iPhone Application Review: Dub – No More Business Cards

Sick and tired of a fat wallet due to all the business cards that you need to carry? Want to stop wasting trees and harming the environment? Just want to make yourself look cool and use sweet new technology? If you answered yes to any of the above questions, or simply want a much easier way to exchange business information, then I have the perfect iPhone application for you.



Dub is a new application that is, essentially, a business card on your phone. You can swap phone numbers with clients, give your email address to new buyers, and even update your information on the fly, with the new changes automatically being sent to your contacts. Dub is available on most smart phones (Blackberry, iPhone, Android, etc.) and can also be used by most texting phones. You can use it to sync data to your contact list, send group invites, and it is even integrated with Facebook and Linkedin. Dub updates the business cards to the new millennia.

Dub is actually quite simple to learn and use. When you download the application, you are able to immediately start to edit your contact information. Enter you name, phone number, email, addresse, IM program name, etc. and you are done. Everything has an easy box to fill in and is extremely easy to do. You don’t even need to fill everything in; just enter the information that you want others to see. Once you get all of this done, you can send invites (give your card to somebody) by entering an email address. Others can do the same (giving you their card) by entering yours. Everything is quite easy to use.

I really like how easy the application is to use. With everything in nice, neat boxes, I quickly was able to enter my information and jump to the next spot. This is essential in any application that needs this much data, as otherwise it would be tedious and pointless. Along with this, the overall layout and feel of the application helped me use it. By being formatted for the iPhone, Dub felt smooth and well polished. I was able to use the easy navigation buttons, and the scroll lists were a huge plus. By making it feel natural, it only makes it easier to use; this, in turn, then leads to more people using it.

Another thing that I like about Dub is the fact that it is integrated with almost everything. I can have things automatically update to my twitter, sync with my Outlook, and work within Linkedin. Heck, it even is integrated with Facebook. Even nicer, Dub allows me to automatically update all of my contact information from Gmail, Outlook, iMail, etc. Features like this help the transition users to the new technology, as Dub does everything automatic and quickly. Hopefully this will help to expand the use of Dub, as that will help it even more.

On the other hand, there are a few problems with Dub. For starters, there are not many people using the software. While I believe that it will grow in the future, any and all startups start quite slowly, and gradually build their base. Dub is no different, but that actually harms the application. While I can get and send contact info, which is changeable, to fellow Dub users, most people I get in contact with will not have the application. How am I supposed to get rid of business cards if most of my clients still use them, and have yet to update. While this is not their fault, until more people jump on the Dub bandwagon, it will be hard to replace business cards with new technology.

Another thing that I am concerned about is the fact that I can only have one profile. I am a writer for Blogcritics, a blogger, a sportwriter, an intern, a student, and a campaign worker. With 5 jobs, each with corresponding contact information, how am I supposed to fit them all on this application? Dub only has spot for one URL, one e-mail, etc. and so it is not that conducive for people with multiple contact needs, and anything like that. I hope that DubMeNow is able to come up with mulitprofile method that allows you to have information for all of your different needs. This would further the application, and make it much more useful.

Overall, I believe that Dub is a nice step towards modernizing our business communications. By linking with everything that we use, making it easy, and ensuring that updates are quick and automatic, Dub is striving to create a brand new niche for itself. I really like the application, and only have a few concerns about it; hopefully DubMeNow will be able to fix my concerns shortly. I believe that any and all business people should get Dub on their smart phones and use it instead of business cards. This saves the environment and makes life so much easier. Due to the ease of use, the automatic updates, and the immigration into everyday life, I believe that Dub is a highly important application that you should grab today.

Dub is available for free from the iPhone app store and is also available on most smart phones in America
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Update time, enjoy

So, I figured that it was time to update you guys on some posts I did in the past, and see how they have changed or altered our course. Some of these are just updates, others discuss how our posts were used, and some are just fun factoids.
Enjoy...



