The Wonderful World of the Gundampilotspaz

There are many different perceptions on what this unique city represents. Be it a romantic vision of victory, a stunning achievement of mankind’s ability to adopt to their surroundings, the destruction of the moral basis of America, or the ruthless nature of capitalism. All these perceptions exist and all of them are valid. This place, this wild and extraordinary place that grew from a lifeless piece of earth, leaves a unique impression on everyone who crosses though.

I have taken the romantic view for a long time. Specifically since the 2004 World Series of Poker began airing on ESPN. Here was a card game, a game most people thought of as a random act of chance, having it’s championship aired on prime time television. When I first watched it I thought it was silly. Why do I care about people playing poker? But the 2004 World Series was presented in a way that allowed the viewer to learn the game, learn the modern day heroes of the game, and learn about the legends.

After the 2004 season of the World Series of Poker ended I continued to play No Limit Hold’em as well as other forms of the game. All the time reading about the legends and myth surrounding the game. From Doyle Brunsons tales of having the keep a shotgun by his side during those first Hold’em games in Texas to Stu Unger winning his third World Series title in 1997 after falling out of the poker world due to cocaine abuse. That whole tournament he wore sunglasses to hide the fact his nostrils had caved in. He died a short time after this final victory.

Four years ago I dreamed of being old enough not  just to play in the World Series of Poker, that mess has turned into a crap shoot anyway, but just to come to Vegas and play poker where these legends had once sat. To stand in the shadows of giants, as it were. As I write this three days away from my 21st birthday sitting in a hotel room thirteen stories above Las Vegas…. I feel like I’m in a dream. This can’t be real, can it? I feels like no time has passed since my friends and I had played our small $5 tournaments and thought about one day sitting in a real Vegas casino and playing a serious game of poker. This isn’t really happening.

I think I kept thinking this as the day of the flight (this morning) came and I bragged to everyone at work. I kept thinking that I’d wake up from some dream as we lifted off from Hartford Connecticut at 7am, and I really thought I was dreaming as I looked down from the heavens upon mother earth of the first time. It didn’t even hit me as we landed at 9am after 5 hours in the air (ugh, jetlag)  and got our luggage. It hit me at the strangest time. As we went back to our hotel I say a highway sign that said, “route 15 to Salt Lake City” that was when it really hit home that I had crossed a continent. That on August 12th I will stand in the shadow of giants.

The first day I used to get a feeling for what Las Vegas was really like. I had to get there first, of course, that was an ordeal that I don’t really want to remember. Not that it was too much of a hassle. But the flight left at 7 am and we left for the airport at 3am. I didn’t sleep that night, in fact I didn’t sleep more than maybe 2 hours on the flight until midnight on saturday. 9am on Friday to 12am on sunday. 39 hours of being awake.

After getting our rental car and checking in we just went for a drive to check out the city. Lunch was a priority and I jumped at the opportunity to eat at In and Out burger for the first time. The restaurant was absolutely packed. Standing room only. The burger was wonderful, the fries were good but nothing spectacular. With fries I use “Five Guys Burger and Fries” as a standard. Five Guys use fresh potatoes, cut them in house, and use peanut oil. So In and Out Burgers frozen fries didn’t

We stopped at the Luxor and just walked around. That casino was amazing. The whole thing is a giant pyramid. In the huge open center is shopping and gaming while the walls are lined with hotel rooms all the way up to the tip. The room doors are facing the inside of the casino. It’s an amazing engineering marval.

The evening was reserved for a trip around town to stare at the pretty lights. I know it’s cliché but they really are overwhelmingly impressive. Old Vegas was an amazing experience, looking at the old buildings blending into the newly constructed lights and dome covering the famous street. Walking though the Horseshoe (now Binion’s) and looking at the spot that all the World Series of Poker Champions were crowned was humbling.

A long day, a humbling day, and day a long time long coming. I look forward to a great week.

Pictures from my first day in Las Vegas
This will probably be one of the longest updates except for MAYBE tomorrow which will be about the final day of the Las Vegas Star Trek convention. Really now, it would be boring to write “Played 18 hours of poker. Can’t wait to do it again” four days in a row.

Tags: travel //

I’m struggling now with the decision to upgrade from my $600 launch day 8gig iPhone to the brand new shiny 3G – GPS enabled $300 16gig iPhone. I’m really happy with my current iPhone and I’d love to have the faster radio and GPS capabilities but is the upgrade worth $200 or $300?

The two features that make the iPhone 3G a better device than the original is the new 3G radio and the GPS. The benefits of these two upgrades goes beyond just a faster data connection and knowing exactly where you are at all times. Are these two upgrades worth spending $200? Lets take a look at what these features will enable to iPhone 3G to do that the original iPhone could not.

