scot hacker's foobar blog http://birdhouse.org/blog Like a chicken with a jewel in its beak. Wed, 16 May 2012 17:58:13 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Miles and friend on the garage roof http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/16/miles-and-friend-on-the-garage-roof/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/16/miles-and-friend-on-the-garage-roof/#comments Wed, 16 May 2012 17:58:13 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/16/miles-and-friend-on-the-garage-roof/ Miles and friend on the garage roof

In album May 16, 2012 (1 photo)

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/16/miles-and-friend-on-the-garage-roof/feed/ 0 Did Pixar accidentally delete Toy Story 2 during production? Story from the horse's… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/did-pixar-accidentally-delete-toy-story-2-during-production-story-from-the-horses/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/did-pixar-accidentally-delete-toy-story-2-during-production-story-from-the-horses/#comments Wed, 16 May 2012 05:57:04 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/did-pixar-accidentally-delete-toy-story-2-during-production-story-from-the-horses/ Did Pixar accidentally delete Toy Story 2 during production? Story from the horse's mouth on Quora:

http://www.quora.com/Pixar-Animation-Studios/Did-Pixar-accidentally-delete-Toy-Story-2-during-production

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/did-pixar-accidentally-delete-toy-story-2-during-production-story-from-the-horses/feed/ 4 Nothing good on TV, so dug up the past tonight http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/nothing-good-on-tv-so-dug-up-the-past-tonight/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/nothing-good-on-tv-so-dug-up-the-past-tonight/#comments Wed, 16 May 2012 05:52:30 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/nothing-good-on-tv-so-dug-up-the-past-tonight/ Continue reading →]]> Expected a cheesy monster movie, but got something a bit different. You never actually see the monster in this one, since it's just a disembodied mental state that can see through the eyes of the creatures whose minds it occupies. Terrific view of life in 1955… if everyone lived in the desert in nuclear families with crazed animals and depressive mothers.

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The Beast with a Million Eyes – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Beast with a Million Eyes is a science-fiction movie about an alien able to see through the eyes of the many creatures he takes control of. It was produced and directed by David Kramarsky, althoug…

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/nothing-good-on-tv-so-dug-up-the-past-tonight/feed/ 0 Are there any Google devs reading this who can explain WHY the image portion of the… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/are-there-any-google-devs-reading-this-who-can-explain-why-the-image-portion-of-the/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/are-there-any-google-devs-reading-this-who-can-explain-why-the-image-portion-of-the/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 17:00:57 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/are-there-any-google-devs-reading-this-who-can-explain-why-the-image-portion-of-the/ Continue reading →]]> Are there any Google devs reading this who can explain WHY the image portion of the Charts API is being deprecated? This is one of the most useful and wonderful things Google offers to data nerds and developers, and I use it in several projects. The non-image side of the API is vastly more complicated and has no benefit to many of us over the image version.

Why kill wonderful tools? Thanks for any info.

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Google Chart Tools: Image Charts – Image Charts (Deprecated) — Google Developers
Google Chart Tools: Image Charts. Important: The Image Charts portion of Google Chart Tools has been officially deprecated as of April 20, 2012. It will continue to work as per our deprecation policy….

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/are-there-any-google-devs-reading-this-who-can-explain-why-the-image-portion-of-the/feed/ 3 Buchanan, not Obama, was our first gay president. http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/buchanan-not-obama-was-our-first-gay-president/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/buchanan-not-obama-was-our-first-gay-president/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 15:36:48 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/buchanan-not-obama-was-our-first-gay-president/ Continue reading →]]> "I have gone a wooing to several gentlemen, but have not succeeded with any one of them."

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Our real first gay president
Don't believe what Newsweek's cover tells you: The first gay president was James Buchanan more than a century ago

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/15/buchanan-not-obama-was-our-first-gay-president/feed/ 0 Helium-3 could become Earth's golden ticket to clean energy — if we're willing… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/14/helium-3-could-become-earths-golden-ticket-to-clean-energy-if-were-willing/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/14/helium-3-could-become-earths-golden-ticket-to-clean-energy-if-were-willing/#comments Mon, 14 May 2012 15:20:36 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/14/helium-3-could-become-earths-golden-ticket-to-clean-energy-if-were-willing/ Continue reading →]]> Helium-3 could become Earth's golden ticket to clean energy — if we're willing to strip mine the surface of the moon.

