I don't own a tom bihn product. I'd only just first heard of them a couple weeks ago, and happened to be on their site when it got/.'ed. Weird.
As for you guys whining about overpriced bags - I'm guessing you haven't tried traveling with cheap shit. When I first started working on the road I got a Thinkpad and a portable printer, and a Targus bag ($80! I thought that was pretty steep). After ONE TRIP the targus bag was starting to sag, and I doubt it would have lasted more than a couple months. My boss (at the time) recommended a HUGELY expensive Tumi bag - which was apparently all the rage at the time. I got one, and have put 10 YEARS of hard travel on it, without so much as a ding in any laptop it's ever contained - they use a 'sling' design that sounds exactly like what Bihn uses. In that time I've lost track of the laptops I've had - at least 10 (job changes, upgrades), and the bag is still in great shape, although I understand Tumi as a company doesn't make stuff that well anymore, and dropped the cushioned sling (as far as I can tell)... too bad.
I'm considering a Bihn bag to get something a little more modular that is a better fit for my new netbook - and after 10 years I think I've gotten my moneys worth out of the Tumi.
I hear a lot of stories about how the US economy is doomed because no one makes anything USEFUL anymore - it's all services and marketing and IP and entertainment - it's nice to see someone who is successfully making good products from solid material that people really enjoy using on a daily basis.
I've played around with FireGPG to encrypt gmail via firefox, and it's pretty cool, but I've been really disappointed at the total lack of gpg/pgp client software for 'smart' phones - I've got a work issued Blackberry with no gpg options, and I haven't had any luck finding anything that will run on an iPhone or android, either. What's up with that? Anybody know of a way to encrypt gmail (or anything else, for that matter) on a smartphone? I love 'email in my pocket' and would gladly start encrypting most of my personal email, but the two are apparently incompatible.
Have the driver issues for the full set of multi-touch features on the eeePC touchpad been worked out yet? I recall seeing a post somewhere that the full functionality was only available under windows.
My sentiments exactly. I get XM/Sirius radio as an add-on to the XM/WX weather service in my plane. I don't much care for the audio - the selection of songs is weak, the sound is extremely compressed, the DJs are tolerable - and it makes me want to punch someone that I still have to listen to adds on many of the stations, even though I'm paying to listen to them. I love that I get to listen to uninterrupted programming while covering 1000 miles, though.
The real reason I subscribe is for the aviation weather package - it isn't cheap, but it's indispensable. I think it will eventually be run out of business by free ADS-B services, but for another 4-5 years at least it'll still be the way to go. I'm not sure what I'll do if the bankruptcy disturbs the weather programming.
I dream of getting internet in the plane - current options I read about run in the $800,000 range.
I recently did a full network diagram using Dia and it was pretty painful - no callouts, and I really missed the 'click-ctrl-drag' to copy - regular cut and paste kept putting new objects where i didn't want them. Editing text in objects was clunky; there is no print preview or even a printer selection option - just dump to default. Dia's use of layers is a bit odd and took some getting used to, but worked well. I did end up with a diagram, but it was painful. I think Dia could be a cool program some day, but it's really primitive atm.
I recently found 'Draw' as a part of open office and am MUCH more impressed with it - I'd consider it feature complete as a fully functional Visio replacement. I understand there are even device templates to be had - I haven't looked into it. The only features I've noticed missing (so far) is the auto-object create macro that visio has to create an array of identical objects, and I don't think Draw it is file-compatible with regular Visio files. Give it a try!
I really enjoyed this - at least until I put it down to get a copy of mathematica to be better able to follow along and found out that would set me back $2k since I'm no longer a student. It is co-authored by Sarah Flannery, and is about her adventures in cryptography as a high school student. I found the math was introduced at a very approachable pace, and would expect other students to be motivated by seeing what she was able to come up with while she was still in high school herself. Who says girls can't do math?
"feel free to provide feedback, by clicking here. Please note that this feedback section should only be used to let us know what you think about the new ESPN360.com."
I'm sending them a strong message showing my disapproval at having hidden charges added to my account for features I have no desire nor can even access (as a linux user). Verizon appears to be coughing up payola and I will switch ISPs (if my only other choice happens to NOT support this shit, which I doubt - I may anyway, just to make sure my complaint gets heard in someone's pocketbook). I urge everyone else who cares about maintaining a sane internet to do likewise.
(maybe if I word it strongly enough I can get a gig with the UN?)
Care to do a sum it up for me with a total "buy in" cost for a decent plane
I can sum up MY costs, but without knowing YOUR end goal, it's pretty tough to come up with what it would cost YOU.
