tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-202177982024-02-07T21:07:55.692-05:00Technically SpeakingA blog about me, my work, and the gadgets that amuse & frustrate me.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-67232302057029217332010-03-03T23:40:00.004-05:002010-03-04T00:05:27.093-05:00Wiimote Whiteboard TestI was reading about some software that lets you use a wii remote & an IR light pen as a sort of poor man's smartboard. You can use it to add tablet PC capability to a regular LCD screen, or project a screen onto a wall and use the whole wall as a giant touchscreen. You can <a href="http://www.uweschmidt.org/wiimote-whiteboard">download the necessary software here</a>.<br /><br />Here is my quick test of concept using my MBP, a DVD remote for the IR LED, and a wii remote:<br /><br><br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/AjKDrybyAPg&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/AjKDrybyAPg&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br><br />This second video shows the original software's developer demonstrating the possibilities for this fun & useful concept:<br /><br><br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5s5EvhHy7eQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5s5EvhHy7eQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br><br />There you have it. If you are already using this wiimote whiteboard in an interesting way share it with us in the comments below.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-4218086605679124682009-06-01T20:31:00.007-04:002009-06-01T20:40:15.453-04:00Self-Portrait<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPrbgbSRVxDV4zYLCSYOK0vTaL5U9IfJprlnWK0NLFubyWYHCBogN_PqKHqLf_Wnh8DSmm1I_zeZdp71iHptG3RZXhuAqXm4pB2gv6hsx1zAoTpv9kCb6p2_8t8PNt9YrSAHQa/s1600-h/face.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPrbgbSRVxDV4zYLCSYOK0vTaL5U9IfJprlnWK0NLFubyWYHCBogN_PqKHqLf_Wnh8DSmm1I_zeZdp71iHptG3RZXhuAqXm4pB2gv6hsx1zAoTpv9kCb6p2_8t8PNt9YrSAHQa/s320/face.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342522144455019698" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I was messing around with Adobe Illustrator and created this blocky simulacrum. I'm obviously not adept with Illustrator yet, but I used to be pretty good with Fireworks. The two programs are somewhat similar in their basic function, but different enough to cause a modest learning curve. No matter; I'll get everything figured out eventually.</div><br>Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-90551757623229406372009-04-14T20:46:00.001-04:002009-04-14T20:46:46.143-04:00Computer illiteracy and American Television<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/ygB0ZviqXac' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/ygB0ZviqXac'/></object></p><p>I wanted to apply to the Secret Service when I finished college. Never got around to it before I landed my current job. Too bad, since all I had to do was tell them I can make a GUI in Visual Basic...</p></div>Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-71365786653949179212009-02-23T23:21:00.005-05:002009-02-23T23:30:41.122-05:00Turkey CrossingI encountered a small flock of turkeys my the way home from work on Friday. There were about a dozen of them, clumsily flapping their way up from the Schuylkill River. They flew across the road, and continued flapping up the mountainside. Here is the approximate location of the sighting: <br /><br /><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110924992491446163565.000463a25394c1bcca8ba&ll=40.57224,-76.002345&spn=0.01581,0.0418&z=15">Google Map</a><br /><br /><iframe width="425" height="350" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" src="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110924992491446163565.000463a25394c1bcca8ba&ll=40.57224,-76.002345&spn=0.01581,0.0418&t=h&output=embed&s=AARTsJrpL4wEY-U4rVPQP9MObjklfyQUVw"></iframe><br /><small><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110924992491446163565.000463a25394c1bcca8ba&ll=40.57224,-76.002345&spn=0.01581,0.0418&t=h&source=embed" style="color:#0000FF;text-align:left">View Larger Map</a></small>Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-24948796221388657782009-01-29T09:38:00.003-05:002009-01-29T09:42:28.728-05:00I'm on TwitterIf you've missed me, you can also follow my microblog on Twitter:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.twitter.com/zoomquick">www.twitter.com/zoomquick</a><br /><br>Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-59532578193590088092008-06-20T13:49:00.005-04:002008-11-13T15:32:58.370-05:00First WidgetWhile on my horribly long road trip last week, I started playing with Apple's developer environment, Xcode. Included in this package is a program called Dashcode which gives developers the ability to create nifty little widgets for OS X's Dashboard. Shown here is a widget I built using the tutorial:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAQYTS8BNt-06yQa2FeGMFZW-KRtJqKt-ccRgmdnOFzUuLqkBvzOF7GbE1Vyh9iKasCRfxqJmDHIf9vQtdw1wa9i7oafKq4jju8bBJeMAjmLF9u_1m4x9-UHkAryieZzJEEbf4/s1600-h/widget.