Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday that is observed on the last Monday of May (scheduled today May 29, 2006). It was formerly known as Decoration Day. This holiday commemorates U.S. men and women who died in military service for their country. It began first to honor Union soldiers who died during the American Civil War. After World War I, it expanded to include those who died in any war or military action. One of the longest standing traditions is the running of the Indianapolis 500, which has been held in conjunction with Memorial Day since 1911.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day

That's my boy

Jesse wanted some nice pictures for graduation but didn't want the hassle of going to a photographer. He asked his mother to take some pictures of he and his girlfriend and these are the result. 18 photos  taken 26 May 06.

more flickr photos
more flickr Sets

A few new blogs are coming!!!

I've been toying with the idea of creating a few more blogs to keep my thoughts more focused, organized and on topic. There are a number that I would like to write but two of interest to me now (which is all that matters anyway), are Internet development and overall fitness (diet, exercise, weight training, martial arts).

I've almost completed a new personal blog interface that will allow me to post articles to the appropriate individual blogs by selecting the overall topic as well as produce an internal news feed for easy reference. This will help me manage the blogs and still stay on the Blogger system which in my opinion does help promote the content.

Over time, the new interface will also interact with the pinging services to also promote the individual blogs. Sure, there is a good bit of time in this development but I am also doing it for a real customer so what the heck.

I'm still coming up with a title for the health and fitness blog and time is running short because I start my new 12 week program on Monday. Whew, this is going to be fun! Also, look for a few changes at my personal website (at the root of this one) where I will offer feed links to all my blogs as well as article indexes to news and information. I'm working on that today as a result of a few new tricks I've discovered and innovated.

Aint the Internet great?

Wikipedia puts the word surf back into the internet

I am absolutely in love with Wikipedia! It is a wonderful resource for almost any topic and I have come to trust its content mostly because there are enough people with knowledge and skills watching each topic. I won't get into a profile of human nature or human nature online of which I am a self proclaimed expert, but I will say that 'smart' people online love to prove it.

Well, they have proved it. Search on nearly any topic (in English) and you can learn about just about anything. With more than 1,150,000 articles online, this is a must bookmark resource. The home page alone can keep you busy for hours.

But don't take my word for it, here is what the Wikipedia article says about themselves...

Wikipedia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wikipedia is a global and multilingual Web-based cooperative free-content encyclopedia. It exists as a wiki, a type of website that allows visitors to edit its content; the word Wikipedia itself is a portmanteau of wiki and encyclopedia and is often abbreviated to WP by its users. Wikipedia is written collaboratively by volunteers, allowing most articles to be changed by anyone with access to a computer, web browser and Internet connection.

The project began on January 15, 2001 as a complement to the expert-written (and now defunct) Nupedia, and is now operated by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Wikipedia has more than 3,800,000 articles in many languages, including more than 1,154,000 in the English-language version. Since its inception, Wikipedia has steadily risen in popularity^[1] and has spawned several sister projects.

Wikipedia's most controversial style policy is that editors are required to uphold a "neutral point of view", under which notable perspectives are purportedly summarized without an attempt to determine an objective truth. Application of this policy has proven difficult to enforce consistently.

Notice all the links in the text of the article? They link to other articles indexed on the word that is linked. Frankly, I think Wikipedia puts the word surf back into the internet. You can surf their articles for hours and never get tired, learn about stuff you didn't even realize you were interested in and immerse yourself in information paralleled by no other website.

(Oh, interesting learning point, "started on January 15" - we share that birthday though mine was a few years prior)

You can even register and write your own articles, comment on articles and/or join discussions about topics and articles. It's a wonderful resource that should be bookmarked, favorited, saved, desk topped, written down, quoted and used by anyone who wants to expand their knowledgebase.

No more film camaras?

You could have predicted this years ago but really didn't give it much thought. I've been using digital cameras for years because it is so easy to get them onto my computer. Many people resisted the evolution from film to digital citing the key concern; "I just like to flip through my pictures." The meaning behind the concern was that pictures put on the computer rarely made it to a quality print process.

Enter Walmart and other main stream retailers who offered an easy way to have your digital film developed. While still costing a good bit more than the old "roll" of film per picture, the fact is fewer pictures needed to be developed simply because you could pick your best shots overall.

Then enter smaller and faster cameras with better quality and larger storage. I can take 500 medium quality pictures with my "card deck" size camera that print beautifully. Now I can still choose my favorites but I have more favorites to choose from. Now I'm printing more pictures and paying more for them. That's okay... it's worth the freedom.

So, my prediction? That the camera manufacturers would stop making film cameras. Okay, that's a broad stroke and not likely to ever come to pass but it looks like the end of some consumer market film camera development has started to be affected by the digital age.

Canon to Stop Making Single-Lens Camera

May 25, 10:08 AM (ET)
TOKYO (AP) - Japan's top camera maker, Canon Inc. (CAJ), will stop developing new single-lens reflex film cameras as more people abandon film for digital, company officials said Thursday.

The Tokyo-based Canon's move followed a similar move by its closest Japanese rival, Nikon Corp., which announced earlier this year it would stop making seven of its nine film cameras and concentrate on digital models.

Canon will continue making film cameras already on the market as long as their demand remains. Whether to withdraw from the film camera business will be "decided appropriately by judging the market situation," said Canon spokesman Hiroshi Yoshinaga.

Full article at MyWay

On a quest to physical fitness

When you want things to be different, you have to be willing to do different things.

There have been quite a few changes in my life the past few months and somehow, I think that trend is likely to continue. Some of the changes are of my own doing, others were brought forth through the normal course of life. The changes thus far have been good.

