If you see this when boarding, you're in luck!

I had the pleasure of flying this past weekend on a Southwest Airlines plane equipped with the airline’s in-flight WiFi system. Despite my business travel in the last two years, I’ve never encountered a flight which had it. I jumped at the opportunity to get a little bit of work done during a long flight!

Southwest In-flight WiFi landing page

Once the plane is at 10,000 feet, the height at which “portable electronic devices” can be used, you’ll be able to connect to the “SouthwestWiFi” wireless network. There’s a limited selection of games available without paying, as is some kind of shopping I didn’t bother to investigate (probably just Skymall). There’s also a neat flight tracker that shows estimated flight time remaining and a map showing where the plane is.

The thing everyone wants is real Internet. Southwest is charging $5 per flight for it. I had some work to do over the weekend, and I much preferred to get it done before I started said weekend. In-flight WiFi was the answer.

Ah, the great circle route.

I whipped out the credit card and went for it. This was where I hit my first frustration. I didn’t want to have to dig out my credit card and input my credit card information. There’s already not much room on planes these days, and putzing around in my backpack on the floor to get my wallet while balancing an open laptop on my lap is precarious enough without a large sleeping elderly lady and a Tetris-enthralled girlfriend on either side of me. I would hope that Southwest would somehow tie in the Rapid Rewards login from its web site to the in-flight WiFi payment system.

Of course, one of my first non-work related sites to visit was Pittco.

Pittco.org on a plane?

I found the speeds to be sufficient to get some moderate browsing and tweeting done.

Speedtest.net wouldn’t load for me. I presume it was blocked to prevent curious geeks from overloading the connection with useless bytes. However, I did my own speed testing using my web server and found a pretty solid 512 Kbps connection behind it. Ping times of approximately four seconds proved that the system uses satellite instead of ground-based directed cellular systems like many other airlines use (e.g. gogo). Using ye old ping to my own web server, the times for a round-trip min/avg/max/stddev were 707.559/4123.338/14299.332/4251.890 ms.

My laptop was assigned an IP in the 184.169.23.0/24 range with a default gateway of the standard 192.168.1.1. All of the traceroutes I did, including but not limited to google.com and cad.cx, put traffic onto Level3 in Las Vegas and onto Los Angeles before heading out to the destination after approximately eight hops, five of which were internal and the other three lacked FQDNs.

It’s not without some criticism, though. I dislike the toolbar that is inject into every non-HTTPS page. This toolbar is certainly useful, but not when it’s on every bloody page I’m visiting. I’d rather have a separate tiny popup window showing that information. It’d be neat if that window used the browser’s built-in notification system to tell me how much time remains in the flight every 10 minutes or so. Moreover, it needs a better way for notifying the user when it’s getting turned off (rather than just stopping working even though the network is still up), as well as better statistics (how many people are using it, how much bandwidth is being used in at least percentage). If I’d have paid $5 for it and it barely worked because so many people were using it, would I get a refund? Those kind of quality control questions are something that I think Southwest needs to address.

Also, there always is the issue of security. A malicious passenger very well could set up a similarly named access point using a secondary wireless card, collect financial details, and route an unsuspecting passenger over the legitimate connection and there’s be no way to catch them before the plane hits the ground. It would behoove Southwest to consider how better they can secure this payment workflow. Come talk to me, LUV, I’ve got some ideas!

Lastly, the service is vulnerable to good old fashioned DNS proxying. If you know what that means, you know the significance of it. If you don’t, don’t worry, it’s not a security thing and you have nothing to worry about. Well, except bandwidth contention!

Overall, it was a useful experience. I doubt $5 would be worth it for personal use, other than as an extravagance to enable chatting or simple 2005-era speed-wise browsing. For businesses, though, a $5 expense which can turn into $100+/hour billable time on a plane is completely worth it.

P.S. I discovered that Android, at least Cyanogenmod 7.1, can enable its WiFi antenna while the phone is in airplane mode.

PGH or PIT? How to YOU abbreviate Pittsburgh?

