My Life with Cr-48

Simple offline text editor for your Chromebook

2011-07-22T18:02:00.000-07:00

Do you need a simple offline text editor for your chromebook? I didn't even realize I already had one installed when I needed one on vacation. It is called Scratchpad.

You can save offline and it will sync to your Google Docs when you get back online. Very handy.

Very simple interface and works as expected.

How Can I Manage My Music Business Online

2011-03-06T06:17:00.000-08:00

As I use my Google Notebook computer, I continue to think of really cool potential uses.
Most recently, I found some great online music student management systems.

The first tool is specifically for music teachers, called Music Teachers Helper. It simplifies everything a music teacher would need to do. It is obviously built by a music teacher (it really is), because it is so easy to use. You can enter your students, list lessons, track attendance, send reminders, create invoices, collect payments online. You can event track student progress and send them notes and reminders. Not only that, but with one click you can create a website, made specifically for music teachers. This is awesome. You should check out Music Teachers Helper.

You can try it for free and just play with it for a few minutes.

I also checked out Studio Helper. This is geared for a music store owner, dance studio owner, arts center manager or even a karate studio owner. It is a really amazing yet simple system.
This system allows the owner or manager to create teacher profiles (including times they can teach), enter students, allow teachers to manage their own students. Add events to a main calendar, schedule multiple rooms, create invoices, and way more.
What most impresses was the ease of use. I tested out the system for about five minutes and found everything I needed.

It has everything I listed for the Music Teachers Helper, and many, many more features for small business owners. You can allow teacher log-ins, student log-ins, track student performance, and track all payments.
This system is really a dream for owners or operators of music, dance, or arts studios.
What I found most useful was that mass email feature. You can create templates, track emails, and send out to all students, all teachers, or both. You can also send emails only to certain segments, like just guitar students.
This email feature alone is worth its weight in gold. Communicating directly with your students will keep them at your studio and help them to truly feel valued.

Check out Studio Helper (for free) and tell us what you think in the comments.

Volcano Tour with a Google Chrome Notebook

2011-03-05T18:27:00.000-08:00

My wife chatted with me and my kids today from a volcano in Hawaii. What was awesome is that it was a video chat and she gave us a quick walking tour, carrying around the Cr-48 and showing us some of the sites. She did this all through the Verizon 3G connection.
What a surreal experience to experience a virtual tour from Hawaii and your wife is the tour guide.
I asked my wife to take a picture of her Cr-48 with a volcano or some other awe-inspiring scenery behind it and she said she would.
When I get the picture, I'll post about where her Cr-48 has been.
Of course, mine was just at home in the living room.

Google Chrome OS Notebook Trackpad Fixed

2011-03-04T04:02:00.000-08:00

Slashgear reports updates to Google Chrome OS.
OK. It sure does seem like the trackpad on my Cr-48 is fixed. I knew it didn't work very well and complained about it, but I forgot just how bad it was.
It is much better now and I can type without losing my spot, accidentally highlighting text, etc.
Thanks, Google, for making my free notebook even better!

OK, What I Really Like About the Chrome Notebook

2011-02-25T19:07:00.000-08:00

Open your Cr-48 Chrome Notebook and it is one, in just a few seconds. I love that. I can check my email in a matter of seconds.

What actually takes a few more seconds is for the computer to reconnect to my wireless connection. I wish this was even faster... and hopefully it will get faster.

This makes the computer perfect for checking email, calendar, loading up my Google Reader feeds.

I give Google and A in this area of boot speed and waking up speed.

Update: Writing a Research Paper with the Google Chrome OS Notebook

2011-02-11T19:21:00.000-08:00

I couldn't do it. I knew that Google Docs would not handle the formatting I needed for the paper (I use it everyday for most everything else, but need Word or OpenOffice for more power).
I also tried Zoho Writer because I know it is far more powerful than Google Docs, but again, it was too cumbersome.
Another reason I went local (usually I refer to this when speaking of food, but hey, it seems to fit here, too) was that an initial writing of my paper existed in an OpenOffice document. It was far easier to add to it there than mess around with some online document service.
Let me know, have you written any seriously formatted papers using only an online tool?

How Can I View Multiple Tabs or Pages at Once with Chrome OS

2011-02-11T19:16:00.000-08:00

I ran across another crazy thing about the Cr-48: I cannot drag out, resize, or otherwise arrange browser tabs except within the same window. This realization killed me when I was going to write some pages of my research paper. I simply wanted to put my notes on one side of the page and my new page on the other and type away. But no, I couldn't do it.

After a few minutes of research I found a way to do it. Thank you "Frame Two Pages"!

This simple app is available in the Chrome Web Store: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/eldgpcphflnopbjadiaonofideekgdgm

Edit: After further testing, Frame Two Pages only works with some pages. It did not work as well as I could have hoped.

