Found a pretty cool website the other day that basically puts all the best open source software in one place. The website is:
http://www.zerodibs.com/
I already have most of the programs that suit my daily life like Firefox and Openoffice, but there are definitely a few on there that I need to get. There are a few different genres on the site that you can look through, but the top ten pretty much gave me what I needed. Check it out before spending money on an overvalued product.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Oil dependancy
I have been struggling with the notion of how to alleviate the worlds dependence on oil, and more importantly foreign oil, for a while now. Not being able to produce all of the energy a country consumes is a risky situation during this chapter of human history. It allows other countries or cartels, OPEC, to influence how much you pay for a commodity, oil, that you need in order to survive.
Just as the Dutch dominated the Spice Trade in the 1600's, OPEC today dominates the market for oil, and has a lot of power over anyone that imports oil. This includes almost every country, notably all of the countries in the OECD.
In 2008, the Energy Information Administration calculated that the world consumed 85,462,000 barrels a day, which was down from previous years, I assume due to the financial crisis, and went back up in 2009 according to the CIA World Fact Book to 94,595,650 barrels per day.
That being said, we use oil with just about everything we do. Entire industries and economies rely on oil, and the more we import oil and refuse to accept the fact that we need different sources of energy the faster the US will fall from its position as a hegemonic power.
Just as the Dutch dominated the Spice Trade in the 1600's, OPEC today dominates the market for oil, and has a lot of power over anyone that imports oil. This includes almost every country, notably all of the countries in the OECD.
In 2008, the Energy Information Administration calculated that the world consumed 85,462,000 barrels a day, which was down from previous years, I assume due to the financial crisis, and went back up in 2009 according to the CIA World Fact Book to 94,595,650 barrels per day.
That being said, we use oil with just about everything we do. Entire industries and economies rely on oil, and the more we import oil and refuse to accept the fact that we need different sources of energy the faster the US will fall from its position as a hegemonic power.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Plastic vs. Oil
Plastic, probably the largest point of oil usage on a daily basis behind heating and fueling needs, stands out in my mind when I think of oil. The practicality of it is beyond any material humans have ever used, which ends up being a double edged sword. On the one had you can make almost any material out of plastic, this refers to excellent products like static proof sleeves for computer parts and medical supplies, as well as waste products like plastic bags or wrappers that are meant to be thrown away. Plastic is great, except for the fact that it is usually thrown away. Sometimes it makes it to the recycling bin, but even if it does, it can only be down-cycled, meaning it cannot be made back into the original product.
This calls for a change, but more importantly a consumer driven change, in which we buy products and containers that can be reused well past its intended use. Buying things that can be reused in a similar way to its original use, or for a completely different use can save money and waste, which are pretty standard excuse for doing certain things differently these days.
For example, glass jars can be cleaned, striped of labels, and used for drinking glasses or storing perishables. Another example is a washable drinking container and mug.
I see a lot of people buying a single plastic bottle during the day. You need water everyday, so why not save yourself the time and money and get a reusable water bottle. (Or you could also buy a drink in a glass bottle and try to reuse it later or at least recycle it. Glass is much easier to recycle than plastic.)
When it comes down to it, plastic bottles far out number glass bottles in the market place. I have no numbers to back that statement up, but its very obvious to see this in any store. This is probably due to the cost of a plastic bottle versus a glass bottle, as well as other factors including the weight of each, and the fragility.
These factors aside, I have come to the conclusion that reusing a glass bottle for drinking purposes instead of buying a new bottle of water every time you run out of water will save you money, period. The glass bottle is very easy to clean, it can be hand washed or put in the dish washer. Plus, glass unlike plastic, loses the smell from the previous liquid that inhabited it. The only problem is, if it breaks, you might be in a tough spot because it is glass and will cut you/other things and the liquid you had in it will be all over the place.
Recycling can be a good thing, but it usually entails the downgrading of the material being recycled. The best form of recycling is up-cycling, or reusing the original object in a similar way, or something close to it to become a better product or give it a higher environmental value. An example of this is of course a glass jar being reused as a drinking glass. It can also be used for storing things that need a tight seal, like jam. (mason jars are best for this)
I also use glass jars for storing fat and grease from cooking pans. It is very bad to pour grease or fat down the drain because it can clog your sink, but if you put it in a glass bottle or jar that has a top it can be sealed and filled to the top with that liquid and reused for other cooking purposes, like making soap, or thrown away in the trash.
It is hard to change a habit when there is no pressure to do so, but when money, time, and common sense become factors in decisions that are made everyday, it becomes easier to reason with yourself why you should or should not do something.
