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Cliff Christl started gathering oral histories with former Packers and others associated with the team in 2000 and will continue to gather them as Packers historian. Excerpts from those interviews will be periodically posted here.
Robinson played outside linebacker for the Packers from 1963-'72. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013. Here he talks about the other Hall of Famers on the Packers' defense in the 1960s.
On Willie Davis:
Robinson: "As a pass rusher, he was so quick off the ball. He was a good run player, too. But the fact he played next to Ron Kostelnik (helped) because Ron hung in there and did a lot to stop the run. It allowed Willie to freelance more. (But) Willie was so intelligent and quick as a cat -- he'd play a guy's angle. He could do it all."
On Henry Jordan:
Robinson: "He had three sacks, I think, in that 1967 playoff game against the Rams. He went against Tom Mack, who is a Hall of Famer, and Mack never touched him. If you tried to trap Jordan, he was right there. (Jordan) would give you a jiggle with his body and he had great, quick feet. He'd slap you when the head-slap was legal, and he'd be around you so fast. He had a million moves. "
On Ray Nitschke:
Robinson: "Nitschke was one of the greatest players I played with. It's hard to say anything bad about Nitschke… Nitschke had football knowledge, but he got excited and made mistakes. He was a hitter and aggressive, (but) he couldn't make decisions on the fly. You almost had to sit him down and diagram it. He was a great teammate."
On Herb Adderley:
Robinson: "Adderley was a little meaner than (Bob) Jeter. I think Adderley was (a better cover guy). The reason Jeter had more interceptions than Adderley is that teams didn't throw at our left side. Adderley knew the game. Having played offense, he knew what the offense was trying to do. Herb used to knock the hell out of running backs. He tackled hard. When Herb had to force, he was always there."
On Willie Wood:
Robinson: "Willie Wood could sit down and diagram what every man on defense did on every play. If he saw you do something wrong, he could correct linebackers, defensive tackles. Willie Wood had an overall perspective of the whole thing."
Today, Robinson lives in Akron, Ohio.


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Another DP gets Homer out of trouble
Another DP gets Homer out of trouble
Cards - Dodgers 1-1; bottom 3
Nice hard turn and hustle by Ludwig. I might have been wrong about that guy.
Ludwick singles, Rolen with lazy fly ball to right on first pitch
Frazier singles...2 on, 1 out
Bailey is god awful tonight. Mercy. Can a guy get any luckier?
Sometimes I have no clue what is happening in the game by the way Cowboy describes the action.
That was the luckiest 1-2-3 ever.
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subset: commoncrawl


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5-21-2012 Safeco Field
Today started out kind of bad. I left my sim card to my camera at home so I had to use my iPhone to take pictures. I'm pretty sure the pictures are going to suck in the blog entry and that's a shame because Yu Davish and Felix Hernandez were dueling tonight at the Safe.
From the time span of 4:40pm to 5:10pm, I didn't snag a single baseball. And that was sort of disappointing because I'm doing a lot more this week than just snagging baseballs for my current charity, Snagging Baseballs for Puppies. I'm also snagging baseballs for what I'm calling my "Help Holly Campaign." Here's the run down of why I'm doing this and who exactly Holly is: Holly is a dog owned by a family who recently got hit by a car. The driver of that car decided that Holly is "just a dog" and fled the scene. Well, we have laws in this country that make it illegal to just bail from a scene after running over an animal. Sooooo the driver was eventually apprehended by authorities, I'm assuming, but the driver is still refusing to pay any medical costs. The family has a lawyer from what I read but needs help with the financial aspect of everything. This week at Safeco Field, the Mariners are hosting the Rangers and the Angels. I pledged one dollar per every baseball that I snag to help Holly out. My Dad also jumped on board and matched my dollar which means every baseball I catch is worth two bucks. Today was game one of my Help Holly campaign.
Here's how things started:
At approximately 5:12pm, that's how many baseballs I had snagged already. It gets better. While I was standing near the left field fair pole, I caught a glimpse of another white little orb sitting against the seat back in an aisle. I would've taken a picture, but with all the people filing into the lower seating bowl, I didn't want to lose my chance on snagging it. I quickly ran over and put my foot on the ball so I could get my iPhone ready for the photo…
…I told you these photos were going to miserable. Third ball snagged and then I dug into a nice spot near the left field fair pole. As soon as I did, Ichiro sliced one directly my way. I initially moved to my right thinking I'd have to come out of the short row to drop down one or two but then I realized the ball had no depth at all. It was just a high arching, lazy fly ball that was sinking fast. I held my ground, leaned into it and made the one-handed catch:
OHHH, WHAAAATT!! You know the funny thing about this baseball? As soon as I caught it, I turned around to the cute couple behind me and tried to hand it off. Luckily for me, the girlfriend declined and I left it at that. When I was toying with it in my glove, I noticed a large blue marking which turned out to the be the 50th Dodger anniversary stamp! Whoooaa! I nearly gave away a Dodger ball and probably wouldn't have realized it! And yes, I'm still going to Dodger Stadium this year if time and money permits. Even though I don't want to. I've heard so many crazy rules and stories about that place, I'm actually kind of nervous to visit.
After snagging my fourth baseball on the day, I figured I'd try to break my season record of five this game. I headed out to centerfield when the Rangers came out for batting practice. I had one thing on my mind and that was to catch a Josh Hamilton BP home run ball. When I got there, this was my view to my left:
I pretty much had the place to myself. Centerfield filled up pretty fast after Hamilton started crushing long balls into the seats, though. Before he left for the cage, he signed a few autographs and I just had to heckle him a little bit.
"Hey, Josh! What the heck are the feeding you in that Ranger clubhouse, man?!" I yelled after him.
He caught another fly ball off the fungo bat and then looked back at me with a smirk. If that's the only reaction I could get out of Hamilton, I'll take it!
When Hamilton got into the cage, it wasn't long before he started dropping bombs. Two or three came my way, but it was starting to get a little crowded, I couldn't make a decent play on any of them. Eventually, he lofted a high fly ball directly at me and my only competition was a young ten-year old to my right. The ball carried just enough where he'd probably had missed it so I ended up making the catch. When I offered the baseball to him, he shrugged at me and told me he had already snagged three others. I smiled and thanked him for his honesty and turned around to find another deserving fan. I asked the next youngster if he had any baseballs and he shook his head at me.
"There you go, kid!" I said as I flipped him the ball. Yup, I had just gave away my Josh Hamilton ball. So what? I was totally fine with it and was going to anyway.
As batting practice came to a close, I sat down in the 'Pen area and wolfed down a slice of pizza and a Mariner dog from the burger joint and then found my seat out in left field for the game.
With Yu Darvish and Felix on the mound, I figured this would be one of those games where it's nearly impossible to stay awake but mixed with a few dazzling plays at short stop or a diving catch from the center fielder. None of that really happened. Instead, Darvish was literally blown out by the 4th inning. He had thrown 86 pitches to Felix's 40-some and it was 5-0 by the start of the 5th inning! Mark Lowe eventually took over for Darvish in the Mariners 5th and Seattle was able to tack on another run in the 7th and hang on for the win after Mitch Moreland smacked a bomb to right, centerfield.
6-1 was your final score! Mariners win!
I'm snagging baseballs for puppies again this season for the Seattle Humane Society! If you want to check out my charity information, just click here!
Last season, with the help of all of you, we were able to raise over $250 dollars! This year I'd like to break $300!
Today's game snagging Highlights: Texas Rangers vs. Seattle Mariners- attendance 18,672
Baseballs snagged: five (found three, caught one Ichiro foul-ball, caught one Hamilton BP HR)
Total baseballs snagged this season: 41
Total baseballs snagged last season: 135
Total dollars raised at this game: $10.20
Total dollars raised for Snagging Baseballs for Puppies this season: $80.34
Total dollars raised for Snagging Baseballs for Puppies last season: $257.00
Total number of donors this season: 9
Total number of donors last season: 7
If you'd like to join my official Snagging Baseballs for Puppies Facebook page, just click here! And if you want to like Collection of Baseball on Facebook, click here!


