About six weeks ago, I finally accepted that my old Dell P991 had about reached the end of it's useful life...

The problem was that even at the lowest brightness setting, the screen was too bright.  In addition, the letters was starting to look a bit fuzzy, and I was getting headaches after using it for extended periods.

It turns out that this brightness problem is well known.  Google "Dell P991 brightness" and you'll find a number of hits.  There are two well documented fixes for the issue.  One is to solder a new resistor onto the controller board, the other is to make a software adjustment to the monitor using a special cable and software.  Unfortunately, it appears that there are two different Sony chassis styles that were used in the P991, and the one that I have used a different controller board - for which I couldn't find a resistor fix - and didn't have the port to enable the software update.

So, I decided to break down and purchase a new wide screen LCD monitor.

After doing some research (online and dragging Jeanie across half of Jacksonville) I elected to purchase a 22" HP w2207h.  I liked the fact that it used "glossy" glass rather than the non-reflective glass, as I believe that the glossy glass offers a brighter, more vibrant, sharper image.  While in a high glare environment (like an office with florescent lights) a glossy screen might have so much glare as to be distracting, in my home office, this is not a factor.  I also liked the highly adjustable base (tilt and height), that it had both analog VGA (15 pin) and HDMI ports, and I thought that the ability to rotate the screen 90 degrees to use the monitor in portrait mode was a neat feature.  The fact that I could get it from the local Staples, and that it was on sale, sealed the deal.

It turned out that the local Staples was out of stock, but they were happy to order it for me.  Two days later I received it and hooked it up.

I liked the monitor pretty well, but even though the native resolution (1680 x 1050) had the best sharpness, the text was just a bit too small for me.  I tried a number of other resolutions, and while the text was larger, it also lost some of its sharpness due to the interpolation of the pixels.

Over the ensuring couple of weeks, as I have been known to do, I started second guessing my decision.  There had also been a 24" monitor that not only was 2" larger, it had a DVI port in addition to the VGA and HDMI ports, was capable of true 1080p (1920 x 1200) resolution (in case I ever wanted to use it as an HD monitor for TV), and was $20 cheaper!

So, I packed up the HP w2207h and took it back to Staples (they were "no hassle") in giving me a refund, and purchased an Acer P241w.

Long story short, after two weeks, I decided that I liked the HP better (it was sharper, more vibrant, had better contrast and had more even back lighting), so I boxed up the Acer, took it back to Staples (I didn't feel quite so bad, as the Acer had been a floor sample), and ordered another HP w2207h.

Interestingly, after loading the drivers for the screen, as well as installing the "HP My Display" utility and running the wizard, the display looks even better than I had remembered.  In fact, I am running the monitor in its native resolution and finding that I am no longer getting headaches  (see below for caveat).

The HP also has built-in speakers and a 2 port USB hub, but I am not using either of these features, as my desktop speakers are much better than the speakers in the monitor and I already have a USB hub convenient to my desk.

The one problem I ran into was that my KVM can't drive the monitor at it's native resolution.  The text looks fuzzy, and it wavers a bit.  So, for the moment, I am running the keyboard and mouse through the KVM, but I am manually switch the VGA cable between my primary home PC and my work laptop.  If I have to access my Linux server or the secondary home PC, I use the KVM and just deal with the issues - as I don't spend a lot of time viewing these systems.

All things considered, I am quite happy with the HP screen.

I'll be even happier after I break down and purchase a new KVM that can deal with the resolution...

It wasn't quite as dramatic as Captain Sullenberger's, but...

It was exciting enough for me.

We recently had a new rebuilt engine installed on the club airplane.  It is very important that the proper break-in procedures are followed to ensure that the oil consumption is minimized over the life of the engine, and that we have the best chance of the engine lasting its rated life.  It is also prudent that the first few hours be flown in close proximity to an airport, in case the engine fails - as that is most likely during the break-in period.

So, there I was flying laps around the island, when I noticed the attitude indicator was spinning.  Just like in the movies!  Fortunately, I wasn't.  I quickly deduced that the directional gyro had also ceased working - a clear indication of a vacuum system failure.

I must say, even though the failure wasn't really that big a deal, it was enough to unsettle me a bit.  I was glad that my first mechanical failure was relatively innocuous, as it gave me a bit of an appreciation for how even a minor issue can affect my thinking.   I think I will be better prepared to handle the next issue, even if it is more serious.

Since I was concerned that the failure might be indicative of something more serious - or at least the start of something that could cascade - I decided to head straight back and land.

The landing was just fine, and after talking with one of the other club board members and the A&P who services the aircraft, they assured me that I wouldn't cause any more damage by continuing to fly the airplane, so I took it back up to put another hour on the engine.

The following day, I flew the final of the first five hours, then flew the airplane to St. Marys to have the filter changed, cut open, and checked for the presence of metal.  While it is not uncommon for there to be a small amount of metal (from the seating of the rings) in the oil, more than a small amount can be an indication of potential issues.  Fortunately, there was no metal in the filter, which was good.  While they were checking the filter, they confirmed that the vacuum pump had in fact failed (I had hoped it was just that a line had come loose) and we had them order a new one.

Two days later, I flew the plane one more time up to St. Marys to get the vacuum pump replaced.

We are now past the critical stage of the engine break-in, although it will be a few more hours before we switch from the straight mineral oil to the standard ashless dispersant oil.

The good news is that the new engine is running great, and should provide us with at least ten years of faithful, trouble free service.

And strangely enough, I haven't been that busy with work...

Which would then make it even harder to understand why I haven't been posting.

The engagement I worked on most of last year (successfully) closed on New Year's Eve.  I spent a few weeks in January doing close-out work, and since then, I've actually taken some time off.

I've been busy spending time with Jeanie, doing a fair amount of flying, working on a new set of web sites for the CAP squadron, catching up on a bunch of training for work I hadn't been able to do last year and just generally letting my batteries recharge.

I did pass my Form 5 check ride, and have been able to fly over 5 hours in the 182.  Interestingly, all of it has been with instructors - which has turned out to be great, as in the last few weeks I have almost doubled the number of hours I have "under the hood" as I've started dipping a toe into the pursuit of getting an instrument rating.  I also got an hour in a G1000 "glass cockpit" C-182T.

For the CAP squadron web sites, I decided to use Google Sites, which is really cool.  I am also using Google Calendar, which has some really cool features.  One of the really nice features is that both use the same Google Account as Google Mail (Gmail) so I don't have to manage a bunch of user ID's - each squadron member can manage his own.  Another nice feature is that it's all free!

In addition to the above factors, I went with the Google Apps because they are easy to use, provide good functionality, and will allow the squadron to share the work of managing the sites rather than being dependent solely on me.

I figure it's only a matter of time before I get assigned to another engagement, but in the interim, I'll try to work through some of the backlog of half-completed posts I have in draft mode.