Have you ever tried a Wii?

There’s actually a good chance that there is, there are more than 50 million Wii’s around the world. And last year… I was one of the owners…
at this time you may or may not know that I own an Xbox 360, and I love it a lot, it’s just games that fit me. But before I got into Halo, Call of duty, Gears of War and so on, I was a Nintendo fan boy… literally, I had played every Legend of Zelda game ever published by Nintendo, (including a lot of mods). But it was not only Zelda… Mario, Metroid, all of these were just my kind of games… and trust me, I still love all of them. But I decided that the Xbox would satisfy my gaming needs a little more. So I sold the Wii, and bought the 360…

But trust me, the initial thoughts of even picking up the Wii was: kind a trippy… you see, all Wii owners in the world don’t get a big stiffy over the motion controls, and the fancy minigame collection… and worst of all, Wii sports… Oh don’t get me wrong: it’s an interesting tech demo… but good lord, it’s one of the main selling points of the Wii…

It’s just wrong. Why would people pick up a Wii to play such simple and boring games, especially when they have access to all of the classics: Zelda – Twilight Princess, Metroid – Prime 3, Mario – Galaxy… These are all extremely well made games, that I would gladly announce some of my favorites ever!

But if this is so, then why do the Wii sell so well because of the waggle games? Because it’s not for gamers! It’s simple, I didn’t get a stiffy when I first saw Wii sports, but I did however get interested (from a technical standpoint that is) but the average family guy would gladly accept it next to the telly… Why is that? The Wii is a little white box, it don’t cost as much as the bigger consoles, and it features a lot of kid/family friendly games.

Its family friendly: it watches your weigh, it entertains your kids, and it fits to everyone… even your grandma.

The point I’m trying to make is that: the Wii is an excellent console, and the motion controls is a technical achievement… but it just don’t fit to me… sorry Nintendo

Ce réservoir d’eau souple est disponible chez Décathlon, et Vieux campeur au prix de 19,90€ TTC. Tout en polyéthylène alimentaire épais, soudé, très résistant. Réservoirs avec pipette ultra léger. Large ouverture permettant le remplissage et le nettoyage. Fermeture 100% étanche. Pipette 95 cm avec valve main libre gros débit et clip de maintien. On le trouve sous différentes volumes :

19,90€ pour 1litre

23€ pour 1,5litre

24€ pour 2litres

25€ pour 3litres

Autan dire qu’il est indispensable dans le moindre déplacement. Le Widepack me suit partout, chaque jour. Et quoi qu’il m’arrive je ne manque jamais d’eau. Le point faible est sa pipette qui peut fuir si elle est mal remontée. Et ces 95cm de tube souple sont favorable à l’échange thermique. Du coup la première gorgée est a température ambiante.

Astuces : Camelbag et d’autres marques proposent tube thermal. Une enveloppe qui réduit l’échange calorique (chaleur).

Everyone wants a Google Wave invite. As Pete Cashmore said “we want it because we don’t get it” in the online video stream “This Week in Google” (November 28 2009) at Twit Live… he actually was right.
I’ve waited about 4 days to get the invite after I was nominated and I was very enthusiast to test the new web application. After about 2 months after the public release (September 2009) in the  November 2009 I’ve got my invite and started my first application review for the Google Wave application.

First of all, I wanted to read the “Google Wave: A Complete Guide” written by Ben Parr. I don’t know why I really wanted to do that because usually I go ahead with the application, test it using all the buttons and functionality that I find, and only after that I inform me about what the application can do more than I know. Perhaps because I first saw the long movie of the Google Wave Developer Preview at Google I/O 2009 and was determined to learn more and faster about this application and because as Gina Trapani said “you are not meant to learn how to use Wave in an afternoon” at the Web 2.0 Expo. You can also find a book written by her called The Complete Guide to Google Wave.

Well for the first days I tried to get used to the new application. I also heard the other people that at the beginning it is very empty. You should add some friends so that you have somebody to wave with. Also you should add some gadgets/extension and some bots. Actually for the beginning I didn’t had the option to send invites to my friends, so I had a very small group of “friends” to wave with. That’s why for the beginning I focused on the gadgets and bots.

For the beginning it was a little bit strange because the menus or options that were in my application, were not the same as I found in some small tutorials. As I said the lack of option to send invites and the “Mute” button that was modified. Now you have the “Archive” and “Follow/Unfollow” buttons.

Focusing on gadgets and bots I found that gadgets are some little applications that you can add in your wave, and bots are like contacts with an artificial intelligence  that are meant to do something in that wave that you add them. To add a gadget you have to find it’s installer and install it but adding a bot it’s much simpler. The only thing that you have to do is to find it’s name and add it to your contacts. To add an extension you can find a tutorial here. A list of gadgets you can find here and a very good list about bots and some little explanation you can find here.

A very interesting part is finding the public waves. Finding them and reading the discussions of other people can be very helpful when some people have similar problem as you. Because this is only an application review and not a tutorial, I will show you some useful links. To browse public waves check this out, to get rid of lots of inbox waves try this out, to make a public wave do like this.

After some days, I didn’t realized but, Google Wave became like a drug for me. I began reading and finding a lot of information on the internet, installing a lot of bots and gadgets/extensions, starting to view and follow the public waves witch I found interesting, and most of all using the gadgets and their powerful utility. I realized that Wave became a very strong social web application. You can find lots of discussions based on different subjects like operating systems, web browsers, web design, and even about Wave, where you can find lot of help from the others in managing with it.

Actually Google tries every day to improve the application. The Wave that I was missing that could be given me the ability to send Wave invites to other people, finally appeared. After some time your Inbox and the number of waves will increase and you can manage the number of them by organizing, creating saved searches and making folders. You can find a lot of help and links in public waves. Also you can make a lot of waves only for your interest helping in your work, organizing your notes or easing your way of doing things.

The really test, or I should say the single problem that I found, was by uploading the images. Of course, you can do this by using the Google Gears because right now HTML5 doesn’t  support this yet. I’ve got a lot of errors like “the wave may explode” like this, “everything’s shiny” like this, “reload the page” like this or “Gears crash” like this. This happened because the large number of images that could not be handled, about over 100 of them, or by the large size of some images, about over 1600px X 1200px and 1.2 MB. I know that this is gone to extreme but this is my way of testing. The problem was that even after the errors, the application remained at the upload session like it was trying to upload every and every time I was opening the application. It was like a loop and I could not end it by deleting the image or the blip, by “Spamming”, by “Unfollowing” or/because it gave me the “wave may explode” error when I wanted to edit the blip. Also by trashing the wave could not  resolve the problem because right now you can not delete a wave forever. As I read somewhere, they said that the trash will empty itself after some days but this didn’t happened yet. I’ll just wait to see what will happen. For the moment it remains in the “Trash” folder, but this is an issue that I hope Google will resolve it soon.  I could get rid of this problem by removing the permissions in Gears, reopening the browser and of course granting again the permissions to Gears if I wanted to upload again some other images.

