GeekBeat TV

If you're interested in technical cool gadgets, you should subscribe to the podcast GeekBeat TV, website here. GeekBeat TV used to be GeekBrief, honestly I liked the old name better, but due to some kinds of problems they changed with a whole new podcast. The host, Cali Lewis, is very entertaining to watch, the videos are really well done, and the podcasts keep me up to date with fun new cameras, phones, tvs, robots, and all other things geeky. It's the only podcast I watch almost up-to-date (sometimes I AM up-to-date!... more often I'm a month or two behind).

I do not fear computers. 

I fear the lack of them. 

- Isaac Asimov -

Live for Victory?

The moment of victory is much to short 

to live for that and nothing else. 

-Martina Navratilova-

Martina Navratoliva is a tennis player from Prague (Czechoslovakia) who has made the Wimbledon singles finals 12 times.


I live to play.

Beware Dihydrogen Monoxide (DHMO)

DHMO is a controversial substance that is wildly researched (dhmo.org).

Here is a list of facts about DHMO from Wikipedia:

Dihydrogen monoxide:

• is called "hydroxyl acid", the substance is the major component of acid rain.
• contributes to the "greenhouse effect".
• may cause severe burns.
• is fatal if inhaled.
• contributes to the erosion of our natural landscape.
• accelerates corrosion and rusting of many metals.
• may cause electrical failures and decreased effectiveness of automobile brakes.
• has been found in excised tumors of terminal cancer patients.

Despite the danger, dihydrogen monoxide is often used:

• as an industrial solvent and coolant.
• in nuclear power plants.
• in the production of Styrofoam.
• as a fire retardant.
• in many forms of cruel animal research.
• in the distribution of pesticides. Even after washing, produce remains contaminated by this chemical.
• as an additive in certain "junk-foods" and other food products.

You see how dangerous this is.
Go check out the Wikipedia link if you don't get it.

(I had a friend who, for a science class, had people at her school sign a petition to get rid of DHMO. I believe she got her science teacher to sign.)

Not all chemicals are bad. 

Without hydrogen and oxygen, for example, 

there would be no way to make water, 

a vital ingredient in beer.

- Dave Barry -

Change File Names Quick! (On a Mac.)

If you are on Windows, now is your time to change :p

If you use the Mac OS, there's this great little application called Automator. Automator lets you lay out actions you can then save as apps or Services, and run. For example, my new favorite: Adding text to the beginning of file names.

I am picky about how my files are named. I have a lot of desktop pictures from Josephine Wall, who does amazing fantasy pictures bursting will color. I keep the pictures in my folder called Fantasy, but I want to be able to find her pictures easily, so at the beginning of each picture file name I have jw_(name of picture). At the time, I went through and added all those manually. What a pain! Today, however, I discovered an amazing thing I can do with Automator.

In Automator, create a new workflow. Add the action Add Text to Finder Item Names. Choose Add Text and Before Name with the drop-down menus, then in the text field put whatever text it is (i.e. jw_). A space also works (so you can put 'jw ' -> 'jw fairy'). Save it as a Service. (I called mine 'Rename • add text to file name'.)

Highlight the file or multiple files, right-click (control-click), go down to Services, and choose your Rename service. Kaboom! File names changed in moments.

Next, you can keep using this Service with little effort. Your Services are stored in your Home folder > Library > Services. Just open it up and change the text to whatever you need at the time.

You can use the same cool function to add Dates to the start of the file name, which is a good way of keeping track of receipts/statements/invoices etc.

I created a similar Service I use that renames a chosen file and moves it to a certain folder. For that, I first renamed the file using Name Single Item in Finder Item Names, then added the date using that Add Text function, then I had it move the file using Move Finder Items where you can choose a specific location. With that service, I can rename, date, and move the file in 1 second. I use it every week when I download my Inventory Report from Amazon.com.

Automator is a real nifty app, you'd be surprised how much you can do with it.

A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved 

from a simple system that works.

- John Gaule -

Again I ask, why didn't I think of the Add Text service sooner?