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GrandDialer is far more successful than I could have imagined
My first iPhone application, GrandDialer has been downloaded more than 9000 times! I thought that it wouldn't be that popular because people can't get GrandCentral accounts. Boy, was I wrong! The reviews are pretty good, but some people expect way more than I can do with the application. As far as I can tell, the only external interface to GrandCentral is through an HTTPS connection. GrandDialer is based on a perl script.
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Dealing with screenshots
Over the years, I've had to take screenshots for documentation, to report bugs, and to help other people. Up until recently, the primary application I used was SnapzProX. However, it took awhile for them to come up with an Intel native version and pretty much has remained the same for years. This isn't really a bad thing as the program worked, but I was longing for something more. There have been a number of programs brought to market since SnapzProX, but nothing has really come close to meeting my needs.
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The end of desktop sync?
While this probably isn't news to many, I have almost come to the conclusion that syncing a handheld with the desktop is dead. The only exception is media as OTA (over the air) sync is far too slow (currently) to handle large photos, music, and movie (for the most part). It has taken me awhile to come to this conclusion as I spent many years working on desktop sync software. In the last few weeks, we installed Zimbra at work and are moving people towards syncing their handhelds (Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, iPhone, and Palm OS devices) over the air (primarily cellular). In these cases, the desktop just becomes another sync client and not the master; the server handles the synchronization.
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Bottom of the line
When I look to buy lasting goods I don't usually don't buy the top of the line as it is not affordable nor would I get the value out of it (however, I do buy my Macs at almost the top of the line). The other day I had to take my circular saw in for service as it didn't quite sound right; I bought it a few months ago reconditioned. I know I didn't buy the top of the line (the saw along with a drill, flashlight and reciprocating saw was $199), but didn't buy the bottom. When I started talking to the folks at the repair shop, they pretty much laughed at me with my saw. These people repair professional tools and my rinky dink saw was basically a toy. I admitted that I knew what I was getting, but it definitely wasn't the bottom of the line; it did come with lithium ion batteries which should have moved it up a notch. However, they didn't agree. After talking with the manager for a bit, I learned that the price of the tool doesn't necessarily mean anything as they get all tools in for repair; it really doesn't matter the brand (there are only a few manufacturers of electric tools as there have been a lot of mergers).