Google, please allow us some easy way to view multiple tabs at once, resize tabs, and otherwise be allowed some flexibility in viewing space.

Writing a Research Paper on ChromeOS

2011-02-11T19:14:00.000-08:00

After receiving a Cr-48 Chrome Notebook this week, I decided to write my research paper for graduate school solely on the web. It has been difficult to get started.

One of the main reasons is the inability to notate PDFs. I would really like to make notations! I've also encountered serious issues with highlighting text. It simply does not seem to work for PDFs. I can only grab one line at a time.

In working through this issue I've hit on a few solutions.

When viewing a PDF directly with Chrome's built-in PDF viewer, press CTRL+S and save the PDF. Once saved, upload it to Google Docs, making sure to select the option to "Convert text from PDF or images.
Alternatively, I also tried creating a Google Doc and simply highlighting one line at a time from the web and pasting it into the doc. Yeah, that is highly annoying and inefficient.

The bottom line is that the built in PDF viewer is very underpowered. It makes doing research very difficult.

How Do I Take a Picture with My Cr-48 Google Chrome Notebook

2011-02-05T09:18:00.000-08:00

Seriously, I just want to take a picture with my Chrome Notebook. I know it can do it because I have a fairly decent picture from when I initially set up the notebook. But when I use something like Picnik, the quality is so poor as to be laughable.

I've read that this is a problem with the way the linux kernel running the ChromeOS handles the picturing taking.

What is interesting is that the initial profile picture I took looks just fine. I'm hoping a future update will allow for better quality pictures.

What is with the Missing Keyboard keys on the Google Chrome Notebook

2011-02-03T20:34:00.000-08:00

I am sorely missing some keys on the Cr-48 Google Chrome Notebook. I never realized that a delete key is imperative for my work flow. Slightly less important, but only slightly, are the home and end keys. I am lost without them!

There is plenty of beautiful space between the keys on the keyboard, but I think I would have preferred those staple keys: delete, home, end, and also page up and page down.

One trick I learned is to hold the ctrl key down and use the left or right arrow keys to skip whole words at a time, but not quite as good as home and end.

Oh well for now. I would love to figure out a way to customize the keys but haven't done that yet.

I explored one extension called Shortcut Manager. It does allow some customization, but does not give options to create a delete, home, or end key. I'll have to keep looking.

Figuring out the Touch Pad on the Chrome Notebook

2011-02-03T20:31:00.000-08:00

I spend a second night using the Cr-48 Chrome Notebook and really pressed the touchpad to work hard for me(play-on-words intended). Sadly, it did not. I had a really hard time highlighting text with the touchpad. The hardest thing to do was play solitaire, which I was doing for test purposes only, of course.
I'm slowly adjusting and getting proficient with it.
There are a few things I really like.
One, you can scroll by using two fingers this. This is a really nice effect.
Two, the tap to click is very useful. Obviously, many touchpads offer this but it is nice. You can adjust the sensitivity of the touchpad from your settings, too, if you want to try a different feel.
I also find myself accidentally touching the pad when I am typing. I think this is because it sits right between your thumbs when you type and if you rest your hand down it hits the touchpad.
I'm wondering what a slightly smaller touchpad would do. It might actually work better.

Getting Logged on to Your Chrome Notebook

2011-02-03T20:30:00.000-08:00

I had to wait in some serious suspense to log onto my Chrome notebook for the first time. You cannot log on for the first time unless you have an internet connection. My Cr-48 showed that I had a connection, but for some reason it would not work.
Eventually, I got smart and went and restarted my router.
That worked and I was rolling!

Hello Cr-48 - My Own Google Chrome Notebook

2011-02-03T20:13:00.001-08:00

A few months ago I received an email telling me I could sign up to receive a Google Notebook.I probably shouldn't have found out when I did because it was at a red light while I was driving home from work. But I did, and as soon as I got home I politely asked my two sons if I could use the computer. Or, rather, I insisted that I "needed" to use the computer.

A few weeks later I saw a post come across on one of my Google Reader feeds that you could track the Chrome notebooks that were being delivered across the US. And I couldn't believe it but one was coming to my zip code! But alas, no Chrome notebook arrived for me:(

Fast forward a few months. I was sitting in a staff meeting at my work when I thought I saw my son prowling around through the doorway. It was he and the rest of my family. They had brought me a surprise in a box. It was a Google Chrome Notebook!

The people I work with typically are not quite as into the tech stuff that I am, but they sure were excited about the prospect of receiving a free computer. They wanted to know how I did it. Well, I can't exactly tell you how I was chosen to receive one, but they all signed up within the next few hours.

So, to make good on my 140 character statement in my Chrome notebook application, here it is:

I will put the pedal to the metal and take my new notebook to 160Mbps. I’ll tell my closest friends and the world about my shiny new Chrome.

--posted from my Cr-48