iPad accessory of the week: the Brookstone Bluetooth Keyboard Case

The iPad is, by far, my favorite portable device.  In fact, it is very close to being my favorite device of all, which is saying quite a bit since I am not a huge fan of Apple.  The iPad is a very versatile device even though it is a tightly controlled device. Over the past several months, I took my son and nephew on several weekend trips to various theme parks and destinations and never took my laptop. I was able to just take my iPad and a couple of accessories like the camera connection kit. One of the things I did miss, however, was a keyboard. Oh, I had the keyboard dock, but it didn’t lend itself to travelling. It is fairly heavy and a bit cumbersome. Works great on a desk, not so much for travelling.

Recently, however, I was shopping at a Brookstone store and found a nice iPad case that happens to include a nice Bluetooth keyboard.  Finally, my desire for an actual keyboard that was easy to carry was fulfilled.

The case is a tri-fold case with a near full sized keyboard. Of course, to keep it simple and easy, the keys are rubber, but don’t feel all that bad. Now, I would not want to write the next best seller on this, but for email, browsing and note taking, it is perfect.

The case comes in a box about an inch or so thick. It comes with a manual and USB cable to charge the keyboard’s battery.

The case itself looks like you paid a premium (and you do) for it and has a nice leather like feel. The flap has magnets to keep it fastened and does not look cheap.

There are several ways you can adjust the iPad for viewing, which can be a bit cumbersome.  I was using the official Apple case, which folds in such a way that it takes little room and you can hold it comfortably.  This is, sadly, not so with the Brookstone case.  I find a little awkward to hold and if you do not want to use or see the keyboard, you can fold the iPad over the keyboard, but then you add quite a bit to the thickness.  You will have to fiddle around to figure out what works best.  However, this is a minor thing and does not detract from the overall usefulness of the case.

Pairing the keyboard to the iPad is simple and took just a minute and is just like pairing a Bluetooth headset.

According to the manual, it takes four hours to charge the keyboard and it should last for ninety hours.  The keyboard will go to sleep after about fifteen minutes. Tap a key to wake it up.

I found touch typing relatively easy once I got used to the tactile feel of the keys.  I wish they were full travel keys, but, for what they are, it is more than adequate.

The keyboard is available at the Brookstone store or through the catalog or web site. It costs ninety-nine dollars.

There are other solutions out there, but this is best I’ve seen with the keyboard as part of the case.

The day I found out I was going to be a dad

In just a couple of weeks, it will have been six months since I lost my dear wife.  I had something in mind to say about the occasion, but, in reading it, it just didn’t sound right.  So, instead, I want to share a very special event in our life:  the day we found out that she was pregnant.

We had the hardest time conceiving. So much so that we were going to see a specialist about it.  I will spare the details as they are between myself and Jo Ellen.  Suffice it to say, it happened.

In the time leading up to the morning that we found out, I played it pretty cool.  Kind of shrugging off the whole idea of us being parents.  I had always joked with her about first buying a house and then buying what ever the latest computer was before we would have a child.  Much to my surprise, I got both.  So, it was time to ‘pay up’, so to speak.  A year or so later, the momentous day arrived.

I will never forget it, either.  We had talked about her taking the little test while we were together. I didn’t want to miss it: be there for her if it were negative and there to share the joy if it were positive.  What I had not specified was that I be awake. 

Well, she was so excited that she took the test at the ungodly hour of before 9am.  Now, I am not a morning person and need at least a Venti – sized cup of coffee to even think about waking up.

So, she takes the test.  Naturally, it was positive.  To quote a co-worker of mine, there was a bun in the oven.  Jo Ellen says ‘wake up, daddy, I’m going to have a baby.’  Of course, being male, a very sleepy male, I made some stupid remark like ‘that’s nice dear’ or something equally lame.  But, then it hit me.  Holy crap! I’m going to be a WHAT?  Oh my!  What have I done?  (Yeah, pretty self-centered, I know) Oh man.  Crap, crap, crap! So, I got up and went into the bath room and hugged and kissed her.  We were both so excited, happy and scared witless.

