History of Morse Code in the Boy Scouts

Posted on February 22, 2016 by Walter Underwood

Morse code has been in and out of the Boy Scout requirements for over a hundred years. During that time, Morse has changed from a career skill to a rewarding hobby, from a vocation to an avocation. Also during that time, radio has grown to include voice communications, data communications, and broadcast.

Morse interpreter strip

I’ve gathered all the requirements I could find: rank, merit badge, or skill award. Morse was a requirement for First Class for 61 years, 1911 to 1972. It returned as an option from 1979 to 1990 during the skill award period of BSA advancement.

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Ultraseek vs. Google Search Appliance

Posted on February 12, 2016 by Walter Underwood

On the occasion of the Googlebox end of life news, it is time to talk about what a weak product it really was.

Sandia Labs was an Ultraseek customer and ran a relevance experiment where Ultraseek trounced the Google Search Appliance. But first some history.

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Self Portrait Series, Continued

Posted on February 2, 2016 by Walter Underwood

One of the assignments in my college photography class was a self portrait. I shot a series of reflective portraits, my imprint on things like my leather bike seat, the soles of my shoes, and the fading on my jeans. This is another in that series.

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Most Casual Observer

In physics class, many things are intuitively obvious to the most casual observer. Welcome to my casual observations.

Monthly Archives: February 2016

History of Morse Code in the Boy Scouts

Ultraseek vs. Google Search Appliance

Self Portrait Series, Continued