Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Oktoberfest


I went to Munich, Germany in 2003 for Oktoberfest. I took a ton of photo's and videos and, now that I'm experimenting with YouTube I thought I'd upload some good clips of what its like to be at a party with 10,000+ people in a tent, all drinking & eating & singing & generally being merry.
There's a vid here and here.

Guinness Surger


My buddy Jeff forwarded this to me knowing I'm a Guinness drinker. Its the new Guinness Surger, though unfortunately, it might only be available in the UK.

Saturday, March 18, 2006

UFCats


Oh, my stomach is still hurting from laughing so hard.
Many of you may know that I'm a big fan of the UFC, and I like a good cat fight, so you'll understand why I find this video so hilarious.

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

Crybaby NTP Finally Settles Blackberry Patent Dispute

Its old news by now, but NTP and Blackberry settled the dispute. I post this because its my favorite explanation of the deal to date.
NTP, weeping the tears of martyrs all the way to the bank, have gone on
record as stating they aren’t happy with the settlement but will stoically cry
themselves to sleep on beds made of money for the good of the nation.

Monday, March 06, 2006

Sunday, March 05, 2006

Boiling to frozen in .5

On a nice day in Saskatchewan (-40 degrees) a guy throws some boiling water into the air and this is what happens. Now how cool is that?

Saturday, March 04, 2006

Autistic Basketball Player Scores 20

This is a story of a an autistic kid that loves basketball. He helps get water for the team, grabs towels and has been watching from the sidelines for years. Then late one game coach decides to let him play. A great, great story.

Friday, March 03, 2006

"Smiling Bob" Penis Pill Scammers Nailed


Remember this guy from those annoying "penile enhancement" commercials? I could never understand how a company could get away with such blatant false advertizing.
Well, it turns out they can't:
"Smiling Bob" Penis Pill Scammers Nailed - Consumerist

Tikibar uses Sun-Rype juice!

My hawkeyed friend Jan found a Sun-Rype Product placement on Tikibar.tv

Here's how Wikipedia describes Tikibar.
Here's a link to the episode (12) where they use some Rio Red.

Thursday, March 02, 2006

YouTube - Fishing with Bill Dance

I just signed up on YouTube.com and uploaded my first video.
This guy is HILARIOUS - such a klutz its a wonder he's still alive.

Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Monday, February 27, 2006

Hockey Fight

We've all seen hockey fights, but I can't say I've ever seen one this big.

Top 10 Strangest iPod Accessories

A couple didn't seem like a bad idea (a bed that I could dock my iPod in), but some of the iPod accessories on this site are hilarious.

AFV Babies

One of the cutest videos I've ever seen:
YouTube - AFV Babies

Two hilarious ads

Both with the theme that "debt follows you around everywhere".
One here, and the other here.

Gilette’s Fusion Razor

Possibly the greatest review EVER. How can you top a review that includes gems like this?
“This must be what it felt like to be caressed by Aphrodite. God must now
include the Fusion in your orientation kit when you ascend to heaven. After
shaving this morning, I grabbed 3 random downtown Supermodels and kissed them.
All three are now under my desk taking turns gently and lovingly servicing me.
The five-blade Fusion—well worth the $109.99 price tag.”

Gilette’s Fusion Razor Review With Built-In Laser-Ion Cannon - Consumerist

Saturday, February 25, 2006

Virtually Vista : Before We Begin: Setting up your Virtual Hard Disk

Here's a really important article if you're going to try and install Windows Vista on a new virtual machine.
It turns out you have to prepare/partition the virtual drive first then the install will proceed.

Friday, February 24, 2006

Google Page Creator

UPDATE:
After posting this entry I tried logging into the service and got this message:
Google Page Creator has experienced extremely strong demand, and, as a result,
we have temporarily limited the number of new signups as we increase capacity.
We will notify you as soon as we are ready to add new accounts. Thank you for
your patience.



What a terrific idea - I haven't tried it yet and apparently there's a bit of a "capacity problem" right now, but Google has released a beta of a web-based web page creator.
Make it easier for lay people to create web pages - its about time.
Google Page Creator

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Cyber Snipa Game Pad


Some of the guys I know that play FPS games are likely going to drool over this keyboard.

