Tech Support Cheat Sheet- xkcd

We have found out that we cannot let the world go one without sharing certain specimens of the almighty xkcd webcomics. So here's the introductory masterpiece: (by the way, our image uploader is slacking on us, so go ahead and click on the comic to see it in its full-resolution glory back in its natural habitat)

We hope you enjoyed that as much as we did!

All credit goes to the awesomeness that is you-know-who at xkcd.com

BTW: you can check out one of our personal favorites here.

Review: The Engadget Show Episode 001

"On September 13, 2009, the technology blog known as Engadget (engadget.com) finally caved and gave its readers the one thing they had been howling for: The Engadget Show. As you may know, Engadget hosts a weekly podcast in which they talk about all the happenings in the technology and consumer electronics arena for the past week. The podcast consists of Joshua Topolsky, Editor-in-chief at Engadget, and two other editors, Nilay Patel and Paul Miller, sitting around talking about all the hottest goings-on in geek land."

Continue reading the review here: Engadget Launches the Engadget Show

Iphone MMS is Live!

Free at last, free at last! The day over 20 million iPhone users have been waiting for has finally arrived. As announced, AT&T has unleashed MMS onto the iPhoning world today, September 25, 2009. It's been a very long summer, hasn't it?

AT&T originally said the oddly missing feature would be available for subscribers in “late summer” 2009. Ahem, excuse us, AT&T, but late summer ended on Tuesday. You couldn't have just stepped it up a notch and hit that target? Well, we won't nitpick. We're just happy it is finally here. Now the mass of iPhone users can continue on their deed of forcing AT&T to upgrade their infrastructure!
To find out how to activate your iPhone's MMS, continue reading here.

Top 4 Free Android Apps

With the advent of the Android Market, open-sourcers are getting a taste of the magic of Apple's App Store. And isn't a wonderful thing? Yes, it is! With over 11,000 apps, the Android Market is taking off. This aspect of Android-powered devices is a great feature. There are some great apps in the Market and we're sure it they will sood rival the number in the App Store. On a side note, Apple approved nearly 1400 new apps last Friday. Way to crank 'em out, boys!

"With the Android Market, users can download a variety of applications, which install automatically on their phone. These apps provide all kinds services and functions and increase the features of any Android device ten-fold. Although some Android apps cost money, the majority are free.
And if you are like me, then you know the best things in life are free! Here are the top four free Android apps from Android Market."
Continue reading here...

Top 4 Cool Things About the Android Market
1. The majority of applications are free (and we like free, here at Magna Techa)
2. The Market will get a major update in October, with the release of Android 1.6 a.k.a Donut
3. There's a Google Voice app!
4. Who can resist downloading apps? It's like a mini shopping spree everyday.

OpenACircle: The Best Way to Meet Virtually

With technology taking such a position at the forefront of today's businesses, the conventional meeting place is evolving at an ever-increasing pace. A few years ago, that important company meeting took place in a secluded boardroom in a specific building. All those who wanted to collaborate had to make the trek to that special room. This sometimes involved cross-country flights, costing either the businessman or his company thousands of dollars per year. However, that has since changed.

With OpenACircle, you and your team can collaborate and share material from nearly anywhere in the world. The new application, which is web-based, allows business team members to work together on numerous projects involving documents, files and pictures. OpenACircle also has numerous features such as a "Live Room" for on demand video and audio conferencing, and video email. The application also includes an "Open Feed" that tells you who is online and what's going on at the moment.

The team here at Magna Techa took OpenACircle for a test run and we have to say it is quite impressive. The applications interface is very intuitive and snappy. For the amount of options and collaboration opportunities OpenACircle's interface provides, it is perfect for those teams that constantly need to stay in touch. We thought the best part of the app was the fact that it is web-based. This means that all you need to be able to use OpenACircle is a computer and web browser with Java. No downloading or installing software. Just sign up and your ready to meet with your team!

OpenACircle has great packages that can fit any team or business. The basic package lets you collaborate with up to 19 other members, 1 GB of storage and video conferencing, all for free. So if you're in the market for a "dynamic and persistent collaborative community on the web" or just need a common area for your team to meet, check out OpenACircle today!

Disclosure: the writers of Magna Techa were financially compensated for reviewing OpenACircle.

Review: T-Mobile's myTouch 3G

Hide the women and children! Android is loose! The second Android-powered geniusphone (yes, it is smarter than a smartphone) to hit the U.S. is on the prowl. With Oprah's Season 24 Kickoff extravaganza, Google's Android OS is starting to get some of the lime light it deserves. Thanks to the Queen, you can get $100 off a myTouch 3G until September 24, 2009. Now isn't that nice? Oprah and open source: all things are right with the universe. Hit up the link below to read a glowing review of that "Docomo HT-03A" (that's what they call the myTouch 3G in the land of Japan)!

