iPad – Our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price. — Apple

On January 27th, Apple finally announced their long anticipated “tablet device” called the iPad. While iSlate, iTablet, or even the rehashed iBook would have been good choices, iPad is fine I guess. I would like to see Apple drop the “i” prefix one of these days however.

As expected, the fit and finish of the device is amazing. In keeping with their recent designs, the iPad sports a unibody aluminum back plate and the front is all glass. I’m sure it really feels great in-hand, and I know the glass surface is going to be super-silky smooth to the touch. For the materials, I give an A+. You can’t get any better in my opinion.

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It’s a new year, and I am using a new online backup solution. This time, it’s CrashPlan. So far, so good… but the year is still young.

I’ve tried a handful of different companies, from Amazon S3, Carbonite, Mozy, JungleDisk, to my MobileMe account via iDisk. So far, CrashPlan is the only one with zero issues. All the others I mentioned had some limitation. CrashPlan is also the most widely available, having versions for use with MacOS, Windows, Linux, and even the Solaris operating system. It’s FREE to try and definitely worth it. It’s only $54.00/year for unlimited storage, which makes it the cheapest service out there.

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I’m not talking about the Ken Kesey variety, but the web standards test that grades web browsers based on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript compatibility. This test is called The Acid3 Test and you can try to pass it if you dare.

From the Acid3 website:

To pass the test, a browser must use its default settings, the animation has to be smooth, the score has to end on 100/100, and the final page has to look exactly, pixel for pixel, like this reference rendering.

I’ve taken the time to test some of the modern, popular web browsers. Some scores may or may not surprise you. If you have any doubt, take the test yourself.

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I’ve had my MacBook Pro 17-inch for a bit over two years now. It is a great computer and still works fine. Aside from the letters “a” and “c” falling off from the bezel, turning the computer into a “M– Book Pro,” a couple of the cushion pads on the bottom falling off, a ding on the back side, some light scratching and a dead pixel, the computer works just like it did on day one. Well almost, the fans tend to run more often now.

However, I never purchased Apple Care protection, so basically it’s living on borrowed time. One catastrophe, such as the logic board going, and I’m out a computer. So I’ve been recently thinking about replacing it with another MacBook Pro. And I’m happy to say that I finally did. I purchased the computer yesterday at the Providence Place Apple retail store, in Providence, Rhode Island.

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I’m always looking for new (and easier) ways to make backup copies of my data. And if you aren’t, you’d better start. All it takes is one catastrophe for years of your data to go poof. Un-fun times.

My backup strategy has ranged from making cloned copies of my drive, to using Apple’s Time Machine software and their Time Capsule hardware, to backing up files on DVDs. All are good, but just as in real estate, it’s all about LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION!

Often, the problem is that all of our backups are stored in the same location. This exposes the data to the possibility of fire or theft. Even with the best backup strategy, data stored in the same location offers as much insurance as not having any backups– and that’s pretty nill.

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I have an Apple iMac sitting on my floor. Not working. It’s making strange sounds upon startup. I get Kernel Panics every 10th reboot. The computer boots, but then shuts off after several minutes. If you restart it too many times within a short amount of time, you have shut it off for an hour before you can use it again. In short– it broke. I knew it wasn’t a RAM or logic board issue, so my job seemed targeted to a hard drive.

I had it up long enough to boot from my external drive and saw that the HDD is corrupted. I wasn’t able to repair the drive, even after booting from my external. I tried Drive Genius 2, but even that couldn’t see the drive. I wish I had Disk Warrior to try it out, but I don’t own that anymore. It was time to get to work.

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Over the last 48 hours, Apple has removed, then put back up, then removed the iPhone application NetShare. NetShare, developed by Nullriver Software, is a tethering application, which basically lets you use your iPhone as a modem, and gives your PC internet access when none is available. Since the iPhone internet access via it’s Edge and 3G networks, one can always have an internet connection for their computer, even when no wi-fi access is in range. Of course, this isdependenton your wireless connection.

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You heard it here first… I am coining the phrase “Dumb Rational & Mentality” as referring to DRM, or digital rights management. I was able to break my eBook DRM without even trying. Without any tools except a print dialog box. How sad.

I am taking an online course this semester, and one of the requirements was purchasing an eBook. I have never purchased one, and found that the software I need to use it was Digital Editions, by Adobe. So I downloaded the free software, then bought the book ($14.95), and indeed I was able to read my digital book.

The software didn’t look all that great, it was functional and let me read my book. Lack of zoom features were something I noticed right off the bat and it’s unintuitive scroll bars never let me jump “to here” as do most scroll bars for applications that I use. Anyway, it worked.

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With the release of iPhone 2.0 firmware, applications can now be run on the iPhone (legally). One app I love and see room for even more functionality is the remote control app, released by Apple. It allows you to control your Apple TV library and iTunes library. Once your library is added, you can visually see a list of all content, and can choose it just as you would when watching on your iPhone, except when hitting play, it will play on your source (Apple TV / iTunes Player).

I was hoping for a full replacement of the current Apple remote, but there is no option to replace the buttons found on the Apple remote, specifically the menu, play, and directional buttons (volume up/down, rewind/forward). So as it is now, I have to use my “real” remote if I want to move around in the menu system of the Apple TV, such as changing preferences or searching. I was really hoping to be able to search YouTube much easier on my Apple TV. Hopefully the next version will bring all my wants to the app.

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Let’s see if I can get this straight. Release the long-awaited iPhones 2.0 software, new iTunes software, launch the MobileMe service, and have a bunch of new (and old) iPhone customers signing up for service… all on the same day… all at the same time.

To put it nicely, it was a nightmare.

Welcome To The (NOT) Working Week

I woke up at 5:00 am, feeling refreshed. I usually don’t get up until 7:00 am, so this was early. Maybe it was because I was anticipating the long awaited iPhone 2.0 firmware and the MobileMe launch. I already updated my iTunes and MobileMe software, so all I was waiting for was iPhone 2.0. From about 7:00 am until 8:00 am, I was in the Apple Discussion forums, talking with all the anxious users. It was almost like a sporting event. I had the TV on in the background and they were broadcasting live from the Apple store in New York City. I was getting more excited by the minute. ETA for 2.0 was 8:00 am. It was one minute to go.

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