herein.
a. Japan maps: This info is coming?? (vector maps)
b. Australia maps: This info is coming?? (raster maps)
c. USA Maps: This info is coming?? (raster maps)
d. Canada Maps: This info is coming?? (raster maps)
e. Philippines Maps: This info is coming?? (raster maps)
f. New Zealand: This information is coming?? (vector maps)
15. Mapedit 2.42: This software allows you to create maps – see www.freedownloadscenter.com/Web_Authoring/Image_Mapping_Tools/MapEdit.html

Here are some more links:
www.texasoffroad.net/forum_php/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=gps_exchange&Number=370258&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/lofiversion/index.php?f11.html

Personal Organisation Software

2007-10-23T04:44:00.000-07:00

It wasn't so long ago that essentially everyone was using Microsoft Outlook for their email communications. Since then Microsoft appears to be becoming increasingly irrelevant. The software giant has been displaced by Google and its range of online applications. The Google platform includes:
1. The google search engine - which is generating much greater revenues than Yahoo
2. Gmail - this chat software is not special,
3. Gtalk - this software too is not special, except that I dropped Skype in favour of it when I noted that it would run on an slow telco connection
3. Google Maps - This is a useful tool if you want to show people where something is, eg. Where to meet for a picnic, where your new house is, or the business location.
4. Google Documents - this document sharing software is not very powerful, but it has applications for some
5. Google Calendar - Surely the best feature is the ability to email yourself and to share calendars
6. Google Blogger - The acquisition of the Blogger business and its integration with Google is a comfort to Gmail users.
7. Google You Tube - The acquisition of You Tube seems like another canny decision by the Google management since video adverts might be a spin-off from this, quite apart from adding to its member base.

There are still a few things that Google doesn't allow me to do:
1. Google Mail for mobile devices: The mobile platform has very limited functionality
2. To do lists: The Google service does not offer a 'to do' listing, though I was able to track down an alternative - see http://tadalist.com/.
3. Backpackit - This website provides an outline space for you to write notes. See www.backpackit.com. If you cant afford a smartphone, this might be the next best thing...assuming you are often at a loose end and have internet access. Personally I prefer to use a smartphone and always carry it with me.

I will update this posting in coming weeks.

The Art of Self Promotion

2007-10-11T14:58:00.000-07:00

There is a great internet based solution for promoting your self, any expression you have created or support. It's called Digg.com.
How Digg.com Works
Digg is democratizing digital media. As a user, users determine site content by reading, sharing or discussing any media they find whether its news, video, images or podcasts.
The process works by:

You selecting your favourite content: When you find an article, video, or podcast online, you have the opportunity to submit it to Digg.com so it appears in their “Upcoming Stories” where other members can find it. If they like the content they can ‘Digg it’, which makes the story more likely to attract the attention of other readers. Clearly the best way of attracting attention is by posting provocative, useful, interesting or relevant content.
Building popularity: As a submission grows in popularity it can reach the Digg homepage for a particular category of news where it may qualify for the “Top 10”. The advantage of reaching a certain category is that you are now reaching your designed audience – that is people with an interest in your content. The problem is getting listed in the categories section. The good news is that categories are broken into sub-categories. If your submission doesn't receive enough Diggs within a certain time period, it will eventually drop out of the “Upcoming” section.
Building your network: The best way of getting your content ‘Top 10’ listed is by inviting your friends, colleagues and acquaintances to read your content. First you need to encourage them to join Digg so you can get them on your friends list. You can ‘Shout’ so that your friends are aware of your new content, or your friends can track what you are Digging. You can email your friends (fellow Diggers or not) the stories that you Digg, including the content you personally write.
Eliminating bad content: The Digg system allows users to vote bad or off-topic content out of the system, and duplicated content can by similarly punished if you “Bury” it. This process ensures spam is taken out of the system.
Decide your Digg media experience: One of the best Digg features is ability to manage the content you receive, whether you read the “Upcoming” content or use the tools like Swarm, Stack, Big Spy or Arc to organise your media content. Otherwise you can stay with subject homepages to stay focused on what interests you.
RSS Feeds: You can subscribe to RSS feeds for any subject categories of your choice, or from individual users or by search keywords. Never before have you had so much control over your media experience.
Engage in discussion: Digg.com really takes the media experience to a new level because it allows you not only to passively read content by to comment or respond to it, as well as easily share it with others, whether its news articles, videos or podcasts.
Competitive dynamic: One of the best elements of these solutions is that no ISP is a sole solution. To stay relevant you really need to be using all these internet solutions.

Problems with Digg
Digg is a brilliantly conceived media delivery system. The problem is that people are likely to shun the ‘Upcoming Stories’ in favour of ‘filtered content’ because they are likely to avoid reading spam or poor/unpopular content. You might think that a great deal depends on the support of your friends. Fortunately the Digg.com algorithm requires a diversity of support for content before it will be promoted from the 'Upcoming section' to the category-based home pages, and that’s a systematic hurdle that everyone faces.
At the end of the day there is always a ‘creative spin’ you can place on self-promotion. Eg. Creating a loners club, perhaps through another internet service provider. Another positive aspect is that even if your content is not mainstream, you will still gain the support of your category

One of the unfortunate aspects of this service provider is that they dont allow you to post any website up on the service. Not even in a standardised fashion.

In conclusion, if you like any of my website content, please ‘Digg it’ at Digg.com.

Cheap flights in Asia

2007-08-27T18:42:00.000-07:00

Anyone savouring overseas travel but are put off by the high extra fees for fuel levies. Whilst its true that flights are often more expensive, there is another revolution going on in the travel business. You might be well versed with discounted regional or domestic travel, but in the last few years more markets are opening up, particularly in Asia. Some of the new airlines include:
1. Tiger Airways - see http://www.tigerairways.com/ - its based out of Singapore. I found the connections really bad. Had to stay overnight in Singapore, and got to Darwin at 3AM.
2. Cebu Pacific Air - see http://www.cebupacificair.com/ - they have limited routes in Asia outside their home base of the Philippines.
3. Air Macau - see http://api.airmacau.com.mo/en/holidays/en_routemap.jpg - you need a visa for Macau, which is a pain.
4. Viva Macau - see http://www.flyvivamacau.com.au/ - you need a visa for Macau, which is a pain since it costs, and you cant leave quickly.
5. Asian Spirit - see http://www.asianspirit.com/destination.html.
6. Air Asia X - see www.airasia.com - this group is expanding its network in Asia. It is a Malaysian based airline 20% owned by Richard Branson, and it services Manila (Clark Airfield) and the Gold Coast (Australia) as well as other airports around Asia).

