Disclaimer

The content of this blog is my personal opinion only. Although I am an employee - currently of Nvidia, in the past of other companies such as Iagination Technologies, MIPS, Intellectual Ventures, Intel, AMD, Motorola, and Gould - I reveal this only so that the reader may account for any possible bias I may have towards my employer's products. The statements I make here in no way represent my employer's position, nor am I authorized to speak on behalf of my employer. In fact, this posting may not even represent my personal opinion, since occasionally I play devil's advocate.

See http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcxddbtr_23cg5thdfj for photo credits.

Thursday, June 28, 2018

Treadmill (desk) needs speed ramps and intervals

I continue to love my LifeSpan TR1200-DT3 treadmill, since 2014.

At first I could only walk slowly, 1-1.4mph, while working.

Then, a year or so ago, I started being able to hit 2-2.5mph for some tasks, like email triage.

Recently I have started being able to run >= 4mph, typically while listening to "XXX Update Meetings", where I don't participate, and often don't need to take notes.

But... sometimes I need to take a note, and may need to slow down.  Not suddenly stop, but ramp down safely. 

(Stopping suddenly can be dangerous - I have twisted my knee several times when the emergency stop engaged.)

PROBLEM: the LifeSpan console changes speeds in clicks of 0.1mph.  Having to lean over and click 20 times to ramp down from 4.0 -> 3.9 -> 3.8 -> ... -> 2.1 -> 2.0 mph is inconvenient, and somewhat dangerous.

WISH: 2 or 3 speed buttons, with designated speeds.  And a smooth transition between them, not instantaneous.

EXTRA WISH: I sometimes do intervals on my treadmill desk, while listening to such meetings. 20 clicks to change speed is a pain.  After the 2 or 3 speed buttons, programmable intervals, would be nice.

DIY: yeah, I should do this in my copious spare time. There's a small community of folks who have made their own treadmill controllers using Arduino or Raspberry Pi or the like.

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BTW, one big reason why I did not start running fast earlier was not my fitness level or even my sense of balance, but that I have had trouble adjusting the treadmill tension: if it runs smoothly at 0.4 mph it slips at 5mph, or it binds at 1mph when smooth at 5mph.

Google Blogger/Blogspot "Blog This!" plugin dead?

As of June 2018 the "Blog This!" plugin seems to have disappeared. Sob! My second most frequently used plugin. This may be my final straw for using Google Blogger / Blogspot. Google Blogger / Blogspot has been dying slowly for years.