RND(tech)

LaCie announced today that they now offer a complete Lightscribe solution for all platforms. That means now Mac OS X and even Linux users can write labels to Lightscribe media with Lightscribe drives. Lightscribe is a technology that allows you to etch silk screen quality images on the label side of CD/DVD media. Up until now, the technology was limited to Windows users due to lack of software. Now with the LaCie LightScribe Labeler for MAC OS, SureThing for Windows and LaCie LightScribe Labeler for Linux, we have software available to the three major OS platforms. Did I forget to mention the software is free from LaCie? Yes, it really is.

See:
http://www.lacie.com/lightscribe http://www.lightscribe.com

It's been over two months with the new Optimum Voice service. So far so good, but I have a few not-quite-complaints about the service. First off, the price isn't bad if you have the other Cablevision/Optimum services. If you don't, you'll be paying a hefty price for service. Most of the features compare with the Vonage service I once had. One big problem I have is with the call log on the Optimum Voice website. It shows all the outgoing calls, but not the incoming ones. If anything, I'm more interested in the log of incoming calls. If I'm not home and I'm missing calls, it's the best way to know who called, even if they don't leave a message. The Caller ID is inconsistent, or at least it's going through some changes recently. Most of the time, I see the calling number's city, rather than the person calling. The distinctive ring or VIP ring is a nice touch over Vonage though. The voicemail, call waiting, and call forwarding services are also equivalent to Vonage. However, Vonage had one nice feature that Optimum Voice didn't quite get right. I live in an area that suffers from frequent blackouts. Vonage allows for a fall back number, in case the Vonage adapter is off due to power, or your ISP is out. Optimum Voice doesn't have this, but they do have "Follow Me". This rings multiple numbers simultaneously. This is great, but I don't want it to happen all of the time. International rates are similar, but I make few, if no, international calls. Optimum Voice does a weird thing where they expect you to buy Internation minutes in bulk. I think it's a minimum of $10. The minutes roll-over to the next month, but it's still somewhat annoying. Optimum Voice doesn't offer the different pricing plans as Vonage, has no second line option, no choice in are code/exchange, and no 1-800 number services. Finally, the Optimum Voice adapter is not portable, where the Vonage adapter is. The Optimum Voice adapter is integrated into the cable modem. This is great for setup, but you can't take it with you if you travel. Of course, from my last post, one of the reasons I changed was for customer service. With the "triple play" package of voice, data, and tv, I pay just about the same as I did with Vonage and if my adapter fails, I expect to bring it to any Cablevision center and get a new one right away.