So PayPal does it again. There's been a lot of news lately about PayPal and their horrible practices that have really put a cramp in people and organizations trying to do good. Our situation is not as severe as some of that stuff but this is really sad nonetheless.

My church (Iglesia Apostolica Cristiana de Bethsaida) has seriously outgrown its facilities and over a year ago we took to the web and the kindness of other like minded individuals to would help us raise the funds necessary to purchase a bigger facility so as to continue helping our community. We created a website to help spread the message and collect donations through PayPal.

The site is still going strong, the donations have not been pouring in per se, but we do get donations on a regular basis. The biggest problem with collecting $1 through  PayPal is that they keep $0.33 of each dollar, even with a non-profit account. But we aren't complaining about that.

Today I check the email account associated with the account, which I rarely do, and noticed there was a dispute on one of the $1 donations. The person said they did not authorize the donation so after going through the dispute process PayPal gave her the money back. Had she contacted us directly I would have been more than happy to refund her dollar, but nope, she disputes it.

Because she disputed it and won, not only did PayPal refund her dollar but they also saw fit to tack on a charge back fee of $20. So because of 1, ONE, dollar we are out TWENTY! That is equal to almost 30 donations lost! Thanks PayPal you are the best online payment processor. </sarcasm>

I'd like to offer up some advice for those of you working at temp jobs. Take it for what it's worth. I worked my fair share of temp jobs over the years before finding my true calling in Web and Graphic Design.

I am now in a position at work where I see the employer's point of view on the whole temp job position. Most times these jobs are just that, temporary, but many have hope that these jobs will become full time good paying jobs and 90% of the time this is just not true. Most times companies are trying to fill a large order and only need help for a week, month, 6 months or whatever it may be.

So my advice is to just shut up and work. Work hard. Go above and beyond the call of duty. You want to get hired? Show that you're an invaluable asset and not just a temp employee. Stop complaining about the work and the hours and the fact that you won't be hired full time. NOBODY promised you a full time job people, why are you expecting one?

I know times are hard and getting a job is really hard. I know, I was unemployed for 2 years but cussing and complaining and moping around is DEFINITELY NOT the way to get hired. Do your job, do it right and be glad you have a job when so many do not. A positive attitude and good work will go a long way to impress a potential employer. 

It may take a while and several stops at different temp jobs but someone will notice and someone will see you as the missing piece to their workforce puzzle.

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When Amazon announced the Kindle Fire a few months back I was one of the many who read in amazement all that this 7" tablet was capable of. Even though I own an iPad 2 I thought to myself, finally a tablet that can compete with the iPad in terms of functionality and wares, not an iPad killer but a competent alternative in a smaller frame.

There is no denying Amazon has got a great ecosystem going with the Books, Magazines, Music and video and that is something Android apps really lacked. Most tablets like the Samsung Galaxy and Motorola Zoom have a great OS and tech specs but lacked the Video, Book and Music integration. This is what really intrigued me about the Kindle Fire, well, that and the cheap price and small, lightweight form factor. So, like thousands of others, I pre-ordered it. I received it on Monday, November 28th and RETURNED it Wednesday, November 30th. Here's why.

Reason #1 - Weight and Bulkyness

Amazon touts that the tablet is small, lightweight and easy to hold in one hand at 14.6 Oz. and 7.5" x 4.7" x 0.45". I would beg to differ. As soon as I opened the box and grabbed the tablet it felt bulky and heavy, very heavy for something so small. I could not believe how heavy it felt. I weighed it and it actually came in at 14.2 Oz, less than advertized, and yet it felt heavier. I held it in my hands and used it for 20 minutes and my thumb started to hurt from holding it down, I had to switch hands a few times and put it down other times just to give my hand a rest. Easy to hold in one hand? I don't think so.

Reason # 2 - Touch Screen Responsiveness

If there is one thing I love about my iPad is that it just works. It's been said many times over and I'll say it again. The iPad is so easy to use and responsive my 3 y/o kid knows how to use and has no problems with it. One of the reasons is the touch screen, so smooth, so responsive. If you tap something it opens, if you swipe the screen it responds immediately. No such luck with the Kindle Fire. I found myself getting frustrated on numerous occasions trying in vain to open an application having to tap the icon several times. The beautiful looking carousel effect it uses to display recent apps is also flawed. Many a times it would scroll to fast or too slow and sometimes jump over the app I would be trying to select, very annoying.

