I miss the eraserhead mouse pointer on my old Thinkpad. It’s so convenient for switching between typing and quickly using the mouse.

If the laptop only has a trackpad, you have to move your whole hand to move the mouse. It’s annoying.

With the eraserhead, you don’t even have to lift up your palm. Your thumb (button clicking) and index finger (pointer moving) are already in position.

It’s unfortunate that few laptops are built with the eraserhead these days. They just don’t pass the muster of an in-store test because it’s hard to control the mouse pointer when you’re not used to the eraserhead. But after a couple of days of use, you’ll want it on every keyboard you use from then on.

Even desktop keyboards could use the eraserhead pointer. I hate having to pick up my hand and move it over to the mouse.

I’m sad that the eraserhead is probably going to die out.

Apple’s “There’s An App For That” campaign is so good that I expect apps for all kinds of things, and have actually been disappointed.  I recently searched for these apps that don’t exist:

• IMDB — to add insult to injury, there isn’t a mobile version of the website.
• MSN/Bing Video — to watch The Guild.
• Netflix — though there are approved 3rd party apps.
• Google products like Gmail, Docs, and Reader — though their mobile browser versions are pretty good.
• Kayako — a very popular helpdesk application I’m evaluating for Killer Aces.
• Quantcast
• Compete
• ComScore

I’m not saying there aren’t plently of great apps on the iPhone. In fact, I recently contributed an article to Intel’s MyLifeScoop.com featuring the cool ways iPhone apps have made my life easier — 3 Ways Technology Makes Personal Finance Easier.

I’m saying that because Apple’s done such a good job with their app store (now with 100,000+ apps*), I now expect an app to exist for every web service or site I use.

* The link goes to a Wired article that says “But as the App Store continues to expand, an inevitable question arises: How many apps do you really need?” My answer is — more than what they have now!

This puts the pressure on developers. In addition to a Windows and Mac version, I now expect your service to have an iPhone version too.  (And I suspect Android users feel the same way. If not today, then soon now that a bunch of second gen Android devices have rolled out.)

Fred Wilson talked about this a few weeks ago when Droid came out.  He said the mobile web (meaning apps, not mobile versions of websites) was the next big thing in tech.  He said:

I believe that mobile devices are bringing web services into our pockets and purses, onto restaurant tables and bars, and into schools and stadiums…

The “mobile web” is where “it” is at right now. And it is also where it is all going…

The mobile web sector is developing quickly and innovation is happening all over the place. It is very exciting to see.

Calling it a netbook is an insult.  It’s more appropriately called an affordable ultra-portable. That’s how I’d sum up the Aspire One 751h.

This Crunchgear review of the Acer Aspire One 751h netbook is dead on. My experience jives completely with the review.  But the advice to disable (and not replace!) the antivirus software horrifies me.  Just ignore that part.  Everything else is spot on.

(AVG is a good free antivirus you can use to replace the bundled trial McAfee.)

The 11.6″ Aspire One line might be the perfect on-the-go work machine.  It’s light and skinny (1″ thick), but big enough to do real work. The 600 px height of 7″ netbooks feel claustrophobic. I carried it in my messenger bag all day, along with the power brick, with no problems.  Sub 4-lb laptops are nice.

It’s very nice, but it’s not perfect. A more powerful processor and reconfigured trackpad area in this chassis would be the perfect portable work laptop.

Four cons you should be aware of:

1. Not for watching videos. It’s underpowered and/or has crappy drivers. Mine comes with Vista Home.  Some users say upgrade to Windows 7 makes the machine speedier and video watchable.

2. It’s a fingerprint magnet. On the top cover and around the trackpad. See pictures at Crunchgear to understand the ridiculousness of the situation. What’s the point of a pretty, glossy cover if it’s always covered with smudges?

3. The trackpad buttons suck.  Being depressed and stiff, you have to lift up your entire hand to get a good clicking angle.  This is only a problem for right-clicks since you can tap the touchpad for left-clicks.  But still. The mouse buttons really suck.

