"Beam Me Up, Scotty"

So, this is the latest trend. You too can have your ashes blasted into space by a rocket for only $600 per gram. The ashes of James Doohan, the guy who played 'Scotty' in Star Trek, are now probably in orbit around some moon somewhere thanks to this new NASA initiative to fund the space program.

To be honest, I find it kind of funny when the family say things like "he would have been so proud to do something he could never do in life". I, quite frankly, would not personally like to be shot into space in a capsule the size of a thermos.

And in other news...
Stephen Hawking went up in "G-Force One" - the aircraft used to reproduce the effect of weightlessness found in space. Two people helped him out of his wheelchair so he could float around for a while.

Aparently he hopes to one day do the real thing. So, Matt, I think that disolves your observation: "Missy Higgins singing her own songs is like Stephen Hawking being an astronaught".

MS Actually Helping Students???

So, I just got the wierdest email ever. Apparently Microsoft are offering university student Office 2007 Ultimate for only $75. Besides the apparent confusion over what is involved in the licence, it seems that you can purchase a key online and use it to activate the trial version of office.

So after many people trying to contact them, it would seem that forums are reporting that the licence is unlimited, but only usable on 2 machines at a time eg desktop and laptop. So, for the first time since... ever, I'm actually considering replacing openoffice with MS Office. As much as I hate microsoft over their 'bloatware' and licencing, this seems to be what I would classify as a reasonable price for an essential software package.

So... yeah. This is probably the only time you'll ever see me promoting at corporation's
product over that of a freeware alternative, so make the most of it.

"Get Ready To Feel The Power Of Attorney!"

Ha Ha Ha! Cookies on Dowl! This show is awsome, and now that the DVD is out in oz, I have bought it to replace those dodgy internet equivalents.

So, besides 13 highly entertaining episodes over 154 minutes, with a second set still to be released in Australia, we have a few deleted scenes, commentaries and the like. All great stuff.

I'd type more but I'm too busy watching it.

Oh, and as a side note, I overheard a sales guy at JB HiFi talking about the PS3. He reckons that they still have their initial batch, and are only selling about three, sometimes 4 consoles per week. Big letdown compared to the PS2 launch, xbox 360 launch, and the nintendo wii launch, all of which were sold out in hours, at the most, days.

Come to think of it, you could buy and xbox 360 premium console and a wii for the same price as the high-end ps3 model. Something to think about, hey?

The History Of Technology: The Pic Says It All

For various assignments throughout my course I am required to research various aspect of technological history. One I accidentally came across while researching internet technologies is good ol' microsoft. When you look at this pic ripped from wikipedia dated late 70's, you gotta wonder how it all took off. I mean, seriously, this was MS. You've got Bill down the bottom left, what looks like a hippie version of Ross from Friends in the centre, and what could possibly be Matt Groening at the right (a stretch I know, but it's all I could come up with).

These are the founding fathers (and... mothers?) of computing technology today. So, what's changed? Well, the nerdy little rich kid at the bottom, who was probably bullied at school, has become the world foremost demonstrator of corporate bullying the world has ever seen. Incidentally, he's also the world richest person.

What else have we got? Telstra, Australia's telecoms monopoly, still has hissy fits over government regulations. Hell, if it hadn't been for Kevin Rudd, we probably would never hear about fibre to the node ever again. Telstra continues to refuse to expand on infastructure, simply because it wants to charge exorbitant prices for wholesale access. ACCC says no, so they stamp off like a 2 year old because they have to share their toys.

So, how did the leaders of the technological revolution become the people most determined to supress its growth?

If anyone find the answer, let me know. I'm sure it has something to do with money, or maybe some secret dungeons and dragons game they have going. Maybe it's an evil plan for world domination. All I know is this: Bill Gates is still an out of touch nerd, and Telstra is run by incompetent morons.

Oh, and Steve Jobs is still a hippie.

A new post...

