Gibbon, Cozad & Western - "The 100th Meridian Line"

[DKS]

Sorry, call me a paranoid luddite, but I simply cannot buy into the notion of connecting everything I own into the internet. Maybe it might save a few cents down the line, but I'm ready to spend those extra cents to avoid insanity such as this:

http://www.dailytech.com/Hackers+Use+Refrigerator+Other+Devices+to+Send+750000+Spam+Emails+/article34161c.htm

[wcfn100]

http://www.dailytech.com/Hackers+Use+Refrigerator+Other+Devices+to+Send+750000+Spam+Emails+/article34161c.htm

 If you can't change a password, then you're inviting something like this to happen.  It's like not changing the default combination on a safe and then complaining that someone broke into it.


Jason

[Scottl]

If you have time of day power rates, programming the HVAC to make use of lower cost periods might help the bill.  Some utilities offer this as an option as it helps them manage demand spikes. 

[DKS]

If you can't change a password, then you're inviting something like this to happen.  It's like not changing the default combination on a safe and then complaining that someone broke into it.

But I can guarantee you it will escalate beyond just a simple password protection issue. Consider the loss of millions of credit card and PIN numbers at Target... Again, I'm not being paranoid, but really, what's the freakin' point of connecting your refrigerator, toaster and washer to the Internet? And lightbulbs, too? C'mon...

[wcfn100]

But I can guarantee you it will escalate beyond just a simple password protection issue.

This attack on refrigerators doesn't really change the landscape in anyway in regards to internet safety.  The bigger issue here is that these people could have gotten it much worse.

Jason

[Scottl]

But I can guarantee you it will escalate beyond just a simple password protection issue. Consider the loss of millions of credit card and PIN numbers at Target... Again, I'm not being paranoid, but really, what's the freakin' point of connecting your refrigerator, toaster and washer to the Internet? And lightbulbs, too? C'mon...

In principle, I agree.  There is a move afoot to integrate many appliances for power management.  Peak load on the grid is expensive and the most cost effective way to manage it at that scale is controlling the demand.  Some people may not like the idea of their appliances being controlled this way, but it is well established with AC units and in some industry settings. 

Just wait until they want to draw power from batteries in devices such as cars.  That really opens doors to grid management if participation rates are high.

Given how many lights get left on at home by my kids, I wouldn't mind the ability to turn them off remotely, but I won't pay dearly for the ability.

[basementcalling]

And then the hackers can watch you through your own home security cams and the microwave will take over your house and nuke the whole thing.   

Funny how the "sell" is making your home more secure from physical burglary, but the steps to connect the home might well make you less secure on the internet.

I'll keep my pet hamsters running on the wheels under the basement train layout, thank you very much.

[GaryHinshaw]

This thread needs more trains....

[C855B]

Ha! Very funny. (Gary found us a unique view of Centralia. Our layout building is hidden behind the big brick building in the top left, across the alley from that white shed you barely see in the forest of light poles.)

A few interesting things about that picture...

1) That middle track ("Track 1", an 11-mile siding) was straightened about six years ago. Obviously the light pole between 1 and 2 on the other side of Broadway was removed... and so was the platform it was on, as well as the light pole to its left. In the infrequent instance Amtrak has to use Track 1, they load/unload using the grade crossing as a platform.

2) There is now a big silver signal equipment shed between Track 1 and the BNSF (the right-hand track), roughly in the crook of the "elbow" of that hunk of sidewalk.

2a) The signal shed replaced the old semaphore relay case this side of Broadway and to the left of Track 2. I have had very little success finding pictures of it when it was a signal.

3) The photographer was probably breaking the law to get this shot - pedestrians are prohibited from this overpass. It's one-way, three lanes wide, no shoulders and no sidewalks. Dangerous to be up there and I'm certainly not going to reproduce the angle.

[C855B]

Latest iteration of the track plan:

• Eliminated Green River. Three major yards was sort of pointless.
• Wasatch vanished with Green River (they were on the same peninsula). Not enough space to do it justice relative to the other LDEs.
• Cheyenne reoriented and lengthened. Added switching leads.
• Expanded C&S interchange.
• Added Egbert to paraphrase the real junction to the Yoder branch (single track at far right).
• Plan west (left) of Grant Tower is unchanged since last time.

