g-WH!Z

The Linksys WRT54G3G-ST EVDO Router!

2006-09-28T13:50:00.000-07:00

Please, take a moment to add my RSS feed to your daily reading. Thanks!

TechDepot has the Linksys WRT54G3G-ST EVDO Router in stock. $219.95 + $12.15 shipping.

Please feel free to use the product link below:

http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=wgMo*yUK70I&offerid=41019.508436560&type=10&subid=

Full disclaimer: The above IS an affiliate link and I REALLY appreciate your interest. I know you’ll love this router and the Sprint service you’ll need to use it with. Blogmobile!

Otherwise, use this non-affiliate link… After all, I only want you to be happy with this awesome product!

Linksys isn’t even promoting this dude yet so I feel fortunate to have an industry scoop. Google seems to think so. That or I have the product number wrong but I don’t think so… Go to the Linksys site and search on EVDO and WRT54G3G-ST and nothing (yet). It’s a real product… there are support engineers training on it!

Anyway, the news here is with the Linksys WRT54G3G-ST you can put an EVDO card in the router, string your network of computers up to the router (a single access point) for all to use. Yeah, yeah… you can share network connections through internet sharing… why do that though and bog your host machine down when you can (or will be able to) do this!? Presumably, power it off a cigarette lighter in your car (or for those who have 120v in your posh rides… good for you!) and you’ve got a roving blogmobile.

Revival Time

2006-09-28T13:34:00.000-07:00

Two blogs are better than one.

First, it keeps me abreast of the differing platforms out there. Knowledge is power.
Second, it reaches a far wider audience.
Third, I'm interested now in the dynamics of blogging networks like Federated Media, etc.

So, I never really went away. But, I AM back at Blogger, as well as the GWhiz blog at Wordpress.

GROCIO link

2006-03-08T12:27:00.000-08:00

GROCIO is one step closer to go live.

Proof of concept here in MP4 fast start .mov format.

Dumping Blogger/Blogspot for WordPress

2006-02-03T09:23:00.000-08:00

It's official... WordPress is for newbies and just lacks a certain amount of flexibility.

So, for those of you subscribing to the RSS of this site... please make sure it's being fed from http://gwhiz.wordpress.com/ Otherwise, you'll miss out on the nifty stuff I'm going to be serving up.

Gerald

Robert Scoble Asked For Ideas...

2006-01-29T19:43:00.000-08:00

Business Ideas ARE tough according to Mr. Robert Scoble. I agree.

He's also asking for people to blog their ideas... Wonder how many people are really willing to lob their ideas into the public square for scrutiny, pilfering, etc. Know what? Who cares! A good idea is a good idea. REALLY good ideas (search engines) have plenty of room for competition. In fact, REALLY, REALLY good ideas (search engines) don't even have to favor first mover advantage, if such a thing exists... Look at Google. WAY late to the dance. But, with a markedly better algorithm and approach.

So, in response to the spirit Mr. Scoble was soliciting here are two ideas I have in the incubator:

Bargain Pantry

I wonder all the time if I'm spending too much on groceries. Quicken tells me I spent 20% (TWENTY PERCENT!!!) of my take home on groceries last year. Three kids, two adults, plenty of visitors and family for gatherings of all kinds... So, if I can put some of that cash back into play somewhere else... maybe I'd like to have a shot at that.

Problem is... TIME. I don't have (meaning I don't MAKE) time to clip coupons or write down the prices I paid, for what, when. There are all kinds of seasonal items like mustard, that are best to buy at certain times of the year. Blah, blah, blah. I don't shop that way. I make a list, go shopping, spend the cash and come home and put everythig away. Then scratch my head and wonder if I should have shopped somewhere else.

Bargain Pantry would let a family build their shopping list(s) and then quickly determine what the checkout price at each of the local stores is. To go a bit further it would also suggest additional savings if the family was willing to shop multiple places. Face it, ONE place normally won't have the BEST prices on all the items on the list and it might be worth the additional drive and time to go someplace else for some things.

I'd be VERY interested to know what folks think of this idea (the coworkers I've floated it to LOVE it). Anyone out there already doing it?

RUN FOR OFFICE

If you've ever run for public office you know it's no walk in the park. Getting your message out, motivating your base, keeping everyone on the same page and basically taking charge of the tempo of the race... is tough. Have you ever wondered just where your candidates stand? What the incumbent's record is? It's HARD to objectively inform yourself, particularly about candidates who have no history at all.

Now imagine if you're that politician in this day and age just how best to get information out quickly and on your terms. Radio's tough (but necessary) and so is television. Print is too slow (but for reach is still necessary). Politics regardless of national, state or local variety is ALL LOCAL! It's ALL expensive and mostly falls on deaf ears.

