In general, I am not someone who watches TV on a regular basis. I will channel surf sometimes (on weekends), I watch football on Sunday, and occasionally I watch the news.
The one program, however, that I make a point to watch weekly is Scrubs, which airs Thursdays on NBC. Just beginning its third season, it is mostly new talent with the notable exceptions of Sarah Chalke (played the 2nd Becky on Roseanne) and John C. McGinley (numerous movie roles, including one of the two Bobs in "Office Space").
Scrubs is, in a word, hilarious. It is very well written, and the humor seems to strike a chord with me. It is sometimes surreal, sometimes slapstick, sometimes witty, and sometimes lowbrow. They tie in a few long-running plot threads, some of which involve more drama than comedy -- but the writers don't take themselves too seriously to poke a little fun at a serious situation from time to time.
I find that background music can make or break a show/movie/production. Scrubs has a tendency to pick music for a scene that is spot-on -- from the opening "Superman" track on through, the music is not overwhelming, but at the same time it will remarkably add to the scene.
Last night's episode ("My Lucky Night") featured a song that had me wow-ed from beginning to end. I checked the website, and found out that it is a song titled "Cindy" by the band Tammany Hall NYC. As it so happens, they had the song available for download from their site -- that being the case, I will also make it available here.
Another song from Scrubs that caught my ear was "Overkill", done originally by Men At Work but performed live (and acoustic) in the episode by Colin Hay, the band's lead singer. This song was played on the opener of the second season, and is copyrighted so I will not make it available for download.
So anyway, watch Scrubs. It's one of the best shows I've seen in a long, long time -- no surprise that NBC gives it the powerful "8:30 Thursday" slot (i.e. immediately following "Friends").
RSS
It DOES NOT stand for "Really Simple Syndication".
It DOES stand for "RDF Site Summary".
SQL
It DOES NOT stand for "Simple Query Language".
It DOES stand for "Structured Query Language".
"for all intensive purposes"
What is an intensive purpose? Is it much more serious than a regular purpose?
How about "for all intents and purposes". Yes, much better.
"should of"
No. No no no. You "should of" paid more attention in 7th Grade English.
"Should have" is contracted into "should've". There is no "of" to be found.
Thank you.
I added links to category archives on the right side of the main page. This was basically for my own benefit, since I've been frustrated a few times looking for older posts. However, I suppose it's feasable that someone else might find it useful as well.
Having had Mandrake Linux installed on my home PC for several weeks now, I finally got up the courage last night to try out the CD burner. I had used both audio and data CDs without any problems, but wanted to see if the sometimes fickle linux was up to burning a CD without my needing to tweak anything.
For my Windows CD burning needs, I use Nero: Burning ROM. It is quick and fairly intuitive -- it streamlines the process of creating an audio CD from MP3 files, automatically converting and normalizing the tracks during the burn.
For linux, there are a number of different choices -- the Mandrake install comes with 3 different ones. I had heard good things about an app called K3b, which happened to be one of the pre-installed programs. I ran the setup utility, which correctly identified my burner make and model (didn't verify the firmware revision, but I assume it was accurate).
The K3b main interface screen is a bit different than that of Nero, so it took a few minutes for me to figure out what went where. My biggest complaint is that, for an audio CD, the portion of the screen which displays the tracks you have added is amazingly short -- only 1 or 2 tracks are visible at a time (so a lot of scrolling up and down is necessary to view all the tracks). I tried moving the mouse over common "resize" areas (top and bottom of frame, lower right corner, etc), but couldn't find anywhere to expand my horizons. That notwithstanding, I was able to get all the tracks successfully added, for a total of 73 minutes and 55 seconds.
The burn icon took me a minute to locate, but when clicked it presented a familiar set of options for the burn. The default burn speed was set to 1x, which I found somewhat odd (my burner is a 52x). All the other defaults looked okay, so I clicked the "Write" button and waited to see what would happen.
