Author: todd

  • MobileViews Podcast 432: Post-Black Friday purchases w/guest Sven Johannsen


    Epson FF-680W Photo Scanner

    Jon Westfall and I are joined by frequent guest panelist Sven Johannsen for a Post-Black Friday

    • Anker 551 USB-C Hub (8-in-1, Tablet Stand) Sold out on Anker site. Still available on Amazon. $80. Regular $100
    • The virtues of mini-keyboards
    • Things Todd considered but did not buy
      – A smart guitar
      – Sub $100 display with speakers
      – Mechanical keyboard – too expensive!
    • Lots of good sales at Anker, Chargers, Battery Banks, Cables. (Best Buy, Amazon and Anker seem to match.)
    • (The problem with USB C. It’s a connector. The power and data is all over the place, USB 2., 3, 4, Thunderbolt) Good rundown at Rene Richie: USB-C regulation — the BIG problem
    • Dock/Port replicator for 24” iMac, 6-in-1 USB-C Hub for iMac 24? Color coordinated. $64 (regular $80)
    • Google Store https://store.google.com/?hl=en-US Black Friday (Cyber Monday?)
      Half price Nest Audio, Nest Hub (Best Buy, same)
    • Epson FF-680W Photo Scanner ($399 at Epson, more other places, Amazon $499, Walmart $599) https://epson.com/Clearance-Center/Scanners/FastFoto-FF-680W-Wireless-High-speed-Photo-Scanning-System—Refurbished/p/B11B237201-N?msclkid=923d06eab9961dae33be65692d798f56
      Does three files. Scanned picture, enhanced picture, back of photo

    Available via Google Music Podcasts and Apple iTunes.

    MobileViews Podcast from Audible.com

  • MobileViews Podcast 431: Evernote changing hands


    In this podcast Jon Westfall and I discuss:

    Audio Hijack 4.0.6

    Twitter bought by Elon Musk

    Broadcom bought VMware

    HP bought Poly (was Polycom)

    Evernote, once the king of note-taking apps, has been bought by Bending Spoons

    A conversation with Evernote CEO Phil Libin
    I had not started numbering the podcasts when this was recorded in January 2009

    Jon’s Thoughts: Dedicated Feature-Built Apps vs. Jacks of All Trades
    Web Apps vs. Native
    Third-Party vs. First-Party: What are our picks (must haves) on either.
    One-off vs. Ecosystem
    Front Ends vs. Command-Line
    Note-taking app Vs. Word Processor
    Streaks / Dedicated Task Managers / Planner apps vs. Built-in Tasks (Reminders, Outlook tasks)
    Money Management / Calculation Apps vs. Spreadsheets

    Available via Google Music Podcasts and Apple iTunes.

    MobileViews Podcast from Audible.com

  • Throwback: MobileViews Podcast from Jan. 2009 with then Evernote CEO Phil Libin

    The recent sale of Evernote to Bending Spoon reminded me that I interviewed (then) Evernote CEO Phil Libin in January 2009. Evernote was an amazing service/app that I used everyday for many years. I have no idea what Evernote’s future is under its new owner, however, Phil had some very interesting thoughts on the then relatively new ability to have your notes everywhere on many different platforms/surfaces.

  • MobileViews Podcast 430: Guest Sven Johannsen; holiday tech gift ideas


    Beelink Mini S PC
    Beelink Mini-S Mini PC

    Frequent guest panelist Sven Johannsen joins Jon Westfall and me for this podcast. We discuss holiday tech gift ideas based on products we have bought and used. We also discussed tolerable (or even welcome) vs. annoying digital advertisements.

    Available via Google Music Podcasts and Apple iTunes.

    MobileViews Podcast from Audible.com

  • MobileViews Podcast 429: The need for Certified Minimally Viable End-users



    In this podcast, Jon Westfall and I discuss:

    • USB-C tester/multimeter
    • M2 iPad Pro battery life is horrible. Significant battery loss when in Airplane Mode
    • Discovery: Apple Watch Chargers can get dirty, and when they do, they don’t charge properly and can actually cause discharge.
    • Waiting for iPadOS 16.2: External extended display for M1/M2 iPads and Freeform. Mid-December?
    • Horrible idea:
      Bloomberg-Apple’s Next Change for Siri: Dropping ‘Hey’ From ‘Hey Siri’ Trigger
    • Todd’s Rant (in a caring way): People should not be allowed to use a computer for business purposes unless:
      They have a professional IT support team and a defined set of processes and practices that they are required to follow
      Lacking an IT support team, they go through a process to certify them as a minimally viable end-user
      Why?
      Cyber-security
      Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity

      What IT support doesn’t fix:
      Fully-justified text with no understanding of typography: Kerning, tracking, leading
      Documents formatting that looks more like a ransom note than a document
      Center justified columns of numbers in spreadsheets
      Spreadsheets formatted as a report when it needs to organized for analysis
      Slides packed with text far exceeding the 7×7 rule

      Jon’s corollary: I can add into this the advice I tell my students: You can be the most articulate and well-educated person, but if the product you’re putting out looks like crap, you will be judged by it. And never let me hear you say “But people don’t notice that…” They notice, consciously or unconsciously.

    • Jon’s funny story about his Withings Blood Pressure Cuff
    • Jon has a Popupiano to join his Populele

    Available via Google Music Podcasts and Apple iTunes.

    MobileViews Podcast from Audible.com