Trackballs

I am a "dyed in the wool" user of Trackballs.  I am sure it started with my first experiences with the Atari Football arcade game and then set in stone by Missile Command.

Back when I got my brand new Amiga 2000, I purchased an Amiga compatible "Mouse-Trak" from ITAC Systems.  It was a great trackball although not extremely ergonomic and definitely not attractive.

ITAC Systems is still around and still selling Mouse-Traks in several flavors.  The Evolution models look much more ergonomic than the older style.  None of these are cheap, but they are built really tough.  I only gave up my Amiga version when my A2000 died and there was no good way to convert the Mouse-Trak to PC use.

A Superior Interpretation of the Rules?

Pinewood Derby, the most well know event in Cub Scouting.  Everyone that was ever in Cub Scouting remembers their Pinewood Derby even if they have forgotten everything else.

Last Saturday was the district pinewood derby.  I spent the whole day helping run the event and I must say that it was a great day and I could see that the boys were having the time of their lives.  So were most of the dads.

Except for a few...

I won't go into the specific details, but there were 4 or 5 cars that did not pass the pre-race inspection because the dads had decided to ignore the rules that had been posted more than a month in advance.  

They are given the chance to correct the violations if possible.  If the violations are not corrected our district still allows the cars to run, but they are excluded from the standings.

I don't understand how any father could do this to their son.  The derby is supposed to be about the fun of building and racing the car.  It is not supposed to be about dad building or buying a car trying to ensure that his son is the one that wins no matter what.

I submit that not winning is probably a more valuable life lesson for a boy than winning.  Especially if he didn't earn it himself.

Commodore 64 Reboot - Hacking a C64 DTV

A friend gave me a C64 DTV to hack.

The C64 DTV is a Commodore 64 emulator in a joystick with a built in collection of 30 C64 games.  It runs on a custom chip using an ASIC CPU.  The designers included a number of Easter eggs including the ability to go into a full emulation mode where it operates as a stand alone C64.  It even has an on screen keyboard and you can even enter and run basic programs.

Pinewood Derby Timer

I am the Cub Master for my son's Cub Scout Pack.

Our pack is small and not well financed. I have been working on changing these facts but I still have to plan all of our activities very carefully.

The pack does have it's own wooden track and it's not a bad track, but there were some issues with it.  The starting gate was not designed well.  It had to much mass and the rubber strap used to snap it open was too strong.  The start of each race was kind of like a bear trap going off.

Moon Towers?

Being an astronomy enthusiast I am very aware of the light pollution coming fro urbanized parts of the world. Having been to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and the top of Haleakela on Maui I have seen what truly dark skies look like.

I just came across this article on "The Atlantic" about Moon Towers that were erected in many cities during the late 1800's including the city of Aurora, Illinois which had six towers and is not far from my home.

Walking in the snow

Yesterday the Chicago area was hit by a big snowstorm although I don't think it quite lived up to the hype the local news stations were giving it.  It was a lot of snow and many school districts did shut down for the day.

I had some books that needed to be returned to the library and I am working on getting into better shape again, so I walked to the library sometime after 9PM. It is a 2.6 mile round trip.

The Beginning

Hi!

This is the beginning of my first blog and the beginning of a new chapter in my life.

I don't know exactly where this blog is going to go but I will be posting whatever I find interesting.  It could be about Science, Astronomy, Camping, Electronics, Board Games, Video Editing, 3D CGI using Blender, Halloween props and costumes, or even knitting.

I was recently watching a podcast on Tested.com and Adam Savage described himself as a serial collector of skills.  I am no where near his level, but it is an apt description none the less.

It will be interesting to see where this blog leads me.