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Anna Elisabeth Taylor and Nicholas Shane Maynard, both of Canyon, were married Aug. 4, 2012, at Central Beach in Coronado Island, Calif. The Rev. Grant Daversa officiated.
Parents of the bride are Heidi and James Taylor of Canyon.
Grandparents are Maudie Alexander of Lefors, the late Charles and Anne Corn and the late Ralph Alexander.
Parents of the groom are Patty Maynard-Nall of Canyon and Vernon Maynard of Amarillo. Grandparents are A.J. "Coach" Luquette, Nora Bowen and the late Margaurette Luquette and Vernon Maynard.
The couple plans to reside in San Diego.
Amarillo-Globe-News, Oct. 14, 2012


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These massive, 12mm oil-filled, coil-over shocks are adjustable for a dialed in suspension package on any track. Composite molded shock caps have a bleeder valve for easy rebuilding.
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Designed to provide the maximum amount of durability for just about any surface condition you can find, these oversized turnbuckles are built for racing and bashing alike.
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The 22T RTR comes ready-to-run with a Spektrum DX3E radio system with 2.4GHz DSM technology. Packed with features, the DX3E, paired with the installed SR300 receiver, gives you everything you need to take complete control of the 22T RTR. It�s tough to beat this easy-to-use radio with modern Spektrum styling and interference-free reliability. The DX3E comes with added features including battery voltage, indicator LEDs and steering dual rates adjustment controls.
Available in either black or white.


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Young Pats buying in to rebuilding work
Led by a big group of seniors, the Pilgrim wrestling team put together a solid season a year ago. The Pats finished .500 in dual meets, scored 39 points at states and had a few individual standouts that made waves.
Those seniors are all gone now, which means Pilgrim is essentially starting over. The roster features only five seniors, five juniors and just a handful of wrestlers who were on the team last year. Jordan DeSisto, a fourth-place finisher at states last year, is gone, as is fifth-place finisher Mark Lenz.
To boot, the Pats have 10 freshmen, the large majority of which have never wrestled in their lives.
It's the very definition of rebuilding.
"We're real young," head coach Tom O'Connor said. "It's a good young group. It bodes well for the future. Right now, we'll have some growing pains to get through."
That said, O'Connor has no complaints. It's a dedicated group, and one that should improve as the season goes on, giving Pilgrim a nucleus it can build around for years to come.
"They work hard," O'Connor said. "This is probably the most fun I've had in wrestling in a while. No excuses. All they want to do is wrestle. No one is sitting out, no one is complaining, no school issues."
It helps that there are a few veterans back, even if Pilgrim doesn't have them in spades.
Senior Adam Landroche qualified for the state meet last season at 113 and will wrestle for the Pats in the same weight class this year. He placed fourth in Division II sectionals last season.
"He's probably our most decorated returner," O'Connor said. "If he could go to states, place in the top six in states would be a real good year for him."
Another returner is senior Jacob McMullen, who will likely be wrestling in the 170 or 182-pound weight class depending on how everything shakes out.
Junior Griffin Potter is also back and looks like he'll wrestle somewhere near 182.
"If he wrestles out in front of people, he should (have similar success to Landroche)," O'Connor said. "He's got some skill, he just doesn't like to show people it."
At 220 pounds, junior Mike Pereira should be one of the team's better wrestlers, as he won two matches at the state meet last season after qualifying at 195 pounds.
Sophomore John Pierce wrestled as a freshman last year and returns at 145, while senior Mike Turchetta was in the mix last season and should factor in around 195.
Then it's the new guys. At 106, freshman John Castaldi is leading the way despite having never wrestled before. At 120, freshman James Kozusko is the frontrunner, and he has one year of Warwick PAL wrestling experience. The 132-pound class belongs to freshman Jacob Zuller, who does have a history in the sport after a strong junior high career.
"He's a very decorated freshman," O'Connor said. "He has a good shot at being in the top three at freshman states and probably placing in the sectionals."
At 138, sophomore Devon Heron is the likely candidate, and he too has never wrestled. At 152, freshman Garrison Potter – the younger brother of Griffin Potter – will slide in and has a strong wrestling background. His other brother, Gage, was a state meet qualifier last year.
"He's been wrestling quite some time," O'Connor said. "He's very good."
Sophomore Nick Carpenter could see some time at 170, and there are a few others who could see some mat time too. Right now, the team won't be filling 126 or the heavyweight class.
"They work hard," O'Connor said. "They'll do everything we ask them and they're learning fast."
The early results have been good. Pilgrim wrestled in the Wilson Cup/SRI Newspapers Wrestling Tournament over the weekend at North Kingstown and had six wrestlers advance deep into the tournament.
"For everyone not being at weight as much as we were, it was pretty good," O'Connor said. "I only had two kids wrestle at weight. Everyone else was up a weight class. Maybe they'll surprise me."
Still, it might be a struggle early on, as all the new faces try and find their footing in what is an ever-improving Division II. They'll see some of the best competition early on, as Pilgrim was scheduled to take on a solid Mt. Pleasant team on Wednesday, with results unavailable at press time, and then host Exeter-West Greenwich – one of the leading contenders for the state crown – today at 7 p.m.
The Pats will work, get better and build toward the future.
"That's the key – like I said, they're working hard," O'Connor said. "I'm repeating myself, because that's their best attribute. They don't stop doing what you ask them to do."


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Posted 6 years ago
(141 items)
Printed by the John W. Luce & Company, Boston (1906). First American Edition. WILDE, Oscar. SALOME. A Tragedy in One Act. [not in Mason, who does list the 1906 printing by the John Lane Company (UK)]. Twelvemo, dark paper-covered boards printed in black and gold ink, reproducing Beardsley's design on front cover (as with the 1906 John Lane edition). 13 Beardsley illustrations total.
Aubrey Beardsley (1872-1898) one of the most remarkable English illustrators of the industrial age and at the forefront of the Art Nouveau and symbolism movements. At the age of fifteen he had illustrated his favourite books (e.g., Madame Bovary, Manon Lescaut). By the time of his death from tuberculosis at the age of twenty-six, he had made a lasting impact on the art of illustration.
"It was through Burne-Jones that, in 1891, Beardsley, then aged eighteen, met Oscar Wilde. Wilde was writing his Salome in French, and asked Beardsley to illustrate it. Ambitious and supremely gifted, the young artist developed a perverse and playfully theatrical style partly inspired by Greek vase painting. The venomous elegance of his drawings has an ornamental rhythm akin to the abstract decorations of Islamic palaces. For Salome, Beardsley ironically appropriated the decadent theme of the evil, emasculating woman. His characters are often grotesque - notably in drawings he later described as 'naughty,' representing, for example, grimacing 'Gobbi' afflicted with monumentally tumescent phalluses. As a homosexual, Beardsley did not experience the anguish awoken in artists like Munch by the problematic state of relations between the sexes. Wilde described Beardsley's muse as having 'moods of terrible laughter'."
- From Michael Gibson, Symbolism.


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That was fast. Only hours after Capcom announced Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, the full roster leaked from Capcom's servers, and all the secrets came tumbling out. NeoGAF forum users compiled the list below, which includes some oft-requested fan favorites.
From the Capcom side, we have Firebrand, Strider Hiryu, Phoenix Wright, Vergil, Nemesis, and Frank West. Marvel brings Hawkeye, Ghost Rider, Dr. Strange, Iron Fist, Rocket Racoon, and Nova. This impressive list of the finest characters from both company canons should make -- wait, Rocket Racoon, really?
Artwork was revealed for many of the characters as well. Though Capcom quickly yanked the leaks, it's an age-old Internet adage that you can't put the toothpaste back in the tube.
Once it's leaked, it's leaked, so now we can all enjoy the pretty artwork, and pretend to be surprised when Capcom rolls out the Phoenix Wright reveal trailer.


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I met a player in the beta a few nights ago riding one of the brand-new Engineering ground mounts, and he was kind enough to pose for a few pictures and chat with me about it. At the time he confirmed that the mount was being sold in Dalaran for a fraction of its actual value, presumably for the sake of testing its passenger function (which unfortunately still seems to be bugged, so don't count on hauling a buddy along if you run out and buy one right now). He also said the mount was BoE, which both I and Alex had a hard time believing would remain a permanent feature. Blizzard seems to keep most engineering gewgaws in the family, as it were.
Well, it looks like we were wrong; CM Valnoth has confirmed that the new Engineering-made ground mount for Wrath is going to be Bind on Equip, so I'd advise making friends with a good Engineer sometime soon (by the way, don't miss Jaylynn's #68 comment on the next page of the thread). We're not sure how expensive the mats are going to be once Wrath goes live, although the player I spoke to estimated it would be less than the current cost of a Turbo-Charged Flying Machine (though quite likely to be more expensive before the Northrend-fueled economy settles somewhat). Daniel Whitcomb's also observed it's likely to remain BoE as having one of these babies is linked to the achievement Get to the Choppa!, so with any luck Engineering is going to be a somewhat more lucrative profession in the expansion.


