A number of restaurants have taken notice of MacKenzie River Pizza Co.'s Mac Loving desert and made their own variation of it.
The Mac Loving desert is a chocolate chip cookie made the size of a personal pizza served melting hot with a scope of vanilla ice cream on top and covered in hot fudge.
Papa Murphys is now offering cookie dough along with their whole line of take and bake pizzas so you can make one of these deserts for yourself at home.
I just learned that Papa John's has a mega 7" chocolate chip cookie on their menu. It comes in a foil pan and sliced into eight pieces. When it arrives it is hot and melty. I couldn't wait so I took a couple slices before I dug into the pizza. You may want to keep it warm in the oven while you eat the main course pizza.
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Video Kiosks for Everyone
Have you seen those video kiosks at a museum or the commercial area of your fair? These are the TVs with a video message that tells you about the product or display. They are usually short videos that are left on continuous loop so everyone can see the message throughout the day.
I think there is a way to do this for the rest of us. In fact I think in the last five years the technology has advanced to the point that we can do it better and organizations, like museums can get more capability at less cost than with their existing equipment.
Here is my idea. Use an inexpensive 13" to 19" LCD TV with an older video iPod.
The first question probably isn't how, but why. For personal use, I see this set up can be part of a school project. You can use it at a Science Fair or local carnival booth. Anywhere you have to set up a table display or a booth, you can now have your own video kiosk. It is one more layer or format where you can present your information to the crowd.
For museums, this offers a solid state easy to modify or update display. In addition to the printed markers and panels of information, you can include a video which goes into more depth or provides animation about the exhibit it is next to. Many museums already have a series of video displays mixed in with their exhibits. The ones I've seen are either run from VHS tapes or DVD players. These have moving parts that are susceptible to wearing out and needing to be replaced on a regular basis. Things like VHS tapes and DVDs wear out or get scratched and have to be replaced as well. Flash based iPods, like the third generation iPod nano don't have moving parts and can provide endless playback without degrading.
For commercial groups at a fair or farmer's market, this can allow you to provide additional information about your products or your organization. It can give the back story about the company and its founding. It can provide customer testimonials about the advantages of your product. It can go into detail about the advantages of your product and the additional value to your customers that you provide them.
The most expensive part of the whole set up is the TV, so if you already have one, keep it. If you don't start hunting garage sales and eBay to get one. Even a brand new 19" flat screen TV can be purchased for $80-$150. Make sure you get one with Composite (red, white, yellow) inputs. Sometimes these are called game inputs. They are very common in portable TVs and projectors. Next in cost is actually the A/V cable. An Apple A/V Composite cable from Apple costs around $50. Finally the older iPod can be picked up from eBay for as little as $35.
When you're shopping for the iPod, be careful as you review the item description. Many people sell nonfunctioning iPods on eBay for parts. Older will be cheaper. Smaller will be cheaper as well. You can also accept some level of damage to the iPod to help bring the costs down. There are so many used iPods available on eBay, that you can name your price. If you loose an auction, just look for another one. There is no reason to get into a biding war over one of these.
I recommend the third generation iPod nano. This was the first iPod nano to offer video. The Video iPod or fifth generation iPod has a hard drive. This is a spinning disk that is subject to damage when dropped or wearing out of the motor that drives it. You lose all advantage of solid state. (Also these tend to be more expensive. I still haven't figured out why people are willing to pay more money for a less capable device.) For the same reason, stay away from the iPod classic. If you get a good price on new iPod nano's then go for it. I would avoid the sixth generation iPod nano because Apple removed video capability from it. Only recently has video been returned to the nano line.
Keep the storage space small. We're talking about a single purpose iPod. You're not going to use this to watch movies on your flight to Hawaii or London. You're not going to use this to watch movies during your week long camping trip to Yellowstone NP either. You only need enough storage for your looping video. This video will likely be 2-5 minutes long. That way people don't feel stuck to listen to your whole pitch and as the crowd moves past your booth, they will all get pretty much the same message. The smallest ever third generation iPod nano was 2 GB. This is approximately the same size as a DVD quality feature length (2 hour) film. Trust me, anything over 2 GB is wasted and you shouldn't pay more for it.
Accept scratches and dents on the iPod. You're feeding the video signal into the TV. You are not going to be watching the video on the iPod, so you can deal with scratches on the display. About all you have to be concerned with is can you read the display well enough to start it up at the beginning of the day. On eBay you're competing with others who want to watch videos on the iPod. They will go for ones with fewer scratches so this keeps the prices down on the ones with scratches.
Accept iPods that don't maintain a charge. The A/V Composite cable from Apple includes a USB connector. Since you'll need power for your TV, you'll have power for this USB connector to keep your iPod running. Like the scratches, there are iPods available on eBay which can no longer maintain a battery charge. This keeps their prices down and helps you get something that works perfectly for your purposes.
The next nice thing about this set up is that all of the hardware is independent of the content. Unlike foam core board or traditional displays, when this project is done, all of the hardware can be reconfigured for the next one. You can use this setup for every project or display from this point forward.
Now that we have all of the equipment, let's talk about configuring it for your project. Start with the video content. You can use your camcorder, cell phone, or newer iPod touch to take videos. You can edit the video on your computer, either Windows or Mac. Mac is nice because you get iMovie that gives you some great editing features and will easily transfer your video to iTunes. No matter how it gets there, get your video file loaded to iTunes. Use this to transfer the file from the computer to the iPod.
You want to look through the iPod settings. In the Video settings look for TV out. You want this turned on. In the U.S. you want to use NTSC format. For European TVs, set it to PAL format. Also set the default for Repeat as Repeat All. If you only have one thing in the playlist it will just repeat it. If later you want a couple different videos, you can do that from iTunes and not have to change the iPod settings. Since this is a single purpose iPod, I recommend removing as many extra items from the Main Menu as possible. You want to turn on the iPod, go straight to your playlist, and start running it. You don't need the rest of the things to scrolls through to do this.
After this it is a matter of plugging in all of the cables and power cords and then starting it. This will vary depending on your TV. It should be a matter of plugging the 30-pin connector into the iPod. The plug the red, white, yellow cables into the jacks for this input on the TV. Then plug the USB connector to a wall charger. Finally plug the wall charger and the TV power cord into the power outlet. Start the iPod video playing. If you don't see the video on the TV, use the TV controls to switch inputs to the Composite or Game input. Adjust volume and you're ready to go for the day. A Ziploc bag taped to the back of the TV is a great way to keep everything together for travel.
Any time you want to update the video you can just connect the iPod back to the computer and sync again.
While we're talking bout this setup, let me present another use for this same gear. You can use this to provide rotating content, like podcasts to an audience. Here is a scenario. Imagine you're part of an Air and Space museum. You want to get the great videos produced by NASA to your audience. You don't want to wire everything up to get the NASA TV feed for a few reasons. One there is a lot of cabling and setup to get the hardware in place for a TV feed. There is also expense in the subscription to either the direct feed or a television service. You also have your exhibit tethered to the television feed. Another reason is NASA TV is boring. There are only a few 10 minute shows worth anything in the 24 hour a day feed.
Instead NASA offers some great short length content for free through their NASAcast Video podcast. You can subscribe in iTunes and set up a Smart Playlist that has the most recent 2 GB, 4 GB, or 8 GB of content. iTunes will download the content to the hard drive. The iPod can then be synced with the computer and then removed. Plug the iPod into the monitor and you can watch hours of NASA programming (just the interesting stuff) on continuous loop every day all day. Once a week the iPod can be synced again with iTunes. The Smart Playlist means that with just the hands free automatic sync built into iTunes, the oldest content is removed from the iPod and the newest content is added.
This will be a great way to encourage more museum memberships. A single visit to the museum and every patron will see that your video display has information directly from NASA that was produced within the last week. They will know that they can return again and again to learn more about the most recent advances by NASA. Who want to keep paying for single admissions? They will quickly purchase an annual membership and then they will return again and again and learn more and more about all of the exhibits in the museum.
If you're this far in the post, you're probably interested in this concept. Now imagine your a school principle or a school teacher. What about setting up one of these video kiosks in the hallway or a central social area of the school? Wouldn't it be nice for the students to get an extra dose of real world education as part of their day? What about other topics? There are thousands of video podcasts available for free on all sorts of different topics. There are programs on music, art, news, science, and more that could take advantage of this set up. Smart Playlists in iTunes allows you to create single topic playlists as well as cross subject playlists. It is all available for minimum cost and minimum effort.
I think there is a way to do this for the rest of us. In fact I think in the last five years the technology has advanced to the point that we can do it better and organizations, like museums can get more capability at less cost than with their existing equipment.
Here is my idea. Use an inexpensive 13" to 19" LCD TV with an older video iPod.
The first question probably isn't how, but why. For personal use, I see this set up can be part of a school project. You can use it at a Science Fair or local carnival booth. Anywhere you have to set up a table display or a booth, you can now have your own video kiosk. It is one more layer or format where you can present your information to the crowd.
For museums, this offers a solid state easy to modify or update display. In addition to the printed markers and panels of information, you can include a video which goes into more depth or provides animation about the exhibit it is next to. Many museums already have a series of video displays mixed in with their exhibits. The ones I've seen are either run from VHS tapes or DVD players. These have moving parts that are susceptible to wearing out and needing to be replaced on a regular basis. Things like VHS tapes and DVDs wear out or get scratched and have to be replaced as well. Flash based iPods, like the third generation iPod nano don't have moving parts and can provide endless playback without degrading.
For commercial groups at a fair or farmer's market, this can allow you to provide additional information about your products or your organization. It can give the back story about the company and its founding. It can provide customer testimonials about the advantages of your product. It can go into detail about the advantages of your product and the additional value to your customers that you provide them.
The most expensive part of the whole set up is the TV, so if you already have one, keep it. If you don't start hunting garage sales and eBay to get one. Even a brand new 19" flat screen TV can be purchased for $80-$150. Make sure you get one with Composite (red, white, yellow) inputs. Sometimes these are called game inputs. They are very common in portable TVs and projectors. Next in cost is actually the A/V cable. An Apple A/V Composite cable from Apple costs around $50. Finally the older iPod can be picked up from eBay for as little as $35.
