Posted By RichC on March 28, 2014
Will Burrard-Lucas has been at the cutting edge of African wildlife photography using his BeetleCam and now BeetleCopter Camtraptions. The above video is from a GoPro Hero 3+ … but there are some excellent stills from the BeetleCam using a DSLR after the launch of his company in January 2014. Some great innovations.
Posted By RichC on March 27, 2014
Yesterday was the 2 year anniversary of my purchasing a second-hand iPad 2, shortly after playing with my friend’s new iPad 3 (that device has been out over 2 years, not sure about my iPad2 … 4 years?). I can’t believe how much I use this tech gadget — everything from email to web surfing … and just plain eBook or magazine reading. The relatively snappy speed, variety of apps and ease of use has made it my favorite go-to device for quick information and to use while traveling. I’ve yet to meet a dissatisfied buyer.
The Kensington keyboard and case is well worn and even though I carry my entire old Dell leather bag, and hefty older upgraded Gateway laptop, I usually can get by with just the iPhone and iPad when traveling. Maybe I should have activated the Verizon connection since it is in my device, but frankly find plenty of wifi hotspots and carry my Freedompop wireless puck when I really need to connect. If there is anyone on the fence, don’t be … buying an iPad is an easy call.
Posted By RichC on March 26, 2014
This morning in a discussion with a friend about the new Sprint HD Voice being rolled out, I mentioned that my LTE capable iPhone5 was not connecting to the 4G Sprint towers in the area that did service my Freedompop4G LTE data access device. I’ve yet to figure out why some areas are servicing Sprint phones with the LTE service, but other are not … YET devices backboned on Sprint seem to be able to connect?
Currently north of Cincinnati in Ohio the Sprint LTE has not been announced, but the Freedompop device has been connecting for at least a half year. In other areas, both devices are connection fine and speeds have been great.
What gives?
Posted By RichC on March 26, 2014
Ok … so I have the holidays confused, but then so does Mother Nature. While driving around on Tuesday afternoon the squalls started and figured it was a perfect opportunity for an animated GIF. We can’t seem to shake off winter.
I expect to see a few flurries when I’m in northeast Ohio (had them last week), but not in Cincinnati. I suppose it’s not really that rare, but it is rather tiring after the long cold winter this year. I think it must be time to head south again! 
Posted By RichC on March 25, 2014
While I should be spending a few more evening hours working on taxes, I’ve instead been tinkering around on another boat improvement. This time I’m working to re-shelve one of the hanging lockers in order to install a removable 10,000 BTU Air Conditioner/Heat pump on the cheap. After reviewing all the more robust and expensive marine units in the thousands of dollars, not to mention the installation cost, I’ve opted for an off the shelf portable AC unit for $309 with free shipping. This is a self-contained vented model that requires a 4 inch flexible duct pipe to exchange the hot or cold air (depending on mode) outside. The install will require a 4 in deck cap to be added to the cabin side that can be dogged down when sailing. The compact AC unit will “hopefully” have enough ventilation to operate efficiently, yet the hanging locker door can be closed when it is turned off (out of sight and out of the way). Obviously this is a work in progress and I’ll reserve my final conclusion until using it an doing some tweaking, but boats spending any amount of time in Florida marinas need AC.
Posted By RichC on March 24, 2014
It was a whirlwind week ending visit for Taylor as he was home from North Dakota for a visit with his friends in Cincinnati, Oxford (Miami University)
and Cleveland. He also found time for family and picked up sister Katelyn in Columbus on his return from Cleveland. He drove her home for the weekend as her alternative motive was to borrow his VW GTI until she buys a new car (sold her VW Jetta TDI). 
I took Taylor to the Dayton Airport on Sunday for his trip home and continued on up to Sidney in order to visit with my Dad. My brother Ron and his wife brought dinner and we had a nice time together – dad is doing great. Ron’s son Jaben drove up and had dinner with us, then he invited me to stop and see his new project home in Huber Heights (north of Dayton area). It 
is a great first house and has the starter home “needs” that will set him up well for the future. There will be all the learning repairs and do-it-yourself “fun.” Great memories for both my brother Ron and me as our first homes had “some” of the same needs. I’ll have to admit, his project has a few more! So far he has been gutting the bad and is getting ready to replace with new. It is a near perfect starter home … thanks for sharing Jaben!
Posted By RichC on March 23, 2014
Wallethub compared how average families from each state when it comes to paying taxes … how does your state look? According to their color coded map, the brighter red your state, the more you pay; conversely, the greener your state, the lower your taxes, and brown puts you somewhere in the middle.
If you hate paying taxes, Wyoming residents pay the lowest taxes. Taxpayers there shell out 66 percent less than the median nationwide. Alaska came in a close second and those oil revenue checks sure help. 
Even Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s state of Nevada keeps state taxes pretty low … the 3rd lowest in fact (no wonder it attracts Californians).
On the other hand, if your considered an average American according to this survey, New York is probably not for you. It has the highest tax burden per resident of all states followed close by you guessed it, California. Those two state punish their residents to the tune of 39% and 37% HIGHER than average for states in the U.S. By the way, average* means your family income is $65,596 and you live in a $174,600 home. No wonder those actually paying the taxes are moving from NY and CA?
* The study accounts for everything from income taxes to alcohol and vehicle taxes, so individual results may vary. Higher taxes can also mean more social services and benefits for residents, so their impact on metrics like quality of life and social mobility may make the expense worth it.
Click this link or the map above for the full listing at WalletHub.
Posted By RichC on March 22, 2014
With the improved weather (70 degrees in Cincinnati on Friday) and spring smell in the air, its feels like it is past due for some music on the blog. Here’s a mystery tune for the day, which of course from the 1970s, but this is one hit that I’m sure everyone has heard. The first hint may not give the tune away:
| Spring is here, so Mother Nature “D G B M H” 🙂 |
Posted By RichC on March 21, 2014
Before I renew my current VPN service it is time to keep them honest when it comes to their subscription pricing. I’m testing the lower cost AnchorFree’s Hotspot Shield Elite 
using their trial program before renewing my more expensive, but easy to use VPN service just to see if there is any difference. So far so good, but if you know of a better inexpensive VPN (under $30/yr) let me know.
Posted By RichC on March 20, 2014
My son Taylor is back for a few days from North Dakota to visit friends (and mom and dad) and do a little shopping. That last part about shopping is my theory since I don’t think they have many JCrew stores or the like in Williston, although I could be wrong?
Anyway it is nice to have him home if even for a short few days. At least we’ll get his taxes done and a few loose ends tied up in following up on a dentist appointment.
I’m also working with the Mophie people to see if we can get his “relatively new” Juice Pack Air iPhone 5 case fixed (I think it is the switch … so far it sounds like they stand behind their product?? We’ll see)
Here’s a left over photo from my trip to Florida – it’s not that often you see a Great Blue Heron from the “above” perspective.
