Toy or Tool?

I’ve been using the NEC 900 I purchased on eBay for about three weeks. I’m ready to review my decision.
· It has become a tool I use daily. I found the portability to be that of my cell phone or sunglasses. It goes everywhere I go and sits on my desk when I’m home because I use it like I used to use my Franklin Planner. Copying files from the NEC to my 64 bit system is simple, using the USB ports and a flash drive.
· I purchased more accessories than I need. The extra battery I bought hasn’t been used. Same with the wireless card and the portal to portal cable. I have not seen the bottom of the battery except when I originally tested the unit (5 hrs). I have no need for the wireless card at this time. I suspected I needed the internet capabilities to transfer files. Not so. The USB flash drive is a simple way to transfer files.
· I discovered that if I calibrate the touch screen each time I turn on the power, the screen and stylus works better. Sometimes I forget and it becomes frustrating.
· The instant ON is great! No waiting for a bunch of junk to load. When I’m using the word processor, I can save the file, close the unit and hours later open the case, turn it on and POOf! It’s right where I left the cursor.
Overall I’m happy with my unit. It has frustrated me at times because of my learning capabilities, but I am more productive. That was the goal. The price/performance is excellent. If you only need an ultra portable word processor, this is the tool for you.
Bob

My first job didn’t last this long!

This post has nothing to do about writing, e-books, Kindle or related topics. It’s about Panama!

Due to a robbery, my failing memory, and bad judgment, I found myself driving on an expired stateside driver’s license. The cops discovered me, too. Two years is a long time to explain away, so in order to obtain a drivers license, I had to do the same process as someone eighteen years old would do; take a beginners driving course, blood test, hearing& sight test and then the written exam and driving test. All went well right up to the written exam…now done on a computer in Spanish. Not just Spanish but technical Spanish. I failed it four times – three with a translator. The last translator I hired was Lola Braxton. She translated a sampling of the questions from Spanish to English. It was very helpful. However, our first time as a team, I failed (#4) by one point. This is a timed exam. Sixty seconds for each question and four multiple choice questions. Yesterday we took our time and I was able to pass. The driving portion is a snap. I’m legal in Panama until 1015! ($366.00 = Ticket, driving course, translators and fee)

I’m including a few of the questions and answers for your amusement.

What entity corresponds to the judgement and sanction for faults or infractions to the rule of ( Decree ( Decreto ) 640 on Wednesday 27th of December 2006 ?
R- The Land and Transit Authority.

What should you do if when crossing a railroad track and the car stalls and you cannot get the car to go. The siren sounds . What should you do ?

R- Get out of the vehicle and get far away from it.

And my favorite:

You are driving at approximately 65 kms/hr , accidentally you hit a pedestrian. At that speed what may happen ?
R- It is probable that the pedestrian dies.

There’s about two hundred more questions/answers available. Contact me and I’ll put you in touch with Lola.

Happy Motoring!

BOOKS – BABES & BETS…

A friend of mine who is prone to declamation, made this statement. “If you went to Boquete and tried to hand out hundred dollar bills, those folks would think it was a trick or you were passing phony money.”
That initiated the BET! The wager was I could go on the Boquete Blog and offer ten FREE eBOOKS in three days. If ten people accepted, he had to buy ten as well. The BABES, happen to be the tykes at Nutre Hogar in David. All my royalties are pledged to this charity until March 31st.
I was worried at first. Only three takers. Then I received some cheer-leading help from Dennis Nutting. I was able to buy and deliver ten books via Amazon Kindle in a shade over two days. Thanks, everyone, I’m proud of you.
BOB HATTING
MY BOOKS
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=Robert+Hatting&x=14&y=22
MY BUSINESS
http://isthmustrader.wordpress.com.
MY BLOG
http://blair-pacificpublishing.blogspot.com.
MY CHARITY
http://www.nutrehogar.org/en/index.html.

BORDERS IS BANKRUPT! Yippe!

