Tuesday, January 31
Don't give up hope
A good friend of mine, relayed this information to me. It's a good way to balance out the garbage being spewed on all the major networks right now. We shant give up on mankind yet!
Sunday, January 29
Volunteer, Shmolunteer
U.S. soldiers at the end of their terms of service are finding out that the volunteer force they joined has backed out on its end of the deal. The stop-loss program that the link will talk about essentially allows the military to extend the tour of duty of a soldier despite his initial contract. Snip:
"When you sign up for the military, you're saying, 'I'll give you, say, six years and then after six years I get my life back.' And they're saying, 'No, really, we can extend you indefinitely.'"
"When you sign up for the military, you're saying, 'I'll give you, say, six years and then after six years I get my life back.' And they're saying, 'No, really, we can extend you indefinitely.'"
Thursday, January 26
"I'm very arroused"
For some reason this post seemed like a good reason to utilize that quote. Anyway I want one of these as soon as it hits the states. I love my DS, there are a ton of very unique and fun games available. And this new one is only 1 inch longer, 0.5 inches wider, and 0.1 thicker than a normal apple ipod. Plus it sports the cool styling from the yet to be released Revolution controllers.
Tuesday, January 24
The Wand, w00t!
The Flaming lips have a new single, its quite good. methinks. Anyway sorry about the myspace link... I know its ass. But you can hear the song legally and free.
Friday, January 20
Google refuses BellSouth's attempted Cybextortion
From GoogleKnot
Google has turned down BellSouth's offer to charge Google to have their sites load faster than others. Good move Google, don't let those ISP's boss you around and way to not fall in league with the monopolistic bastards. The only problem is that someone else will pay. It will be there only way to compete with Google. That's ok though because it's only a matter of time until the telephony titans of yesteryear fall completely to wireless peer to peer.I hope you don't mind the self promotion. I had to post it on GoogleKnot but i thought it was interesting enough to post here as well... and I'm trying to effect my technorati ranking. Speaking of which POST JCMB LINKS! and Please feel free to join in on the Google discussion.
Thursday, January 19
Osama, Osama, Wherefore Art Thou, Osama?
Good news for the non-Islamofascist portion of our planet's population (and especially those of us here in the U.S.): Osama Bin Laden is offering a truce. He'll stop plotting to kill all of us, and stop spreading worldwide his message of violence and death, as long as we agree to seal ourselves inside our borders and never talk to anyone again. Here's a snip from the article, which quotes a recently released audio tape purported to be recorded by Osama himself (thanks, BBC!):
"We have no objection to responding to this with a long-term truce based on fair conditions," the speaker said.
"We do not mind offering you a truce that is fair and long-term... so we can build Iraq and Afghanistan... there is no shame in this solution because it prevents wasting of billions of dollars.
"Your president is misinterpreting public opinion polls which show that the vast majority of you support the withdrawal of your forces from Iraq."
So, something troubles me here. What in the hell happened to Osama Bin Laden? Wasn't he public enemy #1 for a while there? Wasn't he all fire and brimstone, hell in a handbasket for the infidel dogs? Aren't we all sinners, isn't he the solution, isn't that why he turned the WTC into a towering inferno of hell? Now, he's talking about truces, war costs, and opinion polls? What a sellout bitch.
Osama Bin Laden, you used to scare 280 million people just about every day. And that was just in this country. Now? You're nothin' but another talking head. You DUMBASS. You should have kept posturing, should have kept us thinking your power was real. You were living the dream! Now we know that all you are is a thug with some guns. And crappy guns at that. And, we know you are living hand-to-mouth in the hardscrabble world of northwestern Pashtuni Pakistan. You used to be evil incarnate. Now you're a nobody. Dumbass.
"We have no objection to responding to this with a long-term truce based on fair conditions," the speaker said.
"We do not mind offering you a truce that is fair and long-term... so we can build Iraq and Afghanistan... there is no shame in this solution because it prevents wasting of billions of dollars.
"Your president is misinterpreting public opinion polls which show that the vast majority of you support the withdrawal of your forces from Iraq."
