Photo Pos Pro

I work for a few companies that require photo editing. I know that everyone knows the keyword Photo Shop ($700), but this program is very expensive and complete overkill for most people. I use a program in my work that is no longer available but I found another that is very similar  and has a very short and easy learning curve and the best part, "It is free". I take lots of photos and have for some time but even with this experience I can use a photo editor to enhance most. An example would be, a couple in the center but a trash can to the left of them. No problem, just remove the can and replace it with a nice greenish shrub. Lighten, darken or make the sky more blue. .........Jack
The perfect FREE Photo Editor for you! Photo Pos Pro is an advanced yet extremely user-friendly and easy to use digital photo editing software. Photo Pos supports advanced enhancing, editing and computer graphics, special effects, layers, vectorial objects, masks, brushes, and much more!
See and download it here    Click no on all the tool bar junk when you install it.


Thanks John for this tip

Ham Radio - what do you talk about ?

I received an email asking, "Just what do you talk about on Ham Radio"? This is a hard question to answer as people are so different. Some are introverts and others are extroverts, it is the same on Ham Radio. Some Hams join in with a group that meet regularly on a certain frequancy, such as 3.910 on the 75 meter band.  This would be the same as a group of people meeting at a club or restraint. Then there are the Hams that only work DX (distance) These try to talk to as many countries as possible. The exchange is very short, such as "TA2RD WB9OTX your are 59 Indiana, 73.
An   introvert may never speek a word but only type on a computer keyboard. There are many digital modes such as JT65, EME, and others.I have known Hams that after studding for a long time, taking the test and receiving their license never ever keying the transmitter but only listen. I never could understand why they got a license in the first place.
I like to do all facets of our hobby, I do the DX, digital, and just like to have a friendly conversation with others across town or on the other side of the planet. I may ask, where do you work, how many kids do you have, how long have you been on the air, what kind of antenna are you using, and on and on.
So Ham Radio has something for about everyone. By the way if you want to become a Ham there are classes to make it very easy to obtain your ticket. See the RCARC Ham Radio Club page. or the ARRL page. ............ Jack WB9OTX

Martin Cooper makes 1st cell phone call 4/3/73

Martin Cooper

 On a New York City street, Motorola researcher Martin Cooper made the first public call on a handheld mobile phone. He is considered the "father of the cell phone"
See cellular phone
Read More about him

EME "Go Work Yourself"

As you may know or not know I am a Ham Radio Operator. I have did or at least tried about everything that the hobby has to offer. EME (earth moon earth) is the hardest contact to make. I have contacted more than sixty stations throughout the world that encludes stations on all continents (WAC). Here is a video that will describe some of the high points of a EME station....... Jack WB9OTX
See my EME logbook   See my EME antennas

EME "Go Work Yourself"
Pete N8PR dropped by our booth in Orlando to tell us a story, and we roped him into talking about one of this passions - EME (Earth-Moon-Earth). With new software and techniques, you don't need that monster station anymore. But you'll need more than an HT. Somewhere in between....

MOTOROLA SB6121 SURFboard Cable Modem

Comcast Cable a few days ago upgraded their Internet speed, but you have to have a new modem to take advantage of the speed. I ordered the Motorola SB6121 and attempted the install. The easy way did not work so I had to call Comcast. The first call lasted about 35 minutes before I was disconnected. The seconded call lasted about 5 minutes. Comcast was to call me back and keep me in the cue. They did call back but the young lady switched me to someone else. I listened to music and advertisements for 30 minutes. Finally a very nice man came on the line and after 45 minutes I was up and connected to the internet. This long wait is common with Comcast, but what can you do? The speed jumped from 30 to 55 after the install. I am among the few that needs this speed, most would not. But if you want the very fastest and want to spend $77 and go threw the hassle to set it up I can recommend the SB6121 SURFboard.
Get it from New Egg or I'm sure at Best Buy or other local computer dealers.

When / What is Easter?

Easter day is the first Sunday after the 14th day of the lunar month (the nominal full moon) that falls on or after 21 March (nominally the day of the vernal equinox). For determining the feast, Christian churches settled on a method to define a reckoned "ecclesiastical" full moon, rather than observations of the true Moon. Eastern Orthodox Christians calculate the fixed date of 21 March according to the Julian Calendar rather than the modern Gregorian Calendar, and use an ecclesiastical full moon that occurs four to five days later than the western ecclesiastical full moon.

On Easter Sunday, Christians celebrate the resurrection of the Lord, Jesus Christ. It is typically the most well-attended Sunday service of the year for Christian churches. Christians believe, according to Scripture, that Jesus came back to life, or was raised from the dead, three days after his death on the cross. As part of the Easter season, the death of Jesus Christ by crucifixion is commemorated on Good Friday, always the Friday just before Easter. Through his death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus paid the penalty for sin, thus purchasing for all who believe in him, eternal life in Christ Jesus.



