DeckMonster.com - WTF?

I learned a new non-word today...

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:36:45 -0700

That word is: clbuttic.

Found this today on The Daily WTF (i.e. "Worse Than Failure" - a site for geeks to post "strange but true" programming stories)...

The Clbuttic Mistake

Browsing through a web archive of some old computer club conversations, I ran across this sentence:

"Apple made the clbuttic mistake of forcing out their visionary - I mean, look at what NeXT has been up to!"

Hmm. "clbuttic".

Google "clbuttic" - thousands of hits!

There's someone who call his car 'clbuttic'.

There are "Clbuttic Steam Engine" message boards.

Webster's dictionary - no help.

Hmm. What can this be?

HINT: People who make buttumptions about their regex scripts, will be embarbutted when they repeat this mbuttive mistake.

Took me a while to figure out just what "clbuttic" means, but I finally did.

Read more for the answer...
Continue reading "I learned a new non-word today..."

Welcome to the Midwest...

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:43:25 -0700

As the saying goes, "Welcome to the Midwest. If you don't like the weather now, just wait fifteen minutes and it'll change."

Case in point...

This graph, courtesy of Accuweather.com, shows the temperature readings here in Springfield, Illinois for the past twenty-four hours.

Let me summarize it for you... At noon today, the thermometer read 60 degrees and I went out to get lunch without a jacket. It was a little breezy, but perfectly comfortable. A few short hours later, the temp has plummeted to 15 degrees (-12 wind chill) and my ears are practically frostbitten as a result of the two block trudge to my parking spot.

That's a fricking 70 (SEVEN ZERO!) degree drop in wind chill, people! In about five hours.

Ugh.

The Scariest Thing About Cloverfield...

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 19:06:13 -0700

I just uncovered an extremely disturbing fact while browsing for additional Cloverfield information on IMDB...

The gorgeous young actress pictured here is named Odette Yustman. She plays Beth, the love interest of the lead character in the movie, but she's definitely not a newcomer to show business. In fact, Odette got her start in movies as one of the kids in the class of Kindergarten Cop.

I am getting so old.

UPDATE: If you've arrived here via Google, don't miss my other Cloverfield entry, which discusses the secret message at the end of the movie.

And You Were Worried About Global Warming?!?

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 20:19:36 -0700

According to the Peak Oil: Life After the Oil Crash Website, we have much bigger problems on the horizon...

Civilization as we know it is coming to an end soon. This is not the wacky proclamation of a doomsday cult, apocalypse bible prophecy sect, or conspiracy theory society. Rather, it is the scientific conclusion of the best paid, most widely-respected geologists, physicists, bankers, and investors in the world. These are rational, professional, conservative individuals who are absolutely terrified by a phenomenon known as global "Peak Oil."

The site argues (at length) that the imminent depletion of the world's oil reserves will have catastrophic consequences for the world economy and population. I'm not buying into the doomsday predictions at this point, but it's definitely an interesting read.

Stormwatch...

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 23:41:29 -0700

According to a recent CNET News Blog report, the Storm worm has infected and taken control of as many as 50 million computers world-wide. In fact, one security expert had this to say...

"In terms of power, the botnet utterly blows the supercomputers away." He goes on to say that just 2 million of the suspected 50 million Storm worm-infected machines are equivalent to the computing power of the top 500 supercomputers.

Yikes.

Go Phish!

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 00:30:21 -0700

Am I the only one getting spam-hammered (spammered?) by the ecard/postcard/greeting card phishing e-mails? These are just from today (and that's not all of 'em)...

I love the "worshipper" ones.

Vanguard: Saga of Zeroes

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Wed, 16 May 2007 19:44:41 -0700

It's something of an understatement to say that Vanguard: Saga of Heroes is a game that failed to live up to its high expectations.

Even prior to release, the game suffered from some "old school" (i.e. outdated) design choices and insanely high system requirements. However I believe the main reason Vanguard crashed and burned is beta testing, which the game desperately needs six more months of. It was rushed out the door buggy with a humongous but mostly empty gameworld. Unfortunately, the state of the game has lead to real-life repercussions for the employees at Sigil, who developed the game.

From F13.net a couple days ago...

Sigil employees were told to meet outside. At which point they were terminated. On the spot.

More details came the next day in this announcement from John Smedley, President Sony Online Entertainment...

Today I would like to formally announce that SOE has acquired the assets of Sigil Games Online, including Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. As a part of this acquisition, we are bringing on approx 50 people from Sigil in order to insure that Vanguard continues to grow. SOE is dedicated to making sure that Vanguard is well taken care of and that we provide the same level of service we do for our other titles. In the near future we will come out with a publishing plan that will largely be driven by the strong player community that Vanguard has already built up. We plan on supporting Vanguard for many years to come, and you can expect many content updates as part of your subscription. Down the line we will of course be coming out with new expansion packs, but right now the focus is on making sure Vanguard is running the way it should be.

