Thursday, April 27, 2006

These are a few of my favorite things...


Being a gadget guy and loving technology, I am always trying out new application and devices. Below are a few of my favorite things from the last several months.

Favorite Palm Applications

Vindigo City Guide - Vindigo supplies great information about cities, such as places to eat, museums, hot spots, directions, bathrooms (LOL), weather, etc. I use it mostly for finding places to eat and finding cab companies. I never travel without first adding the city I will be visiting.

QuickTips - A FREE application that quickly and easily divides a dinner tab and figures out the tip. It has preset amounts like 15% or 20%, or you can customize it to a preferred percentage.

Destaller - This application makes trying new programs safe. It will thoroughly remove an application and its associated files.

Facer 3 - Replaces the Palm OS look and feel with a fantastic launcher and home page. The home page presents to-do lists, appointments etc., and the launcher page makes navigation a breeze. I like the program so much I plan write a complete review of it in the near future.

Favorite Pocket PC Applications

SPB Weather - Not that I can't look outside, but great for planning outdoor events, especially with the weather finally turning nice.

Broken Sword - What a fun game! It has s a great story line with fun, integrated puzzles that propels the adventure. The Pocket PC version is very faithful to the PC version.

Favorite Windows PC Applications

Skype - I use it all the time to "call" my artist in Japan or to setup conference calls. With a good headset and microphone the sound is excellent and it is free.

PC-Cillian - When I upgraded to Norton 2005 my machine took a nose dive in performance. I removed it and machine speed came back. I did this three times until I was convinced it was Norton. After trying several other virus protection software I selected PC-Cillan for its ease of use, speed, and integration with online and offline email.

Dreamweaver - Makes web site building a breeze. I do recommend taking a class to get full use out of it.


Favorite Gadgets / Hardware

Synching / Charging Cables - They are great to travel with. Compact and light. They use the USB Port to charge your device, so a little slow but gets the job done.

Porporta Crystal Clear Case - Not only does it protect my PDA's but I can check a date, to-do item, etc, without having to open the case. I understand the appeal of the other cases but I am most efficient with a clear case.

Logitech USB headset and microphone.- I bought this to use with Skype and it is great. The advantage of having a USB headset is that you can continue to have music playing while using the headset to talk. Also it is very cool to use on multi-player games.