My Star Trek Desktop

 

Back in 1960's, I glued myself to the television and watched Star Trek while other kids were probably watching cartoons or some other kiddie show. I marveled more at the technology than the stories and this was where my fascination with technology started.

One of the things that I liked about the newer Star Trek series is the control screens. It's called LCARS, an acronym for Library Computer Access/Retrieval System. The name is a misnomer, in my opinion, since this interface is not only used to access the library but also for monitoring and controlling the ship's systems.

I had been thinking of how I could implement a similar screen on my computer's desktop and came up with the one above. It's not exactly like an LCARS because it's not supposed to use icons. It's just an image that I created using PowerPoint and sized to fill the screen. It took several tries because I couldn't understand why the icons didn't land in the proper places. Then I figured out that the background was a little too large and I had to resize it several times before everything fit into place.

If I could figure out a way to create a screen that doesn't use icons, it would be closer to the real thing. I haven't figured out how to do it but I'll keep thinking.

Try This

 Try this.

1. Take a picture or get a picture.
2. Crop it so that it's square.
3. Make a copy of it so you have two pictures.
4. Join them together.
5. Send it to your phone and then open it so that it's the only picture on the screen.
6. Put the phone right up to your eyes (maybe an inch or two away).
7. Focus on a point about six inches past the picture.
8. Slowly pull the phone away from your eyes.

As you move the phone away, you will begin to see two pictures that will slowly start to merge. Keep moving the phone away until the pictures come together and you will see three, clear pictures side by side that seem to be floating in front of you.

It will take some effort to try and keep from focusing on the picture as you're moving it away. I got it the first try. My family took longer (actually getting frustrated).

I find it easier to use Powerpoint to prepare the picture:

1. Paste the picture on a slide and select it
2. Click on Format (on the menu)
3. Click on the little triangle below the Crop button
4. Select Aspect Ratio
5. Select 1:1
6. Position the picture in the crop square so that you have the scene that you want
7. Click away from the picture (the cropped picture will remain)
8. Press Ctrl+D. You will get a second picture
9. Position the two pictures side by side
10. Press Ctrl+A (Select All) and right-click on the pictures (make sure both pictures are still selected)
11. Select Save As Picture and save it to your drive.
12. Send the picture to your phone (whatever method you choose).

I'm experimenting on something that uses a VR headset and wanted to see if I'd be able to create a VR picture and view it without a VR headset. It worked, although I can't see how useful it will be at the moment. It's was just a something fun to do.

Try it and see if you can get it to work.

Earnings from My Books

Every month, around this time, I get an email from Paypal that Smashwords has deposited a certain amount of money in my account. That money represents my earnings from royalties from the sales of my books. These days it ranges from $4 to as much as $11. It's hardly an income but it shows that writing books can work for people who are willing to put time and effort into it.

I'm writing another book that I hope to finish in January 2021 and another two more that I'm planning to finish before the year ends.

When I started out on this journey, my only intention was to write a book...just one book. Today, I've written seven books with another three in line.

I've talked to people who expressed a desire to write one book...like me, just one book. I tell them to just hunker down and do it. I hear all sorts of reasons why they can't do it:

• I've got no time
• I don't know how to write
• My English is terrible
• What if nobody buys it?

There are more but these are the four, most common reasons.

I thought I didn't have time either. I was spending time on Facebook during my rest hours and was writing stories in my Notes. So, I decided I'd take those stories and put them into a book. I spent time improving it, editing it, proofreading it, and poof! I had a book. Well, it was an e-book but it was the same to me. After uploading it and seeing it in online bookstores, it was a proud moment. I had written a book.

Then, sales started to come in. Not bad! It wasn't much, certainly not enough to live on but people were actually buying the book!

Then, I decided to write another one, and another one, and another one. Soon, I had seven books. My sales were between $1 and $2 and sometimes months went by without any sales. I started in 2010. By 2020, it was up to an average of $7 per month.

