Useless dialog of the Week...

Uh, this would be a good time to click Cancel.

NETGEAR - Storage Central SC101

Personally, I'm using NASLite and have been for about a year. The Netgear Storage Central looks like a much more elegant solution.

"Storage Central is easy to setup and install. Just slide in one or two 3.5” IDE disk drives of any capacity; connect Storage Central to any wired or wireless router or switch from any vendor, then configure with Smart Wizard install assistant. Now you’re ready to access files from any PC on your network, as a simple letter drive."

Additional Resources:

• Support forum on Netgear's website- There do seem to be quite a few issues with the device. Here's the support forum on Netgear's website. It appears to only accept specific IDE drives.
• Reviews @ Cnet
• Reviews @ Amazon

Red River Shootout....

Today is the big game and Texas has lost the last five Red River Shootouts. Hopefully, we can win this one, the 100th game between OU and UT. The actual name has been changed to the Red River Rivalry, but we we're still gonna call it a shootout. OK ?

These boots are made for walkin'...

Amy bought her first pair of cowboy boots yesterday at Cavender's Boot City. I will let her tell you about them.

I'm not sure if it was my 30th birthday or my 8th anniversary of living in Texas or just the cosmic alignment... but earlier this year, I decided I needed a pair of cowboy boots. I have never really considered myself a cowboy boot-wearing kind of girl, although I probably officially earned them the summer I worked on the HF Bar Dude Ranch in Saddlestring, Wyoming!

The first boot store we went to had an okay selection, but the boots were sorted by size as opposed to brand or style, so it was kind of like shopping at Payless for 10 times the price.

The experience at Cavender's was far better. John from East Texas was my friendly and knowledgeable sales person. I appreciated his honesty about what brands are better for first-time boot wearers, what brands are known more for their name rather than their quality, and how the construction of the boots varies. I actually ended up buying the first pair I tried on at Cavender's. They are Ariat stockman boots, and I got them for $150. I'm wearing them as I type this, even though I'm already in bed. (Just kidding!) And despite the fact that Eric probably thinks I should have stuck with any one of my many pair of Birkenstocks, he has been completely supportive of this little whim. Thanks, baby!

Latinitas Magazine

Thursday, Amy attended the 2005 Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Community Service Awards Luncheon. A friend of ours recieved the Luz de la Communidad (Community Visionary) Award for Latinitas, an online magazine which she created for Hispanic girls.

At the early age of twenty-five, Alicia Rascon, who was born in Mexico, is co-founder of “Latinitas” an online magazine. Latinitas is a non-profit organization whose main mission is to empower Hispanic girls to succeed through media and technology applications. Ms. Rascon has dedicated herself to providing new avenues and opening the doors to a new future for Latina youths by creating a forum where Latina girls can feel good about themselves. In 2005, the Austin Chronicle’s Best of List named Alicia Rascon, “Best Aspiring Journalist 2005.”

Above quote provided by the September 28, 2005 issue of the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce newsletter.

Fourth Anniversary Weekend

Amy and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary a little early this year. We were able to take advantage of some great deals.

Friday night, we went to a going away Happy Hour at Nuevo Leon for two of Amy's co-workers who are leaving. We left the festivities early to go out to dinner with our friends, Chad and Amanda (she is one of the people leaving Amy's company). We enjoyed visiting with them on the rooftop of Whole Foods.

Instead of going home, we checked into the Hampton Inn Round Rock, approximately 1 mile from our house. You might be wondering why we would choose to stay so close to home... it was free! Several members of Amy's family had stayed in the same hotel back in February, so we had earned two nights' lodging.

Saturday, we slept in until 7:00 and enjoyed a free continental breakfast. Then we did some shopping around town before having lunch at Central Market and going back to the hotel for a nap.

That evening, we got all gussied up and went to dinner at Hill Country Pasta House. A friend had given us a coupon for a free entree, so even with a bottle of wine, two entrees, and a dessert (free because our waiter found out what we were celebrating), we only spent $50 !(and that included a ten dollar tip). The food was delicious, and we had great service from Hank - the same guy who waited on us the only other time we went to that restaurant. He even remembered us!

Following dinner, we drove downtown, parked for free at St. David's Episcopal Church, and enjoyed an amazing concert by Will Taylor & Strings Attached featuring several talented artists - Abra Moore, Suzi Stern, Libby Kirkpatrick, Tucker Livingston, Kacy Crowley, Barbara K, and Patrice Pike. It was a CD release concert benefitting CASA of Travis County. Oh, and did I mention it was free? We were on the guest list!

