• July 9, 2005

    The Fantastic Four

    the fantastic four

    3/5- It had its ups and downs. Another comic book movie, the fantastic 4 is about 5 people who go up into space to track a DNA cloud, the get caught in it, it alters their DNA to kind of fit their he 4 personality. The four good ones- Reed, Sue, Johnny and Ben- the one bad- Victor Von Doom. One day, disaster strikes on a bridge, the 4 are there to help out, they get their name….The group argues as stress mounts- ben hates the fact that he is a (the) thing, johnny loves his powers and he attention, Reed and Sue are just into each other. Von Doom becomes evil after he looses everything- his company, his money, ‘his’ girl. Some things were well done- for instance- the 4 really worked well together- there was good chemistry there which made for a better movie. It is no Batman Begins by far, but it is fairly close to the Spiderman movies- similar qualities- and this movie has some pretty cool special effects. The plot was there, there was reasoning behind it, the characters grew and changed throughout the movie- Ben the most. From start to finish, they realized what Johnny already thought- their powers were a gift, not a curse. The final fight scene could have been better, though it did show how well the 4 worked together, and the real power Sue has. If you are into comic books, i tihnk you will enjoy the movie. Later

  • July 5, 2005

    I am not this bad….

    So I read an article on Engadget stating that a clinic in China just opened for the internet addicted. Symptoms include shakes, unwillingness to work with others and insomnia. Despite what people tell you, I am not that bad…..Later!

  • July 2, 2005

    Why you should buy a laptop for college….

    I just read This- it’s entitled “Why you should not buy a laptop for college. Ok so this post isn’t why you should, but I’d like to help shed some light on the situation. I have both a laptop and a desktop. I built my desktop. I’m a computer geek. However, I find my laptop incredible useful for school and otherwise. Let’s take this guy’s post point by point.

    Price Issue: A laptop will cost considerably more then an equally matched desktop system… While this is true, most students should by laptops because they don’t need a really powerful machine. Something that can run MS Office (Word, Excel, etc.), AIM and a web browser (use FireFox) really should be sufficient. My laptop (Averatec Tablet PC) was $1300, is very small, and is currently running gAIM, Firefox, a notepad clone, Excel, Word, Windows Media Player and Adobe Photoshop as well as Gmail Notifier and Windows Updates. and it’s running fine. if your laptop breaks down you will nearly always have to send it to the manufacture to get repaired. That’s if you are still covered by the warranty… In my experience, the same thing will happen with a desktop. Most people are afraid of the inside of a computer and don’t want to deal with it. Depending on the damage, no matter what you have, you will b e sending it back. and ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS get the extended warranty. At best buy, it will extend it to 3 years.

    Portability Hype: Not all locations on campus will support wifi… This is true, so you will have to find out if you school does, and where. My school does and is expanding it throughout campus. And if your school doesn’t offer it, chances are someone living just off campus did no configure their wireless router correctly, and you can mooch off them. Sitting in a parking lot on campus, i found 16 WiFi connections. Also forget about using your laptop as a notebook… This one he’s pretty right about. But it’s good for those times where you want to bring it to class for other reasons, because you are giving a presentation or something- I’m a programming major, so I find that bringing my laptop to class helps sometimes. But, what our friend didn’t mention is those times you go home for the weekend or breaks. The Laptop is definitely great for this. You aren’t going to lug your desktop home for a weekend. It would take to much time and effort and probably not pay off. Also, those longer breaks- laptop breakdown is much easier. Since I am often in need of My computer- because of certain resources- I find myself bringing my laptop all over the place. Plus, Laptops are great for commuters who often spend the whole day on campus because why drive back and forth in between classes.

    Productivity Hype: Your going to be as productive as you want to me. He mentions online research and distractions- that is true. But you will be able to get the internet anywhere on campus. If you want to do online research at the library you can do it on their PCs, but it wouldn’t be a hassle to bring you laptop there and connect. Either way you will have those distractions, might as well be comfortable, web wise.

    Durability & Security Issues : hey are more easily prone to getting nicks, dents and scratches and a bad fall could just spell the end. Also unlike desktops, laptops are more likely to getting stolen or lost…. This is where being a responsible adult comes in. Keep an eye on your laptop, get an nice case for it for when it’s not in use and you will be fine.

    I hope this has been helpful and I would be happy to answer an questions on the issues for anyone. Just leave a comment or email me (Joe@Casabona.Org). Later!

