For Gadget Geeks and Wanna-Be's

I am a time management junkie. That doesn't mean that I spend endless amounts of time tweaking and re-tweaking my calendar, task list, etc. (ok, I only spend a shitload of time doing those things--but all in the service of being more efficient, I swear!), but it does mean that I require that my time management gadget is effective, easy-to-use, and versatile. The iPhone addicts out there will be laughing at me in a second, but I don't care, because really, the PalmOS offers the most effective time management/calendaring functions of anything, and I mean anything, I've seen out there.

I'm a diehard MacPerson, and my purchased-in-2005-Powerbook-G4 is my most valued piece of property, but I'm sorry, iCal does not help me be productive. It's confusing, doesn't let you make tasks into events (crucial if you are serious about managing your time well), and on and on. Outlook, Entourage--pah. PalmOS' old school calendar, with tasks that you can categorize by color and name, which also match categories for your events (in iCal you have to create different calendars to do this, Jeez!), and which you can sort by date due and priority level, beats them all.

My personal gadgetry is, by modern US standards (especially in the Bay Area where it seems like everyone has a Blackberry, iPhone or other SmartPhone) pretty old school: I have a year-and-a-half-old Palm Handheld Zire (one of the last Palm non-phone PDAs) for my calendar, tasks, and many of my contacts, and a mid-level Samsung phone for Sprint that is good for calling and texting, which is mostly what I do with it. I don't even have an iPod or MP3 player. What a luddite, eh?

Now, I am enough of a technology-geek that I would like to have the all-in-one capability of a SmartPhone, but so far I haven't been able to give up the efficiency and ease of PalmOS for the cool slickness of an iPhone. Lately, though, with my consulting practice ramping up and my related need to be more mobile (conference calls, email from a cafe, not wanting to always have to lug my laptop around with me), I've been craving the convenience of one gadget over two. The frustrating thing is that I haven't been able to find what I really need--time management, WiFi, email capability, a reliable browser, a solid way to sync my contacts--all in one device. If anything, the more reviews I've read about what's out there and what people are using, I've realized some people who are as addicted as I am to efficient gadgetry are STILL using more than one device because the all-in-ones just really aren't that. I personally know at least two people who actually use a SmartPhone and a PAPER calendar! That says something about the time management (in)capability of the SmartPhones out on the market.

My search for the perfect SmartPhone, of course, began with the iPhone, since I am a MacGirl and am devoted to the brand (sick and twisted for a woman who claims to be anti-capitalist, but true). But like I said before, iCal wasn't gonna cut it for me, and even the seemingly powerfuly app OmniFocus didn't seem to be what I wanted. I want tasks+calendar, not tasks in one place, calendar in another. It's the bedrock of how I manage my life!

Blackberries never appealed to me because of the difficulty people I knew seemed to have with syncing it to their Macs. Since I've worked on Macs at home AND at work (I know, lucky me, eh?) for more than a decade now, it really wasn't an option to have a SmartPhone that wasn't Mac-friendly.

So then, I got all excited when the Palm Pre came out earlier this summer. Actually, I got excited about it way back in late 2008 when I first heard about it. Palm's answer to the iPhone, it claimed to take the best of Palm and take it another level with very conceptually coolSynergy, the new WebOS platform, cut-and-paste, 3G and very pretty design to boot. But after playing with it at the Sprint store a few times, I was greatly disappointed that it also didn't have a good calendaring/time management system. And I know I'm not the only one thinking, 'WTF, Palm?'

There may be hope, though, in MotionApps' new PalmOS emulator app. I need to check it out to make a final assessment, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Being that Palm has been my go-to time management device-source for nearly a decade now, I decided to check out the Centro, and although I still need to go play with it a little bit more, I think I my have found what I'm looking for. As the article linked above shows, the PalmOS is indeed soon going to be a thing of the past, but I hope that Palm listens to its loyal, highly-efficient base of customers, and integrates some of the features we loved from the old platform into a new calendaring app for the new WebOS.

When that happens, I will gladly buy a Pre--but only if Apple and Palm kiss and makeup so that Apple will stop blocking iTunes syncing for the Pre, and other such capitalistic, proprietary nonsense.

For now, I'm probably gonna stay closer to the old-school camp and finally get a SmartPhone--a PalmOS-based Centro with email and web capability. At $50 (after rebate, since I'm already a Sprint customer), I really can't go wrong. Or if the PalmOs emulator app works well on the Pre and I can have my PalmOS and WebOS at the same time--that could be the true definition of gadget-geek-joy!

