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Solar panels have gotten so cheap that installers are seeking new ways to push down the cost per clean kilowatt. One answer: Get rid of the humans !
Behind a high fence in Menlo Park, Calif. a gray, tuna-shaped robot glides on a monorail around 20 solar panel arrays attached to steel poles, like WALL-E on a Disneyland ride. The Solbot, made by startup QBotix, stops at each array and extends a cylindrical arm to adjust the angle of the photovoltaic panels so they capture the most amount of sun as it moves across the sky and through the seasons.
Via Pol Bacquet


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From the University of Alabama to University Mall, residents and troops alike gathered Monday to commemorate Veterans Day and honor those who have served in the nation's military.
From the University of Alabama to University Mall, residents and troops alike gathered Monday to commemorate Veterans Day and honor those who have served in the nation's military.
More than 200 people filled Veterans Memorial Park in front of University Mall on McFarland Boulevard for the annual celebration there, but this year it was a joint program hosted by the Veterans Memorial Park Association and the Tuscaloosa Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
In years past, these two groups held separate — and, at times, competing — programs to honor military veterans.
"We decided this year that we'd join forces for a bigger and better program," said Maria Andrews, director of the Tuscaloosa Veterans Administration Medical Center. "Those who served selflessly ... deserve this and so much more."
The guest speaker for the ceremony at University Mall was Willie J. Williams, a Stillman College graduate who rose to lieutenant general, one of the highest ranks within the U.S. Marine Corps, before retiring in July after almost 40 years of service.
"I am truly honored to return home," Williams said.
During his speech, Williams said troops who are enlisted now or served in the past have direct ties to this nation's history.
He praised the sacrifices made by residents who leave the citizenry and join the military.
Williams noted that less than 1 percent of the population now serves in the military, compared to about 9 percent who were enlisted or served in some capacity during World War II.
"And yet," Williams said, "we as a people, we continue to enjoy the freedoms this country ... (that) we have come to expect."
He said the nation would overcome this deficit because "the human will lives in each of us" and because our troops are not committed to fighting for a person, but for an idea.
"We don't swear allegiance to a king or queen. We swear allegiance to a piece of paper: the U.S. Constitution," Williams said to a spontaneous round of applause.
The program also included members of the Marine Corps League Howlin "Mad" Smith Detachment 592 performing a re-enactment of the Iwo Jima flag raising during World War II.
On the University of Alabama Quad in front of the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library, a group gathered to mark the holiday at an event sponsored by the university's Office of Veteran and Military Affairs.
Retired U.S. Air Force Col. Duane Lamb, the assistant vice president for facilities and grounds at UA, said that veterans from many of the country's conflicts of the past century had walked the UA campus.
"Truly these are great American heroes among us," he said, noting that many of the recent veterans on campus served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
UA's support and honoring of veterans was among the reasons the campus has been deemed a Purple Heart University, Lamb said.
The designation is meant to show a community's support for the recipients of the medal by the same name.
Lamb, commander of the Tuscaloosa Chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart organization, said he applied to the national office for UA to become just the second university nationwide to receive the designation that typically is applied to cities and counties.
"I feel the designation was appropriate for the University of Alabama," Lamb said.
A plaque commemorating UA's designation as a Purple Heart University was presented to UA President Judy Bonner during halftime of the LSU game on Saturday. It will be installed near B.B. Comer Hall, where the Office of Veteran and Military Affairs is located.
Monday, the university also remembered veterans with an event at the Walk of Champions to honor the 6,740 fallen veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wars by lighting luminarias. The event also featured a roll call of the fallen Alabama military service personnel.
Retired troops said it was events like these that keep them in the hearts and minds of the people they swore to protect.
"I thought it was very inspirational," said retired Navy 1st Class Seaman Paul Jones, 80, who served in the Korean War but sat alone as he watched the Veterans Day ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park. "An event like this is very meaningful to me because I love our country."
It was meaningful to Tuscaloosa residents and friends Willie Carter, 66, and James Duncan, 68, who are both retired Army sergeants who served in the Vietnam war.
But they, along with retired Army Spc. James Foster, 63, who served in the Korean War, noticed the omission of Vietnam veterans from Monday's ceremony.
"We'd just like to be recognized like everyone else," Duncan said.
"We're human, also," said Foster, adding that he experienced first-hand getting spit upon and labeled a "baby killer" upon his return to the U.S.
But retired Navy Capt. Finis H. Prendergast Jr., who assisted the Exchange Club of Tuscaloosa in handing out all 200 of the small U.S. flags brought in for the Veterans Memorial Park celebration, said these annual events are meant to honor every American soldier to wear a uniform or fight in a conflict.
"To me," Prendergast said, "this Veterans Day is (for citizens) to show their appreciation and also (for veterans) to stand up and show they served.
"They protected America."
Staff Writer Ed Enoch contributed to this report.
Reach Jason Morton at email@example.com or 205-722-0200.

