Chris Pirillo » tablet

Do You Want a Tablet for Your PC or Mac?

Chris — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 01:49:38 +0000

Do You Want a Tablet for Your PC or Mac? is a post from Chris Pirillo

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What’s your favorite input device? Maybe your favorite is your mouse or a track pad. Have you thought about trying something different – maybe a tablet surface, in conjunction with a stylus and a mouse? As long as your computer has a USB port, you can control it using either the stylus or the mouse!

The Genius MousePen Graphics Tablet is likely one of the coolest new gadgets you’ll find. The 6-Inch x 8-Inch working area with the cordless pen and mouse is great for Windows and MAC users to write, draw, sketch or sign emails. Just click the pen on any of the 29 programmable shortcut keys for instant access to Office and Internet functions.

You can use it to enter text in some kind of application on your computer. You can use it to edit photos, or even paint! It’s a pressure-sensitive device – up to 1024 levels, which is a tad tricky to get used to. I did my best trying to demonstrate it!

It’s not only a fantastic media tool for designers, a fun input device for a computer. Improve your hand-eye coordination while using the coolest and hottest new input device.

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Can Hardware Development be Crowdsourced?

Chris — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 11:20:55 +0000

Can Hardware Development be Crowdsourced? is a post from Chris Pirillo

Looks like the TechCrunch Tablet (the CrunchPad) is coming along nicely. It’s good to see that they’re giving it a shot, at least!

Even with the wide array of netbooks now available from major vendors, there seems to be a place for the CrunchPad – so long as the hardware is up to snuff. A $300 price point is a good one, but I’d be interested in seeing what kind of bezel design options are made available. Or will they be skinnable right off the line?

Maybe that’s what TechCrunch needs to look into: a Zazzle for hardware. Mind you, not every branded product is made of quality materials, but that’s where quality control is important.

Touch screens are also tricky – and battery life will be important to keep in mind as well. They’re going to have to address a wide array of engineering problems that no other netbook / tablet PC manufacturer has been able to solve.

Scoble applauds the way things came together for TechCrunch, testament to crowdsourcing. Well, I’ll tell you that I believe this effort is the exception – not the rule. Most crowdsourcing efforts – 99.9% of them – fail if key individuals aren’t completely drawn-in or compensated immediately. And the more complex the project, the more likely a crowdsourcing endeavor will FAIL. It’s difficult enough to do with software – but with hardware?!

I’m not saying that crowdsourcing projects is an exercise in folly, but if you’re not TechCrunch, I wouldn’t bank on it.

So, here’s to hoping the CrunchPad will be different – like, notably different beyond its inception and vision. What will make it stand out on a store shelf? What will continue to set it apart? What will make it truly better than the competition – which already does a horrible job playing the differentiation game.

I can honestly say that I remember Michael before TechCrunch was TechCrunch (and Scoble before “blog” was a word, for that matter). It’s good to see these true geeks on top.

Are You Looking to Buy a Graphics Tablet?

Chris — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:55:36 +0000

Are You Looking to Buy a Graphics Tablet? is a post from Chris Pirillo

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I know that a few of you out there are into Graphic Design. If you’re one of those people, you probably own a Graphics Tablet. I have one, but I just don’t use it much. I have a top five list submitted by Majid to help you purchase the right Graphics Table for you.

Size can seem like a major issue when purchasing a tablet, but I can assure you bigger is not necessarily better. It can depend on what purpose you use the tablet for. For general home users and your usual hobbyist, the most ideal sizes can range from 4″ by 5″ or even 6″ by 8″. But if your an artist, designer or illustrator you may desire a larger surface area to give you more freedom on the tablet. Be aware, the larger your tablet surface is, the more you will need to move your arms. That is why many prefer a smaller size tablet to minimise arm movement. Smaller tablets can also limit your movement. So if you’re a budding artist who paints and performs large sweeping motions, I would recommend a bigger size tablet.
Graphics tablets can seem quite expensive these days, with the majority of the tablets ranging in the 2-3 hundred pound mark. But… prices are dropping. However, manufacturers are beginning to offer tablets aimed at the home user. These tablets are generally priced around 1 hundred pound mark or less, though they lack some of the professional features of the more expensive tablets. In a general sense, you get what you pay for.
Most tablets provide pens, which are generally very comfortable to use. Before purchasing your tablet, check if the pen takes batteries, as this can make the pen heavier, making it feel very bulky and you may start to feel it on your wrist.
I have been using a graphic tablet for 6 months, but have only began getting used to it. To all those who want to buy a tablet, it will not necessarily make you draw better. Yes! You can adjust the tablets’ sensitivity to suit your drawing style. But in fact for me, drawing on a tablet was much harder than drawing on paper. I advise you to learn to draw on paper, then move to digital. If it is for general Photoshop retouching and other media-related actions, you should be just fine. The best tip I can offer is to practise! practise! practise!
All tablets require drivers, so you’ll want to make sure that your manufacturer provides a driver that is compatible with your operating system. You might also want to look at what kind of features are provided in the driver software for the tablet you are purchasing. The driver controls many aspects of how the tablet functions, for the higher priced tablets you maybe offered many advanced features and capabilities. It’s always worth your tme to look to make sure you get the best out of your money.

