How I’m Wired

I just read a column about how anyone who is cool has an iPhone. Now, as a 48-year-old woman, I doubt that I meet the definition of “cool” in any way. However, I am as wired (or more so) than my 16- and 21-year-old offspring!

My workhorse is a year-old BlackBerry Pearl (I would picture it here, but I can’t take a picture of it with it so…). It works seamlessly with the BlackBerry server at my work, keeps me up to date with FaceBook and Twitter (seriously, if you don’t have UberTwitter, download it NOW), and runs the clinical software for one of my hospitals. I have tweaked available apps to do my patient billing, I get weather and real-time sports updates, and I can carry around photos of my kids, pets, and husband. I would like to be able to double its memory, and there are downsides to the compressed keyboard, but I love the little gizmo.

What my Pearl could not do was read Kindle files. It’s screen was pretty small for reading anyway. And I have a netbook I can use for documents. Why did I need another e-toy?

Then my boss showed me the Kindle app on his iPhone. The screen is big enough to read clearly, and an iPod Touch is at least $100 less than a Kindle. My old iPod’s battery was only lasting about 20 minutes, and I just got a $200 honorarium. The stars were aligned for the purchase of the bad boy at right, now wrapped in a purple silicone case.

I downloaded a bunch of books, and some “fun” apps (none of which cost more than $2.99). I then packed my bags and took off for a 4-day business meeting.

The Kindle reader is a blessing. I became aware of a book I wanted to read soon immediately, so I downloaded via the hotel’s lobby hotspot. In a package smaller than a paperback I brought 3 novels along. And I can listen to music while I read.

I have found some games I like, but most of the apps available don’t appeal to me. That’s OK, I am not their target market. I don’t need iBeer to feel cool; I can buy real beer when I want to feel cool! Web sites are easier to read on the bigger screen, though, especially in landscape format.

I still prefer an actual keyboard to the on-screen version. Even with the compressed one on the Pearl, I’m a fairly fast thumb-typist. With the iPod Touch, I am reduced to one-finger work with lots of errors, even in landscape mode. Way slower, for me, than the Pearl interface.

For right now, I am OK with two devices. Together they take up less space than my first cell phone! I don’t have enough memory on a BlackBerry to ditch my iPod, and it’s screen is too small for ebooks. My weeks with the Touch confirms the keyboard difficulties I experienced in the store when the iPhone debuted. Besides, there are apps for work that I just can’t do with an iPhone!

I am due for a new device about the time the BlackBerry Magnum is supposed to debut. Now there’s a cool device for a hot, middle-aged babe like me!

Ears vs. Eyes: Learning to Love Podcasts

I am a visual person. I remember faces and I remember names, but I can’t always put them together again. I often find the very act of making a list allows me to remember what I need, even though the list gets left in the car. I can still see what I have written in my mind.

The popularity of audio books escapes me. I read fast, and I process things so much easier by seeing them than by hearing them. A multi-chapter book would require a recap at the start of each commuter session (or a long enough trip to listen to the whole book in one session).

A couple of years ago, I won an Ipod Nano. I quickly transferred a bunch of CDs and set up my Itunes account. I am not fond of listening through headphones, but my new car has a Ipod jack. The podcast, however, has only recently gotten my attention.

Other faculty have been creating podcasts that physicians can download to answer specific questions. I didn’t get it, because I wouldn’t remember what I listened to long enough to benefit (see first two paragraphs). I far prefer to access an online “written” reference, especially if its presentation is friendly for my BlackBerry screen. Other physicians began downloading these short updates, though, and they still seem to be popular.

Now I have become a podcast personality. ASN Kidney News, the magazine I edit, started producing these with the May issue. I chat with the author(s) of something in the magazine, and we post it on the ASN web site and in Itunes. I was thrilled when the first one was downloaded more than 700 times. After all, kidneys are a niche audience. We just posted the second Kidney News podcast; in 10 days it has received >4,000 unique visits and >12,000 total visits!

I have also wandered around the Itunes store to see what other podcasts are out there. I am especially delighted to find my favorite NPR shows. I often miss Fresh Air on my local station; now I subscribe and listen the next morning at work (or on my way home in the car, if I have to do something away from my desk)! For the past year, I have planned Saturday morning rounds so I could hear as much of Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me as possible. If you haven’t tried this one, you do not know what you are missing; it is roll-on-the-floor, pee-your-pants funny. While this level of humor has, on occasion, proved problematic while driving, it is always appreciated. Now my patients don’t have to “wait, wait” while I laugh!

I still don’t remember as much of what I hear as what I read or see. I do appreciate what podcasts can do for the world, though.

By the way, I am a member of KIOS, the Omaha NPR station. Have you joined your local NPR affiliate?