subset: commoncrawl


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Area 54 / Marty Friedman
The Underworld, Camden, London, England
2nd April 2007
Review and pics by HannTu
Anyone calling himself a metal fan needs no introduction to Marty Friedman. Anyone calling himself a guitar aficionado needs no introduction to Marty Friedman. On the off chance that a non metalhead, non guitarist, is visiting Metal-Rules.com, where should we start with Marty Friedman? Ah heck, go and Wikipedia him, I'm here to talk about the gig in London.
Touring on the back of his latest solo album LOUDSPEAKER, Marty Friedman takes an accomplished band with him on a journey that includes Holland, the UK, Germany and Israel. He is accompanied by the wild and wacky Ron Jarzombek on guitar, the experienced drummer Jeremy Colson and bassist Chris Catero. For the London leg of the tour, they are joined by local boys and winner of the numerous best-new-band awards in the year 2000, Area 54.
Area 54
I have mixed feelings about this band. I'd never heard of their material before tonight so I was going into this completely unbiased. What I heard alternately disappointed and excited me. They started off the evening with sheer pace and energy and never let up. I've not seen a band so energetic on stage since Dragonforce. The two guitarists swapped places every five seconds on a tiny stage the size of a Subway sandwich, almost never pausing for a moment. On that tiny stage, us front row people nearly had our heads taken off every time they spun and got into position for mock guitar duels. They played the gig like it was a 10 000 strong arena: in this tiny club of capacity 300 at most, they posed, preened, and basically acted like million dollar rock stars (think Kiss and Manowar). They definitely had stage presence, and their confidence was amazing. I've never seen a drummer ham it up so much, he almost forgot to drum!!! Stick twirls, OTT drum rolls, exaggerated cymbal crashes and highlighted extended splashes, with the accompanying facial expressions of agony, ecstasy, humour and pervo. Their guitarists had obviously watched School of Rock and taken a few lessons to heart: legs wide, wider, wider – time to solo, lean back, eyes closed mouth open and orgasm. "Scream for me Long Beach Arena" you expected him to cry.
It's unfortunate then, that their music was really nothing to shout about. In a day when bands are popping up daily thanks to MySpace, you really need something to stand out, and I think Area 54 need to take that extra step to be a band people will talk about. Their performance was competent and high octane, and certainly worthy to headbang to. However their material felt like recycled Iron Maiden riffs and Metallica solos. The bass was there to provide low end, nothing else. He played nothing worthy of note all evening, he kept the groove well and followed the rhythm guitar, but nothing else. The drummer, as mentioned before, was busy preening and posing, which was good for a laugh, but also did nothing of substance. He kept the beat, injected some humour and aggression, but did nothing else. The guitarists, while able to play and definitely possessing the technique (and flashy fingers!), but they also seemed one-dimensional, and there was nothing that was really able to hold the interest for very long. At times, they seemed to be playing the same thing. For god's sake, with two guitars in the band, use them! Arpeggiate, or play a harmony, or in a different key, or some fills, anything for some variation! There were some nice twin solos and harmonies that had me going for a while, but it sadly tapered off. Their only highlight of the evening as far as I was concerned, was their performance of Megadeth's Tornado of Souls, which was not bad and certainly had us moving and singing along.
They certainly have potential, and the guitarists certainly have the skill to make it in the metal world. Sadly, they need to buck up their ideas and find something fresh. I'd take their music over nu-metal riffing any day, but that's not saying much either.
Marty Friedman-san
Ah so! The great Marty Friedman on our doorstep, and I could hardly wait. The man best known for his work in Cacophony and his collaboration with Jason Becker, his omnipresence on Japanese TV and the Japanese music scene, his instructional videos and guitar clinics, as well as his endorsement with Ibanez. And of course, the small matter of Megadeth, where as far as I'm concerned, he comprised the classic lineup that will be THE Megadeth for many people.
Marty for me always stood out from the other guitarists, I have to admit, firstly because of his weird technique, both left and right-hand. He performed in Malaysia once, which I missed, but a friend told me about this numbskull who, at the Q&A session asked Marty why he had such a silly looking technique. Understandably Marty wasn't too happy about it.
But he also stands out in the way he approaches the guitar, as a trade and as an art. He made his name with Cacophony and Jason Becker, where he could be said to have equaled Vinnie Moore and Yngwie Malmsteen in the fad-of-the-time, the neo-classical shred era. However, he branched off to Megadeth and their brand of thrash metal, imparting his unique style onto classic albums like RUST IN PEACE. But he's never been one to tie himself down to one genre or style. Where Malmsteen kept producing the same thing over and over again, where Michael Angelo Batio seemed more intent on breaking the sound barrier than writing good songs, where people like Impellitteri and Vinnie Moore rose, shone brightly and faded away, Marty has kept reinventing himself and his special brand of guitar playing. His instructional videos are to be recommended to any guitar players of any level of proficiency, because his philosophy is simple yet profound: Be different.
We all know Marty can shred (MUSIC FOR SPEEDING was aptly named) but he also has something that Michael Angelo and Impellitteri don't, that is the ability to slow things down. He has an impeccable Vai-esque ear for harmony and melody, he has the ability to ask what fits the mood of the song other than a 32nd blazing three-note-per-string scalar run? Honestly, ask yourselves, when was the last time you heard Marty use a generic pentatonic blues scale? Weird bends, funny scale patterns, Eastern, Oriental and Arabic influences – they all make the listener sit up and take note. And so The Underworld in Camden, London was ready to sit up and take note.
Chants of "Marty! Marty!" greeted him as he launched straight into the set. His classic MUSIC FOR SPEEDING was well represented, as was his newest (IMHO, better) album LOUDSPEAKER, although there was only one from TRUE OBSESSIONS. You got a sense that we were in for a treat tonight. And we were duly treated to a virtuoso performance. The band as a whole were very good. Ron Jarzombek is an extremely good guitarist, and it certainly must be a tribute to Marty's playing that Ron is willing to take a back seat. Not that he couldn't speed it up and flash it around too, oh boy, did he ever when given a chance. Chris is an absolute monster on bass, a real livewire and a massive ball of energy. He showed us what he had with a few subtle and probably unnoticed licks that really enhanced the performance.
But the star of the evening did not disappoint, no sir he didn't. Perfect execution of the songs, seamless transitions, brilliant and flashy solos, crunchy and aggressive rhythms, melodic, heavy, fast, in-your-face, mellow, emotional, pissed off, raunchy, sweat-dirt-and-cowboy-boots, we saw and heard it all. Highlights surely must include the emotional "Devil Take Tomorrow" and "Lust for Life" (I told you I liked it when he slowed it down!) and the fast and upbeat "Elixir". I only have a couple of tiny minor insignificant gripes. One is that his stage banter can be improved. I mean, 300 screaming fans can't have overwhelmed him so much that he lost his tongue??? Two, his jokes were awful! Work on it Marty! Three, he kept chucking picks to the centre and back of the crowd, when everyone knows that it's us poor saps in the front row that lined up for two hours outside the venue to get front row, whereas those at the back came late, or couldn't be bothered with the opening band, or put the demands of their bladder and/or thirst before the show. Work on it Marty!
Seriously though, it was a great night for all who came, and the band looked like they enjoyed themselves as well. The crowd definitely did. And the signing and photography session afterwards was just the icing on the cake. Here's hoping that Marty passes through the UK again!
1. Namida
2. Elixir
3. Anvils
4. Gimme a Dose
5. Street Demon
6. It's The Unreal Thing
7. Fuel Injection Stingray
8. Stigmata Addiction
9. Lust for Life
10. Devil Take Tomorrow
11. Tibet
12. Angel
13. Paradise Express
14. Ripped
15. Cheer Girl Rampage
16. Thunder March
17. Ballad of the Barbie Bandits
18. Dragon Mistress
19. Hound Dog


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Published: 2013/01/15
Dawes Reveal New Album Details
Dawes will release their third album Stories Don't End on April 9. The band left ATO Records last year and have decided to release the new album through their own label in conjunction with Q Prime, their management company. Stories Don't End was recorded over five weeks in Asheville, NC last September. As previously reported, Dawes are currently playing on the Cayamo Music Cruise. The band have also scheduled a few shows with Dr. Dog in Portland, OR and Seattle, WA for April 26 and 28 respectively. They will be announcing more spring and summer 2013 tour dates in the near future. You can check out the feature article on Dawes from the July/August 2011 issue of Relix here.


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Gymnocalycium saglionis
Gymnocalycium saglionis plant
You can adjust the quantity you are buying in your Pay Pal shopping cart.
Total shipping and handling is $3 on all orders.
All plants are shipped using priority mail with delivery confirmation. Plants are no longer shipped in the months of January, February and into March.
All plants are shipped Bare-root.
| seeds | plants | cactus soil | climate | insects | contact | ordering |
All Content © 2004-2017 Windowsill Cactus. Photography: Stan Starbuck. Web Graphics and Design: Ann Stretton/Ann-S-Thesia.com. Jewelry used on individual cactus pages available at Ann's Gemstone Jewelry. No images may be used without permission. Disclamer


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Christmas at Concordia: Journey to Bethlehem at 8 p.m. Monday presents a Christmas concert filled with holiday favorites performed by the world-renowned choirs and compositions of artistic director and composer, Rene Clausen.
Chicago's Music of the Baroque Chorus and Brass ensemble performs Renaissance and Baroque renditions of the season's most joyful carols in the exquisite Chapel of the Holy Spirit on A Renaissance Christmas at 9 p.m. Monday.
Celebrating its 88th year, the National Christmas Tree Lighting at 10 p.m. Monday will signal the start of the holiday season across the country and include performances by some of the most recognizable names in entertainment.
Nova at 7 p.m. Tuesday and 10 p.m. Saturday presents "Hunting the Hidden Dimension", the dramatic story of a group of pioneering mathematicians who developed fractals, a revolutionary new branch of math that is touching nearly every branch of understanding from what happened after the Big Bang and the ultimate fate of our universe.
In the midst of recession, Frontline at 8 p.m. Tuesday investigates how the middle class is faring through the eyes and stories of well-to-do bankers, struggling actors and a hair salon owner in New York City.
A look at life in an American town explores the interactions between people and their community on Independent Lens at 9 p.m. Tuesday.
The Territory, back-to-back episodes at 10 and 10:30 p.m., showcases new directions in film and video. These films offer a provocative mix of experimental, documentary, narrative, and animated shorts that allows the audience to take TV trips around the world and to major U.S. media festivals.
Natalie Cole and David McCullough join the Mormon Tabernacle Choir for the annual Christmas concert from Salt Lake City on Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Individual stories from key figures in the art world's first international avant-garde depict how living in Paris transformed them and their work on Paris The Luminous Years at 8 p.m. Wednesday.
Country singer/songwriter Kenny Chesney delivers classic hits from his latest compilation Greatest Hits: Vol 2 on Austin City Limits at 10 p.m. Wednesday and 9 p.m. Friday.
Former US Senator Bill Bradley discusses his career and political views on Overheard with Evan Smith at 7 p.m. Thursday and 8:30 p.m. Friday.
Opera diva Frederica von Stade narrates The Singing Life at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, a moving look at the phenomenon of singing through the eyes and voices of Chanticleer, the internationally known male choral ensemble, and teenagers in a small town high school choir.
Set during San Francisco's 1915 Pan-Pacific Exposition, the San Francisco Ballet's rendition of the Nutcracker presents the charming story, dazzling choreography and magnificent Tchaikovsky score that have made it one of the most popular and enduring ballets in the world on Dance in America: San Francisco Ballet's Nutcracker at 8 p.m. Thursday.
Georgia rockers The Black Crowes bring both fan favorites and songs from their new album "Before the Frost" to the picturesque town of Oxford, Mississippi for a special performance on Live From The Artist's Den at 10 p.m. Friday.
Eclectic singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Andrew Bird dazzles with songs from his album "Noble Beast" on Austin City Limits at 7 p.m. Saturday, followed by the imaginative indie pop of St. Vincent.