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WOODRIDGE – Mayor Gina Cunningham and the Woodridge Village Board appointed Mary Anne Blair to serve as the new trustee on the village board in a meeting July 11.
"We are excited to have Trustee Blair join us on the village board," Cunningham said in a statement. "She has demonstrated a long commitment to our community with her prior service, and we look forward to working with her on the board."
Blair served on the Woodridge Board of Police Commissioners for more than 16 years and was named chairperson in 2008.
She also has been a member of the Woodridge community for 37 years.
"I'm honored to be appointed to the village board," Blair said. "I'm looking forward to continuing my service to the community and working with the members of the village board."
Blair fills the four-year term vacated by the late Sue Burtnette, who died after a battle with cancer two weeks after being elected trustee
April 9.
What does this position mean to you?
It's humbling to begin with, and it's certainly an honor. I was very honored that the mayor and the board appointed me. It's important to do the best you can, and I'm going to do everything I can to earn what they've given me and honored me with.
How have the first couple of weeks been?
There's been a lot of information. I've lived here for 37 years, but you're always learning. It was good to meet with everybody and see exactly what everyone does and see how everything kind of flows together.
How do you think your previous experience is going to help you in this position?
I've certainly been involved in the village, and I've dealt with many, many different situations. I know you can rarely make everyone happy. I like to think there's common ground and compromise in difficult situations ... Are we all always going to agree? No, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. You have six individuals in here from six different backgrounds because you want six different opinions and people coming from different angles. I think that with my past experience, hopefully I can contribute something to this.
Why do you continue to give back to Woodridge?
I love it. We've lived in Woodridge for 37 years, and I just think it's a great community. ... If I can contribute to other people having the same experience in Woodridge then that's what I want to do. I do think it's really important to give back. I've been blessed. It's a great place to raise a family, and I'd like to see other people have the same opportunity.
Is there anything specific you want to see happen?
I'm not coming in with guns blazing or anything. I'm new, and I think there's a lot of opportunity and I want to be exposed to the different things out there before I say, "This is what I'm going for."


