The beginnings of a Blog

Random thoughts about News on the web
Thursday, November 30, 2006

Just got back in real late from covering a Hockey game for my Athletic Training hours and I'm kinda beat. But instead of going to bed I turn on the comp to get some news from the rest of the day. Immediately I turn to Digg, since it is my favorite all around tech news source, but I always turn to News.Google.Com for my daily fix of all the world's news. I think it's probably the best aggregator of news sites, since it takes sites in English from ACROSS the globe, not just from the US or your region. I don't like CNN much, and FoxNews is horrible.

What site you guys use for News? Anything else worth visiting?

Post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:57 PM 17 comments  

Labels: Internet, News

Payday loans and cash advances

Since it's payday for me, which is always a great day, I feel I might as well talk about some cash advance or payday loans that some people take. I've never done of these personally but I know people who have and have looked into it one time when I needed this computer part. It's great being able to get a cash advance or a payday loan but if you don't have the abilitiy to pay the loan within a short period of time you can be in for some financial hurt.

I know some of you may not have a clue of what I'm talking about. But if you need a faxless cash advance there's resources you can use to learn more and understand risk. PaydayCashAdvanceLoans.biz is a site that can help you with resourses such as finance calculators and a city-by-city cash advance directory. Their web site is easy to navigate and comprehensive as well.

If you need a cash advance or payday loan don't be afraid to check out PaydayCashAdvanceLoans.biz.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 2:23 PM 3 comments  

Labels: Saving Money

Wii-looking PC from Shuttle

Most people know Shuttle for their Media PC's or Small Form Factor (SFF) PC's, but now I think they're going to know be known as the Wii-copying PC makers. They just released a PC that's a dead giveaway for a black Nintendo Wii.



I don't know about you but I think it looks WAY too similar. The news is from Digital Battle via Digg so check it out and post your thoughts. Is it imitation through flatery or just a shameless knock-off?

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 1:54 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Nintendo

CouponChief does it again, Circuit City coupon codes

I love giving out coupon codes, it's great since people actually need them and people love saving money. I have a CircuitCity right near my dorm and it's a great store for all your electronic and computer needs, especially with the 24 minute policy they got. If you need some Circuit City Coupon Codes on that next purchase, those coupons from Coupon Chief might help you out. If you need any more coupons for store such as Dell, Overstock, and many more Coupon Chief has plenty for all your needs.

Check them out, I'm definetly going to be picking up some gifts there.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:49 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Free Stuff, Saving Money

Opera Mini Ver 3.0 Impressions
Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Just got the chance to mess around with Opera Mini 3.0 in my class today, since I'm bored by the presentations we generally have to do. There's not really that much changed but I'll highlight the things I thought were great improvements.

1) Feeds, adding Feeds to OperaMini is crucial and makes it much more worthwhile now that it's got it, doesn't work with Atom feeds tho
2) Larger pages load better now, instead of splitting up a large page it may load it completely, which can be a good thing for most ppl but bad for some
3) The fact that large menu's are compress is key for browsing those long pages, makes everything so much simple
4) Secured HTTP access (HTTPS) is also key, for your bank/Paypal accounts as well.

There's tons more stuff but overall I'm happy and it's a great upgrade, it's only a small 98kb download and it's amazing what Opera Mini does with those 98kb.

Anyways off to relax, more later

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:15 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Internet

Nice website on buying radios

I just saw this interesting online guide to buying radios from the people at electrical-guide.info. They've made a really nice looking webiste to help buyers uncover the truths and myths about radio technology. There's a lot of new technology involved in Digital Radio these days and this site should be great a great help for those who want a nice radio. They have guides on what kinds of radio best suit your family needs. They got nice pictures of the leading models or popular brands, great graphics and helpful guides. I actually enjoy the site a lot and think anyone looking into a radio this year should take a look.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 12:02 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Gift Ideas

Interesting article about Sex and Social Networking (Myspace) sites

Ah yes, someone's found the reason why my MySpace gets flooded with constant messages or friend invites from 23yr old model looking girls that are just too beautiful to seem real. Well it's been researched and tried, tested and true that sex sells, and to target users on MySpace and other social networking sites, companies are using "fake" profiles to reach us. I've seen this for a couple of years but it seems that MySpace/mainstream media is only know catching up to this.

There's a great article from the people at ReadWriteWeb about this HERE. Pretty interesting stuff, check it out.

Enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:30 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, MySpace

Cool MySpace Promotion Program

I know a lot of you guys use MySpace and I think it's a way great to reach your friends, learn about new bands or learn about new products. Well there's some new software out there that automates all these things for your potential band or company called Badder Adder. It's a MySpace Friend Adder where you can have the software manage on auto-pilot to add friends, message people, send comments, bulletins, events and accept friends. Would be great to get the word out on your up and coming band, since the more you get the word out the more audiences you may be able to reach.

Check it out at www.badderadder.com and post your thoughts.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:44 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Marketing, MySpace

Opera Mini Ver 3.0 Released!

I don't know if anyone out there uses this program as much as I do. Opera Mini is a small cut down version of the regular Opera web browser (which is one of my favorite browsers as well) made in Java format for cell phones. It's small in size but has most of the features of it's big brother. The greatest thing is how it reduces the size of large webpages into pages that are capable of being viewed on the screen of your cell phone. I use it pretty much all day during class on my SonyEricsson W810i along with my nice 6$ a month unlimited internet through T-Mobile's Tzones.

ArsTechnica, which is a great site I try to read everyday, has a nice press release and short article about it, which you can read HERE. I'm going to give the new version a test drive and report back tomorrow. To download it directly you simply have to go to www.operamini.com

Enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 12:19 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Internet

Wallhogs - Lifesize Posters for your Room
Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Imagine having a 7" tall poster in your room of the hottest chick on campus, or of your favorite beer, teams whatever on your wall. Wouldn't that be sweet? Well with Wallhogs you can. They can blow up a photo or graphic 7" and up to 4" wide and put onto a semi-adhesive vinyl. With it you can put it on your wall within 5 mins and never have it peel, pretty awesome stuff. It's really durable (they claim have walls destroyed and the vinyl still intact, which is impressive) and they got a 30-days , no questions asked guarantee in case you don't like it or are not satisfied.

There's so many things you can do with it, for the office, children's room, dorm room, for your store, etc. It's pretty amazing and if you have something you love to put up and need a large size I'd check them out. I'd make a lifesize one of me running, just to remember those days when I'm older. I wonder what you'd make, like you can put your your Harley like this guy below, but I'm not into motorcycles like him.



Should make a great gift as well, since it is the holidays and all, check them out at Wallhogs.com and post your thoughts on which one you'd get.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:53 PM 3 comments  

Labels: Cool Stuff, Gift Ideas

Updates on the Personal Site/Blog

Yes I'm going to be boring and state that I've done updates to my personal site. If you haven't checked it out yet, the URL is http://dasnipe.atotchat.org. It's also in the top corner and in the sidebar as well, just in case you forget. It's on a different approach from here, where I speak more personal real life things there, as opposed to here where I talk about what I think is cool in the Tech world, or Gaming, or some sports and other random things. There it's going to be more personal, and I might rant a bit more, so it'll be interesting even if it is just to laugh at me.

Check it out and post your thoughts, I did it on WordPress so I can own my content, and I'm going to install some cool Plugins and Themes for everyone.

More later and check it out, remember the URL is http://dasnipe.atotchat.org.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:52 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet, Personal

Watch the New Spider-Man 3 Trailer

I don't know about you guys but I've seen both Spider-Man's (been a fan of Marvel Comics for years) and the movies have been pretty good as well. I saw the early trailer for this a while ago when I went to see Pirates of The Caribbean 2 but this trailer blows it away. You just have to Swing in to see the new, full Spider-man 3 trailer at VideoDetective.com. They have the largest collections of trailers on the net, and they have games and contests there as well so it wouldn't hurt to take a look now wouldn't it.

Visit VideoDetective.com to see this and many more cool trailers.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 1:39 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Internet, Movies

People keep asking me for this all the time so here's a link - Free Anti-Virus Software
Monday, November 27, 2006

Since Windows always asks for up to date virus software as part of it's Windows Security Center I thought I might as well post the free Anti-Virus I use personally. I'm a big fan of AVG, never had a virus infection since I've had it, it's compact and doesn't take much resources unlike paid subscription programs like Norton.

It's from a company called Grisoft, they've been around for years and been supporting AVG Free in order to get corporate or other institutions to purchase their software, so if you need some good AV for your office, contact Grisoft and pruchase their stuff. It keeps my AVG free, lol.

