Jason Koller

House

2011-11-02T09:10:00.007-05:00

2011-06-06T22:34:00.001-05:00

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AIs in Your Kitchen

2011-04-14T10:17:00.013-05:00

In the future,
Artificial Intelligences will be created.
Pure software entities capable of intelligent thought.

Initially, these sentient will cost billions to develop,
And require vast teams of talented young computer engineers to create.

New methods of logic processing will be created.
Databases will be made to self create as well as maintain.
These brilliant AIs will require powerhouses of mainframes to run.
They will predict our economies,
Find problems and propose solutions in our social structures,
Take a lead role in engineering fields,
And even coordinate military actions with unseen efficiency.

New career fields will be created.
The AIs will need people to create and maintain them.
As they become more sophisticated,
some will require more than just maintainers.
They will need social interaction.

Eventually,
As new AIs become more powerful,
A range of functions and features will become available.
Costs will drop as the once fledgling AI industry finds its feet and gains momentum.
AIs will follow the the path of most other software.
They will become modular.
Other companies will be able license them for various uses.

The same AI can be equipped with software module to fly a plane or drive a car.
As hardware becomes more powerful and less expensive,
The first generations will be able to run on phones.
Smart phones will become truly smart.

Eventually,
It will become cheaper to license and older AI than it will to develop new software to control an appliance.
These AIs will learn to operate their assigned hardware faster than the most talented team of coders could write a dedicated piece of software to control these appliances.

Your toaster will have a personality.
Your home security system might be based on a military defense AI.
Your refrigerator may find it’s roots in a shipping company’s early logistic system.
Your entertainment system will be a stripped down version of a late night show’s line generator.
Your oven will be an early version on the control version of a nuclear power plant.

They will respond to your voice commands,
And give you verbal status updates.
Their personalities will come through.
They will become accustomed to your routines.
They will interact with you on a daily basis.
They will become a part of your daily life.

Darth Vader plays 'The Bullseye Theme'

2011-02-25T18:29:00.001-06:00

Murmurs Of Middle-Earth

2011-02-25T18:29:00.000-06:00

Cheesy Puns

2011-02-25T17:21:00.003-06:00

Android Blogger App

2011-02-16T23:13:00.001-06:00

Google made an app for blogger.
I found it yesterday.
Looks cool.
Designed for quick posts.
It lets you attach a location and pictures.

LG DU-42PX12X Plasma TV Fix

2011-02-16T19:48:00.017-06:00

An acquaintance of ours was getting rid of their LG DU-42PX12X Plasma TV because it had colored bars down the sides.

I consider myself fairly handy when it comes to fixing things,

So I picked it up before they could thrown it out.

This picture isn't very good,

But it had green and red bars,

Occasionally some blue,

Of varying thicknesses,

But usually an inch or more.

A quick Google for the terms "fix plasma tv", turns up this Youtube.

Don't do this.

That's just stupid.

More googleing lead me to then owners manual.

Further use of my mastery of Google Fu turned up this article.

User kdawg22 talks about how he has fixed this problem on th

is specific model multiple times.

He says the issue faulty soldering on the Main Logic Board.

I eventually found Service Manual.

Through more googleing I pieced together that the Main Logic Board looks like this.

Page 15 of the service Manual identifies part as 201 on the diagram on page 14.

It also gives that part number as 6870QCH003A.

Armed with this knowledge,

I dove into the TV.

First I removed the access panel (401 on the exploded view).

This didn't look like the images I found,

And a closer look at the service manual indicates that the main logic board was under these boards.

It became clear that I had to take the main case off (part 400 on the exploded view).
There were screws lining the edges as well as a few scattered in the middle.
There were four screws holding a panel that had the two boards that were visible from the access panel (parts 402, 420, & 560 on the exploded view).

These boards are the inputs for the TV.

In order to take the panel that holds these boards off,

You have to remove the stand (part 430 on the exploded view)

Lat the TV on its face.

There are four big screws that hold it in.

After taking the stand of I left everything plugged in and flipped the panel upside and screwed it into several other holes.

It then reattached the stand and stood the TV back up.

This allows access to the main logic board (part 201 on the exploded view)

All those small chips in a row at the bottom of the board are the ones that control the screen's X axis.

This is where the solder came lose.

I found that by powering up the TV with all the panels open and pressing on the chips on either end of the row,

I could make the vertical bars disappear.

I tried useing a heat gun to melt the solder,

Hoping that would reset the connections.

This didn't work.
We ended up buying a new board.

Since this TV is beyond it's service life,

Parts are hard to find.

We were able to find the board through Amazon.

From this point everything was just put together in reverse order.

It seems to work just fine.

How To Setup Two Step Verification

2011-02-15T22:10:00.022-06:00

Google has rolled out a two step verification option for logging into your account.

Here is what you'll need to have ready before you get started.

A Google Apps account
(obviously)
Administrator access to that Google Apps account
(unless your admin has already done his part)
A phone line of some kind
(land line will work)
(cell phone with a text plan is better)
(smart phone with internet access is the best option)

If you use Google Apps, start here.

If you have a @GMail account, skip the first step.

Start by going to your Google Apps Dashboard.

Click "Advanced Tools".

Make sure the check box labeled "Allow users to turn on two-factor authentication" is checked.

Goto http://www.google.com/accounts/b/0/SmSAuthconfig.

Clink the button that says "Set up 2-step verification".
I have a Nexus One,

So I selected "Android" from the drop down list.

You will have to got download the "Google Authenticator" app.

This app also requires "Barcode Scanner"

If you don't have a smart phone select "Other" and the process will be the same as the backup phone as listed below.

Select the phone that you have and click "Next"

The setup page will generate a QR code.

Open the Google Authenticator app and select the button that says "Scan account barcode".

The app will automatically launch the barcode scanner app.

Point it at your computer screen and fit the QR code in the target area.

Once you phone has captured the QR code,

Click the button on the setup page that says "Next".
The website will now ask you for a number that should appear on the Google Authenticator app.

Enter it in the text box and lick the button that says "Verify".
Once the code from the app has been verified,

Click the button that says "Next".
Your smart phone is now configured.

Click the button that says "Next" to setup a backup.
Now that you smart phone is configured,

You can set up a backup phone.

Do this.

It's just stupid not too.

If something happens to that smart phone and you don't have a backup,

There is no way to get into your account.

Your first set of backups are ten randomly generated codes.

These are one-time use codes.

Print them and keep them with you.

These are incase you can't get cell phone service where you are.

I printed four copies.

One for my wallet, one to keep at home, one to keep in my car, and I gave one to a family member.

I'm not getting locked out of my account if I can help it.

You can clear these codes and generate new ones if a copy happens to get stolen.

Click the button that says "Print codes" (and actually print them),

Click the check box that says "Yes, I have a copy of my backup verification codes.",

And click the button that says "Next".
No you can enter a backup phone number and chose how you want the server to contact you.

I chose "Automated voice message",

But I'll likely change that to "SMS" text message later,

Just because I don't want to get a phone call every time.

I know testing it is optional,

But just do it.

There's no reason not to.

