BillDay.com

28-Feb-2007

Aircraft need non-computerized backup systems

Filed under: Events, Security — Bill Day @ 4:46 pm

F-22A Raptor in flight, hopefully nowhere near the IDL

Numerous sites have reported on the now infamous F-22A Raptor systems crash as the first internationally deployed F-22 squadron crossed the International Date Line earlier this month. Read a transcript with CNN military analyst Major General Don Shepperd, USAF-Ret. for more details of what happened (Cntrl+F search for “F-22″ to jump to the pertinent bits).

This is certainly not the first time software has caused an aviation malfunction. It’s but the latest in a long line of aerospace software snafus.

What is interesting about this one, however, is that for a manned system, one might have expected more physical, non-computerized backup systems than appear to have been in place. I’m versed in fly-by-wire and the basics of modern avionics (even have a BS in Aero Eng to prove it), but I have to wonder if there shouldn’t be at least a few critical backup gadgets that aren’t wired-in to the computer systems. Altimeter, compass, etc.

Perhaps there were, and they simply weren’t discussed in any of the coverage. If not, they should have been. F-22 pilots, you know what to add to your kit next time you’re heading up into the wild blue yonder.

BTW, the bug was fixed and the Raptors successfully arrived at Kadena AFB, Okinawa a few days later. Enjoy the arrival with a little video (the narration’s in Japanese, but jet noise sounds the same in any language):

Joost show and tell

Filed under: Recommended — Bill Day @ 3:14 pm

The latest two Joost invitations have been handed out.

Interested in checking it out but didn’t get your request made in time? CBS has posted a Joost “show and tell”:

More invites will be offered on my blog if/when I receive them.

Two more Joost invitations

Filed under: Recommended — Bill Day @ 1:58 pm

I have two more Joost invitations.

First two reasonable requests get them.

23-Feb-2007

Joost invitations gone

Filed under: Recommended — Bill Day @ 11:08 am

Both of the beta invitations to Joost have been given away.

Please watch my blog for any future invitations I receive.

Beta invitations to Joost

Filed under: Recommended — Bill Day @ 10:35 am

I’ve been a beta tester for Joost since mid-December and have a couple more beta invitations I can give out to interested parties.

Leave a comment with your first+last name and email if you’d like an invitation. First two people with interesting comments get one! :-)

My favorite iPod accessory: Kensington Pico FM Transmitter

Filed under: Recommended, Wireless — Bill Day @ 9:00 am

Click to read reviews of the Kensington Pico

I bought myself a Kensington Pico FM Transmitter so I could listen to my Nano tunes sans cables in my car.

It’s a simple transmitter, it uses the iPod’s power so no battery or recharging of the Pico is required, and it just works.

Recommended.

22-Feb-2007

Canon PowerShot TX1 with 7.1 MPix stills and HD video

Filed under: Photography — Bill Day @ 10:39 am

Click for more pics of TX1

Canon has announced their new PowerShot TX1 which will pack 7.1 megapixel stills and 720p HD video recording into an Elph-sized form factor. TX1 builds-in optical image stabilization and a 10x optical zoom as well.

Read more on Engadget or visit Digital Photography Review for the spec list.

Though I don’t particularly care for the styling, the tech in this digicam is impressive. I’m a long time Canon Elph user (currently on my fourth Elph, having given older models to family members as I upgraded over the years). I’ve also recently begun looking for a worthy, HD-capable, HDD- or SD-based replacement for my aging Sony MiniDV camcorder.

I can’t wait to try the TX1 out!

19-Feb-2007

Introducing the book

Filed under: Recommended — Bill Day @ 11:08 am

Why does this feel like so many of my informal tech support interactions with family members?

17-Feb-2007

Discussion forums removed

Filed under: Site Stuff, Wireless — Bill Day @ 12:37 am

The BillDay.com discussion forums experiment mentioned here has failed.

They’ve only proven popular with spammers. As such, I have removed them.

If you’d like to discuss anything on my site, please leave a comment on my blog.

9-Feb-2007

Pipes tips

Filed under: Blogging, Recommended — Bill Day @ 10:35 am

Yahoo! Pipes is currently Beta

More Y! Pipes tips and info from Brady Forrest at O’Reilly Radar.

