I had a chance to play around with the Galaxy Note Edge and here are some of my thoughts.
All of the reviews I've seen so far on the Galaxy Note Edge seem to agree that the extra convenience afforded by that curved edge is more or less nullified since it makes the phone more awkward and difficult to hold - especially for lefties and ambidextrous users.
Which brings me once again to my biggest gripe with Android: those touch-activated Menu and Back keys straddling the Home button. For me at least, these virtual buttons make Android phones (especially the bigger ones) more difficult to operate with one hand. Not only that but a lot of times when I hand my phone to somebody to show them something, the first thing they do is accidentally tap one of these keys, either popping up a menu or kicking us out of the app we were using.
The all-physical buttons on the Galaxy S5 Active gave me hope that of all the Android OEMs, Samsung was the one to finally come to its senses, but now it seems they've taken this flawed touch-key philosophy and applied it to the entire right-hand side of a phone as well. And if that's not bad enough, they have the audacity to charge a premium for the inconvenience.
I was almost ecstatic to see Samsung adopt the flat edge design for the Note 4 (and I still think Apple was insane for abandoning it on the iPhone 6 and 6+). A device on which nearly all of its face is touch-activated needs to have a solid way to grip and hold it without inadvertently activating something, and to me, the Galaxy Note Edge is a step back in that regard. I just wish smartphone manufacturers would stop obsessing about ways to reduce thickness and focus more on making phones more comfortable, ergonomic and durable.
2014/12/22
2014/10/03
The Downside Of Using Social Media For Troubleshooting
For the past couple of months, one of our cars - a 1999 Honda - has been giving us trouble. It idles rough and struggles to get up to speed. My father-in-law checked it out and changed the spark plugs but the problem remained. Thankfully, we have two other somewhat functional vehicles, so we parked the Honda and asked friends, family and coworkers for advice either on how to fix it or where to take it.
After a couple months of using a gas-guzzling 4WD as the alternate daily driver, I finally made the decision to bite the bullet and pay a professional mechanic to fix the Honda. Keep in mind that doing so required me to drop off the car at the shop after work and get a ride home after my wife got off work. And since the shop was closed by the time I got there, it also required me to sacrifice the next day's lunch break to drop off the key and tell them about the symptoms.
Yesterday I got a call from the shop telling me what they found and how much it would cost to fix. And then I made the mistake of revealing this info to family, coworkers and Facebook friends, etc. Suddenly I had shade tree mechanics falling out of the sky opining on how easy that problem is to fix and how badly I got screwed by the shop. How could it be that in the two months the car sat parked in the driveway - nary a peep from anyone, but I pay someone to fix it and suddenly everybody's an expert?
Needless to say, some of the comments (both in-person and online) made me feel like a certified dumbass. I'm sure most of them weren't trying to make me feel bad, they were simply taking the opportunity to stroke their own ego. And that's okay. If you're the kind of person who knows how to work on your own car and has the time, tools and facilities to do so, more power to you. Far too many of us lack any kind of skill set these days. Just remember that none of us is a master of ALL trades.
After I had a few hours to cool off, it dawned on me that some of the very same people riding my ass about paying too much for an auto repair are the same folks I've seen break down and buy a new TV because they didn't have the motivation to crack the manual and learn how the TV or remote works. People who won't hesitate to spend $500-$1,000 to replace a smartphone, tablet or laptop when the problem could have been corrected by reinstalling the operating system.
There's nothing wrong with having a self-sufficient attitude but we all need to remember that it's physically impossible for any of us to become proficient at using/maintaining/repairing every single tool/device that we use on a daily basis. There's also nothing wrong with a guy who is good at fixing X but horrible at fixing Y to trade his time and labor (sometimes, in the form of money) to another guy who may be great at fixing Y but may be a total idiot when it comes to X. It's called voluntary exchange of goods and services (you may know it by its evil nickname: the free market), and it's absolutely essential to human survival.
After a couple months of using a gas-guzzling 4WD as the alternate daily driver, I finally made the decision to bite the bullet and pay a professional mechanic to fix the Honda. Keep in mind that doing so required me to drop off the car at the shop after work and get a ride home after my wife got off work. And since the shop was closed by the time I got there, it also required me to sacrifice the next day's lunch break to drop off the key and tell them about the symptoms.
Yesterday I got a call from the shop telling me what they found and how much it would cost to fix. And then I made the mistake of revealing this info to family, coworkers and Facebook friends, etc. Suddenly I had shade tree mechanics falling out of the sky opining on how easy that problem is to fix and how badly I got screwed by the shop. How could it be that in the two months the car sat parked in the driveway - nary a peep from anyone, but I pay someone to fix it and suddenly everybody's an expert?
Needless to say, some of the comments (both in-person and online) made me feel like a certified dumbass. I'm sure most of them weren't trying to make me feel bad, they were simply taking the opportunity to stroke their own ego. And that's okay. If you're the kind of person who knows how to work on your own car and has the time, tools and facilities to do so, more power to you. Far too many of us lack any kind of skill set these days. Just remember that none of us is a master of ALL trades.
