Everybody knows the term Blitzkrieg, which comes from the Nazi German war strategy used to conquer most of Europe during World War 2.

When I was younger, I thought of a Blitzkrieg attack as just an overwhelming attack by superior forces. I voraciously read about Nazi war machines, and because of the famed German Panzers like the Tiger, the Panther, I certainly correlated these super tanks with what a Blitz would be like.

Later, when I was in Air Force ROTC, I was tasked with giving a presentation on Blitzkrieg warfare, so I ended up reading in detail about what exactly it was.

Blitzkrieg was not exactly what I thought.

The most popular Panzer among German Generals were the MkIII and MkIV versions, which were not superior to French Char B1 bis tanks of the French Army. In fact Tigers and Panthers were probably never as numerous as the German army would have liked, and they were Gas hogs and difficult to maintain.

The essense of Blitzkrieg is mobility, and even today the modern German Bundeswehr continues to use the term "Beweglichkeit" in land war strategy. What does this mean? Mobility? Certainly it means that two sides don't dig trenches and bombard each other while occasionally sending out human wave attacks when they think the enemy has been softened up, but in what way is mobility applied? The introduction of the tank in WW1 brought a sort of rolling bunker onto the battle field. It was thought that this mobile strongpoint could be used to support a typical advancing attack on the enemy front.

The discovery that the tank could do more than just this was made in those early WW1 battles, and laid the foundation for Blitzkrieg warfare. It was not the Germans who first discovered this usage pattern, however. It was the English...

...to be continued

If you see anything like the following results while compiling a module for python (perhaps even attempting to install a module via setuptools, or a package manager like darwin ports) then you need to get the latest XCode update from Apple, and when doing the install, select the custom install option and make sure to install the Universal SDK. Recent versions of MacPython (2.4.x, 2.5) need this or they will fail to compile added modules.

building 'Crypto.Hash.MD2' extension
creating build/temp.macosx-10.3-fat-2.5
creating build/temp.macosx-10.3-fat-2.5/src
gcc -arch ppc -arch i386 
-isysroot /Developer/SDKs/MacOSX10.4u.sdk 
-fno-strict-aliasing -Wno-long-double -no-cpp-precomp -mno-fused-madd 
-fno-common -dynamic -DNDEBUG -g -O3 -Isrc/ 
-I/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5 -c 
src/MD2.c -o build/temp.macosx-10.3-fat-2.5/src/MD2.o
src/MD2.c:14:20: error: string.h: No such file or directory
In file included from src/MD2.c:15:
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:18:20: 
error: limits.h: No such file or directory
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:21:2: 
error: #error "Something's broken.  UCHAR_MAX should be defined in 
limits.h."
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:25:2: 
error: #error "Python's source code assumes C's unsigned char is an 
8-bit type."
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:32:19: 
error: stdio.h: No such file or directory
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:34:5: 
error: #error "Python.h requires that stdio.h define NULL."
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:39:19: 
src/MD2.c:14:20: error: string.h: No such file or directory
error: errno.h: No such file or directory
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:41:20: 
error: stdlib.h: No such file or directory
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:43:20: 
error: unistd.h: No such file or directory
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:55:20: 
error: assert.h: No such file or directory
In file included from 
/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.5/include/python2.5/
Python.h:57

We've neglected our weblog here for a while. Either we were too busy or just lost interest.

We bought an Arduino board from sparkfun.com to play with. We've been wanting to dabble in microcontrollers and robotics for about 4+ years.

Up until now the barrier to entry was intimidating, because the set up for a microcontroller board requires some knowledge of circuit layout. Ideally you want a real pcb circuit board, and you would have had to assemble and solder it yourself. (Yes, I know about the BasicStamp, but for some reason it never appealed to me.)

With projects like the Arduino coming out, it is easy to start playing around with microcontrollers. On top of that, this is an "open source" project, which means there are lots of contributors and a good userbase building around it.

What can you do with an Arduino? You write very short programs in C code, and upload them to the board via a USB cable. The microcontroller will "remember" the programs even if the power is disconnected thanks to on board FLASH memory. The board has connector sockets to run wires to switches or sensors, or motors, or LEDs. The most basic thing you can do is make an LED flash at a certain rate.

