I just bought the Xoom this weekend. Expensive? Maybe, but as most compare it to the iPad you are getting more for about the same money. It was $799, and then I got $200 off with a Verizon contract. Plans start for 1GB at like $10 a month. All that was awesome, I actually want 3G, plus I get a free 4G upgrade in the next few weeks when that is available, and I hate AT&T. Hardware wise you are getting a dual 1GHz processor, 1GB of RAM and 32GB of local storage. On the iPad the 32GB model with 3G is $729 with a single proc and 256MB of RAM. iPad2 is around the corner, so I have no idea how any of that might change.
I love the new Honeycomb Android OS. It feels professional. The built in apps/features work great. Being a previous Android Tablet user with my Galaxy Tab I already had an Android Market Place account. I soon as I signed into the Xoom with my Google account everything that was supported by Honeycomb was automatically downloaded to my device. Some apps were not compatible. All of the apps that made it work great. There have been a few I have found specifically designed for tablets.
Everything is faster and smoother. The transition between screens is seamless. The touchscreen is extremely responsive. A great plus is the widgets that allow you to scroll through the news (CNN App) and your books from the desktop are awesome. The task manager/recent apps menu is awesome. Right now, flash is not available but suppose to come soon. The browser is great, fully tabbed and sync with Chrome.
Email is a breeze. I set up a 3rd party provider email, Yahoo, Gmail and Exchange very easily. The Gmail app is actually a full blown Gmail client, like Outlook would be to Exchange. Very cool stuff.
Movies…I have run into an issue that I was able to resolve with another app. The movie player did not inherently play DivX AVI files. Well, having an iPhone I also have most of my videos as m4v files too. They play great. The video experience, minus the hiccup with DivX has been awesome. It has a mini HDMI that is supposed to play 1080 I haven’t tested. It can record 720p, which I have tested and it’s awesome. It has a front and rear camera, so far it has worked well with Google Talk and Fring. That’s all I have for now. Hit me up with any questions.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Saturday, December 11, 2010
The Samsung Galaxy Tab
First, this isn't going to be some iPad killer write up. As a matter of fact, I like the iPad. I have used one for a few weeks, but it didn't qualify for what I was looking for, at the time. Both the iPad and the Tab are comparable in price and they both have options the other doesn't. I will probably wait to get the iPad 2 when it comes out, but I have the Tab now and I will write about that, am I am sure I will keep it when I get the iPad 2.
First off, I got my Tab through Sprint. I have always hated AT&T and have been with Sprint for about 10 years with the exception of whatever carrier my job requires me to have. I got the $200 off adding it to my current account and they offer that $200 off for a new two year plan. I didn't like the fact that I had to get a separate data plan for it. I think they should have just added this to my current plan. I have been using the Tab for almost a month, religiously. I got it as Sprint released it so there were not very many accessories as I would have liked, such as a screen protector and case, but recently there have been many more accessories in circulation.
I like the design. It is a solid design, very sturdy and it fits nicely in one hand. This makes it easier for typing notes and the like. It features Android 2.2 (Froyo) which is pretty nice. This is my first experience with the Google OS and I like it. From what I have read Sumsung will also support upgrades to 2.3 and 3.0. It comes with a lot of standard apps including Google's navigation app, which I used to make a trip from San Antonio, TX to Dover, PA. It was a great app and had traffic updates integrated. It was quick to pick up a new route when I went off course to avoid traffic conditions.
The graphics are nice I have played DIVX, MP4, and WMV movies, all within the built in movie player. It handled the movies flawlessly with no lag, the audio is in full sync, and no skipping. I have a few games I have played on this as well. The accelerometer works great in the device and it is very responsive to motion. There is a small lag however when going from portrait to landscape mode, but it's not a hindrance at all.
The front and back cameras are nice, but am slightly disappointed that the front camera is only 1 megapixel; the rear camera is 3, not bad but I was expecting more. I have used the video conferencing in Qik, installed, and Fring. I can't figure out how to use the front camera for Fring, but in Qik it works well. I have Yahoo Messenger installed with the video add-on, but I have not used it yet.
