Notebooks vs. desktops: What are we using at work and play?

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Portable computing is currently all the rage and now notebooks are beginning to outsell desktops. On Saturday, I was reminded why. I had to move the Server computer just a few feet, but the wiring was unbelievable, just unbelievable.

Wiring: now where’s the spaghetti sauce?

In school I had to sort out the schools pcs properly, and the amount of wiring that I had to plug, unplug, untangle, retangle… was just incredible. Wires for power sockets (still not enough), wires for printer power units, wires for monitors, wires for boxes, telephone wires, USB wires… I hid everything down the back of a table so that I could get the job done. It is not tidy…

spark #2

So when I was asked what kinds of rig I use when it comes to PCs… I jumped at the chance.

Work vs. Home

At work, we run five pcs with differing configurations and requirements. The first is mine which is a Pentium IV Celeron running at 2.4GHZ with 768MB of Ram, two divd/cd drives, and firewire installed. It’s not a particularly powerful rig and I noticed with XP sp2 installed, there are times when it just chokes… but other than it’s been pretty stable. I ran Windows 98SE on it for a LONG time because I couldn’t be bothered to upgrade… but once I had the option to upgrade a bunch of other stuff on the PC, I jumped. The PC at home is very similar except a slightly bigger RAM (1GB) and a brand new Graphics Card (Invidia GS7600) for a little extra power. Hard Disks have been replaced on both units at least once for safety’s sake.

Chinese and Mobile?

There’s also a notebook that runs XP sp2 in Chinese from IBM, I think it’s 1.5MHz mobile platform. But with having only 256MB, it is seriously underpowered running Chinese XP. Chinese OSES usually need a lot extra RAM to benefit the most. I typically estimate DOUBLE! Other languages with difficult character sets are similar, I expect.

Secondhand or new?

There are two second hand machines at work as well with specs that approximate a PC about six years old including 1.7~2.0Ghz Pentium IV chips and similar hardware. One runs the printers and fax now, the other runs the photocopier. Eventually I will replace at least one of them. Purchasing a second hand system was quite beneficial as we needed a machine at that time, but we didn’t have the budget… it was the middle of our bad year. Though I generally don’t recommend buying second hand machines, it worked for me several times. They’re fine for the light tasks they need to perform.

The last machine was a surprise investment as we urgently needed a new machine… one of the oldest computers just started flaking out too often. Likely it was just the OS needing renewed but we couldn’t be bothered reinvesting extra time and money in a machine that was already 8 years old. When it came I was quite surprised how XP can be so snappy on a new machine… and the box was L I G H T…! Very much lighter than I had expected. Unfortunately I can’t remember the exact configuration at all! It wasn’t an expensive machine: XP SP2 in English, 3.0Ghz Intel Chip with 1GB, I think.

Software

About two years ago, we ran a very mixed batch of PCs with three systems running 98SE, one running XP, three running English and one running Chinese Windows. Eventually I got so fed up of the mess of systems, I started insisting on English versions of the software so I could maintain the rigs better. We’ve now switched 80% English on versions of XP SP1 and SP2. The Chinese Windows version runs SP2.

But standardizing went a few steps further: we had three versions of Office, one in English, two in Chinese; one Office 97, one Office 2000 and one Office 2003… so you can see it was quite a mess, really. We’ve done away with all versions of Microsoft Office, and now we are running only OpenOffice 2.3 in English on ALL stations. Other standard software has been installed: Firefox 2.0.13, Thunderbird 2.0.0, and a few more apps. There are a couple of tools we can’t find equivalents for in Ooo, but for the most part it works, it’s priced effectively, and licensing is no longer a REAL pain in the proverbial. At home, and on the CRUZER, I also run these three APPS most of the time.

Add-ons

Two USB phones for Skype, five media readers, a SIM card reader for banking, Altec Lansing and CREATIVE LABS speakers, V-Gear Cam, LaserPrinter HP1020 and HP 6300 Series Office Three-in-One with color printing, several cameras, one video-cam, two USB-based MP3 players (no iTunes here!), headphones, wireless networks at home and school, numerous flashcards, and that CRUZER to port data easily between home and office. Oh, and miles of wiring.

Preferences are for notebooks? Sometimes…

Notebook computers coupled with a flash drive to port applications and data back and forth really do possess a lot of advantages over desktops:

  • 1. you only need wires for the power unit and 1 socket, cutting socket use by at least 1/3rd.
  • 2. most notebooks are wireless anyway so that negates a network cable or two!
  • 3. running two notebooks off one power extension is very viable, but running one desktop off one extension is sometimes difficult.
  • 4. notebooks have batteries making powercuts less of a problem AND you don’t have to buy a powersurge protector.
  • 5. the amount of desk space you can save is incredible… no large keyboards, monitors, boxes, speakers… all one nice little bundle.

And when you have to use a desktop or carry data, a simple flash drive means you don’t need to carry that portable as much anyway making it less likely to be dropped or stolen!

Problems: Repairs

The biggest issue we’ve faced with our notebook is the sheer inconvenience of getting it repaired, though being an IBM it didn’t breakdown often. But if it does, it HAS to be sent back to the factory. The last time cost a pretty penny: NT$4000 to replace a keyboard. It included transportation and cleaning but that was scary. The desktops can be hauled (by me) across the street, and can be fixed by my favorite repair store quite quickly, especially if it’s a basic item like a CD drive or whatnot. Typically they turnaround my PC in 48 hours. And they are considerably cheaper.

What do you prefer: notebooks or desktops? New or secondhand? Let us know.

Payperpost and SocialSpark: Is it time to give up posting for pennies?

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In September 2006, I discovered a great little company called Payperpost that I thought was innovative and exciting. It offered a whole new model for paid blogging that was novel, exciting, connected, and free of the problems associated with Adsense.

