GeekSugar

Do You Delete Old Email Addresses?

GeekSugar — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 13:14:21 -0800

I have finally gotten used to the weekly, "Did you get my email?" phone calls from my mother. Predictably, every Sunday around late afternoon, she calls to tell me about something cute my nieces have done, or fill me in on the latest gossip about someone I went to high school with. "I wrote this in an email, didn't you read it?" she'd say. Of course, I had never received the email, and just assumed my less-than-tech-savvy mother was doing something wrong. This time though, I asked a question that I don't normally ask: "What email address are you sending it to?" She rattled off an address I hadn't even thought about for at least a year. Oops.

I logged into the old account and, lo and behold, amid a ton of spam in my inbox were a bunch of emails from Mom.

Most of you leave old social networking profiles online even if you don't use them, but what about old email addresses? Do you close old accounts when you open a new one?

iPhone vs. BB Survey Draws Some Interesting Conclusions

GeekSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:35:09 -0800

A recent survey released by Retrevo (an electronics shopping site) comparing iPhone and Blackberry users paints an interesting picture. The respondents are 445 iPhone and BlackBerry owners distributed across gender, age, income, and location in the US. Highlights include:

35 percent of iPhone users would be turned off by a date with outdated gadgets.
iPhone owners use their phones more - they claim to consume more adult content, videos, news, and sports scores.
iPhone owners text more often than BlackBerry users.
iPhone owners claim to be more extroverted, bigger jocks, and more intellectual.

I use both a BlackBerry and an iPhone, so I'm not sure how I feel about the results of the survey. Do you agree with any of them? Are iPhone owners seriously more into porn that BlackBerry owners? Hmm . . .

Does Technology Make You More Social?

GeekSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:33:55 -0800

Between Facebook, Twitter, email, texting, and every other form of online communication and networking, it seems like we're in constant contact with our friends at all times. But does the lack of face-to-face contact make us less social?

My initial reaction is to agree, but according to a new study, technology actually reduces social isolation. The study found that adults who regularly use digital technologies have larger social circles and are more likely to visit parks and cafes or volunteer for local organizations. Do you agree with the results of the study?

Photos courtesy of The CW

Should Texting While Driving Be Grounds For Jail Time?

GeekSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 07:33:00 -0800

A 22-year-old driver in England was recently sentenced to 21 months in jail for her role in the death of a 24-year-old woman. According to police, she was text messaging while driving and slammed into the back of the other woman's stopped car on a dark highway, instantly killing her. The charge, "death by dangerous driving," is handled similarly to a drunk driving charge, and carries a recommended sentence of four to seven years in prison.

Just this week, New York became the latest state to enact a ban on texting while driving. I obviously don't support the practice of driving and texting - it's too distracting - but do you think distracted drivers who cause serious accidents should be punished similarly to drunk drivers?

What Do You Do With Your Phone During Appointments?

GeekSugar — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 07:05:30 -0800

On a recent episode of How I Met Your Mother, Marshall and Ted decided to take a road trip to Chicago, while leaving Lily back at Crumpet Manor. While the guys were gone, Marshall called Lily several times to apologize for taking off without letting her know. Luckily for her (and him!), she was so caught up in her relaxing treatments that she didn't even know he was calling (even though her phone was on vibrate). After watching this, I couldn't help but wonder what everyone else does with their phone while at a spa appointment or doctor's appointment? I always put my phone on silent during these kinds of appointments because my vibrate setting is still pretty loud. What about you? Do you ever leave your ringer on?

Could You Give Up and Live Without Your Tech?

GeekSugar — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:05:50 -0700

I read a story last week about the small (and shrinking) population of US residents that don't have a cell phone - which included my fellow blogger and friend, Gregory Han, from Unplggd. Although a portion of this group do not have the means to own one, a majority of this population has made a conscious decision to ditch the phone by their own accord. It reminded me of a friend that recently gave up his cell along with his Facebook and Twitter accounts in an attempt to clear his mind and simplify his life.

