August 26, 2010
Pocky Ninjas!
Flushed with the excitement of a successful hunt, the Pocky Ninjas pose with their latest victory. Many had fallen to their stealthy ways, and many more would fall in the future, but this one was their greatest conquest.
To be sure, the Pocky Ninjas always believed their most recent triumph to be their greatest, for they had great respect for their prey. They were aware that there were those that thought their views to be anachronistic in these modern days. Many rivals scoffed at them behind their backs they knew, but they paid the nattering no mind: none save the infamous Yam-Yam Pirates could boast a string of victories nearly as long as theirs, and the Pirates still had quite a ways to go before they could be considered "equals."
If you wonder, late at night, where all your tasty cream-covered biscuit sticks have gone to, it's a sure bet that the Pocky Ninjas have paid you a visit. You will never notice until it's too late, and there's nothing you can do to stop them.
Flushed with the excitement of a successful hunt, the Pocky Ninjas pose with their latest victory. Many had fallen to their stealthy ways, and many more would fall in the future, but this one was their greatest conquest.
To be sure, the Pocky Ninjas always believed their most recent triumph to be their greatest, for they had great respect for their prey. They were aware that there were those that thought their views to be anachronistic in these modern days. Many rivals scoffed at them behind their backs they knew, but they paid the nattering no mind: none save the infamous Yam-Yam Pirates could boast a string of victories nearly as long as theirs, and the Pirates still had quite a ways to go before they could be considered "equals."
If you wonder, late at night, where all your tasty cream-covered biscuit sticks have gone to, it's a sure bet that the Pocky Ninjas have paid you a visit. You will never notice until it's too late, and there's nothing you can do to stop them.
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August 24, 2010
USS Shaw
Like the USS Hammann, there was nothing particular special about the USS Shaw (DD-373). Just one destroyer in a fleet with dozens similar to her, really.
Laid down in 1934 as the tenth of the Mahan-class of destroyers, she weighed in around 1500 tons. Armed with five 5"/38 guns and a whopping 12 torpedo tubes, there was no question that she was quite able to fight other ships her size, and with a top speed of 35kts she could outrun many of the ships she couldn't stand toe-to-toe with. None of these numbers, however, made her different than any other destroyer in the US Navy. She joined the Pacific fleet in 1940 after her shakedown cruise, training and overhaul. In November of 1941, she found herself at Pearl Harbor, in a floating drydock for the sort of repairs that any ship needs after a while.
It wasn't until December 7th, 1941 that she became famous, thanks to one picture. The Shaw, hit by three bombs probably meant for the USS Nevada, was set ablaze. While the crew attempted to extinguish the fires, it was quickly realized that the attempt was doomed to failure and abandon ship was called at 0925. Five minutes later, her forward magazines exploded.
After seeing this photograph, one could be excused for thinking that the Shaw was destroyed, in much the same way as the USS Arizona. Indeed, for some 30 years I just assumed that was the case. In fact, it wasn't.
The explosion severed the Shaw's bow completely and to be honest, fairly neatly... at least as far as that sort of thing goes. It also sank the floating drydock she was in (YFD-2, in case you were wondering), which went a long way towards extinguishing her fires.
If you'll direct your attention towards the top of this picture, you'll see just how dramatically she was truncated... as if an axe amputated everything forward of her bridge structure. If you look at the bottom of the picture, you'll see the Cassin and the Downes just forward of the battleship Pennsylvania. In fact, the sole Pearl Harbor survivor I've met served on the Downes. But I digress.
Someone had the bright idea that the Shaw, bifurcated though she was, could be repaired. Refloated, fitted with a wooden bow and fixed up enough to be able to sail on her own, she steamed off to San Francisco. There, she was "placed under the anchor" and refit with a replacement bow.
By the end of August, 1942, 68 years ago, the USS Shaw returned to Pearl Harbor, a ship whole again. She served through the rest of the war in the Pacific, making her presence felt at Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Saipan, and Luzon. She was decommissioned on October 2nd, 1945 and stricken from the Navy List two days later. She was scrapped in 1946, ending what could only be called an eventful life.
Laid down in 1934 as the tenth of the Mahan-class of destroyers, she weighed in around 1500 tons. Armed with five 5"/38 guns and a whopping 12 torpedo tubes, there was no question that she was quite able to fight other ships her size, and with a top speed of 35kts she could outrun many of the ships she couldn't stand toe-to-toe with. None of these numbers, however, made her different than any other destroyer in the US Navy. She joined the Pacific fleet in 1940 after her shakedown cruise, training and overhaul. In November of 1941, she found herself at Pearl Harbor, in a floating drydock for the sort of repairs that any ship needs after a while.
It wasn't until December 7th, 1941 that she became famous, thanks to one picture. The Shaw, hit by three bombs probably meant for the USS Nevada, was set ablaze. While the crew attempted to extinguish the fires, it was quickly realized that the attempt was doomed to failure and abandon ship was called at 0925. Five minutes later, her forward magazines exploded.
After seeing this photograph, one could be excused for thinking that the Shaw was destroyed, in much the same way as the USS Arizona. Indeed, for some 30 years I just assumed that was the case. In fact, it wasn't.
The explosion severed the Shaw's bow completely and to be honest, fairly neatly... at least as far as that sort of thing goes. It also sank the floating drydock she was in (YFD-2, in case you were wondering), which went a long way towards extinguishing her fires.
If you'll direct your attention towards the top of this picture, you'll see just how dramatically she was truncated... as if an axe amputated everything forward of her bridge structure. If you look at the bottom of the picture, you'll see the Cassin and the Downes just forward of the battleship Pennsylvania. In fact, the sole Pearl Harbor survivor I've met served on the Downes. But I digress.
