OpenGeek

It's been a while!

2009-02-13T13:23:00.001-08:00

Life continues to improve! I'm happy for that. Happy enough that I am considering blogging again!

Gonna start with a minor league post about colors, old computers and such.

Content change

2007-09-20T01:36:00.001-07:00

The text of Open Geek will remain for some time yet. Other content files are no longer hosted here, due to some significant life changes happening.

For all of those who enjoyed audio samples, etc... sorry!

Can somebody explain to me how granting a few of us the ability to discriminate traffic creates a free market?

2007-07-06T22:52:00.001-07:00

Seriously!

This is a big regression that is gonna impact all of us in serious ways. Goddammit I hate --really just hate this administration!

Since we've had the Resident President, absolutely nothing that matters has been preserved or even improved. Guess the growing people powered politics movement has gotten some attention and needs to be neutered.

With this action, goes my broadband, you can count on it. It won't really be worth it, if I cannot engage in the communication that matters.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/07/06/ftc-abandons-net-neutrality/

DO make your phone calls. It might help.

They are gonna dangle faster movie downloads, video, etc... They will grant business whatever it thinks it needs, regardless of what we actually need or want.

IMHO, what is being done here is not creating a free market, but a market where large, established interests are free to do what they want, the rest of us be dammed.

Very Orwellian --just like the rest of the shit happening right now.

Blogworks! (and some other stuff)

2007-06-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

This is kind of a dual post. First, I want to comment about a significant evolution in blogging that's become a factor. I first noticed this with "Blog Against Theoracy". Excellent effort, spearheaded by Blue Gal (and she does appear to rock), this was your usual blogswarm, and was fairly successful. I participated in this and met some very interesting people. Good stuff all around.

Blog Against Theoracy is happening again this holiday weekend, with a topic surrounding the idea that seperation of church and state is patriotic. (it clearly is) I've some stuff to write, so I'll be there with my post along with a lot of others. Again all good.

Doing some digging on blogswarms, I find they are led by a few very active hub blogs. A hub is where significant attention has been cultivated. I've also noted a few that are starting to use mailing lists for notification. Sometimes people don't check back. I strongly suspect these two ideas are either being combined right now, or are about to be, resulting in kind of a subject based topical, recurring network of blogs all posting on topics at regular times.

Call this the Blogwork, and you probably read that here first! If so, please do spread it around. I don't get to coin terms anywhere near as much as I would like! (c'mon people, it's cool! You know it is, and I'm not ashamed.)

The blogwork is going to act like something like a TV network does. From one source, links, supporting information, framing, assets, etc... will be posted on a given subject, with said subject loosely following a more general topical bias. Examples could be, the environment, a political party, theoracy, geek matters, electronic voting, etc...

Instead of just aggragating all the content into a mega portal blog, like Kos, the content will remain distributed with the idea of introducing more people to more blogs, and of course, bloggers to bloggers. I think this is just cool enough to happen.

A blogwork is also significant in that it can resonate with the traditional media news cycle, yet can grab the attention of many people of different ideologies. For example, someone who is not religious could be following the members of a given blogwork that have that same bent, or bias, yet still be engaged in the topic as a whole. Someone who is deeply religious could do the same.

The key here is that the greater message is being heard on a regular basis; therefore, the central source can engage in some general advocacy through framing and focus on the topic at hand. IMHO, this is quite a powerful idea and one that is likely to continue to grow.

One other key thing is that passers by get snagged into the network via the very wide net cast. You here might be reading OpenGeek, and I thank you if you are, and decide to explore the Blog Against Theocracy blogwork more fully, or perhaps just look forward to regular updates.

To maximize this, participants really should preface their posts with an icon, tagline, etc... that differentiates their blogwork content from their ordinary blogging content that would have otherwise have been written for other reasons.

Lastly, this also encourages people to write on a regular basis. I like this too and think it might encourage more blogging that is focused and relevant. At the very least, taking a moment to gather one's thoughts on a regular basis just isn't a bad thing overall.

That's it. Google around a little. I didn't include links this time because I want to you just go look at a forming blogwork that's gonna have some impact. Have others? Do I have it wrong? You know where the comment button is, by all means use it!

Blog Against Theocracy

2007-04-07T13:13:00.000-07:00

I like this idea. So, here I am on a quiet Saturday afternoon. There is rain, and there is rain. What better time, than right now, to put up a few quick thoughts? Have thoughts of your own?

Great, use the comment form below, post on your own blog today, or maybe just to talk to a friend. That's what this little movement is all about. Do visit Freedom First on your way through this exercise as well.

Right out of the gate, I think it's important to note we all take some things on faith. That's everybody! As a race, we do not know our origins, nor do we have enough fundemental known absolute truths to be able to call the shots on beliefs in an authoritative way. In this, we are all equally ignorant. This, for me, is the core justification for our equality under the law, and for our government to be neutral on matters of faith.

If we lack these core truths, we also lack authority, thus placing our various beliefs on par with one another. It's perfectly ok to not share beliefs, advocate for specific ones, and act on our beliefs, provided we do not cause one another harm. This is freedom and it's a very good thing.

The tradeoff for this freedom to believe what we will, make our choices as we will and engage others as we will is tolerance. Without it, we cannot exercise our freedom as we would otherwise. We also then lack the means to have the debates necessary for all of us to benefit from greater truths as they are revealed through frequent and passionate discourse.

I believe this is what the founders wanted. I believe it is the only just and true way to govern because I do not believe living a lie is defensible.

Truth is, our freedom here has made us a very religious people! More Americans believe in a higher power than almost anywhere else! Those without this belief also exist here on par with those that do and all is good right?

Wrong.

Over the years, I've seen a strong movement toward defining what our official belief system should be. Many of the larger religious groups want their beliefs codified into the law --endorsed by government somehow thinking this will validate them, lend them credence, or maybe just suppress competiting ones. All of this is wrong, unless we've got some known truths from which to derive the authority for it --and we just don't right now.