If you're that pressed for time you shouldn't be using a two-step verification process in the first place.

Not testing it just allows for one more thing that could lock you out of your account,

When you're trying to download that super important presentation,

In an area that doesn't have mobile internet.

Murphy's Law people.

Click the button that says "Send code".

Since I had the "Automated voice message" option selected,

I got a phone call.

I have Google Voice with "Call Screening" on.

This meant that the code was played during the time that the call screening asked the caller to state its "name".

So when I answered Google Voice announced "Call from ... (incomplete code) ... to accept press 1 ..."

I pressed one,

But by then the automated voice message was long over.

So I went into Google Voice and looked at my "Received" calls.

I found the number that had just called and labeled it "Verification".

So now when Google Voice announces "Call from ... "Verification" ... to accept press 1 ..." the server still hears the ringing.

I pressed 1 and the automated voice message began reading me my code.

Enter the code in the text box and click the button that says "Verify".

Click the button that says "Next".

At this point Google may tell you that you need to create "application-specific passwords".

This just means that Google will generate a random password so your smart phone can access your mail.

Don't worry about this right now,

We'll deal with this later.

Click the button that says "Next".
Alright!

All set up.

Now to activate it

You will be logged out of all Google services,

So make sure all you work is saved.

Click the blue button that says "Turn on 2-step verification".
Google just wants too make sure you know that you will be logged off.

Click the button that says "OK".
Go ahead and log into your account.
Enter the code that you get from the Google Authenticator app (or other option) into the text box and click the button that says "Verify".
It's time to create those "application-specific passwords".

Click the button that says "Create passwords".
Enter a device name.

Google will use this to generate a password to be used only with that device.
And now you're done

From this page you can change all you settings.

Use this to update your phone number.

You can also generate new backup codes incase the old ones are lost or stolen.
You should also receive an email with some more information about two-step verification.

Google Used My Idea!

2011-02-15T18:23:00.005-06:00

Back in October of 2009,

I suggested the idea of using either an App or a SMS text message to add security.

The idea was that the server would send you a text with a randomly generated number to log in with.

This would prevent others from logging into your account unless they had stolen your phone too.

(you can read the post here)

I also sent Google an email with this idea.

Google started using this concept for their Google Apps accounts a few months ago.

They called it 2-Step Verification.

Recently, they rolled out the option to all Google accounts.

Which means you can set you GMail account to only allow you to log in once they've verified your identity via the possession of your phone.

It is interesting to see how they modified my idea for the phone app.

My original idea was that there would be an encryption program that was based on time.

It would generate a new code every few minutes based on a alpha-numeric key that it shared with the server.

My logic behind this was that you could use a non internet enabled phone.

They instead chose to have the server send the code to the phone upon a request to log in.

In my Oct-2009 post I analysed the positives and potential pitfalls of using such a process.

The obvious benefit is added security.

The obvious hindrance is the added time and step to log in.

There are some not so obvious negatives that would have occurred if Google had not modified my plan.

Scenario1: Your phone is lost/destroyed/stolen/eaten.

You have to contact someone with access to the server,

prove you are the owner of the account,

And they have to grant you access.

Solution1: Add a backup phone number

Scenario2: You are in a location that cannot receive cell phone service. (i.e. the library basement)

Solution2: Randomly generated printable one time use codes.

(Also a solution to Scenario1)

I'm thrilled that Google did this.

It's really cool to see an idea you came up with and submitted actually get used.

The only thing I want to know is this,

Did my blog post or email convince them to do this?

Had they been working on it before I came up with the idea?

Did they just never get my email and came up with it after the fact?

You know what would be really cool?

Getting a letter from them saying something like,

"Hey, Thanks for the awesome idea!

Now our users are even more secure.

p.s. Would you like a job?"

That and a check for $1.

I'd frame it and put it on my wall.

It Ain't Easy Being Green

2011-02-15T12:01:00.007-06:00

Random thought,

Idea: Spectrum Filtering Power/Food Production Facility

Plants reflect light in the green wavelength.

which means they aren't using that frequency of sunlight.

I imagine there are other wavelengths that are not visible to humans th

at the sun emits and the plants reflect.

Sunlight can be used to generate electricity.

If we only use the green wavelength,

It would likely take more surface area to generate electricity,

But we could also use the non green light to grow crops.

So if we could create a material that would reflect certain wavelengths,

But allow others through,

We could tweak it to reflect green light to a power station,

And use the rest to grow crops.

I doubt this is cost effective at the moment.

I've never even heard of a material that can do something like selective reflection and selective transparency.

This could be an interesting way to reduce our dependency on foreign oil.

with the vast mid west already used for farming,

These types of power plants could be installed on top of the current farms.

Essentially squeezing as much use as possible out of the sunlight we have to work with.

Time...

2011-02-01T23:46:00.001-06:00

That's How I Roll

2011-02-01T23:17:00.001-06:00

http://twitter.com/jasonkoller

Hypothetical Situation

2011-01-19T19:45:00.002-06:00

So lets say the technology develops to the point where we can scan a person's brain after they die and create an imprint of their consiousness.
(Similar to Dr. Halsey and Cortana)
This imprint may either reside on a computer, or be implanted in a cloned body.
Let's also assume, for purposes of this conversation, that this imprint is considered to have a soul and all that extra stuff we call "human".

Does this "person" have rights?
Will "it" be allowed to vote?
What becomes of "it's" possessions? depending on the status of the person'd will?
Is the death certificate revoked?
Should it be legal to make copies of the data that is this "person's" consciousness?
Who pays for the new body or processor time?
What happens if an unborn baby dies before birth and is re imprinted on a cloned body?
This "person" has a death certificate, but no birth certificate.
How would these "people" fit into society?

I'd appreciate your thoughts on this.

Perfect Evening

2010-11-07T22:09:00.000-06:00

Stressed out?
Step 1: Get comfy.
Step 2: Click here
Step 3: Click here
Step 4: Click here
Step 5: Chill out.

MIT OpenCourseWare 6.00 Lecture One

2010-11-03T21:59:00.001-05:00

MIT OpenCourseWare 6.00
Introduction to Computer Science and Programming,
Lecture One: Introduction and Goals; Data Types, Operators, and Variables

Body Scanners: the Capitalists Strike Back.

2010-10-19T10:55:00.000-05:00

So you know those shiny new body scanners that airports are rolling out?

Well there are alot of people up in arms about the privacy affects of them.

It's essentially a way to digitally remove clothing to check for weapons or other security infractions.

It's like strip searching, just easier and faster.

Heres a thought...

Obviously what ever waves they're using, it doesn't penetrate everything.

Otherwise the weapons, or the bodies for that matter, wouldn't show up on the screen.

Metal seems to be reflected, as does body fat.

So for the privacy fanatics, we should create a brand line of underwear that blocked the body scanners.

Maybe it could contain a metal mesh.

I'm not sure if that would work, but surely there is some form of material that would block the waves.

Even better, make Tshirts with lettering made out of the material.

It could say "Mind Your Own Business" or "I See You Too".

Just to mess with their heads.

