Voyager Turns 30

This fall is the 30th anniversary of the Voyager missions to the outer planets and beyond. The missions brought back the first close-up images of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune along with a plethora of new discoveries about the planets and their moons. Before these missions no one knew that there were volcanoes on any other celestial body other than Earth. Jupiter’s moon Io turned out to be THE place in the solar system for the ultimate in volcanism. From fire to ice, Neptune’s moon Triton, the coldest body in the solar system, was discovered to have geysers that spewed nitrogen gas and dust high into it’s atmosphere. I grew up in the Voyager age and can remember learning about the planets from the very pictures that the spacecraft sent back to Earth. We’ve learned so much since Voyager 1 and 2 passed through our outer Solar System, and we have such a better understanding of these planets and their moons because of these two missions. When Voyager 1 passed the orbits of Neptune and Pluto, NASA turned around the craft and took a picture of our tiny Earth, which looked like nothing more than a small blue speck against a black backdrop. NASA also took pictures of the rest of the planets and made a family portrait of our solar system family. Those spacecraft are still transmitting data, 30 years and about 9 billion miles later. Scientists think the craft are approaching the boundary of the heliopause, where the solar wind and interstellar wind meet. In about 80,000 years they will reach Alpha Centauri, our closest star at around 4 light years away. In billions of years when the Sun is nothing more than a cinder, these two spacecraft will still be on their journey through our galaxy, carrying with them a piece of humankind and human spirit.

Germs From Space

Does this sound familiar? Germs from space, more powerful than what we have here on Earth, come to earth and attack all of mankind. Sounds like your typical bad (or good, depending on your point of view) 1950’s sci-fi movie. I’ve seen my share of those in my time. The space shuttle mission STS-115 that launched back in September 2006 came back with their own mini bad B-movie. An experiment onboard provided evidence that germs really do get stronger outside of the Earth’s atmosphere. A package of Salmonella was taken onboard, carefully protected, to monitor the change in the germs in zero gravity. Turns out the little guys do alter their DNA to adapt to the change in environment so they can survive. The germs were fed to mice back home and the mice were more likely to get sick and died faster than the control set who were fed the germs that had stayed on the ground. This is a handy thing to know for the future of space travel since anywhere humans go, germs go. If humans are to spend a long time in zero gravity we must learn how our invisible little counterparts will react as well. It also will come in handy here on Earth to better understand how germs change, and how to treat the resulting infections. It’s interesting to note that despite all the accomplishments that humans have done and the distances we have traveled, it’s the littlest life forms that still have the biggest impact on us.

Finish the Fight

The release of Halo 3 is just hours away. Oh, how I’ve waited to know how this saga ends. The kicker is that I am out of town for training this week. Yes, you heard correctly…out of town, without an XBOX, and without Halo. It’s a sad, sad day. I haven’t quite figured out why I didn’t check the calendar first to see what was going on this week. If I had, I would have scheduled the class for another time. I predict that lines will be no less that those of who waited for the last Harry Potter book or the iPhone. If you have an XBOX 360 and haven’t played any of the Halo trilogy (shame on you!), you should go out and give them a try.
Why is Halo so great you may ask? The sheer beauty of the game is one very appealing aspect. Combine that with a kick-booty storyline and two modes of multiplayer (online and cooperative), and you’ve got yourself an award winning game. It’s one of those games that I can play over and over, and not get bored with it. I can even find something new in the game despite the fact that I’ve played it dozens of times. Tomorrow will be a grand day for gamers. I’ll be watching from my hotel room. :)

:-) Has a Birthday

It’s been 25 years since the emoticon smiley :-) was born. It was invented by a Carnegie professor by the name of Scott E. Fahlman back in 1982. It allowed people to do something that was very difficult…express emotion in an email or other form of communication. That’s pretty important since emails can be so hard to read as far as emotions go. I wonder of Vulcans would use any kind of emoticons in their communications? :)