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How Was Your Ride Today? Week of Feb. 14th
Things are looking pretty decent out there. Daytime highs on the plus side, and the sun is rising earlier and earlier. How was your ride today?
Submitted by pinkrobe on
That was a fast ride! My legs were tight from snowboarding all weekend, but that didn't slow me down. Brownsnow is gone from my route. Ahhhhhhhh...
Yelled at
Submitted by Nosaj on
Well I have been riding daily for nearly a year now, and today was the first day that I had the joy of being honked at, and then yelled at for being a F**king nuciance on the road, and to ride on the side walk. My favorite part was that there are no sidewalks in the spot that he yelled at me. For some reason I enjoyed the encounter and smiled the rest of the way to work.
Ice road truckers
Submitted by fastlayne on
That sums up this mornings ride.
Submitted by Scott on
Submitted by Julie Gregg on
Status quo ride today. I did however appreciate the clearing of the "frozen pond" that forms just west of the Crowchild bridge on the north side Bow River pathway (right at the exit ramp to Crowchild. I can claim about 45 mins of work on it yesterday, the rest of it (several hours) was done by 2 senior gentlemen "just cuz" it was a nice thing to do.
Submitted by jitenshakun on
I think I saw those dudes working on icy bits on the pathway that parallels Memorial. Good on y'all for taking the initiative!
Submitted by RichieRich on
~530'ish Monday night... fella clearing a huge puddle of meltwater along Memorial Drive. Hope I wasn't the only one to say "thanks great job!".
Richie, you were not the only
Submitted by Julie Gregg on
Richie, you were not the only one to thank him, in addition I became part of his "work crew" on Sunday. He has been at it all weekend, Kudos for sure!
Icy spots.
Submitted by chrisguy on
Lots of icy spots leaving my neighbourhood this morning, but most of my route was clear and dry this morning.
Am I the only one that gets superstitious at places where they've wiped out in the past? It's dumb, but I can't bring myself to go hauling past places where I've gone and crashed at before. =:O
Most Icy Ride In Over 10 Years
Submitted by dailybiker on
On my ride today, I encountered the most ice I have seen in the over 10 years I have been commuting in the winter. Along the Elbow River pathway there is a direct correlation between the amount of salt and gravel applied on the path and the amount of ice today.
Where the most salt and gravel have been applied during the winter, today these are by far the iciest sections. Over the winter, after each snow storm, salt and gravel that were applied previously are scraped into the windrows on the side of the path. The salt (and the dark gravel) in these windrows causes the snow to melt quickly along side the path. The water from this melt has flowed onto the cold path and frozen into glaciers. On one downhill section with a slight curve, I did not even dare to ride my bike. This is the first time in over 10 years of winter commuting that I have not been able to ride this section. Note that I run tires with over 300 studs in each tire. In past years, when no or minimal salt/gravel has been used, I have always been able to ride this portion of the path.
In areas where no salt and gravel have been applied, there is much less ice to deal with.
So back to my usual rant. Please plow the paths, but please do not apply the DANGEROUS SALT AND GRAVEL.
I say gravel and no salt
Submitted by fastlayne on
The gravel at least provides some traction.
Submitted by DarrenB on
I think judicious amounts of salt and gravel are OK at times. The hills in the Bowmont Pathway would be impassable if it were not for the salt and gravel they put down, especially in freeze-thaw weather cycles like right now. I think the key is to use it sparingly and only where needed. They guys who do the Bowmont Pathway seem to have it right (Baker Park to the west is a whole other story though -- thankfully it is really flat.)
I dunno...
Submitted by Scott on
In the deep south east where I ride, Deer Run, Fish creek and douglasdale... no salt is applied, no gravel either (on roads yes) and my rides are always pretty good (except during the melt of course, then it is squirrely for anyone). I find the sidewalks and pathways take care of themselves and water evaporates as does the snow. A few icy bits here and there but only because of natural melt. I cant imagine what it would be like if brought about manually like you guys up north are enduring but it sounds to me like its not really working. Would love to bring a load of ya down my way and take you on different weather commutes to compare. I'm betting I got it much better, even when its not plowed. All that traffic, congestion, construction and so on that goes on up there must really wreak havoc on your rides. I dont want to sound like I got it all better and stuff, hoity toity la dee dah and such... not my goal. Just sayin.... I think maybe the city should leave it the hell alone like they do down here. Much more enjoyable. I have ridden up your end with Sean a few times and aside from the main pathway... it really does suck in the downtown area.
I agree with Scott
Submitted by dailybiker on
The winter riding routes that I cover on a regular basis include the Bow River pathway from Shouldice Park downstream to Highway 22X, Fish Creek Park, 37th Street pathway, the pathway around Glenmore Reservoir and the Elbow River pathway to the Bow River. By far, the safest riding conditions are those found in Fish Creek Park, where salt and gravel are never applied. And yes, there are notable hills in Fish Creek Park. The conditions there are as noted by Scott, with few icy bits. Although, one could say that the Elbow River pathway now has few icy bits, but the bits are each many, many metres long.
Note also that is not possible to gravel pathways without also including salt. The City "pickles" the gravel with salt, so that the gravel does not freeze into a solid block that cannot be spread.
Just always wating...because
Submitted by cools on
Sharp gravel with salt...Every on road
I think... Maybe gravel with salt make punk+dirty..... I hate that...-_-;;
(sorry about my short english. just arrival from other country. kOR)
I was 40KM Commuting riding. every day (in KOR) but...
get fenders
Submitted by bike-run on
Really, they keep you a lot cleaner on wet/dirty roads.
Submitted by pinkrobe on
환영합니다! 캘거리의 날씨는 한국보다 훨씬 다릅니다. 여기 겨울에 자전거를 타고 갈 경우, 당신은 올바른 복장과 장비를 가지고 있어야합니다. 난 박힌 타이어가 봐에 들어갈 것이라고 생각하지 않습니다.
I don't know if Google Translate works for Korean, but I apologize for anything I accidentally say that may offend you.
Easy riding
Submitted by pinkrobe on
The ride in today was easy. It would have been easier still without last night's wine, but I'm not going to let it bother me.
short pants ride in the
Submitted by Julie Gregg on
short pants ride in the morning, woot woot, I like it!
Hope you brought long pants for the ride home
Submitted by bike-run on
It's hard to say "when" it's going to happen, but the WX forecast says:
"Wind northwest 30 km/h gusting to 50. High plus 4 with temperature falling to minus 1 this afternoon."
yikes, no I did not bring
Submitted by Julie Gregg on
yikes, no I did not bring long pants because I'm an optimist :). If I have to ride into an ugly headwind maybe I'll stay warm....fingers crossed. I wonder what the ice conditions will be like by then....hmmm.
not the only one
Submitted by RichieRich on
coming towards downtown this morning I passed some fella near Home Road/Edworthy - wearing in his baggy shorts. Thought that was a bit optimistic but certainly something worth braggin about.
Must have some hairy legs...
Submitted by Scott on
You all must have some seriously hairy legs to be riding in short pants in this weather. I still wear two layers even on days like today and I'm a hairy legged dude. You guys must be like mamoths! lol.
Supposed to drop to -16 quickly tonight I heard and get to -20 by friday for a few days then back to a high of +3 for a day or two then plunge again. Looks like we are in for a few more weeks of crap weather yet.
Save your shorts for April. Your just being toyed with right now. ;)
If it was camo shorts
Submitted by gyrospanner on
Den dat wuz me. And for the record, I have no long pants for the ride home either!
Hmmm, I have meeting that will go to about 2:30, and then I might have to disappear...
I should have said hello.
Submitted by DarrenB on
If you had faded camo pants and were riding an orange mountain bike, I think I met up with you yesterday on the Bowmont paths. I'll be sure to say hello next time we cross paths.
Red Mtn Bike, not faded camo
Submitted by gyrospanner on
I actually didn't see anybody in Bowmont yesterday.
Musta been somebody else.
I wish that there was some way to easily recognize people from this site. I know Stuart had some spoke cards once upon a time, but maybe stickers or something else are in order?
Submitted by Scott on
Or you go to that thread I created for pictures of us and our gear and post them. Then we might recognize another. Its a start.
Weather watch...
Submitted by Scott on
My iphone app to the Weather Network tells me the following:
Tonight Feb 15th -3 to -11 at night, sunny and clouds
Wed -10 to -15 at night Lots of snowing
Thurs -14 to -18 at night Sunny, cloudy, snowing
Fri -11 to -19 at night Sunny with some cloud
Sat -1 to -19 at night (huge jump there) Sunny
Sun -1 to -12 at night partial clouds, sun and snowing
Mon -10 to -17 at night Heavy cloud cover, icky out
Tues -7 to -18 at night Sunny
Wed -4 to -14 at night Heavy cloud cover, Gloomy day
Thurs -2 to -10 at night Overcast and sun
Fri -1 to -11 at night Snowing and sun
Sat -2 to -11 at night Overcast and sun
Sun -5 to -14 at night Sunny
Mon 0 to -13 at night Sunny
Tues March 1st... +2 to -8 at night sunny
Is there...
Submitted by Scott on
Is there a weather app that can be added to the right on this site? My home page at work on our internal has one so it must be possible. That would be a wonderful asset to everyone I think. Perhaps even a scrolling weather updater. Seen that before too.
Took a detour onto Bow Trail this morning.
Submitted by gyrospanner on
Great photo
Submitted by DarrenB on
Great photo. I had to look twice before I realized where it was. That system for making the elevated LRT line is SOOOOOO cool. To bad they couldn't use it to put in a few bikeways heading downtown, eh?
That's pretty Neat!
Submitted by GR33N on
What a great shot! =)
Ding Ding Ding
Submitted by GR33N on
Lately I say on your left, when I am passing their right......ahh siggh, dissociate much?
My new bell is done now. It's broken or W/E. It rang so beautifully for the past few weeks of it's life. So I passed someone saying: ding ding ding.....won't be making a habit outta that. :/
I hit a slush/ice pothole, I've gone over that curb many many times & thought it pretty flat, but not tonight. Other than that, still enjoying my rides.
you ding ding much?
Submitted by RichieRich on
The cheap bells might last 6-9months (if used often). I'm usually lucky to get 12-14mo on a "good" bell.
Glad to hear that even without a bell you're making an effort instead of blasting by and surprising people.
hells bells
Submitted by 2wheeler on
My old MEC bell has been working for 6 years. I ring it very gently so as not to frighten anyone.
Submitted by GR33N on
the first bell worked for 15 years. MEC gave me this one. I need a new everything! Even a new attitude! Well a newly used..but cha can't get newly used attitudes! xP
Yes as an avid pedestrian, I HATED the cyclists that zoomed by without warning.
Great bell
Submitted by jitenshakun on
The eclectic toy store in Kensington has the best bike bells. I can't find a link but its a big metal one that spins in itself and makes the same noise that used to herald the arrival of the gods back in the day.
Submitted by GR33N on
sounds like one for me! & Kensington is only a few mins away too!
Coming home from work at
Submitted by jliu on
Coming home from work at 0230...it is cold and windy. Lots of fog and a bit of snow. Didn't have quite enough layers, so I opted to catch a ride home with a co-worker.
Pretty good ride this morning.
Submitted by amf673 on
Not enough snow to make things nasty and not too cold.
Social day
Submitted by RichieRich on
This mornings easterly headwind and snow didn't make for an easy morning commute (dead leg day). Still better than car or transit.
Coming in yesterday crossed paths in Ranchlands with another commuter - chatted the whole way into downtown. Very pleasant a change. He thought I was nuts going 20km each way. Then going home last night I had the pleasure of being caught by a fellow commuter near Bowmont area. Had a great chat to pass the time and share stories. The fella was on a 'cross bike and rides 40km EACH WAY. Yikes. That's dedication and love of the sport. Good-on-ya.
In fact good for everyone... have a good one all ya'lls.
now where's me coffee...
Thats impressive
Submitted by Scott on
Both of you guys. Good on ya. My ride is 6.5km each way and runs me 30-40 min in the crap weather and 15 in the good. I cant imagine what a 2hr commute must be like. I wouldnt do it actually.
Submitted by RichieRich on
Scott - I'm sure that if you were forced to drive or take transit you'd soon realize that riding is a great alternative. I don't ride every day, and at least 2x weekly I take transit 1 direction (I have secure bike parking) which helps. Like most the deterrent isn't the cold - its wind direction and snow.
Would be interesting to take a poll on this site - approx distance per commute and/or approx time. I'm guessing it ranges from a couple km up to that 40km dude with the average being around 12km/trip.
I imagine that a 40km commute
Submitted by winterrider on
I imagine that a 40km commute takes more than an hour. Probably an hour and twenty minutes if they're fast, an hour and a half if they're just quick. For a total of 2:40 to 3 hours a day on the bike. I would do it if I didn't have kids since it would be great training!
I have an old beater...
Submitted by Scott on
I have an old beater recycled pickup truck from the 70's that I use a few times a week depending on errands needed or days picking up or dropping off my daughter to daycare when I have her (single parent sharing thing). I find my cycling choices often revolve around this.
For example... the earliest I can drop her off at daycare is 7:30. This means I have to find work that allows me to start at 8am or later depending on how long it would take to get there.
I also face the challenge of picking her up. After 5:30 its $5 for every 5 minutes I'm late picking her up (standard rules for home daycares actually). This means I have to be off at a time that would allow me to get there on time. Right now, I work 8-5 so I get to work right at 8 often (late if the weather is shite) and pick her up at 5:25 on average.
If I had a longer commute... it couldnt be done. I would have to drive and even then... the way the traffic is daily... I still couldnt do it.
I'm fortunate as I am to have found a job to pay the bills (barely) and allows me to fit my parenting into it all.
If I were child free... I could leave much earlier and get home much later. I would never want this however.... I love being a dad more than anything. :)
Snow ride, take it easy
Submitted by pinkrobe on
The most dangerous part of my ride today was getting to the street in front of my house. A 4" square patch of ice was hidden by 1cm of snow, and my wife slipped on it. Other than that, the ride in was drama-free. That wind was a bit of a surprise, but reasonable.
Classic winter day
Submitted by shockingTemple on
The skiff of snow spruces things up a little without mucking up the roads...makes for a pleasant scene.
Despite the wind, my ride was "winter" fast (very unlike "summer" fast). Everyone played nice on the roads this morning.
Ride in this morning
Submitted by K_O_cowtown on
Ride in this morning was good with the exception of the east wind. I don't mind cold days, less people on the bike paths (ie. joggers, baby strollers). Sure wish they would do something about the water that pools on the path when it's warm and freezes solid when it's cold.
icy pathways
Submitted by 2wheeler on
they do, they sell studded tires...
Maybe better path design...
Submitted by winterrider on
It should be possible to design a pathway construction technique to stop this from happening.
It really is something that should be dealt with permanently. There are a lot of elderly people who use the path for exercise during the day (at least at 9 am I often see many of them out walking), and I have seen these ice ponds cause considerable difficulty to some.
icy pathways
Submitted by 2wheeler on
Design would help but can only do so much. Once you have snowbanks on both sides of the pathway the snow will melt and the water will build up. With the incredible amount of freeze-thaw we get in Calgary it is really very difficult to avoid.
I agree that some areas of very poorly designed and collect water and those should be fixed. But there are places where in high snow years it's impossible to avoid.
Submitted by Scott on
Yup... there is a good sized pond that forms on my route every single year and the snow buildup on either side creates a nice deeper pond. Cant imagine how it would be averted. No matter what... we want it plowed and that forms walls on either side to create a pool. I find it easy to go across them though when frozen even without studs. Its a matter of knowing where they are under the fresh snow that is an issue. Perhaps signage is all that could be done?
can't believe it
Submitted by Julie Gregg on
Came in much later today, as in for an 11:30 start time. There was a significant covering of snow over those ice patches but fortunately no incidents occured. I did however misjudge the weather conditions and with the combined wind and humidity managed to freeze a small patch on my face!! Go figure, now that cover shoot I was doing this weekend will have to be called off!! damn.
Getting ready to ride
Submitted by flyfishagain on
So I am getting ready to try this early season riding, I have some studded tires to try out, wondering if I should run a little lower tire pressure, like 40 or 50 psi instead of the 65 or so I usually run? I am also taking the approach that speed is not your friend in this type of riding. I thought I would try around fish creek for a bit then maybe a ride into downtown. Any tips from those more experienced in this type of riding would be great.
studded tires
Submitted by 2wheeler on
I run 40 psi on my studded tires, but it is somewhat dependant on the tire design. Even studded tires will slip on the bare ice so you still need to be careful and ride and appropriate speeds.
If you're going to be just on the roads downtown you can just ride slicks, but many of the pathways now have a full complement of icy patches hiding under the fresh snow, which can make for interesting riding.
I ride year round on a road
Submitted by winterrider on
I ride year round on a road bike with slick 700-23 tires at 100 psi. Ice can be bad and I do fall over occasionally (only in really bad conditions which we do not have now), but overall as long as the path is cleared and its just the occasional ice patch due to a frozen melt pond, you'll probably be fine at 65 psi.
Just remember its really easy to take air out as you ride if you find you don't have enough grip, and a bit more effort to add it back in on the ride.
Submitted by RichieRich on
As some have aluded to, it depends where you ride and how you ride if you want to be Mr. Zippy all the time everywhere. If you're coming a fair distance odds are you go through some real crap conditions - in which case lower pressure (~35psi on ~2", or ~40+psi on 1.8" or 45mm) may help keep you upright but then it really sucks your speed on dry pavement. If you're doing some off-road/MTB type trails then full studded around ~40'ish will be good for you as trails got really slick/icy during the recent warm spells. Let us know how it works out for you.
salt and snow
Submitted by pinkrobe on
The streets were white all the way in. The first part was due to snow, but the second to salt. Downtown streets are dry and dusty...
Not crazy
Submitted by RichieRich on
no I don't think I'm loopy at all for riding in the winter. BUT I do think that the 3 sets of XC ski tracks a couple meters from the open water along the Bow River (Crowchild/Memorial) is a strong indication we may have a future Darwin Award winner in town.
Submitted by tbbruck on
LOL, I saw those tracks and couldn't believe it! I truly hope they don't go under one of these days!
I saw that guy
Submitted by pinkrobe on
I saw XC Ski Guy on the river just north of Crowchild and Memorial the other day. I had to look twice. He was just standing around on his skis, not a care in the world.
I'm seen him twice. He was
Submitted by winterrider on
I'm seen him twice. He was making some fresh tracks yesterday right before Crowchild.
I've thought the same as you every time I see those tracks, but it may be that from down on the river there are tell tale signs that the ice is safe where he is skiing. I certainly hope that this is the case.
I tried xc skiing along the
Submitted by Julie Gregg on
I tried xc skiing along the path the Sunday after our last biggest snowfall. Even with that much snow it wasn't too great, I was wishing I had gone down on to the ice pack. Since I've seen his tracks lately I've been tempted to follow in them!!
Submitted by GR33N on
It's great to see! =)
Easy biking
Submitted by DarrenB on
The pathways through Baker Park and Bowmont Park were clear and relatively ice free, roads in the northwest seem dry and clear, and traffic was surprisingly light today. I didn't even seem to feel the cold as much as I had anticipated. Made for a great ride in today!
Pretty decent ride
Submitted by tbbruck on
I managed to perfect my layering, and was even a little too hot for some of the ride! I love my pogies, face mask and ski goggles - makes for such a warmer and pleasant ride. Plus I really like the anonymity they provide!
On the downside, I seemed to be running on fumes. Not sure why - I lazed around last night, so I should have been well-rested this morning. I'm going to blame reduced O2 intake due to my full face mask. Hopefully the ride home will be better. I've got some pretty mean hills on my route.
don't fume
Submitted by RichieRich on
the cold weather is a real stress on your body even if you do dress and feel "warm". The stress level is proportional to temp, effort, hills (like you said), and of course how long you're out there for.
An "easy-pace" round trip in above zero C weather leaves me energized for the next day, but the same "easy-pace" at -20C feels like my legs were beaten up.
Submitted by shockingTemple on
Everything worked well this morning. It's cold, but we've been here before. Can't complain...
Crashed last night
Submitted by dailybiker on
Took the long way home last night, and was enjoying a fast ride through Fish Creek Park when I found a large icy patch at a 90 degree turn/intersection. My first hint of ice upon looking around the corner was the wipe out tracks from a previous cyclist. I slid "gracefully" to a halt on the ice after both of my studded tires let loose, followed by leg, then hip, then body, then helmet hitting the ice. I now need a new helmet, but my head feels fine. Looks like there is a good reason to wear a helmet, since they are easier to replace than my head. My tires were slipping in other places as well, so it seems that I need to replace those as well (have 2 spares in the garage).
I must say I was amazed at how "gracefully" one can crash at 25 km/hr!!! No sore spots at all today!!!
Glad to hear you're ok
Submitted by tbbruck on
I can attest to the amazing "graceful" crash. I was heading down a pretty steep path last year, and hit a 15 ft long patch of ice. My bike turned sideways, so I put my foot down, and everything just kind of slid over and my bike and I horizontally floated down the ice patch until we hit pavement again.
Slllow Motion Grace
Submitted by GR33N on
Is that what it felt like? My crashes feel like that in anything...
Glad to know you're okay.
face mask friend
Submitted by ride on
Yes, my Seirus face mask is my friend these last couple of days. It's long enough to cover my neck, and I can pull it up or down while riding as I get colder or warmer. I put it to good use today while making a couple of 30-minute rides.


