The Raspberry Pi 400

I have used the Raspberry Pi computer as a web server for the most part some IOT tinkering, and love it. There are so many things that you can do with it that you can’t think of one, and that’s a good thing!

Now in 2020, they launched a new single board computer called, “Raspberry Pi 400.” It has the same guts as the Raspberry Pi 4, but it is built inside a small keyboard. Just like the legendary Commodore 64.

The Commodore 64 was my first glimpse at computing. I could remember when I visited my best friend’s house and he showed me this. At first, I thought it was some sort of modern typewriter. Then, he connected it to a CRT TV and lo and behold, the command prompt appeared. He typed some commands and the text blurted out its first words: “Hello!” (Although, I can’t remember the exact words he typed). And so, I thought the TV was alive! (he he).

Computing in general has come a long way, and the Raspberry Pi is no Commodore 64 because it’s much more than that obviously. GPIO pins are alien technology you’ll never hear back in those days, and so it’s something magical even in today’s modern computing. That makes the Raspberry Pi a unique idea, created to fulfill the needs of a connected future.

Likes Yikes!

"Have you never read: You have prepared praise
from the mouths of children and nursing infants?" Matthew 21:16

I remember the time when we were still small when our teachers have these cool stamps where they stamp on you blue stars. It ranges from one star to five stars being the highest rating when you answer her questions correctly. We were all giddy and happy when we receive them as if bought by the whole charade.

Today, I am all grown up and have gray hairs sticking out my ears, and I still love these cool star stamps. They are called “Likes.” The person with the most “likes” wins the prize (steam, that is). Somehow, we grown-ups get to have the most stars when we “share” a viral post, and we are so happy and glad our hearts pour out (I can’t believe we still fall for these). A whole business foundation that we can rely on (yup, I’m kind of sarcastic today, please forgive me. Or, maybe I got a few likes? Ha, ha!).

Earth

How I love to sit at the balcony and gaze at the beautiful sunset. Earth was wonderfully made. The designer must have been a genius.

People are threatened by climate change today. Historic wildfires in California, the devastation left by hurricane Laura, and of course, the virus are warnings of impending doom for many. We have scarred this beautiful planet, and the fault falls to us. We must act fast! It may take a hundred years to fix what we have broken. So, it is our responsibility to save this only home we got. We have to admit we need God in this mess.

Like my mom, I never throw stuff immediately to the garbage. I look for ways to reuse cardboard packaging. I would rather keep than let it go because, in my mind, I am doing my part to save the planet. Sometimes, I even imagine where the trash goes like landfills. I don’t want to end it up there! Because of so many tragedies that come in the news, I am also responsible for any of it. If it’s going to take a hundred years, so be it.

I know where stuff comes from; they all came from factories. Factories spew deadly smoke that harms Earth’s lungs. If only we could put giant air purifiers all over the place to lessen its toxicity. Plant more trees are usually effective unless wildfires render them useless. The only thing to do is to reduce CO2. I only buy hardware that I need and more digital forms. That’s my motto. We live in a world in one’s and zeroes anyway! (Amen to that!)

Therefore, we must be conscious of our actions. As followers of Jesus, we must bear the cross of saving this planet, for our own sake. What’s more? We are made from earth, and we return to earth.

It’s A Web!

Websites. Can’t live with them, can’t live without them. Nowadays, people are queuing online. Who goes first is like a raffle draw and nobody knows when the delivery will arrive at your doorstep. Deliveries have reached the threshold and it’s carrying the heavy burden of the actual packing and deliveries. We need an army to do this.

Online sales are skyrocketing no doubt about that. How about brick and mortar stores? How are they coping with the lock-down? Even the president says that small businesses are the lifeblood of the economy. How will they survive a world without a place where people pick up items, put it inside the cart, wait in line and pay for the products? The answer is the Web!

The web is constantly evolving. Creating your websites used to be a chore and it will take weeks to put up an online shop. But nowadays, it’s automatic. In JUST seconds, you’ll have a website up and running, ready for the WORLD to see, AND it became so cheap even third world countries can have one.

I can’t recommend you one because it’s a disservice to other hosting providers if I didn’t mention them because what’s the point of having a business? Just go to Wikipedia or search it on Google. Do a little research, do your homework before diving in. However, there is a small problem. You see, online stores are great for customers, but security remains a big problem. Now that hackers know everyone is joining, it’s becoming very rampant and common. So, my advice is, create hard passwords and use two-factor authentication. This will help secure your hosting provider enormously. Invest in a good password manager, as I always suggest, and use genuine software, movies, music, etc. Be good and God will always be good.

Lastly, if you don’t know anything about technology, hire a web specialist, IT consultant or a friend who knows his craft.

I hope that you will always remember that God will always be with you. If you get stuck on the web, just pray.

Knowledge

“He who increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow.”

Is knowing about a virus that is killing us all enough? We went to the grocer to find people lined-up in droves. I heard others were saying that alcohol disinfectants were empty. People bought it in panic as if it’s a miracle voodoo cure of some sort. So, after putting all the items on my mom’s list, I began to look for the line towards the cashier and found the end. Suddenly, it got rough when a family forced to get into the line. The man was shouting at the family telling them what they did was unfair to everyone who waited in line. I thought, “Well, I don’t want to get involved with their spat and take more of my time.” So, I changed to another line longer than the previous and waited it out.

