And in related news...

The guy who played Angel on Rockford has not been seen in public for a number of weeks.

New blog views

Blogger.com gets all AJAX-y, CSS-y, and HTML5-y. Check out the new Blogger views of this blog. Once you're there, try the drop-down at the top right. There are five different views.

Facebook profile failure

Well, it almost worked. I came across some clever Facebook profile picture hacks, and I thought I'd give it a try myself. I need to adjust the one photo a bit, but I've lost patience for now. I found out how to do it here.

Definition of a libertarian

One who agrees with those policies of both Democrats and Republicans which each party is least able to deliver.

The Children's Museum of South Dakota

It opens on Sunday, 12 September. I can't wait.

stupid iPad/Pre/GPS trick

[Update 15 August: Verizon apparently put an end to my fun. Now when I try to turn on Mobile Hotspot, I get a message that says my plan doesn't include internet sharing.]

I have a new Apple iPad, a new Palm Pre Plus, and an ancient GPS that's falling apart physically and has old maps. So here's my way of using the two new devices as a substitute for the old GPS:

The Verizon Palm Pre has a feature called "Mobile Hotspot." This connects to the internet via the usual mobile phone 3G connection, and then extends that connection via Wi-Fi to up to five other devices.

The iPad has GPS hardware.

The iPad finds my location via GPS, but can't show maps without an internet connection. That's where the Pre comes in. I fire up Mobile Hotspot, connect the iPad to it, and start Google Maps on the iPad. It works like a charm. It finds my location pretty quickly, and can either just show my current location, or draw me directions.

Notes:

It's not an exact substitute for a regular automotive GPS, since you can't really drive and operate it at the same time. So if you're travelling solo, it's not really for you. Two adults required, or at least a kid old enough to run the iPad and read the map. No turn-by-turn voice directions.

It would also work with the iPad's built-in 3G (if you have one of those models, which I do), but that would require monthly payments of $15, or more likely $25, to AT&T.

The Pre also has GPS and Google Maps, and essentially does all of this on just one device. However, the big screen on the iPad makes it much more pleasant.

The Pre has "VZ Navigator," which does turn-by-turn directions and traffic reports and points-of-interest like a regular GPS, but that's $10 a month.

It drains the battery on my Pre like nobody's business.

Terrible Presidential Puns

Here's a dumb blog I've just started, and my old friend Bentley will soon be joining. We write really bad puns involving (usually) the names of U.S. presidents, and you guess the punchlines and leave them in the comments section.

This silly idea dates back to high school. I'm not sure why we started making these things up, but we did. Now we're doing the world a favor by sharing them. I'm sure the world will be thankful.

So head on over, and supply a punchline.