tech ronin

I am Writing Tech Ronin posts at my new WordPress blog

Even though, I'm still a Tech Ronin and writing about it, I've migrated over to a new domain: janet.tokerud.com. The blog name is now Independent Knowledge Professional. That sounds a little more formal and maybe it is. But, it's still about the fact that a great many of us are knowledge professionals and it may behoove us all to think of ourselves as independent.

As you know if you've read much of tech ronin, the traditional idea of a permanent job has become obsolete. You may have a so-called permanent job, but most of us don't. As usual, I'm emphasizing how your use of technology can help you along your way as a tech ronin or independent knowledge professional.

Most of us do knowledge work these days. The personal computer and now smartphones and tablets are making it easy to take your working environment wherever you go whether that's the livingroom couch, a local coffee house or a client's home or office. This is a very good thing if you like being able to compete in your favorite niche.

I've used Macintosh computers for many years and don't own a PC, so you'll find my expertise slants towards the Macintosh Way. Now a days, that includes iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. I'm currently writing about the best apps for knowledge functions. I've covered information capture and brainstorming so far. Next up is gathering information and ideas.

Ordered the iPad 32 + 3G -- Here's Why

I just ordered the 32gb + 3G. I wanted to get wi-fi only and save $129 but remembered all the times I've been frustrated being stuck without an internet connection on my laptop or iPod touch. I do have an iPhone 3GS and plan on keeping it but I figured it will likely be a certain amount of hassle to substitute iPhone 3G access for access on the iPad when that's what I want to use.

Was on the fence due to the expense but finally went for it since none of us really know what kinds of use cases will materialize that may benefit from 3G plus the AGPS and my sunk cost is only $129 since I don't get stuck with a cellular contract.

I'm confident that the 250 mb, $15/month service will be adequate for my needs since I do have access to wi-fi most of the time. Except perhaps when I'm traveling which is typically only 2-3 times a year.

Cellular access could wind up being the crucial ingredient in making the iPad a laptop replacement. I can imagine using a remote control program of some sort to run things on my Mac at home from my iPad to look things up or file transfer to Drop Box or Mobile Me while away from a full-powered computer.

Got the Apple case for the 3-position capability which I bet is needed for things like typing. Don't care about it as a photo viewer though but maybe other notifications now and down the road. And hoping for widget support in OS 4.

Did not get Applecare. Willing to take my chances and can reconsider once I have it in hand.

I'm hoping to take the iPad with me on my morning exercise walk with destination at Caffe Acri. If I must, I'll take my Macbook Air which I still love and appreciate immensely.

I expect that most days I'll get by fine without my Macbook Air as the five most likely things I'll be doing while out for coffee is surf the web, read, check and reply to email, plan the day's tasks and write my morning journal entry -- probably in an iPad version of Momento.

Kindle vs iPad for Book Reading. When both devices are available, I expect to read fiction on the Kindle and non-fiction with lots of illustrations on the iPad. If I didn't have a Kindle, I doubt I would buy one at current prices, but I am glad to have it for the smaller form-factor and lighter weight for reading fiction in bed especially. I do appreciate the e-ink when lighting conditions aren't a problem. However, now that the Kindle will have competition for which device I carry, it is unlikely it will leave the house unless I'm in the middle of a page-turner and have time to do that kind of reading.

I sure hope I like typing on the iPad. I am big into writing and want this tool to be a moleskine replacement. I'm not optimistic about handwriting on iPad due to what I recently read on JK On the Run about handwriting recognition and the iPad. I hold out a little hope, though, that individual iPad apps like Evernote or NoteTaker will add more handwriting capability.

Then there's the on screen keypad. Not so sure how well I will like it but it's got to be better than typing on my iPhone (fingers crossed). It competes with the great typing experience on my Macbook Air. Also, might get a super light, small Bluetooth keyboard - like one that rolls up if available. I want the iPad to be a tool for thought (remember the great Howard Rheingold book Tools for Thought? Read it online free at the link - one of my all time favorite books).

2nd Gen MacBook Air SSD, the new laptop

 

I'm sitting on my couch surfing the web with my MacBook Air. I've been thoroughly delighted with this machine since day 1. It is so light and comfy and, yes, it is a gorgeous piece of tech.

