ASUS Memo Pad HD 7

A Great and Inexpensive 7-inch Tablet

I recently purchased an ASUS Memo Pad HD 7 from Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/MeMOPad-HD-7-Inch-Blue-ME173X-A1-BL/dp/B00E0EY7Z6) for $149.00, and this morning I noticed that it's now being sold for $129.00.  Be sure that "ME173" is part of the product code since there is an earlier device (ME172) that is also sold by Amazon.  This tablet was the basis for the Google Nexus 7, also manufactured by ASUS.  But the Nexus 7 is quite a bit more expensive.  The other feature on the Memo Pad that's not included on the Nexus 7 is a micro-SD card slot that allows you to add up to an additional 32GB of storage.

I also purchased an ASUS Persona Cover for the tablet (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E60PW9Y/ref=pe_385040_30332200_pe_309540_26725410_item).  $19.00 was very reasonable, and it fits the tablet and is very attractive.

I'm a real fan for ASUS products, having two of their laptops in addition to the tablet.  The quality of their products and the included apps are very good.  All of the products I have are also very battery efficient with high performance.

Here's some information on the Memo Pad HD 7 from the ASUS website:

• Operating System
  Android^TM 4.2
• Display
  7" LED Backlight WXGA (1280x800) Screen
  IPS Panel
• CPU
  Quad-Core, 1.2 GHz
• Memory
  1GB
• Storage
  16GB *¹
  16GB One Year ASUS Webstorage Space *²
• Wireless Data Network
  WLAN802.11 b/g/n*³
  Bluetooth V4.0
• Camera
  1.2 MP Front Camera with Auto focus
  5 MP Rear Camera with Auto focuswith Auto focus
• Audio
  Stereo Speakers
• Interface
  1 x micro USB
  1 x Audio jack: Head phone/Mic
  1 x Card reader (Micro-SD up to 32G)
• Sensor
  1.G-Sensor
  2.E-compass
  3.Hall sensor
• Application
  Asus Launcher
  MyLibrary
  File Manager
  Kindle
  Zinio
  SuperNote Lite
  App Backup
  App Locker
• Battery
  10 hours; 15Wh Li-polymer Battery^*4
• Navigation
  Support
• Color
  White/Blue/Pink/Green
• Dimensions
  (WxDxH)
  7.7 x 4.7 x 0.4 inch
• Weight
  0.66 lbs
• Note
  *1: Actual available storage may vary due to device formatting and space reserved for the operating system and pre-installed apps.May vary by SKU and country.
  *2: Please visit www.asuswebstorage.com for more details.
  *3: May vary by SKU and country.
  *4: Battery life will vary according to use. Battery life measured by looping 720P video, brightness at 100nits, external microphone, WLAN/3G on and Gmail logged in for email and updates.
   
  For many people, the Kindle HDX or HD tablets are of interest, but they only include a front camera on the HDX and neither tablet has GPS, and you are really locked into the Amazon infrastructure.  The Memo Pad is a more generic Android device, and I've added the Amazon Appstore to my apps so that I can get some of their apps as well as most of my apps from Google Play.
   
  And compared to the Apple iPad mini, the Memo Pad HD 7 is so much less expensive with features not included in the mini, such as the micro-SD slot.  Unless you get the Wi-fi plus Cellular version there is no GPS for navigation.
  
  
  Take a look at the tablet if you're interested.  I'm very happy with it.
  
  
  
  

LG 840G

A Great Tracfone Device

I am a Tracfone user because I can never justify the costs associated with having a contract.  And I typically use the phone very little.  I've gone through several Tracfone devices and finally noticed the LG 840G, purchased it for around $50 and transferred my number.  At this time, Amazon sells the phone for about $28.

The phone is a semi-smart one that uses Java as the operating system and comes with a good assortment of apps.  Other apps can be added, but the selection is limited.  The ones that come with the phone are adequate for my use.

One advantage of this phone is that, in addition to accessing the Internet via the carrier (T-Mobile for me), it can also connect to  a wi-fi signal without using your minutes.  A browser is provided, and an Opera version is available as well. Gmail is also an app that can be added, and I was never able to really get the e-mail app included with the phone to work properly.  Texting is very simple compared to the phones I had been using, and the contact list allows you to call your friends or go directly to texting.

