]]> Music Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:14:31 -0700 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=29 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=29 I have a serious Google addition and I'm not afraid to admit it. If they had an office around here somewhere I would probably apply to work there. I think a better name for their "offices" would be playgrounds. That's what they look like anyway. They are always in Forbes top 5 companies to work for in the nation too.

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]]> Life Fri, 04 Jun 2010 21:30:51 -0700 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=28 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=28 I have a serious Google addition and I'm not afraid to admit it. If they had an office around here somewhere I would probably apply to work there. I think a better name for their "offices" would be playgrounds. That's what they look like anyway. They are always in Forbes top 5 companies to work for in the nation too.

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]]> Life Fri, 04 Jun 2010 21:30:50 -0700 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=27 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=27 Most of us get almost all the things we need by buying them; most of us know only vaguely, if at all, where those things come from; and most of us know not at all what damage is involved in their production. We are almost entirely dependent upon an economy of which we are almost entirely ignorant. The provenance, for example, not only the food we buy, but of the fertilizers, fuels, and other materials necessary to grow, harvest, transport, process, and package it, is almost necessarily a mystery to us.

And we wonder why the U.S. economy is hurting.

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]]> Interesting Wed, 26 May 2010 09:05:37 -0700 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=26 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=26 DustinCowell.com, my home on the internet has a new design! My business websites are also getting new designs to match. If you would like to see what the website used to look like for comparison, click here.

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]]> Programming Tue, 25 May 2010 15:11:08 -0700 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=25 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=25 Ultimately, I want to have some acreage, pay off my home, pay off my car(s), pay off all other loans, live off the grid, have a large garden, a large green house, and raise animals. Once I accomplish all of this my family and I could live off our land and there would not be the pressure of having to make a large salary to support ourselves.

I know it sounds like a lofty goal to a lot of people, but in my mind it is not. I also firmly believe that when you set your mind to something you can accomplish anything. It's not going to be easy, but who ever said anything in life is easy?

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]]> Life Wed, 21 Apr 2010 13:45:54 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=24 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=24

On March 22, 2010 Virgin Galactic's White Knight Two carrier airplane made the first captive carry of Virgin Galactic's "Enterprise" (Space Ship Two) spacecraft. White Knight Two was able to reach launch altitude and speed while carrying Enterprise. I'm sure this was a very happy day for Sir Richard Branson and Burt Rutan! I know I sure am very excited to see private space flight finally become affordable ($200,000 vs. $20,000,000). Sir Richard Branson has also said the cost is expected to drop after the first five years of operations.

Someday I hope to be able to see the stars and admire the curvature of the Earth from the edge of space.

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]]> Space Tue, 06 Apr 2010 09:47:13 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=23 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=23 I heard this one on TV the other day and the guy said "I was so scared when I lost my job. My wife doesn't work, we own a house, and we have two kids. I though we were in serious trouble. Thanks to *CENSORING SCHOOL NAME*, I was able to go back to school and get my degree in computer science. Now I'm an IT manager making more money than I was making before I lost my job."

There are a few MAJOR things wrong with this commercial. First, how did he come up with the money to pay his tuition costs? Second, how did he pay his bills during the 2-4 years that he was going to school, especially since his wife doesn't work? Third, IT doesn't pay crap these days so quit making up lies!

Commercials like this really get me fired up!

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]]> TV Tue, 30 Mar 2010 22:58:56 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=22 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=22 I tend to be VERY opinionated... okay understatement... EXTREMELY opinionated about things that I take interest in. Ask anyone I know and they will tell you that I like to go off about things I either really like or really dislike. There is not a lot of middle ground with my opinions either, nor do I believe there should be any middle ground when it's something I am passionate about.

So how do I write entries combining research facts and my personal opinions while also not offending people or saying "this is what I believe and you should believe this too"?

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]]> Thoughts Sun, 28 Mar 2010 16:00:15 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=21 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=21 I think the most powerful part of this movie was when Michael Moore showed families getting their homes taken away and being kicked onto the streets. These were hard working families who got suckered into bad ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) home loans by banks looking to make a huge profit when interest rates went up. Good families with children. This hits close to home for me since there are five homes on the same block that I live on that are foreclosed. Many of the homes have been sitting empty FOR OVER A YEAR! It makes me sick to my stomach to take a walk in my neighborhood and see the destruction that has been done. To see all of the white papers on the doors and to see no lights on inside the homes at night is upsetting. The home right next door to me is foreclosed and the home just on the other side is foreclosed as well. My street feels lonely, cold, and gloomy even on a sunny day.