So, something troubles me here. What in the hell happened to Osama Bin Laden? Wasn't he public enemy #1 for a while there? Wasn't he all fire and brimstone, hell in a handbasket for the infidel dogs? Aren't we all sinners, isn't he the solution, isn't that why he turned the WTC into a towering inferno of hell? Now, he's talking about truces, war costs, and opinion polls? What a sellout bitch.
Osama Bin Laden, you used to scare 280 million people just about every day. And that was just in this country. Now? You're nothin' but another talking head. You DUMBASS. You should have kept posturing, should have kept us thinking your power was real. You were living the dream! Now we know that all you are is a thug with some guns. And crappy guns at that. And, we know you are living hand-to-mouth in the hardscrabble world of northwestern Pashtuni Pakistan. You used to be evil incarnate. Now you're a nobody. Dumbass.
Monday, January 16
Just In Case
Just in case you got sick of me talking about various consumer electronics...here's a link of some kid (gender unclear) singing a Pokemon song. It may or may not be funny to you, depending on if you spend 9 hours in a cubicle every day.
TiVo Trouble
The jury is still out on this one, as far as I'm concerned. Either I'm an idiot (highly likely) or TiVo is really stupid (also highly likely). I bought a TiVo yesterday on sale at Best Buy ($50 once I get the rebate check back). I saw on the box that a landline was required for setup and I asked my friendly neighborhood Best Buy blueshirt "do I really need a landline?" And he said, "no you can use a USB cable." Perfect.
I take the box home. No time to turn on the Bears game...I must set up TiVo in time for the premiere of "24." Open it up, connect all the wires and whoozits. Step 6: connect your landline to a wall jack. Hmm....21st century young adult...wireless internet and cell phone....I don't have a damn phone jack! Not one. I am sure of it. I unscrew several electrical coverings. No secret phone jacks ANYWHERE.
Call to TiVo customer support. Wait in telephone hell for 20 minutes. Finally..."This call may be recorded for quality and training purposes."
"Hello? I don't have a phone jack."
"Well sir you are gonna need that."
"There's no way around this? I can't connect with a USB and use my cable modem or my wireless router?"
"No sir you need a landline."
"So, this 21st-century TV technology is completely dependent on a dying 20th-century technology?"
"Yes."
(long pause)
"Is there anything else I can help you with sir?"
"Sorry I just, I waited a very long time on the phone and I was hoping there was a backdoor or something."
"For the initial setup you will need a landline. You can take it over a friend's house to set it up."
Wonderful. So at 4:30 on my Sunday afternoon, the stroke of genius hits me to take the TiVo to work and set it up. Two horrifying hours later, the TiVo is not set up and I am leaving the office, tail between my legs, to go home to watch the 24 premiere. On regular old TV. With no recording capability whatsoever (what, you thought I had a VCR? That's SO five years ago).
In the end, I decided (after conferring with Howie) to ditch TiVo and their stupid dependency on the landline in favor of the DVR provided by my cable company. Sigh.
I take the box home. No time to turn on the Bears game...I must set up TiVo in time for the premiere of "24." Open it up, connect all the wires and whoozits. Step 6: connect your landline to a wall jack. Hmm....21st century young adult...wireless internet and cell phone....I don't have a damn phone jack! Not one. I am sure of it. I unscrew several electrical coverings. No secret phone jacks ANYWHERE.
Call to TiVo customer support. Wait in telephone hell for 20 minutes. Finally..."This call may be recorded for quality and training purposes."
"Hello? I don't have a phone jack."
"Well sir you are gonna need that."
"There's no way around this? I can't connect with a USB and use my cable modem or my wireless router?"
"No sir you need a landline."
"So, this 21st-century TV technology is completely dependent on a dying 20th-century technology?"
"Yes."
(long pause)
"Is there anything else I can help you with sir?"
"Sorry I just, I waited a very long time on the phone and I was hoping there was a backdoor or something."
"For the initial setup you will need a landline. You can take it over a friend's house to set it up."
