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January 31, 2005
Home Again ... For Now
I should be back in Dallas for the "foreseeable future", which just means I don't know when I'll be sent back to Austin.
That is all. Back to your lives, Citizens.
Posted by Steven at 10:31 AM | Comments (0)
January 28, 2005
Another Piece Revealed
Go to this page to read the "crawls" at the beginning of all six Star Wars movies. Yeah, that's right, Episode III's intro is right there for all to read.
Posted by Steven at 03:28 PM | Comments (0)
January 27, 2005
Genius
The New York Times is running an article on the Apple "Genius Bar" in their Apple Stores. Yesterday I had to rely on the Bar to restart my frozen iBook. I gotta admit, the article really nails this on the head.
If a problem can be solved on the spot, the Genius may disappear into the back and re-emerge with a piece of equipment restored to health. Broken iPods are often replaced at no cost, Mr. Marcantonio said, because if the warranty applies, the easiest thing to do is to hand the customer a new one.In some ways, this has little to do with keen technical knowledge and a lot to do with astute customer service.
The experience of Cecilia Joyce, a marathon runner who claims to be unable to live without her iPod, is a recent case in point. Ms. Joyce's iPod is packed with music like Boy George's rendition of "The Girl From Ipanema," which inspires her to run longer, sometimes even faster.
When her iPod's battery stopped holding a charge, Ms. Joyce went straight to the Genius Bar in San Francisco. She apologized to Mr. Marcantonio for having bought the device at a different Apple Store. Unfazed by this mundane detail, and without further ado, he gave Ms. Joyce a new iPod.
Were it not for the Genius Bar, Ms. Joyce might have gone an untenable two weeks without a device, the amount of time it could have taken to send it to be repaired or replaced.
Soon after the elated Ms. Joyce left, Mr. Marcantonio glanced down at his computer to see what troubled device was coming next. "Oh, it's an iPod Shuffle - this is going to be interesting," he said, delighted by his first encounter with the tiny new flash-based iPod.
Mr. Marcantonio picked up the white plastic stick and gave its miniature controls a quick poke.
Unlike the clerk in the Monty Python dead parrot skit, who refuses to concede that the bird he sold to a customer was in fact deceased, Mr. Marcantonio knows a dead iPod Shuffle when he sees one. The solution: give the customer a new one.
Genius.
Posted by Steven at 02:47 PM | Comments (0)
Home Again
I'm back in McKinney for the foreseable future.
It's not at all clear to me if I'll be doing M-F in Austin anymore with Maskina ... the whole premise (tech-transfer with the gone-but-held-over-on-contract developer) has gone in the toilet as I've been conscripted to write UML for the new parent company. Between that and the schitzophrenic back-and-forth over travel/no-travel (expense) leaves me tired of the whole gig. I'll have to make do with AIM for the bulk of my "tech transfer".
Of course, they'll probably change their minds again tomorrow and I'll be back in Austin before I know it ... but for now, I don't expect to be for some time.
Posted by Steven at 11:03 AM | Comments (1)
Geek Valentine T-shirt
From ThinkGeek:
Posted by Steven at 10:58 AM | Comments (0)
January 23, 2005
Ushicon 2005
This weekend Alanna and I went to Ushicon 2005 in Austin, Texas. The convention was held in the snooty Austin Renaissance Hotel in the Arboretum. We stayed at Chloe's home across 360 from the Arboretum, so we were within easy strike range of the con.
This was the first anime convention that Alanna and I both dressed up in character. This is called "CosPlay" (short for "costume play") and is very, very popular at Japanese themed conventions.
Over a year ago at a previous A-Kon, we decided that dressing as characters from Porco Rosso would be fun, and would work well as a father-daughter team. Alanna and Anne spent the last couple of weeks making the girl character's (Fio) outfit. I waited until Friday of the day we drove down to Austin to go hunting for a costume. Fortunately, I found all I was looking for at the Richardson Army Navy Store.
Saturday morning we got suited up, and hit the trail. I'm used to swallowing my dignity whole, so going out in public dressed as this was just second nature.
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We were approached for photos for most of the day, despite the relative obscurity of the movie (it's never been released in the U.S.). Alanna was frustrated that I was more recognizable as Porco (I mean, look at the costume ... it's a lot easier to spot Porco versus Fio), but I made a point of bringing her into any photo a fan was taking. We were in this together.
The big event was the CosPlay starting at 7pm. I realize that the conventions are entirely volunteer events, but the fellow (in a dress) who MC'd the event was incredibly inefficient at organizing the participants. As a result, we were seated in the wrong order, and he mispronounced Alanna's name (despite prompting), but we had our moment on the stage and we'll just get better at this as time goes by.
