Archive for the “Uncategorized” Category

MacHeist is in the final days of offering a nice discount on Parallels 3. It’s normally $79, but you can get it through MacHeist for just $49, and if you have purchased a MacHeist bundle in the past, you can get another $10 off. I have used Parallels and it’s a great way to get Windows working on the Mac.

Link: Parallels from MacHeist

I was talking with a colleague the other day, and the topic of working at home came up.  Working from home is something I’m sure many people would love to do, but I’m not sure if many people could actually do it effectively.  I work from my home office, and I absolutely love it, but it’s not as easy as some people would imagine.  The first thing you need is a strong initiative.  Working at home you don’t have someone directly looking over your shoulder, so the opportunity to goof-off is there, but you need to have a strong desire to work and succeed with what you are doing.  If you have a strong initiative and are not they type of person who needs to be told specifically what to do all the time, then you have a better chance of succeeding at home.  Dedication and the willingness to do what it takes is the next step.  You have to passionately care about what you are doing to be effective at home, otherwise slacking off is inevitable.  Knowing what your job is and your responsibilities is key, and getting those done without having to be asked is key. 

Distractions are a big issue when working from home.  Right now I have three children home on summer break, and although my kids have pretty good behavior, they still are kids.  Sitting down with them and letting them know that even though you are sitting at home on a computer, you are working, and you have a job to do.   This definitely helps.  Taking the kids to the pool at lunch or break also gives them time to get some of that youthful energy out of them, and it gives you a break as well.  That leads to my next topic….taking breaks.  Now this is something I will admit I have a problem with.  When I start something I want to get it done, and if that means skipping lunch or something then that’s what I will do.  However, that is an easy way to get burnt out.  So take a lunch, take a break, go out and stretch your legs a bit.  It will make your overall work experience much better.

One problem with working at home is lack of personal interaction.  Mainly, you are probably sitting by yourself all day.  Now this varies with what type of work you actually do, but like in my situation, I always keep in contact with my co-workers through e-mail, IM, chat, etc.  It’s not the same as being in person, but the interaction is good on so many levels. Besides, keeping in constant contact you can ensure you are up to date on the latest news and happening from the job.

Here are some other ways to be effective when working from home.

1. If you have the space, have a dedicated home office.  When I moved I specifically sought a townhouse that has an extra room that would be my office, so I could have a dedicated space where I could avoid some distractions.  I will go more into creating a great home office in another blog soon.

2. Try to set hours for yourself.  I would recommend following what your co-workers hours are if possible.  Once again, this depends on what you are actually doing.  I started at 7:30am this morning and I’m still going just because I have many things to get done. 
3. Take breaks to stretch your legs and rest your eyes.  This is especially true if your main job is sitting in front of a computer all day. 
4. Know exactly what your job is, and what your employer expects of you.  Stick to it, and if you do run into a questionable or problem area, just communicate the issue.  Most times it can be easily solved.
5. Make sure you have all the tools you need to do your job effectively.  Whether it’s the right computers, desks, office supplies, etc., make sure you have them.
6. Have a “take charge” attitude.  As I said above, don’t wait to be told what to do.  You know what your job and responsibilities are, go do them! 

Working at home is a big advantage, but it’s not for everyone.  I read recently that more people are looking to telecommute because of rising gas prices, but before you make or accept the offer, make sure you can follow the basic “rules” of working from home. 

Friday was the last day of school for the children here, and all 3 of mine did excellent this past year. Two of them are now moving on to Middle School, and my smallest moves on to the next grade in Elementary. Since the school year came to a great end, we decided to take the kids to Sea World Orlando on Saturday, just to have some fun.

It has been very hot here recently, and the temperature on the ground was well over 100 degrees. We started off early and the kids got touch and feed the dolphins, something they all were wanting to do. After lunch we headed for the kids park inside Sea World where there are various rides and activities for kids.

First ride up was the carousel. My wife and kids, along with others from our family, got on the ride as I headed off to find some shade as I couldn’t take the heat much longer. The ride was beginning to stop and after chatting with my brother-n-law for a bit, I got up to meet the kids. I then noticed a park employee running with a small child and their mother out of the ride area, after a second I realized it was my wife and smallest daughter.

I shot off and ran to them at which time they arrived at one of the medical stations inside the park. My daughter was crying, my wifes hands had blood all over them and I was about to freak out. We were met by one of the parks paramedics which quickly took her into a room and proceeded to clean her wound. She apparently slipped while stepping off the carousel platform, hitting the platform itself, and causing a laceration under her chin.

After cleaning and bandaging up her cut, they gave her a Shamu plush toy, and after talking with the security and paramedics, they drove us out to our car. We then headed towards the nearest hospital which was about 5 minutes away, and checked in at the ER. She was in a room within 15 minutes, and after getting a few stitches, we were out in just about an hour. Not bad for a Saturday afternoon. Overall, she is OK and I appreciate the messages I received asking about her.

I really have to say the staff at Sea World were the best, along with the folks at Dr. Phillips Hospital. Although the first day of summer vacation ended with a trip to the ER, the people who took care of us made a tough situation at least a little better.

