Do DC (direct current) air conditioners exist? [yes, they do exist]

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UPDATED: 2011.06.16 added a new DC air conditioner producer… Recently I wrote about air-conditioning in off the grid environments. The approach I outlined uses solar panels which output DC [direct current]) and an inverter to convert to AC [alternating current] which runs a conventional air-conditioner. A commenter on twitter asked the reasonable question, what about using a DC air-conditioner instead? This is actually a great idea as it reduces the need for a heavy duty inverter and it also would be

Read more Ask J.D., Daily Updates, Household

Air conditioning using off-the-grid solar [sample setup/install]

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Summary: brief article describing a setup for running a good sized air-conditioner using solar in an entirely off the grid environment. My family has lived off-the-grid for a number of years and generally it has been a wonderful experience. However, summers in Missouri can get rather warm so this year I set out to cool our entire house with AC. Previously only our bedroom was air conditioned and the other rooms had ceiling fans or stationary fans. Prior to the

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i5-470UM vs i3-380UM, differences? [SOLVED]

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Question. Hello. I am looking at a new Dell Vostro V130. I see that they are now shipping with either of the following two Intel® Core™ Series Processors: i3-380UM (3M Cache,1.33GHz,800 MHz FSB) -or- i5-470UM (3M Cache, 1.33GHz, 800 MHz FSB) They are both already ULV (ultra low voltage) processors, so what is the difference?! Answer. Great question! Basically, the i5-470UM has turboboost enabled while the i3 does not. This means that the i5 CPU can dynamically overclock one of

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Honda CBR250R motorcycle pros/cons

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I came across the Honda CBR250R motorcycle today and was pleasantly surprised about some aspects of the machine, and not as pleased with a few others… (+)#1 Cost: $3999 MSRP. $4,499 with ABS – there are a lot more expensive machines out there and it is a Honda 🙂 (-)#2 Fuel economy: approx 60 MPG (or more) – I was hoping for a lot more than this since the older 4 cylinder model achieved 94MPG… could this be due to

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My Dell M6500 and Performance Upgrades

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This month I’ll be switching over from a Dell M4400 to a Dell M6500. Samantha is rocking it out with a Dell Vostro V130. They are all three excellent machines, but for my purposes the M6500 is nearly perfect. Specifically, it is: bargain priced (since the M6600 is out now) especially if refurbished via Dell Outlet (w/3 year warranty) high-enough performance (dual core 4 threads HT is enough and should minimize heat compared to quad core 8 threads) up to

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Ideal photo resolution for iPod, iPad, iPhone?! [ANSWERED]

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Hello, what is the best resolution (image size) for me to put photos onto my iPod touch 4th generation? Answer: 960×640 More info: Digital displays generally have a “native resolution” consisting of  a certain number of pixels,  for example: the iPod touch 4th generation (and the iPhone 4G) display resolution is 960×640.There are actually 960 columns by 640 rows of pixels, or 960 times 640 = 614,400 pixels. Therefore, since your iPod’s display resolution is 960×640 for ideal image display

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Week 1 Insanity Workout – Recap and Tips

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Great shoes for P90X or Beach Body Insanity workouts!

Week 1 Insanity Recap and Tips First, hang in there! One of the great things about the Insanity workout is that there are very few “counting reps” type exercises. Instead, you are gradually working out to your max potential every workout. This could make it a bit discouraging in the beginning if you are significantly slower than the people in the video, however, if you stick with it you will be up to speed in no time! Secondly, watch out

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Starting the Insanity Workout

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This week I started the Beach Body Insanity Workout. After the first day  I knew this must be one heck of a workout because even the preliminary fit-test was a REAL workout! Many of you are probably already familiar with P90X. It’s a great workout but the equipment and time demands can be a bit extreme if you’re just looking to stay fit while still keeping your workouts as short as possible. P90X also seems to have a bit more

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