USG and their job: USG voted today to accept the semester switch. I am hoping that there is a legal way to stop it which will pop up soon (KADIM, where are you??). That said, my facebook group against it has grown by over 500 members since this morning. Keep in mind that it was at 10 for about 7 months and now is at 518 and growing. Join it

Change is Coming: As most of you have noticed, we now have 5 active posters, and one sitting there doing nothing. Additionally, I am working on migrating us to our own website, as I see more traffic and potentiality with that site.

Adsense: I have not updated the authors, too bad. Adsense has been doing well in this time, and made over $121 since the post. Thanks all.

Senators to Watch For: Currently, both Fisher and Bruner have declared a campaign. As has Mr. Portman. I know that 3/8 is not good, but there still are two years left

Ten Tech. Predictions: I made ten predictions that I believed would happen in 09. So far, I have been right on several:
Apple is loosing market share
Netbooks are taking off
Rockband/Guitar Hero released a join controller
More will come as the year goes on

My Tat: My tattoo has almost fully healed, and it is doing well. Pictures next time I find my camera

Whalertly sponsoring Weight Loss: Though Gwenn is at a plateau right now, she has been losing weight. I wish her the best of luck

A name for a sports post and Blue Jackets first post: Both of these got various attention and emails, which is good. I chose ABCs of Columbus Sports as the name, and had my first blue jackets post go live. Please check out the actual posts.



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Ten Amazingly Accurate Tech Predictions for 2009

I intentionally picked some things out of left field. It would be really pointless for me to predict that both wireless USB and USB3.0 come out, that Snow Leopard is released, etc. Basically, I took some things that might happen, might not, and justified them. Sure, I will not be a 100%, but what fun would it be if I was?



1) Apple will start to lose desktop/laptop market share.
While Apple has never really had a large share of the market, they have been making slow but steady gains the last few years. The biggest increase for Apple is in the college demographic. However, with the stumbling economy, the masses will buy fewer and fewer computers from Apple as they start to do a simple cost/benefit analysis. This will lead to a full reworking of Apple's marketing strategy and long-term plans, thus leading to the new market for Apple.


2) Apple releases a tablet/netbook/large iPod-Touch.
This new market, and new strategy, for Apple will be the release of a netbook/tablet that is essentially a large-screen iPod Touch. While this will get huge sales initially (helping to bump up the netbook market), it will quickly steady out and remain at the roughly 20% market share that Apple currently enjoys. The iNetBook will feature a touch screen, with a stylus as well, and OSX Snow Leopard. Unlike most netbooks, Apple's will be priced in the $500-$600 range, but that should not keep Apple from getting their normal support (I will be buying it the day it comes out).


3) The Netbook market takes off, but Windows XP remains the primary OS.
With the economy going towards the gutter and consumers spending far less than in years past, low-tech gear will gain in leaps and bounds. Most people want computers to e-mail, browse the Internet, and maybe look at pictures, and netbooks fill this niche perfectly. In 2009, netbooks will take about 20%-30% of the laptop market share and will remain in the sub 400$ range. Regardless of any Linux options or any future Apple OS, Windows XP will remain the king of netbook systems.


4) Microsoft will start a phone company, the iPhone will keep growing, Android will stumble.
The Apple iPhone, with its sexy look and easy-to-use touch screen will continue to grow in market share, while its app store makes millions for Apple. The iPhone, which will be available in larger sizes and memory configurations, will soon become the market leader of smart phones. Android, which launched with some fanfare, will soon plummet and disappear as most companies realize that it is better to have a company who can advertise their OS as opposed to you having to do it. Microsoft, in an attempt to keep Windows Mobile alive, will either create a Zune phone or make a play to purchase RIM (BlackBerry) which will give them a strong standing.


5) Google will release a full-fledged OS, un-beta Gmail, and stop supporting Chrome.
Google, preemptively judging their Android OS as being a market-stealer, will release a full-fledged OS for PCs (and maybe Macs). This operating system will mostly rely on cloud computing and will be lightweight, open source, and full of widgets. It will start strongly, but then will fall to Linux-like market share. As part of the release, Google will also release a final and full version of Gmail (only a few years too late) with only a few new features. Gmail will quickly become the dominant online e-mail client. Chrome, which slumped after a large release (like all of Google's products) will be terminated. Instead, Google will acquire Firefox (and Thunderbird) and attempt to gain browsing territory.