The 840G is also very small and able to be put into even small pockets.  And Tracfone gives you triple the minutes for this phone rather than the double minutes I got with my earlier phones.

Here are some of its features:

• Includes Triple Minutes for Life FREE
  
  This means that every paid Airtime Minute you add to this phone will be tripled. For example, Add a 60 minute Airtime Card and get 180 minutes. ***
• 3.2" Touchscreen Display
• Dimensions:
  • 4 x 2.4 x 0.5 inches (102 x 61 x 13 mm)
• Weight:
  • 3.8 oz (108 g)
• 3G/WiFi® Connectivity
• 2 MP Camera with Digital Zoom/Video Recorder
• Mobile Web
• Bluetooth® Wireless Technology
• 2 GB microSD Card Included
• MP3 Player (cable not included)
• SMS and MMS Picture Messaging
• Hands-Free Speaker
• Voice/Sound Recorder
• Alarm Clock
• Hearing Aid Compatible (HAC) Rating: M3/T3
• Phonebook with up to 1,000 entries
• Battery talk time up to 3.7 hours
• Standby time up to 13 days
• Includes Battery, Charger, Activation Card, 2GB microSD Card and Service Guide
• TracFone Airtime Balance Display shows you how much airtime you've used and how much is left, so you control your costs 

If you're a Tracfone customer or if you are ready to abandon your phone service contract, I think you will find this phone a great choice.

More Windows 8.1

More Windows 8.1

The new Start button isn't as bad as I first thought.  In Windows 7 you could get to more stuff, but Windows 8.1 still allows you to access most of the items.

By right-clicking on the Start button in Desktop, you get a menu that allows you to do many things:

Programs and Features -- go to that category in the Control Panel

Mobility Center -- 

You can access a number of Control Panel applications

Power Options -- takes you to the Control Panel Power Options

Event Viewer --

System --  System Category in Control Panel

Device Manager --

Network Connections --

Disk Management --

Computer Management --

Command Prompt --

Command Prompt (admin) --

Task Manager --

Control Panel --

File Explorer --

Search --  Windows 8.1 Search 

Run --

File Searching --

When you left-click on the Start button, you can immediately start tying the file name you want.

Windows 8.1

Windows 8.1

I've upgraded my Windows 8 laptop to 8.1.  I suspect that there might be a number of "under the hood" changes made, but there is less visible change than I expected.

However, there are several things that have been helpful, and this blog is meant to describe how they are useful to me.

Disable the lock screen

If you like your PC to boot just as fast as possible then the new Windows 8 lock screen may not appeal. Don't worry, though, if you'd like to ditch this then it only takes a moment.

First you must open the "Run" window by depressing <Windows>-R and typing regedit into the window.

Browse to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Personalization (create the Personalization key if it doesn't exist).

Click Personalization in the left-hand pane. Right-click in the right-hand pane, select New > DWORD Value, and give it the name NoLockScreen.

Double-click your new NoLockScreen value, set it to 1, click OK, and when you next reboot it the lock screen will have gone. If you decide to restore it for some reason, set NoLockScreen to 0 or delete it entirely.

Go Directly to the Desktop

The second issue for me was that I wanted to go to the Desktop rather than the Metro window, and you can now do this as well.  First you have to be in the Desktop window.  Right-click the task bar and select "Properties," then left-click on the "Navigate" tab.  You'll see the following:

 

All you have to do is click on the check box to "go to the desktop instead of Start."  

A Start button has also been added in 8.1, but it's not like the one in Windows 7.  If you click on it you'll either go to the Metro (Start) window or to a window that shows all of the applications on your computer.  Click on the "Show the Apps..." if you want to see apps, leave it un-checked if you want to go to the Metro interface.  If you want to do a more global search, click on the checkbox just below.

When you have made these changes and hit the Start icon, you can roll up and down (either by clicking on the circled arrow at the bottom of the screen or by sliding up and down if you have a touch screen) to move between the apps screen and the Metro interface screen.

I haven't officially measured the time to get to the Desktop with the changes, but it appears to me that it is much faster than in Windows 8.  My laptop also activates the wi-fi faster now.

