Devin's Blog

Is this the greatest time waster in the history of the internet?

2008-05-06T12:07:00.000-07:00

There are many ways to kill time while at work... YouTube.. Blogs... Mini Games.. Gossip Rags... whatever... but is this the SINGLE biggest time suck of them all? I had to stop after about 25 minutes...

The Top 50 TV Commercial Parodies.

Miller Lite (surprisingly) invented Devin Heaven

2008-04-30T16:58:00.001-07:00

They just got the name wrong

They stole my idea

2008-04-29T22:30:00.001-07:00

Just goes to show ya... In this wild webernet world we live in, if you don't pull the trigger, eventually someone else will.. in this case, People's Court... So much for BackMeUpOnThis.com

http://www.peoplescourtraw.com/index.php

I finally made my muxtape

2008-04-17T00:03:00.000-07:00

I gave in to making a muxtape. I know, i'm like 2 weeks late on this bandwagon... we all thought it'd be shut down by now and i was planning on using that as an excuse. Well, it hasn't happened (yet) so i gave it a try. Then i realized, i have 4200 songs on my computer and picking 12 would be impossible. So I decided to pick 12 of my favorite, or most interesting covers... that also seemed to be impossible as my original picks totaled 28 and i had to pare it down from there.

Anyhow, without further adieu, My Muxtape:
http://devosuperfly.muxtape.com/

If you like covers too, I have 219 more where these 12 came from (at the time of publishing this, of course...).

Some close ones that did not make the cut:

Dick Dale - Ring of Fire (error uploading)
Ben Folds - Such Great Heights
Johnny Cash (w/ Joe Strummer): Redemption Song
Johnny Cash: The Gambler
Warren Zevon - Casey Jones
Neil Diamond - Heartbreak Hotel
Ugly Kid Joe - Cats in the Cradle
Keane - Under Pressure
Joss Stone - Under Pressure
Seu Jorge - Rebel Rebel
Dropkick Murphy's - It's a Long Way to the Top (if you wanna rock n roll)
Ziggy Marley - Drive
The Killers - Romeo & Juliet
Harvey Danger - Save it for Later
David Lee Roth - California Girls
Dynamite Hack - Boyz in the Hood
Elvis Costello - Hide your Love Away

My #1 Web Usability Complaint

2008-04-06T10:28:00.000-07:00

If you were a hair dresser, you probably couldn't help critiquing people's hair everywhere you go -- if only in your head. An interior decorator would probably walk into my place and shudder. And since I'm in the business of making websites, I pick apart of lot of web experiences.

However, there are some things so universally dumb, that everyone should be annoyed by them. The one that tops my list, and always has is this:

Websites that prompt you for your user name when they actually want your email address.

Like most of you I'm sure, I have a series of passwords that I use depending on the requirements of the site in question and the level of security I hope to maintain with it. So when I am unable to login to a site, and I'm presented the following two options, I choose 2 since my user name is the same 9 times out of 10.

Forgot Username?
Forgot Password?

I go through all of their security questions only to learn that my password is the first one I tried. Now I need to go through everything all over again, choosing option 1, "Forgot Username" instead.

And after all of it... turns out my username is my email address. Cue Incredible Hulk music as the anger starts rising.

Username ≠ Email Address.

If you want a username, ask for it. If you want an email address, ask for that. Make your website better and save me time and frustration.

For those of you who remember my '89 Camry

2008-03-31T22:25:00.000-07:00

Back in high school, I proudly drove a gorgeous '89 camry. It looked like this but black and with different hubcaps. Oh yah, and fuzzy dice:

Now, the fun thing about my car is that while driving, without any effort, you could pull the key out of the ignition with no discernible effect on the ride, or my passenger's safety. In fact, the ignition was so worn thin that you could actually start it with anything that resembled a car key. Honda keys worked especially well.

Anyhow, apparently I'm not the only one. This poor bastard had his '89 Camry stolen THREE TIMES in 6 years and got it back all three times. The LAPD points out why the propensity for 89 Camry auto theft:

I get some helpful information during one of my calls to the LAPD's Northeast Division, where an officer points out that Camrys from the late 1980s were "made to be stolen." This, it turns out, is an understatement.

Almost any key, if shaved properly, will turn the lock of a 1989 Camry, law enforcement experts tell me. By now, the lock on my car is so abused and misshapen that an errant tree branch might do the trick.

Fortunately, our car was never stolen, not even once... but after all these years it's nice to hear about the trials and tribulations of other 89 Camry owners. I wonder if he can't put his passenger window down.. or if his trunk fills with water when it rains.

