{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
Got a hands-on introduction to the Air laptop today. It felt a lot more sturdy than I thought it would be for its size. Also seemed like it was handling heat dissipation pretty well. If it wasn't for the outrageous price it might make for a pretty good compliment to a moofing lifestyle.
--sent from mobile phone--
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Friday, February 01, 2008
Vista ain't so bad
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
I read an interesting article talking about the upcoming service pack for Vista and XP. Some of the folks commenting on the article started the standard debate among Windows OS users about how XP is better than Vista (aka "Vista sucks").
I actually upgraded to Vista on my main machine a few months ago. I did it for a few reasons. One, I was doing my personal bi-annual "build myown monster machine" routine, and so I figured I might as well put the latest and greatest on this new machine, especially since I knew my hardware was beefy enough to handle it. Also, I know that Vista will ultimately become the OS of choice, despite what the critics say, and I made the decision that I was ready to deal with the standard headaches of the early-adopter until Vista got nice & stable & popular.
Anyway, I thought some of the comments in the article were both quite ignorant and quite eloquent. Check it out:
I read an interesting article talking about the upcoming service pack for Vista and XP. Some of the folks commenting on the article started the standard debate among Windows OS users about how XP is better than Vista (aka "Vista sucks").
I actually upgraded to Vista on my main machine a few months ago. I did it for a few reasons. One, I was doing my personal bi-annual "build myown monster machine" routine, and so I figured I might as well put the latest and greatest on this new machine, especially since I knew my hardware was beefy enough to handle it. Also, I know that Vista will ultimately become the OS of choice, despite what the critics say, and I made the decision that I was ready to deal with the standard headaches of the early-adopter until Vista got nice & stable & popular.
Anyway, I thought some of the comments in the article were both quite ignorant and quite eloquent. Check it out:
- "if XP can perform 5% better than Vista...it means Vista is crap..."
- I would say it a different way - "Vista has a ton of new features, has a fully-overhauled and visually pleasing graphic interface, and with all that it only performs 5% slower than XP..." - "XP can perform better on older computers and Vista requires some pretty heavy hardware to be useful..."
- I think it's funny how people still want to be able to use their grandmother's hand-me-down computer for the next 20 years, and if something new comes out that doesn't work well with their hamster-driven machine, they have a problem. Nevertheless, as someone pointed out, if you actually go price a new machine these days, you'll see that you can buy a new machine that is fully Vista-capable, plus some extra memory, for as little as $400 if you shop right. If your money is too funny for that expense right now, then sure, stick with your Hyundai without making fun of our Escalade. - "Notice how few folks are around saying that XP's an abortion and Microsoft should have stopped with Windows 98? The trend is already starting to turn around in exactly that way for Vista versus XP..."
- Amen, brother.
It's true that we as consumers basically tell folks like Microsoft, thru our behavior, that we want NEW NEW NEW and we want it NOW NOW NOW. So when they speed-push the new stuff to market, it's funny how we then complain when a few bugs got thru in that hurried process. Oh well, I guess we'll all have to wait and see how this new generation of OS's turns out. Tho I have a suspicion that I already know..... ;- )
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Say what??
How many sayings do I have that could pretty much be considered Ohio ebonics? Does anybody else talk like this?:
I was driving down the street and noticed a lady waiting to pull out into traffic. In my opinion there was plenty of time to pull out and merge, but she kept waiting.
I turned to my wife and said, "You see her? She coulda been done gone!"
..."coulda been done" ??? Am I the only one who says that??
--sent from mobile phone--
I was driving down the street and noticed a lady waiting to pull out into traffic. In my opinion there was plenty of time to pull out and merge, but she kept waiting.
I turned to my wife and said, "You see her? She coulda been done gone!"
..."coulda been done" ??? Am I the only one who says that??
--sent from mobile phone--
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Read a Book - classic
This was worth posting. I hope this can make a change in the life of some wayward youth. :)
Thursday, January 24, 2008
I won
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
I went to a microsoft event tonite (yes, that's how I spend my evenings) and won this tshirt in the door prize giveaway. Had to take a picture to capture the unique packaging - figured that posting it here was the best way to document it. :) in case you're wondering that symbol is for Visual Studio, a Microsoft product.