Now what gets met in an absolute rage is that out of the five homes foreclosed on my block, there is only one sale sign in one of the yards of these homes!!! The others are just sitting there! Someone could and should be living in those houses! Why kick a family out of their home onto the street and let a home sit empty? At least let the family live there until the house is ready to go on the market. I understand the banks not wanting someone living there when they are trying to sell the homes, but they are not trying to sell them right now.

Why do these homes sit empty and off the market? I know why. It's because congress decided to give the banks a 700 billion dollar bailout. Although since congress is largely controlled by Wall Street I guess you could say the banks gave themselves a 700 billion dollar bailout. The banks don't care that the homes are sitting empty because they already got the money they lost from the bad loans they gave out back in their pocket from the bailout! Why was it ever approved to give the banks this huge bailout? Why didn't the banks have to actually work to clean up the mess they created? If they didn't get the bailout I bet the foreclosed homes on my street wouldn't still be sitting empty for over a year.

The other powerful message in the movie was President Franklin D. Roosevelt's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Bill_of_Rights">second bill of rights</a> that he proposed in 1944. The rights include:

- The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;
- The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;
- The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;
- The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;
- The right of every family to a decent home;
- The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;
- The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;
- The right to a good education.

Why didn't this bill ever get passed? Imagine what our country would be like today if it had been.

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]]> Movies Tue, 16 Mar 2010 09:35:05 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=20 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=20 ====================

Subject: bend

Message: I stumbled across your craigslist posting for the bend. A little over a month ago I had a run of bad luck and had to get rid of some of my stuff on craig's list to make ends meet. One guy dropped in to buy my mitre saw and router and gave me twice what I was asking for. When I asked him why, he explained that he wanted to help me out as long as when things worked out I helped someone else out too.

I can't give you cash the way he did me, but yesterday I did come across these Walmart gift cards. I'm sharing the link, but if it works for you, I'm asking that you do the same and pass it on to someone else.

====================

Why can't you give me cash the way he did?!?!?!? I want CASH!!! I don't want crappy Walmart gift cards, I want cash! If you are not going to give me cash I am definitely not telling anyone else about this email!!!

Of course the link didn't work. The link went to a website that said "IT HAS BEEN REPORTED THAT THE KEYWORD WAS USED FOR SPAM, PHISHING, AND/OR ABUSE. AND IT WAS THEREFORE DEACTIVATED. WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE INCONVENIENCE." Nice web host for doing their part to stop them!

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]]> Humor Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:50:58 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=19 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=19 Comments (0)

]]> Rants Sat, 06 Mar 2010 16:22:50 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=18 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=18 Rotten Tomatoes. I love Rotten Tomatoes and could easily spend a whole day on their website looking at movies. I have discovered a ton of movies on there I would have never found before. I also really like that their rating system uses a poll of all critics along with all movie viewers to give unbiased movie ratings.

Anyways, when I went on there today I found that all of bad movies are being sent to Redmond and all of the good movies can be found at the Pilot Butte theater in Bend, which is not even the nicest/newest theater in Bend. The nicest theater had a mix, but actually had mostly bad rated movies. Looks like Pilot Butte theater is the way to go.

Check it out...

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]]> Movies Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:46:23 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=17 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=17 Comments (0)

]]> Interesting Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:32:55 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=16 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=16 My appologies to anyone who has been trying to get in touch with me and has not heard back from me yet. I am starting to sift through the spam now to weed out the legit messages and respond ASAP. I have also created some email filters that should help a lot of my legit email to not end up in the spam folder. Thank you for your understanding and patience!

UPDATE 02/23/2010: All spam has been sorted through and any legit messages that ended up in there have been replied to. If you sent me a legit message and did not receive a reply, please send it again. I now have filters in place to stop my legit mail from ending up in my spam. Thanks again for your understanding!

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]]> Sun, 21 Feb 2010 16:19:11 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=15 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=15 Free PHP Website Software (my development home), Free PHP Shopping Cart Software (the name says it all), Free PHP Blog Software (again, the name says it all), and Affordable PHP Web Hosting (web hosting and complete website solutions).

