iPhone Updates ~ Where Are You?

Well, I don't know about you, but I'm really ready for these supposed updates for the iPhone. I am specifically waiting for the one that will allow you to use the widescreen keyboard in every app. Although I can type pretty decently one-handed, I still have a pretty tough time trying to use it with Safari. It's just too darn awkward holding the phone in that position, just too narrow.

Would you believe I actually went to AT&T to look at the HTC 8525, and all because of the keyboard. The guy working there told me he had an 8525 and really liked it but said he got rid of it for the iPhone and there's no way he'd go back. Even I thought I was pretty cracked even thinking for a mere moment that I'd get rid of my iPhone, but I think it was the geek in me that just had to have a look-see when I saw it on the net. You know, we geeks gotta keep up. The display model wasn't a functioning phone, and it had one of those fake displays on the screen. The guy told me that the resolution on it was similar to the Treo 700 that they had on display, that was a functioning model. He said it was pretty decent, but in no way as good as the iPhone's resolution. Being a photography nut, I guess I'd have to choose resolution over a keyboard...but I really miss my QWERTY keyboard. The one on the Treo 650 was okay...and I mean just okay, nothing to write home about. The keyboard I really liked was on my old Crackberry - the one that Boo Boo is holding in the picture. That keyboard was sweet and I could really zip along on that one. I was an emailing/messaging fiend. LOL

Soooooo....if anyone has any insight on when these updates are supposed to take place, I'd like to know. I also noticed that the recent update for iTunes did NOT include the ringtone tab as speculated. I wonder what happened with that. Okay, so if anyone works for Apple that has the inside scoop and you're reading my blog...fill me and everyone else in, okay? Pleeeaaaseee *wink*wink*bat*bat* ;-)

iPhone = More Crime???

Okay, as I've mentioned before, I'm a CSI and I can't help but wonder if I'm going to wind up getting called out to a burglary of an AT&T store. Let's hope not, there are enough stupid people out there doing stupid things and I get my share of being called out for sure.

When I purchased my iPhone, I noticed that they had two on display and that the display was located right at the front of the store...next to the doors! Wow, I thought, what would it take for someone who was really bold to just walk in there with a pair of wire cutters and just snip and go. I guess even if you did snag one like that, it would be to no avail since you couldn't really activate it for use as a phone as I'm sure it would be tracked. I guess you could still use it as an iPod though. Geez, I hope there are no "bad guys" reading this - I wouldn't want to give anyone any bad ideas...seriously.

I saw a really stupid display at a convenience store in Georgia while travelling one time. Right at the front counter by the clerk and right next to the clerk in a huge glass display case were a bunch of pocket knives. The knives in the display case were large and decorative, and I mean the blades were big. The pocket knives right next to the clerk on the counter were in several different bins, yes several - not just one, were the smaller kind. I thought the clerk had to be pretty brave to work there, especially late at night. I mean, let's just supply the ammo for someone to use against the clerk so they can hold up the store more easily, right? Stupid is as stupid does...

Back to the AT&T iPhone display...I did ask someone in the store in reference to the display models and they told me that the displays are tucked away when the store closes. That's a good thing.

The Daily iPhone

I think that's what I should start referring to my post as, LOL. Can you believe my very first post was on herbs and planting my goofy front porch garden? I never would've thought my blog would evolve into something dedicated to the iPhone.

I was at the tire store this morning getting the flat fixed on my Jeep and while I was already there I decided to get the oil changed as well. I brought my notes from my class to study with and there was something specific anatomy-wise I wanted more clarification on, so what did I do? I looked up the term on Google right from my iPhone! S-w-eeee-t.... so, there I was tapping and enlarging images and getting my question answered. I did get a message saying that it wasn't able to connect to the EDGE network and then I'd just turn my phone a millimeter in one direction and ---woosh, there was my page uploaded and everything. Not too bad, even if it is EDGE.