Sunday morning, we slept REALLY late (8:00) and had our free breakfast again. Then we just lounged around watching a movie until check-out time. After we got home, we watched the Auburn game, which we had recorded from Saturday. Auburn stomped all over Steve Spurrier's South Carolina team. The Gamecocks played embarassingly bad football, but we'll take the win just the same. War Eagle! Sitting around watching TV was exhausting, so we took a long nap...had to drum up enough energy to work on this blog post.

When I said you could put me on hold...

I didn't know that you were going to be playing Jazz. I would have never agreed to be put on hold if I knew I was going to have to endure the jazzy instrumental version of "How Deep is Your Love"

Safe in Austin...

Thanks to everyone for their prayers and kind thoughts yesterday.

My mother made it to Giddings, TX last night. It took her nearly twelve hours to drive the 122 miles. We had her stay there and we met her at a Dairy Queen. We wanted to avoid 290 into Austin, because of the traffic, those people had been on the road for many hours and were more accident-prone.

Amy and I arrived in Giddings at 8:30 and I drove Mom in the Jeep and Amy followed in Mom's car. We took 77 north to Lexington. We then took 112 to Taylor and then on to Round Rock. Traffic wasn't bad and we made it home safely.

Amy and I will be going to work today and Mom will be on her own. She has her car and knows her way around Round Rock, so she'll be fine.

Our home is open...

My mother will be driving to Round Rock today to get out of the way of Hurricane Rita. She has lived in Fort Bend County nearly 50 years. This is the first time she's ever felt the need to evacuate.

We have several friends in Houston who made the trip yesterday. It's possible that some of them will be staying with us.

Hopefully, they will be able to return home on Sunday.

International Talk Like a Pirate Day

I'm assuming my coworkers will make me sick of this event with 14 minutes of my arrival at work.

Guy's night in...

Amy is at a retreat with her coworkers. I am sitting here doing manly activities.

• Meal: Elgin Hot Sausage and Bush's Black Beans with Trappey's Jalapenos.
• Drink: Shiner Light
• Movie: The Searchers, starring John Wayne

My friend, the criminal

About two months ago, I found out that someone I know is a criminal. This isn't some petty issue. I'm not talking about a youthful indiscretion. This person is middle-aged woman with grown children. The amount of the theft has not been pinpointed yet (and probably never will be). It was certainly as much as my house cost me in 1997. It may have been 3 times that. There was no warning. There was just dishonesty. This person admitted their wrongdoing just before the truth was found out.

I was shocked and saddened by the theft, the dishonesty, the betrayal and my misplaced trust.

My friend, the liar

A few years ago, I worked with a guy who was several years younger than me. We were on the same team and over a few months we became good friends. We used to go and shoot pool every Monday. He told me that he was a former Navy Seal and he was still close to those guys. He also played guitar and sang and had been in a couple of bands.

One night, I noticed a ring he was wearing and said "That's an interesting ring". He explained that it had been given to him by Ian Astbury of The Cult. Ian gave it him on a night that his band had opened for The Cult at The Roxy or The Whiskey (or some other LA club). Even though this sounded suspect, I had no reason to doubt him (We were friends after all).

I knew that he had recently broken up with a lovely girl who worked for the same company. This breakup caused him some pain and he used that to write a number of songs. He played me a tape with several of these he had recorded in the studio. I thought they were some of the finest songs I'd heard. I urged him to shop it around and see if he could get a record deal. However, there was a problem. The producer or the engineer had stolen copies of the tapes and had sold the songs. ASCAP was going to help him sue and he felt that he would eventually win. This dragged on for about a year. He finally mentioned the name of the person who had recorded the songs. That person was David Wilcox. I hadn't heard of him before.

At some point, he started hanging out with a woman who we both knew. She and I became friends (and we are still). I saw that he was fairly dishonest with her and didn't treat her as well as he should have.

I started thinking about all of the things that didn't seem quite right and in one day, I found out why. I went to Hasting's to rent a video and they have a music computer. I remembered the name of one of the songs, "Eye of the Hurricane". I searched for it and found that (sure enough), it was on a David Wilcox album. They didn't have it on CD, so I bought a cassette tape and took it home. I looked at it and noticed that the song titles of the 5 songs he gave me were all on the same album, How Did You Find Me Here ?. I assumed that what I would hear when I started playing the tape would be my friend's five songs played by David Wilcox and his band.

It turned out that it was the exact performance from the tape my friend had given me. Was this possible ? Did a recording artist just put his name on someone else's work? I saw no other possible answer...until I saw the copyright date on the CD, which was 1989. This was 5 years before the breakup which caused my friend to "write the songs." He had only given me a dubbed copy of half the songs on that album and claimed it as his own.