First attempt was over quickly. Apparently, the cdrdao program -- used by K3b for "disk at once" burning -- was unable to locate the correct driver for my burner. I tried re-running the K3b setup program and burning, but got the same error message.
I then tried the burn again, but un-checked the "disk at once" option. I believe this causes the burn to be a bit slower and adds gaps between the tracks, but for my purposes it was fine.
Clicking on "write" caused the reassuring hum of my CD burner to fill the air, and the buffer and progress bars to come to life. The entire burn took about 10 minutes, which included converting the MP3 tracks (though it did not seem to normalize them). It indicated success and ejected the CD, so I carried it downstairs to a known "finicky" CD player and tried it out.
Music filled the air.
I was not especially surprised, but it was comforting to know that linux can recognize a CD burner out of the box, and the default utility didn't require much in the way of tweaking (other than the cdrdao driver). Overall, I found K3b simple to configure and use, and will try some other types of burns (such as a CD-RW burn) to put it through it's paces.
And the CD I burned? 18 relaxing tracks of Flamenco guitar melodies, downloaded (legally) from MP3.com.
This weekend, I attended a very fancy soiree for work. I was pleased to note that there was an open martini bar.
Now make no mistake -- I am a steadfast martini fan. However, as I approached the martini bar I noticed that they had a rather elaborate ice sculpture which was displaying several bottles of Bacardi flavored rums.
I decided to forego any thought of a martini, and instead partake of some of Puerto Rico's finest.
The rum of choice for the evening was Bacardi Vanilla. I tend to enjoy the "burn" of rum, so I ordered my first glass straight with no ice. The barkeep poured it through the ice sculpture to chill it (very fancy), and I was treated to my first experience with Bacardi flavored rums.
And what a treat it was.
Very smooth, subtle flavor and not too sweet. The flavor was more that of a liqueur than of a rum; the characteristic burn was absent -- I expect it was a lower proof than a regular rum.
I enjoyed this rum straight; I imagine that it would flavor a Cuba Libre (rum and coke) quite well. I am heartily impressed!
Yesterday, I attended the Pittsburgh ITEC convention. It is largely an IT trade show, providing local/national vendors an opportunity to showcase their latest goods and services. They also offered 4 different conference "tracks", with seminars throughout the day (these were available for a $300 ticket, while the tickets to browse the show floor were free).
I was able to pick up some neat gadgets (trade shows are good for that), I got some good info from a company or two, and I sat in on a Microsoft presentation about Office System 2003 (not the same thing as Office 2003).
What I found most interesting is that the ID badge they gave attendees is also a swipe card of some sort. Each of the vendors had a reader for the card, and they were able to just get your card and swipe it to (presumably) capture all your registration information. Clever on the part of the conference facilitators, as this all but eliminates the need for each vendor to try to talk attendees into turning over business cards or other contact information.
Although the vendors who swiped my card will be treated to the following information:
- Phone Number: 412-000-0000 (the web-based registration validator apparently has room for improvement)
- Email: w5pxe8i02@sneakemail.com (see my earlier post on Sneakemail for why this address won't be useful to a vendor)
Overall it was a good time, and I was able to do some information sharing with some of my former colleagues that will be very useful too.
Now if I can just keep my Microsoft t-shirt from shrinking in the wash, I'll be all set....
Thought for today, that I had this morning as I arrived at work:
Why is it that if you refrain from doing something that you don't do it at all, but a refrain in a song gets done over and over again?
It's funny how one action can change the way you look at the people around you.
Yesterday, my wife and one of the other teachers at the school where she works had their wallets stolen out of their purses. In looking back over the day, they figured there was a 15-minute period where both teachers were out of their rooms.
Fortunately, nothing else was taken from the purses -- still have keys, cell phone, other personal items.
Unfortunately, the other teacher had 3 of her credit cards hit up within 15 minutes of when we think the theft happened, for a few hundred dollars. Not a huge amount, but enough to be a hassle.
