My plan is to write at least 250 words every day. Do to do that I need to have something I can actually write about. I live in fear of writers block on this blog.
I started this blog in part because I want to develop the discipline it takes to complete the National Novel Writing Month challenge. To complete this challenge requires finishing the writing of a 50,000 novel from start to finish within the calendar month of November.
Writer's block hasn't been my problem in the times I've tried completing this before, but never managed to crack the 20,000 word limit. I'll get part-way into my story, and then start procrastinating. A week or so into the effort I'll start deciding that I have better things to do, or that I don't feel like writing. By the time I realize I haven't left myself enough time to finish and I shrug and decide there's always next year.
Now though I'm trying to get around it by forcing myself to write every day. I'm going to do so not only during the month of November, but year round. To do so I need subjects to write about, and that's something I've never really lacked for before. I worry that I will run out of things to say.
I could just comment on a news item I've seen each day. I did it yesterday regarding the final launch of the Space Shuttle. I probably will do it if there is a news item that particularly interests me. I hope to not get stuck in that rut when it comes to my everyday entries.
This blog is intended in part to be a creative exercise. I want to stay creative. I make no guarantees.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
My birthday and the space shuttle.
I know that everyone and their little sister is writing about the space shuttle today, but it's my birthday and I'll be cliche if I want to. Besides, it's an important thing to me, and since it launched today on my birthday it only seems fitting to give it the only real sendoff I can.
Today I turn 32. I was 2 when the shuttle first launched into orbit on April 12, 1981. I feel like the shuttle has been a big part of my youth since the very beginning.
I was always a nerdy kid. Well, I still am a nerdy kid. When I was little though there was no greater thing to aspire to than to be an astronaut. That aspiration hasn't really even gone away. Deep down inside me there's something that says that some day maybe I'll go into orbit. Right next to it of course is the part that says I'm already to old, too fat, and that I hate flying anyhow.
I was obsessed with flying and spaceflight as a child. One of my earliest memories of a vacation was a trip to my uncle's house in Virginia. I flew for the first time, which was then a highlight (and now is an irritation). I went to the National Air and Space Museum for the firs time, still my favorite place to go in Washington DC. I had an uncle who was a helicopter pilot for the Army, and I pestered him endlessly to give me as much stuff related to flying as I could get. My room at home was filled with books about flying. I wanted more than anything to go to Florida and watch a launch, but I never got to go.
Not all of the memories are pleasant, of course. I am, in fact, old enough to remember watching the Challenger disaster live. I am a resident (and was then) of New Hampshire, and the fact that a teacher from my state was being launched into orbit was enough to guarantee that we watched the takeoff from the private school I attended at the time.
I didn't really understand what was going on, of course. I was 6 years old at the time, and in first grade. The idea that human beings had just been vaporized by a failure in the fuel system wasn't something I was really equipped to understand. All I knew was that something was very very wrong.
I won't claim it was a trauma. I still loved space when it happened and I continue to love space. It was the first time however that I understood that something as awesome as the space program could fail.
The second shuttle disaster I remember much more clearly. I was in my early 20s at the time, and living in San Diego. I had head about a problem on the news that morning before I left for work. I remember thinking to myself that I hoped everything would turn out OK.
I found out on the bus on the way to work that it hadn't. I was checking the news on my mobile phone at the time when I read the news of the Columbia's disintegration. It took a while for the news to sink in.
Maybe that was when the understanding of how dangerous space travel is set in, and I just didn't realize. Maybe it was before that. Maybe I still don't really understand the true dangers of operating above the earth's atmosphere. Now a part of me still wants to reach for the stars, and another part of me wants to grow roots into the earth.
Today I turn 32. I was 2 when the shuttle first launched into orbit on April 12, 1981. I feel like the shuttle has been a big part of my youth since the very beginning.
I was always a nerdy kid. Well, I still am a nerdy kid. When I was little though there was no greater thing to aspire to than to be an astronaut. That aspiration hasn't really even gone away. Deep down inside me there's something that says that some day maybe I'll go into orbit. Right next to it of course is the part that says I'm already to old, too fat, and that I hate flying anyhow.
I was obsessed with flying and spaceflight as a child. One of my earliest memories of a vacation was a trip to my uncle's house in Virginia. I flew for the first time, which was then a highlight (and now is an irritation). I went to the National Air and Space Museum for the firs time, still my favorite place to go in Washington DC. I had an uncle who was a helicopter pilot for the Army, and I pestered him endlessly to give me as much stuff related to flying as I could get. My room at home was filled with books about flying. I wanted more than anything to go to Florida and watch a launch, but I never got to go.
