Skype

I love the news media, really I do. I love how there are 10 million opinions for a single story. I am a Skype user (great chat/telephony program Skype.com. I'm reading Google News this afternoon to do some last minute prep for the weekend shows I produce and a tech story catches my eye. Apparenetly in the past 24 hours Skype has been having a lot of difficulty with a large volume of users in mostly Asia and Europe (mine hasn't had any problems). In the past 24 hours (where Skype on their blog has promised that it would be resolved in that period) the critics have come out with articles entitled "Skype outage: An unprecedented wake-up call" or "Skype Experiences Growing Pains." Heaven forbid that a company have a problem. The articles complain about how the businesses were stranded and that there was no customer support complaint system with skype. Give me a break! It's an online internet chat program. You don't see tons of articles about AIM when it goes down for long periods of time. The sentiment I seem to be reading from the critics is that Skype should have known better and that because of this glitch there are tons of problems coming their way. Like competition, right because Yahoo! Messanger and AIM are not already established and have introduced and failed with voice? People just don't think. RRRRR....I like Skype, I would be a little frustrated if it went down but I think I could probably get over it, even if I had a business I would probably be ok, I mean there is still oh, email, other messaging programs, cell phones, landlines...ummm..fill in the _________ with some other piece of technology that communicates. Just one persons opinion

Strange!!!!

Ok, so I listen to too much radio. Today I was out and about listening to 105.1 The Buzz in Portland (KRSK 1051thebuzz.com) and Daria, Mitch and Producer Ted discuss spanking when they got one of those calls that you wonder why on earth A: they did the thing they did, B: they are willing to admit it. So this woman calls up and has a story to tell about her wedding day...and how she received a spanking from her father. It turns out that she was drunk after her bachelorette party and threw up all over his brand new car that was sitting in the driveway. The obvious question from Mitch was something akin to asking if she had been spanked on the wedding night as well as the wedding day. Her response was that she didn't remember that. OK, this makes no sense. The first time she was drunk I can kind of understand, although I'm really not sure what the draw to drinking so much alcohol that you can't remember what happened, but I digress. The second thing I don't get...WHY WOULD YOU GET DRUNK AT YOUR WEDDING? It's kind of an important event if you ask me. Just my opinion, or lack of understanding, take your pick.

Crazy?!

Ok, sometimes there is a story that just makes you go "you've got to be kidding me?" There are people out there who are so nuts and yet still being taken seriously. Take for example Jonathan Lee Riches, who claims that Micheal Vick (yes, that Michael Vick) stole two of his dogs and used them in dog fighting. Secondly he claims that Vick sold said dogs to buy Iranian missles. The courts of course have had to "recieve" the handwritten, poorly spelled and gramatarized document. There is a pdf file of the document in the Foxnews.com story (oh, don't give me that look...it's just Fox...they aren't all bad). This story is just nuts...oh and the amount of the lawsuit: "$63,000,000,000 billion dollars". That amount is deliverable to the front doors of the prison that Riches is currently housed in via "'UPS' United States Parcel Service" (for those of you who don't know UPS is United Parcel Service). Yet another reason for tort laws...If this sees the light of day I'm not sure what I'll do. That's all I've got for now.

Side-By-Side

Ok, so I'm avoiding homework right noww (it's summer people it's what I do). But I'm sitting here watching ABC which is currently airing IndyCar and they are doing something that I have never seen before but is an extremely cool idea. ESPN (on ABC) is running something they call side-by-side, which is basically the event on the left side of the screen and the commercials on the right. It means that while you can't hear the race you can still be watching it. What an idea for live events! Let's think ahead to what this could be used for. No more weird breaks during football, hockey, basketball, NASCAR, F-1, IndyCar or any other live event that it is hard to break from. I think it is a very cool idea. It means the commercials still run and they are heard but you can still watch the live event. Maybe ESPN has been doing this for a while, I don't get cable so I don't know. They are also only able to put it on during the network breaks, when they show local spots they can't do side-by-side but locals only occur once or twice an hour. I'm also thinking that this could come in very handy during the Olympics. How about side by side double events? So, NBC doesn't want to carry all the Olympic events well this is a way they can. They can run their normal programming on the right window and carry the Olympics live on the right side, or the other way around. There are some very cool implications in my opinion. What do you think? Comment, email, you know how!

