by mike
I am having trouble avoiding interruption.
I first began not simply noticing this, but focusing on this over the past week. I realized that I was spending far too much of my day checking email or performing some other technology tool task. While out walking my dog, I am checking email. When I first wake up I check email. While writing or working I am checking email. I find it is more than a bit distracting. [Read more →]
by mike
Don’t answer too fast… and read the links below.
It isn’t often that I get behind the wheel to drive on the roads, but every time I do I ask myself the same question…. “is it time for a new car”.
I don’t really have much in the way of driving. I cruise around Denver by foot, cruiser bike, by my ages old mountain bike, by bus, by light rail, by cab, and by scooter. I rarely drive my automobile (make that, my giant SUV). What drives me to get behind the wheel (get it) is usually a trip to the mountains which may or not have some bad snow conditions or carrying alot of stuff. [Read more →]
by mike
If you have and love your iphone you might just love this. The rumor mill is circulating that the newest macbook will be launching this October using touchpad technology similar to the iphone functionality. The biggest clue seems to be a recent patent filing. If innovation like the iphone is now part of a new laptop design I am excited to see how the market reacts.
Could this be why apple’s stock is back in the $150’s in a huge rally. Either way the creative look at things by apple is a breath of fresh air. So to is the story of Steve Jobs that was shared at a commencement address to Stanford. This you can download from the new itunes u, and I recommend you do especially as you look at your career or other goals. Okay, that gives you three things to check out. Itunes U for university style content and lectures for your ipod, specifically the Steve Jobs commencement address, and of course hopefully the launch of a new type of laptop by apple.
An apple a day….
by mike
After a backlash of angry early adopters learned that apple was dropping the price of the Iphones by $200 Steve Jobs stepped up and offered a $100 rebate. How nice it is to see apple and Steve Jobs step up. And how nice it is that the loyal apple followers who took a risk [Read more →]
by mike
By By Crayton Harrison
Bloomberg News
Article Last Updated: 08/21/2007 09:29:35 AM MDT
Apple Inc. may sell more than 800,000 iPhones this quarter, beating the company’s goal of 730,000, as consumer demand for the device stays strong, UBS AG analyst Benjamin Reitzes said today.
Retail outlets of Apple and AT&T Inc., which offer the phone exclusively in the U.S., have reported “solid demand,” Reitzes said today in a research note. His estimate for sales of the device, which combines an iPod music player with a mobile handset, was “conservative,” he said.
Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs said last month he expects to sell 1 million iPhones by the end of this quarter, adding to the company’s sales of iPods and personal computers. Cupertino, California-based Apple reported 270,000 iPhone sales last quarter after the product debuted June 29.
Apple’s shares rose 26 cents to $122.48 at 9:51 a.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have increased 44 percent this year before today.
Reitzes, based in New York, is ranked second among computer analysts by Institutional Investor magazine.
By the way, this photo is a joke (as far as I know).
The phone is a great move forward. There is always talk of incremental improvement in technology and then there are great leaps forward on a totally new level, or a new idea, or a new perspective on an old idea. Forget figuring out keypads, use the screen as a dynamic keypad and you can change it whenever you want. Make it intuitive, not techie. Make it easy and make it work. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Iphone just kept right on taking over the phone market.
Might want to pick up some stock in this market downturn.
by mike
Always on the lookout for something new and cool in the world of green the folks at Revolution Cleaners has opened a “Green Cleaning” business here in Denver. I was surprised to find out how few people even knew about them. And I hate to admit that I had no idea what the heck Green Cleaning was. I knew it was supposed to be good for the environment but I didn’t know why or how. My shirt, pant, and other cleaning has increased a ton since I moved from my fleece worshiping days in the mountains. Back then a pair of jeans, some clogs, and a fleece top were the bulk of my wardrobe.
Now that I have balanced this with an urban style (I never said a good one) I actually have clothes that need some more attention. So if I am going to have them professionally cleaned I would like to think I will be green doing it. Hence I hunted down the green cleaning option in town and wanted to learn about their business.
And of course the geek in me (which is probably alot) wanted to learn the science behind it as well.