The Easter Bunny is perhaps the biggest commercial symbol of Easter. But how did a rabbit and eggs become associated with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Well there clearly seems to be no correlation between the secular symbols and the Christian holiday. While the first known mentions of the bunny tradition appear in 15th century German literature according to Discovery, the bunny has its roots in pre-13th century pagan traditions.
From Discovery:

Great Weather Page

One of the neatest weather pages I've seen is at:
http://forecast.io/

After you arrive at the page move your courser around to see the features of the page. It may ask to use your location, if so click yes to change the globe's location. It reads your computer's IP to set your location.

The Commodore 64 introduced in 1982

The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced in 1982 by Commodore International. Its low retail price and easy availability led to the system becoming the market leader for three years. It remains the best-selling single personal computer model of all time.
Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$ 595.Preceded by the Commodore VIC-20 and Commodore PET, the C64 took its name from its 64 kilobytes (65,536 bytes) of RAM, and had favorable sound and graphical specifications when compared to contemporary systems such as the Apple II, at a price that was well below the circa US$ 1200 demanded by Apple.
Read More

Punxsutawney Phil 'indicted'

Punxsutawney Phil

That's what one of his handlers, John Griffiths, declares in response to an "indictment" that the Butler County, Ohio, prosecutor issued Thursday against Pennsylvania's famous weather-predicting groundhog. Apparently frosted over Ohio's cold start to the spring season, prosecutor Mike Gmoser accuses Phil of "misrepresentation of spring." On Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, Phil did not see his shadow. By legend, that portends an early spring. But in an official-looking document, Gmoser alleges that Phil acted "with prior calculation and design" to cause people to believe that spring would arrive early.
Read the full story

7:02AM EDST March 20 Spring

Spring is one of the four conventional temperate seasons, following winter and preceding summer. The specific definition of the exact timing of "spring" varies according to local climate, cultures and customs. At the spring equinox, days are close to 12 hours long with day length increasing as the season progresses. Spring and "springtime" refer to the season, and also to ideas of rebirth, rejuvenation, renewal, resurrection, and regrowth.

The Northward equinox (or March equinox) is the equinox on the earth when the Sun appears to cross the celestial equator, heading northward. The Northward equinox is the vernal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere and the autumnal equinox in the Southern Hemisphere.
The equinox can be as early as March 19 or as late as March 21, the precise time being about 5 hours 49 minutes later in a common year, and about 18 hours 11 minutes earlier in a leap year, than in the previous year. It is the balance of common years and leap years that keeps the calendar date of the equinox from drifting more than a day from 20 March each year.
Read more from: wikipedia.org

March 20,1942 – General Douglas MacArthur

General Douglas MacArthur 

After being forced to flee the Philippines,  General Douglas MacArthur announced in Terowie, South Australia,
"I shall return."
MacArthur is one of my heroes....... Jack.
Read more about him

If power goes out, will my phone still work?

It depends on the type of phone you have. "Corded" phones require no electricity and plug into the wall jack. These phones should not be affected by power outages. Most "cordless" phones require a base station plugged into an electrical outlet. The base station transmits telephone signals wirelessly to each hand held phone. If there is no power to the base station, the phone will not receive telephone signals.
Cell phones will work as the tower has back up batteries. If you are one of the 52 % that does not have a cell phone you can plug in a corded phone either a dial phone or a touch tone. These types of phones do not get their power from house current, so they will work fine. You say you don't have a corded phone, well they are very low priced so get one. I have two that I keep in a closet just in case. By the way when the cell phones are overloaded or the batteries run down they don't work either. eBay is a good place to get an old dial phone. Just do a search for "dial phone".

How SETI at home works

"phone home."
The UC Berkeley SETI team has discovered that there are already thousands of computers that might be available for use. Most of these computers sit around most of the time with toasters flying across their screens accomplishing absolutely nothing and wasting electricity to boot. This is where SETI AT home (and you!) come into the picture. The SETI AT home project hopes to convince you to allow us to borrow your computer when you aren't using it and to help us "…search out new life and new civilizations." We'll do this with a screen saver that can go get a chunk of data from us over the internet, analyze that data, and then report the results back to us. When you need your computer back, our screen saver instantly gets out of the way and only continues it's analysis when you are finished with your work.
Read More
And even More
If your ready to help
Download the software

Logitech Harmony 300 remote

When I was a young kid my dad had a remote control for the TV, It was me. He would say see what else is on Jack. But I was lucky, there were only three channels, 5 9 & 12. Today we could have fifty or even a hundred channels on the TV, plus a DVD player, an audio surround sound amp, a Cable box, or a Satellite receiver. My table beside my favorite char hosted six remotes. My wife even bought a very nice holder for them. It was a challenge for anyone but myself to run the system. My wife was always messing it up by pushing the incorrect buttons. It was a nightmare turning everything on or off. Today this all came to an end with one and only one remote. I purchased a Logitech Harmony 300 remote. The 300 is the most simplest and cheapest in their line of remotes. It will control four units of any components you may have. You do this by programming the control with the database Logitech has via the internet. Collect the model numbers then go online, type them into a downloadable program on your computer. The remote is programmed by a USB connection  It worked perfect, even the audio amp. I was never able to find the codes for it but there they were in the database. What a blessing to only have one remote. You ask about the cost ? I found the 300 from $9.00 to $60.00 - Shop around for the best price. eBay has a large selection with all kinds of prices. That's where I purchased mine. Make sure you have the correct USB cable or get one that comes with the remote. Your gonna like it ! ...... Jack