TSN's New Deal

Yeah, I know I promised news from the NW, but I've been a little tied up reading books and taking care of errands I have put off for a semester, sorry. Today, I have something else to complain about. For over 30 years the NFL's Monday Night Football was on ABC in the United States and a variety of networks in Canada, most recently Global. These networks are all "terrestrial" broadcasts, meaning they are not cable based. That is until this year. This year MNF moved to ESPN in the United States and TSN in Canada. These are, as many know, cable offerings only. That's right you can't see MNF unless you go to a bar or have cable or satelite with a sports package. I think it's dumb, especially considering the popularity of the sport in the United States. Now today, TSN/RDS (the french TSN) announce that they will be carrying the exclusive contract for the CFL (Canadian Football League), including the Grey Cup (the Championship game) and all playoffs. This is also a switch from terrestrial broadcast. For as long as I can remember CBC has carried the CFL. It now looks as though you will not be able to watch the Grey Cup unless you have cable. Stupid idea! It may be good for the network but it is bad for the regular viewing public. There are lots of people who will miss out because the terrestrial networks are no longer able to carry games. I think that makes for a very bad choice overall. It has the potential to push those fans who have been watching on terrestrial TV to buy cable/satellite, something they may or may not be able to afford. I know I'm talking about worst case scenario's but it's just frustrating. If this had happened while I was living in Canada and didn't have satellite I would be very upset about it. Terrestrial television has been carrying football for decades why should we change it now just because a part of the population wants to watch every single game. That's all I have please feel free to post comments below or shoot me an email but hitting the link on the right. Thanks. Sorry, here is the link

Ahhh...Christmas Break

It is really nice to not have class for the next few weeks. I really, really, like the days off. Of course, I wish I didn't have to do anything at all over the break but, that is not possible. I have a radio station to set up, financial data to enter at home, a dog to bath, Christmas at three houses in two cities to go to. I have to plan a wedding. Hmmm...Did I fail to mention that on my blog...everyone on myspace.com knew about it, I guess I forgot to mention it here. That's really all I have for tonight. Tune in tomorrow for an article on the Pacific Northwest of the United States and how it has finally gotten some attention, unfortunately it is for some very tragic reasons.

Funny Wii Story

Ok, so Nintendo is handing out new wrist straps for it Wii Remote's. Every once in a while I see a really funny article about cool stuff. The Edmonton Sun's Steve Tilley wrote an extremely funny piece on the Wii Remote, right here. Enjoy!

Mommeeeeeee....It's OVER!!!!!!

