August 17, 2006

           How could I have lost faith in my Argus? Yes, it has been revived and is back to life. That does not mean I have any pictures yet, which in turn means you have to settle for some archived shots. The good news is totally that it is back in the ring. I examined it closely and found one of the battery contacts had been pushed downward into the casing. So in the end the problem was not even the camera proper. Kudos, Argus.

           Maybe not, before it got really dark, I had to zip over to Winn/Dixie. On returning, I discovered for the first time in maybe 20 years I ran out of coffee. Alzheimer’s? Or just not paying attention? Anyway, on the way back I got a late evening shot of the bicycle trap. If you don’t notice the stop sign in the dark, you wipe out. Cars with headlights bright enough to light up the barrier do okay.
           Anything new today? Yes. An impressive new gadget tested at the shop. I was over at Al’s this morning to get his email working (he was logging on with his Comcast passphrase, a common error for newcomers) and I was able configure Fred’s old router to accept that digital telephone, Globalinx. It is my goal to find the problems with these “new” ideas that have been around since 1950 and I am truly pleased by this gadget.

           For openers, the video is a full 30 frames per second. To those who know what that means, you have to see it. Everyone else, hey, get with it. No more of that step-motion and very little propogation delay, in fact, I doubt you would notice it unless you tested it like I did [with one phone in each ear]. It handles like a regular phone and has all those annoying things like call alert, call waiting and call blocking. And call forwarding and call conferencing. The more impressive functions are not on the phone. The most useful one is call blasting.
With call blasting, you can program you number to ring at different places at the same time or in sequence. Thus, if someone calls your work number and you are not there, it then rings at your house. If you are out, it goes to your cell phone. To the caller, it is all the same number. Plus, that number can be anywhere [that Globalinx has service]. You have to choose from available numbers out of state, but so what. Open a branch office in Alaska. Locally, you can keep your own phone number, so it is a step closer to having the same number everywhere.

           The downsides are minor. One is that you must dial a 1 for every call, even local calls. Two is that free long distance only applies to North America unless the other end is a Globalinx customer. That is hardly a minus at all because the video phone part requires both ends have a compatible unit. These puppies are $250 each meaning you need $500 for a video call. Three, you must have access to the Internet to use the things and obvious as that is, cell phones have us spoiled.
           I looked at the system as well, to make sure it was not proprietory. It complies to something called SIP, a protocol for worldwide video conferencing. So it is not like backing the wrong horse. The phone has ports on the back for if you want to rig up a larger screen, or play a video tape into the phone. (Live phone sex has been a fascinating concept for years.) You can capture stills or block the camera anytime.

           Economically, they are still in the dark ages. Charging for “1,000 minutes” so it is clear they have not learned that every such system has been put out of business by the flat rate latecomers. They also have that ridiculous distinction between residential and commercial lines. I am going to investigate if a fax can be sent directly over the Internet and I don’t see why not. That could be a real savings for some people – Florida is still living in the fax ages. The home lines start at around $19 per month. It is marketed by MLM and that could give Fred’s location a supreme advantage in this area where try before you buy is unheard of.
           That is correct. There are very few places with a working model set up. Instead, they hand you a shrink-wrapped box with instructions not to bring it back to them if it is a lemon. Legally you can, but they make that option as difficult as possible. I left Al a message saying we have to talk turkey on this one. Each phone setup requires a technician to set the router and local settings, and Al has no idea how to do that. I had no time for Linux today and it is still logging on to the root directory without requiring a password.

           [Author’s note 2023: more photos to get them published. I don’t know the motive behind many of these. The West Palm turnoff, the repaired Argus 1600, the Wiley Street Pub (of robot club days), and my bass/music setup of August, 2006. The price tag on the Argus was $18.88.]