Windows Vista - the REAL reason it's taking so long to bring it out

Here's a great article from the Wall Street Journal all about the next version of Microsoft's Windows operating system, and the problems that have caused it to be delayed many times over. It goes into the change Microsoft implemented in how they code their software, and how it wasn't an easy sell with their engineers - or Bill Gates himself. Definitely worth a read.

From the Earth to the Moon - again

Well, it's official - NASA is going to return to the Moon before the end of the next decade, probably in 2018. The spacecraft they plan to develop looks remarkable similar to the Apollo program spacecraft - but it will be updated (of course). It'll also apparently cost somewhere on the order of $100+ billion dollars to develop and build. Not sure if it's worth it, but the new vehicle is also expected to be the main way to deliver people and supplies to the International Space Station (replacing the Shuttle) and will also possibly be the vehicle (or one of the vehicles) used for human exploration of Mars. Maybe it's worth it, but I don't know - we'll see I suppose. I'm sure many people will weigh in with their opinions over the next few days and weeks.

Nintendo reveals the real reason they are calling their next console 'Revolution'

The story broke yesterday - Nintendo, which has been very tight about info on the new Nintendo Revolution console up till now, officially unveiled the new controller for it at the Tokyo Game Show. Big deal, I'll bet you're thinking. But it actually is - read this article from 1up.com to find out all about it. Has Nintendo done it again - or will the Revolution suffer the same fate as the GameCube?

Release date for Final Fantasy VII - Advent Children

It's been a long time coming, but the fully CGI rendered movie 'sequel' to Final Fantasy VII will be available on DVD on November 29th. More info about the DVD available from AnimeNation. You can also find out more about Advent Children on it's website - it's a Japanese site, but not too hard to glean at least some info from it. You might also be interested in this interview with Tetsuyo Nomura (Director of Advent Children), where he talks about his idea of remaking the original FFVII, as a full CGI version for Playstation 3. Now THAT would be awesome - getting to play FFVII again, but it looks like the CGI animation used in Advent Children!!

As promised - some pictures I took in Vegas

I know I promised this a long LONG time ago, but here it is finally - I've got some pictures I took in Vegas to share with you. Like this one - a shot of the hallway leading away from our room at Rio (exciting stuff, I know).



Here's one of the cars on the Las Vegas Monorail - all Borgified. Cool, huh?



I've got more to share - but no time to put 'em up right now, unfortunately. Hopefully later today or tomorrow.

The Bushes on vacation

Man, this picture is hilarious! My father-in-law emailed it to me, so thanks go out to him for brightening my day! If you want to see the image larger you can just click on it.

Bill Gates speaks out about the competition facing Microsoft

Here's a link to an interview Bill Gates did with the Seattle Post Intelligencer, where he talks about Windows Vista, the next version of Office, and the competition Microsoft faces from such companies as Apple and Google - who he admits are doing some things better than Microsoft is. Of course, he believes that he'll eventually crush them, but that's nothing new. Interestingly enough, Gates also recently did an interview with CNET - here's the link to that one. If you're pressed for time the interview in the Seattle PI isn't very long, but I think the one in CNET is more in depth.

Oh, this is just too funny - check this link out!

Got the link to this website emailed to me by a friend, and I laughed my butt off once I went there and read the site - here's the link. You may not want to read this if you believe in creationism/intelligent design, unless you have a good sense of humor!

American traveler's apology t-shirt

Here's another fun thing I found recently - Are you a American, a world traveler, and tired of having to apologize for your government? Wear this stylish and functional t-shirt, and it will do the apologizing for you! I think it's pretty cool, I might just need to get one...

Now available at the iTunes Music Store

Do you have an iPod? Do you love Harry Potter? Well now you're in luck - you can bring the two together! Just go to the iTunes Music Store and download the Complete Harry Potter Collection - you can even use the convenient link I've added to the sidebar (hint, hint) to get it. What could be cooler, right?

And with the new updated iTunes 5, it's even easier to sample and subscribe to thousands of free podcasts at the iTunes Music Store.

Here's another cool link to get some new content from iTunes - just the thing for you Madonna fans out there -


Enjoy!

Let the President know how you feel about his response to Hurricane Katrina

You've seen the devastation on TV (or in person), you've heard the pleas of the displaced citizens and the mayor of New Orleans, and you've seen the complete failure of the government to properly respond and help the survivors of Katrina. Want to let Bush know how you feel? Sign this petition and let your opinion be heard.
You can also catch a bit of the awesome (and hilarious) Katrina coverage that was on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Tuesday night here - check out the Bush's Timeline video.

iTunes 5 and iPod Nano

Greetings! I know, it's been a while since I've posted AGAIN. Sorry about the lack of posts recently - I'm trying to write more often, it's just been tough recently. I promise I'll explain more, but not now. Now there is very interesting news to report on the Apple iPod/iTunes front - the new version of iTunes (version 5) is now available for download (get it here). The new version is a little more streamlined, they say the search is faster (I thought it was pretty fast already), and it supports the new iTunes for Mobile Phone (which only works with Cingular). Also new is the iPod Nano, which looks just like the normal iPod but is pencil-thin (dimensions are 3.5 x 1.6 x 0.27 inches), and comes in a 2GB ($199) and 4GB ($249) version. You can get one in either white or black. So it looks like this new iPod officially signs the death warrant for the iPod Mini - it's better though so it's not a big surprise I guess. Check out the links if you want more info about the new iTunes or iPod Nano.

