Parity Violation

Are Mac fans super gullible? The other day, I found this post at Mac Vista claiming that someone had screenshots of MacOS X 10.5, aka “Leopard.” Mac Vista linked to this blog posting which hosted the actual pictures.

This is just some blog. Not a Mac Rumor site with a history of having some previously accurate scoop or inside sources at Apple. There were no text on where these pictures came from or how they were obtained. As I posted on the Mac Vista site’s comments, they seemed like fakes to me.

The blogger admitted they were fake the next day and even said how they were made, using Photoshop and other means. Ok, he had his fun. Great.

But the amount of attention this guy got for his trouble is astounding. And people believed him! One listed several reasons why they might not be fake. Another just reports them as if they were legitimate. MacUser calls them probably fake. Ars Technica calls them alleged but not terribly skeptical.

In fact, if you notice from my comment on the Mac Vista sight I think they’re fake but even I hedge and say I could be wrong, though in retrospect they’re obviously fake. Why are we so willing to believe something even if it’s from a total non-authority? Who knows. Someone should write a sociology paper on the Macintosh Web.

Well, some of you might remember a brief flirtation I had with running a while back. I even bought nice running shoes. And yet, here we are like a year later and I’m no runner.

I really just want to run because it seems like an easy way to improve my fitness. I may be thin, and I’m a reasonably fast sprinter, but I’m no distance runner. And by “distance” I’m talking like a mile. :)

Anyway, so I’m again trying to implement this couch to 5K plan. I have a new system now though. I skipped ahead to week 2, where I’m supposed to run for 90 seconds and walk for 2 minutes. But who wants to look at a watch or a stop watch? Not me.

So, I created a special playlist in iTunes for my iPod that alternates 90 second long tracks with 2 minute long tracks. Fortunately, with my vast collection of classical music, this is actually possible. And since today is Friday, I now present the not-so-random sixteen tracks. (28 minutes total)

1. Grainger, Percy - Lincolnshire Posy
   The Brisk Young Sailor/Lincolnshire Posy- Fennell, Frederick. Cleveland Symphonic Winds. Various composers
2. Bernstein, Leonard - Mass - Bernstein
   In nomine Patris- Bernstein, Alan Titus, the Norman Scribner Choir and Berkshire Boy Choir
3. Bernstein, Leonard - Mass - Bernstein
   Prayer for the congregation- Bernstein, Alan Titus, the Norman Scribner Choir and Berkshire Boy Choir
4. Bernstein, Leonard - Mass - Bernstein
   Antiphon: Kyrie eleison- Bernstein, Alan Titus, the Norman Scribner Choir and Berkshire Boy Choir
5. Prokofiev, Sergei - Alexander Nevsky Film Score
   II. The 13th Century- Temirkanov - Gorohovskaya - St. Petersburg Philharmonic
6. Bernstein, Leonard - Mass - Bernstein
   Trope: ‘I Believe In God’- Bernstein, Alan Titus, the Norman Scribner Choir and Berkshire Boy Choir
7. Rimsky-Korsakov - The Essential Canadian Brass
   Flight of the Tuba Bee- Canadian Brass
8. Mahler, Gustav - Des Knaben Wunderhorn
   Wer hat dies Liedlein erdacht- Popp, Weikl, Tennstedt, London Philharmonic
9. Shostakovich, Dmitri - Ballet Suite No. 1
   II. Dance- Jarvi/Scottish National Orchestra
10. Bernstein, Leonard - Mass - Bernstein
    Offertory (De Profundis, Part 2)- Bernstein, Alan Titus, the Norman Scribner Choir and Berkshire Boy Choir
11. Grainger, Percy - Lincolnshire Posy
    Lisbon Bay/Lincolnshire Posy- Fennell, Frederick. Cleveland Symphonic Winds. Various composers
12. Schoenberg, Arnold - Five Pieces for Orchestra
    I. Vorgefuhle- Dorati - London Symphony
13. Shostakovich, Dmitri - Suite From ‘Katerina Ismailova’
    IV - Allegretto- Jarvi/Scottish National Orchestra
14. Shostakovich, Dmitri - Ballet Suite No. 3
    V. Waltz- Jarvi/Scottish National Orchestra
15. Mussorgsky - Pictures At An Exhibition
    VII. Limoges. Le Marche- Szell/Cleveland SO
16. Shostakovich, Dmitri - Suite From ‘Katerina Ismailova’
    V - Presto- Jarvi/Scottish National Orchestra

Somehow, this columnist from The Age gets it all wrong when talking about Handbrake. Handbrake is a very handy program which converts DVDs to iPod-compatible video files.

The article implies you have to use Handbrake to convert the DVD once, then use iTunes “Convert Selection for iPod” command from the Advanced menu - encoding the video yet again. This is simply not true. Handbrake can create MPEG4 encoded (or H.264) video that works on the iPod directly. That’s the whole point of Handbrake. I don’t understand how this supposed “Mac Man” columnist could miss this key point, especially since there are several other web sites on using Handbrake to convert DVDs you own to your iPod.

Also, way back in April, the author of Handbrake made available Instant Handbrake which is dedicated to making iPod compatible files.

Update - Instant Handbrake seems to make files much larger than necessary for merely viewing on the iPod. About twice as big, really. So, I’d suggest sticking with Handbrake.

Caveat - Handbrake runs on Intel and PowerPC based Macintoshes. There’s some build for PC/Windows but from what I can glean from the forums, it doesn’t work quite as well.

