Electricity Calculator
March 28, 2006
Found this on the BBC news site. Its in response to the news that the UK will not meet its CO2 emmisions reduction target, well this doesnt help with China and the USA screwing everything up in terms of carbon emmions. The link asks you to calculate how much fossil fules, nuclear energy, alternative and foreign energies you would employ as a energy minister. To be honest im all for Nuclear and alternative, as long as they can make safe Nuclear (Chernobyl and "The China Syndrome" come to mind), and as long as NIMBY's (Not in my back yard) people dont throw up a fuss about wind turbines. They wont be complainging when their energy bills are extrotionate and when fossil fuels are run dry. Anyway heres the link.:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/uk/06/electricity_calc/html/1.stm
10 THINGS WE DIDN’T KNOW THIS TIME LAST WEEK 3
March 26, 2006
Taken from bbc.com – http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4824504.stm
Snippets harvested from the week's news, chopped, sliced and diced for your weekend convenience.
1. Goths, those pasty-faced teenagers who revel
in black clothing, are likely to become doctors, lawyers and
architects, according to a study by Sussex University.
2. Nelson Mandela used to steal pigs as a child.
3. In the UK there are: 275,000km of gas pipes; 353,000km of sewer pipes; 396,000km of water pipes, and 482,000km of electricity cables.
4. Jacques Chirac spent time in his youth as a forklift driver at a US brewery.
5. More than 3,000 BT internet customers download up to 200 gigabytes each month.
6. There are an average of 4.4 sparrows in each British garden, a study has found. In 1979, there were 10 per garden.
7. No chancellor of the exchequer in more than 150 years has delivered 10 Budgets in a row. Gordon Brown achieved that feat this week.
8. Electricity for Number 10 Downing Street is supplied by a French company.
9. Boris Johnson calls Harriet Harman "Hattie".
10. Under the Estate Agents Act 1979, anyone can
set up in business as one unless they have been banned by the Office of
Fair Trading or are bankrupt.
The Best Computer Game Garments
March 21, 2006
So i was in one of those half awake half asleep moods this morning and was thinking of something good to blog about, aside from my rants, which isnt to everyones taste. Then it came to me, there are some iconic game characters that have been in the public eye for years.
In game development there are the key areas to cover when creating a character, whether they are playable or NPC. These include there personality, appearance, and their apparel. So i started to think about which iconic computer game characters have the best garments, or apparel. So me and atariboy (who helped with this list of sorts) got to work thinking up of computer game characters that had some sort of clothing that set them apart from the rest. My only rule was that it couldnt be a Movie ported over to a console or pc, and no tuxedo’s/smart suits. If that were the case, james bond would be straight in there, as well as Men in Black, and well there not typically known as computer game characters, but for the movies based on them.
And so we start, My first thought was Sonic the hedgehog, well of course he has to be first on the list. His classic red shoes are the source of his superhuman (of super-hedgehog) speed, they just add that certain element of cool. And who couldnt resist the urge of holding down the A-button (sega megadrive), let sonic rev up and let him loose to wreak havoc upon dr Eggman/Robotnic.
Then of course who else could follow sonic than Mario, of course we could include luigi here, due to him having an identical hat (in green). But these two iconic characters have been the mainstay of the gaming world since, well , forever. Mario’s hat like sonic’s shoes, gives him special abilities, different hats do different things, makes him bigger, and my favourite the ‘Flower power’ hat which let him shoot whatever those things were.
Of course we have to consider Sonic and Mario are playful characters, with very similar energetic personalities, fighting for a cause against equally comical badguys. I tried to move away from this aspect, and thought about which characters have something that little special, or cheesy. Of course how cud i forget Solid Snake, one of the hardest men know to gaming, the elitest of elite special forces, ah the days of completing metal gear solid and recieving a Bandana at the end. One thing i do have to say is that, damn he’s got it low on his forehead, almost covers his eyes, but this adds a sense of enigma to him. I thought id put in Max Payne, purely because i love the game, and always remember the long black trenchcoat, and the really, REALLY bad hawian shirt. Diving around corners, the black coat brought on cape-like (batman and such) imagery, and blowing in the wind, or the calm before the storm, before he ‘buz a cap in yo ass’, much like Solid snake and his Bandana.