--sent from mobile phone--
Monday, January 21, 2008
One Device to Rule Them All...
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
I think I've found a good analogy that describes my experience thus far with the Mac:
Let's say this remote is my Mac. Obviously, very simple. Some might say even stylish in it's simplicity. This remote probably has about 10 features, and each one of those features it probably does flawlessly. Everything's laid out intuitively and you never have to worry about getting lost. You don't have to worry about it accidentally turning on/off any of your other devices, because it only works specifically with the TV that it came with. It's not a universal remote - you can't put codes in it to operate your other entertainment systems. And not much thought is required about "how" to use it - you use it the way it's designed. If you had some other ideas about how a remote should work, you should forget them.
Now, in my house, I own a universal remote called the MX-500.
It's a fully-programmable universal remote. You can map actions to the hardware buttons. You can program macros commands (I have a macro that turns on/off the tv, cable, audio receiver, and DVD with one button. I have macros that change the tv and audio receiver configurations for, say, DVD-viewing vs. VCR-viewing, etc.) The buttons illuminate. The remote can "clone" another remote by pointing the IR sensors together. It can even be programmed to remote control light dimmers should I be adventurous enough to install them.
Nevertheless, as a result of all these features, I will admit that this remote is not very "friendly" to the casual user, including my wife. (over the years, she has grown to live with it and learn just enough of its features to get by) You would not be able to just look at this remote and figure out how to use it the way I do. (You wouldn't know to press "Main", then hold down one of the panel buttons to run a macro). And if you pressed the wrong sequences of buttons, you might find yourself stuck in some state that you would not easily be able to recover from, thus making the remote useless [for you] until I came over and helped you out.
But - and ay, here's the rub - I wouldn't trade this 1 remote for any of the 6 stylish and simple remotes that it replaced in my house. I gladly give up simplicity and even stability for the God-like power to control and interface with any and everything, and to do things with this remote that perhaps the manufacturer hadn't even thought about. Many times, I do experience limitations. It happens when my TV's manufacturer, for instance, doesn't give my remote the proper access or code authorization to access all of it's features. So, every now and then there's some sublte, hidden feature of my DVD, for example, that I can only access by getting up off the couch and doing by hand, or (heaven forbid) grabbing that DVD player's remote to access the feature.
But do I fault my remote control for this? No, I give it a pat on the back for doing a 85% good job of interfacing and playing nicely with all these other components. My remote has made a decision to bravely enter and play in the world of other electronics. It has not required me to make my home on an island called Basic Remote - an island with one TV, and one set of rules, and one way of thinking.
Rather than being the ruler of that island, a small kingdom though tightly controlled, I'd rather rule the world. Yes, I may have only loose control: a few riots every now and then, a recession or two, a stock market crash maybe, a war here and there. But still - I rule. Ask your boy GW Bush - he'll tell you the same... :)
I think I've found a good analogy that describes my experience thus far with the Mac:
Let's say this remote is my Mac. Obviously, very simple. Some might say even stylish in it's simplicity. This remote probably has about 10 features, and each one of those features it probably does flawlessly. Everything's laid out intuitively and you never have to worry about getting lost. You don't have to worry about it accidentally turning on/off any of your other devices, because it only works specifically with the TV that it came with. It's not a universal remote - you can't put codes in it to operate your other entertainment systems. And not much thought is required about "how" to use it - you use it the way it's designed. If you had some other ideas about how a remote should work, you should forget them.Now, in my house, I own a universal remote called the MX-500.
It's a fully-programmable universal remote. You can map actions to the hardware buttons. You can program macros commands (I have a macro that turns on/off the tv, cable, audio receiver, and DVD with one button. I have macros that change the tv and audio receiver configurations for, say, DVD-viewing vs. VCR-viewing, etc.) The buttons illuminate. The remote can "clone" another remote by pointing the IR sensors together. It can even be programmed to remote control light dimmers should I be adventurous enough to install them.Nevertheless, as a result of all these features, I will admit that this remote is not very "friendly" to the casual user, including my wife. (over the years, she has grown to live with it and learn just enough of its features to get by) You would not be able to just look at this remote and figure out how to use it the way I do. (You wouldn't know to press "Main", then hold down one of the panel buttons to run a macro). And if you pressed the wrong sequences of buttons, you might find yourself stuck in some state that you would not easily be able to recover from, thus making the remote useless [for you] until I came over and helped you out.
