(Part 2) Best products from r/houston

Sorry that I cannot respond with a shorter message: the TLDR; is that this is much more expensive to put on than you are estimating, which is mostly due to the quality of the content is much better than you are estimating and we are not the primary beneficiaries (i.e. beggars) for any value that is accrued here.

The major costs associated with this hackathon are as follows:

• insurance for the facility (United Way makes the facility free for events like this, but they have a reasonable policy that insists that insurance be purchased)
  
• Food and drink for participants, which based on our values of not making the hackathon unhealthy for participants, cannot be inexpensive pizza/soda. We typically spend 5x pizza-level food costs to ensure that there are health food available for multiple dietary restrictions. The patients that we invite to these events frequently have very specific food requirements.
  
• The cost to fly in the patients, data experts, clinical problem owners and mentors to attend the event. Almost everyone who can afford to is donating their travel expenses but that still leaves about a dozen people who cannot attend unless expenses are covered.
  
• The salaries of the people who setup the event. Some of these end up being event planners but some of them are top-level data engineers who will be prepping one of the handful of datasets that will be released at the event for the first time. All of them deserve a living wage for the nearly full time work that 5-10 ppl will put into this for several weeks ahead of the event.
  
  All told, the expenses required for the event are likely north of $500k. Granted, probably $150k of that are related to sunk costs of creating the data, which we (CareSet) would have may have done in any case.. but there are other organizations (hopefully Texas state HHS) that will be prepping datasets as well. This is inherently an expensive process.
  
  Currently, there is an advertisement for a Rice data science class on the front page of the Houston subreddit. Occasionally the offer a healthcare data class. The tuition for both costs about $20k. I was informally invited to teach that Rice data class, the book that I wrote on healthcare data standards is the best-selling book in the space (not actually "best-selling" mind you, but there are not that many books competing -in this space-) and is used in dozens of graduate level health informatics programs and required reading at several health tech incubators. The people that we are bringing in for this meeting are all world-class healthcare data experts in one way or another. These are the kind of people that I will be thanking for teaching me in the forward of any future editions of my book. In one way or another each of them is more qualified than I am.
  
  So basically, we are charging $20 for the same level of content that Rice is currently charging $20,000 for. This is not to say that the Rice class does not have value. It probably is worth what they charge, an ongoing class is a different level of commitment than a single weekend hackathon. But the level and quality of content is similar. It takes resources to make that happen.
  
  With all due respect to your $1 hackathon, and others like it, this is not a "hey lets all get together and make toys over the weekend". This is not a hackathon where you meet someone who can teach you how to make an android app, this is the kind of hackathon where you meet the patient who has a very real unmet need, you hear from the policy maker who is trying to solve that problem at scale, but cannot for some reason, you will get never before seen data that relates to the probem and you will have data engineering and data visualization experts on hand to teach you how to work with the data.
  
  But most most most most importantly, I am not "begging" you to do anything for me or for us. Neither my company, nor Energizing Health, will own any additional intellectual property after this weekend. While our companies definitely do a tidy business, helping the "mega corporations" (using the derogatory label for life science companies used in this thread) to treat people around the world who *have resources to pay* this is the work that we do for those who *cannot pay*.
  
  The main benefit that we accrue from this is marketing. Being associated with good-for-the-world events and other efforts for positive change in healthcare is ok marketing for us as a company. This is similar to how Ronald Mcdonald House operates. It is doing real good for people who do not have other options... but Mcdonald's does get some marketing benefit from having their name on the building. Now, I hope that Energizing Health and CareSet are both better for the world when we do our "day jobs" than Mcdonalds.. but that is what we get out of this. Whatever you think about Macdonalds, there is no way that the money that it spends on the Ronald Mcdonald house would not be better spent on simply another rounds of TV and radio ads each year for marketing purposes. Similarly, my company and others involved might get a slight benefit from marketing here, but I seriously doubt the "mega corporations" that we sell to are paying attention to what happens on one weekend in Houston. I am not sure that this is the kind of argument that will ever be accepted on reddit, but for the most part we are all just doing this because we want to feel good about our work and our contributions to humanity.
  
  Beyond this slight marketing benefit: either poor destitute patients will be the main beneficiaries of this weekends work, or no one will.
  
