Here’s to a ressurrection of this obscure little blog.

I came across an interesting article by a Scott Cambpell on Channel Web.  (ref: Article)  The plot of the story is that he took his laptop in for a monitor hinge replacement at Best Buy under the extended warranty and came out with another shiny new part: a new hard drive.  With his new hard drive, all data was lost upon delivery, but salvageable for a hefty nominal fee.  The theory on why, he concludes, is a corporate culture of trying to increase service revenues.  The bigger question is: What license does a warranty grant the warranty holder?

This is concerning both as a consumer and a technician working for an HP Value Added Reseller (VAR) for a couple different reasons, please read on.

First and foremost, I am a consumer.  I work so I may be a consumer.  It’s one of the perks of a good job, like food, shelter, and transportation.  When I buy an item, I HATE worrying if the product is going to last or if I threw my money away.  That’s why I look at the warranty as a part of the purchase.  In a Best Buy or similar warranty on a computer, part of the repair process includes shipping your machine off for up to 3 weeks.  That’s almost a month that you spend separated from your purchase, along with the lost productivity and convenience that you purchased the machine for in the first place.  With an expensive extended warranty, why can’t you get in-store service?

The second piece to this is the fact that the warranty can be viewed as an all-pass to replace what they see fit, depending on their benefit.  Not only do you pay for the machine and the extended warranty, but now you have the potential to lose everything and have your machine and data held for ransom.  So in order to not lose the productivity or the function of your machine, you have to pay more, even when the damaging service was not warranted or even authorized.  You’ve got to be kidding me!

Enter a VAR.  VAR’s are generally a local business with people who can solve your problem or repair the machine on site.  Manufacturer warranties are still honored, but your machine doesn’t get shipped to some large facility and you get to talk to your technician.  VAR’s are more interested in establishing a relationship instead of dealing with warranties and service as a quick profit opportunity.

At the end of the day, it’s about trust.  You can choose if you trust your technician when you can meet them in person at your local VAR.  With a large national chain, you don’t get to meet your technician, nor be a part of your warranty service proccess.  A VAR may be a little more expensive because they don’t push the volume of the large chains, but what is it worth to know that your new device will be a sound, hassle free investment?

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Here’s a special “Two for Friday”, mostly inspried by linked articles and a discussion with my Uncle via Twitter.

REF: http://daringfireball.net/2009/07/microsofts_long_slow_decline

This article is clearly written by a Mac fanboy.  I don’t agree with this article 100%, but it makes a couple good points.  Before I go further, this is an opportune time to state that I am neither a Mac nor Windows fanboy.  I’m actually more inclined to Ubuntu Linux.  I run Vista on both of my machines and XP on my wife’s laptop.  Why?  Because I’m cheap and lazy.

Which brings me to my first point: Microsoft’s share in the low-end market.  It’s virtually a no-competition market as Apple wants nothing to do with it.  This market is perfect for parents who just want to get their kid a laptop before heading to college without taking a second mortgage to pay for supplies AND college itself.  This is a $650 range notebook with plastic casing.  It might feel cheap, but it takes some good abuse to destroy.  It’s a 50/50 chance with a college kid.  What about choice for the people who just want something they can travel with?  Cheap and lazy = Windows.

My second point: Microsoft in the workplace.  Microsoft has tuned Windows Server/XP Pro/Vista Business to be a platform that an administrator can control from a single place: Active Directory.  Features can be restricted, programs installed, resources shared, etc without having to touch every machine.  Does Apple have this feature with OS X server?  I honestly don’t know.  I know they have some directory features, but I don’t know to what extent.  The main thing is, though, that Apple does not have the experience in this field.  Microsoft has been tuning this for many years.  Macs are being deployed in some enterprise environments for the creative department as well as companies that have Web productivity software, but still hasn’t gained full traction in the enterprise.

My third point: Peer Pressure.  Anything that costs more and is out of line with the mainstream becomes a symbol of status.  What starts as a personal preference turns into a reason for discrimination.  What the rich and the “cool” want and have, so the rest of the people want and swear by.  After all, if this is what the rich buy, it must be the best, right?  If the XYZ U QB runs Mac, it’s the cool thing, right?

