Carbonizer-TWR End of Year Post

Remember back in December 31, 2009, how I made some predictions for 2010, back at Two Way Roads?

Here's what happened:
• Twitter will go the way of Pet Rocks.
Sadly no. Give it another year or so.

• No retail giants will fall.
Fortunately I WAS RIGHT. Nothing new appeared this year: nothing to functionally fill the gap of Mervyn's (except more Kohl's and Forever 21), Gottschalk by Joe Levy hasn't appeared yet, and the fabled "Internet catalog showroom" is still up for grabs. bigg's however, patriarch of the practically defunct Forest Fair Mall, was bought out and converted to Remke Markets bigg's, a grocery-only operation. Furthermore, some malls DID die: the last of my "Labelscar Dead Mall Favorites", Palm Beach Mall and Northwest Plaza are gone except for a few outside-entrance stores.


• The Angus burgers at McDonald's will cease to exist. So will their Dollar Menu.
Again, not yet.

• OSx86 hackers will get 10.6 to run on Windows.
Well, what I meant was Mac OS X 10.6 to run on non-Macintosh computers, and yes, I was right.


• The Wii will make it or break it.
Sales are slowing down, but it's still popular. Not a really killer game though.

• TWR will come out with a great post.
Sure! Just browse the updates.

• TWR will get at least five comments.
Low expectations get results!

I didn't expect to actually shut down Two Way Roads though. I suppose the lack of coherent posts, poor publicity, and schizophrenic posting schedule probably killed it. But I'm just guessing.

I never got to do the last few Spirit of 2005 posts, though. I was to do Popular Mechanics (that can be saved for another day), nor my original ending post. This was originally scheduled to be a The Spirit of 2005 post, featuring a Simtropolis lot that blows sky-high within real-life minutes.

In real life, I never got around to SimCity 4 building (still no Windows on the MacBook folks, wait a week or so), but I did build my blog repertoire to include College Station Roads and Retail which has been oddly overlooked by my local city's population.

I have a few projects up my sleeve, so maybe we'll see something neat in 2011.

(it IS 2011 for those on the East Coast)

See ya

Internet street cred

This picture was taken by me from my car, at the entrance of Chuck Norris's ranch in rural Grimes County, Texas.

Given the Internet's obsession, this will propel my blog to be one of the biggest, most happening blogs on the Blogspot network! Right?

~a eulogy to montgomery ward~

Ten years ago today
Montgomery Ward passed away
Liquidation began to come
Alas, old Wards was done

Not a surprise, not a company leak
Everyone knew that Wards was weak
The stores, they were often in malls
They were not known for being that small

But traditionally, like the boardroom's fears
It wasn't as large as an average Sears
The cash reserves were not that many
And it wasn't as nice as a JCPenney

It tried to make a 21st century leap
But compared to discount stores, it wasn't that cheap.
And the malls that Montgomery Ward was in
Promptly went into a long tailspin

Some were quite healthy and did survive
Demolished the pad and continued to thrive
Target was a good replacement for some
In the light of these closures, it wasn't so dumb

But others weren't lucky as one might guess
After the closures, these malls, were well, less.
These malls, their fate was sealed
To be possibly, an empty field

The Wards stores here continued to rot
In the mall there wasn't a lot
Remarketing efforts were to bomb
(You can see these malls on DeadMalls.com!)

The legacy of Montgomery Ward has life
A MW shirt is a favorite of my grandfather's wife
I sleep on their comfortable mattress; a bed
("You have to move out" my parents just said)

Montgomery Ward served as an acid test
To see who would die and who was the best
Circuit City, like Wards before it made several bad moves
And, like Wards before it, did unfortunately lose

Like Wards before it, it did a major remodel, to be a trend-setter
"The City" stores were brighter, and for most purposes better
But Montgomery Ward, they tried that too.
The "Wards" brand: it'd look good in 2002!

Unfortunately not, they'd perish with the rest
Montgomery Ward, just wasn't the best
Now, 10 years since the death, we've had fears.
Who goes next, perhaps Kmart and Sears?

