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Sunday, September 21, 2008
Things that make me laugh
I was picking up some groceries and as I was walking back to my truck, I spotted this gem. I quickly finished loading in my groceries, whipped out my camera and couldn't stop laughing. Seriously. I love it. I wonder what other amazing home remedies this guy has created.
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Sunday, June 15, 2008
The original Michael Scott
Friday, April 25, 2008
I removed the title for this post because I felt like it
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Hello, Fedora, won't you tell me your name
So I finally got to a point where I wanted a more standard distribution of Linux. The more obscure ones I've been using (as written about in previous blog entries: LinuxMint and FreeSpire) are great for an average user. I would still reccomend them to someone new to Linux who wants a desktop Windows replacement.
But I reached a point where the over-simplified interface, small software library, and lack of bleeding-edge updates got to me. The nerd deep within my soul began to scream, "This is for noobs! You are no longer a noob! Man up!" And so I did.
Even though Fedora 9 is coming out at the end of this month (or early May; I've read conflicting reports) - I downloaded Fedora 8. Fedora has, for a long time, been that one distribution I just loved the idea of, except I couldn't get much to work. I was unable to actually replace Windows with it. I'd have trouble playing videos, youtube never worked, heck, I don't even think I could get MP3s to play sometimes (this is my 3rd of 4th version of Fedora I've tried).
I downloaded the huge dvd ISO and burned it. I booted into the graphical installer, Anaconda. Installation was easy peezy. I'd say the main part that would throw a newbie for a loop would be the disk partitioning portion. I already had available partitions ready for it, so I just assigned the mount point to them and away we went. There are guides out there to walk someone through this, but if they are hoping to keep any data that is already on their drive, they are walking on thin ice here. It's almost necessary you have someone experienced with this part to help you at this stage.
If you come from a windows-only background, the filesystem and command prompt in Linux will be the basis of your troubles. Some things are best done from the command line, and I accept this. In fact, I kind of like it. It just seems to work better.
Anyway, after booting into Fedora 8 for the first time, my system downloaded and installed updates for about an hour (there was a little bubble notifying me of the over 220 updates available, I just let it connect and install all of them). To be honest, at first, I wasn't sure if I should really install all the updates or not. So I didn't. I couldn't get a damn thing to work. I actually called it a night the first day and continued after work the following day.
I let it run and install everything the second night, and now I could install everything I needed. The great thing about Fedora is that even though it requires more time at the command line, it is such a popular distribution that you can find guides for nearly everything you might need help with. You can literally copy and paste the commands into the terminal window. It's pretty easy, really.
So the second day I was able to get any and all video playback to work flawlessly; audio was working great. The desktop effects (you can check them out on this crappy video on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpidWhfIlyo ) are, in a way, silly, but pleasant and the cube for multiple workspaces works very well for me. The way my brain thinks about it in 3D helps me organize my windows well, and it's pretty cool lookin' to boot.
The PulseAudio audio server is really phenomenal. Whereas I've always had issues with audio in Linux (even the "noobie" distros would get confused with my multiple sound devices sometimes, which was annoying) but no longer! PulseAudio allows you to adjust the volume of each individual audio stream coming out of your computer. That means rather than relying on the volume knob on each program, you can switch to PulseAudio and adjust them all in one window. Also, a very neat feature is that it will auto-mute your other applications if you receive (or place) a VOIP call. This works, I've tested it with Skype.
Did I mention I have complete read/write access to my NTFS partitions? It only took one package install. It didn't come configured that way out of the box, but I'm pretty sure I didn't have write access on my NTFS drives with the noobie distros.
Really, the only thing I haven't been able to get working yet is something which isn't very important, and which I've never gotten to run on any version of Linux: World of Warcraft.
I still have my little Windows partition I can boot to if I feel the need to play... and I maintain some hope of getting Wine or Cedega or Crossover Office to actually run it correctly.. but I don't really care anymore. The benefits of Linux outweigh the downside of having a dual boot system.
