*blend

What the…..??? My opinion: Yes, very cool technology, awesome effects, great gimmick as well, but I don’t want it to become mainstream. Water is a naturally beautiful element (those of you that live in the desert will agree with me on this). This seems to cheapen it…next we’ll see “Eat at Mo’s” pulsing in the center of our town hall fountains. I can do without that.

From pinktentacle:

Researchers at Akishima Laboratories (Mitsui Zosen), working in conjunction with professor Shigeru Naito of Osaka University, have developed this that uses waves to draw text and pictures on the surface of water. The device, called AMOEBA (Advanced Multiple Organized Experimental Basin), consists of 50 water wave generators encircling a cylindrical tank 1.6 meters in diameter and 30 cm deep (about the size of a backyard kiddie pool). The wave generators move up and down in controlled motions to simultaneously produce a number of cylindrical waves that act as pixels. The pixels, which measure 10 cm in diameter and 4 cm in height, are combined to form lines and shapes. AMOEBA is capable of spelling out the entire roman alphabet, as well as some simple kanji characters. Each letter or picture remains on the water surface only for a moment, but they can be produced in succession on the surface every 3 seconds. Akishima Laboratories expects the technology to be incorporated into amusement devices that combine acoustics, lighting and fountain technology, which they hope to see installed at theme parks and hotels.

I think this has got to be one of the most, um, interesting mods I’ve seen. Can’t say I’d like to have this on my desk, but oh so cool none-the-less. “Bootiful” mod by Dave Williams. bit-tech.net | The “Bootiful” mod

Catching up on news and stuff: (and seriously breaking good blog guidelines: stick to one or two topics is just one of them, but if you know me you know I never stay on one or two topics even in a 5 minute conversation, so there)

New Zealand’s source for technology news on Stuff.co.nz: Ten signs you’re tech obsessed

me: 3, 7, 10. That’s not too bad.

Lawyer who fights the RIAA speaks out

Ray Beckerman is one of the few lawyers who has taken a stand against the RIAA, and he recently took part in a conference call organized by Defective by Design, an anti-DRM coalition. Beckerman gave a broad overview of the RIAA’s tactics; not surprisingly, he was opposed to them on the grounds that the group’s investigations turn out very little actual evidence.

InformationWeek | News | U.S. Adults Warming Up To Podcasts | July 21, 2006

More than 6 percent of U.S. adults, or 9 million Web users, have downloaded podcasts in the last 30 days, a research firm said. While still very young, the medium has made inroads among online adults, Nielesen Analytics said in a report released this week. Fully 38 percent of podcast downloaders said they were listening to less radio. While the number of users appears small, Nielsen Analytics believed podcasting had established itself among consumers who prefer more control over the media they access.

I plan on really trying to get podcasting and blogging more attention in my community. Chamber of commerce, city, county…what a great way to get out information in a very cost efficent manner. Not to mention making business and politics more attractive and ‘hip’ to our young people. More on this topic later though…maybe tomorrow, if I don’t gets sidetracked on something else.

Could that be the wireless police knocking? | NetworkWorld.com Community

Yes, we’re entering the world of mandatory wireless encryption for private property owners, at least if the intentions of the developers of Canoa Ranch Resort are any indication of things to come.

Make me. I bought the equipment, I pay the bill, I’ll do what i want. Oh, nevermind. This doesn’t apply to me because I don’t in this area of Tucson, AZ. I’ll just ignore it and go on my happy way. (really, who’s to say my neighborhood isn’t next?)

InformationWeek | Podcasting | DFW Airport Launches Podcast Service | July 24, 2006

Dallas Fort Worth Airport’s podcasts help direct travelers to parking, dining, shopping, and other amenities located in or near the international terminal.

Wired News: License Plate Tracking for All

Jealous lovers may soon have an alternative to sniffing for perfume to catch a cheating mate: Just follow their license plate. In recent years, police around the country have started to use powerful infrared cameras to read plates and catch carjackers and ticket scofflaws. But the technology will soon migrate into the private sector, and morph into a tool for tracking individual motorists’ movements, says former policeman Andy Bucholz, who’s on the board of Virginia-based G2 Tactics, a manufacturer of the technology.

ooookay. just what my ex-husband needs access to.

Light goes faster in reverse | The Register

Caution: physicists at play
A group of US physicists funded by the US Department of Energy have made a material capable of making light travel backwards, at speeds “that appear faster than the speed of light”, at the smallest wavelength ever. The work, led by Costas Soukoulis at Iowa State University, could pave the way for a “perfect lens”, and could even have implications for the basic laws of physics. Soukoulis himself says: “Snell’s law on the refraction of light is going to be different; a number of other laws will be different.”

My two-cents worth of input on some posts concerning women techies in libraries:
Balancing work and home obligations on the Library Web Chic blog
(yes, you can ask for change…it’s probably not even worth the two-cents…)

When I started reading this thread of related posts, I thought I had something to contribute..but when it comes right down to it, I’m just another ’statistic’ about women in tech and specifically women in tech at libraries. Working in a smaller public library (serving 12,500) in a very remote and rural setting, I used to feel that being one of few women in the field was actually a great perk. I often had to deal with men who felt above me, but after a few minutes of conversation, I always managed to gain their respect, and therefore enjoyed a sort of celebrity in and around my community. Now, I find myself very alone with much more responsibility…from being a circulation librarian to the network administrator, to being both the network and system administrator, and now as director, I have all of the financial and management burden, and still must play the role of system/network administrator. The celebrity status now is unwelcome, because I find I do not have enough time or resources to complete any of my duties to MY satisfaction (though everyone else seems happy with it). 60 to 80 hour work weeks are growing old, and I cannot think of a single woman to emulate or learn better work habits from. Add to this the little fact that I’m married with 6 daughters (4 of them teenagers), and I often find myself wondering how much longer I can really do this. Like Joy, I’m always on call, and it becomes a burden even if the phone doesn’t ring…just knowing that you’re never fully ‘away’ from work. How many of us are being forced into having to choose between family and work because there isn’t anyone that understands one simple fact:
no matter how much has changed, most women still have ‘typical’ domestic duties….
I will have to choose my family over my library. And what a sad day that will be… for everyone.

More links on this topic from other bloggers:
Library Web Chic: On being the Library Web Chic; The Gender Issue Again
Free Range Librarian: 2.0: Where are the women?
Caveat Lector: Grunch and the Library Coder
Liminal Librarian: What is and what should never should be

OK, I gotta have one. And not because I have the need to tote around so much data that it doesn’t fit on the 2 USB keys I already have tossed in the bottom in my purse, but because this thing is adorable. Four color choices and a translucent matching case…AND I bet it will fit in the USB port at the same time as my printer on my laptop, which I can’t do with either of my current keys. I have to unplug the printer (or whatever else I happen to have plugged in at the time) because the ports are crammed so close together. These little guys range from $30 bucks for the 256 meg to $110 for the 2 gig.

I’m having an affair. With Leo Laporte. Tom Ashbrook. Even Rebecca Bain and Amber MacArthur. I just realized this fact this morning when I woke up, made coffee, and grinned in delight as I realized that there was nothing I had to do, the kids were all occupied, and my better half is away at work.

A few months ago Brian bought me an iPod. It was cool and fun and I played with it for a few days, but then it got left in my purse and almost forgotten because I just don’t listen to music as much as some, and I ran out of interest with listening to it and looking at teeny tiny pics of my kids. Then, while checking out the latest news on NPR.org (by the way - we don’t get a single national public radio station here…so the web site is my only contact with what I consider the finest news and talk shows on the planet), a lightbulb went off in my head and I put together two little words:

PODCASTS and ITUNES.

Duh. Juice was working for me, and I felt really stupid the moment that lightbulb went off. So I subscribed to my shows, found a hundred new ones, and filled my little black and silver friend to capacity, and today find myself an addict. Any free moment, the very short drive to work, the even shorter cigarette breaks at work, and my friend is there with me.

A few weeks ago, Brian got me a speaker/charger system for my office and a charger/fm transmitter for my truck. Now I wonder…is he oblivious to my affair, or is he encouraging it?