Technically Writer

Last time (August 2016!), I wrote about Vibrams as a way of reevaluating your running and the potential benefits of minimalist running . That was part 1. It's about time I did part 2! This time around, I'll continue the theme of minimalist workouts by taking a look at the Max Capacity training program. Max Capacity is a workout regimen -- 12 weeks in duration with a variety of workouts to help you build up your core strength, flexibility, and agility. To me, this is a no frills program and that's what I like most about it. The workout "reps" are easy to understand with simple graphics and explanations. Each week is a little different; even if you do the same four workouts, week to week something may change slightly. As with most things in life, variety is a good thing. How I Found Max Capacity As I mentioned in my post about transitioning to Vibrams, it was a bumpy road in every sense of the phrase. Changing up routine can expose things that aren...

This time around, I'm going to talk about exercise and alternatives to being a gym rat with all the latest and greatest gear. In a lot of cases, the weigh, resistance, and movement of your own body is all you need. As with my other posts, I'm not trying to recommend against something like, in this case, going to the gym. But it doesn't have to be the only way. And one piece of gear that I continue to love since I tried it out are my trusty Vibrams, which I'll focus on in this post. Warmup Anecdote Let's rewind 15 years or so. In my case, my university added a gym, for which the student body had to pay an additional mandatory fee. As a relatively sedentary person, I was initially outraged. After paying the fee a few times, I decided if I couldn't beat them, I could try to join them. And it was then that I started using the gym. As I got more accustomed to going, I felt the need to always have access to a gym -- otherwise, how would I work out? Surely being s...

Given my goal to present alternative tech options to people, I thought it fitting to post about BlackBerry. Stay with me... I Love BlackBerry. Yep, I Said It! Well, I should be specific. I like BlackBerry 10 phones, especially the keyboard models (I've used the Q5 and currently use the Q10). As a company, they've made questionable choices over the years, stemming back to resting on their laurels when the iPhone first rose to notoriety. But I'm going to curb that topic in this post. One thing for certain is that they make easy to use, good quality smartphones (yep, smartphones!). What I want to convey is: BlackBerry 10 phones are great. They are likely better than you think. Some tired arguments are: they're for dinosaurs, they're yesterday's news, they don't have apps, they are no longer relevant, "I didn't even realize they still exist and create phones!" I thought all of these, too. Actually, more accurately, I didn't think m...

And now for something completely different... I've been interested in minimalism lately and the new "web brutalism" -- basically, a backlash to bloated web design and a return to simple web pages for all (access them on any device, keep data charges low, create them with an emphasis on the words themselves). I heard some stuff about it on a segment on CBC Spark , one of my favourite radio shows. As an experiment,  here's a post I did on a minimalist website . It's titled "Good Invisibility." Enjoy!

In my first blog post, I reviewed the Fongo Mobile app. On its own, it's a great way to start saving money on your cell plan -- you could even consider using it as a landline replacement, too. It could be a generational thing, but I like to make most calls on a "real" phone (cordless, corded, etc). I've noticed that traditional landlines are quite expensive these days -- even voice over IP (VoIP) lines through the major services providers are way overpriced, and bandwidth is dirt cheap! Once again, Fongo has us covered with a great alternative. Fongo Home Phone -- For those who just want plug and play cheap phone service While I don't *technically* use Fongo home phone service, I feel I can still comment on it based on my experience with Freephoneline (the adjacent service they offer. More on that in the next section.) Here's a short and sweet blog post on Fongo's site that walks you through signing up for their home phone service. Yes, t...

There are a lot of alternative phone services out there, but I'm a long time user and fan of Fongo , a voice over IP (VoIP) service. VoIP just means your phone's audio connection goes through internet bandwidth instead of traditional landlines or cell towers. Fongo offers a free mobile app for Android/iPhone/BlackBerry, a low-priced home phone service, and (if you feel brave) a free home phone through their system company Freephoneline. I could go on about more technical details, but what you want to know is: will this save me money? YES. Will it be straightforward? Y...mostly. It depends. But stick with me as I walk you through the options. In this post, I'll start with Fongo for smartphones. Some background: I'm not a heavy smartphone user, but I like them. I've used a few Android devices and more recently BlackBerry 10. I never liked paying even $30 for a plan of which I used about 20% of the coverage, if that. Calls are potentially expensive ("is an ...