Friday, May 23, 2008
So what's going on with the Mac Book Pro battery/charger?
I had the opportunity to use my daughter's Mac Book Pro for a day. My Dell recently spat the dummy and I needed a laptop on-site for a day. We both code in C# so her MBP was already decked out with VMWare Fusion, VS2005, SQL Express, and the Dev Express library.
As this was my first time using a Mac I expected to struggle with key positions, key commands and the like; but it was not as bad as I thought it would be. Actually, I am impressed. The speed was far better than my desktop, which is certainly no slouch in the peformance ranks, and everything just seemed smoother and more integrated.
However, there was one confusing aspect, and hence this post.
I worked with the power adapter connected all morning. Just before lunch I noticed that I had only 24% battery life left and this surprised me. I checked the battery meter in both Lepoard and Windows, and they were unanimous in their findings. I disconnected the power cord and re-connected. No Change. The LED on the plug was bright red. I left for lunch, and upon my return both meters advised that there was a little over 4 hours of battery life remaining. Hmmm, maybe I mis-read things before lunch. I decided to keep working, and about 4 1/2 hours later I noticed that power was down to 20 minutes. This led me to think that I had beem working on battery all afternoon, but the power adapter was still plugged in and turned on, although i did notice that the LED was no longer red. It was off.
So, what's going on? I realise I know next to nothing about the MBP, and it is probably pure ignorance on my part, but either I have overlooked something or Macs are not as intuitive as I have been led to believe. I'll be happy to hear from someone about what it is that I have overlooked.
As this was my first time using a Mac I expected to struggle with key positions, key commands and the like; but it was not as bad as I thought it would be. Actually, I am impressed. The speed was far better than my desktop, which is certainly no slouch in the peformance ranks, and everything just seemed smoother and more integrated.
However, there was one confusing aspect, and hence this post.
I worked with the power adapter connected all morning. Just before lunch I noticed that I had only 24% battery life left and this surprised me. I checked the battery meter in both Lepoard and Windows, and they were unanimous in their findings. I disconnected the power cord and re-connected. No Change. The LED on the plug was bright red. I left for lunch, and upon my return both meters advised that there was a little over 4 hours of battery life remaining. Hmmm, maybe I mis-read things before lunch. I decided to keep working, and about 4 1/2 hours later I noticed that power was down to 20 minutes. This led me to think that I had beem working on battery all afternoon, but the power adapter was still plugged in and turned on, although i did notice that the LED was no longer red. It was off.
So, what's going on? I realise I know next to nothing about the MBP, and it is probably pure ignorance on my part, but either I have overlooked something or Macs are not as intuitive as I have been led to believe. I'll be happy to hear from someone about what it is that I have overlooked.
Labels: Mac, Technology
Saturday, May 17, 2008
You get what you pay for
A friend reminded me the other day of an adage we have both used when consulting to clients. It goes something like this: "Your accounting system is how your business eats and your telephone system is how it breathes."
In this age of multiple communication options, this adage still holds true. Even if you have a completely web-based business, I suspect you would be hard pressed to do away with your phone. No one would scrimp on ensuring they could breathe properly, but I am constantly amazed at the length some business people go to get a minimal telephone system. Sure, a basic system will give you 80 % of your needs, but it that missing 20% that makes all the difference.
There are not very many of businesses that have more than 20 percent margin over their competitors, and while a telephone system that only does 80% of the job does not equate directly to the bottom line, one thing is for sure: Running a small business AND trying to make a reasonable profit does not come easy to many people. The little extra you pay over 3 or 5 years to gain least-cost routing, Caller ID linked to Outlook (or some other database back-end), even VoIP, will make a big difference in your ability to provide superior customer service.
I remember my first Skype international call. The money I saved covered the cost of the el cheapo headset many times over. Now this is an obvious example of using technology to save money, and I understand that cost savings are not always evident at the point of purchase, BUT there is another adage that my old accountant used to love to repeat to me - "Your first cost is the least cost".