Been a long time - but here's a new post

Greetings - I know it's been a VERY long time since I last posted anything, but I promise there is a good reason for the delay. I'm not going to go into it right now, but I promise soon I'll write something about it. Vacation went pretty well, although I didn't want to leave Vegas. That happens pretty much every time I'm there though, so it was no surprise :) I have some pictures to share, so I'll be throwing a few of them up here sometime in the next few days. Not a whole lot else going on right now - work sucks (no surprise, I know), and we'll be going to Chicago for a few days this weekend. So that means it'll be a while till I post again. Someday soon I hope to get back to posting more regularly - keep your fingers crossed for me!

VEGAS BABY!!! VEGAS!!!!

Oh yeah - even though the countdown began weeks ago, now it's really getting down to the wire. If I can only make it through the day, then I can just relax and take it easy in Las Vegas. It's almost vacation time - and I just can't wait! It's hard to be here at work today because my mind is just not on work at all. I think it already went out to Vegas ahead of me maybe. Isn't it just the worst thing in the world to have to go into work right before vacation? You just can't concentrate. Well, wish me luck trying to make it through the rest of the day...

This is kinda creepy

Looks like the Japanese have developed a robot that looks very realistic - too realistic, if you ask me. Read the BBC News article here, and here's a link to a National Geographic article with another couple of pictures. Very creepy - what's next Blade Runner style replicants?

Vacation just can't start fast enough...

Work is still kicking my ass, but thankfully it's almost over - it's almost vacation time!! BB and I will be going to Las Vegas this Sunday, and we'll be there for a whole week - I am really looking forward to it, especially with how bad work has been recently. I'll try to get some cool pictures, and I may just be posting a few of them here, we'll see...

If your desk has a forehead shaped divot in it - does that mean you bang your head against it too much?

Still suffering under the yoke of my horrible job - it's been a week from hell, but thankfully it'll be over soon. Since my work week runs Wednesday through Saturday, I have the next three days off! YAY!!! And very soon (but not hardly soon enough) BB and I will be off to wonderful Las Vegas for a well deserved vacation. We'll be staying at the Rio, they have a really cool pool area - it's gonna be a great vacation!

I hate my job

I know, I know - big surprise, everyone hates their job. But I hate my job with the white hot intensity of a thousand suns, it's a hate akin to the pure hatred Ahab had for Moby Dick ("to the last I grapple with thee; from hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee." Now THAT'S some hate!) Suffice to say, my job sucks. We'll leave it at that, or I'll get all worked up about it.
Anyways, I haven't been able to post over the past couple of days - let's see, what's been happening in the last couple days...

More bombings in London, police shoot a suspect.

Bush picks a nominee to replace Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court, John Roberts - his mother says his Roman Catholic faith his very important to him. [sarcasm]Yay.[/sarcasm]

Microsoft renames Longhorn - it's now Windows Vista. VISTA?!?!? WTF??

And on a very sad note, James Doohan died Wednesday morning. He will be cremated and his ashes launched into 'space, the final frontier'. Jimmy Doohan was a very cool guy, it's obvious from the articles all over the web how special he was and how he'll be missed.

The next step in broadband internet - 100Mbps connection in your home

It's being rolled out over in the Netherlands as a trial soon, and looks promising. How cool would it be to be downloading files from your favorite (LEGAL) music service, and getting them in a split second? You can read more about it here.

Harry Potter Mania!!!

So, the new Potter book, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince came out today. Since stores started selling the book at midnight, BB and I went out and picked up a copy last night. And it was quite an adventure! We went to a Meijer's (because they were selling the book really cheap, $14.87 or something) and arrived about quarter till midnight, and got in one heck of a long ass line. At midnight they started moving people through the line and just handing them books - you had to go out to the registers at the front of the store to purchase it. It moved pretty fast, considering that there were probably 300 or so people in front of us in the line. Quite a few people behind us too - I've no idea how many total, but A LOT I'm sure. Anyway, even though BB was all worried we wouldn't get a copy, we did - and she's happily reading it right now. So all's well that ends well, right? Oh, and the Half Blood Prince? Yeah, it's Hagrid. (Actually, I've no idea. I haven't read a word of the book yet. But wouldn't it be funny if I was right?)