And now…

…for something completely different

Extremely concise guide to hotel guides

If there are no pictures of the exterior then it probably looks like one of these :

If there are no pictures of the rooms then then they probably look like one of these :

Deleting Files ( on Windows )

Shift + Delete = Bad
Delete = Good

Shift + Delete = False sense of empowerment
Delete = Wise approach to one’s own fallibility

Shift + Delete = Lost forever
Delete = Still there when you need it

Shift + Delete = Old Fool
Delete = Old Skool

Shift + Delete = Clever road to utter madness
Delete = Becoming one with the universe

The only thing you need to remember is :

Home Entertainment Ramblings

A while ago we moved to our new house. At last we have the space and comfort we always wanted. And comfort is relative, since several parts of the house still need to be completed. But the essential things are there. Well the essential essential things at least.

One thing that we do already have is a new tv. I have searched high and low for the optimal television set. Plowed through endless lists of specs, prices and reviews. I also went to electronics shops to see for myself what the picture quality of some of these tv’s was really worth.

The result of the search was this tv :

I ordered it online, from Redcoon.be. Its price was unbeatable for this particular model. But do your own research before buying one, things move fast on the web. Just google for ‘<thing you want> price [|prix|prijs|preise]‘.

The next thing on my list was a decent set of amplifier and speakers combo. I didn’t really care for a specific setup like 5.1, 6.1, 7.1, plain stereo, biamp stereo,… It just had to be something relatively cheap – which rules out high-end receivers and speakers – and decent sounding.

And the results of the groundbreaking jury ( that’s just me in fact, there’s no real jury, I just made that up for effect, but I soon realised that this lie would not hold for long, so I just thought it better to confess right away ) are :

This device uses a technology that creates surround sound using just one speaker cabinet. Of course you need the subwoofer for the lows as well. Two features, simplicity and compatibility, made this device stand out from all the others.
It has been ordered, but not yet delivered.

So now that we have the two main devices sorted, the question poses itself : what to hook up to them? How to have a big collection of movies, music and photographs that is accessible from anywhere in the house?

Do I use small specialized pc’s? Or dedicated devices?

Do I buy a media streaming client? And a server? Or do I set this up with an old pc featuring Ubuntu? Or should I look at media disk drives?

Will I switch to Apples’s iTunes/iPod/Apple TV?

Every setup has its drawbacks and imperfections. It looks as if with current technology you should be able to make a setup that is perfectly suited to your needs, but whatever you think of, there is always a catch.

And the truly terrible thing is : whatever you eventually install, you’ll always have that nagging feeling that you did it wrong.

Next time I’ll ramble some more about possible setups and their drawbacks.

And what the hell is up with these expensive HDMI cables anyway? Don’t people realise that a digital signal is mostly an all or nothing affair over such a short distance? Either you have bytes or you don’t. The bytes don’t care about gold or nickel, shielded or unshielded, expensive or cheap. This is more than adequate.

Thank you America !

Bright red links do not invite clicks

If you want your links to be clicked, I guess you shouldn’t color them bright red. To me, this color indicates danger or need for caution.

So, without even thinking too much about this, I skipped the links seen in the picture. Then again, why would someone put links on their site that are dangerous to click. But still, pick a friendly color like green or blue or maroon.

Red Links

Chrome

What I like about Google Chrome :

• It’s very fast
• It has got a slick GUI

What I don’t like about Google Chrome :

• No fullscreen
• No smooth scrolling
• No mouse gestures
• No addons

So for me, I’m not ready to switch from Firefox, not by a long shot. And since Google Chrome is completely open source, I suspect Firefox’s Javascript performance will attain that of Chrome in a couple of releases.

New computer on the block

It happened in a shop near me. What I wanted to buy was an external USB disk, but while strolling through the electronics aisle, I picked up a box. In it was a thing of beauty, so beautiful in fact that I could not put the package down. It was 299 Euro. Only two-hundred and ninety-nine Euro for such an amazing piece of equipment. The thing I am talking about, of course, is the Acer Aspire One.

The box I held contained the Linux version of the Aspire. Which is just the one I wanted. There are enough websites where you can check the specs of this baby, so I won’t repeat them here.

I just wanted to share my impressions of this nifty little computer.And as far as impressions go, I must say that I am indeed quite impressed.

What I like about the Aspire One :

• It’s very small and light so it’s easy to carry in my backpack.
• It boots in about 14 secs. That’s fast.
• It has an Atom CPU, which is all the hype right now.
• The little mouse pad works very well.
• Same goes for the keyboard.
• The GUI works for 99% like Windows. Which is important since I’m used to that.
• It’s pretty fast for such a modest cpu.
• With some hacking you can install extra software, tweaking it to your heart’s desire.
• The screen is very good quality.
• The (W)LAN connectivity works without a hitch. ( note : WLAN did not work with my mom’s Dlink router. )
• You can write blog posts while watching tv, which is what I’m doing right now.
• You can impress other people by being the first to actually own one of these cool gizmos.

The moneymoon is still going on with this machine. I would recommend it to everyone. If you wonder what you are going to do with it, just buy one, and wonder no more.

Use it as :

• an extra surfing pc around the house
• a companion to a digital camera to unload pictures and do some basic processing.
• a computer for the kids
• a portable movie player
• a cool piece of kit to look at

It’s been a while since I have been so enthusiastic about a computer. These new netbooks are pretty revolutionary in that they use commodity hardware to provide a basic and low-cost computing experience. But at the same time, they are pretty powerful little computers. You can hook up an external mouse, keyboard and screen, so it can be used as a basic desktop pc as well.

I leave you with a picture ripped shamelessly off Flickr :

It’s those little things

Bicycles are pretty important in my life. I ride one to work every day. Sometimes I ride my mountain-bike in the woods, or even in the mountains when money is less of an issue. And very occasionally, when I feel I have something unprovable to prove, and too much time to spare, I take out the BMX and try to hurt myself.

So, I know something about maintaining a bicycle – though mostly just enough to get myself into trouble – and while I don’t expect everyone else to know as much, there is one thing that absolutely everybody should know about bike maintenance and that is : you must lube your chain, preferable weekly, but at the utmost ultimate minimalistically very least, monthly.

There is lots of stuff you can use to lubricate your chain.

This :

Or this :

Or even this :

( But not this :

)

And you can do it in several ways.

Like this :

Or like this :

Or even like this, and you don’t have to use the extension thingy :

And don’t bother with complicated stuff like wiping off the excess lube, like this :

By lubing your chain you will :

• Be able to use your chain longer
• Ride more smoothly and efficiently
• Not annoy me with a squeaking chain

To show how your efficiency improves with increased lubrication look at this graph :

Yeah I know, you don’t have to tell me, this is indeed great stuff !

Watch Weeds Every Day

A couple of days ago, a friend lent us some DVD’s, among which the – to me at least – unknown tv show called Weeds.

I didn’t know what to expect from this, as the picture on the cover made it look like it was a show in the fashion of Grey’s Anatomy. Grey’s Anatomy has received rave reviews all over the place but it really wasn’t my cup of tea. So, not expecting too much I started watching DVD 1 of Season 1 of Weeds.

Man was I ever surprised. This show is really good. The characters, the dialogues, the plot, … everything first rate. And apparently, the show was shot using only one camera. Pretty amazing if you take the numerous angle switches into account.
It is marketed as a comedy and that’s basically what it is, but it’s also so much more.

Season One and Two are completely consumed, and it seems that there’s a season Three out on DVD, plus they’re already filming season Four.

So, next time you don’t know what to get your girlfriend for some present inducing occasion, get a couple of Weeds DVD boxes. Success guaranteed.