Avoid the Droid

For those of you sitting on a fence deciding whether to get an iPhone or an Android, today there was a very interesting article on SFGate. I pasted it below.

My favorite quote:

So when users buy an Android phone, what will they get? That depends. How will they get new apps? That also depends. Will those apps work with every Android phone? Probably not.

If you're already on iTunes, there's no reason to downgrade to the Android market. You'll have to reorganize your music/movies and rebuy/download all your apps. The simpler way is to just have one iTunes library for all your media that you can distribute seamlessly across all your Apple devices. Sounds like a no-brainer to me. I can't understand why anyone would want to fragment their media into another marketplace, another file system, just to save a few bucks on that buy-one-get-one free Motorola. But of course if I'm talking to a peecee user, you're already use to doing things the hard way for the sake of saving a few bucks. Carry on, my tortured friend.

All the goodies you get with iOS like Facetime, Airplay, and Airprint, you won't get any of that on a droid, sorry. And don't just take my word. I have a reader who recently swapped her iPhone 4 for a work-issued Sprint EVO. Now she can't sync her iPhoto, music, nor share games with her son, or do Facetime with her iPhone-toting hubby or her iPod Touch. The EVO is chunkier but yet the battery life can't even last a day. Go figure.

And I have another friend who opted for a cheaper Droid only to lose all its photos forever for no reason. Fact is, no mobile operating system is as stable, unified and mature as iOS. And no app store has as many offerings as the Apple App Store. Did you know J.D. Power rated Apple highest in smartphone customer satisfaction four years running?

Spend a little more on an iPhone now, and you'll get it all back when you resell it. Remember, with Android, you'll only get what you deserve.

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Amazon's Android Store Will Make Android Even Messier

Amazon's Android app store, which the company opened to developers this morning, will offer a better experience than the current Android Marketplace run by Google. Apps will be vetted by Amazon (much like Apple does with iTunes), which will get rid of a bunch of crummy apps that don't work right or feature unsavory content like porn.

That's good news for Android users, right?

Not necessarily. Having separate app stores for the same platform contributes to the biggest problem facing Android: fragmentation into a bunch of slightly different platforms, each offering slightly different experiences and supporting different apps. That's not a smooth user experience.

Users have already seen Verizon swap out Google search for Bing search on some phones, and Angry Birds developers Rovio have complained that the app doesn't work as well on some older versions of the platform, forcing them to build a "light" version. Android tablets will require powerful hardware, which means that apps which run fine on them might not run at all on earlier smartphone versions of the platform.

But the problem could get much worse from here. As developer Kevin Marks explained on his blog yesterday--and TechCrunch elaborated on--there are actually two Androids. Most popular Android phones are certified by Google and come with various Google apps built in, such as Gmail and Google Talk. But there's also the underlying Android operating system, which is open-source and can be customized by phone makers, carriers, and even Google competitors like Facebook.

As third parties build more customized phones on Android, expect more unique apps to emerge for each platform--imagine Zynga apps built for a Facebook Android phone, or a specialized Motorola app for backing up music and video, for instance. Amazon's Android app store will be a perfect venue for apps that Google might otherwise not highlight.

So when users buy an Android phone, what will they get? That depends. How will they get new apps? That also depends. Will those apps work with every Android phone? Probably not.

In 2010, users didn't seem to care, and bought phones based on Android anyway. But as the platform fragments further in 2011, that could change.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/01/05/businessinsider-amazons-android-store-will-make-android-even-messier-2011-1.DTL#ixzz1ABakENxT

Christina & Buddy Endless Love

This is the final song of the original 12-minute video. The second half of this segment was shot, edited and compiled the moment the wedding started. The file then had to exported to Quicktime and then burned onto DVD disc. It finished burning five minutes before showtime. Boy I was sweating! I think it turned out well. What do you think?

A Manger is His Throne

As keeping with tradition, here's the CIBC Children's Choir Christmas performance.

Happy New Year everyone.

Welcome to iOS

Thanks to Bank of the West and Christmas gift giving, many of you received either an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad. For many of you, this will be your first Apple product ever! Congratulations! You are about to enter the Apple ecosystem known as iOS. So get ready, as your life is about to change dramatically for the better. And for those of you who opted for an Android or a Best Buy $299 peecee craptop, good for you too, because you truly got what you deserved.