Wonderful. So at 4:30 on my Sunday afternoon, the stroke of genius hits me to take the TiVo to work and set it up. Two horrifying hours later, the TiVo is not set up and I am leaving the office, tail between my legs, to go home to watch the 24 premiere. On regular old TV. With no recording capability whatsoever (what, you thought I had a VCR? That's SO five years ago).
In the end, I decided (after conferring with Howie) to ditch TiVo and their stupid dependency on the landline in favor of the DVR provided by my cable company. Sigh.
Tuesday, January 10
To my much missed pal, Adam
First off, I'm sorry that I didn't get to come to philly on new years... It has been quite a while.
Now for my rant. This goes for anyone else who has funded m$ via purchasing 360. You should have held out.
Considering that all the games worth playing (it's arguable that any of them actually are) right now are available on other platforms with slightly lower resolutions, you may have rushed to a rash judgment when you decided to plunk down $500+ for the Microsoft brand of next generation gaming. Excluding cod2, because I can play it at higher resolutions on my 2 1/2 year old computer (which happens to be a 32bit 2.1ghz processor, with a slightly weaker videocard than the 360) with less lag and more players on the multiplayer server.
If u waited, you could have probably saved the $70 you paid extra, plus however much they will reduce the price, when actually compelling games(read: not BS sports, fps, racing, fighting rehashes) are released and the competition readies their systems. By the way, Gears of war is totally crossplatform (ie: PS3,PC,360,and probably revolution) not to mention it's most likely going to turn out to be just a transparent vehicle for the licensing of their game engine. (just like their last games - "unreal" 1 and 2 and id's doom and quake games... Excluding doom1 and wolfenstein they were actually games and not sales pitches)
Yes I am a videogame enthusiast, it makes up a huge part of who I am. But I may be one of the most critical and discerning enthusiasts you might ever meet.
There was only so many Tony hawk games I could play, and thoroughly enjoy. That goes the same with console first person shooters, action rpgs, sidescrollers, madden football's, gran turismos, grand theft autos, fighters. Everytime I play a game that's just a graphical update and tweaking of an older game I spent hundreds of hours playing, it entertains me less. I can't even tell you how many hours we spent in my basement den, playing goldeneye. It was sickening, I almost never want to see it again.
When someone fires up Halo, I can't play for more than a handful of rounds before I'm bored, because it's such a clone of goldeneye that it's retarded. Madden came out in 1992 on genesis, it was incredibly fun. Every iteration was less fun, until it got the 3D treatment on the psx and n64. It was exciting again, because it once again felt fresh. Alas, then the process started over, everytime you spend your hard-earned cash on the next madden it gets played less and hence has lost some of its value.
There has been a pattern that's worked so far. NES -> SNES/Genesis was the first era of successful home console systems. Then there was the 3D revolution to usher in the second era, N64/saturn/psx -> dreamcast/gamecube/xbox/ps2. The pattern is alternating between revolution and evolution. The SNES generation was just an evolution of the 2D formula. There was a significant increase in pixel pumping power and addition of more buttons to refine the existing gameplay. The PSX generation was a 3D revolution. This generation saw the addition of the 3D processor which totally changed the way games were viewed, and the reintroducing of the analog stick (n64) gave a drastic change in the way the games were controlled. The PS2 generation was an evolution of the 3D formula. Simply an addition of buttons and significant increase in polygon pushing power, which refined the new 3d gameplay. Games were mostly made in 640x480 resolution now (instead of 320x200 which was standard on n64 and psx) and game worlds were larger and more involved (ie. Grand theft auto 3) But right about now, we should be at a juncture awaiting the next extensive change in our videogames.
Well according to Microsoft and to a lesser extent Sony we are about to witness a revolution, the HD Revolution! I have news for everyone... It's not a revolution, its just evolution. This time we're not even getting more buttons. All they want to give us is an increase in resolution and bigger worlds, but they propose that this is a revolution?! Prettier graphics, and larger landscapes. That was the selling points for the PS2. They want me to shell out $400 now, $100 more than last time (BTW, my gamecube was only $199 the first day of sale) AS IF!