Just a reminder, I do have an iMac 24 sitting in my home office. And, I use it now and then. But when I do, I find being chained to a desk, constraining and uncomfortable after a while. I would much rather sit or lie or lounge in one way or another on my couch, while I work or use my computer recreationally.

Weight matters.  I don't know why but 3 lbs is extraordinarily more manageable to move around and carry than 5.5 lbs. I did own an iBook at one time and its 4+ lbs did not have the same effect. The size is also waaaay smaller (due to the thinness) than the Macbook Pro.

What about the lack of DVD-drive? I've been wanting Apple to dump the DVD drive in their lapltops to lose weight for years now. I don't watch DVDs on my laptop. I use Handbrake to rip them to my hard drive for Apple TV and other use. I can use Remote CD software from another computer with CD - works fine. Most software is downloadable. If I have a Net connection, I can email a file I want to backup to my gmail account where I have an extra 5gb of space if I need it.

What about the lack of ports? It's not bothering me at all. If you hate the trackpad and only use a mouse, 1 USB port would be limiting. I don't have a 3G USB stick, but if and when I do, I would use it in the one slot I have until such time that I needed the slot temporarily for something else. The point is that Apple has taken away what is not David (not essential) to deliver this full screen, keyboard, high speed, gorgeous screen in as trim a package as possible. It truly is a feat of engineering.

Constant Companion. There's never a reason to leave the Air home, or hardly ever. It is too easy to take, too useful and enjoyable to resist taking. Unlike my MacBook Pro, it competes well with my iPhone for comfortable non-work computer use. You don't have to struggle with the decision of whether to take your notebook when you leave the house. Before, the answer was mostly no, now the answer is always yes - no struggle, just yes.

Frequent Travelers and rich people aren't the only ones who deserve to have a Macbook Air. I know the tech elite is all agog for netbooks, but I think they took their eye off the ball on this one. The Air uses a core 2 duo processor not an atom. It has a 13" LED screen that is probably the best on any Mac. It has a 120 gb drive.

But it is so expensive. There's some truth in that but I bought a Macbook Pro for the same price or more than this SSD Macbook Air. And the Air has replaced it. If you regard an Air as a travel-only device, it is an expensive luxury. As your main Mac, it is a different story. Maybe cut corners and get a refurb unit. If you are a casual computer user, I'm sure you can survive without the SSD and pay $1799 or less for the AIr. That's not much more than the highend Macbook.

As we move from Notebook to more mobile devices, the Macbook Air earns the right to be used a lot. After you use an iPhone for a while, getting out a 5.5 lb Macbook Pro and putting it on your lap while you watch TV doesn't seem worth the brick on your lap. Too much. Rather use the slower iPhone. Less hassle. That's why the Macbook Air exists. [My first post on the Air]

2nd Gen MacBook Air SSD, 10 days in

I couldn't be happier with my new MacBook Air. It is unimaginably small and light. I saw it, I picked it up at the store many times. I knew intellectually it was light and thin but that didn't really sink in until I had it on my lap for the first time. Now, this is a laptop!

I got the SSD model for $2400 on Amazon. That was approximately $700 extra to get the SSD instead of 4200 rpm 1.8 inch hard drive model. I can't really tell you how much the SSD is helping but I can say that I get all the speed I want with this model. I don't and haven't thought, maybe I should use my 2 year-old MacBook Pro or 2.8 ghz iMac because I need more speed.

I bought the USB to ethernet adapter which is still awaiting a reason to be. I figured I will need it occasionally where wi-fi isn't available. I didn't buy the external DVD drive. I have an iMac with a good drive and the remote feature works perfectly. Downloads will suit the vast majority of my needs.

The Gen 2 MacBook Air SSD is what I was hoping for and more. I'm thinking this is my 90% time computer. The iMac is going to be for when I need lots of screen real estate and to keep my connection to the many hard drives I've got hooked up there. My MacBook Pro is an extra machine and is serving well while I get the data I want over the Air which I chose to build from scratch rather than transfer apps and data from my MBP.

