August 22, 2008
Much ado about nothing
Microsoft has signed up Jerry Seinfeld to plug poor perceptions about Microsoft Windows Vista. Perhaps they realize that all this show about Vista is really a show about nothing!
June 20, 2008
C or F?
As seen on Slashdot…
Celsius is based on water temperature, and Fahrenheit is based on alcohol temperature. Ergo, Fahrenheit is WAY better than Celsius. QED.
May 16, 2008
being good...
As seen on another blog:
Being a good writer is 3% talent, 97% not being distracted by the Internet.
March 22, 2008
four senses
Four of my five senses are largely intact, but my sense of smell is gone. This allergy season has been brutal. A wave of cold swept our house this past week and has resulted in a loss of smelling power for me. The good part of the experience is that changing diapers is no longer a challenge. The tough part is that chicken soup tastes like saline with chunks of meat.
Looking forward to all five senses coming back in sync.
March 7, 2008
Time - Pink Floyd
Its been ages since I listened to any Pink Floyd. We have undergone a metamorphosis and have become parents. No time (pun intended) for Pink Floyd.
I tuned into Virgin Radio this morning and there it was. Time. By Pink Floyd.
Relive it here.
Live-r
While walking on campus today, I saw placards about getting tested for Hepatitis B on campus at SF State. See details on Hepatitis B at Hepatitis.
Then, I got to the office and started listening to Virgin Radio, a streaming radio station from the UK, and after a few songs, they aired a commercial about Hepatitis C. Too much about Hepatitis for one day, if you ask me! The Brits worry about Hep C, while we worry about Hep B. Interesting.
Traveling to Asia? Get vaccinated for Hep A. That one, often called Jaundice, is no fun either.
As a side note, the Urdu word for Liver, the organ that gets affected (Greek word for liver is hēpar) is Jigar. Many a poem in Urdu or songs in Hindi will bring it up as the focal point of health in one’s body. No, it wasn’t the heart or the brain that was the center of one’s love for life; it was the liver. Liver. You live a good life as long as your liver holds up. Live-r. Get it?
More cultural allusions here.
February 21, 2008
XO Charger surgery
The power charger that came with my OLPC XO laptop has a connector that’s hard to find at the neighborhood Radio Shack. I really wanted to buy a charger that would allow me to charge the laptop in my car with a cigarette lighter adapter (12 volts, about 3 amps). I couldn’t find a cigarette lighter adapter that had the XO’s power connector.
So, I took a deep breath and cut the cord on the original charger! My soldering skills aren’t great, but they are good enough to solder on a couple of connectors. I got a few RCA (also called phono) connectors because they hold well and are easy to find.
The result? I can mix and match the power source (wall charger, cigarette lighter adapter, solar panel) and use the original XO connector. See pictures. Don’t take my advise though. I had a couple of glasses of wine before I did this :-) You’ve been warned.
See all photos on Flickr
February 17, 2008
children...
This man knew what he was talking about. Most of us don’t. http://www.mkgandhi.org/
February 9, 2008
Laptopgiving - is it here yet?
It seems that a batch of people are still waiting for their XO laptop from the OLPC donation campaign. The donation of $400 plus shipping resulted in one XO laptop that went to a child in a needy environment in Mongolia or Afghanistan or Rwanda. OLPC would then give you one laptop in appreciation. This is much like getting a t-shirt or a bag as a thank you gift when you donate to a radio or TV station. On top of the laptop, T-Mobile gives you a one-year free Wi-Fi contract. In all, its a great deal. Of course, those who still do not have their laptops are disappointed. I have one laptop that still on backorder. It seems they are not making enough to keep the supply going.
Its a good problem to have :-) I hope mine will get here in a month or so. If you haven’t recieved yours, you can scheck on its status
here
Mine says:
