Tossing Kerry Overboard

And now, a political note. As the new democratic party leadership took control of the senate this week a strange thing happened. It happened in the glare of TV lights. It was surreal, like something from a political thriller. The new democratic bigwigs got together for a meeting and strode through the halls of the capitol. John Kerry was apparently not told of the meeting. Strange, as this man was the latest bright light to run for the highest office. But for a narrow margin he would have been the most powerful man on the planet. Now he is left looking for a meeting he wasn't invited to. When he caught up with the team, Chuck Shumer took him aside and said something brief. The team continued on ahead. john Kerry stepped back, out of the limelight, and between two columns, disappearing from the crowd. Here is a take on the incident from Canada. It says a lot about Kerry, the Democrats, and his future.

http://www.canadafreepress.com/2006/burtis111706.htm

KFC Seen From Space

"The company unveiled a new brand logo Tuesday that includes bolder colors and a more well-defined visage of the late Kentucky Fried Chicken founder, who will keep his classic black bow tie, glasses and goatee.

As part of publicity for the new logo, KFC commissioned a giant, 87,000-square foot version of it that can be seen from space. The massive logo consists of 65,000 1-foot square painted tiles that were laid out in the Nevada desert over 24 days."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,229308,00.html

Wave of the future

Here is another wave of the future technology. Sony is working on a process to stream real time tv through a cellular connection to the hand held PSP. Now you might ask why I would want to watch tv on such a little device? Simple. Complete portability.

http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/50562993/

Israel is developing a bionic Hornet

You just gotta love these guys. They know that they cannot rely solely on $100 million war planes, so they are developing a nano based robot the size of a hornet that can track, photograph, or kill. It can be used in narrow streets and alleyways in places nothing but a soldier could pass. Very cool stuff. Unfortunately, there is no picture.

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyid=2006-11-17T082415Z_01_L1751091_RTRUKOC_0_US-MIDEAST-WEAPONS.xml&src=rss&rpc=22

Would RFK have won in '68?

In keeping with the release of the new movie about Robert Kennedy, I found an interesting article discussing whether he had the votes necessary to have won in 1968 if he hadn't been killed. The short answer(from the article at least) is that he probably wouldn't have won, and that if he did, he probably wouldn't have been successful. Find out why and whether you agree.

http://www.americanheritage.com/rss/blog/200611_13_694.shtml

100 biggest business mistakes of 2006

Fun reading about the folks that manage major corporations. They aren't all Harvard MBA's like George Bush!

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2006/01/01/8368135/index.htm

Raise a Glass

Raise a glass and remember an economist. No ordinary economist, mind you, a Nobel Prize Winner. Milton Friedman was a brilliant man who could teach the wonderful complexity of economics to the world. If you have never heard of him, you owe it to yourself to find out a bit about him.

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?siteid=mktw&guid=%7BA30ED07A-9B20-4646-9D51-F9E9654A615C%7D

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton_Friedman

Cool New Toy

GM introduces a new high-end key fob, just packed with features you didn't even know you were missing. Examples include tire pressure display and the amount of fuel left in the tank. Neat.

http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/15/gm-announces-feature-packed-key-fob/

VHS, 30, dies of loneliness

After a long illness, the groundbreaking home-entertainment format VHS has died of natural causes in the United States. The format was 30 years old.

No services are planned.

The format had been expected to survive until January, but high-def formats and next-generation vidgame consoles hastened its final decline.

"It's pretty much over," concurred Buena Vista Home Entertainment general manager North America Lori MacPherson on Tuesday.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117953955.html?categoryid=20&cs=1

Wreaths Across America

What began in 1992 with a trailer load of wreaths, decorated by volunteers and laid at the graves of fallen soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery (Click for: The Arlington Story - How the Arlington Wreath Project was born) will now become a new mission to Remember - Honor - and Teach the value of freedom in the world today.

http://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/

Hat Tip to DeeDee for this one.

