For those of you who might be wondering where my MySpace profile went... it's gone. I am tired of getting spam of all kinds from MySpace: porn sites trying to friend me, bands looking for new fans, and even the occasional bad comic trying to get me to go see his show.
However, the final nail in the coffin was when someone hijacked the account of someone I know and started using it to send spam. I tried to tell her to change her password, but it apparently didn't work... I kept getting spam after spam from her MySpace account.
Yes, I have had some good experience with MySpace: a couple of friends I haven't talked to in a long time found me through there, but the down side is that with all the spam I get now, I would have missed their "hello" letters or friend invites anyway.
Maybe I'll re-connect. I don't know. But for now, no social networking sites for me.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007
On iTunes and DVR's...
I'm not sure, but I think this is a first: Snapstream Beyond TV has a DVD burining/iTunes plugin for their DVR software.
The cool thing about this? I can now dump my tv shows to DVD AND to my iPod. The cooler part is that the iTunes integration is totally hands-off, so I can just plug the iPod in to my comptuer, and while it charges at night, it grabs the latest shows off my DVR, saves them to my iTunes library, and dumps them to the iPod.
Oh, and with Beyond TV Link, I can use the tuners on my HTPC to record a show while I watch a different show on the main PC and my daughter watches something else on another computer. The cool thing about this is that instead of running coax to every room, I just run a home run to the room with the HTPC, and my tuners and my cable modem all plug in there. Much cleaner. True, it means I need a computer to watch TV anywhere but the living room, but it also means that I can take my video with me anywhere.
The cool thing about this? I can now dump my tv shows to DVD AND to my iPod. The cooler part is that the iTunes integration is totally hands-off, so I can just plug the iPod in to my comptuer, and while it charges at night, it grabs the latest shows off my DVR, saves them to my iTunes library, and dumps them to the iPod.
Oh, and with Beyond TV Link, I can use the tuners on my HTPC to record a show while I watch a different show on the main PC and my daughter watches something else on another computer. The cool thing about this is that instead of running coax to every room, I just run a home run to the room with the HTPC, and my tuners and my cable modem all plug in there. Much cleaner. True, it means I need a computer to watch TV anywhere but the living room, but it also means that I can take my video with me anywhere.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
On restaurants and waiting tables...
What's the most important rule in business? If you lose your customers, you don't have a business.
So what's the most important rule in the restaurant business? If you ignore your customers, they won't come back. I was at the Boll Weevil today and got not quite the worst customer service I've ever had at a restaurant. Yes, the service was unexceptional even to the point that it wasn't the very worst.
What was so bad about it? Was the waitress rude? No. Was the place dirty or too loud? No. Was the food bad? No, actually it was very good. But the waitress never once came back to my table after giving me my food. She never filled my iced tea, never asked if I needed anything, never asked if I wanted dessert (which I very much did... until I'd sat there for so long that I was in danger of over-running my lunch hour) and never even brought my check. I had to go find her and get my check so I could go.
I watched her for 10 minutes while trying to get her attention. She took 3 tables' orders, bussed a table, brought drinks to the afore-mentioned tables, but never once even looked my way.
Those of you who own, run, or work at restaurants: the process is simple. Take the order, bring the food, and bring the check with the food. That way I can leave when I'm ready. Then at least come by the table and check in... if I'm reading, don't pester me, but at least see if I'm doing okay. Never, never make the customer feel ignored.
Is that really so hard?
So what's the most important rule in the restaurant business? If you ignore your customers, they won't come back. I was at the Boll Weevil today and got not quite the worst customer service I've ever had at a restaurant. Yes, the service was unexceptional even to the point that it wasn't the very worst.
What was so bad about it? Was the waitress rude? No. Was the place dirty or too loud? No. Was the food bad? No, actually it was very good. But the waitress never once came back to my table after giving me my food. She never filled my iced tea, never asked if I needed anything, never asked if I wanted dessert (which I very much did... until I'd sat there for so long that I was in danger of over-running my lunch hour) and never even brought my check. I had to go find her and get my check so I could go.
I watched her for 10 minutes while trying to get her attention. She took 3 tables' orders, bussed a table, brought drinks to the afore-mentioned tables, but never once even looked my way.
Those of you who own, run, or work at restaurants: the process is simple. Take the order, bring the food, and bring the check with the food. That way I can leave when I'm ready. Then at least come by the table and check in... if I'm reading, don't pester me, but at least see if I'm doing okay. Never, never make the customer feel ignored.
Is that really so hard?
Sunday, October 21, 2007
AutoGroup Editor and Auto Conformer
Without going in to a lot of details, those programs didn't work for me, and the developer refused to provide any technical support.
So I wrote my own utility called Group Helper. This tool will speed the process of creating clothing and accessories for Poser compatible figures. If you use Poser or Daz|Studio and want to use another 3D program to create conforming clothing, go to the forum and grab your own copy.
I know the program isn't perfect, and some morphs don't come over. If someone wants to help develop this figure, you're welcome to help. I plan to donate this to the community as free (as in beer and speech) software.
So I wrote my own utility called Group Helper. This tool will speed the process of creating clothing and accessories for Poser compatible figures. If you use Poser or Daz|Studio and want to use another 3D program to create conforming clothing, go to the forum and grab your own copy.
I know the program isn't perfect, and some morphs don't come over. If someone wants to help develop this figure, you're welcome to help. I plan to donate this to the community as free (as in beer and speech) software.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
My New Project....
I'm working on a new project for school. It's called Doodle. I hope to have a site for it up soon.
In the meantime, check out my first webcomic! (yay!) It's right here....
Tech Support
In the meantime, check out my first webcomic! (yay!) It's right here....
Tech Support
Saturday, July 14, 2007
From iTunes to an MP3 player
I have a Creative Zen Portable Media Center.
I love it.
It plays movies, MP3's, WMA's, and has a 14 hour battery life (playing music) and a 7 hour battery life playing video.
However, I was having a hard time converting iTunes songs to run on the PMC.
Enter two tools: QTFairUse, and Winamp Pro. With QTFairUse, I can remove the protection on the iTunes files. Winamp Pro will play the songs after that (they have a m4a extension). Now I can right-click on a file in Winamp, select "Send To->Format Converter", and select Mp3 as the format. Winamp then happily loads the files on my PMC.
Yes, it's still some work, but with the advent of DRM free music on iTunes, it'll be even easier.
I love it.
It plays movies, MP3's, WMA's, and has a 14 hour battery life (playing music) and a 7 hour battery life playing video.
However, I was having a hard time converting iTunes songs to run on the PMC.