The Real Marco "Porco" Rosso
Fio and Porco
My Porco Rosso costume in all it's horror
Alanna and I on the stage during Saturday night's CosPlay (we were #52)
All the photos that Alanna and I took at Ushicon are here.
The movie will be released by Buena Vista on February 22th. Midnight Eye offers a touching review of the film.
Posted by Steven at 08:05 PM | Comments (9)
January 16, 2005
Austin Bound for Now
I will be in Austin starting Monday evening until Thursday afternoon, when I plan to drive back to McKinney. I'll work at home on Friday and return to Austin Friday afternoon with a gaggle of girls (Alanna and friends going to Ushicon) for the weekend. I'll stay in Austin until sometime later in the week, probably no later than Thursday.
Posted by Steven at 04:31 PM | Comments (0)
PCs for Sale
Anyone want to buy slightly used AMD Athlon class PCs? I've got one or two I don't need anymore, and I need to sell at least one to buy Anne her Mac mini ...
Looking for around $300 for fully stoked systems with at least 512Mb DDR RAM, 80Gb+ HD, DVD-R burner + CD-RW burner (seperate units), asskick 3D accelerated video, and Firewire, USB 2.0, etc. Selling CPU case only (all cases are "modded" with windows, lights, colors, and lots of fans). I'll reset the system to Windows XP SP2 + updates, and load MS Office 2000 and a bunch of goodies like multimedia software.
Lest anyone think I'm joking ... I'm not.
Serious inquiries only, please.
Posted by Steven at 04:26 PM | Comments (0)
Chrinitoid in the News
Frank Hurley posted a note on the WRPI Alumni mailing list:
I actually flipped through the latest copy of the Rensselaer alumni mag, and in the back there's an article on the Chrinitoid, with a mention of Steve Staton's WRPI Memoires web page. I recall missing it more than I thought I would when it went away... it gave RPI a less staid, more kooky feel... like WRPI.Apparently, the Chrinitoid lives on at a bank in Zurich.
If you've thrown out your copy of the mag (as I mostly likely would have,)
here's a legible image (2MB) off the scanner Santa got me...
Wow, I got mentioned in the Rensselaer mag! I'm just too much of a media slut for my own good.
Posted by Steven at 04:21 PM | Comments (0)
January 13, 2005
Decker Family Reunion 2002 Update
I've finalized the DVD for the Decker Family Reunion (2002) and have bought 10 high-quaility DVD-R discs ($2/disc) from the Apple Store. I have boxes and labels but haven't had the time needed to finish the box art nor the disc label.
I'm thinking that the DVD will cost $7.50 with postage.
However, I did get Stephen's negatives of the group photos, and have scanned them:
The Decker Grandkids and assorted Moms
The Decker Cousins (l. to r.) David and Marjorie Decker, Jack and ... Decker, Marianne Hopewell, Bill and ... Decker, Barbara Decker
The Decker Gang at Windham, NY in 2002
Posted by Steven at 02:01 PM | Comments (1)
Mini Mac Mojo
Why would anyone buy a Mac Mini, asks eWeek. Because the price is right, the personal software (iLife + .Mac) is unique, and there's the little issue of those pesky Windows/ActiveX viruses.
"The Mac mini will create switchers: There are a lot of Windows users in the $500 to $600 range who want to buy a new machine without investing in a whole new system," said longtime Mac developer Rich Siegel, CEO of Bare Bones Software Inc., of Bedford, Mass."It's sure to generate more Apple customers, and that's a good thing for Mac developers, Apple shareholders, everybody."
At the same time, Peter Glaskowsky, an analyst with the Envisioneering Group in Seaford, N.Y., said there'd be little traction for the Mac mini in the enterprise world. "It's hard to imagine an enterprise-level corporation that'd want a Mac but not prefer the power of an iMac or the portability of a PowerBook," he said.
Still, he predicted the new, small Mac would be a hit product. "It's the Mac half-cube," he said, referring to a previous compact Mac model that saw disastrous sales due to a combination of limited expansion and high price. "But Apple will sell 10 times what it sold of the Cube because people can afford the Mac mini."
"I'm tempted to buy one for my dad to get him off Windows," Glaskowsky said, adding that his father's Web browsing experience was nearly crippled by Windows-specific spyware and viruses.
...
The genesis of this acceptance may start in the home and migrate toward the enterprise, suggested some longtime Apple watchers."We haven't seen the 'low TCO [total cost of ownership]' message from Apple," said John Gallaugher, associate professor of information systems at the Wallace E. Carroll School of Management at Boston College,. He also consults at corporations with large computing installations, advising them on strategic use, and had chaperoned a group of his students to the Macworld keynote.
