Odds ‘n Sods:

On a recent road trip through Ontario, Canada, I noticed a surprising number of houses equipped with photovoltaic (PV) power panels–both roof-mounted and ground rack-mounted. I suspect that these these PV systems were nearly all both:  A.) Grid-tied, and B.) Partly paid for by generous incentives. One of these incentives is called the Feed-in-tariff (FIT), wherein a grid-tied renewable energy producer is paid a premium for excess power fed back to the grid, for a limited number of years. For small producers (under 10 kW) the available term is 20 years for PV, and 40 years for hydro power. – JWR

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Internet Crashes Will Be Hard To Stop After Obama’s Internet Giveaway

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A neighbor reminded me about the continuing publication of Farm Show magazine. Think of it as Makezine, for country folks.  The creativity of some of these farm and ranch projects is astounding.  Many of these devices are constructed with little more than scrap metal,  welding rod, and a bit of duct tape. Their three published “Encyclopedia of Made It Myself Ideas” compendiums are highly recommended.

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Video: 23 Incredible DIY Projects From Pallet Wood

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Choosing a Liveaboard Boat