Just like Tracy... I'm apparently white.

2008-03-16T20:26:00.000-07:00

Many of you have seen the sudden meme Stuff White People Like... While there have been many that I could identify with, this one takes the cake.

If white people could draft friends the way that the NFL drafts prospects it would go like this: black friends, gay friends, and then all other minorities would be drafted based on need and rarity to the region.

Motorcycles Too.

2008-03-16T20:24:00.000-07:00

Awareness Test - Watch more free videos

I Whooped Adam's Ass.

2008-02-13T10:05:00.000-08:00

When we were younger, my brother Adam would beat me at tecmo bowl a lot. And Baseball Simulator 1000. And Stickball. And many other games and activities. Adam was really good at picking the games that HE was good at. Hell, he even invented a card game so he could win by his own rules.

As recently as Saturday night, he beat me at a board game (new to me, but he had played before).

But on Sunday morning, I exacted revenge by beating him at a game that i'm so terrible at, that I haven't played in almost a year and a half. I beat him at Golf. I've never beat anyone at Golf. I'm awful with a driver. Incapable with a putter. And everything in between is a cross between embarrassing, frustrating and just plain pathetic. But after 9 holes, 2.5 hours and 3 blown par-opportunities, I triumphed by 9 strokes.

Victory is sweet.

One difference between boston and... well.. anywhere.

2008-02-12T13:40:00.000-08:00

It's hard to live somewhere for nearly a decade and move to a new city without making some comparisons. One of the glaring differences between Boston and Orange County is the WAY in which people care about their sports teams. But maybe the difference isn't so much between Boston and the OC.. maybe it's between Boston and the rest of the country. Where else would a truck filled with sporting equipment be considered media worthy?

And it's not just the blogs.. the Boston Globe covers its departure as well.. and even had pictures.

I haven't really heard anyone talk about the Dodgers or Angels yet.

Oprah is going to put me out of work

2008-02-01T12:06:00.000-08:00

Apparently my job is easy, at least Oprah thinks so. In a recent article, she sums up how easy starting a website is. I hope my clients don't see this:

Start your own Web site

The creation of the first Web site was a feat of technical wizardry. More than 15 years later, starting a site is simple enough for mere mortals. Jonathan Schnapp, a Web designer and instructor at New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies, explains how to make it all click:

Find a home and address. Unlike most real estate markets, space on the Web is cheap and easy to come by. Web-hosting companies rent out room on their servers, often for a pittance. Most of these companies will also sell you a domain name, or address, and have directories on their sites so you can see what's available. Many ISPs (Internet service providers), like Yahoo and AOL, offer members a few free megabytes (translation: a whole lot) of space on the Web, but if you choose this route you won't have your own domain.

Design it. Create a flowchart, starting with the homepage. Determine what text and images will be on each page and how the pages will link together. Try to keep fonts and colors consistent, and include headers on each page that explain where you are and link back home.

Build it. Most hosting companies have templates that you can use when it's time to get technical. The upside is that they're virtually foolproof. The downside: You have limited control over the results. Instead, consider using Dreamweaver, a program that edits HTML code for you. Photoshop is also worth the investment if your site will include a lot of images. You can take both programs for 30-day free test runs before you commit. If you feel overwhelmed at any point, there are various outlets to turn to for guidance. Most Web hosting companies have tech support teams that will help with troubleshooting; macromedia.com and adobe.com have active message boards where seasoned developers are happy to answer questions. For face-to-face help, sign up for a basic Web design class at a local college or university.

Share it. You'll need to use FTP (file transfer protocol) software to upload the pages you've built to your host's server for the world to see. If you have a PC, you can download it from cuteftp.com. If you have a Mac, use fetchsoftworks.com.

James Van Der Beek? Brad Ausmus? You got nothing on #2

2008-01-25T11:37:00.000-08:00

My hometown's finest gets his number retired at MSG. Check it out

He brought the Stanley Cup to Cheshire in 1994. Awesome.

Why do I keep hearing this?

2008-01-15T15:41:00.001-08:00

Even though I never had Mr. Dugan as a teacher at Dodd Jr. High... i was familiar with one of his sayings (one that no doubt, many other teachers and grammarians have uttered over the years):

Never use a preposition to end a sentence with.

So why do I keep hearing people end sentences with "at"? I've probably heard it half a dozen times in the last few days. Next person who says it, I'm throwing the book at them.

