Showing 121 - 130 of 135
Phone wars heat up
Life, James Hein, Published on 12/09/2012
» Has anyone noticed how phone-centric we seem to have become? For the most part I still use my phone as a phone and to occasionally send an SMS. Since I upgraded to a Galaxy S3 I have yet to reinstall many of the apps I put on my S2 and even though I get regular notifications of incoming emails, I never check them with my phone and no, I do not use Twitter. My favourite Android apps are Magnify, Google Sky Map and Open GPS Tracker. Other people I notice around me seem to be buried in their phones far more often. Facebook, email, Twitter, SMS and a plethora of other programmes are on the go while driving, walking, cycling and running, eating and working. My nieces sit on the couch and play games on their parents' phones when I see them, and more and more I see fewer children outside playing. The smartphone has replaced the diary and, for some, the notebook.
Court's Apple ruling sure to be appealed
Life, James Hein, Published on 05/09/2012
» The big news in the mobile-phone and tablet marketplace is the US-centric Apple win against Samsung in the United States. Many people regard this decision as ridiculous and think that it highlights how mercenary and capitalist Apple has become.
A return to form
Life, James Hein, Published on 31/07/2012
» It is good to be back on the pages of the Bangkok Post. For those diehards who kept reading my Currents blog during the interim, you can now relax with the expanded Life section and catch up here. The new Currents will be the same as the old Currents but with less technical and programming bits in the shorter format.
The curious case of the reappearing mail
Database, James Hein, Published on 08/12/2010
» I use Yahoo for my personal mail and it is an example of how distributed computing can be a bit flakey. I access my mail from two primary locations _ work and home. I've noticed when I access mail from one location and then go to the other, the same items I've already processed are still there, even when I refresh. Sometimes I find they are still there or reappear when I reboot my computer or restart my browser. It gets really strange when I try to do something with a redisplay item, only to be told it has been moved or deleted.
When upgrading can be a backwards step
Database, James Hein, Published on 10/11/2010
» It can sometimes be interesting to see how people view computers and applications. Many years ago I put together a small Access application that was used by my father, an archaeologist, to track pottery sherds discovered in digs in Thailand. It wasn't a very complex application in IT terms _ a simple database and a couple of forms _ but it was very useful to my father for his work.
Buying and selling digital books
Database, James Hein, Published on 03/11/2010
» There was a book fair in Frankfurt recently. For many people, the idea of a book is something you sit with at the park or in bed at night and slowly turn the pages as the story unfolds. If you are a book writer, the idea is that you spend months sending a manuscript to publishers and agents in the hope someone will want to take it on.
Success for the security-conscious
Database, James Hein, Published on 25/08/2010
» A bit over a week ago a free anti-virus app from DroidSecurity passed the 2.5 million download mark from Android users. This puts the utility in the top 50 most popular Android downloads. The reason this is news is because there have been no security threats in the form of malware aimed at the Android platform. Well, there was one SMS Trojan, but that affected only a few people in Russia. The application contains about 200 signatures that are mostly for spyware and phishing threats. The app also includes some spam filtering for anti-text messaging instances.
The symptoms of a virus, but not a virus?
Database, James Hein, Published on 04/08/2010
» What is the definition of a virus? Or, for that matter, malware? My definition would be something that stops you doing what you want to on your computer or something that has been placed on your computer to cause damage or to use your computer in a way you have not approved or intended. It is also a program that resists your efforts to remove it. Now of course there may be some security software or organisationally applied software that falls under this definition so let's focus on your home machines for the purpose of this definition.
Why PayPal indirectly supports the conmen
Database, James Hein, Published on 16/06/2010
» Some weeks I wonder what I am going to write about but something always seems to happen to give me a story.
Hands-free repetition
Database, James Hein, Published on 09/06/2010
» I've been thinking about automation lately, in the sense of having my computer do things for me. The story starts with wanting to have some of the time I spend in front of a game handled by some program so that I didn't have to be there the whole time. To cut a long story short I ended up being ripped off by some guy selling a solution that ended up being a macro recorder and player. The rip-off part was because the guy was selling a cracked version of a product from http://www.jitbit.com. I paid enough to almost have purchased their Lite product and found about the scam when I read their forum and also found the exact same product as a BitTorrent download.