So on my last drop off to their shop, I asked if the owners would like to share with us some more details about their business and the science of green cleaning. They happily agreed. The following interview was sent by email…
Noel, many folks don’t know about Green Dry Cleaning. Can you give us a high level overview of the difference between your process and standard dry cleaning?
Dry cleaning isn’t really dry; rather, it’s cleaning without water. Standard drycleaning uses perchloroethylene (more commonly called PERC) as the primary solvent. Traditional machines are simply large washing machines that use PERC instead of water. PERC-exposure has been associated with lots of health problems, including being identified as a hazardous substance by the EPA. It is also one of the most common contaminants in groundwater. Cleaning in PERC requires drying of the garments at a high temperature. Our process doesn’t use PERC, or any other hazardous substances. Our two dry cleaning process’ use liquid carbon dioxide and water. Both are naturally occurring in the environment and in your body.
For the extra geeky among us who love the technical details… how exactly does your process work? [Read more →]
by mike
Is too much of our life about the money?
The New York Times this past Sunday had an article about how the millionaires out in silicon valley just don’t feel rich anymore. Apparently, once you make $2 million, or $5 million, or even $10 million you still feel the need to work 60, 70, 80 hour weeks to make sure that you can keep up.
For some folks the money goes into bigger, and bigger, and bigger houses. Or faster cars, expensive gems, boats, trips, etc.
Basically, you will always spend what you make and need to make more.
That is so sad. And yet I seem to be spending what I make. I make more than I did when I was just out of college, but I don’t seem to have a great deal of extra. Isn’t it amazing that people just keep finding new things they “need” that they would never dream of years ago under a different tax bracket.
I have to wonder why it is that we just keep buying more and more instead of saving more and more. Are material items really that much more important than our free time, our ability to travel perhaps for a year and see the world? Do we really need the 10,000 sf house and the six figure car if our budgets grow. Is it keeping up with the jones.
Don’t get me wrong, I have my toys that I buy with extra money. But I don’t mind having a new scooter when my car has been paid off for a year. I really don’t feel the need to have the newest and greatest automobile. I do, however, want the coolest blue tooth ear bud for my iphone.
But given the opportunity to have a couple million in income I don’t believe any amount of peer pressure would make me choose to burn through it as quick as I could. I would like to think I would buy more time. More free time, more flexibility, and more freedom.
Check out the article and let me know what you think. Do you believe you will always be spending what you earn, regardless of how high that income goes? If you say you wouldn’t, let me ask you this…. are you currently making more than you made 5 or 10 years ago and are you spending it all? If so, what makes you think it would change?
Perhaps it was meant to be a sob story, but it is a bit more of a reality check. Here is my advice for you future millionaires who might get trapped into working 80 hours a week. Stop buying stuff.
Duh, and yet not the easiest thing to do. What does that say about our culture.
Here is that NYT article [Read more →]
by mike
Why is this person so happy. Because while it is dumping rain outside and other poor souls are driving with white knuckles fighting traffic, the elements, and sleep she is cozy in her train cabin sipping a drink, reading a book, and watching the beautiful outdoors go by.
This is what we need from Denver to Vail (With a stop in Summit of course). I just drove down from another mountain excursion this morning and while I was blown away as always by the view, I couldn’t help but think how nice it would be to have been sitting and reading my paper while making the journey.
And this was a beautiful uncrowded day. But when I went up on Sunday I-70 was PACKED with cars heading down. Nothing compared to the ski season but certainly another reason to get on a train.
Just picture this. You head over to Union Station and grab a nice warm cup of coffee, a newspaper or book, and some of your best buds. You load all of your stuff onto your train car and grab a wonderful cabin with benches and curl up. The snow outside is dumping and the weather is freezing. The roads are going to be icy, if open at all. But you will make the trip to Vail in bliss surrounded by laughter, warmth and friends.
When you are hungry or thirsty you eat and drink. When you have to use the bathroom you do (but leave your cabin for this). When you are tired you sleep. You are safe.
