Apples, Berries, and Tootsie Pops

Remember these as a kid? I always liked the dark red ones, and was always on the lookout for that Indian shooting the star.

I had a different thought about this sweet treat though. What if we used it to compare the iPhone and the BlackBerry? C'mon, it will be fun.

Okay, I think the iPhone is like the outer candy shell. They are both bright, slick, shiny, and nice to look at. The media features and browsing are top notch. The sugar rush is there. They are sweet at first, but ultimately let you down with limited functionality and customizability.

The BlackBerry, on the other hand, is more like the actual tootsie roll. It is not quite as nice to look at. Some of the features are burried a bit and require some chewing. But once you dig in and really start to chew, you will be left satisfied with a hearty piece of technology that fills you up.

What's your take?

01100-01001-10110-00101

Believe it or not, there was a time in my life in which I actually owned a pager and I wasn't even in the business of trafficking drugs. When my wife was pregnant with our first child, she wanted a way to get ahold of me immediately if need be. I was okay with this, but I was NOT going to have a cell phone. I can remember feeling so strongly about this. I was completely against having a cell phone. I used to think they were ridiculous and pretentious. So I decided to fight the establishment and I got a pager instead.

I have to think back and laugh at this. #1 for my hard head about embracing new technology (especially if you knew how much I love my BlackBerry now) and how silly the idea of a pager sounds today. But I know people still buy them. I saw a store advertising PAGERS! PAGERS! while driving through a hillbilly-ish town on vacation a few weeks ago.

Technology has come a long way in the last few years hasn't it? I was just laughing the other day at the thought of a dial up internet connection- do you remember that noise? I apologize if you heard that noise to actually get here... Mobile phones used to be bricks strapped to our belts or dead weights bogging down purses. And the thought of a car phone conjures up images of cave paintings and hunter- gatherers.

I have been very guilty this summer of bordering on technology overload. I have signed up for 19 different web services, installed over 15 various apps on my phone, got a new email address, overhauled my iGoogle page, created a Facebook account, designed a website for school, upgraded my BlackBerry's OS, and figured out how to make and save .png images with transparent backgrounds. I'm also wearing suspenders and a pocket protector now.

I have had so much fun this summer discovering all the crazy stuff out there on the web. It truly is amaizing. Lately though I feel it is getting to be a bit much. Behind all the 1's and 0's of binary code there are actual, physical people. And that's what all this stuff is for, right? It's all about relationships. This is supposed to keep us connected. As the new school year begins to get rolling, I know I need to start putting all of this into perspective. Granted, it is a lot of fun, but it is all a means. I need to learn to log on without tuning out.

By the way, the title of this post says "Live" in binary code.