Jeff Gordon takes a Test Drive

Milan, Indiana wins the 1954 State Basket Ball Championship

I was just waiting on lunch to be ready and was flipping channels on the TV. I came across the movie "Hoosiers", I remember posting a video on YouTube a few years ago so I went looking for it. Here are two that I found, the 1st was filmed by unknown, The 2nd was Camera by: Bob Ashcraft Edited by: Charles Ashchraft & Jack Demaree ...... Jack



Milan team returns home -

My mind wonders

I just finished watching a TV show on the science channel. A lot of the things they talked about was very hard for me to understand or for that matter even imagine.  My mind wonders at times about things that I'm sure most never considers. I often think if we are not the only life in the universe and they travel to earth what would it be like for us here. I think of an ant hill located in my lower yard. This ant hill is about 1/2 mile from Versailles. Do you think the ants even know there is a town 1/2 mile away. The distance to them is unthinkable. To the ants I am the alien that walks to the lower yard. I stand at a distance observing them, now I decide I don't think I like a very large ant hill in my yard. First I kick at it and the ants try to repair the damage. Do the ants even know I exist  or cause them a threat? I bet not. A few days later I am mowing the yard and mow past the ant hill. I deside I do not want the ant hill in my yard anymore. I park the running lawn mower over the ant hill for about 15 minutes. When I move the mower the ant hill is leveled and the ants are no where to be seen. Now the ants are gone from my yard, but were they hurting me, no I just decided I don't like this lower class life in my domain. This could happen when the space ship from another universe lands on earth and decides they don't like our human race bothering them as we would be like the ants to us. Another way this could turn out. We all like our pets. They may try to teach us tricks or provide us with a better life just like we do with our cat or dog. As I said my mind wonders, think about it......... Jack

Would you run your business this way ?

As of 2013, it costs more than eleven cents to produce a nickel; the Mint is investigating using less expensive metals.
from: wikipedia.org

Hinckley Ohio Buzzards

Every year on March 15 since 1957, the city of Hinckley Ohio has eagerly awaited the return of the buzzards at "Buzzards' Roost" at the Hinckley Reservation, part of the Cleveland Metroparks.

The buzzard, a common name for the "turkey vulture," is a large graceful bird with a bald head and red beak. No relation to the black, Old World vulture family, which includes the eagle, hawk, and kite, the buzzard is native to the Americans from southern Canada to the tip of Cape Horn.
Read More

This year with the relatively mild winter the buzzards never left. Almost every day you could see them feeding on road kill or circling in the sky. They will be seen for sure on March 21.........Jack

COMPLETE and FINISHED

Some say there is no difference between COMPLETE and FINISHED. Please explain the difference between COMPLETE and FINISHED in a way that is easy to understand.

Here is his astute answer: "When you marry the right woman, you are COMPLETE. But, when you marry the wrong woman, you are FINISHED. And when the right one catches you with the wrong one, you are COMPLETELY FINISHED!"
Samsundar Balgobin

USS Indiana

USS Indiana (Battleship No. 1) was the lead ship of her class and the first battleship in the United States Navy comparable to foreign battleships of the time Authorized in 1890 and commissioned five years later, she was a small battleship, though with heavy armor and ordnance. The ship also pioneered the use of an intermediate battery. She was designed for coastal defense and as a result her decks were not safe from high waves on the open ocean.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Indiana_(BB-1)



USS Indiana (BB-58), a South Dakota-class battleship, was the fourth ship of the United States Navy named in honor of the 19th state. Her keel was laid down on 20 November 1939 by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company of Newport News, Virginia. She was launched on 21 November 1941 sponsored by Mrs. Lewis C. Robbins, daughter of Indiana governor Henry F. Schricker, and commissioned on 30 April 1942, Captain Aaron Stanton Merrill in command.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Indiana_(BB-58)

GUNS (Virtual State of the Union 2013)

For Sale

A very clean used eMachine computer that would be great as a second computer or surfing the net and email. Comes with Office 2010

CPU 1.6GHz AMD Athlon 2650e
Memory 2GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM
Graphics 128MB (shared) Nvidia Geforce 6150Se (integrated)
Hard drives 160GB 7,200rpm
Optical drive dual-layer DVD burner
Operating system Windows XP Pro
$199.00 Cash or PayPal
812-689-5960 jack@wb9otx.com

Outlook dot com

The new Microsoft mail service "Outlook" is off to a bad start, at least with me. I wasted 30 minutes trying to set up an account with no success. This is all I ever got when trying to make a new account.
"There's a temporary problem with the service. Please try again. If you continue to get this message, try again later".
I think I'll stick with Gmail but if you have some time to kill give it a try at 
http://outlook.com