Boring Pittsburgh helped out on Facebook, too. @pghtweetup assisted, as well.

The count is in:

60 PGH
4 PIT
2 YNZ
1 YINZ

Many were quick to point out that PIT is Pittsburgh International Airport’s code, and that PIT generally refers to the airport when used in context.

Others reminded that professional sports broadcasts generally use PIT. This data shows that perhaps those outlets should be using PGH!

Thanks to all who participated! Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter.

However, working at home presents its own set of distractions which could detract from your productivity: family at home, nagging chores, different background noises, and a whole new set of random fires needing your extinguishing attention.

When I work from home, or from anyone other than the office, I follow a few rules to keep me productive and sane.

Family: I’m not home, I’m at work. It’s important for family to recognize that you can’t stop what you’re doing to go help them with something for a half an hour. If you have small children, operate normally as if you weren’t there. If a part of staying home is to avoid having to pay a babysitter, then try to get the kids doing something which will keep them busy while you work.

Claim your space. Having a workspace is very important. I have a computer desk at my apartment, but I make space on it by moving my desktop computer’s input peripherals so I can put my work laptop on it. When I work from my parents’ house, I take over a quarter of their dining room table. When I work from my uncle’s house, I take over an whole table in the guest bedroom.

Discipline yourself. I don’t even turn on my desktop computer when I work from home. My personal laptop has a lot of work stuff on it, and I use it at work, too, so it is of course acceptable to use it. If I turn on the desktop, I will inevitably end up playing games or tweaking something; there goes my productivity. Likewise, I work on my desk, upstairs and away from the TV, lest I be drawn to daytime TV (shudder) or my beckoning PS3 with Netflix. Remember, you’re still on company time.

Use mute when using a speakerphone. I frequently participate in conference calls. I know that my coworkers and business partners don’t want to hear the wild chainsaws of a tree trimming crew outside, or my girlfriend’s music downstairs. Likewise, it’s distracting to hear baby cries, television, or anything else which detracts from a call and thereby likely extends it.

Seek compensation. When you’re out of the office, you’re likely to use your landline or mobile phone to dial into conference calls or call the office. If you’re using mobile minutes or data, or calling long distance on a landline, you’re within your rights to ask to be reimbursed for that time.

Set your side goals. Remember that because you’re at home, you might have a few extra minutes here and there to maybe put a load of laundry in or some other task which doesn’t take but a minute with long waits in between. However, don’t let these detract from your primary task: your job.

Take breaks. Don’t forget to take occasional breaks, just like you would at the office. Go grab something healthy from the fridge. Go for a walk around the block. Go kiss your significant other.

Stay productive. Being productive should always be your number one rule. You must prove and continue to show that working from home is a winning proposition for both you and your employer, and that you can be trusted to accomplish the tasks set out for you while out of the office.

Are there any other rules? I may have omitted one of my own, or you may have others to add.

Apple iPad

I figure I’ll contribute to the noise and add my $0.02 about the Apple iPad, which was announced today with much fanfare.

Quick rundown for folks living under a rock who for some reason read my blog and no other news outlet:

• 9.7″ 1024×768 132ppi glass multitouch widescreen display
• 1 GHz Apple A4 processor/SoC
• 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB flash storage
• 802.11b/g/n WiFi
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
• 3G model supports UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz, i.e., AT&T), GSM/EDGE (850, 900,1800, 1900 MHz)
• Compass, cellular network location service (i.e., no GPS)
• 25 Whr battery, 10 hours battery life in use, one month standby
• 3.5″ headphone jack, speakers, mic
• Standard Apple A/V format playback, H.264 video up to 720p
• Access to Apple App Store, iTunes Music Store, and new iBookstore

The pricing is pretty good, too. The cheapest, a 16 GB without 3G, is $499. The most expensive, 64 GB with 3G, runs $829 + $30 monthly for 3G service. Kudos to Apple for negotiating a no-contract deal with AT&T. That’s right—iPad users are not locked into AT&T contractually. They’re just locked into AT&T if they want 3G service. Here’s hoping that T-Mobile springs up similar plans for folks who want T-Mobile and for whom EDGE service will suffice.

