Walter Reade's Personal Interests
I'm best described as a serial hobbyist. I love to learn new things, expecially with respect to technology and personal productivity.
More Digital, Please!
I make no apologies . . . I'm a digital junkie.
It started with my first computer, a Timex-Sinclair, with its blazing 3.25 MHz processor, 2 Kb of on-board RAM (which I upgraded to 16 Kb), and a cassette tape storage device.
And I haven't looked back . . .
I'm an avid (rabid?) fan of digital gadgets, including PCs, smartphones, and digital SLR cameras. I've been on the web since the early 90s, and still prefer to hand-code HTML. I'm a Photoshop power who loves digital photography.
I love all things Web 2.0, most notably Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, and Flickr.
Personal Productivity
I'm constantly trying to improve my efficiency and effectiveness on the routine and mundane tasks of life so that I free up time to do the things I love.
I follow David Allen's "Getting Things Done" methodology, and I recommend it for anyone. At the core of my GTD system is Outlook 2007, EverNote, my BlackBerry Pearl, and the Jott.com service. I regularly follow LifeHacker.com to find new tricks and tips to allow me to get more done faster.
I'm a Google Nut
Here's why Google is my Search Engine, Alerts Service, Browser Software (Chrome), Map Service, On-Line Document Repository, Email Client, Photo Editor (Picasa), and News Reader of choice.
They do information better than anyone else. And I love information. The more the better. And Google delivers.
Rubik's Cube
I'm an aspiring Rubik's Speed Cubist. I hadn't picked one up since they were popular in the '80s, but when I recently learned there was a 4x4x4 version, I knew I had to learn how to solve it.
After I learned how to solve the 4x4x4, I re-learned how to solve the 3x3x3, and then learned how to solve the 5x5x5 and 2x2x2. There are 6x6x6 and 7x7x7 cubes on the market, but I'm focusing all my energy on speed solving the 3x3x3.
Speed solving the Rubik's Cube requires you to learn about 10 times as many algorithms, become highly efficient at "finger tricks," and learn to look ahead to the next step.
Currently, m y fastest time is 1 minute, 2 seconds. I will continue to work on improving my speed until I reach my goal of 20 seconds.
If you'd like to see how the experts do it, check out this video.