iPad vs M1 MacBook … first thoughts

I’ll dive into this in more detail in a future article, but for now let’s ponder this thought:

As a long time iPad Pro user (and fan), with the exception of various special use-cases, it’s going to be hard to justify getting an iPad Pro over an M1 MacBook .. which is cheaper and more powerful, and runs iPad apps.

.. and I hate screen fingerprints. So, it could be a win.

iPad Evolution

I’ve noticed that I’ve been using my iPad Pro a *heck* of a lot more since iPadOS came out introducing widgets, split screen, etc. The current iteration of hardware and software have finally turned it into a good enough productivity tool that I can comfortably replace my laptop in many situations. (Especially personal travel). This is my 3rd iPad, and although I’ve always loved them, this is the first one I can honestly say is indispensable to me. (And I couldn’t say that prior to iPadOS 13.x.

I have even this iPad to edit some basic videos. (Which brings me to the point of perhaps looking at iPhones again one day so I can take advantage of AirDrop to move the footage)

My current iPad is a 2015-2017 12.9” iPad Pro with a Logitech Connect keyboard and a (1st gen) Apple Pencil.

That said: My 2015-2017 era iPad Pro is still running super strong. I’m just missing the new form factor (minor) and (more important) USB-C. With USB-C I could transfer files from my Galaxy Note … without having to do something like upload / download to OneDrive.

My QNAP NAS is dead (again!)

Back in December 2015, barely six months after I purchased my QNAP TS-451 NAS I found it ominously missing from my network.  Upon investigation, I found it in an endless reboot loop, and when it restarted, I found that it was always reset to the factory defaults.  I contacted QNAP’s tech support group who determined it to be a defective “factory reset switch”.  They sent me a form to fill out, which I did.  A week and two phone calls later, I finally got an RMA number so I could ship the server back to them.  About a month after that my unit returned, supposedly good as new.

At this point, let me put this out there: I really like the QNAP NAS appliance.  I like it’s low power consumption, and I love how the OS “just works”.  My ability to access my files, or sync with them over the Internet is brilliant as well.  In short, I really want to love everything about this device.

So here we are in April 2016.  By now the psychological wounds from the last time that my QNAP NAS left me high and dry were almost healed.  Then came last night.  I went to access some data on the QNAP, only to find it wasn’t responding to my copy command.  I then tried to PING it.  No response!  Flashbacks to December came over me.  I ran to the server closet, only to find it dead.  No lights, nothing.  I tried the power button.  No response.  I unplugged it, took it to a different outlet.  Still, sadly, nothing. I tried about a dozen more troubleshooting steps to no avail.

I finally broke down and called QNAP tech support.  They said it was likely either a failed PSU (Power supply unit) or a failed logic board.  Once again they sent me the RMA form.  I filled it out and returned it to them ASAP.  I’m hopeful, but only partly optimistic that this time it won’t take a week to get an RMA number.  I really don’t want to have to wait another month to get this unit back.

That said: My opinion on this whole QNAP NAS appliance thing has changed! 

 

Prior to this week, I was considering increasing my QNAP investment. I was looking at a fairly pricey 8-bay unit that supported Thunderbolt connections to my Mac systems.  This failure changed that.   I had at least three friends suggest I switch to Synology devices.  But after this, I may avoid any such solution in favor of a system I can build myself with off-the-shelf parts.

Let me explain my logic:  Unless I buy at least two of any device I consider (whether it is QNAP or Synology), if a part fails (Power supply, logic board, whatever), I’m at the mercy of sending the device back to the manufacturer for repair.  (That’s assuming I can obtain an RMA number in a reasonable amount of time!)  After I send it to them (my cost), I’m still waiting between two and six weeks to see the unit returned to me.  During that time, my data is offline.  (Even with my backup, where am I going to restore 10 to 12TB of data to?)

If I build my own server, I gain the ability to run down to Microcenter / Frys / wherever and obtain a replacement part.  I can even get a replacement part from Amazon or NewEgg in a day or two if need be.  The cost to assemble my own comparable server would be similar or less than an appliance solution from QNAP or Synology.