It runs very quickly. It has a great software update system. It looks and feels great. Sound and video don't just work, they work better than they do in Windows XP and in "user friendly" distros in my experience. Every piece of software I've installed has worked without a hitch (I've installed quite a few, and with the exception of WINE for WoW). The multiple workspaces are very useful; the 3d cube layout is just brilliant.
What more can I say? I think I'll be migrating my laptop to Fedora next.
But I reached a point where the over-simplified interface, small software library, and lack of bleeding-edge updates got to me. The nerd deep within my soul began to scream, "This is for noobs! You are no longer a noob! Man up!" And so I did.
Even though Fedora 9 is coming out at the end of this month (or early May; I've read conflicting reports) - I downloaded Fedora 8. Fedora has, for a long time, been that one distribution I just loved the idea of, except I couldn't get much to work. I was unable to actually replace Windows with it. I'd have trouble playing videos, youtube never worked, heck, I don't even think I could get MP3s to play sometimes (this is my 3rd of 4th version of Fedora I've tried).
I downloaded the huge dvd ISO and burned it. I booted into the graphical installer, Anaconda. Installation was easy peezy. I'd say the main part that would throw a newbie for a loop would be the disk partitioning portion. I already had available partitions ready for it, so I just assigned the mount point to them and away we went. There are guides out there to walk someone through this, but if they are hoping to keep any data that is already on their drive, they are walking on thin ice here. It's almost necessary you have someone experienced with this part to help you at this stage.
If you come from a windows-only background, the filesystem and command prompt in Linux will be the basis of your troubles. Some things are best done from the command line, and I accept this. In fact, I kind of like it. It just seems to work better.
Anyway, after booting into Fedora 8 for the first time, my system downloaded and installed updates for about an hour (there was a little bubble notifying me of the over 220 updates available, I just let it connect and install all of them). To be honest, at first, I wasn't sure if I should really install all the updates or not. So I didn't. I couldn't get a damn thing to work. I actually called it a night the first day and continued after work the following day.
I let it run and install everything the second night, and now I could install everything I needed. The great thing about Fedora is that even though it requires more time at the command line, it is such a popular distribution that you can find guides for nearly everything you might need help with. You can literally copy and paste the commands into the terminal window. It's pretty easy, really.
So the second day I was able to get any and all video playback to work flawlessly; audio was working great. The desktop effects (you can check them out on this crappy video on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpidWhfIlyo ) are, in a way, silly, but pleasant and the cube for multiple workspaces works very well for me. The way my brain thinks about it in 3D helps me organize my windows well, and it's pretty cool lookin' to boot.
The PulseAudio audio server is really phenomenal. Whereas I've always had issues with audio in Linux (even the "noobie" distros would get confused with my multiple sound devices sometimes, which was annoying) but no longer! PulseAudio allows you to adjust the volume of each individual audio stream coming out of your computer. That means rather than relying on the volume knob on each program, you can switch to PulseAudio and adjust them all in one window. Also, a very neat feature is that it will auto-mute your other applications if you receive (or place) a VOIP call. This works, I've tested it with Skype.
Did I mention I have complete read/write access to my NTFS partitions? It only took one package install. It didn't come configured that way out of the box, but I'm pretty sure I didn't have write access on my NTFS drives with the noobie distros.
Really, the only thing I haven't been able to get working yet is something which isn't very important, and which I've never gotten to run on any version of Linux: World of Warcraft.
I still have my little Windows partition I can boot to if I feel the need to play... and I maintain some hope of getting Wine or Cedega or Crossover Office to actually run it correctly.. but I don't really care anymore. The benefits of Linux outweigh the downside of having a dual boot system.
It runs very quickly. It has a great software update system. It looks and feels great. Sound and video don't just work, they work better than they do in Windows XP and in "user friendly" distros in my experience. Every piece of software I've installed has worked without a hitch (I've installed quite a few, and with the exception of WINE for WoW). The multiple workspaces are very useful; the 3d cube layout is just brilliant.
What more can I say? I think I'll be migrating my laptop to Fedora next.
