Vince Young

Vince Young may be an exmaple of the Peter Principle. Or may be Vince Young just needs a nicer coach.



Laser Tag on 3!

Dell Inspiron Duo

The Inspiron Duo looks really slick. It is a netbook and touch-screen table for $550. I've been testing some netbooks for use in our manufacturing facility to replace some legacy, industrial equipment. We need a Windows device, so we can run out VB .NET apps and the touch screen would be a nice feature.

Black Friday Radio Sales

HRO has the IC-7000 and several other radios on sale.

I've been looking at the Icom IC-7000. I want to get a rig to serve as my base station. I can't decide if I need an all in one (70cm - 160M) like the IC-700 and the Yaesu FT-857D or if I should get an HF radio and a separate 2M set.

Ham City has the MFJ-269 analyzer on-sale for $299.95

And boom goes the dynamite!

House just said, "And boom goes the dynamite!"

If you don't know the origin of the phrase, you must watch this video.

Consequences

Sophomore Defense Tackle Montori Hughes has been suspended for academic reasons. Dooley commented that "Everybody’s got freedom of choice, but nobody’s got freedom of consequence."

I think there are way too many people that don't understand that.

Via Wes Rucker on Twitter.

Logitech Remote

I've been using a Logitech Harmony 880 remote for years. My wife loved the simplicity of pressing one button that turned on all the required devices, set the inputs/outputs correctly, etc. She especially liked the "Help" button that would walk through the sequence again if something failed to power on correctly. We had a lady that cleaned our house who liked to listen to the TV while she cleaned. When I got my Home Theater in a Box, she never could get everything turned on or off correctly. The Logitech solved that problem, too.

For those unfamiliar with the remote, you use an application on your PC to configure the settings and customize your remote. You tell the software what components (using the make and model number of your TV, DVR, etc.) you have and then you define the settings for various activities. For example, when I press "Watch a DVD", it starts the DVD players/HTIB and the TV, but does not turn on the DVR. It sets the the TV to the HDMI input for the DVD player and configures the HTIB to play the DVD. There are advanced options if you need, for example, to configure pauses between actions.

I finally had to replace the original remote, because the play button was worn out. It took a lot of force to hit play and made using the DVR features a lot harder than it should be.

I had been dragging my feet, but my wife was fed up with the problem, so I bought a new Logitech Harmony One Universal Remote with Color Touch Screen from Amazon.

So far the new remote is working fine. The settings transferred over easily from the original remote. The new remote is more stylish and has a touch screen. The top is very thin and it helps balance the remote in your hand. I still think I would move the least used buttons to the bottom if I were designing a remote. It is awkward to use one-handed when trying to access those bottom buttons.

Pret A Mange Christmas Sandwich

One of my favorite things about the holiday season is the left-overs. (Don't get me wrong, I love the food the first time around.) When my wife and I were living in London, we discovered the Pret A Manage Christmas Sandwich.

We re-create it every year with our Thanksgiving and Christmas left-overs. Here are the ingredients from the Pret website. Basically you do a layer of each. I don't recommend going to heavy on the cranberry as the sweet can overwhelm the rest of the flavors. I get hungry just thinking about it.

Malted Wholegrain Bread
British Turkey
Sage & Onion Stuffing (Dressing)
Cranberry & Port Sauce
Crispy Onions
Mayo
Leaf Spinach

Funny - Stools and The USBFF

Sam Venable discusses the latest in self-defense: A motel clerk ran off a would be thief by defending himself with a stool.

I prefer Smith & Wesson.

From Brick O'Lore

Seeking: Motivation

The lesson in Sunday School today was 2 Kings 18 (NIV).

3 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done.
4 He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles.

Hezekiah was a different king. He did what God wanted. As one reads further in the chapter, you see there was an obvious benefit in doing what God commanded. Hezekiah seems to have a very practical side. Should that change how we evaluate Hezekiah's faithfulness? Is the faith of the downtrodden, less fortunate greater than that of the rich man? While the rich may have their own problems (eye of the needle/getting into heaven), it still seems more desirable than the alternative.

I've really not come to a definitive answer. In the end, it is by Grace that we are saved - not our actions or our motivations.

Wired on the AK-47

Wired has an article about the AK-47. I'm a fan of Wired. Normally they put an interesting, tech twist in their articles. Unfortunately, this one doesn't have any real surprises.

This line was thought provoking:

"But it was originally engineered to reinforce state power, not overturn it."

Like any tool, how it is used determines if it is good or evil. One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter.