Not-So-Fond Memories

Perhaps it's because I am a bit cynical, but looking at my grade school websites have not made me happily nostalgic. In fact, I find most people who went to the public schools in my town don't miss them too much.

It's a phenomenon that is profound to me that, instead of all of us bonding in the yearning for times past, we all hated that time and bond in happiness that it is over! Sure, we cried a little at graduation. We'd miss the strong friendships we'd made. However, most of those tears were of happiness. Tears that shouted: AND YOU'LL NEVER SEE ME AGAIN!!!

Frankly, school worked in a weird way. The older you got, the harder your work was and the less cruel people became. Elementary school was a battlefield of being picked on for everything, middle school introduced relationships and the horrors of puberty, then by high school you were dealt less social problems but more academic ones.

The days of "kids have it easy" are finished. Kids have it hard. Harder than adults. No, they don't have to worry about bills, marriages, and kids. But at least adults choose to work, marry and have kids. Kids have to go to school. Then, when was the last time an adult had to defend their self-esteem from 20 to 30 of their peers?

Cut the kids some slack. They have it harder than you!

My Dreamy Experiment - Phase I

From time to time, I want to experiment with my favorite subject: ME!!! I was watching this hot new show, "Running Wilde", and it brought up the subject of mind control. More precisely, the subject of controlling dreams.

Of course, I had no instinct on controlling dreams, so I turned to WikiHow- probably not a reasonable source-but this an experiment...

Follow the link for the 13 Steps. Look for updates.

[Short Post] Geek Celebrities

I was in a bathroom with my glasses on wearing a black turtleneck and I noticed I looked like Steve Jobs. I turned to a classmate and said: "I look like Steve Jobs." She replied: "Who is Steve Jobs?" She may as well have said: "Koiusdoklkjfiesdn."

Interesting though, there are very few geek celebrities. Probably because geeks don't party hard on a Tuesday night sans undergarments. (Rather, we're staring at some text-editor attempting to innovate.)

What we need in this ever-growing technological world is a hot, genius celebrity. Preferably a girl (writer's bias), this geek would be proud of all her gadgets and tech-knowledge. I salute Morgan Webb and G4, but we need a... A Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, or Miley Cyrus of technology (or science!).

Let's give the kids another cool profession to strive for that will require creativity, problem-solving, and unhealthy eating & sleeping habits in order to succeed!

My Idea For My Boyfriend's New Tech Wardrobe

I call it a tech wardrobe because he's not just looking for a new computer, but a new phone...preferably a smart phone. And, having a geek girlfriend, he often turns to me for my opinion.

Phone
As far as phones, he's been caught between a Droid X and iPhone 4 for a while now. He's leaning more toward the Droid X now, and I'd have to agree with him. At first, I thought: "IPod Touch, iTunes, therefore iPhone." However, after he showed me his Droid vs. IPhone Excel Spreadsheet Scoreboard (he's a very smart shopper), I have to side with the Droid X. AT&T and Apple have a few issues regarding that phone that I'd advise people to research before purchasing the iPhone 4. Having not done this (yet), I won't go into that today.

Outside of those two phones, Windows Phone 7 and Android have come out with some pretty impressive-looking smart phones. Then there's the new Blackberry for those who happen to favor those. Moral: Don't buy into hype; find the phone that fits you. Go out and play with some of them. And for goodness sake, ASK QUESTIONS!!!

Laptops
Well, at this point, if it's not a Macbook, it's a Windows 7 PC. I'm currently using Windows 7 (By that I mean, I have a laptop with Windows 7. I'm actually using an iMac right now), and I like it. I never had Vista, so I can't really tell the difference. However, there seems to be a reasonable consensus that Windows 7 is an improvement from its FAIL predecessor.

Most University of Michigan college students either (a) have a Mac or (b) have a PC and want a Mac. Macs are more expensive, but are notoriously better computers. The way I see it?

I like Microsoft Office better on a PC (because that's what I'm used to), so I handle big writing, presentation, and spreadsheet business on a PC. Otherwise, I prefer a Mac.

My ideal plan, that my boyfriend is so not going to use, is to buy a Macbook (regular, Pro, or Air) and use Google Docs instead of Microsoft Office. [See post: 'Why Are People Using Google Docs???'] Safari is a great browser, so you don't have to replace IE with Google Chrome or Firefox, but I would download one of them. (I like having two browsers.)

Conclusion
The moral of all this is: Every now and then we need to update our tech wardrobe. Do the research, though, so you can be as comfortable with your new electronics as possible. Also, look up ways to increase battery life and things to go with your computer like exterior speakers. Be a smart shopper in all your consumption!

Why Aren't People Using Google Docs???

Perhaps the title is misleading. People do use Google Docs, but not as many as what should be. It's probably because people have already spent hundreds on some Microsoft Office Suite, and want to get their money's worth. However, I see Google Docs making Microsoft Office obsolete (at least for the average user who uses it for Word, PowerPoint, and Excel).

Reasons to use Google Docs over Microsoft Office:

• No need to email documents to yourself because Google Docs is online
• Microsoft Office is expensive; Google Docs is free
• Google Docs autosaves
• No .doc vs. .docx problems when Microsoft releases new versions of Office
• You can allow people access (or not) to the documents to edit without numerous emails and downloads
• Saves disk space on your personal computer
• Syncs well with other Google devices (i.e. Sites, Wave, GMail, Blogger, etc.)
  

Possible Cons to Google Docs:

• Not quite sure how private Google Docs is, so I would leave personal information off of it
• I'm sure there are more options on Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel than it's online counterparts
• Other Microsoft Office Applications?

Obviously, I'm quite impressed with Google Docs. I've been preparing to write a new screenplay and using it instead of my Microsoft Office software. Also, my boyfriend wants a new computer. My thinking is: "Use the money you'd spend on Microsoft Office to buy a more expensive computer." Or something nice for your girlfriend. J/K