sam bot dot com

2008-06-09T11:48:00.003-04:00

On the rare chance that anyone is looking here for WWDC info... umm... that's so unlikely that I'm not even going to finish the thought. I am at WWDC though. But I, along with the rest of the developers here, will be concentrating all of my efforts on breaking twitter. You can see all of the action here: http://twitter.com/samhc

Hi 8 Us

2007-07-23T11:08:00.000-04:00

Yeah... I'm on a bit of a hiatus right now (could you tell?). I'm just trying to get some job/life/post-graduation stuff going in the forward/upward/non-wayward direction (and it's going pretty well... thanks for asking!). But fear not, when I return (and this doesn't count), sam bot dot com will be bigger/better/stronger than ever before!

'Til then, brothers and sisters, blog on!

P.S. I want an iPhone.

We Fear Change

2007-06-12T20:31:00.000-04:00

Whoa. Apple.com. It's all... different.

Oh, the Disappointment!

2007-06-11T20:04:00.000-04:00

I've been really struggling with a good way to say this, and I've decided redundancy is probably the best approach. Here goes: Today's WWDC keynote was a...

big
adjective
1. large, sizable, substantial, great, huge, immense, enormous, extensive, colossal, massive, mammoth, vast, tremendous, gigantic, giant, monumental, mighty, gargantuan, elephantine, titanic, mountainous, Brobdingnagian; towering, tall, high, lofty; outsize, oversized; goodly; capacious, voluminous, spacious; king-size(d), man-size, family-size(d), economy-size(d); informal jumbo, whopping, mega, humongous, monster, astronomical, ginormous*

...disappointment. Honestly, the highlight of the keynote (for me) was the announcement of the future absence of the brushed metal look (which I've said good-bye to long ago, thanks to Uno). Yeah, aside from being a great sub-genre of Heavy Metal, brushed metal is getting a bit tired! (Ha!)

*Special shout-outs to the OS X thesaurus for this one!

Let's Get It Together!

2007-06-11T11:23:00.000-04:00

Less than two hours to showtime, people. Let's get it together! Set hammock to light sway. Coffee, hot! Point all browsers to Mac Rumors Live (or Engadget). Keep a "new blog entry" window at the ready. And please, let's make sure that "i" key is all polished and ready to go. I have a feeling that it's going to get a thorough workout today.

iHammock

2007-06-10T15:17:00.000-04:00

Well what do you know... this year's WWDC kicks off next Monday... er... tomorrow. I guess it sort of snuck up on me. And so now the question is, "what's it gonna be, folks?" More iPhone fun? Leopard stuff? Something brand new? Only the Steve knows for sure.

(And in other news, I'm blogging from a hammock. Yes, I know, my socks are very stylish, thank you.)

Mmm... Kudos Onslaught

2007-06-04T14:17:00.000-04:00

Well, after being disconnected just as I was giving my phone number to the customer service rep (you know... just in case we get disconnected), and after trudging through the automated help interface twice, being put on hold while forced to endure a never-ending Kenny G. medley, and then finally being connected to a real live person, and having them finally connect me to the correct real live person, I have successfully accessed my home wifi network. Yay!

The solution was as simple as putting a "$" in front of the WEP password. Wow. Wouldn't it have been much simpler and easier (not to mention, more cost effective for SBC/AT&T/Yahoo!) if that minute, yet critical, nugget of information was included in the li'l install booklet? Or perhaps if it was available on their help site? ("How did you query their help site without internet access?" you may ask. Thankfully, the upstairs neighbors have been allowing me to ~~steal~~ borrow internet from their unsecured wifi network for about a month now. Thanks guys! (That's for dominating the communal storage space with your heaping mounds of junk.))

Anyway, the true reason that I'm posting this is twofold. Of course my main motivation for publicizing this gripe is to... well, gripe (really though, isn't that the primary usage of most blogs?). But my secondary reason, and the one that makes me seem less whiny and quite possibly even selfless (and therefore, the one that we will be focusing on here), is simply to get this solution, the "$" before the WEP password, out there into the boundless ether of internetdom. Come on, I can't be the only one experiencing this problem.

So hopefully, Google will index this solution, make it findable, I'll be a great boon to many, and there will be much rejoicing. See, I do my part to give back to society. Let the onslaught of rightfully-deserved kudos commence! And just for the record, I will gladly accept all forms of kudos... ~~even~~ especially those in bar form.

Palm, You've Done It Again!

2007-05-30T20:17:00.000-04:00

Congrats Palm, you've done it again! You've added another unimpressive and uninspiring piece of hardware to your already lacking product line.

