Clever and potentially profitable

SRS iWow vs Hear Mini-Review on Macbook Air

2012-01-27T13:30:00.001-06:00

First a little story.

I got the SRS iWow 1.1 plugin for iTunes a loooong time ago in one of those Macupdate Promo bundles where you get $400 'worth' of software for like $80 or something.

Lots of times there are one or two good pieces in there at a nice discount and a lot of shovelware.

Well, I was reading a bit about it a few days ago, and decided to install it. The 1.1 era software doesn't work on 2012 iTunes versions. And SRS iWow is up to version 3something.

I emailed the company, and got a key THAT DAY for the new version. Not a 'Sorry, to old' or 'Upgrade for less money'. Just an emailed new key.

How's that for service?

Anyway, here's the gist of it: it will make your Macbook / Mac sound WAY better than it did before.

The Macbook 11" Air (Late 2010) has good speakers for it's size. This makes it better.

I'm not going to talk about it too much, but trust me. You can try it for free here so why listen to me drone on about it?

The only thing I'd like to see is a plugin for ALL Mac audio like the Hear package. However, iWow is much simpler and less daunting. If you like to tweak, Hear may be for you. Hear offers more control, and you probably will have to play with it a little to get it to sound like you like. For me, out of the box it required tweaking on my Mac Pro with Yamaha 2+sub setup to get rid of a strange audio effect.

If you are looking to improve your game audio, hear is probably the better solution. If you just want iTunes to sound better and you don't want to configure much, the iWow may be the way to go.

Hear is $20, iWow is $25.

Clover Free $5 Invites Available

2012-01-26T12:42:00.001-06:00

Click this link

https://www.clover.com/a?inv&t=zt57o1j70l7r

Or scan this with your Android phone. As of this writing, I have 16. I will update when they are gone.

This is a mew payment system that makes it easy to pay in person with your phone. You just scan someone's QR code with the app and the money is transferred. All you need is an Android or iPhone. For the basic account, you don't even need to link a credit card or bank account.

Plus, you get $5 for signing up. If you link a debit or credit card, you can get the $5 quicker and get more referrals for inviting others.

Placeholder for Sending me Money

2012-01-26T12:06:00.001-06:00

This is a perm-link post for if you are, say, ordering something from me and you just want to tell me what it is so you don't have to message me, I don't have to make a payment request, etc.

It's a Donate button so I don't get charged fees. If you're here, you probably know me anyway.

Examples: friends and fellow pilots ordering protein bars, individual shake packets, etc.

Easiest way I can think of at the moment.

Perfect for Shakeology and Fitness Drink Powders

2012-01-19T13:41:00.003-06:00

I have two of these, one with PB2 and one with Shakeology. The compartment is almost filled with a serving of the chocolate Shakeology. Holds 4 servings.

After that I just shake out a couple of tablespoons of PB2.

This and a shaker cup (free if you do certain types of Shakeology orders, ask me how) are what I use on the road for a snack or breakfast.

Microwave Potato Chip Maker

2012-01-19T08:59:00.002-06:00

Still want 'junk food' but want to eat healthy? Check this out.

(WOW! This is ranked #1 on Amazon in Kitchen and Housewares as of this posting!)

It's the "Mastrad A64601 Top Chips Maker and Slicer Set".

Couple of notes: you can marinate in salt, garlic, or whatever your imagination conjures before cooking them. Vinegar, salt and dill anyone?

Also, I did not pat them dry, I just took them out of the marinade and slapped them on the cooking plate. 3 minutes in my over the stove microwave works fine. The center ones tend to cook first. My oven rotates, so that may be a factor. Just don't put any in the very center. You can also buy extra trays to make a bunch at once but I've just got the single.

Tip on removing the chips after cooking: push under them and the rubber will flex, and the chip edges will become unstuck.

Sweet potato chips and salsa is a great way to get your veggies!

I'd recommend the extra trays if you want to make a fair amount of them. A single tray for cooking is a bit laborious.

If you figure $2 for a bag of chips, this repays itself fairly quickly. Plus, it's a ton healthier. We tried carrots, sweet potato, white potato, and red potato so far. The carrots worked so-so.

