My Civic Duty

Tomorrow I'll be heading to the Duval County Courthouse for jury duty. It's my first time ever - should be fun. I'll have plenty of reading material and podcasts to keep me entertained as the summons recommends.

iPhone 2.0

Despite the slew of articles reporting activation problems with the new iPhones and software updates on the existing phones, my update went smoothly. I was hoping the software would be available late Thursday night or early Friday morning. But not so much. Apple was dead set on getting everything timed just right. And sure enough, they got a big fat server meltdown. I waited until around 7 last night - no problems.

I had already downloaded maybe a dozen apps from the Apps Store. As soon as the software update was complete, I piled on the programs (most are under a megabyte). So far, my favorites include Weatherbug (the radar view is great for watching the afternoon Florida thunderstorms), Remote, which turns the iPhone into a remote for household computers and AppleTVs. So there's no need to get off the couch to select a new song. The New York Times app is also pretty solid. I tried a French translator program which contains a good range of phrases (complete with audio) - everything from finding the bathroom to pick up lines. And I bought the game Enigmo - also impressive, but it seems to a battery drainer.

A New Office

On Monday, my coworkers and I moved to our new office building. The move took place over the holiday weekend. Surprisingly, the move itself went smoothly. The computer servers and telephones were all back online on schedule. I thought for sure one of the servers would fall off the moving truck on the way over. But I guess not.

The building is your standard modern office construction, certainly no feat of architectural brilliance. I miss the modern art from Progressive - it's amazing how much difference something interesting on the wall makes. I'm sure it's of the same caliber of construction as any new home around the area - thrown up quickly with mediocre craftsmanship. We're also making a attempt to go green. Everyone got a new mug, no more styrofoam cups. That's a forced change that's good all around (as long as I wash my mug on occasion) And the bathrooms (only the men's for some reason) have a sound sensor that turns off most lights after about 30 seconds of quiet. Yes, that means we end up peeing in near darkness until the flush wakes up the lights. Either the sensor is miscalibrated, or the designer needs to see a Urologist.

My drive time is a little longer due to the increased distance from home, but I'm getting a better freeway mileage. Oh and the parking spaces are surprisingly tight - even for my little 325. Maybe it's a back door way to discourage all the SUV owners by scratching up their doors.

Complaints aside, my new desk is probably in one of the better places to be. I have a nice window seat away from the major traffic areas, break room and restrooms. And we're much closer to a YMCA branch. So the lunch time workouts will be a little easier to squeeze in.

After Dinner Guest

We had just finished up dinner and I was looking back outside when I saw this snake on the patio. It appears to be a Cottonmouth. I grabbed the camera for a few quick shots - not my best work, but I wasn't taking any chances and stayed behind the glass or screen. After checking out the grill, the creature headed back out towards the fence...

Yikes!

Wall-E and a New Belt

Pixar does it again with Wall-E. Go see it. With each new film the animation out does the last one. And each plot is just as brilliant. Would've thought you could get a feature film about a lonely trash compacting robot.

From a purely business angle, the soundtrack was thin on vocals with balance left to instrumentals. Not that it was a bad soundtrack, I just doubt it'll sell as well as previous sound tracks.

In other news I earned my blue belt in my Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training! Yes, I was a bit surprised. Some of us squeaked through without having to do another test.

iPhone 2.0

I finally had a chance to watch Apple's latest keynote presentation from a couple weeks ago. This was a developer conference so it's a little dorky, but all geekery aside, take a look at the first section of the keynote. In it, you'll see some incredible software demos that will be ready for the iPhone 2.0 software release - via the iTunes App Store.

The software, ranging from games to medical imaging applications, is amazing! These applications aren't just shinnied down desktop programs. Instead, many are uniquely suited to the iPhone interface itself by taking advantage of the touch features and accelerometers.

Back from The Great Northwest

After nearly a week traveling around Portland, eastern Washington, and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, it's nice to be back baking in the humidity of sunny Florida. The weather was rather chilly for June. In fact, the locals are so fed up with the weather, they're referring to this month as Junuary. Of course, the day I headed back to the airport, it was started to warm up.

Portland is quite a contrast from Jacksonville. The Jacksonville city leaders might learn a thing or two about city planning if they were ever to take a visit. New construction projects are carefully integrated into the existing landscape - unlike the razed fields that mark a new housing project in much of the country.

The Coeur d'Alene resort was impressive. It's popular golf course with a famous floating (and moveable) island green was a treat! If only I played golf a little more regularly...