I built myself a new toy (computer, that is)..
So I finally decided to do a complete computer makeover and now enjoy the wonders of PCI-E vs AGP land. Here are the results of this endeavor (Newegg links but actually mostly purchased @Fry’s Eectronics):
OS:
It has been a busy week at work so I am still tweaking and installing software but besides upping the level of eye candy, so far, Vista is neither the bane or salvation of Windows operating systems. And probably if AMD/ATI would actually release a better OpenGL implementation in its Linux driver (so I can play Oblivion under wine) this may have been a single boot machine.
MPAA wants to control your TV, and stereo, and DVR
MPAA’s SOC or Selectable Output Control permanent waiver request is complicated and probbably best described with pretty pictures like this video:
Here are some nice write-ups:
Public Knowledge
EFF
Old computing habits die hard …
I upgraded my system so that I could continue to play Oblivion with lots more of the eye candy turned up and perhaps even dabble in Bioshock but I still have a motherboard with (gasp) AGP. Yes, although I do have an Intel Core 2 Duo, I am still “kicking it old school” in the graphics department. Luckily for me and the other folks still otherwise happy with their AGP computing experience there is a new AGP graphics savior compelling you to spend money if you want to extend its gaming life a little longer:
This little card will not break any speed records when compared to the high end in the land of milk & honey … err … PCI-E but to those of us still holding out in AGP land it is the fastest graphics available. So far it is noticeably faster and quieter than my EVGA NVIDIA 7800GS OC and even seems to handle powering down for sleep mode well. For actual benchmarks please take a look here:
Oh wait … you can’t because I can’t find any online magazines that actually have a review out on this card because I guess they are all latte’ drinking AGP haters (my apologies to any latte’ drinking AGP lovers).
In summary if you’re still loving your AGP, give this card a try (although make sure your PSU still has some oomph left in it)…
Bulk Chemicals, Pre-paid phone cards, Food & More
The title really hasn’t got much to do with this post except that I saw this on a “market” on the way to the hotel I’m currently staying at for a business trip in Jamaica. This one of those “etc” posts so I figure it would be a good title since there will be a little everything.
I usually end up running through lots of benchmarks and reviews when I do a computer upgrade but I think “Yougamers” (Futuremark) might have put together a nice page for these endeavors. They essentially have a page that lists hardware in order of CPUMarks per dollar and 3DMarks per $ so that will be a definite help in future upgrade. The list is updated twice a day and you can find it:
http://www.yougamers.com/hardware/stats/3dmark06/priceandperformance/
Need to help a far away friend or family member with their computer on the weekend? Then Fog Creek software (Of “Joel on Software” blog fame) has you covered as they have opened up their Copilot service for free use on the weekends. Haven’t had a chance to try it yet but probably will soon. Here is a link to that post:
http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2008/01/25.html
Like Pizza? Here is a list of various regional U.S. pizza styles:
http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2008/01/a-list-of-regional-pizza-styles.html
Like OSX but not the price of the hardware to run it on. Purely for educational purposes lifehacker has put together a walkthrough on how to get OSX running non-sanctioned hardware:
http://lifehacker.com/348653/install-os-x-on-your-hackintosh-pc-no-hacking-required
Here is a list of the top 100 motivational blog posts as put together by Laura Milligan of Bootstrapper:
http://www.businesscreditcards.com/bootstrapper/top-100-motivational-blog-posts-of-all-time/
And once you’re motivated, here’s a list from the same site of 50 resources to help de-clutter your life:
http://www.businesscreditcards.com/bootstrapper/50-online-resources-for-decluttering-your-life/
Like to dual boot but don’t want to re-partition your hard drive well the Wubi installer might be something for you. It lets you install ubuntu onto your current OS file system (linux, windows, OSX under development) as a virtual hard disk not to be confused with a virtual machine ala qemu or vmware:
http://wubi-installer.org/
The Library of Congress is sharing lots of their pictures on the Library of Congress Flickr tagging project so take a look and help tag:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/Library_of_Congress
LOC Flickr FAQ
That’s it for now….