"T-Mobile released the myTouch 3G on August 5th, 2009 in the U.S. It is a smartphone with Google's open-source Android operating system. The phone comes with the "with Google" branding and is tightly coupled with Google's online services. I received my myTouch 3G one week ago. My phone is on an unlimited web, multi-media messaging and text messaging plan with 300 anytime minutes." Continue reading about the magic of the myTouch 3G here.

Top 4 Reasons to Get a myTouch 3G... Now!
1. Oprah said so (she'll save you a shiny Benji if you do it)
2. Android Market FTW
3. You can get one in Merlot (yes that is the color)
4. Touchscreen keyboard and "Donut" coming soon!

Review: Mio DigiWalker C320 GPS

 

Here at Magna Techa, we definitely appreciate the value of knowing how to get somewhere. After moving to new headquarters, we once became lost in our search for the nearest Radio Shack (now known as The Shack). It was a horrendous time, but a broken arm, $300 and one dead raptor later, we made it to The Shack. After that, we decided it would be worth the money to grab a cheap GPS unit, much like the Mio C320.

"After searching for an inexpensive GPS system, I found the Mio Digiwalker C320. The C320 is one step above the entry level unit (the C230) from Mio. It offers numerous features seen on more pricey GPS systems." Read the rest of this review here.

In honor of the broken arm, we shall refrain from making a "Top 4" list for this post...

Palm Finally Announces the Pixi

The Pixi! We couldn't have named it better ourselves, Palm. We're sure this one will be a winner! Seriously, though, the beast will run webOS and we like that. We had ourselves a tussle with the old Pre the other day and we have to say webOS has got it going on. The minimalistic design of this Pixi lady also impressed us. The only question is: do we really have to wait until "this holiday season"?

"The Palm Pixi will sport a 2.63 inch capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 320X400. The screen will be a bit smaller than other smartphone displays (the iPhone has a 3.5 inch screen). However, the fact that it will be capacitive puts it at the head of the pack. Nearly all touchscreen phones today, besides the iPhone, have resistive screens. Resistive touchscreens are often poorly implemented, in my opinion." We hear you on that resistive nonsense. Continue reading about the Pixi here.

Top 4 Things We Like About the Pixi
1.The name! (Epic win by Palm)
2. The keyboard-- who doesn't love the Pre's keyboard? The Pixi will have those same super-grippy buttons, but with less crampage.
3. The slimness
4. The price (supposedly $99 with the usual two-year lease of your soul to a telecommunications company)

Review: LG Incite

Oh yes, the LG Incite. We once had one of these critters running around (and we use the term "running" very loosely here) at the Magna Techa headquarters. It was a sad machine, didn't want to do much but sit around and freeze its Windows Mobile OS. We ended up selling it on Craigslist to some unlucky chump.

"I bought the LG Incite as my upgrade with AT&T. I read many reviews about the Incite and felt that it was a quality cell phone overall. Unfortunately, I was sadly mistaken. The LG Incite is a candybar shaped phone, with a touchscreen interface. It runs Windows Mobile 6.1." Continue reading this review here.

Top 4 Reasons to Not Buy an Incite
1. You like to actually use your phone
2. You are allergic to styli (LG Incite Club Rule #1: Never use an LG Incite without a stylus)
3. You don't want to be convicted of negligent homicide when grandma falls down the stairs and your Incite refuses to dial 911
4. You appreciate your sanity

Make Ubuntu Faster

Yes, we know Ubuntu is lightning fast on all but the most ancient systems. But aren't we, as humans, built for speed? Don't we strive for faster and faster products in all areas of life, whether it be a speed demon of a car or the fastest toaster oven on our street? So if a little fast is a good thing, won't a lot of fast be a great thing? Yes, we do believe so. Follow these tips and your Ubuntu installation will be leaving those posers (i.e. Windows Vista) in the OS dust.

"Ubuntu is a GNU/Linux operating system and, as such, is quite fast, like other Linux systems when compared to Windows. But there are things that can make Ubuntu faster. Here are some changes that will let Ubuntu boot up more quickly:

Lower the timeout on GRUB
Ubuntu's bootloader is configured to give the user 10 seconds to choose which kernel to boot. Most of the time this is unneeded so I'll show you how to change it. In a terminal, type "sudo nano /boot/grub/menu.lst". Scroll down to the line that says "timeout sec" and change the "10" to however many seconds the system should wait, even 0. This will make the overall boot time for the sytem will be faster." You can continue reading here.

Top 4 Gift Ideas for a Gadget Lover

Yeah, we know it is ridiculous to say which gadgets are best for gifts. However, not everyone's mom can figure out which of the 137 netbooks they should buy their son/daughter. Maybe this little guide just might help your grandmother or Uncle Jerry wade through the muck of ads this holiday season and figure out you want them to buy you a 32 GB Zune HD and a $200 iTunes gift card. Wouldn't that be nice?
We thought so, too. And, by the way, tell old Uncle Jerry to toss a gift card or two our way, just for the help, you know...

"Nearly everyone has a a person in their life that is crazy about technology and gadgets. It might even be you! With so many holidays throughout the year, there is always the question of what to buy them." You can continue reading here.