Well, I’m on a roll. I figured something else out. The cell phone industry loves text-messaging and selling them and why? A text-message takes up like tiny fraction of the bandwidth of an actual voice call. I mean text is a few bytes, even one second of a phone call is probably in the kilobyte range. Yet, they charge $.10 a message for them. Or, $5 for 100 or whatever you plan is. Still, it’s a profit-center. Probably the highest cost per byte price you’ll ever pay.

I still pay 10 cents a message, because I never send/receive enough messages to make paying $5 a month worth it. I suppose some people have managed to get unlimited text-messaging or what have you. But if customers have unlimited night/weekend minutes and are texting instead - they’re saving the phone company millions.

So, I set up one of these high-interest rate savings accounts online. (You can get 4.5% ish, much better than the 1.25 or whatever I’m getting in my normal savings acocunt.)

I won’t say at which bank, since well, that doesn’t seem wise for some reason. But anyway, the entire process of setting it up was online - setting up the account, applying, transferring from my checking, verifying things - all online.

But now that the account is open and they have some of my money… I can’t log in. Not at least until I “register” after getting something via snail mail. I find that most bizarre. I mean, I have a user name and password already - why can’t I just log in immediately? It feels scam-like.

Update - it’s not a scam, I suppose sending me the account number via snail mail is some kind of security measure. Still, they take my initial deposit and then make it tricky to access the money for a while. Oh well. Other than this one thing, I’m pretty pleased with the online account.

Well, it didn’t take me long. I figured out why college baseball gets such scant media coverage. It’s basically a regional sport. Like college hockey. Quick, who won the Frozen Four last year? I bet you don’t know. Neither do I. I’d wager it was some midwest or north eastern team though.

Just look at the College World Series bracket. All southern teams or from the west coast. Why? The season starts in February and northern teams fields are still tundra, assuming they have a field at all.

So, the good programs are all away from big media markets like New York and Chicago and the sport is relegated to regional status and ESPN2*. It may not be fair, but that’s how it is.

* Several games this year will actually be on ESPN/ ESPN HD. In 2002, CBS carried the College World Series and stunk at it. They didn’t even have a post-game interview or show the trophy presentation. I’m very glad it’s on ESPN these days.

The Astros are turning it around, winning 6 of their last 7. Initially, I was going to write about how the Cubs pitchers are always hurt and the Cubs always stink and yet their fans act as if they’re the greatest thing and the press always write about them.

The Astros have been to the playoffs like 7 times in the last 10 years, the Cubs what, once? twice? Yet they get so much attention. Prior was hurt again this year already, Wood just had to shut it down. The Cubs are a mess, as usual.

Anyway, I was going to look to see who picked the Cubs to do well this year and then mock them because Prior and Wood get hurt every year. Wood’s career high season win total is 14. 14! This isn’t because he’s not talented but because he’s always hurt.

What I found much more amusing was looking at 2005 pre-season predictions. Take a gander at ESPN’s 2005 pre-season predictions.. Not one of these so-called experts picked the Astros to even make the playoffs. Exactly one person picked the White Sox to make the playoffs and he didn’t have them making the World Series either.

Or consider the geniuses at Hard Ball Times and their 2005 predictions. Here too we have not one person putting the Astros or the White Sox in the World Series. It doesn’t look like either make the playoffs according to these professional sports-writers.

I suppose no one gets fired for picking the Yankees or Red Sox, or in the NL picking the Braves or the Cardinals, but still. However you make your picks, you can’t do much worse than these paid-professionals.

On another matter, the Rice Owls made it the College World Series again. They’ve been ranked highly all season, so I hope this time the experts have it right. Their first game is this Saturday, conveniently at nearly the same time as the U.S. Italy World Cup game. That’s some unfortunate timing.

Still, in general, college baseball gets very little attention. I wonder why. Is it the metal bats? The fact that drafted players will spend much time in the minors before going to the MLB? I can’t figure it out.

The NCAA basketball tournament is similar, filled with tiny schools that most people have never heard of, and certainly who don’t have much alumni. I don’t get why the CWS is such a second-tier event. Someone explain it to me.

Pics from Jared and Claudia’s wedding are online. The trip was a lot of fun; I’m glad I went. It was a reunion of former Houstonians in a way.

So, a friend once complained about people’s blogs, basically saying something like he didn’t care what some random person ate for breakfast. Understandable. Hence, I’ve tried to post about stories in the news and such, and not so much about the day to day events in my life.

However, this post is sort of a mix. You see, I came across this NY Times article about fast food last week. Inspired by the author’s rave review of Dairy Queen’s Blizzard soft serve ice cream treat, I bought one when I was driving to see my family back on Memorial Day weekend. So, I guess one week ago.

I often stop at DQ on road trips for the Steak Finger basket but despite my childhood love of the blizzard, I hadn’t had one in years. I got the Chocolate Xtreme. My, it was good. On the way back home I stopped and got the Brownie Batter (last month’s Blizzard of the Month). Yesterday, I went entirely too far out of my way and had tried the Georgia Mud Fudge. You notice the chocolate-theme here. I think the Mud Fudge was the best of the bunch - though what with gas prices and the distance to a DQ from my apartment, I’m going to have suppress my urge to try the new cookie monster blizzard.

On another food related note - that I’m sure no one cares about - Gatorade made from powder sucks. It’s not near as good as the stuff you buy in the plastic bottles. It happens to be about half the cost, but I think the powder:water ratio specified on the packaging is off. I’m sure it’s still cheaper, even if I up the concentration but - I don’t think it’ll ever taste quite the same. I was hoping to cut my Gatorade costs but we’ll see.

Btw, Gatorade “Endurance Formula,” which I mentioned in a post a while back, seems to be fading from store shelves. The new “rain” flavors aren’t that good, in my opinion. Though I guess they’re less intense and they are more transparent, if that’s worth anything to you.