My fourth point: Innovation.  After XP, Windows has failed to capture their target audience with something they can take to the bank.  Vista’s release started in disaster, taking Microsoft bout 6 months to work the majority of the kinks out.  Vista SP2 has come out and has been very stable, but the damage has been done.  Also, the features for most people has not been captivating.  A Google Desktop-type sidebar, reorganized file structure, a new graphical interface, but nothing to captivate an audience.  Enter Mac.  It is a new operating system to a user, has some new bells and whistles, works differently, and looks pretty.  But what most people forget is that Mac has not had a radical revolution since 2001, when OS X came out.  Each new version is a baby step, adding a thing or two here and there, tuning another, but no real innovation (save the transfer to Intel, but no software innovation) in the system itself.  Mac is just new and exciting to a set of users.  Both platforms run, both platforms crash just as easy.  Microsoft has tried radical innovation and failed with Vista, hopefully some real innovation will follow Windows 7.  I would go so far as to say that the first one of the two who truly blows away the audience will have a leg up for a few years while the other chases tails.

My fifth point: Focus.  One major point that Apple has going is focus.  Their focus is only divided among a smaller amount of lines, notably computing, iPod/iPhone, and iTunes.  Microsoft continues to pursue complete domination of all things computing and gets their shorts in a knot when they’re not dominating an area.  Microsoft hates Google with a passion and is irritated with the Mozilla foundation.  Microsoft is pursuing litigation and a patent war with Linux and those who implement as a platform for their products.  It appears to me that Microsoft is less interested in their end-user products (Windows, WinMobile most notably) and more interested in why they aren’t queen of all computing.

The in-between-the-lines: Apple is going to continue to grow in popularity as Windows users cross the great divide.  There will always be niches that PCs and Macs will always stay dominant in.  The people who are cheap and lazy will get Windows.  The people with money to burn, want to be “cool”, or who are really want change are going to get Macs.  This is going to be the case until the next big innovation punch is delivered, which I have a hunch is going to be the Multi-Touch interface.

To conclude my thoughts, one of my favorite vids: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-_51OsaaSY

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So this is something that has been bugging me for a while.  It’s also been a while since I’ve posted to this obscure blog.  What a fiery topic to emerge from the hibernation of this blog.

A statistic that has been flying around the Internet like wildfire is that Apple has 91% of the market for $1,000 or more machines.  The obvious response is: DUH!  The only machine that Apple sells that is less than $999 (that to me counts as a $1,000 machine.) is the Mini, but how much traction has that got?  When all your machines are $1k or above, every machine sold gets placed into this market share category.

Well, the less obvious response is: What does this statistic mean?  Let’s take a step back past the Mac vs PC debate and look at what the difference is.

I’ll be generous.  I’ll compare an HP EliteBook 6930p with the aluminum casing to the entry-level Macbook Pro.

MBP ($1200)

• Intel Core2Duo 2.26GHz
• 2GB Memory
• 160GB HDD
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
• 13″ Screen

HP EliteBook ($1200)

• Intel Core2Duo 2.4 GHz
• 2GB Memory
• 160GB HDD
• ATI Mobility RadeonTM HD 3450
• 14.1″ Screen

The specs are very similar for the same price.  You actually get a little better deal with the HP.  So, why aren’t people shelling out for $1,200 HP EliteBooks?

Being a little less generous, most consumers don’t need or want an aluminum casing.  The same type of machine (Plasic casing) in a consumer line model is roughly $700-$750, depending on brand.  Need a little more horsepower?  You can still stay under $1k pretty easy.

So we’re back to pricing points.  What do you get for the  price difference?  Still staying away from the Mac vs PC debate, it comes down to iLife.  iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band.  Most of the pracitcal differences between the machines is iLife pre-installed.  Firefox, Internet Explorer, and many other popular freeware is available on PC as well as Mac.  There are also free services on the PC side that serve the same functions as iLife, but you have to go and download them yourself.

Both PC and Mac have to buy Office-ish software to be inter-opearable with the world.  OpenOffice.org is a good alternative to Office, but get real, it’s an Office world for 90% or more of the users.

Netbooks are a movement that also shifts the value of the metric.  Either Linux or Windows XP netbooks are a good alternative for people who only want Internet access and basic functions.  Does this eat into Apple’s numbers for market share?  I think it is too soon to tell whether this is a tradeoff for users or an addition to.

Overall, with both responses weighed, I feel this metric is a fluff metric.  It’s a PR feel-good for the fellas out at Apple to show their dominance.  Macs have their niche, yes.  Hardware is solid, the OS is decent.  There are stellar applications that are Mac only.  At the end of the day, though, this metric is a comparison between Windows power users and most Mac users.  Talk about a losing battle!

