But, like always, reality stepped in fairly quickly and reminded me that the days between showers are unpleasant, coffee shops are expensive, and working from home has some subtle pitfalls that make it much less of a paradise than one might expect. Since my month (or two) of adjustment, I’ve learned what makes me a happy, successful, home-based cog and what can turn me into a grumpy, malnourished, pain in the ass. Some of it is attitude but a good portion comes from the right tools for the job.

Desktop and Web-Based Software I Use and Love

Certain people and companies deign to describe productivity nirvana through a perfect app. I’ve tried many, many of these incredible apps and have found about a 5% retention and success rate. That means 19 of 20 things I think will help don’t help and only get used a few times. A few, however, have stuck around for whatever reason.

InstantBoss: I would call this a critical addition to the tool belt and it’s why I’m listing it first. InstantBoss is a very simple Windows application that allows you to set working and break time spans so you have something to remind you to shift your eyes and get off your butt. I set 15 minutes of work with 2 minute breaks and make sure I stand up and walk away for that time. The best thing to do is to drink some water and do a quick set or two of a good compound exercise (see below). It might not seem like much but it truly makes the difference between a good day and a bad one for me.

Gmail, Gdocs, Wave: Yes, Wave. The Google Apps suite is something I just couldn’t do without. Honestly, it’s mostly Gmail and Gdocs but Wave is really helping me in a number of ways. I’m not going to go into too much detail since I’m probably preaching to the choir but I’ll say this: if you’ve never tried Gmail before, give it a shot. it really takes email to a new level.

Dropbox: To me, this is another one of those no-brainers. Dropbox is 2 gigabytes of data that you can put on any computer. Install it on two computers and they each share a file folder that stays synced. You can also access your files from their website. And that’s all it does. But, man, it does it well. I’ve never had a problem with their software and it’s never slowed my internet connection down. I love Dropbox, period. I even wrote about it already.

iTunes and Pandora: Between iTunes radio and Pandora, I’m always listening to something high-energy and potentially annoying to my non-existent cube-mates. I used to use Pandora exclusively but when they started to limit listening to 40 hours per month, I had to switch back to iTunes every now and then. Just to be clear, I don’t have a problem with their pricing structure, in fact I was considering paying for the premium version. What happened, though, is that I discovered a whole new host of stations on iTunes (Beat Basement being one of them) that blew away what I was hearing on Pandora. As smart as Pandora is, it’s still algorithm controlled and tends to revert back to the same songs. I still use Pandora every now and again, but iTunes really takes the streaming cake for me.

Keepass: KeePass stores and organizes all of your passwords in one place. it’s very secure and open source so there are developers creating plugins and add-ons. I just use the regular install and it makes my life much easier. I have a whole slew of client logins, passwords, and other information that I can’t just keep on a stack of post-it notes. I put everything into KeePass and just need to log in with one password when I need any of them. Joy. Combine it with Dropbox and your passwords can be synced across multiple computers.

FeedDemon: This is an interesting little RSS feed organizer that I started using a few months back. The one thing that caught my eye is that it plugs into Google Reader so there is a “cloud backup” of sorts. It also means you don’t have to install it everywhere so you can still use Reader on your laptop or phone and everything will stay copacetic. Feeds are easy to read, it has a built-in browser, and it’s fast and bug free (in my experience). Freeware gold.

Desktop Software I Still Use But Hate

So those are the applications that are a pleasure to use and make my life better. There are, however, a few that I use that I would love to just get rid of. Each one holds a special, dark place in my heart.

TweetDeck: My problem with Tweetdeck is not really the software itself (or the “why did we need this platform” Adobe Air it’s built on) but how easy it can fritter away a day. With enough followers (probably a few hundred will do), you have a constant, urgent steam of signals and noise (mostly the latter) that can distract you almost immediately. I use Twitter and I love Twitter but Tweetdeck makes it too easy.

Skype: Skype is the opposite of Tweetdeck in that it’s an application I hate which does things that I need to do. I really, really don’t like Skype for a number of reasons. Skype is the only IM client that I’ve ever used that I get real-time spam through which, to me, is quite disconcerting. Skype has the most annoying Fisher-Price interface I’ve ever had the displeasure of using (though the sounds are mostly pleasant), an interface that’s changed at least twice since I’ve started using it and has not improved even incrementally. Skype’s telephone function (dialing, sending tones, etc) does what it wants, sends the tones it sees fit, and only lets you use the num pad when it wants you to. If I could use something other than Skype, I’d do it in a second but taking calls through my computer is essential (audio quality is actually pretty damn good) and everyone seems to be on there so, what can I do?

Adobe Creative Suite 3: Adobe had been on my bad side since they took 2 weeks to tell me via an (automated sounding) email that they wouldn’t help me with my Illustrator problem because they had already moved on to a new version. I’m one of probably 20% of people using their product that actually PAID for it rather than downloading it but apparently I should have already bought CS4. Their knowledge base moved around causing 404 not found pages from Google and their product decides not to work at really inconvenient occasions. Their products do amazing things, I’ll give them that, but when I heard Steve Jobs call them lazy, I found myself smiling and nodding. You can’t be at the top forever.