In discussing it, we've identified that the person(s) who stole the wallets had to be one of the following:
- another faculty member
- a student
- someone who came into the building from outside
If you think about each of those three, you can see that they're each awful in their own way.
So last night, we spent time on the phone and at the bank. Got credit card account changed, cancelled debit card and got new bank account numbers, got application for new social security card. Another few days of hassle before it all gets sorted out.
The worst part of it is that all my wife could say was that someone took "her stuff". It's a tremendous invasion of privacy, and leaves you feeling quite shocked and violated.
And it makes it hard to trust the people around you.
It's one thing if it happens in the mall, on a bus, or in any other public place. But it hits home when it happens in some place familiar, some place that you consider to be friendly and safe.
So as of this morning, she and I have to look at everyone around us slightly differently than we did yesterday. And that's a shame.
This past weekend, the Half Price Books store in my area was having an "Educator Appreciation Sale", which offered an additional 20% discount on all items to teachers. As it so happens, my wife is a teacher -- so she and I took a trip out there on Sunday.
She purchased some "girly" type stuff (thank you cards, etc...), and I was able to grab the following titles:
All that for less than $20. Oh, how I love Half Price Books!
Was just visiting Google's Language Tools page, and there is a fun section that allows you to select the default display language for the google interface. The standards are there, but I also found these less-traditional languages listed:
There are some other, more useful, languages available as well.
Remember all those sci-fi movies/shows that had people with some sort of neural jack in their heads, enabling them to be "plugged in"?
We may be one step closer. I just read this story on MSNBC, and it simply blew my mind (no pun intended): Monkeys' Brains Move Robotic Arms
In short, scientists measured the brain activity of monkeys as they moved a joystick to manipulate a robotic arm. They eventually learned which signals were connected to which actions, and wrote a program to move the robotic arm in accordance with those signals. They implanted a handful of very thin wires into the monkeys' brains, which were able to transmit the signals to the computer.
The scientists then watched in amazement as the monkeys were able to control the robotic arms by just thinking about it. This story is truly an unbelievable read!
Site URL: http://beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html
Summary: This is a 20-question quiz that attempts to determine which religion most closely matches your own morals/ethics/beliefs.
This is an interesting concept. Instead of simply stating "bullet points" for the various faiths, this quiz takes into account your personal stance on various topics (both spiritual and corporeal) and then compares your responses to the doctrines of the different faiths. It gives you a percentage rating -- the higher the percentage, the closer your personal beliefs are to the named religion.
First time through, here is what I look like:
1. Orthodox Judaism (100%)
2. Hinduism (99%)
3. Eastern Orthodox (92%)
4. Roman Catholic (92%)
5. Islam (91%)
6. Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (86%)
7. Seventh Day Adventist (82%)
8. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (76%)
9. Sikhism (76%)
10. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (75%)
11. Orthodox Quaker (75%)
12. Jehovah's Witness (73%)
13. Jainism (70%)
14. Bahá'í Faith (62%)
15. Reform Judaism (61%)
16. Unitarian Universalism (58%)
17. Liberal Quakers (56%)
18. Mahayana Buddhism (44%)
19. Nontheist (38%)
20. Neo-Pagan (37%)
21. Theravada Buddhism (37%)
22. Secular Humanism (28%)
23. New Thought (23%)
24. Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (20%)
25. Scientology (18%)
26. New Age (17%)
27. Taoism (17%)
Roman Catholic is number 4 on the list, and is what I happen to consider myself at present -- so I apparently am 92% "in synch" with what the Roman Catholic church teaches.
The result screen allows you to click on each religion to get a more detailed view of its tenets.
Realize, if you do take this test, that 20 questions may or may not provide a fully-enlightened look at your soul. However, it is an interesting exercise.
Shalom!
Was just visiting this page on Symantec's website, and I got momentarily flummoxed by the "Native Language" dropdown box.
For dropdown boxes that specify country, language, or other easily-guessable options, I tend to just click on the box and press the first letter of my choice until it appears as the selection. So for "Country", pressing 'u' a few times will get you to "United States". Makes sense, I think.