Enter two tools: QTFairUse, and Winamp Pro. With QTFairUse, I can remove the protection on the iTunes files. Winamp Pro will play the songs after that (they have a m4a extension). Now I can right-click on a file in Winamp, select "Send To->Format Converter", and select Mp3 as the format. Winamp then happily loads the files on my PMC.
Yes, it's still some work, but with the advent of DRM free music on iTunes, it'll be even easier.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Speaking of TV
The new Doctor Who premiers a new episode this Friday, July 6. Kyle XY has been good so far this summer, and Eureka is back.
ABC Family is producing several original series this year. I have to say that I'm impressed with their lineup, but dismayed that "a new kind of family" means "shows that are NOT kid safe", such as Austin Powers.
I like that we do have some original programming over the summer; that goes a long way toward relieving my frustration at not having new BSG or Heroes episodes to watch.
ABC Family is producing several original series this year. I have to say that I'm impressed with their lineup, but dismayed that "a new kind of family" means "shows that are NOT kid safe", such as Austin Powers.
I like that we do have some original programming over the summer; that goes a long way toward relieving my frustration at not having new BSG or Heroes episodes to watch.
Summer movie update: Transformers and Fantastic Four
I have decided that film critics get a kick out of saying bad things about a movie - regardless of whether they're true.
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer didnt' suck. However, it needed another half hour for character development and a serious kick to the head for whomever thought a "sky car that splits in to four pieces" was a good idea.
The real gem (so far) this summer is Transformers.
Here's my review:
omigod omigod omigod!!
That was 2 hours and 20 minutes of AWESOME!!
Okay, now for something less fanboyish:
Visually, Dreamworks and ILM are just magic together. Michael Bay did an incredible job directing this thing.
First things first; the corn factor: you expect a movie based on an 80s cartoon series based on toys to be corny. There wasn't any of that. Well, there was a teeny bit when Jazz opened his mouth (but who didn't expect that? He's JAZZ.) But it fit in with the script: "We learned your language from the world wide web." Well, the "searching the house while Autobots wait outside" scene was corny but amusing. It worked for me.
Visuals? This looked even better than the new Star Wars franchise, and that's saying a lot, since the Phantom Menace was the first movie ever to use CGI that was virtually indistinguishable from reality. The giant robots, airplanes, and Other Cool Stuff in this film were also so real that I now take a second look whenever I see semi trucks, yellow Camaros, or even F-22's.
Action? Yes. In fact, it was literally jaw-dropping. Several times, I had to close my mouth to stop catching flies.
Dialog? Well written. Well acted. Never did if feel like a cartoon re-make; it felt original all the way through.
Plot? It's not purist fare: the human characters from the tv series aren't there; instead we have the 16 year old great-grandson of an arctic explorer discovering that we're not alone in the universe in the most dramatic fashion possible: by almost being squished to a pulp by some of that extraterrestrial life. The Cube or Allspark (depending on who talks about it) is lost, and the Deceptacons and Autobots are competing to see who can find it first. The Allspark is what birthed the Transformers in the first place; Megatron wants to use it to birth a new race of robots on the Earth - a race that will be subservient to him. Optimus Prime wants to use it to restore Cybertron, or failing that - destroy it.
You see, the problem with using the Allspark to make new Transformers is that they tend to be destructive when born. Don't ask me why some are good and other aren't, but ALL of the robots seem to have two traits in common: they adapt, and they're STRONG. Even a dog-sized robot (that transforms in to a boombox and later a portable phone) is capable of terrorizing and taking out several well-armed professionals. Imagine the mayhem that ensues when the 50-foot tall variety get in to it.
I think that the screen writers answered all my questions about Transformer life: why "transformers" in the first place? Why are they alive? Why can they be killed (you'd think that a robot, being a mobile computer, could just be downloaded or restored from a backup.) Well, it turns out that the previously mentioned allspark imbues electronic devices with LIFE, and not just the mechanical simulation of life; they are really alive and can be killed. Once their spark goes out, they cannot be reborn - even if their bodies are repaired.
And yes - they did leave the door open for a sequel, which I'm sure will be forthcoming in 2010 or so.
I did notice one continuity lapse... it has to do with worldwide computer viruses and F-22 raptors. But considering the fact that I didn't think about it until the next day, it wasn't glaring. (and it's even explainable... but that's a topic for another day.)
I tend to rate movies by "will I buy it on DVD, and will I get the Special Edition?"
F4? I'll get it, along with the first one, but only if I can find them on sale. But I'll buy Transformers the day it comes out, and yes - I'll be getting the Special Edition with all the extra features.
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer didnt' suck. However, it needed another half hour for character development and a serious kick to the head for whomever thought a "sky car that splits in to four pieces" was a good idea.
The real gem (so far) this summer is Transformers.
Here's my review:
omigod omigod omigod!!
That was 2 hours and 20 minutes of AWESOME!!
Okay, now for something less fanboyish:
Visually, Dreamworks and ILM are just magic together. Michael Bay did an incredible job directing this thing.
First things first; the corn factor: you expect a movie based on an 80s cartoon series based on toys to be corny. There wasn't any of that. Well, there was a teeny bit when Jazz opened his mouth (but who didn't expect that? He's JAZZ.) But it fit in with the script: "We learned your language from the world wide web." Well, the "searching the house while Autobots wait outside" scene was corny but amusing. It worked for me.
Visuals? This looked even better than the new Star Wars franchise, and that's saying a lot, since the Phantom Menace was the first movie ever to use CGI that was virtually indistinguishable from reality. The giant robots, airplanes, and Other Cool Stuff in this film were also so real that I now take a second look whenever I see semi trucks, yellow Camaros, or even F-22's.
Action? Yes. In fact, it was literally jaw-dropping. Several times, I had to close my mouth to stop catching flies.
Dialog? Well written. Well acted. Never did if feel like a cartoon re-make; it felt original all the way through.
Plot? It's not purist fare: the human characters from the tv series aren't there; instead we have the 16 year old great-grandson of an arctic explorer discovering that we're not alone in the universe in the most dramatic fashion possible: by almost being squished to a pulp by some of that extraterrestrial life. The Cube or Allspark (depending on who talks about it) is lost, and the Deceptacons and Autobots are competing to see who can find it first. The Allspark is what birthed the Transformers in the first place; Megatron wants to use it to birth a new race of robots on the Earth - a race that will be subservient to him. Optimus Prime wants to use it to restore Cybertron, or failing that - destroy it.
You see, the problem with using the Allspark to make new Transformers is that they tend to be destructive when born. Don't ask me why some are good and other aren't, but ALL of the robots seem to have two traits in common: they adapt, and they're STRONG. Even a dog-sized robot (that transforms in to a boombox and later a portable phone) is capable of terrorizing and taking out several well-armed professionals. Imagine the mayhem that ensues when the 50-foot tall variety get in to it.