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Woot Isn’t Always Worth a w00t

Chris — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 12:21:00 +0000

Woot Isn’t Always Worth a w00t is a post from Chris Pirillo

A friend of mine pointed out that Woot was running a special today on the Gateway M275 Tablet PC – for $599. In my humble opinion, this isn’t much of a bargain. I’d probably buy one at $199, but at $599 I’d just as soon put an additional $400 into it for a truly better Tablet PC experience.

You’d be better off spending $400 more ($999 total) for a basic Gateway CX210S – better processor, better power consumption, better RAM modules, slightly better screen resolution, likely faster hard drive, twice as much disk space, and it’s Vista Capable (Vista Ready with a memory upgrade to 1GB, whereas the M275 isn’t even listed as Vista Capable).

If you have $599 to spend on a Tablet PC, you have $999 – and at $999, your experience with the Tablet PC is going to be far better (from everything I’ve heard – not ever having owned one). Understand that Windows Vista is going to bring with it a lot of tablet-specific hooks. If a machine isn’t even Vista Capable today, I wouldn’t spend more than a couple hundred on it.

Intel’s Core 2 Duo processors changed “everything” – and I can’t wait to have one in my next laptop.

Satan is a Dork

Chris — Tue, 30 May 2006 01:19:14 +0000

Satan is a Dork is a post from Chris Pirillo

I was going through my spam folder, and this headline caught my eye. I was then compelled to draw it on my Wacom tablet (which doesn’t get much use around here). Consider this my homage to Spamusement.com. “Satan is a Dork” inspired this pencil sketch:

I have no idea if the Devil really is a dork, but if he was a dork – this is probably what he’d look like. I hope I don’t offend any devil worshipers out there by doing this. The devil-worshipping demographic is highly prized, after all. Have you hugged your devil worshipper today? I wouldn’t recommend doing so, anyway. Here’s to hoping I never get inspired by any other spam subject line. I won’t quit my day job, and I promise not to doodle anything else again without first getting my mother’s permission. She’s a devil worshipper, ya know?

How to Handle Remote Tech Support

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 06:30:00 GMT

Using GoToAssist is the easiest way to view and control another person's computer online. Use it to provide instant technical support to family, friends and customers. Start a session with just one click, and instantly connect with the other party.

Network Tools for Windows

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:30:00 GMT

You need these network tools, no matter which operating systems and networks you have to support. SolarWinds ipMonitor: Affordable Network Monitoring for SMBs. Get turnkey network, server and application availability monitoring with SolarWinds ipMonitor v9.0. This easy-to-use, reliable solution for SMBs delivers out-of-the-box availability monitoring so you always know exactly what's up with Active Directory, DNS, Exchange, FTP, Web, IMAP, MS SQL Server, and SMTP. Download your free trial today. Or, try their totally free tools! And, through 2/29, save 20% when you purchase ipMonitor 9.0.

Get Your Own Web Site

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:30:00 GMT

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VMware and Parallels for Virtual Machines

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:30:00 GMT

It doesn't matter if you're running on Windows or Mac OS X - every power user needs either Parallels or VMware (or both). There's never been an easier way to test software without destroying your primary operating system's stability. Think of how many times you wish you could press a 'reverse' button on your computer. Plus, there's no easier way to try new Linux distributions - see what all the fuss is about. Run Windows in OS X, run Linux in Windows, but the best way to do either is with VMware and/or Parallels.

Coupons for Online Shopping

chris@lockergnome.com (Chris Pirillo) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 07:56:13 GMT

This feed is fueled by Lockergnome Online Shopping and Coupon Codes

Before you shop next time, see if we have a coupon first.