But - and ay, here's the rub - I wouldn't trade this 1 remote for any of the 6 stylish and simple remotes that it replaced in my house. I gladly give up simplicity and even stability for the God-like power to control and interface with any and everything, and to do things with this remote that perhaps the manufacturer hadn't even thought about. Many times, I do experience limitations. It happens when my TV's manufacturer, for instance, doesn't give my remote the proper access or code authorization to access all of it's features. So, every now and then there's some sublte, hidden feature of my DVD, for example, that I can only access by getting up off the couch and doing by hand, or (heaven forbid) grabbing that DVD player's remote to access the feature.
But do I fault my remote control for this? No, I give it a pat on the back for doing a 85% good job of interfacing and playing nicely with all these other components. My remote has made a decision to bravely enter and play in the world of other electronics. It has not required me to make my home on an island called Basic Remote - an island with one TV, and one set of rules, and one way of thinking.
Rather than being the ruler of that island, a small kingdom though tightly controlled, I'd rather rule the world. Yes, I may have only loose control: a few riots every now and then, a recession or two, a stock market crash maybe, a war here and there. But still - I rule. Ask your boy GW Bush - he'll tell you the same... :)
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Deceptive (aka bold-face lie) commercials
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
I was reflecting on Apple's commercial where they were making fun of Vista for its new security feature, which asks for your permission everytime it wants to do something that could be potentially dangerous.
Well here I am on my MacMini, and lo and behold they have the same thing - every now and then when I try to do something, the Mac confirms that I want to do it. To do that, it asks for my user password (on Vista, you can just hit Continue). I found this very interesting.
Well, let me get back to troubleshooting my printer installation - the very process that one of my friends went on and on about in terms of simplicity. Perhaps I'll blog later on the details of my printer woes, but the short story is that I installed from disk the drivers to a Mac-compatible Canon printer, but yet now I find it hard to find anything related to the printer driver i just installed. Perhaps the Mac is hiding the details of the installation from me in an attempt to "keep things simple". Yeah, that's working out real well...
I was reflecting on Apple's commercial where they were making fun of Vista for its new security feature, which asks for your permission everytime it wants to do something that could be potentially dangerous.Well here I am on my MacMini, and lo and behold they have the same thing - every now and then when I try to do something, the Mac confirms that I want to do it. To do that, it asks for my user password (on Vista, you can just hit Continue). I found this very interesting.
Well, let me get back to troubleshooting my printer installation - the very process that one of my friends went on and on about in terms of simplicity. Perhaps I'll blog later on the details of my printer woes, but the short story is that I installed from disk the drivers to a Mac-compatible Canon printer, but yet now I find it hard to find anything related to the printer driver i just installed. Perhaps the Mac is hiding the details of the installation from me in an attempt to "keep things simple". Yeah, that's working out real well...
Friday, January 18, 2008
Memoirs of a DJ
I got this list from a friend of mine - he and his crew regularly put out this newsletter related to their DJ exploits and upcoming events. This list is right on the money, and I can say that as a DJ, I have literally heard every one of the comments below except #6 (what kind of clubs is my friend playing in???), and I agree with all the responses:
-----
Rules of The Game
To all my deejays out there that spin in the clubs this is for you. I got this from J Rawls who got it from DJ Center who found it on a blog(shout out to DJ Supreme)...Can I get a "check 1-2" from all the deejays that are feeling this??
To all my patrons/party goers please read, pay attention and enjoy your party experience!!
Attention party people. Before requesting songs, making comments or asking questions of the DJ, please read this:
1. "Will you play something good. Something WE CAN DANCE TO" ?!
As a dj I have to play to an entire club of people not just YOU or ONE person. So what YOU may HATE may be someone else's favorite joint.
Not only that but EVERYTHING I play can be danced to in one way or another.