When you're shopping for the iPod, be careful as you review the item description. Many people sell nonfunctioning iPods on eBay for parts. Older will be cheaper. Smaller will be cheaper as well. You can also accept some level of damage to the iPod to help bring the costs down. There are so many used iPods available on eBay, that you can name your price. If you loose an auction, just look for another one. There is no reason to get into a biding war over one of these.
I recommend the third generation iPod nano. This was the first iPod nano to offer video. The Video iPod or fifth generation iPod has a hard drive. This is a spinning disk that is subject to damage when dropped or wearing out of the motor that drives it. You lose all advantage of solid state. (Also these tend to be more expensive. I still haven't figured out why people are willing to pay more money for a less capable device.) For the same reason, stay away from the iPod classic. If you get a good price on new iPod nano's then go for it. I would avoid the sixth generation iPod nano because Apple removed video capability from it. Only recently has video been returned to the nano line.
Keep the storage space small. We're talking about a single purpose iPod. You're not going to use this to watch movies on your flight to Hawaii or London. You're not going to use this to watch movies during your week long camping trip to Yellowstone NP either. You only need enough storage for your looping video. This video will likely be 2-5 minutes long. That way people don't feel stuck to listen to your whole pitch and as the crowd moves past your booth, they will all get pretty much the same message. The smallest ever third generation iPod nano was 2 GB. This is approximately the same size as a DVD quality feature length (2 hour) film. Trust me, anything over 2 GB is wasted and you shouldn't pay more for it.
Accept scratches and dents on the iPod. You're feeding the video signal into the TV. You are not going to be watching the video on the iPod, so you can deal with scratches on the display. About all you have to be concerned with is can you read the display well enough to start it up at the beginning of the day. On eBay you're competing with others who want to watch videos on the iPod. They will go for ones with fewer scratches so this keeps the prices down on the ones with scratches.
Accept iPods that don't maintain a charge. The A/V Composite cable from Apple includes a USB connector. Since you'll need power for your TV, you'll have power for this USB connector to keep your iPod running. Like the scratches, there are iPods available on eBay which can no longer maintain a battery charge. This keeps their prices down and helps you get something that works perfectly for your purposes.
The next nice thing about this set up is that all of the hardware is independent of the content. Unlike foam core board or traditional displays, when this project is done, all of the hardware can be reconfigured for the next one. You can use this setup for every project or display from this point forward.
Now that we have all of the equipment, let's talk about configuring it for your project. Start with the video content. You can use your camcorder, cell phone, or newer iPod touch to take videos. You can edit the video on your computer, either Windows or Mac. Mac is nice because you get iMovie that gives you some great editing features and will easily transfer your video to iTunes. No matter how it gets there, get your video file loaded to iTunes. Use this to transfer the file from the computer to the iPod.
You want to look through the iPod settings. In the Video settings look for TV out. You want this turned on. In the U.S. you want to use NTSC format. For European TVs, set it to PAL format. Also set the default for Repeat as Repeat All. If you only have one thing in the playlist it will just repeat it. If later you want a couple different videos, you can do that from iTunes and not have to change the iPod settings. Since this is a single purpose iPod, I recommend removing as many extra items from the Main Menu as possible. You want to turn on the iPod, go straight to your playlist, and start running it. You don't need the rest of the things to scrolls through to do this.
After this it is a matter of plugging in all of the cables and power cords and then starting it. This will vary depending on your TV. It should be a matter of plugging the 30-pin connector into the iPod. The plug the red, white, yellow cables into the jacks for this input on the TV. Then plug the USB connector to a wall charger. Finally plug the wall charger and the TV power cord into the power outlet. Start the iPod video playing. If you don't see the video on the TV, use the TV controls to switch inputs to the Composite or Game input. Adjust volume and you're ready to go for the day. A Ziploc bag taped to the back of the TV is a great way to keep everything together for travel.
Any time you want to update the video you can just connect the iPod back to the computer and sync again.
While we're talking bout this setup, let me present another use for this same gear. You can use this to provide rotating content, like podcasts to an audience. Here is a scenario. Imagine you're part of an Air and Space museum. You want to get the great videos produced by NASA to your audience. You don't want to wire everything up to get the NASA TV feed for a few reasons. One there is a lot of cabling and setup to get the hardware in place for a TV feed. There is also expense in the subscription to either the direct feed or a television service. You also have your exhibit tethered to the television feed. Another reason is NASA TV is boring. There are only a few 10 minute shows worth anything in the 24 hour a day feed.
Instead NASA offers some great short length content for free through their NASAcast Video podcast. You can subscribe in iTunes and set up a Smart Playlist that has the most recent 2 GB, 4 GB, or 8 GB of content. iTunes will download the content to the hard drive. The iPod can then be synced with the computer and then removed. Plug the iPod into the monitor and you can watch hours of NASA programming (just the interesting stuff) on continuous loop every day all day. Once a week the iPod can be synced again with iTunes. The Smart Playlist means that with just the hands free automatic sync built into iTunes, the oldest content is removed from the iPod and the newest content is added.
This will be a great way to encourage more museum memberships. A single visit to the museum and every patron will see that your video display has information directly from NASA that was produced within the last week. They will know that they can return again and again to learn more about the most recent advances by NASA. Who want to keep paying for single admissions? They will quickly purchase an annual membership and then they will return again and again and learn more and more about all of the exhibits in the museum.
If you're this far in the post, you're probably interested in this concept. Now imagine your a school principle or a school teacher. What about setting up one of these video kiosks in the hallway or a central social area of the school? Wouldn't it be nice for the students to get an extra dose of real world education as part of their day? What about other topics? There are thousands of video podcasts available for free on all sorts of different topics. There are programs on music, art, news, science, and more that could take advantage of this set up. Smart Playlists in iTunes allows you to create single topic playlists as well as cross subject playlists. It is all available for minimum cost and minimum effort.
Saturday, November 9, 2013
World's Greatest Laptop Desk
This article is something that many friends and family have heard from me for years. Now I am sharing with you a secret that I discovered years ago.
First, let's discuss what a Laptop Desk is. Since the dawn of computer laptops, users have found two annoying problems. (Well, two that a laptop desk can solve. I can't do anything about your battery lasting one and a half hours before needing to be plugged in again.) They are getting the keys to a comfortable height to type from and providing cooling air to the computer so it doesn't overheat. A hot computer is uncomfortable to have on your legs, so you also need to insulate the hot battery from your lap.
There are many different types of Laptop Desks available. There are fine wood and leather lap desks from companies like Levenger which can run up to $50. There are models that have fans built into them to increase the air flow to the laptop to keep them cool. Kohls has one from Belkin for $30.
These have some drawbacks. In the case of ones with cooling fans, they either have plugs or batteries that need recharging, or they plug into your laptop's USB port draining even more power from the battery and reducing the time available to work. Another drawback is the cost. Even a durable desk made of wood and leather will wear and get scratches in it. You'll have to replace it in time. There is also the waiting. You may be able to pick one of these up at a consumer electronics store, which is one more errand you have to run when you're trying to get home to have dinner with the family. Or you can order online and without paying extra, it may arrive in a week.
My solution is a laptop desk that raises the laptop about an inch and a half above your lap which is a comfortable typing height. It insulates your legs from the heat generated by the laptop. It is also sturdy creating a flat surface that allows the right amount of airflow that the laptop was designed for to allow the on board cooling system to work efficiently.
They range in price from $8 to $20. They are available in every city in the country. They are personally delivered right to your door the same day you order one, often within an hour from when you order it. Every one of them comes with a bonus prize inside the desk.
Does that sound good? Too good to resist? Trying to figure out why something so prevalent, so useful, and you've never heard of it before? Here you go.
The world's best laptop desk is an empty pizza box.
The empty pizza box has static air inside it. This is a great insulator and the same thing that made the heat tiles on the Space Shuttle so effective. The empty pizza box is lightweight because it is made from cardboard and filled with air. You won't even notice the weight of the box after you get your laptop on it and you're arms resting on the laptop.
The empty pizza box is sturdy as well. This is something that has evolved over time. There are some of you that remember the early years of pizza delivery and the dawn of Dominos Pizza. The heat and steam from the pizza would soak the box. A stack of these in the car of the delivery guy and the tops would sag touching the cheese inside and creating a mess. Some pizzerias developed little plastic stands that they put in the center of the pizza to help keep the sag off the cheese. Others developed stronger cardboard that could stay sturdy even with a piping hot and steamy pizza inside.
Just tonight I got two medium size laptop desks for $15 from Papa John's. Each of them had a two topping pizza inside. Now that is a prize worth the cost of the laptop box itself. I mean I wouldn't be surprised if people were ordering these just to get the prize and throwing away the laptop desk.
For those of you worried about grease and food crumbs left behind in your laptop desk, you're not eating the pizza fast enough. Invite three or four of your friends over and then order one. I bet you that within five minutes, your friends will have your laptop desk cleaned out and ready to use.
You were thinking that having your laptop desk arrive the same day and even the same hour as your order would be amazing compared with ordering other computer supplies online. You won't put up with pizza delivery taking longer than 30 minutes from the order.
What about durability? I bet you when you start using your pizza boxes as laptop desks, you'll have a new one in the house before the old one has worn out. Given that you get a free pizza with each laptop desk, you won't mind ordering another one within a month of the last one. If it does wear out, you can quickly and easily order a replacement.
Think about travel. I bet if you got one of those wood ones, you wouldn't carry it with you on a trip. Even a cooling fan one from Belkin isn't likely to travel with you. Well that doesn't matter. Most place you travel to have pizza delivery. When you arrive at your hotel, order a pizza the first night and you'll have a laptop desk for the trip. Of course you may want to hide it in your suitcase when the maid comes. They don't realize that you're using it as a laptop desk and will throw is out. When you leave that town, just leave it behind in the hotel room and get a new one at your next stop. You can even expense the purchase. I don't know, call it a food expense for the accounting department. They probably won't think twice about paying for it.
If you don't like the looks of an empty pizza box sitting next to the couch or your favorite easy chair, then get a can of spray paint and paint it. Add stickers to it to personalize it. I wouldn't spend a lot of time decorating it though. When your mom comes to visit, she won't know what it is and will throw it out, even if you've decorated it.
