I posted photos of our new house.
This is what I need: a shirt that you don't need to iron. It has "memory metal" woven in. When it gets warm, these fibers spring back to their original shape.
IPOs Are Rigged. But we all knew this, right? I suspected as much, but knew for sure after the BS E*Trade pulled offering some IPO's to certain customers.
Another autogyro article.
I posted new photos from Africa.
My Pac Bell DSL is finally working. It only took 85 days from the time I ordered it.
There is an article in the SF Chronicle describing various problems people are having with Pac Bell DSL. So it seems that everybody is aware of the problem except Pac Bell. Or else they know but don't care.
I actually received two call-backs from Pac Bell. The first was as helpful as a wet piece of paper, telling me what I already know, "Our records show that your DSL has not been activated yet." Thanks for solving that for me, fellas. That answer took more than a week, by the way. But yesterday I reached somebody who sounds like he is willing to help, and has given me his direct number so I can call him to check on how he is doing. He called to tell me that he is working on it, but so far has been unable to coax action out of the necessary players.
Here's a way of encoding an HDTV signal into the unused portions of the NTSC band. I wonder how this will effect the troubled HDTV rollout?
Here are some of the BS lines I have been told by Pac Bell regarding my DSL installation: "I have initiated a call-back procedure. Somebody will investigate the problem and call you back in 3 to 5 days. What is your phone number and the best time to call?" And at another time, "I have passed this on to an escalation manager, whose job it is to solve these kinds of problems and then call you back." Now when they tell me somebody is going to call me back, I just laugh. Give me a break! Or how about this one, from a guy who had me on hold while he tried to call another department to see what the problem is, "I've been on hold with that department for 15 minutes, and we aren't even really supposed to call them, so you'll have to call them yourself. Here's the number."
Here's another article about fixed wireless being tested as an alternative to DSL. Good luck people--get this phone company out of my life.
I don't buy Yoplait any more because animals can die when they get their heads stuck in discarded containers. General Mills, the manufacturer, has known for years that the container's unique shape is a problem for animals, but refuses to change it. The most they will do is print on the container, "Protect Wildlife. Crush Before Disposal."
I like the idea of using the AC power grid for Internet access, but do we really want PG&E running our network access?
I don't agree with these sorts of lawsuites but it's interesting to see that so many people are having the same problem with Pac Bell DSL installations.
Consumer Watch: Avoid the DSL Runaround There's nothing high-speed about many DSL installations. It's nice to see this problem getting some press. "In most cases, if you obtain service from your phone provider, only one company will be involved--but that's no advantage if the company is incompetent or negligent." This is what I thought was true when I started my DSL adventure. Not true. When you order from Pacific Bell, you deal with THREE incompetent or negligent companies: Pacific Bell for the local loop; Pacific Bell Internet Services for Internet access; and Advanced Solutions Incorporated, an SBC-wide data subsidiary responsible for DSL gear. I have called all three of these companies multiple times so far. They are happy to transfer you (and the blame) to one of the other companies, but I don't think they talk to each other directly.
Alternatives to DSL are coming, but it's going to be a while.
This article explains why Pac Bell doesn't want me to have DSL just yet. How long will this go on?
At least this guy eventually got activated. I still have hope, but it's fading.
Read this opinion on the state of Internet broadband in the USA.
Looks like it is just as hard to get DSL from Verizon as it is from Pac Bell. I would think there would be a good market for DSL alternatives, like Sprint Broadband Direct (which I can't get without a 30 antenna tower on my roof) and cable modems (which don't work in my neighborhood.)
Pac Bell has missed yet another DSL activation due date. Very frustrating. This company has the nerve to advertise on DSLReports.com (just read the reports on them there.) I am not alone in my troubles with these jokers. Don't expect any new photos until DSL is working.
Update on the DSL installation: I just called to find out the status and Pac Bell has pushed my due date out yet again. :-(
Ever try to get DSL? Let me know the secret. I made the mistake of ordering Pacific Bell DSL, and they keep missing due dates. Every time a due date comes and goes and I don't have the service, I call to find out what's going on. Nobody knows why, but for some reason the due date has been changed to 2 weeks later.
