March 2011
1 post
Joshua Topolsky: AT&T, T-Mobile, and monopolies →
joshuatopolsky:
In the past few days, I’ve seen a lot of rage over the coming merger of AT&T and T-Mobile here in the states. Most of the anger has been swirling around the idea of monopolies and an increasing reduction in choice for consumers. But here’s my question: how do you avoid “monopolies” like…
July 2010
1 post
For those that don't understand Consumer Reports
My father has a Consumer Reports subscription that I borrow from time to time for product research. Here are some quotes from their website on what scores and recommendations mean, and my interpretation of how the iPhone could be the highest-rated smartphone, while still not being recommended.
On Overall Score:
“Overall score is based mainly on Display, Navigation, Voice quality,...
June 2009
1 post
“i dont agree %keyword% anyone reading this %day% you have to know there are alot...”
– SPAM FAIL. A recent spam comment on our company blog fails to pull in its contextual variables intended to make it look more like a legitimate comment.
April 2009
2 posts
Letter to Time Warner Cable regarding conflicting...
Preface: This is a copy of the letter I just sent to realideas@twcable.com requesting comment on the contradictory statements being made, telling consumers that costs are increasing, and telling shareholders that they are decreasing.
To whom it may concern:
Several reports have recently come to light that your SEC filings show
costs are decreasing and your profits and subscriber base are...
To: Time Warner Cable
Preface: Feel free to appropriate this letter to send to your local Time Warner Cable representatives (and don’t forget adudley@twcable.com, twc.cotp@twcable.com, and realideas@twcable.com). If you’re not in Rochester, make sure to change the location. It is also good if you put the points of this letter in your own words, but not strictly necessary. Always be polite and courteous when...
December 2008
1 post
F-Rod
Boss: Looks like K-Rod is headed to the Mets.
Me: K-Rod? Who's that?
Boss: The Angels' closer, Francisco Rodriguez.
Me: Why do they call him K-Rod?
Boss: Because he strikes guys out, I guess.
Me: Why don't they just call him F-Rod?
Boss: I think there's a very good reason for that...
Me: ...?
Me: Oh geez...
November 2008
1 post
Distasteful
While I was at AT&T yesterday picking up my new phone (full slate of impressions on that coming at a later date), I picked up a little scannable card that would donate $10, matched by AT&T, to give phonecards to deployed military personnel for the holidays. I thought it seemed like a good idea, so I added it to my order.
After scanning it, the AT&T associate tore off a perforated...
October 2008
1 post
First iTunes Genius Attempt
I seeded with “Horsehead” by the Black Crowes. I’d say, overall, Genius did very well. It pulled some very complementary songs, such as “The Wanton Song” by Led Zeppelin, “Grind” by Alice in Chains, “Burden in my Hand” by Soundgarden, “Nobody” by Robert Randolph, and “Mr. High & Mighty” by Gov’t Mule.
...
July 2008
3 posts
The New Laptop Report
To mark the two-month anniversary of the day I took delivery of my new Dell XPS M1330, I offer my observations—my “review,” if you will—after a nice break-in period.
The short answer: I love it! The form factor is everything I hoped it would be, it feels zippy, handles Aero with aplomb, and the LED-backlit screen is incredible.
The size of the M1330 is perfect for my current...
Picture Conan O'Brien delivering this:
Ted Stevens’s future cellmate is looking forward to exploring Ted’s Series of Tubes. No, he’s not looking forward to discussing Ted’s idea of how the Internet works, he wants to explore Ted’s tubes.
[Optional tag during laughter/applause:] Anal tube… oral tube… nose tube… whatever.
There are New York State custom plates for Acupuncturists and Hypnotherapists. What, nothing for Astrologists?
May 2008
3 posts
A Laptop Limerick
My laptop is not acting well
So I decided to purchase a Dell
I know that I’ve said
I’d never get in that bed
Must be having a blizzard in hell
Alright, so a lot of you know that in the past I’ve sworn that I would never buy a Dell, believing them to be overpriced, poorly-engineered hunks of junk. Well, I’m reversing course on that opinion.
I believe that Dell...
There are no words. →
Watch this immediately.
Blog It is a mild success
Presuming this appropriately updates my Twitter and Facebook statuses, then Blog It works as advertised. It has a few major shortcomings, though. One, it doesn’t account for the fact that Facebook status updates automatically begin with your name, while tweets do not. Two, it does not support any type of post other than basic text/HTML entry, which negates three-fourths of the appeal of...
April 2008
3 posts
I hate people
Lady in front of me in the checkout lane, after writing a check and receiving her receipt, while taking longer than my entire transaction to get her stuff off the staging area and leave: Did you get that it was a Check?
Cashier, who held it together admirably: Yeah I pushed the but--;
Lady, interrupting, overly emphatic and proud of her stubborn ignorance: BECAUSE I NEVER HIT THE BUTTONS ON THAT GADGET UP THERE
Cashier: That's okay, I did it here.
Me: (already done with my transaction, grabbing my bag and leaving)
Lady: Ok, good.
“What made [Isiah] Thomas unique, though, was his dogged insistence that matters...”
– Will Leitch, Editor of Deadspin, in his anticipatory eulogy for the probably-going-to-be-fired-today coach of the New York Knicks. [Goodbye, Isiah. We Shall Never Meet Another Like You]
An excuse to use fancy French
So I’m trying to figure out what I want to do vis-à-vis my Web presence. I feel somewhat like I need to have some sort of high-level Web presence (i.e., a real website of my own, not just an active Facebook profile), because it is my vocation, and because I enjoy that sort of content produced by others. The recent release of WordPress makes me want to get back into blogging, but I...
