shahine.com/omar/

Since I am out of the office for the longest stretch of my career, I had to think about how to deal with all the email that would be delivered to my exchange mailbox.

You see the problem is that I really don't want or need to be reading any work email while I am gone. However, since Exchange manages part of my life, I do want and need access to my calendar, tasks, notes and contacts. In fact, I've found that being away from the office actually increased my dependency and usage of tasks in Outlook/Smartphone. I do need to launch and use Outlook without seeing 3000 unread items in my Inbox.

I'm also realistic about the fact that there is some work email that I do want to read. It's not work related, but from people that will be emailing my work email address. This includes co-workers that are also friends.

So what I did was this:

1. Remove myself from every non critical distribution list. I noted the lists that I unsubscribed from in a new task that I created called "DLs to rejoin". It has a due date of the day after I return to work.
2. I made sure that every rule that processes mail has "Stop processing more rules". This ensures that when the rule moves a message to a folder, no other rule can operate on that message.
3. I created a "Hold" folder in my inbox. I then created a rule, that I placed at the very bottom of the server side rules that moves every message that has not previously been moved by a rule, and where I am not in the To line, to the "Hold" folder.
4. I changed Outlook to show me Outlook Today when I launch it. Outlook today is really old, lame and crusty though. It used to be the default in Outlook XP I think but since then they've made "Inbox" the default. I'm thinking of switching to something like Jello.GTD for my home page or creating my own.

That's it. Since leaving work I've received about 20 messages in my "Inbox". The rest have been filtered away.

In fact, I had an "aha" moment when I did this. There is so much less junk in my Inbox now, that I feel myself less anxious. I can actually budget an hour or so a day to go into my "Hold" folder and really quickly delete threads and other non relevant emails in one sitting. Previously this is something I would do all day long... which would result in my sitting and staring at my inbox some times and feeling like I would never get through my email. With this new system I can actually get to zero messages every day.

The reality of Microsoft is that email is like a fire hose and your inbox is like a small bucket that can't hold all the water. The hardest part about GTD for me has been just the energy required with staying on top of email. The problem with email is that the majority of it is not actionable and gets deleted, but as humans we are weak and the sensation that you are "buried" all the time by a constant stream of this stuff gets unbearable. Personally I'm not strong enough to really allocate some time a day to do this and I end up doing it all day long... from my desk, for my smartphone and from the web.

This Hold folder idea simply turns the firehose into a garden hose, and redirects the rest of the water to a really big holding area that you can visit on your own time... hopefully after the water has settled a little bit and the amount of energy you spend processing isn't repetitive.

Like Jeff, I am seriously thinking of giving Comcast the boot. I need to add up all the season passes I would need to get and see what the damage will be.

Of course, I canceled HBO a long time ago and watch all their stuff a few years later on DVD from Netflix. I just pretend it's not on (like Rome). Now if Apple could score HBO we'd be in business.

Oh, and I already have an Antenna so I get CBS, NBC, Fox and ABC in Hi-Def over the air (which my Media Center records just fine). I may need to invest in a better Antenna though as the one I have in my garage can be flaky at times.

This of course will save me a bunch of money as I won't need to get a Vista Media Center with Cable Card cause I won't have Cable .

The only hole in this system is that I do on occasion like to watch the news (not the craptastic local news though).

Finally! I've been eyeing this guy since it was announced.

This is a cool wireless headset for your PC. It shares a resemblance to the XBOX 360 Headset.

I want this because Bluetooth on XP AND Vista is a sorry sorry affair. 5 years later and you STILL can't pair a bluetooth Headset with Vista. Go figure.

Anyway, this guy doesn't use bluetooth, and should work well with any PC without all the evil that bluetooth entails anyway.

You can pre-order it from Amazon.com.

case-mate iPod Shuffle Case. Just cute. Trina got 2 for free and she gave me one! I mean gave Sarah one . Looks like they don't even have them for sale yet.

Crumpler 5 Million Dollar Home - sweet case for your DSLR and 2 lenses. I've been looking for a messenger style bag to carry my D70 in for a long time and this looks purfect. To bad Timbuk2 doesn't make one and to bad they didn't seem to be at Macworld. Just ordered the Crumpler in black.

IntelliScanner mini. Kinda like the idea of scanning in all the wine I own to catalog it all and remember what I've purchased and consumed. the OCD in me wants to scan all the contents of my fridge and pantry. Torres, you listening?

harman/kardon drive + play 2. This looks like the ultimate car addon for those of us with cars that don't have built in iPod kits or bluetooth. Basically you wire this puppy in and then you can control and listen to your Zune/iPod while it it stashed away in a glove compartment. You can also take advantage of your cell phone's bluetooth features somehow. Out later this year.

