Here's my own collection of interesting websites

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2007-03-22 Model Airplanes OhGizmo - small R/C glider Rank:0
A really tiny R/C glider that apparently can be flown in a living room / office.
Last modified: 2007-03-22 05:10:51
2007-03-21 Technology Comment about music on Slashdot Rank:0
Wow. Always wondered what the main issue was that I had with the music industry / piracy / DRM / etc.
This guy's comment makes a ton of sense.
Music is a service, not a product. The fact that for the past 100 years one has been able to purchase copies of music as a product should be treated like an anomoly. The Internet is returning music back to a service.
Do you want to be paid for your music? Then play it for an audience. Do you want to be paid again? Then play it for an audience - again.
Last modified: 2007-03-21 13:00:13
2007-01-24 Technology The Hyperbike Rank:0
The site is rough. (At least its cleaner then mine, but still rough.). However, the idea is fascinating. A radical idea in human powered travel.

The bicycle is the undisputed king of human powered speed. However, even the uber-high tech recumbent bicycles suffer from a basic in-effeciency. They are only powered by your legs.

Enter the HyperBike. This monstrous contraption claims that by utilizing legs, arms and torso in an upright stance, the rider can 'swim' along at speeds of 50 mph!

I'm skeptical this things will be agile enough for parks or city street, but on the larger roads were traffic is allowed to travel over 80km/h, this thing would rock! Lean the rider forward a bit and put some carbon fibre fairings around the unit, and full on highway speeds should be quite doable.

Here's to hoping we actually start seeing some of these get made!

Last modified: 2007-01-24 04:43:31
2006-12-18 Small Planes Cri-Cri Aircraft Videos Rank:0
Another link showing off my favourite little airplane. There's a fun one of this little plane taking off from the top of a Jeep (Cherokee?). At less then 200kg and fully aerobatic, this would be one fun little toy to play with on a sunny afternoon.
Last modified: 2006-12-18 05:21:04
2006-11-01 Funny OmniNerd - A snarky Halloween History Rank:0

Last night was Halloween. A stressful holiday for people who prefer to shun evil. We chose to enjoy the fun side of the evening. My daughter, dressed up as a princess (with bright purple hair), and I went out for about 45 minutes and hauled in quite a pile of loot!. My son, who prefers the familiar (we just moved into the city), dressed up as SpiderMan (I believe he is one of the few SuperHeros whose super powers are not specifically lethal) and handed out candy to the kids coming to our house. We all had fun.

There are definetly things about the holiday that people take too far. Like trying to out do the neighbour in making your house look as scary / evil as possible. The vanalism is also really lame - grow up people.

Anyway, this morning, I find this article, which helps explain how we got to where we are.

Warning: While not being overtly offensive, it's not overly kid friendly.

Summary: An Irish nerd who really likes his Guiness beer writes a snarky history of how we went from pagans in northern Europe celebrating their New Year to people handing out candy to kids in costumes.

Last modified: 2006-11-01 04:48:54
2006-10-26 Ultra-lights Manitoba Ultralight Association Rank:0
The Manitoba Ultralight Association - I tried hang gliding a number of years ago and really enjoyed it (maybe some day I'll get back into it). Anyway, a friend sent me a couple of links that I thought I'd throw up here that are more approriate for the general tone of my site. I missed their open house this year. If you want to fly, but like me are on a budget - check out Ultra-Lights! They're not the daredevil crazy machines of yesterday. Very cool.
Last modified: 2006-10-26 05:20:50
2006-10-26 Ultra-lights Aircraft Sales and Parts Rank:0
This is a link to a Canadian manufacturer of kit-style ultralights. Apparently (to quote their site) the ultralights 'go together like a BBQ'. Probably not the most confidence inspiring sales tag line, given what my BBQ looks like. My only beef with their site is no pricing information. I wouldn't have thought the Ultra-light business was so uber-secretive / competitive, but alas all links that hint at pricing lead to a form where you have to provide contact information. Not very good for beginners like me wanting to establish a rough budget.
Last modified: 2006-10-26 05:25:24
2006-10-26 Flight Simulators F-15C Eagle Flight Simulator Project Rank:0
AKA the 'Shrimp Boat'. Gene is a fairly regular poster on a mailing list subscribed to by many couch-pilots building a better setup then a monitor and joystick on the desk. Gene in particular has the extreme pleasure of owning the cockpit of an actual F-15C fighter. The story of how it came into his hands is quite a read. He has spent a lot of time restoring and rewiring the cockpit to be as real of a simulator as possible.
Last modified: 2006-10-26 10:45:22
2006-10-13 Technology Solar lights Rank:0
Spotted this on OhGizmo today. Very cool - basically a parabolic mirror tracks the sun and concentrates the light into fibre optic cables which are run into your house to provide light. I remember seeing something like this many years ago being installed on the top of a high-rise in Japan (on TV - I didn't go to Japan). I've always thought the concept was very cool. Pipe real light into the building and save on electricity. Also the light is as close to 'natural' as possible. Should be less stressful then flourescents.
Last modified: 2006-10-13 04:51:18
2006-10-10 Technology F-14 Simulators Rank:0
$20 a ride - looks like a lot of fun. I'd have a blast, although more 'serious' pilots might balk at the setup - they talk about having just enough levers working to make the experience fun. Sounds like a lot of the cool extras will be turned off.
Last modified: 2006-10-10 05:26:50
2006-10-10 Technology Hack yourself to a better you Rank:0
Just found this today (off /. no less). I've been essentially following this plan since January 2006 when after a particularly wonderful way to large meal I stepped on the scale to find myself at 207lbs. For me this was a shock and I've made it a concious effort to drop 1 lb every week until I'm down to 180lbs. I've created a spreadsheet to track my progress, and have made some lifestyle changes like walking the 4 flights of stairs to my cube whenever possible, plus adding a few extra up and down trips a day (even made a daily reminder in my calendar). I have not maintained the 1 lb / week goal as that would have put me at 180lbs by September 1st, however, I am currently hovering around 185lbs (was 184 on the 6th - but this weekend was our Thanksgiving, so I suspect I probably put 1 or 2 back on). After 180, my goal is 170 by the end of 2007. Maybe even lower, will see. But the message is simple. Eat less then you need and you'll lose weight! The hunger pains are just a motivational stress that tells me I'm doing the right thing (like the burning in the legs when I cycle to work tells me I am getting stronger!). Have fun!
Last modified: 2006-10-10 08:19:41
2006-10-06 News Mennonite Disaster Service Rank:0
A great organization that provides real help to the people affected by tradgedy.
Last modified: 2006-10-06 05:22:10
2006-10-04 Technology 4 bit counter Rank:0
Binary counter using relays. Links to a PDF document.
Last modified: 2006-10-03 20:03:45
2006-10-04 Technology Relay computers Rank:0
Basic Relay circuits that could be used to build a computer.
Last modified: 2006-10-07 09:17:44
2006-10-04 Technology Active Electronics Rank:0
Place in Winnipeg to buy some electronic components. Better then radio shack, not as good as digi-key.
Last modified: 2006-10-03 20:08:08
2006-09-23 Technology Greate Gizmos! Rank:0
Well, could be funny as well. Always lots of neat updates every day!
Last modified: 2006-09-22 20:51:32
2006-09-22 Technology Slashdot Rank:0
Where I go for interesting discussions (when browsing at level 3).
Last modified: 2006-09-21 20:00:00
2006-09-22 Funny Dilbert Rank:0
I used to think this comic was so lame. Then I got a job...
Last modified: 2006-10-07 09:17:34