Merrill's Marauders 1944 – World War II

Click to enlarge

The United States Army long-range penetration special operations unit known as Merrill's Marauders began a 1000-mile march over the Patkai region of the Himalayas and into the Burmese jungle behind Japanese lines.
National WWII Museum

Iwo Jima 19 February – 26 March 1945

The Battle of Iwo Jima (19 February – 26 March 1945), or Operation Detachment, was a major battle in which the United States Armed Forces fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Japanese Empire. The American invasion had the goal of capturing the entire island, including its three airfields, to provide a staging area for attacks on the Japanese main islands. This month-long battle included some of the fiercest and bloodiest fighting of the War in the Pacific of World War II.
Read the full article 

Flight 811 -2-24-1989

United Airlines Flight 811 experienced a cargo door failure in flight on Friday, February 24, 1989, after its stopover at Honolulu International Airport, Hawaii. The resulting decompression blew out several rows of seats, resulting in the deaths of 9 passengers.
Read Report Air Disaster

Cut Government Cost

I'd like to be in charge and if I were I would start with the army because I was there. I was in a headquarters company (HQ HQ USATC) at Ft. Ord and the waste was everywhere. All in this company had a Class A pass in our pocket all the time. This is a pass that has unlimited travail. You could go anywhere as far from post as you liked, all that was required was you had to be back to do your assigned job. All or at least most were instructors and gave fifty minute classes to AIT troops. I and most others gave two classes a week, this means I worked 100 minutes a week. I and others could have performed other work when we were not giving our classes. I taught military explosives but I could have taught other classes such as mortar, field fortifications, anti-tank warfare & etc. As I said before we could travail away from post and we did on almost every week end. The mess hall cooked for 250 men every day even on weekends. Now on Saturday and Sunday only 25 or 30 was there to eat but the mess hall cooked for 250 (why) ? The food that was not eaten was put in the dumpster. This went on every week end as long as I was there and this was only one company on post. Another savings that I noticed was we drew way too much explosives for my class. I ask several times why? I was told this was what was allotted. If we drew less - we might not get what we needed next time and our allotment may be cut. Again NUTS !  At the end of the week we would pile it up down range all that we did not use and blow it up. (BOOM) Thousands of dollars wasted. Now I could go on and on about the waste but I think you get the idea. These examples were only the ones I knew about, but there must have been hundreds more and not only at Ft. Ord but posts all over the world. If a dumb private in this mans army can see how to save money why can't the fat cats see the big picture also.

Tips for flying

Commercial airplane flight is one of the most common forms of international travel. These are some tips for making your flights safer, more comfortable, and more enjoyable.
For a guide to the standard procedures, rules, and other basics of travelling by air (some of which have changed in recent years), see Fundamentals of flying.

The Barefoot Bandit

The Barefoot Bandit tells the riveting true story of Colton Harris-Moore, America’s 21st century outlaw. Born into a poor family marred by alcohol abuse, Colt had the local sheriff after him before the age of 10. Colt survived by breaking into homes to forage for food, and learned to evade the police by melting into the Pacific Northwest wilds. As a teenager, he escalated to stealing cars, boats and identities. An extensive manhunt finally caught Colt, but he escaped juvenile prison and fled to nearby Orcas Island, where he was assured his place alongside D. B. Cooper by stealing an airplane without ever having a formal flight lesson. And that was just the beginning.
Read More
Buy the book
A movie coming soon

Bald Eagle

The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. As visible here, adults are not bald, but have a head of white feathers. Its name comes from an older meaning of the word, meaning "white headed".
Photograph: W. Lloyd MacKenzie
Read More

B-29 / P-51 Actual WWII Footage

Thirty six minutes.  But worth every minute if you are a WW II buff. This is spectacular live footage of the 3,000 mile round trip air assault upon the Japanese mainland, with 3 bomber wings and a host of P-51's.  This is the way to end a war. No matter what war footage you ever saw before, this is the real deal and will keep your undivided attention.  The P-51 & B29 footage is remarkable.  The strafing runs by the P-51 pilots were incredible. There are several “breaks” as the film canisters are changed, just wait for the count down.

http://www.archive.org/details/TheLastBomb1945 

Drugsdb.com

Drugsdb.com is a drug information database where you'll find answers to frequently asked questions on the most commonly-prescribed drugs and medications in the world. This includes information about the uses of the drug, suggested dosages, common and serious drug side effects, contraindications, adverse interactions and more.
Drugsdb.com

Happy Valentine's Day

Especially to a Gal named Betty Jean

Ruth Lyons - Paul Dixon

Ruth Lyons

Ruth Lyons, (born Ruth Evelyn Reeves October 4, 1905, died November 7, 1988) was a pioneer radio and television broadcaster in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is said Ruth Lyons accidentally invented the daytime TV talk show.  Ruth built a TV empire
Read more


The Paul Dixon Show is an American television variety program originating in Cincinnati on WLWT Television beginning in 1955 and ending in January 1975, one month after Dixon's death in December 1974. The show began as a 30-minute series expanding to 90 minutes in the 1960s, but the other stations along the Avco Network in nearby Dayton, Columbus and Indianapolis only ran 60 minutes of the show. Pre-recorded episodes were sold to other markets throughout the Midwest.

