Proud Geek

I got my beloved a Roomba for Christmas.  At the press of a button, it jigs and jags through our home, cleaning our wooden floors and rugs.  Using its cilia-like brushes, it cleans the edges along the walls.  Using its roller brushes, it sweeps the floor clean of dust, cat hair, crumbs, and any other residues of everyday life.

Plus, it provides minutes of entertainment for our daughters.  Any minute that our daughters are kept occupied is a minute of peace and blessings, indeed.  Until they try to go Roomba-surfing, that is.

Easy life, huh?  I thought we had it made.

Until last night, that is.  Yesterday, I saw my neighbor’s Husqvarna Auto Mower mowing the grass on its own.

According to its webpage, the Auto Mower is weather-proof, theft-proof, mulches your lawn, silent enough to run during the night, mows up-hill, and is pet-friendly.

Dammit.  I gotta keep up with the Joneses.  I’m going to buy one, even if it breaks our bank account.

Here’s a photo of the Auto Mower at work on our neighbor’s lawn.  (Click for a larger version.)  Double-dammit.

Just posted some thoughts on DeafDC.com about Loving and love.  Go check it out.

AT&T has announced that it will provide a discounted rate of $40 per month for deaf users of the iPhone. This discount also includes unlimited text messages, unlimited data usage, “Visual Voicemail,” and a rather steep $.40 per minute pay-per-use voice plan. If you wanna get this discount, you’ll have to apply by downloading and filling out a PDF form.

This also coincides with an announcement that AT&T will be offering discounts on new models of the iPhones for the general public starting this summer. These new iPhones will run on the 3G network which is much faster than the “older” data networks — almost as fast as broadband speed, in fact. And the discounts will make these iPhones be as low as $199.

Hmmm. Tempting. I’ve already made my opinions known about the iPhone, but as the iPhone goes through these updates I can be swayed …

(Thanks to David for pointing me to Gizmodo, and to Vadim for being first to let me know about this!)

Today is Free Cone Day at Ben and Jerry’s!  Now if there was ever a cause to celebrate at your local Ben and Jerry’s, this is it.

Ben and Jerry’s has its Free Cone Day on April 29th every year to celebrate its anniversary.  Go find your nearest Ben and Jerry’s and indulge yourself.

See you there!

In these challenging economic times, companies that we’ve long shopped at are now going belly up. And if you’ve got a gift card for any of these companies, better use the card soon or the card’ll lose its value. Same goes for if you’ve got an item you need to return or exchange - just don’t ask for store credit!

• Hollywood Video
• Levitz
• Sharper Image
• Performance Team Freight
• Linens n Things
• Circuit City
• Wickes Furniture

CompUSA has already gone out of business. I wonder if Toys R Us, Office Max, Staples, and Office Depot will be added to this list anytime soon. Just my own observations. Which companies do YOU think might be added to this list?

When I got onto my computer, I opened Facebook — and saw a friend’s status message that said:

woke up at 5:35 am… thanks to earthquake, that shake in Indiana

Whoa, an earthquake? In Indiana?! I sent that friend a wall-to-wall message asking if it was a meteorite strike rather than an earthquake, like what happened in another part of the USA the day before. No, it was indeed an earthquake, she said, and a 5.4 magnitude earthquake at that.

CNN soon confirmed it. A 5.4 magnitude earthquake took place in Illinois, and was felt as far away as where my friend is in Indiana. There are photos of damage. CNN has (at this moment) even stripped its home page to the bare basics to make it load quicker because so many people have been “hitting” CNN’s home page for news.

I’ve heard of people using the social features of the Internet to share news.  This is similar to when people use Twitter to get out of jail in Egypt.  But this is my first time I’ve heard of a major news story from a friend via Facebook before I heard of it elsewhere on the news.

Getting word out about something newsworthy on a national scope, and having friends hear about it first before the news even report it? That’s something new, and that’s certainly something powerful.

Folks who are in the earthquake zone, keep us updated via your Facebook status messages, willya? And hope all is well at your homes and elsewhere.

About time!  Starbucks has added something that I’ve wanted for a long, long time.

