Will's Semi-Regular Rant Google Group

[Will's semi-regular rant] Party Gone Out of Bounds

2006-06-05T18:47:15Z

Stardate 1988 Coordinates: Pacifica, CA Party at Tim Markowitz’s (aka Dolphin-boy) This ranks among the craziest Animal House type parties that ever took place. At least in our small town, anyway. I’ve been to a few wild parties in my time and this one still stands out as the best and worst party ever. We were mostly juniors and seniors in high school, and Tim’s family had gone to Hawaii for a couple weeks. Now, Tim was a good kid, a straight-A “smack”, and could have been trusted to stay home alone. The original intention was to just have a few friends over…but word got spread around Terra Nova H.S. that there was going to be a Partius Majorus at his place. I think it took place on a Saturday night but it’s been a long time and I can’t remember the details all that well. There may be some factual errors in this story. Whitey, if you ever come across this post, feel free to correct me! I figure between 150-200 kids must have shown up. They had a large three-story home which was well packed with people inside and outside in the backyard, too. Alcohol flowed freely…seem to recall those punch bowls filled with random liquor stolen from parents. Kegs. Plenty of green stuff to go around (hey it is the San Francisco area…what did you expect?). It seemed like everyone was well behaved at first, but within a few hours there was plenty of collateral damage. There was one fight; some stoner got punched in the nose by a jock and blood spattered on the wall like a Pollock painting. Flower pots were overturned and their water & soil nutrients got ground into the carpets. Blinds were ripped from the window frames. His parents had an elevated Jacuzzi tub in the master bath; it got filled to the point of overflowing and soaked the floor underneath. Someone clogged a toilet and that overflowed too. Students were throwing anything that wasn’t bolted down (garbage, toilet paper rolls that turned into streamers, etc) off the balcony and into the neighbor’s yards. The cops came out two or three times to try and break things up, the last time they paid us a visit I was hiding in the backyard bushes with other kids while Sergeant McGruff searched the house. Their flashlights bounced in the windows and scanned around the backyard looking for us delinquents. It was cold, damp, and foggy in Pedro Point (quarter mile from the ocean), as usual. They probably succeeded in shutting things down at that point. We were scared to come back inside for a while. It wound down in the wee hours of the morning, after the ruffians were expelled, then we all hung out Breakfast Club style and bullsh!tted for a while. We got maybe a couple hours of sleep by crashing on the floor. The worst part was the aftermath. We were all hung over and our bodies were useless. I helped clean up the following day, but it was overwhelming. Probably five to ten true friends stuck around to help, but it was way too much for us kids to handle. I helped clean up the neighbor’s yards (that was the Walk of Shame) and hauled bags of trash and bottles to the recycling center (who remembers the Bat-mobile?). Rented a carpet cleaner, but it didn’t help much, we needed professional help. There were a few days left to get things in order before his parents got home, but there was only so much we could do to make the house presentable. Water damage to the floors was way beyond our capability to fix. The punishment? Tim had to pay his parents back for the repairs by doing various jobs around the house they assigned to him for about a year. I don’t recall seeing him for quite a while afterwards, he was pretty much grounded and doing that pay-back work all the time. Was it worth it? Sure, I suppose it was!

[Will's semi-regular rant] Tivo Series 3, please come rescue me

2006-05-17T18:21:43Z

From the Hell that is a Scientific Atlanta 8300HD DVR. Time Warner Cable. My God, this thing is terrible. It is so flaky, I can’t rely on it to record my favorite shows, sometimes they just don’t get recorded, or get cut off 2/3 of the way through the program. Or just deletes recorded programs on its own, even though there is plenty of hard drive space. You can’t look up a show by title, other than picking the first character. Keywords – nonexistent. Tivo will often record a show it thinks you might like based on past recording history or keywords, which often lead to great programming being recorded that I otherwise would not have picked to record. I used to catch a lot of obscure documentaries and educational programs that way. Forget about it with this DVR, it only records what you tell it to. The user interface is so cumbersome and ugly you would think the engineers didn’t graduate from high school. It’s pretty embarrassing compared to a Tivo box. You would think since DVR’s have been widely available for about 6-7 years now, that someone would be able to come closer to emulating the Tivo experience. Anyway, since I have an HD TV, and gave up my HD DirecTivo by switching to cable, I am eagerly waiting for Tivo to come out with the Series 3 box which can record HD broadcasts. I don’t know why it is taking so long to come to market, they should have released this mythical box at least a year ago. I want it now!!

