this is not a journal title

Man, what is it with the Google Maps generic map/directions service slams these days?

If you've already beaten Magic Pen and loved it, then you have to give Fantastic Contraption a shot. It's another cartoon physics game, this one based on wheels and levels.

Now I forget what prompted this, but here's some Wikipedia Bingo!

Know the URL http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ without having to type in http://wikipedia.org	Edited a page you were reading for a course	You have a Wikipedia page for your real name	Know WP:NPOV policy by heart	Suggested a page for deletion
Commented on someone's user page	Accepted or recommended Wikipedia as a source for a student's paper	Edited a category box	Removed a Copyvio	Have more than one account
Used Mediawiki for your own wiki.	Tagged an article with {{weasel words}}	Free Space	Familiar with Webcomics Deletegate	Edited a non-English (en) Wikipedia page
Marked an edit as "minor"	Participated in a page deletion debate	Argued that Wikipedia is an acceptable source for a class paper	Posted a death date	Administrator account
Tagged an article with {{fact}}	Contributed to a policy	Posted an image for which you held the license	Contributed significantly to a page later Featured	Filled out the "Edit Summary"

Or maybe I should turn it into a Wikipedia Purity Test.  Too bad I don't have access to somewhere I could post scripts.  Or the inclination to figure out how to write one.  

Anyone use online book trading services? Frugal Reader is one I just came across (you ship books to other members in exchange for books from others, paperbacks are 1 point, hardcovers 2 points, you pay shipping), and I've heard of another though I forget the name now (you get a monetary credit to your account each time you send in a book, each book is worth a different amount, I forget if you send directly to other members or to the webpage owners). Any of these any good? My questions include:

* Is it free?
* Can it print shipping labels?
* How fast is turnover of a book you list?
* How reliable is the shipping?
* How/when does it release your address to the shipper (if another human)?
* Does it do audiobooks?
* How does it value books?
* Can you unlist a book you own?
* What if you don't get the book?

A java "crayon physics" -type game. Yes ayashi, it took me this long to beat all levels. :-P

I was just discussing with rosefox (locked link here for my reference) that Magic: The Gathering, Fluxx, and Robert's Rules of Order all have a similar gameplay/mechanic. Specifically, the issue is figuring out which cards to play in what order, and then resolving which actually take place first. In Magic you have "first-in-last-out" and fast effects; in Fluxx you change the win conditions and what objects you and others own, as well as how many cards you're allowed to play; in Robert's Rules you have friendly amendments to motions, amendments to ByLaws, and Points of Order that can trump any action currently on the floor.

( Further examples, to the best of my recollection of the rules. )

And the same people in suits in a board room who game Robert's would never be caught dead with cards in their hands, let alone collectible ones.

I bought a .wma player - SanDisk's "Sensa Clip" 1GB for $40. I figured that buying multiple audio books will cost lots more than that, so why not?

I couldn't install the OverDrive program on my PC b/c I needed an internet connection to download the other parts of OD. So I shlepped the PC out to the living room where I could actually wire it into the router. Have I mentioned it's so old it barely is able to handle WinXP? And by "barely" I think I now mean "it doesn't". Crashed Windows Explorer multiple times. No programs really want to run, whether Windows Media Player (tried to burn CDs), or the OD program (to transfer the files). So I installed upgrades, crashed a few more times, updated virus scans, locked up the screen for long delays, am currently defragging everything and will do a scan disk next.

Meanwhile I plugged the .wma unit into my laptop, transferred the files (via drag'n'drop) from my USB thumb drive to the unit, and am now charging it - I can't actually *play* them yet b/c the stupid thing needs an OK from Overdrive or another Windows box to tell it it's allowed to play them. Friggin'. I only have the books "checked out" for another few days, what do you want to bet I'm not allowed to play them after that date, even though I transferred them? So since the PC is still puking all over the place, and I'm going to campus (over Break!) for a meeting tomorrow anyway, I'll try plugging the thing in to my work PC and see if it'll play nice.

Meanwhile the Roomba is either sick or on drugs, as he's making small circles in reverse, as opposed to actually vacuuming a room. T$'s turn to call that one in.

Spam email I just received at work threw me for a loop.

From: hillel dean [gallagherrokny00@borland.com]
Sent: Sun 3/16/2008 4:05 AM
Subject: [This message may be SPAM] quimby

may balustradebate , addressograph

I read it about three times before realizing "Quimby" was meaningless here.

Along the lines of the NPR Podcast on the MIT Mystery Hunt, here's a clip from an upcoming documentary on "Nerdcore" music - rap/electronic music aimed at geeks. The clip features MC Frontalot (a Nerdcore star) in the center, with Tycho and Gabe (from Penny Arcade) and they're deconstructing the lyrics of the MC Frontalot song about Penny Arcade and its readers. You can skip the first 40 seconds or so.

I'm sure sclerotic_rings will appreciate this DIY solution for remembering to water plants. You essentially combine a mosture sensor (i.e. a circuit that goes through the soil of the plant), a couple circuit boards, an internet device, and Twitter, and your plant tells you when it needs watering.