Big deal, right? Well, imagine you hooked it to a plastic skull, with LEDs in the eye sockets? That would be kind of neat. Then you could make a welcome mat switch so that when someone stepped on the mat, the controller would get a signal and could then start flashing the scary skull eyes. See? As with most engineering exploits, you start with something bone simple, and build it up piece by piece to something more complex and interesting.

Of course there are far more interesting things you can do with more complex sensors. There are range sensors using IR or ultrasonic, light sensors, moisture sensors, temperature sensors, GPS sensors, etc etc. Indeed the barrier to entry for doing very complex and interesting electronic projects has come WAY down. What would have taken an electrical engineering degree in the past can now be done by the average Prester John.

We'll see what comes of it.

A week or two ago, we discussed "Zero Point" with a coworker, and we lent him Nick Cook's excellent book "The Hunt For Zero Point."

One thing lead to another and we find ourselves surfing the world of "Free Energy" information on the web. Is a new world about to dawn upon us? Or will the laws of Thermodynamics remain in enforcement?

Here's some intersting links we found:

• Most roads lead to Tesla. Tom Bearden talks about Tesla
• Peter Lindemann on the EV Gray Motor & Free Energy
• Petern Lindemann on the "Secrets of Cold Electricty" - discoveries of Tesla and their relation to the EV Gray Motor
• Free Energy News Site
• JLN Labs - where real tests and details can be found!

We've been busy with family stuff on weekends, and work is crazy in the build up to the World Wide Developer's Conference in first week of August.

We long knew of the Stratfor.com website, and even read George Friedman's book about America's Secret War, but recently we also discovered the free podcasts on the stratfor site, which are quite good. You need to give up some personal information to register for access. However, the podcasts, which last 5-8 minutes are worth it.

Who needs television any more? I don't have cable. I'll watch these instead:

• Ukelele Orchestra of Great Britain
• Scottish Star Trek
• Japanese Candid Camera
• Where is Matt
• The Mehve flies
• While my Ukelele gently weeps
• Evolution of dance
• Skateboarding dog
• How to cross the street
• Marimba Ponies
• Mario Bros. Marimba
• Yeah, I can do that
• Sero Ojichan

We wish we were building steam powered robots like this guy! Watch the video.

We traveled the nearby coastal mountains of California, to camp for one night in Portola Redwoods State Park.

Erik Hohned One (and sons) were to join the adventure, but didn't. Wife swapped in her friends: the Luo family. "Because you don't want to waste your reservation money." Wife WAS not interested in camping, but the Luo family's sudden inclusion changed her mind. She wanted to go.

Preparation and departure were stressful as always. I doubted this adventure was going to succeed.

We twisted up highway 9 to highway 35 (Skyline Blvd) and through the hills around Portola valley. Leigh got carsick. She puked on a big bowl of fresh Strawberries. Next time, dedicated recepticals to be provided.

We were nigh out of gas at the entrance to the Portola Redwoods park (where sign there says "no gas"), so take a detour to Woodside via La Honda to get gas.

At the park, the Luo family was set up already. They wanted to gather wood. Sign and camping form said "No wood gathering allowed." We bought firewood, and lectured those Chinese people about following the rules and preserving the public camping places. We grilled over the fire: Chicken Legs, Corn-still-in-the-husk, hot dogs, "Shishamo", and Salmon. It was another outting feast. After that, the great American Camping Cultural Tradition: Smores!

Turns out the wife found camping to be fun. She actually wants to go again.

As I lay me down in our cozy four person tent on that Saturday night, I stared out at the blurry star light filtering through the canopy and felt a deep happiness. Second time ever to go camping (for me), and everything was right.

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Shrek passed on some pictures he took on the day of the flight. I'm in the back in the first picture. The rest were taken on Shrek's flight.

Here we are shortly after take off for our aborted flight over San Francisco.

This post is just a test of posting via Mars Edit using the MetaWeblog API.

Wayne posted pictures from the Beale Air Force Base Airshow on his blog

I wanted to go through all the stunts. I was nervous but wanted to do them all.