Paul Dixon Show Cast

The show was originally co-hosted by Bonnie Lou and Marian Spelman, who was later replaced with Colleen Sharp. The house band, originally called The Bel-Aires, was led by pianist Bruce Brownfield.
Read More


See YouTube videos
Ruth Lyons
Paul Dixon

International Space Station

See the International Space Station from your house?
http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/
If you are an Amateur (Ham) radio operator you could talk to the astronauts on board.
If you are not but have a radio scanner you can hear them. Just listen on 145.800 & or 145.825 FM mode.  You can get further information at:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/reference/radio/
I have made contact with the ISS and received their QSL card.
See a larger photos at:

QSL Front
QSL Back

Patty Hearst - kidnapped Feb.4, 1974

The 19-year-old Hearst was kidnapped from the Berkeley, California apartment, which she shared with her fiancé Steven Weed, by a left-wing urban guerrilla group called the Symbionese Liberation Army. When the attempt to swap Hearst for jailed SLA members failed, the SLA demanded that the captive's family distribute $70 worth of food to every needy Californian – an operation that would cost an estimated $400 million. In response, Hearst's father arranged the immediate donation of $6 million worth of food to the poor of the Bay Area. After the distribution of food, the SLA refused to release Hearst because they deemed the food to have been of poor quality. (In a subsequent tape recording released to the press, Hearst commented that her father could have done better.) On April 3, 1974, Hearst announced on an audiotape that she had joined the SLA and assumed the name "Tania" (inspired by the nom de guerre of Haydée Tamara Bunke Bider, Che Guevara's comrade). For this reason, she is often referred to as a victim of Stockholm Syndrome. On April 15, 1974, she was photographed wielding an M1 carbine while robbing the Sunset District branch of the Hibernia Bank.
I was en-root to Cinci in a UPS package car when ordered to stop at Cleves, then ordered to open the back doors with shotguns pointed at me by cops. After seeing the truck was empty, I asked, what are you looking for? One cop replied, "Patty Hearst ".

The Day the Music Died - Feb 3rd, 1959

Buddy Holly

Ritchie Valens

The Day the Music Died, dubbed so by Don McLean's song "American Pie", was an aviation accident that occurred on February 3, 1959, near Clear Lake, Iowa, killing rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, and the pilot Roger Peterson. After terminating his partnership with The Crickets, Buddy Holly assembled a new band consisting of Waylon Jennings, Tommy Allsup, and Carl Bunch, to play on the Winter Dance Party tour.




The tour also featured rising artist Ritchie Valens and Big Bopper Richardson, who were promoting their own recordings as well. The tour was to cover 24 Midwestern cities in three weeks.
Read the full story

The Big Bopper

Groundhog Day - Feb 2

Groundhog Day is a holiday celebrated on February 2 in the United States and Canada. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, it will leave the burrow, signifying that winter-like weather will soon end. If it is sunny, the groundhog will supposedly see its shadow and retreat back into its burrow, and the winter weather will continue for six more weeks.

Challenger Explodes 1/28th/86

January 28th, 1986 at 11:39am EDT - The Space Shuttle Challenger Explodes on its 10th flight during mission STS-51-L. The explosion occurred 73 seconds after liftoff and was actually the result of rapid deceleration and not combustion of fuel.

CNN was the only national news station to broadcast the mission live, so thus what you are witnessing on this video is the only coverage of the disaster as it happened when it did. Approximately 17% of Americans witnessed the launch live, while 85% of Americans heard of the news within 1 hour of the event. According to a study, only 2 other times in history up to that point had news of an event disseminated so fast - the first being the announcement of JFK's assassination in 1963, the second being news spread among students at Kent State regarding the news of FDR's death in 1945. It has been estimated at the time that nearly 48% of 9-13 year olds witnessed the event in their classrooms, as McAuliffe was in the spotlight.

The 25th Space Shuttle mission altered the history of manned space exploration and represented the first loss of an American crew during a space mission (Apollo 1 was during a training exercise).

Christa McAuliffe was slated to be the first teacher in space for the Teacher in Space Program. As her maximum altitude was ~65,000ft (12.31 miles), she never made it to space. That title was given to Barbara Morgan of STS-118 aboard the shuttle Endeavour in August 2007, 22 and a half years after the Challenger Disaster. Morgan served as McAuliffe's backup during STS-51-L. As Morgan is now part of the Educator in Space Program, she will be credited as the first "educator" in space, to distinguish her from McAuliffe.