For some reason, I asked the old man in front of me if the line is for seniors (because my dad was with me). He said simply yes. Then, I began to talk to him and why I changed lines that led to preaching the Gospel.

This event in our lives is unprecedented, extraordinary and frightening to most of us. I personally never thought that I would experience such as this kind of intensity just like World War II in history books. I thought it’s just in the history books. In the modern age, we deal with problems like computer viruses, AI and robots, but as old and prehistoric such as viruses or plagues like in the Old Testament, we seem to forget that we humans are still just “Human Beings.” Even if we replace our body of entirely robotic like a cyborg, humans are still fragile and easily break. No matter how knowledge increased over the past decade, we still don’t have a clue.

Collaboration

Most of us are now working from home. We have our computers with an internet connection and putting on headphones for our shouting kids. The best thing to do in a crisis is to keep working and hopefully also give others what they need for their families.

Working online needs tools to make collaboration happen: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/mar/13/covid-19-could-cause-permanent-shift-towards-home-working

For communicating with your fellow workers, you will need these:

Slack, Microsoft Teams or Google G Suite.

Project Management Software so could keep track of the projects or tasks to be done:

Trello or Taiga.

Video conferencing is included in Microsoft Teams or Google G Suite, but you might also like:

Jitsi or Skype.

To help you manage tasks into bite-size to-dos and take breaks between tasks with a countdown timer, you might need my very own Chrome Extension:

TwoDo

I hope that these tools help you achieve your goals in a desperate time like this. May God show His mercy and love. Take care, everyone!

Smartphone Microscope

We need a faster way to test for Corona virus, so we may give people early treatment and recover sooner. Test kits are complicated and therefore we need to create a better and easier way for testing.

I did a little search on a smartphone microscope and found Diple. It’s a Kickstarter project that I don’t even know if it’s legit. But, we can draw some lessons on how to design a test kit for the virus. It should be modular, easy to set up and affordable. Diple looks simple enough that you can bring anywhere and do testing at home to avoid crowds on hospitals where anyone can do it.

Check out the Diple project here: https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/11/21/20975677/smartphone-microscope-kickstarter-diple-announcement-magnification-zoom

Transparency

This is essential in any trade. 

Today, Apple will pay $500 million to settle a lawsuit over slowing down older iPhones. Apple said that the reason they slowed down the phones is because of the battery. When the battery is old, it will protect the components and force the phone to shutdown. The problem is nobody knew about this. Apple just decided by not telling everyone about it. So, they apologized and offered battery replacements to customers for $79, which brought down the price to $29 and thus affecting their revenue. Therefore, the valuable lesson here is to become more transparent to your customers. Transparency means having clear communication between you and your customers. Your customers should know what you are doing with their products so that they’ll better understand what problem you are solving and how you are solving it. These, in turn, earn their trust because you are being transparent.

Of course, being transparent is not applicable only in trade but also in health issues, relationships and others.

I watch my pastor’s sermon online, and he was preaching about what happened to him for the past 6 months he was gone. He told us that he didn’t have a vacation but he had to battle depression. He was more or less, very transparent and open to the public about his whereabouts and his daily struggles. This makes us feel more connected and part of the church family. He gained our support and so we prayed for him and his family.

This also happened with the SARS epidemic in 2003. When it broke out, China tried to hide it and told nothing of the virus, which made it worse that killed hundreds of lives. Now, China learned from its lesson and strived to be more open and transparent. This brought support from the public all over the world, and now we are battling this deadly disease together.

16 Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?

Galatians 4:16

Recharge

Every gadget and every electronics today needs to recharge to have some use. Everything will just be like a dead paperweight if there is no juice left in it. People are just like that. If there is no energy then there is no use. We need to recharge.

After all the stresses of work and life, we need to unwind and take the time to thank God for every invention that we conceived. Worship is the charging cable of our lives. By giving praise to God, we are giving back the glory He deserves. And because of His undying love and compassion, He will give us the strength to glorify God more. Remember, it is about God and not about ourselves.

God is the source of life. Apart from God, we are nothing.

5 “I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me. 6 Whoever does not remain in me is thrown out like a branch and dries up; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, where they are burnt. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, then you will ask for anything you wish, and you shall have it. 8 My Father’s glory is shown by your bearing much fruit, and in this way, you become my disciples. 9 I love you just as the Father loves me; remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

John 15:5-10

Microwaves To Recycle Plastics

This is great news! Microwaves are known to heat our food in just seconds and using this same technology to recycle plastics is indeed good news.

What is a microwave? A microwave is a form of electromagnetic radiation that was accidentally discovered while inventing the radar by an engineer at Raytheon during World War 2. They call it the “Magnetron.” While improving on the radar technology, Percy Spencer, the engineer, reached out for his snack in his pocket to find that it has melted because of the magnetron. It resulted in our very own microwave ovens in our kitchens that even knows how to speak by Amazon’s Alexa.

The microwave makes the molecules vibrate so fast which produces heat. This cooks the food faster and it’s more economical.

Check out the article below for more information:

https://phys.org/news/2019-11-power-microwaves-recycle-plastics.html