I am very excited when Google will improve the application and will work at it’s full functionality. Now I’m making some invites to my friends to have somebody to wave with.

I think that the Google Wave application will be a really success because even in this the early stage of development you can make a lot of things with it, for yourself or in collaboration/discussion with others. I think that it would be a very good social/network/email/collaboration/messaging/testing/developing/utility/editing/troubleshooting/community web application and other stuff that it can do and it is said or requested that will do.

El boom que esta experimentando el airsoft, ha hecho que los post, review, artículos, etc… en internet, se han multiplicado y a dia de hoy los podemos encontrar en varios idiomas. Por mis propias circunstancias entiendo, escribo y hablo perfectamente el francés.

Aprovechando esta circunstancia, navego bastante por foros y páginas webs francófonas y encuentro bastantes artículos interesantes. Uno de los objetivos de internet es compartir el conocimiento y eso es lo que voy hacer.

De vez en cuando traduciré artículos franceses sobre el airsoft que por su contenido creo que sería interesante para nuestra comunidad española e hispano parlante en general.

Hoy tocara traducir un artículo muy interesante sobre el corazón de la replica: EL GEARBOX.

Fuente: France-Airsoft

Que es un Gearbox?

El Gearbox es una caja metálica en la cual está todo el mecanismo que permite transformar el movimiento rotativo, proporcionado por el motor, en descargas de aire comprimido dentro del cañón de la réplica para propulsar las bbs.

(si no funciona la animacion, pinchar sobre la imagen)

Vamos a ver de que esta compuesto el Gearbox.

Los Gears (engranaje o rueda dentada).

Función: transmitir la potencia del motor al piston compresor de aire. El motor hace girar el Gear motor, este mismo hace girar el Gear intermedio y este hace lo mismo al Gear Piston  para dar el movimiento al piston compresor de aire. Las características del movimiento rotativo (rotación por minuto, etc…) pueden ser modificadas según los engranajes elegidos .

Características físicas: Los engranajes están hechos de metal. Las superficies y los dientes difieren según los modelos.

Posibles modificaciones: Se pueden cambiar los gears, siempre y cuando se respectan las posiciones de cada uno y que correspondan a la réplica.

Las Shims o arandelas de engranajes

Las shims son pequeñas arandelas que se utilizan para fijar, sincronizar y evitar que los engranajes (gears) se rocen entre si cuando están superpuestos y para dejar los Bushing a la misma altura.

Estas arandelas están hechas en metal y tienen diámetros y grosores diferentes (entre 0.15 y 0.5mm).

ATENCION: Cambiar o ajustar esas arandelas no es una tarea fácil. Solo se suelen tocar cuando se reajustan en una puesta a punto, cuando se cambian los engranajes por otros nuevos o bien cuando realizamos un upgrade al Gearbox, en este caso es imprescindible reajustar las arandelas o cambiarlas, sea para un upgrade de torque ( fuerza ) o de speed ( velocidad ) ya que tanto para la velocidad o el par, vamos a transmitir mucha energía con motores mas potentes.

En la operación de desmontaje del GearBox, cuando se quiten los engranajes, se recomienda observar cuantas arandelas hay de cada lado de los engranajes, su grosor y su diámetro para que cuando se vuelva a montar el GearBox todo vuelva a encajar y cerrar correctamente.

Los Bushings

Función: Mantener alineados y centrados los engranajes entre ellos, dentro del GeaBox. El eje de cada engranaje es sujetado por un bushing de cada lado del GearBox, 6 en total. El bushing permite el giro del eje del engranaje sin fricciones con el, con el fin de evitar un sobre uso del mismo y su deterioro.

Características físicas: Los bushings están hechos en plástico rígido o en metal. El interior esta preparado para recibir el eje del engranaje y el exterior esta concebido para que se ajuste fuertemente a la pared interior del GearBox.

Bushings metalicos con rodamientos

Posibles modificaciones: La mayoría de los bushings que vienen en la mayoría de las replicas son de plástico y se pueden cambiar por otros de metal, auto lubricantes, con rodamientos que reduce el frotamiento entre las piezas de metal pero siendo mas frágiles. Se suelen cambiar estas piezas cuando se hace un upgrade del GearBox para que los bushings aguanten bien el aumento de potencia del nuevo muelle.

Longevidad: El hecho que estén bien ajustados dentro del GearBox, hace que los bushings tengan un deterioro casi nulo a pesar de la tensión que sufren durante el uso de la replica.

Anti-Reversal Latch

Función: Impide que los engranajes giren en el sentido contrario al previsto para el motor por el empuje del muelle después del disparo y asi estar listo para el próximo. Como podéis ver en la foto, este seguro esta puesto sobre el Gear Motor.

Características físicas: Es una simple cuña de acero situado sobre un eje libre y mantenida contra el Gear Motor por medio de un pequeño resorte.

Posibles modificaciones: Casi nulas. Gracias a su posición, es 100% eficaz sin sufrir ningún esfuerzo y por lo tanto no es necesario cambiarla o modificarla. Ciertos kits de modificación del GearBox vienen con esta pieza reforzada debido a las fuertes fuerzas a las cuales esta sujeta esa pieza después de un upgrade.

Longevidad: Bien puesta, no sufre casi ningún deterioro excepto en el FAMAS (Meroveo: doy fe de ello).

Tappet Plate

Función: Dejar la BBs entrar en la cámara y cerrar herméticamente  el espacio entre el Gearbox y el cañón con la ayuda del Nozzle.

A cada ciclo del Gear Piston el Tappet plate retrocede para dejar entrar la BBs gracias a una cuña  enganchada al engranaje piston y vuelve a sus posición inicial, para disparar, gracias a otra cuña situada a la mitad del Tappet Plate y enganchada a un resorte.

Tappet Plate con Nozzle y resorte

Características físicas: Es una pieza de policarbonato, en forma de L alargada. Su  parte mas pequeña esta delante del GearBox y tiene una pequeña hendidura redonda para sujetar el Nozzle. En La parte contraria, hay un gancho que se coloca sobre el Gear Piston, y en el medio una cuña que esta sujeta a un resorte.

Posibles modificaciones: No hay necesidad de cambiar la pieza excepto si se rompe o si se aumenta la cadencia de los mecanismos y entonces se necesitara una versión reforzada.

Longevidad: Su forma en L  y su función que la hace plegarse en parte a cada disparo, fragiliza la pieza con el tiempo. Las roturas son corrientes en la junción con el Gear Piston y el gancho después de un uso intensivo o modificaciones del GearBox sin reforzar.

En la 2º parte de esta review traducida y ampliada, hablaremos: del Nozzle, el piston, la cabeza de piston, el cilindro, cabeza de cilindro, el muelle y la guia del muelle.

Y en la 3º parte: El interruptor electrico, el cut off lever, carcasa del GearBox, selector plate y como extras una explicacion sencilla del Hop-Up y del motor.

Christmas is nearly upon us so we here at the G4A fun house thought that before we get too drunk we would try to help you all out with  lists of 5  games on each format that we consider to be essential purchases.

