The Future

Shortly after extolling the virtues of my phone-run life, while updating said phone, it crashed.

But not all the way. While restarting Springboard (the interface), _that_ crashed, but the phone itself was still running. Now, the normal thing to do in this rare situation is a hard-restart; that is, hold the power button until the phone cycles power. However, my phone's power button has long since died (poor 3Gs design, a known flaw. Likely to be my final Apple phone). What was I to do? Wait until the battery died and then plug it in? That's one method, but it takes *quite* a long time for the battery to die, and I had to use the restroom.

Did I mention that the phone itself was still running? I mean, still observable on my network. I went to one of my computers, SSH'd into my phone, and issued the restart command. About a minute later it was back up and running, good as new (well, I _say_ 'new', but you know what I mean).

This is the future we're living in.

Honda U3-X

I briefly mentioned this on my Enicycle post (or, in the comments, actually), but a new video has surfaced so of course I had to share it. Show/Hide


RAMPANT are the comparisons between this device and those chairs from WALL-E. I don't get it. This is MUCH too small to support such weight...

Translation Party

One morning, I had a good cup of hot coffee. At least, according to Translation Party, a site that takes an English phrase and translates it into Japanese, back into English, back into Japanese, etc, until it finds an identical phrase in both. That's referred to as finding equilibrium.

Sometimes that is impossible, like when you find a translation loop.

They used to let you see what other people were typing in as well, but that was apparently too resource intensive, so the feature was removed (as of this writing; it may be back later).

One thing I wished it had was a game where you are presented with an equilibrium phrase like "And good sex, you need a cup of coffee.", and you have to try and guess the originating phrase. Show/Hide
"The two people wanted to fuck but instead they decided to have a delicious cup of tea instead."

They also made Question Party (but it's not as fun).

Enicycle

This guy built his own 1-axis-balancing (forward/backward) electric unicycle.
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(larger)

THIS is a cool toy, and I want one.

His website is here and has more videos.

Another guy has built a similar one and has all the specs available. The total cost for materials is about $1500. However, that one doesn't have foot-turning like the Enicycle (you turn it like you would a unicycle, eg, arm-flailing).

There's got to be a way to make one of these that is 2-axis-balancing...

I suspected SOME type of oxen...

Phoenix's anagram name is HIP OXEN Now try your name:

Der Schlangemann

*WARNING*
This is a stop-motion animation film that contains mock genitalia and explicit sexual acts involving dolls. Viewer discretion is advised.
(warning from archive.org)

Here is the classic Der Schlangemann video that you may have heard me mention. Now, the original site is gone, unfortunately. (It was actually still up [sans videos] when I originally intended to post this, however many months ago that was).

However, the Internet Archive has kept it online. Isn't technology wonderful?

Don't watch this video at work, unless your workplace is OK with German doll-men with giant penises sexing up Barbie.

(Also, video is entirely in German with no subtitles. But, it is very understandable!)

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Action-Star Obama

(Well, more action-FIGURE Obama.)
Via

The originating site has taken the page down, but the dolls action figures can still be found here. On sale for 8,072円* right now, but the sword and gun accessories are not included. It's a damn shame. You know, now that I think about it, I would totally watch an Obama Action-Movie. It would be so random!

*Holy crap, the dollar has dropped that much against the yen?!

The Fitness Direct Fiasco (Ch 1)

The term is over, and now I have free time to post again. ^_^

I've been wanting a recumbent exercise bike since I moved into my new apartment (I don't live within walking distance of the gym anymore). They are quite pricey, however, especially if you want any special features.

The killer feature I wanted was a target-heart-rate setting. That's pretty much the only setting I use on the bikes at the gym anyway. But, the lower-price bikes don't seem to have it, even if they have heart-rate monitors.

So, I couldn't find one locally in my budget range. I had looked into buying one online, but the shipping costs were a deal breaker.

Then I found iFitnessDirect. Free shipping to anywhere in the US? I'm sold! (Also based in a different state so no taxes [at time of purchase], and they had a discount code that knocked another $15 off)

On their site, I found the Stamina Magnetic Fusion 7100. The features list was incredible!

