Smash 2.0

Belkin wireless G router is slow

I think this is a Belkin problem, not RCN.

Got a Belkin Wireless G router (F5D7230-4) in December. Loading web pages with it has always been slow. The firmware is up to date.

With the previous router, I did not set specific DNS servers for RCN - I let the router get them automatically. I didn't notice the lag I'm seeing here.

For the Belkin, I went to RCN's support page, got the DNS servers and manually entered them into the Belkin's configuration screen ("DNS" in the "Internet WAN" category)... No more lag in loading web pages!

This fix may work for other routers and cable internet providers.

Link: RCN Customer Support - Internet FAQ .

They lack a Knack for popular culture

MacNN had this story...

The Knack -- the rock band that created "My Sharona" -- is suing Apple and several other online music distributors including Amazon and Yahoo for copyright infringement. The band claims those sites distributed copies of Run DMC's 1986 hit song "It's Tricky," which allegedly contains an unauthorized sample of The Knack's "My Sharona." While the statute of limitations for copyright infringement is set at three years, band front man Doug Fieger and lead guitarist Berton Averre claim that they had never heard of Run DMC's song -- which is one of the most famous rap songs of all time -- until August of 2005, according to eWeek.com. Amazon, Apple, and Yahoo are targeted in the lawsuit for distributing "It's Tricky" via their websites, along with other online music retailers such as Napster and RealNetworks. Band members are targeting $150,000 for each infringement of their work. Brick-and-mortar retailers such as Wal-Mart, however, were not named in the complaint.

This is hard to believe. They never heard the song until 2005? Where have they been? Even in Kazakhstan they know American culture (LOL). No one ever told them, "hey dude, I just heard this rap song that sounds like you"???

Also wild is the fact that Russell Simmons, Rick Rubin et al never cleared the sample. Guess it was different times then / "new frontier".

On the wheels of steel

3 1/2 stars in iTunes?

Yes, its true. Assuming you're on MacOS X, you can rate your songs in iTunes with 1/2 stars. Perfect for everyone who has way too many tracks rated 4 stars.

Its an Applescript that you install into the scripts menu in iTunes. You do the 1/2 star rating in iTunes. Instructions are in the download. Download it here.

I bought an actual CD today...

It's the 23rd and Mission of Burma's The Obliterati is out. Fantastic. First time in a couple years that I bought an actual CD...

Newbury Comics has it for $9.99 which is the same price as iTunes, except you get a bonus DVD (4 songs live at Tsongas Arena). And, the first 5 customers get an autographed version of the CD booklet insert. Make sure you ask them to look - the store I went to couldn't find it at first.

Yesterday's Globe review of the CD is accurate. However, I can't judge yet whether its "better" than ON/off/ON but its certainly as great. Perhaps like trying to judge which of your kids you like better? LOL. Other first impression: the mix seems even better, although I'm at work so I can't put it to the real test at a higher volume.

Since I assumed nothing less than great for the CD, the real surprise was the DVD.... the sound is great - at one point in "The Set Up" I did a double-take because it sounded so much like the original CD version. The video is shot from several angles, including a sweeping boom/crane camera providing crowd shots - arena style!

Kudos to the band as well as to Matador/Gerard.

PS, to those of you who have stubbornly ignored it to this point, I have my fanzine's 1983 "breakup interview" with Burma at www.smashfanzine.com

Welcome to...

want to create your own "flickr words"? Go here (spell with flickr)

Dunkin' Donuts cards now apparently as good as cash

from bpdnews.com (Boston Police Dept.):
Monday, May 15, 2006

Suspect Arrested in Dunkin’ Donuts Larceny

On Saturday morning at 8:00am, Detectives from District 2 responded to the Dunkin’ Donuts Franchise Office at 15 Allerton Street in Roxbury to investigate employee theft. On arrival to that location, the detectives spoke to a Dunkin’ Donuts loss prevention employee who stated that 237 rechargeable swipe card’s from Dunkin Donuts had been fraudulently issued from 115 Forsyth Street. These cards were valued at $23,525.

District 2 Detectives obtained warrants from the Roxbury District Court. This afternoon, police arrested David Gonzalez, 18, of Dorchester at 114 Forsyth Street and charged him with Larceny. Detectives also executed a search warrant where they recovered many more swipe cards. Gonzalez will be arraigned in Roxbury District Court tomorrow morning.