Btw what AV software you guys use? I hear Avast is the other popular free one, never used it tho.

Anyways here's the link to AVG Free 7.5 HERE so go test it out and let me know what you guys think.

Later,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:04 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Software

Great Nutrition and Supplement Site

If you guys don't know I've been taking Vitamins and Supplements for my hip. I had surgery 2 years ago in December and hip pain for a year before, however I'm still running and my vitamins are a main reason why. I've looked at a couple of sites online but nothing compares to N101. N101 Nutrition has a huge selection of nutritional supplements, vitamins, herbs and natural beauty products. It's got solid low prices and for those who like to shop in buck they got some volume discounts and free shipping on many items. It's a great one-stop website for everything from skin care to sports nutrition, so if you need some vitamins or supplements like me to perform then you should check them out at N101 Nutrition.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:12 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Sports, Vitamins

Actually watched TV tonight, surprised about the level of Interactivity

I actually watched the show on NBC called Heroes and I was surprised at actually how good it was. I gave up on TV due to time constraints but I was enjoying the show. A little bit of Sci-Fi, a little bit of Drama, an intense story that's a huge mistery, makes for some pretty good stuff.

Anyways I was surprised at the website for the show. Before I even was watching it my friend was showing me the website and the bio's of the characters and a bunch of other stuff, pretty cool to be honest. Anyone out there watch it? It's not that bad.

To visit the website you can see if off NBC.com at http://www.nbc.com/Heroes/. It's even got a good URL, look at that.

Alright time to relax.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:03 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, TV

Why I NEED an HP Digital Camera

If you've Veronique aka Flaming Tamale's post on the Payperpost blog you'll see that they've got a new sponsorship with HP and she got a nice digital camera from them. Honestly I think it's about time she got something but you know I think I word hard too and maybe it's time I get something too. I've been busting my butt, working hard, posting hard and being a team player. I'm on the boards, I've pimped my blog, I've been the best postie I can. I have to cut out real life things to sacrifice for PPP, but I love them for it. To me this digital camera would be a reward, it would keep me working 110% and it would be a great thing for the upcoming holidays. I'd take pictures of Canada, specifically of Montreal, my hometown, in the Winter. It's a beautiful place and I think everyone would like some nice quality pictures. Hopefully a nice digital camera from HP would be a great way to do tihs. Tell me I'm crazy but I love Montreal and I love the winter and you should see the sights.

Anyways write comments and help Ted pick me as one of the lucky 5 winners from Payperpost and HP, c'mon PPP I love you guys, lol.

Thanks,

-Steve

This post is brought to you by the fine people at HP.

Posted bySteve at 5:42 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Digital Cameras, Payperpost

Funny FutureShop Commercial
Sunday, November 26, 2006

Just thought I'd share this with everyone shopping and looking for laptops I thought it was hilarious. It's a FutureShop (almost the same as BestBuy, and owned by BestBuy, in Canada) on YouTube, found it on Digg, which is where I find 75% of the interesting stuff on the net, lol. So enjoy and lemme know if you think it's funny.



Btw this guy's an idiot, lol.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:57 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Laptops

Now this is a cool toy

Toys are getting better and better every year, I remember my action figurines and all that but these things take the cake. They're little Aliens that are grown in a test tube, they even have a chip with a heartbeat and everything. You add water and the feeding materials called sloog that comes with it and it starts growing. You can then interact with it using the website called alienadoptionworld. It's a great thing for kids to watch things grow and online interaction is another great feature I wish I had something similar when I was growing up. A kit with 2 aliens and a bunch of other stuff is only 40$, which isn't bad considering the prices of toys now at Toys R Us.

Here's a picture of what the kit looks like.



Check it out and post your thoughts, what was your favorite toy? Did you grow it? lol

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 3:42 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Holidays, Toys

PS3 Hacked already, lol

Yep just read over the Kotaku.com (great video game news site, on par with Joystick.com) that they've managed to rip a copy of Madden '07 using the onboard linux that you can use on the PS3. I think it's only a matter of days, not weeks, before we can execute backups since they say the structure is like the PSP and we all know about the PSP hacks that are out there, lol. (If you don't type PSP Homebrew in google)

The full article is here on Kotaku, the same site (the one Kotaku links has links on how to install a 750gb HD and other things) so visit them HERE and learn how to hack your PS3 before you manage to get one in febuary, lol.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 2:36 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Sony, Video Games

Forget coupon sites, get cashback - Dealking.com

I've visited Dealking.com since I've seen many people refer to them on Howardforums and I don't know why I haven't let you guys know about them. Dealking.com is easily one of the most aggresive cashback sites on the net with a lot of good deals where you can get money back on purchases. This makes some things, such as a prepaid T-Mobile phone, free after cash back or a cheap Cingular Prepaid phone as well.

Check them out at dealking.com for those offers and many more.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 2:23 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Free Stuff, Saving Money

Up to take information on next generation Console Sales

Thought you guys might like this site where they show an update sales figure for each next generation console. Pretty interesting looking at the numbers, with only 300,000 total PS3's sold, well short of their 400,000 stated initial goal. As well I thought they're would be more Wii's out there, but it's still a LOT more than the PS3's.

As you can see the Xbox360 still has a comfortable lead on both consoles but we'll see what happens once production for the 2 other consoles start picking up.

My predictions are Nintendo 1, Microsft 2 and Sony 3 with each having 40/30/30 market share. We'll see in a year if I'm right.

Alright, here's the link to http://nexgenwars.com/.

Enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 1:05 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, Video Games

Anyone need tips on how to save money, visit MoneyManager.com
Saturday, November 25, 2006

On a nice Saturday after Black Friday I'd thought I'd post about a financial site I use to save some cash and some worries at the same time. The site is called MoneyManager.com and it's an informative site on many financial topics. Things discussed are how to save money, how to Contribute Early to Your IRA or retirement plans, how to cut debt, reduce expenses, etc. They've got some great articles and calculators to help you figure things out as well. If you follow some of these tips I think you'll save yourFinancial Life When Disaster Strikes, which can only be a good think. Definitely worth a look after all the shopping I did yesterday. What's your money saving tips personally? Let me know.

Thanks

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 2:50 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Saving Money

Good news, Cell Phone Unlocking Legal for 3 years

This is some great news for people on GSM networks or nicer CDMA (they're tougher on allowing phones on their network) network users who have a phone they want to use with multiple carriers. The US is making it legal to unlock your headsets, so no more internet searching or Craigslist for people to do this for you. It's great for me since I have an international Quad-Band phone (W810i) and I use it in the US and in Canada at times as well. This may not apply to people but having an unlocked cell phone can come in handy, so this is definitely great news.

Here's the story on ArsTechnica HERE if you want to know the details.

Enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 2:06 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Hardware

Read this great Affiliate Marketing Ebook and make money off comission today

Hey I've been fasicnated by affiliate and internet marketing since I've started my first homepage (back in 2004 with Jhawk's Hardware) and I've always kept abreast of what's going on with it. Today Affiliate Marketing is a simple yet affective way to make money off selling other people's products without having to do all the leg work. You don't have to form a business or anything difficult, you can use your existing webpages, blogs or even email to make some money off what you already have.

Today affiliate marketing is a large field, with many companies and ways to do business inside affiliate market. This is why this affiliate handbook is crucial in terms of understand how to go about affiliate marketing. Jeremy Palmer's eBook goes over everything, and honestly it's 150 pages on the specifics of affiliate marketing. It's very encompassing so every section may not be for you, but the information is gone over in great detail with real examples and tips to help you maximize your time and efforts without wasting money to becoming a super affiliate. I've read through his eBook and it's honestly one of the best eBook's I've seen, from the way he presents his info to the way that information is presented to both the beginners who have no clue about affiliate marketing to those who are looking to improve on their own. He goes over what networks to select, how to build a proper website with tips on how to maximize it's content and earnings potential to Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Return on Investment (ROI) tips. It's that encompassing and it is the way to become a super affiliate.

Honestly if you've ever even thought of using your website or blog for affiliate marketing I recommended you read his high performance affiliate handbook. Without it you'll be wasting money and clicks when you could easily be making thousands on sales. Check it out and let me know your stories on affiliate marketing.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:48 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Marketing

Crazy Japanese See Through Refrigerator

Only the Japanese could come up with this. They got a line of see-through home appliances. A dryer, a refrigerator, something that looks like a fan/AC unit, etc. It's pretty funky, dunno if I'd grab it but thumbs up to them for thinking outside the box and making some.