Someone had the bright idea that the Shaw, bifurcated though she was, could be repaired. Refloated, fitted with a wooden bow and fixed up enough to be able to sail on her own, she steamed off to San Francisco. There, she was "placed under the anchor" and refit with a replacement bow.
By the end of August, 1942, 68 years ago, the USS Shaw returned to Pearl Harbor, a ship whole again. She served through the rest of the war in the Pacific, making her presence felt at Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Saipan, and Luzon. She was decommissioned on October 2nd, 1945 and stricken from the Navy List two days later. She was scrapped in 1946, ending what could only be called an eventful life.
USS Shaw, 1945
Again, congrats to flatdarkmars for being the first to guess the Shaw's identity. Per his request, there will be another mystery coming soon!
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August 23, 2010
Name This Mystery Ship II
Once again, no clues or hints. Leave your guess in the comments. The first to give the correct answer will win a post on a topic of your choice!
And, for the record, I won't write about religion, politics or pr0n (though anime ecchi is okay). Anything else is free game!
Once again, no clues or hints. Leave your guess in the comments. The first to give the correct answer will win a post on a topic of your choice!
And, for the record, I won't write about religion, politics or pr0n (though anime ecchi is okay). Anything else is free game!
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August 21, 2010
USS Hammann
The life of a destroyer is never a glamorous one. Big enough to be a target but small enough to easily die, the destroyer's main job is to protect bigger, more important, ships from those that would attempt to harm them.
The USS Hammann (DD-412) was the fourth of the Sims-class of destroyers, commissioned in 1939. 2200 tons at full load, her twin screws could push her 348 foot length through the water at 35kts. She was armed with four 5"/38 guns and eight torpedo tubes, a common enough armament for a pre-war destroyer. She also carried a few .50cal machineguns. In comparison to what DDs would carry just a few years later, that seems a light load of weapons, but nobody really knew the threat aircraft posed at the time.
The Hammann was to be blessed (or cursed) with an active, but short, life. She was assigned to Task Force 17 and served as the plane guard destroyer for the USS Lexington at the Battle of the Coral Sea. She also collected many of her crew when the time came to evacuate the carrier.
The USS Hammann (DD-412) was the fourth of the Sims-class of destroyers, commissioned in 1939. 2200 tons at full load, her twin screws could push her 348 foot length through the water at 35kts. She was armed with four 5"/38 guns and eight torpedo tubes, a common enough armament for a pre-war destroyer. She also carried a few .50cal machineguns. In comparison to what DDs would carry just a few years later, that seems a light load of weapons, but nobody really knew the threat aircraft posed at the time.
The Hammann was to be blessed (or cursed) with an active, but short, life. She was assigned to Task Force 17 and served as the plane guard destroyer for the USS Lexington at the Battle of the Coral Sea. She also collected many of her crew when the time came to evacuate the carrier.
The Hammann backs away, decks crowded with Lexington crew.
We all know what happened there. The hastily repaired Yorktown took three bombs and two torpedoes and ended up dead in the water. Again the Hammann rescued survivors from an abandoned carrier, this time transferring them to a larger ship. On June 6th, 1942, the destroyer pulled alongside the Yorktown to provide power, hoses and pumping for firefighting efforts. While alongside, the Japanese submarine I-168, taking advantage of lousy acoustic conditions, slipped inside the destroyer screen surrounding the crippled carrier and loosed four torpedoes at her. One missed. Two went beneath the destroyer, striking the carrier. And one slammed into the side of the Hammann. Her back broken, the Hammann jackknifed and sank in four minutes.
There was nothing particularly special about the USS Hammann. Just another destroyer in a fleet that had dozens... hundreds... of them. But circumstances put her alongside the first two American carriers lost during WWII, and nothing but horrible luck made her the first American loss at the Battle of Midway. She earned two battle stars for her service, and her captain, Commander Arnold True, was awarded the Navy Cross for his work at Midway.
The Lex explodes. The Hammann's bow is to the left, the arrow points to the USS Yorktown.
After the Coral Sea, the Hammann escorted the damaged USS Yorktown in her dash back to Pearl Harbor. While the Yorktown underwent a crash repair program, Hammann replenished in preparation for the Battle of Midway.We all know what happened there. The hastily repaired Yorktown took three bombs and two torpedoes and ended up dead in the water. Again the Hammann rescued survivors from an abandoned carrier, this time transferring them to a larger ship. On June 6th, 1942, the destroyer pulled alongside the Yorktown to provide power, hoses and pumping for firefighting efforts. While alongside, the Japanese submarine I-168, taking advantage of lousy acoustic conditions, slipped inside the destroyer screen surrounding the crippled carrier and loosed four torpedoes at her. One missed. Two went beneath the destroyer, striking the carrier. And one slammed into the side of the Hammann. Her back broken, the Hammann jackknifed and sank in four minutes.
The Hammann's stern portion goes down
Most of her crew ended up in the water, surprised but alive. The destroyer, however, seemed to have other plans for her men. Shortly after she went down, a massive underwater explosion occurred when her depth charges detonated. This is somewhat odd, as the man in charge of them says that they had been safed. Some have said that her boilers exploded. Either way, the concussion from the explosion snuffed out the lives of 80 of her 192 crew.There was nothing particularly special about the USS Hammann. Just another destroyer in a fleet that had dozens... hundreds... of them. But circumstances put her alongside the first two American carriers lost during WWII, and nothing but horrible luck made her the first American loss at the Battle of Midway. She earned two battle stars for her service, and her captain, Commander Arnold True, was awarded the Navy Cross for his work at Midway.
