They don’t give two craps about what you really want, they just want to make it as easy as possible for their billing department, or shareholders, or whatever:

Chat Information Please wait for a Verizon Wireless sales representative to assist you with your order. Thank you for your patience!
Chat Information A Verizon Wireless online pre-sales specialist has joined the chat. You are now chatting with VZWRep

VZWRep: Hello. Thank you for visiting our chat service. May I help you with your order today?

You: yeah, why is the pda plan so much more expensive than the equivalent plans for ‘normal’ phones?
You: if i want the new android phone with 500 minutes and unlimited data and text, it’s $100 instead of $70 for the connect plan..

VZWRep: That’s because they are pda plans. Pda plan use a different type of data then the other plans do.

You: but the plans are a lot more expensive than they were two years ago when i stopped being a verizon customer.. then i had the plan for $80, now it’s 100 for the same thing..
You: besides, evdo data is just evdo data, how are the types of access different?
You: just tell me the truth, that since verizon has market share right now, they’re overpricing data..

VZWRep: Data plans have access to corporate the others do not. That’s the difference.

You: corporate what? you mean an exchange service?

VZWRep: Yes.

You: so, if i don’t have a use for that, like say, i’m using the new android, which can’t do exchange, will the plan be less expensive?

VZWRep: Thank you for waiting. I’ll be with you in just a moment.

You: ok

VZWRep: I’m sorry for the delay. I’ll be right with you.

VZWRep: No, they will be the same price.

You: ok, so just so i know i’m not confused, you’re saying the price is higher for a service that most people don’t know anything about and probably won’t ever use? and you don’t give customers the option to only pay for what they need/want?

VZWRep: Right.

You: Awesome, time to chat with Sprint! thanks for your time

VZWRep: Thank you for visiting Verizon Wireless, I look forward to speaking with you again. Have a great day!

Chat Information Your chat session has been ended by your Verizon Wireless online agent.

To be fair, I’m already on the Sprint SERO plan, but out of contract.. and ready for an android phone. I didn’t have issues with Verizon when I did use them, much. But they’re still the most expensive provider.

Get the new SERO plan:
http://sprint.com/sero
Email: russ.s.mcguire@sprint.com
EID: 383

Stop for a second to realize that your way of doing things is always the best way of doing things.  If only for no one else.

I’ve been playing with a G1, mostly for Google Voice/Sipdroid and My Maps Editor (for an upcoming vacation).  As I currently have a great plan with Sprint, and don’t want to drop the major coin required for the full voice and data package, I’ve got the G1 on the network with a pay-as-you-go Sidekick data plan.  No, it doesn’t really work for much, except SMS.  I have no need to make cellular calls, but I do want data while I’m out and about.  The Sidekick plan does NOT work for data on a G1.  It does register on the 3G/EDGE network, get an IP, set up the routes, and shoot, DNS even works.  But you cannot get ‘out’ to anything.  Yay T-Mobile for preventing me from giving you money you wouldn’t otherwise get at all, because lets face it, your network almost exists.

Thus my want for a BT PANU client.  As it turns out, cupcake includes pand and bluetooth networking support is built into the kernel.  Which is just about all you need.  Well, you might need root too.

Enough blathering.

First, you need the MAC of your Bluetooth Network Access Point.  I’m using Internet Sharing on Windows Mobile, so I just need my phone’s BT MAC, for instructional purposes, we’ll say it is: 00:15:81:3E:ED:02

Next create a shell script something like this:

#!/bin/bash
pand --connect 00:15:81:3E:ED:02
sleep 1
dhcpcd -d bnep0
setprop net.dns1 192.168.0.1

That last line sets your DNS / Name Server, it might be different depending on your BT NAP.  If you’re just using this at home instead of wireless because you’re bored or masochistic, then you’ll need to figure out what DNS info you need.  I just connected to Internet Sharing with my netbook first and checked what DNS servers it was configured to use.

One other thing to note:

If you have wireless disabled, and don’t have any SIM card inserted, then as far as Android is concerned, you have NO network connection.  Even after running the script above, only some Apps will work.  Maps works fine, as does Google Voice, but the Browser complains on open, then works fine.  Google Talk never opens at all.  Inserting a SIM card that shows an active 3G connection avoids this, but if I figure out an easier way (to save on the losses of cellular radio) I’ll post it.

If you hadn’t noticed, I’m a fan of Google Voice..  But after a couple days with the G1, now I’m a fan of Android too.

As I am currently unable to switch providers, I wanted to use the G1 without cellular service.  I won’t go into the process of getting past the “No SIM Card” screen, as that’s a whole other story; but I will tell you how to configure a G1, or other Android device, to pretty much work perfectly with Google Voice.

