Gavin Campbell Online

New Media Player for the Blackberry

2009-07-13T22:53:00.001-04:00

One thing I like about having 3rd party developers for the blackberry is that they are for the most part more open and responsive to your ideas and issues with their products. I would not even know where to start if I wanted to let RIM know of a bug or to add a new feature into any of their products. And I doubt I would even get any response if I did submit something.

Sometimes the native app’s on the Blackberry are just lacking certain features that you want and that is when I replacement app comes into play.

Recently a new media player application was released called Unsynced. I loaded up the first released version after it was announced we were of to a pretty ruff start. However I did notice many others with the same issues and it was reported to the team already as they were working on it. So I waited patiently.

Then in the last few days an updated version was released to address the major bugs that plagued the original release. So now we have something working nicely.

As you can see from the screen capture above it is a beautiful program. Much better looking than the included media player for sure.

It does most of the stuff the standard media player does and is lacking a number of features that are probably not possible due to restrictions on the BB development platform. I am hoping that the new 5.0 OS will allow them to expand it in ways that they should be able to.

I have contacted the developer with suggestions and they are working on various things. I can’t wait to see what they come up with.

One of my favorite features in this program is that it keeps track of were you last were in a large file. I listen to a lot of podcasts and long single tracks so at times I jump to another track and would love to come back to where I left off. See that little blue line above the pause button on the screen shot above? Well that is where I was last in the track. So I can easily jump back to it. This feature is so small but so helpful to me.

The program still has a lot of room for improvement but it is a newcomer to the BB world so it has a lot of time to improve.

If you would like to give it a shot go ahead and download your copy from the Unsynced website. And please make sure you send back feedback to help them improve.

My Weight Loss Challenge: Weeks 30-41

2009-07-13T22:36:00.001-04:00

It’s amazing how time flies. I just happened to look at the last time I posted an update and it was about 11 weeks ago. Where did the 11 weeks go?

Life sometimes keeps you so busy you don’t realize its going by. I haven’t updated because every time I thought about posting an update it felt like I just did one. But I guess it really is time for an update so lets get this started.

I have since been very good with keeping up with the challenge. Going to the gym a lot and eating pretty well. Not the greatest but again, much better than I was before I started.

I still try to target the 2 lbs a week but I am now realizing that this is getting much harder to do. So I think I need to focus on the food part once again and start to get strict.

Last time I posted that I had hit my 50 lb goal. Well since then I dropped 10 more lbs and hit my 60 lb goal so I am feeling good. I had dropped 9 percent off my body fat percentage as well as dropped 8-10 pant sizes. When I started I was 328lbs and I am now at 268. Still a lot to go but much better than where I was at last year when I started.

Now the weight is starting to get a bit harder to drop. I actually hit a plateau where it was not going down again. I had to review my routine and tweak it again to help.

Due to time constraints I took the elliptical routine out of my regular workout and banked on the cardio I do in the evening boxing class to cover. I do not think that it was covering it so I had to find the time and add back in the elliptical routine. That 33 minutes a day makes a huge difference. Once I added it back my weight started to drop again. I truly advise everyone to add this to your daily routine if you are trying to burn fat. I see a lot of people at the gym trying to lose weight but they are focusing way too much on lifting weights.

I recently went thru my closet and pulled out everything that was too big for me now. I lost a lot of clothes. My closet seems so empty. I did have to take a trip over the border to pick up some new items but it did feel good. I should have kept some of my smaller clothes.

I was asked what my motivation was to keep doing this. I think at this point I have passed the need for motivation. This is now a part of the regular lifestyle and routine. Just people noticing the difference now keeps me going as well. I have come to enjoy the time at the gym and feel bad on the days I do not go.

For those that are looking for a tool to help track their training, I have mentioned before that I use GymTechnik. This is the program that I track all of my stat’s on. It also keeps me accountable for my workouts. When I look at the calendar and see missed days I have no excuses as to why I didn’t shed the pounds. However I like looking at the calendar and seeing many full days. They recently did a lot of upgrades to the system. They took our idea’s and implemented most of them. They new GymTechnik is great and I recommend it to everyone looking for a tracking program.

