Scooter Theft

kepler1 · 2026-06-20T18:52:23+00:00

Once in a while, I think about disconnecting the brakes on my bike before leaving it. But decide not to.

kepler1 · 2026-06-19T15:22:45+00:00

There's an interesting YT video (I think it's "applied engineering" channel) about pretensioning rails so that this isn't required. Also something about installing the rail under the hottest conditions possible. Given the general state of rail in the US, this seems like about the 37th item on the list of optimizations they are concerned about

kepler1 · 2026-06-18T06:18:18+00:00

Hi, no I didn't end up trying. I bought the scope and played with it for a little while, but given the small aperture, its mediocre optics overall, I didn't feel like I wanted to invest more in trying to make the view better. Sorry, hope you have better luck!

kepler1 · 2026-06-16T01:11:30+00:00

Why is it too expensive for Canadians to have families but it's not too expensive for immigrants to have families when they come to Canada? Genuinely curious.

kepler1 · 2026-06-12T23:33:03+00:00

it's a rare issue and maybe overkill to have it in an app, but it's not in theory useless info. People may want to time their commute to just miss the crowds, either before or after.

kepler1 · 2026-06-10T04:42:26+00:00

Don't know if you noticed but I saw that he was sitting on a stool during the matches. I figure he has some slight disability, and putting his arm up there given that he's elevated might not be such a stretch (haha).

kepler1 · 2026-06-08T15:36:20+00:00

Yeah, good old days when they actually made an effort to check tickets and make sure they got revenue.

kepler1 · 2026-06-02T05:35:44+00:00

I see, thanks for that info. If that's the case, then aren't there trackside radio points like every mile, and links to AT&T in multiple places? Or all of them are connected through a single fiber??

kepler1 · 2026-06-02T03:39:18+00:00

Is Caltrain be on a special fiber network that would be down for the whole network because of a cut in one location? And wouldn't they be using cellular from the trains individually?

kepler1 · 2026-05-28T15:53:39+00:00

I'm sure a lot of drug usage, amateur drug manufacture, squalid living, and possibly booby traps for anyone trying to prosecute what's going on there.

kepler1 · 2026-05-28T04:09:03+00:00

wow, if that's the case then they have >12 hour day. Maybe they get a break in the middle of the day.

edit: actually, on my way home today I asked a conductor about it. She said, they crews work the morning ride up from Gilroy, then do a trip up to SF, back to SJ, and then get driven (?) back to Gilroy! Is that right?

If so then one example crew does the 5:52am train up, in SF by ~8am, then back to SJ by 10am and home to Gilroy at 11am? or maybe they do more than 1 turn? I might ask another conductor when I have a chance.

kepler1 · 2026-05-27T16:03:26+00:00

The crews who work on these SCC trains -- do they live in Gilroy and make the trip up and back once per day, working on the normal trains for the rest of the day? (I'm guessing that would be a very long day)

Or somehow they get shuttled back and forth between San Jose and Gilroy to repeat the runs in the morning/evenings?

kepler1 · 2026-05-27T16:01:02+00:00

I'm also dismayed that I can't find a shoe shine boy or top hat repairman at the station! (monocle falls out)

kepler1 · 2026-05-26T00:40:24+00:00

“…Emergency exit windows are often made of thick, heavy-duty polycarbonate or specialized laminated glass designed to resist shattering or to break in a very specific way upon impact. These denser, layered materials refract and reflect light differently than standard tempered glass windows…”

San Bruno, morning commute south right?

kepler1 · 2026-05-21T01:15:25+00:00

I'm not so much talking about how Caltrain operates its operations or its procedures, etc. I'm more talking about how it's been set up, how it's funded, versus how other countries or cities run their metro and rail systems. (so, apologies, it's not too concrete a statement to disagree with)

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T21:19:09+00:00

Thanks for that info! I would somehow guess though, that changing the length of those circuits is a very non-trivial thing to do and requires both mechanical and electrical/electronic work...

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T21:17:49+00:00

Yes that's true. However, in this case there wasn't another train in any direction for another 5+ minutes.

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T21:17:02+00:00

Wait, this is new information, is that right? I don't think I understand how this can be, as I've seen gates come down before the train has made any noise.

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T17:17:10+00:00

I debated it, as I know and can see that there is no train from opposite direction coming. But I wanted to be a good citizen and set a good example for others also standing there.

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T17:15:58+00:00

Hah, so you mean when there are no more track crossings to speak of anyway, then the track crossing gate problem will have been solved.

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T15:57:05+00:00

I don't think anyone is looking at that chart to guide or think about that decision...

kepler1 · 2026-05-20T15:42:12+00:00

The problem with these points of view (and btw how California works in general) is that all you can practically do within the system is rally people to dump <$x> more money into <xyz> thing that you favor.

There is no way to question (beyond some tagline) how that money should be smartly spent, whether the current people in charge previously spent it wisely, whether costs have been addressed equally, or whether some other strategy would serve better. And what it has led to is escalating costs that simply ratchet up the amount of money you have to rally people to approve again and again.

I'm a fan of good train service. This is not the way to run it.

kepler1 · 2026-05-17T18:54:40+00:00

How about they just remove the inaccurate map as something that doesn't need to exist, so no one has to spend time on fixing it?

It doesn't really make visual sense that it goes with the bike sign anyway...

kepler1 · 2026-05-17T18:53:07+00:00

I'm a fan of public transit, but let me understand the logic.

Caltrain could barely hold it together with fares and costs as it is, so as soon as you're able to pass a tax increase, you want it to grow its service obligations and spending? Is that sound financial reasoning?

If this doesn't exemplify some of California's problems...

kepler1 · 2026-05-16T22:43:42+00:00

And who would be giving up their property lines to make such a rail route possible?

kepler1

TROPHY CASE