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August 20, 2010
Name This Mystery Ship
No hints, no clues save one: she came to a tragic end.
The first person to guess correctly will win a post on a topic of their choice. Leave your guess in the comments!
UPDATE: Reader flatdarkmars wins the contest, and has requested another "name that ship/plane/waffleiron/whatever" post. Look for that to come soon!
No hints, no clues save one: she came to a tragic end.
The first person to guess correctly will win a post on a topic of their choice. Leave your guess in the comments!
UPDATE: Reader flatdarkmars wins the contest, and has requested another "name that ship/plane/waffleiron/whatever" post. Look for that to come soon!
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August 17, 2010
Staying Calm
As you, the intelligent, erudite, well-spoken and cultured reader of The Pond, are aware, I had a small portion of my skeletal system yanked out of my head yesterday. With the appointment at three in the afternoon, I had plenty of time to become jittery as is my wont.
So in an attempt to sooth my fears, I decided to take some photos of Wanderduck, the rubber duckie that goes to interesting places with me, and is, in fact, the duck that appeared in the post just previous to this one.
Alas, it turned out that my nerves ruined both my sense of composition and my muscle control, for only one picture turned out to be good AND not blurred.
I'm not sure how or when Wanderduck joined the flock; certainly he's been around for quite some time. He went with me when I had a tooth removed back in March of 2008, he made the trip to New Mexico (though I fear those pictures are lost), visited Courtesy Aircraft, so on and so forth. It's only been just recently that I've begun calling him Wanderduck, though.
Anyway, this post is about all that I have the mental energy for today. Sooner or later, there will be actual content here.
So in an attempt to sooth my fears, I decided to take some photos of Wanderduck, the rubber duckie that goes to interesting places with me, and is, in fact, the duck that appeared in the post just previous to this one.
Alas, it turned out that my nerves ruined both my sense of composition and my muscle control, for only one picture turned out to be good AND not blurred.
I'm not sure how or when Wanderduck joined the flock; certainly he's been around for quite some time. He went with me when I had a tooth removed back in March of 2008, he made the trip to New Mexico (though I fear those pictures are lost), visited Courtesy Aircraft, so on and so forth. It's only been just recently that I've begun calling him Wanderduck, though.
Anyway, this post is about all that I have the mental energy for today. Sooner or later, there will be actual content here.
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August 16, 2010
Tooth Is Out, All Is Swell(ing)
I'm currently at the Old Home Pond, totally clear-headed as they didn't put me under general anesthetic to yank the offending tooth. Instead, they used Nitrous Oxide gas. It worked, I didn't particularly care what was going on while they dug around, but whoo-doggie I do not think I like Nitrous all that much. It was unpleasantly like being drunk... and if you don't think that's an unpleasant feeling, ask a glass of water.*
So, yeah, I'm drooling and bleeding all over the place but for now, all is well. So far. I think.
*Joke blatantly stolen from one of them-there Douglas Adams novels.
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August 15, 2010
Some Housekeeping and More Music Meme
Okay, so I'm probably not going to be around for a couple of days. I'm having a tooth pulled Monday afternoon, under general anesthetic. I'm sure that Monday night I'll be either too drugged or in too much pain to blog. Hopefully sometime Tuesday I'll be functional enough to update here.
I've had too many bad experiences with dentists to be awake for this. Hell, I went into shock during a teeth-cleaning once. It's not the pain, that's nothing... it's the tugging and the pulling and the sounds. I punched a dentist in the groinacological region once, but that was because he didn't wait long enough for the Novocaine to kick in before he poked at a cavity. The stabbing pain just caused my right arm to jerk spasmodically; I really didn't mean to. Heck, until then he was a friend of mine. We played racquetball the weekend before, for heaven's sake (he won).
So, yeah, with any luck I'll be back Tuesday.
More Music Meme featuring the letter "P":
I couldn't believe I forgot these two songs, so I had to do another post to include them.
Bonus 1): Pump Up The Volume, M/A/R/R/S
I've had too many bad experiences with dentists to be awake for this. Hell, I went into shock during a teeth-cleaning once. It's not the pain, that's nothing... it's the tugging and the pulling and the sounds. I punched a dentist in the groinacological region once, but that was because he didn't wait long enough for the Novocaine to kick in before he poked at a cavity. The stabbing pain just caused my right arm to jerk spasmodically; I really didn't mean to. Heck, until then he was a friend of mine. We played racquetball the weekend before, for heaven's sake (he won).
So, yeah, with any luck I'll be back Tuesday.
More Music Meme featuring the letter "P":
I couldn't believe I forgot these two songs, so I had to do another post to include them.
Bonus 1): Pump Up The Volume, M/A/R/R/S
This may have been the first real hit to have been created out of nothing but samples. It's also not the song I remember (or have in my collection), but it turns out there's a reason for that. For example, at 2:14, the lyrics in the video above go "Automatic pushbutton remote control / synthetic genetic command your soul". The version I remember from my youth, and have on 45rpm single, is "Automatic systematic remote control...". There's also no samples from Wolfman Jack or James Brown on it. Turns out the video above is actually the original version of the tune, which was released in the UK. The version I'm remembering is the US version, which pulled the samples for legal reasons. Huh, who knew? Pump Up The Volume was nominated for a Grammy award in 1989 in the Best Pop Instrumental Performance category, and was M/A/R/R/S' only release.