You can see a more comprehensive global list at See www.travelnotes.org/Airlines/airlines-a4.htm.
Unfortunately there are still a number of Asian countries that have not opened their airspace to discount airlines fearing that they will steal business from their national airlines. Japan is an example, but Korea is at least taking some steps with discount airlines having some access to Pusan, which is only a ferry ride ($150) from Fukuoka, Japan. Japan Airlines is haemoragging under its operating losses, so I dont see any likelihood of discount airlines entering that market soon.

One of the better discount airlines is Tiger Airways, based out of Australia and Singapore. Being in the Philippines I was not willing to pay the high fares charged by the national carrier Philippine Airlines (http://www.philippineairlines.com/). So I decided to test the discount airlines. I flew from Clark Airfield in Metro Manila to Singapore, where I stayed overnight with a friend, then flew on to Darwin. What they dont tell you, and is not clearly stated is that its really a poor connection. Not only would you be loosing on a Singapore hotel, but you are taking 30 hours to complete a 4hr direct flight. Why? Well you leave at 13:00, arrive in Singapore, and I guess for the sake of getting airport access, you are required to fly the next day. My flight was 17:30 from Manila, which saw me arrive in Singapore at 21:00. Not too convenient for calling in on a friend or hotel since I'm obliged to stay overnight until I caught the onbound flight to Darwin at 20:20, to arrive in Darwin at 02:35 - thats 2:35AM - at which time there is nothing open. Fortunately there was a place upstairs I could work on my computer. But its clear that the airline regulators are not making it easy for discount airlines. No doubt this will be the case until governments around the world have an opportunity to sell their national carriers. There are several other hurdles - Tiger has a pretty tight baggage weight limit of 15kg. So I would check the conditions on your ticket. See see http://www.tigerairways.com/flight/useful-travel-information.php. I was fortunate in that I did want to catch up with a friend, and wanted to go on a campervan trip from Darwin....but otherwise you'd have to question the benefits of discount airlines. Certainly it suits students and adventures. If you have a good book to read or a laptop with long battery life, airport lounges arent such bad places to hang out.

For my trip, I paid $280 for a one-way flight from Manila (Clark) to Darwin, but add on $120 for a hotel in Singapore, then $50 in taxis in Singapore and Darwin, my overland adventure was $200 in (net) fuel costs, plus food costs for a week. When you compare that to a direct flight from Sydney to Manila of $580+$230 in taxes = $810 with Royal Brunei, then $830 direct to $650 overland, then the direct flight is cheaper. Of coutse the direct option is much cheaper as a return ticket.

I am not terribly happy about the need to stay overnight in Singapore for future trips. When you start changing airlines it no longer makes sense, so what about other airlines? Tiger Airlines is attractive because Singapore is a hub for Asian airlines. Tiger can take you to Alice Springs, Bangkok, Chennai (India), Changmai (Thailand), Darwin (Aust), Gold Coast (Aust), Guangzhou, Haikou, Hanoi, Hat Yai, Ho Chi Minh City, Kochi (India), Krabi (Thailand), Launceston (Aust), Macau, Mackay (Aust), Manila, Melbourne, Padang, Perth, Phuket, Rockhampton, Shenzhen (China), Sunshine Coast (Aust) and Udon Thani. You can see a visual map of these destinations at http://www.tigerairways.com/flight/destinations.php.

Well next week I will be rturning to the Philippines and I am considering several options since I am coming back in June'08 via Japan. There is the choice of:
1. Direct flight to Manila with Philippine Airlines or Qantas
2. Flying Viva Macau to Macau, then getting a Cebu Pacific flight to Manila
3. Another option for another trip is overland through Indonesia. This trip requires little baggage. I would envisage a ferry-bus trip in the Philippines to Davao City in the south, a ferry/flight to Manado, Sulawesi, then flight to Darwin via Jakarta, then overland to Sydney via Cairns, Brisbane. This time I will go to Katherine Gorge.

Buying a business-savy smartphone

2007-08-23T22:06:00.000-07:00

Recently I purchased a smartphone for business purposes and I must first convey my frustration with this task. Really I think manufacturers are intent on frustrating us rather than serving us. They tease you with one feature whilst denying you another.

Of all the phones I looked at - whether Samsung, Sony-Ericson, Motorola, as well as a few PDAs, I found them all short on features except Nokia. I found Nokia products far superior than the competition. Having said that Nokia products are not all equal. Like the others, they want you to buy the best, teasing you with some features, but denying you others. What I did was start by identifying a wish list of features - and the best way of doing this is to look at the top of the range by each manufacturer. For Nokia thats the N-series. I came away with the following list:

1. Music: I wanted an MP3 player - even if I didn't plan to use it much. I wanted the option to play through external speakers.

2. Camera: Some have two cameras, one for face shots. I was happy enough with one to take scenic shots of property and house improvements, and sometimes corrupt officials.

3. Cellphone: I wanted a phone that would offer 3G, GPRS, GSM, Edge, WCDMA, quadband since I wanted the flexibility to connect in 90% of countries. In actual fact you dont need that many modes, but compromise comes later.

4. Conference calls: I wanted the capacity to hold conference calls, though no great need for it.

5. Email: I wanted POP3 email connectivity through wifi/LAN, so that I could email people from anywhere with wireless. The benefit is that I dont need to bother setting up my computer.

6. Internet: I wanted internet with flexible access through the telco GPRS connection or wifi at my local coffee shop if I needed it. The benfit is that I dont need a local ISP, nor do I need to pay high toll charges for Wifi.

7. Display: I wanted a large screen display so that I could use the device like a computer, and read books with it. I wanted good screen resolution so that I could watch TV or read books.

8. Communications: I wantd the option of communicating through wifi, bluetooth or the telco

9. Memory: I wanted sufficient internal memory plus alot more external using a miniSD card (500Mb+)

10. Applications: I wanted a contact manager, calendar, notes, Word/Excel/Acrobat Editor applications, as well the flexibility to load up third-party applications for stocks, forex trading, etc.