3G: Most of the time I’m near a Wi-Fi connection. Which makes the iPhone’s new 3G connection moot. However, the iphone is best suited for use when you aren’t near a wi-fi connection. When you are in the middle of no where and find an odd shaped rock: well you need to inform your twitter followers, right? The introduction of third party applications make a faster radio that much more important.

Looking at the MLB.com application I can’t see a practical use for the streaming play-by-play baseball videos over edge. That application was designed for either wifi or 3G in mind. But it’s when you don’t have access to wifi when checking baseball scores would be most common. In the office or at home you’re either watching the game or watching the play-by-play gamecast on your computer. You don’t need the MLB application at that point. But when stuck in a restaurant and while checking the scores and I see that Manny just hit a huge home run I want to be able to watch that video. Edge speeds won’t cut it.

But the problem with 3G is that the AT&Ts 3G coverage is shockingly bad. The coverage map lists my entire area (Southern Connecticut) as being 3G ready but as it stands right now I have enough trouble getting Edge service everywhere I go, especially in buildings. The first thing you need to do before even considering buying the 3G iPhone is to check the coverage map. People in big cities aren’t going to have a problem, but most other areas are going to have to stick with edge. http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/

GPS: The iPhone 3G comes with assisted GPS. Meaning that the GPS chip will use itself as little as possible in favor of cell towers. But with the GPS chip it’ll always find your exact location. The problem with the GPS is in software. As it stands now the SDK user agreement prevents the use of turn-by-turn directions. So Apple seems to want to exclusively use the GPS for location based services like the loopt social network. Which isn’t a poor use of the hardware, it just might not be worth the price of upgrading from the original model.

The battery life is also questionable. Steve expertly avoid

ed talking about how much battery the GPS was going to suck down from my multimedia device. Until I see reviews I don’t think I want GPS anywhere near my phone; turn by turn directions or not.

The other improvements to the iPhone also add value to the new model over the old. The plastic back is supposed to boost reception, which has been a problem compared to other phones. The volume on the speaker phone and standard ear piece is supposed to be improved. The phone is supposed to fit better in your hand. And it includes the flush headphone jack as opposed to the recessed headphone jack on the original hardware.

Are all of these improvements worth a $200 upgrade? If the 3G coverage was better then I wouldn’t hesitate to jump on the upgrade. But the poor quality of the 3G network tell me that I should wait till AT&T builds out their network to an exceptable size.

There is also the option of getting a bigger harddrive for another $100. That upgrade is very worth it, the 8gig harddrive has provided plenty of space for music and movies. But with the Application Store about to be released it’d be nice to have another 8 gigs. But $300 is still steep considering the lackluster shine of the other new features of the 3G iPhone.

Please don’t get me wrong. I recommend the iPhone 3G to anyone who wants the iPhone or anyone who needs a new iPod. Its an amazing deal! But should current iPhone owners upgrade? Well, if you are in a big city and can get constant 3G while away from a wi-fi access point. If you think that GPS location based services will be good navigating though the city then the iPhone 3G will give you that added bonus. If you have an iPhone and don’t get 3G in your area stick with your current phone and take advantage of the new features of the 2.0 software.

I remain undecided. I starting writing this to convince myself to buy the new iPhone. Now finished I seem to have pushed myself in the exact opposite direction that I intended. I’ll probably wait until the 32gig model comes out. Or wait a bit longer till the 3 generation hardware comes out. I’m sure it’ll include enough features to make upgrading a no brainer.

Tags: apple, apple, computers, iPhone, technology // 1 Comment »

Time Travel is Awesome has already had some convention content from Sakura Con + Part 2 but we plan to bring some coverage from at least three more conventions this summer. What I want to know is, what kind of content do you want from convention coverage? What do you most care about when it comes to conventions that you attended or when you want to grasp the content of a convention that you missed? I plan to bring lots of photos, video (interviews like those above some comedy, some serious), hopefully some interviews, and panel write ups. But I really want to know how I should spend the most time on based on what the community wants to see.

Please leave a comment below telling me what you like to see or want to see from convention coverage.

Repost from Time Travel is Awesome

Tags: Blogs, anime //

I attempt to avoid situations where I could spend money if I’m not completely conscious. I’ve made some of the worst purchasing decisions in my life while half asleep and I’ve made the all of my worst poker decisions while half-asleep. But there is something about iTunes that makes it different. The ability to get the content immediately combined with a massive selection plus being half asleep leads to purchases that I might want to make but decide against had my mind been completely clear.

