Tag: Tech

Long-Suffering RadioShack, My Geeky Youth Paradise

Carl Setzer
Radioshack Logo

It pains me a bit to see RadioShack suffering so (see No new bidders emerging in RadioShack’s bankruptcy as 2,000 stores face closure over at Geekwire). It doesn’t surprise me, just saddens me. As an electronics enthusiast growing up (back in the 70s and 80s) this was THE place to see stuff, to get your gear. I loved their electronics training kits, for instance.

There was one in Lynnwood right next to Wilcox Park off of 196th street; a rather quick jaunt from home. I would routinely ogle shortwave and HAM radio gear, various electronics kits, then the life-changing TRS 80. I coveted the affectionately titled “Trash 80” for some time. Well, until my father opted for one of the IBM clones on the market, which dwarfed the capabilities of the humble TRS. And my interest started to wane.

RadioShack lost their je ne sais quoi ages ago. I haven’t set foot in one in years. There were (and are) far better places to buy gear, especially computer gear. They failed to pivot at a crucial juncture and just can’t get their legs back under them. I fully expect this brand will die, whether a with a splendid crater or quietly vanishing into a sub-brand of Sprint remains to be seen. But I don’t see how it’s relevant anymore. Perhaps, just maybe, they can snap into the “maker” movement, but it’d need to happen NOW, as they’re behind. Thus, I doubt any such thing will materialize. So, in my heart-of-hearts, I bid this venerable icon adieu. May it rest in peace.

 

2014 Recap of a Memorable Year from Planetary Resources

Carl Setzer

It’s great to see local space tech firm Planetary Resources doing so well. Reviewing this recap of their 2014 delights me and makes me proud to live in this hub of innovation.

I’ve always had a thing for space and space exploration. One of my earliest memories was of the Apollo moon landing. Living in the shadow on Boeing has helped keep that alive, too. Add that to their local-ness, and I can’t help but feel an intense bias towards them.

Here’s to Planetary Resources‘ 2015! May it be a banner year for them, and for us.

Spam from Zillow Email Address

Carl Setzer

Hey folks,

I’ve noticed a slough of email from zms-248310770403394@reply.zillow.com. Besides a bunch of messages “We have received your case…”, I also have noticed that any reply to the that address goes to “everyone”. My theory: there’s a bot somewhere that’s taking every reply and blasting itself out. No, I don’t think Zillow has anything to do with it. 

So, my recommendation: in gmail, mark this as ‘spam’, and then ignore it. I noticed that gmail (at least) has been fast about capturing this whole thread as spam.

DO NOT REPLY TO THIS!!!

There isn’t anyone sending these messages consciously. As far as I can tell, there’s no email list to remove yourself from. So, until the bot is located and deleted by it’s host, we can only mark as spam and move on.

Also, make sure you’re running up-to-date anti-virus and anti-malware software. I recommend AVG & Malwarebytes, but the tool is less important that the simple act of using it.

Robotic Engineering Comes Alive At Imagine Children’s Museum : April 19

Carl Setzer
These sorts of events delight me no end. Seeing local high-school students really work the cutting edge is just awesome.
Imagine Children’s Museum is hosting robotics clubs from Cascade, Glacier Peak and Lynnwood High Schools (The Cascade Bruin Robotics, Lynnwood Royal Robotics and Glacier Peak Sonic Squirrels) this Saturday, April 19. These students will demonstrate robots of their own design and creation, including FIRST Robotics Competition, FIRST Tech Challenge and FIRST LEGO League bots.  Amongst other activities, you’re invited to participate in constructing the robotic equivalent of a functional human hand.  Young scientists will bring robotic hands to life, creating a mechanism that simulates the tendons in human fingers.

Activities will take place in The Great Room on the Lower Level from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m, and is covered by the regular $9.50 admission.

Part of the I-Engineers program, which is presented quarterly through generous sponsorship by our local Fluke Corporation.

Imagine Children’s Museum (ICM)

1502 Wall Street

Everett, WA 98201 ­

425-258-1006 x1015
http://www.imaginecm.org/index.html

 

Memory Issue With Chrome

Carl Setzer

I’ve noticed that Chrome sometimes goes crazy with RAM usage. My main clue comes with Spotify getting choppy. When I shut down Chrome, though, I’ve noticed that a phantom process keeps running. Looks like a whole ‘nother Chrome browser is open (doesn’t show up when I alt+tab, but you can see it on the Task Manager). After shutting down the iteration with the largest RAM usage (the others are plug-ins/extensions), available RAM goes back to the normal zone.

 

Usage Capture

 

I like Chrome a great deal. However, I need to run Firefox in  order to deal with these continued issues. Hardly the worst thing I’ve ever dealt with, but still a source of aggravation. I really wish Google would deal with this.

Thoughts on Delta’s CEO “In-flight cell phone calls would be a ‘disruption to the travel experience’

Carl Setzer

Just read this bit over at Geekwire, and was struck by one key thing.

Delta CEO: In-flight cell phone calls would be a ‘disruption to the travel experience’

Delta CEO Richard Anderson wrote up a memo to 80,000 Delta employees notifying them that even if the U.S. Federal Communications Commission decides to allow cell phone calling in the air, Delta customers won’t be able to do so.

 Makes me wonder how Delta would actually enforce this. Will they re-route their flights and throw someone off the plane who isn’t doing something technically illegal?

More importantly, I expect this to be a lingering hold-out. Once this proverbial “cat it out of it’s bag”, consumers will be expecting to use their phones in flight quite soon. That transition should happen quickly.

For me? I’ll buy noise-cancelling headphones before my next flight.