If you're still skeptical, try it for yourself. The next time you order pizza, save the box. Then sit down on the couch and put the pizza box between your lap and the laptop. You'll find it easy to use and your legs don't get hot from the computer. If you sit and work this way for an hour or so, you'll quickly forget that your laptop desk came from Papa John's. You'll just know that it worked and was pretty comfortable.
First, let's discuss what a Laptop Desk is. Since the dawn of computer laptops, users have found two annoying problems. (Well, two that a laptop desk can solve. I can't do anything about your battery lasting one and a half hours before needing to be plugged in again.) They are getting the keys to a comfortable height to type from and providing cooling air to the computer so it doesn't overheat. A hot computer is uncomfortable to have on your legs, so you also need to insulate the hot battery from your lap.
There are many different types of Laptop Desks available. There are fine wood and leather lap desks from companies like Levenger which can run up to $50. There are models that have fans built into them to increase the air flow to the laptop to keep them cool. Kohls has one from Belkin for $30.
These have some drawbacks. In the case of ones with cooling fans, they either have plugs or batteries that need recharging, or they plug into your laptop's USB port draining even more power from the battery and reducing the time available to work. Another drawback is the cost. Even a durable desk made of wood and leather will wear and get scratches in it. You'll have to replace it in time. There is also the waiting. You may be able to pick one of these up at a consumer electronics store, which is one more errand you have to run when you're trying to get home to have dinner with the family. Or you can order online and without paying extra, it may arrive in a week.
My solution is a laptop desk that raises the laptop about an inch and a half above your lap which is a comfortable typing height. It insulates your legs from the heat generated by the laptop. It is also sturdy creating a flat surface that allows the right amount of airflow that the laptop was designed for to allow the on board cooling system to work efficiently.
They range in price from $8 to $20. They are available in every city in the country. They are personally delivered right to your door the same day you order one, often within an hour from when you order it. Every one of them comes with a bonus prize inside the desk.
Does that sound good? Too good to resist? Trying to figure out why something so prevalent, so useful, and you've never heard of it before? Here you go.
The world's best laptop desk is an empty pizza box.
The empty pizza box has static air inside it. This is a great insulator and the same thing that made the heat tiles on the Space Shuttle so effective. The empty pizza box is lightweight because it is made from cardboard and filled with air. You won't even notice the weight of the box after you get your laptop on it and you're arms resting on the laptop.
The empty pizza box is sturdy as well. This is something that has evolved over time. There are some of you that remember the early years of pizza delivery and the dawn of Dominos Pizza. The heat and steam from the pizza would soak the box. A stack of these in the car of the delivery guy and the tops would sag touching the cheese inside and creating a mess. Some pizzerias developed little plastic stands that they put in the center of the pizza to help keep the sag off the cheese. Others developed stronger cardboard that could stay sturdy even with a piping hot and steamy pizza inside.
Just tonight I got two medium size laptop desks for $15 from Papa John's. Each of them had a two topping pizza inside. Now that is a prize worth the cost of the laptop box itself. I mean I wouldn't be surprised if people were ordering these just to get the prize and throwing away the laptop desk.
For those of you worried about grease and food crumbs left behind in your laptop desk, you're not eating the pizza fast enough. Invite three or four of your friends over and then order one. I bet you that within five minutes, your friends will have your laptop desk cleaned out and ready to use.
You were thinking that having your laptop desk arrive the same day and even the same hour as your order would be amazing compared with ordering other computer supplies online. You won't put up with pizza delivery taking longer than 30 minutes from the order.
What about durability? I bet you when you start using your pizza boxes as laptop desks, you'll have a new one in the house before the old one has worn out. Given that you get a free pizza with each laptop desk, you won't mind ordering another one within a month of the last one. If it does wear out, you can quickly and easily order a replacement.
Think about travel. I bet if you got one of those wood ones, you wouldn't carry it with you on a trip. Even a cooling fan one from Belkin isn't likely to travel with you. Well that doesn't matter. Most place you travel to have pizza delivery. When you arrive at your hotel, order a pizza the first night and you'll have a laptop desk for the trip. Of course you may want to hide it in your suitcase when the maid comes. They don't realize that you're using it as a laptop desk and will throw is out. When you leave that town, just leave it behind in the hotel room and get a new one at your next stop. You can even expense the purchase. I don't know, call it a food expense for the accounting department. They probably won't think twice about paying for it.
If you don't like the looks of an empty pizza box sitting next to the couch or your favorite easy chair, then get a can of spray paint and paint it. Add stickers to it to personalize it. I wouldn't spend a lot of time decorating it though. When your mom comes to visit, she won't know what it is and will throw it out, even if you've decorated it.
If you're still skeptical, try it for yourself. The next time you order pizza, save the box. Then sit down on the couch and put the pizza box between your lap and the laptop. You'll find it easy to use and your legs don't get hot from the computer. If you sit and work this way for an hour or so, you'll quickly forget that your laptop desk came from Papa John's. You'll just know that it worked and was pretty comfortable.
Veteran's Day War Movie
If you're looking for a war movie to watch this weekend before Veteran's Day, I recommend Band of Brothers.
It is a mini-series that HBO produced about the 82nd Airborne and their fighting in WWII. It is a 10 episode series and available through iTunes at https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/band-of-brothers/id474228215. The battles and the characters are real. It was developed through in depth interviews with the guys who served in the 82nd Airborne.
Spoiler Alert: Without giving too much away, the last episode of the series has interviews with some of the survivors from the unit.
It is a bloody and gory tale of fighting in WWII. The television networks are going to full of classic war films this weekend. If you haven't seen Band of Brothers, this will be a good weekend to watch a couple episodes.
Warning: Be ready to watch the whole series. The story is well told; the actors do a great portrayal of the situations; and the filming make you feel like you're there. Like Lays potato chips, you can't watch just one.
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Clubfoot Shoe Exchange
Please pass this along to everyone you know:
http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/free_access/janet-decker-a-hero-in-two-communities/article_f7b0fe0a-463c-11e3-a1b2-0019bb30f31a.html
If you're not affected or don't know anyone affected, please continue to pass it along. Someone the people you know is affected or can help someone they know who can benefit from this service.
Thank you.
http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/free_access/janet-decker-a-hero-in-two-communities/article_f7b0fe0a-463c-11e3-a1b2-0019bb30f31a.html
If you're not affected or don't know anyone affected, please continue to pass it along. Someone the people you know is affected or can help someone they know who can benefit from this service.
Thank you.
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Business and Electric Vehicles
It's good business to support Electric Vehicles. It is also very easy for a business to get started.
There are many things that a business can do to support Electric Vehicles (EVs) and Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs). I've been surprised at how slowly businesses have been to embrace this growing community.
Most people look at it and think that it is complicated or expensive and the reality is that they are wrong. It is easy and inexpensive to take the first steps. I'll talk about ways a business can start small and attract a new, growing demographic out there.
The first step is to take one or all of the light posts in your parking lot. Have an electrician add an exterior 120V outlet to the light post. This is a standard three-prong outlet that you would see on the outside of your house or on your porch. I recommend one that has Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) capability. Then just paint the stripes on the parking spaces near this lamp post with green paint. Let your customers know that these are designated for EVs or PHEVs.
If you look at it, you're already paying a lot of money to light the parking lot at night. Those high power lights in your parking lot are driving a huge overhead expense. Compare that with the 2-5 kWh that any EV or PHEV will pull from the same circuit.
Don't charge for this service. The national average electric rate is $0.12 per kWh. The Chevy Volt and Ford Fusion have batteries that are only about 7-10 kWh in capacity. To fill a 7.5 kWh battery on 120V charing takes about 8 hours. So either the customers will have to spend hours in your store, likely buying things or they are going to take around $0.25 of electricity from you. The fact that you offer EV spots will bring clients that will more than make up for the $0.25 you spend to charge their vehicle.
You don't need fancy charging stations with 240V plugs and the like. Every EV or PHEV has the ability to charge from a standard 120V outlet. You don't have to lose huge sections of your parking lot either. With a heavy duty power cord, only a cord of 25 feet or less is considered safe for the amperage being drawn to recharge. This means that drivers don't have huge extension cords. You only need to designate the adjacent parking spots as EV spots.
You don't have to lose close parking spots. Right now the drivers of EVs and PHEVs are sacrificing to move the technology forward. The cars are expensive and the charging locations are few. This community is okay with walking a little further from their car to your door if it means they might get 3 or 4 more miles of EV distance from plugging in.
After you have set up the electric charging spots, let people know about it. You can put up a poster in your window. Customers will see the new green parking spaces. Then go to websites like plugshare.com and register your business as one with free charing. The community of EV and PHEV drivers are using Apps and websites like PlugShare.com to find businesses that offer charing stations. Sure there are places with fancy 240V charging stations and charging stations that cost money. Your 120V free spots will still be noticed since very few businesses are doing anything. Look around at your neighbors. They haven't gotten on board yet. You should also know that the Ford Mobile website for EV and PHEV drivers pulls its information directly from PlugShare.com. By registering your outlets, every Ford driver will be able to find your business.
There are two types of businesses who can really take advantage of offering charging stations, even 120V stations. They are hotels and family restaurants.
Hotels are easy. People are spending the night there. That means they are likely to be there for the full 8 hours that it takes to charge a PHEV completely. Even a full charge for a PHEV at the national average rate will cost you $1.20 per car. There just aren't that many cars out there. If you really need the money charge everyone who stays there an extra $1.20 a night and you'll cover this utility cost. As a PHEV driver, if I pull off the Interstate and there are two hotels, one that offers charging and one that doesn't, I'll stay at the one with the charging station, even if it is $5 more per night. We do this for the future, not for the money.
Family Restaurants are a little more difficult to see. This applies to any sit down restaurant. First this may get EV and PHEV drivers just to come in the front door. Even if they don't get much charge from your parking lot, they will chose your restaurant over your neighbors and competitors. If they are charging, they are more likely to stay longer. This sounds like a bad thing since the restaurant business is based on turnover and volume. Still these customers are more likely to get an appetizer or desert or both if it means they get to charge for just a little bit longer. Any amount of charge is better than none. Appetizers and deserts are where the restaurant's highest margins are. Selling more of these is worth the lingering customer.
You don't need the high voltage, high amperage specialized charing stations. A 120V standard outdoor GFI outlet is fine. You don't need to charge for it. The cost to you is minimal and the benefits of advertising and public relations are huge. Pretty soon more and more businesses are going to figure out that there is profit in giving away free electricity. The paid charing stations will dry up and not recover the installation costs to their owners.
