Pic-E-Bank
Current News: We pick through it, so you don't have to.
Xbox 360 Video Card Fried
Mar 6th
Well, I suppose I jinxed myself with my regular bragging of how I’ve never had problems with my 360. To be honest, it has been great; very reliable up to this point. However, tonight, I turned it on…everything worked fine…I connected to my media server….started playing a video and about 20 seconds into the video most of the image turned green. I mean, it was still working because I could see things moving and when I stopped the video I could still move around the dashboard it’s just that everything was green now. So, I decided to reboot the box…….BAD decision….As of now, I have an Xbox360 that seems to be working fine (NO rrod and I can hear sound and it connects to live and all) just NO video. Yes, it seems that my video card is fried. And yes, my warranty expired 3 months ago. I’ve only found one report of someone having this same problem and they said that when Microsoft fixed it and sent it back, their DVD drive failed less than a month later. Since, I’ve already noticed my DVD drive making noise I’m confident something similar would happen to me. So, I’m throwing in the towel and getting a new one (I’ll mess around with fixing this one when I have time in the future).
To be fair, I have worked it a little hard this past week or so. I’ve watched about 6 full seasons of one of my TV shows (streamed from my media server) so it hasn’t really had much time to rest.
So, it looks like I will be buying the Xbox360 Super Elite tomorrow with the 250GB hdd and the new Splinter Cell Convictions.
A new set of tires mounted and balanced and a new Xbox in the same day. How depressing…
Note: I will probably be popping open my Halo Edition Xbox360 that just died at some point to see what I can do about it (or at least mess around with it).
Logitech Rebate Scam
Feb 25th
Note: The following article is intended as a warning for consumers that naively believe they will actually receive a rebate from Logitech. It has been submitted to Logitech and will soon be delivered to the Better Business Bureau, Ripoff Report, Rebate Reportcard, Newegg.com, Amazon.com and others.
Who would have ever thought, in these harsh economic times if you need profits just make them yourself. Well, it appears as though Logitech has been taking lessons from those Nigerian Scammers. Do those scammers teach courses now? I bet Logitech was an A+ student.
Logitech’s/Parago, Inc’s obviously fraudulent business practices might have been more believable had they placed the blame on the Postal Service. However, they decide to CLAIM that consumers are submitting the wrong UPCs. Truth or a new method of making lots of money? How many of you out there have purchased items JUST because they currently had a rebate you couldn’t pass up. Well, that’s what happened to me this past Christmas when I needed a few things for my parents. Amazon was advertising a 20% off Logitech rebate so I decided to go with a few products that would fulfill that rebate. A month or so later things got frustrating…
The following is my recent submission to Logitech Customer Service (Full PDF: Response to Logitech):
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Dear Logitech,
I would appreciate you looking into the matter discussed below.
Droid Screenshots
Feb 19th
I just felt like throwing in some screenshots since I still haven’t had time to do a full review. There will still be a review done at some point (although it is probably pointless now). It’s just been hard to find the time lately. Anyway, root your Android!
Dollhouse R.I.P.
Jan 30th
Well, once again Mr. Joss Whedon I have to say THANK YOU. It seems like all of your shows are oh-so-good yet cut short in their prime? I have to wonder if it’s the industry or partly your decision to keep things fresh. Well, whatever the reason, I wish you the best of luck in finding a new project. Whatever it may be, I’m sure we will love it. With followings like you’ve had for Firefly and Buffy, you obviously have the fans a true icon should. And let’s hope your next project is not so short-lived. I’m looking forward to being introduced to more faces to keep an eye on in Hollywood. I mean, you alone have put some of my favorite actors/actresses in front of me. Without you I might have never heard of Nathan Fillion, or Summer Glau, or Felicia Day and for that as well as your cunning originality I will forever be grateful. Well, before this veers too far from the short heart-felt THANK YOU for which it was intended, I will bid you adieu.
