You know what? I love the latest thing. I love the shiny new technology. I’m constantly trying new browsers like the current zeitgeist ‘RockMelt’ browser, or the Opera Mobile for my Android phone. But those things just aren’t as cool as the three things I need to review:
Sharpie’s Liquid Pencil
The future is here. Like the erasable pens of the 80s and 90s, but better. When I found out these were available I hit the nearby Wal-Mart and grabbed a pair of them. I’ve been writing with it for nearly two weeks and I feel comfortable finally providing a review.
The reason this pencil is so… futuristic is that the ink/liquid lead is erasable… for the first “24″ hours (and that 24 is quite loose.) I suspect it has to do with the humidity here in Florida, but I have yet to find writing that I have written which cannot be completely erased.
My only real complaints with this is that it is a less than perfectly smooth writing experience (prone to clumping or other imperfections) and the erasers are little nibs which are prone to being pulled out of the pencil and struggle with any serious erasing. I have not test the pencil with other erasers yet.
Verdict: Buy but don’t write checks with them.
WorkFlowy.com
A list tool for the list-iest of list makers. Truly a fantastic tool which I have become completely reliant on. It’s like an infinitely expandable and amazingly useful tool. I use it as a brain dump and tracking of various lists. One thing I’ve begun doing is making a small paragraph log for what I do every day. You know, for legal defense and stuff. And so I can look back in a week and know what the hell I did.
The site is really deceptively simple and lacking in pizazz. It does one thing and it does it really really well. I’d write more, but it wouldn’t make a difference – go check it out.
I’ve shared about it to a number of my online friends, it seems to be most strongly attached to people who predominately work on the computer as opposed to other professions which do not leave someone handcuffed to the computer. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t not for you. (I don’t hate over-using negatives.)
Verdict: For the list makers out there, this is crack cocaine mixed with smart drugs
NewsBlur.com
This one popped up on HackerNews a few weeks ago and I stopped using it after just a couple days, falling back on the tried and true Google Reader. But two weeks ago I went back to NewsBlur and really dug into it. And I haven’t looked back since (except when I click the Reader link in Gmail out of habit.)
I have a love-hate relationship with Google. I think they do an excellent job in many things, but I grow frustrated with the stagnation of launched products and I’m nervous about how much of my life is in their hands. Email, search, site statistics, etc. And Google Reader is one that has really grown stale with little to no innovation in the last few years. Newsblur was a breath of fresh air with an innovative interface and a number of great features, and the import directly from Google Reader is an excellent way to draw me in.
Admittedly I ponied up for the $12 “Premium” which turns off the limit on the number of feeds I can track (non-premium has a 40 rss feed max as opposed to the ~160 I currently read.) This site is not really going to be of interest to anyone who doesn’t use RSS for news / blog consumption, you don’t even have to be a junkie like I am – but RSS isn’t for everyone.
The other big strength for the site is that it has intelligence training on what posts you’ll like and dislike. I haven’t taken the time to really hone in and train my preferences yet, I prefer to just rawdog it and power through the data overload. Cuz’ that’s how I roll.
Verdict: RSS users should find this site quite useful and easy to use.
So there you have it, from liquid pencils to a new way to process my news and a tool which keeps massive list / brain dump – three tools I want to share.
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