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Sunday, May 11, 2008

I've found that, the acts we fear are only those which we know we are capable of committing ourselves. That's all.

Oh yeah, and growing up sucks.

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Windows Vista

Wow. It's been a good long while since I've posted. I guess I just don't feel the same value in exposing my thoughts with hopes that some writer at the New York Times stumbles across them. But that's a whole other story...

This post? It's about Windows Vista. Ahhh, yes. Microsoft's Third Reich. I don't say that to imply that Vista is anti-semitic, but rather that this is the beginning of the end. For Microsoft, at least.

Honestly now, who hasn't held a passionate hatred towards Bill Gates and Microsoft in the past 3 years? "Incompatible? WTF Microsoft?!?!"...or..."System Unrecoverable? What do you mean unrecoverable??? Where the hell have you been storing my files, the f***ing Bikini Islands??"...or..."PC Loadletter? What the F*** does that mean??"

Ahh, but our savior has come. Windows Vista. To all those promised a flipscreen (Aero), a sidebar, and 40 acres and a mule, our dreams have been realized. If you so much as daydream about Windows Vista, make CERTAIN you check the Windows Upgrade Advisor. But even then, be wary. The Upgrade Advisor, a necessary evil though it may seem, is a simplified "Yes Man". I'm almost certain you will encounter at least a program or two that is not compatible with Vista (surprised? I hope not...), but you will likely encounter at least one piece of hardware that needs upgrading.

But don't stress out quite yet. This hardware often doesn't need to be upgraded until AFTER you install Vista, and even then, it will only add features to your already "functional" Vista program. And your incompatible programs? You didn't really even use them in the first place, did you?? Right...

If, after all this, you're thinking to yourself, "Well, Vista is the next step. It's better than XP, right??" I have to give an eloquent shrug for this one. In all honesty, my current Vista is set up almost precisely as functional as my old XP. I used to have "Google Desktop Sidebar" for Windows XP. Now I have it for "Vista". The difference? It's subtle, but it's there. I wouldn't place a $270 price tag on a mildly (at BEST) sidebar, so let's move on.

Programs? Security? Spyware? Viruses? Vista is the Holy Grail for these problems, right? Ha...as rhetorical as the question may seem, I can't help but feel bad for the Vista marketing team. "How the hell do we sell this program?? I guess if we make the customer fell safer, then they'll feel like XP was the OS of Al-Qaeda - and therefore buy Vista to protect themselves from those damn-crazy terrorists!"

Honestly? I was perfectly safe before. I had McAfee (one of the LARGEST anti-virus companies to date), yet Vista had declared a set of roughly 5 anti-virus companies to guard the gates for Vista. Thus, McAfee was dead. Not just dead though...Vista had successfully protected me against ALL computer attacks. Unfortunately, the guy in charge of viruses? Out to lunch just prior to the release. You're on your own for that one (not included with Vista). So how much money ARE you willing to pay for anti-virus protection??

As if that wasn't enough, Vista was adamant that McAfee was the antichrist, and should not be installed in the system. While I was busy reading the warnings, Vista inadvertently attempted an install for McAfee. The outcome? A defunct anti-virus was firewalling my computer. From EVERYTHING. The obvious answer is to "Uninstall" the program, right? Not so, with Vista. McAfee was incompatible, right? Thus, McAfee's "Uninstall" program wasn't able to perform correctly, and I was effectively left with a pile of flaming shit on my front porch and no extinguisher (not even a bucket of water!!).

And that was "Day 1".

If you care to hear about days 2-4 of installation, feel free to ask. Just be prepared for a story in which you ask yourself "Why the hell didn't you just go back to XP??" at least a dozen times. But I stuck through.

But now...Now's the money shot. My version of Vista (Business) was the "Full" version. Thus, I had to effectively start over from XP, instead of the normal "upgrade". The problem was, it was copy # 2 of the platform. With Windows new licensing program (brilliant, might I add), you're only allowed ONE copy of Vista. If you have 2 computers at home, then Microsoft graciously allows you to license each computer thereafter at an amazing discount of 10% off!!! Imagine that! Buy Vista for your desktop PC for about $270, and you can add it to your spare laptop at a pleasant $243!!! What a deal!!! Thanks Microsoft! It's almost as though you're giving money away!!

If you don't agree with what I say, check out nearly any website which allows customer feedback. My personal favorite was Amazon.com, which hasn't come close to the average customer rating of 3/5 stars for quite some time. Matter of fact, check it out here.

