Do you subscribe to your favorite websites? Do you know that some people believe that subscriptions in readers may be things of the past? One of the stars of the web, Guy Kawasaki , has come up with a compelling way to more efficiently scan the top headlines from the top blogs, categorized by topic. It’s another of his many innovative websites and it’s called Alltop . What’s up with the name? Well, in Kawasaki’s words, Alltop compiles all the top stories from around the web in about 50 of the most sought after categories (e.g., moms, dads, politics).
You’ll easily stay current and know what everyone’s talking about in whatever topics you find most interesting or relevant to your life.
The home page looks refreshingly clean, with eight main topic headings (work , living , people , interests , culture , geekery , good , and news ). So the site is great for experienced surfers as well as casual novices.
As of today, you can see the Alltop badge over there on the right because I’m honored to find this humble blog among the many mom blogs . Visit Alltop . Browse through the many categories and I’d be surprised if you’re not hooked with that first click.
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UPDATE (4.11.08): For more info about Alltop from the top of Alltop , read Jarrett Martineau’s interview with Guy Kawasaki here .
It used to be so easy to shop for my kids. I’d see something cute, buy it, and they’d wear it. Hassle free.
Toward the end of elementary school, that simple process became much more complicated. I’d see something cute, buy it, bring it home and they’d say things like,
“Uh. Who’s that for? That’s not for me, is it?”
“Aw, Mom. That’s so sweet. I would’ve loved that, like, three years ago. Maybe you can send it to [my cousin]!”
“Uh, mom, nobody wears polos anymore.”
“That. is. so. gay.” (Not that there’s anything wrong with that…)
“[insert name of popular clothing store here] Do you know what kids think that stands for? Sorry, Mom. I can’t wear that.”
Or even, simply “Uh, no.”
Shopping for kids’ clothes became a chore. Or something for which I had to reserve a block of time to be sure to have the kids with me. As busy as we are, that last option was less and less realistic.
The annual Toy Fair, held by the Toy Industry Association, ran from February 17 through February 20. Whenever I read about it, I’m overcome with a strong desire to own a toy shop, partly because I’ve always dreamed of having a toy store, but also just so I could go and check out all the latest cool new toys. But, alas, I’m toy shop-less, so, instead, I zip around the web, looking for posts about the hottest tech toys. Engadget, one of my favorite tech sites, came through with a couple of posts about new devices made by the folks at LeapFrog.
The first one, designed for 3rd through 8th grade students, is called the Crammer. As in cramming for tests? Hmm…not a habit I want my kids to pick up (at least not so soon…). It’s being touted as a study device that lets kids create flashcards, download quizzes for their own textbooks and even play music, too. It looks way cool and would no doubt make the kids feel a little like Dad or Mom holding their blackberries or iPhones (or whatever) because it looks like this:
Expected to be released in the fall, it will be priced at $60 (with 1GB of memory).
It’s much sleeker looking than the old iQuest, which the company no longer makes.
It’s no secret to those who know me well that I love Apple and its iPhone. So it may come as a surprise that I’m intrigued by something non-Apple that I read about in today’s New York Times. In the article, “Google Discloses Plans to Put a PC in Every Pocket,” I learned that Intel has a new Mobile Internet Device (MID) that looks really cool. It’s bigger than a cell phone, but smaller than a laptop.
Here’s a look:
It might not look like much to you, but read more about its capabilities by clicking here.
Hmmm…interesting….
That’s just one of the devices — the one that’s already on the market — that’s made by this alliance of companies (which includes Google at the helm, plus Motorola, Samsung, T-Mobile, Sprint and others). They’re planning on making phones that function more like computers. So you’ll be able to surf the Internet, work on your blog and talk on the phone (with a Bluetooth earpiece). So, no, you won’t put this big rectangle up to your head, you’ll have it conveniently stowed in your purse or carrying case and just talk through the earpiece. Then, say, when you’re done with some errands, you can go for a coffee, sit down, take out the device and work on your blog. Mmmmm…I find this absolutely thrilling. I can’t wait until they work out the kinks.
I’m surprised to hear some moms criticizing the iPhone, saying that it doesn’t have enough features.
Are you kidding me??
It is a phone, after all, and some people want it to do everything that every other device can do. Talk about demanding.
It might not have video capability, but please! You can take fairly decent photos with it. You can also, by the way, use the photos you take as the photo identification in your contacts - cool! Okay, many phones do that now, but with the iPhone’s large screen, I can actually see these photos, unlike my old tiny little cell phone.
Another comment I heard is that someone wanted to be able to read books in it (i.e., to have it function as an e-reader, too!). Come on now. I think that’s absolutely unreasonable. The audiobooks are sufficient for me.
Let’s talk more about what it can do!
It has a beautiful-to-look-at calendar that is just as good as (if not better than) my Palm. I can include detailed notes, birthdays, anniversaries, and even a to-do list at the top of my hour-by-hour day page. I can flip through it with a gentle flick of my finger and it’s visually more appealing than my gray screen Palm. It syncs with iCal on a Mac, so the whole family can use the always up-to-date calendar.
