A low cost GPS beacon

drawing design budget updates

For a long time I've been wanting a way to track things remotely using GPS technology. There are many types of systems that do remote vehicle tracking, UPS and other trucking companies use them. There are also emergency beacons that use a network of satellites to track and report distress calls. These systems all require large invenstments in infrastructure in the form of towers, satellites, maintenance fees, licencing, etc. I want to create something that will work for the hobbyist or small volunteer groups who need this type of technology.

Symbols for truth

Searching for a symbol for truth

This site walks, and most of the time crosses, a line between being introspective and interesting or being self important and asinine. It doesn't really matter too much because 99% of the visits to this site are by me, as I'd intended. When I first started this site, I was looking for a way to practice standards based web development, and happened to be in an arrogant mood, so decided to make the site about truth. I'm no artist, so I did a little Googl'ing to find an idea for a graphic that would take attention away from the otherwise dry and boring (but W3C compliant) web site. I turned up several symbols for truth from around the world and throughout history that weren't cataloged in one place, so i thought I'd deposit them here.

The List

List of things I'd like to do

1. Seriously practice a martial art
2. Get a HAM radio license
3. Buy a car with cash
4. Save a life
5. Skydive
6. Have a child that experiences greatness
7. Teach a class
8. Sing the National Anthem at a baseball game
9. Write a book
10. Be debt free
11. Act in a play
12. Be a scoutmaster
13. Be fit at forty
14. Live on a farm
15. Visit every US state
16. Visit every continent

Maps - Antique and New

I like to collect antique maps. These things are surprisingly easy to find. Usually, somebody will get their hands on an antique atlas and razor out all the pages to make a profit by selling each sheet as an 'antique map.' It's tough to find an intact atlas because of this, but the maps are fairly cheap for what you get, and they are easy to find on eBay. I like to buy a map, have it matted and framed and give it to someone as a gift. Usually I'll find a map of their home state, or a place where they grew up. The ones I collect are usually around 100 years old and have been removed from a larger collection.

An ordinary dime

This dime was made in 1966. I found it today after getting some change for a soda. Now a '66 coin is not antique by any means, and on any other day I would have just tossed it in with all the other change that's accumulating on my dresser. But today I was thinking about graduating, preparing for a new job, worrying about money, and otherwise focusing on the future. I saw this 1966 dime and started wondering about all the people who had held it before me and what they bought with it.

The Groundhog Story

In 1996 I drove an '88 Subaru wagon. Great car for a college kid who didn't know a thing about cars and needed a reliable gear transport for various road adventures. That summer I had an adventure I wasn't expecting. I had driven to work that morning and as I crested a hill I felt a thud and the gear shift was sticking. I shoved the car in 3rd and kept on down the road. Eventually the tightness in the transmission wore off. On my way home that evening I passed a family walking their dog and pushing a baby stroller. As I passed them, the Dad was giving me a crazy stare.

New format!

Well, after 5 years of posting my pages manually using PHP and HTML, I'm succumbing to the allure of blogging software for posting. I think ultimately it will mean less reliance on flakey ISP hosting, and will let me post more often and more freely. We'll see.