Chad Dotson

A small town Computer Scientist / Software Engineer. Chad enjoys writing Python and JavaScript as well as tinkering with his Raspberry Pi and Arduino. When not programming, he enjoys Photography (especially lightning) and Sci-Fi.

Sep

2009

NASA Ares I Test Footage

Check out this footage from the recent NASA Ares I Test.

Sep

2009

New Nikon D5000

I finally took the plunge and ordered a Nikon D5000 DSLR this week. I’d been holding off buying one due to the recall on the first production serial numbers. After contacting Amazon and learning that they have received replacement stock, I made the order. I received it mid-day yesterday and have taken a few inexperienced test photos. I’ve included them below. I’ve done no post editing except for cropping. I must say, I am really impressed with this camera. I’m sure there will be more to come on this topic.

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Sep

2009

Local Photos from 9/4/2009

Here are some photos I took yesterday out around Woods Reservoir and the Elk River.

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Sep

2009

One Way Trip To Mars

I heard this week that someone was proposing that any expeditions to Mars be a one way trip for the astronauts. While it could definitely have its advantages such as putting colonization of Mars on the fast track, one big problem remains….its a one way trip. Maybe we are in the 1400s of space travel, but who would sign up for such a thing.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/opinion/01krauss.html?_r=2

Aug

2009

EeePC Upgrades and Eeebuntu!

I just finished my EeePC overhaul. In addition to the default Linux distribution sucking on the EeePC, the stock SSD is as slow as Christmas, the stock SSD is only 4gb, and only had 512mb of memory.

For this mod, I used the following components:

You’ll also want the following:

The latest version of Eeebuntu – http://www.eeebuntu.org/
UNetbootin – http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/
A sizable usb flash drive.

Overall the procedure is fairly simple:

Download the lastest version of Eeebuntu.
Download UNetbootin (it just makes life easier).
Use UNetbootin to put the Eeebuntu distribution onto the flash drive and make the drive bootable.
Unscrew and remove the cover plate on the back of the EeePC.
Unscrew and slide out the SSD.
Install the new SSD and screw into place.
Remove the original memory stick.
Install the new memory stick.
Replace the back cover of the EeePC.
Attach the flash drive to the EeePC and turn it on.
Follow the onscreen steps to installing Eeebuntu.

I should note that I did read about the EeePCs being very picky with memory. I’ve heard that it has to virtually match the specs of the original stick. I’ve tested it so far and mine is not showing any instability problems at all. With the SSD and memory replacement, this little machine is a screamer. Startup and shutdown are blazingly fast and to beat all, I’m starting to wonder if its outperforming a Ubuntu 9.04 install I have on one of my ancient desktops!

Here are some pics…

Aug

2009

Tinkering With an EEEPC 900 Part 1

I just bought a replacement SSD and memory stick for my EEEPC 900. Turns out it uses a mini pcie sata connector and those drives aren’t priced too badly for the smaller capacities. I’m planning on loading EEEBuntu on it this weekend. I’ll have another report on the status of this upgrade later this week.

Aug

2009

AVATAR Trailer

Here is the official trailer for the much awaited Avatar movie that is due in theaters this December.

Aug

2009

New Lightning Photo

I captured this photo during the storm tonight. It has to be one of the most vivid and smooth I’ve taken to date. I kinda wished the exposure had lasted at least another few seconds though. Right after this photo completed, another bolt struck right were mid-frame would be.

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