Categories
Uncategorized

Smart Car Crash at 70mph!


Smart is the brand name of a little golf cart like car offered by DaimlerChrysler AG in Europe. On first setting eyes on this little toy you may wonder how it would hold up in a frontal crash with a concrete barrier! Well, wonder no more (the little tyke in the video below was doing 70mph before it was forced to stop in under one second!)

There is a rumor that they are coming to the USA in 2006? Might not be a bad idea as they get up to 70mpg and are not as fragile as you might think. I wonder how your teeth will look after a wreck like this. Me thinks they may fall out of your mouth, cartoon like, in little shards and make a broken glass sound as they hit the floor? More info from MSNBC and another article from edmunds

Update – Sept 2006 – A sighting!


While walking El pooch o in my neighborhood one evening I came across a Smart parked on a busy street. It appeared to be owned by a dealer as a glossy flyer was stuck in the window. Until you see a Smart in the flesh you don’t realize how bloody small it is and also how really cute and stylish it is. As far as the US goes I don’t really know, we’re all use to huge cars and even the entry level cars (Honda civic and ) are mid sized compared to Europe. There does seem to be more of the so called “pregnant roller skate” type of vehicles on the roads lately (Toyota Yaris, Suzuki Aero etc.) so I think people are gradually moving to smaller vehicles as they realize the days of $1.50 per gallon gas prices are over.

Utah 2005

Make a Favicon.ico image using OS X and IcoMaker

Favicons are those little images that come up in the URL bar to the left of the URL in your web browser. They are also displayed on the browser tab if you’re using Firefox. Here’s how to make em’ (this is the “very quick” version). See Steve Cooley’s Site for a more detailed version.

1) Choose you image and resize it to 16 by 16 pixels. (Use an image manipulation program of your choice – Photoshop, Iphoto, Gimp etc. ) You’ll want an image that is not too complex as the larger image may look good at full resolution but when it’s resized down to the size of a postage stamp it’ll probably look like shite! Choosing an image or piece of line art that’ll look good the 16×16 resolution is probably the hardest part of the whole process!

2) Download IcoMaker from this link. It’s free and will convert your image from jpg (and other image formats I believe) to the .ico format.

3) With IcoMaker launched select File > New Document. A little multi-pane window will open. Next import your image into IcoMaker by doing a File > Include Image. Choose a 16 x16 copy.

4) Save the file as favicon.ico and upload it into the root directory of your website!

There you have it, happy Faviconing!

Map GPS Coordinates to Maps online

Just found out a nifty way to map a GPS point online. You can use MS’s terraserver found here. Look at the bottom left of this page and you’ll see a field to enter latitude and longitude. This value should be in a decimal format so if you have say 109 mins and 30 secs of Longitude you’ll have to divide the seconds by 60 to get it into the correct format for Terra server to play nice. The correct Longitude format is then 109.5 . It appears to work fine although the maps returned are topo like and not street maps like ones you will find at maps.google.com.

Now for google. Tis a little more complicated, you have to enter the data in the URL – here is an example:

http://maps.google.com/?&ll=40.123,-109.456

It’s basically in the format of maps.google.com/?&ll=Lat,long. You can also add some kool things like display all the pizza joints in that area. See all the features of this jewel in see this article on wikipidea.

Andy Andrews on PBS

I’m horrible at reading books and am always looking for the study notes, you know, the summary of the entire book in a page or so. Don’t get me wrong I love a well written piece of fiction like J.M. Coetzee’s “Life and Times of Michael K” but throw a not so well written self help book like “The Celestine Prophecy” at me and it’ll end up on the bed stand for weeks. So I watching a PBS program by this guy called “Seven Decisions that Determine Personal Success” by Andy Andrews. Seems like a nice bloke but ha! here is a little summary of the seven decisions:

1. The Buck Stops Here – Taking personal responsibility

2. Seek Wisdom – Search for understanding and discernment

3. Be a Person of Action – Being a courageous leader

4. Have a Decided Heart – Overcoming double-mindedness

5. Choose Happiness – Possessing a grateful spirit

6. Forgive others – The power of grace and mercy

7. Persist – Perservering with faith until the end

So now you know! Get to it. Perhaps more on it at a later date.

Calling Card Recommendations

I’ve been using this card for a year or two now and it’s a good way to get the most out of your cellphone minutes if you want to call outside the USA or make a call on a payphone at an airport.

What calling card to use?

I personally use and recommend a calling card from Net2Phone, the Net2Phone Direct® Calling Card. I like this card cos it has no connection fee and US rates are 3.9c per min with 5c per min to Europe. It has a nice web interface and you can also set it up to auto renew when your balance drops below a certain dollar amount.

Click this link to get the card now.

