The New Ipod : Well Worth the Look

I just had the pleasure of trying out the new ipod and it was fanstasic. I went to two places to see it Best Buy and The Apple store. At Best buy I got my first view on Wednesday at that was all it was a view. Best Buy is soooo afraid that someone is goung to walk away with theri precious merchandise that they bolt it down so much that you can barely get the feel of the ipod they did the same thing with the Sony psp even to the point that they had an employee carry one around to show you if asked. Needles to say I did get to see the features. The best feature of the ipod in my opinion is ical, the calendar is large enough to view importants date and events. I do not want to downplay the other features by saying that ical is the best because the others wil serve you equally well particularly wifi. The ipod has always been great but wifi makes it superior to all other mp3 players and beyond parity . The touch feature and video features are my favorite . I did say in my last entry that the psp is an inexpensive alternative to the ipod touch and I stand by that statement but if you want it all in a small package choose the touch.

PSP Cheaper Alternative to the Ipod touch

I am one of those rare people who are what I call bi-technical. I use both macs and pcs , I have an ipod and a sony psp, I am comfortable with both. What I am leading to is that there are a great number of inexpensive alternatives . For students who cannot afford a laptop can use the psp to search the web for information necessary to complete a research paper, find their friends on face book or the current transit schedule. The psp is currently selling for around $165 at Best Buy with a 4 gb memory stick for around $79 you are well on your way to cyberwowrld for a over $200 . I love the new ipod but everyone cannot afford it .

To Wik or not to Wik

We were having a discussion on Wikipedia in a graduate class that I am taking and the subject of Wikipedia entries came up. The debate centered around whether professors should edit wikis along with the rest of the public. Some people said yes others said no. The arguments ranged from academic integrity to profs needing compensation for their endeavors. Others believed that professors should share their knowledge with the world. I consider Wikipedia a people's encyclopedia that is for the everyman and woman and does not need the tampering of academics who may be a little too stuffy for the likes of Wikipedia and may turn it into another Britannica . God forbid we have that.

For Those of You who Crave German Food

One of the best places to go in the twin cities for German food is the Glockenspiel. Located in the west seventh neighborhood of Saint Paul, the Glockenspiel is a reflection into the past when this neighborhood was a working-class immigrant and tied to the Schmidt Brewery and a variety of other micro breweries located along the west seventh corridor . The food is excellent if you like German cuisine . Upon my first visit, I had their spare ribs and sour kraut along with red cabbage and and their cheese cake for desert. The cheesecake was the best that I have had outside of New York and it is, ( like all of their deserts ) made on the premises. The food is excellent, the atmosphere quaint and the price reasonable. This combination makes the Glockenspiel my restaurant pick of the week

Tech Find of the Week.

How many of you out there want to buy a new desktop or laptop but cannot seem to fit it into your budget, I may have a solution for you. Some of the smaller computer stores take trade-in ( like First Tech in Uptown Minneapolis) and you could get up to 1/3 to half the cost deducted off the price of a new computer. Check it out you may save some money. Granted these stores do not offer the teacher/student discount that the Apple store offers but the Apple Store does not take trade-ins either . It more than evens out . Besides saving you money it also eliminates having a computer around the house that you will not use again once you purchase the new one.

The Find of the Week

I just want to tell everyone about the new find that I came accross today in barnes and noble . It is the moleskine notebook but I call it the hemmingway pda. Simply put, it is a low tech way of collecting ideas and providing a quick place to jot down the forgetable and the unforgetable. It is also a place to jot down notes about one's many travels and if you are a good enough artist you can ilustrate them too. It is quite a find with it's sleek looks, elastic strap and inside pocket it is a must for all writers, teachers, and anyone whe makes lists. I encourage all of you to run out to barnes and noble and put down $10 and get one, you will not regret it. Keep writing!!!!!

cell phones: what is too expensive

When the iphone came out this summer, droves of people went to purchase it for $499 and $599 respectively. I know where you can get a good pc laptop for $599 . I paid $50 for my razor and it seems to do the job . I had a smart phone once that did everything but I foud that I was doing nothing with it and paying through the nose for it. The mark-up must be incredible on these phones and I cannot believe that people are willing to pay the price. This just rienforces my belief that many Americans make too much money.

Ringtones

My phone either rings or vibrates. I do not have have any flashiy ringtones that are a portion of a 50 or kanye's latest hit. I do not know why any one would want a portion of a song to be their calling card. maybe someone can explain this to me . As a teacher I am subjected to many ringtones on a daily basis and the conclusion that I have drawn is it says something about the personality of the cell phone user. As a teacher maybe mine should be to sir with love or president bush should use "hail to the chief " as his . If this is what ringtones are all about.I guess that is okay. What do you think