If anything is true, it is that we just don't know where we came from, nor how it all happened.

Again, this demands tolerance, if we are to get along at all, and avoid having to live lives filled with lies.

It does not matter what you believe. When advocating it to others, it should be defensible however. My personal view is that your beliefs should also be consistant with your actions, but that's just me. YMMV.

Take this holiday and consider your beliefs. Better, take some time and consider somebody elses. Find out what drives them, where you might have common ground and let them know you both are able to have the discussion because of the freedom you both have. Think about the difference between conviction and real --absolutely known solid truth! Having more numbers on your side, or a law that favors your beliefs does not make them more true does it?

Why bother then? Why not consider advocacy and live by your beliefs, secure in the freedom to do so? If they are defensible, just and true, others will see this and want to share. If not... no amount of law, advocacy or anything else will change that. These things might make you feel better at the end of the day, but that will come at the cost of somebody else not being able to feel good about themselves too. This cuts both ways, and I see a lot of people not so worried about that, and they really should be, if they have the strength of character to be honest with themselves and others.

Think about your freedom and what it really means, then commit to preserving it for our greater good. Future Americans will thank you for it. Heck, your neighbor might just thank you for it. If nothing else, I thank you for it!

Open Geek Discussion

2007-02-14T21:39:00.000-08:00

I've had a request or two for better comment handling. This is it. Nothing special, just a clean and simple free discussion forum service.

Before I do too much with this, let's bang on it a bit. Go ahead, register a user account and post up some stuff so we can check this forum out.

Go to the Discussion Forum

How to save your cat!

2007-01-20T10:00:00.000-08:00

Well, this is how I saved mine at least.

Coupla things about cats, I didn't know:

-if your cat has a plugged nose, it will not swallow. They will breathe through their mouth when this happens. If you see this, your cat is in danger.

-if your cat cannot smell it's food, it won't eat it. The food must be known good food and this happens by smell and taste for a cat. Smell is obvious, but taste can be problematic as the cat must actually try the food in order to taste it. This is a chicken and egg type problem your cat will need your assistance with.

-cats can only go a coupla days without food and water before critical systems begin to shut down, causing other problems.

-Afrin type nose drops work well on cats. One to two small drops per day, one nostril only. Alternate nostrils daily.

Essentially what happened to me was my cat ended up with a very bad cold. Completely plugged it's nose and sinus. Some fever, but all in all, it really was just a stuffed head. I tried vapor, cleaning the nose, etc... Nothing worked until I tried the Afrin. (And I did look up the toxicity before. Just so you know, most human cold remedies contain highly toxic elements for cats. In many cases, the toxicity level is many times that for us humans.)

Life circumstances did not permit a big vet bill. Sometimes you gotta make choices and this was one of those times. So, it was up to me and the cat to see how this was all going to go.

BTW: I should put the standard disclaimer that by reading this, you agree to hold me harmless for anything that should happen. I'm relating a life story only, and I could not see a VET for a lotta reasons. Go see your vet if at all possible.

So I started reading about cats, and their picky nature. That's where I got the info tidbits above. One other thing is that the mechanical problems caused by disease that affects their head usually is what does them in, due to the fact they won't consume the water and food necessary for the other healing processes to work properly. If they can eat and drink, you've a high percentage chance of their body being able to fight off the disease itself. That's where the cat and I were at. Not pretty, but not impossible either. Better than nothing and a certian death for sure.

By the time I reached this understanding, it had been a coupla days. Clearly getting into the danger zone. I started with the Afrin, then had to give the cat water drop by drop, using a small syringe with a pointed nozzle. If you surround the cat, then nudge the nozzle in to the side of their mouth, you can do a small squirt and let the cat struggle through getting it down. I did this a lot, many times per day, for a couple of days. Sometimes I would take some broth and use that for protein. Watch the broth though, it can get sticky and cause other problems. Best alternate with water, then broth, etc... always end with water.

A great check for overall cat hydration is to scrunch up the skin at the back of their neck. When you release it, you learn something about how hydrated your cat really is. If it snaps back quickly, you are in good shape. If it comes back slowly and does not regain it's usual shape, then the cat is not properly hydrated.

After a few days of this, we managed to hold our ground on hydration, but were losing big on protein. I was puzzled after getting her nose clear enough to breathe. Thought I was largely home free, but the cat would not eat! I tried a lot of things, but nothing worked. She would look at it, noze it, lick it, and that's it.

So, time to really annoy the cat. Time to force feed. Another Internet search led me to a great technique that worked very well. The bottom line is the cat wants to eat, but needs to be convinced that it can eat and that the food is something it should eat. Not an easy task.

Surround the cat again. I did this by crouching over the cat, trapping it between my legs. Then put some baby food, on one forefinger. With your other free hand, squeeze where the jaw hinge is and the cat will open it's mouth. Quickly (and I mean quick!) scrape a small amount of the food onto the roof of it's mouth.

Too slow and you get chomped! Too fast and you don't get the food in. Good luck!

What's going to happen is the cat will taste the food. It's gonna be very upset at you putting it there, but it will eventually figure out that either:

-you are gonna keep putting food in and it realizes it is just gonna have to deal,
-it knows the food is good from taste,
-it realizes it can actually eat the food!

Eventually it will try to eat on it's own as that is much better than dealing with you doing the feeding. Sounds brutal, but it works fast! That's something positive at least. Trust me on the feeding, it's largely negative. Took my cat two times through this whole affair and it licked the food off my finger the third time, then tried the food on it's own the fourth time. Each time though I had to go the distance. Crouch 'n trap, get the food ready, squeeze the jaw, etc... The cat has gotta know this is just going to absolutely happen.

Amazing! Just fricking amazing how picky cats really are. Everything else I tried failed totally and completely.