Free Apps
The biggest appeal being on iOS is the iTunes App Store. There are over 300,000 apps available, both paid and free. Many of the free apps are trial versions that have limited functionality or perhaps just the first few levels of a game. The apps you really want are the full version apps, but for free. Most full version paid apps are only offered free for a very limited time. The best website to find out what paid apps are free daily is freeappalert.com. Bookmark it and check everyday, or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Best Stuff
Engadget recently had an useful article "Just got an iPhone?" It's a brief summary of what's available for the iOS products. Another place I like to go for research is iLounge.com where you can research how-to's or sign up as a member to post questions where tons of knowledgeable people can answer. The apps I personally use the most are iBART (BART schedules), WhatsApp (instant messaging via wifi), and Tango (Facetime/phone over wifi and 3G). And of course, Navigon MyRegion for the iPhone or iPad 3G.

Accessories
If you go to the Apple Store or visit the kiosks inside the mall, you'll find that cases and screen protectors will cost upward of $15 and $7 respectively. If you go on ebay you'll find cases and 3-pack screen protectors starting at 99¢. These products are shipped from China so you can take comfort that you're keeping some 11-yo girl employed at the sweat shop. It will also take two weeks to arrive. If you need it sooner, select a US seller, pay an extra dollar or two, and you should receive in three days. So shop the kiosk and touch and feel the one you like. Then come home and find the exact item on ebay for 1/10th the price. Same applies to chargers and cables. Get a few to leave at the office, car, and each computer.

Jailbreak
Jailbreaking will allow you to customize the icons, background and broadcasting (tethering) your 3G signal. It will also allow you to unlock your iPhone for use on T-Mobile. And it will allow you to install unauthorized and pirated apps. So unless you're on T-Mobile or tethering your unlimited data plan for your iPad to piggyback on, I would not recommend jailbreaking. With the latest 4.2 iOS, some of the jailbreak-only features (background, folders, etc) are already included. If you really want to jailbreak, contact me offline, as there are many different procedures for the many different configurations. iPhone Hacks is one of the sites I subscribe to for jailbreaking instructions. For Mac users, iClarified has some great tutorials. If you want to try, here it is: Instructions for jailbreaking iPod Touch 4g

Halo Effect
Back during the days of the iPhone infancy, many industry pundits spoke of the Apple Halo Effect. It states that non-Mac users with first time Apple experience are causing them to purchase a Mac for the first time also. They realize Apple products just work, and work well – a far departure from the peecee environment. For the last five years, Macs have outpaced the entire computer market in terms of sales growth. So obviously many many people are making the smarter choice to switch. My question to you is: Will you see the light and switch too?

Merry Christmas from Bank of the West

Yesterday, along with many of my faithful and happy readers, I received my free iPod Touch from Bank of the West – just in time for Christmas!

I blogged about this in July and many of you jumped on it immediately. To you, you are welcome! You know a great find when you see it and your sense of urgency is to be commended. To the others who ignored my warning that they might pull the promo early only to find out that that's exactly what happened… well sorry, but I TOLD YOU SO!  You know, I can only lead a horse to water… Bottom line, this is a great freebie that required very little effort.

I also predicted at the time that we would receive the then-not-yet-announced 4th generation iPod Touch with dual cameras ($229 value) rather than the 3rd generation ($199). And again I was right! (Well, maybe I was half-right). Last week, people around the web forums were complaining about receiving the older model, including one friend in Alameda. But the latest batch of iPods delivered yesterday were all reported to be the latest 4th generation! Woohoo! Yep, good things do come to those who wait!

Rumor is that the people who both set up direct deposit and used the card for 20 debit transactions were rewarded with the newer model for being potential excellent customers. But who really knows? Maybe it just comes down to us being special and them being not. Who said life was fair?

So far, online banking at Bank of the West is pretty straightforward. I have yet to walk into a branch office because I don't need to. I can cancel my direct deposit, stop doing direct deposit and bill pay, and it still will not incur any fees. The checking account is really free! My only gripe is that there is a $3 fee to wire money out to another bank. Other than that, I may keep this account for awhile, or until the next great promotion :)

Merry Christmas to all of you.




Photo credit: Bryan's FB

Lumber for Slumber, Part 3

Over the weekend many of you inquired about the status of my loft bed. Well it's been completed since Thanksgiving, but the room was a total wreck and I was too lazy to clean it up for the photos. Plus it took me longer than expected to install the handrail. So here it is (and please excuse the mess).