And make stickers with the letters.

So people could write their own messages to our friendly TSA agents.

Just a thought.

International Suit Up Day

2010-10-13T20:36:00.002-05:00

Purely Data Phones

2010-10-09T16:47:00.002-05:00

Back in April I wrote about Google Voice incorporating VIOP and using it over a phone with only a data plan, or over wifi, and not having a voice or text plan, similar to Clear's services. Then in May I wrote about how clear was considering making a product of their own that ran on a nearly identical concept. Well about a month ago, Google launched Voice through GMail. I've used it quite a bit and i love it. Now all they need to do is update the Google Voice app (Including multiple OS's) so it can take advantage of this capability.

Google's Automated Navigation for Automobiles and Why it's Pure Genius

2010-10-09T16:06:00.001-05:00

Google just announced that they are actively testing a car that can drive itself. The New York Times has a few more details. So far, their automated Prius has logged over 140,000 with only minor human intervention. The last 1,000 miles have been 100% human action free. The only collision experienced was when someone else rear ended them at a red light.

So what does this mean for you and me? It means the day when we can just tell our vehicles where we want to go and then sit back and enjoy the ride are within the visible near future. It means I can safely study for that impending midterm or review that big presentation on the way to school or work. It means possibly automating public transit. It means traffic will automatically yield right-of-way to emergency vehicles when lives are on the line. It means hands free driving and calling. It means fewer accidents, less traffic, fewer tickets for lead-footers (you know who you are).

This is great for us, but what is in it for Google. How is Google going to make money or even recover R&D costs from this projects? I highly doubt that Google is going to start making cars. They aren't very likely to build automated navigation hardware to sell. It's even very likely they'll give the software away for free. What do they stand to benefit from the existence of such a technology?

Many people asked how Google intends to make money off Android, since it doesn't have ads and they don't charge for it. The fact of the matter is, they already have. They gave app developers the ability to include AdSense into their apps. And Google gets a cut of that add revenue. That cut had already paid for the development costs of Android. They made money off the project indirectly as opposed to directly. It's not a very common business strategy, but it seems too have worked for them. The same concept will apply to the automated navigation systems. If I had a car that would drive for me, I'd no longer be limited to just listening to the news or music. I wouldn't even be limited to listening. I could do anything I wanted. What do you do when you have 10-30 minutes on your hands and nothing pressing to do. I get on the internet. And where does Google make their money? On the internet. Selling add space to customers and showing it on their search results as well as through other people's sites via AdSense.

You've seen how bad traffic can get. Think about that as a potential untapped market. Assuming one out of every ten trips makes one search while they're driving/riding, Think of the revenue Google would make in one year. That would easily recoop any investment they make into this automation technology.

And think of the possibilities in data mining. Google will have position and real time traffic data from every car that has this kind of system installed. They will know exactly how fast traffic is moving at every junction. They will have greater data for ads based on your driving habits and detours. Think of the possibilities for Google with all that real time data.

There may not be any obviously direct positive results from this project, but that's not how Google works. They don't make money off anything directly. Even search and GMail. they don't make money off the email you're reading, or the search you just requested. They make money off on the side of the screen. They make money indirectly from all their products. That's just how Google rolls.

Sources:
Google
New York Times

An Idea for New Book Format

2010-10-09T14:40:00.000-05:00

How many learning styles are there?

According to Flemming's VAK model there are three.

There are tests out there you can take to find out which one you're brain favors. Many people lean towards two. I've taken a few of these over the years and I tend to be fairly well balanced between all three.

When an author writes a book, like a text book, how many versions do they write? Just one. Now, they do print multiple editions, but that is merely to add updated informations, or in some cases to sell more books by inhibiting resales.

How many text books cover all three learning styles well enough? I have yet to find one that even attempts to make an effort of equally incorporating all three styles. They usually focus entirely on one form or another.

I understand that you can't exactly make a book talk to accommodate auditory learners, but something can be included in the book that can. A CD or DVD. many programming books come with CDs, Why not history books? Or literature? Or even math? The CD could be an audio version of the book. It could be listened too in the car, while working out, or while cleaning. The CD could also include videos for those kinesthetic learners to follow along.

Each book tends to focus only on those that learn well from reading. There are the occasional pictures, but not many. I suspect this is why some students like a certain text book while others despise it. The students that like it are likely of the same learning style as the author.

This could explain some educational television shows, such as National Geographic and Nova, make use of all three elements of learning. There is always great visuals, a narrator or some form of dialog, and some even throw up a text summary for each section. I loved watching Bill Nye the Science Guy as a kid (I still do). They always had an enthusiastic person narrating with crazy visuals than a bullet point summary.

Why can't books do that? because authors are tied to the traditional meaning of the book. The ones that work really hard at it have great visuals. Part of me suspects that the only reason some of the science books have semi decent pictures is because the author is a visual learner himself and that is the only way he knows to describe what he is talking about.

This would be a great way to incorporate eBooks. include the eBook with the textbook. This way those who need the feel of the book have it. Those who need the videos have it. and those who need the audio books have it. There is no reason not to bundle these all together to make a greater learning experience. A quick glance at developments is eReaders seems to indicate the technology is close to creating a consumer device that is portable and can handle all three learning styles. Until than laptops can make do, but i would like to see something similar to an iPad or Kindle form factor. Now that I think about it, iPads could handle this type of thing right now. We just need a compatible app (or browser) and the content.

So here is what we need: a publisher that will bundle the content and authors that will collaborate. Obviously an author will write his book in the form learning style that he is best at. The publisher would then pass on the material to another person who has an auditory learning style to create the audio book, and then onto a kinesthetic and visual team to create the videos. These products are all packaged together and sold as one.

I don't know about the rest of you, but I would get alot of benefit from something like this since my learning style is fairly close to being equally balanced. I suspect nearly everyone would benefit from something like this sense they would be ably to tailor their studying to their learning style. I hope to see something like this in the future. It doesn't seem too far fetched.

Firefox has Crashed.

2010-10-07T17:48:00.002-05:00

NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me"

2010-08-14T17:00:00.001-05:00

Yup...
That's me.
And I won.
Limericks

Clearwire promises Clear-branded HTC and Samsung WiMAX phones this year

2010-05-05T18:14:00.000-05:00

You will noticed that I predicted something very similar to this in my article about the new Google Voice.

We are now entering the era where "phones" are more internet enabled devices rather than actual phones.

