robertgoodwin.net

Constellation: Launching the Program

2009-04-02T10:39:00.003-05:00

Here's a little preview of NASA's Constellation program. I am currently working on the Ares-I project, which is the crew launch vehicle. This is exciting stuff, people!

6th Grade Math Team Wins Trophy

2009-03-04T09:34:00.002-06:00

Our daughter's 6th grade math team placed fourth in their division in the Pizitz Middle School math tournament on Saturday, bringing home their very first trophy. Congratulations!

Alternate Ending to The Empire Strikes Back

2009-02-19T15:34:00.003-06:00

A furious light saber duel is under way. DARTH VADER is backing LUKE SKYWALKER toward the end of the gantry. A quick move by Vader chops off Luke's hand! It goes spinning off into the ventilation shaft. Luke backs away. He looks around, but realizes there's nowhere to go but straight down.

Darth Vader: "Obi Wan never told you what happened to your father."
Luke: "He told me enough! He told me you killed him!"
Darth Vader: "No! I am your father!"
Luke: "No, it's not true! It's impossible."
Darth Vader: "Search your feelings; you know it to be true."
Luke: "NO!"
Darth Vader: "Yes, it is true and you know what else? You know that brass droid of yours?"
Luke: "Threepio?"
Darth Vader: "Yes, Threepio, I built him when I was seven years old."
Luke: "No."
Darth Vader: "Seven years old. And what have you done? Look at yourself, no hand, no job, and couldn't even levitate your own ship out of the swamp."
Luke: "I destroyed your precious Death Star!"
Darth Vader: "When you were 20! When I was 10, I single-handedly destroyed a Trade Federation Droid Control ship!"
Luke: "Well, it's not my fault."
Darth Vader: "Oh, here we go. 'Poor me, my father never gave me what I wanted for my birthday, boo hoo, my daddy's the Dark Lord of the Sith .. waahhh wahhh!'"
Luke: "Shut up."
Darth Vader: "You're a slacker! By the time I was your age, I had exterminated the Jedi knights!"
Luke: "I used to race my T-16 through Beggar's Canyon!"
Darth Vader: "Oh, for the love of the Emperor, 10 years old, winner of the Boonta Eve Open. Only human to ever fly a Pod Racer, right here baby!
Luke looks down the shaft. Takes a step toward it.
Darth Vader: "I was wrong. You're not my kid. I don't know whose you are, but you sure ain't mine."
Luke takes a step off the platform, hesitates, then plunges down the shaft. Darth Vader looks after him.
Darth Vader: "And get a haircut!"

Old School vs. New School

2009-02-06T08:40:00.002-06:00

Morse code vs. text messaging... Which do you think is faster? Check it out:

Pinewood Derby Skateboard?

2009-01-30T20:20:00.004-06:00

Our son decided on a skateboard design for his Pinewood Derby car this year. Which is appropriate, considering how much he's into skateboarding at the moment. Here are a couple of shots of the finished car, which he named "Sk8r". He placed 3rd in his Cub Scout den and also 3rd place for best of show in his den. What do you think?

CompuServe

2009-01-29T12:59:00.002-06:00

Anybody else out there "experienced" enough to remember the heydey of CompuServe? CompuServe was the first major online service in the United States, and it dominated that market in the 1980's. I don't remember my exact CompuServe login ID, but I do remember it was a series of 9 numeric digits in the form 99999,9999. The email address was 99999.9999@compuserve.com.

Anyway, I thought about this yesterday when this image was posted on Digg. It's a 1983 print ad from BYTE magazine (remember them?). I love the "we call it Email™" line in the ad. I wonder if they still have the trademark on "Email"....

Yes, CompuServe is still out there, now a division of AOL.

NASA Rover in Inaugural Parade

2009-01-20T22:21:00.002-06:00

A prototype of NASA's new lunar rover participated in the inaugural parade for President Barak Obama today. Check it out:

Star Wars: Retold

2009-01-16T08:37:00.002-06:00

I came across this yesterday and was literally laughing out loud at my desk. I believe this is the funniest thing I've seen on the web in a while. Reposted from BuzzFeed.

Star Wars: Retold (by someone who hasn't seen it) from Joe Nicolosi on Vimeo.

Resolutions

2009-01-02T22:25:00.000-06:00

I usually avoid New Year resolutions, but there are a few personal improvement goals I have for myself this year. Here they are, in no particular order:

Lose weight - I want to get down to 155 pounds. I started using the Wii Fit over the holidays to track my progress and to motivate myself. This goal includes a healthier diet and getting some exercise... ANY exercise.
Learn a new programming language - It's been a while since I learned a new language just for the pure joy of it. I haven't settled on which language yet. Maybe Ruby. I'm open to suggestions.
Practice my photography - I enjoy photography, but I seldom take time to really go out and practice the art of it. I want to learn and become a better photographer, and the only way to do that is to practice.
Save more money - Those college years are coming at me like a freight train!
Control my mouth - I have a bad habit of using foul language when I'm frustrated. I have to learn to control it.

That's about it, I guess. What are your goals for 2009?

Relaunch

2008-12-31T11:49:00.005-06:00

Welcome to the new and improved robertgoodwin.net. It's been at least a couple of years since I kept a regular blog, and the coming of the new year seems like the right time for a relaunch. Most of my online time is now spent microblogging and posting pics, but I found myself needing a focal point online. Hopefully this site will be that focal point. If you are curious about earlier incarnations of this site, please visit archive.org for a sampling. To follow me online, check out the links under "Follow Me" in the sidebar.

Thanks for visiting, and please leave a comment. It's all about interactivity, after all.