Absurd Singularity

but I must resist! I think I can afford to wait for version two. ;-) Now if the industrial design was new, that'd be another case entirely. =)

I'm not entirely sure what planet Sony execs were on when they actually believed that the UMD was a viable stand-alone video platform. A year later, it's official, UMDs a proven bomb.

I tell ya they would have done sooo much better if they had just bundled the stupid things with their DVDs and maybe charge 2 or 3 bucks more per title. Who the heck wants to pay full price for a disc that you can only play on the PSP? PSPs are nowhere near being prolific enough to warrant such confidence in the platform. If they had bundled it with DVDs they would also have driven PSP adoption. Win/win in my book. Bleh, but Sony always seems to lean towards making a buck above all else so not surprising really.

Between this and this the next 15" Intel Powerbook (I refuse to call it a MacBook Pro) has my name all over it. =)

Anyone know where that quote is from? Anyone? Anyone?

Anyways, I was surprised to see this article on ninjas come down the news pipeline. It's sad that ninjas no longer command the coolness factor that they once had. I guess this isn't helping much either. Ah well, they'll always be cool to me.

I think the most interesting thing about this article was finding out that the US currently has no official language. Although I suppose just about everybody assumed that it was English. Anyway, I guess count me in as amongst the 84% that support making English the national language.

Plucked from Metafilter, this guy's good.

A funky lil' site that will transform your website HTML into a graph. Not particularly useful I suppose but very cool to watch in action. Reminds me of the sticks and balls we used to have in chemistry class to create molecules.

Possibly the best character to come out of Late Night with Conan O'Brien in quite awhile. Easily voted the best new character of the show in 2006, it's...

the EVIL PUPPY!!!!!

I wonder how they have him so sedate in their skits. Aren't puppies (especially goldens) supposed to be more energetic? I guess maybe they just tire him out before the show starts.

Apparently American fashion news is a bit behind the times. Gee, cute Japanese things popular throughout the world? You don't say.

Although I wouldn't really equate cute with cool though. Cute is just... cute. And not for everything. I wouldn't like my gadgets to be cute.

The quote they had from Yuri Ebihara was a little freaky though:

"If someone doesn't find me cute, I want to know why because then I'll work on it to get better at being cute."

I like things that are just inherently cute. You shouldn't have to work to be cute.

why stereotypes exist.

Wow, with the Mac going Intel now, some very interesting shit's coming out for us dual-OSers. Sounds really cool.

Oooohhhh yeaaaahhhhh......

I'm not sure what it is with credit card companies and their payment protection plans but activating your credit cards these days just got a whole lot more annoying. Before, you would call a toll-free #, enter your new credit card number, and voila, your card was activated. Everything was automated and it took less than 5 minutes. I guess not enough people were signing up for those stupid plans cause now they're then connecting you to a customer service person who recites the whole stupid spiel (which takes like a good 5 minutes or so) about the plan and then words it so that you have half a second to reject their offer. I feel bad for the people who have to recite this stuff to us customers every time (cause it really is a long-winded speech they have to give) so I usually let them prattle on until the very end when I tell them I don't want it. They're just doing their job after all. At least they haven't gotten around to being very pushy about it when you reject them.

is to have low expectations. =)

Anyway, some good advice although I don't agree with everything.

I was browsing through this news article about John Irving and Stephen King urging J.K. Rowling of Harry Potter fame to not kill off Harry in the final book when I found the following quote by King amusing:

"I made that dog up, it was a fake dog, it was a fictional dog, but people get very, very involved," King said.

And I thought to myself, "What kind of idiot gets that involved in a book???" Followed a split second later by, "Wait a minute, that's me!"

Back in my youth I was quite a voracious reader. Unfortunately, as I got older, I discovered a tendency (which I don't think I had when I was younger) to get a little too invested emotionally in a book. Wasn't every book, depended on the story. The one book that I distinctly remember me realizing that this was happening with was Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth. Very, very good by the way. But anyway, it was during my second time through it and things that happened in the book just started to bug me. Really, really bug me. Mostly it was when bad things happened to characters I liked. Or when I could sense that something really bad was about to happen. It got to the point where I couldn't continue it bugged me so much.