How to Tell What's on Your iPod vs. What's in iTunes

2012-01-19T08:21:00.000-06:00

To sync just what I want on my iPod, I have two playlists. I sync the Playlist I want vs. just individual songs or random music.

One's called 'Music for iPod Classic Sync' and the other is a Smart Playlist called 'Songs not on iPod Video'.

To make this, you might have to create a new Smartlist. In Itunes go to the menu and select File, New Smart Playlist.

Make it look like this:

Then of course I just sync the 'Music for iPod Classic Sync' to my Playlist.

2012-01-11T08:28:00.003-06:00

"Since 2010 a group of self-confessed pirates have tried to get their beliefs recognized as an official religion in Sweden. After their request was denied several times, the Church of Kopimism – which holds CTRL+C and CTRL+V as sacred symbols – is now approved by the authorities as an official religion. The Church hopes that its official status will remove the legal stigma that surrounds file-sharing."

Ah, taking it a bit far the other way. Though I do think the entertainment industry is way over-litigatingthan innovating, but what else is new.

Rooting the Amazon Fire: adb under OS X Doesn't Recognize

2012-01-05T08:29:00.000-06:00

ADB won't recognize an attached Kindle Fire over USB unless you add the Fire's device ID to adb_usb.ini

Step 1:
From the Finder in OS X, select Go, then Go to Folder, then paste this in:

~/.android

You can see the file there.

Step 2:
Now open a terminal and type these commands in order:

cd /Users/yourusername/.android/

echo "0x1949" >> adb_usb.ini

Now you can go back to the folder in the Finder and verify the entry has been made by opening adb_usb.ini

Now adb will see the Fire. You may have to eject the Fire disk that's mounted, and reconnect it, or kill and restart the adb server etc. That procedure is all over the web, but getting adb to recognize the Fire on the Mac was driving me nuts.

Drop a buck in my Paypal account or buy something on Amazon and support my feeble hacking attempts.

Also, some say cable and port matter, so my Fire is attached with a nook USB cable (ironically) to a powered hub attached to a 2006 1,1 Mac Pro.

New from Beachbody

2011-12-21T23:19:00.001-06:00

Macbook Air: Your next netbook

2011-12-17T14:07:00.002-06:00

Yes, it's finally happened. That expensive piece of shiny has gotten 'cheap', and fast enough.

I am selling my Galaxy Tab 8.9 and my Mini 311 and going to a Macbook Air.

I have the base model late 2010 refurb with 2 gigs of RAM and 64 gig SSD.

Right now it's $699 from Apple with $100 off a printer. You can also get 5% extra cashback through Shop Discover and your normal about 1% cash back. In this sense, you get paid to take the printer if you pick the $99 model. :) I picked the $129 model which ends up being about $33 with tax. Or you can sell it and get $40 or $50 more than you paid I'd guess.

Much has been written but this is the short story: unless you need a lot of CPU on the road, this feels faster than my Mac Pro (non-SSD of course) for basic tasks. If you need more storage buy a cheap 2.5" drive and put it in a USB powered case. Or you might just need a little, in which case you might get some form of external flash storage: thumb drive, CF card in a case, etc. 32 gigs extra is pretty cheap.

You could move apps and data to the thumb drive that you probably aren't going to use in a portable like iPhoto, iTunes library, iDVD, etc. Those are for your desktop anyway right?

Down with tablets and netbooks, up with Air. Or something like that.

Cool Coca Cola In Store Display

2011-12-09T12:59:00.001-06:00

Its the Coke polar bear. This took a bit, Kroger. Gratz.

Golf and Flying Go Together

2011-11-14T14:05:00.001-06:00

A good landing is like a good golf shot; it's the one that keeps you coming back. Today, it was early, smooth, and a day that makes it 'easy'.

If hustling 15 or 20 tons of metal, fuel, and people onto a concrete slab at something around 140 miles an hour is really ever 'easy'.

All the pain, cursing, expenses, and other mess just goes out the window at that moment.

Non-golfers and non-pilots will not understand this perhaps. Fair enough.

Today it was so good the captain turned and said: "Man, that landing really sucked."

This means: we both know the captain is kidding.

