Tag Archives: Microsoft

Sophistication Through Simplicity

I didn’t just post a picture of a black square, this is actually my desktop. I love the clean, simple, and yet still very sophisticated… desktop, home screen, written code, verse, prose, lyric, file structure, office, room, company, house, life… etc (could be I like this so much because life in reality is actually very messy). This term, sophistication through simplicity, has come across my desk several times over the last few weeks, and it’s a phrase I have attempted to develop throughout every aspect of my life for years now. The main reason of course is that this really seems to be how Jesus lived out his earthly ministry. Scripture is so complex, packed full of highly technical arguments and situations, yet, the stories of Jesus’ life are simple enough for any child to understand. The verse on my various desktops in the graphic above about Jesus in John 1.14 is one of the most complex and sophisticated statements ever uttered, yet it’s so very simple.

There are so many ways I try to live this out, and one is being very aggressive at keeping my digital life organized, my desk clean, and to only allow those things which are most important to be most visible. That’s one reason why I really love using an Apple product over a Windows PC or an Android device (I have all the above and use all of them for different things, so I’m not totally Apple bias). Apple just makes it so easy to be digitally organized and in our modern day is a secular company that has spent 30 years perfecting sophistication through simplicity, something Steve Jobs took to its extreme. There are many different ways to achieve this, but a disorganized digital life (to me) is no different than a messy living room, or a house full of junk I don’t need.

I can’t think of a time in my life when I have ever been this busy, a time (or season if you will) when I am being pulled in so many different directions all at once. None of those directions are necessarily “bad” so to speak, but I find the busier I get, the more I have to simplify, organize, and focus on specifics. And that’s why I love the concept of sophistication through simplicity. It allows you to stay focused, remove distractions, and focus on what’s important.

Google Drive vs Dropbox, Amazon, or Microsoft Sky Drive for Cloud Storage?

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There was some great news from Google this week concerning cloud storage, and while it isn’t up to what I want in replacing your hard drive, Google Drive is a great step forward in drive cloud storage with 5GB free, and apparently I’m grandfathered in to my 20GB $5/year plan (see screenshot below). Finally Google put some effort into developing something we can truly use instead of trying to beat Facebook or Twitter at social networking. Eventually, this type of storage is going to do away with our need to keep purchasing more and more hard drives to store our files with only a small flash drive needed on the system for the OS. I have almost 8TB’s of data stored on local hard drives at this point, so this lousy 5GB of storage won’t help that, but it’s a start.

If you aren’t familiar with using cloud storage, until now, there was really only one real option, and that was Dropbox. Yes there are those like Box.com and Amazon Cloud Drive (provide 5 GB), and Microsoft’s SkyDrive (offers 25 GB) who just made some nice improvements this week, probably in anticipation of the release of Google Drive. Each of those have some significant disadvantages, and I don’t ever really consider them to be viable options because of their limitations or issues. Apple’s iCloud is great for backing up devices, but it doesn’t even offer an option for drive storage in the cloud. While I love Dropbox, the basic computer user still isn’t really familiar with Dropbox, and they are with Google. That doesn’t make Google better than Dropbox, but it does make Google Drive easier to integrate with your friends or family to share files. So which one is better, Google Drive or Dropbox? There services seem to be almost identical, but Google has some significant advantages over Dropbox.

The biggest news, at least to me, about the Google Drive launch in the fact that they are going to allow you to keep up to 100GB of data stored for a reasonable price of $5.99, it’s just too bad once you get above that, it’s outrageous, but that too will change. This is great on multiple levels, and something probably only Google could do with some massive data centers that companies like Dropbox, and perhaps even Microsoft, just don’t have. When you are looking at possible server farm potential for cloud storage, the biggest possibilities right now are Google, Amazon, and of course Apple who just built a massive cloud server farm in North Carolina, which is even visible from space now. All of this is good for those who want all files stored in the cloud instead of on local home hard drives that fail.

Advantages and Disadvantages in Google Drive vs Dropbox

More storage – 5GB of Storage on Google compared to 2GB on Dropbox (you can gain more on Dropbox)
Blanket Existing Coverage - most of us already use Google for just about everything from email to Internet searches
Google Recognition – sometimes this is negative, but in this case, everyone has heard of Google, tech-nerds know Dropbox
Integration and Development in OS – both have ability to run within MAC OS-X or Windows but Google has greater development potential. The biggest plus here is with Google Docs and other Google products.
Automatic Syncing – both have this as well, that’s the point of cloud storage
Works with iOS and Android – both have this too (Google Drive says coming soon on iOS), but the Dropbox versions could use some better features, hopefully Google will do this
Backup – this is a big question for me, what happens with my account and my files if the company goes Chapter 11. Google has less chance to do this.
Potential Increases in Storage – Google is known for increasing storage size constantly, and to me, the more storage the better
Integration with Google Apps – Not sure how soon this is on their radar, but at work we use a Google App account
No URL Links – Dropbox just released this feature this week, a feature that lets you have a unique URL for each file. I see no mention about this in the Google Drive information but it has to be in the works, they couldn’t have just overlooked this feature. For now, I only see this available on Dropbox.