I stopped hanging out with my friend, the liar after that. I figured if his entire life was based around this series of lies, that it might be catastrophic to confront him. I've seen him a few times since then. Once, I was telling this story to a couple of friends and I looked up and he was sitting at the bar about 15 feet away. I'm sure he was telling the bartender one of his fascinating tales of adventure.

Booth or Table ?

This is an odd question to be asked at a restaurant. Even when you're sitting in a booth, you're eating at a table. The more correct way to ask the question would be "Booth or chair(s) ?".

New family sports pub coming...

Round Rock is getting a Beef O'Brady's Family Sports Pub. They have only started working on the location which is in the Randall's shopping center. The address is 1901 Town Centre Dr. That's almost exactly one mile from our house. It will be nice to have a place where we can go to watch football that's so close to our house. I'll let you know when we are able to try it.

Eric Schulz - 20% Off

At the last Weight Watchers meeting, I learned that I have lost 20% of my body weight since January 1st, 2005. That's 64 pounds. I'm not sure of what my goal is (I'll know it when I see it), but that should be at least half of what I want to lose.

Tilted Kilt Round Rock

Round Rock just a got a new pub. Last night, we went to the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery (Round Rock). The place was packed, so we decided to leave. We'll try to make it in there on a weeknight when it might be possible to move around. This appears to be the third pub in the chain (other locations - Las Vegas, NV & Tempe, AZ). Here's their corporate mission and their Round Rock address.

Our mission is to revolutionize the pub business in America. By combining Irish, Scottish, English and American cultures we have created a non-traditional pub that promotes good hometown fun wherever home happens to be.

Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery
La Frontera Shopping Center
2701 Parker Rd. Suite 300
Round Rock, TX 78681
512-244-1505

Their corporate website is completely broken (in both Firefox and IE). The front page is offers just one option on the left side menu (Locations). You can also click on the pictures and that will get you to a page of four pictures (with no formatting at all). If you want to get to the rest of the site, you have to click on Interested in owning a Tilted Kilt? Click here to find out how. On that page you have more than enough options as the menu choices are listed on the left side bar and the bar at the top of the screen. If you check the links in this paragraph, you should have seen all of the website.

I think it's interesting that Round Rock website differs from the corporate website in two important ways.

1. The website navigation works.
   
2. No pictures of scantily clad waitresses
   

The Ultimate USB Key

Solutions by PC Magazine: The Ultimate USB Key is a great article on apps to install on you USB key. It also discusses encryption and booting alternative Operating Systems via USB memory Keys.

Cadillac owners are _____________.

Signs I won't honor....

The grocery store Amy and I frequent has a Starbucks inside. Amy and I are two of only nine people on the planet who don't drink coffee. The reason I park in this spot is that it's closer to the door than any other space. I just don't understand why I should carry my seven grocery bags 50 feet further, so that some jerk can improve their self-image by drinking a $4 Caramel Macchiato.

Houston welcomes our friends (Update 1)

Congratulations, Alabama!

Alabama will be formally inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame during The 39th Annual CMA Awards on November 15 on CBS.

Congratulations, Chevrolet !

You've proven that you can finally build a 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser.

Cheapening your brand…

There are some intangible assets that a company owns. One of the most important of these is their brand. Many companies choose to cheapen their brand in obvious ways, making the company less valuable in the long run. They often do this due to greed in the short term. Examples:

• Tony Roma’s – This used to be a premium brand. It was a nice restaurant to take a date. Then about three years ago, they started promoting Tony Roma’s frozen food in the ‘Deli’ at 7-Eleven. I started a new job in April, and a vending machine there sells Tony Roma’s food. A couple of month ago, I noticed that the Tony Roma’s restaurant in town went out of business. This is not a coincidence.
• Pegasus/Windows CE/Palm-Size PC/Pocket PC/Windows Mobile – These brands were cheapened due to inconsistency. At first, Microsoft wanted to distance their PDA platform from Windows and now they want to embrace it (because Windows is still a valued brand). The entire time Microsoft was selling these, their competition kept (virtually) the same name, Palm or PalmOne. Now, Palm or Palm Pilot is how neophytes refer to all handheld computers.

Failed Brands that have been resurrected.

• Microsoft Access – This is the name of a failed communications program for DOS that was not competitive. It is now the name of a popular database program and is now the corporate standard.
• Ford Mustang – Ford somehow avoided completely destroying the Mustang brand when it was crap from 1974 to 1979 by calling that vehicle the Mustang II. They just brought out a new Mustang which increased the value of the entire brand.
• Coca-Cola - This company temporarily ruined their brand by bringing out New Coke in 1985. 79 days later, they reintroduced the original as Coca-Cola Classic.

