The Small Things

Sometimes the small and silly things can make a huge difference. Tonight was a case in point. I finally got my iPhone unlocked so I can use it here in Kenya. There is much rejoicing right now; I'm really acting like a kid at Christmas.

I really wish AT&T were more understanding about people leaving the country for an extended period of time (like say 2 years) and their desire to use the iPhone outside of AT&T's zone of control. I completely understand that they have subsidized the cost of my phone and I am more than happy to pay them the subsidy. It is only fair. But when I called them asking to have my phone unlocked due to my leaving the country, they flat out refused to help me. This was after offering to reimburse them for the subsidy. They wouldn't do a thing for me.

I really appreciate my iPhone, it is a great device. It works well in my environment and the apps actually help me in my everyday life. Since AT&T were going to be no help to me, I figured that I would simply unlock the phone. Trouble is, the iPhone Dev Team folks had not released their jailbreak software for my phone.* All of which meant that I spent the last three weeks using a very basic Nokia phone, while my iPhone became essentially an iPod Touch.

* The Dev Team guys are great, I really appreciate their hard work and even happier that the Library of Congress stated that jailbreaking is A-Okay.

Ah, but then a couple of days ago, the Dev Team came through and released the jailbreak code. They did a great job, the whole process was effortless and soon after jailbreaking, I unlocked my phone, swapped out SIM cards and life is very very very good again!

Yes, it is silly and very nerdy of me to get so excited. But since I cannot have pancakes for a few more weeks, I need something!*

* I have some maple syrup and vanilla extract coming soon. Hope my friend can find the maple extract too, but the syrup is unexpected and much appreciated.

So, I go to bed tonight with my iPhone active once again. I need to add some minutes so I can make a few calls, but that won't happen until I am jailbroken from the IU house.