Brewmonkey

1. Never set the page layout.
2. Never start with the side panel open.
3. Never set magnification.
4. Never resize window.
5. Never center window.
6. Never open window in full screen mode.
7. Never hide toolbars.
8. Never hide menu bar.
9. Never use click navigation.

Note to adobe... If i choose to disable acrobat javascript, please do not remind me that it is disabled everytime. There are some things that pdfs should not do. Javascript being one, and multimedia being another. Also, you should rename your bookmarks to contents, and build in real bookmark functionality.

Some idiot decided to spam my blog comments!!!
The moron decided to post a comment linking to a miriad of other sites offering things such as "penis enlargement" and "viagra."
If you need to post "If you find this entry inappropriate please remove it from your database! " in your comment, please refrain from posting on my site.

By the way, he left "davidradvinsky27@hotmail.com" as his address. Probably spoofed.

Received a "bill" in the mail today from ICLS.NET (internet corporation listing service).

Upon further investigation, I realized that it was not actually bill but a solicitation. If it looks lik a bill, quacks like a bill... But is not a bill it is deceptive advertising, and I will never use the services of a company that resorts to this type of advertising.

The following notices were found on the solication:

The reason why these notices are placed on the solicitation is probably only for legal reasons. They want the "targets" to mistaken it as a bill and pay it as a bill. When the "targets" complain, they could say that it was explicitly written on the solicitation that it was not a bill.

Any legitimate or honest company will realize that statements like that are unnecessary. If the format of the solication could be confused as a bill, they would change it before sending it out.

To see full size versions of the bill click on the thumbnails below:

Here is an article from eWeek.

If SCO comes out on top, linux and the open source movement are dead. Bye-bye Red Hat, Mandrake, et al. None of these companies will be able to afford the licensing. IBM and HP may be able to keep the boat afloat, as the walls around the Microsoft kingdom get stronger.

Here are some comments from slashdot about the subject.

While surfing the Perry Farrell website, a freaky dialog box popped up. "Do you want to install and run http://www.perry-farrell.com/cdcheck2.cab..." What the hell is cdcheck2.cab, and why the hell do I want to install and run it. I googled it, and came up with very little information. I did find some information about a program out there called cdcheck, but I doubt that it is the same thing, seemed like a standalone. After all, the one that perry-farrel.com and Virgin Records wants to install on my computer is a stealthy active-x control. I downloaded cdcheck2.cab using GetRight to check it out. It contained two files, cdcheck2.ocx (active-x) and cdcheck2.inf (install information file). No too much help.

It could be one of two things.

- It is a program that monitors every cd that I ever put into my computer and compares my mp3 files against those discs, reporting back to powers that be the results. It was on an artist website, and put out by a record company... They will surely be disappointed. 99% of my mp3 are ripped from my own cds.

- It is a program that examines the cd and unlocks additional functionality on the website.

I'm inclined to believe that it is reason #2, being the good natured person that I am. If I am correct, it was very poorly implemented. The window pops up on the home page, with no warning or explanation.

If you want to see the window, click here.

This is what the status bar of my browser showed

I normally do most of my browsing with Opera, but for some reason I was using IE at that time. I will have to be more careful in the future.

If you want to experience it yourself, follow this link with IE.

Here is a terrific article comparing Enron, the company responsible for California's energy and current fiscal crisis, to Skunk Works, a top secret Lockheed project of the Cold War era.

Is file swapping the new marijuana? Is it to this generations, like marijuana and LSD were to the 60's?

The powers that be push hard to have it banished, while the subculture almost pushes through to the mainstream.

There will be some scapegoats, like the Verizon customer that the RIAA is out to get.

They are using the DCMA like the old drug laws.

The vast majority of the users will have nothing to worry about, unless they have future political aspirations.

Is the correct spelling of Korea, "Corea?" I came across an interesting article published by The Korea Times this morning. <Read the full text here>.

According to the article there was a debate held in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, to discuss the proper spelling of the word Korea. The contention is that the romanization of the Korea was bastardized into its current form during Japanese colonial rule, to put Korea alphabetically behind Japan. To remove all ties to its colonial history, the spelling should revert to the form used during the last dynastic period, "Corea."

I asked my favorite Korean historian, my mother, for input on this subject. According to her, the word Korea is only used by westerners and other non-Koreans. The true name is actually "Hankook."

Doing a Google search on the etymology of the word Korean lead me to following:
The Google search results.
http://www.geocities.com/neue_strassenbahn/ - Should be taken with a grain of salt. Has a decidedly anti-Korean stance.
Yahoo Groups - Probably the most accurate. It mentions a "Kworye" dynasty. The most accepted spelling for the second modern Korean dynasty is "Koryô." The modern word Korea is most probably a bastardization of the word "Koryô."

During these times of political strife and mass famine, are these esoteric debates appropriate?

Not the most aesthetically pleasing Ferrari. With 660 horses and the ability to top 212 mph, who need beauty. At $657,000, it is a little out of my price range.

Click on images for a larger view. Borrowed from Ferrari.com.

Here is an article about the car at The New York Times.

Talk about nine lives... The guy from the following story used it all in one shot.

Utility Wire Saves Teen Thrown From Car

BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. - A teenager thrown into the air when his Jeep struck another car saved himself by grabbing onto utility wires and hanging on until he was rescued, authorities said.

Joe R. Thompson III, 18, was suspended 20 to 25 feet in the air for about 20 minutes Monday afternoon. He even managed to call his dad on a cell phone while waiting for rescue.

Thompson, flown to a Kansas City hospital, was treated and released. - Yahoo! News

No really into country music. Shania may make me a convert. Music videos only with the mute on.

She looked fantastic on the Super Bowl half-time show. With all the silver and black, is she a Raiders fan?

Click image for a larger view.

I guess serial killers are no longer just an American phenomena. It does seem to be nutured by freedom.

"When China was under the ultra-rigid control of Chairman Mao—with every adult reporting to a work unit or a nosy neighborhood committee—people could barely get away with bicycle theft. That overly restrained but safe China is now long gone." - TIME Asia Magazine