Texture seems to play a big role. Anything gritty won't fly, so don't bother mashing up cat food. After working the baby food for a day or so, I tried various things. The winner ended up being frozen shrimp. Put a few of these on a plate and nuke 'em for long enough to melt the water off and or nicely warm the shrimp. Leave the water on the plate as it's tasty to the cat. Strip the tails, if there are any and chop the meat up into nice little bits. Mine would work though the shrimp slowly, then lap up all the water, then sleep for a long time.

It took a few days of the shrimp diet for the cat to recover enough to start just drinking and eating on it's own, but it did and is just fine today. If you reach this point, just keep offering moist food and watch your cat for signs of improvement. Make sure water is fresh and take it to the bowl often to see if it's ready to do it's own thing.

Ideally, you can see a vet. If you can, do! Of course, that goes without saying, but this is the Internet and you never know...

Hope you don't end up in this situation, but if you do, maybe some of this will prove helpful!

Computing is fun again!

2006-11-20T14:52:00.000-08:00

Ok folks, I've gone off the deep end. Here's the deal. I've come to the realization that I really enjoy either big computing or small computing. The average run of the mill PC computing scene is pretty stale where my interests are concerned.

I've already blabbed enough here about Unix, X and all the neato stuff that brings to the table. Nothing has changed really --still love that stuff and always will. Having said that, I've also been getting back into classic computing through the wonderful community at AtariAge. Wonderful bit banging, right to the hardware stuff. Great homebrew scene as well. It's hard to point to a core group with more talent than the movers and shakers at AtariAge have combined.

For me however, the focus is a bit narrow. I want to get to the metal, but also want some relevance too. Enter Parallax, stage whatever!

These guys produce a fine set of products that are both educational and very practical to boot. Just the thing to start off on some new directions, while feeding that down and dirty to the metal urge coming on strong right now. Please visit them at http://www.parallax.com.

I've jumped in and purchased a Propeller Demo Board. In a 3 inch square package that's just a shade over half an inch high, you get the following goodies:

-propeller CPU 8 32 bit multi-processing core @ 80Mhz for a total of ~160MIPS parallel thoughtput
-ps2 keyboard and mouse input
-audio input from on board mic
-composite (baseband) video output NTSC or PAL
-VGA output with resolutions up to 1024x768 (and that may not be the end of it)
-onboard 32Kb EEprom for program storage
-USB programming interface for use with your standard win32 PC
-8 free i/o pins, ground clamp and two power sources 3.3v & 5v

Aside from the small memory footprint, this little system is a very capable general purpose hobby computer. The included software tools feature an assembler and SPIN higher level language, along with a collection of core hardware drivers and source code.

Parallax has just released a DYI game system, called the Hydra, that is based on the demo board I've been learning on. It has Nintendo compatable game connectors, a controller included, 128K memory expansion and a host of other hardware elements that are more specific to gaming. I fully expect a thriving demo and home brew gaming and project scene to evolve around these two products within a year.

The tech is accessable, supported by a fun community of like minded people to be found at: http://forums.parallax.com. The necessary software tools are free for the download and open where it makes sense to boot. What's not to like?

Needless to say, I'm basically stoked! Plenty of speed, lots of hardware options in a small and portable package. I'll have more to say later on, but it's gonna be a fun ride.

Selling HD Radio: Building value perception and driving early adoption

2006-09-08T08:36:00.000-07:00

Well I ended up ranting about this again on PDXRadio. After all was said and done, it's a rant worthy of some clarification and expansion.

Checking in with HD radio means learning that early adoption is still flat-lined. People are buying them slowly, but not for any real solid reasons. Some like new toys, some need a new radio and have heard the (boring) promos, a few are checking out the "hidden stations", etc... The takeaway here is that radio still has no overall compelling value proposition that will drive HD forward. This post is the third one in an attempt to put some ideas out there I believe have the potential to change this.

Disclaimer: I feel as strongly about what you are about to read as I do about knifing the baby that is HD AM. HD FM needs to build first for there to be a pool of new radios from which HD AM might see some new listeners. Better to use AM-Stereo right now, today to capture those 15 percent of car listeners who can take advantage of the higher quality today.

IMHO, the biggest problem HD faces today is content. It has to be compelling if it is to get people to buy new radios. A secondary issue is the branding. Right now, we've got stations using their existing brand, combined with this whole HD2, HD3 mess. Additionally, those extra streams contain content that may or may not be relevant to the listener base attracted to the brand in the first place. This is stupid from a value perception standpoint. It's also a mess where managing expectations is concerned.

Let me suggest some changes then:

Brand the stations with one identity. KXXX becomes KXXX and KXXX-HD. Two streams, that's it. One is either listening to the mainstream on whatever radio or the new HD stream on an HD radio. Clean and simple. Going forward it's easy to manage expectations and add value to one brand, instead of devaluing it with other choices that do not reinforce it. Think about it for a moment. If the existing stations are so cool, why bother with the new HD ones?

One station identity, with two streams opens the door for a whole set of really new programming and presentation ideas. If there is one constant in radio, the shuffle type stations have taught us, it's that new does get some attention. Having it last is another issue involving people and another rant, but let's just take the new = attention bit and run with it for now.

Copy becomes easy and clear. Now the term HD means both new and reinforces the main station identity all in one nice and easy to understand package. We did this HD thing so existing broadcasters could maintain their existing brands and stature. If this were not the case, DAB would be playing here right now and we would be listening to CBS-4 or some goofy new thing. Why not leverage the effort then and see where it leads?

eg: "Coming up on KXXX-HD, a mini concert series that explores the history of U2", "You are listening to KXXX-HD, where the new music is always first.", "This special programming segment was first aired on KXXX-HD earlier in the week. Take a moment to listen and explore what you too can hear on an HD radio today."