I found another link on upcoming firmware upgrades and they mentioned making the accelerometer work for every function, not just when using Safari (Safari is the icon you touch to open up the web browser). That's the upgrade I'm waiting for. You know, a recording function would be nice, too. I also caught a link from "iTablet" regarding "iPhone Applications". The wierd thing is that they're not like what you're used to with other devices. Usually you download the program and then synch it with your device. For these you go to a website using Safari and use the application from the web. Different, but that can be good. I'm just so darn happy with this phone that I'm willing to try and learn new things.

Here's the link to the firmware upgrade we can all look forward to:

www.myitablet.com/talk/12_570_0.html

Here's the link to the iPhone Applications:

modmyiphone.com/apps/


Ohhh, I've got to get ready for work!!! Too much time blogging and iPhoning!!! :-)

My Dad Got An iPhone, Too!

My dad called me yesterday while I was at work, and always trying to keep up with technology (and his daughter!) as he does, he informed me he was at the AT&T store in Michigan and that "hey, guess what - I'm gonna get a Blackberry!", to which I replied "Oh, no Dad! You don't need a Blackberry, you need an iPhone! The Blackberry is sooo yesterday and the iPhone is soooo today, besides we both keep up on stuff together, right?" So, hours later, and several phone calls later while my dad went through the activation process from his desktop pc at his home - we were both speaking on our iPhones. You go Dad! The guy at the AT&T store told me over the phone that he really thought my Dad was going with the iPhone because of my influence and that he probably wanted the Blackberry more. However, it's too late...the iPhone bug has bitten my Dad. He is all excited now about his new toy and just wait until he really gets into it and sees the other things it can do. I asked him last night "Dad, have you seen the icon for YouTube yet?" to which he replied that he hadn't. LOL, wait 'til he does...I'm just going to have to stress to him DO NOT WATCH YouTube AND DRIVE AT THE SAME TIME. Okay, I'm a bit of a mother hen, but oh, well. Now, I need to get my Mom into an iPhone and it will become an iPhone family thing.

Last night after work I was web surfing (AGAIN) on the iPhone (OF COURSE) and came across this guy's webpage regarding the keyboard on the iPhone. I was impressed. This guy is a really good writer - nice, clean page, easy on the eyes and writing that just flows. He did a good job, so much so that I'd like to share his page with you. He uses the word "orthogonal". Damn, that's a good word. You can check out this guy's article here:

john.jubjubs.net/2007/07/07/iphone-keyboard/


I wonder if I'm spending more time on my blog about the iPhone than on the iPhone itself. I am taking an online class...one at a time, trying to obtain a Masters in Forensic Sciences to help push along my present career path working as a CSI. Somehow, my iPhone just seems a bit more interesting than anthropology right now. I also found out that the browser on the iPhone works great for going to the website for my class (it's through the University of Florida). I can do anything on it via Safari and even checked out the grade I got on my last paper. I got an A (yay!), but then again I'm a geek. I really need to get off this website and get an assignment finished before I go into work tonight. And then - I can goof around on my iPhone some more.

Jaiku ~ Look Boo Boo! Our iPhone Blog Made Someone's Website

Wow ~ how about this iPhone stuff...

I actually caught my blog page on someone else's site...cool! Looks like a pretty good webpage, too. The graphics are great. Of course, it's loaded with photos of the iPhone, heh heh.

Check out Jaiku's site:

http://jaiku.com/channel/iphone/presence/6096605

The Verdict is In... iPhone Review

I've had some time to mess around with my new iPhone now and I can tell you I have absolutely no regrets! Good-bye Treo! hee hee

This is one awesome, kick-butt phone. I'll keep up with the hype when a new gadget is about to come out and stay on top of it, although lately I've learned to exhibit patience. Considering how often the hardware changes and that new versions seem to come out almost as soon as you've finished paying off the last little toy, it is well worth waiting at least long enough to read the reviews. Okay, so patience kinda went out the window for me on this one, but like I said - I have no regrets.

