This has been an absolutely insane last 5 months for me with a lot happening at the Wayside Theatre where I work. When I say insane, I’m not too far from the literal truth there. In addition thing are, as always, hot and heavy here at GBM as well. Somewhere in there I find time for a few moments of life away from work and the occasional moments for relaxation. A lot of things are changing for me at the theatre as we head into this next season and that will also change my workflow quite a bit.

As I always do, when I’m running through life at 120 miles per hour, I’m constantly re-examining what is working and what is not working for me on a variety of levels. So, I’ve been thinking about how I work and the tools I use when I’m mobile. I’ve been tossing around various scenarios that will keep me productive, and also happy, as I move into yet another season (this will be my 10th) at Wayside Theatre. For what it is worth, here is a sketch of my thinking as I’m re-evaluating.

I've made a lot of bad and good tech purchases over the years. Some tech purchases were good because of what they led to, what they taught me, or the value added to my life. Others were bad because of the overhype, cost, or was just plain junk

My overall best tech purchase was the Compaq TC1000 Tablet PC. It was a fantastic tablet pc (although slow as molasses), and it paved the way for what I currently do for a living.

My overall worst tech purchase Palm Treo 700W phone. I had nothing but problems with from the beginning. It was a total lust purchase, too - right after CES 2006.

What about you?

James Kendrick raises an interesting discussion topic in his post this morning about the premium Tablet PC users pay for Tablet functionality, especially now as the move to Ultra-Low-Cost PCs (ULCPC) is in full swing. JK describes himself as an unusual Tablet PC owner in that he is dependent on taking notes all day. I ride in that same boat using my stylus as an oar. Inking on a Tablet PC is crucial part of my work flow, and like JK, I’ve been reasonably content to pay a premium to take advantage of what Tablet PCs offer me.

The reality is that the perception of that premium is about to change in an unfavorable way for the future of Tablet PCs. The difference in price will look much larger to many. The rush to capitalize on the ULCPC market is on in a big way (see Rob’s earlier post about Dell) and while we might see touch screens on the ULCPC we won’t see active digitizers, much less capacitive or dual mode screens on these new low costs (low margin?) contenders.

JK’s point is a simple one and it is has echoes my pleas for OEMs to pay attention to the Inkers out there for the UMPC platform, which is now headed to the dead pool. If you don’t need the Inking capability of an active digitizer Tablet PC, or at least a touch screen with good Inking capability, then why spend the extra dough if what you are after is a mobile solution? While those of us who have been bitten by the Tablet PC bug, know that Inking is a big part of the picture, mobility is just as big a factor, if not more so. I can certainly attest to the fact that the new HP 2133 Mini-Note could serve many a mobile warrior’s need, if they don’t need an Inking solution.

Face it folks, the Tablet PC niche is getting smaller as mobile computing possibilities grow, and it will continue to shrink. Price point, and to some extent touch (without Inking capability), will be the decision factors for mobile devices in the future. Asus rocked the market and everyone is now in follow the leader mode. Asus grabbed the attention and focus in ways that Microsoft could have only dreamed about for the Tablet PC on its release, and later the UMPC. Let’s just hope the incredible shrinking Tablet PC niche doesn’t shrink completely away.

I was in tech week for our latest production of Driving Miss Daisy when the news came across the wires that Microsoft’s naming nannies had coined a new one. I laughed so hard I almost caused a technician to fall off a ladder. (I have a very loud and obnoxious laugh.) I’ve never seen such a humorous retreat and surrender than this nonsense about ULCPC. The ULCPC or Ultra-Low-Cost PC is the latest in Microsoft’s losing game of trying to play catch up with the mobile revolution that they tried to start with Tablet PCs. Of course they quickly retreated from their early start when the first reviews didn’t meet expectations and yielded the battleground to Apple, Nokia, Intel, Asus, and a host of others. The same thing happened to the UMPC. That’s the problem with releasing BETA hardware and not having a clue on how to market it. (First missed clue: devices that promise handheld mobility need to be put in potential customers hands.) I won’t even begin in this post to discuss that the ULCPC is the only platform that will continue to offer Windows XP through 2010, aside from pointing out the failed promises for mobile computing that were supposed to be unleashed by Vista.

I have to admit, I’m still laughing at this recent attempt. Lame doesn’t begin to describe it. I caught some heat awhile back when I blogged that the UMPC platform is quickly receding. Receding? I think Microsoft just buried the UMPC with a few extra syllables and hyphens on the tombstone. The ULCPC is trumpeted as a new class of device,  but it sure sounds eerily similar to the promise of the UMPC/Origami when it was first released. 

