Recent Posts

1701

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 04:03 PM »

you guys don't understand, I've been using this for the past 5 years:


I've been holding on to it far longer than is reasonable.  I don't have any data plan yet, but I need to get one this year...I'm becoming too busy and people are getting annoyed with me.  But the reason why I've waited so long is because the Pearl was the perfect size then and it still is now.  I knew this back then which is why i got it.  And the phones have just been getting bigger and bigger and bigger.  But now there's this SX on the horizon...but I'm not japanese.

1702

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 03:06 PM »

It also has something to do with the peculiar cellphone gear in the US cellular grid. Why someone would use a non-GSM based cellphone is beyond me, but a (big) part of the US does. That means if you want to sell in those regions that you have to do redesign of electronics inside the phone.

So the question (for Sony) quickly becomes: How much units can I sell against the redesign costs. Sometimes it is really not worth it. Better to recognize such things early. If that is already not a showstopper, there is also the possibility US carriers won't or can't afford to have this model in their assortment.

There was at one time a guy over from the US and he brought his US cellphone. He selected the model because it also supported the working frequencies here in Paraguay and was pretty angry that his phone didn't work here. Almost no carrier outside the US uses the non-GSM type of phones (for anything else than land-fill). For me it was the very first time I saw such a cellphone.

-Shades (August 21, 2012, 02:10 PM)

aren't more phones now capable of handling both types of cellular techs?  The SX says it can do GSM and HSPA...meaning it can do ATT or Verizon networks.  I'm still considering getting one, but I can't tell if it will work in english.  One one of the sites it said Japanese only.

1703

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 03:00 PM »

I sometimes suspect Sony deliberately keeps some of their real plum tech out of the US markets for no reason other than the pleasure of saying: "You like it? Well...sorry, but this is not for you." 

-40hz (August 21, 2012, 11:03 AM)

It sure as hell seems like it.  I have a love-hate relationship with them.  Sony comes up with amazing technology and they tend to build things with great quality, unlike most tech products these days.  But of course, just about all their good stuff is completely unavailable here.  Ugh!!

I was browsing some Japanese boards and I didn't realize some of their attitudes towards America.  Seemed almost like a Euro type of hatred, but more about economics.  THey blame the US for destroying their economy, I thought that's what it sounded like.  But I want their gadgets, i really do.

1704

Living Room / Piano gigging pc: help me build

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 12:48 PM »

Ok folks,
Seems like my most immediate next project is to build a pc to gig with.  I'm now playing in two bands and I want a rock solid portable setup to take with me and play the keyboard through VST software on the PC.  The reason why I am doing this and not using the onboard sounds of my keyboard (which is a good keyboard) is because these VST software sound so much better.  It has to be.  They have the entire hardware aresenal of a desktop pc versus whatever lame specs are on the keyboard.  I just got a new Roland RD-700NX, which is the top of the line keyboard and they've supposedly improved the sounds drastically.  It's good, no doubt.  but I also have TruePianos, which is a software VST and it's simply incredible.  I can't go back.  So to make this all work, I need a beefy machine that will be as portable as possible.

So I want to get a very good soundcard, probably an RME.  And I'm going to stuff the pc with max RAM and as high a CPU as reasonable.  GPU is not a big deal.  Solid state hard drive is probably a must.  I'm going to run Windows.  I need as small a case as possible.  I will also consider rack cases if they are small since the audio hardware I'll be using will most likely be intended for rack mounting.  I'd like it to be light, if possible, maybe carry with one hand.  One trick is going to be to figure out what type of monitor I'll be using, it needs to be either super small or something unconventional, like a foldout monitor that can be tucked into a rack space on sliders, or something.  I don't necessarily want to go that fancy as I know those kinds of things are very expensive.  I'm not afraid of really unconventional setups.

I'm also aware that things like V-Machine exist, which is essentially what I'm building.  But the difference is the power of what I'm building will be way more, I'm talking full desktop power, not mobile ARM power.  So please, no hammering me about how expensive or overkill this stuff is, unless you see me making misinformed decisions.

