Posted by Don Kruse on Dec 20, 2008 in Apple, Commentary, MacGeek, Uncategorized | 0 comments
Unlike most of the Macgeeks I know I was not surprised by Mr. Jobs announcement that he will not be giving the keynote speach at MacWorld Expo 2009. I was slightly surprised that Apple says they are pulling out of the MacWorld Expo altogether but you know what? I don’t care.
During the past few year’s MacWorld Expo shows I’ve spent very little time at the typically huge Apple pavilion because the really interesting and exciting stuff is spread all over the rest of the convention floor.
At the show earlier this year I encountered a host of interesting products and emerging technologies that are taking full advantage of either Mac OS X or the Mac hardware or both. The number of products out there for iPods and iPhones is stagering in it’s breadth and depth and quality. At almost every MacWorld Expo I stumble onto some software that I had heard about but never investigated but after using it hands on I buy it before I leave the show floor. Although I rarely ever buy a new computer at the Expo I was very tempted at the show earlier this year.
I might miss Mr. Jobs giving the keynote a little–maybe more than a little–as it is a little bit like getting to see your favorite actor give a talk about his favorite pet project. Could you imagine Charlton Heston coming out to present the MacBook Air? That would be wild but I don’t know if it would help Apple sell more Macs which, like any well managed company, is why they are in business.
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Posted by Don Kruse on Oct 8, 2008 in Commentary, Tech | 0 comments
OK, first things first, what is metadata? For that we turn to everyone’s favorite authority Wikipedia:
Metadata (meta data, meta-data, or sometimes metainformation) is “data about data”, of any sort in any media. An item of metadata may describe an individual datum, or content item, or a collection of data including multiple content items and hierarchical levels, for example a database schema.
For most small businesses I expect they have no idea what metadata is so the small business owner may assume they don’t need to know (“I don’t know what it is so I must not be using it“). Do you ever provide an electronic copy of a Microsoft Word document to a customer or client? If you answered yes then you have exchanged metadata with your customers or clients. Sounds a little like a one night stand doesn’t it?
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Posted by Don Kruse on Sep 9, 2008 in Commentary, MacGeek, Tech | 0 comments
I don’t have any “free” time these days but I was staring at my terminal window and started chuckling when I saw the output displayed in one of the windows. So here it is. Enjoy!
System going down IMMEDIATELY
Posted by Don Kruse on Feb 12, 2008 in Apple, Commentary, Tech | 0 comments
Like many successful businesses, the partners and associates at the firm I support donate to a variety of charities. The senior partner found that there was a need for a non-profit organization to provide a service that was not at the time available. When this non-profit was set up it was incubated within the support structure of the firm and that meant I provided their IT support and advice. Initially many of their technology needs were simply dictated to me so unfortunately I was not able to provide the guidance and development I would have liked to.
I have been thinking about what I would have liked to do and thought my ideas would be both helpful and useful to anyone confronted with a typical non-profit start up dilema: no bucks, no computers, no internet, no technology to communicate with those they wish to serve and those who may want to donate.
So how do you get useful computer technologies into the hands of a freshly started non-profit that may not have significant financial resources available?
To do it right from the start I recommend:
- That you get some donated computers that include a “current” operating system
- Set up a Google Docs account for the staff and volunteers to share
- Include one extra computer to act as a network file server and backup system
- Dig up printers, fax machines, and copiers as necessary
My firm had recently upgraded many of its old computers to newer models so there were several 4-5 year old computers available. All of these computers could run the latest operating system and applications from Apple and third parties. This meant that the non-profit could run any applications that they might need to. Here is a short list of some of the most useful and necessary apps I set them up with:
If you are willing to send a few emails and make a few phone calls you should be able to purchase most of the software at discounts of up to 50% if your non-profit has the appropriate IRS tax status. By using Macs and Mac OS X the non-profit saved the daily hassle and frustration of having to defend against the thousands of computer viruses, trojans, spyware and adware that is out there. Also the Mac OS included applications such as Mail and the Address Book that initially were able to handle the large mailing lists and such the non-profit quickly developed. I later recommended that they switch to an affordable online service for their mailing lists in order to have a better feedback loop with their supporters.
A simple Mac mini with Mac OS X Server and Filemaker Server installed serves up their databases as well as a critical network share. The inexpensive Mac mini combined with an external hard drive is a very affordable and reliable server.
Several of the ISPs providing service at their headquarters location (on an unused floor in the same building as the firm) offered a discounted rate for a non-profit. I have checked around and this is somewhat common in most areas.
