Twitter VS. Pownce – Battle of the microblogs

So I was recently given reason to start using my delinquent Pownce account that I created a few months back on a whim.  I originally wrote Pownce off as Kevin Rose just trying to make some cash off of the microblogging fad (afterall, what does Pownce add to the game?  FTP?  Exciting!)  but after starting to use it again it definitely has its merits.  For one thing it’s pretty.  Way prettier than Twitter.  If you look at Twitter pages what you normally get is something like a solid color, an ugly tiled picture, or some ridiculous color scheme.  Thinking about it now it’s really kind of like a lot of the awful MySpace pages you might have seen – just not quite that bad.  Pownce has a much cleaner look and has some pretty cool default themes for your page.  Also the page itself is laid out a lot more like a social network page (with information about the person who’s Pownce messages you’re looking at) unlike Twitter which is pretty much just a list of tweets.  Another nice thing about the layout is that each message you send via Pownce is basically like a thread – people can reply to it and it is added to the page beneath the original message.  Pretty cool.

Next up I have to comment on the Pownce desktop client – it’s slick.  It runs on Adobe Air and allows for easy link integration.  You can also add files for people to check out but you have to pay for the premium service in order to upload anything larger than 10 megabytes.  I wish it showed messages that are replies in thread-form underneath the original message like the Pownce website  does, but I’m not about to quit using it because that’s not included.  It definitely kills Twitter’s first-party desktop client…oh wait there isn’t a first-party Twitter app.  My bad.  There are plenty of third-party applications for posting to Twitter though (my favorite as of late is Snitter, which also runs on Adobe Air and is very similar to the Pownce desktop client).

I think what I like most about Pownce is that it’s more personal.  For some reason I don’t feel dumb for putting up an actual picture of myself as my Pownce image but I’m hesitant to do the same with Twitter.  Maybe it’s because Twitter is open to everyone and Pownce is still in beta (if you need an invite give me a holler, I have plenty to share), or maybe it’s just the fact that, like I said, Pownce feels more like a legitimate social network.  So Pownce is prettier, more personal, has a better desktop client – what’s not to love?  Well first of all there’s no support for sending messages to your Pownce feed via a mobile phone.  You can pull it off but your phone has to have a web browser and then you just go to Pownce’s mobile site, but that’s a lot more hassle than Twitter’s mobile setup – all you have to do is link your account to a number and whenever you want to send a tweet you send a text message to that number.  The text message is automatically added to your Twitter feed.  Given the nature of microblogging this is huge because it’s all about short messages about what you’re doing at the time.  If you have to be behind a computer to post what you’re doing then half the fun is taken away.  Hopefully Pownce will integrate a phone number system like Twitter’s sometime soon.

So right now I have two microblogging systems, Twitter and Pownce, and both of them have the same exact content for the most part.  What I really want to do is figure out specific uses for the two so I can continue to use them both, and I think I’ve sort of figured it out.  What I’m toying with is using Twitter for messages about the blog or site (maybe the title of the upcoming post, site news, etc.) and also for when I’m out and about and can’t post to Pownce.  Then, I can use Pownce for basically everything else.  We’ll see.  If you’re a Twitter or Pownce user go ahead and give me an add and I’ll do the same.  You can find links to my accounts for both services in this post.

Now Playing:
Canibus (feat. Sun & Killah Priest) – Liquid Wordz

Kind of hating Firefox

I’ve been using Firefox for a long time and have been (for the most part) loving it.  Having extensions to check my email, block ads, and quickly hit up Wikipedia is great.  However since 2.0 using Firefox has become a bit of a nuisance.  On Windows it seems to be the default choice for your recreational browsing, but for that reason I’m beginning to dislike it.  The main problem seems to be the memory leaks.  For instance – if I leave Firefox running for a couple hours (whether I just get up and walk away from my machine or I want my email up so I can check for new messages) I find that it has frozen.  When I say "a couple hours" I’m also being very generous.  Depending on what you’re doing Firefox seems to crash quite a bit.  Whenever I’m at my machine I tend to have one tab with a podcast or something going in it, another tab with my email, and a third tab for just general browsing.  After 30 minutes or so of this I’ll notice that the browser stops responding.  I’ll try to change tabs and it will churn and churn until I bring up the task manager and notice, whoa!, Firefox is consuming a huge chunk of my system’s resources.  Time to kill it and start over.