If you have an iPhone, or any phone capable of changing the wallpaper image, then check out my review of Phone Wallpaper X over at iBoughtAMac.com.

Link: Phone Wallpaper X Review at iBAM

I am still fairly new into my DSLR adventures, but since I bought my Nikon D40 I have begun purchasing some accessories I would consider essential. One of the first things I was concerned about was keeping the camera clean, the lens in particular. The D40 and lens certainly wasn’t cheap, so I did plenty of research before deciding on what cleaning system to get.

After reading review after review I decided to pick up the Nikon Lens Pen cleaning system. One reason is that it seemed to have a very favorable rating overall, and the other reason was that it is a simple solution. I really wanted the most efficient way to clean the lens that isn’t going to fill my camera bag with useless stuff.

Another bonus was that it is less than $10, so really no harm in trying it out. It arrived just in time for my trip to Sea World, where I had no doubt I would need to clean the lens at some point in my trip. Wouldn’t you know just an hour or two into the day that I accidently put my finger on the lens, so now was the time to see if my purchase was worth it or not.

On one end, there is a retractable brush to wipe away any loose dirt or debris. The opposite end of the pen has a cleaning tip with some type of solution on the pad. First you brush the lens, and turn the pen over and wipe the lens in a circular motion with the cleaning pad. I was worried the cleaning solution would leave streaks, but I have to say the lens came out as clean as the day I took it out of the box. I was able to clip the pen to my camera strap for quick access if need.

For less than $10 you really can’t go wrong with the Nikon Lens Pen. It’s a simple, but highly effective solution to cleaning the lens of your camera, whether it’s a DSLR or just a point and shoot. Regardless of the type of camera or brand you are using, I definitely recommend making space for the Nikon Lens Pen in your gear bag.

Purchase from Amazon: Nikon Lens Pen Cleaning System

I have spent a good part of the day playing with different themes, and tweaking the current one I am using. I actually like it, but wanted to see what other configurations would look good. I have been using the two-column setting for a while, so I added the third column just to see how it will work. So far I like it, but I’m not sure if I like the reduced space of the main column. What’s your opinion?

I’m also looking at adding Disqus comment system tomorrow, just to see how that works out. To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure what direction I want to take my blog in, but I guess I will just keep working at it. So as I said, I’m working on it this weekend, so if you see any weird stuff that’s just me messing around. If you have any suggestions or comments please let me know.

I will admit that at one time, I was pretty excited about Facebook. I really couldn’t tell you how many people I had join up, but it certainly was a decent amount. There were all these cool applications to go with Facebook, all kinds of people to meet and get in contact with, so-called “A-list” bloggers would post daily about something related to Facebook…..and then it stopped.

It didn’t happen overnight, but to some people it might have seemed that way. The “buzz” about Facebook has declined significantly, and the bloggers who couldn’t get enough of Facebook have pretty much abandoned it. Traffic to Facebook has been down, as much as 10% according to some analysts. Now I have seen quite a few websites do reader surveys asking about the decline of Facebook visitations, and there are various reasons that have been listed.

I still use Facebook on a daily basis, but the excitement just isn’t there anymore. For me, I just think Facebook isn’t “cool” anymore. The application requests were cute at first, but quickly became one of the most annoying things on the internet, right up there with music on someone’s MySpace page. I think a lot of people also started asking, “what is the point of Facebook anyways?” Yes, it’s great for connecting with friends, and some networking, but what else? If I want to keep up with my friends and associates, I turn to Twitter despite the incredible amount of downtime Twitter experiences.

Is this the end of the line for Facebook? I don’t think so, but traffic to Facebook will slowly continue to decline. Profile pages are scheduled for an overhaul in the coming weeks, but from what I have seen already, I don’t think it will make much of a difference. I really can’t predict what’s ahead for Facebook, but I can say with confidence that the days of Facebook being the number one “social network” are definitely over.

The series has been a quietly celebrated one, and it’s easy to see why. Focusing purely on turn-by-turn galactic conquest, GalCiv sets itself apart with an impressive AI and a deep set of features.

read more | digg story

The Political Machine was a tongue-in-cheek look at North American politics released just in time for the 2004 presidential election. For the latest on The Political Machine 2008, we sat down with Brad Wardell, the lead designer as well as the president and CEO of Stardock Corp.

read more | digg story

It’s pretty much confirmed that a new iPhone will make its public appearance in the next few weeks. Now all the talk is related to the iPhone supporting 3G, which is great, but there are a lot of people, including myself, who will not upgrade just for that. I would hope that the upgrade shows us a host of new features, not just a network speed boost. So with that I wanted to list some features I would like to see added, aside from 3G.

1. GPS. The “Locate Me” feature is nice, but it does not compete with true GPS.

2. Better Camera. A much higher resolution for the iPhone is needed, and it makes such an advanced phone lag behind some others.

3. Video Recording. That pretty much says it all.

These are my top 3 requests. So how about you, what else would you like to see besides a 3G update?