I’ve ran a test post using Gmail Offline from my Dell Laptop running Chrome OS Lime earlier, but today is the real test. I am sitting in my car outside of Lowe’s and I am disconnected from any WIFI connection. I am using the Gmail Offline app to type up this email posting and then plan to connect to Lowe’s WIFI and have it post to my WordPress site. I found that although I had installed Gmail Offline on the old laptop (probably writes to the USB stick), and the icon for GO appeared on my new Chromebook, because I hadn’t actually opened GO on the new system, it hadn’t written any files or emails to the local system. I had to establish a connection first, and have GO download a first set of Gmail emails locally before I could use it while offline on the new Chromebook.

Okay, I also just took a picture of myself with the Chromebook camera (while offline) and have attached it to this email. It should appear in the WordPress posting along with this text.

Sent from my iPad

Sent from my iPad

Sent from my iPad

Not sure how I got the link or info that there was a new Chromebook available for only $249, but it was easy enough to find that there were several retailers offering this deal… and ALL were out of stock (just a few days after the original sale started). I looked at the Google Chromebook site and then googled for more info regarding the new item. I finally found a site that had a good review, and then went back to Amazon.com and put in a back order (with additional 2 year service contract) for one of the new Chromebooks… coming to around $325. Wow! The service contract was shipped almost immediately;-)

I then went out and started researching the Chrome OS, and found that there were versions that you could run from a 4 GB USB stick. I had a Dell Latitude D630 laptop and so I tried downloading and using the "Vanilla" version, but the touchpad/mouse did not work. I then downloaded, and installed the "Lime" version on the laptop, and things went much better. It loaded, and the mouse worked, although the "tap" for Enter key didn’t work. I found that the left-mouse button worked for Enter, instead of the right-mouse button. A Javascript mp3 audio player didn’t work properly on a web page. Trying to view a Word document from Blackboard led to the suggestion, by the Chrome browser, that I convert it to a Web friendly version (Google Docs). Trying to view a PDF document, lead to the same suggestion. *I sure hope that the official Chrome OS on the new Chromebook doesn’t try to make me jump through these hoops!

**The Chrome OS Lime worked well on my laptop. It was fast enough, but then what is is really doing but serving web pages.

***I started to think about using the Chrome OS on campus as a way to use old hardware as a cheap way for Internet access, and basic productivity. I added the Citrix Receiver to my system, and it loaded partly, but then when I clicked on the various apps for my institution, there was a Citrix Server error message.

So, I added the "Gmail Offline" app and am using it to compose this posting. As long as you could type notes, even if you are not connected to the Internet, while in class, then this could be a useful Higher Ed setup.

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I see that the Cool Teachers, Barbara Schroeder & Chris Haskell (now Doctor Haskell), are back and have posted their first podcast in about a year. They are now going mostly "audio only" in order to stay on schedule, and the first podcast was about 16 minutes long. *Good to have them back!

Sent from my HTC on the Now Network from Sprint!

I haven’t watched a full episode of “Major Crimes” yet, maybe. At least, I don’t recall watching a whole episode. I started to watch the “Long Shot” episode last night, but put it to DVR before it was half over.

My ears perked up when part of the dialogue led me to realize that like the drug cartels, I was in favor of Marijuana not being legalized, and therefore I was glad the sniper “got the Judge.” Hmmm… sort of like trying to figure out who to cast my ballot for President this year. Damned if you do. Damned if you don’t. “Oh, Shit. It’s Mitt” should be on a bumper sticker. It would express the mixed emotions regarding having to choose a candidate that you really wouldn’t vote for if he wasn’t running against his opponent, whom has made decisions that you like even less.

Can I be against legalizing marijuana and against the drug cartels too? And unless there is another good reason, also against snuffing a Judge?

And then the witness to the sniper’s actions is a young “illegal alien”, who’s father (also illegal in this country) is killed by the sniper… I haven’t finished viewing the episode yet. I figure the kid gets away. Maybe this is modern day justice. There was always a moral twist in the movies and TV episodes when I was growing up. I don’t care if the wife had really good reasons for killing her cheating, wife beating, dog kicking husband, she still had to go to jail and suffer. Or, if she was adulterous, but in every other way like Mother Theresa, she still was killed off in the end as an act of Just Rewards.

So, having not finished watching the episode yet, I can still guess that the son (witness) will manage to escape the sniper’s wrath. The sniper will “buy it.” And, maybe as a modern day act, the son will be allowed to remain in the country even though at least one officer knows he is here illegally. After all, his hard working, former Juarez police officer, father is dead. Hey, if you had stayed in Juarez (sp?) at least this sniper wouldn’t have killed you. You might have eeked out a miserably poor existence. My “old school” mentality still says, the kid should still be deported, even if he has been written in as a hard working, law abiding (well except for crossing the Border illegally… driving without insurance… and that perverted thing he does with dogs) citizen.