Building the stairs took quite a bit of research and planning in determining the length and amount of steps. They needed to be strong enough and wide enough to support adults in case my mom needs to get up there to administer first aid – that's why a ladder would not have worked. The angles could get quite complicated if you wanted a proper descent, but seeing that I don't have the space for a long stairwell, I just stuck to a simple 45 degree cuts. Cutting the stair stringers were surprisingly easy once you get the hang of it. A portable sliding compound miter saw was all that I needed to go through the 2x12 beams (Thanks Larry!). Without that saw, it can get quite tricky. In fact, I could have built 90% of the entire loft with just that one saw! Other tools I used was a table saw and a router. The tools that could have made my life easier were an impact driver, a jig saw, and a dado blade insert for my table saw – all on my future wish list.

Whoops, excuse me, I didn't mean to disturb you two... Fact: The loft bed they built for their daughter was the inspiration for me to attempt this project. I figure if they could do it, I can do it too. Plus I wanted all of their leftover lumber :) The carpet remnant is leftover from my office when I installed the laminate flooring.

Hey, no girls allowed! Now you know what moms really do when us men are at work.

Grace is thinking: "Wow, had Myron built us one of these love-nest hideaways, I can totally see ourselves with nine kids!"

Being seven feet up, adult supervision is paramount when young children are up here. As you can see, Snow White and the dolls were all jumping overboard under the watchful eyes of this responsible family.

After the busting Patty and Glenn up there alone as well as the Snow White incident, I had to install a gate and impose some basic house rules.

The view from above. I originally was planning to build a floor-to-ceiling bookcase, but instead I found a used Ikea Pax wardrobe at a garage sale around the corner. I also raised Colby's bed 4 inches so that I could squeeze his dresser under the bed to save space. Now I can't wait until the boys move out so I can convert this loft into my man-cave. A wall-mounted tv and a mini fridge is all I need!

On Black Friday Home Depot had 50-ct LED Christmas lights for $1.98 – I should have bought more!

Now whenever anyone comes over, they always want to check out the loft! During the cold weather, it's especially quite cozy and warm up there. We hope to enjoy the loft for years to come. Who knows, now that I know what to do, I may even attempt another one in the other room...

Lumber for Slumber, Part 2

Since I've been talking about woodworking for the bedroom, I'll tell about the franken-bed I built at the beginning of this year. Yes you, my blog reader, get a sneak peak into our master bedroom… Oooooo!

Now last year, had you peaked into our bedroom, you would've witnessed me tossing and turning in the middle of the night, unable to sleep because my mind is focused on too many things. Things like: how to better discipline my kids, how to be the best husband ever, and what to blog about next… all while trying not to disturb my wife. What you'll also witness is my wife finally bouncing in at 1:30 a.m. after catching up on six hours of television, waking me up... What you won't see is us snuggled together with my arm under her neck because I'll get a cramp and frankly I don't like anyone touching me when I sleep. I NEED my own twin space and I've long outgrown the 14-year queen we shared. Problem is, I would never buy a king size bed because it's too expensive and she's we're both too picky. What to do?

So with the scrap wood in my garage, I decided to build a king bed that fits two twin mattresses. The total dimensions of two twins is 78x75, which means it's a little wider and shorter than a standard king (76x80). Wider is always good. And since both of us are under six feet, 75 inches is just fine.

Construction of the bed was super simple. The four sides of the bed are actually rails from two disassembled Ikea twin beds (Robin and Brekke) that I bought as scrap in Ikea's scratch and dent section for a few bucks. Together they form a square. The corners are screwed into a 2x6 post. To eliminate any possible squeak and provide the ultimate solid foundation, I laid not one, but three 4x4 support beam. Because who knows, maybe someday Chris, Greg and Wayland will want to do a sleepover here. This acoustic trio may rattle the nightstands, but this bed WILL NOT be shaken.