Requirements:

• G1, or some other Android device
• Active Google Voice account
• Active Gizmo5 account linked in Google Voice’s Phone Settings
• Google Voice (the official app)
• Sipdroid
• GV (thanks to Evan Charlton for this)

The process:

First install Google Voice (the official app) and configure with the following options:

• Making Calls - Do not use Google Voice for any calls
• This Phone’s Number - select your gizmo5 number

Next install GV and configure it.  Enter your account info and click next.  When it shows your Phones, just click next, lastly for your GV Settings:

• Route all calls through GV - Checked
• Calling method - Call back
• Your callback number - Gizmo5 number
• Voicemail PIN - 1234

The last two options don’t actually matter in this setup, or anyone using callback, but they’re required by GV because Evan left out a conditional statement somewhere.. :p

Lastly, install and configure Sipdroid:

• Username/Password - the Gizmo5 account you created
• Server - proxy01.sipphone.com
• Port - 5060
• Use WLAN - checked
• Preferred Call Type - Phone

So, how does this work?  When you attempt to create a call from the Contacts or Dialer, Evan’s GV app takes control and initiates a callback via your G1’s internet connection.  This instantiates an incoming call from Google Voice, through your Gizmo5 account, which Sipdroid catches.  The beauty of this configuration is that Sipdroid and GV both integrate into the G1 so well that everything looks like a normal incoming or outgoing call..

Noteworthy:  It may be possible to configure Sipdroid to initiate callbacks directly, thus negating the need for GV, but I’m too lazy to bother trying to figure it out right now.  Also, Google Voice’s usefulness is questionable..  The Visual Voicemail is awesome, but the text messages don’t show up instantly, in fact, I’m not sure how often it polls for new messages, or if it only checks when the app is started, or when you Refresh from the Menu.

Good luck, and happy ‘off-the-grid’ calling.

Google Voice has the option of forwarding all incoming calls to multiple numbers.  Additionally, it can forward calls to a Gizmo number.  Gizmo, is a standard SIP-based VoIP service.  Meaning that an Analog Telephone Adapter can be used to attach any standard PTSN telephone you want to your Gizmo account.

So what does that really mean?

After registering for a Gizmo account, I set up my ATA, similar to this $30 ATA from Grandstream, to use the Gizmo service.

Then I configured Google Voice to forward calls to my Gizmo number, which requires an exciting verification process that consists of answering the phone and dialing 2 numbers.

Voila!  Free incoming calls to a real phone at my house, which has no standard pots landline.  Additionally, if I get bored of talking to you on my landline, I just press *, answer on my cell phone and hit the road.

What is with all of these people and all of these people?  They get their panties in a knot because of words that someone deemed in foul, crude, crass, bad, profane.  I’m afraid I’m with Carlin on this one.

It’s not the content, it’s the context.  Which I will prove very simply:

Example 1 includes no ‘profanity’:

I hope your family dies of cancer on christmas, and in their wills, they’ve donated everything to charity.  You can’t afford to bury them because you’ll lose your job the same day, and you’ll have to live out of your minivan with the decaying corpses of your loved ones.

Obviously Example 1 is malicious.  But it doesn’t include any bad word, so it should be G-rated, and is safe for all.  Shoot, it even says love!

Example 2:

Holy shit! Did you see that Ferrari?  It was totally bitchin’  I rode in one of those one and nearly pissed myself.

So, there’s an R-rated comment, not able to be broadcast on television.. Yet who’s feelings were hurt?  Those of a conservative soccer mom that thinks her smutty novels and lifetime romance movies don’t have a negative effect on her child’s development.  You’re living in a dream world baby.

You want to complain about content?  Feel free, but understand that the world exists, your children are going to learn about the Holocaust in history class, and it isn’t knowledge that is destructive, but rather a lack of discipline, common sense, or empathy.  Our society obviously breeds murderers and rapists, but they’re not a result of television or books or video games.  No, we have only ourselves to blame.  That’s right mom and dad, they’re home schooled.

Ask anyone that knows me and they’ll say that I’m highly adaptable. If I don’t initially know how to complete a task, I will by the end. Unless it’s impossible, in which case, I’ll find a solution via other means. There are no problems, only situations, challenges, opportunities. But the practicality of a resolution to a situation is my biggest obstacle. Not the What/Where/When/How, but the Why. I won’t adapt to a bad solution when something else better exists. If I don’t see the point, then there must not be one. Don’t misunderstand me; even if I can’t relate to a situation, I’ll attempt to empathize with it. But if I’m asked to answer a question that’s already been answered, I’m going to quote it and move on. Not for a lack of motivation, but because that work has been done. Sure sometimes things can be done better, and I’m all for advancement, but don’t ask me to hack something together, when a better solution already exists.

I’d like to thank Sal for getting me into the netbook revolution.  I’m almost ashamed to say that I paid very little attention to them prior to my very own eye-witness account of his eee.  After that I was hooked, and I settled on a Dell Mini 9.  Today the 10 was announced with a newer processor and 720p.. *sigh*

In any event, this mini is great, paired with my EVDO-enabled WM6 phone over bluetooth, even while sitting here in the exam room at the eye doctor’s, I’ve got very little to complain about.  Except maybe a misplaced dash or apostrophe key.

I’ll post a few pics in the near future, and also go through the process I used to Install and configure Ubuntu 8.10..

Oh Hi Doc.  Yes, it  is a small computer.  Good for when I’m stuck somewhere sitting around waiting for someone for 15 minutes.

And thus, I devote the first post to you dreamhost.  My one and only web host.  I hope that it’s simplicity pays homage to your nature, and that the total lack of information contain herein is of no consequence.  From the bottom of my bit bucket,  I :heart: you.  At least, until today, when you started sending me Internal Server Errors instead of the HTML I ask for.  What’s the deal?