Funny Ass Video of the Week (2)

Do you know that song called "Touch My Body" by Mariah Carey?

Well... this isn't it.

Obama's elf

This song has been in my head for days now.

I just plays over and over and over again!

It's horrible!!!!

The funny thing is, this is actually exactly the original song. It's not even modified!

Thoughtful Quote from Eleanor Roosevelt

As I was exiting a professor's office earlier today I noticed something above his light switch I hadn't noticed before. At first, it didn't seem like much, but once I read it I realized it was actually an impressively insightful message with some universal truths.

If you can't see the picture, it reads:

Great minds discuss ideas;

average minds discuss events;

small minds discuss people.

learn from the mistakes of

others. you can't live long

enough to make them all

yourself. to handle yourself,

use your head; to handle others,

use your heart. many people

will walk in and out of your

life, but only true friends will

leave footprints in your heart.

                    -Eleanor Roosevelt

The first three lines got me thinking even more about my MTV experience the other day. Reality shows engross themselves completely in talking about people. What they do, what happened to them, what they're saying about each other.

The media in general has an unfortunate tendency to follow this trend.

In fact, I've been watching news on Chris Brown and Rihanna for the past week, and I'm not going to forget the month of non-stop Anna Nicole Smith coverage I saw.

What happened to actual thought?

What happened to thinking about ideas instead of mindlessly concerning ourselves over the lives of others?

Chew on something substantial for a change.

I tuned to MTV the other day...

And boy did I regret it.

A show came on called Fantasy Factory and it proved to me just how badly MTV has deteriorated in terms of quality and content. Not only was there an insane amount of commercials, but throughout the entire 30 minute show not a single thing actually happened. 

When I say nothing happened, I mean that the entire show was composed of a bunch of idiots wasting time. It wasn't even funny (which would have given it some value).

All they did was play with a crash test dummy.... for the WHOLE SHOW. And not even play in an experimental sense, I mean it just showed some guy carrying it around, and putting it in places....

That was it.

So, MTV, please stop making horrible programming that turns people's brains into useless mush, thanks.

Funny Ass Video of the Week

Every week I'll be picking one hilarious video (just one!) from the vast stretches of the Internet and posting it on my blog!
This week, the video is from the comedy experts at collegehumor.com.
Enjoy, and prepare to laugh your ass off!*

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

*Warning: If you are easily offended don't watch this video. Instead bang your head repeatedly on the nearest wall until you stop caring, about anything.
Because you'll have a concussion... never mind, don't do that, seriously.

The state of iPhone competition: the first attack (part 2)

Last time in my iPhone competition series I ranted at length about the atrocious quality of touch screen smart phones released thus far by varying companies. However, there is one ray of hope for true competition in the smart phone market once again! It's called the Palm Pre, and it's going to blow your brains out.

OK, maybe I'm exaggerating just a little bit, but I believe that the Palm has incorporated several key features into the Pre that make it a true competitor for the iPhone, even if it isn't perfect. The most notable of these features is being able to open more the one application at once (i.o. multi tasking):



As you can see from the video above, Palm has come up with a very pleasant way to handle multiple applications at once without bogging down the phone's speed or overwhelming the average user. For example, you can have your Facebook app open and updated while you check your e-mail and listen to music online from another service. Currently, the iPhone can only run one application at a time, making you close one to open another, which is often pretty inconvenient. Among other features of the Pre that the iPhone for some reason lacks, are picture messaging and support for wireless stereo bluetooth headphones.

Overall, I can't wait for the Palm Pre to come out and bring competition back into the touch screen smart phone market!

The state of iPhone competition: the first attack (part 1)

Finally, after two years, a smart phone is being released that can effectively compete against the iPhone on nearly all levels. As an iPhone owner and user you'd think I wouldn't be quite as happy about this, but the truth is I think the Apple needs a serious competitor in the touch screen smart phone market. For one thing, Apple's blatant neglect to put such things as MMS and copy and paste functionality on the iPhone are nothing short of unacceptable, and, until now, they have remained completely unpunished for it. That will, however, no longer be the case when the Palm Pre is released later this year.