6) Microsoft will release Windows 7.
Following the release of Google's OS and Apple's OSX Snow Leopard, Microsoft will launch Windows 7 in the middle of its projected launch window; that is, it will be released in early November. This is just in time for Christmas, and it will be included on all PCs sold as Christmas presents. Unlike Vista, Windows 7 will be greeted with rave reviews and will have a large user base from the start. This will be seen as revitalizing and turning Windows around. I also predict that I will be standing in line and will buy it the second it comes out.


7) The Resurrection of HD-DVD.
As already stated, with the economy in the gutter, consumers are doing their best to spend as little as possible. A dead, but good, format should be able to help them do that. While there will be no new HD-DVD's (for now) released, the pricing of the actual existing movies (a large library of them) and the players are so low that consumers who do not care about the new releases will be starting to buy up these discs. Once there is a large sale record of HD-DVD, Toshiba will start to make the players again. Starting with smaller companies, and then moving to some mainstream studios, HD-DVD will make a comeback.


8) All three consoles will sell less, PS3 will be pulled.
With consumers spending less, all electronics will take a hit, and the console market is no exception. The Wii, with its low price and lower-end technology, will still be leading the market in the console wars. The Xbox 360, not to be outdone, will lower its price and keep on truckin, but will only gain slightly on the Wii. Sony, with their PS3, will not be able to cut their costs any more, as they are already selling each system in debt. Sony will cut their losses, and pull out of the console war for this generation (though their PSP will remain).


9) Microsoft will announce the Xbox 720, and a Microsoft handheld gaming system. Sony will release the PS4.
Sony, in an attempt to find a way to make money quickly and surely, will work on releasing the PS4. After discontinuing the PS3 they will roll out a console that is essentially a small computer, with dual Nvidia 9800 GPUs, Blu-Ray, and all the whistles; Sony will attempt to create another high-end system. While this works at first, and it starts the next generation of consoles, the market will not be there for such a costly item. Sony will pull out of the console market shortly after. Microsoft, on the other hand, will announce the Xbox 720, which will be a hybrid between the PS3 and the Wii, featuring the best of both while also keeping the few nicer features of the current Xbox 360. They will have a Halo title ready for launch. Additionally, Microsoft will announce a handheld system to compete with the DS and the PSP (it might be part of the Zune phone). Nintendo will continue with the Wii, possibly announcing an HD version (with a USB dongle). They will not announce a new console until 2010 or later.


10) Rock band and Guitar Hero will join, or at least release compatible controllers.
While this might just be a wish of mine, but I really am hoping that this happens in the near future. With the slowing down of sales eating into their margins (due to the price of each game), both Rock band and Guitar Hero will team up to release new games. The two companies will merge and become one. They will then release multiple variations of each title. If this does not happen, then I believe that the two companies will release a standard for their instruments, so that they all work on the same games. This makes sure that their games are sold, even if their instruments are not.

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Laptop Review: Acer Aspire One

Go buy my WII on ebay, it is cheap and has lots of stuff
Note, this is not a paid review, this review is entirely of my own choosing


As you walk around town you can't help but notice a horde of people using tiny book-sized laptops. They are using them for surfing the Interwebs, typing up OO.o documents, and e-mailing clients. 'Netbooks', 'ultra-portables', 'mini-laptops', whatever you call them, they seem to be here to stay.

It all started with the Asus Eee PC, followed quick by MCI Wind, the Cloud Book, and a whole slew of other netbook offerings. Just yesterday (9/4/08) Dell released a netbook. Recently, Acer entered the fray with its Acer Aspire One models. They offer two different styles, one with XP and one with Linux Linpus, with two different color options, white and sapphire blue. Let's see if the Aspire One is the leader of the pack or if it is just another lemming.


