FaithEngineer

This past weekend, we hosted a youth conference at our church. Right before the conference started, we clicked on a message to update to the latest version of Adobe Flash Player on our main computer.  Did I mention this was right before the conference started  Since it was a windows computer, you can guess what happened. Constant crashing and serious stress. For the first fifteen minutes of the conference, Tyler and I were frantically doing a system restore to get the computer back up and running. Luckily our worship band was able to keep playing and we got everything running smoothly by the time the teaching started. Since one purpose of this blog is to share lessons learned, so I want to share some new policies that we will be implementing for our windows computers.

Scheduled Updates:

From now on, automatic updates are officially turned off on our main computers. All software updates will be performed on Mondays or Tuesdays so that we have time to troubleshoot and keep things running smoothly for Sunday mornings. Even updates that seem unrelated to the programs you use may render the computer unusable. Just last week, a family member had a windows update cause their Windows XP computer to Blue Screen during reboot. For your health and sanity, don’t do an update right before a service, wait until you have plenty of time to fix things when they go wrong. And it will happen eventually. Remember we are talking about Windows.

Restricted Access

I’m locking down the computer to prevent people from installing any programs or updates. I hate to do this, but with any computer that is used by multiple people, you have to protect it. I already use OpenDNS to filter the internet and Microsoft Security Essentials for Antivirus protection, but it is still too easy to install malware and viruses. And you need to check the computer regularly to ensure that the software and media installed are legally owned by the church.

Backup

Take advantage of the System Restore tool in Windows. It has saved me numerous times. I also backup the computer weekly, but System Restore works for most problems. Just choose a date and time when the computer was working smoothly and Windows will roll back your files to that date.

And Finally, Get a Mac

Make plans for switching over to a mac. Seriously, if we could afford it, I would put in a mac pro this week and make the switch. I use a MacBook Pro and have been spoiled by the ease of keeping things running smoothly. Macs are not without problems, but they have greatly simplified the user experience.

What else do you recommend? Leave a comment with your thoughts.

Google announced their new phone today and it looks sweet. I’ve been waiting for a iPhone to come out on a different network, but this has definitely got my interest now. Especially since it will be available on Verizon in a few months. Check out the video below

Apple – iPod touch – Software Update

First of all, I really want an iPhone. There’s only one problem. There’s absolutely no coverage anywhere around us with AT&T.  The new Palm Pre looks nice, but … no coverage with Sprint. I really like the Android phone from T-Mobile, but … yet again no coverage. There are advantages to living in the country, but staying on the cutting edge is not one of them. So that brings me to my iPod Touch. If I can’t have an iPhone, at least I can pretend with my iPod.

I just finished updating my 2nd generation iPod touch to the new 3.0 software. Apple added some features and made some improvements, so the $9.95 isn’t too bad to pay.  Apple added bluetooth stereo headphone support, a cool new spotlight search, a landscape keyboard for all apps, and finally the ability to copy and paste text between apps. I’ve experimented with the new features and I like everything so far, except for the bluetooth support.

When I heard they were unlocking bluetooth, I immediately thought of the Motorola S9 stereo headset that I use with my cell phone. If it would work with the iPod using skype, then the iPod could function as a phone whenever I had wifi access. The headphones look a little dorky, but they actually sound pretty good.

I paired it up with the new iPod software and started listening to music without any problem. But when I went to try out the microphone that is embedded in the headset, the iPod wouldn’t recognize it. After some checking, it looks like the bluetooth support is only for the A2DP stereo headphones, without headset support. Apparantly, Apple was afraid of enabling full headset support, knowing that the iPod might become too similar to the iPhone. I’m hoping that they will change their mind, because that one feature would be huge. I know I can plug in headphones with a microphone, but wireless is definitely the way to go. If anybody figures out a way to make it work, please let me know.

One last thing, I was able to update Jennifer’s iPod touch as well without paying the fee twice. Since we share the same Apple account, it updated her touch without purchasing it a second time. Overall I like the update, I just hope it’s not the last.