You can even convert the whole parking lot to have standard outlets and make a living. If you don't believe me take a road trip to Glacier National Park. Along the way stop in local cities in Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Visit the local grocery stores and shopping malls. There is a shopping mall in Great Falls, Montana off 10th Ave South where there is an outlet in front of every parking space. I know because I used to live there. The prices for goods in the shops are comparable to those in any other store around the nation. These plugs were not installed for EVs or PHEVs. They've been there for decades. They were installed for block heaters.
A block heater is a heating element that screws into the engine block of a car. It has a standard three-prong plug that sticks out of the grill of the car. In places like North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana the winters can get so cold that oil in a car engine starts to change from a liquid to a solid, or more of a sludgy goo. The heater in the block keeps the oil liquid and easy to push around and lubricate the engine. The heating element is a constant draw of electricity to warm the inefficient heating element of the block heater. The whole time cars are plugged into these outlets they are drawing electricity. All of these outlets are free for customers to use so their engines don't seize up while they are shopping.
An EV or PHEV will only draw enough electrify for it to charge the battery. Once the 7-10 kWh are drawn, the car stops drawing electricity. If businesses in the northern tier have been able to make profits from giving away electricity, any business any where can do the same.
If you're worried about maintaining these outlets, don't worry. I don't think there is a harsher proving ground for these outlet stations than in North Dakota, South Dakota, or Montana. The temperatures can easily dip below -30 deg F. Then there is the ice. With foot traffic and parked cars it is difficult to clear snow from parking lots before it turns to ice. A car trying to park on a sheet of ice will slip and slide. Many times these posts have been run into by drivers and they still survive.
If they can do it, you can do it. And you can be the first in your shopping area to show your support for alternative energy vehicles like EVs and PHEVs. What are you waiting for?
There are many things that a business can do to support Electric Vehicles (EVs) and Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs). I've been surprised at how slowly businesses have been to embrace this growing community.
Most people look at it and think that it is complicated or expensive and the reality is that they are wrong. It is easy and inexpensive to take the first steps. I'll talk about ways a business can start small and attract a new, growing demographic out there.
The first step is to take one or all of the light posts in your parking lot. Have an electrician add an exterior 120V outlet to the light post. This is a standard three-prong outlet that you would see on the outside of your house or on your porch. I recommend one that has Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) capability. Then just paint the stripes on the parking spaces near this lamp post with green paint. Let your customers know that these are designated for EVs or PHEVs.
If you look at it, you're already paying a lot of money to light the parking lot at night. Those high power lights in your parking lot are driving a huge overhead expense. Compare that with the 2-5 kWh that any EV or PHEV will pull from the same circuit.
Don't charge for this service. The national average electric rate is $0.12 per kWh. The Chevy Volt and Ford Fusion have batteries that are only about 7-10 kWh in capacity. To fill a 7.5 kWh battery on 120V charing takes about 8 hours. So either the customers will have to spend hours in your store, likely buying things or they are going to take around $0.25 of electricity from you. The fact that you offer EV spots will bring clients that will more than make up for the $0.25 you spend to charge their vehicle.
You don't need fancy charging stations with 240V plugs and the like. Every EV or PHEV has the ability to charge from a standard 120V outlet. You don't have to lose huge sections of your parking lot either. With a heavy duty power cord, only a cord of 25 feet or less is considered safe for the amperage being drawn to recharge. This means that drivers don't have huge extension cords. You only need to designate the adjacent parking spots as EV spots.
You don't have to lose close parking spots. Right now the drivers of EVs and PHEVs are sacrificing to move the technology forward. The cars are expensive and the charging locations are few. This community is okay with walking a little further from their car to your door if it means they might get 3 or 4 more miles of EV distance from plugging in.
After you have set up the electric charging spots, let people know about it. You can put up a poster in your window. Customers will see the new green parking spaces. Then go to websites like plugshare.com and register your business as one with free charing. The community of EV and PHEV drivers are using Apps and websites like PlugShare.com to find businesses that offer charing stations. Sure there are places with fancy 240V charging stations and charging stations that cost money. Your 120V free spots will still be noticed since very few businesses are doing anything. Look around at your neighbors. They haven't gotten on board yet. You should also know that the Ford Mobile website for EV and PHEV drivers pulls its information directly from PlugShare.com. By registering your outlets, every Ford driver will be able to find your business.
There are two types of businesses who can really take advantage of offering charging stations, even 120V stations. They are hotels and family restaurants.
Hotels are easy. People are spending the night there. That means they are likely to be there for the full 8 hours that it takes to charge a PHEV completely. Even a full charge for a PHEV at the national average rate will cost you $1.20 per car. There just aren't that many cars out there. If you really need the money charge everyone who stays there an extra $1.20 a night and you'll cover this utility cost. As a PHEV driver, if I pull off the Interstate and there are two hotels, one that offers charging and one that doesn't, I'll stay at the one with the charging station, even if it is $5 more per night. We do this for the future, not for the money.
Family Restaurants are a little more difficult to see. This applies to any sit down restaurant. First this may get EV and PHEV drivers just to come in the front door. Even if they don't get much charge from your parking lot, they will chose your restaurant over your neighbors and competitors. If they are charging, they are more likely to stay longer. This sounds like a bad thing since the restaurant business is based on turnover and volume. Still these customers are more likely to get an appetizer or desert or both if it means they get to charge for just a little bit longer. Any amount of charge is better than none. Appetizers and deserts are where the restaurant's highest margins are. Selling more of these is worth the lingering customer.
You don't need the high voltage, high amperage specialized charing stations. A 120V standard outdoor GFI outlet is fine. You don't need to charge for it. The cost to you is minimal and the benefits of advertising and public relations are huge. Pretty soon more and more businesses are going to figure out that there is profit in giving away free electricity. The paid charing stations will dry up and not recover the installation costs to their owners.
You can even convert the whole parking lot to have standard outlets and make a living. If you don't believe me take a road trip to Glacier National Park. Along the way stop in local cities in Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Visit the local grocery stores and shopping malls. There is a shopping mall in Great Falls, Montana off 10th Ave South where there is an outlet in front of every parking space. I know because I used to live there. The prices for goods in the shops are comparable to those in any other store around the nation. These plugs were not installed for EVs or PHEVs. They've been there for decades. They were installed for block heaters.
A block heater is a heating element that screws into the engine block of a car. It has a standard three-prong plug that sticks out of the grill of the car. In places like North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana the winters can get so cold that oil in a car engine starts to change from a liquid to a solid, or more of a sludgy goo. The heater in the block keeps the oil liquid and easy to push around and lubricate the engine. The heating element is a constant draw of electricity to warm the inefficient heating element of the block heater. The whole time cars are plugged into these outlets they are drawing electricity. All of these outlets are free for customers to use so their engines don't seize up while they are shopping.
An EV or PHEV will only draw enough electrify for it to charge the battery. Once the 7-10 kWh are drawn, the car stops drawing electricity. If businesses in the northern tier have been able to make profits from giving away electricity, any business any where can do the same.
If you're worried about maintaining these outlets, don't worry. I don't think there is a harsher proving ground for these outlet stations than in North Dakota, South Dakota, or Montana. The temperatures can easily dip below -30 deg F. Then there is the ice. With foot traffic and parked cars it is difficult to clear snow from parking lots before it turns to ice. A car trying to park on a sheet of ice will slip and slide. Many times these posts have been run into by drivers and they still survive.
If they can do it, you can do it. And you can be the first in your shopping area to show your support for alternative energy vehicles like EVs and PHEVs. What are you waiting for?
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Electric Cars: The Perfect Second Vehicle
The electric vehicles (EVs) available today are the perfect second vehicle. If you know how to recharge your cell phone, you know how to recharge your EV. If you know how to drive a gasoline powered car, you know how to drive an EV.
One thing that Americans love is their automobile. We have been fascinated with cars since they came out. Today this love affair with our cars has created a demand for foreign sources of energy to run them. I believe the future of cars is electric cars. That future is starting right now.
There are a growing number of electric cars available on the market today from the Tesla Roadster to the Nissan Leaf. A lot of people are curious about them. The biggest fear is a single charge limit. The auto makers are playing off this fear to keep their gasoline cars in the market and on the streets. With a second car there is no need to fear current range limits.
Part of what we love about our cars is the road trip and since you can't drive halfway across the nation without recharging an electric car, many people stop looking at them. This isn't the whole story. For a single car household, an electric car won't work today. However most families have two cars. With dual income households becoming the norm, more of these households have two vehicles. For these families the electric car makes a lot of sense.
When you want to take the family to Walt Disney World, the Grand Canyon, or Wally World, you take the gasoline powered car or minivan. The rest of the year you can drive the electric car to and from work, grocery store, soccer practice, and McDonalds.
Most of the electric cars today are getting 100-130 miles on a charge. In city driving this is two to three hours. Try this out. Build a playlist for your phone or iPod that is three hours long. Each time you get in the car listen to this playlist. (In iTunes, you can create a Smart Playlist in about 5 minutes that will rotate the contents of this playlist so you aren't listening to the same songs day after day. More on this in another post.) Each time you get in the car, start playing this playlist. Do this for a week or two of regular activities. If you never get to the end of the playlist, you can expect that an electric car will work for you.
What most of us are missing is that we recharge an electric car each night while we sleep. Every morning we have a full tank to use for the day. Even if we drain the tank to nearly empty, we can fill up in our own garage. We don't have to make a special stop at a gas station to refuel. We all have the ability to refuel our electric cars in our houses today, with no special equipment.
Along these same lines, your first car, the car for the road trips, should be a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) or a hybrid vehicle. The PHEV will be the electric vehicle for most of the year. Only when you're on that long road trip will you start to use the gasoline engine and can refuel in a couple minutes at a gas station off the side of the Interstate.
You don't have to use the gasoline powered car for all trips. Many weekend destinations are within 100 miles of your home today. If you're taking a trip out of town for the weekend, do some research and make a couple phone calls. There is likely an outlet at your destination where you can charge. As soon as you get to the destination, plug in. You just drove two hours to get there, so you'll want to spend some time enjoying it. While you're enjoying the destination, your car is refueling for the return trip.