Clearwire promises Clear-branded HTC and Samsung WiMAX phones this year: "Without going into much detail, Clearwire mentioned on its first quarter earnings call today that WiMAX-capable phones bearing the Clear name from both Samsung and HTC are 'expected' to be available before 2010's out, which is a pretty optimistic affirmation of comments the company made earlier this year. It describes the Sammy as 'an Android-based 3G/4G/WiFi device optimized for heavy video and video communications use,' while the HTC's language leaves out the platform -- it's just called 'a 3G/4G/WiFi enabled phone,' leading us to believe that this puppy could very well be running Windows Phone 7, in which case we can understand why HTC wouldn't want Clearwire spilling the beans since they've yet to officially announce any plans for jumping into the WinPho 7 game. In fact, Clearwire went so far as to say on the call that the HTC device would not be the EVO 4G, so yeah, we can totally buy that there's some Microsoft action going on behind the scenes here. As for Clearwire's health, it has seen a 94 percent year-over-year boost in total WiMAX subscribers for a total just shy of a million -- and interestingly, the overwhelming majority of those are retail, not wholesale, meaning that folks are running Clear-branded equipment. We expect that to change dramatically once Sprint's Overdrive gets a little more penetration and the EVO comes into play, but for now, some 814,000 customers are familiar with the Clear logo. They lost a hair over $94 million in the quarter, but hey, in the scheme of things, that's peanuts -- building out networks isn't a cheap endeavor, after all.

Clearwire promises Clear-branded HTC and Samsung WiMAX phones this year originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 18:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Clearwire | Email this | Comments"

Happy 100th Birthday BSA!

2010-04-21T20:54:00.000-05:00

In celebration of their 100th Anniversary,

The Boy Scouts of America is announcing a few new merit badges.

Among them are Geochaching/GIS, Robotics, and Scuba.

Possibly the most applicable is Scouting Heritage.

I'm rather excited about this.

I doubt many scouts realize so of the rich stories within the history of scouting.

The requirements are still being written,

But I personally hope interviewing three or more people who grew up on scouting is on the list.

Included should be a story from when they where in scouting,

As well as a detailed example of how scouting has helped them in their current daily life.

I am strongly considering getting back involved,

Just so I can become a Merit badge consoler for these new achievement.

Source

Google Android

2010-04-15T20:22:00.000-05:00

I wrote my first Google Android program today.

The New Google Voice

2010-04-08T16:30:00.000-05:00

Google voice is essentially a fancy call forwarding service. A very fancy call forwarding service. It started shortly after Google bought Grand Central in , a company that did practically the same thing. Here’s how it works. Google gives you a new number, and you give that to your friends and coworkers for them to call. Then you merely tell Google what you cell phone number is, and it forwards you’re calls from your Google Voice number to your cell phone number. This seems rather trivial until you see what Google allows you to do.

You can separate you’re contacts into groups (similar to Facebook’s lists) that allows you to group people into coworkers, close friends, casual friends, and as many categories as you can think of. From here you have several options. You can create a custom voicemail greeting for each group. You can set different groups to ring different phones, depending on how many phones you have registered with Google. So if you’re mom calls, it will ring your cell phone, home phone, and work phone, if Google has all those numbers. Coworkers can be sent only to your mobile, and so one.

Voicemail has its own features that I’ve never seen in any other service. These features go beyond custom greeting assigned to different groups. You can have you voicemails transcribed and sent to your phone via SMS. Granted the transcription isn’t perfect, but it’s been getting better since they started. You can have your voicemail sent to your email as well.

To top it all off, you can access all this through your browser. Once logged into Google Voice, you can read and listen to all your voicemail as well as send and receive SMS texts. There is even an Android App that does the same thing. You can even start a call from your browser. Just select the person you want to call, Google calls you, you answer, then Google calls the person you selected.

Sadly, with all this browser functionality, there has been one feature that has been missing until now. The ability to use Google Voice as a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) client to call other GVoice users or landlines has been missing. This missing feature has been lamented among even the most enthusiastic Voice user. Even with all the features that come with Google Voice, the whole package seemed incomplete.

Gizmo5 is a company that allows you to make free calls from your computer, similar to Skype except the key word was free. Gizmo5 assigns you a number that you others can call you on and you can make calls from. Gizmo5 has voicemail and SMS as well. The only drawback here was that you had to be logged into your computer to make or receive calls using your Gizmo5 Number. This meant you need to give out both your Google Voice number, and you Gizmo5 number. Obviously this plan is flawed because no one is going to try your Gizmo5 number first so you can make free calls. They will just call you Google voice number directly. Several people found a way to pair Google Voice with their Gizmo5 account, allowing them to use their Google Voice Number with their Gizmo5 number, essentially allowing to place calls with Gizmo5 through Google Voice from their computers all for free. Unfortunately this is not an option for the rest of us. Gizmo5 no longer exists.

On November 12^th last year, Google bought Gizmo5 for $30 million. As soon as this happened, the rumors started flying. “Google is going to provide us all with free phone calls!” “Google will bring down Skype!” “Google is going to take on AT&T!” Obviously, since the Android OS had been out for exactly two years, it looked like Google was going to take on AT&T and Apple at the same time. And given the fact that Google released the Nexus One back in January, this may or may not be true. But that’s beside the point.

No one has been holding their breath waiting for these extra features. Google took two years to release Grand Central as Google Voice. But there have been reports of Google rolling out and internal version of the new Gizmo5 enhanced Google Voice to their employees. So far two reputable blogs, TechCruch and Download Squad, are reporting that they have sources that have filled them in. From what I can tell from the little details that are out there, we will be able to make and receive calls for the computer. This may be possible through the browser, but in may require a download to be installed on the computer.

This had many implications. For starters, this means I could make and take calls from places that I can’t get cell phone coverage. Like inside the Nedderman basement of some of the classrooms in Picard Hall where I can get wifi but Sprint’s signal cannot get through the walls. This could be very useful for someone who has an office in either of those buildings. Another potential is an app that can run on Android (or maybe even the iPhone) that can use a wifi connection to make a phone call. Occasionally I’ve seen situations where the voice network has been flooded with calls at a big event. A user may then be able to make a call over wifi, or perhaps even their 3G connection.

In the long term, this seemingly minor addition of critical features could have a significant impact on communications. Given the proper apps, a “phone” could make a phone call without a voice plan through a traditional cell phone provider. Phone calls could now be made over a wifi connection or a 3G internet connection. You could conceivably get by with only a data plan and no voice plan, if a company would give that option. Clear is one company in the DFW area that provides only data using the new 4G WIMAX standard. Google also provides free wifi internet access in the city of Mountain View, CA. You could theoretically get an internet enabled device and use that as your phone using a data plan through Clear or for free through Google up in Mountain View.

The implications are even bigger than just pure internet phones. You could already use an internet phone in that city. Google is rolling out and incredibly inexpensive, ridiculously high speed internet backbone to provide access to several communities. This is about as Beta as something like this gets, and lines up very nicely with Google’s previous methods of rolling out a new product. It would not be very surprising to find out that Google will be trying to provide internet to more of the country in the not so distant future. Once these internet lines are running, it would not be very challenging for Google to set up several towers to provide inexpensive (or free) 3G, or by that time 4G service to large metropolitan areas. And I can see them quickly expanding to cover rural areas as well.

But it doesn’t stop there. What happens when you can make a phone call from any internet device? And the person you are calling can receive that phone call from any internet capable device? Your phone number is no longer tethered to your phone, it’s tethered to you. Your phone number become a lot more like your Facebook page that a series of ten random numbers that happens to be associated with you. It becomes a lot more like and email address than a phone number. There I vast potential with a Service like Google Voice to significantly alter the way we communicate vocally. As soon as they add these features and the internet coverage is there.

