Thursday, December 3, 2009

WSJ-ZumoDrive and the Cloud

Interesting article from the WSJ on Cloud Computing. I have been frustrated by Apple's MobilMe which works for some people but not others, as Walt Mossberg has previously described. Apple admits glitches too. These "Cloud" services simply mean you data is "safely secured" outside your computer and not on your premises. The data is out in Cyberland or the "Cloud." As such, I don't post anything that I would consider confidential. Common sense should dictate what you risk exposing.

I have been using Google docs to have documents in development available for collaboration with only me. I use three computers routinely in various locations and having a Google doc offsite lets me have access to the same version from all three locations. So for today, ZumoDrive and no, I have not tried it.
JA



PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY
DECEMBER 3, 2009
ZumoDrive Service Is a Silver Lining In 'Cloud' Storage

By WALTER S. MOSSBERG


As people acquire multiple digital devices, including tiny netbooks and super-smart phones, it becomes harder to coordinate all their documents, music and photos so they have access to them from whichever device they're using at the moment.

People resort to all sorts of time-consuming methods for doing this. Some email the items to themselves. Others copy them to USB thumb drives and manually transfer them to each machine. Still others use Internet-based, or "cloud," storage, uploading all their photos to a service like Flickr or Facebook, or using Web-based productivity programs like Google Docs. And some use Web-based backup, storage or synchronization services.

Each of these methods, even the cloud-based ones, has limitations and frustrations. Some are complicated, or work only with certain kinds of files. Others work only when you have a Web connection, or don't replicate your preferred folder structure. Still, others work OK with standard files and folders, but have trouble with specially arranged content, such as music that is organized in a jukebox program.

I've been testing a cloud-based service that attempts to solve these problems. It is called ZumoDrive, and it comes from a small company called Zecter Inc. A new version is due out this week that aims to add some capability and make the task simpler.

ZumoDrive mimics a standard physical hard disk, which can contain numerous folders and files. It works on Windows, Macintosh or Linux computers, and also comes in a more limited version for the Apple iPhone. It presents itself as a standard hard-disk icon on all your computers. But it's actually a single, identical virtual hard disk that lives on the company's servers, not on the computers themselves. The files it contains are rapidly streamed down to your machines when you need them.

I tested the service on a desktop Windows PC, a netbook, two Mac laptops and an iPhone. I generally liked ZumoDrive and found it easy to use, and pretty fast. But I ran into a few glitches, and it can be pricey. The new version will offer 2 gigabytes of storage free, but will cost a monthly or annual fee for more storage, ranging from $30 a year for 10 gigabytes to $800 a year for 500 gigabytes.

Also, like all cloud-based storage, ZumoDrive isn't fully accessible when you're offline. It caches, or automatically downloads, some recently used files, making them available offline. But you may want to open a document or play a song that is available only when you are online.

There have been online storage services for years, including some that could appear as desktop icons. In particular, ZumoDrive competes with somewhat similar services such as SugarSync and DropBox. But it's different.

Unlike DropBox, it doesn't require you to remember to place files in a single, special folder. You can link your existing folders to the ZumoDrive. And, unlike SugarSync, it doesn't copy all your shared files to the hard disks of all your computers. It keeps the files in the cloud.

Compared with SugarSync, which I also like, ZumoDrive uses much less of your hard disk space, and does a better job with iTunes libraries. But SugarSync doesn't require you to be online to use the files it synchronizes, though it also keeps a backup copy that you can access from the Web.

You don't need to learn any special techniques to use ZumoDrive. Your computer sees the ZumoDrive as if it were a physical hard disk, so you can add and delete files to it in the normal ways. A program like Microsoft Word also sees it as a normal disk, and can open files from, or save them to, a ZumoDrive without a second thought.

And, because a ZumoDrive can be large without taking up much space on your local drive, it is especially nice for netbooks, which may offer relatively little storage. It also allows you to share folders with others, and encrypts the data you store on it, for security.

To use ZumoDrive, you first upload all your key stuff from your main computer. Then, once you install the small ZumoDrive program on your other devices, all those file names show up on your screen and can be fetched from the cloud when you like. You can add files and folders from the other computers as well. And you can also access your files via a Web site or an iPhone.

You can link folders on your computers to identical folders on your ZumoDrive, and they will stay in sync, so you can keep using the folder structure you're used to, and it will be up-to-date on the ZumoDrive.

ZumoDrive understands how to handle and centralize your iTunes music library. In my tests, I uploaded an iTunes library of about 900 songs from a Mac at my home, and was able to play the songs on a Windows XP netbook that had no music stored locally.

I ran into some glitches and limitations, all of which the company says it is fixing. For instance, at first my netbook didn't fetch all the iTunes songs.

But, all in all, ZumoDrive is a harbinger of the new world of cloud computing, and it is worth a look.

—Find all of Walt Mossberg's columns and videos online, free, at the All Things Digital Web site, walt.allthingsd.com. Email him at mossberg@wsj.com.Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B11

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Al Dimeola / Subway Busker Violinist / SI Italian

"THERE IS NO ACCOUNTING FOR TASTE"

MUSIC
Al DiMeola is on Tour. Jazz / Fusion Guitarist, he is coming to the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank, NJ on January 29, 2010, 8PM with the World Symphonia band. This is his Acoustic, Argentinian influenced group. I am planning on going, good seats are still available in the orchestra. Lemme know if you want to go ASAP. Inexpensive by current standards, only $49.50 for orchestra.