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Could Helium-3 really solve Earth's energy problems?
If you watched the movie Moon, you remember Helium-3 as the substance Sam Bell was sending back to Earth, during his onerous three year tenure on the Sarang lunar base.

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/14/helium-3-could-become-earths-golden-ticket-to-clean-energy-if-were-willing/feed/ 4 This song chills and warms me at the same time http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/12/this-song-chills-and-warms-me-at-the-same-time/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/12/this-song-chills-and-warms-me-at-the-same-time/#comments Sun, 13 May 2012 06:46:14 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/12/this-song-chills-and-warms-me-at-the-same-time/ Rock Bottom Riser – Smog

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/12/this-song-chills-and-warms-me-at-the-same-time/feed/ 0 We finally completed our build of the Lego T1 Camper Van! Includes a video walkthrough… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/11/we-finally-completed-our-build-of-the-lego-t1-camper-van-includes-a-video-walkthrough/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/11/we-finally-completed-our-build-of-the-lego-t1-camper-van-includes-a-video-walkthrough/#comments Fri, 11 May 2012 15:41:54 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/11/we-finally-completed-our-build-of-the-lego-t1-camper-van-includes-a-video-walkthrough/ Continue reading →]]> We finally completed our build of the Lego T1 Camper Van! Includes a video walkthrough narrated by Miles:

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Lego T1 Camper Van | scot hacker's foobar blog
Most (OK, all) of the Lego models we've purchased over the past five years have been for my son, who carefully assembles them, keeps them pristine for about a day (max), and then disassembles them…

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/11/we-finally-completed-our-build-of-the-lego-t1-camper-van-includes-a-video-walkthrough/feed/ 2 So many gorgeous alternative bike ideas out there. This is sexy as hell. http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/10/so-many-gorgeous-alternative-bike-ideas-out-there-this-is-sexy-as-hell/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/10/so-many-gorgeous-alternative-bike-ideas-out-there-this-is-sexy-as-hell/#comments Fri, 11 May 2012 05:43:48 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/10/so-many-gorgeous-alternative-bike-ideas-out-there-this-is-sexy-as-hell/ +Eli Cochran

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Belt-Driven, Hubless Rear Wheel Bicycle
Lunartic is a capstone project from Loughborough Design School student Luke Douglas: The aim was to use a hubless wheel to create a compact bicycle,…

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/10/so-many-gorgeous-alternative-bike-ideas-out-there-this-is-sexy-as-hell/feed/ 2 Do you know your POST from your PUT? Good summary in this intro to RESTful archi… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/do-you-know-your-post-from-your-put-good-summary-in-this-intro-to-restful-archi/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/do-you-know-your-post-from-your-put-good-summary-in-this-intro-to-restful-archi/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 17:21:21 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/do-you-know-your-post-from-your-put-good-summary-in-this-intro-to-restful-archi/ Continue reading →]]> Do you know your POST from your PUT? Good summary in this intro to RESTful architectures.

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phpmaster | REST – Can You do More than Spell It? Part 1
PHP Master | Fresh thinking for PHP developers. Learn PHP and MySQL – Tutorials. Master PHP Script, Date, PHP Contact Form and Validation, SOAP and much more

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/do-you-know-your-post-from-your-put-good-summary-in-this-intro-to-restful-archi/feed/ 0 Lego T1 Camper Van http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/lego-t1-camper-van/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/lego-t1-camper-van/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 07:48:12 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/?p=13002 Continue reading →]]> Most (OK, all) of the Lego models we’ve purchased over the past five years have been for my son, who carefully assembles them, keeps them pristine for about a day (max), and then disassembles them to be used as parts for his ongoing “Lego City” project, which rings his bedroom. It’s a noble effort, but as a former 1964 VW split-window bus owner, I couldn’t stand the thought of this one being taken apart. Some kind of mid-life crisis thing I guess, living out the past through my child’s eyes.