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

The Human Clock™

Oh, this is fantastic! This site has a picture for every minute of the day, in 12 or 24 hr format, digital or analog, etc etc.

Monday, February 20, 2006

Friday, February 17, 2006

Apple to buy Blockbuster?

What an idea. Apple is trying to be the one place we go for digital media. I'm already sold on the iPod and iTunes and podcasts, etc.
I'm not sold on watching a movie on an iPod, though. I can't understand why Apple is trying to get more and more people to watch video on a teensy weensy screen. What up with dat?

Anyhow, this site as a good read about why Apple might buy Blockbuster to help "build a video distribution empire to match its existing music distribution empire"
PBS I, Cringely . February 16, 2006 - BYOB

Thursday, February 16, 2006

Ready for a StarTrek car?

How cool is THIS?!
Thanks for sharing, Jan.

StreetWars

Oh, this is rich! I'm already fantasizing about starting a Streetwar here in Kelowna, if only for me and a bunch of people I know. Though, it'd clearly be more exciting with strangers.

Oprah vs Tom

There's a lot of sarcastic and hilarious talk on the web about the authenticity of Tom Cruise's relationship to Katie Holmes.

Someone did some terrific editing and we end up with this gem

Apple to 'Switch' to Windows?

What a wild concept!
Slashdot Apple to 'Switch' to Windows?

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Vicious Dog!

I was at a co-workers desk and saw her the desktop wallpaper she was using and had to gently insist that she send me the picture so I could post it here:

(you can click for a larger version.)

Thanks, Deb!

Reminds me of an earlier posting of mine

Moshzilla

In the beginning it was a hilarious photo of a girl at a dance really letting loose.
Case in point:


And, as often happens on the Internet, some Photoshoppers got their hands on the picture and it became a phenomenom - now known as MOSHZILLA!!!!!

Check out the different versions at this site, or better still, search Google Images for Moshzilla or "mosh girl".

There's more here:
http://alternachips.free.fr/public/the_mosh_girl/
http://www.miscproject.com/mosh/

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Photograph of near fatal lightning strike

My buddy Jan has a photo on his blog that you've got to see. Don't forget to click on the photo to see a larger version. Really, its unbelievable.

Dog Prank

My buddy Jeff wants a dog. I'm guessing its in part because he would love to do things like this.

Monday, February 13, 2006

Google Maps <-> Google Earth Automatic Conversion

You can use Google Maps to find a place, with satellite imagery, then create a URL link that you can paste in to an email and send to someone. For example, click here to view "the boneyard".

Well, I use Google Earth a lot and have always wondered what it takes to create a Google Maps URL out of what I'm seeing on Google Earth's screen.

The dude at GOUILLOU.COM below has it all figured out!
GOUILLOU.COM: Google Maps <-> Google Earth Automatic Conversion

Handy Shirt Folding Video

I'm way, WAY too domesticated. I'm actually looking forward to trying this when I get home.
La-hooo, sa-her.
Dvorak Uncensored » Handy Shirt Folding Video

The World of Smartboards

I've been saying for years that the mouse is a horrible input device for a computer, which is why I generally stay with the keyboard. But even the keyboard is feeling archaic to me these days.
I just watched the video at this site and have an idea of what I'd like to see more of!

Saturday, February 11, 2006

Friday, February 10, 2006

Great line

I just read this and thought it was so good I had to share:
“If I were a mad-scientist, commissioned by the government to create the
perfect woman, I would pocket the grant money, and just place you on the steps
of the Pentagon.”

Thursday, February 09, 2006

Virtually Torino

A terrific idea! You can use Google Earth to see all of the sites in Torino during the Olympics.
Check it out!
Official Google Blog: Virtually Torino

Giant rabbit

Yes, a giant rabbit. Maybe the "biggest bunny". There's an even larger picture after the jump.

CBBC Newsround Herman could be 'biggest bunny'

Official Google Blog: New on your Desktop

UPDATE: Feb 13, 2006
Yikes, this one kind of blew up in Google's face. Not only was the feature not exciting to me, but the EFF is advising against installing this version!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Speaking of new releases, there's apparently ANOTHER new version of Google Desktop (v3), but for the first time I'm not really compelled.
Official Google Blog: New on your Desktop

SharpReader RSS Aggregator

There's a new version of the RSS reader that I use:
SharpReader RSS Aggregator

RIM Announces Workaround in NTP Case

Looks like there's a workaround for our Blackberry's if RIM loses the case. I'm almost dissapointed 'cause I was starting to think a lot about camera phones, much less a cell phone that's COMFORTABLE to talk on, unlike the blackberry.
Slashdot RIM Announces Workaround in NTP Case

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Contact lenses from Nike!