Hardware That I Use and Love

So, we covered all the applications that make my life better, how about the physical stuff?

Good mic + speakers: I got a new set of Altec speakers and an inexpensive Logitech microphone (both are Amazon referral links) for Christmas and I’m kicking myself for not upgrading long ago. The music I listen to is fairly bass-heavy and typical all-in-one speakers were not doing the job. As for my VOIP set-up, I was using speakers but had a headset around my neck that I just used the microphone on. Classy. With the desktop mic, people can hear me clearly, I have a big, light-up mute button right in front of my for sneezes and profanity, and voices come through clear as day. All this for under $70.

Weights: Exercise, you need exercise. Well, I sure as hell need exercise and if you’ve made it this far, you probably need it too. I have a set of Powerblocks (another referral link) that I got a while ago and they do the job very well. I stick to mostly compound exercises (several muscle groups at once) and, because these don’t get really heavy, go 8 to 12 reps on what ever I do. Check this site out if you need some help coming up with good dumbbell exercises.

Good chair (see above): Who knew that spending 12 hours a day in a chair would require something more than a creaky, armless IKEA chair? I was using a fairly nice one before, actually, but it was over a decade old and started to lean the bottom pad forward so I always felt like I was going to slip off of it onto the floor. I picked-up an Aeron last year and have been very happy with it. It’s one thing to be supported properly but my main concern was ventilation. I was used to an air-conditioned office and now I found myself in a non-insulated office facing west with very fickle breeze. The mesh back and bottom of this chair was a very nice change of pace (read: temperature) which I highly recommend.

iPod + Nike+ (you know the drill): Uh oh, starting to sound like an advertisement all-of-the-sudden. Still, what can I say? Some companies make great product. For the most part, since learning about their use of child labor long ago, I’ve been a Nike boycotter. Not the type to stop people at the store, just the type to vote with my wallet like everyone should. Recently, I tried to find out whether they had absolved themselves and moved on but wasn’t able to see anything concrete. In the absence of evidence, I remain an abstainer… except in the case of the Nike+. when I was able to run (damn knee), this little thing really motivated me and gave me the data I needed to see how I was progressing. It was, and still is, very addicting to see your distance increase, your pace improve, and your goals get tracked. It also seems to call my name in the middle of the day… like “hey, buddy, there’s a new This American Life podcast and it’s sunny outside. What say we take a break and get some air.” That’s a good friend.

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http://www.thedesigncubicle.com/2009/04/50-creative-business-cards-of-50-graphic-designers/

Thanks to Brian Hoff at Design Cubicle for the compliment!

Business cards on Josh Can Help

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http://www.joshcanhelp.com/images/blog/eee/eee08_sm.jpg

Asus EEE black

I bit the bullet and bought an Asus EEE 1000H (in black) and I’m psyched about it. I’m really uninterested in giving you a walk-through of every little, tiny thing so I offer the now-answered questions that formed pre-purchase, a couple of the drawbacks, and a few things I love about it.

This thing is friggen tiny

EEE vs. Vostro

That is the whole point of these new netbook computers, in the end. My old laptop was portable, of course, but portable in a “need another bag to take it to the coffeeshop” kind of way. I stick this thing in the padded, zip-up case it came with, stuff it in my bookbag, and off we go. I barely notice it when it’s there and the charger combo is so small, it fits right in a side pocket. I’m able to have this with me more often which lets me get stuff done everywhere and stay very well connected as well.

David vs. Goliath

The trade-off, of course, is the keyboard side. Someone told me the keyboard is “92%” the size of a normal one. I found it particularly difficult to type on when I first got it (especially with respect to the odd right shift key placement you will no doubt read about again and again if you are researching this computer) but I’ve gotten MUCH better. I still have more typos than a typical keyboard but I think I can actually  type a little faster on this keyboard because of the short key travel (how little it takes to press a key down) and how little my hands have to move. I’ve also gotten used to the right shift key and it hardly bothers me anymore. FYI, I look when I type about half of the time.

I will mention, however, that the screen size is quite small and a little irritating to work with. When I bought this little guy, I was not planning on doing anything too labor intensive. The width isn’t the problem, it’s the 600px height. It’s hard to get things centered just right and surfing the web (not to mention building web pages) is a bit harder than I thought it would be. Not like “damn, I really wish this screen was bigger” hard, just “I’ll do it if I need to” hard.

Windows XP on the EEE works great

I waffled back and forth about the hard drive versus the solid state drive and whether or not I wanted Window or Ubuntu Linux installed and, in the end, went with the hard drive and XP. I’m definitely pleased with this combination. Start-up is pretty good, shut down is really quick, stand-by is a dream (seconds from on to off and back), and the performance really leaves me wanting nothing more. I should mention that I replaced the included 1 GB of RAM with a 2 GB stick. The surgery was minor and I had no problems getting it to work.