More Geek Stuff

NTT sets new data transmission record of 14 terabits per second. That is 14,000,000 megbits per second. Contrast that with current enterprise speeds of 1 - 10 gigabit and that is some pretty impressive speeds. What to do with all that speed you might ask. Do we really need to send 100 full copies of the library of congress every second (or hour, whatever)? Well, no, but that bandwidth will come in really handy for High Def video on demand.

http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/30/ntt-sets-new-data-transmission-record-of-14-terabits-per-second/

http://www.engadget.com/2006/11/15/mit-makes-case-for-wireless-power/

Another Funny Video

Here's another favorite video of mine. I don't want this to become another goofy video site, so I will try to limit it to just a couple of my favorites. This is the guy who played Biff in the Back to the Future movies.

I'm Torn

Here is an update to my all time favorite You-Tube type video. It is a mime (David Armand) doing Natalie Imbruglia's "I'm Torn". Like most people, I have a general aversion to mimes, but this guy is just great.

Crokinole

In keeping with holiday traditions, we brought out our crokinole board. It is a checkers flicking game, played on a special wooden board. Simple to learn, it provides hours of fun for everyone in the family, from my eight year old niece to my 85+ aunt. While looking around the web, I found a couple of sites worth looking at.

The first, as always, is the Wikipedia article:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crokinole

The second is the official site of Crokinole from Mr. Crokinole himself, Wayne Kelly:

http://www.crokinole.com/index.asp

Third is a pretty affordable version of the game available from Amazon. Most copies of the board are $100 and up. These are meant to be heirlooms, handed down to generations. The version at Amazon is quite a bit less.

http://www.amazon.com/Mad-Hatter-Blue-Multi-Crokinole/dp/B00001ZUKL/sr=8-4/qid=1163510929/ref=sr_1_4/002-4717702-8097654?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games

As finally, would you believe a movie about the sport of kings? It is an actual documentary of the World Crokinole Championships. "The one flick you must see". You have to understand the game to get the joke. Somebody better get this for me for Christmas!

http://www.crokinolemovie.com/

ThisNext

This is yet another gadget site with cool stuff. It also allows users to make recommendations of their own. Lots of fun stuff on here, like the Airzooka. It's a gun that shoots a blast of air at your unsuspecting victim. Harmless, annoying, and fun.

http://www.thisnext.com/

Do you Bebo?

Bebo is a site aimed squarely at college students. Users can find information aimed at the college of their choice. The site makes you sign in using your college email. I am sure that this will sign you up for a load of spam. I am waiting for someone to tell me if the site is worth the attention of the advertisers.

www.bebo.com

Do you Ga-Ga?

"Ga-ga or GaGa is a form of dodgeball that is thought to have originated in Israel. "Ga" (גע) means "hit" in Hebrew. Along with the racquet sport of Matkot, ga-ga is one of the most popular Israeli folk sports. The game has also gained popularity in English-speaking countries ranging from Great Britain to Australia, especially in Jewish communities. For example, many Jewish American summer camps have special ga-ga arenas or so-called "pits" in which to play."

Those of us who have attended YMCA Camp Weona outside of Buffalo, NY are very familiar with this game. Every time we camped there, we would assemble all of the kids (ages 5 - 16) for a monster ga-ga game in the main Barn. Great fun for the whole family.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ga-ga

http://www.wnybiz.com/campweona/

Enviros Target Target

"Target’s ubiquitous red-and-white logo has proved prophetic. The discount retailer has become the bullseye-du-jour for a nationwide protest-attack by an environmental group that equates plastic with “poison.”

The Center for Health, Environment and Justice is distributing “toolkits” for disrupting Target stores nationwide on Oct. 11. “TARGET Uncovered: The Poison Plastic Lurking In Your Shopping Cart,” warns the toolkit’s cover page.

Although the CHEJ toolkit suggests “safer materials Target can use,” these other plastics are only described as “less harmful” chemicals. There is little doubt that if its anti-PVC campaign succeeds, CHEJ will go back on the warpath against the companies’ use of these other plastics.
How can we know this? Because CHEJ sponsor Greenpeace openly admits right on its own web site, “Ultimately we should ask why we are using [plastics] and whether or not they are necessary.

I suggest that we ask why anyone would listen to junk science-fueled activist groups like CHEJ and Greenpeace, and whether they are necessary. Let’s target them for a phase-out."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,216438,00.html

Bongo News

While we are laughing, you might want to try Bongo News. As their Masthead says, "More people get their satire news from Bongo than from any other sauce".

