Operation Gadget
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Zip-It is a Better Solution for Slow Shower and Tub Drains Than Drain Opener
Reading Time: 2 minutes I want to share one of the ways I quickly resolve slow shower and tub drains at my house. For the last few years, I’ve been doing a lot of the household maintenance for my family. One of the pain points we run into when my wife lets her hair grow…
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4 ways iOS 11 will improve how you listen to podcasts
Reading Time: < 1 minute Recognition of serialized podcasts Support for podcast seasons Support for extras, such as teasers, trailers, and bonus episodes Introduction of in-app podcast analytics Jason Snell does an impressive job documenting the changes to podcast feed formatting that Apple is rolling out in iOS 11. He’s one of the people who…
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Why calculating home run distances is like measuring sea level
Reading Time: < 1 minute When a home run lands in the outfield stands– or perhaps hits a pole or façade– the ball stops moving at a point elevated from the field level, sometime by as much as 200 feet. To figure out how far a ball would have traveled if unimpeded— and therefore get…
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Team Cannondale-Drapac’s Approach to the 2017 Tour de France
Reading Time: < 1 minute Business Insider tells the story of the Cannondale-Drapac Pro Cycling Team and their huge achievement of winning Stage 9 in the 2017 Tour de France with their General Classification rider Rigoberto Urán. First of all, writer Daniel McMahon is totally correct when he refers to Cannondale-Drapac’s strategy is akin to…
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Buying a Bus Ticket in Switzerland with Your Watch
Reading Time: < 1 minute A company in Switzerland called Fairtiq has an iOS app with support for the Apple Watch that lets you pay for transit tickets using your Watch. The way it apparently works is you start the trip on your Watch as you board the bus (they also have partnerships with rail…
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A Glimpse of the Future from 15 Years Ago
Reading Time: 2 minutes Fifteen years ago this week, Steve Jobs gave this pre-opening tour of the first Apple Store in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia. If I said to you in 2001 that Apple Stores would become the fastest growing boutique store concept in retailing, that in the future the presence of an Apple Store would…
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Knuckle Lights Light Up Night Cross Country Races
Reading Time: 2 minutes On the Friday before Thanksgiving, I ran a race called Run the Lights at Shady Brook Farm in Yardley, PA. This was a two mile run along through a farm field that is lined with large Christmas and Hanukkah light displays. The race began at 7pm, long after the sun set.…
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12 Years of Operation Gadget
Reading Time: < 1 minute November 17, 2003 was the day I published the first four articles on a new website called Operation Gadget. Here’s what the first article said: Good morning. Today I’m kicking off a new weblog called Operation Gadget that will talk about electronic gadgets, software, and related products. I realize that…
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High Speed Dual Car Chargers Charge Two Modern Smartphones Faster Than My Standard Wall Charger Charges One
Reading Time: < 1 minute I drive a GMC Acadia that has a built-in entertainment system, so my sons can watch DVDs when we’re driving on trips of more than an hour. This was a great purchase for them. It also gives me an 110 Volt AC outlet which I can use to charge an…