[Will's semi-regular rant] Shame on you, Michelin!! (USGP con)

2005-06-19T19:37:55Z

And a secondary shame on you to the F1 teams running Michelin tires,,,you had choices available which would have allowed you to compete in the race. You should have swapped tires at the first pit-stop opporunity and dealt with the penalties.(For non F1 fans - Michelin just made a debacle of the US Grand Prix in Indianapolis)Michelin can't make a tire to handle turn 13 at Indy ? That is friggin' ridiculous. They have budgets in the millions of dollars just to produce tires for F1, not to mention their passenger tire R&D. Just because a couple tires blew out in practice doesn't mean they were all bad either. They could not tell conclusively why the tires failed. Could have been the car setups too. If they just lowered the downforce a bit that could have made all the difference in the world. I'm sure between the team engineers and the tire mfg. they could have come up with a better solution than boycotting the race.I don't think the FIA or Ecclestone is to blame at all. Why should they compromise the race by slowing down turn 13 with a chicane or allowing the teams to switch all their tires before the race? Rules are rules. If Ferrari came to the race with a bad suspension piece that wouldn't allow them to run at full speed, they wouldn't listen to their request to slow the track down. Bottom line is that Michelin really screwed this one up. I hope their passenger car tire sales suffer for this. They owe the F1 fans a big apology. F1 is just starting to take off in America, and this is a big setback. --Posted by Will OConnor to Will's semi-regular rant <[link]> at 6/19/2005 02:22:00 PM

[Will's semi-regular rant] Don't Panic! (Or Apple's switch to Intel)

2005-06-10T21:16:32Z

Long time, no post. Of course everyone knows about Apple's gargantuan announcement this week that they are dumping IBM/Motorola (about time). IBM has missed so many processor speed increases and failed to provide enough chips when they were sorely needed. I am actually glad to see Apple making this move. Intel is obviously a leader in the CPU market and already has chips that are way faster than anything in the IBM pipeline. Far as I am concerned, Apple can use anyone's processor as long as the speed is faster, they make the transition smooth (looks like it should be no problem to re-code the software) and they don't mess with the OS/interface. I, along with many other Mac users, have been patiently waiting for the mythical Powerbook G5, but it was starting to look like we would be leaping over rainbows on our unicorns before that ever happened. Intel will pave the way for an affordable and faster Powerbook which is great news for us. And this should make for even better compatibility with Windows software since it will be running on essentially the same architecture. I don't see much to lose on this deal, we're going to have cheaper and faster Macs that should be able to run Windows software too. Why wouldn't everyone want to buy in on this? Even the Windows user has something to gain...you could boot up into XP to play that game that is not available on the Mac, then re-boot into OS X to surf the web with no fear of catching a virus. Better yet, you might be able to run both Windows and Mac simultaneously (I'm sure someone will figure out a way to accomplish it). I'm ready to buy a PowerIntelMacabook...so bring on the goods. --Posted by Will OConnor to Will's semi-regular rant <[link]> at 6/10/2005 04:16:20 PM

[Will's semi-regular rant] Top 10 things to do with my vegetative body

2005-04-11T13:02:27Z

If I should ever wind up in a vegetative state, I would like a minimum of 5 of the following 10 activities to take place before you pull the plug on me. Hopefully one of these will jolt my brain back into action. If not, at least you tried. Don't starve me though, I'd prefer a lethal injection.(In no particular order)1. Take me on a roller coaster ride. Please strap me in real good since I won't be able to brace myself.2. Toss me out of an airplane. Well, strapped to the back of a tandem instructor, anyway. Someone's gotta pull the ripcord. Unless they have a parachute that opens at the required altitude, then you can kick me out of the plane solo.3. Get me a ride-along in a 2-seater Indy car. I think they have one at the Las Vegas speedway.4. While in Las Vegas, prop me up in front of a slot machine. I'll bet nobody notices the unresponsive zombie until I start drooling on the machine. If I happen to get a jackpot, you can keep the winnings.5. Another ride along : In a stunt bi-plane. They have one here at the Addison Airport. I want to do a barrel roll and a loop. Please don't kick me out of this plane, they don't fly high enough to use a parachute. Alternate mission: Land me on an aircraft carrier with "Mission Accomplished" banner.6. I want to see all 6 episodes of Star Wars in a row at a nice movie theater. At least I won't have to worry about my butt getting sore from sitting so long, I won't be able to feel it.7. Wheel me up to the top of the Empire State building. I didn't make it there on my trip to NYC.8. I'd like to watch the Monaco Grand Prix from a yacht in the harbor. 9. If space travel is feasible at the time, send me up in a sub orbital Virgin Intergalactic flight. Or to the moon and back.10. Use me as a prop in a haunted house. Or as a scarecrow. Just don't let me get sunburned or let birds poke my eyes out. --Posted by Will OConnor to Will's semi-regular rant <[link]> at 4/11/2005 08:02:20 AM

