HTC Hero
Yep. Back on the Hero. Overall, it has more if the social media features I need. Still hate this fucking keyboard though. :)
More later...
The Life of a DanielIt's not as interesting as it sounds...HTC Hero
Yep. Back on the Hero. Overall, it has more if the social media features I need. Still hate this fucking keyboard though. :)
More later...
Summer
_MG_3084
Originally uploaded by danielhedrick Photos like this make me miss summer already. Don't get me wrong--I love the rain, but winter without snow just doesn't seem right. So I miss summer. Palm Pre
I've switched phones numerous times in the past year... I'll be posting more detail about each at a later date, but since I picked up the Palm Pre today, I thought I'd jot down my first take on it...
First take on the Pre:
Packaging is reminiscent of the iPhone. They put some thought into the box. Included is a wired headset similar to the iPhone's, but black. USB cable and power "tube" are separate... I like that.
PROS
- This thing is DAMN sexy....
- Keyboard is small, but easy to get used to.
- Gestures are simple to learn, and handy.
- "Cards" are friggin' awesome. Switching between apps is simple.
- Speed is adequate.
- Signal strength seems to be good so far.
- WiFi works great.
- Calendar and contacts sync with Google and Facebook
- OTA OS update worked flawlessly
CONS
- Palm's App Store is a bit weak, but hopefully it'll grow.
- USB port is hidden behind a little cover that doesn't open unless you've got long fingernails (or a knife.) I'm sure that's to convince you to buy the Touchstone charger.
- No task syncing
- No native Facebook app
Haven't plugged it into the computer yet, so I can't comment on USB mass storage mode. But so far the phone seems to do everything I need it to. Then again, the last two seemed to do everything for the first day...
Work Travel
My buddy runs the McNultyLive.com blog, and has a tendency to write humorous posts based on his life. I was lucky (?) enough to become the subject of one of these posts.
In addition to being a friend of mine, he's also someone I've worked with for the past nine years. He was my boss for eight of those years, but now we work together putting together corporate videos, shooting photography, and whatever else is asked of us.
I've been told that I must be so lucky to get to travel for work. I'll admit, there are parts of it that I really like: I get the air miles, I get to (occasionally) see incredible cities and stay in incredible hotels and resorts... On the flip side, I often have to get up at three in the morning to catch an early flight, and the only parts of a city in which I'm able to indulge are the airport and the hotel.
That said, when on these work trips, any entertainment is good entertainment--even if it's at my expense. Kudos to my buddy for snapping this shot, as it cracks me up every time I see it. For the record, I am not an atheist... I have considered myself an agnostic for years now. But "The Amish and the Atheist" is a far funnier title, and that's the point, in the end.
To read my buddy's blog post, click here and enjoy.
Scotch and a Promise
I have it in my head that writers drink scotch. Good writers, that is. The ones who, although they may not be famous, pour their heart and soul out on paper. At the very least, scotch-swigging writers pen intriguing prose worth reading. That’s my theory, anyway.
In the past several years, three members of my family have had books published in one way or another. Great books, all unique but each worth reading in its own right. My aunt Margie started it all with an incredible collection of photos and words pertaining to the lives of Benedictine women. Her work was followed by my grandmother’s memoirs, then my dad’s first installment in a series of slightly embellished stories about his childhood. Recently, Aunt Margie published a book about growing up in a family challenged by hereditary blindness. What’s interesting to me is that these authors were spawned from both sides of my family. They don’t expect me to write, but their endeavors allow me to indulge in the idea that maybe someone would be interested in reading something I have to say.
Long ago, I wrote. Nothing spectacular, mind you—mostly teenage sap and cheese, poetry for various girlfriends, drug-fueled philosophical rants, fantastical stories that were started with good intentions, but currently dwell unfinished on floppy disks that have since lost their ability to regurgitate the bits they were sworn to protect. I’ve had plenty of ideas for stories, books, poems—but that’s what I’m good at. Ideas. Actually seeing those ideas become something tangible has been somewhat of a challenge for me. Actually, that tends to be true for many aspects of my life. That, however, is fodder for another story.
Today I made a decision. Today I came to the conclusion that I’m going to write. Something. Anything. I don’t care if it sucks monkey balls, as long as I see one of my ideas make its way to a keyboard, (pen and paper are so 1980s.) So I Googled “best inexpensive scotch”, stopped by the liquor store, and started thinking. Which one of these ideas would reign supreme? Which one would pop my literary cherry? None of them.