I think that the screen writers answered all my questions about Transformer life: why "transformers" in the first place? Why are they alive? Why can they be killed (you'd think that a robot, being a mobile computer, could just be downloaded or restored from a backup.) Well, it turns out that the previously mentioned allspark imbues electronic devices with LIFE, and not just the mechanical simulation of life; they are really alive and can be killed. Once their spark goes out, they cannot be reborn - even if their bodies are repaired.
And yes - they did leave the door open for a sequel, which I'm sure will be forthcoming in 2010 or so.
I did notice one continuity lapse... it has to do with worldwide computer viruses and F-22 raptors. But considering the fact that I didn't think about it until the next day, it wasn't glaring. (and it's even explainable... but that's a topic for another day.)
I tend to rate movies by "will I buy it on DVD, and will I get the Special Edition?"
F4? I'll get it, along with the first one, but only if I can find them on sale. But I'll buy Transformers the day it comes out, and yes - I'll be getting the Special Edition with all the extra features.
Friday, June 1, 2007
Now that summer is here...
...all of my favorite TV series' are on break.
So let's recap.
Heroes: The exploding man was stopped - sort of. I was sitting there, thinking "when Peter uses one power, he can't use another. Why didn't he just fly?" But the writers wanted to end the series with Nathan sacrificing himself, contrasting his selfish actions throughout the rest of the season. Amazingly enough, the plot to blow up New York involved nearly everyone in Peter's life - including his final hospice patient. Possibly my favorite development is that Nikki finally comes to terms with her alter-ego, Jessica, and takes Jessica's power as her own. I'd hoped to see that all season long. And how cool was it to see Mr Sulu in a role where he gets to strut a little? (anybody remember the Star Trek episode where he did some sword fighting?) Hiro's trip to the far past has some VERY intriguing possibilities. I'm looking forward to seeing where they go with that.
Smallville: Bizarro? Interesting. Chloe's dead. Lois is alive because of Chloe's sacrifice. Clark and Lois have been forming a real friendship over the last couple of seasons, so the stage is all set for "Clark, Lois, and Jimmy" next season. We've also seen J'onn J'onzz revealed. That was nicely handled, IMO.
Lost: Jack led the survivors to rescue, but made himself miserable in the process. We also have the mystery death (My guess is that it was Locke). Charlie is dead. But we also find out that the ship who resuces the survivors is not what it claims to be. Ben's comments ("the Island is under attack") makes me wonder if the island is alive somehow. Certainly there are now new questions regarding the island, the inhabitants, and the future of everyone on the island.
So here are my predictions for next season. Once the season is underway, you can come back and tell me what an idiot I am or how much of a sage I am for being right:
Heroes: Peter is not dead. In "Five Years Gone", Peter is alive, despite having been the exploding man. Since the second season is not a continuation of the first season's story, I can't begin to guess what other fun stuff they'll throw in.
Smallville: Clark and Lois will hit their stride together. One or both of them will start working for the Planet, possibly after the current editor leaves and Perry White is hired. Jimmy and Clark will turn to each other for friendship in the wake of Chloe's death. Lois's natural curiosity will get her in to more and more trouble, which Clark will save her from. I'm also guessing that the only way to stop Bizarro will be to re-power the fortress. Remember the "power source" from the beginning of the season?
Lost: The only way I can see to resolve Jack's future dilemma is to change the past. I'm guessing that the first new footage of next season will be the same scene with Jack, Locke, and the sat phone. But instead of talking to the person on the freighter, Jack will hang the phone up. Thus, the future events from the S3 finale will be an alternate future that doesn't happen.
The biggest question that I have at this point is "What's up with the Others?" They can't be Island born, since pregnant women die, and so they can't be true natives. So why, then, do these Others seem to fight with everyone they encounter? So far, they've killed several Oceanic survivors, the entire Dharma project, and possibly other people who have accidentally discovered the island.
So let's recap.
Heroes: The exploding man was stopped - sort of. I was sitting there, thinking "when Peter uses one power, he can't use another. Why didn't he just fly?" But the writers wanted to end the series with Nathan sacrificing himself, contrasting his selfish actions throughout the rest of the season. Amazingly enough, the plot to blow up New York involved nearly everyone in Peter's life - including his final hospice patient. Possibly my favorite development is that Nikki finally comes to terms with her alter-ego, Jessica, and takes Jessica's power as her own. I'd hoped to see that all season long. And how cool was it to see Mr Sulu in a role where he gets to strut a little? (anybody remember the Star Trek episode where he did some sword fighting?) Hiro's trip to the far past has some VERY intriguing possibilities. I'm looking forward to seeing where they go with that.
Smallville: Bizarro? Interesting. Chloe's dead. Lois is alive because of Chloe's sacrifice. Clark and Lois have been forming a real friendship over the last couple of seasons, so the stage is all set for "Clark, Lois, and Jimmy" next season. We've also seen J'onn J'onzz revealed. That was nicely handled, IMO.
Lost: Jack led the survivors to rescue, but made himself miserable in the process. We also have the mystery death (My guess is that it was Locke). Charlie is dead. But we also find out that the ship who resuces the survivors is not what it claims to be. Ben's comments ("the Island is under attack") makes me wonder if the island is alive somehow. Certainly there are now new questions regarding the island, the inhabitants, and the future of everyone on the island.
So here are my predictions for next season. Once the season is underway, you can come back and tell me what an idiot I am or how much of a sage I am for being right:
Heroes: Peter is not dead. In "Five Years Gone", Peter is alive, despite having been the exploding man. Since the second season is not a continuation of the first season's story, I can't begin to guess what other fun stuff they'll throw in.
Smallville: Clark and Lois will hit their stride together. One or both of them will start working for the Planet, possibly after the current editor leaves and Perry White is hired. Jimmy and Clark will turn to each other for friendship in the wake of Chloe's death. Lois's natural curiosity will get her in to more and more trouble, which Clark will save her from. I'm also guessing that the only way to stop Bizarro will be to re-power the fortress. Remember the "power source" from the beginning of the season?
Lost: The only way I can see to resolve Jack's future dilemma is to change the past. I'm guessing that the first new footage of next season will be the same scene with Jack, Locke, and the sat phone. But instead of talking to the person on the freighter, Jack will hang the phone up. Thus, the future events from the S3 finale will be an alternate future that doesn't happen.
The biggest question that I have at this point is "What's up with the Others?" They can't be Island born, since pregnant women die, and so they can't be true natives. So why, then, do these Others seem to fight with everyone they encounter? So far, they've killed several Oceanic survivors, the entire Dharma project, and possibly other people who have accidentally discovered the island.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Spiderman 3
I saw Spiderman 3 last night. There were parts of it I really loved, and while I can't say I hated anything about it, I was left a little un-fulfilled by the ending.
