Most “hotfixes” (patches) for Microsoft’s Windows and Office products are available as simple downloads from MS’s website. However, many hotfixes – typically those for “just discovered” issues, issues that for some reason only affect a tiny number of computers, or issues that might require long and complex testing before release – required a phone call to Microsoft’s support line. However, as of this week, that policy is no more. You may download those “call Microsoft” hotfixes simply by using this form on MS’s site. Geeks and IT support folks might want to bookmark that page.
HOUSEKEEPING: Site update
One quick note about the website:
I’ve removed the Viper Guest Book from the site, as no one was using it. I have added a contact form to the Contact Me page. This form will allow you to contact me through the site without having to register for an account. It’s similar to the old site’s “Feedback” page, but it has a built-in challenge question (to prevent spammers from using it). I hope you like it!
News for 07/25/2007
Wow – nothing but randomness today:
- Fox announced this week that the producers of Bones will solve the mystery of the canceled show Vanished in an episode this season. This is, as you might guess, somewhat unusual. Characters and plot lines from spin-offs sometimes intermingle with the original show, but as you probably know Bones and Vanished are completely unrelated. It’s nice of the Bones people to wrap up the loose ends from Vanished, though. Read all about it here.
- Sad news: the Weekly World News will cease publication in August. I used to read the WWN in high school; it was unparalleled in sheer entertainment value. I haven’t bought it in years, and the times I flipped through it in the stores, it seems that the “quality” has dropped off greatly in recent years. Oh well… Ed Anger, we’ll miss you!
- Bricklehampton, England is the longest isogrammatic place name in the English speaking world. An isogram is a word in which each letter appears only once.
What You Didn’t Know About… Alton Brown
Alton Brown is the beloved host of Good Eats, one of the most popular shows on Food Network. His show is based on molecular gastronomy, which is the “application of scientific principles to culinary practices”. As a result, his show is usually half traditional cooking show and half Mr. Wizard’s World. People enjoy the show not only for its “wacky” style, but also because Mr. Brown teaches sound scientific principles that easily carry over to everyday cooking. For example, if Alton was making a spaghetti sauce, he’d show the scientific reasons why the aromatics needed to be added first, and why some form of alcohol needs to be added to the tomatoes to unlock alcohol-soluble flavors. Thus, even if you don’t use Alton’s exact recipe, you still learn how to make your own dishes properly. Which is good.
But there’s a lot you might not know about Mr. Brown and his show:
He was originally a cameraman! Actually, a lot of people know this. But did you know that he was a steadicam operator for the Spike Lee film School Daze? Did you know that he was the director of photography for R.E.M.’s “The One I Love” video?
He changed careers midstream! One day, Alton Brown decided that the quality of American cooking shows was lacking. Having little cooking experience, Brown decided to enroll in the New England Culinary Institute. He also considered himself to be a poor student of math and science, so he also read a considerable amount on both subjects whilst enrolled at the cooking school. So while it wasn’t much of a leap to go from cameraman to cooking show host, he had to spend a considerable amount of time learning about the subject matter!
Welcome to the all-new jimcofer.com!
Welcome to the all-new jimcofer.com! If you haven’t been here since the redesign, you might want to review the list of changes between the old and new site summarized here. As always, thanks for stopping by!
Oh, Happy Day!
PREAIRs are Everywhere!
In the world of online video file trading, a “PREAIR” is a video file of a television show that has yet to air in its home market. Most frequently, PREAIRs are ripped from “screener” DVDs sent out to television critics, although this is not always the case. Some PREAIRs are leaked from production or special effects studios. Sometimes studios even make PREAIRs freely available: the first four episodes of season six of Fox’s thriller 24 were sold as a special “preview DVD”; these were released online as PREAIRs, even though they lacked any sense of cachet, since they were available to anyone with $14.98 and a way to get to Target or Wal Mart.
