Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, & technology book reviews, plus social, political, & economic commentary
Staying Sane & Entertained While Forced to Hide from the Coronavirus Charles Dickens likely did not have a deadly global pandemic in mind when he wrote the “best of times, worst of times” opening for his novel, A Tale of Two Cities. He was contrasting life in profitable, peaceful London with grim life in revolution-torn … Continue reading Worst of Times, Best of Times
Yes, drones are controversial. And drones of any size or type make many people nervous. As someone who built and flew seemingly thousands of model airplanes in my youth, I have decidedly mixed emotions about drones. They can be used for many good things, for many evil things, as well as for actions within virtually … Continue reading ‘Make: Drones’ – A hobbyist’s how-to guide – #bookreview
Back when I first learned basic electrical and electronic circuits, I also learned how to burn my fingers on a hot soldering iron and how to accidentally cut and pinch my digits with wire cutters and needle-nosed pliers. Years later, I learned how to make printed circuit boards, using nasty, corrosive chemicals and an electric … Continue reading ‘Make It Glow: LED Projects for the Whole Family’ – #bookreview
Maker Media’s new book Tools is subtitled “How They Work and How to Use Them.” But the Tools title seems a little too broad for what is covered. Most of the tools described in the book’s pages are associated mainly with working with wood or ABS plastic, not with metal or other materials. That is … Continue reading New book ‘Tools’ shows how to cut, shape and assemble wood or plastic projects – #bookreview
You don’t need science degrees and big grants to perform useful, meaningful research, says one of America’s foremost amateur scientists, Forrest W. Mims III. In his well-written new book, Forrest Mims’ Science Experiments: DIY Projects from the Pages of Make:, Mims notes that amateur scientists are continuing to do “what they’ve done for centuries. They’ve discovered … Continue reading ‘Forrest Mims’ Science Experiments’: Good projects for the new or experienced amateur scientist
The White House and the University of the District of Columbia are two of the sites helping spotlight the National Week of Making, June 17-23, 2016. “America has always been a nation of tinkerers, inventors, and entrepreneurs,” a White House news release recently stated. “Empowering students and adults to create, innovate, tinker, and make their … Continue reading Some Book Choices for ‘National Week of Making,’ June 17-23, 2016 – #books #WeekofMaking
Spring in Action Craig Walls Manning – paperback If you have worked with the decade-old Spring framework, you know well that it has a long history of providing configuration headaches for developers. The new Spring Boot framework, on the other hand, literally brings much-needed simplification and automation to the process of using Spring. And it … Continue reading ‘Spring Boot in Action’ can help you push aside the old drudgeries of configuring Spring applications – #programming #bookreview
The Make: Series of How-to Books A British scientist made headlines a few years ago when she warned that young people no longer make or repair things. It has become all too easy for them now, she cautioned, to simply throw away old or broken devices and buy new ones. A key point was that … Continue reading Step away from the ‘smartphone’ and try using your hands and mind to make something – #bookreview
Ionic in Action Hybrid Mobile Apps with Ionic and AngularJS Jeremy Wilken (Manning, paperback) Ionic in Action is a very good introduction to the Ionic framework, which the author describes as “a combination of tools and utilities….” These tools and utilities enable developers “to quickly build hybrid mobile apps using the same technology used to … Continue reading Ionic in Action – A solid guide to building hybrid mobile apps with Ionic and AngularJS – #programming #bookreview
Make: Paper Inventions Kathy Ceceri Maker Media, Inc. – paperback Don’t just hand this book to your kids, say “Have fun,” and then go off to play with your computer. Get out the glue, scissors and paper and join in. You might enjoy seeing what happens when you (1) cut all the … Continue reading Make: Paper Inventions – A fun how-to book for kids and their adults
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