However, this is all a complete waste of time, energy, and money if the person doesn’t know how to use it effectively. I am an extremely competent computer user. I know how to do all kinds of things with my computer. I do not, by any means, know how to do everything on the computer. Something that still to this day that causes me no end of grief is anything related to graphics. Yes, I can crop and resize a photo or even change formats and that type of thing. But don’t ask me to make massive edit on a photo. That’s not my thing. However, I know how to do many of other things. I do not expect people to know how to do everything; however, they should not be scared to learn when the computer can make a difference and how to make it get the job done.

I would love to help people know more about how to use their computer, but the problem is that I never know where to start. If you start at too basic of a level, you make people feel stupid. I don’t view them as stupid; I just don’t know what they know. And if they don’t have the appropriate level of knowledge then it makes it hard to add to that knowledge. It’s similar to learning to cook. If you don’t know how to operate a stove you are severely limited in what you can make. If you know how to use the oven, a bread maker, a toaster, a blender, a whisk and ingredients you can certainly make more complex and tasty meals. You shouldn’t have to be a sou chef, but, being able to make more than a peanut butter and jelly sandwich could be good as well. In the end, people need to look at the computer as a tool to be used and not as something that is too complex for them to understand.

10 Most Awesome iPhone Apps of 2008: “

The iPhone alone is an amazing device. But it’s the phenomenal App Store that’s made the iPhone truly revolutionary, by giving thousands of independent developers the ability extend and transform the device with their creativity.

Not even half a year old, the store has surpassed a milestone of 10,000 pieces of software available. Since the beginning, Wired.com has paid close attention to the gems that shine among the dross.

We’ve plucked out a list of 10 apps — from mapping software to musical instruments to games — that deserve applause for their quality, innovation and breakthrough achievements. Here they are — Jay Leno style — with our top pick at the very bottom.

10. Stanza
A book reader that grabs free titles from public domains, Stanza has soared in popularity — making the iPhone a worthy competitor to Amazon’s Kindle. And if those free books aren’t enough, Stanza recently expanded to incorporate a store to purchase commercial titles. The app did a good job pleasing Wired.com’s Charlie Sorrel, who modified his Moleskine notebook so he could embed his iPod touch in it. (That way, he could read e-books
at the cafe while exuding an aura of pretentious artiness, instead of pretentious geekiness.) Download Stanza (Free)

9. SayWhere
You get used to typing on the iPhone after some time, but punching in addresses to look up directions is by far the biggest drag. DialDirections was the first to introduce speech-recognition capabilities to the iPhone with SayWhere, which translates users’ speech into queries for Google Maps, Yelp, Traffic or Yellow Pages. It’s a nifty app, especially for keeping drivers’ eyes on the road rather than the iPhone’s virtual keyboard. Download SayWhere (Free)

8. Tweetie
Twitter, a new form of micro-blogging, became more legitimate when it broke the news of the deadly Mumbai attacks. And Tweetie is the best app we’ve found to follow your Twitter friends. The app neatly separates Twitter feeds
into categories, and the interface resembles the bubbly iChat interface that most of us have come to love. It even lets you search Twitter and save those searches for later. A must-have for Twitterholics.’ Download Tweetie ($3)’ ‘

7. NetShare
This app is so cool you can’t have it anymore. Nullriver’s NetShare, an application that turns your iPhone into a wireless modem, disappeared from the App Store shortly after its release. Later, we learned Apple banned the app because NetShare violated AT&T’s terms of service agreement. So only a lucky few (including some Wired.com staff) got the benefits of unlimited iPhone tethering, which normally costs about $30 a month, for
a one-time price of $10. Bummer!

6. Shazam
Everyone’s familiar with this scenario: You hear a
really catchy, unfamiliar song on the radio and you have no idea what it’s called. You hum it to yourself repeatedly and attempt to memorize the lyrics, only to forget it after slamming a few shots at the bar. Shazam will never leave you struggling to recollect these thoughts
again: Hold the iPhone up to a speaker playing the unknown tune and the app will identify it — album, artist and song title — just like that. Download Shazam (Free)

5. Ocarina
The hottest music app in the App Store, Ocarina
thought beyond the iPhone’s touchscreen and found a unique way to use the handset’s microphone. Blowing into the mic simulates the experience of tooting into a flute; you play around with four virtual ‘holes’ on the screen to change the note. Ocarina users around the world can even hear what you’re playing in a globe mode. It takes a while to get a hang of it, but Ocarina gives away just how creative iPhone apps can get so long as developers have enough imagination. Download Ocarina ($1)

4. TapTapRevenge
You’d have to be living on a different planet (or a retirement home) if you haven’t heard of Guitar Hero, the game that gets players to twitch their fingers compulsively along with the beat of their favorite songs. Developer Tapulous took the same idea to make an extremely addictive rhythm game called Tap Tap Revenge. Tapping blinking lights on a screen to catch tunes isn’t exactly the same as rocking out on plastic guitars and drum pads, but it’s still highly addictive. And Tap Tap Revenge is so popular it’s even offering the option to download new tracks to tap to, similar to Guitar Hero and Rock Band’s music stores. Download TapTapRevenge (Free)

3. Trism
Trism is such an addictive and appealing game that it blessed its developer Steve Demeter with $250,000 in profit in just two months. And deservedly so, because the game’s really well designed and plays something like a Bejeweled
with an accelerometer to move around the puzzle pieces. It wouldn’t be fair to call it one game, either: There are three different modes to keep you hooked. Download Trism ($3)

2. Pandora
Whoa whoa whoa — free downloaded music on a portable device? You don’t say. Pandora’s alternative music distribution made this happen, and the app is cool as hell on the iPhone. Add a station for an artist you like, and the app will play that artist’s music as well as similar tunes you might like. What better way to find new music with the wealth of new bands out there? Download Pandora (Free)

1. Google Earth
When Steve Jobs called the iPhone ‘Your life in your pocket,’ he probably didn’t expect Google to deliver the world
in your pocket. Well, virtually. Displaying satellite imagery around the world in a 3-D globe, Google Earth is one of the most intense, mindblowing apps that truly shows off the powers of the iPhone. If you want to impress your grandmother with a demonstration of just how far technology has come since she was a girl, this ought to do the trick. Download Google Earth (Free)

”

(Via Wired News.)

