Technofetishism XIV
Started using several new applications today. First up, tools for the iPod. xPod from BITcom helps you move MP3's off of your iPod and onto your hard drive. It's freeware, and it's been quite useful in terms of getting all of the MP3's Strand set me up with before I had my own PowerBook moved over to iTunes. PodUtil seems to work similarly, although it has the added feature of managing contacts on the iPod, as well. I've only played around with this one a little bit. Lastly, Podtext. This is an application that allows you to upload text files to your iPod -- files that can be read much like contacts. You can't use it for anything too long -- it runs out at 2,000 characters, which is more than many iPod text apps -- but for short text files, it seems to work pretty well.

I've also started using Opera as my default browser today. Blogger Pro doesn't support Opera, so I have to continue using Explorer to update Media Diet, but otherwise, Opera is an excellent alternative. It's faster, smaller, and more flexible than other browsers, and it offers some interesting features -- such as the 20-100% zoom. Again, I'll use Explorer to manage Media Diet, but for all other things? Opera is my browser.