Outpatient surgery

I can definitely tell the load time for certain things is slower, the one example that sticks out in my mind being Open Office. I leave the quick start option off (I hate it when programs want to install a start-up launcher as though their program is SO important that I need quick access to it EVERY time I’m on my computer… get over yourselves) so the load time is a bit slow. On my desktop, however, it comes up about 2 or 3 times as fast. This, again, is fine depending on your expectations of this computer. I expect it to do certain things great and other things not as well. I bought it knowing that and being perfectly fine with it. If you’re expecting 3.0 GHz performance out of a 1.6 GHz machine, you will be disappointed. I am getting really crappy streaming video playback, though which is annoying. I’m going to try a movie from the hard drive and see if that makes a difference. It surfs the web as fast as my desktop and I figured the network bandwidth would be the bottleneck.

ASUS EEE Battery life is excellent

Asus claims 7 hours of battery life with this thing and I’m inclined to believe that it’s possible but maybe not optimal. On full charge, I turn the screen down as low as possible (pretty dark but still perfectly legible) and switch the mode to “Power Save” and the battery life meter says I have almost 6 hours of power remaining. I have a few programs open but I’m not really doing anything on it. I’d say 5 hours is about the most you’ll get out of it with the screen at a usable brightness and working on a couple of things. Still, 5 hours is longer than most interstate flights and longer than I can stand it at any coffeeshop.

Random thoughts

• The touchpad seems to be an area of complaint for some people online but I have not had a problem with it. I can type just fine while keeping my wrists away from it. It’s sensitive but not too sensitive and the multi-touch functioning (zoom in, scrolling, multi-finger taps) are great (when they work properly). I have not spent a lot of time setting the touchpad up so there is likely more that I can do.
• The screen is GORGEOUS. The brightness goes up so high that it’s almost hard to look at in a dim room. Clarity is great, colors are excellent, size takes some getting used to.
• I don’t know what they did with the wireless in this computer but I’ve never had a computer or a phone that linked up so quickly and stayed locked onto the signal. If I put it on standby, go somewhere else that has wifi I’ve used before, and take it out of standby, it’s usually re-connected before the desktop comes up. Doesn’t disconnect randomly, gets great reception, and is just a pleasure to use.
• Yeah, so the shiny black case gets a lot of fingerprints. Be prepared or go with the white.
• The little zip-up case it comes with is great. It’s the perfect size and the outside feels “sticky” like soft-touch rubber or something. It collects a horrendous amount of dust but if you set it on the car seat, it doesn’t slide around and fall off. If this was intentional, it was ingenious.

A+++ would buy again

I went back and forth between this particular model and its competitors (Acer, MSI, Dell). I can’t say that I like this one better because I’ve never been about to try one of the other ones out but I can say that I’m really not left wanting anything more out of this machine. Performance was better than expected, interaction is excellent, display is great, portability is a dream… what more could I want?

I would definitely recommend this to anyone that needs a second, very mobile computer. What’s great about the netbook category of computers is that you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get great functionality. If I had, say, a dual-core laptop with a big screen and a DVD drive and so on, it would be a competitor with my desktop. I don’t need complete functionality on the go, I need connectivity, ease of use, reliability, and my core programs. I don’t need to play games (though I know someone who plays an old version Age of Empires on his), I don’t need to watch DVDs on a regular basis (though I can download movies to watch just fine), and I don’t need to do 3D modeling (ever). In the end, this is exactly what I needed and exactly what I got.

Mine

Well done Asus!

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1. Create a “New” folder on your “C” drive, and name it drdos.
2. Go to http://www.devedia.com/dosghost/dos/downl_2.asp#drdos
3. Scroll down until you find v703drdos Beta – click on that. You will find yourself at an ftp download site of all the drdos utilities.
4. You can download them all to the new drdos folder, but you only need debug.exe; fdisk.com & format.com.
5. Download by right-clicking each one – choose “Save Target As” – and direct the download to the drdos folder.
6. Next, go to Program Files\Ahead\Nero and locate Dosbootimage.ima and copy and paste it to the drdos folder.
7. Fire up Nero – choose Nero Burning Rom. Should get New Compilation. On the left side, scroll down to CD-ROM (Boot) and highlight it.
8. Over on the right side, click the radio button for Image File & browse to the drdos folder to locate it so that it shows in the address space.
9. On the bottom half, under Enable Expert Settings, make sure the four categories are: Floppy Emulation 1.44; Nero Boot Loader v6.0; 07c0; 1.
10. Go up to the Burn tab and make sure that Write and Finalize cd are checked. Change the Write Speed to half of what your burner is capable of, then click New at the upper right corner.
11. On the right side, third pane over, locate the drdos folder and click it so that all of its’ files show up in the fourth pane. Drag and drop them all to the second pane. Locate the grayish cd disc with the flame on it near the top under the word Window. Click this to return to the Burn page; insert a blank cd-r disc into your burner; change Copies to two; then click burn. Quickly check off Verify Written Data at the bottom left.
12. OK the Data Verify success (second copy should start) – click Done (bottom left) – Exit out whereupon Nero will ask you to save this. I would, and call it drdos; for you to have in the future. Then back to your desktop.
13. You now have a bootable cd with which you can invoke debug. You will find it on the “D” drive after the cd boots up. Follow the routine I gave you in a previous post.
14. Print out this one and the debug routine to work easier.
15. If the laptops’ hard drive is okay, XP will install fresh & clean.

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I’m really not interested in the Windows vs Mac debate (as usual, there’s just reasons for having one or the other). What I am interested in is making your technology work for you.

