SpaceShipTwo's Impressive Test Flight

The soon-to-retire NASA Space Shuttle Program will not only mark the end of an era in space travel, but start another in commercialized space flight. Hot on the market is Virgin, who is well into testing of their SpaceShipTwo models.

Gizmodo has video of the most recent test of this remarkable vehicle, with the pertinent details of the new ship. It's impressive!

See the video here.

Google Extends the Cloud

A proponent of the cloud concept, Google's I/O conference was littered with cloud-based concepts, ideas, and products. Among the most interesting are the Chromebooks, essentially cloud netbooks. Chromebooks are designed to be online full time, very little on-board storage, simplicity of concept.

Cnet has a look:

Work on Desktop, Save in the Cloud

One of the more difficult things about moving to cloud computing is the comfort we have with Office products, after years of use. This familiarity is comforting, but it lacks the backup and accessibility benefits of the cloud.

Google docs, long touted as the cloud alternative to Office, has released "Google Cloud Connect" that allows for automatic synchronization of Office documents to Google Docs. With this add on program, the comfort of Office programs is combined with the backup and sharing of cloud documents.

NASA Shows Us the World

To celebrate http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifEarth Day '11, NASA put together the 20 more amazing pictures of our planet. Some breathtaking views included.

Cnet news has the images here.

Formula 1 Steering Wheel

Even non-racing fans can appreciate the complexity and sophistication of a Formula 1 car, and, in this case, the driver's wheel. Amazing amount of stuff crammed into such a precise space.




Video via Wired.

Imperial Holding Out

Here's a map of countries officially NOT using the metric system.



Beauty. Credit to ZME Science.

How NASA Retrieves Booster Rockets

Surprisingly never revealed before, NASA has released a video of the procedure of retrieving the two solid core rocket boosters post space shuttle launch. For the space buffs, fascinating stuff. (via Gizmodo)

Bill Gates TED on Education

Teachers have a significant impact on education, but little has been done to identify how the best teachers teach from a strategic stance.

Bill Gates talks about education after malaria (also worth a listen). The Education section starts at the 8 minute mark if you want to jump.

First Person Video of the Japan Tsunami

When most people think of a Tsunami hitting land, they imagine the Hollywood style massive wave crashing down... when in reality, it's a much more gradual build up of tension and destruction. This first person view of the Tsunami, hosted by Gizmodo, shows what happened to hundreds of thousands on March 13, 2011.

What starts looking like some flooding grows steadily. Near the 5 minute mark, the true destructive power is realized. Watch it through to see how it builds towards a devastating climax. Be hopeful for those who survived, and saddened for those who didn't.

Back Up Your Cloud

As a big proponent of cloud based computing, the one issue has always been backing up. While I have great trust in massive cloud organizations, recent mis-steps by Flicr and Google have me looking for ways to back up data.

Most secure is to run a desktop email client for your cloud email, enabling pop based settings, then including this in your desktop/laptop backup strategies.

A more simple method is using one of the many cloud-based backup services. Of the 3 I took a closer look at, I'm going to use Backupify.

Backupify quietly backs up many of your cloud based activities, whatever you choose, for free or as a paid service. I've started with the freebie, and will report if there are any issues.