MySpace for the 'hood

Link: Welcome to Street Space.

We'll see if this goes anywhere. An obvious take-off on MySpace... The real issue is users. Can this site, or any other imitator, reach the critical mass of users that then drives exponential growth?

LyricWiki

Link: Main Page - lyrics from LyricWiki.

LyricWiki is a free site which is a single source where anyone can go to get reliable lyrics for any song from any artist without being hammered by invasive ads.

Who are the real patriots?

I'm not really into the Democrats vs. Republicans game... "the lesser of two evils" hardly seems to be something to get enthusiastic about, and the real problem is THE SYSTEM anyway. Nevertheless, I came across this list on the blog Dick Mac (alive!), and the extent of Republican "pacifism" is far greater than I was aware of...

Tell me again . . . Who are the real patriots?              

To contrast liberals and conservatives, Democrats and Republicans, I offer this list of the military involvement of party activists in the service of their nation.

Democrats:
Richard Gephardt: Air National Guard, 1965-71
David Bonior: Staff Sgt., Air Force 1968-72
Tom Daschle: 1st Lt., Air Force SAC 1969-72
Al Gore: enlisted 1969; Vietnam 1971 army journalist 20th Engineer Brigade
Bob Kerrey: Lt. j.g. Navy 1966-69; Medal of Honor, Vietnam
Daniel Inouye: Army 1943-47; Medal of Honor, WWII
John Kerry: Lt., Navy 1966-70; Silver Star, Bronze Star w/ Combat V, Purple Hearts
Charles Rangel: Staff Sgt., Army 1948-52; Bronze Star, Korea

Turn your pennies into iTunes Music Store credit (Coinstar)

You know those green Coinstar coin-counting machines at the supermarket? They charge about 8.5% for counting coins, which IMHO is still worth it if you're counting pennies. However, if you put your proceeds into a gift card, there's no fee deducted. iTunes Music Store, Starbuck's and Amazon are the options that appealed to me (Linens N Things does not!). I cashed in a modest pile of coins and got $20 in credit for the iTMS. Pretty cool. I had never bought anything there before.

Here's the link to their website: Coinstar : Our Products : Skip the Coin-Counting Fee at Select Coinstar Centers and Get a Gift Card or eCertificate.

and a direct link to their machine locator.

"MySpace.com Menaces Teens? C'mon!"

Mike Males, in Youth Today debunks the hype that MySpace is a dangerous place for teens. The statistics speak for themselves.

WeatherDock, and more goodies

I've been a fan of WeatherDock for a couple years now. Its IMHO the best weather monitoring app/add-in for Mac OS X and is free (donations accepted). I've tried the other weather shareware and freeware, which either were not free, too complicated for what I'm looking for, or simply stopped working.

Although one of its main features is similar to the others - the ability to add the weather to your menu bar, I particularly like the fact that I can shut that off to conserve menu space. I prefer the dock display to tell me the current weather. If I need to see the the full forecast I can simply switch to its application window, and leave the app visible if I like. And, unlike a dashboard widget, you don't have to switch to the Dashboard either.

I went to developer Alwin Troost's site to check for updates and found some other cool software. Troost has a very good sense about user interface: witness the Juice Dashboard widget that monitors your xBook battery, which looks like (god forbid!) a real battery!

Another gem is his Dashboard KickStart, which essentially pre-loads your widgets. If you've ever switched to the Dashboard and found the displays blank (i.e. no weather data showing, no stock data, etc), you'll know what I'm talking about. As I've stated in other posts, I like software that eliminates minor but everyday annoyances. That's what great UI is about - the details.

PS, if you couldn't tell by the category, this is all Mac OS X stuff.

The HD Boycott Begins Now

Apple's former director of product marketing for video software, including Final Cut Pro, DVD Studio Pro, and iDVD, is now calling for a boycott of upcoming "HD" products.

"I really want you to understand what's going on with the video industry's push towards HD. Under pressure from Hollywood, they are engineering a complete removal of the concept of fair use. They are setting up systems that will completely control how, when and where you can use content that you buy. Even worse, they can retroactively change the rules!"

Link: Writers Block Live - The HD Boycott Begins Now

Multiple iPods and computers

A helpful guide to using multiple iPods with one computer; one iPod with multiple computers, from Playlist magazine (MacWorld)... Playlist: Multiple iPods and computers