Monday, January 31, 2011
Crazy Family
OK so yesterday was a family get together on Mr Mans side. His aunts, uncles, grandmother and various cousins and the such. And of course little man and I went but Mr Man didn't. So I got the third degree from the family on when we are getting married (never) and when we are having another baby (who knows). That family is crazy, nice but crazy. I did get to play with little mans cousin who is this cute little 10 month old. Well that was my Sunday.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Sigh...
Alright Ladies, this is really getting ridiculous. Mr. Munchkin is on the phone arguing with his mother again. They have had a really rough time in his family getting along since the end of October. This situation is totally stressing me out and making me crazy.
He's been on the phone 25 minutes so far this time (a marathon talk for him and his mom) and I heard him raising his voice. I have no clue what the conversation is about because he locks me out of the conversations. What should I do?
~Munchkin
He's been on the phone 25 minutes so far this time (a marathon talk for him and his mom) and I heard him raising his voice. I have no clue what the conversation is about because he locks me out of the conversations. What should I do?
~Munchkin
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Vacation!
Hey Ladies,
I remodeled the bathroom this week! I though you would like to see, but Blogger would not let me the the photos in order so here ya go. Mr. is off pouting cause I yelled at him for trying to kiss my neck as I was trying to figure it out. Sorry Mr. Q.
Done!
Apollo say's HI!
NOOKstudy--I wish I had had this when I was in school...
During the last month Barnes & Noble made available a new, free, downloadable service called NOOKstudy. I stumbled upon it earlier this week while downloading some free ebooks for my Nook. The name is slightly deceptive (in my opinion) because NOOKstudy is not a feature for the Nook device (at least not yet). It's a download for PC or Mac that provides access to your Barnes & Noble ebook library on the computer, and more specifically, it provides access to certain etextbook services. In the FAQ section, B&N claims that this is because the computer is the most universally owned student electronic, making the PC/Mac the natural vehicle for the first incarnation of the NOOKstudy service. I can imagine that DRM, etextbook formating for a smaller screen, and syncing might be issues if this service were to extend to ereader devices in the future, but I bet that B&N is already looking into it.
NOOKstudy differentiates itself from the regular downloadable Nook applications with several polished services, and most notably, textbook DRM. Through NOOKstudy, you can purchase etextbooks that can be downloaded to 2 computers associated with your account, or rent the textbooks for cheaper than the purchase price for the semester that you are taking the class. This probably works the same way that checking out an ebook from the library works--you get a digital download with an expiration date, and after that date, you can no longer access the book. A further difference between the NOOKstudy application and the regular Nook app is the ability to highlight text, insert digital notes, import your own documents (think class syllabus, notes taken during class in a Word .doc, or downloadable handouts created by the professor), and group documents using tags or by course. The system is fully search enabled, and offers features like being dictionary or online lookup services from within the application.
I really wish I would have had this during all my years in college. I have literal stacks of textbooks and notebooks in my basement that I have to search by memory to find what I'm looking for, and it would be so much easier to have it all inside my PC, where I could search my class notes like I search my email! As a student of library science, this level of control to digitally organize and search pleases me.
Also, the ability to rent certain textbooks digitally would have been nice, because some textbooks really weren't worth the purchase price to use for one semester. I have to wonder if some universities will fight this transition to digital tooth and nail because it's likely to put university bookstores out of business. For example, you don't get a resale value on a digital rental. I had professors in college who authored their own textbooks and then released new editions every few years so students would be required to buy the book new every semester (heavily devaluing the used resale value), thereby keeping their royalty checks up. If students can now rent that textbook for $50 instead of buying it for $200, some of these money hungry, empty-student-wallet-squeezing, arrogant professors might decide to not release the book in digital form to support their profits. As a student, if I saw this happening, I would elect to take the class from someone else--when I'm already paying 10-20K a year in tuition, I shouldn't have to buy an over-priced textbook filled with information I can find online that I will probably crack twice over the course of the semester (midterms and finals).
I do have one question/concern for Barnes & Noble regarding this service, and this has to do with renting vs. buying. If I rent a textbook, and take notes throughout, would I lose access to my notes once the rental expires? Also, what if I rent a book, and then like it so much that I decide to buy it--will the program automate the process of moving all of my notes and highlights from the rental file to the purchased one, or do I have to do that myself?