The fine print

*3.9¢ domestic rate and 5¢ international rate available in select metro areas with local access numbers. Higher rates apply using toll-free access. Rates subject to change without notice. There is a $1.49 monthly service charge. Surcharges may apply for calls made from a cellular phone or a payphone, or for calls made from outside the continental United States. Minimum $25 purchase of calling card with credit or debit card required.

I just looked at my billing history and I seem to get 3.9c per min sometimes 4c calling from my cellphone when calling within the US so they don’t appear to be charging me a surcharge because I am using a cellphone. There is also a $1.50 fee per month deducted from the card. This is not as bad as it sounds as other cards will slap you with a 49c connection fee per call so I think it’s better to have pay the once off fee per month than per call connection fees. The will also send you a physical calling card that you can carry in your wallet or purse and use at any payphone. This is also quite handy when ye old cellphone dies or you have no service but are near a good old payphone.

Click this link to get the card now.

One year and you’re done for!

Those doubters among us knew this already right, the following article was grabbed from off the net by yours truly – enjoy R.

ROME (Reuters) – Your heartbeat accelerates, you have butterflies in the stomach, you feel euphoric and a bit silly. It’s all part of falling passionately in love — and scientists now tell us the feeling won’t last more than a year.

The powerful emotions that bowl over new lovers are triggered by a molecule known as nerve growth factor (NGF), according to Pavia University researchers.

The Italian scientists found far higher levels of NGF in the blood of 58 people who had recently fallen madly in love than in that of a group of singles and people in long-term relationships.

But after a year with the same lover, the quantity of the ‘love molecule’ in their blood had fallen to the same level as that of the other groups.

The Italian researchers, publishing their study in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology, said it was not clear how falling in love triggers higher levels of NGF, but the molecule clearly has an important role in the “social chemistry” between people at the start of a relationship.

My Classic A6 for sale Ad on Craigslist

I finally got a 1999 A8 Quattro so I reluctantly need to sell my 1995 A6 Quattro! (I have no need for two cars and you can only serve one master right)

Specs: Color gray with black cloth (All Wheel Drive) – 5 speed – V6 170hp with 136k miles. Heated seats and sunroof. Electric drivers seat. Headlight washer (currently disconnected). The car comes with two sets of wheels/tires, hi-performance 17 inch summers and Dunlop non-studded snows – Note: radio and subwoofer will be removed or sold separately ( I have a high end pioneer DEH8600MP $450 – MP3 CD player that is in the car you can purchase from me but you can have the old radio / tape player) ($6300 KBB for car is $5300 + $400 for snows and A4 rims in good condition and $600 for Hi-performance 17inch summer tires Kumo and sweet new wheels, just paid $1200 for summer tires and rims)).

Seeing as I live in Boulder, am a bit of a lefty and love Mother Earth etc. I have decided to sell my Audi A6. 🙁 I’m getting a 4.2L Audi V8 – BooYah!! It’s time to run with the big dogs, no more pissy V6 for me chaps, it’s 300hp and 300lb of torque and manly V8 engine for me phoofters, so watch out! Audi diesels (in the USA) are still a few years off so it’s time to have some fun – yeah! and double BooYah! (don’t tell anyone this but the A8 can get 27 mpg on the highway). I love my A6 and I probably shouldn’t sell her but what the hell.

So let me start out by telling you why you need this car? Let’s face it if you live in Boulder or Denver every Tom, Dick and Harry has got a bloody new Subaru Outback (Subie). Christ on a bike!, you’ve only got to drive down to Pearl St. in your new Outback and there is a good chance that you’re gonna park next to an identical model, perhaps even one in the same color. (it happened to a mate of mine) You want to get a Subie cos it’s safe but the 95 A6 has 5 stars front and passenger rating too. You want AWD (you don’t want to have to push a button when you start to loose traction!), the A6 has AWD and locking front and rear diffs, try getting locking diffs on a similar priced Subie. And gents, do you really think a lovely lass is gonna want to get a bit of “leg over” if you’re driving a Subie and let’s not leave out the Ladies here – how good do you really think a bloke is gonna be in the old “Boudoir” (winky winky …) if he drives one of these – think about it!

Details – see full specs of the 95 A6 here.

  • Summer Tires – Kumo 225/45 ZR 17 inch tires on 17 inch rims – $1200, new a year ago
  • Winter Tires – 185/65 R15 – Dunlop Graspic Snows Tires on Audi A4 rims – good for another 2 seasons
  • New windshield $220
  • New battery
  • Synthetic oil changed at 135k (she’s good till 140k)
  • New struts – Boge gas (better than the OEM ones that were oil filled) $1000
  • Radiator and brake fluid flush – all fluids are nice and clean
  • New front rotors and pads at 120k
  • Timing Belt Replaced at 119k (she’s good till 180k – this is a $1200 job when done correctly)
  • New air filter and plugs about 2k miles ago
  • Aircon recharged and blows cold
  • Will get 20 mpg worse case in city and 25 on highway.
  • 21 gallon gas tank – drive 450-miles on a tank or more.

