President's File
January 2011

(The President's message will occasionally be writen by editor Patrick Libert)

By Patrick Libert

Weather Comment Retraction

Last month, I headlined the first paragraph in my column “I love this season.”
May I retract or modify that statement?

Day after day of way below freezing temperatures may be short-circuiting my neurons. I thrive on being outdoors daily but when such excursions are a chore rather than a pleasure, then it’s time to wish for moderation. 

If any readers are weather nuts, as I am, you may have read that our climatic experience is primarily dependent on the behavior of our western neighbor, the Pacific Ocean.   This immense body of water controls most of the patterns in the northern hemisphere. As the water on the surface warms and cools and shifts West and East, aka El Niño and La Niña, this influences the wind patterns. So, if you despair and lament the fact that you can’t step outside without getting frostbite, go to Accuweather.com and check out some of the expert blogs from Joe Bastardi and Eliot Abrams. It’s an education and explains all that Mother Nature throws at us.

HackerSpace Presentation

Wasn’t that a great program? I love that area of creativity, which reminds me of the many hours I spent assembling and modifying Heathkits in my student and newly married years. It was inevitable, in my case, that even after carefully following the instruction manual, I would have to contact the technical department and make modifications in order for the unit to work. I often had to resort to using older components or jury rig new ones to achieve what I wanted. 

Circuit Writer Hibernation

Coinciding with the bear hibernation season, Jim Scheef has just announced that he will go on sabbatical leave from writing his stimulating monthly column.  I thoroughly enjoy receiving and editing Jim’s column; it is educational, timely and gives us much food for thought on many subjects.
Let us hope that Jim will complete his other projects in a timely manner and be back as a contributor soon.

More Pandora

As I was perusing my Pandora account page this week, I noticed that they had added Genre Stations recently. Instead of choosing an artist, one can choose a type or period of music and let Pandora play a cornucopia of music. In my opinion, this is an excellent addition to an already superlative musical site.

Facebook Mail

I tend to agree with Jim Scheef’s comments in this month’s column. Facebook’s proposed mail feature may sound as if it will facilitate social communications but I do not like the idea of being subservient to a specific site to send a message. We won’t really know what it will offer until it is released, so in all fairness we have to reserve judgment.

My Last Word

This is my last column as Editor of DACS.doc. Jennifer Anderson will be the new Editor beginning January 2011. Please join me in welcoming Jennifer to our DACS community and assuring her that she can depend on our total support.

I look forward to continue writing and contributing to the monthly newsletter as much as possible, a most enjoyable activity.      

 

  

 

 


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