After I had a few hours to cool off, it dawned on me that some of the very same people riding my ass about paying too much for an auto repair are the same folks I've seen break down and buy a new TV because they didn't have the motivation to crack the manual and learn how the TV or remote works. People who won't hesitate to spend $500-$1,000 to replace a smartphone, tablet or laptop when the problem could have been corrected by reinstalling the operating system.
There's nothing wrong with having a self-sufficient attitude but we all need to remember that it's physically impossible for any of us to become proficient at using/maintaining/repairing every single tool/device that we use on a daily basis. There's also nothing wrong with a guy who is good at fixing X but horrible at fixing Y to trade his time and labor (sometimes, in the form of money) to another guy who may be great at fixing Y but may be a total idiot when it comes to X. It's called voluntary exchange of goods and services (you may know it by its evil nickname: the free market), and it's absolutely essential to human survival.
2014/08/03
Win8 App Store, Laptops, Desktops and Tablets - Oh My!
Looks like some shady stuff may be going on in the Windows 8 app store. There's an app for $1.49 called Google Chrome Browser but the listed developer isn't Google. One called Adobe Flash Player for $2.49 but it's not issued by Adobe.
And while I'm thinking about it, why do we need standalone Mac/PC apps for services (like Facebook, Twitter or YouTube) that were designed to run inside a web browser?
If the future of the laptop/desktop OS is to mimic our smartphones, why not just give people a wireless keyboard/trackpad to go with their tablet... and HDMI-out for when they need a bigger display... and some sort of overpriced case gizmo that can support the tablet, keyboard and trackpad for when they want to prop it all up on their laps. You see where I'm going with this, right? Maybe just buy a laptop and be done with it instead of allowing these guys to nickel-and-dime you into the poorhouse?
I still maintain that the most useful function of the tablet was to encourage laptop manufacturers to increase battery life and decrease start-up/resume times. Before the iPad, most laptops were little more than portable desktops/thigh-warmers but with recent improvements in performance and technology, I can't make a good argument for why a tablet would be preferential to a laptop for the average Joe - especially when he already owns a smartphone.
And while I'm thinking about it, why do we need standalone Mac/PC apps for services (like Facebook, Twitter or YouTube) that were designed to run inside a web browser?
If the future of the laptop/desktop OS is to mimic our smartphones, why not just give people a wireless keyboard/trackpad to go with their tablet... and HDMI-out for when they need a bigger display... and some sort of overpriced case gizmo that can support the tablet, keyboard and trackpad for when they want to prop it all up on their laps. You see where I'm going with this, right? Maybe just buy a laptop and be done with it instead of allowing these guys to nickel-and-dime you into the poorhouse?
I still maintain that the most useful function of the tablet was to encourage laptop manufacturers to increase battery life and decrease start-up/resume times. Before the iPad, most laptops were little more than portable desktops/thigh-warmers but with recent improvements in performance and technology, I can't make a good argument for why a tablet would be preferential to a laptop for the average Joe - especially when he already owns a smartphone.
2014/07/27
Windows 8.1 on MacBook Pro
It's been about a week since I installed Windows 8.1 on my 'Late 2011' 13" MacBook Pro. Here's a little review.
First let's clear up some confusion. Basically, there are two ways to install Windows on a computer: a fresh, new install which requires a full version of Windows, or the cheaper 'upgrade' version which requires you to have a licensed, compatible version of Windows already installed on your machine. If you don't already have Windows installed on your Mac, you'll need the full version. I paid about $126 for the full version of Windows 8.1 at Best Buy.
To add to the confusion, the last few versions of Windows (going back to at least XP) have been broken up into a basic consumer version called 'Home' or 'Premium' (or something similar), and a version called 'Professional'. The 'Professional' version costs about $200 and according to the comparison chart, it didn't really offer anything extra that I couldn't live without. Contrary to what your Best Buy salesperson may tell you, the installation of Windows on a Mac does not require the Professional version. Buyer beware!
The other thing I needed for the install was a USB stick for installing Windows hardware drivers. I never did find any minimum size specs listed for the USB stick but mine only had 2 GB of free space and everything worked fine. The first thing that you'll need to do is plug the empty USB stick into your Mac and format it to the FAT filesystem (this will allow both OS X and Windows 8.1 the ability to read/write to the stick).
Now go online and find instructions for installing/running Boot Camp and Windows on your Mac. Read Apple's tips before beginning so that you'll understand the process and know what to expect. The short version is that you'll use Boot Camp to partition your Mac's hard drive, download and install the necessary driver files onto the USB stick, and dedicate space for the installation of Windows. Once the Windows installation is complete, you'll hold down the Option key during reboot or power-up to choose whether you want to run OS X or Windows.
As far as installing Windows goes, this was one of the simplest installs I've ever done. All of the hardware drivers were on the USB stick so there was no barrage of third party installers competing to get their stuff installed and set up.
The bad news...
If, like myself, you'd planned to install Windows 8.1 on your pre-Retina MacBook primarily so you could take advantage of Windows' ability to adjust your display's DPI settings to do a system-wide increase of the size of icons, text, etc, forget about it. The option is grayed out. This option is only available when the MacBook is connected to my 24" 1920x1080 external monitor.