The Grouchy Gamer has details on how the game might've arrived at its current state...

Brad McQuaid has been an absentee manager at Sigil for months. Not only has there been a leadership vacuum at Sigil, with the employees there left twisting in the wind, but I have been able to confirm that Brad hasn't even bothered to be at the office.

Since last year.

And finally, we get some dirt in a candid and fascinating F13.net interview with one of the disillusioned Sigil developers...

What people don't understand, is the game that went out the door was literally created in the last 15 months. Design worked 12-18 hour days for 9+ months. Coding and Art worked insane hours as well, all trying to actually get something playable out the door.

And also...

f13.net: How was QA treated through the course of development?

Ex-Sigil: QA?

f13.net: QA.

Ex-Sigil: QA was one person up until about November... ONE.

f13.net: What.

Ex-Sigil: 100% serious.

f13.net: What? How? This is an MMOG.

Ex-Sigil: Vanguard had one internal tester for probably 95% of the design cycle.

Unbelievable. My best wishes go out to all of the once and future Vanguard developers.

S.O.S. - Save Our Streams!

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 12:36:29 -0700

Pandora is a very interesting service... It is an online music site that asks about your favorite artists and dynamically constructs a custom radio station just for you. In addition to songs from the artists you selected, the site will analyze your choices and deliver tunes from different artists that (hopefully) also fit your taste. You can further guide the playlist by clicking thumbs up or thumbs down for songs you feel strongly about. If you're an impulse shopper, links are available to iTunes and Amazon to buy the current song or album then and there. Nice.

Unfortunately, Pandora and other online radio stations like it might not be available for our listening (and shopping) pleasure very much longer. The Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) has recently released a revised fee schedule for internet radio. For most Webcasters, this new royalty rate represents more than 100% of their total revenues. Left unchanged, these rates will force most independent internet radio sites to shut down. The RIAA has effectively convinced this federal committee to establish rates that make online radio a non-viable business.

A site called SaveTheStreams.org has been created to provide information on this issue and what we might be able to do to reverse this decision. An online petition is available, as well as links to snail and e-mail addresses for your local representatives in Congress.

Maybe together we can prevent big business from limiting our soundscape.

Fighting Illini - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 13:27:14 -0700

The Good

After a very shaky start to the Big Ten season, the Illinois men's basketball team has put together a decent 5-2 run in the past seven games, marginally improving their outlook to make the NCAA tournament at the end of the season. Of course, how well they play in the final five Big Ten games will determine their fate.

I will continue to do my part, though... I'm not the only one who has noticed that the Illini play better when I don't or can't actively watch the games. As soon as I turn on the game, they commit a turnover or do something else stupid. It's all my fault.

The Bad

For the past 22 years, any true fan who has ever attended a University of Illinois basketball or football game has thrilled to hear public announcer Jim Sheppard rally the fans with spirited calls like "It's a Threeeee!!!" or "First Down ILLINI!!!" in his signature booming voice.

However, on December 7, 2006, the University's Division of Intercollegiate Athletics informed Sheppard that they will "go in a different direction" after next year's football season and Sheppard's 22-year run will end.

WTF?!? I can't believe the U of I would basically fire Sheppard without any better reason than "a different direction." This Daily Illini article discusses the situation and I think echoes my opinion that Illinois is way off the ball here.

The Ugly

Coach Ron Zook and the Illinois football program should be celebrating a tremendously successful recruiting season, earning what experts are calling a top 15 recruiting class nationwide. Unfortunately, that very success is causing some losers, uh, I mean some coaches who lost recruiting battles, to bitch and moan privately, and not so privately. The New York Times published a literary masterpiece earlier this week titled "Illinois Has Rivals Fuming About Its Recruiting Coup", which seems to have ignited this controversy with its less-than-balanced coverage of the story. For a more news-worthy study of the situation, I suggest reading this Chicago Sun-Times article instead.

Now don't get me wrong... If there's proof that Illinois did something illegal in recruiting these kids, punishment should be swift and appropriate, and then we'll all move on to the next scandal. But I haven't heard anything so far that even remotely resembles a shred of proof. If this turns out to just be sour grapes, it'll give me even more reason to dislike a certain holier-than-thou midwestern university that has been named as the driving force behind these vague accusations. After all, having your very own national television deal isn't enough of a competitive recruiting edge, is it? No Doubt about it.

BCS = Better Change Soon

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 20:48:46 -0700

I am definitely not a Michigan fan. In fact, every time I hear that damn Michigan fight song (too often unfortunately when they play the Illini), I can't help but think of the alternate, highly unflattering version one of my roommates taught me back in college. But that doesn't change the fact that Michigan was one of the best teams in college football this season. In fact, I believe they were the second best team in the country and deserve a rematch with undefeated #1 arch-rival Ohio State. Instead, the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) will feature OSU and Florida in the Tostitos BCS Championship Game on January 8th.