For those of you that do not know who Joss Whedon is, get out from under your rock and read up! Or better yet buy some of his masterpieces (Buffy, Firefly, Serenity, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and now Dollhouse). Become a Joss Whedon supporter, you won’t regret it.
For those fans of Dollhouse out there, you should check out THIS ARTICLE for in-depth looks at some of the stories and ideas behind Dollhouse.
I am a Browncoat through and through and damn proud of it!
Apple iPad
Jan 27th
Well, Apple finally released their much-talked-about tablet computer. They’ve donned it the Apple Ipad. I must say, I’ve never been a big supporter of Apple but this does look quite nice.
Firstly, before I show the prettiness, I would like to point out that some people are calling this the “Kindle killer”. I can’t even imagine what these people are thinking. This isn’t even targeted to the same group nor function in a similar manner. The Kindle is an EREADER with an electrophoretic (eInk) display that runs for days. In other words, no color, no full motion, no “real” browsing capabilities (I say real b/c it has been hacked). How is that a logical comparison? I mean really. The next time a new revolutionary cellphone comes out…I’m donning it the “Internet Killer”….yea, this phone is so cool you’ll be making calls all day instead of surfing the internet. Yup, you can do it too. Way to go you “Kindle killer” writers. You just started a fad. Hmm, maybe that’s what you wanted all along……….
Anyway,
Email Received from Apple:
iPad
“Our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price”
Click the Image to find out more!!
TM and copyright © 2010 Apple Inc. 1 Infinite Loop, MS 83-DM, Cupertino, CA 95014.
Android Phone Discussions and Lenovo Ideapad U1 Hybrid
Jan 25th
I swear, one of these days I will make it out to CES (Consumer Electronics Show). I mean 8000 vendors with new unseen gadgets would be like Heaven on Earth.
Nexus One Review (all the apps he shows are on the Droid) Apparently he’s impressed with the 1ghz Snapdragon cpu in the Nexus One. “I will abandon the iPhone because I think this is in many ways much better than the iPhone”, said Leo Laporte. This will be available on the Verizon network Spring of 2010. Seriously, watch these videos. If you don’t have time now, then check them out when you can.
Nexus One
New Look!
Jan 19th
Well, Jhong over at WP-United has done it yet again. He’s been working on integrating Wordpress and phpBB for a while but with this newest release, it actually does CSS stylesheet integration on-the-fly in order to help with all those formatting kinks we saw before. Big thanks go out to Jhong! If you or anyone you know has a website running Wordpress, you should send them over his way.
If you see ANY PROBLEMS or receive ANY ERRORS, please leave a comment detailing it. Thanks!
iPhone 4
Jan 10th
Just thought I’d throw out the news. I’m sure there’s plenty of other articles out there but I heard from a friend who manages an AT&T store that the newest iteration of the iPhone is on the books for the end of summer. As we all know, release dates get pushed back all the time. But it seems as though, at this point at least, AT&T is planning to have it at the end of summer. I wonder how it’s going to stack up against all these Android phones that are hitting the market. Only time will tell.
Leo @ CES2010
Jan 7th
Hmm…weird that on Leo Laporte’s coverage of CES2010 he mentioned that they tried Sprint’s 4G and all the other phone service providers YET VERIZON’S DATA NETWORK WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT COULD KEEP UP WITH THEIR STREAM….hmmmm….appears as though AT&T’s “better 3g network” commercials are a bunch of malarkey and do not apply in the real world. It’s a shame they have to blatantly lie to keep people from leaving, don’t ya think?
Edit: Streaming Video removed from this post. A static version of the portion mentioned in this post will be put here (if I can find it). If you would like to view the streaming video of Leo’s Show please see it under “Live Streams”.
The Tech Guy image used in cooperation with the Creative Commons License.
Microsoft Presents MUI (Muscle User Interface)
Jan 1st
Recent patent news indicates a filing from Microsoft describing the control of a computer using Electromyography (EMG) to translate electrical activity from muscles into instructions for the computer. You should really check out the article over at TechFlash and watch the video below. It’s very interesting.
Article