One of my favorite blogs is by the Muscle Couple and over the last few months they were trying an experiment where they took a “skinny” person and put together an eating/exercise routine to help build up their body. All I can say is that I was simply amazed at the results after just 35 days. You have to see it for yourself. I have linked to the four blog posts about it so you can read them directly for yourself.

The Muscle Couples Build a Better Body Experiment

Build a Better Body Update #1 10 Days In

Build a Better Body Update #2 with Photos

Build a Better Body Update #3 Holy Shazam

Now if the Muscle Couple decide to take somebody “bigger” and help them to lose weight and get cut (ME! ME! ME! I’m hitting another plateau!) I would love to read what they put together. But I am following this one closely as the results so far are amazing.

Hopefully my next update won’t be so far away but my next goal is 10 more lbs. Hopefully it won't take me as long. It would feel even better to say I've dropped 70 lbs. I know I can do it. Well at least I have the right attitude.

Bionic Gloves Men’s Fitness Gloves

2009-07-13T16:02:00.001-04:00

My pair of $10 workout gloves that I got from Wal-Mart were perfect when I started working out and the weights I were using were relatively light. However, as I progressed to heavier weights they were just not doing the job. I started getting calluses and blisters which made my hands ruff and ugly. So off to the local fitness store I went to pick up a pair of new gloves.

I went through the racks and saw everything that ranged from $10 up to $40 and tried them all on. I was actually surprised to seek the Bionic Gloves on the rack. I have been following their golf podcast for a while now where they also talk about their golf gloves but I never got to see any of their gloves in person to check out the quality.

Once I tried them on I was impressed. They fit very nicely as the material they are made of is stretchy. I also really like how and where they are padded. You can really feel how they protect your hands.

I have been using the Bionic Gloves Men’s Fitness Gloves for a number of months now and they are working perfectly. My hands feel and look great and I am lifting the heavier weights.

I recommend spending the extra money on a good pair of gloves if your serious about lifting. While your at it check out their site for other gloves.

Server Move Completed

2009-07-10T20:26:00.002-04:00

I know its been a while since I last updated the blog but life has kept me really busy and we just recently went through a server move.

I looks like the few sites we ran on this server outgrew the bandwidth allocated to us and we had to move. So now we are back up and running on a bigger box. I hope it all went ok.

Look for an update from myself soon once we settle in.

TweetGenius – The Newest Blackberry Twitter App

2009-05-06T10:03:00.001-04:00

I have been looking forward to the release of TweetGenius for a while now as for some reason I knew something big was in the works. I didn't know what it was but I knew it would be big. And to my surprise it was released yesterday. Version 1.0.

Instantly there were reviews posted all over the place and I was able to see what it was. And it looked really NICE. I got my hands on a copy and started playing with it right away.

Fast. Smooth. Beautiful. I like.

Up until now I have been using YATCA as my Twitter client of choice. However I started to get overloaded with its message inbox notifications and was looking for a more independent application to handle Twitter.

I have SocialScope loaded and love its Facebook integration, but with the latest version for some reason my BB Bold has been hanging every now and then. I have recently uninstalled it to see if it truly is the cause of this.

This release is 1.0 and 1.1 is currently in the works. I figure a lot of the other smaller features such as short URL and TwitPic integration will be added at a later date. For a 1.0 release it does include all of the basic Twitter features.

Some of the things I like include:

Very attractive application. This is what a BB app should look like.
Includes all the basic twitter functions right off the bat: friends timeline, direct messages and replies
Shortcut keys for everything you want to do.
Very fast. Shows off what the BB can do.

Some of the things I don’t like include (more than likely will be added in the next version):

No way to upload a picture via TwitPic.
No way to include a short URL
No way to save tweet's.. something I do often as people post URL’s.
The home screen notifications will only show for unread mentions and direct messages. I would love to have an option to allow me to notify for other tweets.

You can see some of the reviews here.

http://blackberrysync.com/2009/05/software-review-so-ingenius-it-must-be-tweetgenius/
http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2009/05/05/tweetgenius-for-blackberry-its-war-on-the-twitter-streets/

You can order your copy of TweetGenius from http://www.thetweetgenius.com/ and also follow the team on twitter at http://twitter.com/tweet_genius.

Good job guys. This is my new Twitter app of choice on my Blackberry.

