Blah, blah, blog!

OK, so I cheated...

Mindy posted and asked for an update and some photos of my Russell and Hazel binder and I promise I will post some.  Yes, yes, am still using it!  Though, more for a notepad and paper catch all than a calendar (those big rubber bands are fabulous for grabbing scraps of paper!

Let's face it folks, we live in a digital world.  I just don't know if I will ever find the "perfect" planning system that will bridge my love of paper and seeing my plans laid out before my eyes in a tangible way and my reality of the barrage of email and electronic information that never stops.

I love my iPhone.  Love, love, lovey love it!  I live by that thing.  But I have to say, the teeny, tiny calendar inside, makes me work way too hard for previewing what is coming in terms of my schedule and workload.  No Bueno.

But this Bad Boy......with it's big shiny screen and all...looks promising:

Well, hello back!

And, yes, I can write directly on the screen with a stylus or my finger if I do not wish to use the touch screen keyboard or optional docking full keyboard.

Here are just a few reasons I have discovered I now LOVE my iPad:

Pocket Informant is Bigger, Better, and has more features (screen shots taken from Pocket Informant site):

I love that it now feels more like a real planner in my hands, with the addition of tabs.  I have more optional views, GTD, Franklin Covey, and Toodledo task modes, and more task layout options.  I love that it syncs with Google Calendar.  That is huge.  I share calendars with my husband and work groups with the charter school.  I have more colors going on in my calendar than a pride parade, and it really helps to put it all together.

Next comes one of my FAVORITE things....Pulse News Reader!  Don't tell anyone, but I've never really understood RSS feeds, Feedburner or any of those things.  Well, now I don't have to.  Powered by Google Reader, Pulse is an awesome app that allows me to simple use the search box to type "Trader Joes Blog" and Bam!  all of the search results for blogs that are related to Trader Joes pop up.  I am now following "Cooking With Trader Joes.  It works for blogs and newsfeeds.  Beautiful, colorful images and the first few sentences of the most recent stories fill the grid of the Pulse screen so it nice and pretty.  I just scroll through to see what is new and interesting!

 

Another promising app (I'm waiting for my invitation--this app is SO highly anticipated and in such demand they are rolling out their user base by issuing email invitations to users who have downloaded the app).  Flipboard is another media management app.

Here is a review of Flipboard

Things I enjoy right now:

Books!  Love e-books and with the recent addition of the Kindle app and the power of Amazon the iPad has immediate access to a whole new world.  I have to say it is pretty amazing to browse the virtual bookstore, tap the title, download the sample, read the first chapter or two, decide you like it, buy it and own it in 30 seconds.  Wow.

Games

While I have not played Scrabble yet...I dearly loved teaching my son the joys of Solitaire while waiting for a terribly long physician's appointment this afternoon.  Little D loves playing Cooking Mama on the iPad.  Doodle Glow is another winner.  You can't go wrong with the games.

Movies!

I am not a big TV fan.  However I love movies.  I recently initiated a Netflix subscription.  One of the coolest things ever was sitting in our cabin near Yosemite (WiFi access, of course) with everyone sound asleep, and my little iPad perched next to me, with my Bose headphones creating my own personal theater.  I streamed a Netflix presentation of 7 Pounds with Will Smith (great movie) and just thought "wow!"

So that's it.  If you want to know what I think of the iPad, I think it is a fantastic gadget.  It will not replace your laptop, however it has some fabulous functionality.  I believe it is far more than a large iPod Touch.  I do wish it had a USB port, however, I think there are workarounds (emailing docs).  I think the iPad is all about accessing your media and information, not as much about productivity, though I know you can create excel files, Powerpoints, and Word docs with Apple version software.  

I love mine!

Apple = Love

Do you know about my lifelong devotion to all things Apple?  No?  Well, allow me to debrief you:

Sometime around 1985 I went up to the MacWorld Expo at the Moscone Center and become fascinated with all things Mac.I attended the MacWorld Expo twice and it was such a grown up cool thing to do.  I was a kid, young and impressionable, and loved the "Think Different" vibe of the Mac Culture of of mid 80's.  I still love it today. 

My parents bought my first Mac for me when I went to college in 1987. I can remember what a HUGE deal it was for my mom to make that investment for me.  This was before computers were common for kids.  But she trusted and believed that it would help me be a better student.  She believed that the price tag was worth the risk of giving me a chance at opening some doors.

My trusty little boxy Mac SE saw me through college graduation (Mom's risk paid off!) After I left the University of Arizona, I joined the Peace Corps and moved to Ecuador.  In year two, I returned to complete my service with this trusty little Mac Powerbook so Todd and I could write our grad school applications and figure out what to do with our lives post-service.

While my then-boyfriend-now-husband spent his life in the lab pursuing his dissertation, I went to work for a tech company.  I sold-out-To-The-Man and bought my ever PC. In my defense, I was selling processor upgrades, pulling hard drives, and feeling pretty capable in the PC world, so I gave in.  Biggest Mistake Ever.  Todd and I used his OSU student discount and went into big-time debt and bought a Mac Power PC.  It was a piece of crap, but we where happy to be back among the Apple devotees.

Then we got married, bought a home, had a kid (then two more) and budget became more important than my religious-like devotion to Steve Jobs.  We bought (and tossed) a Gateway 2000, & an HP.

After viruses, problems, and headaches galore, we FINALLY saw the light and returned to the Mothership.  I got my sleek little Macbook pro a few years ago and loved the life out of it until I started my Photography gig.  Then.....

....we migrated into the iMac, which is undeniably an amazing experience.  I love it every single time I sit down.  This is where I connect, work, watch TV, and organize myself.

I wanted this device from "Hello".  A few months ago it became mine and my life has not been the same since. It wakes me up in the morning and tells me where I need to be hour by hour.  iPhone, I just can't quit you.

And Now, there is the iPad You've just got to watch this video and see how amazing this thing is!

Todd and I sat through the hour and a half Keynote today and were giddy with possibility.  We have long considered a Kindle because my husband and daughter tear through books like crazy.  This iPad promised to put the Kindle to shame.  I love the concept of the iBook store and the virtual bookshelf.  My hubby's 41st birthday is just a few short months away and he has been a very good boy....