Home Screens – Katie Floyd


Katie Floyd is my podcasting partner on the

Mac Power Users

and a terrific Mac Geek. Katie also has her iPhone with her “at all times” and agreed to share her home screen. In addition to the Mac Power Users, Katie also blogs at

KatieFloyd.me.


I’m old school; I keep almost all of the original Apple apps on my home screen. I’ve been using the iPhone since it was released and just got use to having the applications where they are. Though some of the apps (like photos) I don’t use all that often and could be replaced.

Notes has been replaced by Evernote which is what I use for notes and everything else. I use Things for task management and Tweetie is my preferred twitter client. I also use NetNewsWire to keep up with my RSS feeds. Seems like most of the dust has settled since the move to Google Reader as a backbone for the service. Lastly, I’ve added Apple’s remote. I have an AppleTV and a couple of Airport Express remote speakers around my house  and it’s nice to have the ability to control my content from anywhere in my house. So these are the Apps I have added to my home screen.

What is your favorite app?

I don’t know about a favorite – but the App that has changed my life since getting an iPhone has been Mail. Having email on my iPhone and available at my fingertips has been a game changer in the way I manage my personal and work email. It allows me to never be out of touch, though maybe that’s not such a good thing. 

Which app is your guilty pleasure?

I don’t’ really have one. I never got into gaming and I really use my iPhone more to keep in touch and organized. I guess Facebook and Twitter are arguably non-productive things I use my iPhone for. Does that count as a guilty pleasure? 

How many screens full of apps do you have?

Five – and the organization is really based on usage rather than dividing apps by category. My most used apps are on my home screen, next most used are on page 2 and so on. There are probably a few apps I could purge but I just keep them around incase I might need them.

What is the app you are still missing?

Google Voice. I use this service quite a bit for filtering calls and making long distance calls. There was a blow-up when Apple rejected (depending on the story you believe) this App and the FCC got involved. Personally I think AT&T had more of an issue with the App than Apple.  I never heard what became of the whole situation. Hopefully the parties can get together and get Google Voice back on the phone. There is as basic web version but it’s not as easy to use as an App would be.

How many times a day do you use your iPhone?

Constantly. It’s never more than an arms reach away. 

What is your favorite feature of the iPhone?

It’s really a combination of a lot of things – but it’s really the ability to have a small computer in my pocket and keep in touch almost anywhere. Probably my least used feature of my iPhone is the actual phone. But the ability to have my email, web browser and everything else at my fingertips has been a real life changer. When the iPhone was introduced, it was the first smart phone I ever owned. I never really saw the need for a smart phone, now I can’t imagine my life without it.

If you were Steve Jobs, what would you add to the iPhone?

I would build in more hands free functions.  The reality is, people are stupid and they will use their phone in the car and be distracted. Voice Control on the 3GS was a big step in the right direction, but how about the ability to put your phone in a total hands free mode where it will read incoming email and text messages, respond to basic commands and have speech to text recognition. We’ve already seen third party apps and accessibility mode of the iPhone do some of this so the technology is there. I’d like to see Apple put it all together.

Anything else you’d like to share?

Poor AT&T coverage has been a constant complaint of many people who use the iPhone. I have no coverage at my house and there are many people who are in the same boat. I’ve found a solution that works well for me and may be a help to someone else struggling with the same issue.

Knowing my poor coverage, it became obvious I would have to get some kind of home phone. Thankfully, it’s actually cheaper to bundle my cable, internet and basic phone from my cable company (Cox) then it would be just to buy cable and internet service. So the home phone line really costs me nothing.  

I use Google Voice to manage my calls. Since Google Voice can be confusing to those who aren’t familiar with the service, I just tell people it’s my home phone. It’s become habit that as soon as I get home in the evening I set my iPhone to forward to my Google Voice number. That way anyone who calls my cell phone rings my home phone and I don’t miss calls. Any calls I make from home in the evening I place through Google Voice using either the web interface or by dialing my Google number from my home phone and placing an outbound call. 

By using Google Voice I get free long distance within the US and my Google Voice number (which my friends should already have) shows up on their caller ID to avoid confusion. When I leave the house and turn off call forwarding, any calls to my Google Voice number ring both my home and cell phones, so I don’t miss any calls. One disadvantage is that AT&T counts any calls it forwards from my cell phone against my plan minutes and I don’t know when my home phone rings whether the call is coming direct or from my cell. Between night and weekend and rollover minutes I never have a problem with overages but it’s something I keep an eye on. If an incoming all sounds like it’s going to be particularly long, I usually just ask the person if I can call them right back to avoid burning AT&T minutes.

I’ll admit this method adds additional hassle, but Google Voice has other benefits so it’s a work around until the coverage issues are resolved.

Thanks Katie!

AppZapper 2.0

 

I don’t know why Apple doesn’t bake an uninstaller into OS X. Many applications leave all sorts of cruft about. In the meantime, the latest AppZapper looks pretty good. Also, it accepted my AppZapper 1.0 license code that I bought years ago.

