#35 Games? In the Library?

Games in the library!? Surprise, surprise games have not just permeated our buying expenditures for Christmas but it has also permeated our beloved libraries!

Surprisingly public libraries have always been a place to get information. Whether it be books, romance, sci-fi, VHS, DVD's and games the library have been a place to give their patrons the information they want.

Libraries fought the onslaught of consumers buying DVD's once they cheap and the hardware was wider attainable. As the idea was pitched to the libraries to also allow patrons to check out movies some of the baby boomers voiced their opinions and loudly. They mentioned that the library was a place of learning and that where not a blockbuster. Well as blockbuster passed us up the library had to play catch up for years before we allowed DVD's to be checked out.

Now that we offer computers we are now playing catch up to computer online games. There are many free games offered online that are geared to adults down the little kids.

I decided to play some free online soduku. Hit the link for the website:

http://www.websudoku.com/

Learning the game took just a couple of minutes and on easy you were up and running easily. This definitely helps with number association and helps your mind keep sharp.

There are plenty of games also geared towards kids. Learning games, math games, counting games.

Try the PBS Kids website for you children.

Hit the link:

http://pbskids.org/games/

Look around and you can find first person shooters online, free mmo's, Super Mario Bros and several other games.

#34: Geocoding and Geocaching

Alright we've been doing pretty good so far using the google maps. Now let's talk about Geocoding and Geocaching both can be found using google maps. What is Geocoding? Well you now how people say Longitude by Latitude with a number following each well that's basically what it amounts to.

Finding the Longitude by Latitude is what we need first. Hop on the website http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/geocode and type in a public address. Afterward at the bottom you'll get either the Decimal Degrees (top number) or the Degrees in Minutes (bottom number). Copy either.

Now open maps.google.com and paste the coordinates in the search bar. Now search for the coordinates and it should find the exact place where the business or public area is.

The public area I'm doing is the Baldwin Boettcher Library found off of Aldine Westfield and 1960.

Here are the coordinates in Decimal Degrees:

30.037481, -95.381284

Now copy that and paste it into google maps.

You'll see that it will pull the exact location for the library.

Seems like a novelty item to use the directions in google maps. But there is much more than you can do with this coordinates it's called Geocaching.

Geocaching is basically a type of scavenger hunt. What people do is find a well hidden spot and bury an item. And you basically go out and use the longitude and latitude to find the buried item.

It's a fun way to use what we've learned and put it to use.

This seems to a fun geocache to find and it's by the airport. Seems it has great GPS coordinates to find it easier but it shouldn't be too hard.

Geocaching seems to be a fun way to use the coordinates in google maps. Some of the things I can see that may be dangerous are parking in the airport having security question you on what you are doing. Especially if it has to be dug up.

But I would love to try this out and dig something up by the Arboretum where the trails could hide something well.

Maps #33 Relocating with online maps

Ok following our my last post on what else can google maps be used for we're going to continue the conversation today. Now also continuing on topic from our Alcatraz prison photo let's say you're a young strapping man that has just be "rehabilated" and the state deems you ok. Now what's next on the list other than being left on a pier. Well you're going to have to reconstruct your life!

So to do that we're going to have to find you an apartment. And guess what website we're using today for that? No no not www.hamsterdance.com it's maps.google.com.

Ok for myself I'm going to look for a apartment around $600-800 tops for a one bedroom that's animal friendly.

Going to Apartments.com you can search your city and decide to live inside the loop, outside the loops, north, south, east or west. After you go from there I'll click through the different options to refine your search. I click on "Large Animal" in case I want to raise a Great Dane. After choosing your different search result click on "Continue" and it will pull up results for you to click through.

I find that there are different photos that are available. Comparing apartments the interior photos are great and also the pool and clubhouse photos. If there are any arial views or street views even better. They show you if the apartment is next to a airport, hospital, train tracks etc.

After finding the Preserve at Kingwood I found that it's very clean and has alot of amenities. While comparing the clubhouse you can really see a difference between other apartments.

Now we aren't done yet. If you click on the "Map" tab you can view the google map provided and what businesses, schools, diners are around. This could make or break a deal.

Food Marts close to the apartment complex would be:
1. Wal-Mart
2. Randall's
3. King's Mart

For Schools:
1. Kingwood Middle
2. Kingwood High
3. Foster Elementary

Restaraunts close:
1. Outback
2. Papa's
3. Burger King
4. Denny's

Apartments.com really made it easy to view everything you needed before making a decision. Remember this is a year of your life. Enjoy! :D

Maps #32 Current Events

Now that we are done doing our own maps we're done. *Dusts off hands* Alright lets move o...Wait there's more? Of course there is! You don't think I'd let you off that easy now would you. ;)

Now what else can we do with google maps? Well alot! Think of how you made your own map with your special places of interest. Now think about what other people can do with just a little more elbow grease. You still don't understand what I'm talking about well then here's a question. Have you ever wanted to see the 7 wonders of the world? You can and can do it interactively with google maps.

