Sony Sliders: I could be referring to the new Sony PSP Go or the Sony MYLO, but I’m not.

This is not the first time I’ve had a problem with a slider button on a Sony product. My very first Sony PlayStation Portable was occasionally a source of aggravation, but only with certain games (most notably Grand Theft Auto : Liberty City Stories). In the heat of battle, I would accidentally flip the sliding On-Off switch and oh no, where did my game go? Sometimes I got it back, other times it was just tough luck - should I have being playing GTA in the first place?
This problem wasn’t just limited to the first PSP. I had the same problem playing a Pinball game on the Sony PSP 3000, the most recent PlayStation Portable (the last one which still handles UMDs). In both cases I just had to adjust my grip slightly and the problem went away. Don’t get me wrong, the Sony PSP is still my favorite handheld gaming console.

The last time I was blogging, I happened to be using my Sony VAIO VGN-S460P Laptop, and when I clicked the  “Save” button, I got an error message that there was no internet connection. It took a frantic few seconds to realize that I had accidentally flipped the Wireless switch to the off position, not that hard to do since the slider switch is just where my right wrist rests. Poor design? Maybe, but I still like the laptop.

Today I saw a print ad for the Livescribe 1GB Pulse smart pen. It is not available on Pricegrabber.com yet, but is similar to the LeapFrog FLY Fusion Pentop Computer.

The FLY Fusion Digital Pen is targeted at children ages 8 to 16, to help with homework as well as play games and double as an MP3 player. A number of adults find it useful too, both in business settings as well as for general writing. I must admit that when I first saw it advertised I thought it was pretty cool.

Basically, the FLY Fusion Digital Pen makes use of a tiny camera to record handwriting on special paper (called “FLY Paper“). This is then stored in the pen’s memory, and when the pen is connected to a computer the digitized handwriting can be converted into various formats. Additional software can be purchased to add functionality to the FLY Fusion.

The Livescribe Pulse “smart pen” adds sound recording, so it can record sounds while you are writing. This seems ideal for college and also business meetings. It also uses special notepaper and ink refills.

This technology is still developing, but is already a viable (and cheaper) alternative to tablet PCs.

In a previous Blog Posting, “Stop Malware!“, I mentioned ways to keep malware out of your computer, but what about keeping unauthorized people away from your computer, and more importantly, your sensitive information?

First of all, determine whether your computer actually needs protection. Is there any sensitive data on it, like banking information or personal information? Obviously if you use a computer to simply browse the internet or play games, and don’t have any confidential information on it, then there is not much to gain by even password protecting it. On the other hand, if it is a laptop with client data including Social Security numbers, you need more than a password.

You can buy a Notebook computer with a built-in fingerprint reader, but what if you already have a Notebook which doesn’t have a fingerprint reader. This is where the APC Biometric Personal Password Manager may come in useful. It simply plugs into a USB port and is apparently easy to use. It can also be used to remember user names and passwords for websites. There are also numerous software password managers, for example Roboform.

For securing sensitive data on a password-protected computer, Winzip can create password protected archives, or with free open source software like TrueCrypt you can create an encrypted partition on your hard drive or on a USB key.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to securing information.

So, Significant Other tried out Dell’s live chat function. This function on Dell.com allows you to talk with a rep from the company to get your questions answered. Her primary question was, how can I get a laptop that has a non-glossy 15-inch screen? She likes the idea of working outside, especially during the summer, and most glossy screens, which seem to predominate on notebooks these days, become almost invisible. She has the same problem when she’s working in her too-bright office.

With that bit of information in her hands, the Dell rep led her on a journey of her options, helping her to make choices at each phase of the buying experience. For example, she explained that none of the 15-inch-plus displays came in anti-glare. She’d have to go with a 14-inch display to get that — a tidbit of information she couldn’t discover strictly through Dell’s shopping function.

My sweetheart was quite adamant about staying under $1,500 and told the rep that. Not a problem, was the reply.

She recommended the Inspiron 1420. Seemed like a solid option. That has the Intel Core 2 Duo T5550 processor. She specced it with 2 gigabytes of RAM and an NVIDIA GeForce TM Go8400M GS video card with 128MB of graphic memory. (SO isn’t a game player, but she does work with DreamWeaver, so this seemed sufficient.)

Best, it included a 14.1-inch anti-glare widescreen display.

The rep mentioned the free printer offers that Dell pushes everywhere these days. No interest, said my SO.

But she did want to find out what it would cost to add an external flatscreen monitor too. Would doing so keep the price under the limit? Pretty close! The rep added on a 19-inch Dell UltraSharp 1908FP,Wide Flat Panel. But suddenly, the barrier was breached.

Then came the software. Yes, Vista Home Premium Edition was fine, and she wanted Office 2007 Small Business Edition to go with that.

From there, the shopping covered the hard drive, a 250 gigabyte 5400 RPM no name hard drive, which could have been faster for sure, but helped SO keep the price down. And she needed a DVD with read-write.

