A perfect little stream

"Normal"

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 22:18:36 -0400

I’ve made my relationship mistakes in the past. I’ve picked some people to be with who did not respect me. I was theirs all day everyday.

Only, I did not realize it.

Now, being with Annie, I see how a healthy relationship should work. I see how love should be. If I don’t see her for a weekend she doesn’t go to pieces and guilt trip me into feeling like a war criminal. If we don’t talk for a night, or much one night. It’s sad for both of us, but it’s not apocalyptic. It happens. We move past it and talk lots the next night.

In the past I’ve dreaded how much time I have to spend with someone. With her, I want to spend all the time I can because it’s so good.

It’s so good to be with someone (for nearly a year!!!) who makes me feel so good and I don’t have to change a single iota of my personality to please.

She loves me for me.

I love her for her.

I never feel like I can tell her enough how good she makes me feel and how wonderful life has been with her.

I’ve been really enjoying the gaming reviews from...

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:31:00 -0400

I’ve been really enjoying the gaming reviews from channelflip.com.

High quality videos, short and to the point. They are a nice mix between the lovely host (who is delightfully British) and gorgeous game footage.

Check out the site or subscribe to get your reviews in iTunes.

Buddy

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:28:45 -0400

For all those people on your massive buddy lists, how many of them do you actually talk to?

More than once a month?

More than once a week?

Ever?

So cute! If you’re not seen this movie, you are doing...

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 23:39:39 -0400

So cute! If you’re not seen this movie, you are doing yourself a serious disservice!

Featuring!

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:19:11 -0400

No ad should ever contain the words “featuring” and “Celeron” next to each other.

marco: dalas verdugo: When you send me an email requesting help and you mark it Urgent with that...

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:12:14 -0400

marco:

dalas verdugo:

When you send me an email requesting help and you mark it Urgent with that little urgent flag option, you look like a big jerk, similar to someone rushing into the DMV and pushing their way to the head of the line.

“Excuse me, everyone else, MY problem is IMPORTANT!”

Stop doing that.

The “priority” field is one of those awful design ideas that completely ignores human nature. I love, in particular, the people who you communicate with on a regular basis and from whom every email is marked “high priority”.

I always imagine them running in here with the “!!” icon over their head, shouting wildly.

EVERY issue is urgent to that person.

The number of red flag, cc’ed all over the office including the director who has no idea what you’re even talking about, URGENT flashing red light emails I get everyday is astounding.

No, it’s not urgent.

No, I don’t know when the tech will be there.

Sit down, don’t crap your pants.

(PS. He has either 3 or 60 days depending on the issue)

"IT work is miserably unfulfilling. It’s a constant stream of problems, bugs, shoddy hardware,..."

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 11:51:40 -0400

“IT work is miserably unfulfilling. It’s a constant stream of problems, bugs, shoddy hardware, half-assed software, idiotic users, and infuriating management. The best you can hope for is a return to the original, clean, working state. It’s nearly impossible to improve or build anything, and there’s no creativity - you just clean up other people’s messes, whether they’re the users in your company or the programmers at Microsoft. IT people are glorified janitors.”

- Getting over the IT addiction

Please describe your I.T. issue correctly

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 11:46:06 -0400

Please describe your I.T. issue correctly:

marco:

My favorite one that I heard in my (fortunately past) days in IT:

“The network is down.” This could mean anything. A file share might be slow or disconnected. The internet connection might be slow or down. They might be typing the wrong Windows login password. They might have just gotten a 404.

Glad those days are over.

AMEN!

I’d like to add…

My internet is down. (It’s always MY something)
I am locked out. (Of what? PC? Mainframe? Phone? Voicemail?)

Then there’s the callers who won’t tell you who they are.

Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Jones don’t tell me anything (we’ve got 5,000 employees)
Not a single police officer has a first name (No sir, your first name is not Sgt, Det. or Officer)

And don’t even get me started on following directions. For instance this one,

Right click my computer and Select Properties.
Click the Computer Name tab in the System Properties box which opens.
Halfway down the box there is a line saying Full Computer Name.
Please provide that information.

It is flabberghasting how many people utterly fail at comprehending this.

Welcome to Monday!