The realm of computer game has brought on a torrent of FPS, and the possibilities for sci-fi, and fictional worlds and settings has brought many of the best known games of recent times into a new direction, one of fantasy and kickin ass. Although the heroes depicted in these game, most notabley Gordon Freeman (half life), Samus (Metroid), and the Master Chief (Halo), all face many dangers in the escapades, and many hazerdous environments. This is where the full body protective suits comes in, most iconically the HEV suit from half life, but also the master chief with his suit and sheild. With Metriod and Halo these suits add the potnetial of you becoming a protagonist, because your never sure of their identities or facial appearance, you Become them. This is much the same for Hlaf Life, because we know what Gordon Freeman looks like, yet these are only from concept designs. The suits that these heroes adorn therefore have two purposes, to enable you to become a protagonist, and to protect from those nasty electric bolts from sparky’s as i call them (vortigaunts), hazardous waste or pesky plasma burns from those annoying little shits we call Grunts (Halo).
Oh tommy vercetti, what class, what charisma… what a pimp. That Hawaian Shirt just oozes personality. The setting of vice city was immense, such an awesome game design with many parts of the city to explore and unlock, all done with the mafia don that is tommy vercetti, then of course theres the hilarious ‘i completed vice city and all i got was this lousy t-shirt’. The 80’s setting fits perfectly, and reminds me of Goodfellas the film, the shirt just says, im a gangster and i look cool. Much the same can be said for good old Duke Nukem, of which im pointing out his sunglasses. Maybe behind those eyes is a fragile character, or maybe is an ode to ray charles, but those sunglasses are what make Duke, Duke! And what punchlines he came up with “its time to kick ass and chew bubblegum…damn im all outa gum”, and my personal favourite…”Lara…is that you”. Which leads me onto the only recognisable female computer game charater that i can think of, ruling out samus from metroid (becuase none of us were expecting samus to be a girl). What can i say about Lara, apart from, blasphemy has been placed against her with those god awful film adaptations. Is it the long hair, is it the Boobs (well mostly the boobs) but we all know her for the blue top and skin tight shorts….DAMN!!
Never in a million years would i have thought of including Link (zelda), parrappa the rapper and Raziel (soulreaver) together in a sentence. Having Never played any of these games properly i cant say much about them (although i dabbled with parrappa), i can say this, Link from Zelda has a very recognisable emsemble of clothing, like Lara Croft, the green tunic thing (of whatever it is) and the pointed hat have been a mainstay in the gaming industry for years, and still manages to surprise us with every incarnation of Zelda. Parrappa the rapper, well he’s got a Beanie, what else can i say. And Raziel, with that scarf/cloak/thing …urgh whatever, adds an enigmatic air to his character.
Ok so i lead onto Beat-em-ups. Im not a huge fan of them, but Tekken 4 i really enjoyed, If i knew more about the whole genre im sure i could do a whole blog about the different characters and their apparel, but the ones that come to mind are Jin (Tekken) and Raizen (i think thats his name – MortalKombat). Jins gloves are his ‘thing’ and you dont wana mess with him, esp when he turns evil, although this is mostly towards Heihachi, that miserable old fiend, grr i shak my first at him. Lastly i come to Raizen, i immediately thought of him from Mortal Komat from when he flings his hat and severs what ever unlucky soul crossed his path. Im also reminded of the recently banned advert that appeard online somewhere of the new game, where ‘Mr lee’ i think, resembles, bellows ‘FIGHT’, and ‘FINISH HIM’ from across the boardroom table, very funny.
(edit) – I almost forgot, how could i, shame on me, Sam fisher from Splinter cell, a very impressive series of games, although if you close your eyes after a heavy session of playing splinter cell, all you can see are those 3 damn green lights. The infra-red goggles are a very useful gadget, and is a distinctive element in the game.
Notable Mention:
My notable mention for this blog has to Alan Wake, which from all accounts is basically the next max payne (same developers) but they lost the rights for another max payne, to be honest i couldnt see where they would go from max payne 2. Anyway Alan wake looks very impressive from what ive seen and heard, and ive allready seen posts about his scarf, although it doesnt really share similarities with Raziel’s scarf thing, it does look good, and damn wherever he is, it must be cold!
Anyway those are all the Game characters i could think of, please comment and add your favourites that i have probably missed out.