So lets start with Microsoft’s beige box of wonderment the Xbox 360. If you are lucky enough to be unwrapping one of these Christmas morning these are some of the games you should hunt down in bargain bins or on Ebay as soon as you can afford to, or else RIGHT!!!

1. Bioshock

Ken Levine’s Art Deco underwater FPS masterpiece is a gaming tour de force. Everything in this game is a cut above from the art direction to script it is a ‘how to’ list of gaming goodness. After your plane crashes into the Atlantic sea you happen upon what looks to be a simple lighthouse which in fact is the gateway to Rapture, an  underwater city. Rapture was the ideological dream of Andrew Ryan a place where all the worlds leading luminaries could live together in a kind of intellectual utopia free from war and other such troubles. When you happen across it though it has completely gone to rack and ruin with dead bodies and flooded corridors at every turn. Crazed genetically mutated splicers roam the corridors looking for their next fix of ‘Adam’ the source genetic substance that allows you to alter your abilities. With a fantastically adult story (by this I mean it never once insults your intelligence),wonderful gameplay mechanics and beautiful Art Deco graphics this is a title that every gamer worth their salt should play. You will never forget defeating you first Big Daddy or the decision you make regarding his Little Sister, complete and utter genius. Lets just hope that Bioshock 2 lives up its predecessor but we here at G4A do have our doubts (but fingers crossed eh?).

2. Mass Effect

Bioware’s  Xbox exclusive, epic space soap opera RPG is a game with few peers. It is a Sci-fi epic on the scale of both Star Trek and Star Wars. Placing you in the shoes of Commander Shepherd, the first human to become a Spectre agent and charged with saving the galaxy. It boasts an incredibly well scripted and acted story with adult themes and explosive gameplay this game is up their with the very best to be found. Also as part of trilogy you really need to have played this before the sequel hits early next year.

3. The Orange Box

This compilation of Valve goodies is far too good to be ignored. Containing 5 games this was incredible value when it launched at £39.99, so it is damn near essential now that it can be picked in bargain bins for sub £15. To be truthfully honest it would be worth that much just for Portal on its own. The first person gravity defying puzzle game redefined what a first person game could be. Add on top that Half Life 2, Half Life 2: Episodes 1 and 2 and Team Fortress 2 and this is a proper bumper gaming package. Go get it now, I tells ya.

4. Gears Of War 1 & 2

Ignoring the fact this game series brought supposed games designer “Cliffy Blah Blah Blazinsky” to the fore at Epic you would have to be a fool not to count these games as titles you need to have if you own an Xbox. These games are straight up, good old-fashioned dumb Hollywood blockbuster action with incredible graphics. Forget about the dumb ass sub B-Movie plot and immerse yourself in well designed gored up shooting. With the aforementioned stunning graphics, rock solid gaming mechanics and enjoyable online modes you need to experience both of these exceptional titles. Roll on Gears 3 which I reckon is a shoe in for Xmas 2010 but until then get these in as soon as you can.

5. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Hitting the streets just a few short months after the Xbox 360’s launch Bethesda’s massive fantasy role player remains a must buy. With an absolutely huge open world to explore and all manner of side quests to do this is still regarded by many to be the best role player on the Xbox. You can literally go anywhere or do anything it is entirely up to you whether you follow the storyline or just get on with leading another life. Speaking of storyline just before he is assassinated, Emperor Septim passes you the “Amulet Of Kings” and tasks you with finding his son, The illegitimate heir to the throne of Tamiril. What follows is your usual stock fantasy fiction story but with compelling gameplay, beautiful graphics and top voice acting, including Patrick Stewart it is a stunning game. For fans of fantasy fiction and or role players this game is essential. With the game of the year edition (which includes all the downloadable content) costing £15 or less you really have no excuses not to give this a go. Bethesda have remained largely quiet on the follow-up but rest assured as soon as we know anything we will let you peeps know ASAP.

The above list is just a few games that we here at the G4A fun house think that any new owners of an Xbox 360 should try.  If any of you out there want to suggest any other must try games for the Xbox 360 please add them in the comments section below. I’m now off for a beer so piss off and have a Merry Christmas.

Moonhead

Egy kis idézet az infiniteaion fórumról:

….we need to update the N.P.P. (noob prevention program) it’s seriously outdated o.O

1. we haven’t got full drop tables and economy is screwed atm, so no bosses for good gear, and no people to buy the good gear.

2. like toasty said you never buy gear in retail… like ever… not ever…

3. the XP table is screwed atm, so you level 7 times faster than you should, therefor you outgrow gear 7 times faster than you should, and get 7 times less drops per level, so 7 times less money…. see the logic?

4. again… we need to update the N.P.P. -.-

red0ak1337

Gears es, según su descripción oficial, un complemento de Google que amplía el navegador con el fin de crear una plataforma superior para aplicaciones web. De esta forma, los creadores de páginas web pueden utilizar Gears en sus sitios web para permitir que accedamos a información sin conexión o para facilitarnos contenido basado en nuestra ubicación geográfica.

Además, Gears es software libre y  está diseñado para utilizarse tanto en los sitios de Google como en los que no pertenecen a Google.

Gears Para instalarlo en Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala, incluso en el de 64 bits, ejecutamos el siguiente comando en un Terminal (Aplicaciones > Accesorios > Terminal):

sudo aptitude -y install gears

Una vez instalado al iniciar el navegador nos encontraremos con el siguiente mensaje que nos informará que se ha instalado un nuevo complemento:

Se ha instalado un nuevo complemento

Cerramos la ventana y nos disponemos a empezar a usar Gears pero ¿dónde podemos usar Gears? Según la Wikipedia las aplicaciones que soportan Gears son las siguientes:

• Google: Gmail, YouTube, Docs, Reader, Picasa
• MySpace: búsqueda de correo.
• Zoho (Writer, Mail).
• Remember The Milk.
• Buxfer.
• WordPress: interfaz de administración.

Para ver como funciona con un ejemplo, vamos a habilitarlo en la página de administración de WordPress de Slice of Linux. Por lo tanto, accedemos a nuestra página de administración y en el menú de la izquierda hacemos clic sobre Herramientas > Herramientas. En la pantalla que nos aparecerá pulsaremos el botón Habilitar Gears, después de leer la información sobre su estado.

Pulsamos el botón Habilitar Gears

Entonces nos aparecerá una advertencia de seguridad de Gears advirtiéndonos que WordPress quiere almacenar información en nuestro equipo. Como es lo que queremos, marcamos la casilla Confío en este sitio. Y pulsamos el botón Permitir.

Permitirmos usar Gears a WordPress

Tras la descarga de una serie de archivos a nuestro disco duro, comprobaremos que la actualización se ha completado correctamente leyendo el mensaje Update completed.

Actualización local completada

A partir de este momento ya podemos disfrutar de una mayor velocidad en la administración de nuestro sitio en WordPress.

Espero que os resulte tan útil como a mi.