The Reason For the iPhone Love

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:03:30 -0400

shutupinternet:

If you’ve opened your eyes in the past two weeks than you’ve seen the insane amounts of love (and money) that people are throwing towards the iPhone. There’s a reason for this, and it’s very simple. It’s a reason most people quickly overlook due to the shininess and sleekness of the iPhone: other mobile platforms just suck.

Get a phone from any wireless company, including AT&T, and you’ll notice that the company’s proprietary software and name are plastered everywhere. Verizon starts to try to rope you into using its VCAST software from the second you turn on most phones. Cingular used to pimp the “Cingular Mall” when you started up phones and first got into the menus. It was the first thing you saw. I understand that cell phone companies think that they need to rake in more money than they already do by selling ringtones, 30 second TV clips and movie trailers but give it a damn rest! These petty worthless features drive your users nuts! It’s too bad there’s no way around these other than the iPhone and Blackberry.

On top of the obvious reasons that people flock to the iPhone, there’s a certain percentage of people that switch just to be free from the endless advertisements and name plastering that comes with 95% of phones on the market. As a Verizon customer for over four years I never used VCAST once. I opened it once because I wanted to check out what it was that they were trying to shove down my throat every time I powered on my phone. I was instantly unimpressed and never looked at it again.

99% of cell phones also boast extremely clunky user interfaces. On most phones there’s no easy way to do things. Most require you to scroll through unavoidable menus just to get to a simple feature. Take Verizon’s Alarm Clock feature, for example: to get to the alarm clock you have to go to menu -> settings -> tools -> alarm clock. Why is the Alarm Clock in settings? What does it possibly have to do with the settings of the phone? Nothing. Every cell phone on the market is filled with these little annoyances that make using them more of a hassle than they need to be.

AT&T appears once on my phone in the top left corner and I’m fine with that. It’s not on the black in blue; it’s not on the front in big letters on the bottom of the phone. I don’t want to be a walking advertisement for your cell phone company. Yes, I use your service but why should I pay you almost $100 a month to walk around and advertise your company’s name ever time I pull out my phone to answer a call or to text?

I’ve been using the iPhone for almost a week and I haven’t looked back. It’s easy to use, pretty, and extremely integrated but what’s great is that I’m not a walking advertisement. I’m not constantly bombarded by software that I’ll never use or services that I’ll never touch. It’s cell phone heaven, really.

I’ve owned a half dozen cell phones since getting my first in 2004 and each one has had a major flaw.

The last of which, an LG Chocolate, likes to white screen of death. The whole screen goes white. The phone continues to function but you can’t see anything to use it!

In December when my Verizon contract is up I am seriously pondering the move to AT&iPhone for all the reasons above.

I hate phones because using them is such a pain.My 32GB iPod Touch is a wonder to use. I dream of getting rid of the clunky phone altogether and using one wonder device.

Now if they can integrate a camera like the Canon SD1000 in my pocket, I’ll be down to one device.

Team Fortress 2

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:18:05 -0400

Night before last, I was delighted to see my friend Scott playing TF2. I was delighted as I’d been wanting to play it but not alone.

So I logged on, messaged him and soon we were shooting and healing our way through a cap the flag battle. At one point we were both Pyros and we were toasting the opposing team to a nice crispy golden brown.

It was short-lived but extraordinarily fun. After Scott left for the night I played a couple more rounds and a wonderful thing happened.

I came across a group of guys who were playing the game… for fun. They weren’t yelling at their teammates when we messed up. They weren’t cursing and screaming that we had misstepped.

They were laughing. And joking.

It was so refreshing to find that in a random game. At one point I was playing a Heavy with another guy and we just laid waste to a room of foes. We were standing back to back and defending out checkpoint to the death. And laughing hysterically as Scouts and Pyros would run towards us over and over and we’d mow them down.

We were eventually overrun, when we ran out of ammo.

After that match, I stayed with the same group and in the next match we were getting overrun so we decided to play a bit and all be Engineers and construct a vast array of turrents, spawn points, and healers.

Up until then, I never really understood how to play as an Engineer. And I didn’t ask for fear of the commonplace mocking of anyone who doesn’t know something in a game. But these guys were chill and we were helping each other out.

So I learned how to build and upgrade my turret, and good places to build them on the map.

