LA fire likely to pass across Mount Wilson
September 1st, 2009 | 
Author: The wildfire ravaging Northern Los Angeles County is expected to pass across Mount Wilson, home to TV and radio towers and the famed Wilson Observatory.
Mount Wilson Observatory Director Hal McAlister said Monday in an ongoing blog that the U.S. Forest Service informed him that passage of the fire across Mount Wilson was imminent. The USFS also said firefighters would battle the blaze from the air rather than on the ground.
Firefighers have already been pulled from Red Box, a major staging area about five miles from the observatory.
In his blog late Monday, McAlister reported:
Monday, 31 Aug 09, 2:46 pm PDT – I just spoke with Sherry Roman, Public Affairs Officer of the Angeles National Forest. She could give no updates as to the status of the fire in the Mount Wilson vicinity except that the USFS still considers that passage of fire across Mount Wilson is imminent and will be fought aerially rather than with ground personnel. Once the fire is through the area, they can assess the damage by air after the event before they can send in ground personnel. She also confirmed that firefighters have been removed from Red Box.This roller coaster has taken a dip downward.
McAlister’s latest blog (which mistakenly lists the day as Monday rather than Tuesday):
Monday, 1 Sep 09, 7:15 am PDT – …I do not at this point have any news – only what we can all deduce from Towercam and other sources. Towercam scenes continue to show thick smoke on the mountain with a concentration on the right side of the image implying activity on the mountain’s north side. It clearly has not reached the mountain and, if advancing towards us, it is only doing so slowly.
McAlister also reported that one of the two power lines to the mountain was knocked out by the fire. But the towercam showing the latest images is still online for now, allowing the Mount Wilson staff to monitor the flames.
The latest news from CBS in Los Angeles reports that the Station fire is still only 5 percent contained, and officials don’t expect full containment for another two weeks. At this point, the fire has destroyed 121,000 acres and 53 homes.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-10323008-94.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
Posted in diaster, evironment, Health, weather | 
Tags: diaster, environment, Health, L.A. Wildfire, Mount Wilson | 
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Control4 displays to monitor energy in smart-grid project
Control4 Energy Systems, one of a growing number of home energy display providers, said on Tuesday it will supply energy monitors in a planned smart-grid project in rural Texas.
The home energy monitor–a five-inch-wide monitor that resembles a car GPS unit–will display electricity usage in real time and provide consumers the ability to program a thermostat, according to Will Holford, the public affairs manager at Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative.
The system works by using Zigbee wireless networking within the home to connect the monitor to the thermostat, which communicates with the utility via a smart meter. Other providers in the project, which the utility hopes to begin work on in the second quarter next year, include smart meter provider eMeter and Silver Spring Networks which provides a networking card for the meter.
Control4, which is perhaps better known for its home media management systems, raised $17.3 million in July to expand into the energy monitoring business.
Control4’s display for managing home energy along with home media.
(Credit: Control4.)
Home energy monitors, or in-home displays, are a key piece of the more advanced smart-grid programs being pursued by utilities. By providing more data and ways to program appliances, utilities hope that consumers will be able to find ways to shave back on consumption.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10322885-54.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
Posted in evironment, Green, software, Tech |
Tags: Control4 Energy Systems, energy monitor, Green |
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Microsoft releases preview of Windows 7 embedded edition
Designed to run on everything from ATMs to digital photo frames, Windows Embedded Standard 2011 is now available for download as a trial edition. The finished version is expected in the second half of 2010.
The community technology preview of Windows Embedded gives businesses and developers a chance to evaluate it on their devices and offer feedback to Microsoft. The company said that Windows Embedded lets manufacturers choose only those components they need to drive their equipment, eliminating the need to develop a full platform on their own.
Windows Embedded is used in a variety of markets, including industrial automation, entertainment, and consumer electronics. In the business world, the software is typically found in thin clients, kiosks, medical equipment, and point-of-service devices. On the consumer side, Windows Embedded is used in GPS devices, gaming consoles, networked TVs, and portable media players.
Microsoft said the latest embedded version offers several new features. Businesses will be able to manage their devices using Active Directory group policies and virtual desktops. The new edition will support 64-bit CPUs, the Windows Aero interface, and Windows Touch for touch screens. Windows Embedded Standard 2011 will also incorporate Internet Explorer 8 and Windows Media Player 12.
To help manufacturers, the company will offer Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist certification, a preparation kit, and training software. More information can be found on the Windows Embedded Training site. The company will also let businesses and developers register for free Webinars.
Source :
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-10322875-75.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
Sony shipping Chrome on Vaios
Google promised earlier this year that a major computer maker would start to ship its Chrome browser.
Sony’s the one.
Sony’s Vaio line has begun carrying the browser in the U.S., the Financial Times reported late Monday.
According to a Dow Jones report, all Vaio-branded PCs are now using Chrome as their default browser. A Sony representative told Dow Jones that there are no plans to add Chrome to Vaios outside the U.S.
Vaios will continue to come with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer in tandem.
The Financial Times also reported that other companies are in talks with Google about Chrome and that the browser will also be promoted to Internet users who download RealNetworks’ RealPlayer media-streaming software. Google has previously said it’s in discussions with Dell about bundling the software.
To date–a day before the first anniversary of its launch on September 2, 2008–Chrome has around 30 million active users or around 3 percent of the global market. This makes it the fourth most-popular browser after Internet Explorer, Mozilla’s FireFox, and Apple’s Safari.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10322884-92.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
TweetSaver makes a personal archive of Twitter
I’m always intrigued by backup tools for Web services that don’t really need backup. TweetSaver is no exception. This paid service backs up (almost) everything you’ve ever posted to Twitter, along with private messages and replies from other users. It then adds an extra layer of utility on top of it, like a search tool that’s limited to just your messages, simple sharing options for each message, as well as a way to assign a tag to each tweet for categorization.
Of course the usefulness of all of this hinges on Twitter being down and/or somehow losing all of your data. However, based on Twitter’s uptime over the past year, you have to ask yourself if it’s worth the cost of $20 a year. That’s pretty steep considering there are some free Twitter backup solutions like TweeTake and TweetBackup that do many of the same things.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-10322626-248.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
Posted in Communication, Internet, software, Twitter |
Tags: archive, TweetSaver, Twitter |
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