Aboard Challenger during STS-51-L:

Francis "Dick" Scobee (Commander)

Michael Smith (Pilot)

Judith Resnik (Mission Specialist)

Ellison Onizuka (Mission Specialist)

Ronald McNair (Mission Specialist)

Gregory Jarvis (Payload Specialist)

Sharon Christa McAuliffe (Payload Specialist - Teacher in Space)

from: youtube.com

Explorer 1 launched 1/31/1958

Explorer 1 was launched on January 31, 1958 at 22:48 Eastern Time (equal to February 1, 03:48 UTC) atop the first Juno booster from LC-26 at the Cape Canaveral Missile Annex, Florida. It was the first spacecraft to detect the Van Allen radiation belt, returning data until its batteries were exhausted after nearly four months. It remained in orbit until 1970, and has been followed by more than 90 scientific spacecraft in the Explorer series.
From: wikipedia.org

Elk Cloner virus

Elk Cloner is one of the first known microcomputer viruses that spread "in the wild," i.e., outside the computer system or lab in which it was written. It attached itself to Apple DOS 3.3 operating system and spread by floppy disk. It was written around 1982 by a 15-year-old high school student named Rich Skrenta. It was originally a joke, created and put on to a game.

from Wikipedia

HOW THE COMPUTER MESS ALL STARTED

        In ancient Israel , it came to pass that a trader by the name of Abraham Com did take unto himself a young wife by the name of Dorothy. And Dot Com was a comely woman, broad of shoulder and long of leg Indeed, she was often called Amazon Dot Com.

        And she said unto Abraham, her husband, "Why dost thou travel so far from town to town with thy goods when thou canst trade without ever leaving thy tent?" And Abraham did look at her as though she were several saddle bags short of a camel load, but simply said, "How, dear?"

        And Dot replied, "I will place drums in all the towns and drums in between to send messages saying what you have for sale, and they will reply telling you who hath the best price. The sale can be made on the drums and delivery made by Uriah's Pony Stable (UPS)."

        Abraham thought long and decided he would let Dot have her way with the drums. And the drums rang out and were an immediate success. Abraham sold all the goods he had at the top price, without ever having to move from his tent.

        To prevent neighbouring countries from overhearing what the drums were saying, Dot devised a system that only she and the drummers knew. It was known as Must Send Drum Over Sound (MSDOS), and she also developed a language to transmit ideas and pictures - Hebrew To The People (HTTP).

        And the young men did take to Dot Com's trading as doth the greedy horsefly take to camel dung. They were called Nomadic Ecclesiastical Rich Dominican Sybarites, or NERDS.

        And lo, the land was so feverish with joy at the new riches and the deafening sound of drums that no one noticed that the real riches were going to that enterprising drum dealer, Brother William of Gates, who bought off every drum maker in the land. Indeed he did insist on drums to be made that would work only with Brother Gates' drumheads and drumsticks.

        And Dot did say, "Oh, Abraham, what we have started is being taken over by others." And Abraham looked out over the Bay of Ezekiel , or eBay as it came to be known.

        He said, "We need a name that reflects what we are."

        And Dot replied, "Young Ambitious Hebrew Owner Operators."

        "YAHOO," said Abraham.

        And because it was Dot's idea, they named it YAHOO Dot Com. Abraham's cousin, Joshua, being the young Gregarious Energetic Educated Kid (GEEK) that he was, soon started using Dot's drums to locate things around the countryside.

        It soon became known as God's Own Official Guide to Locating Everything (GOOGLE). That is how it all began.

Author unknown

Ripley Computer Services

The things I do:

VCR to DVD
Audio Cassette to CD music format
Photos to DVD presentation
Photo restoration and repair
Small business Web pages

$35.00 per hour plus supplies
Jack Demaree
812-689-5960

WLS 890 Chicago & WSAI 1360 Cincinnati

Hop aboard the time machine and go back to the late evening of December 4, 1962. Dick Biondi "The Wild Italian" is just starting his 9pm to Midnight show on WLS 890 Radio in Chicago.



As I bugged the Versailles Square in my 57 Chev with my best girl beside we listened to Dick Biondi on the AM radio 890 out of Chicago. Dick Biondi was my favorite but sometimes we would listen to Dusty Rhodes at 1360 Cincinnati. Lots of static but good times..... Jack

Reckless was a Korean pack horse

See a larger video

WE NOW HAVE 'OBAMA

REMEMBER WHEN RONALD REAGAN WAS PRESIDENT, WE ALSO HAD -- BOB HOPE, JOHNNY CASH and STEVE JOBS!!           WE NOW HAVE 'OBAMA AND NO HOPE,  NO CASH and NO JOBS !!!!!
HAROLD_TOWNSEND

Aloha from Hawaii - January 14,1973

Aloha from Hawaii is a music concert that was headlined by Elvis Presley, and was broadcast live via satellite on January 14, 1973. The concert took place at the Honolulu International Center (HIC) in Honolulu (now known as the Neal S. Blaisdell Center) and aired in over 40 countries across Asia and Europe (who received the telecast the next day, also in primetime). Despite the satellite innovation, the United States did not air the concert until April 4, 1973 (the concert took place the same day as Super Bowl VII). Viewing figures have been estimated at over 1 billion viewers world wide, although it's debatable whether these figures are accurate. The show was the most expensive entertainment special at the time, costing $2.5 million.
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Payola - Lobbying - Isn't it the same ?