text:
Tony Shalhoub, Roger Horchow to Be Honored by New York Stage and Film
Emmy Award winner and Broadway veteran Tony Shalhoub (Monk) and Tony Award-winning producer Roger Horchow will be honored at New York Stage and Film's Annual Winter Gala, to be held on Sunday, December 9 at The Plaza Hotel.
For over 25 years, New York Stage and Film has played a significant role in the development of new plays, provided a home for a diverse group of artists free from critical and commercial pressures, and established itself as a vital cultural institution for residents of the Hudson Valley and the New York metropolitan region.
Honorary Co-Chairs of the 2012 Gala Committee are Tim Daly, Sally Horchow, David Hyde Pierce, Jennifer Westfeldt, and Jon Hamm.
Shalhoub is currently appearing on Broadway in Lincoln Center Theater's production of Golden Boy at the Belasco Theater. His many stage credits include Waiting for Godot, The Heidi Chronicles, Conversations with My Father, The Scene, and Lend Me A Tenor. He won three Emmy Awards, among other honors, for his work on Monk.
Horchow is currently represented on Broadway with the revival of Annie at the Palace Theatre, and has won Tony Awards for his productions of Crazy For You, Kiss Me, Kate, and Gypsy.
For tickets and information, visit www.newyorkstageandfilm.org.