Bonus 2): Politics of Dancing, Re-Flex
I often feel like I'm the only person in the world who remembers this band and their only (legitimately) released album. It's too bad, really, for Re-Flex should have been a lot bigger than they were. This 1983 album (of the same name as the single) is chock full of great beats, blistering hooks, clever lyrics, everything you'd want from an '80s New Wave group. It peaked at #53 here in the US, #23 in the UK, and the rumored second album never appeared.
Until 2002, that is, when the keyboardist for the band, Paul Fishman, unofficially released Humanication, and announced that a 6-CD boxset, called Re-Fuse, was going to be coming out sometime in 2010. I'm hoping it's true.
Bonus 2): Politics of Dancing, Re-Flex
Until 2002, that is, when the keyboardist for the band, Paul Fishman, unofficially released Humanication, and announced that a 6-CD boxset, called Re-Fuse, was going to be coming out sometime in 2010. I'm hoping it's true.
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August 13, 2010
It's Music Meme Time Again
So over at Greyduck's place, it seems that he was tagged by another blogger with the following situation:
1. If you’d like to play along, reply to this post and I’ll assign you a letter.
2. You then list (and upload or link to the video, if you feel like it) 5 songs that start with that letter.
3. Then, as I’m doing here, you’ll post the list to your journal with the instructions.
Of course, GD came through with flying colors. Also of course, I couldn't resist a challenge of that sort so I requested a letter of my own. Grey gave me "P". Below, please find my five songs... and enjoy, won't you?
more...
1. If you’d like to play along, reply to this post and I’ll assign you a letter.
2. You then list (and upload or link to the video, if you feel like it) 5 songs that start with that letter.
3. Then, as I’m doing here, you’ll post the list to your journal with the instructions.
Of course, GD came through with flying colors. Also of course, I couldn't resist a challenge of that sort so I requested a letter of my own. Grey gave me "P". Below, please find my five songs... and enjoy, won't you?
more...
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August 09, 2010
Two (Er... THREE!) More Texan Pics
Since I find myself at a loss for things to expound about, I figured I'd throw up another couple of pictures from my trip to Courtesy Aircraft. Like this one:
It's almost like the manufacturers knew that, one day, someone would come along and want a place to put a rubber duck on the side of their plane. Oh sure, they may say it's for entering or exiting the cockpit, but I think we know better...
Another picture of radial sculpture. I have to admit though... I'm somewhat confused about why there's a penny wired into the engine:
I'm sure it's not a coincidence that the hole in the nut is exactly the right size for a penny. It's also not just a one-off, since the engine on the other Texan had the same arrangement. I just can't, for the life of me, figure out why it's there. Not that I'm an engine mechanic or anything, because I'm not. Ah well, perhaps we'll never find out. Lends an air of mystery to the whole thing.
It's almost like the manufacturers knew that, one day, someone would come along and want a place to put a rubber duck on the side of their plane. Oh sure, they may say it's for entering or exiting the cockpit, but I think we know better...
Another picture of radial sculpture. I have to admit though... I'm somewhat confused about why there's a penny wired into the engine:
I'm sure it's not a coincidence that the hole in the nut is exactly the right size for a penny. It's also not just a one-off, since the engine on the other Texan had the same arrangement. I just can't, for the life of me, figure out why it's there. Not that I'm an engine mechanic or anything, because I'm not. Ah well, perhaps we'll never find out. Lends an air of mystery to the whole thing.
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August 07, 2010
Wonderduck Pays Courtesy A Call
You may remember back about a week or so ago, I mentioned in a comment to reader Will that the Duckford Airport was home to a warbird restoration shop. It turns out that isn't quite the case, as I got the "restoration" part incorrect. Instead, Courtesy Aircraft is a seller of classic warbirds and modern planes as well... and I was exchanging e-mails with them. After three back-and-forths, I was told I could stop in any time during business hours to look around. How cool is that?
It was a sunny afternoon as I pulled into the small parking lot next to Courtesy's hangar at the Airport. I met Darcy, Courtesy's Marketing Director, and learned what I had feared: they were actually quite busy. Turns out they had a few customers in town after their appearance at EAA AirVenture, which is good! It did mean, however, that they couldn't spare anybody to escort me around the flightline. I could stick around the hangar, I just couldn't go onto the taxiway... security, y'know. I knew, and approved, even though it meant I couldn't get any closer than this to some juicy-looking aircraft:
Two T-6 Texans, just ahead of a pair of T-28 Trojans. I gather that the high-visibility yellow-painted T-6 won a restoration award at Oshkosh sometime recently, in fact. Still, the limitation didn't mean that there wasn't anything I could get close to...
more...
It was a sunny afternoon as I pulled into the small parking lot next to Courtesy's hangar at the Airport. I met Darcy, Courtesy's Marketing Director, and learned what I had feared: they were actually quite busy. Turns out they had a few customers in town after their appearance at EAA AirVenture, which is good! It did mean, however, that they couldn't spare anybody to escort me around the flightline. I could stick around the hangar, I just couldn't go onto the taxiway... security, y'know. I knew, and approved, even though it meant I couldn't get any closer than this to some juicy-looking aircraft:
Two T-6 Texans, just ahead of a pair of T-28 Trojans. I gather that the high-visibility yellow-painted T-6 won a restoration award at Oshkosh sometime recently, in fact. Still, the limitation didn't mean that there wasn't anything I could get close to...
more...
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August 06, 2010
Teaser
Just a teaser for the post I'll be putting up on Saturday...
It's a Notazero!
UPDATE: Pete Z reminds me that a T-6 makes an appearance in Yokohama Kaidashi Kiko, too:
It's a Notazero!