11.Keyboard: I wanted a well designed keyboard that would deal with my clumsy big figures.

12. Voice recording: I wanted the option of voice recording so I could record discussions with people or more quickly vent ideas.

13. Contract: I wanted a phone that would not require a contract. Unlocked phone means Pre-paid all the way, so I could travel overseas and just get a SIM card for each country.

14. Radio: I wanted a radio because I like to listen to music and sometimes something new and unfamiliar.

15. Texting: I wanted the ability to SMS people, with the capacity for using a distribution list.

16. Ports: I wanted a USB port for connectivity with other devices, such as a portable bluetooth keyboard for faster typing.

17. Video: I would happily accepted video 4G bandwidth

18. Weight: I wanted a phone that would weigh less than 150gms

19. Dimensions: I wanted a phone that would be comfortable to use, as well as carry in pocket.

20. Operating system: I wanted an operating system that would function with third party software. There was Symbion or Win Mobile.

21. Global Positioning System: This is a useful feature in big cities where you are always going somewhere new, but its utility falls in the countryside where there are no cell phone towers.

22. Processor: I wanted just enough processor power to do everything I need.

23. Battery life: I wanted the device to be able to last 2 days with alot of typing and texting.

22. Price: This is mentioned last, but it was an important issue. I didnt want to pay a premium for the latest, and I wanted a product road-tested so no flaws. This also gave me a long list of reviews from users of the device. Reviews are readily available on the internet, and like me they post blogs.

It was easy to settle on the Nokia - as the Samsung, Motorola and Sony-Ericson models available in the Philippines did not have great specs, whether in functionality or quality. Within the Nokia range I was frustrated. The N90-series were very pricey (all in $800 area), some were bulky (N93), and I didnt like their small keypad or screens. Stepping down from the N80 series, and I had a cheaper price ($600) but still the small keypad and screen. But it did have wifi. :) I was almost convinced this was the best I could do.

I flirted with the E-series, the E65 was a bulky device with a fold-out keyboard. But I thought it was too bulky, heavy and use of the keyboard was not intuitive since it was split between two components. There was the E61 and the E61i. This was a much wider screen and keyboard device. Playing with the device it wasnt too cumbersome for my big fingers, but it did have the challenge of the fingers getting in front of my key view. But by playing around with the keyboard, just pretending to type on a model, it seemed good enough. So, in the end I settled on the Nokia E61i. This did carry some compromises but I did pay just P19,600 ($US400).

Nokia E61i

Looking back on the feature list above, the E61i ranks accordingly

1. Music - yes it has though I doubt its as good as an ipod. Have not used yet.

2. Camera - The built in camera doesnt have a flash, and the picture quality was not great, but its ok I have a good waterproof camera if I need a specialised application. The picture quality was poor in late afternoon light.

3. Cellphone: I got all the communication standards I wanted - except 4G bandwidth. It is a little hard to hear on this phone.
4. Conference calls: Not sure it can do this - though it was not a priority
5. Email: It provides POP3 email connectivity through I tend to use Gmail software downloaded through wifi/LAN.
6. Internet: This phone offers the option of selecting Wifi or telco, and you can select the wifi hotspot you use. Using the internet on this device was good as far as roaming around a page, though there were memory issues, and its not easy to toggle between pages. There were also difficulties logging in to certain sites, though I was able to do banking and share trading. Clearly the free access through Wifi is a huge benefit - which those suckers with Blackberries can't get, and thus pay $200 per month, and are tied to a contract for global access.
7. Display: The screen resolution is fine, and I could even read books on it at 66% page reduction, though only just so if you hav poor eye sight you will struggle.

8. Communication: As indicated, I got the wifi and cellphone access I wanted.

9. Memory: It has plenty of external memory using a miniSD card (500Mb+) and internal memory is good too.

10. Applications: I got the contact manager, calendar, notes, Word/Excel/Acrobat Editor applications, though I found that there are not so many applications supported by the Symbion OS, though perhaps there are more for European equity markets.
11.Keyboard: I wanted a well designed keyboard that would deal with my clumsy big figures. This brand was great, and although my fingers get in the way of seeing the keys, that problem subsides over time. The keyboard is a buying point, the key layout is great.
12. Voice recording: It has this feature though I tend to use the notepad option to save typing later.
13. Contract: Yep can use pre-paid.
14. Radio: I didn't get the radio, but you can get this from the internet anyway I think, so maybe I do have it. But this feature has not been road tested, so dont know if internet offers sound.
15. Texting: Yes, with good integration with the contact manager.
16. Ports: I have a USB port but only through docking
17. Video: I can play videos through software but I dont have 4G bandwidth so it would be cumbersome to play off the internet, but I have not road-tested this feature.
18. Weight: The phone weighs 150gms - the limit I set but because the unit is thin it doesnt feel so heavy, not like the blocks I would be comparing it to.
19. Dimensions: I found this unit much more comfortable in the pocket than my old phone. Because it is much thinner it has a smaller footprint and you can place it in your coat or shirt pocket as well, but I worry about the effect on my heart, and it might jump out if I was running.

20. Operating system: The Symbion OS does not seem to offer the range of 3rd party software I want. BourseData trading software is not compatible, though I have yet to check out the range at various websites, so stay posted.
21. Global Positioning System: I already have a Garmix Etrex for outdoor GPS requirements which uses satellites rather than cell phone towers, so I really didnt need a GPS capability, though I believe I can link my Nokia phone to a GPS device to navigate. But for me the feature is redundant. Not road tested.

22. Processor: I think this is perhaps the biggest weakness of the phone as I have found it to fall over a few times when using the internet. But using the internet alot is not so important.
23. Battery life: When I originally bought the phone the battery was lasting a week without charging, though I'm not a big communicator, but I do write alot of notes. But I realised that battery life falls off alot in provincial areas where the phone might struggle to make a connection, in which case the battery lasts 2 days. Still not bad.

24. Synchronising: This phone synchromised well, no problems other than a little corruption of my notes on one occasion.
25. Price: I thought the phone was very cheap compared to the others. I thought the E61i was better than the much more pricey N90 series.

