Progress! I took a step back, to make a leap forward... After a horrible experience upgrading Ubuntu 9.04 to 9.10 on the CarPC, I decided to scrap it all and go to LinuxICE... A distribution developed with the CarPC in mind. It took a few tries (over a few days) to get the install to work properly; turns out a properly-burned DVD is a must. ;) Then some issues with peripherals were apparently making the install crash; I believe it was the HD radio being attached but I won't open a bug report on it until I get an opportunity to test that theory further.

After getting the install completed, the final setup steps were simple, including calibrating the touchscreen. I'm now in the process of copying music and videos over; I will investigate the settings for the radio and HD radio controls next. I'll also have to customize the skin, couldn't have one without my Sylvia logo! I've noticed a few issues with some of the buttons in the skin as well, overlarge/misplaced confirmation buttons for hibernate/suspend/shutdown. Those aren't such a high priority as the CarPC should auto-hibernate when I turn off the ignition, but I'll put them on my to-do list anyways....

I also made a horrifying discovery a day or two ago; the space under the front seats is not nearly enough for the CarPC. That means I have to go back to the original idea of a trunk mount, and all the cooling problems that entails. I'm still hoping to have everything installed and running before the Jacksonville Open road trip that starts 9 April... :-D

Awesome birthday yesterday! Uneventful day at work (mom says everybody's birthday should be a National holiday; I told Dad if I took everyone's birthday off I wouldn't get paid!), a nice little nap, and then the family drug me out to Target to buy my gift, a Blu-ray player. The 32" TV for the bedroom should be delivered today (my gift to myself), so I should be able to get it all hooked up and viewable this afternoon. After Target, we went by Best Buy, picked up a couple of Blu-ray movies, and then by Papa John's to pick up supper. We sat around in the living room, watched a movie and ate pizza and cake! Now that's my idea of a birthday party!

Almost forgot ! Check out this great band! Robyn and I met the Sax player, Nathan, on a catamaran snorkling trip in St. Thomas during the disc golf cruise. Pretty cool vibe.

Got to Miami last night for the DG cruise that leaves tomorrow. Today Robyn and I played a round at Kendall Indian Hammocks, then drove down to Key West for the afternoon. Traffic was horrible on the drive down, it took 45 minutes longer than the trip back, almost 4 hours. Some pictures from today and yesterday are up in the gallery here.

More photos up! I'll be uploading throughout the cruise, as well !!