2014 No-Nonsense Technician Class License Study Guide

Dan (KB6NU) has updated his No-Nonsense Technician Class License Study Guide for 2014. If you are looking to get your ticket this is a great resource.

Outernet

I'll just hold my breath... the Outernet:

"'There isn't a lot of raw research that is being done here; much of what is being described has already been proven by other small satellite programs and experiments. There's really nothing that is technically impossible to this'"

And:

"Much like how you receive a signal on your television and flick through channels, Outernet will broadcast the Internet to you and allow you to flick through certain websites."

Frequency - A Visual

Embed isn't working so check it out here.

Torch Run

MagicBand Teardown

We used the MagicBands on our trip to Disney. The MagicBand is your ticket, your room key, your PhotoPass, your FastPass, and can be used to make purchases.

I wondered what was inside the MagicBand. I thought about cracking into, but it was just easier to Google it... MagicBand Teardown. I knew it had RFID and suspected that it had something that could be tracked more easily. Looks like that is the case.

In this scenario, I'm not worried about Big Brother - in fact, I'm excited to think Disney can take the magic to a whole new level!

Main Trading Company

MTC is having a grand opening of their new digs on Saturday. I'm glad to see things going well for ham radio businesses.

Auto Manufacturing Down Under

I had no idea.

"Toyota announced it will shut down its Australian manufacturing by 2017. Quite simply, it's cheaper to manufacture elsewhere (especially here in the U.S.) and ship to Australia. The company had been trying to reduce its labor costs by amending contracts, but that got nixed by the country's court system. Toyota was the last of the automakers to announce that it is leaving Australia. Once it pulls out, Australia will have no consumer carmaker."

Via Ace of Spades HQ

Still Job Hunting

Looks like I got passed over again.

Stanene

"Researchers predict that a new material called stanene, composed of a one-atom-thick sheet of tin, could act much like a room-temperature superconductor, leading to faster, more efficient microchips."

I expect this would mean great things for radio, like this:

Technology Makes Us Antisocial

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.

Via @msuster