New Updates to GymTechnik

2009-04-20T21:44:00.001-04:00

One of my most used fitness programs is GymTechnik. I’ve written about them before here and here and they just got even better with their latest set of updates. These updates include fixes as well as enhancements to the current program. If you are currently using GymTechnik to track your gym progress I recommend you do.

One of my favorite things on the site is the frequent article updates. Their library has gotten bigger and I never miss a new article.

Included in these updates are the following.

Latest articles right when you login
Stay up to date with all our latest articles written by our featured authors available to you right when you login to Gym Technik Online
Automatic copy from last time stats
Don’t feel like inputting workout stats into your smartphone? We’ve now added a mobile setting where you can choose to have all the exercises in the workout you start auto-fill with the stats from the last time the exercise was completed. This is great to quickly load up a page, perform the exercise, and simply hit “next” as the stats are already filled in for you. We've even placed a “Clear” button that you can click on to clear out the pre-filled stats if you need to add in completely different stats. If you wish to enable this feature you can easily do so by clicking on the “Settings” button at the bottom of Gym Technik Mobile while logged in on your smartphone
View all the exercises to track on one page
To date, Gym Technik Mobile only displayed exercises in sequence where you had to have one exercise open and click on “next” to get to the next one. We’ve now given you the option to simply load up the entire workout on one screen so all your exercises are loaded up on one page and you can easily scroll through each exercise and input stats. This is great for super-sets and circuit workouts. If you wish to enable this you can easily do so by clicking on the “Change View” button at the bottom of Gym Technik Mobile while logged in on your smartphone
Numerous Bug Fixes and optimization of speed
We have optimized the way images load up to give you a faster experience on the mobile application. And to make it even faster, you can turn images off in your mobile settings.
All three image stills for each exercise
This is great for beginners that need to view the entire motion of an exercise. Now when you view an instruction of an exercise, you will see all 3 image stills of the exercise showing you how to start the exercise and then taking you through the full motion to completion - all on your smartphone!
Maximum value in picklist goes as high as you push
Quite a few of you had notified us that the maximum value of the weight input in the picklist wasn’t high enough at times. We’ve now made the highest value a “More” value so that you can click on “more” to get higher numbers. Alternatively, within your mobile settings you can change the entry input method to "Enter by typing value" to simply enter in whatever value you want
Numeric entry for BlackBerries
Probably our most popular feature request by BlackBerry users! For those of you that have set your mobile data input settings to “Enter by typing in value”, the BlackBerry now will default to the input being numeric so you don’t have to hold the ‘alt’ key anymore
Remember me fixed
Another big one that a lot of you reported to us – The “Remember Me” function on the Gym Technik Mobile login page now works. Sorry about this one...

My Weight Loss Challenge: Weeks 25-29

2009-04-20T21:38:00.001-04:00

I know its been a while since I last posted any updates but I have a few updates to give you. I have not given up on my goal. I am still going strong and have been keeping it up every day.

I have a made a few modifications to my workout routine since. I have added and removed a few exercises as well switching up the order. Every few months I recommend doing this to help avoid getting bored with your current routine. Also due to time constraints I have removed my cardio routine from my lunch time session and doubled my evening cardio session. Just a slight modification but I still get the same workout.

Basketball on Friday’s is still going strong and is a good way to burn calories running up and down a court.

I have started boxing class in the evenings. This is an intense cardio class that involves many different things such as running stairs, sit up’s, push up’s and much more. By the end of each class you are really drenched in sweat. At first the class was hard… but after about 3 weeks its getting much more easier and enjoyable. For fun I took my Polar F6 watch with me to see how many calories I burned and it came up just short of 1000 kcal’s in one session. For the last few weeks I’ve been burning more than 6000 calories a week. But I have since cut back to 4000.

Just for the record I have passed the 50lbs lost mark and still counting. It feels great. Clothes fit so much better and I just feel much better in general. Its become very obvious.

My Weight Loss Challenge: Week 24

2009-03-18T19:32:00.001-04:00

Last week was another great week. I was able to drop yet another 5lbs. I don’t know how I did it but it happened.

This week I hope to hit the 50lb mark and I’m aiming for that.

I will be doing strictly cardio this week to burn it off and will be switching up my routine next week to throw in a few new exercises and retire a few old ones. I’m always up for some suggestions as to what to do. Hit me up on the email if you have any. I currently run a 4 day cycle with weights. Arms, Chest, Legs and then Back/Shoulders. I plan on mixing it up a bit and modifying.

