Year: 2010

Parking… My Rant

What is it with people and parking?  Is it that hard for you to put your car between the two lines?  Are you really saving that much time by parking, with your hazards blinking, in the Fire Zone?

And handicap placards… don’t get me started.  I guess you can get these at the local 7-11 because it seems like every pudgy person in the tri-state area has one.  You are going to be walking inside the mega-mart, do you really need special parking?  I once saw a person with a handicap parking placard RUN into the store!

Then you have the selfish bastards…  These people, with their “my car is soooo special I need to segregate it from yours” mentality love to make up spots to rest their chariot.  Please don’t be concerned about the flow of traffic around you, the safety of your fellow man, or the fire hydrant you are oh so conveniently blocking.

Before I get accused of being a hypocrite because of MY personal parking habits, allow be to explain my logic.  You see, I don’t want to park next you your 4×4 with the giant swinging doors.  I don’t want to park next to your mini-van you used to transport your 16 screaming hyper children.  I don’t want to park next your beat-up grocery getter.

Where I DO want to park is away from all of that.  I want to park in the back of the lot, in my own single space.  I want to be away from your drama and come out to find my car all by itself right where I left it.  No new mysterious door dent, no shopping cart resting against the bumper, and no $80,000 import parked 6-inches from my door.

Is that to much to ask?

New to the IndyScan Library; Tribal Leadership

I started reading “Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization”, by Dave Logan, John King, Halee Fischer-Wright, a few weeks ago after learning one of my clients, fresh out of a merger/acquisition, was sending copies to all of its senior level staff.

The reviews on Amazon.com are glowing and so far I like the general premise of the book.  Tribal Leadership provides insight from a group of successful leaders and tells readers how to use the “tribes” that already exist within an operation to maximize productivity.

Overall I like the concept and can see how it could be implemented in certain industries.  I think in the case of the client mentioned above it can only help the situation they are facing with separate diverse groups from around the country suddenly being forced to play in the same sandbox.

Lenovo Q150 IdeaCentre Nettop Computer

On a recent business trip I saw one of these in action & knew I had to have one.  It actually solved a problem I was working on for a few months.

Prior to purchasing the Q150 I had been looking for a way to utilize DLNA technology to stream media (of any type) to the TV/Stereo in the living room.  After spending a lot of time doing the research I found that just about every reasonably priced solution had the same flaw…  Spotty compatibility.  Some players supported formats A-S & others supported H-Z.  Nothing I could find supported A-Z.

Enter the Lenovo Q150 IdeaCentre Nettop Computer.  Since it’s a fully functioning Windows 7 PC you can use it to do anything you would normally use a PC for.  It’s tiny size allows you to fit it into your entertainment stack (or hang on the back of the TV with the included mounting kit).

Highlights:

  • Windows 7 (Home Ultimate)
  • HDMI Out
  • 1.6 GHz Intel Atom D510 Dual Core CPU
  • 2GB DDR2 RAM
  • 500GB HDD
  • 802.11n WiFi
  • NVIDIA ION 512MB GPU
  • OPTIONAL Wireless Keyboard
  • Less than $400!

Notice that the wireless keyboard is OPTIONAL.  This caught me by surprise after I placed my order from Lenovo but I ordered from Amazon ($45) & had it in a few days.  The wireless keyboard is nice but after using it for a few days I would look for an alternative (with backlit keys).

As a Windows 7 Ultimate user I was excited to get the Q150 up and running.  Since my U-Verse head end is in the same cabinet I hard wired the Q15o into the network & fired it up.  Nothing unusual here as it’s just a PC.  Initial setup went without a problem.

The Q150 is pretty snappy when it comes to performance.  Typical boot time is less than a minute & there are very few delays unless you are trying to do too many things at once.  After removing all of the “BloatWare”  (which there was actually very little of) I was left with a lean, mean, media machine.

Something I did not think of is how things would look on a 42″ display running at 1920×1080 resolution.  Text is very small at this resolution and at a viewing distance of 12 feet unusable…  A couple of accessibility tweaks in Windows 7 & we were all set.

I had a few items I wanted to install on the Q150 (Firefox, Shark007 codecs, Microsoft security Essentials) & ran into another issue.  Remote Desktop (RDP) is not supported in Windows 7 home!  I tried a few other tools & was able to connect but the high resolution does not scale very well (or at all) on a 14″ laptop.  I ended up finding a patch online that enables RDP & I was all set.

The primary purpose for this machine is media.  I launched Windows Media Center & after a quick configuration I was ready to go.  By installing the Shark007 Codec pack I can now play just about every known format of media out of Media Center.  I can even use the X Box 360 as an “Extender” and enjoy the benefits of Media Center on another TV in the basement!

Videos look great & the NetFlix plug-in means I can move the Roku to another TV in the house & watch movies there as well.  I’m not terribly thrilled with how Media Center handles my music collection so I think I’ll be running iTunes on the Q150 for the foreseeable future.