The built in mail app works well and has push capability. I have Microsoft Exchange, Yahoo Mail, Gmail and Rackspace Mail all set up on it and I have not had problems. The contacts are great, you can add Facebook contacts and there are many sorting options, including separating contacts by where they were downloaded from and you can link contacts, so if you have someones work email and personal email on two different mail accounts it will consolidate them for easier operation when sending mail and to whom. There is also calendar integration with exchange and all of my other mail accounts and Facebook, which means I don't actually have to log into Facebook to remember a birthday. I do have a question on keeping contacts and the calendar in sync. I will see new entries, at times, but I am not sure how often these sync up; not as often as email is delivered. I would have liked to have seen a manual sync for contacts and calendars. I have seen new entries to my regular Exchange client take at least a full day.
Browsing the web I have ran into few difficulties. Flash is on by default and can cause a lag in web pages loading faster if they are running flash. I have heard of other crashing the web browser, but I haven't crashed the default browser yet. I have however crashed Opera Mini and Skyfire. So far I have been using the Dolphin Browser and have not had issues with it. It does play flash video really well but there are some lags in resizing the video once it is playing.
The biggest let down has been applications. There are many in the Android market, but development has been slow and there are not as many apps as I would have like to have seen written to make use of the larger screen, but these are becoming more frequent as the Tab has been on the market in the US for about a month or so now. This has been my take on the Tab. I hope it helps someone make an educated decision on if this is the tablet for them.
First off, I got my Tab through Sprint. I have always hated AT&T and have been with Sprint for about 10 years with the exception of whatever carrier my job requires me to have. I got the $200 off adding it to my current account and they offer that $200 off for a new two year plan. I didn't like the fact that I had to get a separate data plan for it. I think they should have just added this to my current plan. I have been using the Tab for almost a month, religiously. I got it as Sprint released it so there were not very many accessories as I would have liked, such as a screen protector and case, but recently there have been many more accessories in circulation.
I like the design. It is a solid design, very sturdy and it fits nicely in one hand. This makes it easier for typing notes and the like. It features Android 2.2 (Froyo) which is pretty nice. This is my first experience with the Google OS and I like it. From what I have read Sumsung will also support upgrades to 2.3 and 3.0. It comes with a lot of standard apps including Google's navigation app, which I used to make a trip from San Antonio, TX to Dover, PA. It was a great app and had traffic updates integrated. It was quick to pick up a new route when I went off course to avoid traffic conditions.
The graphics are nice I have played DIVX, MP4, and WMV movies, all within the built in movie player. It handled the movies flawlessly with no lag, the audio is in full sync, and no skipping. I have a few games I have played on this as well. The accelerometer works great in the device and it is very responsive to motion. There is a small lag however when going from portrait to landscape mode, but it's not a hindrance at all.
The front and back cameras are nice, but am slightly disappointed that the front camera is only 1 megapixel; the rear camera is 3, not bad but I was expecting more. I have used the video conferencing in Qik, installed, and Fring. I can't figure out how to use the front camera for Fring, but in Qik it works well. I have Yahoo Messenger installed with the video add-on, but I have not used it yet.
The built in mail app works well and has push capability. I have Microsoft Exchange, Yahoo Mail, Gmail and Rackspace Mail all set up on it and I have not had problems. The contacts are great, you can add Facebook contacts and there are many sorting options, including separating contacts by where they were downloaded from and you can link contacts, so if you have someones work email and personal email on two different mail accounts it will consolidate them for easier operation when sending mail and to whom. There is also calendar integration with exchange and all of my other mail accounts and Facebook, which means I don't actually have to log into Facebook to remember a birthday. I do have a question on keeping contacts and the calendar in sync. I will see new entries, at times, but I am not sure how often these sync up; not as often as email is delivered. I would have liked to have seen a manual sync for contacts and calendars. I have seen new entries to my regular Exchange client take at least a full day.