It's High Time for a Better Mario and Zelda Collection

I recently got a copy of Super Mario All-Stars, but aside from a soundtrack and booklet, it's basically the same old SNES version sans Super Mario World (as some versions did). Not that I'm unhappy: I'm glad I can play 2D classic Super Mario on my Wii legally. I used to have the Homebrew Channel but I removed it as Nintendo could delete it/make updates to homebrew, and besides, I now have a computer that can play ROMs well.

But I think that SMAS wasn't the best solution. I think that the Wii version of SMAS should've not only included Super Mario World but also Super Mario 64, plus a demo of New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Of course, if I did that, it would basically render my VC copy of SM64 worthless and the save files immobile (unless they managed to integrate a handy import tool).

The Legend of Zelda faces another problem (but it has a 25th in a 2011, so...): Throwing the console Zeldas in would be nice. The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition had the NES and N64 games (nevermind that the emulation on Majora's Mask crashed, rendering the game hard to win) but it would be a crime not to throw in A Link to the Past, and I miss the original Game Boy Zeldas.

What do you think?

TR2N

I saw Tron: Legacy in the theater yesterday.

Unlike my review of a pair of Disney movies, I decided to put the review in 2 comments for non-spoiler purposes.

A Carbonizer Christmas!

Merry Christmas, everybody! I did a get a lot for this Christmas.

This includes a DVD of Good Eats with three episodes ("Flour Power" containing episodes "The Dough Also Rises", "Puff the Magic Pastry", and "Choux Shine").

A hand-me-down Bluetooth headset from my brother

Some "horns" from the Renaissance Faire

Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary, Super Scribblenauts, and WarioWare DIY

"Molecular Cooking Set" from ThinkGeek.com: it comes with a catalog and sticker!

Plastic coffee cup (Starbucks style) with a package of flavored coffee

And a Rival food steamer

A USB game controller


A lot of Kinects and PS Moves found their way into homes this Christmas.

Enjoy time with your families, and celebrate the day of our Lord.

I'm going to try to do a post every day...for the holidays. And I may update this one!

More Tales from the Road

- It's depressing how many billboards there are on Interstates for "adult establishments", promising either beautiful women, X-rated DVDs, or both.

- Played the original Carmen Sandiego game on mini vMac. It appears that all the suspects strongly like seafood or Mexican food. Must have been an inside joke at Brøderbund.

- DADT was repealed. I think that was a bad idea...

- Psych season finale!! A bit of a letdown, though.

- I met my brother's girlfriend (via FaceTime, iPod).

That was my "mini-winter break vacation". I'll try to post a bit more now that I'm home. Stay tuned for something on the 24th!

Strange things are afoot at the Circle K

At a Circle K in Florida, I saw a woman with a Santa hat, a robe, and slippers...filling up with gas in the rain. Never does one get to quote movie lines that make sense at the moment!

From Vapid to Outright Subjective

Today, I was looking around to see who owned seemingly-popular URLs that were likely snapped up in the mid-1990s. One, Mail.com, had a link to "6 Sitcoms That Moved the Culture Forward".

Well, they moved the culture, alright...

An Open Christmas List

Friends, family, and visitors: I present my 2010 Christmas list!

I decided to do it in blog form so I could do running updates. Those who are actually getting gifts for me, I sent you this link, therefore, I don't have my name here.

LAST UPDATE: December 12, 2010
1. A good water bottle (Nalgene, perhaps?)
High capacity, easy to open and shut, wide mouth, etc.
2. Super Mario All-Stars Wii (limited edition!)
$29.99, local retailers
3. Molecular Gastronomy Starter Kit
$69.99, ThinkGeek.com
4. A nice CD pocket case, similar to one that holds the Performa-era CDs. I have about two of cheaper ones that are hard to get CDs in and out and are bulky.
5. A deep-fat fryer, a smaller model resembling a crockpot (runs for about $25)
6. Subscription to Nintendo Power
7. WarioWare DIY and/or Super Scribblenauts
8. iPod AV cable (runs for about $30-$40)
9. Computer software is always nice (I'm getting Windows for my MacBook, but prefer Mac software)
10. Older (Mac) books, acquired at used bookstores, or if you have some kicking around
11. Gift cards are fine too! ThinkGeek.com, Amazon.com, Half-Price Books, Walmart, Target...
12. If you can find a relatively cheap (<$20) copy of "Game Over" by David Sheff that would be appreciated
(it either has the rather large subtitle of "How Nintendo Zapped an American Industry, Captured Your Dollars, and Enslaved Your Children" or "How Nintendo Conquered the World" or "Press Start to Continue")
13. A game controller, resembling a PS3 controller (but with USB connection)
14. Used magazines (model railroading, MacAddict, Mac|Life, Nintendo Power) if you can find them at a reasonable price
15. Monk Season 3 or 5, maybe?