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Russian Meteor: Chelyabinsk Asteroid Had Violent Past 24
astroengine (1577233) writes "The asteroid that hit Earth last year and exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia, had a prior crash record. Fragments of the asteroid recovered after the powerful Feb. 15, 2013, airburst show it contained an unusual form of the mineral jadeite embedded in glassy structures known as shock veins. Shock veins typically form when the parent body of a meteor or asteroid collides with a larger object in space. Heat and pressure from the impact cause rock to melt. It later reforms bearing vein-shaped patterns. 'Impact-induced jadeite has been found from other shocked meteorites. However, a unique point of the Chelyabinsk jadeite is that it seems to have crystallized from melt. To my knowledge, previously reported jadeite in other meteorites is considered to have formed (by solid-state reaction) without melting,' graduate student Shin Ozawa, with Japan's Tohoku University, wrote in an email to Discovery News."


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Original URL: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/20/panasonic_dmfc_demo/
Panasonic to demo 20-hour laptop-friendly fuel cell
Laptop battery and stand-alone charger developed
Posted in Personal Tech, 20th October 2008 11:53 GMT
Panasonic will show off its latest developments in Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFC) this week. The highlight is a power pack capable of delivering a charge continuously for 20 hours.
Panasonic's DMFC: can power laptops for up to 20 hours
The fuel cell achieves this on just 200cc of methanol, Panasonic said. The battery has a 270cc volume and the ability to provide between 10W and 20W of power. It weighs about 320g, but that's excluding fuel - Panasonic didn't say what filling the tank does for the unit's weight.
A DMFC standalone gadget charger
Panasonic has also developed a standalone DMFC charger which has two USB ports and can be used to charge up all manner of gadgets, including mobile phones and MP3 players. The 360cc DMFC weighs about 350g, again excluding fuel.
Panasonic will display both DMFC gadgets at the Hydrogen Energy Advanced Technology Exhibition 2008 in Fukuoka, Japan on Wednesday. But the firm doesn't plan to launch any such devices commercially until the end of 2012.
Rival Toshiba has been much more bullish about its plans for fuel cell power and recently hinted to Register Hardware that it may launch fuel cell-based products on a commercial scale within the next few months. Problems such as government regulation and fuel distribution methods are still causing Toshiba some headaches, though, the firm admitted.


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Cards Learn Culture
NEW BREMEN — He can be called flat, but his adventures are anything but one-dimensional.
Third-graders at New Bremen Elementary are receiving letters from around the world from their globe-trotting friend Flat Stanley, part of a project teacher Jenny Perryman said teaches letter writing, map skills and cultural understanding.
The project begins with reading a book about a character named Flat Stanley. According to Caden Puthoff, in the book Stanley is accidentally flattened at a friend's house, then sent off in an envelope to visit his friend in California after discovering it is cheaper to travel by mail than airplane.
"He got flattened by a bulletin board," Victoria Solorzano said.
The book series follows Stanley's adventures and provides a Stanley for students to cut out and mail.
"We each colored our own Flat Stanley," Margaret Hirschfeld said.
Some students colored as many as ten Stanley characters. On the back is a letter written by the teachers explaining the project and giving a little information about New Bremen.
Then the students started collecting addresses, trying to find people as far away as possible to mail their characters to.
Trevor Bergman sent his to Arizona, while Tate Roetgerman sent it to an uncle in China and Katie Fleming sent hers to cousins in California.
"I sent my Stanley to Hawaii to my aunt's aunt," Gabi Heckman said. "She sent back pictures of Hawaii."
Grant Wilker's aunt travels to Washington, DC, and was able to get a picture of Stanley at the White House. Lily Erb's Stanley has already been to New York, and may go to England.
Mara Brackman sent her Stanley to a friend in California, who took a picture of Stanley on a double decker bus.
The letter asks people to describe their weather, what people wear, and the kind of jobs people work in the area. Then people are asked to send something back from where they are and to send Stanley on his journey.
Perryman said many people write back letters of what they did with Stanley, where others go so far as to write back from his perspective. Tuesday, students received chocolate from Germany, one of Stanley's more recent adventures. Stanley has even had a picture taken at the podium used by the President of the United States to give speeches.
The third-graders ask every few days about what they get in the mail, and appreciate the gifts from around the world.
"One of the things I really liked, we got a lot of pencils that were souvenirs," Janelle Hagen said.
Perryman said one important part of the lesson is about letter writing. In a world full of electronic devices, many students have never mailed anything before, and their parents rarely mail things, so they often don't know how to address a letter.
The other lesson it teaches is tolerance.
"Sometimes they think that in China everyone walks around in traditional clothing," Perryman said. "This teaches them different cultures, but also that people are really like us."


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Here comes everybody else
Our color in the Crayola box of "flesh tones" shouldn't determine our place in the church.
Corporate reorganizations have become so common that they hardly merit mention, even when the corporation in question is the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The USCCB has been under steady pressure to reduce costs and has just completed a process of "streamlining." As anyone who's been reorganized or streamlined well knows, that means cutting staff and departments.
Some surprising victims of the organizational ax were the offices devoted to the various ethnic, linguistic, and cultural groups in the church. The once-separate secretariats for Hispanic affairs and African American Catholics, along with the office for migrants and refugees, were reduced to subcommittees in a new Office for Cultural Diversity in the Church, joining new subcommittees for Native Americans and Asians and Pacific Islanders. Three ministries that once required 15 employees are now five that need only 11 workers.
The National Catholic Council for Hispanic Ministry (NCCHM), comprising more than 60 ministry groups, universities, publishers, and religious communities, responded with a strongly worded letter presented to the U.S. bishops at their November meeting in Baltimore. The NCCHM expressed two concerns: first, that ministry to Hispanic Catholics, the coming majority of the church in the United States, would be diminished; and second, that the new office "structurally divides the church into two groups-one for Catholics who are white, and the other for Catholics who are not." The latter should raise eyebrows, as it in effect accuses the bishops of a kind of racism, though the NCCHM expresses certainty that it was unintended.
But the council's statement should give us all pause because it contains no small amount of truth. A snapshot of the groups served by the new committee would show its members to be generally poorer, darker in skin tone, and less likely to speak English as a first language than Catholics not judged "diverse." The label "Hispanic" alone covers such an amazing variety of national and cultural groups that it almost breaks under the pressure.
Even more, how is it that an office for "cultural diversity" excludes the current yet shrinking majority: "white" or Euro-American Catholics. Which do they lack: culture or diversity? The irony becomes richer when we recall that "white" Catholics were nothing of the sort two generations ago, when the mainstream white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant majority looked down their prim noses at the papist ethnics who didn't speak English (and even at the Irish who did). Their children became "white" only when they joined the professional classes and elected a Catholic president.
We should, of course, have some compassion for our bishops. Given the history of this country, issues of immigration, race, class, and language make up one enormous minefield. But how we Catholics negotiate being a multicultural, multiethnic, multilingual institution of millions of people could set the tone for how the rest of the country manages the same transition in the years ahead.
First on the list of things to do is to remember that our church is both one and catholic. Our unity charges us to hold the whole human family together. Our catholicity no less demands that we value equally the many varieties our family contains, regardless of their numbers in any one place. There can be no majority rule among the People of God, though the current, newly "white," English-speaking majority sometimes has behaved as if there were. Even when Hispanic American Catholics outnumber all others, the unique needs of African or Vietnamese American Catholics will require no less attention.
With this in mind, we U.S. Catholics of every race and language should heed the NCCHM's pledge and call to "work even closer with our bishops" as we struggle to value in word and deed both our unity and our diversity. "White" Catholics like me need to stop thinking of ourselves as the norm against which "diversity" is defined, an attitude that has at times made the church as unjust as the society around it. For their part Catholics currently officially labeled "diverse," perhaps through organizations such as the NCCHM and the National Black Catholic Congress, must push harder than ever to keep us all honest to our catholicity, in which unity shines equally in its many hues and voices.


