More Google Goodness

I know that Google has become the latest tech company to hate, but I really have to give them credit. I've become so dependent on their offerings that I can't imagine ever using the lame Yahoo portal, or my pathetic Hotmail email account with it's 2 mb storage allocation. I can only imagine the heartburn MS had when they learned that Google was releasing a web mail solution with 1 GB storage. Then when they saw how the application worked, as a Beta version, they must have just cried.

But that's not the end of the story. Then Google showed the world how to use Ajax with Google maps. Yes, there is some concern that armed with my phone number, a total stranger could have a complete AAA map directions to my doorstep. But Google offers the option to remove your phone listing. I suggest you test your phone number in Google search and see if it provides a map link to your residence.

But the hits keep on coming from Blogger, RSS Reader, Google Talk, Earth and more recently a great update to Picaca. And that's the real purpose of this post, as Picasa2 has just helped me organize all my photos scattered across my multiple hard drives and network paths. It's a beautiful thing to see. And the real kicker is the integration with Blogger. So I found a long lost image I put together many many moons ago with a 3d noise filter. It's my favorite cartoon character of all time, and first person that can figure it out gets a 486 DX-66, 8mb ram, 60mb HD PC!!! Now try not to push others out of the way, lets show some respect here to your fellow cyber neighbors. Do keep in mind winner pays for shipping.

Click on the image to enlarge it for easier viewing.

If you don't remember the trick to view these images, it's actually easier on the PC then on a poster. The trick is to focus on an object that is past the image. All the crossing your eyes and staring at your nose and finger is crap. Don't strain your eyes, keep blinking normally, but pick out an object behind you that is reflected on your monitor, such as a light source. Try to position yourself so that the imagine you are now focusing on is in the middle of this image. After a few seconds you will not see the image, but you will start to see the layers develop. Once you can get those layers to remain without having to look back at the focus point, then you can concentrate on the layers...and then your brain will help put those layers together and form an outline of my beloved cartoon character.