It’s remarkable the technology kids have access to these days. When I was my daughter Virginias age the coolest technology I had access to was an 8-Track tape player. Oh, yes, I had Boston on 8-Track. Now we have pocket

computers (some call them smart phones) that are more powerful than my first personal computer, the beloved Apple //e. My first cell phone was given to me by my work. They wanted all managers to have cell phones so you could be reached anytime, anywhere. The joys of being a manager. It was one of those super cool, thin Motorola jobs that were all the rage at the time. State of the art. Then September 11 happened and so many things changed. Luckily it was morning before I had gone to work so my wife and I and Virginia, who was just a baby , were all home. But we started wondering, what if I wasn’t home? What if the attack had happened close to were we lived? Immediately we recognized the need to communicate. Just to coordinate actions, to know where everyone is and where everyone was going. I bought my wife a cell phone the next week. Now cell phones are so cheap, they are finding there way into the hands of kids. I wasn’t a big fan of this at first, but when your kid turns around 9 and starts galavanting around the neighborhood more on their own you start to like the idea. Life is more complex now, faster. Who is going to pick up the kid from the birthday party? I thought Mrs. Jones was bringing you home. Nope. She thought we were. If you kid has a way to communicate, one quick phone call resolves the situation easily.

At first we tried those “kid” phones that are easy for them to use and can only dial certain numbers, ect. Nice idea but the reception was so poor it was worthless. It was just as easy and inexpensive to just get her an AT&T phone and add her to the family plan. But herein lies the trap. Being a child, your kid is likely to loose, misplace or otherwise become eternally separated from his or her phone at some point. If you go into AT&T they will tell you that your kids phone is not up for a discount renewal for possibly a very long time, depending on when the loss happens. In my case, Virginia’s phone is not up for a year. Buy a new phone? Pay the retail price. No thanks. Cancel her line? Pay a $175 early termination fee. Gee, thanks. I’m on the hook for $10/mo for another year for a

phone she doesn’t have. I looked right at the AT&T rep. What am I supposed to do? For a while he just looked at me like I don’t know sir, you’re pretty screwed. “I can’t believe this” I said. Finally he took pity on me and said I could buy a GoPhone and he would give me a replacement SIM card to put in it. A GoPhone would only be around $50. Of course, they don’t sell them at the AT&T store. Of course not, why would they. I went down to Best Buy and took a look. The GoPhone are prettysucky but they would work.

Problem #2: Your daughter has turned 10 and is obsessed with texting. Yes a phone, fine, but can I text? With a real keyboard? Dad, I’ve tried it on a regular phone pad, it’s no good. I can’t argue with that. it does suck. Your first thought is probably my first thought which was she doesn’t deserve a texting phone because she lost the first phone. True, but here is my logic. If I get her a decent texting phone, she will be so happy and obsessed with it she’ll never let it out of her site. It will be way to valuable to loose. But there are no GoPhones I can find retail that have a keyboard. The one I found online wants to force me to sign up for a plan. I just can’t win. Finally I turn to craigslist and you actually can get a Samsung Blackjack for around $100, which is the same price as the texting GoPhone. So I think that’s what I’ll do until her contract is up at which point I will drop her from AT&T. Fuck ‘em. They didn’t help me out, so they loose my business.

Here is the lesson learned. If you want to get you kid a cell phone, go with a pre-paid phone on a network with no contracts like Virgin Mobile. They have decent phones and you won’t be screwed if the phone gets lost, stolen or damaged. Plus, you can always move to a different provider anytime.

Recently I gave my white MacBook to my daugher for use at school and got myself a new MacBook Pro. I had been thinking of upgrding over the summer anyway, but due to circumstances I ended up doing it early. This is probably the most I have ever spent on any computer but I can say without question this is the best computer I have ever owned.

I have owned many computers in my time and many Macintoshes. They have all been great and special in the way only a Mac can be. This MacBook Pro however, is by far the most elegant computer ever. It’s looks fantastic, it feels fantastic. To own this computer is to know what Steve Jobs means by “insanely great”.

So far, this MacBook Pro doesn’t get hot like my old white MacBook. It cuts through video like butter. They keyboard is similar but better than the white MacBook. Illuminated keys are just plain sexy. The screen, wow, eye popping is the only way to describe it. No, I don’t mind the glare and yes there is alot of it. Somehow, I adjust and never really notice it. I love the new trackpad and multi-finger gestures.

My daughter is also thrilled with her new white MacBook as she has upgraded from a typical PC laptop. My wife is getting a Kindle in a few weeks; the whole family is happy.

Some Dude From California Morning Update

My new iPhone 3G and other random chatter

An unboxing of my new Sony Ericsson Bluetooth Speakerphone.

