Pogoplug: A Gadget You Need

I love gadgets. But let's be honest, gadgets are frequently impulse buys. People buy them more because they are really cool, and less because they actually need them. Last week I picked up a Pogoplug (a small little device that let's you share a hard drive across the Internet).

I first heard about the device a few months back, and wasn't very impressed; it looked too complicated and was limited in capability. In December, they released a new version of the device for $130, and it's one gadget that's much more than an impulse buy--it's a gadget that you may just need yourself.

A few years back, when I moved out of my parents house, I knew my parents would have a hard time keeping the computer up to date, and being able to help them remotely. This problem was solved cheaply with LogMeIn (a free service that let's you login remotely, and securely, to any computer from any computer). The second problem was how to share files easily from computer to computer (my parents still aren't very good at downloading attachments, but have go drag and drop down pretty good). The PogoPlug fills this need for a relatively small price.

The device has four USB ports and one LAN port; you connect the unit to your router, plug in a thumb drive or external hard drive, and your set. There are no limits to size, so if you have four 1 TB hard drives, then you have a 4 TB cloud that anyone who you give permission to can view. You decide what people see, how much they see, and if they can make any changes.

All you need to do is pick a directory on your hard drive, and hit share

Once you decide to share a directory, you select who to give access to, and how much access they should have.

An email is sent to your friends alerting them to what you have shared; here they can either preview or download the files.

To make your life even easier, Pogoplug has a free download on their website that turns the device into a virtual drive on your computer, so there's no need to log into your Web browser to access the drive--you can access it the same way you would any other drive in My Computer, so it's all drag and drop functionality.

If you are looking for an easy way to share files with your family, then consider picking up a Pogoplug for yourself.--share the cost with your family if you are looking for an even cheaper solution.

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My amazing wife is also an amazing writer, and has started a blog of her very own. Check out her blog on Poladroid cameras...it might just make you say "Those were the good old days!"

Meet Your Next Computer

I have been watching the CES conference closely from afar; a few things impressed me (the wireless battery charger, and, surprisingly, Windows 7...but only if it's truly not the resource hog they claim it's not, and will really run on NetBooks), but only one thing truly amazed me: the Eee Keyboard from Asus.

For years, people have been trying to push the computer into the living room (most notably Microsoft), but it's never really caught on. I think the biggest reason is it's just not simple enough. And, no one wants to have some clunky desktop sitting next to their TV. Media centers are a great idea, but never, in my opinion, been very practical.

What makes the Eee keyboard so different is everything is built right into the keyboard...including the wireless HDMI (so no cords going from the monitor to the keyboard)! I currently have a Mac hooked to my TV, and one of the biggest problems I have with it is the mouse; I can't lay in bed and comfortably use the computer, because I need a hard surface for the mouse. This keyboard has a touchscreen mouse built in.

Asus also has a history of making cheaply priced products (albeit with sometimes cheap parts), and if that is true here, then I really see this catching on.

Unfortunately, it's all a prototype right now so it might not ever come to life; my guess, however, is Target and Walmart will have them on their shelves in time for Christmas next year.

As for the biggest disappointment...Windows 7; they promise a great product and then release the Beta with Vista as a system requirement! So they promise the GUI will run faster then Vista on machines that Vista ran too slow on, and then they say, but you'll just have to take our word on that.

The Death of a Laptop

My laptop has been dying several months; I didn't want for it to happen, because I love that laptop, but, as a writer, it's something that happens all to often. I type over one thousand pages a year; that means in less then a year the letters on the keyboard begin to quickly wear off. This is soon followed by keys that stick. Those things you can live with, but when the computer begins frequently locking up or crashing, then you know it's time to start looking for a laptop.

For the past two years, I have been using a Toshiba Portege R200; it's less then three pounds, and can go for about 4 to 5 hours if the wi-fi is on, and 6 to 7 hours if the wi-fi is off. The new Toshiba R600's are awesome, and equally light with great battery life; the problem for me this time around is I don't have $1,500 to $2,000 to spare on a laptop. I also knew that I could not go without a laptop.

