“If you sell networks, you also, intrinsically, sell the capability to intercept any communication that runs over them”

Edit that: “to intercept and edit any communication”

Nothing new to see here, but nice to hear it from the mouths of marketers.

Via janchip.

In January 2009, I made a cheap, simple book scanner and in April I put the complete plans online. Since then, not only did I land a laser cutter from Epilog, but better still, a number of people have built their own scanners and made incredible improvements.

Though Instructables has been very kind to me, it was time to lay the foundation of a new community dedicated to building book scanners and book scanning software. To that end, I created DIYBOOKSCANNER.ORG.

Another scanner builder, Rob, is helping moderate the community and maintain the software. We’re still working on things behind the curtains, but I urge you to come join us and help work toward the future of books.

Some questions stick in your mind but are rather difficult to answer, just because the opportunity to test them must arise naturally and does not happen often. In this case, I simply wondered if those stupid magnetic key lockers were worth a damn. Answer below:

I used to be very interested in telecommunications equipment. In particular, payphones. Often while playing around with them, I wondered if there was a way to reliably determine which piece of conduit contained the actual twisted pair. It turns out that in the case of payphones with lighted signs above them, it’s as simple as looking for the conduit which continues up, even if it takes a break at the payphone enclosure level.

Back in April, I helped with the evacuation of the Valley City State University Library basement. It was startling to see the sheer volume of books that we ended up moving.

This is one of the many panoramas I captured in between cartfloads of books.

Also, the blog has been widened to accommodate slightly larger images.

A good friend of mine built up an AR-15. He wanted a single-point sling to carry the thing, so we manufactured one.

My mom supplied the webbing and slides — surplus from a job she had making instrument bags for some medical corporation. Thanks, mom.

I won an Epilog Laser Cutter.

I have been alive for ten thousand days.

You may recall “Through the Virtual Cell“, an educational short film for which I produced sound and music.

Quoting Dr. Slator:

I am pleased to announce the winners of the South Beach
International Animation Festival have finally been announced
and posted online at

http://www.southbeachanimationfest.com/winners2009.htm

where the winner of the ‘Education’ division is
“Through the Virtual Cell” (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1370799/)

Brian Slator

w0000000000000000000000000000000t!!!!!!!

Just a minor note, more for me than for you. I helped prepare Figure 3 in this article in Mineralia Deposita, and it’s just been published.

Over the course of several years, I had the pleasure of working with one of the authors on the Geology Explorer project. It’s great to be able continue to graphically support quality research well outside my field.

There’s a big, new project coming to life. (I’ll announce here shortly). It gives some much-needed attention to Meg’s writing, and takes Not Dead to a whole new level.

In the meantime, follow the Corporation as it overseas your existence. You didn’t need that life, anyway.

I am pleased to announce the release of a major project — complete plans for a high-speed book scanner made from off-the-shelf cameras and salvage. With the help of Aaron Clarke, there is now software to complete the process, too.

The complete plans and software are on Instructables. Please vote for this project!

PageBuilder:

Big thanks to Aaron Clarke, Noah Bicknell, L, and everyone else who contributed. Couldn’t have done it without you.

Well, actually that’s Moorhead. But the principle holds.

Some new hardware arrived in the mail today, so I had to go test it. Not art by any means, but still interesting. Warning — clicking on this image will get you a browswer-breakingly huge image, 16213×5050 pixels large. The download is ~9mb. Probably best to “right click and Save As” with this one. This image is from today, April 2nd, around 2:30pm.

Bummed to see the weird periodic artifacts in the top of the image. Looks like I have some serious calibration to do.

Start by looking West — homeward.

Down.

Left.

Notice the wall you’re leaning over.

Down and to the North, face West.

From this point, overland, right.

See what there is to see East.

And homeward, getting dark now.

There have been many hundreds of visitors to this blog in the last few days, but no comments on new content.

Why don’t you drop in and make a comment here? I’d like to get to know you.

If you are a publication doing a story on the Red River flooding that is happening now, or an educator looking to use my photographs as instructional materials, please email me at danreetz(AT)gmail.com. I grant all educators free, unfettered access to my materials.

THE MOVIE