First of all, The action was great throughout. The actors are all top-notch (I especially like Topher Grace AKA Eric Foreman as the "bad boy" competition for Peter Parker's job as photographer at the Bugle. He did a great job of being just annoying enough that you wanted to punch hsi lights out, while still being likeable enough that... well, let's not go there quite yet. I also thought The Sandman was brilliantly portrayed as another villian who's not really evil - just misunderstood. Of course, the Peter/MJ/Harry trio are all brilliant.
I started thinking about the villians in this film, and one of the things I realized about all of Spidey's foes is that they're not truely evil in the classic comic book villian sense. They're just.... disturbed. All of the villians in the series are not evil people; they're just tragic. First, the Green Goblin loses the government contract that would have saved his company, and he loses his sanity experimenting on himself. Who couldn't sympathize with Doctor Octopus? He loses everything: his career, his wife, even his future.
What I loved is how, in this third installment, the hero himself must face his own internal battle. This time, it's not the struggle to overcome teenage awkwardness, and it's not the challenge of telling the woman you love that you can't be without her. Instead, he's fighting for his very soul. Will he win by being the good man he is, or will he let revenge and hate run his life? It's like the parallel challenges that Anakin and Luke Skywalker faced: one went to the dark side, and the other stayed on the light.
Were there things I didn't like? Yes. Certain parts of the conclusion left me feeling more confused than satisfied, and I could have wished for a very different outcome for another character.
Finally, there were a couple of consistency issues in the film. Consistency problems, whether internal (something happens one way at one point in the movie, but has a very different effect another time) or external (breaking the laws of physics or nature) always bug me in a film.
When watching a scene, the audience has to get sucked in. They have to believe every second of what they're seeing. When a major, glaring violation of the laws of physics happens, it doesn't make me go "wow, look at that!" Instead, it makes me go, "aw jeez. How fake," and the whole scene loses much of its impact (sometime, I'll write about airplanes in space). One such incident was the crane scene early on. A girder smashes right through part of a building... one that should have stopped the girder cold. Those scenes always annoy me, because I know what should happen, and so when something different happens, I can't stay with the scene. It's gone from "oh wow" to "oh fake".
Likewise, the moment of the Sandman's origin is completely implausible, because the security was far too lax for something as significant as what was going on there. They didn't even have a camera on the scene to record the event?
Those kinds of things don't have to be that way. It wouldn't have cost any more money to write the scenes properly and to design an effects sequence that wouldn't break the rules of reality. Yes, I know that a sentient ball of sand is a little implausible, but that's why it's even more important to keep the other laws of nature intact. By keeping the rest of the story completely believable, the writer makes the viewer want to believe that the one thing he sees that seems to break the rules is still real.
Despite that (which is admittedly my pet peeve in action and sci-fi movies), I though this movie stood up well next to its two predecessors. In fact, I'm betting that there will be an S4. I can only imagine what they'll think up for that one.
First of all, The action was great throughout. The actors are all top-notch (I especially like Topher Grace AKA Eric Foreman as the "bad boy" competition for Peter Parker's job as photographer at the Bugle. He did a great job of being just annoying enough that you wanted to punch hsi lights out, while still being likeable enough that... well, let's not go there quite yet. I also thought The Sandman was brilliantly portrayed as another villian who's not really evil - just misunderstood. Of course, the Peter/MJ/Harry trio are all brilliant.
I started thinking about the villians in this film, and one of the things I realized about all of Spidey's foes is that they're not truely evil in the classic comic book villian sense. They're just.... disturbed. All of the villians in the series are not evil people; they're just tragic. First, the Green Goblin loses the government contract that would have saved his company, and he loses his sanity experimenting on himself. Who couldn't sympathize with Doctor Octopus? He loses everything: his career, his wife, even his future.
What I loved is how, in this third installment, the hero himself must face his own internal battle. This time, it's not the struggle to overcome teenage awkwardness, and it's not the challenge of telling the woman you love that you can't be without her. Instead, he's fighting for his very soul. Will he win by being the good man he is, or will he let revenge and hate run his life? It's like the parallel challenges that Anakin and Luke Skywalker faced: one went to the dark side, and the other stayed on the light.
Were there things I didn't like? Yes. Certain parts of the conclusion left me feeling more confused than satisfied, and I could have wished for a very different outcome for another character.
Finally, there were a couple of consistency issues in the film. Consistency problems, whether internal (something happens one way at one point in the movie, but has a very different effect another time) or external (breaking the laws of physics or nature) always bug me in a film.
When watching a scene, the audience has to get sucked in. They have to believe every second of what they're seeing. When a major, glaring violation of the laws of physics happens, it doesn't make me go "wow, look at that!" Instead, it makes me go, "aw jeez. How fake," and the whole scene loses much of its impact (sometime, I'll write about airplanes in space). One such incident was the crane scene early on. A girder smashes right through part of a building... one that should have stopped the girder cold. Those scenes always annoy me, because I know what should happen, and so when something different happens, I can't stay with the scene. It's gone from "oh wow" to "oh fake".
Likewise, the moment of the Sandman's origin is completely implausible, because the security was far too lax for something as significant as what was going on there. They didn't even have a camera on the scene to record the event?
Those kinds of things don't have to be that way. It wouldn't have cost any more money to write the scenes properly and to design an effects sequence that wouldn't break the rules of reality. Yes, I know that a sentient ball of sand is a little implausible, but that's why it's even more important to keep the other laws of nature intact. By keeping the rest of the story completely believable, the writer makes the viewer want to believe that the one thing he sees that seems to break the rules is still real.
Despite that (which is admittedly my pet peeve in action and sci-fi movies), I though this movie stood up well next to its two predecessors. In fact, I'm betting that there will be an S4. I can only imagine what they'll think up for that one.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Programming tidbits
Ever wanted to upload or download files via FTP inside of your own program?
http://www.codeproject.com/vb/net/FtpClient.asp
I found this today, and it works perfectly for a custom project I'm doing. No way was I going to manually download 20,000 images, scale them, and upload the resulting 60,000 files!
http://www.codeproject.com/vb/net/FtpClient.asp
I found this today, and it works perfectly for a custom project I'm doing. No way was I going to manually download 20,000 images, scale them, and upload the resulting 60,000 files!
Saturday, April 28, 2007
A song for you
I'm working on a project. I'm calling it "A Soundtrack In Search of a Game". Here's a sample: Night Visions
The song was composed on Cakewalk Sonar, and played entirely on a Roland MT-32, the classic synth for video game music.
