I have a couple of hobbies that have stuck with me for a few years. And one of them culminates yearly on the 4th of July. I have a license to blow up stuff granted to me by the State of Oregon - a pyrotechnician operator's license. Thanks to some friends at a commercial fireworks display company near me, I get to have some fun now and then by shooting their shows.

On Monday, a bunch of friends and coworkers of mine will be meeting me in a town near here, where we'll be setting up the public fireworks display show to be launched later that evening. Then we'll clean it up. It will be a blast. Pun completely intended.

It's not a huge show or anything, but it's more work than you might realize. While the sponsoring city has a backhoe dig an 18-inch trench about 150 feet long, everything else is done by hand by the pyro crew. We will be unloading and burying over 400 individual mortar tubes, all of them 4- and 5-inch diameter sizes. We'll set them in the trench, backfill the trench to hold the mortar tubes securely in place, and prep the area. It's quite a bit of work.

And by the way - the crew is made up completely of people who are interested in doing the work. I just ask people I know if they're interested and see who wants to help. The only qualifications I put on my crew are those placed on them by the state - you have to be old enough (21), sober (duh) and not legally banned from handling explosives (the ATF cares about this a lot) - plus my own additions of "must not be crazy and must be able and willing to be very, very safe." It also helps if you can bear some fairly acrid smoke and don't mind getting dirty. Sometimes very dirty. In other worlds, it's open to most people who show an interest and want to give it a try. Some people even come back for more.

Anyhow, after we get the mortars installed in the ground, we'll unpack the explosives - the fireworks shells that is - and carefully load them into their individual mortars. We'll check and double-check them, and if necessary we'll prep the whole thing in case of weather problems (wet fireworks simply don't work very well). We'll have time to be meticulous and make sure everything's just right. By the time we're set up, everyone working will be more than ready for a break. We'll break for dinner, followed by an evening of hanging around keeping the curious gawkers with cigarettes away, while waiting for 10:00pm to come around.

Then, in a total of about 15 or so minutes, we'll light some fusees and destroy what took us several hours to prepare. After the excitement is over, we'll spend an hour or so cleaning it all up, digging out the mortar tubes in the dark and putting them back on the truck. And then we'll finally get out of there.

It makes for a long, fun day - you're worn out by the time it's all over with. Because I have some pretty nagging back problems, I can't really do any of the heavy lifting or twisting this year, so I am quite grateful there will be a good crew of people there to share in the fun. I'll just focus on the requisite safety teaching and making sure no one does anything that could get them hurt. It's no fun anymore if anyone gets hurt, after all.

Once you've smelled the smoke, there is no return. Fact is, there's nothing like lighting several hundred big-bore cannons you've stuck in the ground - firing out loud concussions of kaboom and hurling colorful stuff into the sky - to get your blood pumping. Travis (in his typical colorful blog entry style) put it this way last year:

"An exhausting day, to be sure, but there's something about it that, once you've done it, you can't not do it again. It's all of the scariness and loud bang and fire of war with the safety of proper setup and equipment (and the knowledge that no one is actually shooting back at you). You smell the gunpowder smoke, you feel the impact, and you're hooked.

"We'll definitely be back next year. Hopefully it won't be at the sewage treatment plant."

Umm, sorry dude - same misty city as last year, applicators and all. Heheh...

Happy 4th!

I've been using MS Tablet PC powered computers since Compaq came out with the TC1000 a couple/few years ago. After that I switched to the Acer C300-series devices. I've had a couple of the Acers, because they don't wear quite as well as one would have hoped. Thank goodness they have a reasonable RMA/repair policy. As it turns out, the Acer has pretty much everything I need and want: A big, bright, contrasty display; built in DVD burner; touchpad and decent keyboard. What it lacks is frustrating, though: Durability of the pivot hinge with significant use is bad; the case's surface finish wears off; battery life is fair; screen resolution is typically marginal (it's the standard 1024x768). I use the Acer as a laptop more than I do in tablet mode. but when I want tablet mode it's there for me in a matter of a couple of seconds. Oh, and the Acer's a bit heavy. There have been others. I carried around a Toshiba M200 for a while. I didn't like it. The display was flat and dim, and performance was mediocre. No built in optical or removable drive. It just didn't work for me.

Anyhow, yesterday over at Engadget they asked "How would you change the Tablet PC?" There are pushing 100 comment responses as of the time of this post, and while some of the answers are not that helpful, some of them are quite interesting. Check it out over there.

What do I think needs to be in every Tablet PC? Here's my own quick list:

• Greater than 1024x768 resolution (I can change font and icon sizes if I need to)
• Display must be bright and contrasty (I like the Acer and Sony bright displays for this)
• Included high-end docking station
• Optical burner drive built in (DVD+RW, dual layer even better, make it so I can replace it in a year when the "standards" change)
• OneNote included (like Toshiba does)
• Extra pen built in (like Toshiba does)
• Use a power source readily available on the market so I can plug it into my generic Car/AC/Airplane power adapter
• Up to 2GB RAM (or more would be fine)
• Touchpad (I really don't like the red rubber eraser nub thing)
• Microphones everywhere, high gain, noise canceling
• Built in camera on the top edge that can rotate/flip to point at the user or away (like Sony's portables) - at least a couple megapixels with a glass lens
• Biometrics - a fingerprint reader that works

That's for today. What do I want to see in the future?

