So I spent a fair amount of time in a 2008 Pontiac G6 GXP this weekend (as a passenger), and I thought I might as well give a little passenger-view review of the car.
It is sporty-looking on the outside, a pretty handsome car.
Getting into the car will be tricky for tall people (not me) or people with wonky knees (me) because the car is very low to the ground. Once inside the car, there is plenty of legroom in the back seat, however anyone above 5'4" (such as myself) will have to watch their heads, the roof is very low. Inside the car looks and feels cheap, lots of hard plastic doesn't help this. It also feels like you're inside a bunker. The windows are tiny, and very high up on the car.
The V6 version of this car feels pretty snappy on the road. Plenty of power. It also seemed to get pretty good mileage both on the highway and in the city. However, the ride (to put it frankly) sucks. Every bump, crack, nook, and cranny in the road is amplified making the ride quite jarring. Also, it is hard for the passengers to find a good "rest my head somewhere to sleep" position.
Anyways, I should be able to get another video up tomorrow, and hopefully my schedule will normalize a little this week.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Jazz Fest!
Well, sorry again for the inconsistent video uploads the last two weeks, hopefully things will normalize soon.
Anyways, the Beaches International Jazz Festival in Toronto is running this weekend, and I recommend that anybody in Toronto head down tonight, tomorrow night, and during the day on Saturday and Sunday. It is always a good time, and a nice chance to wander around a pretty nice part of Toronto.
That's all for me this week, have a great weekend.
Anyways, the Beaches International Jazz Festival in Toronto is running this weekend, and I recommend that anybody in Toronto head down tonight, tomorrow night, and during the day on Saturday and Sunday. It is always a good time, and a nice chance to wander around a pretty nice part of Toronto.
That's all for me this week, have a great weekend.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Euphemisms
I got thinking about euphemisms today.
About when my friends and I were getting our first jobs, we were "employees". You had a pretty good idea where you stood in the grand scheme of things. They were the "employers" and you were the "employee". You did menial tasks, dealt with angry, unreasonable customers, and if the place was in financial trouble, you were at the top of the list of people who would get cut.
Now, a couple years ago, I noticed that I was no longer an "employee", I was "Staff". "Staff" makes you feel a little better about yourself. Emptying garbage cans suddenly feels more important, because you're not just employed there, you're a "staff member". Without you, the place wouldn't run as well, the mighty staff to the rescue.
So today, I'm at an Ikea. And I notice that the employees, who might actually be staff, are now "co-workers". Sort of lets the people at the bottom of the food chain delude themselves a little bit more. They don't just work for the managers, they work WITH them! And of course the company will take care of you, because you are a co-worker! Not just some measly staff member, or (god forbid) an employee. And of course if there's trouble at the company, the management will take pay cuts instead of firing you, because you're a co-worker. Sounds almost equal. Like maybe they'd take the bus to work, and help you move pallets of furniture.
News flash co-workers. It's the same as being called "comrade". It's just a little title to slow down the realization that you are just an employee number and a time-sheet.
About when my friends and I were getting our first jobs, we were "employees". You had a pretty good idea where you stood in the grand scheme of things. They were the "employers" and you were the "employee". You did menial tasks, dealt with angry, unreasonable customers, and if the place was in financial trouble, you were at the top of the list of people who would get cut.
Now, a couple years ago, I noticed that I was no longer an "employee", I was "Staff". "Staff" makes you feel a little better about yourself. Emptying garbage cans suddenly feels more important, because you're not just employed there, you're a "staff member". Without you, the place wouldn't run as well, the mighty staff to the rescue.
So today, I'm at an Ikea. And I notice that the employees, who might actually be staff, are now "co-workers". Sort of lets the people at the bottom of the food chain delude themselves a little bit more. They don't just work for the managers, they work WITH them! And of course the company will take care of you, because you are a co-worker! Not just some measly staff member, or (god forbid) an employee. And of course if there's trouble at the company, the management will take pay cuts instead of firing you, because you're a co-worker. Sounds almost equal. Like maybe they'd take the bus to work, and help you move pallets of furniture.
News flash co-workers. It's the same as being called "comrade". It's just a little title to slow down the realization that you are just an employee number and a time-sheet.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Viacom Exceeds All Known Measurements of Douchebaggery!
Well, Viacom has extended their streak of douchebaggery.