Let’s remember that the Microsoft raison d'être has been about software first and foremost (although that’s changing), and wants their software on those devices. The battle has shifted to a point where Linux is making gains (at least in mind-share and perception) with the promise of MIDs (still just a promise-releases and realistic assessments are still to come). Even HP’s promised new ultra-mobile will offer Linux variants. Asus rocked the non-Apple world with the Eee PC, and even though they are busy trying to launch more flavors of that little device than Baskin Robbins offers in ice cream, the big news is that consumers bought the original Linux version in numbers that changed the landscape. And then of course there is Apple, but I won’t repeat my well chronicled thoughts on that here.

So, let’s get down to brass tacks here. This, as it always has been, is about marketing pure and simple. In the same way that McDonald’s isn’t about burgers, Microsoft isn’t about software and is quickly becoming less so as it tries to get bigger footholds in the advertising game. Mobile devices are coming but they will be the razor. The blades will be advertising that pops up on all those free Internet services. Until (and if) Microsoft gets a hold in the advertising game, they still need to sell software. Now the marketing shifts from creating and supporting a new life-style platform to a two-fold strategy that:

• Attempts to get Microsoft software onto a class of devices that Microsoft tried to create an environment for and failed to deliver on and,
• Hyping price as the deciding factor.

The thing is, it will probably succeed. With no thanks to Microsoft.

P.S. I ran an informal survey at the theatre once I could do so with a straight face. I asked a simple question with no multiple choice answers. “How much would you expect to pay for a mobile device called an ultra-low-cost PC?” While not scientific, the answers ranged from under $100 to $299. Might be too many hyphens after that ultra. Just a thought for the naming nannies. 

This week I’ve been lucky enough to test out several different Tablet PCs during rehearsals for our production of Driving Miss Daisy that starts performances at Wayside Theatre today. Tablet PCs, (and UMPCs for that matter), are all about note taking for me. During rehearsals I am constantly taking notes. I’ll be blogging more about my experiences with the various devices (Lenovo ThinkPad X61, Motion F5, Fujitsu P1620) and note taking software in this next week.

Last night at rehearsal though one of our staff was looking over my shoulder when I had the Motion F5 in my lap and noticed the screen smudges. They asked me if it was broken.

I’ve become accustomed (obviously too accustomed) to the smudges on the Lenovo ThinkPad when I’m in note taking mode and I guess I’ve learned to ignore them. Both the Motion and the Lenovo have a ViewAnywhere technology on their screens. Lenovo calls theirs SuperView and whatever the coating is that supposedly lets you view the screen in bright light conditions leads to the smudgy deposits that fill the screen. It is unsightly, and I’ve found the pen actually starting to drag as it passes through some of the gunk.

Again, I’ve gotten used to this, and thanks to the Shwamee Microfiber cleaning cloth I use, I’ve gotten into a routine of cleaning the screen each night or morning. But my colleague’s “is it broken?” comment drew a new picture for me last night.

Think about this OEMs. Someone sees someone using your product and decides to take a closer look. They see that smudged up screen. That can’t be a favorable impression. The explanations of why the smudges are so apparent also can’t do much to make that first impression go away when the explanation begins with “oh, that’s the technology that lets you view the screen in bright light conditions,” especially when those greasy deposits do nothing but reflect light.

This isn’t just a usability or a technology issue, it is also a marketing issue. OEM’s would be wise to look for a better way if they want potential customers to see a clear path to purchasing their product.

I’ve been running crazy lately with an insane schedule. Thankfully that’s about to end soon. The one thing I don’t need when I’m literally only turning the computer on for a few minutes a day to get some work done is a deluge of CRAPWARE and a bunch of update notices. Last night was a perfect example.

I got in after a day where I hadn’t touched a computer during the entire span. I knew I was going to have far too much email to plow through, and that Google Reader was going to have a tremendous back log. When I opened up my Tablet PC the first thing I was greeted with was that CRAPWARE like notice that Apple wanted to throw the new version of Safari on my machine. Immediately after swearing at that pop-up, Firefox (my browser of choice) popped up a notice that it had an update ready and was ready to close out and update.

Now, I realize that an update is completely unknowing, uncaring, and insensitive to how and what a user is doing on their computer at any given moment. But this quick double whammy just ticked me off to no end. I had email downloading and was already responding to a few, and things were already bogging down.

