HELLO WORLD!! - Java

I decided to do a Hello World blog whenever I want to learn or work on a programming language. These are notes for myself in case I lose interest and want to come back to a language. Today, I do Java!.

1.  Download the latest Java JDK (http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html?ssSourceSiteId=otnjp).  At the time of this writing, it is Java 8.
2.  Install.

I did this in Windows 7 so going forward, this will be Win7 notes.

3.  Change the PATH - Open the Advanced System Settings - Environment Variables - PATH
4.  Add the path of the Java.exe and/or Javac.exe to the Variable Name field.  Don't forget the semicolon.  (ie:  C:\Program Files\Java\jdk.1.8.0_05\bin;)  You might need to add (x86) to the end of "Program Files" if javac gives you a "not recognized as an internal or external command" error (ie:  C:\Program Files(x86)\Java\jdk.1.8.0_05\bin;)
5.  Open Notepad and type:

public class helloworld
{
  public static void main(String[] arg)
  {
    System.out.println("Hello World!");
  }
}

6.  Save as helloworld.java
7.  Type javac helloworld.java in the command prompt to compile.
8.  If no errors you can check to see that helloworld.class is created.
9.  Type java helloworld in the command prompt and you should get....

Hello World!

Shelling The Hawaiian "Escargot" - OPIHI

Hawai'i has a lot of special foods that make the 808 state unique.  Laulau...  Poke...  Poi...  And one of the best...  OPIHI...

There are many ways to shell an opihi.  Some people use a butter knife, some people use a spoon...  Most islanders like to do it the "natural way."  Check out these instructions.

Step 1.  Grab an empty shell.

Step 2.  Using the empty shell, scrape the opihi out of the shell.  Try to keep the edge of the empty shell as close to the bottom of the occupied shell as possible.  There is a "sack" at the bottom of the opihi similar to escargot that might break if you aren't careful.  

Step 3.  Continue scooping until the whole opihi is out.

Step 4.  Repeat until all shells are empty.

Step 5.  Enjoy your opihi!

Some people will put the opihi "meat" back into the shell with some soy sauce, citrus, sugar, or other ingredients, put them on the grill and eat them after cooking for a little while.  Cooked or raw, it is a very tasty treat.

Note:  Opihi is usually found at the edge of the ocean where the waves crash into the rocks.  Every year people get hurt or even die trying to collect them.  If you ever see these on the rocks at the ocean, always remember ocean safety.

Honolulu Maker Faire

Want to be a part of the Maker movement in Hawaii?  This weekend is going to be Hawaii's first Maker Faire!  If you have ever seen or read the magazine - MAKE, you should kind of know what the Faire will be about.  It is a DIY meeting on steroids.

The Faire will be held at Iolani High School from 12:00 Noon to 5:00 PM HST.

If you need more information, visit http://makerfairehonolulu.com/ and get your tickets today!

Falling behind on the fun

So I like models.  The difficult thing is actually opening the box and building these things.

Picked up this ae86 coupe because I was missing my old car.  Not planning to build this for a while.  

Got this one from a friend.  Its an R1.  Probably won't build this one for a while either.

This one I won from a friend.  We were competing who will end up higher placed in our Fantasy Football league.  We call our little competition the Mecha Bowl.  Whoever wins will get a Mecha model from the other one.  The main rule is that whoever wins has to actually build his model so this one will be built.  Maybe I'll post my progress here.

Quick post: Tying your shoelaces

Ok, this one is going to be really quick but I wanted to share what may be one of the coolest sites I have seen in a while.

My friend and I recently bought a pair of Converse Chuck Taylors and we were lacing them up.  We  talked about the many ways we have (or have seen people) lace up their shoes so I decided to google shoe lacing.

That's where this site came up - Ian's Shoelace Site.  In it, he covers hundreds of ways to lace up your "kicks".  According to the site, there are 2 trillion ways to lace up shoes!  And all this time, I have only been worried about over or under lacing...

Enjoy!

Raspberry Pi Project 1: Media PC

So it seems the first thing people have been doing with their Raspberry Pi has been media center.

I decided to go with the Raspbmc (http://www.raspbmc.com) distribution for no other reason than when I googled information for the project, it was the first hit I saw.  The installation is pretty well documented on the website and easy to follow.  You will need an SD card to install the Raspbmc distribution on it.  Specs of the card you need are on the Raspbmd website.

After about 5-10 minutes the installer was done!  

Plugged the Raspberry Pi into my TV.  After about 20-30 minutes, the Raspbmc system was installed, updated, and up and running.

Initial setup screen.

There are both iOS and Android remotes for XBMC.  I loaded the "Official XBMC Remote" app.
To get it working, I had to activate the Raspbmc web server and input the information into the app but it worked pretty flawlessly after that.

Official XBMC Remote

That is basically it.  My first Raspberry Pi project.  Pretty easy, not much to it, and I expect to be moving on to my next Raspberry Pi project in a few months.



Side note:

Years ago, I tried building a EPIA-M Mini-ITX media center (http://www.via.com.tw/en/initiatives/spearhead/mini-itx/) that ended up being more expensive.  I put it in a wooden box, got it working, and never really used it.  It was kind of expensive for what it was but it was a fun project.

Pebble Smartwatch

So I got my Pebble Smartwatch from a friend recently and have been playing with it for a day or two.

I already threw away the box it shipped in but it was in a nice clean box...  Nothing exceptional.  It came with a usb charging cable that magnetically attaches to the left side of the watch.  It came with a slight charge, but it needed to fully charge another couple of hours.  

Overall, the watch feels nice, its not too heavy or light.  

One of the various watch faces that come preinstalled on the watch.  There aren't many apps yet available for the Pebble on the ios platform but it seems the community is pretty excited about the watch.  You can download an SDK to create your own stuff too!

 On the iPhone, you have to download the Pebble app from the appstore and turn on your Bluetooth connection on your phone to pair them together.  Instructions were pretty straightforward.  Load the app, pair the watch, and you are good to go.

If you just got you watch, you might need to update it.  

You can add new watchfaces via the app.  If you want to download new faces, you just need to download it to your phone and the app will allow you to load it onto your watch.

Having the Pebble makes it much easier for me to weed out text messages and notifications that I was getting on my phone.  Now I can keep my phone in my pocket while I get texts and email notifications on my watch.  

I'm very excited to see what developers have in store for Pebble (or any smartwatches) users.  Visit http://www.getpebble.com for more information.