 

If you're like me, still defending your space on an outgrown queen bed, here are a few reasons why two twins are the way to go. Forget getting a king mattress set:

• I toss and turn, I don't wake her. And vice versa.
• A clear division of space. She stays on hers and I stay on mine.
• My wife likes a thick plush mattress. I like firm. We both get our wish. 
• She can upgrade her mattress every seven years, I can upgrade in 20.
• When we upgrade, we simply pass down old mattresses to kids. No kid wants a king, and dumping a king set is no easy task.
• Twin sheets are cheaper and easier to wash – although trying to find a second Pokémon fitted sheet to match your existing one may be challenging.
• No box spring means plenty of room below for storage and hiding. Seriously, is there anything more useless than a box spring??
• If ever we go through marital difficulties, I can install a partition between the two mattresses.
• King bedspread covers everything and no one knows (except you) that I have Pokemon sheets on a franken-bed. 

This bed is awesome! Needless to say, I've been sleeping a lot better this year. I only wish I had done this ten years ago. Just think what kind of person I could've become with a good night's rest every night… 

If you're interested in building franken furniture with Ikea parts, I get a lot of inspiration from Ikea Hacker. If you were to build this bed from scratch, it would only cost $100 in lumber. And with the additional money you save not buying a king mattress set, you'll have enough to take me out to dinner several times!

Later this month, Part 3, when I hopefully will have the loft bed done.

Lumber for Slumber, Part 1

Last weekend was the one weekend I look forward to every year: Family Camp weekend. Our church has family camp every year with attendance around 450. There are lots of fun activities for children and adults and great food and exceptional teaching and everyone comes back having a blast. But we never go.

Instead, I view it as the one Sunday a year I get to sleep in. Man, living the life of an atheist is pretty relaxing! No yelling at the kids, no stress selecting their clothes (and yelling), no rushing to get them breakfast (and yelling)… Just peace and quiet. My kids even discovered there's actually cartoons on tv on Sunday mornings too! And did I mention east coast NFL games?? Ahh, such a tempting lifestyle as we sample the path toward delinquency.

So what to do on this totally free (and stormy) weekend?

This was the weekend I decided to embark on my most ambitious woodworking project thus far: a loft bed. Or rather a loft with a bed. So instead of building kid furniture, I'm going to attempt to build a structure for the very first time!

After inheriting scrap lumber from numerous friends throughout the year, my garage was getting full. I needed to build something, anything. And with the boys growing older, they'll eventually outgrow the room they share and need more separation of personal space. I had been combing craigslist for months trying to find the perfect loft bed/bunkbed, but none worked the way I wanted it to work. So with the stockpile of lumber and machinery in my garage coupled with inspiration from a friend's recent loft bed project, I decided it's best to do it my way. Yep, I am the master designer!

The bedroom is an unusual shape with a pitched ceiling going up over 13 feet. What's even weirder is that there's a 16" ledge on top with electrical and cable tv outlets (like anyone would want to crane their neck upward to watch at such an awkward angle). I saw this as premium usable space. I wanted a loft that not only fit a twin mattress, but also have a little area to sit and play games.

The whole project is a like a plan-as-you-go kind of thing. I was figuring out how to do things as I progressed. Even my wife was a little skeptical wondering if I knew what I was doing. I had to gently reassure her with some kind words, "Don't doubt me woman!" The main objective was to avoid having a center support beam in the middle of the room.

Once the platform was secured, the kids couldn't wait to get up there! Just like magic, we instantly gained over 50 sq. ft.! They treat it like a little clubhouse and are already demanding I add more "features" to it. I need to work on the ladder asap because Dustin is dying to sleep (and play) up there. The ladder will be another plan-as-you-go thing as I've never built one before. Stay tuned.

Next week, part 2, when I let you venture into my most private space. Ooooooh.

Cardpool.com

Today as a treat to my readers, I have Cez as a guest blogger. Her and her husband have been fans of my blog from the very beginning. They send me tips and gentle reminders whenever I'm lagging on the blogging (as I have been lately – sorry). If you want to share something that my readers would enjoy, and you don't mind spending some time writing it out, you too can be a guest blogger! Please feel free to send me a note. Enjoy.


I was honored when WhoFongPaid asked me to write on his blog..  "become a guest blogger" he says. Now I feel sick... due to the pressure to write up to his professional level. He couldn't write this himself since he didn't experience it. But I felt that this was an important consumer tip that can not go unnoticed. So okay.. here it goes.

