What's been going on?

As you have probably noticed, we haven't updated the blog much lately. A few reasons for that, but first a sincere apology to those of you who were waiting for some tool news and were disappointed in our lack of posting.

Big reason #1: We have a new site. The 10 years of custom development we had on the old site resulted in band-aid over band-aid, so rather than continue the development course we were on, we demolished it and built something new. Ok, so it's been a bit of a learning process for us trying to get this new system running at the efficiency levels of the previous one, but after a bunch of adjustments to our web servers, it seems to be doing quite well.

Big reason #2: Our vendors have been really stingy with the product training. The economy has hurt many of them, so they're stretched thin and haven't been doing events like they were before. Without the training, I don't get to see all the new stuff, don't get to learn what makes it cool, and don't have stuff to write about.

Reason #2 isn't going to stop me any more, but reason #3 might. We're re-vamping Tool Parts Direct over the next few months to go into the same system as we're using for ToolBarn. Not an easy task with the amount of data we have in that system, but it's very necessary to continue supporting our customers the way they've become accustomed to. So, that's something to be looking forward to, but the blog isn't going to get as much attention as I'd like.

But there will be some exciting updates coming soon, so stay tuned.

Fun with a Makita Drill

I found an interesting video on YouTube via Twitter today and had to share it. Makita drills over 20,000 holes to make a cool looking billboard to demonstrate the precision of their tools.

Mosquito 86

Every now and then, I get asked to try something out.  The latest was called the Mosquito 86. I wasn't quite sure what it was they were going to be sending me, and never having heard of it I was a bit skeptical. I've tried some foggers in the past and haven't been real impressed, so how good could this thing be, right?

Well, that was my first mistake. The Mosquito 86 is not a fogger. Instead, it actually disperses a professional grade mosquito killing solution that applies directly to grass, shrubs, and trees.  It sends out both fine aerosol droplets that float for a while and larger droplets that leave a barrier for longer term protection. In fact, it says it'll eliminate most mosquitos within 24 hours of first use and keep the yard mosquito and insect free for up to 3 weeks. Rainfall is where the "up to" comes in.

Not knowing exactly what was in the box, I was a bit eager to see what it had. There was a gas powered leaf blower (electric models are also available) and a strange attachment. They give you the standard nozzle for use as a leaf blower, but also a nozzle with a surgical hose running down it and a container for mixing up the secret recipe of mosquito killing agent. You mix a little of the solution that is included (refills available fairly inexpensive) and fill the rest of the container with water, fire up the leaf blower and away you go, killing mosquitos and other insects along the way.

Not having a real big yard myself and not much of a mosquito problem, I asked one of my co-workers to test it out at a big cook-out he was going to be at.  I also figured he's usually pretty critical of things like this, so it'd be a good test for the Mosquito 86. He came back after the weekend and simply said it worked well. How well? Well enough that I haven't been able to get it back, that's how well.

Looking around their website some more, I found that they offer a universal kit with adapters to fit over 50 leaf blower models, so you don't have to spend the $200 for the complete kit if you already have something that'll work. They offer refills of the Agent E anywhere from an 8 oz bottle (you use 1.25 oz per application) to a "Summer Pack" with 4 8 oz bottles, and the prices are pretty reasonable.

If I can ever get my Mosquito 86 back, I'm excited to give it a try. I noticed it's also effective with wasps, which have taken a liking to our garage the past couple of summers. Now if they could just do something about the birds that keep attacking themselves in my car mirrors...

Now hiring in Omaha!

Looking for a great job in the Omaha area?

We need some people here, so this is your opportunity to let us know how great you are. Currently warehouse, purchasing and web content specialist positions are available, so head on over to our job openings page and apply now.

We've (virtually) moved everything!

As you can see in the picture to the left, we had our cabinet at our ISP pretty well full. In fact, there were 2 switches and a T-1 router on the back of that yet that you couldn't see in the picture, and we had one device pulled for maintenance. Since our customers haven't shown any sign of wanting to use our site less, and we're constantly finding new customers, we knew it was only a matter of time before the space we were using wasn't adequate. We want to stay ahead of the curve and make sure our users are getting the best experience possible, so we have made a move across town.

To the right, you can see our equipment at our new datacenter - some upgraded, some new, and all ready to serve you. We've got 4 more machines to install yet, but we have nothing left at the old facility.

If you spot any problems, let us know. We had a few minor hiccups along the way, but everything should be back to business as usual now and no orders were lost in the process. That was goal #1, and it was achieved. We now have well over three times as much space available, so we can continue to add machines to keep up with the traffic spikes during peak periods and keep the best website experience available to our amazing customers.