techniQal support

EDIT:
Here is the link to the latest and greatest version of the Google Maps Snow Report

Here is a little page I put together for an RSS feed supplied version of the Colorado Snow Report.

This data is collected from the RSS feed at http://www.coloradoski.com For a link to the feed, try http://feeds.feedburner.com/snowreport
To update the data, click the link again. Any updated results from the RSS feed will automatically appear.
(PS. Check out the AJAX RSS feed reader on the sidebar, to see the ‘lite’ version of this)

If you like your news fast and furious and frequent, you need to check out this site.

This is an incredible mashup that dynamically updates news items by location, and shows you snippets of the information. Really unique use of the Google Maps API , and a neat way to get your daily dose of news.

WeReporters GeoNews

Looks like Level3 screwed up big time.
It seems like Level3 messed up a software upgrade in Chicago.

Isn’t it nice to know that one person can accidentally effect internet access for a large part of the world?
Also, looks like journalists are trolling for information on this is well.
Time to sell your stock in Level3.

Boing Boing: Two tier-one ISPs are scr0d today

The much touted and hyped Flock Browser has opened up with a developer release. Previously it was locked down to Beta users, but now the world gets a peak.
Flock is touting itself as a social web browser, that integrates del.cio.us,Flickr,and your blog. This will make it that much easier to post on your own blog.
I am chomping at the bit to give it a try. Will update this post once I try it out.

Flock This!

Okay—I am Flocking this right now, and it is flocking great.

The Flickr and del.icio.us stuff is hot—bye bye Firefox, I loved you, but there is a new hotness in town.

Flock This!

Once the weather cools down, the booze posts start flooding in.Check out this great innovation in alcohol delivery systems.
It replaces your wimpy one spigot keg tap, with an UBER 3-spigot tap.
You can now get drunk three times as fast.

Also, check their Ultimate Cocktail add-on. This specially designed pressurized bottle allows you to tap a keg o’ whatever you want.
Pour your favourite cocktail into the bottle, and attach the UBER tap, and you can finish the whole thing in two or three minutes.
It is really nice to see technology changing the booze world.

UBER TAP® | THE UBER TAP

This is interesting news for a number of reasons. First off, I finally joined the throngs of Treo 650 owners, and I am really pleased with it so far.
Second –where I work, they prefer the blackberry enterprise stuff, so I have been out of the loop on that so far(ps. blackberry phones are ugly).
Third, it seems to me that RIM may be trying to suck up some cash, so they can afford the potential licensing fees, that they may have to pay.
The patent lawsuit for wireless email, has turned against RIM, so I get the feeling they are trying to license their tech as much as possible. This may help stem the cost of the court injunction against them. As a side note, the company suing RIM, has failed to uphold their patent claims with the USPTO, but, the court case is still going their way.
Let’s hope RIM doesn’t disappear.

Palm says Treo 650 to get BlackBerry Connect early 2006 - Engadget - www.engadget.com

Okay alchies’ -time to prioritize which new gear you’re going to need for the coming Ski/Snowboard season.
You no longer need to worry about lugging that flask, or pint o’ Rumpleminz, in your jacket.
You can now enjoy your favourite booze of choice anywhere on the mountain.
These ski poles sport a removable handle, that hides a resevoir that can hold up to 8 oz of liquid in each pole.
I know some people who I guarantee cannot live without this.
Check the ColdPole site below for ordering info,etc.

Liquid Reservoir Ski Poles - ColdPole

First off—The iPod nano is very,very nice. But a 60GB VIDEO iPod will beat it up in the schoolyard with ease.

Apple news for the day(in order of importance):

1. New Ipod(30GB and 60Gb flavors) -supports playback of MPEG4 and H.264 -plus has composite video out.
   Apple - iPod
   I want this bad enough that it really truly hurts.
2. iTunes 6–supports purchase of music videos, new videocasting support, gift giving of playlists/songs–and…
   Buy TV shows for $1.99 the day after they are released. This includes titles such as Lost,Desperate Housewives, and more.
   They are pushing the limits on this one.
3. 
   The new iMac G5 sports new media enhancements, built in iSight camera, included remote—very nice. Could easily replace your tv.

Good job Jobs!

Here is the code for the simple AJAX functions I am using.
I will extend it some more later on, IE handle both GET and POST, as well as basic auth.
I know there are other more graceful libraries out there, but for now, my needs are simple.
Thanks to the number of different web authors, who I stole/borrowed bits and pieces of code from.

    var http_request = false;
    function makeRequest(url,divid) {
        div_id = divid;
        http_request = false;

        if (window.XMLHttpRequest) {
            http_request = new XMLHttpRequest();
            if (http_request.overrideMimeType) {
                http_request.overrideMimeType('text/xml');
            }
        } else if (window.ActiveXObject) {
            try {
                http_request = new ActiveXObject("Msxml2.XMLHTTP");
            } catch (e) {
                try {
                    http_request = new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");
                } catch (e) {}
            }
        }

        if (!http_request) {
            alert('Giving up  Cannot create an XMLHTTP instance');
            return false;
        }
        http_request.onreadystatechange = alertContents;
        http_request.open('GET', url, true);
        http_request.send(null);

    }

    function alertContents() {

        if (http_request.readyState == 4) {
            if (http_request.status == 200) {
		 document.getElementById(div_id).innerHTML = http_request.responseText;
            } else {
                alert('There was a problem with the request.');
            }
        }

    }
	function removeContents(divid) {
		document.getElementById(divid).innerHTML = "";
				} 

I am slowly adding content to this site that is AJAX enabled.
For now, I have a few examples.

• Check this post, and hover over the word AJAX.
• The Search form on the main page is Ajax enabled, and will auto suggest posts based on your search terms ala “Google Suggest”

Expect more soon, as I learn and play around even more.