Those creative and forward-thinking guys and gals over at Palm Inc. (or Palm Pilot, or PalmOne, or Access OS, or whatever their name is this month), have just released a spectacular new product. Something so spectacular and new that you're likely to curl up in the nearest corner and cry. Yes, cry. Cry till your tear ducts have nothing left to cry and they poof out vapor clouds of dried tear powder. And when someone asks why you're crying in the corner (because inevitably, someone will), you can tell them that you're crying because now, thanks to the innovative innovations emanating from Palm's headquarters, humanity's long stint of suffering and agony is finally over. Brothers and sisters, these are not tears of sorrow. Nay! They are tears of joy! For today, Palm released a laptop. But wait! Not just any ol' laptop. It's a little laptop. Hurray!

See, not all that impressive, is it? What really gets me though is the mounds and mounds of media attention devoted to this product's release. Maybe I'm missing something... and perhaps you can help. Okay okay, fun time! Yay! Complete the following sentence: Palm's new laptop thingy is great because
____________________________________________
____________________________________________
____________________________________________.

(I'll even start the first one.)

Indy!

2007-05-23T14:43:00.000-04:00

Hot! I just read that a portion of the filming of Indiana Jones 4 will be taking place in The Have (okay. Not have. Hayv... with a long A. Like HAVEn. Get it? That's what all the cool kids call New Haven. Are you a cool kid? I'm a cool kid.)! Apparently, there's going to be "some kind of car chase on Chapel between College and High streets." June 28-30. Yeah. That's hot.

My Filth

2007-05-23T12:53:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I find the most difficult time to write is when I have too much to write about... hence the severe lack of updateage. But yes, I'm still alive. And no, my thesis didn't kill me (though it tried its damnedest... and proved to be a more-than-worthy adversary. Good for you, thesis!).

So yeah, I'm all graduated and stuff. The graduation ceremony was spectacular. It was a beautiful day, I got an award, there was free beer... needless to say, fun was had by all. And now, into the real world, to experience bigger and better things. Like debt and unemployment.

It's funny though: grad school, Quinnipiac, the endless amounts of research, writing, and general academic toil... for the past two years, these have all been monstrously strenuous and mentally exhausting parts of my life. And despite my relentless complaining, I've loved every excruciating moment. In fact, I've reveled in those moments. I've rolled in them, gleefully, like a pig in its own filth. But now, without any real preparation, I've been yoinked, remorselessly, from my sheltering filth. Sadly, I've discovered that my filth was keeping me warm... sane... content. My filth was keeping me filled with purpose.

Sigh... it's cold and strange out here without my filth to slog through. Perhaps I should get a doctorate.* Yes! Back to the cozy, comfortable, filthy world of academia!

Sallie Mae, baby, I'm coming home! Now where's that loan deferment form?

*Doctorate? Umm... no way. Not for all the coddling filth in the world.

Bible Bar!

2007-05-10T16:44:00.000-04:00

Yeah. I saw it in the store and I just had to. I couldn't resist. I needed to know what the seven foods of Deuteronomy 8:8 taste like... in bar form. And the result? Well ~~goddamn~~ goshdarn! That's one divine Bible Bar.

(Actually, it was kinda bland.)

Tremendous Wildebeest

2007-05-03T22:08:00.000-04:00

Staying in line with my most current theme (and my most passionate hobby), I'd like to bring to everyone's attention the fact that there is FREE COFFEE being distributed (for this, and most of next week) in the Quinnipiac University Law Library. All you have to do to participate in this spectacular event is simply say that you're a law student. So, if anyone asks, I'm a law student. Heck... I'd declare myself a tremendous wildebeest* if it results in free coffee.

*Yeah, I'll admit, "tremendous wildebeest" is an odd thing to declare oneself. But I'm trying really hard to work it into a blog post... cuz it's sort of an inside joke... but not a very funny one... and that's all I got... and I'm gonna go now... ZINGGG!!!**

**And just so we're all on the same page here, "ZINGGG!!!" is the sound it makes when I leave really quickly.

100%

2007-04-27T15:55:00.000-04:00

So either:

A) I've finished my thesis,
B) I haven't left the library since Saturday, or
C) I'm dead (and blogging from the nether-realm).

The correct answer is A... and a little bit of C thrown in for flava.

The truth is that I'm 95% done with my thesis. And 5% dead. So really, it all balances out. But I'll be 100% done really soon. And then 100% graduated. And then 100% a master.

And then 100% unemployed.

Yay!

If My Heart Doesn't Explode First...

2007-04-21T20:48:00.000-04:00

I am only allowed to leave the library tonight under one of the two following conditions:

1) I am finished with my graduate thesis, or
2) I am dead.

(I'm hoping for the first scenario... but only marginally so).

And thus, in a weak attempt to accelerate the completion of my thesis (and also, to advance the incursion of death), I have prepared the requisite dinner of power bars and energy drinks... a perfect compliment to a fine evening of academic toil.