I had the same problem when re-reading Melanie Rawn's Dragon Prince trilogy. It's not that I didn't like the path the author decided to take while telling the story, it was more like I empathized/sympathized way too much with some of the characters. So after awhile, I just stopped reading. Books at least. I still tore through magazines like tissue paper.

After a good number of years I eventually started reading novels again. And as far as I can tell, I'm no longer plagued by that particular problem. Guess it was just a phase. Or maybe I haven't found the right book yet. Although I no longer read as much as I used to, that's due more to lack of time and this silly thing we call the Internet. I just finished re-reading Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood for the third time and I was, once again, touched. For some reason I keep forgetting the plot of this book even though I know that I like it. So every now and then I re-read it, which isn't a bad thing because even though the coming-of-age lessons in the book can be of the simple run-of-the-mill variety, they're pretty much timeless, and it doesn't hurt to be reminded of them from time to time. My favorite line from this latest read through:

After 2 days of agonizing and debugging I finally figured out why Adobe CS2, well, Photoshop, ImageReady, and Illustrator in particular fails to run on my MacBook. The culprit?

Case-sensitivity.

When I installed my new hard drive, I formatted it using the MacOS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled) option. After recently installing CS2, the above 3 apps just refuse to launch. Acrobat Professional works fine after all the updates have been installed. After finally checking out the system log, it appeared that Photoshop was having trouble loading libraries. Luckily it displays the path to the library that it's having problems with so after a bit more digging, I discovered that it was because some of the directory names had different cases. Manually renaming the bad directories to the right case solved that problem but now it's telling me that my user name, organization or serial # is missing or invalid. Which makes no sense since Acrobat works fine. So I'm assuming Photoshop is looking for the file that stores this info in a slightly different case and unfortunately I have no idea what file to look for.

So my only option is to back up everything and reformat, this time without the case-sensitive option. Pain in the @#!$!@#$!!!

Image: THE INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION/MARTIN KORNMESSER

Wow, it's official (at least I think it's official). Our solar system now has three new planets. This is a pretty exciting development. A few days ago they weren't even sure Pluto would be remaining a planet but not only did it remain, it gained a partner as well. This is the first change since 1930. 1930!

MovableType recently upgraded their version to 3.3 and with it comes the increasingly popular tags support. Finally got around to making use of it so you'll notice there's a new "Tag Cloud" section in the right-hand column. Still putzing around with it trying to figure out what I should and shouldn't tag but it's pretty cool so far.

Ok so it looks like I was premature in my earlier post stating that there's now 12 plants in our solar system. Seems like a lot of astronomers didn't like that plan, and Pluto too. So now we're down to only 8 planets in our solar system. One less for kids to learn I guess. =p

Been reading Murakami's latest book, Kafka on the Shore, while stuck in jury duty and as usual, a good quotable line (or paragraph in this case). Two characters discussing people who lack imagination:

"Narrow minds devoid of imagination. Intolerance, theories cut off from reality, empty terminology, usurped ideals, inflexible systems. Those are the things that really frighten me. What I absolutely fear and loathe. Of course it's important to know what's right and what's wrong. Individual errors in judgment can usually be corrected. As long as you have the courage to admit mistakes, things can be turned around. But intolerant, narrow minds with no imagination are like parasites that transform the host, change form, and continue to thrive. They're a lost cause, and I don't want anyone like that coming in here. I wish I could just laugh off people like that, but I can't."

I purchased the original Nintendo DS system when it was first released only to sell it a few months later to help pay for the subsequent Sony PSP system. It didn't help that back then there was only one game that I considered buying and even that one I wasn't particularly wedded to.

Now, almost 2 years later, I've jumped back on the bandwagon and picked up this Nintendo DS Lite - Onyx system. And talk about having to handle it with kid gloves, this thing's more of a fingerprint magnet than the black iPod and PSP! The highly reflective glossy black surface takes up the entire top and bottom casing. This is one item you'll want to store with a chamois cloth. =p Although I've found that the microfiber keyboard cover that comes with the Marware Protection Pack for MacBook works pretty darn well too.