A few years ago I was on a book tour with Michael Blake (author of Dances with Wolves). Our mutual agent set up our schedule; notifying Borders and Barns & Noble plus some independents. This was all planned out. Michael was promoting his newest book, INDIAN YELL and I was signing and selling PARTNERS. We paid our own expenses; airfare, car rental, hotels and meals. We also paid for the advertising. Without exception, we’d arrive at Borders or B&N and a large number of people were there to buy books (mostly because of Michael) but there were very few books on the shelf – 50 people in line to buy our books and the store only ordered 12 of Michaels and 4 of mine? This was a guaranteed deal for them – authors signing books. Book stores are allowed to return unsold books! So it’s really very little risk for them. SOoooo, the dummies are gonna go bankrupt. They owe billions and a lot of people will be out of work. I should be gloating but it’s bad for authors. Unfortunately, this will cause a domino effect. Publishers and book printers had to cater to these people. All the books in all the stores will be returned to the publishers. What will that do? Yep, cause financial chaos and the ones who are financially marginal will crash and burn. A few of the larger publishing houses will hesitate to take on new titles because the same may happen to B&N. The big box business model the last twenty years wiped out most of the independents. Where are they gonna sell books?
ON-LINE or by eBook.
One would think that as an e-book author I would see this as a good thing. Perhaps in the short run but over the long haul, I believe the book industry will suffer. Fiction and non-fiction will survive but what about the coffee table books? Children’s books? Libraries?
I suspect the book industry will be re-invented over time. Independent bookstores may fill the gap between on-line and e-book. But personally, I believe the authors lose in the long run.
Bob

Oh, Boy! Packages from…ouch! #/*@&*%!!!

The PDA I won on eBay finally arrived, yesterday. The winning bid was $51.00. The seller charged me $15.00 in shipping. ( he/she did a lousy job of packing). The charge from Miami to David was $19.00. So, if my math is correct, freight and duty was $34.00 – 2/3 of what the PDA cost! In addition I bought an extra battery and a case. I won’t dwell on those costs but my freight bill at this end was $55.00 for the four small packages. (Miami-David)
This is the downside of ex-patriot living. Just a simple letter costs $2.14. I won’t dwell on this negative because I’m really happy with my old/new NEC PDA. It’s very portable and I can type on the unit without a problem. I used it yesterday and discovered the battery lasts for five hours.
I expect to be much more productive in the coming weeks/months. I highly recommend any writer who wants portability without a major cash outlay to consider the obsolete NEC MobilPro 900.

LONG AGO AND FAR AWAY

Tricks learned as a journalist have served me well over the years. Taking notes, taking photos or just recording thoughts and feelings help flavor a news story of magazine article. Over the years, the tools changed but the habits prevailed. Moving from the news genre to writing fiction was not much of an adjustment for me because I had all those old habits. My first novel was written in the cab of a truck in Prudhoe Bay Alaska; one hundred and twenty thousand words, all handwritten on scraps of paper, can labels, and sometimes even college ruled tablets. Once back to the “lower forty eight,” this manuscript was typed on an IBM electric typewriter; complete with carbon paper. It was rewritten several times so consequently retyped as many times. I was really getting sick of the story.
(I wish I could tell you that OIL SPILL was a huge success. It wasn’t…but it was a learning experience. It revealed to me the corrupt aspects of the publishing industry; BTW the sleaze factor is still prevalent.)
Then along came the Personal Computer. The first one I bought was a TANDY from Radio Shack. One had to program it in BASIC Level 2. Then IBM released the XT with DOS, then the Mac 512. I had the all – 386, 486, with every conceivable storage device.
Now, thanks to my brother, I use a 64 bit laptop with the almost latest gadgets and software. A 16” screen and live streaming internet. I’m confident I only use two or three percent of the computer’s capability and it’s too big to pack around. I think a lot of folks have those reservations, hence the popularity of the tablets. They are very portable. Also the minis; portability versus true laptops.
I yearn for Windows 98 and my old Panasonic Tough-book (magnesium case, rubber keys, etc.) It’s stored away with some of my other treasures and it doesn’t make sense to travel north to fetch an old reliable that isn’t worth $50 bucks. So I decided to try something else.
Back in “The Day,” NEC made a neat little hand held. It wasn’t all that powerful but it had a decent sized keyboard and was a fine word processor. Last week I bought one on E-bay. I should have it next week. I anticipate the step back will allow me a step forward in production. I’ll give a fair report on my decision.
Bob