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August 18th, 2010
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Categories: Uncategorized
A Father’s Day Message – God’s Blessings to All
June 20th, 2010
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Father’s Day is here and felt it fitting to write about what this day means to me. Last night, I sat awake thinking about the future and my first born, Andrew who is now 10 years old and on his way to the 5th grade. In 8 short years, he will be graduating from high school and moving on to college and out of the home and for me, that was a frightening thought that brought instant sadness to my heart.
This sadness welled up from a flood of images and memories of a little boy watering his dad’s roses, and another of a 3 year old, in rain gear, stomping around puddles at our Roseville, CA home. The thought of seeing my son walk away from me, pained me to no end. Even now, writing about it, hurts. I cannot keep him forever and at some point, I will have to let go as he begins to take flight without Mom or Dad around. For years, this life has been dependent on me and has given me his unconditional love. What am I so afraid of? If we walk in GOD’s light and I have taught him 1/2 of what was given to me from my parents, then he will truly be a wonderful responsible person.
I was blessed to know my father for 32 years before his passing in late 2004. I still find myself at odds with his passing, wrestling with the thought that he simply gave up his life without fighting. Maybe he was just too tired, or he listened to all the pessimists about his prognosis. But I reflect on the good times that we did have together and the times that he was there and shared in my joys, my sorrows, and through it all, I know I could count on my father. My father was cut from different stock than our overly politically correct society is today. At times, in passing, it seems odd how we interacted, but from his standpoint, he was doing everything taught to him by his father. I didn’t play catch with my dad in the front yard. We didn’t build model airplanes together. I don’t remember one time my father got down on his hands and knees and played with my cars or action figures. Did that make him a poor father? No. It was the societal norm at that time. He was there to carry me when I stepped on a nail. He was there to pray to GOD over my broken jaw from a Little League mis-hap. He was there at the football games and supported his children in anyway he could.
As I started to have children, I had no idea that the amount of love I could have in my heart could expand so much. There are three large events in my life that mean the world to me and for better or worse, make me who I am:
- Marrying Cynthia Page
- The death of my parent in 2004
- The births of my children
I placed those out of order, because on this Father’s Day, it is very important that we celebrate the trials and the tribulations that have befallen us and prepare for those still yet to come. Being a father means knowing your boundaries in being a good friend or being a good model for your children. Having a balance and rearing your children to such a degree that when I am 50, looking back on my children, I will without a doubt be proud of the experiences and the love I shared. If you can do that – then you have done a great job.
If you think that when you are 50, you could have done things differently, or you should have been more patient (as I need to be still), then it is not to late to make that change – for you and for your children. As Whitney Houston has sung, the children are our future and their loving upbringing will be our legacy to this world – we get one shot at doing it – do it right!
With love and prayers this Father’s Day – and with God’s blessings,
Bill
iPAD – Quick Take 2 – Thoughts and Impressions
April 23rd, 2010
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OK – I have now had the iPad for about 3 weeks and I like it a lot. It is a very unique device and is a great addition to my arsenal of I.T. tools. It offers me quick access to SSH, LOGMEIN, my Web based HelpDesk application as well as my e-mail.
But the shine has worn off and I am met with a few regrets and maybe some future ideas?
First Bitch - The Cable that comes with the iPad works with all my iPods – so it is ‘backwards compatible’ – However, the same cannot be said for the other cables (of which I have a shoebox full of them). This pisses me off to no end, because here I have spent a lot of money in support of great products and I have definitely gotten my money’s worth (in terms of my iPods and iPhones), but the fact that I now only have 1 cable that will work with the iPad – is just stupid! Apple’s plan? Buy a sync cable compatible with the iPad – $19.00
I don’t think so – I have found (from a friend at work – thanks Tejas!) that a company called GTMAX makes a cable (Part Number IPODDAT002) that works perfectly well! And all for a whopping $3.95:
Second Bitch – My second bitch point is I foolishly bought two accessories (this, of course, is my own consumerist failings):
- The Dock (MSRP $29.00) – What a waste of money – $29.00 for a weighted dock that fits the iPad – I thought it was a wise investment and I could prop up the iPad and have it charge when not in use… So what is the problem? Two things: First problem is that it is just the DOCK – no cable. For $29.00, I want the damn $4.00 cable too! That is just a no brainer, Apple! Second problem – that with the purchase of the ‘official’ Apple Neoprene cover heavily promoted and advertised – IT DOESN’T FIT THE DOCK!
- The Apple iPad Case (MSRP $39.00) – In the beginning, this was a no brainer – what a great idea – new $500.00 device and a case for $40.00 to help protect my investment. It doesn’t quite ‘stand-up’ like the commercials show and more than that, it feels cheap in my hand. What really ticks me off is the incidental costs of nickel and diming us to death with accessories we really don’t need. Now, in order to get the $39.00 Case to work with the $29.00 Dock, I had to cut the backside of the case so it would fit into the Dock – Not revolutionary, but functional
Third Bitch - This has nothing to do with Apple, but with the development community in general. Since I have received the device, I have purchased about $40.00 worth of applications and none of them I regret – well thought out applications and I appreciate the effort it takes to create these applications.
Then what pisses me off about the developers?
The fact that a developer creates a separate iPad application and charges the same amount for it as it did for the iPhone version. This may sound confusing, but let me give you a clear example. I follow Major League Baseball with a passion. I love to listen to the games during my lunch hour or catch a score while I am working. So, I have purchased a MLB.TV audio subscription so I can listen at work on my computer ($15.00/season). No big deal. I have also purchased the MLB 2010 application for my iPhone so when I am on the go, I can also catch the scores, the play-by-play and the audio (also $15.00/for the 2010 application). Now that the iPad has been release, the MLB folks could have created a universal application for the same $15.00 that works on the iPhone and the iPad – but no. They created a separate version for the iPad – which means I have to fork over another $15.00 for the iPad version.
Sounds all fine and dandy, but I am here to tell you that many developers are creating ‘UNIVERSAL’ apps from their iPhone apps to work on the iPad with a ‘new’ interface for the iPad – POINT IN FACT – LOGMEIN for the iPhone and iPad.
Great company – great product. I purchased for the iPhone about 6 months ago – and thankfully they created a UNIVERSAL app so when I got my iPad it ‘upgraded’ to an iPad version and it didn’t cost me a dime.
That is supporting the community as the community supports them.
Now – MLB makes major money off of us all year round – you think they could afford to roll their app into a UNIVERSAL version for the fans.
Anyway – I love my iPad and it is a great device – Just heed some of the warnings above and you will love your iPad too.
Categories: Personal, Technology