User Account Control Settings can get pretty annoying. Here is how you turn them off – or turn them back on.
My Control Panel -> User Accounts and Family Safety -> User Accounts -> Change User Account Control settings
Restart required.
August 24, 2009
Don’t Tread on Me – Kit and the Outlaws (lyrics)
This is my best attempt
People walking around on me
When they stomp my name in the ground
They usin, bruisin, try to confuse me
But I just don’t make a sound
I’m used to having an overload
Yeah
Carrying along my shit
But you sigh and cry and try to lie and think you just get in my hair
Don’t tread on me!
*Don’t tread on me!
Don’t you tread on me!
*Don’t tread on me!
I just wanna be free
*Don’t tread on me!
Don’t you tread on me!
NO! NO!
Child there are things that made me cry, things that I don’t quit understand
Like you go out with other guys but you see I’m your only man
Don’t tread on me!
*Don’t tread on me!
Don’t you tread on me!
*Don’t tread on me!
I just, I just, wanna be free
*Don’t tread on me!
Don’t you tread on me!
NO! NO! NO! NO!
Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t walk on it.
I need ya. I need ya loving. Now don’t you try, walk on me
Yall Don’t tread on me!
*Don’t tread on me!
Don’t, don’t you tread on me baby!
*Don’t tread on me!
I I wanna be free (?)
*Don’t tread on me!
No! No, don’t do it!
NO! NO!
April 26, 2009
Web Design is Dead
Dead, yes but don’t worry! Most freelancers and designers on small teams should not be in fear of job loss. You just have your terms a little wrong. A web designer is someone who creates the images for websites and the basic idea for interaction. They do not code (html and css) the design at all. That is your most basic definition of a web designer – they do nothing more than create the images.
What Killed Web Design?
- The clients
- They don’t know what good design is
- They are cheap
- Templates for CMS & PSD to HTML
- Gives potential clients custom, cheap attractive options
- The School Systems & Social Networks
- Too many people are learning the same skill
- Everyone thinks they are a “web designer” now
Embrace its Death!
- Don’t worry. You still have options!
- If you love what you do then nothing will stop you
- Keep learning
- Always work on something – look at open source projects or contests
- Help other out while tring to use or learn your new skills
- Ask for critiques of your work
- Get involved! – Network
Just because you should not be a web designer anymore does not mean you can’t still do it. You may enjoy being a user interface developer. A user interface developer does all the things a web designer does but a little more. A web designer does just the graphics while an user interface developer does all of that plus the front-end work for a web site. Front-end developer is actually coding what the web designer makes. This is usually in (x)html, css and some sort of javascript or javascript framework. They take the content given by the back-end developer and make it look pretty – which is what design should be all about.
Just being a web designer is not good enough anymore. In these tough times you need to work harder and faster to stay on top. For web designers that means learning new skills and becoming an user interface developer. It is not a huge leap but it is still a leap. Have fun!
If you are still curious about this subject please read My Job Went to India: 52 Ways to Save Your Job by the Pragmatic Programmers and the article Why Creatives Make the Best Progammers by The Denver Egotist.
April 4, 2009
Logitech Illuminated Keyboard Review
PRO
- Super sexy
- Back lights
- No glow leakage between keys
- Can adjust brightness (four levels)
- Thin (.37″) and small profile
- Full-size keyboard
CON
- Backspace button is small
- No official OSX or linux drivers
- Windows logo
- Clear border – why?
- “Soft-touch palm” isn’t real that soft – feels like a bendy plastic
Conclusion
This is one of Logitech’s cheaper keyboards. It is a great alternative to the diNovo Edge. The only real negative in this keyboard is a smaller backspace key. If you are a superior typist you will not find this to be a problem. When typing during the day you can also turn off the brightness to conserve power and the LEDs. This sexy keyboard is a must buy.
March 31, 2009
Buy Me a New Computer!
My computer sucks. My Birthday is coming up… so maybe you can give me a gift? If you have ever found my site or anything I have done useful please feel free to donate.
Here is why you should get me a new computer:
- I need it
- I will design something for you if you do
- I might finish PbGunTrader then… :p
- More content for this blog because I would then be able to do things faster thus having more free time to post
- I need it
- It was my Birthday a while back…. but you all missed it. One person donated before that!
Send me an email at eggzacly@gmail.com if you have any questions. I will then provide you with my paypal address or home address so you can send payment. Alternatively, you can donate via ChipIn (paypal). Thank you :D
March 31, 2009
Orson Scott Card – Inspiration
Orson Scott Card is an avid, talented and famous author of novels, plays, and scripts of various genres. Although he is most well known for his science fiction work, the Ender series, Card is a very innovative and modern writer who also publishes work on the internet. The topics of his writing consist of today’s top problems, and he tackles them head on, even when the topic is controversial. On top of writing, he is also involved politically and religiously in a variety of organizations, while also being a critic, teacher and public speaker. His family and religious life are contributing to his successful prize winning work, making him one of the best American science fiction writers of all time.
