Another year has gone by, the fourth one running in which I am writing a roundup article. While still not burdened with an overabundance of excitement, they are useful to me.
Category: Opinion
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Reviewed: Tesla Model S part 7: 15000 kilometers later
Since first picking up the car a year ago, we’ve driven more than 15000 kilometers. Regardless of the season, the car is a joy to drive. Though the rear-wheel drive can be challenging when the roads are snow covered, this is more a question of adapting to the conditions, rather than an actual problem. Likewise, even when conditions are very cold indeed (15 degrees below zero, centigrade) range is only ever a problem if you completely fail to plan (I admit that I have done so once, with the result that I had to stop to charge at a fairly slow charger for an hour to get enough power to get home comfortably).
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Why I blog – revisited
Back in 2010, I wrote a post called “Why I blog“. All of the things I said six year ago are still true. This is still my personal KB, and I use it on a weekly basis for that very purpose. I was offered both of my last two jobs, in part due to this blog (having documented skills in written communication is literally never a bad thing for a support tech – or anyone filling any role in IT, for that matter), and I still enjoy my soapbox.
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In memory of Leonard Cohen
Baruch dayan haemet – blessed is the true judge.
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Which camera drone – a look at the changed market
Funny, isn’t it, when a new product, which changes the market arrives, another – from a competing brand – is not far behind? So, too, with camera drones (although I might add that the topic of this discussion came about a fair bit sooner than I had thought). At any rate, following GoPro’s announcement of the Karma drone (which I covered last week), DJi announced their new drone, the Mavic, which is specced and sized to compete in exactly that segment; small drones that easily pack into a backpack. Before I get into it, let me just say that I have not actually interacted with either, but I have read a fair number of articles on either, and base my comments on those. (more…)
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GoPro Karma: First thoughts
I have made no secret of the fact that I like what GoPro are doing in the action camera market, and my thoughts on the GoPro Hero Session are here. I was very excited to hear, as I did a few weeks ago, that they would launch their own drone, to compete with DJI and the other manufacturers of camera drones out there, not least because I have been thinking about getting one of my own.
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On the necessity for strong encryption to remain legal
Some time ago, I had yet another induhvidual claim that some policy of the security establishment was only bad for criminals, and that those who had nothing to hide also had nothing to fear. I can’t find the original context, but I am fairly certain it had something to do with US authorities and their bumbling handling of the now infamous San Bernadino iPhone. Whatever the context was, the induhvidual in question praised Donald Trumps support of proposals to outlaw strong encryption methods, making the aforementioned argument.
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Reviewed: Tesla Model S part 6: 10000 kilometers down the road
As regular readers of the blog will know by now, my wife and I bought a Tesla Model S last year. Here are my thoughts on it, after having had it on the road for 10000 kilometers:
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Understanding a product revisited
I would like to revisit my thoughts on understanding the product of news outlets. Some time ago, an acquaintance, who works for a news outlet posted a picture of a newspaper article to his Facebook feed, stating that “…this is journalism. You can’t get it on social media – or on blogs for that matter. Journalism at its best is both critical and supportive of society at the same time…”
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On Tesla and Autopilot
There have been a few incidents of Teslas involved in accidents, where critics (in some cases including the driver of the car) claim that the Autopilot is to blame. In response to questions I’ve received about my opinions about these accidents, I would like to point out a few things, as well as offer some opinions: (more…)
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State of the blog 2016
State of the blog is a new segment that I’m trying out. It’s meant to be the summer counterpart to my end-of-year roundup series, and some information will be presented both places.