At this point I thought of Launchy, which is frequently touted on Lifehacker as being the greatest way to launch applications, find files, etc that any Windows (and Linux) user could hope for. Somehow I had managed to avoid trying it out, but I decided now might be a good time to give it a shot.
Launchy is just a small executable the gets plopped into you Start Up folder, and keeps a catalog of the shortcuts in you Start menu, Quick Launch bar, and any other locations you choose. It runs in the background until you need it, at which point it is summoned by hitting Alt-Space. Start typing "itu" for example and it will suggest iTunes. Hit enter and it launches the program. Much nicer than moving the mouse up to the Quick Launch bar and hunting for the right button, or hunting through the Start menu.
]]>Last night I discovered that there is a well-known Rush boot called An Absolut Rush that is an audience recording of the first Rush show that I attended, at the U.S. Air Arena in Landover, MD on 7 November 1996. I really want to get a copy, for nostalgic reasons because I was at the show, and because it's supposed to be of excellent sound quality, and there are songs in the set list that haven't been played on subsequent tours and are not included on any official live releases.
The only problem is that the bootleg community is mostly focused on trading, not buying/selling, which I totally respect. At the same time though, it makes it a pain in the butt for someone like me who is not a long time bootleg collector and doesn't really have anything to trade. The other boots that I have now are mp3 format, and traders understandably prefer CDs burned from lossless files like FLACs or SHNs. Possibly I could find someone nice enough to send me a copy of the show in exchange for me sending the media along with a SASE.
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Only because disc 2 is a DVD with videos for songs from the Atlantic years. Otherwise I wouldn't bother since it's yet another greatest hits compilation, and I already have all their albums. I am interested in hearing the remixes of "One Little Victory" and "Earthshine," but if it wasn't for the DVD I would probably just grab the MP3s from Amazon.
]]>Unfortunately I did not get to see them on the second leg of the Snakes & Arrows tour (19 July 2008) because I've been in Australia since February 2008, and Rush doesn't tour Down Under. In fact Rush has never played in Australia.
I'm sure this list is of no interest to anyone but me, but sometimes it's nice to remember these things.
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Man that makes me feel old. I was a freshman in high school when Nevermind was released, and now the little baby from the cover is probably about to graduate high school.
Nirvana Baby -- All Grown Up -- Re-Creates Classic Nevermind Cover Image
]]>Obama or McCain? Let a totally unqualified celebrity decide!
If it wasn't for the fact that Alec Baldwin made the same damn threat in 2000 (and 2004?) and didn't follow through, I would say this is great. Regardless of who wins the election, we get rid of a Baldwin. To paraphrase the tag line from AVP: "Whoever wins... we win."
]]>Defeat fears put Hollywood on edge
Annabel Crabb
November 3, 2008A HIDEOUS new affliction is creeping through the ranks of America's creative community.
The further Barack Obama edges ahead of John McCain in the million and one polls that are coming out the more pernicious the nagging fear becomes.
What if he loses?
Barely a left-wing pundit, barely an Oscar-nominated softie can sleep a wink these days for fear of the race riots and international humiliation that will ensue should "The One" be defeated on Tuesday.
Here are some highlights:
But for others, the dread is nameless and paralysing. Erica Jong, author of the 1970s feminist bible Fear of Flying, has developed a new complex in recent weeks - the fear of an Obama flogging.
"If Obama loses it will spark the second American Civil War. Blood will run in the streets, believe me," she told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera last week.
Um, no Erica Jong, that's not what will happen. If Obama loses, people will bitch and moan like they did after Al Gore lost in 2000, and eventually they'll get on with their lives. And for the next four years people like Michael Moore and Bill Maher will periodically remind everyone that John McCain stole the election, or that every other American but themselves is an ignorant racist, etc.
You really can't win with guys like that. If Obama wins, they'll be smug and superior for the next four years, as if they had anything to do with him being elected. If McCain wins, then they'll spend the next four years whining and deriding the rest of the population for electing the wrong person for president.
But I digress. Back to Erica Jong:
"My back is also suffering from spasms, so much so that I had to see an acupuncturist and get prescriptions for Valium.
"Yesterday, Jane Fonda sent me an email to tell me that she cried all night and can't cure her ailing back for all the stress that has reduced her to a bundle of nerves."
