Pegging the "Geek Meter"

There is a concept in software that is extending elsewhere called "open source".   While companies like Microsoft usually talk against open source software, companies like Sun have figured out ways to make money by making all their software open source.

What open source means is that while the developer or development group still owns and maintains the software, others are able to look at, fix or enhance the software that was written.  Depending on licensing, those changes may need to go back into the project.

Here is one of the most interesting open source projects I have seen...

According to the press release (just click on the picture), it is a car powered by Lithium-Ion batteries and an electric motor on each wheel.  The lighting is OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) which is driver configurable.  The developers are, however, completely opening the technology to others to help improve the vehicle.

Feeding the Feedburner

I have know about Feedburner for some time.  I just put my blog feed on feedburner however.

I know I have mentioned web syndication (RSS) and feeds before and why but I'll recap.  

RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication" and is a way for you to watch someone's blog or podcast or the news (really anything with frequent updates) without having to visit the site constantly to see if the put something out for the rest of the world to read.

For the non-geek among us, most blogs like Typepad, Blogger and Wordpress will publish a feed for you.  For the geekier, among us, there are ways of building your own feeds, you just need a place to put the feed file.  One that I use is called "ListGarden"... I like it because it's easy and reliable, runs nearly anywhere and costs $0... A good price.  You can pay $$ and get something like RSSBuddy however.

What do you do with these feeds?  There are several things you can do... One is to ignore it but what fun is that?  If you choose not to ignore it, however, you don't have to look directly at it. After all, the file that is produced is pretty ugly.   

Instead, put it into a feed reader.  There are installed readers and on-line readers.  I like on-line readers because I am not always on the same computer so I don't have to weed through the same information multiple times.  The disadvantage is that if you are reading a feed from a corporate intranet (inside the company), the on-line readers can't get to it and you need an installed reader.  Fortunately, many browsers have the feature built in.

Installed readers include:

• NewsGator (Windows, Microsoft Outlook & Mac)
• Firefox Browser
• Safari Browser
• Internet Explorer 7

On-line Readers include:

• Google Reader
• News Gator
• My Yahoo
• Bloglines
• Pageflakes
• Netvibes

My personal favorites are Google Reader.  It works well in Internet Explorer, Safari and Firefox as well as a mobile version for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Now, why Feedburner?  Feedburner has this feature that allows you to subscribe to any of the on-line services with the click of a button.  If you are publishing a podcast, you can also have iTunes automatically subscribe, even if you are not in the iTunes store.  It also keeps statistics for you on where people come from and go to.

You can now subscribe to this blog here, Why you may want to is a different question.

YouVersion

A few posts ago, I mentioned the YouVersion: iPhone Edition (which also works on the iPod Touch).

As nice as it is, you should bookmark (and register to use) regular YouVersion.  Why?  I'm glad you asked.

YouVersion is a FREE offering from Lifechurch.tv and offers

• A daily reading plan.
• A Bible reader with many different versions in several languages.
• Ways to add comments to the passages you read.
• A way to take and store notes

Their description is

Welcome to YouVersion

A revolutionary online Bible that enables community and collaboration like never before.

Organize - YouVersion empowers you to organize the content that's important to you! Share - Simply share meaningful content with anyone, anytime, anywhere. Community - YouVersion makes it easy to connect and collaborate with others. Contribute - With YouVersion you have the power to share your content with your closest friends, family, or anyone online!

A test of giving and pride

A friend and fellow musician on our worship bands gave me a gift last night that has tested my pride. He had gotten a pair of headphones, then found these, then got another pair of the original as a backup pair. Last night, he offered these to me. THANKS TODD.

I struggled with the gift, offered to pay him for them (he said he'd take a Coke or something). These are the most expensive headphones I have ever used but they also happen to be the clearest sounding headphones I have ever used. As Marj said... What an expression of extravagant love.

Computer Problems

No, not the one I am typing on. The computer in our office was being primarily used as a print server for the Marj's and my Laptop as well as a file server. For some reason, most likely a cooling fan, it died. Oddly enough, so did our printer so we were forced to purchase a new one.

As a result, we have a set of printer cartridges. If you have an HP printer that can use the "78" tri-color, we have a cartridge (still in packaging) looking for a home. You'll need to talk to Marj on the price... Personally I might just give it away but I wouldn't make any promises.

There is also a partially used 78 and a partially used 45 (black) cartridge that I would happily give away but they need to be handed off quickly.

iLounge - The Free iPod book

If you have an iPod, you may want to check out iLounge . They are offering their "The Free iPod Book 3" for the cost of downloading it. There are a lot of advertisements but also some good information. The need to pay for it somehow though so maybe you get what you pay for!

As of this writing, the download is in a large banner near the top of the page.

The iPod as a learning tool...

I can tell you that while people keep buying them, there are those that still see no real use for an iPod. Because they are an "electronic device", their use is frowned upon during take-off and landing in planes.

We did, however, put Kyle's iPod to good use last month. You see, Kyle auditioned for a part with lines in the school spring play at his school. Since Kyle is busy but can memorize well, he didn't know his part as well as the teacher would have liked. To help with this problem, Marj and I got his script, read lines into some recording software (Garage Band in this case) and had him load it onto his iPod. Running through his lines with the lines we recorded (everything around his), he was able to memorize them quite quickly.

Wonder if that would work for Scripture memory!

Life at home without a net

I would have to agree with you if you were to call our situation this week trivial. However, being unplanned, it made things tougher.

You see, on Tuesday evening, I decided to tighten the security on our wi-fi (wireless internet) and, in the process of an upgrade, caused the device to go into an endless (if one or two hours weren't proof of that, I'll send it to you for verification) cycle.

A call to Qwest and magically, another is on the way, as long as you agree to pay for it.

Yes, I had internet access at work but due to the fact that my employer allows me to use it for work I don't like abusing the privledge.

We are back on-line now....