Touch the iPod Touch

I was able to play with the new iPod Touch this weekend at Best Buy. Yep, it’s cool – very cool. The part that would stop me from getting it right now is the price tag. However, after getting a chance to use it for a while I think the best new feature they could have added is the Wi-Fi capability. The Internet is more fun when you get to pinch your way into zooming in and out of a webpage. The screen itself is just plain beautiful. I found that the keyboard that pops up when you want to type in a webpage is fairly easy to type on. I do have smaller hands than a guy would admittedly, and my husband didn’t get a chance to look at that feature when he was there. I have heard reports from other reviewers who have big hands or chubby fingers that typing can be a problem if you don’t pay close attention to where you are tapping, but I can’t say that from personal experience.
Pretty much the Touch is an iPhone without the phone capability. I think this is a nifty thing for those of us out there who just want the cool interface and not the data plan and all the “etc., etc.” that goes along with getting the iPhone. If you get a chance to stop by a retailer who has an iPod Touch on display, you have a pinch at it. It’s definitely one of the most fun gadgets I’ve had a chance to look at in a long time. Yep, I am hoping that Apple will do a $200 price cut on it in two months. :)

iHop For My iFrogz

Whether you own a Zune or iPod (or are looking at buying one), one place that has really cool cases for them is a company called iFrogz. I own two of the custom silicone cases for my 30GB iPod Video and I love them. They’re thick and don’t attract lint (which is important for a neat freak like me). The cases I have come with a wrap that covers the whole iPod except for the screen an click wheel, a screen protector, a band that goes around the outside of the device to protect your ports, and a sticker to cover the click wheel. All are customizable. Mainly I bought mine for protection (and it does a wonderful job of that!), but the pretty colors and cool picture for the click wheel sticker are a definite perk. The Zune doesn’t have all of the same options since you really can’t cover the controls with a sticker easily and still have it usable, but you still get the screen protector, band, and wrap. They even have cases for the Shuffle, Nano, and iPhone. They currently have a special going on where you can get 50% off if you order before September 16th, so if you’re interested stop by their site before then.

The Zune Gets a New Price Tag

Looks like Microsoft is getting the price slashing bug as well. The Zune, Microsoft’s MP3 player that is a competitor to the iPod, was cut by $50 last Wednesday bringing it to $199. Seems like it didn’t get as much press as the iPhone price cut, but then again it didn’t quite tick as many people off either. I’d actually probably consider a Zune for my next MP3 player. Not that I don’t like my iPod, but if I had to buy another one I’d have a hard time deciding between an iPod Classic and the Zune. And the price cut helps too. :) The main reason I purchased a iPod this last time around is that I thought the screen looked a little crisper and brighter. I was also used to the iPods since I owned a Mini prior to my 30GB iPod Video. However, a $50 difference would be a factor if I had to make that decision now.

The Beat Goes On, and On, and On...

Well, get ready for some reading. This post is going to be a long one. Apple had their big announcement today and yep, there’s going to be a new iPod and a few changes to some old favorites. Oh, where to begin?

The iPod Shuffle: 1GB, $79
The shuffle will get a wardrobe change and come in red, silver, blue, green, and purple. The blue, green, and purple aren’t as vibrant as the previous colors but they are pretty.

The iPod Nano: 4GB and 8GB, $149 and $199
The Nano gets an even bigger wardrobe change with the introduction of video and the new Cover Flow interface. It’s cute…shorter and fatter than before with a 2”screen (320x240) that is the same resolution as the current 5th Gen iPod Video. The whole thing is only 2.75 inches tall. The Nano also comes in new colors…silver, black, red, green, and blue. The 4GB variety is only available in silver. It’s also really thin – only 6.5 mm. The battery life isn’t bad either…5 hours for video and 24 hours for audio.

