Sign, sign everywhere a “NO” sign
The city of Huntsville has passed a ban on texting while driving. Which does not really bother me except, once again we can be punished by law for making poor decisions. What bothers me is that the city has spent quite a bit of tax money in posting "NO TEXTING WHILE DRIVING" signs all over the road ways. Along with that law, they passed a loud stereo ordinance and that was also accompanied by numerous matching signs. While driving through Huntsville you will be visually assaulted by rules that you should follow while in our city (maybe should take notes on each of the rules but please pull over to do so). I thought that maybe they should consider adding some real crimes to the sign postings since they feel these are an effective deterrent to stop me from texting and playing my radio too loud.
Maybe these will keep someone from shooting or stabbing someone...
New street signs for Huntsville © 2011 Jeffthurston.com
Google Sketchup…now I can use it! (Sketchup 8.0 that is.)
Through the years I have downloaded Google Sketchup only to get frustrated with it and eventually uninstall it. Lately, I had been reading about wood working techniques to design furniture and found out that many craftsmen are using Sketchup. I decided to try the new version of Google Sketchup 8.0. Either I was not intuitive enough to use this software in the past or they have greatly tweaked it's usability (My geek pride says go with the later). Don't get me wrong, Sketchup is not for the neophyte, you should have some understanding of graphics programs like Photoshop and Fireworks along with some understanding of CAD and 3D before attempting detailed Sketchups.
The good thing is that the community for this product is strong and many plugins have been created and supported. I have found some great plugins which help creating Sketchup drawings. I have a list of the ones that I use at the end of this post. I have also contributed the checkerboard drawing to the Google 3d Warehouse.
Base drawing in Sketchup 8.0:
Checkerboard with default style
Above is a base drawing in that I created in Sketchup 8.0 in 10 minutes. The drawing is created with only 2 components,the checkerboard square and the checker itself. Since these are created as components, you only have to edit the component to change all of duplicates. Sketchup does allow application of materials to each duplicated component separately. Copying and pasting are done with using the array method so you can duplicate one component and then type 6x to create 6 more spaced the same amount as the first initial pasted component.
Sketchup also has styles which let you acheive some really awesome effects to your drawings.
Checkerboard with Sketchy edges style
Checkerboard with scribble on masonite style
There are also some plugins (free and paid for), that will render your Google Sketch.
Google Sketchup drawing rendered with SKindigo renderer plugin.
Not bad for a open source product. Sketchup is going to allow me to create some 3d graphics that can be rendered or styled to whatever look that I want to achieve.
Links:
Google Sketchup
Indigo 3d Render for Sketchup
Lumberjocks Sketchup wood material library
Some other drawings I have been working with:
LR Baggs Para Acoustic Di Active Direct Box and Preamp
The Para DI is a roadworthy 5 Band EQ/Direct Box that will make any pickup, passive or active, sound better. The award winning Para DI's features include; tunable notch and midrange controls, XLR and 1/4"outputs, adjustable gain, phase inversion and 48v phantom powerable or 9v battery.
LR Baggs Para Acoustic Di Active Direct Box and Preamp
My daughter and I recently performed for the Hampton Cove Middle School Talent Showcase. I had recently installed a Fishman 125 saddle pickup and wanted to get the best sound out of my old Yamaha FG25 acoustic. My Fender Hot Rod amp is not the best equipment to run an acoustic guitar through. I started looking at purchasing an acoustic amp but also started reading about acoustic direct boxes. The knowledgable staff at The Fret Shop here in Huntsville recommended the LR Baggs Para Acoustic DI. It is a little pricey at $150+ but, I found out well worth it. The manual had some ideal settings based upon pickup configurations and I used those for the show. My guitar sounded great thru the PA system that night with close to the default settings. I am glad I purchased it and will be using it again.
The Amplitube iRig rocks!
It is really amazing what tools my trusty iPad has replaced. I have been using it as my virtual effects rack/amplifier and as an 8 track recorder since Christmas. This cool hardware and software combination comes from the folks at IK Multimedia (http://www.ikmultimedia.com). Their product combination of a hardware component, the iRig (http://www.ikmultimedia.com/irig/features/) along with their software component, Amplitube (http://www.ikmultimedia.com/amplitubeipad/features/) allows me to carry a large pedal board of effects, different amp head and cabinet combos along with a 8 track recorder all in a neoprene, notebook sized sleeve.
iRig and AmpliTube Rocks!
It works like this:
- Plug the iRig into your headphone jack on your iPad.
- Plug your guitar into the 1/4" jack on the iRig.
- Plug your headphones (if desired) into the other side of the iRig.
- Load the AmpliTube application.
