It looks like an iPad, only it's 1/14th the cost: India has unveiled the prototype of a $35 basic touchscreen tablet aimed at students, which it hopes to bring into production by 2011.
If the government can find a manufacturer, the Linux operating system-based computer would be the latest in a string of "world's cheapest" innovations to hit the market out of India, which is home to the 100,000 rupee ($2,127) compact Nano car, the 749 rupees ($16) water purifier and the $2,000 open-heart surgery.
The tablet can be used for functions like word processing, web browsing and video-conferencing. It has a solar power option too -- important for India's energy-starved hinterlands -- though that add-on costs extra.
"This is our answer to MIT's $100 computer," human resource development minister Kapil Sibal told the Economic Times when he unveiled the device Thursday.
In 2005, Nicholas Negroponte -- co-founder of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab -- unveiled a prototype of a $100 laptop for children in the developing world. India rejected that as too expensive and embarked on a multiyear effort to develop a cheaper option of its own.
Negroponte's laptop ended up costing about $200, but in May his nonprofit association, One Laptop Per Child, said it plans to launch a basic tablet computer for $99.
Sibal turned to students and professors at India's elite technical universities to develop the $35 tablet after receiving a "lukewarm" response from private sector players. He hopes to get the cost down to $10 eventually.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Oceans reaching tipping points
WASHINGTON — A sobering new report warns that the oceans face a "fundamental and irreversible ecological transformation" not seen in millions of years as greenhouse gases and climate change already have affected temperature, acidity, sea and oxygen levels, the food chain and possibly major currents that could alter global weather.
The report, in Science magazine, brings together dozens of studies that collectively paint a dismal picture of deteriorating ocean health.
"This is further evidence we are well on our way to the next great extinction event," said Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, the director of the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland in Australia and a co-author of the report.
John Bruno, an associate professor of marine sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the report's other co-author, isn't quite as alarmist, but he's equally concerned.
"We are becoming increasingly certain that the world's marine ecosystems are reaching tipping points," Bruno said, adding, "We really have no power or model to foresee" the impact.
Volcanic activity and large meteorite strikes in the past have "resulted in hostile conditions that have increased extinction rates and driven ecosystem collapse," the report says. "There is now overwhelming evidence human activities are driving rapid changes on a scale similar to these past events.
"Many of these changes are already occurring within the world's oceans with serious consequences likely over the coming years."
"Although our comprehension of how this variability will change over the coming decades remains uncertain, the steady increase in heat content in the ocean and atmosphere are likely to have profound influences on the strength, direction and behavior of the world's major current systems," the report says.
"It's a lot worse than the public thinks," said Nate Mantua, an associate research professor at the University of Washington's Climate Impacts Group.
Mantua, who's read the report, said it was clear what was causing the oceans' problems: greenhouse gases. "It is not a mystery," he said.
The report, in Science magazine, brings together dozens of studies that collectively paint a dismal picture of deteriorating ocean health.
"This is further evidence we are well on our way to the next great extinction event," said Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, the director of the Global Change Institute at the University of Queensland in Australia and a co-author of the report.
John Bruno, an associate professor of marine sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the report's other co-author, isn't quite as alarmist, but he's equally concerned.
"We are becoming increasingly certain that the world's marine ecosystems are reaching tipping points," Bruno said, adding, "We really have no power or model to foresee" the impact.
Volcanic activity and large meteorite strikes in the past have "resulted in hostile conditions that have increased extinction rates and driven ecosystem collapse," the report says. "There is now overwhelming evidence human activities are driving rapid changes on a scale similar to these past events.
"Many of these changes are already occurring within the world's oceans with serious consequences likely over the coming years."
"Although our comprehension of how this variability will change over the coming decades remains uncertain, the steady increase in heat content in the ocean and atmosphere are likely to have profound influences on the strength, direction and behavior of the world's major current systems," the report says.
"It's a lot worse than the public thinks," said Nate Mantua, an associate research professor at the University of Washington's Climate Impacts Group.
Mantua, who's read the report, said it was clear what was causing the oceans' problems: greenhouse gases. "It is not a mystery," he said.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Powering The Future
I happened to catch this on Discovery Channel last night (after Mythbusters examined the Moon Landing Conspiracy theories). It turns out it's a four part series.
Powering the Future, a brand-new four-hour special series, is hosted by Dr. M. Sanjayan, lead scientist at The Nature Conservancy, the special closely examines where our energy could come from and how we are striving to create a clean, limitless, secure supply of energy.
The episodes are
The Energy Revolution
The race to power the future.
The Energy Planet
Reasons for easing mankind's dependency on fossil fuels; ways to power Earth in the future.
Striking a Balance
Balancing energy supply and demand.
Leading the Charge
Global warming, geopolitics and geology offer reasons for change.
They were on Discovery Channel last night, but I see they are being rerun on the Science Channel this week.
Powering the Future, a brand-new four-hour special series, is hosted by Dr. M. Sanjayan, lead scientist at The Nature Conservancy, the special closely examines where our energy could come from and how we are striving to create a clean, limitless, secure supply of energy.
The episodes are
The Energy Revolution
The race to power the future.
The Energy Planet
Reasons for easing mankind's dependency on fossil fuels; ways to power Earth in the future.
Striking a Balance
Balancing energy supply and demand.
Leading the Charge
Global warming, geopolitics and geology offer reasons for change.
They were on Discovery Channel last night, but I see they are being rerun on the Science Channel this week.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
google docs lockup / new format
I recently noticed that when I try to edit my google docs docuents on chrome, the browser locks up. CPU activity goes to 100%. It's like it gets stuck in an endless loop. So I have to CTRL-ALT-DEL and end task to exit.
It seems OK on firefox though. And trying it on Internet Explorer it locks up there too.
So I wondered maybe it's just my old documents. So I tried creating a new document. And it looks different. Now it looks like a WYSIWG word processor with a ruler on the top and margins on the left and right.
I suppose this is OK, but I'm wondering whether this has something to do with why it's locking up.
I tried a small document and it seemed OK. So maybe it's the size of the document? Maybe they can't handle large documents in the old format?
***
Well, I tried copying and pasting text from the old document to a new document. But it doesn't look the same. Even changing the font to the same, the line spacing looks different. And as soon as I try to do anything, it tries to save and I get a message box saying the script is unresponsive. And this is in firefox.
Definitely a turn for the worse in my view.
***
I guess what I can do is go to this link and copy and paste into it.
OK made the doc and tried to edit it in chrome. Seemed OK. Then tried it in I.E. Locked up at first with high CPU usage then settled down after a number of seconds and then could edit it. Maybe it's a document size issue?
Next I opened a document in the new format into which I had pasted in test from an old document. It was really slow to open in I.E. with high CPU usuage. After like 10 minutes the document finally loaded in and I was able to slowly edit it.
The same document loaded much quicken using firefox, like in five to ten seconds.
Conclusion? I'll continue to use firefox and create new documents in the old format.
***
Ah, now I see that there IS a new google docs and actually seems to be a brand new (completely different) product.
So compatibility issues would be expected. But locking up the browser has to be unacceptable.
***
[7/19/10] Ah, you can change the default back to the old documents. Click on new features at the top. Then click on the link Learn more about the new version and how to start using it. That brings up the answer.
You can continue to create documents in the older version, for now, by opting out of the new version. Simply go to your Google Docs Settings page, click the Editing tab, and deselect the option labeled "Create new text documents using the latest version of the document editor."
***
[1/28/11] Now I see they have removed that option. What you need to do is then, is bring up an old document with the old format, make a copy of the document (with the make a copy option under the File menu), rename the document, type in the new text and delete the old text.
It seems OK on firefox though. And trying it on Internet Explorer it locks up there too.
So I wondered maybe it's just my old documents. So I tried creating a new document. And it looks different. Now it looks like a WYSIWG word processor with a ruler on the top and margins on the left and right.
I suppose this is OK, but I'm wondering whether this has something to do with why it's locking up.
I tried a small document and it seemed OK. So maybe it's the size of the document? Maybe they can't handle large documents in the old format?
***
Well, I tried copying and pasting text from the old document to a new document. But it doesn't look the same. Even changing the font to the same, the line spacing looks different. And as soon as I try to do anything, it tries to save and I get a message box saying the script is unresponsive. And this is in firefox.
Definitely a turn for the worse in my view.
***
I guess what I can do is go to this link and copy and paste into it.
OK made the doc and tried to edit it in chrome. Seemed OK. Then tried it in I.E. Locked up at first with high CPU usage then settled down after a number of seconds and then could edit it. Maybe it's a document size issue?
Next I opened a document in the new format into which I had pasted in test from an old document. It was really slow to open in I.E. with high CPU usuage. After like 10 minutes the document finally loaded in and I was able to slowly edit it.
The same document loaded much quicken using firefox, like in five to ten seconds.
Conclusion? I'll continue to use firefox and create new documents in the old format.
***
Ah, now I see that there IS a new google docs and actually seems to be a brand new (completely different) product.
So compatibility issues would be expected. But locking up the browser has to be unacceptable.
***
[7/19/10] Ah, you can change the default back to the old documents. Click on new features at the top. Then click on the link Learn more about the new version and how to start using it. That brings up the answer.
You can continue to create documents in the older version, for now, by opting out of the new version. Simply go to your Google Docs Settings page, click the Editing tab, and deselect the option labeled "Create new text documents using the latest version of the document editor."
***
[1/28/11] Now I see they have removed that option. What you need to do is then, is bring up an old document with the old format, make a copy of the document (with the make a copy option under the File menu), rename the document, type in the new text and delete the old text.
Friday, July 16, 2010
clearing firefox browsing history
For some reason, I can't clear one one certain item in my firefox browsing history.
Normally you press the down-arrow in the address bar to bring up the most visited url's. Then move the mouse arrow to highlight the item and press delete. That will delete the item. But when I did that, one item still remained. Well two items, one was google.com, so that's OK. But the other one was a private website.
They even remain when I go tools, clear recent history, and clear everything.
Ah there you go, it was in unsorted bookmarks (go to bookmarks, organize bookmarks). Found it and deleted it and now it's gone. I forget why I looked at this. I might have been been after looking at this article or similar (found from searching mozilla support) and happened to look there. (Don't know for sure because I deleted all my history and can't look back to see now :)
***
Ah, now I'm getting to see how the items get in the address bar history. It doesn't appear at first. But accessing the website, the next time you type a few letters in the address bar, the website appears. Then after you select the website, it's now in the choices in the address bar history.
Normally you press the down-arrow in the address bar to bring up the most visited url's. Then move the mouse arrow to highlight the item and press delete. That will delete the item. But when I did that, one item still remained. Well two items, one was google.com, so that's OK. But the other one was a private website.
They even remain when I go tools, clear recent history, and clear everything.
Ah there you go, it was in unsorted bookmarks (go to bookmarks, organize bookmarks). Found it and deleted it and now it's gone. I forget why I looked at this. I might have been been after looking at this article or similar (found from searching mozilla support) and happened to look there. (Don't know for sure because I deleted all my history and can't look back to see now :)
***
Ah, now I'm getting to see how the items get in the address bar history. It doesn't appear at first. But accessing the website, the next time you type a few letters in the address bar, the website appears. Then after you select the website, it's now in the choices in the address bar history.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Was blind, but now I see
LOS ANGELES — Dozens of people who were blinded or otherwise suffered severe eye damage when they were splashed with caustic chemicals had their sight restored with transplants of their own stem cells — a stunning success for the burgeoning cell-therapy field, Italian researchers reported June 23.
The treatment worked completely in 82 of 107 eyes and partially in 14 others, with benefits lasting up to a decade so far. One man whose eyes were severely damaged more than 60 years ago now has near-normal vision.
“This is a roaring success,” said ophthalmologist Dr. Ivan Schwab of the University of California, Davis, who had no role in the study — the longest and largest of its kind.
Stem cell transplants offer hope to the thousands of people worldwide every year who suffer chemical burns on their corneas from heavy-duty cleansers or other substances at work or at home.
The approach would not help people with damage to the optic nerve or macular degeneration, which involves the retina. Nor would it work in people who are completely blind in both eyes, because doctors need at least some healthy tissue that they can transplant.
The treatment worked completely in 82 of 107 eyes and partially in 14 others, with benefits lasting up to a decade so far. One man whose eyes were severely damaged more than 60 years ago now has near-normal vision.
“This is a roaring success,” said ophthalmologist Dr. Ivan Schwab of the University of California, Davis, who had no role in the study — the longest and largest of its kind.
Stem cell transplants offer hope to the thousands of people worldwide every year who suffer chemical burns on their corneas from heavy-duty cleansers or other substances at work or at home.
The approach would not help people with damage to the optic nerve or macular degeneration, which involves the retina. Nor would it work in people who are completely blind in both eyes, because doctors need at least some healthy tissue that they can transplant.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
lost my beep
When I permanently delete items from my Outlook Express deleted folder, I get a pleasant beep sound. But now I just get the beep from the speaker. [This happened several times before too.]
I also get the sound as a warning when I close (for example) Word without saving. And when using WS_FTP (yes, I still use that).
I suspect the system is sort of screwed up because the memory always gets low.
Anyway, the last time it corrected itself after a reboot, but this time it didn't. The first time, I used these instructions to correct it.
1) Click START... RUN... type Services.msc in the box... click OK
2) Change both of the following services from "Automatic" to "Disable"
---> Plug and Play Service
---> Windows Audio Service
3) Reboot, then reset both the "Plug and Play" & "Windows Audio" Services back to "Automatic".
4) Reboot, then test if the "Beep" is still there by opening a new MS Word document, type a few letters, then exit without saving to get the Exclamation/Beep prompt.
***
[7/14/10] Hey got my beep back, but not in the above way. What I did was go to control panel, sounds, and set it to no sounds. Then shut down. Start up. Then set the sound back to Windows default.
I also get the sound as a warning when I close (for example) Word without saving. And when using WS_FTP (yes, I still use that).
I suspect the system is sort of screwed up because the memory always gets low.
Anyway, the last time it corrected itself after a reboot, but this time it didn't. The first time, I used these instructions to correct it.
