 Thursday, December 26, 2002
FACT: Millions of Bloggers Online
"JD Lasica notes 'there are now more than 970,000 registered users of Pyra's Blogger software, up from 343,000 a year ago. So perhaps it's fair to say there are as many as a million bloggers today." This tracks with the sublte growth of Irish blogs during the past year. They've more than doubled, with fewer than 10 percent dying of link rot. I've many of the Irish URLs noted as 'Irish Sources' on my daily blog page.' " [Underway in Ireland]
Kate needs some light, Friday reading....
"15 months after the first waves, Blogging seems to prove so popular among young Iranian boys and girls that now the number of Persian (or Farsi) weblogs has jumped to more than 9,000. Almost half of them are using Blogger.com's free service and other half are using a similar but more Persian-friendly online application, created by Iranian programmers, called Persianblog.com. Tomorrow, they are gathering in a big conference hall in Tehran to meet other colleagues and bloggers and to share what they've experienced during their lovely days of a rare thing in Iranian history: absolute freedom of expression." [MetaFilter]
Max Out Your CLIÉ Handheld: Amazing ways to alter the look and feel of your NR/NX
"The Palm platform has never been particularly tweaker-friendly. Sure, with the right Hacks you could play a few anemic Star Trek sounds or display a "startup screen," but that was about it. Enter Sony's high-end CLIÉ handheld series, most notably the NR and NX models. With their HiRes+ screens and enhanced audio hardware, these are tweakers' delights. I've modified my CLIÉ NR70V handheld in ways I wouldn't have thought possible a scant six months ago-and I'm just as happy as a technogeek can be....
Of course, skins are the real fun of virtual Graffiti. You need an installer like SkinMgr (www.skinmgr.com), and then you need the skins themselves, which can turn your Graffiti area into anything from a Spider-Man poster to a tranquil sunset to a Newton Messagepad doppelganger.
You'll be amazed by the quality and diversity of what's out there. Start your search at Sonipa (www.sonipa.net). And if you're a fan of the TapPad Graffiti enhancement (www.tappad.com), get the TapPad skin, which gives you all the capabilities without the need for the actual overlay.
Customization doesn't end with the Graffiti area-you can also tweak the toolbar beneath it. My preferred option is NR Buttons (www.standalone.com), a $9 utility that adds up to four application buttons to the toolbar. This is great for quickly accessing the core apps (or any other favorites) when the hard buttons are hidden.
Next, there's the latest version of Palm Reader (www.palmdigitalmedia.com), a robust viewer for Doc files and Palm Digital Media e-books. It now supports HiRes+, meaning you can collapse Graffiti to see almost 50 percent more text. Better still, you can rotate the image 90 degrees for 'widescreen' reading, which creates a more natural-looking book page. I've been reading Jonathan Franzen's 'The Corrections' this way and loving it.
Several CLIÉ handheld models have enhanced audio capabilities. Sony's own Musiclub (www.musicclub.com) offers a vast collection of artist information, discographies, and music samples. (ATRAC3 files require MagicGate Memory Stick media while MP3 files require regular Memory Stick media, each sold separately.) If you'd like to hear 'Brown-Eyed Girl' or the theme from 'Mission Impossible' when an alarm sounds, download the ClieSounds collections (www.palmgsm.net). In addition to TV show and movie themes, the developer offers Depeche Mode and Pink Floyd collections (what, no Abba?)." [Clie e-newsletter]
I have the opportunity to upgrade to the NX-60, but I haven't taken it because there isn't a keyboard for it yet. Even the Pocketop doesn't work with it. I'm dying to try some of these other fun hacks, though!