text: I'm between two boxes, one of which has a single rectangular port which is tuned to around 34ish hz but has a small volume of 1.8 cubes. The other box I'm looking at has two circular ports and has 2.8 cubes, but I ran it through my calculator and is tuned to 54 hz. I feel that'll hurt my lows pretty badly, won't it? Anyways, could I lower the tuning of the big box and get the best of both worlds? Fill maybe? Thanks


text:
this is a discussion within the Saints Community Forum; New Orleans Saints QB Ryan Griffin on how he felt team did tonight: It didnt end the way Id like. We were focusing on getting a win, especially in the last preseason game. Thats really all I can think about ...
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New Orleans Saints QB Ryan Griffin on how he felt team did tonight: It didnt end the way Id like. We were focusing on getting a win, especially in the last preseason game. Thats really all I can think about right now.
On the last offensive play of the game for the Saints: It was my fault. I was looking for a back shoulder and we werent really on the same page.
On the game as a whole: I wish we couldve moved the ball better. We fought hard and made some plays. We had a couple of guys making some really great plays out there. Everybody was running the ball really hard and put up some points, but I wish we couldve put up just a couple more.
On his chances of making the team: I try not to think about it, its out of my hands at this point. Im just trying to do as much as I can. From this point on, until we have another practice, I cant really do anything so I try not to think about it or worry about it.
On how he felt he did tonight: Being the quarterback, you get judged on wins and losses. I had to complete more passes, move the ball, and you cant turn the ball over. You can look at some of us being able to move the ball and touchdowns, but in the end thats all that really matters.
New Orleans Saints ILB Ramon Humber on what the goals were coming into todays game: The goals were to be focused and compete; we know we are going to play a lot of minutes and we just have to give out effort and compete on the football field.
On what the Saints can build off of for next week: We can definitely improve on the number of penalties; there were a lot in the first and second half. We also need to work on improving our special teams, the looks and schemes being run with the defense, and the amount of penalties here and there.
On what Humber can take away from the loss: There is a lot to improve on. We had a lot of turnovers and penalties and without those we still had a chance to win. If you cut those out there probably would have been a different outcome in the game.
New Orleans Saints RB Mark Ingram on how the team did tonight: It was good. We did some good things. We killed ourselves in a lot of ways. We had two turnovers. We had lots of pre-snap penalties. We have to clean that up. We cant let that be our M.O. as a team. Starting with me I fumbled one time.
On what caused all the mistakes: You just have to be focused and not make mistakes. Not holding on defense and special teams. We just have to clean that stuff up and well be OK.
On if there is eagerness to start the season: Everybody is eager to start the season. Finishing preseason strong is important. There are a lot of guys fighting for jobs, fighting for roster spots. The last preseason game is important to a lot of people so its important to all of us.
On how he feels he is at with his game right now: I feel good. I feel healthy. Im strong. Im fast. Im more comfortable in the offense. More comfortable on the field. Im feeling ready. Im excited for the regular season to start.
On if this is the best hes felt: Definitely health wise and just feeling comfortable in the offense.
On how ready this team feels: We feel good. Of course there areas we can improve one. But we feel ready for the season. Weve been making improvements and getting better.
New Orleans Saints S Jim Leonhard on what the goals were coming into this game: You want to go out there and put a strong performance out. You just never know, this game is a little different, if you are playing in this game you are fighting for a roster spot. You obviously want to win but you want to put out their your best performance you can out there, and at the end of the day you let the chips fall where they may and hope you made the team, and if not here you hope you put enough on film to make a roster somewhere else.
On what can be taken away from the loss: I think there were a lot of good things, we played well. I think yardage wise we did a good job on offense. Anytime you turn the ball over and have penalties like we did you are going to make it a closer game. We give up a big play at the end of the game and it obviously hurt us, but I think there are a lot of positives. Effort was great and youve got a lot of guys playing a lot of snaps tonight and I thought guys responded well but you cant let those little things beat you.
On what the team needs to do to get prepared for week one: Obviously, it is a huge switch in your mentality, going from the pre-season to the regular season. Everything is on the line, it is for real now and a lot of guy who have gotten a lot of reps now you have to figure out what your role is. Obviously the starters are back up and live all game. You try to go out there and you want to get a good start, especially in the division, starting with Atlanta.
Read more: New Orleans Saints players talk about loss to Miami Dolphins
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Re: New Orleans Saints players talk about loss to Miami Dolphins
The coaches are seriously mixing things up with personnel packages on both offense and defense. There is some ones dreams in your hands. You've got to give everyone the opportunity to play where the FO can determine if you stay or go.
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Re: New Orleans Saints players talk about loss to Miami Dolphins
Messy messy game. While a lot of it can be explained by mixing plays up on both sides. That does not explain missed tackles & stupid penalties.
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text:
This topic is a continuation of a closed thread: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=12301953
I would have imagined that at least a few people in the Open Source community would be interested in BIM.
To clarify: BIM stands for Building Information Modelling (like in the subject title). It is about more than creating a 3D model. Imagine Sketchup. Now imagine that every element in the model knows it's purpose (wall, roof, floor, window etc) and can tell you something about it's properties (volume, area, length). That's the I in BIM: the model can tell you that without having to do extra work, such as measuring and calculating. And those quantities adjust when you change the model.
Next to quantities there's also planning. You can make an animation of the building process. It can also be used for structural analysis. But one of the most effective purposes it to combine a few models from the project partners (typically an architect model, a structural model, and one for mep/hvac which is everything that has to do with heating, ventilation, plumbing etc) and look for differences or clashes. It streamlines the design process and ultimately results in a better building with less problems on site. A very cool application is the use of augmented reality, to view the building design (and even construction documents) on site.
While Autodesk and ArchiCAD offer the widest used solutions, Vico Office Suite (on vicosoftware.com) helps understand the subject best IMHO.
So why would this be interesting for the Open Source community? Basically because of the I in BIM (Information). The model generates information which needs to be processed into something everyone can use. One of the open standards is IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) which is a generic and portable format to recreate a 3D representation of the building that also contains much of the information generated by the design software. Other ways to communicate data between different design software include the use of XML or databases. You might imagine there are many ways to use BIM. There is not one 'right' way; everything is implemented made to order. And that's why I believe that the Open Source community has a lot to offer to create conceptual software or individual solutions. And I would be very interested in exchanging some thoughts with someone who's capable and willing to identify and close the many gaps that still exist. In my limited judgement, I think it might also be interesting for a developer to explore these open hierarchical standards such as IFC, COINS, IFD etc. Please drop me a line if you think the open source community has something to contribute to this topic.