You'll find that each customer review on the page is 1/5 stars, with very little light at the end of the tunnel. My favorite entry is quoted as saying:

Vista is a sorry software, March 25, 2007

Reviewer: James Fulton (Marion, North Carolina) - See all my reviews

"Give Amazon a negative 10 for recommending and selling Vista software. The software is complete junk. I know that Amazon didn't design this software, but Amazon should have at least checked out Vista before they sold it. If they would have checked out the software first they would have known that Vista is a complete failure. It will be a long time before I can trust Amazon again."
.....

You're still reading? Impressive. You must really want Windows Vista, or at least you might want some good news on it. Windows is the benchmark of customer satisfaction (despite numerous complaints, purchases and concamitant commitment to Windows Operating Systems outweigh any commitment customers have made to "Mac's") right?

"User Friendly" is a term I highly doubt you'll ever see associated with Vista. I consider myself quite proficient with computers (I was just offered over $50K to work technical support for a large computer software company), yet it cost me more than 2 days to get Vista even MINIMALLY functional.

Have you had enough yet? Still on the bandwagon?

Try researching Mac's future platform, "Leopard". If that doesn't get you, then just download Google Desktop and add the sidebar. It is EXACTLY the same for me, now that I've added Vista.

In my opinion, Vista is at least 3 out of the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse, as far as Microsoft is concerned. Bill Gates and his overpaid workforce better have something up their sleeves if they ever hope to compete with customer-oriented companies like Google and Macintosh over the next 5 years.

I, personally, am going to track down an old XP CD-ROM and revert back for a fraction of the price that the current Vista program is running. And next chance I get to buy a computer, I'm buying a Mac.

P.S. Mac's new Leopard is supposed to be capable of running XP on it as well. Forgive and forget, right? Does anyone feel like Microsoft is busy pouting in the corner?

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Your Opinion is Wrong

Terre Haute never ceases to amaze me. The article I mentioned a couple of entries ago is only one in a series of Christian styled territory battles in this town. I caught an opinion in the Terre Haute Tribune-Star tonight, and I had to reprint it just to show how amazingly closed-minded some people can be. This is no attack against the person's faith, but the fact of the matter is that he's verbally attacking one of his neighbors. Doesn't seem very "Christian" to me.

No cross should be called an eyesore
[Tribune-Star, Opinion & Commentary, A6, March 16 2006]

This is in response to Mr. Dowell's calling the chruch's cross an "eyesore" in the newspaper paper [sic] dated Feb. 25.
Mr. Dowell, no cross, whatever it looks like, is an "eyesore" as you have called it.
The cross is a symbol and a comfort with a message so simple and a meaning that is so very powerful and clear of what Jesus did for us 2,000 years ago, and when I said "us," that includes you.
I get the feeling your life has become complicated and your world seems to have gone astray for you to "attack" the cross in making such devilish statements as calling the cross an "eyesore" and that it doesn't fit in the neighborhood.
Mr. Dowell, the day will come when you will be standing at heaven's gate and then you will understand that the cross you called is not an "eyesore," and the cross does fit in all neighborhoods, and you will understand that the cross is the key that opens heaven's gate.

-Charlie Barth
Terre Haute

Perhaps Mr. Barth can do Jesus' bidding and help out his Christian neighbors by firebombing Mr. Dowell's house. That oughta teach you to question our faith, huh? You little demonic antichrist, you. Exorcise that devilish thought you call an "opinion" and give in to the power of Jesus.

Yeah. That's how Christianity works. I hope Jesus is sitting up there somewhere, looking down and shaking his head in disbelief. I hope everyone else's blood is boiling just as much as mine is.

And if that's not enough to piss you off, look at how many periods the guys uses. 5. Total. Welcome to the run-on sentence marathon. Bad grammar is a sign of either a lack of knowledge or a lack of effort in one's thoughts. Either way, thank you Mr. Barth, for letting me further appreciate that I'm not you.

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Roe v. Wade Followup

Read this article. It argues that men should have an equal say in abortion, or at least equal rights.

I agree with this about 90%, it's actually what I wrote my paper about in Bioethics.

Roe v. Wade for men

Wednesday, March 08, 2006

Theory of Devolution

Okay, that's it. I'm pissed. What the hell is happening to this world? I blame Bush and his conservative, God-loving administration for the atrocities that are occurring across the country currently.

