Clariticity

What I Want to Be When I Grow Up

2010-03-26T12:13:00.002-06:00

I saw this little video on Kottke.org today. It is about a Master Bladesmith. It is fascinating. It made me want to do this. I have a deep desire to "create" things. Right now it is software in my life but it is hard to have something to show for it. A knife like this could last for generations. Awesome.

More AppleTV gameness

2010-03-02T12:40:00.002-07:00

Looks like someone agrees with me about the AppleTV becoming a game console. Michael Pachter, a very visible game industry analyst is making the same prediction I made HERE. It still makes sense to me, but Apple can be hard to predict.
Although, in a little "fly in the ointment" for this prediction, Apple's COO Tim Cook downplayed any big moves on the AppleTV anytime soon at a speech he gave at Goldman Sachs Tech Conference last week.

For Michelle

2010-02-15T11:36:00.003-07:00

Thanks to my friend Jeff Davis for the reference to this video.

To my dear wife Michelle, I want you to know that I see you.

Chinese Lessons

2010-02-15T11:19:00.003-07:00

KJ is weeks away from entering the Missionary Training Center. I thought a little Chinese lesson would be appropriate.

Google has gone to the Moon

2010-02-05T11:20:00.003-07:00

I saw THIS article today. Google is selling high fashion signature scarves. What? Yes, you heard that right, Google inspired scarves. More and more recently I have been realizing that Google is operating like they are on another planet. Rules don't apply to them. They can do anything they want. They are big and big means they can bully and get away with stuff etc. This feels a lot like another company that acted this way about 20 or so years ago. Microsoft. Google is acting the same way. They will eventually be slapped down and suffer the same fate that M$ is suffering now. A long slow decline into irrelevance. Why? Well, one reason, and it may be the primary reason, is that much of Google's employee base has come from former Microsofties. So, a new company was created and populated with people that "grew up" in a culture of arrogance and have brought that to their new company.
A second symptom stems from American business culture's need to grow at all costs. Diversify or die. Continued growth and increased revenues are a must or your stock price will go down. Just being successful isn't good enough, you have to be ubersuccessful or you might as well close your doors. This gets companies like Microsoft and Google in trouble. This makes companies like Google decide to sell designer scarves and other crazy things like make cell phones.

Post iPad, what's next from Apple?

2010-01-28T11:41:00.002-07:00

So Apple announced the iPad tablet computer yesterday. I can't wait to touch one...and buy one. I'll write more about it later.
What I want to write about today is what almost nobody is talking about. Everyone is busy chatting up the iPad. Do you think Apple is done for the year? HELL NO!!!! They even hinted in their quarterly earnings call about multiple products this year. So, do you think I'm gonna start talking about the next iPhone due out sometime this summer? No. What I am going to talk about and predict is the next AppleTV. Or, whatever Apple will release that will replace the AppleTV. Watching the iPad keynote yesterday it became clear to me where Apple is going. Sony (PS3), Nintendo (Wii) and Microsoft (XBox) are their next targets. Maybe not direct targets but you'll understand in a second.
As of yesterday, January 27th 2010, the iPhone App Store had over 140,000 separate applications available for download. Most of those apps will work on the iPad out of the box. There will be at least 10,000 apps made specifically for the iPad available on the day it ships. At least 10,000. I wouldn't be surprised to see more than 10,000.
Here is my prediction. An App Store for the AppleTV. I know I'm not the first to suggest this but I have seen very very little written about it lately. I'm sure this is because of the iPad. However, it is all interconnected into Apple's strategy. An App Store for the AppleTV would turn gaming on it's ear. All the thousands of games available for the iPhone/Touch/iPad available for use on your HDTV. And of course specific apps developed specifically for the TV. I don't think that hard core gaming would be the goal here. I think the casual gaming space would be perfect for a device like the AppleTV. There will still be a market for the Xbox and Wii for hard core and longer form gaming. Thousands of relatively cheap games available for purchase and download right from your TV. You would also have access to all of your other media from the same device, TV shows, Movies, Music and photos. I know you're gonna say that Microsoft already has something like this. The XBox 360 XBMC right now does most of this. However, the XBox 360 is a game machine first and all that other stuff second. The AppleTV is opposite. This is where I see an opportunity. Not everyone wants to spend $200-300 for a game machine. Yes, there are millions out there but not hundreds of millions. There are hundreds of millions of TV's. All Apple has to do is update the AppleTV. Beef it up a bit, make it more current, add a faster processor a little more RAM and a bigger hard drive. Tune the software to add an App Store and come up with some kind of wireless game controller/remote and voila! you suddenly have access to thousands of games and internet connectivity all from your TV. Play a game, rent a movie, purchase/rent a TV show, check Facebook, send a Tweet, check the weather, play some music, watch some YouTube, play another game, check your email. You get the idea.
This is definitely not "new", the idea has been around since Microsoft's WebTV gambit. The difference here is Apple. In the same way they revolutionized the music industry and then spun the cell phone world on it's ear and now are resurrecting the Tablet they are going to nail the TV thing.
I am convinced Apple is going to do something like this this year. AppleTV the "hobby" has allowed Apple to learn and they have not done a major update in more than 2 years. There is no way Apple is NOT going to play in this space. They already are but we are on the cusp of them taking it to the next level. Plan on it. Write it down. It is coming. You WILL want one. My crystal ball has a picture of me in 2011 sitting on my couch with an iPad on my lap watching a rented movie on my new AppleTV. Oh, and I'll be controlling my TV using my iPad.

iPhone saves a life

2010-01-20T15:39:00.002-07:00

It's true. A man trapped in the earthquake in Haiti this week is crediting his iPhone with saving his life!!!
He used the iPhone screen and his digital camera to shed light in the dark spot he was trapped in. He made his way to a safer spot to wait for rescue. He then used a "medical app" he had installed on his iPhone to diagnose and treat his wounds.
I hope I am never in this situation but what a great comfort to know there are tools that can help in such times.

Google = Ironic

2010-01-11T16:38:00.002-07:00

So, here is the best irony of the New Year!
Google started selling their own smartphone recently. The Nexus One. People are having trouble with it. The irony is that Google is selling a phone that has no phone support to provide customer service. Now wait, what was that? Google sells a cell phone you can only buy online and only provides online support for it. I can see the geeky Google guys sitting in their offices patting each other on the back for coming up with this one. Google doesn't own the entire world quite yet, so they still have to do business under the rules the rest of us work under. If they want to change the world then they needed to work harder to make the online support dead simple and rock solid. I guess they have a little bit of work to do.

My Worst Fear

2009-12-18T14:40:00.002-07:00

This clip shows a disaster in a warehouse that is "man caused" but my worst fear is being inside a Costco and an earthquake hits and this happens. If you're not inside a forklift like these guys I don't think you survive. Does Costco sell life insurance?

Android Doomed

2009-12-16T11:23:00.002-07:00

HERE is the most concise explanation thus far as to why, at this writing anyway, the Android ecosystem seems doomed.
The news this week about The Googs new "Nexus One" phone is evidence that even Google sees the problem. They are trying to fix it by making their own phone. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, everyone is chasing the iPhone. Even Google. I'm not saying they are giving up on the open source Android OS but by making and shipping their own phone they are taking a stand that will piss of handset manufacturers and Cell carriers at the same time. Thus making things wildly more complicated than just making a phone and controlling it from beginning to end ala Apple. Good luck Goog!

Why didn't I think of that?

2009-12-16T11:07:00.002-07:00

Check out THIS new iPhone app. It uses the phones camera to make the phone transparent while you're texting. So you can see where you are going. Hmm. Of course! Seems so obvious now. Now if I'm texting in the car I can see the crash I'm about to get into before it happens. Sweet!

Peaceful Word Processing

2009-12-11T14:26:00.002-07:00

Found this new software today.
It is a simple word processor for Mac OSX only. Sorry PC guys, you'll have to wait. (I love saying that ;) For those poor non-Mac guys you can go to their site and watch a video of how it works.

