I’ve mentioned offline wikipedia access before mainly because for all it’s flaws, wikipedia is probably the single largest, most comprehensive and best information resource out there. There may be other encyclopedias that are more accurate, but require subscription access… anyway for all the warts it’s a great resource. To many people though it comes as a great shock that we’re not plugged into the internet all the time.. (so many people say “why offline, that’s what makes wikipedia so good is that it’s current and if it’s not current it’s worthless.” When I was growing up we had an encyclopedia set from 1965, I grow up through the 70’s and 80’s and it was still VERY useful and there was very good information, now it may not have been “up to date” in many areas, but it was still informative and was right on a GREAT many things. I think if I manage to download wikipedia once a year I’ll get by on the “currency” of the information. Anyway… the main point is that many times internet access is 1)not reliable 2)not practical 3)not there….. For instance I do have wireless for the laptop, but don’t always hook up to wireless networks there are places here and there “bubbles” of access around town, but many of the places I go there just isn’t wireless internet available. Now I guess if I wanted to pay verizon another $60 a month that would increase I would have MORE pervasive access, but frankly…..
Month: September 2007
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High powered laser from a dvd burner
I really don’t know if I want to do this or not… but I found several sites talking about how to salvage the laser from a dvd burner and use it as a VERY high powered handheld laser. (i.e. “light that candle” kind of power….) Don’t get me wrong, I would like to be able to start the campfire from 10 paces just like anybody else would… in fact that would be VERY cool…. but the whole “instant blindness” thing kind of slows my eagerness down a bit. (Plus maybe the “is that skin burning?” thought that comes along there too…) You see I’ve got a 6 year old in the house (and another due in February… well – he won’t be six but… ) I know how much my 6 year old likes to get his hands my combo flashlight/laserpointer that I carry with me all the time and in fact when it was first given to me at Christmas (my brothers got identical ones), he was very quick to scarf one up that was within reach and start playing with it. Now we’ve had talks about being careful, not pointint it at someone else’s eyes, not looking into it, etc… but he’s not at an age where that really clicks… so if I build one of these I’ll need to lock it away in a gun cabinet…. And really ANYBODY that makes one of these OUGHT to treat it with the same respect as a loaded weapon. (No you’re not going to kill anyone, but blinded for life would not be fun….) Treat them responsibly. Links below the fold.
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Help me Obi-Wan… – 3d images in the air…
Display technology has come a long way, but the 3d holographic display that is so recognizable in hollywood special effects in movies like Star Wars have just not been anything within the realm of possibility. I recall seeing one display that used fog to shine the light on, but that was two dimensional (although you might could do 3d…) Using lasers though Japanese researchers have created brilliant dots of light in the air that can be the components for an image. The technology is certainly early in development, but it reads as though they are cooking air into plasma with the lasers and the molecules give off light in the process. There’s a lot of popping and crackling and I suspect you could have severe discomfort if you accidentally tripped over the device…. Looks neat though.
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So many browser tabs, so little time – the swirling vortex
The last few weeks have been fairly eventful and I’ve accumulated quite a few web pages open in tabs that I’m still holding open (just counted 49 tabs across two windows.) Many of these things are just for my own memory and others will be posted because I thought they’d be of wider interest. For starters I had a bad attack of vertigo on August 30th. This is the second time I’ve had such a spell (first was April of 2006.) They seem to be triggered by allergies… which leads to fluid in the ear – fullness/roaring in the ear and some difficulty hearing and… if it keeps up for a week or so the equilibrium goes out. Sometimes it’s just mild dizziness, but this was “category 5 hurricane riding out in a small dingy” vertigo…. I’ve been carrying Meclizine around with me since then and have been reading about Meniere’s disease which sounds strikingly close to my symptoms. I haven’t yet seen a doctor for official diagnosis, but plan to setup an appointment to get a bit more aggressive on the allergy front. Anyway… below the fold are some links to info on Meniere’s disease.