I want a real change, and it looks that this time the only option for something actually new is Nintendo. I guess its fitting, Nintendo was the first company to make home videogames a profitable enterprise in the first place. Right after the gamecube was released Nintendo promoted Iwata (the game programmer responsible for super smash brothers) to their acting CEO/President. Since then Nintendo has been talking about how videogames need a kickstart, he knows that games are getting stale. They have proved that they are willing to make systems and games that stray very far from the norm, to attempt to reinvigorate the market (ie: Nintendo DS, pikmin, nintendogs, electroplankton). So when they say that this next generation is to be a revolution, I'm on their wagon.
Adam I don't think less of you or anyone who doesn't have the same jaded outlook as me. I realize I have a pretty unique point of view when it comes to this kind of thing. But god help me, if these companies keep rehashing tired shit that only the Johnny come lately's can stand to play, because they are afraid to risk their bottom lines on actual revolutionary game ideas. All the while they refer to halo and gta3 players as "hardcore gamers". If they were "hardcore"(I am assuming "hardcore gamers" refers to people who spend a serious amount of time playing videogames) they would be so tired of these run of the mill 3d games, because they overplayed that formula... Like me.
Bring me my virtual reality. Bring me my holographic displays. Bring me motion sensing controls. I want the gaming future today. Viva la revolution!
Now for my rant. This goes for anyone else who has funded m$ via purchasing 360. You should have held out.
Considering that all the games worth playing (it's arguable that any of them actually are) right now are available on other platforms with slightly lower resolutions, you may have rushed to a rash judgment when you decided to plunk down $500+ for the Microsoft brand of next generation gaming. Excluding cod2, because I can play it at higher resolutions on my 2 1/2 year old computer (which happens to be a 32bit 2.1ghz processor, with a slightly weaker videocard than the 360) with less lag and more players on the multiplayer server.
If u waited, you could have probably saved the $70 you paid extra, plus however much they will reduce the price, when actually compelling games(read: not BS sports, fps, racing, fighting rehashes) are released and the competition readies their systems. By the way, Gears of war is totally crossplatform (ie: PS3,PC,360,and probably revolution) not to mention it's most likely going to turn out to be just a transparent vehicle for the licensing of their game engine. (just like their last games - "unreal" 1 and 2 and id's doom and quake games... Excluding doom1 and wolfenstein they were actually games and not sales pitches)
Yes I am a videogame enthusiast, it makes up a huge part of who I am. But I may be one of the most critical and discerning enthusiasts you might ever meet.
There was only so many Tony hawk games I could play, and thoroughly enjoy. That goes the same with console first person shooters, action rpgs, sidescrollers, madden football's, gran turismos, grand theft autos, fighters. Everytime I play a game that's just a graphical update and tweaking of an older game I spent hundreds of hours playing, it entertains me less. I can't even tell you how many hours we spent in my basement den, playing goldeneye. It was sickening, I almost never want to see it again.
When someone fires up Halo, I can't play for more than a handful of rounds before I'm bored, because it's such a clone of goldeneye that it's retarded. Madden came out in 1992 on genesis, it was incredibly fun. Every iteration was less fun, until it got the 3D treatment on the psx and n64. It was exciting again, because it once again felt fresh. Alas, then the process started over, everytime you spend your hard-earned cash on the next madden it gets played less and hence has lost some of its value.
There has been a pattern that's worked so far. NES -> SNES/Genesis was the first era of successful home console systems. Then there was the 3D revolution to usher in the second era, N64/saturn/psx -> dreamcast/gamecube/xbox/ps2. The pattern is alternating between revolution and evolution. The SNES generation was just an evolution of the 2D formula. There was a significant increase in pixel pumping power and addition of more buttons to refine the existing gameplay. The PSX generation was a 3D revolution. This generation saw the addition of the 3D processor which totally changed the way games were viewed, and the reintroducing of the analog stick (n64) gave a drastic change in the way the games were controlled. The PS2 generation was an evolution of the 3D formula. Simply an addition of buttons and significant increase in polygon pushing power, which refined the new 3d gameplay. Games were mostly made in 640x480 resolution now (instead of 320x200 which was standard on n64 and psx) and game worlds were larger and more involved (ie. Grand theft auto 3) But right about now, we should be at a juncture awaiting the next extensive change in our videogames.
