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July 31, 2007
Finally - Book is Out!
I can't believe I missed this update from my Dad, but as I've blogged here before - he's written a book for publication. I've been waiting for notice that it has it the presses - and it has!
I get a fair amount of email, and do my best to keep up, but my personal email at home is a bit messy with newsletters and years and years accretion, general noise, and buildup. Enough with the excuses though - oddly enough I went searching for a different email from my Dad he mentioned that I missed - an email with access to the friends and family ordering sight for Insight.com where he works.
In the process of digging for that I found his announcement that his book had been published and was now available at Amazon.com!
So, in light of this new found (but outdated) knowledge - I'm happy to report I have some very recent email which I have seen and have not lost track of - that reads in part:
The following items have been shipped to you by Amazon.com:
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Qty Item Price Shipped Subtotal
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Amazon.com items (Sold by Amazon.com, LLC):
1 His Grace is Enough $9.99 1 $9.99
Shipped via UPS Ground (estimated arrival date: 06-August-2007).
Tracking number: 1ZA7820W63430505W927
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Item Subtotal: $9.99
Shipping & Handling: $3.99
Total: $13.98
Congratulations Dad - Great job and I can't wait to get my copy! Maybe you can sign it for us when you visit next? See you then!
Oh and if anyone is interested in checking it out... here ya go. Already reviewed twice!
Posted by gcrgcr at 6:19 PM | Comments (0)
July 30, 2007
The Guys
Okay, so this was Flickr upload test number one for me, as a new Flickr user.
First, and foremost, the photo material - the boys are in Cub Scouts, and every summer we get the chance to up to Camp Jack Nicol scout camp near Red Feather in northwest Colorado.
It is beautiful country and the boys really like the chance to camp out with their friends in the mountains.
As for Flickr and uploading photos. Once I downloaded the Flickr Upload tool - batch uploads are made very easy.
The annoying part of this is that Flickr considers your uploads and your photos you put in your account a "stream". The counter-intuitive part of this is that, when you upload your photos in what you believe to be chronological order - Flickr considers the "stream" to be running the opposite direction. That is, the last photo you upload, which is probably the last thing you did at that event or whatever, is the "first" photo from the Flickr perspective relative to that "stream" of photos.
So, I was very confused by this, and judging by the FAQ entries, I'm not the only one. While I get the Flickr system perspective on this, given the amount of noise from the user base, I would hope they'd address in some manner.
For example, there are batch organization tools available to edit your Flickr streams, but nothing that lets you reorder.
So word to the wise - when you drop your photos into the Flickr uploader, do so in the reverse order chronologically that you consider them to flow, so that the Flickr stream will be chronological. Clear as mud?
I've still got to post more photos, so will update on those experiences as well.
Enjoy!
Posted by gcrgcr at 9:47 AM | Comments (0)
July 26, 2007
40 Gigs Per Second...
If you know what that means, you are a geek for sure... If you don't know what that means, know this - with an Internet connection that fast, you could download a full-length movie to your PC (or Mac) in less than two seconds.
Yep.
Or how about enjoying 1,500 high definition HDTV channels - simultaneously.
That's fast.
Who get's such premier access?
CNN reports here that it is none other than 75-year-old Sigbritt Lothberg of Stockholm, Sweden.
Seems her son Peter, a network guru, set out to prove that there are no limitations to Internet speed. So he hooked up his Mom.
She's a brand new Internet user - using the blazing connection only to read the newspaper online.
I hope CNN does a follow up to see what she's doing a month or two from now, once she builds up some savvy.
This was also covered previously by Wired, Slashdot, and a local Swedish outlet.
Posted by gcrgcr at 6:01 PM | Comments (0)
July 10, 2007
I'm Finally Flickr'd
I know what you're thinking - welcome to the 21st century Mr. Bartel. Let me introduce you to this thing here, it's called "The Internet". Oh, and that "Web" thing, it is up to 2.0. Try to keep up okay?
Okay, so it is not that bad - but I am a pretty slow adopter when it comes to the Web 2.0, Social Freakworking type web services these days.
Flickr is one that is not overly scary. I've had numerous Flickr links sent my way, and I've never had trouble viewing the photos etc.
What got me Flickr'd? Yahoo! Photos.
Yahoo! actually handled this really nicely. I received the following notice this morning:
Dear Yahoo! Photos user,For some time now, we've supported two great photo sharing services: Yahoo! Photos and Flickr. But even good things come to an end, and we've decided to close Yahoo! Photos to focus all our efforts on Flickr — the award-winning photo sharing community that TIME Magazine has called "completely addictive."
