Halo 2 Headset Benefits Katrina Victims

Halo 2's still the most popular Xbox Live game, and if you need a new headset, you could do worse than pick up a Emerald Halo 2 headset for $15. A portion of the proceeds is going to the Platronics GameCom United Way Katrina Recovery Fund. A good cause and a good headset. – Jason Chen More »

Katrina Unleashes Terminator Fish

Ever really wonder how all your US income tax money is spent? Apparently the Navy is training dolphins in the Gulf of Mexico to shoot terrorists and hunt for underwater spies. Armed with toxic dart guns, these dolphins are taught to obliterate enemies that might be attacking military vessels. During the wrath of hurricane Katrina, their containment compound was destroyed, releasing the brainwashed fish out to sea. Now all we can do is wait until some innocent tourist is found face down in the water after attending their first scuba diving class. We just wonder how the dolphin will plead to the imminent homicide charges. More »

Katrina: I Hate Hurricanes Forever

Joel Johnson — First, I apologize about a lack of updates, but I've been working. I got away from the group for a day and went up north to the house of Miss Gerri, who may be one of the most open, compassionate women I've ever met. I could only stay away from New Orleans for about a day. Although a day away from the stress in a cool bed did wonders, as soon as I hit the ground back in Algiers I found the Common Ground camp in high alert mode and the stress and frustration came right back. More »

Katrina Aid: Radio Algiers

Joel Johnson — First, I apologize for my lack of updates. I've been holding off because I've been too busy to blog and because I wanted to have something cool to show you guys before I took the time to write. Fortunately, I think this is pretty cool. More »

Katrina: EVDO in NOLA

Joel Johnson — We've made it into Algiers, the 15th Ward of New Orleans, at the request of Malik Rahim. Malik stayed in Algiers after the hurricane and is working to establish community help stations to assist in getting the neighborhood back on its feet. Tomorrow we're going to visit the local community-run medical center to see what we can do there to help them get internet access. More »

Hurricane Relief: Today's MVP: Will Hawkins

CUWireless's Will Hawkins helped set up a 20-PC lan today in the Astrodome. Check this out:

We do not have an official network connection for this lab, but we are using my laptop to bridge into a wireless network for connectivity. This is definitely a shoe-string operation, but I cannot believe that within a period of mere hours we went from 0 computers to 20 computers and reconnected a survivor with his family.

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Hurricane Relief: Press Access Strange at Astrodome

Joel Johnson — I was nearly thrown out of the Astrodome complex for helping set up a network for donated computers. To be fair, after the jump, you'll find out it was basically a big misunderstanding. You'll also be able to read about my confusion about press access and be able to infer the reasons behind why I sometimes consider ditching the press credentials altogether and just lie. More »

BREAKING: Hurricane Relief: Low-Power FM Group Gets Final Approval

Joel Johnson—I just received word from the volunteer group setting up the low-power FM transmitter that they have gotten the final approval to broadcast information to evacuees inside the Astrodome. More »

Hurricane Relief: Donation and Volunteer Updates

Also, a quick update on helping out. If you have equipment you want to donate, please contact cu-wireless-response@cuwireless.net instead of contacting me directly. They can help guide the necessary equipment to our central deployment area in Rayville, LA. More »

Hurricane Relief: Stuck in George Bush

Joel Johnson—It's not really any carrier's fault, but because of a quick switch out in Orlando, my luggage is about two hours behind me. Once I get that, Appelbaum and I are going to try to head in to meet up with our third team member, as well as the folks setting up the low-power FM gear at the Astrodome. More »

Drones Arrive In New Orleans

Five unmanned aerial vehicles are headed to NOLA to search for survivors. The 8-foot long Silver Fox drones are equipped with thermal cameras that will help searchers find Katrina survivors. The UAVs were obtained from a private company—the feds still do not have their act together enough to deploy something like this, according to Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Curt Weldon, vice chairman of the House Armed Services and Homeland Security Committees. More »

A Tragedy By Any Other Name

That the Bush administration diverted funds from the rebuilding of the New Orleans levees to Iraq is by now well-known. What you might not have heard is that the people cleaning up the mess are really pissed about it. A tipster informs us that down in New Orleans, they have a name for the flood waters that have invaded the city: Lake George. More »