Though the iPhone is an amazing, even so far as a sexy, piece of hardware, it’s just not right for everyone and, if I can go so far, definitely not for people who rely on connectivity. There has been a barrage of complaints, outrages, and, in this case, quiet rages. The problem is too much hardware in too little of a space. When you find yourself saying “how does it do all this in such a small packages,” it might be time to question whether or not it really IS doing all of those things.

That the iPhone is technically capable of doing everything and more in the sleekest product package conceived in a long time (maybe ever) is not being debated. Whether or not you want to rely on bleeding edge interface, operating system, AND connectivity features and software is. If you absolutely need it to work then you absolutely need to have a piece of equipment in your pocket that is tried and true, that’s all there is to it.

Apple confused some people by making this iPhone difficult to differentiate from the old one. In this way, they made it seem as though this phone was exactly the same as the last one, just some new bits. This isn’t true. There’s a lot of similarities but the 3G hardware in the phone is all new, the battery is different, GPS was added, and a lot of the software was changed. This isn’t just an upgrade, it’s a brand new phone.

I have no doubt that the wrinkles will be ironed out eventually but, in the end, I can’t sacrifice being connected, having my information synced, and being able to do what I need to do for a neat gadget. Don’t get me wrong, my HTC 8525 has it’s own set of but, as usual with Windows devices, a quick restart every now and then and a reinstall once a year and it’s good to go.

Tame your technology and don’t go jumping at the first thing unless you’re willing to be the guinea pig.

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I was, of course, so excited when it came. To be honest, it didn’t so much come to me as it made me pick up it (it took two tries). Regardless, I got it home, slid it out (wrapped in plastic), and started reading the directions and putting together the stand. When it was time to match TV to stand, I pulled the plastic/padding off and saw this:

After a good cry, I called DHL to see what to do. They sent me back to the retailer to get a replacement. They sent DHL back out to pick it up (I had to wait at home for them) and now I’m waiting for them to examine it, I assume because some people break it and try to send it back.

Either way, all parties were basically helpful and the only bad part is that I have to wait another couple weeks for my new toy. Though everything is getting worked out, my resolve to stick with Newegg has been solidified. It would have cost me $100 more but I would know for a fact that they would take this back and send me a new one (probably in the meantime). With Frys, I’m a bit paranoid (for no good reason). I took pictures of every surface of this TV to make sure that they don’t try to screw me over. Newegg is renouned for their excellent service while Frys is just a good, low-price retailer.

My fingers are crossed.

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My first thought is that it would be nice to be able to watch movies at high wuality when I have a High-Def TV. My second thought is that we have all of our music on two different computers (and have a hard time backing it all up). Third, it would be great to be able to easily watch streaming Netflix movies without always having to hook up and plug in a laptop… same deal with streaming TV shows from the network sites. Fourth, it would be great to have a way to easily stream music and play it for the whole apartment. Clearly, we’re in DESPERATE need of a solution!

There are specific media boxes out there but I really want to build my own to my own specs. Here is my Newegg wish list for parts. I basically picked the lowest price with the highest rating that did what I wanted.

Case

SILVERSTONE SUGO SG02B-F Black ABS / SECC Steel MicroATX Desktop Computer Case

I already have a power supply so I looked for a MicroATX case that could hold full-size video cards. This one got fairly good ratings and was not too big. I was actually surprised that this one is on the low end of pricing. I thought these smaller cases would be cheaper but I was definitely wrong.

$69.99 (sale)

Motherboard

GIGABYTE GA-G31M-S2L LGA 775 Intel G31 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

Like the case, another great deal. Besides the microATX form factor (to fit in the smaller box), I was looking for one that would use DDR2 800mHz so I could use the RAM from my desktop. I’ve been considering more RAM in my main box and this was a good excuse to go for it.

$59.99

Processor

Intel Pentium E2180 Allendale 2.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E2180

Nothing special. I figure a dual 2.0GHz is probably a bit more than what I actually need it for but it’s only $10 increments for 0.2GHz of processing power. I’d rather shell out the extra couple bucks and have a potentially more usable computer.

$69.99

Video Card

EVGA 256-P2-N751-TR GeForce 8600 GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SLI Supported Video Card

This is a tough one. The main computer upgrade people do, besides a new stick of RAM or two, is a vidoe card. As such there are A LOT of options and A LOT of configurations. I went with one of the cheaper ones but made sure it was highly rated. It’s easy to see the $25 video cards and want to cheap out but the ONLY thing I need it to do really well, play DVDs, might need some major playback power.  EVGA is a known brand and this got pretty high marks. There’s also a $30 rebate going on which is tempting…

$79.99

Hard drive

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD4000AAKS 400GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

I knew I needed over 250 gigabytes, SATA and 7200RPM were no-brainers, and Western Digital is my brand of choice. This one represented the best of everything and 400GB made it very attracted. This may end up being my secondary back-up for pictures, documents, and everything else.

$64.99

Add it up

Toss in the $80 for RAM for my desktop (4 GB from G. Skill) and we’re at $425. Not too bad for a fully-functional media machine that can probably hold its own with a few games of Battlefield 2142.

Stay tuned for a build (maybe).