The song was composed on Cakewalk Sonar, and played entirely on a Roland MT-32, the classic synth for video game music.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
I think I spend too much time shopping on-line.
I heard a truck drive up, so I went outside. It was Fed Ex. As I was signing for the package, The UPS guy pulled in to the driveway.
Don't ask me why, but for just a moment, I felt like a guy whose wife came home and caught him with the girlfriend. :)
Don't ask me why, but for just a moment, I felt like a guy whose wife came home and caught him with the girlfriend. :)
Monday, April 9, 2007
How NOT to treat a customer
This is a real transcript of a support request I sent in to EBay. A little background before I get to the message. I have been looking at music and sound equipment. Specifically, I've been looking for keyboards, mixers, and MIDI synthesizers. But when you search for "Mixer" in EBay, you get the stupidest things. For example, some guy is selling Audacity, a free program, for $9.95. Another guy is selling mixer CASES. This is NOT what I'm looking for.
We have a "favorite sellers" list. I thought maybe there was a way to build a "blocked sellers" list, so I can dispense with all these non-sequiters.
So I e-mail customer support. What follows are the messages that went back and forth.
Message #1, from me to EBay:
Dear EBay,
I would like to be able to block specific SELLERS when I'm browsing listings. Certain items pop up again and again, and it's often junk that's in the wrong category or only incidentally related to the items I'm looking for. One example: search for "Mixer", and you get more listings for CASES than for the actual mixers. Thrown in there, you get people with auctions for FREE software, and some guy who wants $150 to ship something that should only cost $10 or so to ship.
If I could just filter out these annoying sellers, it would be much easier to find the specific items I'm looking for, rather than having to wade through a bunch of stuff that's irrelevant to my search.
Dear <member>, [yes, it shows up like that in my inbox]
Thank you for writing eBay in regard to <issue>.
Tom, you are referring to spoof and spam emails. Those are junk email that want your personal information. If you want you can contact you Internet provider and ask them if they can block those emails. You can also use the Advance Search to look for the items in a specific way.
[Here I cut out the advanced search tutorial]
Advanced Search offers a variety of ways to narrow your search and get more specific results.
Sincerely,
Luis M.
eBay Customer Support
Dear Ebay,
Thanks, Luis, but I am NOT writing about spoof e-mails. I'm talking about the number of irrelevent listings when I search for items in EBay.
PLEASE TRY THIS: go to EBay and search for "Mixer". Look at how many items are NOT mixers: mixer cases, "mixer" software, and even totally off the wall stuff like "ear training" software. I want to be able to filter out those sellers so that I don't see their listings.
Dear Tom,
Thank you for writing eBay in regard to searching for a specific item.
I really apologize for the delay in receiving a response and any inconvenience caused to you because of this.
I understand that you are looking for a "mixer". I will surely assist you with that.
Type "mixer" and under All Categories select "Home & Garden" and then click "Search". You will find all type's of mixer's. [Excuse me? I'm not looking for kitchen appliances.]
However, also use our "Advanced Search".
[cut out the exact same text as the first message]
It is my pleasure to assist you. Thank you for choosing eBay.
Sincerely,
Ray R.
eBay Customer Support
_____________________________________________
All I want to know is this. Is anyone there actually listening? Are these messages being read by English speakers? The first rule of customer support is that you have to be able to communicate with the customer. The best customer support experience I've ever had was with a company based in Singapore. They hire Americans, working in the US, to handle customer support. But when I try to talk to a US company, I get someone who doesn't even read English at a 4'th grade level?
We have a "favorite sellers" list. I thought maybe there was a way to build a "blocked sellers" list, so I can dispense with all these non-sequiters.
So I e-mail customer support. What follows are the messages that went back and forth.
Message #1, from me to EBay:
Dear EBay,
I would like to be able to block specific SELLERS when I'm browsing listings. Certain items pop up again and again, and it's often junk that's in the wrong category or only incidentally related to the items I'm looking for. One example: search for "Mixer", and you get more listings for CASES than for the actual mixers. Thrown in there, you get people with auctions for FREE software, and some guy who wants $150 to ship something that should only cost $10 or so to ship.
If I could just filter out these annoying sellers, it would be much easier to find the specific items I'm looking for, rather than having to wade through a bunch of stuff that's irrelevant to my search.
Dear <member>, [yes, it shows up like that in my inbox]
Thank you for writing eBay in regard to <issue>.
Tom, you are referring to spoof and spam emails. Those are junk email that want your personal information. If you want you can contact you Internet provider and ask them if they can block those emails. You can also use the Advance Search to look for the items in a specific way.
[Here I cut out the advanced search tutorial]
Advanced Search offers a variety of ways to narrow your search and get more specific results.
Sincerely,
Luis M.
eBay Customer Support
Dear Ebay,
Thanks, Luis, but I am NOT writing about spoof e-mails. I'm talking about the number of irrelevent listings when I search for items in EBay.
PLEASE TRY THIS: go to EBay and search for "Mixer". Look at how many items are NOT mixers: mixer cases, "mixer" software, and even totally off the wall stuff like "ear training" software. I want to be able to filter out those sellers so that I don't see their listings.
Dear Tom,
Thank you for writing eBay in regard to searching for a specific item.
I really apologize for the delay in receiving a response and any inconvenience caused to you because of this.
I understand that you are looking for a "mixer". I will surely assist you with that.
Type "mixer" and under All Categories select "Home & Garden" and then click "Search". You will find all type's of mixer's. [Excuse me? I'm not looking for kitchen appliances.]
However, also use our "Advanced Search".
[cut out the exact same text as the first message]
It is my pleasure to assist you. Thank you for choosing eBay.
Sincerely,
Ray R.
eBay Customer Support
_____________________________________________
All I want to know is this. Is anyone there actually listening? Are these messages being read by English speakers? The first rule of customer support is that you have to be able to communicate with the customer. The best customer support experience I've ever had was with a company based in Singapore. They hire Americans, working in the US, to handle customer support. But when I try to talk to a US company, I get someone who doesn't even read English at a 4'th grade level?
That's what's wrong with business in America today.
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Viral politics and the National Association of Broadcasters
The credibility of a self-proclaimed consumer advocate group based in Washington DC, and now possibly that of a professor at Georgetown University, has been destroyed by their link to the NAB, a political lobbying group tied to American TV and radio broadcasters.
First, some background. Back in February of this year, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Raio announced their intention to merge. My guess is that they've done their homework, or they would not have announced the deal - complete with 6-figure penalties if either company pulled out. More is available on Wikipedia and on Wikinews.
Recently, after Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite radio declared their intention to merge, a group calling themselves the Consumer Coalition for Competition in Satellite Radio released a statement opposing the satellite radio merger. The group claims to be a group of law students who are subscribers to both companies' products and who don't believe a merger would be good for consumers.
