DustinDam.net

[Christmas Lights] If your going to hang the lights, do it like this!

2008-12-15T19:48:00.000-08:00

This is one of my (nerdy) friends Christmas project every year. Ryan I applaud your geekness.

Here's his website, check it out.

[Projects] My Senior Design Project

2008-12-11T09:01:00.000-08:00

Here's a video of my group's EE 495 Senior Design Project it's a face tracking marshmallow cannon. Very useful in the real world. I'll post some more details later on. Leave me a comment if you have any questions about this beast.

[Mac+ Linux] Configure Ubuntu as Apple File server...with Time Machine too!

2008-11-05T10:55:00.000-08:00

Here's a nice little tutorial I stumbled upon that shows you how to dress up your Unbutu Linux server into an AFP file server and broadcast the shares over your network with Bonjour. The post goes on to explain how to even attach your Time Machine backup to one of the shares Read through it! HowTo: Make Ubuntu A Perfect Mac File Server And Time Machine Volume

Also if you are using Unbutu Intrepid Ibex 8.10 I already have a package that will take care of the first part of the tutorial for you! Enjoy!

netatalk_2.0.3-11ubuntu1_i386.deb

[Productivity] Flipside - Reboot to Bootcamp partition quickly with no hassle

2008-10-07T08:58:00.000-07:00

Flipside is an application for OS X that allows you to boot into windows once similar to the tray icon in Widows that Bootcamp provides. Here's a blurb from Project Appletree's website:

Flipside
Get to the flipside of your Mac with Flipside. This easy to use and quick application helps you get to Boot Camp worry free. It will automatically find your bootable Windows partition and reboot your Mac into it without changing your default startup disk.

Dynamic and static.
Flipside dynamically figures out which one of your partitions is a bootable Windows OS so there is no configuration or setup. It also statically remembers which partition you last used to make the process even faster.

Hassle free.
No more rebooting your computer and waiting to hold down the option key or changing you default startup disk to get to Boot Camp. With Flipside, there are no hassles, it does all the work for you without changing your default startup disk.

This is a great app props to Project Appletree!

[NASA] Apollo Guys and ISS Baby

2008-10-01T10:19:00.000-07:00

Here's some love for the NASA Co-ops! Alpert, ya look good as Flight!

[Productivity] DialaHuman.com

2008-08-25T07:45:00.000-07:00

This may be one of the best ideas ever. Have to call a support line? Don't like talking to computers? Look up how to get to a real person!

[Productivity] Sync iCal to gCal

2008-08-21T13:21:00.001-07:00

Here's the best thing until something free comes along to sync your iCal and your gCal. I'm not one to buy software typically but this works well. If you follow this link you'll save 5 and I'll make 5...do it...do it.

[Funny Business] MacBook Air

2008-08-18T15:29:00.000-07:00

Don't get me wrong, I love Apples but the Air doesn't fit in all manilla envelopes.

[Smartphone Trick] Palm 650 Treo for Dial-Up-Networking with your Mac

2008-08-13T12:00:00.001-07:00

This is a setup that took me way longer to implement than it should have. I did quite a bit of research on the topic so here’s my version of this implementation.

Background
When you have a smartphone such as a Palm Treo 650, what I have, it connects to the internet the same way that a computer tethered to a cell phone would. Therefore, by having a smartphone plan your account is essentially configured the same way it would be if you paid the tethering fee. So, since you are already paying for unlimited data, wouldn’t it be nice to connect on your notebook? I think so.

Performance
My service on Alltel’s EVDO network. I was able to get 85 KB/s down and 53 KB/s up. This is not near as fast as broadband anything, but hey having internet driving down the road is sweet.

Implementation
I’m going to start with the implementation for Alltel, however, other implementations will be very similar.

1.) You will need a Mac running OS X 10.3 at least. (I believe?)

2.) You will need a smartphone with the unlimited data plan.

3.) You will need a modem script for your phone. This is a file that contains the instructions for your phone. Here is a general one that should work on any CDMA network. You can get that here: CDMA Modem Script. (You may need to remove the .txt file extension.)

Step 1:
Put the modem script renamed, “CDMA Modem Script” with no file extension into the directory
“/Library/Modem Scripts/”.

Step 2:
Pair your smartphone with your Mac. On the Palm Treo 650 you must go into the Bluetooth preferences and set the Dial-Up Networking control to “On”.

Step 3:
Open the Network preferences under the System Preferences icon select the Bluetooth connection and enter the following parameters(for Alltel):

Telephone Number: #777
Account Name: [your number]@alltel.net, i.e.: 9995551212@alltel.net
Password: alltel

Click Connect and your Mac should dial into Alltel via its Bluetooth connection.

I plan on making revisions to this to improve readability and clarity. Please contact me with any suggestions.