I found myself working a long-term contract out-of-town, making a ton of cash and trying to see my family 1x-2x a month. It is a 13 hour drive, or about 9 hour door-to-door commercial flight (90 minute drive to airport on each end, plus waiting through checking, and a lay-over enroute). My goals were: fast (200mph) IFR cross-country plane, monthly budget of $1200 for about 300 hours a year. I normally traveled alone, so cargo capacity wasn't important. I initially was looking at an older Mooney - 4 passenger, retractable 'sports car' of planes. After I started flying lessons one of the guys at the airport suggested I consider an experimental Vans RV-8 - 200mph (more or less), two seat (lower insurance), fixed-gear (lower insurance and maintenance) - more the 'crotch-rocket' of planes. I found one loaded with full IFR instrumentation (garmin 430 gps, autopilot), 180+ hp engine w/ fuel injection and electronic ignition, and a constant-speed prop (lets you select 'power' setting for climbing and 'cruise' setting for faster/more efficient cruising) - $115000. I coughed up $1500 earnest money, 10% down ($12k, about) for the financing, $2600 first year insurance, about $8k sales tax ("use" tax - the state (MN, in my case) hoses the 'rich' that buy planes and yachts, even if used), about $350 annual 'registration' fee. The database for the GPS is about $350/yr, but optional (until you start flying IFR). It cost me about $6k for my private pilot license - about 65 hours in a rented 172 (I'm 6'5" and just don't fit in the cheaper 152 trainers). The FAA exam is $200-$300 depending on the examiner, plus you'll probably want your own headset ($100-$1000 depending on what you get), and have to buy some books and incidentals - probably another $200. Fuel was about $2.50-$3.00 then; now it's at least $4.50 - $6.00. I burn 9 - 12 gph depending on the conditions, and get about 150 (low altitude / bad headwind) to 230 mph - so it's about 18-25mpg(?), although since you don't have to follow roads I trim a good 30% of the distance off most cross-country trips. I burn less fuel in the RV on a trip home than I do in my subaru impreza (which gets about 25 mpg) - although the fuel costs more. Since it's 'business travel', I deduct the mileage from my taxes (federal private aircraft rate is something like $1.50/mile - it works for me, but if you have a more expensive rig many guys put it in a separate corporation for tax purposes - I could, but I hate paperwork and accounting, and as far as I could tell it would be a wash). I got lucky with maintenance - since I got the plane the local mechanic recommended (and he loves it - who wouldn't - it's fully aerobatic) and I added him to the insurance as a pilot and let him borrow it whenever, he does all the maintenance for free. I've put up a mental block about how close I come to the $1200/mo budget; I'm not sure I want to know for sure, but it's probably a bit closer to $1500/mo ($850 or so for the bank note, $200 for insurance, hanger, fuel.... mental block kicking in.....
Even with that, since I've had it (4.5 years? - about 1000 hours flight time) I've: upgraded the GPS to WAAS for $5500, fixed/upgraded the autopilot for $2000, replaced/upgraded the directional gyro with an experimental efis for $3500, replaced the electronic ignition (and upgraded to a impulse coupled mag starter), and replaced a mag / bought a spare - about $2800, bought a hand-held back-up gps (garmin 396) with XM satellite weather for $2200 / $350/yr, replaced the comm panel and got some panel wiring fixed - $2000, got the vacuum gyro attitude indicator rebuild - $450 (just sent the check), sent in and had the 2nd radio checked (nothing wrong, now it works??) - free- the mechanic offered to pick that up for use of the plane, bought 2
Fossett was flying a Super Decathlon; not a home-built. you must be confusing this with some other incident (maybe the guy who crashed his just-completed plane in Vegas recently?) From the FAA report (http://www.ntsb.gov/NTSB/brief.asp?ev_id=20081007X17184&key=1):
"The airplane, a Super Decathlon, was a single engine, propeller-driven, tail-wheel fixed landing gear, two seat airplane, which was manufactured by Bellanca Aircraft Corporation in 1980. Its maximum takeoff gross weight was 1,800 pounds. It was powered by a Lycoming AEIO-360-H1A, reciprocating, air cooled, fuel injected engine. Annotations in the airplane's maintenance records indicated that its last annual inspection was performed on April 8, 2007. The airframe and engine each had 1,072 hours of flight time at the time of inspection.
"no ELT signal was received" - no mention of it having had it removed.
The problem with the old tech is more than just software - being analog, they alarm on anything that transmits at a given frequency. For some reason pizza ovens are notorious for giving off noise at that frequency, as are other random devices. Well over 99% (from what the CAP says - I can't find a source atm - sorry) of the signals picked up by the satellites are false alarms - either real ELTs set off by accident (dropping one in the shop, or landing too hard), or not even an ELT at all, and the emergency response teams have to try and figure out which are real or not. The new 406 system is digital, and REGISTERED, so they know immediately who to try to contact. It will save a HUGE amount of time and effort, and mean real emergencies will get much quicker responses.