After having the courts hand them all of YouTube's user information, they have started sending out a host of copyright ownership claims to YouTube posters.
Sure, if it's theirs, fine. But they're sending these claims to independent producers with no affiliation to Viacom. They're sending them to people who produce THEIR OWN videos. Videos that Viacom has absolutely no ownership over.
The video that seems to be getting the most attention is a cute short by Joanna Davidovich. (you can watch the video here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=0F-WQ9ReFJY ) Viacom is claiming it owns the copyright to "some or all of the audio and visual content". The problem is that Joanna made the short herself, and she actually has it copyrighted. Every distribution of it has been non-exclusive.
This sort of thing had never even occurred to me. While I figured Viacom would be up to no good with all the information, I never thought they'd try to steal people's videos. I hope the judge that gave Viacom information they never should have had feels like a huge douche.
After having the courts hand them all of YouTube's user information, they have started sending out a host of copyright ownership claims to YouTube posters.
Sure, if it's theirs, fine. But they're sending these claims to independent producers with no affiliation to Viacom. They're sending them to people who produce THEIR OWN videos. Videos that Viacom has absolutely no ownership over.
The video that seems to be getting the most attention is a cute short by Joanna Davidovich. (you can watch the video here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=0F-WQ9ReFJY ) Viacom is claiming it owns the copyright to "some or all of the audio and visual content". The problem is that Joanna made the short herself, and she actually has it copyrighted. Every distribution of it has been non-exclusive.
This sort of thing had never even occurred to me. While I figured Viacom would be up to no good with all the information, I never thought they'd try to steal people's videos. I hope the judge that gave Viacom information they never should have had feels like a huge douche.
Monday, July 21, 2008
iPod Touch 2.0 Hands On!
I got a little hands-on time with the iPod Touch today, complete with the version 2.0 software.
My opinion?
Brilliant.
I had actually never used a Touch, or iPhone, before so it was completely new to me.
The interface is magnificent. Intuitive, good looking. If this thing was a woman, she'd be quite the catch.
It also seems to have some sort of GPS thingy, that also tracks traffic and such. It was neat. I liked the touch keyboard, it was much easier than I thought it would be, but I think that it can go either way. I can see why some people would hate the keyboard.
Being a university student, I get a free one of these when I buy a laptop, so when I pick up a MacBook later this summer, I'll certainly grab one of these too.
My opinion?
Brilliant.
I had actually never used a Touch, or iPhone, before so it was completely new to me.
The interface is magnificent. Intuitive, good looking. If this thing was a woman, she'd be quite the catch.
It also seems to have some sort of GPS thingy, that also tracks traffic and such. It was neat. I liked the touch keyboard, it was much easier than I thought it would be, but I think that it can go either way. I can see why some people would hate the keyboard.
Being a university student, I get a free one of these when I buy a laptop, so when I pick up a MacBook later this summer, I'll certainly grab one of these too.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Tardiness, Zimbabwe, Batman (Batman is FANTASTIC!)
First I want to apologize to everyone for only getting one video up this week. It was just one of those weeks where time just disappears. But something occurred to me this week at work. Almost nobody cares about being on time anymore. I work at a day camp, which starts at nine in the morning (not an unreasonable time in my books). I understand that sometimes it can be hard (especially with kids) to get somewhere on time, but TWICE this week I had kids show up incredibly late. I'm not talking half an hour or anything like that, I had two kids show up FOUR HOURS late. Now one had to go to the doctor or something, so his parents called and said he wouldn't be there; but the other one, the parents didn't call, or even apologize, they just showed up with him 4 hours late. You know what? In the days when I went to day camp if I showed up 4 hours late, they wouldn't take me. They'd say to come back tomorrow. Now, I don't think being late is the problem in itself, but it is a symptom of one. To put it bluntly, a lot of parents these days are more concerned with their own convenience than with having a well-adjusted child. What sort of message does it send the kid when their parents don't see anything wrong with showing up 4 hours late for an organized program? It tells the kid that there is nothing wrong with blowing off appointments and showing up whenever they want to. I think this is only going to get worse, and it is going to lead to a generation of (even more) self-centered, self-indulging whiny people.
Anyways, in things that actually matter, Zimbabwe has started printing 100 billion Zimbabwean dollar notes. And they'll barely cover the cost of a loaf of bread. Zimbabwe is (or has) fallen apart as a country.
