Samsung Galaxy Nexus

The next-gen developer-phone from Google/Samsung.

It has a sturdy build with high-quality plastic, and the battery-cover is cleverly fitted into the phone-chassis.

The OS (currently updated Android v4.0.2 "ICS") differs quite a lot from v2.x (which I used before). All of the UI-interaction is now done completely via touch / multi-touch (which Google had envisioned when they started development on Android).

I especially love how you can drag-n-drop shortcuts on top of each other in the new launcher to form popup folders. One of several new, interesting and innovative UI functions. Another is the ability to take a screenshot of the device-display (pressing Power+Volume down buttons simultaneously).

I've been using Android full-time since the early v1.x-days, and personally I love the new UI guidelines, drop-down menus and generally, Android v4.x all-in-all :)

Google has done a magnificent good job in rolling v2.x (mobile-version) and v3.x (tablet-version) into one monolithic source-code tree, capable of making both binary-versions.

Keep up the good job guys! :D

NAS for iSCSI/media/files

1.8TB SATA3 in RAID-1 configuration.

I have now switched my ReadyNAS Duo v2 with a ReadyNAS Ultra 2 Plus, which is the business-edition of Netgear's 2-bay NAS boxes. Way better equipped for my needs.

Hardware:

• Intel Atom dual-core 1.5GHz (x86 instead of arm5 as in Duo v2)
• Dual Gigabit RJ-45 LAN ports
• 2 x USB 3.0 on back-panel (one over each gigabit LAN port)
• 1 x USB 3.0 on front-cover (for "backup"-button)

Accessories:

• 2 x Western Digital Caviar "Green" 2TB SATA3 hard-drives

The Ultra 2 Plus business-ready revision of the dual-bay NAS from Netgear offers more advanced configuration and customization options, and also complies with Linux networking protocols (NFS, SSH, SFTP, etc.), unlike the Duo v2 which only offers AFP and SMB file-sharing (Apple and Windows network file-sharing respectively) and basic configuration.

What really makes it stand out is its ability to share iSCSI targets. Basically, it can share portions of its RAID-array as virtual hard-drives for Virtual Machines run either by for example VMware or VirtualBox on a server, or via a bare-metal hypervisor (ex.VMware ESXi, my personal favorite ;).

Extra functions in the Ultra 2 Plus compared to Duo v2, are for example the possibility for scheduled RAID-scrubbing and/or volume checking, to keep your RAID volumes clean and fixed :)

Hobby-boy

Yes, I am a hobby-boy. Time-spender extraordinaire :p

Well, I recently had a rebound with a lost love of mine: shooting! :)

Well, airgun shooting that is... So I bought myself a summer-present, a brand-new Umarex Beretta M-92 FS XX-Treme, airgun.


I'm actually quite gitty about this "boy-toy", I've been dreaming of owning one of these for a looong time.

A couple of hardwood-boards, a pellet collector-plate and I'm set for a ShootOut!

Link to manufacturer:
http://www.umarex.com/uxc.php?load=view&item=419.00.51&deptid=1