UPDATE: Pete Z reminds me that a T-6 makes an appearance in Yokohama Kaidashi Kiko, too:
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August 04, 2010
Curiouser And Curiouser (Updated: YAY!)
So this morning I woke up, turned on my computer and wanted to check something on my external hard drive... and got a message saying that the link I had on my desktop was null and void because it led nowhere. Hm. Well, I rebooted and when everything came back up, there wasn't a problem: there was the external HD. That'll happen.
This evening, I got home from work, turned on my computer and had the same thing occur. Hm. Reboot, and there was the HD... until suddenly, it disappeared. Wazzuh-huh? Reboot, and this time, no external hard drive at all. Oh, carp. I plugged in a flashdrive, and Chiyo-chan recognized it, no problem.
I played with the cables, checking to make sure everything was plugged in firmly, and still nothing. I tried unplugging the power brick for the HD, then plugging it back in. Nothing... except a few minutes later, it came back... for three minutes, 34 seconds. At that point in a song, it disappeared again, with this error balloon popping up:
Oh, lovely.
So I ran over to the Olde Home Pond, taking the hard drive with me, and plugged it into Ph.Duck's laptop, just to make sure that it's not Chiyo-chan having a problem. No sign of life at all, just that stupid error balloon popping up repeatedly. At this point, I'm into damage control mode. Nothing irreplaceable on the drive, just 300GB of anime, six or seven seasons worth of Top Gear, and a lot of music. The music is what I'm most concerned about, because while I have a good chunk of it backed up, there's some anime OSTs that I've glommed recently... and my BakaBT ratio is low enough as it is.
So after a couple of hours chatting with Ph.Duck, I drove back to Pond Central. Once I got back home, I decided to try again. I put the HD in its normal place, plugged in the USB cable and...
...verrrrrrrrry innerestink. Very innerestink indeed. You'll note that I said I plugged in the USB cable. While, indeed, I had done so, it wasn't plugged into the hard drive. It appears that I'm getting an error message because of the cable!
Has anybody else ever had this happen to them?
UPDATE, NEXT DAY: My external HD is back! All it took was a new USB A-to-Mini B cable. I'm still a little nervous about it, but all in all I'm optimistic. And a big "Pbpbpbpbpbpbththhhhhhh" to the Geek Squad member who told me that it's "when things like (this) happen, it's never the cable." Much happy here.
This evening, I got home from work, turned on my computer and had the same thing occur. Hm. Reboot, and there was the HD... until suddenly, it disappeared. Wazzuh-huh? Reboot, and this time, no external hard drive at all. Oh, carp. I plugged in a flashdrive, and Chiyo-chan recognized it, no problem.
I played with the cables, checking to make sure everything was plugged in firmly, and still nothing. I tried unplugging the power brick for the HD, then plugging it back in. Nothing... except a few minutes later, it came back... for three minutes, 34 seconds. At that point in a song, it disappeared again, with this error balloon popping up:
Oh, lovely.
So I ran over to the Olde Home Pond, taking the hard drive with me, and plugged it into Ph.Duck's laptop, just to make sure that it's not Chiyo-chan having a problem. No sign of life at all, just that stupid error balloon popping up repeatedly. At this point, I'm into damage control mode. Nothing irreplaceable on the drive, just 300GB of anime, six or seven seasons worth of Top Gear, and a lot of music. The music is what I'm most concerned about, because while I have a good chunk of it backed up, there's some anime OSTs that I've glommed recently... and my BakaBT ratio is low enough as it is.
So after a couple of hours chatting with Ph.Duck, I drove back to Pond Central. Once I got back home, I decided to try again. I put the HD in its normal place, plugged in the USB cable and...
...verrrrrrrrry innerestink. Very innerestink indeed. You'll note that I said I plugged in the USB cable. While, indeed, I had done so, it wasn't plugged into the hard drive. It appears that I'm getting an error message because of the cable!
Has anybody else ever had this happen to them?
UPDATE, NEXT DAY: My external HD is back! All it took was a new USB A-to-Mini B cable. I'm still a little nervous about it, but all in all I'm optimistic. And a big "Pbpbpbpbpbpbththhhhhhh" to the Geek Squad member who told me that it's "when things like (this) happen, it's never the cable." Much happy here.
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August 02, 2010
AirFest 2010: Thunderbirds, Run 'Em Up!
(continued from the first post)
Even though I knew I was in a great position, I didn't realize until just a few minutes ago really how good it was. Here, take a look at this:
Obviously the duck isn't to scale, but that really does clear up where I was located: just over a half-mile from the end of the runway. About 100 people and myself were lined up on the east side of 251, down to about where that farm area starts. I couldn't have planned it better if I had tried... and the best part is, I DIDN'T plan it, it just worked out that way. Should have brought some sunscreen, but such is the price of spontaneity.
When I arrived, there were some acrobatic planes doing their thing. Then they finished up, and we waited for the main event to begin. And waited. And waited. I figure that the big dark cloud moving NW to SE over the airport had something to do with the delay As we were waiting, an older man and his wife pulled in. They'd driven up from Peoria, nearly four hours, to catch the show. "Your timing is great, they should be starting any minute!" No sooner had I said that when a roar came from airfield; not one of high-performance engines, but of thousands of people cheering. THEN came the loud whistling scream of six Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 engines, followed closely by a cloud of white smoke and...
...The Diamond roared by. Actually, this isn't quite The Diamond yet, as #4 is still getting into position, but it soon would be. While I, and everybody else, were agog watching The Diamond fly overhead, the two Solos, #5 and #6, took off and went dead vertical, gone from view in an instant. Meanwhile, the four planes of The Diamond changed shape...
