Rickrolled IRL - I Think Reality is Collapsing...

The most rediculous thing just happened to me.  So I went out to get the mail today...and I got an oddly wrapped package from my friend Andrew (@mcandre on Twitter).  When I say oddly wrapped, I mean it was a media mailer very heavily bound in packing tape.  I knew the package was coming because he asked my address last week, but he told me it wasn't a gift requiring reciprocation.  That made me curious...

Now if you have ever tried to pull packing tape off of shipping plastic, you know it's no picnic.  I pulled out the kitchen scissors and after quite a bit of wrestling, I arrived at...more wrapping.  This time it was festive wrapping paper.  From the size and shape of the package, I could tell it was a CD case of some kind and I made quick work of the final layer.

Before I even got it totally out of the wrapping paper, I realized what it was.  I could see this logo [see left] very clearly and I felt a feeling I had felt many times before while surfing the web.  One of dread...I had just been Rickrolled.

This was not just any Rickroll though, this was a Rickroll "IRL" or "in real life."  I've heard of such things happening, but really, in my own mailbox!  What is this world coming to?

I have enlisted the help of the bear on my desk to help me document this crime against the memedom.  

Here you can clearly see that this is the album that included "Never Gonna Give You Up" as the top track.

If you have suggestions on how I can get Andrew back, leave a comment or message me on Twitter.  I cannot allow this kind of behavior to abide!!!

Big New Post Coming Soon...

It's been a while since I updated.  Never fear!  It's all because I'm working on a big post about something awesome.  Wait for it....wait for it....(keep waiting until your RSS reader says otherwise ;) )

The Ender Saga Fills a Plot Hole Nicely [Ender in Exile Review]

If you've been reading my stuff at all, you know I love sci-fi.  Specifically, older sci-fi novels have a special place in my heart.  A little while ago, I gave in and read Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game and was BLOWN AWAY by the story.  From there I read all of the other "Ender's Saga" books as well, starting with Speaker for the Dead.  

Well finally, another book for the series has come out, and boy is it a doozie!  Ender in Exile is a direct sequal to Ender's Game.  That being said, you pretty much HAVE to read all the other books that have come out already because there is a great deal of assumed knowledge.  The story happens primarily as Ender is leaving Earth and going to out the new colony he's to govern.  Essentially Card felt that there was a missing story between the end of the war and the beginning of Peter's time as leader of the united world.  Plus, we get to find out what happens to Bean's last missing son.

I have to say, I really liked this book.  It's told with exactly the same tone that Card uses in all of his Ender books and lets us once again into Ender's beautiful mind.

Speaking of the book...I didn't actually read it.  In fact, I haven't ever read one of Card's books.  I listen to audiobooks :)  Here's a link to the Ender in Exile Audiobook if you're like-minded.  It has the same cast of voice actors as in the previous books so you will feel right at home.  I wish it wasn't so expensive, but until audiobooks get cheaper, there's not a lot you can do.

  

Also, speaking of newly released content that's really great...the Dr. Horrible DVD is OUT!

A Special Honor

This week I am exstatic that I have been chosen for "Worth the Follow" on Julia Roy's Tweet Week.  I had no idea I'd been picked until several hours after the post went live.  This is mainly because I had a post go up on MakeUseOf today that netted me a lot of followers on Twitter.  Many of those followers turned out to be from Tweet Week.  What a pleasent surprise!

Here's Tweet Week #5:

Thanks so much to @JuliaRoy and all of her fans :) - then again I'm one of her fans so thanks to me too!

P.S. - If you can spare a Digg, please help my Twitter article get on the front page!

A Switch To Chrome

Well I'm finally biting the bullet and switching to Chrome. I have been a loyal Flock user for a very long time now, but I just can't handle it anymore.  The constant crashing, the corrupted profiles, the sticky add-ons, and the general incompatability with everything but the most basic web tools.  I know it's a firm shake-off, but I've been with it for a long time and it's generally been a very stressful existance.  

I stayed with it through all the bugginess primarily because the extra features were really compelling.  Long before Firefox had the "Awesomebar," Flock was mixing your history and your favorites and guessing your destination.  Of course this was more in the search bar and less in the main address bar.  Also, the RSS reader was ahead of its time and that is one of the things I have not had luck in finding a replacement.  That being said, the RSS reader hasn't been upgraded for quite a long time and in terms of features and interface is miles behind Google Reader, which I am currently using for my many feeds.  Thank God for OPML exporting!

My switch to Chrome (with Firefox as a backup for incompatabilities) went smoother than I expected.  I'm keeping Flock around to make sure I don't lose anything I thought I had already, but I'm pretty sure all my exporting and importing is done.  The browser experience on Chrome is superb (as I indicated earlier) but I am missing a few things.  For one, the download manager is aesthetically pleasing (and similar to Download Statusbar) but does not offer as many options in where and how to download.  Also, videos viewed on the web play by default in the browser using some plug-in instead of allowing me to move it to an external player.  Note that I mean file-based videos, not YouTube vids, which obviously play fine.

The performance difference between Flock and Chrome is unbelievable.  I feel like I'm using a completely different computer.  I probably have 24 tabs open right now, which is fairly typical for me, and I'm experincing no lag and no serious drain on my system resources.  It also doesn't get worse over time, it just equalizes at one level and stays there.  Hopefully my profile will not gunk up (which is still possible), but I don't feel like Chrome is as gunk-upable.

If you have any questions about how I'm getting along, please let me know.  I want this to be a resource for others making the big leap.  I haven't played around with some features, like the Application Shortcuts, so there is still a bit more for me to test out.

Good night and good luck!

[Image from SiliconRepublic.com]

Finally, Christians Can Play Guitar Hero!

As most of you are aware, Christians have been suffering for many years now as other faiths and the non-religious enjoy the game Guitar Hero. The lyrics are obviously too dark for they ears of the Faithful, so much of the nation has experienced an increase in hand-eye-coordination while Christians fall behind. Well no more! Now there is Guitar Praise!

Satire aside, let's look at the name first...Guitar Praise? Personally if you were going to rip-off and re-purpose the game, wouldn't you pick something that is at least slightly original? Or at least go with Praise Hero, which sounds a lot better to me...

Here is the ad for the game, which was originally posted on GeeksAreSexy by Casey:



Are you serious? This is an incredibly inferior game for obvious graphical and platform reason, but on top of this, it illustrates how backward some people are. The ad is clearly for people who have somehow never been exposed to Guitar Hero and are generally new to the idea of a guitar controller. This isn't just some new fad...it's one of the most popular game control systems in use today. Truly you must have been buried in some hole (and consequently buried your kids in that hole with you) to be in the dark about this game.

It's hard for me to express my aggravation with groups that have to digest and rebrand everything they use in order to ensure it fits with their own way of thinking. Ironically, the parents of modern parents would probably see all the tracks on Guitar Praise as works of the devil.

Jimmy Chows Down - Eli's Deli Becomes "Best Deli"

It's true, Eli's Deli is under new management and will henceforth be known as "Best Deli." It was quite a shock to my system as a long-time Eli's fan, but times change I guess. Anyway, here's my review of our local deli:


I hope you enjoyed our recent video...I feel this one came out especially well! Also, notice I'm wearing my Epic-Fu shirt...it's fabulous and you should get one too!