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Unfortunately, all the Brownie workshops are sold out, but discounted admission tickets are still available for Girl Scouts (and their families) for Girl Scout Day at Old Sturbridge Village on Saturday, Nov. 7. Admission is just $7 per person.
To register, visit www.osv.org/orders/listprograms.html?ID=19&GID=13
The organization's spring event attracted more than 1,800 Girl Scouts. Saturdays, event is sponsored by the Girl Scouts of Central & Western Massachusetts and the Boy Scouts.


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FARES for business-class seats on domestic flights are hovering near 20-year lows as Qantas and Virgin slug it out for the most lucrative passengers.
The latest government figures reveal that fares for business seats this month are almost a third cheaper in real terms than in 2003 - the base line for aviation statistics.
The figures, released yesterday, show that business fares this month - when adjusted for inflation - are about 40 per cent cheaper than in October last year, just before Virgin began an assault aimed at breaking Qantas' stranglehold on the corporate travel market.
The Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics index shows business fares touched their lowest level in July when they were 35.8 per cent below the base line in 2003. They were also the cheapest since the bureau began keeping records on fares in October 1992.
This month they are only a touch above the lows reached in July.
The battle between budget airlines Jetstar and Tiger Airways also remains intense, which is keeping ticket prices down on domestic routes.
So-called ''best discount'' fares this month are almost a third cheaper than they were in 2003, and 9 per cent lower than in October last year. Tiger was still recovering in the latter part of last year from its forced grounding by the aviation watchdog due to safety concerns.
Virgin chief executive John Borghetti has described the discounting for business travellers as the most aggressive it has been since ''way before'' the collapse of Ansett in 2001.
Although Virgin has been able to boost its share of corporate travel, Corporate Travel Management chief executive Jamie Pherous said he believed it would become harder for Australia's second-largest airline after the ''easy market-share moves''.
Qantas has had a vice-like grip on the corporate travel market - estimated to be worth about $3.5 billion a year - since Ansett's collapse.
Mr Pherous said the demand from companies for air travel was steady, and a cut in interest rates this month was likely to give a boost to the sector. ''All in all, activity is very steady,'' he said.


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I would like to thank Linda MacDonald for writing such a lovely article about me and my blog in the magazine, I am honored beyond words.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
I would like to thank Linda MacDonald for writing such a lovely article about me and my blog in the magazine, I am honored beyond words.
48 comments:
- Restyled Home said...
You are so sweet! Thank you for the mention and I was honoured to feature you and your blog. You know your home is one of my favourites, and if I was cool like you, my house would look look yours!
I am so glad you are enjoying the magazine!
- February 20, 2010 at 10:46:00 AM GMT+8
- cakegirl said...
I would love to spend an afternoon flipping thru that magazine. Spring is a long way off, but I will have fun dreaming of the upcoming outdoor flea markets.
- February 20, 2010 at 12:27:00 PM GMT+8
- Coco said...
Woo hoo... I would love a copy. I will probably wear it out looking at it. I have only heard good things about it.
How is the packing going?
- February 20, 2010 at 8:44:00 PM GMT+8
- Claudia said...
Hi Linda, Just wanted to say congrats on your mention in the magazine. I just found a copy yesterday and am having a great time reading it. You deserve it - you are the queen of flea market style.
- February 20, 2010 at 9:16:00 PM GMT+8
- C.E.R. said...
I would love to look through this new mag with a hot cup of joe...and my fingers are crossed that the "wonderful vintage treasure" from your collection is one of those chairs in your header. :O
- February 20, 2010 at 11:56:00 PM GMT+8
- Kristen said...
I have been looking all over but haven't found a copy yet.
- February 21, 2010 at 3:27:00 AM GMT+8
- Joan@anythinggoeshere said...
Congrats, Linda. I haven't seen the magazine yet, but I don't spend much time in "regular" stores, but now I have extra incentive. I would love to win a copy and some treasures of yours before you head off to China. Then I will be out hunting for a copy after Tuesday if I don't win.
- February 21, 2010 at 4:50:00 AM GMT+8
- Jess said...
Scott was on his way to Borders so he picked me up a copy as per requested. I am obsessed with it already. Loved that they included you!
Have to keep my eyes open for all these new ideas.
They did such a gorgeous job. Really and truly lovely.
- February 21, 2010 at 5:22:00 AM GMT+8
- Rebecca Ramsey said...
I can't wait to see it! Congrats to you both!
- February 21, 2010 at 6:17:00 AM GMT+8
- Jennifer Rizzo said...
Congrats! I didn't realize you were a chicago blogger too! We just had a get together of IL ladies. Congrats on your feature! It's a nice magazine!
- February 21, 2010 at 10:08:00 AM GMT+8
I am so excited about this magazine!! Today was warm and sunny in the south and I was in the best flea market and antique salvage shops this afternoon.
Found great treasures to add to my already very loved home. I would love to have a copy of the magazine so please PICK ME!! PICK ME!!! Thank you for sharing with all of us.
Kass Spitaleri
Montgomery, AL
- February 21, 2010 at 2:21:00 PM GMT+8
- Shirl said...
Me, Me! I'd love to win a copy of this wonderful magazine ... :0)
Shirl x
- February 21, 2010 at 9:07:00 PM GMT+8
- Carolee said...
OMG, I've never heard of it, but think I need a copy!! (complete magazine junkie here)....Please drop my name in the hat for the giveaway just in case I can't find it here...
~ Carolee
- February 22, 2010 at 12:44:00 AM GMT+8
- Amy said...
I'd love to win a copy! Never heard of this magazine but it sounds good!
- February 22, 2010 at 2:57:00 AM GMT+8
- Brittanie said...
I wish they had had more info about you in there! I loved the photo of your gumball machines and am jazzed to go through your blog now. I hope I get picked for your fun giveaway~I would love any of your treasures! Congrats on being an excellent addition to a wonderful magazine!
- February 22, 2010 at 6:08:00 AM GMT+8
I found my copy at the Jewel/Osco and spent the last few hours reading every word. I never get tired of seeing bits from your house. Hope I win!
- February 22, 2010 at 6:31:00 AM GMT+8
- Emily said...
Pick me!! haha, I cannot wait to get my hands on this magazine!
- February 22, 2010 at 12:12:00 PM GMT+8
- Happy Cottage Quilter said...
Wow what a very great giveaway! I can't wait to see this magazine. Thanks for entering me.
- February 22, 2010 at 12:57:00 PM GMT+8
- Pink Princess said...
PLEASE pick me lol ;) The magazine will NOT be sold in my country. So who knows IF I win I might be able to read it.
- February 22, 2010 at 1:46:00 PM GMT+8
- junkgarden said...
I have been looking forward to this magazine for months. I have been ALL OVER my town looking for it and no luck. Boo Hoo. I.must.have.this.magazine!
- February 22, 2010 at 2:11:00 PM GMT+8
- Susan said...
I too have been searching for this magazine and have had no luck as of yet! Please help change my luck!!!
- February 22, 2010 at 7:57:00 PM GMT+8
- fromthepines said...
Woohoo - thanks for sharing the junk love!
- February 22, 2010 at 10:13:00 PM GMT+8
- MoniCue said...
Oh, Please! I live in small town WI and know I will never find this publication myself!
- February 22, 2010 at 11:02:00 PM GMT+8
- Hopeful Homemaker said...
I've been looking everywhere for a copy! Would love to get my hands on one! Thanks!
- February 22, 2010 at 11:20:00 PM GMT+8
- Cindy@Cutepinkstuff said...
Congrats on the feature. I'm off to find the magazine today. Would love to hear from you!
- February 22, 2010 at 11:38:00 PM GMT+8
- Shannon said...
Cute, I can't wait to get my hands on this magazine!!!
- February 22, 2010 at 11:51:00 PM GMT+8
- Hillcrest Acres said...
I have been looking for this magazine everywhere and still haven't found it! I can't pass up entering in this great giveaway.
- February 23, 2010 at 12:37:00 AM GMT+8
- Green Girl in Wisconsin said...
How wonderful for you! Congratulations! That picture is adorable, too.
- February 23, 2010 at 12:44:00 AM GMT+8
- So Not Martha said...
I would love to win!
- February 23, 2010 at 1:55:00 AM GMT+8
- KitschKrafts said...
How exciting to have a write-up about your blog. The magazine sounds like it's full of fun stuff!
Take care,
- February 23, 2010 at 3:04:00 AM GMT+8
- Alice said...
Oh, I'd love to own a copy of this magazine. Thanks for the chance to win one!!!
- February 23, 2010 at 3:23:00 AM GMT+8
- Babsarella said...
Thanks for the "heads up" about Target having this great magazine. I'll keep my fingers crossed that I win, but if not, I'll know where to go to purchase it!!
- February 23, 2010 at 3:39:00 AM GMT+8
- MMW said...
Oh I am happy to hear Target is a carrier! Although I'd LOVE to win it here!
I too love Linda at Restyled Home. Such great taste.
xoxo MMW
- February 23, 2010 at 4:55:00 AM GMT+8
- Silver Thistle said...
I need this mag so bad I can almost taste it!! I think a giveaway is my only slim hope of having one though (I'm in the UK) so fingers and toes are crossed!!!
Thanks for offering this giveaway!
- February 23, 2010 at 5:21:00 AM GMT+8
With so many magazines disappearing (I still have all my Home Companions-and the ones featuring your home is one of my favorites!) it is so exciting to see a great one out there. Very excited about this and just haven't been able to make it out yet to hunt it down. Thanks for the giveaway chance!
PS-I'm excited to see what your new adventure brings to the blog. So fun!
- February 23, 2010 at 8:16:00 AM GMT+8
- cathysusko said...
I just found your blog and LOVE your style!
- February 23, 2010 at 9:01:00 AM GMT+8
- leah said...
i'm lovin me this contest! it would be fan-tabulous if i win. woot woot for flea market style magazine!
- February 23, 2010 at 9:52:00 AM GMT+8
- Sweet Daisy Mae said...
Oh, I too have been scouting out all my favorite book places looking for a copy. I have been following all the build-up and am dying to see what lies after the topcover...the colors shown on the front are bright, fun colors so I am sure the magazine inspires with the same enthusiasm. Please enter me in your drawing...I can't wait...until then I will keep reading your "older posts", and maybe head to the kitchen for a cupcake (or two).
- February 23, 2010 at 10:48:00 AM GMT+8
- Cha Cha said...
Congratulations, Linda! I was eagerly awaiting this magazine, but now I'm doubly excited - can't wait to read about you!
Love your new look. Hope the packing is going well!
- February 23, 2010 at 12:11:00 PM GMT+8
- Anita said...
See, now that you are in the magazine, we are going to miss you even MORE when you move away...
- February 23, 2010 at 12:15:00 PM GMT+8
- noodle and lou said...
i haven't found it yet!!! eeeeek!! dying to see it, dying! and now that i know YOU are in it (and catherine too!!!) i'm on a mission. congrats...you know i think you are theeee best:)
- February 23, 2010 at 12:57:00 PM GMT+8
- julie (jane's apron) said...
I'm going to check my Target today...can't wait to see it!
- February 23, 2010 at 10:35:00 PM GMT+8
- Becki said...
Hi Linda,
Thanks for offering a give-away! Becki
- February 23, 2010 at 11:16:00 PM GMT+8
- wadev said...
Can't wait to her my hands on a copy of the mgz! Thank you for offering a giveaway!
- February 23, 2010 at 11:40:00 PM GMT+8
- Sandy and Joe/rhubarb reign said...
Whoa! I'm speechless. Thank you so much. xo
- February 24, 2010 at 9:42:00 AM GMT+8
- Heliotrope Tree House said...
Wow! Just took a long down my loooong blog roll and saw this. What an honor. You must feel so wonderfully proud. Hopefully, I'll be able to find it. When are you moving? Will you continue to blog from your new residence?
- February 25, 2010 at 10:38:00 AM GMT+8
- Gabriela said...
~ Gabriela ~
- February 27, 2010 at 8:15:00 AM GMT+8
- Just Beachy said...
I know how you feel , you are so right , it is a beautiful magazine and it was worth the wait.
Just beachy
- February 28, 2010 at 2:13:00 AM GMT+8