Kilawatts taught us the "hook maneuver" in the preflight briefing. He said the loop-the-loop would pull 4G's. (1G = normal gravity). "Clench every muscle in your body, arms and legs repeatedly, and breathe out like this: 'huh' 'huh' 'huh' I want you to practice this right now." It seemed silly.

The "Hook Maneuver" keeps the blood flowing to your brain.

After my brief stint at the controls, Kila took over for some aerobatics. The first move was a stall. Kila pulled the T-28 into a climb.

The T-28 is stable. It didn't want to stall. Kila ticked off the airspeed as it fell. From the sound of his voice even he was surprised how long it took to stall. When it did, it was anti-climactic. I imagined STALL = FALLING, going nose down till the plane sped up enough to pull out. Inside the cockpit it was more like a gentle ease out of climb position back to an attitude just below level flight.

Next was a "Wing Over." The T-28 began to climb again, then the left wing dropped and the plane turned left to point back down toward Earth. I did the "Hook Maneuver." - no doubt unnecessary as we were not pulling heavy Gs. I can still picture diving toward the farmland below. I was tensed up like any roller coaster ride.

Upon recovery of the "Wing Over", I was already sweating. Worse, my stomach was going uneasy. I told Kila I was "a little queasy"

Next, was the "Aileron Roll." It was over fast. I had a video camera dangling by a strap from my neck. The camera never moved at all during the roll. I wish I had taped all the stunts, but I was busy doing the "Hook Maneuver." It was a dreamlike experience to see the horizon roll around. I've seen cockpit video of rolls before, but...wow.

To this moment I regret what happened next. I told Kila that I had had enough. I was ready to puke. I drank one of his Vanilla-Cherry Cokes in his office while waiting out Mr. Shrekkie's wild ride. Now that Coke was trying to escape. I put my hands up on the instrument console, and focused on keeping the contents of my stomach inside.

"Relax" said Kila. "Breathe in and out." after a few minutes of silence from me, he said "I can tell from the position of your arms that you are not relaxed." At that point I did not have much to say. Kila offered to let me fly the plane again. "That sometimes helps" but I declined. I took some video shots as we flew back toward Livermore airport. We were going to do a "break turn" to land, but as we flew back straight and level I began to regurgitate my coke into my throat. I was clenching a little white plastic bag that Kila had given each of us, just in case. I REALLY REALLY did not want to be the one to throw up in the plane. I somehow kept the Coke inside, although it was practically back in my mouth. I felt like a loser to call off the rest of the stunts. My only triumph was not puking.

Back on the ground, I had to lay down in the office for a few minutes. When I got home I was never so tired in my life. I seriously questioned whether I'd ever agree to ride in that plane again.

As I recover now though, I keep reliving the experience. I was bitten by something that day. I hope to fly again, although I'll be sure to take some motion sickness medicine beforehand and no Coke! I even wonder whether I should try for a pilot's license...

A special thanks goes out to Kilawatts for taking each of us up in the T-28.

Hey YOU! Leave me a comment!

very forward or back of the stick brought that "rollercoaster" feeling. I feared that. We've played pilot on the computer. We know what it looks like. But we only guessed what it feels like, until we were sitting in the back seat of a T-28 at 5,000 feet over the Altamont pass. It was LOUD. It was rattling.

"Did you have to sign a release? Isn't that dangerous?"

"If anything goes wrong. I'm going to yell 'BAIL BAIL BAIL'" said Kilawatts. He was hunched in the shade under the wing of the Centurion, in front of one of his South Hangars.

Shrek, Dorian, and I listened to the preflight briefing. "That canopy is going to open in like.... point three seconds, it is THAT fast. It has explosive bolts. Unplug your intercom cable, release your seat belt and climb out. Dive DOWN past the right wing..."

"Will our parachute open automatically?"

"There is a D-ring release. Practice reaching up and grabbing that with your eyes closed. Pull that ring and your chute will open. Just before you hit the ground, DO NOT look down - LOOK AT THE HORIZON, and...keep your knees bent and...I don't know what else to tell you..."

more later....