Still in "thinking mode":

• Sinclair refinery, now in upper right.
• Lobe to the left of Egbert is itching for something... I just don't know what yet. It may get the refinery instead of Sinclair since there is a small refinery east of the yard in 1:1 Cheyenne. Otherwise, there are no significant industries or towns between Cheyenne and Egbert, it's mostly open mainline.
• Other than the "nolix" for the level change, the Yoder branch (upper deck) is not shown. It needs to be rejiggered for the changes in peninsula orientations.

Let's talk about staging again. I'm still of the mind to stick with "live staging" given the copious yard capacity at each "end" of the railroad. IF it is deemed that we need out-of-primary-view staging, we can do a nolix descending from the mainline near the junction with the C&S, following the edge of the layout around to a lower-level staging yard along the east wall under Cozad. This way I get ~ a foot of headroom for handling rolling stock and keep the ruling grade out of staging to 1.5% or less.

[C855B]

Construction notes: in the past couple of days we partitioned the heated space with construction plastic. Should have done it two months ago. The poor abused heat pump is breathing a sigh of relief. Robyn's been working on insulation in the workshop area; not like that's going to gain anything since it's still open to the uninsulated spaces, but at least it's reducing the exposed wall area. It looks like once the stairs are up and we can install the joists for the mezzanine expansion above, the workshop is going to be near-finished, as a staging and work area for the rest of the construction. Should speed things up a little.

Stairs going slowly, but still going. I hope to be cutting stringers today. Unfortunately they can't go up until Robyn paints the walls in the stairwell, and progress there will be dictated by how well the insulation and partitioning improves the working temperatures in that space.

[C855B]

Doing a little cleaning this evening, I glanced up from the broom and the view really struck me as telling a story about where we are:



Of course the first thing you guys will notice is the switchstand. It is waiting for warmer weather, to pour the concrete pad out front. The stringers, bottom right, are cut and ready to go. Robyn finished painting the stairwell today, so with luck the stairs to the mezzanine will be done tomorrow. Wall in the background is one of the uninsulated areas vexing us at the moment, it needs the interior studwall finished before we insulate, so it's on the short list for this week. Plastic sheeting on the left is the quick fix to stop the huge heat loss into the layout room (and it works like a charm).

Car battery in the background is from our box truck, which was gifted with a new one on the last run to Menards for layout construction supplies. I left the lights on in near-zero temps, and it was cheaper to buy a new battery there on the spot than to pay for a tow service to jump start. Floor scraper next to it was for dealing with the ice a couple of weeks back after the big snow.

[Leggy]

Pomona to Cheyenne? Do you plan to replicate the 4014 move? 

[C855B]

Pomona to Cheyenne? Do you plan to replicate the 4014 move? 

Eh. That's modern era stuff.

They really did miss their opportunity by not having the 6936 as part of the entourage. OTOH, a truly elderly, oddball diesel pulling an older, crankier, huge@$$-teapot-on-wheels in questionable condition is the stuff RFE nightmares are made of.

GD&R...

[C855B]

The persistent cold here has seriously cramped our style, since the major work being done is in unheated areas. We have made progress on the construction front, however:



Door in front of the steps is also up now. This weekend will be mostly about cutting-in the step-up from the landing, as it gets into a bit of trickiness with floor joists. This part of the project is important because it 1) is key to expanding the attic storage area, and 2) is access to the crew quarters, which must be habitable by the end of April. An orphaned circuit run was temporarily relocated last night, in prep for a good afternoon of running wires once the structural re-engineering is settled (in both senses). Next on the list is the wall you see behind the switchstand three posts above. This is where the front door used to be, and needs the interior studwall, wiring and insulation.

Speaking of insulation, the electric bill came yesterday. Ouch. Brutal winter, indeed. It looks like a warm-up starting Monday, so Robyn - who ceases to function in the chill - will be joining me in getting items off the list.

Next task is building a heavy-duty table for the workshop. If I do that now, I have a platform to help with hanging joists for the new attic space. It also creates a workspace for fabricating layout bits ('bout damn time, Mike!). Funny how that works.