Another interesting feature of this setup will be the bootup scenario.  As a live gigging instrument, I'd like it to be where I turn the computer on and it boots right into the vst host software.  This probably means just tweaking the startup behavior.  I'm just nervous about things that can go wrong during a live gig.

1705

Living Room / Re: Is having everything available in "real time" where we really want to go?

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 12:14 PM »

@superboyac: Sorry. I'm not sure I can make sense of all that.
And I thought pointing wasn't "accusatory", but a dominance signal.   

-IainB (August 21, 2012, 09:53 AM)

Hell, I thought pointing was a way of identifying one think out of a group of others - i.e. I would like that lemon filled chocolate doughnut. - Now I'd hardly be planning to dominate the doughnut by pointing at it ... I'd merely be identifying the focus of my interest.

-Stoic Joker (August 21, 2012, 11:26 AM)

In the context I was referring to, it's a manipulative thing.  Imagine pointing after every syllable: "You..will..do..as...I...say...or...else."  You try the same without pointing and it's not as intimidating.  People have all sorts of ways to cover up the fact that the content of what they are saying is all or mostly bullshit.  Inflections and all that.  And I know there's a place for all the rhetoric, but it's just interesting that it seems that those who are really good at rhetoric tend to have the least content.  And when I see that the public in general is more persuaded by rhetoric than content, that is something I worry about.  Seems like we've gotten really really good at bullshitting and the content is nowhere to be found.  But they tell me I'm just getting older.

1706

Living Room / Re: Is having everything available in "real time" where we really want to go?

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 10:51 AM »

@superboyac: Sorry. I'm not sure I can make sense of all that.
And I thought pointing wasn't "accusatory", but a dominance signal.   

-IainB (August 21, 2012, 09:53 AM)

Ah forget it.  It's just a bunch of my rambling nonsense.

1707

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 09:43 AM »

sigh, it doesn't look like it will ever be available in the US, and it may not even come in an english version.  I don't understand why there's no market for this here, yet there's a market for a gazillion variations on the huge phones.  Will not one company make a popular smaller phone?

1708

Living Room / Re: Is having everything available in "real time" where we really want to go?

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 09:33 AM »

...look at the guy holding his knee...

-superboyac (August 20, 2012, 10:50 AM)

I'm not familiar with that. Is it a body language signal of superiority, like steepling the fingers is supposed to be?

-IainB (August 20, 2012, 09:47 PM)

It's more of a professional way of appearing casual.  To be honest, they're in a difficult situation from a "how to look cool" standpoint.  First, they are NOT cool by any means, and they know that.  So that's a problem already.  Next, they are talking some high intellectual stuff...also not cool.  It's being filmed, they're not actors, they feel awkward I'm sure.  And then there's the whole debate atmosphere thing...you know, keep your cool, process thoughts, form your logic.

I don't blame the guy, i just think it's funny.  If it were me, instead of sitting down, I'd be pacing Sherlock Holmes style.  I think better that way, and I can make more natural arm gestures.  If I wanted to appear superior, I'd point at people...they all do that anyway.  I hate people pointing at me when they talk.  How could it not be an accusatory gesture?

1709

Living Room / Re: Coffee Mug or when Plastic is done right!

« Last post by superboyac on August 21, 2012, 01:19 AM »

Miles, you may be the one member that will enjoy my first ever web article:
The Ultimate Desktop Mug

-superboyac (August 20, 2012, 09:05 PM)

Hmm, I didn't notice any mention of the black cap issue. I take it there was no lame after-taste? As I mentioned, every metal/black plastic hybrid I ever tried as soon as I put my lips to the plastic, I didn't want to drink the coffee.

-MilesAhead (August 20, 2012, 11:01 PM)

You are correct, that plastic taste is definitely there.  I've never had a mug that didn't do that.  i guess to avoid that, we need to find a wide base mug with a cap made of ceramic?  That would be good.  But I've never seen anything like that.  My thermos bullet mug does a pretty good job with it, they actually put the metal on the rim so your mouth is touching the metal, not the black plastic.  not ideal, but it's better than directly on the plastic.  we should make the ultimate coffee mug!  seems like the market is calling...

1710

Living Room / Re: Coffee Mug or when Plastic is done right!