...and went by in the "Close Follow" formation, which transitioned back to The Diamond over the airfield. As soon as they cleared, #6 whipped by over my head for a knife-edge pass of the crowd. Alas, that picture is nothing but a faintly Falcon-shaped blur as he went by too fast for my camera to adjust focus. However, the lead solo, #5, was coming right towards us in a level slow roll, followed by a rapid climb-out to his right, smoke streaming all the way.
Around here, I lost track of what maneuver is which... and I don't really care. Onwards for the really cool pictures!
more...
Even though I knew I was in a great position, I didn't realize until just a few minutes ago really how good it was. Here, take a look at this:
Obviously the duck isn't to scale, but that really does clear up where I was located: just over a half-mile from the end of the runway. About 100 people and myself were lined up on the east side of 251, down to about where that farm area starts. I couldn't have planned it better if I had tried... and the best part is, I DIDN'T plan it, it just worked out that way. Should have brought some sunscreen, but such is the price of spontaneity.
When I arrived, there were some acrobatic planes doing their thing. Then they finished up, and we waited for the main event to begin. And waited. And waited. I figure that the big dark cloud moving NW to SE over the airport had something to do with the delay As we were waiting, an older man and his wife pulled in. They'd driven up from Peoria, nearly four hours, to catch the show. "Your timing is great, they should be starting any minute!" No sooner had I said that when a roar came from airfield; not one of high-performance engines, but of thousands of people cheering. THEN came the loud whistling scream of six Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 engines, followed closely by a cloud of white smoke and...
...The Diamond roared by. Actually, this isn't quite The Diamond yet, as #4 is still getting into position, but it soon would be. While I, and everybody else, were agog watching The Diamond fly overhead, the two Solos, #5 and #6, took off and went dead vertical, gone from view in an instant. Meanwhile, the four planes of The Diamond changed shape...
...and went by in the "Close Follow" formation, which transitioned back to The Diamond over the airfield. As soon as they cleared, #6 whipped by over my head for a knife-edge pass of the crowd. Alas, that picture is nothing but a faintly Falcon-shaped blur as he went by too fast for my camera to adjust focus. However, the lead solo, #5, was coming right towards us in a level slow roll, followed by a rapid climb-out to his right, smoke streaming all the way.
Around here, I lost track of what maneuver is which... and I don't really care. Onwards for the really cool pictures!
more...
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August 01, 2010
AirFest 2010: Eagles, Spooks, Warthogs and Hornets, Oh My!
I had an ulterior motive for purchasing my new digital camera when I did. Y'see, I knew that this was the weekend for the Chicago-Duckford International Airport's annual airshow, named AirFest. And I planned, as I always have before, to stand in the field behind Pond Central and take pictures of the USAF Thunderbirds, this year's featured performers, as they went by overhead.
See, Pond Central is right at the edge of their performance cylinder, about two miles or so from the airport, so when they extend out from the runway they tend to fly right over my living room... literally. However, they're usually the only performers who get that close, so on AirFest weekend I make a small change to my routine. Instead of going to my usual grocery store, I head to a smaller, dingier place that has the advantage of being about a half-mile from the airport. I've not usually gotten good pictures of the "supporting acts" from this location, but there's always a first time, right? When I get to the store, there's no sound at all coming from the skies, so I head inside and do my shopping. $70 later (and I forgot to get batteries, darnit!) I emerge from the Hilander and push my cart back to the DuckMobile. As I unlock the Official Car of The Pond, I hear a strange, almost spooky, howling moan coming from the direction of the airport and getting louder. Just as I look up, one hand unlocking the car door and the other frantically trying to dig my camera out of my pocket, the first of the jet performers, the F-15E of the US Air Force's Strike Eagle Demo Team screamed right overhead and low, rolled hard left and dashed away for what I assume was to be a high-speed "sneak" pass of the runway. I quickly threw my comestibles into the back seat, moved my car about 100 feet west (no cars parking there), and waited for the moaning howl to come back. And then it did.
He played around for a little bit, including one absolutely brilliant zoom for the skies that I couldn't get a picture of because the sun was too bright, then disappeared. Content that I got at least one good picture, I got back into the DuckMobile... and then scrambled out again, because I heard a rumbling roar coming from behind me.
I've never seen a F-4 Phantom II in the flesh before! This one is from the Air Force's Air Combat Command "Heritage Flight". A triumph of thrust over aerodynamics, the Phantom was called a number of derogatory names over the years, such as "Double Ugly", "Flying Brick" and "Iron Sled." The Luftwaffe gave it the best nicknames, though: Luftverteidigungsdiesel ("Air Defense Diesel") and Eisenschwein ("Iron Pig"). Strangely though, I found it to be much more graceful in flight than the Strike Eagle.
And then something happened that blew my mind.
more...
See, Pond Central is right at the edge of their performance cylinder, about two miles or so from the airport, so when they extend out from the runway they tend to fly right over my living room... literally. However, they're usually the only performers who get that close, so on AirFest weekend I make a small change to my routine. Instead of going to my usual grocery store, I head to a smaller, dingier place that has the advantage of being about a half-mile from the airport. I've not usually gotten good pictures of the "supporting acts" from this location, but there's always a first time, right? When I get to the store, there's no sound at all coming from the skies, so I head inside and do my shopping. $70 later (and I forgot to get batteries, darnit!) I emerge from the Hilander and push my cart back to the DuckMobile. As I unlock the Official Car of The Pond, I hear a strange, almost spooky, howling moan coming from the direction of the airport and getting louder. Just as I look up, one hand unlocking the car door and the other frantically trying to dig my camera out of my pocket, the first of the jet performers, the F-15E of the US Air Force's Strike Eagle Demo Team screamed right overhead and low, rolled hard left and dashed away for what I assume was to be a high-speed "sneak" pass of the runway. I quickly threw my comestibles into the back seat, moved my car about 100 feet west (no cars parking there), and waited for the moaning howl to come back. And then it did.
