James the Hawk /  by Jared

St. James elementary school was visited by an injured hawk last November.  Outside a classroom window he seemed dazed and could not fly.  Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown sent volunteers to collect the bird for rehabilitation.  Sweetbriar then returned to release James the Hawk back into the wild.  The children and educators were very excited to see James after his stay at Sweetbriar.  Here are some photos from the event and a video associated with release.



Impact OctaCool 9 Notes /  by Jared

I got the Impact OctaCool 9 from Amazon a little while ago.  It's a good CFL unit that's lightweight, puts out decent light, and has two diffusers for nice soft light.  The drawbacks are the clips holding the inner diffuser are a pain to use, the reflector material is single stitched (might not hold too long), and the whole umbrella setup is tough to assemble.  I just leave it assembled to get around that.  Here's a video I put together for it.


Kickstart... well anything /  by Jared


Kickstarter is a fantastic website which makes supporting projects we love an easy and effective proposition.  The interface and structure of the site is simple and very intuitive.  The direct and very personal participation in these projects reflects the enthusiasm and shared commitment of the supporters.  This works very well for short films, music, and other creative productions.  Also, one of the nice features the system provides is that projects are fully funded before they are performed.  This seems like a nice way to operate.  Get the capital you need to proceed first, then execute the proposed plan.  Seems pretty straight forward.  Well, what if we applied this type of funding model to other applications such as local government budgeting?




Positive effects
  1. Local services such as garbage collection and snow removal would be pre-funded (no more budgeting short falls) kind of like saving up and buying a new TV rather than getting it on credit.
  2. Just funding these services would essentially be direct voting for which services are valuable to residents.
  3. There could be less chance of government corruption and misappropriation of funds (this would only work of course if the hiring practices and evaluation of service providers for the local government was transparent and published).
  4. Hard quantifiable data for residents wants and needs would be all there for anyone to see.

Negative effects
  1. You and your neighbors may not agree on what is necessary and what is not (but what else is new)
  2. Direct participation in societal matters I think on the whole is a good thing, however, “the mob” is capable of terrible things.  I think the best way to start this type of local government is to apply is to non-essential services such and waste management and snow collection before going for something like Police and Fire.

There are many details that would have to be worked out, but I would like to see a local town or city attempting to automate and pre-fund their residential services pretty soon.  We have the technology and even the IRS is online, no reason why smaller government can’t pave the way.   The Kickstarter system can be applied to many situations.  Any other ideas where?

Last Call Highlights and Bloopers /  by Jared

I had a blast getting video of my brother's softball team Last Call.  I learned a lot trying to get stills and video of live action sports.  It was tougher than I had originally thought.  At first I just posted video of the player's swings at 1/2 speed (60 fps played back at 30) so they could check out their form.  I eventually got enough footage I decided to make a highlight reel.  So this is for Last Call and hopefully see you guys next year!









Re-purposed Futon = Wine Rack /  by Jared



While cleaning out the basement I came across an Ikea futon which had no mattress.  "What do I do with this?"  Well after some debate and a need to put my booze somewhere I came up with wine rack.  I used all the existing hardware, the only modifications I made were some chop saw cuts and new screw holes.  Otherwise it's exactly the same.  I get 56 bottles, and it doesn't look half bad.  Thanks Ikea!





My DIY Jib /  by Jared

So I saw Film Riot's episode on creating a jib and thought it was a great idea to make my own (especially after checking the prices online).  I didn't follow the plans they had, but the unit is a simple enough design.  I was able to get most of the materials at the local metal shop for about 30 bucks and the rest was a Lowe's run.  It's mostly aluminum and doesn't weigh too much.  (If I make another one I will definitely buy a drill press)  I did have a speaker stand already.

Here are some test shots.


Idea - Keep or Toss /  by Jared

This could be a Facebook app, Picasa add-on, Flickr feature, etc...  So, you know when Mom gets fed up with how much stuff is in the attic, basement, or other storage space she may have the tendency to throw out boxes without checking with the siblings of the family, or won't throw them out because everyone has to be together to go through them.  This could be easily remedied with a simple photo app.

Usage:

  1. Take picture of stuff in the boxes
  2. Post them to the app
  3. Share/Send all relevant parties the album which will have a nice "Keep" or "Toss" button
  4. The feedback will be accessible by the person who posted them and they will know what to do with it (including commented special instructions such as "Don't Throw Out!!!, or Why did we keep that for this long?)
This should be a simple enough feature to build into any established photo sharing site, and will make "stuff management" much easier for families!

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