I'd really like to see politicians make use of web 2.0 type applications to connect with the people whose votes they're seeking. I believe in the power of transparency. Which doesn't mean politicians do or will. But, hey, wouldn't it be great if a few of the more progressive thinking candidates out there had a powerful platform at their disposal and shook things up?

THAT would be a powerful and beautiful thing!

Unused Google Analytics Invitation Codes?

2006-01-21T06:26:00.000-08:00

Anyone out there have an unused Google Analytics Invitation?

Some time back Google purchased a great little company called Urchin. We were all scratching our heads wondering where it would lead. It's obvious now in the grand scheme of things Google is using the information for good, not evil :)

Seriously though, they're watching the click stream and using it to help display still more relevant results.

The Urchin license we purchased freakin ROCKS. And, I can't imagine Google just giving away the full strength dose of Urchin to every one who comes along and asks. But, I won't find out until I plug in the invitation code you're so graciously going to email me at gerald.buckley@gwhiz.us... Pretty please? :)

A Special Soul

2006-01-05T09:37:00.000-08:00

A dear friend of my wife's is passing away before our eyes.

Lorie Anaya, a wife and a mother of two small precious little ones has given so much to so many. If you're a praying person... offer some prayers for her family. Lorie's probably going to... die in the hospital.

Her life has served as an inspiration to so many... me, my wife Michelle and countless others.

Please, prayers and donations to the family (or to your favorite charity to honor someone who would have done it for you if she but could).

Training Wheels Are Off!

2005-12-12T15:22:00.000-08:00

OK, the BFD is unleashed on the world now and I'm happy to spill the beans.

For the longest time (has it really been two years in the making?) we've been working on pitching, justifying and building out a search engine for a nearly one million document large repository of data.

It's hosted on Apple gear. Is built entirely in Java. Powered by Lucene. And runs in JBoss and is WICKED cool.

http://search.datapages.com/ is the subscriber address. In all liklihood you'll be blocked unless you've paid for full-access (you'll know if you did).

However, http://payperview.datapages.com/ is the open access site. This one will let you search about 70,000 or so articles dating back to 1917 and purchase any or all of them at $10 a pop.

Now, while this might be one of those GROOOOAANNNN kind of things to you I have to tell you I have a whole new appreciation for "search" as an application. IT AIN'T EASY SISTA! I evaluated a TON of solutions out there: Apple's Spotlight; SearchBlox (which is still awesome); and a score of others... Lucene kept coming back as the one to beat (open source, platform agnostic, portable, scaleable...)

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Hats off to two EXTREMELY fine geniuses: Fred Toth and Jay Allen Hill. They are truly marvelous, dedicated, talented professionals who brought their creative problem solving skills to bear on some pretty funky stuff and pulled off programming miracles on a routine basis. We could not do this project without their involvement. There's more to do and I hope they'll stick with us through the next iterations. They're both a pleasure to work with.

Michael McDonald of Pinehurst Technologies... Thanks for the introductions to Fred on election day 2004. Time has flown!

My bosses here at the AAPG and Datapages. I really appreciate the trust you've placed in me to get this deal launched.

The folks at Petris Technologies who have hosted the searchable archives for the past many years. These guys did a great job and we'll be looking forward to the next business opportunity that bring us together.

My staff - Anne, Paula, Bev, Carol, Sandra and JingYao. Guys... there's no way this thing would have come together without your can-do attitude. I know the availability's been spotty for the past year (probably will be for another year). But, this deal is a testament to "hire people better than yourself" cliche. I have no worries because of each of you!

Last and MOST important - my family!
Michelle, Ian and Logan have put up with so much BS from me for the past two years I'm amazed I'm still married. I'm even more amazed there's a little girl on the way! ((When did THAT happen!?)) I see authors pour doting praise on their families for putting up with their project/profession. NOW I appreciate what that all means. It sure helps to be blessed with a bride who's understanding and encouraging. Also helps to have munchins who don't know any better! :)

Conversational Farsi Anyone?

2005-12-01T04:59:00.000-08:00

So, here I am in Boston improving my chops a LOT on OSX Server.

Arek Dreyer is the instructor Apple brought into 111 Huntington and he is absolutely stellar! Reminds me of the old Apple SE Summer Camp days when Apple brought out all the young turks to make us smart. MAN! That feels like yesterday.

Anyway, in Boston... @ the 111. Nice place. Connected to this mall. So, I go down to have breakfast on Tuesday and among lots of other things (like John Battelle's "The Search") I find this great little sidewalk vendor pumping out some slick video by way of one of the newer G5 iMacs. That was enough to draw me in. On closer inspection this is a language development company called Rossetta Stone.

