Raiméis

I’ve decided to give Linux a lash. I’m a Windows guy, I like point and click, nice and simple, no messing around with command lines or anything. I’ve been following the case of Linspire recently because it looks like one of the best Linux options for Windows users and although it’s not free it is certainly affordable (there’s a Mother’s Day special if you’re quick). The good news is that Linspire will have a free version soon called Freespire, “a community-driven, Linux-based operating system that combines the best that free, open source software has to offer … but also provides users the choice of including proprietary codecs, drivers and applications as they see fit.” Sounds good.
Anyway today I got hold of a Live CD version (i.e. it runs from the CD and doesn’t need to be installed) of Ubuntu Linux, had a chance to prick around with it for half an hour and just like Creative Bits I am quite impressed. It is, as they claim, Linux for human beings!
It has a nice user interface, seems easy to use and (like most Linux distros) comes packaged with a number of programs (which you can run directly from the Live CD) such as Firefox, Gimp and Open Office. Oh yeah, and it’s free. If you’re curious about Linux I highly recommend trying it out.

• Ubuntu homepage
• Screenshots
• Download

Update: I found one mini-app in Ubuntu, a wee fish when clicked it displays a random message. First one which came up was the following:

What’s the difference between an Irish wedding and an Irish wake?
One less drunk

Bastards.

It’s a pity (but obvious) that Gary McKinnon lost his extradition case. Sure he broke the law blah blah blah, anyone who can show up such gross stupidity that appears to exist in the US DOD (or any such organisations for that matter) is a top man in my book!
For those not familiar with the case, McKinnon launched the “biggest military computer hack of all time” on U.S. government computer networks when he “hacked” into Army, Air Force, Navy and NASA systems. But what’s interesting is that he hacked into these systems through computers with administrator status which had no passwords!! Such utter incompetence deserves to be exploited. The US Government should be thanking him for highlighting the massive holes in their security and they should also be counting their blessings that he wasn’t a malicious attacker!
The decision to extradite him now rests with the British Home Secretary who’ll probably just do what Tony tells him.

• Interview with Gary McKinnon
• Free Gary McKinnon

Just watching ladies weight lifting, it’s my favourite women’s sport. It’s the only opportunity I get to shout “lovely snatch” at a woman without risking a slap in the puss. I wouldn’t like to get a slap off one of these women … except maybe her.
Sorry.

“This contest is offered only in the 50 states of the U.S. and the District of Columbia (“D.C.”)”

Note to self: read the forking rules before devoting time to a competition. Bastid! Still, I suppose it was interesting anyway.

Tá póit orm. Bhí mé leath ar meisce aréir, tá pian i mo cheann anois agus tá mo ghoile ag cur isteach orm. I hate hangovers. Tis so rare I drink these days that when I do I suffer woeful hangovers.

I came across the following on Winds & Breezes and just had to post on it. According to Salary.com, Stay at Home Moms in the U.S. would earn $134,121 p.a.

If paid, Stay at Home Moms would earn $134,121* annually (up from 2005′s salary of $131,471). Working Moms would earn $85,876 annually for the “mom job” portion of their work, in addition to their actual “work job” salary.

I was watching Dr.Phil one day (c’mon, sometimes it’s interesting) and during one show he was discussing the issue of moms working at home and he repeated the (propaganda) statement that work at home moms work two-days worth of work each day! Sorry Dr.Phil, but that’s a crock of shit.
I get really annoyed by these sort of gross generalisations. They are inaccurate, way over the top and personally I find them insulting and demeaning. There’s no doubt many stay at home moms have a tough job but what about dads?? These sort of generalisations are always about putting moms on a pedestal and I always feel like the insinuation is that moms are somehow better than dads, work harder and are worth more. The people who spread these generalisations seem to easily forget the work many dads do. We work a fulltime job, we pay the bills, we also help clean the house and cook the dinner and we look after the kids. We’re generally the provider for the family and it’s ultimately our responsibility to put a roof over our family’s heads and to provide for their well being. So how much is that worth? So little apparently that’s it not even worth calculating.

Furthermore, I don’t really understand this need to place a monetary value on being a parent. Being a parent is not a profession, it’s not something you demand a salary for. It’s a life choice, if you’re looking for a big salary then don’t have kids! If you decide to have kids then you choose the life that comes with it. It’s a tough, demanding task but if you feel the need to place a cash value on the job then maybe you’re missing the whole point of being a parent.

*

I was pricking around with Excel trying to make some reports so I could more easily monitor my Adsense stats. I made the following template and thought that I may as well share it. It’s very basic (averages and totals each of the columns, draws a few basic graphs ) but it might save you the trouble of doing similar. If you decide to give it a lash let me know how you get on and I might try an improve on it.

Download zip file.

To use it is simple, export your adsense data in csv format then just copy and paste the monthly data into the boxes. You’ll probably need to remove the $ signs from the raw data first – just use search & replace, takes a jiffy.

Bit bored today, normal Monday feeling (yeah I know it’s Tuesday) so I thought I’d play with the news headlines again and funnily enough one of the items in the news today was in the news last time I had fun with headlines.

BBC: Verdict due in Scream theft trial
Verdict just in: It’s still a shit painting.

BBC: PM bids to lift beleaguered party
For his next trick he’ll balance a car on his nose while farting the theme tune to Dallas. Shows daily at 2pm and 5pm. OAP free admission.

BBC: David Blaine enters a ‘human aquarium’ in his latest stunt
The world prays in unison … please let the motherfucker drown!

BN: Masked gang shoots man in legs
Police say gang leader is male, has dark hair, is well built and closely resembles Bob the Builder.

ABC News: Flu Spray Better Than Shots for Toddlers
Says a Health Department Spokesperson: “We reckon giving toddlers the flu is the best way of preventing them getting the flu … oh no wait … that can’t be right …”

Guardian: ‘French Watergate’ threatens Chirac
We keep telling him, stop fucking with the water gate or it’ll eventually give way!

Fox: Nepal Leaders Struggle With Cabinet Makeup
According to Nepal’s Prime Minister … “at first we thought perhaps lightening the skin tone, adding some dark mascara and bright lipstick would be nice, but it really makes the cabinet look like a ho. We’re not good at this, we need 5 queers.”

“May Day is a name for various holidays celebrated on May 1 (or in the beginning of May), ranging from several festivals to International Workers’ Day.” So whatever you’re doing today, wearing funny sailor-type graduation hats and having a bonfire like the Finns, Morris Dancing like the English or celebrating Lei Day like the Hawaiians, ilosta ja onnellista Vappua kaikille! Happy May Day.

After speaking with Division HQ we’ve decided to to implement Operation Stop Spam in an effort to cut down on the amount of comment spam we get per day. From now on there’ll be a very simple match question to answer, unless we find some better way to stop the spammers.
Any problems posting please let me know.

Edit: Speaking of spam, US “spam king” Alan Ralsky is reportedly behind bars and the spammer underworld are worried he might be about to rat on a lot of people. We can but hope.