The Chronicles
September 2011
Salutations dear readers and fellow Laurentian neighbors,
Welcome back from vacation y’all … hope you enjoyed yourselves! In the next couple of months I’d like to talk about a very hot topic: Intelligent Phones. And it all starts with a story …
A long, long time ago when I was but a wee lass of 21 (that’s 21 years ago) I purchased my very first electronic agenda. Well, it wasn't an agenda per se but an electronic address book. Though it had a memory of only 64ko, it was way sufficient to store ALL of the contacts I’d made on each continent I’d travelled through. How I loved it! (I still have it today. It's all banged up and doesn't work anymore but it’s a keepsake I’ll treasure forever.) Then, in 1998, I bought my first real electronic agenda: the Palm Pilot. WOW!!! Not only did I transfer all my contacts to it from “Old Faithfull”, but I was now able to organize my life with an electronic Calendar. Working in the Sales Industry, this tool became indispensable to my success. I was hooked! For years it “dinged” me for everything: to wake up, make a call, go to a meeting, brush my teeth (hihihi) … and because all of this info was backed up on my computer, I never worried about losing ANYTHING. Then one day what was to happen eventually did – the screen and battery both died. Old age I guess. After a short mourning period, I came to realize that it couldn’t have happened at a better time. The iPhone was here and was I in for a treat!
An Intelligent Phone … what an intelligent idea! The iPhone ... a manmade marvel! I was in seventh heaven when I got it: I no longer had to carry two apparatus (Palm and Cell Phone), and it was ergonomically amazing and VERY easy to understand and use. This was at the beginning of 2008. Mon Ami l’Ordi had already been in business for two years. Not only was I able to synchronize all of my contacts and calendar events from the Palm back-up on my computer, but I also had access to thousands of applications which would make my life more pleasurable. For example: a constant access to all my e-mail boxes and the Internet (no more having to get back to people “after hours”), the possibility of tracking all my incoming/outgoing $, a calculator, currency converter, translator, journal, GPS, Music, Photos, flashlight … and the list goes on and on …
Now, I understand that most of you out there reading this are retired and wondering what on earth you would do with an Intelligent Phone. Many of my clients would LIKE one but are unsure if they NEED one. My answer to them is: “Even if you only use 10% of its capacity but use that 10% well, you’ll be happy with your device”. Therefore, over the next couple of months, we’re going to look at the most popular Operating Systems: iPhone, Android and BlackBerry. This will help you when purchasing your machine from either Bell, Rogers, Videotron or others, and which supplier you choose is only important for telephone signal reach and strength. So, even though you may not need an Intelligent Phone, I think you would REALLY have a BLAST with one. After all, in most cases, it's not much more expensive than the traditional cellular phone plan.
Take good care of yourselves,
questions.monamilordi@gmail.com
This article originally appeared in Main Street – The Laurentians' English Language Community Newspaper.