Monday, February 25, 2008
If it's time for some tacos, it's definitely not Taco Time
So I get out of work on Friday and I want something quick to eat. I remember some coworkers at Microsoft telling me that Taco Time is pretty good. It was described to me as an "Expensive Taco Bell" or "Like Taco Bell, but a little more fancy".
This place is like 5 blocks from my house, so I figure I'd take the plunge to the NW mexican fast
food scene and give it a shot. If only I'd known...
My experience at Taco Time was one of the worst I've ever had. I like food, I'm not all that picky. I was in one of those "Taco Bell even sounds good" moods, so I thought I'd be satisfied with "taco bell, but better". I go through the drive through and take a look at the menu. "Our tacos are so huge, we ROLL them!" I see. So you sell $5 burritos as tacos because that makes sense, right? If you roll a soft taco like a burrito, guess what it is? A FUCKING BURRITO. (Burritos usually cost more than tacos, so this business model makes absolutely no sense to me.)
However, the best looking thing on the menu is the "tacos", particularly the soft tacos. Because they are big. And rolled like a burrito. I mean the burritos looked pretty good. Next thing I notice is they offer whole wheat tortillas. Not very authentic but I figure if I get mine with regular tortillas I'll be fine. I proceed to order two $5 veggie soft tacos.
After I pay, the lady asks me if I would like any hot sauce or ketchup. I should have asked for my money back and just left at this point, but alas, I did not. KETCUP.
KETCHUP.
Anyway, I reply with "Give me the hottest hot sauce you have."
Now, I didn't ask what was in the soft taco. I've had probably thousands of tacos and burritos in my day, and a whole lot of them were veggie. Here's what is in a typical veggie taco or burrito anywhere other than taco time: Beans, rice, cheese, onions, tomatoes, guacamole, sour cream. Basically what Taco Bell markets as a "7 layer burrito".
Heaven forbid Taco Time follow those rules. NO THEY ARE TACO TIME THEY ARE SPECIAL. What you get from Taco Time when you order a veggie soft taco is the following:
1.) Tortilla (whole wheat, even though you didn't order it) - Filled with:
2.) CABBAGE (Yes, a shitload of sliced cabbage. I'll say it again. CABBAGE.
3.) SUN FLOWER SEEDS. (I'm not making this up)
4.) A tiny amount of normal ingredients such as beans and perhaps one or two grams of cheese product.
5. "hot" sauce (if you asked for it) that tastes like the mild (MAYBE medium) taco bell packet sauce. And if you know anything, you know that Taco Bell's "Fire" Sauce is the hottest they have, and it is pretty weak, but it makes the medium seem like ketchup.
I was so hungry and having already driven home, I just ate both of these fuckers. They weren't even as filling as you would expect based on their size as they were mostly cabbage.
I just can't even believe what an atrocity that place is. Their attempt at providing me with tacos was an epic failure.
This place is like 5 blocks from my house, so I figure I'd take the plunge to the NW mexican fast
food scene and give it a shot. If only I'd known...
My experience at Taco Time was one of the worst I've ever had. I like food, I'm not all that picky. I was in one of those "Taco Bell even sounds good" moods, so I thought I'd be satisfied with "taco bell, but better". I go through the drive through and take a look at the menu. "Our tacos are so huge, we ROLL them!" I see. So you sell $5 burritos as tacos because that makes sense, right? If you roll a soft taco like a burrito, guess what it is? A FUCKING BURRITO. (Burritos usually cost more than tacos, so this business model makes absolutely no sense to me.)
However, the best looking thing on the menu is the "tacos", particularly the soft tacos. Because they are big. And rolled like a burrito. I mean the burritos looked pretty good. Next thing I notice is they offer whole wheat tortillas. Not very authentic but I figure if I get mine with regular tortillas I'll be fine. I proceed to order two $5 veggie soft tacos.
After I pay, the lady asks me if I would like any hot sauce or ketchup. I should have asked for my money back and just left at this point, but alas, I did not. KETCUP.
KETCHUP.
Anyway, I reply with "Give me the hottest hot sauce you have."