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 09:06 PM »

I remember these mugs were very common when i was a kid.  It's unfortunate they've moved almost entirely away from desktop mugs onto cupholder mugs.  Like you say, very unstable.  Annoying, actually.

1711

Living Room / Re: Coffee Mug or when Plastic is done right!

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 09:05 PM »

Miles, you may be the one member that will enjoy my first ever web article:
The Ultimate Desktop Mug

1712

General Software Discussion / Re: xpdf, pdftk, etc

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 12:54 PM »

hello!

manipulating pdf has always been a hard work for me, mainly because of lack of tools
now, I can do alot of things with these:

xpdf
pdftk

can you help me complete this list with other useful free cmd/gui pdf tools?

also, which are the best xpdf and pdftk gui versions?

thanks!

-kalos (August 20, 2012, 12:24 PM)

I've searched a lot for these.  I don't think you'll find a freeware one with good editing capabilities.  My strongly preferred pdf editor is bluebeam.  very strongly preferred.

1713

Living Room / Re: Recommend some music videos to me!

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 11:07 AM »

Man, that Muppets skit is freaking hilarious.  That's gotta be one of my favorite ones.  I love how Animal is always panting!

I lived there for about 10 years. smiley

If you want to see beautiful girls, that's the place to be. cheesy

You're like the 5th person to tell me that.  I'm so going there soon.

1714

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 11:00 AM »

Just ask yourself 1 question... How well does it do porn?

-Renegade (August 20, 2012, 09:49 AM)

Bigger screen better images? 

-rgdot (August 20, 2012, 09:52 AM)

Well, it can't compete with my dual 24" monitor setup at home.  At times, it's better than the real thing.

-superboyac (August 20, 2012, 10:25 AM)

Perfect size for a flight simulator. And way safer than flying the real thing.

FWIW, I've adopted the comedian Dennis Miller's "soul mate" perspective to technology purchases:

If the New Agers are correct, right this very minute, there's the perfect woman waiting for me out there somewhere. Problem is, with my luck, she's probably sitting in front of a yak shit fire on a hilltop in outer Mongolia eating a bowl of horse meat stew as we speak. Yeah...so she's absolutely perfect. And like we're sooooooo ever gonna find each other. Thanks guys!
 

-40hz (August 20, 2012, 10:33 AM)

mmm...Mongolian chicks.  mmm...meat stew.  yeah, that's about perfect.

1715

Living Room / Re: Is having everything available in "real time" where we really want to go?

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 10:50 AM »

One side effect I've noticed with "real time" is that it has brought about far less considered comments and writing.

There was a time when you'd very carefully choose your words and marshal your arguments on a given topic. Now, with the "need for speed" to either be first out the door - or (more commonly) being pressured to respond to something more quickly than desired - you see more and more pointless exchanges.

What I see is a gradual but very widespread and noticeable shift away from dialog. Instead of dialog there's now the trend of making a statement - and then digging in to defend it against all comers. Small wonder petty bickering and squabbling has replaced mature debate and discussion in most places.

To paraphrase an old joke: You want my answer, and you want it right now? Well... did you want it "right" - or did you just want it "now."

-40hz (August 20, 2012, 10:25 AM)

Hmm...very interesting point.  I must say, I have totally adapted to the whole "just say what you want to say" thing.  I have lost my patience with most dialogue.  But it feels like a chicken-egg thing.  I don't like the dialogue because of the pettiness and over-sensitivity, but my impatience is what is causing it sort of!  Ugh.  Very ambiguous.  I mean, on one hand, I appreciate the getting-shit-done type of attitude, but I also love to be able to have interesting discussions with people whoa re comfortable having a wide range of emotions.  I like it when people get angry and chaotic, and unpredictable, etc.  that's good stuff, that's a real discussion!  But the content needs to be rich.  I don't like it when all the emotion is due to people just not being able to disagree with each other.

I was watching the Milton Friedman Free to Choose debates this weekend, loved it!  I mean, it can get pretty stuffy at times, but overall very entertaining and educational, like a good conversation should be.  It is damn stuffy though, almost comically so.  I mean, look at the guy holding his knee:

Oh I love the struggle of eccentrically intelligent people trying to mask their cockiness with stereotypical professional poses.

