21 February, 2010: The new Apple iPad has been released, and is it hot! For all intents and purposes, it is basically a giant iPhone with more capabilities. It has the same look, feel, and navigational features as the iPhone in a sleek, beautiful frame.

Recently, I swung over to the "Dark Side", meaning, I turned in my Motorola Q for an iPhone. I say dark side because I have been a proponent of the IBM-Microsoft way of life since I started being a Techie, and have more or less shunned the Apple-Mac world...up until recently. I had to check out the iPhone and see if it had all the features as promised by it's Apple-ized Followers.

First the bottom line. With Verizon I was paying about $115 a month for 900 minutes, zero texting (huh??? Yes, zero...which always wound up costing me $5 to $6 a month at .25 per text), and unlimited data, meaning emails and Web browsing. I loved the Q but refused to do Web browsing due to the tiny screen...just not bearable. With ATT I am at $83 a month for 450 minutes, 200 monthly texts, and unlimited data. No more text charges but half the minutes; night and weekend offerings are a wash. I can get to 900 minutes for an additional $20 with ATT. So I am saving $32 a month now, and talking less, and can still save $12 a month if I bump up to 900 minutes.

I have had my iPhone for about 6 weeks and have had no coverage issues. Since they all share the same cell towers, I am not surprised. I did drop off the ATT network once, and had to reset the service to connect. But even out here in Harrison Ohio, I have no connection or dropped call issues. The Verizon myth, at least locally, has been debunked.

So, how about my experience? In a word, excellent! I love it. Easy to use, all the features (maps, directions and satellite on my phone!), more bells and whistles then any cell phone I have ever used. I use the ear buds/microphone that came with the iPhone and it is awesome...if listening to my iPod it rings in my ear and I can seamlessly switch to the call. I do not carry around an iPod and a cell phone anymore, just the iPhone. Email synching is a breeze. On a scale of 1 to 10, the iPhone rates about a 14.89.

Why, you may ask? Easy, and I can sum it up in one word: intuitive. It just works...and it works how you expect it to work. The engineers of this product have studied how humans work with devices and created the iPhone from there, instead of creating a device and making us humans configure our brains to the engineer's thinking. I have called for help once (other than the network drop issue) and used the online documentation once. Other than that it has been like this:
"I need to do this.
What if I press this...
Wow! That's it!!!"

Gut instinct works 99% of the time with this phone. There is no 45 page book and CD with the phone (as the Q provided), the iPhone does not need it.

So, back to the iPad...what does all of this mean? I have been amused by the techie reviews of the iPad, both good and bad. It is super light, it is great for email, pictures, Web browsing, and connecting to the world while on the go. It does not have huge disk space (although all of the hard disk storage is flash memory, meaning no disks or moving parts to go bad). So here it is in a nutshell: the iPad is an excellent computer for consuming media, not making media. You are not going to program a Web site or configure servers on it. You are not going to create 12 page documents or write documentation on it. You can do emails, browse the Web, check Facebook and Twitter, organize and share photos, read a book, and listen to tunes, easily and swiftly on the iPad. It's size and weight are a perfect marriage between mobility and staying connected in a busy world. As for the things it does not do well, that's why you will keep your desktop PC around.

23 January, 2010: Microsoft announced yesterday there is a vulnerability in it's Internet Explorer Web browser. This is the same vulnerability that was utilized last week when Google was attacked. Hackers place code into a Web site, and when a user with an unpatched browser goes to that site, the code is launched onto their PC. It is imperative that all PC users using Internet Explorer go to microsoft.com and visit the Security and Updates link, and download the update immediately.

This ties in to my three basic MUSTS for all Internet users:

• always use an anti virus program, and perform regular updates;
• always stay current with Microsoft Updates; and
• always use some type of firewall, and preferably, and anti-spyware/anti-malware program.

As always, stay safe in Cyberspace!