Ryan Akins

Upgraded to CS 2008

2008-06-13T17:23:00Z

They site is now upgraded to Community Server 2008! There are some new features so feel free to check them out. You may notice the most obvious change is the theme is the new default CS 2008 theme. I will come up with something new in the next few weeks. Let me know what you think!...(read more)

Rule 240

2008-01-30T21:17:17Z

Have you ever heard of Rule 240? I hadn't until today but basically if your flight is canceled for any reason other than weather you can ask the ticket agent about rule 240 which requires them to schedule you on another flight, even on another airline if necessary, to get you where you are going. It's an old rule and some things have changed but it still exists. Check out this post on the Today Show Blog for more info. The article is really long but the first half explains most of the rules...(read more)

Guitar Hero

2008-01-26T04:38:01Z

I'm not big into video games but guitar hero is quite the revolution. Now anyone can be a rockstar and have fun with facial hair too. I "found" this pic and had to post it. ;) Rockin' the headband!...(read more)

Flow Bindings Break

2008-01-11T19:50:00Z

I purchased Flow NXT AT bindings along with a Nitro Misfit towards the end of last season because the roof rack on my Jetta ripped off while driving home and I lost my snowboard (with bindings attached of course). I rode on them for only a few days and a small piece of plastic that holds a bolt tight on the inside front strap broke off. A few more trips up to the mountain the same plastic piece on the other binding broke off. My first thought was I can't believe this happened but it didn't...(read more)

Nike +

2008-01-10T17:59:12Z

I know a couple people that have the Nike Plus setup and have been interested in it for a while. There are a few problems you immediately face if this is something you want. First, you need the proper iPod. I already have 2, a now old school 30GB one without color and a shuffle I got for running/working out last Christmas. Now, I have a 3rd which is a the 2nd generation iPod Nano, not the new nano that plays videos. I found a brand new 4GB one on Craigslist for $80. Ahhh craigslist, you always treat...(read more)

Back online and on a new host!

2007-12-08T00:52:00Z

I have been fighting with my previous hosting company to keep my site live for easily the last 6 months. It was one problem after another. I just switched over to Server Intellect and look forward to my site live all the time. Don't let me down! I am also launching a new site in the next week or so. More to come later. It may come as a shock but it will be based on Community Server. Last note... Telligent just released a beta of a new product called Graffiti . It's pretty slick!...(read more)

iPod Touch, really? awesome

2007-09-06T02:01:00Z

I just read that Apple is introducing the iPod Touch . Wow, it looks awesome and this guy has a good point about the iPhone. Too soon? The thought of it does sound really cool and my iPod is one of the old ones without video so I'm not cool anymore. Too bad I just bought a new kayak!! It's a Pyranna Burn . More info on my Kayaking Blog....(read more)

Olympic Peninsula Weekend

2007-08-17T08:18:00Z

This past weekend Emily and I took a trip to the OP (Olympic Peninsula) for a overnight backpacking trip and camping on the ocean. It was a great trip and along with the perfect weather were really long ferry lines. We hiked up 4.5 miles to our campsite Friday evening getting there just in time to eat dinner and catch a view of the valley we were in. In the morning we took a day hike the top of Marmot Pass, about a .5 mile away from the camp, and around the pass. It was really cool and had great...(read more)

Gettin' Cultured

2007-08-17T00:51:00Z

Last week Emily and I saw an Opera and Musical not only in the same week but back-to-back days!! I felt smarter, better, and snobbier than you! Also, a little tired of sitting still for several hours at a time. Anyways, we saw The Flying Dutchman at the Seattle Opera and it was actually pretty good. Because Emily is a total dork and likes to learn we bought tickets to the lecture before the show. We were 15 minutes late and it lasted another 35 minutes. I learned that we were the youngest people...(read more)

Tumwater Canyon - 7/28/07

2007-08-01T06:36:00Z

On Saturday a large group of paddlers met up to run Tumwater Canyon of the Wenatchee River. This is a classic stretch of big water Class IV-V whitewater that I've been wanting to paddle ever since my first trip to Leavenworth. Driving to or from Leavenworth on Hwy 2 you pass this stretch of huge whitewater and in the back of my head I've been a little scared yet tempted to get on it. It was flowing just under 2000 cfs which puts most of the major rapids between IV+ and V- with the exception...(read more)

dontclick.it

2007-07-26T20:16:00Z

Jon Broom recently posted about www.dontclick.it and I think it's such a cool idea. I doubt it will catch on but is something to think about. It's a simple concept and makes you start to re-think the direction UX has gone. However, Flash is a pain in the butt (IMO) and I can't imagine developing all of that animation. And as with all Flash sites don't click back!!...(read more)

Sky, Cooper, FITW, MM, Sauk

2007-07-25T11:12:00Z

I was doing a great job tracking all of my trips but got a little lazy lately posting each of them. Now I've lost count of what river and when. However, I know for a fact I took trips down the Skykomish, Cooper, Fall in the Wall, Middle Middle, and the Sauk. There is a possibility I left something out... The Cooper is far and away my most favorite river at the moment. It is a classic Class IV/V creek run that has some great drops but isn't too consequential. Here are 2 videos I took last...(read more)

Vacation Last Week

2007-07-25T11:09:55Z

I took last week off from work to hang out with my parents who came in town for the week. Emily, my Mom, and I went rafting on the White Salmon River on Saturday which was an awesome trip. Our rafts crew include the three of us and 3 other guys that were with a huge bachelor party. We were a solid crew and didn't loose a single person the entire trip. Here we are totally unaware a picture was being taken: The trip started with some Class IV rapids then settled down to Class III only to end with...(read more)

Music

2007-07-13T20:05:00Z

I never thought about blogging the music I'm listening to until today. I just picked up some new CDs and love them and wanted to share. One of the great things about Seattle is being able to listen to KEXP on the radio. They are an amazing listener supported radio station (I am a member) that toons me into all kinds of new music. They also have an extensive website that includes streaming audio, live performances, streaming archives of the radio show, a blog (not based in CS ) and all kinds of...(read more)

How hot is too hot to work?

2007-07-11T23:59:00Z

The temperature in Seattle has broken 90! That may not seem hot to those in Texas but without A/C it gets old after a while. Since my office is upstairs in a converted attic it gets hot so I moved my office downstairs and have been working from there the past few days. When it's hot out or in the late afternoon moving my "remote" office downstairs is common. So, when is it too hot? Well today I was forced into the basement. The temperature in my upstairs office was 95 and the downstairs...(read more)