What Grinds My gear 4
March 17, 2006
So ive been biding my time as to what i could write about, and suddenly it came to me, actually it came to me three times in three days. Ill expain. It it actually this really annoying Chain E-Mail thats been doing the rounds. I had three emails in three days, which have just been forwarded. Its like the same as all other chain emails of this sort, people forward first and ask questions later. FFS read through the thing carefully, and heres another clue, Use some fucking Common Sense.
here is an excerpt:
Hey it is Andy and john the directors of MSN, sorry for the >interruption but >msn is closing down. this is because too many inconsiderate people are >taking up all the name (eg making up lots of different accounts for just >one >person), we only have 578 names left. If you would like to close your >account, DO NOT SEND THIS MESSAGE ON. If you would like to keep your >account, then SEND THIS MESSAGE TO EVERYONE ON YOUR CONTACT LIST. This >is no >joke, we will be shutting down the servers. Send it on, thanks. >WHO EVER DOES NOT SEND THIS MESSEAGE, YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE CLOSED AND YOU >WILL COST £10.00 A MONTH TO USE. SEND THIS TO EVERYONE ON YOUR CONTACT >LIST. >NOW YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO. PLEASE DO NOT FORWARD THIS or REPLAY. COPY THE >WHOLE EMAIL. GO BACK TO YOUR INBOX AND CLICK ON NEW. AND PASTE THANK YOU >FOR >YOUR ATTENTION > >hey everyone, i dont normally send this sort of stuff out but had a look on >the internet and its actually true . On the 1st of november , we will have >to pay for the use of our MSN and email accounts unless we send this >message >to at least 18 contacts on your contact list. It's no joke if you don't >believe me then go to the site ( >http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1189119.stm ) and see for yourself. >Anyways once you've sent this message to at least 18 contacts, your msn >dude >will become blue. please copy and paste don't forward cos people won't take >notice of it.
Ok let me first start off by saying. Who are these andy and john, directors of MSN, no i think Bill Gates is the director of MSN unless im mistaken, and nobody would say yeah im mike, im the boss of the galaxy, in that case you must believe me. Nobody can actually believe someone saying “my name is andy and im Really High up in MSN”. That annoyed me first off. The Bullshit about people taking up account names, and only having a certain number of names left, Thats Fucking bullshit, MSN are the biggest computer provider in the world, if this was the case (WHICH IT IS SO FUCKING NOT) you dont think theyll be able to afford to buy more server space, DURGH!!!. But that is not the case. The key thing here is that, seriously would the director of MSN just send out a chain email, you know how crap chain emails are, if something big was going to happen, the MSN team would send an email out to everyone, i repeat EVERYONE. You know the ones, those annoying emails from the MSN team saying how great there service is.
Umm one thing, would the Director of MSN say “Anyways once you’ve sent this message to at least 18 contacts, your msn dude will become blue” – Now Seriously would the director say BLUE MSN DUDE!!, i emphasise the word DUDE, surely they would say icon FFS
Two more points to notice here. first, charging £10 a month, your having a fucking laugh, MSN Hotmail isnt a fucking Phone contract, for a start thats an extortionate amount of money, and the pranksters who thought this up seriously over-estimated an imaginary amount to charge, who the fuck would beileve that you have to pay £10 a month to send and recieve emails, ill tell you who, the sad idiots who pay for monthly games, and PEOPLE WHO DONT READ THE WHOLE EMAIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Which brings me onto my last point, that link theyve put in:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1189119.stm
That one, Ok heres the thing, which has been clarified by the BBC THEMSELVES in this article :http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4778046.stm
THE LINK IS 5 FUCKING YEARS OLD!!!!!!! – As stated in the second link, the link is 5 years old, yes microsoft had considered the thought, but didnt go ahead with it. As i said earlier people just froward and ask questions later. If you read the date, it says in plain english here:
Another point is that the BBC notes in that second link, the website has gone through 2 different site redesigns, if you look at the chain email link and the current bbc news website, they dont look the same. Also in the chain email link it has a screenshot of the Hotmail front page from 5 years ago, and the current Hotmail homepage looks totally different!!!!! Seriously i urge you to read this link once again, itll reiterate it its importance.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4778046.stm
ONCE AGAIN THE HOTMAIL CHAIN EMAIL IS FAKE, AND YOUR IDIOTS FOR BELIEVING IT, AND IN FUTURE READ THE WHOLE EMAIL BEFORE YOU SEND IT ONTO ME YOU SMALL MINDED FUCKS, I DONT WANT ANOTHER FAKE CHAIN EMAIL.