I can also watch You Tube videos (by the way, speaking of YouTube, if you’re considering an iPhone, you really need to check out David Pogue’s/NYT video).
David Pogue’s “I Want an iPhone” Movie
Well more accurately, my kids can watch You Tube videos while we’re waiting in line or on a long car trip or whatever. Or they could watch one of my many downloaded movies, tv programs (from Sponge Bob to The Office), music videos and more.
Speaking of car trips, I can also check weather for the week in a variety of cities of choice. Once again, I can do that neat finger-flick action to look at the attractive, colorful pages.
Curious about stock activity? Check. It’s got that capability.
Texting? Sure. In the most stylish way I’ve seen.
Music via iTunes (just like any iPod)? Absolutely. Steve Jobs has said it’s the best iPod ever made (to date). I especially love cover flow (the ability to flip through the album covers with a gentle flick of a finger).
Short example of cover flow in action
Internet searches? YES! (admittedly, it has no Flash player so that means you can’t play Webkinz, but still…). Check today’s headlines or find out the online price of a book while you’re standing in a bookstore which wants to charge you full price. Apple may upgrade sometime in the future to allow Flash to function, so I’ll keep my hopes up. Oh, and the cost of surfing? Included in your monthly AT&T bill (which really is not very big (in terms of pages), though some folks have stated otherwise…).
I also love the e-mail feature. You can check messages from several accounts (e.g., AOL, Gmail, Yahoo). And the iPhone notifies you (with an ear-pleasing, gentle buzz) when you receive another message.
Okay, now on to the phone features. Right, it is a phone after all! Your list of contacts can include the standard home phone, work phone, mobile phone, various e-mail addresses, birthday, spouses’ names, kids’ names, and more. But here’s the feature I love. If you touch the address listing for one of your contacts it takes you immediately to a map of the location! Then, if you need to drive there, it can provide directions (there and back!) and show you the current traffic on major arteries.
Does your old phone do that?
Oh, and if you’re on vacation and you want to find the nearest Starbucks? Type in “Starbucks” and the map will provide locations, indicated on the map with tiny little red-ball-tipped pins, along with the phone number and address right in your contacts. Just touch the phone number and it will call the location you selected. Think about how that could work to call ahead to get take out on your way home.
If you like maps as much as I do, you may want to go to an Apple store to see its map in action.
Assignable ringtones are more fun than other phones, too, including a barking dog and an old fashioned phone ringer.
UPDATE - Now you can hand pick measures from selected iTunes songs and design your own ringtone! I did that with John Mayer and I love it!
The Apple folks are excited about the visual voicemail feature where you’re given a list of all your voicemails and can scroll through to select only the voicemails you want to listen to at that moment. Very, very handy — especially if your child’s school called with an urgent message, or if you have six messages from someone you don’t need to talk to (or who leaves long messages) and one from someone you need to speak with urgently. You don’t have to listen to six other voicemails to get to that one urgent message. Just touch it and it plays.
Everything loads, syncs and charges through iTunes in your computer, so you just put the iPhone into the dock (included) and all the information is transferred (back and forth). That feature also means that if you (heaven forbid) ever lost your device, you could get a new phone and upload everything into it and continue right where you left off. So you have no worries about losing all your information forever (a concern which I’ve heard some people express).
Overall, IMHO the iPhone is well worth the investment. It lives up to the hype and makes my life easier and a whole lot more fun!!
UPDATE (1/16/08): On Tuesday, January 15, 2008, at the Macworld Expo 2008, Apple announced a new update to the iPhone. Now you can move your icons around on the home screen, create a few different home pages and create icons. For example, if you have a favorite blog (ahem) you can just call it up on Safari, then touch the plus sign at the bottom of the screen and choose “Add to Home Screen.” It produces a new icon for that particular website and instantly displays it on your home page screen. Fantastic! Now I can quickly go to my favorite blogs with one touch of a finger. Other options include mailing a link to the page and adding the page as a bookmark.
You’ll find over 600 Web apps (including some games like Mahjong) that you can add to any of your (up to) nine home pages.
Apple also improved upon the map features. View the video by clicking here.
All of these updates are free for iPhone owners. They just sync their iPhones and click on “check for update.”
I still feel passionately positive about my iPhone and think it’s the best phone out there for moms!
Yes, I have to chime in and say that this device is absolutely, positively ideal for stay at home moms (and everyone else, for that matter!)! I used to have a Palm Pilot, mobile phone, and a big clunky paperback map book in my car. Now, with one device, I have all of those inside one well designed stylish tool of beauty — the iPhone. In addition to all of those features (phone, calendar, map), I’m treated to an iPod (best one ever made), all of my email, Internet access at my fingertips and so much more…
I recently saw a fun video that captures the passion some people have about the iphone.
It’s David Pogue’s (the New York Times technology reviewer’s) YouTube video. I just can’t get enough of it. So fun…
The bottom line?
If you can swing it…
GET an iPhone!
I hereby finally acknowledge and accept that all things Mac/Apple are brilliant, well designed, easy to use, gorgeous to look at and super efficient. I give full credit to my sisters who have been trying (for decades!) to make me see the light. Thanks!! You were right all along!!