PROS: practically everything, design form, ease of use, functionality, * BRIGHT * CRISP *
clear screen with awesome resolution for photo and video viewing, if you weren't hooked on YouTube before, you will be now. Incredibly fun - state of the art interface... I expect that there is going to be a mass exodus of Treos from within homes across the country, suddenly popping up on Ebay for quick sale...and yes, you do adapt to the virtual keyboard, I am beginning to type faster and faster with it as the days go by - just wish I could use it horizontally and it would be even more user friendly...and hey, this is a pretty cool feature, did you know that the reason you cannot use a stylus for input with the iPhone is because it works via heat? The screen literally senses the heat from your fingertips. If you don't believe this, then try to activate something on the keyboard with another object. It will not work. So, what happens I wonder on a freezing winter day? Well, you probably should be protecting your cute little phone under your scarf or something, huh? Mitten-Touch-Input apparently won't work.

CONS: would prefer the keyboard to be able to function in the accelerometer mode as it does for photos and video - this is when you hold the phone horizontally instead of vertically and the image shifts from the vertical position to the horizontal view - a very cool feature. Currently you can only use the keyboard while holding the phone vertically and this makes for more narrow space between your hands - holding the phone horizontally would really imitate the previous QWERTY keyboards giving you the feel that you're already used to....no task list, memos, or ability to categorize contacts (i.e. business, personal, restaurants, etc.). Mmmm, okay - and no external battery...and you currently cannot use a custom ringtone - but I did read that the next version of iTunes is supposed to have an added tab labeled "Ringtones", so that must be coming **** OH, BUT WHO CARES ABOUT ALL THESE TRIVIAL LITTLE THINGS ?!? THIS IS A GREAT PHONE!!!!!!!!! :-))))))))))))))

What is my biggest fear with this phone? That I'll drop it...I am truly the bull in the china shop. I don't mean to be, but I just am. When I am graceful I'm usually trying to be ~ it's not like it comes naturally, LOL. I thought the screen would become messy looking with fingerprint smudges due to the high gloss finish, but so far this has not seemed to be a problem. It's just shiny and beautiful all the time.

Wouldn't ya love to own stock in Apple and AT&T now? I expect that AT&T is going to have quite the monopoly in the wireless industry as they were able to secure a 5 year contract giving them the exclusive rights to sell the iPhone. I can only imagine how many people actually cancelled their contract with other wireless carriers and even paid the penalty to do so, just to come join AT&T to get the iPhone. Fortunately, I am already with AT&T (formerly a Cingular chick to be specific). Sure, Microsoft is planning on coming out with their Meizu, and yes - I've already scoped it out on numerous websites - but no way baby does it compare with the iPhone. Sorry Bill, that's just my opinion. The Meizu will have 16 gb of internal memory, and that's all good - what gadget freak doesn't want more memory? Geez, I can remember my first pda and I was jonesing for a 1 gb card when the 128 mb card was the new thing and that was "wooo" a big deal. Of course Apple will have future generation iPhones to match the memory of the Meizu. I'm pretty satisfied with the 8 gb I have now. I just hope that the accelerometer function for the keyboard and a task/memo list will be an upgrade for this first generation iPhone. Please, Apple, don't make me wait another two years for these features, nor have to save and save up again for the next one. This little iPhone is going to have to work well for me for a very long time....

.......so, anyone wanna buy my Treo? It's a 650....

iPhone in Hand!

Yes! F-I-N-A-L-EEEEE!

What an adventure ~ thank you Ocala. Yep, I had to travel to the AT&T store in Ocala to pick it up. I called them this afternoon, as I said in my earlier post and they said that they had one left. I was told a guy had called before I did and said that he was coming from another city to get the one they had left. I was told it was first come, first serve. They wouldn't even take the payment for it over the phone. AT&T is quick to tell you "it's an Apple thing". So, now I'm all geared up to make the drive and I go out to my Jeep, sit inside of it and notice that it looks like the leaning tower of Wrangler...I'm like "oh, no - please not a flat tire!", and sure enough, the rear passenger side tire was as flat as the flattest pancake you've ever seen. So, I call the store and tell them I'm having this dilemma and they tell me they still have the phone. Fortunately I have AAA, and they came right out and changed it for me. Okay, go ahead and laugh at me for calling Triple A to change a tire, but the jacks that come with Jeeps are really stupid and it would've taken me a heck of a lot longer to do it than the Triple A guy, and remember, time was of the essence here.

