Chromebook: One more [useless] gadget

http://www.businessinsider.com/google-chromebook-review-2012-10

You’ve seen the commercials, I’m certain.  Befuddling, no?  What is this Chromebook?  How can a laptop cost only $249?  Read on.

“The idea behind the Chromebook is to run just about everything within the Chrome browser, with Google services covering your documents, email, calendar, etc.

“But unlike normal laptops, there's no file management system. It's not a laptop. It's not a tablet. It's a shell that houses a web browser.  That's it.

“While Google added more of a “desktop-like” feel to the Chromebook's operating system with a home screen of icons that launch web apps in the browser, it's simply a facade.  There is no way to effectively manage files that aren't Internet-based.  If you don't have an Internet connection, you're extremely limited in what you can do.”

I apologize…  I must appear pathetically obtuse.  I assure you, I’m a bright girl.  Really, I am.  But…  I still don’t get.

Assuming the Chromebook performs its existing functions irreproachably, it remains a useless and superfluous device.  Netbooks and tablets offer more functions than the Chromebook at the same affordable price.

Truly, the Chromebook is a tricky device.  As in, it’s a trick.  Ostensibly, it is a fully practical laptop that boasts standard features at an accessible price.  After all, no other twelve inch folding gadgets with full-sized keypads and screens skimp on the primary computing functions expected of a laptop-looking device.  Disillusioned online shoppers who neglect their technology homework may purchase the “computer” and be surprised by its dependence on apps and an internet connection.

There you have it.  A reason to continue reading.  Witty and Wireless:  Saving readers return shipping fees with every post.

It's a White and White Issue

http://www.courant.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-apple-white-ipad-mini-20121026,0,7888407.story

Though black Apple gadgets generally enjoy greater popularity (MacBooks aside) than white products, the trend is reversing with the iPad mini.

As the Hartford Courant writes, “If you want an iPad mini, you'll have to settle for the black model.

“The white iPad mini sold out during the first day of pre-orders for the new, smaller version of the Apple tablet, according to the company's website.

“The iPad mini is supposed to ship to users by Nov. 2, but already, the expected ship time for the white models has now been changed to read “two weeks.”  That applies to the 16 GB $329 model, the 32 GB for $429 model and the 64 GB for $529 model.

“Meanwhile, the black iPad mini is still available to arrive on Nov. 2 in all three of its versions, although who knows how much longer that will last.”

Why the change in user preference?  Black devices are sleek, refined, and professional, no?

Yes.  Black devices are sleek refined, and professional.  However, the crowd that hastens to the iPad mini values character and quirkiness above sophistication.  Indeed, the crowd that hastens to the iPad mini is…young.

My proposal is that tweens and teenagers are the primary iPad mini customers.  The small size and low pricepoint delight young techies as much as the reflective apple that brands the rear of the device.

The kids who have been petitioning their parents for a tablet, yearning for an iPad but willing to accept a cheaper Kindle Fire or Nook, can now, with the advent of the iPad mini, obtain their true obsession:  An Apple product.

Goodbye Apple black, today’s kids applaud the whimsy of your white and wireless sister.

Didn't you know? I own Facebook.

http://www.courant.com/business/technology/chi-ny-businessman-arrested-in-scheme-to-defraud-facebook-20121026,0,3045643.story

On Friday, wood-pellet salesman Paul Ceglia was arrested for forging documents that support his claim of a large ownership stake in Facebook.

“The businessman sued Facebook and its CEO in 2010, claiming a 2003 contract he signed with Zuckerberg, then a Harvard University student, entitled him to a stake in the social media company.  This past March, as part of that case, Facebook released emails sent by Zuckerberg around the time of the contract to show Ceglia's claims were false.”

Forecasting the outcome of these charges, one lawyer notes, “Ceglia used the federal court system to perpetuate his fraud and will now be held accountable for his criminal scheme.”

Can you hear my guffaws?  Truly, I’m confounded by the imprudence of Ceglia.  The man alleges untruthful entitlement to one technology (Facebook) as another technology (email records) simultaneously invalidates his claim.

In and of itself, this scenario confirms Ceglia’s fraudulence.  How could this man, who naively underestimates the might of technology, have contributed to Facebook?

I can do everything better than you...except print.

http://www.courant.com/business/technology/ct-tribu-tech-questions-ipad-cant-print-20120225,0,4783878.story

As an iPad owner, I share the confusion of my befuddled peers who cannot understand why the Apple tablet, which boasts miraculous capabilities, cannot perform a function that my 1995 Compaq somehow managed.  The iPad cannot print.

Apparently, “The iPad doesn't have built-in software to talk to printers.  But it does have software that lets it talk to a Mac laptop.  So to print from an iPad, it first has to (wirelessly) ask the Mac, “Would you mind telling the printer to print this document for me?”  If the Mac has been set up properly to hear the iPad, it will print out the document, because the Mac does have built-in software to talk to printers.”

Though Apple could have equipped the iPad with this competency, “that would have taken up a lot of room on the iPad's flash drive, room that's probably better spent holding apps, music, video and other more interesting stuff.”

While I prefer that the iPad preserve its capacity to accommodate my applications, notes, and music, I do wish the sucker could print.  The device walks, talks, and squawks like a computer, so why not perform all the same functions?

However, as one article reminds me, “the iPad is not designed to replace a PC, much like a microwave oven can never replace a conventional oven.  But it's quite a neat device, although, yeah, printing is one thing it cannot do by itself.”