Isn't THIS something?! It'd be pretty freaky competing against someone that stares you down with EVIL RED EYES

The lenses come in amber for sports like baseball and tennis where the wearer
must separate fast moving objects from the background, and grey-green for sports
like golf, where the background environment is what’s visually important. Both
colors filter out a significant amount of overall light, but they also sharpen
and improve contrast, so they have a brightening effect, says Alan Reichow, who
invented the lenses and is a sports vision consultant for Nike.

The amber lenses also turn the wearer's eye's an unsettling shade of red. But when Nike
asked players if they'd like to create a version that created less of an evil
eye, the answer was an overwhelming "no."


Wired News: Sharper Image, Better Performance

Cure for AIDS?

I wonder, is it wise to publish a report like this? Granted, if its true then this is some of the best news I've heard in years, but if not...
What studies to date show is a compound that attacks HIV at its molecular
membrane level, disrupting the virus from interacting with their primary
targets, the "T-helper" class white blood cells that comprise and direct the
human immune system. Further, CSAs appear to be deadly to all known strains of
HIV

Salt Lake Tribune

Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Microsoft OneCare

OneCare Live as desribed by Microsoft:
Microsoft describes OneCare Live as a PC health service that runs continually in the background on a PC, providing round-the-clock protection and maintenance capabilities. The product includes a virus scanner and a two-way firewall, performs various system tune-ups, and has a data backup feature. Later this year, Microsoft will also integrate OneCare Live with Windows Defender, the company's antispyware solution.

John Dvorak has this great quote about OneCare:
Does Microsoft think it is going to get away with charging real money for any sort of add-on, service, or new product that protects clients against flaws in its own operating system? Does the existence of this not constitute an incredible conflict of interest? Why improve the base code when you can sell “protection”? Is Frank Nitti the new CEO?

There's more here: http://www.tonybove.com/getoffmicrosoft/blog/?p=27

Britney Spears is completely unfit

What a total cow

Monday, February 06, 2006

Super Bowl XL Commercials

Finally a site that hosts the commercials with fast load times and you don' t have to sit through the website's own ads (like AOL, for example:
Super Bowl XL Commercials on Google Video

Friday, February 03, 2006

Thursday, February 02, 2006

"Marcia Brady-style" - hee hee hee

And I quote:
"O.K., I'm not saying violence is funny and I'm not saying that Star Jones is rather difficult to like, but even her producer on 'The View' admits that he can't get enough of seeing her hit in the puss with a football, Marcia Brady-style. Enjoy, people!"
See it here

The Empire Tumbles 4 Ya!

Hilarious and hurtful all at the same time! This article was too funny not to link to:
The Empire Tumbles 4 Ya! - Defamer

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

IE 7 bugs abound

There's an article on CNET News.com talking about a bunch of problems with the Beta of IE7 that I blogged about.

If you listen real carefully you can hear Jan laughing (and it sounds a little smug if you ask me)

Spell with flickr

How cool is this?! Look for the "Entry Form" link on this page and you can produce your very own ransom note!

Too much money to tax

You know you're rich when:
the tax office in the US has to store his financial data on a special computer because his fortune is so vast

Read more about Bill Gates and how he has too much dough.

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

FHM - Top 100

Entirely for the boys (and maybe a couple girls I know) - after the jump you'll find FHM's Top 100 Women. Some are debatable (Teri Hatcher comes to mind), but its still a nice way to spend 10 minutes...

Start your phun here

Internet Explorer 7: Beta 2

Microsoft has just released the 2nd Beta of the new Internet Explorer 7. I've been waiting for this for a while because I want to check out the RSS features, and its supposed to be more secure and adhere to Internet standards much better.