One thing I might suggest to B&N to include in this service is academic file sharing, similar to the LendMe service they have on the Nook devices, where you can digitally loan a file to a friend for a limited amount of time. There's another free research aid that I have used a lot at work called Mendeley, which works kind of like iTunes for your PDFs. You can upload your PDFs and tag them, do full text search across your library, create research groups to share what you are reading and learning, and even upload them to the cloud to have online access to your PDFs anywhere. It's spiffy, and the base level membership is free (you pay more for more online storage, but I have never needed more than the basic level). It would be very neat if B&N would incorporate this type of group sharing and collaboration into their NOOKstudy, thereby making it a social learning tool--this type of service might be able to overtake online learning systems like Blackboard.
Looking forward to future improvements on this product, B&N. Keep up the good work!
Alula
NOOKstudy differentiates itself from the regular downloadable Nook applications with several polished services, and most notably, textbook DRM. Through NOOKstudy, you can purchase etextbooks that can be downloaded to 2 computers associated with your account, or rent the textbooks for cheaper than the purchase price for the semester that you are taking the class. This probably works the same way that checking out an ebook from the library works--you get a digital download with an expiration date, and after that date, you can no longer access the book. A further difference between the NOOKstudy application and the regular Nook app is the ability to highlight text, insert digital notes, import your own documents (think class syllabus, notes taken during class in a Word .doc, or downloadable handouts created by the professor), and group documents using tags or by course. The system is fully search enabled, and offers features like being dictionary or online lookup services from within the application.
I really wish I would have had this during all my years in college. I have literal stacks of textbooks and notebooks in my basement that I have to search by memory to find what I'm looking for, and it would be so much easier to have it all inside my PC, where I could search my class notes like I search my email! As a student of library science, this level of control to digitally organize and search pleases me.
Also, the ability to rent certain textbooks digitally would have been nice, because some textbooks really weren't worth the purchase price to use for one semester. I have to wonder if some universities will fight this transition to digital tooth and nail because it's likely to put university bookstores out of business. For example, you don't get a resale value on a digital rental. I had professors in college who authored their own textbooks and then released new editions every few years so students would be required to buy the book new every semester (heavily devaluing the used resale value), thereby keeping their royalty checks up. If students can now rent that textbook for $50 instead of buying it for $200, some of these money hungry, empty-student-wallet-squeezing, arrogant professors might decide to not release the book in digital form to support their profits. As a student, if I saw this happening, I would elect to take the class from someone else--when I'm already paying 10-20K a year in tuition, I shouldn't have to buy an over-priced textbook filled with information I can find online that I will probably crack twice over the course of the semester (midterms and finals).
I do have one question/concern for Barnes & Noble regarding this service, and this has to do with renting vs. buying. If I rent a textbook, and take notes throughout, would I lose access to my notes once the rental expires? Also, what if I rent a book, and then like it so much that I decide to buy it--will the program automate the process of moving all of my notes and highlights from the rental file to the purchased one, or do I have to do that myself?
One thing I might suggest to B&N to include in this service is academic file sharing, similar to the LendMe service they have on the Nook devices, where you can digitally loan a file to a friend for a limited amount of time. There's another free research aid that I have used a lot at work called Mendeley, which works kind of like iTunes for your PDFs. You can upload your PDFs and tag them, do full text search across your library, create research groups to share what you are reading and learning, and even upload them to the cloud to have online access to your PDFs anywhere. It's spiffy, and the base level membership is free (you pay more for more online storage, but I have never needed more than the basic level). It would be very neat if B&N would incorporate this type of group sharing and collaboration into their NOOKstudy, thereby making it a social learning tool--this type of service might be able to overtake online learning systems like Blackboard.
Looking forward to future improvements on this product, B&N. Keep up the good work!
Alula
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
DecalGirl: Before the Storm on Nook
Here are the promised pictures of my new DecalGirl decals on my Nook. The larger decals were not as easy to apply as the smaller ones I put on my phone, but still applied without a lot of drama. The design I picked was Before the Storm for the Nook; I picked this design because I keep my Nook in the Brontë Cover in Storm offered by Barnes and Noble, and I wanted something that would match the black cover.