My prediction from a few months ago became a reality. I ordered an ipod touch to replace my old nano with several Apple gift cards. Jennifer orchestrated everyone getting me Apple gift cards for Christmas. I ordered the 8 gig version and it should be here by Tuesday or Wednesday. I really want an iphone, but the fact that it is on AT&T kills it for me. They have zero bars in our entire city, so there’s no hope anytime soon. The ipod touch is simply the iphone without the phone.

Here’s my question for my blog readers. What apps would you download for your touch or iphone from Apple’s app store. I’m planning on adding Facebook, everything Google related, Evernote, Remember the Milk, Jott, YouVersion, Weather Channel, Amazon, and Apple Remote. What other apps or games would you recommend?

I’m curious to see how I can integrate this into my workflow. I have a feeling that it will mostly replace my smartphone. Since the touch has wifi internet, I may even drop my phone back to a basic model to save the internet fees every month. Most of the time when I’m on the internet with my phone, there is a wifi network available. The only downside is I will have to carry two devices around. I’ll let you know how it works.

Apple via kwout

My blogging has been pretty slow the past week because I have been without my trusted laptop.  Last week, I turned on my macbook pro laptop and got nothing.  It booted up, but I had no image on the screen.  I did the normal tech support stuff and tried rebooting and resetting and removing the battery, but still got nothing.   I then took my computer to the nearest Apple store in Charlotte.  It’s a 2 hour drive, but at least I got a date-night out of it with Jenni.   The Apple Genius took a look at it and decided they needed to send it off to have the main logic board replaced.  That was about 11 days ago, and I still have no computer.

I was impressed at the Apple store, and I’m glad they decided to send it off.  I’ve seen too many laptops over the years that were messed up by service techs who didn’t know what they were doing.  But Apple threw me a curveball a couple of days ago.  They emailed from the service depot and asked me a big question. They were intrigued by how my laptop died so they wanted their engineering group to study it.  They offered me a brand new macbook pro, straight from the Apple store, as long as they could keep my old computer for research.  The one caveat was that I would have no chance to get any data off my old laptop.

I really struggled with what choice to make.  Either have my 18 month old laptop repaired with all my data intact, or get a brand new one with slightly better specs and have to start over.  I had a decent partial backup from about 3 months ago, but I would have lost quite a few files. SO WHAT DID I CHOOSE ….

I have blogged before about the need to backup your computer (see here)  and I am definitely kicking myself for not having a better backup.  I chose to have my old computer repaired based on the amount of time it would have taken to get a new one back up and running with all my apps and programs.  I missed a pretty good opportunity since I didn’t have a complete backup.  I guess I need to practice what I preach, even when it comes to technology.  It does make me really consider getting either a time capsule or an external hard drive.  You can’t be too careful when it comes to your important info.

and for all you mac-haters out there, I have seen plenty of motherboards go bad on pc laptops as well. The heat from a small case and the vibration from constantly moving them around eventually takes its toll.  It’s just part of life in this digital age.  That’s why you should always get a long warranty on laptops.

I’ve got gadget envy again.  This time, it’s the new ipod touch.   I knew they were coming out with a new one so I’ve been waiting.  The best improvements to me are the built in Nike+, the app store, and the price.  My first generation ipod nano might be replaced.  Now if I can just convince my wife that I need want this so I can be more productive and healthier …

Apple via kwout

I just realized that I have never posted about my switch to a mac computer. Switching was a big deal for me because I have been such a huge PC guy for years (see my post from a couple of years ago about all the PC’s I have owned) In my engineering job, I did a ton of IT work in keeping all the software updated and fixing all the computer problems for our department. I have used multiple versions of DOS, Windows 2, Windows 3.1, Windows 3.11 for workgroups, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows 2003 Server, and now Windows Vista. All that is to say that I am very familiar with Windows, both it’s strengths and weaknesses.

