Let me get this out of the way first, I like this phone a lot.  It’s a great device, it’s fast, it’s sexy, it’s big..but it’s not perfect…far from it, and most of the reason is due to the crap software that is on it…let me explain.

The UI and Software

My OG ran stock vanilla Android (what devs call AOSP: Android Open Source Project). This basically means it’s the bare Android OS with no added UI tweaks and no added bloatware crap (with exception to some Verizon apps).  This is the best way to run Android for the most part because it’s not using the CPU or RAM to run some fancy/ugly user interface over top of it, it’s not going to have built-in apps syncing crap in the background, it’s just plain ol’ vanilla ice cream (and I like vanilla ice cream).  And it works!  It doesn’t waste CPU (meaning it’s faster) and it doesn’t background sync unnecessary apps constantly (meaning battery savings) unless you install them.  But of course, HTC and other companies want to change it to suit their own phones and needs.

This is a Screenshot from a Nexus 1 running AOSP 2.2

Now, the Thunderbolt (as with many HTC phones) doesn’t do AOSP Android, they use Sense UI, it’s their own user interface which they designed to put on mobile devices for a “sleek” and “unified” look.

This is Sense UI

While some people like the look (which I don’t think is terrible mind you) and the feel, I don’t like it, I hate it.  There are several reasons I hate it actually the first and most important being that it’s clunky and slow to respond VERY often; it feels like my OG before I rooted it…this shouldn’t happen on a 1Ghz phone with 700+MB or RAM.  So what I did to “fix” this was install ADW.Launcher and use that as my home app.  It’s faster, and it looks and feels more like a stock phone now.  Second, they package a whole mess of crap in with it; they have a “friendsteam” which gathers your Twitter and Facebook and whatnot into a widget on your screen and displays it and updates it for you; a weather widget (which is actually nice, but i should have a choice to remove it);  and their own Facebook and Twitter syncing built in.  This is stuff I’d like to install on my own and not have running in the background constantly asking me to log in and sync; if I want Twitter and FB, let me install them myself.  They also use their own MMS app which is very slow compared to the AOSP app.

You might be thinking, “man, this is cool that it’s all built-in, why are you hating on this?”  Because I like to be able to choose what to have installed on my device.  Because of these built in apps (which mind you, aren’t really apps, they’re more like utilities) I have two Facebook apps, and two Twitter apps and it’s kinda dumb to waste space on stuff like that.  I also find it annoying that they START UP WITH THE DEVICE…even when I DON’T USE THEM.  What a waste of CPU and battery.  Once CM7 is released for the phone (not Alpha-builds) that will be my savior.  Verizon is also guilty of bundling tons of bloatware with this device.  When I received the phone it was PACKED with tons and tons of useless crap..and you can’t remove this stuff!  I’ve written about carriers loading bloatware onto phones before, this shit needs to stop with Android.

The Battery

Smartphones are notorious for having crummy batteries.  My OG was actually pretty great before the last few months of using it.  I used to get over a day with it and I was happy.  When deciding on a new phone every review I read had the same complaint with regard to the Thunderbolt: The battery is terrible.  Now, I’m never far from a power source, and I have around 4 or 5 micro-USB chargers from my older devices and ones that I found around the lab, so this wasn’t too much of an issue for me.  My first day on the phone I got through the entire day of heavy use and texting without it dying, it got to about 5% by midnight (from 8am or so).  The second day, same thing.  On the third day that’s when it ended.  Without using it too much I made it to about 2pm before it started dying on me, I charged it and it was low again by 9pm.  Now I see what the complaints were about.  I tried using task killers to kill unwanted tasks, I synced data less, I lowered brightness, nothing helped.  I read around online and found the best way to get more mileage was to turn off 4G.  I figured, I don’t need 4G all the time, so it’s fine, if I get more battery time out of it this is what needs to be done.  After turning off 4G, I get through the day again.  A few weeks ago an update was released that helped the 4G radio consume less power, so since then I’ve actually been able to leave 4G on and get through most of my day with it…so good on them for fixing that.

