I went to school at the Leeton R-X school district in Missouri. The computer lab was quite humble.
There were mostly DOS machines with some Windows 3x machines connected together via Novel Netware. It wasn’t until about 1996 that Internet access became available.
Before I graduated high school in 2002, we had one major upgrade. Windows 98 with Office 2000. It’s amazing how a school could fall behind on technology.
At least the Internet connection was fast. I remember to this day having to deal with dial-up. It was mostly through my dad’s AOL connection, and heaven help me if I had any Windows Updates.
This was before I delved into this thing known as Linux, or rather GNU/Linux. One of the reasons I wanted to have regular access to hi speed Internet was due to the prevalence of soft modems.
Linux-based drivers were difficult to come by back then.
Access via Ethernet was an appropriate way around that problem. I do have fond memories of dial up, though I’ll admit that I’d be frustrated today, though not nearly as much as with a mobile hotspot that’s going at Edge Network speeds.
Truth be told, I came into the computer culture late in the game. I never got to experience the dial-in BBS’es that others had the pleasure of using to talk to each other and trade files with.
It wasn’t until a couple of years ago that I actually utilized IRC. I can only imagine the amount of lag from all the conversations at once.
These days, I feel fortunate. There’s a straight up monthly fee for access (while a price guarantee is in effect). Long distance fees for access are a thing of the past.
Yet I still remember the excitement while exploring vast communities and dreaming of things that I wouldn’t have otherwise attempted to accomplish.
Dial-up modems still exist to this day, and there are still plenty of dial-up users out there. Sometimes, the old reliable is all that’s needed. Hopefully, I won’t have to use that as an only option.
With that said, I appreciate the legacy. What are your memories of dial-up access?
Ah, the month of February. Cupid is in the air, and love is all around us. Sometimes that feeling shows itself in strange ways, especially this week.
There’s creative amusing love, reciprocated love, tough love, and more. This week, we’ll explore a few examples both in the technology and pop culture realms.
Unix
Nixie Pixel: Her site is full of tech, video games, and all around nerdiness. After seeing her respond on Slashdot to both positive and negative comments, it was only fitting to have her site linked this week.
Toshiba Chromebook Hits the Scene (MaximumPC): Google’s cloud-based OS is finding itself on more devices. Toshiba’s offering is Intel-based and has a 720p webcam, which means high quality video for YouTube. One can either get it from the company for $300 USD or from other venues for $280 USD when it becomes available.
The Day the Light Came On for Eddie (FOSS Force): Ken “helios” Starks tells the story of a teen wanting to learn Python as well as an offer made to a family member regarding their GPA and a new computer. It’s a heart warming story.
Overlooked Pop Culture
Maddox Responds to Backlash Against Coca-Cola: Coca-Cola’s Super Bowl ad with America the Beautiful being sung in multiple languages has caused quite a stir. Maddox responds with an image of his own, and sometimes pictures are worth a thousand words. It’s well worth the read, especially given the hypocrisy of today’s society.
Maddox Responds to “Inspiration:” Why link to his site twice in the same week? Simple. He’s Maddox. While there are times for inspiration and positive thinking, people sometimes take things a bit too far as he illustrates in his piece against the motivational speaking industry.
We have the controversy surrounding the NSA and wiretapping. There’s that chaos over in the Ukraine. But no! Let’s focus on yet another celebrity having a breakdown.
At least when Alex Jones and Kurt Nimmo had their petition to deport Piers Morgan, there was an actual purpose to it (hint: if you say it was to deport Morgan, then you haven’t been paying attention).
There are more important things out there, and that’s why this petition makes this week’s Friday Epic Fail.
One of the most popular games I remember playing was Mike Tyson’s Punchout. Seeing my older step-brother, my dad, and others play this game made me want to give it a shot.
I wouldn’t get the chance until well after the NES’s popularity started to dwindle in favor of newer consoles.
In either event, Tyson himself was on the cover, and was even featured at the end of the game. As the final boss, he was aggravating, especially in the first round.
January is almost over, and it’s already been an interesting ride this year. 2014 is turning out to be an interesting year.
New ideas are emerging as well as a changing geopolitical landscape. While this isn’t the change many were supposed to “believe in,” things are definitely not going to be stagnant.
Unix
Bridge Linux: Every now and then, a new Unix-like OS enters town. This distro uses Arch as its base and comes in a variety of desktop environments. There is a 32 and 64-bit edition. Dalton Miller, the founder of the project was recently interviewed by DistroWatch.
Bitcoin and TigerDirect: The online electronics retailer is now accepting Bitcoin as payment. As mention of the digital currency goes more mainstream, it will be interesting to see what happens next.
David Gerwitz recommends Chromebooks: Gerwitz of ZDNet has recently started recommending Chromebooks for everyday users. The big reasoning according to him is that, “For people who don’t need all that Windows has to offer, for those who live in their browsers, Gmail, Facebook, and such, for those who write simple documents and need simple spreadsheets or presentations, for those who just need to get something done quickly and easily, the Chromebook is an ideal choice.”
Overlooked Pop Culture
CNN US Edition Covers Bieber instead of Ukraine: During the unrest in the Ukraine, a Reddit user caught the front page of CNN’s website (U.S. Edition), where Justin Bieber was front and center. There seems to be a trend of people getting tired of celebrity “scandals.”