Having two streams under one brand provides a vehicle for more clearly differentiating that which is new content that adds value and that which is anchor content listeners return for. Both streams reinforce the station identity and together add value and provide additional choice for existing listeners, thus you will have a higher chance at keeping them. We may also find they switch to the HD stream before tuning off to another station. That can only be a good thing right? Finally, new listeners might be attracted by the new presentation options the two stream approach brings to the table.

If you are the first station in your market to actually do this, you get to claim the high-ground forever! Promo after promo can be aired, from time to time, letting people know their favorite station was the first on the dial to bring you the best in class HD radio programming! Gentlemen, start your engines!

Radio is best done as a venue. Having the two streams gives you a venue --go use it!

Some examples of what becomes possible, with a little out of the box thinking: (If you find yourself wanting more, contact me and let's talk!)

Play special events, interviews, live in-studio band sessions, DJ hour long spins, new music, contests and other things on the secondary stream first. Promo these on the legacy stream and play some of them while taking a bit of time to let the analog only listener not only get a taste of what they are missing, but also slowly get the idea they are behind the times. Done right, this not only builds awareness for HD radio, but also builds strong value perception and the idea of "newness" at the same time. This also provides a shot at earning some revenue from the HD programming efforts, in that properly re-purposed content can attract all listeners, not just HD enabled ones.

Once the new branding begins, the legacy stream is delayed where new content is concerned.

Mini-concert multi-casts! Choose an artist that has appeal across both young and old demos. Then play to both demos at the same time, letting the listener pick and choose! Before the commercial free set begins, take a moment to plug the HD and explain what's going to happen. The beauty of this is that when somebody hears the intro for a tune they don't like, they can check out the other stream first, maintain program continuity, and check out the other selection, all before tuning to some other station!

A station here locally has a program where listeners provide contact information that is announced and tied to Internet content and offers delivered to them by the station. (Yes, I'm a KNRK Nation supporter.) So, announce these early on the HD stream and tie that to a biggie prize. Then follow up with the normal announcement and the usual prize.

live DJ chat sessions, during long sets. On the HD stream, people can choose to hear the music, or participate in the chatter / shout-outs, etc... This is a very interesting way to combine music and talk. More to explore here for sure.

Pre-concert band interviews, special tracks, etc... On the day of a concert, promoted by the station, air extra goodies on the HD stream. Band member chats, mini-concerts, etc...

Make time limited podcasts avaliable to HD listeners. Put an HD radio ad into the podcast, and allow access to it via a keyword, heard only on the HD stream. Watch as HD listeners e-mail, IM, and phone a friend to say "I heard it on HD, check this special thing out!"

Actually play requests on the HD stream, during request hour while your bland and totally researched day parts grind away. Listeners can then contribute to the research in a way that mitagates the risk associated with playing some requests. You will find your next local market signature hit that way. Promo the hell out of it on the legacy stream, once it happens.

Extended listener composed sets, with dedication or message of the day. "Here's a set from sally that speak to global warming..." "From Weyland to Marissa with "Expresso Love". This is an hour of the best trance local DJ freaky has to offer, live and in studio coming up in the next hour on the KXXX-HD.

Which is more compelling?

Additional stations between the ones already on the dial that may or may not have anything to do with one's station of choice, or more of your favorite content first on HD?

There it is. Do this, so I've actually got a reason to buy an HD radio please?

Want more? hd@opengeek.org

Taco Pizza

2006-07-29T22:21:00.000-07:00

Finding a Pietro's, where I live, is tough. Of all the pizzas they sell, the taco one is the one I remember best. After some fiddling around, here is a recipe that will do the pizza justice:

You will need:

Pizza Crust (buy one, make one, whatever --just make sure it's a deep dish style one)
1 can refried beans (or make them, your call)
Grated cheese (moz, jack, cheddar) (enough to cover the pizza all over 1/3 of an inch thick at least --maybe two and a half cups for a medium pizza)
sliced and chopped lettuce (2 cups or so --medium sized bowl)
sliced tomatoes (two tomatoes or 1 cup)
diced onion (1/4 to 1/2 cup, depending on how much you like onions --get the white ones though!)
Dorito's Nacho Cheeze chips. (1 bag)
1/4 pound ground beef for medium pizza
optional: Spicy Jack cheeze
some small amount of corn-meal to sprinkle on cooking sheet

Spread the refried beans onto the pizza crust like you would pizza sauce. Make sure it's about 1/4 inch thick everywhere.

Sprinkle some of your onions on top.

Add cheeze to taste, sprinkling remainder of onions into the cheeze.

Roll beef into little balls, no bigger than 1/2 inch in size and place on top of cheeze. If you want to pre-cook these, that's a good idea too.

Put the whole works into the pre-heated oven for about 12-15 minutes at 425 degrees. If you like corn meal, sprinkle a light dusting onto your cooking sheet before placing the pizza on it.

Pizza is done, when cheeze is well melted and beef is cooked and brown. Depending on your oven, you might have better luck pre-cooking the beef or just skipping it.

Remove cooked pizza from oven and cut it to your preference.

Sprinkle sliced and chopped lettuce on top, followed by about 1/2 cup crused Doritos. Finish with chopped tomatoes on top and it's all ready to eat.

Enjoy a very good Taco Style Pizza!

HD Radio: Digital Boondoggle? (Part 2)

2006-07-04T14:07:00.000-07:00

Here we are another few months into the HD Digital radio saga. Time enough to check in and evaluate where we are with HD Radio and complete my earlier thoughts on the subject as well. Regular OpenGeek readers know I'm no fan of Digital Radio. On AM, it's a mess. We need to knife the baby right now and reconsider how we want to move the AM band forward.

Hint: Am Stereo support in every receiver made from today forward --this plus the modern DSP technology found in the new HD Radios would make for a potent AM solution. We are gonna invest in the design of the new radios, why not cover out bets huh?