I do a morning walk of about 1-1/2 miles to my local coffee place and I've always wanted to be able to carry a notebook. I tried taking my Powerbook 15 a shorter distance a few years ago and my back gave out after about a week. Finally, I'm testing the dream again. I've brought the Air with me every day for 10 days with nary a twinge. I got a light neoprene case (incase) for protection and carry it in a super light knapsack. These together only weigh a pound. I'm doing just fine with my 4 lb pack.

The MacBook Air is the Ergonomic King for sure. You can have it on your lap, stomach, knee - whereever. Moving it as you shift positions. All those easy options means that I don't get stiff or sore because I'm mobile while working. I'm not used to this level of comfort in my heavy-computer use.

Even in this bad, bad economy, the Air makes sense. For some people, the netbook might work. For me and I think many others, the access to a full-size keyboard, full-strength computing and 13 inch screen in a tiny 3 lb package is all the computer they need. I can't get what I want done with a Netbook. And, I don't want to try. My iPhone will handle the little stuff.

If you are an active knowledge-worker, you owe it to yourself to try one of these out next time you even think you might want a new computer. My days of lugging around a heavy notebook are over. My back is going to love me!

Grading Apple's New Releases 2 Weeks in

On July 11, Apple launched 4 major initiatives: iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 software, the App Store and MobileMe. There's no way Apple planned that all 4 would launch on the same day. I'm sure Apple hoped to release some of these things in prior weeks but ran into unforeseen problems that delayed them.

Finally, the 22-country iPhone 3G release date came. That was a hard deadline and it required the other pieces. So damn the torpedoes! As might have been anticipated, everything seemed to go awry to one degree or another

iPhone 3G Launch. People encountered enormous and interminable lines at Apple stores trying to buy the iPhone 3G and many went away without a phone. Previous iPhone owners endured hours when they couldn't use their old phone or their new one. Nevertheless, a million iPhone 3Gs were sold over the first weekend. Shortages continued for days. C-

iPhone 3G. What about the phone itself? The price cut worked in driving sales even if AT&T will recoup the discount in monthly fees down the line. People who got good 3G in their area were pleased with the speed bump. People who didn't get good reception like me were not pleased about paying an extra $15/month with little recompense. Most people liked the GPS, but original iPhone owners noted that they also liked the new artificial GPS pretty well. Battery life doesn't go very far when you use 3G, GPS and all the new apps including games. The phone looks a little better, sounds better and has better reception. B

MobileMe didn't work or wasn't accessible. The so-called "Push" people expected didn't push both ways in a timely manner. Since then all sorts of syncing problems have ensued and in some cases data has been lost. The current status is that MobileMe is a MobileMess. D

iPhone 2.0 software. Mixed bag all the way. The apps are all over the map but in general are great fun and offer quite a lot of utility to boot. The downside is that (1) you'll use up your batteries in a hurry if you are a big gamer and (2) iPhone 2.0 OS is slower, sometimes 3x slower. B-

The App Store. The App store is a wonder. The main thing is you can buy apps in a button touch on your iPhone. They install automatically. This is a break through for software purchasing and installation. Awesome! Updating is just as good when it works right from your phone, but there have been reports that sometimes the only way to upgrade is to do it in iTunes on your computer. The applications are a huge addition to the iPhone. A-

MacBook + iPod touch for $995 = Awesome

Whoa! Any non-starving student in the market for a computer, would be a fool to pass up this deal. There could be a lot of new students all of a sudden. ;-)

Apple is making a bold competitive move just as the PC is at its weakest. To put it another way, Steve is going for the throat.

This bargain offer is a way for Apple to dabble in low cost computers without hurting the status of their brand. I'm checking out what it takes to qualify as a student ASAP.

The low-end MacBook has only one gig of RAM which is fine for normal casual computer use. However, if you are a heavy user especially of graphics, video or web browser with lots of apps running and tabs open, 1 gig isn't enough.

Other World Computing can fix you up with 4 gigs (a pair of 2 gb modules) for $95. You'll need to handle installation yourself or pay about $25 to your local third party Mac shop to have them install it for you.