1) Click START... RUN... type Services.msc in the box... click OK
2) Change both of the following services from "Automatic" to "Disable"
---> Plug and Play Service
---> Windows Audio Service
3) Reboot, then reset both the "Plug and Play" & "Windows Audio" Services back to "Automatic".
4) Reboot, then test if the "Beep" is still there by opening a new MS Word document, type a few letters, then exit without saving to get the Exclamation/Beep prompt.
***
[7/14/10] Hey got my beep back, but not in the above way. What I did was go to control panel, sounds, and set it to no sounds. Then shut down. Start up. Then set the sound back to Windows default.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
welcome to recycled island
A Dutch architecture company says it plans to construct a massive island in the Pacific made from the vast collection of plastic that has collected in the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” between Hawaii and San Francisco.
WHIM’s Ramon Knoester says the construction of “Recycled Island” will clean out the majority of the Pacific’s plastic pollution and create new habitable land as many of the world’s coastlines are lost to rising sea levels.
WHIM’s Ramon Knoester says the construction of “Recycled Island” will clean out the majority of the Pacific’s plastic pollution and create new habitable land as many of the world’s coastlines are lost to rising sea levels.
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Monday, June 21, 2010
HDTV and closed caption
I went to Billy's house again last night and tried to turn on closed captioning. For some reason it doesn't work on his Toshiba HD-TV. I thought it might be the cable box. So I tried to turn it on while playing a DVD (Live Free or Die Hard) [not Blu-Ray] and that didn't work either. Of course the subtitles worked on the DVD. [Hmm. Looking up Live Free or Die Hard on amazon. Doesn't say it supports closed captioning, so maybe it doesn't. Will have to try another DVD that does.]
So that made me wonder if there's a problem with HD-TV and closed captioning. And apparently there is.
Here's an article from 2007.
As high-definition TV gains momentum in the United States, broadcasters, set-top box manufacturers and cable and satellite companies are struggling to provide closed captioning.
While most older analog sets provide captions with the touch of a remote control button or via a simple on-screen menu, it's more complicated to get closed captioning on the newest digital TVs that get their signal through cable and satellite boxes rather than antennas. That's because the signal is processed by the box and the caption settings must be matched to the resolution of the TV display.
In addition, most high-definition cable and satellite set-top boxes control the caption settings through often obscure and confusing menus.
"I learned that ... digital captioning options must be controlled from the cable box via a hidden menu that comes with no instructions," wrote Pamela Holmes, a deaf cable customer in Madison, Wis.
In an e-mail, Holmes said it took nearly 12 hours with installers, phone support and other resources to get her closed captioning operating.
Further complicating things, people are now discovering that if an HDTV set is hooked to the cable box through a connection called HDMI, captions won't be displayed at all.
***
From Amazon.com.
I bought this TV the other day and I'm waiting for comcast to come out and hook it up tomorrow. I was going through the manual and it says that closed caption is only available on the TV, AV, and S-Video mode. I'm hearing impaired so I use the CC all the time. Does this mean if I connect the cable box by HDMI or Component cables that the closed captions won't work? ANyone who could try this for me or knows a solution for this would be greatly appreciated!
I see what you saw in the manual so I tried in a HD station with my cable box over HDMI and I could not select caption from the menu. I think the reason for this is because the cable box has its own closed captioning. I went into the settings for the box and was able to use closed captioning that way.
***
From Wikipedia:
Many viewers find that when they switch to an HDTV they are unable to view closed caption (CC) information, even though the broadcaster is sending it and the TV is able to display it. Originally, CC information was included in the picture ("line 21"), but there is no equivalent capability in the HDTV 720p/1080i interconnects between the display and a "source". A "source", in this case, can be a DVD player or an HD tuner (a cable box is an HD tuner). When CC information is encoded in the MPEG-2 data stream, only the device that decodes the MPEG-2 data (a source) has access to the closed caption information; there is no standard for transmitting the CC information to an HD display separately. Thus, if there is CC information, the source device needs to overlay the CC information on the picture prior to transmitting to the display over the interconnect.
Many source devices do not have the ability to overlay CC information, or controlling the CC overlay is extremely complicated. For example, the Motorola DCT-5xxx and -6xxx cable set-top boxes have the ability to decode CC information located on the mpg stream and overlay it on the picture, but turning CC on and off requires turning off the unit and going into a special setup menu (it is not on the standard configuration menu and it cannot be controlled using the remote). Historically, DVD players and cable box tuners did not need to do this overlaying, they simply passed this information on to the TV, and they are not mandated to perform this overlaying.
[In other words, you got to turn it on from the cable box. Somehow.]
***
Here's how one user turned on closed captioning on his cable box.
***
Here's Oceanic's solution
There are no graphics, closed captions or program guides appearing on the TV screen.
1. The DCT cannot generate graphics on all video outputs at all times. If the DCT is set to 1080i, 720p, or 480p output formats, graphics are only available on the high definition video outputs (DVI and component video). If the DCT is set to 480i, graphics are available on all video outputs.
2. If the DCT is connected to a standard definition TV, verify the DCT is configured to use the 480i output mode.
3. Verify closed captions on the DCT have been enabled in the User Settings menu.
So what does DCT mean?
Digital Cable Terminal, the generic term for the set-top box required to receive digital cable.
***
HDMI.org verifies all of the above (or just read this first without reading everything above :)
Q. Does HDMI support Closed Captioning?
Close Captioning
The evolution from analog to digital TV has added some complexity to Close Captioning (CC). With one standard way of broadcasting/transmitting, decoding and displaying content NTSC or PAL, depending on region, analog TV made enabling CC fairly easy across CE devices since the TV was able to do all the CC decoding.
With the advent of digital TV and the introduction of digital HDTV services (cable, satellite, etc.) the responsibility of decoding CC has been taken away from the TVs and put into the various Set Top Boxes (STB) that are required for the majority of the digital HDTV services. Additionally, these STBs now have different ways of enabling CC making it complicated and creating confusion for consumers. All set-top boxes are required to support CC, however the implementation of CC can vary from one product to another. Enabling CC on a specific set-top box can be simple, or more difficult, depending on the implementation.
HDMI, LLC recommends contacting your TV service provider (cable, satellite, etc.) for the correct way to switch on its CC feature as a first step to resolve this issue. The second step is to contact the manufacturers directly for the correct way to enable the CC feature within your product.
How CC works in HDMI and other digital connections:
The TV remote's CC button does not enable/disable CC on HDMI sources. To enable CC, the user must enable it at the source either through a source remote control key (i.e. CC button) or by going through the setup menu of the source. The source will then combine the video content with the CC information and output that (video + CC) via HDMI to the TV.
***
Hmm. Never noticed if closed captioning worked on my digital channels (on my SD-TV). Let me see...
OK, it works on both 5 and 85. So evidently it's not a digital problem but a hi-def problem. Well I should say it's not the digital signal, but the digital TV.
***
Well, I guess I'll have to wait to get my hi-def TV first to know for sure, I guess.
***
On a related note, does Blu-Ray support closed-captioning?
Since Blu-ray is now accepted (for the most part) as the new HD disc format standard, many questions have come up about closed-captioning and subtitling for Blu-ray Disc (also referred to as BD).
First off, to get the record straight, Blu-ray does not support closed captioning. This is for a very logical reason: Subtitles can be turned on and off through the disc’s menu (just like an SD DVD), therefore there is no need to add the closed captioning option. Consequently, BD does not carry Line 21 due to its High-Definition Multimedia Interface specs (HDMI). These specs were designed to displace the older digital and analog standards.
[so does that mean every Blu-Ray disc has subtitles?]
[yes, according to reply #8]
From Wikipedia:
HD DVD and Blu-ray disc media cannot carry Line 21 closed captioning due to the design of High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) specifications that were designed to replace older analog and digital standards, such as VGA, S-Video, and DVI.
***
To make it even clearer, apparently the HDMI cable does not support closed captions. And closed captions appear on an interlaced signal, so it's not supported by progressive mode either.
OK, that sucks. That means I would have to hook up my DVD/Blu-Ray player via composite cable to view closed captions on DVDs.
But apparently some DVRs support closed captioning with HDMI (see replies #5,6,8). I wonder if my Toshiba has it? [9/1/10 - don't see that option]
***
[9/1/10] Finally got my HD DVR and found (looked it up) that I can turn on closed caption as one of the options when I press the setting button on the remote. Cool.
So that made me wonder if there's a problem with HD-TV and closed captioning. And apparently there is.
Here's an article from 2007.
As high-definition TV gains momentum in the United States, broadcasters, set-top box manufacturers and cable and satellite companies are struggling to provide closed captioning.
While most older analog sets provide captions with the touch of a remote control button or via a simple on-screen menu, it's more complicated to get closed captioning on the newest digital TVs that get their signal through cable and satellite boxes rather than antennas. That's because the signal is processed by the box and the caption settings must be matched to the resolution of the TV display.
In addition, most high-definition cable and satellite set-top boxes control the caption settings through often obscure and confusing menus.
"I learned that ... digital captioning options must be controlled from the cable box via a hidden menu that comes with no instructions," wrote Pamela Holmes, a deaf cable customer in Madison, Wis.
In an e-mail, Holmes said it took nearly 12 hours with installers, phone support and other resources to get her closed captioning operating.
Further complicating things, people are now discovering that if an HDTV set is hooked to the cable box through a connection called HDMI, captions won't be displayed at all.
***
From Amazon.com.
I bought this TV the other day and I'm waiting for comcast to come out and hook it up tomorrow. I was going through the manual and it says that closed caption is only available on the TV, AV, and S-Video mode. I'm hearing impaired so I use the CC all the time. Does this mean if I connect the cable box by HDMI or Component cables that the closed captions won't work? ANyone who could try this for me or knows a solution for this would be greatly appreciated!
I see what you saw in the manual so I tried in a HD station with my cable box over HDMI and I could not select caption from the menu. I think the reason for this is because the cable box has its own closed captioning. I went into the settings for the box and was able to use closed captioning that way.
***
From Wikipedia:
Many viewers find that when they switch to an HDTV they are unable to view closed caption (CC) information, even though the broadcaster is sending it and the TV is able to display it. Originally, CC information was included in the picture ("line 21"), but there is no equivalent capability in the HDTV 720p/1080i interconnects between the display and a "source". A "source", in this case, can be a DVD player or an HD tuner (a cable box is an HD tuner). When CC information is encoded in the MPEG-2 data stream, only the device that decodes the MPEG-2 data (a source) has access to the closed caption information; there is no standard for transmitting the CC information to an HD display separately. Thus, if there is CC information, the source device needs to overlay the CC information on the picture prior to transmitting to the display over the interconnect.
Many source devices do not have the ability to overlay CC information, or controlling the CC overlay is extremely complicated. For example, the Motorola DCT-5xxx and -6xxx cable set-top boxes have the ability to decode CC information located on the mpg stream and overlay it on the picture, but turning CC on and off requires turning off the unit and going into a special setup menu (it is not on the standard configuration menu and it cannot be controlled using the remote). Historically, DVD players and cable box tuners did not need to do this overlaying, they simply passed this information on to the TV, and they are not mandated to perform this overlaying.
[In other words, you got to turn it on from the cable box. Somehow.]
***
Here's how one user turned on closed captioning on his cable box.
***
Here's Oceanic's solution
There are no graphics, closed captions or program guides appearing on the TV screen.
1. The DCT cannot generate graphics on all video outputs at all times. If the DCT is set to 1080i, 720p, or 480p output formats, graphics are only available on the high definition video outputs (DVI and component video). If the DCT is set to 480i, graphics are available on all video outputs.
2. If the DCT is connected to a standard definition TV, verify the DCT is configured to use the 480i output mode.
3. Verify closed captions on the DCT have been enabled in the User Settings menu.
So what does DCT mean?
Digital Cable Terminal, the generic term for the set-top box required to receive digital cable.
***
HDMI.org verifies all of the above (or just read this first without reading everything above :)
Q. Does HDMI support Closed Captioning?
Close Captioning
The evolution from analog to digital TV has added some complexity to Close Captioning (CC). With one standard way of broadcasting/transmitting, decoding and displaying content NTSC or PAL, depending on region, analog TV made enabling CC fairly easy across CE devices since the TV was able to do all the CC decoding.
With the advent of digital TV and the introduction of digital HDTV services (cable, satellite, etc.) the responsibility of decoding CC has been taken away from the TVs and put into the various Set Top Boxes (STB) that are required for the majority of the digital HDTV services. Additionally, these STBs now have different ways of enabling CC making it complicated and creating confusion for consumers. All set-top boxes are required to support CC, however the implementation of CC can vary from one product to another. Enabling CC on a specific set-top box can be simple, or more difficult, depending on the implementation.
HDMI, LLC recommends contacting your TV service provider (cable, satellite, etc.) for the correct way to switch on its CC feature as a first step to resolve this issue. The second step is to contact the manufacturers directly for the correct way to enable the CC feature within your product.
How CC works in HDMI and other digital connections:
The TV remote's CC button does not enable/disable CC on HDMI sources. To enable CC, the user must enable it at the source either through a source remote control key (i.e. CC button) or by going through the setup menu of the source. The source will then combine the video content with the CC information and output that (video + CC) via HDMI to the TV.
***
Hmm. Never noticed if closed captioning worked on my digital channels (on my SD-TV). Let me see...
OK, it works on both 5 and 85. So evidently it's not a digital problem but a hi-def problem. Well I should say it's not the digital signal, but the digital TV.
***
Well, I guess I'll have to wait to get my hi-def TV first to know for sure, I guess.
***
On a related note, does Blu-Ray support closed-captioning?
Since Blu-ray is now accepted (for the most part) as the new HD disc format standard, many questions have come up about closed-captioning and subtitling for Blu-ray Disc (also referred to as BD).
First off, to get the record straight, Blu-ray does not support closed captioning. This is for a very logical reason: Subtitles can be turned on and off through the disc’s menu (just like an SD DVD), therefore there is no need to add the closed captioning option. Consequently, BD does not carry Line 21 due to its High-Definition Multimedia Interface specs (HDMI). These specs were designed to displace the older digital and analog standards.
[so does that mean every Blu-Ray disc has subtitles?]
