Posts tagged Mobile
The iPhone – One Month Later
0I switched from my trusted Blackberry to an iPhone about a month ago. It was not a change that 
undertook lightly. It was made after using Blackberries for years. I was proficient at that platform and very productive on it. One month later, I cannot believe that it took me three generations of the Apple platform to switch. The difference is night and day, in a good way.
I will sum it up this way: I had hundreds of moments with my Blackberry where all that I wanted to do was through it at a wall and be done with it… in the past month, I have had hundreds of times when I actually wanted to pickup my iPhone and use it. Yup, it is that simple. The Blackberry was always getting in the way and the iPhone makes work feel like fun.
Now, I am not simply a love struck Apple puppy here. There are certainly a number of features of my Blackberry that I sorely miss and wish were imitated on the iPhone. There are:
- Rapid Navigation. The BB trackball is a masterpiece of productivity. You would think that being able to touch the entire screen would speed up navigation, but it does not. I miss the ability to rapidly get to a place in text.
- Spell Checking the MS Office Way. Both the iPhone and BB have competent spell checkers. The difference is that it is a background feature on the Apple and a foreground one on the BB. You cannot evoke it with the iPhone. I miss the comfort of knowing that my email has been checked.
- Speed Dialing. Not sure why, but my BB could dial a phone number with all those silly codes after it to access a voicemail system in about a millisecond. The iPhone seems to dial at a snail’s pace.
On the other hand, there have been a number of features of the iPhone that have pushed my productivity to places that my BlackBerry never dreamed of. A few big ones are:
- Web Development. I can easily create blog posts and administer this website from my iPhone. No way that was going to occur on the BB.
- Browser Activity. The browser on the iPhone is web standard and as capable as my desktop. The one on the BB is barely usable. Anything that I can do at my desk, I can do on the iPhone. That includes shopping, email, web documents, and R&D. Yesterday, while I was at the mall, I passed time waiting by buying the next four gifts I needed, researching a project for work, and catching up with article reading from two industry publications. Not possible before.
- Applications. The applications for the iPhone are obviously famous, but from an Information Technology Professional perspective, they are simply amazing. The ability to expand the mobile tool to fit any need within the time that it takes to think of it is a liberating experience. Yesterday alone, I made it become an alarm clock, convert units, shop eBay, and manage my Netflix queue. Tomorrow, I am sure that I will come up with three more uses and find three more solutions in the Apple App Store.
Overall, I am obviously very happy with this switch. It is too bad, too, because I really like my Blackberries. Honestly, it feels like they gave up innovating about three years ago and have been coasting since then. I really don’t understand why they did not innovate through duplication after the iPhone came out. The writing was on the wall on the way the mobile space was moving and I do not see why no one else followed. At one month, I am very pleased with my switch to the iPhone. I suspect that readers of this blog would be equally better served as well.
What do you think about this topic? Do you agree or disagree with me? What mobile do you use? Please share your ideas below.
That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for February 15, 2010 by Scott Coughlin.
Image Credit: Weekly Reader
Do You Want Your Own iPhone App?
0On somedays I offer comments on some of the most interesting information technology stories that I have found on the web that week. Please feel free to join in the discussion or suggest other stories.
I think that one of the defining characteristics of this chapter of the Information Age is the empowerment of your average computer user. People have easy access to unbelievable computing power, unlimited customization of software, scrawling mobile communication capabilities, and near zero cost for it all. The Apple iPhone is simply one of the best examples of all of this wrapped up in a single product. Today, Mashable.com brings us the story of this trend going to the next level. It is now possible for an untrained computer user to become an iPhone application developer for only $25 and their time! Please read on:
Mashable.com – Create Your Own iPhone or Android App in Minutes With iSites
“Creating a self-branded iPhone or Android app just got a lot more accessible.
iSites, a new service launching today, allows you to take your website’s RSS feed and data and quickly transform it into a full-fledged iPhone app. It was created by Genwi, a service that combines aspects of RSS reader, social network and news filter (read our review here).”
This story and the company behind it simply blew me away. Image being able to couple the power of the iPhone, the customization of your or your organization’s own application, and ubiquitous cellular 3G and WiFi access! I suspect that this will user in a second gold rush of users for the platform and transform the mobile application market in unexpected ways. Huge news with huge implications for all information technology professionals for sure.
I think that it is time for me to get an iPhone! You had better believe that there will be an Information Technology Thought of the Day iPhone app coming your way soon!
What do you think about this topic? Do you agree or disagree with me? Do you have a recommended news story for next week? Please share your ideas below.
That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for January 21, 2010 by Scott Coughlin.
Image Credit: rfSearch
News Commentary: The Opportunity Cost Of Texting
2On Sundays I offer comments on some of the most interesting information technology stories that I have found on the web that week. Please feel free to join in the discussion or suggest other stories.
Today, Gizmodo, the awesome technology gadget website has a wonder article discussing the amazing amount of time and energy that teenagers put into text messaging, or texting. Please give it a read here –
Gizmodo- Texting Is the Scourge Of This Generation
Obviously, there are many factors at play here, but I became enamored by their analysis of amazing amount of time that teens put into this. Essentially, their point is that teens spend an incredible amount of time texting and write quite a few page equivalents worth every month doing it. I especially like their comparisons to the number of novels that these same teens could generate per year with the length of their texts. For us Enterprise Information Technology Professionals, though, I believe that the real thought piece is what the opportunity cost of these activities are for our users.
On one hand, it is tempting to think that writing 80,000 words worth of text messages is a complete waste of time and a productivity killer. On the other, though, I believe is a much more promising outlook. First of all, time will get filled somehow. If not texting then what other activity will fill the void? Personally, I think that having people communicate, regardless of the means, is better than mindless TV watching or Internet surfing. Also, I am sure that some of this texting is being done for efficiency purposes, like I text. I know that I can accomplish more with 2-3 text messages than I can with a five minute phone call. The elimination of the expectation of pleasantries, openings, and closings alone makes it 50% more effective or more.
My opinion, is that I really like this article. It is a good thought stirrer. I am not very concerned though, because I think that more vice less might actually be getting done by these same people because of texting. They are text messaging, not becoming involved in worse activities, and by its very nature, texting gets things done.
What do you think about this topic? Do you agree or disagree with me? Do you have a recommended news story for next week? Please share your ideas below.
That is my Information Technology Thought of the Day (ITTOD) for February 14, 2010 by Scott Coughlin.
Image Credit: Sprout