The Hardware Itself

This is where the phone really does come out.  This phone has some weight to it (it’s heavier than my OG which was a brick) and it’s got that big bright screen.  The screen makes it so easy to read things on and to watch videos, the rubberized back makes it easy to hold, the weight makes it feel like you’re not going to crush it in your hands.  It is a nice, solid phone.  It’s also fast when you need it to be.  Playing games, running apps, downloading, it just runs fast (especially with ADW.Launcher).  Of course Verizon’s network helps too, I get 4G everywhere in NYC, and the 4G speeds are really good (EVEN INDOORS! Take that WiMax!).  I have plenty of space on the 32GB MicroSD card they give you and on the internal storage (8GB but only about 2.5 are available).  The only complaints I have about the hardware and design: no dedicated camera button, I really miss this, but it’s fairly minor; the bluetooth volume is super low, I’ve read that it only does it with some headsets but my Jabra is so low I cannot use it; and the GPS takes forever to lock on, sometimes 5-10 minutes.  Now, some of this is probably software-based so a fix may be in line (apparently there might be an update in the next month or so to address some of these issues as well as the random reboots caused by the last update) but until that fix is out these problems will remain.

Overall

So to sum this up in a few lines (TL;DR); I really like this phone a lot, it is a great phone by design.  The 1Ghz Snapdragon processor and the large amount of RAM really make this phone fly with apps and games and with Verizon’s 4G it really is a speedy phone in all faces.  However, the phone has many kinks due to some bad software that comes bundled with it and a broken update from HTC.  Most of it’s issues are solely based on the software so hopefully we will see fixes for them in the future.

Some first impressions: This thing is super fast, it’s got a nice feeling to it (not as solid as my DROID but still pretty well built), and the screen is really really nice.  The battery life isn’t as bad as everyone says it it…I got a full day out of it with fairly heavy use…we’ll see if that continues though.  I hate SenseUI…so I replaced it with ADW Launcher right away and I’m waiting for CyanogenMod to come out for it (it’s currently being worked on).  So expect some sort of review in the coming days/weeks…

Well…

Yesterday’s post has already shown us that Motorola should really rework some of their business practices, but it also puts them in a precarious position in the OHA by going against what the OHA is exactly trying to stop, carrier and corporate lockdown of mobile devices. Some even think that because of the eFuse Moto should be asked to leave the OHA, and I’m not entirely sure that they’re wrong in asking this. If they are supposed to abide by the OHA terms, they should. No deviations.

Now for another punch in the OHA/Android face, T-Mobile and Verizon are now installing “junkware” in their new Android phones that cannot be removed in most circumstances. The LA Times blog is reporting that, “the Droid X comes loaded with several nonstandard applications for Google’s Android, most of which cannot be removed” and that T-Mobile’s new Samsung Vibrant is also loaded with some extra apps that cannot be removed. What kind of apps are installed? Here’s a few snips:

Among the [Droid X's] so-called junkware is a Blockbuster video app and a demo for an Electronic Arts game called Need for Speed: Shift….The EA racing game, which provides limited functionality and a large button on the introduction screen urging players to buy the full version, can be removed…

Skype, which is included with other Android handsets Verizon sells, is a permanent fixture, as is a utility called City ID. The latter program provides location information about phone numbers on the incoming call screen. But it works for only 15 days before asking users to pay $1.99 per month…

The T-Mobile Vibrant phone from Samsung, meanwhile, has four of these extra apps staring you in the face.

One is the movie “Avatar,” permanently loaded onto the device…Another is a live video channel called MobiTV — good for only 30 days. The third is a link to install an EA game called The Sims 3: Collector’s Edition. The last is an outdated version of Amazon’s Kindle app.

There’s also Slacker Radio, which cannot be used before providing an e-mail address, and a button leading to Gogo Inflight Internet’s website, which includes a one-month trial for Web surfing (only on plans that provide the service).

Try as you might, none of these apps can be uninstalled.

