Category: Technology

Xbox 360 – Wireless Speed Wheel

I had a bit of money burning a hole in my pocket so my son & I took a trip to GameStop.  I’ve wanted to buy the new Formula One racing game but I’ve never been very impressed with the Xbox 360 controller when it comes to driving games.  Then I found the Xbox 360 Wireless Speed Wheel and everything changed.

I checked out a few reviews online and found a lot of positive comments on the performance of the Speed Wheel.  It’s not cheap ($59) but it’s a lot less expensive than the wheel/peddle setups that cost several hundred dollars.

The Speed Wheel has a nice design and all the necessary functions are where you would expect them to be.  It’s missing the 2 shoulder buttons found on the Xbox 360 controller but I have yet to find a game that needs them.  The triggers are a lot larger than on the regular controller and they allow a very precise application of the accelerator and brakes.

Since the Speed Wheel is wireless it relies on you holding it in front of you while you use it.  On long racing sessions this can get a little tiring.  As far as performance goes, this thing is very accurate and steering inputs are immediate with no perceived lag.  In fact, if you are using the in-game camera view that shows the steering wheel it mimics your movements exactly in real-time.

Unfortunately the Speed Wheel does not measure forward and backward motion which would make it a great controller for flight simulators.  It’s only purpose is for driving games and it works very well for that purpose.  If you’ve been as frustrated as I’ve been with the regular Xbox controller you should definitely check it out.

You say SOPA, I say PIPA, Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off!

FightForTheFuture.org has one of the best explanations on how SOPA and/or PIPA could have an impact on all of us if either one passes.  Remember back in 1998 when the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) was all the rage & still ended up getting passed?  Although it’s not in the news everyday the DMCA still has an impact on US citizens with the take-down notices and prosecution of innocent people.

Please watch the video below and let me know what you think in the comments section.

Easy Folder Creation in Windows With Smart Folders

Similar to the function you get on iOS (Apple) Smart Folders allows you to stack files on top of each other to automatically create a folder. Check out the video below for more info. This is a function that should be built into the next version of the Windows OS.

You can download the application at the bottom of this page.

Google+

I like Facebook & I like Twitter. What I’m not so excited about is Google+.

I setup a Google+ account when it first became available and I added several  people to my “Circle” but I’m just not seeing the participation that I see on other social networks.

Are you a Google+ user? Do you like it? Have you abandoned Facebook for Google+?

A lot of questions, I know.  I’m just trying to get the draw/popularity of Google+.  As reported in the Huffington Post Google+ To Reach 400 Million Users Within A Year.  This was predicted by a “Statistician” who we all know can make numbers mean many different things depending on how they spin it.  I’m not so sure about these numbers.

So…  I’m asking all of my blog visitors who actually use Google+ to help me understand what it is & if it’s a replacement for Facebook/Twitter or just another option for Social Networking.

The 10 Oldest Domain Names on the Internet

27 years ago the first Domain Name was registered.  Here are the first 10 ever registered (The Top 100 list can be found here).

As of today (1/6/2012) there are 135,639,614 domains across the .COM, .NET, .ORG, .INFO, .BIZ, and .US top level domains.  There are more and more added every day & this does not even cover all the .GOV, .US, etc. Domain names in use.

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Review – Our Groceries App

I’m a list maker.  I find lists are the best way for me to get things out of my head and free that thinking energy up for more important things.  To keep all of our family lists in sync we uses the Our Groceries application.

Our Groceries is a free “cloud” based tool that’s accessible via the web, and applications designed for Blackberry, iPhone and Android.  It’s a simple list maker that keeps everyone updated in near real-time.  The free version is ad-supported and has small ads at the top of the screen.  You can purchase an ad free version for Android and Apple.

My family uses Our Groceries for our master grocery list as well as errands, gift ideas, and even dinner ideas. It’s also a great way to make a packing list for vacation.  Creating a list is a one step process and once it’s created you can start populating it right away.  One of the cool features is that Our Groceries remembers your list items even after you check them off.  Enter an item once and it’s always available for quick entry in the future.  This is great for grocery lists where you’re adding the same things every week.

The magic of Our Groceries is in the synchronization.  Once all the users in your family are connected (a very simple process that’s done via email) every time you add an item it’s automatically synchronized to the other users lists.  Cross something off and it crosses that item off on their list.  This all occurs within about 10 seconds.

