Combatting nasty comments!

One of the PM’s I got on Virily yesterday was: what do you think is an offensive comment?” For me, it is any comment that is directed at me, not at what I posted. That was one of the drivers for me reporting comments. Anyone that attacks me, I will remove their comments. The moderators may return them, but I won’t. I also don’t respond to people that post nasty comments about me.

One of the things that I love to play with is scanners. I have written many times about the Epson Perfection Series scanner that we used for the family history project. But there are a couple of other scanners that I use frequently. One of them is a smaller handled scanner from Dacuda. They have built an engine that allows you to scan text and convert on the fly. I love translation software! I wish you could translate things on a computer screen using the Dacuda device, but it doesn’t work on screens due to the nature of projection. It did, however, get me thinking about what it is that I like in terms of portable and easy to carry devices.

I have the pilot earbuds that I use for Voice Translation. They are extremely useful, and are higher fidelity for both translation and listening to your phone. I do also use the handheld Travis Translator. Travis has a unique translation algorithm and so far seems to have a much better translation rate than the earbuds (pilot) or google translate.

I’ve used the Travis Translator device with native Spanish, and native Dutch speakers. In the past, I knew just enough spends to get one or two of the words. With Travis, the Translator, I get all of the words. Travis handled both languages rapidly and correctly (in both cases, I asked the native speaker to verify). Overall the why use translation hardware remains a personal choice. If you travel or work in areas where non-your native language speakers are, it can be a valuable tool.

.doc

Of Bags backpacks and rolling…

Being able to pick up and go is a huge part of my job. I often find myself in situations where portability is critical. Its why I have a portable projector and printer. Most people don’t, but because of the nature of my job I do. It lets me evaluate what is critical for me. If I am tiding to the customer in my car, the printer can weigh more. If I am riding on the metro, it has to fit in my rolling bag. I tore up my shoulder with all the flights to Europe and Asia carrying a heavy backpack. I don’t do that anymore, but the damage is done. A couple of years ago, I talked about things that I carried that were backpack worthy. I don’t have a backpack currently. Well, I have one, but I don’t use it.

In part, the shoulder pain is my fault. I was always in a hurry and never wore the backpack on both shoulders. I always had it on one shoulder. A lesson learned, sadly far too late. I moved to a rolling bag about five years ago. In that time I have found several very good rolling bags. Currently, my favorite rolling bag comes from Victorinox the same people that make the Swiss army knife. Rolling bags are more about the wheels than anything. Yes, in the case of an emergency, my rolling bag does have backpack straps. But counting the time I pushed the backpack straps into their little holder, and the times I’ve used the bag as a backpack, we are still at 1.

I have talked to bag people over the years. I have given the folks at various companies my thoughts on what would make a bag better. There are now bags that include solar power. Bags that include wifi integrated hotspots. Bags that have cameras that let you see behind you and bags with built-in power supplies so that you can charge your devices while using your bag. The problem is you have to use the bag properly and I don’t. my left shoulder hurts every day because of that. Payback is never a good thing. Some of the newer bags are interesting because they are systems. They actually work together. I have a rolling suitcase that has the perfect holder for a backpack. If my shoulder wasn’t bad I would probably use it. Instead, I use two rolling bags. Good thing I don’t travel as much anymore. I cut a wide swath through an airport.

.doc

Arguing with my GPS…

Do you ever argue with your GPS? I know, growing up using an old fashioned compass that I have a sense of direction for the most part. What I also have is a processing system that has visual input as well as experience-based evaluations of previous events. A couple of days ago, I was heading to a location that I have been to several times. I was coming from a new place to start, so I used the GPS. As we got closer, I knew the route I wanted to take. The GPS wanted to go a different route. So, as the driver, I made the call, and we went my way. I saved a good 10 minutes and avoided the last two traffic lights that for some reasons the GPS wanted to stop at.

Perhaps GPS has invested in stoplight companies. I don’t know.

That got me thinking, about the inputs most GPS’s have and get. The inputs today are relative to your car. Where are you (via the connection to the remote Satellite), how fast are you going and reported traffic. There is so much more information that could help drivers, but it is going to require more bandwidth. The GPS of tomorrow will know your favorite route and why!