This sounds great, but what do I give up?  Well, the two main things I give up are:  Any self-built system, regardless if it runs FreeNAS, UnRAID, or even Windows is going to use more power than an appliance system.  That’s just a given.  I can do some things to mitigate this issue, such as spending a bit more for lower cost processors, but I’ll never get down to the power levels of these dedicated appliance servers.  Fair enough, and it’s a trade off that I can live with.  The second thing I’d give up is cloud support.  Many of these NAS manufactures build cloud server infrastructure to make it easier to access your data from anywhere.  Basically you connect to their web site (such as “myqnapcloud.com”) and after authentication, it will redirect you back to your home / small office NAS box where you can then freely access (or sync) your files.  This really does make the system a “personal dropbox”.  Short of using a solution such as BitTorrentSync, or TeamViewer I haven’t found an equivalent way to do this on a home-built NAS solution yet.  This doesn’t mean that such a solution doesn’t exist, it just means I haven’t found one yet.  I’m still looking, and suffice to say, in the early stages of research.

The third thing I’d give up is dedicated apps and an app store.  I don’t consider this major as any OS you deploy will have apps.  The main difference is that unlike in an appliance solution, you will have to configure them and set them up yourself.  So, you aren’t really losing anything here, other than ease-of-setup.

 

So, regardless of when I get my QNAP NAS back, it’s going to be retired!

Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice (oh wait, that actually happened !?!)  Fool me three times, shame on me.

So, I’ll likely be building my own NAS in the near future, which should be a fun project.

That said: I have another (short term) solution.  Once I get the data off my NAS volume, I could just mount the drives into my Windows tower, set them up as a RAID volume and share them from there.  I’d have to keep the system running 24×7, but at least I’d have a lower cost up front for now.

 

In the meantime, I was exploring restoring (some of) my data to local storage until I can get my NAS repaired.  QNAP’s web site had mentioned this product called “reclaime”.  It’s (apparently) free.  It works with most NAS devices because nearly all of them use a file system called MD-RAID.

And … it works, sorta.

It takes a while to run, but eventually gives you a list of files that are on your RAID block.  The problem is that it doesn’t have the full file system.  It makes a big tree of folders labelled “TIF”, “JPEG”, “DOC”, “MP3”, etc, and inside each one is all of the files for that type.

Good luck getting related files all back together!

I did find another product I found that will re-assemble the file system as well.  It’s called UFS Explorer, and it looks brilliant (assuming it works).  The only downside is that it’s 99 Euros to purchase.  I’m not in THAT much of a rush to recover my files.

So for now, I’ve taken the drives back out of my main system tower, and put them back in their QNAP enclosure.

I did notice that a local tech retailer has a TS-451+ in stock.  Was thinking of going down and purchasing that, copying my data off to my external disks and returning it. (I’d pay whatever restocking fee they have, or just exchang it for parts to build a NAS.)  I guess my decision here will depend on how soon I find that I need a file that’s currently sitting in a stack of inaccessible drives.

 

 

 

 

 

PS4 upgrade

A few years ago my wife gave me a PS3 for Christmas.  She said I needed to find a hobby to relax.  For the most part I’ve very much enjoyed it.  Unfortunately however, I’ve utilized it more as a set-top box and media player than as a game system.  It’s a great player for NetFlix and Amazon Video!  (Although for whatever reason, in recent months I have started playing games more frequently.  This has proved to be a good thing for me.)

I haven’t had a need or desire to upgrade from the PS3 to the PS4.  I was aware that the PS3 games wouldn’t play on the PS4. We have a reasonable library of PS3 games collected, so to lose these was a disadvantage.  More so, I also learned that for multi-player games, and even to play Netflix, you need a “Playstation Network Plus” subscription.  I tend to resist recurring monthly fees, and these same activities are free on the PS3.  Likewise, I considered this a disadvantage.

