I’ve posted some pictures that we took at MINIs On Top 2006 last weekend on my Flickr.
Archive for June, 2006
MINIs On Top 2006 Pictures
Sunday, June 18th, 2006OSX Password Manager
Sunday, June 11th, 2006The first thing I did after configuring my MBP with my AP was to google roboform+osx. Nothing of value came back. Well it’s been about two of weeks and I still have a couple of hundred passwords to enter into Keychain. Ugg, not fun.
Keychain is nice but it’s functionality (afaik) is sorta limited. For instance, I can’t use the Keychain with Firefox and Keychain doesn’t support multiple passwords per site.
I really miss RoboForm. So just for fun I googled again and this time a few links from the top was a link to 1Passwd. At last, a Mac password manager! 1Passwd works with Safari and Firefox, and it imports RoboForm data. Hallelujah.
As soon as 1Passwd reaches GM, my order is going in.
Chicago Motorola Q and Nokia Stores
Saturday, June 10th, 2006
I had the chance to stop by the new Motorola Destination Q store on Michigan Avenue last Thursday. The first thing I realized upon reaching Destination Q was that it was being housed inside what used to be the Terra Museum. It felt really wierd walking into the what used to be the Terra. How sad.
Anyways, Destination Q certainly isn’t the Apple Store. One whole table of about 6 or so Q’s were dead and no one seemed interested in helping me find a working Q. Walk into any Apple Store and every device on display will have power and work. And, you won’t find any GSM devices here… Destination Q is more of a glorified, Q-centric, Verizon Wireless store.
Q’s exclusivity as a mobile device store on Michigan Avenue will soon end however. The Nokia Flagship Store is set to open on June 24. Now that should be worth visiting!
Upgrading MacBook Pro Memory
Monday, June 5th, 2006
Who wants to spend $300 for 1GB of Apple branded ram? Not me! So, I checked the reviews at Newegg.com and gave Fry’s a call to see what they had in stock. Fry’s has a liberal return policy and I decided to buy what they had (Patriot, Mushkin, and Corsair), test, then return the ram that didn’t work. I also purchased 512MB of Apple branded memory ($90) just in case the Fry’s stuff didn’t work.
First up was the Patriot 1GB 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300). I turned on my MacBook Pro and it seemed to boot okay… but then it stopped. An error message telling me there was a hardware problem appeared. I shutdown the MPB, reseated the ram and turned the MBP on again. The same error message appeared. Strike one, that was the end of that test.
Next I tried the CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300). No error messages this time – good! So, I booted the MBP into the Apple Hardware Test. I tested the memory 5 times with the Apple Hardware Test and each time the extended memory test failed. I reseated the memory, swapped sticks, nothing worked. I guess the Corsair memory won’t work either. Strike two.
I really wanted one of these three brands to work… the Mushkin was all that I had left. But it didn’t work either and after another 30 minutes of failed testing I gave up. Strike three on the Mushkin ram.
In the end, I returned all the ram I purchased from Fry’s along with the 512MB Apple ram (why spend $90 for 512MB?). I think I’ll call Other World Computing. More to come!
MacBook Pro at Last
Saturday, June 3rd, 2006If my memory serves me correctly (as they say on Iron Chef) I think it was about one year ago when I last considered buying a Mac notebook. I very much remember visiting my local Apple Store the night before a long business trip to Asia. But I decided to wait and left the Apple Store empty handed, without a PowerBook. And as it turns out, that was the right thing to do.
So with the transition to Intel in full swing over at Steveland, I figured now was the right time and returned to my local Apple Store. The difference this time is that I left with a 15-inch MacBook Pro in hand. And let me just say, I couldn’t be happier!
Aside from the 3rd degree burns I’m developing on my legs from the intense heat this thing pumps out, this is probably the nicest notebook I’ve ever used. The screen is gorgeous and the keyboard it perfect with just the right feedback. As I like to say, it’s high quality.
For those considering a MacBook Pro, try to find one built just recently. I have a week 17 build and have no issues! Of course, your mileage may vary, but I’ve read of some problems from machines built during weeks 1 through 16 in 2006. This whole week thing brings back fond memories of my MINI purchase 