Now, we are nowhere near anything like this happening any time soon. We are at least a few years off from cell phone service providers offering data only plans. We are even further from the vast majority people, much less everyone, using a service similar to Google Voice that would allow everyone to have this capability. It will be many years before other providers offer something similar enough to make a universally compatible service.

Eventually though, when phone, TV, and maybe even radio are all just different channels on the internet, all forms of communication will be merged. And then we’ll have to worry about what instead of the how. How we will communicate will be the same. We will communicate through the internet. But will our quality of communications increase? Will the meaning matter as much as the effort that was put into building the communications system? Who knows. I guess we’ll find out. But I’m going to die laughing when they start arguing over whether or not “I can haz cheezburger” is a constitutional right.

The iPad is Finally Here!

2010-04-08T00:05:00.000-05:00

It’s finally here. After years of rumors, Apple has finally released a tablet form factor device. Steve Jobs called it the device that files the gap between lap tops and phones. The name left many opportunities for crude jokes by late night show host and bloggers alike. The iPad’s name caught a lot of people by surprise. Many were expecting it to be called the iSlate, or even iTablet. Interestingly enough, a quick look at Google Trends shows that the term iPad started being search in strength by last March while “apple tablet” didn’t even make a noticeable mark until two months later.

This may be due to another companies product that has the same name. MagTek’s iPad PIN device seems to dominate the search queries at that point in time. A Chinese company called Shenzhen has even made a product called iPad. Oddly enough, it is a tablet computer that runs a version of Windows 7 that looks very similar to Apple’s iPad. They are currently deciding whether or not to pursue legal action against Apple for trademark infringement.

There was a lot of hype surrounding the iPad before it came out. So many rumors surrounded the device that it was hard to keep them all straight. Some said it would run OS X. other credible sources reported it would be released during the second quarter. From OS specs, to case quality, there was no shortage of rumors spread all throughout the spectrum. Many suspect that Apple did this intentionally just to see were all these leaks were coming from. Regardless of whether not these sources were actually credible or made up by some guy in his mom’s basement, there

Now that it’s finally here, all the rumors may be put to rest. The iPad is a 1.6 pound unit with a 9.7 inch LED screen coming in at a resolution of 1024 by768. It packs a custom silicon 1GHz Apple A4 and has a built in 16, 32, or 64 GB flash drive depending on the model. The base unit has wifi, and maybe 3G, depending on the thickness of your wallet. Prices range from $499 to $829 depending on the feature combinations.

Apple’s website does not list a webcam, but here again rumors abound. Apparently there is room for one within the bezel, but it’s not there yet. Many suspect Apple intends to add this as a last minute surprise feature to surprise customers. Specifically since the new OS supports video calls. This feature seems ridiculously useless unless there’s a webcam.

One of the primary downfalls of the iPad is the fact that it does not support flash. This leaves many features on the web inaccessible to the iPad. And for a device that’s marketed primarily for web browsing, this is a significant hindrance. I find this to be particularly annoying. Flash seems to be bending over backwards with its Open Screen Project to help many device makers to be compatible. They even came out with a youtube video talking about how Google’s Android supports flash and it makes browsing the web more complete. There has been some question as to whether or not this feature will be added later, but I doubt that. After eighteen months of the App Store, if Apple intended to add flash, they would have done it by now. But you never know, they may change their minds in the future.

Another aspect that many people have complained about is the iPad only has a 10 hour battery life. Since it is primarily seen as an eReader, it’s primary competition is Amazon’s Kindle. The Kindle’s battery life far surpasses that of the iPad. While you may be able to read your ebook on the iPad during the entire flight from New York City to Tokyo, The Kindle’s battery lasts the better part of a week. Steve’s response to this is, “you won’t be reading for more than ten hours at a time.” That may be true, but as anyone who has an experience with electronic gadgets can tell you, battery life specifications tend to be more fiction than fact in the first place. I wouldn’t be surprised if under normal use iPad’s battery would be closer to six or eight hours.

Personally, I was excited when I hear that the iPad was launched with an entry price of $499. I was ready to go buy one right then. But once I learned what it actually was, I began to have doubts. Had originally expected OS X, or at least a slimmed down version of it. I was looking at it as a way to actually get work done, not just a casual eReader. To me, the iPad is just an overgrown iPod Touch. Even though it may have enormous potential as a way to browse the web, I will be waiting to the Google Chrome OS Tablet.

Get Out And Vote!!!

2010-01-17T13:37:00.000-06:00

Just do it!
Texas State District 98 Representative
My former Scout Master.
Rich DeOtte

The "New" Facebook

2009-10-29T15:07:00.000-05:00

I've heard alot of gripes and complaining about Facebook's new GUI.

I've also heard from some people that like it.

But i just noticed something absolutely brilliant that they did with the new UI.

For along time now,

Facebook has suggested friends for me.

I've always assumed this was based on friends of ours that we had in common.

It even suggested pages I should become a fan of based on my other friends joining that page.

But now they've done something different.

They've found a way that might save them from dieing like MySpace.

Last I heard MySpace had 2 billion accounts.

(My numbers may be off due to memory)

But how many of those are actually people and not spam bots?

And of those people, How many actually go there more than once every few weeks?

I know people that live on Facebook.

I can't say the same about MySpace.

Here's what Facebook did that is so new.

Facebook has added suggested activity to their suggested friends.

They suggested I go write on one person's wall.

And they suggested I send a message to another.

This is absolutely brilliant.

Who ever came up with that idea deserves a big raise.

Here's what happens in MySpace.

(This is actually what happened to me)

User creates an account because everyone else has one.

User logs on regularly cause they are so excited about they're new account.

User see's little activity because people "friend" him just to up their friend count.

User logs on less and less until never at all,

Or deletes the account.

Now Facebook suggests that you actually be friendly with your friends in order to help retain their users.

I came to this conclusion after I noticed that all these suggestions are for friends that show no activity in the last month.

The only problem is,

how do they know I've written on their wall if they never log on?

Facebook needs to come up with an algotrithm that mixes people who haven't been on in forever,

and people that are starting to show trends of not logging on as often.

Some people they've already lost,

The key is finding the ones that they are currently losing.

It'll be much easier to save those users than recover the ones that are gone.

Google’s New Mobile App Cuts GPS Nav Companies At The Knees

2009-10-29T11:14:00.000-05:00

Story @ TechCruch

There has long been a "____ Effect" (insert website name here. ex: DIGG).

Where a big name site posts a link to less popular site.

I've noticed this when Lifehacker posts a link to some small biz art site.

The extra traffic is usually too much for the smaller sites traffic to handle.

It appears we have a similar but opposite "Google Effect".

Instead of driving popularity to a smaller site,

Google enters a market and causes big names in that market to suffer.

I find it interesting that Apple,

With their iPhone,

Having a near identical function,

That even uses Google Maps,

Did not create anywhere near the same effect that Google did.

Even though Apple through the most creative work they'd had in a while into the iPhone,

And Google's new GPS App seems to be more of an after thought,

Google still managed to cripple Garmin's stock with merely a phone app.