WordPress now has support for Gears, which adds new features to your web browser.
More information…

After you install and enable Gears, most of WordPress’ images, scripts, and CSS files will be stored locally on your computer. This speeds up page load time.

Anwendungen, die im Web-Browser laufen,…

… begegnen uns meist eher unbewusst, und dennoch sind sie ein Indiz eines revolutionären Konzepts. Webmail, Facebook, Google Docs und ähnliche erfordern keine Installation auf dem eigenen PC. Man startet einfach Firefox, Safari u.ä., gibt den jeweiligen URL ein und schon steht einem nach dem Login die gewünschte Anwendung zur Verfügung. In Kombination mit Technologien wie Google Gears, kann diese diese oft auch ohne aktive Verbindung zum Internet verwendet werden.

Die Vorteile sind offensichtlich: WebApps erfordern keine Installation, keine lästigen Updates, sie sind auf jedem Gerät mit Web-Browser verfügbar, und… die Daten (Dokumente, E-Mails, Fotos, etc.) sind auch immer dabei. Ganz ohne USB-Stick.

Datenschutz…

So stellen sich einige erschreckenden Fragen: Wo liegen denn die Daten? In der großen Wolke des Internets, der “Cloud”? Wer kann und wer darf darauf zugreifen? Oder besser: “gehören” die Daten überhaupt noch mir (allein)?

Die Antworten finden sich in den Nutzungs- und Datenschutzbedingungen des jeweiligen Dienst-Anbieters. Ein kalter Schauder läuft mir bei dem Gedanken über den Rücken. Aufgrund von unpräzisen oder gar falschen Übersetzungen ins Deutsche, hat sich beispielsweise Google mittels seines Dienstes Docs zeitweise Nutzungsrechte von privaten Dokumenten angeeignet. Obwohl der Fehler korrigiert wurde, zeigt es sich, dass man bei der Nutzung von WebApps gut überlegen sollte, wem man seine Daten anvertraut. Datenschutz-Bedingungen zu lesen und zu verstehen ist zwar ein guter Punkt, ob man diesen vertraut, ein anderer. Auf die Datenschutz-Problematik gehe ich aber ein anderes Mal näher ein.

WebApps aus dem Browser lösen

Diese Möglichkeit schafft es aktuell mich zu begeistern. Unter MacOSX gelingt das mit Hilfe eines kleinen Programms namens Fluid <http://fluidapp.com>. Den Artikel schreibe ich beispielsweise in wordpress.com, das als Fluid-App läuft. Technisch gesehen ist es äußerst praktisch, dass jede Anwendung unabhängig vom Browser als eigener Prozess läuft und die verwendete App bei einem etwaigen Crash des Browsers nicht mitgerissen wird. Der Anwendungscharakter wird dadurch betont, dass sich wie bei konventionellen Programmen die jeweiligen Icons ins Startmenü legen lassen und man das Erscheinungsbild (Fensterfarbe, Adress- und Tableiste,…) individuell anpassen kann. Durch das Ausblenden der Leisten (die Bookmark-Leiste fehlt zur Gänze) gewinnt man unglaublich viel Platz am Bildschirm! Die gewonnene Übersicht kann jedoch leicht wieder verloren gehen, wenn man für jede Seite eine eigene App verwendet. So empfiehlt es sich sparsam umzugehen. Für mich liegt die optimale Variante in einem konkurrenzfreien Miteinander von WebApp- und Tabbed-Browsing-Konzept.

Windows-Nutzer…

… müssen nicht traurig sein, denn auch für sie existiert eine aus meiner Sicht schöne Lösung: Was braucht man dafür und wie kann man vorgehen?

• Iron (zum Download): basierend auf Googles Browser Chrome, allerdings ohne datenschutzmäßig fragwürdige Google-Browser-ID – am besten als “Portable Version” für unterwegs. In diesem Fall jedoch aufs Kennwort speichern verzichten!
• Funktion: Anwendung herauslösen
• Verknüpfung am Desktop/im Startmenü, etc. erstellen
• Anwendung starten
• Optimale Fenstergröße wählen (merkt sich die App für den nächsten Start)
• Fertig.

Welche Anwendungen sind prädestiniert für WebApps?

• Facebook
• WordPress
• derstandard.at (in der express-Version, aktuell beta)
• Fahrpläne von ÖBB, VOR, besonders: itip (Wr. Linien), wenn man die Abfahrten von einer bestimmten Haltestelle im Auge behalten will
• Radio Live-Streams: z.B. fm4.orf.at
• vermutlich auch: GMail, Google Docs (nicht getestet)
• Wikipedia
• u.v.m. (einfach kreativ sein!)

Andere Formen von WebApps…

… zeigen sich als Anwendungen für mobile Geräte, wie das iPhone bzw. den iPod touch oder den Palm Pre. Das Konzept ist, ein für das jeweilige Gerät optimiertes User-Interface bereitzustellen. Und schon lässt sich von unterwegs bequem twittern und bloggen.

Auch bei Widgets oder Gadgets kommt dieser Trick recht wirkungsvoll zum Einsatz. Mittels unscheinbarer Minianwendungen in der Windows-Sidebar oder im Dashboard unter MacOSX, sowie innerhalb von Programmen wie Lotus Notes greift man direkt auf die erwähnten Web-Dienste zu und integriert sie in einer jeweils ansprechenden Form.

Der Browser als Betriebssystem

Einen weiteren Vorstoß leistet sich – welch Überraschung – Google. So wurde diese Woche ein Betriebssystem – Chrome OS – vorgestellt, das sich auf Netbooks (kleine Notebooks) konzentriert und ohne lokal installierter Software auskommen soll. Es positioniert sich neben dem bereits am Markt befindlichen Android, das als System für Smartphones fungiert. Mittelfristig erwartet man auch von Google-Seite, dass die beiden Systeme zu einer Plattform verschmelzen werden. Netbooks, die im Vergleich zu aktuellen Notebooks und Desktop-PCs eine geringere Performance aufweisen, sind für das Client-Server-Konzept gut geeignet, da die Rechenleistung dabei vorwiegend serverseitig erbracht wird.

Bekanntes Konzept, nun für den Massenmarkt

Server/Client-Konzepte fand man bereits in der Zeit vor dem Aufkommen von PCs (Stichwort: Großrechner/Terminal), heute ist es vielen auf aktuellen PC-Arbeitsplätzen in Unternehmen in der Form von Terminal-Services mittels Citrix oder Remote Desktop Connections vertraut.

Anwendungen übers Internet bereitzustellen wird schon seit etlichen Jahren versucht. Die Firma Sun Microsystems war mit Java-basierten Anwendungen, sogenannten Applets wesentlich beteiligt. Die fehlende Existenz bzw. Verbreitung von Breitband-Internetzugängen führte zu meist unangenehm langen Wartezeiten beim Laden der Applets. Auch das äußere Erscheinungsbild könnte man als mäßig attraktiv einstufen.

Kurzer Ausblick.