Here is the business secret in this post. If you're part of a motel or other travel destination, having free charging stations for guests or patrons is going to give you a competitive edge in attracting business away from your competitors. The group of EV and PHEV drivers today is small, but it is growing. Being EV friendly now will build a reputation for you. The Internet is allowing EV drivers to share information quicker and easier than ever before. If you don't believe me, check out www.PlugShare.com. Your neighbor may already be listed and getting business you didn't even know was available.
If you haven't quite made up your mind and are wondering if you can really recharge an electric vehicle in a day trip on a Saturday, consider that modern battery chargers don't charge linearly. What I mean is that if a full charge takes 10 hours, after 5 hours you're going to have more than 50% charge. You'll have something closer to 85% charge. Think about filling a large glass with water from the faucet. When you start, you turn the faucet on to its maximum flow. As the glass fills, you start decreasing the flow. When the glass is almost full, you have the faucet back to a small stream to make sure you don't overflow the glass. Battery chargers today work the same way. It is easiest, if not exactly correct, to think of it as an 80-20 split. In the first 20% of the charge time, the charger will fill the battery to 80% capacity. After this it slows down and takes its time.
Like the glass of water, the charger will not allow the battery to be over charged. This is where damage to the battery and loss of recharge cycles comes from. It's reasonable to expect that even during a one hour sit down family meal at a restaurant, you're going to get a significant recharge on your electric vehicle.
I hope after reading this, the next time you're in the market for a car, you consider the electric vehicles as well. It will reduce the impact of fluctuating gas prices from foreign sources on your monthly budget. They are also fun to drive.
One thing that Americans love is their automobile. We have been fascinated with cars since they came out. Today this love affair with our cars has created a demand for foreign sources of energy to run them. I believe the future of cars is electric cars. That future is starting right now.
There are a growing number of electric cars available on the market today from the Tesla Roadster to the Nissan Leaf. A lot of people are curious about them. The biggest fear is a single charge limit. The auto makers are playing off this fear to keep their gasoline cars in the market and on the streets. With a second car there is no need to fear current range limits.
Part of what we love about our cars is the road trip and since you can't drive halfway across the nation without recharging an electric car, many people stop looking at them. This isn't the whole story. For a single car household, an electric car won't work today. However most families have two cars. With dual income households becoming the norm, more of these households have two vehicles. For these families the electric car makes a lot of sense.
When you want to take the family to Walt Disney World, the Grand Canyon, or Wally World, you take the gasoline powered car or minivan. The rest of the year you can drive the electric car to and from work, grocery store, soccer practice, and McDonalds.
Most of the electric cars today are getting 100-130 miles on a charge. In city driving this is two to three hours. Try this out. Build a playlist for your phone or iPod that is three hours long. Each time you get in the car listen to this playlist. (In iTunes, you can create a Smart Playlist in about 5 minutes that will rotate the contents of this playlist so you aren't listening to the same songs day after day. More on this in another post.) Each time you get in the car, start playing this playlist. Do this for a week or two of regular activities. If you never get to the end of the playlist, you can expect that an electric car will work for you.
What most of us are missing is that we recharge an electric car each night while we sleep. Every morning we have a full tank to use for the day. Even if we drain the tank to nearly empty, we can fill up in our own garage. We don't have to make a special stop at a gas station to refuel. We all have the ability to refuel our electric cars in our houses today, with no special equipment.
Along these same lines, your first car, the car for the road trips, should be a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) or a hybrid vehicle. The PHEV will be the electric vehicle for most of the year. Only when you're on that long road trip will you start to use the gasoline engine and can refuel in a couple minutes at a gas station off the side of the Interstate.
You don't have to use the gasoline powered car for all trips. Many weekend destinations are within 100 miles of your home today. If you're taking a trip out of town for the weekend, do some research and make a couple phone calls. There is likely an outlet at your destination where you can charge. As soon as you get to the destination, plug in. You just drove two hours to get there, so you'll want to spend some time enjoying it. While you're enjoying the destination, your car is refueling for the return trip.
Here is the business secret in this post. If you're part of a motel or other travel destination, having free charging stations for guests or patrons is going to give you a competitive edge in attracting business away from your competitors. The group of EV and PHEV drivers today is small, but it is growing. Being EV friendly now will build a reputation for you. The Internet is allowing EV drivers to share information quicker and easier than ever before. If you don't believe me, check out www.PlugShare.com. Your neighbor may already be listed and getting business you didn't even know was available.
If you haven't quite made up your mind and are wondering if you can really recharge an electric vehicle in a day trip on a Saturday, consider that modern battery chargers don't charge linearly. What I mean is that if a full charge takes 10 hours, after 5 hours you're going to have more than 50% charge. You'll have something closer to 85% charge. Think about filling a large glass with water from the faucet. When you start, you turn the faucet on to its maximum flow. As the glass fills, you start decreasing the flow. When the glass is almost full, you have the faucet back to a small stream to make sure you don't overflow the glass. Battery chargers today work the same way. It is easiest, if not exactly correct, to think of it as an 80-20 split. In the first 20% of the charge time, the charger will fill the battery to 80% capacity. After this it slows down and takes its time.
Like the glass of water, the charger will not allow the battery to be over charged. This is where damage to the battery and loss of recharge cycles comes from. It's reasonable to expect that even during a one hour sit down family meal at a restaurant, you're going to get a significant recharge on your electric vehicle.
I hope after reading this, the next time you're in the market for a car, you consider the electric vehicles as well. It will reduce the impact of fluctuating gas prices from foreign sources on your monthly budget. They are also fun to drive.
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Ford Fusion Energi SE
I'm loving my Ford Fusion Energi SE. I'd like to thank everyone at Revision3. First they are sponsored by Ford which let me know that Ford had some Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs). Then the folks at Ford's Twitter account let me know I could also get Adaptive Cruise Control in the Fusion Energi SE.
As many of you know, this is not my first PHEV. My last one was a Toyota Prius with the Hymotion H5 conversion. I picked up a used 2008 Toyota Prius and the great folks at Pro Auto Care in Denver, CO converted it from a standard hybrid car to a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle.
I loved that car and was getting 80-90 miles per gallon (mpg) during regular use, which was commuting between home and work. Road trips to visit family were between 45m mpg and 50 mpg. Roughly a year ago, the conversion battery pack started giving me trouble and the company who originally built the conversion was in bankruptcy. The Toyota Prius kept working great.
Now things are better. With the conversion, the original Prius computer program was managing the switch between electric and gasoline modes. It was very hard to stay in a a pure electric mode. Every time you start the Prius, after about 20 seconds, the engine would turn on. I assume this was to warm up the catalytic converter to help with emissions for when the engine is needed. This would happen even if I hadn't taken it out of gear yet.
The next thing I learned with the Prius is that I had to keep speeds below 45 mph to run in electric mode. I assume this was to make the transmission switch easier if the engine power was eventually needed. There were a few times that I was coasting down a hill (i.e., no acceleration needed) and as the speed increased, the engine started.
I went into this adventure to learn about hybrids, PHEVs, and electric vehicles. I've been an advocate for hybrid cars since the first ride I got in one in 2003. A friend of mine had a Prius, and the first time the engine turned off when we were at a stop light, it blew my mind. I still believe the future of transportation is in electric vehicles. Hybrids are a necessary step on the way to that future. After years and years of talk, talk, talk about electric vehicles, I decided it was time for me to put my money where my mouth was and figure out if the hype could work for real people with real world driving conditions.
The result was that I learned owning was everything I thought it could be. It drives the same as any other car. I really liked that Toyota had a Smart Key system with push button start. The Smart Key meant I never had to fumble with keys. The push button start only makes sense because you're really booting up your car, not cranking the engine. The car taught me to accelerate and brake smarter as well. That helped me get even better gas mileage.
One thing I wasn't expecting was getting in my car each morning to a full tank. When you plug in your car each time you return home, you're refueling it. Gasoline cars and gas stations have taught us to monitor the gas level through the course of many trips and many days. In a PHEV, I still had to monitor the gas in the tank, but every morning the batteries were fully charged and ready to drive.
I also learned that it was simple to keep the car charged. It didn't take long to develop a habit of plugging the car into the wall each time I pulled into the garage. It is similar to the habits we build to plug in our cell phones to recharge them each day. We also have habits about getting ready in the morning. It is easy to add to this ritual unplugging the car and storing the extension cord.
One thing the manufacturers probably don't want you to know is that there is no need for the extra high voltage charging stations in your garage. All of the PHEVs on the market today offer the ability to charge from a standard 110V outlet. This usually takes 8 hours. The charge time can be cut in half when you install a special 220V charging station in your garage. Your house probably has this capability for your oven and dryer. It sounds like you would want the shortest recharge time because you're comparing it with 5 minutes to fill your gas tank. What you learn when you live with a PHEV, is that you sleep for 8 hours. From the time you pull into your garage after work until you are ready to leave in the morning, your car is charging. There were a couple times where I turned around in 6 hours and still I had plenty of charge in the car. An 8 hour charge every night keeps you running on electric for as long as possible.
Well, the title of this blog is the Ford Fusion and I've spent all of this time talking about the Hymotion H5 converted Prius. I did that because so much of what I love about the PHEV Fusion Energi SE are the same as the Prius, like charging while you sleep.
There are some things different about the Fusion. On the negative side is no Smart Key option and no Pushbutton Start option, even though these are options on other Ford models. I would expect these options will come in future models of the Fusion Energi. Right now the My Ford Mobile app for the iPhone feels cheap and doesn't seem to have much functionality. The good news there is that the Ford software department can fix that without changing my vehicle.
On to the good things. The Fusion Energi SE was designed from the start to be a PHEV. This means that the computer logic does a better job of keeping the car in electric mode. I can drive at full Interstate speeds (70 mph) in pure electric mode. Even after the EV battery has been drained and you're driving on the Hybrid battery, if there is enough power in the battery at Interstate speeds, the engine will shut off and the car will drive on electric only.
This past week I was just driving between home and work. I charged each night. I drive roughly 10-13 miles one way and don't have charing capability at the office. According to the read out at the end of each trip, I used a total of 0.01 gallons of gas. These trips included stops for dinner on the way home and one 6 mile round trip when I had to get a drive through dinner before returning to the office to finish a project. When I was looking at the Fusion, I was also looking at some electric cars. I decided to stick with the hybrid because I am still doing a number of road trips (> 600 miles) during the year. After performance like I saw this week, the Fusion Energi SE is really an Electric Vehicle with a safety net for the longer trips.