AND THAT LADIES AND GENTLEMEN IS WHAT GRINDS MY GEARS
Games!!
March 15, 2006
So ive been using the stumble upon extensions for firefox, which ill probs tell you all bout at some point, if you dont allready know what it is. But ive found some really cool little games, that id thought id share with you all.
Bowman – stickmen with bows, you have to ingenuity, angles and force to cause as much bloodloss to your opponent, i recommend putting a wall in to add some difficulty.
Gimp Roulette – a strange take on russian roulette, btw do not try it at home, you will die.
skop.com – not really a game, but a cool sound program that lets you use your keyboard to play a song, but the catch is all the soundbites are from bruce lee films, its animates with each keystoke, also a downloadable version is there too.
Battleships – does exactly what it says on the tin!!
fun cup – A nicely designed race game, using real tracks, and vw cars, the camera angle is a little anoying when tryin to steer, but looks raelly good.
Poom – this little game is really interesting, involves the player to do essentially keepie-uppie, with a ball, althogh the grid changes with every bounce.
Programmer or serial killer?
March 14, 2006
http://www.malevole.com/mv/misc/killerquiz/
One for all you computer geeks out there, can you tell the difference between a programmer or a serial killer in the mugshots shown in the quiz, i only got 5/10, see how you can do. Im not sure what constitutes in you doing better than me, id be distrubed if you knew all the programmers, and even more disturbed if you knew all the killers. Anyway see how you do.
Channel 4, the saviour of saturday night
March 13, 2006
I found this the other day, on the bbcnews.com. And my jaw dropped. Channel 4 is showing so many good films in the months to come, and the news tht filmfour is going to be free to view, whereas it used to cost £15 a month, bit of a rip off. So id like to thank channel 4 and fox for collaborating together and being the saviour of saturday night (i imagine theyll be showing these good films on saturdays).
Channel 4 buys Fox film archive
Dodgeball will have its UK TV premiere on Channel 4
Channel 4 has signed a multi-million dollar deal with 20th Century Fox to buy the rights to a raft of hit movies.
20th Century Fox said it was the largest deal it had completed with a UK broadcaster, with a figure of $250m (£149.9m) being reported.
Among the films included in the deal are Dodgeball, The Day After Tomorrow, X-Men 3 and The Omen 666.
The deal comes as Channel 4 prepares to launch its movie channel FilmFour as a free-to-air channel in July.
The deal includes Fox’s back catalogue of feature films and future releases up until 2008 for use on Channel 4 and its digital channels E4 and FilmFour.
Working history
Other films included in the deal are Ice Age 2, Robots, Kingdom of Heaven, Cheaper by the Dozen 2 and Fantastic Four.
“Fox and Channel 4 have an excellent working history together and many of our successful films and series have been on their networks, so we’re delighted that this new deal will extend and expand that relationship into the future,” said Fox senior vice president Jeff Ford.
Channel 4 and E4 already show Fox TV programmes such The Simpsons The OC.
FilmFour’s switch to a free channel will see advertising pay for the channel rather than subscriptions, and will be available to anyone with digital TV.
Omnia Vincit Amor Part 3 – 50 Things guys must know
March 13, 2006
I think i found this on points in case link
Points in case is very interesting website, although aimed more at the american college crowd. I thought id follow up my last list with this one. I must say im pretty clueless when it comes to understanding what a woman wants, well because not many men can decrypt what a woman says and what she really wants. Hope this list helps you men understand women a little better.
50 things girls want guys to know
By: Charlie
Dated: 11:05 on 11/17/2005
1. Saying “I love you” immediately before, during, or following sex doesn’t count.
2. Real men drive stick shift.
3. I will leave if you lie.
4. You are cute in raglan-sleeved T-shirts (two-toned baseball undershirts).
5. I’m convinced I’m pregnant and obsess about it for a minimum of 24 to 48 hours before my period, even when I have no rational reason to think so.
6.I love it when you hug me from behind and whisper in my ear.
7. “Fine” is never an appropriate response when I ask you how I look.
