David Bailey

Flying for 1/3 the Price on Delta

2011-10-16T20:14:51-07:00

Want to get from Albuquerque to Atlanta on the cheap? Don't buy a ticket from ABQ to ATL; get one to CLT (Charlotte). The flight to Charlotte is $212, but a ticket to Atlanta costs $601. The New York Times reported on this phenomenon a while back, but this is the first time I've seen such a drastic difference in fares myself. Buying the ticket with an extra leg to Charlotte results in a 65% savings! Digging deeper into the fares, the trip to Atlanta has the code M while the trip to Charlotte has the code U on both legs. The Fare Chart at cwsi.net/delta lists both codes as discounted coach fares.

If you'd like to take advantage of this unadvertised sale for Atlanta tickets, just buy a ticket to Charlotte. Be aware that you cannot check bags on this flight because those bags would end up in Charlotte. You could also be rerouted if your original flight is cancelled.

It is possible to find other deals such as this one on different routes. It is easiest to find cheaper flights to a major airline hub by looking for a ticket to a close-by city that would require a connection through the hub.

Happy Trails!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY!!!

2010-11-25T12:28:08-08:00

Upstate New York

The Internet is a Scary Place

2010-10-31T05:00:00-07:00

Scary Shirt

In honor of Halloween, here is a scary article. Well, maybe only the first half is scary.

Google is the New Microsoft. You have to use them. Microsoft Office used to be the default business app; now, it's Google Search. Everyone's afraid of them. If you're a startup and Google moves into your space, your company is done. They say scary things: "If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place." This was said by Google CEO Eric Schmidt in 2009. Here's a great response to this statement by Bruce Schneier, a computer security specialist.

I'd bet that within 10 searches at a new computer, Google can identify who you are. Even if you don't ever log in or have an account, they probably have some algorithm to identify people across the world. Ever searched for your address when getting directions? Ever looked at your house on google maps? What about Googling yourself? Maybe they just know you as someone who likes to search for BBQ places in Los Angeles. Or maybe they saw that you searched for the same restaurant on both your home and work computers the same day. Google can probably put all this together and use it to track everything you do with their services.

Going further, it's not just search. Google maps has a record of everywhere you've been or want to go. Google Ads can track you across many of the sites on the Internet. Gmail keeps track of everyone you know, how they interact with you and what they know about you. YouTube, Blogger, Picasa, Groups, Health and dozens of other Google sites can constantly collect information about you. Google mobile tracks your location when you search for nearby places. Google's Chrome records every keystroke you type in the bar at the top, and maybe every page you visit. Chrome OS would be able to track everything you do with your computer. Android could do the same with your mobile phone. With or without an account, Google can find you on the Internet.

Maybe I should just live in the woods.

It's safe to say that Google knows more about you than anyone single person on Earth. Now, reread that quote by CEO Eric Schmidt and tell me if you're scared.: "If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place." Maybe I'm just crazy.

For more of this conversation, read this New York Times article about advertising and privacy.

Now onto some lighter thoughts. All the best college grads wanted to work for Microsoft in the 90s, Google in the 2000s, and now it seems like Facebook is the new kid in town, along with other startups like Digg and Reddit.

Facebook is strange because, like Google, it makes most of its money from ads. It is still hard for me to believe that multi-billion dollar companies run on little 2-inch squares on the sides of websites. Facebook, also like Google, appears to care more about pushing their own technology agenda than its users' privacy. It seems that ever since the site broke out of the college market, Facebook has been upsetting users by creating products that, by default, decrease privacy. While a select few have stopped using Facebook, it seems that most put up with the service because they need it to stay 'connected' with their friends.

Microsoft is the new open source champion. Their .NET environment is open sourced in the mono project, and MS has gone so far as to create a "Community Promise" that they will not sue anyone for patient infringement involving mono. They also no longer have a monopoly on web browsers because of Firefox and Chrome (and Safari and Opera). Their search engine remains in the third place position (although I do like their maps and flights features). It would seem as if MS cares more about its Xbox and SYNC product lines, than it's computer software or Internet properties.

Happy Halloween!

Microsoft is more like an old guy now. Think News Corp, Comcast, Verizon, Time Warner, etc. These companies don't really have a handle on a young industry that is moving fast. They're worried their businesses might soon disappear so they buy a startup here or there. But more often than not, they buy an AOL (Time Warner) or a MySpace (News Corp) that is on the way down.

