Well, it's 'late May' and so we're in
North Carolina for a few days of firing a friend's (wood-fired) kiln,
and - of course, Ms. May brought some 'work' with her, and though you
can not see it in this 'view' of our PACKED mini-van - be assured, Ms.
May's work IS IN THERE!
just ONE view of our mini-van before we drive north - (and YES - we loaded EVEN MORE """STUFF""" in the mini-van before we)left for the 12 hour drive!)
When we (actually "THEY") load the kiln, there is a HUGE requirement for a LOT of BTUs (calories):
here's a few more miscellaneous, in no particular order, pictures...
this is just SOME of the wood we'll use for a four to six day firing... Wood-kiln-firing is VERY MUCH a 'Team Sport' (so to speak!) - and watching the team 'dance' is certainly mind-expanding & interesting...
Mr. Bill continues to do the 'OmniTemp' thing - and challenging, it can be; especially when one leaves a few things at home! Notice the pink-ribbons on the ends of the K-type thermocouples, inserted into the kiln. The Owner (Dan Finch) has two K-type thermocouples already in the kiln (one of which is visible on the very top of the kiln in the right-central-part of the picture... We add three or four more, for a total of five or six for this firing. The OmniTemp will output data out of the USB port, but the collection and use of that data is 'an exercise left for others'...
the picture below is the 'other-side' of the kiln in this picture
this picture is of the 'other-side' of the previous picture
I have some videos of various parts of the 'kiln-loading-process' - HOWEVER, they are both too big to reference from here, and they are too-big to fit into an e-mail (most are about 25-75 mega-bytes) - but you can download them pretty quickly, (depending, obviously, on your 'web-connect-speed'... drop me an e-mail if you want the web-link and password to have a look-see...
New Paradigm for Old Concept:
========================
We (our society) is / are moving from an 'Analog-age' to a 'Digital-age' - are we:
a.) doing this correctly
b.) giving-up 'freedom' for 'what'
c.) are all societies on earth doing this 'correctly' - or are some 'getting-it-wrong'?
d.) what can we (Americans) learn from other societies and their mistakes?
IF you are having trouble with this concept, then please (PLEASE read this:) http://vikingasia.blogspot.com/
there's more - there are a couple of books that will take the concepts I talk about in the above blog-article, and expand on them...
Book Recommendations:
==================
"The Steel Kiss" by Jeffrey Deaver (same guy who wrote 'The Bone Collector' - which was made into a movie with Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie) - I think the 'best-part' of this book is when Angelina Jolie puts a bullet in a motor that won't stop - very entertaining... - BUT ALSO very RELEVANT for our societal development - and in light of 'Stuxnet' <= Wikipedia-Link.
"Make Me" - by: Lee Child - this is a 'Jack Reacher' novel - and quite good - there was a recent (last year, I think) movie called 'Jack Reacher' (Starring Tom Cruise (in the lead role) and Rosamund Pike - the above book carries-on with that character.
some music to listen-to / ponder: (YouTube link)
Ms. May feeding someone 'less fortunate' than us, this was several weeks ago - at a park on the cycling-path ----
just ONE view of our mini-van before we drive north - (and YES - we loaded EVEN MORE """STUFF""" in the mini-van before we)left for the 12 hour drive!)
When we (actually "THEY") load the kiln, there is a HUGE requirement for a LOT of BTUs (calories):
here's a few more miscellaneous, in no particular order, pictures...
this is just SOME of the wood we'll use for a four to six day firing... Wood-kiln-firing is VERY MUCH a 'Team Sport' (so to speak!) - and watching the team 'dance' is certainly mind-expanding & interesting...
Mr. Bill continues to do the 'OmniTemp' thing - and challenging, it can be; especially when one leaves a few things at home! Notice the pink-ribbons on the ends of the K-type thermocouples, inserted into the kiln. The Owner (Dan Finch) has two K-type thermocouples already in the kiln (one of which is visible on the very top of the kiln in the right-central-part of the picture... We add three or four more, for a total of five or six for this firing. The OmniTemp will output data out of the USB port, but the collection and use of that data is 'an exercise left for others'...
the picture below is the 'other-side' of the kiln in this picture
this picture is of the 'other-side' of the previous picture
I have some videos of various parts of the 'kiln-loading-process' - HOWEVER, they are both too big to reference from here, and they are too-big to fit into an e-mail (most are about 25-75 mega-bytes) - but you can download them pretty quickly, (depending, obviously, on your 'web-connect-speed'... drop me an e-mail if you want the web-link and password to have a look-see...