Sure, the CAP will still monitor 121.5, but only when they are flying, and happen to think of it. They will still be able to use it to home in on you if they HAVE BEEN DISPATCHED; it isn't like they just fly around waiting for a crash. An unclosed flight plan, missed arrival, or possibly an eye-witness can initiate a search - eventually. The extra cash just buys you a quicker response (assuming the stupid box survives the crash).
You can indeed buy a used plane for $15000. However, to use the requisite car analogy, it'd be the equivalent of buying a $500 car - it's a car, and it'll run - mostly. The big difference is YOU can work on a car yourself; the FAA mandates only a certified aircraft mechanic (A&P) work on a certified aircraft, or optionally the original builder if it's experimental. Your drivers license cost about $100 and a couple weeks? A private pilot license will cost about $6000 and take six months if you really get after it; the FAA mandates at least 40 hours in a plane, typically 60, generally at $100+ per hour to rent the plane - note possible savings if you are flying your own - although the insurance coverage could be problematic until you have your license and/or a minimum number of hours total and / or hours in the plane. I would expect insurance to be at least $1000/yr, depending on the hull value of the plane and your experience. You take your car in for an annual inspection (maybe) for $25 - your mandatory airplane annual will be a good $500-$800 - assuming it doesn't uncover any problems. Also note that most aircraft engines have a suggested rebuild schedule at 2000 hours. You'll want to keep your new baby in hanger - expect $50/mo to well over $500/mo depending on how far in the sticks you live. Of course you'll want a good GPS ($2k for a lower-end handheld, $8k-$15k for a 'real' panel-mount IFR one) to let you know when you are approaching some arbitrary, invisible airspace restriction, and pay to keep the database current ($300/yr), and maybe some on-board weather (another $300+/yr - but oh-so-worth it if you fly cross country). I hope you understand why yet ANOTHER $1200 (although I'd heard they were closer to $300-$400 for a basic drop-in replacement) for an upgraded beacon that is renowned for not working when you need it (see: steve fossett) really annoys many pilots.
Depending on your goals, it can be much cheaper and easier to get a 'sport pilot' license (more info at http://www.sportpilot.org/), but there are a number of restrictions - daylight flight only, only in a certified 'sport plane' - limited to 100 hp, two seats, no faster than 130 mph (?). Don't get me wrong - there are some mighty nice sport planes, but since the category is pretty new, you probably aren't going to find a $15000 sport plane (they are generally MUCH cheaper than new 'regular' planes, though)
Having said all that, keep in mind that an airplane is a long-term investment, and buying one is much closer to buying a cabin or other land (or at least it was - haven't checked recently) - you should be able to get a 15-20 yr low-interest loan, and they historically keep their value pretty well due to the rigorous maintenance requirements. If you are truly passionate about flying it's certainly possible to get a pilots license. If you want to fly recreationally look into joining a flying club and distributing the ownership costs, find a busy general aviation airport and start visiting and asking questions, talk to pilots and take some rides, make friends with some mechanics, learn about various models of planes in the price range you are looking at. You'll find many are pretty small if you are a large person, and some will be more comfortable than others, and there are differences in speed, range, weight capacity, operating cost (fuel burn, parts availability and maintenance costs, insurance) that have to be considered.
In summary - flying is awesome, if you have the desire by all means follow your dreams, but don't for a second think that $15000 is going to put you in the air, even if it might buy you a plane (well, it might if you go the flying club route). You don't have to be a millionaire, but you DO have to commit serious time and effort - and a chunk of cash - into it. I can, however, assure you it's worth it.
I work on a long-term government contract, out-of-town. The 9/80 gives me an extra day for travel home, and not being home during the week means I don't miss any family time. We do a split-shift, so a co-worker covers for me on my friday off, and since we only support internal folks who are also working 9/80, fridays tend to be really light anyway. I'd gladly work a 4/10, but haven't been able to convince anyone. I do get to be pretty flexible on when I work (I bill straight hourly - it just costs me billable time to not work).
I love the fridays off that I end up staying out of town - it's like having an entire extra day free to do whatever.
I have been watching this happen over and over and over again. Companies developing their products to use Linux but turn around and not support Linux client access. I had stupidly picked up a wireless networked video camera that was known to run Linux on the inside and made a very stupid assumption that Linux client access would therefore be a no-brainer. WRONG! It was Windows only for client access... not even Mac could access it.
