As an IT consultant, I have a lot of different responsibilities that I have to maintain. Not only do I have a plethora of emails and projects to handle simultaneously, but I also have meetings to attend, deadlines to be met, and networking to be done. Even though these tasks are quite manageable, being in IT makes it much more interesting as I spend more time speaking and networking with persons across the globe than I actually do w/ persons who are local in Tennessee. On top of all of this, I also have the responsibility to my clients (and to myself) of continuing my education so that I can deliver the best solutions possible. This results in me spending ALOT of energy reading blogs, watching screencasts, and participating in discussions online. Taking all of these things into consideration, I have very little time to waste. In fact, I often feel like running in circles in my house screaming, "What to do now, what to do now?" - because that always gets things done faster, ;).
So, the point of the opening rant is to basically say that I am in need of a device that will allow me to keep in touch, keep my information in line, keep myself up to date, and also have enough gadgetry that I can create custom solutions so that I can further increase productivity. To be totally frank, this is not cutting it:
About a couple of weeks ago, I made the decision to upgrade my phone to one that is able to handle everything that I need of it. Given the current selection of phones, I only had a few choices. For the sake of brevity (I am often accused of being wordy), I make a quick pro/con chart of each option.
Brief Disclaimer - I am comparing this according to my own criteria. You can find a plethora of comparisons of the products, which often devolve to cross-fire and flame wars. I try to make a pragmatic approach to these to see how they serve my needs. Due to this, you may find my comparisons somewhat incomplete as I tend to gloss over the "hot topics".
iPhone
| Pros: - *If* I made an application, I could sell it for $$ with little pain.
- Good Coverage Area
- Cheaper monthly plan than Verizon's Blackberry plans.
- Has good glitter factor (not a big deal to me)
- Wifi support!
Cons: - Not an application architecture that I would love to dev for.
- Very closed system. It can be jailbroken, but that is a pain to maintain.
- Very closed hardware architecture. Welded battery FTL.
|
The Storm
| Pros: - It is a Verizon Phone - I am currently a Verizon user.
- Verizon has the BEST coverage area in TN (and many other places).
- Open API in .Net. As a .Net programmer, this is cool!
- Has decent application base (nothing compared to the iPhone though
Cons: - It is a generation 1 endeavor. Scary.
- No wifi!! What were they thinking?
- Not as smooth UX as iPhone (but still pretty darn good)
- Have to pay BB plan. Current phone plan + 30 bucks. Ouch!
|
So, after careful consideration, I found both phones to be very similar and both an acceptable solution. They both have nice web browsers, widgets for RSS feeds, internal calendars, ability to do instant messaging, twitter, and sms, email support, etc. After carefully considering these options, I finally decided that I would go w/ a Storm - mainly due to the fact that it is Verizon, has better coverage, and the API thing.
On the day before the storm released, I was all happy w/ my decision and then Gabe had to throw a wrench in the whole thing. After listing my thoughts to him, Gabe said, "Check out the G1." What!?!? Another phone option? Noooooo... So here we go:
The Android (as represented by T-Mobile's G1)
| Pros: - Based on an open source phone architecture. I can completely 100% modify anything about the phone (even the core menus / functionality).
- API is in Java - I am not a Java guy, but I am a C# guy. This, at least, gives me a better edge when starting to develop. Plus, I can pester Gabe for Java stuff, lol.
- Application base that is quickly growing.
- T-Mobile's plans are cheap! Dirt cheap as compared to the Verizon and AT$T
- Hardware is open, but the OS is not limited to 1 phone. Might see future phones / carriers support the Android.
- Its friggin' Google! <3 Google! (Don't get mad M$, I like you too :) )
Cons: - T-Mobile does not have a G3 network in K-town.
- T-Mobile had absolutely dismal coverage area in TN - period.
- T-Mobile is does not have a corporate office in K-town. Have to deal w/ "hot dog" vendors in malls.