For a moment, let's look at a seemingly unrelated situation: the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has been buying advertising space in Washington DC newspapers. The controversial ads are aimed directly at the satellite radio companies, and attempt to "use Karmazin's words against him." A little research in to the NAB's web site shows that the NAB has opposed satellite radio every step of the way: images from the ad campaign and FCC filings are available via the site's search engine. The NAB certainly has the right to oppose satellite radio. Satellite radio poses a threat to the traditional business model that has been in place since the 1930's.
The nasty business comes in when it's discovered that the C3SR is really a front group for the NAB. While not all of the details are clear yet, it does appear that the NAB is providing material support to the C3SR. Read the Orbitcast article here.
To further muddy the waters, edits are starting to crop up on Wikipedia by a user named "Antitrustbust". These edits cite J. Gregory Sidak as a source. As it turns out, he is an antitrust activist and professor at Georgetown University in Washington DC. Guess where the C3SR is based? That's right: Georgetown.
I don't have a problem with groups that are geunuinely interested in protecting the public welfare. I don't have a problem with groups that attempt to preserve and defend their own industry. But when political lobbying groups are secretly funneling money in to consumer advocacy groups, I get worried. How far will the NAB go? While there may be no legal conflict here, I see an ethical one. When does this go from being a minor ethical breach straight in to outright bribery? Lies? What will the NAB do to protect their domination of the public airwaves?
The issue here is no longer one of monopoly or antitrust. It's about one organization abusing the rights of the American public and our system of law to protect their own business model. Sirius and XM may indeed become a monopoly, but you can always choose not to subscribe. But we rel on broadcast radio every day, and if they kill off their only competition (satellite radio), where does that leave us? It leaves us with a situation that's every bit as real as the one they're fighting against. If the NAB accomplishes its goal of killing satellite radio, then the consumer will be in a position where big media has more power over us than ever. Don't let that happen. Write the NAB at nab@nab.org and let them know how you feel about dishonest practices and "viral politics."
First, some background. Back in February of this year, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Raio announced their intention to merge. My guess is that they've done their homework, or they would not have announced the deal - complete with 6-figure penalties if either company pulled out. More is available on Wikipedia and on Wikinews.
Recently, after Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite radio declared their intention to merge, a group calling themselves the Consumer Coalition for Competition in Satellite Radio released a statement opposing the satellite radio merger. The group claims to be a group of law students who are subscribers to both companies' products and who don't believe a merger would be good for consumers.
For a moment, let's look at a seemingly unrelated situation: the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has been buying advertising space in Washington DC newspapers. The controversial ads are aimed directly at the satellite radio companies, and attempt to "use Karmazin's words against him." A little research in to the NAB's web site shows that the NAB has opposed satellite radio every step of the way: images from the ad campaign and FCC filings are available via the site's search engine. The NAB certainly has the right to oppose satellite radio. Satellite radio poses a threat to the traditional business model that has been in place since the 1930's.
The nasty business comes in when it's discovered that the C3SR is really a front group for the NAB. While not all of the details are clear yet, it does appear that the NAB is providing material support to the C3SR. Read the Orbitcast article here.
To further muddy the waters, edits are starting to crop up on Wikipedia by a user named "Antitrustbust". These edits cite J. Gregory Sidak as a source. As it turns out, he is an antitrust activist and professor at Georgetown University in Washington DC. Guess where the C3SR is based? That's right: Georgetown.
I don't have a problem with groups that are geunuinely interested in protecting the public welfare. I don't have a problem with groups that attempt to preserve and defend their own industry. But when political lobbying groups are secretly funneling money in to consumer advocacy groups, I get worried. How far will the NAB go? While there may be no legal conflict here, I see an ethical one. When does this go from being a minor ethical breach straight in to outright bribery? Lies? What will the NAB do to protect their domination of the public airwaves?
The issue here is no longer one of monopoly or antitrust. It's about one organization abusing the rights of the American public and our system of law to protect their own business model. Sirius and XM may indeed become a monopoly, but you can always choose not to subscribe. But we rel on broadcast radio every day, and if they kill off their only competition (satellite radio), where does that leave us? It leaves us with a situation that's every bit as real as the one they're fighting against. If the NAB accomplishes its goal of killing satellite radio, then the consumer will be in a position where big media has more power over us than ever. Don't let that happen. Write the NAB at nab@nab.org and let them know how you feel about dishonest practices and "viral politics."
Another happy customer
More than any other single factor, I believe that customer service is the foundation that any company stands on. I believe that good service is even more important than price (within reason) when selecting a vendor.
So, when I have a good experience with a company's support staff, I'm going to post about it here.
I'm going to start with Motorola. I called to get a replacement ear clip for my H500 Bluetooth Headset, and the man I talked to on the phone was very pleasant and helpful. They had several reasons they could have refused warranty service: I bought the headset on EBay and got an OEM pack (it was just a sealed plastic bag; this is how the headsets are delivered when you buy a phone/headset combo), the clip isn't a warranty item, and it was broken because of "excessive mastication." You're not supposed to chew on a Bluetooth headset. (No, it wasn't me. It was my (at the time) 2 year old daughter. The spot she chewed on finally wore through. All I wanted was to buy a replacement clip. I even told the guy: "I don't think it's under warranty," but I checked the order date anyway: April 26, 2006 (it's April 4 today.)
Despite all that, he's sending me a free replacement ear clip at no charge, not even for shipping.
Update 4/11/2007: I got a package in the mail today. They actually sent 3 of the clips for my headset, a gray one, a beige one, and a black one.
Thanks, Motorola!
[More happy support:]
I also dealt with Creative Labs on a number of occasions. Every time I have, I've had great service. My two most recent calls were to get remote controls for a speaker system and a media player. The speaker system came from a pawn shop, and the remote wasn't with it. I didn't expect Creative to stock a 5 year old remote, but they had one. Then I ordered a remote for my Zen Portable Media Center. The guy had to search to find it, but he found one.
In both cases, the rep stayed on the phone long after my issue was handled and talked to me about the company and the products. I felt like a valued customer, not a talking wallet.
What amazes me is that even though CR is based in Singapore, they hire US workers to man phones in the US for US based callers. That makes me feel like they take support seriously, instead of just calling it "overhead" and trying to pay as little as they can get away with for support staff.
My hat is off to Creative Labs.
So, when I have a good experience with a company's support staff, I'm going to post about it here.