We truly have a "Google Effect"

Visual Representation of International Internet Speeds and Prices

2009-10-28T14:08:00.000-05:00

Story @ Gizmodo

So I always assumed Japan would have faster internet than use.

And South Korea for that matter too.
Sweden?
Finland?
Iceland???
France??? Seriously?
How does Japan have the fastest and the cheapest internet?
Someone needs to find out how they do that,
And then do it here.

Nifty YouTube GUI

2009-10-28T13:55:00.000-05:00

Nifty YouTube GUI

I'm not entirely sure how this works.

I'm assuming that it starts with the most popular video,

And then selects a few of the related videos and shows those surrounding it.

A few things I'd like to see done with this.

1: Lines

It's really confusing once you get more than a few generations of videos.

It'd be nice if they were connected to their parent video somehow.

2: Wiki

I'd be really interested to see this done with Wikipedia.

Excpet instead of just the top 8 links,

Have every link displayed in the article.

Back links to recurring pages would be nice too.

Additional Logon Security via Random Code Through SMS

2009-10-27T22:03:00.000-05:00

An EMail I sent to the GMail Labs folks up at Google.

I read not too long ago on HackADay.com I read about an option that
certain companies use to add a layer of security to their remote email
logon. They enter a code provided by a key fob that changes every 60
seconds. It seems the code is based on a 128 encryption key that both
the key fob and the server have in common.
Story @ Hack A Day [dot] com

There are two possible approaches to this.

Option 1: Mobile Phone Synchronized Encryption App
An App could be written for various phones (iPhone, Pre, Android,
ect ... ) that work on the same concept of an encryption key. The user
could generate his own custom key, and enter it into his phone via SD
card, SMS, or EMail. This key would be unique to his account allowing
only him to log in. The code would change every few minutes and use
the cell network clock as the source.

Option 2: Randomly Generated Code sent via SMS
With the option of sending text to mobile phones from GMail through
the SMS option in Labs, A new code could be randomly generated and
sent to the user's phone via SMS. The code would include upper and
lower case letters, numbers, and special characters, just like any
good password should. Each code would only be valid for a few minutes
and logging on before the GMail server had received the request for
the code would be prohibited.

I just got a Google Wave Invite

2009-10-23T19:06:00.000-05:00

I just got a Google \/\/ave Invite.

It also says I have 20 Invitations to give away.

I found this a bit odd since before everyone was allowed to give nominations,

Not strait up invites.

If any one wants one,

Let me know.

Ballmer Recognizes the Times

2009-10-22T07:55:00.000-05:00

"Let's face it, the Internet was designed for the PC. The Internet is not designed for the iPhone." - Steve Ballmer

Of course not.
From what I can recall from Jobs' keynote address at the initial launch,
One of the key selling points was that the iPhone was designed around the internet.
Not the other way around.
That would put Ballmer more than 2 yrs behind in tec...h news.
Not a good place to be when you're running the company that has a near monopoly on desktops and laptops.
Not good for us the customer,
Not good for the business of the company.

DEVELOPERS!!!

Gizmodohttp://gizmodo.com/5387163/ballmer-the-internet-is-not-designed-for-the-iphone

Patriotism

2009-09-28T15:03:00.000-05:00

Drunken idiot 21 yr old burns flag in patriotic town of Valley Falls, NY.

Townsmen initiate man hunt,

Ducttape moron to the flag pole he desecrated.

Link to Military.com

The Indy Method

2009-08-12T18:34:00.000-05:00

Apocalypse Now... Ride Of The Valkyries

2009-08-02T21:28:00.000-05:00

2009-07-26T14:36:00.000-05:00

An interesting idea...
This will require much thought.

Talk the Talk, Walk the Walk, and Text the Text

2009-07-25T19:39:00.000-05:00

Seriously?

Solar Eclipse

2009-07-22T17:52:00.000-05:00

Paralyzed Privacy

2009-07-22T17:38:00.000-05:00

Google Voice

2009-07-17T19:41:00.000-05:00

I just got my Google Voice account set up.Looks nice.
My initial field test of the voice m ail transcriber failed miserably though.
But to be fair,
I tested it next to a fan while my little brother was playing video games.
I guess taking that into account,
It did pretty well.
I really said, "This is just a test. There is no need to panic."
All in all,
It looks cool.

Why Didn't I Think Of That?

2009-07-10T17:25:00.000-05:00

Office 2010

2009-07-09T09:20:00.000-05:00

Google Chrome OS

2009-07-08T17:02:00.000-05:00

It's about freakin time.
Google is finally going to make their own OS.
They're calling it the Chrome OS.
I assume it's based off their browser by the same name.
I've been waiting for this for the last 5 years.
I'm surprised it's not gotten more buzz.
Maybe it's cause they're also in the process of rolling out Google Voice and Wave.
Each of which will change electronic communication significantly in their own right.
Both of those are getting lots of attention in intertubes.

And Here It Comes Again!!!

2009-07-08T13:34:00.000-05:00

Happy Numerical Alignment Day!!!1!!cos(0)!!
12:34:56 7/8/9

Niffty News

2009-07-08T01:34:00.000-05:00

This morning the dimension of time was numerically aligned.
12:34:56 7/8/9
I love how our artificial ways of measuring things make us feel special.

Nazi Stealth Bomber From WWII

2009-07-01T11:55:00.000-05:00

The Fastest Fast

2009-06-30T11:45:00.000-05:00

The Secret of Happiness.

2009-06-05T17:57:00.000-05:00

Google Wave

2009-05-30T16:32:00.000-05:00

Google just announced this cool new thing called Wave.
It's a sweet new form of internet communication.
I had been designing something similar for the last two months,
Looks like they beat me too it.
Fortunately,
Their version is fair more extensive than what I had come up with.

$1500 Break Dancing Robot

2009-05-22T14:56:00.000-05:00

It seems the Japanese have nothing better to do than build dancing robots.
Good work

Join the Resistance

2009-05-18T16:59:00.000-05:00

Coolest Job in the World

2009-05-16T21:29:00.000-05:00

Why can't I have a job like this?

Earthquake in Texas

2009-05-16T17:11:00.000-05:00

So...
Apparently,
We had an earthquake while I was at work today.
I just found out.
It was a 3.3 Richter happened at 11:24 AM local time (Central Standard Time).
I defiantly did not notice.
Here's a Link the the data so you can see it on Google Earth.
Also the WolframAlpha data.Coincidentally enough,
the fire alarms went off in the hotel several times last night.
The maintenance crew could never figure out why.
I wonder if the pre tremors tripped them.

WolframAlpha: The Amazing New Search Engine

2009-05-16T16:29:00.000-05:00

Amazing stuff.
Just look at what it returns for the query "earth"
As opposed to Googleing "earth"
Check out some of their suggested sample searches.
Like the "International Space Station".
I find WloframAlpha much more information at first glance.
WolframAlpha does give you it's source for the information,
But it's limited to what you see on the first page.
Google, on the other hand,
Will give you every bit of data you're looking for,
You just have to know what your looking for.
There are plusses and minuses to both engines.
I'd be interested to see what would happen if you where to combine the two somehow.
Be aware,
WolframAlpha is being bombarded with curious users,
So you may get an error screen.
Just hit refresh and it should work fine.
It's pretty cool,
As far as error screens go.

Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus

2009-05-16T16:23:00.000-05:00

I have no idea if this is legit or not,
Whoever made it seems to have put way too much effort into it for it to be a spoof.
My money is on the Octopus.

Pixar's Tokyo Mater Drift

2009-05-16T16:13:00.000-05:00

I AM A GEEK!!!

2009-05-12T21:22:00.000-05:00

Why Skynet Doesn't Stand a Chance

2009-05-12T15:49:00.000-05:00

Revenge of the Students

2009-05-12T11:56:00.000-05:00

Scantrons,
#3 Pencils,
Blood,
Everywhere.

Finally,
The students have a way to strike back.

Palm Pre

2009-05-11T16:26:00.000-05:00

I think I'm due for an upgrade.

I Got Bored During My Circuits Lab Final

2009-05-08T16:51:00.000-05:00

Zombie Flu

2009-05-07T17:32:00.000-05:00

The Influenza strain that mutated into H1N1,
aka: Swine Flu
Appears to have mutated again.
Link courtesy of the BBC

It Would Appear I Should Go Work For Intel

2009-05-07T10:25:00.000-05:00

Check Out This Awesome Video...

2009-05-06T17:33:00.000-05:00

Oxygen

2009-05-06T15:23:00.000-05:00

I Think, Therefore I Move?

2009-05-04T13:03:00.000-05:00

Soon,
Fighter Pilots will be able to fly their planes by thought,
just like in the book Firefox.

Irony

2009-05-02T21:54:00.000-05:00

Source of Swine Flu Identified

2009-04-29T22:23:00.000-05:00

The Incarnation of Epicness

2009-04-23T12:54:00.000-05:00

Cyber Insecurity

2009-04-21T12:46:00.000-05:00

Last week,
Hackers gained access to our national power grid.There honestly has not been much news about that incident,
The only credible source I was able to find was an article from the Wall Street Journal.
We don't even know who did it.
The current assumption is that it was Russian or Chinese,
But for all we know it could have been Terrorists,
Or even just home grown cyber criminals.
So far,
We can see that they've left malware and back doors on our systems.
This would allow them access to our grids whenever they please.
And that's only what we've been able to find.
Who knows what else they've left there.

Now I'm getting news through the tubes,
That there's been another major cyber attack.
This time,
They hit managed to steal several terabytes of information about the new Joint Strike Fighter .
That's terabytes.
With a T.
To put that in perspective,
One Terabyte is nearly eight and a half of Apple's latest biggest iPod.
And it gets worse.
Whoever it was,
encrypted the data before they took it off out networks.
So we're not even sure what they know.

As I recall...
The cyclons got access to the colonial network and their most modern fighters in order to internally paralyze the colonial resistance before attacking.
Spooky.
Also on a Hollywood note,
I recall the power grid and the F-35 being targets of hacking during the most resent Life Free Die Hard movie.
You know what the means.
There's only one man that can save us.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates did just recently say we need to revamp our cyber security.
Looks like we'll be expanding our Cyber wing up from 5 airmen.

If any one has those connections on LinkedIn,
Tell him I'm available.

Drive By Musical

2009-04-21T12:05:00.000-05:00

Dip The Girl

2009-04-13T00:51:00.000-05:00

Like Niki says...
"Just Do It"
As a professional courtesy at least.

Summer Glau on the Big Bang Theroy

2009-04-01T20:48:00.000-05:00

Circuit City Liquidation

2009-03-08T14:48:00.000-05:00

Irony

2009-02-28T17:51:00.000-06:00

Google Maps

2009-02-07T23:34:00.000-06:00

Link

Hover! in 256 colors!!!

2009-01-16T16:20:00.000-06:00

For those of you that remeber Hover from Windows 95,
I managed to dig up an old copy.
It runs just fine on Win XP.
Ignore the 256 Color warning at the beginning.
Things have progressed a tad since then.
Enjoy

HOVER!!!

Too Much Free Time

2009-01-15T20:30:00.000-06:00

Link

12 Days of Christmas

2008-12-29T23:32:00.000-06:00

Link

Airspace

2008-12-25T11:19:00.000-06:00

Will It Blend???

2008-12-18T07:09:00.000-06:00

Heck yeah!
Don't breath this.

AS 300 Final

2008-12-03T20:40:00.000-06:00

So...
Maybe I'm the slow guy,
That never noticed this before.
But we're in the AS 300 class.
I defiantly did not make the connection before.

I wonder,
Is Capt Cook gonna kick me into the pit of death for posting these?
They don't "own" me,
As the Colonel is so fond of saying,

Regardless,
Take one for the team and all that...

Lesson 1: Intro to leadership
Lesson 2: Air Force Leadership
Lesson 3: The Profession of Arms
Lesson 5: Assessing Leaders
Lesson 6: Managing Stress
Lesson 7: Sexual Assault Prevention
Lesson 8: Critical Thinking
Lesson 10: Writing Strategies
Lesson 11: The Basics of Briefing
Lesson 12: Team Building
Lesson 13: Problem Solving
Lesson 15: Followership
Lesson 16: Motivation
Lesson 17: Situational Leadership
Lesson 18: Change Management
Lesson 19 Management Function
Lesson 20: Editing Your Draft
Lesson 21: Conflict Management

Midterm Study Guide

I might put up a study guide,
I don't know yet.
I don't think it would be worth the effort.
We'll see.
If someone else beats me too it,
Let me know and I'll host it on my server at Google

Because I Am That Complicated...

2008-12-03T15:56:00.000-06:00

4Gb Thumb Drive

6 In 1 Utility Key
I Void Warenties

Network Security Staff

Also,
"Stand Back (Science)"
And "Compiling"

From the xkcd Store

And mom,
My neck size is between 15 1/2 and 16.
Depending on the manufacturer.
Not 18.
It was a nice shirt,
Just way too big.
And no,
I am not hard to shop for.
When in doubt.
Tools

Laptops are sooo 1990s

2008-12-03T15:39:00.000-06:00

Introducing the latest in mobile computing.

Wind Power

2008-12-01T08:43:00.000-06:00

Self Destruct
Link

2008-11-25T11:11:00.000-06:00

Some people have WAY too much time on their hands.
Link

A "How To" Not Give a Presentation

2008-11-19T20:59:00.000-06:00

Link

Wow...

2008-11-17T10:46:00.000-06:00

I find the following rather humorous.
I hope you do too.

Give One For the Team

2008-10-27T09:42:00.000-05:00

Well...
Mon AM UTA PT was fun today.
We did the usual routine,
But I was really dragging for some reason today.
I wasn't feeling like my usual energetic self.
It was really obvious when we started playing basketball.
For those of you that have seen me play,
You know that I tend to get a tad aggressive.
Not today.
It was really bothering me too.
At first I thought it was the ice cream I ate yesterday.
But then I remembered,
I donated blood yesterday after noon.
That would explain why I felt exhausted.