NYC Subway
Photographed Micheal Shulman: Neo-Classical Shred Violinst. Sounds incongruous, but he is a very good crossover artist. I bought his CD. Dream Theater meets Paganini. www.blackviolin.com.
Photos at: http://www.photoshelter.com/c/johnares/gallery/MUSICIANS/G00006DdYu5qiNSY/P00003mdKQrJsx9c


FOOD
Staten Island: Enoteca Maria near the St George Theater is a find. With the Island being 35% Italian, you would think we would have better Italian restaurants. Mostly it is great Pizza.

Enter Enoteca Maria. It is really good and unique. It rotates chefs, "Italian Grandmothers" from different regions of the peninsula. So depending on what day you go, you might get Naples as opposed to Sicily. A great concept, in the heart of the city part of Staten Island. Reservations a must, specific seating times, parking on the street nearby, a short walk from the SI Ferry from Manhattan.

www.enotecamaria.com
27 Hyatt St
Staten Island, NY 10301-1801
(718) 447-2777


PHOTOGRAPHY
My blog has taken off for a general audience. Articles for all levels: Beginner, Enthusiast and Pro. News, fun photos, how-to's, tips and resources. Enjoy at: http://www.johnaresphotographic.blogspot.com/

Friday, October 2, 2009

JA PHOTOBLOG LAUNCH

I hate the term relaunch. Implies what was there before didn't work. Updates are good. Folks, I have returned to my roots as a photographer after Wall Street "freed up my future" last year. I started taking pictures at age 7 and never stopped, so this is nothing new to me. I have never been busier.

This is an update. Friends tell me "I don't know what he does." Here is my current Website along with 1000+ photos to view for fun and purchase on-line. www.JohnAres.com

The last 16 months have been a labor of love assembling the archive behind the scenes (always, from now into infinity), finding a capable e-commerce site, figuring that I want a T-shirt site (least developed), plus the archive and a password protected place for photos of family, friends and fiends.

Along the way, a Photo Tip page popped up for Beginners and Intermediates. Some time after that, a more Advanced Series of peer reviewed White Pages has materialized for pros. This will be the basis for a Workshop being presented at the Meadowlands Convention Center in NJ in 2010.

The latest addition is the John Ares Photographic BLOG. I have the vision of this being a resource for improving your photography. Tell me what you would like to see here. How do you want to improve your photos? So far it is mostly collection of articles I wrote, that have been published in DivePhotoGuide.com (DPG). DPG is perhaps the webs largest resource for Underwater Photographers.

" If you want PICTURES, shoot Film. If you want WORK, shoot Digital."
JA

www.JohnAres.com

Saturday, March 7, 2009

There is no accounting for taste.
JA

MOVIES
FINALLY! After many years of holding back, CLEOPATRA, the early 1960's version with Liz Taylor, Burton and Rex Harrison has been released. This was particularly good timing coming on the heels of reviewing the two seasons of the HBO series ROME.

ROME has better production values and perhaps the same 80% attempt at historical accuracy, but to see 45 years difference in filming the same subject matter is fascinating. Burton and Taylor were an item that cannot be duplicated on or off screen so just see it for that reason alone. Available on Netflix. Neither Rome nor Cleopatra for the kids despite the good history lessons.


MUSIC

Last installment had the lilting Classical / Popera voice of Haley Wistenra, and the Electronic Classical treatments by Tomita, with the Pandora.com internet radio source. This time exposes my truly schizophrenic musical taste. I confess. None of the following are ever likely to be played on an American Radio Station. Maybe except Johnny Mathis. iTunes is the way I found most of them.

Classic Jazz

Jane Monheit has a new one out "The Lovers, The Dreamers and Me." Check out "I'm Glad there is You." While I like Dianna Krall, Jane I think has a better voice. OK shoot me.

Classic 60's Vocal
I admit it, I finally downloaded Johnny Mathis version of Misty. Probably one of the best songs of all time.

Progressive Rock / Alternative / Metal
Listening to the Internet station MORROW.com on iTunes has produced many additions to my collection inexpensively. So much great new music in the genera that the Beatles spawned: Progressive Rock.

MORROW.com is the French Progressive / Metal / Alternative station that will not be to everyone's taste. Narrowcasting in English, I have found the following bands that deserve exploration on iTunes by Progressive Rock devotees:

VOTEM
Start with the Acoustic Guitar & Piano intro that leads into The Hunt is On. Starting off quietly, it will grow to remind you of the best of Symphony X or Queensreich.

SIEGES EVEN
Start with Eyes Wide Open. These guys remind me of Staind.

FROST
Start with the title cut to the Experiments in Mass Appeal collection.

MASTODON
Start with Oblivion. A great, typically despondent, Metal title. More Pure Metal for your inner headbanger that knows Progressive. Put on your late night, highway "Keep me awake" playlist.

M83
Start with "Kim & Jessie" (Actually found in the NY Times music review section, not Morrow. Not the WSJ ether. M83 is truly a mixed genera band of Electronic / Rock / Alternative and Dance. Interesting stuff with a long history given popular music. Being hard to classify, they make for lot of "oh-need to hear that again."