All of this changed this past Christmas.  My daughter bought her brother a copy of “Call of Duty: Black Ops III” for the PS3.  She paid quite a bit of money for the game.  My son put the disk into the PS3 and went to play it.  It turned out that the PS3 doesn’t have the campaign mode, which, if you are familiar with the Call of Duty franchise, is the heart and soul of the game.  I felt bad for my son (and my daughter who spent money on this).  This was the first time we had a real disadvantage by not upgrading to the PS4.  For the first time, the advantages of the PS3 did not outweighs the disadvantages of upgrading.  (Note here I’m not talking graphics ability, or technical aspects of the consoles, which very clearly favor the PS4!)  It was at this point that I began to shop for a PS4 at a good price.

I finally found it!  The PS4 was on sale at a local chain store for $299,which was $50 cheaper than the usual published retail price. I hadn’t even found a used console this inexpensive yet, so this was good enough!  Tonight, I brought home the PS4 and set it up.

Yeah!  Finally the PS4 upgrade.

 

The initial setup was fun!  There were however a few downsides: Mostly, there were a lot of updates to download when I first installed it.  It should have gone quick, but it didn’t.  It was taking hours.  Then, I realized that something was amiss with my router and my bandwidth was way way down.  Rebooting my router fixed that problem and the rest of the setup process went quickly.

Eek!  Why so long! (Router issue!)

 

The PS4 package came with an ear bud.  This was new as the PS3 didn’t have such a thing.  The ear-bud plugs into the game controller itself and operates wirelessly.  Apparently it’s used for in-game chats, banter, trash-talk, and whatever else live gaming entails.  I haven’t tried it yet, but the idea intrigues me.  I’m sure my son already knows everything about it.  Oddly, I’m the tech guy in the family, yet somehow I’m always a day late to this game stuff.  (It probably goes back to my wife’s comment that I need to unwind and relax a bit more)

The new ear-bud … (Still in the bag) … I need to try this for in-game chats.

Contents of my PS4 package.

My PS4 kit came with the following items:

• Game Console (Obviously, but not pictured above)
• One controller (Just one, that was a bit surprising)
• Power cable
• HDMI cable
• Ear-bud (Mentioned earlier, for in-game chats)
• Instructions (very basic)
• Coupon for $10 on the Playstation Network
• Call of Duty: Black Ops III game

I’ll admit to being surprised that the game didn’t come with two controllers, but that’s a minor nit.  The console also comes with a 14 day free trial of the “Playstation Network Plus” service, so you can try it immediately without committing to money.  I supposed this is in case you change your mind and want to exchange your PS4 for an Xbox or something like that.  Ultimately, I’ll likely purchase the PSN+ subscription.  The best deal seems to be the one year at $50.  Since I already saved $50 on the console, I’m enough ahead of the game (pun intended) to pay for the first year’s subscription.

 

So: That’s my first impressions thus far.  I like it.  My game library is now opened up to all of the new games that are available.  I won’t have to deal with any more “limited” games as my son had to deal with for Call of Duty: Black Ops III on the PS3 version.  (In fact, he’s away this weekend and hasn’t gotten the news I upgraded the system, he’ll be pretty thrilled when he gets home!)

I just have to decide what to do with my PS3 now.  I can either keep it around as a set-top box for when I finish my man cave, or keep it to play the library of PS3 games.  Alternatively, I could go to Gamestop and sell it, and all the games and recover some cash.  I haven’t decided yet.

I look forward to forming some more opinions of the PS4 as time goes on.

 

 

 

 

End of year: About myself

We are in December.  It’s the end of the year.  I have many close friends, but I wonder how many know some details about me?  I’ll reveal them here.  (For better or worse)

Things y’all probably don’t know about me.

