tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-127096372011-04-21T13:45:45.403-04:00Thoughts, ideas and actions.APnoreply@blogger.comBlogger251100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1162402731614270142006-11-01T12:36:00.000-05:002006-11-01T12:38:51.623-05:00

Figured it was time I put my own domains to good use. clothbot engineous wiki

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1150603774919565982006-06-17T23:40:00.000-04:002006-06-18T00:09:34.930-04:00

Short of a medical emergency, the train is a great way to travel if you're on a time crunch, just not here in North America.Over the past few months I've had the pleasure of riding the rails (by choice - travel agent was shocked that I didn't want to rent a car) on business trips within the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, France and England.Not once did I have to worry about getting lost,

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1145558731306343032006-04-20T14:45:00.000-04:002006-04-20T14:45:31.310-04:00

Platform 3 @ Lyon Airport Train Station Originally uploaded by aplumb. I'm not a fan of traveling for the sake of traveling (not to be confused with a nomadic lifestyle, where it's your home, work and life), but when I do I try to take in as much of my surroundings as I possibly can.In Europe, that means taking the train whenever possible and practical.

APnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1140020031938245012006-02-15T11:07:00.000-05:002006-02-15T11:16:59.550-05:00

Alright, I'll admit it. I watch American Idol with the same fascination as watching a car crash. There's talent there, but it gets swept up in and smothered by the hype.Canadian Idol on the other hand... I prefer it, but that could just as easily be because I'm more accustomed to the English+French culture mix/sound we get up here than the English+Latin mix down South. Comfort food for the ears.

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1135112408034646672005-12-20T15:42:00.000-05:002005-12-20T16:00:08.046-05:00

When ever I read stories like this, I have to wonder if anyone with actual technical knowledge of the systems involved was ever consulted.This is a cellular telephone technology we're talking about, not cold-war era broadcast technology. Calls are able to find their destination cell phone by way of the closest cell tower/site in the network. If you were to put a micro-tower in the theatre, all

APnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1123554714115337172005-08-08T22:24:00.000-04:002005-08-08T22:31:54.120-04:00

On one hand, the EPA overestimates the mileage for the Prius, and Toyota's not happy.On the other, some drivers are able to eke out 110mpg from stock Prius vehicles. The solution? Capture the smarts of the performance-foot in a software upgrade for all!

APnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1121888508730033682005-07-20T15:36:00.000-04:002005-07-20T15:41:48.736-04:00

Apparently, the Y2K bug didn't wreak nearly enough havoc.In an effort to bolster a flagging IT industry, the US government has embarked on a make-work campaign by shifting daylight savings time so it starts a month earlier and ends a month later. I wonder how many algorithms will need to be fixed this time around.?.

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1120578270243383932005-07-05T11:21:00.000-04:002005-07-15T21:09:31.116-04:00

Why is the city of Ottawa looking at burying the proposed light-rail in a tunnel?I don't get it, beyond the usual car-centric perspective. More people-per-vehicle will have the time to enjoy the view through the city core riding the rails than driving their cars, so bury the cars instead.Be creative! Be enlightened!How do you get more people out of their cars, using public transport? Give them

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1119361731795556252005-06-26T21:33:00.000-04:002005-06-27T15:13:29.246-04:00

...where will you be?Since finishing my first read through Jim Kunstler's The Long Emergency, I've stopped planning for what I would do if the fossil fuel reserves effectively ran dry tomorrow. Realistically, tomorrow would be too late; planning for such a catastrophic failure happening tomorrow would probably be a waste of time.Instead, I'm planning for the gradual decay of infrastructure over

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1119546590456396712005-06-23T12:00:00.000-04:002005-06-23T21:09:27.366-04:00

I just finished reading Fab the other day and a most intriguing question came to mind. What place will patents have in an age of personal fabrication?Think about it. A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a government to a person for a fixed period of time in exchange for the regulated, public disclosure of certain details of an invention.This works in an industrial, mass-production

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1118385179497818312005-06-21T09:32:00.000-04:002005-06-21T09:33:28.626-04:00

It started with some discussions on the wearable computing list, wear-hard.A more organic approach to machine design. Perhaps the oldest of machines, superceded only by the spinning wheel, the loom goes back thousands of years. Where broken tools and pottery shards lie in dust, cloth wraps the bodies of the dead.In order to blend in with society, a robot needs to simply be part of the

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1118802080640688202005-06-14T22:15:00.000-04:002005-06-14T22:28:43.096-04:00

It's one of those things I've always used, because my dad used them:Robertson screws.a.k.a square drive screws.Whenever I buy a piece of assemble-yourself furniture that uses cross or flat head screws, I swap in an equivalent Robertson. Hex screws I don't mind; they're just as effective.If you're gonna screw, screw with the best!