- T-Mobile is the only carrier that has the Android.
- Notice a trend here? Adding another T-Mobile con just for being T-Mobile.
|
So, after another agonizing round of careful consideration, I found that the Android would have been my choice, hands down, if it were not for the fact that T-Mobile is so craptactular in this area. I even went so far as to call their corporate office to ask what their plans were in our area. They stated that they were planning to build a corporate office in K-town and that they would have G3 support within "a year or so". Finally, I called one of the "hot dog" vendors and, typically, they did not know what was going on, did not have a display model of the G1 phone, were not very helpful, and left me w/ a feeling of insecurity regarding overall their intelligence. :) Man! I am excited about the Android!
In the end, I ended up choosing the Storm, but with reluctance. I am buying the Storm, but I plan on watching the Android very closely. Within a year or more, if T-Mobile gets their act together or if Google can scrape some contracts w/ other carriers, I am going to jump ship and become an Android adopter. I sincerely felt that it is the best option, but just not feasible in our area for the next few years. Am I being wasteful by buying a Storm, even though I plan on moving to somewhere else in the future? I don't think so. Realistically, I replace my phone about once every 2 years or so. If it provides the kind of service I am hoping, I will be able to more than make up the cost of the phone.
So, big surprise, I am the owner of the Storm (even though have not gotten mine in the mail yet). In regards to this conclusion, Gabe had come comments regarding the outcome of my internal debate.
Gabe @nathanblevins did you get your storm yet?
Nathan @Gabe Nope, but I plan on blogging about the decision soon.
Gabe @nathanblevins lol, I wait with baited breath.
Nathan @Gabe Your sarcasm cuts deeply, sir. ;)
Gabe @nathanblevins not sarcastic at all, i really am curious, though since i can't see you changing your mind at the last second... it'll be like reading a book you know the ending to. . . Though I am open to surprises! ;-)
Cracking me up! Man, I hate to be predicable... ;)
So here I am, waiting for the impending Storm...
Categories: Personal ,News-Events
posted by nblevins on 11/26/2008 9:49:14 AM
So, I got hit w/ this link today via Twitter (thanks for nothing, @jameshacker). I can't stop watching it. I just keep cracking up every time I watch it. I am certain that Tuank Tunak Tun is going to be the new RickRoll. Since I am having such a great time w/ it, I thought I would share. :)
Everyone needs to see it at least once:
If you are unfamiliar w/the concept of RickRolling, Wikipedia says:
Rickrolling is an Internet meme typically involving the music video for the 1987 Rick Astley song "Never Gonna Give You Up". The meme is a bait and switch: a person provides a Web link they claim is relevant to the topic at hand, but the link actually takes the user to the Astley video. The URL can be masked or obfuscated in some manner so that the user cannot determine the true source of the link without clicking (and thus satisfying their curiosity). When a person clicks on the link given and is led to the web page he/she is said to have been "Rickrolled".
On a side note, the only thing better than RickRolling is Zombie-RickRolling. For instance, check out this link and wait for about 10 seconds (no, it is not a RickRoll but a link back to my site).
Braaaaiiinnnssss
Enjoy!
Categories: Personal ,Misc
posted by nblevins on 11/17/2008 10:19:37 AM
This weekend was an exciting weekend. As many of you know, Crystal and I are in the process of building our first house. To say the least, it is a fun and exciting time even though it can be a pretty daunting and scary process. Of course, there is nothing like going monstrously into debt to make you realize just how small you actually are, lol. Anyway, one of our biggest projects that we are taking on is the clearing of all the wood and underbrush that had to be removed in order to make room for our house. Given that our property is heavily wooded, this is going to be a huge process that will, most likely, take me months and months to complete fully. For example, here is a bit of a before and after shot of the land.
 |  |
Saturday, we began our big project, having the assistance of Drew and Dylan to start clearing the land. Going into the project, I have to admit that I was pretty stoked. After all, this included some of my favorite things: chainsaws; crawling across the mountainside in my 4wd truck; and moving HUGE objects w/ manpower, truck power, straps, pulleys, levers, etc. It was going to be GREAT! After all, nothing could go wrong, right? ... right?