Well, being a woman, she wasn’t just going to let my lame response go unnoticed. Oh no.  After that initial excitement waned, she reminded me-OVER and OVER-of my response.  No, I never forgot it, she would not let me.   But, she was so happy.  It is probably the happiest I had ever seen her up to when Chase was actually born. 

His birth, like any child-a true miracle, was just as emotional and joyous.  She had to have a c-section due to some complications but, when they took him out and he started to make noise (something he does to this very day) the two of us just lost it.  She was so happy. I was so scared. This was real. It really happened.  We had our child.  We had our house. I had my super duper computer, which was already old.  But, more importantly, we had our child.

I got share him with her for twelve wonderful years.  There were some rough spots, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.  Having Chase brought us closer together, though, at times, it may not have seemed that way. We didn’t always agree on what to do with him, but she was almost always right. At least, I let her think that.   (I’m sure she would say otherwise.)

That morning, though, is the way I will remember her: so happy. 

iPad iOS update: worth it?

Apple finally released the long awaited 4.2 update to the iOS that powers the iPad.  It is version 4.2.1 to be exact.  The release adds a few welcomed features that make the iPad seem almost new.  “Multitasking” is one of the big new features.  It does what it is supposed to do, but only on applications that have been coded to use the “multitasking” programming interfaces.  What this means is that only a small percentage of apps can take advantage of the new feature.  For those applications, however, this is a much needed feature.

Another big feature is AirPlay.  Used with an Apple TV, this feature allows you to stream content from from the iPad to the Apple TV so if you have videos or other content on the device, you can stream it to the Apple TV.  The feature works well, but the video streaming seems to be available only to Apple developed applications.  Like YouTube.  YouTube streams perfectly to Apple TV. Non-Apple applications seem to only be able to send audio.  Not sure if this is by design or is a bug.

For me, folders are the big feature.  Previously, you had nine pages with which to fill with applications on your home screen.  I had actually filled up all nine pages and anytime I wanted to add another app, I had to remove one.  Now, with the folders, I can add quite a few more apps.  Only problem I have with them is that you cannot nest the folders.  Baby steps, I suppose.  Apple will learn and figure out this most difficult of problems.  Just like multitasking.

AirPrint is also a nice feature, though I’ve yet to be able to use it. Apple removed Windows support, it seems but there is a web site that explains how to put it back, though the method is questionable.  Google it, I don’t want to put the URL here since there is a question about the legitimacy and legality of the method.  (Hint: check LifeHacker.com)  HP has a line of printers that are AirPrint ready.

Other new features are more enterprise related like remote control, wireless adding of corporate developed applications and other features.

This is a worthy upgrade but, beware…for you Windows users, the bloody backup takes forever. For me, it took EIGHT HOURS. I kid you not.  In fact, anytime I go to sync my iPad with my Windows 7 computer, it takes five to eight hours. I blame iTunes and Apple’s lack of Windows expertise.

Run, don’t walk, to your computer and update now.

A video store, a pretty woman and rosy cheeks

I am a firm believer that everyone should have to work retail at least once in their life. It really gives you an appreciation of the utter nonsense that retail workers have to deal with and why many have the rotten attitudes they have.  Not all is bad, though. One can have many interesting and positive experiences as  well.

I had the privilege of working retail for about six years. The company was a Virginia based video rental retailer.

I worked for the company, part time and then full time beginning in 1988.  I was really young and was nervous around people I didn’t know. At the time, video tapes were expensive and the rental industry was starting to really boom. Video stores required memberships and part of my job was to ‘sell’ them even though by this time, they were free.

Well, the first membership I ever wrote up happened to be for this drop dead gorgeous woman.  This woman was so pretty, it was intimidating. She walked up to me and, of course, I turned six shades of red and was stammering all over myself.  I’m sure she found it quite amusing.  She asked about the store and the membership so I took her over the sign up table and proceeded to write it up. My face felt like it was burning off my head.  I was so nervous and had the most difficult time looking at this woman.  I am sure she knew and was playing it up big time.

