Google Earth 5.0 is Under this World

Google Earth 5.0 has been released with some pretty amazing features added to an already great program.  My favourite – I am an avid diver and water lover – is the new ocean features.  Previous versions of Google Earth did amazing things on the terrestrial side, now the ocean part of our planet is getting some need attention.  You can now plunge in under the water to get a great view of the formations around islands.  Check out the Hawaiian Island chain for a great example. Also they are pulling in data from many other sites to provide a wealth of information about different parts of the ocean.

Another really interesting tool is the ability to see an area in different times. For example you can see the areas around New Orleans before and after Hurricane Katrina. You can also see urban sprawl happen right before your eyes.

Other thing to check out are the sky and Mars views.

Happy earth viewing.

Ontario Green Energy Act

If you live in Ontario then I highly encourage you to check out  Green Energy Act and sign the petition.  The Ontario government is supposed to bring forward a new Energy Act later this month.  The hope is that the act will contain provisions for a much needed  transition of the electricity gird to support more renewable energy production at the local community level.  The act and subsequent follow through could help catapult Ontario to the forefront of green energy in North America.  We have a lot of catching up todo to countries in Europe but this could be a great first step.

Spaceflight Now

If you are lucky enough to catch a rocket launch, then Spaceflight Now can be a huge help .  On a recent trip to Florida I managed to see the launch of a Delta-4 heavy rocket.  The launch was a surprise and was pushed back several times because of technical glitches and weather.  Due to the nature of the payload – NRO spy satellite – the official sites had little details. Spaceflight Now had all the details and on the night of the actual launch had a play-by-play of the several restarted count downs.

peaksaver Review

If you live in Ottawa or Toronto (other areas are covered as well) then I suggest you check out the peaksaver program. The idea is to help the utilities control the load on the electricity system during peak periods. By signing up for the program you allow your utility to bump your thermostat setting a few degrees when necessary (think 30+ days in the summer).

For giving up a little control they pass along some nice incentives. You get a one time rebate for signing up. They also come to your home to install a new programmable thermostat which has a pretty cool feature, allowing control from a website. This feature is great if you set the thermostat to hold while you are away on vacation, just login a few hours before you get home and you return to a nice comfortable house. Not bad for something that costs you nothing but a degree or two!

Jamas.net now running WordPress 2.7

Wow what a slick new admin interface. Sadly as a visitor you can’t see it – so get your own WordPress blog to enjoy it. Thanks to the whole WordPress development team for another solid release.