A light bump on one wheel, a light bump on the other, and the nose lowered as gently as the designers at Embraer allowed. Which isn't terribly light, unless you carried some extra speed because sorry, the elevator just won't hold you up any more no matter how hard you pull.

That's why the other guy stays out of the way of the yoke.

See you out there tomorrow. Looking forward to it.

HP Touchpad Keyboard Usability Report: Android, Mac OS X, PS3, and more?

2011-11-03T08:27:00.001-06:00

I'm sure we will see more of these in one channel or another so you are wondering whether it will work with your device.

OS X: Pairs fine and runs a little wizard which asks you to press a few keys.

Works: The right 7 special function keys across the top. Starting with the media keys. Brightness keys would probably work on a laptop Mac but I tested on a Mac Pro desktop. Lower left key with the squares on it functions as the Mac Command key. Power button asks if you want to sleep.

Doesn't work: First 3 special function keys. You could probably remap these if you desired.

Android 3.1: Paired fine with my Galaxy Tab 8.9. Most keys worked. Upper left works like the Back on screen control on Android. Search button opens search, held opens voice search.

Doesn't work: brightness keys, power, keyboard dedicated button, dedicated 'Squares' command button.

Again, probably some remappable stuff here.

I have a PS3 I can test with and report back.

Great construction quality. Like Apple's version, but black, and with different keys of course.

Looks like it's cheap on Amazon:

Galaxy Tab 8.9 Editorial

2011-10-27T19:18:00.001-05:00

If there is an iPad 'killer' it is the Galaxy Tab 8.9 I am typing this on. If you don't spend some time with this machine and you are buying soon, you're wrong. Of course, the 4 core stuff is coming but buying later is an age old conundrum that will not be solved. 8.9 is a GREAT form factor. Notice that Apple was only concerned enough to sue the makers of this and the Galaxy Tab 10.1? This is why: it was too good and too close. If it had MicroSD and maybe HDMI it would be perfect.

Oh, and USB recharge. EDIT: It looks like it charges at least when it is 100% powered off, and I believe when the screen is off, so there's that. At least when completely off, the battery indicator shows charging.

I was lucky enough to get it for $444 with a Best Buy 10% off open box and a $5 Reward.
Protip: if you return a tablet to Best Buy, zero out your email and settings. Its just a few clicks on a tablet and a reboot.

Mac Pro 2006 CPU Upgrade SL9MV 1.86 ghz L5320 CPU

2011-10-25T09:14:00.000-05:00

I went from a 2x2 core 2.0ghz in a Mac Pro 2006 (Xeon 5130s).

I went to 2x4 core 1.86 ghz, 5320's without the BSEL mod. I wanted stability, and this upgrade is CHEAP. I may do the BSEL later or just wait for the 3ghz to get cheap one day. :) SSD is probably next best bang for the buck, and I've got a Radeon 4870 already. Flashed PC Card, 512M memory.

Tool note: I got a 9" 3mm T Handle for the CPU Allen screws for under $4. Grainger had them in stock in Houston. Grainger Item number is 4CT02, cots $3.20 as of Oct 2011.

I used Arctic Alumina for the new heatsink, cleaned the old off with plastic scraper and fingernail polish that had acetone as the main ingredient.

A 50% improvement on Geekbench for $56 minus whatever I can get for the old CPUs.
I went from 4237 to 6330, 6431 on a later run on Geekbench 2.2. This was the unlicensed 32 bit run. 64bit would of course done a little better.

A brief scare when it wouldn't boot but I reversed the RAM risers.

Another brief scare when the Activity Monitor only showed one CPU scale, but that's what it does with over 4 cores; an aggregrate.

About this Mac doesn't report it correctly of course, but benchmark-wise and using other tools it all looks and acts like it should. At the prices for 5320s, no reason not to do this mod unless you just aren't handy with the steel.

SystemLoad at 100% on all 8 cores, 82F ambient air. World of Warcraft in a window with fairly high settings, showing 33fps in the Auction house.

Ran a dungeon and temp didn't go over 120F for one CPU Heatsink and 115 for the other. CPU fan at 703rpm.

