Category Archives: Technology

The truth will set you free, but more lies might piss off your customers.

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On Friday, Sprint had posted that an over the air update was available for download, though requesting the file wasn’t successful. I checked again Monday, only to find that the update had been removed. This was the long awaited Froyo (Android 2.2) update and it appeared to be up for an early test drive. Research later confirmed that was the case, but apparently sprint was only test-driving it. Leaked Sprint documents confirmed the details of this process.

I broke chat on the sprint site to see if the download was still available anywhere. I got one rep who knew nothing about it and another who insisted that he couldn’t give me their findings in the test run, but the official launch date of the application was pushed beyond the originally expected launch date of today. Well, today I got the update, as scheduled by Sprint’s early plan. It’s great that I have the application, but I’m getting really tired of Sprint’s customer service lying to it’s customers. Which is better? Lying to get the customer off the phone, or simply telling the truth and stating “We’re not allowed to comment on that, as it has not been released to the public yet.”.

Apple Announces iPad G2

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Remember January 27, 2010? That was the day that Apple changed the way we use personal computers with the release of the first generation iPad. Aside from it’s shortcomings, I bought one. I’ve suffered with it’s lack of storage and limited uses, but now that apple has announced the iPad G2, things are looking up. features of the iPad G2 include:

  • Unlocked with capability to use both GSM and CDMA networks.
  • Supports G3 and G4 Speeds (where available)
  • SD Card Slot accepts SD/SDHC/SDXC cards for expansion
  • Dual 5 Megapixel cameras (One on rear, one on front)
  • Built-in Microphone
  • LED LCD replaced with Easier-on-the-eyes active color display
  • Multitasking Capability Added 7:11 PM

It’s a shame it took this long for apple to identify the shortcomings of its device, but the iPad G2 is definitely the correct answer to the first generation iPad.

I’m kind of surprised that Apple released what seem like no more than a 9.7 inch iPod touch with such limited expandability. I am looking forward to what other manufacturers come up with to compete with Apple. Hopefully we’ll see some of (or all of) the features I mentioned integrated into a comparably performing low cost tablet. Ironically, I’ve seen $400-500 web/application tablets released 5 or more years in the past and they all seemed to have disappeared. I wonder, If they had Apple’s reputation and marketing strength behind them back then, what would we be seeing today?

Windows 7: Pin Folders to the Start Menu

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In the same way people spread the word if they find good mobile phone deals, I will be sharing customization tricks for Windows 7 to make it a more personal experience.

I’ve started playing with the Release Candidate of Windows 7 in anticipation of receiving my copy in October, so here’s a relatively simple registry hack to enable Windows 7 to pin Folders (and Libraries) to the start menu:

1. Open the Registry Editor (regedit) *NOTE* Don’t screw up your registry! Mistakes can make your PC inoperable!

2. Navigate to:  HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT \ Folder \ ShellEx \ ContextMenuHandlers

3. Right-click on ContextMenuHandlers and select NEW and then KEY

4. name the key, {a2a9545d-a0c2-42b4-9708-a0b2badd77c8}

That’s it! Now to pin a Folder to the start menu, hold down the SHIFT key while you right-click on the folder and you’ll see the option to Pin to Start Menu available. Note that this will not work for some special or system folders.

Facebook Discriminates Against Web-saavy Users

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Since it’s inception, I have had an account on Facebook. Over the years, it has grown to be one of the best social networking sites available. It’s users range from teens to adults, but a recent move by Facebook is going to upset a small portion of it’s users, the technically advanced users.

My email address is admin[at]jaypoc[dot]com, and has been for close to (if not more than) ten years. I have maintained this address as my personal email address and is the address that friends and colleagues know to contact me and/or search for me on social networking sites. A few weeks ago, I signed on to Facebook and saw a message stating “Our systems have detected that [email protected] is no longer a valid email. Facebook requires all users to maintain an active contact email.“.

It asked me to enter a new email address or re-confirm the same one, but would not allow me to reconfirm my valid email. I searched their help for a reason this was happening. It took a while to find it, but I located this absurd statement:

“Unfortunately we do not support email addresses with generic prefixes (e.g. info@, webmaster@ etc.). Since email addresses of this nature are typically used for organizations and businesses, we do not allow them to be used for personal Facebook accounts. You will need to use a personal email address that does not contain this type of prefix. There are no exceptions to this rule.”

Sure, Email addresses of that nature COULD be used for organizations and businesses, but only if the domain name is  owned by an organization or business. I own a PERSONAL WEB-SITE and have a PERSONAL domain name, so it’s only fitting that [email protected] is me. Facebook ignorantly refuses to accept that an individual could have their own domain name or web-site. Unfortunately, Creating a “valid” name according to Facebook’s statement would require me to reconfigure my mail server with additional aliases or email addresses. While a trivial task, none of my colleagues, friends, or family will know this new “facebook-compliant” address. How would they search for me? The simple answer is that they would not be able to. The basic functionality of Facebook, bringing people together, would be lost because of their closed-minded opinion that a domain name can not belong to an individual.

The fact remains that my email address is what it is. I will not change it for Facebook. If they want to kick me off of their system, then that’s what will happen. I will become a victim of discrimination not because of my religion or skin color, but because email address (while valid) doesn’t conform to their standards.

Sprint PCS, Ugh

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If you haven’t read my previous post, Sprint PCS, For better or for worse!, you may want to review it again. I just received my fourth replacement phone. I was less than amused (though not shocked) to find the keypad defective on this one as well. This time some of the keys were hyper-sensitive and would double or tripple up when pressed. Others wouldn’t work at all unless I used additional pressure. I was given a new option this time which I’m skeptical about, but if the deal is honored, will be acceptable. Sprint offered to reimburse me the amount of the deductible.