Having said that, this is not one of those cases. I love Little Shop of Horrors. It really is the best movie musical of all time (or at least that was made in the 80’s). But did I really need to own the iTunes version of it for my iPhone and AppleTV…no….The amount of times they play it on cable the chances I’m going to sit down and watch the whole thing (every time) make buying it a bit silly. But do I own now? Yes. Hell, I preach about getting rid of cable anyone. This is one more chance to pull myself away from the television other than when I’m ready to watch my content!

On top of that, did I really didn’t need to also buy the original soundtrack from the play? (movie? I’m not such which I got) Well it’s mine now! I spent the day at work listening to it and was very upset when I found out that in the original the plant ends up winning! I’ll stick to the Rick Moranis version with the sappy ending. This from a person who likes to kill his characters off, mind you.

While I don’t suggest browsing the iTunes library while half-asleep I do suggest going down right now and buying the Little Shop of Horrors movie and soundtrack. Especially if you’ve seen them before but haven’t rewatched/listened to them in years. Best impulsive $20 I’ve ever spent.

Tags: entertainment, movies, music //

I’ve decided to move The Wonderful World of the Gundampilotspaz to my webserver and in the next few weeks I plan to retool it into my personal blog where I post things that interests me. That is what this blog started out as and that is what it is going to return too. I will still do commentary on important news but I’m really going to save most of that for Time Travel is Awesome.

So you cna expect more observations, personal essays, and a hub to most of my other projects that I’m working on the Internet like the above mentioned Time Travel is Awesome, my articles at MyMac Magazine, a new blog project that I’m working on, as well as some creative projects that I will begin to send into the public.

So be patient during the redesign. There are things that I need to do to make the transfer work. I’m going to cut down on the number of categories, for one. I’ve already done this twice but the list is still overwhelming. I need to pick a new theme that works with widgets and actually looks good. There are so many Wordpress themes that look really good but when I start working with them I begin to hate them. You’ll also see widgets begin to appear including some slight Google Ads which you probably should click on, and hopefully some widgets that’ll make it easier to find me on the web in places like Twitter or Facebook. I also need to go though nearly all of my posts and change the code for youtube videos and other html based content because those all broke thanks to the way that Wordpress.com handled their implementation.

Look forward to better content, more consistent content, and a brand new mindset in my approach to this blog.

Tags: Blogs //

I first saw Goldentusks Back to the Future video about a year ago and I thought it was funny, but above all it stood out as being strangely high quality for just a youtube video. Well, now Goldentusk has seven of these videos the most recent he pays tribute to the Indiana Jones theme song. These videos shouldn’t be over looked and it’s unfortunate that this quality content gets mixed in with people eating cinnamon and cats playing the piano.

Below are three of the best of his videos but here is the link to his youtube channel:

Repost from Time Travel is Awesome

Tags: humor //

A new Article posted last week at MyMac Magizine. Click for the full article, below is a preview.

NBC Universal and News Corp. invested heavily in the new online video service Hulu in an attempt to take control of their digital media. NBC pulled their media from iTunes late last year fearing Apple’s continuing dominance in the content distribution space. But NBC is missing the point of digital media and Hulu will always fall short as a solution for digital distribution.

Looking at Hulu, it is a very impressive service. Although still in closed beta I was able to sign up early and get an invite. The selection is very impressive with NBC offering over 70 shows; that’s right 70, and 37 networks signed on the amount of content will keep anyone busy for a very long time. Brand new shows become available on Hulu about an hour after the show has finished airing in Hawaii. Already it has a massive amount of content, new shows are available much sooner then they are on iTunes, and it’s all free. Where could Hulu possibly fall short?

Hulu is representative of the studios hanging onto the old model. Granted it’s a step in the right direction but it’s really just a much improved version of youtube. Hulu falls short by missing the wants and needs of consumers. But they could fix the problems very easily. The model the studios should adopt is as follows;

Leave the steaming as it is

Hulu is a wonderful platform, and it’s a step in the right direction. It’s the perfect hub that studios can use to allow their customers to watch their media streaming from the Internet. Two factors of Hulu stand out as a step forward for online streaming content, the fact that shows and movies are not broken up into smaller streams so they can sneak more ads in. The benefit of creating a central hub for content is that I don’t have to go to four different websites to watch the content that I want. Hulu allows me to watch NBC, Fox, and all the studios that are using the service in the same easy to use sandbox. The biggest surprise about Hulu is the embed function, I can now embed full episodes of Family Guy or the Simpsons onto my blog or website, you don’t even need a Hulu account to watch embedded media. This is a shocking feature that I’d never think commercial television studios would adopt.