Etc : March 1 – 18
Babies take a lot of time … so here is a reader’s digest version of a post:
If you have an old Xbox lying around collecting dust, you may want to take a look here at an interesting project you can undertake relatively painlessly:
How to Go from Xbox to Xbox Media Center in 30 minutes
Pigeons appear to be relatively immune to avian flu and do not appear to spread it :
Avian flu virus H5N1 and pigeons: the facts
The Invincible, Flu-Immune Pigeon
Linux it’s not just for dual boot systems anymore:
30 days with Linux
I have never really gotten into myspace, or classmates.com, etc but I do have to say that I am really liking LinkedIn.com as a “professional” networking site. Check it out.
Dell Ideastorm
Michael Dell opened a new website : www.dellideastorm.com
It’s a place for folks to give ideas and feedback to Dell. The ideas are voted on, and those with more votes get more attention from the Dell folks. The highest voted ideas don’t necessarily get implemented but they do get the most attention from the Dell execs.
I even submitted an idea. You can find it at:
www.dellideastorm.com/article/show/63302/Linux_Gaming_Box
If you’ve got a few minutes, sign up and vote for some ideas … voting for my idea would be especially cool.
Silicon Valley Pioneer Hitchikers
It’s an art project and a history lesson! It’s GPS/Cellphone equipped cutouts of Silicon Valley pioneers hitchiking across the country!
To read more about this project and see the cutout GPS locations and travelogue go here :
http://www.ylem.org/Hitchhikers/
Sun Microsystems also got in on the action as HP didn’t seem to want to care for their namesakes :
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/08/17/sun_buys_hp/
Definately worth taking a look and reading about the guys who helped make alot of the technology we use today possible.
On a “Dark Miracle”
As seen on WilWheaton.net, Joshua Ellis, who is an independant journalist, went to the Trinity Test Site (the site of the first nuclear bomb test), this year to go take a look. The site is open to the public 2 days of every year. He describes what he saw in pictures and words, and has also given some historical context for it all. It is a good read and his article can be found here :
http://www.zenarchery.com/trinity/
Please go take a look and feel free to leave some feedback.
Nintendo … gone wild
As seen on digg. Here is a link for a Nintendo micro ad that for some reason isn’t being shown in the US.
Enjoy!
How the Death Star Works
Saw this link on digg.com :
A nice article by the “HowStuffWorks” gang on the workings of your favorite planet detroying space station :
How the Death Star Works
On it use, Obi-Wan Kenobi a former member of the Jedi Council says :
“A great disturbance in the Force. It was like a million voices crying out in unison, then suddenly silenced.”
In completely unrelated news, it appears that “Star Wars : Revenge of the Sith” is now available on DVD.
And in other completely unrelated news, it also appears that “Star Wars: Battlefront II” is also available.
RIP : Turbolink Switching Power Supply
Well to make a long story short. If you add a new spare drive (for backing up other systems on the network, for example) to an older system you may want to be sure that the power supply has enough enough wattage (which it did), unfortunately that didn’t stop my linux box’s power supply from giving up the ghost. I guess it was manufactured 12/2001 and probably adding a new energy sucking hard drive did not help it in its golden years but it did make for some drama before going in to work this morning. …
Such is life.
Well before it gave up the ghost I also heard the system drive starting to sing … a trip to FRY’s for a new main system drive and power supply later everything is up and running. For replicating a drive the “dd” utility has become my newest favorite *nux tool. Here is the link I found really useful in this endeavor if you ever find yourself in the same situation.
High school robotics team beats college students but still wants to go to college
Might be old news, but maybe not. Check out this Wired article. These kids from a high school beat out several colleges, including MIT, at an underwater robotics competition.
Its a story about underdogs, college, and Hooters.
One other side of the story is that since they are undocumented, they have little chance of going to college in this or any other country but there is a scholarship fund if you would like to help.
Now Reading
Planned books:
None
Current books:
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The Shadow Rising (The Wheel of Time, Book 4) by Robert Jordan
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A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 3) by George R.R. Martin
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1776 by David McCullough
Recent books:
- Lamb by Christopher Moore
- The Demonata #6: Demon Apocalypse (Demonata) by Darren Shan
- A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 2) by George R.R. Martin
- The Demonata #5: Blood Beast (Demonata) by Darren Shan
- Demonata #4, The: Bec: Book 4 in the Demonata series (Demonata) by Darren Shan
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