Sc@-tt3r-ed Thoughts

As I usually do occasionally on my phone, I went to the App Store to check for updates. Since the release of iOS 4, one of the main reasons I repeatedly checked for updates was due to the Skype application.
There was  an application for the iPhone called Fring. and in and of itself, is a great app. For a little while, they even supported the Skype protocol, which was exciting. Not too long after its release though, Skype and Fring got into some legal battle, and since then, Fring removed its support for Skype.

Well this morning, my day was made! Skype finally released its iPhone update, which makes Skype iOS 4 compatible. More specifically, allows Skype to be run in the background. I had always wondered what this would mean, for Skype running on the iPhone, when both my cell number AND Skype number are connected to my Google Voice number, the latter of which is the one that I give out to people.

So I decided to do a quick test:

First I opened up Skype and put it in the background, then I called myself on my SkypeOut number. A push notification popped up on my phone with the Skype ringtone, and I was able to pick up the Skype phone call. FTW! I pretty much expected this test to work ok.

The real test, however, was the case where I would receive a phone call on the Google Voice number. I was wondering how my phone would handle this. Well, it was surprisingly good. When I dialed my Google Voice number, my phone’s ringtone actually sounded, the Skype ringtone did not, however, the push notification still popped up for the Skype call, while the cell number was ringing. Granted, the push notification goes behind the dialer window, so I had to reject the cell call, and then click on “Answer” on the Skype notification. At this time, the Skype app was foregrounded, and the Google Voice greeting sounded.

in a couple of instances, when dialing the GV number, the Skype push notification didn’t actually show up, and that may be due to the order in which Google Voice dials, or rather, establishes a connection to my devices. Not really a big deal, and I’m not even sure that there is a way to really make this problem completely disappear. After all, the way I’m using my cell number and the skype number under a Google Voice number is probably not a very common way people will use these services, but in my mind, if the more complex setups work, then, the simpler ones will definitely work.

If you have a Google account of any sort, you are likely using one of Google’s many services.

One of the issues always talked about regarding Google, is how much data they have on you. Of course, there are things like your “Web History” that you can check out. But if you use Picasa, Google Docs, Gmail, Gmail Contact, Google Voice, etc … there is quite a lot of additional information that Google has about you.

Today as I was looking at my account settings, I found an interesting link, which I had never seen before, and that is your Data Dashboard. If you go to this link while logged in to your Google account, you will see a list of all the services, and an overview of what data you have stored in each of these applications. Quite enlightening, in my opinion. As a matter of fact, by looking there, I found out that I had some files scattered in some Google services that I once tried, like Google Sketchup, and never deleted its content. Imagine what more you may be able to find if you go through this exhaustive list of services, you may be surprised.

Give it a shot and see how much of “you” Google owns.

If you’ve never heard of Zoho, you may be wondering what the heck that subject means. Well, it’s very easy to explain: 99% of users have used an office suite of some sort, whether it be Microsoft Office, Microsoft Works, Open Office, or any other product. Unfortunately, up until very recently, most of them were actually offline productivity tools. With the new and upcoming Web 2.0, the world has changed, and shifted to online collaboration and productivity tools.

If you are at all involved in the online world, you may be familiar with the Google Docs applications. Zoho is a very similar set of online tools, whose sole purpose is to not only provide a set of application that seamlessly integrate together, but also allow for simple collaboration between groups. The applications range from any thing simple like creating a word document or an excel spreadsheet, to creating a full fledged application with backend database supporting it, using a very user friendly interface, as well as options to script the application manually (for advanced users) using the Deluge scripting language.

One of the very cool features that I personally like about zoho, is that they allow you embed any application, anywhere, they also have plugins for outlook, to collaborate when using their CRM product, as well as other plugins to integrate with other office products, as as facebook.

Now, even you can create something really cool to impress your friends on your MySpace page, or even your professional website, collecting customer’s contact information, or a poll or what have you …

If you are intrigued as to what Zoho can do, you can check out that YouTube video that gives a brief demonstration of the product.

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You can also run this search to get a whole slew of additional videos that demonstrate the different products that Zoho offers.

Alright, so maybe it’s not as exciting a fight as I may have made it sound in the title, but there’s a method to the madness.

You see, a lot of times, I find myself on IM trying to send someone a picture, and it takes forever to do so, for many reasons:

• Sometimes you are at work, and there is a firewall that blocks / limits bandwidth for sending files or media files
• Sometimes it is just the mere fact that some of the providers (i.e MSN has a very bad file transfer protocol, which is inherently slow
• and sometimes, ok , you get my point …..

This is when a website like picoodle or tinypic will come in play.