Tags: internet, mymac, technology //

I have a review that was posted last week up at mymac.com. Here is a preview, click here for the full article.

The iPhone is a unique device compared to Apple’s other portable media players. The iPod is rarely handled by the user. The most of the interaction the user has with the iPod is to press play and then put it back in your pocket. The iPhone wants to be used.

The design of the iPhone is important to the entire experience, and using a bulky case robs you of a large piece of that experience. The invisibleSHIELD protects your iPhone without limiting its functionality. It won’t protect your phone from blunt trauma but the invisibleSHIELD will help keep your phone looking like new.

The InvisibleSHEILD for the iPhone comes in two different versions; a whole body set or just the front piece. The material is tough enough to make the front only version the best screen cover available for the iPhone, but the real value is having the full body of the iPhone protected. The full body shield comes with a complete front and back pieces for the phone, a rubber applicator, and a tube of the application solution.

When opening the product and being faced with the task of applying the shield, I grew very nervous during this step. The idea of using liquid to position the shield scared me. I was going to spray my $600 phone with a liquid? The front piece is the easiest to apply and set in place. The back gets a little tricky because it includes pieces that have to fold around the corners of the . The shield itself is extremely adaptable and after each end is down it’ll conform to the shape of the phone within about an hour. Don’t worry about the sides of the phone not being down exactly flat or moving out of place. As the shield dries it sets itself in place and morphs to the shape of the phone.

The small pieces of the Shield are frustrating to apply. There are two thin strips for the top and bottom silver borders, and four tear drop shaped pieces for the corners. I made the mistake of placing the small pieces over the larger portion of the shield, so it overlaps and creates a small bump on the side of the phone. The place where I managed to line the shield up correctly, on touch feels like it’s a single large piece of plastic.

The whole iPhone feels like a single piece of plastic is covering it. I wouldn’t be surprised if you handed me an iPhone with the invisibleSHIELD applied and told me that you had the iPhone dipped in plastic. I’m trying to avoid using the word plastic. The invisibleSHIELD is not made of plastic. It’s made from a material developed by the Defense Department to protect helicopter blades in flight.

Tags: apple, iPhone, mymac, reviews, technology //

I experienced some strange problems while trying to encode some video from a DVD with handbrake. Both in Windows XP and OSX the program would crash while attempting to scan the disk, making me unable to even begin the encoding process. No other disk had ever given me this problem and I needed to get the content off to experiment with my video projects for Time Travel is Awesome. After doing a little digging, I found the answer on the handbrake forums. The user van did some serious work to fix the problem and if you are a bigger nerd than I am you can compile some new code from the fix he provides.

The diagnosis of the problem on the handbrake forums:

All these scan aborts are caused by a divide-by-zero in routine hb_fix_aspect(), line 141 of libhb/common.c. It’s being called at the very end of the scan (routine ScanFunc) after all titles have been scanned and the aspect ratio for each title is being updated based on what was discovered about title width, height & aspect ratio while constructing the preview images.

There are two separate problems leading to the aborts:

For program streams, if there’s a title where no previews can be constructed (for example title 3 in bdkennedy1’s crash), title->width, title->height & title->aspect will all be zero when hb_fix_aspect is eventually called on that title & all three of these are multiplicative terms in the denominator so we’ll get a divide by zero. I’m not sure what’s the right fix here but my inclination would be to remove a title from the job’s title list if HB can’t get any previews from it & that would solve the problem.

For transport streams, if the construction of preview 3 fails then title->aspect will be zero which will cause the divide by zero in hb_fix_aspect. I think the best fix here would be to make aspect closer to the way fps is chosen - take the aspect from every preview we get, not just the 3rd, then at the end use the most common AR as the title’s AR.

Finally, hb_fix_aspect should probably validate the terms in the denominator rather than dividing by zero. But I’m not sure what it should do if they’re invalid. (Just use the adjusted job width & height? Delete the title?)

I’ll code up the transport stream AR fix. I can do the other two things at the same time since they’re only a couple of lines each but would like some input from the other devs on what’s the “right” fix.

Link to the fix

Now for those who, like me, hear the word “compile” and start to get a headache there is a much simpler solution. Handbrake 9.1 does not have this problem. However, you are going to have to do a little searching if you are on anything but OSX as that is the only release that is still supported of 9.1. The sourcecode is also supplied so if you are of the more adventurous type give it a shot.

Tags: apple, internet, movies, technology //

This seems like it’s turning into more than an elaborate joke.

Tags: Uncategorized, apple, computers, mac, technology //