As I keep reminding folks about CRAPWARE, my whole theory on that comes from my grandfather and his definition of a weed. Essentially, a weed is anything that is growing where you don’t want it to. CRAPWARE is like a weed, even (in the case of Firefox) when you have to plug a security hole. The Apple Safari thing is something else entirely. It is unwanted, unneeded, and necessary for Apple to keep trying to stick it on my system. Stop that CRAPWARE crap now.

So, here’s a simple plea. If companies are going to insist on invading my work-flow, do it quietly. If I open your app (or service) chances are I’m doing it to get some work done, not help you cover up a flaw, install an enhancement, (in most cases with less than explanatory change logs or details available for me to make a choice), or install an application I don’t want. Don’t pop up a window that forces me to take action. Make an announcement that the world will pick up on, or allow me to let this happen relatively quietly. I don’t care that you have the latest and greatest, or that you are playing catch up because your code is insufficient and thus vulnerable to other Malware that is out there. Well, yeah, I do care, but I want to care on my own time.

I’m going to start sending these companies some CRAPWARE myself. I will send them invoices for the time I’m spending doing updates and getting rid of this stuff. I’m sure they will get dismissed, but each invoice will have to be dealt with by some accounting acolyte before it can be dismissed and guess what? That will cost them time and money. My time is valuable. Their CRAPWARE is not.

Going in to a long Easter weekend, I thought it might be fun to have a discussion centered around mobility. So, here's the question for this weekend:

"What is your biggest struggle when it comes to being mobile?"

My biggest struggle is not the technology, per se. I'm actually pretty pumped about Tablet PCs, the iPhone, my MacBook, and general web services like EverNote, FolderShare, and .Mac which allow me access to most of my data wherever I am and on whatever device I find myself using at the time.

My struggle is mostly with creating some distance from the technology. Being mobile means that I'm more or less always attached to my devices. That makes it harder to put things away when I mostly need to relax and break free, because the tendency is to check feeds, check email, twitter some status update, check TechMeme, - because, you know, it is there, connected, and available. I try, believe me, but it is a constant discipline issue in my mind.

What is your biggest struggle? battery life, OS, syncing, staying connected, staying disconnected, choosing devices, cost, connectivity, etc?

Mike Elgan writes an interesting piece in Computerworld on the cell phone-PC Connection that, if nothing else, points up just how much of an interesting transition we are in out here in mobile land. His thesis is that PC makers, especially those rushing to join the handheld market, should make cell phones work better with PCs rather than just adding new features that most users don’t take advantage of anyway.

Two examples from the article stand out for me:

He argues, well, that quite a few cell phones can serve as broadband modems, and that most users don’t take advantage of this. I think one of the reasons for that is the complexity that exists in doing so. But Elgan goes further and points to some interesting “awareness” technology that would let the computer know when you’re close by or not, that was abandoned because of a lack of hardware support.

In the second example, he points to solutions that avoid syncing in the current traditional sense, but instead lets you use the cell phone as your document/data transport device to move from location to location, having your data and your mobility at the same time. Intriguingly, this seems to ignore the entire movement to “the cloud” where your data resides out there somewhere and you can access it from any device, anytime, assuming of course you have connectivity. As we keep moving higher and higher into the cloud we’re moving more and more away from the traditional syncing methods. Business and the enterprise is still the long term key here, and watching that transition take place is fascinating. I created quite a stir with my “game over” post on Apple and its recent announcements. If you’re paying attention, Apple is working to bridge the enterprise and consumer markets as it carries us further and further into the cloud (or is that the Air?). Loren Heiny has some interesting thoughts on this as well.

I’m going to be writing more on this in the coming weeks, but I’ve really been enjoying working with the Beta of Evernote’s Web solution that allows me to collect data and seamlessly have it synced between my Tablet PC, my desktop, and my handheld. For me, personally, it is a game changer and I think that is the type of game we’re all headed for in the future. Provided, again, that you have connectivity.

Rob is still having difficulties downloading the iPhone SDK, probably because the servers are slammed, and yesterday he posted that “Apple grabbed the UMPC/Mid Market and took it away.” I have to agree with my friend and colleague and even go further. Apple opened a big door with the announcement and shut quite a few others in the process. Apple not only took the UMPC/MID market away, it will own mobile for some time to come, with everyone else playing catch up. The race to the top is over. Now everyone else can scramble to figure out who is number two.