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1118801217054224272005-06-14T21:52:00.000-04:002005-06-14T22:26:46.796-04:00

While in San Jose last week, I decided to start looking into how feasible it might be for me bike places (including from the airport to the hotel) instead of renting a car.Much as Dan Gilmour notes with respect to auto travelling, 511.org has a whole section devoted to bicycling.First things first. Must get set up to ride to work and back on a regular basis.

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1118161050358452172005-06-07T19:54:00.000-04:002005-06-07T22:53:58.763-04:00

I was reading through the Technology Review newsletter I get every day and one article title jumped out at me.One Decision: UPS Goes BluetoothImmediately, the wheels started to turn in my mind. Imagine what one could do in a home where non-essential equipment power consumption was controllable by bluetooth......but it wasn't that kind of UPS; it was the other kind. Ooops!

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1118119012437745672005-06-07T00:21:00.000-04:002005-06-07T00:36:52.446-04:00

One of the more lasting ways to effect change in life is to find ways to make it your own.With that in mind, I had started the Personal Mantras page at 43FoldersWiki. Looks like it's really taken off! Cool!

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1117827851773859132005-06-03T22:51:00.000-04:002005-06-03T22:51:53.770-04:00

Having traveled as much as I have these past few years, I have come to appreciate the little things.For the most part, my expectations of people have fallen pretty much to what Seth experienced in We don't have to care, part I. As a result, I usually enter a zen-like trance while traveling and let what will happen, happen. Life is too short to get stressed out by other people's

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1117734522045784352005-06-02T13:19:00.000-04:002005-06-02T13:48:42.056-04:00

Just spotted this press release about a new solar-powered sensor module by EnOcean.Now there is a company that gets it. As the Long Emergency plays out, implementations like these will take off. Along this train of micro-power thought, why don't children's toys have solar chargers built in? They would certainly charge a lot faster outside than in, perhaps persuading more kids to go outside.

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1117679462696823002005-06-01T22:02:00.000-04:002005-06-01T22:31:02.716-04:00

Looks like it's time to retire my iRiver PMP-120......because Archos has just released the SDK for their PMA-400 series devices! That's where iRiver failed to meet my expectations, with respect to embracing Linux as their PMP OS. First idea that comes to mind is an all-in-one, non-linear video editing application. Would be ideal for all this talk of video blogging to replace audio-only

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1117590352132237482005-05-31T21:44:00.000-04:002005-05-31T21:45:52.140-04:00

We all know there are energy losses in any system....but this much systemic loss? Certainly makes one think.

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1117466120563963222005-05-30T10:41:00.000-04:002005-05-30T11:15:20.566-04:00

Nearly every household has them......dangling from the sockets of our energy addiction, sucking precious electrons from our already strained electric grid. Parasite, thy name is wall wart! Design engineers, please be more intelligent about your stand-by power management. There are options and alternatives. For example, some low-power control to run off capacitors and detect (and supply) the

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1115870410533731172005-05-11T23:56:00.000-04:002005-05-14T23:03:46.760-04:00

Finally!An easy way to sketch out isometric views without needing a 30/60/90 triangle.

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1115860959768319742005-05-11T21:17:00.000-04:002005-05-11T23:53:11.400-04:00

Not too long ago, Treehugger pointed folks to an article called Organic Lawn Care For the Cheap and Lazy.As it turns out, rabbit manure makes a fantastic fertilizer!(Gotta ask my brother to save his rabbit's output for me.)

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1115786201122435422005-05-11T00:07:00.000-04:002005-05-11T00:36:41.130-04:00

Five easy steps to biological enlightenment: Read article about soybean aphid problem Do Google Search on "soybean aphid predator". Find Arthropod Biological Control State Reports for 2004. Do Google Search on "Orius insidiosus Say picture". Introducing the Minute Pirate Bug, Orius insidiosus (Say)! So according to the article in #1, farmers are waiting for the insects to emerge to

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1115435006802633012005-05-06T23:03:00.000-04:002005-05-06T23:03:26.806-04:00

sapien_512x512 Originally uploaded by aplumb. So, apparently Flickr lets you "Blog this photo" directly.Giving it a shot to see what happens. Send in the robot!

APnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12709637.post-1115434513435254272005-05-06T22:48:00.000-04:002005-05-06T22:55:13.440-04:00

...there was Nexus (Not Nodal).But times changed, as did needs and expectations. Seven years later (has it really been that long?), I think it's time to give it another shot.They were called "online journals" or "online diaries" back then. Today they're weblogs, or 'blogs for short.What awaits tomorrow, I wonder.?.

APnoreply@blogger.com1