Vatican embraces iTunes prayer book: “Roman Catholic church embraces Apple iPhone technology

The Vatican has given Roman Catholics its blessing to worship via their Apple iPhone and iPod touch.

”

(Via Macworld UK.)

A fact has become recently insistent and apparent. Paper has a purpose. Paper is heavy, unsearchable, bulky and takes up a massive amount of space. However, there is one quality of paper that almost makes up for all of this. It’s convenient. For a long time I used a paper day planner from Franklin Covey. Actually, for those of you who are familiar with this product, I started using a “Franklin” back when the company was called “The Franklin International Institute.” Back then there was only one planner size and the catalog was hole punched to fit in the planner.

Well, I had not be using one religiously over the last few years being convinced that I didn’t need one any longer and technology could fill the gap. Oh, my, was I wrong. I love my laptop, I love my iPhone. However, my laptop is a bit difficult to carry around and pull out to take a quick note. And the one thing that the iPhone doesn’t do well is notes. The Calendar is great, OmniFocus on the iPhone is awesome. The address book is awesome. But taking a note and then doing anything with it later, is a nightmare.

So the Day Planner is back. Mainly because there are a few things that are easier to do, like take notes about something quickly. Running around seeing clients all day and taking phone calls it’s easy to forget or loose something. A particular shortcoming of mine is being overloaded with information and by the time comes to perform the first task there have been fifteen other things added to the list and the first one is lost in the black hole of my brain.

Last week I placed the order for the 2009 planner which arrived yesterday. I have it setup and am currently attempting to figure out how to incorporate Getting Things Done with my paper planner. Getting Things done is a great capture methodology but I have trouble with the other pieces. But I’m planning on rereading the book again and seeing if I can pick up some things I might have missed.

I have been using the Franklin Day Planner for almost 20 years now and so I’m very comfortable with the format and layout. There are many other options as well, but I chose the one I was most comfortable with. I’m really interested in hearing your thoughts and ideas on how to stay organized and track what you need to do on a daily basis. I’m trying to decide currently on if I should transcribe my daily notes into the computer for future reference or if I should just skip it. I’m pretty obsessive, so I’ll probably end up typing them. Then the question becomes, where do I put them.

I love the note taking ability in Mail on OS X. I’m not sure what the deal is here. Why in the world don’t the notes sync between the computer and iPhone? I find myself having to carry a pad of paper because I want to be able to make a note to myself and then put it on my MacBook Pro where it has some finctionality to me. Like being able to make tasks and such. That’s another problem, but I use OmniFocus so I care less about tasks than I do about notes. I was seriously hoping that this would be fixed with this latest update. But no go.

Come on Apple, Seriously, fix this. Soon, PLEASE!

— Post From My iPhone

I am really impressed with the design. I spent much time setting it up and copying things over from his PC. So I really got to use it for several hours. It is very light. When you pick it up by one corner, like you really shouldn’t do with a laptop, it doesn’t bend; it’s very stiff.

Speaking of stiff and ridged. One of the things I was most impressed by was the palm rest. On many laptops, including my 17″ MacBook Pro and my Titanium 1Ghz PowerBook, was the “mushy” feeling of the palm rest. They never feel as if they are solid in that area. Not the new MacBook Pro, it’s very solid. It doesn’t give at all when you rest your wrists on the laptop.

The most difficult thing for me to get used to was the new trackpad. The trackpad feels luxurious, the feel of it is amazing. The most difficult part of using it was getting used to the “click.” Some of that is easy to get used to, but you have to really retain yourself to use it. But, unlike the trackpads that I have on my MacBook Pro, the feel is better. I think with prolonged use, I would get used to the “click” feature. It’s just such a complete change in how a trackpad works that it will take time to get used to.

Overall, I’m very excited about the new design. I really want one and can’t wait to get my hands on one of my very own. Anyone want to buy an upgraded 17″ MacBook Pro?

Vertabrae bathroom system for really small bathrooms: “

After our post on the hideaway sink ran two weeks ago, we received an email from one of our readers asking us if we had seen the Vertabrae® bathroom system. We hadn’t yet seen it, and we thought you might want to see it too. The Vertabrae system is an incredibly compact and vertical bathroom unit that houses just about everything you need in your bathroom. The design is by Paul Hernon of Design Odyssey Ltd.

More information on the Vertabrae:

This stylish aluminum sculpture of seven stacked modules that rotate from the center ‘spinal column,’ has every basic item you need in a bathroom, plus it leaves you some room to bend down to touch your toes without hitting your head on the way up.

With a toilet, sink and two modules (one for children), the Vertibrae gives most of the space in your bathroom right back to you. And the Vertebrae even provides some space for shower, bath, shaving, and cosmetic products right along the column. Cleaning supplies and your favorite toilet paper… in the cupboards under the toilet seat.

Thanks to reader Richard for sharing this interesting concept with us.

”

(Via Unclutterer.)