[yes, according to reply #8]
From Wikipedia:
HD DVD and Blu-ray disc media cannot carry Line 21 closed captioning due to the design of High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) specifications that were designed to replace older analog and digital standards, such as VGA, S-Video, and DVI.
***
To make it even clearer, apparently the HDMI cable does not support closed captions. And closed captions appear on an interlaced signal, so it's not supported by progressive mode either.
OK, that sucks. That means I would have to hook up my DVD/Blu-Ray player via composite cable to view closed captions on DVDs.
But apparently some DVRs support closed captioning with HDMI (see replies #5,6,8). I wonder if my Toshiba has it? [9/1/10 - don't see that option]
***
[9/1/10] Finally got my HD DVR and found (looked it up) that I can turn on closed caption as one of the options when I press the setting button on the remote. Cool.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Martin Gardner
Martin Gardner, 95, a journalist whose omnivorous curiosity gave rise to wide-ranging writings that popularized mathematics, explored theology and philosophy, debunked pseudoscience and dug into Lewis Carroll's beloved children's books with the gusto of an investigative reporter, died May 22 at a hospital in Norman, Okla.
His son, James Gardner, said the cause of death was not known.
A native of Tulsa, Mr. Gardner was writing stories and poems for a children's magazine in the 1950s when he submitted an article about hexaflexagons -- pieces of paper folded intricately to resemble, Mr. Gardner once said, "a budding flower" -- to Scientific American. The editor, Dennis Flanagan, was so taken with the piece that he hired Mr. Gardner to produce a regular column on recreational mathematics.
The resulting monthly feature, "Mathematical Games," ran from 1956 to 1981. It became one of Scientific American's most popular items, capturing the imagination of amateur and professional mathematicians and introducing a generation of young readers to the pleasures of problem-solving.
His son, James Gardner, said the cause of death was not known.
A native of Tulsa, Mr. Gardner was writing stories and poems for a children's magazine in the 1950s when he submitted an article about hexaflexagons -- pieces of paper folded intricately to resemble, Mr. Gardner once said, "a budding flower" -- to Scientific American. The editor, Dennis Flanagan, was so taken with the piece that he hired Mr. Gardner to produce a regular column on recreational mathematics.
The resulting monthly feature, "Mathematical Games," ran from 1956 to 1981. It became one of Scientific American's most popular items, capturing the imagination of amateur and professional mathematicians and introducing a generation of young readers to the pleasures of problem-solving.
Hackers Wanted
Delicious irony is always fun to discover, and the surfacing of an unreleased documentary from 2003 about the exploits of infamous computer hacker Adrian Lamo is just such a case. As reported by wired.com's Threat Level, the film was brought to the public eye and posted Thursday on the Swedish website The Pirate Bay through the efforts of hackers.
Lamo, shown at left earlier this month at the home of his parents in Carmichael, Calif., denied any involvement with the hackers, but such suspicion is not unwarranted since, as Threat Level put it, Lamo "made his mark in the early 2000s with a string of brazen but mostly harmless hacks against large companies," including The New York Times. He was later imprisoned briefly. The 90-minute documentary of his hacking exploits is called "Hackers Wanted" and is narrated by Kevin Spacey and includes interviews with Kevin Rose and Steve Wozniak. It was never released, until now, because of conflicts among the producers and crew, according to Threat Level.
Lamo, shown at left earlier this month at the home of his parents in Carmichael, Calif., denied any involvement with the hackers, but such suspicion is not unwarranted since, as Threat Level put it, Lamo "made his mark in the early 2000s with a string of brazen but mostly harmless hacks against large companies," including The New York Times. He was later imprisoned briefly. The 90-minute documentary of his hacking exploits is called "Hackers Wanted" and is narrated by Kevin Spacey and includes interviews with Kevin Rose and Steve Wozniak. It was never released, until now, because of conflicts among the producers and crew, according to Threat Level.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
National Research Council calls for greenhouse gas limits
In its most comprehensive study so far, the nation’s leading scientific body declared on Wednesday that climate change is a reality and is driven mostly by human activity, chiefly the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation.
The group, the National Research Council, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, issued three reports describing the case for a harmful human influence on the global climate as overwhelming and arguing for strong immediate action to limit emissions of climate-altering gases in the United States and around the world — including the creation of a carbon pricing system.
Predictably, advocates of climate and energy legislation embraced the reports.
“These studies clearly demonstrate the urgency for Senate action,” said Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts and a sponsor of a climate bill introduced in the Senate this month.
Peter Frumhoff, director of science and policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists said: “This report should light a fire under Congress. Lawmakers should stop dragging their feet, pay attention to the science and pass a bill this session.”
The group, the National Research Council, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, issued three reports describing the case for a harmful human influence on the global climate as overwhelming and arguing for strong immediate action to limit emissions of climate-altering gases in the United States and around the world — including the creation of a carbon pricing system.
Predictably, advocates of climate and energy legislation embraced the reports.
“These studies clearly demonstrate the urgency for Senate action,” said Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts and a sponsor of a climate bill introduced in the Senate this month.
Peter Frumhoff, director of science and policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists said: “This report should light a fire under Congress. Lawmakers should stop dragging their feet, pay attention to the science and pass a bill this session.”
Sunday, June 13, 2010
trade in your bulbs
Sometimes, making a difference can be as simple as changing a light bulb -- literally -- as in switching from an old, incandescent light bulb to a compact fluorescent light.
Though there are clearly far larger issues to tackle, from a global-warming standpoint, the Blue Planet Foundation is encouraging people to take that one simple step by offering free CFLs to every resident on Molokai.
An average family in Hawaii can save $80 to $240 a year in energy costs with CFLs, according to the Hawaii Energy Program. A CFL requires 75 percent less energy than ordinary bulbs and has a life span 10 times longer than a regular, incandescent bulb.
What you need to know is that CFLs shouldn't be thrown into the trash because they contain small traces of mercury that can leak if broken.
Retailers like Home Depot now accept used CFLs for recycling, while Lowe's is rolling out a program soon. Local retailers like City Mill and Hardware Hawaii, however, do not. Maui County is working on a recycling program for Molokai residents.
Molokai is ahead of the times, given that incandescent bulbs will be phased out across the U.S. starting in 2012 (as approved by Congress).
Though there are clearly far larger issues to tackle, from a global-warming standpoint, the Blue Planet Foundation is encouraging people to take that one simple step by offering free CFLs to every resident on Molokai.
An average family in Hawaii can save $80 to $240 a year in energy costs with CFLs, according to the Hawaii Energy Program. A CFL requires 75 percent less energy than ordinary bulbs and has a life span 10 times longer than a regular, incandescent bulb.
What you need to know is that CFLs shouldn't be thrown into the trash because they contain small traces of mercury that can leak if broken.
Retailers like Home Depot now accept used CFLs for recycling, while Lowe's is rolling out a program soon. Local retailers like City Mill and Hardware Hawaii, however, do not. Maui County is working on a recycling program for Molokai residents.
Molokai is ahead of the times, given that incandescent bulbs will be phased out across the U.S. starting in 2012 (as approved by Congress).
Tuesday, June 08, 2010
DirGraph
DirGraph provides a graphical view of the space used by your files and directories. It allows you to navigate around this view - zooming in to see greater detail and zooming out to see the bigger picture.
It also supports colour coding its display by file dates, so you can see at a glance how much of the space used is occupied by files that haven't been accessed for an age [and that should therefore have been committed to back-up storage long ago].
It can be quite interesting to look at your system in this way: for instance did you know your games and mp3 directories was taking that much of you over-all drive space?!! No wonder there wasn't room to install the latest version of PaceMaker...
[via frwr_news]
When I ran it, I discovered that Microsoft Encarta was taking up a half a GB of space on my hard drive. I didn't even realize Encarta was even installed. And sure enough, Encarta runs. Though I don't know if I would use it with wikipedia around..
Wondering whether Encarta is now available on the net, apparently not the encyclopdedia. However a dictionary, thesaurus, and translator are available online.
Encarta as a retail product has been discontinued.
Read all about it on wikipedia. (Where else?)
It also supports colour coding its display by file dates, so you can see at a glance how much of the space used is occupied by files that haven't been accessed for an age [and that should therefore have been committed to back-up storage long ago].
It can be quite interesting to look at your system in this way: for instance did you know your games and mp3 directories was taking that much of you over-all drive space?!! No wonder there wasn't room to install the latest version of PaceMaker...
[via frwr_news]
When I ran it, I discovered that Microsoft Encarta was taking up a half a GB of space on my hard drive. I didn't even realize Encarta was even installed. And sure enough, Encarta runs. Though I don't know if I would use it with wikipedia around..
Wondering whether Encarta is now available on the net, apparently not the encyclopdedia. However a dictionary, thesaurus, and translator are available online.
Encarta as a retail product has been discontinued.
Read all about it on wikipedia. (Where else?)
Monday, May 31, 2010
how to recycle right
Now that Honolulu has extended curbside recycling to the Leeward side, every household on the isle should be equipped with three city and county-issued trash bins, in blue, green and gray.
It will take more effort to rinse and sort your opala, but you'll get the hang of it -- and you'll be glad you're doing your part to keep these items out of landfills, which none of us wants in our own back yard.
Although filling the bins would seem to be a matter of using common sense, there are limitations to what can and cannot be put into the respective bins. For instance, some things that are accepted for recycling in other counties are not accepted here. Here's a primer:
» The green bin: Grass clippings, tree and hedge trimmings, leaves, palm fronds and Christmas trees go here. The plant matter is mulched and turned back into potting soil, which goes back to your garden.
Everything in the green bin goes to a composting facility, so none of your mixed recyclables belong here.
Plastic bags also do not belong in here, but county recycling director Suzanne Jones said the city is allowing residents to use it occasionally to keep grass from clumping at the bottom. However, "We ask people to avoid using bags as much as possible."
» The blue bin: This is for mixed recyclables such as aluminum cans, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles (Nos. 1 and 2), newspaper and corrugated cardboard.
Beverage containers do not have to be labeled HI5 to go in the blue bin. The HI5 label means you can get 5 cents back at a redemption center (you might want to do that instead).
Though the directions seem pretty straightforward, you might want to know that corrugated cardboard (the kind that's double-thick, with ridges in between) does not include cereal boxes, tissue boxes or egg cartons.
Some pizza delivery boxes might qualify, but Jones asks that you try to scrape off the cheese first.
White and colored office paper do not go into the blue bin, either. These can be recycled at community bins found at most public schools, where you can also drop off stapled papers but not envelopes, magazines or shredded paper.
» The gray bin: Everything that does not go into green or blue bins goes in the gray bin -- the trash bin. Waste is taken to the HPOWER waste-to-energy facility on Oahu.
This includes phone books, tin cans and egg cartons.
Whatever your views about HPOWER, Jones says the county has determined it's more efficient to burn egg cartons into energy rather than to ship them offshore for recycling.
» Sorting it out: To figure out which plastics go in the blue bin, look for the number inside a triangle typically placed on the bottom of the object. Nos. 1 and 2 are acceptable. These usually include plastic food containers that hold cold foods, like the strawberries from Costco. The same goes for shampoo and liquid soap bottles.
Bottle caps do not go into the blue bin. Nor do yogurt cups, which are usually plastic No. 5.
Where does it all go? Most of Honolulu's paper and plastic gets shipped to various markets in the Pacific -- mainly China -- to be re-purposed into other materials. Glass goes to the West Coast.
Glass is recycled into new bottles or "glasphalt" road pavement, while aluminum can easily be melted down. Plastic is re-purposed into lumber, carpet and textiles, while newspapers and cardboard get a new life as new newsprint, boxes and tissue paper.
If you accidentally put something in the blue bin that does not belong, don't fret: A team sorts through all the stuff as it travels along a conveyor belt. For a peek, go to www.opala.org.
For questions on curbside recycling, call 768-3200 or visit www.opala.org/solid_waste/curbside.htm.
Nina Wu writes a column about environmental issues on the first Monday of every month. E-mail her at nwu@starbulletin.com.
***
[6/7/10] If you're really determined to recycle magazines (and phone books and paperback books), you can drop them off at Hagadone.
It will take more effort to rinse and sort your opala, but you'll get the hang of it -- and you'll be glad you're doing your part to keep these items out of landfills, which none of us wants in our own back yard.
Although filling the bins would seem to be a matter of using common sense, there are limitations to what can and cannot be put into the respective bins. For instance, some things that are accepted for recycling in other counties are not accepted here. Here's a primer:
» The green bin: Grass clippings, tree and hedge trimmings, leaves, palm fronds and Christmas trees go here. The plant matter is mulched and turned back into potting soil, which goes back to your garden.
Everything in the green bin goes to a composting facility, so none of your mixed recyclables belong here.
Plastic bags also do not belong in here, but county recycling director Suzanne Jones said the city is allowing residents to use it occasionally to keep grass from clumping at the bottom. However, "We ask people to avoid using bags as much as possible."
» The blue bin: This is for mixed recyclables such as aluminum cans, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles (Nos. 1 and 2), newspaper and corrugated cardboard.
Beverage containers do not have to be labeled HI5 to go in the blue bin. The HI5 label means you can get 5 cents back at a redemption center (you might want to do that instead).
Though the directions seem pretty straightforward, you might want to know that corrugated cardboard (the kind that's double-thick, with ridges in between) does not include cereal boxes, tissue boxes or egg cartons.
Some pizza delivery boxes might qualify, but Jones asks that you try to scrape off the cheese first.
White and colored office paper do not go into the blue bin, either. These can be recycled at community bins found at most public schools, where you can also drop off stapled papers but not envelopes, magazines or shredded paper.
» The gray bin: Everything that does not go into green or blue bins goes in the gray bin -- the trash bin. Waste is taken to the HPOWER waste-to-energy facility on Oahu.
This includes phone books, tin cans and egg cartons.
Whatever your views about HPOWER, Jones says the county has determined it's more efficient to burn egg cartons into energy rather than to ship them offshore for recycling.
» Sorting it out: To figure out which plastics go in the blue bin, look for the number inside a triangle typically placed on the bottom of the object. Nos. 1 and 2 are acceptable. These usually include plastic food containers that hold cold foods, like the strawberries from Costco. The same goes for shampoo and liquid soap bottles.