This sounds good, and many of you are saying that while I'm not spending money on gasoline, I'm still spending money on electricity. You're absolutely right, so let's look at that. The Fusion battery can hold 7.5 kWh. Most days I was using all of that. Where I live, I'm paying $0.085 per kWh. That is a little over $0.50 per day to drive to and from work. That is $15 a month. I challenge everyone reading this article to look around their house. How much is the alway on refrigerator adding to your electric bill? Surprisingly your Internet modem and wireless router are also using energy 24 hours a day. Then there is the phantom power from your HD television set. All of these appliances are getting more efficient. Still, look at your electric usage for the next few months on your utility bill. Would you be able to afford another 150 kWh to your usage if it meant never filling up the car at a gas station again? I am lucky with my utility rate. The national average is $0.12 per kWh.
One of the other things that I like about the Fusion Engeri SE is that it provides a trip summary when I park and turn off the car. I have used this to compare the different ways I can get to work from my house. One route uses about 3.5 kWh. Another route only uses about 2.5 kWh. This kind of comparison wasn't available in the Prius. I tired comparing routes using the tank milage over the course of 3 tanks. This was very time consuming because it could take me the better part of a month to use up the gas in the 9 gallon tank. Then the milage was an average of all the driving I had done that month, not just the differences between the routes. The immediate feedback that the Fusion provides is helping me find the most cost effective route faster so I can realize the benefits sooner.
The newer car has many more options for displays in the instrument panel. There is a really nice Energy Coach display. It gives a set of bars for acceleration, braking, and cruising. I can use each of them to learn more efficient ways to drive. More gentle acceleration and longer, lighter braking give me a better score and help me get the most from a charge.
So I'm really liking my Ford Fusion Energi SE. If you want to learn more about it stop by and I'll let you take mine for a spin and I'll tell you all about it. It may be easier to just stop by your local Ford dealership and ask them for a test drive. Keep reading this blog as I intend on posting more and more about the Fusion as I learn more about it. I will probably be the only person you know who is happy when gasoline prices go up. That means my investment in this car will be paid off sooner.
Now I haven't even gotten started on the Adaptive Cruise Control. Stay tuned as I expect to be posting more about that in the future as well.
As many of you know, this is not my first PHEV. My last one was a Toyota Prius with the Hymotion H5 conversion. I picked up a used 2008 Toyota Prius and the great folks at Pro Auto Care in Denver, CO converted it from a standard hybrid car to a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle.
I loved that car and was getting 80-90 miles per gallon (mpg) during regular use, which was commuting between home and work. Road trips to visit family were between 45m mpg and 50 mpg. Roughly a year ago, the conversion battery pack started giving me trouble and the company who originally built the conversion was in bankruptcy. The Toyota Prius kept working great.
Now things are better. With the conversion, the original Prius computer program was managing the switch between electric and gasoline modes. It was very hard to stay in a a pure electric mode. Every time you start the Prius, after about 20 seconds, the engine would turn on. I assume this was to warm up the catalytic converter to help with emissions for when the engine is needed. This would happen even if I hadn't taken it out of gear yet.
The next thing I learned with the Prius is that I had to keep speeds below 45 mph to run in electric mode. I assume this was to make the transmission switch easier if the engine power was eventually needed. There were a few times that I was coasting down a hill (i.e., no acceleration needed) and as the speed increased, the engine started.
I went into this adventure to learn about hybrids, PHEVs, and electric vehicles. I've been an advocate for hybrid cars since the first ride I got in one in 2003. A friend of mine had a Prius, and the first time the engine turned off when we were at a stop light, it blew my mind. I still believe the future of transportation is in electric vehicles. Hybrids are a necessary step on the way to that future. After years and years of talk, talk, talk about electric vehicles, I decided it was time for me to put my money where my mouth was and figure out if the hype could work for real people with real world driving conditions.
The result was that I learned owning was everything I thought it could be. It drives the same as any other car. I really liked that Toyota had a Smart Key system with push button start. The Smart Key meant I never had to fumble with keys. The push button start only makes sense because you're really booting up your car, not cranking the engine. The car taught me to accelerate and brake smarter as well. That helped me get even better gas mileage.
One thing I wasn't expecting was getting in my car each morning to a full tank. When you plug in your car each time you return home, you're refueling it. Gasoline cars and gas stations have taught us to monitor the gas level through the course of many trips and many days. In a PHEV, I still had to monitor the gas in the tank, but every morning the batteries were fully charged and ready to drive.
I also learned that it was simple to keep the car charged. It didn't take long to develop a habit of plugging the car into the wall each time I pulled into the garage. It is similar to the habits we build to plug in our cell phones to recharge them each day. We also have habits about getting ready in the morning. It is easy to add to this ritual unplugging the car and storing the extension cord.
One thing the manufacturers probably don't want you to know is that there is no need for the extra high voltage charging stations in your garage. All of the PHEVs on the market today offer the ability to charge from a standard 110V outlet. This usually takes 8 hours. The charge time can be cut in half when you install a special 220V charging station in your garage. Your house probably has this capability for your oven and dryer. It sounds like you would want the shortest recharge time because you're comparing it with 5 minutes to fill your gas tank. What you learn when you live with a PHEV, is that you sleep for 8 hours. From the time you pull into your garage after work until you are ready to leave in the morning, your car is charging. There were a couple times where I turned around in 6 hours and still I had plenty of charge in the car. An 8 hour charge every night keeps you running on electric for as long as possible.
Well, the title of this blog is the Ford Fusion and I've spent all of this time talking about the Hymotion H5 converted Prius. I did that because so much of what I love about the PHEV Fusion Energi SE are the same as the Prius, like charging while you sleep.
There are some things different about the Fusion. On the negative side is no Smart Key option and no Pushbutton Start option, even though these are options on other Ford models. I would expect these options will come in future models of the Fusion Energi. Right now the My Ford Mobile app for the iPhone feels cheap and doesn't seem to have much functionality. The good news there is that the Ford software department can fix that without changing my vehicle.
On to the good things. The Fusion Energi SE was designed from the start to be a PHEV. This means that the computer logic does a better job of keeping the car in electric mode. I can drive at full Interstate speeds (70 mph) in pure electric mode. Even after the EV battery has been drained and you're driving on the Hybrid battery, if there is enough power in the battery at Interstate speeds, the engine will shut off and the car will drive on electric only.
This past week I was just driving between home and work. I charged each night. I drive roughly 10-13 miles one way and don't have charing capability at the office. According to the read out at the end of each trip, I used a total of 0.01 gallons of gas. These trips included stops for dinner on the way home and one 6 mile round trip when I had to get a drive through dinner before returning to the office to finish a project. When I was looking at the Fusion, I was also looking at some electric cars. I decided to stick with the hybrid because I am still doing a number of road trips (> 600 miles) during the year. After performance like I saw this week, the Fusion Energi SE is really an Electric Vehicle with a safety net for the longer trips.
This sounds good, and many of you are saying that while I'm not spending money on gasoline, I'm still spending money on electricity. You're absolutely right, so let's look at that. The Fusion battery can hold 7.5 kWh. Most days I was using all of that. Where I live, I'm paying $0.085 per kWh. That is a little over $0.50 per day to drive to and from work. That is $15 a month. I challenge everyone reading this article to look around their house. How much is the alway on refrigerator adding to your electric bill? Surprisingly your Internet modem and wireless router are also using energy 24 hours a day. Then there is the phantom power from your HD television set. All of these appliances are getting more efficient. Still, look at your electric usage for the next few months on your utility bill. Would you be able to afford another 150 kWh to your usage if it meant never filling up the car at a gas station again? I am lucky with my utility rate. The national average is $0.12 per kWh.
One of the other things that I like about the Fusion Engeri SE is that it provides a trip summary when I park and turn off the car. I have used this to compare the different ways I can get to work from my house. One route uses about 3.5 kWh. Another route only uses about 2.5 kWh. This kind of comparison wasn't available in the Prius. I tired comparing routes using the tank milage over the course of 3 tanks. This was very time consuming because it could take me the better part of a month to use up the gas in the 9 gallon tank. Then the milage was an average of all the driving I had done that month, not just the differences between the routes. The immediate feedback that the Fusion provides is helping me find the most cost effective route faster so I can realize the benefits sooner.
The newer car has many more options for displays in the instrument panel. There is a really nice Energy Coach display. It gives a set of bars for acceleration, braking, and cruising. I can use each of them to learn more efficient ways to drive. More gentle acceleration and longer, lighter braking give me a better score and help me get the most from a charge.
So I'm really liking my Ford Fusion Energi SE. If you want to learn more about it stop by and I'll let you take mine for a spin and I'll tell you all about it. It may be easier to just stop by your local Ford dealership and ask them for a test drive. Keep reading this blog as I intend on posting more and more about the Fusion as I learn more about it. I will probably be the only person you know who is happy when gasoline prices go up. That means my investment in this car will be paid off sooner.
Now I haven't even gotten started on the Adaptive Cruise Control. Stay tuned as I expect to be posting more about that in the future as well.
Sports on Internet TV
Where are the sports on Internet TV?
I'm a huge fan of Internet TV. I cut the cable back in 2006 and haven't looked back. My family and friends will tell you that I've tried to get all of them to try Internet TV with very little success.
One of the key things standing in the way is the lack of sports on Internet TV. When I start talking to someone about watching Internet TV, one of the first questions I ask is if they are sports fans. If they are I slowly back away.
With all there is to love about Internet TV, there are still very few sport games available to watch. This is significantly holding up the adoption of Internet TV by mainstream audiences. For some reason the major sports franchises have been slow to adopt the Internet. Just as movie viewers needed Netflix to bring Internet movies into the living room on the big screen, sports fans need the franchises to dot he same for their favorite teams and favorite sports.
It is starting. I applaud MLB for being the first sports franchise on the Apple TV. They have done amazing things with MLB.com and are leading the charge. After MLB, the sports with smaller audiences have been quicker to adopt the Internet. NHL and MLS have made good use of the Internet to bring games to audiences. NCAA has also brought March Madness to thousands of fans over the past few years. Things are starting to move very slowly.