Similar experience here. My computer uses capacitors made by Johanson Dielectrics, so I carefully picked a GPS that also uses capacitors from Johanson Dielectrics, figuring that meant they would work together, but the damned thing would not work with my computer.
I think it's more like you bought a computer that was made with capacitors donated in hopes of helping spread a better capacitor technology that's more freely available to the world, only to find out that the company arbitrarily made the computer such that it cannot be used with any other device made with those capacitors, therefore providing a strong dis-incentive for anyone to use a another product with those capacitors in them.
Regardless, I WILL NOT purchase a sony product, in spite of once being very fond of them. I HATE their attempts to make things proprietary, their love for DRM, and their underhanded BS (Rootkits, etc). They can take their HDCP Blu-Ray High-Def crap and stuff it where/. won't let me say.
I suspect only working part time in IT would make it difficult to maintain a current skillset. I seem to learn something from just about every project I do - and I'd hate my job if I didn't. Only working part time gives you fewer opportunities to learn new things, stay current with what you already know, and keep up with the constant changes compared to a full-time co-worker. Unless you really focused on keeping up - which I find tougher to do without a specific (job related) task associated with it, you are going to fall behind over time, and you'll be lucky to get any job in IT.
Stupid filter at work blocks Larry Gonick's cartoon guide to statistics as 'not work related', but didn't have a problem with the Korean math example (which is just brilliant; to bad more folks in the US don't have that kind of sense of humor).
How about typing, is it even possible to blind type with a touch-screen keyboard?
I have a fingerworks multi-touch keyboard in my mac Ti powerbook (made by the company that apple bought and closed to get the IP for multi-touch). I can touch-type on it OK (it's one giant keyboard-sized touchpad). The 'keys' toward the edges of the board are tougher to hit (with accuracy), and it is pretty important to be lined up squarely to it. There is no tactile feedback, or non-visual way to catch a typo. It IS really nice to be able to use a 'mouse' pointer and infinite, customizable gestures without having to move you hands from the keyboard. It's great for tasks that involve a combination of some typing/some pointing; a bit challenging for just a lot of data entry. When you DO type it's cool that there is no mechanical component to require 'travel'; only the slightest contact with the surface registers as a keystroke, so it's pretty comfortable, quick and silent to use.
I use XM WX on a Garmin 396 in my plane as well, and subscribe to XM radio for an extra $5/mo. I'm really frustrated that the music selection just isn't that great (compared to what's on my iPod - a broad selection of music *I* hand-picked, that I can skip through at will), and the dynamic range is compressed COMPLETELY flat - so that even when they do get around to playing a good song, it sounds like crap.
It's only a matter of time before the FAA gets the new ADS-B system rolled out, which will (supposedly) include aviation weather and traffic, for FREE. I think satellite radio has a tough road ahead.
On the other hand, I know a number of sports fanatics who LOVE the live sports talk shows; maybe that will be eventually be their niche market.
I love macs, but I've completely refused to buy ANYTHING with HDCP, and won't buy any new macs until I know NONE of my purchase goes to support technology that limits my LEGAL RIGHTS to make use of my purchased goods.
Kiss my ass, Steve. I don't need your sell-out products.
I came to point out the same thing - pandemic = tital wave of telecommuting traffic. I'd mod the parent up, but all my points seem to have leaked away.
Sure, desktop keyboard remapping works MOST of the time, but every now and then - booted into bios, off a CD, into single-user-mode, rescue disk - about the time you really need it - the mapping isn't available. I went cold-turkey onto dvorak, and now I have to look at the keys to type on a qwerty layout - a blank qwerty layout would be unusable, and I fear re-learning to touch-type both qwerty AND dvorak would just make my head explode. I'd MUCH rather have a native dvorak blank keyboard - or better yet, I want a USB in-line adapter with a switch that will flip between qwerty and dvorak - so if someone else needs to type something I don't have to mess with the desktop. Then I can have native dvorak AND any keyboard my heart desires.
I still have a 'Wing Balans' 'kneeling'-type chair I got a LONG time ago - the model I got wasn't made strong enough at the joint connecting the seat to the post - it broke after a year or so, I had it replaced, and it broke again - I still use it occasionally, but it still isn't quite right. It's OK, but I never really found it that great for extended use. I also tried a 'swiss ball', and found the plastic made my ass sweaty. I currently have Herman Miller Aeron chairs both at work and at my home office and enjoy them. I'd like to try a 'swopper' next - in a place where I don't have enough room for a 'real' chair.
It's probably more important to maintain proper posture and get up to move around during the day - and do regular stretching / sit-ups / physical therapy type activities than the particular chair, although a 'bad' chair can certainly make that tough.
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I don't own a tom bihn product. I'd only just first heard of them a couple weeks ago, and happened to be on their site when it got /.'ed. Weird.