2. "Would you play something with a BEAT" ?!
Are you serious? I know of NO songs I play in night clubs that do not have some sort of a beat.
3. "I don't know who sings it or the name of it"
Well that's not much to go by. So please don't sing it for me. I put up with high dangerous decibal levels all night long. Please do me a huge favor and keep the rendetion of your favoite song toyourself.
4. "EVERYBODY wants to hear it"!
Oh ok, you went through the entire club and took a poll and have been appointed the spokesperson to tell me this?!
5. "EVERYBODY will dance if you play it"!
I'm not going to so, I guess that blows a hole in your theory.
6. "I can get laid if you play it"
Why settle for one night? Buy the cd and get some for a month!
7. "I want to hear it NEXT"
The ONLY person who can get away with that statement is the one that signs my paycheck.
8. "I don't know what I want, what do you have"?
It's way easier for you to go have a few drinks and figure out something you
would like then for me to recite the 10,000 songs I come with.
9. "Hey man, what's up? NOBODY can dance to this"!
It's not really advisable to say when the dancefloor is jam packed (But a lot of you do anyway). However, even if there is only one person on the floor it contradicts your statement.
Here are some assorted things NOT to say:
If you request a song and I say "I just played that". Don't say "Well I just got here". That does not make an ounce of difference. Don't ask me "Is this the only kind of music you play"? When you go to eat Chinese food do you ask for mexican? Rock clubs play rock. New Wave clubs play new wave. Disco clubs play disco! 80's night plays 80's etc. etc. Plus I like to mix it up and play to the diverse crowds that attend my events. I'm not there strictly for YOU only.
When requesting a song please be SPECIFIC. Don't say"I want to hear something, ANYTHING but this"! You can't complain if you can't be specific.
However, if you are specific and I tell you I don'thave it - don't say "What"?! What do you mean youdon't have it? What kind of DJ are you? Why don'tyou work fast food ? You obviously don't know whatyour doing".
At that point I might KILL you!
Special Notes:
Club DJs are expected to play EVERYTHING forEVERYBODY. It is impossible to satisfy all of thepeople all of the time, yet i'm expected to do just that. If a radio station plays a song over and overand over and tells you that it's good the majority ofpeople believe it. However 95% of the time I wasdropping that song in the clubs months before it hitthe airwaves and radio has discovered it. So give theDJ a break! Next time you wish to request a songTHINK before you speak.
And last but not least and above all.......... If Ihave one hand on the mixer, one hand on a turntableand my headphone to my ear........ DO NOT BUG ME.
I'm working....................
-----
Rules of The Game
To all my deejays out there that spin in the clubs this is for you. I got this from J Rawls who got it from DJ Center who found it on a blog(shout out to DJ Supreme)...Can I get a "check 1-2" from all the deejays that are feeling this??
To all my patrons/party goers please read, pay attention and enjoy your party experience!!
Attention party people. Before requesting songs, making comments or asking questions of the DJ, please read this:
1. "Will you play something good. Something WE CAN DANCE TO" ?!
As a dj I have to play to an entire club of people not just YOU or ONE person. So what YOU may HATE may be someone else's favorite joint.
Not only that but EVERYTHING I play can be danced to in one way or another.
2. "Would you play something with a BEAT" ?!
Are you serious? I know of NO songs I play in night clubs that do not have some sort of a beat.
3. "I don't know who sings it or the name of it"
Well that's not much to go by. So please don't sing it for me. I put up with high dangerous decibal levels all night long. Please do me a huge favor and keep the rendetion of your favoite song toyourself.
4. "EVERYBODY wants to hear it"!
Oh ok, you went through the entire club and took a poll and have been appointed the spokesperson to tell me this?!
5. "EVERYBODY will dance if you play it"!
I'm not going to so, I guess that blows a hole in your theory.
6. "I can get laid if you play it"
Why settle for one night? Buy the cd and get some for a month!
7. "I want to hear it NEXT"
The ONLY person who can get away with that statement is the one that signs my paycheck.
8. "I don't know what I want, what do you have"?
It's way easier for you to go have a few drinks and figure out something you
would like then for me to recite the 10,000 songs I come with.