I was going through some old VHS tapes and noticed that sports fans collect recordings of their favorite teams and their favorite games. There are classic games like the 1997 NCAA Basketball Championship and the 2005 NFL Playoff game between the Steelers and the Colts. Every fan has a number of their favorite games that they can watch over and over and over again.
There is a huge demand for this, if anyone were to figure that out they would see that there is a huge opportunity for this as well. Imagine having the original HD broadcast for your favorite game on a Blu-Ray or a touch of a button away in your iTunes purchases.
There is movement along these lines. Current seasons of MLB, NBA, NHL and NCAA games can be found in the iTunes Store. When you dig deep enough, you can find these games. Some of them are still only available in SD. NFL seems to be dragging their feet on this one. They must not know tht their fans are buying Smart TVs and set top boxes to watch Netflix and other online streaming content. So far you can only get Preview shows and Highlights of NFL games.
The real money will be made in the classics. The historical games that many of today's viewers missed when they happened. These are the games of legends. They are the clips that you see year after year in highlight films pre-game shows and Post-game wrap-ups. Millions of fans will want to own a commercial free, high quality copy of these games. It will create a continuing revenue stream for the teams that even the marketing department from Star Wars would envy.
I'm not much of a sports fan myself. While IU basketball games played while I was growing up, I was usually on our Apple II computer playing Load Runner or trying to build an AppleWorks database. In the end I was hours of television for free, on demand, and podcast episodes on the niche topics that I'm interested in, which no TV studio executive would agree to include their programming schedule. I get what I want, when I want it, and spend less time since each episode is typically shorter than broadcast shows.
So what's my point? (You may have missed that this will be mostly a blog of rant sand random thoughts which are pretty much pointless.) There are two things to come away with from this post. If you're a sports fan and interested in money, find a way to digitize old games and legally sell them through the Internet. I would start with the iTunes Store.
Second, if you enjoy watching TV and are too busy or dissatisfied with the programming you're paying for, cutthroat cable. It is easier than you think. You'll thank me later. Also stay tuned to this blog. I'm passionate about this topic and will have much more to say about this in the future.
I'm a huge fan of Internet TV. I cut the cable back in 2006 and haven't looked back. My family and friends will tell you that I've tried to get all of them to try Internet TV with very little success.
One of the key things standing in the way is the lack of sports on Internet TV. When I start talking to someone about watching Internet TV, one of the first questions I ask is if they are sports fans. If they are I slowly back away.
With all there is to love about Internet TV, there are still very few sport games available to watch. This is significantly holding up the adoption of Internet TV by mainstream audiences. For some reason the major sports franchises have been slow to adopt the Internet. Just as movie viewers needed Netflix to bring Internet movies into the living room on the big screen, sports fans need the franchises to dot he same for their favorite teams and favorite sports.
It is starting. I applaud MLB for being the first sports franchise on the Apple TV. They have done amazing things with MLB.com and are leading the charge. After MLB, the sports with smaller audiences have been quicker to adopt the Internet. NHL and MLS have made good use of the Internet to bring games to audiences. NCAA has also brought March Madness to thousands of fans over the past few years. Things are starting to move very slowly.
I was going through some old VHS tapes and noticed that sports fans collect recordings of their favorite teams and their favorite games. There are classic games like the 1997 NCAA Basketball Championship and the 2005 NFL Playoff game between the Steelers and the Colts. Every fan has a number of their favorite games that they can watch over and over and over again.
There is a huge demand for this, if anyone were to figure that out they would see that there is a huge opportunity for this as well. Imagine having the original HD broadcast for your favorite game on a Blu-Ray or a touch of a button away in your iTunes purchases.
There is movement along these lines. Current seasons of MLB, NBA, NHL and NCAA games can be found in the iTunes Store. When you dig deep enough, you can find these games. Some of them are still only available in SD. NFL seems to be dragging their feet on this one. They must not know tht their fans are buying Smart TVs and set top boxes to watch Netflix and other online streaming content. So far you can only get Preview shows and Highlights of NFL games.
The real money will be made in the classics. The historical games that many of today's viewers missed when they happened. These are the games of legends. They are the clips that you see year after year in highlight films pre-game shows and Post-game wrap-ups. Millions of fans will want to own a commercial free, high quality copy of these games. It will create a continuing revenue stream for the teams that even the marketing department from Star Wars would envy.
I'm not much of a sports fan myself. While IU basketball games played while I was growing up, I was usually on our Apple II computer playing Load Runner or trying to build an AppleWorks database. In the end I was hours of television for free, on demand, and podcast episodes on the niche topics that I'm interested in, which no TV studio executive would agree to include their programming schedule. I get what I want, when I want it, and spend less time since each episode is typically shorter than broadcast shows.
So what's my point? (You may have missed that this will be mostly a blog of rant sand random thoughts which are pretty much pointless.) There are two things to come away with from this post. If you're a sports fan and interested in money, find a way to digitize old games and legally sell them through the Internet. I would start with the iTunes Store.
Second, if you enjoy watching TV and are too busy or dissatisfied with the programming you're paying for, cutthroat cable. It is easier than you think. You'll thank me later. Also stay tuned to this blog. I'm passionate about this topic and will have much more to say about this in the future.
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Reviews for the Podcasts App
I know I just wrote a post about the Podcasts App from Apple. I'm back on board after a while away. I like it.
This post is different though. See, I tried and tried in Podcasts version 1.1.1 to get my podcast Playlists from iTunes to work in the Podcasts app. When I finally couldn't figure it out, I gave up and found Downcast. With the help of the Internet I found a few reviews of Podcasts version 1.2 and learned that Playlists are back and Apple has worked out this new feature called My Channels. I've played with it again. It took some time, some getting used to, and more than one sync between iTunes and between iCloud. Now it is running smoothly.
I went back and updated my less favorable review of the app on iTunes hoping it would help turn the ratings around, even just a little. I started reading reviews about the app freezing, not being able to sync playlists, and not being able to play programs in anything except reverse chronology. Well, they are just flat out false.
The App freezing is because you have a ton of subscriptions and it takes time to sync all of that between iCloud and the host website for all of your subscriptions. Get one started and let the app do its thing in the background.
Playlists are there. What you need to do is sync your playlists with iTunes, the same way you have done it hundreds of times before. Then open the Podcasts app and switch to My Channels. There are two default channels to help you figure out how to make your own custom channels. You'll also see an entry for iTunes Playlists. This works like iPods of old worked. They are still organized in the Playlist Folders that you created in iTunes. They are also in the same sort order that you created for them in iTunes. Sort on whatever you want and these playlists will be set correctly.
Playback order is something that Podcasts version 1.2 has given more choices for than ever before and definitely better than Downcast offers. First you can do a newest episode first order. You can also do a manual order of the My Podcasts listing. We already mentioned that iTunes Playlists can do any number of sorts and they stay in order in Podcasts version 1.2 Now under My Channels, episodes are grouped with the program that they came from and are included in this particular channel The order of the podcasts can be newest first or match the order you've selected in My Podcasts. (Yeah, you may have to play around with this one to really understand what that means. It is pretty cool and what I use for most of my channels. The other great thing is that the order of episodes within any given channel can be specified.
With all of this ordering stuff and podcasts in or out of a channel, I was curious and concerned. I've got some podcasts that I'm behind on. I've had a couple times where iTunes stopped downloading episodes because I hadn't been listening to it. Then I listen to one and they resume with a flood of downloads, so that naturally means they are all together and I've got a clump of episodes for a particular show. Have you ever had a cupcake where the mix hadn't been completely mixed before baking? Then you bite in and there is a clump of something. It isn't good, just like it isn't good to get a marathon of episodes that you have a medium interest in. (Admit it. That is why you got behind on listening to episodes in the first place.) Well Apple has figured this out too. You can specify in My Channels that for a particular program you want the most recent 2 or one or all episodes. That way if you are behind, you can listen to a few episodes and then the channel moves on to the next program. The next time you open the channel, it will sync with your subscriptions and a few more will be waiting for you. You can work off a backlog without having to listen to 15 straight episodes of a particular program. I'm going to use this feature a bunch.
As I was reading the reviews in iTunes, I thought they were for previous versions. Many of the complaints were for the very things that I couldn't get to work in the previous versions of Podcasts. I switched to all versions and back and still these reviews exist. Many of them even call out iOS 7 in the text of the review. It is clear that people have updated the app with iOS 7 and still don't know how to use it. Instead of spending some time with it or doing some research, they are running back to iTunes complaining because it doesn't do something that it most certainly does do.
In the end I'll never fix this. I just hope everyone reading this post takes some time to find things they like about a product before they submit a customer review. The good news is that Apple allows you to update your review, as I did, after the product has improved or you learn something new that you didn't know before.
I've seen some of the different articles written about iOS 7. One of the points I read is to remember that with any upgrade that changes the look and feel of a product, often the features you loved before are still there. They are probably just moved to some other place. Take a little time to search in unexpected corners or do a few Internet searches. If the feature was that good, like podcast playlists, others are using it too. Maybe one of them has already found where it moved to and they can show you how to get back your gem of a feature.
This post is different though. See, I tried and tried in Podcasts version 1.1.1 to get my podcast Playlists from iTunes to work in the Podcasts app. When I finally couldn't figure it out, I gave up and found Downcast. With the help of the Internet I found a few reviews of Podcasts version 1.2 and learned that Playlists are back and Apple has worked out this new feature called My Channels. I've played with it again. It took some time, some getting used to, and more than one sync between iTunes and between iCloud. Now it is running smoothly.
I went back and updated my less favorable review of the app on iTunes hoping it would help turn the ratings around, even just a little. I started reading reviews about the app freezing, not being able to sync playlists, and not being able to play programs in anything except reverse chronology. Well, they are just flat out false.
The App freezing is because you have a ton of subscriptions and it takes time to sync all of that between iCloud and the host website for all of your subscriptions. Get one started and let the app do its thing in the background.
Playlists are there. What you need to do is sync your playlists with iTunes, the same way you have done it hundreds of times before. Then open the Podcasts app and switch to My Channels. There are two default channels to help you figure out how to make your own custom channels. You'll also see an entry for iTunes Playlists. This works like iPods of old worked. They are still organized in the Playlist Folders that you created in iTunes. They are also in the same sort order that you created for them in iTunes. Sort on whatever you want and these playlists will be set correctly.