The other side of arguing with the GPS is the reality of sitting in your car. What else, computerized voices, would you argue with? I know for example, that from time to time Alexa and I disagree about things. That disagreement is in my kitchen, basement, or office. I don’t argue with SIRI in public, although at times I have considered arguing with Siri. The reality of a person yelling at their phone over and over is most likely to make everyone around them nervous.

So what would you argue with?

My dog and I frequently disagree about the timing of his walk and the timing of breakfast and dinner. I don’t argue out loud with him, however.

I argue with people from time to time,

What else do you argue with?

.doc

Initial Review Anker Capsule II projector…

Many years ago, I coined a phrase Screen as a Service (SCRaaS). The concept was using screens as services where the screen can be consumed. The easy button example of this is Google Chromecast. With that, you plug a receiver into an open HDMI port on a TV and then project content to your screen from your computer or mobile device. Apple TV does the same thing, and Samsung has a native player on their TV’s. It means you can take the small screen (phone) and push the information to the large screen (TV or Projector). I do it all the time in my home office and often upstairs on the upstairs TV in our house. It isn’t hard, and the results are pretty simple and effective.

But, the world of projectors is today’s conversation. I have been a huge fan of projectors for many years. The personal or sometimes PICO projector has interested me. There was, for a time, a case that would be a projector and charge your iPhone or Android phone. They were ok overall but lacked the luminance to be effective projectors. The higher-end or expensive Laser Projectors have the lumens and normal to large to make effectively portable. What you need is a projector that includes a speaker. It also needs to be small enough that you can easily carry it with you. Flexible in the sense that it can’t work with only Android, or only iPhone. Plus it needs to be easy to use.

That is why Google built Android TV and the rise of the new smart projectors. First, if you stream, you no longer need a device to stream from. You use your PICO projector. The picture is of the one I am using. I backed the original Capsule campaign on Kickstarter (from Anker the USB power company) and also decided to back the Capsule II when it became available. The picture is of my Capsule II. I can quickly plug an HDMI cable into my iPhone and read documents when I need to now. I do the same with my Samsung phone, tablet, or iPad. But, if I want o watch Netflix, I turn on the Capsule and stream at will. If you are often on the go, a PICO projector is a must-have! I never know what type of projector is in a conference room, but I don’t have to worry about that anymore!

Capsule II is a great solution in the PICO projector space!

.doc

what do you do when your mouse breaks?

When I was younger, the “price point” was much lower than it is today, but it is also too high today for many things. When I was a kid, honestly ten bucks was roughly my upper limit for the cost of things. Now that limit is higher, but I do wonder sometimes. Things that now cost 100 dollars didn’t use to cost 100 bucks. Yesterday I dropped [ped my mouse. I have done that many times over the years, and every once in a blue moon, you drop it in such a way that something breaks. The scroll wheel on the mouse was broken. I don’t use my mouse often (the computer has a touch screen) but when I do the scroll button is the go-to function that I use the most.

You scroll documents, web pages, and so on. That is roughly 90% of what I use the mouse for. First off, if you don’t have a touch screen, then you use the mouse for 3everyting. If you do have a touchscreen then like me you’ve probably begun the transition to the world between the click. Do I use the mouse or press the screen? I find that I use the screen more and more. The only time I don’t now (use the finger on screen) is when I am scrolling and if I need a pinpoint selection. In part, because I am a frequent iPad user, the reality of touch was easier to adopt. That did get me thinking though; I do have a computer at home that isn; ’t a touch screen.

I realized yesterday as I threw the mouse away, that once I started only using the screen on the computer I use for writing, I started trying to use the non-touch screen of my VM computer. I kept touching the screen, pausing and then realizing it is mouse-driven, no touch screen! I did sadly do that twice yesterday. But in fairness, I did not suffer mouse withdrawal.  I did decide this morning to get a new replacement mouse, as I was looking online, I noticed that you can get many different types of mice now for computers. What I wondered was the price point. As in how much would you spend for a keyboard and a mouse, or a mouse or a keyboard? I will ask a few questions in the poll, thanks for reading!