FEATURES:

• Wireless and contact pulse rate
• Self-powered generator system
• Super smooth dual poly V-belt technology
• Extra large seat with high density contoured pads and lumbar support
• Aluminum rail for precision and smoothness, 24 positions
• Side and front handlebars
• Self balancing pedals with wide, adjustable straps
• Front transport wheels
• 350 lbs Maximum user weight
• Workout Programs: Pre-Set Programs
• Accessibility: Walk Through Design
• Maximum User Weight: 350.00 lbs
• Power Requirement: Self generated power
• Dimensions: 65" x 24" x 48"

Console:

• Large LCD Window
• Console Feedback: Time, Speed, Distance, Heart Rate, Calories, Watt, RPM
• Programming: Manual, 12 Pre-Set Programs, Target Program Setting: Time, Distance, or Calories, Target HR Program, 16 levels of Resistance

WARRANTY:

• Frame: 10 Years
• Parts: 1 Year

All for under $300! I placed my order.

Continue to Chapter Two: The Bike Arrives...

Shooting My Canon

I've been wanting an HV30 camcorder for a while now, and even ordered it at one point. Unfortunately for me, I ordered it through a bait-and-switch company, so I didn't get it.

Well, recently a "Cyber Monday" deal brought the price down to $550. Cheap! Even the bait-and-switch price had been higher than that. Plus a Live Search cashback offer would give me back another 2%. And no taxes. And free shipping.

Additionally, I had recently discovered some things about my credit cards. For example, my MasterCards added extended warranties to my purchases automatically (Visa requires you to register your purchases with them, and only if your service agency covers it). So it would double the 1-year warranty on the HV30 at no cost to me. ALSO one of my MasterCards has a 6% interest. 6%! (Not that I often carry a balance, but still) [This is my new primary card.]

It was time to buy.

In addition to the HV30, I added a Canon DM-50 directional microphone and a Modo Steady 585 camera support, all at B&H Photo-Video, all with 2% cashback.

The only thing left to do was log in to my credit card site, make sure all of my information was up to date, and link it to my checking account (I don't like to make purchases unless I know for sure how it's going to be paid for). Ideally, there will also be an auto-pay option that I can set up so I never ever miss a payment.

Let's see, click login, put in my info, hit enter...

System Unavailable

The system is currently unavailable. Please contact customer service.

Huh. That's weird. Try again....

System Unavailable

The system is currently unavailable. Please contact customer service.

Hmm. :-( That's not good. I want to buy this camera (who knows how long this deal will last?) but I won't do it until I link my credit card account with my bank account. I can't.

So, I wait a few hours and try again and

System Unavailable

The system is currently unavailable. Please contact customer service.

Grr. A few hours later, the same thing. Late into the evening/early morning, the same thing.

Frustrated, I go to bed.

When I awoke, I immediately panicked. Was the sale over? Rushing to the computer I found, no, it was still the same price. Hey, maybe this is just the new price? It is December, after all. The new HV model should drop next month, with even BETTER features (but a higher price tag). And they're probably clearing out stock before the end of the fiscal year. I relaxed, logged in to my credit account and

System Unavailable

The system is currently unavailable. Please contact customer service.

DAMMIT! Why is this happening? I can't link my credit card to my checking accout via customer service.

So I forget about it and go back to work. It's final-projects week (I'm waiting for a download to finish so I can reboot, which is why I'm writing this instead of working on that right now). Many hours later, I needed to wait for a download to finish so I could reboot (hey!) and with nothing else to do, I tried (again) to log in to my credit card account and HEY! IT WORKED! Hooray!

Time to checkout!

Oh, it's after midnight and the sale is over. The HV30 went up $40.

And there is no auto-pay.

:-(

Keepon

It's really quite hypnotic...
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It's actually a research project by Marek P. Michalowski, a Ph.D. student in the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon, and Hideki Kozima, a senior research scientist at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), Japan.

I wants one.

Buying a TV

So, today's Woot is an Emerson 32" LCD HDTV
$399.99 + ($5 shipping).

HDTV for $405? Count me in, right? Whoa there, cowboy. A couple of the posters in the forum sent me to this:



A Westinghouse SK-32H240S - 32 inch LCD with a better screen and way more inputs. (It's the inputs that do it for me), right now $430. No tax here in WA, free shipping (or $5 for expedited shipping). But wait, there's more! $10 off $200 in electronics knocks it down to $420, plus I can get another $30 off if I sign up for their visa card. So it's really $390 vs $405 shipped (both are refurbished). $15 less for a better TV. And the Buy.com one offers the ability to purchase an extended warranty for $50 (Woot does not have this option).

Am I crazy to buy this? With the extended warranty, it's $440, which is more than a month's rent. And I don't have a job at the moment, so it would come out of my meager savings... but it's a good deal. The people who bought it either love it or had it break (hence the extended warranty). And I've been meaning to buy a TV since I came back from Japan. The previous TV I wanted went out of stock before I bought it (missed opportunity!). This is the best deal I've seen since then.

What do you guys think?