He played around for a little bit, including one absolutely brilliant zoom for the skies that I couldn't get a picture of because the sun was too bright, then disappeared. Content that I got at least one good picture, I got back into the DuckMobile... and then scrambled out again, because I heard a rumbling roar coming from behind me.
I've never seen a F-4 Phantom II in the flesh before! This one is from the Air Force's Air Combat Command "Heritage Flight". A triumph of thrust over aerodynamics, the Phantom was called a number of derogatory names over the years, such as "Double Ugly", "Flying Brick" and "Iron Sled." The Luftwaffe gave it the best nicknames, though: Luftverteidigungsdiesel ("Air Defense Diesel") and Eisenschwein ("Iron Pig"). Strangely though, I found it to be much more graceful in flight than the Strike Eagle.
And then something happened that blew my mind.
more...
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July 29, 2010
Smile For The Camera!
About a week ago, I asked y'all for recommendations about a digital camera. Well, I've made my purchase, and the winner is the Nikon Coolpix L22, in red so it matches my cellphone (note: while it does match my cellphone, that's not the reason I got it in red. They didn't have black in stock). It's not quite as hands-on as I'd prefer, but it was about $60 less than one that let me set the shutter speed manually. I can live without that feature for $60, and I suspect that once I get into the users guide, I'll find there's plenty I'll be able to fiddle with.
It's 12MP with a 3.6x zoom... here's an example of its capabilities:
If ever there was a picture that let you know that Rusty II isn't your normal yellow duckie, this is it. He's actually cast iron, weighs maybe 1.5 pounds, and you can see the little pits and dimples that occurred when he was cast.
Oh, and that's at normal zoom from about three two feet away, under overcast skies. Like all point-and-shoot cameras I've ever used, it has a problem focusing on on something that's much closer. (...but see the UPDATE below!)
Me likey!
UPDATE: Two things.
1) I've discovered something called "macro zoom." Goodbye problems focusing on things close in. Here's a macro zoom shot, 4000x3000, reduced to 640x480:
That's from about half a foot away, more or less. Now here's the 640x480 crop from the full-resolution pic:
Yes, that's his left eye. I probably won't be getting THAT close very often... kinda creepy, actually.
2) My media card reader may not be able to deal with a 4GB SD card. Whoops.
It's 12MP with a 3.6x zoom... here's an example of its capabilities:
Hi, Rusty II!
This is a 4000x3000 picture, reduced down to 640x480, or a factor of 6.25. 2.7mb in size. Pretty good quality, that. Now, here's a 640x480 crop from the original, full-sized, picture:If ever there was a picture that let you know that Rusty II isn't your normal yellow duckie, this is it. He's actually cast iron, weighs maybe 1.5 pounds, and you can see the little pits and dimples that occurred when he was cast.
Oh, and that's at normal zoom from about three two feet away, under overcast skies. Like all point-and-shoot cameras I've ever used, it has a problem focusing on on something that's much closer. (...but see the UPDATE below!)
Me likey!
UPDATE: Two things.
1) I've discovered something called "macro zoom." Goodbye problems focusing on things close in. Here's a macro zoom shot, 4000x3000, reduced to 640x480:
That's from about half a foot away, more or less. Now here's the 640x480 crop from the full-resolution pic:
Yes, that's his left eye. I probably won't be getting THAT close very often... kinda creepy, actually.
2) My media card reader may not be able to deal with a 4GB SD card. Whoops.
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July 21, 2010
I'd Like Your Input
I'm looking for a good, relatively inexpensive ($120 in a brick'n'mortar store, or thereabouts), digital camera. See, all these years that I've been posting photos of my duckies, I've been using either the Duck U. Bookstore's 3 megapixel Sony or Ph.Duck's 5 MP Samsung.
The thing is, I have absolutely no idea what makes a good camera anymore. When I was working for CowPuters lo these many years ago, a 5 MP camera was the top of the line at the consumer level, and even then I knew that the ones we carried were... um... not so good. I do know that all the megapixels in the world don't matter if the lens is crepe, and being able to zoom in on something from a mile away isn't useful if the camera can't do anything with the input.
So all you shutterheads, I need your advice! What's a good camera for someone like me? I've been looking at THIS one, but I really don't know if the one on the shelf right next to it is better, worse, or exactly the same... help?
The thing is, I have absolutely no idea what makes a good camera anymore. When I was working for CowPuters lo these many years ago, a 5 MP camera was the top of the line at the consumer level, and even then I knew that the ones we carried were... um... not so good. I do know that all the megapixels in the world don't matter if the lens is crepe, and being able to zoom in on something from a mile away isn't useful if the camera can't do anything with the input.
So all you shutterheads, I need your advice! What's a good camera for someone like me? I've been looking at THIS one, but I really don't know if the one on the shelf right next to it is better, worse, or exactly the same... help?
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July 15, 2010
Summer Days
Wednesday was probably the hottest day of the summer here in Duckford. It got over 90ºF for what felt like the thirty-first day in row, but it was the oppressive humidity that really made it miserable. Eh, it's summer in the upper Midwest, what do you expect, right? That's the nature of the beast.