New Paradigm for Old Concept:
========================
We (our society) is / are moving from an 'Analog-age' to a 'Digital-age' - are we:
a.) doing this correctly
b.) giving-up 'freedom' for 'what'
c.) are all societies on earth doing this 'correctly' - or are some 'getting-it-wrong'?
d.) what can we (Americans) learn from other societies and their mistakes?
IF you are having trouble with this concept, then please (PLEASE read this:) http://vikingasia.blogspot.com/
there's more - there are a couple of books that will take the concepts I talk about in the above blog-article, and expand on them...
Book Recommendations:
==================
"The Steel Kiss" by Jeffrey Deaver (same guy who wrote 'The Bone Collector' - which was made into a movie with Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie) - I think the 'best-part' of this book is when Angelina Jolie puts a bullet in a motor that won't stop - very entertaining... - BUT ALSO very RELEVANT for our societal development - and in light of 'Stuxnet' <= Wikipedia-Link.
"Make Me" - by: Lee Child - this is a 'Jack Reacher' novel - and quite good - there was a recent (last year, I think) movie called 'Jack Reacher' (Starring Tom Cruise (in the lead role) and Rosamund Pike - the above book carries-on with that character.
some music to listen-to / ponder: (YouTube link)
Ms. May feeding someone 'less fortunate' than us, this was several weeks ago - at a park on the cycling-path ----
We've
been 'in and out' (A LOT!!!!!) lately...
for a few days in January, we went snowboarding in Colorado: http://www.coppercolorado.com
for the better part of a (fairly long) week, I helped Ms. May, and Ms. Ellen to set-up this (functional) pottery-show: http://www.earthtotable.land Which was showing about 19 Feb through about 19 April, 2016, here in Stuart, Florida
for a few days in February we went snowboarding in Vermont: http://www.jaypeakresort.com
and a friend attacks the frozen waterfalls when he has completed his daily 'list': click for attack image
for a few days in March, Ms. May attended the 'NCECA conference: http://nceca.net/2016-kansas-city/
for a few days in March it RAINED!: (and rained, and rained (some more?!))
AND - in Publix, (grocery-store) one day we found a LOT of support from the Star Wars people!: click for support image
for a VERY FEW days in March, I got 'fired-up' about a Porsche (918) I might like to have (but then I looked at the price!): http://www.caranddriver.com/porsche/918
AND - we are a bit 'behind the times' and managed to buy a "Go Pro" Session 'adventure' camera - some THINGS from this magnificent gadget are available, here : http://www.vikingasia.org/Misc/GoPro_Session/Misc; they are BIG, and may take 'a while' to download to your computer - and they will then 'play' ? - these are all 'raw' (not a heck of a lot of) iMovie editing!... so take them with a 'grain of salt'... (and - oh, use these: gpuser / gppass)
AND -
AND - AND
- if you want to see something REALLY OLD (LONG BEFORE the concept of the Go Pro!) - you can click on this link to an OLDIE (but a goodie) - this video was done in 'about' 2002 (14 years ago? (we think (Ms. May is videoing, I'm sailing (or trying to?))) but we're not sure...??) - click-here
- if you want to see something REALLY OLD (LONG BEFORE the concept of the Go Pro!) - you can click on this link to an OLDIE (but a goodie) - this video was done in 'about' 2002 (14 years ago? (we think (Ms. May is videoing, I'm sailing (or trying to?))) but we're not sure...??) - click-here
Revelation / (RE)discovery of a "Law of Physics" / example of 'Murphy's Law':
This is something
that I am CERTAIN we are not the first couple to discover, but PERHAPS
if we share our 'fortune' with others it will help them?
Ever lost your key(s) to 'X'? - Hmm? - now let's be honest here, who hasn't?
Well - we'll come-clean-here, and let you know that YES - we lose our keys, also... BUT in the past 4-6 weeks we've FOUND keys and so this MUST BE A TREND!
I lost my keys to the 'shop' - two big garage doors, that sometimes we lock when travelling out of town (but sometimes we don't lock)... - Well - I found the keys in the pocket of a 'fuzzy' vest (that was originally my Mom's) - and I guess I hadn't worn that vest in quite some time (It being 'cold-weather-gear') and this being Florida.
Just this morning my Ms. Huggly put on a jacket that she hadn't worn in 'quite some time' - and, well - what does she discover but a long-lost car-key...
SO - Bottom-Line / Lesson to 'take away' - when you LOSE SOMETHING (like a key) - look in the pockets of EVERYTHING AROUND and you might just find them?!
Some other news / views / things:
This one-cup coffee maker came out of Ms. May's kiln, last fall, and we borrowed it from it's Maker, Mr. Will.