Arctic Butterfly - a super duper brush to get the dust off the CCD on your DSLR. If you own a DSLR you will get dust on your CCD. Getting it off often involves some tricky acrobatics with a duster or a CCD swipe that can potentially damage your CCD. There is also the option to send it to the manufacturer but that's a pain. This device avoids all that and appears to be safe on your CCD.

Shure's new line of headphones. Lots of usability improvements. The new line includes the SE210, SE310, SE420 and SE530/SE540PTH. The last one are basically the headphones I own (E500PTH) that come with new ear foam inserts that they gave me some of in the booth. The 500 series are just incredible. I've never heard base on headphones like this. It sounds like you are in a room with really great speakers. They are absurdly expensive for earphones though and I would not have purchased them had I not gotten them for 50% off.

Belkin CushTop. Pillow for your hot laptop.

If you're at Macworld tomorrow, you'll see me and my daughter roaming around in a red bugaboo stroller . I'm looking forward to checking out the show and to having Sarah witness her first ever Macworld! Hopefully she will cooperate and I'll quickly find a good restroom in Moscone for diaper changes.

As I was falling asleep last night I was thinking to myself, Why Cingular? Why did Apple announce a phone and strap themselves to the carrier like every other Mobile Device Maker (Palm, Microsoft, etc).

You see, a couple of months ago I was asked by a co-worker what I thought of the possibility of the iPhone. I responded that I thought it was real, that is was going to be amazing, groundbreaking, and that I think Apple would break free from the handcuffs that the Carriers have on every technology company... perhaps by launching their own phone brand like Virgin.

You see, by partnering with Cingular, Apple is now subject to a few very annoying things:

• They cannot release the device before Cingular can field test the device. This can take anywhere from 3 - 6 months. If Apple is releasing the phone in June, they better hope Cingular fast tracks this testing. If they do a rush job it's possible that coverage and radio reliability sucks in some places.
• They cannot release the device before Cingular gets its say. That ultimately means installing a bunch of craplets on the device and generally messing up the phone in some way.
• They will require customers to sign a 2 year contract to buy the device. They do this because they are subsidizing the device. You think the price that Steve Jobs put up on that screen at Macworld is how much Apple can afford to sell it to you? Nope, it costs more than that, which is why Cingular is happy to absorb some of that cost to lock you into their network for 2 years.
• You want a new iPhone when the next one is announced at Macworld 2008, or when the battery dies? Well you are screwed. You have to now pay an out of contract price (which is likely $200 more than the prices Steve quoted). This is because Cingular hasn't finished eating the cost of subsidizing the phone for you, and the next time they do this they want you for another 2 years. Cingular typically allows you to purchase a new phone and the discounted price 18 months after the start of your contract.
• You want that new software update with all the bug fixes that Apple has been working on? Sure, just plug in your iPhone and iTunes will take care of..... NOPE.... wrong again. The carrier (Cingular) needs to test this out, and they need to make sure it's field test etc.

Anyway, you get the picture right? This is the reality that everyone else faces (like Microsoft Phone Makers, RIM, Palm). Is Apple going to be allowed to "break" these rules? Well if they do, Cingular better think about extending that courtesy to, um, the rest of us. I sure would like it if Microsoft could update my Samsung BlackJack with bug fixes.

Now, what I thought would happen is that Apple would give the carriers the boot, and go it alone... selling an unlocked device themselves that customers could then go and plop in a SIM card from T-Mobile or Cingular (sorry Sprint/Verizon customers, you don't have this luxury... carrier still owns you) thereby circumventing all the nasties that us geeks hate about carriers. It's not clear that Apple can just drop in a software update direct to you.

But instead they got Cingular up on stage... I'm not sure why but I think Cingular gets more out of this relationship than Apple... thanks to Number Portability etc Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint are probably not happy. Cingular is likely to get a wave of switchers when the iPhone is in stores.

Of course people that don't use Cingular, or don't want to use Cingular are going to bitch endlessly to Apple... but Cingular won't care. They'll be selling you some overpriced data plan with a 2 year contract.

2 years is a long time to own a lifestyle device like the iPhone assuming it lasts that long before it's stolen, broken, can't hold a charge or you see the next version and want that.

Update: PC Mag tells us what Cingular gets in this deal.

It used to be that the Steve Jobs "Reality Distortion Field" only worked on Mac users. Now that Apple has expanded it's customer base to include practically every one on the planet (courtesy of the iPod) it seems everyone is susceptible to the Reality Distortion Field. Protecting yourself is non trivial. I personally find hiding under a desk with a Tin hat the only real protection.

I was encouraged to see at least a few posts today that indicate that people are starting to understand that they were subject to his powers the other day.