When our daughter says she needs something from the store, we tell her “add it to the list”.  There have been times where I’ll be at the grocery store and my wife will remember that we need something.  Se adds it to Our Groceries on her phone and it magically shows up on my phone just a few seconds later.  I really can’t stress enough how cool this application is.

Other features of Our Groceries allow you to input your favorite recipes and with one click all the ingredients get added to the shopping list..  Using the web you can drag and drop items so they are in the proper order when you walk through the store.  I always put all of the produce at the top and frozen items at the bottom.  The next time that produce item is added it will automatically end up at the top of the list.  If you want to get really fancy you can assign categories to items so they’re grouped together.

The uses for Our Groceries are nearly endless.  You don’t have to synchronize with other people, you can use the application by itself as well.  Check it out and let us know what you think!

 

White County, Indiana – Wind Farm

Time to get nerdy… For those of you that don’t travel north on I-65 much there is a HUGE wind farm in White County.  It’s pretty mesmerizing during the day because the wind turbines stretch as far as the eye can see.

I was driving back from Chicago the other night and as I approached the White County farm (that has a goal of 600 turbines) I could see dozens of red lights on the horizon.  As I drove closer I realized what they were and I also realized that ALL of the Obstruction lighting was Synchronized.

As mesmerizing as the turbines are during the day the giant expanse of synchronized warning lights was almost as captivating. I found a white paper available online that explains the reasoning behind the coordinated light show.  Development of Obstruction Lighting Standards for Wind Turbine Farms:

Considering the lighting concepts currently used for illuminating radio towers and long-span bridges, which states that obstructions near to each other should be treated as if they were one large obstruction, a similar lighting concept was adopted for illuminating the wind turbine farms. The lighting concept for wind turbine farms includes the use of red, simultaneously flashing lights positioned on the outer perimeter of the wind turbine farm, each spaced no more than one-half statute mile from each other, and requires only one fixture per turbine. As long as the wind turbines are painted white in color, daytime illumination is not required.

As I was doing research for this post I also came across information that I had not heard before.  Evidently these giant wind farms are tied to a large number of bat fatalities in the area.  It’s bad enough that some wind farms are shutting down at night.  Like them or not bats provide a great service to humans.  Some species of bats, such as the Little Brown Bat, can eat 500 – 1000 mosquitoes in one hour. So if we consider the night 8 hours, that can add up to 4000 – 8000 in a night!

While I’m not opposed to this kind of energy generation I understand for the residents that live near these farms there are a lot of issues.  These issues range from reports of a low-frequency hum to distracting shadows flowing across the windows of houses.  I’m also very concerned about the environmental impact from the deaths of neighboring bats.

What do you think?  Have you seen the nighttime light show on I-65? What are your thoughts on the ever-increasing growth of wind farms in Indiana?

Is the iPad Compromising the IT Industry?

It’s kind of like the perfect storm…  The Internet has exploded in growth and its ubiquity directly corresponds to the Commoditization of “Connected Devices”.  It started with devices such as the iPhone and Blackberry and it’s spiked again with the introduction of the iPad.

Gartner announced this week: Without Proper Planning, Enterprises Deploying iPads Will Need 300% More Wi-Fi.  This is pretty serious if you’re the one responsible for making sure these enterprise systems work reliably.

I’ve been in the IT industry for a while now and I can tell you from experience the adoption of new technology has ALWAYS been a hard sell to upper management.  Then the iPad hits the market and the drive for adoption starts coming  from the TOP of the orginization.  The “Cool Factor” of the device made it the “thing” to have in the board room.

The fact that the iPad is NOT a laptop replacement is lost on the CEO, CFO, COO, etc..  I’ve seen people who once had to have perfection in their “productivity tools” all of a sudden accept the major limitations of their new toy.  These limitations are not only limited to the iPad, all the tablets being wedged into the corporate world have limited features and poor security.

To be fair, I’ve tested the iPad & it was a fun toy.  If you just want to surf the web and check your email it will do that just fine.  If you want to use your accounting applications, ERP system, or edit complicated spreadsheets it’s going to have its challenges.  I’m now testing the Blackberry Playbook which has similar limitations and a lot less available applications.

The only “Tablet” that I’ve ever used that, in my opinion, was worth anything was a Tablet PC where the screen could be rotated and reversed allowing you to use its 14″ touch screen.  This, to me, is the best of both worlds.  Full featured, powerful, and completely compatible with your existing workflow and environment.  Is it a little bigger than the iPad?  Sure it is but that difference is 100% worth it to me.

Do you have an iPad (or other tablet)?  Does it do everything you expect?