April 24, 2010 by Joel.

It’s been 3 weeks since Jan got her WiFi iPad. My 3G+WiFi arrives next Friday, 4/30. Can’t wait. As you know if you read this blog, I first commented on the iPad back at the end of January when it was first announced. After having seen and used Jan’s iPad for a few weeks, I’m even more convinced that I’m right about the device.

Let’s talk about several aspects of the iPad.

Performance. The A4 processor delivers snappy performance. As you rotate the iPad through a 360 degree turn, the screen morphs quickly to each new orientation. There is no up or down to the iPad. Web pages render quickly and crisply. I don’t have an iPhone, but I do have a first-gen iPod Touch. It too is an elegant device, but pages on Safari render slowly, unlike the iPad where it’s just there. Multi-touch zoom is so fast that it feels entirely natural.

Form factor. The iPad feels “right.” The screen is big enough for most web pages, but the device is comfortable the size of a thin book (Jan has the Apple case on hers, I have the case but no iPad ). Weight is minimal, esp. when compared to a laptop. I’m looking forward to not lugging my laptop around campus.

Battery. David Pogue said that he could get 12 hours of video playback. We’ve never even gotten the battery level on Jan’s down do 50%. Other pundits have said that 10 hours is conservative, too.

Apps. Yep, you can download zillions of apps. Most are not iPad optimized (and it does make a difference), but you can you iPhone/iPad apps quite happily. They work well, just not with the video resolution of the iPad native apps.

Security. OK, so the browser on iPhone OS was cracked at Pwn20wn, but so was everything but Chrome. It’s still orders of magnitude more secure than using MSIE under Windows. The Walled Garden is a good model. With Citrix apps, support for 802.1x authentication, VPN support, etc. for the iPad, it’s a device that can play in the enterprise. It’s not as open as Android, but each app that’s available to a non-jailbreak device is vetted to some degree by Apple, and that oversight is not a bad thing as I reflect on the state of computer insecurity these days.

Functionality. So you can’t run everything on it. But with 150,000 apps, geez…you can generally find what you want.

So, what’s not to like? it’s not a laptop. Don’t try to make it one. However, it will so so much that folks use laptops for. I’ll convert my work laptop to a virtual desktop (i.e. it will stay in its dock) and I’ll carry the iPad. Typing works reasonably well, but it’s not a physical keyboard. If you really need a keyboard, get an Apple bluetooth keyboard for use with the iPad and you are set. It’s not a phone. You can’t make calls with it and you will carry your phone. However, the iPad is a “cloud portal appliance” and it excels at that (raspberries to Google for not supporting docs editing on mobile Safari browsers).

Am I happy I’ve ordered one? You bet! I enjoy the 10 minutes per day that Jan lets me play with her iPad and I can’t wait until 4/30!

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March 29, 2010 by Joel.

Each year in the spring, the daffodils put on a show at my parent’s house in Pitt County. My great-aunt Lottie (born 1895) planted the first ones at the homeplace in the 1930’s. This year, WRAL’s Tarheel Traveler visited during the peak bloom and interviewed my mom and dad. They didn’t give their names nor the exact location, as they get plenty of traffic there anyway. It’s a neat piece. We’ve got many pictures of our own kids in the flowers…hope you enjoy the video!

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January 17, 2010 by Joel.

Awoke this morning to pouring rain and low expectations of seeing the beach. Drove to get the paper, and got drenched getting one from the box. However, during the 2nd latte this morning, I looked out and saw sunshine and blue skies! Dropped the paper, chugged the coffee, and hit the beach for a three-mile walk. As soon at the old dog is settled, I think we’ll head out again. There’s a chance of rain again later today, but much better weather than expected!

Those oysters at Jordan’s last night were excellent; we’ll head back for a another peck this evening!

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January 16, 2010 by Joel.