He suggested that this message, which hinges on Mac OS X's security and relative immunity to spyware and viruses, "may come up from the home."
"There are a lot of executives who have kids who bring home Macs," Gallaugher said. "And as a father, I want to document my life," he said, adding that this made Jobs' presentation of the iLife "digital lifestyle" suite more attractive.
A friend pointed out that the Mac Mini makes a really solid headless server in a small office/home office environment. It didn't even occur to me, since I am so wrapped up in seeing the Mac OS GUI ... it's just that attractive. There has to be four or five markets for this product, starting with all the iPod owners who hate dealing with Windows and iTunes together, and including SOHO users, second or third-machiners (home users), and finally folks like me who just cannot handle the higher price that Apple has demanded over the years for their hardware.
Posted by Steven at 11:48 AM | Comments (1)
Dude, Where's My Car?
 | Tomorrow around 3am, my old RX-4 Wagon "Huygens" will enter the atmosphere of Titan, and if all goes well (and by that, I do mean "if the fuel pump doesn't stick ... again"), humans will have softlanded the first Wankel Rotary Engine vehicle on another planet. I can barely contain my pride at having contributed to this majestic scientific effort. Why my old car was chosen for this mission, and how it survived seven years in interplanetary space when it could scarcely make it up the Taconic Parkway on a good day, is both a miracle and mystery to me. Godspeed Huygens and Good Riddance! Update: NPR did a story on the Huygens probe and they interviewed Prof. Jim Ferris of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Afterall, only an RPI prof would have first hand experience with my old college car! |
Posted by Steven at 10:55 AM | Comments (0)
January 12, 2005
Apple Posts Record Quarter
Apple Computer (yes, I'm still on the Tournament of iPods Parade Float) posted a incredible earnings result this quarter, almost doubling the analysts' estimate of forty-two cents a share (the actual earning was seventy cents a share). Over 4.5M iPods were sold last quarter, and I imagine the $99 iPod Shuttle will keep the numbers, if not the margins, up. It awaits to be seen what the Mac Mini will do to sales, margins and market share (probably the biggest gamble since Spindler bought NeXT).
Posted by Steven at 04:39 PM | Comments (0)
January 11, 2005
ATI's Booth Babes Try To Resemble "Ruby" (and Fail)
Another previous employer's CES booth caught John Dvorak's eye: ATI. They rendered a busty Tomb Raider-like vixen for their new line of product, and apparently hired two women to dress up like her at CES with all the predictable results.
Posted by Steven at 05:48 PM | Comments (1)
Dvorak Does Pepper
John Dvorak discovered the Pepper Computer at the CES. Check it out.
Posted by Steven at 05:43 PM | Comments (0)
Mini Mac
Well, it's here! The $499 Mac of my dreams. A 1.2GHz G4 with a combo-drive, 40 Gb HD, and the same ports and memory of the iBook G4.
And the back has all the ports that an iBook G4 has:
Just yank out your PC, plug in the Mini Mac and off you go. Rock and Roll.
Posted by Steven at 03:12 PM | Comments (0)
YAKaTMB
 | Yet Another Kiss and Tell Mac Book. Andy Hertzfeld has penned another Macintosh history text, but this one looks to be more interesting than, say, Guy Kawasaki's self-love books. |
Titled Revolution in the Valley, it traces the history of the Mac from one of the co-developers' perspectives. The thing that intrigues me about this text is that it goes into gorey details about the Mac's ROM and how technical problems were tackled. This is red meat for a geek like me. I look forward to reading this puppy.
Posted by Steven at 10:37 AM | Comments (0)
January 10, 2005
Was Clarke Right, Again?
Check out the ring around Iapetus.
Iapetus, for the non-geek, is one of the moons of Saturn. In 2001: A Space Odyssey (the novel, by Sir Arthur C. Clarke), the Discovery goes to Saturn and ends up orbiting Iapetus, because of a startlingly anomaly found there: the Monolith.
Now Cassini (the space probe) has discovered what is clearly a ring around the moon's surface:
Man, is that weird or what? So did Clarke get lucky again? Who knows ... maybe it's just a discarded demo from Magrethea ...
Posted by Steven at 05:37 PM | Comments (1)
No Austin for You!
I'm stuck in Irving all week, so don't go looking for me in Austin until (maybe) next week. The good news is that if you're looking to get your PC examined, or have a personal sales pitch for a Mac (Kim, are you reading this?), then this is the week to do it.