I’m also used to Safari on the Mac and in comparison Firefox seems dog slow.  I haven’t tried out the beta of Firefox 3 but I’m just hoping that they’ve fixed the memory issues.  What I’d really like to see though would be a nice stripped-down no extension version of Firefox that is lightning fast and runs like a champ.  Even if they released it as a separate download (Firefox 3 basic or something) and then also allowed users to download the full version I’d be cool with it.  Alternatively they could just make Firefox 3 a solid release and they wouldn’t have to worry about multiple versions.  It’s gotten to the point that I’ve started to consider trying out Opera or the Windows version of Safari again to see if there has been improvement from either of those browsers.  Post a suggestion for a good browser (or just tell me why I’m nuts for starting to dislike Firefox) in the comments section and I’ll try out whatever you have to offer.  Obviously this is really only an issue for my XP and Vista boxes so what I’m really looking for are Windows solutions but post whatever you’d like and I’ll check it out.

Now Playing:
Canibus – 702-386-5397

If you aren’t using this you should be

It’s been sort of a slow news week and to be honest I haven’t had much time to dedicate to post-writing with finals and so forth, so this will (hopefully) be a quick one about an application/website that’s been around for a while but I just found out about recently.  One of the nice things about modern networked computing is the ability access machines across the network either with Remote Desktop, VNC, or whatever your preferred method of connection is.  This is all well and good when you’re on the same network as the machine you want to get remote access to, but what if you aren’t?  There’s always the issue of being able to find your computer across the internet – especially if you’re using an ISP that issues dynamic IP addresses.  It’s near impossible to get a legitimate connection since every few hours or so your machine will be issued a new IP address.  So what’s a geek to do?

Check out No-IP.  What they let you do is set up a completely free domain for the purpose of rerouting traffic to a computer of your choice.  All you have to do is sign up, give them the host name you’d like to use, and install their little Dynamic Update Client on your host machine (the machine you’d like to access remotely).  Then, whenever you want to remote desktop into that machine (as long as the DUC is running on it) all you have to do is set the remote address to the host name you setup at No-IP’s website.  Say for instance I wanted to make a DmK host, it would be something like "dmk.no-ip.biz," and I could type that into my remote desktop client, hit connect, and bam you’re connected across the internet.  There has been programs out like this for a long time but a lot of them are pay services.  This is completely free.  The only thing you really have to deal with is making sure you renew your host name with No-IP every couple months.  As a result of this being a free service you’ll get an email from them occasionally saying they’ll delete your host name if you aren’t still using it.  All you have to do is hit a link they provide to renew your host name and you’re set.

So that’s it, really.  A pretty simple fix for a fairly common problem, and now I can get to my main computer that’s sitting at home from anywhere.  It’s available for all platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux) so you have no excuse to not give it a shot!  Thanks to Donny for giving me this info a ways back.  =)

Now Playing:
Wyclef Jean – Sweetest Girl

My new passion

A lot of people these days tend to hate on Microsoft.  In some cases their gripes are completely legitimate, in others they’re completely overblown.  Regardless, there are some areas where Microsoft is doing some great things and, unfortunately, they tends to go somewhat unnoticed.  The newest thing I’ve started to really dig is a product of Microsoft’s "Windows Live" initiative.  This isn’t like Xbox Live (though that’s great too) but instead it’s a suite of online and desktop applications that revolve around Internet activity.  Namely email, calendars, online storage, and blogging.  I’ve talked about Windows Live Writer before (I still think it’s the best blogging tool there is, I’m using it to write this) but the rest of the Windows Live experience was sort of under my radar.  That is until I heard Leo Laporte and Paul Thurrott interview Dave Fortin from the Windows Live team, and they were able to discuss a lot of the current and upcoming Windows Live applications.