[Will's semi-regular rant] If you must kill me, please make it quick

2005-03-23T18:27:22Z

This whole Terri Schiavo fiasco is driving me nuts. I have really mixed emotions and no clear answers on this one, I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way.I can agree to some extent with both the parents and the husband. I know technically she is in a vegetative state, but how can anyone be sure that a cure could not be found in the future? Well, if the republican "numb nuts" would allow stem cell research, there would be a much higher chance of ever finding a cure. If stem cells could jump-start brain cell growth, reconnect nerve connections, etc., maybe there would be some hope. As it stands right now I don't see her ever coming out of her present state. But let her survive a few more years, once we get some progressive thinking back in the White House, and maybe there is a slim chance for improvement or recovery. At least there is a one in a million chance, if she dies then there is obviously no way to bring her back.I think the parents should have some decision-making rights here. They gave her life, so they should have some input, no matter that she is/was married. If there was a unanimous decision between the parents and husband to end her life there would be no issue here. If congress wants to butt in and start passing laws, then make a law requiring that families be united in making these type of decisions. I think most families in this situation would agree to euthanasia, but if the parents want to hang on to a glimmer of hope, I don't see any harm in keeping her alive (I sure hope they are paying the medical expenses, I'd hate to think that somehow taxpayers are getting stuck with the bills). If it was my son or daughter, I wouldn't want the spouse's decision overriding mine, unless I agreed the case was truly hopeless. IS there no more humane way to let her expire though? This whole starvation thing is kind of disturbing. They say she has no feelings/emotions but surely there is a better way to die peacefully. No water seems pretty cruel too. I just wish people would make a decision here and get this over with. Either let her live, or use a lethal injection. That would be more dignified. And let's get the laws straightened out so this doesn't happen again. Legalize euthanasia too... --Posted by Will OConnor to Will's semi-regular rant <[link]> at 3/23/2005 12:27:21 PM

[Will's semi-regular rant] Apple Buying Tivo? Film at 11...

2005-02-23T23:14:44Z

This is a match made in heaven. Sure hope it comes true. I will chime in with some more thoughts on this in a bit! --Posted by Will OConnor to Will's semi-regular rant <[link]> at 2/23/2005 05:13:00 PM

[Will's semi-regular rant] PalmOne - Treo 650 vs. Treo 300

2005-01-26T14:59:25Z

In case you are on the fence, this is the most worthwhile upgrade I have made in a long time. I had a Treo 300 for the last two years (I won it on a CNET radio contest!!) and had to put up with many of its flaws, which are completely solved with the 650. Where the 300 was basically a palm pilot with a phone hacked into it, the 650 is designed from the ground up to be a phone first, with the nice addition of Palm OS thrown in. It is an example of fine engineering, much better design than the 300. The 300 actually feels like a toy in comparison. If you are still using the 300, please run out and get the 650. I wouldn't be tempted by discounts on the 600, it probably isn't worth it, you are going to get a whole lot more out of the 650. Note to Sprint customers - Sprint doesn't advertise this very well, but if you have had the same phone for 18 months and your payment history is good, you can get a $150 rebate when upgrading your phone.Problems w/Treo 300 that are fixed on the 650: - You won't lose internal memory if you let the battery run down. This has the be the biggest problem with the 300. - Many 300's were afflicted with a battery drain problem when roaming/ searching for coverage. I took my 300 on trips to California and New York, and was hit with this problem both times, which drained my battery, erasing all my phone numbers and installed applications. Frustrating to say the least, especially since I was away from my computer and could not reload data. 650 has much better battery life and will not run down when roaming. - Screen resolution - very lacking on 300. Try to read a (Mapquest) map on the 300 - pretty much useless, the graphics are all fuzzy and low res. Web sites are actually very usable on the 650, pictures and text very sharp, and web browser has a lot of nice features (Java, ability to download files, etc) - HotSync is much faster, used to take almost 10 minutes on 300, now takes about 1 minute. Probably due to the faster processor more than anything else. 312 MHZ is faster than a lot of old PC's. Great speed for such a small device.Cool features on the 650: - Listen to MP3's!! Comes with RealPlayer built in. It's not going to replace my iPod, but still a neat feature. - Bluetooth headsets - Expandable memory (SD cards up to 1GB are available, probably higher capacity in the future) - Lithium-Ion battery lasts way longer than the crappy NiCad in the 300. - Can access corporate email and VPN (who needs a Blackberry??) - Very user friendly interface, almost Mac-like. - Camera and Camcorder built in. Only VGA resolution, but takes decent shots. Camcorder records audio too, and is only limited to available memory. --Posted by Will OConnor to Will's semi-regular rant <[link]> at 1/26/2005 08:59:21 AM

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2005-01-01T19:32:39Z

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