As for you guys whining about overpriced bags - I'm guessing you haven't tried traveling with cheap shit. When I first started working on the road I got a Thinkpad and a portable printer, and a Targus bag ($80! I thought that was pretty steep). After ONE TRIP the targus bag was starting to sag, and I doubt it would have lasted more than a couple months. My boss (at the time) recommended a HUGELY expensive Tumi bag - which was apparently all the rage at the time. I got one, and have put 10 YEARS of hard travel on it, without so much as a ding in any laptop it's ever contained - they use a 'sling' design that sounds exactly like what Bihn uses. In that time I've lost track of the laptops I've had - at least 10 (job changes, upgrades), and the bag is still in great shape, although I understand Tumi as a company doesn't make stuff that well anymore, and dropped the cushioned sling (as far as I can tell)... too bad.
I'm considering a Bihn bag to get something a little more modular that is a better fit for my new netbook - and after 10 years I think I've gotten my moneys worth out of the Tumi.
I hear a lot of stories about how the US economy is doomed because no one makes anything USEFUL anymore - it's all services and marketing and IP and entertainment - it's nice to see someone who is successfully making good products from solid material that people really enjoy using on a daily basis.
I've played around with FireGPG to encrypt gmail via firefox, and it's pretty cool, but I've been really disappointed at the total lack of gpg/pgp client software for 'smart' phones - I've got a work issued Blackberry with no gpg options, and I haven't had any luck finding anything that will run on an iPhone or android, either. What's up with that? Anybody know of a way to encrypt gmail (or anything else, for that matter) on a smartphone? I love 'email in my pocket' and would gladly start encrypting most of my personal email, but the two are apparently incompatible.
Build yourself a HERF gun (from the old microwave you need to recycle) and use the drives to test EMP resistance measures.
"contract of adhesion".
Is that like a band-aid with fine print?
Have the driver issues for the full set of multi-touch features on the eeePC touchpad been worked out yet? I recall seeing a post somewhere that the full functionality was only available under windows.
My sentiments exactly. I get XM/Sirius radio as an add-on to the XM/WX weather service in my plane. I don't much care for the audio - the selection of songs is weak, the sound is extremely compressed, the DJs are tolerable - and it makes me want to punch someone that I still have to listen to adds on many of the stations, even though I'm paying to listen to them. I love that I get to listen to uninterrupted programming while covering 1000 miles, though.
The real reason I subscribe is for the aviation weather package - it isn't cheap, but it's indispensable. I think it will eventually be run out of business by free ADS-B services, but for another 4-5 years at least it'll still be the way to go. I'm not sure what I'll do if the bankruptcy disturbs the weather programming.
I dream of getting internet in the plane - current options I read about run in the $800,000 range.
I recently did a full network diagram using Dia and it was pretty painful - no callouts, and I really missed the 'click-ctrl-drag' to copy - regular cut and paste kept putting new objects where i didn't want them. Editing text in objects was clunky; there is no print preview or even a printer selection option - just dump to default. Dia's use of layers is a bit odd and took some getting used to, but worked well. I did end up with a diagram, but it was painful. I think Dia could be a cool program some day, but it's really primitive atm.
I recently found 'Draw' as a part of open office and am MUCH more impressed with it - I'd consider it feature complete as a fully functional Visio replacement. I understand there are even device templates to be had - I haven't looked into it. The only features I've noticed missing (so far) is the auto-object create macro that visio has to create an array of identical objects, and I don't think Draw it is file-compatible with regular Visio files. Give it a try!
I really enjoyed this - at least until I put it down to get a copy of mathematica to be better able to follow along and found out that would set me back $2k since I'm no longer a student. It is co-authored by Sarah Flannery, and is about her adventures in cryptography as a high school student. I found the math was introduced at a very approachable pace, and would expect other students to be motivated by seeing what she was able to come up with while she was still in high school herself. Who says girls can't do math?
http://www.amazon.com/Code-Mathematical-Journey-Sarah-Flannery/dp/1565123778
from the ESPN site:
"feel free to provide feedback, by clicking here. Please note that this feedback section should only be used to let us know what you think about the new ESPN360.com."
The link is here: http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/faq#21
I'm sending them a strong message showing my disapproval at having hidden charges added to my account for features I have no desire nor can even access (as a linux user). Verizon appears to be coughing up payola and I will switch ISPs (if my only other choice happens to NOT support this shit, which I doubt - I may anyway, just to make sure my complaint gets heard in someone's pocketbook). I urge everyone else who cares about maintaining a sane internet to do likewise.
(maybe if I word it strongly enough I can get a gig with the UN?)
You listed a ton of hidden costs.
