My wife tells me I have too many techy posts.  So I thought I'd add in this shot from yesterdays trip to the Taste of Music City that we went to.  There was a really nice mix of vendors and it was a great opportunity to try things that maybe you don't normally try.  Best of all, the "prices" were crazy cheap.  I say "prices" since you paid in tickets which were purchased with cash.  Still the most expensive item we found would have been wine for $6.

 

This event apparently is put on by the same group that does Wine on the River, Nashville on the Rocks, and the Music City Brewfest.  So there is an event for just about anyone at this point whether your thing is food, wine, cocktails, or beer.

 

Keep up with this site for next year:  Taste of Music City

  I like the idea of having solar power on a laptop.  Not strictly because I feel like it could help "save the earth" or anything.  More, simply because it could be practical in extending the use of a portable device.  What I'd really like to have is this sort of technology on a smartphone.  Yes, yes, I know they make solar powered chargers but that sort of thing is frustrating.  What I don't want is one more additional thing to carry.  Instead I just want a panel right on the back so that the phone could charge while it's just sitting idle.  Perhaps at the very least, the solar panel could be used to help lower the impact on the battery while actively using the phone.

 

Via: TechCrunch

Probably the most popular ROM emulator on the Android market has been removed.  I know there are good reasons to block obvious illegal apps but I wonder the legality behind removing and emulator.  Consider the ROMs aren't prepackaged it seems wrong to remove an app even if enables you to play something you may not own.

I dunno, the whole idea of cracking down on something like bit-torrent or an emulator because it could allow you to do something illegal is like making it illegal to drive because you might speed or commit a crime on the road.  Just my 2 cents.

 

The app maker has moved his apps to SlideME, an alternative market:  Yongzh's applications

 

Via: Engadget

This game was in the works when I was around 16 years old. That's when development started. I actually have very found memories of the original "3d" title. It was built very much like other games of the time, in a a Wolfenstein/Doom type engine with FPS playstyle. As a matter of fact, I think it was the first game that allowed you to look upand down by pressing keys on the keyboard. In Doom you could only look straight ahead and turn in place left or right. There was no up or down other than falling off the side of a ledge that you may have been on.

I hate to say something cliche, but I am amazed at how far games have come. I also feel very fortunate to have basically seen games from the beginning (at least starting from the Atari forward.) I have added DN Forever to my wishlist on Steam. Hey, for kicks maybe they should release the game as shareware like the original title. Then again, maybe not. Steam is far superior to even a "brick and mortar" store in my opinion.

I hope it's worth whatever price they set. I imagine it will be fun just for the nostalgia.

Via: Gearboxity

I'd like to point out a great news site for Android users. Something I read nearly every day. Also I actually listened to their podcast and it's probably the first one I've had any interest in. Android Central seems to have information well ahead of time for things like new phone releases, OS updates, market apps, and more. They even have information dealing with carrier issues (like the fact that up until recently you couldn't install "Non-Market" applications on AT&T.)

So if you are a current Android phone user or you are thinking about one, this is the site to follow.

Android Central http://www.androidcentral.com

I still can't figure out why are speeds are so much slower than other countries around the world.  Oh well.  I get that 10mbps is plenty fast for most things.  And I wonder what kind of upload speeds you get in other countries.  35mpbs is nothing for me if the upload is capped at something like 256kbps.

"Consumers in some large European and Asian cities reported faster download speeds than consumers in comparable U.S. cities, the report released Friday said. For instance, average download speed was found to be 11.7 Mbps in New York with a population of nearly 8.4 million people compared with 35.8 Mbps for the 10 million residents of Seoul, South Korea, the report said."

More here:  US Broadbad Adoption via Yahoo!

The blog is nearly ready.  I've gotten most of the layout done.  I have the title and page fonts set.  Kind of a weird selection but I felt "OCR-A" gave it a kind of "Techy" look.  I have a working gallery with our recent Dominican Republic pictures.  Now on to get a working RSS feed and I think I'm ready to go.

My first blog post.  Just created as a test.  Test edit.