tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994Thu, 08 Apr 2010 10:34:15 +0000Mumblings of a sometime webdeveloper, occassional potato sculptor, recently-become dad, and just this guy getting along in the world.http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/noreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)Blogger124125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-80193978500610456Thu, 08 Apr 2010 10:34:00 +00002010-04-08T05:34:15.122-05:00 This blog is now located at http://samfosteriam-me.blogspot.com/. You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click here. For feed subscribers, please update your feed subscriptions to http://samfosteriam-me.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default. http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2010/04/this-blog-has-moved.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-277508610637106516Thu, 06 Nov 2008 23:02:00 +00002008-11-06T17:06:21.367-06:00After my little blogging hiatus, there's too much news to catch up on. But the biggest is that we all moved to Leeds, England and are settling into a new (to us) house in Meanwood (if you happen to know the area). The kids are in school, Kelley is well, I'm still with Sitepen doing much of the same old.http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2008/11/settled-in-leeds.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-5129542488824706927Sun, 31 Aug 2008 14:31:00 +00002008-08-31T09:42:39.839-05:00osxIn the notes-to-self category, turns out apple ships a tool called airport in leopard. Following this article's suggestion, I linked it like so: cd /usr/sbin sudo sudo ln -s /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Apple80211.framework/Versions/A/Resources/airport airport -h shows me that I can do airport -I to see my current statushttp://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2008/08/airport-cmdline-tool.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-3003288843990594171Fri, 25 Apr 2008 20:15:00 +00002008-04-25T15:24:54.840-05:00Like a few other people, I couldnt help but notice that RoadRunner monkeyed with their service recently with the result that my day to day internet activity has slowed to a crawl. You know something's wrong when you go to search on google and get a rr.com page saying host google.com not found (and offering all sorts of sponsored links and searches). Today I reached my bullshit threshold and http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2008/04/roadrunner-dns-opendns.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-1346267452120377562Mon, 28 May 2007 16:06:00 +00002007-05-28T12:09:11.178-05:00sustainablehomeYesterday I put the final piece in place to our solar powered lawn-mowing solution. At the old house, I used the reel-mower - not a terribly onerous task provided it was kept sharp. But at the new house we are on a corner lot, and inheriting our predecessor's love of lawn. We are slowly eating away at it with vegetable and xeric beds... but a lot remains. Too much to feasibly manage with the reelhttp://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2007/05/solar-powered-lawn-mowing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-7872826087108448825Mon, 28 May 2007 15:28:00 +00002007-05-28T12:11:09.327-05:00howtowebsitereviewI stumbled on instructables.com looking for I forget what. They have a nice format of a series of illustrated and annotated steps. I was looking at electronic projects, but there's a broad range of crafty/makey topics.http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2007/05/instructables.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-116539067290355030Wed, 06 Dec 2006 07:08:00 +00002006-12-06T01:39:39.556-06:00As if to underline the already bleeding obvious, today my desk clutter hit the point of self-destruction when I exitted my chair and pulled the headphone cord with me. It snapped at the plug. Worse would have been to break the actual jack in the laptop (or maybe drag the laptop off the desk). It wasn't a happy moment though. I was undaunted. Radio Shack sold me a new plug, I scoffed at the http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2006/12/small-moments.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-114611865064262468Thu, 27 Apr 2006 06:13:00 +00002006-04-27T01:17:30.666-05:00Never sure if this is "work" or play. But I got tired of the pond weed look on this site and refreshed it. I mostly just switched a couple colors and a few graphics to make "Lentil 1.1". Maybe I'll even do the blog templates this time? nah... I'm sitting on that while I ponder migrating the blog - which will make me address the more difficult question of what navigation around a blog and its http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2006/04/new-site-theme.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-113743560698909237Mon, 16 Jan 2006 18:17:00 +00002007-05-28T12:13:12.804-05:00homeWe are half-way through the mess of moving house - from Payne Ave, Austin, to just 5 miles north of there nr. N. Lamar @ Braker. So, some things are going to take a little while to settle back down while we reconnect services, unpack things from boxes, and deal with the 1001 tasks involved in putting our old house on the market. Apologies in advance!http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2006/01/moving-house.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-112982167061296321Thu, 20 Oct 2005 15:21:00 +00002007-05-28T12:12:54.176-05:00websiteThis looks like fun: a computer programming board gamehttp://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/10/c-jump.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-112534963373067919Mon, 29 Aug 2005 21:07:00 +00002005-08-29T16:07:13.773-05:00A long train of thought (naps, forty winks, wombles) wound me up at the official wombles site, where I briefly wallowed in nostalgia. It has been speculated that the wombles were inspired by the art students at Wimbledon School of Art, just down the hill from Wimbledon Common - who were (and are) great scavengers. The same art school just happens to be my alma mater, so I'll stake my claim tohttp://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/08/wombles.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-112152995134533446Sat, 16 Jul 2005 16:05:00 +00002007-05-28T12:12:54.177-05:00websiteMore tips and tricks for sound effect design than is reasonable to expect in one place: Favorite effects tips from the trenches.http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/07/favorite-effects-tips-from-trenches.