Not much more to say other than I’m keeping it up still. 5 months and still going strong. People are noticing.

Yet Another Twitter Client Application for Blackberry

2009-03-18T19:27:00.001-04:00

A new Twitter application for the Blackberry was recently released. It is conveniently called Yet Another Twitter Client Application or Yatca for short.

I previously had Twitterberry on my phone but was not impressed with the fact that I had to go into another application other than my message box to receive the updates.

Then I heard of this one. Once I saw what it was about I instantly knew that this was the Twitter application that I wanted on my phone.

All your tweets are loaded directly into your main message box. From there you can retweet and reply directly. Just like email.

It just works. Its simple. And I like it.

They recently added Twitpic integration to it and I am sure they will be adding a lot of new features to it soon. It is only available for Blackberry OS 4.6+ and this is because they only allow message box integration in that OS. I don’t expect to see it on older Blackberry’s and I guess that is its main downfall.

Give it a try. I’m sure you will like it. I can’t wait to see what they have planned for the future.

My Weight Loss Challenge: Weeks 22-23

2009-03-10T15:56:00.001-04:00

Major progress last week. Finally got over a little hump and dropped 5 lbs. It felt good as I was fighting to get it done. I didn’t weigh myself all week so was surprised on Monday when I did the weigh in.

How I did it I’m not sure. I think it was a combination of the basketball on Fridays (that gets intense) and pushing it even hard on the elliptical machine. I’ve had to work even hard to get my heart rate up. The resistance is already really high and I don’t want my legs to hurt before my heart rate goes up.

It feels good as I am about to retire the gym shorts I have been using since I started. They are really loose and keep sliding down. Nice to say that huh?

Also noticed my skin is looking a lot better. Not sure if this is because I have been eating better but its gotten a lot clearer than before. Hard to explain.

I’m now coming up on my 50lb mark and can’t wait to break that.

Those Damn Random Computer Issues

2009-03-04T23:54:00.001-05:00

Don’t you just hate it when one day out of the blue your computer starts doing something it didn’t do before that is now causing you a great headache. You can spend hours and hours working on it and never figure it out.

Recently my main computer in my house (which I use mainly as a server for sharing media and running other services) decided to start crashing for no reason. Its a computer that is let on all the time and is barely actually used.

The crash was very weird though. It didn’t give a blue screen or anything. It just hung and the hard drive kept going. I couldn’t figure out what the heck it was.

At the time I had Vista loaded and I have been meaning to downgrade back to XP (I won’t even get into that) so I figured doing this should solve the problem.

One day after the downgrade it did the same exact thing. Go figures, it must be a hardware issue. All I did recently was add memory.

Let me reseat that memory. Still no luck.

So I checked the event viewer on the machine and found some errors. There was a major error that went something like “The driver detected a controller error on \Device\Harddisk0\D”. A quick look on google and many articles basically pointed me to the SATA cables or connections.

I basically removed the cables and reseated them all. I also changed around the ports just as a test.

It looks like it is working now. Hopefully it stays that way. But its just one of those problems that piss me off!

My Weight Loss Challenge: Week 21

2009-02-24T22:56:00.001-05:00

Every now and then my weight seems to drop quickly to a record low… and then it goes back up for some reason. Then I spend the week working it back down and it stabilizes at that new weight and repeats the cycle.

That happened last week. However I don’t mind it. I probably weight myself way to often so I notice things like this. I really should keep it to probably once a week but I find it keeps me motivated and makes me work harder on the days it jumps up so I don’t really mind. Right now I’m back at that record low for me and it has stabilized for now. Time for it to drop again. I’m feeling good.

I don’t know what it is about going to the gym but I always feel really good afterwards. No matter what I do the thought of burning off the calories makes you kind of tingly inside. And I’m not sore at all so it doesn’t feel like a total waste of time. Actually its not really. But you know what I mean.

I started playing basketball again for the first time in how many years. It was ruff but I did way better than expected and its a new Friday ritual. I don’t even think I can duplicate the workout I get from that in the gym. However I did jam my finger and that is going to affect me this week with the weights. But I really don’t mind. It was fun.