The train might even have a dining or bar car where you can grab a bite or a drink. The folks going to and from the mountains might be the perfect audience to make this work. 
Or who knows what other luxury is possible. Perhaps a massage after hours of pow pow skiing or rock hopping biking.
Or maybe the train simply has seats that look out the mountains and allow all of these comforts with gorgeous views. Either way, it is a better experience than driving in a car.
And would you like to know what makes it even better? If it is planned out right we can
1: Promote alternative transportation
2: Reduce many many carbon footprints (my biggest violation is that drive to and from the mountains)
3: Make it a fun, fun journey for many people.
So why am I bringing this up again? Because I want to get started with planning, designing, and more before we go and add another lane of traffic to I-70. Or at the bare minimum we can try and send a message that we support this direction and promote the idea that it might happen (hopefully sooner rather than later).
And yes, I know there are challenges. But those challenges become greater every day that we continue doing short term solutions such as expanding lanes. Let’s support a long term solution with environmental responsibility.
Plus it will be more fun. And just to see if there is an interest out there please show your support at this ipetition here. Maybe it will even show enough support to encourage a private investment firm to get involved as discussed in the Denver Post. It doesn’t matter who does the train, what matters is folks get out of their cars.
Pass it on!!
Here is the scoop from when it was voted down from High Speed Monorail
Colorado I-70: state says highway, not monorail (1/13/05)
Denver, Colorado. Colorado transportation officials are sticking to their belief that a high-speed monorail is not the way to solve highway congestion from Denver to Vail. Their vision is for more pavement, by widening Interstate 70 through the busy mountain corridor. Last month the state released a draft environmental review that favors widening I-70, while rejecting both a high-speed monorail or a conventional rail line as too costly. In the first of ten public hearings on the I-70 mountain corridor study, almost 200 people showed up Wednesday to voice their opinion. Most of them favored monorail and said CDOT’s idea to widen the highway will be outdated when completed by 2025 as proposed. A plan for a Colorado High-Speed Monorail using inverted-T rail technology lost steam when Colorado voters turned down money for a test track in 2002. That proposal was described derogatorily as a “Disneyland ride” by Governor Bill Owens, which helped sway voters against the ballot measure.
The vote below is for the blog…. the real vote is available
clicking here!.
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by mike
Just a cool, cool article about how new buyers are taking on the market, and setting the stage for their future in buying new homes. When I think about it, our interest rates our lower, we have less fear of credit, and we know what we want. Plus, after watching the stock market tank a couple times, the technology stock boom and bust, and the crazy antics of enron and others I personally prefer to place my bets in my real estate over the stock market. This story is about New York, but it could just as easily be Denver… except we aren’t as pricey.
What a fun ride we are on. First, the number of people in our country and the world are increasing every day. Second, folks are realizing that the city is where they want to be and are relocating to downtowns across the country. And last, it’s just fun to be in the heart of everything.
This story talks about how the current generation is looking at real estate, their homes, and their future. It’s a story I believe in as well. [Read more →]
by mike
It’s amazing how quickly things change. Just over a year ago I was a total PC fan, using the database management tools. Then a buddy I know, Chris, told me I would be on an apple platform when I moved down here to work on the launch of Glass House. I think he was shocked that I was actually excited to try it out.
And guess what, I loved it. So much so that today when he told me that Macworld was announcing the Iphone I did backflips. He found this great blog where someone actually at Macworld is taking photos and blogging the announcement real time. Key features that were announced today…
1: No buttons, the screen adapts for what you want
2 The screen adjusts from portrait to landscape as you turn it
3: Detects when you are putting it up to your face and turns off flatscreen
4: Feeds for maps, weather
5: Free Yahoo push mail or blackberry feed
And as of this posting the folks at engadget.com are still doing announcements and the photo credit for the above pic is to them… so check out this blog at www.engadget.com to track it.
I am so excited to try this out and ditch my razr!! I called cingular and they don’t have it in their profile yet, but they announced it will work with cingular. I checked with the apple store and they are expecting some news in a few hours. Chris heard that it might not be until June due to FCC approval. Either way, its cool.
Apple also has announced the specs here.
