5 Tools To Keep Up To Date With Tech News

Someone asked me how can I blogging about technology and keep myself up to date with technology, when at the same time I still working, spending more than 11 hours including commuting from and to the workplace. What’s more, I’m working in IT industry and my working time started after your lunch time and sometime after your dinner time (hope you can guess my working hours).

Well, there is no sophisticated tools, or scientific method that I use, except these 5 tools that I’ll elaborate below.

1. Twitter

Twitter need no introduction almost to everyone, it is the micro blogging service that taking the world by storm. What make Twitter is superior as news source is because, it got updated as a news broke out, or real time.

You know why? Twitter app is available in almost all smartphone platform, which means Twitter is accompanying the people wherever there go. Or , there are also SMS service provided by certain carries that let you tweet using your ‘regular’ phone, as long as it support texting or SMS.

In Twitter, these are 3 areas to look upon.

List - Most useful of all. List allow you to organize information by grouping the twitter account you follows based on the topic. For instance, nowadays, more companies jump to Twitter and use their account as one of the vehicle in doing announcement, promotion or customer service. So here is where it make sense. Let say you want to follow telecommunication news, so group all twitter account belong to these companies under one list, called Telco for instance. Beside that, you can subscribe to the list the twitter account that you follow as well.
Search - Use the search function to find the conversation about the topic that you’re interested
Trending - The hot trend currently in Twitter. It can be manipulate using the hash # tag.

2. Techmeme.com

What is Techmeme. WikiAnswer best definite it as “Techmeme is a website that aggregates the top tech news stories from the most prominent technology oriented websites”. Techmeme is one of my favorite website, which has contributed to hundreds of posts I made in this blog. If you’re looking for tech tops news, beside Twitter, here is the right place to do so.

3. Google reader

Wikipedia define Google Reader as “Web-based aggregator, capable of reading Atom and RSS feeds online or offline” . So you have tonnes of website that you frequently read or you bookmark them for later read. It is almost impossible to visit these websites to read the new content daily. RSS reader such as Google Reader fill up the gap by allow users to subscribe to the RSS of that websites. You read, comment, share bookmark the content you find interesting within the Google Reader itself. All in one, is that beauty?

4. Google Alert

What is Google Alert anyway? The definition by Google - “Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic”. So let say you want to stay update on Nokia’s latest new, set ‘Nokia’ as the topic in Google Alert, which will send the to your email on the frequency that your comfortable with. Create as many as Google Alert to fit your needs. For me, I have dozens of Google Alert set up for different topic of my interest.

5. Smartphone with data service

Of all that I suggest above, this is going to be the most important. If you can afford it, go get one and you won’t ever regret it. Smartphone with data has 3 basic things that make it appeal to everyone.

It is portable, fit in your pocket, light and the battery life is long lasted than.. let say netbook.
You can get your email on the go, stay updated with your social networks through the social apps or webs and browsing website anywhere you want.
This is all in one device you ever need.You can play games if you bored, listen to music, capture picture and etc, not to forget it’s main feature as communication device.

Most of the time, I read all websites stated above using smartphone, except when I’ve found the content and ready to write, I’ll switch to my notebook.

All 3 websites stated above has it’s own mobile version. The ‘normal’ website is tough to read in your smartphone. The mobile version of this website will show bigger font and convenient to be read from smartphone’s small screen. The mobile optimized website also usually simple and less cluttered, less graphic which mean it will load faster in your mobile web browser.

So you say you have notebook that got wireless broadband connection. It’s true that it offer almost the same convenient as smartphone, but imagine if you’re commuting a lot. You’re not full time blogger who have luxury of working from home; you spending a lot of time outside of your home. That’s where smartphone is what it is design for. Connecting you to the world of information regardless of space, time or border

Admin 5 February 2010 blogging google, google reader, smartphone, techmeme, tweet, twitter No Comments

Chrome Tablet Concept Previewed

Now seems to be a tablet season where one tablet was announced after another.

After iPad launch last week, Chrome tablet concept is sensationally out from nowhere yesterday, trying to ’steal’ the spotlight??. It sounds interesting, but one person that going to fume about this development must be Steve Job. Google is after his latest innovation, again after iPhone, although I don’t think iPad itself is revolution rather than one piece of beautifully crafted device.

As you know, Chrome which started as Web Browser has fast transformed to Chromium OS . It’s early version was tested and able to run on netbook as demonstrated couple of months back. And now, Chromium OS has moved a step further to tablet platform, but.. unfortunately it still just a concept. Timing is important. Sounds like the release of this concept is kinda rushing, am I right??

The concept which was posted on Chromium Project is mostly demonstrating the UI concept. Among in show are different style of keypad position, the main menu screen, tab style and how multi touch is handled in tablet as shown on the video below.

Yes, it’s just that. Images that could be rendered overnight by experienced graphic designer.

Here is more images.

The

Admin 3 February 2010 gadget & hardware chrome tablet, chromium, Chromium OS, google, tablet No Comments

SME Corp Organize Google Seminar for SME’s

Great news for entrepreneurs out there! SME Corp Malaysia together with Google is going to have a seminar titled ‘Grow Your Business Using the Internet with Google’ next week.