• One button, two-second power-on-to-available capability
• Roll-up computer
• Gesture tough control support
• Whatever input recognition they choose, it sure as heck better not be T9...
• Brain input must not require use of the Microsoft Implant^TM (nor the Apple Implant^TM for that matter)
• Media center, personal media center, tablet, etc all in every device: Desktops, notebooks, handhelds, etc.

I got a wild hair a week or two ago and picked up a Steel Battalion game and uber-controller on eBay.

Oh. My. God.

Wow...

This game - and it's incredible game controller setup (detail here, image at right) - is pretty darned cool.

At lineofcontact.net, they essentially say that Steel Battalion and Steel Battalion: Line of Contact are both "daunting games to be a novice at, even for very experienced gamers." That's an understatement. 

Line of Contact is the XBOX Live multiplayer sequel to the original single-player game: "The level of complexity entailed in the game is on a par with PC based massively multiplayer role playing games, but with a challenging controller interface, live voice-based communication and a stiff penalty for inattentiveness (eject or lose your pilot)."

It's an awesome simulator game, where you "pilot" a futuristic vertical tank (VT - basically like in Mechwarrior) and the controller has (get this) something like 40 freakin' buttons, and they all actually work! Mastering this game will be nearly impossible. So sweet!

I hooked it all up this evening, and immediately failed to make the thing drive very well, so I focused instead on shooting the heck out of stuff. And since I did not eject in time, my player got completely wiped out. Yep - you have to eject if your VT gets shot up bad enough, in order to keep your player alive and available for the next round. Talk about simulators, heheh...

If you've never seen this game, especially if you like simulators, you should check it out any chance you get. Heck - Call me and drop by (if you happen to be in the Middle of Nowhere anytime soon), I'll let you play this one.

It's a great addition to my pile of Microsoft XBOX stuff.

Uh oh – GoogleFight is something I’d already forgotten about, somehow… http://www.googlefight.com

Someone make it stop. Three of us are here are running battles to see who wins, Greg Hughes or Brandon Watts? Matt Hartley or Brandon Watts? (by the way, Matt’s blog here and Brandon’s blog here) Hmmm…

More fights:

• Hotdog vs. Hamburger
• Jason Calacanis vs. Chris Pirillo – a close one
• God vs. the Devil – Phew!!!

Heh…

What is WeatherBug? As a piece of software, it puts the weather on your desktop. It’s live, updating every two seconds. NOAA doesn’t do this – they update every 15 minutes at best. As a company and a bunch of people, here is how they describe themselves:

“WeatherBug is the ultimate geek-ified company. We are about creating cool and fun technology, teaching children, and saving lives.”

RSS weather feeds accessible by ZIP code will be available in July – that will be cool. They will also be shipping WeatherBug for the Mac.

Controversy – because what would a good conference be without it? Lots of discussion here at Gnomedex about the presentation in which this company is being highlighted. About how WeatherBug used to have spy/adware, but that was a long time ago, and now it doesn’t – Seriously. It doesn’t. Also, the fact that I am writing about their product at all (actually I am mostly interested in the 2–second differentiator) is exactly what some people are complaining about here, because Steve Rubel (according to some of the crowd) used this presentation as a vehicle to do PR for one of his clients. So what. Decent example of PR, short time to fill, interesting info.

Whatever. Heh. I still like the every-two-second data update thing. That’s sweet.

If you live around Portland, Oregon or somewhere kinda-sorta nearby so you can get here, and if you're interested in coding, put the PDX Code Camp event on your calendar. It's free, but you need to register so they can plan for you to be there.

What is Code Camp?

Code Camp is a new type of community event where developers talk with—and learn from—fellow developers. All are welcome to attend and speak. Code Camps have been wildly successful, and we’re going to bring that success to Portland.

An original Code Camp organizer, Thom Robbins, wrote a six-point manifesto: Code Camps are (1) by and for the developer community; (2) always free; (3) community developed material; (4) no fluff – only code; (5) community ownership; and (6) never occur during working hours.

What can I expect at the Portland Code Camp?

Two full days of talking about code with fellow developers, on the scenic Reed College campus. Sessions will range from informal “chalk talks” to presentations. There will be a mix of presenters, some experienced folks, for some it may be their first opportunity to speak in public. And we are expecting to see people from throughout the Pacific Northwest region.

To create a little structure, we’ve proposed a variety of one- and two-day tracks including Hobbyists, Mobile and Tablet PC, Architecture and Patterns, Databases, Web Development, Client Development, Games Development, Tools, Methodology, XML and Web, and “Alternative Lifestyles” (Ruby on Rails, Python, Squeak, etc.)

