Upgraded to Diablo!
09/July/2008 18:21 Filed in: Technology
I upgraded my Nokia N800 to the newest firmware a while
back, and I have to say that I am pretty pleased!
Initially I was not going to upgrade because I was
really not looking forward to reinstalling my
applications. Thankfully, the backup that I did also
captured most of my config files so I did not have to
configure more of my upgraded apps.
My overall impression of Diablo is favorable. I am really liking the new email client, and the browser seems snappier than before but maybe it’s just new-OS-it is that I am experiencing, so we’ll see how that goes.
I decided to upgrade the firmware on the N800 for one reason: Over-the-Air upgrades! (OTA). This means that in the future, when there are new OS upgrades, I can just download them over the Wifi network and install them without needing a PC, and without needing to reinstall all my apps again – which is something I hate to do. I just want my device to work, not to make me work in order for it to work.
My overall impression of Diablo is favorable. I am really liking the new email client, and the browser seems snappier than before but maybe it’s just new-OS-it is that I am experiencing, so we’ll see how that goes.
I decided to upgrade the firmware on the N800 for one reason: Over-the-Air upgrades! (OTA). This means that in the future, when there are new OS upgrades, I can just download them over the Wifi network and install them without needing a PC, and without needing to reinstall all my apps again – which is something I hate to do. I just want my device to work, not to make me work in order for it to work.
|
Television Tuesday: Terminator, The Sarah Connor Chronicles
08/July/2008 18:19 Filed in: Entertainment
| Television
I am a big Terminator fan, that is why I am happy
this series is coming back for
another season!
I initially approached this series with skepticism, but it ended up being quite good! My reasons for being a skeptic were that I really could not see anyone other than Linda Hamilton taking over the role of Sarah Connor, and the idea of a high-school-aged terminator T800 was laughable (at the time).
Well the show has made me a believer! The action is great, the story line is good, and it essentially keeps you in suspense throughout the season. One of the things that was not answered in the movies was the origin of skynet. I know that in the third movie we wee the military makes skynet, but did this mean that it was fate? That skynet would be built no matter what? Or could the future be changed? As the season went on we saw a number of various possibilities as to the origin of skynet, and as one by one they got eliminated, you kept wondering just who and under what circumstances, made skynet.
I look forward to the new season, and to the recap of the first season starting August 10. I really hope that the Reese family is explored more, and we see more futuristic shots. I also hope that they tie in the third terminator movie. I am all for time paradoxes and alternate timelines, but I really do want some sort of tie in.
I initially approached this series with skepticism, but it ended up being quite good! My reasons for being a skeptic were that I really could not see anyone other than Linda Hamilton taking over the role of Sarah Connor, and the idea of a high-school-aged terminator T800 was laughable (at the time).
Well the show has made me a believer! The action is great, the story line is good, and it essentially keeps you in suspense throughout the season. One of the things that was not answered in the movies was the origin of skynet. I know that in the third movie we wee the military makes skynet, but did this mean that it was fate? That skynet would be built no matter what? Or could the future be changed? As the season went on we saw a number of various possibilities as to the origin of skynet, and as one by one they got eliminated, you kept wondering just who and under what circumstances, made skynet.
I look forward to the new season, and to the recap of the first season starting August 10. I really hope that the Reese family is explored more, and we see more futuristic shots. I also hope that they tie in the third terminator movie. I am all for time paradoxes and alternate timelines, but I really do want some sort of tie in.
Lovin’ Firefox 3.0!
07/July/2008 18:18 Filed in: Technology
I’ve been using Firefox 3.0 for a couple of weeks now
on my Vista machine at work, and I can say that I
really like this version, much better than the 2.x that
I used to use up to now. I am not really into
micro-analyzing what renders on my screen. All I know,
from an end user perspective, is that the application
is snappy, and what is displayed on the screen looks
normal.
I think I need to spend some more time though testing the new stuff, and how all my plug-ins work.
I think I need to spend some more time though testing the new stuff, and how all my plug-ins work.
Video Game Friday: Megaman II (GameBoy)
04/July/2008 18:16 Filed in: Entertainment
| VideoGames
Back in the days of the original gameboy (bought mine
in 1990), I did not have that many games. I had Tetris
and Super Mario Land. My first expansion was when I was
visiting my relatives and I spent a lot of time at Toys
R Us stores where relatives bought me games 
One of these games was Megaman II. I had never played Megaman before, but my 11-year-old mind thought that “2” must be better than “1” so I got this Megaman to start with. I didn’t get to play the games I bought until I returned to Greece (which is where my gameboy was). I spent a lot of time on the first four bosses! I remember playing Metal Man first, and once I got to the end of the state and beat him (after many, many hours of game play), I found out that the game was not over! Darn!
I haven’t played many Megaman games after that. I have maybe played some stages on Megaman and Megaman 4 on the NES, and I have “Mega Man Powered Up
”
and “Mega
Man Maverick Hunter X
"
on the PSP. What I failed to realize was that Rush
(the dog companion) was not found in other Megaman
games (at least the ones that I was exposed to),
and it was quite a bummer.
While I no longer have Megaman II (I gave the game away, along with my gameboy), I would gladly play through it again. It was a lot of fun! Following is a video (1 of 6) that goes through the first two stages of Megaman 2, on the gameboy.
