If you’re using one of the new iPhone 3GS models you may have noticed it’s no longer possible to force quit an application by holding the home key down for 5 seconds. This worked on prior models but now holding the home key down will only bring up the voice control. Instead to force quit an application running on an iPhone 3GS press and hold the power button for 5 seconds. When the Quit/Cancel screen appears THEN you can hold the home key for 5 seconds and the application will force quit. When even that doesn’t work I’ve found the combination of holding home and power for 5 seconds will still force a reset.

Appmodo

I have many fond memories of time spent on CompuServe in the late 1980s. For those of you not familiar with the service, CompuServe was like a mini-Internet before there was an Internet. CompuServe was the online place that the cool geeks hung out while AOL was for the neophytes unsure about the online world and wanting a graphical interface with training wheels. Sure the CompuServe online interface was crude (for a long time it was all text based) but there were discussion forums that seemed to attract only the most diehard enthusiasts thus ensuring the information exchanged was of high quality and absent of today’s crass commercialism. As of June 30, 2009 the old CompuServe forums and software are no more. There will be a CompuServe 2000 which is a newer iteration of the old CompuServe many of us dearly loved. Gone forever are the days of paying nearly $30/hour to access CompuServe on a 9600 baud modem. Farewell my friend.

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The Why Cry Baby Analyzer claims to analyze “advanced frequency spectrum” and within 20 seconds tell you why your baby is crying. As a single dad who raised two infants let me save you the $99 and give you some advice. Babies cry when they’re sick (Tip: Don’t hold them over your head at 2am in the morning unless you enjoy trying to fall asleep smelling like sour baby puke) or when they’re hungry. There you go – invest in a good digital thermometer and a baby bottle – send me the $99 instead. Happy 4th.

Why Cry Baby Analyzer – $99

Here’s something that I had not seen before. It may not be a new feature but I thought it was strange when my NY Times application presented a pop up window asking me to rate the application. I’m used to only seeing that prompt when I delete an application and not while I’m in the middle of using it. Let’s hope that it’s not followed by prompts to subscribe to the paper version or some other type of pop-up marketing nonsense.

This morning I received an auto-response from a subscriber to a newsletter I publish for work. This person is without ANY email for 5 days while they wait for a replacement router that was damaged due to a lighting strike (Connecticut is on about the 30th day of severe late day thunderstorms). How can any business professional be without email for 5 days when clients and customers use email as a replacement for the telephone? Having access to email from any Internet connected computer is an immense benefit — and a reason I’m such a believer in GMAIL and Google Apps which while still subject to outages are in my opinion a much more reliable solution for small businesses than hosting their own email. And apparently others are noticing as well because just this morning CSC announced they expect to migrate millions of users to Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Suite which is Microsoft’s soon to be available entry into the clouds for Exchange and Sharepoint.

CSC To Resell Microsoft Cloud Services

Dell has this Sony XPERIA X1A Smartphone on sale for $599 after a $100 instant savings. Apply coupon code 22X6DLMFK6K92G and score another 10% savings for a net price of $539. If that’s not enough savings for you – then how about some free shipping. The Sony XPERIA features a 3-inch touchscreen, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 3G, HSDPA, 3.2 Megapixel Camera/camcorder with a secondary camera for video calls, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth with streaming music; 400MB built-in memory and powered by Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system.

Sony XPERIA X1A – $539

Save $35 on this limited edition Batman Begins Gift Set. The Blu-ray gift set includes exclusive high-def content: The Dark Knight Prologue, Hollywood Movie Money to see The Dark Knight in theaters (a $7.50 value which will buy you a mini box of sno caps), 32-page exclusive Dark Knight Prologue book, 16-page comic book adaptation of the first 6 minutes of The Dark Knight, a Batman Begins lenticular and five collectible postcards to send to your geeky friends. More importantly this is a bargain priced DVD set that when gifted to a friend will make them think you spent more than you really did. Shipping is free on orders over $25.

Batman Begins via Logicbuy

The long awaited web venture from Ryan Block and Peter Rojas has just launched. Their joint site GDGT.COM, which is separate from their popular podcast of the same name, appears to be designed as a community for gadget lovers. I need to spend some time browsing the site, however at first look it seems headed toward being a site to get trusted feedback on gadgets and eventually make purchases. Because both Ryan and Peter have extensive blog experience (they are both former editors for Engadget/Gizmodo and Peter founded Engadget) they likely have a lot of new ideas in the hopper. It’s still early so they may have added plans in store for the site beyond the initial features.