(and if you read it, be patient … but some of it is political)

1. I never push my views on others.
   I have my own views, in some cases, I have strong views.  However, I respect the rights of others to have differing opinions.
   If you want to change my opinion, I strongly suggest you don’t come at me with an emotional plea, but rather approach me with facts and logic.  If your facts are substantiated and convincing, perhaps I’ll consider your point of view and evolving mine.  Convince me.
2. I love to travel
   Regardless of all the complaining I do about my trips, I actually enjoy travel. A lot.  I’m so blessed that my job allows me to see the world (without killing anyone, like our esteemed armed forces are often asked to do).  If I stopped travelling, which I will have to do at some point, I believe I’d really miss it.
3. My political viewpoints: I’m a conservative. I’m not embarrassed about that.  I firmly believe the Federal Government’s role should be limited to national defense and interstate commerce, as the constitution defines it to be.  Anything beyond that is over-reach and against the visions of our founding fathers.  (side note: I have many liberal friends, and enjoy our conversations very much.  I’d go as far as saying that many of them have helped shape my politician opinions, and perhaps they have improved my understanding of some situations. I always value opinions that don’t agree with my own, because how else do you learn anything?) 
4. My favorite American historical political figure: Ben Franklin.  I could write a book about him.  However, I don’t have to write a book as many others’ have already written books about him.  I will recommend one particular book by Ben himself: his autobiography.  Read it, and if you don’t admire him after that, I can’t help you.  Suffice it to say, the USA wouldn’t exist without him, and he was very much a “regular guy” like you and I.  He had ambition, and a love for this crazy democratic experiment.  That made all the difference.  (I have other favorite historical figures, but that’s beyond the scope of this article)
5. My views on abortion: This one may make some of my good friends uncomfortable, so I apologize in advance if it does.  (See point # 1)   While I won’t push my views on others, I don’t hide my views either.  In my opinion, abortion is the murder of an unborn child.  (Especially late term abortion) This view isn’t based on my religion, but on intellectual honesty, and science.  As Americans, we seem to care more for the wellbeing of pets than we do our unborn children.  (and before someone says to me “Planned parenthood only does 3% abortions, the rest of what they do is good!” .. my response is “They only murder 3% of the time, so I guess that makes them good people?”)

   All that said:  I do want to see abortion gone from the USA.  But making it illegal won’t solve anything.  We need to change the hearts and minds of people if we want real change.  That’s done with understanding and love.  Anything else will result in abject failure and I wouldn’t support it.  Some people get frightened when they get pregnant.  They need support, not preaching.  Our culture needs to change, and that’s not done one person at a time.

6. My favorite cartoon character(s): Minions
7. My favorite Disney movie (so far): Frozen. (Don’t’ say it, a grown man likes Frozen and Minions … I get it, let’s move on)
8. My favorite city in the USA: Buford, Georgia  (I can live anywhere, I choose Buford)
9. My favorite domestic Airline: American  (Yes, I live in Atlanta, but Delta is dead to me.)
10. My Ethnicity: I’m a Mut like many Americans.  However, my name and heritage is Hungarian. (I’m a 4^th generation American) I am so very proud of that.  I loved my great grandfather who came to the USA from Hungry. He lived to the young age of 101, and I was fortunate to know him.    I miss him very much,  and I sincerely hope that my life would have made him proud.  I am only a fraction Hungarian (although as I learned during my visit to Eastern Europe, I do look the part 100%)

    My children however are 50% Korean.   I know that my daughter identifies herself as Korean.  As such, I also identify as Korean and that’s very much my adopted culture.    (Want to get on my bad side: Talk bad about Asian cultures … it’s one of the few things that will turn me against you. I’m the most Asian “white guy” you’ll ever meet.)

11. (Switching to Aviation) My favorite single aisle aircraft: Boeing 757 (long discontinued, but awesome airplane and still very much in service).  My favorite wide body?  I had to think about this one:   But I’m going with the iconic Boeing 747.  The top deck is as close to you get flying a private jet.
12. Most disappointing aircraft: Boeing 787: Coach is too cramped.  Business class is convoluted.  (Seriously, I need to wear a shoulder seatbelt harness?)
13. Is there any aircraft I wouldn’t fly? Anything with propellers unless I’m at the controls.  In this jet age, there is no good reason to have to deal with ancient aircraft for commercial travel.  Propeller plans make perfect sense for General Aviation due to the lower costs.  For commercial aviation, not so much, unless you are going fishing in Alaska.
14. My favorite country: It’s still Thailand even though I’m horribly distressed by the direction it’s taken over the past few years (subsequent to the military coup).  I’ll say this: The nicest people I know are from Thailand and I wish only good things for this nation.  (and one person who’s very special to me, whom I consider a blood sister, is Thai … @Audra)
15. My dream job: I’ve done my part over the years helping corporations and governments solve their infrastructure issues for mobile data processing.  I’m a very good coder.