These are just a couple of examples. I may add to this article in the future and republish it. Feel free to add to the discussion in the comments.

Opportunities for blogging

We just had a few friends move to Houston and start new lives.

• One couple recently became parents and moved to Houston to be nearer to their parents and so he could join the family business, real estate.
• A friend went to Houston to start law school at South Texas College of Law.
• Another couple (who recently married) went to Houston, so that she could start law school at the University of Houston Law Center. He will be attending the University of Houston to complete his degree in education and become a teacher.
  

These are all great opportunities to start a blog:

• Beginning a new stage in Life (marriage, becoming new parents)
  
• Moving to a new city
• Starting a new career or degree

TCU kicks Oklahoma's butt...

Tonight, every Texan is a Horned Frog.

Auburn's Season Opener

I have to work today, but after that I get to watch the Auburn Tigers season opener. Amy has a family connection to both the Auburn Tigers and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Her former brother-in-law played for Auburn as a linebacker from 1982 through 1986. He played with Bo Jackson. Amy's cousin is a red shirt freshman on Auburn's roster as a tight end. Back in the day, her stepmother's brother-in-law was a cheerleader for Georgia Tech.

It should be a great game. War Eagle!

Orders for Treo Accessories

I've been waiting to get a 1GB SD card for less than $50 shipped and wasn't able to get it that cheap. I was able to get one for $55.89 shipped from Newegg

Yesterday, I ordered a couple other Treo accessories. The first is a 3.5" stereo headphone adapter. This item, when combined with the memory card, will allow me to replace my MP3 player and finally get back to listening to Podcasts. I also ordered a case. There wasn't even a good picture of it, so I'm not sure what I'm getting. However, it was very cheap (less than $3).

I'll post again when I get them.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Sign of the times....

I filled my truck up with gas today. Gas was so cheap (less than a dollar a gallon) when I bought this truck (January 2002) and I lived within about a mile of my job. Now, I have about a thirty mile round trip to work.

I do need to mention that it was virtually empty. I may be able to make this tank last at least a week and a half.

Six Feet Under

Last night, we watched the conclusion of Six Feet Under. It wrapped things up nicely. I'm not going to spoil anything, so just watch and enjoy.

Trapeze School New York (TSNY)

My wife, her sister and their mother are planning a trip to New York City next month and are looking for activities. I thought this looked like something they might enjoy.

TSNY New York is dedicated to creating a safe, fun, challenging environment where our students strive to surpass limitations, fulfill their dreams and more richly enjoy their lives. We want you to know everything you can about the School and activities. Thus, we work to provide you with excellent information to support your educational journey with us."

Casas for CASA - Barton Creek

Yesterday, Amy and I went to see the Casas for CASA playhouses. They are being raffled off as a fundraiser. Last year, the event raised $59,000. The hope is that this year (the 14th) will raise even more. These are the playhouses that were on diplay at Barton Creek Square Mall until yesterday.

Casas for CASA - Lakeline

Yesterday, Amy and I went to see the Casas for CASA playhouses. They are being raffled off as a fundraiser. Last year, the event raised $59,000. The hope is that this year (the 14th) will raise even more. These are the playhouses that were on diplay at Lakeline Mall until yesterday.

Black Creek Golf Club

On August 1st & 2nd, we went to the Black Creek Golf Club in Bryan County, Georgia. We were there with a lot of family to see our nephew, Will McCurdy, compete in the Black Creek Junior Classic - 2005. This is a Southeastern Junior Golf Tour (SJGT) tournament.

We followed Will around the course in 5 golf carts (Will had more fans than all other competitors combined (slight exaggeration)) and were all amazed by his level of play. Amy and I hadn't seen him compete in a tournament and he was fantastic. He came in third place in his age group.

The bottom picture is Will with his trophy and his good friend Blake Watts, who finshed second in the 16-18 age group.

Mercedes-Benz US International Visitor Center

We had hoped to tour the Mercedes-Benz plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on the way home from Fort Payne. It is where the current M class and future R class (Sport Tourer) Mercedes are built. However, they are ramping up for the new vehicles with a $600 million expansion, and the visitor's center and museum are closed until the second quarter of 2006.

(The above picture wasn't taken by me.)

Atlanta Braves 2 - Pittsburgh Pirates 1

A couple weeks ago (July 29th) we went to see the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Our friend Jeff hooked us up with tickets 4 rows behind the Braves dugout. This is the VIP section. You don't walk to the concession stands if you're in this section. They have a menu and a waiter will be happy to take your order and bring it within a couple of minutes.

Jeff drove us from Fort Payne to Atlanta, drove us around all day in Atlanta, and then took us to the game and drove us home. This Karma insured that he would get a game ball and he did. That's him with it.