Now, I didn't ask what was in the soft taco. I've had probably thousands of tacos and burritos in my day, and a whole lot of them were veggie. Here's what is in a typical veggie taco or burrito anywhere other than taco time: Beans, rice, cheese, onions, tomatoes, guacamole, sour cream. Basically what Taco Bell markets as a "7 layer burrito".
Heaven forbid Taco Time follow those rules. NO THEY ARE TACO TIME THEY ARE SPECIAL. What you get from Taco Time when you order a veggie soft taco is the following:
1.) Tortilla (whole wheat, even though you didn't order it) - Filled with:
2.) CABBAGE (Yes, a shitload of sliced cabbage. I'll say it again. CABBAGE.
3.) SUN FLOWER SEEDS. (I'm not making this up)
4.) A tiny amount of normal ingredients such as beans and perhaps one or two grams of cheese product.
5. "hot" sauce (if you asked for it) that tastes like the mild (MAYBE medium) taco bell packet sauce. And if you know anything, you know that Taco Bell's "Fire" Sauce is the hottest they have, and it is pretty weak, but it makes the medium seem like ketchup.
I was so hungry and having already driven home, I just ate both of these fuckers. They weren't even as filling as you would expect based on their size as they were mostly cabbage.
I just can't even believe what an atrocity that place is. Their attempt at providing me with tacos was an epic failure.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
The reason airplane food is kind of nasty...
I had a revelation! People can't say "bomb" on a plane, supposedly. When I eat something that is delicious, I tend to exclaim, "This is bomb!" Or "This is bomby!"
I feel like the airliners are doing myself and others like me a great service by providing cardboard-like food on flights. If they served something delicious, I'd probably end up being interrogated, and/or shot.
:(
I feel like the airliners are doing myself and others like me a great service by providing cardboard-like food on flights. If they served something delicious, I'd probably end up being interrogated, and/or shot.
:(
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Trailer Park Boys
Preface: Trailer Park Boys is a Canadian "mockumentary" taking place in beautiful SunnyVille trailer park. The show finished its 7th season, and is aired on "Show Case" channel in Canada. TPB is full of harsh language, drug use, alcohol, fictional depiction of illegal acts, and hilarity. It really is a different type of humor than most are used to, but I urge open-minded viewers to check it out.
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Oh god, I love this show. It is brilliant. I think it takes a little getting used to, though I immediately liked it when I saw it in 2003. The characters are awesome. I love Bubbles, Ricky and Julian, but I don't really miss Cory and Trevor. Every season, with the exception of season six, is gold. I'm not sure what happened during season 6, but the writing and general quality of the season isn't up to the level of the rest.
Jim Lahey is so pathetic and so drunk, he is only occasionally funny to me with his shit references. Randy is a great component to the show, but rarely makes me laugh. I do laugh at jokes at Randy's expense quite frequently.
I freakin' hate Cyrus, but I love how he always ends up getting screwed by the TPB. Lucy and Sara were funnier to me in the earlier seasons, generally before Sara took a liking toward Cory and Trevor.
Seriously though, Bubbles is the star of the show. If he and Ricky left, I wouldn't watch anymore. You often end up feeling sorry for him, but he is awesome. His solo commentary is hilarious, his interactions with other characters are no less funny.
Ricky's constantly messing up words/entire-sentences are awesome. "I didn't want to say atadaso but a fucking todaso!" Also, his constant stupidity is hilarious to me. I'm not sure why.
Julian is funniest when put in an awkward position, which is good because he tends to gravitate towards those (usually to clean them up).
J-ROC is pretty consistently funny. His rapping sucks but is often funny and I do admit to laughing at his emulating a turntable. "WizzzzzzzzaayyyyyyyAyin! Know what I'm s-z-s-z-sz-zayin!!" LOL
Really the only thing funny about Phil Collins is that his name is actually "Philadelphia Collins" which is beyond awesome and I laugh every time I think of this. His character is not at all funny to me.
By season, they are all 4.5 out of 5 starts except season 6 which is 3.0 out of 5. Seriously, just don't even watch that one. If you read all this and haven't seen the show, wow. Go watch!
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