On FM, to be perfectly fair, the technology has some merits and brings with it a unique chance for the radio industry to do itself some real good. Things like this just don't come along every day. That makes this discussion worth it on those grounds alone.

Frankly, if FM HD Radio manages to make it, we might actually get to a place where solid improvements to the AM band become viable. That place includes IBOC, BTW for those who might be thinking I'm just another bring back the AM Stereo geek. Well, I am, but I'm also fair too in that I simply want better radio. That means embracing IBOC where it makes sense to do so. 'nuff said, onward and forward!

Here we are some precious months later and the only new buzz I'm hearing about HD Radio still comes from the industry itself. The spots tell me more about Crutchfield than they do about the value proposition HD Radio brings to the table. That's gotta be fixed ASAP.

New radios are not on the shelves for all practical purposes, expectations about the technology are still being managed downward, and fundemental decisions about how to best apply the technology are off the map at this point. Most importantly, the early adopters are not buzzing about this new tech like they normally would a viable tech. What does this mean? It means they don't see the value proposition. Given all of the above, who can blame them?

So, how to sell HD Radio?

In a nutshell, put content on there that is not otherwise easily obtained elsewhere. Secondly, set the right expectations for the new venue (I refuse to buy into the ideal that radio is just another stream delivery system!). And finally, leverage the Internet for both listener interaction and feedback and content cultivation and aggragation.

Let's go through these one at a time.

Content not otherwise easily obtained elsewhere

Right off this means content outside the usual channels. With all the new content delivery choices these days, it's pretty hard to call most of the established content new by any measure. Your average hit single appears in a video game, on iTunes, all over the P2P filesharing services, on a movie sound track, internet radio stations, streamed from the artist web site, through a CD music delivery service, on a ring tone, as part of a TV broadcast, your friends iPod, and it goes on and on and on...

What's worse, for this model, is the reality that we are living today where the overall impact of the mega hit single is dropping. Greater overall availablity of music on demand has allowed people to focus on niches they find interesting. This, in turn, highlights pop music for what it is.

All of these things, and others I'm sure, have sharply diminished the value that 'new' (as in just released by the majors) content has where radio is concerned.

I propose the following: Given the primary strength of terrestrial radio is it's ability to deliver live and local content to it's potential audience, an ideal testing ground for this is the new FM HD subchannels. Things like this do not come along every day. Every FM station, broadcasting a secondary HD stream has a largely risk free venue to promote new ideas and content, without seriously impacting the bread and butter mainstream programming!

The lack of person to person marketing surrounding HD radio is disturbing. The early adopters and talkers should be promoting this technology to their friends, if it's to be a successful tech at all, we need people at this stage in the game to be talking it up to their peers. One such group, ripe for the picking, are local people into the local music scene.

So put some of the more talented ones on the air! (With a mentor of course.) They are going to jump at the chance to do some radio and are also going to be very interested in others hearing their efforts for obvious reasons. Tie these things in with an HD radio availiabity program and you have the makings for some local buzz.

Some of these efforts are going to be great. Run those as promos on the mainstream channel, thus letting ordinary people know not only that there is HD radio and that it has extra channels, but that those extra channels carry something relevant to them. Stream the new content as well, thus giving it a larger potential audience than just those people willing to buy HD radios for local content temptations. Overall, that's a more solid value proposition that resonates on many levels.

Set the right expectations for the new venue

First and foremost, radio is a venue. Position it as such, so that people can easily differentiate it from the other delivery technologies. Of course, radio can be a simple delivery system too, but that's not going to pack the punch required for longer term growth and mindshare being a venue will. There is room for both honestly. This advocacy essay is aimed at building new (and ideally better) radio experiences, so please take it as such.

Another expectation to set properly is content, not quality. The way HD radio exists today means either one digital stream that sounds pretty good, or two that don't sound so good, with one that has no analog backup. Pushing the whole digital means quality thing is just bunk. The bitrates and codec technology we have today just are not enough to meet this expectation, so why even bother setting it. Welcome to entertainment quality audio people.

Digital means choice and in particular it means more of it, period.

Leverage the Internet

Today radio can easily be a whole lot more of a two way medium than it has been in the past. This means we can more easily bond with the people (assuming there are people) on the radio. Technologies, such as e-mail, instant messaging, hypertext (web pages), online streaming, etc... all allow for a much greater interaction with a potential audience than was possible just 10 years ago.

The Internet also represents a potential content source as well. The local content, I mentioned above, may well have sharp limits depending on a lot of factors. However, there will be content online that appeals to the locals, whoever they may be. This content can be aggragated and presented in the form of shows just like the ones that currently pound home the same 40 or so hits every fricking week. This is beginning to show up on television, with shows detailing Viral Videos and other goofy internet culture / content offerings.

That's it on this topic for a while. Again, I've put these ideas here in the hopes of getting better radio --take it or leave it.

Making the switch to Ubuntu: Dapper Drake --That's Linux for the rest of you!

2006-07-04T12:21:00.000-07:00

I've been living by a simple rule, where computing is concerned, for a while now; namely, only run win32 & win64 operating systems if somebody else pays for them.

That means Linux, or a Mac at home for personal computing. So far, I prefer Linux and an older SGI Irix machine for most of my computing needs. The SGI is more or less dedicated to a few tasks, the rest happens on my Linux machine and it has gotten a bit long in the tooth. Time for a new computer and some new Open Source Software!

Having been a very long time Mandrake user since about version 6, the idea of switching didn't hold much appeal. Despite being a fairly happy user, a couple of issues continue to nag at me. These are, package management and desktop functionality.

Enter Ubuntu. These two areas are a focus for this distribution right now and let me tell you, I'm a pretty happy user! Over the last few days, I've been installing some software, getting to know GNOME and generally just checking out the environment. The UNIXey bits underneath are somewhat unfamiliar, compared to Mandrake and it's SGI like structure, but the arrangement is sane overall and easily understood. That means just getting used to a few differences here and there. No biggie.

