Comments for Seize the Moment of Excited Curiosity for the Acquisition of Knowledge http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com Sun, 27 Dec 2009 02:32:46 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 Comment on Jay Corbett’s Famous Gruel Recipe by Recipes Volt http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/05/05/jay-corbetts-famous-gruel-recipe/#comment-1430 Recipes Volt Sun, 27 Dec 2009 02:32:46 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/05/05/jay-corbetts-famous-gruel-recipe/#comment-1430 Cool recipes from all over the world. Create meals that will wow your friends and family over? Don’t reinvent the wheel, make proper use of it! Cool recipes from all over the world. Create meals that will wow your friends and family over? Don’t reinvent the wheel, make proper use of it!

]]> Comment on Mom’s London Broil recipe by Raphael http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/05/04/moms-london-broil-recipe/#comment-1421 Raphael Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:03:55 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/05/04/moms-london-broil-recipe/#comment-1421 Really? Garlic Powder and that's it? I'll give it a shot....let the stabbing commence! Really? Garlic Powder and that’s it? I’ll give it a shot….let the stabbing commence!

]]> Comment on Build file extravaganza by Damon Hart-Davis http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2009/07/20/build-file-extravaganza/#comment-1406 Damon Hart-Davis Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:01:39 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/?p=288#comment-1406 Hi, National Grid plc runs the grid, Elexon (owned by National Grid plc) provides "balancing" services eg coping with deviations from forecast demand and spikes and slumps. They don't run generation equipment (at least not on any significant scale). At the retail end of the wires are the DNOs (Distribution Network Operators) who ship the power to the majority of end users. These are owned by, but legally behind a chinese wall from, the 'big six' generators of electricity. There are also some generators that are have no DNO operations/infrastructure, and retailers that make use of DNO services etc but have no actual wires. Complicated, but the upshot is that more or less any any user can buy power from whichever retailer they wish who in turn can source that power from whichever generators they wish, MWh by MWh, and the National Grid and the DNOs must ship the power over their otherwise-monopoly infrastructure in a reasonable and non-discriminatory way. For example, I buy power at home from a small independent 'green' (all wind) generator and retailer called Ecotricity, and their power, mixed in with power from other sources of course, is shipped across the National Grid and through the wires of my local (French-owned EDF) DNO. Does that help? B^> Rgds Damon PS. Some more DNO info for you from National Grid's site: http://www.nationalgrid.com/uk/Electricity/AboutElectricity/DistributionCompanies/ Hi,

National Grid plc runs the grid, Elexon (owned by National Grid plc) provides “balancing” services eg coping with deviations from forecast demand and spikes and slumps. They don’t run generation equipment (at least not on any significant scale).

At the retail end of the wires are the DNOs (Distribution Network Operators) who ship the power to the majority of end users. These are owned by, but legally behind a chinese wall from, the ‘big six’ generators of electricity.

There are also some generators that are have no DNO operations/infrastructure, and retailers that make use of DNO services etc but have no actual wires.

Complicated, but the upshot is that more or less any any user can buy power from whichever retailer they wish who in turn can source that power from whichever generators they wish, MWh by MWh, and the National Grid and the DNOs must ship the power over their otherwise-monopoly infrastructure in a reasonable and non-discriminatory way.

For example, I buy power at home from a small independent ‘green’ (all wind) generator and retailer called Ecotricity, and their power, mixed in with power from other sources of course, is shipped across the National Grid and through the wires of my local (French-owned EDF) DNO.

Does that help? B^>

Rgds

Damon

PS. Some more DNO info for you from National Grid’s site: http://www.nationalgrid.com/uk/Electricity/AboutElectricity/DistributionCompanies/

]]> Comment on Java 1.6 & Eclipse on Mac OS X by WattDepot presentation & Derby started « Seize the Moment of Excited Curiosity for the Acquisition of Knowledge http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2009/11/16/java-1-6-eclipse-on-mac-os-x/#comment-1405 WattDepot presentation & Derby started « Seize the Moment of Excited Curiosity for the Acquisition of Knowledge Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:08:29 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/?p=340#comment-1405 [...] Seize the Moment of Excited Curiosity for the Acquisition of Knowledge « Java 1.6 & Eclipse on Mac OS X [...] [...] Seize the Moment of Excited Curiosity for the Acquisition of Knowledge « Java 1.6 & Eclipse on Mac OS X [...]

]]> Comment on Build file extravaganza by Robert Brewer http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2009/07/20/build-file-extravaganza/#comment-1404 Robert Brewer Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:23:39 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/?p=288#comment-1404 Thanks for the clarification Damon. Here on Oahu, there is one utility company that provides all electricity, though they do buy some from 3 independent power providers. We are envious of your data. :) So in GB, Elexon runs the grid but the actual power plants are run by other organizations? Thanks for the clarification Damon. Here on Oahu, there is one utility company that provides all electricity, though they do buy some from 3 independent power providers. We are envious of your data. :)

So in GB, Elexon runs the grid but the actual power plants are run by other organizations?

]]> Comment on VMware Fusion, Apple Boot Camp, and Windows Activation by Robert Brewer http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/08/30/vmware-fusion-apple-boot-camp-and-windows-activation/#comment-1403 Robert Brewer Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:18:42 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/08/30/vmware-fusion-apple-boot-camp-and-windows-activation/#comment-1403 @John Thomas, my experiences with VMware have not involved an OEM version, so I can't say whether or not that makes a difference. My guess is that you will be able to use VMware without breaking your Boot Camp installation. Later versions of VMware have taken pains to reduce the reactivation problem, but you might have to reactivate once in Boot Camp after upgrading. You should be able make a low-level backup of up your Boot Camp partition, and then if things go awry, you could restore from your backup. Good luck. @John Thomas, my experiences with VMware have not involved an OEM version, so I can’t say whether or not that makes a difference.