Look at this picture, invisible fridges, lol


Here's the full link on Gizmodo HERE and as usual post your throughs on this funky stuff.

Alright off to bed, enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 12:17 AM 5 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Random

Moving to Vegas?
Friday, November 24, 2006

One of my friends is an avid poker player and honestly he's pretty good at that and most forms of gambling so he's been thinking of moving to Las Vegas. It's pretty tough out there at first since Las Vegas real estate isn't very cheap, most people have to rent a place first then pick up something afterwards. He's been checking out some of the rental homes here trying to find something nice before he commits to anything tho. According to him Las Vegas is pretty competitive city by nature, it's tough to make it out there but there's money to be made out there, just have to know how, either by opening a business, or being very good at what you do. If you've seen some of those pro poker players like Phil Ivey (and hopefully my friend one day) you know the type of guys I'm talking about. I wonder if he'll actually make it down there but if he's not there's like 5,000 per month moving down there so I'm sure some of those people are striking it rich. Check out http://www.millionsaver.com/ to find some great real estate in Vegas if you're thinking of trying to cash in on the American dream in Vegas as well.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:07 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Random, Saving Money

That was quick, Zune hacked to wirelessly send MP3's without DRM

I knew that it wouldn't be long before someone hacked the Zune, after all it is a Microsoft device, lol. They managed to use the Zune as a portable Hard Drive or storage device, and once they figured that out it was simple for them to send MP3's renamed as image files without the DRM on them. I'm over simplifying the process but there's a much better explanation on Gizmodo with a guide to doing the hard drive mod and how to send the files. It's better they explain it since I don't think most of you guys have a Zune yet and don't really care yet.

Anyways if you're interested check out the Article on Gizmodo HERE and post your thoughts.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:00 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Digital Players, Electronics, Microsoft

Emoze 1.3, the way to get Email to your Phone without a Blackberry

Just letting you guys know about an update to a program I spoke about a while ago called Emoze. Well Emblaze Limited, the makers of Emoze, has released a new update to the Emoze program called Emoze 1.30. If you don't remember Emoze was the world's first free and secure "push" email or PIM service. It was able to synchronize your emails onto your mobile device or PDA's without the need for you to check up on it all day. It can update your work or home emails and your Personal Information Manager stuff (yea those contacts, calender, notes, etc) onto your PDA or compatible phone wherever you are.

One of the great things about this new version is that a lot more phones are supported. Before only Windows Mobile 5 and some Symbian phones were supported, now there's a lot more phone support including the SonyEricsson W810i, aka my phone, so that's great news for me. Unfortunately for me I'm not able to access my Thunderbird (I use Thunderbird since it's free and faster) since I'm away from the computer for the holiday but once I get back tomorrow night I'm definitely going to try this with my new phone. The software can be downloaded for free at www.emoze.com. It's great because the software can now access many types of email programs, from Outlook to Thunderbird to Lotus and more. The software is easy to use by pretty much anyone, all you need to do is download the compatible version and follow the steps from there.

This software can save your or your business a great amount of bandwith by only sending you email when you have it at the intervals you want eliminating the need to check in and see if you have anything new. It's free, flexible and secure, which is great news, and the program itself don't come with any Spyware, Adware and they don't duplicate your data either.

I honestly think this is a great idea since not everyone needs or can carry a Blackberry around. If you need more info or would like to download it please visit www.emoze.com and get the right version for your phone.

Thanks,

-Steven

Posted bySteve at 10:32 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Email

Last thoughts before I wake up early for Black Friday and Funny Console Screens
Thursday, November 23, 2006

Just got back from Thanksgiving dinner at my coach's house in East Brooklyn. Was a great time. Since I found out about 2 pretty decent deals at Best Buy for laptops I think I'm going to get up around 4:30 and try to get in on them, we'll see what happens. You guys getting up? I'll go just get a phat deal for my friend, might be worth it, and I'll get to cash in the mail in rebates as well, hehe.

On a second note (too lazy to start another post) I came across these BSOD (Blue Screens of Death) for consoles, it's pretty funny to see them in all the versions, from Xbox to the Wii. A nice short laugh for someone, lol. Check the screens HERE, I've never seen the Xbox on, so that must be a good.

Alright off to bed, getting up at 4:30am.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:07 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Holidays, Video Games

Need a christmas gift for that little scientist in your family?

I remember playing with a crappy microscope and science set my parents had bought me years back when I was just a little kid, probably around the ages of 9-10. I had fun with it and it made me more interested in science. Well that and Bill Nye, wow that was a great show. Well if you're interested in getting your kid something different that most toys out there then I seriously suggest you check out some of the microscopes they got there. They also got other types of microscope in case you're shopping for that grown-up kid or if you're purchasing something for the lab at your local high school/college. They even got digital, photo and video camera microscopes, like the ones shown below which display the image through a video feed onto a TV. Great thing for demonstrations or science projects. By shopping at www.microscopes.com you can save up to 70% off on these microscopes and get free UPS shipping on orders over $29.95. And just for the holidays they got an Extended No Hassle Holiday Return Policy, so that brand new microscope you just picked up won't be DOA without any chance of return. Can't go wrong, these are the guys from OpticsPlanet.com so you know you're getting a great deal and some great service.

Check them out and tell me what you think, like wouldn't this below be great for your kid science project?



Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 3:00 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Gift Ideas

Rumours about Gears of War coming to PC

Just reading the Opposable Thumbs Blog on Ars Technica, it's a great blog talking about the gaming industry in general. Today they have a piece about Gears of War coming to PC, well, speculation on how it will/will not since Microsoft's Games For Windows initiative had GOW as one of their featured titles. Well Microsoft went on the record that's they're NOT releasing it yet (they don't wanna kill their precious Xbox360 sales) but they din't say they're not releasing it ever, a la Halo 2 for PC (is that thing ever going to come out?

Anyways you can read further HERE and discuss if you've playing GOW how the PC vs the Xbox360 versions would be like.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 2:01 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Microsoft, Video Games

Free Online Games - Play your Nintendo Classics

Since most of you have the day off and have time to kill I should let you know about this site I visit to play some free online games. The best thing about this site, Excessively.net is that you can play classic Nintendo (NES) games with emulation directly off the webiste. They got like Dr. Mario and Final Fantasy 3, both great games. They got tons of other games and if you're looking for your Nintendo fix while waiting to get your Wii I suggest you check it out, why not, can't go wrong when playing free online games.

Alright back to Super Mario World 3, trying to see how fast I can do with it the flutes, lol.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Nintendo, Video Games

Thanksgiving morning news

Since it's Thanksgiving here it's kind of slow in the US (I woke up at 10am for the first time in months, I loved it) for tech news but there's a nice article on Windows Vista out and there's a hack out to see the Wii store from Firefox. Both pretty good reads on your Turkey day morning while waiting for the folks to cook and arrive.

PC World has a pretty big overview of Windows Vista out, speaking about the features and what they like/don't like. It's pretty comprehensive for the typical user, so check it out HERE. I might just get Vista afterall (I haven't owned a legal MS OS license in a while, maybe it's time i stop being a pirate, lol)

Next out for the gamers out there is a link to the Wii store. You need to run some javascript first but there's some cool pages there. The site has videos and screenshots for the lazy people (including me) and it's pretty interesting os take a look. Here's the page HERE so let me know what you think.

Alright enough for now, more later after I get back from the store.

-Steven

Posted bySteve at 10:50 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Microsoft, Nintendo, Video Games

Moby in New York
Wednesday, November 22, 2006

I listen to trance/electronica so I've definetly heard of Moby. Most of you have heard him for that Porcelain song he's released a few years back. I've listened to his other stuff and it's pretty decent, I'm more of the trance guy myself. Since I'm from New York I have to promote the Moby in New York special that's on CNN's The Scene. He talks about Chinatown (he's true when you can still easily get lost there if you're a New Yorker, lol) and other places like Central Park inside New York. It's pretty intresting so check it out if you're doing nothing waiting for that turkey to cook or have never been to New York (who hasn't), lol. If you haven't, read this link about New York Etiquette unless you want to get run over or piss off the locals, lol. Trust me tourists stick out like sore thumbs on the streets/sidewalk, you'll see, lol.