So, it's been a while. Been flat out at uni handing in assignments and such. So, after king kohl's enticing link to a dude playing crotch catch (the one word that comes to mind is "WHY?"), I'll make another post. As soon as I think of somthing to post about...

*tries to make a new folder*
Ah, a random error message in windows vista! Great, I'll just crap on about it for a while.
*works out what error message means*
*checks windows problem reports dialogue*
"This problem was caused by SPLITTER.AX (Follow the steps in the article to unregister this binary, e.g. regsvr32 /u SPLITTER.AX). SPLITTER.AX (Follow the steps in the article to unregister this binary, e.g. regsvr32 /u SPLITTER.AX) was created by Haali Media.
A solution is available that will solve this problem."
*follows link*

What the... Fantastic, microsoft's solution to the problem is either use some fancy registry hack, or to simply turn off thumbnails.
*tries both*
So, the problem still exists. Google is my friend.
*google's problem*
So, it turns out that due to some obscure dos command you can't call a folder "CON". Never mind the fact that the command is used in a completely different context to file and folder navigation. WHY DON'T YOU SAY THIS IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!
*reads posted material*
Ha, you're still reading. This is more random than filmguru's cat crusade.

So, in short. Apple ads about windows error messages right, Microsoft full of crap.
*finds ubuntu linux disk*
This should fix everything. *maniacal laugh*

I really think I should get some sleep...

TV Show: Con

So, I left the tv on after family guy and got this. A dude named Skylar is a professional conman and gets and entire ski resort shut down to record his fake boyband's music clip. So, he and his friends get a whole free day of skiing, just for pretending to be a boyband and do a (frankly terrible) fake add for california tourism at the end.

This is classified as reality tv, and I gotta ask the question - isn't this actually theft? Sure, they post a 2 second warning at the end and quote: "The producers have reimbursed persons for the value of some goods & services. Viewers are reminded that CON is only the first syllable of CONSEQUENCES". But, really, these guys got a ski mountain shut down for AN ENTIRE DAY! While that is an amazing effort, to actually go through with it and then just "partially reimburse" someone, or in this case what would be thousands of dollars of business is criminal, is incredibly selfish and conceited.

So, to be honest, I don't know whether to be amazed or appalled.

Finally! An Online Music Service I Might Actually Use!

Exciting news! For all those digital music lovers despairing because they can't load their Apple Itunes Music Store DRM infested files onto portable devices they actually use, THERE IS A LIGHT!

Finally, after much ado involving the Steve Jobs comments about DRM (Digital Rights Management), EMI have finally agreed to release DRM free tracks through itms. Not only that, but they will be encoded at a massive 256KBPS, DOUBLE that of the current 128kbps offerings. For those of you not in the know, this means that they will have twice the quality, at which I find almost indestinguishable from the CD version.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! Almost reminiscent of those bad daytime infomercials, they will be offering all current owners of EMI's DRM material a 30c upgrade per track for the useful version.

Anyway, they only downside is that it uses apple's propprietary AAC format, which some older devices still don't conform to.

This announcement acually makes me consider whether the slightly higher quality CD is worth it over itunes music. I guess the price will make that decision for me. This will probably kill microsoft's online services with the Zune, as itms has a greater range of music, and now it's (partially) DRM free!

All we need now is the other distributers to jump on board.

Site Update!

So, in my continuing quest for perfection in procrastination, I've updated the site! I know you're all excited (all 1 people who've read it so far... really do have to spread the word).

Well, for future updates, I was thinking some pics, maybe some google adsense for some cash on the side (not that i'm going to make much with 1 person visiting the site), and an sms service to vote off your least favourite cartoon character. Ok, maybe not the sms thing... maybe...

Anyways, I think the site is starting to take shape. I'm pretty impressed, 'cause I didn't think I'd last this long.

So, because I don't have anything in particular to post, report, or share, I'll just link this random youtube link (mac people just point the mouse cursor at it and click) of steve balmer bagging out the iphone 'cause it doesn't have a keyboard and of course the ever popular developer's conference vid. For anyone who read's filmguru's archives, of which I am shamefully of which a member, I posted this comment as an example of where Web 2.0 is taking us... DEAR LORD HELP US!