Rethinking my Blog Existence, Again

It's that time of year again, when, after a good few months' worth of not posting on this blog, I question whether I should still keep it. I've been bandying about ideas of other, more specific and less individual-centered blogs with different folks--a blog about Oakland, a blog about fundraising and nonprofits, a writing blog (which does exist but is currently set to private)--and am wondering if I really need to keep an individual blog at this point, or whether to narrow the focus of this blog so that it's not so vague.

I should say that when I started this blog several years ago, it was really just an experiment, an 'I'll-try-this-thing-and-see-how-it-goes' thing, and I never thought this particular blog would've lasted this long. It's had it's ups and downs as far as readership, content quality and posting frequency, that's for sure, but it's served its purpose for me and made me realize that on some level, blogging is now a part of my life.

I think it's interesting that some colleagues of mine who are of the Baby Boomer generation look to me for advice and a certain perspective on all things high-tech, in large part due to this blog and my more consistent presence on Facebook. It's actually funny to me that they see me this way, actually, because I don't think of myself as super-technologically savvy compared to my Millenial counterparts. In any case, my life has become much more oriented around the Internet than I ever thought it would be, even a few years ago, and this blog has been a significant part of that.

More soon about my recent retreat/residency at Windcall in Washington State last month, which was a big part of my overall reflective mode these days.

And Now for Something Completely Different...and Geeky

I have to say that I was excited about the iPhone when it came out, although not excited enough to actually go and buy one. Even when the second version came out, no biting from this hard-core functionality girl-geek. I need my technology to not only be pretty, but be extremely functional. That said, I am also a dyed-in-the-wool (i don't know what that phrase really means but it somehow feels right to use it here) Mac-head, as the first real home computer I ever used was my uncle's old Macintosh with the black and beige-ish floppy disk drive that I used to play video games on when I was a kid. The biggest single purchase I've ever made was of the beautiful (yes, I said beautiful) and highly functional 15" aluminum Powerbook G4 that I'm typing on right now. And yes, my beautiful laptop has a name, but I'm not telling you what it is.

So my Mac credentials are firmly established. At the same time, I have been using a Palm handheld organizer device of some kind for the past four years or so. I find them extremely handy and useful, and practical, not to mention cheap. So despite my lust for the iPhones--which was tempered and cooled by the fact that AT&T's service plan for it cost a good $99 per month--I stuck with my handy-but-not-at-all-fancy Zire, with my handy-bu-even-less-fancy Samsung Sprint cell phone as my mobile communication tool.

But now, all bets are off. Because Palm has out-Mac'd Mac with the new Pre, a mobile device that seems to do everything I liked about the iPhone and then some. The iPhone is pretty and has some cool, interesting apps which are completely useless as time management or practical tools (yeah it's cool that you can find the name of a song just by putting your iPhone up to the stereo as it's played, but really, I'd rather have system-wide cut-and-paste functionality!), but the Pre is just a better work horse. Of course, this is a new gadget and there will most likely be many bugs to be worked out, but I have to say, I'm geekin' out over here.

All Out for Obama

If you didn't get to see the Obama-Biden campaign's fancy, well-produced $4 million commercial last night--which was brilliant, brilliant, brilliant--you can watch it here, courtesy of the campaign itself.

I've been too busy lately working and trying to do a little bit of elections work that I don't have time for a lengthy blog post, but let me just make a few key points about the Obama campaign:

-It's probably the smartest Presidential campaign I've witnessed in my lifetime. The campaign's use of technology to reach not just young voters but all voters (and non-voters! which is even more crucial this year) with their messages is fascinating and brilliant (there's that word again). If you don't believe me then log on to BarackObama.com and find out for yourself.

-He's running a tight, well-oiled grassroots campaign. Just read an on-the-ground report from Colorado If the packed Obama East Bay headquarters I saw last weekend are any indication, there's no doubt Obama will win the popular vote (of course, the Republicans and far-right fanatics will do everything they can to make sure that vote isn't counted properly, as they did in 2000 and 2004). But even more than that, his campaign's slogan in these past few days has been 'Run through the tape', meaning don't get overconfident and cocky. I think this is more than inspiring rhetoric--it's a way to make sure that Obama wins by an undisputable landslide in as many states as possible--who ever heard of Montana, North Dakota and North Carolina becoming Democratic swing states?--so that his opponents won't be able to get away with stealing the election.

-His campaign's ability to utilize technology and grassroots organizing to fundraise from the bottom-up is simply astounding. ASTOUNDING. But also not rocket science. They ask, ask, ask (I think I get at least three emails a day asking for money), and they get, get, get. Who would've thought even a year ago that the first Black Presidential nominee-to-be would be able to afford to buy 30 minutes of airtime on four major networks during prime time? It's ridiculous and amazing and beautiful. And he did it mostly on donations of less than $250. Simple frickin' beautiful. I don't anyone to tell me anymore that poor people don't give money or that small donations don't matter. Obama has blown that argument clean out of the water for good.