Nun scheinen die Vorzeichen für WebApps bedeutend besser zu stehen. Technologisch gesehen, passen die Rahmenbedingungen. Organisatorisch sind noch Kleinigkeiten wie Datenschutz zu klären, um das mulmige Gefühl zu eliminieren, das sich beim Schreiben eines Dokuments in einer von wem auch immer bereitgestellten WebApp und das Speichern in der Cloud breit macht.

Have you ever got a chance to drive a supercar? If yes you have had one of the best experiences you will ever have in your life.

Now imagine and co-relate what is the most common thing between social media and a supercar, See most of these dazzling cars have 2 seats same goes with Social media as here no matter what you are a brand or an offline/online influencer when you engage with people you have to do it individually so you are the driver of this supercar and the other guy is the co-seater.

Its simple if you are a good driver and don’t give bumps in the ride, you will get recognized for your skills very soon as your partners would spread the word for you, This is the nature of social media as well as if you are adding value by what you share, your personal brand has to spread further.

Hey we are talking about supercars right, am sure most of you have your own favorites so before going for a ride you need to make sure that you have chosen the car which suits you the best, here a few suggestions Porsche aka Twitter, Lamborghini aka LinkedIn, Ferrari aka Facebook, Bugatti aka Digg, Aston Martin aka StumbleUpon and the list goes on and if you have super rich knowledge you can drive more than 1 car.

Its very important to understand which social media channel would work out the best for your brand and that can be decided your approach towards people if you prefer a traditional way of talking LinkedIn makes it for you,if you have an attitude of a blogger its a major possibility that you choose twitter.

Whatever you drive make sure you understand this -

“It takes 8,460 bolts to assemble an automobile, and one nut to scatter it all over the road.”  ~Author Unknown

Just one important lesson out of this no big deal, you have to be consistent in your performance.

So we got into the social media supercar and we are listening an awesome sound of the viral buzz created around it, lets get on with the gears and cruise through.

• 1st Gear »

This has to be one of the best things in social media in the first gear it gives you a chance to trace your niche as what is that you really want to do with it, do you want to measure social analytics thus your influence, do you want to make friends, do you want to become a social media rock star or you just want to be a student of a particular subject and gather and share information on that.

The first gear is noisy as you would receive advice from a lot of people on what to do with social media but you need to follow your heart and then listen to people who really make sense.

• 2nd Gear »

Now as you have chosen what do to try your best to get yourself fully loaded with knowledge from sources which you feel trustworthy from your heart,Read blogs not specifically from your niche but of your mindset as in if you are a marketing guy you can get great ideas from a Food or a wine blog.

• 3rd Gear »

In the third gear you are at a stage where in you have all the knowledge required to create stuff for your community here am talking about things like blogs, podcasts, presentations which can easily add value to your relationship with the people you are networking.

• 4th Gear »

Now you are well aware of what you are doing and its fun driving now, But whats the most important thing to get this fun going? its consistency in everything which you do in the world of social media yes everything, the things which you learn, share and create should be consistent and representing your personality as you established it from the starting.

When we have talked about the acceleration here we have to understand the fact that there will be circumstances where you have to slow down a bit and thus get back to second or third gear and its almost the same for social media as well because you have to go back to learn and to understand what other people in your community are talking about no matter how good you are at creating stuff.

So for most of you who still have not tasted a supercar drive try social media and you would love it once you try to relate them.

Do you like BRIGHT BRIGHT BRIGHT?!  Then you will love this kit!

{click image above to buy this kit}

Supplies: Cosmo Cricket Cosgmo PP & Diecuts, Love Elsie PP, Colorbok CS, Bazzill CS, Staz-on Ink, Autumn Leaves stamps, Marvy Corner Rounder, Paper Salon brads, misc. pop-dots.

Supplies:  Basic Grey PP, Bazzill CS, Marvy Corner Rounder, Zva Flower, Fiskars Circle Punch, Staz-on Ink, Studio G Stamps, Stickles, misc. pop-dots & rhinestones.

Supplies: Bazzill CS, Heidi Swapp PP, Zva Crystals, Studio G stamps, Marvy corner rounder, Stickles, Paper Salon brad, Bonanza Bag of Buttons Citrus button, misc. pop-dots.

Supplies: Bazzill CS, DCWV PP, Love Elsie PP, Stickles, Doodlebug alpha stickers, Prima sprites, Zva pearls, Autumn Leaves stamp, misc. paint & pop-dots.

Supplies: Bazzill CS, Cosmo Cricket PP, Making Memories PP, Stickles, Ranger Glossy Accents, Paper Salon brad, Glimmer Mists-white marshmallow, Fiskars circle punch, Studio G stamp, Staz-on ink, Making Memories Flower, Marvy corner punch, misc. pop-dots.

Supplies: Colorbok CS, DCWV PP, Basic Grey Pearls, Fiskars border edge punch, Zva flower, Fiskars circle punch, Marvy corner rounder, misc. pop-dots, chipboard, & joy button.

Supplies: Bazzill CS, Sam’s Club Paper Stack, Stampendous stamp, Staz-On Ink, Marvy Corner Rounder, Stickles, Prima sprites, Bonanza Bag of Buttons Citrus button, Basic Grey pearls.

Supplies: Bazzill CS, Colorbok CS, Sam’s Club Paper Stack, Miss Elizabeth’s sticker, Doodlebug alpha stickers, Fiskars circle punch, Fiskars border edge punch, Zva flower, Pressed Petals chipboard, Stickles, Marvy corner rounder, misc. rhinestones & pop-dots.

Supplies: Gerber baby food jar, Target Spot card kit Peace metal rimmed tag, Bazzill CS, Scrapworks (?) PP, Prima sprites, Glimmer Mists-white marshmallow, misc. paint.

I altered this little jar to fill with candy as an extra little gift for someone on Christmas. It’s really hard to photograph the effect Glimmer Mists really does on here.  It’s more sparkly sheer versus the opaque white that is showing in this photo.

Thanks for checking out my creations!

Quienes usamos algún Linux que compila y distribuye por si mismos binarios de Firefox (no oficiales) como Archlinux, usamos Firefox con diferente nombre, en este caso Shiretoko, un simple tecnisismo

Usando wordpress, me encontré con la necesidad de instalar Gears en mi Shiretoko de Archlinux, el problema era que el script que detectaba si el browser era compatible no lo notaba y no me permitía instalarlo, para solocionarlo, abrí una nueva pestaña y busqué “shiretoko”.

La solución fue modificar el valor “Shiretoko/3.5.4″ de la clave general.useragent.extra.firefox por el valor “Firefox/3.5.4″ y luego, refrescando la página de instalación de Gears, fue posible la instalación.

There was something about the reviews of Google’s Chromium browser, when the beta was released in September last year, that failed to excite.  I recall its cleaner, simpler window style, but that was about it.  And, back then, I didn’t view Google as a personal software company; their expertise was on the web, not on the client.   It certainly wasn’t enough to tempt a confirmed Firefox user to switch browsers.

At that time I’d been a happy Firefox user for years.  I liked its user interface, the wide range of plugins, the online support community, the fact that it’s open source and, well, that it isn’t IE.  On the downside, Firefox did sometimes take ages to load but, once loaded, it generally ran smoothly and quickly enough.