I was looking at that P90X program last week. I hear so much about it. It seems to be the latest craze so why not see what it is all about. The first thing I did was watch the intro video about the entire program. Pretty nice. Its not just an exercise video but an entire program that includes eating as well. A full package that will run you about $120 CDN. Its about 12+ DVD’s of exercises. Quite overwhelming.

However while watching the video they started pushing other things they sell onto you for purchase. Claiming that you would need them to get the max out of the program. Everything from vitamin supplements to the mat you use during yoga. It looks like it would all add on another few hundred dollars.

In the end I felt like this program really is for skinny people that are looking to tone up. I’m not saying it won’t help the bigger set like myself but it is probably a lot of overkill for us.

I’m just going to stick to my Biggest Loser workout DVD’s for now.

I’ve run across a number of blogs this week though about other people that are documenting their weight loss as well. It was very motivational to read. Seeing the challenges they face as well. A number of them had way too few posts though. 1 starting up, 1 half way through, and a final post when they were complete. They weren’t detailed enough. But still motivational enough to make me want to work harder. I would love to hear any recommendations of normal people going through the same thing. Drop me an email.

Kickin Ass in Street Fighter IV

2009-02-19T19:51:00.001-05:00

As you can probably tell from my Twitter I have gotten a copy of the new Street Fighter IV game that was released to day.

I decided to take a trip to the local best buy this morning and pick it up before it was all sold out. Luckily they had two copies of the Special Edition left which I was able to grab with my saved up gift certificates. While I was there I also picked up a 2nd controller.

I have been playing this game now for a few hours and I LOVE IT!!!!! It takes me back to my youth. The characters are all pretty much the same with some slight modifications. But if you remember all the moves from SF2 they are pretty much the same. After a little bit of practice I was right into the game with my usual moves. I missed Blanka.

These days I can’t handle the games that use 50 buttons and the combo’s are near impossible to pull off. I like the somewhat simplicity of SFIV. The graphics are much improved and look really good on my 56”.

The next thing I am looking to get is the official Street Fighter IV Arcade FightStick (Tournament Edition).

I got wind of this over at the UGO Blog and I am currently looking all over for it. Unfortunately I don’t think its really out yet. Well at least in Canada I don’t see it anywhere. Up here we never get the cool stuff. I don’t even want to get into that.

This controller will complete me!!! Well my game at least.

I Am Now on Twitter

2009-02-19T00:01:00.002-05:00

I have seen a few articles in the papers recently talking about twitter and I must admit that it was a technology that I skipped. So I decided to check it out.

I was reading one of my favorite basketball stars tweets (that is what they call twitter posts) and if Chris Bosh is on twitter then I got to get on it.

I have also linked my tweets into this blog so on the right hand side you will see my tweets. The cool thing is that it is also linked into my Facebook page so it automatically changes my status on there as well.

You can follow me on twitter at www.twitter.com/gavin_campbell so add me.

I have also installed TwitterBerry on my Blackberry Bold so I can tweet from anywhere. How cool is that!

My Weight Loss Challenge: Week 19-20

2009-02-17T10:31:00.001-05:00

Once again the last few weeks have been ruff. Many excuses to not go to the gym have come up and affected my regular routine. Busy day’s at work, things to get done at home. And various other things. This also includes my eating habits. I’ve slacked off just a bit.

The good news is that I have been able to at least get out to the gym 4 days of the week and last week I kick started everything to get myself back on track.

As of yesterday I’ve lost 40lbs since I started. My body fat percentage has also dropped 6 points since I started. That is a huge milestone for me and I got over a hump that I was fighting for a few weeks. I don’t plan to stop here.

I have also started doing an aerobics routine in the mornings or during the days I can’t get to the gym when I want. I picked up a copy of “The Biggest Loser Cardio Max” and have jumped right into it.

The routine is actually pretty good. It is broken down in sections, 5 minutes warm up, 20 minutes level 1, 10 minutes level 2, 10 minutes level 3 and 5 minutes of cool down. You can mix and match the levels how you want but for now I’m just doing level 1 with the warm up and cool down. In total the routine takes about 30 minutes.

I do put up a good sweat and with my Polar watch I can see that I end up burning up about 400 calories. Which is equivalent to my half an hour on the elliptical. I recommend this videos for others looking for one.