Changing Default Applications

Another useful thing to me is the ability to change my default applications directly from the "PC Settings" window.  In Windows 8 I had to go to the Control Panel to do this.  Here is what the new 8.1 screen looks like:

Some of the control panel apps are now available in the "PC Settings" window, but not all of them; so you will still have to go to the Desktop and get into the Control Panel for many of the other settings. 

I'm pleased with 8.1.  It has solved most of my most nagging issues.  Hope this helps you better use your system.

The Verde River

Arizona's Dying Rivers

The Verde River is being threatened and may become another of Arizona's disappearing rivers. It is essential to people, wildlife and plants through its 190 mile excursion across the middle of our state. A film has been produced -- "Viva La Verde" -- (about 48 minutes) on the river and I've included a link to this film here so that you can view it. The proposed pipeline from the Big Chino aquifer to Prescott, Chino and Prescott Valley threatens this river because the aquifer is its primary origin. Depleting aquifers are a major threat to the entire world, so don't think this is just a problem for the high desert.

http://www.cwagaz.org/videos/158-vivavideo

A Water Ethic

A Water Ethic

Living in Prescott, AZ, we are a high-desert area that has been in drought for many years, with more to come.  Water is a precious commodity, and there are constant arguments and discussions about our lack of it.  Aquifers (the Little Chino and the Big Chino) are being depleted at a terrifying rate, and the Big Chino is the headwaters for the Verde River, one of only a few truly natural rivers left in Arizona that will surely dry up if enough water is siphoned out of that aquifer..

Water issues seem to be just about everywhere.  Emphasis today is more on our carbon footprint and very little seems to be directed toward our nation's water.

A book I just read provides a wealth of information about this crisis, how we have managed to mess things up and how a number of countries and cities are taking steps to improve their water use.  Cynthia Barnett's book, Blue Revolution: Unmaking America's Water Crisis, is chuck full of stories on our water dilemma and how we can take steps to improve.  Almost 40% of the book consists of references used in the book, but Ms. Barnett writes in a very engaging way in spite of the citations.

Here is what I feel is any important quote from the book:

Aldo Leopold articulated “The Land Ethic” in his Sand County Almanac with these simple words: “A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.”

We have clearly destroyed or harmed our biotic community by stressing growth and profitability, and Ms. Barnett states that we must value our precious water resources more than we have in the past and create a national "water ethic" that ensures we maintain our supply for future generations.

Please consider reading this book and become more aware of the water issue in our country and world.  You'll be surprised at what you can learn and perhaps become an advocate for making things better.

My First Train Trip -- Going Back Home

Going Back Home

We had a wonderful time in Cincinnati, seeing two of our kids and seven of our grandkids.  Even got to attend Amanda's sixth-grade graduation!

Now it's time to go back to Prescott.

One problem with train travel is that you get on when the train gets there, unless you are fortunate enough to live in a city that is the originating train site.  Our train from Cincinnati to Chicago starts in New York City, so the scheduled departure for us was 1:15 am.  Not wanting to stick our kids with this late departure, we arranged for a taxi.  This is not something I'm comfortable with, given the tales of late or never-arriving cabs.  And I like to have at least one back-up plan that was not available to me.  Fortunately, the cab picked us up on time and we got to Union Terminal well ahead of the scheduled departure.  Unfortunately the train didn't leave until about 2:30 am!

We rode coach on this first leg of our return.  There's plenty of room and the seats recline a little, but not enough for me to get any sleep!  Because the train was almost to Chicago, the toilet areas were pretty gross because I suspect they hadn't been cleaned during the trip.  I would recommend coach for relatively short legs, not the nine-hour kinds of trips.

We had a roomette for the Chicago-to-Flagstaff train trip, and we had learned in the outgoing trip that there is very little room; so we put our luggage in a storage area on the first level of the sleeper and only took what we needed for the night to the room.  Because I had trouble sleeping, I took over-the-counter sleeping pills and slept pretty well.

The meals were included with the roomette, and they were good, probably too good because my wife and I picked up a few pounds.  Oh to have an exercise car on the train!  As with the outgoing trip, we met a number of delightful people seated at our tables -- one of the real perks for train travel, in my opinion.

We got to Flagstaff pretty close to the scheduled arrival time, retrieved our car from the parking area and headed back toward Prescott.  It was good to be back home, and our cat Kasi was really glad to see us!

