Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Just a test


Seeing if my moblogging client can handle an image upload...

Note: Picture of Lady Bird Lake, taken with my Droid.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Some Apps for Android - Turbo QuasiReviews

My Tracks -
  • What: GPS Track logger, saves statistics and maps -- can upload to MyMaps and Google Docs spreadsheets.
  • Pros: Save and review workout data, do GPS data logging for geo-tagging apps (export GPX or KML).
  • Cons: GPS-based altitude is pretty poor, and shouldn't really be trusted.

Andoku -
  • What: Sudoku and some variants. 
  • Pros: Easy interface with "pencil marks", variants offer variety. 
  • Cons: "only" 100 puzzles of each type/difficulty. (But, by the time you finish them all, will you really remember the solution to the first one? I doubt it...)
Word Wrench -
  • What: Anagram-based game, somewhat like "TextTwist"
  • Pros: Pauses automatically and resumes nicely. Can change the allotted time.
  • Cons: Interface it really basic; grays out and makes it hard to see what you missed.
Jewellust -
  • What: Similar to Bejeweled, but with some unique power-ups and other features.
  • Pros: Every bit as addictive as Bejeweled.
  • Cons: Every bit as addictive as Bejeweled.
Pandora (no description necessary, does what you'd expect)

Photoshop.com Mobile - Crop and color-balance on your phone. Great for contact photos, etc.

ConnectBot - ssh/telnet client. Very solid, plenty of screen real estate on my Droid.

ES File Explorer - Local file manager with network SMB share access (nice way to grab files from NAS or upload pix, etc.).

SportsTap - Scores, schedules, etc. Good interface, but refreshes kinda slow...

AndFTP - FTP, SFTP, FTPES client. Seems pretty stable so far.

FTPServer - Exactly what it says. Perhaps a little scary, but good in a pinch, especially if you monitor it and make sure there aren't unexpected users...

Twidroid - Twitter client -- I use a task manager to close it so I don't get alerted by every new Tweet in my little world.

Blogaway - Blogger interface. Basic, but works for simple moblogging (That's a super-compound internet word). Doesn't make urls hot, but does allow picture uploads.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

QR Code is fun

QR Codes are pretty neat little 2-D bar codes that are increasingly being used to enable mobile devices to access information quickly. Programs like the Barcode Scanner for Android or similar apps for the iPhone can read and decode these easily. This code, for example, should take you to my Photo Gallery web site.

Thank you, Austin City Council

Even though Perry vetoed a similar law at the state level, at least Austin will be slightly safer...

 

Going the extra yard for cyclists: New 'safe-passing' ordinance by Austin City Council

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/2009/11/02/1102wear.html

See also:

http://weareaustin.com/content/news/story?cid=35351

http://www.txcn.com/sharedcontent/dws/txcn/austin/stories/110109kvue3foot-bkm.276194f35.html

The ordinance (http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/edims/document.cfm?id=131661) passed the City Councli unanimously just before the last general election.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Twitter

I'm still trying to figure out how to use it, and why anybody would care about my short-form rants or tidbits... I'm at twitter.com/kevinguinn if anybody _does_ care.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Droid

I picked up a Droid at my local Best Buy last night. So far, I absolutely love it - especially vs. my old and busted T-Mobile Wing (HTC / WinMo 6 / EDGE). Verizon is expensive, but map tiles loaded 2-3x faster than a friend's G1. Will compare vs. a MyTouch later tonight...