25. Reviews: The reviews I read were overwhelmingly supportive of the phone and largely similar to mine. Many buyers had upgraded from the E61, as they wanted the better battery life and wifi.

So the only negatives were the camera picture quality, the under-powered processor (same as E61) and arguably the Symbion OS. Overall I am overwhelmed with this unit. Its very durable and functional. My GF wants one as well.

Nokia E61i Smartphone - Buy It!

The Sounds of Silence

2007-08-21T09:32:00.000-07:00

Alot of people appreciate the sounds of nature, classical music, even background rock n roll, some even the sounds of silence. There is something for everyone, and today an every growing array of devices to play your favourite music. I have gathered a list of my favourites:
1. Sounds of nature: This website www.soundsleeping.com allows you to mix and play a range of natural sounds from your computer. I often play it from a background tab while I am working from my computer. This resource is free, but there are other websites where you can download sounds to play off your own device, whether you want to edit or play them.
2. Opera: Anything with Pucini is my taste. Its noteworthy that whilst we are in the habit of buying such music from music stores, any music more than 72 years past the death of the composer is free to copy since the copyright has expired. As far as I'm aware. But I guess everyone is doing their own recordings. Not sure where the copyright laws stand on such compilations.
3. Soft rock: There is a range of nice sounds I like, eg. Dire Straits, Seal, Cranberries and Hikaru Utada.
4. Classical music: Nahhh.

I find it helpful to play music whilst I am working, and that the right music at the right time or with the right task can make a difference.

Blogging & Online Content Management

2007-08-05T19:18:00.000-07:00

Recently I have been reviewing the merits of various online services for simple folk like me, and I'd have to count it among the most complicated and frustrating tasks I've had to perform. Why? Because the options are seemingly endless and the support woefully inadequate. At times like these I get philosophical. I ask the question - Why are there so many bloody programming languages? Even within certain languages there are schools doing different things. Notwithstanding that there should be a range of product to ensure competition, and there will be a range of programming languages for different applications. But unlike the commercial world where industries go through periods of innovation (seeding) and convergence (consolidation), the IT industry seems to be propaganding like weeds. The culmination of this is that there are probably several thousand programming languages, when I would think less than 50 would be ample. There are efforts to standardise software by manufacturers who would like to make their devices compatible with as much hardware as possible. But clearly their efforts are having little impact.
I reflect upon this trend, and I can see parallels with schools of philosophy - where a philosophy schools break apart because of some conflict. And it occurs to me that this market structure arises from a propensity of programmers to be self-indulgent and self-righteous, just as philosophers are prone to be. They have the independence to go-it-alone, but what about the realism to remain grounded in reality. This self-indulgence is rooted in a subjective desire to place one's interpretation of the world about the facts of the reality. Its likely that the work-culture and ethos in the programming community does is less effective because their communication skills are poorly developed. Their poor communication skills are a product of their lifestyle and basic philosophical values. Pro-logic does not necessarily make them of this world, as is evident, because they seem prone to fits of rationalism. Look at some examples:
1. The Freeswitch Open Source platform for VOIP is being developed in competition with Asterisk despite the competition being on features more than substance.
2. Joombi open source content management software is being developed as a spin-off from Mambo
3. Java has all these different schools

OK, having got the politics out of the way, lets focus on the blogging & content management offerings:

There are hundreds of choices of course, none of them offering great customer service in terms of features and support - more a case of one or the other. The first challenge is discovering what you want:
1. Simple Blog: You might just want a place you can record you life events, or place a few pictures of your family. You are probably better off with Blogger (Google), Wordpress.org, Typepad, etc. I suspect Google's support makes Blogger a winner. Wordpress is a pretty sophisticated product, easy to use.
2. Commercial blog: You might want to start with a basic blog, but over time build it into a sophisticated commercial platform for selling your wares. You will need to look at 2 options:
(a) Commercial software: There is software you pay for like Community Server ($495). We are all used to the idea of paying for things, including Microsoft software, and it offers some compelling logic....'you get what you pay for' or 'value for value'. Commercial software does offer the benefit of being self-funding, and being market driven, their product does tend to be better packaged. Having said that, there are no guarantees that commercial software will be better packaged, and it might be all rhetoric, will bugs included. There is however a tendency for them to offer demos, which at least give you a free trial period to test the product. Another problem is pricing and capital structure. If the company does not get their pricing right, far from being well funded, the software will fail to get market support, and thus developer support.
(b) Open Source software: The open source community is expanding quickly as an alternative way of developing product. But one has to question its merits. I have identified several problems: (i) Open source software is offered on the basis that it is free. Being free tends to attract a certain type of supporter, firstly programmers with no commercial skills, and 2nd tight people willing to accept product flaws for the sake of the OS ideology. Open Source platforms are abhorent for even considering licensing by this ethos. (ii) The industry is controlled by developers with no with commercial or marketing perspective. The jargon used, the way their sites are structured, the way these products are installed, you would have to be a programmer to use them, because you can be assured the product will unlikely be supported by general terminology, will have universal compatibility with different systems. Despite 80% of users having Windows installed, you will find their product offering will be Linux-based. So 'open source' is really only open to developers. But to be generous, maybe thats the way it should be for now, given that there is a period of transition to Linux systems, and capabilities have to be added.

In conclusion it looks like we will have to be patient. From my research, I felt that the best way to go was:
1. Drupal - for a fully functional Lunix-based program - if you are a programmer and ambitious. The product is difficult if you lack programming knowledge.
2. Blogger - if you want a basic blogging platform with basic features
3. Wordpress - if you wanted a slightly more sophisticated blogging platform suitable to the causal user, but with add-on capabilities. But its a blog, not a full content management product.

If I had more time I would define the difference between blogging and CMS.

Book & movie reviews

2005-09-18T19:56:00.000-07:00

I have read some very good books in my time, so I thought I'd share some of them with you, roughly in order of significance to me, but 'results will vary'.