It rained for much of the game and we got soaked, but it was still awesome.

Rising Fawn, Georgia

A family member is building a house on Lookout Mountain in Georgia and the two pictures here represent the views available from the back porch of the house. It's unbelievable and these two pictures don't really do it justice. My camera couldn't get a wide enough view, so I used AutoStitch to create each of these panoramic photos from 3 different photos. Click on each of them to see the full-size image.

1GB SD Card

Now that I have the $50 rebate back, I'm looking for a deal on a reputable 1GB card for $50 (shipped - no rebate). Newegg gets close, but I can wait until they have a free shipping promotion.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

John Cazale - Finest actor ever ?

John Cazale (August 12, 1935 - March 12, 1978) had a very brief career in films. He was in just six movies from 1972 to 1978. Each of the movies was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture (he's the only actor with multiple roles to have each of his movies nominated). All six are in the IMDB Top 250(he's the only actor with multiple roles to have this honor).

I just watched The Deer Hunter which was his final role. It's also the movie where he met his fiancee' at the time of his death, Meryl Streep.

Here's a list of his six movies:

1. The Godfather
2. The Conversation
3. The Godfather Part II
4. Dog Day Afternoon
5. The Deer Hunter
6. The Godfather Part III

Delivr

Delivr is a super simple service to create your own custom digital postcards. Obviously it is not the only site in the world to do this, but Delivr is unique in a few ways:

• It is powered by the Flickr API, so the number of images available is HUGE and growing daily…how many other ecard sites have a library of 600,000+ images, with 1000’s more added every day? This might just make Delivr the biggest ecard site online.
• All images are licensed under the Creative Commons, and all images are fully attributed, both in preview and in the sent postcard (try it). Delivr does not use images with a NoDerivs license.
• The postcards you can create with Delivr are much more classy than your average ecard…no annoying flash animation or tinny muzak.
• You can even use your own images to create postcards just by searching on your tags.
  

Shreveport to Fort Payne, Al

This is Thursday's route. If we leave the hotel by 8:00 or 9:00, we should be in Fort Payne by 6:00 or 7:00.

Round Rock to Shreveport

This is Wednesday's route. We're leaving the house at 5:00pm and hope to be in Shreveport by midnight.

How you can avoid looking silly

Sorry, too late.

www.TheFATMANWALKING.com

"Walking across America to lose weight and regain my life!"

JB & Sandy !

Their radio show is awful and so is their parking! It seems as though these two are doomed in everything they undertake. They are on the radio quite a bit. Check out Mix 94.7's schedule. You can listen to these two suck the funny out of a room seven hours a day.

Just another reason to be listening to podcasts...

Treo $50 Rebate Check - Recieved

All the literature said to allow '8-10 weeks', but it took just about one month. Now I'm trying to find a 1GB SD card to buy with that money.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Katara D. Johnson

Last Saturday night, when we were downtown to see Jabarvy, we left the Jeep in a parking garage. When we returned to it, the car to the right of the Liberty had the rear window tribute shown to the right.

I searched for her name this week (assuming that I wouldn't be able to find anything because she was so young). I found that she had been a resident of Taylor and star high school athlete and trusted friend and cherished daughter.

She was murdered in her home on the date shown. Here's the article about her death from her hometown newspaper. There's also an article about the first scholarship in her honor being given to a deserving high school athlete.

Her murder remains unsolved.

The beginning of the end of summer

Yesterday, I stopped by WalMart. They had the school supply lists out. This is the thing I dreaded all summer. It meant that my fun would soon come to an end.

Making Moonshine Whiskey

St. George's

Today, we were unable to attend St. George's (left). Last night at dinner, I did drink a St. George's English Ale (right).

Last night - Jabarvy

After dinner last night, we went to Latitude 30 to see Jabarvy. They are a great live band. They're very tight - there's not a musical question that one member can ask that the other members can't answer. Amy's friend and colleague, Jon is one of two guitarists in the band. We've seen them several times and we've spoken to most of them and they're just super nice folks.

Latitude 30 is a cool club. It's between 5th and 6th streets on San Jacinto. We sat about ten feet from stage left on a beautiful black leather sofa. The drinks were reasonable and the bathrooms (and the rest of the club) were very clean (worth pointing out in this neighbborhood).

Last night - Dinner

We went to the Landmark Whole Foods for dinner. They have several salad bars and they charge $6.99 per pound. Amy and I each got a great variety of salad and sat on the rooftop and ate and enjoyed a great view of 6th & Lamar.

My Cheap GPX MW2805 MP3 Player

A couple of days ago, my mp3 player quit working. It fell one too many times, and it only plays one channel (right). The case basically fell apart.