I had seen the latest revision to Microsoft’s hotmail which I liked, but that alone wasn’t enough to topple Google’s online presence.  Then Dave Fortin talked about the calendar they have integrated with Hotmail and the new SkyDrive which is basically virtual storage space.  You only get a gigabyte through SkyDrive right now but if you’ve ever needed to host some documents, music, or pictures online where you can have access to them from any computer with an internet connection I think it’s a good way to go.  With these breakthroughs in mind I went ahead and created a Live account and I was impressed from the start.  You’re offered a Google IG-like page with a clean interface allowing you to access your upcoming calendar events, your email inbox, your SkyDrive so you can upload and downloaded media, your Windows Live "Space" (think MySpace + blogging), and so forth.  This is all offered in an extremely tidy little page that I think is pretty attractive.  One thing I never liked about Google IG is that when you start adding all of your extra little doodads and widgets the page can become cluttered fast.  That’s not so with your Windows Live homepage.  You can’t really add anything extra (no RSS feed support or anything like that) but I think that’s a definite benefit.  There is however one-button access to composing an email, adding a calendar date, and starting a Windows Live Messenger session (plus more).  Think of Windows Live as your professional online presence where as Google might be your personal.

My favorite part of the package has to be hotmail’s new interface.  You no longer have to use a hotmail ID (though you can use one if you have one, or create a new one).  You can instead sign up for an @live account which allows you to access all of the other features I’ve gone over already.  Hotmail now looks a lot like Windows Mail/Outlook looks on the desktop – except it’s in your browser.  If you’ve ever used an exchange webmail account you’ll be right at home and probably even more so since you can customize the look of your inbox easily.  If you haven’t used exchange what this means is that you can get more robust access to your email.  For instance you can get email previews, little snapshots of your email without actually opening the message.  This comes in incredibly handy when you just need to check a message real quick.  There is also a lot of contact integration.  The other shining star here is the calendar application.  I think it destroys Google calendars personally – it’s easier to manage and much more appealing to the eye which, with a calendar, is key.  Again it’s similar to Outlook calendars you might have used in the past but it’s encapsulated in the browser.  What the Windows Live team has successfully done is come as close to replicating Microsoft’s email client in Vista and XP, only now you can access it in your web browser. 

Still – what if you’re just not one for webmail?  What if you absolutely HAVE to have a desktop email client?  Windows Live has you covered there too with their Windows Live Mail app.  Live Mail is nearly identical to Live Hotmail with one caveat – you can access multiple accounts simultaneously.  After you install Live Mail it will ask you to create or sign into a current Live account (this includes Hotmail), and once you do that you’ll have all of that account’s email right in front of your eyes.  If you want to check a different account all you have to do is click the account drop-down in the top right, click ‘Change Sign-in ID’ and bam you can login to a different account.  The best part about this is that it keeps all of the different accounts in the left pane of the application so you can access messages from different accounts with one session (and one window).  It doesn’t sound like much but it’s another handy feature.

So that’s my Windows Live post.  I’m really getting hooked on it and I wish it would take off and have more success then it currently has.  Windows Live is a shining example that, although Microsoft gets a bad rap online, they’re still doing some pretty cool things.  Give it a look and let me know what you think.  If you’re feeling particularly adventurous you can go ahead and send me an email about it at dmkemick(at)live(dot)com!  I’m trying to get used to using that account more and more as I move forward.  I don’t know if home.live.com will completely replace Gmail for me but at least it’s a nice change.   Also, when I came back to link this post a few hours after I wrote it I noticed that the colors of my Live homepage had changed to a nice darker color to coincide with the weather displayed in the top left corner.  Earlier today the color was a lighter blue and now that it’s night it has changed to a dark blue/purple.  Just another nice little aesthetic touch.

