Iron Man 3

Iron-Man-3Over the weekend, I saw Iron Man 3 in the theater, in 2D (I want to do everything possible to eliminate 3D from the movie theaters). I will say that going in, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Iron Man 2 was not particularly good, and the early reviews on IMDB for Iron Man 3 were less than stellar (though this seemed to be due to people wanting the movie to by like the Chris Nolan Dark Knight movies).

Previews took for bloody ever (not unlike other Disney movies), but once we finally got to the movie, it pretty much set a pace within the first few minutes, and kept up on it through the rest of the movie. Acting and Direction is pretty much what we’ve all come to expect from A. A Marvel Movie (post Daredevil/Fantastic Four/X-Men Last Stand), and B. A Robert Downey Jr., Gwen Paltrow movie.

Without ruining too much, the movie is darker. Stark does suffer from PTSD after what happened in Avengers (which seems a bit lame, but whatever). But it stays pretty true to the previous two movies, as well as the larger Avengers universe. No doubt Joss Whedon is getting some editing “rights” to the scripts.

All and all, a good movie. Never felt like it dragged during the action (which there was a fair amount of), and it has to be the best example of a movie introducing a “kid” but not allowing that to ruin the characters or the movie. And Ben Kingsley is awesome.

In short, see it. It’s well worth the 2 hours.

Rating: ★★★★¾ 

Fluke C115 Soft Case

Fluke C115I know I haven’t actually finished the review of the Fluke 189, but this review is easier. I purchased a Fluke C115 to hold the meter, and my leads (which themselves were in a Fluke C75 case). After reading several positive reviews on Amazon, I ordered one and waited my 2 days (Amazon Prime, FTW). After receiving, I can say the case is quite nice, though a BIT smaller than I thought. The C75 case fits in one of the internal pouches, and the Fluke 189 fits in another, but it’s kind of a tighter fit, and because of the hem on the pocket, taking the 189 OUT of the pocket is a bit slow (the hem can catch on the buttons of the meter).

There is a back zippered pocket that I stashed a printed copy of the manual in, and otherwise, it seems to work quite well. Light weight, pretty sturdy, and I would guess it would protect the meter should it be dropped from being carried (though I doubt it’d survive a distant fall since the 189 has a molded rubber case rather than a removable rubber one). The main flap unzips almost all the way down the sides, so it opens up pretty far, but storage IN the case if you’re using both pockets is a bit limited.

All and all, pretty happy. Just wish it was a bit bigger, or that maybe it had a handle rather than just the shoulder strap.

Rating: ★★★★½ 

Steren 201-102 Splitter

steren 201-102Post is mainly for my own records since finding documentation for the Steren 201-102 2-way splitter is near impossible.

So, here it is. I have this unit splitting the incoming cable feed into my house between the cable modem on one side, and a 3-way splitter on the other (that feeds the TV’s in the house). All and all, pretty happy with it.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

ITEM # 201-102

1GHz 130dB Digital Splitters

Premium 1GHz 130dB Digital Ready Splitters
Broadband and CATV 5-1000MHz 75Ω Splitters
Suitable for Hybrid Distribution Networks, HDTV, Voice, Data, Modem and Digital Converter Applications
Gold-Plated Beryllium-Copper Two-Prong Contacts
Reduced Aperture Flat-Ended Ports
High-Performance Printed Board Circuitry
Tongue-and-Groove Housing
All Ports DC Power Capacitor-Blocked
Low Intermodulation Hum
Soldered-Back Cover 130dB min. EMI-RFI Shielding
Anti-Corrosion Silver-Plated Zinc-Alloy Cast Housing
3/8″ Precision Machined F-Port Threads
1″ centered F-ports accommodate security tools
SCTE Compliant SC IPS SP 202, 203; SC IPS TP 406, 409; SCTE 29, 48, 04
Supplied with Protective F-Port Plastic Caps

2-Way Balanced 1GHz 130dB F-Splitter
Insertion Loss 4.0dB max.
Port-Port Isolation 37dB min.
Input Return Loss 24dB min.

http://www.sterenusa.com/1ghz-130db-digital-splitter-balanced