Care to do a sum it up for me with a total "buy in" cost for a decent plane
I can sum up MY costs, but without knowing YOUR end goal, it's pretty tough to come up with what it would cost YOU.
I found myself working a long-term contract out-of-town, making a ton of cash and trying to see my family 1x-2x a month. It is a 13 hour drive, or about 9 hour door-to-door commercial flight (90 minute drive to airport on each end, plus waiting through checking, and a lay-over enroute). My goals were: fast (200mph) IFR cross-country plane, monthly budget of $1200 for about 300 hours a year. I normally traveled alone, so cargo capacity wasn't important. I initially was looking at an older Mooney - 4 passenger, retractable 'sports car' of planes. After I started flying lessons one of the guys at the airport suggested I consider an experimental Vans RV-8 - 200mph (more or less), two seat (lower insurance), fixed-gear (lower insurance and maintenance) - more the 'crotch-rocket' of planes. I found one loaded with full IFR instrumentation (garmin 430 gps, autopilot), 180+ hp engine w/ fuel injection and electronic ignition, and a constant-speed prop (lets you select 'power' setting for climbing and 'cruise' setting for faster/more efficient cruising) - $115000. I coughed up $1500 earnest money, 10% down ($12k, about) for the financing, $2600 first year insurance, about $8k sales tax ("use" tax - the state (MN, in my case) hoses the 'rich' that buy planes and yachts, even if used), about $350 annual 'registration' fee. The database for the GPS is about $350/yr, but optional (until you start flying IFR). It cost me about $6k for my private pilot license - about 65 hours in a rented 172 (I'm 6'5" and just don't fit in the cheaper 152 trainers). The FAA exam is $200-$300 depending on the examiner, plus you'll probably want your own headset ($100-$1000 depending on what you get), and have to buy some books and incidentals - probably another $200. Fuel was about $2.50-$3.00 then; now it's at least $4.50 - $6.00. I burn 9 - 12 gph depending on the conditions, and get about 150 (low altitude / bad headwind) to 230 mph - so it's about 18-25mpg(?), although since you don't have to follow roads I trim a good 30% of the distance off most cross-country trips. I burn less fuel in the RV on a trip home than I do in my subaru impreza (which gets about 25 mpg) - although the fuel costs more. Since it's 'business travel', I deduct the mileage from my taxes (federal private aircraft rate is something like $1.50/mile - it works for me, but if you have a more expensive rig many guys put it in a separate corporation for tax purposes - I could, but I hate paperwork and accounting, and as far as I could tell it would be a wash). I got lucky with maintenance - since I got the plane the local mechanic recommended (and he loves it - who wouldn't - it's fully aerobatic) and I added him to the insurance as a pilot and let him borrow it whenever, he does all the maintenance for free. I've put up a mental block about how close I come to the $1200/mo budget; I'm not sure I want to know for sure, but it's probably a bit closer to $1500/mo ($850 or so for the bank note, $200 for insurance, hanger, fuel.... mental block kicking in.....
Even with that, since I've had it (4.5 years? - about 1000 hours flight time) I've: upgraded the GPS to WAAS for $5500, fixed/upgraded the autopilot for $2000, replaced/upgraded the directional gyro with an experimental efis for $3500, replaced the electronic ignition (and upgraded to a impulse coupled mag starter), and replaced a mag / bought a spare - about $2800, bought a hand-held back-up gps (garmin 396) with XM satellite weather for $2200 / $350/yr, replaced the comm panel and got some panel wiring fixed - $2000, got the vacuum gyro attitude indicator rebuild - $450 (just sent the check), sent in and had the 2nd radio checked (nothing wrong, now it works??) - free- the mechanic offered to pick that up for use of the plane, bought 2
Fossett was flying a Super Decathlon; not a home-built. you must be confusing this with some other incident (maybe the guy who crashed his just-completed plane in Vegas recently?) From the FAA report (http://www.ntsb.gov/NTSB/brief.asp?ev_id=20081007X17184&key=1):
"The airplane, a Super Decathlon, was a single engine, propeller-driven, tail-wheel fixed landing gear, two seat airplane, which was manufactured by Bellanca Aircraft Corporation in 1980. Its maximum takeoff gross weight was 1,800 pounds. It was powered by a Lycoming AEIO-360-H1A, reciprocating, air cooled, fuel injected engine. Annotations in the airplane's maintenance records indicated that its last annual inspection was performed on April 8, 2007. The airframe and engine each had 1,072 hours of flight time at the time of inspection.
"no ELT signal was received" - no mention of it having had it removed.
