Keys Perspectives

I am in the process of transitioning to Google Voice, although there are a lot more challenges than you may expect because the companies in the industry just can't play nice and let the consumer chose how to configure their services.

Like many, the rejection of the iPhone app by Apple has was a real disappointment for me. Not having this makes initiating calls from the iPhone with my GV number as the caller identifier hard.  This issue and the poor AT&T network performance of late make the switch to the Droid and Verizon a real possibility even though I still have a while to go on my AT&T lock-in.

Another challenge has been getting the right "behavior" when calls are received.  I have calls routed to my mobile and to my office desktop (through a Skype In number). Unfortunately, the Skype In service does not really let you shut off its own integrated voice mail service.  There are workarounds like leaving call presentation on in GV,  forwarding to a "dead" number or getting your sequences to extend beyond 25 seconds, but all have drawbacks.  Skype In also has the issue of requiring to add duplicate contact records to your Skype contact list to get correct caller identification when someone calls.

Google has its own deficiencies.  It won't let you tie your GV service to a Google Apps account, so it has to be tied to your personal Google account.  Same issue that still exists with iGoogle, Reader and Google Profiles.  This is specially hard for me since Google doesn't seem to recycle unused GMail names so I have never been able to get johfleming or johncharlesfleming which are the personal ids I use on all other services.  The GV transcription service is a really nice feature, but has a long way to go in reliably transcribing messages.

I haven't decide dyet whether GV will replace my Skype To Go service. The lack of an easy speed dial facility is a real stopper here.  I also haven't tested GV international call quality, although the rates seem to be inline with everyone else.

All this being said, I will probably continue the transition.  The capabilities of GV to deliver voice and text messages to your inbox, to be able to effectively archive and search for them and to have unique greetings for callers really do improve voice communications. Theer are some nice third party tools coming to market like this Adobe Air desktop client that was recommended  by Kevin Purdy at LIfehacker.   It is a really nice addition.

So how about you?  Are you using GV?

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If you have just upgraded to Win7, you are probably pretty pleased with the new Windows Explorer.  Lot's of nice productivity features like being able to display a folder and its sub-folders as one thing.

One of the issues you may have run across is the fact that Adobe .pdfs so not display in the preview window even after installing Reader.  Apparently an installer issue.

Here is a tip from Ditti to quickly resolve it.   If you have a 32 bit version of Win7, just take out the Wow6432Node\ when you are looking for the registry key.

Once the key is changed, it works like a charm.

http://www.ditii.com/2009/09/11/fix-for-adobe-pdf-preview-handler-bug-in-64-bit-windows/

Pretty simple, but I was hoping it would be a couple of weeks before I would have to use regedit on Win 7. Oh well...

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Check out @artwiculate - a word of the day game on twitter

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Although, like most guys, I am not an "early shopper",  I really enjoy the whole holiday gift-giving thing.  When I moved to the Florida Keys full time in the Fall of 2007,  I faced a dilemma when I started to prepare for the holidays that November.    Living in the Keys and having most of my family in Boston made this more problematic than prior years because I couldn't just do the mall marathon two weeks before the holidays as I has in prior years (the nearest mall  is 90+ miles away).  I also figured that hauling gifts on the flight to Boston two days before Christmas was probably going to be more complicated than I wanted to take on.

I had been an Amazon customer for a long time.  I decided to go completely online and have everything drop shipped.   One of the things I took advantage of was Amazon Prime.  This annual membership service costs 80 bucks and allows up to 4 members of your family to get free two day shipping.   That first Christmas went off without a hitch and I have maintained the membership.  I do most of my discretionary shopping through Amazon which means I don't have to hike to Miami and Amazon Prime has been a real value for me.

They just announced a new enhancement.  Items ordered on Thursdays will be delivered on Saturday with the same free shipping.  If you shop online, this is a great service.

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Push mail is now supported on iPhone and Windows Mobile devices using Google Sync!!!

Editions included:
Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions

Languages included:
US English

How to access what's new:
Administrators first need to enable Google Sync in the administrator control panel under 'Mobile Settings'. If you're already using Google Sync for contacts and calendar, push mail is automatically enabled but you may need to switch it on on your device.

Click here to get the instructions on how to set up Google Sync on an iPhone.

Click here to get the instructions on how to set up Google Sync on a Windows Mobile device.

For more information:
http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com/2009/09/push-mail-for-iphone-and-windows-mobile.html

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Struggling with the 10 years / another 10 pounds reality.  Time to attack and "beat the buddha" back and see if I can turn this particular "clock" back 10 or twenty years yet again. I know all the right things to do.   Eat healthy, eat less.  Allocate time to exercise and reflect every day.  Simple, right?

I even know why I should and why I want to every time I think about my 11 year old son.  Hopefully I can stay disciplined and be willing to listen and accept help to stay on track.

Of course, there has to be a new, cool tech toy to help, right? There are lots of choices. I am trying out Daily Burn.  Let's me track everything online and from the iPhone.  It also has some very cool social features that make you think more about your goals and support.

Wish me luck!!!

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Seasoning the Lodge grilling tools

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I am redoing my office and doing some overdo equipment upgrades.   One of the key enablers for us at Outcome Labs is the combination of Skype and Yugma. The free versions of both services are reliable and have good quality.  We also use premium services from both vendors.

We are using the video conferencing of Skype much more frequently.   These really help enhance communications and personal connections with our distributed teams.   My current Dell XPS laptop has a 1.2 megapixel camera.  While it is functional, we have decided it is worth the investment to upgrade this to higher fidelity technology.   We have been looking at new laptops with 2.0 megapixel cameras and some of Logitech's standalone devices.  All seem like solid improvements, but I was really impressed with this new offering from Microsoft featured on Geek Brief.

http://www.geekbrief.tv/lifecam-cinema-spacers-john-gruber-post-cristal

What do you currently use for video conferencing?

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Growing up as a kid, my Dad had a set of "How To" books.  I spent hours reading them and got ideas for a couple of pretty cool science projects.

Today, it is pretty easy to get guidance on "how to" do anything.   One site I ran across recently thanks to a tip from Lifehacker is Instructables which was originally created by folks from the MIT Media Lab.

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My son Ryan and I are making ice cream "Drumsticks" next weekend based on one of the article there and are checking it out for ideas for his science projects at school this year.

Definitely worth taking a look. What do you use to get ideas and instructions?

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