Archive for May, 2003

802.11 alphabet soup

It looks like the WiFi standards are finally settling down. The battle between 802.11b and 802.11g looks like it will continue for a while, but 11g should win out. At least that’s if I read the alphabet soup of 802.11 standards correctly.

The Earth at night

I have been known to study a maps for hours on end. This photo from space has similar time wasting qualities. It’s no more real a representation of the earth than a map — sorry folks it’s not a photo — but still it’s visually stunning. Someone in my office posts these Astronomy Picture of the Day on the notice board in the kitchen every so often. Lots of good on-links to explain the pictures.

Flat screen envy

I’ve been drooling over flat TVs for some time, but sticker shock has kept me from buying one. They’re slowly coming down in price, and they’re now starting to produce LCDs at a size (and price) to compete with the smaller plasma displays. The new Sony 30″ LCD is a thing of beauty, but at US$5999 it’s a bit expensive. The Sharp 22″ widescreen is nice, but I wish they would do an HDTV version, since at US$1999 it’s just too much to spend on a non-HD screen. The just released Sharp 30″ HD widescreen is more promising, but at US$3999 it’s about US$1000 more than I’d be happy spending (and that would still be crazy money for a TV!). Additionally, it’s the only Sharp LCD TV which is NTSC only, meaning it won’t work outside the US. I’m not sure why this is the case since the rest of the range support NTSC, PAL and SECAM out of the box.

I’ve formulated this theory on TVs: I think that if I had mountains of money I’d get a 30″ flat panel for every day viewing, and a projector for a more cinematic experience. Anything bigger that 30″ (panel or television) dominates the room, too much for my taste. Of course if you’re rich enough to have a dedicated ‘media room’ then things change, but I still think for that setup a projector has to be the best option.

So, until prices drop, I’m holding out.