I guess I've grown up

2008-01-10T14:43:00.000-08:00

Throughout your life, you want to believe that you're only as old as you feel but periodically a reminder comes along that ignores that warm-n-fuzzy ideology. Maybe it's the first time you find yourself ogling a girl walk down the street and then she gets on a school bus. Maybe it's when you try to talk about music or tv shows with the new intern and realize that they don't understand what you mean when you say the "NEW Knightrider TV Show".

Or maybe, like it was for me today, the first time you're sitting in a waiting room and your name is called. Not your first name... but your last name. and with the word "Mister" in front of it.

Mark it. January 10th, 2008 at approximately 9:20AM.

I live in a Honey Mustard Cocoon

2008-01-07T22:25:00.000-08:00

As some of you may know, I moved into a room that was decked out in a relatively subdued, but still very old and dirty wallpaper. Shortly after moving in, I decided something had to be done... Unfortunately, the vaulted ceiling which features exposed boards and beams, was painted a blue/grey color and I was just unwilling to paint that too. So instead of going with the slate grey room i WANTED, i was limited to colors that would match a blue ceiling. I decided on Behr's Expedition Khaki which is I guess the HGTV way of saying Ken's Honey Mustard.

Anyhow, as with most painting jobs or other home projects, it turned out to be a bit more work than originally anticipated. The wallpaper came off pretty easily but the 13 foot wall proved to be difficult to work with. The whole room needed sanding and priming. I needed to LIVE in the room while doing it. Good thing I didn't have a social life or this might have taken more than 3 weekends to do.

Anyway. here are the pics:

View from my bedroom and bathroom

2008-01-01T19:06:00.001-08:00

Today's sunset. Yes, on the left that is a home built out of a water tower. Just beyond that is the beach. This is definitely one of the better ones since I've been here (granted, most sunsets have been while I've been at work). The temperature at the time I took this pic was 72 degrees.

My next car

2007-12-21T23:54:00.000-08:00

As any child would, I have inherited a few traits from my mother. Terrible Handwriting, a penchant for Ruth's Chris steakhouse, love for shoes and perhaps, most dangerous, a knack for buying cars.

Since graduating college 5 years ago, i have had 3 cars... and i've LOVED every one of them. But at the same time, I've always had the question in the back of my head, "what's next?". With a lease coming due in 9 months, I naturally have been considering my car options for some time now. I've toyed with buying another wrangler and will no doubt test drive the new ones when the time comes...Or perhaps I'll spring for that GTI i've always wanted (they don't make it in that metallic lime green anymore though.. tragic). I've thought about buying out my car when the lease is up. All kinds of ideas....

And somehow... one new model slipped under my radar. I recall seeing it mentioned in a magazine here or there.. then somehow forgot about it. The new BMW 1 Series.

So I built me a pretty one. I think we'll go with blue. Whatdaya think?

Finally, people will know...

2007-12-21T23:49:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to post this for quite a while.. but for the 2 people who read this blog, you may have realized that my posts come in very tiny bunches, few and far between. Anyhow... About a month ago, my brother Adam asked me to be the best man at his wedding next August when he takes the untraditional route in our family of MARRYING a doctor instead of BEING one. Anyhow... though I've never "officially" been the best man before, and really have no idea what the heck i'm doing, it certainly is a pretty sweet honor. And better yet, It's about time to plan a bachelor party... My typical attitude of "go big or don't go at all" will definitely play in here.

I'm now accepting bachelor party suggestions, or any other advice you'd care to give a first-time best man.

As my brother calls it, more "Nieblings"

2007-12-10T13:52:00.000-08:00

Great news from the fam today. My sister and brother-in-law just welcomed a healthy baby boy (as my sister boasts "she knew it".. good job on those 50-50 odds).. tentatively named Gavin Something. He's uh.. seven pounds and change.. and loud and hungry already (much like my sister...).

Pics to come, I'm sure.

Mom's say the darndest things...

2007-11-26T08:46:00.000-08:00

You may need to know my mom to find this funny... but I was showing her pictures from Live Earth and with my fuzzy memory, was unable to identify one of the performers from the picture i took from 42 miles away, up in the nosebleeds:

Me: That's not Ludacris... maybe it's Kanye West
Mom: That's not Kanye West. Is it Usher?

My Brother and I sat speechless for a few seconds, then just started laughing

Sweet Caroline now feels kinda wrong

2007-11-23T13:04:00.001-08:00

Apparently Neil Diamond wrote Sweet Caroline about a young Caroline Kennedy. Who knew?