Browsing the web I have ran into few difficulties. Flash is on by default and can cause a lag in web pages loading faster if they are running flash. I have heard of other crashing the web browser, but I haven't crashed the default browser yet. I have however crashed Opera Mini and Skyfire. So far I have been using the Dolphin Browser and have not had issues with it. It does play flash video really well but there are some lags in resizing the video once it is playing.
The biggest let down has been applications. There are many in the Android market, but development has been slow and there are not as many apps as I would have like to have seen written to make use of the larger screen, but these are becoming more frequent as the Tab has been on the market in the US for about a month or so now. This has been my take on the Tab. I hope it helps someone make an educated decision on if this is the tablet for them.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Livestrong Challenge - Austin 2010
On October 24 I rode in the Livestrong Challenge in Austin. Lance Armstrong was there; unfortunately I did not have a chance to meet him. Anyway, I have been riding a few months now, but this was my first organized bike ride and it was amazing. The morning was cool; it was overcast so we didn't get blasted by the sun.
Ever since I first got clips on my bike I have had problems with them. So, not even making out of the parking lot someone cut in front of me. I couldn't get out of my clips fast enough and I fell. I skinned my knee up a bit but I think my ego took most of the damage. After we got started I was a great ride. The scenery was nice and I was biking with some friends from work, so there was also good company.
First hill was coming up. Usually at the course I ride I big gear everything. It's typically tougher and I guess I like that type of thing. Wow, did I underestimate the hill. I ended up walking the last 20 meters of it. Little did I forget that these are the same hills that Lance Armstrong rides to train for the Tour de France. Riding more, second hill and I figured I am a bit wiser for the wear. I can't shift to the small wheel. So I walked the last 20 meters or so of that hill.
I eventually got the bike to shift into the small wheel on a straight away knowing there was a bigger hill coming up, but I'm stuck in the small wheel and can't shift back up. Last big hill and I made it just fine. There was a power stop just at the last 5 miles of the ride and I was able to get my shifting issue resolved, so the rest of the ride was great.
Coming across the finish line my family was there to cheer and show me they were proud. I was excited to see them. I finished the ride feeling like I had accomplished something bigger than myself, and it really was. During the ride I thought of those I knew that had recently had battles with cancer and of the family members I had lost to cancer.
A good friend of mine from work recently fought and won a bout with cancer. My brother is a cancer survivor as well. Unfortunately I lost my favorite aunt, Aunt Millie to cancer when I was young. I then thought about the number 28; the 28 million people who are fighting cancer right now.
Not wanting to leave this on such a depressing remark; my son and daughter want to ride with me next year! I think I may even have my wife talked into riding with us!
Ever since I first got clips on my bike I have had problems with them. So, not even making out of the parking lot someone cut in front of me. I couldn't get out of my clips fast enough and I fell. I skinned my knee up a bit but I think my ego took most of the damage. After we got started I was a great ride. The scenery was nice and I was biking with some friends from work, so there was also good company.
First hill was coming up. Usually at the course I ride I big gear everything. It's typically tougher and I guess I like that type of thing. Wow, did I underestimate the hill. I ended up walking the last 20 meters of it. Little did I forget that these are the same hills that Lance Armstrong rides to train for the Tour de France. Riding more, second hill and I figured I am a bit wiser for the wear. I can't shift to the small wheel. So I walked the last 20 meters or so of that hill.
I eventually got the bike to shift into the small wheel on a straight away knowing there was a bigger hill coming up, but I'm stuck in the small wheel and can't shift back up. Last big hill and I made it just fine. There was a power stop just at the last 5 miles of the ride and I was able to get my shifting issue resolved, so the rest of the ride was great.
Coming across the finish line my family was there to cheer and show me they were proud. I was excited to see them. I finished the ride feeling like I had accomplished something bigger than myself, and it really was. During the ride I thought of those I knew that had recently had battles with cancer and of the family members I had lost to cancer.
A good friend of mine from work recently fought and won a bout with cancer. My brother is a cancer survivor as well. Unfortunately I lost my favorite aunt, Aunt Millie to cancer when I was young. I then thought about the number 28; the 28 million people who are fighting cancer right now.