At least the playing area doesn't have the same glossy characteristics. The D-pad was surprisingly not stiff upon first contact which was kinda weird cause you usually expect a few days breaking in period for those things. Despite its smaller size, I haven't found it to be too uncomfortable yet...

Compared to its older brother the DS Lite is definitely much more svelte, without the fat bottom look. The entire system is actually the same width as the top case of the original DS. Definitely takes care of my prior beef with the original DS in that there seemed to be too much open/unused space just lying around.

The one thing about the DS Lite that just absolutely crushes the old DS is the screen (or screens in this case). The original DS screens were rather dim and grainy which I thought was rather odd for a system released at the time. Especially when compared to the PSP that came out shortly afterwards, the DS screen was a joke. These new Lite systems fixes that problem completely. Not only are the screens brighter but they seem to be much more colorful as well. The Lite is what the DS system should have been to begin with 2 years ago when it comes to the hardware.

And the first thing I did after removing it from the box? Slap on screen protectors of course. I've been using these Brando Ultraclears for awhile now and they're highly recommended in my book. They make them for pretty much anything that has an LCD screen. They are a bit pricier than the ones you'll find at say Best Buy or whatnot and you have to wait longer for them since they ship from Hong Kong, but I've yet to see another brand that's as easy to use. These things are great!

Anyway, hopefully I'll hang on to this one longer than I did the original. I now have 3 games for it that I play on a regular basis, but only one that I would actually play in public. How sad is that. ;-p Somehow I feel uncomfortable playing a cooking game or calling to my imaginary dogs in public. Go figure. ;-p But, this thing won't be leaving the house until the hopefully spiffy case I just ordered for it comes in.

SNL comes up with pretty hilarious Digital Shorts every now and then. This ranks up there with "Lazy Sunday."

Somewhat intrigued by a brief mention in November's issue of Wired, I took a look at Twitter, a site where you can keep your Twitter friends up to date on whatever it is you're doing or thinking. Hmm... is this really necessary? For one thing, do your friends really care enough to have to know what you're doing all the time? And I think it takes a certain level of ego to assume that people do care that much. Hmmm...

As most of you may have heard by now, yesterday at approximately 9:40 am PST Apple fans the world over collectively soiled themselves upon the introduction of the quite impressive iPhone. Unfortunately a little over an hour later this state of orgasmic bliss was rudely punctured by subsequent revelations that the iPhone would be (initially at least) locked to Cingular, would cost $499 (4GB) or $599 (8GB) (and that's AFTER selling your soul to Cingular for 2 years), and be available "in June" (which means the last day of June).

My prediction? If the UI is half as good as they make it out to be, it'll sell like weed in an upscale suburban neighborhood. People will still bitch about the price (as they do already) but they'll buy it anyway. Cause this is consumer America, baby.

Apple better incorporate the new UI features from the iPhone into their iPod line though. I think that will effectively snuff out third-party MP3/media players. Save for the few that survive cause of the diehard Apple haters out there.

But it seems at least the financial market is betting big time on the success of the iPhone. Apple stock jumped $12 yesterday and today combined. That's just insane.

Whether the wacky weather we've been having this winter is a result of global warming or just a natural cycle in Mother Nature's grand scheme of things, it's still a good idea to do as much as possible to support alternative energy sources and reduce carbon dioxide emissions (yes you can still breathe as much as you want wiseass). All I know is I can count on one hand the number of really cold days we've had in the NY/NJ area this late fall/winter. And even though it snowed for like 20 minutes today, it also hit 72 degrees just 5 days ago. 72 DEGREES. In JANUARY.

So if you have the means, support alternative energy. If your utilities company allows you the option of choosing to purchase electricity from alternative energy providers, do so. It doesn't cost that much more (I average less than $5 more per month). A good site to check out would be Green Mountain Energy.