Not all of the memories are pleasant, of course. I am, in fact, old enough to remember watching the Challenger disaster live. I am a resident (and was then) of New Hampshire, and the fact that a teacher from my state was being launched into orbit was enough to guarantee that we watched the takeoff from the private school I attended at the time.
I didn't really understand what was going on, of course. I was 6 years old at the time, and in first grade. The idea that human beings had just been vaporized by a failure in the fuel system wasn't something I was really equipped to understand. All I knew was that something was very very wrong.
I won't claim it was a trauma. I still loved space when it happened and I continue to love space. It was the first time however that I understood that something as awesome as the space program could fail.
The second shuttle disaster I remember much more clearly. I was in my early 20s at the time, and living in San Diego. I had head about a problem on the news that morning before I left for work. I remember thinking to myself that I hoped everything would turn out OK.
I found out on the bus on the way to work that it hadn't. I was checking the news on my mobile phone at the time when I read the news of the Columbia's disintegration. It took a while for the news to sink in.
Maybe that was when the understanding of how dangerous space travel is set in, and I just didn't realize. Maybe it was before that. Maybe I still don't really understand the true dangers of operating above the earth's atmosphere. Now a part of me still wants to reach for the stars, and another part of me wants to grow roots into the earth.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Living with Chrome OS, Conclusion.
So, how did my week go? Better than I'd feared it would, and not as well as I wished it would. ChromeOS is usable and practical for most needs, but not really fully featured enough to be my primary machine.
That, of course, isn't a surprise. Google's own ad campaign tries to separate the idea of a Chromebook from that of a regular computer. Still, I was pleasantly surprised at how well I was able to get along without the full-sized machine.
I would (and have) gladly take this machine on a weekend vacation. A longer vacation (say a week), I think i would gladly bring it along, but I would take my regular machine along as well to get actual work done on. I can write a blog post on it, but I don't think i would want to write a book on it, though I could if I had to.
All in all, it's an excellent second machine. That said, I'm glad to have gotten a new power supply so that I can get back to my normal computing routine.
Now if you'll excuse me, my Netflix Instant Queue is calling.
That, of course, isn't a surprise. Google's own ad campaign tries to separate the idea of a Chromebook from that of a regular computer. Still, I was pleasantly surprised at how well I was able to get along without the full-sized machine.
I would (and have) gladly take this machine on a weekend vacation. A longer vacation (say a week), I think i would gladly bring it along, but I would take my regular machine along as well to get actual work done on. I can write a blog post on it, but I don't think i would want to write a book on it, though I could if I had to.
All in all, it's an excellent second machine. That said, I'm glad to have gotten a new power supply so that I can get back to my normal computing routine.
Now if you'll excuse me, my Netflix Instant Queue is calling.
Living with Chrome OS, The Bad.
My week on the CR-48 wasn't all wine and roses. There are things that I found difficult to deal with. These were not because they were specific to the hardware, but because they were issues with the OS itself.
Let's start with the elephant in the room. ChromeOS does not currently run native applications. For many things this isn't a problem. As previously stated, web apps can handle everything from social networks (TweetDeck), to office applications (Google Docs), to cloud storage (Dropbox). There are things it can't do.
I needed to download a Linux ISO. There was no Bittorrent support. My RSS feed was configured to grab video files from sites like Revision3 and the TWiT network. There is very little native media support, and no actual podcast catcher, so I had to use my phone for a lot of that. Skype support only exists through third party applications like imo, and those don't support voice or video chat well. This last could be fixed by the integration of Skype with Facebook as announced this week, but as I understand this it would not let me speak to those two whom I am not already connected by Facebook.
Then there's Flash. I mentioned this earlier as a plus, and it is one. It's also however something of a minus as well, since Flash support on ChromeOS can at times be a bit buggy. In particular, having multiple tabs with flash video containers (like the ones found at Blip.tv or Hulu) open at the same time can cause the OS to hang, and for those tabs to crash. Since I like to watch videos in sequence and I like to let them buffer all at once, this is a problem for me.
This doesn't make Flash unusable by any stretch, but it does occasionally get extremely irritating. When Flash stops functioning on a ChromeOS machine I've found that it doesn't tend to respond on any page after it does so until a restart has been performed.
