a few things

On Sunday, I tried out Skype for the first time. I had installed it on my laptop and gotten a headset and microphone earlier in the week because I had a phone interview with Susan Werner scheduled on Saturday. I thought I could use Skype and record the conversation to my laptop. Instead, I ended … Continue reading “a few things”

On Sunday, I tried out Skype for the first time. I had installed it on my laptop and gotten a headset and microphone earlier in the week because I had a phone interview with Susan Werner scheduled on Saturday. I thought I could use Skype and record the conversation to my laptop. Instead, I ended up using a speaker phone and recording the conversation to minidisc. So, it wasn’t until Sunday that I decided to give it a go and call my parents via Skype’s free domestic calls special (until the end of the year). Impressive. The sound quality was better than what I usually get on my cheap cell phone.

The interview with Susan Werner was awesome and a lot of fun. My week has been a bit much, but I hope to have the transcript transcribed and edited for public consumption by Saturday. It will be posted here as well as on Blogcritics.org. If you haven’t downloaded Susan’s alternative national anthem (“My Strange Nation”) yet, do it now.

Also on Sunday, I decided I’d better finally watch the two Netflix DVDs I’ve had for nearly two months. That was when I discovered I had misplaced them. After a frantic ten minute search of the house, I gave up and instead watched some stuff I’d downloaded a while ago. I let it simmer until last night, when in a flash of insight after some more searching I remembered one more place I might have stashed them, and there they were. However, by that point it was nearing midnight and I decided that Battlestar Galactica and Crash can wait for the weekend. Particularly since I’ll have Monday off, too!

frustration

I alternately want to throw the monitor displaying the useless manual out the window or burst into tears.

My library purchased the ERM module for III last year. I had a couple of hours of WebEx training in April or May. My notes from it are obscure and useless. I’ve been putting off implementing ERM because it is overwhelmingly huge. Today I decided to try creating some ERM records for an ejournal package rather than simply attaching separate order records to the print bibs. Less than forty-five frustrating minutes later, I have no records created and I am fighting against collapsing into a quivering pile. I alternately want to throw the monitor displaying the useless manual out the window or burst into tears.

I think I need to take some St. John’s Wort and come at this again some other day.

how popular are you?

I heard a piece this evening on Future Tense about a website where you can see how you rank against all AIM users. AIM Fight scores you based on how many buddy lists include your screen name. The commentators noted that youth are more likely to have high scores compared to adults since youth use … Continue reading “how popular are you?”

I heard a piece this evening on Future Tense about a website where you can see how you rank against all AIM users. AIM Fight scores you based on how many buddy lists include your screen name.

The commentators noted that youth are more likely to have high scores compared to adults since youth use AIM and other instant message systems to communicate with each other. I wish more of my friends and colleagues were online and using AIM/MSN/Yahoo instant messengers. Sometimes instant message is the best way to contact someone with a quick question or comment.

My score is 647 – what’s yours?

future of cell phones

Talk of the Nation had an interesting segment today on the future of cell phones. Jenny will be pleased to know that guest Walt Mossberg uses a Treo. The audio is available after 6pm Eastern. You could also look and see if a radio station will be broadcasting the show online in the next few … Continue reading “future of cell phones”

Talk of the Nation had an interesting segment today on the future of cell phones. Jenny will be pleased to know that guest Walt Mossberg uses a Treo. The audio is available after 6pm Eastern. You could also look and see if a radio station will be broadcasting the show online in the next few hours, if you’re eager to listen right now. RSS for the show is also available, if you’re interested.

Ooh! I just noticed that my favorite public radio tool now lists public radio podcasts.

reading your phone

“Ulysses” not likely to be a first choice, but some are reading ebooks on their cell phones.

I heard a report today on the Marketplace Morning Report that cell phone users in Japan are using their phones to read ebooks. The reporter also spoke with an American author who is tailoring his writing to the length of what users are willing to read on a small screen.

I would prefer to read on my PDA, since the screen is larger and I’d have it with me on my hypothetical commutes to and from work, anyway.

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