Fiction
The short fiction reading list is testimony to the fact that I value content rather than style, plots or drama. Put another way, I'm more engrossed in my plot than others, and why limit yourself to 2.5D novelist character depictions when you can understand real life characters. The 2 exceptions below are because these 2 books were very educational to me when I was young, and their romanticist content is still appealing today. I still laugh when I read the dialogues.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand: This book is a romanticist depiction of the decline of US society. It has its heroes (enlightened capitalists) and villians (despotic & fence-sitting collectivists). This book was less of a novel and more of a philosophical expose, which appealed to me. Its a bit drawn out (at 1200 pages), but it was very compelling reading.
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand: This book manifests in a court room drama placing the architectural standards of the day, and the moral values which underpin them in question. The fundamental values in question are egoism vs collectivism. Its a compelling concretisation of values, though I feel the characters lack empathy.... I suggest because the author did. I found it necessary to flick though some of the descriptive content because its overdone, and repetitive. Though that may reflect my preference.

Philosophy
I have always preferred non-fiction over fiction. This reflects my ambitions, and desire to find values that I can draw upon in my own life. I wondered around the Macquarie University and NSW libraries and never founded another philosophy so compelling....but then I've needed to add to it where I was not satisfied with it. The better philosophy books were:

The Virtue of Selfishness by Ayn Rand: This is a very well-written and compact explanation of the Objectivist philosophy. It includes an essay by the current chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, Dr Alan Greenspan on the role of government. His current policy is a diversion from that.
The Philosophy of Objectivism by Leonard Peikoff: This book captures the fundamental schemes of Objectivism in a single book. Leonard Peikoff is the intellectual & commercial heir to the Ayn Rand legacy.
Objectivism - taped lecture courses: A number of years ago I did a number of taped lecture courses by Leonard Peikoff. It was educational & humoress. The subjects were: Introduction to Objectivism, Understanding Objectivism, Philosophy of Education, Introduction to Logic, History of Ancient Philosophy, History of Modern Philosophy. See Second Rennaissance Books Online or the Ayn Rand Institute www.ari.org.

Economics

Capitalism Online by George Reisman: This book is being distributed online. Its a long read, though I found his arguments terribly rationalistic. But it stands as a valuable summation of the current state of economic debate. I think its less solid than alot of the Objectivist material.
The Roaring 2000's by Harry Dent: This was an interesting explanation of the relationship between market booms and population demographics.

Business Management

McDonalds - Behind the Arches by John Love: This was an interesting exploration of the development of McDonalds. It works as a business system, but food retention is still an issue for me.
Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman: This was a good read. It highlighted the importance of empathy to me - applied to the realm of management theory. I was not swayed by the underlying values though, just by the practical need to 'get along' , to be practical. But its too late for me. I triedbeing nice when I was 17yo. It just didn't fit. Honesty seemed like the only intelligible standard to me.
The E-Myth Business by Michael Gerber: This is an interesting book on how effective organisations should be structured.
Sony – The Private Life by John Nathan (1999): This was good because it outlined the Sony philosophy. Revolutionaries at Sony by Reiji Asakura (2000): This looked more at the people responsible for the ascension of Sony Corp.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey: This was a good book on time management.
Principle-Centered Leadership by Stephen Covey: I found this book as valuable, but his Christian values undermine its depth and integrity.

Self Improvement / Health

Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki: Kiyosaki is a 2nd generation Japanese American. He makes a compelling argument for changing your life goals - with the focus being on investment. He writes simply. Read the books, but dont go to the lectures. That's his value adding - not yours.
Life Strategies by Dr Phil McGraw: Dr Phil was 'discovered' by Oprah Winfrey, and he now has his own show. He writes simply & effectively on relationships, though I think other authors do a better job on 'life strategies'. He's a Christian, so the intellectual content only goes as deep as his best professor...people he often quotes.
The Life Factor by Dr Ross Walker: This was a useful self-improvement book.
The Energy Edge by Pamela Smith: This was a great book for nutritional & dietary info.

Japan in Focus

Anyone that knows me, knows I have a particular interest in Japan. This would surprise anyone who knows my politics, but in a way its a more interesting experience.

Kawari by Milton Ezrati: I learned alot about the Japanese economic organisation from this book.
Madame Butterfly by Karen Ma (1996): This is an older book, but was interesting to understand Japanese culture.
The Japanese Mind by Robert Christopher (1983): This was a good book on understanding Japanese society.

Movies

My favourite movies are either offering intellectual content, have strong moral characters (heroes).

The Thomas Crown Affair (1990s): This is a remake of the old version with Steve McQueen. The new version has a stronger story and scrip, and more real characterisation. It stars Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo. Its perhaps my favourite.
The Fountainhead (1956): This movie is in desperate need of a remake, but this is a great attempt.
Braveheart: Starring & directed by Mel Gibson. Its a great story.
The Shawshank Redemption: This is another good story, but it doesnt strike me emotionally.

Applied ketchism - the art of cheap living

2005-08-25T00:58:00.000-07:00

I have always been a saver....which means that I spend very little on myself and others. Why way of extremes, I'd like to point out that China's national savings rate is 35%, but since probably 30% of their population is living a subsistence living, maybe its more like 55%. But I probably save 60-70%, at least whern I'm earning an income. But thats about where comparisons between me and the Chinese end. I dont have a strange English accent, I dont live in China Town, I dont push my way out of elevators, and I dont engage in business in a haphazard way to make a living. But each to his own, anf anyway its entertaining to see them wear themselves out working so hard. I guess by some standard they are 'very practical'...but it aint mine. Oh...I forgot...they are also tight like me. Hmm...I wonder why...anyway so maybe they have something to teach me on this subject. Anyway, philosophy aside (since I have addressed the philosophical aspects on my Understanding People blog), this posting is mostly about saving rather than thinking...so how is it done....well here are the secrets.

When you live in a developed country you come to accept certain prices for goods and services. In the last decade, there has been great advances in the globalisation of trade - be it goods or services. We are witnessing a huge reduction in prices, so when we go to the dept store - we think we are getting a good deal. My experience has told me otherwise. Companies generally charge what they can get away with - and so I counter this strategy with what I can get away from them legally. Consider the following:

1. Food: Well as a lazy teen I grew up on food courts and home-made sandwiches, but in recent years I have some to appreciate the health and cost advantages of unprocessed foods. I realise by eating mostly fresh foods I can halve my food spending. So for breakfast its toast, jam & yoghurt, lunch is sandwiches, and fruit, dinner is steamed meat and vegetables. Frozen fish fillet and mint sauce goes well with the veges if you dont think steamed vege has taste.