Plus the buttons are placed in a bad position.  The touchpad is short because the buttons are below it. If the buttons were moved to the sides, they would solve two problems at once.

4. The reflective glossy screen makes it hard to use outdoors.  It’s impossible to use in sunlight and hard to use even in shade.

Wishlist:

1. I’d like to see an SSD version. Personally, I’d prefer the speed and fault tolerance of a SSD at less than 100 gb versus a 5,400 rpm 160 gb hard drive. 5,400 rpm is slow and I feel like I’m going to break it if I’m walking around with the machine on. 5,400 rpm spinning platters suck.

I just bought a new laptop.  Actually, it’s classified as a netbook, but it’s bigger than most.  I got an Acer Aspire One 751H.  I’m typing out this post in a Starbucks on the machine now.

This model has an 11.6″ screen with a hi-res 1366×768 pixels.  I love the hi-res screen.  The extra vertical screen space is a huge advantage over the typical 600 vertical pixels of other netbooks.  The screen size, the fuller sized keyboard afforded by the larger footprint, 2 Gb of memory (most netbooks come with 1 Gb), and slim profile (just 1″ high and not tapered) are my favorite features of this machine.

First thing I did when I booted up the machine?  Installed Firefox and went to type out this blog post. :)

I’ve never bought hardware this quickly.  Usually, I need to agonize over a potential purchase for months first.  But I needed a small laptop that didn’t make scary loud noises for DrupalCamp today, so I did some quick research, found the Aspire One line fit my wishlist almost perfectly, and stopped by Fry’s to pick one up this morning.

Speaking of the reason for buying this laptop, I need to get a move on if I’m going to catch the keynote!

PS: I already miss the eraserhead pointer on my old Thinkpad.  Those Thinkpads were nice machines.

Download the mobile client for Ultimate Bet here. I haven’t tried it out, but they seem to support a lot of mobile devices. I’m installing it now to play my remaining $11 at UB.

Hmm… I can’t login. It just says there’s a problem connecting to the server. I wonder if it’s T-mobile or UB that blocking it.

I wanted to get the Gmail app on my shiny new 680. (It’s actually not that shiny anymore since I’ve already dropped it. Still works great though!)

There were a couple of issues. Not nearly as easy as setting it up on the E61. I’m disappointed in both Google and Palm. In any case, it’s now working. Below are the steps I took to set it up. It took about an hour from beginning to end — not counting the bluetooth setup and the time it took to write this post.

(BTW, if all else fails, you can always use the simple HTML version of Gmail at m.gmail.com.)

1. Setup bluetooth sync

This is not necessary for setting up Gmail on the device, but I didn’t have my cradle/cable with me, so now is as good a time as any to setup bluetooth sync. It’s not too hard.

Palm’s instructions for setting up hotsync over bluetooth

I had to try it a couple of times. It didn’t work unless I turned on bluetooth visibility. (Prefs -> bluetooth -> visibility -> temporary) You also need to turn on discovery on the laptop because the handheld looks for a computer to sync with. That can be disabled after the sync.

2. Download the JVM

This should be pre-installed on your Palm, but it wasn’t on mine. Maybe because it’s an unlocked phone? Anyway, here’s the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) download page.

The link from Google’s help page to install the JVM has a form to fill out before you can download the JVM. You can skip the info collection by going directly to the download page (same link as above).

The docs say it’s version 571, but what was actually downloaded is 572. The page is a bit out of date, but the JVM downloaded and installed seems to work fine.

You need to change some preferences for the JVM. Go to Prefs -> IBM Java VM:

• Check Use Double Buffering.
• Check Use high resolution coordinates.
• Don’t set anything for HTTP Proxy.
• Set Memory maximum to at least 4Mb.
• Set Maximum java thread stack size to 4kb

You need to reboot the Treo after installing the JVM. I just pulled out the battery. (Is there a better way to do this?)

