Tom McMahon

The Driving Activity Reporter

The Driving Activity Reporter

The Blurb:

This is the device that monitors a car's activity and provides a detailed report of places, routes, and speeds traveled. It uses a 16-channel GPS receiver to track the movements of the car to which it is attached (internally or externally, using the device's built-in magnet for covert purposes), storing locations on its built-in flash memory that holds up to 100 hours of driving activity. Removed from the car, the reporter connects to your computer's USB port, and the included software allows you to view the time, date, and precise locations visited--even how fast a driver was traveling--using animated digital street maps. The data can also be examined using Google Earth (a free application from the Internet) for precise satellite pictures of locations visited. Durable, water-resistant frame enables operation between -15° to 185° F. Two AAA lithium batteries (required) provide up to three weeks of operation; device will enter sleep mode if it does not detect car movement within two minutes. 3 3/4" L x 1 1/2" W x 1 1/4" D. (1 oz.)

$230. Resolving those nagging suspicions does not come cheap.

My Viewsonic Viewpad 100 eBook Project: The Amazon Kindle 2 Library Book CD with 2800 Great eBooks

The Viewsonic Viewpad 100 has a terrific, bright TFT display that makes reading a pleasure. But what to read? Although you could download a bunch of books from Project Gutenberg, a much easier way would be to order The Amazon Kindle 2 Library Book CD with 2800 Great eBooks off of eBay. While the Kindle reads the prc format books, so does the free Mobipocket Reader I've loaded onto the Viewpad. Cool, eh? And with the Kindle craze, that means there's all sorts of CD-ROMs with prc format public domain ebooks available. 

I didn't count the number of books to see if they really added up to 2800, but it seems like enough to me. So that's 600 megabytes out of 16 gigabytes used. How to use the rest? Stay tuned . . .

My Viewsonic Viewpad 100 eBook Project

My Viewsonic Viewpad 100 eBook Project

This is a followup to my previous post A Cheap Alternative to the Pricey Amazon Kindle 2: Ten-Year-Old Windows CE Handheld PCs for $100 or Less. The Viewpad 100 was another Super PDA that came out about 10 years ago for $1000. I've been able to pick up several for less than a tenth of that price. The 10-inch screen makes it great to use as an ebook reader, and it holds up to 16 GB: 8GB in the CF slot, and another 8GB CF card in the PCMCIA slot. But you can't use up all 16GB with ebooks, eh? So what do you put in there? I'll let you know in some subsequent posts.

I'm going to give one of these to my brother Tim and another to my high school English teacher who helps out my 84-year-old father who lives alone. Yeah, a Kindle would be nice, but this is more fun.

The Touch Book Is A Little Bit Laptop, A Little Bit iPhone

The Touch Book Is A Little Bit Laptop, A Little Bit iPhone

It's the first netbook that detaches its screen from the keyboard in order to create a standalone touch screen tablet. Lots of other cool features.  More here.

Tivoli Sirius Satellite Radio for Around $100 on eBay

Tivoli Sirius Satellite Radio for Around $100 on eBay

We've had a big Sirius boombox in the kitchen after it proved to be too complicated -- and the buttons too small -- for my 84-year-old father (see my previous post What I'm Getting My Dad For Christmas: A Sirius Stratus Receiver & Refurbished Universal Boombox for Just $70). The boombox didn't receive AM or FM, so we needed another radio in the kitchen for that too. This Tivoli Sirius radio replaces both of them, is small, stylish, and you can get one for under $100 on ebay. Nice, clear, rich sound. I really like it.

It does have its quirks, tho. The preset buttons only work for the Sirius stations, not for AM/FM. You absolutely need the included AM loop antenna to receive even strong local AM stations. So if you're buying one on eBay, save yourself some time and avoid the "box only" sales and get one with the Sirius antenna, the AM loop antenna, and the power supply (attaching the external FM antenna didn't seem to make much difference). On the other hand, the large display makes navigating through all the Sirius channels a breeze.

These things used to be $300. So just tell your wife you saved the family $200 and you'll be a hero ;-)

The Garage Door Butler Closes The Garage Door For You When You Forget

The Garage Door Butler Closes The Garage Door For You When You Forget

The blurb:

This is the patented security device that reassures the absentminded by automatically closing a garage door. Preventing your home from becoming an easy target for thieves, the closer works with virtually all garage door openers and doesn't interfere with any other safety features. Wired to an opener's inside push-button, it lets you set a delay of 3, 10, 20, 30, 45 or 60 minutes before signaling the door to close, and a light sensor closes the garage door at nightfall. A red status light tells you that the system is activated and the device sounds a warning for 30 seconds prior to the door closing for safety. When cleaning or holding a garage sale, an override button keeps the door open. Hardware and wire included; installs easily in about a half hour.

$59.95

The Rocky Color Cone: The Classic American Wood Toy Designed In 1938 by Jarvis Rockwell, Brother of Norman Rockwell

The Rocky Color Cone: The Classic American Wood Toy Designed In 1938 by Jarvis Rockwell, Brother of Norman Rockwell

The story.

I'm So Sick Of Reading About New Phones

And so is John C. Dvorak:

I've had it with cell phones—all of them. I'm sick of reading about new phones. I'm sick of news about the iPhone, how cool it is or that it lacks a removable battery, and gosh we need to discuss this important flaw incessantly. Who cares? It's a friggin' phone, for God's sake. And now I'm sick of hearing about Google's Android phones. The gPhone, the G1, the Android, or whatever you want to call it. Who cares? Exactly why is so much time spent talking about these devices? Are we that bored? ...

When someone gets hold of a new phone, the next thing you know they are all over the Net reviewing it in minute detail—as if it were a great piece of literature to be deconstructed. Everyone who doesn't have the new phone is immediately jealous. "Oh, I want one of those so badly!"

This phone thing began a few years back. You'd go to a restaurant and all the phones would come out, everyone oohing and ahhing over the various models. It's completely ridiculous. "Wow, nice phone. What is it?" "Oh, it's my new Nokia X-9000. Look, it has a built-in laser pointer!" "Wow! I want one!" Gee, could we be any more decadent?

And then there were the lines around the block for the iPhone. It looked like a 1933 soup line. Why did people stand in line to get a phone? They already had one, but there they were, standing in line to pay full price and sign up with a carrier that nobody likes. Historians of the future will look at this sort of thing and equate it with pole-sitting in the 1920s. "Look, a guy's sitting on a pole!" "Wow, great! Hey, everybody, over here!"

Natural Wooden Baby Rattles

Natural Wooden Baby Rattles

Carefully made from select natural hardwoods, these rattles are crafted in Vermont by a small company. Babies will be delighted by the distinctive design, smooth feel and pleasant sound made by the clinking wooden circles. Choose from natural or brightly painted wood. $10

Talking Barack Obama Bobblehead

Talking Barack Obama Bobblehead

With the way his campaign is imploding, by Christmas this bobblehead will be just a historical curiousity.