Mobile Crunch says:

Some of you - most of you in fact - likely think that I should capitulate now, kneel before the mighty Apple and swear on a stack of iMac manuals that I shall never speak of Symbian again. But wait; has anyone but Mssr. Jobs ever used the device? Has he? Does it actually work? Maybe. But the truth is that at this moment and until at least June - a full six months from now - we simply don’t know.

In fact, we don’t know a lot of things. Like whether the battery is removable - if it’s not the thing is an expensive brick between charges. We don’t know if the “typing” really is significantly faster than on something like a Treo or a SonyEricsson P990 with their small but well engineered thumb keyboards. Steve-o didn’t do any typing during the demo, did he? Of course durability has to be a question. Few devices have to stand up to as much abuse in the line of duty as a typical mobile phone. Will that beautiful display go the way of the Nano after a few short weeks? What then? Is it replaceable? By the user? Or only by the dealer with a six week turn-around time and a two-hundred dollar you can afford it if you can afford Mac penalty?

Marc Orchant also weighs in:

It's a product announcement folks… of a product that won't ship for nearly six months . A product that no one outside the fortress is Cupertino has apparently even seen or held except in the center of the RDF-powered MacWorld keynote. Watching the Steve do his thing the other day evoked an image of Edward Norton in the recent movie The Illusionist. No judgment implied before you start twitching to tell me what an idiot I obviously must be. What I mean by that analogy was that in the movie, most of the people in the audience weren't sure whether what they saw was illusion or reality. On the fringes on either side were those resolutely predisposed to believe what they saw must be one or the either. They knew it before they entered the theater and the experience of the performance only cememnted that predisposition.

...

So please – everyone – discuss it amongst yourselves as you like but please don't accept the illusion as reality in the absence of proof. 

And then of course there is the bitching that has already started:

Ryan’s list contains a lot of the tear-inducingly sexy fantasies that were going through my own mind on Tuesday morning when we all heard that the iPhone was going to run OS X.

Like a lot of my friends, I (probably naively) took the announcement to mean that, as on my own Mac, I’d be able to install Cocoa applications built to take advantage of announced features like WebKit, Core Animation, and so on. Sure, given the foreseeable hardware limitations, these wouldn’t be the exact applications that we’re each running on our MacBooks today, but, hell, I’d take “OmniOutliner Mobile” or “iTerm Lite” or “Textmate for iPhone” in a heartbeat. No question.

Yesterday morning, though, I started to hear rumbles about the “inability for users to install additional applications of their choosing.” And then later, after Brian from Gizmodo got a hands-on demo along with a sit-down with official Apple honchos, he noted…

It isn’t OS X proper, as you’d expect. And like an iPod, it won’t be an open system that people can develop for. Remember, this is both an iPod and a Phone.

…and I died a little inside.

Fat chance you will be able to install apps on this thing.

Apple will be lucky if they get this thing out in June and weather the force that is the Mac Faithful when they rip this thing to shreds till Apple cries Uncle. Just you wait... June is doing to be a fun month on the blogesphere.

Just remember... Steve has just sold you his dream, and that dream is scheduled to ship at some point. Reality isn't guaranteed to match what he was selling.

Remember the Newton. Best PDA EVAR!!! on version 4.

I give up and am uninstalling Quicken. My trial barely lasted a few hours. Was this app written in Java or something? It flickers, redraw is horrendous and the user interaction model sucks. Reconciling transactions from a bank is primitive. You can't even specify what date range to use when downloading transactions from your bank. And yes, I downloaded the R3 version just a few weeks after downloading the R2 version.

Man this is depressing. I guess I'm stuck with Money till some nifty web based online site comes along with a similar feature set. None of these do.

I wonder what's going on with http://onestatement.com/. Looks promising, but no updates since July 2005.

I mentioned one reason to get Vista Ultimate a while back: Volume Shadow Copy. Well, another reason to get Ultimate is that it includes a MPEG2 encoder/decoder. Why should you care? Well Windows XP always required 3rd party MPEG decoders to do things such as play DVDs. If you own a Media Center PC then you know just how sorry this is since it's completely useless without one. It was always blamed on licensing costs (MPEG is not free).

Well great, so how did 3rd parties take care of this opportunity? The usual way... they created buggy substandard software that was sometimes ok at decoding but incapable of encoding. Or, it would install their DVD player that would often get in the way of the built in Windows software it was meant to service and behaved a lot like Anti Virus and Security software constantly saying "hey look at me!!! check out my always running tray icon process, and watch how I take over when you insert a DVD". They found all sorts of ways to take something that costs $5 or less to licence and turn it into anywhere from a $15 to a $60 "opportunity" with fancy bells and whistles you never needed in a DVD player. Thankfully, nVidia finally came out with a decent decoder a few years after XP came out but seems like they too have fallen victim to the "Bronze", "Gold", "Platinum" strategy of selling you more expensive sugar water.

