We’re taking a little snooze over here, but you will find me blogging at PurpleWren. Here are the latest headlines, compliments of FeedBurner.

technorati tags: PurpleWren, Sandy Renshaw, Iowa

Sorry for the lag in posting. I started another blog site on TypePad because I work with several clients on that tool and am really used to it now. http://purplewren.typepad.com

Being somewhat of a perfectionist, I wanted to get the new blog “finished” and then publish the site and point everyone over there. But life has kept me busy on other projects and it’s not totally done yet. So, since one of my favorite expressions is “good enough,” I’m making the switch anyway. You can watch my progress on the site and we can continue the conversation in the new location.

Hope to see you there.

Photo on Flickr by SparkyLeigh

Oh yeah, here’s a test to see if you’re too hard on yourself.
technorati tags: Blogging, TypePad

OK – this is more like it. I spent yesterday returning Macintosh products and shopping for a new PC. I went with a Toshiba P105-S6084 – a very popular model with an unbelievable 2GB RAM that looks similar to the photo above. I was very pleased with the customer service at Best Buy.

I started after 5 pm and it was all up and running with another SPRINT EVDO card, wireless mouse, virus protection software, feed readers, Firefox, Adobe CS, and GoogleTalk within a few hours. Having trouble with the Product Key for Microsoft Office though. Just a small learning curve with the key placement and feel of the keyboard. This is lightyears ahead of my four-year-old IBM laptop.

My experiment using the new Intel chip and running both OS X and Windows on a MacBook Pro is over and was not a success. In fact, it was a very expensive ordeal. In my (humble) opinion, Apple still has some work ahead in developing BootCamp. I love the Macintosh, but until they have this software perfected and the phone companies catch up with the high-speed express style EVDO cards, I’m sticking with the PCs.

So, no more excuses not to post…

technorati tags: Toshiba Laptops MacBook Pro Customer Service

After reading the Battles Hymn of the Bloggers at ConverStations, I wanted to comment. I’ve been a wallflower for awhile and decided to join in the conversation. Then I read the other comments and followed their links. Thanks to Liz Strauss I found the post from Chartreuse. Love it! Be sure you follow the first link to the CNNMoney.com article, “50 [People] Who Matter Now.”

When I first started this blog, I wanted to name it “All About Me” – not because that’s all I think about (in fact, sometimes I don’t think about me enough), but because the bottom line is that we each care about how “IT” affects us, whatever “IT” is, and I wanted to write from my viewpoint. So I’m thrilled to see that You! (and me) really matter. What a great time to be here, collaborating with all of you and using all these new tools. It reminds me of the early days of the Web. Wonder what 3.0 will be?

Photo from cnnmoney.com

technorati tags: Consumer, Open Source, You, Social Media, Conversation

Well, it’s been two (2) weeks since I got my MacBook Pro and yesterday I finally found someone who had the experience to load Boot Camp and Windows XP. I didn’t have time or knowledge of OS X to tackle it myself.

So… if you need assistance and you’re located in the Des Moines, Iowa area, contact CompUSA. The technical people are very knowledgeable, fast and thorough. Less than four (4) hours and it was back in my hands. What a relief! How is the service at your local CompUSA?

More about my frustrating experiences later…

technorati tags: CompUSA, MacBook Pro, Boot Camp, Windows XP, Intel, Customer Service, Iowa

Well, in the last month I have had nothing but trouble with my IBM laptop. In fact, it has been failing since last winter. I had to replace the hard drive just a week out of warranty and lost all my files. To make the pain greater, I opened the software package and found it contained cardboard. I had to pay to get the CDs with the original software.

Now the IBM laptop won’t shut down properly and when it’s off it won’t come back on. Since my life revolves around a computer, I can’t continue like this.

So… taking the advice of a friend, I started asking questions at the Apple Store and the Sprint Store in West Des Moines. I was using a Sprint EVDO card and it doesn’t work on a Mac, but I found out I could use a phone with a high-speed modem.