    Beyond that: I’ve taught at the college level (one of the most rewarding experiences of my life)  I’d like to teach High School kids.  I hope I get to the point where I can afford to do that.

    Second choice:  I love to cook.  I’d love to run a restaurant and make people happy with amazing food.

    In short:  I won’t be doing my life’s calling (computer work) forever.  I’m damn good at my job, but even I will burn out at some point.  (But I think I have quite a few years left …. So no rush to change)

16. My most proud accomplishment:  I’m an Eagle Scout.  I’ve also gone out of my way to give back to the Boy Scouts when I can.  Fantastic organization.
17. Biggest regret: Not spending more times with my loved ones when I had the chance.  (Grandfather, grandmother, my mom).    Also: I had opportunities to join the Navy when I was younger, and I sort of wish I followed through.  But my life would have been different.  I doubt I’d have the same awesome children I have now, so I rarely question the path I’ve taken.  But you always question the path not taken …..
18. Most rewarding aspect of my life now (not-family related): I enjoy giving back to my community (Highland Creek).  Without saying much about this, it’s by far the one thing I’m very passionate about and brings me a tremendous amount of joy.
19. My children: Every single day, my three children make me so proud.  They do things that are so well reasoned, so well thought out, that I wonder where they learned how to choose their path?  They are so wise beyond myself.  I’d love to take credit, but I can’t, this is all on them.  I’m so beyond proud of each of them.  I have no words.
20. My favorite pet: My bird. (A green cheek conure)  He’s awesome.  He understands me.  But he bites.  (Ok, I do that sometimes too!)

 

 

Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy 6 Edge+

Today Samsung announced two new devices.  The Samsung Galaxy Note 5 is the successor to the wildly popular and successful Galaxy Note 4, and the Samsung Galaxy Edge 6+, which appears to be a hybrid of both a large version of the Galaxy S6 and an update to the Galaxy Note (4) Edge.

Let’s start with the Galaxy Note 5.  From an aesthetic perspective it is an absolutely beautiful device!  Based purely on appearance, it has the iPhone and pretty much every other phone that is currently available beat.  Movado calls themselves “the museum watch” based on the appearance of their minimalist, premium timepieces.  The Note 5 belongs in that same category as Movado as it is, visually, quite stunning. The materials are premium, but also fragile with glass on both the front and the back of the phone.  Sadly, this means you’ll have to hide all of that beauty in a case to protect it from drops and other unexpected traumatic impacts.

On the upside what Samsung has added to the mix is wireless charging and a new lower-power octocore processor.  Both are welcome additions.  (Author’s note:  I am still on the fence with the wireless charging.  It feels gimmicky, and if you like to sit on your sofa and use your device while it’s plugged in this idea is now a bit of a problem.  Lastly, you still have to plug in the wireless charger, so I personally don’t see the benefit.)  Samsung has  improved the front facing “selfie camera” to 5MP.  It’s reported that this camera is now wide-angle so you can take a selfie with a few of your friends.  I assume the clarity has also improved for video calling as well.  The excellent rear camera remains the same as the previous Note 4 with 16MP.  The most exciting new feature for power-users is the addition of an extra GB of RAM bringing the device to 4GB!  For multi-tasking this is a gift from Zeus himself.  To put things in perspective, the iPhone 6 only has 1GB of RAM.  Ever wonder why when you switch back to the app you used 3 minutes ago on the iPhone it reloads itself (again)?  That’s because the iPhone is RAM starved.  This Note 5 absolutely won’t be memory starved!  (For comparison, the existing Galaxy Note 4 has 3GB of RAM, which is impressive in it’s own right.)