Incidentally Kilawatts will be at Beale Air Force Base (near Sacramento) along with Brigadier General Chuck Yeager for an airshow this weekend June 3-4 2006.

he big man from American Fork, Utah : Mr. S came to SF for continuing education classes in medicine. He is a P.A. in a small town.

So Northern California members of our gaming clan gathered to greet him. Kilawatts "the generous" offered to take us in a Centurion to soar over the city, down to Monterey, then back to Livermore. We slipped away from the Earth around 11 a.m. on 29 May, a Sunday.

Set a course for S.F. but not a few minutes in the air, Kila became unhappy with the sound of the engine and the readings on the instruments.

Turn back then, we passengers to a man contemplating our impending doom. Back on the ground the Centurion was left for the local mechanic who suspected it was a bad sparkplug.

Kila calls his boss. Can he fly each of us in the T-28, a 2 seat Navy Trainer? Sure, NP.

Shrek went first. A big guy with an obvious love of life, He returned a happy man. "That's the best thing I've done in my entire life - don't tell my wife..."

We were next. We're not fans of rollercoasters and G-forces, so we were a bit worried though we tried to conceal it. Kila took the T-28 up over the Altamont pass area, put both hands in the air, and said "You have the controls."

I took the stick and did some meek and mild things. Tiny bank left, tiny bank right, tiny descent, tiny climb. "Try a bank and turn. Bank to 45 degrees and pull back on the stick."

I banked the plane to a terrifying angle. "That's about 15 degrees" says Kila, "bank a little more", so we went off the edge and stood the plane on its wingtip "That's about 30 degrees. Keep going" said Kila. I banked the plane to an impossible angle "Ok that's good, now pull back on the stick" and I did. What was frightening began to become routine.

to be continued...

Among the tools of maker's arte, we seek procure an engine or two from this shoppe. A small store in San Mateo called Hobby Engineering sells such and similar interesting bits. We want to try hobby robotics, but still not yet.

We've done some vegetable gardening over the years, as our father did when we were young. In our last stronghold, the trees were nice, but they blocked the sun. The new place, better exposed, makes the gardening that much more fun. We built a large frame box on the lawn and grew spinach on and on, Cherry tomatoes (weeds! they are!), Japanese cucumbers (production improved when fenced from squirrels), thai chilipeppers (damn hot!), and shiso. Always shiso! Aka Perilla. Aka Beefsteak Plant.

The green onions and carrots survived over winter when we abandoned the garden to the elements. Come Spring, we remember the garden and go find giant green onions and weirdly shaped carrots!

Green onions are great. Cut the bottoms off store bought ones, stick them in the dirt and they grow. Grow, harvest, cut and repeat. Dump a pack of seeds in planter and a million of 'em will rise. Carrots are hardy too, but grow forever till a decent size. We've read they grow well in poor soil.

It will soon be time again for The Annual Robogames. (June 16-18 2006) We went to a previous event in 2004. It was very cool, tho methinks the Maker Faire was better.

We read last year "The Hunt For Zero Point" by Janes Defense Weekly reporter Nick Cook. Intriguing research into Anti Gravity and Zero Point Energy with history that goes back to Nazi research during WW2! Here's an NPR Interview with Nick Cook.

Kilawatts informed us that when an aircraft hits the aft end of the deck below the level of the flight deck it is called a "Ramp Strike!"

When an aircraft fails to catch the line with its arresting hook it is called a "Bolter!" (where the craft had best put the demonfire into its engine else Neptune will be the new Master.)

To speak of Kilawatts, we too undertook to learn of flying machines of that Great War Era. Twas a harrowing task to let the craft down upon a moving platform on the high seas. Look here! : By the moving arts may you see one of our attempts...:

ome may call him 'Kilawatts' Famed is he as a Warrior, a Navigator of the skies, and one who Famous People meet. We have no fame, yet we have met Kilawatts when joined for battle in the continuous online war which rages inside a phantom realme named Call of Duty

Sir Kilawatts is an intinerant traveler, bearing upon wings his Master and other Vassals of a Guild of Earthmovers about the Western reaches of North Americae. Kilawatt's Grand Master is a man of wealth, he who collects for his wunderkammer flying war machines of the past, oft rebuilding the ancient engines of destruction from crashed and rusted hulks. The neighbors at the Aerodrome where Kilawatts flies do also collect flying beasts. See here a photo of the neighbor's "F8F Bearcat" :

Like most of your leaders around the world these days. Our understanding of foreign policy and grand strategy is heavily influenced by Thomas P.M. Barnett

See a Video Interview here.