So with the assistance of Kelsey from Apple and Lucas from Sprint, I’m getting set up. Last week I purchased a MacBook Pro from the Apple store. Just like the ads claim, I pulled it out of the box and was able to start using it. What a dream. Lucas at Sprint helped me with the entire setup. I’m a customer for life at both Apple and Sprint. Both of these young people exhibited great customer service.

So now I’m on the journey to get the Windows part of the laptop set up. I got the Intel chip so I can run both Windows and Mac programs. More later…

Photo on flickr by brandonwardlaw

Here’s another great example of the ingenuity people show. This is from Anthony White Artwork. He has been selling these pieces for a couple years, but now that he has a web presence, it will probably go much faster. The whole idea is he sells a painting for the amount. $1 for $1, $2 for $2, etc. And you can’t buy a number until it comes up. He has branched out to several currencies. 

And don’t we all say, “Why didn’t I think of that?”  But we can think of creative ideas. Take a chance. Step out of your comfort zone. Do something you always wanted to do. What if you fail? Pick yourself back up and try something else.

I just love the WWW and the chance we have to expand our community and sphere of influence. Be a good example to others! It’s always motivating to me when I find examples of entrepreneurship. Now if I can just figure out what I want to do…

Yes, it’s been awhile since I posted here, so a long holiday weekend is the perfect time to get back in the habit. A lot of people are looking for real food. We have healthfood stores and farmers markets where we can buy fresh meat and produce to take home and eat/cook, but what if you want to eat out?

It can be a challenge, especially if you are watching your intake of wheat, sugar, preservatives, etc. or have to find food that is gluten-free. One food that I especially miss is pizza. Well, the wait is over. There’s a restaurant that recently opened in West Des Moines that has become my favorite. Una at Beyond the Grain, 801 1st Street in West Des Moines, makes a wonderful pizza. Try it today. Sometimes I stop in and eat there, but often I pick up an order and take it with me. And if you’re looking for a dessert, her carrot cake is the best. 

Anyway, they serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and offer a nice menu selection. There’s other restaurants in the area that offer a gluten-free menu, and I’ll write more as I visit them. There’s also an informational website.

Let me know what you think – and if you stop in to eat at Beyond the Grain, mention you read about them in Sandy’s blog.

Photo on flickr by bakerchick2

OK – sometimes I take the challenge and sometimes not… Mike Sansone of ConverStations has issued one that I'll answer.

My Blog Posting Process

1. Just start writing – Eventually something comes to me and while it may not be what I started with, it usually turns out OK
2. Save as a draft often
3. Follow Mike's first 7 rules – I usually forget #8 (to ping'em) but maybe I can get that set up soon to occur automatically
4. Spell check – Yes, part of the charm of blogs is that they aren't perfect, but I can make an effort to use correct grammar, punctuation and spelling so readers aren't distracted by errors
5. Check the links in preview mode – You would be surprised how often my copy and paste function doesn't work
6. Step away for awhile – Either physically or mentally I take a break and browse somewhere else on the blogosphere before a final read (old proofreading habits)
7. Post it
8. Check the links again - Just my compulsive nature
9. Smile – It really does get easier every day to make writing a habit

Thanks Mike. Hope this still counts since it's past June 14, but thought maybe you could use a bit of coaching help today, too. I'll look forward to reading Steve Farber's book, The Radical Edge.

Photo on Flickr by Sean McNeil 

technorati tags: Blogging, Challenge, Books

I recently attended a meeting of Digital Arts Group held at Haddock Computer for the first time. It was great! The topic was Digital Storytelling by Joann Schissel, DAG President (thanks Joann). Everyone was very friendly and welcoming – and I learned something new. What more can you ask from an association? This is a group you might want to check out.

Here's a few links from the presentation to share. Digital storytelling is definitely an art form to keep your eye on. You may even want to try it yourself – the cost of technology makes it possible for most of us to participate. What story would you tell?

• The Digital Drive-In
• PhotoBus
• dorelvis
• Scott County Schools
• jasonOhler.com
• Center for Digital Story Telling

Great stories! Helpful information to get you started.

technorati tags: Digital Storytelling, Digital Arts Group, Iowa