Clete’s Blog

On Saturday, I ordered a brand new iPhone (white 16GB) from AT&T. I’m really excited about it. I have been wanting one ever since the rumors spread on Engadget and elsewhere that Apple would be releasing a phone. I was able to easily place the order on AT&T’s website. Generally, you are not able to upgrade to an iPhone through their website, but since we receive an employee discount from my Dad’s job through the “Premier” program, I was able to. Sadly, the phone is now on backorder, but it should ship this week. I’m extremely excited.

In preperation for my new toy, I have searched the application store for some great additions to my phone. Here is what I have come up with so far:

• Air Sharing — Allows sharing of files between your computer and your iPhone.
• CheckPlease — Tip calculator.
• eBay Mobile
• Facebook
• Flashlight — Will help me check for dead pixels. Also can turn the screen white to be used as a flashlight at night.
• Google Mobile App
• iProcrastinate — A homework scheduler.
• Loopt — Finds iPhone users in your area.
• Mobile Banking from Bank of America
• Mocha VNC Lite — A VNC client.
• Pandora Radio — Free music radio.
• Shazam — If you don’t know the name of a song that is playing, hold your iPhone up to the speaker and it will identify the song for you.
• SimStapler — A staple simulator
• Tap Tap Revenge — It looks like a fun game.
• Units — Unit conversion.
• WhosHere — Another application similar to Loopt.

More to come once I receive my phone!

Ten minutes ago, I received a broadcast email relating to the newly-inacted Pennsylvania state indoor smoking ban. Here is the e-mail:

PASSHE stands for “Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education” and it is the government institution for 14 universities in Pennsylvania. Let me start out by explaining the situation.

The law that Governor Ed Rendell (D) signed into place bans smoking in many public places and all private indoor commercial/industrial places (with exceptions such as bars that sell under a certain amount of food).

Although I will never be a smoker, I believe that this law impeeds on our rights. Why should the government tell a business owner that he cannot allow smoking inside of his building? What right does the government have to control his business? People can look out for themselves; they don’t need the government holding their hands. People, like me, will avoid places that have excessive smoking indoors. I watch out for my health and so do others. I eat my meals in the non-smoking section; I bowl on the days when the owner has prohibited smoking. I hold my breath when I walk by smokers outdoors. People watch out for their health. We don’t need more government and we certainly don’t need the government telling businesses how to run.

However, I do believe that cities (like New York City and Philadelphia) should be able to decide on outdoor bans, since there is such a dense population in a small area. Nobody should be allowed to intrude on our rights when we are indoors on non-government property.

As for outdoor smoking on campuses, I believe that the campus should be allowed to choose. PASSHE should not mandate smoke-free campuses. Campuses should decide on their own (Should we have designated areas? Should we ban it? Should we allow it everywhere?). Government always messes things up and we certainly don’t need Edward Rendell (D) or anyone else intruding on our rights.

Two weeks ago, my wireless mouse (a Targus with a USB dongle, which was a wonderful mouse) began to go awry. I suppose that I accidentally stepped on the dongle, because there seemed to be a short in it. Whenever the dongle would move, it would disconnect and then reconnect. I then decided to shop around for a bluetooth mouse (read: no cords — at all).

The best one on the market appeared to be the Logitech V470 (product page). It was small-looking, lightweight, and it had good reviews by around 95% of the people who reviewed it. I saw a lot of complaints about it shutting off after being inactive for a few seconds, but I wasn’t concerned about it. I decided to buy it and I found it on eBay for $33 or so. It generally costs $49 in retail stores.

Specifications:

This mouse is a laser mouse that has two buttons (that are integrated with only a central seam) and a scroll wheel with side-scrolling capabilities. The V470 takes two AA batteries, but it is still lighter than most battery-powered mice that are on the market. It also includes a small LED light that glows red when the AA batteries need to be replaced.

Performance:

The V470 glides smoothly over almost any surface, due to the fact that it is a laser mouse. The laser is invisible to the human eye, so there is no annoying red light shining all of the time. The mouse does have a slightly noticible lag when it is being used over a counter-top surface. Even when it is on a mousepad, there is still a very slight lag that is enough to render the mouse useless for first person shooter games. Other than these limitations, it is an exceptional mouse when it comes to portability and ease-of-use.

Other Notes:

The Logitech V470 is incredibly easy to install. All I had to do was set my computer to search for a bluetooth device and press the “connect” button on the bottom of the mouse. Once I paired the devices, the mouse was picked up perfectly and was fully functional. After the device is paired with the PC for the first time, it will automatically connect to the PC every time it is turned on.

Summary:

The Logitech V470 is a great buy for the money. It is ultra-portable, light-weight, and it works on almost any surface. If you are looking for an affordable bluetooth mouse, I would highly recommend the Logitech V470.