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-111811659126100268Tue, 07 Jun 2005 03:44:00 +00002007-01-11T00:55:05.103-06:00Today I suffered my first injury by cheese. My left thumb aches and has swollen from the cut I received under the nail. It happened like this: At lunchtime I discovered the office microwave had been the site of a small explosion - probably featuring lasagna - and the debris had since baked on in a uneven patina of tomato red splotches. Not wanting to be a part of the problem in baking it on http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/06/cheese-inflicted-injury.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-111444154629056184Mon, 25 Apr 2005 15:01:00 +00002005-04-25T10:05:46.293-05:00I was reminded to dust this off and publish this again. Its the beginning of a list of some of the varying uses and meanings of the word "piss", which I trust is a mild enough word to not offend even my american readers. The Piss List I'd welcome any input from either side of the pond, and any Aussie/Kiwi variants would also be interesting.http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/04/piss-list.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-111043294527158365Thu, 10 Mar 2005 05:35:00 +00002007-05-28T12:12:54.177-05:00websiteAh. Not sure if this is work or play, but its great stuff: Vantage Graphics and Design - Mapping the spherehttp://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/03/mapping-sphere.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-110969130908355372Tue, 01 Mar 2005 15:20:00 +00002005-03-01T09:35:09.086-06:00The wheel has turned again and my attention has moved on to Second Life Its a multi-user 3D digital world that's highly flexible and absorbing of free cycles (CPU and brain). For me, its a great way to learn a little about 3D modelling (there are in-game tools for creating your own objects) and yet another scripting language, hooking you into the game's 3d, physics-capable engine. Lots of http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2005/03/second-life.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-109352949003294808Thu, 26 Aug 2004 14:11:00 +00002004-11-11T22:26:46.346-06:00I've been really getting into BEAM robotics.. most of the examples I've seen are mobile edge-finding / line-following / light-seeking critters. This is a whole nuther species - a solar activated chime - a very sweet idea. http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/08/sun-chimes.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-109345060210927120Wed, 25 Aug 2004 16:13:00 +00002004-11-11T22:27:28.053-06:00still-warm doughnut hole salvaged nugget of fried goodness delectable void http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/08/doughnut-hole-haiku.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-109088170292861254Mon, 26 Jul 2004 22:41:00 +00002004-11-11T22:28:44.840-06:00Constructing a solar engine using black polythene. Mechanical work from trash-bags and sunshine. http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/07/solar-engines-and-polymer-entropy.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-108554607834498766Wed, 26 May 2004 04:34:00 +00002007-05-28T12:12:54.178-05:00websiteThey just have some of the best articles over on yougrowgirl.com This one (Getting her Goat) is a cracker - a recent transplant from NY city tackles her weed problem in suburban Boulder, CO by hiring a small herd of goats. Does it go without saying that I have been tossing around a similar idea for a while. My problem is grass though - not something goats are that keen on - they are http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/05/goaty-suburban-weed-control-and-other.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-108554139004709636Wed, 26 May 2004 01:49:00 +00002004-11-11T22:30:23.200-06:00For all sorts of reasons my laptop at home is still running windows 98. Mostly because I'm low on disk space and haven't the time or money to figure out an upgrade path. Meanwhile I've got a webcam and want to video chat across mac/pc platforms. Yahoo is kind of working, no audio and disappointing frame rates. AIM should work - I have the latest version (5.5 at time of writing), but I've since http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/05/video-im-on-windows-98.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-108429356941355279Tue, 11 May 2004 16:39:00 +00002007-05-28T12:12:54.178-05:00websiteThis is a feature I've wanted for years. It makes lots of sense. I'm curious to see how it all ends up looking. http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/05/blogger-does-blog-by-email.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-108260949613177489Thu, 22 Apr 2004 04:51:00 +00002004-11-11T22:35:15.210-06:00 Bicycle Powered Generator Troubled Times: How to make an effective bicycle generator More bike/human power links It's another project I'll put on the end of a very long list. Last year I picked up a stationary excercise bike to this end - it has a stable frame and a built in fly wheel that I thought might get me part way there. Of course, efficiency is not a design concern for these http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/04/human-power.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-107431595427297632Sat, 17 Jan 2004 05:05:00 +00002007-05-28T12:12:54.178-05:00websiteAn easy step-by-step for repairing or creating a book with a simple japanese style binding. I think I could manage this. http://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/01/simple-japanese-bookbinding.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-339994.post-107367900226824720Fri, 09 Jan 2004 20:10:00 +00002004-11-11T22:38:29.090-06:00inluminent: Wireless old iMac via Linksys Ah ha. It was just a matter of trying some different keywords, and finally I have paydirt. This blog entry describes getting an old (no air-port, just ethernet) imac onto a wireless network the easy way. After much misinformation, this suddenly makes sense. I will be returning the access point (which came well recommended but how it was going to helphttp://www.sam-i-am.com/blog/2004/01/wireless-old-imac-via-linksys.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Sam-I-Am)4