We will officially close Yahoo! Photos on Thursday, September 20, 2007, at 9 p.m. PDT. Until then, we are offering you the opportunity to move to another photo sharing service (Flickr, KODAK Gallery, Shutterfly, Snapfish, or Photobucket), download your original-resolution photos back to your computer, or buy an archive CD from our featured partner (for users of the New Yahoo! Photos only). All you need to do is tell us what to do with your photos before we close, after which any photos remaining on Yahoo! Photos will be deleted and no longer accessible.
Of course, we hope you'll join us at Flickr (you can even use your Yahoo! ID), but we also realize that Flickr may not be for everyone. In the end, we want you to find the service that's right for you, and we hope you take some time to learn more about your options before making this important decision.
Please give us your decision by Thursday, September 20, 2007, at 9 p.m. PDT. After that time, any photos remaining in Yahoo! Photos will be deleted. Click here to make your decision, or review a list of our frequently asked questions.
Thanks for being a part of the Web's largest photo sharing service — we hope to see you over at Flickr!
The Yahoo! Photos team
So, I clicked the link and followed the instructions. Wow. Talk about organized. First I get the option to either migrate my Yahoo! Photos or let them be deleted. I chose to migrate. My migration options included Flicker, Photobucket, Shutterfly and Snapfish. I chose Flickr (even though I don't have a Flickr account).
Here it gets even cooler - my Yahoo! credentials have been ported over to Flickr, and I just confirm I want to use those credentials versus establish a new account.
Sweet. Literally two minutes later and I'm sitting in my Flickr account.
Now I get the option to migrate my photos. I click the request and it tells me to look for a confirmation email at a particular address. I check that account and there it is. I click the link and back to the site I go - your migration is in process we'll send you a note when complete. A few minutes later - "I've Got Mail!".
Couldn't be five minutes total and here I am:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/notthatyouasked/
So, it is a bit of a weak stream - um, I mean a weak PHOTO stream - at the moment, but now that I am Flickr'd, I'll be placing more photos here. Look for them in the future!
Posted by gcrgcr at 5:45 AM | Comments (0)
July 7, 2007
Try Not To Destroy A Girl Scout...
...the next time one comes to your door or you see them outside the supermarket and you don't want to order any Thin Mints. Why you won't want to is probably not their fault Let me explain.
Cool Mint Creme Double Stuff Oreos.
I know! They are really, really good.
I'm not sure how they showed up in the pantry at my house, but I saw them and instantly downed three. Mmmmm.... Cool Mint Creme Oreos. Wow. And Double Stuff on top of it! I could have eaten the bag.
Now, I've always liked the classic Thin Mints from the Girl Scouts. I've got to tell you, Oreo is going to eat into those Girl Scout profits with these genius cookies. Mmmm....
As far as I'm concerned the research and development folks at Nabisco hit this one out of the park.
Oddly enough, I can't seem to find anything about them online.
Oreos.com is a squatted search site domain that Nabisco must be refusing to pay some obnoxious fee for.
Nabisco's Oreo World seems to be touting some new Oreo "Cakesters" - not sure I'm down with that. The outer, hard chocolate part of the Oreo is just fine. Replacing it with some puffy, cakey thing - hmm... not sure. Now, offering up a bright green, mint flavored filling - now that is a brilliant move.
Google search for mint oreos turns up a lot of mentions of dunking, dipping, and Dairy Queen Blizzards.
This post from Kevin Meltzerr implies that Cool Mint Creme Oreos have been around for over a year and I'm just now getting clued in!
Man I need to pay more attention at the grocery store from now on.
So go get some and try them. And whether you really, really like them, like I do, or not, make sure you still buy your Thin Mints this year from your Girl Scouts.
Their going to need the sales lift.
Posted by gcrgcr at 12:23 AM | Comments (0)
July 4, 2007
Wise Sayings
Someone said in an email to me today, "you're a good egg, as my Grandma used to say...".
While it is always nice to hear a compliment, the "good egg" phrase reminded me about my Grandpa. He used to say "don't sweat the small stuff". I've always liked this saying - short, to the point, and easy to understand.
I even find that I've said this to my own kids on more than one occasion.
Apparently, I'm not the only one who appreciates this catch phrase - lots of hits at Amazon - 17 at the time of this posting. Richard Carlson has an entire series, including "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff at Work" as well as DSTSS for Women, for Men, and for Couples.
The obligatory Google search culled up a decent haul as well - including a dontsweat.com site.
Wow. I guess I won't sweat the fact that there is so much research I can do on not sweating things. :)
Oh yeah, and if you are wondering What About The Big Stuff? Well, Mr. Carlson has that covered too.
Posted by gcrgcr at 11:32 PM | Comments (0)