Author: Jere

Stop Internet Explorer

I think most of you know my feelings for Internet Explorer run deep and true, basically, it stinks. Here’s a website that let’s you know in detail the biggest problems with IE.

StopIE: Help stop Internet Explorer, the worlds most popular and worst internet browser – StopIE.com

I can concur with the wasted web developer’s time. I’ve learned from personal experience that for every hour spent on the initial design and implementation of a standards based web page (by standards based I mean global community standards, not Microsoft “standards”), it takes 2-5 hours to hack your compliant code so it works properly in IE. Just dump the lame browser already.

Windows Freeware

Here’s another effort of mine to help out the less fortunate of you who are stuck in the dreary world of Microsoft Windows.

nedwolf – Free Software – Windows Freeware

Hopefully some of these programs will help you through the next couple of years. By then, if we’re lucky, we’ll be able to install OS X on any PC. Those of you waiting for the OS formerly known as “Longhorn”, now known as “Vista”, will unfortunately have to wait even six more months after that.

Excited about viruses? You can already get Vista viruses now (sorry, didn’t mean to bring down and already “cheery” post).

LEGO crazy

Here’s a new one for me, this guy is a “professional” lego designer…

Eric Harshbarger’s LEGO pages

You may be scoffing now at the professional tag (I’ll admit, I did too at first), but go to his LEGO page, click the portfolio link at the bottom, and you’ll be able to see tons of different “models” he built with LEGOs. I only scanned through a few, but the Nativity Scene and the Song Of The Angels are downright impressive. Unfurtunately, it appears he’s scaled back his LEGO creations this year for “other” things.

Essential Resources for Google Maps

If you haven’t made the switch to Google Maps, then you are seriously missing out. Not only does the site work great for directions, but there are a ton of “hacks” that people have come up with to utilize the Google Maps API.

Essential Resources for Google Maps

Of particular interest I think is the CheapGas link that’s first on the list. It’s not up to the second accurate, but checking Ann Arbor’s area this morning yielded results I know were accurate as of Monday.

Finally, a few tips…

  • Finding addresses at Google Maps. If you wanted to map out Big Bird’s address for instance, you’d type the following line in the “search” field:

    123 Sesame Street, New York, NY, 10012

    The street address and zip code (without the city/state) also works most of the time.

  • Click the “Satellite” button at the upper right of the map to access satellite imagery of the area if it’s available. Click the “Hybrid” button to overlay the main streets with their names on the satellite images.
  • Click and drag on the map, it will go where you want it to go without reloading the whole page.

    • “Warp speed now, Mr Scott!”

    Need to know how to get every little ounce of energy out of your warp engines? Well, the following article from howstuffworks.com explains the basics of the antimatter engine (this is real folks, no science fiction here).

    Howstuffworks “How Antimatter Spacecraft Will Work”

    It won’t help you break that warp 10 barrier, but hey, an interesting read nonetheless for the modern day space explorer in all of us.

    Face lift

    Take a good look. Because in several more days this house won’t look the same.

    pre siding

    A trailer with our new siding arrived yesterday. We’re excited to have our new exterior look, especially since we actually get to enjoy it for a little bit and we’re not doing it just to sell the house. A friend of our’s father is doing the work for us. He delivered all the goods and took down the gutters yesterday. Today he’s putting the new back door in. We’re thinking it will take a little more than a week to finish the whole thing.

    So in the mean time, you all can take a look at the picture above, imagine what colors you would use, and leave a comment with your guess. Then when it’s all finished, I’ll post another picture of the exterior.

    It’s going to look great when it’s all finished. Now maybe we won’t get anymore flyers in our screen door offering an estimate to paint or side the house for us.