What about Apple? Apple is off in their own world pretending like they're not paying attention to what's going on. They ignore their hardware compeditors (Dell, HP, Lenovo) by pricing their products a couple hundered dollars higher. Their phones only run on AT&T but that doesn't bother them. Their iPods took command of the music player market years ago. The iTunes Store competes with Amazon, but not really. Apple people are just that, Apple people. (Some use the word fanboys.) They often use the services of the other companies mentioned here, but they usually go for the Apple product if it exists.

Apple is always trying to drive Mac sales. That's why they created the iPod, iPhone and iPad. These devices were all made to lure customers into the Mac world. However, it just so happened that these devices dominate their respective markets. Good for Apple.

Other weird things: Oracle's purchase of Sun kinda sounds like eBay's acquisition of Skype a few years back. "What's a database company going to do with Java?" is a lot like "what's an auction web site going to do with Internet communications?" Amazon has an interesting position with S3 and AWS as they could soon be (or already are) running much of the Internet.

That's all for now. Happy Halloween!

NOOKflip

2010-10-27T00:57:36-07:00

Barnes and Nobel came out with their NOOKcolor today which is really just a 7" Android tablet specialized for reading ebooks, specifically those from BN's NOOKbooks store. This got me thinking that the killer "device" that everyone is trying to create should really be a original NOOK (e-ink) on one side and a NOOKcolor on the other side. Take the devices and glue them back to back. Call it a NOOKflip. You can browse for books and use all your apps on the color side, but when's time for serious reading, the e-ink side is there. Of course, these two screens would share the same OS, hardware, and storage.

Really though, Apple should adopt this idea in their iPad (and possibly their iPhone and iPod Touch) and add an e-ink screen to the back. These new devices would be a full iOS device but with an e-ink option for reading books, PDFs and long websites. But you can still run all your apps, games and watch movies on the beautiful, color LCD.

The best solution would be a screen that can do both e-ink and color LCD. While I'm confident some people are working on this, I'm afraid it's a couple years off.

Hotels Need to Offer Rental Bikes

2010-10-09T00:03:42-07:00

tourist?

What's the first thing most travelers do when they arrive at their destination? Rent a car and drive to the hotel. Most cities require a car to get around. However, these same cities can usually be navigated by bike. But where do you get the bike? Bike shops often rent bikes, but who knows where they are? It's hard to bring a bike with you on a plane. Why not rent a bike from the hotel? Wouldn't it be great to arrive in a new city, take a courtesy shuttle to a hotel, and then jam around on 2 wheels? Exploring a new city by bike allows you to see everything. There's also no parking worries or charges. You don't have to worry about traffic. You can take your newly rented bike on public transit. It'd be cheap for the hotel, and cheap for the guests. Hotels need to offer rental bikes.

Over-metering Congested Freeways Will Increase Capacity

2010-10-08T23:02:37-07:00

traffic

Every day at 5:00 PM everyone in LA knows what traffic on the 10 is going to be like. Awful. Every city has these freeways. They're the roads everyone takes to get home from work. As a side note, traffic at 5 is worse than traffic in the morning because people arrive at work at different times, but most leave around 5. Also, many more people do things after work (get dinner, shop, meet friends) than before work. With everyone leaving Santa Monica at 5, how can we improve things? Over-metered freeways.

Most freeways in LA have meters (those stop lights that control cars entering the freeway). Traffic is caused by freeways being over capacity. Reduce the number of cars on the road (over-meter) and traffic should improve.

Think of a lane. If traffic is crawling, only a few cars can pass a given point in a minute. If cars are going 30 MPH then a couple cars can pass that same point in say 10 seconds. If traffic is moving at 60 MPH, the same number of cars passes through that same point in an even shorter time. This means that with faster traffic, the capacity of the lane (and consequently the freeway) is increased. By reducing the number of vehicles on the road, the speed of cars increases and capacity increases. This means everyone gets home quicker. Everyone wins.

The only problem is people who run the lights. However, these people are few. Maybe if wait times get longer, more people will run the lights. However, if people understand the big picture, hopefully they'll get it and chill out.