Here are the specs of the reviewed model:
Built In Devices: Wi-fi antenna, LAN port, stereo speakers, 3 USB ports, VGA output, 1 SD slot, 15-in-1 slot, mic input, headset output, built-in mic, built-in Web cam
Width: 9.8 inches
Depth: 6.7 inches
Height: 1.1 inches
Weight: 2.19lbs (with battery), 3lbs (with cord)
Color: Sapphire Blue
Processor: Intel Atom N270, 1.6GHz
RAM: 512 MB (1.5 GB max)
Hard Disk: 8GB SSD
Display: 1024 * 600; widescreen; 18-bit color; LED backlit
GPU: Intel GMA 950; Technology 3.0
Battery: 3-cell; 3hrs (Mfr estimate)
Operating System: Linux Linpus Lite
Software: OO.o 2.3, Acer Aspire One Mail, IM-client, games, Firefox, Media Manager
Price: $324.99 (at Micro Center)


The Body – 4/5
When you first pull Aspire One out of the box you are captivated by the beauty of the actual casing. With rounded edges, a ocean-blue color, chrome (both red and silver) highlights, and a shiny gleam; this netbook appears sexy. Quickly, though, you will realize that fingerprints show up very noticeably and distract from the otherwise attractive casing. While this casing is nice, the gloss on it serves as a mirror which, in a well-lit room, causes light to reflect into your eyes.

The overall layout of the build seems easy to learn and use. The buttons are in the right spots (with the exception of the mouse) and it is easy to tell what is going on. The plastic body feels slightly unsteady and unstable, but it held up to a lot of abuse. The only change to the otherwise smooth layout and look is a small bump for the SSD HD and a cutaway section for replacing the RAM. The overall feel of the netbook in your hand, while closed, feels almost identical to that of a novel, so it should work well with the coffee-sipping crowd.


The Screen – 3/5
Loaded with what seems to be the norm for netbooks, the Acer Aspire One has a small 8.9in screen that is surrounded by a glossy black body. The screen also has a glossy cover on it. Similar to the problems with the rest of the body, this serves to bounce light into your eyes in a well-lit environment. The backlighting of the Acer reacted quickly and produced a bright outlook that had several customizable levels of brightness. It is easy to read text and view images on this screen. When watching videos or photos, one notices a slight lag on quick or high-def sections, but it is only noticeable briefly. Additionally, it is hard to view some wide Web sites using this screen, but most fit easily onto it and are quite readable. The biggest issue with the screen is its viewing angles. You need to be looking almost dead on vertically to see the screen well; however, the horizontal angles seem to have a much wider allowance than normal laptops. The screen is perfect for watching Flash movies, Youtube videos, and working on your e-mails.


Operating System – 5/5
On my normal laptop (Acer Aspire 7720), I dual boot Ubuntu and Vista; this might cause me to have a different reaction to the included OS (Linux Linpus) than you. I found the OS of this model to be amazingly quick and useful. It boots up in roughly 10-15 seconds, launches applications in about the same time, and is quite user-friendly. All tasks needed are grouped into four sections (Web, productivity, entertainment, and files) and you can quickly find what you need. There is also a handy search bar located at the top of the screen. Users who are not used to Linux will quickly find this OS to be quite user-friendly.

For those users who happen to be Linux fans, or wish to customize their netbook in any way, the OS becomes much less user-friendly. Acer has made it idiot-proof which means that they removed the library (kinda), hid the right-click, and even hid the terminal. Once you activate the terminal (ALT+F2), it is easy to run this like any other Linux OS. You can add, remove, or use the Fedora library of programs. There still is some limitation to the OS, but you can always install a custom one if you would like.


Heat and Noise –5/5
The primary concern of any laptop, and especially a netbook, is battery life, shortly followed by the heat and noise produced by the machine. While I am sure that the XP version of this netbook is louder and hotter (due to the rotating drive and the temperature needed to keep it running), my version was surprisingly quiet. With most laptops, the fan and HD noises usually cancel out the typing, on this, my typing was the loudest. Heat was virtually nonexistent. Except in the small bump where the HD is, and the front fan vents, the laptop was roughly room-temperature. Even at those two points, my Acer was probably barely over 85 degrees Fahrenheit.