Here’s why I think this. We’ve only seen teasers of what the Apple SDK will unlock for the future. And the teasers certainly make you want the entire show. The ability to have push email and sync with Microsoft Exchange is huge and will open the floodgates into the enterprise. We won’t see this in play until this summer but Steve Jobs, once again succeeds in sucking the oxygen out of the PR cycles throughout the spring. But come June, the mother of all converged devices will be available. And it will be available in several segments.

For those that want the boutique coolness, it will be there. For those that want it for business, it will be there. For those who want to play games, it will be there. For those that want to develop and push the envelope of the mobile experience, it will be there.

Media, SMS, phone, applications, business apps, GPS, games, you name it, you’ll have it all on the iPhone, and a lot of it on the iPod Touch, both of which will fit into your pocket. What Microsoft, Intel, and VIA are working to accomplish with UMPCs and MIDs, Apple is about to deliver. Timing is everything and Apple is not only out of the gate first, but is about to enter the final turn.

Let’s face, it the UMPC platform is quickly receding. The MID platform is still to come and is unproven. Not only has Apple loaded up their devices with potential for all segments, they’ve come in under the magic $600 price point. Intriguingly, there’s news today that last year’s great hope on the UMPC front, the HTC Shift, is finally beginning to ship in the US, but at a price point of over $1600.

With Venture Capital funding support for developers, Apple has also kickstarted an entirely new developer class, and that will be huge as well. Apple sees the long view in this. Big time. The iPhone we know today, and the version of the hardware we will probably know for the next year or two is only the beginning, and from where I sit, there are a lot of companies that would have liked to have had that as their version 1.0.

Small, $600 or under, always connected, media and the web at your fingertips, and access to your communications. I seem to remember that as the promise of the UMPC a short time ago. UMPC, we hardly knew you.

Game over.

Post Script: As I said, game over. If Apple wanted to put the last nail in the coffin of all of its other competitors, it would steal a page from Amazon’s book. Ditch the old way of thinking about connectivity charges and user fees (or is that usury?) and offer up the versions yet to come with Amazon’s connectivity model.

• 37Signals has a great write-up on Apple's iPhone SDK "What we saw today was the beginning of two-decades of mobile domination by Apple. What Microsoft and Windows was to the desktop, Apple and Touch will be to mobile. " I especially love this comment from Kevin: "I completely agree as well. This is Apple’s second chance. While Microsoft may have won in the desktop market, the next generation of computing is upon us. After watching today’s event, more than ever I feel that mobile computing is the next big thing… perhaps even bigger than desktop computing. As you said, there’s currently no clear leader and Apple has all the pieces needed to make it to the top. This is going to be exciting."
• I purchased an Objective-C programming book last night - still can't download the iPhone SDK from Apple's servers - still getting hammered on download requests. Amazing
• What kind of process is Apple going to apply to determine who gets listed on their Apple App Store and who gets left off? Obviously they won't let SIM breaking utilities? Where is the line and what kind of objective / subjective reasoning are they going to apply? That is concerning to me as a developer. By the way - Apple's 30% cut seems awfully high. I don't know that it is, but it seems high to me as a developer. Along those lines, why will iPod Touch users have to pay for the new June release that will allow SDK support and Exchange support ( iPhone 2.0 )? Didn't they just pay for an update a couple of months ago? Good way to show love....
  
• Absolutely loving EverNote's Web Notetaking / syncing beta - Warner will have much more to share on that later. My short impression - it is a game changer for mobile notetaking that addresses cross-platform notetaking. I'm looking forward to their Mac and iPhone version. I'm quite tempted to switch from OneNote to EverNote....What is OneNote going to do to get seamless syncing with the web?
  
• As a web developer, where do I need to be focusing my programming efforts?
• Rugged Tablet PCs and rugged notebooks  seem to be getting a lot more focus these days? Is Field Force the vertical to hone in on? What are the application needs?
  
• Is thin and light really that important?
• The tablet pc OEM space is awfully quiet...why?
• There is a clear move to focus on mobile computing - that's gotta be good for everything that we talk about here.
• What are our readers getting excited about? Where do they see the most potential for there business?
• I so totally love InkSeine and think it is one of the best things to happen to the Tablet PC software space in several years. What is Microsoft going to do with it?
  
• Why do great tablet pcs like Motion's F5 and Dell's Latitude XT need to cost so much? They are totally awesome Tablet PCs that would sell like hotcakes if the price was right. How many folks would buy an F5 or XT if they cost $1500? Why is an already out of day Shift priced at $1629? Why are we still talking about cost five years after the cost conversation started? What's up with that?
  