Ahh... good times.

Multiple Choice

2007-04-19T14:45:00.000-04:00

Concerning web browsers, there was a time (a dark time) when I used to do the Safari thing. Then I migrated to Firefox (and then back to Safari... and then back to Firefox... which is not what we're here to talk about). But concerning mail apps, the Moz (Mozilla, the makers of Firefox) just released Thunderbird 2, a free and powerful email app.

Currently, I use OS X's Mail and I'm pretty happy with it. Though, it does have its annoying quirks. Now the T'bird... well, she's already making some peeps pretty excited. Dare I?

And so, as I do with all of the important and life-altering decisions that I'm faced with, I turn to the internet. My dear readers, should I make the switch from Mail to T'bird?

A) Yes.
B) No.
C) I really don't care. And by the way, this will be the last time that I read this crappy-ass blog.

Wha?

2007-04-17T18:59:00.000-04:00

Being somewhat of a self-proclaimed sewing dork, and equally as much a cool machines dork, I was delighted (simply delighted!) to see this graphic explain, using four-color animated gif awesomeness, the stitching technique of the commonplace sewing machine. Up until this point, I was fully willing to accept satan, magic, or gnomes as logical answers to the mystery of the sewing machine question... that can be fully and succinctly articulated in the following syllable: wha?

I Have Influence

2007-04-17T15:01:00.000-04:00

It worked!

Get on Your Blogs and Ride!

2007-04-16T16:35:00.000-04:00

Something weird is going on with Blogger and/or Blogspot and/or Bloglines: the blogs of some of my peeps that have not updated their blogs in a very long time, are spontaneously showing up as unread in my feed reader. Which is weird, but also kinda nice. It's like an unexpected dose of nostalgia... a reminder of a simpler time... a time when bloggers may still have referred to their craft as weblogging. Weblogging!? Ha! Those truly were foolish times.

And so, the following is a plea... no, let's make it a petition (to be signed in the comments section of this post). It's a call to all of my pals who once proudly donned the titled "blogger" but have since fallen, hard, from the top deck of the blogwagon. (And this points especially pointedly at The Dark Lord Derfla, whose blog, From the Depths of the Tepid Inferno, demonstrates a mastery of hand drawn, Sharpie and Post-It note illustrations which showcase the hilarious exploits (often featuring yours truly) of the trials and tribulations of The Dark Lord's daily routine.)

And so, from one who knows the pain of time spent away from the blog, I reach an outstretched hand from the driver's seat of the blogwagon to those unfortunate bloggers who have fallen to the cold, wet, and just miserable on all accounts, ground. Come'on back. We'll party like it's 2004.

The Petition:

The internet is a cold, wet, and just miserable on all accounts, place without the blogs we once loved. Therefore, we, the undersigned, hereby invite those who may have fallen, to get back on their blogs and ride (ummm... sing that last part in the tune of Fat Bottom Girls by Queen... you know, that part where Freddie Mercury shouts, "Get on your bikes and ride!" for no particular reason whatsoever. God... I love that song).

Signed,

(sign petition by leaving a comment)

Boycott

2007-04-14T17:12:00.000-04:00

Top 10 Coolest Doormats!? What!? No... I refuse.

Okay. This is it. I've had enough. I'm drawing the line. The buck stops here. The camel's back just broke. Et cetera. Et cetera. Et cetera.

Can someone please tell me what the blogoshere's fascination with top ten lists is?

Play along at home! What fun!
1. Go to digg.com.
2. Search for "top ten."*
3. Be appalled by the ensuing result.

Anyway, this has got to end. So, even though I've written one, I declare an all out boycott of the invasive top ten list. Starting... now!

*The actual search term that I used was "ten top." I dunno. It just worked better that way. But I'm sure someone was going to call me out on it.

I Hate Old Navy

2007-04-13T13:56:00.000-04:00

I never was, nor do I aspire to be a bicycle messenger. However, I spent some time living in the East Bay, rooming with a San Franciscan messenger. And as a result, I was unwittingly plunged headfirst into their culture... which was accurately described to me as being "the rock star lifestyle of the cycling world," in that bicycle messengers are feared by grandmas, idolized by youth, and guilty of trashing hotel rooms... all of which I can't personally verify. But I've heard stories.

I do enjoy the bicycle though, in all its forms (especially the purest), cultures, and subcultures... including, of course, bike messenger culture. Clearly, this stems (almost entirely) from my west coast inundation. And even though I have long since moved back to the east coast, I've maintained a sort of passive interest in the goings-on within the bicycle messenger genre of bikedom. Why? Well, I guess it makes me feel ever-so-slightly less removed from the west coast and my bike messenger friend.

And that is why I hate Old Navy. Good night.

