Santa brought technology my way this Christmas. I had asked for something called a Slingbox. The concept is that you can watch programs from your home television, cable box or digital video recorder anywhere in the world via a high speed internet connection. The reviews and advertisements that I read have been very positive, but I was still skeptical about it as I removed it from the box last night and set it up.

The diminutive box goes on top of the other boxes on top of my home entertainment center. It found a nice home with the old fashioned VCR, cable box, DVD player/recorder, TIVO and digital video recorder. TIVO is one of the most wonderful inventions of all time to me. I got mine two years ago, and it revolutionized how I watch television. It makes it magnificently easy to choose programs and movies to record. I am surprised it is not an even more popular product than it is.

TIVO has created a whole new term called time shifting. People can now watch their favorite programs on their schedule. This is very important for me, since I am frequently on the road and away from a television during dinner meetings, travel, etc. It literally means no wasted television watching time. I only watch programs in which I have a great interest. Then TIVO introduced TIVO To Go, which allows me transfer programs that I have recorded to my laptop, so that I can watch them when I please on the road, in my hotel room, in an airport or while flying. Another neat feature is online scheduling, which allows me to program recordings from any computer.

Slingbox takes that to another level. Now I can access my TIVO controls and programming live through the high speed internet connection in my hotel room or in an airport. I don’t have to transfer the program to my computer in order to watch it. It is streamed to me live in real time. The video quality is amazingly good.

The installation was very straightforward. The only challenge was getting the virtual remote controls to work properly, but otherwise, the program worked on the very first try. Unusual by today’s technology standards.

Now with an iPod, portable XM radio and Slingbox, travel is just a bit easier.

The Monday afternoon map discussion video is on the server at:

http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb

As I mentioned this morning, clouds hung in across northeast Alabama generally in an area from Athens to Cullman to Gadsden so they've not be able to benefit from the wonderful sunshine the rest of the area enjoyed. Temperatures climbed generally to around 50 across central Alabama. Areas under the clouds were still in the lower 40s, so the warm-up forecast for tomorrow will be even more spectacular for places like Fort Payne and Scottsboro.

Sunshine returns on Tuesday as we do see a good warm-up with highs into the lower 60s. Clouds should increase late in the day and into the evening as the next front approaches.

The front on Wednesday is still bringing the promise of some severe weather. Dewpoints are likely to surge into the lower 60s across southern Alabama with CAPEs forecast to be in the range of 800 to 1300. It would seem that the greatest severe weather threat is south of a line from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham to Anniston, but the area will depend on how far north those high dewpoints can move. Severe weather is likely to be in the form of hail and damaging wind, but vertical wind profiles suggest the possibility of isolated tornadoes.

I was reminded earlier today that Alabama was in Tornado Watch Number 1 at the beginning of 2005, so it will be interesting to see if we are in the last tornado watch of 2005 - or at least close to the last watch.

The front moves through the state Wednesday night with better weather returning on Thursday. Because the air mass behind the front has Pacific origins, we won't see any dramatically colder air. Then we recover with another weather system forecast for us by Saturday. Moisture return could be more limited and the upper level disturbance appears a trifle weaker so I don't think it will be a big event for the weekend.

The GFS has locked onto a rather progressive pattern with the strong westerlies well to our north but a series of short waves or disturbances running across the southern tier of the US. In the longer range, in fact, the GFS suggests a closed upper low moving along the northern Gulf, much further south than the series we are experiencing now.

I don't rise quite as early as James, so look for the next map discussion to be on the server around 8 am tomorrow morning.

-Brian-

Not in Gatlinburg, mind you, although they reported a trace this morning. But in the high country:

12 inches on the ground on Newfound Gap
15 inches atop Mt. Leconte

WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
6 inches at Mars Hill
3 inches at Beech Mountain
4 inches on Mt. Mitchell

A snow Advisory continues for a few more hours in Avery County, N.C., mainly along the Tennessee border. For the most part, however, the snow is winding down.

The Monday morning map discussion video is on the server at:

http://beta.abc3340.com/weather/video.hrb

Alabama is bisected this morning by clouds on a line roughly from Muscle Shoals to Dothan. Clouds will be clearing the area and I expect just about everyone to see some sun today with temperatures warming into the lower 50s. A nice change from the steady 40s of yesterday. The only possible exception might be the northeast corner of the state where clouds might hang tough keeping temperatures in the upper 40s.

Warm-up continues on Tuesday with afternoon temperatures expected to reach the 60 to 62 range - a bit above normal. Moisture will return Tuesday evening ahead of a cold front that is expected to move through the state on Wednesday.

There is a risk of severe storms on Wednesday with the system as we see a vigorous short wave at 500 millibars and a cold front moving across the state. Possible limiting factors will be the amount of moisture and the amount of destabilization that occurs, but vertical wind profiles seem favorable for isolated tornadoes. SPC currently has only southern Alabama in the slight risk outlook for day 3, but this system deserves watching.

Temperatures drop back below normal on Thursday but recover nicely on Friday before the next front on Saturday. The GFS seems to have the trend right in keeping us a bit south of the strongest westerlies and in a zonal flow pattern with embedded short wave troughs with a Pacific origin. The result will be a couple of days of good weather followed by a day or two of inclement weather followed by a couple of days of good weather in this somewhat regular pattern over the next week.

I'll try to have the next discussion on the server by 4 pm this afternoon. Hope you have a great week.

-Brian-