I wasn’t planning on it but I happened to grab my computer a couple of minutes before Facebook opened up folks to get their vanity URL’s. I was able to get dan.masters and so my Facebook URL is now -
Honestly I am not sure how much good that is going to be for me but I got it none the less.
Filed under: Other on June 13th, 2009 | No Comments »
This past weekend my wife and I had our monthly day off from the kids and decided to go look for Bluebonnets which are the Texas state flower. Initially we started to drive north of Austin but were not finding very many so we decided to drive out to 290 toward Houston since we had seen Bluebonnets in that area in years past.
On our way to the 290 we passed a large group of RV’s and tents setup in Cedar Park and were wondering what was going on. I had my wife do a search on Twitter for Cedar Park and someone had Twittered about attending a cook off in Cedar Park and so our question was answered. Being inspired I asked my wife to search Twitter for Bluebonnets and sure enough there were people Twittering about seeing a lot of Bluebonnets on the way from Houston to Austin. Specifically there was mention of them being in Brenham which is about half way between the two. One person who Twittered about the Bluebonnets mentioned that there were a lot behind the Walmart in Brenham at the 290 and 36.
We headed that way. Read more »
Filed under: Nature, Twitter on March 24th, 2009 | No Comments »
Cool! I just made my first iPhone Amazon Kindle purchase. I was in a book store and found a book that I was about to purchase when I thought “it would be realy nice to have this on my iPhone instead of luging this hunk of paper around”. So I jumped on amzon.com/kindlestore
After closing Safari I opened the Kindle app and it said that it was syncing and in less then 30 seconds my book appeared. I opened it and the whole thing was there. I though that it would need to download for a while but it was actually pretty quick. The whole experience was pretty cool!
This has opened up a whole new world for me as having the book “in my pocket” will give it a much better chance of getting read. Good work Amazon!
- Posted from my iPhone, please excuse any typos!
Filed under: Apple, Technology, iPhone on March 18th, 2009 | No Comments »
I have been eating at Que Pasa in Round Rock, Texas for several months now and thought that I would give them a shout out. I like Mexican food in general but was severally disappointed in the type of Mexican food that was served here in Texas. The reason for my disappointment was that Mexican food on the West Coast is different then it is here in Texas.
There is a reason that Mexican food here in Texas is called Tex Mex – it’s different. After several months of not having an Mexican food my wife and went to try some Tex Mex with a different mindset – we are trying something new so don’t expect it taste like West Coast Mexican food. With that mindset we loved it and frequent several Tex Mex places in the area.
Back to Que Pasa…
We stumbled upon Que Pasa about 6 months ago when El Arroyo closed near the Baskin Robbins off of Highway 79. We decided to try. From the first day we were impressed. It was West Coast style Mexican food and was great.
I have tried several things on their menu but usually go for their Flautas (made with corn tortillas as opposed to flour). Some times I will opt for a crispy shredded beef taco and/or an enchilada. Their fajitas are good as well. Another thing that I really like about Que Pasa are the prices, they are really affordable.
Some people here in Texas may not like Que Pasa because their food is not traditional Tex Max and that is understandable. I think if they would go there with an open mind, like we did to Tex Mex restaurants here in Texas, then I think that they would be pleasantly surprised.
Filed under: Entertainment, Food, Round Rock, Texas on March 10th, 2009 | No Comments »
Apple updated their Mac Mini line this week after almost a year of not touching it. The upgrade was not that significant other then the fact that it is now possible to use dual monitors via the Mini DVI and Mini DisplayPort ports. This has raised an eyebrow for me because I have wanted to use two displays with my present Mac Mini for quite some time.
My current Mac Mini is setup as the kid’s computer in our upstairs family room and the kids absolutely love it. I have a 22″ monitor and a hard drive full of movies on it. Across the room I have a 42″ Phillips plasma TV that at times I will hook my MacBook up to in order to watch something that is on Hulu or that is ripped to a hard drive. My ideal setup would be to have the ability to display the Mac Mini on the 42″ so that we could watch items off of it as opposed to having to setup my MacBook to do so. It would also be beneficial to the kids to have this setup as they could watch their movies and even surf on the big screen as well.
At $600 for the base version of the new Mac Mini it is not too expensive to make this change but in the current economic client I may have to wait a while. it is nice to know that this is now a native possibility though.
