The Flame Keepers: The True Story of an American Soldier's Survival Inside Stalag 17 by Ned Handy (Thumbs up)

Title: The Flame Keepers: The True Story of an American Soldier's Survival Inside Stalag 17

Authors: Ned Handy and Kemp Battle

Book Description:

Ned Handy was captured by Germans in April 1944, after his B-24 was shot down. Sent to Stalag 17, the infamous Nazi prison camp, Handy soon led an escape team determined to tunnel to freedom. Along with the unforgettable comrades he vividly describes, Handy worked relentlessly for months on a tunnel that was to prove instrumental in saving the lives of four fugitives sought by the Gestapo. One of those fugitives would become the only American ever to escape permanently from Stalag 17. The Flame Keepers is a vivid first-hand account of an American soldier's experience as a prisoner of war in Nazi Germany and a poignant portrait of the POWs who worked to survive within the wire and their German captors. Illustrated with original photographs taken inside the camp from a smuggled camera and published for the first time in the trade press, The Flame Keepers recounts one of World War II's great untold stories.

Gort's Review (Thumbs up):

Awesome WW2 true story of American soldiers in a German POW camp. The description of their day-to-day survival routines as well as their intimate talks about home and food is inspiring. One of the best books I have read.

Write It When I'm Gone: Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations With Gerald R. Ford by Thomas M. DeFrank (Thumbs up)

Title: Write It When I'm Gone: Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford

 

Author: Thomas M. DeFrank

 

Book Description:

In 1974, Newsweek correspondent Thomas M. DeFrank was interviewing Gerald Ford when the Vice President blurted out something astonishingly indiscreet. He then extracted a promise not to publish it. “Write it when I’m dead,” Ford said— and thus began a thirty-two-year relationship.

During the last fifteen years of their conversations, Ford opened up to DeFrank, speaking in a way few presidents ever have. Here the award-winning journalist reveals these private talks, as Ford discusses his experiences with his fellow presidents, the Warren Commission, and his exchanges with Bill Clinton during the latter’s impeachment process. In addition, he shares his thoughts about both Bush administrations, the Iraq war, his beloved wife Betty, and the frustrations of aging. Write It When I’m Gone is not only a historical document but an unprecedented portrait of a president.

Gort's Review (Thumbs up):

Being a child during Ford's time as President, there was little that I knew about this President. This book does not go into all the details, but rather his thoughts and feeling as told to the author with the stipulation that none of this would be printed until his passing.

So what's unRaid? and what's it used for?

Question: What is unRaid?
Answer: unRaid: is a piece of software that produced by the company Lime-Technology

Question: What does unRaid do?
Answer: unRAID Server is an embedded Network Attached Storage server Operating System designed to boot from a USB Flash device and specifically designed for digital media storage:

• Digital Video
• Digital Music
• Digital Images/Photos

Say what? In plain English please!

Well, let's explain it this way. Years ago, there were no digital cameras, so all pictures were printed out and usually stored away in a box somewhere. Then 20 years later, out comes the box of pictures.

With digital pictures, the actual pictures are rarely printed, and usually stored on a USB stick, an external hard drive, or on your computer's hard drive. Now suppose that hard drive dies, or you lose that USB stick. Some people have tons of pictures stored this way and have no backups at all.

So as a simple form of backup, you could copy all of your pictures to another hard drive. But supposing both hard drives die,....well,..I think you know the answer to that question already.

In the computer world, there's something called RAID. RAID is a method to create a redundant backup of data in case of a hardware failure. There are several types RAID, but we won't go there (at least not in this post). In simplest terms, 3 hard drives are used to copy the data to,..if one of the hard drives fails,..you remove it, put in a replacement, and the data is restored to that drive.

So then how does unRaid fit in?

Well typically standard RAID demands some special hardware that might be out of reach for some people.
unRaid simplifies the requirements, thus making it easier for anyone to use.

Still confused? Ask a question...

Pictures of the HTPC and unRaid server being built and completed

So here are the pictures I promised:

I started top put this together and in my excitement,..I realized that I need to take pictures.
So as you can see I've got the case apart, the RAM in, the PSU in, and the CPU cooler temporarily sitting on the PSU.

This keyboard is awesome!

Now the CPU Cooler is finally installed. That thing is amazing! and HUGE!! But it fits perfectly.

Figuring out the wiring and getting ready to pop in the MOBO.
Notice where I installed the SSD and see that the HDD is under the BDROM drive.
There was space to install another drive next to the HDD.