I used to be a big Palm supporter and had several of their devices going way back to the beginning. Palm made the PDA real for everyone and their elegantly simple hardware and software design has carried them a long way. Over the past several years, however, they have completely lost their mojo. A complete lack of innovation in the face of a rapidly changing market. Their smart phones are big, feature poor and are still based on an OS that is severly outdated. It’s been sad to see the rapid decline of Palm and now they are hanging on by a thread.

This years CES show will see the introduction of a brand new phone finally based on their new advanced OS. This will be the last chance for Palm. If people don’t take to this phone or if there is any kind of software or hardware failure, it will likely be curtains for Palm. The new OS has been in development for so long and has taken such a twisted road, I’m really not sure it can live up to expectations.

I do hope palm does well with this phone as I hope Google can make Android really sing someday. Apple is starting to dominate the smart phone market and needs some healthy competition to keep them honest. Palm has made so many bad moves lately, though, I don’t have much hope they will actually pull this one off.

My business, Connected World Media is starting to take off and as it does I find myself meeting with more people. Since I work out of the house and I am currently working with other small businesses, my office has become various coffee shops around town.

I see plenty of other people working on laptops and I have to assume they are also home-based business folks or sales people who spend most of their time on the road. There is a good business here catering to we mobile workers.

If you want my business, here are my requirements:

Free Wi-fi Internet: This is the basis for any business and without it you can’t do much. Starbucks foolishly charges for wi-fi and therefore does not get my business. There are too many places that offer it for free.

Good coffee: It’s a staple of late night bloggers and Internet marketing professionals everywhere. And after all, it’s a coffee shop, you should at least have good coffee.

Variety of Food: Often these meetings are around breakfast or lunch so having some kind of food available is nice.

Comfortable Atmosphere: Plenty of comfy chairs or couches and not too loud please. Most are not prepared for it, but lots of power plugs are greatly appreciated as well.

The mobile worker is a serious market. Coffee shops and small restaurants should pay attention. Help us do business and we will bring business to you.

Wordpress released their native blogging app for the iPhone today and this is my first post with it. So far I like it a lot and using the iPhone soft keyboard to write a longer post is not a problem at all

This just makes the iPhone even more of a handheld computer and not really a phone.

So tempted I was to rush out and get the new iPhone 3G. Faster speed, GPS, and…and…well, that’s about it. Than I started hearing the poor battery life reports and I started to think. My original iPhone is great and I love it. With the new 2.0 software I get most of the benefits of the new phone as well. Having GPS would be fun, but the older triangulation technology has actually been improved and works pretty well. Plus, with no real turn by turn directions, the GPS is not really living up to it’s full potential. Disappointing. 3G speed would be cool for sure, but at what cost? 3G sucks battery. It’s really no different for any other 3G phone so the iPhone 3G isn’t really far off, but fast speed does you no good if you’re out of battery. Plus the AT&T plans went up in price monthly.

I’m waiting. For a better battery and 32Gig. You know 32Gig is not far off with the way solid state memory is going these days and certainly there will be a better, more power effecient 3G chipset comming at some point. With a full 32Gig, I could fit my entire iTunes library on the iPhone. Truly at this point it will have taken the full place of my iPod. 16 Gig is better, but still not really there yet. Delayed gratification is supposed to be good for you and for the frist time in awhile I will practice it. I have other priorities right now anyway other than upgrading my phone. I do want an Apple TV though…

Hillary Clinton is bringing daughter Chelsea out on the campaign trail in Iowa but won’t let her speak to the press. Predictably and quickly, this has lead to the absurd as she turned down an interview request from a 9 year old Scholastic News reporter.

Thus is the politics of control. In a hot presidential race, one statement, one moment can change fortunes forever. Just ask Howard Dean. The Clintons have always sought to protect and shield Chelsea from the press and I understand and empathize with that but if you don’t want to get shot, don’t go near the battlefield. If they are going to bring Chelsea along and make her part of the campaign in that way, than she is in the game, like it or not.

I don’t like the overly controlled and manufactured politics we have today. It’s almost impossible to get any kind of real read on a candidate. I’d love to hear from Chelsea and I’m sure other young people would too. She’s a smart girl for goodness sakes, let her speak. People are so afraid of making a mistake and the press is too quick to judge.

I has been said this is the YouTube campaign, but don’t let that fool you into thinking this is a new media campaign. We have had some “YouTube debates” but that’s just window dressing on a campaign that is still controlled by and manufactured for the old dog media. If anything, new media has intensified the control because of the way bad news can spread like wildfire across the Internet. We will not have a new media election until candidates are allowed and are courageous enough to let down their hair and let us see their real selves. Until control is broken down. Not until blogs, audio and video podcasts are treated as equals in the process and not a side show like the YouTube debates were. We’re getting closer every year and I hope someday we are able to break through and have a true new media election.

Take a look at this very thin phone. Pretty neat but at some point these phones will be so thin, it will be too easy to snap them right in half.