Bottle caps do not go into the blue bin. Nor do yogurt cups, which are usually plastic No. 5.
Where does it all go? Most of Honolulu's paper and plastic gets shipped to various markets in the Pacific -- mainly China -- to be re-purposed into other materials. Glass goes to the West Coast.
Glass is recycled into new bottles or "glasphalt" road pavement, while aluminum can easily be melted down. Plastic is re-purposed into lumber, carpet and textiles, while newspapers and cardboard get a new life as new newsprint, boxes and tissue paper.
If you accidentally put something in the blue bin that does not belong, don't fret: A team sorts through all the stuff as it travels along a conveyor belt. For a peek, go to www.opala.org.
For questions on curbside recycling, call 768-3200 or visit www.opala.org/solid_waste/curbside.htm.
Nina Wu writes a column about environmental issues on the first Monday of every month. E-mail her at nwu@starbulletin.com.
***
[6/7/10] If you're really determined to recycle magazines (and phone books and paperback books), you can drop them off at Hagadone.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Stephen Hawking suggests aliens may be hazardous to earth's health
THE aliens are out there and Earth had better watch out, at least according to Stephen Hawking. He has suggested that extraterrestrials are almost certain to exist — but that instead of seeking them out, humanity should be doing all it that can to avoid any contact.
The suggestions come in a new documentary series in which Hawking, one of the world’s leading scientists, will set out his latest thinking on some of the universe’s greatest mysteries.
Alien life, he will suggest, is almost certain to exist in many other parts of the universe: not just in planets, but perhaps in the centre of stars or even floating in interplanetary space.
Hawking’s logic on aliens is, for him, unusually simple. The universe, he points out, has 100 billion galaxies, each containing hundreds of millions of stars. In such a big place, Earth is unlikely to be the only planet where life has evolved.
He suggests that aliens might simply raid Earth for its resources and then move on: “We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn’t want to meet. I imagine they might exist in massive ships, having used up all the resources from their home planet. Such advanced aliens would perhaps become nomads, looking to conquer and colonise whatever planets they can reach.”
He concludes that trying to make contact with alien races is “a little too risky”. He said: “If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans.”
The suggestions come in a new documentary series in which Hawking, one of the world’s leading scientists, will set out his latest thinking on some of the universe’s greatest mysteries.
Alien life, he will suggest, is almost certain to exist in many other parts of the universe: not just in planets, but perhaps in the centre of stars or even floating in interplanetary space.
Hawking’s logic on aliens is, for him, unusually simple. The universe, he points out, has 100 billion galaxies, each containing hundreds of millions of stars. In such a big place, Earth is unlikely to be the only planet where life has evolved.
He suggests that aliens might simply raid Earth for its resources and then move on: “We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn’t want to meet. I imagine they might exist in massive ships, having used up all the resources from their home planet. Such advanced aliens would perhaps become nomads, looking to conquer and colonise whatever planets they can reach.”
He concludes that trying to make contact with alien races is “a little too risky”. He said: “If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans.”
a cancer vaccine
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved the first treatment that uses a so-called cancer vaccine, a drug that trains the body’s own immune system to fight the disease.
The drug, Provenge, developed by the Dendreon Corporation, was approved to treat advanced prostate cancer. In clinical trials it extended the lives of patients about four months compared with a placebo.
Getting the immune system to attack cancer has tantalized scientists for decades, because it promises to have fewer side effects than the harsh chemotherapy now used. But until now the approach has yielded little but disappointment.
“The big story here is that this is the first proof of principle and proof that immunotherapy works in general in cancer, which I think is a huge observation,” said Dr. Philip Kantoff, chief of solid tumor oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and the lead investigator in Dendreon’s largest clinical trial for the drug. ”
Provenge is not a preventive vaccine like those for measles, hepatitis or even the new ones for cervical cancer, which prevent a viral infection that causes the cancer. Rather, it is a so-called therapeutic vaccine, used after prostate cancer has already been diagnosed.
Provenge has become a cause célèbre among some patients. When the F.D.A. declined to approve the drug three years ago, some prostate cancer patients and investors protested.
“I think it’s fair to say that people are waiting for it,” said Jan Manarite, who runs the telephone help line in Florida for the Prostate Cancer Research Institute, a patient advocacy group.
The drug, Provenge, developed by the Dendreon Corporation, was approved to treat advanced prostate cancer. In clinical trials it extended the lives of patients about four months compared with a placebo.
Getting the immune system to attack cancer has tantalized scientists for decades, because it promises to have fewer side effects than the harsh chemotherapy now used. But until now the approach has yielded little but disappointment.
“The big story here is that this is the first proof of principle and proof that immunotherapy works in general in cancer, which I think is a huge observation,” said Dr. Philip Kantoff, chief of solid tumor oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and the lead investigator in Dendreon’s largest clinical trial for the drug. ”
Provenge is not a preventive vaccine like those for measles, hepatitis or even the new ones for cervical cancer, which prevent a viral infection that causes the cancer. Rather, it is a so-called therapeutic vaccine, used after prostate cancer has already been diagnosed.
Provenge has become a cause célèbre among some patients. When the F.D.A. declined to approve the drug three years ago, some prostate cancer patients and investors protested.
“I think it’s fair to say that people are waiting for it,” said Jan Manarite, who runs the telephone help line in Florida for the Prostate Cancer Research Institute, a patient advocacy group.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Oceanic and TIVO
Got an invitation to Sujin's house and met Nalu (the black retriever). Of course, Sujin wasn't there, otherwise why would I get an invitation? (Thanks Cathy.)
Beautiful (and clean) house. Wonderful dog.
And a snazzy hidef TV on the wall that was set up in a way that I had never seen before. It was getting Oceanic HD TV but there was no Oceanic cable box to be seen. It was running Tivo. From what I can figure out, it must have been running from the TV box with a cable card plugged in. Way more storage than Oceanic's DVR. Scanning through the recorded list, there must have been hundreds (and hundreds) of hours recorded on that thing.
The other thing that I couldn't figure out was how to get their Blu-Ray player working. It wouldn't show up on any video input on the TV. Maybe the cable to the player wasn't hooked up. Or maybe there's another switch somewhere.
Anyway here's techhui's post on Oceanic and TIVO (and why and how Laurence Lee booted Oceanic).
*** [9/14/13]
Played around with Shirlyn's TIVO today (they apparently lost the network connection). It got me tempted to consider the TIVO. Here's my notes.
I'm kind of tempted to dump my Oceanic box and going to TIVO
I wonder how much it costs?
I think you need a cable card in the TIVO to view HD channels.not on direct connect cable
plus a tuning adapter (for SD - switched digital channels)
here are some user experiences
maybe I just gotta try it
ok, here's the price of the cable card, only $2.50 per month (vs. $12.99 for a DVR)
Assuming you can live with the limitations (no on demand), you'll save about $10 a month (the guy in the user experiences link says $24 a month). Oh, I forgot the price of the cable box which is $6.20. OK, that brings it up to $16.
Wait, there's a monthly service fee for TIVO. It's $14.99, so there goes the savings. However you can pay a one-time fee of $500 for lifetime service (lifetime of the product?) So if it lasts three years, you'll come out ahead.
How much is a TIVO these days?
Well checking Best Buy,
The TIVO Roamio Pro DVR is $599.99.
Beautiful (and clean) house. Wonderful dog.
And a snazzy hidef TV on the wall that was set up in a way that I had never seen before. It was getting Oceanic HD TV but there was no Oceanic cable box to be seen. It was running Tivo. From what I can figure out, it must have been running from the TV box with a cable card plugged in. Way more storage than Oceanic's DVR. Scanning through the recorded list, there must have been hundreds (and hundreds) of hours recorded on that thing.
The other thing that I couldn't figure out was how to get their Blu-Ray player working. It wouldn't show up on any video input on the TV. Maybe the cable to the player wasn't hooked up. Or maybe there's another switch somewhere.
Anyway here's techhui's post on Oceanic and TIVO (and why and how Laurence Lee booted Oceanic).
*** [9/14/13]
Played around with Shirlyn's TIVO today (they apparently lost the network connection). It got me tempted to consider the TIVO. Here's my notes.
I'm kind of tempted to dump my Oceanic box and going to TIVO
I wonder how much it costs?
I think you need a cable card in the TIVO to view HD channels.not on direct connect cable
plus a tuning adapter (for SD - switched digital channels)
here are some user experiences
maybe I just gotta try it
ok, here's the price of the cable card, only $2.50 per month (vs. $12.99 for a DVR)
Assuming you can live with the limitations (no on demand), you'll save about $10 a month (the guy in the user experiences link says $24 a month). Oh, I forgot the price of the cable box which is $6.20. OK, that brings it up to $16.
Wait, there's a monthly service fee for TIVO. It's $14.99, so there goes the savings. However you can pay a one-time fee of $500 for lifetime service (lifetime of the product?) So if it lasts three years, you'll come out ahead.
How much is a TIVO these days?
Well checking Best Buy,
The TIVO Roamio Pro DVR is $599.99.
record up to 6 shows at once with 3TB storage
The TIVO Roamio Plus DVR is $399.99
The TIVO Roamio Plus DVR is $399.99
record up to 6 shows at once with 1 TB storage
The TIVO Roamio DVR is $199.99
The TIVO Roamio DVR is $199.99
record up to 4 shows at once with 500GB storage
TIVO Premiere High-Definition Digital Video Recorder is $149.99
TIVO Premiere High-Definition Digital Video Recorder is $149.99
records up to 75 hours of high-definition programming
Plus I'll want a wireless adapter
TIVO wireless-N adapter is $70.99
TIVO wireless-G USB adapter is $43.99
Evidently Roamio is the current line of TIVO (formerly it was the Premiere) and has built-in wireless.
TIVO makes it sound easy to set up.
Here's a review of the roamio plus
Another review
***
Alternatively, I could buy a device like a Hauppage PVR 2 which can record HD from the cable box. In addition, I would need a computer.
Plus I'll want a wireless adapter
TIVO wireless-N adapter is $70.99
TIVO wireless-G USB adapter is $43.99
Evidently Roamio is the current line of TIVO (formerly it was the Premiere) and has built-in wireless.
TIVO makes it sound easy to set up.
Here's a review of the roamio plus
Another review
***
Alternatively, I could buy a device like a Hauppage PVR 2 which can record HD from the cable box. In addition, I would need a computer.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
The Great Atlantic Garbage Patch
Researchers are warning of a new blight at sea: a swirl of confetti-like plastic debris stretching over a remote expanse of the Atlantic Ocean.
The floating garbage — hard to spot from the surface and spun together by a vortex of currents — was documented by two groups of scientists who trawled the sea between scenic Bermuda and Portugal's mid-Atlantic Azores Islands.
The studies describe a soup of microparticles similar to the so-called Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a phenomenon discovered a decade ago between Hawaii and California which researchers say is likely to exist in other places around the globe.
"We found the great Atlantic garbage patch," said Anna Cummins, who collected plastic samples on a sailing voyage in February.
The debris is harmful for fish, sea mammals and, at the top of the food chain, potentially humans, even though much of the plastic has broken into such tiny pieces they are nearly invisible.
Since there is no realistic way of cleaning the oceans, advocates say the key is to keep more plastic out by raising awareness and, wherever possible, challenging a throwaway culture that uses nonbiodegradable materials for disposable products.
"Our job now is to let people know that plastic ocean pollution is a global problem—it unfortunately is not confined to a single patch," Cummins said.
The floating garbage — hard to spot from the surface and spun together by a vortex of currents — was documented by two groups of scientists who trawled the sea between scenic Bermuda and Portugal's mid-Atlantic Azores Islands.
The studies describe a soup of microparticles similar to the so-called Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a phenomenon discovered a decade ago between Hawaii and California which researchers say is likely to exist in other places around the globe.
"We found the great Atlantic garbage patch," said Anna Cummins, who collected plastic samples on a sailing voyage in February.
The debris is harmful for fish, sea mammals and, at the top of the food chain, potentially humans, even though much of the plastic has broken into such tiny pieces they are nearly invisible.
Since there is no realistic way of cleaning the oceans, advocates say the key is to keep more plastic out by raising awareness and, wherever possible, challenging a throwaway culture that uses nonbiodegradable materials for disposable products.
"Our job now is to let people know that plastic ocean pollution is a global problem—it unfortunately is not confined to a single patch," Cummins said.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
free Microsoft Office on the web
[12/4/10] I notice that Microsoft has integrated the online version of Office with live.com. Just log into your live.com account and you can create a new document. If you want to use an existing file, add it to a folder in your account, then open it. Pretty cool. (Though I still find using Office 97 on my computer faster and easier to use.)
***
Microsoft has created a chimera in its new Office 2010 software, part desktop software and part Web app.
This latest version of Office, which includes applications like Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint, is Microsoft’s long-awaited effort to modernize one of its most lucrative products and to thwart rivals like Google that are nipping at its heels with free Web software.
For the first time, Microsoft will provide a free online version of Office that lets people store their documents on the Web rather than on their personal computers.
It is now available for businesses. Microsoft has said that Office will range in price from a limited, free Web version supported by ads to a full-blown version that costs $500, both to be available to consumers in June. Most analysts say they think Microsoft will hold on to its near monopoly on productivity software. Richard Williams, the senior software analyst at Cross Research, said that most companies would continue to choose Office because it was familiar and safe. “This is not the cycle that will take away from Windows or Office,” he said. “Most of the people calling the shots and paying the bills are in their 40s, and grew up with Microsoft.”
Nonetheless, a host of businesses are chipping away at Microsoft either by offering free versions or by recommending to clients that they buy fewer copies of Office. “I think Office has run away from its users,” said David Girouard, the president of Google’s business software group. “Every company ought to have a few copies of it, but it has nothing to do with what most people need.”
Users of the new version of Office will be able to share and work on the same documents and presentations over the Internet rather than e-mailing files back and forth to each other. Microsoft has created a way for people to flip from the PC to online versions of Office to give users the best of both worlds.
If many of those functions sound familiar, it is because Google, Adobe and smaller companies like Zoho have been giving away Web-based apps that do much the same thing. But the rival products have hardly made a dent in the sales of Office — a product used by 500 million people.