Podcasts

2010-10-07T00:04:03-07:00

MacBook > iPad

2010-09-11T16:22:00-07:00

Contrary to popular belief, an iPad is not the best device for a flight. I just flew from Los Angeles to Albuquerque to San Francisco and back to Los Angeles and developed a this blog from scratch on my MacBook. How could I ever expect to do that with an iPad? Sure, I could hook up a keyboard and write some code. But with my MacBook I'm able to have an Apache server with PHP on my local computer and develop, debug and view what I'm doing in real-time. Now everyone is not a web developer, but most people could get something done on a flight instead of watching a movie. Sure, the ipad can be used to read books, but I think a Kindle or Nook is better for that.

There are 2 classes of devices: ones that fit in your pocket and ones that fit in your bag. The iPhone/iPod are fit in your pocket devices, and people bring those everywhere they go. Larger devices must be carried in a bag and therefore are only available when you plan to need them. This puts the iPad in the same catergory as a MacBook.

The only reason to get an iPad is if you want something with a Mac-like experiance but do not want to fork over $1000 for a MacBook. But really, the functionality and lifespan of a MacBook makes it worth the extra cash. Apple sees the iPad as a iPhone-type device that will be replaced every 2 years while their compters last 3 to 5 years.

Everyone who wants an iPad: just get a MacBook and you'll be much happier.

Also, the Apple spelling dictionary contains iPhone and iPod, but not iPad?

before the iPad, before the iPhone

Where to Eat In and Around Hollywood

2010-09-11T00:21:31-07:00

Here's the lowdown on where to eat in Hollywood. Of course there's the trendy places, but these spots are dependable and well priced.

We'll start with Chinese. There's 3 places you might want to check out with different quality levels. Maos (Yelp) has some of the best Chinese in LA and it's affordable. They started out in Venice Beach, but opened up a Hollywood location a couple years ago. They made sure to keep their original character including dishes named Gang of Four fried shrimp and People's potstickers. If you want Chinese a little faster or cheaper, head over to Hoys Wok (Yelp) on Sunset. This is your standard Chinese place, fish tank included. Nothing is going to wow you, but it's not going to really disappoint you. Then there's Chinatown Express (Yelp). You can guess by the name this place is a Panda Express clone. The food isn't bad, it's super cheap, and you always get more then you can eat. If you need to just fill up, go to Chinatown Express.

For something a little closer to home, there's In-n-Out (Yelp). If you're from Southern California, you already know In-n-Out. If you're not from Southern California, you'll soon know about In-n-Out. If you prefer pizza over burgers, hit up Village Pizzeria (Yelp). It's located on Larchmont Blvd. which is the main drag in a cool little neighborhood full of good food and quirky shops. Village Pizzeria was created by a dude who moved from New York to San Francisco to LA and was disappointed by the lack of good pizza. They also have a location at Ivar and Yucca.

The best place to get late nite eats is Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles (Yelp). It seems the later the hour, then longer the line at Roscoe's. These guys are a local LA chain with 5 locations in the county. Chicken and waffles might seem like a strange combination to someone who's never had it, but trust me, it works. Go for the #2. If you prefer Persian chicken, go to Ro Ro's Chicken (Yelp). This is the best pita sandwich/falafel/kabob place in LA. They're open til midnight and are dirt cheap. The food is delicious, and if you're lucky, there'll be some dudes smoking a hookah out front.

Looking for a grocery store? There's Ralphs and Vons around, but I think Trader Joe's (Yelp) is better. Again, if you have a Trader Joe's around you, you already know what they've got. If not, it's a grocery store except they label around 75% of their items as Trader Joe's brand. They've got some great frozen dishes and boxed meals like their Indian Fare. Did you say Indian? Actually, there's a great little Indian place on Santa Monica called Crown of India (Yelp). Crown of India is kinda like you're Hoys Wok of Indian. Reliable, reasonably priced and tasty. You can also order online and they deliver.

Hope you get some ideas and see what Hollywood has to offer.

Hollyweird

Baseball Stadiums I've Been To

2010-08-31T23:25:07-07:00

Major League
Candlestick Park
Bank One Ballpark
Dodger Stadium
Yankee Stadium
Coors Field
AT&T Park
Yankee Stadium

Spring Training
Camelback Ranch
Peoria Sports Complex
HoHoKam Stadium
Salt River Fields at Talking Stick

Minor League
Isotopes Park
Richmond County Bank Ballpark
MCU Park
Raley Field
Charlotte Sports Park

AT&T Park in San Francisco