My PayPerPost Track Record

Since then I wrote over 180 opps for Payperpost and earned something around $1650 or a little more. During the time I learned a tremendous amount writing for a blog, my blog’s various themes, the WordPress platform, marketing my blog, and much more… For that, I’ll always be grateful to the wonderful people at PayPerPost (and SocialSpark) but today I had another frustrating experience with the limitations of their blogging requirements.

Rejected Again?

I recently did my SocialSpark opportunity that was rejected. In the past, I simply would edit the post to satisfy the requirements, but this is my third rejection and I’m beginning to wonder if all the work that went into each of the posts was really worth it. So let’s look at the posting process…

How it works!

The typical opportunity offers the payout of about $8.50 (at least that is my long term average over the time I was involved with PayPerPost). For that payment, you are required to perform a number of steps.

1. Log into the Payperpost system;

2. Navigate to the opps – there could be dozens for you, there could be none;

3. Find an opp that is available to you and one that you find appropriate for your blog;

4. Once you’ve selected an opp, you have to read the opp in detail, then visit the website page that relates to the opp, click ‘take opp’, enter a captcha code, read the basic details;

5. You then write the post according to the requirements of the opportunity, making sure that you include the required links (at least one), the disclosure, the tracking image, any additional images. In addition, you have to make sure that your opp fulfills the word length, the tone, and the type of post;

6. Of course, your post must also be written in good English with good grammar, punctuation and style. It must also be relevant to the advertiser’s wishes;

7. You then submit this opp through the system; if approved, you will then allow the advertiser 30 days to advertise on your blog for either SEO or traffic reasons; if rejected, your advertiser will have had days of advertising for free; if rejected prior to payment, it’s all for nothing;

8. While you wait for payment, you are then required to post an intermediate post that is of sufficient quality and length BEFORE you can take another opportunity;

9. While you are waiting for payment for this post, a good blogger will seek ways to increase exposure, traffic, your PR, respond to comments about the post;

10. Even before you are paid, you have already granted accepted that:

Blogger grants PayPerPost and the specific Advertiser purchasing the content a worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive, sub-licensable, unconditional, perpetual and transferable license to use, display, perform, reproduce, republish, and distribute the content or any portion thereof in all forms of media and through any media channels (now known or hereafter developed), including but not limited to television, radio, print, Internet site and other electronic communications.

11. Oo! It was rejected. You’re invited to resubmit it, sometimes this will be a quick edit, other times you will spend a lot more time finding out what’s wrong.

And that’s… how much?

In other words, you have done a heck of a lot of work for a post that you are paid for only once. Now how much did you get? $5? $8.50? $15? Oh, and by the way, the blogger is still …

… responsible for the payment of all federal, state and local taxes on compensation received from an Advertiser, (iii) responsible for any reporting requirements imposed by the federal, state or local government, and …

… you have to pay for your hosting each month if you take this even half way seriously… there are additional costs related to PC repair, ADSL connections, software purchasing (if you buy blogging software), etc.. that the payments do not cover…

In return, and much of the reason that I no longer enjoy doing posts, you are not free to write posts as you see fit; you cannot include any other links, videos, referenced materials, or other “distractors” to the Advertiser’s opp: “There are to be no third party links, ads or other detractors located within the sponsored post.” You are also not expected to remove the posts as they are part of the archive.

Is it time to give up posting for pennies?

While there are few restrictions on other sources of revenue that you can generate for your blog, such as private advertisers, Adsense, Text-Links, etc… there is a lot of potential for alternate streams of income. In reality, the way that the system works encourages bloggers to “post” for pay. In fact, some of the other revenue streams, I’ve been finding, offer a lot more rewards for a lot less messing about. And I get to write about what I like, how I like, when I like. I’m wondering: is it time to give up “posting for pennies”? Mmm.

Buzz: Journyx – Will it keep you on time?

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Sometimes I feel so busy running a business and a successful online blogging company that I wonder how on earth I’m supposed to do anything… and there are times I simply need to just sit and ponder things. Like how I have so little time to use things like timesheets, diaries or whatnot.

Worse, much of the information that I need to write down just doesn’t fit into conventional boxes, checklists and diary entries. In fact, I loathe much of what passes for ‘productivity products’. The lines frustrate me at times with their generosity, at others with their limitations… So it’s a tough challenge for a product like this – to convince me that it offers anything like the flexibility I might need…

journyx

Well, Journyx claims to have found a solution to this problem putting things on the web as a way to manage your Online Time and Expense . As a skeptical user of diaries, journals and weblogs, I am remaining unconvinced… Fortunately, for users who are as disorganized as I am, Journyx is offering its product as a free download for you to try out. I’m always a sucker for these kinds of deals.

While I’m downloading the software right now… I’ll add a little more about this companies product:

Journyx Timesheet is a timesheet and expense management solution for the entire enterprise. Any company that bills for its services, performs project-oriented work, or tracks absences for a professional workforce can benefit from Timesheet. You can easily manage employee timesheets and expenses for project control, customer invoicing, and payroll automation with Timesheet. Journyx Timesheet is the foundation of the Journyx P5 Protocol, your path to Per-person, Per-project Profitability.

Ok. After a few niggles filling out their form, it’s now downloading but slowly!… I guess I’ll have to leave the review till next time…

In our school, I think we could probably use some of the functionality without much alteration, such as timesheets and expense tools. Our expense requirements would be quite simple to manage. The big plus would be to deal with appropriate customer invoicing as currently this is a time intensive and mistake ridden process that challenges even the more detail oriented individual, not to mention some scatterbrains like myself.

Now I’ve got to have a look at the software… more tomorrow.