I speak French (somewhat) and can read it well enough to know if I'm being directed to the kitchen, a submarine, the bathroom or to eat a cat. I like languages and have had some interest in middle eastern languages and Chinese for a long time (oil country languages if that wasn't obvious). French was a high school diversion that happened to be flush with all the pretty girls (different story)...

So, I try this software out over lunch and I'll be dog goned if it didn't just blow my socks off! I bought both Farsi (module 1) and Arabic (modules 1 and 2) and highly recommend anyone who's serious to check this stuff out.

Tivo2Go... Should Just Go Away

2005-11-21T05:40:00.000-08:00

That didn't take long and again was predictable as rain in London. Tivo's supposedly going to announce their 2Go service has MPEG4 conversion capabilities. Big whoopdidoo.

Tivo HAD to preempt Apple's move into the video space. Funny thing is Apple's simply going to completely obliterate the first mover advantage when they make their move (whenever that is).

Face it, Apple's dominance in the home entertainment sphere is growing leaps and bounds. Front Row is the latest volley of entertainment oriented ammo to come out of Cupetino. Have you tried this stuff!? Yegads it's awesome. My wife, who is pretty much a sideline afficianado of all things tech appreciates ease of use. Apple's done a superb job of minimizing, dumming down but maintaining the elegance.

If Michelle gets it and likes it... I'm sure the next several million people will too. No wonder no one's buying Tivo (the company). Everyone's wondering what killer move Apple's going to make.

Tiger Server Certification Weeks Off

2005-11-15T20:32:00.000-08:00

So, yeah, OK...

Six weeks from now I'm going to be Tiger Server Certified. That just rocks in absolutely every conceivable way.

Yipppeeee!

Spotlight Module & Apache. Sweet Redemption.

2005-11-02T22:37:00.000-08:00

Damn! Seriously, I mean DAMMIT GANG! This is a GREAT day!

Before I deleted my previous batch of posts leading up to the Tiger launch I was bitching mightily at Apple about their lame (yes, I still feel this way) lack of documenting the apple_spotlight_module for the Apache server built into X Server.

That all turned upside down this evening for me (no thanks to Apple's technical writers).

All I wanted was a way to hook into the awesome funk of Spotlight piped through to a web interface. Sure, I could have gone with some hacked up PERL mess or WebStar or God-only-knows-what-else. But it wouldn't have been Spotlight. So, today... (grinning like a little boy who peaked into his Christmas presents a little early) I got my wish!

This site posts the only working solution I've found and I've looked about as hard and long as anyone on this pretty blue marble we live on. Kris, my hat's off to you man! I get a ton of click-throughs from Google and Technorati on "spotlight apache" searches and I hope this makes a lot of joy happen out there.

To see it working (I never said it was pretty... remember that) go here and search on the word "discovery". The tips at AFP548 are helpful too if you're planning on deploying this beyond something of a personal nature such as searching for files while you're away from the office.

Apple's New Video iPod

2005-10-12T22:13:00.000-07:00

One more thing... turns out to be pretty cool.

New iMac, new iTunes and of course the new video iPod. In Steve Job's own words, "Pretty amazing." and it's hard to disagree with that.

But, if you look beyond the novelty of it and just simply think of things in a logical progression of a product you've gotta be thinking to yourself, "That was really pretty predictable." Right? Apple pretty much had to do this to go where the real money is (if you're not thinking Tivo this very second, shame on you).

The iPod platform is poised to become the next Tivo.

It connects to TV just fine.
It connects to computers (which are broadband capable) just fine.
It's got friggin GREAT! compression and playback.
Podcasts are simply delayed playback of recorded stuff (so are vodcasts).
And, now Apple's got a deal rolling with ABC Disney (with no commercials in their videos)

Gang, believe me it is KILLING me to say this. But, I love my third gen iPod and will wait until the next gen device comes out. Why wouldn't I? This little new critter isn't fully formed yet. When is any Apple product really fully formed...? At the rate they're squirting these things out - probably never. And, that's the odd beauty of Apple. By the time I'm convinced I can't live without it I'd just about bet it's turned into the iTablet.

Apple rounded a really interesting corner today and I'm super jazzed about their future as the next Sony. Way to go guys! Amazing is a good start for Infinite Loop. Now, go out and one up yourselves.

The BFD is Nearly Done

2005-09-27T12:32:00.000-07:00

OK, went underground for a while and am on the cusp of giving birth to the BFD I've been working on for nearly two years. Stay tuned.

Enhanced m4b podcast

2005-07-29T12:47:00.000-07:00

Well, with the great news from WIRED today it was time to up the ante a bit.

iTunes 4.9 opened up "chaptering" of podcasts. Essentially, publishers can now insert pictures, links, etc into their podcasts and create a "chapter". Which really makes it easy to navigate through the podcast. At least, I think so.

Just did this for the newest AAPG podcast. Pretty nifty deal.