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Life in General

Living Life in the Cloud

I got an iPhone for Christmas, and the ubiquity of the internet access has begun changing my way of working. I am moving more and more stuff to the “cloud.” I find that the centralized data storage and the access-anywhere-from-anything benefit outweighs the worries about sensitive data. (To a point; more on that in a moment.)

I got an iPhone for Christmas, and the ubiquity of the internet access has begun changing my way of working. I am moving more and more stuff to the “cloud.” I find that the centralized data storage and the access-anywhere-from-anything benefit outweighs the worries about sensitive data. (To a point; more on that in a moment.)

For example, I’ve now moved my GtD work from Thinking Rock (a fine computer-based program on my laptop) to ToodleDo, a web-based app that I can access from any computer OR my iPhone. I can use the computer when I want to do some serious data entry and organizing, and the iPhone for on-the-run work and moment-to-moment checking of next actions.

The key is having an app that works well in both Firefox on my laptop and Safari on my iPhone. Even better is an app that has a custom portal or app specifically designed to work on the iPhone. ToodleDo has both, so it has become my tool of choice.

I’ve been looking for a Quicken replacement for some time — well, actually, I’ve been looking for a PocketQuicken replacement for my iPhone, and haven’t found anything. So, I gave Buxfer — an online version of Quicken — a try, but deleted my account after a few days. I wasn’t sure I wanted my financial data in the cloud, AND I wanted it on my phone so I could check it without having to have access.

Now that I’ve installed SplashMoney on the phone, I’m debating going back to Buxfer. I wonder if I am being too paranoid — and Buxfer has some features that SplashMoney doesn’t. Stay tuned for more on this.

I’m looking at a number of other cloud apps, including Evernote. Again, it’s the central data storage and multi-point access that is appealing. I’ll write more on this as I explore.

If you are using internet apps more, drop a comment and share your experience.

2 replies on “Living Life in the Cloud”

Bruce, as one who develops cloud solutions for large customers, I keep up with some of the security vulnerabilities and security breaches that are under-reported. I am not an expert in security though. Personally, I would not put my financial records in a cloud-based service, particularly when you add wireless access to the mix. There are far too many breaches right now anyways. I don’t like the risk/reward ratio.

Of course virtually every transaction you make is in the cloud and most are tied to your name/personal information, but these are different privacy issues.

Peace,

Samuel

Samuel — thanks for the comment! I share some of your concerns, especially about financial records. But, as you say, there’s so much we do using the ‘net that I’ve just decided that vigilance and good passwords is about all we can do, if we want to use online commerce at all.

My real wish for my banking needs is a version of Pocket Quicken for the iPhone. My understanding is that Quicken (Intuit) won’t license the Quicken name and technology to Landware for an iPhone version. I keep hoping.

Come by again — I’m going to do a story on Toodledo, which I’m really enjoying.

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