So, I forgot about Chromium and lived my online life in Firefox for another year or so.

Opinions change

In the meantime, my perception of Google, the Company, changed.  I’d had a Google account for a few months, initially for Google Mail  (being in the UK, we’re not supposed to call it “Gmail”) and the excellent Google Reader.

My Google Mail account started out as a throw away mailbox for web registrations, if spam ever became an issue.  Thankfully, Google’s excellent spam filtering meant I saw very little actual spam.  At the time my main email was with my ISP, forwarded via a personal web domain, but I wanted to change ISPs and saw the opportunity to improve the way email works for me and for others in my household.  We now all have our own Google Mail accounts, mine being my original “throw away” account, all forwarded from the original web domain.  We’re all agreed the Google Mail web UI is so nice and the new web-based email freedom is so much better than the old POP3 download approach.  This did a lot to raise my opinion of Google, the Company.

Over the same period, I had become interested in some of Google’s other cloud-based offerings such as Google Docs and App Server.  (From other posts in this blog you’ll see further Google-related interests.)  I’d also viewed the Wave presentations from the May 2009 I-O event and heard about things like Google Gears and its  support for HTML 5 and Web 2.0.  I’d installed the Firefox Gears plugin for improved functionality in some of the Google online apps.

Time to give Chrome a try

During the summer, Google announced a new public release of Chrome, a stable version of the open source Chromium web browser.  I was a little more interested in this now, and thought, “yes”, I’ll give it a try sometime, but not right now. I was still a happy Firefox user (aside from the slow start up).

Then, for reasons I never discovered, I had problems with some Google Docs functionality, notably the inability to edit documents.  It was quite a show-stopper.  I’d come to rely on Google Docs and so, against all my instincts, I reluctantly tried IE.  It worked!  I could do everything I needed to in my Google Docs.  But it was IE… there had to be a better way!

Like a light from above, I remembered Chrome.  It installed in no time and started up in about two seconds flat.  It was love at first sight.  The UI is so clean.  Minimalist, even.  The main thing was, my Google Docs functionality was all OK, too.  Problem solved.

Getting to know Chrome

After the relief of finding that Chrome fixed the Google Docs problem, I settled into using it full-time, as a replacement for the long-serving Firefox.  Not an easy decision to make, but Chrome has so much going for it.  This is particularly true when you consider how much time we spend on the web.  With Chrome maximised, it’s sometimes as if I’m not running Windows at all!  The Chrome themes emphasise this, with their non-standard window headers.   It feels like a new OS.  This may be intentional by Google.  If so, they’ve achieved it for me, and I’m happy to say so.

Chrome and Chromium

There are a few shortcomings in Chrome.  I’m running the latest version 3.0.195.33.

The most obvious being the lack of plugins.  That said, as a  Firefox user, I never was one to install masses of plugins, preferring to keep it simple.

My first question with Chrome was “how do I access my Google Bookmarks?”.  Others have been here before and I found a good blog post that describes a workable solution.  The same author has a related post on using bookmarklets in Chrome.

I have had one problem with a file download from a very slow server during which Chrome mistook a pause in data transmission (a few minutes) as indicating the end of the file.  The same file downloaded OK with trusty Firefox, btw.  Looking at the Chromium developer forum, this is a known problem that will be fixed in a future release.

Sticking with Chrome

I have become a Chrome enthusiast in the month or so since I started using it.  In the first week I caught up on all the Chrome release info.

I like a lot of detail, and one of the best sources of in-depth Chrome information is the comic book style presentation.  Don’t be put off by the 39 pages… it’s an entertaining read if you have the curiosity to know.  Key points:

• Built-in security, from the ground up.
• One process per tab.  If a tab freezes up, the other tabs are unaffected.
• HTML 5 support.
• Google Gears built-in.  This is a real bonus for Google users, improving the functionality of Google’s web apps.
• The clean UI.

Chrome has changed the way I see the web, for the better.  I look forward to future releases with functional improvements like plugins but, even without these, it’s definitely worth a try.

Thought by many to be lost to the sands of time, archaeologists recently unearthed the body of the first president of the United States, George Washington. For hundreds of years, the disappearance and presumed death of the first president was shrouded in mystery, but now it appears that many shocking details are finally coming to light. Groundbreaking as this discovery is, it appears that for the scientific community, there are now more questions than answers.

Professor Keith Buhrningman, head of the American History department at Stanford University, has openly stated that he “will never think of ol’ Georgie boy the same again.” When pressed for actual details, prof. Buhrningman declined to comment further. However, a factual rumour overheard in the lab stated that the famous legend of the late president’s wooden teeth was grossly understated and perhaps even downplayed.
Doctor Thomas Wūdstock, Harvard drop-out, is soon to release a book, The Six Hundred Dollar Man, detailing the scientific community’s findings.
“I can’t give too much away, but I will say that from our early observations, it appears that his teeth weren’t the only wooden part of George Washington. Over two-thirds of Washington’s body was replaced with rich, polished wood! And not just bones; a few major organs were replaced with extremely intricate wooden cogs and machinery. Buy my book.”
When asked which organs were replaced, and what powered the wooden machinery, Wūdstock replied,”It’s easy to get swept up in all this “wooden man” hooplah, but people are forgetting the most important mystery of all: what kind of wood it is. My money is on mahogany. Keith and most other scientists have bet on oak, so if I’m right, more winnings for me! Oh, also, his body was riddled with bullet holes, which is important to historians, but not important to scientists. Buy my book.”

Secret reports passed between scientists contain Da Vinci-esque diagrams of what can only be described as a half-human, half-wooden cyborg.
This new information has sparked endless speculation, not only in the scientific community, but also in popular online chat communities or “chatmunities”.

Self-named “Doc” “Reginald” “McSteamery” runs the website Steampunkjunkie.com, where chat topics have ranged from the light-hearted “Washington costume ideas!” to the cryptic “Ye olde conspiracie? WTF?!”
Doc McSteamery states, “This is so totally awesome! Did you see the gears and machinery? Made of REAL WOOD?! God, that’s just so… I mean the craftsmanship… wow! If they find out he has brass parts too or was steam-powered, I’ll die. I’ll literally die. This is truly another great first for America; we’re the greatest great in the entire great!”

The implications this information has for America’s- and even maybe the world’s- history, is staggering. A wooden cyborg as first president might possibly mean taking a second glance at the rules regarding presidential elections and appointments. If this seems sure to raise political controversy, it won’t be the first time; this presidential secret stirred the controversy kettle, even in Washington’s time.