First of all, from what I have seen, the Pre is the first well thought out touch screen smart phone released since the iPhone. Everything I have seen until now has been crap after crap after crap. The likes of LG, Samsung, and other phone companies have simply been releasing desperate, hacked together attempts at grabbing a piece of the iPhone's market. They have horribly thought out user interfaces, barely usable hardware, and awful execution of features on almost every level. The only decent UI I've seen is Google Andriod, but the phone it was released on was one of the ugliest pieces of hardware I have ever seen (despite it's performance and features). Even the latest Blackberry storm, which I expected good things from, was horrible upon my first use with it. The interface is slow, unresponsive, and the clickable touchscreen, which may look nice on paper, is nothing but an annoying gimmick.

In part 2 of my rant on iPhone competition, I'll be elaborating on some of the Palm Pre's noteworthy features that just might bring the iPhone to it's copy-and-paste-crippled knee's once and for all!!

Best Web Sites to shop for Macs!

     Whenever I talk to people about Macs, one thing always comes up. PRICE. 

"They're just too expensive"

"They're awesome I just can't afford it"

"Blah blah blah price price money money"

So, it is with that in mind that my absolutely awesome intuition suggested I write about places on the internet where you can find Macs for cheap(er)!!!

1. macmall.com - This is probably one of the most well known Apple resellers on the internet. They always seem to having some kind of huge sale. In fact, right now, you can find a brand new white Macbook for just over 900 bucks (which is pretty good by Mac standards).
2. ebay.com - Ebay is almost always worth mentioning when you want to get things cheap(er) but, you should always be especially careful when buying Macs on ebay. First, Macs tend to hold their value very well, so don't expect to find anything more than 300 below MSRP (i.o. what it would usually sell for). Second, many Macs can have the same outward appearance, but have dramatically different technical specifications. In other words, even it two Macs look the same, one can be 10 times faster than the other. Always place close attention to what you are buying!
3. Apple Refurbished - This is something most people tend to overlook, but is in fact a great way to buy Macs, especially if your concerned about buying from Ebay (like I am). The products are rigorously restored and inspected before being put up for sale as a certified refurbished product, it also comes with all the documentation for the product. The list of available sales on the page changes constantly, so check back often if you're looking for a deal!

Porn star for senator?

Wow.

Louisiana must be in pretty bad shape if it's trying to get a porn star to run for state senate. Don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against the porn industry, but I also don't think that someone from this line of work is fit to be in such a position. It seems to me this was really just something to attract attention to the senate election in Louisiana and the current senate's questionable history. In fact, Daniels admits in her interview with CNN that "originally the focus wasn't even about making me a candidate, I think it was about bringing attention to the senate race in general." However, it seems that some people are beginning to taking this whole thing seriously.

A lot of people are beginning to take this seriously, which is really disheartening considering I thought the country was just beginning to go in the right direction. Although Ms. Daniels seems quite articulate and educated in her interviews, this doesn't even begin to make her a truly viable candidate for senate. People need to stop getting caught up in publicity stunts and start thinking about people with real experience and knowledge of government and politics.

The funniest answer to the question. What is podcasting?

This is a video I saw on askaninja.com (one of the comedy websites I recommended) a while back. It's probably the funniest way I've ever seen podcasting explained.

Enjoy!

Best Collegehumor.com videos!

     In my previous blog I mentioned Collegehumor.com as my one of my favorite comedy sites. However, for people who have never seen the site before I thought it might be convenient to mention some of the funniest videos I've seen on the site (since there are some that are worse than others).

Just be prepared to laugh (or sometimes gasp in shock).

How Many Times Has This Happened To You?

The Other Team

Viral Video Pet Store

Jake and Amir: Economic Crisis

Hardly Working: Fired Up

Jake and Amir: Internship

If The Other Party Wins

The Dark Knight Meets Superman

     There is also a series of videos called Jake and Amir (some of which are on collegehumor.com) which feature the hilarious interaction between a total idiot who assumes he is best friends with an extremely annoyed co-worker. These videos are all posted on www.jakeandamir.com.

Economy got you down? Do you feel like you need to laugh?

     Economy, wife, in-laws or work got you down? Do you feel as if you just need to laugh it off? Well, dear reader, you've come to the right place! You see, as a big fan of comedy myself, I've found places on the internet where you can see some good, high quality comedy every day of the week! Here are some of those places:

• Collegehumor.com - By and large one of the best dedicated comedy sites on the internet. They consistently deliver hilarious, high-quality videos nearly every day! By now, they've built up an extensive library of videos made by their own staff, as well as videos submitted by the online community. Furthermore, they have hysterical comedic articles that will have you laughing for hours on end!
  