3. Install the Gmail midlet

Here are Google’s tips on installing the Gmail app on the Palm. Apparently it’s not supported, but as long as we have a JVM, it should work. Let’s try it anyway….

The latest version at gmail.com/app is v1.1.1. It doesn’t work. Trying to start it throws this error:

ava.lang.Error: Exception in static initializer:
java.lang.RuntimeException: Missing strings.dat
        at java.lang.Class.initialize(Unknown Source)
        at com.google.gm.MiniGMail.startApp(Unknown Source)
        at javax.microedition.midlet.MIDletAccessor.startApp(Unknown Source)
        at javax.microedition.lcdui.AppManager$1.run(Unknown Source)

Install the older version (v.1.1.0) and it’ll work. To install the older version:

1. Click on the IBM Java icon from the Treo’s main page
2. Click Install
3. Enter this URL: http://gmail.com/app/v1.1.0/L1/gmail-g.jar

I learned this from this awesome discussion on Google groups: Setting Up Gmail App with IBM Java on Treo 680. The wisdom of crowds rocks!

Once the app is installed, you’ll need to setup some permissions. Go to IBM Java VM, select the Gmail app, then Menu -> Permissions:

• Select Gmail > Menu > Permissions.
• Select HTTPS, please make sure Once when the application runs (session) is selected.
• Select HTTP, please make sure Once when the application runs (session) is selected.

4. Rant about the process and quirks on your blog

Why is it way easier on the Symbian based Nokia E61? Symbian is not even close to Palm’s reach. Doesn’t every business user have a Treo? It’s odd to me that this process is so hard considering the ubiquity of Palms.

At least the Gmail app is working!

Kinda. There’s an annoying quirk. The “archive” hotkey is 9. On the E61, I could just hit the 9 key (same key as “N”) and the 9 would register. On the Palm, I need to press command+9. Lame.

You can save your a sanity a tiny bit by double tapping the command key once you’re in the app — so that you’re always hitting the number, not the character. Of course, when you’re ready to actually use letters again (like in replying to an email), you’ll need to double-tap the command key again to get back to normal typing mode. Yes, lame.

I bought a Treo 680 for $345 shipped from eBay.

I don’t really need it, especially since I just spent ~$400 on the E61 less than 6 months ago. I’ve never paid for a phone before buying the unlocked E61. I don’t know what’s come over me. Two expensive, unlocked phones in the last 6 months! It’s like I’ve become an out-of-control gadget freak.

A couple of things prompted this (kinda) impulse buy:

1. I saw and held my aunt’s Treo when I was in Singapore. It’s narrower than the E61, which is better for my small hands. I can’t really use the E61 with one hand because I can’t reach the farthest characters on the keyboard without some incredible balance.
2. As I go through my GTD life reorganization, I’ve become increasingly frustrated with the E61′s calendar and todo lists. I don’t know if they’re Symbian products or Nokia’s, I just know I hate them. The Palm OS was built for just this sort of thing and it has a long history of keeping people organized. Plus, Johnny said he loves using the Palm to track his action lists. Yeah. Blame Johnny.
3. I’ve wanted a Treo for a long time. I almost pulled the trigger on the Treo when I bought the E61. I chose the E61 over the Treo because the E61 has wifi. That was important to me at the time. I’ve since decided that wifi on a phone isn’t nearly as useful as a cellular data plan.
4. The 680 is the first Treo without the antenna nubbin. And it was “only” $330 or so on eBay — not the over $700 I’ve come to associate with Treos. Yes, it’s a generation behind the lastest Treos, but I’m cool with that.
5. I won $350+ from last Sunday’s poker game. Thanks guys!

I can’t wait to get my hands on it. Probably at least another week.

I need to pick up some more GTD supplies — folders, a label maker, filing system, etc. Time to schedule another poker game. ;)