Expect Apple to sell a boatload of MacBooks and help their installed base of iPod touches to boot.

Upgraded MacBook Pro and iMac 24 to 4 gb RAM

In the last couple of weeks I upgraded my MacBook Pro and iMac from 2 to 4 gigs of RAM. It cost me about $100 at Other World Computing for the 2- 2 gig sticks of RAM, so that was about $200. I checked just now and you can get out the door with UPS ground shipping for under $98 for 4 gigs of RAM for the MBP or iMac Core 2 duo machines.

I tried on my own to install the RAM and after encountering the slightest bit of difficulty in each case (a screw was too tight for me and I worried about stripping it), decided to just ask my local Marin Mac Shop to install the RAM. Their charge? $27/machine. Any questions?

If you operate towards the power user end of the spectrum and have relatively powerful hardware to match, RAM is so cheap right now that you would be foolish not to upgrade up to 4 gigs of RAM if you can. That gives you headroom for things like 25 tabs open at once in Safari plus maybe 10-20 open applications. Works for me!

Now I feel like I'm not handicapping my fast Macs. It's crazy to spend around $2500 for the Mac and then cripple it even a little with not enough memory.

I have to admit that both these machines were fast to begin with and I really didn't have any complaints at all about my new 2.8 ghz iMac. But, who knows what it is capable of if it is limited by RAM a lot of the time?

Recession is Apple Talent-grab Opportunity

You know that $18 billion in cash Apple has lying around gathering dust? What say Apple starts staffing up for the coming era of iPhone / iPod touch platform domination? You can buy both companies and talent on the cheap in a recession. Steve is Scotch as I recall.

Combine a crappy economy, an awesome new iPhone SDK, a frictionless wireless App store and a $100 million iFund and what do you get? The best and brightest global entrepreneurial software talent are going to swarm this. Look what jailbreaking wrought and multiply by 10 for a start.

Update Mar 9: Upon further reflection, it strikes me that Apple may well scoop up the a few of the most promising iPhone SDK developer companies themselves. I'm convinced Apple needs to staff up.

I noticed that last year their R&D spending was less than 4% which is pretty low for such an innovative company as Apple. But then maybe some of their recent spending hasn't been expensed yet due to the 2-year window within which they can recognize expenses for the iPhone.

Attentive Mac fans have noticed the fairly high number of missed deadlines. Most recently Leopard was late and a bit buggy when finally released and now the SDK is just in Beta rather than done by February. Apple needs talent - the best available. I almost think they've been too busy building stuff to go out and find some more good people. But that only works so long.

I liked seeing Steve including two of his most able executives in important parts of the Roadmap presentation. They were looking good, actually. Steve casts a long shadow, but he needs plenty of help at the size Apple has grown to be.

Upgrading my MacBook Pro with Leopard Erase & Install

I am upgrading my main axe, my MacBook Pro, to Leopard right now. I tried upgrading a couple months ago but got stopped because the DVD drive on my MBP is fussy and wouldn't read the Leopard Install disk. That slowed me down long enough to realize I had better wait a while before I upgrade my primary computer.

I first upgraded my backup notebook my MacBook on October 27. Then on December 2, when I bought my 24" iMac, I used the included Leopard disk to upgrade it.

Things have worked fairly well on those machines and I really enjoy Leopard but I was still having some conflicts running IMAP email with some machines on Leopard and some on Tiger. I had planned to upgrade my MBP at Christmas but didn't do it. Still kind of hesitant.

Yesterday, New Years, I was thinking, let's do it. And bought online the Take Control of Upgrading to Leopard ebook. I really recommend this to anyone who hasn't upgraded to Leopard but wants to. I also bought Take Control of Customizing Leopard. The 2 ebooks together were $15. Seemed a small price to pay if it saves me some hassle or problems in the installation.

After going through the Upgrading ebook, I decided to use Erase and Install. That meant I needed 2 full bootable clones of my MBP before I could upgrade. I ran SuperDuper twice and created two clones on two hard drives. That felt good.

Today and followed the upgraders guide further and deactivated startup items, made a smartupdate to update one of my clones and was set to go. I also did a verify on my MBP drive which came up good in Tiger.