Payola, in the American music industry, is the illegal practice of payment or other inducement by record companies for the broadcast of recordings on music radio in which the song is presented as being part of the normal day's broadcast. Under U.S. law, 47 U.S.C. § 317, a radio station can play a specific song in exchange for money, but this must be disclosed on the air as being sponsored airtime, and that play of the song should not be counted as a "regular airplay".
The term has come to refer to any secret payment made to cast a product in a favorable light (such as obtaining positive reviews).
Some radio stations report spins of the newest and most popular songs to industry publications. The number of times the songs are played can influence the perceived popularity of a song.
The term payola is a portmanteau of the words “pay” and “Victrola”, a trade name of early home music reproduction devices from RCA Victor.[citation needed] Payola has come to mean the payment of a bribe in commerce and in law to say or do a certain thing against the rules of law, but more specifically a commercial bribe. The FCC defines "payola" as a violation of the sponsorship identification rule that in 2005-06 resulted in tens of millions of dollars in fines to cable corporations in New York.

Lobbying (also lobby) is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by many different types of people and organized groups, including individuals in the private sector, corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or advocacy groups (interest groups). Lobbyists may be among a legislator's constituencies, meaning a voter or bloc of voters within his or her electoral district, or not; they may engage in lobbying as a business, or not. Professional lobbyists are people whose business is trying to influence legislation on behalf of a group or individual who hires them. Individuals and nonprofit organizations can also lobby as an act of volunteering or as a small part of their normal job (for instance, a CEO meeting with a representative about a project important to his/her company, or an activist meeting with his/her legislator in an unpaid capacity). Governments often define and regulate organized group lobbying that has become influential.

Nuclear bomb on the Moon

Project A119, also known as "A Study of Lunar Research Flights", was a top-secret plan developed in 1958 by the United States Air Force. The aim of the project was to detonate a nuclear bomb on the Moon to boost public morale in the United States after the Soviet Union took an early lead in the Space Race. The existence of the project was revealed in 2000 by a former executive at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Leonard Reiffel, who led the project in 1958. A young Carl Sagan was part of the team responsible for predicting the effects of a nuclear explosion in low gravity.
Project A119 was never carried out, primarily because a moon landing would be a much more acceptable achievement in the eyes of the American public. The project documents remained secret for nearly 45 years, and despite Reiffel's revelations, the United States government has never officially recognized its involvement in the study.

Aussie Mosquitoes 1944

THE OLD PATHS

I liked the old paths, when
Moms were at home.
Dads were at work.
Brothers went into the navy.
And sisters got married BEFORE having children!

Crime did not pay;
Hard work did;
And people knew the difference.

Moms could cook;
Dads would work;
Children would behave.

Husbands were loving;
Wives were supportive;
And children were polite.

Women wore the jewelry;
And Men wore the pants.

Women looked like ladies;
Men looked like gentlemen;
And children looked decent.

People loved the truth,
And hated a lie.

They came to church to get IN,
Not to get OUT!

Hymns sounded Godly;
Sermons sounded helpful;
Rejoicing sounded normal;
And crying sounded sincere.

Cursing was wicked;
Drugs were for illness.

The flag was honored; America was beautiful;
And God was welcome!

We read the Bible in public;
Prayed in school;
And preached from house to house.

To be called an American was worth dying for;
To be called an American was worth living for;
To be called a traitor was a shame!

I still like the old paths the best!


'The Old Paths' was written by a retired minister who lives In Tennessee.

Mantell UFO incident

Captain Thomas Francis Mantell Jr. (30 June 1922 – 7 January 1948) was a United States Air Force serviceman and a World War II veteran. Mantell was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for courageous action during the Normandy landings, and an Air Medal with three Oak leaf clusters for heroism. In 1948 Mantell became involved in a presumed UFO incident and died on the same day, when his aircraft ultimately crashed near Franklin, Kentucky. The incident was the subject of headlines across the country and has been named for Mantell.  Mantell was the first member of the Kentucky Air National Guard to die in flight. According to John Trowbridge, historian of the Kentucky National Guard, "There is a real X-Files twist to this, too. Mantell lived almost his entire life in Louisville. But he was born in a hospital in Franklin, only a few miles from where he was killed".
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"Government" take care of me

"Any man who thinks he can be happy and prosperous by letting the Government take care of him, better take a closer look at the American Indian."

- Henry Ford

Time till 2013

Time has ran out for the year 2012

Have a great 2013

Thanks for reading my blog ............ Jack

Kevin Mitnick - The Art of Deception

What's going on with the Sun?