I might add some more things to this, but this seems to be it

BttF: The Game

I'm a bit worried about Back to the Future: The Game, being published by Telltale Games.

Marty's voice is okay, but the trailer leaves much to be desired.

1. The voices are really out of sync. It was okay in original SCUMM games, where it was just basically flapping mouths.
2. Didn't Marty destroy the speaker in the first ten minutes in the original movie?
3. How did Doc rebuild the DeLorean? After all, it was destroyed completely by a train in the third movie, and DeLoreans aren't common.
4. Are they just going to write off the fact that Doc was married to Clara Clayton and had two kids?
5. Are they going to acknowledge the fact that Doc's house appears to be in a fairly commercial part of town? After all, it did have a gate in front of it (as was seen) but in the movie, you'll see that a Burger King is next to it. I imagine that the Burger King won't make the cut in the Game, but I am going to be not happy if it's set in a residential neighborhood.
6. Are they going to write off the fact that Doc built a flying train that could time travel?
7. In fact, are they just going to write off that entire scene of Doc coming back in the train?

After all, it does involve time travel, so a canonical time altering could be done...

Shameless ads

Open source stuff

I, being a poor college student, have a tendency to save money on my computer. The mouse is a gift I got for Christmas two years ago, the printer has a few problems but I got it for free after my parents decided to off it for a laser printer, and I don't have a real monitor or keyboard.

To run good programs, you need good software, something I am lacking. Unlike the other computers in the house, I rely primarily on open-source programs. They're not as good as real programs, but I'm not pirating (something I really try to avoid) and I'm not putting any DRM on my computer (something I also try to avoid). So far, I use OpenOffice.org instead of MS Word, and Scribus instead of Adobe InDesign (though admittedly I haven't tried that yet). I use free versions of SketchUp and blender (haven't used that yet).

The only thing that I wasn't satisfied with was using PlayOnMac as a WINE client to run Windows games. It was no replacement for Windows, and I plan on getting actual Windows soon.

In which I try to install WINE

Some of my posts never got posted, though I'll try to fix them up soon and integrate them into new posts. Unfortunately, it all requires being timely: I believe I wrote a post (or part of one) about the Beatles being on the iTunes store.

Regrettably, some of my other projects have been neglected too: progress on a hypermarket-themed page on Pseudo3D's Projects has been going poorly, I haven't made an update on College Station Roads and Retail for weeks, and the less we talk about PS3DSC4, the better.

I tried installing PlayOnMac to run some Windows games. It doesn't do full screen yet (boo!) and it didn't install I Wanna Be The Guy properly (though admittedly, it did start up and play part of the intro), but it looked promising.

I'd like to try to give it another spin sometime, perhaps try SimCity 4 or other games that PC users rave about (it is supposed to be compatible with Crayon Physics, for instance).

Or perhaps I'll just go out and buy Windows 7 sometime, maybe this Christmas.

Thanksgiving Wrap-Up

Finally got around to watching The Princess and the Frog with some relatives last night. What I can say? The music felt a bit contrived and forgettable (thankfully) except the villain's song, which was awesome with an awesome villain. It was way better than the Disney films of the recent era, but it still felt like a mostly effort to try to add another Disney princess (an African-American!). I don't want to spoil it, but it also stretched the willing suspension of disbelief. For a traditional Disney animated canon film, the fact that it was set in New Orleans was a bit jarring. It was more realistic than the depiction of Hawaii in Lilo & Stitch: the main character's father died in World War I, and our princess' favorite condiment to add to food is Tabasco sauce.

