This is a test using the new dragon software available for the iPhone. What I’m doing is I’m actually talking into my iPhone, and it is transcribing everything that I say. Then I can post everything that I have sent directly into my blog. This is freaking amazing!

This is a proof on concept to show I can update my blog from my iPhone. Next–world domination!

Call me Mr. Early Adopter.  When people started having web pages, I figured out how to make my own web page.   That was fun, and I learned some stuff.  Then people started making blogs, so you’ve got what you see here.  Then there was instant messaging (you can reach me on AIM at “fastandbad”).  And text messaging on my phone (probably the most I have kept in touch with my daughter since she was borned).  Then someone sent me a Facebook link and that seemed interesting, so you can find me there.  And now there’s a lot of media attention on Twitter (have an account, don’t use it).

And all this stuff is cool and great and the wave of the future blah blah, but (and here’s the part that hopefully goes without saying) one has to ask–going from pages of text, to Blog posts, to a pithy 140 characters on Twitter–what are we really gaining here?  I’ve been doing this stuff for years and years, and I enjoy writing about what interests me and attempting to share what’s interesting about those interests (hopefully) to the world.  And I make no great claims for producing profound insights into the human condition as we know it, and I agree with people who would say there is a (varying) level of narcissism in all these kinds of activities (look at me!  Look at my insightful comments on contempirary culture!).

But (and here’s the cranky old people stuff), the constant move towards more and more active (and more and more limited) “communication” – what are people really communicating?  ”Gonna pick up the kids–What a weekend!”, “Love those Tigers!”, etc.  I mean, I’m as capable as anyone of making some short, pithy, funny statement that can give a friend or acquaitance a laugh or a glimmer of what’s going on with me (not that they should even care what’s going on with me–they’ve got their own lives, and their own short, pithy statements to make).  But where is this going, exactly?

If you asked me what’s wrong the world (and many, many people do), I would say one of our biggest problems is the shallowness of our thought and our arguments, our unwillingness to dig a little deeper and confront and deal with the bigger picture of what’s really going on.  And these supposed new “tools” for communication, be they cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, text messages blah blah–they are actually hurting more than they help.  I don’t want to hear what my Congressman tweets when watching President Obama’s State of the Union address–I want him to make the country a better place for me, my family and my friends.  I don’t need 500 Facebook friends-I need a couple of good friends I can depend on to watch my back.

Sorry to go on for 467 words.  Next I’ll talk about the latest book I’m reading, OLIVER TWIST.  It’s by a guy named Dickens.  Look for him on Facebook.

Having been trained by the Spouse, who talks to students for hours every day, to brush after every meal (even, or shall we say, especially at work, and don’t even get me started on the weird stares you get from #2-goers while you’re doing something healthy and hygenic), and be aware of your “freshness” when close-talking with your fellow man, I must sing the praises of the new Colgate 360 toothbrush, which has this sexy new gizmo on the back of the brush that actually scrapes the yucky gunk off your gums, cheeks and tongue while you’re doing your standard toothbrushing, leaving you “kissable” fresh (providing, of cours, you have a willing partner with their own Colgate 360).  All hail dental technology!

Make your own comic strips.  Post them on your own comic strip blog.  Let your imagination run wild.  Check out Strip Generator.  Here’s an example (and believe me, this is one of the clean ones!)

 We just got a shiny new 17″ laptop to replace the dying Shuttle SFF PC in the office.  The primary reasons for this were:

•  I was sick to death of trying to revive the Shuttle PC (a few months ago I took the entire thing apart, re-seated the CPU with new thermal paste, reformatted the HD, etc, and yet it still it spontaneously re-booted several times a day, usually when my daughter was trying to do something “important” — “Daaaaaaadd!”)
• To get my daughter off my PC in the basement, because the Shuttle was not strong enough (even with a  new graphics card) to play the meaning of her young life, So in my new spirit of “There’s a slim difference between amateur computer enthusiast and banging your head against a wall untl it bleeds,” and trying to be, shall we say, economical, I actually found a swell 17-inch laptop with a standalone graphics card (which is  must-have if you’re going to play any kind of kid’s video game at all).  It’s this baby from Everex via New Egg (the worl’s awesomest online PC supplier), and if you can live with the facts it’s mostly sold overseas and has three backslash keys (\\\!!), for the price you cannot beat it.  I threw in an extra gig of RAM, and voila!  Instant happiness!

Now the kids are happy, the Wife can check her work e-mail, and, most of all, people are leaving dad’s stuff alone!  So it’s a win-win!  So, if you’re ever in the market for a very reasonably priced (aka cheap) laptop with a huuuugescreen, dedicated graphics card, and can live without the panacea of “support” of the major labels (and tons of bloated extra software that comes with it), I can’t recommend this baby enough.  Now, if you’ll excuse me , I have to go to the basement…

PDAs have become mini laptops. The day is not far away when a pda will have the power and features to mimic today’s notebook computer. You may have a toshiba notebook and a pda today but in the future you will have your pda only. You must be thinking a pda keyboard cannot replace a standard keyboard. Well technology can give you a keyboard the size of a coin with the ability to expand to a full size keyboard as you are accustomed to in those sony notebooks. In the future you won’t need a laptop charger because you won’t have a laptop, just kidding!

Turns out you can get the coolest stuff, if you just work at it.  And it’s even easier with machines to help.  Check out BustAName.

Haven’t had a lot of time for lists, but I was thinking of best techie geekie things that helped me through the day in 2006, and if you haven’t checked them out, I’d have to suggest:

1) Podcasts and Audiobooks: Some of best books I read last year I didn’t actually read, but listened to. The Ricky Gervais podcasts were awesome. I can’t go a week without listening to This American Life. If you have an iPod or equivalent, it’s really fun and useful utilization of your limited time, especially when driving to and from work.

2) Aggregrate Sites: The whole Web 2.0 News aggregator thing is well worth it. Once again, when there’s a gazillion things out there, it helps to have everything in one place. I’d recommend all the usual favorites — DIGG, Google Reader, and my favorite PopUrls.

3) Bit Torrents. You missed last night’s 24? No problem! You won’t be able to see that British show you’ve heard about til it comes to States next year? Not an issue. You’re obsessed with Traci Lords? So are many others! One caveat, though: I’m not sure this is what you would strictly call “legal”, in the technical sense of the word.

4) Wikipedia. If you’ve heard of something and you’re not quite sure what it is, Wikipedia is the place for you!

5) Craigslist. I solld stuff through this. It was easy. And I know Craig. And from what I hear, they can use the business.

For a true geek this would be a lame list, but it’s exceedly accurate description of my wasted hours in 2006. Good luck with it!

From New Camera

This is a test of embedded photos from Picasa. How cool is that?

Spell with Flickr!