I like the article proclaiming that since Paul Mcartney's divorce, and the death of the other two Beatles, Ringo is now the richest Beatle.

http://www.bongonews.com/layout3.php?event=2841&topic=

Meet The Blackadder

Remembrance day, while it is serious, made me think of another story out of history, the story of the Blackadder family.

There are four separate series that follow the descendents of the Blackadder clan. Each descendent is named Edmund Blackadder.

"Each series was set in a different period of English history, beginning in 1485 and ending in 1917 (with one special set on New Year's Eve 1999) comprising six half-hour episodes. The first series, made in 1983, was called The Black Adder. This was followed by Blackadder II in 1986, Blackadder the Third in 1987, and finally Blackadder Goes Forth in 1989.
The character does evolve through the series, however, and he begins showing signs of what his descendants will be like by the final episode, where he begins insulting everyone around him and making his own plans. This evolution follows naturally from the character's situation. "The Black Adder" is the title that Edmund adopts during the first episode (after first considering "The Black Vegetable"). "

They are definitely worth your time.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackadder

Don't forget to Remember Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day (Australia, Canada, Colombia, UK and Ireland), also known as Poppy Day (South Africa and Malta), and Armistice Day (UK, New Zealand and many other Commonwealth countries; and the original name of the holiday internationally) is a day to commemorate the sacrifice of veterans and civilians in World War I and other wars. It is observed on November 11 to recall the end of World War I on that date in 1918. The observance is specifically dedicated to members of the armed forces who were killed during war, and was created by King George V of the United Kingdom on November 7, 1919, possibly upon the suggestion of Edward George Honey though Wellesley Tudor Pole established two ceremonial periods of remembrance based on events in 1917.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remembrance_day

Buddy, can you spare a Terabyte?

At the recent Gartner IT Symposium I heard someone ask, "How long will it be before we start seeing people with 1 Terabyte of storage in their home? 1 Tb is 1,000 Gigabytes or 1 Million Megabytes. If I add up all of the machines we use at home, I get something like 650 Gigabytes. Here is an ad for a sweet little unit that has 1 Tb. It comes in just over $500. It wasn't that long ago that I was paying $100,000 for the same storage. Granted, that was enterprise class hardware, but is still an enormous decrease in cost per Gb.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2484230&Sku=I21-6102

5 mistakes made when buying HDTV

Did you know that Digital TV or DTV has 18 different sub-sets of specifications including SDTV, EDTV and HDTV? I didn't know that. I don't have one (yet), but I really want to understand it before I buy into it. Just for the record, HDTV is 720p or better

http://www.engadgethd.com/2005/11/08/dont-make-these-hdtv-mistakes/

Find Free Music on the Web

"Your digital music collection is crying out for new songs. Sure you could hit up the iTunes Music Store, or rip another CD, or fire up your P2P software and pray the RIAA doesn't eat your firstborn - but the plain ol' web is an untapped goldmine of audio. If you're willing to branch out beyond the Top 40, have a gander at six of my favorite places to find tunes on the web. "

http://lifehacker.com/software/geek-to-live/geek-to-live--find-free-music-on-the-web-136578.php

RSS Feeds

An aggregator or news aggregator or feed reader is client software that uses a web feed to retrieve syndicated web content such as weblogs, podcasts, vlogs, and mainstream mass media websites, or in the case of a search aggregator , a customized set of search results.

What that means is that you can subscribe to news sites, blogs, or any site that changes its content frequently. Rather than going to each individual site, the news is culled from the sites you subscribe to and is presented on a digest page. You can usually subscribe for free to as many sites as you want. The benefit is that with on site you can review all the news that suits you. It is kind of like building your own, constantly updated, newsmagazine. Just the thing for a news junkie. Its also great for a Hollywood-Entertainment Tonight type junkie.

Here are a couple of examples. I like the Google one the best so far. It is easy to use and has enough features to keep me happy for awhile. It also works as a gadget off of a Google start page.

