My Chrome Extensions

This weekend I beefed up my browser with a few more extensions.

I use Google's Chrome browser. I find it very fast and uncluttered. I'm also a bit of a Google fanboy, so that helps determine which browser I use as well. For a long time I used Firefox, but I think it has become too bloated, especially with extensions. I even tried Flock, but I am happy with Chrome right now. I like Chrome's extension gallery and have found a few that I like:

• 1-ClickWeather for Chrome - There are a lot of weather extensions. I like The Weather Channel, but I have to admit there is probably a "better" weather extension out there.
• Amazon Wish List - I have an Amazon wishlist, and I also maintain my own versions of wishlists for my kids and for my wife. Amazon wishlists can even include things outside of Amazon. Doing that is facilitated by this extension.
• bit.ly | a simple URL shortener - Ever sent a link in an email and a line break inserted by your email client makes it not work? Ever try to insert a link mid-paragraph and find it makes the line breaks look weird? You need a URL shortener. Bit.ly is probably the most popular because of Twitter, but Google's is starting to have some legs.
• Google Mail Checker - I have had some trouble with this one because it sometimes loses my connection with Gmail. However, it is nice to be working along and see a nice little icon when new mail has arrived (instead of having to go back to the actual Gmail page to check.
• Google Reader: Note in Reader (Unofficial) - I used to have the bookmark to do this that you can get from Google Reader. The biggest problem with this is that I like to hide my bookmarks by default, which makes it hard to use. This solves that.
• Google Sidewiki - I have not ended up using this one much, mainly because I do not think Google is emotionally invested in Sidewiki. Hopefully that changes because I think it is a potentially good idea. Who doesn't want to be able to make comments about any arbitrary web page?
• IE Tab - Unfortunately, sometimes we need IE. Many offices require quirks of that horrible browser in their software. Microsoft often plays better with IE. This extension allows one to use IE inside a Chrome tab. Not perfect, but better than switching browsers completely.
• InvisibleHand - Supposedly this extension alerts you when you are paying too much for something. It throws up a warning like "You could get that for cheaper at Amazon" or something. I have hopes and dreams.
• StayFocusd - I mainly use this one at work. No, it is not a typo. It will shut down access to certain sites after a certain amount of time has passed. You use up your time for the day then too bad!

Any really good extensions I am missing? Know of a better weather extension?

Farewell, faint-hearted

I was shocked and appalled to see that my follower count in Google's friend connect has gone down. Alright, not really. My wife's blog once again has more followers than mine. This is not surprising since she can actually write funny and insightful posts, but it still hurts my pride because her blog is private (which is why I did not link to it).

C'mon people! Stand up and be counted! I actually understand why the follower left: I probably got too geeky for them. While I hope to have a heavy tech bent on this blog, for a while the only things I blogged about had to do with my involvement in the LDS church. I even briefly changed the name of the blog to "Mormon Yankee Hacker." I have now refocused on tech, but there is a button on the right to my mormon.org profile. I also reserve the right to talk about whatever I want to. It is my blog after all.

The point of this post is to ask for you to follow me on Google friend connect. Then subscribe to my feed. I know everything I write may not be gold, but every once in a while I hit something good!

Android Hacker

My manager at work put together a simple Android^TM app last weekend. It was just a toy app, but he plans to continue to mess around with things on the side (in his vast spare time </sarcasm>). He encouraged me to do so as well. For one, the development platform we are using to experiment can run Android. More importantly, we always want to be "sharpening the saw" in order to stay competitive. Unlike his suggestion that I learn python, the suggestion to learn android is something I can get excited about.

I also am intrigued here by the apparently successful efforts of a former fellow grad-student. He now works for lolo developing iOS apps. The apps look pretty cool (I do not have an iPhone or an iPod touch): lolo burn lite, lolo burn, and tempomagic. I do not know how their apps are doing, but they look impressive to me (I'd buy lolo burn if I had an iPod Touch).

Here are the steps I took to download the SDK and get it installed:

1. Go to the Android Developers website. I found myself getting a little bit of that "Christmas morning anticipation feeling" when I went there, but that might be due to my download of the latest KNOPPIX I have going.
2. Click on the "Learn more" link under Download to get the SDK!
3. View the system requirements and then download Eclipse (triple check to make sure I get the version I want). Install Eclipse by extracting the zip file into the Program Files directory (or wherever you want it).
4. Download the Android SDK (more exciting than the Social Network, I know). Unpack it somewhere (I unpacked it into Program Files too) and then add it into your PATH. Do this by right-clicking on your computer (either on your desktop or in the taskbar) and then selecting properties. You then want to get in the advanced system properties and select "Environment Variables." Edit the path variable to have an additional semi-colon and then the absolute path to the Android SDK.
5. Use the ADT instructions to install Android Development tools in Eclipse.
6. Install all the "extra stuff." I am not sure what I need, and I have plenty of space, so I just installed everything. Yay for free software!

That is all for now. Next I move on to Hello, World. After that: profit! Or not. While profit would be nice, I think it will just be fun to tinker around a bit.

Android is a trademark of Google Inc. Use of this trademark is subject to Google Permissions.

Blogger templates

Two months ago I finally made good on my intention to make a nice-looking blog. I like a lot of social media tech stuff and do not have much artistic sense, so my last blog looked cluttered and horrible. After seeing some relatively simple things that my father-in-law did to make a nice blog, I decided I could make a much better looking blog with a little elbow grease.