Apple is a PR/Marketing machine.   Many businesses can learn some marketing lessons from Apple.  They have done an excellent job of associating that Apple logo with a sense of purpose and well-being.  This PR push gets attention very quickly, but I feel lacks the practical comparison between a PC and Mac laptop that would make this a competitive statistic.

Thoughts?

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The Samsung Omnia, the gem of the Verizon Wireless phone lineup.

I got the opportunity to not only play with this phone, but to be able to use it as my everyday phone.  I have been impressed 2 weeks into full time usage.  Once the settings are set right, battery time is excellent.  Normal phone functions (Ringers, Voice, Address Book, etc) perform well and are well-designed.  Multiple alarms can be set at the same time.  Recurring alarms stay in the selection list, while one-time alarms disappear after they are dismissed.

In addition to a solid phone core, the wireless/radio features are outstanding.  The phone comes with Wi-Fi built in, as well as an FM tuner.  A 3.5mm headphone adapter is included, and is also the FM antenna.  The phone uses the Verizon Wireless EV-DO REV.A, which produces fast Internet speeds.  Between Wi-Fi and REV.A, web browsing and email downloading is quick.

The large touch screen is impressive.  Samsung implimented vibration haptic feedback for selection options.  When typing, each key gives a small vibration to give the illusion of a hardware key press. Drag and Drop options are available on this phone.  The orientation switch from landscape to profile is lightning quick with several transition effects available.  The screen has a sharp resolution and displays photos extremely well.  In addition to the touch screen, there is an optical “mouse” available for extra navitation options.  The mouse clicks as an action/OK button.

In the line of software enhancements, Samsung has implemented a widget bar that proivdes the most commonly used functions on the home screen.  A widget can be dropped onto the home screen and tapped to implement.  A 4 person speed dial uses a tap system to dial the numbers, eliminating the need to search for the name.  Calendar, Clock, Wireless Manager, and Sound Profiles are just a few of the widgets available.  The main menu puts the most common and the Samsung applications in place for easy access.  It also allows for user defined shortcuts.

MP3/WMA ringtones are standard, but it is a little difficult to manage.  All sounds desired for ringtones requre being placed into the “My Ringtones” folder in “My Documents”.  The included Touch Player is an intuitive media player that enlarges the function buttons for easy playing.

There is 8GB of included storage on the phone, labeled “My Storage”.  The phone also supports up to 16GB of MicroSD external storage.  This is more than enough storage for the video camera and the 5 megapixel still camera.

With the Windows Mobile 6 operating system and the available software for the platform, the Samsung Omnia gets my approval.  I have been thoroughly please with this phone.  I might dare to say that at a price of $250-$270 (with a contract), this is a heavy competitor to the iPhone.

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The smartphone race is still in full swing, even with the recession staring the country down.  It seems that no matter what the economy is doing, people still want information and email at their fingertips.  Today’s smartphones also transcend the level of just email and limited Internet into an all-in-one media center.  Instead of carrying multiple devices for media, phone, and productivity, you are starting to be able to carry only one.

With this, I have been using a BlackBerry Pearl for the last year.  It has been a good phone, but it does have it’s limitations for what I and many other techies want to use it for.  The phone’s memory capacity for programs is very limited.  It can only handle a handfull of programs before other, more basic functions are sacrificed. 

The input has also driven me nuts.  They keyboard has 2 letters per key for most keys.  The smart auto-fill completes most words, but there is still a majority that it does not recognize.  It is not easy to correct the word to what you have wanted it to say. 

The camera on the phone is also fairly weak.  The pictures look excellent on the phone and on most other phones, but look horrible on a computer.  This is not intended for a camera replacement, but it is weak for a smartphone. 

All in all, this is a good phone for one who wants a basic smartphone and won’t abuse the capabilities.  To have it used as a phone primarily and email/sms secondarily is a good use for the cheapest of the BlackBerry line.  To be able to have a phone that can lookup phone numbers over the air and get emails away from the desk has been invaluable.  It will be bittersweet to depart with the Pearl tomorrow, but onward and upward to a better phone.

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IT: the branch of engineering that deals with the use of computers and telecommunications to retrieve and store and transmit information.  

When a person thinks about Church, or The Church, IT is hardly ever the first thing that is thought of.  In many cases, it is the last thing that is thought of.  A good IT infrastructure is essential in a business, but where does IT fit in The Church?