For now we all have to wait until Google actually rolls it out instead of just giving us the information, and of course, they developed the Android OS before the iOS, so us Apple iPhone and iPad users will have to wait even longer. Still, it’s a step in the right cloud storage direction!

Catalyst Off the Blogs Night with Carlos Whittaker and Aaron Keyes

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One of the special events last week when I made it over to Catalyst One Day was the Off the Blogs meeting that took place in Buckhead GA. This event was hosted by Pete Wilson of Cross Point Church in Nashville and he was joined by Carlos Whittaker, Anne Jackson (both of which are on a blog break right now) Jon Acuff, and worship was led by Aaron Keyes. I went into the meeting / worship time not really fully understanding what was going to happen, and went away with a new understanding of the real names and faces we each have behind our own Internet facade.

There were no laptops, no macbooks, no (or very little) twittering, and it was real, it was hard core, it was intense, and an offline time to unplug and take a look at what shapes our lives. I went in with a few questions of my own.

As Believers, how are we allowing technology to control our lives?
How do we use it to further self and selfish ambitions.
What are we doing to use the knowledge of technology and understanding of how things work on the Internet to further God’s kingdom?
How do we balance our online lives with those we physically interact with on a daily basis (are those people become the same)?
It is really necessary for us to unplug when it is not a distraction in our lives, but it is how we live now?
How can we leverage technology for God’s purposes?
How much of our own lives do we share online?
How can I get more connected with leaders in the church through technology?
How do we connected with people outside the church?
What is the next thing in technology that is going to rock this world?

I left with more questions than I went in with but it was still a great night and well worth the extra time to get over to Buckhead. Carlos, Anne, and Jon all shared some incredible stories of how they got where they are in their walk and the struggles they went through with and without God in their lives. None of this had to do with their blogs, facebook, or anything technology related, but how God changed their lives. We are all a work in progress and I am so glad I had the chance to get to listen to people I respect in the Church and online.

Here are a few pics from that night.

I am Giving Away a Free Dell Dimension Computer and 17" Flat Panel in 29 Days

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Something just a little bit different for my blog today. Today is November 1st, 29 days away from my birthday, and this year, on my birthday I am going to give away this Dell desktop computer plus 17″ flat panel monitor (and a bunch of extras) for free! You don’t even have to pay the shipping.

It is a free computer, monitor, keyboard, wireless mouse, speakers, and an HP printer, to be given away on November 29th. Yep, that’s right football fans, my birthday is on the same day as the Auburn vs Alabama game this year (if anyone wants to send a pair of UA vs AU tickets my way for my birthday that would be cool too), so this giveaway date should be easy to remember if you are the slightest bit familiar with Alabama football.

Every year when your birthday rolls around someone will always ask you what you want for your birthday, and I always liked to do something different instead of opening presents. I like how Brad Ruggles celebrated his birthday yesterday by asking for his readers to donate to Compassion, a fantastic international children’s charity. I may do the same thing, but I am also giving away this Dell desktop computer.

Details About the Dell Computer

The setup will consist of the following:

Dell Dimension E510 Desktop Computer
Windows XP, Service Pack 3
Microsoft Office 2003 (Excel, Word, Powerpoint and all that)
It has a 3.00 GHz Intel Processor, 500mb of RAM
17″ Flat Panel Monitor
HP All-in-one Printer, Scanner, Fax PSC 1210v
Speakers
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Mouse
cables, wires, and plugs needed

This does not include any software discs as I can not find them at this point, but everything is up to date and works fine. It is not a brand new computer of course, but it is a good working system for someone who needs a computer.

To Enter to Win the Dell Computer Contest Giveaway

In order to be eligible to win the contest, you will need to do the following simple steps below. Preferably I would like to find someone or some organization that is in need of a computer but can’t afford to buy one. Anyone can enter, but it would be nice to find a home that is in great need of a computer and I will only ship this computer within the CONUS, I am sure you can understand that.

To enter, you will need to do a blog post on your blog that links back to this blog post. Somewhere in the post you just need to use the link to this post, here, and then come back here and leave a comment to let us know where to find your blog post. That’s it, but, don’t expect to win by spamming my blog or leaving comment spam, you will need to write a blog post linking back here to be eligible to win.

If you know someone who doesn’t have a blog and is in need of a computer and would like to enter for them, just do a blog post saying so. The blog post can be very simple and short but it would be nice to read what you need the computer for or how it will help, or who you would like to give it to if you win. I would ask that if you win, and you do not need the printer to let me know so I can save a little bit on shipping.

So there you have it. Simple.

Write a blog post linking back to this blog post right here
Come back here and leave a comment so I know where to go find your post
Tell your friends so they can enter too

If you don’t have a blog, find someone who does and just ask them to enter for you. Any questions at all please feel free to contact me, you have 29 days and counting. The winner will be announced here on my blog on November 29th so you might want to subscribe to my blog or make sure you visit again in 29 days. Good luck.

Scott Fillmer

Life in Faith & Photos