Colbert reports on Goldblums Death
A Great reason not to take Twitter for everything on its Face!
| The Colbert Report | Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Jeff Goldblum Will Be Missed | ||||
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"American Nerd: The Story of My People"
From Simon & Schuster I received a copy of “American Nerd: The Story of My People” by Benjamin Nugent, and I will treasure it forever.
In my following review, I’ll try to not give too much of the book away because it was very enjoyable to read…
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The first chapter establishes two types of nerds:
those who are by choice, behaviour, and/or interests…
and others who are forced into the classification by social labeling and catagorizing.
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After describing some basics of nerdiness, Nugent examines various types of nerds:
(page 128)
“…the nerd receives his calling from God or nature…the nerd is incapable of selling out.”
Those who appreciate medieval culture…
Fake nerds (and why they would choose to pretend to be)…
(page 142)
Asperger’s syndrome may cause behaviour that is deemed nerdiness…
[I have never been diagnosed for this, but from all I’ve read of it, it would explain a lot of my life. Some of my kids have been diagnosed with (some) autism…]
(An Author’s Note states that some names may have been changed to protect privacy.)
There’s a chapter (page 111) about a guy Nugent knew in high school, Darren, that proves that some choose nerdum to escape uncomfortableness in their life. (I can relate to Darren.)
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An interesting passage to me is found on page 20, in the second paragraph, where Nugent addresses our/nerds preferences for people to “say what you mean, mean what you say”. There are times in my life where I’ve been considered to be too literal: I hate the phrase, “wait a second”.
Rather than participate in social gaming, and needing to decipher signals that are being sent, we/nerds prefer obvious communication.
I remember the many “pick-up lines” I’ve never had…the closest I’ve ever been able to come to flirting is: “I’m going to bed…you are welcome to join me.”
(Page 53)
Nerds tend to be more rational and logical, than emotional; the general populace tends to be more spontanious and seek gratification before considering potential consequences and outcomes.
As stated on page 37, nerds prefer to focus on expertise and can prefer to be (in general) non-confrontational to social engagement.
When we do attempt to engage, where most flirt to show interest (as described on page 106): “…debate is something nerds to in order to meet other nerds they can hit on…”
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Historical figures who were probable nerds are proposed, and Nugent used some fictional characters to explain the evolution of “manliness” and its descriptive components.
When he compared “nerds” to “jocks” and referenced Skolnick and Urkel, I waited for Doc Savage (whom I consider to be a nerd and jock) to be mentioned. I was dissappointed…
He explains how the term “sissy” evolved, which should have been obvious, but I never thought about it.
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While expounding on nerdy characterizations on television he mentions the television show “Freaks and Geeks”, which I have never seen. I waited for a mention of “Square Pegs”, which I have seen and thought would be a similar comparison to his descriptions, but it was not. It left me wondering if he was aware of the show, or felt it did not apply…
(This book was written before The Big Bang Theory was on CBS.)
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His interpretation of ethnicities pleasantly surprised me. I had never taken into consideration that some traits are due to culture. There is a probable reason those of Jewish decent seemed to read at an early age (page 80), and why nerd culture appreciates Japanese techno-art (page 82).
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“American Nerd: The Story of My People” is available as an ebook.
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I strongly suggest you buy the book:
Add it to your collection because it’s a good read.
If you are a nerd, and/or know or love a nerd.
Maybe you will learn something about yourself and your peers…maybe others will learn about you…maybe there will be more understanding.
Buy the book, highlight the parts you feel appropriate, and (assuming the recipient can read) give the book to someone who doesn’t understand you, and you wish they did…or at least would try to understand you.
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I miss my slide rule…
2009 Xbox Project Natal Announcement
This looks awesome!
No Strings (or Controllers) Attached.Introducing Project Natal, a revolutionary new way to play: no controller required. See a ball? Kick it, hit it, trap it or catch it. If you know how to move your hands, shake your hips or speak you and your friends can jump into the fun — the only experience needed is life experience.
Ubuntu 9 on Steriods reviewed by Gandalfdjh & Mike-Linux-NL
Ubuntu 9 on Steroids
Super OS – formerly called Super Ubuntu – is a modified version of Ubuntu 9.04.
Besides being Ubuntu, it also includes:
Java
Ubuntu Tweak
Startup Manager
Better Internet experience with MSN, Opera, Firefox, Google Gears
Portable application available right out of the box – so to speak
Multimedia support – VLC, DVD-playback, MP3 and other codecs – improved
App Runner is included too.
System beep has been disabled
It has its own repository in addition to the official Ubuntu repository
Uses the commonly used KDE and QT libraries for easier deployment of software.
Has a live USB creator – cd2usb – To create a Live USB, just use usb-creator (already included on Super OS itself), or cd2usb (windows program: already included on the DVD)
Information:
Latest Version: 9.04
Live DVD and Install DVD (x86 – 32 bits)
ISO MD5 hash: 1aee96a429446c6d1b6337b52d249b33
ISO size: about 990 MB
Upgrading from Ubuntu (+ Kubuntu + Xubuntu) 9.04
- Install the Super OS repository
- Check for updates (type sudo apt-get update on the terminal)
- Install the package super-os (using synaptic or the command line: sudo apt-get install super-os )
- Done!
If you need help: FAQ
Download available at:
Mike-Linux-NL had the following to say about Super OS:
I am running Super OS also now, since a week, and I must say, that I really like it! Before switching to Ubuntu/gnome finally, I was using Opensuse 11.0 with kde 3.5 which I also tweaked out, so I had support for almost anything.