• 
  

This is certainly disappointing news, but something tells me the story is just starting to get told. Steve Jobs, in a major slap at Adobe, has said that Adobe’s Flash Player just isn’t good enough for the iPhone.

Here’s the disappointing part. Apple has said since the hype days that the iPhone delivers the real Internet in its (and now iPod Touch) browser, staking out turf that sets it apart from other mobile operating systems. Because of all of the excitement about the iPhone, most folks kinda, sorta looked the other way, and I believe the assumption was that Flash would show up eventually (you know, unessential things like cut and paste). Well, unless Steve Jobs has something up his sleeve, I think we can say bye-bye to the “real Internet” thing for awhile now. It is a shame too. Using my iPod Touch, I’ve become quite attached to mobile web surfing on that device, and being able to view in Flash would only make it a better experience.

But in the high stakes game that Jobs is obviously playing with Adobe there could be other things in the works on the cusp of the eagerly anticipated release of the iPhone SDK. Could this be an opening for Microsoft and its Silverlight platform? Does, as Loren Heiny speculates, Steve Jobs have something else up his sleeve?

Who really knows, but I think a lot of users are feeling pretty bummed about this. I’m sure Adobe is as well.

This has been a trying several weeks for me and it looks like that is going to continue for a number of weeks to come. We’re in the final throes of our major theatre renovation. I’ve had to step in and take over directing our Education Department’s production of Romeo and Juliet. As if that wasn’t enough, we’re at the crucial point of hiring and casting for our next season. And, we’re also in some intense negotiations to continue operating our second venue that we opened so we could perform while our theatre was under renovation. Every day brings new challenges and new wrinkles to any of the above mentioned tasks, as well as the continuation of the successful run of our current show.

Normally I’m able to stay on top of quite a few things at once in my multi-tasking world, and how I use technology makes a lot of that possible. Lately though I seem to be losing ground and I find that even my mobile arsenal isn’t helping cut through the chaos. Here are a couple of examples.

Yeah, this is a rant and it is probably a bit off topic for our usual coverage here. But I’ll try and make it relevant. AllTel is proudly announcing a new voice mail service called VoiceMail Max. The purpose? It will now allow customers to customize their voicemail greetings with celebrity voices.

Here’s my point. I understand mobile companies and OEM’s work hard to come up with products and services that lend the perception of value to their customers. Nothing wrong with that. But, IMHO, we see far too much of this kind of silly development on things that are nothing more than polished up fru-fru that quickly fades away. The same can be said of companies, like Asus, that spend resources developing their own little proprietary apps for their devices that do nothing more than fill up the machine with CRAPWARE. Most of that kind of CRAPWARE quickly gets uninstalled, so why bother adding it in the first place.

I’d much rather see these companies devote those resources into better products, better service, and indeed into better customer service, than I would continue on the path of providing silly add ons. That’s where the real value is with a customer, not in some silly service or application.

If you followed Rob Bushway this weekend on Twitter you probably caught his adventures in an Apple Store and his falling in love with a MacBook Air. As far as I know Rob has reisted the urge to pull the trigger. So far. Also of note is an excellent think piece blogged by Loren Heiny on The Incremental Blogger about how perceptions might be shifting now that folks can grasp the Air in their hands. Here’s a quote:

I’m reading more and more about people proudly showing off their new Air laptops with resounding acceptance.  People like the lightness, the sleekness, the accessibility. The other stuff–you know the high performance stuff–is just not needed in this type of computer.

Yes, the tide it turning.

And my guess is that as thin and mobile become more “in” in the Apple world, so will it be in the Tablet space. And maybe, just maybe Tablets will make it back into retail. They’ll become cool for students to own. They’ll become acceptable as a lead laptop. The market will grow.

I like the jist of what Loren is pointing too, and I would hope he is correct once this plays out in the future. My hesitation is that I think it is far too early to tell if what Loren is predicting/wishing for will happen or not. While I think the early adopters early postive thoughts about the Air will carry some sway, my guess is a few months from now we’ll have a better assessment of how much the impact of the MacBook Air will have. Will it help turn the tide with Tablet PCs. Again, I would hope so.

We’ve talked in the past about the blurring lines (and horrible branding) when it comes to mobile devices like MIDs, UMPCs, and the like. It looks like those blurry lines are going to continue to become even more fuzzy from the Personal Media Player (PMP) sector. Electronista is reporting that Archos is readying a new PMP that includes 3G connectivity that allows access to the web using the Opera browser.