When I started at Cornerstone I decided to get a laptop. I wanted one with great graphics capabilities since we would be using this computer for our worship presentation software, but I wanted one that was still portable and light. After looking at everything on the market I kept coming back to a 15″ Apple Macbook Pro. Knowing I could install both Windows and the Mac operating systems on the same computer finally pushed me over the edge. And since Mac computers now use the exact same processors as Windows computers, you can easily compare them to other PC makers. When I started using the laptop I was probably using 90% windows and 10% mac, now after almost a year, I am running almost exclusively in Mac OS X. The only time I boot up in Windows is to open an old Microsoft Publisher file or to run Easyworship on Sunday Mornings. Here are my thoughts about each

Microsoft Windows Vista: I actually really like Vista. The interface is easier to use for new computer users, and the search capability in the Start menu is great. Many of the new graphic abilities of the Aero interface are nice, but they don’t add much to the overall user experience. But as always, with the good, there is some bad. Even on a fast computer, Windows Vista seems slow and clunky. It is just not very fast. There are still some driver issues for older hardware, and I have already had several registry problems. I even had one problem that caused me to reformat my windows partition and reinstall. I tried everything to get the problem fixed, including going to the text based recovery console, but my Windows Registry was fried and it refused to boot. Not good at all. But since reinstalling – no more problems.

Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard): It took me a few days to get used to the different terminology and icons, but once I did I was impressed. It boots fast, feels fast, and works like it is supposed to. I had used OS 9 in the past and I was not impressed at all, but they have really come a long ways. Now since Apple provides bootcamp to allow you to dual-boot with Windows or Mac, you really can’t go wrong.

What apple does right:

• Industrial Design: the computer is sleek. It is incredibly thin and portable with all the features you need integrated in the computer
• Slot loading CD tray: why haven’t all laptop makers switched to this
• Magnetic power cord: no more tripping over the power cord and killing your computer
• Back-lit keyboard: this is great to use at night
• OS X – It works great. There are too many features to list. Expose is one of my favorites.
• Running Windows: My macbook pro runs windows better than any PC I have ever used. That should really scare Microsoft.
• Bundled Software: iLife and iWork are great
• Compatibility with Windows Files & Networks: Apple has made huge strides in working with Office files and with sharing Windows files.

What apple needs to work on:

• Price: Apple computers are more expensive than their Windows counterparts.
• GIVE ME A 2nd Mouse button: I know I can tap with 2 fingers, but please quit being stubborn and just add a button.
• Why do font previews not show up in all applications. Windows has been doing this forever. It’s really not that hard
• Heat: this laptop can get hot, it’s hard to use on your lap
• More USB ports and a VGA port: I know I can use a USB hub and a DVI-VGA dongle, but it would be nice to have more connectivity on the laptop.

Final Thoughts:
More churches will be switching over to Apple Macs because of the graphic capabilities and user-interface. The computers are super easy to use and you don’t have to worry about constant crashing and troubleshooting. They just work like they are supposed to. I also use parallels so that I can access Window’s programs without ever leaving the Apple operating system. Microsoft needs to quit adding features that people don’t want, and they need to start speeding up Windows so that it doesn’t get in the way. As much as I hate to say it, Microsoft has simply been passed by their competition. Let’s hope that the competition will improve both operating systems. I would strongly encourage you to think about macs if you are buying a new computer, especially if you don’t have any exisiting programs that require Windows.

Yesterday, I was anxiously glued to my computer screen finding out the news from MacWorld in San Francisco. Apple announces all of their big new products for the year at the conference, and numerous sites liveblog pictures of the event. As a communicator, I love watching Steve Jobs announce and demonstrate the new products. He is effective and funny, and the audience always responds.

The big news was the new MacBook Air, an incredibly thin and light weight new laptop. At the thickest point, it is 3/4″, and it tapers to almost nothing. Super cool, although it is geared more toward the business traveler. I don’t have any real use for something this small.

The other news was a redesigned and updated AppleTV which now lets you rent movies through iTunes, including HD movies and a new wireless router that serves as a network storage device called Time Capsule. This lets you have a hard drive integrated into your wireless router so that all your macs on the network can be backed up wirelessly through Time Machine. There were also some software updates announced for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Altogether there were some big announcements, but I was a little disappointed. I was hoping to see some minor updates to the iMac and MacBook Pro laptops. I’m hoping some of the technology in the MacBook Air will trickle over to the MacBook Pro with a software update. Especially the multi-touch trackpad. I will have to wait until we eventually make the move to a HD TV before I consider the AppleTV since it works best with a widescreen TV, and I will probably wait until my current wifi router dies before jumping to something like the Time Capsule. So all the big news and no new gadgets for me to buy. Dave Ramsey would be happy. Although we have tossed around replacing our current windows desktop with an iMac…….