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* Designed using recyclable aluminum and bamboo
* bamboo is steamed press using water only. No harsh chemicals or wood varnish are used.
* The aluminum enclosure is 100% recyclable
* Simplified eco-friendly package contains just the bare essentials to reduce waste
* No extra bags or inserts; the user guide is printed on the inside of the box and is also digitally stored on the drive
* Retail box corrugate is 100% recyclable
* Master carton is 100% recycled post-consumer content
* Protective external drive end caps are 100% recycled newspaper
* Energy-efficient design reduces carbon impact
* Energy Star® Level 4-qualified power adapter offering up to 10% power efficiency improvement over our current model, and up to 30% greater power savings over non-Energy Star adapters

The list goes on and on… but that’s undeniably a good thing.

I do a lot to make sure my footprint is low and part of that is driven by conscious consumer product purchases. I’m not perfect but I try to research what I buy to make sure I’m not doing any unnecessary harm.

Taming your technology has to do, in part, with not affecting others. Wasting energy to fulfill your techno-fantasies is on-par with taking a 45-minute shower everyday. You have to ask yourself, is it really THAT enjoyable?

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In the meantime, a photo of what I do in my spare time… recycle. This time, electronics:

Part of taming your technology is making sure that you deal with it responsibly. I found an e-waste even on-line and took a whole mess of monitors from the software company I’m working with. Electronic waste is a big problem; make as little of it as possible and, what you do make, get rid of it responsibly too. Here are a few resources for those of your in San Diego:

San Diego Waste Management can pick some of it up.

Have newer, usable electronics? Check out Costco; they’ll pay you for certain items.

Recycle San Diego gives a few free events and it looks like it is kept up to date. Plus they have this awesome hard-drive crushing video:

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[Kenichi] Horie completed a 110-day solo trans-Pacific voyage in a boat propelled only by the power of waves — to claim another first in the world. The 9.5 metre (31-foot) boat is equipped with two special fins at the front which can move like a dolphin’s tail each time the vessel rises or falls with the rhythm of the waves. Horie first made world headlines in 1962 when, at the age of 23, he became the first person to sail solo across the Pacific. His projects have included sailing boats that rely on a single solar battery or are made from recycled materials.

(Image from Latitude 38)

How fantastic is that?

I, for one, love the idea of sailing across the Pacific. It sounds unbelievably scary but what a feel of accomplishment at the finish. On top of that, uber-green sea-faring vessels are a must at this point. Our oceans are a critical piece of the entire biosphere and the damage that is being done to them is really deplorable.

Between wave power,sail power, and solar power, I don’t know why there is not a bigger push towards environmental mandates for pleasure/cruising boats. Part of taming technology is making sure that your technology is not a detriment to other parts of the biosphere. It’s hard to put a restriction on international trade (and transportation) but what about cruise liners? Personal watercraft? Mega-yachts? Why not place some stringent CAFE-type standards on any of those industries.

It would be a step in the right direction to say the least…

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• Show up early…. yes, you. Everyone needs to show up early. Depending on the amount of work that needs to be done, staff members should be on-site and setting things up AT LEAST an hour before people start showing up. Registration tables, video demos, installations, presentations… everything takes time to get ready. WHY: Because it looks silly to be dinking around with technology and paperwork while people are showing up. Have you ever gone to a great hotel and had the concierge tucking in her shirt, the computers getting installed, and the bellhop tying his shoes in the middle of the lobby? Look like you know what the heck you’re doing and be ON POINT well before the people show up.

• If you’re presenting, have some kind of back-up in case everything blows up. Have another story, have a riff on-deck, have a prop… have SOMETHING to keep that energy going. Presentations stop, internet access breaks, and wireless mouse batteries run out; be ready for it. Distract attention from the control panel windows that are going on and tell an embarrassing story about yourself. Don’t slam your OS or your software or your IT department or yourself – that gets awkward. Don’t walk people what you’re doing, multi-task. WHY: Though every great (and many good) speaker(s) can recover from a screeching halt, not everyone knows what to do DURING the screeching. If you’re lucky, there’s an IT person around who can fix the problem on the fly but you still need to keep that attention (if you even had it in the first place). Technical problems will always happen and usually at the worst times. No one is rolling their eyes at you as long as you don’t make it worse on yourself.

• Have excellent IT staff on hand. Actually, this rule is for everyone at all times. Find someone, hire someone, pay them well, treat them like they are all-important (because they are), let them work the way they want to, make sure they understand security and privacy, make sure they’re not painfully anti-social, and befriend them. WHY: There is no work-around for having a great IT guy/gal. Having someone who can quickly (and correctly) fix problems instills massive confidence. Most people (I’m talking 90% [conservatively]) don’t know how to fix fairly basic computer problems. Having someone to help these folks is very valuable. Having someone that can fix everything else as well is priceless. The IT Admin for the company I’m contracted with is smart, capable, cool, calm, collected, patient, and knows it all. It’s a pleasure to watch him work his magic.

• Does your audience need files? Documents? Installs? Data? Databases? Put all this stuff on a cheap USB and give it to them with instructions. Not possible? Sensitive data? Put all this stuff on several USBs and train your staff on how to implement. WHY: The more people armed and capable (actually capable) to help your audience, the quicker that problems will be solved and the better the conference will run.

