So I’ve actually been using Mint for the last 7 months, and I’m happy to report that I’m still using it. Not consistently every day or anything, but at least once a week I go in and check all my transactions. That’s remarkable considering all the times I tried to use Microsoft Money or Quicken (or even some of the lesser finance applications like Cha-Ching) and those forays lasted maybe 2-3 weeks before I got tired of using them and just quit.
What makes Mint different is the fact that it removes all the fat of Money or Quicken. The biggest difference between Mint and all the others is how they get their data. The others expect you to enter your transactions manually and then use the data the program downloads from your bank to reconcile those chargers; but Mint exclusively uses the data it gets from your bank.
So you log in to Mint, it downloads the latest transactions from your bank, then you go through and categorize your new income and expenses and that’s it.
You can set up a budget, and you can track all your expenses and see where your money goes. The beauty of Mint is its simplicity. It’s not bogged down by all the superfluous features of Quicken or Money. It gives you the basics of expense tracking, reporting, and budgeting, and that’s all I need.
(Oh, and it has what I consider to be the best user interface of any web application to date.)
Whenever I’m driving and have to sneeze, I always wonder what’s going to happen with my eyes shut. Well apparently my worries aren’t unfounded, heh.
BOSTON (AP) — An untimely sneeze nearly cost Andrew Hanson his life. The 42-year-old Weymouth man told authorities that a sneeze caused him to lose control of his pickup on Soldiers Field Road and plunge into Boston’s Charles River on Tuesday.
Hanson was able to wade to shore after escaping from the truck, which was partially submerged in 4 feet of water. He was not seriously injured but was taken to a hospital as a precaution.
Lawrence Callahan of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation said Hanson told him that after he sneezed, “the next thing he knew he was in the river.
Guess I’ll have to sneeze with my eyes open next time. Oh wait, nevermind.
I’ve been using a Mac regularly for the past 4 years, starting with 10.3 Panther running on my old Powerbook G4. And even 4 years later, I still find the little things that just make using the Mac a little better. The little things that some developer thought about and took the time to implement.
For instance, yesterday I received a new DVI-HDMI cable that I ordered from MonoPrice so I could hook up my MacBook Pro to the TV in the bedroom. I plugged it in to the computer, and in order to see Front Row on the TV, I had to adjust the external monitor settings. So I did and watched some videos and it worked perfectly.
Then, today I come into the office, set up my computer and plug in my external monitor. The computer recognized that it was my second monitor and not the TV and used the settings I normally use for that monitor. Not only that, but the windows I normally have on that second display popped up over there instead of the computer’s display.
So I think it’s pretty cool that the computer not only recognizes an external monitor, but which monitor and how I was last using that monitor.
Here’s a little insight into any given project for me …
So after working on the new design, I’ve decided to scratch it. It’s just a little bit too dark and heavy and I want something a bit lighter and not so industrial-looking. The design I already had was a bit dark and dismal and had a rather flat color scheme. Just a lot of grays and steel blues, and I was never quite perfectly happy with what I had.
Let’s try this again …