The first thing to consider is that all money used to purchase any equipment is either directly or indirectly derived from gifts given by the congregation.  The second thing to consider is the IT infrastructure is only as good as the ability to manage it internally.  The other major point to consider are the goals of the church in reaching out and if technology helps or hinders those goals.

With these considerations in mind, I see IT becoming a critical piece in an effective church in the very near future.  Whether it be as simple as an effective website or a high-scale internal network, the younger generation is pushing the ministry into an increasingly digital arena.  Almost every young(er) person has an email address and would prefer to communicate over email instead of snail mail.  Social Networking is a trend that has made connecting and communicating so easy for anybody.  When people are looking to find a church home, more and more people are looking for a website before they step foot in the door.

With this, what resources should a church invest in IT?  A church that is conscious of the future should budget a minimum of 2%-5% of it’s income for maintenance and progression.  If the budget is not needed for maintenance, then a church should pursue technologies that will help further their ministry.  This budget number is strictly for normal maintenance, workstation replacements, server upgrades, etc.  It does not account for any special needs based on projects.

The questions I ask are: How do downtime and instability effect the ministry?  How much time is spent resolving issues that could be addressed before they become an issue?  How easy is the network to manage?  Most importantly, what can be done to increase the effectiveness of our ministry and to facilitate growth?

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The latest buzz in the tech industry is the adoption of cheap, low-powered laptop type computers that are tuned for nothing more than Internet and word processing.  Because of the low power needed, these netbooks are lighter than most.  These combined make an attractive package for people who are on the move and just want to check their email or Facebook page.

Asus seems to be leading this drive with the Eee Pc.  It comes in a few different flavors ranging from about $350 to $500, depending on the options.  One cost saver is buying the Linux option.

What I’m starting to wonder is if this trend will stay.  I have thought about snagging one of these netbooks just so I don’t have to bring my work laptop home to surf in the easy chair.  The more I look at the specs, though, I know that I will over subscribe a Netbook and not be happy with it.  I wonder how many people have bought this with the intentions of using as a Internet only terminal, but have wound up bogging the machine down.

Also, how long term is the purchase?  Adobe keeps coming out with larger and larger versions of Flash, as well as the dynamic nature of today’s Internet tells me that the Netbooks might be soon lagging behind.  iTunes is already starting to bog down mid-grade machines.

So, after thinking about this a little further, I would rather pay $800 for an HP 550 business notebook with a dual core and the ability to upgrade memory.  It’s not the fastest notebook in the stack, but the warranty and the abillity to upgrade make it a better decision than a cheap trend.

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After earning a CCNA and working with nothing but Cisco equipment, I fell into the mind trap that Cisco was synonymous with a corporate network.  While they have a good core set of integrated products, this is a huge misconception.  Cisco does a good job of marketing to put their name at the forefront of IT, but the product does not always stand up to the name.

Enter HP ProCurve, a small unit with HP that takes HP’s core of R&D and takes it to IT’s infrastructure department.  ProCurve operates using industry standards, both pre-existing and standards that ProCurve has driven the industry to create.   ProCurve has driven many industry standards to have the ability for seamless integration of other vendor’s equipment, both the competition and supplemental products.

The stand-out difference between ProCurve and Cisco is two-fold: Price and Warranty.  The price of an equivalent ProCurve switch is a fraction than it’s Cisco competitor.  The warranty is a full lifetime, next business day warranty at no additional cost after the purchase.  What kind of warranty does Cisco have to match that?

To provide an example of how lifetime this warranty is, take a ProCurve 2424 switch, purchased in 1997.

This switch has ports die and basic functionality leaving.  This is 2008, production and stock is done for this line.  One call to ProCurve support and the switch is still replaced with the functional equivalent, a ProCurve 2524.

Granted the warranty does not cover functional design of the switch (cannot handle current traffic load, cannot support capabilities, etc.), but a switch should never have ports or basic functionality fail.  This is ProCurve’s stand.

There is nothing more to say about a cheaper, more effective switch that tends to out perform it’s more popular competitor.  While this is not the fullest extend of the differences, it is enough to make you wonder if Cisco really is the market leader in networking infrastructure.

So, have you thought about ProCurve?

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This is the official christening of my technical ramblings.  In here, you will find my thoughts on corporate networking, home networking, gadgetry, and anything else that might cross my mind at the time I publish.  I hope to keep this updated frequently, so keep checking for updates as the times roll by.

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