But on recommendation of a good friend of mine (wirelesspacket), I finally made the switch. In fact, I had to, since kde 3.5 is not included anymore in any new distro, and they will drop
support for it in a while. And I had worked with ubuntu before, so I knew what I could expect.
However, this Super OS was a good choice for me since a lot of packages were pre installed.
some of those packages were:
– skype
– amsn (msn clone)
– pidgin (multi IM)
and all stuff that is mentioned in Gandalfdjh’s post.
Rythmbox allowed me to add online radio stations, and they worked straight away. On my dad’s regular ubuntu box it does not work, so this gives an example of the extra features in Super OS.
Also VLC player is very good and supports almost every media file.
For myself, I encountered a few problems, like skype. PulseAudio still does not work right on every pc. but with a little workaround I removed pulse audio, AFTER I switched everything in the sound settings to ALSA only, and disabled system sounds. After a little sudo apt-get remove pulseaudio and a reboot, I had no issues anymore with skype.
For Twitter, I installed Gwibber, which has support twitter,identica, jaiku,rss etc. very good client.
All in all the migration from opensuse kde to ubuntu gnome was not that hard. after some tweaks in themes and wallpapers and other stuff, I ended up, having this desktop, with compiz fusion support, screenlets etc.
Please check out the screen shot of Mike’s: Screen 1
Both Mike-Linux-NL and myself hope that you find Super OS an operating system that will meet your needs. We recommend that you try it!
A recommendation: upgrading from plain ubuntu still causes some issues. the best option is a fresh install. Over wubi, it will not install the Super OS packages, we tried it out – so the best solution is a fresh install – its done within 30 mins!
Harris Interactive Poll says Blu-Ray adotion Lukewarm
While HDTV Resides in More Households, Interest in Blu-ray Remains Lukewarm
Few Likely to Purchase a Blu-ray Player within the Next Year
ROCHESTER, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–While Blu-ray was declared the big “winner” in the high definition format war last year, consumers may be slow to be part of the winning team. In fact, Americans are not jumping on board with any of the high definition DVD players. Just one in ten Americans (11%) own a HD DVD player while 7% own a Blu-ray player. Looking at the other devices for playing HD DVDs, 9% own a Sony PLAYSTATION®3 (which plays Blu-ray ) and 3% have the external HD DVD drive for the Xbox® 360 (which plays HD DVDs).
These are some of the results of The Harris Poll® of 2,401 U.S. adults surveyed online between April 13 and 21, 2009 by Harris Interactive®.
While slow to catch on, ownership of all these high definition disc players is up from May 2008. Interestingly, while Blu-ray was the clear “format war” winner over HD DVD, sales of HD DVD players (11% in 2009 vs. 6% in 2008) are up over 2008 by about the same margin as Blu-ray players (7% in 2009 vs. 4% in 2008). Both were rivaled by the Sony PLAYSTATION®3 (9% vs. 5%). However, only 3% purchased the external HD DVD drive for the Xbox® 360, up from 1% in 2008. There is no expected surge of interest pending — only 7% of non-Blu-ray player owners report a likely purchase of a Blu-ray disc player within the next year, down from 9% in May 2008
Ownership of HDTVs
Looking at high definition television sets, almost half of consumers now report owning a high definition television (47%), up decidedly from May of 2008 (35%). HDTV ownership rises dramatically with household income (27% for those with less than $35K vs. 62% among those with more than $75K).
Are Blu-ray Player Owners Switching from Standard DVDs to Blu-ray Discs?
On average, consumers purchased approximately 6 Standard Format DVD’s in the last six months compared with 1 in HD format (HD DVD .7 vs. Blu-ray .5). However, plans to purchase Standard Format DVD’s is down by half compared to past six month purchases, while interest in HD DVD’s (.6) and Blu-ray (.7) are holding their own. Notably, HD DVD format purchases reflect the continued sales of the HD DVD players within the past year.
When Blu-ray player or PS3™ owners are asked specifically about standard versus Blu-ray format purchases, the results suggest a mixed bag of behaviors with some price sensitivity indicated:
Only one quarter plan to switch to Blu-ray completely (25%), while one third of Blu-ray or PS3 owners claim that most of their movie purchases are now on Blu-ray format (32%);
Two in five are waiting for Blu-ray format prices to come down before they buy more (43%) – and a quarter buy Blu-ray regardless of price (25%); and, Only 1 in 5 appear to be replacing or duplicating their existing standard format DVD library with Blu-ray format (21%), and over a third say they only buy movies on Blu-ray format that they currently do not own on standard definition (37%).
So What?
In addition to financial issues that may be slowing consumer adoption, Milton Ellis, Vice President and Senior Consultant, Harris Interactive Technology, Media, and Telecom Practice added, “Blu-ray also faces competition from alternative technologies such as cable, satellite, and the Internet. Consumers today can easily watch high definition TV channels or use the Internet or video-on-demand to access high definition movies. In the near future, access to high definition movies may be a download or streaming delivery of one’s favorite movies to a home media server that eliminates the need for a Blu-ray player and Blu-ray disc. One thing is for sure, the market will be highly competitive and consumers will have a wide variety of choices for their entertainment experience.”
The Harris Poll® #63, June 18, 2009By Joan Barten Kline, VP, Research, Business and Industry Sector, Harris Interactive Methodology
This Harris Poll® was conducted online within the United States between April 13 and 21, 2009, among 2,401 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online. Full data tables and methodology are available at www.harrisinteractive.com.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.