I reckon a good general rule of thumb for any business purchase is to buy for the future.
In this age of multiple communication options, this adage still holds true. Even if you have a completely web-based business, I suspect you would be hard pressed to do away with your phone. No one would scrimp on ensuring they could breathe properly, but I am constantly amazed at the length some business people go to get a minimal telephone system. Sure, a basic system will give you 80 % of your needs, but it that missing 20% that makes all the difference.
There are not very many of businesses that have more than 20 percent margin over their competitors, and while a telephone system that only does 80% of the job does not equate directly to the bottom line, one thing is for sure: Running a small business AND trying to make a reasonable profit does not come easy to many people. The little extra you pay over 3 or 5 years to gain least-cost routing, Caller ID linked to Outlook (or some other database back-end), even VoIP, will make a big difference in your ability to provide superior customer service.
I remember my first Skype international call. The money I saved covered the cost of the el cheapo headset many times over. Now this is an obvious example of using technology to save money, and I understand that cost savings are not always evident at the point of purchase, BUT there is another adage that my old accountant used to love to repeat to me - "Your first cost is the least cost".
I reckon a good general rule of thumb for any business purchase is to buy for the future.
Labels: Business, Technology
Friday, May 16, 2008
Who wants to be a developer?
I enjoy reading Joel Spolsky's blog, Joel on Software. Recently, he wrote a humerous article about IE 8, and although it was funny (he often is), it gave a critical insight into the state of software development as it current stands.
If you have 10 minutes, do yourself a favour and read Joel's article. I hate being a doomsayer, but fore warning is fore knowledge as the saying goes, or as Proverbs puts it, "A wise man sees trouble afar off and prepares himself".
If you have 10 minutes, do yourself a favour and read Joel's article. I hate being a doomsayer, but fore warning is fore knowledge as the saying goes, or as Proverbs puts it, "A wise man sees trouble afar off and prepares himself".
Labels: Development
Hello, and welcome
Welcome to Veracity Recondite.
As the title suggests, you will find a wide array of topics discussed in this blog, mainly aimed at technology and small business, but with a smattering of social psychology thrown in for good measure. The word 'Recondite' intrigues me with its three different meanings. Of course, it is the third meaning that applies to this blog.
Firstly, I would like like to point out that if you are looking for expert information or advice on ANYTHING, then this is not the site for you. You know the old saying... "X" is an unknown factor and a spirt is a drip under pressure! So, no earth-shattering information or higher wisdom is to be found in here.
What can you expect from this blog? Notwithstanding the previous caveat, I do hope to impart small tidbits of information and insight about running a small business,and using technology, that you may find helpful.
One other thing to keep in mind is: I am Australian. That means my English is different from yours (unless you too, live in the Antipodes) and my spelling is different. I can only blame so much on my dislexic keyboard so any errors will simply have to be excused under the title of language differences.
Wish me luck and I hope you stick around!
As the title suggests, you will find a wide array of topics discussed in this blog, mainly aimed at technology and small business, but with a smattering of social psychology thrown in for good measure. The word 'Recondite' intrigues me with its three different meanings. Of course, it is the third meaning that applies to this blog.
Firstly, I would like like to point out that if you are looking for expert information or advice on ANYTHING, then this is not the site for you. You know the old saying... "X" is an unknown factor and a spirt is a drip under pressure! So, no earth-shattering information or higher wisdom is to be found in here.
What can you expect from this blog? Notwithstanding the previous caveat, I do hope to impart small tidbits of information and insight about running a small business,and using technology, that you may find helpful.
One other thing to keep in mind is: I am Australian. That means my English is different from yours (unless you too, live in the Antipodes) and my spelling is different. I can only blame so much on my dislexic keyboard so any errors will simply have to be excused under the title of language differences.
Wish me luck and I hope you stick around!
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