photo credit: ODHD

Once upon a time I bought a shiny new MacBook Pro. I bought it because although I’ve been a PC user for over 20 years, I needed a laptop and also to be able to test how my websites look on a Mac.  I didn’t believe all the Mac-lover hype – in fact I find the whole love-in kind of obnoxious – but I do agree Macs are well-designed things of beauty, so I figured, why not.

That was almost 2 years ago, and I’m still not comfortable using the darn thing. I didn’t take a full plunge into adapting to it and so it only gets used quite occasionally for testing sites and travel. But even then – when I travel I don’t do the kind of work (neither type nor volume) I do at home. Kind of a chicken-or-egg thing, really. I never took the time to settle into the machine so it’s unproductive for me, hence I expect to be unproductive with it. I don’t go to internet cafes and do the modern mobile worker thing as much as I could if I slogged through the set up and studied the envious, mysterious ways of a Laptop Bedouin.

Now on top of all that, my PC really needs an upgrade and TLC. And I’m planning to move my home office, but don’t want to make my sweetheart pull any wiring, so that got me looking at wireless gadgets for the desktop… and well, I figure I really should have a proper go at adapting to this machine.

I spent time today arranging file structures, looking for software options, etc. I’m slowly getting better with the shortcuts and interface differences. I find “Finder” confusing sometimes; like how to move folders around to very disconnected spots (like the cut and paste in Windows). I seem to have lost one folder that displayed a “poof” and I’m not sure where it ended up. Probably something that’s uber-obvious to a Mac user… But this is the kind of thing I point out when people rave about how eeeaaasy Macs are vs. PCs. Macs take learning too, and if someone who’s very comfortable learning new software on-the-fly like myself can have trouble, that claim is too simplistic.

So if there’s any Mac-savvy readers among you, I’d love your input on software and tips.

Here’s what I have installed

• NeoOffice – just today, we’ll see how it goes
• CyberDuck
• TextWrangler – not sure how I like the integration with Cyberduck, maybe need to configure better or something
• Photoshop of course
• Parallels to run Windows

I also need some time tracking software. I’m used to TimeSlice for Windows. I’d like a desktop app so I can track time when I’m offline too. I downloaded TimePost and discovered it’s really ONLY meant for integration with online services like FreshBooks. I might go there, but until I do it’s kinda useless.  I installed Time Trek and it seemed confusing. Now I’m looking at Fanurio and OfficeTime. Any suggestions?

Hardware-wise, I need to attach the MacBook to a keyboard and monitor for when I’m at home. Or maybe just put it on some kind of riser that keeps it at a better angle for typing. I hate typing on this thing with the edge of the laptop pushing into my arms. Any tips on external monitors or docking stations or really, anything that might make a person love their Mac are most welcome

…on the Web, most people are bozos and not worth listening to.

A snippet from Why Web 2.0 Can Be Dangerous.

Now slightly annoying has become a major issue for me because I can’t create events unless they exist in a known city. The customer service rep told me to “choose a supported network nearby”, and “We hope to add that city in our next network expansion.”. The Sunshine Coast looks close to Vancouver on a map, but being dependent on a ferry ride between, it’s not a trivial distance. Not like we’re a suburb. So there’s really no point in me creating events at all. And of course being excited about the possibility of events promotion, I was planning to promote the feature to others through my use etc.

I can’t help but think there’s a better way to handle the growth of networks than by waiting for Facebook to create them. Surely some kind of tagging model, maybe with some moderation for misspellings or something… something a bit more organic, would foster greater adoption of the network-dependent features. (Hmm maybe something like how Google suggests search terms could help…)

I suggest moderation etc. because I realize there are issues to be faced with this idea. I worked years ago on a system that let users type in their cities during account creation, and the typos alone made it an unmanageable mess for reporting… But I think the viral growth and scale of a site like Facebook absolutely needs a better solution to the question of where my event is happening. Because now, according to Facebook, it’s just not.

Makerra is enthralled with Webkinz. (You should have seen the excitement of the girls at her school fair over the giant basket of Webkinz on raffle… she’s not alone!) Quite the marketing strategy: it’s a physical toy that kids will love, which comes with a code for the Webkinz website. On the site the child gets a matching virtual pet to care for. So they have to keep coming back to ensure it’s fed etc. This is cleverly entwined with some social networking — the kid’s friends can send them notes and virtual goodies within the site. The site is *so* 8-year-old girl.

One of the most interesting moments for me was when I saw Makerra go to Google (unusual in itself since it seems computer time was synonymous with Webkinz…) and type in “webkinz”. “What are you searching for?” I asked. “Oh,” she said, “Webkinz was slow so I’m just restarting it.” What an interesting way to think of a search engine.

Have you noticed the demise of the Flash intro? A couple of years ago, they were everywhere. I have asked thousands of people in some 35 countries what they do when they see a Flash intro. “Skip intro” is the universal reply.

Go, Gerry go! Excerpt from “Graphic design plays a minor role on the Web” by Gerry McGovern.

Lively panel discussion about building usability in organizations. Fitting, given the team envy which had set in during the morning discussion… Nice to hear that others feel like their organizational politics present a huge battle. OK not nice but reassuring.

Early to bed last night. Must be adjusting to the timezone now… it’s 4:47 Pacific and I’m half ready to go out the door.

The data showed that the average consumer paid far more attention to the superficial aspects of a site, such as visual cues, than to its content. For example, nearly half of all consumers (or 46.1%) in the study assessed the credibility of sites based in part on the appeal of the overall visual design of a site, including layout, typography, font size and color schemes.

(More study details)

This is good for visual designers – an educated business owner is likely to appreciate this as proven value of our services. But, it’s not so good for consumers who should be taking more care with who they trust online.

Related links:
http://captology.stanford.edu/
http://www.webcredibility.org/guidelines/index.html

On the Web, the task is everything and you must focus
relentlessly on it. Your arch enemies are statements like: “They might be interested in this; Some people come to our website looking for information.” Nobody that matters comes to your website looking for information. They come because they have a task they want to complete. All information must serve task completion. Websites that are full of aimless, vague information are a waste of time, effort and money. They should be shut down.

Perhaps this post is ironic on a weblog which doesn’t have much in the way of tasks… I’m a woman of contradictions I guess