What's wrong with you man???

Keep procrastinating. Pondering whether or not to buy the Qtek 9100 / iMate K-Jam. Cannot get my head 'round whether to get it or not?


Will it be to heavy for practical use? Will someone, somewhere make it compatible with iSync and/or release an alternative piece of synchronization software? Will Skype work on it in a satisfactory manner? Far as I can tell, some people say it works brilliantly, others that the sound quality is somewhat lacking? And will I need to get antivirus apps again? Have been blissfully devoid of this since switching to my mac. Will I even be able to accept the horribly bland and dull GUI that is the Pocket PC 5 OS?

Questions, questions, questions. But the most pressing one of them all: why can't I find a way to motivate myself to work on my thesis, instead of sitting here surfing the 'net 10 hours a day? Honestly! - I got up at 7am this morning, and it's now 18.14 (6.14pm), and I've done fuck-all with the damn thing. Inserted some comma's, written that I need to find some sources...but nothing huge. Girl just asked if I'm any closer to having something I can send in?

*sighs*

Sometimes I really, deeply loathe myself.

SuperDuper!

No. The title is not, nor will it ever be, a way in which I will describe how I'm feeling. That sort of thing is reserved for peppy, preppy types, which I am not. No, SuperDuper! is in fact an excellent little application for creating backups and bootable clones of your Mac drives. I'm very impressed - it just works? And it's so userfriendly, I would recommend it to my Dad - if he had a Mac...

On a totally different note: the Nokia 6680 is growing on me. I must admit that I like having a SmartPhone? It's a welcome change. So I'm actually thinking about making my next phone a Qtek 9100 / K-Jam.


You can see more pictures here, care of Google. This phone has an excellent screen, a full QWERTY keyboard, BlueTooth, WiFi, an OK camera and the full smartphone-package, ie. Pocket PC 5.0 - which ironically is it's greatest drawback: neither Apple nor Mark/Space don't support it yet, which means no iSync capabilities...which is funny, seeing as both SallingClicker and Skype already support it? Oh well. Guess I'll have to bide my time, and be patient. MAN I hate being software-dependent! :-(

Temporary replacement toy: Nokia 6680

So...while I'm debating whether to go for the N70 or not, I have been given a Nokia 6680 by my friendly local phone-pusher. Not too impressed by the general workings of the phone - sure, it synced with my mac via iSync (and killed at least 5 contacts while doing so - TG for backups) and sure, it works great with my SallingClicker (definitely nice with the album art right there on the screen, but again: not a big thing), but the phone feels...overly complex after my recent years with SonyEricsson bliss?

Take the text-messages for example: OK, so I'm not a 14-year-old bimbo, sending smileys for every 3 words, but admittedly, a smiley will go a long way towards conveying the mood with which you're sending an sms...and never in my life has it taken such effort to create a : a - and a ) !!! Not to mention :-* (for the wife...), which demands that you use special keys to insert a "symbol" (the *). Sighs. But you can't win, can you? I want the best of all worlds! My ideal phone should have:

- WiFi, with Skype capabilities (ie. Windows Mobile 2003 / 5 + touchscreen)
- at least 2 Mpixel camera
- GPRS/EDGE, would like 3G
- Bluetooth (IrDA not required, but not frowned upon either)
- iSync / OS X * - preferably with contact-pictures supported
- hotswapable memory-card of some sort
- easy on the eyes (...yes, I know: I'm demanding...)
- easy to use (LOVE the SE OS, but Microsoft Mobile is alluring...)
- a nice, big, bright display

So, as you see, not your average user here... So far, the K750i has been great, but it lacks the ability to sync contact pictures to and from the phone (no biggie, but would really be a nice thing to have). The prospect of walking around at home / a hotspot, chatting with people over Skype via my cellphone is just so...desirable? Really would love this, as it would enable me to free myself from the PowerBook when I'm Skyping + hopefully achieve better sound than the mic in the PB? Oh well. So using the 6680 now, and while its nice enough, the OS (Symbian) isn't for me, and the keys are tiny (or my fingers are too big - whichever) and too close together. Also, why can't they (= Nokia) make it so that when a contact calls you (and you've gone through the trouble of adding a photo to said contact), this contact's pictures is displayed NICE AND BIG - not the size of a bulimic stamp??? Honestly. Get your act together. Laughingstock of the household for that one (household firmly and smugly wedged in with their SonyEricssons...).

Oh well - the hunt goes on. The Qtek 9100 / K-Jam looks gorgeous, and my hands-on time with it today held promise. But as long as the good people at Mark/Space can't get it syncing with iSync, I'm going to bide my time...