Anyway, download the beta of Ommwriter and check it out.

I spent many years in my career working on word processors for WordPerfect (for Mac), Adobe (Framemaker) and Microsoft (Office), and word processing always seemed very businesslike. Straightforward even sterile interfaces. Nothing fancy or aesthetic about them at all. These guys take a very simple approach. Take everything away but the writing. It is unique and I kind of like it. I can see using Ommwriter for creative writing. Everyday business writing would require too much re-formatting in a more full featured word processor.
Your desktop icons and dock go away and you have a simple background. Soothing sounds and/or music plays. All interface elements fade away as you write leaving you with just the words your are writing and nothing else to distract you. If the music does distract you can turn it off. I personally found it soothing. I'm sure they will iterate on this concept and add more features but maybe they don't need to. What do you think? Give Ommwriter a try and come back and comment I would love to hear what you think.

Kindle Krap

2009-12-03T16:15:00.003-07:00

I've been waiting for awhile now to get my hands on an Amazon Kindle for the first time. I've been waiting to review/remark on the Kindle until I could actually use one. Thanks to my friend I had my first contact yesterday.

Here are my thoughts.

So, the unit I used was a first gen Kindle. I understand it has been improved since. If I ever get my hands on the newer models I will update my feelings here. That being said, my feelings on a lot of points will probably be the same despite the improvements I have read about.
First thought was, wow this thing is small. I couldn't believe how small the screen is. The newer models have bigger screens. Good. I knew that this device was not a touch screen so I found the scroll ball device pretty quickly. What surprised me was the scroll indicator window directly above the scroll wheel. What the heck? This vertical indicator thingey is totally bizarre. What is it? I don't think it is LCD like the eInk screen the book text displays on. I quickly figured out what it was telling me and moved on. However, it was a little odd to figure out and doesn't feel very intuitive to me. It isn't part of the main display screen. Nowadays this seems completely odd, backwards and unnecessary.
The power button and wireless button are on the back. Bad. I have to turn the unit over to turn it on. The unit I was using was in a leather carrying case which seemed kind of nice. I had to remove the Kindle from the case in order to turn it on and then place it back in the case.
eInk. It looks a little different than the usual experience of a non-backlit LCD screen. Text seemed smooth and very readable but it also looked a little muddy and I was just not "wowed" by it. The background is a dull grayish color and seems decidedly darker than if I were reading an actual "real paper" book. I would like the eInk background to be brighter.
I found a book on the main menu and clicked to open it to start reading. I expected a full page of text like I would see in a book. No. I found maybe a quarter page of text, flush left. I had to click the "next" button often to read. This would be distracting I think if I were actually sitting down to read an entire book. I "expected" and/or "wanted" something different. I wanted this device to mimic at least in some fashion what reading a real book would be like. I am not a real book purist. I love books but I totally want an electronic device that I can comfortably read books on. The Kindle is not it. This surprised me. I expected that I would like this device, that it would immediately appeal to me and that I would want one and it would start the usual multi-month or year long longing to have one.
The interface was decidedly basic and lacked design and any sort of layout. Basic text lists of titles and options. Boring. I tried several books and noticed that on each one the text is just thrown on the screen without any consideration for typography or layout. Most books I read don't have a lot of "design" to them but at least I can see a chapter heading and page number and a pleasing typeface. This experience felt "less than". Less than even a basic paper back book. I must say it again that this surprised me. How hard is it to mimic a page full of black and white 12pt Times Roman text with a chapter heading and page number? Maybe this varies by book and I just picked books that didn't have any layout etc. I don't know.

In summary, I guess it's true that my expectations are too high. I am continually disappointed by my experiences with electronic devices. I am eternally hopeful however that someone somewhere will meet my expectations and make my life better. I hope this new fad of late in the eBook reader space will turn out something special at some point. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on the Barnes & Noble Nook. It looks interesting but I fear it will suffer some of the same downfalls of the Kindle. There are dozens of others but they all seem even less exciting than the Kindle. Maybe Apple's rumored tablet will hit the ebook ball out of the park. It won't be an ebook reader only so I fear that it's cost will be too great. However, the Apple experience and polish give it a very good chance of exceeding the Kindle. Having other features and uses could be a plus too. We'll have to see what they deliver. My guess is even their first version won't completely meet my high expectations. I fear I will have to wait a couple more years till something comes along I find exciting. You can be sure I will write about it here!

ClickToFlash

2009-12-03T16:06:00.002-07:00

Thanks to The Fireball, I just found this really cool plugin for Safari on OSX. ClickToFlash blocks all Flash until you click on the flash to start it. It makes pages load tons faster. My browsing speed experience just doubled if not more. Since most flash is for advertisements I don't really miss much. If I want to see it I just click the flash button and it will load and run the flash. I don't use a laptop but this would increase battery life exponentially. Flash is a resource hog. For those sites that you visit often and want to see the flash you can "whitelist" sites easily.
I hear FireFox has a similar plugin but don't know anything about it since I don't use FF. If you are "Foxtard" you're on your own.
Cheers!

My Courageous Kids

2009-11-20T15:36:00.003-07:00

I went to a church sponsored talent show that my daughter has been preparing weeks for. As I sat watching her sing in front of a couple of hundred people I was predictably filled with parental pride. As I think about it more I am even more deeply impressed with the courage it took for her to get up and perform on a stage. She did not get this from me. I have never and will never grace a stage in front of any amount of people. Here is the video of the performance. It was taken with my phone and the sound isn't the best. Lots of noise from people talking etc. But you can get the gist.

As I sat last night pondering Shelby's performance I was reminded of my other child and his decisions and efforts lately. His courage to leave home and live in a college dorm with a total stranger was nothing short of courageous as well. It's not an easy thing to do. I did it and remember how hard it was to leave home. He has also made the decision to serve a volunteer mission for our church and will be leaving for 2 years in Taiwan next March. Giving 2 years of your life in service is a courageous choice.
Today I am proud of and in awe of my 2 very courageous children.

Hallelujah - Priceless!

2009-11-20T13:58:00.001-07:00

Found this on my neighbors Facebook post today.
Lovin it!

Kewl Klok

2009-11-18T17:00:00.000-07:00

Check this Digital clock out! Very clever!

UP-Lifting

2009-11-18T09:51:00.002-07:00

Here is a short "up" lifting inspirational message. Not a lot of meat or depth but very very good reminders in a clever way. I enjoyed it I hope you do to.

Premature Decoration

2009-11-17T14:26:00.002-07:00

Time for another "Rant O the Week". The last couple of weeks I have seen many of my neighbors out hanging Christmas lights and decorations on their house. Makes sense, it's only a couple of weeks till Thanksgiving, the holidays are fast approaching. However. Let me say that a little stronger. HOWEVER. These same neighbors (some, not all) have turned their lights on at night. WHAT THE HELL??? It's not even Thanksgiving yet. Isn't 5 weeks of lights enough to celebrate the holidays? You know, turn your lights on the night after Thanksgiving and off the night after New Years Day. These decorations do not in any way represent Thanksgiving. If they did I would say, "Oh look, how nice, someone has decorated their house to celebrate Thanksgiving!" That would be cool and would be OK with me. But 2 months of Christmas lights is not OK. This drives me crazy. I think these "premature decorators" should be punished. I say we gather them all up and dress them up in Pilgrim clothing and make them walk around the neighborhood singing "I killed Thanksgiving".

Sad state of Microsoft

2009-11-17T14:22:00.002-07:00

I don't know if this was a corporate directive or just the employees at the Mission Viejo Microsoft Retail store just trying to spice thing up a bit.