And, here's everything installed and the bracket back on the case.
Wiring could be better, but I found this to be really easy and I was extremely happy.
You should see the mess I made of the unRaid server. That case is huge, but the wiring is a mess.
Need to take a class on wiring.

 

Now installing Windows 7.
Notice the adapter cable sitting in front of the monitor.
Only later did I realize what it was for.....
I have to learn to read the manuals!!!

AND here my unRaid server. (now you're saying "What's an unRaid Server and what is it for?" now, that's to be explained in another post) It's in a temporary home,...which may end up to be a permanent home.
Where? The laundry room. The furnace is also in there,..and I was worried about heat, but temps have been fine.

and of course,....Lights out!

Well I hope these pictures help someone!!! Perhaps you you'd like to build one yourself,..or just want to ask questions. Go ahead,..I'll try to help out.

So what's XBMC on a HTPC???

Exactly my question!

I was recently researching something on Amazon when I can across a review that said, "I love this computer case and I use it for a HTPC running XBMC". I was puzzled as to why, (even though I'm into computers) I had never come across this before. Well, after further research I found that XBMC stands for X-Box Media Center and HTPC stands for Home Theater Personal Computer.

That discovery opened a Pandora's Box (or Rabbit's Hole) and eventually led me to building my own HTPC running XBMC. All I can say is, Boy I am glad I did some researching because this stuff is amazing!!!

Not only can XBMC run on just about operating system, but it allows you to play your DVD movies, View you pictures, Play your music, and with additional Add-Ons,..a whole boat-load of other things.

This build allows you to play movies in 1080p,..as well as in 3D, if you have the properly equipped HDTV. Here is my build list and I'd highly recommend these parts if you're thinking of building one.


Computer Case:
SilverStone Aluminum/Steel Micro ATX Media Center/HTPC Case ML03B (Black) $59.99

Power Supply:
SilverStone Strider 400W, 80 PLUS, Active PFC Power Supply ST40F-ES (Black) $48.99

CPU:
AMD A6-3500 APU with AMD Radeon 6530 HD Graphics 2.1/2.4GHz Socket FM1 65W Triple-Core Processor - Retail AD3500OJGXBOX $74.99

CPU Cooler:
Scythe BIG SHURIKEN 2 Rev B. 5-Heatpipe Universal Low Profile CPU Cooler (SCBSK-2100) $47.95

Motherboard:
ASRock MB-A75M Socket FM1/ AMD A75 FCH/ SATA3&USB3.0/ A&GbE/ Micro ATX Motherboard $74.99

RAM
Kingston HyperX Genesis 4 GB Kit (2x2 GB Modules) 1866MHz DDR3 PC3-15000 240-Pin Non-ECC CL9 1.65V DIMM XMP Desktop Memory KHX1866C9D3K2/4GX $35.74

Solid State Hard Drive:
Crucial 64 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT064M4SSD2 $80.99

BD-ROM:
LG UH12LS28K LightScribe 12x SATA Blu-Ray Combo Internal Drive, Bulk (Black) $57.39

Operating System:
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64bit (Full) System Builder DVD 1 Pack $99.99

Wireless Keyboard:
IOGEAR Multimedia Keyboard with Laser Trackball and Scroll Wheel, 2.4GHz Wireless GKM561R (Black) $39.08

Remote:
Windows 7 Vista XP Media Center MCE PC Remote Control and Infrared Receiver for Home, Premium and Ultimate Edition $15.41

I didn't buy an internal HD, since I already have a 2TB and a 1TB just laying around.



My next post will show pictures of the completed build, and then in additional posts, I'll discuss an unRaid Server. "A what???", you say...don't worry,..I'll explain,...so Stay tuned!

The Preacher and the Presidents: Billy Graham in the White House by Nancy Gibbs (Thumbs up)

Title: The Preacher and the Presidents: Billy Graham in the White House

Author:  Nancy Gibbs

Nancy Gibbs is Deputy Managing Editor at TIME magazine. Named by the Chicago Tribune as one of the ten best magazine writers in the country, she is the author of more than 130 TIME cover stories and now writes the back essay page. She won the National Magazine Award for the black-bordered special issue on September 11, 2001, and was the lead TIME writer on virtually every major news event from Oklahoma City to Hurricane Katrina, as well as the last five presidential campaigns.

Book Description:

No one man or woman has ever been in a position to see the presidents, and the presidency, so intimately, over so many years. They called him in for photo opportunities. They called for comfort. They asked about death and salvation; about sin and forgiveness.

