We hooked up Ooma this weekend.  It works great!  There is no loss of quality in our phone calls, I was able to easily do a three-way conference, the voicemail works, and you can listen to the messages via the Ooma Lounge, which will be handy when we are traveling.  I even inadvertently enabled the DND (Do Not Disturb) feature and the next call went straight to voicemail.  XD

If we continue to be happy with it, we'll be dumping AT&T in favor of a lifetime of free (or cheap, if we continue with the Premier Services) phone service.  We currently spend $36.95 per month for a single phone line + Caller ID and Call Waiting.  All that comes free with Ooma for the initial outlay of $200.  In other words, it pays for itself in less than six months.  Six months!  If we stick with Premier, it means we save $343 per year (assuming rates change on neither side).

The only other equipment I'm going to add to the mix is an uninterruptible power supply to insure we have phone service when the power goes out.

Obama wants high-paying, high-skill jobs in future (AP)

I understand what he means. "President of the United States" just isn't a good job anymore. (LOL)

ooma: Free home phone service. Unlimited US calling with no monthly fees.

ooma: Free home phone service.

We're going to give ooma a try, to see if it lives up to the hype.  Since they are scheduled to release new hardware later this year, it's a good time for cheapskates like me to join - I'm sure they'll be here till at least the end of this year, so I am very likely to at least recoup my investment.

And the 30-day free trial helps me make sure my wife is satisfied. :)

Energy Information

Google Power Meter - Google.org

This is just the kind of thing that can transform the world.  Schoolhouse Rocky says, "Knowledge is Power!" (pun intended).

Converting an application from Ruby on Rails to Java and other misguided decisions

Inauguration Will Set A Port-A-Potty Record

The new Fisker Karma

Who says Hybrids can't move?

Barack Obama's family gets a Wii video game system

Quote:

"It gives me an amazing amount of warm fuzzies knowing there's going to be a game console in the White House," wrote Mike Fahey, a blogger for Kotaku.com, which tracks gaming. And the GameCulture.com blog crowed, "Remember that… your chief executive, and the leader of the Free World, now wears a wrist strap."

Solve the Credit Crisis from the Bottom up - Change. org

Social Lending (something I'm a part of via The Lending Club)  is a great way to make a little money off of savings, and help others at the same time.  Interest rates are typically lower than what a bank would charge, but higher than you could get somewhere else.

Vote for this idea to be presented to President-Elect Obama at the link above, and while you're there, browse for other ideas that resonate with you.

Where the hell is Matt? | Blunt Wit

Where the hell is Matt? Blunt Wit
The DMZ was the first to make me laugh, and then it continued...

Aegisub: If programming languages were religions...

Aegisub: If programming languages were religions...

A very funny read for us geeks!

Finch Elves Snowball Fight

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

The Middleman - TV.com

The Middleman - TV.com
Save the Middleman! I don't know if anyone who reads my blog (all three of you) watch "The Middleman" on ABC Family, but it is a smart, funny, way-out-there TV show that Amanda and I love. And it may be in danger of being canceled!

Go to http://abcfamily.go.com and ask them to bring back this show!

Official Google Blog: Sorting 1PB with MapReduce

Official Google Blog: Sorting 1PB with MapReduce

This seems like the kind of work I'd enjoy doing...

Culture Clips for September 8, 2008

Culture Clips for September 8, 2008: "In July, Americans spent 302 billion minutes online, according to Internet tracking service comScore. That equates to 6,760 lifetimes, give or take. [forbes.com, 8/20/08 stats]"

(September 8th? Yes, I'm a little behind on my reading.)

Buy Nothing Day | Adbusters Culturejammer Headquarters

Buy Nothing Day

The Cave » Blog Archive » How The Mighty Have Fallen

Howard Kapustein has begun cataloging people he knows who were affected by Tuesday's layoffs.

I don't view the layoff as a bad thing, I view it as parole from a self-imposed inprisonment. It will be the start of something bigger and better!

Multitasking In The Car: Just Like Drunken Driving Don't just read the story, listen to it. The example with the concert pianist is great!

I, for one, welcome our pixelated Google overlords

Nonsense in Nashville

FactCheck.org looks into the candidates' claims.