Sean Camden » Geek-centric

Apple 1 Sold at Auction

Sean — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 18:11:29 +0000

Apple computer sells for $210,700

A bargain at $210k

In a time when most personal computers were sold as self-assembly kits, the Apple-1 broke new ground as the first personal computer sold with a fully assembled motherboard.

Fellow Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who attended the auction in London, threw in an autographed letter with the sale. Wozniak said he was proud to have his work auctioned alongside such technologically notables as an Enigma, the World War II German code-making machine, and documents from British mathematician Alan Turing, a pioneer of modern computing.

“Today my heart went out as I got to see things auctioned off like the Turing documents and the Enigma machine–and the Apple I,” Wozniak reportedly told journalists after the auction. “It really was an important step, (even though) I didn’t feel that way when I designed it.”

You Might Get Eaten By a Smith Corona

Sean — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 17:39:12 +0000

Fans of the classic Infocom games (Zork et al) and geeks of all stripes may appreciate the efforts of Jonathan M. Guberman and his Automatypewriter.

A new way to interact with fiction from Jonathan M. Guberman on Vimeo.

Handheld Input With Swype

Sean — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:51:39 +0000

I just installed Swype on my Android phone, and it works pretty well. Fitaly was my last favorite handheld input method, but the stylus has gone the way of the 8-Track. This method is fast and intuitive; it does a good job of guessing what word you want based on your finger’s scribbling across the (slightly larger than the default Android) keyboard. It’s not perfect; sometimes your finger will be hiding the keys you want to slide over, forcing you to pause and misspell. But given how awful most handheld input options are, it’s a fine improvement.

This warning screen is a bit unnerving, particularly considering this recent article at CNet Report: A fifth of Android apps expose private data (via Slashdot). So maybe I won’t use Swype to enter any passwords. But its improved functionality is mostly lost on passwords anyway.

WordPress 3.0

Sean — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 04:14:04 +0000

It’s new. It’s neat. Check it out.

Good Games, Pay What You Want

Sean — Fri, 07 May 2010 17:41:57 +0000

http://www.wolfire.com/humble/

World of Goo alone is worth money.

Blu-ray Player Returns

Sean — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 16:45:51 +0000

40 days later, without a single unsolicited word from Sony at any point during the repair process, the BDP-S360 has returned. Seems to be working. Maybe I’ll just hold off on firmware updates, at least until a specific need demands … Continue reading →

Sony eSupport Repair Blu-ray Player BDP-S360, Part 1

Sean — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:42:07 +0000

Shipped the self-destructed BDP-S360 back to Sony’s facility in Laredo, Texas on the 26th of October via UPS and it arrived their a few days later on the 30th.

Waited a few days and heard nothing, no call, no email. Calling them (1-866-909-7669), I discover that a part necessary for the player’s repair has been back-ordered, and that if I want more information (I do!) I should call the repair center directly at 1-866-357-6230.

The repair center tells me that the part is not expected to arrive until November 27th, which would seem to indicate a functioning player returning to me no earlier than the beginning of December.

Sony is apparently not big on customer service.

Sony BDP-S360 Firmware Update 007 wrecked my player

Sean — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:40:38 +0000

After updating the firmware via the network connection, the Sony BDP-S360 died. It just flashes “SYS ERR” on the screen now and Sony’s eSupport says it will have to be sent in for repairs. In 7 to 10 days, not including shipping time, I may (or may not) get back a functional player. I sure hope Sony gets this Blu-ray thing sorted out soon. http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?upd_id=4941&mdl=BDPS360

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Exploring MythTV

Sean — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 21:25:34 +0000

Installed MythDora on a box cobbled together from parts and plugged it into the new TV. Bought a cheap cable card off ebay and plugged it in. Apparently, that was pointless, since the signal coming from the cable company is encrypted. MythTV doesn’t seem to see anything. The menu is far nicer to look at and navigate than the simply awful DVR interface offered by the cable company. Now if I can just get some content onto it.

Subnet Established

Sean — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 22:50:59 +0000

With the Buffalo WHR-G300N flashed with DD-WRT as the main access point, and the Linksys WRT54G flashed with Tomato as the client bridge, the new subnet is operational. Really underwhelming experience, quite frankly. But it’s done.