Anyways off to bed, nice long sleep for once today.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:49 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Music, NYC, Travel

A new strategy for DVD releases, Fox going to release a DVD for 24, the TV show, the day after it airs

Sorry for the long title but this is pretty interesting news. Since everyone gets a lot of episodes on Bit-Torrent while waiting for the DVD versions to come out they're trying to undercut that and release the DVD of the show the same week. Yep the same week of the TV broadcast, which is usually Sunday/Monday they're releasing the DVD on Tuesday. It'll be interesting to see the sales since a lot of people get the season box sets or just download them anyways on Bit-Torrent/P2P networks.

Anyways check out the full story HERE and post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 7:09 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Bit-Torrent, DVD, TV

Holiday Wallpapers from AmericanGreetings

Since I'm not in the holiday spirit today I might as well talk about something in the holiday spirit to get my spirits up, lol. Since Christmas is coming soon it's starting to be time to be festive again and the folks at AmericanGreetings.com have a pretty large selection of Christmas wallpapers to spruce up your boring desktop. They have 16 holiday wallpapers in all, and they come in a lot of sizes for you desktop freaks, from 640x480 all the way to 1600x1200, which should easily most if not all the non-widescreen resolutions out there. The wallpapers themselves are pretty easy to download and don't come with spyware/adware or etc. You might have to register, aka giving your name, birthday, email address, but they have confidentiality policy so your information is safe.

Oh yea they also some festive screensavers so if you don't wanna change your desktop you can have a nice screensaver if you're away from your desk a lot. Can be a nifty touch if you decorate the office/desk area. Lastly if you're interested in this and more they have newsletter option on registration, it's optinal and you can unsubscribe at anytime.

Now go check out some Christmas wallpapers and let me know which one you like.Here's mine



Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 6:25 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Holidays, Internet

Holidays, you like em?

For me this holiday hasn't started off too well but you can't complain when you get a couple of days off, right? I had to move and pack up ALL of my room since they're doing construction in there installing a Skylight. Yes that's right they're installing a skylight during thanksgiving break. I had to put all my things in my closet and hide everything from the dust that's going to be everywhere I'm use. Supposedly they're gonna clean up my room later but we'll see.

Anyways I'll post any developments, for now I'll just chill in my temporarily room on the laptop, which I'm removing spyware from, always a fun job.

More Later,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:19 AM 0 comments  

Pretty cool gift - A book with your family history.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006

The guys would know me in real life know I'm a pretty avid reader, usually Fantasy/Sci-Fi novels though, but most people don't know I've always been pretty interested in names, particularly Family Trees and etc. I've bought scrolls with my personalized family tree before but it's not a very practice or thing to share with my family/friends. So I've seen this pretty cool book called Our Name in History where they take your family data off places like Ancestry.com and others and compile a book relating your family history. This actually sounds like a great novel gift idea for your parents, children, basically anyone in your family. Tracks down your family history and it's a real record, a book, that you can reference at anytime.

This is how it looks, pretty nice and fits the setting well.



It's worth a look if you're needing a unique gift. For more info please visit OurNameInHistory.com .

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:15 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Gift Ideas, History

Off-day, no tech news today

Yea I'm kinda having an off-day today. I've been busy helping other people out and running practices (I had 2 track practices) so I'm kind of exhausted and didn't really do much browsing the web or anything really. Do you guys have those kind of days where you don't wanna do anything but sleep and ignore the world when you get back in? I think I'm in one of those moods.

Alright I'll go relax or something, lol, sorry for ranting. More maybe later,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:01 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Random

ah you gotta love the Payperpost peeps
Monday, November 20, 2006

As many of the Payperpost posties know last weekend the head honcho of Payperpost along with his 2 cohorts (just joking guys) were in Vegas for a tradeshow and the Payperpost Wedding between Jules and Michael. They had a blast and even if I didn't see the live stream (I was at a football game) I'll hopefully be able to see more than just the pictures on Flickr sometime soon. Anyways Veronique, aka the Flaming Tamale, posted a PPP confessional on the payperpost blog about the whole trip and her HP digital camera that she just got from Ted this morning. That's great for her, I use my camera on my phone but hey, free stuff is always great. She's going to take pictures of the office so let's see how that goes, lol.
Anyways here's the video, enjoy!



Thanks and post your thoughts about the vid,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:54 PM 2 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet, Payperpost

Sell your PS3 to Taco Bell for $12,500 worth of Taco's

Found this pretty interesting on Digg so I might as well share it. There's a story on 2old2play.com where Taco Bell is having a promotion/fundraiser to the first person that sells them their PS3 will get $12,500 worth of Taco Bell credit. That's a LOT of tacos my friends, lol. The PS3 they will have one will go to the Boys and Girls club of America, so it's for a good cause and it's always nice to see. Pretty interesting propesition if you have a PS3 and love taco bell, lol.

Check out the full article HERE and post your thoughts, Tacos or PS3? lol

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:28 PM 2 comments  

Labels: Digg, Internet, Sony

Mortgage Fraud
Sunday, November 19, 2006

I was in the library today talking to my coworker at the library and he just bought a house in West New York, NJ. He was telling me about the fact that once he started looking for a new place he went also looking for financing and mortgages for the place. He told me that each place he was at trying to get financing from had all these kinds of hidden fees or were lacking any sort of transparency. He then told me he how he wants to start looking online and I suggested him a site I've seen called www.personalhomeloanmortgages.com. They have a lot of information to help protect the customer and help them fully understand the ins and outs of borrowing. They got a mortgage directory, forums and some industry content/terms to help you out. Definitely the place for home mortgages, loans, refinancing and all the things surrounding it. Check it out and tell me what you think.

Thanks,

-Steven

Posted bySteve at 9:57 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Random, Saving Money

Boycott FYE! Using bait and switch tactics for Wii pre-orders

Just say this on the frontpage on Digg and somehow I'm not surprised but FYE FORCED a customer who had a Wii pre-order to buy 2 more games and purchase a $25 giftcard or else he wouldn't get his Wii. That's called bait and switch FYE but somehow one person can't make a difference, right? Well I think the manager of the FYE store on the YouTube video isn't going to be employed very longer at FYE and his superior who's number is also on the video is going to have a very long Monday. I called just for the fun of it and to fill up that lady's mailbox. Let's hope he gets his Wii back and FYE catches some serious flack for this.

Here's the post on the Consumerist HERE.

Watch the video and post your thoughts!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:08 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Nintendo, Video Games

MacOS X86 Leopard Cracked

It's funny now that Apple's gone Intel it seems all their operating systems can be cracked just like WindowsXP and Windows Vista can be cracked as well. This is via Digg so since the original webpage got the Digg Effect duggmirror has been hosting it. Too bad there's not much more info, it would be nice to setup another partition and run OSX for fun, lol. I like XP but OSX would seem fun, which one you guys prefer yourself?

Alright here's the link HERE and post your thoughts?

Posted bySteve at 12:00 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Apple, Hardware, Intel

New marketing service for mobile media

I think that mobile video, music and etc is the way to go these days, and it's about time advertisers catch up to these new thrends. PocoTag is a service where if someone is watching a video on their iPod, Creative Zen, etc, to use mobile SMS to get more information about a product. It's great because the clip or advert is fresh on the consumer's mind and he gets free info on the product, people do it for ringtones why not use SMS for your product.

For those worrying about confidentiality PocoTag has a service where whenever the customer sends SMS, and the first (and only) time, the customer is asked to send email address by SMS. PocoTag then creates a temporary, anonymous email and provide it to the advertiser. This way their mobile numbers aren't given to the advertiser and PocoTag only sends the proper SMS's. Pretty cool idea if you ask me

There's more on the PocoTag site, I think it's a good idea and one that could save both advertisers and consumers money.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:45 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Digital Players, Internet

Random Post of the Day

I'm alone at work, even if I showed up late my co-workers didn't even show up at all. Pretty bad showing for the library if you ask me (I'm a student assistant here). Anyways I went to Supercuts for my haircut today, I don't know any real local places around here that have a lot of experience cutting my hair (I'm in Downtown Brooklyn, had to walk to another part of town for Supercuts). Just wondering do you prefer Supercuts / another chain branch or do you prefer the guy down the block?

Discuss.

