News for March 2013

Mashed Potatoes

Posted: March 13th, 2013
Categories: humor, sports
Tags:
Comments: No Comments.

Jailbreaking iOS

This news is fairly dated (about 4 weeks), but the new Jailbreak is out for iOS devices (iPhones, iPads, etc).

Most family and friends are familiar with the fact that I despise Apple (ironically, I was an Apple ‘fanboy’ for almost 10 years and was in pretty deep prior to my ‘digital awakening’ in 2003); however, there is no doubt that the iPad rules the tablet market and will for some time. I speak as a user of both Android and iOS and can tell you that it will be some time before the Andriod environment is suitable for tablets. But mark my words, Android will overcome iOS with tablets. It is just a matter of time. It is a lot like the PC market in the late 80s/early 90s … Apple opened the door to the industry for every-day users, but Windows eventually overtook the market. Apple’s walled-garden mentality just isn’t sustainable – and, like PCs and most recently phones, won’t be for tablets.

I have 2 Android tablets (which I have since given to the kids) and still hold on tightly to my iPad 2. The only reason, though, that I considered owning an iPad and still maintain ownership is the possibility of Jailbreaking. I have introduced a few peers to this world, and it’s interesting to see them discover it. How easy it is (it takes just minutes), how much it opens your experience, and how much more productive you can be with your device now that it is free from Apple’s confines.

Jailbreaking sounds a lot more ‘dangerous’ than it is. It is simply an opening of the Operating System – which allows you to customize and tweak your tablet to do things that Apple doesn’t want you to do. Why does Apple not want me to be able to use a flash drive or have USB connectivity with my iPad? Why doesn’t Apple want for me to be able to network with my home PCs? Why doesn’t Apple want me to be able to see various system folders and files? It all comes down to them wanting to control the user experience. I understand this for most users – it’s what made Apple appealing to me as a first time computer user; however, I changed and want to do more and explore under the hood with my technology. Jailbreaking allows you immense freedoms.

Try it out here.

Posted: March 10th, 2013
Categories: computers, tech
Tags:
Comments: No Comments.

RIP Daisy

So today, about two weeks after Elyce brought home both “Daisy” and “Luigi” from school (from a science class) as pets, Daisy died. Elyce buried her in the back near a tree. Even though I missed the service, I did tell Elyce (she was pretty upset) that Daisy had a pretty good life: Impressive Digs (I’ll probably post a pic of the aquarium later on this weekend) and a very caring owner. Hell, if I was a frog with the setup Daisy had, I’d feel pretty lucky.

IMG_0167

It looks like we’ll be waiting until this coming weekend to find a replacement companion for Luigi … apparently, these frogs are ‘social creatures’ and tend to live longer when not alone.

The things you learn as a parent …

Posted: March 6th, 2013
Categories: animals, dead, kids, pets
Tags:
Comments: No Comments.