I'm going to start with Motorola. I called to get a replacement ear clip for my H500 Bluetooth Headset, and the man I talked to on the phone was very pleasant and helpful. They had several reasons they could have refused warranty service: I bought the headset on EBay and got an OEM pack (it was just a sealed plastic bag; this is how the headsets are delivered when you buy a phone/headset combo), the clip isn't a warranty item, and it was broken because of "excessive mastication." You're not supposed to chew on a Bluetooth headset. (No, it wasn't me. It was my (at the time) 2 year old daughter. The spot she chewed on finally wore through. All I wanted was to buy a replacement clip. I even told the guy: "I don't think it's under warranty," but I checked the order date anyway: April 26, 2006 (it's April 4 today.)
Despite all that, he's sending me a free replacement ear clip at no charge, not even for shipping.
Update 4/11/2007: I got a package in the mail today. They actually sent 3 of the clips for my headset, a gray one, a beige one, and a black one.
Thanks, Motorola!
[More happy support:]
I also dealt with Creative Labs on a number of occasions. Every time I have, I've had great service. My two most recent calls were to get remote controls for a speaker system and a media player. The speaker system came from a pawn shop, and the remote wasn't with it. I didn't expect Creative to stock a 5 year old remote, but they had one. Then I ordered a remote for my Zen Portable Media Center. The guy had to search to find it, but he found one.
In both cases, the rep stayed on the phone long after my issue was handled and talked to me about the company and the products. I felt like a valued customer, not a talking wallet.
What amazes me is that even though CR is based in Singapore, they hire US workers to man phones in the US for US based callers. That makes me feel like they take support seriously, instead of just calling it "overhead" and trying to pay as little as they can get away with for support staff.
My hat is off to Creative Labs.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
BSG
Okay, now I'm frustrated and excited, all at the same time.
We have to wait through at least 8 months until the next BSG episide, but there's a good chance that they'll find Earth next season. Also, Starbuck is back! (at least in spirit...)
Theories abound.... is Starbuck real? Why do four humans hear an Earth song? What is up with the vision shared by Hera, Roslyn, Athena, and Caprica 6? Why doesn't Baltar share this vision?
And who ARE the final five? I'm not buying the theory that they're the four humans. I think the four humans have some other, extraordinary trait, but that they are NOT the final 5 Cylons. The whole "snatches of music" thing just makes no sense. Neither does the fact that one of them has a kid.
Other than Sharon, Cylons have never reproduced. If Cylons were fertile, then the whole "research" project would be moot.
Well, we'll find out... in 2008.
We have to wait through at least 8 months until the next BSG episide, but there's a good chance that they'll find Earth next season. Also, Starbuck is back! (at least in spirit...)
Theories abound.... is Starbuck real? Why do four humans hear an Earth song? What is up with the vision shared by Hera, Roslyn, Athena, and Caprica 6? Why doesn't Baltar share this vision?
And who ARE the final five? I'm not buying the theory that they're the four humans. I think the four humans have some other, extraordinary trait, but that they are NOT the final 5 Cylons. The whole "snatches of music" thing just makes no sense. Neither does the fact that one of them has a kid.
Other than Sharon, Cylons have never reproduced. If Cylons were fertile, then the whole "research" project would be moot.
Well, we'll find out... in 2008.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
XM Radio
170 channels of music, news, talk, radio drama, and even local traffic and weather (if you're lucky enough to live in one of the areas that has this service). You can take it with you in the car, listen at home, and even strap on a pair of headphones and go jogging with it.
What could be better?
Check out XM's Web site
and this is a little project I started: XiVo
What could be better?
Check out XM's Web site
and this is a little project I started: XiVo
Monday, March 5, 2007
Sunday, February 11, 2007
The cost of spam
I have 141 messages in my spam folder.
Most of those messages are less than 24 hours old.
So, if I spent just 5 seconds reading the sender and title of each message, that is 11 minutes and 45 seconds per day to make sure that I don't lose an important message in the deluge of spam.
Now expand this. 11.75 * 5 days a week * 52 weeks a year. That's 3055 minutes, or 51 hours.
At the last desk job I worked at, I made $25 an hour. That's a cost of $1,275 to my employer for one year of spam.
There were over 200 employees in my company.
That's a cost of $255,000 PER YEAR. In one company. It only takes 5 companies the size of the one I worked for, and this cost is well over a million dollars. 5000 companies, and we're talking over a billion dollars a year in lost productivity because of spam.
Free speech was never meant to apply to advertising. That's why we can't sell cigarettes on TV and why we can't show naked women on billboards. People certainly shouldn't be allowed to advertise porn, drugs, and pirated software by e-mail, where kids might read them, and where it costs employers billions of dollars anually.
It's high time to fix this problem, once and for all, both on the legal front (simply outlaw unsolicited e-mail, period. None of this opt-out stuff. If you don't explicitly ask for it, it's spam.) and on the technology front: SMTP and POP3 need to be seriously revamped. We need new ways to handle the conversation to ensure that the message is legit.
I propose:
1. ISP's do not allow any outbound e-mail except through their servers. This will stop spambots.
2. Services like GMail and Yahoo Mail provide some sort of validation system that uniquely identifies the sender. Use a credit card, use a cell phone, or use snail mail. I don't care, as long as the ID is somewhat reliable.
3. Any ISP that facilitates spam be cut off from the Internet. Period.
We're losing billions of dollars to this problem. Let's fix it once and for all!
Most of those messages are less than 24 hours old.
So, if I spent just 5 seconds reading the sender and title of each message, that is 11 minutes and 45 seconds per day to make sure that I don't lose an important message in the deluge of spam.
Now expand this. 11.75 * 5 days a week * 52 weeks a year. That's 3055 minutes, or 51 hours.
At the last desk job I worked at, I made $25 an hour. That's a cost of $1,275 to my employer for one year of spam.
There were over 200 employees in my company.
That's a cost of $255,000 PER YEAR. In one company. It only takes 5 companies the size of the one I worked for, and this cost is well over a million dollars. 5000 companies, and we're talking over a billion dollars a year in lost productivity because of spam.
Free speech was never meant to apply to advertising. That's why we can't sell cigarettes on TV and why we can't show naked women on billboards. People certainly shouldn't be allowed to advertise porn, drugs, and pirated software by e-mail, where kids might read them, and where it costs employers billions of dollars anually.
It's high time to fix this problem, once and for all, both on the legal front (simply outlaw unsolicited e-mail, period. None of this opt-out stuff. If you don't explicitly ask for it, it's spam.) and on the technology front: SMTP and POP3 need to be seriously revamped. We need new ways to handle the conversation to ensure that the message is legit.
I propose:
1. ISP's do not allow any outbound e-mail except through their servers. This will stop spambots.
2. Services like GMail and Yahoo Mail provide some sort of validation system that uniquely identifies the sender. Use a credit card, use a cell phone, or use snail mail. I don't care, as long as the ID is somewhat reliable.