Lastly, there are some sites it just doesn't play well with. Leaving aside Netflix (which we are told there will be a plugin for), there are sites that just don't seem to like Chrome OS very much. For instance, I use Hotmail as one of my mail accounts and while it is usable, it is VERY slow and sometimes the page will not load properly.
This isn't really Google's fault, of course. The current configuration of Hotmail is a dog on many browsers. I used to use Opera lot, and it was horrible on that on pretty much any computer and OS I tried. It's no great shakes on the Windows version of Chrome either. Still, it is an issue for those people who use web services not controlled by Google.
So, how does this all fit together? We'll get to that next time.
Let's start with the elephant in the room. ChromeOS does not currently run native applications. For many things this isn't a problem. As previously stated, web apps can handle everything from social networks (TweetDeck), to office applications (Google Docs), to cloud storage (Dropbox). There are things it can't do.
I needed to download a Linux ISO. There was no Bittorrent support. My RSS feed was configured to grab video files from sites like Revision3 and the TWiT network. There is very little native media support, and no actual podcast catcher, so I had to use my phone for a lot of that. Skype support only exists through third party applications like imo, and those don't support voice or video chat well. This last could be fixed by the integration of Skype with Facebook as announced this week, but as I understand this it would not let me speak to those two whom I am not already connected by Facebook.
Then there's Flash. I mentioned this earlier as a plus, and it is one. It's also however something of a minus as well, since Flash support on ChromeOS can at times be a bit buggy. In particular, having multiple tabs with flash video containers (like the ones found at Blip.tv or Hulu) open at the same time can cause the OS to hang, and for those tabs to crash. Since I like to watch videos in sequence and I like to let them buffer all at once, this is a problem for me.
This doesn't make Flash unusable by any stretch, but it does occasionally get extremely irritating. When Flash stops functioning on a ChromeOS machine I've found that it doesn't tend to respond on any page after it does so until a restart has been performed.
Lastly, there are some sites it just doesn't play well with. Leaving aside Netflix (which we are told there will be a plugin for), there are sites that just don't seem to like Chrome OS very much. For instance, I use Hotmail as one of my mail accounts and while it is usable, it is VERY slow and sometimes the page will not load properly.
This isn't really Google's fault, of course. The current configuration of Hotmail is a dog on many browsers. I used to use Opera lot, and it was horrible on that on pretty much any computer and OS I tried. It's no great shakes on the Windows version of Chrome either. Still, it is an issue for those people who use web services not controlled by Google.
So, how does this all fit together? We'll get to that next time.
Living with Chrome OS, The Good.
So, with the ugly bits of cloud computing out of the way, let's talk about what was good about the week living on ChromeOS. A week of relying on an experimental Google laptop didn't send me running for the hills. These reasons are part of why.
First, let's talk battery life. The CR-48 has VERY good battery life, at least by my reckoning. My Acer is usually dead after 3.5 to 4 hours worth of use, assuming I turn the backlight down and I don't use the optical drive at all. Last night I used the CR-48 for 3 hours on battery alone, and wasn't even below 50% on the battery meter. We should take this last bit with a grain of salt, since power meters on laptops are sometimes little more than educated guesses about how much is left in the power pack (my eeePC is testament to that), but my experience throughout the week was pretty much similar the whole way.
I don't really attribute this entirely to the hardware either. While the CR-48 does have a reasonably-sized battery, it's not really the multi-cell behemoth you might expect for something I can use for 6 hours without it dying. A lot of the battery life I expect is because of the lightweight nature of the OS. There just isn't much that runs in the background, and the less work the machine has to do, the more battery life the device is going to have. Since a ChromeOS computer runs even less in the background than your average Android phone, I'd expect the battery life on commercial models to be good as well.
Then there's the boot time. ChromeOS is designed to go from sleeping to functional in an instant, and for the most part the designers seem to have succeeded. Negotiation to join the wireless network seems to be the only thing you wait for when the machine goes from sleeping to active. Even booting is a matter of less than a minute.
I carry my laptops all over the place, and even though I'm hardly a jet-setter (my last flight was about 4 years ago), the boot time is REALLY nice. My Acer (which runs windows) still takes minutes to go from off to a usable state (even running a boot-time manager like Soluto), and even going from sleeping to running takes a while.