Not wanting to leave this on such a depressing remark; my son and daughter want to ride with me next year! I think I may even have my wife talked into riding with us!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Mid-year Healthcheck
So far, it has been a great year.
It turns out, get diabetes was probably one of the best things that happened to me. It was a great catalyst to enact some great changes in my life.
In addition to everything I had started doing, most recently, I quit smoking, well cigarettes. I still have a couple cigars a week, but I was a two pack a day guy and I feel much better. I am 4 weeks in to being cigarette free.
I had mentioned this before but I am eating better and I am floating between 185 to 190 lbs, which means I have lost a solid 40 lbs since the change of my diet. I am still biking 2 to 3 times a week and my resting heart rate is about 55. I think a lot of the changes in my life has motivated my wife to enact positive changes in her life as well. After a lot of family discussions she finally quit the job that has been driving her nuts for the last two years and she she is by far the most mentally sound she has been since I have known her. She has been excising like crazy, like up to 3 times a day. In the last couple of weeks she has lost almost 20 lbs herself. I am so proud of her.
In other positive news, I have finished my associates degree. It's through the University of Phoenix and I will be completing my bachelors degree within the next year to a year in a half. I still don't know if I should finish up with a degree in business focusing on in IT or a degree in IT focusing on Networking. A lot of the core classes are the same so I do have a little time to think about it. The University of Phoenix is a bit more expensive, but with my already hectic life it is the best option, coming out of this I feel far more accomplished and I am looking forward to shooting for the stars, even thinking about staying in for my masters degree too.
Coming up is our family vacation, it has really been a long time since we have taken one. This time we are going on a cruise. It's a 5 night cruise on Carnival. We are spending 3 of the nights on the ship but it should be great, there are tons of things for the kids to do. The two day trips we have are a day in Progreso on the Yucatan Peninsula and a day in Cozumel. In Progreso I would like to take the kids out to see the Mayan ruins. In Cozumel I am thinking about swimming with dolphins. That has actually been a life long dream, and I think the kids would totally be into it.
That's it for now. I am off to go ride my bike!
It turns out, get diabetes was probably one of the best things that happened to me. It was a great catalyst to enact some great changes in my life.
In addition to everything I had started doing, most recently, I quit smoking, well cigarettes. I still have a couple cigars a week, but I was a two pack a day guy and I feel much better. I am 4 weeks in to being cigarette free.
I had mentioned this before but I am eating better and I am floating between 185 to 190 lbs, which means I have lost a solid 40 lbs since the change of my diet. I am still biking 2 to 3 times a week and my resting heart rate is about 55. I think a lot of the changes in my life has motivated my wife to enact positive changes in her life as well. After a lot of family discussions she finally quit the job that has been driving her nuts for the last two years and she she is by far the most mentally sound she has been since I have known her. She has been excising like crazy, like up to 3 times a day. In the last couple of weeks she has lost almost 20 lbs herself. I am so proud of her.
In other positive news, I have finished my associates degree. It's through the University of Phoenix and I will be completing my bachelors degree within the next year to a year in a half. I still don't know if I should finish up with a degree in business focusing on in IT or a degree in IT focusing on Networking. A lot of the core classes are the same so I do have a little time to think about it. The University of Phoenix is a bit more expensive, but with my already hectic life it is the best option, coming out of this I feel far more accomplished and I am looking forward to shooting for the stars, even thinking about staying in for my masters degree too.
Coming up is our family vacation, it has really been a long time since we have taken one. This time we are going on a cruise. It's a 5 night cruise on Carnival. We are spending 3 of the nights on the ship but it should be great, there are tons of things for the kids to do. The two day trips we have are a day in Progreso on the Yucatan Peninsula and a day in Cozumel. In Progreso I would like to take the kids out to see the Mayan ruins. In Cozumel I am thinking about swimming with dolphins. That has actually been a life long dream, and I think the kids would totally be into it.
That's it for now. I am off to go ride my bike!
Friday, May 14, 2010
The ripple effect
I think I had more to talk about that I originally thought. I want to share my most recent great achievement. I won the Rackspace Straight Jacket Award. This is the highest award that anyone can win at Rackspace. I am very excited about it.