Posted bySteve at 11:27 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Random

Tonight's blog of interest
Saturday, November 18, 2006

Was cruising the blogosphere tonight again, just got in from Football, and saw this pretty interesting blog. It's a personal development blog from Ksuccess, they're a community based on that, and on their blog they post random tips and articles about becoming a better person. I particularly like their articles on Blood Pressure and about running injuries, which I'm very close to being a runner AND an athletic trainer. Honestly it's a good read, especially if you're stuck inside on a Saturday night. Check it out!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:03 PM 0 comments  

Now this is cool - USPS Mailbox finder

Ever needed to find a mailbox and had no idea where to look? Well I just saw this post off the frontpage of [H]ardOCP.com that has a listing of Mailboxes by Zip Codes. That's a pretty nifty idea especially when you're in a rush to send/postmark something. The site is from the Payphone project people, they're doing some kind of listing for Payphone numbers, so I think this mailbox search is a side thing but cool never less.

Anyways here's the link for you guys, MailBox Search Engine

Enjoy

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:46 AM 3 comments  

Labels: Internet, Random

SEO'Brien's Online Marketing Blog
Friday, November 17, 2006

I've been becoming more and more interested now that I have my blog in online marketing and the whole SEO (Search Engine Optimization) thing going on. Another one of my friends, who runs ContentMob.com, has shown me some sites and some links about SEO, Adsense, Arbitrage and the like. Since then I've been roaming some blogs and found a pretty interested one last night called SEO'Brien.

Paul O'Brien, the creator of SEO'Brien, has worked with Yahoo, HP and has over 15 years experience in Online Marketing. His blog covers such diverse topics and lessons in things like Comparison Shopping, Affiliate programs, Banner media, RSS, and more. The Search Engine optimization and online marketing from SEO'Brien's blog brings quality news on these subjects and more helping you which could help you drive sales while reaching targeted customers through behavioral paid search management, regional optimization, comparison shopping cycles, integrated marketing, and affiliate searching. There's more but I suggest you check out his blog, can't hurt and it's pretty informative.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:10 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet

Yes I should've sat in that line for a PS3

I witness my friend making $1000 for a spot in line at Best Buy for a PS3 and I thought to my self, even if I was working all day how much more would've I have made if I got into line and waited for 2 days, lol. Yep there's stories everywhere on the net about the PS3 rush that occured last night into this morning, how some people got shot by a BB gun while waiting, fights breaking out, the event launch parties at Sony in NYC and in San Francisco, etc.

Here's the Engadget converage most of you won't see HERE. Can't say I didn't see it coming, lol.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:20 PM 2 comments  

Labels: Sony, Video Games

Who needs a credit card? - CreditCardSearchEngine.com
Thursday, November 16, 2006

Since I've spoken about Car search engine, voice acting search engines, self-storage search engines, I guess I might as well include a topic that many people search for daily, a Credit Card search engine. CreditCardSearchEngine.com has pretty much any type of Credit Cards you could possibly need and all forms of credit. From Low Interest, Cash Back, Rewards, Airline miles, student, business, and credit cards for bad credit you're pretty much covered at Creditcardsearchengine.com. Check it out and compare them all to find the right Credit Cards for you.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:33 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Saving Money

Variety Proclaims the death of VHS

As if VHS wasn't dead already, we need Variety for confirmation. Anyways the good old magazine published an obituary for the old format. It's pretty funny and has some good tidbits in there, like how VHS had its troubles in infancy with Betamax, and how the Lion King sold over 30 million tapes, which is pretty impressive.

Anyways reminisce with the article at Variety HERE and post your thoughts or memories of VHS.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:27 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Hardware

Taking a holiday to spain!

When I went to Europe one of my favorite places to visit was Spain, particularly Barcelona or anything along the Meditteranian. I would love to go back and take advantage of one of these Cheap Holidays packages to Spain that I've seen online but I think I'm stuck here in the US for a while.

I used to use travel agents but now that the Internet has so many ways to comparison shop it's what I use to find what I need I definetly would take an online package and save the fees. On The Beach Holidays has a great number of travel options, even to places like Egypt and Tenerife if Spain isn't your thing. The beaches, the women, the sun, everything is great down there. If you have the chance to get out for a while take it, and enjoy it.

Alright back to daydreaming about the beach,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:57 AM 2 comments  

Labels: Saving Money, Travel, Vacations

This is cool, Hack Your Wii Gift Card

This is pretty cool. Target's been giving away a Wii giftcard with Wii's and other electronic items. Here's a picture for those who've never seen it.



Pretty nifty isn't it. Well people have begun to hack it by changing the colors, changing how the lights blink, etc. Pretty awesome what people will do to things. The post was linked to Engadget so I'll link you to the real source.

Check it out here, lol, and hack your giftcard!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:26 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Nintendo

New Car Search Engine
Wednesday, November 15, 2006

I've been covering search engines for a while and since I'm looking at maybe getting a car when I graduate I've also been looking at some car sites. Most of the car sites I've seen haven't had very good car search engines but AutoIQ.com aims to change that. They have one of the easiest to use car search engines I've seen, pretty much up there with a local one I used to use in Canada (camhebdo). Me personally I've always loved Honda Civic's since they're great on gas, parts and even if everyone has one, including my dad, they're always well received.

I tested out a search on a used one around Brooklyn, 2005-06 years, LX model with Manual Transmission (I would get an Si Coupe but they're way too expensive) and I could easily find a good number of models with AutoIQ.com's New Car Search. I don't know what models or makes you'd like, maybe if you're well off you can search for a BMW (I love the 3-series) or maybe a Tercel for your grandma or something, lol just joking but they got all the major manufacturers there so don't worry. I honestly recommend the site when searching for a new car, you can never have enough options and AutoIQ.com is by far one of the better car search engines I've seen. Check it out!

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:25 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Cars, Internet, Saving Money

Weird but cool USB accesories

I've never visited Noheat.com before but apparantly they made the front page on Digg.com with their weird but cool USB accessories. It's a pretty funny list, with everything you could think of in it. There's things from USB Ashtrays that have an included program that'll warn you when you'll die from cancer to USB Lava lamps, who doesn't want one of those, lol.

I don't wanna steal his images/text so I'm going to link you to the site HERE and let you decide if it's just weird or cool at the same time.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:12 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Internet, Random

This is too funny!

I knew the guys at Payperpost where off the wall but honestly Ted takes the cake in this one. This has to be the funniest PPP video I've ever seen, and after being there a while, I've seen it all, from Colleen's alter ego, to Veronique's rant, to the Postie Patrols. Ted, or his alter-ego Antonio, somehow becomes a catfish, but it's not how you expect it, lol.

Honestly this has to be seen to be believed, and just for you guys I've embedded the code from YouTube so everyone can see, lol.



Ted is lost, and he's our fearless leader, we're doomed, lol. But if you want to see more funny PayPerPost videos you should check out their blog (click on the Payperpost link) or if you're interested in getting paid to blog visit www.payperpost.com

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 1:20 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Payperpost, YouTube

Confirmation of the Apple phone?

Since everyone's been speculating about the Apple iPhone or Cell phone or whatever they're going to call it there's an interesting report out of Forbes.com that states they contracted a Taiwanese manufacturer to make 12 million mobile handsets that function as music players. This could definetly shake up the mobile industry.

Me I personally think it won't make too large of an impact, especially in the US, since most people want cheap free phones and an Apple phone would definetly be more expensive than the bundled phones that come with a 2 year agreement.

Anyways here's the link from Forbes.com. Post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 1:04 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Apple, Cell Phones

Free Online Calendar
Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Yep got another free service for you guys. Since I'm a pretty disorganized guy (not forgetful just messy) I find it important to keep a calendar with all my important tasks, meetings, events, etc. It's also important to make sure that you can use that calender wherever you are, if you're on the go, if you're away from home or the office, etc. That's why the people at AmericanGreetings.com have a free online calendar for you guys to use. You can record birthdays, meetings, anniversaries, etc, and best of all it can email you or SMS text message you whenever an important meeting is coming up. Sounds pretty sweet since I'm always pushing the limit and knowing something a few days in advance can help, I'm sure you guys agree.

They even got some new and improved reminders to go along with the redone calendar. Check out this picture below to see a preview of them, pretty nice if you ask me.



Check this out and more at AmericanGreetings.com

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:45 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Free Stuff, Time Management

Wii Not DVD enabled?

Seems the news about video games is pretty crazy. I guess the Wii is not DVD-enabled by default, meaning your $250 purchase can't play your nice DVD collection that you've accumulated over the years. I know the Gamecube couldn't do that but it didn't have DVD drive nor was it aimed at that segement. The Wii has an online web browser in the pipes as well so I'm surprised at this but maybe it's just me.