3. Any ISP that facilitates spam be cut off from the Internet. Period.
We're losing billions of dollars to this problem. Let's fix it once and for all!
Zlob
So I had a run in with Zlob tonight. Someone sends me a link to one of those "you gotta see this" videos, and when I click the link, I get a web page with a Media Player window that says "Media Player can't play this file." and the info bar comes up asking me to download the Video ActiveX Plugin.
Stupid me. I clicked it. Windows Defender pops up the "you moron" alert. Of course, it hijacks my browser and can apparently be used to download other software. This version of Zlob doesn't match the info I've been finding, so I have to work from scratch.
Now to get rid of this thing. I tried GiPo's Move on Delete, but it can apparently only move one file at a time, and Zlob uses two different executables, one of which launches the other. That way, if you kill one, the other one kicks off anohter process.
The other problem is that my PC was recording a TV show, so I didn't want to reboot.
So the solution: change permissions on the executable files. I opened the Program Files directory and hit Properties on the Video ActiveX folder. I click the Security tab, then Advanced, then Edit. I un-check "Include inheritable permissions from this object's parent" (they sure did bury this one deep).
After clicking OK, I am asked whether to copy or remove the permissions. Since I want no-permission files, I click Remove.
Now I kill both tasks in task manager. Surprise! They don't come back! Finally, Windows security works for me instead of against me.
Now to add the permissions back in and remove the files for good.
The irony? This malware program hijacks your browser, pointing to a page that sells malware protection. In other words, "Pay us to remove this program!"
Sounds like extortion to me.
Stupid me. I clicked it. Windows Defender pops up the "you moron" alert. Of course, it hijacks my browser and can apparently be used to download other software. This version of Zlob doesn't match the info I've been finding, so I have to work from scratch.
Now to get rid of this thing. I tried GiPo's Move on Delete, but it can apparently only move one file at a time, and Zlob uses two different executables, one of which launches the other. That way, if you kill one, the other one kicks off anohter process.
The other problem is that my PC was recording a TV show, so I didn't want to reboot.
So the solution: change permissions on the executable files. I opened the Program Files directory and hit Properties on the Video ActiveX folder. I click the Security tab, then Advanced, then Edit. I un-check "Include inheritable permissions from this object's parent" (they sure did bury this one deep).
After clicking OK, I am asked whether to copy or remove the permissions. Since I want no-permission files, I click Remove.
Now I kill both tasks in task manager. Surprise! They don't come back! Finally, Windows security works for me instead of against me.
Now to add the permissions back in and remove the files for good.
The irony? This malware program hijacks your browser, pointing to a page that sells malware protection. In other words, "Pay us to remove this program!"
Sounds like extortion to me.
Thursday, February 8, 2007
Ahh, Wikipedia
I created an account and started contributing to some articles. It's a very interesting process, and while I have some misgivings about certain policies, I like the idea of a community-edited encyclopedia.
http://www.wikipedia.org
http://www.wikipedia.org
Sunday, February 4, 2007
Evil Inc, review
Have you ever wondered what really goes on in the life of your favorite big corporation?
In the comic strip Evil Inc., Brad Guigar lifts the veil of corporate secrecy and shows us all what really happens behind those closed doors. The esteemed founder of Evil Inc, Evil Atom, discovered the perfect way to "do more evil" and do it legally!
Yes, those things you love to hate: telemarketers, credit card ripoffs, high-interest home loans (that then get foreclosed on when you can't pay the bill), and every other sort of corporate evil are abundant at Evil Inc. Not only are they trying to conquer the world, but they're doing it legally. (Did I mention that already?)
Lightning Lady, the crossover character from the famous Greystone Inn, reveals a world filled with fascinating characters, brilliant artwork, and funny storylines. Somehow, and don't ask me how he did it, Brad Guigar created a world of supervillians that you can't help but love. (Apparently, Captain Heroic can't help but love villians, too. He married the beautiful Miss Match.)
Go check out Evil, Inc for yourself. You'll be glad you did.
In the comic strip Evil Inc., Brad Guigar lifts the veil of corporate secrecy and shows us all what really happens behind those closed doors. The esteemed founder of Evil Inc, Evil Atom, discovered the perfect way to "do more evil" and do it legally!
Yes, those things you love to hate: telemarketers, credit card ripoffs, high-interest home loans (that then get foreclosed on when you can't pay the bill), and every other sort of corporate evil are abundant at Evil Inc. Not only are they trying to conquer the world, but they're doing it legally. (Did I mention that already?)
Lightning Lady, the crossover character from the famous Greystone Inn, reveals a world filled with fascinating characters, brilliant artwork, and funny storylines. Somehow, and don't ask me how he did it, Brad Guigar created a world of supervillians that you can't help but love. (Apparently, Captain Heroic can't help but love villians, too. He married the beautiful Miss Match.)
Go check out Evil, Inc for yourself. You'll be glad you did.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Sattelite Radio
For those of you who haven't tried XM Or Sirius lately, you're really missing out.
That is, if you like commercial-free music (of pretty much any genre), radio theater, news (CNN, Fox, MSNBC, and a few other stations in your car), or sports (football, baseball, hockey, and basketball).
XM has more channels and is a little more family oriented (several "family" and Christian channels). Sirius has Howard Stern and NFL. Both sound better than FM radio and can get reception anywhere in the United States and Canada. Most of the stations are also available on-line as well, so you don't have to have a radio to listen at work or in the house (provided that you're listening to one of the on-line stations. Not all of XM's channels are available on-line).
Yes, it's $13 a month, but now that I've gotten hooked on it, I'm never going back to the "old" way of listening to the radio again. In fact, I even sprung for a second radio that connects directly to my computer. I'm also working on a new controller program, partly to sharpen my skills, and partly just because this is fun!
Check out the free trial of XM's on-line service. I don't think you'll be dissapointed.
That is, if you like commercial-free music (of pretty much any genre), radio theater, news (CNN, Fox, MSNBC, and a few other stations in your car), or sports (football, baseball, hockey, and basketball).
XM has more channels and is a little more family oriented (several "family" and Christian channels). Sirius has Howard Stern and NFL. Both sound better than FM radio and can get reception anywhere in the United States and Canada. Most of the stations are also available on-line as well, so you don't have to have a radio to listen at work or in the house (provided that you're listening to one of the on-line stations. Not all of XM's channels are available on-line).
Yes, it's $13 a month, but now that I've gotten hooked on it, I'm never going back to the "old" way of listening to the radio again. In fact, I even sprung for a second radio that connects directly to my computer. I'm also working on a new controller program, partly to sharpen my skills, and partly just because this is fun!
Check out the free trial of XM's on-line service. I don't think you'll be dissapointed.
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