So far, the GUI controls for nearly everything but window focus behavior are more than adequate for my needs. (Somebody really needs to let these folks know what focus follows mouse means!) Multimedia support is easily added to the base software package as well. Core software included was properly configured and ready to use, making me productive right out of the gate. All in all a net positive.

Package management rocks, particularly with Easy Ubuntu added to the mix. I asked the system for a variety of emulators, editors, some development stuff, etc.. and it was all delivered and installed while I worked on other things. --Nice.

The only downsides I'm seeing right now are some cut 'n paste wierdness, the VMWare Virtual Player and Kernel not matching up, and problems playing DVD media. I don't depend on these things for my core computing, so I'll just work through them and that's it.

Oh, one other thing nagged at me too. The lack of a base development selection choice. Maybe there is one and it was just not obvious. Either way, I was frustrated with having to pick and choose lots of stuff in order to compile some classic game development software. Still having some issues in this area and I'm sure it's just me spoiled by the Mandrake development base. Really I should know better what I am using such that I can just pick it from a menu, but I don't! Guess that's gonna change a bit, probably for the better.

All in all, this has been a great move. My hardware works, including lots of USB stuff, my desktop is functional and productive, and the system runs fast without a hitch.

Nice job guys --appreciated!

If you are looking for a Linux to get started with, Ubuntu sets a nice high bar. Worth learning IMHO.

The %$^&#$! DMCA (Death by DMCA)

2006-06-04T13:55:00.000-07:00

This one hits home. Regular readers and fellow geeks all know what the DMCA is about and why it needs reform. For the rest of you, give this one a read and consider all the cool stuff you are missing out on. (And it's a growing pile of stuff!)

I own one of the wonderful ReplayTV products mentioned in the article. It's probably the best PVR made to date, all things considered. It works with your existing stuff, has the right features and does not get in your way. No PVR sold today does what this device does and the vast majority of owners are just trying to get the best experience possible from their (rather expensive) television programming.

The DMCA lies at the core of this and the matter comes down to this:

Should we allow content creators to also control content handling devices? Don't the creators need platforms for their content to thrive in? Haven't we gone along just fine with people having the freedom to rip, mix and share their content with others? (and you can be we have!)

As long as this law continues to evolve as it currently is, we will continue to be denied the results of innovators everywhere. That's a direct and provable harm to you and me the average consumer. (Or, should I properly say citizen!)

Still think your vote matters?

2006-06-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I know I just wrote about political issues being elsewhere. Let me clarify: Some political stuff will remain here. Just not the more frequent postings I've been wanting to make.

'nuff said on that.

This is an excellent piece that everyone should read. Our elections are a freaking mess. There is a part of me that is convinced this is not just a matter of circumstance. Messy elections favor those in power. Want to run this nation the way you want? Just muddy the will of the people and it's easy to say you are unopposed. Done, next.

Constructive change is needed. Almost all of us agree on that. The poor state of election affairs we are currently experiencing means we need solid numbers to exercise our check on the government, not just winning margins because the margin for error is now very high. Since the Supreme Court decided to select our president for us, a growing number of elections that matter have gone to the courts over ambigious election results.

That means pure numbers folks. Turnout is paramount if change is to come about!

This just in: We Don't All Suck!

2006-05-27T19:29:00.000-07:00

Got your attention huh?

I'm gonna change the focus a bit on OpenGeek.

Political issues are growing more important. Rather than bleet (ask the great YAK --Jeff Minter what a bleet is) on about that here, I've started writing at OpEd news for those issues on a more frequent basis. This will let OpenGeek continue to be diverse, and hopefully interesting, in the way it is now, while giving me a venue for other issues that is focused in the way it should be.

The core change will be more quick links to popular content here. Google analytics has shown me that a fairly large number of readers here dig through the archives only to leave frustrated. I'll work on changing that in the near future. Regular readers are also often frustrated with the lack of new content. This focus change will allow me to put more things of interest here, without having to worry about content focus clash. (Which has been a big worry as of late.)

As always, thanks for reading. Thank you to all who have sent me interesting e-mails over the years. I blog for this reason if no other! Writing and interacting on the Internet has shown me one core thing that really matters:

We don't all suck Dammit!

Damn good cheezy Popcorn

2006-05-18T13:33:00.000-07:00

Well officially moving sucks. I'm in the new house, but it's gonna be a mess for a while just yet. It's the usual, tech does not work after being moved (what kind of voodoo is that anyway?), can't find things, found new things, etc...

For some reason I ended up wanting some good popcorn. One thing lead to another and it all came together to jog my memory. Somehow the microwave popcorn ended up right next to the Kraft Mac 'n cheeze. A quick search led to the butter and all the elements were there for top-notch highly addicive cheezy popcorn. Nice. In fact, nice enough to blog here for those of you looking for a totally unhealthy but totally great geek snack.

OpenGeek Cheezy Pop Corn

1 Bag Microwave Popcorn

(You can basically use any popcorn, but I recommend the Theatre Butter flavor)

1 sacrificial box of Kraft Mac 'n Cheeze

(You want the cheeze packet)

1/2 tsp ordinary salt

1/4 cube butter

Preparing the popcorn:

Mix half the contents of the cheeze packet with the salt, set aside for the shaking process. Once you have an idea where your taste for cheeze and salt lie, prepare a larger quantity of this and store in a spare salt or pepper shaker for immediate use!

Pop your popcorn however you want to get it done. Once popped, shake in butter and cheeze / salt mix to taste. For your average bag of microwave popcorn, half a cheeze packet well shaken is more than plenty of that fine cheeze taste. Your milage may vary!

Pour into serving bowl and consume with napkins!