 

Apple and the Controlled Leak

The Mac Observer posted an intriguing piece by former Apple Marketing executive John Martellero about the art of the controlled leak.

“The net result is that Apple gets the desired information published by a major Wall Street news outlet, but can always claim, if required, it was all an editorial misunderstanding. The WSJ is protected as well.”

On the Future of Macworld

 

 

There is quite a stir in the Mac blogosphere the last few days over the future of Macworld Conference and Expo. Some knowledgeable commentators, such as Jim Dalrymple and Steve Sande have written it is likely Macworld 2010 will be the last. I disagree. Here is why.

 

No Apple ≠ No Macworld

I have never spoken to a single attendee who said the highlight of their Macworld visit was the Apple booth. While it is very nice to get your hands on Apple devices on the Macworld show floor, it is hardly the draw. I will drive by three Apple stores full of shiny new macs on my way to the Airport when I go to Macworld next month.

Likewise goes for the Apple Keynote. Steve Jobs has given some truly remarkable Keynotes at Macworlds past. He is an extraordinary showman and Apple has made some fantastic products. However, a lot of times Steve did not climb on stage with much ammunition and the Keynotes were really not that interesting despite his super-human presentation skills. Think about it. How much were you “blown away” by the Apple TV refresh of 2008 or the iLife introduction in 2005? Even last year Phil Schiller had to work really hard to make iWork.com more than a snoozefest. More to the point, of the thousands and thousands of people who attend Macworld, how many actually got in to see the Apple Keynote? A small percentage.

I still find Apple’s withdrawal baffling. The people who attend Macworld are the passionate bloggers, power users, and programmers that make the Mac special. They are the sharp end of the stick. While I appreciate that a business argument can be made to cut costs, Apple’s quarterly profits are measured in the billions and supporting its developers and most avid users seems a very worthwhile investment.

Regardless, Macworld can get by just fine without Apple. In lieu of a large Keynote for a select audience, IDG has put together a series of featured speakers that are all both knowledgeable and entertaining. Watching people like David Pogue, Andy Ihnatko and John Gruber will be far more entertaining and educational than hearing someone from Apple prattle on about the latest menu item in iPhoto.

 

IDG Is Listening

I was in attendance at the Macworld town hall meeting last year. There wasn’t a seat in the place and people were lining the walls, two or three deep in some places. Many ideas were proposed and several of them (like moving the date to February) were implemented this year. Some critics have argued IDG dropped the ball by not moving the expo to a different town. I would speculate that a place like the Moscone Center is booked years in advance and IDG already had contractual obligations for 2010. Perhaps in future years the Expo will move. Either way, I’ve had some inside exposure to the Macworld planning and can report that the people behind it are extremely passionate about making it the best show possible and are looking very closely at every suggestion, the wacky and brilliant alike.

 

Don’t Forget the Conference

Macworld is a lot more than a group of vendors and software developers. It also includes a world class conference where users and professionals can learn a lot about their Macs and how to use them. At the conference you can become a networking and security expert, an Applescript guru, or just maybe a more savvy Mac user. Every year, IDG assembles an all-star cast of instructors and attendees can learn a great deal on any of the conference tracks.

 

There is No Substitute

There is an argument that if Macworld were to disappear, there would be no real loss to the Mac community. I couldn’t disagree more. Macworld is a special place. While local user groups are nice and the internet community is a great resource, neither can hold a candle to the flesh and bones gathering of the true believers. 

Macworld is about users and everyone there is a zealot. Nowhere else in the entire world can you look at the guy in front of you in the sandwich line, ask him how to zip a file in Applescript, and receive a prompt, if not concise, answer that is spot on. The concentration of Mac geekiness in the room is palpable and, if you have experienced it, unforgettable. It is a communal experience that, if lost, will not be replaced. This point also goes toward the issue of the decline of trade shows. Macworld is more than a trade show.

 

 “Everything changes, nothing remains without change.”

  -The Buddha

 

An Opportunity Exists

Without being tied to Apple’s presence, Macworld could very likely evolve into something even more useful to Mac users, developers, and professionals. Regardless, declaring it dead a month before it even begins defies logic. There will be a different vibe at Macworld this year. As Buddha says, things change. There are a lot of very smart people working hard to make this change for the better. Who is to say they won’t succeed?


Macworld Questions

 

Katie and I are going to be interviewing Macworld President, Paul Kent (twitter @paulkent), in a few days for an upcoming episode of the Mac Power Users. If you have Macworld questions, comments, or suggestions, drop me a note, soon. Also, if you are planning on attending make sure to reserve Saturday, February 13 at 2:45pm on your calendar where the the Mac Power Users will record live from the show floor. Finally, if you are attending the conference, sign up for one of my sessions. I’ve been putting long hours in preparing and the sessions are looking good. You can get a 15% discount on a conference pass by using the coupon code “DSPARKS.” I’ll be posting more on Macworld as it approaches.