Daily Archives: July 5, 2005

Almost everyone I know has a WiFi network in their house. For under $100.00 you can turn your wired mess into a personal internet hotspot. Most people plug in their newly purchased routers, turn on the computer, and start surfing the web. An unencrypted network is not an uncommon occurrence. What most people don’t know about is “wardriving” (driving around looking for unencrypted WiFi networks).

Illegal activity can be conducted on your open network unless you take a few precautions. Some people ask me, “is it illegal to steal WiFi if your neighbor doesn’t have a password on their network?” I answer that I don’t know. But one guy got charged a 3rd degree felon for doing so.

I love text messaging. When my friends tell me how to get somewhere, I tell them to text it to me. Need a phone number? Text it to me. Talking on the phone not only requires 70% of my attention, but it also eliminates my memory from distorting the vital information I retrieve via voice calls. “Was that address 1904 or 1409?”

Text messaging brings evils along with good. I’ve sent personal messages [hey cute stuff? Doing anything tonight?] to Christine my 50ish year old co-worker instead of Christine the cute freshman who I met at summer orientation. Or after a few drinks at the bar I may send a message to that girl who broke my heart last month. You all know how embarrassing that phone call is the next day “Do you know what you texted me last night?”

Samsung has fixed it, or wants to in the near future. Retract your SMS text messages with Samsung’s new patented idea. You’d have to act rather quickly, if the message is already read, then it’s just too late.

Mobiado does not make phones for cretins like you or I. No, they make only the finest of dialing devices for those who sip on champagne and at night have caviar dreams. The phone you see below combines a hardwood cover with stainless steel buttons to create the Grey Poupon of cell phones.

Despite being made of wood the technology is up-to-date. It isn’t anything amazing, but I guess it’s a little bit more classy than the phones with the flashing blue raver lights.

Ever sit in a WiFi café and wonder what that cutie over in the corner is working on? WiFi access points are becoming more and more abundant, which allows more of us to get out of the house and on to the net. “Computers are fabulous at connecting people over a long distance, but they can become a wall between people who are sitting right next to each other.” This quote is oh so true, I’ve been caught a few times doing just that.

Computers are sight, sound, and touch, so unless I’m smelling or tasting the person next to me they pretty much don’t exist. Well there’s a beginning to the end of this as far as Sean Savage is concerned. Bringing people together by the very means that pushes them apart, is his mission. You login and create a friendster-type account with the café’s system, then proceed to asking cute girls for their phone numbers. Great idea, if you ask me.

I have had a ton of jobs, from drive thru, to car wash, and even library security. With each paycheck came a boss. Sometimes I had a bad boss, and sometimes I had a good boss. I came across an interesting article written by Edward Prewitt today, regarding bosses. Prewitt noted something about techies that I found not only very true, but also quite comedic.

They [techies] thrive on challenges, get absorbed in what they are doing and aren’t primarily motivated by money. It follows that to keep these staffers happy, CIOs need only keep the challenges coming and (this is critical) avoid micromanagement. “If you know how to work with techies, they are the easiest kind of employees to motivate,” Jeff Chasney, CIO and executive VP of CKE Restaurants, said in an earlier CIO magazine story. “They don’t need cushy perks, personal recognition or bonuses; they thrive on creatively solving problems.”