Also visit TerraPass where you can learn how to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide you emit in daily life and purchase passes which go towards funding alternative energy sources. An interesting way to balance out your carbon footprint. Every little bit helps.

not mentioned during the keynote.

And why Colbert hates the iPhone.

Knowing some people out there they probably would need space for 150 kabillion contacts...

I've long resisted the temptation to purchase headphones for use with my old 3rd gen iPod. Never much of an audiophile, I figured my ears wouldn't be able to tell much of a difference between a $100+ pair of headphones and the stock ones that come with the iPod. For the most part the iPod headphones worked fine for me. Only thing I noticed was that with loud background noise I couldn't hear much of anything with them. But when it comes to pricey headphones, you definitely don't know what you're missing until you actually use them.

This actually wasn't my first foray into in-ear headphones however. Awhile back I had purchased the Apple iPod In-Ear Headphones when they first came out. That was a mistake. Couldn't get the things to stay in my ear so I sold them off real quick. But in anticipation of a widescreen iPod late last year (that never came to fruition), I decided to take another look at the headphones that were available. Based on the review at iLounge, I decided to pick up a pair of Etymotic ER-6i Isolator Earphones.

If there's anything I have that's worth selling, I usually give it a shot on good ol' craigslist first. It usually works out well since the buyer is local and I can meet them for a straight up cash exchange. It's not entirely roses though as prospective sellers also have to wade through their fare share of scavengers and outright scammers.

Scavengers I mostly ignore. You know, and they know, that their offer is ridiculously low but hey, maybe the seller's a dumbass and they'll get lucky. It happens. Hagglers, on the other hand, are fine. I always expect some amount of haggling so I usually bump up my initial price appropriately. I still wind up getting an acceptable amount and the haggler goes away feeling like he accomplished something. Win/win.

The emails that I find most amusing come from the foreign scammers. I'm not exactly sure why these guys still try to do what they do on craigslist. If you're a seller, and you fall for their line, you should just return your computer and stay off the web. For starters, craigslist has this convenient page that warns potential bonehead sellers what to look out for. And the emails that I receive are just chock full of signs that the person on the other end isn't who he/she wants you to believe they are. For instance:

"Hello, How are you today? I saw your item on display on craigslist and I'm interested in buying from you. I'll appreciate if you can give me a good description of the item and probably send to me the picture so I could see its condition. Please get back to me ASAP.Thank you."

Now, here are some tips for you scammers out there:

1. Skip the pleasantries. No one I've ever received an email from who was a legitimate buyer types crap like "How are you today?"


2. RTFA (Read The F*****' Ad). Send you a description and picture? Hello? I described the item and posted not just one, but FOUR pictures with it. Obviously you just worked up a bot that trolls through the classified ad emails and shoots crap out to everyone selling anything remotely of value.


3. Stop being so damn polite. A "thank you" at the end if you're requesting information is perfectly understandable. Pleasantries in the beginning of the email (see point #1) along with unnecessarily "nice" ways of requesting things just don't wash. Especially here in NYC.


4. Work on your grammar. The combination of polite writing and poor grammar is just weird.


5. Offering to pay MORE than what the seller is asking for will not make them like you. It just raises warning bells. People who frequent craigslist classifieds are trolling for a cheap deal. They rarely offer you your asking price much less more.

A couple more examples of what I'm talking about:

"What is the best price you offering for this item? will be expecting yourprompt response at your earliest convenient time."

"Hello i want to know if you still have this product for sale and what problem is having before i proceed with the payment, if no problem i will offer you some extra money to it."

I want to know, who, WHO falls for this type of stuff? Obviously somebody is otherwise we wouldn't be seeing this kind of crap constantly. It'd be a waste of the scammers time. Argh!
Anyway, even after all this I'll still hit craigslist as my number 1 selling destination. Just like with almost everything else out there on the web, the signal to noise ratio is annoyingly lopsided but the ones that do get through make it worthwhile.

I'm not sure why, but I'm mucho, mucho excited about this. Apparently they'll be in NYC in August.