Some have already called the iPhone (yours truly included) the first MID, and some are really enjoying using the iPod Touch in the same way, when WiFi is available, (again, that’s the case here.) So media players as web browsers is nothing really new. I am increasingly thinking that the blurry lines defining these devices is largely irrelevant as far as the consumer is concerned. And it seems that those making and marketing these devices feel the same. Given that the focus for UMPC and MID development centers on consuming media and web browsing, as long as the consumer is getting what they need from a small device does it really matter?

Of course the question will come down to marketing. It always does. 

Thoughts?

Next Saturday, my wife and I will be taking our daughter, Maggie, to St. Louis Children's Hospital for some medical tests.

I'm already in the midst of planning what I'm taking with me, how I'll get work done while away, and the best devices for the job. I've also got a ton of regular work to do between now and next Saturday. Man, it never ends!

One of the challenges with this trip is Internet connectivity.  Because of the type of tests being done, we're not allowed to have cell phones or wwan Internet connectivity in the hospital room. However, I have been known to break that rule on occasion, and ask for forgiveness later . Any cell conversations or wwan Internet access has to be conducted elsewhere in the hospital. In addition, EV-DO coverage in our hotel has typically been very spotty. So, it is a constant connectivity battle communicating with friends and loved ones, staying on top of work, and being available to take care of the occasional emergency from work.

Here is what I'm taking with me and why:

• TC1100 Tablet PC - I want a no-hassle way of taking general notes while the doctors are talking with us, journaling, etc. I've installed Vista on the TC1100 and will be using InkSeine for my note-taking and journaling
• Moleskine - In the event a situation doesn't allow for a slate Tablet PC or I've run out of battery, I always carry a regular paper-based notebook with me. Oftentimes, I'll use the Moleskine when I want to escape from technology. Sometimes, paper is best.
• MacBook - I've got a black MacBook with Vista running through VMWare's Fusion. This is my current powerhouse for getting work done. I could take the X61 with me, but on this trip I'm leaning to the MacBook due to its flexibility in running multiple OS's and the wide range of program selection. In addition, the MacBook has a built-in webcam so I can record some video of Maggie and upload it for her brother and sisters to watch from back home.
• Canon SD600 camera - when Maggie was in the hospital several years ago, I took my Nikon D70. It was too big to be hauling around the hospital, waiting rooms, etc. For this trip, I'm aiming for light-weight and good quality. I'll also be using my iPhone for picture taking.
• Novatel USB727 air card - Since I'll be bringing two computers with me, the flexibility of a USB based EV-DO is important, assuming I can get good coverage in our hotel room. I want to avoid paying our hotel for internet access at $10 - $20 per day.
• HP 310 Travel Companion - Because we're driving to and around St. Louis, I'll be relying a great deal on a GPS solution. I don't have a good sense of direction, so GPS and standard maps are a mainstay for me. HP will be sending me a replacement eval 310 since the one I received prior to CES had problems from the beginning. After working with HP, who have been totally awesome in helping me work through this, we've determined that I likely had a bad unit. The 310 will be put to good use during this trip for sure.
• iPhone - I've gone back and forth between the iPhone and the HTC Tilt. Both are good phones. However, since I'm primarily using a MacBook right now ( coupled with a TC1100 ), the most seamless and trouble-free syncing solution is with an iPhone. In addition, taking pictures and casual web browsing is much better on the iPhone than on a Windows Mobile phone. I'm expecting AT&T coverage to quite spotty between here and St. Louis, with Kansas providing the biggest challenge. Still, with the iPhone coupled with IMAP enabled Gmail, I should be able to stay on top of email while on the road, refilling at gas stations, and stocking up on fast-food.
• Amazon Kindle - there is a lot of down time while these tests are going on, especially during all of the video monitoring. To keep from bringing so many regular books, Kathi and I will be doing most of our reading on the Kindle. That said, I'm sure Kathi will be bringing her fair share of regular books, too.
• Maggie is bringing her Zune to listen to music and watch movies on. The driving time is about 13 hours, so we'll be keeping the Zune charged through an auto power adapter.
• In the car, Kathi and I will be listening to our music on our Zune, which will be plugged in to the stereo through a standard male to male cable. It is mounted in our van using a ProClip mount.
• And of course, all the darn adapters and power cables to keep the above charged and working. Fortunately, most of the smaller gadgets charge through USB, so I can either charge them using my computer or by using a standard USB power adapter.
• Box.net and Zoho? - this trip is showing me the value in keeping documents locally accessible, especially when I need to be able instantly search my notes. With the unpredictable availability of internet access, I need a dependable way to get to my stuff, especially my notebook. So, I won't be relying on Box.net or Zoho during this trip. Using the cloud for storage and document generation is a good solution if you can depend on your connectivity. Once that confidence begins to shed, though, the good-ole standby begins to shine: local storage and client-based apps. Web-based services Office Live look like a good in between solution - access and viewing of documents online, editing offline, and automatic syncing. Look for some coverage on Office Live from Sierra and I over the next 3 - 4 weeks.
• If you are pretty sharp, you'll notice one item missing from my standard kit: The OQO Model 02. Several weeks ago, I let Sierra borrow my Model 02. Big mistake. She has since fallen in love with it. I knew my chances of getting it back where slim to none; so when she offered to buy it from me, I jumped at the opportunity - better to get a little money out of the deal than never get the unit back at all! I'll likely pick up another one on when OQO releases the next version.

