I am now officially a geek: I just installed Ubuntu 10.04

That's right. I just installed Ubuntu 10.04 on my netbook. And so far, I'm liking it. A lot!
I tried Ubuntu on a live CD a couple of years ago, and it was alright, but I didn't feel it was ready for prime time. But now, it's better. A LOT better.
The interface is much cleaner, crisper, and high tech looking. It's a bit Mac like, but different. Different in a good way.
My favourite change is the Ubuntu Software Center. It's almost like the Apple App Store on the iPhone, but for software. The last time I tried Ubuntu, it was using the Synaptic Package Manager, which worked well, but it was still difficult and cumbersome to get the right software. Now, one click, and everything is downloaded and installed. It's that easy.
I'm a Mac user through and through. I'm going to give Ubuntu a chance for casual use on this netbook for the next few weeks to see how it goes. I'll keep you posted.

I bought an iPhone

Well, I took the plunge and bought myself an iPhone 3GS on March 25.

So far, I am loving it!

I knew what to expect since I've had an iPod Touch since they first came out, but it's even more handy than I had imagined. I came to the iPhone from a Blackberry Curve 8330, and I almost upgraded my Blackberry to the new Blackberry Bold 2. I'm glad I didn't. The screen on the iPhone is just amazing, and the interface is far superior to the dated Blackberry OS. I can type faster on the virtual keyboard than I could on the Blackberry's physical keyboard.

There are a few things that I do miss about my Blackberry that I wish the iPhone had though.

1. The message indicator light. This one tiny LED was the most useful thing on my Blackberry. The light blinks when you get an e-mail, so you know someone it's there without having to turn on the screen like with the iPhone. This is a big plus.
   
2. Integration with the holster. Ok, I know most iPhone users aren't big on holsters, but the Blackberry holster and the way it integrates with the device is awesome. In case you didn't know, the Blackberry holster has a magnet in it, and the Blackberry itself has a sensor which detects this magnet, thus, knowing if it is in the holster or not. Why is this useful you ask? You can set the profile based on whether it's in the holster or not. For example, if my Blackberry was holstered on my waist, I don't want it to chirp with every e-mail, it can just vibrate. If I have the Blackberry on my desk, I'm not going to feel it vibrate, so I want to hear it chirp. It's a little feature that leads to a lot of customization, as you can select any combination of alerts that you feel like based on your preferences.
3. Battery life. The battery life on my Blackberry was amazing. I could go for around 5 days without having to charge it.
   

Ok, that's all I can think of for the Blackberry right now. What do I like about the iPhone? Just about everything.

1. Interface. Awesome. Just awesome.
   
2. Media integration. Again, the Blackberry just sucks when it comes to media. The iPhone is easy to sync with iTunes. The media playback is amazing.
3. App store. I didn't think this one would be as important to me as it has become. The App Store is full of useful (and some useless) apps that greatly enhance your original purchase. Yes, the Blackberry has it's own app store now, but the apps tend to be clunky as they are shoehorned into the Blackberry interface. Not nice.

To sum it all up, I'm very happy with my decision to switch to the iPhone from the Blackberry. The only complaint that I have about the iPhone is that it's just too damn pretty. What does that mean? Well, it's glossy black on the back, which shows every single finger print. The back of the device is definitely a finger print magnet, but I think I've found a way around that.

But that is for another post.