Would I take more train trips?  Yes, but we would change a few things, like taking less stuff.  I had a bag with lots of computer stuff (his and hers, iPod Touch, Kindle e-book reader, Lenovo 7-inch tablet) and will certainly not take all of that next time.  I would schedule our trips well ahead of time, to get better prices on the roomettes.  I'm considering getting an Amtrak credit card to collect miles -- we met one couple from California who took their entire trip on the miles they had on their card, even purchasing some miles to get into the right "zone" for the trip.

I'm suspecting that a rash I had on my legs was from bedbugs, but if this is correct it can happen just about anywhere today.  Might be good to inspect the roomette (which I didn't do) next time.  All of the upholstery is of course a great place for the creatures.

Thanks for reading my blog.  I hope some of this was useful to you.  Now to think about future Randlings!

My First Train Trip -- Leg Two of Two

Leg Two of Two

The next part of our trip was from Chicago to Cincinnati.  Because it's only a short trip and not overnight, we decided to take coach seats instead of a roomette.

The seats are spacious, not like the cattle-car ones on airplanes.  They have adjustable foot rests and plenty of room for our bags above our seats and in front of us below the seats in front of us.  The extra space between seats allows them to be adjusted without squishing the people in the ones behind us.

The so-called dining car was nothing like the one we had for the Flagstaff-to-Chicago leg.  You could get short-order items to take back to your seat or go to a place where a few tables were available and a dinner could be ordered.  Very few choices for dinner, especially since my wife and I are vegetarians.  We selected vegetable lasagna, pretty good but also very expensive.  On our way back home, I think we'll pack some stuff for breakfast since that train departs at 1:30 am and gets into Chicago around 10:00 am.  We have a much longer wait in Chicago going back.  I might check if there's anything around the terminal to see, or we'll just take more time to read books and use the Internet (if it works this time!).

The train had to stop several times to allow freight trains to use the rails, so we arrived at Union Terminal in Cincinnati around 4:30 am rather than the scheduled 3:30 am.  We then took a cab to our condo about ten miles away.

The total trip took about two days as compared to the four or five days we take to drive.  By the time we drive to Phoenix for a plane trip and sometimes stay the night before if we have an early-morning flight, then are wedged into seats for four hours or more after waiting in line and having a body check, a good part of one day or more elapses.  So a two-day train trip isn't that much longer, and the price isn't significantly more.

I'll follow this train-trip blog with at least one other for our trip back home.

My First Train Trip -- First Leg

Train Leg One of Two

We got up from our hotel bed at 3:00 am Friday morning to get ready for our 4:45 am departure.  I checked the train status and was informed that it was running thirty minutes late.  We were already up, so no additional sleep for us.  Since we had to park the car near the terminal, we left around 4:15 am.  When we got in the terminal we found that the train wouldn't be at Flagstaff until about 6:00 am.  Oh, well!  As some of you know, passenger trains defer to freight trains, so the delay was for the train to pull into a side track and wait for freight trains to pass.

Our roomette was much smaller than pictures portrayed.  We had taken two medium-sized bags (and a brief case for me and a cosmetic bag for my wife and a bag of snacks).  Getting up the narrow steps to our second-floor roomette was a challenge with all of that stuff.  Note to self:  put the bags into the cubbies on the first level and carry only a small bag for the things needed on the train into the room.  Here are some pictures of the hallway (about 18 inches wide), the roomette and the roomette with beds unfurled:

I'm a light sleeper, so I had little sleep that night.  The train didn't rock me to sleep, especially since it jerked around a lot.  The train whistle also was distracting since it had to be sounded every time the train was at a crossing.  My wife (being more agile than me) had the top bunk and had no problem with her sleep.

The meals on the train are included with being a "sleeper."  They were very good, and since Amtrak puts other people with you at tables for four, we enjoyed those who were also at our table.  They came from many other places and were traveling to  many locations.  What the trains really need are exercise cars since we ate more than we normally eat and had little space to exercise in.

The train made up its time, and we arrived in Chicago only about fifteen minutes late.   Being "sleepers," we were entitled to stay in the lounge to await our next leg of the trip.  Supposedly, the lounge had wi-fi, but it was not working.  I was told that it is up and down most of the time.  So I just read e-books and played some word games on my Kindle.