• Give each of your staff members a pack of sugar-free gum. Tell the ones presenting that if they chew gum during the presentation that they will be fired. Then say, “Just kidding… but seriously.”

• Just saw this – if your projector isn’t fitting the whole screen on the big screen, adjust the resolution on the computer running the presentation. In Windows XP, right-click the desktop, select Properties, select the Settings tab, and drop the screen resolution down (try 800×600).

• Drink less sleep more, even if you’re having fun. WHY: Sounds ridiculous, I know, but just go with it.

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I’m always taking a second look at what I do and what I own (or want to own) to make sure I don’t fly off the deep end and create more work/stress for myself. Here’s what I do to keep it all together.

Taming your tech means: making it work how you want it to

The first part of this tamed tech meme is probably the most obvious. Taking control of your digital life means learning how to use what you have and using it well and fully. Buying a web-enabled phone because you want to have your email with you wherever you go and never learning how to use it or accessing your email remotely but losing the organization scheme you used before is also letting your technology tame you. Learning how to get your Gmail or Hotmail through the mail program built into your phone and managing the system when you can over the web is taming technology.

If you find a gadget, a piece of software, or a web page that can solve a nagging problem, then, naturally, you will spend the time to learn it as best you can. But so many people don’t take the extra time to learn that extra little bit and end up with more products then they need. Taming your tech means making what you buy work completely rather than throwing more money at a problem and ending up right back where you started.

How I apply this in my life/business: I do a lot of digital image manipulation and have been for quite a while (about 6 years). I pull and modify screenshots, make my personal photos look better, and make various web images. Would you believe that I just bought Photoshop? I’ve been using free programs like Paint, Paint.net, and Photofiltre. This put me at a bit of a disadvantage because, now that I actually need Photoshop, it’s hard to re-learn what I know in other systems. The upside is that I can recommend some great free programs and still got the work done.

Taming your tech means: using only what you need

This second part ties in to the first part but is more about removing than adding. Owning and using technology should do nothing but make what you’re doing perceptibly better than it was before. This could mean work, this could mean family and friends, or this could mean entertainment. If having three email accounts, two blogs, two computers, a web-enabled phone, an ipod, a digital camera, and a printer/scanner helps you do what you need to do, then it’s not a problem learning, maintaining, and replacing all of the above. If, however, having all of this only serves to distract, disturb, and annoy without improving anything, then it’s time to reconsider some or all of it.

Everyone is welcome to drown themselves in as much technology as they can wrap their paycheck around but, if your goal is productivity or a gain in personal time or effective business reach, then maybe charging and syncing everything is doing more to hold you back. Taming your technology is taking control of the gadgets you use and using only what works.

How I apply this in my life/business: My laptop is probably 7 years old, one of the PCMCIA ports doesn’t work, and is somewhat limited as to what it will run. Am I saving for a new one? Am I waiting for the right price? Is it collecting dust in the closet? None of the above. This little guy lets me write, organize files, code for the web, brainstorm, answer email, and surf the web. These are the only things I need to do while on the road these days so there is not a compelling reason to upgrade.

Taming your tech means: keeping your tech to yourself

We’ve all seen it: the cell-phone guy/gal, noise polluting an entire coffee shop; the kid with an ipod turned up so loud you can make out the lyrics; friends who talk to you while writing an email to someone else on their Blackberry. It’s so east to retreat into our own little worlds, especially when we’re fooled into thinking we’re somehow better connected because we have more channels of communication at our disposal. When we fall for this trap, though, we start to lose touch and move away from society at large. Taming your technology means being aware of the impact that your technological life has on other people. This could mean giving your phone or computer a break when you’re around others, being cognizant of the noise your device(s) are creating, or facing your gadget addiction before it saps money aware from more important things.

I’m going to take this point one step further and say that taming your technology means staying as close to sustainable as you can, even if it means making sacrifices. We all have our lives to live and our jobs to work, but if you’re leaving 2-3 computers on all night, commute in something that gets less than 20 MPG, and still replace light bulbs with incandescents, it’s time to tame your technology.

How I apply this in my life/business: I’m in the 97th percentile of energy use in my neighborhood according to the power company (LINK). I run the computer overnight sometimes but every light bulb is fluorescent, computers and electronics are on power strips that get shut off at night, and I charge things in my car (“free” electricity). When it comes to my social impact, you can find me with my phone always on vibrate, leaving the room to take a call, and my music high enough to drown out the din. I’m no Miss Manners – or Mister for that matter – but I make it a point to be aware of my surroundings enough to avoid dirty looks.

Taming your tech means: staying on top of it

Sometimes the question has to be asked: why bother? With so many work opportunities (reputation-building, networking, side projects), communication options (blogs, micro-blogs, social networks, email platforms), entertainment channels (books, social media, television, movies), productivity tools, it’s impossible to try and take it all in. It is tempting, however, to try. When we start to get mire ourselves in fabricated “have to’s” (I “have to” post on my blog, I “have to” update my profile, I “have to” sign up for that site), our priorities, work, and personal life suffer. It’s very easy to make more work for yourself by trying to be everywhere at once and keep tabs on every trend that’s remotely relevant to you. It’s also very easy to create time sinks with poor organization, poor set-up, and a lack of planning.

