Afishionados,

I know that blogging about cats and gardening is pretty much a “blogging no-no” and a definite mood killer. It’s like posting photos of your kids. Nobody gives a shit, despite what you may think. But, folks, I am gonna have to break the rules for this post, because I am so damned excited!

I planted some cats a while back and dang if they didn’t start sprouting! Yep, almost time to pick ‘em and make a stew. And some cat sammiches. And cat casserole. Or cat bread pudding. Cats aren’t good for much besides eating. Or shooting. And then eating.

Afishionados,

Behold! The new box art for Microsoft’s upcoming¹ Windows 7! At least, what the box art would look like if I were designing the packaging.

I have installed Windows XP on my otherwise-fully-functional Mac because I’ve grown quite fond of some of Telltale Games’ adventure games. While they are far from resource-intensive pigs, they do require Windows in order to run. Sadness, I know .

Anyway, after infecting installing Windows XP, I was all set to go (or so I thought) until I tried to join my wireless network, which failed every time I tried to connect. Windows could see the network and the computer connects just fine under Mac OS X (so it wasn’t a hardware issue). However, Windows XP continued to fail for unknown reasons.

After a quick Google Search™ for a solution via the iPhone, I found a Microsoft support document² with information and a download to resolve the issue. I restarted into Mac OS X in hopes of downloading and applying said patch but was greeted with a lovely “Windows Genuine Advantage” screen instead of a download link.

For those not in the know, Windows Genuine [Dis]Advantage is Microsoft’s way of ‘protecting’ the consumer from fraudulent copies of Windows. At least that’s what they want you to think. In reality, it’s Microsoft’s way of making sure you aren’t running a pirated copy of their shitty operating system. You can’t download updates for Windows if it doesn’t pass the test.

Well, you can see how this is quite the conundrum. Obviously Mac OS X wouldn’t pass the WGA test so I couldn’t use THAT to download the file. And Windows has to verify itself as legal, authentic, legit, etc. over the Internet in order to obtain this file, yet the whole PURPOSE of the patch is to fix my inability to connect in the first place! Boggles the mind.

I ended up running an ethernet cable (so 2008, I know) from the router directly to the the computer, booting into Windows, and authenticating my copy for the download. Happily³, all is well in the world of Windows XP Professional and connecting to my wireless network.

Oh, I nearly forgot what is arguably the best part: My copy of Windows XP Professional is not ‘authentic’ by any means. Nor is my copy of Windows Vista Ultimate [Piece of Shit]. But you can bet your ass BOTH of them pass the WGA test every time I install them, so you can see how effective THAT fuckin’ system is.

I will never in a million years understand how anybody can stand to use Windows, let alone try and defend it as superior to the competition.

And speaking of the competition, Google has announced their own operating system. Is it just me, or does their logo look like a goddamn Simon?

¹Well, Microsoft claims Windows 7 will be released on time. Skeptics, get out your calendars…
²An oxymoron if ever there was.
³As happy as one CAN be when using Windows

Afishionados,

I’ve been preparing for a psychology test tomorrow and to say that it’s been an excruciatingly dull couple of hours does not do proper justice to the the abysmal magnitude of boredom that I have experienced. I began with the history of psychology…. ZZZZZzzzzzz….. Oh, shit, sorry. I fell asleep again. From there, I moved on to a repeat of 8th grade anatomy of nerves and how senses work. Apparently nothing has changed since then, as my visual senses have demonstrated. The only redeeming portion (if such a thing exists) is the bit about Freud. The guy may well be full of shit, but at least his bizarre theories of sex and aggression are more interesting than reading about how the sense of smell is converted to a neural pulse. Unfortunately, the textbook leaves out all the good parts about Freud’s cocaine use.

The material is so uninteresting to me that I have created this chart to help you better understand:

The designer in me wants to make this into a shirt and wear it to class just to see what would happen.

Afishionados,

Richard Dawkins appeared in my toast this morning. It’s a sign!