Digest audio more quickly with Windows Media Player

I was recently listening to a sermon and I discovered something in Windows Media Player that is quite helpful. I was trying to speed up the tempo, and couldn't find an option to do so in the normal settings, so I right-clicked on the Play button and found a menu that allows you to playback at different speeds, including "Fast." It works well for audio podcasts, sermons, and similar "spoken word" audio files.

 Playback Options in Windows Media Player

A chair that may change the world... or at least the way people sit in it.

There are few inventions that come along that make you think, "that's a great idea," or "I wish I had thought of that." You know, ideas like the iPod, water/ice in the fridge door, or the tagless t-shirt. Such things aren't always earth shattering concepts, but things that you wouldn't want to live without after owning them.

I sat in a new chair recently that is a great product. The chair is called Trey, and I really think may change the way a lot of people sit. Trey is not only a sharp looking office/desk chair but, as the website states, it is "more than a chair."

Trey can be used as you would would assume, at a desk or conference room table, and it can be separated into different pieces of furniture to give the user many different uses. Don't think of something complex like a Rubik's Cube, think multi functional like MacGuyver's Swiss Army knife.

As a gamer, I think that the best thing about Trey is that it works great for both PC gaming (as a desk chair) and a console gaming chair (as a floor rocker and footstool). Another incredibly smart thing about this chair is that it was designed so that users can sit in it backwards, sideways, or frontwards. If you aren't quite figuring out how one chair can do all of this, you need to watch the video and view their photos on their website: www.treychair.com.

Update: YouTube videos of Trey

Get Your NES Fix Online!

Wow... this may not be great news for most of the folks on the Interweb, but for Mr. Black and I, it is time to return to our roots. The NES is now online, baby! I remember going over to my friend Jeff's house and playing Jackal on Sunday afternoons. Now I can play it without even having to mess with cartridges. Oh what fun this shall be... Check-it-out, check-it-ouuuuuuut.

It's Tea Time

Ever just want to play a game that is fun but doesn't take a ton of time to learn? Teagames is a great place to find games that are just that... easy, and fun to play during boring meetings.

Some of my favorites are Blueprint, TG Motocross, and Pitch 'n' Putt Golf. Check them out!

Geek-Out: I can't believe I'm saying this...

I'm excited about great technology from a PHONE COMPANY! (You know, those massive companies that charge you more in fees than for services were started back around Noah's time and were all once a part of AT&T)

Yesterday, I read that there were more cell phones than land lines in the US, and I thought it spelled D-O-O-M for these U.S. icons of communication. However, there may be a savior for all land line-based telco's, called fiber-optic broadband.

For months, Verizon has been marketing Fios, what I thought was just another alternative to cable and DSL. However, today I stumbled upon an evil marketing ploy advertisement that caught my attention... 30 megabits down and 2 megabits up. WOW. Ok, now I understand that it is very different! Have I lost you? Well, as Inigo Montoya said, "Let me 'splain... No, there is too much. Let me sum up."

Imagine that you were filling up an Olympic-sized pool with water. That act of filling represents the speed at which you download information from the internet (e-mail, illegal music, web pages, files, etc.) If you were using a drinking straw, it would be the equivalent of using a 56k dialup-modem connection, a garden hose would be the equivalent of a cable modem or higher-end DSL, and breaking down Hoover Dam would be the equivalent of the speed of Fios. Make sense? :) Ok, it's a little bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point.

So, listen up you phone companies... we (I) need you to get out there and install some fiber... and if you're not up to speed with Verizon, GET WITH IT (SPRINT)!

Link: Verizon Fios

Life on the inside track

Did you ever know someone who always knew some little trick that, had you known it, would have saved you time on some sort of job or project? Those little "tricks of the trade," as we call them can come in very handy, especially when you are trying to do something that you don't do for a living.

Today, a LifeHacker article referenced a website that we will all find useful. The site, http://www.tradetricks.org, is a collection of user-submitted "tricks of the trade," covering everything from caulking techniques to maintaining order in a classroom.

I was surprised at how many useful tips there were on the site, and I'm sure that there will be many more to come. Take a look at the site and if you're one of those people who know something that the rest of us don't, feel free to send the tip their way.

Link: http://www.tradetricks.org

Independence Day

Welcome back from what I hope was a great weekend for you.

Upon my return from a weekend of fireworks, family, and friends, I spent some time reading a little bit about our nation's independence. As I read, I was surprised to learn that we might have just as much reason to celebrate July 2nd as we do July 4th. It seems that one of our founding fathers, John Adams, thought that July 2nd was the day to celebrate. He wrote:

"The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epocha in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward for evermore."

Isn't that interesting? We have been celebrating July 4th for over two centuries, but have we been celebrating the wrong date?

According to the entry for the U.S. Independence Day on Wikipedia.com, July 2nd was the date that the Continental Congress voted secretly for independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. After two days they authored a document, the Declaration of Independence, that was then ratified by 12 of our 13 colonies. That day, July 4th, 1776 became the day that we, the people, stood united as a new nation.

So we are celebrating the date that the people decided to ratify the Congress's decision as opposed to the date that a select few representatives secretly made a choice. We are celebrating a date when a decision was made that could not be made in silence and secrecy in order to have effect. This decision needed to be spoken with a voice that the whole world could hear... the voice of a nation.

For more information on our Independence Day, visit the "Independence Day (United States)" article on Wikipedia.com.