[retweeted by supergeeks]
***
Microsoft has created a chimera in its new Office 2010 software, part desktop software and part Web app.
This latest version of Office, which includes applications like Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint, is Microsoft’s long-awaited effort to modernize one of its most lucrative products and to thwart rivals like Google that are nipping at its heels with free Web software.
For the first time, Microsoft will provide a free online version of Office that lets people store their documents on the Web rather than on their personal computers.
It is now available for businesses. Microsoft has said that Office will range in price from a limited, free Web version supported by ads to a full-blown version that costs $500, both to be available to consumers in June. Most analysts say they think Microsoft will hold on to its near monopoly on productivity software. Richard Williams, the senior software analyst at Cross Research, said that most companies would continue to choose Office because it was familiar and safe. “This is not the cycle that will take away from Windows or Office,” he said. “Most of the people calling the shots and paying the bills are in their 40s, and grew up with Microsoft.”
Nonetheless, a host of businesses are chipping away at Microsoft either by offering free versions or by recommending to clients that they buy fewer copies of Office. “I think Office has run away from its users,” said David Girouard, the president of Google’s business software group. “Every company ought to have a few copies of it, but it has nothing to do with what most people need.”
Users of the new version of Office will be able to share and work on the same documents and presentations over the Internet rather than e-mailing files back and forth to each other. Microsoft has created a way for people to flip from the PC to online versions of Office to give users the best of both worlds.
If many of those functions sound familiar, it is because Google, Adobe and smaller companies like Zoho have been giving away Web-based apps that do much the same thing. But the rival products have hardly made a dent in the sales of Office — a product used by 500 million people.
[retweeted by supergeeks]
Friday, May 07, 2010
MAGIX PC Check & Tuning Free
I'm trying out MAGIX PC Check to see if I can get my PC running better (it periodically pauses with hard drive activity - I think it's swapping memory to hard drive cache) as it got a couple of positive responses on frwr_news.
It took a little while to install. Then it took a little while to run and get results.
Finally it came up with a list of things it found, but doesn't do any changes until you tell it to. And gives you the option to set a recovery point to do a system recovery in case something goes wrong.
Anyway, I first tried deleting unnecessary files. To my dismay, it deleted everything in my recycle bin. Well, I guess that's one way to get rid of it. I decided not to do a system recovery.
Then I tried to fix the registry of which it found hundreds of problems. Did that. Didn't seem to matter much. But no disaster so far.
Then it said my swapfile was off. I think I adjusted it manually in the past. So I tried that. Upon reboot, it seemed to load up slower. But task manager showed more memory is free. And the system doesn't seem to slow down as much with long pauses for hard drive activity.
That's enough. I'll leave the other options for later. But so far, so good. Or at least so not bad.
It took a little while to install. Then it took a little while to run and get results.
Finally it came up with a list of things it found, but doesn't do any changes until you tell it to. And gives you the option to set a recovery point to do a system recovery in case something goes wrong.
Anyway, I first tried deleting unnecessary files. To my dismay, it deleted everything in my recycle bin. Well, I guess that's one way to get rid of it. I decided not to do a system recovery.
Then I tried to fix the registry of which it found hundreds of problems. Did that. Didn't seem to matter much. But no disaster so far.
Then it said my swapfile was off. I think I adjusted it manually in the past. So I tried that. Upon reboot, it seemed to load up slower. But task manager showed more memory is free. And the system doesn't seem to slow down as much with long pauses for hard drive activity.
That's enough. I'll leave the other options for later. But so far, so good. Or at least so not bad.
Saturday, May 01, 2010
avoiding the Blue Screen of Death
Are you tried of seeing the Blue Screen of Death? Well change the colors! Now you can tell Windows what colors you want when it crashes!
[via frwr_news]
[via frwr_news]
Sunday, April 25, 2010
3-D home video
I have yet to get Blu-Ray, but now I see 3-D coming out for the home (with this email blurb from Amazon). Actually I saw a demo unit at Best Buy and was kind of impressed.
So far the pickings are slim. It looks like SamSung is the only company to come out with 3D TVs or monitors so far. And also the only company to come out with a 3-D Blu-Ray player. And the only 3-D movie out so far that I see is Monster vs. Aliens that comes in the SamSung 3D Starter Kit.
I'd say it would be at least a couple of years before 3-D becomes mainstream. The first sign would be Avatar out on 3-D. But this story still ties it to Blu-Ray which is still being far outsold by DVD. OK, more than a couple of years.. I did happen to see the Avatar menu being played on a HD-TV today at Costco, and have to admit that even the menu looked kind of impressive.
[4/26/10] Blu-ray Discs have been around less than four years with the first titles being released in June 2006. There were seven movies released then: 50 First Dates, The Fifth Element, Hitch, House of Flying Daggers, Underworld: Evolution, xXx (all Sony), and MGM's The Terminator. And it was only two years ago, when all the major studios gave up on HD-DVD and went solely to Blu-ray.
[4/27/10] A review of Avatar. It's kind of fun (in a disturbing sort of way) reading these (insert adjective here) critics/reviewers making fun of the best-selling movie of all time. [Here's a clue, the guy has an OPPO BDP-83 player(!)]
[5/14/10] The 3-D Television Buying Guide (still not much content)
So far the pickings are slim. It looks like SamSung is the only company to come out with 3D TVs or monitors so far. And also the only company to come out with a 3-D Blu-Ray player. And the only 3-D movie out so far that I see is Monster vs. Aliens that comes in the SamSung 3D Starter Kit.
I'd say it would be at least a couple of years before 3-D becomes mainstream. The first sign would be Avatar out on 3-D. But this story still ties it to Blu-Ray which is still being far outsold by DVD. OK, more than a couple of years.. I did happen to see the Avatar menu being played on a HD-TV today at Costco, and have to admit that even the menu looked kind of impressive.
[4/26/10] Blu-ray Discs have been around less than four years with the first titles being released in June 2006. There were seven movies released then: 50 First Dates, The Fifth Element, Hitch, House of Flying Daggers, Underworld: Evolution, xXx (all Sony), and MGM's The Terminator. And it was only two years ago, when all the major studios gave up on HD-DVD and went solely to Blu-ray.
[4/27/10] A review of Avatar. It's kind of fun (in a disturbing sort of way) reading these (insert adjective here) critics/reviewers making fun of the best-selling movie of all time. [Here's a clue, the guy has an OPPO BDP-83 player(!)]
[5/14/10] The 3-D Television Buying Guide (still not much content)
Friday, April 23, 2010
global warming not in weathermen's forecast
The debate over global warming has created predictable adversaries, pitting environmentalists against industry and coal-state Democrats against coastal liberals.
But it has also created tensions between two groups that might be expected to agree on the issue: climate scientists and meteorologists, especially those who serve as television weather forecasters.
Climatologists, who study weather patterns over time, almost universally endorse the view that the earth is warming and that humans have contributed to climate change. There is less of a consensus among meteorologists, who predict short-term weather patterns.
A study released on Monday by researchers at George Mason University and the University of Texas at Austin found that only about half of the 571 television weathercasters surveyed believed that global warming was occurring and fewer than a third believed that climate change was “caused mostly by human activities.”
More than a quarter of the weathercasters in the survey agreed with the statement “Global warming is a scam,” the researchers found.
The split between climate scientists and meteorologists is gaining attention in political and academic circles because polls show that public skepticism about global warming is increasing, and weather forecasters — especially those on television — dominate communications channels to the public. A study released this year by researchers at Yale and George Mason found that 56 percent of Americans trusted weathercasters to tell them about global warming far more than they trusted other news media or public figures like former Vice President Al Gore or Sarah Palin, the former vice-presidential candidate.
The American Meteorological Society, which confers its coveted seal of approval on qualified weather forecasters, has affirmed the conclusion of the United Nations’ climate panel that warming is occurring and that human activities are very likely the cause. In a statement sent to Congress in 2009, the meteorological society warned that the buildup of heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would lead to “major negative consequences.”
Yet, climate scientists use very different scientific methods from the meteorologists. Heidi Cullen, a climatologist who straddled the two worlds when she worked at the Weather Channel, noted that meteorologists used models that were intensely sensitive to small changes in the atmosphere but had little accuracy more than seven days out. Dr. Cullen said meteorologists are often dubious about the work of climate scientists, who use complex models to estimate the effects of climate trends decades in the future.
But it has also created tensions between two groups that might be expected to agree on the issue: climate scientists and meteorologists, especially those who serve as television weather forecasters.
Climatologists, who study weather patterns over time, almost universally endorse the view that the earth is warming and that humans have contributed to climate change. There is less of a consensus among meteorologists, who predict short-term weather patterns.
A study released on Monday by researchers at George Mason University and the University of Texas at Austin found that only about half of the 571 television weathercasters surveyed believed that global warming was occurring and fewer than a third believed that climate change was “caused mostly by human activities.”
More than a quarter of the weathercasters in the survey agreed with the statement “Global warming is a scam,” the researchers found.
The split between climate scientists and meteorologists is gaining attention in political and academic circles because polls show that public skepticism about global warming is increasing, and weather forecasters — especially those on television — dominate communications channels to the public. A study released this year by researchers at Yale and George Mason found that 56 percent of Americans trusted weathercasters to tell them about global warming far more than they trusted other news media or public figures like former Vice President Al Gore or Sarah Palin, the former vice-presidential candidate.
The American Meteorological Society, which confers its coveted seal of approval on qualified weather forecasters, has affirmed the conclusion of the United Nations’ climate panel that warming is occurring and that human activities are very likely the cause. In a statement sent to Congress in 2009, the meteorological society warned that the buildup of heat-trapping gases like carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would lead to “major negative consequences.”
Yet, climate scientists use very different scientific methods from the meteorologists. Heidi Cullen, a climatologist who straddled the two worlds when she worked at the Weather Channel, noted that meteorologists used models that were intensely sensitive to small changes in the atmosphere but had little accuracy more than seven days out. Dr. Cullen said meteorologists are often dubious about the work of climate scientists, who use complex models to estimate the effects of climate trends decades in the future.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Sony Trinitron KV-27FV16
This was a nice TV that my neighbor up the street had on the road. It looked too good to throw away, so I picked it up. Pretty heavy.
Anyway, I lugged it home and plugged it in and it worked. The picture was pretty sharp, though the sound sounded kind of funny. But from the control panel in the front, I adjusted the sound. I think the bass was way too high. Anyway, after the adjustment, it sounded pretty good.
So that Sunday, I had Alvin help me carry it up the steps and set it up. After a little while though, I noticed the picture has a subtle blue haze that kind of tires my eyes after a while. But it's not too noticeable on certain pictures. Or to certain people for that matter. (Either that, or they don't want to complain.)
Anyway, I want to get rid of it (and get a new hidef flat screen) now but don't want to throw it away since it still works. Maybe freecycle. Or even get a few bucks on craigslist.
I wondered how heavy it was. I figured it's gotta be in three-digits. Found the manual on the internet. 108 pounds.
Stay tuned.
***
[4/26/10] All this time I was bothered by the blue tinge. Today I decided to adjust the picture again and I noticed that it was set on cool. I changed it to neutral. Hmm. Picture looks better to me. Actually the picture looks quite good now. Almost tempted to keep it now. We'll see how it looks and feels after a day or two.
Anyway, I lugged it home and plugged it in and it worked. The picture was pretty sharp, though the sound sounded kind of funny. But from the control panel in the front, I adjusted the sound. I think the bass was way too high. Anyway, after the adjustment, it sounded pretty good.
So that Sunday, I had Alvin help me carry it up the steps and set it up. After a little while though, I noticed the picture has a subtle blue haze that kind of tires my eyes after a while. But it's not too noticeable on certain pictures. Or to certain people for that matter. (Either that, or they don't want to complain.)
Anyway, I want to get rid of it (and get a new hidef flat screen) now but don't want to throw it away since it still works. Maybe freecycle. Or even get a few bucks on craigslist.
I wondered how heavy it was. I figured it's gotta be in three-digits. Found the manual on the internet. 108 pounds.
Stay tuned.
***
[4/26/10] All this time I was bothered by the blue tinge. Today I decided to adjust the picture again and I noticed that it was set on cool. I changed it to neutral. Hmm. Picture looks better to me. Actually the picture looks quite good now. Almost tempted to keep it now. We'll see how it looks and feels after a day or two.
Panasonic remote replacement / CCOH remotes
My remote for our Panasonic 27" TV hasn't been working for a while. I'm using a universal remote, but I miss being able to change the close caption on/off via remote (talk about lazy). So I was wondering if I a replacement was available.
Examining the back of the remote with a magnifying glass (my eyes are going bad OK?), the code is EUR7613Z10.
I see remotexperts is selling it on Ebay for $10.95 plus $3.25 shipping. So that's $14.20.
Amazon is selling it for $27.76 + $7.95 shipping.
Try Craigslist. No luck.
***
[12/31/11] After trying out Donna's giant remote at her house a month or so ago (and it worked on her Panasonic TV), I chanced buying the 8-in-1 Jumbo Universal Remote from Walgreen ysterday (WOW $5) and tried it out today.
I'm happy because it worked on the Panasonic and can now access the menu (and the Sony TV too! Plus the Apex DVD player!). The instructions are pretty tiny. They run 18 "pages" but are printed on one large sheet of paper with 9 pages on each side. I was a little confused at first because I went from the bottom of "page 13" to the top of page 16 (since page 16 was right underneath page 13) instead of going back to the middle of the paper for page 14.
Anyway, here's the instructions.
First locate the code (it's code 1819 for Panasonic TV, code 0414 for Sony TV, code 0023 for Apex TV, code 0252 for Scientific Atlanta cable box, code 1541 for Panasonic DVD player (which worked with my Panasonic DVD-Recorder), 0998 for Toshiba DVD-Recorder, 0324 for Emerson VCR [for some reason, close caption doesn't work with the Emerson], 0937 Quasar VCR, 0146 Apex DVD - some of the other codes work too but assign different functions to the buttons).
Press and hold the CODE SEARCH button until the LED lights up. Press and release the device button (TV or DVD or CABLE, etc.). The LED will blink and stay on. Enter the four-digit code. The LED will turn off. Then press the power button (the button on the top right) to see if it worked.