I should also note that as I have read my Nook in garish light before and been slightly bother by the glare coming off of the shiny white plastic, I elected to pay the extra $5 to get the Matte/Satin finish on this cover. I have the regular shiny finish on the skin I used on my phone, and I have to say, I think I picked right in each case. The shiny finish skin on the phone is reminiscent of shiny plastic (like the shiny white plastic on the Nook) and the matte/satin finish is very much like a matte finish plastic (like the matte finish used around the page turn buttons on the Nook).
I was initially worried about a functional aspect of this skin, because of the Nook home button. For anyone who doesn't have a Nook, this is a "soft" button on the Nook that does not click because it is touch activated. The skin now covers this button, but the home button still works through the skin. Some other reviews I read online complained a little that the cutout window for the touch screen was a little small; I will concur with this opinion--the touchscreen is still fully accessible, but the skin could have been a little more generous in this area.
Nook before--notice the grey on black touch "n" button just above the touch screen. This button will be covered by the DecalGirl skin, but will still be fully functional after the skin is applied. Also, while the skin does have the arrow page turn icons included in the design, the pips that tactilely indicate the page turn keys can also be felt through the skin. I do have screen protectors for both the touch screen and the display screen, and these need to be put on before applying the skin. Note that while applying the skin, I did have some trouble repositioning the skin because it stuck to the touch screen protector and would peel it up when trying to move the skin around for placement--be ready to iron out any bubbles that might get under there in this process, and do it at a time of day when you are the least likely to experience high frustration. I recommend Zen music and chai tea.
Front of Nook with the applied skin and the matching background. The background seems to not have formated as well as the one for the LG Vortex--on the Nook, there is a white information bar at the top with title, time, etc., and the image seems to get shrunk a little to allow for this bar. If you look closely in the picture, you can see how the Nook has added black margins along the sides of the image to account for the image resizing for the bar at the top. This has caused a minor misalignment with the edges of the skin, but not enough to bother me, as I'm only using this as the Nook home screen (I have a series of images from my own creation and downloaded from online that I like to use as screen savers).
The back of the Nook with the skin. Note that the skin is elastic enough to be pressed in and cling to the "n" brand icon on the back of the device, which is a nicely stylized touch. As with the skin I applied to my phone, the skin can easily be pressed and worked around the rounded edges of the device to prevent and get rid of sticker edge bunching.
The Nook, with skin, inside my Nook cover. The browny-orange-black stencils go much better with the tan inside of the cover than the white of the device, and the black goes well with the outside black of the cover. Also, the skin serves as a surface protector for my Nook, while the Brontë cover is firm and sturdy enough to offer decent device protection from light drops and bumps.
Alula
I should also note that as I have read my Nook in garish light before and been slightly bother by the glare coming off of the shiny white plastic, I elected to pay the extra $5 to get the Matte/Satin finish on this cover. I have the regular shiny finish on the skin I used on my phone, and I have to say, I think I picked right in each case. The shiny finish skin on the phone is reminiscent of shiny plastic (like the shiny white plastic on the Nook) and the matte/satin finish is very much like a matte finish plastic (like the matte finish used around the page turn buttons on the Nook).
I was initially worried about a functional aspect of this skin, because of the Nook home button. For anyone who doesn't have a Nook, this is a "soft" button on the Nook that does not click because it is touch activated. The skin now covers this button, but the home button still works through the skin. Some other reviews I read online complained a little that the cutout window for the touch screen was a little small; I will concur with this opinion--the touchscreen is still fully accessible, but the skin could have been a little more generous in this area.
Alula
Monday, January 17, 2011
DecalGirl: Winter Sparkle on the LG Vortex
A couple of days ago I received the decals that I ordered from DecalGirl. Some people reported unusually fast shipping online; mine took about 10 days to arrive, and both of the decals I ordered arrived in the same shipment (one for the Nook and one for the LG Vortex). The skins each arrived on a simple one piece sticker sheet and were well packaged with a "Do Not Bend or Fold" warning on the outside of the shipment envelope.