Posted by Steven at 10:57 AM | Comments (0)
The Switcheroo Mac?
Is Apple poised to offer a "headless iMac"? A Macintosh with a G4 (probably) CPU, minimal memory and disc, and no flat-screen display, for $500? There's a lot of rumor flying around, including the caveat that nothing is happening at all, but it's creating buzz none-the-less.
If Mr. Jobs is now actually preparing to plunge into the Best Buy and Circuit City world of razor-thin consumer electronics margins, he would finally be paying heed to the industry pundits who have repeatedly claimed during the seven years since he returned to run Apple Computer that the company was doomed by its higher-priced computers.The reasoning goes as follows: Having tricked the computer industry into believing that Apple was on the verge of becoming a digital music company on the strength of its wildly popular iPod music player, Mr. Jobs will suddenly reverse ground and begin selling a new iPod peripheral - a cheap Mac desktop - to the legions of PC owners who have eagerly purchased iPods but so far have failed to switch to the more costly Mac computer world.
It would be a nifty jujitsu move that would finally lure the millions of PC owners who have lusted for a Mac, but have until now stuck with the Chevrolet-like price tags of Windows-based PC's.
"Apple wasn't building market share because of the switching costs," said Charles Wolf, a financial analyst at Needham & Company, a New York investment firm. "It's such a logical move."
All I can say is that a $500 Mac would allow me to populate my house with them this year, a goal I've had for sometime but which has been largely unachievable due to the cost.
Posted by Steven at 10:53 AM | Comments (0)
January 04, 2005
Latest in Laptop Security
Wanna secure your laptop on the road? Put it in a Pizza box. Seriously.
Desirable laptops are desirable to thieves too. Disguise your laptop with a PowerPizza and reduce the risk of getting it nicked.
Just crazy.
Posted by Steven at 11:20 AM | Comments (1)
Austin Update
I'm in Austin starting tomorrow (5th) through Friday (7th). I'll be staying at the Wingate hotel on I-35 near US 79, instead of at the Arboretum (not my first choice).
I should be back in Austin all week (next week), unless Maskina changes their minds about travel (again).
The week after that, I am planning on going home Thursday night, and coming back down on Friday afternoon with Alanna so that we can attend Ushicon. Since I'll be in Austin over the weekend, I'll be in town through the next Friday (28th).
Posted by Steven at 10:36 AM | Comments (0)
Llama Song
One of Alanna's friends found this little ditty, which has become her unofficial anthem. Alanna's nickname is "llama" (sound it out), so this became an instant hit amongst her friends. I think the song is hilarious, and I really like the "kiss a llama ... on the llama" line most of all.
Listen to the Llama song here.
Posted by Steven at 10:11 AM | Comments (1)
January 03, 2005
Party at John Davis'
John Davis invited a bunch of his old LHHS film club (Fantastic Cinema Productions) friends over Sunday night to hang out at his pad. Bryan and his wife, daughter and mom came, as did Mike Jones and his family, and Paul Claerhout and wife.
I had never been to John's home, so I didn't know what to expect. It turns out that he lives in a home styled much like the ones on Fallbrook Dr. (where he grew up) -- a kind of late 70's bauhaus-style architecture that I think is really cool. The whole house is built around a small courtyard with a modest pool in the center, surrounded by windows -- no part of the house is hidden from any other. In some ways, it's very Japanese. There are some stylings that imply the home was built during the heyday of the Savings and Loan Crisis, when wheeler-dealers were making "swinging singles pads" for themselves. This is one of those homes.
John and Kim have a wild sense of fashion, and their home is a show piece of this.
My favorite piece of furniture is this rabbit-fur covered three piece loveseat
Their den is a kind of 60's retro homage that looks awesome
This lamp is a cloth covered frame that is stunning in person
We spent the bulk of the evening watching really bad commericals, promos and a movie specifically made as a parody of the 50's horror/SciFi films, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra. I cannot describe this film ... it's either the worst thing you've ever seen, or the best parody of the worst thing you've ever seen. The DVD extras are worth the trouble to watch ... and they explain a lot of the badness in ways that aren't necessarily obvious.
The evening was a great time and John and Kim were wonderful hosts. I look forward to another get together!
Posted by Steven at 12:24 PM | Comments (0)
January 02, 2005
Alanna's New Earrings and Hat
My daughter took another step towards "womanhood" today ... she got her ears pierced.
Alanna's new look
She found a new hat, which is quite a departure from the Cirque de Soleil jester hat or the "Cactar" cap she used to favor. The hat seems like it belongs in a Bob Fosse musical ... which is a big change for her.
Posted by Steven at 01:00 PM | Comments (0)