Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

HP Slate 7 Tablet for $169.99

Handheld computing power keeps getting cheaper and cheaper. Now Hewlett-Packard has introduced what may be the cheapest full-featured handheld device on the market: the HP Slate 7 Tablet. It will sell for $169.99. That is the manufacturer's suggested retail price,  not a closeout special and not a discount. Best of all, it runs the Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) operating system. It should be capable of running all of today's Android programs, including genealogy programs.

(Click on the picture to see a larger image.)

Magic Wand Portable Scanner with Wi-Fi Feature

I have written several times about the handheld Magic Wand scanner made by VuPoint. (Past articles may be found by starting at http://goo.gl/GB9Co.) The articles I have written have described the original scanner that stores data on a microSD memory card. After making the scans, you can copy the images to your computer by either connecting a USB cable from the scanner to the computer or by removing the memory card and inserting it into your Windows, Macintosh, Linux, or Chromebook computer (a microSD adapter may be required if your computer does not already have a microSD socket). You can save the images on your computer or print them or upload them to the cloud. In fact, you can do all three.

A new version of the Magic Wand scanner is now available that includes built-in wi-fi wireless networking.

Add Wireless Wi-Fi to Your Flip-Pal Scanner

I wrote in an earlier article at http://goo.gl/Zkx20 that VuPoint has released a new version of their popular Magic Wand handheld scanner that now includes wireless wi-fi connectivity. However, owners of the Flip-Pal handheld scanner shouldn't feel left out; the Flip-Pal has always been able to use wi-fi networking if the owner purchases a suitable memory card.

SanDisk has made a series of Eye-Fi memory cards for years. These are SD cards that are intended to be installed in a digital camera. The Eye-Fi card allows you to wirelessly transfer photos and videos from your camera to a computer, tablet, or smartphone.

The Eye-Fi card contains BOTH memory and a wi-fi adapter. It makes uploading, organizing, and sharing your photos and videos very easy. You don't need to wrestle with USB cables or, if you are like me, you probably left the required cable at home but you need it now!

Windows 8 RT Tablet Available at a Bargain Price

In October, 2012, Microsoft released an operating system deigned for tablet and smartphone computers, called Windows 8 RT. While it has the phrase "Windows 8" in the name, the new operating system is just that: all new. It looks and feels a lot like Windows 8 for desktop and laptop computers, but is completely different otherwise. The new tablet and smartphone operating system does not run programs written for Windows 7 or earlier versions of Windows.

NOTE: A very few programs written especially for Windows 8 can be run on both Windows 8 for desktop and laptop computers as well as on Windows 8 RT for tablets and smartphones. However, there are very few such programs available so far.

You can find my earlier articles about Windows 8 RT by starting at http://goo.gl/gEKaS.

VuPoint Magic Wand Portable Scanner for $29.99 with Free Shipping

UPDATE: The web site now reports "Sold Out!."

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There has been a lot of discussion lately on this newsletter's web site about handheld scanners. (See http://goo.gl/vU1pM for my past articles.) These devices are great for genealogists when visiting libraries or archives as well as for dozens of other purposes as well. For instance, I scan all my incoming printed mail except for the junk mail and then I throw away the paper. I prefer to have a permanent record of everything worth saving in Evernote where I can find and retrieve anything within seconds, even when I am traveling.

Now the VuPoint Magic Wand Portable Scanner is available at the lowest price I have ever seen: $29.99 and that even includes FREE shipping. That's a good price for something that retails for $99 although many discount web sites have sold it for a lot less. I paid $79.95 when I purchased mine a couple of years ago.

(+) Still Another Update: (Almost) Unlimited Cell Phone Minutes for only $19 per Month

The following is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman.

I have written several times about my experience with a $19 a month cell phone service. The first article was written when I had used the new phone service for one week. I have since updated some of the technical details in later articles. I now have been using the new phone and the service for nearly three months. I thought I would post what is probably the last update, describing my experiences and focusing on all the drawbacks I found.

Portable Wand Scanners Reviewed

Handheld "wand" scanners are popular amongst genealogists. These things are great when visiting a library or archive as you can quickly and easily make a scanned image of documents or pages from a book. (Always ask permission first before scanning anything.) I have reviewed several handheld wand scanners in the past. See http://goo.gl/vU1pM for my past articles.