After some long delays as we raided his personal stash for missing bits, finally finished the build a few days ago. Amazing attention to detail in this model (1332 pieces), from the sink with comb and mirror to the surfing artwork on the interior, to the dashboard details, to the ridiculously accurate engine compartment and oil cooler, to the real fabric pop-top (which doesn’t really work that well, but hey, they tried).

Super-fun father/son build. Recommended.

IMG_5808 IMG_5813 IMG_5812 IMG_4542 IMG_4543 IMG_4541 IMG_5814 IMG_5811 IMG_5810 IMG_5809

Miles even narrated a little video tour for you:

]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/08/lego-t1-camper-van/feed/ 4 I'm still amazed sometimes at the power of the innertubes to bring people and… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/07/im-still-amazed-sometimes-at-the-power-of-the-innertubes-to-bring-people-and/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/07/im-still-amazed-sometimes-at-the-power-of-the-innertubes-to-bring-people-and/#comments Mon, 07 May 2012 07:11:59 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/07/im-still-amazed-sometimes-at-the-power-of-the-innertubes-to-bring-people-and/ Continue reading →]]> I'm still amazed sometimes at the power of the innertubes to bring people and answers together. I was approached recently to write a book on TextMate for a certain publisher, but a bit put off by their lack of professionalism in the first few messages exchanged, not to mention the small size of the advance they offered.

Posted a message on Twitter asking whether anyone had ever dealt with them, and within minutes, got a fantastic response from someone who had. Virtual strangers, willing to respond at length and help me with the decision.

After several exchanges, I've decided not to take on the book (but if you're a TextMate pro and are interested, let me know). I've already got a couple of books under my belt and don't need the clips/resume item – but if you haven't written a book, let me just say it's probably the single best thing you can do for your tech career, and its cred lasts a very long time.

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/07/im-still-amazed-sometimes-at-the-power-of-the-innertubes-to-bring-people-and/feed/ 2 It's been a long slog, but BeOS' successor "Haiku" has finally… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/its-been-a-long-slog-but-beos-successor-haiku-has-finally/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/its-been-a-long-slog-but-beos-successor-haiku-has-finally/#comments Mon, 07 May 2012 06:23:42 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/its-been-a-long-slog-but-beos-successor-haiku-has-finally/ Continue reading →]]> It's been a long slog, but BeOS' successor "Haiku" has finally been released. Good article in IEEE Spectrum :

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The Dawn of Haiku OS – IEEE Spectrum
How a volunteer crew brought a crack operating system back

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/its-been-a-long-slog-but-beos-successor-haiku-has-finally/feed/ 6 One of the most fascinating illusions! http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/one-of-the-most-fascinating-illusions/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/one-of-the-most-fascinating-illusions/#comments Sun, 06 May 2012 07:58:47 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/one-of-the-most-fascinating-illusions/ Reshared post from +Derya Unutmaz
One of the most fascinating illusions!

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/06/one-of-the-most-fascinating-illusions/feed/ 0 For Stuck Between Stations, Roger describes how his bicycle-themed playlist ground… http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/05/for-stuck-between-stations-roger-describes-how-his-bicycle-themed-playlist-ground/ http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/05/for-stuck-between-stations-roger-describes-how-his-bicycle-themed-playlist-ground/#comments Sat, 05 May 2012 16:58:27 +0000 shacker http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/05/for-stuck-between-stations-roger-describes-how-his-bicycle-themed-playlist-ground/ Continue reading →]]> For Stuck Between Stations, Roger describes how his bicycle-themed playlist ground to a halt on discovering the horrifying history of an old Velodrome.

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Vel’ d’Hiv: Springtime for Hitler (and Bicycles) | Stuck Between Stations
A few weeks ago, I started pulling together a bicycle-themed playlist. I'd hoped it would motivate me to train for a late-April metric century bike ride in Chico, California, which due to some fea…

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]]> http://birdhouse.org/blog/2012/05/05/for-stuck-between-stations-roger-describes-how-his-bicycle-themed-playlist-ground/feed/ 0