Model Airplanes

HOLLAND, Mich. (AP) – Max DeVisser is only 2 and can barely talk, but he knows what he likes.

“He loves trains. Loves them,” said his dad, Mike DeVisser, as the two explored an elaborate miniature railroad complex in the basement of Howard Miller Library and Community Center on a recent Wednesday evening. For more than a decade, Holland Modular Railroad Club members have set up and operated the Christmas-season train show, to the great joy of children and adults alike, The Holland Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1wzlTau ) reported.

“We started at an empty store in Zeeland,” said Glenn resident Phil Hanscom, 82, a small-train hobbyist since getting a Lionel set when he was 8-years-old. “We were in four different empty shops in Zeeland until we got into the library. We’ve had the show upstairs and in a smaller room downstairs.”

This year’s train show at the library is interactive, featuring anywhere from two to eight trains moving along tracks laid out on a 46-by-16-foot platform. The mini-landscape includes towns, tunnels, woods, some surprises and a variable soundtrack.

Hanscom didn’t bring any of his own collection to Zeeland – they are set up in a permanent working display at home, taking up about two-thirds of his basement.

Max DeVisser spent several minutes pressing buttons, operating lights and sirens of emergency vehicles at a small-town street.

Natalie Langeland, 9, spent most of her visit at a table set up so children can operate a simple train. She practiced making her train go forward, speed up, slow

Article source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/dec/21/holland-clubs-tiny-trains-return-to-zeeland/

Since the state’s first store specializing in hobbyist and commercial drone technology opened Nov. 1 in Castle Rock, the gadgets have been flying out the door at a steady clip. Many will land under the tree.

“This niche is huge,” said Kerry Garrison, co-owner of Multicopter Warehouse. “The industry is calling 2014 the year of the drone. Last year, industrywide, there were hundreds of units sold. This year, it’s hundreds of thousands.”

Garrison worked for Josh Gilson’s telecommunications company in Denver. About a year ago, Garrison, 49, and Gilson, 33, began messing around with old remote control helicopters.

“We started getting into the newer stuff, but the parts were so hard to find, we decided to start a side business in the garage,” Garrison said.

The pair launched online sales of drones made in China in March and also began offering customized models. The business took off so fast that Gilson and Garrison last month moved to a storefront in downtown Castle Rock.

“We wanted to focus specifically on drone technology and take it as far as we can go,” Garrison said.

Drones – unmanned aerial vehicles typically operated remotely – have been used for years in military combat, for surveillance and to collect intelligence.

But the advanced technology that includes such elements as video cameras, infrared cameras and GPS has only recently become available for private application.

Multicopter Warehouse sells drones for hobbyists and commercial operators, along with customized models, replacement parts and do-it-yourself kits.

Some hobbyists fly drones for sport, with units that don’t have a camera.

“They

Article source: http://gazette.com/increased-drone-use-creates-a-buzz-at-castle-rock-shop/article/1543417

As 2014 winds to a close, we got to test a variety of exciting new tech to help you, as always, make informed buying decisions. Among the gadgets we tried were Apple’s companion to its larger new iPhone 6, the even more massive iPhone 6 Plus, as well as the latest DSLR camera from Nikon. Both had what it took to take home our coveted Editors’ Choice awards. Rounding out our slate of reviews were a solid pair of earbuds from Sennheiser, and a relatively affordable 55-inch TV from Samsung.

Our news and features team also had its share of excitement. We covered Airbus’ spectacular airplane stunt — one that put a cool $1.5 billion worth of the company’s own planes at risk. In addition, we issued a PSA to stop shooting video in vertical mode, got buzzed with a comprehensive coffee taste test, and discovered a Kickstarter-backed pizza bed. Yes, you read that right: a pizza bed.

Watch Airbus risk $1.5 billion in a wild airplane stunt

In a video promoting its new A350 XWB passenger jet, Airbus flew five of the new planes in awe-inspiring (and potentially dangerous) formations. With each of the jets valued at $300 million, it’s safe to assume Airbus put about

Article source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/12/19/the-week-in-reviewed-risky-airplane-stunt-edition/20643895/