Electronic Proof of Passage; What Works for Me

Randonneurs USA has provided for Electronic Proof of Passage, acceptable forms to be agreed upon by the rider and the permanent owner.

The following works for me:

I am a total fan of Timestamp Camera, a free phone app which imprints the timestamp AND location on the picture as it is being taken.  It even has a cool feature to superimpose a translucent overlay of the MAP with location dot in the upper right corner.

As the pictures are timestamped, I will also accept them for timed controls.  You and/or your bike need to be in the picture (SR-600 type of documentation), and the picture should be of something which is clearly the control location.

Like so:





(before I discovered the text formatting options, but it is an unambiguous pic of the control!)



Settings changes for best readability:
Position - select "One line to the edge" and "Time in below"
Format - yyyy/mm/dd, lat/long, City/State; optionally select Display Map
Font - default?  I  use ArialMT
Input - if you wanted, you could put your name and route name/number.
Opacity - move the background opacity to about 1/3 of the slider.

For total fancyness, in the menu (upper row of icons), if appears that you can set it up to send email to someone as each pic is taken.  It creates the email, but you still need to tap Send.  Still Very  Cool.

Number Four!

US Patents, that is. Really big grin here. We signed the invention disclosure for this one just a few days AFTER I had been subjected to a 7 hour deposition defending another patent. (We won.) I told the IP department that I just don't learn...

US Patent 7,593,814, Attaching measurement data to an area map

Here, if you want the details.

The stuff in my head...

(warning, exquisitely geeky content ahead)

Brian is living at home for the next 6 months, during his engineering co-op internship. His computers have moved in (yes, plural), he's excavated his bedroom, and some of our dinners are now Brian-friendly. Like, when was the last time YOU had tuna noodle casserole for dinner, without children in the house? I myself am waiting for the Kraft Mac and Cheese extravaganza (yum!)

So, a couple nights ago... "Dad, can you help me? It is a unix question. I've got a hidden folder that I need to get at, and I need to make a soft link to it. Do you remember the command?"

Wait for it.....

Me: "ln -s"

I have not used unix in possibly a decade. Yes, that was the right answer.