In recent years, Samsung has been known to occasionally remove features from their latest devices, and the Note 5 is no exception.  In this case however, Samsung has removed features that are quite major.  The Note 5 loses the following features that were important in the previous Galaxy Note 4:

• Changeable battery The battery life in the Note line has never been stellar, but having a changeable battery has mostly negated this issue. Many Galaxy Note power-users often carry a spare.  (Author’s note: I often carry at least one spare with me and my Note 4 and it gets me through pretty much any situation, including trade shows, long trips to theme parks with the family and multi-day camping trips where recharging is near impossible.  The alternative with sealed-battery phones like the iPhone and Note 5 is to carry around an awkward, expensive external battery back and associated cables.  This is possible, but certainly not preferable).
• Removable SD Card storage.  I can predict that the loss of this single feature will cause much consternation among loyal Samsung purchasers! For an almost laptop-replacement productivity device like the Note, this is a huge issue!  Yes, Samsung now offers the device in both 32GB and 64GB models.  Yes, internal storage is faster than external storage.  But for folks that want to store media (Books, photos, videos, and music) even a slower SD card is adequate at a fraction of the price of internal storage.  I personally have a 128GB SD card in my Note 4 bringing my total storage to 160GB for my device.  The best I could do with a Note 5 would bring me to a 96GB loss of storage space.  Cloud storage is available, but when you consider that most carriers throttle you once you hit a certain amount of bandwidth (typically 2 – 5GB) that no longer becomes practical, especially for streaming video.  (Not to mention that accessing anything from the cloud on a mobile device is glacially slow, even assuming you are in a coverage area.  If you are outside of a coverage area, your cloud content is basically gone.)  To be fair: The problem here isn’t so much that Samsung took away SD card storage, but that they did it on a device used by (worshipped by?)  their core “power-user” demographic.  Even worse, they did it when other vendors (LG, Motorola, Lenovo S930, HTC) are still offering expandable SD card storage.  Even more to the point, Apple now offers their own “phablet” in the form of the iPhone 6 Plus.  The major differentiator between the Note 4 and the iPhone 6+ has been the SD card and the changeable battery.  I know of many users that prefer iOS, but often take Android due to the superior hardware differentiation. The Samsung Note 5 inexplicably evens the field between the iPhone phablet and the Note 5.  But it’s even worse than that: The iPhone comes in a 128GB version, while the Note 5 maxes out at 64GB.  Samsung has gone from having a clear advantage to being a notable underdog in the specs department. Anyway, enough of the SD card topic … moving on …
• IR blaster.  This is one of those cool little features that nobody ever buys a phone for, but when you have it, you tend to love it!  Essentially it turns your phone into a TV / Media center remote control.  Samsung included some excellent software in the Galaxy Note 4 to make this magic happen.  Personally, I love this feature.  I’ve heard many others praise it.  It’s not something available in the iPhone.  While I’m sure other devices exist with this ability, I personally don’t know which ones.  However, it doesn’t matter now because Samsung has removed it from the Galaxy Note 5.  It’s gone.

In summary, the Galaxy Note 5 gets a few minor updates (processor, wireless charging, selfie camera) while losing two major power user features and a minor, but really cool “IR blaster” feature.  Honestly, if I were in sales, I would imagine that it would be fairly easy to sell a Galaxy Note 4 to a Galaxy Note 5 user as an upgrade, with a cheaper price to boot!  The obvious summary here is that Samsung has failed miserably with more features lost than gained.  (Other than pure aesthetics, because as I mentioned, this device is the super-model centerfold of mobile devices.)

Now on to the Galaxy S6 Edge+.  Spec wise, this device is identical to the Galaxy Note 5.  It really should be the successor to the Galaxy Note (4) Edge which was released in September 2014.  A little history: The Galaxy Note Edge was a clever device that combined all of the breathtaking features of the Galaxy Note 4 but added a smallish, curved “edge” display along the right side of the screen.  This screen served a multitude of unique functions.  It provided a side bar for launching applications basically replacing the “dock” at the bottom of the traditional Galaxy Note 4 screen.  It could be configured to have informational “banners” scrolling, basically replacing the traditional notification bar/messages.  At night, while sitting on a nightstand it could dimly display the date/time in a manner similar to many alarm clocks.  It was a bleeding edge (no pun intended) design that captured the imagination as to where Samsung might go with it.  In a time when Samsung was being accused in court of steeling Apple’s ideas, this was actually, pure innovation.

