Public Access
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The best of Public Access Vol.11: Welcome home
This week, there's plenty going on from hints on the upcoming Apple event to Instagram allowing users to upload both landscape and portrait-oriented photos, but the big news in Public Access is our shiny new home page! If you've been regularly reading these 'Best of' update posts, then you already knew that we've been busy working behind the scenes on sprucing up Public Access, but now it's finally here.
Growing up geek: Not so much actually
These days, I am almost always within reach of a computer. I've largely forgotten what the days were like when I wasn't switching among the screens of various smartphones, tablets, laptops and desktops. My apartment is cluttered with numerous gadgets and devices, from a barrage of home automation and mobile accessories to a beast of a desktop in the middle of a rebuild. I am the family member who gets all those fun text messages requesting tech support with printers and social media settings. (Here, let me Google that for you...) After 10 years of being a writer and editor at over half a dozen tech magazines and online tech publications (most recently here at Engadget, huzzah!), I can safely say that I am often the geek in the group. I built my gaming desktop with my own damn two hands; I have a Steam account; I am constantly testing and deleting new mobile apps; I have multiple backups in place; I am perfectly comfortable working in HTML; and I can tell you in detail what GPU, CPU and PEBCAK stand for. However, I did not grow up geek. There is a 97 percent chance that someone was yelling, "Heels DOWN!" when this photo was taken. I just wasn't a tech geek as a kid. I spent a good portion of my childhood on horseback, and aside from Lego, my toys were a fairly typical array of non-tech items like Barbies, My Little Ponies and Cabbage Patch Kids. I didn't take apart the VHS player and try to put it back together. I didn't have a yearning to understand how mechanical things worked, nor any deep desire to make software comply with my commands. My household had no gaming system until 1993, when we got an aging NES console that required a book to be wedged into the slot to keep the cartridge in the machine. We had no CD player until roughly 1995. When I first moved to San Francisco to attend college, I had a hand-me-down beige desktop PC running Windows 98 and no cellphone to speak of. So how did I get to be a geek? Bears a striking resemblance to the PC I went to college with. Via the mailroom. Oh, it's true. My geekhood began in a decidedly analog environment. After a short and disastrous stint in hospitality, I snagged a job delivering mail and packages to editors at PC World. Within eight months, I'd been booted up to editorial assistant, writing a consumer advocacy column and getting a crash course in laptops, desktops, printers, smartphones and more. While I wasn't born a tech enthusiast, being surrounded by a testing lab, gadgets aplenty and knowledgeable folks piqued my interest. Without really intending to, I picked up a variety of information and skills: from knowing how to get better Google search results, to understanding how to troubleshoot problems with laptops, and knowing the shortcuts and "secret" commands in mobile OSes. My friends started asking for my advice on which tech items to buy, and my family started calling me with support questions. In the decade-plus since I first stumbled into tech writing, my interest in and affection for technology has only grown -- I built my first desktop (and am currently working on upgrading and overhauling it), reviewed high-profile products like the first Windows Phone, attended trade shows in places both near and far, interviewed creators and CEOs, installed home-automation hardware, tested fitness and wearable devices, successfully troubleshot a variety of software and hardware issues and continued to pick up as much knowledge as possible. At the time, my mailroom job seemed like something I had just stumbled into before becoming a big-time fiction writer (which is, hilariously, what I thought I'd be when I majored in creative writing in college). However now I see it as a stroke of pure luck -- I still get to write, about a constantly changing and evolving topic that affects all areas of modern life, and I get an unparalleled education in technology. It's a privilege to get to do something I love while learning new things every day, and I am now firmly a geek at heart. Long live the geeks!
For Your App-roval - Here Are My Two Favorite Apps
There are lots of other apps that I love eg. Spotify, Instagram, Google Maps.. but it is these two that have made the greatest impact on my life. My FitnessPal I used to live a sedentary, unhealthy lifestyle which was accompanied with poor eating habits. Working in an office didn't help and I would find myself eating unhealthy snacks and drinking lots of coffee. Things came to a head when my mother passed away because of heart disease. This was smoking and weight related and it was the catalyst for me to start adopting a healthy lifestyle. A friend recommended me this app and it has virtually revolutionized my life since I incorporated it into my fitness routine well over a year ago. The app features a never ending database- some four million + items and a brilliant calorie counting feature. You can enter the types of food you are eating and sync it with your PC/ mobile device/tablet. There are exercise workouts which are varied and never boring, it keeps me motivated and has helped me make better eating choices. It has been extraordinarily transformative in many ways, I feel happier and healthier. I have lost 10.7 kgs and kicked 20 year old smoking habit. This would not have been possible if I didn't have this daily companion informing me, inspiring me and motivating me. I had joined gyms before but usually gave up after two weeks, now with this app I find myself setting goals that I am not only reaching but exceeding. This has got to be my number one app. Wally This is another fantastic app that has helped budget and prioritize my spending. Being prudent with money was never one of my strong points, in fact I was pretty reckless and would often spend on items that I didn't need. Now that I am paying rent and bills, I have to reign in my spending and prioritize my finances otherwise I would end up without a roof over my head! This app is user friendly and easy to use, Wally lets me know where my income is going, sets and adheres to budgets, balances my income and expenses and allows me to reach my financial goals. Now instead of being flat broke at the end of the month surviving on basic rations, there is enough cash in the kitty to indulge myself a little. Peace of mind and sensible money management have been the two great benefits of this app.