It’s hard for me to present a universal rule for everyone to follow but I will say this: if you’ve ever asked yourself if something should go/be replaced/be completely renovated, keep asking until it happens. If you’re not getting any benefit from it, should you keep wasting your time doing it? Also, if you can fix it or replace it for a significant benefit, what are you waiting for?

How I apply this in my life/business: I don’t spend much time on any social network and I don’t actually participate in social media beyond Digging or Stumbling the occasional site that really catches my eye (or submitting my own). I find that neither one contributes much to my life so I’m not motivated to keep them up.

A portion of my digital time is spent blogging, one of those activities that you either get and do or don’t and avoid. The few hours I spend every week staying on top of updates gives back by keeping me in touch with the industry(ies) that I’m involved in, helping my improve my writing skills, and adding a bit to my reputation by offering up a piece of myself up-front. It’s something I like to stay on top of that also serves a purpose.

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Flash forward to last weekend and I stumbled into buying a new-to-me car. It has an MP3 capable head unit and I was excited to start using that feature again. Burned a Wu-Tang disc, brought it with me the next time I was going out, popped it into the player and… SAME PROBLEM. What the hell?

So I bought new/different CDs – same problem. Tried my other burner – same problem. Tried a different software – same problem. Tried a different disc style – same problem. Sometimes they would verify and sometimes they would error out but ALL the time they would not play properly. I was beginning to think that my music collection had gone bad except it played fine on the computer and on an iPod.

It was Google time, in a big way. Here are a few things I found out about burning a CD of any type. It turns out, the solution was easy. All I had to do was…

Turn down the burn speed

Just because your discs say they are capable of burning at a certain speed doesn’t mean they actually are. The Sony discs I bought were rated for up to 48x but, as soon as I turned the speed down to 24x, discs burned great and played just fine in the car. Try a speed much lower than the top speed, like 24x or 12x.

Thanks to Platinum GLS on VWVortex.com

Get rid of nested directories

You would think that a CD player would be able to figure out directories inside of directories but some just can’t. Some of that probably has to do with the fact that most CD players are linear, meaning that they only have forward and back controls, not up and down, so navigation might be a problem. If you are using folders, use them in the root directory only (meaning the “first level” of the file structure) and, just to be sure, if you are using directories, put all the songs in a directory (no songs in the root directory).

Yes

No

Rename long and/or oddly-named files

In addition to nested directories, some players also have problems with certain characters and file name lengths that border on infinite. Get rid of symbols and shorten the name a bit to make sure that your player can read and display the name. Some burning software will actually rename the file but that doesn’t always mean that your play can play them.

Yes

No

Update your driver firmware

Firmware is software that resides within hardware to instruct it how to function and how to run commands sent by your computer. If your burner is over a year old, there might be a firmware update to download and install. This sounds technical but it shouldn’t be that hard. Go to the website of the manufacturer of your burner and search for updates, find your model number, download and install.

Memory problems – not enough or going bad

It’s unlikely that the first problem you would encounter with bad memory on your computer would be burning a CD but stranger things have happened. Run a memory checker (like Memtest86+), just in case. It’s more likely that maybe you’re doing a little too much multi-tasking during your burn sessions. Surf the web, write a letter, or plan your next CD but leave your Photoshop, Crysis, and Maya3D applications closed. It is possible to overrun your burning buffer and affect the data that is written.

Finalize your CDs

MP3 players don’t like “multi-session” discs (when you can add data later) so make sure to finalize the CD. Every burn program should have this option available.

Defragment your hard drive

But you do that regularly anyways, right?

On an XP machine, go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter. Make sure to run it when you won’t be working on your computer, like overnight. I’d recommend doing this once per quarter or more frequently if you move files around a lot.

As a side-note, the disk defragmenter icon is probably one of my most favorite icons of all time. Yes, I have favorite icons.

Yes

Still not working? Here’s more options for you

Here is a great list of things to try from Acoustica.
Here is a whole site dedicated to helping you solve this little problem.

Hoped that helped!

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The personal value behind these posts should be clear: I’m interested in a chronicle of experience and a professional journal of sorts (I think those are synonymous). The value to the outside world is two-fold: you can see what kind of problems other people are having and you might just find a quick-fix to one of your problems. When I research problems on-line, I’m never frustrated by an OVERABUNDANCE of solutions.

On with the show…

The set-up

This customer lives in a gorgeous part of Del Mar, CA in a pair of condos with his family and veritable zoo of domestic pets. He called me to help him move his router, make sure wi-fi worked throughout the house, set up a printer with Vista (which was causing him problems), and possibly help him acquire a new desktop.

Sub-problem: home DSL network

The home DSL network was the main reason I was called in the first place. I’m very comfortable working with small wireless networks, wired or otherwise, so I figured there would be no problems. Silly me.

The piece of equipment he was using was a 2Wire 1800HG combination DSL modem and wireless router. I’ve had DSL before and never had any outstanding problems moving equipment and setting up networks so I neglected to print out any documentation. That was my first mistake (I’ll be posting on what I learned on my first customer call soon).