One of the things I've resolved to change is my fitness, or lack thereof. A few years ago I looked in the mirror and realized that I had become "white, wide and weak." At the time, I had been working 16 hour days in my home office which happened to be in a dark corner of my basement. Barely more than glorified crawlspace, I would spend every waking hour at my computer.

As with an creature who does not control what they eat and live a sedentary life in darkness, it was only natural that I became discolored, over weight, and weaker than I had ever been in my life. I made a change and with the help of a book titled "Body RX," I changed myself from head to toe. I ate better, got stronger and as a result of my long runs in the park, even began to get some coloration back in my skin. (grin)

One other tangible result of improving my diet and getting some exercise was I became more productive. It would seem that I could remember things better, problem solve better, stay better focused and meet deadlines easier when I was taking care of myself physically.

Over the past few years I have neglected to remember these valuable lessons and have not given my physical fitness, nor my diet the attention it deserves. Oh, I've not locked myself away in a dank dark basement, but I have not been watching what I eat, have not been going to the gym at all and have been spending way too much time sitting at my desk.

Well that's about to change!

I have a new book! It's called "Body for Life" and I intend to follow the instructions to the letter. (Well almost anyway.) This book offers a program that takes 12 weeks to completely transform yourself physically and mentally. I will also be adding another element to this plan and that is Kung Fu. I've made a new friend who is willing to mentor me in the Chinese Martial Arts Wah Lum Kung Fu, Pong Lai Kung Fu, Yang Style Tai Chi, (I think that's what it is.), so that will be an integral part of my new self.

An 84 day fast! Yep, for 84 days I will avoid food that I enjoy eating, avoid drinks that I like drinking and avoid sitting around doing nothing. I will concentrate on my physical self, learn new ways to fight and if I'm correct, even learn a new way to meditate through the martial arts. So here we go... it's gonna be a ride.

I have a desire to journal this experience from my other website, DavidFrancis.org. Look for a new link to a new blog after I get that going. I'll likely post some statistics, experiences and progress photos. It should be comical to say the least. The Fitness Link may end up getting divided into two areas, martial arts and the Gym. I'm not sure how it will all pan out, it's just one of those things I thought about doing.

This week is considered "Week Zero" of the 12 weeks. I'm going to re-read the book, take some measurements of myself as well as some photographs. Build a nutrition and supplement schedule as well as arrange my times at the martial arts academy. It is a time for preparation, planning and commitment. It's also a time for me to get some things finished around here so I can have the time to get out once in a while and worry about myself for a change.

Wish me luck... hey... why not join me in this quest to physical fitness?

Bowling Green Police 100%

BG Police Force At Full Strength
May 18, 2006

With eight newly added officers and one dispatcher, the Bowling Green police force can boast something it has not been able to in a long time - full strength. Lieutenant Colonel Jerry Wells tells WBKO that it shows the City Commission's commitment to public safety. It will still be some time before the newly hired officers hit the streets, but Wells says, "What we've hired.brings us to full capacity in terms of what we're authorized for sworn strength."

(As reported on InsightBB.com local news)

Subscribing to the Daily News (online) was easy!

Has anyone tried subscribing online?

I recently took a private office for SoKy.net and decided to honor my published commitment to subscribe to the Park City Daily News print version. Being a web developer by trade and an internet enthusiast by choice, I am perfectly comfortable conducting business online. Whether it's filling out a form, sending an email or filling a shopping cart, I find it is easier for me to place orders for products and services using the Internet.

Subscribing to the Daily News was easy! On the left side of their website, there is a link which is a little hard to find but works none the less.

 

Perhaps they should consider renaming this link (or adding a new one) that says "subscribe today."

Clicking on the link brings up a secure form that allowed me to provide all the necessary information to receive the paper, pay my subscription and even offer special comments. Once submitted, I even received a notice that my order was received. I did notice that the receipt suggested that someone will contact me about my order which I found strange. I thought, "why do the need to contact me? I gave them all they needed." No one contacted me, I guess it's just the standard reply.

Another option available was to pay for my monthly subscription on the 5th or the 20th of each month. I selected to pay on the 5th for 12 months. It comes right out of my business account and now my paper will come to my new office every day and I don't have to think about sending a check, paying the delivery person.

I figured it would take a few days for the order to be processed and given to the delivery person. Frankly, I expected it to take up to a week. Boy, was I surprised when I received my first paper (on my door step no less) the very next day.

Anyone who reads my blogs regularly knows that I'm quick to post my critical opinions of the paper from time to time. It's only fair that I post my positive observations as well. With all the things that I think could be improved on bgdailynews.com, the online subscribing feature needs no adjustment. It works great.

Section 508, Web accessibility : Just a little frustrated

I've been an advocate of web accessibility standards for years because it helps people with disabilities enjoy the internet. It's also a great way to publish information online that is easy to manage and manipulate. I was trained in the Air Force to produce websites that meet or exceed the requirements of US Law under the Rehabilitation act and more specifically section 508 as it applies to content online.

I spent allot of time last week debugging a new website to comply strictly with section 508 because the site is for a Kentucky state legislator. I felt that if anyone should comply with these standards, it should be those who have been chosen to represent us and inform us. I'm proud of this new website and it should release May 1st.

Then in my search for news and information today, I found myself at WhiteHouse.gov. I decided to test the site for compliance and woe is me... if failed miserably. Now they do have have some nice statements about the efforts to make their site accessible but that's about it. The site even fails to validate for basic mark up. I can't figure out how this can be so, but then my focus is a little unique I guess.

Sure, I'm a little frustrated that George Bush and his White House staff have not made the effort to comply with the law or serve the community they serve. That won't affect my own drive to comply with standards. I think it's important to create websites that all people can access. Who'd a thunk that I would be creating websites that even the blind could enjoy.

Okay; admittedly this website doesn't validate either. It's just easy... and yes... it's just lazy.