Reason #3 - No Dedicated Volume Toggles

This reason on the surface sounds benign, I mean most touch screen devices have volume controls on the screen right? Wrong! One of my favorite apps and one Amazon touts is available in their app market is Netflix does NOT have volume controls within the app so what happened when I tried to lower the volume on a movie I was watching? I had to quit the app, lower the volume then comeback to Netflix. This is NOT how it should work. I wondered if this was also an issue with Amazon's video player and wouldn't you know it, their video player does include volume control within the app. Netflix was not designed specifically for the Kindle Fire so it does not. BIG mistake in not including volume toggles.

Reason # 4 - Horrible Email Client

The Kindle Fire runs on a custom Android operating system and usually that is ok if it's done correctly. This also means no Google App Market or official Google Apps (Gmail, Maps, Calendar, etc.) and again that is usually ok, IF done correctly. Well Amazon did not do it correctly. I setup my Gmail account easily enough then grabbed my iPad and sent a test email using a separate Gmail account. I got the email notification right away on my Droid Bionic and a split second later on the iPad. I waited 5 minutes and the email had not shown up on the Fire. 5 minutes after that I manually clicked on get email and nothing. I started wondering if the email had even really gone through so I checked my phone and iPad and indeed it was there. Finally after 15 Minutes I got it on the Kindle Fire. FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER!!! That is ridiculous!  

Other Reasons Not Major But Pet Peeves

• No Facebook App - selecting the facebook icon takes you to Facebook mobile. Last year this would have been fine as the Facebook app back then sucked but the latest version is their best.
• No SD Card Expansion - the Kindle Fire comes with 8GB of space with 6GB usable, that might seem like enough on the surface but it is not. I've blown through 2GB of space in apps alone, let alone pictures, music, videos and books. Amazon would like you to believe that you do not need extra space because of the cloud storage but what about when you are not connected to a wifi signal, how are you going to reach your content then?

In the end I could not overlook these faults and decided to return it. I was very disappointed. There are those who will find the copious amounts of books, newspapers, magazines, music, videos and apps good enough for them and have no issues with the weight, touch screen ineffectiveness, etc and love their Kindle Fire but I didn't.

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A week or so ago I saw an ad within my gmail account for the HyperShield by Sanho. It looked great it had some glowing reviews, like "The iPad 2 Back Cover Apple Forgot" by AppAdvice. The pictures looked great and I so desperately needed to protect the back of my iPad, it already has several scratches, so I went ahead and bought one to match my Blue Apple Smartcover

I was very excited when a few days later I received my hypershield blue, when I opened it I was very disappointed. The blue of the HyperShield DOES NOT match the blue of the Smartcover at all! It's not even close.

I immediately contacted customer service and they were more than accommodating offering me a replacement of a different color (clear or black). I wanted the clear in the first place to show off the Apple engraving but opted for the blue for matching purposes and boy did I make the wrong choice.

Customer service mentioned they used the same color code as the smartcover but as they also pointed out, the cover and shield are made from different materials so the end product is different. Ummmm, DUH!! They should have known this in beforehand and made the color correction before bringing these to market. 

I can only assume this issue is the same across the board. All the smartcover colors will not match the shields as they are portrayed on their website. I foresee more complaints such as mine in the near future.

The one BIG issue I have with all this is the fact that they doctored the photos to look like they indeed where a match. I feel dooped, cheated, lied to and that is just unacceptable as a consumer. The gallery above shows two of their images followed by my own taken at my desk.

In the end if you want great protection for the back of your iPad 2 the hypershield is great but only if you don't care to have matching colors. As customer service suggested, get it in Black or Clear. If you do care for matching colors go elsewhere, that's if there is somewhere else to get them.

Very cool gadget to sanitize my phone made by the fine folks over at Violight. Had no idea how much I needed this until I saw it on AnyLuckyDay.com. I commented and shared the daily giveaway and was lucky enough to be one of the winners. Woot woot. Thanks Violight and Giancarlo from AnyLuckyDay

Regards,

Samuel Mateo, Jr.
Pro D'ZYNES
www.prodzynes.com

Look at what just arrived in my inbox just moments ago. I've been waiting for this day since the first iPhone landed in the dirty little hands of at&t.