I'll cover the train trip from Chicago to Cincinnati on my next blog.  Stay tuned!

My First Train Trip -- the Night Before

The Night Before We Board

We decided to drive up to Flagstaff this afternoon rather than try to drive tonight.  We're staying at the Hotel Monte Vista, an old historic hotel.  We got a small room (very small), queen-size bed and an included (not shared!) bathroom.

Oh well, this is only for the night (or part of the night), and the price was reasonable with a 10% senior discount!  Lots of the rooms are named after famous stars (Zane Grey, Esther Williams, etc.) but no name on the door of this room!

We ate at Pato Thai, right next to the hotel.  The pad-see-ewe my wife and I ate was delicious!

We also took a walk before dinner to make sure we knew where we're going tomorrow morning.  Downtown Flagstaff has lots of one-way streets, so even though we're two blocks from the Amtrak terminal, the route isn't direct.  The ticket office was open, so we were able to get our 15-day parking pass this evening rather than tomorrow morning.  We also were able to figure out where the parking lot is!

Now I'm going to set numerous alarms to guarantee that we get up at 3:00 am tomorrow.  Don't want to miss the train!

There is no wi-fi on the train, so I'll probably have to wait until we get into Chicago Saturday afternoon or maybe after we get to Cincinnati.  Maybe I'll find a signal I can pirate!

My First Train Trip -- Getting Ready

Getting Ready

Every late spring or summer we travel back to Cincinnati to see two of our kids, seven of our grandchildren and one great-grandson.  This trip is usually by car (1850 miles taking a minimum of four days for us old folks) or by plane (always a major hassle with cattle car seating).  This year we decided to take a train instead.  This is the first time we've tried this, so I thought some of you might like to know how things go for us.  This might inspire you to give it a try or to not even think about it if our experiences are bad!

Amtrak is the most convenient choice for us.  We board a train in Flagstaff, AZ, at about 5:00 am, go to Chicago and then take another train to Cincinnati that arrives around 3:30 am, roughly two days after we start the trip.  The cost is a little more than air travel since we decided to pay for a roomette on the longer legs of the trip, then travel by coach for the shorter part to and from our old home town.  The roomette also includes meals and other nice perks.

We live in Prescott, AZ, about 90 miles from Flagstaff.  To avoid a late-night drive, we elected to rent a room at the Hotel Monte Vista the night before the trip.  The hotel is about two blocks from the Amtrak terminal.  Since we drove there, Amtrak provides 15-day free parking, but you must be out of the lot before the deadline or your car will be towed!  If this is similar to other terminals, it looks like you might want to find another way to get started, especially if your trip is longer than 15 days.  In our case we will complete our journey on the fifteenth day.

You can buy your tickets online, but I decided to talk to a human being, especially since this is a new adventure for me and my wife.  "Julie" is Amtrak's virtual agent, but if you say "agent" during her spiel and then follow it with "none of those" when she tries to give you more choices, you'll get to very courteous human agents.  I explained what we wanted and was given help in determining what was best for us.  I would suggest that you plan a train trip early and order tickets well ahead of your trip, especially if you want a roomette or bedroom suite.  The prices go up as the sleeper cars fill up.  In our case we paid about $300 for the trip from Flagstaff to Chicago but paid about $500 for the roomette on our way back.  The roomettes don't have toilets or showers in them, but there seem to be adequate facilities in each sleeping car.  The bedroom suites are about double the cost of roomettes, and one friend told us that you can sit on the toilet and take a shower at the same time in those suite restrooms!

We can check up to two bags each and can carry two bags onto the train, but we decided to forgo the baggage checking and just carry  all of our stuff in one piece of luggage for each of us.

We travel to Flagstaff tomorrow afternoon and board the train Friday morning.  I'll collect my experiences on the trip and write some more blogs.  I'm excited about this new adventure!

