Steve vs The MafIAA

Without question, the most cogent description of the latest ruckus between Steve and the music labels. Stolen from Slashdot.

Music Industry: We want DRM.
Steve Jobs: You got it. Hey, it only works with iPods as well. Isn't product tying great!
Music Industry: Can we have more control over our product?
Steve Jobs: Nope.
Music Industry: Oh. Uhm... We'll leave
Steve Jobs: No you won't.
Music Industry: Oh. Ummm can you open up Fairplay. This will mean there's some competition and we can afford to ditch you.
Steve Jobs:: Nope. Why would I ever do that?
Music Industry: We'll make you look like the bad guy.
Steve Jobs: You can try. I made downloadable music viable, produce the gadget all the cool kids want and I don't sue children and old ladies. Not only that, but I can plausibly blame all your troubles on you.

Purdue Scientists Create "Tricorder"

Purdue scientists have created a portable mass spectrometer that allows them to determine the chemical analysis of a substance out in the field without the need for a vacuum chamber, which they liken to a tricorder. Can phasers be far behind? [article]

Bang, Bang, Hammer, Hammer

So at long last, I am making serious progress on a number of home improvement tasks around the house. Some said it would never be done, could never be done, and possibly should never be done (oh wait, I don't think anyone said that last one), but here it is at last. I have spent a number of days going through bags of ancient mail, sorting out what can be recycled and what needed to be shredded. Still have a number of bags to go, but perceptible progress has been made. I've also spent quite a while properly filing (instead of piling into a box) my bills, etc. On Wednesday some guys are coming to replace the ancient garage door with a 20th century one. Next week I have people coming buy to plan and out and start preparations on replacement windows and getting the house properly insulated. Noelle's been fabulous at making my lawn look like it's owned by a human, fixing skylights, moving stuff out of the garage (oh yeah, that's another project, making room inside the garage to store a car), bagging my mail, taking me to Ikea to get bookcases and stuff and a million other things.This would not be possible without her. <love bubbles> Oh and very soon now I will be ripping out the crappy, decrepit sprinkler system and replacing it with a snazzier automatic one in preparation for the new landscaping. I'm tired, but happy the house is looking better. Well, actually it looks like a bomb went off in it right at the moment, but you can't make an omlette without breaking a few eggs, right?

Back West

Back in California this week. Gram seems to be recovering somewhat, so that's good. Traveling by plane was not too bad, as it turned out. On Jetblue, at least, if you have an injury that prevents you from moving easily, they get a skycap to wheel to the plane and around the terminal, if you need one. And all I had to do was break my fibula (see dark line in the middle of the above picture)! Flying back was even tolerable (despite it being a seven hour flight from JFK to SJC) with a good book and some prescription painkillers. Foot is doing better now. I can sleep decently at night and it hardly hurts at all lately. Should be back on my feet in a few weeks. Getting decent at using crutches and a wheelchair in the meantime.

Technorati Tags: broken leg, traveling home

Pillowfight Club

If you're at Market and Embarcadero at 6pm tonight, check out the Pillowfight Club.
[Pillowfight Club Rules]

Jack Bauer To Save Boston From Mooninites

Someone with some time on their hands and a video editing suite brings us the 24 vs ATHF mashup.
[video]

When It Rains, It Pours

So last weekend, while enjoying a ski weekend at Tahoe. I fell down while learning how to snow blade (like downhill skiing with shorter skis) and messed my ankle up. 2mm fracture in the fibula. I wanted to post some pictures, but I didn't get around to it. So I got back to the Valley and fortunately it looks like I won't need surgery, thankfully. Noelle has been an absolute angel taking care of me and the kids. I can more or less get around my house. Haven't fallen too many times. :-p Looks like I'm going to be telecommuting mostly for the few next weeks, though.

This morning, however, I get a call from my mom. My gram is in the hospital and she's in a bad way. The prognosis is not good. So I'm flying back East with a bum leg tonight. This should be interesting. More later.

Big Cat

Wow! I don't ever want to hear about how big my kitties are! Hercules is frickin huge! He got stuck in a doggie door foraging for food while on the lamb from his owner's house. [story]

I Hope They See This, Because I'm Doing It As Hard As I Can

So the folks over Adult Swim decided to do a viral market campaign for their new Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie and decided that this trailer was not sufficient. So they hired some people to make little lite brite signs of the Mooninites and surreptitiously put them up around various American cities. Fast forward a few weeks. Some knucklehead sees one in Boston and calls the police. The bomb squad blows it up. More are found. Full fledged media panic erupts. The authorities discover it's a media stunt. Many recriminations follow. Seriously, dude, if those things (which clearly look like lite brites) were bombs, then you would have been seriously screwed in the weeks that they had to go off. I guess the terrorists have already won.

[video of the signs being put up]
[video of ATHF fan response]
[shirt I want]
[E Online story]