Whatever the case it is totally lame. If this is a corporate retail directive I wouldn't be surprised. What depths has Microsoft sunk to have to have their employees break out into a line dance to try and sell stuff. Maybe the Microsoft "Guru Bar" will start "dispensing" more than just technical advice. Now that could get interesting.

iPhone App Store Review Process

2009-11-12T11:34:00.002-07:00

I have a few things to say about the hubub about Apple's iPhone App store review process. There are a lot of software developers out there getting their panties in a twist over having to submit their work for review and acceptance before an App can be sold in Apple's app store. There was a high profile hissy fit just yesterday that prompted me to finally write about this. Joe Hewitt the programmer behind Facebook's iPhone app quit yesterday. See the story HERE. He says he has finally had enough of Apple's submission process and refuses to work on an iPhone app any longer. This is especially ironic that he is calling Apple out for being a "walled garden" when he works for the largest walled garden on earth. I'm not the first to make this connection. Jon Gruber on Daring Fireball links to a tweet by @counternotions that calls out this irony.
I don't claim to know all the ins and outs of the app review process. I have read a lot about it so I think I know some about it. I am not a developer nor do I have any personal experience with Apple's app review process. That being said with what I do "think" I know I am just getting angrier and angrier at those who are whining and now quitting over this.
There is one comment I can make that I have not seen anyone else make yet. It's possible that someone has said this and I will update this post if I find it or if someone sends it my way. I have personal experience working for Microsoft on Xbox games. I spent 6 years there starting a year before the first Xbox shipped. I happen to know intimately the process for getting a game published on the Xbox. It is essentially the same for Nintendo and their game units including the Wii and the DS and for Sony and their game units including the Playstation and the PSP. You cannot just develop a game and ship it to stores or sell it online for any one of these devices. There is an excruciating review process that takes weeks and months of time before your game is approved for sale and publishing on any one of these platforms. I have yet to see anything remarkably different between the app review process Apple has created and those of Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony. This is why I am so angry at these people that are so indignant and up in arms that they can't have complete freedom to create something and just throw it on the iPhone. There is precedence for this review process and it has been around since the very early days of video games. The console creators had to do this to protect their brand and their Intellectual property. They did it to try and make sure that the experience of using a Playstation or Xbox is an excellent one and does no harm to the hardware and their image etc. Oh, I just remembered one significant difference between the iPhone app review process and this video game example I have just given. When you as a developer submit a game for review to any one of these game console makers you pay THEM for the privilege of having your game reviewed. Yes, you read that right, the developer of the software pays money, several thousand dollars, to have their software approved for publishing. Apple does not charge for this service. There is a small fee to become a developer yes, but that is different in that you may never submit anything for review or you may submit a thousand apps for review. It is not a charge for the reviewing service. How much do you think it has cost Apple to do all the work to develop this app store and review what is now well over 100,000 application in the store? It has to be millions and millions of dollars.
Now, after saying all of this I can see that there have been issues even big issues with Apple's review process. They are fixing them. They are making changes to improve the process almost weekly. Going from zero to 100,000 applications in the short amount of time they have had is remarkable I think. No, it is not perfect and I can understand why some have been frustrated. I have no qualms with a lot of the frustrations people have had, they have had perfectly good gripes and a lot of them have been fixed. I have a problem with those that want the review process to essentially go away. They want complete freedom to be "creative" etc. Bullcrap. Apple is absolutely doing the right thing to protect the iPhone experience and to protect their contracts with the Cell service providers. AT&T has had enough trouble keeping up with the explosion of network usage the iPhone has created can you even imagine what would have happened if the App Store was a completely open garden? AT&T's network would have been destroyed along with their business. Apple should trust you? Hell no. Allegedly, even this Joe Hewitt guy has used some private frameworks in some of his code. Private frameworks that are forbidden to be used by developers in order to protect the device, the network and Apple's and AT&T's brand.
I hope Joe Hewitt and the others like him have fun developing apps for the other mobile platforms like Android, Blackberry and Palm's WebOS. They all aren't completely open either. They are going to run into some of the same issues they are complaining about with Apple. They will miss out on working on a platform that has revolutionized mobile computing. You cannot argue that Apple has done this. The numbers speak for themselves. The last thing I have to say to these whiners is, when you are working on building something great it will NEVER be easy. It is the easy road that had gotten us to where we were pre-iPhone. Your choices were WindowsMobile, Nokias Linux based Symbian and Blackberry. They were going nowhere really really slow, and even now with a clear leader showing them how it's done the rest are scrambling to change and emulate. Some are only now coming close to what Apple did 3 years ago. Personally, I cannot wait to see what year four of the iPhone revolution brings.

Sunday Morning Drive

2009-11-09T14:42:00.004-07:00

Here is a little video I took during a Sunday morning drive we took recently. The video doesn't do it justice, it was breathtakingly beautiful. This was taken on the Alpine Scenic Highway in Utah, looking back towards Mt. Timpanogos at about 8200 feet in elevation.

HP ad = Cool, HP= not so much

2009-11-09T14:05:00.002-07:00

I found this directors cut of a unique HP ad. Very cool ad.
Too bad HP is decidedly uncool.

HP "Create Amazing" - Director's Cut from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

On 3D Movies

2009-11-09T10:30:00.004-07:00

My rant for this week is about the preponderance of 3D movies coming out lately. First a little background. A couple of months ago I got a note from Delta airlines that my frequent flier miles were going to expire. I haven't been traveling at all for work the last few years so my miles have gone stagnant. They offered me some free magazine subscriptions to use up my miles. Kinda cool of them to do that actually. Although, the list of possible subscriptions was not very long. I was determined to use up every last mile so I subscribed to Variety. It is a trade rag for the entertainment industry. I have really enjoyed reading this every week. It comes with a lot more detail about movies and TV etc. than I ever got in the occasional article on MSNBC.com.

So, about the time I subscribed to Variety I had been noticing that there were a lot of movies being released that were including a 3D format. Like way more than usual. There was some kind of trend going on. Then I started reading in Variety why this was happening. To put it in a nutshell it is about money. $$$. Surprised? Yeah, me too ;) To the press, people like Jeffrey Katzenberg and other big name directors and Hollywood wonks were talking up how 3D is the future and how the technology is so much better than it ever has been. Yada yada yada. The only reason there are so many 3D movies being released is because they can charge you 30-50% more per ticket for the movie. More money. In their pockets. That is "all" it is about. Don't let the psychobabble about technology and 3D storytelling fool you. You still have to wear the uncomfortable cheapo glasses. It is a less than ideal experience for watching a movie. I'm going to go out on a limb and claim that 3D is not the future of movies. There will NOT be a day any decade soon where most of the movies released are 3D. Eventually the movie going public will tire of the novelty of this latest run of 3D movies and will stop paying the extra money. The studios will lose their shorts on the extra production costs and will stop making them. There will still be the occasional 3D release but it will go back to topics that make sense for a 3D treatment. Like a Halloween blood fest or an occasional animated release.

The reason I am upset about this latest trend is that they are using the guise of technology and creative storytelling to trick us into paying more for a movie ticket. What these people should be doing is focusing on developing good stories. That's what we really want. That is what I really want!!! I see a LOT of movies. Any given Friday or Saturday if you can't find me go to the local Cineplex and shout my name. That's where I'll be. Most of the movies coming out these days are total and utter crap. I must be stupid to keep going in hopes that somehow something good will show up.
So, Mr. Katzenberg and your 3D loving pals, give up the whole 3D thing! Put your efforts into quality content and you will make plenty of money. More people will go to the movies. More people will rent movies. More people will buy movies. You will be able to continue making movies. Keep up this 3D crap and people will vote with their wallets and their feet. Have you heard of the internet? If you're not careful your days could be numbered.

iMac Genesis

2009-11-05T10:50:00.003-07:00

If you're a fan of advertising and design like I am you might enjoy THIS article. It is about the genesis of the name iMac. For those of you who have forgotten your tech history the original iMac was the first major product that came out of Apple after Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1997. This product saved the company. This article is about the naming of the product. It's fascinating.
Steve Jobs supposedly hated the name initially, and then,

"He rejected it twice but then it just appeared on the machine,” Segall says, laughing. “He never formally accepted it.”