9. "Hey man, what's up? NOBODY can dance to this"!
It's not really advisable to say when the dancefloor is jam packed (But a lot of you do anyway). However, even if there is only one person on the floor it contradicts your statement.
Here are some assorted things NOT to say:
If you request a song and I say "I just played that". Don't say "Well I just got here". That does not make an ounce of difference. Don't ask me "Is this the only kind of music you play"? When you go to eat Chinese food do you ask for mexican? Rock clubs play rock. New Wave clubs play new wave. Disco clubs play disco! 80's night plays 80's etc. etc. Plus I like to mix it up and play to the diverse crowds that attend my events. I'm not there strictly for YOU only.
When requesting a song please be SPECIFIC. Don't say"I want to hear something, ANYTHING but this"! You can't complain if you can't be specific.
However, if you are specific and I tell you I don'thave it - don't say "What"?! What do you mean youdon't have it? What kind of DJ are you? Why don'tyou work fast food ? You obviously don't know whatyour doing".
At that point I might KILL you!
Special Notes:
Club DJs are expected to play EVERYTHING forEVERYBODY. It is impossible to satisfy all of thepeople all of the time, yet i'm expected to do just that. If a radio station plays a song over and overand over and tells you that it's good the majority ofpeople believe it. However 95% of the time I wasdropping that song in the clubs months before it hitthe airwaves and radio has discovered it. So give theDJ a break! Next time you wish to request a songTHINK before you speak.
And last but not least and above all.......... If Ihave one hand on the mixer, one hand on a turntableand my headphone to my ear........ DO NOT BUG ME.
I'm working....................
Thursday, January 17, 2008
My friend is taking a trip...
As u can see, i've prepared the coffin... I mean the return box that will be shipped back to microsoft. Now we must wait and see just how long this whole repair process takes. Safe travels, my friend!
--sent from mobile phone--
Friday, January 04, 2008
Moofing
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
I just learned a new word that describes my lifestyle pretty well - moofing. Mobile out of office. Describes 'where you are/ what you're doing when you're not at your desk or office but yet fully contactable and able to work as normal'. If you arm me with my trusty tablet pc and my pocket pc cell phone (which doubles as a wireless modem), then a moofer is what I become!
Unfortunately my mac mini has yet to prove itself as an ally in my moofistic lifestyle. Being that it is morally opposed to my windows mobile device, and thus refuses to sync nicely with my calendar items, puts yet another barrier between it and my coveted primary workstation area. :)
--sent from mobile phone--
I just learned a new word that describes my lifestyle pretty well - moofing. Mobile out of office. Describes 'where you are/ what you're doing when you're not at your desk or office but yet fully contactable and able to work as normal'. If you arm me with my trusty tablet pc and my pocket pc cell phone (which doubles as a wireless modem), then a moofer is what I become!
Unfortunately my mac mini has yet to prove itself as an ally in my moofistic lifestyle. Being that it is morally opposed to my windows mobile device, and thus refuses to sync nicely with my calendar items, puts yet another barrier between it and my coveted primary workstation area. :)
--sent from mobile phone--
Thursday, January 03, 2008
iChat, You Chat, til our connection goes to crap...
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
So, I hooked up with some of my Mac buddies - two in Cali, one in Ohio - and got a 4-person video chat going. As you can see from the snapshot, it's got a pretty impressive interface. What was also impressive was the file/photo sharing. I was able to stream a Billy Ocean music video ("Caribbean Queen", of course) and an Al Green mp3 to the other 3 people, pretty seamlessly. Nice.
So, I hooked up with some of my Mac buddies - two in Cali, one in Ohio - and got a 4-person video chat going. As you can see from the snapshot, it's got a pretty impressive interface. What was also impressive was the file/photo sharing. I was able to stream a Billy Ocean music video ("Caribbean Queen", of course) and an Al Green mp3 to the other 3 people, pretty seamlessly. Nice.The only downside is that I was the only one in the bunch without a native Mac-friendly web cam. Mine is more of a Vista-certified Logitech USB camera. I had to install 3 different pieces of software on the Mac to get it to work, and even then, I was the one that kept getting dropped out of the chat, or my mike would stop working.