Anyway, Vista Ultimate now has a genuine Microsoft included quality MPEG encoder/decoder. One less way to get stuck in DShow Hell. You can now expect the same level of quality from DVDs and the like that you get from Windows Media Video.

update: the mpeg decoder is also included in Vista Home Premium.

Um, the videos that our Canon PowerShot takes are huge. I can manually open them in movie maker and reduce their size by an order of magnitude.

Does anyone know of a good automated way to do this that does not involve writing a bunch of scripts and creating profiles for Windows Media Encoder?

As of May 3rd, JetBlue will fly into all 3 Bay Area airports; SFO being the latest addition. This is just super IMHO and should give American and United a good kick in the rear. Not so good for Virgin America which is still grounded.

Unlike Torres, I would give the Apple TV a B and the iPhone a C. Why? Well I have a bunch of TV shows on my iPod/iTunes and no good way to watch them on my plasma screen. Buying shows from iTunes is waay more reliable than my flakey comcast, flakey ATSC HD, and my Media Center 2005 which is running on 3 years old and starting to show its age. So I could use a Apple TV. Maybe even the Apple TV + the Tivo Series 3 and I can get the best of both worlds (all my photos, music, downloaded tv and HD PVR in my living room). I'm holding out for Vista Media Center + CableCard but who knows when I can get one of those.

Here is the thing with the iPhone. Yes it's cool... and yes it has some crazy cool new features. However, there is a reason it's going to be out in June. It's probably horribly buggy and incomplete. There is going to be a ton of NEW software running on this thing. Mac OS X on a tiny device the size of the Q powering your Phone, IMAP IDLE connection etc? It's going to Crash, need reboots, be slow, lock up (hellooooo spinning beach ball), have trouble answering the phone and so on. You know it will, you just don't know it yet because you haven't lived with one.

I know this because I've owned every version of the Microsoft PDA OS (From the original iPack to the current Samsung Blackjack). I've also owned every generation of Palm handheld and Treo device. They all got better over time, but they sucked in the beginning. I used them because they did something so utterly cool that is now commonplace... but they did less than a cheapo free carrier phone when it came to calls. You think a pre-emptive multi-tasking OS is good for a phone device? I've witnessed my Windows Mobile device STRUGGLE to answer the phone in the past because it was busy doing god knows what. Now you can write this off to your standard anti Microsoft, windows ce/windows is crap rebuttal, but you know better. Hundreds of Microsoft/Palm engineers have spent years trying to make a device running a modern OS (like OS X in this case) do all sorts of crazy things like sync your PIM data over the air, deliver push notification, play video and audio, run applications, manage memory and storage... AND answer the phone when it rings quietly putting everything else on hold. Oh, and it does this while negotiating with cell phone towers while you are moving around going in and out of good/bad signal strength and running on a teeny tiny batter.

You know why the iPhone doesn't have 3G and ride in the slow lane with EDGE? Cause 3G would suck the tiny battery dry in an hour. Just ask anyone with a Samsung Blackjack how their 3G is impacting their battery life.

Don't underestimate how difficult it is to make a convergence device like this work. If you are plunking down $500 for a device WITH a contract for 2 years, you are going to expect a device that CAN answer the phone. Now I have no idea if Apple will nail v1 out the door (they might). But looking at the first versions of Mac OS X and pretty much every other v1 product out there, Caveat emptor my friends.

Now this is an awesome life hack. I love hacks like this because it makes "the man" work for you. I just checked and a few of the items I've ordered from Amazon are cheaper already...

Web site Refund Please tracks your Amazon purchases for price drops in the 30 days following your purchase date, helping you take advantage of Amazon's under-advertised 30-day price guarantee.

Source: Track Amazon's 30-day refund guarantee with Refund Please

Windows apparently didn't get my memo. I don't have a modem any more. This is the dialog you get the first time you add or edit a phone number in Outlook. BTW this happened with Outlook 2007 with Vista.

Windows Home Server is exactly what I need. It solves so many of my sharing/archiving/backup issues. That coupled with unlimited offsite storage from Mozy, Carbonite, Amazon S3 (and maybe one day Live Storage) and I'm set for 2007 . Well more like 2008 unless I get on the beta... hint hint Lee Linden!

I'm also dammed excited about the Apple Keynote. Not sure why really... I no longer have love for the Mac OS, but the fact that every Mac is a PC and that I now own every iPod form factor might (yes I bought a Shuffle) have something to do with it. I'm also eying a MacBook Nano if such thing exists.