Basically, they are sites that allow you to quickly upload any type of pictures, tag it, resize it, and send your friends a link to that image. the best thing about these 2 services are that tend to support most linking methods. so if you are unfamiliar on the format of a link in order to embed your picture in MySpace, Facebook, your blog or any other location, do not worry, because they give you the list of links, and you can choose the one most appropriate for your needs.

When on IM, usually, you would just use the “Direct Image” link.

now you may ask…. well, which one should I use? well, you can use whichever one you like. they are almost exactly the same, with one major difference however, which could, make or break the deal for you!

Picoodle allows you to login and keep track of the pictures that you uploaded for future reference to their links where TinyPic does not seem to allow that, once you upload the picture and send the link, and navigate away from the page, you pretty much lost the link, unless you saved it on your computer somewhere or bookmarked it. other than that, it’s super simple, try it out, and you’ll see what I mean.

Now…. for people who are interested in still sharing pictures in a more dynamic level and don’t want to keep uploading the whole time they are chatting, there is a solution (unfortunately, it is only for Windows, and I am bummed about that because, I have a Mac). the Software is called “Hello” .. yup it’s that simple, it’s a part of the google suite, and integrates very nicely with Picasa. essentially it is an IM client just like AIM, Yahoo, MSN, with one big difference, in that it is very media oriented, which means that when you initiate a chat session with someone, a big white screen shows up next to that session, where you can drag photos from your desktop, or your favorite photo browser (Picasa supports sending a picture straight to Hello), the picture will upload and your chat partner can immediately see the picture you uploaded. You can choose to save the pictures as you see them, or just look at them and move on. Also, you can have your buddy “drive” guiding you through the pictures as they explain. So basically, it is a remote presentation of pictures.

Do you ever find yourself trying to make a plan with your friends, but have a hard time coordinating times when everyone is available? Or even on different level trying to decide what movie to go watch prior to the event, or what travel destination a group is interested in? Without Doodle , this can be a tedious process involving a lot of emails, or phone calls and text messages. Now, check this out, you create a simple poll with Doodle, and then send it to your friends with an email link, and each will put their availability times, and this will give you a very nice overview as to everyone’s availability and/or preference. what do I think about the idea? Slick’n'Simple!

Ever found these CDs that have scratches on them, and went out and bought one of those $20-$30 kits to clean the scratches? … well .. not only is this solution viable for CDs, but also to clean any surface that is scratched, in this case, an iPod.

I have not personally tried it, but I would think it should work.
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Have you tried this method at all? has it worked for you? I have a pretty scratched up iPod, so I’m going to give it a whirl, perhaps, I’ll post an update on this article to verify the veracity of the information presented in the video

That’s a pretty sweet way to make your friends drop their jaw.

I saw this in a picture. I still am not sure if it’s a photoshop picture, or if it’s sold somewhere. but I will look for that, and post an update if I can find it. that would be trippy!

Ok honestly, I’m not pondering anything with this one, though for some reason, I found the facts in it extremely intriguing, and if nothing else, it made me just think about where our world is heading, or at least try to imagine. This presentation address US Labor vs world labor, as well as education issues, and technologies, I guess I just wasn’t quite aware of some of these numbers, they left me gasping in surprise in some instances, I hope it would be some food for thought for you too..

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I don't know about you, but I'm a sucker for good deals, and I love to have the resources to be able to find a good deal when I need one. 

Well, today I stumbled on a website that helps with that. it's actually sortof a blog article, it has 49 places to find a discount on everything. It has sections in the following:

• Electronics
• Auto Parts
• Travel
• Entertainment
• Clothing and Accessories
• Gas
• Health and Wellness

It's worth checking it out. Usually I just bookmark these sites so that I can refer back to them when I need them. 

Happy good deal shopping!  

I guess this post is more of a plug to a service I use, as well as an update to my blog site.

If you noticed on the top right, you will see a "Grand Central — Call Me — " Button. Don't be fooled, this actually does work. Now I hope that you won't just pick up and start calling just to see if it works, or I'll have to start sending them all to voicemail. 

I am using this through grandcentral.com, which is a service that was recently acquired by google. Currently it's in Beta, and I am currently unsure as to whether this will remain a free service, or become a paid service as it comes out of Beta. Meanwhile, I am enjoying the free number, and the benefits that come with it.

If you have not hear about this service, and you happen to have a couple of phones that you carry around, this may be an excellent service for you. In a nutshell, this will give you the opportunity to never have to give our your phone number again, even if you change phones, or phone numbers… are you curious as to how that is possible? Check out their site, they explain it much better than I ever would …

http://grancentral.com