How many states have I been to NOW?

2007-11-23T12:39:00.001-08:00

A while back, I posted about the number of states I've been to. At the time, i thought it was 37 -- Turns out I forgot i've been to South Carolina. Anyhow, with the recent trip across the country, I am up to 42 states (plus Washington DC). Not sure which of the remaining eight states could possibly be on the radar to check off next.

You can create you're own map here.

The End is Near: I've signed up for Twitter

2007-10-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

UPDATE: As I lamented to several that I've signed up for twitter, it turns out more people than i suspected have no idea what twitter is.. so here's the summary:

Aside from being stupid and annoying, twitter is essentially a short-message journal of what you’re doing. It’s like a cross between blogging and away messages. You can use their website, Instant Messenger or Text Messages to sent short updates of what you’re doing, thinking about, or other random thoughts. And like most things web 2.0, you can follow other people’s twitters (or whatever) and they can follow you. You get a feed so you can put it in a reader or whatever…

In regards to Twitter, there are three types of people in the world:

Those (often in my industry) who thumb their nose at the utter ridiculousness that is Twitter. It's the Web 2.0 equivalent of calling the Monkees classic rock. This is Web Pop -- and that's why this embarrasses me. Until today, I was in this group.
Those who don't know what Twitter is, don't need to know and/or would never use it even if they did.
Those that are under the age of 20 or so and think Twitter is the bees-knees -- though to put that into perspective, people in this group also followed along when Abercrombie & Fitch (somewhat slyly) put out a new store called Hollister that is identical except for the name emblazoned across the chest. Lemmings.

So where does that leave me now that I've signed up? Not sure. But I do have a relatively good reason. I'm starting on a cross-country drive next week and thought this would be a 'fun' way to track it. Or, put another way, things get boring in a 2-seater after about 100 miles so... why not?

If you care to follow my road trip twittering (is that a word? did i just date myself?), check it out here or grab the feed:

http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/9625812.atom

I should start using it in earnest next thursday.

Great Commercial. Better Parody.

2007-10-01T15:03:00.000-07:00

The original:

The Parody:

10 Rules of Trash Talking

2007-10-01T08:23:00.000-07:00

Every year I join at least one fantasy hockey team. Partly because I'm a dork and partly.. well.. I guess that's the only reason. And every year, within the first week of the season, someone spews some trash talk and someone else gets all huffy about it and someone (usually me) needs to chime in to tell them to calm down. Trash talking is all part of the game. To put some of the issues to bed hopefully once and for all, here are my 10 rules.

1. Trashtalker can (and should) directly insult the mother of the trashtalkee. Penis size, Girlfriends, pets and unborn children are also fair game.

2. This seems silly, but the worse your record, the more trash you can talk. You have nothing to lose. If you have an impeccable record, trash talking becomes gloating and that's just rude.

3. Profanity is an artform. A well placed swear gives an insult zest. A poorly placed swear is like putting lipstick on a pig. Bad trashtalk is bad trashtalk -- without or without an F-bomb

4. Sexuality, Religion, Ethnicity, Gender... these are the things that you must not take into consideration when hiring and firing people. When trash talking though, game on -- with a caveat. Make sure everyone involved can handle this type of nonsense. It helps to over-indulge so the utter ridiculousness of the comment is easily inferred. The more stereotypical the comment, the better.

5. Extra points should be awarded for insulting someones real-sports allegiance in addition to their fantasy-sports allegiance. And yes, there is a difference. Hell, I'm a born-and-bred new englander, but don't think I'd hesitate to have Peyton Manning or A-Rod on a fantasy team. Calling me out on my man-crush on Peyton Manning is a good way to insult me and my inner patriots fan.

6. Watch your cop dramas. Everything you say while trash talking can and WILL be used against you. Insult someone's latest pick-up cautiously, as they will turn into a fantastic second half player.

7. Be creative. A simple, uninteresting comment like "Your Team Sucks!" really only embarrasses yourself.

8. In a trash-talking battle, admit when you've been beat and gloat when you have won. And believe me, you know when you've been beat b/c you put your fingers on the keyboard to type a response but you've got nothing to say. Don't try to force it. It'll only call more attention to your loss.

9. Talk too much trash and you're an asshole. Talk to little trash and you're a pussy. It always comes down to quality over quantity. A well timed zinger can knock someone down to size in one sentence. Never shut up and your trash talk quickly becomes white noise.

10. There's no crying in trash talking. But seriously.. don't take it seriously.