More dual-sim phones please...

Roaming rates can get pretty ridiculous ... but not being able to
receive calls on your home network (i.e. the number that everyone's
got for you) is a non-starter for a business traveller. Open
question: Why aren't there more dual-sim phones out there? Clearly
they're not something most operators would favor ... but when you're
going out and buying an unlocked GSM device in the first place, why not?

WiFi, WiFi everywhere...

Ever notice that there's free WiFi EVERYWHERE in the SF bay area?
(From coffee shops that are just flooded with literally dozens of
laptop users, to a nondescript laundromat...)

Now, the Hydro muni-wifi project in Toronto certainly sounds cool,
but what about just more open access points around the city?

(On that note, thank you Le Gourmand for having great coffee, food
and free WiFi! ;-)

Anyone using Plaxo for Mac?

I noticed yesterday that there is now a Mac version of Plaxo
available... cool, I thought, let's give that a try. The Plaxo app
syncs between your Mac's Address Book and Plaxo. It SORT OF worked
for me... I got all the names, addresses, and phone numbers of the
people sync'd, but Plaxo didn't seem to get any of the other details,
and it certainly didn't get the all-important eMail addresses. That's
kind of weird. I've uninstalled it for now, but if anyone's had
success with it (or had this issue and resolved it), let me know!

Art Of the Board Meeting

Guy Kawasaki's great article on who you want on your board, and how
to best use them.

http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2006/03/the_art_of_the_.html

Looking for a great lawyer?

More on this when I've got some time, but briefly: If you're a Toronto-based tech startup looking for a fantastic lawyer, Rob Hyndman's (hyndmanlaw.com) your guy.

Since when do I dig musicals?

So musically my world's getting a bit weird:

1) I ended up REALLY liking this French musical, Le Roi Soleil
(available on Canadian and French iTunes... US customers are hosed...
ugh)

2) A trip ends up forcing me to bail on an upcoming Beth Orton
concert in Toronto. (double ugh)

3) I'm actually finding I like the soundtrack to Rent (the movie). La
Vie Boheme is brilliant...

Me liking musicals? No, I wouldn't have guessed either...

Reaching out to authors... a whole new world

(apologies for a distinct lack of linking to people... I'm writing
this as an eMail and Blogger still refuses to let me post as html...)

Tonight in Toronto, Shel Israel (co-author of Naked Conversations)
hung out at Shoeless Joe's with a bunch of geeks and bloggers... and
generally a good time was had by all. (Thanks to Dave Forde for
organizing things!)

Rick Segal mentioned that the world of publishing had changed pretty
significantly since all of a sudden it's become easy to reach out to
an author... either by writing about them on your blog, commenting on
THEIR blog, or even just sending an email and expecting an answer.

So it's fitting that I got a note from Wayne McVicker, the author of
Starting Something (yes, while we were having the above
conversation). Starting Something is a book that Leila Boujnane lent
me ... it's all about the ups and downs of building a startup: highly
recommended. Anyway, I sent Wayne a note thanking him for writing a
terrific book.... and not only did I get a response from him, but
hope to see him for breakfast when I'm down in San Francisco in a few
weeks.

The world's changed... that's for sure.