I as a Radio Amateur (Ham) look at the sun's activities most every day. The sun effects radio waves here on earth and this effects my communication activities. The solar cycle runs on a 11 year cycle. In the 1990s it was not uncommon to see the reading (flux) of over 200. The same was true in the 2000s but now in the peak year of a 11 year cycle of 2012 - 2013 it hovers most days just over 100. When the flux reading is 175 to 200 I can expect to communicate to all parts of the world with very little power (watts from the transmitter) on the 14 Mhz. band (20 meters)  With the flux count of 100 14 Mhz. drops dead at slightly after sunset. If I want to talk to Europe or the Pacific I must lower the transmitter frequency down to the 7 Mhz. band and use very high power (1000 watts). So what is going on with the sun ? See if you can find the answer on Google.

Above chart from:
http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2011/jun/30/whats-going-on-with-the-sun

The Earth's Axis has shifted ??

I ran across these web pages just by accident and was amazed at what they state. Take a look and make up your own mind. There is pro & con. if you dig for the facts, make up your own mind. It is entertaining,  also a time killer to dig out the unknow ...... Jack

Pro site:
This has created severe changes in our global weather, seismic & volcanic activity... And it will get much worse. You need to know the facts & scientific details about these increasing global problems from authentic, verifiable sources.
http://www.divulgence.net/

Con site:
http://www.uwgb.edu/dutchs/PSEUDOSC/49Degrees.HTM
No, Every so often something so outrageous comes along I just shake my head in disbelief. Latest one (several e-mails from people wondering about it) is the claim that sometime around 2006 the earth's axis tilt suddenly changed by 26 degrees. The principal page making this claim is http://www.divulgence.net/.

looking through the window

My wife hasn't stopped looking through the window since it started snowing. If the weather gets any worse, I might have to let her back in.

Wernher von Braun (1912 – 1977)

 Wernher von Braun was a German-American rocket scientist, aerospace engineer, space architect, and one of the leading figures in the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany during World War II and, subsequently, in the United States.
Read more about him

The Curse of the Bambino

The Curse of the Bambino was a superstition evolving from the failure of the Boston Red Sox baseball team to win the World Series in the 86-year period from 1918 to 2004. While some fans took the curse seriously, most used the expression in a tongue-in-cheek manner. The curse was said to have begun after the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth, sometimes called The Bambino, to the New York Yankees in the off-season of 1919-1920. Before that point, the Red Sox had been one of the most successful professional baseball franchises,
Read the full story

Saint Nicholas

Sinterklaas or Saint Nicholas,
considered by many to be the
original Santa Claus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinterklaas

Trans Siberian Orchestra

Q.
You seem to be able to find things on the Web that others can't, so where can I find the song or video of Trans Siberian Orchestra Christmas lights. I was told it was on the Web but I have not had luck locating it. Where is it  ye ol' Google man ?

A.
You Tube has the video at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0IwpRzWL_4

wishing you the best of holiday greetings

http://ripleycounty.net/card/card.htm

and

http://wb9otx.com/card/

Dec 21, 2012 "It looks like we made it"

http://wb9otx.com/audio/A_FREAD1.WAV

December 21, 2012 "The End ??"

Scientists insist there is no dire threat on the horizon, while Mayan experts stress that the ancient civilisation’s legacy has simply been misinterpreted.
‘Nothing bad will happen to the Earth in 2012,’ says NASA on its website in the reassuring tones of a parent dealing with a frightened toddler.
‘Our planet has been getting along just fine for more than four billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012.
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International Space Station

The following is really interesting. A lady crewman (Sunita Williams) on the International Space Station who has been there for 6 months gives you a tour of the facility.  It’s the first time I’ve see an ISS bathroom, kitchen, bedrooms, etc.  The tour guide is about ready for a return trip to earth.  Hope you enjoy it.
Click here to view the video

Note:
I have contacted the ISS via Amateur Radio, what a thrill !....... Jack WB9OTX

To my Ham Radio Friends

N0D: SPECIAL EVENT STATION CELEBRATING THE END OF THE WORLD!
That's right! The end is finally near. According to one of the three Mayan Calendars, the End of the world will occur on December 21, 2012. To celebrate this—literally—oncee in a lifetime event, Special Event Station N0D (Now Zero Days) will be activated for three days during and possibly after the end of the world. December 20; is a celebration of the end of the world. December 21, the day of destruction, we will be on the air as long as possible. December 22...that is a little iffy right now
See the Web page

N0D on QRZ
http://qrz.com/db/N0D

not what I meant

I know that you believe you understand what you think I said.  But, I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.  
Robert McCloskey

Sea salt

The harvesting of sea salt—salt obtained by the evaporation of seawater—in Phetchaburi Province, Thailand. Like mineral salt, production of sea salt dates to prehistoric times. Generally more expensive than table salt, it is commonly used in gourmet cooking because it is believed to taste better.

Photo by: JJ Harrison
Wikipedia dot org

Sky King

Out of the clear blue of the western sky comes Sky King

When 9 or 10 I could not wait to see the next adventure of Sky King. ........ Jack
See Sky King official site






See Sky King Videos on YouTube

How to Copy and Paste