There's no way I can spend that kind of money again, so I picked up a cheap GPX MP3 Player at Fry's for $19.99. I have to return it today and get a replacement, because it won't turn off. It works OK, and I plan to get one for Amy as well. Anyway, here's the feature list.

• 128MB built-in memory for WMA and MP3 playback
• PC and MAC compatible
• LED indicator for play/pause modes
• Auto power off and last song resume features
• Plug & Play - plugs right into your computer's USB port - no installation software required
• Doubles as a back-up for data storage - virtual hardrive
• Electronic volume control
• 4-preset EQ
• Stereo earbud headphones, included
• Battery life approximately 12 hours
• Uses 1-'AAA' size battery (not included)
• USB 2.0/1.1 compatible
• Lanyard with breakaway safety snap included

I Park Like An Idiot

Bumper stickers! Let everyone know that you know you park like an idiot. There's a stern warning on the site to not stick these bumper stickers on other people's cars.

Quote of the Day

Dave Barry: "What I look forward to is continued immaturity followed by death"

2005 Chevy Tornado

Remember the Chevrolet El Camino? The Ford Ranchero? The Subaru Brat? The Dodge Rampage? The Plymouth Scamp? The Volkswagen Rabbit Truck? The Subaru Baja? (These are all I could think of)

They are all car-based pickup trucks. All but one (the Baja) are no longer available. Well, add another one of those cool vehicles to the list; the 2005 Chevy Tornado (english translation). It's only available in Mexico and I know of no plans to bring it here, but who knows?

One perk to living so close to Mexico is that often we see unique vehicles that aren't available here. I saw one of these on the freeway on the way to work yesterday and spent a few minutes trying to figure out what I'd seen.

Active data connection and voice mail

A couple of times in the last week, I got a message that I had a voice mail while actively surfing the net. I wasn't sure what was going on, but now I know (the following text is from the PalmOne website).

palmOne - Products - Treo 600 Smartphone:
3. What happens if I get a voice call while I'm accessing the data features (email, web browsing) on the Treo 600 smartphone?
If there is an active data connection (you are actively sending or receiving data), then all incoming calls go directly to voice mail. Once the voicemail message is left, you will get an alert telling you that you have a message."

This is a real limitation in a Smartphone. Now that I understand, I can work around it. Both times, I had left a person a message and immediately started using wireless Internet to kill time until they called back. I will use more offline browsing. I did see information elsewhere that the same is true for the Treo 650.
Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Who's Lance ?

Last night, Amy and I went to see the Round Rock Express beat the Nashville Sounds with a group of 15. We got these fans from the Lance Armstrong Foundation. It was hot when we got there, so everyone was enjoying making use of the fans. Two rows in front of us, there was this guy who turned around and asked us about the fans.

Guy: Who's Lance ?
Us: (Stunned silence).
Guy: Hey! I'm not from around here!
Us: Lance Armstrong!

I can only assume that by "I'm not from around here", he meant "I'm not from Earth"

NerdTV

Robert X. Cringely is going to create a video blog and podcast. It launches on September 6.

NerdTV is pretty much as I described it back in 2002: a downloadable video show that features long-form interviews with notable nerds. I was definitely ahead of the curve with that download feature. What has changed about the show is just the episode length, which is now about an hour up from 20 or so minutes, and the bandwidth required, now 183 kilobits-per-second up from 128. Pilot after pilot showed that 20 minutes simply wasn't enough time while an hour feels about right. And the extra bandwidth was always needed for the 320-by-240 video window, only now it is finally cheap enough that I can afford it.

NerdTV is still encoded in MPEG-4 and still uses an applet player, only the applet is now Open Source, not from IBM, and comes with the assistance of mediaframe.org.

7 July 2005 London bombings

7 July 2005 London bombings - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "On 7 July 2005 at 08:49 BST (07:49 UTC), during the height of morning rush hour, a series of four explosions struck London's transport system. Three Underground trains were hit in the first wave and a bus an hour later. London ambulance services confirmed that 45 dead and over 1,000 injured."

A Volcano In Austin?

It's True! - News - MSNBC.com

Treo Freeware: U*Blog

This is a very cool little application which makes it easy to post to a blog. I have two blogs that I post to regularlyo. When I launch U*Blog, it displays a list of posts (only those for which U*Blog was used). I can then choose to edit one of those or choose a blog and create a new entry and decide when I want to publish it. I wrote this entry on my Treo and published it. Once I got home, I added the screenshots and clean up the text.

Today is Freeware and is recommended.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Still another redesign...

I'm happy with this one, but it's only been 2 minutes...

O Lowrd

Snapped at the Westlake Barnes & Noble.