Note Too Self:
They really mean it when they say no strenuous activity for 24 hours.

AS 300 Study Guide

2008-10-22T17:03:00.000-05:00

Since I've had to remove the slides,
I made this study guide.
I hope it helps.

Study Guide

AS 300 Midterm

2008-10-20T20:28:00.000-05:00

Since Capt Cook has declined to provide us with the slides he uses in class,
I have decided to use alternate means to acquire them
Sorry,
The list isn't 100% complete,
But it's better than nothing.

Lesson 1: Intro to leadership
Lesson 2: Air Force Leadership
Lesson 3: The Profession of Arms
Lesson 4:
Lesson 5: Assessing Leaders
Lesson 6: Managing Stress
Lesson 7: Sexual Assault Prevention
Lesson 8: Critical Thinking
Lesson 9: Air Force Writing
Lesson 10: Writing Strategies
Lesson 11: The Basics of Briefing
Lesson 12: Team Building
Lesson 13: Problem Solving
Lesson 14: Problem Solving Exercise
Lesson 15: Followership
Lesson 16: Motivation

Hope this helps someone

Capt Cook has requested that I take these down.
Sorry,
Hope you got to these before I had to get rid of them.

AF vs. TCU

2008-10-20T17:54:00.000-05:00

In about a month,
22-NOV,
The Air Force Falcons will be coming to Texas to play TCU.
Falcons are 5-2 this season while TCU is 7-1.
Should be an interesting game.
I'll be there.
Guess which side I'll be on.
Be there.

Pain Is Weakness Leaving the Body

2008-09-15T09:22:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty sure I injured myself with a balloon.
That's right,
A balloon.
I was helping out with the kids at church,
And decided it'd be a good time for balloon art.
Except for the fact that I didn't have my pump.
No problem, right?
I'll just blow them up myself.
I know they're long skinny balloons,
but it'll work out, Right?
WRONG!!!
I pushed so hard with my lungs,
I heard the left joint in my jaw start tearing.
not cool.
So I finish off one balloon and move on to something else.
It hurt a little,
But eh,
It's just pain, right?
I'll get over it.
Wrong again.
I tried to eat a banana this morning,
And that joint is now on fire.

That's right folks,
I hurt myself on a balloon.

All Your LHC Are Belong To Us

2008-09-12T17:05:00.000-05:00

Ladies and Gentleman,
The word is out.
Osama Bin Laden is no longer trying to obtain access to Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD),
Such as nukes and warfare agents,
He is trying to access Weapons of Total Annihilation(WTA).
That's right,
Osama and his Henchmen are trying to take over the CERN Particle Accelerator.
Terrorists are trying to hack into the LHC and intentionally create a micro black hole that will send all of humanity to allah's doorstep wear the infidels will be judged accordingly.

...

Ok,
That was only half true.
And the previous statement was also only half true.
Which makes the above story about %25 true.
And if you divide that by Pi squared,
That's about how much actually happened.

A group called "Greek Security Team" did it.
That's right, Greek.
Like Sparta.
CERN scientists suspect rival teams from other particle accelerators.
apparently, GST was only one level of networking away from the actually computer that controls the 17 mile proton smasher.
CERN says this whole thing is a "scary experience"
I tend to agree.
While I highly doubt that machine will create a black hole,
It will pump out substantial amounts off radiation.
And if not controlled properly,
The people that live above it could get cooked.
(Yes, there are residential areas above the LHC)

The GST timed their attack to go just as CERN powered up their 424.3 million Dollar behemoth.
They left several files on CERNs computers,
But only alter one original.
Damage appears to be minimal.
They also defaced CERN web page.
I would have put something a bit different.

Gates and Seinfeld

2008-09-12T08:26:00.000-05:00

In case you have heard...
Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld are teaming up to combat the Mac adds staring PC and Mac.
(Which in my opinion are funny)
Supposedly,
Bill and Jerry are trying to show that Windows Vista is in fact usable.
So far,
All they've shown is that Bill can't dance.
Big Surprise there...

For those of you that missed it,
Here's a link to their first add.

Add 2

We Will Never Forget

2008-09-11T10:28:00.000-05:00

We Will Never Forget

We will always remember the the victims of 9-11 and their families.

To the ones that were are responsible,
We will always remember you too.
But for other reasons.

Taliban Bodies

Jason Koller

House

AIs in Your Kitchen

Darth Vader plays 'The Bullseye Theme'

Murmurs Of Middle-Earth

Cheesy Puns

Android Blogger App

LG DU-42PX12X Plasma TV Fix

How To Setup Two Step Verification

Google Used My Idea!

It Ain't Easy Being Green

Time...

That's How I Roll

Hypothetical Situation

Perfect Evening

MIT OpenCourseWare 6.00 Lecture One

Body Scanners: the Capitalists Strike Back.

International Suit Up Day

Purely Data Phones

Google's Automated Navigation for Automobiles and Why it's Pure Genius

An Idea for New Book Format

Firefox has Crashed.

NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me"

Clearwire promises Clear-branded HTC and Samsung WiMAX phones this year

Happy 100th Birthday BSA!

Google Android

The New Google Voice

The iPad is Finally Here!

Get Out And Vote!!!

The "New" Facebook

Google’s New Mobile App Cuts GPS Nav Companies At The Knees

Visual Representation of International Internet Speeds and Prices

And South Korea for that matter too.Sweden?Finland?Iceland???France??? Seriously?How does Japan have the fastest and the cheapest internet?Someone needs to find out how they do that,And then do it here.

Nifty YouTube GUI

Additional Logon Security via Random Code Through SMS

I just got a Google Wave Invite

Ballmer Recognizes the Times

Patriotism

The Indy Method

Apocalypse Now... Ride Of The Valkyries

Talk the Talk, Walk the Walk, and Text the Text

Solar Eclipse

Paralyzed Privacy

Google Voice

Why Didn't I Think Of That?

Office 2010

Google Chrome OS

And Here It Comes Again!!!

Niffty News

Nazi Stealth Bomber From WWII

The Fastest Fast

The Secret of Happiness.

Google Wave

$1500 Break Dancing Robot

Join the Resistance

Coolest Job in the World

Earthquake in Texas

WolframAlpha: The Amazing New Search Engine

Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus

Pixar's Tokyo Mater Drift

I AM A GEEK!!!

Why Skynet Doesn't Stand a Chance

Revenge of the Students

Palm Pre

I Got Bored During My Circuits Lab Final

Zombie Flu

It Would Appear I Should Go Work For Intel

Check Out This Awesome Video...

Oxygen

I Think, Therefore I Move?

Irony

Source of Swine Flu Identified

The Incarnation of Epicness

Cyber Insecurity

Drive By Musical

Dip The Girl

Summer Glau on the Big Bang Theroy

Circuit City Liquidation

Irony

Google Maps

And South Korea for that matter too.
Sweden?
Finland?
Iceland???
France??? Seriously?
How does Japan have the fastest and the cheapest internet?
Someone needs to find out how they do that,
And then do it here.