.dox

More on 5g

Latency  – to put the term in simple words it is the time between I click on a picture online, and my computer can display that picture for me. The time between the click and the load is Latency. The longer the time, the more frustrating it can be. What if it wasn’t a picture you were clicking on, but instead you were clicking on a site providing information about a plant that your dog ate — latency matters when it is life or death. One of the reasons why robotic surgery hasn’t taken off is Latency. IF you have a doctor who can perform a specific surgery better than anyone in the world having that person preforming your surgery is the optimal scenario. But that surgeon lives in another state.

It is the time between when I ask for something and when I get something is important for another reason. It is the reality of what type of data you are requesting. Again, if I am here on Virily and I request a full screen of one of Kim’s Flowers, or Lajenna’s Lunapics, or Flowers by Vidocka or CarolDM, Lado, Ghostwriter or expanding one of Linda’s favorite buildings, I probably expect a delay. In the world of cellular phones today, a Latency of 100 milliseconds is acceptable. In the future, with the 5th generation network (that is what 5g actually means), you will see Latency of 20 milliseconds on average. In the Cell phone world, that is a huge shift in available timing for applications and data.

But, to reply to the comments of yesterday, the technology has to be of value to you. Latency matters when you are doing surgery remotely or robotic surgery. Latency matters when you are talking about Driverless cars.  The other things that have to happen are there has to be value for people to want this new thing. Today if you are 20, there is value in 5g. On average they, 20-year-old’s, watch more TV/Movies on their phone than on a TV. They stream YouTube and other channels of information to their phones. They listen to podcasts. As 5g rolls out (it is in 6 US cities, and 12 cities outside the US today), I suspect people are going to need a value proposition to move.

I know from our community here that robotic surgery and driverless cars aren’t of value to readers. But, what if you needed information in less than 2 seconds to save someone’s life. Would speed matter then?

.doc

5g is coming!

Normally for me, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) provides the fodder what I think is a game-changer in technology. Not this year, well it did, but it didn’t. The change I see coming is the reality of 5g.  With reduced network latency, and now some users in Chicago, Minneapolis and other Verizon cities are getting 1.3 gigabytes to the phone or better (in the best sense of disclosure I do work for Verizon). What this means in the short run is not much. The reality of the 5g rolling out is that today, things are more focused on smaller pockets. 5g presents a lot more data in as I mentioned a lower latency. The industries that this is going to impact are many.

Driverless cars, remote robotic surgery, faster analytics and data processing, and beyond that I could keep going.  4k Ultra TV can be streamed. It makes applications respond faster. It empowers more and more capabilities. The problem is the reality of what is the network and what is the device. We can cram an infinite amount of data down a pipe, but in the end, of the device can’t keep up things don’t work. That’s why Apple and Samsung have focused on building up their onboard cell phone processor. 32-bit processors cannot address more than four gigs of onboard memory. They can address infinite storage, just only the four gigs of RAM. As we move to 5g, you could be looking at buffering more than 1.3 megabytes per second.

In 5g you would fill your memory in 5 to 6 seconds. Most shows do not buffer 5 seconds. They look to buffer 10-20 seconds for a better viewing experience. With 5g that is easily done, but you will create problems for live streaming of 4k Ultra HD events — with lower latency and greater reliance on the capabilities of the remote device, being able to have enough memory on that device becomes critical. Samsung and Motorola have 5g Capable handsets today. Apple maybe this year, (2020) or next year for the iPhone/iPad cellular improvement to 5g. The remainder of the major phone makers has already announced their intent to have 2020 be the year of 5g handsets.

It is a great new technology that will change the world, once it rolls out!

.doc

Improving Virily

The top three per the Virily community (sending this on Monday am EDT).

• 18 yes votes

• Update the dashboard more often

• 16 yes votes

• I want to edit my posts

• 15 yes votes

• I want to edit my comments• The next tier of votes was nine votes

• I would like the 20 character limit for comments changed to 10

• There were a number tied with eight votes

• Eight votes

• I would like to understand how posts are approved

• I want to be able to delete my posts

• I want to be able to resize the thumbnail in my posts

• If I report a comment on my post, I would like it to remain off my post The remainder got 6 or fewer votes.As a long-time IT person, who has run sites similar to Virily, I want to caution everyone. The dashboard updated more often three years ago. But at that time there were less than 200 users. We are well past 2000 users, and doing that update or change may be very expensive. The other side of the poll from Friday is that most people are not willing to commit their Virils to fix the site. Based on that, the admin team. I won’t rerun the poll the link to the post with the overall community polls is here. https://virily.com/virily_poll/the-13-questions-that-were-9-and-then-10-for-the-virily-admin-team-from-the-virily-community/.

