Blackberry hour-glass

Ok - I think it's a plan to slowly tip me over the edge. :) It started innocently enough, every now and then. I would pick up my crack berry and I would have to wait to log in to my phone due to an hour glass. WAIT!! I just said "Wait to LOG INTO my PHONE". Ok, that alone is a little weird, but really not the point of this post (thanks enterprise security). The issue at hand is that the wait time seems to keep getting longer, no matter what I try. When I need to use my phone, check email, etc... I want it to WORK! Ok - I had to get that off my chest. Now, anyone have any suggestions to make the hourglass not show up as regularly?

When it works, it is a good device, but I want it to work! I am going to start carrying 2 phones, one for personal use and one for work since I have to keep the blackberry for work. I am thinking the Droid X will be the next phone. mmmmmm Droid goodness, I can't wait!

Blackberry v iPhone

In today's issue of CIO, there is an article on the Blackberry v iPhone debate. Essentially the claim is that the Blackberry in all it's forms is dying (or dead depending on whom you ask) and the iPhone is the new king in town. I imagine the Android crew have an opinion on that as well - the story mentions the iPhone app store as the key to keeping the Android at bay but having used both, I think that's a weak defense. Read the article for yourself and see what you think.

Goodbye BlackBerry: Future Belongs to iPhone

The Apple iPhone changed the mobile game in less than three years. Apple continues to make improvements that resonate with consumers, who are gaining more control over technology in the enterprise. I've seen nothing from RIM that shows it can reverse this tide.
By Tom Kaneshige on Wed, May 12, 2010

Kindle for the Blackberry

It's here! Those of you (few) who have read my posts for a long time will remember my reference to this while I was waiting at the Y for my wife to finish getting ready, and looking for something to read with only my blackberry in my pocket. I have the Kindle and the iPod touch app for Kindle reading, but I am almost never without my Blackberry since it's my connection to the corporate borg... (pitiful, right?)
Now I can use my BB in a pinch to read books, picking up where I left off on one of the other apps. Well done and nicely executed. Now - to get my hands on the 3G / WiFi iPad or something in that family. ;)

Gadget lifestyle

While traveling this summer, I had a funny realization - my life (especially on the road) has been taken over by electronics. I was in Europe at an airport - I think it was in Budapest on my way out of Hungary, but it may have been Germany - too many airports on that trip. I passed my backpack into the scanner and they kept running back and forth. It turns out, I had it packed too densely with electronics to scan properly. Who knew?

I have learned to rely on a few key gadgets and some new ones as well. Topping the revised new list are my kindle eBook reader and my Zune music player for entertainment, my HP Tablet PC for keeping up with all things internet and such, the Nikon D-90 for capturing a photo record of the fun and my Garmin GPS to help me find my way. My Blackberry Tour keeps me in touch and connected to the internet both on the device and with Tether mode.
Of course, for power, you need the whole assortment - the international travel adapter kit, the power supplies for the notebooks. I usually have 2 there. The charger for the camera and cables to charge the Zune, Phone and Kindle along with a universal plug, an extension cord since hotel plugs are not always convenient. For mobile power, I have an inverter with a plug that adapts to fit the car or plane.

All this gadgetry makes life a little more fun, but takes up space. I typically keep this collection and a little more in my backpack when traveling and have had to learn to pack creatively to make it fit without jamming up the xray machines. The key is modular and layers like a cake or lasagna. mmmmm speaking of food - there needs to be a few goodies in there as well. I am particularly fond of the Starbucks Via packets for a quick pick me up.

Blackberry development

So my blackberry 8330 died a sad death at the best of times, while traveling. It is amazing how much I had come to rely on that device. I use it for online access, tether mode for my laptop, calendar, etc... I went directly to the Verizon store on returning home, and was told the device was hosed, so time to upgrade. The new device is the 9630 World Edition and so far, I am impressed and pleased. That said, I feel a strange need to play with the SDK, or at least get started with the Plazmic CDK.

A quick internet search led me to the blackberry site and their sdk. The link required registration to download but you can find it here. Once you install the base application, you need to run the update as well.

Once I get the install finished and see how it works, I will update with a new post. In the meantime, keep your fingers crossed on the install since I am running Windows 7 and it is not listed as supported - probably due in part to the fact that Windows 7 has not been generally released yet.

cross posted from my digital vision site as well.