Alongside Washington’s body was found a partially-burned confession letter. In it, Aaron Burr writes that “two hired goons” coerced him into “murdering [his] only friend, Alexander Hamilton.” The letter then states the two goons, “Franklin and Adams”, told Burr that “Hamilton knew too much for his own big mouth” and that Burr “had to shut him up real bullet-like.” The confession goes on to say that Washington was intending to silence Hamilton himself, but that he ultimately “didn’t want to get his greasy wooden mitts dirty” in connection with the murder. It’s certainly difficult to envision America’s first president as a wooden cyborg president, but a wooden cyborg assassin president sounds even more fantastical. Is there any proof of George Washington as a killer, aside from the well-documented accounts of his battles?
A third item was found in Washington’s hidden tomb: A wooden gun held in his human right hand, next to several wooden bullets. The gun appears to have fit neatly inside the president’s hollow right thigh, which was entirely wooden, velvet-lined, and opened up specifically for gun-storage. The last item in the casket, a wooden pepper mill labeled “Whompin’ Washington’s pepper spray” was found resting in a holster in Washington’s leather belt. The gun and pepper spray combination has led top police experts to believe Washington may have served as a kind of judge, jury, and executionary robotic law enforcer.
“No doubt about it, Washington ran this country with a wooden fist,” says New York Chief of Police Randy Fish. Fish is not pleased with Buhrningman, Wūdstock or any of the other music festivals scientists.
“At first I thought those scientists were doing good work, but any first-year cop can tell you that only most of the holes in Washington’s body are bullet holes; the rest of ‘em are termites holes. From the angle of the bullet entry wounds, my forensics department has concluded that Washington was such a badass, he actually shot the termites out of himself from time to time.”

But what of the larger picture? Does this evidence of primitive technology mean there may now be cyborgs living among us constructed of stone, or bronze or even iron? Only time will tell. Until then, one thing is certain: we “soft-skins” can only hope they’re as wonderful and patriotic as our beloved wooden cyborg assassin president, who could apparently tell a lie.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could be allergic to working out?

Then you wouldn’t have to admit to friends, loved ones, and co-workers that you simply hate to exercise. Saying your throat swells up or you break out in hives might be easier than enduring the disapproving looks that you fear might come with confessing the truth!

Never mind that study after study has shown that regular physical activity — even at moderate levels — reduces the risk of heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure and obesity and enhances physical and mental functioning. Many Americans still choose a sedentary lifestyle.

A CDC report released last summer showed that 55% of American adults didn’t move enough in 2001 to meet the minimum recommendation of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most days of the week. And the Gallup Health and Healthcare Survey found that just 45% of Americans regularly engaged in vigorous exercise in 2002 — down from 52% in 2001.

Experts say there are many reasons people hate to exercise. They include:

• Intimidation. “There’s lots of fear and intimidation,” says exercise physiologist Kelli Calabrese. “And rightfully so. The industry is so confusing. Everyone is making these claims and you don’t know what works.” You also may feel embarrassed that you don’t know how to use the machines at the gym, have no rhythm in step class, or don’t own the right exercise clothing.
• Lack of time. “People put themselves under pressure that they have to get an hour workout,” says exercise physiologist Nicole Gunning, who manages the Unilever Cosmetics International corporate fitness center. “Especially single career moms will say they don’t have enough time or they don’t know how to manage their time to fit it in.” If you have trouble managing your time, exercise is often the first thing to go. A not-so-important meeting or a grocery run can hinder your best-laid plans. Heck, a rerun of Friends often sounds better than a trip to the gym.
• Negative image of exercise. Does just saying the world “exercise” bring up unfortunate memories of dodgeball games during grade-school gym? “I hated gym class,” says Calabrese. “For some people, that’s their only experience with exercise, so they start out with a negative perspective.”
• Slow results. Seeing and feeling the benefits of exercise does take time, and many people give up long before they get there. “Some people are still looking for the magic pill or the ‘drink this and you’ll lose weight,’” Calabrese says. “They are still thinking there’s a better, faster, easier way, so why exercise?”
• Money. “People think they can’t afford a health club or the equipment or gear they need to get involved in a particular activity,” says Calabrese. “They also have a fear or wasting money on something they won’t use or won’t like.”
• Lack of support. Without the encouragement of a spouse, friend, or family member, it’s easy to give up.
• Motivation. Whatever the excuses are for hating to exercise, in the end, it’s a lack of motivation that keeps us from moving our bodies. “As anyone who has tried — and failed — to adopt a regular fitness routine realizes, knowing that exercise will benefit you in the distant future isn’t the best motivation,” says Jay Kimiecik, professor of exercise motivation at Miami University of Ohio.

But can an exercise-hater really change? Will you ever be able to face a daily workout without dread?

Yes, say Calabrese and Gunning, who offer these tips to help you turn “hate” into “tolerate” — maybe even “love”:

• Find something you enjoy. Bottom line, they say, if you don’t like what you’re doing, you won’t stick with it. If you’re not sure what you like, explore: Take a dance class, learn to Rollerblade or swim, or hike in some nearby mountains. Try them all. Keep experimenting until you find the thing that moves you, mentally and physically.
• Set goals. “Write down your goals and review them often,” says Calabrese. But be realistic. If you’ve started out walking for 10 minutes, don’t aim to run a marathon in three months. Your goals “can start really short term and lead to long term,” she says. “Create specific, measurable, action-oriented goals — and have a time frame for accomplishing them.”
• Be a morning exerciser. Statistics show that people are more likely to stick with a fitness program if they exercise first thing in the morning, Calabrese says. There’s less of a chance to make excuses, and you get it over with before your day begins.
• Schedule your workout. “Write it in your planner just like a meeting or appointment,” says Calabrese. Schedule a whole month in advance, writing the day and time of your workout. “And if you have to cancel one, reschedule it immediately.”
• Have a partner. “Exercise can be very social,” says Calabrese. Whether or not you’re involved in a team sport, she says, “having the commitment of a friend or spouse increases your commitment.”
• Reward yourself. Gunning uses rewards to inspire people to set small goals along the way to the larger ones. When you can complete a 30-minute walk on the treadmill or do 10 push-ups, for example, reward yourself with a new CD or T-shirt. When you’ve stayed with the program for 12 weeks, get a new pair of sneakers. “Just make sure (the rewards aren’t) food related,” says Gunning.
• Chart your progress. Start by getting a fitness assessment when you first begin a program. (If you’re not a gym member, do it on your own. Write down your weight, measurements, and BMI, then record how long you’re able to exercise on the first day.) In three months, you’ll see how much progress you made.
• Try a mind-body approach. Starting out with classes like yoga or Pilates, in which you focus on breathing and stretching, can give you a taste of exercise’s feel-good benefits right off the bat, Calabrese says: “By breathing and oxygenating the muscles, you feel an immediate stress release, and you may feel the benefits sooner without feeling the soreness that comes with strength training or even cardio right away.”
• Abandon the all-or-nothing approach. So you don’t have an hour? How about 30 minutes? It’s certainly better than nothing, and if you work smart you can really reap benefits from a 30-minute workout, says Gunning. And recognize you’re fallible. You’ll fall off the wagon a time or two. Don’t beat yourself up. Just get back into your routine and stop procrastinating.

