Jason O’Grady’s Blog

I am a big fan of smartphones because I love the concept of being able to get my email and browse the Web in one small device that is also my phone. The problem is the most phones are too small to fit a meaningful UI and most PDAs are too big for a pocket and need a belt clip. I have previously used a Sony Ericsson P800 and HP iPaq h6315 (link 2) Pocket-PC based PDA and find that the Blackberry is exactly the combination of form and functionality that I need.

BlackBerries don’t come with native Mac capability out of the box, so you’ll need to pick yourself up a copy of PocketMac for Blackberry (US$29) straight away. PocketMac For BlackBerry is the first program to allows you to sync your data between the BlackBerry and Entourage, Address Book, iCal, Now Contact, Now Up-To-Date, and even Stickies. And it’s fully integrated with iSync as well.

In order to setup email you need to connect to T-Mobile’s Blackberry Web Client (BWC) and set up an account. It’s a relatively easy process although parts of the Web interface look bad in Safari. At the end You’re issued an address in the format of username@tmo.blackberry.net. The good news is that you can set your reply-to address to your usual email address. POP and IMAP accounts are checked every fifteen minutes and pushed to your BlackBerry’s PIN over the BlackBerry service.

If you’re company uses Exchange for email, then you should investigate if they’ve installed the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) as it allows you to “browse and save to multiple folders, sync your calendar over the air, and do all sorts of cool advanced features the BWC people can’t do” according to MobileWhack.

ScOObydoo has posted dozens of 7100t screenshots in his review of the 7100t at BlackBerryForums.com.

My 7100t paired perfectly with my Jabra BT250 headset, but a headset is about all that you can use the BlackBerry’s Bluetooth for (more on the limited BT in my second installment).

The good
- The famous BlackBerry email is worthy of the hype. It works well and is easy to configure, my only real problem with it is that opening a message requires two clicks of the scroll wheel when it should really only require one.
- Web browsing is decent considering the small-ish interface but it still barfs on a few sites. I wish that Opera would come out with a version of their excellent browser for the BB.
- The built-in IM application from OZ supports AIM, Yahoo and ICQ is a nice feature although every function (read, send) requires clicking the darn scroll wheel. The other down side is that you can only be logged into one IM service at a time (more on that in the next installment).
- The built-in speakerphone is loud and easy to hear from a distance.

My second installment will feature more about BlackBerry software, accessories and some nagging issues I’ve had in my first seven days in the world of BlackBerry.

For more check out:

- BlackBerryForums.com
- BlackBerry category on MobileWhack

Renick Marsh asks: Do you know of anybody who charges to overclock iBooks for you? I found instructions on how to do it online, but found it to difficult to try myself. This is a used backup iBook with no warranty, so it’s not much of a risk for me. Thanks for any help. Please post your suggestions in the comments below.

As we begin a new year it is often a good idea to start with a fresh slate. Some even use the new year as an opportunity to clean out their aging computer hardware in preparation of something new being released from Apple (no wait, that’s Macworld Expo). Many people clean out their old PCs in January because they got a new one for Christmas or Hanukkah. Either way, it is important to recycle old computers (especially monitors) and NOT throw them into the dumpster.

Discarded computers and other consumer electronics (so called e-waste) are the fastest growing portion of our waste stream — growing almost 3 times faster than our overall municipal waste stream.

Why it’s important

The solvents, gases, acids, flame retardants, plastics, and heavy metals that go into making computers can be extremely harmful to both people and the environment if handled improperly. Decades of unsafe use and disposal have resulted in elevated cancer rates, neurological disorders, miscarriages and severe birth defects among workers in the high tech industry and their families.

Microchip production is resource intensive, involving more energy, water, fossil fuels, toxic chemicals, and elemental gases than any industry in history. Because computers become obsolete so rapidly, the industry also generates a lot of waste. The National Safety Council predicts that in the U.S. between 315 million and 680 million computers will be put to rest within the next few years. The waste will contain more than 4 billion pounds of plastic, 1 billion pounds of lead, 1.9 million pounds of cadmium, 1.2 million pounds of chromium, and nearly 400,000 pounds of mercury. Less than 10% of outdated computer products are refurbished or recycled.
Learn more

One of the most important things you can do is to dispose of your old equipment in a responsible manner. DON’T just put it in the trash. Find out about electronics recycling opportunities in your area.

http://www.apple.com/environment/recycling/

I have been experimenting with a new Business Relationship Management application called Daylite to replace the aging copy of Now Contact that I have been using for managing business relationships.

Address Book has been fine so far for personal contacts but if all goes well, I’ll probably convert the whole enchilada to Daylite in 2005. A colleague pointed out a really cool feature: you can run a server and sync the database against it and then take it with you.

What makes Daylite cool is that in addition to tracking Contacts and Calendar events you can also track Opportunities and Projects - two key areas overlooked by most PIMs

DayLite goes beyond contacts and appointments to include project management and introduce a powerful concept, opportunities. Opportunities offer a simple way to track details, helping you “close the deal” on new business. DayLite’s projects provide you with the perfect tool to stay focused on the big picture, while maintaining control over all small details. Appointments, activities, and contacts can be linked to both projects and opportunities. Simplicity and power - all in one neat package.

NetNewsWire 2.0b10 includes bug fixes, podcasting support, a rewritten and much improved Atom parser, Yahoo news search, performance optimizations, and a bunch of small new features and enhancements.

See the change notes for the full scoop. Also see this post on inessential.com for some screen shots and more about podcasting.