I love technology, but not as much as you, you see, but I still love technology...

...



now and forever...

Last time I was at Farm and Fleet, I recorded (with my cell phone) the baby turkeys that were residing near the cash registers. I really wanted to use their cute voices as a ringtone, but NewPhone said that the .amr file was non-acceptable content.

Why the phone would create audio files in a format that it itself can't use, I do not know.

I really wanted that turkey chick ringtone, though.

So I emailed the .amr file to myself from my phone, downloaded SmartAudioConverterPro to get the .amr into .mp3 file format, only to find that although NewPhone will play .mp3s, this particular .mp3 was still non-acceptable, then downloaded Audacity (with an accompanying .dll file) to convert the unusable .mp3 to another, virtually indistinguishable, usable .mp3 file, which I then reloaded on to my phone using the USB adapter and MicroSD card/SD adapter I got from Singapore via eBay.

Voila, turkey chick ringtone.


And I'm a biology major.


The Internet: Helping Normal People Sound Like Nerds Since 1992.


.

I might let New Phone sleep on the bed tonight.

I got my memory card (sent here from Singapore via eBay--I'm getting trusting here in my years) and a USB transfer widget today, and have spent a good part of my afternoon putting songs on my mp3 phone.

Honestly, it sounds fantastic! So, now I'll be ready to entertain myself while I'm waiting for stuff AND I'll be ready in case some spontaneous dancing breaks out!!!!!!!!!! Me miss dancing opportunity?

See, I would never do that. My dancing genes are a green belt.

Speaking of--we're going to Sundance (now located in Waukegan) tonight at 730 for anyone who wants to come. I'm wearing 1 of 2 spaghetti strap tops I've got, so just keep your eyes open for the girl who's freezing her *ss off. That will be me.

NewPhone is desparately trying to curry my favor...

I've discovered 2 features about NewPhone that I think are really cool (one I can vouch for, one I haven't tried yet).

Cool feature1:
It has a D-Day counter. You put in the event and date, and NewPhone counts down (and displays on-screen, if you like) the number of days "until". 18 days til Halloween!

It's a little weird/creepy that they actually call it a "D" day counter, but...

Cool feature 2:
MusicID. You're listening to the radio or a commercial or a band in the park. You hear a song/piece of music you like, but can't identify it. You can record a snippet of it with your phone and send it to MusicID via your phone, and MusicID will identify it and text you back the name.

That is the coolest thing ever! If it works as well as it seems (and if it doens't cost an arm and a leg), it might be even cooler than the internet itself!!


You might be trying to get on my good side, NewPhone, but one of these features is having the best. week. ever.

I'm going to marry Radio Shack and eBay too.

Radio Shack and I really should have gotten married long ago. I even still have my first tiny AM/FM/tape player that I got for Xmas (it's in my linen closet).

It's not that RS is the first place I stop--it's really expensive--but, if you can't find it at RS, it doesn't exist. If the video-game-playing technowizards they've got working there can't dig it up out of their collection of obscure catalogs (or fish it out of their online morass of electronic widgets), it simply hasn't been invented yet.

(Just don't look directly at them, ladies, they get flustered).

My most recent purchase there was a car cell phone charger that doesn't require one to buy an entirely new charger when one gets a new phone (fortuitously, in my case). You just get a new nubbin adapter. And where else have I seen this cool gadget? Uh, nowhere?

Speaking of the specter of accessory-buying that I may have to do if I wish to use all the features of my red-headed stepchild phone, I will never again buy an electronic accessory from a real store (except, of course, RS if I can't find it anywhere else).

I am an Ebay cell phone accessory convert. The "holster" I bought for OldPhone? $16, because they said that no one else sold one for that phone (at the time. liars, I'm sure). An OldPhone extra home charger at the Cingular store (which I refused to buy)? $29.

A rapid car charger, rapid home charger, and case on eBay? Buy It Now for $2.46


I have learned the error of my ways.

NewPhone is here.

First things first--NewPhone arrived yesterday. It's okay. I'm snubbing it, though.

All right, I suppose it's a perfectly good phone, except for these things:

1) Even while I was picking this phone, I was feeling like I should pick the other phone. Always do what you think you should do.
2) It's an mp3 player, but in order to use it, you have to buy the memory card and usb cable. Not surprising, but sucky.
3) When I send a text message, I get a confirmation tone. I can't turn it off and it annoys me.

Maybe it'll grow on me.

But I doubt it.

NewPhone did, indeed, fall thru the cracks.

As I suspected, something associated with my Monday call to Cingular got lost in the translation. BUT--they're sending NewPhone to me via 1-2 day express shipping for free to ameliorate my inconveeeenience.

I am wheel, hear me squeak.

My new phone (should it ever show up)...

...will be an LG Cu500--> http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=951. I haven't gotten the usual, "yep, we're replacing your phone" email from Cingular, so I'm a little nervous that my call has fallen thru the cracks.

I really wanted the Pantech C300--> http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=886, but it would have been a downgrade from what I'm turning in (--> http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=547), and that just doesn't make good financial sense. NewPhone does have an mp3 player, so that'll be something new and different to fool around with.

I've been really happy with Cingular's customer service (I think between my woes and switching my parents' cell plans, I've called them every day for 2 weeks now). I'd recommend them.

Maybe I can find a Pantech cheap on ebay and just have 2 cell phones.



...like I don't have enough to do without having 2 cell phones...

How do I hate thee, Motorola Razr, let me count the ways...

1) The first one I bought (in 12/2005) kept accessing the internet all by itself, every 1/2 hr, all day and all night. 33 page phone bills. So I complained and they replaced it.

2) The second one sounded like it had sand in the flip and had a huge dark spot on the screen. I complained and they replaced it

3) The third, and current, one accesses the internet all day and all night. In addition to that special feature, it also turns itself off randomly. When I go to turn it back on, it gives me an error message that requires me to disassemble/reassemble the battery and SIM card just to get it to work. This really great when I'm in a hurry or when my nails are painted.

So today I called Cingular to complain again and talked to Ashley about my woes. She said that since I've had so many problems, they will replace my phone with a different kind. She said she'd be right back.

Suddenly a very rude guy comes on the line and starts in on all the troubleshooting crap I went thru in July/August when I first called. I gently interrupted to explain my problem (so as not to waste our time) and he just behaved in a very ass-like manner. Skip, skip, skip, I asked him what standard procedure was in a situation like mine and he said they would send whatever they had in stock.

Uh, so I carefully and happily picked out my Razr in December and now I'm supposed to be satisfied with whatever piece of sh*t phone you feel like sending me? I've generally been happy with Cingular's service, so I was really surprised to encounter this guy.

I asked if I can figure out what I want phone I might like and call them back, which was fine with assboy.

So now I've got to figure that out. Grrrrrrrrr.