Category: Technology and Software
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Black Sheep Power and Light
Here’s one of our new solar arrays. It doesn’t just collect power – it also provides shade for the sheep. Continue reading
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Apple iOS 4 Problems on iPod Touch: Update Downgrade Instructions
Well, I stupidly upgraded my iPod Touch to iOS 4 yesterday. Don’t do it! My battery now lasts less than 12 hours, even with wifi off. The advantages of the new OS are not with the hassle, but to add insult to injury, I cannot go back. The first rule of any computer system is… Continue reading
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SplashShopper Problems
I’ve been a loyal user of SplashShopper on the Mac and Palm for years. It’s one of the best shopping applications out there. It’s fast, it’s responsive, and it allows the creation of many lists and stores. When I got my new iPod Touch, I was looking forward to getting SS running on it. The… Continue reading
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The Daily Shoot, Moved
I’ve moved all of the Daily Shoot pictures to a new blog: Oogie’s Daily Shoot. They were cluttering up the Farm Blog. Now, they’re in a much better location. Continue reading
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A Solar Update
It’s been almost a year since we installed the solar hot water system. It provides both domestic hot water and supplemental heat for our radiant floor system. We learned several usage tricks early on, and they have not changed over time. We need to plan on doing most laundry and major hot water usage in… Continue reading
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RMPBS Signal, Lost in Translation
PBS is the only TV channel that we get with useful programs. They air real news via the Nightly Business Report and the News Hour, plus other interesting shows, documentaries, and entertainment. Unfortunately for much of rural America, the vaunted digital transformation is a joke. You see, a little-known exemption means that anyone who receives… Continue reading
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Salt in Old Wounds
Apparently, unsatisfied with simply cancelling our Pioneer Plan phone without contacting or notifying us, Sprint had the gall to send us a letter asking if we still needed the line. I called and was told that the letter went out in error because the line had already been cancelled. I’m waiting to hear back from… Continue reading
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Exploring Social Media
An article I read a while ago about reserving your name on popular social media sites forced me into exploring Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. Because of our farm business, I added Ravelry to the short list of critical places to be on. At first, I just wanted to be sure no one else was OogieM… Continue reading
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Customer Service: The Good and the Bad
Four recent incidents have prompted a mini-rant about customer service. First, the bad. We were one of the very first users of Sprint’s PCS service. We were in San Diego and had a Pioneer Plan phone. The deal was that the phone was to have no monthly fees for life, but it had a very… Continue reading
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Living With Solar
We’ve finished installing the solar hot water system, and after a month or so, I thought I’d post the first lessons we’ve learned. Installing a solar system will not, in and of itself, make a huge difference. You will also have to change your behavior to take advantage of the system’s strengths and weaknesses. For… Continue reading