Needless to say, Murphy had quite a bit to say concerning my initial impressions. Even though we were 100% prepared to get started working, it seemed as if everything had to go wrong at least once before we finally got down to business. Considering what we had to do, we pretty much only had 2 main points of failure
The Chainsaw
So, Hollywood tells us that the Chainsaw is one of the most important items you could possibly have in order to survive a horror movie or a zombie apocalypse. Don't believe me? Check here . Anyway, the facts that Hollywood does not tell us is that chainsaws break... a lot... consistently a lot... stay broken longer than running, a lot, consistently... etc. As we were working, I ended up stopping about every 15 mins in order to fix the chainsaw. One of the biggest problems w/ working w/ a chainsaw, is that trees are usually under some kind of tension when you cut them, even if they are on the ground. Due to this, as you cut through the tree, you experience some from of kick-back. Basically put, kick-back is the release of any kind of tension between two parts of trees that were under pressure. When this occurs, you can, at the very least, have your chainsaw stuck in between two parts of trees or, at the very worse, be missing a few teeth when a 500+ lb tree trunk comes whizzing toward your face. On top of this, I ended up dealing w/ all kinds of hardware issues as my chain kept coming off, the throttle would stick wide open, and the chainsaw would decide that it "had enough" and would pout for about 20 mins at a time.
All in all, I regret having bought a non-commercial grade chainsaw and, having already exchanged the chainsaw once on Saturday, I plan to take the current one back in order to get something a little more hardy. /sigh
The Truck
I love my Dodge. If you have not heard me say that, this means that you have probably not have ridden w/ in my truck before. It is an awesome piece of machinery that has yet to give me any form of trouble. It runs perfectly, starting w/o me having to crank at all, and is equipped to handle just about any situation. In case I am not making my point clear here... I LOVE my Dodge. Anyway, they have been doing grading work on my land for the last couple of days and we saw a pretty good rain the night before, so I was a little concerned in taking my truck through the "work zone." Since my driveway is a very steep incline, I was pretty certain that I would end up mired up in the fresh mud. The last thing I needed was a stuck vehicle.
As we were working, it became increasingly clear that we needed to have the truck w/ us in the work zone. Considering that some of the tree cuts were so heavy that 2 people could not lift a 3 foot span, I decided to bring my truck down. Popping it in 4wd, I gritted my teeth and eased down into the property. To my complete surprise, my truck did not even slip a wheel. When I got to the base of the hill, I decided to tempt fate and try to climb up it... in reverse, lol. Once again, I was pleasantly surprised as my truck easily traversed the hill. At this point, I threw caution to the wind and ended up climbing all over the work zone, going up steep inclines, driving sideways on 45 degree hillsides, and pulling huge loads of tree pieces all over the place. (Did I mention that I love my truck? Bwa ha ha!) I was able to go all over this freshly turned wet dirt (mud) and did not have a single piece of trouble.
After clearing a truck load of trees, we decided to go to the "untouched" side of the land in order to deposit them (this is the future site of the paint-ball course in which I plan to use this logs as the basis for our barriers). Anyway, you can imagine my surprise when my truck got stuck as I was trying to pull across this nicely flat and innocent stretch of land. Maybe it was the fact that this land was in the bottom of the ravine, maybe it was the fact that I had TONS of lbs in wood in the back of the truck, or maybe it was the combination of both, but my truck quickly sank into mud on the left side. In fact, it sank so deep, that I could only see the tops of my tires.
After trying to pull myself out, I realized that I was going to need help. First off, I had Dylan and Drew push, jump, prod, and poke to see if they could give me any kind of extra traction. The result was them getting completely soaked and me, albeit in higher spirits after laughing at them, stuck in a truck.