Rivers in Arizona

Viva La Verde

Last night I saw a wonderful video about the Verde River in Northern Arizona.  It is one of only a few riparian rivers that remain in Arizona today, and it now runs the risk of being a dry riverbed that has water only when it rains.  The primary threat is our lowering groundwater level and a pipeline that will start extracting water from the Big Chino aquifer to the cities of Prescott, Prescott Valley and Chino Valley; this aquifer is the primary source of the Verde River.  This movie is available to view on the Citizens Water Advocacy Group website (http://www.cwagaz.org/videos/158-vivavideo) and the Vimeo page at http://vimeo.com/63984592 . The movie is about an hour long, but I think you will find it both beautiful and troubling.

Android Apps On Windows 8

There are a number of apps on my Lenovo A1 Tablet that I enjoy using, but I'm mostly using my Windows 8 laptop.  I found a program that runs on Windows 8 (and has a Beta for Windows 7 that I haven't tried) and allows me to enjoy some of the Android apps.

Bluestacks can be downloaded from http://www.bluestacks.com/ :

 You can then download Android apps from several websites (Amazon, Google Play) and then use them.  Here is what my Bluestacks window contains:

To stop an application, I use the <esc> key.  To close Bluestacks in Windows 8, you left-swipe the charms bar (the black rectangle at the bottom of the previous image comes up), then click on the X circle.

I suspect there is is a limit to how much memory you can use for the apps, and the emulation that is necessary to run Android on Windows 8 may be very slow and may make some of the apps run too slow to be much fun; however, the apps I have installed work pretty good!

Give it a try, and you might like it!  Besides, it's free! And many of the Android apps don't cost anything and are better (in my opinion!) than many of the Windows 8 programs from the Windows Store.

Windows 8

I teach a "Windows Essentials" class at Yavapai College.  All of the computers at that college use Windows 7, so this class is about it.  But, as you many know, any new PCs purchased by individuals will have Windows 8 installed, so I  decided to incorporate some of the new operating system fundamentals into next fall's class.  Being a techie, this also allowed me to justify purchasing another computer to add to my "collection" of a Windows 7 laptop, an iPod Touch, and a Lenovo A1 tablet!

The computer I bought is an ASUS S200E Vivobook laptop that cost me about $400 and has a touch screen.  I consider it sort of an ultranetbook because it is very thin and small, with an 11.5-inch-diagonal screen.  Here's a picture:


I chose this over a tablet because of the keyboard (I do a lot of typing, and a virtual keyboard is awkward), three USB ports, HDML, 4GB RAM, 500 GB hard disk, web camera, etc.  You can see specifications at http://www.asus.com/us/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/ASUS_VivoBook_S200E/#specifications .  It is also about the size of a large tablet and weighs only 3 pounds.

Even though Windows 8 has some issues right now, I'm confident many of them will be worked out with an upcoming revision (Windows Blue?).  Many of the programs specifically written for Windows 8 are still not fully implemented, but behind the "Metro" interface (the Desktop) is really Windows 7.  All of the programs I used with Windows 7 work just fine.

I especially like the touch screen and some of the applications built for Windows 8 like Kindle and Google Chrome browser.  I normally prefer Mozilla Firefox but their "Nightly" development effort is still full of problems in the Metro interface.  In future blogs I'll discuss some of the things I've learned so far and some of the applications I've added.

Isn't technology fun?

Why Am I Blogging?

This is my first real blog.  I set up a previous blog to highlight some things that are happening in a church committee, but most of the postings are from others in the group.

My wife and I are going to take our first train trip in mid-May, and I thought it would be interesting to create posts on what happens on that trip.  We're traveling from Flagstaff, AZ, to Cincinnati, OH, and have decided to try the train rather than drive the 1850 miles or have to deal with the absurdities of air travel.  As I thought about blogging this adventure, I realized that there might be a lot of other things to share.  After all, I'm over 70 years old and have become aware of a lot of things!  I'm also a techie who has taught at a university for 20 years and continues to offer a couple of introductory computer courses as an adjunct, so some posts will be directed at computers, the Internet, etc.  I also like to sing, love good music and enjoy reading.

I bought a Kindle e-book reader a while ago and have read more books in the past few years than I probably did in many years before.  I'm cheap, so I am always looking for free or very inexpensive books.  Maybe I'll "talk" about some of the books and where I've found free ones.

So, this blog will be pretty eclectic.  I'm looking forward to sharing some of my thoughts with you and hope you enjoy at least some of them!