Oh, by the way, The Dark Knight is fantastic. Christian Bale is gruff and kid of wooden, but Heath Ledger is absolutely brilliant as The Joker. He really takes over every scene he is in, and the character veritably oozes evil. Ledger is fluid, the way he moves, speaks, it is all perfect, absolutely the best incarnation of the joker yet. It is really a shame that such a great acting talent was lost so young. One issue I have with the movie is that some of the fight scenes do suffer from the "shakey-cam syndrome" that has become popular in many action movies these days (Batman Begins had a far worse case of this). In some of the fight scenes, it is hard to tell who is winning, or even who is fighting. I wish Hollywood would stop this practice. Now, other fight scenes in The Dark Knight are pretty good, moving towards a more Bourne-esque style of fight; brutal, quick and a very focused lethality, while still being interesting to watch. Personally I think that the fights in the Bourne movies are pretty much the pinnacle of modern movie fights, and I hope that the next Batman movie moves farther towards that style.
Anyways, in things that actually matter, Zimbabwe has started printing 100 billion Zimbabwean dollar notes. And they'll barely cover the cost of a loaf of bread. Zimbabwe is (or has) fallen apart as a country.
Oh, by the way, The Dark Knight is fantastic. Christian Bale is gruff and kid of wooden, but Heath Ledger is absolutely brilliant as The Joker. He really takes over every scene he is in, and the character veritably oozes evil. Ledger is fluid, the way he moves, speaks, it is all perfect, absolutely the best incarnation of the joker yet. It is really a shame that such a great acting talent was lost so young. One issue I have with the movie is that some of the fight scenes do suffer from the "shakey-cam syndrome" that has become popular in many action movies these days (Batman Begins had a far worse case of this). In some of the fight scenes, it is hard to tell who is winning, or even who is fighting. I wish Hollywood would stop this practice. Now, other fight scenes in The Dark Knight are pretty good, moving towards a more Bourne-esque style of fight; brutal, quick and a very focused lethality, while still being interesting to watch. Personally I think that the fights in the Bourne movies are pretty much the pinnacle of modern movie fights, and I hope that the next Batman movie moves farther towards that style.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Mario Kart Jihad!
Well, I've decided that Mario Kart for Wii is absolutely awesome, and a terrorist plot. It's designed to keep otherwise productive, vigilant people stuck in their basements, where they can't stop terrorists.
Anyways, I got to make fun of another viewer in my video today. I don't normally do that, as most of my viewers are pretty smart, but the brain of the people who comment on my F#CK Bell Canada video seems to have been replaced with one from some sort of rodent. Except rodents are good at mazes.
Also, I came across a charity called Remote Area Medical (or Medicine, I forget) and they do a lot of great work, both in developing countries and in the United States. Check them out at http://www.ramusa.org (not .com, that goes to some company) Take a look, and help them out a little if you can.
Anyways, I got to make fun of another viewer in my video today. I don't normally do that, as most of my viewers are pretty smart, but the brain of the people who comment on my F#CK Bell Canada video seems to have been replaced with one from some sort of rodent. Except rodents are good at mazes.
Also, I came across a charity called Remote Area Medical (or Medicine, I forget) and they do a lot of great work, both in developing countries and in the United States. Check them out at http://www.ramusa.org (not .com, that goes to some company) Take a look, and help them out a little if you can.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
YouTube Musings
Well, so far I've been at the whole YouTube thing for about 6 weeks. And I like it. It's taking off way more quickly than I'd hoped, and I'm getting a much better reception than I ever thought I would. It's pretty neat seeing things speed up, too. It took me about 3 weeks to hit 10 subscribers, and then just 3 more weeks to hit 40. And it looks like I'll break 6000 views this week.
YouTube is an interesting medium to perform in, and probably the weirdest in my experience. In all my performing experience (as an acrobat, general funny-man, actor, back-up musician, featured musician, and solo musician) I've never done anything quite like this. In every other type of performance I've done, there is instant feedback from the audience, you can feel if they like what you're doing. And if they don't, you can completely change tack in the middle if you need to. Or you can just turn it up to 11. But on YouTube, I might not know for hours, if not days, how my work is being received. And I can't change it if it sucks.
So, I do plan on continuing my YouTube work, though as I'm working full-time right now, I'll just try to get 2-3 videos up per week, but I'm not promising specific days. I don't really have a long-term plan for the show (I actually don't even write a script) so I'm just going to see where it takes me. So far it certainly has been fun getting a little community started where I can share my views with people all over the world, and they can share theirs with me.