-I'm so in awe of how poised, Presidential, sincere and compassionate Mr. Obama (I'd say 'President' but I don't want to jinx it) is in the ad, and in all of his media appearances. This is a man who's been called a Muslim (by the same people who decry his connection to Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who is the pastor of a Christian Church), a terrorist who cavorts with domestic terrorists, a baby-killer, a commie faggot, etc., and whose grandmother is extremely ill in the last few days leading up to the biggest day of his life, and he still manages to walk out into the limelight with the regal bearing that is his trademark. I did notice a slight indentation between his brows yesterday that I didn't notice before--perhaps a sign of human weakness, stress? But other than that, he has proven over and over again how ready he is to take office during probably one of the most difficult periods in United States history.

-Taking the moral high ground works. Obama never mentioned McCain or Palin or even the Republican party last night. It was clear he felt he didn't have to. He felt that telling his truth would be enough. Worked for me (and i wasn't even the intended audience for the ad). I have faith it will work for the rest of the people that still need to be convinced.

All out for Obama folks! H. and I will be phonebanking this weekend, and hopefully attending the marathon phonebanks slated to take place at Oakland's Marriott Convention Center. It'll be the happening place!

Part of the Matrix Again

I just got back from my writing retreat, and damn, I have to say that I am an Internet junkie, moreso than I thought I was. There was a wireless connection at the retreat center I was at, but it was a good 100 yard walk from my little cabin, and I was trying to wean myself from the addiction, so I only used it three times while I was there. But then again, I was only there for three days so I pretty much used it everyday. It's funny, because I pride myself on being a Gen-Xer who still knows how to ask for directions and use a (paper!) map versus relying on Mapquest or a GPS device, but I have to say that I'm disturbed by how dependent I feel on DSL. Ick.

Maybe I need to put myself on an Internet diet. My friend Julie Davidson-Gomez did this once and blogged about it. Sounds intriguing. I'm super-dependent on email at work, and because of how we're set up, with several offices all over the state, it would be pretty hard not to use email for a couple days, but on the weekends there really isn't a real reason for me to use the Internet. I mean, I could check my bank account balance via phone, I can actually CALL people---texting is sort of cheating, but technically isn't not email, right?--instead of emailing them, i could actually just use the phone to find out the hours of a certain store I want to go to. Remember that thing called a landline? Yes, I could actually even use one of those.

Hmph. It's an interesting concept. I'd like to play with it more. I am proud to say that without 24-hour access to an Internet connection I was able to get a lot done, including tons of writing, and still not feel very bored the rest of the time. I read a lot, I listened to music (okay, I didn't stop using my computer for things other than writing--that would be too much to ask!) and I actually paid attention to the little sounds of nature around me, and of course, to the quiet. That was so soothing to this stressed-out, over-stimulated city chick.

No promises now, but maybe in a week or so I'll try to 'unplug' just from the Internet for a couple days. We'll see how it goes.

Missing Pride...But Still Connected

I'm actually out of town (for like the forth time in a month) for a self-designed writing retreat. I'm really excited to be here--'here' being the Santa Cruz Mountains, which are still beautiful despite all the news about the big fires, and the redwood forest is as awe-inspiring as ever--and to give myself this gift of peace, quiet and time.

I am kinda bummed that doing this retreat this weekend--it made the most sense to do it this weekend because I had a board meeting in San Jose yesterday and Santa Cruz is just an hour south of there--meant I'd have to miss Gay Pride weekend back in Frisco. I haven't gone in a few years but I do try to go every once in a while. The big crowds can be a little draining, but there's no big festival in San Francisco (or the Bay Area, for that matter) that's as colorful and fun and crazy as Pride. Where else can you see leather daddies, dykes on bikes, gay families, straight-ish 'friends' (like me) and tons of trannies doing their thing in the middle of the street for all to see? It's also cute to see all the queer tourists that fly into the Bay Area for the big bash. They look almost like regular tourists--replete with cameras hanging from their necks and wearing those awful fleece sweatshirts in royal blue and gray that read 'San Francisco' above an embroidered image of the Golden Gate Bridge--but they're walking in pairs of women and pairs of men instead.

Oh well, another Pride, another year. I can always go next year. And since they have an internet connection here (although I have to walk a few hundred yards to access it, which is better as I'd get NO real writing done if I had access all the time), I can look at the photos from the parade and stuff on the San Francisco Chronicle's site. It seems like this year's pride would've been a lot bigger and more interesting because of the gay marriage decision by the Supreme Court, which is cool. Lots of wedding drag--as a blushing bride myself, I can dig it!