  
• Askaninja.com - The idea was simple: a ninja answering questions about his craft in the funniest way possible. It started off as a humble Youtube channel and eventually evolved into a successful standalone website. This ninja has almost 100 videos that may literally kill you with laughter.
  
  
• youtube.com/sxephil - Although this is somewhat of a niche in the online comedy world, it is one that I find myself coming to time and time again. Philip Defranco, a fairly popular man in the youtube world, delivers his almost daily online show (The Philip Defranco Show) to over 300,000 subscribers. In this show, he wraps up popular and unusual news in a package that is more entertaining than CNN would probably make it.

So, suffer no more internet surfers! After all, laughter is the best medicine!

Unless you're having a heart attack, in which case, you really need to call an ambulance man.

Barack Obama and his Presence on the Web.

     One of the things Barack Obama has always focused on is more transparency of government functions. The primary means through which he would achieve this was through the internet, and, after taking a look at President Obama's new home page, whitehouse.gov, I must say I'm quite impressed.

     To begin with, I can confidently say a significant amount of time was poured into the creation this website and it certainly isn't a half-baked idea. It's evident thought and planning were put into making the website visually attractive and robustly functional, a feat which is often not accomplished by many modern websites. The fact that this website is so well engineered speaks volumes about President Obama's understanding and commitment to the internet. Furthermore, although this is somewhat unrelated, it also gives me more reason to believe that our new president will be the avid supporter of net neutrality that he said he would be. 

     Primarily, I believe this website has successfully opened up the government, made it more transparent, and connected with a vast number of people. For example, all of President Obama's policies and many, if not all, of his future plans are posted on this website for all to see. Furthermore, President Obama has mentioned that he will be posting any bills on the site for at least 5 days of open comment before signing them. Lastly, the site is also home to President Obama's weekly address to the people of the US. Here, the President explains the current state of affairs in the US and what his administration is currently involved in doing.

     Overall, I feel as if the President and his team of excellent web designers have done a commendable job of making a strong presence on the web and making the government more transparent for tax payers.

College + Money = Happiness

Credit: Our Lady of Disgrace

     A friend of mine recently asked me for advice on paying for his college classes. I realized that, in today's economy, many people must be having trouble paying for anything, to say nothing of college classes and books. In light of this, however, I must say: fret not brave college students!

     You see, for those of you who live in the US like me, our society tends to value education above almost anything. That means that people who consider giving large sums of their money away often turn to scholarship funds and grants to help young people to pay for their education. So, there is a lot of money to go around, especially for people who get good grades.

     Now, you might be wondering, where is all this money? Well, it certainly isn't going to fall onto your lap, you have to go out and find it. Here's some places you might want to start looking:

1. Facts.org - This is a fantastic website dedicated to all types of information regarding college. From information on varying scholarships and even ways to start applying for college, facts.org is a great place to start looking for information and money!
2. Fastweb.com - A website I would consider to be the gold mine of college money, fastweb gives you a comprehensive list of any scholarships you might be eligible for. On top of that, it gives you constant E-mail notifications when any new scholarships get added to your list! The only problem is that the scholarships often require significant amounts of writing and then waiting to see if you are picked as the winner of the money. However, if you don't mind writing and you are confident in your skills, there's a lot of money to be earned!
3. The financial aid counselors at your college - Sometimes overlooked, these creatures of the light can often help you be on your way to a well funded college experience. Every self-respecting college (that I know of) has them, you just have to find them!!

Hopefully, this helped some college students in financial troubles!

Anti-WiFi Paint

     Don't you just love it when you're on vacation, or you don't have internet in your house, and a neighbor just so happens to have a usable WiFi network you can leech off of? I mean, come on, who doesn't like free internet?! Nobody!

     Well, unfortunately, the days of free internet may well be over with the invention of WiFi blocking paint. Oh, you read that right, paint that blocks WiFi signals. So, in theory, someone could paint their house with this, and your free internet would be gone forever!!!

     In all seriousness, for large scale corporations this could be quite useful for security purposes. Being able to block any other parties from connecting to their networks could prevent intrusion from malevolent hackers, or just people who could steal away their bandwidth. And they could do this without the need for expensive hardware or cumbersome software.

     So, for all you internet stealers out there, you might need to start paying for your own internet...

     Yes, that's right, internet does cost money.