Plus, she wanted blue tooth to start taking advantage of all of the great wireless gear out there — though the gear itself would have to wait until a later date. So she settled on a simple wireless mouse. Then the question came up: Would she like that in pink?

If you knew my SO, you’d know that it was just the right thing to ask in the buying cycle. Suddenly, she was emotionally hooked to that computer. A pink mouse? Wow! She did some quick surfing to check out customer testimonials, and the recommendations were almost uniformly positive — except for one reviewer who said the pink was redder than preferred. Best, the price was the same, no matter whether the mouse — from Logitech — was black or pink. Problem was, shortly that pinkiness would help push the price tag well above $1,500.

Next: Negotiations in Earnest!

Hopefully no-one has tried to pair the IOGear USB KVM and a USB to Dual PS/2 Keyboard Mouse Adapter that I mentioned in my Blog Entry “Wrong Connectors“, because it won’t work!

Right after opening the USB adapter, I realized that there was no way it was going to connect to the KVM. There was a really wrong connector. What I needed were two male PS2 adapters to a female USB adapter. Instead, the cable was the exact opposite. If I’d looked at the picture carefully I would have realized it. Reading the package label made it even clearer “Use your PS/2 compatible mouse and keyboard in a USB port“. That wasn’t what I wanted to do. Instead, I wanted to connect a USB KVM with USB connectors to a computer which had PS/2 compatible ports. An adapter like this just doesn’t seem to exist. I tried connecting up the the older PC to the USB KVM with a USB to PS2 adapter connected to the keyboard. This way the PS/2 mouse was connected directly to the PC, as the USB KVM only has a VGA and one USB male connector for each PC. This didn’t work. After a number of permutations I settled on one with the new PC connected to the KVM, and the older one just having the monitor connected to the KVM. This means I still have a mouse and a keyboard for each computer, but I freed up the two VGA cables I was using.

There are KVM boxes available which support PCs with both PS/2 and USB keyboard and mouse adapters, like the Belkin Omniview Soho 4 port KVM Switch, but I’ll continue to try to get my IOGear USB KVM to work.

Last time, I looked at inexpensive camcorder solutions that one of my clients could supply to people who contribute regularly to a website that aspires to become a waystation for vodcasts about a particular topic. This time I’m going to look at some webcam solutions. Typically, these are used to add video to real-time chat or Skype sessions. But why not apply the same technology to capturing quickie videos?

Here the low-cost options are more plentiful. Filtering by price (under $200) on PriceGrabber.com leads to 128 matches. So this time I’ll add a minimum price as well and eliminate any models under $25. Then, I’ll only consider those that have a rating on the site, even if it’s only a single review. Whoa! Too many choices!

If I only look at those two models with the highest rating — five stars — I’m left with two models:

Intel Pro PC Camera
Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 Webcam

They’re comparably priced — between $70 and $140. But one, the Logitech, has 14 reviews. The Intel device has only a single review.

I think I’ll drill down on the Logitech one.

This webcam is designed for use with your notebook. It has auto-focus, something called RightLight 2 technology to ensure “great looking images, even in poor lighting,” and RightSound technology for echo-cancellation and noise reduction. It even lets you personalize the video filters, avatars and face accessories. (This business crowd could have some fun with that!) Additionally, says the company description, “an ultra-wide field of view and automatic face tracking always keeps you right in the middle of the action.” The QuickCam Pro comes with a desktop stand to bring the webcam up to eye level and a travel case to protect the camera when it’s not being used.

According to reviewer dongly, the video is captured to WMV, an excellent format for our purposes.

The question I’m left with, however, is how much to rely on the processor power of the computer being used with the webcam to deliver video that doesn’t drag, stutter or drop frames. The use of a separate digital camcorder would eliminate that concern completely.

None of the many reviewers addresses that particular problem. I think it’s time for some field testing…

More on this topic later.

I have a client who wants to become the YouTube of his industry, which I think is a fine idea. The question is how to get people who are accustomed to submitting whitepapers and articles in their various areas of expertise to submit vodcasts instead. One idea we’re considering is buying a bunch of low-cost camcorders or webcams that record directly to a digital format and place those in the hands of frequent contributors. Then we simply need to persuade them to video their thinking instead of writing it.

So in an effort to come up with some recommendations, I’ve just done a search on PriceGrabber for “camcorder” under $200 and recording to digital media. I get 34 matches. If I stick with vendors I recognize, the list gets a bit smaller. Then if I do a comparison by reviewer ranking, I get three models:

RCA EZ201 Digital Hard Drive Camcorder
Panasonic SDRS10P1 SD Card Camcorder
Sanyo CG6 Digital Camcorder

Here are my notes from doing a comparison check:

Two, the RCA and Sanyo, can capture at a resolution of VGA quality — 640-x480. The Panasonic is limited to 320×240. Not exactly a resolution to bowl anybody over.

The Panasonic and Sanyo models offer an optical zoom feature. All three offer digital zoom, but that’s always less preferable.