YouTube is an interesting medium to perform in, and probably the weirdest in my experience. In all my performing experience (as an acrobat, general funny-man, actor, back-up musician, featured musician, and solo musician) I've never done anything quite like this. In every other type of performance I've done, there is instant feedback from the audience, you can feel if they like what you're doing. And if they don't, you can completely change tack in the middle if you need to. Or you can just turn it up to 11. But on YouTube, I might not know for hours, if not days, how my work is being received. And I can't change it if it sucks.
So, I do plan on continuing my YouTube work, though as I'm working full-time right now, I'll just try to get 2-3 videos up per week, but I'm not promising specific days. I don't really have a long-term plan for the show (I actually don't even write a script) so I'm just going to see where it takes me. So far it certainly has been fun getting a little community started where I can share my views with people all over the world, and they can share theirs with me.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Let's All Hate Phone Companies
Well, Canada continues its reputation as the worst place in the world to own a cell phone.
First, Rogers Canada so far has refused to provide reasonable plans and prices for the iPhone, and insists on a world-longest 3 year plan, meaning that a Canadian iPhone customer will pay at least 2600$ over the life of the phone.
Apple has responded to this, in a way that I think is quite fair. Since they can't break their contract with Rogers, and no other network would run the iPhone 3G in Canada well anyways, Apple has done 2 things. Well, one certainly, and one allegedly. First, Apple has (allegedly) shipped some iPhones to Europe that were supposed to go to Canada. I think they're expecting slower than planned sales in Canada, as evidenced by over 50,000 people signing a petition to Rogers. The second thing they've (certainly) done is to refuse to sell the iPhone 3G in Canadian Apple Stores. Thats right, they're refusing to sell their own product. They are so pissed at Rogers that they won't help them sell the iPhone. Way to fuck up getting the most sought-after tech device of the year, Rogers.
But Rogers isn't the only asshole in the Canadian market. Being a big country, there's room for several. Bell and Telus announced that they will begin charging for received text messages. Including unsolicited, spam texts. So now their customers will pay 0.15$ to send a text, and 0.15$ to receive one. That might not seem like much, until you realize that so far this year Canadians have sent over 4 billion texts, and sent over 10 billion in 2007.
First, Rogers Canada so far has refused to provide reasonable plans and prices for the iPhone, and insists on a world-longest 3 year plan, meaning that a Canadian iPhone customer will pay at least 2600$ over the life of the phone.
Apple has responded to this, in a way that I think is quite fair. Since they can't break their contract with Rogers, and no other network would run the iPhone 3G in Canada well anyways, Apple has done 2 things. Well, one certainly, and one allegedly. First, Apple has (allegedly) shipped some iPhones to Europe that were supposed to go to Canada. I think they're expecting slower than planned sales in Canada, as evidenced by over 50,000 people signing a petition to Rogers. The second thing they've (certainly) done is to refuse to sell the iPhone 3G in Canadian Apple Stores. Thats right, they're refusing to sell their own product. They are so pissed at Rogers that they won't help them sell the iPhone. Way to fuck up getting the most sought-after tech device of the year, Rogers.
But Rogers isn't the only asshole in the Canadian market. Being a big country, there's room for several. Bell and Telus announced that they will begin charging for received text messages. Including unsolicited, spam texts. So now their customers will pay 0.15$ to send a text, and 0.15$ to receive one. That might not seem like much, until you realize that so far this year Canadians have sent over 4 billion texts, and sent over 10 billion in 2007.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
F#ck Bell Canada 2...The Beer Analogy.
Well, it seems I'm still getting some flak for my video complaining about my ISP, Bell Canada.
Frankly, it bothers me a little when the default attitude is "go call tech support" or "pay for more bandwidth".
I'll pay for more bandwidth if they give me what I pay for now and I still need more. I'm not paying extra just to get what I'm supposed to at this price point.
And there is no technical problem, Bell decided to slow my internet down. Besides, consumers shouldn't have to spend hours on the phone to get services that they've already paid for.
Think of it like this; you go to the store, grab a 12 pack of beer, and bring it up to the counter. You pay for it, take it home, and drink 2. The next day someone from the store shows up and takes back 6 of the beers.