The problem with the old tech is more than just software - being analog, they alarm on anything that transmits at a given frequency. For some reason pizza ovens are notorious for giving off noise at that frequency, as are other random devices. Well over 99% (from what the CAP says - I can't find a source atm - sorry) of the signals picked up by the satellites are false alarms - either real ELTs set off by accident (dropping one in the shop, or landing too hard), or not even an ELT at all, and the emergency response teams have to try and figure out which are real or not. The new 406 system is digital, and REGISTERED, so they know immediately who to try to contact. It will save a HUGE amount of time and effort, and mean real emergencies will get much quicker responses.
Sure, the CAP will still monitor 121.5, but only when they are flying, and happen to think of it. They will still be able to use it to home in on you if they HAVE BEEN DISPATCHED; it isn't like they just fly around waiting for a crash. An unclosed flight plan, missed arrival, or possibly an eye-witness can initiate a search - eventually. The extra cash just buys you a quicker response (assuming the stupid box survives the crash).
You can indeed buy a used plane for $15000. However, to use the requisite car analogy, it'd be the equivalent of buying a $500 car - it's a car, and it'll run - mostly. The big difference is YOU can work on a car yourself; the FAA mandates only a certified aircraft mechanic (A&P) work on a certified aircraft, or optionally the original builder if it's experimental. Your drivers license cost about $100 and a couple weeks? A private pilot license will cost about $6000 and take six months if you really get after it; the FAA mandates at least 40 hours in a plane, typically 60, generally at $100+ per hour to rent the plane - note possible savings if you are flying your own - although the insurance coverage could be problematic until you have your license and/or a minimum number of hours total and / or hours in the plane. I would expect insurance to be at least $1000/yr, depending on the hull value of the plane and your experience. You take your car in for an annual inspection (maybe) for $25 - your mandatory airplane annual will be a good $500-$800 - assuming it doesn't uncover any problems. Also note that most aircraft engines have a suggested rebuild schedule at 2000 hours. You'll want to keep your new baby in hanger - expect $50/mo to well over $500/mo depending on how far in the sticks you live. Of course you'll want a good GPS ($2k for a lower-end handheld, $8k-$15k for a 'real' panel-mount IFR one) to let you know when you are approaching some arbitrary, invisible airspace restriction, and pay to keep the database current ($300/yr), and maybe some on-board weather (another $300+/yr - but oh-so-worth it if you fly cross country). I hope you understand why yet ANOTHER $1200 (although I'd heard they were closer to $300-$400 for a basic drop-in replacement) for an upgraded beacon that is renowned for not working when you need it (see: steve fossett) really annoys many pilots.
Depending on your goals, it can be much cheaper and easier to get a 'sport pilot' license (more info at http://www.sportpilot.org/), but there are a number of restrictions - daylight flight only, only in a certified 'sport plane' - limited to 100 hp, two seats, no faster than 130 mph (?). Don't get me wrong - there are some mighty nice sport planes, but since the category is pretty new, you probably aren't going to find a $15000 sport plane (they are generally MUCH cheaper than new 'regular' planes, though)
Having said all that, keep in mind that an airplane is a long-term investment, and buying one is much closer to buying a cabin or other land (or at least it was - haven't checked recently) - you should be able to get a 15-20 yr low-interest loan, and they historically keep their value pretty well due to the rigorous maintenance requirements. If you are truly passionate about flying it's certainly possible to get a pilots license. If you want to fly recreationally look into joining a flying club and distributing the ownership costs, find a busy general aviation airport and start visiting and asking questions, talk to pilots and take some rides, make friends with some mechanics, learn about various models of planes in the price range you are looking at. You'll find many are pretty small if you are a large person, and some will be more comfortable than others, and there are differences in speed, range, weight capacity, operating cost (fuel burn, parts availability and maintenance costs, insurance) that have to be considered.
In summary - flying is awesome, if you have the desire by all means follow your dreams, but don't for a second think that $15000 is going to put you in the air, even if it might buy you a plane (well, it might if you go the flying club route). You don't have to be a millionaire, but you DO have to commit serious time and effort - and a chunk of cash - into it. I can, however, assure you it's worth it.
I work on a long-term government contract, out-of-town. The 9/80 gives me an extra day for travel home, and not being home during the week means I don't miss any family time. We do a split-shift, so a co-worker covers for me on my friday off, and since we only support internal folks who are also working 9/80, fridays tend to be really light anyway. I'd gladly work a 4/10, but haven't been able to convince anyone. I do get to be pretty flexible on when I work (I bill straight hourly - it just costs me billable time to not work).
I love the fridays off that I end up staying out of town - it's like having an entire extra day free to do whatever.
Similar experience here. My computer uses capacitors made by Johanson Dielectrics, so I carefully picked a GPS that also uses capacitors from Johanson Dielectrics, figuring that meant they would work together, but the damned thing would not work with my computer.