I guess Nintendo has always had this stance of being for the games first but do you think that lacking DVD-playing capabilities is something that would turn you off? A dvd player is so cheap it doesn't seem right for the Wii to lack this feature. I guess we're just going to have to wait for 2007 when the Wii will be DVD enabled. So there's maybe some hope for you early adopters, but I just wonder why it's not enabled by default, since someone pointed out to me on the Engadget forums they have to have a red laser to read Gamecube games.


Anyways here's the link from Engadget.com so go read it and post some comments. I swear it's my last video game article for the night, lol.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:30 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Nintendo, Video Games

What I love best about Payperpost

Many of you may have noticed the dramatic increase in posts over the last few months on this blog. It started to be a personal blog but has since moved on to discuss what I do when I'm on the next with my free time, reading electronics/technology/computers sites and reviews. Its given me a way to express myself that I hadn't had since my failed site (JHawk's Hardware, had no time to manage it and find content at the same time). I'd like to thank the guys at Payperpost for it. They help me blog and make it worthwhile for me to blog. I had 2000 views at my old site and barely made 5$ on Adsense.

Now with Payperpost I can get paid to advertise on blogs. I can talk about things that may interest my readers (unless you're reading this cuz you hate my blog, lol) and get to learn about new products and services. Some of the things I've spoken about are great. Case in point, the DigitalLife'06 show, where I wrote about free tickets that anyone could use, and I refered many friends to go, and I went there myself for free. It can't get any better than that. How can I not like Payperpost after that. Also I get paid to write, which I'm using to help pay off a large bill (check my old posts for what I'm using the money for) and it's helping tremendously.

Honestly, check out Payperpost.com if you blog, it's worth a look and maybe you can earn some decent cash like me.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:13 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet, Payperpost

It's crazy the lengths people will go to for some things...

Sticking with the video game theme for tonight I was just reading on TGdaily about the people who've been lined up for a PS3 since LAST WEEK. Yep that's right, last week. Kind of a crazy if you ask me but then again some people are VERY addicted to their video games or electronics (yes I know I am in SOME aspects). Well those guys in Burbank California were kicked off the Best Buy property. Makes sense since it's pretty nuts to line up for a week before the launch, it's only a gaming system guys (then again I'm biased since I sold my PS2 and think PS3 is overrated for now).

Anyways you can read the article at TGdaily.com HERE and read more on how these guys quit their jobs and postponed engadgements to be the first ones in line. Nuts I tell yea.

Anyways more later,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:10 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Sony, Video Games

Want to sell more on ebay? Read this ebook!

I've had a few friends write informative eBooks and have found them to be pretty good sources of help especially when you're not familar with the concept or business. eBooks are pretty much what the name stands for, an electronic book or guide (usually in PDF form) to something.

Rob Frechette's Ebay ebook can definetly be helpful for those merchants looking to use Ebay to its maximum potential. He reveals how to build up a business like his all without loans step by step to where his business is today. He sells over 50,000 items a month (nearly $2.2million) and only has 1 full time employee apart from himself, which is pretty impressive. If you're looking to get a foothold on Ebay, I definetly suggest looking into his eBook.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:52 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Ebay, Internet

Funny Penny Arcade Comic

Since it's been a busy day and I've been so tired from resuming track practice I'm going to post a funny comic from the guys at Penny Article. If you've never heard of Penny Arcade then you're not into the online video game scene, as they write comics about the scene and what they think about it. Since it's Wii laucnh week in 4 days they got a pretty funny comic up that I think the gamer in you might enjoy.

Here's the link to their comic HERE

Enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:30 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Nintendo, Video Games

Want to spruce up your program with some nice Icons?
Monday, November 13, 2006

Most people overlook the aesthetics of their programs when designing a program. That's a big mistake since as the saying goes it's the little things that count. From the layout, to the colors/fonts, and even little things like the icons used for the program can matter. That's why getting the right icons for your page, installer, or the main program itself can make the difference.

Icongalore has some great Professional XP Style Icons available for software developers and Web Designers alike. If you visit their site you can see some of their work and you're even encouraged to try a sample before you buy a complete package of icons. The icons are designed following Microsoft's XP Style Guidelines, they're availible in four sizes and formats and they're some of the cheapest priced icons around. You can check out the samples from their Sample Page or view a sample of their icons in the photo below.

Icongalore's website has many categories of icons for many types of popular software or web page designs. They have a set of Network Database Icons, Accounting Software Icons, Email Application Icons, Navigation Icons, Web Icons and etc. Their site has a more complete listing and they offer a customized Icon creation service for those who might be interested in getting that great custom look for their application.

Check out Icongalore.com to visit their site and download some samples of their icons at no cost, who knows, it could be that final touch that you're software was lacking to make it complete.

(Here's a sample of their icons with their logo, enjoy!)


-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:23 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Web Design

Stealing Wifi Gets you in Jail!

Pretty crazy thing out of Singapore where someone's been charged with stealing someone's unsecured wireless network with a possibility of spending 3 years in jail. A 17 yr old teen has been charged with stealing his neighbor's wireless connection as he was warned to get off the connection and didn't do it. I don't know more of the specifics but there's got to be more to the story then this. (Full Link HERE)

What you think about jailing the teen? Is he right for using something that's freely up in the air (like Radio Waves) that's unsecured is he an intruder for going on someone's network and stealing their connection?

Post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:46 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, News

Custom engraved USB drive from PexagonTech.com

I've had a couple of ugly flash drives and the labels on them pretty much suck. However, I've found a pretty nifty gift idea that I might just get for myself. (I just lost my 2nd flash drive on the weekend, not too happy). PexagonTech has a really nice line of personal engraved USB thumb drives out there that could be that special small gift for the tech oriented member of your family (like yours truly).

Their USB flash drives come in 512MB, 1GB, 2GB or 4GB sizes and in your choice of 5 exciting colors. That's pretty awesome. I saw these before and I was pretty impressed on how they look.

Check out this picture below, wouldn't it look nice on a Christmas tree (I'd take it for myself if I saw one, lol)



They're having some online specials right now that make the prices pretty interesting. A 1GB Thumb Drive (any color) is going for $20.99 with FREE laser engraving & 2GB Thumb Drive (any color) for $38.99 with FREE laser engraving. Not too price of a price/capacity ratio especially with laser engraving.

Check them out and get me a 2gb drive 2!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:00 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Hardware

Global Rich List

Not really a technology news posting but since I came across this site on Digg I might as well post it.

Global Rich List ranks your income against the income of the entire human race. That's right, you type in how much you make per year, and it finds your percentage in terms of being the richest man compared to humanity's rankings.

Me, I put like $15,000, since I'm a student I don't count my scholarships, and I only got a 12.33% of the top richest, so I guess I'm not too bad. $200 US is like 95% percentile so you can guess how much people really make. Pretty eye opening.

Anyways enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:56 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet, Personal

Anyone need any Dell Coupons or Deals?

I know whenever someone asks me what laptop should I get I usually point them to the place with the largest selection and a good price/performance/quality ratio and that usually ends up being Dell. Dell deals are awesome, and Cheapstingybargains.com has a great Dell coupon page that's updated hourly and has great buying instructions for those first time buyers over the web. Any Dell Coupon that you can find is money in the bank and if I needed a new laptop (I need a new job first, lol) I'd definetly take a look since you can't go wrong with free coupon codes.

Enjoy the codes,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:43 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Dell, Hardware, Laptops, Saving Money

Zune's being released tomorrow, you getting one?

If I wasn't so lazy I'd put a poll up here asking you guys if you'd get a Zune or not. Since it's coming out tomorrow there's been a lot of press/reviews. I saw a really good link yesterday but never got around to posting it so here it is, sorry if it's old news.

This one is from IHT.com, stating that most iPod users are considering buying an iPod, here's the quote:

"That is why Steve Wilson, a consumer electronics analyst, was so surprised this month when he read the results of a survey by ABI Research of 1,725 randomly chosen owners of digital media players. To Wilson's shock, 58 percent of iPod owners told ABI they were likely to buy a Zune, the new player Microsoft plans to start selling in the U.S. market on Tuesday, and in 2007 in Europe."

Pretty interesting thing here, staying that iPod users aren't loyal. Here's the rest of the article HERE

Me, I'd look into a Zune maybe later for its video capabilities. I have my phone (SE W810i) for music since I don't want to carry 2 seperate devices on the go but if their movie support takes off then it might be work looking into. Anyone have any further thoughts? Post away,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:34 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Microsoft, Music

Megaglobe.com - An International Search Engine
Sunday, November 12, 2006

I've never had a great amount of success with the various search engines when searching for international or local Canadian results unfortunately. Most of the search engines don't specify local content or anything first. Well hopefully that's a trend that will start to change with the coming of Megaglobe, New International Search Engine.