I am currently on the hung for a good workout bench for my home gym. However it has been pretty hard to find something with the requirements that I want and the price I am looking to pay. I basically want a bench that can incline and decline as well has hold a 300lbs barbell and has the leg extensions option that can hold up to 150. (If that exists). So far everything I’ve seen is either too expensive or can’t do it. But the hunt is on. This equipment is mainly so I can do some of my routines at home when I can’t make it into the gym. Its not to replace my gym all together.

This morning I got a reply back from the GymTechnik team. They liked my suggestions and will look to add them in a future release. I look forward to that as well. Make sure you read my previous review and give it a shot.

New Version of Firefox Released (3.0.6)

2009-02-04T13:27:00.001-05:00

Every now and then I like to remind people to patch their system. It should be a monthly routine you go through. Not only are the Microsoft patches important but other software that you have on your system are just as important.

Firefox released a new version today that includes a number of security fixes. So if this is your browser of choice then update it.

Other applications to check as well include Adobe, Microsoft Office and even things such as MSN Messenger.

There are some nasty things floating around out there on the internet. Don’t get caught with one.

My Weight Loss Challenge: Week 17-18

2009-02-03T14:48:00.001-05:00

Well its been a ruff few weeks. I went away for the first week to the Turks and Caicos. With all the beach sand and sun it was very hard to stick to any sort of diet or work out routine. Ya, that is my excuse and I’m sticking with it. So after that week I ended up putting on a few pounds that I don’t mind at all.

The following week I got right back into the routine. It was very interesting as by Thursday I was back on track and by Sunday I and gotten rid of the extra pounds and more. So I was pretty happy.

Keeping up with the routine is pretty hard. But the best thing is when you start to see the results. Even when you start to fit into some older clothes a bit better. It feels OH so nice. :)

So right now I am on track towards my goals as usual.

I’m going to keep this post short as work is a little busy right now. But next week will be interesting as I have another get away this weekend. So I will have to work hard to keep on track during those few days.

New Version of Bolt Browser Released for the Blackberry (0.83)

2009-02-03T14:30:00.001-05:00

I wrote a post about the new Bolt Browser before and I was impressed. Although it was good I didn’t think at that point it was good enough to replace my other Blackberry browsers.

I was excited when I read on Crackberry that a new version was released and instantly went and downloaded it.

So far I am really really impressed and now think I am able to use this as my main browser.

The first thing I did was go to my usual sites and check out the formatting. They all looked good from what I could tell. I even logged into Blogger to see if I could publish a post and it worked perfectly. I think I had issues with this before.

I did see some things it had problems with but I also think I was pushing it a bit too hard with this browser. They were graphic intensive sites that I don’t plan to use on this anyways.

Even little things impress me. There are a number of Blackberry specific enhancements included. My favorite is the adding of the . with the spacebar like how the OEM browser works. Here are a few more that were listed on Crackberry. I am not sure where the list came from as I can’t find it anywhere but I will take their word for it.

1. APN configuration automated for BlackBerry devices. BOLT now auto-detects network details. This will eliminate the "internet not available" error messages, and manual APN configuration requirements, some BlackBerry users were experiencing.
2. BlackBerry dedicated back key support. Also supported on some SE devices.
3. BlackBerry scrolling enhancements. Scrolling on track ball BlackBerry devices is now faster and smoother.
4. BlackBerry-specific enhancements to match BlackBerry system short cuts such as "." when space is pressed in URL mode.
5. System fonts will be utilized instead of Bitstream fonts for lists and options, resulting in increased usability.
6. Improved server support, resulting in a more stable browsing experience.
7. Automatic reconnect after client/server disconnect
8. Usability enhancements for URL, Favorites and History entry and management.
9. Instant switching between landscape and portrait modes (this formerly required a server round trip). This should also enhance user experience on accelerometer powered devices such as the BlackBerry Storm.
10. Auto-Update. When a new release is available, BOLT will prompt users to download and install the new release directly from BOLT.
11. Blackberry Specific Scrolling/navigation enhancements including space to page down one screen and space+shift to page up one screen, 't' to jump to top of page, 'b' to jump to bottom.
12. Double tap/double click as a shortcut to toggle between zoom out split screen mode, and full screen mode.

