All day yesterday I received storm alerts for this big wind storm we are expecting in the next few hours.
Batteries are charged, my generator tank is full, and the truck’s fuel tank is topped off.
Pantry is stocked, and water is on hand. I get ready for any storm I think is heading our way, but lately the weather predictions have been either overblown, or just wrong. Best to be safe either way, but I had hoped technology would have advanced a little more in the accuracy department.
Usually my dogs are better weather predictors when a storm is coming. When they start acting goofy, I know we’re in for something bad.
So if this storm does knock out the power and even the cell service for a few days, I’ll at least have the one tool on hand that is always useful in many situations. No it’s not my phone, or my laptop. It’s my old school Swiss Army knife. It doesn’t require power or an Internet connection to function, just your brain.
Almost everyone appears to have a smartphone with them these days, and I would categorize that as having a “Swiss Army Knife” of sorts, but other than games, flashlight, notepad, or a camera function, many are quite useless without a internet connection. Without power, they become a paperweight that you probably could use as a sun reflector for emergencies.
A real jackknife only requires a little dexterity.
Of course if you have a reliable source of power (solar or fuel) and possibly a satellite connection – or even a cell booster, you might be ok as your local area takes a hit from storm damage.
If you get high winds, like we are expecting, it could move your satellite dish enough to lose your link. That is sometimes worse than some brief attenuation from rain fade or cloud cover. You can prepare for a storm, but sometimes they throw you a curve ball you weren’t expecting.
So keeping with my Swiss Army knife theme, I also keep my cell phone with me as my “tech tool” of choice. I don’t really rely on my laptop too much anymore unless I’m working on a special project that requires support from a operating system other than IOS or Android.
Now I’m starting to consider the creative possibilities of the IPhone’s camera. I have a 7plus which has 4K capability at 30 FPS. It’s not something I would have ever considered playing around with, but that’s a better camera than my old Kodak I rarely use.
I’m thinking about playing around with some video editing, which I might even try to do all in the iPhone.
I did look at using my Linux laptop running OpenShot, and I also tried the Windows version.
It works fine, but my old laptops might be slightly under-powered for any heavy cpu and memory demands.
I looked at using the Chromebook, but didn’t find any solution I really liked.
I am interested in Adobe’s Project Rush if it becomes available for Chromebooks. I see it’s available for Windows, Mac, and IOS.
Maybe I should film the pine trees I see starting to sway in the breeze. Hopefully this storm is not too damaging.
Anyhow, I think I’m ready for it, but who knows how the wind blows.