One of these games was Megaman II. I had never played Megaman before, but my 11-year-old mind thought that “2” must be better than “1” so I got this Megaman to start with. I didn’t get to play the games I bought until I returned to Greece (which is where my gameboy was). I spent a lot of time on the first four bosses! I remember playing Metal Man first, and once I got to the end of the state and beat him (after many, many hours of game play), I found out that the game was not over! Darn!
I haven’t played many Megaman games after that. I have maybe played some stages on Megaman and Megaman 4 on the NES, and I have “Mega Man Powered Up
”
and “Mega
Man Maverick Hunter X"
on the PSP. What I failed to realize was that Rush
(the dog companion) was not found in other Megaman
games (at least the ones that I was exposed to),
and it was quite a bummer.
While I no longer have Megaman II (I gave the game away, along with my gameboy), I would gladly play through it again. It was a lot of fun! Following is a video (1 of 6) that goes through the first two stages of Megaman 2, on the gameboy.
Started using Spaces
03/July/2008 18:15 Filed in: Technology
I’ve been using Expose since Tiger came out, it is a
nifty function of the MacOS. When Leopard came out I
did not use Expose at all because I did not have to
experiment with the functionality, and quite honestly I
couldn’t be bothered. I had gotten my workflow to a
point where I was happy, and I did not want to change.
That all changed this week!
I started experimenting with Expose on my Leopard machines, and all I have to say is WOW! Why did I shun this feature before? It’s really quite useful! I used to hide applications, and minimize things to the dock in order to keep an uncluttered screen. With Expose, this is no more! I setup my application to open in certain spaces, and BAM! Uncluttered desktop! Simply awesome!
I started experimenting with Expose on my Leopard machines, and all I have to say is WOW! Why did I shun this feature before? It’s really quite useful! I used to hide applications, and minimize things to the dock in order to keep an uncluttered screen. With Expose, this is no more! I setup my application to open in certain spaces, and BAM! Uncluttered desktop! Simply awesome!
Need to work on my project!!!
02/July/2008 18:12 Filed in: School
Well, we’re one third done with the semester, and it’s
project start time.
I am planning on designing and partly implementing and online class for travelers to Greece.
I was going to make it broader, a start-to-end trip to Greece, with language and culture for a variety of occasions, but I don’t think I will have time. Instead, I think that I will be focusing on everyone’s favorite subject: food!
I am planning on designing and partly implementing and online class for travelers to Greece.
I was going to make it broader, a start-to-end trip to Greece, with language and culture for a variety of occasions, but I don’t think I will have time. Instead, I think that I will be focusing on everyone’s favorite subject: food!
Television Tuesday: Burn Notice
01/July/2008 06:10 Filed in: Entertainment
| Television
Thanks to Hulu, I have been exposed to yet another
great television show (no I
don’t spend all my time at home watching
television).
Burn notice is a series about a CIA agent who’s been, well to put it bluntly, screwed. He’s off on a mission at the beginning of the series, tries to make a deal with some shady people on behalf of the US government and BAM! He’s cut lose! “We never knew you, we never heard of you” type of situation.
When he gets back to the US, he is essentially stranded in Miami, with an FBI tail, people trying to kill him, and all this time he is trying to work a few odd jobs here and there (utilizing his CIA skillset) so that he has food and a roof over his head. The series is pretty nice because the main character is not a Rambo ‘blow everything to bits’ type. He is a cool headed (most of the time) character that prefers non violence if possible.
If you do have some free time, check it out on hulu. You won’t be disappointed.
Burn notice is a series about a CIA agent who’s been, well to put it bluntly, screwed. He’s off on a mission at the beginning of the series, tries to make a deal with some shady people on behalf of the US government and BAM! He’s cut lose! “We never knew you, we never heard of you” type of situation.
When he gets back to the US, he is essentially stranded in Miami, with an FBI tail, people trying to kill him, and all this time he is trying to work a few odd jobs here and there (utilizing his CIA skillset) so that he has food and a roof over his head. The series is pretty nice because the main character is not a Rambo ‘blow everything to bits’ type. He is a cool headed (most of the time) character that prefers non violence if possible.
If you do have some free time, check it out on hulu. You won’t be disappointed.
Public Transportation Experiment!
30/June/2008 18:08 Filed in: Personal
OK, so the monthly public transportation experiment
begins!
The rising cost of fuel, tolls and parking is costing me $90-$100 per week to go into work. In contrast, public transportation would only cost me around $40 for unlimited travel. That is a sizeable chunk of change!
In the past, I had used public transportation to come to school or work, but the overall cost at the time was more expensive than driving, and not as convenient! The train station was not near, busses took forever, and the cost was about the same as it is now. Back then I had no tolls (and when I did it was $2/day), gasoline was $20 to fill up for the week, and parking was $4/day for a grand total of $40-$50 per week. The speed/cost factor did not dictate a switch to public transport.
Now, on the other hand, it does. If this goes well, I may also trial it for the fall semester.
The rising cost of fuel, tolls and parking is costing me $90-$100 per week to go into work. In contrast, public transportation would only cost me around $40 for unlimited travel. That is a sizeable chunk of change!
In the past, I had used public transportation to come to school or work, but the overall cost at the time was more expensive than driving, and not as convenient! The train station was not near, busses took forever, and the cost was about the same as it is now. Back then I had no tolls (and when I did it was $2/day), gasoline was $20 to fill up for the week, and parking was $4/day for a grand total of $40-$50 per week. The speed/cost factor did not dictate a switch to public transport.
Now, on the other hand, it does. If this goes well, I may also trial it for the fall semester.