Jan is rolling his eyes right now. Get over it, bud. ;-)

You can check out its new features and download the Beta here.
Oh! By the way:
Internet Explorer 7 Beta 2 Preview will only run on Windows® XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) systems

Gallery of the Absurd

This picture was so funny I just had to share: Celebrity Endorsement Idea No. 312

Monday, January 30, 2006

Google Toolbar Beta

The Google Toolbar is a key tool for me - I use it all day, every day. It appears to have just gotten better! There's a new Beta to try out and here's a bit of what Google has to say about it:
Now you can make your Toolbar as unique as you are. You can add buttons and bookmarks; get instant search suggestions; share web pages with friends; and enjoy the Toolbar's pop-up blocker, web form filler, and spellchecker.

Google Toolbar Beta

A new way to view London: from a toilet

Sometimes people joke about getting "stage fright" in the bathroom. I think this toilet would bring a whole new meaning to the idea.
a usable public toilet enclosed in one-way mirrored glass situated on a sidewalk near the River Thames

Saturday, January 28, 2006

Parachute Pyramid

Its certainly not every day that you see something like this. Even my sky-diving buddy Brian is likely to be pretty awed by this video.

James Lipton recites Kevin Federline's PopoZao

The moron married to Brittney Spears is releasing (has released? really, who cares?) his own album. Rap I think, but again, who cares?

The point is, his lyrics are hilarious. I've read some and couldn't really make sense of them. That's where James Lipton (of the Actor's Guild) comes in. Thanks to The Superficial for providing us the link.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Adult Diapers All The Rage Among Chinese Travellers

OMG - this is another reason I'm in absolutely no hurry to travel to the orient:
Alongside food and fire crackers, Chinese are adding a new item to their
lunar New Year shopping: Adult diapers. Sales have soared ahead of the holiday as travelers prepare for long trips home aboard trains so crowded that even the toilets are jammed with people, newspapers said Tuesday.

Monday, January 23, 2006

U.S. Supreme Court rejects RIM's appeal

I'm already jonesing a little! What ever will I do without my Blackberry? Oh, I know: get a camera phone.
A U.S. shutdown of Blackberry service looks imminent as an appeal in a patent infringement case from RIM is rejected.

Thursday, January 19, 2006

iPod Alarm Clock

This is it! The next great reason to own one of these great little devices.
Instead of waking up to one of our somewhat lame radio stations in town, I wake up to a podcast instead!
Check it out: http://www.codepoetry.net/archives/2004/08/01/ipod_alarm_clock.php

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Keyboards Are Disgusting

This article is exactly why I have a bottle of Purell at my desk:
Slashdot Keyboards Are Disgusting

TextArc.org Home

I don't even know where to start - this site is absolutely astounding.

I found it on a link from this equally impressive site:
http://www.visualcomplexity.com/vc/

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

The brain is so amazing

Isn't it amazing that we can actually read this?
Can you read this?? Olny srmat poelpe can.? I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!? If you can raed tihs psas it on

Saturday, January 14, 2006

Bash

Speaking of great quotes:
"The problem with America is stupidity. I'm not saying there should be a capital punishment for stupidity, but why don't we just take the safety labels off of everything and let the problem solve itself?"

I found that on http://bash.org

The Quotations Page

I found a great site of quotations. For example:
"In all large corporations, there is a pervasive fear that someone, somewhere is having fun with a computer on company time. Networks help alleviate that fear.", John C. Dvorak

Shaw Throttling Bit Torrent?

I finally decided to try Bit Torrent and see how it peforms now that my connection to the Internet is so much faster.

I fought with it for about an hour, read some FAQs and then remembered a friend suggesting that Shaw was blocking Bit Torrent packets. I tried a quick search and found this article.

What a freaking shame - but it seems like a necessary evil as Reuters claims Bit Torrent accounts for 35% of all Internet activity!

Friday, January 13, 2006

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Castanet.net - B.C. News

This story disgusted me so much I feel compelled to ask anyone seeing this to please sign the petition mentioned at the end of the story.

I'm so ashamed of our justice system right now...

Nick Burns Your Company's Computer Guy!

Somehow my blog dropped a previous posting I made to this website showing some great Nick Burns clips. Hopefully this one will stay.