I will ask the will you trade the value of one viril for the cost to fix the site one more time today.

It is important to remember (Rex reminded me of this in a recent comment) advertising online revenue has decreased over the past eight years by a lot. Virily is operating on a small budget (IMHO). I don’t think that Virily has been moving towards becoming a public ally traded company (listed on the stock exchange, selling shares in the site to buyers) but I don’t live in the country where Virily is hosted, so I don’t know if they are doing that in reality.

I am packaging all of this up and sending it to the Admin team tomorrow!

For this poll, please only pick one of question 2, 3 or 4!

.doc

two crowdfunding success stories!

Another crowdfunding success story or stories is the growing realm of 3d printing. 3doodler is a pen that you can write in plastic. Recently they have also released metal, wood and other materials you can write with! I use the 3doodler to create smaller objects. Although people far more talented than I am can create things, tare is beyond amazing. 3Doodler continues to expand the world of handheld 3d printers. Like a soldering iron, it is really important to remember that the 3Doodler uses heat to melt what is being drawn with. The heat the pen creates is very high. Anything that produces massive head should be used with caution. You will end up burning yourself if you are not careful.

Snapmaker is another success story. Snapmaker has a 3d printer that isn’t just a printer. It is also a CNC carver and a laser engraver.  That means you can print in plastic, carve wood or plastic and laser etch on objects. Many 3d printers cost well more than 1000 dollars. The software is really hard to use, and well all they do is print plastic. The cool capabilities of the Snapmaker printers allow you as the creator to do more. You have the option to print plastic. You have the option to use the laser to carve shapes out of wood. Finally, you can use the engraver to engrave on wood, metal, and other surfaces. I have used all three functions of the Snapmaker and find them to be easy to sue!

Crowdfunding is a great starting point of a good idea. The reality is it takes more than a good idea to move a company to real. So many crowdfunding companies had a great idea but were early to the market (Keecker and Jibo are great examples.) There is more to having a business model than having built a new mousetrap. You also have to have a strong business plan, processes, and ultimately, the market has to be ready for your idea. One of the things that large companies did well in the past was they paid people to think about new things. You didn’t end up putting your dream into a crowdfunding campaign only to have to shutter the company a year later. Post-it notes sat on a shelf at 3m for ten years.

.doc

13 ways to fix Virily

Twelve little suggestions sitting on the bed, One fell off and bumped their head. Sorry, I remember those counting songs from years ago. A missing suggestion from the past was PMed to me, and CarolDM added a great new poll question. Please note that the rules remain the same only faces have been changed to protect the innocent.

1. Vote 5 times for the ones on this list you want to be submitted

2. Vote no if that particular one doesn’t impact you.

3. Question 13 does not count against your five choices! It is to show the admin team we are willing to compromise!!!!

Please note, this poll intends to gather the highest votes. If only one thing impacts you, please for one thing. But do consider the reality of what impacts other users if you only have one or two that impact you. I will leave the poll up for today all way until Sunday. (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) For voting. I will tabulate the scores and share those Monday early, at the same time sending the link to the post and the top five issues for Virily writers in an email to the Admin team.

There are, of course, no guarantees that anything will happen. I know there are a couple of changes requested that is pretty easily done. I know there are a couple that is a little more expensive. Please note that based on that, question 13 does not count in your five. It is asking the community would you be willing to give up the value currently of Virils to implement these changes what that means in a plain talk where a Viril today is rough .00010 us cents per Viril, roughly 1000 to a US dollar. We would accept less value per Viril to get these changes.

So, vote five times on the issues that impact you.

Vote no on any issue that doesn’t impact you.

Please make a selection for question 13 separate of the other 12. (pick 5 of the 12, number 13 is to show the admin team we are willing to compromise)!

Link to the poll

.doc