Reviews

Mike Gdovin | March 21, 2011
One comment

Lock Desktop for Mac Review

*****DISCLAIMER: PLEASE NOTE THAT I WAS CONTACTED BY THE DEVELOPER AND GIVEN A FREE COPY OF THE APPLICATION TO REVIEW. THIS HAS NO EFFECT ON MY REVIEW OR OPINION****

Lock desktop is a simple to use program on the Mac App Store to quickly lock your password to prevent unauthorized access to your computer. This is good if you are about to walk away from your computer, even for a few seconds and be sure your computer is safe and your data is safe.  Once you buy the 99 cent app, you just click the app icon in the dock or in  the Applications folder and your computer will go to the login screen. It is just that simple. There is no options or preferences just click and lock.  This is good for the sake of simplicity since it is a single-use application, but it also limits the users’ control. The application does exactly what it says it does and it is worth the 99 cents to make sure your computer is safe from unwanted users. The only thing I wish the application had was a keyboard shortcut so that, instead of having to click a icon for the app,  you could just use a hotkey and lock your screen, like the Windows-L shortcut on Windows. This is one thing I wish Mac OS had built-in.

This is of course,  all  dependent on you using a strong password, it will take you to the login screen whether you have a password or not, but,  anyone could just click on your username and get in if you-don’t have a password. Also remember that you need to use a strong password meaning no easily guessed names, birthdays, etc. Strong passwords use capital letters, lower case letters and numbers.

Lock Desktop is a great application as long as you don’t mind clicking an icon. It does what needs to be done in order to protect your computer as long as you use a strong password. This is especially important if you are in a public place, live in a dorm or just don’t trust someone around you and will keep all your information safe.

Category: Reviews, Software |
Mike Gdovin | December 26, 2010
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Magic Mouse Review

When the Magic Mouse first came out, I wasn’t very impressed. However, now that I have used one for over a month it is a great mouse. The mouse itself is a bit flat and can take some time to get used to the ergonomics but, once you do, you will love it. The entire mouse can be used to click unless the secondary click is enabled in the settings which can be set to use either the left or right side.  This is a feature I wish was enabled by default because secondary (right click) is essential for many tasks. Scrolling is much smoother than the Mighty mouse because it is a multitouch device instead of a little scroll ball. It also has the option to swipe through for things such as pictures using 2 fingers. You can also zoom into the screen using the pinch to zoom multitouch gesture. The magic mouse is also a wireless mouse which I was originally was against but it is extremely reliable and the battery life is great. I never turn it off and the mouse lasts for a very long time. I do recommend using a  rechargeable  batteries to prevent wasting  many single use batteries but, all in all this is a great mouse. I don’t think it justifies a $70 price tag but, you can find it online for half the price as I did and it is a great mouse!

Category: Apple, Reviews |
Mike Gdovin | August 10, 2010
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Apple Magic Trackpad Hands-on Review

The other day I was at the Apple Store and got to use the new Bluetooth Magic Trackpad. The idea is for users to move around their desktop computer screen using multitouch gestures. It works great, but I personally prefer to use a regular mouse with my laptop. But, for those who use multi touch gestures frequently, and can’t operate with out them, then this could be a decent device for you. However, for $70 I wouldn’t want to spend that for an extra accessory, and would definitely not want to substitute it for a mouse when I bought a new computer. But if you really like multitouch and don’t mind spending the money it might be worth while. But if you don’t like the trackpad that much it’s not worth the money.

Category: Apple, Reviews |
Mike Gdovin | December 6, 2009
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iWork 09 Review

For those who are sick of Microsoft Office for Mac, which is extremely bulky and slow, iWork is a great alternatives for Mac users. The current version of iWork, iWork 09 only costs $79 for one license and $99 for a family pack that you can install on five computers, which in my opinion is totally worth while if you only have more than one Mac. While Microsoft Office has Word, Excel and Powerpoint, iWork has: Pages, Numbers and Keynote which are the respective alternatives to their MS Office counterparts. Pages is a very well designed and well made Word Processor and does everything that I would need a word processor to do, including opening Microsoft Word documents. Numbers, the newest addition to iWork is a great spreadsheet tool and although it may not have many of the advanced features of Excel, for most people it is more than you need! Finally, is Keynote which I and many others believe is the killer app for iWork it is an amazing presentation tool that surpasses the standard Powerpoint. All three applications have a stunning  template gallery with many templates which helps make documents much easier.

For the price, which is a lot less than what you would pay for MS Office, I highly recommend iWork over Office for the Mac. That said there are a few disadvantages to iWork. First, and probably the most important disadvantage is that you can not automatically save to Office formats making it a little annoying to use Office formats because they are standards many people would like to continue using them. There is however, a modification that you can do to make pages save to .Doc automatically and makes at least one application easier to use. The other disadvantage is that unlike Office, iWork does not have a full email client, like Entourage. However, OSX’s built-in mail client is extremly good and could fill in.

All-in-all, iWork is a great, easy to use office suite for the Mac and is definitely a great replacement for the slow Office for the Mac. I have made the switch out of frustration with Office and I recommend making the switch to this great suite.