Anyways you can visit the previous post to get info on getting in on this beta if you are interested. I highly recommend it to those that like browsing on the Blackberry.

A Whole Bunch of Links

2009-01-30T14:06:00.001-05:00

I came across this post on LifeHacker which is full of reading material all related to fitness and weight training. You can spend days or weeks reading all this stuff but its a very good list of links to go through. There are 5 pages so make sure you click on the next page at the bottom.

[ LifeHacker Fitness ]

How to Get the Best Sound from Your In-Ear Headphones

2009-01-30T10:32:00.001-05:00

I read this article the other day and I must admit, I use to be the type of person that just tried to jam them into my ear and they never stayed. Now, something as simple as the ear pull technique makes such a huge difference. Very simple but very effective. They even hold in better when at the gym now.

[ How to get the best sound from in-ear headphones ]

Gym Technik Updated

2009-01-28T23:52:00.001-05:00

I blogged about the Gym Technik service that I use to track my workouts sessions at the gym before. They have recently released an update to the system that adds new features and some new look.

I have not yet had the chance to go through them all but from what I see on my device it is looking much better. The mobile screens are formatted properly on my Bold and a lot of the information I like to look at is easily available on the web. I’m starting to love them already.

I still have a few suggestions of my own that I want to submit. I love it when a company listens to its users.

Here are some of the features taken directly from their press release.

• New home page when you login
Instantly view informative summaries about both your workouts and body stats as soon as you login on your home page. You will also see a much more intuitive navigation to other portions of the site

• Articles at your fingertips
Informative articles, both featured and latest, displayed to you on your home page as we update them. Now you’re always in the loop on the latest informative articles from Gym Technik

• Workout and Routine Library
This is probably our most exciting new feature. We’ve built out a workout library section where you can find pre-built workouts and routines each within its own category. So if you’re looking for a new routine or just need some guidance in building out your workouts, browse all the categories within our workout library and in one click add any of our 60 published routines to your own workout library and begin to track on your calendar and your smartphone.

• The library
As an extension to our workout and routine library, we’ve built out a content driven library where you can browse through for fitness tips, nutritional advice, lifestyle articles, and smartphone tips. So if you’re looking for that extra bit of motivation or want to learn a few tricks on the latest integrations with your smartphone – The Gym Technik library will have what you need in here.

• More exercises and more images
Gym Technik has extended it’s already extensive exercise list with new exercises requested by many of you. We’ve also added videos and images for almost all of our exercises so you can now get the guidance you need for any new exercises you add to your routine.

• Edit or delete your custom exercises
This was probably the most requested feature so this is sure to excite many of you. Now you can edit or delete any of your custom exercises that you’ve already created

• Upload photos
Now with Gym Technik, you can track both your workout stats AND the progress of your body through photos. Upload photos of yourself using your smartphone or directly from the web site and tag each photo to a body part to visually watch yourself get closer to your goals.

• Enhanced user interface for smarthones
We have taken a lot of your suggestions and improved the user interface of the smartphone application. Improvements will be seen across all smartphone handsets.

• Faster experience on mobile
We have optimized the way images load up to give you a faster experience on the mobile application. And to make it even faster, you can turn images off in your mobile settings.

• International launch
We are proud to announce that Gym Technik is now multi-lingual, with our first language launched in German at www.gymtechnik.de

• Browser compatibility
With the launch of all these new features and the enhanced user interface, Gym Technik no longer supports Internet Explorer 6.0. So if you’re using IE 6, you will have to upgrade to version 7.0 or use Firefox, Chrome, or Safari to enjoy all of our new features.

I look forward to more from them in the future. Give it a shot if your not already using this service.

Street Fighter : The Legend of Chun-Li Trailer

2009-01-16T14:10:00.001-05:00

The other day we broke out the old super nintendo and started playing Street Fighter 2 until the late hours of the morning. I don’t remember having that much fun with video games since I was younger. But since that day we have been playing various versions of the game and beating up on each other.

Well to my surprise I just saw this movie trailer. Adding to the little Street Fighter streak we are on. This looks pretty good.

New Browser for the Blackberry Bold

2009-01-16T12:36:00.001-05:00

Yesterday a new browser for the Blackberry Bold (as well as other phones) was released and I was lucky enough to get in on the beta. This morning I have had a chance to install it on my Blackberry Bold and play around with it a bit.

