Leopard Screenshots

New Leopard screenshots have been posted by ThinkSecret. I can’t wait until its release in October.

Redemption.. I Was Wrong!

In my earlier entry concerning my switch to Apple Mail, I stated that Apple Mail had sub-par IMAP support. When I wrote this, I was under the impression that it was not possible to have separate Sent/Drafts/Junk/Trash folders (mailboxes as Apple Mail calls them) for your different IMAP accounts.

I was wrong!

Apple Mail and the IMAP accounts simply have to be configured for it.

• Make sure all IMAP accounts are configured to store the messages on the server.
• In the correct folder tree for each IMAP account, select the folder you wish to use for Sent email and go to the Mailbox menu >> Use This Mailbox For >> Sent. Do this for Drafts, Junk, and Trash for each IMAP account.

And voilà! You now have separate special folders for each IMAP account.

Apple Mail has the ‘combined’ mailbox interface, and it does take some getting used to. But so far, I don’t have a complaint about it.

My Own Personal Browser War

My name is Tom and I have a problem.

No, this isn’t an AA meeting. My problem is deciding what browser to use on my PowerBook. My choices:

• Safari
• Firefox
• Camino
• Flock

Each have their advantages and disadvantages. Here are my opinions/observations:

• Firefox is slow compared to Safari and Camino. Additionally, it’s painfully slow compared to the Windows version of Firefox.
• Camino has the Mac feel to it but doesn’t support Firefox extensions.
• Safari has the Apple name and Mac feel to it but doesn’t support Firefox extensions naturally.
• Safari and Camino are both very fast.
• WordPress’s visual text editor (TinyMCE) doesn’t work in Safari. I use WordPress on many sites, so this is a huge loss.
• Flock is rather new on the scene and built off of the Gecko rendering engine (Firefox) but doesn’t fully support all Firefox extensions.
• Flock still seems bloated and very beta.
• Safari’s bookmarks sync with my iPhone.
• Safari has a weird cookie issue with Microsoft Outlook Web Access that’s quite annoying.

So my question to my three readers: What browser would you suggest I use?

Bluetooth Schmutooth

There’s no mistake that I’m a self-proclaimed gadgeteer. A popular trend these days are the bluetooth headsets that allow you to have a conversation on your mobile phone wirelessly. For the most part, these headsets are a great idea.

For the most part.

I am a proponent for banning mobile phone calls while driving if not using a hands-free adapter. Mobile phones are quickly becoming the number one distraction while driving, and these bluetooth headsets can help combat that.

However, if you’re shopping at Target, take the damn headset off. You look like a fool walking around with this stupid little piece of plastic hanging over your ear. No one is important enough to necessitate wearing a headset in a store – with the exception of the Secret Service naturally. If you get a call, take your lazy ass hand out of your pocket and hold your phone up to your ear.

Which leads me to my next rant..

If you’re in a store checkout line, get off the damn phone. The checkout employee is due the respect of not overhearing your unimportant conversation. The employee is there to serve you; have the decency of allowing them to do that properly. The same goes for drive-thrus, restaurants, and any other similar situation.

Whew.. I feel better now.

Onward to the Moon

After six years of protest, I have changed my Sony Vaio’s Windows XP Professional to use the Luna interface rather than the Windows 95 classic interface.

Why?

More than likely, in the next few months I will be upgrading to Vista and will want to use the Aero interface.

Again, why?!

Well, I’m a Director of IT and I’m not even running the newest Windows operating system. There’s something wrong with that picture, so as soon as I purchase an external hard drive, I’ll back up my files and music and upgrade to Vista. If something doesn’t work right, I’ll just wipe the drive and reinstall Windows XP Professional.

<sarcasm>
But everything will work since Microsoft never breaks things working in previous versions.
</sarcasm>

iPhone Wish List

Every iPhone owner has one; here’s mine.

• BCC ability. I don’t understand why this isn’t an option already. This is fairly standard on every email program I’ve ever used.
• Distribution List ability. Mail/Address Book on OS X supports distribution lists, but not the iPhone. This one baffles me as to why it was omitted.
• Mulit-client chat (YIM, AIM, Jabber). Not very important, but would be a very cool addition. If added, I just hope it’s not limited to AIM.
• Contacts having own home screen icon – Address Book. It’s an annoyance that I have to enter the Phone app to get to my contacts. Seems an Address Book option on the home screen makes too much sense.

I realize that Apple didn’t want to miss the June deadline, and I appreciate that. Hopefully these features and more will be added in the near future.

67% of Americans Are Unhappy

A rant according to Jay Leno.

The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right?The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president. In essence two-thirds of the citizenry just ain’t happy and want a change.

So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking, “What we are so unhappy about?”

Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day,7 days a week? Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter? Could it be that 95.4 percent of these unhappy folks have a job? Maybe it is the ability to walk into a grocery store at any time and see more food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?

Maybe it is the ability to drive from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean without having to present identification papers as we move through each state? Or possibly the hundreds of clean and safe motels we would find along the way that can provide temporary shelter? I guess having thousands of restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough. Or could it be that when we wreck our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.

Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home. You may be upset with knowing that in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames thus saving you, your family and your belongings. Or if, while at home watching one of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or prowler intrudes , an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss. This all in the backdrop of a neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90 percent of teenagers own cell phones and computers.

How about the complete religious, social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world? Maybe that is what has 67 percent of you folks unhappy.

Fact is, we are the largest group of ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S. yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don’t have , and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here.

I know, I know. What about the president who took us into war and has no plan to get us out? The president who has a measly 31 percent approval rating? Is this the same president who guided the nation in the dark days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession? Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ungrateful brats safe from terrorist attacks?

The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me? Did you hear how bad the President is on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn’t take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad?

Think about it.. are you upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the “Media” told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day.

Make no mistake about it. The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have died for your freedom. There is currently no draft in this country. They didn’t have to go.

They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ”general” discharge, an “other than honorable” discharge or, worst case scenario, a “dishonorable” discharge after a few days in the brig.

So why then the flat-out discontentment in the minds of 69 percent of Americans? Say what you want but I blame it on the media. If it bleeds it leads and they specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts. How many will watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for-profit corporations. They offer what sells , and when criticized, try to defend their actions by “justifying” them in one way or another. Just ask why they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he didn’t kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way.. Insane!

Stop buying the negativism you are fed everyday by the media. Shut off the TV, burn Newsweek, and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as a country. There is exponentially more good than bad.

We are among the most blessed peoples on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative.”

With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?

I Love Lucy Movie!

According to TVShowsOnDVD.com, the I Love Lucy complete series DVD set will contain the long-lost movie from 1953! I only hope the movie will be released as a separate DVD as well since I already own all of the individual season box sets.

For more information on the I Love Lucy movie, jump over to this website.