This marks the completion of 3 years of software development. It was a long road that had many ups and downs. I remained determined and confident through it all though and never gave up. Owning my own web based software business has actually been a dream of mine for about 10 years or so.

This is not the end of my development efforts though! Very far from it! This is just the completion of version 1.0 of both programs. Version 1.0 of both programs includes everything I wanted the programs to have initially to feel like complete, fully featured programs. I still have years worth of development ideas in my head that have yet to be written. These ideas will only enhance and add onto what is already in place. Much more fun to come!

Of course I could not have ever gotten to this point without the tremendous support of my awesome family! My wife Amanda and my daughter Lucy both really deserve a HUGE THANK YOU!!! They have both put up with a lot from me in the last 3 years and I appreciate their patience with me beyond what words can even say.

I am very excited to see where things go now! The rest of 2010 is going to be focused on getting my businesses out there and working on feature improvements for future software versions in between. If you or anyone you know is in need of free shopping cart software, free blog software, web hosting, or a complete website package, please send them my way! My web hosting starts at 1.50/month and my complete website packages start at 6.00/month. I would really appreciate any referrals!!!

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]]> Business Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:22:52 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=14 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=14

Captain Phil Harris from Deadliest Catch passed away yesterday, February 9, 2010. Captain Phil passed away from complications from a stroke he suffered on January 29, 2010. He was only 53 when he passed away, way too young! He was my favorite guy to watch on the show. He was a real inspiration and will be missed! I feel bad for his two sons, Jake and Josh Harris. I hope one of them will take their father's place as captain of the Cornelia Marie and continue his legacy. Both served as deck hands for the last several years on their father's ship and know it well. Either would do an awesome job running it!

Meeting Captain Phil and his sons in Redmond last October at a signing for his coffee line Captain's Reserve Coffee was really awesome! I just can't believe he is gone only 5 months after I shook his hand. I'm really glad to have been able to meet him before he passed away though and will never forget my experience.

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]]> TV Wed, 10 Feb 2010 15:19:43 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=13 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=13 Obama's proposal is to let the private sector handle getting humans into space. I both agree and disagree with this idea. While the private sector has made huge leaps and bounds in just the last few years, it still has a long ways to go before it could put people on the moon or beyond. Heck, it has a long ways to go before it could even get people onto the International Space Station (ISS)! Next year, Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic is scheduled to begin launching SpaceShipTwo into suborbit at 68 miles altitude with paying space tourists. The ISS orbits between 173 miles and 286 miles altitude. Based on these facts, the private sector is going to need to triple it's efforts in very short order just to replace NASA's current orbital missions.

While all of this may be possible, that still leaves the issue of the moon and beyond. Many in the private sector have had plans to conduct missions for NASA close to home and let NASA focus on distant missions. Who is going to focus on distant missions now? We need to get off this planet sooner or later.

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]]> Space Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:42:14 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=12 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=12

Capt. Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie from Deadliest Catch on Discovery Channel suffered a stroke yesterday. Of all the guys on that show, he is my favorite by far. Him and his sons are very entertaining to watch and also very inspiring. Having the awesome opportunity to meet him and his sons last fall was just way over the top! It was only by chance that I even got to meet them. I am hoping for a speedy recovery for the captain!

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]]> TV Sat, 30 Jan 2010 23:14:29 -0800 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=11 http://dustincowell.com/index.php?page=entries&request=view_entry&blog_entries_id=11 http://www.slideoo.com!

Slideoo is a free tool that takes your Flickr photostream and turns it into a horizontal slide show. You can then copy and paste code onto your website to have it show there. On my website you can see the one I made. If you move your mouse over the left or right sides you will get a "+" or "-" sign that allows you to scroll through the pictures. You can also drag the grey scroll bar at the bottom of the pictures too.

TECH WARNING! The slide show uses Flash so I wrote some javascript that detects if Flash is enabled or not. If it's not enabled then a standard HTML Flickr badge shows in place of the slide show. If anyone would like the code, feel free to contact me.

Awesome free tool for anyone who has a website!

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]]> Programming Thu, 28 Jan 2010 09:37:15 -0800