But the new Disney film (CGI), Tangled, is much better in several aspects. It's based after the Rapunzel fairy tale, and holds a lot truer to it than what The Princess and the Frog is based after. It's also kind of hard to describe the category it fits in: it kind of follows the traditional Disney princess formula, which is to say that the heroine is a princess, but the male lead isn't exactly Prince Charming (spoiler: he's a thief). The non-human sidekicks don't talk, crude humor isn't why its rated PG, the songs aren't annoying, and the villain is delightfully evil.

It was possibly closest to Pixar (in more than one term) that Disney has gotten, outstripping Disney's CGI efforts previously and any DreamWorks picture you can name (yes, I think it was better than How to Train Your Dragon). Pixar, on the other hand, is making Cars 2, but that was one of the better films among many other ones, including CGI films based after the classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons, another DreamWorks picture (from the makers of Shrek...), a movie called "Disney Prom", and a documentary about a certain contemporary young pop star I'd rather see die of a drug overdose. That was a little harsh, but the sad thing is it's going to make a ton of money no matter how bad it is.

Thankgiving was great, and I'd like to make an update to the Pictophone post a while back. Some of the greatest ones I lost but only one I remember involved beavers wearing Darth Vader masks becomes a dark wizard turning people into waffles.

My Yoot Tower question was never answered (but it is definitely the system I know that much). I'm also creating new content for the master webpage (check it out today!)

Poker Night at the Inventory/Yoot Tower

Telltale Games' Poker Night at the Inventory was released today (Mac and PC, even!) yet I'm still curious as to why it hasn't been rated by the ESRB yet (there's an option for uncensored language, apparently). I'm also wondering why there wasn't anything on Homestar Runner on it: but there's only been one small short and a new main page, not even a Halloween toon (which has happened yearly since 2000), so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

YouTube external link since Flash is banished here

I wonder if Tycho voiced by Jerry Holkins.

Also, I finally got around to posting something about Yoot Tower on the Macintosh Garden forums and the same problem I mentioned several months ago on Two Way Roads.

Thanksgiving plans

Normally at TWR, I'd be doing some sort of Thanksgiving special, but in reality, I only did one.

To tell you the truth, it's really hard to write a neat personal blog without making it like Twitter or a complaint board.

Anyone have ideas?

Sosumi

Why does anyone care that The Beatles is finally on the Apple iTunes store?

iTunes has been wildly successful without it up to this point, and most people who have The Beatles on their computers and players either ripped it from a CD or downloaded it from file-sharing sites years ago.

Or does it go deeper, something that the Apple Corps finally forgave Apple for infringing in the music business?

And did you know the system sound Sosumi is a sample of a xylophone?

Dictionary of Drivers

Often times, I come across all sorts of cars and types of cars on the road. Certain types of cars and their drivers can, well, be named. I use these names and think of them when driving.

DRIVERS
Speedy McZee
This driver has a lot of variants: it can go from anything to the one who often changes lanes (while signaling, too) while doing anything legal to get to where he or she is going. An illegal or particularly annoying Speedy McZee can turn into the Idiot (below).

Idiot
The Idiot drives relatively fast. He never uses his turn signal, and often puts others in harm's way so he (or she) can get where they're going.

The Psycho
The more advanced version of the Idiot, and the main reason you should pay attention to driving. The Psycho will clearly disobey rules. Expect The Psycho to get in the wrong lane to pass, run the red light (a lot, with no regards for others), and more. The Psycho's car is usually bent up, or brand new. Common drivers of the Psycho are either people from another country (sad, but true) or people that probably shouldn't reproduce. Very few cases turn out to be both.

The Jerk
The Jerk is really mean and will try to just irritate others for the fun of it. Expect a Jerk to slow down just enough so you miss a light. That has happened to me.

The Old Lady (aka Grandma)
The Old Lady drives very slowly in an older car. You're most likely to get stuck behind her in a place where you can't pass.

The Alcoholic
Slowly drifting from side to side in a lane, the alcoholic is often seen on evenings or when the bars close. The Alcoholic may actually be on other drugs, medications, or simply sleep deprived. Depending on their personality, they act like The Old Lady, The Jerk, The Psycho, or Speedy McZee. They're a wild card...stay far away from them.

Road Rage Guy
Born out of big cities, this guy likes to intimidate others if he's stuck behind someone. Once he's free of restrictions, he'll become a Speedy McZee.

