This post is mostly so I can get the idea out of my head, but also to solicit comments from anyone in a similar situation.

I put a lot of content in a lot of different places (that’s what she said) on the Internet.  Flickr for photos, Vimeo for videos, bookmarks in Delicious, tasks in RTM, other stuff in Evernote, etc. etc.  All of this content is “tagged” with one or more tags. 

I would like a desktop application that will access these services and show me content for a specific tag that I enter.  For example, I am going to Virginia in a couple of weeks to bicycle along the New River.  I have a bunch of content in Evernote tagged newriver.  I have bookmarks in Delicious with the tag newriver.  After I come back I’ll have newriver photos and newriver videos, etc. etc.  I want to be able to open an application and type in “newriver” and have it show me the variety of content.  It should be able to save searches. 

With something like this you could build something like a project management application just by using tags in a collection of services.

Maybe I’ll just build it myself.
srg

A thought I had today:

I have a fascination with recommendation engines on websites.  Two of the best examples are at amazon.com and netflix.com.  You rate books or movies you’ve read/seen and the website recommends other stuff you might like.  Pretty slick and I use these sites all of the time to find new stuff.

We were talking about these recommendation engines when I was with my parents over Easter and my dad mentioned the one problem I have with these engines, which is that your life can become very two-dimensional if you use only these recommendation sites to find new stuff.  You say you like something, the site finds something similar and says “try this”, and you like it, so it gives you something else that’s just like those other two, and it goes on and on and on. 

Sometimes I want to see a recommendation for something completely different than what I just read.  This expands my horizons and it is fun to try something new.  Maybe I won’t like it, but I’ve tried it.

So it would be great to have an “opposite” button on these recommendations.  You say you like romantic comedies, well try “Saw III” and let us know what you think.

A related but different thought is the “Opposing Viewpoint” extension for your web browser. If you always read articles from the same sources, and you always get news from the same sources, and you always read the same blogs, you may only be seeing one side of the story.

I would like a browser extension that will bring up the top five articles with the opposing viewpoint when I am reading an article.  If I am reading an article that says global warming is true science and it is happening then it will list five articles that say it isn’t really happening.  I can read the opposing viewpoint and make my own decisions.

It is interesting to think about the possibilities when you see all of the sides of a story, and if the technology can open new paths for you instead of just leading you down the same old one.

Now for implementation . . .

srg

I just got back from an overnight trip exploring the abandoned section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.  Mike, D’Arcy, Steve and I went over to Breezewood, PA on Saturday morning.  After having a bite of lunch we found the western end of the abandoned section and started hiking east.  The route is still mostly asphalt, but it is broken up and covered in debris.  After a mile and a half we came upon the entrance of the first tunnel, Ray’s Hill.  It looks much like the entrance of the tunnels that are currently in use on the PA turnpike, but there are only two lanes running through it.  This was the primary reason for abandoning the tunnels in the first place.  It is surpisingly in good shape inside.  It is still paved and you could drive your car inside the tunnel without any problems.  There is a lot of graffiti and no lights.  The tunnel was short enough that we could see the other end as we entered.  We made it to the eastern end and hiked a little further to try to see a lake we could see on the map.  The lake ended up being further down in a gully than we thought, and we only caught a glimpse of it.

We hiked back to the car, then drove over to the other end of the abandoned section (the eastern end).  We hiked another mile and a half to the eastern entrance of the Sideling Hill tunnel.  This tunnel was much longer, but we could still see the reflection of the light on the other end, so we were never in complete darkness.  This tunnel was just like the first, with lots of graffiti, but generally in good shape.

After we hiked back to the car, my GPS unit showed we had hiked for about 12 miles.  This was much further than I had expected, and we were all pretty tired.  It was definitely worth it.  We had a great time, and saw some pretty interesting sights.

For more info on the abandoned turnpike section: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abandoned_Turnpike

For photos and video: http://www.flickr.com/photos/srgdog/sets/72157615325009466/

One more video: http://www.vimeo.com/3673777
srg

We have had a great few days spending Christmas with our families.  Photos are at Flickr.
srg

Today we celebrated Rylie’s baptism.  Norma, Peter, and Lindsay came to town to help us celebrate.  Mike and Robyn had everyone over to their place on Sunday after church for food and drink.  Some photos are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/srgdog
srg

Sam and I went hiking at Tar Hollow State Park on Saturday.  We had a great time, until we lost the trail and had to do a little cross-country trekking down the side of a ridge.  I took a couple of photos you can see at http://www.flickr.com/photos/srgdog
srg

Holly and I dressed up on Friday night and went over to the Highball Halloween celebration on High Street.  They closed down several blocks of High Street here in Columbus and put on a a Halloween celebration.  Lots of people, lots of great costumes, and we had a really good time.  You can see pictures of us dressed up at http://www.flickr.com/photos/srgdog
srg

Last weekend we all gathered as a family to celebrate Mike’s birthday and Robyn’s birthday.  We all had a good time as usual.  Photos are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/srgdog.
srg

Well we already did.  On Sunday we went to Cooper Hollow down near Oak Hill to do some hiking.  Unfortunately there is public hunting in Cooper Hollow between September and April, so there is no hiking allowed.  We then went to Jackson Lake, but there’s really no trails there.  So finally we went to Lake Katherine on the other side of Jackson.  We finally got a good hike in.

Photos are at Flickr

srg

The Gaslight Anthem - The ‘59 Sound (OFFICIAL VIDEO)

The Gaslight Anthem - great band, great song