Lastly it's useful, at least for me. If you are willing to commit to cloud services (and I know for some that's a BIG if), ChromeOS is going to let you get stuff done. I had access to my documents using Google Docs. I had access other files using the Dropbox website. I could contact people via instant message using imo. I could still read all my RSS feeds using Google Reader, and was even able to listen to podcasts through it. It was a very functional web experience.
This isn't faint praise. Considering that ChromeOS is an almost entirely new operating system (by my understanding, please correct me if I'm wrong), the web experience is pretty complete. Even flash-based sites like Hulu work right out of the box. By comparison my first experiences using Ubuntu (which were admittedly years ago) were far less complete.
I was forced to live on my CR-48 every day, and I was able to do so. That in and of itself is something of a victory. This is especially true since it seems fairly evident that ChromeOS was not really designed to replace a computer with a full-featured operating system, but instead to augment it.
Next up: Time to face the music. Let's take a look at The Bad.
First, let's talk battery life. The CR-48 has VERY good battery life, at least by my reckoning. My Acer is usually dead after 3.5 to 4 hours worth of use, assuming I turn the backlight down and I don't use the optical drive at all. Last night I used the CR-48 for 3 hours on battery alone, and wasn't even below 50% on the battery meter. We should take this last bit with a grain of salt, since power meters on laptops are sometimes little more than educated guesses about how much is left in the power pack (my eeePC is testament to that), but my experience throughout the week was pretty much similar the whole way.
I don't really attribute this entirely to the hardware either. While the CR-48 does have a reasonably-sized battery, it's not really the multi-cell behemoth you might expect for something I can use for 6 hours without it dying. A lot of the battery life I expect is because of the lightweight nature of the OS. There just isn't much that runs in the background, and the less work the machine has to do, the more battery life the device is going to have. Since a ChromeOS computer runs even less in the background than your average Android phone, I'd expect the battery life on commercial models to be good as well.
Then there's the boot time. ChromeOS is designed to go from sleeping to functional in an instant, and for the most part the designers seem to have succeeded. Negotiation to join the wireless network seems to be the only thing you wait for when the machine goes from sleeping to active. Even booting is a matter of less than a minute.
I carry my laptops all over the place, and even though I'm hardly a jet-setter (my last flight was about 4 years ago), the boot time is REALLY nice. My Acer (which runs windows) still takes minutes to go from off to a usable state (even running a boot-time manager like Soluto), and even going from sleeping to running takes a while.
Lastly it's useful, at least for me. If you are willing to commit to cloud services (and I know for some that's a BIG if), ChromeOS is going to let you get stuff done. I had access to my documents using Google Docs. I had access other files using the Dropbox website. I could contact people via instant message using imo. I could still read all my RSS feeds using Google Reader, and was even able to listen to podcasts through it. It was a very functional web experience.
This isn't faint praise. Considering that ChromeOS is an almost entirely new operating system (by my understanding, please correct me if I'm wrong), the web experience is pretty complete. Even flash-based sites like Hulu work right out of the box. By comparison my first experiences using Ubuntu (which were admittedly years ago) were far less complete.
I was forced to live on my CR-48 every day, and I was able to do so. That in and of itself is something of a victory. This is especially true since it seems fairly evident that ChromeOS was not really designed to replace a computer with a full-featured operating system, but instead to augment it.
Next up: Time to face the music. Let's take a look at The Bad.
Living with Chrome OS, The Ugly.
I'm dividing this section into two parts: irritations I have with ChromeOS as a concept, and irritations I have with the CR-48 itself. Of these two, the first is likely to be the only part you care about, unless you're nabbing a CR-48 off of eBay or something. I think there's a lot of misunderstanding about ChromeOS and the CR-48, so before we even get to good and bad these are things you probably need to know.
So, ChromeOS is a bit of an odd duck. It isn't really a full operating system. It isn't designed to be a full operating system. It is designed instead to be a web browser with a keyboard. Without an internet connection of some kind it is a very ineffective doorstop, and not much else. it comes with both wi-fi and a cellular data connection for a reason.
So, that's "ugly" item number one. If you don't have a wireless connection, and you're not in rang of a cell tower, a CR-48 isn't going to be of much use to you. This was outlined rather starkly to me in the first month I owned it, as my router kept cutting out at home, and because of an odd network configuration issue with the Verizon Wireless network I was unable to use the cellular modem.