I realize 6330 isn't that much of a score on Geekbench but I wanted to go ahead and do this upgrade while the L5320s were cheap and plentiful. Plus of course the sooner I sell my CPUs the more they will be worth hopefully.

Editorial: The 2006 Mac Pros are getting cheap on Ebay. Sure, you could build a Hackintosh cheaper. But, get a Mac Pro, add RAM, better hard drive or SSD, flash a Radeon 4870 from a PC and upgrade to 8 cores on the CPUs. My last batch of RAM was 6 gigs for around $78. I paid less than $100 for the 4870 after I sold the Accelero cooler I got with it. The 2006 models can be had for around $800 or less. It will beat most of the iMacs with an i5 or less in the processor department and it's so much more expandable and upgradeable. And you get to pick your display.

The 8 core 3ghz CPUs will be cheap later. Frankly, it's more about RAM. I've got 10 gigs. The processors even that I have aren't taxed much even with artificial loading.

Shakeology on the Road: Traveling Recipe

2011-10-18T10:18:00.000-05:00

Here's an easy one: put these ingredients in a water bottle if you forgot your shaker:

1 Pack Shakeology
1 packet Starbucks Via Instant Coffee
Altoids to Taste. Probably Peppermint will work best.

Water to taste and as cold as you can find.

Shake and let sit, repeat until Altoids dissolve.

I did this and it's pretty good. You get bored on a long flight. :)

The Temptation Of Rob

2011-10-04T10:03:00.001-05:00

I can tell you that the temptation to misuse this is terrible.

I can also tell you the best way to rid yourself of temptation is to yield to it.

$5 at a garage sale! We had to go To Target to get enough ammo to fill it. 25 rounds. It has a feed bin for the ammo belt and a bipod. But its more intimidating to have the ammo belt over your arm Rambo style.

2011-10-03T11:37:00.000-05:00

This is my blender for Shakeology and other shakes and smoothies. I've seen it at Fry's and I think Kohl's under a different brand. The Bella Cucina brand has a 1 year warranty.

It's reviewed at 2.5 stars on Amazon out of 5, but the only trouble I have had is when the blade is not screwed on tight enough. It can loosen during blending and spill a little. But you will hear it as it rattles and makes a bit of a racket. Just put it on tight.

Don't use a heated dishwasher dry or high temp setting. I've washed the glasses many times in the dishwasher with no problems but one reviewer said theirs warped. Or wash by hand. Put a little soap and water in and blend!

This is the way to go. A regular blender wastes too much. Much better to drink out of the container you're making it in. There are 16 oz and 8 oz cups, two blades, and some other bits and pieces.

It comes with 4 16 ounce containers so you'll always have one clean.

I use those with a scoop of Shakeology. It's thick and tasty enough for twice as much shake making as the label indicates.

Totally worth it. Had mine a few months and so I guess I've made over 100 shakes, easy.

Click the link to order. Recommended.

Free $2 for MP3 Purchases at Amazon

2011-09-29T22:16:00.001-05:00

See here: http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/hot-deals/1127788/

I just got 'Demon Days' for $3 after the coupon. Any Gorillaz fans can thank me with future purchases through Amazon link on the right.

Get it fast, tomorrow is the last day.

2011-09-29T08:43:00.000-05:00

Kindle Fire Review! Ok, I haven't seen it yet but here's my opinion on some of the unique aspects of it and where it fits in within the crowded tablet field. I won't be talking about the hardware, which seems pretty run of the mill.

Battery: 4 hours to charge? Seems a bit long. My eee Transformer is far faster. It's a much bigger screen and battery.

Web Browser: Server side acceleration. You can see this in action with the Opera Mobile web browser and enabling Turbo Mode. In short, this should work great just like it does for Opera. For reference, my 2G iPhone running Opera Mobile felt as fast as 3G or WiFi. It also does pre-fetching.

Overall opinion: Will it kill the iPad? No. Will it get a lot of attention and effect iPad sales? Yes. It's a media consumption device. I do mostly reading, emails, Facebook, blog posting, stuff like that. This will suffice, and if it's really fast at browsing the web and tightly integrated with Amazon's content, will be a success. The only thing that will kill it is glitches and if the hardware has issues. Features look like smart choices. Amazon: Want to really make a splash? All you can eat streaming Music, Books, and streaming Movies or each ala carte for a reasonable monthly fee. Or at least the movies and music. Books are sorta a different animal I suppose.

