Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally

Glenn Beck was the organizer of a rally on the National Mall.  The stated purpose of the rally was to show support for a return to more traditional values, called "Restoring Honor".  The media in general are critical of this rally on the National Mall today, with many (including Rev. Al Sharpton) suggesting that by holding the event on the National Mall on the same day MLK gave his famous "I have a dream" speech, Beck's "stepping on toes" and such.  Is it because Beck is white?  Perhaps.  Let's see if they acknowledge the magnitude and diversity of the crowd that was there:

Yes, that's the National Mall - filled with people of all types - all there supporting traditional values.

The good Reverend held a "Reclaiming The Dream" rally nearby, but the turnout was less significant.  The only picture I could find was this:

It looks like a smaller crowd, and I didn't choose to compare the old photograph with the new one.  But it shows something about the size of the crowd.  In the black & white MLK photo, you can see people in the crowd way back.  In the Sharpton photo at right, not so much.

Also, Sharpton's event was missing someone. Alveda King, the niece of Martin Luther King, Jr. was at Beck's event, and spoke to the crowd.

Please Stop Making New Phones With Old Firmware

Please Stop Making New Phones With Old Firmware

Pandigital Novel - Quick Review

Just picked up a Pandigital Novel last night, partly to use as a cheap ($170) e-reader.  Honestly, it was a cheap iPad alternative that I knew other people (smarter than me) had figured out how to install Android applications on.  The stock "reader" app (which still works after the hack) can buy books from Barnes & Noble, just like the Nook.  After hacking, I was also able to install Kindle for Android, which effectively makes this a "multi-platform" e-reader.  Again, for this price it's hard to resist.

Here's what it looks like "stock".  Not bad.

The real fun began when I followed a series of (relatively simple) steps I found online, and hacked it to run "regular" Android, complete with access to the "Android Market".  I can even justify this as a business expense, since it's the first Android device I've spent more than 2 minutes using, and knowing my way around Android will help when a client asks me to help them setup an Android phone.

The screen is RESISTIVE, which means it requires pressure, such as the tip of your finger or a stylus.  This is not a deal breaker, especially on a cheap device like this.  It's actually pretty sensitive and responsive - I wish my GPS had a screen this responsive.

The iPad (and iPhone) uses a CAPACITIVE screen, which requires that a conductive "pointer" (such as your bare finger) be used.  While a capacitive screen "feels" better, this screen feels good for what it is.

It has 1GB of on-board storage, but will accept SD/SDHC cards up to 32GB. 

Anyway, I'm pretty pleased with it.  If you don't already have an iPad, and don't want to spend $500, go to Bed Bath & Beyond right away and buy one of these.

iPhone wallpaper

Loving my new wallpaper:


-- Post From My iPhone

OtterBox "Defender" case for iPhone 4 - Review

Just got my OtterBox Defender case for the iPhone 4.

The Good:
- The clear screen guard is 100x better than the prior one. No "oil slick", and it appears to have a slightly matte finish inside, which just seems to improve visibility.
- The inner shell snaps together as before, except now the actual latches that make it work are integrated into how the holster works. And because of this, the holster is more secure.
- The opening for the dock connector isn't as small as before, so chargers seem to fit more easily. The prior model for the 3G/3GS had an oval opening that required modification of my car charger in order to fit.

The Not-So-Good:
- The silione outer layer isn't as "meaty" as the prior version. I know some people may consider this a benefit, but I personally like the thicker outer layer.
- The holster's release for the phone is now side-mounted. So if you're wearing the holster vertically, you've got to rotate the phone to unclip it.

Overall - this is a very well-designed, high-quality rugged case for the iPhone 4. The previous complaint about the fragility of Ballistic's offering make the OtterBox the clear winner for me.

Ballistic HC Case for iPhone 4 - Review

Just hot the Ballistic HC Case for the iPhone 4. The case is okay, but the rubber outer layer already broke:




-- Post From My iPhone

UPDATE: I sent the company an email, and apparently they're sending me a free replacement. Cool!

Sen. John Kerry skips town on sails tax

Sen. John Kerry skips town on sails tax

Couldn't have said it better myself...

And yes, that is bird poop all over it...


-- Post From My iPhone

iPhone 4 "Bumper" case refunds

Apple recently announced that since the iPhone 4's antenna design appears to be the cause of signal loss, they're refunding money to anyone who purchased a "bumper" case.