Now M. David Stone has written a review in PCmag.com of the latest and greatest handheld wand scanner on the market today: the Pandigital Portable Wi-Fi Wand Scanner with Feeder Dock (S8X1103). Stone says great things about this scanner although he points out that it is a bit pricey at $119.95 (on Amazon). Even better, the article contains links to earlier reviews in PCmag.com of the VuPoint Solutions Magic Wand with AutoFeed Dock PDS-ST450-VP ($149.99 at Amazon) and the VuPoint Solutions Magic Wand Wi-Fi PDSWF-ST44-VP ($97.95 on Amazon). If you read all three articles, you will then have a good side-by-side comparison of the most popular models of today.

Follow-up: Chromebook Laptop Computers

I have written several times (see http://goo.gl/T9OqY for my past articles) about low-priced laptops that use Google's Chrome operating system in place of Windows, Macintosh, or Linux. Chromebooks have become very popular. The Samsung Chromebook has been #1 on Amazon’s bestseller list for laptops every day since it launched 125 days ago in the U.S., and Chromebooks now represent more than 10 percent of notebook sales at Currys PC World, the largest electronics retailer in the U.K. I own a Chromebook, love it, and use it frequently.

Today, Google introduced a new, high-end Chromebook but my prediction is that it will be a flop.

Computer Screens of the Future

Ask the owner of any Apple iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch or the owners of several competitive Android devices: "What's the best thing about your device?" Many owners will reply, "The screen." Indeed, Gorilla Glass and similar glass products in many of today's handheld devices produce better displays than that of any traditional desktop computer screen. The Apple MacBook Pro I am using to write this article also has an excellent video display, called a Retina Display, that produces better video than any other laptop I have ever seen.

Corning knows something about the glass business as well as about computers, as the company makes the display screens for many of today's laptop and handheld computers. Now Corning has released a video showing the company's vision of the future of computer displays. The video has nothing to do with genealogy but can you imagine using these tools to view images of census records and other old documents?

Add a Robot to Your Desk

Think of it as being something like Siri, the artificial personal assistant for Apple cell phones, only with even more intelligence and then built into a toy robot that sits on your desk.

Robotalk connects to the Internet via your wi-fi wireless network, has a great deal of intelligence, and is controlled by voice commands. It also answers questions verbally. It can do at least all of the following:

Chromebooks Become Very Popular

I have written several times about Chromebook laptop computers (see my past articles by starting at http://goo.gl/zhVKP). I purchased one of the first Chromebooks available and use it frequently. Since then, these low-cost laptop computers have become very popular. Even Amazon agrees. The retailer lists the most popular products sold in a number of different categories. It seems the most popular laptops are not Windows computers made by HP, Dell, Lenovo, Acer, or Asus or even an Apple Macbook computers for that matter either. In fact, the top seller recently has been a Samsung device that runs Chrome. See http://goo.gl/fV9lQ for details.

Dell's Project Ophelia: Carry Your Computer in your Pocket

Dell wants to replace your desktop and laptop computers. The company has introduced a new computer that looks like a USB memory stick (also known as a flash drive).

Ophelia uses a Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL) to draw power to boot from an HDTV display, or it can be powered off a USB port. It has integrated Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capability for connecting to a keyboard, a mouse, and the network, and it runs the Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) operating system with all of the functionality of a tablet. It can also be used to power virtual instances of other desktop operating systems on a remote server or in the cloud.

The Chromebook -- It's Like an iPad, but with a Keyboard

I have written several times about the Chromebook laptop computer. (You can find my previous articles if you start at http://goo.gl/oK2aq.)

I have an older Chromebook and love it. It is an inexpensive computer that does about 95% of the things I need a computer to do. It is a simple computer that runs a web browser and always requires an Internet connection. However, I can also make the case that it is a sophisticated device available at a very low price ($235 to $330), is easy for non-experts to use, never gets viruses, and meets the needs of 99% of Internet users worldwide.

VuPoint Solutions Magic Wand with AutoFeed Dock PDS-ST450-VP

Genealogists use handheld scanners more often than almost any other group I can think of. We scan documents at the local courthouse, old newspaper articles at the library, and photos while visiting a cousin's house. One of the more popular handheld scanners for genealogists is the VuPoint "Magic Wand." I own one and use it frequently. You can see my earlier articles about the VuPoint Magic Wand if you start at http://goo.gl/A4cwM.

I noticed today that M. David Stone has written a review of the brand-new VuPoint Solutions Magic Wand with AutoFeed Dock PDS-ST450-VP. This unit consists of two pieces: the first looks almost identical to the older Magic Wand handheld scanner but the second box is a dock that turns the first device into a manual-feed scanner.