My favorite part of this piece was:

Segall was still consulting for Apple until a couple of years ago when he started working for Dell.

“Dell and Apple: It’s night and day,” Segall says. “It’s a transactional world Dell lives in. It’s all about numbers. Everything they say about Apple making products for themselves is true. Apple — it’s about changing the world. For everyone else, it’s about the money.”

The rest as they say is history.

19!

2009-11-04T13:47:00.005-07:00

Number One Son had a birthday. Way to go KJ.
BTW, the decoration on the cake is the flag of Taiwan and "Happy Birthday" in Mandarin Chinese.
Sheng ri kuai le!

It's Apple Magic!

2009-11-04T11:25:00.002-07:00

Those of you who know me know I am very decidedly a fan of Apple computer. Some would call me a "Mac fanboy" some would term it "Mactard". Whatever. Call me what you will, I define it as loving great design. Apple is known for this ability and is consistently great at great design. They don't always hit it out of the park and I will admit to that. I have had some of their products that were stinkers.
Today I'm talking about another home run Apple has hit way way out of the park. It's the new "Magic Mouse".

Apple hasn't always done this well with mice. I remember the God awful "puck mouse" that shipped with the first iMacs. Yikes, those were a big turd. I couldn't use one for more than a minute before I unplugged it and replaced it with another mouse. So, after that experience and my lukewarm feelings for the most recent Mighty Mouse I was skeptical when I heard about the Magic Mouse. The worlds first "touch" mouse. It sounded great and the videos on Apple's website looked fantastic but I wasn't sure it would work for me.
Well, I picked one up at the Apple store last week and I have been smiling ever since. Where have you been all my life? After using probably 2 dozen different mice in my computing life I have found nirvana. This is the mouse God uses on his Mac. Finally, everything I wanted in a mouse.
Here's a little detail about the mouse. It has a surprisingly low profile. I thought it might be too short to be comfortable but it is actually more comfortable than the taller mice I have used. I almost forget my hand is on a mouse and not just resting on the desk. It has a gentle click action for both right and left clicks. This should satisfy all you 2 button mouse freaks out there. It has a very comfortable smooth as glass surface. It's not actually glass but looks and feels as if it were. That's it. No buttons. No scroll wheel. This is where the multi-touch part comes in. The entire surface of the mouse is the touch surface and you swipe and drag your finger/s to scroll and move backwards and forwards. No need for a 7 button mouse any more. The scrolling even has a special feature called "Momentum scrolling." You flick a finger and it will send the screen flying in a fast scroll until it gradually slows down or you touch your finger to stop it. iPhone users will be familiar with this "rubber band" effect. It took me a little getting used to but I can't imagine not having it now. This is where I was skeptical. I was worried that if I rested my hand or fingers on the mouse that it would detect a gesture or something that wasn't intended. This has not happened to me. It feels and behaves as natural as I could possibly imagine. I now look at all the other mice out there and think "Model T" or "Duh." It just feels and performs that well. Why did no one figure this out before?
So, I am over the moon happy with this mouse and the thing that keeps me giggling, (literally, I giggle when I think this) I know that Apple is just going to make this thing better. More gestures etc.
Bottom line is this Apple device literally deserves it's name because it is magic!

Flipping Awesome!

2009-11-04T09:46:00.004-07:00

Our new graphic designer here at work just showed me THIS totally cool site. Just bring the site up and it will search your installed fonts on your system and give you a side by side comparison of all of them. You can change the text that will display by clicking the text in the heading on the page. What an awesome idea! I will totally use this. Thanks to Stuart Robison at flippingtypical.com for this! It may not be a 'new' idea per se but it's the first time I've seen it. Bravo Stuart!

Taiwan!

2009-10-27T15:50:00.002-06:00

Number One Son received his LDS mission call. He is going to the Taiwan, Taizhong mission.
Here's the video:

C:/ONGRTLNS.W07

2009-10-22T14:54:00.002-06:00

I haven't bashed Microsoft for awhile. So, today on the day of the release of MS's latest version of Windows, Windows 7, I have a few things to say.
First of all, I have used Windows 7 a bit. Not extensively, not enough to do a full blown review. My first reaction is that it isn't bad. It improved on Windows Vista a bit. I don't really have anything negative to say about the software per se. Just one thing. It's still Windows. Windows users won't get this and I don't care. If you are choosing to use Windows you deserve what you get. If you are happy with it, you deserve it. If you are miserable, you deserve it.
Here is what I want to rant about today. The babbling ridiculous marketing drivel coming out of Redmond about this release. I mean come on! How much bullshit can you take? Here is one example from Mr. Ballmer head bullshitter of Microsoft:

“Let’s face it, the Internet was designed for the PC. The Internet is not designed for the iPhone,” Ballmer said. “That’s why they’ve got 75,000 applications — they’re all trying to make the Internet look decent on the iPhone.”

Uh...what? "The internet was designed for the PC." Who does he think he's talking to? Seriously, he is starting to sound like Al Gore. This is the type of bullshit you get out of salespeople. This guy has no idea what the hell he's talking about. No wonder MS is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Microsoft's Board should toss this idiot out ASAP if they want to turn the Titanic around. The iPhone has this guy so perplexed and angry that he can't even talk about a desktop operating system on the day of it's worldwide release. He has to start comparing the internet to the PC and the iPhone. His head is so far up his ass that his companies mobile strategy is splintered between not 2 but 3 different technologies. Pick one DUMB ASS!!!

A lot is being said about Windows 7 being the "best release of Windows ever". I agree. It probably is the best version since Windows 2000. The problem here is that the world of technology is rapidly moving on from the era of the desktop operating system. It seems everyone gets it but Microsoft. As much pleasure as I get from seeing them fail I still get worked up that they are getting so much positive press and attention about it. Microsoft's stock and image will see a rebound from this release of Windows. It will last less than a year before their decline continues and accelerates.
Oh, one more item. Did you see the opening of the first "Microsoft Store" today in an Arizona mall? The video is easy to find on Youtube. Check it out. They couldn't have made their store look more like the Apple store if they had just broken in to one and stole everything. No ingenuity. No Innovation. No creativity. The "M" in Microsoft still stands for "Mediocre", and it looks like it always will.

Turning the World on it's Ear

2009-10-13T13:53:00.002-06:00

Check out this blurb about the future of TV. It is imagined in a world where Apple will turn how we view TV on it's ear. This is one of the best "guesses" or predictions about what is coming and why in the TV and the gadget world that I have read to date.
Click HERE to read the article.

Ten years ago, many people started getting rid of their landlines in favor of mobile phones. Five years from now, we'll all be choosing our "cable" options from an a la carte menu on our NATVs, and we'll only need wires to bring the Internet tubes into our homes. Five years after that, we'll all be using WiMax or another ubiquitous high-speed wireless Internet provider. We'll be wondering why we ever had all those wires for phone, DSL, cable or Internet. Our bathroom reading will be eBooks bought on our fifth-generation iTablets. The iTablet will be the ultimate eReader on the market. Note to Kindle: Never mind, they know what's coming. Apple is changing the game. Again. Competitors, eat your hearts out. Consumers, rejoice.

Whether or not Apple is able to pull this off or not, it is this type of thinking and anticipation of the future that gets me out of bed every morning.

I Hope They Call Me on a Mission

2009-10-04T16:30:00.004-06:00

Number One Son is now filling out his paperwork to serve a volunteer 2 year mission for the LDS Church.
Here is a little video of the map in our home where we are marking all the guesses from family and friends as to where he might go. Feel free to comment if you want to log a guess. Or, you can email me at kageysea AT Gmail.com.