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAQYTS8BNt-06yQa2FeGMFZW-KRtJqKt-ccRgmdnOFzUuLqkBvzOF7GbE1Vyh9iKasCRfxqJmDHIf9vQtdw1wa9i7oafKq4jju8bBJeMAjmLF9u_1m4x9-UHkAryieZzJEEbf4/s400/widget.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214023558187320866" /></a><br />It's a countdown to my birthday! The button on the bottom, when clicked, takes you to my Amazon.com Wishlist so you can buy me a nice present. If you want a copy of my widget for you computer, you can <a href="http://www.NovaPrecisionCasting.com/scot/ScotBD.zip">get it here (ZIP file, 3.9 MB)</a>.<br /><br />Disclaimer: Use my widget at your own risk. As I said, I built it using a modification of a tutorial from Apple, and therefore I do not know what I'm doing.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-48634811651985918982008-06-08T22:49:00.003-04:002008-06-08T22:58:17.631-04:00That's Bullshit!<p>If you are a console gaming enthusiast and you've never seen the Angry Video Game Nerd on YouTube, you'd better go watch his videos right now! In addition to his reviews of old, shitty games, AVGN also has a segment called "You Know What's Bullshit?" in which he rants on about whatever happens to make him upset at that particular moment. His second episode on the penny was featured on CNN.<br /><br />Shown here is episode 8. Its about printers, so it fits with my intended technical gizmo blog theme. Enjoy!</p><br /><br /><div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p><object height="350" width="425"><param value="http://youtube.com/v/bV0M9_NwMHY" name="movie"><embed height="350" width="425" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://youtube.com/v/bV0M9_NwMHY"></embed></object></p></div><br /><p>Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-5361113862641808542008-06-08T22:00:00.002-04:002008-06-08T22:04:21.441-04:00On the Road, Again...with my Mac!I'm back on the road! I'm on my way to Atchison, Kansas for a Steel Founder's Society meeting.<br /><br />Also, since my last post, I got a Mac. A MacBook Pro, to be exact. I had an iMac a few years ago, but it died in an involuntarily, self-inflicted incident (I think there's still a blog entry about it here). Now I'm back in Mac, and it's good to be back.<br /><br />So, I saw Blogger has a Dashboard widget for quick blog entries. I'm trying it out now. If you can read this, the widget is operational.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-68656686412934542782008-04-23T12:08:00.002-04:002008-04-23T12:12:34.380-04:00New BlogMy wife just started her first blog. <a href="http://zlatysews.blogspot.com">Click here</a> to check it out. We can only hope she'll post to her blog more often than I to mine.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-43108368921697264532008-03-06T11:36:00.003-05:002008-11-13T15:32:58.586-05:00Lights<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE8h_d-eeotjwB6MQf73cdo0GIuh-9lACnrboGZwRw3Au6K4eIC-RJ6m02ZALFY7d-dVAPAorfy2ZgqYnZ7sW9p5IcU3bHhz7wPeiUtFIW6Y5g75VGVk0buHRfv20cen_oEjyc/s1600-h/lights.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE8h_d-eeotjwB6MQf73cdo0GIuh-9lACnrboGZwRw3Au6K4eIC-RJ6m02ZALFY7d-dVAPAorfy2ZgqYnZ7sW9p5IcU3bHhz7wPeiUtFIW6Y5g75VGVk0buHRfv20cen_oEjyc/s200/lights.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174672118789931138" border="0" /></a><br />I'm back. I was pretty sick a week or so ago. I had the flu and an ear infection. Then I got a stomach virus. I think I'm all better and back to normal now.<br /><br />The fluorescent lights over my cubicle are particularly oppressive today. I can hear them buzzing... no, talking. They're mocking me. I'm stuck in this cubicle with half a window while the sun is shining outside. I've gotta get outta here!Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-19824110533045893742008-02-11T10:24:00.000-05:002008-02-11T10:30:37.938-05:00Day 02 - WhateverOk, so I didn't post as religiously to my blog as I had planned. So, here's a brief summary of what you missed:<br /><br />I played World of Warcraft, put some new light fixtures in my kitchen, played Wii, ate lots of junk food, played D&D while eating lots of junk food, played more WoW, and didn't post to my blog.<br /><br />That's about it. Oh, and I'm also starting to catch up on design and layout for new <a href="http://www.TrickyOwlbear.com">Tricky Owlbear</a> products, so get your money ready to buy a copy of "Behind the Monsters: Skeleton" in the next day or two.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-41104013001491766562008-01-10T08:53:00.000-05:002008-11-13T15:32:58.713-05:00Day 01<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizCFbBwGUVf2hRGibTCDhWwUeeliNzoYHBdcgVpZnZUeLzT4HLGjs0VzVURSfoTwMSiQyyxrrop5-T4ygPVs2CT06HKmGxMfi3ke7fSsDyNq9q1CUbymbJYOtk0QikVHTwAQof/s1600-h/desk.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizCFbBwGUVf2hRGibTCDhWwUeeliNzoYHBdcgVpZnZUeLzT4HLGjs0VzVURSfoTwMSiQyyxrrop5-T4ygPVs2CT06HKmGxMfi3ke7fSsDyNq9q1CUbymbJYOtk0QikVHTwAQof/s200/desk.