bioneural.net » skype

Mac-friendly alternatives to Apple's 1G iPhone

Bruce — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 12:04:28 +0000

The iPhone has arrived in the US. Even if it were available in New Zealand I still wouldn't buy one. I'm happy to wait for the large beta-test program (i.e. 1 in 5 US adults) to refine the product first. That said, I've been looking for a way to converge my mobile devices (phone, PDA, iPod) for some time. Sadly the 1st generation iPhone does not look like the device to fill this need. Relative to other Mac-friendly alternatives it comes up uniquely short in a number of areas on my feature wish-list. But of course I haven't seen or held it in the "flesh", and it is only a 1G device—so I can't be overly critical. Or can I? Most of the pre-launch focus has been on iPhone's interface (not unimportant), but what about comparative features? It's clear that while the iPhone offers few unique features (iTMS DRM playback, bookmark syncing) it's also immediately apparent that, relative to comparable products, the iPhone has the most limitations. I've been a Palm user since 1999, owning a Palm V, an m505, and (currently) a Tungsten T3: I also use an ageing Sony Ericsson T610 and an iPod (1G deceased; currently an iPod Photo). It would be nice to carry around one device instead of three (ditto on the chargers); I had hoped that device might be the iPhone: So the iPhone has arrived. I posted on the perfect PDA + phone back in 2005—it still hasn't arrived. With Palm OS so obviously stagnating ...

A Skype and Mac-friendly alternative to iSight

Bruce — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:07:16 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

Now that the expensive but excellent Firewire-based iSight is no more, Mac users lacking a built-in (USB-based) iSight webcam face a dilemma. Although Mac OS X 10.4.9 introduced iChat support for USB Video Class (UVC), and using such webcams means no extra drivers are needed, it is far from easy to walk into a store and choose a one that is certain to work. I threw my once-loved Cyberphone, blaming the non-native drivers for poor audio performance on my Intel Mac. Any cheap webcam (as with the Cyberphone) is likely to have poor Mac driver support, so a driver-free UVC camera seemed like the answer. But would the built-in microphone be recognised? Google didn't seem to come up with a definitive answer to this question. Furthermore, reports said that Vista-certified cameras "should" work—but elsewhere I read that some Vista-certified webcams support UVC and others do not. So how can you send high-quality Skype video and audio without hogging all your USB ports? A microphone In Wellington USB headsets abound (which I find cumbersome), but there is a dearth of desktop USB microphones. I could have bought a new iMic, which serves to amplify a line-level microphone—an additional purchase. I used to own the original iMic and was less than impressed when using it to send audio out via my hi-fi (the sound kept breaking up). A camera As for a camera I gather the Xbox Live Vision works natively with OS X 10.4.9, delivering a decent image for the money and available in-store for ...

Keeping in touch and online in New Zealand

Bruce — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 22:46:33 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

We knew we would spend the first month of our stay in a Wellington apartment that had no phone line. We also knew that our UK-sourced mobile phones would work fine in New Zealand. Furthermore, being addicted to fond of Internet access, we knew we would want to get online as soon as possible (OK, "we" in this context means Bruce). More than two-thirds of New Zealanders have home Internet access—and you can't go back to dial-up once you've tasted the broadband fruit. So what were our options? What is Project Koru? The code name of our "great escape" from our adopted home in the UK to spend a year living and working in New Zealand. You can find an introduction to the project here together with an explanation of why we chose the koru as the symbol for our journey. Short-term Internet options Internet cafés virtually litter the streets of Wellington. As for wireless, prepaid cards for access to Telecom WiFi hotspots are available in Starbucks and other stores ($NZ10 for an hour). CaféNET is a cost-effective alternative (from $NZ10 for 24 hours) with numerous hotspots in downtown Wellington. As things turned out we didn't need to utilize these options, since we were (semi-) online in the apartment the day after arrival. Wireless options Woosh use a "3G" UMTS network that has geographically limited coverage (most of Wellington is served). A 1.6Mbps/ 125 Kbps (downstream/ upstream) connection with a 5GB monthly data and phone rental costs $NZ69.95 $NZ59.95 from 1 Nov 2006 ($NZ198 activation ...

SkypeOut + Cyberphone K VoIP phone

Bruce — Sat, 20 Aug 2005 07:18:46 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

After a recent run of rants, it's about time I found something to rave about. Enter "a low cost way to make calls from Skype to friends who still use those traditional landlines or mobile phones. That means calling anyone, anywhere in the world at local rates" (q.v. SkypeOut). Add to this a USB phone that does VoIP (voice over IP) and integrates with Skype (q.v. VoIPVoice Cyberphone K). We have family and friends in Germany and New Zealand and international calls contribute to most of our £80-90 per quarter phone bill. If you're serious about reducing BT's profit margin, you might want to check out this pairing. SkypeOut I've looked at Skype before, here. Until recently I used it for Mac to PC Internet telephony, but have been disappointed with the call quality (especially to my parents in NZ who use a dial-up modem, but also to family in Germany who are on broadband like us). Such calls are routed from computer to computer over the Internet, and thus require the remote end to be online (shame Skype's online status indicator seems a bit flakey). SkypeOut means you can use your computer (with or without accessories) to call someone on their landline or mobile phone. This time the call is routed over the Internet for some of the time, then gets passed on to the public telephone or mobile network. The most important implication of doing this is that you aren't paying for an international call, but for a local one! Calling ...

Instant messaging matrix

Bruce — Wed, 23 Feb 2005 10:10:05 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

You have a Mac; they have a PC. What IM software will let you type, talk, see, and send across the Great Divide? The IM phenomenon According to Wikipedia: An instant messenger is a computer application which allows instant text communication between two or more people through a network such as the Internet. This definition accurately describes the situation in the 1990s, but the phenomenon that is instant messenging (IM) today is much broader than the exchange of realtime text messages. Type Good old-fashioned typing still has its uses, and it doesn't require much in the way of bandwidth or processing power. Perhaps the main advantage is that you don't have to think about a reply in realtime as on the telephone—but nor do others wait hours or days for your e-mailed reply. Typing gives you time to think of a suitable and reasoned reply (with spell checking!)—without being put on the spot or having to endure an uncomfortable silence. It's also very easy to copy-and-paste a URL or other information into a chat window. Talk Sometimes, as BT say, "it's good to talk". Voice calls can be made PC to PC and North to South hemisphere for no additional communications cost, even if both parties have 56K modem access. Broadband is better of course, but even then call quality can be variable. Getting this to work from behind your firewall and/or NAT router can pose something of a challenge. See If talk is good, then talk with moving pictures must be better, right? Sure, it is nice to "see" ...