NOTE: Items on the map. The white flags are the guesses. You will get white flags with your names on them if you make a guess. The white dots (pins) are Current LDS temples. The Red dots (pins) are US Embassies and the Blue dots (pins) are US consulates. The green dots (pins) are places someone in our family has lived or visited.

Holy Cow, what a prediction!

2009-10-01T11:08:00.002-06:00

You've heard of Babe Ruth pointing the bat to where he was going to hit a home run and then doing it? Well, maybe this is the second best baseball prediction of all time. A former MLB baseball player talking on a pre-game radio show makes an unbelievable prediction and then...Well, watch the video to see.

Metaphor for Stupidity

2009-09-22T14:51:00.002-06:00

Sometimes I think I am like this cat. I may be getting a little bit of water but it is not the right way to be getting it.

Thanks to Blairwilliams.com for the link.

Incredible, Awesome, Amazing

2009-09-17T13:20:00.002-06:00

I think Apple is "Great, incredible, awesome and amazing" too.

I am T Pain

2009-09-04T10:51:00.001-06:00

You know you're gonna wanna buy this iPhone app! I AM T Pain Watch the video and see what you think. I don't care for rap at all but this actually looks like it might be a little fun ;)

Moving Words

2009-09-04T10:18:00.002-06:00

I saw this video today and was entranced by it. FLICKRMOOD. An experiment in motion typography. I have done some type/video stuff before of course not even close to this level. I can't imagine the work that went into this! Nice. Click the link above for an extended version if you like this embedded one.

Flickermood 2.0 from Sebastian Lange on Vimeo.

Yike Bike!

2009-09-03T10:15:00.002-06:00

This is pretty cool. It's an electric bicycle and it folds into a bag that you can take with you to your office or on public transportation very easily. It's called the Yike Bike. It goes approx. 12 miles per hour which is plenty, it charges to 80% in 20 minutes, it takes 15 seconds to fold up, it weighs 22 pounds and it's range is 6 miles. The range may be a bit of a problem and it looks like it would take a little getting used to riding the thing. Watch the video and see how they compare to a normal bicycle. This has a lot of potential. Oh, it costs about $5k so for now it is not cheap, but I'm sure if it catches on it will come down significantly in price. Keep an eye on this one.

New Age Mom

2009-09-02T11:07:00.002-06:00

This video was hilarious. Sometimes The Onion really nails it.
Seriously, I cannot stop laughing!

Facebook, Twitter Revolutionizing How Parents Stalk Their College-Aged Kids

Quick! Hide!

2009-08-26T12:44:00.001-06:00

Sending #1 son off to college today.

No way i'm old enough for this.

Is it time for my mid-life crisis yet?

I'll take a red one...

Our New Car

2009-07-31T11:50:00.003-06:00

Well, after the latest traffic debacle we were completely befuzzled on what we were going to do to replace our totalled car. This time we thought we would be smart about it. Use the 'ol noggin. This is what we came up with. So, when we're not using it if anyone needs a tow, let us know.

Another 'Car' bites the dust Part 2

2009-07-29T11:23:00.004-06:00

12 year old car + 220,000 miles + Teenager = Totalled Car

As promised, here is the video.

Another 'Car' Bites the Dust!

2009-07-28T20:10:00.000-06:00

Number One Son totals second Carter vehicle in two years. Film at 11.

Pretty Link WordPress plugin

2009-07-28T14:38:00.006-06:00

If you're running a WordPress site (or sites) sit up and take notice.
A good friend of mine just launched a new plugin for WordPress sites. It takes the link shortening and link management craze as of late and stands it on it's head! Here is a brief description:

Shrink, track and share any URL on the Internet from your WordPress website. Unlike other link shrinking services like tinyurl, budurl, and bit.ly, this plugin allows you to create shortlinks coming from your own domain! Pretty Link tracks each hit on your URL and provides a full, detailed report of where the hit came from, the browser, os and host. Pretty Link is a killer plugin for people who want to mask their affiliate links, track clicks from emails, increase the reach of their website by spreading these links via Twitter, forums or comments on other blogs.

There is a free version you can check out but you're really going to want the Pro Version for all the great features. Click the link for more info.
Enjoy the Link Magic!

Grandma is 90!

2009-07-23T12:50:00.002-06:00

Here is a little tribute to Grandma Hill from Number one Son.

We held a big family birthday party for her last night. It went well and Grandma seemed to enjoy it. Can't wait to see her blow out one hundred candles in 10 years at the big Century party! She promised she would practice and get ready.

Smile! or your FIRED!

2009-07-23T10:50:00.003-06:00

Those crazy Japanese are at it again! HERE is a story about Japanese railworkers that are required to "check their smiles" on a laptop computer with a webcam attached before starting their shifts. It gives them a Smile rating. Wow. I love this quote:

"I don't think that we have had much opportunity to stare at our faces that close and for that long to check our facial expressions until now."

This is one of those things that makes you go, "Hmmmmm." Working in a busy train station it makes sense that smiling employees would help ease stress. I'll bet this theory would work in any job situation. How many of us think this way? I'm guessing not very many.

Apptastic!

2009-07-22T13:06:00.001-06:00

Check out the new window display at the Apple Store.

I haven't seen it in person yet and am worried it might invoke some kind of seizure or delirium or somesuch. It sure does look cool though.

Bravo Olympus!

2009-07-14T17:05:00.002-06:00

No new tech here, a lot of people have been doing the stop motion photog stuff but I really liked this one. Again, it made me smile. Makes it worth sharing. Thanks Olympus. Left me in awe of the work it took to produce this.

Tone of Everyday Life

2009-07-13T17:23:00.001-06:00

Maybe you've seen this already, it's making the rounds.
Another gem of a find. This made me smile. Watch it to the end it's worth it.
Consider yourself hugged.

Holy Inkjets Batman!

2009-07-13T17:02:00.001-06:00

Found this kewl video recently. It's a kewl idea. I'd hate to see their ink bill!

HP - invent from Tom and Matt on Vimeo.

More Proof...

2009-07-09T12:15:00.002-06:00

Here is even more proof that as a whole Microsoft has jumped the shark.
What kind of reality distortion field has cropped up over Redmond? What in the heck is going on up there in their marketing departments? They are so messed up they probably are still thinking King Obama is the second coming of Christ.

This is how they chose to promote the next version of Office? Seriously?
At least no one is vomiting in this ad ;)

Seriously? IE8?

2009-06-30T11:02:00.002-06:00

Something must be in the water up Redmond, WA way. I think Microsoft has 'jumped the shark'. Below is just one of their new ads for Internet Explorer 8. Wow. I am at a loss for words. I feel really really sorry for Dean Cain. Would someone please give him a real job so he doesn't have to stoop this low again.
Click the 'Redmond' link above to see the other horrific ads. O.M.G.I.G.P just watching these ads.

There, I Fixed it

2009-06-30T10:49:00.004-06:00

I found this blog recently. It is hilarious. There, I Fixed it.

This post made me laugh out loud today.

Fire Alarm

Kewl Song

2009-06-30T10:11:00.002-06:00

I am mostly posting this here so I have a place to go back and listen easily.
Also, just to share a kewl song. I love Jon Schmidt. He is a local Utah talent that I and my family have met and seen in concert several times. Love his music and his passion. Enjoy!

Minority Report is NOW

2009-06-26T11:37:00.002-06:00

Check THIS out!

Remember the "touch screen wall" that Tom Cruise used in the film "Minority Report?" Well, this type of tech is starting to show up in real usage around the world. I find this fascinating and can't wait to actually walk up to something like this someday and interact with it. Heck, if I were wealthy (yah, I know wealth is relative) enough to afford it I would put something like this in my home. This could replace the magnetic white board calendar/cork board we have in our kitchen right now.
Very cool!