text:
MIT Sloan School of Management is at the cutting edge of educating future global business leaders for success in global growth industries. Dean David Schmittlein joins us to provide his unique foresight into the future of global industries, big future job opportunities, innovation and the skills and education needed to succeed in an increasingly interconnected and intensely competitive world of business in the years ahead.
Visit the Website: http://www.ceoglobalforesight.com
Episode #107 / Length: 26 minutes


text:
Our exclusive lifestyle hotel experience, designed to fulfill the needs of the discerning business executive and leisure traveler.
Our hotels offer a broad range of function rooms - from elegant boardrooms to banquet halls.
Whether on an epic journey or a weekend getaway, we make every child's stay magical.
These exquisite properties are the perfect vacation oasis for you and your loved ones.
Purchase a gift card or browse through our selection of quality bed linens, pillows and bathrobes or sample our premium teas.
After an invigorating day on the slopes, step into consummate luxury.
Our luxurious golf destinations include breathtaking mountains, stark deserts and warm tropical beaches.
Experience our growing collection of breathtakingly beautiful spas around the world.
View the latest issue of Fairmont Magazine.
Celebrate the beginning of your journey together at one of our landmark wedding resorts.
Enjoy up to 30% off*
- Everyonesanoriginal.com To Serve As A Virtual Gathering Place For Guests of the Luxury Hotel Brand
TORONTO, February 8, 2010 – As social networking continues to grow and shape the way people communicate, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts today announced the creation of its new online community platform www.everyonesanoriginal.com (EAO). A mix of customer-generated media and non-traditional Fairmont content, the new site will serve as a virtual gathering place for Fairmont guests, colleagues, and others and be an interactive environment where fans of the brand can post photos or video from a memorable trip, participate in exclusive polls and contests, access exclusive hotel and destination content, and engage in dialogue with other site users about their Fairmont travel experiences.On top of being a platform for brand and hotel storytelling, the EAO site will also serve as a timely and comprehensive resource for travelers seeking hotel and destination information and visuals. Designed to support and house rich media content including high quality digital video and podcasts, vignettes from Fairmont will range from tours of suites made famous by visiting VIP or celebrities to tips on how to fully explore the locale, whether it's eyeing The Big Five on a game drive at Fairmont Mara Safari Club in Kenya or exploring the cultural diversity of Boston's North End during a visit to the Fairmont Battery Wharf. Ensuring a sense of authenticity, Fairmont guests will also be encouraged to post short vignettes from their travels.Generating some buzz and excitement around the new web platform is the company's Original Memories Photo Contest. A call for creative or interesting photography from a past Fairmont experience, guests are being encouraged to submit their top images along with a short post about why the photo holds a special place in their heart for a chance to win one of three exciting prizes. The contest's Grand Prize consists of a five-night stay to any one of Fairmont's world-class hotels in addition to a $1,000 airfare credit. * "Fairmont is an experiential brand and storytelling is a common theme amongst our guests and hotels," says Brian Richardson, Vice President Brand Marketing & Communication, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts. "We see great value in creating an ongoing dialogue with our guests and feel our new EAO platform is an area where they can not only share their stories with us, but also with other like-minded individuals who may share a common interest with them. Our intention with EAO is to try and engage our customers online in a much more meaningful way." In addition to hosting user generated content and exclusive Fairmont content, Fairmont's new EAO site will also serve as the "hub" for the brand's growing social media presence. Already, Fairmont can boast strong visibility on sites such as Twitter (www.twitter.com/fairmonthotels) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/fairmonthotels), and has plans to explore and leverage other top sites like Flickr and Linkedin throughout 2010.
* For Official Rules and prize descriptions, visit http://www.everyonesanoriginal.com/. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. LEGAL RESIDENTS OF CANADA (EXCLUDING QUEBEC), THE UNITED KINGDOM, THE 50 UNITED STATES (D.C.), 18 YEARS AND OLDER who did not purchase any equipment for purposes of entering the Contest. VOID IN QUEBEC WHERE PROHIBITED. Enter Contest by: 3/31/10. Sponsor: Fairmont Hotels Inc., 100 Wellington St. West, Ste. 1600, Toronto, ON M5K 1B7, Canada.
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Find out more on Fairmont's award-winning environmental efforts, a pioneering program launched close to two decades ago that focuses on responsible tourism practices and sustainable hotel management.
Long before CSR became a business buzzword, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts was operating in a socially and environmentally sustainable fashion
Share your stories on FairmontMoments.com
Unlimited access to the world of Fairmont wherever you go.


