March 2006 Archives

For you PSP gamers out there - heads up!  Use of this batter pack could burn 'yo crib down.  I have one of these and have noticed it definitely gets hot, but I've never really had one give me a problem.  In any case, I don't need to come home to a crispy pad.  I'm callin the hotline for me free replacement schwag.  Deatils can be found here:

http://www.powerbrickrecall.net/

Details after the jump...

Technorati Tags: PSP, Gaming, Peripherals, Accessories

Yep - you read right.  Our mighty #99 has been hit with the Hollywood bug...straight from the Roush Email blast:

"Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Office Depot Ford Fusion, as he makes his debut on FOX's hit show "24" this coming Monday, April 3 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). Edwards takes on his first role in a primetime drama as Jim Hill."

"I had a blast! Everyone was so cool. John Cassar (the director) is an amazing guy and Kiefer (Sutherland) is just really cool."
Carl Edwards

"I watched a couple takes and he was moving faster than our average extra."
Kiefer Sutherland

Catch some behind-the-scenes footage during FOX's pre-race show this Sunday, April 2 live from Martinsville, Va. at 1:30 PM ET.

Now that's what I'm talkin about...racing and 24..what a combo!  ;-)

Technorati Tags: NASCAR, 24 - TV Show

For those of you working in education, especially in the state of Florida, you may have heard of, or even attended FETC (Florida Educational Technology Conference).  This is one of the largest conferences of its kind in the country and it's hosted in sunny Orlando, FL.  If you happen to have missed the conference this year, Apple has graciously provided some podcasts that bring you the action straight to your computer or iPod.  You can get updates on cool products from a variety of vendors, and even hear the first Podcast Palooza in education!  You can go to the site at: FETC 06 or subscribe to the podcast at: FETC 06 Podcast.

Technorati Tags: Podcasts, Education, FETC

In yet another example of a good thing gone bad, Alienware, makers of some of the most kick-ass gaming machines on the planet, have sold out to Dell.

"Dell is buying Alienware, the Miami-Dade company that makes powerful PCs for video gamers, for an undisclosed sum. The companies say no jobs will be lost."  [ Miami Herald ]

Is it me, or does anyone else see the end result already?  If you ask me it will play out something like this...Dell agrees to buy Alienware, and makes all the promises in the world that it will allow Alienware to remain it's own entity and not mess with it's current setup.  This sounds all peachy until 6 months to a year later, some bean-counter in Austin starts "thinking" how they could make more money by streamlining this or that at Alienware.  It won't be long before decisions are being made in Austin, and not in Miami.  The current Alienware management will cave in (because they have no choice in the matter) and ultimately Dell will do what it wants and dictate how it will be done.  Next, quality of the components and support will go to the dump and you'll be having Aliens from India answering your support calls.  The people who made Alienware what it is today will eventually get fed up and one by one, leave the company for something that they hope will be better.  It won't be long before the Alienware executives "retire" and also leave the company.  Ultimately Alienware will get rebranded "Alienware by Dell" and that will be the end of the gaming machines we know today.

We have all seen this happen far too many times to actually believe that this scenario will turn out anything but a disaster.  I am happy for the guys at Alienware that busted their asses all these years, it's time for them to get the big payoff, but it will come at a price.  That price is seeing their dreams and the company they poured their blood, sweat and tears into, demolished by corporate goons that have no clue what the gaming community wants in a high-end PC.  Good luck Nelson and Alex, enjoy your money and go start up a new venture.  My advice, create a new company that focuses on gaming, but supports the Macintosh community.  Maybe, just maybe, we could someday see a Mac clone focused on gaming.  Wouldn't that be something to bring to the table for Steve Jobs?  You have a whole clan of Mac gamers just waiting for someone to do something cool with Macs and gaming.  Give me a call if you need a Mac guru right here in Miami to help you launch your next venture. ;-)

Technorati Tags: Dell, Alienware

The fallout from Microsoft's announcement that Vista won't ship until 2007 continues in Business Week's latest online poll.  In this case a picture is worth a thousand words.  Make sure you place your vote at Business Week!

Technorati Tags: Apple

Boy 'oh boy...all hell is breaking loose up in Redmond, and I bet these boys aren't doing the vista boogie now.  If you haven't already seen the reports, Microsoft has announced yet another slip in it's launch date of Vista.  You will now have to wait until at least early 2007 before getting a PC with Vista as the factory installed OS. 

It seems that there are quite a few MSFT employees that are ticked off and not drinking the kool-aide.  Check out the comments in this post..

[ via Mini Microsoft ]

It certainly sounded like Microsoft leadership committed to us, our customers, our partners, and our shareholders that Vista would be out in 2006.

Slip!

We should have asked for more details around the "or else" part of that commitment.

I was upset at missing the back-to-school market. Now we're missing the holiday sales market. All of those laptops and PCs are going to have XP on it. What percentage will upgrade to Vista? Well, I guess that's the little dream that I need to give up on. Vista's deployment is going to come from people buying CPUs with the OS pre-installed, not dancing down the CompUSA aisle as they clutch that boxed version of Vista to their loving chest. So not only did we miss last year's opportunity, we're missing this year's opportunity, too. With the convergence of high-tech media, this holiday season would have been an explosive nodal point to get Vista out for a compounded effect...

[ Full Story: Mini-Microsoft: Vista 2007. Fire the leadership now! ]

Technorati Tags: Microsoft, Windows

Sometimes you just have to wonder how the hell people can train their dogs to do certain things.  This is one of those videos that will drop your jaw and having you saying "that is one WAY cool dog!"

[ via MySpace ]

Technorati Tags: Comedy, Video

Wow - has it really been almost a month since my last post?  Whew.  Been a hectic and nutty month.  All is well in bisonium-land and normal posting shall resume immediately.  Been doing quite a few things lately and haven't had a whole lot of spare time for blogging.  The Gearlive thing didn't work out so that is one less thing on my plate.  I feel better posting things for MY readers so it will remain that way for the time being.  I have 2 new additions to the family - both with 4 wheels. :-)  Although I was hell-bent on acquiring a new BMW, somehow I couldn't turn my back on my Fords and decided to continue buying American, despite my long standing desire for that Bimmer.  Therefore, welcome my 2 new babies:

1) 2006 Ford Mustang - and this aint 'yo moma's average 'stang.  Welcome back the pure American muscle cars of the 60's and 70's.  I absolutely fell in LOVE with this car when I saw it.  After driving it, I was sold.  Looks aside, this thing SOUNDS as good as it looks.  Over time, I'll be adding all sorts of new hidden features, namely under the hood.  Ultimately this will turn into a full-blown race car, but for now, it's my daily ride.  Don't wanna void the warranty just yet with that Shelby Supercharger being bolted on to the motor. :-)

2) 2007 Explorer Sport Trac - this is primarily the wife's ride.  This thing wasn't on the lot but 3 days, and it wasn't even really supposed to be out yet.  It makes for a killer baby-mobile without the suburban hell of a soccer-mom mini-van.  That just wasn't happening so this was the next best thing while retaining some respectability on the streets.  It also happens to make a killer rig for those weekend camping trips around Florida.

Needless to say, I am a happy camper (pun intended).  Full pics of both rides are on my Flickr site.  Sorry for being absent over the last month, but hopefully I am all caught up and ready to keep blogging my life away.  :-)

Technorati Tags: General, Automobiles, Photos