Last week, I posted about the brydge keypad that transforms an iPad into a laptop.  As a highly functional yet simple device, I would consider condensing my personal technologies (and freeing some space in my charger drawer) by retiring all devices other than my iPad.  However, it is these limitations that remind me of the iPad’s impracticality.  Though the compact, suave, and futuristic qualities of the tablet make it endlessly…cool…it is not a sensible everyday gadget.

Thus, I must retain my laptop and my overcrowded charger drawer.

And how will you be paying, sir? With cash or by smartphone?

http://money.cnn.com/2012/10/19/technology/innovation/isis-mobile-wallet/index.html

On 22 October, Isis, a mobile network founded by Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile, will release its mobile wallet app.  Partnerships with such major retailers as Foot Locker, 7-Eleven, McDonald’s, and Sports Authority give Isis "serious firepower.”

The network will support American Express and Capital One credit and debit cards, and will store payment cards, loyalty programs, and merchant offers.  Though the company has yet to reveal which smartphones will be compatible with Isis, we do know that its system functions with near-field communication chips and short-range wireless technology.

Unfortunately for Isis, its lengthy startup process permitted other web payment apps to capture consumers.  eBay, Paypal, Google, Venmo, and Square are a few examples of successful mobile payment applications/ services/ technologies.  However, “if Isis’ carrier partners work with handset makers to pre-install Isis’ software on new phones—a likely scenario—the upstart venture could quickly gain traction.”

A few weeks ago, I wrote of the cultural loss I associate with a coin-less and bill-less society.  Though this application isn’t harmful or silly in any way, it shatters yet another seemingly timeless tradition.  Unless you’re staggeringly wealthy, your on-hand cash and coins likely weigh very little.  That means we’re adopting these technologies to save time…so we can get home to Facebook?

Each day, we approach a Jetson civilization of sleek, colorless, personality-less metal.  Indeed, when I learn of applications like Isis, I begin the wearying process of staking my house to the lawn.

Teaching an Old Dog Technology Tricks

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/20/nyregion/in-wi-fi-intoxicated-manhattan-a-generation-of-teetotalers.html?_r=0

http://snewzbutton.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/oldpeopleonline-300x253.png

Every month, the First Presbyterian Church in New York City’s Greenwich Village hosts a technology seminar to educate the community’s older residents about the wireless innovations their youthful counterparts grotesquely cuddle each night.

As modernity wars with tradition, the attendees balance their aversion to technology with a true terror of obsoleteness.  Reactions to the seminar are chuckle-provoking:

“I think it’s going to end badly, this lack of contact in the world.”

“People say, ‘What if there’s an emergency?’  I say, ‘There’s nine people around me who have one.’  I’ve never had that emergency, and neither have they.” [Smartphones]

“I’ve seen children neglected,” she added darkly. “I’ve seen friends neglected.” [Not being connected]

“The worst is not knowing what it is, not knowing how to get there, and knowing that everyone around you is completely hooked in.”

‘“Has anybody heard of Angry Birds?”  he asked.  Murmurs followed.  Not one hand went up.’

“I’m too old to understand this, but I think it’s great.”

“They could put a bomb on your head anytime,” he said. Who could? “Your enemies,” he replied. “Your slobbering enemies.” [Smartphone tracking technologies]

“It was fascinating…but it’s not my generation, so I didn’t know what he was talking about half the time.”

What does this article tell me?  First, I am sixty years too young for my own good.  Second, the elderly generation reaffirms their wisdom often.  In particular, the sassy woman who pairs an aversion to technology with social disownment is decidedly astute.  She understands that, if you do not connect wirelessly, you cannot connect socially.

As a nation, we have discarded phone calls and snail mail, the only forms of communication familiar to our oldest generations.  What is left of tradition?  Very little.  What choices do we leave holdouts?

The obstinate few who maintain their wired ways must either suffer isolation or cultivate friendships with the local Best Buy staff.

Brydging the Gap Between Tablet and Laptop

http://www.informationweek.com/hardware/reviews/6-ways-to-turn-your-ipad-into-a-laptop/232901114

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/552506690/brydge-ipad-do-more

http://technabob.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/brydge-ipad-keyboard-4.jpg

Generally, I roll my eyes when the first thing people do after purchasing a new technology is accessorize it.  My friends and family browse Amazon for cases, car cords, keypad covers, decals, and the like whenever they grab a new gadget.  That being said, I cannot help but covet the following iPad accoutrement:

Called the Brydge, this thing is simply…cool.

As their website notes, “Brydge is an elegant solution to the lack of quality iPad keyboards and accessories currently on the market.  Brydge connects to your iPad using a patent-pending hinge which allows for close to 180 degrees of iPad positioning and holds your iPad secure.

“Brydge’s hinge combines the forces of friction and magnetism to hold strongly onto the iPad.  There is no need to enclose your iPad in any sort of case, instead, your iPad snaps in and is ready to go.  If you need your iPad free from Brydge, simple hold down on the Brydge and pull your iPad free.” 

In addition to boasting the Apple aesthetics, this device, which features speakers, offers impressive functionality.  Indeed, if you own an iPad and one of these nifty keyboards, do you really need a laptop?

As a minimalist, I maintain the conviction that, if ever my iPad (which was a gift) breaks, I will not replace it and will simply continue with my good-for-all-purposes laptop.  Now, I wonder if I should amend that strategy.  Perhaps, if my Asus breaks, I’ll instead equip my iPad with the accessories that transform it into a laptop?