Top 20

2009-06-23T10:41:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to shout from the rooftops that I have made a world-wide Top 20 list! I'm famous. My name, "Kevin" is the 19th most used first name on Facebook. I'm sure it's because of all the times I have updated my status ;)

(note: I do share this distinction with 385,464 other Kevin's however)

Cute Callie

2009-06-22T11:10:00.001-06:00

I took the opportunity to grab a little video of my newest niece Callie at our Father's Day dinner last night. She is so sweet and lovable.

Fathers Day Dinner - Video

2009-06-22T10:56:00.002-06:00

I thought I'd share a little of our Father's Day fun at Raq's place with a little video!

Father's Day Card

2009-06-22T10:36:00.002-06:00

I got this card for Father's Day yesterday from my dear wife.
It was so funny I just had to share it.

PBS=Liberal?

2009-06-17T10:42:00.002-06:00

I didn't hear about THIS until today. Evidently PBS has been working to enforce a longstanding rule against religious programming over the last year. This is coming up now supposedly due to the analog to digital transition that just completed last Friday June 12th. According to the article (link above) the stations that already broadcast religious programming have been give a reprieve. Which includes all of 4 stations nationwide. All other PBS affiliates are now banned from any religious programming.
So, evidently the PBS organization that regularly teams up with and broadcasts content from extreme leftist NPR (National Public Radio) has now decided to get militant on religious programming. This is unfortunate. An organization that supports programming that has historically covered the gamut of American culture and society has now closed itself off from a major piece of what makes America what it is at it's core.
So, in my opinion, now begins the long slow decline of PBS into the ether. It will begin to fail at an even quicker pace than it already has been. You'll know this is true when sometime in the next 4 years you hear a news story about how King Barack Obama announces a bail out of PBS. With your tax money.

Black and White and RED all over

2009-06-11T15:15:00.002-06:00

Saw this today. It was hilarious. I believe we are living through a major transition not unlike the industrial revolution. Newspapers are literally disappearing before our eyes. The way we get information is changing almost daily it seems. Check out this little tongue in cheek Daily Show snippet that goes inside the New York Times. Some of the questions were funny and profound at the same time. I loved how the NYT guys literally had no answer to some of the questions.

A New Graduate

2009-06-10T15:42:00.004-06:00

It's official.
I'm old.

Check out this vid of the manchild walking for his high school diploma last week.

Kudos to those who came out to support him. Dad, Nana Berni & Grandpa Lee and Mr.Guad.

Makin it look easy

2009-06-09T14:09:00.002-06:00

Referring to the keynote from Apple's WWDC yesterday,
this article by Steve Gillmor on TechCrunch puts it better than I could ever have come up with.

Here's a snippet:

Apple’s rigorous march forward and its deep understanding of what the market will want next is not only keeping them ahead of the competition but building the markets they will own tomorrow. They’re like Willie Mays and the basket catch, making the hard stuff look easy.

Real Time iPhone App Store purchases

2009-06-09T10:27:00.003-06:00

Check out this video from Apple's World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) being held this week in San Francisco.
It is a representation of the 50,000 apps in the iPhone app store and the pulses are the apps being purchased. Very cool :)

Palm Pre - Not So Much

2009-06-04T13:37:00.002-06:00

Let me begin by saying I have not actually touched and played with one of these phones. Maybe that would change my opinion. I'll write again once I've had a chance to touch and use one.
All of the Palm Pre reviews came out today. They are mostly positive. One of the best was on Engadget. It was in depth and fair. I read several reviews as to not be slanted by one reviewer in my early opinions. I have been very curious about this offering from Palm since they announced it over 6 months ago.
We have had and used Palm devices in our home. They were the best things available at the time. I agonized about biting the bullet and spending money for one of my own. I never did. None of the models I tried ever really hit the sweet spot of my expectations for a personal device. Once the line between PDA and Mobile Phones started to blur my curiosity started picking up again and I was hopeful that a device would surface that I could be happy with. As many of you know that did happen for me. It was in the form of Apple's iPhone. Although far from perfect especially in it's first version it was very usable and to be honest life changing for me. It changed how I live my life. I have gripes and complaints and even had to use the warranty on my first model after almost a year due to a screen defect that popped up.
I have watched with interest as one "iPhone Killer" after another has come and gone from almost every handset maker on the planet. None have measured up, not even close. The initial info from Palm was good and seemed like maybe this could finally be some competition for Apple. It is. Competition is a good thing. It will make Apple innovate faster and work harder and hopefully not let them get complacent with a wildly successful market changing device.
However, today after reading reviews and watching videos of the device being used by real people I don't think they quite hit it out of the park. I think it will be successful. Time will tell if it will be successful enough to save Palm. Maybe. What it will do is finally put the Windows Mobile pieces of shit out of our misery. They should just go away now. Thanks for playing yet again Microsoft. The Pre is good and will undoubtedly get better if they are allowed years of time to iterate. The single largest thing their success hinges on at this point is their ability to get an app store and a library of apps that even comes close to what Apple has done. They are off to a stumbling start already on this point. The Pre launches on Saturday June 6th and they do not even have the developers SDK ready to release and probably won't for months. This could kill them. Yes, Apple was a year before they released their SDK but the difference is they had no competition at the time. Palm does not have that luxury. Everyone has an app store for their smartphones up and running now. They are launching this phone with 12 apps. Yikes. The comparison to the 40k apps in the iTunes app store is staggering.
So, here is the meat of what I think about the phone. The UI is beautiful. Very much an Apple-like experience and it gets directly compared that way in EVERY review. So, this is not just me saying this. There are parts of the UI where it seems like the Palm engineers were trying to be too clever for their own good in trying to differentiate and 'outdo' Apple. This just makes the UI cluttered and clunky. I watched probably an hour and a half of demo video and I am now thoroughly confused about how to use this phone. Palm even admits that there is a learning curve. Doh! Wow, you will never hear Apple say that about any device they produce. The "learning curve" on the iPhone is picking it up and turning it on. I have handed my phone to several decidedly non-techie people and they instinctively know how to do things. It's just dead simple. The Pre cannot be labeled this way. There are fast swipes and slow swipes and there are on screen gestures and a special off screen gesture area. WTF? Are you kidding me? It seems like the biggest item that reviewers and Palm are touting is the ability of the phone to have more than one app running at once. Well, in practice this falls down fast. If you watch an iPhone user and a Pre user you will think they have the same feature in this area. Technically, right now, the iphone's apps aren't running concurrently but they launch so fast that you can't tell the diff between 'switching' apps on the Pre and launching apps on the iPhone. Pre apps take up to 10 seconds to launch according to every reviewer. Wow, I cannot imagine tolerating that on my iPhone. The occasional large game may take that much time to load up on the iPhone.
I watched the cut and paste demo on one of the videos and had to laugh. The reviewer had to actually put the Pre down on a table in order to complete the multi finger key presses necessary to complete a copy and paste. I haven't actually seen how iPhone will implement this feature but the Pre implementation looks crazy to me. There is a special orange button on the keyboard that must be slid out to perform this feature. Although there are menu items for cut/copy/paste but the reviewers showed the menu items in an app that had no text to cut and paste. Hmm? That was odd. Again, even after watching all this demo it isn't clear in my head how to use this thing.
Next, something else I noticed on the videos that I cannot be sure of until I actually use one. The Pre uses a "deck of cards" metaphor for app switching by placing a box with the app or browser windows on screen that you can flip through. Problem. These cards are small and hard to see on the already smaller than iPhone Pre screen. That could be really annoying if I am constantly holding the phone right up to my face so I can see anything. Also, with the smaller screen and many of the little "audio players" and "event notifiers" etc. that come up on the Pre I'm not sure my fat fingers could hit such small targets. It's already hard enough on my iPhone and it looks like the Pre is expecting tiny little fingers to be using their phone. That would be a DEAL BREAKER for me. Throw the phone down in disgust and never come back. It can look great and even be clever and innovative but if I can't see it and can't USE it then it's a no go. We'll see how it performs when I can touch one.
I had some other thoughts but I'm already going long here. In summary I think the Pre is a worthy competitor but it looks like Palm cut some corners in the hardware components and tried too hard to be different and clever. They overshot the mark a bit I'm afraid and my guess is this phone will be a distant 3rd or 4th to the iPhone/BlackBerry/Android crowd at least for their version 1 offering. If they last another year and can put out a version 2 we'll see how much better it is. Of course by then their competitors will be on versions 3 and 4 and 5 etc.