Personally, I think Michigan got robbed, but that's not exactly what this entry is about... What I am ranting about is the BCS itself. Why is Division I-A college football the only organized sport I know of that absolutely refuses to adopt a playoff structure to decide the season championship? The answer, of course, is money.

The existing Bowl games and their inevitable sponsors have lots of dough invested in keeping the games where they are. To get an idea of how out of hand the current bowl system has gotten, take a look at this list of scheduled bowl games. C'mon, the "San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl"? All due respect to the fine folks who work at the San Diego County Credit Union, but that has to be the most ridiculous excuse for a Bowl game that I've ever heard.

What I don't understand is why the NCAA is so resistant to a college football playoff. Think "March Madness" at Christmastime. It would be huge. It would definitively answer the question of who is the best football team in the country every season. It would still be possible to have a number of Bowl games featuring teams that didn't make it into the playoffs. And at this point, I think it's just a matter of time before popular demand for a playoff system forces the NCAA to rethink the outdated and overcommercialized Bowl games. Can't wait!

BTW, I'm rooting for both Ohio State and Michigan to win each of their games by embarrassing margins.

You'll Get Yours, Black Bart!

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 22:46:33 -0700

Ten points if you can identify the gentlemen in the photo (click to enlarge)...

Hint: The weapon on the left is an Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle.

That's right! The guy on the left is none other than Peter Billingsley, a.k.a. Ralphie from A Christmas Story. Actor/director Jon Favreau is on the right. Jon is directing the Iron Man movie, currently scheduled for a May 2008 release. Ralphie, uh, Peter is co-producing the movie with Jon. The hardware are props for the movie (I hope ).

It's just a game!

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Sat, 12 Aug 2006 21:49:16 -0700

I read a very interesting article earlier tonight on the upcoming video game Spore, which was already featured in a previous blog posting. It gives more details about the mechanics of the game, which unfortunately isn't due to be released for another year (or probably more)...

The game will let players create a custom-built microscopic germ that can evolve into a macroscopic critter that can walk on land, build its own cities, and eventually discover the secret of space travel. One of the most intriguing features of this open-ended game is how it will focus on "procedurally generated content" -- that is, content that's created on the fly by the game in response to a few key decisions that players make, such as how they make their creatures look, walk, eat, and fight.

Sounds very cool.

However, this particular entry was inspired not by the article itself, but by the six pages (at current count) of reader comments following the article. Even that's not all that note-worthy given the hype and anticipation surrounding this game. What surprised me is that, because the game models an evolutionary process, a majority of this commentary is an argument of evolutionism vs. creationism, or more accurately an argument between a few anti-creation zealots vs. a few anti-evolution zealots.

Now, don't get me wrong... I absolutely agree that everyone has a right to believe whatever they damn well want to. One of my favorite quotes, attributed to Voltaire (or is it?) is, "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it". I think this is the epitome of the American ideal.

However, when a limited number of extremists on either side of an issue, any issue, control the dialog about that issue, that dialog can get loud and rancorous enough to interfere with my right not to give a shit.

For the record, do I believe in evolution? Yep. Do I believe it's the absolute answer to this particular question and that it precludes any and all other alternatives? Nope, I'm not that smart... I don't have those kinds of answers.

Do I have opinions on other issues that divide our towns, our states, our countries, our planet? Yep. Am I going to rant and rave in the vain hope that you will end up believing the exact same thing that I do? Definitely not. I simply ask that you extend me the same courtesy.

OK, I think I've gotten it out of my system now. I'll step off my soapbox and get you back to your regularly scheduled blog...

Marketing Brilliance

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 22:42:09 -0700

Ben and Jerry really know how to sell ice cream, and other products that make people want to buy ice cream...

Think about it, how long could you stand having your house smelling like this Waffle Cone Ice Cream Room Spray and NOT have a bowl (or two) of the real thing on hand?

Toto... we're not in Kansas anymore

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 22:07:16 -0700

Apparently Mother Nature is so not a soccer fan...

I wonder what that one was... F4? F5?

Square Melons?!?

dave@deckmonster.com (Deck) — Fri, 04 Aug 2006 21:53:39 -0700

No, I'm not talking about cosmetic surgery gone wrong.

Leave it to the Japanese to solve a problem that no one even realized they had. This story from the BBC tells how 20 years ago, a Japanese farmer came up with the idea of making a cube-shaped watermelon which could easily be packed and stored. The farmer grows the melons in glass boxes, which then assume the shape of the box as they grow. Today the cuboid watermelons are hand-picked and shipped all over Japan.

However, unnaturally shaped melons don't come cheap. Each melonoid (my word ) sells for around 85 bucks, equivalently speaking. For that kind on money, you should get a Geisha girl as part of the package to hand-feed it to you.