That is an awful lot of software to load onto a phone that runs an operating system that is supposed to be “free” and “open” for it’s users. The fact that most of them cannot be uninstalled is the most enraging part. I’m also sure that these apps take up a good deal of storage space.

Samsung, Motorola, Verizon, and T-Mobile are completely going against the principles of the OHA which they are all (with the exception of Verizon) a part of. But I’d probably blame the carries more because in the end, they are the one’s with final say on what is loaded on their devices.

So, should all of them be asked to leave the OHA? I’d say that if they continue this trend then yes. The OHA should give them an ultimatum to stop and they should take it or leave. If the OHA fails to even deliver on that then what is the point of the OHA? If you’re not going to stand by one of your most basic principles then you have failed.

While I don’t think this is worse than the eFuse in the Droid X, it certainly is something that needs to be resolved just as rapidly. Putting a few small applications on a phone specific to your company is not really a problem, not allowing your customers to remove them is.

First thing, I’m really not a tablet PC type of person anyway, so I was hoping that it would at least have something different than other tablets, or even something so good that I might even want to get one.  Lets face it, I do like my Apple products; my 80GB iPod, my old 40GB iPod, my MacBook Pro, the lab machines, the servers, etc.  I enjoy using them for the most part and I believe that Apple does make quality products.  And you already know my disdain for the iPhone from my last two posts, so you can’t really say I’m a fanboy; meaning I’m not going to buy everything Steve Jobs says because he said to, NO. I’m going to buy a product I feel has a use in my life, and that I will like to use.  And the iPad just doesn’t do it for me.

There are many things that they should/could have done differently with it, but they didn’t.  I admit, it’s very nice looking and I can see some uses for it (below) but I just don’t think it’s practical for most.

The iPad would be an excellent control for, say, a media system or a professional presentation.  I can see people buying one of these for their office to use as a datebook or a replacement for magazines and newspapers or even to control things in their office (lights, music, etc). Using it as an eReader or an internet device when on the road? I just don’t see it.  Reading the screen would probably be like reading a book on your computer screen, you’ll go blind.  Why is the Kindle so popular? It uses e-ink and doesn’t blind you with back lighting.  That’s the whole point of it.  Don’t get me wrong, using the iPad as a magazine or newspaper reader would be great, you can’t do that shit with e-ink but $400 for a magazine reader? I don’t know…

I also don’t see people buying this thing as a gaming device.  (Yes, I know that’s not the point of the iPad) Sure, it can do some nifty graphics and tilt functions, but it’s so big compared to a Nintendo DS or a PSP.  And those systems won’t make you look like an idiot steering a box in public.  And about the games and apps; all iPhone apps work on it, great, now I can have an iPhone sized app running on my 9 inch tablet, way to utilize the screen space.  Yeah, you can zoom in, but what happens when you zoom in on things that weren’t meant to be zoomed in on? That’s right, it looks like a piece of mosaic.

The drawing features are nice. I can see many artists or designers wanting this to sketch out things on the fly and be able to send it to someone without a scanner or whatnot…but why not take that a step more?  Make a deal with Wacom and allow it to become an actual Wacom tablet.  Charge like $50 for an app that when you plug it into your PC it shows the screen of the PC and allows you to draw on it! Genius! That would actually make it multifunction; hell I’d consider buying it then.

Speaking of multifunction, I must say this:

HAHAHAHAHA!

They didn’t learn that people really wanted multitasking. I know many folks who were very pissed off about this and I just ask them, “you’re surprised?” Good luck on the next update.

Oh and another one: Think they’d learn from their AT&T problems?

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Unfortunately, sticking with AT&T was inevitable; the iPhone is AT&T only, so why in the hell would they move to another carrier?  If they released a new iPhone for Verizon then I’d see it to be more plausible…until then, enjoy your AT&T iPad users!

Oh and the name…iPad?  You’re fucking Apple! You couldn’t have used one of the much better names like iTablet or my personal favorite, the iSlate? You went with the name in which MadTV did a skit on already making the joke that everyone is making now? Wow. Someone missed that joke from like 3 years ago. That’s why people are making those jokes, not really because of the maxipad/pad reference, but because it was already a stupid joke on MadTV.