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153867603582069394" /></a><br />My first day alone was less productive than I had originally intended. I went to work in the morning as usual (my messy cubicle desk shown here). When I got home, I considered a short nap since I had not slept well the night before, but I still couldn't sleep. Instead I laid in a zombie-like state in front of the TV for most of the evening.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-61375271452481246642008-01-09T12:05:00.001-05:002008-11-13T15:32:58.873-05:00Lunch<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6juZzvmA23_iOAbq1CCcJphAvVCUPFaBG88ZMnST-e5-hrT5XjiB4JvHhjP9N3j5dmIU6DgMv8FUGxU3IJowIkRNt3dJzhODLk4-sCQEDrxmbZK3c-ak3Obq-ve4IkX_kndS/s1600-h/bread_bowl.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6juZzvmA23_iOAbq1CCcJphAvVCUPFaBG88ZMnST-e5-hrT5XjiB4JvHhjP9N3j5dmIU6DgMv8FUGxU3IJowIkRNt3dJzhODLk4-sCQEDrxmbZK3c-ak3Obq-ve4IkX_kndS/s200/bread_bowl.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153524852306946690" /></a><br />This is today's lunch: an unusually large bread bowl full of beef stew. Yum!Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-17984960436622944872008-01-09T11:55:00.000-05:002008-01-09T11:56:59.424-05:00Day 00Last night my wife left to visit her relatives in Bulgaria. That leaves me all alone for the next 28 days. So, I have decided to use this time to complete some home improvement projects. I picked up a few supplies at IKEA on the way home from the airport. I will post details of my progress here, including pictures from my new Sony Cyber-shot camera (DSC-W80, a very excellent camera so far).Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-51441942070648010392007-06-09T21:04:00.000-04:002007-06-09T21:35:45.527-04:00Return of the BlogI have returned from my 1 1/2 years of blogging idleness. Since then I successfully graduated from Drexel and got a job with my <a href="http://novaprecisioncasting.com" target="_blank">dad's company </a>as Sales & Information Technology Manager. That's about it. Oh, except for the e-publishing corporation my brother and I are starting: <a href="http://www.trickyowlbear.com" target="_blank">Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc.</a><br /><br />I have at many times over the last 1 1/2 years considered blogging again. Every once in a while something would really piss me off, and I'd think "I should blog about that." Unfortunately, this is not one of those times. I'm sure another is coming soon, so be patient.<br /><br />That's it for now. Welcome back!Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-1139529225566126372006-02-09T12:44:00.000-05:002006-02-10T23:19:44.620-05:00School DazeYeah, it's been awhile. Nothing eats your leisure time like school work, immigration & tax forms, and job hunting.<br /><br />School is going well so far. I'm about halfway through the semester which usually means lots of midterm exams and projects will be due soon. For some reason, that has not been the case this time. Most of my classes already had mini-exams, with two or three more scheduled in later weeks. <br /><br />More professors have begun to dabble in using online learning products like <a href="http://www.webct.com/" target="_blank">WebCT</a>, <a href="http://www.blackboard.com" target="_blank">Blackboard</a>, and <a href="http://www.aplia.com" target="_blank">Aplia</a>, though to questionable effect. I particularly hate the odd selection of due times for online assignments. For example, my Macroeconomics class meets only once every Wednesday, but several small assignments are due throughout the week. So I have assignments due for this class on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday Nights, at 11:45pm. Why on those days and at that particular time? No reason I know of; and that's what makes it so frustrating. You may say "The prof needs time to correct the assignments so they can be returned to you on Wednesday." Well, no. The computer corrects the assignments for him. And even if it didn't, do you really think he's sitting at his computer at 11:45pm every night, waiting for us to finish our assignments? I think not. So, if you're gonna set a due time other than class time, why not make it something more meaningful like 8:00am. Then I have all night to work on it (as I like to do sometimes) and the prof would have all the results ready for him when he gets to his office in the morning.<br /><br />An update for my A+ Certification: I passed the first part of my exam, Hardware, and will take the second part, OS Technologies, as soon as I've finished brushing up on my Windows 95 DOS commands. I did fairly well on the hardware part, and I expect to do even better with the OS.<br /><br />There's your update. Time to get back to my school work. I think I have one of those Econ assignments due in a couple of hours...Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-1137091315843593962006-01-12T12:58:00.000-05:002006-01-12T17:12:43.290-05:00Blowing DustYeah, I haven't posted for a few days. Time to blow off the dust and post once more.