Although this was a preliminary review I hope you get an idea of how neat this little PC is.  If you are wanting to bring the Internet to your big screen TV & want the flexibility that a PC can deliver I would recommend checking out the Lenovo Q150 IdeaCentre Nettop Computer.  I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Dear Howard Schultz (Chairman and CEO of Starbucks)…

Dear Mr. Schultz (Chairman and CEO of Starbucks),

First of all I would like to thank you for your company and products. I appreciate the ability to spin around 3 times and  face one of your establishments when I stop.  I also appreciate the ability to use all of those $5 bills I have cluttering my wallet on a Venti Cafè Americano.

What I DON’T appreciate is watching 3 cars in your drive-thru being serviced for every one customer inside.  Look, I actually parked my car (in the designated spot) and walked into your store to make my purchase.  I can tell you’ve spent a lot of money trying to impress me and liberate more $5 bills from my wallet.  You’re a business, I get that.  Sometimes it works!

I find it absolutely infuriating to place my order and watch drink after drink from the “outside” be processed in front of mine.  You always have twice as many Baristas working that tiny little window than you do the big expansive counter.

The little treats you put out for me are a nice touch but the guy in front of me always seems to have taken the last one.  The sole employee manning the inside counter is too busy helping the window to notice.  As a point of reference I actually SAVE you labor costs as I put my own flair in my drink at the little self serve counter!

All I’m asking for is a little respect when I enter your store, after all, I’m taking the time to enjoy the “experience” and I might even stick around and visit for a while.  I assume that was your intention when you started oh so many years ago.

Please Mr. Schultz, please consider the customer who cares.  The customer who sees, and buys, all of those leftover holiday items in January to free up shelf space for the Spring Collection.  The customer who uses your free wireless services you have invested in.  The customer who cares enough to bring this matter to your attention.

Caffè Americano

Five Blades Really Are Better Than Three!

After a LONG run with the Mach-3 I decided to take a chance with the newest crop of razor systems on the market.  I picked up a Gillette Fusion Power razor at the local megamart & gave it a try.

I must admit I was pretty skeptical that this “new and improved” razor would be any better than my current kit.

I’m a firm believer that shave prep is what makes the difference.  I always shave in the shower after letting by shave cream of choice do it’s magic.

The Fusion razor has 5 tightly spaced blades on the front and a single blade on the back for those hard to reach places.  The Power model has a vibrating handle that is supposed to make the razors work even better.

To be honest it was love at first stroke.  There was a noticeable difference in the feel of this razor as opposed to the 3-blade unit I’ve been using for years.  The initial thought was that I was not applying enough pressure.  It just did not feel like it was doing anything.

I quickly found out it was not only doing something it was doing it with far less effort than I’ve ever had to use before!  I’m a pretty meticulous shaver and I actually ended up overdoing it.  Afterward I did have a slight case of razor burn but that was my own fault.  Subsequent uses have cured that problem  (as did a liberal use of Zirh Sooth) & I’m growing more and more impressed with this razor every day.

If you are growing tired of your current shaving regimen and you’re looking for a change, check out the Gillette Fusion series of razors.  Like anything in the shaving world, the refills are where Gillette makes their money.  I’ve read online that people are getting over a month out of each cartridge.  I can live with that!  I’ll plan on reporting back later this year with a long-term review of the Gillette Fusion Power razor.

Book Review: Sh*t My Dad Says

After a 3 month reading hiatus I’m one again getting a lot of use out of the Amazon Kindle I purchased last last year.   The latest title to be delivered by WhisperSync is “Sh*t My Dad Says” by Justin Halpern.

From the Publisher: After being dumped by his longtime girlfriend, twenty-eight-year-old Justin Halpern found himself living at home with his seventy-three-year-old dad. Sam Halpern, who is “like Socrates, but angrier, and with worse hair,” has never minced words, and when Justin moved back home, he began to record all the ridiculous things his dad said to him…

What started as a Twitter account that posted the various things his father said, Mr. Halpern collected the quotes and stories and turned them into a book.  CBS has even picked the concept up and is turning it into a sitcom staring William Shatner!  I personally think Jerry Stiller would have been a better choice…

About the Book: Sh*t my Dad Says is a very quick read.  With short chapters and pages of one liners it’s a book that’s easy to pickup and read for a few minutes at a time.  If you take it on a trip you could finish it in a day. If you are easily offended by profanity (especially the F-Bomb) you will not like this book.  If you’re unsure, check out the Twitter feed first.

The star of the book is the dad.  The constant stream of one liners that come out of his mouth are priceless, unique and hilarious.  You want to keep reading so you’ll keep laughing.  Unfortunately the book ends too soon.  Amazon is selling the Kindle version for $9.99 & I’ve seen the book in stores for $14.99.  This is one of those titles you can buy, read & pass on to friends & family.

If you’re looking for a fun and witty book for the summer, add Sh*t My Dad Says to your list.