I’m not saying that the iPad is a failure, or it’s a completely useless product, because it’s not.  I’m just giving my $0.02.

A few months ago Windows 7 build 7000 came out, I signed up for the beta and downloaded it.  I figured I’d give it a shot.  I had been using Windows XP on my MacBook Pro for a bit and I wasn’t really into Vista much so I decided, what the hell.  I installed the 32-bit version on my computer (I know my laptop is 64-bit but there’s a weird issue with installing 64-bit windows on this version of the MBP, can be fixed but didn’t know at the time) and began using it.

The first thing I noticed was the look and feel of the OS.  It’s very aesthetically pleasing; much nicer than XP and a small step up from Vista.  I noticed that the taskbar at the bottom was now like the dock in OS X, programs show up there when running (icon only) and you can “pin” the icon there permanently for later use; also, if you mouse over the icon you get a small snapshot of the window or program running, clever.  Windows 7 ups the graphics a bit in some visual effects which drastically challenges your graphics card at times, but of course the effects can be disabled; however, I only noticed this issue with it when attempting to run Windows 7 in Parallels (note to self, don’t try again).

Another thing I noticed about 7 is that it’s fairly speedy and responsive.  After installing my MBP drivers on the system the computer runs very nicely; no hiccups, no glitches, no lockups, very solid.  I began testing some small duties on it after a bit: typing, searching, surfing, etc.  I have yet to install and heavy programs like Premiere Pro or Photoshop yet, but that’s only because I don’t need to…I use Mac OS for that.  The main use of my Windows install is for Steam.  I installed steam and Left 4 Dead (among other games) and the games play fine.  I have had only one lockup playing Left 4 Dead and I don’t think t was a Windows issue.  The game loads FAST so I have no complaints about that.

I’ve also been using the latest Windows Media Player on it; another program which I used to avoid at all times.  The new WMP is pretty nice; it plays what I want it to play, and it looks better.  I even like how it organizes your music when loaded up with album art.

One surprising thing I was very happy to find was when I was repairing my girlfriend’s Sansa View media player.  In Windows XP you can load it up like a regular drive, or using windows media player, it only gives the option to open or play, thats really about it.  I was shocked to see that when I plugged the player into Windows 7 it gave me a window with the correct product, the ability to update the firmware, sync pics music and videos, play, etc.  This made me very happy to see it had built in Sansa support (and if it didn’t at first it downloaded it from the internet!).  It made it so much easier to fix the player and organize the music on the player.

Now Windows 7 isn’t completely without it’s problems.  While the interface is beautiful it does do some work on your graphics card at times.  I have an ATI Radeon x1600 with 256MB video memory in my MBP, the graphics did hang sometimes (not too much) but it was definitely doing something.  It might also be about the drivers, ATI has released some Windows 7 beta drivers, but again they are only beta.  Another thing I noticed was that I couldn’t install some programs; MacDrive and Symantec EndPoint Protection.  This is possibly the case in Vista also, but it did kinda suck that it wouldn’t install them.  The system also still complains a lot about security issues which gets annoying after a bit, but you can decrease the sensitivity of the annoyances to a certain extent.

So, the good definitely outweighs the bad here and I’m looking forward to seeing Windows 7 when it’s complete.  I believe that if this beta is this good, then Windows 7 has a damn good change of being “the next XP.” Overall, I’m very happy with Windows 7 and I’m very happy to see a Microsoft OS that functions well and is easy on the eyes.

Note: I am running Windows 7 build 7000, I have not installed 7100 or RC1.  I may have to update if anything changes with later builds, but for now I’ll leave it at this.

The machine is an eMachines T3092 with an Athlon XP 3000+ processor, 512MB DDR RAM, 160GB hard disk, CD-ROM and DVD-R.  It’s got onboard nVidia gforce 4 video and sound, and it actually works fairly well.  He wants the maximum amount of RAM (2gb) and a fresh install of XP, nothing really major.