At a time when the nation is increasingly split over the place of religion in public life, THE PREACHER AND THE PRESIDENTS reveals how the world's most powerful men and world's most famous evangelist, Billy Graham, knit faith and politics together.

Gort's Review (Thumbs up):

Fascinating account of the interaction Billy Graham had with every since Harry Truman. The fact that the Presidency is an overwhelming job, magnified their need for spiritual guidance during and after the Presidency. Sometimes we take for granted that we know all about historical figures. This book helps to explore the little known facts about their lives and the difficult decisions where they needed spiritual guidance.

South: The Endurance Expedition by Ernest Shakleton (Thumbs up)

Title: South: The Endurance Expedition

Author:  Ernest Shackleton

British Explorer

Book Description:

In 1914, as the shadow of war falls across Europe, a party led by veteran explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton sets out to become the first to traverse the Antarctic continent. Their initial optimism is short-lived, however, as the ice field slowly thickens, encasing the ship Endurance in a death-grip, crushing their craft, and marooning 28 men on a ploar ice floe.
In an epic struggle of man versus the elements, Shackleton leads his team on a harrowing quest for survival over some of the most unforgiving terrain in the world. Icy, tempestuous seas full of gargantuan waves, mountainous glaciers and icebergs, unending brutal cold, and ever-looming starvation are their mortal foes as Shackleton and his men struggle to stay alive.
What happened to those brave men forever stands as a testament to their strength of will and the power of human endurance.
This is their story, as told by the man who led them.

Gort's Review (Thumbs Up):

The amazing true story of survival, courage, stamina, leadership, and devotion to a leader. The fact that the boat was named "Endurance" was amazingly prescient.

One of my favorite quotes comes from this book:
"Loneliness is the penalty of leadership, but the man who has to make the decisions is assisted greatly if he feels that there is no uncertainty in the minds of those who follow him, and that his orders will be carried out confidently and in expectation of success."
-Ernest Shackleton

Hiroshima by John Hersey (Thumbs Up)

Title:  Hiroshima

Author: John Hersey

John Richard Hersey (June 17, 1914 – March 24, 1993) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American writer and journalist considered one of the earliest practitioners of the so-called New Journalism, in which storytelling devices of the novel are fused with non-fiction reportage. Hersey's account of the aftermath of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, was adjudged the finest piece of journalism of the 20th century by a 36-member panel under the aegis of New York University's journalism department.

Book Description:

"At, exactly fifteen minutes past eight in the morning on August 6, 1945, Japanese time, at the moment when the atomic bomb flashed above Hiroshima, Miss Toshiko Sasaki, a clerk in the personnel department of the East Asia Tin Works, had just sat down at her place in the plant office and was turning her head to speak to the girl at the next desk." When the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, few could have anticipated its potential for devastation. Pulitzer prize-winning author John Hersey recorded the stories of Hiroshima residents shortly after the explosion and, in 1946, Hiroshima was published, giving the world first-hand accounts from people who had survived it. The words of Miss Sasaki, Dr. Fujii, Mrs. Nakamara, Father Kleinsorg, Dr. Sasaki, and the Reverend Tanimoto gave a face to the statistics that saturated the media and solicited an overwhelming public response. Whether you believe the bomb made the difference in the war or that it should never have been dropped, "Hiroshima" is a must read for all of us who live in the shadow of armed conflict.

Gort's Review: (Thumbs Up)

Nothing is more powerful than the historical facts and biographical stories of people as they encounter and endure adversity. This book certainly falls into that categorical statement. Must Read.

So what's with the name Gort and why review books?

Fair questions indeed,...let me answer both so we can move onto what this is intended to be, a place to read/share book reviews.

Q: What's with the name Gort and why do you sign as GortWillSaveUs?

A: Gort comes from the movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still". No, not the one with Keanu Reeves,..I'm talking about the original movie from the 50's. Gort was the robot that was sent to destroy the earth. So I guess I'm trying to be ironic when I say GortWillSaveUs. I know,...you're still confused. Believe me,..I understand.

Q: Why review books? and what kind of books? and only books? or will the be other things you review?

A: Because I like books. Mostly non-fiction and historical in nature, especially books about the WW2 time period. Well,..I'll be reviewing mostly books. Yes, I may slip in a review of a cool movie, or some sweet computer part. Hey, it's my blog right.

Bottom-line: Just enjoy and feel free to comment.

P.S. By the way: Here's Gort