Mr. Bill, looking at out at the 'cross-roads' (where two boating-channels cross, from our kite-park; so-named because this is where we fly our kites, a lot!
recent ride documented here: click to see ride stats...
- hardware from http://www.wahoofitness.com
- software (an "app" on the iPhone) from http://www.abvio.com
- YES there are other 'apps' for iPhone (and/or other "smart" phones) but this just happens to be the one I use...
AND - here we talk about the infamous "__OmniTemp__" gadget (in acutality it is ONLY a 'pyrometer' for a 'wood-fired-kiln' - that doesn't sound very exciting (and it really isn't)) - the (highly-reduced) web-page is here...
We have a 'New Gadget' we're going to try-out this week - the "__OmniOxy__" oxygen sensor for 'any' kiln (electric, gas, wood) - but - well - we figure this thing is probably a least a year away from something someone can use? - NO - it has NO WEB-SITE (at this point) but might soonish, after we do one of our very first 'alpha' - runs this week...
The 'Rhino3D' thing - modeling Pottery-Kilns, (and other Rhino3D things) - and where I'm going / where I've been and how I'm getting there...
============================================================================================================
AND MUCH of what I have learned about Python (which I'm using for this, that, and the other) has come from using the great courses and knowledge available from: http://www.lynda.com
AND - AND - AND! - more about Python comes from the books I find at: http://www.oreilly.com
Rhino3D has a companion software tool that is called (loosely) a "graphical algorithm editor" (_Grasshopper_ is it's name) - it allows me (the 'pilot' for lack of a better word) to do several things that are not inherently possible in Rhino3D... (AND NOW the Grasshopper thingie is available for the Macintosh version of Rhino3D) I took a course in Grasshopper, in Miami, last week, and learned a LOT - it's hard, sometimes to change-one's-approach / mind / theory of things - but in this case it was warranted. On the other hand - I've decided the time-involved in driving to Miami (in the POURING RAIN) could be better spent elsewhere. Luckily, the trainers in the Miami office have agreed, and will do on-line / via-the-web support for me in the future. - We've outlined a couple of 'areas of interest, and we'll get on this support 'wagon' in the very near future - and I don't have to DRIVE in the RAIN anymore!
- AND as you know - mostly - I LIKE to use the Rhino3D for Macintosh version, and so having Grasshopper on the Mac is a WONDEROUS development for me! BUT as in life - there's a trade-off, and here it means that the Macintosh version of Rhino3D is a 'bit' behind the WindowsPC version. At home I have both, admittedly, both on 'older' machines (3-5 years older)... I LIKE Macintosh's user interface, but there is / are a NUMBER of features that just work better on the Windows PC version. At this point I've learned if it doesn't work after the 'expected' investment of time and effort on the Macintosh version, TRY IT on the Windows PC version and it typically works there -
a screen-capture of a Rhino3D model upon which a kiln was built last October (2015). To fire this kiln wood goes in the left side (for something between 72 and 108 hours, non-stop) and on the extreme right side there is NO Chimney shown, though in the kiln that was built there is an obvious chimney...
At the top (of this image) you'll see (especially on the left-end) a number of black curves, those are the 'tops' of the 'ellipses' (that are 'cut-off at the 'floor' level (the green-surface)). Ellipses are an acceptable approach to the catenary type of curve that the real kiln has. Ellipses are (mathematically) a closed-curve, which in the mathematical-modelling world are much easier to deal with than open curves. However catenary curves are coming in the next issue of Rhino (probably then end of 2016 or the beginning of 2017).
Though the PC-version of Rhino3D is still the goldstandard, the people at McNeel are making significant progress on the Macintosh version of Rhino3D, and Grasshopper, so - in time things will be MUCH BETTER.
Most everyone has heard of '_AutoCAD_' (which is actually a 'suite' of products) and even in the (VERY EXPENSIVE) _AutoCAD_ world there is nothing to compare to Rhino3D and Grasshopper applications working together.
Here's a tiny-representation of Mr. Bear(s) sailing our 14 foot skiff...
if you want a BIGGER VERSION, click here!
for SMPS.jpg click here
Ever lost your key(s) to 'X'? - Hmm? - now let's be honest here, who hasn't?
Well - we'll come-clean-here, and let you know that YES - we lose our keys, also... BUT in the past 4-6 weeks we've FOUND keys and so this MUST BE A TREND!
I lost my keys to the 'shop' - two big garage doors, that sometimes we lock when travelling out of town (but sometimes we don't lock)... - Well - I found the keys in the pocket of a 'fuzzy' vest (that was originally my Mom's) - and I guess I hadn't worn that vest in quite some time (It being 'cold-weather-gear') and this being Florida.
