Hi Jan (if you are back from your trip with your new netbook) or anybody else who wishes to comment,

I was wondering your initial thoughts/impression on your new NC10 netbook. I keep trying to decide what hardware combination (from desktop all the way down to PDA ,or its modern-day replacement - the WiFi tablet) will best help me meet my organizational needs. It seems that the more I think about it, the more complicated it gets. I never really considered some of the "cloud" or the synching services, like Dropbox, as a part of my PIM+ strategy, but maybe I was "thinking inside the box". Ideally, I would like software that could reside with my files on the device in hand, but easily synch through the web, like what Dropbox seems to offer. This way I would not be tied to the web, but could take advantage of it if I was without that dedicated piece of hardware. Am I better, and more importantly, reliably served by not relying on the web? Win XP on a netbook is a pretty known quantity. Certainly I could not run a program like Surfulator from a tablet, but am I willing to give a netbook a permanent home in my briefcase rather than my old, but small, Sony PDA? Any advice would be greatly appreciated, as I feel that I have dug myself into an information management rut. And we all know that the only difference between a rut and a grave is depth!

--Ken

I've been switching computers and devices so much lately that I have started migrating most of my info management to web/cloud/sync platforms. I am using EverNote3 for notes and web capture, and I use DropBox for other files.

You should check out EverNote3 if you haven't already. They have an iPhone client that lets you grab or clip web pages and type freeform notes, and they are all synced to their web server. You can view and edit notes on the web, iPhone, or desktop.
As a resident of the blackberry ghetto, I don't get to play with all the cool iPhone apps, but I can still email items into my EN3 account, view my notes, and create new text-only notes using their mobile browser interface.

Until recently, I used datadepositbox for online backup. It's really cheap - I think $1 /GB/mo.
But now I am trying to share data between different computers, and my file sharing AND online backup needs are all fulfilled by DropBox, which is even cheaper (free). I can't recommend DropBox highly enough: it does exactly what I want it to do, and from the moment I installed it, I haven't had to think about it once. All my personal documents and spreadsheets are in my dropbox folder on both computers -- including, for instance, by password database, which I update daily -- and I never have to worry about having an old version on either computer. Of course, I can also access my files on the web if I ever need to, and if a computer dies I can just install their client on a new machine and in a few minutes I'll have local copies of all my files.

This is great to hear. Dropbox sounds like a solution that might work for me, but what is promised, and what works are often two different animals. While I have tried EN2.X, I never really got the hang of their model. Web synching has some great potential for the way I work, and I am not quite ready to turn everything over to the "clouds".

--Ken

Ken wrote:

Hi Jan (if you are back from your trip with your new netbook) or anybody else who wishes
to comment,

I was wondering your initial thoughts/impression on your new NC10
netbook. [snip]

Hi Ken. I like the little machine & I'm glad I've got it. As to whether it will fit into your Hardware -> PDA plan I can't say but I will say that I'm liking Samsung products. More & more I find myself drawn to them for one reason or another. Currently, I'm using the NC-10, the Instinct smart phone & their monitors. All are high quality, good design, well worth their money IMO. Had I not spent a small fortune on HP's blackbird, I would be looking to Samsung for a desktop if they made one.

For my trip, it was just what I needed: battery didn't run out on the plane, good screen, excellent keyboard, light to carry. Could I have used a built in DVD / CD drive.... sure.

I'm getting the feeling that they are picking up where Sony left off. At the moment I don't have a real data connection between my Instinct & my NC10; maybe dropbox or some other cloud is the solution. My only concern continues to be security but then I'm not involved in state secrets; only personal stuff. So bottom line, Ken, if you've got an extra +/- $450 to spend, I don't think you'd feel cheated.

I think JJ's review was eminently fair, i.e. neat little machine, sprightly, great keyboard, PITA pointing device which might be improved if there was any software to calibrate it but this can be resolved w a 'field' mouse & great battery service. HTH.

Happy Holidays.

Hi Jan,

Well, the journey begins. I realized that I like a real keyboard, and that a small tablet would not meet my needs alone. So, I decided to open it up last night, and I now have an NC10 to help me get my life organized. Regarding the trackpad, there are a couple of software adjustments that can be made to make the pad more user-friendly. I believe they are discussed in one of the threads here: http://www.sammynetbook.com/plugins/forum/forum.php . Its seems like a useful forum for NC10 owners, so you may want to spend a few minutes scanning some of the posts.

Take care,

--Ken

Ken wrote:

This is great to hear. Dropbox sounds like a solution that might work for me, but what is
promised, and what works are often two different animals. While I have tried EN2.X, I
never really got the hang of their model. Web synching has some great potential for the
way I work, and I am not quite ready to turn everything over to the "clouds".

Dropbox is one of the two cross-platform (Linux included) alternatives that I considered. The other is Diino ( http://www.diino.com/ ) which I am currently trying out; it's not free, but it seems more mature to me. As long as I didn't require Linux compatibility, my choice was Nomadesk ( http://www.nomadesk.com/ ).

I am personally wary of totally free online sync/backup options. Indeed, recently a number of such services were discontinued, including X Drive (owned by AOL). Sideline: as far as I remember, X Drive also existed in the 90s and closed down afte the dotcom bubble burst. Then it reopened and now its closing down again. So I now opt for moderately priced professional packages.

I would also like to drop a positive line for Evernote. Until I tried it, especially with a mobile capture device, I wasn't impressed. But the ease with which one can enter notes, images etc, from virtually everywhere, is unmatched. I think they are on to a winner. One of the best tools they have is the Web Clip to Evernote which works like a simple bookmark and can be accessed from any computer regardless of OS --even one with no Evernote installation, such as an internet cafe.

alx

Thanks for the links and information, Alexander. I so dearly wanted to like Evernote when it first came out, and it is on several of my machines, but I never seemed to get the hang of their "endless roll" metaphor. I will have to give it some additional consideration.

--Ken

Ken,

You will be pleased to hear that the 'endless roll' metaphor no longer applies to Evernote (3) at least in the web and, I think, the Mac version. One now gets nice single sheet views of notes. In fact, they have just added a pop-up note view to the web client.

Interestingly, around the same time that EN3 came out roll-less, I noticed public WCs getting similar single-sheet toilet paper :-)

alx

Alexander Deliyannis wrote:

Interestingly, around the same time that EN3 came out roll-less, I noticed
public WCs getting similar single-sheet toilet paper :-)

Coincidence? I think not! ;)

--Ken

Just a note to say that Evernote has now added file synchronisation to its premium accounts:
http://blog.evernote.com/2008/12/17/new-feature-file-sync/

As far as I can understand, the main difference is that this feature can handle any type of file attached to a note, whereas free accounts are limited to specific file types that Evernote can display, such as JPGs and PDFs.

alx