Review: Samsung a177 AT&T's QWERTY GoPhone

 

 AT&T released the Samsung a177 in May of this year. The phone is a qwerty-style messaging phone and is part of AT&T's GoPhone service. The GoPhone service is a prepaid mobile phone service that does not require a contract. The user simply buys the phone and the minutes that he plans to use and does not have to pay a monthly bill.

The Samsung a177 is an impressive phone, considering GoPhones are usually lower-end and of poor quality. After a first hands on with the device, it felt as though it was of a high quality build.

The Keyboard

The Samsung a177 has a typical qwerty keyboard with shortcuts to various applications, including the games, the camera and instant messaging functions. There is also a shortcut button for the messaging application (SMS and MMS). The keyboard on the a177 is very impressive. It is quite easy to use for anyone with normal sized fingers. The buttons are not too close together and there is adequate feedback while pressing them.

The Screen

The display on the Samsung a177 is a 2.2-inch screen with 64,000 colors and a resolution of 220x176. It is bright enough for use in full sunlight and does the job well. However, the display is not on par with higher-end devices (i.e. iPhone or G1) in terms of resolution or colors. This is to be expected from the a177 as it is not a smartphone.

The Style

The style of the Samsung a177 is definitely noteworthy considering it is a prepaid device. A comparable prepaid option in terms of price is the Motorola RAZR. It is quite obvious that the a177 beats the RAZR in the looks arena, not to mention functionality, as the RAZR is not a qwerty device. The a177 is a black phone with blue accents on the number keys. The back of the a177 is textured (sort of like a tire, but it looks quite fashionable) and will not slide around easily when laid on it. The device is very slim compared to other qwerty phones such as the Blackberry Curve.

The Connection

The Samsung a177 is a standard GSM quadband cellphone (no 3G radio). However it does have Internet capabilities with a WAP browser and push notifications for instant messaging services, including AIM, Yahoo! and Windows Live messengers. The Samsung a177 also has a Bluetooth 2.0 radio, but it can only be used to add a bluetooh headset (no transferring of files).

The Call Performance

The Samsung a177 is on par with other phones in its price range when it comes to call performance. In testing, there were no dropped calls and the other caller could be heard loud and clear. There were no complaints from callers about quality coming from the a177's end. The phone is rated at 300 minutes of talk time and 10.5 days of standby time.

Other features of the Samsung a177 include:

    * Games, such as Guitar Hero and Bejeweled
    * VGA camera with 640x480, 320x240 and 220x165 pixels, no flash or video
    * 500-contact phonebook, with the ability to assign a picture to contacts
    * Calendar, holds 100 events
    * Calculator
    * Unit Converter
    * Alarm (5 alarms, can power device on to go off)


The Samsung a177 is a great choice for those of you that want a messaging phone and no monthly bill for you wireless service. It is a high-quality device great for IM and text messaging.

Top 4 Reasons to Get a Samsung a177
1. Your dog ate your iPhone and your 1 year and 4 months from your upgrade
2. You threw your iPhone at your dog for eating your MacBook and broke your iPhone... and your dog.
3. You can't break your love of physical keyboards
4. You enjoy using corny rap ringtones (the a177 has a top-notch example)

Windows 7: The Last of the Mohicans

By now nearly everyone is aware of the failure of Windows Vista, the current OS from Microsoft. But if you're not, here is a summary: The software was received with harsh criticism of being buggy and too resource-intensive. There was even a class-action lawsuit against Microsoft over the "Vista Capable" label applied to new PCs. These systems were anything but Vista capable. Needless to say, the uptake of Vista by the public was quite slow.
Continue reading here.

Update:

Now, my Windows 7 install is giving me even more problems, in addition to its general lethargy and lack of good temperament. It has, for the past couple of weeks, insisted on telling me that my "copy of Windows is not genuine". This is after I accurately validated, with my software key provided to me by Microsoft, my Windows 7 install. So that's not that bad, you say?

Well how about if I told you that clicking on the "Go online and resolve now" link got me absolutely nowhere. When I click on it, it takes me to the validation page. Cool thing is, the page does not currently support validating Windows 7. This must be due to the fact that I am using a Release Candidate version of the OS. The full version won't be released until October 22nd.

Great planning, Microsoft. Leave your beta and RC testers to be told that "You may be a victim of software counterfeiting" every 10 minutes for days on end. This also means I cannot get optional updates, which might better my OS's performance (badly needed). I'm pretty sure we're instead the victim of Microsoft's lack of competence.

So I guess I will be using my non-"genuine" version of Windows 7 until October 22nd. Or until I uninstall it and give up on Windows all together, whichever comes first...

Update 2:
Success! Windows 7 was proven to be genuine today, the day after it was available to the public. Now can I somehow use a $29 Vista-to-7 student upgrade to turn this install from an Evaluation Copy into the real deal?  I mean, this laptop did come with Vista on it. I'm not sure if I want to go down that road...