Gmail & iPod geeklove
Been playing with Gmail for a couple of weeks now (michaelocc AT gmail.com).
Mind not made up yet on the overall experience, but I think their conversation threading thing is a mighty goodness. Not an original idea, but nicely implemented.
Meanwhile, have I mentioned recently how much my iPod completely flipping rocks?
The only issue I have so far is one shared with many other iPod users, I guess: the battery life. Not that it's horrible - it's just that a lot of the neater features of the software are precisely the ones reckoned to put a bigger drain on the battery.
I don't want to turn off the EQ, thanks very much, and I just love the welcoming glow of the backlight when I brush the scrolly wheely bit.
Apple's battery life tips also suggest one should "Avoid changing tracks" as this causes the iPod to turn on and off the hard drive which eats power. Hmmm...does this mean that the iPod's Playlists are a bad idea if you want max battery life? That would surely suck.
One of the single most wonderful things about my iPod is the ability to keep a huge chunk of my sizeable music collection in my back pocket, and create on-the-go playlists to match my ever-changing preferences from day to day.
Here's part of this morning's streetcar ride playlist, for example (in order):
- The Jam: I got by in time
- Rhonda Vincent: When I close my eyes
- REM: Electrolite
- Puccini/Scotto: Chi il bel sogno di doretta...
- Barenaked Ladies: Brian Wilson (Live)
- The Beatles: In my life
- Echo & The Bunnymen: The Game
- Billy Bragg: The boy done good
- Benny Goodman: Sing sing sing
As you can imagine - these tracks are scattered far and wide across the hard drive of the little podule (I'm assuming it writes a whole album in series). If the poor thing is having to thrash the disk every time it switches tracks, it's no wonder the battery life is sucking.