8-Feb-2007

Yahoo Pipes

Filed under: Blogging, Open Source, Recommended — Bill Day @ 12:22 pm

Click to read more technical details about Yahoo! Pipes

Yahoo! Pipes launched last night, opening up an interesting new Unix pipes-like capability for mixing, processing, and using feeds. According to Y!, Pipes allow one to “rewire the web” (their words) by combining, filtering, sorting, truncating, translating, geocoding, etc. user defined feeds. Click here to try out Pipes yourself.

(Note that as I type this the site is overwhelmed with traffic and returning the error message “Our Pipes are clogged! We’ve called the plumbers!”)

O’Reilly published an introduction and overview of the promise of pipes, followed by additional Radar posts providing a technical overview and short deconstruction of one of the example Y! pipes.

Tim O’Reilly started his introduction with high praise indeed:

Yahoo!’s new Pipes service is a milestone in the history of the internet

A lot of possibilities for consuming pipes.yahoo output come to mind. And I find the use of a visual metaphor for indicating user intent very interesting: It’s not new by any means, but nonetheless another informative example of how we can think about empowering users to orchestrate complex operations through simple indications.

It’s a series of…pipes?

Filed under: Blogging, Open Source — Bill Day @ 12:19 pm

It must be asked: Is Senator Ted Stevens a mad genius?

Replace “tubes” with “pipes” and you be the judge…

OK, OK, so he’s not Einstein Jr. But wouldn’t it have been great if Y! had named their new Pipes service “Yahoo! Tubes”?

I would love to see tubes.yahoo.com link to a humorous version of Pipes! :-)

We are the Machine

Filed under: Blogging, Personal, Recommended — Bill Day @ 10:38 am

Imagine what we can do as we the people build off our systems, and vice versa, in the ever deepening and broadening echo chamber of the Web:

[Thanks to Chris Anderson of The Long Tail for bringing this video to my attention]

6-Feb-2007

Matsuri of the Mobilists 61

Filed under: Recommended, Wireless — Bill Day @ 9:32 pm

Nikkei Matsuri in San Jose

The 61st installment of the Carnival is out. Jan Kuczynski has posted number 61 on Wireless World Japan, complete with a Matsuri theme.

My “Two horse race, soon to be three” post on the mobile handset market made the cut. Thanks Jan!

2-Feb-2007

Nokia and Motorola: Two horse race, soon to be three?

Filed under: Wireless — Bill Day @ 3:11 pm

N93i takes WiFi-enabled video shooting smartphones to new Nokia heights

Last July I wondered in writing about Q2 2006 NOK and MOT numbers:

Is mobile handset design and marketing now a two horse race?

As reported in this Chicago Tribune story on Q4 2006 results, the answer appears to be a big “Yes”. According to the Strategy Analytics numbers quoted by the Tribune:

  1. Nokia increased Q4 share to 35.2% worldwide, versus 34.1% Q4 2005
  2. Motorola rose to 21.9%, from 18.2% in the final quarter of 2005
  3. Samsung lost share, down to 10.7% from 11.1% in the same quarter last year
  4. Sony Ericsson is up to 8.7% from 6.6% last year
  5. Closing out the top five, LG Electronics sank to 5.7% share from 6.6% in Q4 2005

Although Sony Ericsson increased its share a bit year-over-year, it appears to be more at the expense of Samsung and LG than of Nokia or Motorola. And even with S.E.’s rise, Nokia and Motorola still managed to pull slightly further ahead of the pack.

I wonder how things will stack up at this time next year, after iPhone has had a few months on the market? For Steve to hit his target of 1% share by 2008, Apple wouldn’t need to take very much from the major players.

Getting to the next order of magnitude, however, will be quite a bit more challenging. 10% share would position Apple in the top three mobile makers, assuming they grab share more at the expense of Samsung, Sony Ericsson, and LG than Nokia or Motorola. And as you can see from this quarter’s numbers, 10% iPhone market share won’t be easy to come by. But given the key bit of my quote from mid-2006, that this is a race based upon “design and marketing”, I’d say Apple has a better chance than anyone else at getting there from here. Assuming they listen to feedback and understand the shape of the mobile market, of course.

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