2. Transport: Well I have tended to live in cities where I can use public transport. No great insights here. Transport in Philippines, Malaysia and Korea is cheap though.

3. Travel: I have discovered the benefits of discount airlines. One way flights are so much more flexible than the return packages, and it doesnt matter which country you book from with internet commerce. You will need however to consider the special rules that apply. eg. Cancellations, tight luggage limits. Sample the offerings at Tiger Airlines (www.tigerairways.com). Pity Japan wont allow discount airlines. That is one luxury I permit myself. But the great thing about not 'seriously' working is that you can travel anytime, and that means you can avoid those premium priced 'golden week' fares that the Japanese Salaryman has to pay. Some countries like Australia and NZ have good deals on bus fares where you can travel on bus passes with unlimited stops. But I prefer campervans on the cheap. See www.standbycars.com.
4. Reading: Well there is plenty of free reading. There are books online, there are free books and newspapers in your local library. I download to a Nokia Smart phone and I can read the material at 65% magnification - only just. Books are cheap in the Philippines. I can even read a free newspaper if I have McDonalds breakfast.
5. Movies: Well movies are cheap in the Philippines.
6. Sports: You can pay alot for gym membership, but I prefer just walking because I dont want to strain anything and its good thinking time, and mountain biking because its a great adventure with a GPS. Canoeing is another favourite. Once you acquire the equipment they are cheap sports. And the equipment is not so much these days. Biking $300, Canoeing $400 with accessories.
7. House & Furnishings: Well I have only bought house, land and furnishings in the Philippines and Japan, so I can attest to the savings there. I wanted to spend alot of time in Japan so I bought a house there for $35,000 and that included washing machine, frig, desk and lots of timber to say the least. Both properties in Japan and Philippines were bought as bank foreclosures. Furniture is so cheap in the Philippines I bought everything new. Paid $200 each for leather lounge, dining set, fridge, and $100 each for great mattress and bed frame. But you can rent in the Philippines a nice place for $100/mth in the countryside or $200 in the city. You can buy a studio apartment in Manila for $US20,000.
8. Entertainment: Well I never appreciated the economics of paying a 300% mark-up to drink in bars. But its pretty compelling in the Philippines with $1 a beer with great live music venues. In western countries there is plenty of outdoor entertainment that is free, or entertaining at home.
9. Clothes: I used to do all my clothes shopping in Japan. It was a little more expensive but the variety is so much better than Australia. Now I tend to buy casual clothes and shoes in Japan and the Philippines.
10. Electronics: Another luxury I grant myself is toys like waterproof digital cameras, GPS devices, PDA for note writing and backup trading. Japan tends to be the cheapest - like Bic Camera at Ikebukuro, in Tokyo. Akihabara was the cheap electronics district, but thats no longer the case. The Philippines has a good underground economy in external HDD drives and cell phones, and you can readily find these people on the internet forums. Try www.ebay.com as well.
11. Cars: Not a big fan on cars. I prefer something you can move and store, and sleep in, so I prefer campervans, though they are expensive.
12. Eating out: Most cities have a cheap food area where you can eat out. Japan is expensive, but I have eaten cheaper there than I would in Manila - for safety reasons. eg. Noodles and egg for Y290 ($US3.50). The Philippines and Vietnam is good for beer.
13. Reducing costs: There are simple things you can do to reduce costs. For example, but turning the power off at the switch you save electricity. Consider that a TV still consumes 33% of full power when the remote on stand-by. Read newspapers at the library rather than buying them. Like me you are problably only interested in 5% of the content.
14. Residency: Choose a location close to a supermarket, bus/train, recreational area (eg. beach, park or river) and community facilities likes sports facility or library. You might need to pay a more for these conveniences - it depends on your job-location flexibility but you save on not needing as much transport at least in alot of non-western countries.
15. Education: By all means get a basic degree for credibility and structured learning - but I regard anymore than that as a waste of time. Western universities are not institutions of learning, they are intent on blugeoning you with their arrogance. Why pay for a years education when you only stay there 26weeks a year, and half that time is self-study. There is more material on the internet and in library books than you could possibly need. Get a basic degree if you need the `dubious` credibility.
16. Health: Health insurance is the biggest rout in Australia - worst still because it doesn`t cover dental. My advice is - if you are in decent health - drop the scheme and rely on your own savings. Medicare is adequate - and if you require any treatment and don`t want to be waitlisted or pay high fees - go overseas to Thailand, the Philippines or India. Doctors and other specialists in these countries are often trained in the US or EU, and my experience has been they might well have been equipment. Such was my experience in the Philippines. Dont go to any rouge - seek a recommendation by an ex-pat living locally - someone who is a specialist to the stars, who charges local currency. It cost me $US16 to clean my teeth with a US-educated dentist. He had digital photography and laser fillings. I never knew they exist in Australia, and he took time to communicate with me. Be careful where you go....and don`t go to a too poor country. In Vietnam, I`m certain I knew more than a local doctor there - get an expat at an international hospital. Thailand, India and the Philippines are more westernised. Always ask an ex-pat, as you don`t want to rely on local loyalties.
17. Personal Income: Before we spend, we have to earn and save. A life of thrift necessary requires retaining income. The problem is that we live in a society where wealth is expropriated by force. None of us signed on to this taxation system - even if some of us have tacit support for taxation. So its our moral right to avoid its `unjust effects`. Consider the following routs:
a. Salary earners: Employees get the worst deal because they get few tax deductions and get to keep after-tax dollars. Unlike companies, they have to pay their tax at the point of payment, whereas companies pay it 1-2years later.
b. Asset allocation: Another great injustice is the preferential `tax` treatment given to households over asset traders. Why are houses tax free whilst share profits are taxed at 50% - no concession if you intended to make a gain. So investment in new technology and other high risk businesses are discouraged. The lesson is - Buy real estate and leverage it to the hilt.
c. Leverage: The tax system rewards you for debt-financing your business or investments, so take excessive risks, as you know you can always depend on the welfare state.
d. Expenses: You need to structure your life to maximise your deductions. eg. Find a tax accountant in your favourite country, so you have a legitimate tax deduction to claim when you visit him. Companies are even more flexible because you can change your domicile, but retain the same benefits. Non-residents are otherwised paying higher tax rates - starting at 30%.
e. Discretionary breaches: Break all the rules they were never intended to be followed. The Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC) never investigates anyway since its under-resourced. It will drive a high-profile businessman to suicide to give the appearance of action, but its all talk.
f. Investment: Money makes money. A little thrift in the early years can go a long way in later years if you invest right. Be willing to learn about the different markets, whether commodities, stocks, property, CFDs, bonds, art, etc.
18. Living Overseas: I don`t like living in Australia anymore, and being a trader and having assembled an amount of savings, its unlikely that I will return for more than a holiday. Why? Because its small population means that its under-serviced and parochial. I prefer living in Japan, holidays in the Philippines and visiting family only in Australia. Japan has a great ex-pat community, great services and infrastructure, and offers a great lifestyle if you don`t accept the local stressed lifestyle. There are only certain jobs which give you that freedom, but really the answer for most is to struggle and save, then GET OUT of Australia. I go to the Philippines for business opportunities, holidays and surgery. Some 5% of Australian residents already live overseas.
Mind you - you can live like a king in the Philippines - and the same in Japan if you have savings and dont need to go out too often. In the Philippines there is a wide variety of food very cheap, you can rent in the city for $US180/mth, in the country for $US140/mth. You can buy a 3br apartment in Manila, opposite a shopping centre for $US60,000 - with 2 bathrooms and a maid`s room. The only expensive items are power (2nd to Japan) and ADSL internet ($US50/mth).
I prefer Japan for lifestyle reasons. There are wide disparities in costs in Japan. You can pay $US2000/mth for an apartment in Tokyo, though I`ve heard of people buying houses for $US10,000 in the country, or living rent free in more rural communities. Food is moderately-priced to expensive in the cities, but power, telephony and eating out are the greatest expenses. Clothes and furnishing your home are cheaper than other countries. Japan is the best place on earth for a holiday house. Cheap - safe - legal - though for non Japanese speakers its more difficult.