Card is a middle-aged 57 years of age and was born on August 24, 1951. He was born in bucolic Richland, Washington and is currently living in Greensboro, North Carolina with his wife, Kristine, who is the loving mother of his five children. Card’s children are an important and germane part of his life, as one of his daughters and he was even in a short film together. Each of his children’s names was inspired by a great author or scholar. His first child, Michael Geoffrey, was born in 1978, was named after Geoffrey Chaucer. Card’s other children – Emily Janice, Charles Benjamin, Zina Margaret, and Erin Louisa were named after, Emily Bronte and Emily Dickinson, Charles Dickens, Margaret Mitchell, and Louisa Mae Alcott, respectively. Unfortunately, Orson and Kristine’s third child, Charles Benjamin, was afflicted with cerebral palsy and died soon after his seventeenth birthday. Their fifth child, Erin Louisa, died the day she was born. Even with these sad situations, it seems that the Card coterie has a hard time leaving Greensboro as they refer to it as their “home base”. Currently, Scott and Kristine’s son Micheal Geoffrey is married to Heather Heavener Card and they live in nearby Seattle, where he is a game designer for Amaze Entertainment. Emily is an actress, poet, singer, and audio producer in Los Angeles. Their youngest, Zina, is living at home, attending school, and playing video games and chess (“About Orson Scott Card”). With so many children involved in Orson Scott Card’s life it is no wonder that children are the center of his books and work.
Most, if not all of Card’s stories, novels, and plays, have a child as the main character. As with any story with children in its center, a major theme is loss of innocence. “It is not merely about the loss of innocence, as so many stories are with children at their center. It is about innocence systematically deceived and purposefully destroyed in the fanatical pursuit of a misguided higher ideal” (Wagner, “Ender’s Game / Orson Scott Card”). In Ender’s Game, the main character is a mere six years old. He is plucked from his Earthly home to attend Battle School and prepares to fight off an alien race called the Buggers. In battle school, Ender
and hundreds of other children and adolescents are subjected to grueling training that takes the form of war games, played both in computer simulation (video games, essentially) and in real time combat practice in an enormous zero-G chamber called the Battle Room. Ender is a natural. He excels immediately, and becomes commander of his own platoon ridiculously early.
Wagner, “Enders Game / Orson Scott Card”
With so much pressure on Ender and the other students, they are losing their childhood – much like Card’s two children who died at a young age. “We aren’t just ordinary children, are we? None of us. Don’t you sometimes wish we were?” (Card, Ender’s Game, 240) Card is saying that adults need to let children be kids – be happy and have fun – and stop putting the world on their shoulders.
Another factor that influences his life and writing is his faith. Card is a member of the Latter-day Saints (LDS) and has openly written about his church and his stance on political and religious views and agendas. He strongly opposes homosexuality and has received much criticism about it which has greatly affected how people view his work. Card’s outrage against homosexuality is sparked by the hypocrisies and sacrilege on the issue within the LDS church. However, Card believes that “Within the Church, the young person who experiments with homosexual behavior should be counseled with, not excommunicated” (Card, The Hypocrites of Homosexuality). He also believes that this is more than just a religious issue but a global issue that should be accosted with immediately. Orson Scott Card has also made it quite clear that he has never and will never “advocate, encourage, or even allow harsh personal treatment of individuals who are unable to resist the temptation to have sexual relations with persons of the same sex” (The Hypocrites of Homosexuality, Orson Scott Card). Even though Card’s opinions differ from others, he is not afraid to be the American he is and voice his opinion while also not being myopic. He also does not want others to view his children differently because of his religious and political perspective, which he made quite clear in First Meetings through the character of Theresa (Ender’s Mother).
Although Orson Scott Card does not summarily point directly to his religion or his views in his earlier books, there is some evidence of his religious leanings. He wrote the majority of his books in the 80’s which was when “people [were] searching for ways to re-establish traditions in their homes and lives” (“Ender’s Game (Historical Context)”). This reconstruction of home life is evident in Ender’s Game and First Meetings when the Wiggin family breaks a population law to be able to have a third child, Ender. “They are secretly proud of having a third, but are still ashamed of not being able to follow their beliefs more openly.” (“Ender’s Game (Themes)”) The main characters in Card’s book tend to be rebellious by following their heart and not blindly following others such as the government.
Another aspect of religion that can be found in Ender’s Game is a blurry line between good and evil. Ender’s mordant brother, Peter, is the depraved, antagonist and the evil brother. Ender is the distraught hero, but he sometimes finds himself wondering if he is the better killer than his brother, and thus more evil than he. Ender is not perfect and his human weakness, original sin, is evident. The difference between Peter and Ender is that Peter enjoys the death, violence and power he has while Ender wants to get away from it all. At the end of Ender’s Game, Ender embarks on a new life away from the disarrayed Earth and travels through space with his sister, Valentine.