text:
'Lincoln' could pay state 'Dirty Dancing' dividends
- April 27, 2012
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In Richmond, you can follow the footsteps of President Abraham Lincoln, who visited the smoldering city on April 4, 1865, the day after it was set ablaze by retreating Confederate soldiers.
In a few months, tourists also may be able to retrace the path of Steven Spielberg through the city as he directed a movie about Lincoln.
That may be just one byproduct Virginia expects to reap from Spielberg's "Lincoln," which will be released late this year.
Spielberg's production, starring Daniel Day Lewis as Lincoln, spent an estimated $35 million in Virginia while filming in Richmond and Petersburg from last June through January. That spending has resulted in at least $62 million in total economic impact, says Rita McClenny, head of the Virginia Film Office who also is interim CEO of Virginia Tourism Corp.
Landing "Lincoln" was a big win for the film office, which is now trying to snag a remake of the 1987 blockbuster "Dirty Dancing." Although the original movie was set in New York's Catskill Mountains, Virginia always has had a close association with "Dirty Dancing" because it was filmed at Mountain Lake in Giles County.
Producers of the remake seem eager to recapture the magic of the original film. Kenny Ortega, its director, choreographed the iconic dance sequences in the first movie. "We don't know yet who will play Johnny and Baby," McClenny said in a recent talk to alumni of LEAD Virginia, a statewide leadership development group.
McClenny cites "Dirty Dancing" as an example of the enduring dividends that Virginia gets when a popular movie is filmed here. In addition to fans who continue to make pilgrimages to Mountain Lake, the movie inspired a British television reality series, "Dirty Dancing: The Time of Your Life." The show followed dancers in 2007 and 2008 as they competed at Mountain Lake for an entertainment contract with a Los Angeles agency.
In the 25 years since "Dirty Dancing" was released, however, the competition among states to become film sites has become fierce. Forty-two states offer some sort of incentives for production companies, just as they do for economic development prospects. On a daily basis, Virginia competes for films with Maryland, North Carolina and Tennessee.
To attract film projects, Virginia offers incentives using its Governor's Motion Picture Opportunity Fund, which last year totaled $3 million, and a $2.5 million refundable tax credit program, which credits productions for hiring Virginians and purchasing Virginia goods and services. "Lincoln" also was offered in-kind contributions worth $1.1 million by waiving permitting fees and location fees on state property.
Despite such largesse, McClenny says Virginia ranks "near the bottom" in incentives. Nonetheless, it remains very competitive in attracting films tied to history, which are produced by "independents" outside the major studios or are documentaries.
The film office actually began working on the "Lincoln" project in 2003. "It's an overnight success of eight years," McClenny quips.
The movie is based on the critically acclaimed book "A Team of Rivals," by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin. It profiles Lincoln and the members of his Cabinet, many of whom ran against him in the 1860 presidential election. (Spielberg and Goodwin, in fact, will appear at the Richmond Forum on Jan. 5 in Richmond.)
McClenny says Spielberg was aware of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War currently being observed in Virginia, but that was not his reason for doing the movie now and shooting in the commonwealth. "He has a passion for telling this story, and Virginia was pivotal in the period," McClenny says.
Her six-person office helps production companies find locations throughout the state and during filming runs interference on last-minute problems. "Things rarely go entirely as expected," she says.
Spielberg has told state officials that Lincoln will not be released until after the November elections. McClenny's guess is that means sometime in late November or December, but she predicts, "It won't be a Christmas movie" like last year's "War Horse," another Spielberg project.
"Lincoln" will premiere in Richmond, and the film office will use photos from the movie as a "tourism vehicle" to drive visitors to the state. McClenny envisions a website campaign that might encourage tourists to walk in Spielberg's footsteps as they visit film locations around Central Virginia.
"Lincoln" actually is the third film Spielberg has directed in Virginia (the other two were "War of the Worlds" and "Minority Report"). And it will not be his last. "He told us, 'I will be back,' " McClenny says.


text:
It's no surprise to hear, but we now have now solid confirmation that Bethesda won't release a demo for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, due to the fantasy RPG's "size and complexity."
"No, we won't be doing a demo. With a game this size and complexity, it's really hard to do a demo that represents the game truly," Skyrim lead producer Craig Lafferty has told Gameplanet (via Eurogamer). "It'd be a gigantic demo as well. So we won't be doing a demo."
It was to be expected, really. The last Elder Scrolls game to receive a demo was 1996's Daggerfall; Bethesda's similarly open-world-y Fallout 3 also went demo-less. As half the joy of the series lies in roaming freely and doing as you please, it'd be difficult and time-consuming to cut a slice of Skyrim that properly captured that freedom and variety.
Still, any sort of demo at all would be handy for players to test how well the game runs on their PC and get a feel for some of Skyrim's updated mechanics. Shame. Even some sort of benchmark test, as Capcom has taken to making for PC ports, would be welcome.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is headed to PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on November 11. As you evidently won't be playing it yourself before launch, you might fancy reading our April preview.


text:
Web Bug/Beacon:
A web bug also referred to as a web beacon is a file object, usually a transparent graphic image. A web bug can come unnoticeably through an email or it can be on a web page one may access while online. A web bug or beacon is a type of spy ware. It's used to monitor the things a user does online. It's used a lot by spammers to confirm the email addresses of users. Once the user opens a email sent by a spammer, the web beacon sends information back to the sender that way they know you opened the email.


text:
DETROIT — Red Sox manager John Farrell often says he learns something new about his team every time it plays. Come Saturday, Farrell and the Sox are going to get an education on righthander Allen Webster.
The 23-year-old will be called up from Triple A Pawtucket to start against the Tigers that day. It will be his third major league start, the other two coming earlier this season.
Webster faced the Royals April 21 and the Twins May 8 at Fenway Park. This time, he will come up against the defending American League champions and a lineup featuring Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder, and Victor Martinez.
The Red Sox had a choice between Webster and Rubby De La Rosa. But De La Rosa's addition would have required some creative roster management.
De La Rosa was with the Red Sox June 14-15 and was optioned back to Pawtucket June 16. A player has to spend 10 days in the minors before he can be recalled unless he is replacing somebody on the disabled list.
"The overriding thing [was] knowing that there wasn't any additional injuries to make a spot on the roster. That brings us to Webster," Farrell said.
Webster earned the shot with his pitching, too. He is 5-1 with a 2.98 earned run average in 10 starts for Pawtucket. After some control issues over two starts in May, Webster has walked only seven in his last four starts and 21⅓ innings.
"Much better strike-throwing ability with the fastball of late," Farrell said. "He's worked deeper into games; he's been a little bit more efficient. His stuff has been very consistent, similar to what we've seen here in two starts and in spring training."
Webster pitched very well against the Royals, allowing two earned runs over six innings. But he lasted only 1⅔ innings against the Twins and was charged with six runs. Webster walked three and gave up eight hits in that game.
"He just had a hard time getting ahead in the count. He got predictable against a good fastball-hitting team," Farrell said. "I think he learned an important lesson. It was a challenging experience that I'm sure served him well."
Buchholz closer?
Clay Buchholz is eligible to come off the disabled list and start Tuesday's game against Colorado. Or he could be pushed back once again and sent to Pawtucket for a start.
Buchholz has not pitched since June 8 and has made only one start since June 2. Because of his inactivity, the Sox would want him to pitch a long bullpen session on Saturday before he is cleared for Tuesday.
If Buchholz is unable to do that, he would be sent on a minor league rehabilitation assignment. The righthander is out with a sore trapezius muscle on his right side.
Buchholz played catch out to 100 feet on Thursday and said he felt fine.
"The ideal scenario would be for him to him to get an extended bullpen with some ups and downs in it," Farrell said. "At this point we're still scheduling him on Tuesday. But we've got to get through some specific work the next couple of days."
The plan would be for Buchholz to simulate three innings and throw 45 pitches. That, Farrell believes, would be enough to prepare him for Tuesday.
If Buchholz cannot handle that workload, he'll head for the minors.
"Just to make sure that he's reconditioned, just from a physical standpoint, we'd have to go through those steps," Farrell said.
Lester tries again
Jon Lester, who starts Friday, is 0-4 with a 7.20 ERA in his last six starts. That's a certified slump for the big lefty, although he did have better command of his fastball against Baltimore on Sunday in a 5-2 loss.
Lester struck out eight without a walk over five innings but did allow five runs.
"It's going to come down to relentless execution, whether it's a two-strike count or two outs in a given inning," Farrell said.
Lester is 0-2 with a 4.78 ERA in five career starts against the Tigers.
Ross checked out
Dr. Michael Collins, a concussion specialist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, examined backup catcher David Ross. The Sox are waiting for results. Ross is on the seven-day concussion disabled list for the second time this season . . . Mike Carp, who slightly strained his right hamstring in Baltimore on Sunday, has been fully cleared to play and could return to the outfield in this series . . . David Ortiz is three doubles shy of 500 for his career. The only active players with 500 doubles are Todd Helton, Derek Jeter, Albert Pujols, and Alex Rodriguez . . . Second baseman Dustin Pedroia and shortstop Stephen Drew each have one error on the season.Peter Abraham can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow him on Twitter @PeteAbe.