Fast forward to now:  The Galaxy Note Edge loosely inspired the Galaxy S6 Edge.  The S6 Edge has the same basic design, but different application implementation of the edge, and now both edges were curved instead of one.  Whereas the Note Edge had a separate small screen for the “Edge” display (bringing the resolution to 1600×2560, it would appear that the S6 Edge is just the main screen, with curved glass.  The resolution remains at 1440×2560.)

The successor to these “Edge” movements is the Galaxy S6 Edge+.  Like the S6 Edge (and unlike the previous Galaxy Note Edge) the display resolution is exactly the same as the Galaxy Note 5.  However unlike the Note 5, the S6 Edge+ does not have an S-Pen.  So, in many ways, it’s like the Note 5 with yet another major feature removed.  Also, unlike the previous Galaxy Note Edge which was innovative, this time Samsung chose to name it the S6 Edge+.  (Copying the plus from Apple’s iPhone 6+, the total oppose of innovation.)

If you want a larger version of the S6 Edge, you will love the S6 Edge+!  It has the same beautiful design as the Galaxy Note 5, but is larger and easier on the eyes.  If you are looking for a true successor to the innovative Galaxy Note (4) Edge, don’t get this device. It’s not the same thing and no true successor exists yet.

In short, Samsung has created two new devices that are clearly aimed at a different demographic than the ones that purchased their previous devices in this space.  I’m not so worried about the Galaxy S6 Edge+ product as their Edge products have always been bleeding edge “what if” forward thinking futuristic products.  Some will love them, some won’t.  At the end of the day these products will inspire future products.

The Galaxy Note 5 concerns me however.  Samsung has basically taken their flagship phone, blown it up and alienated their core power-user demographic.  We had a preview of this earlier this year when Samsung did a similar downgrade of the S6 from the S5.  Subsequent sales have very publicly tanked.  This change is much bigger than the S5 to S6 one was as Note users are far more technical and much more demanding.  While It’s a sure bet that Samsung will pick up many new users simply based on the beautiful design, it remains to be seen how many will be lost by the gutting of core product features.  With the utmost admiration for Samsung, this author is not optimistic about the prospects of the Galaxy Note 5.  Too many features were removed.  It should be fascinating to watch this play out over the next year.

EDIT/ADD: During the keynote presentation Samsung announced a new keyboard cover with the words:  “It’s a keyboard.  It’s a cover.  We called it a keyboard cover.”  (which really says tons about their current level of innovation!)
But beyond that, this keyboard isn’t bluetooth.  It also isn’t usable.  Apparently it uses rubber buttons to push the on-screen keyboard.  Odd at best.  But here is an article that documents this:
http://mashable.com/2015/08/13/galaxy-note-5-keyboard-cover/?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=dlvr.it

The Demise of iPhoto

It’s official.  Apple has quickly killed off iPhoto (and Aperture) just after the release of their Photos application (photos.app).  You can no longer install iPhoto on your Mac from the Mac App store. Even attempting to install it from your previous purchases page will fail.  If you still have iPhoto installed on your existing system it will continue to run for the foreseeable future. However, at the end of the day Apple wants you to stop using iPhoto and move on to photos.app.

I’ve been a user of iPhoto since the first release.  While I realize that not everyone loved the app, it was perfect for my workflow.  I have over a decade of family photos in it’s database.  Every photo has a description, keywords, and usually a GPS location.  (I can search on any or all of this information!)  I never worried too much about where the photos were in the file system as Apple preferred to abstract that information from me, and I was just fine with that.  (I’m a technical guy and know I can go get the images out of the file-system if I want, I just don’t want to deal with that unless necessary and with iPhoto it was rare that I would have to worry about such things.

