Vacation Part 1: Finished upholstery, master bath and cleaning
Posted By RichC on October 23, 2019
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Learning about automotive manufacturing and Digital Buck
Posted By RichC on October 22, 2019
One thing about waiting for a start-up car company to build a car is that I’m learning a lot more about the automotive manufacturing process. Nowadays, many of the parts are manufactured by suppliers to the automotive industry and then assembled. The same will be true for the unique Elio Motors three wheel tandem seating hypermiler (if it ever eventually gets financed and begins the assembly process).
One of the positives is that they do continue to send out a weekly email … usually not updating the situation or making promises … but to talk about the design and building process. This past week’s email was about Digital Buck, or a bit more generically, tools for design or Digital Mockup.
A Look Inside
The Manufacturing ProcessThe idea of something new is exciting. Today, the terms “new” and “reliable” are practically synonymous. When a new item comes into our possession we fully expect that the item has been thoroughly tested and any potential bugs have long been resolved: any product that falls short can be an immediate disappointment. It was not long ago, however, that many were leery of purchasing a new vehicle because of the variables that accompanied the purchase. For the most part, those days are comfortably in the rearview mirror. Luckily, through several technological advancements, new vehicles are stunningly dependent and reliable. At Elio Motors, we are ensuring at every stage that our vehicles will be reliable by utilizing tools such as the Digital Buck.
Are you ready for the World Series 2019
Posted By RichC on October 21, 2019
In the year of the home run, the Astros and Nationals have served as reminders that exciting, dominant starting pitching is still out there, and still effective. Both clubs, who will face off in the 2019 World Series beginning with Game 1 on Tuesday, are built around their rotation.
LINK
Wow, 10 years in a growing community really makes a difference
Posted By RichC on October 20, 2019
A photo from August 22, 2009 of a field that is now completely developed
Saw this post from 10 years ago on my blog in August of 2009 as I was playing with the camera on my Palm Pre smartphone. At the time, I was impressed with the dramatic sky and quality of photo from a tiny digital phone camera. NOW, I’m just impressed with the amount of development that has taken place in Liberty Township, Ohio … all around us!
Wildlife Photography – Photographer of the year photos 2019
Posted By RichC on October 19, 2019
Wildlife photography whether beautiful or funny have always been something I’ve enjoyed. There was a time that I thought I would spend my vacations hiking and sailing with a camera in hand … but it requires far more dedication and "love of hobby" than I was willing to devote. Still … this years photos on Digg were appreciated.
All Aboard! Never complain about your commute again.
Posted By RichC on October 17, 2019
It is hard to fathom just how difficult life is in other highly populated third world countries. Count your blessings you live in America, even if you have a challenging “big city” commute. 😮
Few grocery stores match Trader Joe’s quality and service
Posted By RichC on October 16, 2019
Although I am not a huge shopper … be it groceries or other retail stores … the grocery chain Trader Joe’s stands way above the rest when it comes to quality and service in my opinion. Brenda and I had a direct comparison today as we first stopped at a Trader Joe’s to pick up a few things that we have enjoyed before. Although the store was busy, we enjoyed every minute of walking through and finding more than the couple items we stopped to pick up.
For my part, I sampled a few of the samples and went back for a little more of their coffee sample — very good. Unfortunately they do not have everything that we had on our grocery list which required another stop … what a mistake after the fantastic service and smiling, ambitious people at Trader Joe’s. I don’t think it would have mattered it it were a Kroger, Publix or Meijer … but we stopped at Walmart. Ugh … like night and day … from the shopping experience to the attitude of the people working there (not to mention the customers at Walmart … and I really don’t want to be hoity-toity).
Phase of life: Enjoying life and watching family doing the same
Posted By RichC on October 14, 2019
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Simple mount in BMW X5 35d for Amazon Echo Auto
Posted By RichC on October 12, 2019
It isn’t easy to see this little magnetic bracket I made to hold my new Amazon Echo Auto low on the dash of the BMW X5 35d. I opted to make a little aluminum bracket that straddles the 
pushbutton switch blanks to the right of a few other buttons. It is fastened with automotive trim tape on two rails and several leftover neodymium magnets used on previous projects. The bracket was painted with some zinc chromate primer that I used for my aluminum aircraft parts and some leftover Rustoleum Hammered paint that I used on petite outdoor cast aluminum table and chairs – I barely had enough and it was going bad (keeping old paint fresh enough to use is a pet peeve of mine).
I’m saving back the Amazon included AC air vent mount and cord holder … just in case I want to put it in Brenda’s “new to her” 2010 Acura RDX or my old van … if I can figure out a way to connect to my old 2002 Honda Odyssey “work wagon” (no Bluetooth or 3.5mm plug – maybe a FM gizmo?)
Tech Friday: Apple iOS 13.1.2 was a challenging update
Posted By RichC on October 11, 2019
My conclusion is that some of my most recent Apple iPhone and iPad iOS update problems stem from having older mobile devices and 
having loads older apps? That said, the upgrade to the mobile operating system known as iOS 13.1.2 (current) did not go smoothly for me. My iPhone 7plus is a few years old now as the iPhone 11 arrives on the scene in the fall of 2019, and my iPad Air getting the new iPad version (new separate release) is even older. Both have been running nearly flawlessly and I foolishly decided to update … after knowing never to jump on the “latest and greatest” bandwagon if everything is running well with a previous version. When will I learn?
So, in order to fix the problem, I’ve been on Twitter with DMs (Direct Messages) with AppleSupport regarding my issues. First, and most important to me, is the loss of battery life. Prior to updating, I could comfortably go a full day on my relatively new battery. One of the screenshots clearly shows the Mail app using WAY more battery than at anytime in the past. The techs suggested I give it 24 hours to “index” … then see if it was still happening. I gave it 48 hours and it improved … but then out of the blue it happened again? Zap … late in the afternoon my phone got very hot in my pocket and once I again noticed that the Mail app was using over half the battery again? Who knows why.
Currently, everything seems fine and the Mail app is down to using only 7% … but I also tweaked the PUSH settings to 1 hour rather than the 30 minute I usually keep it at – I’ll be moving back to 30 now that it is working again … as long as I have a charger and cord with me!
Issue two was that the LTE or WiFi indicator would not switch when connecting to a broadband connection instead of wireless. That is not really a big deal, but it is not suppose to happen. I again took a couple screenshot to illustrate 
the problem, yet no matter if I was connected to WiFi or not, the indicator (underlined above) indicates that the iPhone is still on LTE (in my case VirginMobile). The suggestion was to remove a few of the legacy utility apps that have not been updated for a while … the culprit might have been Fing or it all might just be tied to the indexing after the new iOS install? In any case, my advices is to stick with your older iOS until you have a lot of time to tinker with your phone or mobile device.
Now that things seem to have settled down a bit, I’m ok with the new features and redesign … although can’t say that any of the tweaks make it all that much easier to use? So far, my favorite “simple feature has been the volume slider that takes up very little screen and just shows a bar next to the volume buttons on your iPhone.
Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee
- lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
- digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.