Although some folks see technology as an extra added complication to an already busy daily grind, I use tech to my advantage, and it actually helps streamline my day. From using my iPhone apps to help me navigate the roads, to using 3G and wireless technology to log in and get work done from anywhere. For me, tech allows me to go more places, and stay in touch with family and friends I wouldn't otherwise talk to on a regular basis. This got me wondering - would you give up and live without your tech on a permanent basis?

How Do You Add People to Your Address Book?

GeekSugar — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:17:32 -0700

When you meet someone new, how do you add him or her to your phone's address book? I'm not talking friends or relatives - I'm talking about people you meet through friends, new business contacts, or anyone else whose number you want to save but aren't planning to become their best friend.

I recently started doing something new: if I meet someone new and want to store their number, I add their first name and, instead of their last, a detail of how I met them. For example, a few weeks ago I met someone at a concert and we exchanged numbers. I entered his contact info into my phone as "Tony Concertinthepark" so I'd remember who he was - much easier for me than adding his full name and being puzzled later as I scrolled through my address book. A friend of mine does the same thing - his now long-term girlfriend is still in his phone as "Katie Houseparty." Cute!

One of my friends completely disagrees with this strategy; she insists on entering the contact's first and last name. I can't get behind her system. . . Maybe it's bad short-term memory, but I think I'd end up with a phone book full of unrecognizable contacts. Do you have a special system for entering someone's contact info? Share it below!

Does Foursquare Equal Overshare?

GeekSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 09:30:10 -0700

I recently realized that my days spent planning an evening out with friends seem to be fewer and far between. Our ability to stay in constant communication with each other via text, Twitter, Facebook, and more means there's no need to plan ahead. Instead I find myself saying, "Just text me when you get there," and creating our plan on the fly.

The latest addition to the ever-growing lists of constant-contact facilitators is Foursquare, recently profiled by The New York Times. Users of the social networking site can share their current location with friends in real time. The free service is designed for use on the go, and in addition to its web-based presence has BlackBerry and iPhone applications available for download. To read how Foursquare works and to share your thoughts, read more.

The service is based on check-ins: when you arrive at a location (a restaurant, store, bus stop, wherever), you "check in," disclosing your location to friends. Check-ins earn you points; a series of check-ins at certain places (three places with a photo booth or 50 unique venues, for example) earn you coveted merit badges. Add tips and to-do lists with any location, and read other Foursquare users' tips and lists when checking into a new place. This isn't a new concept - Foursquare founders built the idea from Dodgeball, a now-defunct service that used SMS messaging to alert friends of your whereabouts. And services like Latitude and Loopt provide similar location-based services.

Foursquare launched in March and is now available in 35 cities from New York to Vancouver to London.

Do you use Foursquare? Do you think it encourages oversharing, or is it a helpful way to keep tabs on friends?

Do You Store Your Contacts' Data Anywhere Else?

GeekSugar — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 05:47:05 -0700

Last weekend's server crash resulting in T-Mobile Sidekick users losing all of their data left a lot of Sidekick users understandably angry. At first, T-Mobile considered recovering the lost data unlikely, but now it seems that most of the data has been recovered and will be restored to Sidekick users shortly.

Part of the problem: Microsoft offers no digital backup for the Sidekick. My iPhone's address book is backed up on my computer, but (similar to my Moleskine addiction) I also keep a paper address book for important phone numbers - just in case. What about you? Do you have your contacts' information stored somewhere so you won't lose it?

Do You Wish More Sites Would Apologize When Crashing?

GeekSugar — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 07:33:44 -0700

Most of you (58 percent in total) said you would just move on and forgive and forget when the website that you're visiting needs some downtime or crashes. But if it's a paid online or service, a majority of you would consider abandoning that service if it kept having issues.

I received the following email message from an online retailer that I frequently visit, and although I didn't take part in the heavy-traffic sale, I sympathize for those who were unable to take part because of the site outage. I thought this apology was a nice gesture on their part - although I can't speak for the hundreds of unhappy shoppers. What do you think? Is an apology necessary? Does it make the situation better?