I just got the following, twice, since I bought two:


Dear Apple Customer,

Apple recently announced that iPhone 4 customers who purchased an iPhone 4 Bumper are eligible for a full refund.

As of today, we have automatically processed your refund.

Thank you for choosing Apple.

Sincerely,
Apple Online Store Support

Samsung Omnia II "Review"

A client of mine just got the Samsung Omnia II. It's clearly being marketed as an "iPhone competitor.". In reality It's not at all competitive. The touchscreen appeared to be resistive, which means you have to physically push down on it. It had a sort of "skinned interface", but underneath it runs Windows Mobile, which was a decent competitor to the old Palm OS on PDAs several years ago, but it doesn't hold up very well today. Bottom line, it's a very dumb "smartphone".

Something I noticed while waiting at the Apple Store

I arrived at the apple store at approximately 8pm.  (Dropped the phone at 7:20 or so.)

I was standing at the Genius Bar from 8:05 until 8:40 or so.

During that time, at least TEN iPads were sold.  Hmm...

Dead iPhone 4.

I dropped my iPhone 4 from a height of less than 1 meter onto a "soft" linoleum floor.  It (the phone) was wearing a bumper case.  When I picked it up, it was OFF.  And it stayed off.  There was zero visible damage of any kind.  It just refused to light up.  I know the battery was well over 50%, so that wasn't it.  Could it really be that a short drop like that killed my iPhone 4?  Apparently so.

Needless to say, I was upset.  I went to the nearest Apple Store (Pasadena) and got on the "standby" list at the Genius Bar.  After about 40 minutes, someone called my name.  About 10 minutes after that, I had a new iPhone 4 at no cost to me.  I last synchronized this morning and am in the process of restoring from that backup as I type.  Of course, I'll still lose any pictures/videos I made since this morning, and have to re-enter a bunch of stuff on the phone (at least 30 usernames & passwords, several wireless keys, merchant id's, etc.)

While Apple's support and service is world-class, I'm beginning to worry that the iPhone 4 is not.  Is it wrong to expect a phone to survive a drop of less than 1 meter?

Would you like some HOT AIR?

Health Insurance requirement: "Not a Tax"?

Remember when Obamacare passed, and they (mostly dems) said that although the law required you to have insurance, and although you'd be penalized monetarily for not having it - it was not a tax.  Over and over, the penalty was defended as a anything other than a tax.

Well, now they're finally starting to own up to the truth:


http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/18/health/policy/18health.html?_r=1&ref=politics

Who owns america's debt?

Click the image below to see in full size:

"Water free" urinals suck

This is why "water free" urinals suck:


-- Post From My iPhone

I've gone over to the dark side... ;)

Since I'm working on actually doing some additional marketing, I'm looking at a number of options. Someone suggested using Facebook as another method of marketing. 

At first, I scoffed at the suggestion. I had a personal account on Facebook before, but found it annoying. That being said, she made a compelling argument, and I had no idea that I could create a "corporate presence" there.

I took the advice and setup a company page, but maintaining it requires that you also have a personal account as well.  Facebook generates a ton of emails - someone took a trip, posted pictures, and got 35 comments - you'll get at least 35 emails detailing the blow-by-blow for each. So I setup a rule on my Outlook to automatically move Facebook emails to a folder called "Facebook". 

It's only been a week or so, but we'll see how it goes.  Click the Facebook link on the right and be sure to click "Like" once you're on the "Geek to The Rescue - Burbank, CA" page.

Tell me again why the charges were dropped?

This POS was protected by the current administration.  Why?

Human rights activist tries to stop death by stoning for Iranian woman - CNN.com

Human rights activist tries to stop death by stoning for Iranian woman - CNN.com

Nite-Ize cases

I needed a case to hold my iPhone 4 when working. Since OtterBox still doesn't have anything, I originally bought a handful of generic "sideways" holster pouches from a few mall kiosks. Some worked okay, but none of them felt quite right.

I've been using the Clip Pock-Its XL for a while now, and it works well. The clip is designed to stay on your belt no matter what. I figured I'd look and see if they made something that would work for the iPhone 4. I'm glad I did.

I picked up the Nite Ize Universal Clip Case Sideways Medium and it's working pretty well so far. I'm still awaiting an Otterbox case, but until that time, this is a worthy substitute.