My guess is that you will be able to use VMware without breaking your Boot Camp installation. Later versions of VMware have taken pains to reduce the reactivation problem, but you might have to reactivate once in Boot Camp after upgrading. You should be able make a low-level backup of up your Boot Camp partition, and then if things go awry, you could restore from your backup.

Good luck.

]]> Comment on VMware Fusion, Apple Boot Camp, and Windows Activation by John Thomas http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/08/30/vmware-fusion-apple-boot-camp-and-windows-activation/#comment-1399 John Thomas Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:45:17 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2007/08/30/vmware-fusion-apple-boot-camp-and-windows-activation/#comment-1399 Robert, in all of the above posts, it's only clear in one or two of them whether the problems come from using OEM, "For distribution with a new PC only," copies of Windows. That's what I have. It's Windows XP Home Edition, and I'm currently running it from Bootcamp. I've downloaded, paid for, and installed VMware Fusion Version 3.0.0 (204229), but I'm scared to death of running it for fear of unactivating and thereby ruining the damned bootcamp XP. Am I out of luck? What's the right thing to do? Robert, in all of the above posts, it’s only clear in one or two of them whether the problems come from using OEM, “For distribution with a new PC only,” copies of Windows. That’s what I have. It’s Windows XP Home Edition, and I’m currently running it from Bootcamp. I’ve downloaded, paid for, and installed VMware Fusion Version 3.0.0 (204229), but I’m scared to death of running it for fear of unactivating and thereby ruining the damned bootcamp XP. Am I out of luck? What’s the right thing to do?

]]> Comment on Build file extravaganza by Damon Hart-Davis http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2009/07/20/build-file-extravaganza/#comment-1398 Damon Hart-Davis Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:54:06 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/?p=288#comment-1398 Whoops, Ireland not Island! Whoops, Ireland not Island!

]]> Comment on Build file extravaganza by Damon Hart-Davis http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2009/07/20/build-file-extravaganza/#comment-1397 Damon Hart-Davis Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:44:40 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/?p=288#comment-1397 Just for the record (as I stumbled across this page again!) it isn't the utilities themselves, this data is provided by National Grid's subsidiary Elexon, the ISO (Independent System Operator) for the grid for Great Britain (ie Scotland, Wales and England but not Northern Island). The data availability was a little flaky but it looks like Elexon's put in some work behind the scenes to improve reliability, which has saved me reworking the code to use an alternate interface, at least so far! B^> Rgds Damon Just for the record (as I stumbled across this page again!) it isn’t the utilities themselves, this data is provided by National Grid’s subsidiary Elexon, the ISO (Independent System Operator) for the grid for Great Britain (ie Scotland, Wales and England but not Northern Island).

The data availability was a little flaky but it looks like Elexon’s put in some work behind the scenes to improve reliability, which has saved me reworking the code to use an alternate interface, at least so far! B^>

Rgds

Damon

]]> Comment on WattDepot logging by Robert Brewer http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/2009/08/24/wattdepot-logging/#comment-1298 Robert Brewer Tue, 25 Aug 2009 19:41:14 +0000 http://excitedcuriosity.wordpress.com/?p=305#comment-1298 Thanks for the feedback Geoff. I read over the Brultech site, and a variety of forum sites where people were discussing their use of the Brultech meter and getting data off of it. My understanding is that in all cases, you have to provide a computer to get the live data stream from the meter. If you already have a computer in the home that you leave on 24x7, this might not be a problem, but many people don't. Also, if you are trying to reduce power consumption in the home, leaving a computer on around the clock to record data seems counterproductive. One can buy or build an embedded computer with low power consumption to record the data, but that's what the TED 5000 provides out of the box. It should be even easier to get data out of the TED 5000 to send to other sources (WattzOn, Pachube, etc) since the Gateway component records the data and makes it available via XML. In fact, that's my primary motivation for acquiring the TED 5000. The web dashboard that it provides out of the box is also very impressive, and the hand-held wireless display should make it easier to measure the consumption of individual appliances. Of course I haven't actually used either device, so my assessment is based on web-accessible information only. Do you have a link for your code to publish data from the Brultech meter? Thanks for the feedback Geoff. I read over the Brultech site, and a variety of forum sites where people were discussing their use of the Brultech meter and getting data off of it. My understanding is that in all cases, you have to provide a computer to get the live data stream from the meter. If you already have a computer in the home that you leave on 24×7, this might not be a problem, but many people don’t. Also, if you are trying to reduce power consumption in the home, leaving a computer on around the clock to record data seems counterproductive. One can buy or build an embedded computer with low power consumption to record the data, but that’s what the TED 5000 provides out of the box.

It should be even easier to get data out of the TED 5000 to send to other sources (WattzOn, Pachube, etc) since the Gateway component records the data and makes it available via XML. In fact, that’s my primary motivation for acquiring the TED 5000. The web dashboard that it provides out of the box is also very impressive, and the hand-held wireless display should make it easier to measure the consumption of individual appliances.

Of course I haven’t actually used either device, so my assessment is based on web-accessible information only.

Do you have a link for your code to publish data from the Brultech meter?

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