[1/4/14 update - not sure where I got the above instructions because when I looked at the instructions last night at CCOH, it said to press and hold the SLEEP button which flickered but didn't turn off. But now it works today, maybe because I took out the batteries overnight? Who knows? Anyway I tried it today and it looks like SLEEP works in addition to CODE SEARCH.
BTW the codes for the CCOH dining room (Sharp) TV is 0907.
For the Sony DVD/VCR it's 0540
For the lounge Samsung TV: 0112
For the Panasonic DVD/VCR it's 0345.
Or you can use the room 119 remote for the Samsung TV.
Or my Panasonic DVD-R remote for the Panasonic DVD/VCR
Testing further, the code 1241 works for my Sony Blu-Ray player. I even got to the setup menu by pressing the INPUT button. And 0618 seems to work best for my Panasonic Plasma (can use the up/down buttons when going to the TV menu).]
For the manual code search (didn't try it because all the codes worked so far). Press the CODE SEARCH button until the LED lights up. Press and release the device button. Press power repeatedly until the device turns off.
I wonder if the instructions are online?
There's a similar looking remote here, but the codes are different.
Whatever. I'm happy. $5 well spent.
[8/6/12] The giant remote control infested by ants :(
[4/1/16] Maybe this entry doesn't belong here, but it sort of does because it pertains to a remote at CCOH. Anyway, there's been a generic RCA remote in dining room the last week or two and it doesn't seem to control anything. Certainly not the TV. Nor the two DVD players near the TV. Plus it doesn't look like it was designed to work with a DVD player, just TV or SAT/CBL/DTC. (DTC stands for digital TV converter.)
So I couldn't resist. I opened up the cover to the battery compartment and it said to go to rcaaccessories.com. There's a place to enter the model number and it's RCRH02, (Currently $5.20 from Amazon.com.) There are links to the manual and to the code list.
Anyway, the instructions are to press the CODE SEARCH button until the light goes on. Press the component key you want to program. In this case, there's only two: TV or SAT/CBL/DTC. Press TV. Enter the four digit code. For the Sharp TV, it's 0818. The light turns off after entering the code. Press the POWER button to see if the TV turns off. Yep! OK it worked!
Let's try the Samsung TV in the lounge. The first code is 0812. OK, that worked.
The only thing with this remote is that there's no left and right arrow keys. So you can't navigate the menu. Actually, now looking at the menu, the volume up/down is supposed to go left and right. OK, never mind.
When in MENU mode, the red button blinks. Apparently to exit menu mode you have to press the TV key again. Or just wait without pressing any buttons.
Examining the back of the remote with a magnifying glass (my eyes are going bad OK?), the code is EUR7613Z10.
I see remotexperts is selling it on Ebay for $10.95 plus $3.25 shipping. So that's $14.20.
Amazon is selling it for $27.76 + $7.95 shipping.
Try Craigslist. No luck.
***
[12/31/11] After trying out Donna's giant remote at her house a month or so ago (and it worked on her Panasonic TV), I chanced buying the 8-in-1 Jumbo Universal Remote from Walgreen ysterday (WOW $5) and tried it out today.
I'm happy because it worked on the Panasonic and can now access the menu (and the Sony TV too! Plus the Apex DVD player!). The instructions are pretty tiny. They run 18 "pages" but are printed on one large sheet of paper with 9 pages on each side. I was a little confused at first because I went from the bottom of "page 13" to the top of page 16 (since page 16 was right underneath page 13) instead of going back to the middle of the paper for page 14.
Anyway, here's the instructions.
First locate the code (it's code 1819 for Panasonic TV, code 0414 for Sony TV, code 0023 for Apex TV, code 0252 for Scientific Atlanta cable box, code 1541 for Panasonic DVD player (which worked with my Panasonic DVD-Recorder), 0998 for Toshiba DVD-Recorder, 0324 for Emerson VCR [for some reason, close caption doesn't work with the Emerson], 0937 Quasar VCR, 0146 Apex DVD - some of the other codes work too but assign different functions to the buttons).
Press and hold the CODE SEARCH button until the LED lights up. Press and release the device button (TV or DVD or CABLE, etc.). The LED will blink and stay on. Enter the four-digit code. The LED will turn off. Then press the power button (the button on the top right) to see if it worked.
[1/4/14 update - not sure where I got the above instructions because when I looked at the instructions last night at CCOH, it said to press and hold the SLEEP button which flickered but didn't turn off. But now it works today, maybe because I took out the batteries overnight? Who knows? Anyway I tried it today and it looks like SLEEP works in addition to CODE SEARCH.
BTW the codes for the CCOH dining room (Sharp) TV is 0907.
For the Sony DVD/VCR it's 0540
For the lounge Samsung TV: 0112
For the Panasonic DVD/VCR it's 0345.
Or you can use the room 119 remote for the Samsung TV.
Or my Panasonic DVD-R remote for the Panasonic DVD/VCR
Testing further, the code 1241 works for my Sony Blu-Ray player. I even got to the setup menu by pressing the INPUT button. And 0618 seems to work best for my Panasonic Plasma (can use the up/down buttons when going to the TV menu).]
For the manual code search (didn't try it because all the codes worked so far). Press the CODE SEARCH button until the LED lights up. Press and release the device button. Press power repeatedly until the device turns off.
I wonder if the instructions are online?
There's a similar looking remote here, but the codes are different.
Whatever. I'm happy. $5 well spent.
[8/6/12] The giant remote control infested by ants :(
[4/1/16] Maybe this entry doesn't belong here, but it sort of does because it pertains to a remote at CCOH. Anyway, there's been a generic RCA remote in dining room the last week or two and it doesn't seem to control anything. Certainly not the TV. Nor the two DVD players near the TV. Plus it doesn't look like it was designed to work with a DVD player, just TV or SAT/CBL/DTC. (DTC stands for digital TV converter.)
So I couldn't resist. I opened up the cover to the battery compartment and it said to go to rcaaccessories.com. There's a place to enter the model number and it's RCRH02, (Currently $5.20 from Amazon.com.) There are links to the manual and to the code list.
Anyway, the instructions are to press the CODE SEARCH button until the light goes on. Press the component key you want to program. In this case, there's only two: TV or SAT/CBL/DTC. Press TV. Enter the four digit code. For the Sharp TV, it's 0818. The light turns off after entering the code. Press the POWER button to see if the TV turns off. Yep! OK it worked!
Let's try the Samsung TV in the lounge. The first code is 0812. OK, that worked.
The only thing with this remote is that there's no left and right arrow keys. So you can't navigate the menu. Actually, now looking at the menu, the volume up/down is supposed to go left and right. OK, never mind.
When in MENU mode, the red button blinks. Apparently to exit menu mode you have to press the TV key again. Or just wait without pressing any buttons.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Fox News on the San Diego Zoo on Global Warming
At the San Diego Zoo polar bears are now on thin ice, at least that's the word from the zoo as a new million dollar expansion to its polar bear experience opens this week. The zoo has spent considerable time and money to make the exhibit interactive, but some critics complain with this interaction comes politics and they argue the zoo should stay out of a policy debate.
As you make your way through this exhibit there's a carbon calculator, a walk that shows a shrinking ice cap and multiple displays showing the problems associated with climate change. For the consumer the displays are catchy, interactive and colorful. People here at the San Diego Zoo say the whole experience helps visitors better understand the arctic and the loss of habitat for polar bears as climate change continues. They tell me their exhibit features "the best science out there."
As you might imagine not everyone is happy with this display and claim the zoo is jumping into politics and a very heated (no pun intended) debate. Some scientists and a few supporters of the zoo contend that climate change is not happening as sold to the public and even if it is, man is not causing it. Some also argue that polar bears adapted before and can do so again and to assume that man can kill them off by CO2 emissions is an unfair and untrue claim.
When presented with this argument the Zoo stands strong. They maintain the Polar Bear Experience is all about the best science out there and whether you believe in climate change or not, what's wrong with cleaning and preserving the environment anyway. Officials here have heard some of these complaints, but they tell me the overwhelming response has been nothing but positive.
As you make your way through this exhibit there's a carbon calculator, a walk that shows a shrinking ice cap and multiple displays showing the problems associated with climate change. For the consumer the displays are catchy, interactive and colorful. People here at the San Diego Zoo say the whole experience helps visitors better understand the arctic and the loss of habitat for polar bears as climate change continues. They tell me their exhibit features "the best science out there."
As you might imagine not everyone is happy with this display and claim the zoo is jumping into politics and a very heated (no pun intended) debate. Some scientists and a few supporters of the zoo contend that climate change is not happening as sold to the public and even if it is, man is not causing it. Some also argue that polar bears adapted before and can do so again and to assume that man can kill them off by CO2 emissions is an unfair and untrue claim.
When presented with this argument the Zoo stands strong. They maintain the Polar Bear Experience is all about the best science out there and whether you believe in climate change or not, what's wrong with cleaning and preserving the environment anyway. Officials here have heard some of these complaints, but they tell me the overwhelming response has been nothing but positive.
Friday, April 09, 2010
scanning to pdf
I kept getting an error when scanning a document and trying to save to pdf.
The error message was:
Error!
An internal error occurred while processing the document.
Click OK to close the program, and then try one of the following:
- restart the program
- restart the PC and then try again
- reinstall the Photo & Image Software and try again
[I have an HP OfficeJet 5710xi All-in-One running on Windows XP.]
I decided to try again, running HP Solution Center and scanning to searchable pdf instead. And it worked!
I noticed that the software sets the dpi to 300 and can't make it smaller. So the file is comparatively big. Then I tried pdf again at 300 and it worked!
Hmm. Try 75 dpi again. Error.
100 dpi. Error.
150 dpi. Error.
Shut down firefox (to increase available memory) and try 200 dpi. It worked!
OK, was it a memory problem? Try 150 dpi again. Error. 200 dpi worked again.
So it works 200 dpi and higher and errors on 150 dpi or lower.
The file size for 200 dpi was 155 KB. For 300 dpi was 332 KB. For searchable dpi was 345 KB (scanning an old Fairholme Fund statement). So might as well use searchable if going 300 dpi. Otherwise 200 dpi.
It seems the files could be smaller though. The newer Fairholme files are 144 K (and are searchable). Heck, the Schwab files are as small as 13K! (and are searchable too).
[4/20/10] I posted my solution somewhere on the internet. I'll find it again one day. [A few minutes later... OK, here it is.]
In the meantime, here's another guy that had the same solution. Plus some others with other solutions.
[4/20/10] here's one way to get the files smaller. scan in grey-scale or black and white instead of color. Black and white is substantially smaller than color.
The error message was:
Error!
An internal error occurred while processing the document.
Click OK to close the program, and then try one of the following:
- restart the program
- restart the PC and then try again
- reinstall the Photo & Image Software and try again
[I have an HP OfficeJet 5710xi All-in-One running on Windows XP.]
I decided to try again, running HP Solution Center and scanning to searchable pdf instead. And it worked!
I noticed that the software sets the dpi to 300 and can't make it smaller. So the file is comparatively big. Then I tried pdf again at 300 and it worked!
Hmm. Try 75 dpi again. Error.
100 dpi. Error.
150 dpi. Error.
Shut down firefox (to increase available memory) and try 200 dpi. It worked!
OK, was it a memory problem? Try 150 dpi again. Error. 200 dpi worked again.
So it works 200 dpi and higher and errors on 150 dpi or lower.
The file size for 200 dpi was 155 KB. For 300 dpi was 332 KB. For searchable dpi was 345 KB (scanning an old Fairholme Fund statement). So might as well use searchable if going 300 dpi. Otherwise 200 dpi.
It seems the files could be smaller though. The newer Fairholme files are 144 K (and are searchable). Heck, the Schwab files are as small as 13K! (and are searchable too).
[4/20/10] I posted my solution somewhere on the internet. I'll find it again one day. [A few minutes later... OK, here it is.]
In the meantime, here's another guy that had the same solution. Plus some others with other solutions.
[4/20/10] here's one way to get the files smaller. scan in grey-scale or black and white instead of color. Black and white is substantially smaller than color.
Saturday, April 03, 2010
Ed Roberts
Dr. Henry Edward Roberts, the developer of an early personal computer that inspired Bill Gates to found Microsoft, died Thursday in Georgia after battling pneumonia, said his son, David. He was 68.
The man better known as Ed Roberts developed and marketed the MITS Altair 8800 in the 1970s. The build-it-yourself kit was operated by switches and had no display screen, but it inspired Gates and childhood friend Paul Allen to found Microsoft in 1975 after they saw an article about it in Popular Mechanics.
David Roberts said Gates, who had remained close to his father over the years, visited Friday after hearing he was ill.
[Note: Ed Roberts is featured in Chapter 9 of the book Hackers (chapters 1 and 2 available on Project Gutenberg) and Chapter 2 of the book Fire In The Valley (two of my favorite books).]
The man better known as Ed Roberts developed and marketed the MITS Altair 8800 in the 1970s. The build-it-yourself kit was operated by switches and had no display screen, but it inspired Gates and childhood friend Paul Allen to found Microsoft in 1975 after they saw an article about it in Popular Mechanics.
David Roberts said Gates, who had remained close to his father over the years, visited Friday after hearing he was ill.
[Note: Ed Roberts is featured in Chapter 9 of the book Hackers (chapters 1 and 2 available on Project Gutenberg) and Chapter 2 of the book Fire In The Valley (two of my favorite books).]
Friday, March 26, 2010
my old Apex DVD player
I'm using Donna's old DVD Apex AD-1500 player in my room, which works except her remote broke. But I'm using Sue's remote which works for her old Apex [AD-1200 I think] player which broke. (Or was it the other way around? Doesn't matter too much I guess. Come to think of it, I bought both of those players as gifts to them. Actually I first gave Sue my old Fisher player, but I didn't like the picture of the Apex as well as the Fisher, so I swapped it.)
Anyway. The DVD player no longer ejects. The belt broke. I know it broke because I could see the broken belt when the drawer opened. I was going to give it away or trash it. But I think I'll keep it because I figured out how to work it. (In the meantime, I opened it up and tied the belt to one of the group of wires, so the belt doesn't muck anything up.)