This calls for a change, but more importantly a consumer driven change, in which we buy products and containers that can be reused well past its intended use. Buying things that can be reused in a similar way to its original use, or for a completely different use can save money and waste, which are pretty standard excuse for doing certain things differently these days.
For example, glass jars can be cleaned, striped of labels, and used for drinking glasses or storing perishables. Another example is a washable drinking container and mug.
I see a lot of people buying a single plastic bottle during the day. You need water everyday, so why not save yourself the time and money and get a reusable water bottle. (Or you could also buy a drink in a glass bottle and try to reuse it later or at least recycle it. Glass is much easier to recycle than plastic.)
When it comes down to it, plastic bottles far out number glass bottles in the market place. I have no numbers to back that statement up, but its very obvious to see this in any store. This is probably due to the cost of a plastic bottle versus a glass bottle, as well as other factors including the weight of each, and the fragility.
These factors aside, I have come to the conclusion that reusing a glass bottle for drinking purposes instead of buying a new bottle of water every time you run out of water will save you money, period. The glass bottle is very easy to clean, it can be hand washed or put in the dish washer. Plus, glass unlike plastic, loses the smell from the previous liquid that inhabited it. The only problem is, if it breaks, you might be in a tough spot because it is glass and will cut you/other things and the liquid you had in it will be all over the place.
Recycling can be a good thing, but it usually entails the downgrading of the material being recycled. The best form of recycling is up-cycling, or reusing the original object in a similar way, or something close to it to become a better product or give it a higher environmental value. An example of this is of course a glass jar being reused as a drinking glass. It can also be used for storing things that need a tight seal, like jam. (mason jars are best for this)
I also use glass jars for storing fat and grease from cooking pans. It is very bad to pour grease or fat down the drain because it can clog your sink, but if you put it in a glass bottle or jar that has a top it can be sealed and filled to the top with that liquid and reused for other cooking purposes, like making soap, or thrown away in the trash.
It is hard to change a habit when there is no pressure to do so, but when money, time, and common sense become factors in decisions that are made everyday, it becomes easier to reason with yourself why you should or should not do something.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Recycling
Recycling can be a good thing, but it usually entails the downgrading of the material being recycled. The best form of recycling is up-cycling, or reusing the original object in a similar way, or something close to it to become a better product or give it a higher environmental value. An example of this is of course a glass bottle being reused as a water bottle. It can also be used for storing things that need a tight seal, like jam.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Peel MP3 Blog Reader
The program Peel has become a vital part of my life. I originally got this program 3 years ago, and I have yet to get board with it. If you cant get it from the title, it basically reads blogs that host music and "peels" the songs right off of the blogs and organizes them in a program on your desktop. Peel comes it two versions, the free and the not free. I started off with the free version but soon realized that it was way too good of a program and ended up forking over the $15 dollars to buy it. I have never spend a better $15 dollars. In order to get the music you need to add blogs to the program for it to search. I always had a few MP3 blogs I would check every so often to check out new music, so I stared with a small list of about 5 blogs. After a few months I expanded my collection to be about 10. Unfortunately some blogs did die off or stopped working with Peel, but trust me there are plenty of blogs to choose from. The reason I am writing this post is because I recently found this great database of various MP3 sites organized by genre. Could not have asked for more. So now I pass on my knowledge of this database as well as my enjoyment for Peel, new music is just around the next page.
Peel (highly recommended) : http://www.getpeel.com/
Database: http://wiki.monkeyfilter.com/index.php?title=MP3_Blog_Listing
Peel (highly recommended) : http://www.getpeel.com/
Database: http://wiki.monkeyfilter.com/index.php?title=MP3_Blog_Listing
Prey Project
Open source software, hands down, is awesome. I've been a big fan of it ever since I found out about it, and the Prey Project is just another reason why I think it is so cool. The ability to take an idea and share it freely on the internet with anyone who is interested in your creation is a huge step in the right direction in my book. Open source software is also a great tool for direct feedback. Some one that does download and use your product is more than likely to give you criticism, both positive and negative, about how they use it and feel it can be improved. My recent open source find is the Prey Project. It is a way to keep track of your laptop or phone, and get alerts about it if it goes missing or you want to know where you last left it. I have a MacBook and an iPhone, but I could only register my laptop because the iPhone platform is not yet available. I just may have to encourage the creator(s) of Prey to extend their creation to the iPhone. Check it out, if not for the program at least watch the 2 minute informational video.
http://preyproject.com/
http://preyproject.com/
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