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Libertarian Fiction

I was recently exchanging correspondence with the Author of the book The Untethered, S.W. Southwick. His book is probably one of the best examples of Libertarian fiction/SciFi that I have seen. In my opinion it is reaching into the territory to be considered Classic Literature. Anyway he asked me what other libertarian stories I had read. I was able to rattle off 5 or 6 but I know that I have read 10 times that many but they just weren’t coming to mind.  So this post is going to be updated on a regular basis as I add in Libertarion stories and authors as I remember them and or read them. So in no particular order, or maybe in alphabetical order 🙂 here we go.

How much are you willing to spend on a book?

I have noted in myself what my reaction to pricing in purchasing books seems to be and here is my experience. I think that this is becoming a new norm for readers in general. If a book has good reviews and 250+ pages I won’t really even think about it but will drop 1.99 to 2.99 on it. Call it an impulse buy that I don’t really resist. If it is a second book in series that I like I will normally be willing to drop between 2.99 to 3.99 on it if it is in that 250 to 350 page length. Once the price jumps over 3.99 it has to both have a decent page length of 300+ pages and be something I really really want to read based on reviews, how interested in the idea of the story showing in the blurb, or that it is a sequel to a book I am dying to read the next book. In the last couple years I have just about quit purchasing works by traditionally published books in paper or in digital due to the prices. Even before the advent of the really good indie books at reasonable prices I had been buying less and less books as the prices rose and rose to the point that I simply didn’t want to purchase then even though many of those authors I am die hard fans of. Instead I more and more found them in the library or library book sales. With the advent of digital publishing and the amazon kindle, the availability of samples and reviews to guide one I have had a revolution of sorts in purchasing. I think I spend more money overall than I did before. I’m not sure that financially this is a good thing but I no longer feel upset at spending that amount of money individually on a book. I think I am spending overall more of my income on books.  How do some of the other readers out here feel about their purchasing habits involving books?

Seasonic Platinum Power Supply

Seasonic Platinum Power Supply

Extension Cord Woe’s

So someone asked me about what I use for an extension cord on the boat because of a comment I had made about having the perfect one. Everyone knows what a pain extension cords are. They are constantly getting tangled and snarled up, they are a pain to coil back up after using them, they are a pain to un-snarl and pull them out of the cockpit locker after they have become wrapped around every other thing in there. Last but not least is that you can only plug one thing into a standard extension cord. I am constantly having to switch between a drill and a sander or router etc… It just slows stuff down.

Reviews of those most essential items, your kettle and airpot :)

Reviews of the
KitchenAid Teakettle 2-Quart Gourmet Essentials Stainless Steel Kettle , Brushed
and
BUNN 32125.0000 2.5 Liter Lever-Action Airpot, Stainless Steel

So So Solar

I am about 1 week into using the new solar panels and charge controller and while they are working, I am not getting the amount of power I had hoped to get. Here is the production over the last 10 days. Now I have to admit that it has been overcast and cloudy to downright stormy on some of these days but I figure that is real world  and I was hoping the real world would be a bit better. I am going to need to produce more than double this consistently every single day to keep up with my projected power usage. If i have a couple stormy days I will be in trouble. With the rest of the solar installed I should be doing ok but I can now see that I need a wind generator also. The max battery voltage is off on a couple days as I turned the shore power on to top the battery bank off. The days where I only produced 220, 160 and 530 watt hours. Right now all that is running off of 12 volt is the propane solinoid, 6 12 volt fans, 12 led lights, and the fridge. I still have to add all the 120 loads through the inverter and the 12v freezer that is running on 110 right now. The freezer will add another 24 to 50 amp/hrs a day and the rest of the stuff an easy 200 a day. If we don’t cut down our usage drastically.

Solar Panels Part One of Many

So I reached a mile marker in the solar panel installation saga. The solar panels have been glued down to the dodger and all the wiring under the dodger completed.

 

Super Power Efficient Boat Computer

I was needing an upgrade for my office computer for work and needed a replacement computer that was super power efficient due to the nature of limited electric power on a boat when using an inverter to power stuff.

Here are the components I used to build a system that using 15 to 17 watts of power sitting at the desktop browsing the internet. The 24 inch monitor uses another 21 watts of power.