Category: Apple, Reviews, Software |
Mike Gdovin | October 25, 2009
2 comments

Logitech USB Microphone Review

Picture from My Flickr Page

As you might of heard on The Weekly Spin or on my Twitter feed, my old Logitech headset that I used to record The Weekly Spin and used for general Skype use broken and I had to return it to Newegg! Luckily it was under warranty and because of that after I returned it I was able to get another microphone with the same value which was $20! There were not many USB microphones or headsets for $20 except this one so, I knew it was really my only option. The Logitech USB Microhphone was my choice and I am so grateful that I made that choice. After I plugged it in for the first time and tested out recording I found out that this microphone is extraordinary! The voice quality is great and even when I put it  directly in front of my old Dell Laptop that makes a lot of noise all it picks up is my voice. This is because of the noise cancellation built into the microphone which makes this great for podcasters as well as anyone who needs to do voice-over work!  The only compalint that I have is because I have gotten used to having a headset with the microphone directly in front of my face, having a standing mic takes some getting used to and requires some pre-recording testing to asure good audio levels.

Overall, I recommend anyone just starting doing professional recording it is completely worth the money and will not disappoint! I am excited to begin using this for The Weekly Spin and other projects because of it’s superior quality, it makes me almost glad my old microphone broke because this microphone has much higher quality!

Category: Reviews, Technology |
Mike Gdovin | October 8, 2009
One comment

Dropbox Review

For those who have multiple computer and want to access files between them, usually requires the user to use either an external hard drive or thumb drive and manually move the file from one computer to another! However, that is now a thing of the past with Dropbox. With Dropbox, all you need to do is sign up for an account and install the program on all the computers you want to use, the program works on both Mac as well as Windows. With the free account you get 2 GB of storage but, if you need more you could pay for up to 5o GB of storage. With Dropbox, you have a cloud drive that you can use like a thumb drive, but once you save files to the Dropbox, they are automatically uploaded to the web and then are synced to the other computers. This makes thumb drives a thing of the past and let you just save files to Dropbox and you can access it anywhere, even online in your browser!

Personally, I use my Dropbox to sync files between my Macbook Pro which is on my desk most of the time with my netbook that I take to class so, my school work is availible and up-to-date one whatever computer I choose to use! If you think 2 GB is not enough for you, which if you are just doing documents it should, since I have all my school files on there and some other stuff and I am only use 2%! However, if you need more you can get another .25 GB for going through the Dropbox tutorials and even more if you invite your friends! Dropbox is a great solution if there a a few crucial files you want to have backed up, Dropbox is a awesome way to do it! If you want to not worry about copying files and remembering a thumb drive give Dropbox a try, you will not be disappointed!

Category: Cloud Computing, Computers, Reviews |
Mike Gdovin | August 4, 2009
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Canon Vixia HF100 Review

I figured that since I was going to be majoring in video production in college, that it would be a good idea to get a video camera. I had already looked around with Michael Plasmeier for a new camera for Tecker 911 and decided on the Canon Vixia HF100, so it was a no brainer after using it for one shoot, that it was the camera for me. It is extremly well designed and has a lot of semi-pro features for the inspiring videographer.

It has a microphone in jack for people producing more professional video, headphones out to monitor audio levels, as well as audio monitors on the LCD screen. It uses SD cards and AVCHD formatting which works amazingly well with Final Cut! SD cards are very inexpensive and you can get a 32 GB card for like $30 which can record hours of video! Speaking of video it is very high-quality and only has problems when you are shooting in low-lighting! It has many pre-set white balances to get the best video quality and even a manual White Balances for the pros! One of the other really cool features is that you can take still pictures while you are recording video which can be very useful. Battery life is pretty good and it is always best torun the camera off wall power when availible. The camera also comes with a remote control so the camera operator doesn’t have to stand directly behind the camera for the whole shoot and, as we found out at Tecker 911, if you have multiples of this camera, one remote can control them all!

I only have two complaints, one is low light quality and the other is lack of zoom, I would love some more zoom control.

However, all-in-all this camera is awesome and I cannot wait to make more awesome videos with this. Canon really makes great equipmement and I hope they keep it up!

Category: Reviews, Technology, Video Production |
Mike Gdovin | June 25, 2009
2 comments

HP Mini 1000 Review

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Mike Gdovin gives a review of his new HP Mini 1000 netbook!

Category: Reviews, Video |
Mike Gdovin | June 10, 2009
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Palm Pre Review

Image Hosted Courtesy of Flickr

While I was in New York City, Plaz and I visited a Sprint Store and had the chance to try out the new Palm Pre. At first I thought the Pre was the first phone that could challenge the iPhone but after using the device it seems the Pre still needs to be developed signifigantly to be a true iPhone competitor.

The device itself is significantly smaller the iPhone also leading to a smaller screen which makes the device harder to use. The other major issue is the keyboard, while the iPhone has a generous touch screen keyboard, the Pre has a minuscule plastic hardware keyboard and makes it difficult to do long writing on while on my iPod Touch I can easily write full blog post and data entry to me is very important in choosing a mobile device.

The Palm WebOS is nice but has a steep learning curve. The gestures to operate the phone are quite confusing and makes getting started using the phone complicated. The multi-tasking is the one feature that makes iPhone user jellous and it is well done in a Mac OSX  expose style. However at first using this powerful feature is hard to use. The other major flaw is the lack of and app store and it’s over dependance on web apps. This enraged early iPhone users and I had hoped that Palm had learned from Apple’s earlier mistake.

Overall, I think that the Palm Pre was a good first try to challenge the iPhone but still needs a lot of improvements before becoming a real iphone challenger. It has potential but if they fix the problems I pointed out, then it could be a rival to the iPhone. But for now and with iPhone 3.0 Software and the new iPhone 3Gs on the horizon, they are still the best smartphones on the market.

Category: Reviews, Technology |
Mike Gdovin | June 2, 2009
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Video: Evernote Tour and Review

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Mike Gdovin gives a review and tour of the great Cloud software, Evernote

Category: Reviews, Software, Video |
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