Once the membership form was filled out, she then asked where the new arrivals were and-much to my dismay-she asked where the adult movies were.  Of course, I had to show her.  I took her to the new arrivals first and then over to the adult movies. Don’t get a dirty mind here, at this particular location, the tapes were in a corner of the store and there were no boxes. 

Of course, she had to ask for a recommendation.  She wanted me to pick out the dirty movie for her!  Oh my.  Well, I explained to her that company policy didn’t allow me to do that on these titles but I could find out which ones rented the most.  Naturally, she asked me to do so.  Oh man. She would have to ask that.  I walk her over to one of the computers and proceeded to pull up a report.  I showed her the popular titles and, of course, had walk with her back to the corner and get the movie for her.  There was only one thing left to do with this woman.  I was so bloody nervous.  I probably looked like a clown, red cheeks, rosy nose and wide eyes.  You would think that I would have gotten over it by this point.  No, she had to ask about those bloody adult movies.

Oh, the one thing left to do?  Check her out, of course. And I mean ring her up.  So I did.  Very quickly, too.  She very politely thanked me for my help and then she walked out of the store.  I tell you, that was one of the most interesting Sunday mornings I had had up to that point.  I volunteered to work Sundays after that.

Ah, Video World, you gave me so much: good friends, lots of interesting experiences, a wife and a career.  I have to wonder if McDonald’s offers such benefits.

Your online privacy: Facebook

So, one of the more egregious violations of your online privacy was done by Facebook.  A while back, they very quietly changed their privacy settings and, as a result, left most users wide open.  Photos, personal information, etc. was available to pretty much anyone. Users had to go and manually change the settings.  Facebook took so much flack over this (and Mark Zuckerberg’s famous quote stemmed from this) and implemented new and improved privacy settings.

Those settings are pretty straight forward and Facebook provides a public setting, a friends setting, friends of friends and a custom setting.  Choosing the custom setting gives you more flexibility. For example, I don’t care if Jane Public knows I live in Richmond, but would not want my photos made available.  You can fine tune these settings.  You  can choose who sees any of your posts, comments, likes, photos and just about anything else you post on Facebook.

Where things get dicey are with the games and applications.  Things like Farmville will ask to have access to your wall.  They also gain access to all of your contacts, so your friends now become targets for these applications and games and will get invites and other status updates from the applications.  Some people won’t mind while others will.

Fortunately, you can block some or all of the applications. At the bottom of the ‘Choose Your Privacy Settings’ page is the Block Lists link.  Click on that and you will see the block settings.

This page lets you block users and application invites and events.

While Facebook says they simplified –and they have – the privacy settings, they are still pretty daunting to fumble through.  It is pretty safe, however, to select ‘Friends’ and let that be your default.

One other feature that Facebook implemented recently will let you download EVERYTHING you have done on Facebook. It will give you back your photos, all of your posts AND, more importantly, all of your mail and instant message logs.  It’s pretty scary what Facebook saves, so, the best advice I have, don’t post anything that you would be embarrassed by having Facebook save.  I would encourage you to download your stuff at least once, just to see what Facebook saved.  You can do so by going to your Account Settings, clicking the ‘learn more’ link next to ‘Download Your Information’ and follow the directions. It takes about thirty minutes for it to gather your stuff. It will email you a link to download the file.

Facebook’s privacy settings are far better now than they once were and following a few simple things will help guard your privacy:

• Change your privacy settings to at least Friends
• Don’t post anything you wouldn’t want family and friends to see or know
• Download your stuff to see just what Facebook saves
• Be careful when playing games, taking quizzes (some of them want to charge your cell phone, so read all of that small print first before accepting anything)
• Never accept a friend that you do not know

Facebook is a great site and a good tool for re-connecting with friends and family. I have re-connected with some folks that I never thought I would see or hear from again.  A little prudence will go a long way in protecting your privacy.

Note: Facebook has a page that will explain the various settings. You find that here.