My only personal problem with debates like this is that its difficult for me to be able to tell when someone is stating the truth well, or just trying to be a contrarian.  They're too smart for me to always tell the difference.  I love one, hate the other...very fine line between them.

1716

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 10:25 AM »

Just ask yourself 1 question... How well does it do porn?

-Renegade (August 20, 2012, 09:49 AM)

Bigger screen better images? 

-rgdot (August 20, 2012, 09:52 AM)

Well, it can't compete with my dual 24" monitor setup at home.  At times, it's better than the real thing.

1717

Living Room / I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by superboyac on August 20, 2012, 09:43 AM »

This is the first time I've ever wanted a phone.  This is the phone I want, the Sony Xperia SX:


It came out last week.  Why do I want it?  It's the only LTE, up-to-date Android phone that is relatively small.  Every other phone is trying to get bigger and bigger screens.  I thought the Blackberry Pearl was the perfect size for a phone and I've been waiting for one to come out.  I can't believe so few people want a smaller phone.  I hate all the 4.whatever screens, they're too big for something to have in your pocket all the time.

Problem is this phone will not be sold in the US.  So it'll cost me $600-700 to get it.  Which is really not worth it, I know that.  But man, it's the perfect size.

1718

Living Room / Re: Shake Your Head & Look At This Pic

« Last post by superboyac on August 19, 2012, 11:36 PM »

man, with all the advances we're making with light technology, i have a feeling that within our lifetime, the notion of "seeing is believing" is just going to be turned upside down.

-superboyac (August 19, 2012, 11:25 PM)

 

Its an illusion...wth is 'Light Technology' ? lol

-Stephen66515 (August 19, 2012, 11:27 PM)

i just mean with all the capabilities we have.  Like that trillion frames a second camera, etc.  That's all.  Just a shooting the shit comment.

1719

Living Room / Re: Shake Your Head & Look At This Pic

« Last post by superboyac on August 19, 2012, 11:25 PM »

man, with all the advances we're making with light technology, i have a feeling that within our lifetime, the notion of "seeing is believing" is just going to be turned upside down.

1720

Living Room / Re: Shake Your Head & Look At This Pic

« Last post by superboyac on August 19, 2012, 11:23 PM »

whoa!  badass!!!

1721

General Software Discussion / Re: Audio Destortion during Video Playback

« Last post by superboyac on August 19, 2012, 11:05 PM »

could be a flash issue also. I had really bad flash issues a while back, where the flash elements on certain sites just wouldn't work at all.  my vote goes to flash, and maybe some software interfering with it...ad blockers, antivirus, antimalware, mine was actually due to a whole bunch of virtual network or real network devices that I was dealing with (I keep pushing the limits of connectivity).

1722

Living Room / Re: Go dark for IE - October 26, 2012

« Last post by superboyac on August 19, 2012, 02:50 PM »

People generally use whatever works for them. Punishing them is not an effective way to encourage  them to change. If websites just stop jumping through all those hoops they allegedly do to support older browsers, people will eventually migrate over to what works. That's how it's always worked in the past. Those people who are unwilling (or can't for technical reasons) upgrade will become a new market and income opportunity for those sites that do continue to support their browser versions.

Web developers and hosts need to get over themselves a little. This isn't the 90s any more. The web's era of the child-king webmaster and the techno-elite is largely over. The Internet has already become a commodity. And it will soon become just another public utility - no different than electricity, water, and sewage treatment. Time to get with the new reality folks!

Openness and 'come as you are' has always been the rule of the web. How is this "go dark" initiative any different from the thinking of certain governments when they propose to establish an official web access client? And are these people who propose the web "go dark" the same people protesting closed ecosystems whenever Apple and Microsoft attempt to play that game? Or who rebel against any attempt to dictate to them how they operate their websites?

If so, it's a sad state of affairs.

I can see a time in the not too distant future when I put an old school Fido BBS system on a Raspberry Pi and walk away from all this browser nonsense once and for all. And after talking to a few other folks, I now know I'm not the only one thinking about doing it.
 

-40hz (August 19, 2012, 08:16 AM)

well said.