text:
Law Review presents commemorative symposium on March 31University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
The University of Hawai'i Law Review is pleased to present a commemorative symposium on the landmark cases of the Supreme Court of Hawai'i since 1993. The symposium will be held on Thursday, March 31, from 11:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m. at UH Mānoa's William S. Richardson School of Law classroom 2.
The symposium will commemorate Ronald T.Y. Moon's seventeen years of service as Chief Justice and focus specifically on those Moon Court cases that have had a significant impact on Native Hawaiian rights, land use and the environment, and same-sex marriage.
Speakers will include: Law School professors Denise Antolini, David Callies, Sylvia Law, Melody K. MacKenzie, Michael Sant'Ambrogio. Discussants will include Associate Justices Robert G. Klein (retired) and Steven H. Levinson (retired).
For more information, visit: http://www.hawaii.edu/lawreview/


text:
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 13D Standard for the design and installation of residential sprinklers identifies two basic types of systems — multipurpose and standalone.
Multipurpose residential systems integrate the fire sprinklers with the cold-water plumbing lines in the house, so the sprinklers perform just like any other plumbing fixture. These systems were created specifically for residential use, and are designed to be easily and seamlessly incorporated into a home's construction process.
A standalone residential sprinkler system usse a separate, additional system of piping that must be kept isolated from the home's drinking water supply by a backflow preventer. This component adds additional cost to the initial installation as well as annual maintenance costs which can significantly add up over time.
Since the fire sprinkler and cold-water plumbing systems are integrated, there's no need for another separate network of sprinkler piping for the house.


text:
A flash flood watch is in effect for nearly all of Colorado on Tuesday as this week's weather continues to pack a punch.
"Monsoon moisture combined with a moist easterly upslope flow will produce widespread showers and thunderstorms this afternoon into Wednesday," the National Weather Service said. "Rainfall amounts through Wednesday will range from one to two inches with up to three inches possible. If a prolonged period of heavier rainfall develops later tonight into Wednesday morning, this could lead to even higher rainfall amounts in some areas."
The watch is in effect from early Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday morning.
Monday saw severe weather in the Denver area as several funnel clouds were spotted within the city limits, in Aurora and near Denver International Airport. Minor damage associated with the tornadic activity was reported.
Southern Colorado, meanwhile, which was expected to take the brunt of Monday's weather system, again was spared from any major flooding or thunderstorm events.
This is a developing story that will be updated throughout the day as weather conditions change statewide.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, firstname.lastname@example.com or twitter.com/jesseapaul