From the Fuck the Police Files: The Smoking Gun recently reported on a Pizza Hut Manger who spit on the food of a deputy who had busted her for riding in a car with someone who might have been drinking. In Tennessee, it’s an automatic DUI. She lost her job, and the cop probably lost some of his faith in fast food chains.
I’ll be up front about this. I don’t care about Miley Cyrus and her twerking, let alone her song “Wrecking Ball.” So she’s rebelled against all the blind Hannah Montana fans and Disney.
I can totally understand that.
But acting a fool on a piece of construction/destruction equipment is not going to help matters, especially when other celebrities try to cash in.
For instance:
Hulk Hogan is sponsoring a web hosting company with a litany of various features. I’m not so sure a man in his 60’s wearing a thong is the right thing to do in terms of marketing, but whatever floats his boat, right?
Let’s see, I can either go with a hosting company that has a bunch of features at a competitive price or one that’s sponsored by a creepy dude wearing hair extensions, a thong, and sporting a less fertile sex organ due to steroids.
I’m thinking I’ll pass on Hostamania.
But it gets worse….. much worse.
At least it was an actual porn star who wasn’t shrunk by steroids. Still, a fat dude in his tighty whiteys exploiting such a horrible song is bound to leave one sleepless at night, and not in a pleasurable way.
So you see, it’s not the song from Cyrus herself that makes things so painful. It’s creepy elderly men wanting to get their rocks off while younger kids are busy throwing up.
When I was in grade school, I didn’t always have access to the Internet. The household would only get a video game console when the price dropped low enough for them. The main outlet for entertainment was broadcast TV.
We had about four to six whopping channels.
One of the shows that I remember quite well was Renegade, starring Lorenzo Lamas.
I watched the show for the martial arts and gun toting action. The ladies watched him, because he was a stud on a bike.
Lamas played the role of Reno Raines, a former cop who was framed for murder. He joins Bobby Sixkiller, uses Clint Black as a pseudonym, and becomes a bounty hunter while trying to clear his name.
Dutch Dixon, the crooked cop turned Federal Marshal, is the main villain in the series. He’s absolutely horrible as an individual, and it makes for an interesting series.
The series ran for 110 episodes, and is actually available as a box set.
Though the show may be seen as very corny and blown out of proportion by today’s standards, I remember seeing this guy’s impressive kicks and his motorcycle.
I thought to myself, “Wow. This dude is tough as nails!”
Plenty of guest stars including Jesse Ventura have made appearances in various episodes.
I remember the good old days of relying on Microsoft. I used everything from Windows to Office. I even used Visual Basic for a while.
The problem is that said software costs several hundred dollars in the U.S. alone. Even the subscription model can get expensive after a while.
That’s why so called “software piracy” has run rampant throughout the years. While many would love for companies and individuals to be compensated for the work done, bending them over and violating their hind quarters without so much as a happy reach around was not a good incentive to be “moral and ethical” about installing software.
So there I was on my lunch quietly scrolling through Facebook when something showed up on my feed that caused me to die a little on the inside. The big push is for people to turn others in for cash rewards.
This reminded me of another ad that got trolled. Instead of an actor who was blown up to look like Hercules through the magic of photo editing, we have, “Hey! Snitch on others you know for money! Yeah! Money!”
Needless to say, the ad didn’t go over well.
From being called scum to being asked if they’d pay for a person’s software if they turned themselves in, is a clear demonstration that the people at the BSA are not the brightest stars in the sky.
Why in the world would they pay for an ad on Facebook?
Who knows. Maybe they just want to throw everything out there and see what sticks. At the end of the day, BSA is this week’s Friday Epic Fail!
It isn’t too far into 2014, and we’re already experiencing some interesting turn of events. Thomas Holbrook II is now writing for Muktware once again. His focus will be on Chromebooks, Chrome OS, and other topics, such as civil liberties online.
Speaking of civil liberties, that is one topic that will see coverage in this week’s links. We have the usual developments in free and open source software, but also from a few other fronts as well.
Unix
Don’t Blindly Trust Open Source, verify it: Mozilla Calls for Protection from NSA Spying (Muktware.com): Swapnil Bhartiya, founder and editor of Muktware, writes about the NSA and how the availability of a project’s source code isn’t immune from tampering, especially if developers don’t pay enough attention.
ZaReason’s Zeto a Part of their Latest Offerings (ZaReason): Though the company has been criticized for their tablet, the California-based company keeps quietly releasing new products, such as the Zeto. It’s powered by the newest generation of Intel processors as well as powerful NVIDIA graphics.
Ars Technica on Verizon vs FCC (Ars Technica): The courts have invalidated most of the Net Neutrality rules put out by the FCC. ISP’s can’t be treated like phone companies. Only time will tell whether ISP’s will start to throttle traffic in order to prevent competition throughout various Internet-based industries.
Superbabies? (Mail Online): A Chinese firm is apparently trying to see if one can map the genes of those who are especially skilled in Math. Imagine picking out the smartest embryos and combining other good genes with them. Interesting indeed.
Daniel Bryan Has a Concussion? (24Wrestling.com): Though not seen on WWE’s website, it seems that Daniel Bryan suffered a concussion during the cage match from the last Monday Night Raw. Again, no official statement has been made on WWE.com.