For those of you who are interested, you can following our trip from my personal blog, RobBushway.com. I'll mostly be posting stuff there that we are doing on a day to day basis, how Maggie is doing, test results, pictures, video captured in the hospital room, etc. I'll also be twittering, which you can follow here.  Warner, Sierra, Matt, and Terry are going to keep things running on the GBM front while I'm prepping for my trip and also away.

Here comes a crazy mobile week. The big trip this week is to head to Memphis for auditions at the UPTA conference. That’s a 5 day conference where we will audition over 600 actors and then interview about 200 or so for possible jobs in our next season which begins in June. More on that later. (Note some of the links in this post are affiliate.)

In the State Capitol

But before we head off to UPTA, I am spending a day doing some political lobbying on behalf of the Arts in our state (and my theatre in particular.) I, and other members of my team, leave this afternoon to head to Richmond. (We’re leaving early enough so we can get into our hotel and watch the Super Bowl.) Early tomorrow morning, we’re off to the state capitol and a day full of appointments. We’ll be using our mobile phones (both voice and text messaging) to keep in touch throughout the day, as appointments often change due to the legislators’ schedules. I’ve planned out the day in MindManager and will be using my Tablet PC to keep track of our progress throughout the day. It will be a fast moving day and interestingly enough most of the work will come in the follow up that we have to do the next day, so keeping accurate records of conversations is a must.

On to the Auditions

Mid-week we head off to the UPTA conference. For this conference (and another one in March) we basically carry a small office with us. The tools I’ll be using will be the Lenovo ThinkPad X61 Tablet PC, the HTC Mogul, the Canon Pixma i90 Printer, a LogiTech webcam, and, for brief bits of relaxation, the iPod Touch. I’ll also be carrying a video camera to tape some auditions. I primarily use OneNote 2007 in keeping track of interviews and auditions. I’ve chronicled how I do that in the past, but it has been awhile, so I’ll be updating my process some this year. It has been a successful method of keeping track of actors and interviewees.

Twitter: A Different Communication Method?

Not only do we audition and interview at the conference, but I also do much of my ongoing work for the theatre there as well. In essence a big portion of our office moves to Memphis for the week. Communication is the key as we have a number of big pressing issues (we’re in the middle of renovating the theatre) and there are some issues coming up that we know in advance are going to require relatively immediate responses by me. Auditions are like attending a public event. Cell phones are turned off for courtesy (if an auditor’s cell phone goes off during the audition he/she pays the fee for that actor’s audition!) but the WiFi is plentiful. We are going to try something different this trip as far as a communication method. In the past we’ve used SMS messaging at these events when the folks back home have to reach me. But the buzz of a cell phone in stun mode can still distract. So, I’m going to be using the iPod Touch to follow direct messages from the home office on Twitter. I could just as easily use the HTC Mogul for that, but I’m experimenting, and I want to see if the Touch will do the trick here. We’ll see how that works.

It should be an interesting, but exhausting period of time. As a side note, my participation here on GBM will be light during the auditions. I’m also trying out a couple of new (to me) gadgets and accessories and if all goes well, I’ll be reporting about that either from the road, or after I return.

Microsoft Windows Vista is celebrating birthday number one today on the anniversary of the public release. You can certainly say it has been a controversial first year. Vista has taken its knocks from many quarters, certainly from the mobile sector, but it has also continued to grow in terms of sales. If you follow the industry news, it looks like there is a growing trend that is moving beyond the “knocks” into the “Vista isn’t all that bad” column. That said, there is still a large chorus that wants to see Vista branded as a Windows ME type failure and move on. Some even say Vista is the best promotion that Windows XP has ever had. Recent confusing stories of a potential 2009 release of Windows 7 certainly doesn’t help. The final release of SP1 is supposedly just around the corner and there is a lot of emphasis and interest to see how well that changes the matter and the perceptions.

