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LightScribe Label Example

Back in 2004 Hewlett-Packard engineer Daryl Anderson had the notion that if you can burn data on to a disc, why couldn’t use use that same technology to burn the label?  And thus the LightScribe burner was born..

I had always wanted to pick one of these suckers up and never got around to it because I already had a CD/DVD +/- burner and didn’t need a new one..  I couldn’t reason the cost of getting a second burner when I didn’t really use the one I had all that often..

Well about 4 months ago my old burner went off into the weeds and never came back, enabling me to buy a Lightscribe external burner and bid all my labeling woe’s goodbye! Sorta..

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Sony DR-BT21G

In 1994 Jaap Haartsen and Sven Mattisson has a stroke of genius when they invented the personal area networking (PAN) protocol known today as Bluetooth for Ericsson phones.   By the year 2000 it was pretty widely known that Bluetooth was something hot!  A lot of major companies jumped on to the Bluetooth Special Interests Group with the intent of developing some really neat technology..  And ever since I heard about the protocol I immediately though, “they need headphones that use those!!”..

Well set the way forward machine to 2009 and I FINALLY have a set of stereo headphones that use the Bluetooth protocol!  Yay!   I know they have actually been out for over a year but it took me this long to find a pair that I thought would be worth having, AND I had a device that would actually support it.

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Razer Mamba

Update (Jan 23, 2011) :: So several months ago the mouse optics just up and quit.. Everything else worked, but slowly over the course of a couple days the optics got less and less responsive and then finally stopped all together..   I had put the mouse in the closet on the shelf which is generally where hardware goes to die at my house..  Today I went in there to do some cleaning and putter around only to find that the mouse battery cover had been forced off by a battery that had swelled to more than double its original size!!

My opinion on this thing is back to “avoid at all costs”..  The level of support being what it was and the number of other folks who have similar issues tells me that this thing sucks bad.  Add to that the random deaths, the number of folks who have similar optical issues, the battery swelling issue, the very short battery life and it’s inability to work on some surfaces… yeah.. don’t buy this mouse.

Update (Nov 1, 2009) :: After all is said and done, I have the mouse back from Razer and it is working as I think it should.   It doesn’t do the sleep-death thing it was doing previously which implies to me that the old firmware was horribly buggy and the newer firmware is required for sure..  That was the number one issue previously and it appears to be resolved..   The Razer management team that I dealt with were nothing but professional and courteous though I am still concerned about the “standard” support they are providing as those folks didn’t give anywhere near the level of support that I got directly from the president and his main man (of course)..  My over all opinion on the device itself has gone from “avoid at all costs” to, “okay its not bad so long as you get the most recent version”.  I still find myself occasionally using the G7 which I still find telling but I am not sworn off Razer products as I was previously..  And no they didn’t pay me or make me say these things..

Now on to the original post ::  I was pretty frustrated and angry when I initially wrote this.  The tone is a lot harsher than it should be and for that I apologize, but the message is still basically what I want it to be..

As I have said previously, I’m a pretty hard core Logitech fan.  I use a lot of their hardware, and am always very happy with it..  I have used several Logitech mice in my day (corded and cordless) and up until fairly recently was using a Logitech G7.   The G7 is one of their cordless gaming mice and I have used it for a while.   I really like it, it’s a wonderful mouse and I highly recommend it.  My only complaint being that I wish it had 2 thumb buttons instead of one.. that was it.. my only complaint..  I managed to break the mouse wheel on mine though due to my own stupidity and being a bit rough with it, so it was time to replace it..

A buddy of mine has a Razer mouse and loves it, so when I was at the store and saw the Ferrari of the Razer mouse line; the Mamba wireless gaming mouse — I went ahead and picked it up..

At $129.99 I expected this thing to perform like no other..  In fact, at twice the cost of my Logitech G7, I expected it to perform twice as well..  It came in a really nice box, with a lot of high and mighty claims on the box so I was thinking I had a winner..

Let me be clear here – this mouse is the biggest piece of shit, I have ever.. and I mean.. EVER used..

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Aion Online

I have played a lot of MMO’s in my time.. I feel I have a pretty good handle on the genre and have a very good idea of what makes a game good, and what makes a game bad.  Both in terms of what I personally feel, and as well as taking a broader view as a whole.  I can readily recognize why one game or another may not appeal to me, but be appealing to others.

What’s interesting is that I find that as time has gone on I have had to lower my expectations because none of contemporary games are ever as good as the now lofty memories of the games of old..

I fully realize that it’s not fair of me to compare a modern game to the memory of a previous game.  A memory full of good times, good people and fun events.  Memories that I generally cherish in some way, oh and there was a game involved too..

Aion Online is the first game in a long time that actually holds up under this scrutiny..  I was shocked..

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Logitech Illuminated Keyboard

I have to admit I like Logitech.  Their hardware is always good.  I find their software is a little bloated and doesn’t always deliver but I can’t fault the hardware at all..

So when I was in the market for a new keyboard I naturally gravitated towards the Logitech flock of peripherals..  I was replacing my old Logitech G15 which is a great device but at this point it had so much dust, dirt and kibble between the keys I was horrified to touch it.   (Mmmm keyboard kibble)

I liked the G15, but it had issues; the primary one being, I rubbed all the paint off the keys.   Apparently I type a little hard for the first generation G15′s and ended up removing the surface paint of the home row and several commonly pressed keys.   You could tell where my fingers and hands always sat.

I also never.. ever.. used the left side macro buttons or any of the other wiz-bang features of the keyboard.  It was wasted on me.  Hell for almost a year I didn’t even install the keyboard software for the little video display.. I just didnt’ see the value of it, and yes I play games that take advantage of it.. I just never look down from the monitor..  I needed something new..

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District 9

My initial reaction to District 9, upon the movie ending was to say — and I quote; “What the fuck was that?!”  I sort of felt like my soul had just been raped, and I was just beginning to feel the crush of information as I processed the movie I had just watched..

Let me start by saying that District 9 is an extremely interesting movie and most likely not what you will expect..  In fact I described it to my best friend as being “completely fucked up and horribly dark with a message that is delivered in an extremely heavy handed manner –  but at the same time.. kinda cool..”   And I stand by that description now that I have had time to process..

It wasn’t bad.  It really wasn’t.. even though my review is harsh, I kind of liked it and will watch it again ’cause I’m sure there was a lot I missed..

However, this movie makes no attempt to hide that it has a message, and by god you’re going to get the message like it or not..  For the first 3/4 of the movie the happy go-lucky recently promoted dork goes about committing what amounts to horribly brutal and inhumane acts.. (of a character similar to crimes against humanity).. of enforcing racial segregation…  against an already segregated people..  in South Africa..  Hrmmm If only there were a cogent paradigm..

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