Following in the steps of my first lens comparison post, I had the opportunity to test out 4 mid-range zooms recently: the venerable, battle-hardened Canon 24-70 f/2.8 L; its younger, lighter and longer-ranged sibling, the Canon 24-105 f/4 L IS; its wider, shorter-ranged non-L bastard stepson, the Canon 17-55 f/2.8 IS; and its cheaper, luck of the draw distant cousin, the Sigma 24-70 f/2.8 EX DG Macro.

This is by no means a lab-grade test. Just me with a tripod, a 30D, these 4 lenses, and some spare time on my hands away from the baby. And it's just a comparison of sharpness. Sharpness alone doesn't make a lens but as a personal preference, I like my lenses to be sharp right from the get-go. Plus these results only show the sharpness of the particular copies of the lenses that I had in possession. Quality control is a bit of an issue with lenses so as always, YMMV.

The Canon 24-70 is obviously the gorilla of the bunch, weighing in at a hefty 2.1 lbs. Followed by the Sigma 24-70 at 1.6 lbs, the Canon 24-105 at 1.5 lbs and the Canon 17-55 bringing up the rear at 1.4 lbs. Length-wise the Canon 24-70 is the longest of the bunch with the other 3 pretty much the same length. Build-wise, the Canon 24-70 and 24-105 of course rule the roost with their L quality construction. While the Sigma 24-70 and Canon 17-55 EF-S are more plastic-y, their still considerable heft doesn't make them feel much cheaper.

In another installment of my lens sharpness comparison series, I now pit the solid, renowned workhorse, the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS with its new younger and more svelte sibling, the Canon 70-200mm f/4 IS.

The 2.8 IS is big, heavy, and fast, weighing in at 3.2 lbs and 7.7" long while the 4 IS is significantly much smaller, lighter although a bit slower, weighing in at 1.7 lbs and 6.8" long. Diameter-wise, the 4 IS is smaller by 10mm which doesn't sound like much but when you see it in person it definitely is.

Word on the street is that the 4 IS is possibly the sharpest and best resolving zoom lens Canon has made to date. At half the weight of its 2.8 older brother and with a newer IS that's supposedly good for 4 extra stops of light, it almost makes the 2.8 obsolete. Or does it...

Felix & Maria's new line of baby clothes is starting to get some press! Rock on!

indeed. What's harder to stomach? This donut burger (available at Google's NYC office cafeteria oddly enough) or paying $100+ for each of these culinary badboys.

This is pretty sick. 10 fps??? I'm having enough problems handling 5 fps on my 30D much less having to contend with 10. Geez. But it sounds like it's going to be one hell of a camera. My gadget lust is ragin' right now. For more details on this monstrosity, check out the white paper. I'm almost afraid to see what the 1Ds Mark III is going to be like.

On a side note, I'm kinda glad they didn't announce the 40D this time around, means I can stick with my 30D for awhile longer. =)

Almost forgotten with the 1D Mark III hoopla is this potential gem that Canon sprung on us on the same day. It's a 7.1 megapixel camera that also shoots widescreen high def (granted, only 720p) video and looks more like a camcorder than a camera. As opposed to the camcorders that look like camcorders and also takes really crappy still pictures. And it's just slightly bigger than their Powershot series of point & shoots. I think it's pretty ideal for a new mom who doesn't want to mess with the weight and intricacies of an SLR. Hint, hint. ;-)

Doh! Found out today that one of the two best known multi-IM chat program on the Mac, Fire, has discontinued development. I had been using it ever since it was available for MacOS X. Wasn't until Tiger that I switched over to Adium. No reason for the switch, just thought I'd try something new. There are some parts of Fire that I still prefer over Adium, like the keyboard shortcut to log in to all your IMs in one shot, but that's kinda moot now. Maybe someday it'll be rekindled but until then, thanks to the developers who had spent so much time on it making it the super program that it was.

I decided this was more of a spew than a blog entry so I moved it to the appropriate place.

In his newly-resurrected blog (hopefully you'll keep it around longer this time ;-p), Lee brings us a not-often seen photo. Mmmm..... spaaaammmm..... It's the only food that I like but that I'll only eat when I'm in Hawaii.