Watch this site for more details and schedule as we firm things up.

Microsoft's released a new build of their Microsoft Antispyware beta software. Several improvements are included. The expiration date for the beta software is also extended through the end of the year. Download here.

From the MS web site description:

In this second beta refresh (Build 1.0.614), we’ve made other enhancements to the detection and removal capabilities, including improved Winsock LSP removal capabilities and support for long descriptions of categorized software. In addition, we have also extended the Windows AntiSpyware beta expiration date to December 31, 2005.

Existing users of the beta (Builds 1.0.501 and 1.0.509) will receive a software update that extends the expiration date and includes the enhancements to the detection and removal capabilities. The second beta refresh is also available for download through this site.

Microsoft’s announcement yesterday about support for RSS built into Longhorn has been followed up with the posting of the actual specification.

Overview

The Simple List Extensions are designed as extensions to existing feed formats to make exposing ordered lists of items easier and more accessible to users.

The term “list,” as used in this document describes an ordered collection of items with similar properties. For example, a photo album may be described as a “list of photos.”

And it’s licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, which is cool.

Phillip Torrone (often known simply as “pt”) is a geek’s geek. He’s been showing various hacks and stuff between presentations here at the Gnomedex conference.

This guy could do a conference on his own if he wanted to. He’s funny, likable and has lots of fun ideas. I like the hands-on kind of things, the practical stuff. Not that all of it’s actually practical or anything, but even if it’s just goofing around, it’s nifty.

He’s done a few 15–minute demos showing all the stuff you can do with a hacked Playstation Portable. He showed how you can modify a eBook reader with new firmware to break the bad DRM they put on it back in the day, so it can be a usable device today. He even has an old-skoool analog phone (with a mechanical bell and all) that has GSM phone guts built in, and there’s more to come.

But hey – you don’t have to be here to see this cool stuff. You can see pt’s stuff in/on Make: magazine (an O’Reilly thing), and there’s a Make:blog site, as well. I am subscribed to both. Highly recommended. If pt is publishing, it’s cool and fun. You should go there.

Check it out: [Magazine (subscribe) | Podcast | Blog]

I have a dog that's such a spaz he can't even remember how to play fetch. I have a cat that apparently thinks she's a dog. She plays fetch incessantly with this stupid play mouse. I throw it, she runs, she gets it, she brings it back drops in in front of me, and stares at me til I throw it again. She gets all upset if I don't.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat. It never stops.

What a weirdo.

I don't actually know Lee, but hey - he's going to Gnomedex, lives in Seattle, and he's throwing a party at his place on Thursday afternoon before it starts. He invited the entire Intarweb, so he must be cool. Just doing my part in viral marketing. 

Should be interesting. Eric seems to think so, too. Heh...

I'll be heading up to Seattle on Thursday (one of my favorite cities and a quick 2.5 hour drive from my place) where I'll be catching up with all sorts of friends and people I have not seen for some time at Gnomedex 5.0, a confluence of geeks from around the world.

Email me if you'll be there and want to meet/catch up - greg@greghughes.net - or call me on my cell - 503-970-1753. I'm arriving Thursday afternoon at around 4 or so.

It's going to be quite a get-together this year - the schedule looks like the makings of a great show, and I hear there are some as-yet unannounced things that should gain some attention.

I'll be blogging some of the fun stuff that happens there. With so many interesting and cool people from so many interesting and cool places/companies, I'll have to fill this weblog up just to be able to remember it all when it's over with.

Interesting Gnomedex link of the day: Podcasting ROBOT to be released at Gnomedex

Heh. Cool if real, funny even if not.

MSN Local is live, and it's interesting: http://search.msn.com/local

The MapPoint visuals are pretty much what you'd expect, and the satellite imagery, at least in the are where I live, is not as good a Google Maps (not even close). Looking forward to more from Virtual Earth later this year.

In other news, a comparison of Technorati, Google and Yahoo! Search. (via Jeremy Zawondny)

My friend and coworker Scott Hanselman has updated his Ultimate Developer and Power User Tools List for 2005. All techies and geeks (especially developers) should check it out:

http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ScottHanselmans2005UltimateDeveloperAndPowerUsersToolList.aspx

Scott's list is close to famous, and for good reason. He's quite the ultimate power user. I sometimes stand over his shoulder to watch him work (he tells me he's twice as productive when I watch, is that weird or what? Heh...), and so I get to see him use all these tools in terific ways now and then.

Head on over and see what I mean.

One of these days I am going to publish my list of IT and security tools. It is a completely different list, but still interesting and useful.

Hmmm... Anyone know of a good blog posting tool for the Blackberry that would interface MT/Blogger APIs using the GPRS connnection? That would definitely make my list. Emailing this entry from a 737 (on the ground, so don't start with me) is cool, but a richer interface would be nice.