Step 1: Order RAM

Easiest part, right?  I order 2GB PC2700 RAM from New Egg for $54 and have it shipped to me at work.  It ships from Edison, NJ…about 30 mins away.  It takes 5 days to reach me. This is annoying to me because I could have used 2 of those days (the weekend) to install and test the RAM.  Why would this have been important to me?  See below…

Step 2: Install RAM

I install both 1GB sticks, computer boots, I rejoice.  While working a bit I notice some issues.  Freezing, slow loading, and finally blue screens.  This is not good.  I’m thinking it’s a driver issue because of the new RAM.  I reinstall the chip-set drivers and still blue screens.  Finally I run Memtest on the RAM, right away both sticks come up with errors.

Step 3: Test RAM

I pop out 1 stick and test only one.  Same deal, red flags like China.  I pop that stick out and test a stick that I know to be 100% working, one from a computer that is used all the time.  Memtest: CHINA!  What next?

Step 4: Begin Google and BIOS

Looking through the BIOS for memory settings; speed, voltage, etc.  Nothing to change that would help.  Google brings some light on this; many people have the same issue, works with 512MB but nothing more.  Some people say it’s the power supply unit (PSU), some had RAM issues.  Since I know it’s not the RAM, it might be the PSU. That’s my next stop, testing a better PSU than the Bestec that’s in there. Many people on forums complain that the PSUs in eMachines are crap, and they tend to burn out boards, RAM, or just don’t give enough voltage. Hopefully it’s the PSU.

If after I test the PSU tonight it does the same thing it’s time to get a new motherboard for this guy.  Now, keep in mind he wants me to try to stay below or as close to $200 as possible, at this point I’ve been VERY generous with costs only charging him 50% of my normal labor costs. If he needs a new motherboard I need to eBay it because no one has them in stock.  The price on eBay with shipping is approximately $60, the same price as the RAM.  I told him I can either get a new motherboard or he can stick with the 512MB RAM for now.  Only issue with the latter, he has to pay for th 2GB RAM still, it’s not returnable, and I only bought the brand I bought because it was well rated, has a lifetime warranty, and was cheaper than the other more known brands.  He wanted me to save him money, so I did.  Now it might bite him in the wallet.

I use one of the best programs for a Mac to backup your hard drive simply and cleanly, Carbon Copy Cloner, and best of all, it’s 100% free. The backup takes roughly 2 hours using an external drive interface via USB, and I begin the dissection.

I’ve installed and replaced several parts in Powerbooks before but not a MBP. It’s relatively the same,, with the exception of a few screws and innards. I like using the How-To’s on iFixit.com, they have everything from drive replacement to replacing the screen for Mac laptops old and new. I use the one suitable for my laptop of course, and in the end takes about 45 minutes or so to replace.

Almost 3 hours to backup and install a new 320GB hard drive into my laptop, not too shabby I think. Of course my roommate was done in about 2 hours because it is a lot easier to get to the hard drive on the new MacBooks, but that’s how it works.

The Good:

• Very easy to backup drive, CCC is very quick and safe
• No BIOS settings, plug the drive in, you’re done
• Fairly easy to get to drive once case is opened

The Bad:

• Too many screws to open MBP
• Apple uses some TORX screws to secure case and drive

The Verdict:

• Noticeable increase in speed with new drive (16mb cache)
• VERY quiet drive
• No vibrations (some people online complained about vibrations from the new drive)
• Well worth the $100
• Stay away from iFixit for hard drives;-)

Turns out it was NOT Leopard server, but the WordPress configuration. So let this be a lesson, always start fresh if you can.

Our secondary server, POW, the server that this site is currently hosted on hosts a few different domains. Recently, I have been setting up things for our new HCI and Games lab here at BXMC. They wanted a site so they made one in WordPress with my recommendation. Now I need to move it to the server with a better domain than pow.idmi.poly.edu/~chrisdimauro/wordpress. I was instructed to use socialgamelab.bxmc.poly.edu (the bxmc is due to the expected change in all of our domains soon). I call up my guy at IS and he tells me it’s done. Excellent for me.

