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2010 Gadgets of the Year

Mike — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 02:09:02 +0000

Now that 2010 is completely over, I thought it would be fun to look back on the gadgets that meant the most to me over the past year. I’m leaving off the Cr-48 I received last week from Google (too new) and my Ubuntu server, which I rebuilt into a very useful media center backend (too old). I’d consider those gadgets honorable mentions this year.

Motorola Droid

Even though this phone was almost immediately outclassed by the Nexus One and replaced by the Droid 2 after only 6 months, my Droid remains the gadget I use more often and find most useful throughout the day. That it is more useful than the day I bought it is a testament to the Android platform’s growth and the persistence of the open source custom ROM development community that has sprung up around it. Here is a list of my most-used apps.

Communication: Google Voice, GMail, Touchdown (Exchange for Android), Facebook, Twidroid Pro, eBuddy
Productivity: VitaDroid, Calendar Pad Pro, EverNote
Entertainment: NewsRob, Amazon Kindle, TuneIn Radio, Subsonic, Pandora, Act1 Video Player, NFL Network
Utilities: USB Tether (a Froyo feature), Gentle Alarm, Lightning Bug
Games: Angry Birds, Robo Defense
Travel: TripIt, FlightTrack Pro
ROMs: CyanogenMod 5 and 6, Sapphire 1

Amazon Kindle (2nd Generation)

I love my Kindle, and prefer to read books on it than on paper now. Part of the appeal is that it is a gadget, but, even more importantly, the Kindle is lighter and smaller than most books, and takes up a finite amount of space as my library grows. The only downside to the Kindle is that its contrast is not great, and screen glare is a problem in mediocre-light conditions. (Oddly, glare is rarely a problem outside or in bright light.)

Boxee Box

I love my Boxee Box. Even though my Amazon.com review, the #1 most helpful for the product, is less than glowing, I love the Boxee Box’s handling of local media, and wait eagerly for it to get apps for Netflix and, to a lesser extent, Hulu Plus.

Upcoming Articles About Ubuntu Server Rebuild

Mike — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 21:51:15 +0000

My Ubuntu Server rebuild is basically complete. I’ve been writing tutorials for each service or program I’ve installed. I plan to post them all soon, linked together in a “how to set up Ubuntu as a media server back-end” series. I’m still testing things out and tweaking my configurations. Once that is complete, I will start publishing my methods/tutorials. There are good things coming to the blog soon! Stay tuned.

The Louvre Photos

Mike — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 12:59:14 +0000

My wife and I loved the museums in Paris. The Musée d’Orsay, with its large collection of Impressionist paintings, was our favorite, but the Louvre was the most magnificent, as anyone would expect. Surprisingly, the Louvre was also the only museum we’d been to there that allowed photography inside. For that reason, we have a ton of photos from the Louvre. Walking through there brought back all the art history class memories I had from college. It was amazing!

Current Album: Paris The Louvre 2010
Images:

Paris Photos

Mike — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 16:00:25 +0000

My wife and I enjoyed five days in Paris at the end of our honeymoon. Paris was swelteringly hot, because we arrived in the middle of a heat wave that the locals assured us was quite unusual. We were surprised by the pollution (all the cars, mopeds, and smokers really add up) and the how far apart the attractions were, compared to in London.We especially enjoyed the museums (the Centre Pompideau was a considerable exception, however), the street food, the cafes, and the Seine. The excessive heat limited what we could do there, so we hope to visit there again—during a cooler season, of course!

Current Album: Paris 2010
Images:

Stratford-upon-Avon Photos

Mike — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 15:47:38 +0000

Two of the most fun days of our honeymoon were our visit to Stratford-upon-Avon. We came to visit Shakespeare’s birthplace and see “Antony and Cleopatra” at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Stratford-upon-Avon is kind of a tourist trap, but it is nice. We saw an open-air market, had some great tea, fish & chips, and the coldest soda in England, and loved the relaxed pace, compared to London. We stayed at the Moonraker House, a nice bed-and-breakfast that we highly recommend. Enjoy the photos!

Current Album: Stratford-upon-Avon 2010
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London’s Regent’s Park Photos

Mike — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 17:20:36 +0000

Regent’s Park was one of our favorite stops on our honeymoon. The flowers are beautiful and plentiful.

Current Album: London Regent's Park 2010
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London Kew Gardens Photos

Mike — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 15:31:51 +0000

While we were in London, the city was hot and crowded. My wife and I escaped to Kew Gardens for one day to cool off, and it was peaceful, relaxing, and absolutely beautiful. Here are my photos of the gardens. Enjoy!

Current Album: London Kew Gardens 2010
Images:

London Photos

Mike — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 15:03:19 +0000

My wife and I spent our honeymoon this summer in London and Paris. It was a fantastic trip, and we took a ton of pictures. Here are my photos from our adventures in London. These photos exclude our trips to London Parks and our side-trip to Stratford-upon-Avon, which I will post separately. Enjoy!

Current Album: London 2010
Images:

Moving In

Mike — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 18:43:28 +0000

My wife and I just bought our first house, and have spent the last few weeks packing, moving, unpacking, and even cleaning an inordinate amount. I haven’t been posting to this blog, but I will get back to it as soon as we are settled in. We finally got Verizon FIOS installed earlier this week, and so far, it is awesome. That is all for now. Cheers, everyone!

Pictures of Ruby

Mike — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 18:52:04 +0000

This is our cat, Ruby. Allyson’s students have sort of an obsession with her, and like to draw her picture on Allyson’s board while she teaches.

Ruby likes to lay on her back and look up at us, which is hilarious and cute. This is it, folks. Enjoy!

Current Album: Ruby, Winter 2010
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