<br /><br />My wife hates it when I blow dust off of things. She says I should use a rag to wipe the dust, but I find that much less satisfying. Blowing dust is an important step in going forward with numerous facets of life; from something as small as finishing a furniture project, to an important milestone like beginning a lifetime career.<br /><br />Some recent dust-related occurances:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/3331/2021/1600/corner_shelf.1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 3px 3px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/3331/2021/200/corner_shelf.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><li>Saw Dust - I got a cool, new toy at Sears last weekend; <a href="http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?vertical=TOOL&bidsite=&pid=00961120000" target="_blank">a rotary tool</a>. It can cut, grind, sand, etch, trim, plane, drill, cut, polish, carve, and cut. So far I used it to drill screw holes into two old, triangular desk parts. I then combined them to form a simple corner shelf.<br /><br /><li>Dusty Books - With my holiday vacation over, it's time to dust off the school books and get back to my studies. This quarter I'll be facing another C++ programming course, food science (mmm...science), a 4-hour evening macroeconomics class, and two Information Science classes. The first of those is a continuation of a class I took last quarter. I'm working with a group of 5 other students to develop a system to remind medical patients of their appointments via phone, email, or SMS text messages. The second is a class focusing on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Competitive_Intelligence" target="_blank">Competitive Intelligence</a> (CI). Through CI techniques, a company can legally and ethically gather information about its competitors and the marketplace in general. This intelligence is then used to make better strategic business decisions.<br /><br /><li>Dusty Resumé - As I complete my academic obligations and prepare to return to the real world, I must chronicle what I have learned and experienced, on an 8½-11" sheet of paper, so that someone might see it and be willing to pay me money for the use of my abilities. I haven't adjusted my resumé since I was hired for my second co-op back in the summer of 2002. I've been putting it off until I complete my A+ certification, just so I have something else to add to my marketability. I'll be taking the hardware part of the test tomorrow, and the OS part sometime next week. Wish me luck!Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-1136351077571209212006-01-03T16:41:00.000-05:002006-01-04T00:04:37.606-05:00Computer #4, UpdateI finally got the case, motherboard and power supply for my wife's computer. After four hours of assembly in the tight space of this cute, little case, it's not much closer to being a computer than when I started. I booted it up and it went through the normal POST and such. I thought I was in the clear. But then there was Windows. The hard drive I am using is salvaged from a non-functional Compaq Presario. When it was time for Windows to start, I got the <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/windowsserver2003/library/ServerHelp/e14bf84d-d2f7-42c3-9fae-2af3db3f806c.mspx" target="_blank">F8 pre-start screen</a> because the last computer was not shutdown correctly. Ok, that's not so bad. But when I selected the "Start Normally" option, the computer rebooted. When I selected "Safe Mode", the computer rebooted. I guess I've got more work to do...Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-1136019403171093302005-12-31T02:53:00.000-05:002005-12-31T03:56:55.090-05:00I Can Read!I've been doing an unsual amount of reading over my holiday vacation. I just recently finished "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey. This was a good book about how to live your life through principles and to respect and help others to do the same. Most of the habits are common sense things that you don't give much thought to until you see it in writing. These 7 habits are effective in both professional and domestic settings. <br /><br />I first heard about this book from the professor of my CSCW (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer-supported_cooperative_work" target="_blank">Computer-Supported Cooperative Work</a>) class. He often mentioned how he felt the 7 habits in this book helped him to be a better manager. His style was to give people task, then let them accompish the tasks without trying to mirco-manage their efforts. The individual could approach the task using their own unique talents, thereby creating equally unique, creative solutions to the problem. <br /><br />My current read is a book called "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by by Robert Kiyosaki & Sharon Lechter. The book describes the reasons why the rich remain rich and the middle and lower classes remain poor through examples and narratives of Robert Kiyosaki's