This year, the weather over the MLK holiday weekend is more salubrious than last year, though it is supposed to rain all day Sunday. Last year, the highs were in the 30’s on the beach. Today, we had beautiful sunshine this morning, and though the sun is filtered through some thin clouds now, it’s a pleasant 60F on the deck. A walk of about 2 miles this morning to get the paper, breakfast with 3 lattes, then a 5 mile walk. Crackers, brie, and pepper jelly for a snack before oysters at Jordans this evening. This is the kind of day that makes you glad you live below the Mason-Dixon line ;-). The last 10 days have been pretty chilly for NC, with lows well down in the teens and highs most days in the 30’s. Ice on the ponds, and my backyard goldfish pool still had an inch of ice on the corners though Friday’s temps were into the 50’s. We’d debated all week about whether to come, waiting on Thursday’s forecast. Hopefully the rain will pull out Sunday night and give us nice weather to get out on Monday morning before we come home. Jan and I both have Monday off, and she has Tuesday off. We’d stay late Monday, but I have a scout committee meeting in the evening.

We talked to some friends right down the street here at EI, and they told us that Swansboro has a new Performing Arts Series, and there’s a folk acoustic trio playing at 2PM Sunday. A possibility for tomorrow.

Oh well, the clouds are beginning to thicken and it’s getting cooler as the afternoon progresses. Time to head inside…

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January 12, 2010 by Joel.

OK, so it’s already January 12th…it’s still early in the new year! 2010 is off to a good start. We’ve got both kids back out of the house again, off at their respective schools, so peace and quiet reigns. I’ve been trying to keep on top of communications and planning for my new BSA role as District Chairman. I think that the key is to do what I need to do right when I think of it; if I let it sit, too much time will pass and I’ll also stand a better chance of dropping a ball. Electronic communication will be important, and I plan to try to use Skype for conference calls, and also leverage either the current Yahoo site or a Google group. We’ll also make use of collaborative editing with Google Docs. I’m gearing up to teach at UNC-CH again this semester in my role as an adjunct in SILS. Last semester was the first time in 10 years I’ve not taught a class, and I feel energized to do it; it’s been good to take the time off. I’m working on getting my vacation schedule set up and coordinated with my colleagues at UNCG. I want to be sure that I get some time for shad fishing in March, Bassclave in June or July, and beach time in August. Time flies, and the cold weather we’ve been having will be gone soon, and the fish will be biting. I do plan to try for some trout in early February. There’s a local pond/lake that gets a trout stocking during the winter. I’ll be giving that a try this year. What’s that whooshing sound? Time rushing by

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August 10, 2009 by Joel.

On vacation this week (actually since July 31) at Emerald Isle, NC. We’ve been having a great time, but this is the first time we’ve been here in August in a while, and the first time we’ve really paid attention to the hatches of sea turtles. Over the many years we’ve come here, we’ve seen turtle nests, several each summer. However, we actually saw several turtles extracted from nests that had boiled (hatched) three nights previously, and we invested several hours sitting, waiting at two nests. We missed one, as it boiled several hours after we’d left the beach one evening.

Tonight, though, we got lucky! First, we saw 16 turtles dug out of an earlier nest. Cool! This was about 6:15PM. Then, we settled in for the evening watch. It’s really not bad to sit and wait, as the beach cools, and the surf pounds a few feet away. At about 9:30PM, seasoned volunteers began to see signs of impending hatching. This continued for the next 45 minutes, until in one push, the whole nest (count was 118 turtles) “boiled” up and headed down a causeway constructed by the volunteers. This path is needed to keep the turtles from fanning out on the beach and ensures that most will successfully reach the water.

I’ll do it again next year, but I’m glad I don’t have to sit up tomorrow; I’m losing my beauty sleep

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August 6, 2009 by Joel.

We’re now a few days into our 2 week beach vacation, and beginning to be very mellow. Even the dogs are mellow . Arrived at EI late evening on 7/31. Somewhat hectic as cleanup by #1 son from previous weekend left a few gaps . Windy with some t-storms over the weekend, but the plants were all happy to get a good soaking. Our neighbors came down for a few days, arriving Sunday. Enjoyed fellowship, good food and good wine. Jan cooked shrimp cakes (think great crab cakes but made with shrimp) on Sunday, a paella on Monday, and Galen cooked a great venison roast on Tuesday. Sunday evening we saw the “Turtle Patrol” clearing out the last few baby loggerheads from a nest that hatched last week. Took the boat to Bear Island (aka Hammocks Beach SP) on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Wednesday, we saw the tracks where a turtle had come up the night before to lay a late season nest. Perfect weather. Tuesday, there was one other boat at Bear Inlet. Wednesday, we had it to ourselves in the morning. In the early afternoon, though, a flotilla arrived, and we decided to come on back to the house where more wine was chilling.

