FamilySearch Indexing for iOS, Android

FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org) has now launched an Indexing app for iOS and Android. For all those interested in genealogy and with some free time on their hands, a warning... This is an addicting app!

First you want to do a few names just to test it, next you realise there are stats and you want to have a high number of matches, meaning the way you typed a name matches the way other indexers typed it, and then you just can't stop! You will do just one more name, just one more, just one more...

This is actually a great way to use your free time as you will be contributing to the largest freely available genealogical database on the Web, making it possible to search for names instead of spending hours looking at old microfilms. And with the mobile app you can index on the bus, at the beach or wherever you are, either on your smartphone or your tablet.

Way to go, FamilySearch!

Technology or People, Secret of Success

Since the Industrial Revolution that technology has not only replaced people in businesses, but it is more and more seen as the solution to productivity, performance, profitability. New automated systems controlled by powerful computers now replace hundreds of workers in many factories, and in the office the ancient role of the telephone operator has been replaced state of the art telecommunication systems.

iOS 5 Woes

Quite probably one of the most anticipated and feature rich upgrades to Apples`s mobile platform operating systems, iOS 5 ended up being also one of the buggiest. Adding to the (hopefully resolved) battery and DST bugs, it is now surfacing what seems to be one of the most annoying bugs of late, especially if we take into account there is no fix announced. After updating to iOS 5 many idevices are now unable to connect to wireless access points, or get such a weak signal that it becomes impractical to use Wi-Fi at all.

What I find interesting is that everyone criticizes Windows for its bugs, but Apple has no heat for theirs, even repetitive ones, like the DST bug.

I am getting really annoyed at not being unable to connect to my home wireless network, especially when iOS 5 brings Over the Air updates to the iPhone and iPad... right!

Have you been plagued by this bug? What are your thoughts?

Lenovo Thinkpad Tablet

Lenovo has recently launched the Thinkpad Tablet, powered by Android Honeycomb. This seems to be one of the best equipped, designed and a solid tablet that includes digitising features, but no one seems to have noticed it.

I know Lenovo is targeting the enterprise market with this tablet, but even the "pros" are quiet.

Maybe one such tablet will find it's way to me, so I can post a proper review. In the meantime, check it out at Lenovo.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Airport Security and Other Annoyances

I am writing this post from Switzerland, where I arrived yesterday for a brief business visit. When I picked my luggage at the airport I immediatly noticed something was missing. I had a bright blue handle wrap on my bag, which helps me identify it among all the other black bags and also makes it more comfortable to hold. Well, that was missing.

Social Media Courses

I am currently writing this post on a train to London, where I will participate in a series of courses on Social Media. While I was researching about what courses were available and which ones were the best I found myself completely lost. Some would say Social Media studies are so new that no courses were actually good at all, while others said that any course would be somewhat valuable.

Logitech ClearChat PC Wireless

Logitech ClearChat PC Wireless

My wife gets annoyed with a little habit I have. If I am on the phone, I can’t sit still. I will be walking around the room or the house, talking away. As I work mostly form home and the telephone is one of my main tools, you can imagine the rest.

When I was taking VOIP calls on the computer, though, I was stuck. I have used a bluetooth headset, but not only it made my ear ache, people also couldn’t hear me well. So I was down to a nice pair of Sennheiser PC350, typically used for gaming, but which I love to use both for VOIP calls and even with my iPhone. I had to buy a small adapter that allows both jacks (headphones and microphone) to be used with a combo audio socket, like the one on my Lenovo ThinkPad W510, but it worked fine.