A veritable flood of PREAIRs began hitting the scene late last week. PREAIRs of the first two episodes of the new seasons of existing Showtime series, like Dexter, Brotherhood and Weeds are available, as well as a PREAIR of the first episode of the new David Duchovny series Californication. ABC’s new show Pushing Daisies, NBC’s new action\comedy Chuck, and Fox’s new The Sarah Connor Chronicles are also available, amongst others.
These PREAIRs are available just about anywhere torrent files are offered. If you have no idea what “Bittorrent” is, or where you might find such files… lemme know and I’ll hook you up!
Blues Spoil Beckham’s US Debut
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Chelsea defeated the Los Angeles Galaxy to spoil David Beckham’s American debut. Perhaps the only thing surprising was the score: 1-0… especially since Chelsea actually played most of their first-stringers… a rarity in these “friendly” games.
One thing that was not surprising was the total Beckham wankfest provided by ESPN. Although they never came right out and called it such, they may as well just had a “Beckham Cam”… every time Beckham tied his shoes, shifted in his seat or asked for some water, the Beckham Cam was there! It was obscene, especially since some of the most famous names in British football play for Chelsea. And of course, ESPN just couldn’t resist interviewing all the celebrities that attended the game. So THAT’S what’s been missing from the soccer scene in the US all these years – celebrity endorsements! Now that we all know that Drew Carey and Arnold Schwarzenegger like soccer, the rest of us will jump on the bandwagon like lemmings!
Oh well… the only thing I have to say about the game tonight is:
Blue is the colour, football is the game
We’re all together, and winning is our aim
So cheer us on through the sun and rain
’cause Chelsea, Chelsea is our name!
New Order is/is not broken up
Back in May, Peter Hook announced that New Order was breaking up during an interview with radio station XFM in the UK. Later that day (or week), he posted the same thing on his MySpace page.
It seems that he might have jumped the gun a bit. This story, posted today on the BBC’s website, says that although Peter Hook may have left the band, Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris have every intention of carrying on as New Order without Hook.
Why it took that Sumner and Morris two months to make this information public is a mystery.
I’m eating the weirdest stuff…
I don’t know what’s up with me lately. Part of me is on a “retro-kick” with my food, going back to the dishes my parents used to enjoy. Another part of me is on a tropical kick, craving pineapples, mangoes, coconut and limes. Yet another part of me simply seems like a stoned teenager, eating just about anything that comes along. Here’s some examples:
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups with Banana Creme – I stopped by the convenience store last night to pick up some cigarettes. This store was staffed by two older people that didn’t seem to be in much of a hurry to do anything. Seriously… it was as if crossing the threshold of the store took me into some bizarre world where spacetime was completely slowed down. Anyway, while waiting (and waiting, and waiting) in line, I spotted these Reese’s cups… with banana creme! They were announced last year as a tribute to Elvis Presley (who, as you might know, loved fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches). They only started shipping this summer, however.
So – how are they? Pretty decent, albeit slightly disappointing. The “banana creme” isn’t very creamy, at least in the “runny” sense. It’s as dense as the peanut butter, so when you bite into it, stuff won’t go running everywhere. I should also point out that these are the big “king size” cups (get it? Elvis was THE king – the package even says “THE King Size”). Anyway, the banana creme actually tastes pretty good – like a fresh banana, which is probably due to the “banana flakes” listed on the ingredients label. Sadly, the banana taste is overwhelmed by the peanut butter and chocolate, so that you only get the occasional banana taste. I’d prefer more banana and less peanut butter, but that’s just me. As a limited time only thing, these cups are great though… I think I might go and buy some more a little later on this afternoon!
Ham Salad – Recently I committed the sin of going to the grocery store whilst hungry. My penalty for this – ham salad. My penance? Eating it. In case they don’t sell ham salad in your part of the world, ham salad is a sandwich or salad ingredient much like tuna or chicken salad… only made with ham. Perhaps I just bought an “off” brand or something, but this stuff just wasn’t any good. It wasn’t enough that the ham salad had sweet relish in it, the manufacturer put even more sugar in it. All you could really taste were pickles and sugar. If someone can recommend me a savory ham salad, I’d appreciate it.