Conan the unfunny man

2009-06-04T13:26:00.002-06:00

I'm pretty sure I've posted something similar to this before in years past. It's time to talk about it again.
With Conan O'Brien taking over for Jay Leno on NBC's late night Tonight Show this week I have yet another opportunity to spout off about how NOT funny this guy is.
Sheesh. Seriously. Jay Leno is a hack and I rarely if ever tuned him in because I couldn't stand him but now it's been made even worse. Yah, I know everyone has their own tastes and opinions. However, I cannot comprehend how ANYONE can think Conan is funny. This guy is a dumb ass. He laughs at himself like he's the funniest guy on the planet. His ego could not be any larger than it is. I watched his entire first Tonight Show episode and my mouth was agape the whole time. In shock at how stoooopid it was. My 18 year old son sat next to me and kept looking at me as if to say, "what is this guys problem?" I asked him if he thought Conan was funny and he laughed out loud and said, "this is really stupid." Thank You. I trained him well. To think for himself and tell it like it is.
I was going to give examples from this first show but I'm not going to because it would make me pick up this keyboard and throw it through the FREAKING WINDOW BEFORE I COULD FINISH TYPING ANYTHING!!!!! Gah! What an ass monkey this guy is.

Recognized

2009-05-19T19:59:00.002-06:00

Cheg it owt.
The 18 year old I call "Son" was recognized tonight at his High School recognition night.
He and a few of his classmates were recognized for being awarded scholarships to Brigham Young University.
Good job!!!
We're still having a hard time convincing him that this is worthy of recognition. He just doesn't seem to get it. There are tens of thousands of kids out there that would kill for the opportunity to go to BYU never mind have their tuition paid!!!

M$ Smackdown

2009-05-13T13:24:00.003-06:00

Apple finally came out with an ad answering the Laptop Hunter Ad from Micro$oft.
As you all know I am extremely biased but I thought this was the perfect retort. Clean, simple, brilliant and tongue planted firmly in cheek.
I'm betting the ad guys at TWBA\Chiat\Day were laughing their collective asses off the minute the first laptop hunter ad hit the airwaves. It took them a few weeks to get this Apple ad on the air because they had to stop laughing so hard so they could work again.
Yah, yah, so before you get all argumentative, yada yada yada, save your breath. Your "PC laptops are cheaper...etc etc." shtick is not going to be heard here. In the last 3 months I have helped 2 die hard Windows users convert to a Mac laptop and they could not be happier. Every time I see them they gush about how much their Mac has "changed their lives". They can "trust their computer again", "things make sense" I could go on for hours.

Cheg it owt!

Electric Complications

2009-05-13T10:58:00.002-06:00

I've been hearing/reading/viewing a LOT about electric vehicles in the last year or so. Especially because of recent high gas prices the electric vehicle has become a 'when' and not 'if' proposition. It seems dozens of manufacturers are racing to bring their vehicle to market. I have read a lot about the batteries in all of these vehicles and the range in miles you may or may not get on a single charge. HERE is something I did not think about or even consider until I read it today.
The idea is instead of waiting for your car battery to recharge you go to a local "Battery Swap Station" and just have your battery changed out for a fresh one. This would also allow for longer 'cross-country' type trips. I guess it makes sense really but my first reaction to this was, "Seriously?" I guess if oil was really almost gone, which it is not, or supply and demand was making gas prices ridiculous like last year then maybe I could see this. I just can't understand why with all of our technological prowess we cannot come up with a battery that will last longer, more like a tank of gas longer, and why we couldn't recharge said battery as fast as filling up a tank of gas. This battery swapping idea just comes off comical to me. Watch this video and see what you think.
These batteries are huge! How many cars could a swapping station even service in a 24 period for example. Something about this just doesn't seem right to me.

Cheg it owt!

2009-05-04T14:33:00.000-06:00

This is a kewl youtuber.

Clickin it Old School

2009-04-29T14:19:00.002-06:00

Looks like technology hasn't progressed all that far maybe.
Thanks to HockeyGuy for the vid.

Just what we need?

2009-04-09T15:41:00.004-06:00

This is cool, but do we really need a video game to teach the upcoming generation how to do graffiti?
If it can keep the kids from doing it on a building then it is genius. If it creates more taggers then it is horrible.
I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Important Training!

2009-04-08T15:58:00.001-06:00

Oh those Japanese minds are at it again!
You cannot make this stuff up. It is real.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Hazel for President!

2009-04-07T10:30:00.002-06:00

After watching this video my first thought was is there a makeup artist out there good enough to make her look enough like Obama to fool people. We need to draft this woman and put her in charge here. Then we could actually get some shiz done!
Go Hazel!!! (thanks to Hockeyguy for the link.)

Where the wild things are - big screen

2009-03-31T10:52:00.002-06:00

Where The Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak's classic children's tale is coming to the big screen. The wife and I have given this book as a baby shower present ever since we were first married. It is one of her favorite stories and now it is coming to the big screen! Click the link above to watch the trailer. It looks like a wild fun time!!!

Little Red Riding Hood - Updated

2009-03-31T10:44:00.002-06:00

Check out this interpretation of the classic Little Red Riding Hood.
Pretty good.

Slagsmålsklubben - Sponsored by destiny from Tomas Nilsson on Vimeo.

Happiness?

2009-03-11T10:35:00.002-06:00

I just read that Utah has been ranked 1st in a survey on overall happiness.
Maybe it's because in another recent survey Utah was found to be the highest per capita in paid Pornography subscriptions.
Just a thought ;)

Barry Manilow - WMD

2009-03-02T22:39:00.002-07:00

A mall in New Zealand has resorted to using Barry Manilow music to chase away "mall rats". Unruly teenagers that hang around the mall and cause trouble. They figure the teens would rather be somewhere else than listening to Barry Manilow's smooth tunes wafting through the rafters of the mall.
My favorite part of this story is the quote from the mall's manager:

"Association manager Paul Lonsdale told The Associated Press. "I did not say Barry Manilow is a weapon of mass destruction.""

I wish my local mall would play Barry Manilow. I would go hang out there more often. At 43 I don't think I would cause much trouble.

Priceless

2009-02-23T15:38:00.003-07:00

Another notch on the bedpost of Microsoft's slow decline into oblivion.
Microsoft recently laid off several hundred workers and due to a "software glitch" they were paid too much severance. They have the balls to actually ask for the money back. Priceless.

UPDATE: Late yesterday Microsoft announced they are no longer seeking the extra money back from laid off employees. Good call.

