Doug's Blog

Comcast at 16mbps
Doug posted in Recommendations on February 22nd, 2008
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On the phone with Comcast yesterday I found out that I was at an 8mbps plan, but a 16mbps plan was available for the same price “in my area” (zip or city, don’t know).   This is not information that’s shared on their website, nor have I seen it publicized in any flier or other mailing.  I was already paying $10 more to get to 8 (from 6), but it turns out that this same $10 could give me a solid 16mbps connection.  So I asked them to switch me for no cost and they did.  Just tested, and sure enough, I downloaded a 700meg file at a consistent 2 MB /sec – all done in about 3 minutes.  The “speed boost” jumps it to downloading around 4 MB sec for the first 60 megs or so.  If you have Comcast (and especially if you’re already paying more for faster service), might want to check.

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Eldar is amazing
Doug posted in Music, Recommendations on February 7th, 2008
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Went to see Eldar last night. Simply amazing. Someone at work corrected me when I said he was a prodigy. He’s right – too old to be called that. He’s a genius.  I can not recall the last time I have been this impressed with a performer.  I have been playing piano more years than he has been alive, and yet I will never play half as good as him.  And this is… ok. 🙂  Honestly, it’s wonderful, and an inspiration. 

The idea that this beautiful venue was maybe only a quarter full tonight shows this is a special time, before people are completely aware of who he is. No wonder he got nominated for a Grammy. And, although this has not been announced, he told me he is playing at this year’s awards show.  I feel lucky to catch him before it becomes difficult.  If you watch the Grammy’s, look for a 21-year-old to knock your socks off.

I’m already a fan.

Thanks Eldar for signing both CDs I purchased. I am enjoying re-imagination as I write this, and amazed that it’s still so largely new from what you played last night. Fantastic.

The new Yoshi’s was fantastic as well. I highly recommend it.  Beautiful place and fantastic sound.

It’s been almost a year since I wrote my last post. Sorry – I’ll try to write more often…

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Using GMail for your own domain for free
Doug posted in Email, Recommendations on February 28th, 2007
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Google is currently doing something for free which is hard to refuse – hosting the email for your domain.  I have had my personal email address for so long, and fought for years to try to maintain this single email address.  This fight has been tough because free accounts such as Yahoo actually have better spam filtering than any of the small ISPs a little guy like myself can use.  If you have bought your own domain to have email@{somethingyoulike}.com, you know how hard this always is.  Usually you are stuck accessing your email through either a poor online interface or storing your email locally with Outlook.  I could go on about all the attempts I have made to manage this problem, like using GMail but having my email address as the “reply to” but there are always problems which keep email from either looking professional or working the way I would expect.

Even if you don’t have a domain registered, this offer is too nice to ignore.  Just register your domain at GoDaddy, then register for a free  Google Apps account and follow the instructions to switch your MX records to point to Google’s servers.  You’ll have a personal and professional email address for less than $10 a year (the yearly charge for GoDaddy registration), without being tied to any email provider.  And besides, it’s just cool.

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