Moving on…
Since I found out about having diabetes I have made many lifestyle changes. Not those kinds.
So, first, I changed the diet. No more table sugars, at all. Not that terrible. I was already drinking Diet Coke, but I discovered the world of sugar free chocolate. That was a blessing and a curse all at the same time. It was good, but I discovered having a couple of servings would keep you in the toilet most of the night and your gut will tell you how stupid a decision that was.
I am now in the world of carb counters. That was pretty hard. I truly didn’t realize that how broad that was and how hard it would be to give that up. Especially at work, we are always bringing in cake, or donuts, or pizza. It is very difficult to keep to the diet. I do the exchange system. I get three exchanges for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; I get one exchange for snacks three times a day. For those who are not familiar with exchanges one carb exchange is 15 grams of carbohydrates. Really want to see how little it is check out the nutritional value box on a box of cereal. Then look how big the serving is for that. It’s pretty small.
I have never considered myself a big guy. On the doctor appointment I found out about this I weighed in at 230 lbs. I never looked over weight. But, just from the simple diet change I lost 30 lbs. in about a month or so. I started feeling better.
Lastly, I started biking. I really good friend of mine gave me a road bike. A rather expensive one and I started riding. I am doing on average 6 to 8 miles a day. I have a short term goal of riding to work within a month. It’s about a 20 mile trip. I have to ride back at the end of the day too. I also have one long term goal. I would like to ride in the MS150 in October. It’s a big order but I know I can do it. I’m excited. Since biking I lost another 10lbs. I have also started to see the definition in my abs starting to return. I haven’t seen that since my first couple of years in the Army. It’s funny how this one thing instigated this change and I am already seeing more good than what I started with.
Moving on…
Since I found out about having diabetes I have made many lifestyle changes. Not those kinds.
So, first, I changed the diet. No more table sugars, at all. Not that terrible. I was already drinking Diet Coke, but I discovered the world of sugar free chocolate. That was a blessing and a curse all at the same time. It was good, but I discovered having a couple of servings would keep you in the toilet most of the night and your gut will tell you how stupid a decision that was.
I am now in the world of carb counters. That was pretty hard. I truly didn’t realize that how broad that was and how hard it would be to give that up. Especially at work, we are always bringing in cake, or donuts, or pizza. It is very difficult to keep to the diet. I do the exchange system. I get three exchanges for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; I get one exchange for snacks three times a day. For those who are not familiar with exchanges one carb exchange is 15 grams of carbohydrates. Really want to see how little it is check out the nutritional value box on a box of cereal. Then look how big the serving is for that. It’s pretty small.
I have never considered myself a big guy. On the doctor appointment I found out about this I weighed in at 230 lbs. I never looked over weight. But, just from the simple diet change I lost 30 lbs. in about a month or so. I started feeling better.
Lastly, I started biking. I really good friend of mine gave me a road bike. A rather expensive one and I started riding. I am doing on average 6 to 8 miles a day. I have a short term goal of riding to work within a month. It’s about a 20 mile trip. I have to ride back at the end of the day too. I also have one long term goal. I would like to ride in the MS150 in October. It’s a big order but I know I can do it. I’m excited. Since biking I lost another 10lbs. I have also started to see the definition in my abs starting to return. I haven’t seen that since my first couple of years in the Army. It’s funny how this one thing instigated this change and I am already seeing more good than what I started with.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Life Changing Event
About a month ago I was told that I am pre-diabetic. This came after some blood work (12-hour fast) I had that had shown my glucose level was too high a few months in a row. It stuck me weird I guess you could say. I was a bit upset. I got a glucose meter at the request of my wife the nurse; I changed a couple of things about my diet and got over it. I didn't think it was that big of a deal, after all, I was just diagnosed with pre-diabetes.