life. The "rich dad" is the high-school educated, but financial-savvy father of Kiyosaki's best friend. The "poor dad" is a very highly-educated school teacher and father of Kiyosaki. What initially intrigued me about this book was when I read a passage about how poor dad always said something along the lines of "Work hard to get good grades in school so you can go to college and get a secure, high-paying job." As this is something my dad always says to me, I knew I had to get this book and find out rich dad's perspective on the issue. <br /><br />So far its a great book, challenging long-standing assumptions about money and finances. For example, the poor and middle class view their house as their greatest asset, because they can use it as collateral to borrow money to pay off credit cards, bills, or buy more stuff. Of course with the credit cards paided off, the poor and middle class people will likely use them to buy stuff and go into debt again. The rich, however, view a house as a liability because of the numerous utility bills and property taxes. Plus, any money borrowed against the value of the home is money that must be paid back over a long period of time, with interest. So, the rich settle for the stuff they have right now or take the loan, then invest their money into buying income-generating assets (stocks, bonds, real estate, intellectual propery, <span style="font-style:italic;">etc.</span>).<br /><br />Lastly, I'm also reading a prep book for the <a href="http://www.comptia.org/certification/a/default.aspx" target="_blank">A+ Certification exams</a>. I plan to take the tests sometime next week. Now I will finally have a piece of paper that says I know how to do what I've been doing for friends, family, and co-workers for years: fixing computers.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-1135752974566032342005-12-28T01:31:00.000-05:002005-12-28T01:56:14.573-05:00Computer #4The barebones kit I was waiting for did not arrive. Apparently, that particular one never will.<br /><br />I ordered this kit to put together a new computer for my wife for Christmas. The order for my item was received at the warehouse on December 9, and shipped later that day. December 16, early in the morning, it arrived from California (I chose the cheapest and slowest 1-5 day ground shipping method) at the UPS hub in Philadelphia. At 11:30am, I went downstairs to pick up my package. But, the package wasn't there. Later that evening, the <a href="http://wwwapps.ups.com/WebTracking/processInputRequest?HTMLVersion=5.0&loc=en_US&Requester=UPSHome&tracknum=1ZW960F10315294593&AgreeToTermsAndConditions=yes&track.x=38&track.y=12" target="_blank">UPS website</a> said that my package was "damaged". Three hours later, my "damaged" package was reported as "missing". I guess the "damaged", "missing" package was later found, because it made it's way back to California a week later. In California, the package was forwarded to another sorting hub; the wrong sorting hub. Three days after that, on December 27, the item was finally returned to Newegg. My refund is currently being processed. The belated Christmas present is still pending.<br /><br />I was a little surprised that Newegg didn't just ship another kit to me instead of defaulting to a refund. That's OK though, because I looked at their site today and discovered that the exact same kit I ordered is now $15 cheaper. I guess when they finish processing my refund, I'll buy it at the new price, and use some of the money I've saved to ship it with a different carrier. :-)Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20217798.post-1135674276040774012005-12-27T03:26:00.000-05:002005-12-27T04:07:44.916-05:00здравей!здравей and hello! Welcome to my shiny, new web log (i.e. "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog" target="_blank">blog</a>").<br /><br />In case you don't already know, I am a Senior at Drexel University in Philadelphia, studying Information Systems. I live in a tiny, one-bedroom apartment with my loving, Bulgarian wife and three computers (soon to be four, but I'll get to that later).<br /><br />Like many others, my blog is conceived from boredom. I am currently in the 2nd week of my three-week holiday vacation. Many people I know have been or are starting to blog (see <a href="http://dmbretb.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Freelancer's Rest</a> and <a href="http://badmojo74.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Chilled Monkey Brains</a>). So, why not join them? As you can see, I couldn't think of any reasons why I shouldn't; and so I have.<br /><br />I guess that's a good start. Click in tomorrow for the promised story of my fourth computer. Whether it will be a happy or sad story depends on the UPS guy showing up in the morning with my long-anticipated <a href="http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16856160011" target="_blank">case, power supply, and motherboard</a>.Scothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10708558761744847132noreply@blogger.com2