Although all the computers used at the non-profit were donated by the firm it wouldn’t have been a problem to reach out to the local community to find other sources for computers. Again it is a matter of having a knowledgeable person who has the time and energy to devote to picking up computers from individuals, businesses and schools.
Before I forget to mention it, what did I do about a web site?
The firm hosts several domains with a hosting provider that offers unlimited domains for a low monthly price. That meant in this case I simply added their domain to our hosting plan and set up an account for them that had administrator access to their domain and email hosting. The senior partner of the firm negotiated a deal with a interactive agency to provide web site design and development at no cost to the non-profit. This is actually version 2.0 of the web site as the initial site was set up by a designer who donated her time as well. Again some legwork, both real and virtual, and good design and services can be found. It is all about being open to opportunities and creative in your approach.
If you are an IT Guy or Gal tasked with setting up a non-profit I feel this process won’t be as hard as you may have first thought. You will be able to get all the gear together in a timely manner at an affordable cost to your non-profit.
And what of the non-profit that was set up by my firm? They have had several successful seminars with notable presenters. The Filemaker Donations solution has helped them track their donors as well as the campaigns conducted to raise funds, the old computers have–mostly–operated flawlessly for the past 2-years, their staff has increased a little bit and they are planning future events and seminars to get their message out.
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Posted by Don Kruse on Jan 20, 2008 in Apple, Commentary | 0 comments
I finished all the seminars and toured the two show floors one more time and found a few more things to share.
In the opening day MacIT Administrator session we learned is that starting in 2009 two new ships of the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line will be outfitted with 2905 Apple Mac minis and 2200 Apple TVs. Um, yes that is not a typo. The Mac mini and Apple TVs will be used to drive HDTV displays used throughout the new ships to provide helpful information as well as entertainment. This set up also includes 50 Mac Xserves on the back end serving up all the content. The tech guy from Royal Caribbean says going this route over using a Windows based system is saving them hundreds of thousands of dollars (mostly in licensing fees paid to Microsoft). If you want to know more about this just head over to TUAW.
Need to take a nap? Need to take a high tech nap?
Each Pod has a Mac mini inside that plays ambient music, colored lights that glow across the dome as you nap, and it even controls the temperature of the bed.
This guy drew the picture on the display seen in the photo in about 20 seconds. It is a very good sketch of the guy speaking a few feet away. He drew it directly on the screen on this highly modified (“modded”) MacBook. These modded MacBooks are from Axiotron.
I decided that actually the new MacBook Air is thinner than my iPhone.
I’m going to have to take out a second mortgage to pay for all these gadgets. 
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Posted by Don Kruse on Jan 18, 2008 in Apple, Commentary | 0 comments
I’d like to thank a few people: My mom for buying me lunch on Tuesday, Junsong Xue for taking care of dinner with my parents and I at the restaurant he manages after our service got a bit slow Joseph Cohen, his lovely assistant and dad for some great geek talk over breakfast on Wednesday, and my friend Chris Colvin for buying me dinner on Thursday night and of course the partners for sending me on this trip to expand my knowledge and learn about cool gadgets.
Speaking of cool gadgets: The Incline laptop support. It weighs seemingly nothing yet supports a laptop in style and keeps it cool while being cool.
I thought it was really impresive that when I asked if they had any good pictures of this laptop support they simply handed me a CD with all their PR images. I was impressed with how well prepared they were. Especially with such a small niche product from a small company.
Also Griffin Technology has many nice iPod accessories for you, your car, and your home. I also liked KB Covers at last years show and they had even more nice keyboard covers at this year’s show (the whole business just seems to be run by one guy). Tunewear for having the widest selection of covers and cases for iPhones, iPods, and the iTouch and for selling me one for really really cheap. Microsoft finally released their updated Microsoft Office for Mac and it is much better than the Windows version they released last year. And don’t forget about Apple for introducing six new incredible products:
There was only one session on Friday as the other one I wanted to attend was cancelled.
IT864: Version Control via Workgroup Services – Tracking File Changes Automatically
This session explains specifically how to setup and use the Wiki server, augmented accounts, group sites, and group calendaring to enable versioning control in a variety of departments-for example a Catalog department, to automatically extract accounts out of AD, assign them to custom groups, and allow management of each group to manage the Wiki and calendars. This permits users to view and edit various versions of documents and can be used to track each version for legal or auditing purposes. This methodology applies to any area users require version control, good calendaring, and can be applied across almost any platform.
Sara Porter, Musician’s Friend
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