Compile a simple USB program in Linux
Here’s another “hairball” post about USB devices and drivers on Linux. I wish some expert would write the definitive “here’s how to reverse-engineer a USB device and write a new USB driver” guide. I am...
View ArticleFunny SEO emails, part 6
Folks at Google get cold-call emails out of the blue just like everybody else. Here’s an email that a colleague of mine got recently: I was on your website www.google.com and wanted to shoot you a...
View ArticleThe heart of a computer is now the network connection
Back in the 90s, the heart of a computer was the CPU. The faster the CPU, the better the computer was–you could do more, and the speed of the CPU directly affected your productivity. People upgraded...
View Article30 day challenge: no social media, no news
I realized that I didn’t mention this widely: my current 30 day challenge (July 2013) is not to read any news or social media. So no Twitter, Google News, Techmeme, Google+, Hacker News, Reddit, Imgur,...
View Article30 day challenge: Chromebook Pixel
For May 2013 I decided to try making a Chromebook Pixel my primary laptop. So how did it go? Well, the short version is that I’m still a happy Pixel user, almost three months after my one month...
View Article30 day challenge: record a second of video every day
For June 2013, my 30 day challenge was to record a second of video every day. I was inspired by Cesar Kuriyama’s wonderful TED talk about how he records a second of video every day. There’s a couple...
View ArticleSecuring your Google Account after a possible hack
A couple friends have recently had security scares with their Gmail account where they were worried that their accounts might have been hacked. I was emailing one of them about how to make sure that...
View Article30 day challenge: better email handling
Some relatives were visiting this past week, so my inbox has a triple digit backlog. That’s after aggressive pruning of mailing lists and so on. Nearly all of those emails mention me in a “to:” or...
View ArticleGetting things done with Google Tasks
Someone recently asked me how I manage my to-do list, so I thought I’d write up the software that I use. Fundamentally I use Google Tasks as the backend, but with extensions and apps that improve on...
View ArticleHalloween costume for 2013: Silk Road Dread Pirate Roberts
For Halloween 2013 I decided to be the Dread Pirate Roberts from the movie The Princess Bride: I even grew a slight moustache to help make the character believable: But to be clear, I wasn’t just any...
View ArticlePlease help me run the Boston Marathon
On April 21st, 2014, I’m going to run the Boston Marathon. If you want to show your support, please donate to a good cause for cancer research. Anyone who wants to give is welcome. So many people have...
View ArticleOn vacation the rest of November 2013
For the folks that don’t know, I’ve been out for a couple weeks and I’ll be on vacation the rest of November. If you’ve tried to contact me recently and haven’t heard back, that’s probably the reason....
View ArticleWhat would you like to see from Webmaster Tools in 2014?
A few years ago, I asked on my blog what people would like from Google’s free webmaster tools. It’s pretty cool to re-read that post now, because we’ve delivered on a lot of peoples’ requests. At this...
View Article30 day challenge update: stretching!
I like to set myself different challenges every 30 days. In October 2013, I tried to eat better and exercise more. I did alright on that, but without a specific daily goal, I had a hard time deciding...
View ArticleI’m matching funds for cancer research!
I’ll keep it short: this week when you donate for cancer research, I’ll match your donation (up to a limit of $5000 total for all donations). We’ve already raised almost $8,000 dollars to help stop...
View ArticleBluetooth garage door opener
Today I made a Bluetooth garage door opener. Now I can open my garage from my Android phone. There’s a short how-to YouTube video from Lou Prado. Lou also made a website btmate.com that has more...
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