Recent Comments:
Mess of circuitry unlocks iPhone, software solution next? {Engadget Mobile}
Aug 27th 2007 10:09AM "Mess of circuitry"? It's just one flippin' switch! And you don't even need the switch, just the wires. Check out:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2007/08/25/114961.aspx
Ford and Electric Car in the Same Sentence? {Switched.com}
Jul 18th 2007 6:06AM Ric and CricketSong:
Sure, you have to pay for the electricity, but consider that the conversion from fossil to electron at the power plant is done on a large scale, and achieves about 60% efficiency. Then from electron to kinetic in a pure electric car is about 80% efficient, considering all losses. Compare that to the conversion from fossil to kinetic in a car, which is around 35% efficient. Electric vehicles are the way to go. It also opens up solar / geo-thermal / wind / wave options as power sources.
I'm totally with you on the idea that public transportation is king. But 90% of America is not, and will not be in the forseeable future. So if it's gotta be cars then the lesser of all evils is electric.
Parents rejoice! Heelys won't be cool much longer {BloggingStocks}
Jun 4th 2007 1:29PM I'm 37, and have been heeling for the last 4 years. It's phenomenal in airports when you've only got a few minutes to try to make a connecting flight. And most parking lots as well. Granted that it takes some patience while you're learning to "get the hang of it", but after becoming proficient I find it to be an excellent timesaver. Don't be fooled with how simple it looks, it ends up being moderate exercise. You can really only go maybe 50% faster than walking on most sidewalks due to all the cracks. In Wal-Mart or Costco where there's a nice surface you can get up to about twice walking speed in an 100% safe manner. I walk 100% in the busy sections at the front of the store or aisle intersections, and heel in the empty aisles to make my way to the back of the store. (Seems like everything you really want is always in the back of the store, right?) It really is 100% safe. I've never run into anyone.
The #1 question I get asked when I'm heeling: "wow, where did you find a pair in your size?" They're available on eBay or at Mervyn's and Big 5 sports. Remember that there's a significant learning curve involved here, and you'll build up ankle muscles you never knew you had. But after you're practiced up, it's an excellent way to get around.
For all those naysayers: with something that's currently this popular with the youth, and has the potential to make the everyday commute easier, there's a good possiblity that it won't die out like the hoola-hoop. I expect that in another decade these heely-proficient youth will still use the shoes to get around. I recommend going out and trying it for yourself to see what all the fuss is about before you blindly try to get the shoes blacklisted.
Cingular and Sprint Nextel -- who has the better national network? {The Wireless Report}
Jun 17th 2006 11:41PM If you are looking for an Internet connection via cellular then one thing for sure -- Sprint's EVDO beats Cingular's EDGE hands-down. I can't believe how pathetic Cingular's data service is. Absolutely worthless. After changing jobs where I used to have Verizon's EVDO and loved it, I tried out Cingular's offering for a couple of weeks all around California, Arizona, and Louisiana, including a few airports in-between. I was absolutely amazed that they would dare charge the same amount as Verizon ($60 a month if you also have a voice plan). This service is not worth having. It's actually easier to just stumble on unsecured WiFi hotspots in your travels rathar than try to use their spotty service. Often it may look like you're connected, and then the connection just halts. You still have an IP, but absolutely no packets are being transmitted. Or while connected your IP address may change randomly, even though you're hitting the exact same cell tower. This may force you to restart some applications. Constant goofy issues like this. And web pages are hacked by a proxy server that recompresses all the images to a smaller size -- and poorer quality.
On the other hand, Sprint's EVDO has treated me just as well as Verizon's did. Very impressed. Same monthly fee, $60 if you also have a voice plan. A little steep, but worth-it for how much I travel and use it.
If you've read this far then you're definitely interested in wireless Internet. So may I invite you to check out a blog post I recently wrote about the new generation of EVDO stuff coming out later this year:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/06/13/81756.aspx
Sony Vaio UX50 on pre-order {Engadget}
Jun 11th 2006 12:17PM I bought one at Yodobashi camera a week ago, and used in lots in Japan. Absolutely love the machine. It's about 20% faster than my aging Dell laptop with a 1.8 GHz Centrino. But I don't think the memory is upgradeable, so I'm stuck with 512 megs. Still what an amazing machine! I can't get over how excellent the screen is. And it will play back beautiful 720p high def video that's been resized to 1024x576 at a full 60fps!!! Amazing. More info:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/06/10/81423.aspx
Sony's UX50 on the gray-market, ready to order {Engadget}
Jun 11th 2006 11:47AM I picked one up a week and a half ago in Japan, and have had a pretty smooth time getting everything working. English Drivers available from Sony themselves. Ran into one snag with the audio driver, but the fix is detailed in this blog post:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/06/10/81423.aspx
Unboxing the Sony Vaio UX50 {Engadget}
Jun 11th 2006 11:21AM I bought one in Japan a week and a half ago for $1450, and posted an unboxing video (done at a Japanese temple of all settings) and some technical detail:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/06/10/81423.aspx
Performance is about 20% faster than my Dell 1.8 GHz Centrino. And it can play back high def video filling the 1024x600 screen at 60fps. An incredible unit. Read the post for more details. Also tells about getting around a sound card issue you may have if you install English Windows XP on the Japanese unit.
Sony's UX latest to get naked {Engadget}
May 18th 2006 2:08PM Hmmm, the hard drive looks like the 20 gig Toshiba T20MK2006L. For those people that get the 30 gig version I guess Sony puts in the Hitachi 1.8" 30 gig disk.
Looking forward to when the flash RAM version comes out in another month and a half in Japan. No doubt amazingly fast access times without the clunky spindle to deal with!
http://www.newlaunches.com/archives/sony_ux50_umpc_with_16gb_of_flash_memory.php
I think Jan got it back together again. Looks easy enough with only one major ribbon cable between the screen/keyboard and motherboard. After all, I got my HD-DVD player back again after it was dissected, and that was about 10 ribbon cables:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/04/21/75795.aspx
IODATA launches BRD-UM2 & BRD-AM2B Blu-ray drives {Engadget}
Apr 22nd 2006 1:32PM A friend and I dismantled Toshiba's new HD-A1 player in order to find out what made it tick, and were intrigued to learn that under the hood the HD-DVD drive itself is a standard IDE unit designed for a desktop PC. Also inside is a USB flash drive on a daughter card:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/04/21/75795.aspx
Why HD DVD will prevail: my opinion {Engadget HD}
Apr 21st 2006 1:10PM A friend and I dismantled Toshiba's new HD-A1 player in order to find out what made it tick, and were intrigued to learn that inside the HD-DVD drive is a standard IDE unit. Also inside is a USB flash drive on a daughter card:
http://geekswithblogs.net/lorint/archive/2006/04/21/75795.aspx