Wait. I think I left something out. Oh right... In my passive interest in the goings-on of the bike messenger community, I stumbled upon this: "Can't think of a sub-culture that hates to be co-opted more than bike messengers. Nothing worse than seeing your lifestyle turned into an Old Navy tshirt." Yep. Old Navy has taken the bike messenger rock star lifestyle, condensed it, mainstreamed it, and printed it on a faux-vintage t-shirt.

And that is why I hate Old Navy. Good night.

(Ahh... see? My hatred makes so much more sense now. And for the record, I don't really hate Old Navy. It's not their fault. I think Murphy's Law of Cool Things states that, "All cool things will, eventually and unfortunately, be exploited by large corporations (that just don't get it) for the specific intent of mainstream consumption.)

"Kurt is up in heaven now."

2007-04-12T10:48:00.000-04:00

Kurt Vonnegut died yesterday. He was 84. This makes me so sad.

The following is a quote from Kurt's last book, A Man Without a Country (2005). It seems oddly appropriate:

"I am, incidentally, Honorary President of the American Humanist Association, having succeeded the late, great science fiction writer Isaac Asimov in that totally functionless capacity. We had a memorial service for Isaac a few years back, and I spoke and said at one point, 'Isaac is up in heaven now.' It was the funniest thing I could have said to an audience of humanists. I rolled them in the aisles. It was several minutes before order could be restored. And if I should ever die, God forbid, I hope you will say, 'Kurt is up in heaven now.' That's my favorite joke."

Anyway, R.I.P. Kurt Vonnegut. And if you haven't already, you should read Vonnegut's The Sirens of Titan, followed by Slapstick... two of my favorites.

More:
Boing Boing
New York Times
Gaurdian Unlimited

Linkage. Sausage or Chain... You Decide

2007-03-28T18:31:00.000-04:00

Just some linkage that I'd like to share:

1) The Otis, by Swobo Bikes. I'm going to call it the world's most perfect city bike. What sets this bike above some of the others in the urban cycling genre is, in order of least to most important: front disc brake, a 3-speed internal hub, matt black styling, and finally and most importantly, there is a bottle opener embedded in the bottom of the saddle! Yes, a bottle opener. See... perfect. (What is questionable about the Otis, is the inclusion of a coaster brake. Huh? Yeah, I don't get that one either. It would seem, however, that one should be able to simply spin off the fixed cog and replace it with a freewheel. But don't quote me on that.)

2) And the second link... darn... what was the second one? Well, I guess this will have to do. All you need to know is blood is truth. Many, many good things for your aural amusement. Enjoy.

I'm Not Sorry

2007-03-27T13:27:00.000-04:00

I enjoyed FREE COFFEE (yes, FREE COFFEE is deserving of all caps) this morning, just for driving my car to school. Encouragement for being lazy. Ha! In your face, beautiful spring-time weather!

Hmm... this blog is quickly transforming into a where to get FREE COFFEE blog. I can't honestly say that it's entirely unexpected though... considering my fondness for all that is free and all that is coffee.

I do, however, feel compelled to apologize for the lack of warning. Though, in all truthfulness, I'm not repentant... in any way whatsoever. But having said that, here's a hollow apology: Sorry, jerks.

And the Founder of Quinnipiac University is...

2007-03-20T17:42:00.000-04:00

Right... so I don't want to jinx it, but as of right now (actually, as of February 26, 2007), I am, according to the all-knowing brain-in-a-jar that is Wikipedia, the founder of Quinnipiac University.

Yep. It's right there in the History section, second sentence in. It reads, "Quinnipiac University is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian institution of higher education. Originally known as the Connecticut College of Commerce, it was founded in 1929 by Samuel H. Cohen as a small business college..."

1929. Damn. I'm looking pretty good despite being almost 80!

and

I guess I should update my resume to reflect my former position as University Founder. Unfortunately, I will be unable to provide references... because they're all probably dead.

I don't know who made the actual edit (I do have my suspicions, though). But anyway, I have to go now. I'm off to the bursar's office. Being the founder, I assume that I'm entitled to a tuition reimbursement... or at the very least, a free bobble-head.

(What makes this inaccuracy all the more ironic, is that last semester I wrote a paper commending the Wikipedia community for its accuracy... promoting the notion that, by the collaborative authoring of worldly knowledge, accuracy will prevail! Clearly, I was wrong. But I'm not giving back my A. Oh... and just in case Wikipedia ever catches up with itself, and reverts to a previous iteration, here is a .pdf of the Quinnipiac University Wikipedia entry as it exists today.)

Umm... More Free (as in Beer) Coffee

2007-03-20T16:02:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow. All day long. FREE ICED COFFEE. This time, from Dunkin' Donuts.