So when I was attempting to enter my "Native Language" on the form, I immediately began pressing 'e', in anticipation that I would soon read "English" in the box.
No such luck. My choices were: Egyptian, European Portuguese, and European Spanish. Took me about 4 times through before I realized that I was not going to see my native tongue listed as an option.
I began to panic. My mind reeled at the thought of trying to perform tech support in another language. I had about 10 years of Spanish in school, but another look through the options listed European Spanish, Latin American Spanish, and Spanish. I, having learned Spanish in the West Indies, was again at a loss.
Hm, they list Croatian. My dad's side of the family is Croatian. Maybe my Great Uncle can help me out.
Full-fledged despondency had not quite set in when I noticed, all the way down at the bottom, my salvation.
"US English"
Another look through the list offered me another option -- something called "Intl English", which I presume to mean "International English".
I have a degree in English, and I have no idea what the difference is between the two.
If you have a few minutes, take a look at all the choices for "Native Language". It is a very odd mixture.
Site URL: http://www.sneakemail.com/
Summary: Disposable email addresses to help cut down on unwanted email.
Sneakemail is a service that provides unique, disposable email addresses that translate to a valid email address which you provide. They offer both a free and a premium ($2.00 per month) service, although I have found that the free service is more than sufficient for my needs.
Here's how it works:
That's it. You will receive messages normally to your email account -- and when you reply, the message you send goes back through Sneakemail's server, keeping your valid email address private.
Other nice features include the ability to do basic filtering on the different aliases, including whitelisting/blacklisting. Aliases are generated as a variable-length random string of alphanumeric characters, designed to deter spamming by trying "normal-looking" usernames or ids.
There are message size and bandwidth limits for both the free and premium services, and there are safeguards to ensure that the service does not get used BY spammers to create untraceable email messages.
I believe this is an idea whose time has come, and it is great to have a service like this available for free (although $2.00 per month is not tremendously expensive, either). If you find yourself needing to "register" on different websites but disagree with or distrust posted "privacy policies", this is definitely a service you will want to check out.
If you would like more information, you can email me at w5pxe8i02@sneakemail.com
I ran across this essay a while ago, and I believe there is a lot of truth to it:
I am a hacker, and you are afraid.
You must think hackers are evil demons who work in shadowy rooms. That they want to steal your money, kill your dog, and deflower your daughter. This is what CNN and John Markoff and every other place you turn for news tells you. Only it's not news anymore. Its Peter Jennings spoon-feeding opinions to you while your mouth smiles and your brain decays. What are Hackers? Hackers are your inventors, your creators, and your dreamers. Hackers are the people who are building your better tomorrow, and you hate them for it. You slap laws on them for it. You drag their name in the mud for it. You pass knee-jerk legislation making innovation a crime. Because we scare you. Because Technology scares you. Because you don't understand it. Because we do. Because some kid knows more about how to configure your network then your admins do. Because its easier to blame us than shame yourselves. Your very ignorance and your desire to stay blissfully ignorant causes half the problems. You let Windows store your passwords and banking information and you have no idea how they do it or how they protect it. And when a thief, not a hacker, but a thief steals that information, you blame anyone who likes to tinker with technology. Your mind is so trained by the media; you don't even stop to think to blame the thief who stole it, or to blame Microsoft for not properly protecting your information. Instead you want our heads on a pike in your hall.
I am a hacker, and you are afraid, and that makes you more dangerous than I ever could be.
(Source: http://www.se2600.org/acidus/)
Here are some websites related to some rather unusual projects that I've uncovered lately:
Dan Gillmor is a columnist at SiliconValley.com whose work I read from time to time. He has, in collaboration with David Weinberger, set up an interesting website called Word Pirates. It is in the form of a public blog, but the idea is to explain how some English words have been "pirated" by having their meanings twisted or misused.
I am happy to say that I have made my first contribution to the site. You may view it here.