I was a little dubious about the application of these stickers to my expensive electronics, but after reading some reviews online I learned that they can be removed without leaving a residue on the device. That said, I was worried about ruining my fancy stickers by mis-applying and then needing to peel them back up; figuring I might need to reorder, I started with the cheaper of the two I ordered, and applied the Winter Sparkle for LG Vortex skin first.
N.B., apply any screen protectors you want on your phone BEFORE applying the skin, as the skin will lay over the screen protector. Also, try to be sure you're happy with the application of the screen protector--if you're the kind of person that those bubbles will annoy, get rid of them now, because they will be all the more difficult to get rid of when you're trying to squeeze them out from under the layer of screen protector and the added layer of skin.
The stickers peeled off the sheet easily, and I was a little surprised that the back side of the "sticker" decal didn't feel much like a sticker at all--it was tacky and adhesive, but not hyper sticky. When placed on the device, the peeled decal would kind of sit on top until pressed down, and then it would stick. This "doesn't stick until pressed" property made the positioning of the decal very easy to do, because I could move it around until I was happy with the positioning. One would think that this quasi-stick property would mean the decal wouldn't adhere well after the fact, but I can say with confidence that the decal is now on and is staying put until I try to peel it off again. Another property of the decal that surprised me was the elasticity of it--with a normal sticker, a sort of "bunching" of the material can occur at rounded edges on the device. These decals can kind of be worked and stretched so that bunching around the edges does not occur, and the decal fits the device very closely. Also, upon investigation, the sticker also has some channels drawn into the adhesive underside--these allow trapped air to be pushed out after application to reduce bubbles under the design.
The price was very reasonable, and the functional and aesthetic design of the product is magnificent. I am very pleased, and will likely buy from this company again.
The front of the phone--notice how tightly the button holes fit to the buttons on the device.
The back of the phone--notice those well-contoured edges!
Front of the phone with the downloadable background--notice my cat watching you intently! I was a little afraid that the background image might be a smidge off from the decal, and the mismatched edges would annoy my obsessive compulsive tendencies too much. However, the download fit to the edges off the sticker decal amazingly well, and the colors match darn well perfect despite the company caveat that the LCD screen colors might vary depending on the device. The overall presentation is very slick!
I'll send more pictures when I get my Nook decal installed.
Alula
I was a little dubious about the application of these stickers to my expensive electronics, but after reading some reviews online I learned that they can be removed without leaving a residue on the device. That said, I was worried about ruining my fancy stickers by mis-applying and then needing to peel them back up; figuring I might need to reorder, I started with the cheaper of the two I ordered, and applied the Winter Sparkle for LG Vortex skin first.
N.B., apply any screen protectors you want on your phone BEFORE applying the skin, as the skin will lay over the screen protector. Also, try to be sure you're happy with the application of the screen protector--if you're the kind of person that those bubbles will annoy, get rid of them now, because they will be all the more difficult to get rid of when you're trying to squeeze them out from under the layer of screen protector and the added layer of skin.
The stickers peeled off the sheet easily, and I was a little surprised that the back side of the "sticker" decal didn't feel much like a sticker at all--it was tacky and adhesive, but not hyper sticky. When placed on the device, the peeled decal would kind of sit on top until pressed down, and then it would stick. This "doesn't stick until pressed" property made the positioning of the decal very easy to do, because I could move it around until I was happy with the positioning. One would think that this quasi-stick property would mean the decal wouldn't adhere well after the fact, but I can say with confidence that the decal is now on and is staying put until I try to peel it off again. Another property of the decal that surprised me was the elasticity of it--with a normal sticker, a sort of "bunching" of the material can occur at rounded edges on the device. These decals can kind of be worked and stretched so that bunching around the edges does not occur, and the decal fits the device very closely. Also, upon investigation, the sticker also has some channels drawn into the adhesive underside--these allow trapped air to be pushed out after application to reduce bubbles under the design.
The price was very reasonable, and the functional and aesthetic design of the product is magnificent. I am very pleased, and will likely buy from this company again.
I'll send more pictures when I get my Nook decal installed.
Alula
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Registered?
Hey Munchkin, are you registered for baby gifts anywhere? And when is your baby shower? I want to get a head start on getting you stuff!
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