Star Car in the dark

Thursday night's power outage reminded us all how important the Star Car is going to be for us. Above is a shot of the rack in the back of the Star Car ... it's wired to provide power, after the folks at Carter Chevrolet ran plugs to the back. On the rack are two 400-watt power converters (they change the power from DC to AC) and two surge protectors.
Basically, the electronics on the car are going to run off the vehicle's battery. As you already know, it's going to have a wireless signal.
Electricity and Internet. Two things we didn't have last night when the power was out.
But that didn't stop the staff at The Star from hopping on board and updating the Web. Everyone started making calls to get information about what was happening around the city, and Kevin Ellis, deputy editor at our sister publication The Gaston Gazette, worked with us over the phone to post breaking news about the power outage online. Thanks, Kevin!
When the Star Car is up and running, we won't need the newsroom to be up and running ... all we'll have to do is gather around the SUV and get back to work.
When the Star Car is up and running ... by the way, Skip estimates that we'll be training the staff in using the car next Friday. That means the vehicle is close to being on the road. Keep your fingers crossed, and very soon the Star Car could be rolling into your neighborhood.

Here's Mark Vanburen, working to install a laptop desk in the fron passenger seat. See the holes in the back? That's where power will be run. There's two more desks, too ... they'll be in the back seat.

In the next blog, I'll give you an overview of what we're doing inside the office to prepare for the Star Car.