Computed Axial Tomography

Yesterday, we went to a cookout at Tim and Renee's house. I shot this picture of one of their cats crawling around the scanner. As soon as I snapped it, Tim said "CAT Scan!".

Hill Country Pasta

Saturday night, we had a nice dinner at Hill Country Pasta. The food and service were fantastic. One thing that really impressed me was this bar made from wine crates.

When Aliens Invade...Remember the Alamo

We just got back from seeing Mr. and Mrs. Smith at the newest Alamo Drafthouse. I took this picture in the lobby with the Treo.

Broke down...

Today, I somehow managed to hurt my back. I took it easy this morning and drove to work. I was there about ten minutes and realized that I couldn't work today. I came home and took it easy and it's almost completely healed. I didn't do much but lay on the couch.

I watched Collateral (DVD), and a couple of episodes of H1t Me Baby One More Time. After watching those two episodes, I deleted every other one off of the DVR. It's not easy to watch.

7.5 miles, 25 yards at a time (conclusion)...

Today, I swam almost a half-mile, which concludes my swim commitment for the month of June with 7.5 miles completed.

My PDA History

My PDA history goes back almost nine years.

In Sept. 1996, I bought a Compaq Companion C120. This was Pegasus, the very first release of Windows CE. The hardware was awesome.. It had a 480x240 monochrome (4 shades of grey), 2MB and a PCMCIA slot, but the operating system needed work. Actually, what needed work was the synchronization software. It was called HPC Explorer and it wasn't great. A while after I bought it, I purchased an upgrade chip from Compaq which upgraded it Windows 2.0 and added 2MB. That gave the ability to run ActiveSync. That's when Windows CE started to make sense. I used that PDA for years and still have it. It still works well.

Next, the Windows CE 2.0 Palm size device came out and I thought I needed one. I purchased a Philips Nino 301. I had thought that this 'upgrade' would hold me for a while, but I never really liked the Nino. It had A 320X240 monochrome (4 shades of gray), 4MB of RAM and a Compactflash slot. ActiveSync got better and better and is the single most important component of the Windows CE OS.

I made the jump to PocketPC's later than most. I got an @migo from UR There in June of 2002. This company wasn't around very long. I bought it on eBay from an individual who said he was owed money by UR There and was paid in PDA's. Until it died a few months later, it was awesome. It had a beautiful 320x240 color screen (65,535 colors), 32MB RAM, and a PC Card slot (they used to be called PCMCIA slots). I paid $160. My wife and I watched movies on it in the airport. I connected to wireless networks before most others with PDA's could. It was a great PDA.

By the time it died, my work situation had changed (no work situation) and I was forced to go low budget. I bought a used monochrome Compaq iPaq 3135 in July 2003 (again on eBay) for $51 (shipped). It was trailing edge and I was able to buy extra sync cables and chargers at a 99¢ Only store. It had a 320x240 monochrome (16 shades of grey), 16MB and no card slots ( expansion sleeves were available but expensive). It was a decent PDA and is still around the house somewhere.

In June of 2005, I upgraded my Verizon Wireless cellphone to a Treo 600. It cost me $149 (after rebate). It has a 160x160 color screen, 32MB RAM, and an SDIO slot. I wrote half of this post on it. It does so much more than earlier PDA's because of the phone integration and unlimited Internet access. I am not as fond of HotSync as ActiveSync and the Outlook integration is not as tight as I would prefer, but I am very pleased.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

The stars are aligned against me...

Yesterday morning, I showed up at Clay Madsen Rec Center to swim at 9:00. The damned water aerobics women had all but two lanes blocked. Each of those lanes had two swimmers already and one person waiting. Since it was late, I didn't have another chance to swim yesterday.

Since there are no more weekend days this month to make it up, I decided I would add 8 laps each day for the next 3 days which will allow me to make my commitment (distance). Today, I got up early and showed up about 6:15 and every lane was in use. I came home and then went back about 8:45 and was able to swim 32 lengths (.45 miles).

I want to make a commitment for July, but I need to leave myself alternatives to swimming when that's not an option. I do plan to up swimming to a half mile (.51 miles) when I do swim.

eReader.com: Free eBook each day in July

Every day in July, eReader.com is featuring a different eBook as a completely free download. This is in addition to the free eBooks they normally offer. I downloaded the reader yesterday and a couple of books (The New Testament of the King James Bible and The Hacker Crackdown). July starts on Friday, so go ahead and register and be ready when the first free eBook is available.

The reader is available in a free and paid version. I (naturally) got the free version for the PalmOS (it is a multiplatform product). I will try to review it in the near future.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Round Rock Express game

Tonight we went with friends to see the Round Rock Express beat the Albuquerque Isotopes. I didn't get a lot of great pictures, but I liked this one.

