I’ve use input hints in almost every project I work on and I’ve been writing the code from scratch every time.

So I decided to create a jQuery plugin so that I never have to rewrite the code again and I’m making it open source.

You can download the plugin here.

Here is how it looks:

Here is how it works:

Javascript:
$(‘#form_id’).inputHint(‘class_name’);

HTML:
<style>
.class_name { color: #999; }
</style>
<input type=”text” title=”Enter your email address” />

If a user submits the form and leaves an input blank, the hint text will not be submitted.

Signup for my newsletter I’m calling Deeper Thoughts on Mobile, Tech, Startups and Hockey (these are the things I’m most passionate about). You will receive a periodic email from me, nothing overwhelming and I will never share or sell your information.

I’m going to experiment with an email newsletter instead of posting to my blog. I use my blog and my Twitter account for posting small tidbits of information. This is easy to do and requires little thought and I want to share my thoughts in a much deeper sense. I could just post these types of things on my blog, but in the past I haven’t found blogging to be much fun for me.

I also want this to be more intimate, therefor I’m limiting my newsletter to 500 subscribers for now. We’ll see how it goes and I will reassess this limit.

You can signup on the sidebar of my blog, in case you overlooked it

The new MoFuse login screen. Such a simple and commonly overlooked page in web apps. It came out beautifully, but I’m biased since I created it.

I have a T-Mobile Nexus One, unlocked, rooted and running the latest version of Android 2.2 called Froyo. It has absolutely no scratches on it, looks like it’s never been used. We use it for development testing here at MoFuse, the device has hardly ever left the desk.

I’m looking to get another Nexus One, running any version, doesn’t have to be rooted or unlocked, it just has to be the AT&T version of the device.

So if you bought the device to use with AT&T and you’re not happy with them, or their recent change to their data plan pricing and want to switch to T-Mobile let me know! I don’t want to spend $550 to have the same exact device.

Email me: david@mofuse.com

FLOCCINAUCINIHILIPILIFICATION (n) – The act or habit of describing or regarding something as worthless.

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/floccinaucinihilipilification – Often cited as the longest non-technical word in the English language.

FireFox doesn’t even know it exists.

This tweet from Sarah Palin is sad. Everybody remembers her pushing more off-shore drilling. How can she even begin to act like she wasn’t for drilling where this disaster is happening?

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Palin was a strong advocate of drilling both offshore and in ANWR, a position that was repeatedly expressed her now-famous phrase “Drill Baby Drill.”

In her October 2008 vice presidential debate with Joe Biden, Palin specifically took aim at him for opposing offshore drilling efforts.

“You even called drilling – safe, environmentally-friendly drilling offshore – as raping the outer continental shelf,” Palin said at the debate.

“There – with new technology, with tiny footprints even on land, it is safe to drill and we need to do more of that.”

From: CNN

I thought this was funny. The text below this video, on YouTube and from Google Developers, telling viewers to watch the video on Vimeo for better quality.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs revealed that the iPhone OS was made for a tablet during a chat with Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher at the All Things D conference. Jobs said they were working on a tablet and thought, “this would make a great phone”.

I originally criticized Apple (privately) for using the iPhone OS on the iPad. I wanted a shrunken MacBook, not an enlarged iPhone. In reality, we are all making phone calls on shrunken iPad’s.

From Engadget

A sinkhole in Guatemala from Tropical Storm Agatha as seen on CNN.com

A few days ago I received a Powermat review unit for my iPhone 3GS and I had been using it to charge my iPhone every night when I go to bed.

It comes with the charging pad, or mat, iPhone case and a Mini-USB to USB cord. You simply plug the charging pad into the electrical outlet, put the case on your iPhone and then place your phone on the pad and it charges magically.

What I really like about this is that when I wakeup in the morning and reach for my phone I don’t pull it out of the wall since I usually check my email (it’s a terrible habit) as soon as I wakeup.  I hate that my phone is tied to the wall and it doesn’t reach far enough for me to rollover into a comfortable position.

I don’t like taking my phone off of the charger until I’m ready to leave in the morning because the battery won’t last past 4pm if I do. So the Powermat allows me to rollover with the phone and reply to late night and early morning emails then simply throw it back on the mat until I’m ready to leave for the day.

Unfortunately for me, I don’t like the way most cases feel in my hand or in my pocket and I found myself taking the case off during the day and putting it back on at nighttime.

To be fair, the two piece slide-on case isn’t bad at all, it’s just my personal preference. Most people I know with an iPhone use a case that is much larger, bulkier or uglier than this one.

One issue more people may have with this product is the case completely covers the port on the bottom of the phone and replaces it with a Mini-USB port. They should have, if they could, replicated the iPhone’s port to make using other accessories, like a car charger, easier. I suspect Apple doesn’t allow this though and that is why it comes with a Mini-USB to USB cord.

I can see how people who are more tolerable to having a case on their phone could like this product. Every night I have to find my phone’s power cord, which usually falls behind my nightstand or I have to feel around in the dark to not wake my wife who goes to bed much earlier than I do. So using the Powermat made it much easier to just go to bed, and unfortunately get right back to work in the morning.

I wonder how long it will be until more phones come with this functionality built-in, like the Palm Pre. I’d also like to see the stats as to how many people have purchased the wireless charger for the Pre.

This was my first experience charging any gadget without plugging it in. It is clearly much easier and if it weren’t for the case I would be using it and I would pay extra for it.