Do I have any dreams of making a best seller? I'd be lying if I said, no. But it's not a priority. I just write because I want people to enjoy the books. 

Earning a living writing books? That would be the dream. Doing something you love and earning from it. That would be heaven. 

Red Ant Rage

Sometimes you have a memory so unpleasant you just want to forget it. Sometimes you do so well that you actually forget about it...until something reminds you.

I usually take a bath at night principally because I like feeling fresh when I go to bed. The other night was just like other previous nights when I would get in the bathroom after dinner. I was looking forward to spending a few hours writing my book and then conversing with the wife on Messenger.

After rinsing off the last soap suds, I took the towel off the rack and began wiping off. I was wiping my chest when I felt a painful sensation. I quickly pulled the towel away from me and looked in horror at what looked like two dozen red ants on my chest! The painful sensation extended into my back so I knew there were a number of the crimson critters there as well.

I stopped wiping and poured water on myself again. The stings were excruciating! It was an effort to keep my fingers from scratching. The pain lasted a couple of hours but by the time I went to bed, it was almost gone.

Lying in bed, the memory of what I just went through seemed to pale in comparison to a previous experience I had about four decades ago.

I had been given a reddish, brownish (damn this colorblindness) bath robe that I had been using for about a month or so. I took it out of the closet and put it on. Almost immediately, I felt that stinging sensation on my back and I hurriedly tore off the bathrobe.

The inside of the red bathrobe was now an even darker shade of red. There was a seething mass of hundreds, maybe even a thousand, red ants! I quickly ran with the robe, took it outside and let it bake in the sun. I never found out what the ants were doing in my bathrobe and I never wore it again.

Breakfast at a Hotel

Years ago, I was staying at this hotel and called downstairs to order breakfast. I ordered the American Breakfast but decided that I'd have mango juice instead of the normal coffee. The guy at the other end of the line said, "Right sir, we'll have your breakfast up in a few minutes."

About a minute or so later, I got a call from him.

Guy: "Ah, sir? We're out of mango juice, would you like pineapple juice instead?"

Me: "Oh yeah, sure. Pineapple juice would be fine."

 I just shook my head and lay back on the bed, watching tv. Another minute went by and the phone rang again.

Guy: "Ah, sir? We're out of pineapple juice as well."

Okay, I figured the smart thing to do would be to ask what they did have on hand. I was afraid of another "Ah, sir?".

Me: "Okay, what juices do you have?"

Guy: "We have orange juice, sir. Would you like to have that one?"

Me: "Okay, I'll have orange juice then."

Guy: "Very good, sir. Please accept our apologies."

I lay back and thought about how smart I was. I figured it shouldn't take long now. The eggs, bacon, and pancakes would have been done already. All they have to do is take the can of orange juice out of the pantry, put it on the tray, and send it up. Five, ten minutes tops and I'll be eating my breakfast.

Phone rings again. Oh oh.

Me: "Hello?"

Guy: "Ah, sir?..."

Me: "Just give me coffee, please."

😑😑😑

Things That Tap You in the Dark

It was raining last night when I went to sleep around 10:30pm. I was having a pleasant dream when I half awoke.

I was lying on my side when it felt like someone had tapped me on the waist. I opened my eyes and looked around...the room was empty except for me. I didn't mind it because this happens often when I'm using an electric fan. The fan causes the blanket to flap around and it feels like someone's tapping on my skin.

I turned over on to my back and allowed the blanket to slip off. It wasn't very cold anyway. Just as I was drifting back to sleep, I felt another tap, this time on my stomach.

I opened my eyes again but, again, saw nothing. I was alone. Had I been dreaming? I felt another tap, on the same spot. Then, it turned cold.

I bolted up and ran to the light switch. I knew, however, that turning on the light would not scare away the thing. I had to act fast.

The roof was leaking and I had to push the bed to the side.

I hate it when there are things that tap you in the dark. (",)