The iPod Classic: 80GB and 160GB, $249 and $349
This little baby is similar to the 5th Gen iPod Video but with the new Cover Flow interface and bigger hard drives. The colors have changed a bit in that the case is now metal and are available in grey and black (pretty close to the white and black offered in the iPod Video). Both versions come with a 2.5” screen and are a total of 4.1 inches tall. The 80GB is .41 inches thick (10.5 mm) and the 160GB is .53 inches (13.5 mm) thick. Playback time is lengthy with the 80GB having 40/5 hours for audio/video and the 160GB having 40/7 hours. These actually are pretty good prices considering you’re getting double the storage space as the 5th Gen Videos for the same price.

The iPod Touch: 8GB and 16GB, $299 and $399
The Touch is the most innovative iPod of the group. It looks a lot like the iPhone, only without the phone features. You get around the interface the same way you would an iPhone. Full sized touch screen (3.5 inch diagonal) and overall 4.3 inches tall. It’s thin too…only .31 inches (8 mm). Also new to this iPod is the Wi-Fi capability. Now you can download your favorite songs directly to your iPod wirelessly using iTunes that is installed on the device itself. Once you sync your iPod Touch with your computer, it will copy the music you purchased back to the iTunes library on your computer. Considering the screen type on the Touch, the playback times aren’t bad at all with 22 hours of audio and 5 hours of video. It even has Safari on it making it the first iPod to have Internet capability. Yep, I said Internet. In my opinion it’s a little pricey still but considering you’re getting the new interface, it’s not too bad.

Wi-Fi Music Store
As mentioned in the iPod Touch section, you can now download your favorite music through iTunes using the built-in Wi-Fi in the Touch and iPhone. Once you connect your device to your computer, iTunes will sync with it and copy the music you downloaded into your iTunes library.

Starbucks
Apple and Starbucks have come up with a plan to make it easier to download music at a Starbucks store. You can see what is currently playing at your favorite java hangout and also see what last ten songs were in their playlist. You can also download them while you’re there. Most all Starbucks should have this functionality by the end of 2008.

Ringtones for the iPhone
One thing people were complaining about is not being able to put custom ringtones on their iPhones. Now Apple has provided the opportunity to download ringtones to your iPhone through the iTunes store for an extra 99 cents a song. Say you find a song you like on iTunes and want to download it. So purchase it and then decide hey, that would make a great ringtone. Any song with the ringtone icon next to it in iTunes will give you the option to choose 30 seconds of the song, and for an extra 99 cents you can have those 30 seconds as a ringtone as well. Apple’s reasoning is that the $1.98 for the ringtone is cheaper than most ringtones you can purchase online.

Finale
So there you have it -- all the new products and technology that Apple is releasing involving the iPod. If your eyes aren’t worn out yet, head on over to Apple’s website to check out pictures and demos of their new toys.

Three More Weeks Until the Halo 3 Release

Yep, I’m counting down now. Three more weeks until Halo3 is unleashed on the world and we can all find out how it ends. The ironic part – I will be in San Antonio for a week attending class for work and won’t be able to play it. Sigh. I suppose good things come to those who wait.

So You’ve Hacked the iPhone…

I wondered how long it would take for the big “L” word (Legal, that is) would take to pop up in reaction to people unlocking the iPhone for use with carriers other than AT&T. I gotta give that 17 year old kid credit for doing it though. If Apple or AT&T were smart, they’d snatch him up. Apparently it’s not illegal to unlock the phone for personal use, but it might not be legal to unlock it and sell the phone or the technology to unlock it for a profit. I’m betting they’re not going to do the kid anything, but I do foresee any companies wanting to sell their software hacks being shut down. I’ve heard talk of other cell phone makers producing spin-offs of the iPhone. If it were me, I’d just wait until one of them came out with one before I go hacking into any $600 phone and voiding a warranty. :) You can read more at FoxNews.

iCar

Apple and VW are in talks about possibly doing an iCar. Yep, one more product to keep track of that has the “i” on the front of the name. Apparently this car will go further than just the iPod hookups that are currently integrated in many VW autos. No details have been released yet on exactly what would be included in this car but one can imagine it would be a nifty little piece of engineering.