March 2008
1 post
Warren Spector reflects on the passing of Gary... →
There will be a great many eulogies given around the Web for Dungeons & Dragons co-creator Gary Gygax during these next few days; I found this one by game developer Warren Spector to be particularly touching. Amazing (scary!) to think that without D&D, there may have been no Deus Ex.
December 2007
2 posts
Call it the "Bambooooo PC" →
Asus evaluates bamboo as potential laptop chassis. I’m not convinced of its viability yet—questions of weight and heat dissipation linger—but I like the idea.
I, for one, welcome our new chimp overlords →
Study shows chimps to be much smarter than humans in spatial memory tests. Be sure to check out the awesome videos.
October 2007
1 post
Anil Dash explains why so many people hate Apple,... →
A beautiful post that wonderfully captures my feelings about Apple, including the part where, yes, I give them money on a regular basis.
August 2007
1 post
“Friend, I’m not sure your Pontiac Grand Prix is expensive enough to...”
– The note I wish I had the sack to leave on the car of this DB that always parks his cars across two spaces, in the back corner of our office parking lot. Two of his cars are very nice—a Porsche and an Audi SUV thing—and I can see why he would be worried about damage being done to them, but to give...
July 2007
3 posts
“What currently popular song do you never wanna hear again? John Mayer’s...”
– Steven Page, Singer and Guitarist of Barenaked Ladies [via NOW Magazine]
iTunes is currently offering “Waiting on the World to Change” as an instant preview download if you preorder their forthcoming Live Earth compilation album. I don’t understand why that song resonates with...
To the Boyd Tinsley haters in the audience
Just finished listening to DMB’s recently released Las Vegas shows that were recorded in March. The violin solos have gotten much easier to listen to, now that Leroi and Rashawn have written horn parts to play over most of them :)
“Speaking of the Sabres, all is not sweetness in the Queen City. After being the...”
– Scott Burnside [via ESPN.com]
June 2007
2 posts
The World Needs More Dialog Boxes Like This →
Credit to Scott Austin for pointing me to this.
Flash: She loves me, she loves me not...
First, the positive: I’m floored by how easy it is to bring a layered Photoshop file into Flash CS3, completely in tact with editable layers. I was less than thrilled when Adobe bought Macromedia a few years back, but the results are quite promising. It’s not perfect yet, but it’ll improve, no doubt.
Second, I’m continually astounded at how difficult it can be to...
May 2007
2 posts
From the What Took So Long? Department →
‘Idol’ Producers Seek an ‘American Band’ [via Zap2it]
Maybe Ty should learn how to TAKE THAT BUS! →
‘Makeover’s’ Pennington Arrested for Drunk Driving; TV personality offers apology [via Zap2it]
April 2007
8 posts
CBS' 'Pirate Master' Sets Sail in May →
Sweet! This sounds awesome. I hope it lives up to its premise and its pedigree. (Yes, I respect Burnett. I am a proud Survivor watcher to this day.) [via Zap2it]
New York Times obituary of Kurt Vonnegut →
So it goes, old friend. So it goes.
“I’ve never seen a Statue of Liberty disappear the way this one did.”
– An older lady from the live Liberty Island audience being interviewed following David Copperfield’s famous illusion in which he made the Statue of Liberty disappear. Anyone know how he did it? [via Ask Yahoo! via Digg]
“In case you missed it two weekends ago, the NHL on NBC (Bruins-Penguins and...”
– John Buccigross, laying the smack down on the hockey haters in a column framed as a primer for the NHL playoffs for the April-June hockey viewers. (It’s kinda like people who only go to church on Christmas and Easter.) [via ESPN.com]
“Doubtless, this story will have slipped past the games industry gossip hounds,...”
– Paul Rose, a.k.a. Mr. Biffo, relating the hilarious story of an attempt by a Sony executive to auction a Playstation 3 for charity that fell flat on its face. [via Digg]
Memo to Charla & Mirna
People in foreign countries do not understand you better because you speak with these horrible fake accents. You do it throughout the whole race, and most of the time, your fake accent doesn’t even sound like the accent of the people you’re speaking to, like when you’re speaking with an Italian accent to these people in Africa. It’s like imitating the speech patterns of a...
March 2007
10 posts
I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER? →
Cat photos with amusing captions. I’m not generally a fan of the style of linguistics prominently on display, but somehow, when coupled with cat photos, it’s hilarious.
"Swim across the Atlantic Ocean -- 3,462 mi" →
A little slow on the uptake on this one. It’s been making the rounds since yesterday, but I thought I should mention it here because it’s one of those little quirks that Google tosses into its apps every now and then that never fail to make me smile.
“I just don’t understand why this Flash cost so much. I mean, I can do the...”
– [via Tofslie.com, via Digg]
Adobe Creative Suite 3 Launch Event Webcast →
Thank goodness I can still get the student discount… A ginormous $2500 for the full version of the Master Collection if you’re an average consumer.
The Tipping Point
To steal Malcolm Gladwell’s buzzphrase and intentionally misuse it, I need to find the tipping point at which the large amount of time time I spend in the grocery carefully price-checking and seeking out the best value for my money is worth more than the amount of money I actually save in the process. On a related note, though I probably found some good values last night at the grocery, I...
About this thing
This is my new tumblelog. Look here for more info about that. I’m hoping it will be my gateway back into the world of serious blogging. The idea is that I don’t have to sit down and craft a long, well-written post, but I can drop snippets and links here in there. I think it will be particularly useful for those links I find as I browse around the Web that I might ordinarily send...
