------- Clearing Up the Confusion E-Zine ------- Vol 2, Issue 3 I've been doing a bit of upgrading on my cell phone lately. I picked up a new memory card (2 Gigabytes for $16 and it's smaller than my pinky fingernail -- crazy!) and a bluetooth headset. I find it somewhat amusing that I've gone from a person who wanted *nothing* special on my phone, to someone who uses his phone for a wide array of purposes. This issue, I'm taking a brief look at the many ways you can use an Internet-enabled phone and some of the pluses and minuses of each. ---------------------------------------------------------------- In This Issue... ---------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Article: Phun Phone Tools 2. Blog Posts 3. Shameless Self-Promotion 4. The Fine Print ---------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Article: Phun Phone Tools ---------------------------------------------------------------- OK, I'll admit it. I'm a bit of a cell phone junkie. I use my phone for everything from taking snapshots, to reading email, to keeping track of my "to do" list. Heck, I can even use it as a GPS when I'm out looking for a client's office. Some of these tools are a part of the phone itself. Others, however, reside out on the Web. That means, whether I'm sitting at the coffee shop, or relaxing on vacation, as long as I have a cell phone connection, I have access to my information. So, what are some of these services and how well do they work? Here's a quick rundown of some of the ones I've been using: 1. Gmail (http://mail.google.com/): Google has done a pretty good job of setting up their webmail client to work on the smaller screen of my smart phone. I can send and receive email with no problems. About my only complain is that the navigation functionality can be a little clunky at times. Still, it's a minor difficulty when compared to the benefit of being able to check and recieve my email wherever I go. 2. Remember the Milk (https://m.rememberthemilk.com/): This is my choice for "to do" list apps. The "phone" version has all the functionality needed to maintain the list, though it's missing some of the more esoteric features which allow you to manipulate multiple task items at the same time. About my only complaint with this service is that I have to login every single time. For whatever reason, I can't get it to remember me -- possibly a deficiency with my phone. Otherwise, very useful. 3. Google Reader (http://www.google.com/reader/m/view/): If I find myself waiting for an appointment or with a spare few moments on my hands, I can fit a little bit of reading in using this tool. I can keep up with the various blogs that I read and make myself more effective with those small chunks of time. I can't think of any features that are really missing from this one on the tiny screen. 4. Weather Underground (http://mobile.wunderground.com/): I've actually got this "Favorite" pointing to their animated radar map, but the entire mobile site is well-designed for the smaller screen. Forecasts, current weather, radar imagery -- it's all there and available at the touch of a button. 5. Google Calendar (http://www.google.com/calendar): Another fairly well designed Google mobile site. Of course, the limited screen real estate on my phone prevents all of the functionality of the Calendar from working, but it's particularly useful for viewing items for the next couple of days. The only flaw in this phone app is that you can only enter new events in your main calendar. Personally, I maintain calendars for business, personal, exercise, and family appointments. I'd like to be able to specify which calendar in which to record a new event. Minor flaw, but irritating. Oh, if you have an address associated with an event, Calendar will provide a link to Google Maps. 6. GasBuddy (http://gasbuddytogo.com/): Gas prices for your area. I don't usually use this to locate the lowest price in the area. Often the cheapest gas is so far from me that it costs more to drive to that station than I would save by going there. If I am out and about, though, I can be sure to hit the cheapest gas along my route. 7. Google Search (http://google.com/): I wrote about this in a blog post not long ago. If you search for a business through Google Search, often the business will come up with the telephone number as a link. "Clicking" on that phone number causes the cell phone to actually dial the number. No need to try to memorize it or find a scrap of paper and writing implement to record the information. 8. Jott (http://www.jott.com/): OK, this isn't really a phone appropriate website (in fact, I can't login to the website with my phone). As I wrote in last issue, this is a (currently) free dictation service. Just call the toll-free number and tell them to whom you want to send a message (email, IM). The targets of the message have to be in your online contact list, but otherwise this is a wonderfully convenient service. You can even hook it up directly to a number of online services. I've done so with Remember the Milk (which I use a lot) and three of my Google Calendars. I just make a quick call and that new appointment magically appears on my calendar. I hope these tools give you some ideas on other ways you can make your phone work harder for you. If you know of any other useful sites which have been well-designed for the tiny screen, I would love to hear about them. Drop me a line at gpeters@cyberdatasolns.com and I'll feature them in an upcoming blog post or in this newsletter if I receive enough interest. Copyright 2008, Greg Peters ---------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Blog Posts ---------------------------------------------------------------- Links to posts on the "Clearing Up the Confusion" Blog from the last year: Monday, February 11, 2008 -- An SEO Primer http://clearing-confusion.blogspot.com/2008/02/seo-primer.html "As I mentioned the other day, I've been catching up on my podcasts recently. For free content, I'm always surprised about the amount of quality information you can get from them...." Tuesday, February 05, 2008 -- Make a Name for Yourself http://clearing-confusion.blogspot.com/2008/02/make-name-for-yourself.html "Anyone who's read this blog for any length of time knows that I think that Scott Ginsberg is a pretty cool guy. He's got a fun way to look at the world and really 'walks the talk'. I even got a chance to meet him a little while back at the Women Mean Business conference back in 2006...." ---------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Shameless Self-Promotion ---------------------------------------------------------------- The "Clearing Up the Confusion" E-Zine is a production of Greg Peters, owner, chief cook, and bottlewasher of Cyber Data Solutions. CDS has been helping website designers develop better web presence for their clients for more than a decade. Visit us on the Web at www.cyberdatasolns.com to see how we can help your webmaster. ---------------------------------------------------------------- 4. The Fine Print ---------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: You can subscribe to the "Clearing Up The Confusion" E-zine at: http://www.cyberdatasolns.com/ezine Questions: If you have any questions, concerns or comments regarding the Clearing Up the Confusion E-zine, please email Greg Peters at: gpeters@cyberdatasolns.com This content may be forwarded in full, with copyright and contact information intact, without specific permission, when used only in a not for-profit format. 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