To eject, press the eject button so that the Open message appears on the LCD panel (or is it LED? I think it's LED because it's emitting the light). Then tip the player down, so that gravity opens the drawer. [Hey, even easier. Turn off the power, then tip the player.]
To play, turn off the power. Open the drawer. Put the DVD in. Push the drawer all the way in. Then turn on the power.
Somehow this seems in keeping that I'm watching the picture on a Commodore 1702 monitor 8)
Anyway. The DVD player no longer ejects. The belt broke. I know it broke because I could see the broken belt when the drawer opened. I was going to give it away or trash it. But I think I'll keep it because I figured out how to work it. (In the meantime, I opened it up and tied the belt to one of the group of wires, so the belt doesn't muck anything up.)
To eject, press the eject button so that the Open message appears on the LCD panel (or is it LED? I think it's LED because it's emitting the light). Then tip the player down, so that gravity opens the drawer. [Hey, even easier. Turn off the power, then tip the player.]
To play, turn off the power. Open the drawer. Put the DVD in. Push the drawer all the way in. Then turn on the power.
Somehow this seems in keeping that I'm watching the picture on a Commodore 1702 monitor 8)
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Khan Academy
Imagine if you could go online and find a math, science or economics tutor that could help you get your daughter through a high school trig equation or your son to master a college finance course. Envisage also that this would be presented in a clear, concise and even entertaining manner. Naturally it would be free of charge.
Well, folks, look no more. Welcome to the Khan Academy.
Working out of his home in Silicon Valley, Salman Khan, a former hedge fund analyst, could be transforming the way people all over the world will learn math and other subjects.
Khan, an MIT math and science grad with an MBA from Harvard, was doing very well at his employer's hedge fund but got hooked on education after he helped one of his cousins, a seventh-grader who was having trouble with math.
He tutored her online with a blackboard on the screen. That led him to eventually place math lessons on YouTube. It didn't take long before he was a worldwide phenomenon. (See www.youtube.com/watch?v=po3DAsr6mDE)
***
[8/26/10] Bill Gates' favorite teacher
*** [5/2/14]
Here's one way to keep you mind sharp (for free). Learn math at the Khan Academy.
Well, folks, look no more. Welcome to the Khan Academy.
Working out of his home in Silicon Valley, Salman Khan, a former hedge fund analyst, could be transforming the way people all over the world will learn math and other subjects.
Khan, an MIT math and science grad with an MBA from Harvard, was doing very well at his employer's hedge fund but got hooked on education after he helped one of his cousins, a seventh-grader who was having trouble with math.
He tutored her online with a blackboard on the screen. That led him to eventually place math lessons on YouTube. It didn't take long before he was a worldwide phenomenon. (See www.youtube.com/watch?v=po3DAsr6mDE)
***
[8/26/10] Bill Gates' favorite teacher
*** [5/2/14]
Here's one way to keep you mind sharp (for free). Learn math at the Khan Academy.
Friday, February 05, 2010
iPad
With his customary flourish, Steve Jobs unveiled Apple’s widely anticipated touch-screen tablet computer, dubbed the iPad, on Wednesday.
Arriving with few new content deals despite months of heavy hype, the half-inch thick gadget, which looks like a giant iPhone, met with mixed reviews.
But Apple’s co-founder and chief executive called it a “revolutionary product” that would fill the gap between smartphones and laptop computers.
* * *
Burl Burlingame tries out the iPad.
Arriving with few new content deals despite months of heavy hype, the half-inch thick gadget, which looks like a giant iPhone, met with mixed reviews.
But Apple’s co-founder and chief executive called it a “revolutionary product” that would fill the gap between smartphones and laptop computers.
* * *
Burl Burlingame tries out the iPad.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Shortcut to Better Google Results
If you’ve ever Googled the best way to Google on Google and come up short, follow these four tips from Randolph Hock, author of The Extreme Searcher’s Internet Handbook ($25, barnesandnoble.com). Then, learn seven surprising ways to utilize the Google search field.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
antivirus live
Mel had her laptop infected with antivirus live. Said it locked her out of the programs that she wanted to use to get rid of it.
Did a ctrl-alt-delete after booting and was able to get to the task manager (I suppose before it began to lock it out). From this site, I learned the process running has the name [randomword]sysguard.exe. So I terminated it and the program was killed.
Then I downloaded and ran malwarebytes on quickscan. Then later fullscan (which found a couple more culprits).
Also updated and ran ad-aware and spybot for the heck of it, though I don't think they detected it.
Did a ctrl-alt-delete after booting and was able to get to the task manager (I suppose before it began to lock it out). From this site, I learned the process running has the name [randomword]sysguard.exe. So I terminated it and the program was killed.
Then I downloaded and ran malwarebytes on quickscan. Then later fullscan (which found a couple more culprits).
Also updated and ran ad-aware and spybot for the heck of it, though I don't think they detected it.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
mass extinction #6
If the course of human history is any model, then the wheels are already turning on Earth's sixth mass extinction, thanks to habitat destruction, pollution and now global warming, a scientific analysis of millions of years of data revealed Friday.
The study of the fossil and archaeological record over the past 30 million years by UC Berkeley and Penn State University researchers shows that between 15 and 42 percent of the mammals in North America disappeared after humans arrived.
That means North American mammals are well on the way - perhaps as much as half way - to a level of extinction comparable to other epic die-offs, like the one that wiped out the dinosaurs.
The analysis by Barnosky, research associate Marc Carrasco and Penn State's Russell Graham was published this week in the scientific journal PLoS ONE. It compares the extinctions of mammals in North America after humans arrived 13,000 years ago to the five mass extinctions on Earth over the past 450 million years.
Although humans clearly did not have anything to do with the previous extinctions, many scientists are afraid that global warming and other environmental problems caused by the ever-increasing human population could have similarly catastrophic consequences.
"Here we are again, astronomically increasing the number of humans on the face of the globe, plus unusual climate change," Barnosky said. "That seems to be a recipe for extinction that we saw in the past, and we are seeing again."
The study of the fossil and archaeological record over the past 30 million years by UC Berkeley and Penn State University researchers shows that between 15 and 42 percent of the mammals in North America disappeared after humans arrived.
That means North American mammals are well on the way - perhaps as much as half way - to a level of extinction comparable to other epic die-offs, like the one that wiped out the dinosaurs.
The analysis by Barnosky, research associate Marc Carrasco and Penn State's Russell Graham was published this week in the scientific journal PLoS ONE. It compares the extinctions of mammals in North America after humans arrived 13,000 years ago to the five mass extinctions on Earth over the past 450 million years.
Although humans clearly did not have anything to do with the previous extinctions, many scientists are afraid that global warming and other environmental problems caused by the ever-increasing human population could have similarly catastrophic consequences.
"Here we are again, astronomically increasing the number of humans on the face of the globe, plus unusual climate change," Barnosky said. "That seems to be a recipe for extinction that we saw in the past, and we are seeing again."
Friday, January 15, 2010
resetting cable box
The DVR was acting screwy. When I went to record to VCR mode, some other screen came up.
How to reset? Looking it up, it's info,vol+,vol- all at the same time.
How to reset? Looking it up, it's info,vol+,vol- all at the same time.
Hawaiian Hope
The sight of a homeless woman sleeping on a park bench at 4 a.m. next to the Waikiki police station was an epiphany for Curtis Kropar.
"I was instantly infuriated to think that this was the best option she's got," he said of the experience a few years ago. "I seriously could not tell the difference between her and my mother in Pennsylvania. She had the same build and same poufy hairstyle."
The woman's plight so disturbed Kropar, a highly paid computer programmer at the time, that he grew determined to help people like her improve their circumstances. He quit his job and founded Hawaiian Hope, a nonprofit technology-based company in Kalihi that views computers as a key to success.
"People that are struggling to get food to eat are not going to spend $300 to $1,000 on a computer," he said. "It's phenomenal what we've done in the last year. Dozens and dozens of computers were given away for free to people who have never owned a computer before."
On the receiving end have been charitable agencies and shelters.
"Hawaiian Hope is bringing technology to the people ... bringing hope into Hawaii," said Kropar, noting that computers make functioning easier in today's society.
In a job search they are increasingly necessary: More than a third of the 100 private and government employers his volunteers surveyed this year take job applications online only.
"I was instantly infuriated to think that this was the best option she's got," he said of the experience a few years ago. "I seriously could not tell the difference between her and my mother in Pennsylvania. She had the same build and same poufy hairstyle."
The woman's plight so disturbed Kropar, a highly paid computer programmer at the time, that he grew determined to help people like her improve their circumstances. He quit his job and founded Hawaiian Hope, a nonprofit technology-based company in Kalihi that views computers as a key to success.
"People that are struggling to get food to eat are not going to spend $300 to $1,000 on a computer," he said. "It's phenomenal what we've done in the last year. Dozens and dozens of computers were given away for free to people who have never owned a computer before."
On the receiving end have been charitable agencies and shelters.
"Hawaiian Hope is bringing technology to the people ... bringing hope into Hawaii," said Kropar, noting that computers make functioning easier in today's society.
In a job search they are increasingly necessary: More than a third of the 100 private and government employers his volunteers surveyed this year take job applications online only.
Friday, January 01, 2010
batteries
Took apart (unscrewed anyway) my Intel roll-up calculator that is no longer working. I see there's a little button battery in there. Since the calculator is over 10 years old, I'd say the battery is dead. It's an AG10 battery which I never heard of before.
Googling, I see it's available from bestofferbuy.com with free shipping. Don't know how they would make money since a 10-pack is $1.50.
Amazingly, I just tested the battery with my Radio Shack tester and it tests as good! So maybe the calculator is bad after all.
So maybe I should just get a new calculator. Or not. I think I'd like a credit card calculator better. Or just use my cell phone..
Googling, I see it's available from bestofferbuy.com with free shipping. Don't know how they would make money since a 10-pack is $1.50.
Amazingly, I just tested the battery with my Radio Shack tester and it tests as good! So maybe the calculator is bad after all.
So maybe I should just get a new calculator. Or not. I think I'd like a credit card calculator better. Or just use my cell phone..
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
my new wireless router
I didn't own a wireless router because I don't own a laptop/notebook (a modern laptop anyway). But since I still have my cousin's Toshiba Satellite laptop which hasn't been picked up for like a month and I wanted to test the wireless connection, I decided maybe to get a router for future testing of laptops. And one day, I guess I'll get one of my own.
Anyway, I went to Best Buy. The cheapest one they had was a Belkin for like $40. Then I went to Wal-Mart and saw the same thing for $31. Wal-Mart it is.
I set it up and the laptop connected readily enough with no security.
Then I set up WPA security. Unsuccessful connection. Evidently the laptop doesn't support WPA? Because I didn't see that option on the network card properties.
Switch to WEP. Type in the key. Still couldn't connect.
Go back to Setup software and save configuration to flash drive (for some reason it didn't work on my old 512MB flash drive, so I used my 2GB one). Plug flash drive into Toshiba. Run Wizard. Hey it connects! Maybe I had typed in the key wrong?
Shut down. Reboot. Now it cannot see anything (no networks anywhere).
Beats me. Go outside and dig some weeds.
Come back. Hey it's working now. (Don't ask me why.)
I see on the net that the Toshiba Wireless LAN Mini PCI Card does support WPA with a newer driver.
Installed the drivers. It updated from 7.62.0.390 to 7.82.0.550.
Change encryption to WPA2. Run setup and copy setting to flash drive.
Delete old settings on computer. Run Wizard from flash drive.
Hey it's now working on WPA!
network authentication WPA-PSK
data encryption TKIP
Move computer to patio (so it's not right next to router).
Still working OK. Though the connect bars is one less than maximum (though it was max when I first moved it.)
So now I finally have a working wireless router connected to my DSL modem. (I guess I'll be using it instead of my 10 Mbps hub to connect my desktop.)
***
[12/30/09] One thing I notice is that I lose connection when I run the Microwave. The Toshiba then automatically connected to the Kokua Wireless. Well, it was $31 after all..
Anyway, I went to Best Buy. The cheapest one they had was a Belkin for like $40. Then I went to Wal-Mart and saw the same thing for $31. Wal-Mart it is.
I set it up and the laptop connected readily enough with no security.
Then I set up WPA security. Unsuccessful connection. Evidently the laptop doesn't support WPA? Because I didn't see that option on the network card properties.
Switch to WEP. Type in the key. Still couldn't connect.
Go back to Setup software and save configuration to flash drive (for some reason it didn't work on my old 512MB flash drive, so I used my 2GB one). Plug flash drive into Toshiba. Run Wizard. Hey it connects! Maybe I had typed in the key wrong?
Shut down. Reboot. Now it cannot see anything (no networks anywhere).
Beats me. Go outside and dig some weeds.
Come back. Hey it's working now. (Don't ask me why.)
I see on the net that the Toshiba Wireless LAN Mini PCI Card does support WPA with a newer driver.
Installed the drivers. It updated from 7.62.0.390 to 7.82.0.550.
Change encryption to WPA2. Run setup and copy setting to flash drive.
Delete old settings on computer. Run Wizard from flash drive.
Hey it's now working on WPA!
network authentication WPA-PSK
data encryption TKIP
Move computer to patio (so it's not right next to router).
Still working OK. Though the connect bars is one less than maximum (though it was max when I first moved it.)
So now I finally have a working wireless router connected to my DSL modem. (I guess I'll be using it instead of my 10 Mbps hub to connect my desktop.)
***
[12/30/09] One thing I notice is that I lose connection when I run the Microwave. The Toshiba then automatically connected to the Kokua Wireless. Well, it was $31 after all..
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
warmest decade on record
The decade of 2000 to 2009 appears to be the warmest one in the modern record, the World Meteorological Organization reported in a new analysis on Tuesday.
The announcement is likely to be viewed as a rejoinder to a renewed challenge from skeptics to the scientific evidence for global warming, as international negotiators here seek to devise a global response to climate change.
The period from 2000 through 2009 has been “warmer than the 1990s, which were warmer than the 1980s, and so on,” Michel Jarraud, the secretary general of the international weather agency, said at a news conference here.
The unauthorized release last month of e-mail messages between climate scientists in Britain and the United States has provided new ammunition to global warming skeptics. Some of the messages seemed to suggest that some data be withheld from the public. Mr. Jarraud said the release of the climate analysis was moved up from year’s end to coincide with the international conference on climate change.