I guess the question is, do I ding Mac for making me install 3 pieces of 3rd-party software in order to use a name-brand web cam? Or do I ding myself for not following the Mac motto: use our stuff, and only our stuff, til death do us part?
I know that the major instant messenger folks on Windows also have video chat capability (I chat with my wife via MSN Messenger video all the time, cuz I'm too lazy to walk up the stairs to her office). Never tried 4 people on video chat, tho. And, although I'm sure both Win & Mac can do basic video chats, I'm pretty sure the iChat interface is a lot better than the others.
On a side note, this is the first blog post I've composed while on the Mac. it's also the first blog post to give me formatting errors that made me have to look at the HTML to figure out what was going on. I don't know if this is just coincidence, but I HAD to mention it (hehehe...)
Hmmmm, on we go....
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Force Quit... Already???
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
So, I'm like just a couple weeks into my Mac ownership, and already i'm using the 'task manager' to kill rogue processes? In this case, one of the disc mounting processes was running in the background and keeping me from ejecting [another] disc. Hmmm...seems like i'm using all the same troubleshooting skills I learned in the Windows world. I didn't think I was gonna need those bag of tricks in Steve's world. :)
I also tried to do a screenshot of my error message using the Grab service. Thought I could capture the image and paste it into an email message. Does that sound too much like right? Wouldn't let me do it.
I also realized that I never liked the menu bar for the apps always being context-sensitive and sitting at the very top of my screen. "Attention managment" is important to me - seems inconvenient to have to take my eyes all the way up to the top of the screen to do something with a window I'm using near the bottom of my screen. And that's if the menu updates to the new context fast enough, and is not still showing the menu for the last window I clicked on. (hmm, maybe that's a Mini thing)
To top it all off, I love the message Mac gave me about my problem from their Help files:
"If this happens, WAIT A FEW MOMENTS and try again..."
Who is this message written for? Are there computer users out there in 2008 that actually DON'T wait a few moments prior to being frustrated enough to check the Help files??? And apparently, in this case a 'moment' was like 10 minutes before I started having to search for a process to kill.
So far, I feel right at home in my Mac world - my woes thus far are very familiar..... ;- )
So, I'm like just a couple weeks into my Mac ownership, and already i'm using the 'task manager' to kill rogue processes? In this case, one of the disc mounting processes was running in the background and keeping me from ejecting [another] disc. Hmmm...seems like i'm using all the same troubleshooting skills I learned in the Windows world. I didn't think I was gonna need those bag of tricks in Steve's world. :)
I also tried to do a screenshot of my error message using the Grab service. Thought I could capture the image and paste it into an email message. Does that sound too much like right? Wouldn't let me do it.
I also realized that I never liked the menu bar for the apps always being context-sensitive and sitting at the very top of my screen. "Attention managment" is important to me - seems inconvenient to have to take my eyes all the way up to the top of the screen to do something with a window I'm using near the bottom of my screen. And that's if the menu updates to the new context fast enough, and is not still showing the menu for the last window I clicked on. (hmm, maybe that's a Mini thing)
To top it all off, I love the message Mac gave me about my problem from their Help files:
"If this happens, WAIT A FEW MOMENTS and try again..."
Who is this message written for? Are there computer users out there in 2008 that actually DON'T wait a few moments prior to being frustrated enough to check the Help files??? And apparently, in this case a 'moment' was like 10 minutes before I started having to search for a process to kill.
So far, I feel right at home in my Mac world - my woes thus far are very familiar..... ;- )
Friday, December 28, 2007
Window resizing
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Journey to the Dark side
{this post moved to http://rixbits.blogspot.com}
I'd like to point out that on Day 1, I put a CD in the drive. Standard task, right? The Mac didn't see the disc. Wouldn't let me eject it. Had to restart before it would work. Did I buy a Mac or is this a mini-Windows98 box? Hmmm, not what i expected......
Saturday, December 22, 2007
On the road
Headed to cincinnati. Ridin in the car bumpin a krs-one mix cd. The ride down I-71 is so exciting ... Not.
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