I think it's more like you bought a computer that was made with capacitors donated in hopes of helping spread a better capacitor technology that's more freely available to the world, only to find out that the company arbitrarily made the computer such that it cannot be used with any other device made with those capacitors, therefore providing a strong dis-incentive for anyone to use a another product with those capacitors in them.
Regardless, I WILL NOT purchase a sony product, in spite of once being very fond of them. I HATE their attempts to make things proprietary, their love for DRM, and their underhanded BS (Rootkits, etc). They can take their HDCP Blu-Ray High-Def crap and stuff it where /. won't let me say.
I suspect only working part time in IT would make it difficult to maintain a current skillset. I seem to learn something from just about every project I do - and I'd hate my job if I didn't. Only working part time gives you fewer opportunities to learn new things, stay current with what you already know, and keep up with the constant changes compared to a full-time co-worker. Unless you really focused on keeping up - which I find tougher to do without a specific (job related) task associated with it, you are going to fall behind over time, and you'll be lucky to get any job in IT.
Stupid filter at work blocks Larry Gonick's cartoon guide to statistics as 'not work related', but didn't have a problem with the Korean math example (which is just brilliant; to bad more folks in the US don't have that kind of sense of humor).
How about typing, is it even possible to blind type with a touch-screen keyboard?
I have a fingerworks multi-touch keyboard in my mac Ti powerbook (made by the company that apple bought and closed to get the IP for multi-touch). I can touch-type on it OK (it's one giant keyboard-sized touchpad). The 'keys' toward the edges of the board are tougher to hit (with accuracy), and it is pretty important to be lined up squarely to it. There is no tactile feedback, or non-visual way to catch a typo. It IS really nice to be able to use a 'mouse' pointer and infinite, customizable gestures without having to move you hands from the keyboard. It's great for tasks that involve a combination of some typing/some pointing; a bit challenging for just a lot of data entry. When you DO type it's cool that there is no mechanical component to require 'travel'; only the slightest contact with the surface registers as a keystroke, so it's pretty comfortable, quick and silent to use.
I use XM WX on a Garmin 396 in my plane as well, and subscribe to XM radio for an extra $5/mo. I'm really frustrated that the music selection just isn't that great (compared to what's on my iPod - a broad selection of music *I* hand-picked, that I can skip through at will), and the dynamic range is compressed COMPLETELY flat - so that even when they do get around to playing a good song, it sounds like crap.
It's only a matter of time before the FAA gets the new ADS-B system rolled out, which will (supposedly) include aviation weather and traffic, for FREE. I think satellite radio has a tough road ahead.
On the other hand, I know a number of sports fanatics who LOVE the live sports talk shows; maybe that will be eventually be their niche market.
I love macs, but I've completely refused to buy ANYTHING with HDCP, and won't buy any new macs until I know NONE of my purchase goes to support technology that limits my LEGAL RIGHTS to make use of my purchased goods.
Kiss my ass, Steve. I don't need your sell-out products.
I heard someone mention Eddy Izzard - now THAT would be funny. "Tea and cake or DEATH!!"
I came to point out the same thing - pandemic = tital wave of telecommuting traffic. I'd mod the parent up, but all my points seem to have leaked away.
Gosh - I'd assumed Initech closed after the building burned.
Sure, desktop keyboard remapping works MOST of the time, but every now and then - booted into bios, off a CD, into single-user-mode, rescue disk - about the time you really need it - the mapping isn't available. I went cold-turkey onto dvorak, and now I have to look at the keys to type on a qwerty layout - a blank qwerty layout would be unusable, and I fear re-learning to touch-type both qwerty AND dvorak would just make my head explode. I'd MUCH rather have a native dvorak blank keyboard - or better yet, I want a USB in-line adapter with a switch that will flip between qwerty and dvorak - so if someone else needs to type something I don't have to mess with the desktop. Then I can have native dvorak AND any keyboard my heart desires.
I still have a 'Wing Balans' 'kneeling'-type chair I got a LONG time ago - the model I got wasn't made strong enough at the joint connecting the seat to the post - it broke after a year or so, I had it replaced, and it broke again - I still use it occasionally, but it still isn't quite right. It's OK, but I never really found it that great for extended use. I also tried a 'swiss ball', and found the plastic made my ass sweaty. I currently have Herman Miller Aeron chairs both at work and at my home office and enjoy them. I'd like to try a 'swopper' next - in a place where I don't have enough room for a 'real' chair. It's probably more important to maintain proper posture and get up to move around during the day - and do regular stretching / sit-ups / physical therapy type activities than the particular chair, although a 'bad' chair can certainly make that tough.