This is a free seminar and with Google presence expected to be there, this is a must-attend seminar for everyone who wishes to explore and use the internet to grow their businesses.

Seats are limited, so hurry up and book your seat by filling up the form below. Read more below or head to this page for more info.

Google Seminar for SME’s

EVENTS - By administrator on Thursday, January 14, 2010 - 07:48

We are pleased to inform that SME Corp. Malaysia in collaboration with Google will be organizing a seminar titled “Grow YOUR Business Using the Internet, with Google!” The objective of the seminar is to enhance knowledge, skills and ability of SMEs towards improving the company’s performance, growth and competitiveness by leveraging on online marketing. Details of the seminar are as follows:

Date : 27 January 2010
Time : 8.00 am - 12.30 pm
Venue : Dewan Perdana, 20th Floor, SME Corp. Malaysia

In this regard, SME Corp would like to extend this invitation to you and if you are interested, please kindly submit your confirmation of attendance to us by filling up the Registration Slip (download below) before 20 January 2010. We are happy to inform you that the seminar is free of charge and it is on a first come-first serve basis.

start date:

27/01/2010

end date:

27/01/2010

Attachment	Size
replySlip.doc	228.5 KB
PROGRAMME.doc	27 KB

Admin 21 January 2010 Event google, Seminar, SME, SME Corp No Comments

Search Emails and Contacts Using Google Mobile App for Blackberry

Google yesterday updated the Google Mobile App for Blackberry with a new feature that allows you to search contacts and emails in your device.

As you type the keyword in the search box, the app will list down all contacts and emails that match the keyword followed by the result from the webs.

From that, you can call the contacts or reply/forward the email directly from that app.

You have full control of how the search could be done (include the device in search or not) from the option menu where you can turn it on/off anytime you want.

Bear in mind that searching email requires BlackBerry OS version 4.5 or higher while searching contacts requires at least BlackBerry OS 4.2 and higher.

p/s Wish that this app can do more than just searching emails and contacts, just like search function in iPhone.

Admin 15 January 2010 mobile app and web Blackberry, google, google app, Google Mobile App, RIM 1 Comment

Unboxing HTC Magic

It is rainy day when I arrived at IT Hypermall the day after Christmas. About an hour later, I came out RM1.5k poorer, thanks to HTC Magic. The long dreamed Android smartphone finally in my pocket, ready to rock!

HTC Magic position itself between HTC Hero, the HTC’s Android based smartphone flagship model and HTC Tattoo, the slightly low end model running on Android 1.6. Compared to Windows Mobile smartphone, it is relatively an easy task choosing Android smartphone of your choice due to limited model we have currently in Malaysian market.

There are 17 Android based smartphone models available worldwide if I’m not mistaken, but I’m quite surprised to see only Android smartphones from HTC currently in sale (at the outlet). Well, since I already set HTC Magic as my first Android smartphone, the rest of the model doesn’t really matter now..

HTC Magic has been in the market for about 6 months, so I left the review part to this post, which covers almost everything. You know, GSMArena is always over delivered on it’s review, which why I trust them whenever I’m going to shop for new smartphone.

On my end, I’m more into the inner side of the smartphone such as the interesting apps, function and feature of the smartphone which you should start to see in the next few days, hopefully.

There are couple of things that almost end me up with Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone. But luckily I’m sticking to my target. Before you decide to buy HTC Magic or any Android phone and using it in the country outside of the US, please be aware of following drawback. If you live in the US, that’s not going to be the big deal, as it’s there by default.

- No Android Market. By default, Android smartphone sold in South East Asean countries (such as Malaysia, Vietnam) doesn’t have it. It remind be of Blackberry App World that I have to install using the workaround. Imagine iPhone without its App Store, unimaginable?? Gone all the excitement in iPhone!!

You won’t be able to fully utilized to phone to its extent. Although there is workaround to install it (by flashing the ROM), but hey, not everyone has the skills to do that.

- No GPS Software - HTC Magic is equipped with GPS but without GPS software and MAPS by default. Garmin?? Don’t ever dream of it. Jump to Windows Mobile smart phone which has the GPS app and maps pre-installed if you really wanted it.

But the good news is, Papago X5 and maps (for Malaysia) had just been released recently. It is not free though and I’m not sure if it is good enough.

Seriously, it really need more effort to enjoy Android smartphone in this part of the world, just like other Android users in the US or other developed countries who enjoy the phone without risking their ‘life’. There are workarounds available on the net, but it may void the warranty and in the worst case may turns it to brick.

But because my ultimate goal of having Andoid phone is for blogging purpose, just like how I use other smartphones run on Symbian, iPhone OS and Blackberry OS, and not for just daily usage, it is thousands times more worth than the amount that I have to part away and the time I have spent to get it works the way I want.

Anyway, here are some photos of the phone that I snap the day after I ‘kaw-kaw’ testing it. Gorgeous right!