Voice object #2...

Compare this one to the other and tell me which one sounds better...???... B-)

Audio Intro...

This is a test of a voice object...

No sunspots: 96-year record will fall this week

No sunspots: 96-year record will fall this week

Posted using ShareThis

Wikipedia Testing New Method to Curb False Info...

(AP) -- Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that has drawn some decidedly juvenile pranks, is looking to impose more discipline with new restrictions on the editing of articles. The latest changes come as Wikipedia tries to balance a need for credibility and a desire for openness. While anyone can still edit entries, the site is testing pages that won't register changes until they are approved by an experienced Wikipedia editor. If the site's users respond well to the test run, the new restrictions will apply to all entries for living people in the next few weeks. The idea is to block the kind of high-profile vandalism that has marred some pages. In one of the most recent embarrassments, Democratic Sens. Robert Byrd and Edward Kennedy were prematurely declared dead by rogue editors. Still, Wikipedia risks discouraging legitimate editing if restrictions on changes or additions become too burdensome, keeping articles from getting better or keeping up with events. That may be especially true on more obscure pages with fewer active volunteers to approve edits in a timely way. Aware of the risks, Wikipedia has set the criteria for "experienced editor" status relatively low. Users who are registered for a few days can give changes the OK, said Jay Walsh, a spokesman for the nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation, which runs the site. A more uniform system for filtering changes on Wikipedia represents a step back from the site's original philosophy, which called for harnessing the collective knowledge of volunteer editors without any major restrictions. But it is not the first time Wikipedia has attached some strings. The same flagging process, for example, has been imposed on all entries in the German-language Wikipedia for more than a year. On the English site, too, high-profile pages that are likely to be defaced, such as Michael Jackson's, have been tightly restricted. Some observers believe Wikipedia must continue tightening editing policies if it wants to gain credibility. "I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop," said Eric Goldman, director of the High Tech Law Institute at the Santa Clara University School of Law. Goldman envisions a future Wikipedia curated by a relatively small group of dedicated editors. Under the current model, he said, there simply aren't enough volunteers to catch all errors. "My hope is that Wikipedia still exists and is still considered a useful site," Goldman said. "But it will be at that point a very tightly controlled site. It won't have that veneer of a site that anyone can contribute to. They haven't closed the drawbridge. People can still get in. But it keeps going up and up and up." Separately, the Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment group started by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, said Tuesday it is committing $2 million over two years to the Wikimedia Foundation. Omidyar Network's grant will support Wikimedia's goals of bringing free educational content to people around the world and supporting more people to help create that content. It follows last week's announcement of a $500,000 grant from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation to make Wikipedia's software more user friendly and to develop training materials to engage new potential volunteer editors. ===eof=== I find Wikimedia to be very helpful for the most part.  I think some sort of policing is needed to protect the system from vandals though. /rbs:.:.: .

Posted via email from rbse's posterous

"Location, Location, Location" Twitter to have geographic coordinates:

"Location, Location, Location" Twitter to have geographic coordinates: http://blog.twitter.com/2009/08/location-location-location.html B-)

Posted via email from rbse's posterous

Search Engine with many media types. Each Summary has a thumbnail, SHARE links, Preview, Save, & Trash options:

Search Engine with many media types. Each Summary has a thumbnail, SHARE links, Preview, Save, & Trash options - http://www.nexplore.com/

Posted via email from rbse's posterous

Twitter cofounder Isaac "Biz" Stone - watch the interview...

August 13, 2009 Twitter co-founder Biz Stone shares lessons learned from the site's recent crash, talks about the growing influence of the brand and speculates on the micro-blogging site's future. Watch the interview: http://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/archive/200908/20090813.html ===eof=== After viewing this interview, I'm confident that Twitter.com is here to stay.  Tweets are a very powerful tool... /rbs:.:.: .

Posted via email from rbse's posterous

1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake Aftershock Map...

Loma Prieta Aftershock Map

Powered by Socrata

===eof===

It looks like a giant volcano to me...

/rbs:.:.:
.

