right on bro!

Everybody head over to yellowbot.com - it’s a new online business review/social networking site formed by some people I used to work with. They’ve been up for a few months in beta mode and it’s looking fairly good so far. Yellowbot is at a bit of a disadvantage out the gate - Yelp.com has gotten a leg up on them and has an already-growing community in this space - but they are doing cool things like aggregating reviews from other sites such as Citysearch (which has gone down the tubes), so you don’t have to waste time cruising around to other sites checking for reviews of a particular restaurant. I wrote a few reviews for some out-of-the-way places for them, check it out.

I wish they would move a little bit more towards a MySpace-like interface for connecting friends instead of their neighbors system (when introducing new UI concepts into a new space, it’s probably best to use familiar concepts), but knowing the Yellowbot crew, they are a talented bunch and will get it right and succeed in this space. Good luck guys!

Also, the Transformers movie was a big disappointment.

General

I’m giving up on OS X and the MacBook that I have had since February. Here’s why:

* The keys on the bottom left of the keyboard. For the life of me, I keep making mistakes. I use a Windows laptop during the day, and the reverse placement of commands from Ctrl to Alt (and Alt to Ctrl and the open Apple key) are driving me nuts.

* No taskbar. I’m too used to the Windows taskbar, and keeping multiple windows open and switching back and forth is just too difficult, even with something like Quicksilver.

* Too hard to develop. I have my set of tools on Windows - the Adobe suite, TextPad, FileZilla, etc. For the life of me I could not find a suitable replacement for TextPad. Also, IE is still a good 80% browser market out there. At the end of the day, if you are designing + developing on a Mac, you still need a Windows machine to test it on.

* Bad compatibility with Microsoft Office - okay this isn’t quite fair, because I never bought Office for the Mac. I tried NeoOffice and it kept crashing, and it was kinda like Office, but not really. I need the real thing.

* Feels too fragile. Which is kind of ironic, because it’s a pretty heavy laptop. But I feel like I can take my Dell laptop anywhere, whereas with the Mac, I feel like it might crack at any moment or something.

* BSD is cool, but what can you do with it if you are not a Unix person by nature? For my purposes, all I did was open up Terminal and ssh to some other boxes, and run a few ping’s and traceroute’s. Which I can do on Windows just fine.

* File sharing with a Windows network is a pain in the ass. I could never figure out how to share files.

Things I liked about the Mac:

* iPhoto - iPhoto is, like, the best photo app ever. Picasa on Windows comes close, but not close enough.
* Logic (it’s sweet)
* Not having to do virus and spyware scans

In the end though, it doesn’t justify the existence, so I am back on my Dell laptop for now. The MacBook is now sitting in the closet. Anyone want to buy it?

General

Yep, it’s been months since I posted. Things have calmed down somewhat so I am probably going to start posting again.

I moved, about two months ago. I now live in a managed apartment complex in Marina del Rey. I never thought I’d ever end up in one of these places, but there’s a Starbucks and a post office across the street, and I have a dishwasher and central air now, so I can’t complain. I haven’t really had time to enjoy it much, but I am finally beginning to settle in. My boss told me, “All you need is a TV and a couch, and you’re set.” I finally got those two things, and even though I have things still in boxes, it turns out that he’s pretty much right.

Matt gave me two of his paintings and they look fantastic on the walls. I still need to buy a dining table and some bookshelves, and after that, everyone is invited to come over.

General