They promise to represent the entire world with their search engine, a mighty noble goal. Along with that they seem to be doing the same type of advertising as Google by targeting local markets. This is good since no one cares about things they cannot buy or see. They have some technology in place to prevent click fraud as well, always a positive from a startup. Also, they're going to have ads or sponsor listings in 50 different countries worldwide, which is definetly a start, which is another nice thing to see.

The search engine is going to start off in 45 languages when it's live, it's not up yet but the main page is accepting sites to be spidered in its index. More search engines = more results = more clicks and readers. They're also going to operate from multiple domain names, something close to 304 in total, which is good for targeting those local countries as well.

They have a couple of press releases available if you want to know more about them, here's some links and their logo.



Press Release 1
Press Release 2
Press Release 3

Definetly worth checking out, even if it's just to add your blog/site to Megaglobe's Index for now.

I'll post a full review once it's fully online, post your thoughts on it as well.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:54 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet

ContentMob.com - The User Generated Think Tank

I'm pretty good friends with the author of this website and I've been helping out/moderating his forums so I'm going to let you guys know about the site.

ContentMob.com is a site where anyone interested in user generated advertising can come together and discuss strategies, sites, tools, etc. It's got eBooks for sale to help people learn the basics of some sites and the forum is going to be jammed packed with info and tips and knowledable users, such as myself, lol.

I'd honestly check it out, it's worth a look, the URL is http://www.contentmob.com

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:14 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet, Web 2.0

Free Stuff Part 25 - Free Ipods!

Just letting everyone know about a free Ipod giveaway site. Yea I know most of you guys don't trust the free ipod "popups" but these guys have 2 things. One you can enter their mailing list and win an ipod by random chance (they draw one every day) or two you can complete advertisers offers (signing up for things) so that they get credit and you get an Ipod. They're a legit company, having given away over 2,000 ipods over 6 years and since they're giving you 2 options to get one I think it's cool.

Check out the link below to Get a Free iPod from iPodSweepstakes.com Now!

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:24 PM 1 comments  

Labels: Apple, Free Stuff

Sorry for the missing 2 days

Yea I've been rather busy as of late with a lot of Athletic training and real life things in the way. It was my birthday on Saturday (11/11) and I also worked the whole day for the PSAL, so I kept myself busy. I really didn't get the chance to post much so I'll try to catch up today.

Btw someone pointed me out that New York isn't one of the cities in 3D for some reason, I didn't notice the bar on the side with the city listings so that's my bad. Here's a complete list

Atlanta
Baltimore
Boston
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
Fort Worth
Houston
Las Vegas
Los Angeles
Philadelphia
Phoenix
San Francisco
San Jose
Seattle

Enjoy and more later,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:15 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Microsoft, Personal

Looking for something to give someone who works outdoors? Give them a good Flashlight
Friday, November 10, 2006

My dad worked in warehouses and does construction on weekends for years. Therefore he works outdoors and in dark gloomy places a lot. I remembered asking him once what's the one thing he always needs whenever he's doing outdoor work? He casually gave me his answer but gave it without hesitation, a solid dependable flashlight, and I've remembered it since. He's been using the large 9V flashlights for years but the batteries die out rather quickly for the work he does. That's why for Christmas I've been looking at the flashlights from OpticsPlanet.net.

They got some of the best brands, including Streamlight, SureFire and Pelican. They got lights as gun-mounts, (pretty cool lights there), lights for police work, firefighters, hunting (laterns) or random construction work with headgears. I've been looking to get him a Headlamp, which is a flashlight that attaches to his head, so that when he's working in a dark place he can hold his tools and have some light as well. Would be good for working on the foundation of our house. Opticsplanet has some decent prices, which includes Free UPS on orders over $29.95 and volume pricing if needed. I think it's a great gift idea to get someone a quality flashlight, those things need to be dependable, and it's something most people overlook.

So take a look at OpticsPlanet.net and pick the right flashlight for that outdoors person in your life.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 6:15 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Electronics, Outdoors

Unpacking the PS3 and Wii

Since about every news site has this URL linked too and since these 2 systems are coming out next week I might as well share them as well. Gizmodo has the Wii and PS3 final unpackaging, I might say the PS3 box looks nice, but the thing is a brick in size. The Wii has plain packaging but it's so small that it don't really matter.

For me the killer is this pic



Which one you want after that? lol

Here's the link to the original artice HERE

Enjoy and post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 6:06 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Microsoft, Sony, Video Games

Which PayPerPost employee would you take out for dinner?
Thursday, November 09, 2006

Being a postie at Payperpost is a great thing. I get to be part of a large community of great people, I get to learn about cool products and services and best of all, I get paid to blog. Can't really go wrong with that, now can you?

If I had to take on of the Payperpost staff or employee's out to dinner I think I'd take Ted out for a some Pizza :p. Naw just joking, I think I'd take Veronique out, she seems to be dealing with a lot of stress, and she never goes to the conventions that Brit and Ted get to go to, so I'd take her out. I'd prolly let her chose a nice spanish place, since I'm not too family with Spanish food still (had some Puerto Rican/Mexican dishes, nothing from anywhere else in Latin America or Spain). Maybe I'd take her out before just to get her away from the office, then get some food, who knows, it would be her night, thanks to a happy postie from Payperpost.com. I don't know quite what the discussion would be like, maybe some things I like about Payperpost, maybe what's happening with her life apart from PPP, or maybe some suggestions on things that they could work on. If she wanted to keep work out, it'd be her choice, remember, just trying to show appreciation, lol.

If you're still clueless about any of the Payperpost or any of the employees I'm talking about you should check out their blog at http://blog.payperpost.com and the forums at http://boards.payperpost.com. You'll get to meet Ted, Brit, Veronique, Pete and all the other PPP employees (well the ones that we've found out about so far, lol)

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 11:00 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Internet, Payperpost

Free TV on the internet!

Just saw this article on Digg and I've been watching it for about an hour so I thought I'd share with you guys. ChooseAndWatch.com is a free site bringing live streams of online TV channels. It's got ESPN (not a local feed since I compared it to my TV), CNN, BBC, Fox8, etc. In total it's got like 250 channels, not so bad. I warn you tho there is some adult content, so for some it might not be suitable but overall it's great since it's free online TV with no registration/passwords required.

Check it out at ChooseAndWatch.com.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:27 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, TV

Speaking of Text-Based games, try NinjaBattles.com

Just letting you know about NinjaBattles.com, another online Text-Baxed RPG that I've tried out. It's pretty cool since everyone who joins get the chance to win $500 bucks. You pick a side either Ninja or Samurai (Samurai are less so you get a bonus) and try to win Yin (for the Ninja's) or Yang (for the Samurai) depending on missions you take and etc. Sounds pretty fun, I think I'm going to try it out (we'll see how long I go without missing a day, lol), and the promise of a cash prize for someone on the winning team ain't so bad either :).

Check out NinjaBattles - Join the Battle! and maybe win something in the process.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:51 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Video Games

Who's tried Kingdom of Loathing?

Diverging from my normal Tech news to post about a game that I remembered playing a couple years back with an old friend from high school. I'm still surprised to see it going all these years later, I saw a guy at DigitalLife'06 playing it, which was amazing. It's called the Kingdom of Loathing, and it's an online text based game with some funny stick figure images and themese. It's an online RPG where you pick a type of class, Seal Clubbers, Accordian Thieves (can't remember the rest) and you fight things like Ninja Snowmen and the like. I liked but I didn't keep up with it after a while since I got extremely busy and your account gets deleted after a while. I'd check it out if you're out for a free game, seems like fun.

The website is http://www.kingdomofloathing.com

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 7:42 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Video Games

Another option when shipping for vitamins

Since you all know I run track and light weights as part of my routine most of you guys wouldn't be suprised I take some vitamins to supplement my diet. I don't touch the weight lifting supplements since I'm still an NCAA athlete and a lot of those are banned. However for me I need my supplements in order to keep myself healthy from the great choices I have at the LIU caf and since I've had hip surgery a Joint supplement (Chondritin, Glucosamine and MSM) was recommended to me as well. Anyone involved in sports and lifting should check out the Vitamins and supplements available at CheapVitamins.com, it's an easy way to get what you need, and the prices are great. I've visited CheapVitamins.com and found their selection to be pretty good and helpful for me. Check them out if you need that extra help with your diet or that push when you lift.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:31 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Health, Saving Money, Sports

Long Day, all way and no play

Taking a timeout at the library to write some blog posts, it's pretty quiet so I can do what I wish. I don't have track this week so I'm not as tired, however I've been doing extra hours for Athletic Training so I can get some extra cash. I miss running/lifting weights but I'll get back into it 2morrow.