Well according to Microsoft and to a lesser extent Sony we are about to witness a revolution, the HD Revolution! I have news for everyone... It's not a revolution, its just evolution. This time we're not even getting more buttons. All they want to give us is an increase in resolution and bigger worlds, but they propose that this is a revolution?! Prettier graphics, and larger landscapes. That was the selling points for the PS2. They want me to shell out $400 now, $100 more than last time (BTW, my gamecube was only $199 the first day of sale) AS IF!
I want a real change, and it looks that this time the only option for something actually new is Nintendo. I guess its fitting, Nintendo was the first company to make home videogames a profitable enterprise in the first place. Right after the gamecube was released Nintendo promoted Iwata (the game programmer responsible for super smash brothers) to their acting CEO/President. Since then Nintendo has been talking about how videogames need a kickstart, he knows that games are getting stale. They have proved that they are willing to make systems and games that stray very far from the norm, to attempt to reinvigorate the market (ie: Nintendo DS, pikmin, nintendogs, electroplankton). So when they say that this next generation is to be a revolution, I'm on their wagon.
Adam I don't think less of you or anyone who doesn't have the same jaded outlook as me. I realize I have a pretty unique point of view when it comes to this kind of thing. But god help me, if these companies keep rehashing tired shit that only the Johnny come lately's can stand to play, because they are afraid to risk their bottom lines on actual revolutionary game ideas. All the while they refer to halo and gta3 players as "hardcore gamers". If they were "hardcore"(I am assuming "hardcore gamers" refers to people who spend a serious amount of time playing videogames) they would be so tired of these run of the mill 3d games, because they overplayed that formula... Like me.
Bring me my virtual reality. Bring me my holographic displays. Bring me motion sensing controls. I want the gaming future today. Viva la revolution!
Review: Xbox 360
Well I'm not proud of it, but I bought an Xbox 360 on ebay on Christmas day. I couldn't resist whatever cosmic message was being sent to me. Now I'm not completely insane: I only paid $70 more than I "would have" if it were available at stores. Which it isn't. When it arrived, I was afraid to open it out of fear of what I might discover. I don't have an HDTV, but I don't know anyone else who has one, either. And the truth is, it doesn't matter. At least not right now.
The graphics are rendered in a completely different way than any console I've ever played. When you play NBA 2K6 (highly recommended over the unsatisfying NBA Live 06), your player's face isn't just a rough approximation of polygons. You really feel like you're watching that player on TV. His sweat beads in non-repetitive patterns. His jersey flows with his movement, not based on some set programmed jersey movement, but based on the player's actual physical orientation.
In Call of Duty 2, the action is so real and engrossing that you will not be able to blink without doing it consciously. Need for Speed Most Wanted on 360 looks like a totally different game from the one on "regular" Xbox. In one of a very few disappointments, Halo 2 is unchanged from regular Xbox. Maybe soon they'll come out with a patch on Xbox live.
The system itself, from an aesthetic standpoint, is beautiful. Gone are the rough, hard edges of the Xbox; in their place are soft lines, a smaller and more efficient design, and improved functionality. The wireless controller can act as a remote power switch for on or off modes. Although the power cord comes with a massive "brick," otherwise the system is pretty sleek. The wireless controllers are a really nice touch too; for the first day or so you will feel that little tug from a phantom wire but it should pass.
One reason to feel good about the fact that I have a 360 and you don't is that the games currently available don't even scratch the surface of what the system can do (another reason is that it all costs a pretty penny). Microsoft clearly pushed its software developers to create launch titles on time for the console release. In 2006 and 2007, we should begin to see games the likes of which we have never seen before, games that really tap into the power of the 360's three (3) 3.2 Ghz processors. In particular, Gears of War is on my list for purchase in 2006.