Google is working on a solution to this for some of their web applications. In particular, Google Docs is supposed to get an upgrade on ChromeOS so that it can at least operate in the absence of a network connection. For now though, if you are likely to need to use it on an aircraft without wi-fi (or you're stuck in a cellular dead spot in upstate Vermont at a friend's place and don't know his network password) you're going to be frustrated.
Item the second: You're going to need a Google account to even log into it. This seems a bit obvious, but with the increasing scrutiny Google is getting regarding privacy this needs to me mentioned. True, there is a "Guest" account to be able to log in to the machine with. The primary login however is the username and password for your Google account.
This isn't a problem for me. I use Gmail as my primary email address. I own an Android phone. I use GTalk to instant message friends. I am, it is safe to say, about as far into Google's pocket as I can get without actually being paid by them (and if this site gets enough traffic to justify Adsense that might change too). I don't consider myself a Google fanboy, but for various reasons I have gravitated more and more towards using their services. If you're not comfortable with the idea of logging in to an online account, you may want to reconsider.
Now, let's talk about the hardware. The CR-48's hardware needs to be mentioned, but it isn't going to be identical to the retail versions of ChromeOS computers. I won't lump it's failures on to machines that I don't know.
That said, the CR-48 isn't really a bad machine. It is worth every penny I paid for it (which was nothing, but whatever). There is a reason I turned to it as a primary machine rather than my eeePC. It's not incredibly slow, or heavy, or badly put together. it does have a few foibles that I find irritating.
First is my least favorite feature in the history of computing; a touchpad that covers the mouse buttons. I actually LIKE touchpads. I am the only person I know who is completely fine not only with tap-to-click, but is also perfectly happy using a touchpad to play a first person shooter. Trust me when I say that the CR-48 is quite possibly the WORST pointing device I have ever had the displeasure to experience.
Why? Because using one of the mouse buttons nearly ALWAYS results in the mouse pointer moving. Also, the touchpad is so large that it's nearly impossible for me to type on the machine without a section of my hand brushing it and sending my mouse pointer off in a random direction. Right clicking with the thing is basically pointless, though I did find a workaround by using alt+click instead.
There are other issues as well. Related to ChomeOS' need to always be connected, let me mention that the CR-48 has no ethernet port. I work in a large concrete building. Wireless is available to me, but it tends to be of irregular quality. When I bring my regular laptop to work, I generally plug a handy ethernet cable into it at my desk. Given that the machine is mostly useless without a network connection, you'd think that the including of a physical network connection would be a no-brainer. I know that Chrome OS is capable of using a 10/100 connection, because an external adapter can be plugged into the USB port. This is a flaw I hope future models of ChromeOS machines will not repeat.
Speaking of the USB port, there's only one. This is a problem, especially given the touchpad issues outlined above. Using an external mouse? Want to plug in a USB storage device so you can open a document on it? I hope you're carrying a USB hub with you, or you're going to have to resort to the touchpad while you're accessing those documents. Again, this is an issue I hope future models don't make.
So, that's the "ugly" of the CR-48. Some of those are due to concept, and some are due to the specific hardware of the CR-48. The former will likely apply to ANY cloud-based instant-on computer regardless of OS. Even if you're not using Google services on a cloud PC, others will likely have similar issues. The second really shouldn't apply to you unless you get your hands on a CR-48.
Next up: The Good.
So, ChromeOS is a bit of an odd duck. It isn't really a full operating system. It isn't designed to be a full operating system. It is designed instead to be a web browser with a keyboard. Without an internet connection of some kind it is a very ineffective doorstop, and not much else. it comes with both wi-fi and a cellular data connection for a reason.
So, that's "ugly" item number one. If you don't have a wireless connection, and you're not in rang of a cell tower, a CR-48 isn't going to be of much use to you. This was outlined rather starkly to me in the first month I owned it, as my router kept cutting out at home, and because of an odd network configuration issue with the Verizon Wireless network I was unable to use the cellular modem.
Google is working on a solution to this for some of their web applications. In particular, Google Docs is supposed to get an upgrade on ChromeOS so that it can at least operate in the absence of a network connection. For now though, if you are likely to need to use it on an aircraft without wi-fi (or you're stuck in a cellular dead spot in upstate Vermont at a friend's place and don't know his network password) you're going to be frustrated.
Item the second: You're going to need a Google account to even log into it. This seems a bit obvious, but with the increasing scrutiny Google is getting regarding privacy this needs to me mentioned. True, there is a "Guest" account to be able to log in to the machine with. The primary login however is the username and password for your Google account.