So found a way to add rounded corners and played around with them until they looked close to right. There are still a few places where the spacing is less than ideal, but I do not know CSS and adjustments were mostly trial and lots of error. I kept the black text on a white background, but then I framed everything in BYU-blue. I made a nice (and correctly sized) banner and drastically limited my clutter with widgets. I still hand-changed the template to have the sidebars on the right like I wanted them. You may not believe it, but I did exercise much restraint. In the end I had something that looked decent.

Apparently I did this two months too soon. On March 11, Blogger announced the Template Designer in Blogger draft. You can read about it in the Blogger in Draft blog or the Blogger Buzz blog. Basically, all the blind bumbling I did in CSS can be eliminated by using one of these templates.

My favorite right now is the Picture Window by Josh Peterson, although there are several templates available that look really sharp. I thought about and even tried moving my blog over to one of these templates, but there were some things that didn't look like I wanted and I liked being the master of my own template. If you are starting from scratch, I would completely recommend using one of the new templates.

Go check it out!

Google Wave notes for Sacrament Meeting talk

Below is the Wave which I used to collect thoughts for my sacrament Meeting talk on Acquiring spiritual knowledge. I thought it worked out rather well, except I only had one person participating with me (more were invited). I am not sure how well this cut and paste will look as a post. I will try to fix it after I see it, but if you are looking at the feed then it might look funny.

Notes for talk on Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge

I am speaking on this topic on February 28th, 2010. I plan to jot down notes here, and if any of you have anything to add then feel free to chime in!

Specs from Bishopric member who gave the assignment:

Speaking - 20 minutes

D&C 11:13-14

November 1993 Elder Scott

Previous: D&C 11:12 - humility

Feb 21

You:

D&C 11:13-14

Verily, verily, I say unto you, I will impart unto you of my Spirit, which shall enlighten your mind, which shall fill your soul with joy; And then shall ye know, or by this shall you know, all things whatsoever you desire of me, which are pertaining unto things of righteousness, in faith believing in me that you shall receive.

Feb 21

Jacob:

Wonderful promise of the Lord. That through the Spirit, whatever we desire righteously, we shall receive.

Feb 20

You:

Elder Scott's October 1993 Conference talk on . . . Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge (http://bit.ly/bTq8Sl)

Feb 21

Jacob:

Liahona » 1987 » June

The Desires of Our Hearts

By Elder Dallin H. Oaks

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=456b8b5c1dbdb010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

Feb 26

You:

Elder Uchtdorf's talk in October 2009:

http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-1117-19,00.html

1:28 pm

You:

A version of Elder Scott's talk that he gave at CES a couple of months earlier:

http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=7105

1:52 pm

You:

and his most recent conference talk on acquiring spiritual guidance:

http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-1117-2,00.html

2:21 pm

You:

Scriptures:

John 17:3 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/john/17) - And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

D&C 130:18-19 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/130/18-19#18) - Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection. And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come.

D&C 93:12-13, 28, 36 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/93) - grace to grace, knoweth all things, glory of God is intelligence

2 Timothy 3:7 - Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth

Moroni 10:3-5 - And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things

D&C 131:6 - It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance

3 Nephi 27:27 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/3_ne/27) - What manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am

D&C 9:7-8 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/9/7-14#7) - Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me. But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

1 Cor 2:11, 14 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/1_cor/2) - For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

D&C 84:43-47 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/dc/84) - And I now give unto you a commandment to beware concerning yourselves, to give diligent heed to the words of eternal life. For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God. For the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ. And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit. And every one that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit cometh unto God, even the Father.

Ether 12:6 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/ether/12) - And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.

Alma 32:27 (http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/32) - But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words.

Mosiah 3:19 -

2 Ne 9:29 - To be learned is good if we hearken to the counsels of God

Feb 24

You and Jacob:

Concepts:

Tree of knowledge of good and evil

Know > Do > Are

Search for principles

Light - bulb in dark room (ignorance, disbelief), bulb in black ink (transgression), laser (repentance)

Word -> seed

Keep a "spiritual" journal

Set spiritual goals

Milk vs. meat (need scripture)

Feb 21

You and Jacob:

Outline:

Why do we want spiritual knowledge?

What is spiritual knowledge?

How do we acquire spiritual knowledge?

Be teachable

Desire/Seek the Word

Apply principles

2:52 pm

You:

Stories:

PhD

Physical therapy

Plato's forms

Constant vigilence!

Civil war - refusal to act on reconnaissance: Longstreet used disreputable spie system, Lee waited too long for Stuart

Bridge too far

Newborn having milk then soft foods then finger foods then table foods then corn then baby corn

Brother Macinanti's six shooters

Elder Scott's story of the humble Mexico City instructor and fancy teacher

Feb 21

You:

Any ways to tie this topic to the Olympics?

Feb 21

Jacob:

Practice and dedication to out perform your competitors

What is "olympic spirit"?

The Olympic motto is the hendiatrisCitius, Altius, Fortius, which is Latin for "Swifter, Higher, Stronger".

Feb 22

You:

Hard, continuous work. Years of training.

Know what to do, practice, becomes automatic.

Feb 24

You:

Color: (funny or interesting stories to keep attention and that can act as lead-ins)

Staying up late, watching the Olympics (Ice dancing?)

Writing the talk using Google Wave