  All of which is to say:
  
  
• If you think $20 is too much to pay for data training -> don't come, this is probably not for you
  
• If you think that our expenses do not justify $20 -> don't come, this is probably not for you
  
• If you think that mega-corporations are secretly going to make money off of you -> don't come, this is probably not for you.
  
• If you think that my company is getting inappropriate credit for this effort -> don't come, this is probably not for you.
  
• If you think spending $20 to hear lectures and get lessons about healthcare data might be a fun way to spend a weekend... -> welcome!
  
• If you think that learning about how people get screwed by the healthcare system and how data/technology might change that is fun -> welcome!
  
• If you have super-ninja data skills and you feel like you do not get an opportunity to use those skills for a good cause at your day job -> welcome!
  
  I hope this clarifies things somewhat. I really do not have time to make this clearer and shorter...
  
  -FT

I have no experience with the course so I can't comment, but I think you can cook a fantastic brisket on your own just by reading and watching what the "pros" do and copying it. Aaron Franklin is pretty generous with is expertise and I've found his videos helpful. Amazingribs.com is also a helpful, if thorough, place to read up on cooking pretty much anything you can put in a smoker.

Buy one of these in 18" or 22" and experiment with different recipes and see which one you like best. Spend the money you would have spent on the course on brisket and that way you can invite your friends over and get their feedback. You can get away with using a charcoal grill but you'll have to be careful to keep the meat away from direct heat or else it will become tough.

There's really not that much to it - keep the smoker at 225 degF and keep the brisket in there until it reaches 205 degF internal temp (buy a digital thermometer, wireless is better), then wrap it and rest it for a couple of hours.

The most important thing is to buy good meat - Costco sells prime brisket for $3-4/lb which is about as good a value as you'll find anywhere.

Actually most of what I listen to is classical. I <3 Mahler.

They definitely sound better than the SR-60 headphones. Do they sound $250 better? Of course not, but it's diminishing returns, and you really have to admit that any headphones over $100 are a luxury item. I'm very happy with them.

I'll admit that I didn't try any other headphones over $200, but I was so happy with the SR-60 (especially compared to any other comparably-priced model) that I trusted Grado there. I probably should have tried some comparable Sennheisers (like the HD-600), though, and I agree that Audio-Technica makes some great cans too.

Yes, I am using an amp, but if you have a good audio source you don't need one with these. However, in this case, my computer is the source of the music, and since it's a Dell workstation with cheap onboard audio, the sound quality isn't great, so I needed an external DAC and amp. I bought the FiiO E10. Aside from my original SR-60 headphones, it's probably the best $70 I've ever spent on audio equipment. It's a USB DAC with built-in amplifier, and it has excellent sound quality.

For everyone asking about dash cams, here are a couple of links that I think will help. They're really not very expensive and can be installed for free by you if you don't mind a little effort (or a wire to your cigarette lighter), or you can get one hardwired (with the wire tucked away so it's barely noticeable) for $50-$100 from a local car stereo shop. The good thing is they're small and don't really stick out like a GPS, so they're not really going to raise the chances of someone breaking into your car to get at it.

This is a wonderful review site for those of you who like to research things before buying.
Dashcam Talk Forum/Blog

Here's their best value cam in all black from Amazon.

Here's the one I'm using which is just a little more money but also a tiny bit better in quality (you won't notice a huge difference, I just like the style better).

And here's a 32GB microSDHC memory card that you'll need.

To address the question that usually comes up, they record in loops. That means they record in segments of a few minutes (usually 3, 5, or 10 minute files) and then once the card fills up, they start recording over the oldest files first. 32GB is usually enough space for 5 hours of recording. Yes, you can usually click a button if you record something (or get into an accident) that will tag the last file to not ever get recorded over. They do record sound as well. Neither of those have GPS but you can get some more expensive ones that do.

I'd totally recommend getting a dashcam if you're a driver in Houston as if there's ever an accident you're involved in and not at fault, now you have a very good chance at having proof that it wasn't your fault, which can go a loooong way with insurance. Also, you can capture stuff like op here did, along with you know, russian dashcam worthy footage on occasion. :)