8. Most of the time when I fantasize, it’s about you.
9. I’m terrified of becoming my mother, even though I admire her.
10. I get turned on simply seeing that I have an e-mail from you.
11. I expect you to call me.
12. Only rock stars are allowed to wear leather pants.
13. I’m scared of losing my independence.
14. I’m more forgiving of you than I really should be.
15. Oral sex is your get-out-of-the-doghouse-free card. Manolo Blahnik shoes also do the trick.
16. You did something bad. I seem cool with it. I’m not. (See directly above.)
17. If I’m not having sex with you, I’m… a. …having a fat day. b. …not feeling “connected” to you. c. …blackmailing you to get something I want.
18. Shoes determine whether you’re fashionable or not.
19. I own a Debbie Gibson CD, and I’m not afraid to use it.
20. When I compare my flabby tummy to a kangaroo pouch, say nothing.
21. A man I love plans the occasional fancy-schmancy dress-up date and impromptu weekend getaways, and he buys my favorite candy in advance when we’re just going to the movies.
22. You look hot in hooded clothing items.
23. You should never tell me what to do.
24. If I slept over, you owe me breakfast.
25. My breasts love much licking and sucking.
26. If you ask me out directly, I will say yes.
27. I’m very impressed when you ask for my advice.
28. I’m unimpressed with a man who doesn’t take the lead.
29. When in doubt, go with the shirt that matches your eye color.
30. I want to be Madonna.
31. Women get urinary-tract infections easily, so watch (and wash) your fingers.
32. I’m in heaven when you hold my hand.
33. You’re sexy when you’re shaving, fixing things, wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, driving, eating a peach, holding a baby.
34. I need to hear how you feel about me. Often. Tell me now.
35. Surprises, especially gifts for moi = more loving.
36. I want to be the best thing that ever happened to you–and for you to recognize this.
37. If I’m not feeling loved, I will start looking….
38. Discussion of ex-gf’s and ex-bf’s should be avoided at all times.
39. I like it when you tell me what you’re thinking, even if you don’t know yourself.
40. Celebrating our anniversary, even if it’s only been a few months, earns major bonus points.
41. I love it when you’re sweaty.
42. It’s best to consult your gal pals for gift ideas.
43. A lady should always be greeted with kisses.
44. I like porn.
45. I love holding your bum in the palms of my hands.
46. Even nice girls like hushed dirty talk in public.
47. It’s cheating as soon as you’re doing something with her that you wouldn’t want me to see, hear, read…
48. For the record: I’d rather you break up with me than cheat.
49. I remember everything about our relationship.
50. You should know all this and more with-out my telling you
Ha Ha – The CIA suck at security
March 12, 2006
Taken from bbc news .com http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4799174.stm
Internet blows CIA agents’ cover
The Chicago Tribune says it has compiled a list of 2,653 CIA employees, just by searching the internet. The newspaper said it gathered the information from online services that compile public data, that any fee-paying subscriber can access.
It did not publish the names, at the CIA’s request. Many of the agents are believed to be covert. The paper also located two dozen “secret” facilities.
A CIA spokeswoman admitted the internet had scuppered some of its methods.
“Cover is a complex issue that is more complex in the internet age,” said Jennifer Dyck.
“There are things that worked previously that no longer work. [CIA Director Porter] Goss is committed to modernising the way the agency does cover in order to protect our officers who are doing dangerous work.”
Ms Dyck declined to detail the remedies “since we don’t want the bad guys to know what we’re fixing”.
Terror targets?
The Chicago Tribune article was headlined: “Internet blows CIA cover.”
It began: “She is 52 years old, married, grew up in the Kansas City suburbs and now lives in Virginia, in a new three-bedroom house.”
It went on to explain that the online service describes the woman in question as a CIA employee who has been assigned to several American embassies in Europe.
The CIA confirmed that she was a covert operative.
The paper also identified facilities in Chicago, northern Virginia, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah and Washington state. It said some were heavily guarded, but others appeared outwardly to be private residences.
Asked how so many personal details of CIA employees had found their way into the public domain, a senior US intelligence official told the Tribune “I don’t have a great explanation, quite frankly”.
Asked about fears that the details might be accessed by terrorist groups, he replied: “I don’t know whether al-Qaeda could do this, but the Chinese could.”
The disclosure comes as the US justice department continues an investigation into whether members of the Bush administration deliberately exposed the identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame.
Jeeves retirement video
March 11, 2006
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mO50pnBD0M
ok so i randomly found what seems to be an official video from ask.com, a spoof video as it were about the retirement of jeeves their mascot. And i must say, its fucking terrible!!, make of it what you will