text:
Firewalls, Torrent Slaves, Front end for a "remote desktop" style connection, small traveling computer for a hotel that has a flat screen, etc.
Plug it into the wall, give it a coax cable in
And get only local channels. Everything else needs a CableCARD.
Well...I can scan the cable, and find all the local channels on HD. But for analog, I still get all of the expanded basic channels...and I've heard tale, that some people can do this with only paying for a cable internet connection, and just tap in and get all these 'free' tv channels.
So, you get local programming this way...and for special shows, well, that's what DVD's are for, and I've also heard tale that many things like this can be do
Torrent Slaves
I wonder
* I know you said 'torrent slave', but it gave me the idea
And I wonder, if you went into random office buildings and plugged some of these in, programmed to connect out to your master server (through their NAT, etc) sniff traffic, scour the local intranet and file shares and generally do some spying and acting as a jump point for your hacking, how many of them would still be operating after a couple years?
* I know you said 'tor relay', but it gave me the idea
Don't forget your fingerprints on the box, both the virtual ones (like coding practices, notes, and hostnames) and real ones like physical fingerprints on the outside of the box.
You may have a hard time sniffing for traffic on a good switched network. All you may see is broadcast traffic. If you can gain access to the switch itself, you could set up a monitor port and listen to various things. Open file shares are a bit obvious, but not always useful if they have anything resembling secu
places have ports enabled that are not is use/conspicuous?
places have ports enabled that are not is use/conspicuous?
You might need to put a Polycom sticker on it.
My favorite I once saw was "Process Controller. Touching this will break manufacturing line." And this was *not* at a small scale manufacturing plant.
>>>Torrent Slaves
Ooops read my mind! It would save a lot of money to have a 5 watt Torrent-downloading plug to download my favorite TV shows,* versus leaving my ~150 watt computer running all the time. Some quick math: 0.140 kilowatt * 24 * 365 * 12 cents per KWh == about 140 dollars saved.
Okay maybe not a lot of money. In fact: Never mind. I'll just use my laptop to save electricity.
* Trivia - 5 watt is the US-enforced maximum wattage allowed on Digital TV converter boxes.
That $140 saved is enough to pay for itself in 1 year. And that lets you keep your laptop as a laptop.
Firewalls, Torrent Slaves, Front end for a "remote desktop" style connection, small traveling computer for a hotel that has a flat screen, etc.
Firewalling with only a single NIC is difficult when most consumer level switches don't support vlan tagging.
You're not going to be torrenting much with that little computing power and especially that little storage.
Not sure what a "remote desktop" style connection is that can't be done just as easily with a port forward or something like TeamViewer.
Botnets bitchez.
Yours In Astrakhan,
Kilgore Trout
P.S.: Bush-Gingrich 2012 !
I actually RTFA because I'm interested in these things... And found it a total waste of time. Let me summarize everything in it:
The small and cheap, low-power computer that you plug directly into the wall is actually a small and cheap, low-power computer. It has USB 2.0 (as can be clearly seen in all pictures of the device). You can install linux on it and do stuff that such a linux computer could obviously be used at: File storage, run FTP server, run apache, use it as SSH gateway... That's about the list of ideas mentioned in TFA.
Did anyone here actually find new information (okay, 3rd page has a bit of technical specs. Nothing unexpected, nothing that would have taken more than 2 minutes to google) or ideas in the article? If so, what were they? If I missed something essential, my bad... But this seems to contain zero information. Especially to someone who already has interest to such devices (obviously, if you've never heard of these "wall warts" ((Okay, I hadn't heard that name being used for these devices before)) before, everything there was new. Though I still believe that running ftp server or ssh gateway would have been about the first things you would have thought of yourself, too).
Not to mention half the applications for something of this size are equally well filled by a reflashed OpenWRT wifi access point you can fish out of a dumpster for free. You don't need 512M of flash/ram to run an ssh gateway.
a reflashed OpenWRT wifi access point you can fish out of a dumpster for free
How? I tried a Google search for how to dumpster dive for access points but it didn't help
Not to mention half the applications for something of this size are equally well filled by a reflashed OpenWRT wifi access point you can fish out of a dumpster for free. You don't need 512M of flash/ram to run an ssh gateway.
I'm kinda wishing I had more than the 16 MB (IIRC) that's in my WRT54GL, though...blocklists implemented as iptables rules need a bit more RAM than that. The model with a couple of GigE ports looks like it'd make a decent router.
For someone who does not have an interest in such devices, it has little information either.
Yes, it can do any Linux server task, in a way that is slightly more green than repurposing an old pc, and, yes, it is smaller as well.
There's your article. Tack some technical specs on the end.
My best ideas are to pair them with some old LCD screens and do something like this: http://www.panic.com/blog/2010/03/the-panic-status-board/ [panic.com]
Not a particularly attractive name overall, but I decided to search the web to see if it's in common usage. Turns out that it's only used in reference to AC adapters, not as all-in-one computers. In fact, the first reference to the term as it relates to a mini computer is this very article. So it looks like they're making up their own lingo.
Everything is wrong about this article. I love
I hate to be this guy, but I don't understand why this is on
these devices are the same size and shape as many of the transformers used to power such things as laptops and video games. If you didn't know they were a complete computer, you'd be looking for the device that it was powering. The only difference you can see is that instead of a power cable going to some device, you have a network cable going into a router.
Since they look like a "wall wart", it isn't that surprising that they get called by the same name. These things are SMALL.
Not a particularly attractive name overall, but I decided to search the web to see if it's in common usage
The wall wart conjures up something that is hot, bulky, won't fit on my UPS or power strip - or takes up a socket I need for something else.
It does have WiFi, but some people want to use it as a wireless gateway/AP/provide more throughput than WiFi can provide.
Isn't this like the billionth Slashvertizement for SheevaPlugs? They're neat and all, but I think at this point everyone here knows about those things. I'll probably get one if I can ever think of a use for it.
Yeah, seriously. Enough!
OK, they're cool devices. But they've been around for, what, a year+ now? They promised they'd be coming down to the $50 price range "real soon now"; likewise with newer versions. I'm not seeing them, are you?
Meh. $100, is it? I think I'll pick up oh, any number of low-end components for that price which will still do the job.
$100 with eSATA or two NICs? Then we'll talk. ARM manufacturers really need to get on the ball if they don't want to have their lunch eaten by the Atom z6xx SoC
SheevaPlug, I don't know about the rest of you but that name brings visions to my mind that has nothing to do with computers.
SheevaPlug, I don't know about the rest of you but that name brings visions to my mind that has nothing to do with computers.
Thanks for ruining my lunch.
Does anybody know of a similar device that includes Homeplug so you can do away with the ethernet connection as well?
Does anybody know of a similar device that includes Homeplug?
No, unfortunately. There also aren't any plug computers that can run off POE (Power Over Ethernet).
Being small and cheap is a key part of plug computers appeal. There are many technologies that would go well with a plug (e.g. WiFi, Homeplug, POE, USB, ESATA, RS232, RS422, I2C, etc.), but including them all would be size/cost prohibitive. The manufacturers have to make a judgment call about where the "sweet spot" lies. The result is often a "
First, I misread this as "linux walmart" and thought it was some sort of "app store" deal. Closer inspection reveals the truth is far more disturbing. They should probably pick a new name... or dress them up like 'Shrek' and market them towards kids or something.
Not only for the lulz, but I seriously just spent about 20 minutes googling around and using amazon/froogle, and because "Wall Wart" and "Plug Computer" are both common phrases for things like - you know - ac adapters, these things are insanely hard to nail down an actual vendor or two in order to purchase one or two or five.
Need a new name like "wall computer" or "power pc".
Maybe not so much that last one.
I'll wait for Apple to release the iPlug.
I'll wait for Apple to release the iPlug.
I swear I saw one of those at a sex shop once.
Plug computers are widely overrated. For the same price you can get a cheap home oriented NAS box like http://www.lacie.com/us/products/product.htm?pid=11384 [lacie.com] with 1TB of storage that can be reflashed http://lacie.nas-central.org/wiki/Main_Page [nas-central.org] to do whatever you want.
Plug computers are widely overrated. For the same price you can get a cheap home oriented NAS box like http://www.lacie.com/us/products/product.htm?pid=11384 [lacie.com] with 1TB of storage that can be reflashed http://lacie.nas-central.org/wiki/Main_Page [nas-central.org] to do whatever you want.
If you don't need the storage as much as you need the always-on/low power processing, you can get a WRT54-based router that can be relfashed with Tomato [polarcloud.com] or DD-WRT, then you can install optware [nslu2-linux.org]. The Asus WL-500G has enough guts to run Asterisk while still doing its primary purpose. Or maybe a cvs, svn or other repository. All for maybe half the price of the Sheevaplug. And much more available. Of course, it doesn't have the wall wart form factor, for good or bad. And it's not quite as discreet, if that's a requirement.
You could also get an ALIX board... they're comparable in cost and offer a lot more networking functionality; they're x86 boards and have much more processor and RAM than anything near the WRT54 stuff. They'll run a small to medium network's gateway device (running pfSense) with several VPNs, even - no problem.
My N800 only draws 5W max at the plug. IIRC my "ancient" Jornada 720 does as well. I've been planning to repurpose my N800 as an always-on wireless server once I get a replacement handheld. You can get last-gen handhelds in a similar price range as these plug computers.
Not really.
The biggest advantage these have over cheap NAS boxes is bang for the buck in terms of horsepower. The Lacie NAS appliances you mention come with 400 Mhz processors at 16 MB of RAM.
The SheevaPlug and GuruPlug each come with a 512 MB of RAM and 1.2Ghz processor. Also, GuruPlug has 802.11g WiFi capability in addition to the wired Ethernet connectivity.
And I say this as an owner of a reflashed Linksys NAS 200, which not only serves files, but also serves as a print server for my network [blogspot.com], a capability that Cisco/Linksys doesn't include in the box.
Stay away from Guruplug. They're sold with two gigabit NICs, but if you use them both at gig speeds, the Guruplugs overheat. Heck, mine exhibits the same syptoms (gets very hot and reboots) using one NIC at gig speeds while also maxing out the eSATA connection.
Originally, Globalscale had this to say:
http://plugcomputer.org/plugforum/index.php?topic=1735.msg12392#msg12392 [plugcomputer.org]
Now, they say that the plugs aren't designed for this kind of use, and that they will sell "Professional Upgrade Kits" to let you use the devices in this way. Worse, to me, they're essentially rewriting history here. The forum post accurately quotes the original announcement dated 7/17/2010. The page now only shows an announcement 7/5/2010 mentioning what they are "designed" for and about the sale of the upgrade kits.
Frankly, I'm shocked that the units were sold with 2x1Gb NICs, but weren't tested using them and that they're considered "not designed to be used together." It's asinine that they would pull this crap.
That's the GuruPlug Plus. The standard GuruPlug includes only 1 Gb NIC.
The "professional upgrade kits" are just a microfan and a wiring harness. You could just as easily mod the GuruPlug Plus with a 3rd party fan and drilling a few holes in the case, etc.
Or just lock one of the NICs at 100 Mb, as the announcement suggests, if you need 2 NICs and don't need them both to be GigE, as in the case of building a router. Or if you're building an iSCSI target and need the 2 GigE ports for speed by using channel
That's the GuruPlug Plus. The standard GuruPlug includes only 1 Gb NIC.
I'm standing by my statement to stay away--actually, from anything they produce. How much testing could they have done if they didn't notice this issue? What's the point of having a "plus" version that upgrades the slower NIC to Gb if you can't use them both together?
