dacs.doc electric

DACS members know Mike Kaltschnee through his articles on numerous topics—mostly Mac—in the pages of DACS.DOC. A veteran application developer, Mike has been involved in creating many cutting edge software tools, including Hijaak, a popular utility for converting graphic formats, and WebSpice, a collection of tools and images for use on personal Web pages.

The proverbial “busy man”, he somehow manages to balance his dacs.doc duties with a three-hour round-trip business commute to New York and a second career in “family development” (his second child just arrived).

At the February 4th, 2002 DACS general meeting. Mike will go live, with a freestyle presentation on his favorite subject of toys—not Tonka, Fisher Price, Bob the Builder, Sponge Bob or Clifford—but geek toys.

Mike is planning a selection of live demos of cool stuff, and is assembling a select team of DACS members to help with the presentation. But as he understandably has not been getting a lot of sleep lately, some of the details are still being dreamed up. At press time, he had released the following tentative outline:

• Wearable Computers. See the latest in computers you wear like clothing.
• Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Learn how to know exactly where you are.
• Wireless Networking. Why run cables through your house?
• Fuel Cells. It’s coming faster than you thought to power your house, car, computer and more. See a working fuel cell and learn what the excitement is about.
• Computer Modifications. Why have a boring beige box? See the latest ways to customize your PC.
• Caffeinated Products. Learn new and interesting ways to get your daily dose, including caffeinated soap.
• ...and more!

When our boy Mikey says he likes it, he backs it up with more than a puffed-up peroration, but with real flavor, punctuated by a snap crackle and pop. Listening to him in the past, I know he can explain complex material in layman terms and bring it to the level of those that are not experts. We are all familiar with Mike as a gifted writer; February will be the time to experience him also as a charismatic speaker.

The regular DACS meeting is held at Danbury Hospital Auditorium. The program begins at 6:30 p.m. with informal networking, followed by Random Access Q&A at 7:00, a short business meeting at 7:30, and the featured presentation at 8:00.

For more information, check the DACS Web site, www.dacs.org.