Playback order is something that Podcasts version 1.2 has given more choices for than ever before and definitely better than Downcast offers. First you can do a newest episode first order. You can also do a manual order of the My Podcasts listing. We already mentioned that iTunes Playlists can do any number of sorts and they stay in order in Podcasts version 1.2 Now under My Channels, episodes are grouped with the program that they came from and are included in this particular channel The order of the podcasts can be newest first or match the order you've selected in My Podcasts. (Yeah, you may have to play around with this one to really understand what that means. It is pretty cool and what I use for most of my channels. The other great thing is that the order of episodes within any given channel can be specified.
With all of this ordering stuff and podcasts in or out of a channel, I was curious and concerned. I've got some podcasts that I'm behind on. I've had a couple times where iTunes stopped downloading episodes because I hadn't been listening to it. Then I listen to one and they resume with a flood of downloads, so that naturally means they are all together and I've got a clump of episodes for a particular show. Have you ever had a cupcake where the mix hadn't been completely mixed before baking? Then you bite in and there is a clump of something. It isn't good, just like it isn't good to get a marathon of episodes that you have a medium interest in. (Admit it. That is why you got behind on listening to episodes in the first place.) Well Apple has figured this out too. You can specify in My Channels that for a particular program you want the most recent 2 or one or all episodes. That way if you are behind, you can listen to a few episodes and then the channel moves on to the next program. The next time you open the channel, it will sync with your subscriptions and a few more will be waiting for you. You can work off a backlog without having to listen to 15 straight episodes of a particular program. I'm going to use this feature a bunch.
As I was reading the reviews in iTunes, I thought they were for previous versions. Many of the complaints were for the very things that I couldn't get to work in the previous versions of Podcasts. I switched to all versions and back and still these reviews exist. Many of them even call out iOS 7 in the text of the review. It is clear that people have updated the app with iOS 7 and still don't know how to use it. Instead of spending some time with it or doing some research, they are running back to iTunes complaining because it doesn't do something that it most certainly does do.
In the end I'll never fix this. I just hope everyone reading this post takes some time to find things they like about a product before they submit a customer review. The good news is that Apple allows you to update your review, as I did, after the product has improved or you learn something new that you didn't know before.
I've seen some of the different articles written about iOS 7. One of the points I read is to remember that with any upgrade that changes the look and feel of a product, often the features you loved before are still there. They are probably just moved to some other place. Take a little time to search in unexpected corners or do a few Internet searches. If the feature was that good, like podcast playlists, others are using it too. Maybe one of them has already found where it moved to and they can show you how to get back your gem of a feature.
Welcome to my Blog
Thanks for finding me. I'm happy to have you as a reader of my blog.
This is more of a warning. I've found that for years I've had things to say and no one to say them to. Most of my friends and family aren't interested in the sorts of things that I want to get off my chest. So I've decided to unload them here in my blog. With that sort of introduction, I wouldn't be surprised if this was the last post you read. I'm happy you made it this far.
I'm thinking that maybe my ideas are just so eccentric that there are only a few people out there interested in hearing them. The Internet is the perfect place for a handful of people stretched across the entire planet to meet and share ideas. If you find the sorts of things I'm posting here interesting, well hang on and I'll try to make it interesting.
One of the biggest questions in starting a blog or a podcast is, "Will it last?" There are thousands of blogs and podcasts that just faded over time. It may happen here. I think that is unlikely. That is what has prevented me from starting this blog earlier. Now I've got a bow wave of things to talk about and think I can make a go of this for a long while. I hope you stick around to see what happens next.
My interests and ideas are all over the map of different subjects. Right now I don't think I have enough on any one topic to split it out as its own blog. You can expect random thoughts from random places to pepper this blog with their own unique perspectives. I expect that some of you will like some of the posts. I don't expect any of you to like or agree with all of them. Feel free to post your comments here and start a conversation around those posts. You're feedback is one of the things that makes a blog different from a newspaper or magazine article.
I hope you enjoy the variety of thoughts and rants I post here. Thank you for stopping by.
This is more of a warning. I've found that for years I've had things to say and no one to say them to. Most of my friends and family aren't interested in the sorts of things that I want to get off my chest. So I've decided to unload them here in my blog. With that sort of introduction, I wouldn't be surprised if this was the last post you read. I'm happy you made it this far.
I'm thinking that maybe my ideas are just so eccentric that there are only a few people out there interested in hearing them. The Internet is the perfect place for a handful of people stretched across the entire planet to meet and share ideas. If you find the sorts of things I'm posting here interesting, well hang on and I'll try to make it interesting.
One of the biggest questions in starting a blog or a podcast is, "Will it last?" There are thousands of blogs and podcasts that just faded over time. It may happen here. I think that is unlikely. That is what has prevented me from starting this blog earlier. Now I've got a bow wave of things to talk about and think I can make a go of this for a long while. I hope you stick around to see what happens next.
My interests and ideas are all over the map of different subjects. Right now I don't think I have enough on any one topic to split it out as its own blog. You can expect random thoughts from random places to pepper this blog with their own unique perspectives. I expect that some of you will like some of the posts. I don't expect any of you to like or agree with all of them. Feel free to post your comments here and start a conversation around those posts. You're feedback is one of the things that makes a blog different from a newspaper or magazine article.
I hope you enjoy the variety of thoughts and rants I post here. Thank you for stopping by.
Return to Apple's Podcasts app
When I got my first iPod (a first generation iPod nano) in 2006, the greatest discovery was podcasts. So as the years have passed and I've bought new devices, podcasts have been a necessary feature for me. I was extremely disappointed when Apple split up the iPod app and then split out the Podcasts app. When it first released it just wasn't up to the task.
I'm happy to report that Apple has fixed my biggest complaints in Version 1.2 (and sad that it took until version 1.2.3 for me to discover it). I'm back and I'm once again recommending this app for the hundreds of thousands of podcast subscribers out there. The biggest change came with the addition of two features: My Stations and iTunes Playlists.
My Stations is a new way of organizing podcast subscriptions. It is like playlists and yet it is different. It is designed around interacting with your subscriptions on your mobile device (iPhone, iPad, iPod touch). You pick some of your podcasts, set the order, set the media type (Audio, Video, Both) and you're ready to listen. You can tweak and adjust other settings later. The basics make it easy to start new stations. I have created stations for Technology, Space, Snowboarding, Management, and History. This way I have a station ready for whatever mood I'm in.
iTunes Playlists returns a functionality that should have been there from the beginning. My first generation iPod nano still does a better job with letting me listen to podcasts than an iPhone with Podcasts version 1.1 did. This is because I could manage my podcast subscriptions in iTunes and create a large variety of Smart Playlists and then sync them to my iPod. They played on my iPod exactly the same way they played on iTunes. Well, with Podcasts Version 1.2, that is back. One of the keys is sorting a Smart Playlist by Release Date and this is working in the Podcasts app now.
Even with My Stations there is a place for iTunes Playlists. iTunes gives more control to the filtering and sorting of your podcast subscriptions. This fine tune control over podcasts in iTunes can be enjoyed on your mobile device when you sync them.
iCloud Synchronization let's you make changes to My Stations and synchronizes Played and Unplayed data. This means that you can listen to a station on your iPhone in the car. Then through iCloud, you can pick up where you left off on your Apple TV, iPad, or iTunes. It all happens in the background. (I thought it would go without saying that you must leave the app running in the background when you return to a WiFi connection to allow your first device to upload status. Then it will take a while for this status to download to the second device. Based on the way I've seen non-technical people interact with other aspects of iCloud, I guess I still need to say this out loud.)
We're not completely out of the woods though. There are plenty of little things for Apple to fix to help podcast subscribers enjoy their programs. For the time being, I'm using Apple's Podcasts app. If you're not happy with Apple's Podcasts app, while I was away from it, I was using Downcast. For $3 it is a great app for podcasts. Give it a try and compare them both to your podcast playing preferences.
I'm happy to report that Apple has fixed my biggest complaints in Version 1.2 (and sad that it took until version 1.2.3 for me to discover it). I'm back and I'm once again recommending this app for the hundreds of thousands of podcast subscribers out there. The biggest change came with the addition of two features: My Stations and iTunes Playlists.
My Stations is a new way of organizing podcast subscriptions. It is like playlists and yet it is different. It is designed around interacting with your subscriptions on your mobile device (iPhone, iPad, iPod touch). You pick some of your podcasts, set the order, set the media type (Audio, Video, Both) and you're ready to listen. You can tweak and adjust other settings later. The basics make it easy to start new stations. I have created stations for Technology, Space, Snowboarding, Management, and History. This way I have a station ready for whatever mood I'm in.
iTunes Playlists returns a functionality that should have been there from the beginning. My first generation iPod nano still does a better job with letting me listen to podcasts than an iPhone with Podcasts version 1.1 did. This is because I could manage my podcast subscriptions in iTunes and create a large variety of Smart Playlists and then sync them to my iPod. They played on my iPod exactly the same way they played on iTunes. Well, with Podcasts Version 1.2, that is back. One of the keys is sorting a Smart Playlist by Release Date and this is working in the Podcasts app now.
Even with My Stations there is a place for iTunes Playlists. iTunes gives more control to the filtering and sorting of your podcast subscriptions. This fine tune control over podcasts in iTunes can be enjoyed on your mobile device when you sync them.
iCloud Synchronization let's you make changes to My Stations and synchronizes Played and Unplayed data. This means that you can listen to a station on your iPhone in the car. Then through iCloud, you can pick up where you left off on your Apple TV, iPad, or iTunes. It all happens in the background. (I thought it would go without saying that you must leave the app running in the background when you return to a WiFi connection to allow your first device to upload status. Then it will take a while for this status to download to the second device. Based on the way I've seen non-technical people interact with other aspects of iCloud, I guess I still need to say this out loud.)
We're not completely out of the woods though. There are plenty of little things for Apple to fix to help podcast subscribers enjoy their programs. For the time being, I'm using Apple's Podcasts app. If you're not happy with Apple's Podcasts app, while I was away from it, I was using Downcast. For $3 it is a great app for podcasts. Give it a try and compare them both to your podcast playing preferences.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)