I’ve never really found a similar product that I liked as much as iPhoto, and I’ve evaluated many possibilities.  Many of my friends and colleagues simply store their photos in the file system.  I don’t like to do that as I can’t search on descriptions or keywords or GPS locations that way.  (and let’s face it, when you have over a decade of family photos, those search abilities are helpful!)  Other acquaintances use Picassa or Flickr.  I tried both and neither really pleased me.

There was one time that I found a competing product that I actually liked!  Microsoft made a product on the Windows platform called “Digital Image Pro”.  It was a fantastic package that came very close to iPhoto for it’s day.  I’d even say the editing tools were better than what iPhoto was offering.  In 2009 Microsoft discontinued that product for (the free) Windows Photo Gallery.  I tried Windows Photo Gallery.  It didn’t have half the abilities that Digital Image Pro did, and even in 2015 it is still not as good of a product as Microsoft had back in 2009.

So here we are in 2015, and after all these years of being happy with iPhoto, Apple has killed it for their new Photos.app.  In spite of my history with Digital Image Pro going to Windows Photo Gallery I was hopeful that this time would be better.  I waited to try the product before passing judgement.  I’ve now had time to try Apple’s new Photos app and evaluate it.  The results are that my worst fears.  Photos is a shell of what iPhoto was.  The key things that are missing that I find most critical for the way I work:

• No ability to add batch descriptions to multiple photos.  I’d literally have to edit each individual photo to do this.   That’s a time consuming process which means it won’t get done.  This sacrifices my ability to search later.
• No ability to add GPS tags to photos taken on my DSLR.  (Seriously, how did they not think that people would WANT to do this.)
• The map showing where photos were taken using the GPS coordinates is completely gone. (This was very useful if I wanted to highlight photos taken on a particular trip)
• Even worse: Geotagging for DSLR photos I previously added in iPhoto are GONE in the new Photos app.  Honestly, this is pretty close to a deal breaker for me.
• If you want to view your photos on your phone as well as your desktop you must subscribe to the quite expensive iCloud feature.  (As of this writing this is double the price of what Dropbox is asking, and ONLY Apple’s iCloud is compatible with the Photos app)
• The UI is less intuitive and less visually attractive.  (Yes, this is subjective, but it actually “looks” like a free app now, whereas before it looked a bit more refined.)
• Export features are far more limited.  It’s now quite a bit harder to export your photos back to the file system.

Fortunately facial recognition (tagging and searching) made it into Photos and may be a bit of an improvement.

It’s clear to me that without drastic improvements Photos won’t be useful to me.

I believe that Photos may be useful to many users with basic photo processing needs. I strongly suspect that’s the group Apple is targeting with this app.  For myself, I find myself once again searching for an alternative to iPhoto that works for me.  I don’t care if it’s on OSX or Windows so long as it’s the best tool for the job.  When I find it, I’ll let you all know.

Lost soul

I was walking to my car at Hartsfield airport when a lady pulls up next to me and says out the window “can you help me find this address, it’s an office building.”  So I put on my glasses and look at the paper.

I tell her “maam, that’s in Columbus.”  She says “Yes, where is the street?” 

I had to tell her gently: “I’m sorry, you are in Atlanta, Columbus is at least 90 minutes from here.  You are in the parking lot of the Atlanta Airport.” 

With that I got a “Lord have mercy!” 

I gave the nice lady directions out of the parking lot. I hope she finds Columbus.

Never say “I *know* I’m right!”

Why you never hear me say “I *know* I’m right!”:

Even if you are right 99% of the time (which is unlikely for the best of us), you’ve set yourself up to fall on your sword if this is that 1% of the time you are wrong.

Guess what people are more likely to remember and associate with you? The 99% of the time you were right, or the one time you were wrong but *knew* you weren’t ?

Learn that early. Qualify your knowledge. Be prepared to correct on the fly as new data comes in.

There is no good reason to put yourself in a position to ever fall on your sword.

The Alamo

Not much to say here. I was at the Alamo (again)  This time I had a co-worker with me, so I had him snap this photo.

Remember the Alamo. Many fine men died here for a cause. This is a place for reverence.