In Good Company

The redesigned Apple – MacBook…a new addition to our family

Larry Winger — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 06:34:55 +0000

After years of building my own Windows desktop computers, and serving as the in-house I.T. Department, I broke down and bought one of the new MacBooks. What a sleek piece of design technology. Apple really knows how to do it right. At the same time I got the Canon Pixma MP560 multi-function printer/scanner. Because it is wireless, as well as the Apple keyboard and Magic Mouse, we will normally use the MacBook as a laptop but then quickly change over to the desktop environment when it is time for heavy duty writing. The only thing to plug in is the monitor cable. Sweet!

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Lighthouse beauty

Larry Winger — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:15:05 +0000

via 2.bp.blogspot.com

On our recent trip to Mendocino and the Northern California coast, we stopped by the Point Arena lighthouse. This is a great picture of the recently retired Fresnel lens that warned passing ships for decades. Elegantly effective, but now sadly replaced by a LED strobe less than 6 inches high. Efficient but lifeless.

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Zenith Zodiac CH 650 video

Larry Winger — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:45:44 +0000

via zenithair.com

Here’s the plane I’m building. Just in case you haven’t seen what’s taking shape in my garage.

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Strong coffee

Larry Winger — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:28:55 +0000

Download now or watch on posterous

COFFEE.MPG (10800 KB)

I've had this video tucked away on my hard drive for years, just waiting for the right time to use it. Recently one of our employees got the firehose treatment from a new coffemaker in our office. Here is the video I sent her, with my condolences. Enjoy!

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New way to post to social media

Larry Winger — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:28:12 +0000

I just learned about www.posterous.com and I think it has the potential for changing my blogging habits forever. The idea is that one email to posterous not only populates a named blog on their site (i.e. www.larrywinger.posterous.com) but it also can be configured to send the same info to your blog, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and the list goes on. This email message is actually my first experiment. BTW, it can also handle all sorts of file types including doc, ppt, pdf, jpg, gif, png, mp3, avi and mpg. Pretty amazing stuff…and free.

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The Rip Van Winkle of Blogs

Larry Winger — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 05:44:59 +0000

Plenty has happened since my blog curled up and took a lengthy nap. It’s a new world, and I’ll try to catch you up a bit. The topics I expect to share over the next few days and weeks will include, but not be limited to, a marriage proposal, a grounded aircraft, and a new tech toy. Stay tuned.

Goodbye to Facebook

Larry Winger — Sun, 31 May 2009 17:18:05 +0000

“Hi, my name is Larry and I’m a Facebook dropout.” I finally came to the realization that Facebook just isn’t my thing, for a whole host of reasons. I won’t bore you with them, but I decided to part ways with this social networking juggernaut that sucks the life out of everthing in its path (oh, I wasn’t going to give my reasons. Oops.) In a fraction of the time I was spending on Facebook — back in the day when I was diligently responding to friend requests and messages — I can keep this blog fresh and up-to-date. It may be trading one form of insanity for another, but at least it is the one I most enjoy. NOTE TO MY FORMER FACEBOOK “FRIENDS”: Please don’t take it personally. We may just have to connect over a cup of coffee or the occasional email. I’ll even buy!

Inspecting an inspection

Larry Winger — Sun, 31 May 2009 17:02:50 +0000

As a first-time aircraft homebuilder, there has been this veil of mystery about the final airworthiness inspection. Thanks to the gracious invitation of a new-found fellow Zodiac builder in Corona, the inspection process has been de-mystified. Yesterday I joined Ted Taylor at his hangar in Corona for the airworthiness inspection on his beautiful Zenith Zodiac 601XL. Ted has been laboring in relative isolation from the larger builder community, which may account for his steady progress and the completeness of his final product.

The DAR (Designated Airworthiness Representative) was thoroughly prepared and did an excellent job of outlining the scope of responsibilities — both his and the builder’s. At the end of the session, Ted passed with “flying colors” (pun intended) and I learned a whole bunch about final inspections. Congratulations, Ted.

Home Sweet Home

Larry Winger — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 07:10:54 +0000

We’re always glad to have family visit, and Joy’s sister and her daughters are in town to take in a soccer match tonight at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA. Because they had never seen Tom and AJ’s place, we had lunch together at the Good Earth restaurant in Westwood (one of Joy’s favorites) then took the grand tour of their apartment.

It is special for plenty of reasons, most especially because it is their first place together. Beyond that, it has a real charm that only comes with wood floors and ocean breezes. For those who haven’t had the privilege of a tour, here it is.

Decision complete and progress being made

Larry Winger — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:25:39 +0000

In a posting in the late summer, I was wringing my hands over the decision to build the 601XL I started or to make the switch to the Zenith Zodiac CH 650. Well, shortly thereafter I decided in favor of the new style, paid for the upgrade…and waited. After nearly 3 months of waiting, the plans arrived just in time for me to fire up my tools a bit between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Now that the holidays are over, I’m in full swing and making great progress. Here is a video of the make and model of plane I’m building, with a paint job that is remarkably similar to the look I’ll have (only with polished aluminum and accent stripes).

Enjoy!