You paid for 12 beers, but only get 6.
I pay for 3mbps, and rarely get 10% of that.
I have never passed my 60GB cap.
Bell never informed me that it was crippling my internet.
Bell continues to offer services with ever higher bandwidths (up to 18mbps), as well as opening an online video store at the same time that it is crippling my relatively low-end connection and claiming that it doesn't have any bandwidth to spare.
Bullshit.
UPDATE: Google has decided that Bell's throttling violates Canada's telecommunications laws, and has filed a complaint with the CRTC. Hopefully Google gets somewhere on this one, because Bell and the other big Canadian ISP's (Rogers, Telus) have pretty much said that they are playing "Fuck the Consumer" on this one.
If Canadian ISP's were prison, we'd all be reaching for the soap.
Frankly, it bothers me a little when the default attitude is "go call tech support" or "pay for more bandwidth".
I'll pay for more bandwidth if they give me what I pay for now and I still need more. I'm not paying extra just to get what I'm supposed to at this price point.
And there is no technical problem, Bell decided to slow my internet down. Besides, consumers shouldn't have to spend hours on the phone to get services that they've already paid for.
Think of it like this; you go to the store, grab a 12 pack of beer, and bring it up to the counter. You pay for it, take it home, and drink 2. The next day someone from the store shows up and takes back 6 of the beers.
You paid for 12 beers, but only get 6.
I pay for 3mbps, and rarely get 10% of that.
I have never passed my 60GB cap.
Bell never informed me that it was crippling my internet.
Bell continues to offer services with ever higher bandwidths (up to 18mbps), as well as opening an online video store at the same time that it is crippling my relatively low-end connection and claiming that it doesn't have any bandwidth to spare.
Bullshit.
UPDATE: Google has decided that Bell's throttling violates Canada's telecommunications laws, and has filed a complaint with the CRTC. Hopefully Google gets somewhere on this one, because Bell and the other big Canadian ISP's (Rogers, Telus) have pretty much said that they are playing "Fuck the Consumer" on this one.
If Canadian ISP's were prison, we'd all be reaching for the soap.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Viacom, Go Fuck Yourself
Well, usually I don't get too concerned when one company sues another, but Viacom's suit against Google/YouTube is starting to creep me out. Google has now been ordered by a judge to turn over to Viacom ALL its YouTube user data. Viacom wants to use the data to prove that copyrighted videos are viewed more than user-created videos. However, Google doesn't have to turn over just a list of what gets viewed how many times, they have to turn over over 4TB (yes, TERABITES) of user data. Viacom gets to see who viewed what, under what user names, and even under what IP address for those anonymous viewers.
I think I've made it pretty clear what I think is happening to privacy rights these days, but this is even more disgusting than many things I've seen recently. YouTube users from all over the world are having their IP addresses and viewing habits sent to a 3rd party, without their, or Google/YouTube's consent.
EDIT: It turns out that it is actually 12TB of data being given to Viacom, not a measly 4TB.
Kind of makes me wonder if Viacom is going to start trying to sue people who watched copyrighted material on YouTube for copyright violation. Hopefully Google will appeal this decision. This judge seems to be a total lunatic.
I think I've made it pretty clear what I think is happening to privacy rights these days, but this is even more disgusting than many things I've seen recently. YouTube users from all over the world are having their IP addresses and viewing habits sent to a 3rd party, without their, or Google/YouTube's consent.
EDIT: It turns out that it is actually 12TB of data being given to Viacom, not a measly 4TB.
Kind of makes me wonder if Viacom is going to start trying to sue people who watched copyrighted material on YouTube for copyright violation. Hopefully Google will appeal this decision. This judge seems to be a total lunatic.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Happy Canada Day!
Well, July first has come and gone, known south of the border as "three days before July Fourth", but up here in Canada it is Canada Day.
Thats right, 141 years old, without a civil war or falling apart as a country.
On a note completely unrelated to any current events (sarcasm), July first also happens to be the 150th anniversary of Darwin publishing his theory of evolution.
So, Happy Birthday Canada, 141 years, and you hardly look a day over 120.
Thats right, 141 years old, without a civil war or falling apart as a country.
On a note completely unrelated to any current events (sarcasm), July first also happens to be the 150th anniversary of Darwin publishing his theory of evolution.
So, Happy Birthday Canada, 141 years, and you hardly look a day over 120.
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