This is a test of a plugin which should be most excellent.

e have many alchemists and magisters in our kingdome. They paint stars and moons on their conical caps. Is it for magic, or are they watching the sky? "Watcher of the Skies, what do you watch?"

At the Maker Faire, we heard a tale incredible and tempting!

At the Chabot Space and Science Center in Oak's Lande, as darkness falls they meet once per Freitag, and hold forth on the ways of polishing a rough glass into a Telescope by hande! Those brave enough to take up the quest can tinker even up to a 20" sky watcher that would normally cost many thousands of Coine of the Realm, all for a much lesser expense in materiele and a much time spent polishing a lens!

Me thinks his Majesty will commend us to join the Lensmen's guild!

here are the artisans? The die makers? The lathers and punch pressers? Men who built radios and overhauled their own engines? Who arc welded or hammered copper sculptures in their spare time?

My country saw the fading of a once great manufacturing economy. My family was directly involved in the factory boom after World War II. I grew up around my Uncle's metal stamping factory. That factory is gone.

Service and Info economies are the new thing. Information Services are transferred at the speed of light.

But something was lost. To manufacture is to have a hidden asset: knowledge, tools, and exposure to the possibilities.

When a country outsources its manufacturing, it loses a mind-set: a culture of tools, the craft of mastering matter. The art of making. It denies generations the exposure to engineering, science, and creativity that comes of manufacturing.*

The culture of consumerism, turns custom-making into a vestigial skill, lost in favor of buying unsatisfactory things we don't need and disappointing factory food.

A consumer culture sees pre-packaged products attached to price points. The engineering of the products is inaccessible magic. The choice of what to possess: limited by lowest common appeal, cost cutting vendors, and by our income.

But there is a Renaissance afoot. Engineers, Artists, Journalists and Book Publishers are promoting a new "do it yourself" (DIY) culture.

"DIY" culture engages the mind, reconnects us to engineering as art that any one can do. Assume the role of maker, and fashion unique objects for our own needs.

We have no engineering degree, but we will be engineers. We wil find 1,2,3 instructions, and low cost parts from unexpected sources. We will recycle and repurpose weird stuff into raw materials for custom made objects.

Our Liege Lord thinks this is an idea whose time is come (nay was ever so.)

Three of us made pilgrimage to the in the land of San Mateo. What wondrous werkes we did see! More reports of what we saw are to come.

Til then...Here's a photo of Leigh popping a balloon: This was taken using a rig which uses the sound of the popping balloon to activate a flash. Cameras open on long exposure in the dark, the balloon is popped, flash!, and balloon-in-mid-pop is captured! Wonders Never Cease!

More photos of high speed balloon popping can be found via a "Flikr Photostream"

What do you think about the "do it yourself" movement? write a comment!

*It was pointed out in "The Japan That Can Say No" that manfucturing is a form of creativity (this point made to counter the idea that America created all the ideas and Japan merely copies and manufacturers what others have created.) Manufacturing capability is a resource that can lead to new ideas and technologies in and of itself - The people exposed to the tools of manufacturing and the ideas and concepts of manufacturing are well placed to be inspired to think of new ways to use the tools and techniques of "making".

race be upon you and your Kingdome. I bring thee a message urgent from my Liege: Presbyter John. We are a small yet Wonderous Realm in lands afar beyond mountains and the sea. Yea, we reckon it nigh impossible to make commerce from ours to thine. Routes perilous, beset on every side by heathen warlords, barbarous tribes, and savage beastes; even Hospitallers may not vouchsafe the way. Nevertheless, his Majesty would that you should hear: Our Kingdome is one in same tradition as thine. Take heart! Yea there be many wylde folk and untamed lands between us, yet do ye not have a friend and faithful ally in a distant Lande?

Unto each area of expertise, its own category

Our masons now lay the foundation of our stronghold.