* (there go all the Windows Mobile 5 smartphones, as Mark/Space haven't managed to crack this issue yet)

A chat and a handshake...

Been shopping. For pool-tables no less. Need one. Can't have a home without a pool-table? So we need one.

Also shopping for a new cellphone. My K750i has died for the second time in 6 months, and I'm fed up with it, so I'm thinking about switching back to Nokia (shock horror), and giving their N70 a go...? The N70 isn't native in iSync, but I've found a hack that should work, so that's alright. It also works with BluePhone Elite and SallingClicker, which is critical for my choice of new phone (I'm such a compatibility-junkie, it's really scary how you come to be in the grasp of your favourite apps...).

The weekend was good - aside from the fact that the Steelers whooped (...) my Colts...goodbye playoffs...such a pity that Manning couldn't play all 4 quarters like he did the 3rd...if he had, the Steelers would have had little hope. But DAMN what a game! LONG time since I've seen anything quite as nerve-racking! From the blitz-start by the Steelers to 14-0, right through to the end with the failed 4th down by the Colts, that's then given to the Steelers on the Colts' 1-yard line...at which point The Bus decides he wants to make his ONLY mistake of the evening, and has the ball knocked loose and converted...teeth meeting nails at an unprecedented rate here - thought we'd (the Colts) lost the game twice before we actually had...managed to rally both times after we were in the bag...hehehe...but 3rd times a winner - or loosed in our case - and much respect to the Steelers for the game.

But they'd better go all the way after this! - or else... ;-)

Procrastination continues...

In spite of getting up at 7am (which is actually nice, once you get used to spending the first 4 hours you're awake in total darkness), I still manage to get next-to-nothing done on my thesis...the Internet is such a wonderful distraction? And when I try to shut down my Internet connection, I go into withdrawal? *sighs* Guess I'd better just get my act together and start applying myself? The harder I work, the sooner it'll be over, right?

On a totally different note, things are absolutely fantastic with the girl - new found levels of respect and commitment all round. She makes dinner, she's cleaning up the house pretty much from one end to the other...makes me feel even more guilty for not working more efficiently, but also, it makes me feel...loved? And what's better than that???

In a Zero 7 sort of mood today...check them out if you don't know them, highly recommend them. Oh: and I decided not to go for the MacBook Pro after reading this blog entry from rosyna - I would definitely miss my FW800 port for backups! And my S-video out! - what are they thinking?!? Schmucks. Hope there'll be a work-over of this MacBook later on...and a name-change...don't think I'll ever warm to that? PowerBook - now there's a name!

Off to attempt to write some more.

Stay happy and never take drugs.

Yay - new toy to crave...

So MacWorld was yesterday, and as a result, I'm now left with a craving for toys that I cannot posses before at least a month has passed: the new MacBook Pro + iLife 06 with iWeb.

Of course, I realize that - apart from investing (heavily) in a MacBook Pro, I will also have to get a .Mac account, as the prospect of photocasting appeals to me wildly. So it appears that Apple once again has me by the short and curlies...but damned if I don't love the stuff they make! SO...I guess I'm just a sucker for Steve...*stupid, impish grin*

January 18th - update: no longer want the MacBook Pro for these reasons. Back to the drawing board, Steve...

Oh, and check out Kelly Osbournes new single, "One Word" - I know it's alright as I was tapping my foot to it before I found out who the artist was, and while I dislike her as much as the next person, this track is actually very listenable. So go listen.

Starting this off on the wrong foot...

Tuesday came and went. Supposed to be writing my thesis, but not finding it entirely too enticing, so have decided to start blogging - yay. Yesterday decided to learn Japanese. Amazing what you do to avoid things you don't want to do? "The fun lies not in having nothing to do. Oh no. The fun lies in having plenty to do - and not doing it." Mae West was a wise old gal.

So now that I have this outlet, I guess I'm going to have to figure out what to do with it? Maybe vent over life, the universe and everything (yes, Douglas Adams was a genious), maybe wax philosophical to scare off everyone. Or maybe just be me? Right now listening to the incredibly talented Amos Lee and his "Soul Suckers" (on iTunes - get it before your neighbour!), which pretty much reflects the mood. Sitting in my self-proclaimed "writing-room" in the basement, while the girl is busy tidying up upstairs. Feel a bit guilty procrastinating down here (let's face it: this blog will NOT further my thesis) while she's up there working. But fair's fair: I've been pampering her while she was doing her project, and what goes around comes around? *grins*

Oh well - call this session brainstorm, cause that's what it's been. Crazy rollercoaster ride this - thanks for reading, promise to update with more interesting stuff soon.

Greets to all - posters and lurkers alike...