Now Playing:
Flogging Molly – Laura

Google will bid on the wireless spectrum

About a week ago Google finally confirmed that it would bid on the 700mhz spectrum that the FCC was putting on sale starting January 28th of next year.  A lot of people have been anticipating this move, especially while rumors of the Google phone were abound.  The hope of most was that they would bid on and win the spectrum and then use it to provide a free ad-based wireless service (whether for cell phones or internet).  The spectrum was previously used for TV broadcasts but with the move to cable and satellite setups there isn’t much need for that anymore. 

The real question though is if Google will actually put in a legitimate bid for the spectrum or if, after the pressure from analysts if they’ll only put down a bid to show they’re making an effort but not truly pursue it.  That’s not to say that Google couldn’t afford to go all out for it at all, quite the opposite, but it might not be part of their plans.  In just attempting to win the spectrum they could force whoever does win it to keep it open though, which would allow people to use it no matter the device (or application, for that matter).  In this way they can avoid all of the extra hassle and cost of having to maintain their own in-house network and instead take advantage of the open spectrum.

This is all hot off the heals of Google’s petitioning of the FFC to force whoever wins the spectrum to keep it open (contrary to Verizon and AT&T’s hopes).  In order for this to happen Google has to bid at least 4.6 billion for the spectrum and then they can back off.  After that, whoever wins it would have to keep it open.  The question is whether or not 4.6 billion is enough to win the spectrum in the first place.  Most analysts say it’s not – they think the spectrum could go for upwards of 6 billion.  Both Verizon and AT&T are extremely interested in the spectrum because it would be essential to the future of the respective companies so the bidding could go much higher than 6.

I’m rooting for Google to at least make the 4.6 billion play, I’d hate to see the spectrum end up closed to either AT&T or Verizon.  Let’s face it those aren’t exactly the most technologically cutting-edge companies and I’m pretty interested in what Google could do with the spectrum.  Free open wifi?  Yes, please.  Mobile phones with free service based off of an ad-based program?  Yes, please.  Sixty dollars a month for Vcast services with improved speeds?  I think I’ll pass…

Now Playing:
Dropkick Murphys – John Law

Uniting the tribes: ‘World of Call of DutyCraft…5′

The big news in the gaming world this weekend was the merger between Activision (Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, and a slew of licensed games) and the Vivendi Game Unit (which includes Blizzard Entertainment – Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo).  From what I’ve read the name of the new amalgamation will be Activision Blizzard.  I’m not sure how I feel about that name, seems pretty lame and I think it would have been better to just keep the names separate but there you go.  Vivendi will have a 52% ownership of the 18 billion dollar venture which, they say, will be complete by mid-2008.

Why this is important to gamers is that this merger has the potential to overthrow EA as the leading game developer in the industry.  Many people seem to loathe EA for treating their staff poorly (often times firing entire teams after a game is finished, not to mention the brutal work schedules) and for having a monopolistic grip on some areas of the market.  One example of this is EA’s ownership of NFL game licensing which forced game developers like 2k Sports to close up shop on their football franchises.  Other than that I doubt it makes a huge difference to the consumer.  Of course the first reaction from fans of the respective companies’ games was one of concern – everyone just wants to make sure that their work stays consistent.  In order to address these concerns Mike Morhaime (CEO of Blizzard Entertainment) did a little interview to tell everyone things would be alright.  No need to panic.  Business as usual – and so on.

  The other result of the merger is the potential for follow-up titles for the games we already know and love.  Already more or less confirmed on the Activision side of things are Call of Duty 5 and Guitar Hero IV.  Big surprise there, seeing as how those are two of their most successful franchises.  On the Vivendi (read Blizzard) side of things there are rumors of a new MMO to finally overtake World of Warcraft not to mention Starcraft 2.  If you love sequels this merger is for you!  Personally I think an MMO based on Call of Duty would be pretty epic, and hey, they’d kill two birds with one stone.  =)

Now Playing:
Jay-Z – Party Life
Guitar Hero 3, Call of Duty 4, Thief: Deadly Shadows