Hey, so I am an attorney working in the energy field and I'm gonna be honest, this is the worst possible time you could be making that move. I've been a landman for close to 2 years and when you do that job, a majority of the time you are working as an independent contractor (which means job security can be tight) and with oil prices where they are, we are just barely making it and I know a whole mess of landmen who have been laid off.
But in the interest of education: your starting point most of the time is as a basic landman. A lot of title research can be done online, but a lot of positions require you to spend time in the field. That means you will be sent to BFE Texas for days or weeks at a time. If you can succeed in that position for about 2 years you will probably be able to parlay your experience in into an analyst position or working as a title attorney.
If by some miracle you do find a job, congrats to you, but as of right now I got no places to point you in the right direction. If you graduated from a local law school like STCL, then I recommend joining their energy alumni association and going to some social events. Honestly science or engineering doesn't really matter. It all comes down to your ability to do research and effectively communicate results. If you have a good property/oil & gas/probate law background, you are ahead of the game.
If you don't have a strong background in Oil & Gas I advise you read this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Primer-Texas-Law-Oil-Gas/dp/0769880908
If you would like to know more, please feel free to contact me with a message.

This is from personal experience, but I used a crate similar to this one with my pup and it made potty training much easier- especially if you're gone more than 8 hours at a time. If your dog rips up the pad like mine did, they make potty pad holders like these. A few accidents here and there during the first month are expected, but it helps to spray the urine spot with a deodorizing spray like this so they do not keep peeing on the same spot. Also, I've read that ammonia heavy products are terrible for cleaning up pee because it smells like urine to animals and encourages them to urinate on top of it. Hope that helps, happy training!

Been riding here for two and half years and other places for more years. Cycle gear has Dainese mesh armour for under 200. It has held up well, but it smells awful if you don't wash it. Full face helmets with tinted or mirrored shields are your friends and keep you from feeling like an ant under a magnifying glass when the sun is out.

The HOV is your friend. The people on the HOV and pretty much anywhere else are fucking terrible drivers. Any day I'm only merged into twice each commute is a good day. Take it slow, give yourself space, check your mirrors often and watch out for idiots on their fucking phones. I've never had anything thrown at me, but that's probably because I'm all black and people don't see me. Friday and Saturday are the worst nights for riding in town. Sunday, people are not aware enough to care. People are terrible, and you might as well be a tin can in the highway for them to run over. Just be cool and let them by.

The heat is terrible if you are stuck in it. Soak your head, your shirt, a bandanna around your neck to help keep you cool. When you get more miles under your belt, I recommend filtering when traffic isn't moving. Most people won't see you/won't move over, don't give a shit. Some people will honk, or move to block you so keep your levers covered and watch people's mirrors. Go slow, but keep moving. I won't do it around cops, but any time traffic's under twenty and congested, or there's a long line at the light, or morons on the HOV are at a standstill because they want to check out a wreck all the way across the freeway from them, I'll split. Just don't be a douche about it. Be respectful and most people will ignore you. I've been honked at a few times, and yelled at/followed by an angry lady once, but it doesn't get to me. I'm gone by the time most people notice me, and if they're that angry, they should get a bike and boil on it, too.

Get gloves with pockets behind the knuckles, you can fold your toll money in there and pull it out fairly easily to pay tolls. Don't ride tired. Don't drink and ride. Don't be a douche around cops (or in general) and they'll pretty much leave you alone.

Pick up a copy of Proficient Motorcycling by David Hough. Take the MSF course, it's like 200 bucks and worth it. And fun.

The city is not great to ride in, but riding makes commuting in the city bearable. Highways are best. FM roads and back roads are fantastic.

Be Safe!

Fair enough. I worked with her on some publicity for one of her books a few years back (back when she was constantly on ATH) and she was honestly one of the nicest people I've ever met. We had her sign a couple hundred books and she just hung out and shot the shit with us for a few hours after. I ran into her around town (back in the Boston area) a few times the years following and she'd always recognize me and come say hello.

In addition, like i said, her writing is great. If you're a basketball or NBA fan, i recommend checking some of her stuff out. Her book, When the Game was Ours is really interesting.

I've recently kind of made the switch. I'll mention my setup since it involves a bit of what you are using as well as some of the other recommendations:

I'm currently using some Apple TVs hooked up to the TVs. I know that from one of your comments that you are using an AppleTV (I'm using 4th Gen).

I've got an HDHomeRun, which transmits the Over The Air (OTA) over my home network (and am using this antenna with it).

It's worked pretty well for live TV. I've tried HomeRun's DVR software (which costs extra), but have had rather so-so results.