Why FaceBook really bought FriendFeed August 11, 2009 | Jim Connolly | Comments 11 So, FaceBook has acquired FriendFeed. This immediately got people speculating as to why FaceBook, with all those hundreds of millions of happy users, would want to buy FriendFeed.  In short - FaceBook didn’t want to buy FriendFeed! FaceBook bought talent - Not a platform FaceBook is huge and has no need to buy in the relatively tiny number of users that FriendFeed has.  So, this was not an acquisition of eyeballs. The FriendFeed software is (as any geek will tell you) awesome; but that’s the problem. Geeks like us LOVE it, but it’s not usable enough for mainstream use.  Although far superior to Twitter technically, FriendFeed lacks the instant usability that sites like Twitter offer. So, I don’t believe FaceBook bought FriendFeed for the platform either. FriendFeed does have one extremely valuable asset though - Talent! In buying FriendFeed, FaceBook has just acquired the services of four extremely smart people; Bret Taylor, Sanjeev Singh, Jim Norris and Paul Buchheit.  Before founding FriendFeed, these guys worked at Google and helped develop services like, Gmail, Google Maps and Google Groups. Their market value is huge and that’s what I believe FaceBook is paying for. In a press release accompanying the acquisition, FaceBook confirms the value it places on FriendFeed’s co-founders - saying they will; “hold senior roles on Facebook’s engineering and product teams.”  The remaining 12 FriendFeed staff members will also be joining FaceBook, as part of the deal.  At the time of writing this, there’s been no mention as to what FaceBook has paid for Friendfeed. ===eof=== We shall see what Facebook has to offer with this acquisition.  I'm looking forward to the results... RBSe.us .

Posted via email from rbse's posterous

Now posting to all my social networking sites with one email...

This message was sent to post@posterous.com and is distributed to my 3 (currently) social network sites,  Twitter, Facebook, & Blogspot.  You can cut-n-paste to your email once and off it goes to all your social networking sites, it's that easy.  Setup is simple and extensive help is available if needed.  This is, by far, the easiest way to publish... Just email it! Check out http://Posterous.com for yourself. Sincerely, Robert Stretton RBS Enterprises 1.707.444.9650 rbse@yahoo.com http://RBSe.us

Posted via email from rbse's posterous

California Names: County, City, District, Etc. (1270 data points)

This dataset is derived from census.gov datasets. There are 1270 data points to this dataset that lists all the County, City, District, Region, Reservation, Etc., names. Get the names in your state from:
http://www2.census.gov/census_2000/datasets/demographic_profile/

Here is the California dataset for your review:

California Names: County, City, District, Etc. (1270 data points)

Powered by Socrata

===eof===

Just in case you were interested... B-)

/rbs:.:.:
.

Find Your Car on the "Cash for Clunkers" data-set and get up to $4,500 from the government!!!:

Find Your Car on the "Cash for Clunkers" data-set and get up to $4,500 from the government!!!:

Cash for Clunkers Separated by Make

===eof===

I hope this helps you get that money, good luck... B-)

/rbs:.:.:
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"Son of String Art"... Nice Webware... B-)

"Son of String Art" This project uses the pen to make String Art between the blue dots that you can drag around: http://tr.im/v5SW B-)

Solar - Powering the future using Micro-inverters:

A relatively new option for optimizing solar system efficiency is to use a micro-inverter for each individual solar panel, instead of using a single inverter for the entire system. The chief benefit of the micro-inverter topology is that the system will continue to convert energy even when one inverter malfunctions. Each panel having its own micro-inverter has other important benefits as well, including the ability to adjust conversion parameters on each panel using a high resolution PWM (Pulse-Width Modulator).

Clouds, shadows and other environmental conditions can vary the output of individual panels. Equipping each panel with its own micro-inverter allows the system to accommodate its changing load, which provides optimal conversion efficiency for both the individual panels and the entire system.

Micro-inverter architectures also enable simpler wiring, which translates into lower installation costs. Panel and system monitoring is also improved. Large solar panel farms, in particular, require subsystems to communicate with each other to keep loads in balance and plan in advance how much power will be available and what to do with it.

===eof===

With continual advancement and miniaturization, control systems can be put just about anywhere.

/rbs:.:.:
.