Posting to a Blog in real-time. Create a "virtual you".

I am traveling east to Daytona Beach for Thanksgiving right now. That's right, I am updating this blog as I am in the car.

When I decided to take this trip, one of the things I wanted to do was test some of the web services and technologies which would allow me to "report" and document my trip in real-time. so far so good. Here are some of the ways I have been doing it:

• I have taken pictures with my Verizon LG cell phone. Using Blogger's mobile upload service I can automatically post them to this blog in seconds by emailing the picture on my cell phone to the go@blogger.com address. Text messaging has come in handy too.
• The audio blogger service is neat. By calling a special phone number and leaving a voicemail, I am able to automatically add an audio file to my blog.
• I purchased a new Canon SD 450 Elph Digital Camera and a 1 Gig SD card which can hold 600+ pictures. The SD card can be loaded directly to my laptop. I am using Picasa software (free from Google) to save and manipulate the pictures locally.
• I signed up for a flickr (owned by Yahoo) photo hosting/sharing account and tested it by uploading some picures there. The quality of the uploaded photo isn't that good. I have also been Blogger's own photo upload, but it is very slow.
• One of the coolest technologies has been the Verizon Broadband connection for my laptop. The connection is slow at times, but it has allowed me to stay connected almost anywhere at anytime. I have actually been updating this blog while we have been driving from New Orleans to Mobile Alabama (where I am right now).
• I have a Sony Handycam and have taken some good video with it. When I get a chance I will work on editing and posting some of the video.
• I have been using my Blackberry extensively.

By using all these real-time technologies and devices, I can almost create a virtual, real-time photo album with audio, video and text without a van full of equipment and satellite hookup. The Internet and technology has come a long way.