While I’m on a video posting kick, I want to share a cool video by a teenager. The teen from England posted the video on youtube. It got noticed by Apple so they asked the teen to work with their ad agency to make it into a real ad. With cheap tools for video editing available now, how many other companies will follow Apple’s lead to let their customers develop advertisements? This video also made me think about how we can be using teens to help with technology in church. The complete story is here.

I’ve been waiting for a good while now to see what Apple was going to come up with next. Now we know. My inner tech, geek self gets excited every year for the CES show and the MacWorld show. I posted several months back about the iTV, now officially named Apple TV. I would love to get my hands on one of these to try out. Apple’s website is taking orders now at $299 and they should ship in February. It takes music, videos, movies, photos, and podcasts from your computer and plays them on your tv. It hooks up to the network through wireless or wired home networks. Apple is now supporting 802.11n as well. It comes with a 40 gig hard drive and intel processor. One of the main problems I have with most current media streaming devices is that they won’t play protected or purchased content. Since I use iTunes, this new product would fit perfectly with my home entertainment system.

But the appleTV was not the big announcement, everyone was expecting it. The big announcement was the new iPhone. Man, this thing is sweet. No buttons. A phone that is all screen, and from the looks of the pictures, they nailed the interface. Apple has been known for simplifying the user interface of their products. They take an existing market and make it accessible to the common person who’s not a technology expert. This is not just a phone, it is also a full featured iPod with video and an internet browser. They added an accelerometer that can tell when you rotate the screen and automatically changes the display to landscape mode. They’ve added the cool coverflow scrolling of album titles from iTunes 7 as well. There are so many cool features to this phone. To get the full effect, you really need to check out the demos at Apple’s website. It also supports bluetooth and wifi. Can you tell yet, that I’m really impressed by this thing. I was expecting just another phone with iTunes support, but they really revolutionized the market with this one.

Now the bad news. It is only going to be available through Cingular for now, and not til June. For those of us in CDMA markets, that means it’s going to be a long while, if ever, before we can buy this thing. And it ain’t cheap. $499 or $599 depending on memory, so this thing will definitely set you back a little. Living in the country has great benefits, but the benefits don’t include living on the edge of new technology. Apple is calling the new touch screen interface “multi-touch”. My only thought in watching the preview videos is that the on-screen keyboard looks pretty small. I’m not sure how that will work for most guys with big hands. But it is really cool how the interface responds to your touch.

Here’s the weird part. Apple is able to generate such a buzz with their announcements. I took a short lunch just so I could get back to my computer and hit refresh every minute to see the pics coming live from MacWorld. AND I’M NOT EVEN A MAC FAN. I’ve had PC’s for a long, long time, and I have not been a very big fan of Apple. But they have been able to design products that are easy to use and that fill a void in the marketplace and do it with style. And because of their peripherals, I now am even thinking it would be nice to have a mac computer, especially one of their laptops. So their marketing plan is working, by focusing on the smaller items that people can use everyday, they are able to increase market share and entice people to purchase computers.

I love my iPod, and it has enabled me to listen to a lot of sermons, radio shows, and podcasts, that I would not have had the opportunity to listen to otherwise. Technology can easily become an idol to us in this day and age, but I think we can and should redeem it for God’s Glory!

Check out the new ipods at Apple’s website. A 30gig and 80gig video ipod and new nanos in different colors with 2,4, and 8 gig models. I was hoping for video playback in the nanos, but we just got pretty colors in an aluminum case with longer battery life.

Itunes received some new stuff as well. Most notably movies, in 640×480 resolution. And is anyone else happy that Itunes 7 finally downloads album art to files that you rip. Even Windows Media Player has done that for years! I like the look of the new Itunes as well.

And finally iTV, a cheap way to hook up all your pictures, movies, and music to your home theater. I need to read up on it a little, it looks like people will be disappointed if all the downloaded movies max out at 640 x 480 resolution. That’s lower than dvd’s. Anyway, cool stuff as always.