I then put the Leopard DVD in my iMac and shutdown my MBP. Then I connected the MBP to my iMac via a firewire cable and shutdown the MBP. Then I powered up the MBP with the T key held down to put it into firewire diskmode. Then back to my iMac and ran the Leopard installer. The MBP drive showed up.

I then went into the Disk Utilities available from the startup disk and verified the MBP drive. It almost finished but then bombed out. I then tried again and after a 2nd time the repairs all took and I had a clean bill of health from Leopard's Disk Utilities. That was also a reassuring thing. Not sure this was necessary at all since I planned to do an Erase and Install, but better safe than sorry I thought.

I went ahead then and used the Options button to select Erase & Install and continued and selected Customize and deleted extra translations (saving 1.9 gigs) but kept foreign fonts since Joes said the extra characters those fonts have might come in handy. I also chose to install the X-11 tools because those sometimes come in handy when you try to do command line kinds of things.

I'm about 15 minutes into the upgrade and it's telling me I have 26 minutes to go.

I won't be done then because I will have to do a Leopard-assisted transfer from my most recent clone of the MBP to get my applications, settings and data back on my fresh install of Leopard. I like the Erase and Install because you get a from scratch install and still don't have to install all our applications from scratch or even copy your data. I'm expecting that it will take 2-4 hours to transfer everything.

Luckily, my little Blackbook is available because both my iMac and MBP are tied up doing all this stuff. I'll let you know any further developments.

Update 7:22 pm. All done with the installation. Had to unplug my MBP in order to get it out of firewire drive mode. Also shut down my iMac to get it out of the mode of welcoming me to Leopard after it restarted itself when my Leopard install was done. But, all was well when I plugged in my external drive with the MBP clone on it and restarted my MBP. As soon as the MBP started up, I got the festive Leopard welcome and was offerred the option to transfer settings and such from another computer. I chose other volume and right now the transfer is going and says 1 hour and 36 minutes remaining.

Update 11:52 pm. The transfer went perfectly as far as I can tell and finished in about 2 hours. After that, I still needed to use the OS X updater to fetch 10.5.1 plus assorted updates since then. That took about 30 minutes.

After that I focused on getting FileMaker Pro 9 advanced working. I deactivated right before the upgrade to Leopard. After the install and updates, starting FileMaker threw an error. I expected that because when I upgraded to Leopard on my iMac, the same thing happened. That time I called FileMaker tech support and they helped me fix it. This time I had already found an post on the net by Googling that gave me some special instructions that allowed the Activation to occur on Leopard. Once that worked, I was in business.

Loving Leopard. Loving it on my machine I work on 50% of the time. I've been working a lot on the iMac since I got it just cause it is so fast and cool with Leopard. Now that my MacBook Pro has a new lease on life with Leopard, I may be using it more. We'll see. That gigantic 24" screen is pretty tempting. I just often like to work on the couch.

Watching Video Podcasts on iMac 24

I just watched my first episode of Girls Gone Geek. About 5 minutes of quite high quality video. I'm impressed. I'll be watching more episodes. Yes, it is partly because it is done by women. If things were not so lopsided in the geek world, I wouldn't need to seek these shows out. But there it is.

I've found with my iMac 24, that I spend a fair amount of time sitting back about 4 feet and either reading and surfing with big type on the screen or watching video podcasts. Maybe the remote you get with it is actually useful to people not in college dorm rooms.

Now that I have the iMac's 500 gig hard drive to boot from, I'm getting into more video podcasts. I could have done this before using an external drive mind you, but something about this 24" screen plus the 500 gig drive has pushed me over the edge on video podcasts.

I bought an AppleTV back in January when they were first announced but cancelled my order once I found out that it wouldn't really work with my Standard Def 50" TV. In October, I managed to pawn off my humongous SDTV to my sister and acquired a 40" HDTV right-sized for my smaller new Tiburon place. Now I could benefit from watching video podcasts on my TV via an AppleTV. Except it seems obvious that Apple will release AppleTV 2.0 in by spring. I'm waiting for that. In the meantime, this 24" iMac is working for me just fine.