First of all, you must be wondering why there’s an “a” at the end of the version number. I need to confess, I did a slip-up in the original release of FunkeeStory 1.0.7, and that earlier release contained a bug that may cause redundant messages to appear in your Mac. Fortunately, I did manage to detect and fix it quickly, so less than 15 people worldwide have downloaded the release containing that bug. If you’re amongst one of those affected, I sincerely apologise to you - please contact me if you’re facing any problems at all because of that release and i’ll do my best to help.
That aside, FunkeeStory 1.0.7a has a number of changes from 1.0.6
- Much improved Address Book contact photo matching.
- Stability improvements in the conduit.
- Better handling of phone numbers with formatting characters like “-”.
- Redundant phone numbers in contact details are now merged.
I highly recommend upgrading to this release if you’re on an earlier version. As always, this update is free for all users.
With this release out, I will be continuing work on FunkeeStory 1.1 - which would be sold at its original price of $24.95. If you’ve always been interested in FunkeeStory, this is your last chance to buy FunkeeStory at its promotional price, so hurry!
I’d also like to thank all those that have supported the development of FunkeeStory by purchasing a license. Thank you. Without your support, I would not have managed to even survive these past 4 months, developing these new releases. Its with your support that I do not need to go out and look for a job somewhere writing code for The Man, instead, I work for you - my faithful users.
I have suffered from the symptoms of RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) in my right wrist for the few past months, probably due to spending too much time on solitary night-time activities. By which I mean, using a computer mouse for work.
After the mouse i’ve been using broke down yesterday, i’ve decided to give up my mousing ways once and for all in a bid to save my wrists (and my livelihood). 16 years of using a mouse, what could ever replace it?
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you - The Red-Eye Monster. There are many others like it, but this one is mine.
The Red-Eye Monster
It is otherwise known as the Logitech Trackman Wheel. Its a trackball, and is available in both corded and cordless versions.
After 16 years of using a mouse, like anyone who’s ever used a mouse, i’ve had doubts about switching to a trackball. Will I even be able to get used to it? Will it even improve the situation with my wrist? There’s only one way to find out for sure, so I plunked down some dollars for a shiny new one.
The Red-Eyed One A.K.A. Logitech Trackman Wheel works out of the box with Mac OS X 10.4, no driver installation required, just plug and play. I expected to take at least a month before I got used to twiddling a ball under my thumb, but its been amazing how quickly the adaption to using a trackball has been.
Just after using it for two days, drag and drops, mutliple selections, even cropping pictures in Lightroom and Photoshop are all really easy now with no significant loss in pointing accuracy. I did notice a big loss in speed (even with the tracking speed turned on full) and a slight loss in precision though, and this is probably due to The Monster With The Red Eye tracking at a lower DPI compared to my Razer Viper. Logitech - please come up with a “high-DPI” trackball for us switching from high-end gaming mice.
But the most important question is: Did using a trackball instead of a mouse actually help with alleviating the symptoms of RSI?
Me, fondling the monster.
Today, i’ve been using the trackball for 9 hours so far with a wrist support (to keep my wrists straight), and i’ve not had any pain at all. Previously, if I used my mouse for more than 4 hours, I am guaranteed some pain in the wrist to keep me awake. The rolling action was quite rough the first day I got it too, but it got alot smoother today - maybe due to lubrication from finger grease?
When I first made the switch yesterday, using the trackball for 7 hours *without* the wrist support, my wrist hurt just like before. So if you notice that your wrist is bent upwards when using a mouse or trackball, I highly recommend getting a wrist support. The one i’m using is made by a company called Fellowes, and it has a really nice squishy feel, so you can even squish it with your thumbs for stress relief. Good squishy fun.
It took me 15 years of using a computer mouse before I experienced any symptoms from RSI, but you don’t have to wait for that to happen. Or perhaps you want to be like me - enjoying the wonderful sensation of fondling a smooth red ball under your thumb? Act now and switch to a trackball today!
For those of you that have been waiting to see that “Coming Soon…” sign go away all these months, thank you very much for your patience. Here it is - The FunkeeBlog!
This blog is crafted by me, Joe Goh. I’m the sole developer behind FunkeeMonk Technology, and its first product FunkeeStory.
This blog will have my views on technology, computer programming, food, business, news about FunkeeStory development and a whole load of other things. So stay tuned folks, things are going to get interesting…
I’m going to follow Bob Johansen’s advice and have Strong Opinions, Weakly Held when writing posts for this blog.
I will be discussing some pretty controversial topics in the near future, and my stated opinion about those topics are going to be strong. However, i’ll be trying hard to not be too attached to my beliefs. It is my goal to be able to learn something new everytime I write a new post - and its your comments that will make this possible.
Enjoy reading The FunkeeBlog!