Anyway, if you do get an HDHomeRun, then on your AppleTV you will want to get the Channels app. It costs a bit (more than I'd like it to have, but eh...), and make sure that you buy it through the AppleTV, since there is a separate version for iOS, and if you buy it for iOS, you don't get the tvOS version and visa versa. Although the cost is annoying, it works quite well.

Right now I am trying DirectTV Now. It's been working moderately well (also I'm using a Gigapower connection through AT&T). I'll have to review in a few months whether I want to keep it or not.

Then, if you do happen to have some sort of other (DLNA) media server in the house (Plex, Kodi), then Infuse is a great app (and if you get the iOS version, you also get the tvOS version).

Another thing that I should also probably note is that with the HDHomeRun devices, none of them are actually wireless. So you'll have to have the device (and antenna) either by your router, or otherwise connected up through a wired line.

Anyways, it's been nice in that this set up has meant that I'm getting the local OTA channels a player for my media server, DirectTV Now, Netflix, WatchESPN, and a few more things all on one device now.

The funny thing is that it was really live sports that kept me with regular cable, but now between DirectTV Now/WatchESPN, I've actually got more sports channels than I did before, but at a lower cost.

They get mobile in the summer and will travel into your home. This is the most important time to keep a handle on them, you'll see giant watering style roaches and teeny German cockroaches in Houston.

Germans are the bigger concern, they're the sort that likes to infest homes and when an infestation gets going it can be tough, if you're infested you'll see tens or hundreds scatter when you turn on the kitchen lights at night.

If you just see one or two on wet objects occasionally they're probably traveling. Best to use some sort of bait poison in my opinion. I swear by advion cockroach bait which I buy in syringes from Amazon.

It's peanut butter looking gel you lay out near cracks and crevices, along baseboards, backs of cabinets, between the stove and the wall, behind the fridge, countertops on slips of thin cardboard. They'll eat and carry it in and on their bodies back to their nests, where they die. Then their cannibal brethren will eat them, and die. Makes for a very effective treatment, I've used it to help friends fix up terrible German roach infestations in a week or two.

The waterbug varieties die to it too, but they're not so much indoor dwelling roaches so they rarely infest clean appearing homes.

Mostly harmless to animals, active ingredient is indoxacarb which is used in some flea drops.

It used to be about $25 with prime shipping from Amazon but it seems that's not the case at the moment. This was the best I could find.

advion 4 Tubes and 4 Plungers Cockroach German Roach Pest Control Insecticide Bait Gel, Kill German, American, Australian, Smoky, Brown https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00730QW70/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_prdsDbEHJXGCS

Invict Gold seems similar, imidacloprid is its main ingredient, same as advantage II flea drops for animals, and at $25 on amazon not bad.
Rockwell Labs - Invict Gold - Cockroach Gel - 4 Tubes https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0049I6CT2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_HldsDbDGN91FC



Note on animal toxicity, these chemicals are safe because they're being spread at low concentrations in small areas, not broadly and widely like with sprays. If your animals seek and consume the roach bait that will not only increase the dose but reduce the effectiveness of your bait. I've never had issues with my cats being interested, but maybe a dog would. Just keep the bait out of reach of them as best you can,

I will say this: I live in Austin, and I love it, but Houston kicks Austin's ass when it comes to dining. Especially inexpensive dining. My wife lived in Houston for a while (job stuff), and while she was there we worked our way through this book, which I highly recommend.

That and the museums, pretty much changed my attitude toward Houston, and I could see myself living there (as long as I lived and worked inside the loop).

EDIT: Looks like the last edition of the book is from 2007. Has it really been that long? Still, Houston has an unbelievable number and variety of restaurants.

Check out these (recent) great writeups on Houston's food scene. Props and praises to Houston!

Yeah we were considering getting a KA since you can get the attachments, but getting them together is quite expensive, which is why I opted for this, it works pretty great and it's really easy to clean and store, the mixer weren't a priority for us anyways so it worked out.

What gym are you going to? Because it is very reasonable to teach yourself to deadlift and squat solo. Squats in particular are easy to learn, but difficult to master. Do you have any prior injuries, to your lower back in particular? Because if not you really can learn these ok on your own.

Pick up a copy of Starting Strength, it provides excellent, highly detailed descriptions of how to perform these lifts. While the Starting Strength program isn't perfect, it has become the go to beginners program for a reason. Practice them a bit, and then post a form check in /r/weightroom on Friday in the form check thread. While /r/fitness is great for providing postive feedback and a good, supportive atmosphere I would caution against taking any actual technical advice there with even a grain of salt.