Great time yesterday...

Yesterday, our trip to Gruene was outstanding. This picture was taken outside The Gristmill. Chuck and Susan were a hoot and three-quarters. We were hoping to see them again tonight at the Heybale show at The Continental Club tonight but declined in the interest of being able to work tomorrow.

We'll see them again in 6 weeks when we're in Alabama.

They were out of water...

Today's awesome plans

1. Pick up extended family at their hotel. (Amy's sister's husband's brother & his wife - that was less confusing than the other two versions of the theory of relativity)
   
2. Drive to Gruene, TX (pronounced GREEN)
3. Hang out for an hour or so and visit a couple of shops
   
4. Have a nice dinner at The Gristmill River Restaurant and Bar
5. Enjoy The Derailers (blog tour) at Gruene Hall (Texas' Oldest Dance Hall)

Yes, you have seen a version of these plans before. First, we need to get the house cleaned up. I just finished mowing and am just taking a break to cool off.

Treo Freeware: Today

The above screenshots are from Today v2.2, which is a very Windows CE / Pocket PC kind of application. It's a powerful application which can work as your primary interface to the built-in PIM. The first screenshot above is the opening screen and while it's not busy, there are a number of options available.

Screenshot Explanation:

• Top Row: Just to the right of the word Today is the amount of internal memory and to the right of that is the battery meter. The next item on the top row is the .|..|:: (Day/Week/Months) selector which switches between the three screens shown here. The left and right arrows move backward and forward through the data by day, week or month (depending on what screen you're on).
• Clock Icon: Displays the date and time. This launches the Date & Time Preference screen.
• Owner: This launches the Owner Preference screen.
• Calendar: Displays today's appointments. This launches the calendar application.
• eMail: Displays unread emails here. This launches the email application.
• Tasks: Displays active tasks. This launches the Tasks application.
• Bottom Row: The launcher on the bottom row launches the Contacts, Memo, Tasks and Calendar applications.

Today is Freeware and is recommended.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Treo Freeware: Snap

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I have been using Snap to grab Treo screenshots (in this case, Snap itself). It does require an SD card and creates the screenshots in /palm/programs/Snap/ on that card (that directory must be exist or be created). It works as advertised and in the short time I've used it, I haven't had any issues.

Screenshot explanation:

• The application is enabled (Enabled is highlighted)
• Snap Key: The Power button is set to capture the screen
• File Prefix: All screenshots will have "Snap-" at the beginning of the filename
• Auto-disable is enabled, which means the program will be disabled after capturing the first screen. The alternative would be to uncheck this and capture all needed screenshots and then launch the program again and choose Disabled

Snap is Freeware and is recommended.
Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Lexar 128MB SD Card

Lexar 128MB SD Card
Originally uploaded by eschulz.

The screenshot program I use requires an SD card so I fet like I needed to get one. My limit was $20 and I ran by Wal-Mart and they had a Lexar 128MB SD Card in that price range. I have moved some applications to it, I put a couple of movie trailers on it and I've used about 11MB, so I can still add a couple of podcasts.

Cost (before tax): $19.99

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Website redesign at 4am

I was awakened about an hour ago by a sudden onslought of Acid-Reflux. Since I've been eating healthier, this has very rarely happened to me. Tonight we were watching the Spurs (National Champions!) and I had a couple of slices of pizza which is what caused it. When this happens about the only thing that helps is to take a Zantac 75 and drink a quart of water.

Usually, I come into the office and surf the net for about an hour and go back to bed. So, tonight, I checked my blog and it was broken (actually it was BROKEN). I decided to try to fix and nothing worked, so I chose a new template that's similar to the old one and added all of the stuff that is normally on the right side of the screen. I think it looks OK. If not, please leave a comment here or on my comment line at (763)322-1842.

Bonzai USB 2.0 SD Card Reader

Amazon sells a very small SD card reader. The Bonzai USB 2.0 SD Card Reader is less than 10 bucks and should fit in the smallest gear bag. I'll try to get one for review.

Note: This article was originally posted to the TreoVida blog on date listed. It was moved to Does the fun ever start ? on Sunday, October 23, 2005.

Inexpensive (Cheap) furniture

Home Reserve looks pretty interesting. Their furniture is ready-to-assemble. It is shipped via UPS, the fabrics can be replaced and each of the items includes storage space. I'm tempted to purchase a chair or ottoman, just to see what it's like.

Sofa $346 = $299 + $47 Shipping
Loveseat $276 = $239 + $37 Shipping
Chair $196 = $169 + $27 Shipping
Ottoman $96 = $79 + $17 Shipping