Filed under: Apple, Mac Mini, Technology on March 6th, 2009 | No Comments »
Carl’s Jr has come to the great state of Texas and setup shop in Cedar Park which is just 15 minutes north of Austin.
Carl’s Jr started way back in the 40’s in Southern California as a hot dog cart and has been growing nationally ever since. Having grown up in So Cal myself I frequented Carl’s for the Western Bacon Cheese Burger. This hamburger consists of a flame broiled patty, cheese, bacon, onion rings, and BBQ sauce. It is truly a unique burger that I missed when moving to Texas.
Today I went to Car’ls Jr in Cedar Park to relive my days Western Bacon Cheese Burger delight and I was not disappointed. The burger was great. It seems that they have upgrade to a new style of french fries that are the “natural cut” fries which were quite tasty.
The only drawback to the Cedar Park location is that the seating is limited. I was lucky to get a seat even though I got there before the lunch rush. As I was finishing there were people with food but without a seat. They do have room to add tables outside and I would highly recommend it.
In talking with the server that took my order Carl’s is planning on adding 15 more locations in the area. The sever also said that their was another Carl’s Jr in the southern part of Austin but was not sure of the exact location.
All-in-all it was a good experience and I am happy to have another creature comfort from my days in California. Now all we need in In & Out Burger here in Texas!
Filed under: Cedar Park, Food, Texas on January 23rd, 2009 | No Comments »
I have traded our Acer Aspire One for a 13″ MacBook.
While looking for a new Product Manager position I am stepping up my side business in Web Design and Development to generate some extra income. I tried using my wife’s Aspire One but it was just too small and underpowered. Therefore tonight I went to the Apple store and got a white MacBook.
Netbooks are great to travel with because they are so light. But unfortunately there wasn’t much more I could do with it that I couldn’t do with my iPhone. The MacBook isn’t full size but it is bigger then the netbook and is a reasonable price for the features. I used to have one that was issued by my company so I am already used to it’s size and performance.
Netbooks are cool but just a little too small for me to be completely usable. Your mileage may vary.
Filed under: Acer, Apple, Aspire One, MacBook, Technology on January 16th, 2009 | No Comments »
That is the nice way of saying that I got laid off today. I know that I was one of three that got released from the Product Management Team this morning from Coremetrics. I know the management there was doing all they could to avoid it but when the seas get rough you have to lighten the load in order to make it to port. I wish all those at Coremetrics well and look forward to seeing them make it through the storm.
In light of that I have added a new page to the site with my resume on it. If you are looking for a Product Manager that is well balanced between client requirements and the technical side of getting the job done then I am your man. I am in the Austin area and would love to talk to you. Sorry, I love Austin and am not looking to relocate.
My resume can be viewed and downloaded here:
Dan Masters – Product Manager, Austin TX
Filed under: Doh! on January 8th, 2009 | 1 Comment »
I thought I would energize my aluminum Apple keyboard yesterday by dowsing it with some Red Bull. The keyboard didn’t flinch but I sure did even though there wasn’t any sparks or explosions.
After unplugging it from my computer I placed it upside down so the Bull could flow out of it. After I wiped it down I plugged it in and it still worked. I used it the rest of the day without a hitch.
When I came in this morning I did not think about yesterdays baptism in the Bull until I tried to come to this website and was typing my name. The R was slow to some back up after being pressed and so I need to perform some surgery on my keyboard.
I ended up popping off the a Shift key, plus the T, R, and E keys. I rinsed each key and its little plastic spring with water and wiped the inside of the key socket. While those keys are now nice and responsive I have noticed that the G key is also acting sluggish so it looks like I will need to pop it off as well.
I wish I could just throw this thing in the dish washer and take care of it in one swoop.
P.S. This post has caused me to add a new category named "Doh!".
Filed under: Apple, Doh!, Mac, Technology on December 18th, 2008 | No Comments »
This guy is simply amazing.
You can see all of his videos here – Ken Block Racing
Filed under: Entertainment, Unbelievable, Videos on December 2nd, 2008 | No Comments »
This is the personal website of Dan Masters of Round Rock, Texas. He is a husband to one wife, father to three kids, a Product Manager by day, and a blogger , handyman, techie, and web designer by night.
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