Splash sticks.

I’m tired of coffee splashing out of the lil’ hole on top and onto my hand while walking, or all over the cupholder in the car whenever the car hits a bump.  I’m tired of holding napkins onto that lil’ hole and steering one-handed.  But I still want my Starbucks Venti Pike Place Roast coffee.  So I had been putting up with these not-so-little inconveniences.

And now Starbucks has released mermaid-shaped splash sticks.  (I wonder if these mermaids have bare bosoms — not that I’d find them appealing or anything like that.)  They nicely plug the lil’ hole.  Uh, I’m talking about the sticks, not the bosoms.  Double uh, I mean, splash sticks, not that kind of “stick.”  And triple uh, I mean that lil’ hole on top of your drink.  Uh … Never mind.

They should be in your local store soon.  I think customers have to specifically request them.  Be sure to re-use them!

(Thanks, Starbucks Gossip!)

My favorite party-planning website, MyPunchbowl, just got better. It has partnered with Kayak.com and is now offering flight / hotel / car search services directly from the MyPunchbowl site. That is, guests who confirm party attendance can now make travel arrangements as well. Convenience, with Punch served with it!

Specifically:

• Event hosts can search flights, cars, and hotels directly from their MyPunchbowl account
• Event guests have travel search capabilities directly within the MyPunchbowl save the date or online invitation
• A simple option enables hosts to choose whether or not to display the travel center on the guest view

Not sure yet if guests can make reservations directly from the MyPunchbowl site, or if they’d be taken to Kayak.com to complete arrangements.

I asked Viable customer service for more info on VPAD accessories.   Viable has a vendor, Clear View, selling “CVI Gear for the VPAD” which includes the VPAD-compatible WiFi USB adapter (Wireless G, 54Mbps data transfer) for $29.99, a small rechargeable two (2) hour battery for $89.99 that can be attached to the VPAD, and a sleek, flexible clamp mount for $79.99 that puts the VPAD at eye-level on a desk.

VPAD customers can order “CVI Gear for the VPAD” at 1-800-351-9578.

Here are the prices again:

• CVI Flexarm Mount - $79.99
• WiFi Adapter - $29.99
• Rechargeable Battery - $89.99

I know some people will complain that the VPAD is already pricey (whether at the low low price of $99 or at the full price of $699), and that these accessories will only make the price question worse. But I think this makes perfect sense. For too long, our equipment has been heavily subsidized — whether from the state or Federal government or from the companies themselves. The deaf community is reaching a point where we can be economically self-sufficient, and the pricing of the VPAD and its accessories reflects this. Plus, it speaks volumes for Viable’s business sense to be able to offer its services at a price — it would allow Viable to develop multiple business platforms instead of just relying on FCC for Video Relay Service funds.

Wonder if Viable will offer discounts on packages in the future (i.e., some money off if you buy a VPAD with a mount, wifi adapter, and battery) …

There has been numerous comments about the MVP (Mobile VideoPhone) being planned and tested by HOVRS.  Apparently, the MVP will include WiFi and battery, rather than them being sold separately.  I’m gonna try my best to get more info on this and pass this on to you folks.

A follow-up to my post earlier this morning about the VPADs going on sale for $99 this Saturday.  Viable says this $99 discount (down from $699) is ONLY available for the Pomona, CA DeafNation Expo at this time.  Pricing is subject to change for future Expos.  And remember, this discount is limited to one per customer.

And … it’s first-come, first-serve.  If (when?) they sell out, then that’s it.  No further orders will be taken, and you’ll have to wait till the next Expo to buy these VPADs or when Viable’s on-line order form for VPADs is ready.  Even so, no guarantees that it’d still be $99 per VPAD.  No word yet on how many VPADs Viable plans to stock at this Saturday’s Expo.

So, better go to the Pomona DeafNation expo bright and early Saturday morning!  It opens at 9am.

On a side note: we need to make up a sign for the VPAD.  Maybe something like “verify” (backward V tapping on your palm), but with the V-hand reversed so that the “V” is hand-down and tapping your palm?