Here's a webpage to show exactly that:

http://coolmaps.7wonders.googlepages.com/ancientwonders.html

Or have you ever wondered how it would be to take a little trip as a package? You can follow a package that you've sent or by a online retailer to you as long as you have a tracking number. It will show you a map through google and show you the different destinations the package travels as it travels.

Here is that website (Registration Required):

http://www.packagemapping.com/

Also here an image I liked and so decided to post on it. It's Alcatraz a prison over water.:

http://www.terraserver.com/view.asp?cx=550746&cy=4186756&proj=32610&mpp=1&pic=img&prov=gx19&stac=2743&ovrl=-1&drwl=-1



A couple of things I didn't know about Alcatraz:

• There were no female correctional officers or inmates in Alcatraz
• Prisoners remained on Alcatraz until they were no longer considered to be disruptive or incorrigible - an average of 8 to 10 years.
• There were no executions on Alcatraz, although there were five suicide and eight murders.

Have map, Will Travel

Have map, Will Travel! Love that line except when the gas prices are your 1 gallon for your firstborn. America loves to travel since the creation of the first car to sputter off the assembly line.

Now back then they may of not have the tools we use for traveling. For example: Run Flat Tires. Yes run flats may not be a necessity but imagine back when you had to replace a wagon size wheel on a model T. And the most embarrassing part about it is they didn't have wrecker's back then to pull your car. You had to get it pulled by horse and carriage, ah the irony of it all.

On top of that maps were not as easy to use as they are today. We have key maps, maps to your street, maps to your bathroom, maps of space, maps, maps maps. And as a species without maps we'd have to rely on only our surrounding areas.

Now here's the secret. You can create your own map with way points all using google maps.

Say for example that you have places of interest you may want to share with someone. Theaters, Restaurants, A Cow you say painted funny. You can share with many other people. And making one is the most fun part.

Go to maps.google.com. Go ahead and register yourself for a gmail.google.com account but it's not necessary. At maps.google.com you'll see an option for "My Maps" click on that. After just search for different restaurants and when you see one click on it and add it to your "My Maps".

Easy as that. So we can share it with each other here's mine:


View Larger Map

Spring Cleaning

Back once again for the ATTACK OF THE KILLER BLOG!

Alright this blog may not kill you or even attack you it's more of a roll over and play dead blog but who's counting.

Today we shall talk about SPRING CLEANING your files. Yes SPRING CLEANING your files. Why am I screaming? Well it's really simple, you scream and people listen, simple enough.

What we are all doing is a little cleaning of our network hard drives. So let's see what I have on these drives....

La la...HOLY. That's alot of files and they're just all staring at me like I've abandoned them. Well I have since I don't use all of these files alot...matter of fact I don't use alot of these files at all!

So let's see.. The oldest file I have on the P: drive is... one from 05/12/07. Alright this puppy is going to get deleted. Click....hit delete...click yes and now empty the recycle bin, voila! No more squatting files on the P drive. Now that's an old file to be sitting there for that long. Well knowing that all this space costs money and the more they have to upgrade to keep up with our junk files. So it's best to delete the files that we don't use anymore and free up space for everyone else. This cause less clutter and is more efficient for the drives.

Organizationally it's not bad as I thought. Most of my files are in one folder and most of the files are easily viewed or accessible. So like a great street said "Chim Chiminey Chim Chem Che roo" and here I go sweeping the old files off.

GTD or "Getting Things Done"

The information that Allen provides is useful in many aspects of life. From work to your normal home life, the different steps from having a set in stone workflow aspect to the different level of focus can impact our lives in many ways.

I've always walked around with set of instructions in my mind that I need to do. Most people do also have these set instructions. I'm sure most of us have a morning routine. Wake up, take a shower, brush our teeth, eat breakfast and then it diversifies from there. This is in our mind of things needed to be done for us to feel good when going to work or for doing hobbies.

We can use these aspects in our organizational skills at work.

I've gone online and looked over google's calendar system. From reading Allen's tickler file system I've gone ahead and implemented that aspect into my life. I've had trouble keeping a notebook planner because it get's pushed to the side when I do any work or when I'd get home.

With it being online I can access it easier and be more redundant with my information. I can always have the notebook planner with the same information in it in case the internet goes down. It's what I've been needing to keep me from forgetting the different tasks needed to be done throughout the month.

I can use all these steps for my college classes also and will definitely be using the calendar to keep myself organized at all times.

I'm really grateful into reading the system as it has put alot of my flaws in the open (organization) and made it simply easy to fix.