Feedreader

http://www.feedreader.com/

and Google Reader

http://www.google.com/reader/view/

Solar Prominence

A solar prominence is a large bright feature located in the solar corona. While the corona consists of extremely hot ionized gases, known as plasma, which do not emit much visible light, prominences contain much cooler plasma, similar in composition to that of the chromosphere. A prominence forms over timescales of about a day, and may persist in the corona for several weeks. Many prominences break apart and give rise to coronal mass ejections.

I just thought the pictures were pretty cool.

Sad Picture

Not one of America's Finest Hours: Here is a photograph from the mid-1870s of a pile of American Bison skulls waiting to be ground for fertilizer. Bison were hunted almost to extinction in the 19th century and were reduced to a few hundred head by the mid-1880s, from which all the present day's managed herds are descended. The commercial take arguably was anywhere from 2,000 to 100,000 animals per day, though there are no statistics available.

Photo credit: Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library

Credit: Wikipedia

Extreme Tech

Here is a deep dive into computing technology, courtesy of the folks at Ziff-Davis and PC Magazine. I just spent some time looking into the newest version of DirectX, the graphics programming platform that makes the Xbox fly so smoothly. Very cool stuff in here. This technology forms part os the base for Vista, the newest Operating System from Microsoft, which, BTW, went gold today. (That means it was actually shipped off for manufacturing).

http://www.extremetech.com/

Incredible Waterfall Pictures from Croatia

As someone who lives practically next door to Niagara Falls, I must say that I am fascinated by other waterfalls as well. These pictures were taken by a photographer named Jack Brauer. They are quite impressive.

LockSport

Welcome to the fun and amusing hobby of lock picking. This is a group of hobbyists who while away their spare time studying locks, picks, and techniques. The site includes a 20+ page comic book that explains just how lock picking works. There is also a nice section on how to create your own lock picks. I always wanted to know how this was done.

http://locksport.com/home/index.php?entry=entry061027-222056

iTunes Library Updater

If you have music on your computer that, for whatever reason, you didn't get through an iTunes rip or purchase, the iTunes Library Updater can automatically add those new tracks to your iTunes database.

http://www.lifehacker.com/software/itunes/download-of-the-day-itunes-library-updater-145098.php

http://itlu.ownz.ch/wordpress/

Tag&Rename

Tag&Rename is software from softpointer that allows unlimited access to updating the tags on your media files. The software gives you full screen edit capabilities and multi-file support to change groups of files with the same info. It can also be used to change tag format versions and to fix corrupted tags that might keep your music from playing in iTunes. (That's the reason I tried it in the first place).

http://www.softpointer.com/index.htm

Build your own DVR

For the Do-It-Yourselfer, a homebrewed Digital Video Recorder (DVR) that will work "just like Tivo, only better" whatever that means. You definitely need to be a geek to want to do this yourself, but it looks like an interesting project.

http://www.lifehacker.com/software/dvr/hack-attack-build-your-own-dvr-165963.php

Disney Legends

Established in 1987, the Disney Legends program recognizes men and women who have made an extraordinary and integral contribution to The Walt Disney Company. The honor is awarded annually during a special ceremony.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney_Legends

The Museum of Online Museums

"Welcome to the Coudal Partners Museum of Online Museums. Here, you will find links from our archives to online collections and exhibits covering a vast array of interests and obsessions: Start with a review of classic art and architecture, and graduate to the study of mundane (and sometimes bizarre) objects elevated to art by their numbers, juxtaposition, or passion of the collector."

Museums of fine art, the museum of the devil's rope (barbed wire), a museum of bouncy things, and the MoMA.

http://www.coudal.com/moom.php

Technorati

Professional strength blog watching. This is a great place to wander through other people's blogs, looking for what's interesting out there.

http://technorati.com/

Meebo

Ajax based multi-system IM process. It lets you control your IM in multiple systems from a single screen. The Ajax part makes it a Web 2.0 site.

http://www38.meebo.com/index-en.html

Quote of the Day

A house without books is like a body without a soul.