In the news yesterday were the release from NDA of the Geforce 8800GTX reviews and the nVidia 680i SLi motherboard chipset reviews. Those 2 seem to be forming a potent combo, it'll be nice to see what the guys in Red come up with to counteract it. I'm not doing anything upgrade wise for a bit, since I need to save up my pennies, but it's always nice to see this level of performance, especially since my 2005fpw needs a good GFX card to drive it at 1680x1050.

Anyone here going to get some new hardware? what you looking at? the latest and greatest or a nice X1900XT 256mb that's around 200$? Post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 8:58 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, nvidia

Braincast, making voice memo's useful again.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Ever been on the run and wanted to remember something but haven't had the chance or a pen and paper lying around. Well Braincast has a solution for those people on the go. They provide a service where you can call a 1-800 number (toll-free so no long distance) and record messages from your phone. You can then listen, manage and add labels to these messages from home or any browser later on. It's a pretty good concept which expands from the basic voice memo's on your phone. The BrainCast website is pretty nice, layout is simple and effective, and should be easy for even a notice computer user to use. I just wonder if they're going to allow listening to your messages from your phone. I tested it and the message appeared about 10 seconds after I ended the call. Pretty slick if you ask me. It sounds like a great way to keep yourself organized. I'm going to give it more time during the next few days and let you guys know how much I use it. Until then visit BrainCast and give it a shot yourself, it's free.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 7:38 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Cell Phones, Internet

Microsoft Virtual Earth 3D - Google Earth copycat?

I played around with Microsoft Virtual Earth 3D yesterday and coming from the Live maps that they had I was expecting a much better experience. However I found that the beta application wasn't as good as Google's 3D inside of Google Earth, not even close. Maybe it's because Google Earth is a much more mature stand-alone application but I expected more with Virtual Earth 3D. I had 3 3D buildings in Manhattan, yes 3, not very good. Didn't see any 3D in Montreal, but I expected that. I was able to tilt the screen and see the pictures from different angles, but no 3D buildings. Anyone else give it a shot yet? Did they fix NYC yet? Let me know your thoughts/opinions

Oh yea here's a link to the download, you need the plugin to use the local.live.com 3D function, Virtual Earth 3D Download

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 7:30 PM 2 comments  

Labels: Internet, Microsoft

Free Stuff Part 24 - Freebie Fanatic

Came across another freebie / free samples site and thought I should let you guys know about it, after all, who doesn't like free stuff. They got a bunch of articles, something like over a hundred, on pretty much the majority of free stuff out there. Things like free software, or like I've posted before some more Free Coupons or some random things for your phone in the Phone Freebies section. Doesn't require any purchasing or credit cards, sometimes some registration, which is why you should always have a second email address for deals and stuff, as I do, so you can get the Free Stuff/Offers and keep your personal inbox clean. If you're interested in these or more freebies, check out the free stuff at Freebiefanatic.com.

Thanks,

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 3:22 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Saving Money

Blackfriday.info and their Black Friday Ads
Tuesday, November 07, 2006

I'm from Canada so I don't usually get to experience Black Friday in the US so I'm looking forward to going out and shopping on that Friday in 2 weeks, lol. I've done Boxing Day in Canada for many years so this will be a new experience for me, but it should be fun.

Anyways here's a link to Blackfriday.info, it's got all the leaked BlackFriday ads out so far, so it's a great place to look for deals. Check it out

Best Buy Black Friday

-Steve

P.S. I've been busy working a lot with Athletic Training so 2morrow I'll be back in library so I'll get some more juicy info for you guys. Btw K-Fed and Brittany Spears are done, so there, that's some news, lol.

Posted bySteve at 11:07 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Saving Money

Had trouble finding a host?
Monday, November 06, 2006

I don't know about you but between all the offers of web hosting I haven't found too much differentiation. There's a couple of basic things that one should know.

1. How much bandwith do you need?
If it's a personal site you're not going to need 20gb or more transfer per month

2. How much space do you really need?
Are you a fileserver? Unless you're posting files, music, videos or uncompressed video you should be fine with under 500mb of space.

3. Costs vs Names?
You might be taking a risk by trusting a new host compared to a proven or large host, beware.

If you should need to find a Web Hosting Provider Now, you should follow these tips. But in case you're still clueless at this, there's some people who can help. Findahost.com has some more indepth articles and reviews that can help you. There are a LOT of hosts out there, so choosing the right one for your site or business is important. That's why doing your research and getting some help is important, and Findahost.com can definetly help you with that. Check them out.

Thanks,

-Steve


Find a Web Hosting Provider Now

Posted bySteve at 11:02 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Internet, Web Design

Problems for people who bought MSN Music

Just thought I should put that out there, since a lot of people bought music from MSN Music and other online music stores that aren't iTunes. Well since the Zune has a completely new interface and a whole new DRM scheme all the PlayForSure tracks aren't going to work. That's not good for all the people who bought individual tracks, but for those who bought subscriptions it shouldn't hurt so bad, since you can just buy a Zune subscription and replace all your tracks.

The BBC News has a more complete article on this, you should read it HERE and post your thoughts

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 10:50 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Microsoft, Music

Free Stuff Part 23 - 5 Songs on Emusic free with a review of your doctor

I guess everyone's trying to get in on the free stuff lately. The folks at Vimo have a comparison shopping website for doctors so in order to promote their site and get more reviews of doctors they are giving away 5 Free songs to EMusic for each doctor reviewed. Sounds pretty good if you've had a lot of doctors you can rack up the songs. Btw these songs are MP3's so if you need to transfer them to your iPod or Zune then you'll be set since all you have to do is send them over, no nasty DRM. Vimo doesn't require any credit card numbers or anything crazy like that, so don't worry about getting scammed. I think I'm going to review my doctors, I need some new songs, lol.

Enjoy!

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 9:20 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Music, Saving Money

Free Stuff Part 22 - Free 250gb Hard Drive with the purchase of a 500gb one
Sunday, November 05, 2006

I saw this on The Tech Report and I thought I'd post it up here since it's such a good deal. Newegg.com has a deal where if you buy a Seagate 500gb SATA2 Hard Drive (it's the 7200.10 series, 7200rpm, 16mb cache and perpendicular recording) you'll get a free Seagate 250gb SATA2 Hard Drive (7200.9 series, 7200rpm, 8mb cache). That's amazing for 230$ you'll get 750Gb of space. I have 200gb of space and don't even use it all. This would be good for those movie editors or music junkies, I just don't see the need for a couple of HD's at the moment, but you never know in the future, lol.

Check out the Newegg link Here and get yourself some nice Hard Drives.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 6:04 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Hardware, Saving Money

Postie Patrol 2 - Blue Monster Comes Rolling

If you haven't heard of the Postie Patrol from the folks at Payperpost then you're missing out on a great thing. The people at Payperpost, the ones who PAY you to blog, have organized a way to meet the "posties" and present them with a challenge. If you've seen the first one you've seen some of the crazy stuff they do. (You can look for the link on my blog or visit Blog.Payperpost.com) This one tops it, lol. After watching this video you have to feel sorry for Ted, but I don't really want to ruin the surprise for you so click on the video to watch the 2nd Postie Patrol from Payperpost.





Need some pepto Ted?

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 5:40 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Blogs, Payperpost

Final Fantasy XII Review

I'm a big Final Fantasy nut, I even put a Final Fantasy Tattoo on my face at DigitalLife'06 to get a cd from the soundtrack, lol. I have pretty much all the games released for PS2 and PSone, and a bunch of classics on emulators. I still haven't beaten them all but I love them. So since they've released FFXII (12) I thought I should post up a review from the boys at Ars Technica. I unfortunetly have NOT played it yet since I sold my modded PS2 but I'm thinking about getting it since I'll have a bit more free time and I want to play my RPG's. My friend doesn't like it, Ars did, so I'll have to be the tie-breakers then, lol.

Here's the review on ARS of Final Fantasy XII so take a look and decide for yourself.

-Steve

Posted bySteve at 5:34 PM 0 comments  

Labels: RPG's, Video Games