E-Ink displays will not be affected. People buy those for the sharpness and for price, just like they buy this for price. E-Ink still has a sharper display and far longer battery life. I don't see much demand for the bottom non-touch screen E-Ink readers. I got the Nook 2 with touchscreen and I won't go back to one without.

And the Fire will get hacked, unlocking all the lovely potential like they did with the Nook Color. Which will be on super sale pricing soon. A refurb Nook is about $165 with less features and less powerful hardware. This, instead of that.

Versus other Android Tablets: The Fire probably, unless you want a 10 inch screen. Which may be next for the Fire.

Click on the Fire link at the top of this post and support theroblog! Buy enough so that I can buy one off the commissions. :)

Questions? Fire away in the comments section.

Buddy Roemer Close to getting Matching Funds

2011-09-27T12:23:00.000-05:00

Team,
In less than two months of running, we are close to qualifying for "Federal Matching Funds." I'm not sure how many of you know how this system works, and without going into boring details, basically if we receive $5,000 in donations from 20 states and agree to certain limits on spending, we will be given a dollar for dollar match on donations. If you donate $20 that means we get $40, and so on.
If you live in the following states or know anyone that does, PLEASE donate any amount up to $100: Florida, New York, Massachusetts, Georgia, Washington, Virginia, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Alabama, Ohio, Illinois, Arizona, Missouri, New Jersey, Minnesota and Maryland.
And in case you missed it, here are some clips of Governor Roemer's media appearances last week:
The Rachel Maddow Show The Daily Show CNBC Worldwide Exchange RT
Thank you,
Carlos Sierra Campaign Manager
P.S. For our most dedicated volunteers, please visit www.FreeToLead.com to start making a difference.

2011-09-27T12:16:00.000-05:00

A little tour of the home gym. You can get better results with less time and less money with just a little bit of gear, a fitness program from beachbodyrob.com and my help! Visit my Team Beachbody Independent Coach site and see my results and learn more.

Diet, programs, edibles, and community support. It's all here and I'm going to help you.

It's not a dust ball if it has a tail

2011-09-27T10:11:00.001-05:00

But I couldn't see it that well, so now I regret touching it.

This is why I don't do as much lighter housework because I get the yard, dead animal duty, strange noise investigation, oily, dirty, and other fun jobs.

Now to find out why the condenser fan is making noise.

Adventure Time!

Shakeology vs. Greens and Whey vs. Vanilla Protein Energizer

2011-09-24T14:04:00.000-05:00

First, I'm biased. I use Shakeology. However, that doesn't preclude me from tasting other stuff and telling you whether it tastes good or not.

These competitors don't.

They do however, have a subset of what Shakeology has for ingredients, at a lower price. But, a lower price isn't terribly hard to achieve on most products.

Look at Apple vs. most everyone else. They aren't the cheapest, but their stuff works and the experience is good to excellent.

Having said that, I'll be fair. If you can find Rainbow Light Nutritional Systems' Protein Energizer for 44 cents like I did, buy a bag and mix it with Shakeology or other ingredients. Yes that was a misprice, and yes, that's the real company name. You won't get all the nutrition, but it lowers the cost and now you can drink twice as many smoothies and still get tasty nutrition.

Biochem Sports' Greens and Whey Chocolate wasn't very chocolatey at all. Again, mix it with Shakeology if price is a concern. I got a can of that for less than $5.

So to sum, you can save some money, but you aren't going to enjoy it as much. I sure wouldn't have paid full price for either of these, and if I had, I think I'd be asking for my money back or not using it again.

Check out beachbodyrobshake.com for Shakeology info.

I'm not even going to link to the other two because they are yuck.

Here's a video with advice from Doctors:

Healthy Portable Snack Options

2011-09-23T23:53:00.001-05:00

I have had the Gluten Free High Protein Bar and the Sweet Romance bar. The Sweet Romance is great to stash anywhere as it is just compressed dried fruits and nuts. These are great snack options. 15% off if you use Subscribe and Save.