  • July 1, 2005

    GAA

    So I think im pretty much done with uploading Pictures of Ireland. If you want to see more, you can view them from my friends’ webshots- here and here. If I find any more in the multitude I have, Ill post them. In a related story, Jen (the second link) got pictures developed from the Galic (GAA) game we went to. It was Dublin and Wexford in the Semi Finals. Dublin won. It was a Croke Park (same place as the U2 Concert) and teh atmosphere was incredible. 90,000 people going crazy, chanting and singing, and the sport is intense. It’s like a mix between Soccer (football) and Rugby, and some basketball. There are goal posts (1 point) and an actual goal (3 points). When Dublin scored a goal to put us ahead of wexford, teh crowed went wild. We were in Hill 16, the hill where the big Dublin fans go to cheer for their team. Its called Hill 16 because a battle against the British took place there and 16 Brits were killed. The game was a good time- I have never seen so much enery or so many blue jerseys being worn at the same time in my life. Later!

  • June 29, 2005

    The U2 Concert

    Bono

    The culmination of 2 weeks of fun, excitment and some boozing. 12 days after I arrive in Dublin Int’l Airport, 11 days after our first night out, 8 days after Sean’s party, 3 days after I saw the most beautiful country side, after months of waiting, I saw U2. And it was incredible. The stage, the lights, the energy. Bono and the boys know how to put on a show. They came on at about 8:50pm- it was still light out. The opened with Vertigo. They played for about 2 and a half hours. They closed with Vertigo. The middle was a barrage of emotion and music coming both from the band and the audience. Durring Sometimes you can’t make it on your own Bono took his shades off, went off stage, and sang with every ounce of feeling he put into writing the song- everything the inspired him. The cameras focused on him the whole time. You could feel connected to him. He knows what he is doing and that is why U2 is arguably the greatest band in the world. The emotion Bono put into the performance is only comparable to the energy. Durring Sunday, Bloody Sunday and Where the Streets have no Name the crowd exploded in a burst of energy resonating from the stage and the whole place errupted and we sang along with Bono. Durring 2 parts of the show, Bono pulled audience members up on stage- one to give her a hug as he sang to her at the edge of the runway- and one so he could play guitar with them durring one of the songs. 90,000 people witnessed what was probably those people’s lives changing. I mean, how many people can say they jammed with Bono, or Bono sang to you. Only a handful. After the show I was left speechless and breathless- I have never been so exhausted after a show in my life. If you ever get the chance to see these guys live, do not pass it up. Later.

  • June 28, 2005

    I am back…

    And there is a lot to talk about. The trip to Ireland was amazing, relaxing, and a lot of fun in general. It was a vacation as well as a retreat in some aspects. I had a good amount of time to myself to just think and clear my head. With no internet I wasn’t on the computer all that much- just to upload the 700 and something pictures we took. I created a Flickr account and will be adding more over the next few days. There we did the usual tourist stuff like take a tour of the town and country- which is beautiful- the rumors are true. The night life was nice- since we stayed with a friend, and some other guys showed us around to the good places. I found out reenforced what I thought already- I don’t like to drink all that much. Watching others and remembering is much more fun….most of the time. Sitting at the bar just talking was a good time- the clubs were ok- I look like a fool when I dance, and as a result don’t really like to dance. What I really enjoyed was going out to Wicklow County. There is one place- Guiness Lake- I could have stayed out there for days. Sitting on top of a hill over looking a lake and mountains with a nice refreshing breeze. I tried to recapture it in pictures, but they don’t even come close to being there. All in all it was a good trip and I’m sure ill probably post more on it some time.

  • June 12, 2005

    Ireland for 2 weeks….

    That’s right, in a couple of hours I’ll be leaving for the fabulous Dublin, Ireland until the 27th. I will try to post and make updates (as well as keep up with the internet and all the sites I read), but the only think I can promise is lots of pics and stories when I return. So, Later!

  • June 10, 2005

    How to drink a Guinness

    Well, I have to admit that I didn’t do any research on it, but in viewing LifeHacker, I saw How to drink a Guinness. I find it especially funny because on Sunday I leave for Dublin, Ireland- the Guinness Captial of the world. Later!

  • June 8, 2005

    Star Wars: A Reflection

    Mike of Binary Bonsai gave an excellent review Reflection of Star Wars, including his thoughts on Episode 3. I feel that I too should give a relection on the movies as a whole, as opposed to a haphazzard sort-of review. But I don’t have the time right now. I’d like too- but it would be in no way shape or form as good as Mike’s. His was heartfilled, meaningful, well written- worth the wait. Later.