Dee @ Shaw ROCKS

Nice! I finally had a good experience calling my Internet provider (Shaw Cable Systems). I've been waiting for ages (okay, a couple months but it FEELS like foreever) to find out why I haven't been transferred to a higher speed connection as I requested back in November. After 4 unanswered emails I decided to call and wait for tech support to call me back.

When I hear from Shaw I'm used to "professional", stale, boring, faceless, corporate personalities on the other end.

This time I was lucky enough to speak with Dee. She was unprofessional, easy to speak with, hilarious, personable, a little quirky and SHE TOTALLY MADE A BAD THING GOOD.

As of NOW my Internet connection is almost 3x faster than it was before speaking with Dee. Turns out one of her (less qualified, less personable) co-workers put me on an enhanced telephone service instead of an enhanced Internet service. Easy mistake? I'm guessing not.

Dee. I encourage you to send the link to this blog to your boss to let him/her know how much I appreciate your help tonight. You were one of the most helpful, well spoken and personable tech support people I've ever spoken with. For real. I think that says a lot since I've been in the computer industry for nearly 15 years (like you).

Thanks a bunch, Dee. You made my day.

The Sith Sense

A beautiful piece of programming - care of Burger King?!
The Sith Sense

Vader actually got my first one (an orange) but "a woman" apparently stumped him. Maybe the burn torched his privates a bit too much?

Redwire DLX

This site suggests that Levi's will be making a new line of jeans that

will include an iPod cradle sewn into a pocket on the hip

and more...
Who's going to be the first to get me a pair!?

Einstein's 'spooky action' seen on a chip

Wow. We're living in a science fiction movie.

New Scientist Breaking News - Einstein's 'spooky action' seen on a chip

What ... a ... retard

David Hasslehoff singing Hooked on a feeling.
Has he no shame?

Wild Ride

50 Fun Things To Do With Your iPod

Some great ideas! I'm still chuckling about piPod.

50 Fun Things To Do With Your iPod (kottke.org)

Monday, January 09, 2006

Quick Laugh

I felt the need to share a quote my Dad just sent me:

When a woman wears leather clothing
A man's heart beats quicker,
his throat gets dry,
he goes weak in the knees,
and he begins to think irrationally.

Ever wonder why?

Because she smells like a new truck.

Want a Cool and Quiet PC?

Dunk it in Oil

(complete with video)

Sunday, January 08, 2006

Let them sing it for you

My buddy Jeff sent me a link to this cool site.
Click here and when you arrive, you can type in some words and the site will play them back for you.
You'll see what I mean...

Saturday, January 07, 2006

Google Pack

Now THIS (Google Pack) could have saved me a lot of time while configuring a new machine.
Its still a bit green, but I LOVE the idea. It'd be great if we could customize the software in the package.
This kind of thing would convince me to blow away and re-install Windows more than once every year or so.
I know my buddy Jan is gasping at that 'cause he apparently does it every couple of WEEKS.

Friday, January 06, 2006

SharpReader RSS Aggregator

My good buddy Jeff asked me a good question tonight: "What do you use for an RSS client?" For what its worth, I'm using SharpReader RSS Aggregator. Does everything I want.

Now that we're on the topic, here are some good feeds:
  • Official Google Blog
    Speaks for itself, so I'm not sure why I'm adding this...
  • IronSpace
    Do you need to ask?
  • Joel on Software
    Smart, smart guy running this site. Sharing his experience working in our industry
  • Twit
    GREAT podcasts
  • PeekJ's Blank Blatherings
    A buddy of mine runs this site - he knows his stuff and finds GREAT stuff out there
  • Snicker
    Something for the boys
  • Bastardly
    Hilarious write-ups about stuff happening in the entertainment world
  • Dvorak
    One of the most well known tech-writers today (and for a while now)
    (also a contributor to the TWIT podcasts I mention above)
  • Wired
    Really interesting science articles from this site
  • CNet News
    See above
  • Slashdot
    More hi-tech, but still great articles to help keep us up to speed with our fast moving industry

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

WMF Vulnerbility

UPDATE:
Microsoft (wisely) released a patch for this vulnerbility 5 days ahead of schedule so don't bother what's below.
Why are you reading this? Didn't you just hear what I said? Eeesh.


If you're running Windows and you're reading this before January 10, your computer is potentially at risk for a creepy new attack on the Internet.

You really should read this article.

Sunday, January 01, 2006