Have been thinking about a netbook for a while, and ended up getting a Dell Mini 9 a few days ago. It's a really amazing piece of hardware in a tiny package.
I ended up getting the Linux model with 32GB SDD drive, 1GB of RAM, and the Timbuk2 carrying case. I ran Linux on it for a day or so, and then loaded Windows XP. The eventual use for this system will be light email and web browsing, and using Coastal Explorer on my sailboat and elsewhere to plan trips.
I also added a 16GB SD card for some additional storage for charts and other data. Even after reloading it with XP, loading all of my favorite programs and files, and then Coastal Explorer and all of my local maps, I still have ~20GB free on the main SDD drive. I haven't moved anything to the SD card yet.
The keyboard is quite small, but that was expected. There are some odd key placements to accomodate the small keyboard size, but they're workable. The mouse touchpad is really nice. It's molded into the body and has a scroll area on the right hand side.
The screen is really nice – extremely easy to see and clearer than I thought it'd be.
Performance wise it's pretty good. I expected a bit slower response and performance because of the Atom CPU, and that is the case. Opening multiple applications with existing things running can result in some slowness or choppiness. It's completely workable, however.
The system gets warm when you're using it, which is expected from other reviews. The battery lasts a long time even with wireless on. So far I've had it up and running for just shy of 4 hours on one battery charge while doing a decent amount of surfing and such.
The best part of the whole system is how fast it resumes from hibernation/sleep, and how silent and small the whole package is. Typically, it will resume and find the wireless network in less than 10 seconds, usually faster. Very nice for casual use when needed, and it can be closed and placed somewhere when you're done. Very convenient.
Overall, I'm really happy with it and I predict it will be used for a lot of surfing and boat related work given it's size, convenience, and battery life. More details when I get Coastal Explorer setup with my Bluetooth interface on the boat.
Dell mini 9
Seattle snow!
After threats of it over the last 2 days, and having gotten a light sprinkling earlier in the week, we're finally getting a decent amount of snow here today. Temperatures in Seattle have been really cold this last week – the coldest in 20 years – and they're supposed to be even colder over the next few days.
It was fun watching folks try to drive on it today – there were the really timid folks who braked constantly and ended up sliding, and then the folks who chained up but their chains weren't quite right, banging their car loudly.
I walked into work and took a few pictures over on my Flickr site. I hope the snow stays around a while!
Storing passwords securely
I've been struggling for a while finding something that I can put all of my passwords in for online stuff that doesn't have limitations or security holes.
For a while, I used Splash ID on my PC and phone, which was convenient. But it was a piece of software I had to have on one computer, and I couldn't find my passwords when I didn't have that computer. I used it on a BlackBerry, iPhone, and Windows Mobile phone in conjunction with the PC app, but it wasn't that terribly useful to have it on the phone, except when I was away from my normal computer and needed one of the passwords. It also was somewhat buggy and crashed at the most inopportune times.
I was somewhat worried about the data being secured enough – these apps claim they use good encryption, etc. but I also didn't think it was a good idea to have all of this on my phone and on my PC. I was afraid of my phone being stolen and then the passwords being retrieved from it.
So I began using common passwords for things by adding numbers and other items in front and in the middle. That resulted in forgetting a bunch of the passwords, and making me feel less secure because the passwords weren't that good.
Recently I looked again at options and found Passpack. The difference with this solution is that it's all online. While that might sound like a worse idea because the passwords are stored somewhere out online, it's important to understand their security model to know that it's not possible for them to even read your passwords.
I also like the idea of disposable logins, or one time passwords, as well as their multiple levels of login and authentication security. I've set up all of the features, and it is very clear every time I login to the site that I've gotten the right site, right place and nothing strange is going on.
I generally use these sorts of tools for storing things that are medium security, like logins to online stores and such. I never use them to store bank account, email, or other critical services like that. Those passwords are unique and I never even write them down. It's a must, though for the hundred or so online places that I have accounts with, and I much prefer using something like this for a number of reasons.
First, it allows me to generate a unique password of varying lengths for every site I login to. No duplication. Second, it allows me to get to them from anywhere – since all of these passwords are for online resources, I'll already be online when I'm trying to login. And finally, the auto-login functionality is very helpful for those really long, 20+ character passwords – typing those can be a pain.
So far Passpack has really impressed me with their UI, feature set, and reliablity, and especially their security model.
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