1723

Living Room / Re: 1,000,000,000,000 Frames/Second Photography

« Last post by superboyac on August 18, 2012, 03:56 PM »

I saw this last week.  Fucking incredible.  Sorry to curse, but it's the only way to describe it.
Stuff like this keeps me going in life.

1724

Living Room / Re: Is having everything available in "real time" where we really want to go?

« Last post by superboyac on August 17, 2012, 07:36 PM »

I haven't read the whole article yet, but from what you quoted and skimming IainB's post (which I also have to queue up for reading later, as usual ) I think I normally prefer things in real time, whenever possible.  Why not?

The only argument against it is for those cases where the fun of it is in the waiting...like waiting for the next episode of your favorite show to come on.  I break it down like this:

Entertainment:
For entertainment related things, being real time or not is not an issue.  Because there's a story being told, and the creator/artist needs to figure out the best way to tell the story.  So the feature of real-time doesn't help anything here.  This is an artistic issue.

Truth:
For facts and truth, etc., real time is always ideal for me.  Any delay just gives people more of a chance to lie about something.  And we lie far too much as is.  The truth is simple: it is what it is.  Don't make it more than it is, don't make it less.  If Lebron scores a layup, the truth is in what you saw in real time...how he scored it, what led up to it, etc.  Any more than this is lies and manipulation.  Even saying "That was AWESOME!!" is already manipulating it because it probably wasn't that awesome.  And the hater will say "It SUCKED!" which is also not true.  Only the real-time experience was the truth.

So for the sake of truth, realtime is always preferred for me.  i don't want any lies, any coercion, any manipulation.  Just show me the real muthafuckin thing.

Even lately as I've been on a quantum physics kick...I don't want the interpretations.  I don't want the fancy 3d models of balls inside atoms shooting out and stuff, or the animations.  I want the RAW data.  What are the scientists looking at that proves or disproves things?  Stuff like what's below:

because those artist recreations have really prevented me from thinking about it clearly.

The problem with real-time is that to be able to deal with the real good, realtime, truthy stuff you need to constantly keep up with your personal education.  And I'm noticing that this is what people don't like.  We reach a point in our lives where we don't have the time/energy/money/family/etc. to keep up with everything that we want to.  Then all the realtime stuff becomes too much very quickly...it's like data overload at some point.  So that's when we become like "I don't even want to know" or we just want to see the cliffs notes version of something.  is that good?  I don't know.  I personally don't like it, but it's also clearly a good way to be able to live in a community in a pleasant way.  I imagine if we were all craving and processing realtime data, we'd eventually just turn into chaos and violence.  If everyone was super impatient and also had the energy to resolve that impatience...oh boy, that would be pretty crazy.

1725

General Software Discussion / Re: BitTorrent Inc. earns $15-20 mn; makes uTorrent Ad-supported to "keep lights on"

« Last post by superboyac on August 16, 2012, 11:03 PM »

I still don't understand why you guys are so afraid of someone "frankensteining" or whatever the torrent protocol.  I don't get it.  It's just a tool, you can use any which way it works.  Yes, I also hate to see someone use a chainsaw to commit ghastly crimes...but so what?  Why is this such an issue?  Are you saying we should stop trying to improve on torrent or chainsaws?  I don't get it.  Just seems like a bunch of judgmental stuff and nonsense fear.

-superboyac (August 16, 2012, 07:41 PM)

Take a look at Java and what has become of it.  There are a myriad of other examples.  As people start to repurpose something, it inevitably becomes instead of the sum of its parts, the difference of its parts.  For better or worse, its better if there is a driving force, vision, and purpose.  Software designed by committee without these things inevitably becomes crap.

And we're not talking about stifling innovation nor inhibiting improvements.  We're talking about purpose.  In the end, a chainsaw is a chainsaw.  It's not a hammer, and it's not a screwdriver.  And if you start trying to make it those things it was not meant to be, you end up with a tool that useful for nothing.

-wraith808 (August 16, 2012, 09:42 PM)

I see.  Maybe it's a technical thing I don't get.  I'm the type where I'll use a chainsaw as a hammer and I won't think twice about it.  Ends justify the means?    not always of course...