Galen & Sandra have headed back home today. We’ve done a bit of cleanup around the house this morning, after having a 3-latte breakfast. Plan to go down to the beach in a couple hours when the tide is low and go for a nice walk with Jan. Probably swim some today as well, after Jeff gets up.

More company this weekend, as Jason & Jenny are coming for a few days. My sister is fixing dinner (her famous crabcakes) at her house in Swansboro on Sunday. Will probably go to Bear Island on Sunday, and then a couple days next week as well. We’ve got a new 2-person float that we’ll use to pull folks down the ICW

I could get used to being on vacation…this is good stuff!

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May 19, 2009 by Joel.

One down, one to go

This past weekend was busy! Jeff’s birthday, Jason’s graduation from Virginia Tech, and the 28th anniversary for Jan and I. We took Friday off work, and headed to Blacksburg. We were glad we had a place to stay. It’s tough to get a hotel room in Blacksburg or anywhere within 50 miles for graduation weekend; reservations have to be made a year in advance. VT is a big university (4,000 undergrads, and about 1,000 grad students) and not a big town. With all the family who want to see, it’s a challenge to get a spot. We lucked out and through a tip from my friends on the flyfishing listserve, got on the waiting list and then got rooms at the Inn at Riverbend, a B&B about 20 miles west of town in Pearisburg, VA. What a nice place. It’s every bit as nice as it looks on their website. The innkeepers (Lynn & Linda, with help from the manager Eric) are very hospitable, the food was great, and the Inn dogs are friendly! I highly recommend it if you are looking for a place to stay in that area. Here’s a picture I took (with my blackberry, so sorry for the quality) from the deck on the first afternoon when we arrived.

First event was the Computer Science departmental graduation at 4PM on Friday, followed by the University ceremony in Lane Stadium at 7:30PM. Saturday morning was the College of Engineering graduation, where they read all 1,000 names while the graduates traipsed across the stage.

A few hours of relaxation on Saturday afternoon; I went to Little Stony in nearby Pembroke and harassed a few trout. A very nice dinner at The Bank Food and Drink in Pearisburg. Just beat the approaching cold front, and watched the rain sheet off the windows while we ate. Fortunately, it stopped before time to head back to the Inn. Jeff didn’t get much of a birthday party, but all got cards, etc. at dinner. Jan and I then enjoyed some Duval Leroy bubbly and the hot tub back at the room

Sunday was moveout…packed up his apartment, loaded the Uhaul and headed back to Chapel Hill. Whew! I sure could have used a weekend to rest up from the weekend. Jason’s off now in DC for an internship before starting grad school. We’ll all get back in the grind here at home…

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April 25, 2009 by Joel.

What a fantastic April weekend! Temperatures in the 90’s in the piedmont meant 70’s at the coast. I took a couple of hours of vacation and left town early enough to beat the traffice through Raleigh. We arrived at Emerald Isle about 6:30PM in time to get oysters at Jordan’s for dinner Friday. Spent the day Saturday at Bear Island. Put the boat in at Island Harbor and ran down the ICW to the Bear Inlet cut. It’s shoaled up a lot since last October, but we still got in and out (the tide was very low when we left in early afternoon). The Carolina Skiff doesn’t draw much water. Water temps in the upper 60’s, southwest breeze about 10-15 knots, air temp in the mid 70’s. Doesn’t get much better than this! Lessa sure liked it. Heading back again Sunday morning. Gee, can I call in sick Monday?

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March 2, 2009 by Joel.

One nice thing about snow in North Carolina…things tend to shut down for a day or so when it snows. Yesterday, it poured rain all day, but changed over to snow about 10PM and dropped 3 or 4 inches of fluffy powder here in Chapel Hill. Got out for a walk with the dogs, the woods were quiet and still. I’m at home today enjoying a “snow day” as UNCG is closed for the day (more snow west of here in the Greensboro area) and we have a nice approach to adverse weather. If the University is closed, then faculty and staff and students stay home; staff don’t have to make up time. Think I’ll go grab a cup of tea!

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