The data also indicates that 2009 was also the fifth warmest year on record, he said, although he noted that the figures for the year were incomplete.
The international assessment on temperatures from 2000 to 2009 largely meshes with an interim analysis by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States, which independently estimates global and regional temperature and other weather trends.
The announcement is likely to be viewed as a rejoinder to a renewed challenge from skeptics to the scientific evidence for global warming, as international negotiators here seek to devise a global response to climate change.
The period from 2000 through 2009 has been “warmer than the 1990s, which were warmer than the 1980s, and so on,” Michel Jarraud, the secretary general of the international weather agency, said at a news conference here.
The unauthorized release last month of e-mail messages between climate scientists in Britain and the United States has provided new ammunition to global warming skeptics. Some of the messages seemed to suggest that some data be withheld from the public. Mr. Jarraud said the release of the climate analysis was moved up from year’s end to coincide with the international conference on climate change.
The data also indicates that 2009 was also the fifth warmest year on record, he said, although he noted that the figures for the year were incomplete.
The international assessment on temperatures from 2000 to 2009 largely meshes with an interim analysis by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States, which independently estimates global and regional temperature and other weather trends.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Pradaxa
Dec. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH’s blood- thinning pill Pradaxa may provide a more convenient alternative to the standard therapy for potentially deadly clots, researchers said after a study comparing the two medicines.
Pradaxa prevented clots in the legs and lungs as effectively as the generic drug warfarin with no increased risk of major bleeding, a complication of anti-clot treatments, according to a study published online today by the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Society of Hematology conference in New Orleans. Boehringer’s drug posed a lower risk than warfarin of bleeding in general.
Newer medicines like Pradaxa and Xarelto from Bayer AG and Johnson & Johnson don’t require the regular checks that warfarin does to ensure patients are getting the right dose. The need for regular monitoring has left doctors wary of prescribing the older treatment for more than six months to a year.
The Boehringer pill “is a far more convenient drug,” since levels in the body don’t react with foods and other medicines the way warfarin does, researchers led by Sam Schulman, a professor in the department of medicine at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, wrote in the study.
Pradaxa reduced the risk of bleeding by 29 percent compared with warfarin, the study showed. Twenty of the 1,274 patients who took Pradaxa experienced major bleeding, compared with 24 of the 1,265 patients who took warfarin.
Pradaxa prevented clots in the legs and lungs as effectively as the generic drug warfarin with no increased risk of major bleeding, a complication of anti-clot treatments, according to a study published online today by the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Society of Hematology conference in New Orleans. Boehringer’s drug posed a lower risk than warfarin of bleeding in general.
Newer medicines like Pradaxa and Xarelto from Bayer AG and Johnson & Johnson don’t require the regular checks that warfarin does to ensure patients are getting the right dose. The need for regular monitoring has left doctors wary of prescribing the older treatment for more than six months to a year.
The Boehringer pill “is a far more convenient drug,” since levels in the body don’t react with foods and other medicines the way warfarin does, researchers led by Sam Schulman, a professor in the department of medicine at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, wrote in the study.
Pradaxa reduced the risk of bleeding by 29 percent compared with warfarin, the study showed. Twenty of the 1,274 patients who took Pradaxa experienced major bleeding, compared with 24 of the 1,265 patients who took warfarin.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
cutting global warming would make people healthier
Cutting global warming pollution would not only make the planet healthier, it would make people healthier too, newly released studies say.
Slashing carbon dioxide emissions could save millions of lives, mostly by reducing preventable deaths from heart and lung diseases, the studies show. They were published in a special issue of The Lancet British medical journal, released Wednesday.
The calculations of lives saved were based on computer models that looked at pollution-caused illnesses in certain cities. The figures are also based on the world making dramatic changes in daily life that may at first seem too hard and costly to do, researchers conceded.
Cutting carbon dioxide emissions would also reduce other types of air pollution, especially tiny particles that lodge in the lungs and cause direct health damage, doctors said. Other benefits could come from encouraging more exercise and less meat consumption, to improve heart health, researchers said.
"Reducing greenhouse gases not only helps save the planet in the long term, but it's going to improve our health virtually immediately," said Christopher Portier, associate director of the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. That agency helped fund the studies along with the Wellcome Trust and several other international public health groups.
"It's not 50 years from now, it's now," Portier said.
Instead of looking at the health ills causes by future global warming, as past studies have done, this research looks at the immediate benefits of doing something about the problem.
And for places like the United States, those advantages of reduced heart and lung diseases are bigger than the specific future health damage from worsening warming, Portier said.
Some of the benefits would only come from dramatic — and what could be considered unlikely — changes in everyday life, such as more bicycling and walking and reduced meat consumption. Other proposals studied are more concrete and achievable, such as eliminating cook stoves that burn dung, charcoal, wood and other polluting fuels in India and the rest of the developing world. All are part of a number of proposals examined by researchers that are aimed at cutting global greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from the burning of fossil fuels, by 50 percent by 2050.
"Here are ways you can attack major health problems at the same time as dealing with climate change," said lead author Dr. Paul Wilkinson, an environmental epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Slashing carbon dioxide emissions could save millions of lives, mostly by reducing preventable deaths from heart and lung diseases, the studies show. They were published in a special issue of The Lancet British medical journal, released Wednesday.
The calculations of lives saved were based on computer models that looked at pollution-caused illnesses in certain cities. The figures are also based on the world making dramatic changes in daily life that may at first seem too hard and costly to do, researchers conceded.
Cutting carbon dioxide emissions would also reduce other types of air pollution, especially tiny particles that lodge in the lungs and cause direct health damage, doctors said. Other benefits could come from encouraging more exercise and less meat consumption, to improve heart health, researchers said.
"Reducing greenhouse gases not only helps save the planet in the long term, but it's going to improve our health virtually immediately," said Christopher Portier, associate director of the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. That agency helped fund the studies along with the Wellcome Trust and several other international public health groups.
"It's not 50 years from now, it's now," Portier said.
Instead of looking at the health ills causes by future global warming, as past studies have done, this research looks at the immediate benefits of doing something about the problem.
And for places like the United States, those advantages of reduced heart and lung diseases are bigger than the specific future health damage from worsening warming, Portier said.
Some of the benefits would only come from dramatic — and what could be considered unlikely — changes in everyday life, such as more bicycling and walking and reduced meat consumption. Other proposals studied are more concrete and achievable, such as eliminating cook stoves that burn dung, charcoal, wood and other polluting fuels in India and the rest of the developing world. All are part of a number of proposals examined by researchers that are aimed at cutting global greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from the burning of fossil fuels, by 50 percent by 2050.
"Here are ways you can attack major health problems at the same time as dealing with climate change," said lead author Dr. Paul Wilkinson, an environmental epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
current co2 levels not seen in a million years
The readings at this 2-mile-high station show a troubling upward curve as the world counts down to crucial climate talks: Global-warming gases are building in the atmosphere at record levels from emissions that match scientists' worst-case scenarios.
Carbon dioxide concentrations this fall are hovering at around 385 parts per million, on their way to a near-certain record high above 390 in the first half of next year, at the annual peak.
"For the past million years we've never seen 390," said physicist John Barnes, the observatory director. "You have to wonder what that's going to do."
One leading atmospheric scientist, Stephen Schneider, sees "coin-flip odds for serious outcomes for our planet."
Carbon dioxide concentrations this fall are hovering at around 385 parts per million, on their way to a near-certain record high above 390 in the first half of next year, at the annual peak.
"For the past million years we've never seen 390," said physicist John Barnes, the observatory director. "You have to wonder what that's going to do."
One leading atmospheric scientist, Stephen Schneider, sees "coin-flip odds for serious outcomes for our planet."
Monday, November 23, 2009
Al Gore rethinking energy
As a nation, we face three interrelated crises that collectively threaten to destabilize our way of life: the climate crisis, the continuing economic crisis and the security crisis, all stemming from our absurd overdependence on foreign oil, the largest reserves of which are controlled by sovereign states in the Persian Gulf.
Fortunately, there is a growing realization that the solutions to the climate crisis are also the most important solutions for the other two crises. We can simultaneously protect our climate and establish stability for our economy and our national security.
-- Costco Connection, November 2009
***
Perhaps not too surprisingly the December issue prints some letters to the editor that are not favorable to Gore.
Here's something interesting (i.e. dirt) on Dr. Fred Singer who is featured there.
In 1994 Singer was the Principal Reviewer of a report authored by Kent Jeffreys titled Science, economics, and environmental policy: a critical examination which was published by the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution (AdTI), a right wing[13] think tank of which he was a Senior Fellow.[14] The report attacked the United States Environmental Protection Agency for their 1993 study about the cancer risks of passive smoking and called it "junk science". Singer also appeared on a tobacco industry list of people who could write op-ed pieces defending the industry’s views, according to a peer-reviewed commentary by Derek Yacht and Stella Aguinaga Bialous.[15] Writing for The Guardian, George Monbiot stated that in 1993 APCO, a public relations firm, sent a memo to Philip Morris vice-president Ellen Merlo stating: "As you know, we have been working with Singer and Dr. Dwight Lee, who have authored articles on junk science and indoor air quality (IAQ) respectively ..."[16] Monbiot wrote that he did not have direct evidence that Singer had been paid by Philip Morris.
So I wonder how much of a consensus is there on global warming? Or is it a few nutballs that disagree? (not to say that a few nutballs can't be right)
From wikipedia:
National and international science academies and scientific societies have assessed the current scientific opinion, in particular on recent global warming. These assessments have largely followed or endorsed the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) position of January 2001 that states:
An increasing body of observations gives a collective picture of a warming world and other changes in the climate system... There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities.[1]
Since 2007, no scientific body of national or international standing has maintained a dissenting opinion. A small minority of organisations hold non-committal positions.
Since 2001, 32 national science academies have come together to issue joint declarations confirming anthropogenic global warming, and urging the nations of the world to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The signatories of these statements have been the national science academies of Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, the Caribbean, China, France, Ghana, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, India, Japan, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, New Zealand, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Sweden, Tanzania, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
A poll performed by Peter Doran and Maggie Kendall Zimmerman at Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago received replies from 3,146 of the 10,257 polled Earth scientists. Results were analyzed globally and by specialization. 76 out of 79 climatologists who "listed climate science as their area of expertise and who also have published more than 50% of their recent peer-reviewed papers on the subject of climate change" believe that mean global temperatures have risen compared to pre-1800s levels, and 75 out of 77 believe that human activity is a significant factor in changing mean global temperatures. Among all respondents, 90% agreed that temperatures have risen compared to pre-1800 levels, and 82% agreed that humans significantly influence the global temperature. Economic geologists and meteorologists were among the biggest doubters, with only 47 percent and 64 percent, respectively, believing in significant human involvement.
***
Then again, some say wikipedia is biased. Actually I didn't really know when I wrote the previous sentence, but I had a hunch that almost everything is attacked by somebody. Kind of reminds me of the right-wing smear on snopes.
***
[7/28/10] I wonder... Why don't most Republicans believe in global warming?
Fortunately, there is a growing realization that the solutions to the climate crisis are also the most important solutions for the other two crises. We can simultaneously protect our climate and establish stability for our economy and our national security.
-- Costco Connection, November 2009
***
Perhaps not too surprisingly the December issue prints some letters to the editor that are not favorable to Gore.
Here's something interesting (i.e. dirt) on Dr. Fred Singer who is featured there.
In 1994 Singer was the Principal Reviewer of a report authored by Kent Jeffreys titled Science, economics, and environmental policy: a critical examination which was published by the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution (AdTI), a right wing[13] think tank of which he was a Senior Fellow.[14] The report attacked the United States Environmental Protection Agency for their 1993 study about the cancer risks of passive smoking and called it "junk science". Singer also appeared on a tobacco industry list of people who could write op-ed pieces defending the industry’s views, according to a peer-reviewed commentary by Derek Yacht and Stella Aguinaga Bialous.[15] Writing for The Guardian, George Monbiot stated that in 1993 APCO, a public relations firm, sent a memo to Philip Morris vice-president Ellen Merlo stating: "As you know, we have been working with Singer and Dr. Dwight Lee, who have authored articles on junk science and indoor air quality (IAQ) respectively ..."[16] Monbiot wrote that he did not have direct evidence that Singer had been paid by Philip Morris.
So I wonder how much of a consensus is there on global warming? Or is it a few nutballs that disagree? (not to say that a few nutballs can't be right)
From wikipedia:
National and international science academies and scientific societies have assessed the current scientific opinion, in particular on recent global warming. These assessments have largely followed or endorsed the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) position of January 2001 that states:
An increasing body of observations gives a collective picture of a warming world and other changes in the climate system... There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities.[1]
Since 2007, no scientific body of national or international standing has maintained a dissenting opinion. A small minority of organisations hold non-committal positions.
Since 2001, 32 national science academies have come together to issue joint declarations confirming anthropogenic global warming, and urging the nations of the world to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The signatories of these statements have been the national science academies of Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, the Caribbean, China, France, Ghana, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, India, Japan, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, New Zealand, Russia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Sweden, Tanzania, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
A poll performed by Peter Doran and Maggie Kendall Zimmerman at Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago received replies from 3,146 of the 10,257 polled Earth scientists. Results were analyzed globally and by specialization. 76 out of 79 climatologists who "listed climate science as their area of expertise and who also have published more than 50% of their recent peer-reviewed papers on the subject of climate change" believe that mean global temperatures have risen compared to pre-1800s levels, and 75 out of 77 believe that human activity is a significant factor in changing mean global temperatures. Among all respondents, 90% agreed that temperatures have risen compared to pre-1800 levels, and 82% agreed that humans significantly influence the global temperature. Economic geologists and meteorologists were among the biggest doubters, with only 47 percent and 64 percent, respectively, believing in significant human involvement.
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Then again, some say wikipedia is biased. Actually I didn't really know when I wrote the previous sentence, but I had a hunch that almost everything is attacked by somebody. Kind of reminds me of the right-wing smear on snopes.
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[7/28/10] I wonder... Why don't most Republicans believe in global warming?
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