Install Linux on Acer's $199 C7 Chromebook

In the November 12, 2012 newsletter, I described a new laptop computer from Acer that sells for $199. The article is available at http://goo.gl/Qw2RW. I had my hands on one of these for a few minutes a few days ago at a BestBuy store. The low-cost laptop looks like the more expensive competitors but does not use Windows or Macintosh or Linux. Instead, it run Google's Chrome operating system.

In comments at the end of the article, one newsletter reader suggested installing Linux on the Acer laptop. Now step-by-step instructions for installing Ubuntu Linux on the $199 Acer C7 laptop can be found in an article by Andrew Cunningham in ars technica at http://goo.gl/T9aMa. Ubuntu Linux software is available free of charge.

Upgraded Version of Acer's $199 Chromebook

In the November 12, 2012 newsletter (available at http://goo.gl/UGzDv), I wrote about the $199 Acer C7 Chromebook laptop computer. This full sized, although lightweight, computer weighs only 3 pounds. It includes 11.7-inch display, a full sized keyboard, a 1.3-megapixel camera, and a battery that lasts about 3.5 hours. It also contains a 320-gigabyte disk drive. It doesn't run Windows or Macintosh or Linux. Instead, it runs Google's Chrome operating system. I own an older Chromebook and love the simplicity of the Chrome operating system. It just works. It also doesn't get viruses.

Andrew Cunningham has looked deep inside the Acer product catalog and has found an upgraded version of the same computer that sells for $100 more. It includes a larger battery, 4 gigabytes of RAM memory instead of 2 gigabytes, and a 500 gigabyte hard drive instead of a 320GB model. You can read his article in Ars Technica at http://goo.gl/ZXo0h.

Cunningham's recommendation is to stick with the cheaper model unless you have a specific requirement for the features of the $299 version.

 

Scandock, the "Post PC" Scanner

I haven't had a chance to use this yet but the advertisements look interesting. Atiz, a well-known manufacturer of large, heavy-duty book scanners (see http://www.atiz.com/) has announced a new pint-sized device for document scanning. (Click on the picture to the right to see a larger image.) The new Scandock device turns your smartphone into a professional-grade scanner for pictures, documents, and books. With Scandock, all your scans go with you. You can send scanned images by email, create a PDF, or upload right from the phone. You can leave the scanned image in the phone or, once uploaded, copy it to any application or storage area you wish. Of course, you can also do both: leave one copy in the phone and upload additional copies to other applications.

Atiz calls this a "Post PC" scanner as it does not require a Windows or Macintosh computer. Instead, it uses the power of your Apple or Android smartphone.

Now This is a Book Scanner!

I have written before about book scanners. You place the book in the scanner, press a button, and then walk away for a while as the scanner turns pages automatically and creates a digital image of every page in the book. It employs a robotic mechanism to flip through the book and has cameras that take an image of each page.

With most book scanners, you don't even need to cut the bindings off the books being scanned. Now newsletter reader Jay Crossman wrote to let me know of a new beast to be available soon that will scan 250 pages per minute. That's roughly 4 pages per second!

Build Your Own Page-turning Scanner Out of Sheet Metal, a Vacuum Cleaner and $1,500 in Parts

Want to scan books? Perhaps a lot of books? You could always purchase a scanner that automatically turns the pages for you except those scanners typically cost $100,000 and up. Way up. One model costs more than $400,000. Now an engineer at Google has built his own automated book scanner for about $1,500 plus spare parts from a vacuum cleaner.

Best of all, Google Books engineer Dany Qumsiyeh has donated the plans to the public domain, meaning you or anyone else is free to experiment, improve upon, and even sell scanners built on Qumsiyeh’s design, all without worrying about Google’s army of lawyers swooping down on you.

Acer's $200 Chromebook

I am constantly amazed by the dropping prices of computers. You can now purchase a full-featured, full-sized Acer C7 laptop computer for $200. Well, it's full-featured if you are always within range of a wi-fi wireless network connection.

This is no mini machine. It is full sized, although lightweight, at only 3 pounds. It includes 11.7-inch display, a full sized keyboard, a 1.3-megapixel camera, and a battery that lasts about 3.5 hours. It also contains a surprisingly high-capacity 320-gigabyte disk drive. That's surprising as Chromebook laptops usually have smaller hard drives.