XO in Wolcott

I received an e-mail late last week that my XO computer would not be shipped until after the holidays and that I can expect delivery before January 15.

I was disappointed because I planned to give the XO to my wife, Laurie, as a Christmas gift. Laurie has never used a computer, but lately has expressed an interest, so I thought that the XO would be perfect for a novice like my wife (plus I could play with it when she wasn't playing with it).

Christmas Eve morning, Laurie was out doing some last minute Christmas shopping and I just came in from the cold after washing the crud from the recent snowstorms off my car. The Pie dogs started barking, which was a sure sign that someone had driven up our driveway. I went to see who arrived and it is Fedex delivering the XO! I was surprised and very happy.

I wrapped the XO's shipping box without opening its contents and gave it to my wife with other sundry gifts yesterday morning. She was very happy to receive her own computer, but we did not have much time to play with it because we had a full schedule ahead of us.
I did power up the XO to make sure it worked (and it does). The user interface is cool and the XO sees our home Wi-Fi network, so that is a good start.

In the next few days, I will get the XO on our Wi-Fi, check it all out more throroughly, and report my findings here.

All You Need Is Cash

After a busy day, I wanted to relax and watch something amusing. Nothing on the dish interested me, so I looked through my collection of DVDs and decided to watch The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash.

I have not seen this film since it came out in 1978 and it was almost like watching it for the first time. I laughed a lot and enjoyed the music. I had forgotten that it was a Lorne Michaels' production, so there were cameos by the prime "not ready for prime time" Saturday Night Live crew: Aykroyd, Belushi, Murray, Radner, Franken, Davis, and Michaels, himself.

For those who have no idea what I am talking about, The Rutles, "a living legend that will live long after other living legends have died" is a spoof of the Beatles career following their rise from Liverpool to their breakup in 1970. George Harrison appears in the film as an interviewer.

The music is dead-on Beatles. I like it so much that I have the soundtrack on my iPod.

If you are a Beatles fan, buy or rent the DVD; I think you will have a laugh or two.

Surfin': Guarding the Coasts With Our Radios

This week’s Surfin’ explores how ham radio operators can help the US Coast Guard. Read it here, then come back here to post your comments, if any.

By the way, Surfin’ is a weekly column published on ARRLWeb features Web sites related to Amateur Radio, specifically, and radio, in general. If you have any suggestions for Surfin’, please contact WA1LOU using the e-mail link to the right.

time to fire FCC Chairman Kevin Martin

Yesterday, "Bush-appointed Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin rammed through a 3-2 partisan vote to remove the longstanding "newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership" ban that prohibits a local newspaper from owning TV and radio stations in the same market. Witness yet another shining moment: the Bush administration serving up a wholesale giveaway to the largest media corporations in the most corrupt process imaginable."

Read the rest of the story here and complain to your representatives here and here.

Surfin': When Kenwood Was a Trio

This week’s Surfin’ exposes another of WA1LOU’s favorite radios: the venerable Kenwood TS-520. Read it here, then come back here to post your comments, if any.

By the way, Surfin’ is a weekly column published on ARRLWeb features Web sites related to Amateur Radio, specifically, and radio, in general. If you have any suggestions for Surfin’, please contact WA1LOU using the e-mail link to the right.

Surfin': Twoer, Not Tower

This week’s Surfin’ exposes one of WA1LOU's favorite radios. Read it here, then come back here to post your comments, if any.

By the way, Surfin’ is a weekly column published on ARRLWeb features Web sites related to Amateur Radio, specifically, and radio, in general. If you have any suggestions for Surfin’, please contact WA1LOU using the e-mail link to the right.

XO Marks the Spot

Here is the deal of the century! Yeah, I know the century is not even 7 years old, but this is one of the best deals I've seen in a long time.

For a mere donation of $399, you can give a laptop computer to a child in a developing country, receive a second laptop for the child in your life, and get a $200 tax deduction! (This deal is only good in the US and Canada and ends on December 31.) The Give One Get One program is part of One Laptop per Child (OLPC), whose mission is to "empower the children of developing countries to learn by providing one connected laptop to every school-age child."

The laptop, known as the XO, includes a bundle of hardware and software features that make it a versatile computer and not just a toy. Since the XO runs on Linux, ham radio Linux applications can be run on it, too.

If you sign up for the Give One Get One program (like I did), you will help a child in a developing country join the computer age and you can give a laptop to a young ham to help him or her join the Amateur Radio computer age. If you need more convincing, read David Pogue's review in The New York Times and for more information, check out The OLPC Wiki.

(Thank you, Harv Nelson, AI9NL, of Harv's Hamshack Hack fame for cluing me into OLPC.)