This week the VA set up a diabetes class for me with some other diabetics, a diabetic specialist and a nutritionist. The diabetic specialist really sank in the severity of my situation. She had relayed to me that the term pre-diabetic was like telling someone they're almost pregnant. Either you are or you're not. She said that this term was just something that was used to identify that you are not taking medication to control it because it's not classified as Type I or Type II. I was told that it can be controlled through diet and exercise but eventually I will fall into a Type I or Type II class whether its a month from now or when I am 80.
I found out that I was using my glucose meter wrong. Well, not so much I was using it wrong as I was using it at the wrong times. I would use it after meals consistently. That was wrong. I was told I need to use it before meals and/or when I wake up in the morning to find out what my blood sugar is doing before I replenish the batteries. I learned a lot about how sugars react with the body, what exactly diabetes is and what my normal glucose readings should be. We spent a lot of time going over diet information and counting carbs. I am using a plan where I get 45 grams of carbs per meal (3 times a day) and 15 grams for snacks (3 times a day). I check the food label on everything I buy at the grocery store now.
This has definitely been a lifestyle changer for me. Tonight I went into a restaurant with my family and it literally took me 3 times longer than usual to pick out what I wanted to eat as I was doing the math to find out how many carbohydrates each item or combination of items had and what I could substitute for what to make it work. I can tell you the days of me eating a 32 ounce steak and the fattest potato the restaurant has, just because I could, are over. Right now, I am not sure how I feel about the whole thing. It still kind of feels like a dream.
I am very fortunate that this was caught early and I am still able to control this through diet and exercise. I'll just keep chugging a long day by day, living healthier and making wiser dietary choices. My heart goes out to those who do have to live with this and especially those who need to control it with medication. This is a new chapter in my life. I hope to give it a happy ending.
This week the VA set up a diabetes class for me with some other diabetics, a diabetic specialist and a nutritionist. The diabetic specialist really sank in the severity of my situation. She had relayed to me that the term pre-diabetic was like telling someone they're almost pregnant. Either you are or you're not. She said that this term was just something that was used to identify that you are not taking medication to control it because it's not classified as Type I or Type II. I was told that it can be controlled through diet and exercise but eventually I will fall into a Type I or Type II class whether its a month from now or when I am 80.
I found out that I was using my glucose meter wrong. Well, not so much I was using it wrong as I was using it at the wrong times. I would use it after meals consistently. That was wrong. I was told I need to use it before meals and/or when I wake up in the morning to find out what my blood sugar is doing before I replenish the batteries. I learned a lot about how sugars react with the body, what exactly diabetes is and what my normal glucose readings should be. We spent a lot of time going over diet information and counting carbs. I am using a plan where I get 45 grams of carbs per meal (3 times a day) and 15 grams for snacks (3 times a day). I check the food label on everything I buy at the grocery store now.
This has definitely been a lifestyle changer for me. Tonight I went into a restaurant with my family and it literally took me 3 times longer than usual to pick out what I wanted to eat as I was doing the math to find out how many carbohydrates each item or combination of items had and what I could substitute for what to make it work. I can tell you the days of me eating a 32 ounce steak and the fattest potato the restaurant has, just because I could, are over. Right now, I am not sure how I feel about the whole thing. It still kind of feels like a dream.
I am very fortunate that this was caught early and I am still able to control this through diet and exercise. I'll just keep chugging a long day by day, living healthier and making wiser dietary choices. My heart goes out to those who do have to live with this and especially those who need to control it with medication. This is a new chapter in my life. I hope to give it a happy ending.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
What I did for my Mom on Mothers Day
I wanted to write this on Mother's Day for my Mom. About 3 or 4 months before my Mom passed away I got her, her first and only tattoo. She had gotten a Morning Glory (the flower) on her left shoulder. She was ecstatic with it. She said she had always wanted to get a tattoo and I was very happy to be a part of that for her. That was in 2001. After she passed away I always wanted to do something to memorialize her life. Just this last Mother's Day I got my Mom's signature tattooed on my right forearm. It looks great. It is something that was unique of my Mom that I was able to make a part of me. I actually had gotten a copy of her signature off of the waiver that she signed for my to join the Army at the age of 17. This signature means a lot to me on many levels.
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