The RCA captures in AVI format, the Panasonic in MPEG-2, and the Sanyo in MPEG-4. Newer — as in MPEG-4 — is almost always better in these matters.

The built-in memory is heftiest with the Panasonic — two gigabytes. The Panasonic and Sanyo also offer the longest warranty, a year vs. 90 days for the RCA model. Also, those same models come with rechargeable batteries and a recharger.

Hmm. The customer reviews are all uniformly positive, though the RCA has more of them — four vs. one for Panasonic and Sanyo. Easy to carry, easy to use, easy to transfer the files onto the PC and inexpensive.

Nothing emerges as a final choice here. In my next entry, I’m going to look at webcam eyeballs to see if there’s a clear winner there.

(Pardon the title, somehow my first choice “PS/2 + USB <> KVM” really seemed too geeky.)

This week I was very fortunate to get my birthday present early, especially since it is a relatively expensive one. It was partly as a result of two of my blog entries (”XP still outsells Vista” and “Buying a PC with XP“) as I had decided on a Desktop PC with Windows XP. The problem was that Windows XP PCs may be hard to find when my birthday comes around. So now I have a shiny new Dell Desktop PC (well, not really shiny, but new).

There is a major problem though. Even though I knew that the latest Dell machines don’t have PS/2 ports for mouse and keyboard, but instead supply a USB mouse and keyboard, which take up two of the numerous USB ports , I had not really thought it through. Somehow I thought that it would be possible to connect to the existing PS/2 KVM with just two USB to PS/2 adapters. After looking at the Dell PC I realized that what I actually needed was a PS/2 to USB adapter like the Cables To Go USB To PS/2 Adapter. After some research it appeared that this might not even work. Just to get two PCs working I used an “old-fashioned” manual VGA monitor switchbox (which shares one monitor between two desktop PCs), and for the moment I’m using two sets of mice and keyboards. It looks like the best solution would be a USB KVM and a USB to Dual PS/2 Keyboard Mouse Adapter to connect my newest old PC to the USB KVM.

Of course the PS/2 I refer to above is the “PS/2 connector, an interface standard for PC mice and keyboards” not the Sony “PlayStation2″ (from Wikipedia)

I’ve been dealing with a cartoonist lately for one of my jobs. He’s got a nice style — loose and simple. But he works in hard copy. As in, ink and paper. And since he’s in one state and I’m in another, this has posed some challenges for shuttling work, particularly since he doesn’t seem to own his own scanning device. (These days, I thought scanning devices were so common as to be handed out in cereal boxes.)

I’ve mildly suggested that he consider getting a software application to handle his work so that the digital copy of his art could be emailed to me, but there’s something about pen on paper that appeals to this guy.

But I’m thinking that maybe I need to present him with cool toy to spark his “inner geek.” Specifically, I have my eyes on the little Wacom Bamboo Digitizing Tablet. Priced comparable to the nicest Etch-a-Sketch you could ever buy, this device lets the user touch a pen tip to the tablet to write notes, mark up digital documents, create a digital signature and best of all, make quick sketches.

It works with Microsoft Windows Vista and Office 2007 or the OS X-built-in Mac Ink and connects to the computer via USB cable, which is detachable.

PriceGrabber reviewers love it. “My favorite aspect of this tablet is its texture,” writes anvilfactory. “When you press the tip of the pen onto its active area, it resembles the feeling of a pen against paper!”

“Compared to what my conventional method used to be, instead of having to scan my sketches and then redrawing solid lines with the mouse, I can now draw directly on the computer, as if I was drawing on paper,” writes shmps.

“This is the best for the bang tablet that made by a well known vendor and the only tablet that doesn’t use batteries!,” writes pcdoctor01 from GA. (The power draws through the USB connection from the PC — standard operating procedure, apparently, for Wacom products.)

Hmm. Maybe it’s time for me to put aside my keyboard and find my inner artist…

This is not a dilemma I shall face in my near lifetime, but perhaps it is one you already face: how to view the videos you’ve downloaded to your iPod, SansaView or Microsoft Zune in comfort. Face it, there’s something irretrievably uncool about squinting like the sun is in your face just to catch the final episode of last season’s 24 on a screen that’s too small for your eyeballs.

Myvu has the solution: They’re called personal media viewers, and they resemble hyper-techie, Bono-fashionable sunglasses with built-in earbuds.

The myvu viewer takes the output signal from a portable media player or other device and projects a floating image onto the lenses that the user can see around — providing an interesting viewing experience for “on-the-go” people. The viewer includes a rechargeable battery for up to four hours of viewing time.

New models include the myvu shades and myvu crystal.

The next time you see a well-outfitted teenager bumping into planter boxes in a shopping mall, don’t think to yourself, “Oh, that poor kid must be having horrendous growth spurts that leave him incapable of knowing where his legs end and his feet begin.” Think to yourself, “I wonder what he’s watching.”