- Select your amp, cabinet and microphone combination.
- Select up to 4 effects and change their settings.
- ROCK OUT!
I have really enjoyed having the portability of the iPad as my practice rack and I am going to try and use it live soon. The quality of the sound is pretty good and the 8 track recorder is feature rich with effect options, bouncing tracks and other sound engineering duties.
The product is a little pricey for an iPad/iPhone application. The iRig retails for $39.99, AmpliTube retails for $19.99, the 8-Track plugin is another $17.00 and there are other effects to add on for around $2.99 a piece. The software comes with 11 effects (Delay, Fuzz, Distortion, Overdrive, Wah, Env Filter, Chorus, Flanger, Phazer, Octave and Noise Filter) and you can buy 5 more (Compressor, Limiter, Reverb, Parametric Equalizer, Graphic Equalizer). So for around $90 bucks you can have 16 effects, 5 amp heads, 5 cabinets, tuner, song practice tool that speeds ups and slows down loaded mp3 files, metronome and a 8-track recorder. I sold my Vamp and held back on purchasing an 11 Rack after getting this for Christmas.
All-in-all it is a great tool for the amateur guitarist. They do have a free version of the application so you can get an idea of how it works before making the big purchase.
While researching the IK Multimedia site, I discovered they have another product coming soon, the iRig Mic along with Vocal Live (http://www.ikmultimedia.com/vocalive/features/) which looks to be a vocal effects application like the AmpliTube. Hope I can multi-task these 2 products.
Design a Day Number 12
Yes, I know it should probably be "design a month" but work has really been hectic lately. I am trying to get back in the habit of designing something daily if possible. So my wife wanted a Popsicle applique so I started playing around with drawing one and then kept going in Corel Draw X4 and came up with this design. Her applique will be a little more basic.
20+ Hours flying
I am all packed and ready to see my girls to school before leaving for India. My flight has me in Detroit, Amsterdam, Mumbai and then Pune. I am trying to have the traveling mindset of being moved around like a herd of cattle. Should have some good travel stories after today.
WordPress for iOS Version 2.6.1, started using it today.
I looks like they have done some updates to the WordPress for iOS app (iOS for WordPress). I will be using it for the next few days on my iPad. I did experience some issues with my first post but, it maybe the configuration settings. I will post a review after a few days of using it on my India trip.
India…A New Adventure for the Thurston
My employer is hiring offshore resources in India. I will be traveling the next few weeks to Pune India to get the new team moving forward and to interview potential talent. I plan on blogging my trip and experiences the next 2 weeks. Stay tuned ....
Design a Day Number 11
I call this one Blood Flower. This is Chaos Scope brought into Fireworks.
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Huntsville Local News
- Health officials monitor outbreak of hand, foot & mouth disease in Huntsville January 27, 2012
- Limestone County Sheriff Department to crack down on speeding drivers January 27, 2012
- Columbia High School students, faculty mourning 15-year-old student killed riding his bike home from school January 27, 2012
- Alabama's tourism director expects big impact on Space Camp from Hallmark Hall of Fame movie January 27, 2012
- Telecommunications repairman accused of stealing jewelry from two Limestone homes January 27, 2012
Lifehacker
- How Can I Release My Music Online So Music-Lovers Can Easily Find It? [Ask Lifehacker] January 27, 2012
- What to Write Down During a Class Lecture [Note Taking] January 27, 2012
- Camera Size Shows You How Bulky or Compact Digital Cameras Really Are [Cameras] January 27, 2012
- Stand Up and Stretch Your Legs in This Week's Open Thread [Open Thread] January 27, 2012
- Use Google Alerts as an Identity Theft Watchdog [Security] January 27, 2012
- Add Keyboard Shortcuts to Netflix's Web Interface [NetFlix] January 27, 2012
- TextDropApp Edits Text Files in Your Dropbox Account [Dropbox] January 27, 2012
- GNews Is an Unobtrusive Google News Notifier for Chrome [Chrome Extensions] January 27, 2012
- Cook Instant Oatmeal in the Packet When You Don't Have a Bowl [Macgyver Tips] January 27, 2012
- Use a Toilet Paper Roll and a Sandwich Bag to Protect Your Ties at Home or On The Road [Clever Uses] January 27, 2012
Psdtuts+ Photoshop Tuturials
- How to Create High Quality Metal 3D Text in Photoshop January 26, 2012
- Sneak Peek at Adobe Photoshop CS6 January 26, 2012
- Create a Medieval Battle Axe in Photoshop January 25, 2012
- Quirky and Creative 2D Illustrations and Concept Art January 24, 2012
- Best Selling Photoshop Add-ons from GraphicRiver January 24, 2012