In theory, it’s pretty slick device. Lots of innovation, right?

Hardware-wise, I pronounce that Apple has done it again. It’s a new idea, a new form-factor, a new audience. Apple’s going after the folks who love e-book readers and who maybe need to do some typing every now and then. They’re going after the on-the-go designer, or presenter, or other person who would benefit from having, essentially, the capabilities of the iPhone but with a larger screen and faster processor.

Apple iPad Case

Apple iPad Keyboard Dock

There’s a few accessories for it, including a keyboard dock and a case. The case doubles as a bit of a stand, as well. The dock gives the user a keyboard (it’s not clear to me whether or not the keyboard is included) with which to type in programs such as a new mobile edition of iWork for the iPad. It’s a novel idea, but not terribly innovative. It has an audio jack for in-place speakers and likely relies on a USB keyboard or, more likely, Bluetooth.

Unfortunately, it lacks several things it could really use:

• Web cam, front-facing or user facing — no Skype video, folks
• GPS — there has to be room inside for it, and it would make the device truly mobile like the iPhone
• Lid — I understand that this is where the “upsell upsell upsell” case comes in, but I would have really liked to see some kind of lid or carrier. ZAGG will no doubt have a screen protector for the iPad immediately.
• USB ports — sayonara, expandability

Hardware-wise, I’d buy it if I had a use for it. It’s slim, mobile, and the battery lasts forever. Package up a mobile Bluetooth keyboard, and I’d have a nice on-the-go machine for CES or something.

That’s where the good ends. If you’re an Apple fanboy, now’s the time to go elsewhere.

36" hoops and enough room for your iPad

It’s the software which makes it irrelevant to me. It’s a giant iPhone without voice capability. Or, it’s a giant iPod Touch with 3G data capability. Or, it’s a music player in which the only jeans it would be found are JNCO jeans.

It’s an embedded device, as far as I’m concerned, with its own ecosystem (as giant as it may be, given that iPhone apps run on it, too). The books from the iBookstore are DRM-locked to the device, and there’s been no indication if Apple will allow books purchased on it to be transferred to new devices or to desktop machines.

Another big missing feature: Adobe Flash. No Hulu, no web sites which use Flash. This lack makes it somewhat useless as a laptop replacement computer.

Worst of all, and the real deal killer for anyone who would use the iPad in place of a real computer: no multitasking. That means that you can’t listen to Last.fm or Pandora while working on a paper; locally stored music only. AFAIK, there’s not a VoIP calling application on the App Store yet, and there likely won’t ever be, so forget using the iPad as a call center of any kind.

Could Apple figure out multitasking for the iPhone OS, thereby quashing this point and silencing the Android fanboys (myself included) who constantly berate iPhone users on their inability to check email while listening to Internet music while surfing the web while reading a book and not losing place when switching between any of these? Sure, Apple could. Then iPhone and iPad users would realize that their little snappy device is no longer snappy when they try to run more than one or two apps a time.

Oh, how I could go on and on about such a fun topic as multitasking and its necessity to any computer user expecting a real computer experience.

So, software-wise, Apple fails on the iPad software-wise. Had it been granted Mac OS X privileges, plus the camera, I think it could sway a lot more people. It would be a great platform for we Linux geeks to hack upon, and I can’t wait to see what the open source community tries to do with it.

More evidence of the Jobsian Nation’s collective disappointment: my company is comprised of tens of Apple fanboys, and I only heard one or two saying that they’d get the iPad.

Kudos to Apple for actually using its P.A. Semi property—I was hoping to see something out of it.

TL;DR

Apple iPad is great hardware, but the software makes it stupid. I won’t buy one, likely ever.

If you don’t mind being locked to the Apple ecosystem, go for it. I’d love to play with it, just not bring it home and take care of it.