The My-Time-Is-More-Important-Than Yours Guy
TYPES OF VEHICLES
The Motorcyclist
A liability for the roads, the motorcyclist is often young and helmetless. Technically legal yet still annoying.

The School Bus
Stopping at the most inconvenient times and places, the school bus is bad because practically whatever it does, it's legally protected. Because they run on routine times, try to avoid them by getting a different time.

City Bus
Far more frequent in downtown big city areas. Less annoying than school buses in that you can pass them.

Cement Trucks
These things are bad news. They take a very long time to get up to speed, but once they get up to speed, they don't stop easily, they pack an unbelievable amount of force, and for all intents and purposes, like trains that don't run on tracks.

I may add more to these, so stay tuned.

Better books and chemistry teachers

For some reason, I thought back a few years ago back to my 10th grade year, where we had to read some book for a project. Most of the books were on the off list already. One book that I was actually considering to read was On the Road by Jack Kerouac. It, of course, is kind of like to hippies and the 60s countercultural generation as what The Communist Manifesto is to Communists. But to tell you the truth, it did seem like a book one would actually want to read: two hippies go around America in some 1960s van. The protagonists are lovable goofs who may or may not be stoners, because in popular culture, stoners are entertaining. Wacky hijinks ensue as they may become fugitives for something but ultimately turns out to be okay. There may be some raunchy scenes, but nothing too explicit (or sinking to a level as low as current "college road trip" type films).
That book is not On the Road. In the end, I never read it, and instead read A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court which was about as long and dry as dirt, and I think it was "Mark Twain in his bitter phase".


Furthermore, I was forced to drop chemistry. Such a shame, too: in the fall semester of high school we had Mrs. Chem (names changed for privacy), which was a really cool AP Chemistry teacher. Unfortunately, due to some problems in the way teachers retire, she was forced to retire mid-year (like her husband, who also left for similar reasons, I think) and was replaced with Ms. Stupidson (not her real name), a former chemistry saleslady. Everyone's grades went down, Ms. Stupidson was one of the most hated teachers ever (she never improved) and was fired three semesters later on a technicality.

In college, I got Ms. Yttrium (also not her real name), who had bad reviews on

Book and film

I recently got a copy of Top Secret Recipes Unlocked at $4.99 new. Very good book, I recommend it. It goes over a few things, like how Chex Mix pre-packaged tastes different than the Chex Mix on the box because they add MSG, how to make Jimmy Dean sausage, and how to recreate Coca-Cola Blãk, the odd beverage that only lasted two years, was expensive, looked like shoe polish (that was the name my high school choir teacher gave it), and tasted like a mixture of coffee and Coca-Cola (and cream soda).

I also watched Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief which is only tolerable if you assume that all kids with ADHD and dyslexia are actually Greek demigods, all Greek mythology is real but not any other religions. Even then, you get some sappy morals and some typical teenager action movie clichés.

TI Programs

One of the things where Carbonizer is different is that it has some practical, contemporary things.

Here are some programs from my math class, it only makes sense in context. 15-3.

I have tested and confirmed these! Good luck!

Notes: Must use Y1 as VARS (RIGHT) 1 1
Must use L1 as 2nd 1
Must use L2 as 2nd 2
Must use -> as the STO> button (above "On")
Must use "seq(", not "Seq"

LEFT END
:Input "N",N
:Input "A",A
:Input "B",B
:(B-A)/N->D
:seq(A+(I-1)D,I,1,N)->L1
:seq(Y1(L1(I)),I,1,N)->L2
:sum(L2)*D->S
:Disp S

For the RIGHT END
Fifth line must be
:seq(A+ID,I,1,N)->L1

For the MIDPOINT
Fifth line must be
:seq(A+I*D-.5*D,I,1,N)->L1

The computer illiterate

Most people know how to use a computer, but what is computer literacy? Using a word processor and browsing the Internet is kind of like the equivalent of those "Junior Reader" books in elementary school. Especially with things like iPads today, we are growing dumber in this type of thing.

Good News!

My math prof used a curve "bonus test opportunity" to add points to tests. I wasn't failing the first time around, but now I have 101.