The best of Public Access Vol.10: Who's there?
by08.20.2015
This week, we live-blogged IDF and its scary robots, reviewed the OnePlus 2, and debated the merits of Apple Music. Also: Giant robots! Space! And Knock Knock! (That's not a joke.)
The best of Public Access Vol. 8: RIP Hitchbot, Hi Soylent
by08.06.2015There's a reason your mom told you not to hitchhike -- it can be dangerous, even for friendly, harmless robot creations. This week, the internet mourned the loss of Hitchbot the hitchhiking robot, and started playing the finger-pointing game at some pranksters in Philly (who may or may not have prematurely ended Hitchbot's mission to get to San Francisco -- but apparently did fake the much-viewed video of the bot's demise). Photos of the busted bot quickly circulated, and while its creators have confirmed their experiments with AI and human interaction are not over, it does appear to at least be the end of the line for Hitchbot version one. Since the bot is officially RIP, why not write it a eulogy befitting its adventurous nature and expounding on its achievements?
The best of Public Access Vol. 6: Apple Watch edition
It's unlikely we'll get the real dirt on Apple Watch sales anytime soon, but that hasn't stopped analysts, journalists and basically anyone with a pulse from speculating about the wearable's potential success or failure. In the leadup to Apple's latest earnings report, we heard news of declining adoption rates from Fast Company and developer disinterest from The New York Times. Since everyone seems to be watching the Watch, we asked you to weigh in on the future of the wrist-worn category and you delivered. Brandon Côté envisioned a wearable future that mirrors Ender's Game while Carl Zetie suggested that it's a largely a product category without a problem to solve.
Welcome to Public Access: Community storytelling at its weirdest
Before YouTube, before Twitter, before Lil Bub and The Dress, there was the localized meme generator known as public-access television. As an alternative to commercial broadcasting, public access gave voice to local communities, fostering often bizarre, sometimes thought-provoking outpourings of DIY creativity. It's in the spirit of that great social melting pot that Engadget invites you to embark on a new journey in community storytelling. With the launch of Public Access, we're giving you the tools to publish your opinions, experiences and discussions alongside those of Engadget's editors and some of tech's brightest minds. This is your chance to have your voice heard by millions of humans like you, and maybe...
Waco, Texas launches WCCC-TV government access HD channel
Here's an interesting one. The city of Waco, Texas has just launched its very own all-digital HD channel for government access use. WCCC-TV (Waco City Cable Channel) is thought to be the first of its kind in Texas, and it can currently be viewed on Grande channel 410. Since earlier this year, the staff at the station has been "creating all new programming and numerous short segments about Waco, its people and government all in 1080p HD." Of note, the HD channel was completely funded by two cable operators (TWC and Grande, we presume) and not a dime of city tax funds were required to pay for the new studios or equipment. Nice touch!
Locals get up in arms over Charter's digital push, ignore that 2009 is almost here
Charter doesn't have a flawless track record when it comes to customer service, but we can't help but share a little sympathy here. Reportedly, a number of locals in Wisconsin are perturbed by the carrier's decision to push public access channels into slots that require a digital TV tuner or set-top-box. According to Mary Bennin Cardona, executive director of the Wisconsin Association of PEG Access Channels, she "thinks it's discriminatory and really harmful to our communities." Meanwhile, the February 2009 analog shutoff is drawing ever closer, meaning that these very consumers who continue to rely on analog OTA signals will soon be cut off from everything, whether they like it or not. It's reported that Charter is considering handing out STBs for free to those negatively affected, which we suppose would be the best solution here. Still, if it hasn't been made clear yet: you should probably start preparing for the DTV transition. It's coming, and it's coming fast.[Image courtesy of SimpleSystems]
It's on: FCC sets 700MHz spectrum auction for January 16, 2008
It's still not entirely clear how it'll be used, but there's one thing about the FCC's upcoming 700MHz auction that we now know for sure: it'll go down on January 16 of next year. The feds look to sell off a grand total of 1,099 licenses freed by the approaching end of analog television broadcasting divided into five distinct blocks. So-called Blocks A and E cover the FCC's Economic Areas, 176 distinct subdivisions of the US and its territories. Block B is divided into the smaller Cellular Market Areas category, 734 in total. Block D -- intended for use by public safety workers -- is nationwide, meaning just one license will be offered spanning the nation. Finally, the controversial Block C -- the public access spectrum everyone's been in a tizzy over -- is being offered as 12 regional covering the entire country. As with any huge FCC spectrum offage, this sale promises to generate some corporate fireworks, public discussion, and mudslinging, so we're marking our calendars and crossing our fingers that CSPAN will cover all the wild action live. [Warning: PDF link][Via Phone Scoop]Update: It turns out that the 12-region Block C is destined for open access, not the single-license Block D. Block D is intended for public safety use. We've corrected the text of the post above. Our apologies!
