buy this... a lot

You get home from work and the sun goes down and you turn on the lights because you don't want to sit in the dark... what if you could turn on the lights without using any electricity?

Little Sun from Studio Olafur Eliasson on Vimeo.

and the next step?... is it so far fetched to believe that solar energy cells can power everything we need if we just invest in the technology to convert solar radiation into power for everything we need?... just a little over a hundred years ago people would have laughed at the idea of something replacing candles and gas lamps... if humanity wants to survive, we will... believe it... work for it... invest in it...

NFC

Now much of the world might think this is going to be about football, but noooooo, this is about near field communications - technology that turns your phone into your wallet and virtually does away with the need for credit cards or cash. If i had investment capital, I would be buying some stocks...

Companies like ISIS will provide software, though i can see many jumping on that bandwagon once the hardware companies get going. The question is, will you, Lucy and Ricky Consumer, buy in.

The new technology is for electronic payments but not with a credit or debit card, rather, with your phone... Convenient, sure, but how secure is the question. What if you lose your phone, can you call it from another phone, download all it's information securely by entering some code in your new phone, and then push a button on your new phone to make your old phone self destruct?. Kind of like mission:impossible, but will passwords be enough protection? How about a fingerprint scanner, that should be a simple and secure addition.

So you have a way to wave your phone like a magic wand and create an electronic transaction. The next question is will merchants do their part? Are they going to invest in the hardware and software needed?

Of course they will, eventually, and so will you, eventually, when everyone is as sure as we can be that it is as safe and secure as the current system of monetary transaction, the credit or bank card. The question is how long will that be and more, from an investment perspective, which company will emerge as the leader in hardware and software production for the new NFC world.

Something to ponder if you've got money to invest.

double a mc not (AAMCO)

i waited until all the emotion and opportunity for resolution passed to write this and don't feel any of the anger or hurt i originally felt last year when AAMCO of Sanford Florida provided the worst service i ever experienced at any auto mechanic business... i am certain now that i was lied to and they tried to rip me off beyond the poor work they did on my car and could have made them pay if i had the time and wanted to invest the money in hiring a lawyer... i've let it go and am writing this entry just to record the bad experience i had at AAMCO Sanford Florida...

simply, the $1600 transmission repair was faulty, i inquired about a tune up and was talked into a head gasket replacement i probably didn't need, and the repairs caused permanent damage to unrelated parts of the engine... part of that additional damage was repaired at for an additional $500 to repair at a much more reputable mechanic, Tibbits on University...

after leaving my car at AAMCO, Sanford Florida for two full days, the fact that it was not ready the third morning for my scheduled pick up should have been a red flag... i had explained that i was inconveniencing a friend to give me a ride and that is why i agreed to leave the car two full days... they acted as though i was imposing when i showed up at our scheduled time for pick up... running late for a meeting i did not insist on checking the repair work as much as i should have... they apparently rushed to put the engine back together which probably caused the damage that left the care getting 6 miles to the gallon on the highway (it was getting 30mpg highway when i brought it into AAMCO)... the engine started without a hitch, idled smoothly at 900 rpms and was rock solid never sputtering, stalling, or having any problems at all before i left it in the hands of AAMCO, Sanford Florida...

it sputtered, jerked into gear, lost acceleration, and had other engine issues (besides the 6mpg highway) upon driving out of AAMCO... the engine has never been the same...

Tibbits on University was able to identify the parts AAMCO broke and the car is running ok now, a year later, except for the hiccups in the new transmission AAMCO installed and diminished engine performance...

the worst part of the experience was the general manager's rude, aggressive, insulting language and attitude when i returned to have the car checked... i dealt with the owner for the repair and this was the first meeting of the general manager... i explained the car performance issues... he had a mechanic check the car and told me it was the fuel pump and they would repair it for around $600... i asked about the transmission and engine and he told me he didn't have time to discuss anything else... his words were "take it or leave it" as he stood up and showed me to the door...

i suspected this was not true and asked to speak with the owner who was the person i contracted with for the transmission and he got in my face and physically backed me out the door... i walked to the bay and called out to the mechanics that i requested to speak with the owner and would appreciate one of them letting the owner know... the general manager threatened to call the police... i then called the owner and the owner came out from a back area of the shop...

the general manager would not allow the owner to discuss my concern, repeatedly interrupting, calling me a liar, and again threatening to call the police if i did not leave the premises... he told the owner that i deliberately damaged the car... he insisted he was polite and professional, even as he was yelling that i was a liar and my complaints about the car were meaningless...