- Cicero (106 BC - 43 AD)

Hollywood's Dirty Secret

From the liberal heart of Hollywood comes a conservative film festival. Running for a couple of years, the promoters run films that go against the standard PC grain of leftist Hollywood to show the other side of America. Was that too heavy handed? Alright, I'll settle down. Anyway, this just might be a place to find some film gems that might get overlooked by the mainstream because the subject or the creators are a bit too "against the grain". Look it over.

http://www.libertyfilmfestival.com/libertas/

Happy Anniversary!!!

Ooops

It looks like I missed the anniversary. Yes, Dataman55 has been online for a full year. Thanks to Blogger.com, I have been able to share my favorite sites for 365 days. I apologize that I don't update every day. I tend to get lazy and stack up several notes together and post them all in one blitz. I'm sure you don't mind. Keep sending me e-mails about what you like. I try to respond to all of you individually, but sometimes it gets to be a bit much. Remember that this isn't a site run by a full time staff, it is just Dataman, and you.

LifeStraw

The LifeStraw is a portable, cheap water filter that relies on suction and no moving parts to provide potable water for millions of the world's poorest. Every day 6000 people die of water borne illness. This little product might go a long way to saving many of these lives.

I found this on the Medgadget site, dedicated to interesting new developments in medicine. Check it out.

http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2005/05/lifestraw.html

Meet the Walrus

This is a rigid body airship (a blimp to you and me) that will be able to transport massive cargo over any terrain or water. Originally designed by DARPA (The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) the same people who created the internet. Interesting use of very not cool technology to accomplish some difficult tasks.

http://www.gizmag.com/go/4538/

Guba

Guba is a video download site that has lots of commercial videos to go along with the amateur stuff you can find on YouTube or Break.

http://www.guba.com/

A Silent Jet?

Smoother, Quieter, and it looks like a flying penguin.

http://news.com.com/Silent+jet+could+ease+airport+noise/2100-11397_3-6132664.html?tag=nefd.pulse

Christmas is Coming

A Child's Christmas in Wales

Here is a copy of the entire short story by Dylan Thomas. It is brief (6 pages), but it captures the sights and sounds and smells of a childhood Christmas in a way that is timeless.

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/a-child-s-christmas-in-wales/

Window Blinds

Microsoft Vista is coming soon to a PC near you. This is a product that "skins" Windows XP so that it gets the look and feel of Windows Vista. Vista will be coming out just after the first of the year. By using the skins you can get a jump on the Vista learning curve. Strictly for the geek in you.

http://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/

Discover the Network

This site is a guide to the political left. This is either a map to your side, or a description of the bad guys, depending on your political slant. I hope it helps aid in your understanding regardless of your affiliation. Oh, and Happy Election Day!

http://www.discoverthenetwork.org/

Electoral-Vote.com

EV is an electionb tracking site. It is run by a self-avowed democrat, but the measurements used are very objective. He occasionally lets his guard down when discussing races, but his statistics are very accurate.

http://www.electoral-vote.com/

You Tube Trojan Horse

Everyone knows the story of the Trojan Horse, right? Then why would anyone allow a trojan horse to be slipped past them? Here is a silly little movie:

http://bbemporium.blogspot.com/

Indiana Jones Denied Tenure!

Read the official notice from the University:

http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2006/10/10bryan.html

Meet The Tesla Roadster

Here is a hot new car for 2009. It is an all electric hot rod two seater, capable of pulling 0 - 60 in about 4 seconds (that's really fast). It gets about 250 miles per charge. It starts with a price tag north of $100K, but comstantly improving technology and mass production could lower the price substantially.

http://www.teslamotors.com/index.php?js_enabled=1

http://www.slate.com/id/2152255/?GT1=8702

The Day of the Long Tail

This little video explains a lot about the current state of the market.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xAA71Ssids

EMI Music CEO says the CD is 'dead'

EMI Music Chairman and Chief Executive Alain Levy Friday told an audience at the London Business School that the CD is dead, saying music companies will no longer be able to sell CDs without offering "value-added" material.
"The CD as it is right now is dead," Levy said, adding that 60% of consumers put CDs into home computers in order to transfer material to digital music players.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/story.aspx?siteid=mktw&guid=%7BBA27DA69-B92A-473A-AF46-0CBE9DFA59EE%7D