My latest article for Tech in Hiding is now up, discussing five BlackBerry utilities that deserve some love. Okay, I cheat a bit towards the end, but that’s okay.

Tried it.  Liked the look of it… simple but functional.  Uninstalled it when the keyboard shortcuts I’m used to on Ubertwitter didn’t work (or any, for that matter).  I’m used to the shortcut keys to get things done in less time.  Seesmic isn’t there yet, but it is a beta product, so I can’t fault it.  Ubertwitter has more features and is more robust as of right now.

Next…

Look, it’s easy to just say that Google is king and I’m not switching to anything else.  I tend to look at alternatives and have some unusual tendency to gravitate- or at the very least try- the underdog option.  I use Google Search and Google Maps on my BlackBerry because they are fantastic.  In the past I had used Microsoft’s Live Search application, which combined search, mapping, movie listings, weather, and more into one application, and I really liked it.  That has given way to the new Bing application, since Microsoft likes to change their product name every 18 months or so (I’m looking at you, Live Search, nigh MSN Search).  So I gave it a shot on my BlackBerry.

And it gets one big “meh”.

• The initial search screen looks nice; it reflects the Bing site’s anti-Google aesthetic, with color pictures that change daily.  This is a nice touch, and I don’t mind it at all.  The problem is when you try to find the data you’re looking for.
• Bing search results are not bad but not as accurate as Google’s.  Perhaps it depends on what you’re looking for, but one thing Bing doesn’t match (in the mobile app, at least) is the depth of Google’s searches.  Doing a search for movies in the Google search app will load local movie listings and times, broken out by theater if you’d like.  Bing will show you some theaters and / or movies (oddly enough, missing the theater I usually go to), and only some movies.  When you click deeper to get more information, it tries to take you to an MSN site.  I say “try” because the app would get hung up on connecting to the site.  If you’re used to Google, it makes for a frustrating experience.
• Searching for directions was merely okay.  It got the directions I was looking for it took longer than Google Maps to load (and app / map navigation was not as smooth).  Bear in mind, this is over the 3G connection of my old Storm.
• Using Google to search for “weather” + my zip code brings me a forecast of the next few days of weather.  The same search in Bing only provides links to weather sites, and not even accurate ones at that.

Needless to say, Bing was not long on my BlackBerry, and I can’t recommend unless you’re a hardcore Bing fan.  Now where’s that Cuil mobile app?

This is a great tip that fixed one of the most maddening issues with Google Chrome that I ran into.

Now that really sucks… at least he got cleared.

Over at the Crackberry forums, someone mentioned an application called Vodafone Update, which works pretty well on the BlackBerry Storm.  You can link your Facebook, Twitter, and Twitpic accounts to the application (it’ll launch the browser for you to log in to Facebook and Twitter to “authorize” it).  I successfully authorized these three services in the application and was able to do some testing.  Here are some random thoughts on it:

• You need to disable Compatibility Mode for the application on the Storm.  You can do this by going to Options > Applications, selecting the app, and using the menu key to bring up the menu and disable that mode.
• Vodafone Update can auto-refresh and pull Facebook status updates and tweets.  You can “Like” and comment on statuses through Update.  You can send a status update to both Facebook and Twitter simultaneously.  I found that when I unselected one, I could not write anything in the update field; probably one of the quirks since the application is not written for the Storm.  Selecting both Facebook and Twitter allowed me to write an update.
• Another quirk I found was that, when “Liking” or commenting on Facebook, I would receive a message box telling me there was a Facebook error; however, my comments and Likes still went through.
• Flipping the Storm into landscape mode does not properly resize the text box for entering status updates.  It’s a graphical annoyance.

The app won’t replace the Facebook application from RIM, but if you’d like to easily view and send Twitter and Facebook updates from within one decent application (at least SocialScope goes out of private beta, around the time the Sun dies out), Vodafone Update may be a decent, if flawed, option for you.

I use Twitter a fair amount.  I’ve gone through several clients for my BlackBerry, using TwitterBerry the most until recently.  I switched to Ubertwitter, mostly on a lark since I had used it in an earlier version and hated it.  However, the latest beta has been impressive, and I’ve seriously thinking about dropping the $4.99 on the non-advertisement version (gotta’ support mobile developers, having been one in a previous tech life).  I’ve seen some buzz regarding TwitterGenius, and I went to download it.

On their home page is a link to download the latest version.  I did so, launched it, and found a pop-up telling me my device was not authorized.  I took another look at the website, and figured the download was only to update your existing version if you purchased it already.  And I found no link to a trial version.  Because they don’t have one.

Not really smart.

So there goes one potential sell.  I’ll be sticking with Ubertwitter for now.

Interesting to find this on the Windows team blog… perhaps Microsoft has finally given up on its awful Reader eBook platform?  Because no one will miss it.  No one.

A month (or so) into running Mac OS X on my Compaq Presario c762, and I haven’t looked back.  I barely like even being on my Windows Vista home PC.  I’ve pretty much decided that, when the Gateway goes, we’ll replace it with a Mac, maybe a Mini or whatever the equivalent is then.  I’ve also resolved to get a MacBook at some point.  I know Apple’s not a fan of the OSx86 community, but they need to suck it up:  they’re getting money from me thanks to the community. 

So, anywho, here are the list of apps that I’ve found indispensible on my OS X notebook:

• Firefox.  Does it really need to be said?  No matter what the Apple fanboys want you to think, Firefox is still superior to Safari, especially on the 3.0.1 release,which has been solid.
• Thunderbird + Lightning + Zindus. Thunderbird and the latter add-ons for calendaring and contacts syncing with Google respectively, allows you to get the equivalent of MobileMe, in the sense of keeping your information out on the cloud.   I use Thunderbird to connect to my GMail account through IMAP, and then with the add-ons I sync my calendar (with Google Calendar), contacts (with Google Contacts), and Tasks (with Remember the Milk) seamlessly and from one interface.  Awesome.
• NeoOffice.  OpenOffice for Mac, essentially.  Free, full word process / spreadsheet / presentation software, etc.  If you know OpenOffice, you know the drill.  Microsoft Office compatibility.  And it’s free.  I use it for all my writing on my notebook with zero problems.
• Quicksilver.  In Windows, I used Launchy as my preferred app launcher and loved it.  Quicksilver is just as useful and with more features.  I haven’t even begun to scratch the surface with this app, but it really lives up to its reputation.
• Evernote.  There’s a more extensive post waiting down the road regarding Evernote, but this free notetaking application integrates easily with your system, and syncs to an online account (if you create one) so that your notes can be synced from any desktop (Windows, Mac, Linux) or viewed and edited through a web interface.  A great writing tool.
• Cyberduck.  Freeware FTP, SFTP, and WebDAV application.  I use this to connect to an online web disk right from my desktop.  Fast, great program.

I have posted on Tech In Hiding my article, “Five Utilities to Rock on Your Vista Notebook.”  You can read it by going here.