A little off topic, but...

In my continuing efforts to create a real exocortex, I have created a little program to train for my new keyboard design. You see, a typical wearable computer's keyboard input leaves something to be desired. So, I wanted to find a better way. The problems that conventional portable and wearable computers have include the fact that voice-recognition software is right only about 70–80% of the time and needs to be trained before use, keyboards are either huge and comfortable but hard to carry or tiny and portable but impossible to use. Some people have tried to introduce one-handed keyboards, but with limited success, since they are so expensive and difficult to learn. I decided to try a different tack. There is already a simple way for people to send serial data to a computer that was in heavy use during the 19th century and early 20th. Yes, Morse Code.

You see, Morse Code is actually not that hard to learn. How do I know this? I wrote a simple training program in PERL/Tk (available for Windows, OSX and Linux/UNIX) That shows you how to "type" on a three-keyed keyboard. The trainer uses the arrow keys, but the finished keyboard will use a dedicated hand-held keyboard that communicates via RS232->USB. I'll post some more, when there is something to post.

In the meantime, you can download the trainer here.

The Kelly Kettle is Amazing!

I recently acquired a storm kettle from Kelly Kettles in Ireland. It is an excellent piece, clean in form and beautiful in function, with a sort of steampunk feel to it. Despite its grace, it's a very efficient tool for boiling water out of doors. In this article, I would like to show mine to you, and demonstrate its use.

First, we have the basic components: water, fuel, and the kettle.

Now, a word about the fire. I just grabbed the first bit of scrap I could find, in this case MDF, and a piece of fatwood to light it with. Fatwood is amazing: it takes fire from a match, yet burns with such ferocity that it can ignite even damp wood. Anyway, you can see the fire from the match at the bottom of the photo.

Here, you can see that I've placed the kettle atop the fire pan. The fire quickly grew from this little spark to a miniature furnace in the span of a minute!

Here, although you really can't see it, the water is boiling. It only took a few minutes!

And so, we come at last to the end of our little journey. From cold water to hot cocoa in just a few minutes courtesy of the Kelly Kettle. You can bet that I will be offering my canoe passengers the hot, tasty beverage of their choice, come Summer!

Fat man goes walking

Welcome to my new blog! This blog is primarily concerned with my outdoor life. So, you get to hear about my adventures in Camping, Hiking, Biking, and Boating. I'll also review some of my equipment and mention interesting techniques that make my outdoor life easier and more pleasant.

Please, do feel free to write in your own comments as you read my articles. I look forward to reading them!