Engadget has a good hands on of the iPad. Mashable has a great discussion, too, and we’re in agreement on a major disappointment: “It’s an unprecedented win for closed computing.” If you’ve seen some other good articles, post them in the comments.

This will select everyone. Be warned, though, that if you computer is slow or you have a lot of friends, it could take a while. It took about a second on my MacBook Pro with a 2.53 GHz Core2Duo.

Many moons ago, I inquired as to the intent of White Castle, purveyor of the finest sliders in the known universe, to expand its presence into Pennsylvania. I’m interested specifically in its expansion into the western parts of the state, from whence I hail.

In my last communication, I lived near New Castle, Pennsylvania, and the nearest White Castle was in Barberton, Ohio–more than an hour’s drive. I now live near Monroeville, east of the most steely city of Pittsburgh. The nearest one now may in fact still be Barberton, which is approximately two hours from Pittsburgh.

I know that you will remind me that White Castle contracts out its fantastic sliders to various retailers for sale in the frozen goods section, but, alas, such a thing is simply not as pleasing and edifying as the Real Thing.

When oh when, praytell, shall White Castle increase its sphere of influence to include the city of steel, bridges, rivers, buccaneers, and awkward-waddling flightless birds? Its people clamor for the delight of sliderage!

Thank you!

While not concerned with overcoming depression, as I am not affected by that, a recent Change Blog entry titled How To Meditate gave me some pointers to help clear my mind.

You may want to read that article, then return here to better understand the remainder of this post.

I already have control of my thoughts—most of the time, that is. Sure, there are times when random cartoons get drawn or I am compelled suddenly to listen to some obscure song. The latter, though, spawned a great theme for the past few weeks’ work music selection though: shoegazing music, ala My Bloody Valentine, Chapterhouse, etc. I am capable of rejecting thoughts which I’d rather not muse, and can keep those thoughts at bay effortlessly.

Patience is something I’ve always had. There are times I think I have too much patience, but the situation ends up working out better in the end when I’ve used my (legendary?) patience. However, I know it takes time and work—practice—to perfect the art of meditation. My patience is still tried by incompetent or malicious people, and I’d just as soon dismiss them from their responsibilities and take those responsibilities in addition to my own until a suitable replacement comes.

Detachment from my thoughts is related to control of them, but adds in the ability to see the thought from an external camera, per say. If I can let go of a thought—if I can detach from it—I can clear it from my mental table easily. I can also see that thought from other peoples’ perspective, and understand their support or opposition thereof. This consideration of other peoples’ perspective and how much weight it bears in relation to my perspective allows me to understand the greater picture and detach myself from my own tunnel vision.

Remaining intense and disciplined is difficult, but I’m improving with practice. I find I’m able to force myself to begin clearing my head quicker as time goes on.

Concentrating on something else is the hardest part of meditation, at least for me. I tend to clear my mind of one thing by replacing it with another, less important thing. Sometimes, though, that new thought leads to something else which then leads to another heavy thought which I’d rather not consider. Recently, I’ve led my mind to space scenes ala APOD or some of the nature pictures I’ve taken in the past. These are things that have little or no relevance to things related to my daily life and are perfect fodder for mental table clearings—the last thing on the table, perhaps.

Some folks find religious prayer meditative. I don’t because it puts more things in my mind instead of centering me and clearing my mind. If you’d ask me, I’d recommend avoiding prayer when meditating for that reason.

I still have a long way to go before meditation is any more than a means to fall asleep quickly. I’d eventually like to be able to use it to calm myself down when agitated or as way to induce a semi-hypnotic, trance-like state.

This design keeps dust out while providing an enormous amount of cooling for the entire motherboard.

However, cleaning it is annoying. One must unscrew the inner mesh and its panel, then pop the panel out of a number of tabs. Once that’s open, one can carefully clean it. It took me approximately 20 minutes to clean it.

Check out the picture for the amount of dust which had accumulated since mid-March when I reviewed it for ThinkComputers.

Read The Super Hacker at The Daily WTF.