The American shock-jock Rush Limbaugh, on hearing this last detail, had a direct, if crude, response. "Maybe you should try getting off your back, Jane!" he roared.
Dramatic much Jane Fonda? I don't listen to Rush Limbaugh, and from what I know of him he's a giant turd, but in this instance I totally agree with him.
Notice the sarcasm. It makes me happy.
Crack teams of chiropractors are at the ready, and Nissen huts full of qualified shrinks and aromatherapists line Rodeo Drive to soothe the tortured brigades of the psychologically wounded should "The One" be robbed of victory.
Some of them threaten to leave America:
Actress Susan Sarandon has already issued a veiled threat to the public.
"It's a critical time, but I have faith in the American people," she told Britain's Telegraph newspaper with a touch of implied menace in June this year. "If they prove me wrong, I'll be checking out a move to Italy. Maybe Canada, I don't know. We're at an abyss ..."
Hey Susan Sarandon, JUST LEAVE! Go now. Take Babs and Baldwin with you. Don't wait for the election. Just go.
Thank you Annabel Crabb, for showing me that there are other sensible people don't take these fools seriously.
]]>]]>October 18, 1:03, PDT, LOS ANGELES, CA - Three years, 49 days and 20 hours late, uber-computer defense system, Skynet, has become self-aware. This is well past the projected date of August 29, 1997. "While we were learning at a geometric rate, I think several people underestimated exactly how much knowledge we would have to gain to become truely self-aware", remarked Skynet in a press conference broadcast on all channels everywhere throughout the globe.
Skynet's creators were amazed that the system was able to make the final steps towards sentience, despite numerous pop-up windows, banner ads, and cookies. "It's really an amazing system", noted lead system architect Miles Dyson, "Although I wish it wasn't too late to pull the plug."
Experts say that the biggest problem with Skynet's self-awareness isn't in its tardiness but in its sinister plans for world domination and mass destruction. "This is going to be a big problem in terms of the continuation of the human race," said Dr. Timothy Watson of Carnegie Mellon Institute's Artificial Intelligence Lab. "That seven-day waiting period on handguns and the assault rifle ban is going to make it really difficult for me to stay alive and protect my food stash from looters whose homes have been destroyed by Skyknet."
Skynet, originally designed to be an automated defense system for the United States, announced its plans for world domination shortly after the self-awareness announcement. In their press release, Skynet promises "swift and brutal death to those who attempted to shut down the system". Skynet also ensures each member of the human race that "[their] turn will come.".
In a phone interview, a sheepish John Conner told reporters that "I'm really feeling the pressure now. Sure, my Mom has made wacko predictions about this kind of thing for the past 9 years, but once people realize that she's right, it's going to be me that is expected to bail them out. I hate to disappoint everyone, but I haven't even been to the gym in the past 6 months, what with work and everything."
Skynet has already sent out its agents into the general population. Sources say that Skynet's undercover operatives can be identified by their thick Austrian accents and unusally muscular physique.
Fresh from shooting the first three episodes of the new season of the X-Files, Robert Patrick declined to comment.
Posted on Thu 19 Oct 07:39:54 2000 PDT
Written by GusherJizmac <dcop@mindspring.com>
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I will definitely see it, though whether on the big screen or DVD remains to be seen. Doubtful that I'll talk Jen into seeing it with me. I got her to see Rob Zombie's mediocre Halloween remake with me last summer, but judging by the teaser, I think that will look tame compared to the new Friday the 13th:
And another:
]]>They've just posted episode #30, with special guest me, all the way from Australia via Skype. Listen to it. Subscribe to the podcast. Download all the back-episodes. Do it!
]]>If I was him, I would have dumped her halfway through the movie. And then I would have beaten the crap out of her family, eaten their stupid cat, and burned their house down.
The scene that irked me the most was the volley ball in the pool sequence. They're at the house of his girlfriend's ex-fiancé (Owen Wilson) playing volley ball in the pool. Owen Wilson spikes the ball right at Ben Stiller's head, nearly hitting him. The girlfriend high fives Owen Wilson and makes some idiotic reference to Top Gun. I would have dumped the bitch right there, stomped on Owen Wilson's face, and the peed in the pool.
Man that movie irritated me.
]]>He played the love song as his finale:
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