Nothing special about the case other than the USB3 ports on the front and the space size constraints of where I planned on mounting it in the boat.. Any Matx compatible case would work.

This memory is listed by model number by the manufacture of the motherboard as compatable. I spent a few extra dollars over the cheap memory but it is worth it to know it works.

I had a hard time picking a motherboard. There were several good choices but this one had more sata 3 and usb 3 connectors and was a bit cheaper than other comparable motherboards. So far I am pleased with it.

Here is where we get pricey. This power supply is one of the best of the best. It is rated platinum level which means it is 94 or 95 % efficient. It is fanless and even so after running for a month or two solid you can touch the power supply and it feels cool to the touch.

I already had a pcie ssd card in my old computer with ubuntu linux installed on it and I just moved it over to this computer. The same with 2 3tb data drives. I purchased this to hold a database that needed the fast access and larger size.

I went to order the i7-3770T processor but found the Xeon version of the same processor for 50 dollars cheaper. On checking the motherboard CPU compatability chart it said that it was compatible with the Xeon so that is what I got. This is teh 45watt 2.5 ghz version of the i7-3770. The normal one is 75watts at 3.5 ghz. However in benchmarks this one is only 10% slower.

This is the monitor I am running and it is a very power efficient model. I purchased it a year or two ago and have been really happy with it. The manufacture states 35 watts but mine and others measurements in use seem to consistently run around 21 watts.

High Tech Towels

We were having space storage issues with our regular towels as well as them staying damp forever. I did a lot of reading of reviews on a lot of brands of the new high tech towels and finally came down to the Discovery Trecking brand. They were very expensive and the only reason we ended up getting them was a gift card we got.

We bought 5 of them and it is all we have used now for the last 6 months or more. We purchased the largest size they had and it is huge. I probably would have tried the next size down if I had known how huge these are.

Composting Head Two Year or There About Thoughts

Guests on board

Something else I thought about as a downside to these. When we have guests it is still as hard or harder to explain how to use these as it was a standard marine head. At least we don’t worry about people putting toilet paper into this one but having to explain that poo and pee go in separate holes and that you have to rinse or clean up after yourself every single time you use it seems to generate a lot of resistance. We now have people we would prefer not to visit us on our boat because of the mess they left behind on the composting head. At its messiest (oh shit I missed the hole) it is still a simple matter of a minute or so to wipe the mess down the open  hole to the composting bin and spray with water and wipe down again and then maybe spray a disinfectant if needed. In regular use you just about never need to do this but guests that have different attitudes or lack of ability to use it as described can be a trial.

Companionway Table/Seat for Valkyr

I first saw this table/seat in a newsletter I get from Steve Roberts of the Nomadnes report (his http://nomadness.com ) I modified it slightly to fit how we wanted to use it,by doing a cutout on the right side as you face it in the companionway. This allows for someone to climb up or down the companionway with the table installed. Our companionway is fairly wide so it still left plenty of space for a usable table surface. In mounting it we drilled holes at every step from bottom to top so that the table could be used for multiple tasks at different levels.

Short reading list for lowcostvoyaging gang.

So I have much longer list of 215 books but for some reason am having issue getting it to display right. Hopefully this shorter list that I culled from the larger one does display. 🙂 these are the howto, and helpfull books that I thought follow some of the topics and character of our conversations on the list.

ASHLEY BOOK OF KNOTS
Ashley, Clifford
9780385040259
Doubleday
Editorial Reviews Amazon.com Review The Ashley Book of Knots takes us back to a time when knots saved lives and put dinner on the table. Whether out at sea or in a pioneer cabin, knots were a part of daily life, one that is nearly lost today. But in this attractive, well-organized archive of more than 3,900 different knots–presented through 7,000 illustrations–the art of knot tying lives on, both as a historical reference and a reservoir of handy knowledge. Product Description Describes every practical knot, what it looks like, where it comes from, and how to tie it. The book includes 4,000 knots, with all the varieties of shipboard knots as well as knots used by butchers, steeplejacks, electric linesmen, knitters, cobblers, surgeons, poachers and cowboys. –This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.