Let's start with the local news. I flipped through the Terre Haute TribStar lately only to find this article*. I recommend you read it, but the point is that a tabernacle just built a 50 foot sign advertising their faith. Who does this?? If your religion is so correct, why do you need to advertise it with a massive and annoying sign? If you're truly a chrisitian, wouldn't you feel that the money would be better spent on, I don't know, FEEDING THE POOR! HELPING THE HOMELESS! Terre Haute alone has plenty of need for charity, so why do you fucking spend all of your money trying to get the poor to come pray in your establishment? That seems so very un-christian to me.
*[I have to say though, I don't know how much I trust this writer. You really should read this article, in which Ms. Salter goes to extremes in supporting a new stripclub in part of Terre Haute, even citing two pastors who support "a nightclub where women rub up against poles and dance as sex objects for men who drink too much and then get in their cars and drive away". I think she's being facetious, but perhaps going way too far.]

Okay, okay, I'll chalk that one up to Terre Haute. We all know this city has been sliding down to the shallower parts of hell since the 60's.

As I opened up the IndyStar on Monday, the frontpage (which contained the quote of the day - a passage from the bible...that's sketchy, but it's okay) showed the story in which Indiana is split on whether or not to overturn Roe v. Wade and outlaw abortion. North Dakota is one step ahead of us on this topic - they've already outlawed it.

Roe v. Wade, a famous and controversial large step for female rights in this country. If anybody remembers anything about American history, you'd recall that the population spent a large chunk of the 60's rebelling to anything the government said. This rebellious movement led to huge leaps in equality across the nation - in fact, a considerable portion of the Civil Rights Movement occurred during this period. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out on racism, feminism emerged, and the sexual revolution took place.

The people had spoken. And the government listened.

Okay, enough history. I disagree with abortion. I think it is morally incorrect, and I feel that it is taking an innocent life. I feel that it is a matter of convenience for the mother, as killing an unborn child infringes on the life of an assumed member of society ('assumed' since the child is unborn and would be expected to live until birth without intervention).

But I still support Roe v. Wade. I know that what I think is my opinion, and I can understand others who are of the opinion that an unborn child is not an acting member of society, therefore the civil rights to life and liberty apply to the mother and not to the child itself. This means that the mother is in control of her own body. And she should be.

Overturning Roe v. Wade puts the government in control of the woman's body. This is a clear turn for the negative in terms of civil rights. The country is in a slow process of devolution and removal of our personal rights in favor of simpler things like apparent security and uniformity.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that the very reason America was formed? The colonists were originally escaping religious persecution and an overbearing government.

But now we trade in our thoughts of freedom in favor of a government which controls more of our lives with things like the Patriot Act and pushes for a stronger involvement of the church with the government.

I think I'm going to jump on a boat and head to a new island, and start this whole "America" and "freedom" thing all over again. I'm sick of this country slowly whittling away at all we've built up. It's a certain devolution of the people.

And speaking of evolution, how about Kansas? You can no longer teach evolution because it makes just as much sense that some higher being (for the sake of political correctness and religious anonymity, we'll call him "Bob") sat down and built the entire universe quark by quark. Evolution may not be the answer, but it certainly tells us a whole lot more about biology than any religious text.

One website provides a mathematical proof that intelligent design is true.

I love this.

Anybody who has had half of their brain removed or less should be able to see through this person's use of higher level thinking to shroud his nonexistant point. First of all, he randomly apples a probability to each of these physical theories or thermodynamic laws. I'm going to sidestep the fact that he's abusing statistics so heavily it would be afraid to report to the police, black eye and all ("I fell down the stairs again..."). I just want to point out that if the odds of this planet forming really are 1 in 10^62, then I still feel more confident than the converse he's trying to prove: 1 in imaginary.

Evolution is still a theory. It needs a little work. But it still needs to be taught in schools - it's the basis for our genetic understanding, which is pretty freaking important in the world of biology and medicine. And faith is still important. Religion is important. But it shouldn't take precedence in the schools and in the founding of our country, or else we're just going back to where we started.

Learn from history.

That's my moral here.

Oh, and as long as I'm bitching about this country, I may as well vent one final topic: I think that guys who spend their freetime thinking about science and math instead of boobs should all get on a bus and go masterbate about things like the square root of -1 somewhere else, then proceed to kill themselves. Maybe that's how they ended up at Rose though...

Man, I really hate this place.