What, I can sit on both sides of the apple/pc fence, can't I?

Moving right along...

OK, I've just read what I posted not 24hrs ago, and I am almost awestruck at the depth of it. Wow. I'm rarely that deep and reflective. Like, never.

Anyway, here's something completely unrelated:
I was in JB-HiFi the other day looking at the laptops, and there were these two "surfer dude" guys playing around with the apple macs. I was waiting for a sales assistant, so out of boredom I was kind of listening in on the conversations around me. Bad habit, I know.

So these guys clearly have no idea what they are doing on these things, and they both finally get to the web browser screen (is it Safari in OSX? Who knows, only arts students and hippies use macs ;) ). One guy turns to the other and says "what's that thing... how do you spell 'You Tube'?".

Fortunately for me a sales assistant finally became available at that instant, or else I would have probably given away my evesdropping by bursting into fits of laughter.

The funny thing was that the computers probably didn't even have a net connection.

These are the people buying Apple products, people... Well, I found it funny, anyway.

Good Friday

So, it's this time of year again - Good Friday. How do we define it? Public Holiday? Religous event? Precursor to the ever popular easter egg hunt? Or, perhaps the incredible event on the forefront of Melbournian's minds, the Royal Children's Hospital Good Friday Appeal (which, at time of writing, had raised more than $10mil)?

I, like many others of Christian upbringing, prefer to think of it in terms of its religious significance. To be perfectly honest, despite my aforementioned christian upbringing and (usually) regular church attendance, this is a time of year I almost dread. This may seem odd to a lot of people. Easter, after all, is the penultimate event of Jesus' time on earth, the comming together of everything that was foretold by the Jewish profets, the supposed saving of all mankind's sins and failings through his death. It is an historical event, obviously believed in by biblical scholars, and not (in my opinon) very well refuted by athiests. It is an event that has caused controversy throughout the ages, yet brought people together in loving respect.

But the question remains -why do I dislike this time of year? The simple reason is that it makes this religious reasoning a reality. Stupid as it sounds, this time of year makes me reflect on Jesus' death not just as a nice(?) bedtime story, but as a living breathing person painfully killed by the very people he came to save. This is often a big struggle for me, as for several years now I have been studying the sciences, both in high school, and now university. I am finding it increasingly difficult to match that 2000 year old story into something that I personally can relate to today, not just the easter story, but God's existance as well. Yet, despite the apparent differences between God and Science, and the inevitable arguments that follow them, I have yet to prove or disprove God.

You might be wondering how does that slight digression about God vs Evolution relate to the original topic? Quite simply, it is the core decision of cold hard evidence versus faith. Do I choose to see the world as many see it today, in all its impersonal, self-centred existance, or do I choose to believe that there is something else, something greater than I who can actually guide me through the mess that is called life.

As illogical as it may seem to some, I would rather believe in the almost romantic notion of ultimate love as shown in Jesus than believe that this world is 'it'. While I have struggled in the past to uphold this conviction, all I have to do is see the almost paternal love shown in Jesus crucifiction to realise that it's not just a good story, or a good excuse for a holiday, but a living, breathing person who might have actually made a difference.

So, as I sit here typing at this ungodly hour, listening the the (frankly briliant) Chronicles of Narnia soundtrack, I'm taking the time to do something I rarely, if ever, do - reflect on an event that I would prefer to put off and ignore - the impact of Jesus' death and resurection.

First Post!!!

So, let's kick this thing off! First off, welcome. I hope you have as much fun reading as I hope to have posting.

Secondly, a word of warning - I have no idea where this is heading. No idea what I'm going to post. Certainly no idea how often I will post. So... yeah. Don't expect too much.

Anyway, my interests are rather eclectic, so I expect my inate rantings will be the same. But, if you can get past that, I hope you enjoy trawling these future posts.

Happy Surfing!