And yes, once I placed a turrent backwards, facing a wall. Who knew they only had a 180 degree range?

TF2 was stupidly fun and as always, improved with a proper group of gamers who were out to have a good time, win or lose. We won some. We lost some. Eventually the hose quit the game and we were all flung back out to our corners of the Xbox Live.

But it was fun while it lasted.

Irrelevant and invalid reasons for angry nerds to avoid iPhone 3G

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:46:39 -0400

Irrelevant and invalid reasons for angry nerds to avoid iPhone 3G:

“That’s because there’s no demand. What percentage of iPhone owners do you think have ever had a single Ogg Vorbis or Theora file on their computers? Does anyone reading this post even know what these are?”

I know a single person, and that’s only because he’s an Audiophile with a Capital A. He refuses to use MP3 and doesn’t touch iPods because he’s an Ogg-head.

I know of Ogg Vorbis, but I can’t think of a single person who uses or knows that Theora is.

These are the Linux Nerds who calls the Apple Fanboys fanboys when they’re the Linux equivalent.

If it works, use it.

marco:

Via azspot, the official supplier of Marco.org links. I, of course, would like to argue these points in the context of regular people (not free-software nerds).

iPhone completely blocks free software. Developers must pay a tax to Apple, who becomes the sole authority over what can and can’t be on everyone’s phones.

This is only partially accurate. They block anonymous distribution and installation of software, but I don’t think there’s any prohibition of sharing your source code. Regardless, regular people don’t care that they can’t recompile their $2.99 copy of Bejeweled.

iPhone endorses and supports Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) technology.

Apple supports DRM for content, but they certainly don’t endorse it. And they only support it because they have to — the content industry won’t let them distribute most content without it. But you’re not obligated to use Apple’s DRM. It gives you the option to play DRM-protected content, but it doesn’t force DRM on you if you just want to play unprotected files.

They also wrap DRM around the apps in the App Store. As an App Store developer, I see absolutely no problem with this. Sure, you can’t pirate my app… but what legitimate complaint would you have about apps being DRM-protected?

iPhone exposes your whereabouts and provides ways for others to track you without your knowledge.

No, it doesn’t. Every time a new app requests location data from the API, the phone pops up a dialog to ask your permission. There’s no way for apps to get around this.

iPhone won’t play patent- and DRM-free formats like Ogg Vorbis and Theora.

That’s because there’s no demand. What percentage of iPhone owners do you think have ever had a single Ogg Vorbis or Theora file on their computers? Does anyone reading this post even know what these are?

iPhone is not the only option. There are better alternatives on the horizon that respect your freedom, don’t spy on you, play free media formats, and let you use free software — like the FreeRunner.

Alternatives always exist. That doesn’t mean the iPhone should be avoided.

The FreeRunner doesn’t yet do as much as the iPhone and it’s certainly not as pretty. But in terms of potential, the fact that it’s supported by a worldwide community of people rather than a single greedy, dishonest and secretive entity puts it light-years ahead.

Regular people don’t care about these issues. All they want is a phone that’s great and does what they want to do now — not one that might be great and might do what they want to do at some point in the future. People replace their phones every year or two. The vague, distant promise of future improvement is completely irrelevant.

I don’t know how dumb articles like this can be taken seriously.

Want to watch Top Gear in person? Prepare to wait 21 years

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:52:57 -0400

Want to watch Top Gear in person? Prepare to wait 21 years:

(via caseyliss)

And you thought the iPhone lines were long.

…And this, is where he works: Me, at work, with my sweet...

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:22:52 -0400

…And this, is where he works: Me, at work, with my sweet headset and ear buds. I usually turn the iPod off when a call comes in… Usually.

donotwearthat: manfrys: via www.picturegeek.net Brilliant....

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:06:55 -0400

donotwearthat:

manfrys:

via www.picturegeek.net

Brilliant. Made me topple over in joyous laughter. :D

"ceswiedler writes “A disgruntled software engineer has hijacked San Francisco’s new..."

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 13:21:36 -0400

“ceswiedler writes “A disgruntled software engineer has hijacked San Francisco’s new multimillion-dollar municipal computer system. When the Department of Technology tried to fire him, he disabled all administrative passwords other than his own. He was taken into custody but has so far refused to provide the password, and the department has yet to regain admin access on their own. They’re worried that he or an associate might be able to destroy hundreds of thousands of sensitive documents, including emails, payroll information, and law enforcement documents.””