While I don't recommend purchasing an HDTV simply for the sake of playing video games, I do believe that having an HD set would unlock even more about the 360. That's probably because the games were programmed in HD. But if you were expecting the 360 to be a regular Xbox with a few bells and whistles...you're in for a letdown. If you can get your hands on one, and you're a gaming enthusiast (James, I'm looking at you), the 360 has the qualities and features to back up the hype.
The graphics are rendered in a completely different way than any console I've ever played. When you play NBA 2K6 (highly recommended over the unsatisfying NBA Live 06), your player's face isn't just a rough approximation of polygons. You really feel like you're watching that player on TV. His sweat beads in non-repetitive patterns. His jersey flows with his movement, not based on some set programmed jersey movement, but based on the player's actual physical orientation.
In Call of Duty 2, the action is so real and engrossing that you will not be able to blink without doing it consciously. Need for Speed Most Wanted on 360 looks like a totally different game from the one on "regular" Xbox. In one of a very few disappointments, Halo 2 is unchanged from regular Xbox. Maybe soon they'll come out with a patch on Xbox live.
The system itself, from an aesthetic standpoint, is beautiful. Gone are the rough, hard edges of the Xbox; in their place are soft lines, a smaller and more efficient design, and improved functionality. The wireless controller can act as a remote power switch for on or off modes. Although the power cord comes with a massive "brick," otherwise the system is pretty sleek. The wireless controllers are a really nice touch too; for the first day or so you will feel that little tug from a phantom wire but it should pass.
One reason to feel good about the fact that I have a 360 and you don't is that the games currently available don't even scratch the surface of what the system can do (another reason is that it all costs a pretty penny). Microsoft clearly pushed its software developers to create launch titles on time for the console release. In 2006 and 2007, we should begin to see games the likes of which we have never seen before, games that really tap into the power of the 360's three (3) 3.2 Ghz processors. In particular, Gears of War is on my list for purchase in 2006.
While I don't recommend purchasing an HDTV simply for the sake of playing video games, I do believe that having an HD set would unlock even more about the 360. That's probably because the games were programmed in HD. But if you were expecting the 360 to be a regular Xbox with a few bells and whistles...you're in for a letdown. If you can get your hands on one, and you're a gaming enthusiast (James, I'm looking at you), the 360 has the qualities and features to back up the hype.
Thursday, January 5
Graffiti Art
Some consider it Vandalism, I consider it one of the most intriguing art forms of modern times. Whenever I see a masterful piece I am transported to a cutting-edge, urban fantasy world filled with superheros, villans, ninjas, and anime rappers all smoking Dutch masters.
Tuesday, January 3
Another Reason to Never, Ever, Ever Buy A CD Again
Coldplay's newest CD has been equipped with the RIA's most advanced data encryption technology yet. The new CD will ONLY play in a regular CD player. It won't play on your computer; you can't rip or burn it; it won't play on your car stereo, DVD player, Xbox, or PS2; and the best part is, you won't know this until you buy the CD and open the packaging. Oh, the humanity!
News Flash: Common Sense Backed By Stats
In a stunning and altogether welcome announcement, DuPont Hospital for Children in Delaware has announced that children are no more safe in SUVs than they are in sedans when it comes to car crashes.
Also announced today: orange juice tastes better than grapefruit juice; black, blue, or brown socks are preferred to white when wearing dress clothing; and, cigarettes are bad for you.
Also announced today: orange juice tastes better than grapefruit juice; black, blue, or brown socks are preferred to white when wearing dress clothing; and, cigarettes are bad for you.
Collective Brain Vomit
This does not serve to make the goings on of this past year seem any less bizarre but may serve to put them in a little perspective so that you don't become desensitized to ridiculousness. Or maybe it will still just look like any 'ol year to you. I really hope that this year was somehow more superprodundo than future years but if not at least things will continue to be entertaining until we all choke on our Collective Brain Vomit. Regardless, I heard This so called Harpers's Magazine is pretty neet.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)