25/06: Pop music sucks, essentially
Since I'm here to study music, it makes sense that I should be doing at least some thinking or writing on the subject.
I'm in Rome write now, at a fantastic Hostel/Resort. I'm having too much fun to leave it and go into the city, but I will. If you are ever in Rome, Tiber Hostel and Camping is where it's at. Pool, bar, nice beds, the works.
But, there is one problem. Italian radio is playing everywhere. I don't really have a problem with the music, per se, I just don't like how safe the music is. Seems to me, that everywhere I've gone, pop is basically the same. Different artists, languages and hits of course, but they all have that one radio-friendly sound.
That "sound" is exactly why I gave up the radio years ago. Music is about much more than popularity and making money.
I'm in Rome write now, at a fantastic Hostel/Resort. I'm having too much fun to leave it and go into the city, but I will. If you are ever in Rome, Tiber Hostel and Camping is where it's at. Pool, bar, nice beds, the works.
But, there is one problem. Italian radio is playing everywhere. I don't really have a problem with the music, per se, I just don't like how safe the music is. Seems to me, that everywhere I've gone, pop is basically the same. Different artists, languages and hits of course, but they all have that one radio-friendly sound.
That "sound" is exactly why I gave up the radio years ago. Music is about much more than popularity and making money.
23/06: Personal Goals
I'm in London right now, for the first time. I won't be back in the grand ole U.S. of A until August. Next we're going to Rome, and from there we'll be spending almost a month in Slovenia. From there, we'll take short trips into Austria and Croatia.
As a first time European traveler, I felt it would be a good idea to try and write as much as possible. I have been writing a lot lately, mostly for school, but it's cathartic and habit forming. So, not only will I be documenting my travels for myself, my friends and my family but I will also be satisfying my need to typey type type.
One thing that has always amused me is differences in brands between different countries. Here in the U.K. they have a dish soap called Fairy Liquid. Maybe I'm a pervert, but that's funny.
As a first time European traveler, I felt it would be a good idea to try and write as much as possible. I have been writing a lot lately, mostly for school, but it's cathartic and habit forming. So, not only will I be documenting my travels for myself, my friends and my family but I will also be satisfying my need to typey type type.
One thing that has always amused me is differences in brands between different countries. Here in the U.K. they have a dish soap called Fairy Liquid. Maybe I'm a pervert, but that's funny.
Just recently I bought a new toy. It's a Nokia 770 Internet Tablet, and I love it.
Oh, sure. It got bad reviews... but the reviewers missed the point.
It wasn't meant for businesspeople to use when they were away from the office (but it can be). It wasn't meant for students to be able to take notes on in class, but it could be used that way. This tablet was meant for people who think the idea of listening to streaming internet radio in the car is exciting. This thing was MADE for people who like to tinker with their gadgets.
I have a Nokia 770 tablet, and it's tethered to my Nokia E62 phone by Bluetooth - and I can get internet (with a good browser) anywhere I can get cell reception. And, you know what? It feels good.
It was a lot of work for a few of my friends to figure out exactly how to do this, and as it turns out it was because nobody anywhere on the internet has a good tutorial how to tether to a Cingular phone and get EDGE (or better) internet through the phone.
First off, I'm going to try and keep this as platform non-specific as possible. There are tutorials for Windows XP, but they are a little lacking in detail. And, there are tutorials for other hand-held devices, but there are none that are just the facts.
First things first, you need a working Bluetooth connection. I try and know as little as possible about how Bluetooth works, so you're pretty much on your own for this. Once you have this working (it should be easy), its time to move on.
As for configuring the connection itself, there are certain things you must have set up correctly for the connection to work at all. They are generally in the form of several fields that need input from the user. They are listed below. Bold are the field names, italics are the input.
Connection method: Packet Data
Access point: wap.cingular
Phone number: *99# [Silly number, eh?]
User name: ISPDA@CINGULARGPRS.COM [This is case sensitive.]
Password: CINGULAR1 [Also case sensitive.]
If you can get all that set up, it should work for you.
Oh, sure. It got bad reviews... but the reviewers missed the point.
It wasn't meant for businesspeople to use when they were away from the office (but it can be). It wasn't meant for students to be able to take notes on in class, but it could be used that way. This tablet was meant for people who think the idea of listening to streaming internet radio in the car is exciting. This thing was MADE for people who like to tinker with their gadgets.
I have a Nokia 770 tablet, and it's tethered to my Nokia E62 phone by Bluetooth - and I can get internet (with a good browser) anywhere I can get cell reception. And, you know what? It feels good.
It was a lot of work for a few of my friends to figure out exactly how to do this, and as it turns out it was because nobody anywhere on the internet has a good tutorial how to tether to a Cingular phone and get EDGE (or better) internet through the phone.
First off, I'm going to try and keep this as platform non-specific as possible. There are tutorials for Windows XP, but they are a little lacking in detail. And, there are tutorials for other hand-held devices, but there are none that are just the facts.
First things first, you need a working Bluetooth connection. I try and know as little as possible about how Bluetooth works, so you're pretty much on your own for this. Once you have this working (it should be easy), its time to move on.
As for configuring the connection itself, there are certain things you must have set up correctly for the connection to work at all. They are generally in the form of several fields that need input from the user. They are listed below. Bold are the field names, italics are the input.
Connection method: Packet Data
Access point: wap.cingular
Phone number: *99# [Silly number, eh?]
User name: ISPDA@CINGULARGPRS.COM [This is case sensitive.]
Password: CINGULAR1 [Also case sensitive.]
If you can get all that set up, it should work for you.
Something quick to note. Had you purchased exactly 11 shares of Apple (AAPL) stock the day before the iPhone announcement and then sold them today, 1 week after the iPhone launch, you would have made back all of your original investment and approximately $510 on top of that. Just enough to buy an iPhone (not including taxes).
More after the jump.
More after the jump.
The company I work for relies very heavily on email, but recently we have started to switch over to the wonders of the instant messenger for things that need quick responses. However, not everyone is schooled in the fine art of IM-ing, so here's a little lesson.
But, this is way too good to be true.
I'm currently in The Big Apple Bar in New York, New York in Vegas, smoking a Cohiba and drinking some single malt, and I just realized something.
Google links to the homepage of blogs instead of to the permalink for the post more often than they should.
Case in point: I was looking for a transcript of Ted Koppel's speech at the University of Southern California for the commencement on Friday,and every search result I looked at was something that had been indexed days ago but was indexed on the homepage.
Wouldn't it be more interesting and easier to find if the permalink was in the index and not the blogs homepage?
Google links to the homepage of blogs instead of to the permalink for the post more often than they should.
Case in point: I was looking for a transcript of Ted Koppel's speech at the University of Southern California for the commencement on Friday,and every search result I looked at was something that had been indexed days ago but was indexed on the homepage.
Wouldn't it be more interesting and easier to find if the permalink was in the index and not the blogs homepage?
ED EB 63 0B 41 3C 10 0D 9D E5 70 63 57 87 4D 53 is MINE.
Click the read link for further info.
Click the read link for further info.
Once upon a time, in a distant land, a sorcerer named BadMackTuck decided he wanted to create a bot for the AOL Instant Messenger protocol. It wasn’t easy. Actually, it was.
Here’s his story.
Here’s his story.
Maybe it never crossed your mind that using Steam isn't a wonderful experience, but for us over at team 3, Steam is maybe the most hated software ever. Today I will not get into the details of all its shortcomings, but instead i will show you an image of my steam folder. This is some good proof that steam sucks.