Wednesday night, it only got down to 77º, and though I didn't think it would be possible, the humidity got worse. When I dragged myself into bed at midnight, it was still over 80 and the dewpoint was 76, according to the National Weather Service's station at the Duckford International Airport, which is just a couple of miles from Pond Central.
Then Thursday happened. It was 86 and still thickly humid by noon... simply miserable. Here's the bad part: that temperature was recorded inside the Duck U. Bookstore! Yep, still no air conditioning. Even with a fan blowing directly on me, because of the humidity I was still soaked with sweat. Other people work in that sort of heat every day, I know... construction workers, for example... but they're paid more than me, and it's pretty much part of their job.
Hopefully the new a/c system for the U will be turned on Friday, as the Ops staff plan. Cross your wingtips we don't blow any transformers or something like that...
UPDATE, FRIDAY 7/16: It was cooler at the Duck U Bookstore, but not because the a/c was turned on. Instead, it's because it actually got down to the low 60s overnight and a lot of the humidity went away. Still, I'm glad I wasn't working today, and the a/c might still be fired up today. It'd make working tomorrow a lot nicer...
ANOTHER UPDATE, SAME DAY: They did try to turn the new chiller units on at Duck U this afternoon. ComEd, bless their little hearts, told them that the transformer would be able to handle it. Nope! Transformer trashed damaged, new one scheduled for arrival on Tuesday. Might even get the day off on Tuesday, because most of the campus is powered through that transformer, including the IT center, which means no internet and no phone service when they replace it. We'll find out on Monday.
Wednesday night, it only got down to 77º, and though I didn't think it would be possible, the humidity got worse. When I dragged myself into bed at midnight, it was still over 80 and the dewpoint was 76, according to the National Weather Service's station at the Duckford International Airport, which is just a couple of miles from Pond Central.
Then Thursday happened. It was 86 and still thickly humid by noon... simply miserable. Here's the bad part: that temperature was recorded inside the Duck U. Bookstore! Yep, still no air conditioning. Even with a fan blowing directly on me, because of the humidity I was still soaked with sweat. Other people work in that sort of heat every day, I know... construction workers, for example... but they're paid more than me, and it's pretty much part of their job.
Not so much for members of the Light Music Club
At 1215pm, the Bookstore closed for the day, the first time in the 6+ years I've worked there that we've shut down because it was hot. Snow? Of course. Rain? Yep yep, mostly because of power failure. Heat? Never before. Most of the U's offices either closed or moved to the newest campus building, which has it's own air conditioning system, for the day. Of course, it's not like we could pick the store up and go there ourselves. Hopefully the new a/c system for the U will be turned on Friday, as the Ops staff plan. Cross your wingtips we don't blow any transformers or something like that...
UPDATE, FRIDAY 7/16: It was cooler at the Duck U Bookstore, but not because the a/c was turned on. Instead, it's because it actually got down to the low 60s overnight and a lot of the humidity went away. Still, I'm glad I wasn't working today, and the a/c might still be fired up today. It'd make working tomorrow a lot nicer...
ANOTHER UPDATE, SAME DAY: They did try to turn the new chiller units on at Duck U this afternoon. ComEd, bless their little hearts, told them that the transformer would be able to handle it. Nope! Transformer trashed damaged, new one scheduled for arrival on Tuesday. Might even get the day off on Tuesday, because most of the campus is powered through that transformer, including the IT center, which means no internet and no phone service when they replace it. We'll find out on Monday.
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July 08, 2010
The Pond Is Five!
When the Lord of MuNuVia, Pixy hisownbadself, sent me an invitation to join his growing blog empire, I had no idea that The Pond would still be a going concern five years later. But yet, here we are!
Five years. Phew. Long time in blog terms, that.
Anybody want some cake?
When the Lord of MuNuVia, Pixy hisownbadself, sent me an invitation to join his growing blog empire, I had no idea that The Pond would still be a going concern five years later. But yet, here we are!
Five years. Phew. Long time in blog terms, that.
Anybody want some cake?
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June 22, 2010
Wolverine Followup
About a month ago, I wrote about the world's only freshwater paddlewheel carriers, the USS Wolverine and her sister ship the USS Sable. A couple of days ago the Official First Friend of The Pond, Vaucaunson's Duck, sent me an e-mail, wondering if I'd seen the video?
Video? Of the Wolverine? Baby! Turns out it was from a Pathé newsreel, which you can see here. "Yankee ingenuity" indeed. But that got me wondering... is there any more video of the Wolverine or the Sable out there that I didn't find the first time?
Turns out, the answer would be "yes!"
Avengers and Hellcats in that clip, a wave-off and a barrier crash, too. The wave-off gives you a sense of just how small the two IX carriers really were; the Avenger looks like it won't fit on the deck, let alone land safely.
From that clip, I wandered around a bit, and found a link on another video to a blog devoted entirely to the paddlewheel carriers, aptly titled The Paddle Wheel Aircraft Carriers. It hasn't been updated in about a year, but boy, do I wish I had found it when I was doing my earlier post. Particularly because of this post which has a link to another video.
The internet... is there anything it can't do?
Video? Of the Wolverine? Baby! Turns out it was from a Pathé newsreel, which you can see here. "Yankee ingenuity" indeed. But that got me wondering... is there any more video of the Wolverine or the Sable out there that I didn't find the first time?
Turns out, the answer would be "yes!"
From that clip, I wandered around a bit, and found a link on another video to a blog devoted entirely to the paddlewheel carriers, aptly titled The Paddle Wheel Aircraft Carriers. It hasn't been updated in about a year, but boy, do I wish I had found it when I was doing my earlier post. Particularly because of this post which has a link to another video.
The internet... is there anything it can't do?
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