Here's an actual serious list of things I got and LOVED and what I'm getting next time:

• a 5 gallon water cooler screw buying bottles - get something bigger and cheaper
  
• 1 liter water jugs - to freeze and use as giant ice cubes in your
  
• giant ice chest. The kind with a really good lid to stay frozen forever
  
• a pump - this one kicked ass because it can be submersed or not. Buying 2 more soon
  
• longer extension cords and garden hose to drain that guy elsewhere
  
• blue tarps and sand bags/soil bags -
  
• back up phone batteries
  
• batteries for everything else
  
• bread - multiple loaves. Junk food sounds great when you're party planning but it gets old fast.
  
• food! I didn't run out, but lots of people did. Plan for 6-10 days without leaving the house. I did half non perishable and half perishable, but with a cat 5 coming, I'd do more non perishable. Also though. Fruit and veggies.
  
• bug spray
  
• rain coat and wellies
  
• lawn/yard bags (can make impromptu bags with flood water) + clean up
  
• medicine - refill prescriptions now as well the basics like advil
  
• paper towels/toilet paper/life basics
  
  Also, what's coming your way seems more like Ike than Harvey. If I was looking at that I'd get
  
  
• a generator
  
• extra propane (or just trade out my half full tank for a full one)
  
• battery operated fans
  
  
  

This one is not the best, but it gets the job done and is pretty cheap.

http://www.amazon.com/2-5-inch-Vehicle-Recorder-Dashboard-Camcorder/dp/B0053DDNW6/ref=sr_sp-btf_title_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1404912766&sr=8-10

It will take me a while to find the one that is higher quality and a lot more popular. Black something.

Louis Aulbach, an active member of the Houston Archeology Society and frequent kayaker, wrote a book called "Buffalo Bayou: The History of Houston's Wilderness Beginnings." It began as a kayaking guide for the bayou but it evolved into much more than that.

Yes, there is still a bit of kayaking i formation in it but it covers more Houston history than you can imagine. For instance, I learned that I once lived on land that was part of Sam Houston's ranch. (This was inside the loop.)

I know Louis personally from some of my involvement in HAS and I can tell you that he is passionate about our history. He told me that, once he started writing, it took on a life of its own. He did a mind-boggling amount of research and cites his numerous sources. Seriously, I cannot recommend the book enough.

https://www.amazon.com/Buffalo-Bayou-Houstons-wilderness-beginnings/dp/1468101994/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1467925740&sr=8-1-fkmr2&keywords=Houston+bayou+kayak

I did it myself for about $10 of parts. You buy a fuse tap, and a 12-5v converter, something like this and this, and plug the dash cam power cable into the converter. I tapped my windshield wipers, in the interior fuse box, so that it would only be powered on when the car is in the "on" position. Getting a correct ground connection to the frame of the car is the most important part, i used a screw next to my interior fuse box. All the extra cabling fit neatly next to my interior fuse box.

Yes, and it works pretty well for under $20.

May I recommend BASE Performance electrolyte salt to deal with dehydration and help you stay hydrated longer?

​

https://www.amazon.com/BASE-Performance-electrolyte-refillable-gastrointestinal/dp/B00XDC6MK4

I use this one and it's fantastic: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00DP1WYD2

Edit: Sorry, I was using my phone: http://www.amazon.com/Mobius-Action-Camera-1080P-Sports/dp/B00DP1WYD2

I failed extra credit, but I'm excited to read the book. I assume this is it: http://www.amazon.com/Buffalo-Bayou-Houstons-wilderness-beginnings/dp/1468101994 ?

I'll be buying a copy this weekend!

For the DIY people

Get this from Amazon

Get this cable and plug the white to the fuse pigtail and the black to ground, like a screw touching metal.

Find your inside fuse panel, pull out a fuse plug in the pigtail and put the fuse in the pigtail. They'll have a guide what each fuse goes to. I have four USB connections just under my dash and if I want to flush mount USB connections for others to use I have that option.

Get a 10ft USB to mini-USB male cable, route it around your panels, dash and sun visor to your mirror.

It takes about 20 minutes to install.

http://www.amazon.com/Mobius-Action-Camera-1080P-Sports/dp/B00DP1WYD2

Here is the mobile version of your link

G1W-h