Republicans took back the house, bumping out my district's Congressman (which is a good thing).

I found something in college I was missing.

Long time no post

If you don't see a posts for a while, it's because I don't have content or time worth a post. Sorry. I can do Twitter-like updates, but no one wants to read that, do they?

Nueve

Webcomics

Sometimes I wish I could write a webcomic, based on my life and my own crazy ideas, but unfortunately, I have no drawing tablet, and my sketchings look crude at best. It's probably for the better that I need some practice.

The other thing that really bothers me is that's a saturated market, and often, the ones that do get better in terms of artwork often lose focus. The artwork gets better, but wacky comedy is often lost for the dreaded Cerebus Syndrome.

Tough call.

Obsessive Compulsive Posting

Every day for the last week or so, I've been updating this blog daily. No more. This is what drove me in the hole for TWR, and it won't happen again.

Where Games and Retail Meet!

I like retail history. I like video games. But when they combine, they create bad/disappointing things, or worst: a guy set a GameStop on fire inside the Westfield Galleria at Roseville mall.

The website is currently down, but I have saved it for posterity.

DOOM

I didn't do well on a chemistry test, and was especially annoyed at how my professor blamed me for not being prepared.

I don't feel like doing the rest of chemistry homework, however.

Pop-tarts

I recently got in a habit of eating Pop-Tarts again as a snack.

I admit that Pop-Tarts aren't that great, are terrifically unhealthy for you, they are brittle, they kind of get stuck in your throat, but on some days taste really good!

I prefer the Cherry, I kind of like the Hot Fudge Sundae (if they added more icing), Strawberry not so much.

It's a guilty pleasure of mine.

What an idiot

I got a bad grade at some chemistry lab recently, and to this day, "Al" (name changed to protect the guilty), blames our bad grade on my (supposed) incompetence. I remembered just now (nearly a week later) that it was Al who didn't even read the lab or know what we were supposed to do. If I ever to work a lab with Al again, I'll remind him of his own incompetence, and he shouldn't try to attempt to sponge off of me ever again.

Big posts

I always loved making big posts from TWR, but they took to long, weren't worth it, and rarely produced comments. So are they worth it?

EDIT: Oh, and this is the 25th anniversary of the NES! I'm going to play Super Mario Bros. on my computer to celebrate.

Weekends suck

To tell you the truth, I kind of want to do a PHD Comics-type comic strip appearing here (except focusing on undergrads, not grad students). Partially because my weekends are eaten up by homework. I've thankfully cut back on blog visiting (my favorites rarely update anyway--so why bother?), I've gotten suspended from Simtropolis for reasons mostly unknown, but the main reason I'm there is to get help with my BAT, which is also suspended due to college. God knows how long it's been since I touched my Wii: I want to play The Legend of Zelda again (Twilight Princess and Ocarina of Time, specifically).

At least I continue working on my abandonware archive, which even then only works if Mediafire decides to not cut uploading when I'm 99% done.

Ubuntu

I decided to try Ubuntu, based on a few suggestions. I didn't install it on my computer, rather, I burned it on a CD-R. A few things:

1) It took an eternity to start up, compared to my Mac. Maybe it was because I boot from a CD, but it still was aggravating.
2) I couldn't set up the Internet. I think I need to check my wireless settings...and it wasn't especially clear-cut.
3) The interface was a bizarre combination of Windows, Mac OS X, and even hints of the old Mac OS. Finder windows resembled both Windows and Mac, there was something that was analogous to the old Mac OS Apple menu, the clock and wireless functions on the top right of the screen (just like a Mac) and minimized windows on the bottom (just like Windows).
4) I decided to hit restart, but restart inadvertently caused the CD to be ejected, putting a grinding halt to Ubuntu's processes, and forcing a hard reset. Whoops.

Chick-fil-A

I love Chick-fil-A, but it's a little disappointing...I mean, six dollars for in-house lemonade, waffle fries, and a chicken sandwich for $6 is pretty high, especially when the waffle fries (one of the best fast food fries EVER) are just mildly warm. :(

New blog

I've been contemplating adding a new blog for some time now. Unlike my old blog, this is far less ambitious, and I plan to chronicle my times at college.

I'll start posting any day now.

View the old blog