Now the task of setting up another virtual host on POW. Normally this is a CLI job with lots of files and configuration but not with Server Admin (SA); SA gives you a really nice GUI for editing many server features. One can completely configure and maintain their server without ever using CLI by using SA. More complex set-ups will have difficulty at times while only using SA.

This is what you’re presented with after opening SA, a very nice looking summary of your server and it’s running processes.

Now, I want to add a new website to this server using a name-based virtual host. So I’ll select ‘Web’ from the left side list of active services, and begin to edit this:

That’s a very simple, straight-forward form for a website. I filled out all of the appropriate information, pointed everything to the proper directory, and save. I restart apache, and try the site after a few (i needed to wait for it to replicate to the external dns servers). After a short wait, I test the site. I am directed to the main site, pow.idmi.poly.edu. Something is not working on my end, I don’t think virtual hosting is working properly. So I test one of our other virtual hosts on the server, and that works. I compare the two, both are the same 100%. Now it’s time to bring out the CLI and go deeper into the config files.

Apparently Leopard server uses different configuration for virtual hosts and apache in general. It breaks up each virtual host config file into numbered .conf files. Apache’s httpd.conf just includes the directory and any .conf files that are inside of that directory. Sure, this looks nice, it’s pretty clean and easy to edit sites, but it’s a pain when researching help, I am literally stuck with Apple only help (to a good extent). I find the appropriate file (nicely named 0005_[ip]_socialgamelab.bxmc.poly.edu.conf) and look into the file. I compare it with the working virtual hosts .conf file and find, they’re also the same.

Now I begin to ask myself things like “Why?” and “What?” but at the same time begin to wonder how Leopard Server is messing this up. The site loads properly if I direct the browser to it’s long directory, but still only gives me the main site if I use the new virtual host name.

I am still in the process of working on getting this to work. I have a list made up of how I am going to resolve this. I think I will update as I go through the list.

1. Comb the internet for help, this includes Apple discussion forums, and of course Google.
2. Change the bxmc to idmi. This could be conflicting on our network which is still using idmi for everything else.
3. Call Apple Support. When you buy Apple server products, like every other server retailer, you get support. We have support for our recently purchased Mac OS 10.5 Server, I will utilize this to it’s fullest extent.
4. Replace the entire apache configuration with a default configuration from another system that works. Last resort because I really do not want to re-configure the webserver.

Covering the List

1. I have been searching the internet and Apple discussion boards for hours (before I wrote this post). I found one issue with domain aliases using an (*) in place of a real alias, but nothing that fixed the problem yet.
2. IS has changed it to IDMI a little while ago, I’m waiting for it to update. Let’s hope this is the last step.

My iPod is 40GB, and I’ve never filled it. But I love my iPod, I love how it looks, and I used to love how rugged it was. It’s been through a lot, here’s a run down of stuff:

• 3 batteries, all replaced by me
• 1 headphone connector
• dropped on asphalt and stepped on accidentally
• dropped in a sink full of water (not by me)
• dropped several times from my pocket to the ground
• sat on
• banged about

I bought it in 2003, when it was new, from eBay for $300. It has lasted me 5 long years, and now the battery is dying again (it only holds about an hour charge). I’ve finally given in and decided to buy a new one.

When looking, I decided to get another iPod, just because I like them, and I’m very impressed with my iPods durability. I decided to get a refurb from Apple. It’s the “previous generation”, basically meaning they don’t make it anymore. It’s 80GB, black, and $100 cheaper than the new ones. Of course I got Applecare for the additional $59. Worth it.

I am anxiously waiting for it to arrive from California now. I’m hoping that this new iPod gives me the same amount of life that my 3rd gen has given me. I of course will not be doing away with the 3rd gen, it’ll still be used for files and backups until something else on it dies (the hard drive or the port).

So, in this post I shall thank you 3rd Generation iPod. You’ve given me countless hours of entertainment, you’ve been around through my entire college career, and I know you’ll always be around somewhere for me.