Observation of the Week

2009-02-03T14:16:00.004-07:00

One thing I have been thinking about for some time now. It is in regards to our former President George W. Bush. He left office 14 days ago. He was reportedly the lowest rated President in terms of job performance polls ever. If you listen to the media in the last few years he was a horrible, silly, joke of a president. It got so bad that even people close to me that are staunch Republicans were cracking jokes about our sitting President.
I for one never gave up on the man and one thing that he accomplished keeps coming to my mind.
It was 2,689 days from 9.11.2001 to the day that President Bush left office, January 20th, 2009. Not once in those 2,689 days since our country was brutally attacked by terrorists was there another terrorist attack on US soil. Not even a small one. Not once. I think that is amazing. Even with increased security and diligence I believe that a determined terrorist could find a way to attack. Why didn't they?
The war in Iraq has become looked at as a huge miscalculation. A mistake. I don't see it that way at all. Even President Bush's detractors railed that Iraq became a "magnet" for Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups. Great. That kept them from coming here.
Can you imagine the uproar and the railing against President Bush if even one suicide bomber had come and detonated themselves on a busy New York City street or subway platform? It didn't happen and I think that says something about the accomplishments of our 43rd President.
Yes, mistakes were made. He was not perfect and maybe there could have been some things done differently. Today I am stating my gratitude to George W. Bush. I do not feel the fear and worry that I felt on 9.11. I feel I live in a relatively safe place. A safe country. Even among multiple other terrorist atrocities that have happened since 9.11, they have not happened here. I thank him for that.
I sincerely hope that I can have the same gratitude for our new president in four years. The day after being inaugurated, President Obama signed an order to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay Cuba. The place where we were holding suspected terrorists. He was asked in a recent interview if troops would be coming home by the next SuperBowl. President Obama said that he believed most of them would be home by then. So, I wonder where these released prisoners will go. To fight in the "magnet" for Al Qaeda that is Iraq? Or, will they follow our troops home?

5 Word Review - New in Town

2009-02-03T13:50:00.002-07:00

New in Town
Starring: Renee Zellweger, Harry Connick Jr.

1. Mildly Funny
2. Predictable
3. Take it or leave it
4. Weak attempt at romance
5. Overdone Minnesota stereotypes

5 Word Review - Taken

2009-02-03T13:34:00.003-07:00

Taken
Starring: Liam Neeson and a lot of dead bodies

1. High Body Count
2. Compelling
3. Shout out loud AWESOME
4. Emotional revenge
5. Engaging

Dang it!

2009-01-28T08:52:00.000-07:00

I was going for the R rating but I just can't do anything right lately ;)

Ice Cream!

2009-01-28T08:44:00.001-07:00

Got this from a friend recently.
Some may not agree but it sure seems to be this way to me.

------------

Ice Cream & The Election

Excellent analogy!
From a teacher in the Nashville area.

Who worries about "the cow" when it is all about the "Ice Cream?

The most eye-opening civics lesson I ever had was while teaching third grade this year.
The presidential election was heating up and some of the children showed an interest.
I decided we would have an election for a class president.
We would choose our nominees. They would make a campaign speech and the class would vote.
To simplify the process, candidates were nominated by other class members.
We discussed what kinds of characteristics these students should have.
We got many nominations and from those, Jamie and Olivia were picked to run for the top spot.
The class had done a great job in their selections.

Both candidates were good kids. I thought Jamie might have an advantage because he got lots of parental support. I had never met Olivia's parents.

The day arrived when they were to make their speeches. Jamie went first. He had specific ideas about how to make our class a better place. He ended by promising to do his very best.

Everyone applauded. He sat down and Olivia came to the podium. Her speech was concise. She said, "If you will vote for me, I will give you ice cream." She sat down.

The class went wild. "Yes! Yes! We want ice cream." She surely could say more. She did not have to.

A discussion followed. How did she plan to pay for the ice cream? She wasn't sure. Would her parents buy it or would the class pay for it? She didn't know. The class really didn't care. All they were thinking about was ice cream.

Jamie was forgotten.

Olivia won by a landslide.

Every time Barack Obama opened his mouth he offered ice cream and fifty-two percent of the people reacted like nine year olds. They want ice cream.

The other forty-eight percent of us know we're going to have to feed the cow and clean up the mess.

A Good "Drug" Problem

2009-01-27T09:59:00.002-07:00

A colleague of mine sent this around the other day.
Very profound.

The following letter has appeared on the internet and was viewed by many readers.

The other day, someone at a store in our town read that a Methamphetamine lab had been found in a old farmhouse in the adjoining county and he asked me a rhetorical question, "Why didn’t we have a drug problem when you and I were growing up?"
I replied, I had a drug problem when I was young: I was drug to church on Sunday morning. I was drug to church for weddings and funerals. I was drug to family reunions and community socials no matter the weather. I was drug by my ears when I was disrespectful to adults. I was also drug to the woodshed when I disobeyed my parents, told a lie, brought home a bad report card, did not speak with respect, spoke ill of the teacher or the preacher, or if I didn’t put forth my best effort in everything that was asked of me. I was drug to the kitchen sink to have my mouth washed out with soap if I uttered a profanity. I was drug out to pull weeds in mom’s garden and flower beds and cockleburs out of dad’s fields. I was drug to the homes of family, friends and neighbors to help out some poor soul who had no one to mow the yard, repair the clothesline, or chop some firewood, and if my mother had ever known that I took a single dime as a tip for this kindness, she would have drug me back to the woodshed.
Those drugs are still in my veins and they affect my behavior in everything I do, say, or think. They are stronger than cocaine, crack, or heroin; and, if today’s children had this kind of drug problem, America would be a better place.

5 Word Reviews - Revolutionary Road

2009-01-24T16:29:00.003-07:00

Revolutionary Road
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Kathy Bates

Sad Story
Great Acting
Boring
Lackluster
Sterile

What a day!

2009-01-21T14:00:00.003-07:00

Hah, This comic is pretty dang funny.

5 Word Review - Defiance

2009-01-20T10:54:00.003-07:00

Defiance
Starring: Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Alexa Davalos

Nothing surprising
True Story
Medium Quality WWII flick
Attempt at depth
Farcical dialect/accent work

Great Day!

2009-01-20T10:03:00.003-07:00

January 20th, 2009
Today is a great day!
I've been waiting for this day for a long time.
Since last Wednesday.
There is another episode of American Idol on tonight!

5 Word Review - Last Chance Harvey

2009-01-17T12:15:00.003-07:00

Last Chance Harvey
Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson

Surprisingly Good
Painful
Sweet
Slow
Date Movie for the over 40 crowd

5 Word Review - Gran Torino

2009-01-17T12:00:00.003-07:00

Gran Torino
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Bee Vang, Ahney Her

Vintage Eastwood
Gritty
Surprising tenderness
Old school racial slurs
Sacrifice

5 Word Review - Slumdog Millionaire

2009-01-17T11:55:00.003-07:00

Slumdog Millionaire
Starring: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto

Gut Wrenching
Great Story
Engrossing
Brutal
Oscar worthy

5 Word Review - Tale of Despereaux

2009-01-17T11:50:00.003-07:00

The Tale of Despereaux
Starring: Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffmna, Emma Watson

Soup
Rats
Beautiful Animation
Dark
Predictable

5 Word Review - Yes Man

2009-01-17T11:46:00.003-07:00

Yes Man
Starring: Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel

Funny
Disappointing
Spontaneous
Entertaining
Naughty

5 Word Review - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

2009-01-17T11:42:00.002-07:00

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Starring: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Julia Ormond

Subtle
Beautiful
Love
Odd
No Answers

5 Word Review - Doubt

2009-01-16T16:34:00.003-07:00

Doubt
Starring: Meryl Streep, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams

Heavy Dialogue
Great Acting
Thinking
Unemotional
Flat

5 Words Review - Marley & Me

2009-01-16T16:30:00.003-07:00

Marley & Me
Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Owen Wilson

Sweet
Romping
Tears
Family
Woof!

5 Word Review - Valkyrie

2009-01-15T18:47:00.003-07:00

Valkyrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Kenneth Branagh

Surprising
Educational
Riveting
Intimate
Bold

5 Word Review - Seven Pounds

2009-01-15T18:41:00.004-07:00

Seven Pounds
Starring: Will Smith, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson

Forgettable
Wanting
Hollow
Disappointing
Unintelligent

5 Word Review - Bedtime Stories

2009-01-15T18:33:00.003-07:00

Bedtime Stories
Starring: Adam Sandler, Keri Russell, Guy Pearce

Fun
Silly
Entertaining
Family Flick
A Little too Cute