Fixing your laptop computer

2005-08-25T00:31:00.000-07:00

Confronted an all to common problem recently - the failure of a hard disk drive (HDD). Its not the first time - in fact its the 2nd time I got duped. The first time I got a friend to fix the computer, then battled through a number of compatibility problems causing my computer to freeze for years - rather randomly too. On this occasion - probably no problem - just I paid too much and got dubious service. I will take note of the following advice from a friend:

Buy components: Buy the components yourself over the internet or from a computer store. In Japan, go to http://www.primepc.jp to check out the prices.
Fix the laptop yourself: Apart from getting ripped off by tradesmen who find more faults than are there, I am averse to sharing the contents of my HDD with anyone. Why should I share my password with my Pakistani repairman. Next I`ll find I`m financing the Al Queda network. That smile is probably an act.

Fixing your laptop
It will take you up to 6hours and $1100 to fix or upgrade your laptop.

Step 1: Getting started
The 20-year reign of sealed, proprietary laptops is nearly over. Today's mobile PCs are well on their way to becoming almost as upgradable as desktop PCs. You can often swap out everything from the memory to the CPU and, in some cases, even the graphics card--pretty much everything under the keyboard, other than the motherboard. Not all laptop lines are equally upgrade-friendly, though, and most vendors still resist articles encouraging readers to grab their screwdrivers and muck around inside their laptops. (We're not sure whether they're worried about accidental hardware damage or lost service revenue.) In general, you'll have an easier time working on a second-tier brand, or a whitebook, because the internal components in these models are usually easier to reach and replace.
To illustrate the process, we picked an example of a good whitebook model: the Intel Centrino-based Asus M6000N with a 1.4GHz Pentium M processor, 256MB of RAM, and a 5,400rpm 20GB hard drive. (Asus ships bare-bones laptops to many resellers, so you just may have one.) We updated these components to a 2.0GHz Dothan Pentium M processor, 512MB of RAM, and a 60GB hard drive. The cost of these three upgrades was $1,139, total. You could probably buy a brand-new laptop for about that price, but it wouldn't be as well configured. What's more, if you don't feel like making such a major investment in an aging laptop, you can choose one or two of the three components to keep your clunker running a little while longer. We'll show you how to upgrade each one, starting with the hard drive. One word of caution: Before you try any of this at home, take heed of the industry-standard warning. Once you upgrade your CPU or hard drive, you can kiss your warranty good-bye. But if you're ready for an upgrade, your warranty's probably long gone anyway.

Step 2: What you'll needBefore you even get started with this project, we recommend that you have the following on hand:

A small set of jeweler's screwdrivers
Needle-nose pliers
Containers to hold screws
A grounding strap

Helpful upgrade hints

Place all screws in containers away from your work area. These are small, difficult-to-replace screws, and if you lose one in the carpet, you're toast.
Do not remove a screw or unplug a cable unless it's essential to your upgrade. Laptops are considerably more difficult than desktops to reassemble, so the less you disconnect, the better.
Laptops often use similar screws of different lengths. To be safe and avoid confusion later in the upgrade process, keep screw groups in a bundle and label them, such as "four screws from under battery" or "four heat-sink screws."
Upgrade components one at a time, booting the system after each addition. This way, if there's a problem, you immediately know where to look.

Laptop Processor: A laptop is only as fast as its processor. If your system is getting long in the tooth, the surefire way to give it a little extra oomph is by upgrading its CPU. As long as the new processor is at least a few hundred megahertz faster than the one it is replacing, you should notice an increase in performance.

Laptop memory: Sometimes an increase in memory is just what your laptop needs for that added performance boost, especially if it has less than 512MB of system memory. A total of 512MB of installed RAM should more than meet the demands of Windows XP and today's mainstream applications.

Step 3: Upgrade your hard drive
You can upgrade a laptop hard drive in one of two ways: Clone your old drive to the new one using 2.5- to 3.5-inch drive adapters connected to your desktop PC's IDE ports or take the easy way out and buy an upgrade kit, which has everything you need to switch. We chose the latter option and picked up the $369 60GB Xtreme Upgrade X7200-UP-60 from Apricorn, which includes a 7,200rpm 60GB hard drive.