The Thunderbolt port does work on the Windows side but it isn't hot-swappable (it requires a reboot to begin working).
Battery life isn't quite as good on the Windows side. The MacBook's fan runs a bit more as well. Display brightness seems a little harder to adjust. Same for the keyboard backlight.
The Boot Camp Control Panel (in the bottom right next to the clock) is essential for adjusting settings for things like the built-in keyboard and trackpad.
After digging around in Windows 8.1's settings, I have yet to find a button or icon to turn off (or on, for that matter) the Bluetooth radio. It says it's on and searching for devices but gives no option to switch it off when not needed. I haven't had a chance to try using Bluetooth or the FaceTime camera, so I can't comment further on these options.
All in all, Windows on a Mac is interesting to say the least. The new Start Screen (it's not just a Start Menu anymore) takes some getting used to. Had I known that like OS X, Windows 8 wouldn't allow me to adjust the built-in display's DPI setting, I probably wouldn't have bothered. There a few minor things that prevent me from giving up Windows entirely but my biggest disappointment with OS X is how small it renders buttons and text throughout the OS. Seriously, trying to read a fine-print EULA on a Mac is like trying to read the last line on an optometrist's eye chart... from the parking lot!
In the past, there were two reasons someone might want a bigger computer display: to increase space on the desktop for multiple windows, or to increase the size of everything on the screen. Sadly, it seems that us folks in the latter camp have been abandoned. Oh well, live and learn. At least I'm once again able to batch-rename files without the need to google a refresher on how to create a Workflow.
First let's clear up some confusion. Basically, there are two ways to install Windows on a computer: a fresh, new install which requires a full version of Windows, or the cheaper 'upgrade' version which requires you to have a licensed, compatible version of Windows already installed on your machine. If you don't already have Windows installed on your Mac, you'll need the full version. I paid about $126 for the full version of Windows 8.1 at Best Buy.
To add to the confusion, the last few versions of Windows (going back to at least XP) have been broken up into a basic consumer version called 'Home' or 'Premium' (or something similar), and a version called 'Professional'. The 'Professional' version costs about $200 and according to the comparison chart, it didn't really offer anything extra that I couldn't live without. Contrary to what your Best Buy salesperson may tell you, the installation of Windows on a Mac does not require the Professional version. Buyer beware!
The other thing I needed for the install was a USB stick for installing Windows hardware drivers. I never did find any minimum size specs listed for the USB stick but mine only had 2 GB of free space and everything worked fine. The first thing that you'll need to do is plug the empty USB stick into your Mac and format it to the FAT filesystem (this will allow both OS X and Windows 8.1 the ability to read/write to the stick).
Now go online and find instructions for installing/running Boot Camp and Windows on your Mac. Read Apple's tips before beginning so that you'll understand the process and know what to expect. The short version is that you'll use Boot Camp to partition your Mac's hard drive, download and install the necessary driver files onto the USB stick, and dedicate space for the installation of Windows. Once the Windows installation is complete, you'll hold down the Option key during reboot or power-up to choose whether you want to run OS X or Windows.
As far as installing Windows goes, this was one of the simplest installs I've ever done. All of the hardware drivers were on the USB stick so there was no barrage of third party installers competing to get their stuff installed and set up.
The bad news...
If, like myself, you'd planned to install Windows 8.1 on your pre-Retina MacBook primarily so you could take advantage of Windows' ability to adjust your display's DPI settings to do a system-wide increase of the size of icons, text, etc, forget about it. The option is grayed out. This option is only available when the MacBook is connected to my 24" 1920x1080 external monitor.
The Thunderbolt port does work on the Windows side but it isn't hot-swappable (it requires a reboot to begin working).
Battery life isn't quite as good on the Windows side. The MacBook's fan runs a bit more as well. Display brightness seems a little harder to adjust. Same for the keyboard backlight.
The Boot Camp Control Panel (in the bottom right next to the clock) is essential for adjusting settings for things like the built-in keyboard and trackpad.
After digging around in Windows 8.1's settings, I have yet to find a button or icon to turn off (or on, for that matter) the Bluetooth radio. It says it's on and searching for devices but gives no option to switch it off when not needed. I haven't had a chance to try using Bluetooth or the FaceTime camera, so I can't comment further on these options.
All in all, Windows on a Mac is interesting to say the least. The new Start Screen (it's not just a Start Menu anymore) takes some getting used to. Had I known that like OS X, Windows 8 wouldn't allow me to adjust the built-in display's DPI setting, I probably wouldn't have bothered. There a few minor things that prevent me from giving up Windows entirely but my biggest disappointment with OS X is how small it renders buttons and text throughout the OS. Seriously, trying to read a fine-print EULA on a Mac is like trying to read the last line on an optometrist's eye chart... from the parking lot!
In the past, there were two reasons someone might want a bigger computer display: to increase space on the desktop for multiple windows, or to increase the size of everything on the screen. Sadly, it seems that us folks in the latter camp have been abandoned. Oh well, live and learn. At least I'm once again able to batch-rename files without the need to google a refresher on how to create a Workflow.
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