Google Reader ads nifty Notes feature

Google Reader is my RSS reader of choice. It makes it possible for me to keep up with about 100 blogs and websites. The “Share” feature (which I mention here from time to time) let’s me flag and post a story to my “shared stories” page. Just click the “more stories” link at the bottom of the little blue box on the right side of this page.

Google has added a Notes feature that let’s me share a story AND include a brief note about it. I can also highlight text on a web page, click the “Note” button in my browser toolbar and add the text… with my note… to my shared page.

I know, it’s a little confusing. But this is good shit. There’s a social networking aspect to this but let’s not go there right now.

If you use Google Reader, check out the notes feature. You can get a better explanation at Techcrunch and the Google Blog.

MacBook Pro battery indicator lights

BatteryindicatorI’ve had my MacBook Pro for two years and I’m still discovering cool new features. Today I was putting it way when my hand brushed a tiny button on the bottom of the laptop and a row of tiny green lights came on. At first I couldn’t figure out what it was and then I got it. A battery strength indicator.

Wanna check the charge on a PC laptop? Turn it on, wait for it to boot up, and check the charge. Mac users? Just touch the little button. I’m telling you…

Art Text

Webheadsgraphic200_2The tagline on the Art Text website is: “Where text becomes art,” and that’s pretty much right on. I’ve been looking for an app that would compensate for my lack of graphic design skills and this comes close. If you have the Photoshop chops you can probably do everything that Art Text does but even then it’s going to take you longer. This graphic for the Coffee Zone took about 5 minutes to create.

iPhone users love mobile web

Iphone150NYT Bits Blog reports the results from a January survey (of 10,000 adults) of media habits of iPhone users:

84.8 percent of iPhone users report accessing news and information from the hand-held device. That compares to 13.1 percent of the overall mobile phone market and 58.2 percent of total smartphone owners – which include those with Blackberries and devices that run Windows.

74.1 percent of iPhone users listen to music on their iTunes-equipped device. Only 27.9 percent of smartphone users listen to music on their phone and 6.7 percent of the overall mobile-phone-toting public listens to music on their mobile device.

Two years on the Mac

ApplestoreI started succumbing to Mac Lust just about two years ago and finally broke down a few weeks later. Today, like most Mac users, I keep my entire life on my (insert Mac model here). I never did that with my Thinkpad. It was more of a “spare” computer. Too heavy to lug around and very wifi unfriendly.

I imagined that I would be what they call a “slider.” Someone that slid back and forth between operating systems. But I almost never work on Windows these days. I sold the Thinkpad and only turn the home Dell on for Windows security patches.

At work, I click over to the Windows side of the iMac to flush email from Outlook (I use Apple Mail now). I don’t worry about Vista because it will never be a factor in my work/play life.

As more and more of our world happens online, being able to get there in a fun and efficient way is (for me) important. My mac is my window and doorway.