Ok, so my title for this one isn't that great, my compliments to Just for Laughs for the line. I'm referring to the NHL Playoffs. Yes, they have still been going on, at least up until last night (that is Monday night, I realize I'm writing this Tuesday morning). Wow, what a playoffs. Let's recap. The Stanley Cup final was played between the number 8 seed from the West and the number 2 seed from the East. The number 8 seed took the number 2 seed to seven games only to finally be defeated in the final game 3-1. The number 8 seed from the West was the Edmonton Oilers. Their story began even before the playoffs began.
The Oilers did not realize they were going to be in the playoffs until the second last game of the season. They then drew the 8th spot in the West, and thereby drew the Detroit Red Wings to play in the first round. Edmonton shocked the hockey world by defeating the Red Wings in 6 games. With the Red Wings gone, Edmonton's second round opponent was the San Jose Sharks. Edmonton again shocked the hockey world, after losing the first two games they won four straight to defeat the Sharks in six games. The third round and the Western Conference final saw the Oilers against yet another California team. The Anaheim Mighty Ducks (soon to just be Ducks) became Edmonton's third victim falling to the Oilers in 5 games (oddly, the only game they won was in Edmonton, where they out of desperation defeated Edmonton 6-3). While all of this was going on in the West the East was being far more normal. See, the West had the 8th seed defeating everyone in their path to win the Conference final.
In the East things were a bit more normal. In the first round, while things looked scary for the top four seeds they all came out on top in their respective games. Carolina lost their first two games to the Montreal Canadians then won the next four in a row to take the series. Carolina (the number two seed in the East) then faced the New Jersey Devils. The Devils managed one win in their series loss to the Hurricanes. The biggest surprise in the East was the fact that the Eastern Conference final did not come down to the top two seeds. Instead Carolina met the Buffalo Sabres in the conference final (the Ottawa Senators were the number 1 seed). The Sabres made the Hurricanes work for their win, taking the series seven games before being defeated in the 7th games 4-2.
Now we look back to Edmonton. Problem number 1, remember that they defeated the Ducks in 5 games, that turned out to be a bit of a problem being that Buffalo and Caroline went 7 games. The Oilers had 11 days off between series, which had been a problem with several other teams in the playoffs (including the Sharks). The Hurricanes and Oilers met in game one in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Canes took game one, and game two (game two was a bit of a blowout 5-0 the final score), sweeping the Oilers in the first two games. The Oilers stormed back in Game three winning it at home. Game four went to the Hurricanes. With the series now 3-1, Edmonton had their work cut out for them. Game Five was back in Raleigh. Edmonton pulled out a win. Game Six, again back home the Oilers slaughtered the 'Canes 4-0. Game seven moved back to NC. The 'Canes struck first making it 1-0 in the first period. They struck again in the second taking the score to 2-0. Edmonton just couldn't make the puck get past Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward. It would be a few minutes into the third before a puck would go into the net for Edmonton. With 90 seconds left in the game Edmonton pulled their goalie and Carolina managed to get an empty net goal to seal their victory and win the first Stanley cup in franchise history. Incidentally, speaking of goaltenders, the Oilers took this series to seven games with their backup goalie. Dwayne Rolison was injured in game two of the Finals. Jussi Markennan, stepped up and kept the Oilers alive. At the other end 22 year-old Rookie goaltender Cam Ward (a Canadian from Sherwood Park, Alberta, a suburb of Edmonton) shone as the star of the series and came away with the Con Smythe Trophy. My hats off to the Carolina Hurricanes, what a series. My congratulations to their coaches and team. Hats off to my Edmonton Oilers, who came oh so close to becoming the first team since 1942 to win a series after being down 3-1 and the first time any 8th seed had come from the bottom to the top. Some interesting stats about each team. On the Hurricanes there are 12 Canadians (several of which are from Alberta), 10 Americans and 7 from various other nations (based on place of birth). The Oilers have 20 Canadians, 5 Americans, 7 from others. It should be noted that these stats do not reflect where players live now. Many of the Americans on the Hurricanes may live in Canada (I don't know for sure). I know the Canadians on the Hurricanes all are headed back to Canada for the off-season. I think I've rambled on long enough at this point. I'm a little upset the Oilers couldn't pull it off in the end but WOW what a run. Maybe they'll be able to do something next year but they need to make sure that they re-sign all their free agents. Feel free to post comments or hit up the tagboard. Goodnight everyone

My Best Segments

My best segments blog post: Suburban Pioneers represents one of the nation's eclectic lifestyles, a mix of young singles, recently divorced and single parents who have moved into older, inner-ring suburbs. They live in aging homes and garden-style apartment buildings, where the jobs are blue-collar and the money is tight. But what unites these residents-a diverse mix of whites, Hispanics and African-Americans-is a working-class sensibility and an appreciation for their off-the-beaten-track neighborhoods.
This is only one of five categories in my neighborhood. A couple of them were way off the mark but this one has a bit of on and off. My area of this neighborhood is a little different than the majority of the of the rest of the zip code. Because of the diversity of the zip code I can see this as apply but it really doesn't apply directly to my street.
As an FYI to my normal blog readers this is the last post for my class and I will return to posting more "normal" things in the near future. Thank you for your patience.

The Digital Divide

Jan van Dijk in his book "The Deepening Divide" discusses his thoughts on the digital divide. In his first two chapters he spends a lot fo time discussing the premise of this argument but his third chapter gets down to business and discusses why there might be a percieved digital divide and how motivational access plays a part in that. Van Dijk thinks that there is a reason that some people are not online and it has nothing to do with access to a computer or the internet. He also notes that of those people who don't have access to the net, they know people who are online and can help them out. Motivated access is only one part of the Van Dijk theory on the digital divide.

According to Save the Internet.com there is a much bigger problem. It is true that there are people who do not have access to the internet, but according to this site the bigger problem is that "big companies" are trying to take over the internet (and having some success). "Save the Internet" is, I believe, another way of looking at van Dijk's ideas. Van Dijk says that with there are users out there who try the internet but get frustrated and leave. Imagine if the Big 5 media companies decide to get rid of Net Neutrality (more info on net neutrality found at the Save the Internet website) and give a bigger pipe other compaines that pay for it. While it is a stretch I think that van Dijk might be a proponent of net neutrality and that the only way to narrow and shallow the digital divide is to keep everything as simple as possible (which it is already not but we can pretend).

While this is only my first look at van Dijk and his thoery and the Save the Internet website I can see some parallels between the two, a little more research should show how these two sites compare.