If your digital camera takes SmartMedia or Compact Flash, you know that those memory cards are expensive. Taking your camera on a trip can be a problem because you can run out of memory. I bought the Iomega FotoShow to solve this problem. It's a small device you can use to dump your pictures from memory card to zip disk without the need for a computer. Then simply erase and reuse your memory card. Zip disks are much cheaper than memory cards. The FotoShow functions as a Zip drive when you connect it to your PC via a USB port. On my Windows 2000 machine, I didn't need to install any drivers from Iomega for the computer to see it as a drive. As a bonus, the FotoShow has a video output connector and a remote control so you view your photos on a tv while you are away from your PC. The FotoShow cost me $240 from Onvia.com, and the 250 MB zip disks cost $10 each. The FotoShow is a little bigger than I would like, and its power supply is fairly bulky, but I don't plan to take this unit hiking, so it's not really a problem. I have found that I end up taking many more photos on trips than I did before I purchased this unit.
If you use a digital camera, but like to keep a physical photo album, I found something really cool for you. Kodak has something they call Picture Pages. You download a small application, and use it to create photo album pages. When you are done, the application connects to Kodak via the Internet and uploads the images. You fill out some order information, and get printed album pages in the mail in a few days. These are really nice: 8.5 x 11 inch, double sided, thick album pages with holes already punched. You just drop them into your album. They look much better than the old fashioned album pages because the pictures are printed directly onto the page, and don't have to be stuck behind a sticky plastic sheet. They cost $7 for each double-sided page, which seems like a lot, but is not really when you consider how great they look, and compared to the price of ordering prints from digital photos and the price of regular album pages. You can fit pretty many photos on a page, and you could decorate the page with stickers later if you want. I ordered three pages so far, and just love them.
I'm pleased that my new PC doesn't have any ISA slots, but disappointed that it doesn't have on-board FireWire or ethernet, and surprised that it has an RS-232 port and a parallel port.
After a great meal yesterday, I can report that the best restaurant in town is Chez TJ.
Nikki and Steve got married this afternoon!
Set your phasers to "stun." A prototype laser stun gun has been announced.
Payment for order flow: more on why you can't trust your stock broker even if you think he's a swell guy. Hint: your interests and his are not the same.
What is "liquid smoke?" I was wondering this as I made beef jerkey this weekend.
I propose a new standard for numbering the floors in buildings. The ground floor is 0. Then the numbers increase from 1 going up, and decrease from -1 going down. And no skipping floor 13 and other nonsense.
You'll think this is really geeky, but I keep going back to this site.
Do you think decimalization will make everything rosey? Think again.
What do you think of a machine gun that can fire one million rounds per minute?
Pretty soon you'll be able to enjoy real vanilla ice cream, Caesar salad, and Orange Julius. Why? They can pasturize eggs now!
Do you trade stock? Think your broker or your discount broker is your friend? Be careful, because there are plenty of people in line to screw you. New SEC execution disclosure rules coming in April 2001 might help a little. The first requires brokers to publish monthly reports on the quality of order execution as a group. The second requires that order execution details be reported to the investor for each trade.
What are those wacky South Africans up to now? Fill your car with compressed air, and run around all day without generating any more air pollution. But how much is generated in the act of compressing the air? Probably less than driving around. I hope this turns out to cost effective and practical. Air-powered cars on the way to SA
See the results of the 4th annual pumkin carving event.
I didn't go to school here, but I understand that the textbook situation in California is pretty bad. Read about it here.
Stock market analysts are sleeze. If you want coverage for your company, you have to pay them, directly or indirectly by giving business to the investment banking arm of the their company. Read about it here.
New displays which harvest light instead of creating it. Science is very exciting right now.
ZDNet: News: Startup claims digital photo breakthrough You thought your digital camera was cool? Just wait. Memory is going to be the real bottleneck, and has some catching up to do. Don't worry--it'll get there.
I posted a few photos from the 4th of July.
Kings Canyon photos are now online. I don't think reprints are free any more. Maybe if you open an account they give you some free prints. Not sure.
Genetic algorithms design low-emission engine
James has our hike plans detailed, complete with aerial photography. Nice work.
You mean you don't have your own personal chef yet? What's keeping you?
Here's an idea: a small module which clips on the bottom of my cellular phone. It contains an earphone and mic on a retractable wire. So when you aren't using the earphone, it winds up inside the module on a spring-loaded reel. When you want to use it, you pull it out.
New and Improved Gum. I present this idea to the world with the hope that somebody picks it up and runs with it: gum which lasts only as long as it's flavor. Why not make gum which slowly disappears as you chew it? Perhaps after half an hour, it would be gone. I'm sure we have the technology. Tim's refinement: chew piece A until it looses its flavor. Then add piece B, which reacts with piece A, and they both disolve in your mouth.