I'm not much of a hardware hacker or maker--I'm a software guy. So I'm not really excited about modding it myself with a third-party fan. I'd much rather have the professional upgrade kit--which is 3-4 months away according to the "new" press release. Worse, I'm outside of the return period, so I can't even wash my hands of this and send them back.
I know I'm grousing a lot, but I really see this as highly deceptive. They sell a "plus" version that doesn't work, promise a fix, then sell you a fix long after the return period has elapsed for a big chunk of your customers.
They're still working out the bugs and they take months to ship(bill your credit card right away though). They said 2-3 months to go for a hardware fix for the Guruplug+'s overheating problem when using GigE, other than "use them at 10/100".
Sheevaplugs have gotten better though, the capacitors don't pop anymore, but both of them benefit from removing the 5v power and putting it in it's own box. Which doesn't entirely defeat the point, but it is a little aggravating. Still, unless you like paying now for flaky hardware from a company that has zero customer support and enjoy resoldering your power supply, buy one of the more commercial ones.
PS, I rather like mine, I'm just lowering your expectations so you might like what you get, if you still buy from Globalscale.
Oh, and if you plan to install a different distribution, you NEED the jtag adapter to get a console. It doesn't come with the Guruplug, but one is built in to the Sheevaplug.
Yeah, I'm still waiting on my "Early June" delivery of a GuruPlug+ from an order in May. It's spec'ed great. Too bad you can only use the Gigabit Ethernet at 10/100.
They think they're going to sell me a "professional upgrade kit" to make it meet the spec they advertized when they billed my card. Bullshit.
So let's say you want to do something you need to rely on: home music server, 24/7 monitoring applications, security. If you haven't laid in a spare, are you going to wait over 3 months for a replacement wh
So where SHOULD we be going to get similar functionality?
I ordered several Guruplug+, received them, and have had no end of problems with them. I second your opinion, but I'll go a bit further--I'll never order from Globalscale again. To sell a device with two gigabit NICs, but without the capability to use both is simply false advertising.
From the article:
Linux does the job admirably, with even the most full-featured distro like Debian being able to slot into the flash memory provided you're economical with what you install (scrap Gnome and KDE for starters!). Or Damn Small Linux and other distros of its ilk will do the job just fine too.
They always forget Puppy, which is a heck of a lot easier to use than DSL. Puppy can fit in as little as 32 megabytes with a full desktop even a kid could use.
.....and 512Mb DDR2 RAM.
Woah. I feel like I stepped into the Nintendo and Sega wars. 512 megabits == 64 megabytes in normal human parlance. i.e Twice as much as I have in my old Windows98 laptop and equal to what was in my OS 9 mac.
I don't think there is an ARM port for puppy. So you'd be setting yourself up for a fair bit of work.
I'm in the design phase of opening a consulting business (non-IT related) to run out of my home. Marvell's plugs look very attractive to me as a right-sized server for my modest needs. Email, web, file storage (especially with a RAID NAS or via DropBox) -- the wall wart looks just right for that kind of workload. I've worked in IT with big, fancy servers, and I just don't need them.
The alternative is to lease something like a Linode. I like the way Linode does business, but five months of their low-power service would buy a SheevaPlug. All I'm missing then is a static IP and the always-up cloudiness that Linode provides. The choices are tempting.
Sheeva plug as a server? Is this a joke? No raid or redundancy and these things are infamous for blowing caps, overheating, and other hardware issues tells me you need to start doing testing before publicly proclaiming your business plan.
Oh and those "big ol fancy servers" no one needs? You're paying for raid, hardware warranty, same/next day parts, dual power supplies, support, proper engineering, etc. If your company came to me with one of those toys as a "solution" you'd be walking out of my office with that sheeva plug shoved in your own "plug."
Totally agree..
Not saying a small business (especially if not IT based) needs an "enterprise" level server.. but running web and email off one of these things sounds very dubious.
Probably better off with a hosted solution.. most ISPs won't let you run a server on a standard plan
You should be able to do everything on that NAS alone. I run a Gentoo server on a Buffalo Linkstation Live, with the only difference that its Marvell ARM CPU is a little slower and there is a little less RAM, compared to the Sheevaplug.
For my purposes, the Sheevaplug has the problem that any sizeable storage needs its own power supply. Thus it negates all of the size and power consumption arguments. Linkstations and similar devices come with a hard drive or two on the same power supply. If you actually n
If you plugged one of these into a serio [sparkfun.com] you couldn't get any closer to analog input/output for your crappy bash scripts
You got wall warts from using a SheevaPlug, you better get some cream for that right away...
Gah, I grossed myself out... pleh!
"What can you actually do with them? Plenty, it seems!"
Not really. The article spent 3 pages to say that you could use it as a file server with an external hard drive or... a web server. That's it?
This reads more like a slashvertisement for a product with no real purpose. Yes, it's great that it's cheap and runs linux, but if you need an external hard drive to get any real use out of it, what's the point in making it so small? Just make it the size of a caddy.
The article mentions internet router, file storage, and print server. Really? That's the best you can do?
A decent dd-wrt compatible router is pretty inexpensive, and will give you a few port switch and a decent set of wireless antennas. Most people aren't so constrained on space that they can't tuck one away somewhere. They often include the capability of handling USB hard drives as well for file or print sharing. Many printers these days have built in ethernet or wireless to handle their own print serving capability.
Devices of this size do have possibilities, but the article doesn't mention anything really interesting. Apple has had its airport express base station for a while, and while it's mostly an ordinary wireless N router, it does provide music sharing via airtunes which works well if you happen to use the Apple/iTunes ecosystem for music.
So what do you do with a tiny Linux box? mpd or a squeezebox client would provide music sharing (though you can get Logitech's own radio for $100-$150, and it comes complete with a screen and controls). It would either need a good quality sound chip on it (unlikely) or a decent USB sound card (added expense, though).
What would be really neat is if they had an HDMI port for a thin client. Maybe an install of Android and its browser to turn a smaller LCD monitor into a little internet browsing box in otherwise cramped spaces (e.g. kitchen). Or have something powered off 12V and use it as the basis for a car computer.
Even with the current offerings, I'm sure there are much more interesting ideas that people could come up with (probably involving more significant hacking) than a file or print server.
Of course, you can even run your own web site using Apache on a plug computer.
Great. Now my website is dependent on my internet connection and power. Geeks that want this so bad that they'll do it even though its completely pointless have a PC already running that could do this job much better.
or run a site to monitor other sites!
Yeah. More often than not, if your site is reported as "down," it's probably your wall wart. Nevermind the fact that, again, this might as well be running on your already-running PC.
could be a media server, a file server or print server for your network.
Fair enough, but there already a number of cheaper dedicated options
I own a few of these devices. My first one has a eSATA port that I connected to a 5 bay sata port expander. That has been my network DHCP/DDNS/fileserver/printspooler/VPN endpoint/etc for a while now. The problem is that its hard to justify when compared with the recent firewall/wireless devices that have USB ports for exactly this reason. Sure I can get ~60MB/sec, absolutely outrunning anything attached via USB, but it cost about 3x as much to get there compared with just purchasing a $70 netgear and plugging in a dual drive USB raid array.
Plus, these things _REQUIRE_ hacking to get them to do a lot of stuff. I wasted days of my life trying to figure out why the JTAG interfaces didn't work as documented, or trying to boot kernels that didn't come with the devices. Or even consistently boot off USB instead of internal flash. This would be fine, except they are hardly open devices. Much of the time wasted turns out to be endless reverse engineering closed portions of the device. Marvell publishes a fair amount of the documentation for them, but I quickly found, time and time again, that the information I needed wasn't available.
So, In the end, for low level stuff things. The AVR butterfly an similar devices are far better hacking platforms, and on the higher end its hard to ignore the atom nettops or dozens of very nice single board computers that are far more powerful for not much more money.
Buy a couple dozen of them. Hook them up to the cheapest router that will handle that many. Set them up with Yafray or similar. Instant, low-power render farm. Might not be high-performance, but I bet the frames per watt are better than most.
Or set one of them up as a Quake server. Old-school FTW.
Ah, forgot ARM doesn't have a built-in FPU as standard. Which would make almost any game server too slow anyways. Actually, it would make almost anything slow.
Is there a reason for no FPU? Is it some extreme power-saving measure?
Something like that has industrial embedded applications, but they need to get past "UL approval - pending" and a peak external operating temp of 104F. You don't want something that's marginal on temp specs in an application where it's controlling something. They talk about putting them side by side on an outlet strip, but that's going to make the cooling problem tougher. Fanless devices should not push the temperature ratings of the components. That never ends well.
Solidly reliable little compute br
nt. Guruplug and sheevaplug have availability problems. Pogoplug seems to be barely existant, with no technical data on their web page and nothing that indicates it is linux-friendly or hacker-friendly. This 'plug-computer' industry needs to mature in order to replace the mini-servers I am using.
I'm using these devices now for R&D work. We started with the Sheeva plug, now the Guru plug. The devices are okay. If you are looking for a COTS general purpose computer, the price, size and capability cannot be beaten. If you have more specific needs, particularly consumer needs where you can give up size as a constraint, there are many other cheaper alternatives.
That said, if you open up one of these devices, the thickness of the "wall wart" is half power supply, and a lot of the space is allocated to thermal design (heat sink, space for airflow). If you don't need their (crappy) power supply, replace it with a 5 V DC-DC converter and you can run it in your car or in your custom R&D device like we are. Very few low cost (small, low power) GigE devices exist now. These are just about the only ones. Downside is that there is NO support (oh, I'm sorry, "community support"... not okay for corporate use). You have to go it alone if you want to do something that nobody else has done.
Globalscale (makers of the Sheeva/Guru plugs) are supposed to be releasing a GuruPlug "Display" device which has an HDMI port. It sounds cool, but based on my experiences buying the "Server" version on spec, wait until it is not just vaporware. They said that the "Server" version would include some things that aren't actually pinned out (so if you want, say, an I2C interface, you have to be prepared to go digging around on the circuit board, then you might have to deal with building a custom kernel, then you might have to pray on your knees before the dark god of fab, etc.).
And forget about using this as a portable device. Power draw is low but it still sucks down the juice if you're using it do actually do anything. And the ARM5 core does not, as I recall, support floating point operations, so they're emulated (at reduced speed). And last but not least you're going to be cross-compiling everything, or hooking up a hard drive so you can install a precompiled gcc and making less-common things from source.
All in all, are these show-stoppers? No. I'm still using a few of these for various jobs, like one which is going to go get pelted around in the ocean, and they're great if you can withstand the negatives. I have $200 worth of batteries to run it and a custom kernel build (and a separate board for the I2C interface, thanks a lot you jerks at Globalscale)... took a while to get going but it mostly does the job.
and it's not even a decent article. No I didn't RTFA
"An open mind has but one disadvantage: it collects dirt." -- a saying at RPI