So in today's story of trying to move backwards technologically...

I used to have a USB727 stick modem. It was great. Then I bent it.

So I bought a MiFi2200 which was its own little wifi router. It was great. I bought a Cradlepoint MBR900 router that could use its USB tethering capability to tie it into my larger wired and wireless network. That was super great. Then I needed a second one since the SO & I were going to be apart.

So I upgraded it to a MiFi4620 which was 4G and paid to have the USB727 back on prepaid temporarily. They assured me at the store that I could use the MiFi4620 with my router just the same as my 2200. But I couldn't.

I bought a Pepwave Surf OTG mini router because it was supposed to be able to use the MiFi4510's USB tethering like the 2200. Which is probably true. Only I don't have the 4510, I have the 4620.

But it's okay, because the Pepwave also has WiFi as WAN capability, so it should be able to just pick up my MiFi4620's wifi signal and treat it like it was the usb internet connection. Only it couldn't. It kept dropping the signal.

So I let the USB727 prepay expire and added the MiFi2200 back onto the account so I could keep using it. Which was great!

And then we took both of the units with us during separate travel while the SO was touring and I was doing social justice and whatnot and what with one thing and another we came home with the 4620, and not the 2200. So I reactivated the USB727 prepay. Which was fine, except, you know, still bent, and getting less and less reliable as we go.

Its prepay term expired. So I finally admitted we'd lost the 2200 and went into the Verizon store to see if they sold old refurbished 2200s. They don't. But they do sell old refurbished 4510s, which should work! Except they don't actually, only for prepay, which I didn't want to do moving forward.

So I bought the new UML290 which is a USB stick modem just like the USB727 except now they're calling it a "data card." I brought it home. I hooked it up to the Pepwave. And it won't work unless I fiddle with it to force it to be 3G only, which is fine for now, but we're supposed to be getting 4G in like, a year, so not a long term solution.

So I hooked it back up to the Cradlepoint MBR900. And it works fine.

So.

This is the kind of story that if I were on dw, I'd cut tag for you so you didn't have to read it, but I lived it, so here you go.

But seriously, people, creating shinier new products that work LESS WELL than the 3-5 year old products I have to go back to is not a good long term strategy for your system!

And anyway, I had to go back and reset all my static DHCP addresses, but I'm back up and running now, and we've left Mirkwood and are back in Rivendell and I still remembered which Tolkien quote was the PSK, so I suppose all is well.

Now I can start on the day's work that I was supposed to be doing.

I need to be able to have my iPhone name photos something other than IMG_XXXX.jpg, since it's running up against old photos from another camera. I found this app Photo-Sort, but haven't bought it yet. Anyone have any other suggestions?

Jon,

I use dropbox and upload images that way. It uploads to the folder I specify and then I can use automator on the mac or whatever to rename.

Dumb question: when you use Dropbox to store your photos, do they hang around taking up memory on your phone/every device you have Dropbox on?

I use dropbox and upload images that way.

I don't want to have to go through dropbox. I want to be able to connect the iPhone to my PC (FYI: not a Mac), and have the filenames be something other than IMG_XXXX.JPG.

I may try Photo Manager Pro, since it is well reviewed and has some other photo organizing features that I would find handy. Anyone else use this?

t,

No. dropbox only keeps the files that you have designated you want offline access to. You have to star them to have offline access to them.

Jon,

okay, I understand. I do not connect my phone to my computer very often, so the dropbox solution works well for me.

Does anyone use Vuze? I'm trying to trigger some archival downloads using pattern recognition on RSS feeds, and I can't work out if my site's feed is wonky or not--I have the reqex working fine--it's getting the right and only the right entries, but nothing is recording. The first one I tried was RSSFeedScanner and it seemed to be looking for another layer in the feed between filename and torrent name, or something. So I switched to [bad tag ate post]ScaneRss which seems better, lots of finds, but still no recording.

What actually gets the torrents or magnets in and starts downloading???

If you had one request of TiVo, what would it be?

I think mine would probably be "Wanna get manual?" A list of shows that lost the conflict--not like the Menu+2 and scroll up,--simpler. Just tell me that I'm not getting Scandal this week and that episode doesn't come up again in this version of the programme. Or, that Suits is going to be clipped, but 3 hours later, it airs again unclipped, so I can move the recording.

However, I do think being able to say "take later showings within x days of initial airing instead of a clipped showing right away" or "don't skip the only episode of a lower rated show to catch one of multiple airings of a higher rated show. Some sort of "get it eventually (later but not mad later)" setting. I'd implement for a few things, especially when the cable channels get flooded with 3-5 run showings and then slink off into the night.

Yeah that would be great. My current inattentive workaround is to schedule the shows that repeat more lower on the priority list even if it's a lie.

Thanks, le nubian! I got that wrong in my head for no apparent reason and then couldn't correct without buffista sanction.

Eta: I don't have official Tivo anymore, but I do like Liese and make "doesn't have multiple showings" -> higher priority. Why do so many shows I like have to run over by 1 or 2 minutes, anyway?

Because networks are douches and they know you're timeshifting. Even though most DVRs are now clipping, as far as I know, they seem to want to continue to punish the viewer, as opposed to the DVR companies who would theoretically have suffered if shows didn't record.

Now everyone has a problem, because if you're watching live you still miss stuff changing channels.

My current inattentive workaround is to schedule the shows that repeat more lower on the priority list even if it's a lie.

I hate lying to computers.