Prep your laptop for surgery: Before you start, make sure your laptop is configured to boot from the optical drive before the hard drive. Your manual should tell you where to find this option in your system BIOS. Also, be certain the Apricorn EZ Gig II data-transfer software CD is in your laptop's optical drive.

Move your data: Run power to the Apricorn drive with the included AC adapter and, with the laptop off, plug the drive into your laptop with the bundled USB cable. Power up the laptop; it should boot to Apricorn's drive and load its Clone EZ utility. Follow the instructions to clone your current hard drive to the external drive.
Screw your new drive into the old drive's carrier, position the drive in the bay, and secure its pins to the drive's connector.

Swap out the old drive: Step 11 of the kit's instructions describes how to open the enclosure and remove the newly populated hard drive. Once it's out, locate the hard drive bay in the laptop's belly (on the M6000N, with the front facing you, it's on the right). Take out the screws securing the cover panel. To remove the M6000N's drive, slide it away from its pins and gently lift it from its compartment. Remove the four screws on the sides of the drive's carrier, then swap the new drive into the carrier. Position the carrier in the drive bay and gently push the drive toward its connector until its pins are completely secured. Replace the bay cover, and you're back in business.

Tip: Don't pitch that old drive. You can put it into the new drive's old enclosure and use it as an external drive for additional storage or backup.

Step 4: Boost your memory
Our next task is to add memory. Most laptops have two slots for SODIMM memory modules. Our M6000N's primary internal slot came filled with a 333MHz 256MB DDR module, and its external slot was empty. Intel's Centrino chipset (855PM) will run memory up to only 333MHz, so even if you use faster, 400MHz modules, the M6000N will run them at the slower speed. Powerful desktop-replacement laptops are more likely to support 400MHz memory. We chose a stick of Kingston Technology's 400MHz 512MB ValueRAM for $124. The 400MHz speed is overkill, but it won't hurt anything, and it's available at a great price.
Easy does it: Accessing the M6000N's external memory slot is a cinch. Pop off the memory-bay cover--located in the middle bottom of the laptop--pull apart the side clips holding in the current module, and gently pull the module loose and remove it. Insert the new stick at an angle, making sure the notch on the SODIMM's edge connector matches with the key in the memory socket. When the edge connector is fully inserted, press the module down until it snaps into place.

To replace the RAM module, release the clips holding it in place and carefully pull it out. Insert the new one at an angle and snap it into place.

Leave the internal slot alone: Accessing the internal slot is easy on the M6000N but can be considerably harder with many laptops. In some cases, it's under the touch pad, and you need to disassemble most of the laptop to reach it. It's an extreme operation that even we get nervous about. The 855PM chipset doesn't support dual-channel memory architecture, so you wouldn't be losing any speed if you weren't able to access the second slot. But you would give up the opportunity to upgrade to the full 2GB of RAM; the best you could do would be 1.256GB, which isn't too shabby for a laptop.

Step 5: A new CPU
Our final upgrade is the processor. Remove the two recessed screws--roughly in the middle of the back. (They're marked with a K on the M6000N.) These secure the keyboard, and once they're out, you'll be able to lift it and access the motherboard. You may need a pair of needle-nose pliers to remove the screws completely.

Get to the mobo: Turn the laptop right side up again, open the cover, and slide a small, flathead screwdriver under the seam on each side of the plastic frame surrounding the keyboard. Carefully slip your fingertips under the side of the keyboard and gently run your hand along the top until it comes free. Be careful not to disconnect the keyboard data cable from the motherboard. Fold the keyboard over, facedown on the touch pad, then detach the plastic control panel above the keyboard by removing two screws.

Tip: Before you touch anything inside, ground yourself by touching a piece of metal or wearing a grounding strap on your wrist.

Locate the processor: You can now see the copper fan and the heat-sink assemblies. The corners of the heat sink are numbered 1 through 4. Remove (and later replace) the screws in this numbered order. This helps keep even pressure across the chip's surface to avoid damage. You should now be able to wiggle the heat-sink assembly out of position and remove it. If you can't, carefully pry it up using a flathead screwdriver.

Pop in your new CPU: You now have a clear view of the internal memory slot, the chipset, and the processor. The processor is the one in a socket. With a flathead screwdriver, turn the socket's lock 180 degrees counterclockwise (toward the "unlock" symbol) to unlock the chip. Remove the old CPU and insert your new one, being careful to keep the notched corner of the CPU's underside with its missing pin aligned with the corresponding corner of the socket. Another way to know you're doing it right is to match the triangle on the socket with the triangle on the CPU. The CPU should rest flat in the socket, allowing you to turn the socket's lock screw clockwise to lock the chip in place. Carefully lift the keyboard up and fold it over. Be sure not to disconnect its cable from the motherboard. When removing the processor, make sure you take out the processor's heat-sink screws in the order they're numbered.
Pull out the old processor (it's the one in a socket) and drop in the new one, being certain the pins on the processor match up with the holes in the socket. Note: Most Pentium M-based laptops are Dothan compatible but may require a BIOS upgrade from your motherboard's maker to facilitate regular operation. In some cases, an OEM or a reseller provides such support.

Close everything up: Reverse your steps to reassemble the CPU subsystem, taking care to keep the fan's power cable under the CPU's heat pipe. Fire up your "new" laptop and enjoy your newfound power and speed.

5. Video upgrades - optional

Laptop vendors are slowly redesigning their systems to accommodate video-related upgrades, and the best is yet to come. Models from Alienware, Dell, and other vendors already offer graphics chips mounted on removable cards. An ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 chip can be upgraded to the 9700 or even to its Nvidia counterpart when the cards become available. The problem is, unlike today's standardized AGP or PCI Express (PCIe) graphics adapters, mobile graphics cards tend to be proprietary to the specific laptop. Expect this to change as soon as Intel and others start releasing mobile chipsets supporting PCIe. Nvidia in particular has been vocal about its new Mobile PCI Express Module (MXM) standard. The standard is based on x16 PCIe architecture and offers guidelines for three standard card types, each meant for a different laptop form factor. MXM cards are expected to be far easier to upgrade than today's proprietary parts. Though initial models may work only within a vendor's laptop family, future designs are slated to yield universally compatible cards, perhaps even external modules that plug in like a PC Card or a removable optical drive.

Source: http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-10163_7-5506183-1.html?tag=txt