This isn't a problem for me. I use Gmail as my primary email address. I own an Android phone. I use GTalk to instant message friends. I am, it is safe to say, about as far into Google's pocket as I can get without actually being paid by them (and if this site gets enough traffic to justify Adsense that might change too). I don't consider myself a Google fanboy, but for various reasons I have gravitated more and more towards using their services. If you're not comfortable with the idea of logging in to an online account, you may want to reconsider.
Now, let's talk about the hardware. The CR-48's hardware needs to be mentioned, but it isn't going to be identical to the retail versions of ChromeOS computers. I won't lump it's failures on to machines that I don't know.
That said, the CR-48 isn't really a bad machine. It is worth every penny I paid for it (which was nothing, but whatever). There is a reason I turned to it as a primary machine rather than my eeePC. It's not incredibly slow, or heavy, or badly put together. it does have a few foibles that I find irritating.
First is my least favorite feature in the history of computing; a touchpad that covers the mouse buttons. I actually LIKE touchpads. I am the only person I know who is completely fine not only with tap-to-click, but is also perfectly happy using a touchpad to play a first person shooter. Trust me when I say that the CR-48 is quite possibly the WORST pointing device I have ever had the displeasure to experience.
Why? Because using one of the mouse buttons nearly ALWAYS results in the mouse pointer moving. Also, the touchpad is so large that it's nearly impossible for me to type on the machine without a section of my hand brushing it and sending my mouse pointer off in a random direction. Right clicking with the thing is basically pointless, though I did find a workaround by using alt+click instead.
There are other issues as well. Related to ChomeOS' need to always be connected, let me mention that the CR-48 has no ethernet port. I work in a large concrete building. Wireless is available to me, but it tends to be of irregular quality. When I bring my regular laptop to work, I generally plug a handy ethernet cable into it at my desk. Given that the machine is mostly useless without a network connection, you'd think that the including of a physical network connection would be a no-brainer. I know that Chrome OS is capable of using a 10/100 connection, because an external adapter can be plugged into the USB port. This is a flaw I hope future models of ChromeOS machines will not repeat.
Speaking of the USB port, there's only one. This is a problem, especially given the touchpad issues outlined above. Using an external mouse? Want to plug in a USB storage device so you can open a document on it? I hope you're carrying a USB hub with you, or you're going to have to resort to the touchpad while you're accessing those documents. Again, this is an issue I hope future models don't make.
So, that's the "ugly" of the CR-48. Some of those are due to concept, and some are due to the specific hardware of the CR-48. The former will likely apply to ANY cloud-based instant-on computer regardless of OS. Even if you're not using Google services on a cloud PC, others will likely have similar issues. The second really shouldn't apply to you unless you get your hands on a CR-48.
Next up: The Good.
Living with ChromeOS, intro.
So, I've had the Google CR-48 (and therefore Chrome OS) since February or so. I was lucky enough to be one of the people in my area selected to be part of the Chrome OS pilot program. I had used it on and off, but mainly as a second computer, my main one being an Acer Timeline laptop I did most of my computing on.
Well, last week my power supply died, and I was forced to rely on my CR-48 as my primary machine until I could get a new one. I just got the replacement power supply today (Thank you eBay!), but I thought I would give my impressions of the CR-48 as a primary computer.
First, let's get a few disclaimers out of the way. I am not a tech journalist. I am not really even THAT advanced a user compared to some others I know. I have used Linux in the past (and still do, as we'll get to in a second), but I don't know how to do much other than to search online for a way to fix any particular issue. That's its own set of stories, of course, but we'll save that (maybe) for another time.
Also; Even though I was using the CR-48 as my main computer, it was not my only computer. I own a very small ASUS netbook (a eeePC 900A I've upgraded the RAM and the SSD on). I have access to a full-sized desktop at work. Worst comes to worst, I have a smartphone (my trusty Motorola Droid) that can do a lot of the things i need to do.
Lastly, I use a LOT of cloud services, and Google online services in particular. I host files on Dropbox, and make extensive use not only of their application, but also of their web services (yes, I am aware of their security issues. That's for another day). When I write, I tend to use Google Docs. I keep my bookmarks the same on multiple machines using Google Sync. If you don't use online services like these, you will have a vastly different experience than I do.