Now I get in my Jeep, spare tire on (no - it's not a donut!), and think that I should really be safe before making the drive and stop to make sure there is enough air in the tire, there is. Well, on the way down I notice huge billowing clouds of black smoke emanating from somewhere on the east side embankment of the highway and as I get closer I realize a vehicle is on fire. As I drove by and eyeballed this, it looked like the vehicle had crashed into a tree. It was a smaller car, like a Hyundai or something, and the entire car looked gutted at this point, fully engulfed. When I realized that someone likely just died suddenly the urgency for an iPhone didn't seem to be there. So, I continue on my journey to the AT&T store, the whole time listening to the obnoxious sound of my spare tire making an odd noise, as this tire is not balanced like the other three. If you don't care about the proper reasons for balancing your tires, then balance them at least to maintain your sanity as you drive down the road. Remember, I'm in a Jeep, it's a softtop, and you hear everything. When you see the oncoming cars with their headlights on and dark clouds in the distance, and I mean really dark clouds - rain is inevitably making it's way to you or you to it. Of course, I drove through the thick of it. Rain, sleet, ice, or snow...nothing is going to keep me from my iPhone, LOL.

I pull up into the parking space feeling hopeful they still had it, as I had asked them to call me if the other guy showed up, so I wouldn't get stuck making the drive for nothing. So, all in all, between the cost of gas, the extra time, and of course the cost of my iPhone, like they say "priceless", hee hee... And the best part of it all is that I didn't charge it. Do you hear that MasterCard? VISA? Discover? You guys did not get my money, nor my finance charges, or interest. That's right. Screw you credit cards. My iPhone is paid for damnit. Could I have spent the money for other necessary reasons? Of course I could have, but it's my treat, and you'll be seeing my Treo and the "other" iPod up for sale on Ebay soon enough to compensate.

I also got some scoop when at AT&T...Microsoft is catching up quickly and plans on launching their competitor to the iPhone, may be something called the Meizu? Unsure of the exact spelling here. If anyone knows the name for this, feel free to jump in here and comment. It will supposedly have 16 GBs of memory and faster internet speeds. When I consider I've used a Palm LifeDrive that has 4 GBs of internal memory coupled with a 1GB card, and I've got plenty to spare, I'll be okay. I'm not really into downloading a ton of music files, photography mostly for me and a TV series here and there. I'm also an R.N., so most of my needed space is reserved for drug guides, medical guides, etc., and those guys can stay on my pda. So, my little iPhone is going to be just fine.

Okay, enough of this blog stuff...iTunes has loaded and it's time to activate!

More iPhone Drama

Still no iPhone.

It's not like I haven't been trying. Days ago I had spoken with a guy at one of the AT&T stores who promised me he'd call when they got a shipment in. I spoke with AT&T late yesterday afternoon (had to call from work) and was told that they weren't going to be getting in any more shipments that night and had not gotten any iPhones in at all that day. I was told their UPS guy makes deliveries between 11p and 4p ~ so, okay fine.

Well, as I said before I'm a CSI on night shift so I sleep my head off during the daytime while normal people sleep. I call the store again and was told "oh, we got a shipment in late last night and we got 5 phones in and there were people waiting at the door at 9 am when we opened", oh - and the guy who was supposed to call me, well, he wasn't working yesterday. Go figure.

So, I now call the other location and I get this real nice guy who tells me they got a huge shipment in today but they haven't opened up the boxes yet. I mention I'm a CSI with a ridiculous schedule and he metions his cousin is a CSI in another county ~ good, so someone actually understands my iPhone plight of I can't wake up early enough to be drooling at the front door when the store opens. He says he'll call me when they go through the boxes. I ask him to call me anyways even if they didn't get any in, you know, for peace of mind. LOL

So, I'm eating a bowl of cereal, gonna make some coffee and probably give Ocala stores a call - just in case. I can't get too distracted with all this iPhone stuff as I've taken the next few days off from work to study for the state real estate exam. Well, I don't need to worry about spending a lot of time learning the device, I already did that when playing with the display model. The learning curve for me and a new gadget is about 30 minutes - believe me, by then I've entirely scoped out the whole thing, read the entire manual for the most part and have mastered every function. If you're a geek like I am - you too, have the same ability. Oh, and how does real estate figure in with forensics? Crime scene is awesome and my heart is into it, but I need to supplement the income - especially if I'm gonna keep up with the fancy phones, huh?

