Rachio Iro Smart Sprinkler Controller: Will it save money?

Ever since we moved into our house several years ago, I've been frustrated by the unnecessary complexity of our sprinkler controller.  "Smart" sprinkler controllers have been on the market for a while, but I was put off by the cost.  However, the Rachio Iro (1st Gen, 16 zone) went on sale for $150 (here) as inventory was cleared for the 2nd Gen model, I finally pulled the trigger.

Windows 10 (Upgrade) Frequently Crashing

After upgrading a laptop (HP Envy dv6-7214nr) from Windows 8 to Windows 10, the laptop would frequently crash.  Google Chrome was almost guaranteed to cause a crash, but even after uninstalling that, the laptop would frequently crash.

Checking Windows 10's reliability monitor showed "Apple Push" as the most frequent cause of the crash, but I could find no way to disable the "Apple Push" service.

A bit of google searching led me to this link http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-hardware/upgraded-to-windows-10-but-now-msvcp100dll-is/68475c07-090a-4fe8-9a0f-7d5f1ac0cbde?auth=1.

While not an exact match for my issue, I decided to try uninstalling all versions of "Microsoft Visual C++  20xx Redistributable".  And it worked!  A few programs that relied on the missing components failed to run, but that was easily solved by reinstalling them.

Streaming video from Windows Media Player to PS3

We had not streamed video from Windows Media Center to our PS3 for quite a while, and when I recently tried it, it didn't work.  We could see all the files on the PS3, but when we tried to play them we would get a black screen and eventually error number 80710092.

Since the last time we had used the setup, our router had died and been replaced.  After an hour of digging through settings on the new router (ASUS RT-N56U), streaming still didn't work.  The solution actually turned out to be quite easy.  The PC running Windows Media Center had had its network mode switched to "Public", which prevent media streaming -- perhaps from when the router was changed.  I switched the PC back to "Home" network mode and streaming was back in action!

Skiing Utah, 2014

Thanks to some sweet airfares to Salt Lake City and generous babysitting from grandparents, we headed to Utah for some fantastic skiing, beautiful scenery and fun with friends.

Shredding the Pow at Powder Mountain

A Day Hike on the Coast of Fife, Scotland

While Jack Frost was toying with family and friends back home in Dallas, Scotland was enjoying a bit of warmer-than-normal weather.  With the business meetings over, I escaped for a few hours of coastal walking before heading home.  After a short train and bus ride from Edinburgh, I was in St. Andrews.  Here are a few (cellphone) photos from my trip.

How to Coil a Cable, Hose, Cord, etc.

I found this video eye-opening. I have always tried to wrap cables, hoses, power cords, etc. neatly, but it never seems to work well. Turns out I was trying to do the wrong thing all along.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/08/tnhyut-coil-cable/

Once your cable has been coiled "wrong", it takes a while to work out all the twists but once that's done this method seems to work quite well.

Shoe Sole Repair

The sole on one of my dress shoes had come loose on one edge.  I went to fix it with ShoeGoo, but found my tube had dried out (no surprise -- I have no idea how many years I've had it).

Looking around for an alternative, I found some Loctite "Pit Crew's Choice Adhesive and Sealant".  It worked perfectly, maybe even better than the ShoeGoo.