The new browser is called the Bolt Browser. Here is an excerpt taken directly from their FAQ.

“What is BOLT?

BOLT is a free mobile browser that offers an uncompromised browsing experience on even entry-level mobile phones. It is compatible with virtually any handset with Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP) 2.0 support.

In non-geek speak, this means “it works on lots of phones, even basic ones.” Rather than offering a simplified, mini version of the Internet, BOLT provides users with an efficient, feature-rich, way to enjoy full PC-style Web pages and rich media applications on all levels of mobile devices.“

Here are some of my initial impressions:

Very fast compared to both Opera Mini and the BB Browser. It loaded up in no time and pages load a lot faster.
The rendering of the pages is very good and clear. Most sites look exactly like they do on the desktop. There are a few glitches such as text formatting (bold, size etc)
It still has a bit of work to do. There are reported problems with input forms and various other things. But these I’m sure will be ironed out in the long run.
I like it a lot better than opera mini and the blackberry browser. I don’t think it is ready yet to replace them but its doing a good job.
Has a built in RSS feed reader. I don’t know why everyone keeps putting this in. I’d rather have a separate program for this (Newsgator) but some people like this. I wouldn’t mind if it were able to detect the feeds and then allow me to launch them in another program. But I don’t need to reed them directly in the browser.
I wish I had the ability to set it as my default browser but I don’t think that is even possible at all. From what I’ve heard its not an option.

My overall opinion: I look forward to seeing this go much further. It has a lot of potential to replace any browser on the mobile front. And with all the hype that has been generated with its release yesterday I hope it does not slow down. I have been impressed so far with the Beta version.

There are many other in depth reviews out there already from others that have put it through its paces but this is less of a review and more of a opinion.

Here are a few links to other reviews that will give you more details.

http://crackberry.com/preview-bolt-browser-blackberry-beta-get-your-copy

http://www.blackberrycool.com/2009/01/new-bolt-blackberry-browser-private-beta-we-have-invites/#comments

My Weight Loss Challenge: Week 16

2009-01-15T16:38:00.000-05:00

Weight loss is a funny thing. I like to check every day at the same time in the same gym outfit right after my routine. This way I keep as much as I can consistent. If you weigh yourself in the morning you usually weigh less then the evening. However last week I had a huge fluctuation. From Monday to Tuesday I jumped up 5lbs (which was pretty depressing). However by Thursday I was down 8. Very strange but I won't complain. As long as I am back on track.

Next week is going to be ruff. I will be traveling down south to the Turks and Caicos and its going to be very hard to keep this up. Hopefully the combination of laying on the beach in the sun (I know you are jealous) sweating away and jumping in the ocean for a swim will help me continue to lose or maintain my current weight so I can pick up where I left off. Its not an all inclusive stay so I won't be going crazy during the meals which is a good thing. Lets see how this goes.

One thing I look forward to when I come back is playing some basketball again. That is going to be a good workout. I just hope I remember how to put that round thing in the circular thing.

As of today I'm 4lbs away from my January goals. Got to keep trucking along.

Patience in Poker

2009-01-10T21:55:00.001-05:00

I still consider myself a student of the game. Actually I think everyone still is a student of the game. Its a game that you are always learning from.

However one of the most important things I am working on right now in my game is PATIENCE!

In short, I'm working on picking my battles. Not having to play every hand.

You always get those hands like 10-5 that you fold on the button before the flop and then the flop will come 10, 10, 5. You kick yourself for folding but in the end it was the proper decision. Some people will take this as a sign and start playing those hands more often which is the bad thing to do.

Wait it out. Get the premium hands and play them. You will be more successful that way. Its all about patience.

There are certain exceptions to the rule. But only a few.

Here are a couple of things you can do while waiting on your playable hands.

Observe. Watch the game and the situations that occur. Watch what the players do while they are in those situations. You may end up in a similar situation later on and have a tell on the player when you need to make a big decision.
Watch TV. If there is a TV in your area you can watch it to kill some time.
Listen to music. A lot of people bring music devices to the table to help them kill time.
Engage in conversation with other players or the dealer. This can kill a lot of time. However try not to be too much of a disturbance to the players currently in the hand.

Good luck working on your on patience.