Nothing seems to be working

Maybe its the "Maintenance on Saturday" thing Blogger posted. Only its 1:00 PM and it was scheduled for noon Pacific time. Should have been done at 11 am. But I can't update my blog, or add Technorati.

Will this post eventually make it online?

My Palm Treo 700p

For a guy who passionately hates cell phones this is way more than I'll ever need. After the first night of playing with it I had to run out the next day and buy a 2 gig SD card just to keep playing. It was addictive. The amount of shit this thing can do is nothing short of astounding. I'm sure I haven't scratched the surface.

I love having the camera and email functions in one place, as you can probably tell by the amount of pictures on this blog. The Palm Treo makes that possible.

The audio feature and the amount of storage space available has made this phone my MP3 Player. Now I can listen to Stephen Leeb drone on about the Coming Economic Collapse and how to survive when oil is $200 a barrel anywhere. YAY!

Let me just say, Wireless Email! I love it. For some people maybe these features are available on their phones but to go from pre-paid cell phone to this is like sending a man to the moon in a tin can with computers running on vacuum tubes. Unbelievable.

And it makes phone calls too.

Problems:

It stops sending and receiving text messages and I have to take the battery out and and do a hard restart to get it working again. then when someone sends me a message all the ones I missed come cascading in at once. The only other person I know of who owns the Palm Treo 700 has the same problem.

I tried using the recording feature to sample a song intro to create my own ringtone and the sound quality was horrendous. Why can't I associate MP3's as ringtones?

Manual says it can sync with your address book in Outlook but it doesn't work if you only have Outlook Express and use the Windows Address Book. I had to go through several hundred contacts and move their information around into the right fields. (After working one day for 2 hours and coming close to finishing the Palm software froze and I lost all that work.)

If there is a way to assign contacts to multiple groups I haven't found it.

If the camera has a zoom option why not the video camera?

Wi-Fi Hot Spots in Southern New England

After moving out of my apartment into a trailer in my friends backyard I had to find some way to stay connected to the net. Easy answer for my mobile computing needs was Wi-Fi. Slip a card into my laptop and I'm ready to go.

The best part is not being connected now at the new apartment. I can get work done without being interrupted by email (and I turn the ringer on my cell phone off). I finish my tasks and make a list of what I need to do online. Then believe it or not I usually stick to it which saves me tons of wasted time being sucked into web page after web page.

Mostly what I look for is free Wi-Fi access, but there are more if you are willing to pay. For instance there is a Borders bookstore next door to the Panera Bread in North Attleboro but they charge, so Panera gets the money I spend on lunch. I love Borders but I get most of my books on Amazon anyway.

So here's a short list for anyone in the area. I'll update it as I come across more in the Attleboro, MA and Northern Rhode Island area.

#1 - Pawtucket Library Don't have their address right now
#2 - Panera Bread North Attleborough 1250 South Washington Street North Attleborough MA 02760
#3 - Ground Round/Comfort Inn 2 George Street Pawtucket RI 02860
#4 - Providence Public Library Main floor West Reading Room login:westreading pass:wireless Dowstairs in Adult Reading Room login:empire pass:wireless
#5 - Brown University Libraries College Street Providence RI 02912
#6 - Providence College, Phillips Memorial Library 549 River Avenue Providence RI 02918
#7 - Rhode Island College, James P. Adams Library 600 Mount Pleasant Avenue Providence RI 02908

I'm pretty sure there are a few coffee houses with internet access to, and someone mentioned McDonalds.

Try looking on Jwire for more suggestions or to find something closer to you.

At the Altar of Information

17 Stories Lugging Books

Handicap Highrise, Central Sq. Cambridge.

Astors Beechwood Mansion

Working the Newport Mansions can be a drag. Last night was a $25,000 a table fundraiser, tonight its outdoor lighting for a wedding being held inside. Its cold enough that I doubt many people will come out to enjoy my work.