From a Tablet PC perspective, Vista certainly offered some great advances, (check out our GBM InkShows on Tablet PC features in Vista) and in many ways ushered Touch into the picture. Unfortunately, from my perspective, the big hope of making Tablet PC functionality available across the board by rolling it all into Vista (the bits are there, all you need is the hardware) didn’t yield the hoped for increase in interest and development of new Tablet PCs from OEMs. That is a marketing failure as much as it is anything else, as you need to look really closely in any of the hype about Vista to know that improved Tablet PC functionality is a feature.

If it seems that Vista has been around for longer than a year that is because it has. In the roll up to the final release to consumers, the various release candidates, the release to business customers, and of course the delays, were all covered breathlessly, and it seems, endlessly (certainly here on the pages of GBM), and rightly so.

TEO developer Josh Einstein has waged a one man campaign in the GBM Forums and comments throughout the year defending the OS from some of the charges leveled against it, and done so admirably, especially as it relates to issues that might be caused by drivers and hardware from Microsoft hardware and software partners. He’s raised some excellent points along the way and in our small world here, put the focus where it needs to be in some cases. In the final analysis though, the fact that Josh has felt the need to do so, demonstrates that Microsoft missed the boat by not being proactive in discussing and addressing some of the issues that caused concern. But then that seem to be the “accepted way of things” when it comes to talking about issues with operating systems and new releases. I think the large turnover inside Microsoft, shortly after Vista’s release, also had some impact on this as well, and if you ask me the timing of those moves was not only questionable, but in some cases damaging.

So, it has been a bumpy ride in Vista’s first year. In my one man’s opinion, there is still a lot to learn, still room for improvement, and there are still some questions unanswered. While Vista and some of its attendant issues have given me some headaches, I’ve used it almost exclusively since the fall of 2006 and continue to do so. For better or worse. Mostly better.

What are your thoughts?

One of the many common themes coming from the great comments you all are leaving is in the area of broadening the content coverage. I'll address other general themes like usage scenarios with the devices we are using / testing, design layout, etc in future posts.

First area - broadening coverage: some want us to build on the "mobile" aspect of our name and include coverage beyond Tablet PCs, UMPCs, etc. Others were looking for more mobile coverage out of CES than the extensive Tablet and UMPC coverage we brought you.

This is an issue we have been discussing for quite awhile as a team - broadening coverage, defining that coverage, staying true to our original base build on Tablet PC, etc. It is true, the mobile world is much bigger than Tablet PC and natural human interface technologies.

These are some practical questions / thoughts I have in relation to broadening coverage and I'd love your feedback:

• Are you looking for more mobile phone hardware /  software / usage coverage, along the lines of iPhone, Smart phones, Windows Mobile phones, etc? We've touched on those subjects in the past, but they have never been a focus of ours.
• Should we look at covering all mobile computers like the MacBook, Sony Vaio TZ, Dell ultraportables, etc? We've been testing this with the Eee PC, and everyone seems to like that. How do you feel about Apple coverage? I'm a big Apple fan, use MacBook, iPhone, etc. As an example, being able to run Vista and OS X on a MacBook has tremendous mobile benefits, especially when .mac syncing is working behind the scenes to tie back to a iMac. Throw in a Wacom 12WX Digitizer and you have Vista tablet functionality running on a MacBook.
• Define mobile gadgets - what are you really looking for there? To be honest, I don't want GBM to become another gadget site that loses its focus. Embracing all kinds of mobile gadgets scares the heck out of me. However, I am hearing what you are saying.
• By broadening out to more mobile coverage, will our coverage become too watered down and lose the uniqueness that GBM currently brings to the table?
• Our focus to date has been on the intersection between mobile computing and natural interface technologies like ink, touch, handwriting, speech, etc. Can we still do that and broaden in to other mobile areas? Maybe.

Keep talking. This is good stuff.

Based on your feedback, we've already implemented two changes:

• Clicking on the page title now takes you directly to the comments. We are going to watch the performance on the site after implementing this change. If it negatively impacts performance, we'll put it back. dasBlog documentation suggests not implementing that feature on high-traffic blogs. Guess we'll soon see.
• We've added Older / Newer post links to the bottom of the page. Those links will let you page through older posts that don't appear on the homepage. You can also use the calendar option on the right, as well, to navigate to specific days.

Keep it coming - we're listening.