Just this morning my Ms. Huggly put on a jacket that she hadn't worn in 'quite some time' - and, well - what does she discover but a long-lost car-key...
SO - Bottom-Line / Lesson to 'take away' - when you LOSE SOMETHING (like a key) - look in the pockets of EVERYTHING AROUND and you might just find them?!
Some other news / views / things:
This one-cup coffee maker came out of Ms. May's kiln, last fall, and we borrowed it from it's Maker, Mr. Will.
Mr. Bill, looking at out at the 'cross-roads' (where two boating-channels cross, from our kite-park; so-named because this is where we fly our kites, a lot!
recent ride documented here: click to see ride stats...
- hardware from http://www.wahoofitness.com
- software (an "app" on the iPhone) from http://www.abvio.com
- YES there are other 'apps' for iPhone (and/or other "smart" phones) but this just happens to be the one I use...
AND - here we talk about the infamous "__OmniTemp__" gadget (in acutality it is ONLY a 'pyrometer' for a 'wood-fired-kiln' - that doesn't sound very exciting (and it really isn't)) - the (highly-reduced) web-page is here...
We have a 'New Gadget' we're going to try-out this week - the "__OmniOxy__" oxygen sensor for 'any' kiln (electric, gas, wood) - but - well - we figure this thing is probably a least a year away from something someone can use? - NO - it has NO WEB-SITE (at this point) but might soonish, after we do one of our very first 'alpha' - runs this week...
The 'Rhino3D' thing - modeling Pottery-Kilns, (and other Rhino3D things) - and where I'm going / where I've been and how I'm getting there...
============================================================================================================
AND MUCH of what I have learned about Python (which I'm using for this, that, and the other) has come from using the great courses and knowledge available from: http://www.lynda.com
AND - AND - AND! - more about Python comes from the books I find at: http://www.oreilly.com
Rhino3D has a companion software tool that is called (loosely) a "graphical algorithm editor" (_Grasshopper_ is it's name) - it allows me (the 'pilot' for lack of a better word) to do several things that are not inherently possible in Rhino3D... (AND NOW the Grasshopper thingie is available for the Macintosh version of Rhino3D) I took a course in Grasshopper, in Miami, last week, and learned a LOT - it's hard, sometimes to change-one's-approach / mind / theory of things - but in this case it was warranted. On the other hand - I've decided the time-involved in driving to Miami (in the POURING RAIN) could be better spent elsewhere. Luckily, the trainers in the Miami office have agreed, and will do on-line / via-the-web support for me in the future. - We've outlined a couple of 'areas of interest, and we'll get on this support 'wagon' in the very near future - and I don't have to DRIVE in the RAIN anymore!
- AND as you know - mostly - I LIKE to use the Rhino3D for Macintosh version, and so having Grasshopper on the Mac is a WONDEROUS development for me! BUT as in life - there's a trade-off, and here it means that the Macintosh version of Rhino3D is a 'bit' behind the WindowsPC version. At home I have both, admittedly, both on 'older' machines (3-5 years older)... I LIKE Macintosh's user interface, but there is / are a NUMBER of features that just work better on the Windows PC version. At this point I've learned if it doesn't work after the 'expected' investment of time and effort on the Macintosh version, TRY IT on the Windows PC version and it typically works there -
a screen-capture of a Rhino3D model upon which a kiln was built last October (2015). To fire this kiln wood goes in the left side (for something between 72 and 108 hours, non-stop) and on the extreme right side there is NO Chimney shown, though in the kiln that was built there is an obvious chimney...
At the top (of this image) you'll see (especially on the left-end) a number of black curves, those are the 'tops' of the 'ellipses' (that are 'cut-off at the 'floor' level (the green-surface)). Ellipses are an acceptable approach to the catenary type of curve that the real kiln has. Ellipses are (mathematically) a closed-curve, which in the mathematical-modelling world are much easier to deal with than open curves. However catenary curves are coming in the next issue of Rhino (probably then end of 2016 or the beginning of 2017).
Though the PC-version of Rhino3D is still the goldstandard, the people at McNeel are making significant progress on the Macintosh version of Rhino3D, and Grasshopper, so - in time things will be MUCH BETTER.
Most everyone has heard of '_AutoCAD_' (which is actually a 'suite' of products) and even in the (VERY EXPENSIVE) _AutoCAD_ world there is nothing to compare to Rhino3D and Grasshopper applications working together.
Here's a tiny-representation of Mr. Bear(s) sailing our 14 foot skiff...
if you want a BIGGER VERSION, click here!
for SMPS.jpg click here