GDGT

This HP Pavilion Slimline s5110t desktop PC (monitor not included) comes with a free 500GB Hard Drive upgrade, free HP DeskJet Printer and Free Shipping. The basic specifications (which can be upgraded) are: Pentium Dual-core E5200 2.5GHZ; 3GB DDR2, 320 GB hard drive; GMA 3100; DVD +/-RW LIghtScribe; 10/100 Ethernet;Vista 64-bit; Keyboard; Mouse; 6-in-1 card reader; 5.1ch audio and MS Works. GearSponsor deal ends on July 5, 2009 and this is eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 7 when released.

HP Pavilion Slimline S5110t – $339 – free Windows 7 upgrade

Do you have an IBM ThinkPad that has a red pointer that’s a bit worn out or dirty? I’d recommend buying this deal simply because the shipping and handling has to cost more than the .39 the company is charging to send out one red IBM ThinkPad Trackpoint Red Cap Pointer replacement pad. As a matter of fact you can drive the price down even further and snag 4 for .99. Especially good deal for those who don’t wash their hands often and in return have filthy pointer pads.

IBM ThinkPad TrackPoint Red Cap Pointer replacements – .39/ea or 4 for .99 SHIPPED via FW

Ok we know that “Two For Tuesday” is a better rhyme. But it’s Wednesday and there’s a two-for bargain that our GearSponsor just sent in – so we’ll make do with two for Wednesday. Buy the new redesigned HP Pavilion p6100z AMD-based Desktop PC and save 50% on HP MediaSmart LX195 1.6GHz Atom 640GB Home Server ($400 value). Coupon code SV2132 gets you the deal (expiring today). The HP Pavilion 6100z is packing an AMD Semmpron 2.3 GHZ; 2GB DDR2; 320 GB Hard Drive; GeForce 6150SE; 16X LightScribe DVD+/-RW;Vista Basic; 10/100 Ethernet; Keyboard/Mouse – 5.1 Channel Audio.

HP Pavilion p6100z

Do you have kids that are text messaging addicts? Everywhere I go I see people text messaging like crazy – and kids seem to be the leading users of text messaging. The problem with buying phones for kids is they lose them or leave them in the rain. That’s why I’m a big fan of prepaid phones – however the selection of phones with QWERTY keyboards for prepaid plans can be skimpy. Here’s a great opportunity to pick up a full QWERTY smartphone with Quad Band capabilities (850/900/1800/1900). The Windows Mobile powered device is unlocked so it takes any GSM SIM you throw at it. On the downside, the camera is way mediocre (only 1.3 megapixels) and this is an EDGE only device – so forget about taking advantage of any 3G speeds. As a spare QWERTY device this one’s a deal and you can run it on prepaid plans simply by swapping in a SIM card. This is a one day sale – so don’t delay or the deal will be gone tomorrow.

HTC Dash – $99 via SD

You order your fast food in bundles – so why not your cell phone and laptop. Step right up to the Dell counter and place your order for a supersized #1. Included is the Dell Vostro A860 ($420- Celeron M M560 2.13GHz, Vista Basic, WiFi, DVD Burner) plus the brand new Nokia N97 touchscreen cell phone ($700 – 5-Megapixel Cam, GPS, Keyboard, Bluetooth). This deal is via GearSponsor Logicbuy and expires July 1.

Dell Combo Deal

Gamers and lovers of high resolution monitors may be interested in this latest GearSponsor deal from Logicbuy. Until 7/1 you can take 20% off the normal price of $339.99 for this Viewsonic VS2265wm FuHzion LCD Monitor bringing the net cost to $271.99 with free shipping. This 22″ LCD Monitor Designed for the hard core gamer looking for the ultimate in 3D gaming and graphics professionals looking for a monitor to bring your designs to life. Revolutionary, pure 120Hz frame rate combines with ultra-fast 3ms video response for immaculate blur-free motion and realistic 3D rendering. DVI-D dual link interface allows you to connect directly from your computer. Round out your ultimate monitor package with 1680 x 1050 super HD resolution, high contrast ratio and integrated stereo speakers.

Viewsonic VX2265wm 22″ FuHzion Monitor – $271.99

Some are saying that the new video capabilities found on the iPhone 3GS will soon eliminate the need to carry a separate video camera such as this Flip Classic. While this may be true there’s no disputing that for $39.99 this refurbished Pure Digital Flip Classic 30 minutes camcorder will be convenient for using in places like the beach or on a boat where you may not want to take your $200+ iPhone for fear of damaging it. Capture up to 30 minutes of digital video then connect the camcorder via USB to your computer. From there you can upload the video to your favorite video site and best of all with a $39 camcorder you won’t have to worry as much about dropping it in the water or having sand kicked it it’s face at the beach.

Pure Digital Flip Classic 30 Min – $39.99