Beware of the cheaper Mac 'n cheeze knockoffs. Their cheeze mixes are not anywhere near the quality necessary for raw, on popcorn, consumption. Trust me, use the Kraft. Also a longer shake while evenly adding the ingredients results in a more even coating. This part of things, done too fast or with poorly melted butter, will give you lumps of butter cheeze that may or may not be as appealing as you think they might be.

By reading this post, you agree to hold OpenGeek harmless from any incidents that may arise from the consumption of the preparation detailed above. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Get bigger sound from your laptop speakers

2006-04-04T23:34:00.000-07:00

I've been listening to music on my laptop speakers lately. Yeah, I know don't ask. Obvious issues aside, if you are in a similar situation, you might consider downloading audio processors aimed at webcasters and radio broadcasters.

The problem all boils down to a limited bandwidth, namely the laptop speakers have very little of it! In this way, they are very similar to FM radio broadcasts. Laptop speakers are very bright, because of their small size. Simple equalization does bring out the lower sounds, but the dynamics leave the listener with a rough to endure sound with a very limited volume range.

This software FM radio processor, combined with some aggressive equalization, will solve these and other problems. The end result is more output from tiny speakers with a fuller overall sound that I find more listenable than I would otherwise expect. Of course, the real solution is headphones or some other respectable speaker, but in a pinch this is better than you think it is.

Visit the developers home page

Computer Science Students program Atari 2600 games, using Batari Basic

2006-03-20T20:09:00.000-08:00

I know that headline means almost nothing to most of you, but trust me it's cool. The 2600 is probably the most challenging programming environment around these days. The machine has no frame buffer, 128 bytes of system RAM and 4K of ROM space. Graphics must be constructed essentially line by line with the CPU and the overall code timing must in most cases be cycle perfect to sync with the Television for a stable image. No BIOS, just a cpu, some minimal hardware and that's it!

Fred Quimby recently managed to come up with a compiled BASIC language for the 2600 that allows people to program the machine without having to manage all the smaller details and timing normally associated with the machine. The resulting environment is minimal in terms of graphics variety, but runs real time. Programmers can mix 6502 assembly language with BASIC statements to program their game with a very limited set of graphical elements. Sounds messy and it is, but it's also quite fun to push your creativity on a video game icon.

Until recently, the 2600 authors club was fairly exclusive. A small, but talented group of assembly language programmers have continued to push the boundaries of what this machine could do, year after year. Amazing frankly. Batari Basic opened up the experience to others and it seems it's catching on with at least these students who programmed games for their computer science class. (How cool is that?)

Despite the limited environment, there are some good gameplay elements in these project games. If you are into emulation and classic games, IMHO these are worth a look.

Here are some screenshots of the games created!

You can find the student project page here.

Paper Ballots in New Mexico and Voting Fraud in Virginia

2006-03-05T16:01:00.000-08:00

Regular readers know just how I feel about Electronic Voting machines. Our democratic process demands everyone involve respect it and take it seriously, or it's just not going to serve us as it should. Our requirement that a vote record not be personally linked to the voter really is the driver behind this. If we eliminated this requirement, which I do not recommend, we could use decades of innovation surrounding traditional banking systems for voting and have a system that is secure but scary to use.

New Mexico claims it's on the leading edge of election reform. While I think their effort to utilize human readable ballots for votes cast, I remain conserned that the counting will be all electronic. Perhaps the right auditing requirements are in place and this will prove to be a non-issue. Failing that, exit polls should shake out any counting issues. Overall, this is a much better scenario than we saw in '04.

The scenario playing out in Virginia underscores the importance of taking our civic duties seriously. For anyone that believes we don't have significant vote fraud, consider just what is at stake and how polarized the nation currently is. I want my party (Now Democrat!) to win as much as anyone else does, don't get me wrong on that score. However, I want the most solid leaders elected first and foremost. Debating various approaches to our problems and how well they might work in our best interests would be a very welcome sight indeed, given what we have seen this last few years.

Regardless of how you feel about things, tell your friends and loved ones to vote early and take their civic duty seriously. It's the only way we are going to get America back on track.

Teacher Suspended over hard hitting MySpace Video

2006-03-03T08:23:00.000-08:00

From the AP story: (Linked to source)

"A lot of people are saying it is the best show they've ever seen the TV broadcasting class produce," student producer Neil Willoughby told the TV news. "It was really hard-hitting."

What! She was suspended for helping kids to not only think critically about their online environment, but also working hard to get the word out to their peers? You have just got to be kidding me. As a parent, I've been working hard to help my kids be safe online despite the influence of their peers. Getting kids to worry about these things is tough because they want to interact with their friends online. MySpace actually is pretty cool in this regard, but it's also very dangerous.

Another story has a statement from one of the students who produced this short 8 minute segment:

"The point of the presentation was to show that kids are being irresponsible when posting their profiles," said Neil Willoughby, 17, a junior at the school who helped put together the presentation.

I think this school needs to get the message loud and clear:

Let's ask to see the video!

A local TV station, WDIV-TV has the story. Why not ask them to help out and get this video online where other kids can see it? There is no reason why this teachers struggle should be wasted. We can get this video online and make the students work worthwhile and let them know we value critical thinkers who care about others at the same time! This is a good effort from our future leaders that should be rewarded, not punished.

You can reach the TV station feedback page here. Take a moment to fill out the form, let them know you want to see the video and possibly help your own kids.

MySpace has been in the news quite a bit lately as well. A simple Google News search more than justifies this video, in my opinon.

Wanna blow some serious time?

2006-03-03T00:26:00.000-08:00

Thought so, otherwise why would you be here right now reading OpenGeek!

Trust me, it's fun and you will spend longer than you think playing it.

Sadly No! Recommended.

2006-02-27T11:56:00.000-08:00

Thought I might start doing mini-writeups on sites I find interesting, rather than just stuff 'em in my blog roll. Bumped into this fine counter-spin blog from Crooks and Liars (always a fine experience, IMHO) and just love the style and passion. This post in particular really shines with both the right questions and short and to the point style. Like I said, recommended.

