RIP Google Reader

How do you read this blog?

If you do it via Google Reader, You must be aware by now that Google has announced that they will be retiring the service 01-July-2013.  Oh NO!

But hey, there are alternatives.  Who knew?  Google was the 800 lb gorilla in the room.  With them active, the alternatives were boutique news readers, largely ignored except by the Neteratti.

I am not going to tell you what reader to use - that is a decision that each must make for him/her/self.

But I am going to tell you what I chose:  Feedly.  Why did I choose it?

• It uses OAuth for authentication, via your Google account.  (That means that Feedly asks, via OAuth, that Google authenticate you.)  Why is this good?  
• Federated identity management (OAuth - Open Authentication - is the authentication portion of OpenID - a federated identity manager) is the way things will be working everywhere in the future.  Step aboard the train!
• Doing authentication properly is hard.  Google is an experienced old-hand at this.  I trust them much more than I'd trust a brand new site.  
• If you are already logged into Google, you will not be asked for a password when opening Feedly.
• No new password to memorize
• Feedly will automatically import the current state of your Google Reader.
• There is an iOS Feedly app
• There is a Firefox Feedly plugin.  

The user interface is different - it is much richer.  It's going to take me a while to get on top of it.  But here in the fast-paced Internet world, change is the only constant, so join me in embracing change!

RIP Google Reader

Everyone has a story

Everyone has a story.  We all do.

But unlike those on shore, the stories of those of us living out here on G Dock lead to us living on a boat.  And that makes us definitely weird, at least by the standards of those living ashore.  So that means the stories that got us here all have an unusual twist, or a strange angle.

So aside from just having some common experiences with others living aboard (which are worth exploring in their own right), all of us have stories which are well above average when it comes to their interest level.

So it behooves you to grab a bottle of wine and go visit your neighbors down the dock.  Ask them how they got here, and listen.

I promise that you will not be bored.

Everyone has a story

Brushed again

Have any brushed stainless on your boat? On Eolian, our stove is brushed stainless.  This finish is produced in the factory by sanding the metal surface.  

The thing is, stainless is hard, but not so hard that use, and more importantly cleaning attempts, can scratch it, ruining that beautiful, uniform appearance.

On our stove, between the two burners you see here, a typical dishwashing sponge with a scratchy side was used to remove some baked on food.  Sadly, it left a clearly visible remnant of the effort:  an area where the scratches ran up-and-down rather than side-to-side.

Since the finish is originally created by sanding, I thought it might be repaired in the same fashion.  But what grit should I use?  Originally I tried 400, but it was too fine, producing an almost polished finish.  So I backed down to 320:  perfect.  I know the photography doesn't really show it, but the cleaning 'fingerprint' is gone, completely.

NOTE:  When sanding, you must be careful to always move the sand paper in the same direction that the original "brushing" went.

Of course, if the scratches are deeper than the ones that 320 grit makes, then it will take a long time to sand down past them.

I did the actual sanding with a 3M sanding sponge that I now have dedicated to the purpose, but I suppose that any sandpaper would work.

(BTW, I used the sanding sponge to renew a stainless head sink too.  It worked just as well there.  In this case, the brushing was circular, around the inside of the sink, rather than linear.)

Brushed again

Cozy

Raining at anchor in Port Madison

When you live aboard, you live aboard in the sunshine, and you live aboard in the rain.  It isn't all sundowners in the cockpit in the cooling evening after a warm day, although it sure has been that way here in Seattle for the last couple of weeks.

Back to normal

Seattle weather has regained its senses.  And all the plants out there, burgeoning away greenly, are thankful.  It's been a long time since they got a drink.

For us, out here at anchor?  It's a time of coziness, corn bread and reading.

And the rain has washed the salt from the windows.

Cozy