While sitting here in my recliner, choking down a glass of rot-gut scotch, I got more play from the idea of the idea of writing than I got from any previous ideas. And if that sentence made sense, I’m guessing your running nose for nose with me in the scotch department. Thanks for playing along.
The truth is, I have no clue what I’m going to write about. No clue if it will be short stories, poems, full-on novels, blogs, or screenplays. I’m not sure if the sentences will garner a PG rating, or if they’ll dip their wicks into the R pool. I’m leaning towards R—never been a fan of censorship. Sadly, this means my daughter won’t be reading anything I write anytime soon, but I’m okay with that. I don’t think in a PG sense, why would I limit my writing to such juvenile political correctness?
In addition, I think I’ll steal emulate my father’s approach to writing. Based on the truth, but dipped in scotch and bodily fluids to make it a little more entertaining to read. So if you’re reading something I’ve written, and it sounds slightly familiar to you, it may be based on something you and I have experienced together. Please don’t get your panties in a bunch if I happen to throw in an extra orgasm or two, or paint myself out to be a little larger than life. Much like scotch, narcissism seems to fit nicely into a writer’s personality.
So here I sit, trying to figure out how the hell people drink this shit. Pre-pubescent brainchildren kick around in my head, wondering why it gets hard when they rub it, or why mommy was screaming daddy’s name the night before.
Pop a Ritalin, kiddos—you’ll all have your chance to be somebody.
MacBook Pro and ATI X1600 Graphics Card
I love my first generation 17" MacBook Pro, but a few weeks ago I started having issues with the display. Horizontal lines, blocks of gradient color, random display freezes, and now distorted or stretched images. It only happens once the laptop gets into "normal" operating temperatures (CPU @ 150F, GPU @ 130F.)
Rather than re-write everything that's been written, I'll just post the links I've found regarding this issue. If you're having the same problems, feel free to post your findings in the comments below.
Golf
I love to golf. I suck at it, but it's one of those therapeutic activities that I'll probably never give up. I started golfing way back when I was a kid in Montana. The courses were different there. I remember golfing the Fort Benton course when the fairways were just patches of green surrounded by brown, dry grass. It didn't matter to us, we just went to have fun. These days, I don't get to go as often as I'd like, so when I can't actually golf, I like to hit the driving range.
I've been playing with the same set of clubs since the mid-90s... But a few weeks ago, a friend of mine offered to trade a fairly decent set of hardly-used clubs for an external hard drive. How could I refuse? Time to hit the driving range. It's amazing what a new driver did for me. It's like night and day--I can't wait to actually hit the course with 'em.
BIS
Was helping a friend check her Blackberry BIS with Verizon today. Tried to login to Verizon's BIS email setup, but was unable to. We gave up, eventually, and I logged into my Sprint BIS to show her the filters I was able to set up to ensure that Gmail sent items didn't show up on my Blackberry.
When I logged in, I noticed that it asked me for my PIN and ESN--that was new. I figured it was something new, so I went ahead and input my ESN (the PIN was already filled in.) I didn't realize that the PIN entered for me was not my PIN. As a result, I accidentally associated my Sprint account with her Verizon Blackberry... and she started getting my emails. All my registered email accounts showed up on her BB Pearl. Awkward.
I logged back into Sprint BIS and moved things to my device, but the email icons are still on her BB's screen... So we're going to wait and see if she keeps getting my emails.
Interesting phenomenon. Moving email accounts across carriers and BIS accounts.
Terminator Salvation
Saw Terminator Salvation in the theater yesterday. I love all the previous Terminator movies, and this one didn't disappoint.
Set in the future, Terminator Salvation was a CGI junkie's dream come true. The timeline of John Connor vs. Kyle Reese was entertaining, and the machines were incredibly well done. Even Arnold (or a CGI version of him) made an appearance.
There were a few lines that made everyone in the theater laugh, and action scenes that kept us riveted. Definitely one to see in the theaters if you get a chance.
My rating: A
Grudge 3
I'm a fan of the original Grudge movie. It gave me the willies--something about the dead girl crawling in jerky spasms across the floor while making that noise...
The second Grudge movie was okay, but didn't creep me out as well as the first. It was just kind of ho-hum for me.
Sadly, The Grudge 3 was just as mundane. There were a couple parts that raised the hairs on my arms, but for the most part it was about as creepy as Barney the Purple Dinosaur. Scratch that--Barney IS creepy.
That said, it's still worth watching. It goes in my list of movies to put on when I need some background noise for another task--like cleaning the living room, working on the computer, folding clothes, etc.
My rating: C-
|
|