I could have gone with the cheap 400 dollar laptops that are usually on sale at Best Buy and Circuit City; but I write on the go, and I needed something ultra-portable.

My next option was a netbook. In the past, I've been against them because their hard drives were too small (and most ran Linux, which I like for secondary computers, but not primary ones). This year a swarm of XP netbooks came out with 60+ gigabyte hard drives. The first one to catch my eye was the Acer One; it has 1 gig of RAM, a 120 gb hard drive, and has been on sale at CostCo for $350. I had two problems with that one. One, it had a 3 cell battery, which meant only two hours of battery life; and two, a small keyboard. Further investigation also revealed that it has a known problem with overheating and is quitee loud. There are reports that a new Acer is coming out with a six cell baterry next year.

Next I considered the more costly Lenovo Ideapad ($399); this was a little bit more, but had a larger screen, thus bigger keyboard; it also had a smaller hard drive. The biggest problem I had the Lenovo was the battery—again, a three cell. It was tempting, because it was a name I could trust, but in the end I decided against it.

I did not even look at the HP netbook, which is probably the most commonly purchased business netbook; FYI, I think HP is the worse computer on the market. I have have never had one or known someone that had one that didn't have a series of hardware and/or software issues; part of the problem is they often use Compaq parts, which is basically the lemon of computer parts.

The last computer I looked at was the MSI Wind; Amazon had it on sale for $430, and it was everything I wanted (6 cell battery, 160 hard drive, 10 inch screen, 2.8 pounds); it had a SCSI hard drive, so it would be slower to transfer larger files, but I could deal with that.

I now have the laptop, and couldn't be more please. It's a little bit heavier than my Toshiba, but the flaws stop there. It's quiet, does not get even a little hot on the bottom (unlike just about every other laptop out there), and surprisingly fast. The keyboard feels just like a full size one; although the comma and question mark keys are just a tad to small and awkwardly placed, and the mouse pad is less than ideal.

Normally cheap laptops have tons of software preloaded on the desktop, and your first hour with the new computer is spent getting them off; not so with the MSI. It has a trial version of Office, which I promptly took off because I cannot stand the new version of Office. Once I dig up my old external CD drive, I'm going to install an older version of word, but for now I'm contempt running Open Office, which is basically the same as Word and free.

I've heard all the reviews say that netbooks are great as a second laptop, but not as a main one; I disagree. If you are doing graphics, video production, or something that requires a quick processor then stick with a desktop; but if all you do is type, use the Internet, video conference (web cam is built in!), and take digital photos, then the MSI is the perfect computer. The only thing it doesn't do is burn CD/DVDs, but with most people using USB drives, then why do you need to? I still have a desktop for that, but I could live without it.

Unfortunately, Amazon sold out of the MSI Wind the day after I made my purchase (you can buy them elsewhere, but I haven't found them as cheap); they have a black model for just a little more, but it's on backorder, and won't ship for six to seven weeks. I suspect it will magically come back in stock for Black Friday or Cyber Monday.

Oprah's Favorite Thing is My Favorite Thing Too!

Those of you who didn't hear, Oprah picked the Amazon Kindle as her new favorite thing in the world. I happen to agree; last week I got a royalty check that was quite a bit more then expected and I decide sense I never really bought anything with my advance that I would splurge and buy myself a Kindle and my wife a phone (the Nokia E71). I'm impressed. Very impressed. It's not just the books that make this thing so incredible...it's the stuff that comes with it (like free Internet (albeit slow Internet, but free nonetheless).

This blog has been pretty dead for a week (sorry about that), but I hope to spend at least a couple days going over some of the features. I had previously said that the price tag is much too much (something I still agree with), but I believe very much that this thing is the future, and I'm going to show you why soon.

If you want a Kindle now, then don't forget to put in the OPRAHWINFREY coupon code when you check out for 50 dollars off that purchase (so $309 instead of $369).

It's Not Just A Wii Anymore!

Why is the Nintendo Wii better then the PS3 and Xbox 360? Quite simply, it's not just for games. The video below shows you how you can use a Wii remote (no Wii required) and turn your laptop into a digital whiteboard! This would be a perfect low cost solution to libraries and schools offering computer workshops.