- Slashdot: News for nerds, stuff that matters

Get the FOFLCopters! I find this hysterical. :)

41 questions

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:53:33 -0400

41 questions:

bianca:

my personality test results:

Your personality type:

Quiet, reflective and idealistic. Interested in serving humanity. Well-developed value system, which they strive to live in accordance with. Extremely loyal. Adaptable and laid-back unless a strongly-held value is threatened. Usually talented writers. Mentally quick and able to see possibilities. Interested in understanding and helping people.

Careers that could fit you includes:

Writers, artists, counselors, social workers, English teachers, fine arts teachers, child care workers, clergy, missionaries, psychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, political activists, editors, education consultants, journalists, religious educators, social scientists.

i haven’t done one of these in years…

nice to meet ya! :0)

Your personality type:

Quiet, reflective and idealistic. Interested in serving humanity. Well-developed value system, which they strive to live in accordance with. Extremely loyal. Adaptable and laid-back unless a strongly-held value is threatened. Usually talented writers. Mentally quick and able to see possibilities. Interested in understanding and helping people.

Careers that could fit you includes:

Writers, artists, counselors, social workers, English teachers, fine arts teachers, child care workers, clergy, missionaries, psychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, political activists, editors, education consultants, journalists, religious educators, social scientists.

Looks like we’re very similar. LOL

iGrace

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 01:56:55 -0400

iGrace

"· Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want..."

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:58:48 -0400

“· Access Xbox LIVE Marketplace on the Web. Browse and purchase Marketplace content whenever you want from Xbox.com and it downloads automatically to your console. Purchase that new map, television episode, the latest Xbox LIVE Arcade game or set up a movie to watch when you get home from work. · Dashboard built into the new Xbox Guide. For everyone who loves the blades interface, it’s not going away; they are now built directly in to the new Xbox guide. Every feature and option is available right from the guide. You can even access your full games library at all times. No matter where you are (in dash or in game), immediately call up your games played list and directly launch a game. · LIVE Party system. Create a party of up to eight friends, and stay with them from one game to another, or watch a Netflix movie together, or share a slideshow of your personal photos. It works with all Xbox 360 titles, not just upcoming games. LIVE Party allows up to eight people to chat in the dashboard, so you can meet up before playing. · Xbox LIVE Primetime. This whole new category of games is going to give you more reasons to get online with your friends. Games will support everything you’d expect, like Achievements and leader boards, but many of these games will include real prizes. You can invite your friends, and even set a reminder for an upcoming show. Each game is broadcast simultaneously, so everyone is answering the same questions. Many events will have a live host, calling the shots as they happen. · Avatars. Your online identity started as a Gamertag - it then grew into a personalized Gamercard. Now, it has evolved even further into avatars. You can express your style, check out new outfits and share this with the community. Avatars will also be integrated into Xbox LIVE Arcade games, LIVE Party, as well as retail games. · New display support. Because you asked for it, we are adding 16X10 over VGA or HDMI, and support for 1440x900 or 1680x1050.”

- Some of the features in the new Xbox experience (8 person chat, VGA support and more) - Xbox Lives Major Nelson

Hot damn! Copying games to the hard drive! Motr Native Support! Partying system! :D

And best of all… NETFLIX!!!

"Thank you for calling Pizza Hut, how can we help you?"

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:35:55 -0400

“Thank you for calling Pizza Hut, how can we help you?”

- My manager, to the king of our idiot clients.

This guy has called in a dozen times to have his email setup.

He calls in with things like “where is my file?”, “how do I save a file?”, “how do I get my email?” The man is legendary for his inability to remember anything you told me 2 seconds prior, to do simple thing like “click” or find a “start button” the man is, in a word, an help desk nightmare.

His name strikes fear into the heart of anyone who has ever dealt with him, even once. It’s legendary how ignorant he is.

(P.S. This is easily our top caller. I have sympathy for people who just don’t get computers. But this guy doesn’t even try!)

Wall-E was amazing! I loved

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:14:42 -0400

Wall-E was amazing! I loved every second of it!