So, without further ado, let's get into the review in what is possibly the most cliched (but useful) mechanism in literary history; The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
I am going to mix up the format just a little bit by starting with the Ugly first. For the purposes of this review, the Ugly can be classified as things that are limitations of ChromeOS and the CR-48 as a concept. They may not apply to commercial versions of ChromeOS PCs, or they may be on their way to being fixed. Either way, I'm going to put them in a separate area from "The Bad", because I don't think they're things that will affect anyone other than CR-48 owners, or even anyone other than me.
Well, last week my power supply died, and I was forced to rely on my CR-48 as my primary machine until I could get a new one. I just got the replacement power supply today (Thank you eBay!), but I thought I would give my impressions of the CR-48 as a primary computer.
First, let's get a few disclaimers out of the way. I am not a tech journalist. I am not really even THAT advanced a user compared to some others I know. I have used Linux in the past (and still do, as we'll get to in a second), but I don't know how to do much other than to search online for a way to fix any particular issue. That's its own set of stories, of course, but we'll save that (maybe) for another time.
Also; Even though I was using the CR-48 as my main computer, it was not my only computer. I own a very small ASUS netbook (a eeePC 900A I've upgraded the RAM and the SSD on). I have access to a full-sized desktop at work. Worst comes to worst, I have a smartphone (my trusty Motorola Droid) that can do a lot of the things i need to do.
Lastly, I use a LOT of cloud services, and Google online services in particular. I host files on Dropbox, and make extensive use not only of their application, but also of their web services (yes, I am aware of their security issues. That's for another day). When I write, I tend to use Google Docs. I keep my bookmarks the same on multiple machines using Google Sync. If you don't use online services like these, you will have a vastly different experience than I do.
So, without further ado, let's get into the review in what is possibly the most cliched (but useful) mechanism in literary history; The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
I am going to mix up the format just a little bit by starting with the Ugly first. For the purposes of this review, the Ugly can be classified as things that are limitations of ChromeOS and the CR-48 as a concept. They may not apply to commercial versions of ChromeOS PCs, or they may be on their way to being fixed. Either way, I'm going to put them in a separate area from "The Bad", because I don't think they're things that will affect anyone other than CR-48 owners, or even anyone other than me.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
The purpose of this blog
So, like other attempts this blog is likely to end in failure. Sorry. I don't mean to be fatalistic about the whole thing, but I've tried to do this before, and for some reason it hasn't really ended well.
Why? It could be that I'm lazy, I guess. It could be that I get distracted and busy with other things. It could be that I just don't have a whole lot to say. In any event, this is the third (?) time I've tried starting a blog, but we're going to give this thing a try anyhow.
The purpose of this blog is to force myself to write. I'm going to (hopefully) sit down at a set time each day, and write some words. They might not be great words. They might not be true words. They might be fictional or factual words. They will, however, be my words.
Once a day I'm going to log in and write a minimum of 250 words. Just to get into the habit. I've wanted to be a professional writer for a long time, and you cannot be a professional writer unless you write.
Simple, I know. Somehow however I don't think it is likely to be as easy as I'm making it out to be.
I've done this before on Wordpress, I know. I think I did it once before on a different platform, but I don't remember for the life of me which one. Now I'm going to try it on Blogger. Why? Mostly because I'm lazy. Also because I use a CR-48 a lot of the time, and I suspect it will play better with Blogger (which is owned by Google) than it will with other sites.
So, let's see how this goes, shall we?
Why? It could be that I'm lazy, I guess. It could be that I get distracted and busy with other things. It could be that I just don't have a whole lot to say. In any event, this is the third (?) time I've tried starting a blog, but we're going to give this thing a try anyhow.
The purpose of this blog is to force myself to write. I'm going to (hopefully) sit down at a set time each day, and write some words. They might not be great words. They might not be true words. They might be fictional or factual words. They will, however, be my words.
Once a day I'm going to log in and write a minimum of 250 words. Just to get into the habit. I've wanted to be a professional writer for a long time, and you cannot be a professional writer unless you write.
Simple, I know. Somehow however I don't think it is likely to be as easy as I'm making it out to be.
I've done this before on Wordpress, I know. I think I did it once before on a different platform, but I don't remember for the life of me which one. Now I'm going to try it on Blogger. Why? Mostly because I'm lazy. Also because I use a CR-48 a lot of the time, and I suspect it will play better with Blogger (which is owned by Google) than it will with other sites.
So, let's see how this goes, shall we?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)