Visit Sadly No!

Voting issues roundup

2006-02-27T09:56:00.000-08:00

Folks, we are getting closer to some very important elections, yet little has been done to make solid progress on the ongoing issue of untrustworthy electronic elections. I've been following this issue intently since the advent and aggressive uptake of the new electronic touchscreen voting machines. My reason is simple: non-voter-verififed votes with electrons only cannot be trusted at this time. Honestly, I'm not sure they can ever really be trusted in the same way that votes on physical media can be trusted, but that's another story.

Here is a small grab bag of news stories and information that should give you a good grasp on the current state of things. Our last presidental election was decided with about 30 percent of our national vote being cast and counted on non-voter-verified electronic voting machines. Given the kinds of problems I've linked below, and the inherently untrustworthy nature of the technology itself, we really have no idea who we elected in 2004. Clearly I'm not at all pleased with the result, but that's not my primary issue. The lack of trust is the biggie for me. Good or bad, we need to know absolutely that our leaders are duly elected indeed. Without this, it is very difficult to continue to have a strong faith in our system as a whole.

And on to the news:

Watchdog Group Questions Fla. 2004 Vote

"An examination of Palm Beach County's electronic voting machine records from the 2004 election found possible tampering and tens of thousands of malfunctions and errors, a watchdog group said Thursday."

Ohio Voting Fraud

This is a nice analysis of the issue and it's potential ramifications on upcoming elections. Bear in mind, that 30 percent figure for 2004 may well be 50 percent by the time the elections come to pass...

Alaska Now Refuses Release of 2004 Election Data Citing Security Concerns!

Can somebody explain to me how the record of the peoples votes threatens the security of the state of Alaska? Maybe they are worried more about how people will react to the knowledge than they are about accurate and trustworthy elections...

Elections Officials fear '06 Season of the Glitch

"When you look at disaster stories, it is usually that first time using a new piece of equipment that something is going to fall apart," says Kimball Brace, president of Election Data Services, which maintains data on voting systems across the country.

I've got a couple of still relevant articles, here on OpenGeek, on the topic as well:

How Electronic Voting Impacts the Trustworthiness of Our Elections

This article details the fundemental differences between votes cast with electrons and those cast with ordinary means, such as paper ballots marked with pens and how those differences impact trust and thus democracy as a whole. Recommended for anyone that does not understand the very basic trust issues.

"Electronic voting machines that use Closed Software and electronic voting records violate the two strongest of the core ideals necessary for mutual trust in an election. These ideals of transparency and oversight are time tested and necessary. Without voter-verified paper record facilities attached, these machines are unacceptable for use in any election."

Dealing with Voting Machine Ignorance, One media person at a time

This is an advocacy how-to article. Blog posts, such as this one and the ones linked above are valuable in that we are getting the word out. That's good, but we need to pack a bit more punch with our traditional media sources if the issue of electronic trust is to see greater acceptance and consideration. (and yes, we do need this!) Challenging posh voting machine success stories is one very effective way to do this that I used with some solid success in '04. Nothing has really changed, but the year, so go get 'em people!

"[How does it work?] First, you find a story, such as: “Voting machines exceeded expectations in recent election” This story is great because you can put the following in your e-mail subject to the reporter of the story. “How do you know those machines worked so well?”
Trust me, they are going to read that..."

Offset your home heating costs with junk mail!

2006-02-06T21:22:00.000-08:00

The title says it all really, but the idea was goofy enough it ended up worthy of a short post. Any thoughts?

I'm thinking subscribe to every free trade magazine, catalog and get ones name onto the very best junk mail lists and save a bundle on your home heating next year. Of course, the mail guy is not going to be happy, but maybe cut him in for half the savings as a nice annual delivery bonus!

If you are one of the lucky people with a fireplace or real wood stove, this idea is for you. Finally, all those crazy ads end up doing some real solid good --bundled up that is!

Nice kickoff for AM Stereo: Two new AM Stereo stations on the air!

2006-01-12T23:30:00.000-08:00

IBOC, or HD Radio has been way overhyped on AM and it seems a small but growing community of broadcasters are deciding to put real analog AM Stereo stations on the air! This is really great news that I hope to see continue. IBOC just isn't going to deliver the quality originally promised and it makes a total mess of the dial as well.

KRIB-1490 and WNMB-900 have both started transmitting full analog AM Stereo signals, despite a huge industry push for Ibiquity HD Radio IBOC technology. In WNMB's case, they have received some very positive listener feedback, including on guy amazed at the quality sound in his brand new Ford Expedition, shipped with factory premium sound system. Yes, many American cars feature AM Stereo support in their better sound system, meaning anyone choosing to broadcast AM Stereo today can tap into a similarly equipped listener base that is many times larger than HD Radio will be for many years to come.

Why did they do this? In the case of WNMB, it was the desire to deliver the best product they could with out risk of losing their existing listeners. IBOC, demands a noisy and narrow analog signal in return for a marginal digital one that only can be received on expensive new radios almost nobody is choosing to buy. AM Stereo, by contrast, can easily deliver great sound that in many ways remains superior to the digital one, on the many AM Stereo equipped receivers in use today.

WNMB has also been educating their listeners with radio giveaway promotions and a tie-in with a local electronics retailer who agreed to stock quality radios for WNMB listeners.

This folks, is how the AM band is going to improve. One station at a time, serving it's listeners with a quality product.

I've written on this topic recently and it appears I am clearly not alone in my thinking that AM Stereo is still relevant today. Just think, if all new HD Radios included support for AM Stereo, the coming IBOC mess would have a nice fallback solution for the many up and coming conflicts 30Khz wide AM signals are going to create....

Here's to hoping for a more vibrant and better sounding AM Dial as we move into '06!