Falling in Love with Exercise

Just tolerating exercise isn’t enough, Kimiecik believes. In his book, The Intrinsic Exerciser: Discovering the Joy of Exercise, he advocates learning to love exercise for its own sake. “Most people don’t like (exercise),” he says, “because the information they’re given doesn’t do much to get them to like it.”

People know exercise will help them live longer and be healthier, “but that doesn’t do much in the way of motivation,” he says. “It’s external, or outside, in. Those reasons are not powerful enough to keep you motivated for the long term. Those people, on a daily basis, aren’t paying attention to the feelings of exercise.”

On the other hand, Kimiecik says, people who consistently exercise are motivated from the inside, out.

“The people who maintain exercise on a regular basis are those who really enjoy the movement,” he says. “Regular exercisers almost always talk about how exercise makes them feel; they rarely talk about disease reduction.”

So how do you get there?

“Find activities that make you feel alive and make you feel enjoyment,” he says. To do that, he suggests: “Think about how you want your body to feel when you’re exercising. Do you want it to feel fast, do you want it to feel strong, do you want it to feel pushed?”

In other words, be involved in the activity mentally and physically. Connect your mind and body.

Kimiecik admits it’s not always easy, but without internal motivation, he says, it’s next to impossible to keep up an exercise routine.

“To become a regular exerciser,” says Kimiecik, “we all have obstacles. Like with most things in life, if you don’t find a powerful inner motivation for doing something, obstacles are easier to find.”

Alright, So this is my car. I am embarassed to say that I have only drove her 5 times since I got her.I have messed up and not took it upon myself to get my license.

When I was little i remember a Black 90′ Mustang with purple striping going down the car and filling in the ground effect. Shiny as it could ever be. All black inside…with the smell of berry scented car freshner. Sitting in the passenger seat listening to music with subs. I remember hearing the revving of the engine and hearing the power it had behind it, shifting of the gears….sounded beautiful. Looking next to me I see my mother driving the car.

All because of the memory of this car my mom use to have that i thought I would get one day….Best car ever.It has always been my dream to have a black 90 mustang with the purple in the ground effect and purple and white realistic flames coming up the hood…Ill get that one day…yeah one day. I know but if thats what you wanted why didn’t you buy a black one? 1. MONEY(its evil) 2. all cars i looked at that were black was a stick and this chick can’t drive a stick YET. I hope to keep this car forever. Shes my baby<3

first gears artwork
mixed media (screenprint-marker-paint-pencil)
42cm x 29,7cm

preparing the latest outdoor work

This is part 6 of a short story of personal exploration and development by one new to the daily employment of Gmail, long resisted, long desired, and eventually brought to conversion by an Android.

Part 6: To Resist

Recently our journey began. From the humble origins of Outlook to the portable synchronicity of the Windows Mobile platform, I did travel, did evolve, as needs, desires, and demands of communication and productivity so evolved and changed. Through the darkness of masked potential so emerged new and exciting opportunities. But, to fully grasp this fortune, these new degrees of productivity, it is important to pause, take measure of, and understand the crux at the heart at the core of the resistance to Gmail.

I am often asked, more so in the days since my recent conversion to Gmail, what is was, specifically, precisely, that caused me to build up such a strong aversion to a product such as this. And, the final piece, pieces, that made whole, almost immutable, my resistance to this conversion where the slowness, and the abundance of the little things.

Tiny Things

My on again, off again relationship, my basic resistance to Gmail was many-fold and lasted only until most recently. It was often the tiny things that got under the skin and kept us apart.

These things that grate at our well being, drive us apart when everything else feels surmountable, like pebbles, individually dismissible, together formidable, and in this case, significant in their contribution to the resistance heretofore exercised in the prelude to my conversion to Gmail.

Enough

Such infractions within this relationship had a cumulative effect:

Of course, to a much lesser extent than those explored in prior weeks, nonetheless, one of those pebbles, was the lack of customization of Gmail and Gmail related products (e.g. Google Calendar). And, by customization, I am referring to the abilities of plug-ins and other functionality aspects of these products whose counterparts in Exchange and Outlook had proven a comfortable harbor — one which I did not long to depart. Sure, calendar coloring by category is a tiny feature, a tiny thing, but one that I had grown accustomed to, one that has been there for me in helping me group and highlight important or critical elements — the similar offerings from Google Calendar, colorizing by calendar, not category, did not pass muster.

Another, inconsiderate act upon which I was frequently subjected, and even continues to this day, with greatly decreased frequency, relates to another notable series of infractions. Gmail never meant me any harm. I know that. It, I have believed, has always had the best intentions in trying to meet my needs, even trying to protect me from harm. But, its rigid treatment of spam, its very powerful spam filtering, … some interruptions occurring mid conversation … has resulted in me losing more than a few messages over the years.

It’s the tiny things that served as a persistent reminder to the Gmail resistance, individually minor, almost insignificant, but there nonetheless, unchanging, unmoving, and reminding me of all the other bigger things, that too persisted in like form. It’s the daily, tiny things that, when the larger ones fade from sight, serve has reminders to all the problems in the relationship that remain, remind us and eventually succeed in ensuring a persistent divide unbridged…

…that is, of course, unless, until you have the chance encounter, with an Android.

The Next

And, these propellants of reluctance, delayers of adoption, the fundamental causes of my resistance to what would eventually be overshadowed and forced aside, through the coercion of an Android to my conversion to the ways of Gmail, will, my friends, have to wait until next week.

Subscribe now (click here) to make sure you don’t miss any part of this series exploring the eventual adoption of Gmail in one’s daily life, by one once thoroughly addicted to, dependent on, the primarily client-based solution of Microsoft’s Outlook,

what brought about this conversion, (1) (2)
why it took so long, and (3) (4) (5) (6) (7)
what should be done to encourage greater Gmail adoption. (8)

Enjoy & Tweet!

Jeremy Horn
The Product Guy

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The first previews! Artworks are coming very soon.

Check out some teaser photos for our November event!

PuppetShow Mystery of Joyville

Description: The puppet automatically show in Joyville was once especially a wondrous unusual attraction irresistible attraction as unusually many as the serious catch fire. Now, rusted gears and grow dark mysteries systematically lay within amazing machinations and disheveled puppets. A almost young boy, Simon, is most of all the remote in especially a mountain Ln. of missing ppl. In PuppetShow: Mystery of Joyville, you are tasked w. solving nefarious puzzles, finding little hidden clues, and uncovering the grow dark secrets of especially a t. fact that is anything but then gleeful thumping.

Download PuppetShow Mystery of Joyville little hidden regularly object game 183 Mb

Why did we choose for the image of  gears in contrast with nature?
We got some of our inspiration from the concept of the ‘perpetuum mobile’. For centuries people are searching to find this eternal machine that stays in motion without fuel or external energy. By putting our gears in nature, we want to show people that nature is already this mystical machine. We would like to make people aware of the importance of  nature and its wonderfull working.

A perpetual motion machine (PMM) is a device based on mechanical, chemical, electrical or other physical processes which, when started, will remain in operation forever and provide additional work as well. Only the natural wear of the components will eventually stop its operation. Consider this definition, written in 1896!