Gadget Alert: Ceiva Digital Photo Frames
"Interesting product. Ceiva is a Southern California-based company that offers a digital picture frame service. Costs $119.99 at Amazon after mail-in rebate. Here's a snip from the Amazon.com editorial review:
 Ceiva put the future in an unassuming black picture frame with this amazingly simple yet innovative product. This Internet-enabled frame makes it so easy to receive and display digital photos that even the most tech-shy relatives will love it. The traditional frame houses an LCD screen that displays up to 20 pictures in a single-view or slide-show format. Once a day, the frame dials in to Ceiva's Web site and downloads any new photos that have been sent to you (or that you've uploaded). What's truly amazing is that it works flawlessly--it's a cutting-edge technology idea that's well executed." [Boing Boing Blog]
I just wanted to chime in and say what a wonderful product I think the Ceiva digital frame is, and ditto to the above review. I bought one for my Grandma last year because she's in a nursing home now and this would be an easy way for my parents, my brother, my cousin, and me to let her see new pictures (especially after my niece Anna Banana was born in 2000).
I set up the picture frame at home, took it to the nursing home, plugged in the AC adapter, plugged in the phone jack, pressed a button, and that was it. The frame dials into the Ceiva server each night to get any new pictures, and everything is managed through their web site. It's all very easy, especially on my Grandmother's end since she doesn't know anything about technology. The frame just runs by itself, as advertised.
It's gotten knocked around quite a bit in her room At one point I had to exchange it via postal mail for a new one because the phone jack stopped working, and the folks at Ceiva were great about the return. These frames are great for families that live far apart from each other, especially when you realize you can use a digital camera and skip printing each one out.
My only caveat is that the colors do indeed wash out a bit. My advice is to saturate the colors and bump up the contrast more than you normally would. It really helps. If Ceiva could just bring down the price and the monthly fee, I think this niche could really take off because they have truly made this a "no-brainer" product.
For Gadget Addicts: Splints for 'Blackberry Thumb'
"There are braces for bad knees, slings for strained wrists, and now a remedy for sufferers of gadget addiction: splints for 'Blackberry thumb.'
That's the ailment that afflicts people who spend too much time typing with their thumbs on the tiny keyboards of Blackberry wireless devices. When you add those to the masses using the new 'thumbboards' that hook onto hand-held organizers, it's clear that the opposable digit is under pressure. Some users of what addicts have dubbed 'Crackberry' log more than 500 e-mails a day.
Now a cottage industry is springing up to coddle their aching digits. The Futuro Thumb Stabilizer, launched this summer, is a flesh-colored contraption that holds the hand in a thumbs-up position. Other splints use high-powered magnets meant to draw extra blood flow to the thumb and encourage healing. Earlier this year, IMAK added thumb support to its Smart Glove for carpal tunnel syndrome (Think Michael Jackson, circa 1983). The company is planning a campaign in Wired and other technology magazines next month to reach the sore-thumbed.
'Techno-geeks are a really good market for us,' says Daniella Pentelute, marketing director of IMAK....
...Style is also a consideration. The Futuro has a high geek factor, with lots of confusing straps. Smart Glove is black and sleeker looking. IMAK is considering putting out gloves in fashion colors, so users can match them with their outfit." [The Daily Southtown, although, I can't find the article online yet]
And, of course, I typed all of this with my left ring finger wrapped in gauze. Of course, that's not because of 'Blackberry thumb' since I don't own a Blackberry.
Just think of the increase in health insurance costs the thumb generation is going to see....
Pepys' Diary as Blog
"Ben sez: 'Phil Gyford's taken the Project Gutenberg edition of Samuel Pepy's diary, and converted it into a blog - new entries every day from Jan 1st. It comes complete with space for annotations, and trackbacks, and has an RSS Feed with the complete entry inside.' " [Boing Boing Blog]
I hope everyone has had a good couple of days, holidays or no. Happenings at our house were great, and we all ended up going to bed early last night after so much excitement. The only mishap is that I was cutting up some potatoes and I missed a potato. Got the tip of my left ring finger instead, so it's swathed in gauze, which is a serious impediment to my normal typing speed. I'm not complaining, though, since this was the worst thing that happened. However, you'll probably see postings to my site with little to no commentary as a result (at least until the tip decides to rejoin the rest of my finger). Consider it a test to see how well you know me - WWJS (What Would Jenny Say?).
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