How impressive would that be as a CSI, to whip onto a scene in my Hummer and then take a call from dispatch via my iPhone? A CSI can only dream....ahhhhh

The iWant Phone

Maybe that's what the iPhone should be called instead - because after all, we all want one, don't we? I have been calling Cingular (excuuuuuse me --> AT&T) locations everyday and still to no avail - no iPhones in yet, and of course, yesterday was a holiday, so UPS was not gonna be delivering any iPhones on the 4th. We'll have to see what Thursday brings. Of course I know each store's business hours, what time they open and their normal UPS delivery schedule. I kinda feel like a kid waiting for Christmas to get here...and as much as I'm frustrated that I can't just bee bop into a store and pick one up right now, I never would've waited in one of those horrendously long lines the night before their release. Somewhere out there is my little iPhone, in a cute little box, waiting to be delivered like a new baby by the stork on the doorstep of one of my local AT&T stores. Where, oh where are you my little iPhone?

....update to follow

The Ubiquitous iPhone

OMG ~ the iPhone, it's here. I have to say that when I saw all of the television advertisements for it that I thought "yeah, whatever - just a bunch of hype". Someone at work even asked me a week ago "so, are you gonna get an iPhone?" and I told them no and I meant it. I just simply wasn't interested. Well, well...as fate would have it I just happened to need to be inside the AT&T store as I had to return an aircard I had purchased that was just not compatible with my laptop. Don't ya know that there were 2 iPhones on display...and I did what a true bonafide geek-a-saurus would do, I played with them! And it was love at first slide (if you haven't handled an iPhone in person, you'll get that comment eventually). I mean we're talking major * WOW * factor here. I am in awe. The only thing I have a reservation about is the keyboard as it's not a standard raised tactile keyboard that I became so adept with on my Blackberry and became semi-adept at on my Treo. Apple has an awesome video on many of the iPhone's features and in one the guy says to give yourself a good week before you really adapt to using the keyboard.

Hey, I'm a flexible person...yes, I spoke with AT&T today, okay, I spoke with someone from every local store today beginning my verbal inquiry with "hi, I know you've probably been bombarded with this question, but, um, did you guys get anymore iPhones in yet?". Alas, the answer was no - from_every_store. :-(

Oh, don't think I won't keep checking back...heh heh heh I'm a crime scene investigator and I know all too well how short life really is. One must balance being conservative with having fun, and the iPhone is well, all about fun! Hmmmm, I can't imagine what the title of my next post will be...."My New iPhone"....we'll see!

My Very First Post!

Well...here it is! My first blog post, everyone else is doing it, why not me?

I work night shift so here I am up very late. I get things done around the house while "normal" people sleep. A few months ago I had started a really nice front porch herb garden with lots of rosemary (my favorite herb). I had to go out of town and was gone for two weeks and when I returned, well - most of my plants had not made it. I had friends helping take care of my pets and I didn't have the heart to really impose on people to care for my plants in the same manner that I do. I basically requested for them just to be watered. I find that rosemary is a really picky plant and recently read that most plants don't make it because of over care - where they get watered too much. I have also heard that you shouldn't water plants at night, something to do with mold forming since there isn't enough heat to evaporate the water fast enough, but for me - nighttime watering works the best. Probably because this is Florida and it's always humid enough in my opinion for the water to evaporate just fine.

I went herb shopping today and just finished planting my new herbs; lots of rosemary, basil, and some curry. Curry smells great when you're just hanging out on the front porch. I don't think you can actually use it in cooking, but as an aromatic, I love it. Since this is my first blog, my page will look a bit boring until I spice it up a bit. Until then...