    More about her

    Before I start let me tell you that I’m the kind of bloke who’ll climb into the passenger seat of your brand new automobile and tell you 10 things that are wrong with it, REALLY, I’m a tad anal when it come to cars so bear with me here!!! I am going to tell you her little nuances, some of which you probably won’t even notice, ever!

    There is a little oil leak from where the tranny goes into the engine but it’s not worth being fixed because it does not interfere with the clutch (no slippage or heaviness ) and my mechanic told me I can do it when the clutch needs to be replaced which, judging by it’s current operation and the observed history of other A6 users this may be quite some time! The car is leaking on the driveway (is worse in winter due to cold metal contracting) but it hasn’t done this for about 6 months. The oil tends to drip down and collect on the plastic skid plate under the engine, I will remove it and clean it off at the car wash. It is really not a big deal but just wanted to let everyone know. The car does consume some oil which is normal for a car of this age but it’s not something that you’re gonna have to check at every fill up but just something to be aware of. The car does not smoke or hesitate at all.

    The front left tire seems to be wearing faster than the tire on the other side so I just had the alignment done ($45!). I don’t know if this will fix the problem but my mechanic looked at the wear and said that that alignment appeared to be the problem. The car was aligned with the big 17 inchers on so you may want to get it aligned with the snow tires on if you notice wear as they are pretty different in size. I also noticed a little noise coming from the right front of the car when backing out of the driveway but I don’t know what this is and I don’t feel any shakes or wobble at any speed (0 mph to 100mph+) – she we cruise quite happily at 75-80mph with the snows on and higher speeds with the summer tires on.

    Electrics – sunroof needs to be fully opened before it can be closed. (It works fine otherwise) and sometimes when the headlights are left on by mistake the little buzzer doesn’t buzz to tell you to turn them off, a few of the dash lights are out (2-3 out of the total of 12) but you can see the dials fine and one side of the speedo looks dime. All the windows work, doors lock, cruise control works etc.

    So get to it – I have been told that this ride will be snatched up soon!

  • Watch Energy Crisis 2012 – ShootOut 2005 finalist

    Here are some links to view the wonderful award winning moive we made for The Shoot Out Boulder 2005, the 24 hour film fest that takes place here in Boulder ever October. Click the play button on the bottom left of the window below and enjoy. If you get a “The movie is currently not available” message then jump to the “Other ways to see the movie” section.

    Watch on YouTube

    Other ways to see the movie

    If you can’t get the video player above to start or it says “The movie is currently not available” then start out by jumping to the bottom of the page and clicking on the hi-res verions of the video, if your get no sound then it means that you don’t have the correct/latest version of quicktime to view the movie and you’ll have to keep reading (Sweet Mary and Joseph this is getting complicated – sorry!)

    I just realized that to view my amazing movie WINDOWS users (Not Mac) will need QuickTime 7. MOST windows users will only have QuickTime 6 installed and clicking on the video file will result in no picture being shown and only sound playing! So before you can view it you’ll have to download the FREE QuickTime 7 Player for windows. Here is a link to download the QuickTime Player 7 (20 Megs):

    QuickTime Player 7 for Windows

    You can put in a bogus email address and also uncheck the check boxes. Enjoy and sorry for the confusion. I will try to put it in a more accessible format but H.264 (the current method that it is encoded in) produces the best quality and the smallest file size.


    You can try clicking of the link below first and it should launch quicktime player in your browser window.

    It may take a while to download the video so if you don’t see it right aways give it a little while before you write me a nasty email!

    You can also right click and do a “save link as” and save the movie file to a folder of your choice. Once downloaded you you can just double click on the file/movie and it should launch the Quick time Player and play the movie.

    The larger movie looks good at double size and you can also try full screen mode. In the QuickTime Player select View>double size or View > Full Screen.

    Here is the big hi-res version – 300Kbps : get it here

    Here is a very small dial up friendly version that’s barely viewable (mom use this one!) : get it here

    Equipment recommended from Podcast

    Listening to a new Podcast that I just subscribed to about video production. The presenter made a few recommendations regarding video kit: ( These were made in episode 14 of a Pixelriffic Podcast)

    Mic’s:

    Wireless mic’s – he like the Senheiser Evolution range.

    Wired mics for vocals at around $100 or so Sure SM58 and also not as good Sure SM57 – has no windscreen.

    Tripod + Fluid Head:

    He recomended a bottom of the line Bogen for backup and non important stuff.

    Bogen 3011 ($150) with a 700rc2 head.