after stating to the owner that it is obvious he did not want to resolve my complain as he was allowing his employee to prevent us from having a conversation, i left... within 30 minutes the owner called to apologize, explained the general manager was hired just two weeks ago and was out of line, and he offered to do the gas pump job at his cost, no labor, for around $350... he gave me his private number and asked i did not call the office again... i told him i would think about it after getting a second opinion...

the reputable mechanic, Tibbits, told me my fuel pump was just fine and showed me the damaged fuel sensor part that needed replacing... the part was cracked, not worn out, and Tibbits said it likely occurred when the transmission and engine put back together, but there is no way to prove that...

i was done trying to negotiate with AAMCO Sanford Florida because they tried to rip me off for work that was not needed (fuel pump) instead of addressing the actual damage, not to mention the rudeness and intimidation tactics... unfortunately, the evidence of the damage done by the AAMCO of Sanford Florida shop was not concrete enough for my credit card company to stop full payment mostly because it was an old car, though they did withhold payment for six months while investigating and acknowledged a lack of responsibility and professionalism on the part of AAMCO...

the fuel pump is still fine a year later... the transmission and engine has permanent damage costing me a bit more in gas every week and proving less acceleration in traffic and on highways...

all i can tell you is that if you want to go to AAMCO for work on your car, steer clear of AAMCO of Sanford Florida not only because of shoddy work, but for unprofessional attempts to intimidate you into work you do not need... trust is an essential aspect of auto repair decisions and you do not want to trust AAMCO of Sanford Florida...

chemistry dot crap

this was a free weekend on chemistry dot com... so i visited and answered their questions and the site gave me ten profiles they called matches and not one matched my criteria and i did not match any of the ten (i mean way off on critical criteria, not even close) and after clicking them away, they didn't have any other profiles for me to see... so the free come on was bogus, so trusting the site with something as important as an introduction to my heart and mind is out of the question...

don't they get that? :}

ford fiesta and other failures

car buying sucks in many ways when money is an object (and remembering a time when money was almost no object brings a whistful smile, but that's another story for another horse of a different rider, or something like that), but car buying is much worse when there are no cars to choose from... take about a sellers market, sheeesh...

so i very well would have bought a ford fiesta se with auto and the 203a option package (just in case any ford dealers are savvy enough to be googling out there) and the blue with black/blue interior would likely have iced it, but there were none to be found in the country, apparently, and in their infinite wisdom to make the extra buck, the very few that were available were packaged for optimal profit for the car seller and not for the buyer...

research showed me that reliability aside (and while that would be a large set of dice to roll, i was ready to take that gamble), the new 2011 fiesta was the best bang for the buck in sub-compacts offering the best gas mileage and best options packages...

while honda and toyota may still have the best reliability and longevity ratings and resale value (though gm has the longest warranty), they've come down in stature in recent years and their cars themselves are no longer ranked in the top few of subcompacts... add to that the fact that their prices have risen above most of the other brands, especially when you compare the option packages... ford is the first manufacturer to offer the good options in the subcompact model and still brings the car in at a price under the bare bones models of the perennially most reliable foreign makers...

the 100,000 mile warranty gm offers almost had me going for the chevy aveo but it ranked fairly low on the scales i reviewed (for instance, using multiple other reports and this methodology) as did many other small cars that were at the top of the rankings for most of the last twenty years...

i decided there was no good reason to compromise on what i felt was the best car package for me for under $20,000 so i am tossing the $2000 i would have put as a down payment on the fiesta into the old cavalier which means no new car (read my lips) for at least a year or two or maybe few since the cavalier has just 82,000 miles on it and that means it should have another few years of low cost after these big repairs are done... as long as aamco does them right, that is...

maybe i'll actually clean and even paint the old flippantly casual automobile now :)

don't buy a car in orlando, fl

prices are way inflated when compared to other parts of the country... there is almost no selection, no selection if you are looking for a smaller economical car... and used cars are high mileage with prices that can get you a new car in other parts of the country...

that's just the way it is...

new toys

did i mmention the htc inspire?... if not, look again, i'm sure there's an entry somewhere about it, at least... meanwhile, i just ordered this... i will let you know about it when it arrives and i have the chance to play with it a bit...

meanwhile, the htc inspire is doing well :)