iMatt :: The Blog of Matt Clare

I’ve blogged about being a big fan of the PeakSaver program before. mattclare.ca/blog/2010/07/07/peaksaver-heat-wave/ No longer.

I recently wrote Burlington Hydro about the about the remarkably poor instructions for logging into the PeakSaver Online Control Centre. The number of issues with the process really does make Burlington Hydro and the PeakSaver program look foolish.

The issues stem from me attempting to log into the online control centre with credentials I had saved but no longer work. It would appear they stopped working after my thermostat was replaced in the summer after it was damage by our child — an experience that was very good and left me impressed with PeakSaver’s responsiveness. My opinion has since changed.

Apparently the new thermostat meant a new log-in, no one told me this, but it was simple to deduce. Here are the three major problems the experience highlighted, with the benefit of information from a phone call on Thursday December 15.

1. Login page for PeakSaver Control Centre

   When you don’t enter your password correctly at rscdr1.rodanpower.com/login06.html the logo changes from BHI’s to PeakSaver’s
   

   When you follow the Forgot your password link you are presented with a form

   

   I filled out that form at least a 1/2 dozen times. I never got a response. I’d put my phone number in the notes, ask if anyone was receiving these, no one ever got back to me in any format.

   PeakSaver and Burlington Hydro would be offering better service if this link wasn’t even there, because I’d call immediately and not wait for a never arriving response.

2. The account instructions to sign-in to the online control centre are incorrect on the Burlington Hydro web site, and I know how to correct them based on my Thursday December 15th phone call.

   At www.burlingtonhydro.com/your-home/conservation/peaksaver.html it should read:

   The letters BUR followed by Your Account Number. Note that there is no dash in your User Name as there is in your Burlington Hydro account number.

   


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I wanted to quickly write about the TMSoft White Noise app.  It has to be quick both because there isn’t much to say, other than it’s free or cheap and because our baby may be up from his nap soon.

I bought the full iPhone app before there was an iPad and before we had a baby in a fit of insomnia.  I’ve used it to try to fall a sleep our tune out those around me.  It works well for both and the audio samples provided are very good and you can combine them and set timers.

Since our baby has arrived we first discovered how much liked the oven exhaust fan.  I then realized that I had a portable version of “oscillating fan” in my pocket in the White Noise App.  It’s been great to both sooth our child and drown out other noises that might wake him.

TMSoft have since expanded their lineup.  I have a copy on my Android tablet.  My wife has the free version on her iPhone and I have the desktop version available from the Mac App store on my computer at work – airplane noises seemed to work well to drown out the noise of colleagues to write reports etc.

Here’s the places that I’ve found TMSoft’s White Noise application at:

• iOS Free App
• iOS Full App
• Android Web Store Free App
• Android Web Store Full App
• Mac App Store Free App
• Mac App Store Full App
• Blackberry version
• Windows Phone 7 Series Phones
• TMSoft’s website

I had a great time at the 2011 Rally of the Tall Pines in Bancroft Ontario Canada this weekend. Great weather and a good result for Crazy Leo. Thanks to all the volunteers and towns people who make the weekend happen.

My Flickr photo set at www.flickr.com/photos/mattclare/sets/72157628184149659/with/6416075347/
the results are posted at rallyscoring.com/results/2011/TallPines/index.htm

The Southern-Ontario race track Mosport recently transitioned from Don Panoz’s ownership to a new ownership group.

They’ve got some great plans for the place and will hopefully be able to give the place the attention it needs and perhaps do some needed updates.

One update that I feel is needed is more slow corners to promote passing.

The track consist of a lot of long high-speed turns which only really provides for passing with modern high downforce cars like F1 cars and the top classes of ALMS. Road cars and other racing series tend to do almost all of their passing in breaking zones or out of slow corners and are forced to follow each-other through most of Mosport’s corners.

I propose a chicane or “S” in place of what is now turn 8 and some of 9. Turn 8 is at the end of a long straight and is a sweeper with some banking, it doesn’t slow cars that much of the straight and does not provide for the changes in running speed that promote passing. Further, I’ve seen street cars and lower formula cars have moments overcooking it into that corner — thankfully there’s generous run-off.

By adding a chicane or “S” cars will be forced to break down to a slow enough speed to negotiate the turn. The need to get the breaking point right and the opposite direction corner could promote passing through this section and on into the start/finish straight. Further I’d added a “kink” after the new 9 both to respect the current layout of the in-field terrain (as best as I can remember) and keep drivers worrying about their positioning relative to the corner and other drivers.
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I’ve recent updated the main page of my website. Ever since Facebook first took off I’ve been trying to figure out how to give the various things that dribble out of my mind and are fit (or not) for on-line consumption a proper home. A proper home, might often have been my blog, but more often than not it was easier to post it to Facebook or Twitter — both for the shorter length and the immediacy of the tool.

To accommodate this I added my Facebook, and then Twitter status to my web site as the constant “first blog post”. This sort of worked, but still didn’t provide an ideal summary of information.

I’ve tried again, this time focusing on mattclare.ca. There’s a little more of a summary of of the blog, focussing in the titles and images, with some teaser text.

Further I’m hoping to write more on the blog, and more pictures etc.

One thing I still refuse to do is narrow the focus of my posts, that will still range from server admin, to ed. tech. to F1 and fatherhood.

Here’s hoping.