The holidays are just around the corner and if you're like me, I start making out my list now.. checking it twice.. and thinking of what to get for my family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, the mailman, newspaper lady (mine is a lady and I've been sending her a Christmas gift for the past 5 years) etc.. I really try to get something that that particular person would like and appreciate so it takes some time. Now, others may not take the effort and time I do to put some 'thought' into a gift and they go out December 24 to hunt for whatever is left on the shelves.  The easiest gift to get are.... drum roll.. gift cards! Who hasn't gotten any? Or too many? Especially from places that you never shop, eat or visit! What were they thinking?!?! What will I do with $50 worth of Peet's Coffee when I don't even drink coffee?? What a waste.. you say. You should have given me cash. I always take cash!! But they didn't and you're stuck with a $50 worth of coffee bean money.

Or are you like me.. that have a huge stack of gift cards waiting to be spent but you always forget to bring them with you when you get to the store so they never get used.

Here's a solution.. sell your gift card and get CASH back! Okay you can't get the full amount of the gift card but hey.. you didn't spend any money for it so technically you aren't losing any money. Getting some cash for an unused gift card that'll be sitting in your dresser for who knows how long is much better don't you think? And like I said before, CASH is good.. you can buy ANYTHING with cash!!

I had received $75 worth of Regal Theatre gift cards (from generous school parents.. last day of school teacher gifts) and since I'm in Fremont I never go all the way to Dublin to see a movie.. so I decided to sell them. You can't get the full price but what I got was better than nothing. I sold it to cardpool.com and they offered me $52.50 cash or $55.13 amazon gift card. I took the amazon since I shop there all the time. Within 24 hrs of them receiving my gift cards, I got my amazon card emailed to me. I didn't want to bother with ebay and I didn't want to regift the cards so I went this route. It was perfect and I got to spend it on what I wanted. Oh happy day!

You could also buy discounted gift cards from cardpool.com also. So check it out and get some good ol' cash for those unwanted gift cards!

Cardpool was created by two Asian guys who wanted to solve the problem of having unwanted gift cards. They are based in San Francisco and were recommended on the Today Show (which was where I saw them promoed) and on various other TV stations. It's a service that lets you buy gift cards up to 30% off or sell unwanted gift cards for cash. All orders and transactions include free shipping ( they'll send you a shipping label to print) and are covered by their extensive Purchase Guarantee Program which is if you're unsatisfied with your purchase for any reason, you can return it for a full refund. They guarantee that when you purchase a gift card from them it will be valid at the merchant to the dollar amount specified in your order. Guarantees are honored up to 100 days from the date of purchase.

Now to sell your unwanted gift card, you click on the "Sell Gift Cards" on the top menu, find the merchant of the card ( and they list ones from 76 Gas to CVS to Yankee Candle). If you have a card that they don't list, just contact them directly and see if they would buy it. After you find your merchant, type in the gift card amount. If you don't know the amount or balance on the card, just look it up on the website that should be listed on back of the gift card. Click on "Get Offer" and they will automatically tell you how much they will give you Cash for the card or if you like Amazon, they'll give a few dollars more if you choose a Amazon gift card as an exchange. If you choose 'Cash' they will send you a check via USPS First Class mail within 24 hours of receiving your gift cards. If you choose an Amazon.com gift card, they will send you the gift card via email within 24 hrs of receiving your gift cards. And since they are local, I received my Amazon gift card the day after I sent my cards.

If you're interested in buying discounted gift cards, just click on the "Buy Gift Cards" on the top menu and scroll down to see what they have available. It lists the value of the card, how much you pay and the percentage you save. It's that easy.

So happy shopping!
www.cardpool.com

Adoption Auction

Just when I thought I was going to retire from blogging, an incredible story comes along that just has to be shared: a story of faith, joy and creativity.

Our good friends Hebron and Kitty (the ones that cheat in mahjong) are planning to adopt a girl in China in December. To close the $13,000 shortfall of the $35,000 adoption cost, they've decided to host a silent auction. They've collected items and services donated from their friends and have listed them as auction items. Hebron, the impressive java whiz that he is, stayed up to 4 a.m. the last seven nights hand-coding the entire auction site!

The auction just started this morning and will end October 30 at 3:00 p.m.

I encourage you to help support them through this auction. And if you would like to support in another way, you can also donate new/newish items to the auction. So if you have something to offer, get it to me this weekend as Hebron will be adding more items on Sunday night.

You can read more about their story here:
http://maksters.blogspot.com/

You can visit the auction site here:
http://tinyurl.com/makauction