Snapped!

Wow!  I never noticed until today but Snap has been implemented in the latest version of WordPress.

It’s this simple.  If you haven’t already noticed.  You hover over an external link – such as this (my family website) and it displays a little wee thumbnail previewing that site.

It’s really useful because there are so many links out there you want to check-out, but to leave the flow of what you are reading is disruptive.

Now all we have to wait is for Snap to be integrated into RSS Newsreaders.

Nice, WordPress and Snap.   Thanks.

Wankword Motto of the Day…

We had a new recruit start at work the other day and I caught myself saying “As long as you’re having fun doing the things you love, you will be successful”.  I know it’s utterly wanky, but I believe it 110%.    Work should not have to feel like work.  Work should be fun.  And when it is, the best results happen.

Wankword Bingo anyone? Wow!  There’s even a Web2.0 version.

The iPhone: My Thoughts

My Oh My!  Has there been debate over this sexy little monster, the Apple iPhone, or what?

I downloaded the Macworld Keynote Address on video podcast and this gave a real good overview as to the capabilities of this device.  You’ve likely heard most of my comments echoed by others, but here goes anyway.  In no particular order:

• It is very sexy indeed
• I am festiduous in keeping my video iPod clean, this iPhone is gonna tip me over the edge – remember I don’t touch the screen of my video iPod!
• Lack of 3G is a bit disappointing, but then 3G in NZ is so bloody expensive anyway does this really matter?  After all, the size of a general email is small.
• 4GB or 8GB won’t make this thing big enough for my insatiable appetite for music and video – therefore until this changes it will not eliminate a device.  I used to have a 4GB iPod mini, and I soon learnt that wasn’t enough.
• It only syncs with Exchange if you have enabled IMAP (which most businesses do not) – so that might alienate some of the business community who provide Telecom and Vodafone 3G devices to their staff on mass.
• The visual voicemail is a bit of a wanky term, but the idea is great.  However, we have to hope that Vodafone (and Telecom should the iPhone ever do CDMA), play ball.  Else it’s crap.
• Google Maps is great but boy does it chew bandwidth (I’ve tried it on the Palm and hit my 3G limit after 5 minutes!)
• The way you resize photos is simply astounding.  Beautifully simple.
• The SMS text conversation is just.. erm.. obvious
• Shame it’s a closed platform.  Kind of.  You’ll still be able to buy official Apple software for it (a la iPod games)
• Who gives a shit what it’s called?

To summarise, there’s been so much debate on this thing it is not funny.

It IS a wonderful device, and it IS a step above everything else currently out there.  Just download the keynote and watch it.  You’ll go “Wow, it’s kinda cool!’.  If I had a dollar for everytime Monsieur Jobs said that.

One thing is for certain, I will end up buying one.  Why?  Because it’s just so bloody sexy.

RSS on the Box!

 

Without wanting to sound the blogging echo chamber too much, I heard the other day that Sony were releasing an IPTV module to go with their new sexxxyyyy looking Bravias.  RSS feeds on your big mutha widescreen!  Awesome.  Check out Gizmodo for more.

It’s a good job that more and more New Zealand websites are providing RSS feeds.  I can’t quite believe that it’s still yet to really take off here yet.

Finally.

Ninety Days with a Mac

It’s now been ninety days since I bought my shiny new iMac. 

However, I’m relegated to the sofa using the old cruddy NEC laptop we’ve had for years.  The missus comandeers the Mac in the evening.  It’s hers.

When I first got the iMac, I was trembling with eager anticipation.  I had toyed with Macs before and had wet myself over the demos that the ‘Mac’ites at Weta Digital were giving me.  But to be honest, my first impressions were slightly disappointing.  I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it was kind of just another PC.

Or so I thought.

For some reason I can’t quite put my finger on, our iMac has become part of the furniture.  My wife and I don’t see it as a computer.  It’s now almost a lifestyle thing.  You don’t notice you’re using a computer.  It’s just so easy to use.  Typing this blog entry on my laptop feels like I’m on one of those manual typewriters.  It’s just not as much fun.  I can’t pinpoint it 100%, but using a Mac just “feels” better.  And that counts for a lot in the subconscience.

It comes with a warning though – you will fight over who gets the use the Mac. 

On the plus side, the missus knows what to get me for my birthday – a MacBook Pro!!