Keyboard and Mouse – 2.5/5
Sporting an 85% size keyboard, the Acer Aspire One is much easier to use than most other netbooks. The keyboard, though hard to use for the first 15 minutes or so, grows on you quickly as you memorize the slightly smaller movements needed to type. The trackpad on the mouse works well, though it is too easy to touch it when typing, which causes it to jump around (hit Fn+F7 to turn it on or off). The biggest problem with this layout is the mouse buttons. The right button is on the right of the pad, the left on the left. This is far different than any normal laptop or netbook where the buttons are on the bottom. It is very hard to remember where the buttons are, and they are not user-friendly.


Speakers and Headphones – 4/5
The speakers on the Acer Aspire One are exactly what you would expect from any small laptop. They sound small, but work well enough for most applications. When you plug the headphones in, however, the sound quality improves to what you would get from any decent desktop computer.


Microphone and Web cam – 2/5
The microphone on this system works remarkably well and isolates noise better than any other that I have seen recently. It does get spotty at times, but usually is a decent mic. The Web cam, on the other hand, is one of the lowest quality Web cams i have ever used. While it is good enough for a brief videochat, it lags a fair bit and only focuses well on your face. If you videochat often, or need to conference call your office from Starbucks, I would suggest investing in a USB Web cam (which, interestingly, is roughly have the size of your computer).


Performance – 4/5
The biggest perk of this system is that it runs Linux, which, as mentioned earlier, means that the computer is up and running in less than 15 seconds. Opening applications is also a breeze. However, once you get about three to five separate windows open, the limited 512MB RAM greatly slows down the laptop. Trying to run over 10 tabs in Firefox, having more than three OO.o documents open, or playing a game and doing anything else at the same time slows the system down. Thankfully you can upgrade the RAM with little effort.


Battery – 3.5/5
Battery life being the primary concern with laptops and netbooks, this is the area that most people complain about. On this particular netbook, typing a OO.o document while running music and Pidgen, and doing a little Firefox browsing, I was able to get roughly three hours of usage on 75% brightness. At 100%, it was two-and-a-half. At 50% I was able to get about three hours and fifteen minutes. When just browsing the Internet or just typing, add about thirty minutes on to those totals. I know that it is not a lot of time on the computer, but at the battery size, it seems about right.


Extras bundled – 4/5
The Acer Aspire One comes with a leather carrying pouch, the adapter/charger, and a screen protector. These are in good quality, work well, and are light/small which fits the computer perfectly. The only issue is that the backup restore comes as CD-ROM. Seeing as the Acer does not have a CD drive, this makes little sense to me. Acer, had they been thinking, should have included the restore on a SD card.


Software – 3/5
To be honest, the only good bundled software is the OS, Firefox, and OO.o. The messenger client, IM client, and the entertainment system all are fairly useless. Most of the games are actually demo versions that make you pay for the full version. I would recommend removing most of these programs and replacing them with Pidgen, any other games you want, and Thunderbird.


Linux Library – 5/5
Seeing as the Linpus Lite OS is a derivative of Fedora, the Linux library that is searchable is vast and user-friendly. You can replace any program on your Acer, add anything you want, and get support online easily. Plus, like with most Linuxes, everything is free.


Support – 5/5
Acer issues standard computer company support to their Aspire One product. What gave this a 5/5, however, is the fact that there is a large online community of support for this product. Ranging from people using Linux all the time to people who just got their Acer Aspire One, many Web sites have sprung up with forums for help, step-by-step guides, and even videos to tell you what to do. Head over to http://www.aspireoneuser.com for more info.


Expandability – 4/5
While you can not easily upgrade the components of this system, the fact that you can add HD space without opening it up is a plus. By placing a SD card in the SD slot, you can incorporate its memory (up to 16GB) right into your HD, with no separate drive shown. Basically, for $30, you can triple your HD space. Add the fact that you can install other versions of Linux or even Windows means that the expandability of the Acer is nice.


Pros:
Small design
Nice layout
Good OS
Decent Battery

Cons:
Glare
Mouse problems
Cramped Keyboard


Overall - 3.5/5
While there are some problems with the layout and mouse of this device, the overall usability of it prevails. If you are shopping for a netbook, give this one a test drive at your local stores.

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