Card’s religion and views are more apparent in his ‘newer’ books, like the Shadow series (a sequel to the Ender’s series) and First Meetings (pre-face or introduction to the Ender series). In Ender’s Shadow, a conversation is held which says, “‘Do you know why Satan is so angry all the time? Because whenever he works a particularly clever bit of mischief, God uses it to serve his own righteous purposes. So God uses wicked people as his tools.’ ‘God gives us the freedom to do great evil if we choose. Then he uses his own freedom to create goodness out of the evil, for that is what he chooses.’” (Card, Ender’s Shadow, 236) The above quote represents major religious view points and topics. It addresses our free will and humanity’s ability to choose things for themselves. It also shows that there is a God who is good, and Satan who is evil. Fortunately, God always overcomes the evil for He always prevails. In First Meetings a major theme is conflict between religious ideas – mainly the population laws.
Card’s well written work, which has been inspired by his family and faith, has won him numerous awards. His most current award, which was awarded to him in 2008, was the YALSA Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Contribution to Young Adult Literature for Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow. Other major awards consist of the Nebula and Hugo awards, which are both very prestigious. These prominent awards evince the fact that Orson Scott Card is the best American science fiction writer of all time. No one else in the world has won this many awards and has been honored in such a fashion as Orson Scott Card. America should be proud to have such a prestigious author writing for our entertainment.
Orson Scott Card’s prize winning work and actions have made him one of the best American science fiction writers of all time. He is a family man, and although his religious views are controversial, they do not negatively affect his excellent writing style or work. He has a free, American spirit and ideals that inspire millions. Card’s most famous book, Ender’s Game, will be part of history and will be in fan’s hearts for a while – especially with a future comic book release and a possible movie deal. Orson Scott card is a true American hero because he speaks his mind, and an excellent science fiction writer – the best of all time.
Works Cited
“About Orson Scott Card.” Hatrack River – The Official Web Site of Orson Scott Card. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://www.hatrack.com/osc/about.shtml>.
Card, Orson Scott. Ender’s Game. New York: Tor Science Fiction, 1994.
Card, Orson Scott. Ender’s Shadow. New York: Tor Books, 2000.
Card, Orson Scott. First Meetings in Ender’s Universe. Tor Teen, 2004.
Card, Orson Scott. “The Hypocrites of Homosexuality.” Sunstone. Nauvoo. 1990. Latter-day Saints. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://www.nauvoo.com/library/card-hypocrites.html>.
“Ender’s Game (Historical Context).” Answers.com – Online Dictionary, Encyclopedia and much more. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://www.answers.com/topic/ender-s-game-novel-4>.
“Ender’s Game (Themes).” Answers.com – Online Dictionary, Encyclopedia and much more. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://www.answers.com/topic/ender-s-game-novel-2>.
Minkowitz, Donna. “My favorite author, my worst interview.” Salon.com – Breaking news, opinion, politics, entertainment, sports and culture. 3 Feb. 2000. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://archive.salon.com/books/feature/2000/02/03/card/>.
“The Parallels between Ender’s Game/Shadow and Religion.” Suite101.com: Online Magazine and Writers’ Network. 30 May 2003. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://www.suite101.com/discussion.cfm/fantasy_and_sf/92470>.
Wagner, Thomas M. “Ender’s Game / Orson Scott Card.” SF REVIEWS.NET | SF and Fantasy Book Reviews. 2003. 30 Mar. 2009 <http://www.sfreviews.net/endersgame.html>.
Special thanks to @falkencreative for peer editing.
This was a homework assignment. Highlighted words are vocabulary words.
March 11, 2009
Still dead
Yep, still dead.
Check me out on twitter: http://twitter.com/twodayslate
Also, doing a paper on Orson Scott Card for school – will post :)
December 24, 2008
DEAD
This blog is dead for a while.
Taking a break from blogging finish some things.
Sorry.
November 18, 2008
An Easy Way to Fix Grub
Sometimes GRUB stops working out of the blue. Other times, Windows kills GRUB out of spite – when you install Windows, GRUB breaks. One way to fix GRUB is via the command line by using a live CD. An easier method is Super Grub Disk. 
I use the CD-ROM disk method. Download Super Grub Disk and burn the .iso image to the CD. After this is accomplished reboot your PC. Change the BIOS settings so you boot to the CD-ROM drive first.
At the Super Grub Disk menu keep pressing enter until you get to an option screen that lets you choose Linux or Windows. If you have recently installed Windows choose Linux and then reinstall Grub. The process is automatic. After that reboot and remove the disk. Grub should now be working. Play around with Super Grub Disk and learn how Grub works.
If Super Grub Disk does not work check to see if your Hard drive (HD) is plugged in correctly. If you have two hard drive switch the IDE cables. This might solve the problem.