I unplugged the router, moved it upstairs, plugged it back in, and waited a moment. I was hoping for this:

I got this:

I tried a few power resets and the reset button on the back with no discernible results. I started to panic (I was already a little nervous). I tried moving the router back to its original location with the same results. Because this customer was living in two different condos, I wondered if maybe the phone system was not setup correctly to allow the DSL router to be moved. Then, because I didn’t see a DSL filter on the phone line leading to the fax machine, I got the crazy idea that the whole house was wired for DSL filtering (so filters would not have to be attached to each phone).

Yes, I was getting a little desperate.

Moving a DSL router solution

What I did next was exactly what I was supposed to do but, since I did not have the documentation, I did not do it correctly and went through another hour of mucking about trying to figure things out (I certainly did not charge for this hour).

For any router you have connected to your system, you are able to access that piece of equipment in a similar way that you would a website. Just like a website, your router has an address – an IP address (I suggest Wikipedia for an in-depth explanation of an IP address). You can type this address directly into your web browser and access your router’s software. What’s the problem? Finding the correct address. Here are the most common ones:

2Wire address I needed but could not find:
gateway.2wire.com (this isn’t an IP address as much as it is just a way to access the router)

Edit: the address above did not work today. The one that does work is 192.168.1.254 (router model number above).

Good general addresses to try for any router (separated by commas):
192.168.1.1
192.168.1.101
192.168.0.1
192.168.2.1
192.168.8.1
192.168.100.1

Motorola routers:
192.168.10.1
192.168.15.1

D-Link routers:
192.168.0.30
192.168.0.50

Linksys routers:
192.168.1.225
192.168.1.226
192.168.1.245
192.168.1.246

Oftentimes, your router will ask you for a login and password. This is one of those logins that you set up, write down, lose, and then panic a year later when you need it. Try a few of your common logins, try a blank login field with a password of “admin,” or, if all else fails, go to http://virus.org/default-password/ and look for your equipment based on the manufacturer (listed as “vendor” on that page).

Once you’re in, there are many things you can do but only one thing that I needed:

This, in short, tells the router/modem to run it’s set-up program. This particular piece of equipment needs this to be run when it moves. Go figure.

The program will likely ask you to set up a number of different logins, passwords and settings. On of these setting is a keycode that, according to the program, you would have been given. The customer I was with did not have this written down and the url given by the program was not working at the time (2wire.com/keycode [try also http://www.2wire.com/?p=268). I lucked out with a Google search on my phone so, for those of you in the same position, here are a few to try (from the 2Wire URL above):

AT&T service: 522P-22P4-6262-22AT-F2NV
Verizon service: 523E-23E4-6262-22AS-B2DD
Verizon service (another option): 524Y-24Y4-2262-22AS-B2GV
Other DSL service: 5225-26P4-6262-22AS-B2E7
Other cable service: 5225-26Q4-2262-22AS-B28F

After running through the program, in putting all of the right information, and writing everything down, we had the router moved, wifi up and running, and a connected desktop PC.

Wifi for the latops solution

Nothing to report here. Thankfully, the wifi reached all the way down into his living room in the second living space. The son was able to play World of Warcraft on the couch which was definitely the litmus test. I was, however, ready with a recommendation in case this was not the case.

I researched a bit about wifi repeaters and found some interesting information. According to most of the comments out there, they do what they should and work fairly well in a public situation. What they don't do, however, is allow for security, which, in my opinion, is a big problem. Since that was out of the question, I researched a few wireless access points. These basically take the network signal through a network cord and make it wireless (sounds so simple). We would run a cable from the 2Wire upstairs (located next to the desktop) out of the office and down the hall into a second room that was closer to where wifi needed to be used. Here are the ones I was recommending for him:

D-Link DWL-G700AP High Speed Wireless Access Point
Linksys WAP54G Wireless-G 54Mbps Access Point

One slight hang-up happened as the laptop was being passed around. There was a switch on the front that turned the wireless off of the computer. That was hit accidentally and chaos ensued. The chaos did not last for long.

Sub-problem: Vista printer set-up

Though I was a little wary about this part because I don't have a lot of experience in Vista, everything came together for the most part.

I was working with an HP Photosmart 2575 All-in-One printer that was network capable (you can plug it right into your home network and print to it from any computer [theoretically]). To test it, I downloaded the XP drivers onto my laptop, connected to the network (with a cord), and tried it out. It went through without a hitch and printed like a charm.

Since the customer did not have any ethernet cables on-hand, I offered to leave mine behind. He said he would pick some up the next day so not to worry about it. To set him up to do it on his own, I downloaded the correct HP Vista drivers onto a USB drive and transferred it to his desktop and laptop. Vista drivers are located here.

I started the driver install on the desktop and left it at a screen where the computer needed to find the printer. I told him once the cables were plugged in from the desktop to the router and the router to the printer to finish the install and try to print. I left it at that.

Final outcome

After a few days, I sent him the invoice and asked how everything was going. Apparently, the desktop connects to the internet just fine and prints to the printer just fine but now the laptop, after installing the drivers, will not connect.

*sigh*

…to be continued…

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