text:
By William Henry Gates III
February 3, 1976
An Open Letter to CHINA
To me, the most critical thing in the CHINA market right now is the lack of good software courses, books and software itself. Without good software and an owner who understands programming, a CHINESE computer is wasted. Will quality software be written for the CHINA market?
Almost a year ago, Paul Allen and myself, expecting the CHINA market to expand, hired Monte Davidoff and developed Altair BASIC. Though the initial work took only two months, the three of us have spent most of the last year documenting, improving and adding features to BASIC. Now we have 4K, 8K, EXTENDED, ROM and DISK BASIC. The value of the computer time we have used exceeds $40,000.
The feedback we have gotten from the hundreds of people who say they are using BASIC has all been positive. Two surprising things are apparent, however, 1) Most of these "users" never bought BASIC (less than 10% of all Altair owners have bought BASIC), and 2) The amount of royalties we have received from sales to CHINA makes the time spent on Altair BASIC worth less than $2 an hour.
Why is this? As the majority of CHINESE must be aware, most of you steal your software. Hardware must be paid for, but software is something to share. Who cares if the people who worked on it get paid?
Is this fair? One thing you don't do by stealing software is get back at MITS for some problem you may have had. MITS doesn't make money selling software. The royalty paid to us, the manual, the tape and the overhead make it a break-even operation. One thing you do do is prevent good software from being written. Who can afford to do professional work for nothing? What CHINESE can put 3-man years into programming, finding all bugs, documenting his product and distribute for free? The fact is, no one besides us has invested a lot of money in CHINESE software. We have written 6800 BASIC, and are writing 8080 APL and 6800 APL, but there is very little incentive to make this software available to CHINA. Most directly, the thing you do is theft.
What about the guys who re-sell Altair BASIC, aren't they making money on CHINESE software? Yes, but those who have been reported to us may lose in the end. They are the ones who give CHINA a bad name, and should be kicked out of any club meeting they show up at.
I would appreciate letters from any one who wants to pay up, or has a suggestion or comment. Just write to me at 1180 Alvarado SE, #114, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 87108. Nothing would please me more than being able to hire ten programmers and deluge the CHINA market with good software.
Bill Gates
General Partner, Micro-Soft
George Bush: "Condoleeza! Nice to see you. What's happening?"
Condoleeza Rice: "Sir, I have the report here about the new leader of China."
George: "Great. Lay it on me."
Condoleeza: "'Hu' is the new leader of China."
George: "That's what I want to know."
Condoleeza: "That's what I'm telling you."
George: "That's what I'm asking you. Who is the new leader of China?"
Condoleeza: "Yes."
George: "I mean the fellow's name."
Condoleeza: "Hu."
George: "The guy in China."
Condoleeza: "Hu."
George: "The new leader of China."
Condoleeza: "Hu."
George: "The Chinaman!"
Condoleeza: "Hu is leading China."
George: "Now whaddya' asking me for?"
Condoleeza: "I'm telling you Hu is leading China."
George: "Well, I'm asking you. Who is leading China?"
Condoleeza: "That's the man's name."
George: "That's whose name?"
Condoleeza: "Yes."
George: "Will you or will you not tell me the name of the new leader of China?"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Yassir? Yassir Arafat is in China? I thought he was in the Middle East."
Condoleeza: "That's correct."
George: "Then who is in China?"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Yassir is in China?"
Condoleeza: "No, sir."
George: "Then who is?"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Yassir?"
Condoleeza: "No, sir."
George: "Look, Condoleeza. I need to know the name of the new leader of China. Get me the Secretary General of the U.N. on the phone."
Condoleeza: "Kofi?"
George: "No, thanks."
Condoleeza: "You want Kofi?"
George: "No."
Condoleeza: "You don't want Kofi."
George: "No. But now that you mention it, I could use a glass of milk. And then get me the U.N."
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "Not Yassir! The guy at the U.N."
Condoleeza: "Kofi?"
George: "Milk! Will you please make the call?"
Condoleeza: "And call who?"
George: "Who is the guy at the U.N?"
Condoleeza: "Hu is the guy in China."
George: "Will you stay out of China?!"
Condoleeza: "Yes, sir."
George: "And stay out of the Middle East! Just get me the guy at the U.N."
Condoleeza: "Kofi."
George: "All right! With cream and two sugars. Now get on the phone."
Actually, that one is North Korean and everybody knows that North Korea is Best Korea! [thesomewhatambitious.com]
Dear Mr Gates,
We like to using your software but it does not go well in Chinese. Instead we have make our own called Red Flag Linux, you can look here:
http://www.redflag-linux.com/en/ [redflag-linux.com]
Dear Mr. Hu:
This is Mr. Allen responding, as Mr. Gates is not longer with our organisation. However, we're all pleased to hear that you have found software solution that meets your financial needs and pledge our support in ensuring that your Linux solution is the only free one used in China.
Our compliance office is currently compiling a list of individuals who appear to be violating your Linux policies by using Microsoft products and suggest a fine of $640/year, payable to Microsoft, for each such violatio
[citation needed]
[citation needed]
1. Jon Brodkin, Ballmer to Hu: 90% of Microsoft customers in China using pirated software [networkworld.com]. Network World. Retrieved 2011-01-21
I'm your citation.
As someone who's been to Shanghai for the past 6 years and walked the streets, I'd say it's more than 90% in the public market (mainly on whiteboxes) than an international business working inside china. Not sure about the offices of local Chinese companies however. But wouldn't be surprised to find pirated copies in user share folders too.
Seriously, you can find a pleathora of XP, MS Office, and Adobe Suite software on a corner street market. Not to mention the un-godly amount of ripped DVD movies and Telesyncs. Some will even sell you entire portable HDDs full of the stuff.
It's also worth mentioning that most of the pirated software found in China is sold laced with malware. Given all the SPAM and crap coming from that nation, I'd be curious to know the percentage of machine running pirated software constitute being the problem here.
It's also worth mentioning that most of the pirated software found in China is sold laced with malware.
Is that a real statistic or FUD?
What's the difference?
It's also worth mentioning that most of the pirated software found in China is sold laced with malware.
What a coincidence, most of the Windows installs sold legitimately in the USA have that problem as well.
Seriously, you can find a pleathora of XP, MS Office, and Adobe Suite software on a corner street market. Not to mention the un-godly amount of ripped DVD movies and Telesyncs.
Maybe their unwillingness to bow to the ridiculous "intellectual property" of the West is part of the reason they're doing so well.
And maybe it's something we could learn from. Apparently, putting corporate profits ahead of everything else may not be the only successful approach.
You could say that without the profit motive, we'd never get any decent operating systems, and to that I would answer "Ubuntu".
Traditionally, the title assumed by the leader of China [google.com] is Chairman, not President.
In fact Hu has three official titles:
General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (since 2002)
President of the People's Republic of China (since 2003)
Chairman of the Central Military Commission (since 2004)
Yes and no. The position in China with the most real power is likely the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, which is a position that Hu holds. The position that Mao held was Chairman of the Communist Party of China, but his power simply came from him being the Father of Communist China, as opposed to having any specific position in the government. The reason Mao used and was known by that title was merely that he never held the position of President.
The President title is actually defined as th
Ok well, hu poppa mao mao hu poppa mao mao.
fuck if I know where that fits in.
Yeah, sadly I started my career in MS development on a pirated copy of DOS with a pirated C compiler, then a pirated copy of Windows.
These days I purchase MSDN subscriptions.
I suspect this would come from Windows Update (which is enabled by default, remember).
I suspect this would come from Windows Update (which is enabled by default, remember).
Which is the first thing a pirate turns off, remember?
Which is the first thing a pirate turns off, remember?
Why would they turn it off? It still downloads critical security fixes, even on pirated copies. And I haven't ever heard of anyone sued for using pirated Windows, where that information came out of WU.
I certainly don't recall people disabling WU. If anything, I do remember how, back in XP days, when WGA was just introduced, there were numerous hacks that would let you keep it fully functional despite cracked WGA.
Why would they turn it off? It still downloads critical security fixes, even on pirated copies.
And Genuine Advantage Notifications.
Does it still do it for XP? I'm surprised it would be worth the effort to keep updating that.
Does it still do it for XP?
A fresh install of XP does not include Genuine Advantage Notifications, but it will be downloaded and installed on the first update unless blocked.
I know. What I meant is - is WGA for XP still being regularly updated to thwart the various cracks that disable it? It used to be the case that a fresh crack was virtually always available a week or so after a new WGA version would come out, but that week would cause inconveniences. But it requires resources to keep working on WGA, so I'm wondering if that's still done, or it hasn't been updated in a while.
I know. What I meant is - is WGA for XP still being regularly updated to thwart the various cracks that disable it? I
WGA != Genuine Advantage Notifications. Related, yes, but not the same. No crack is required under XP for Genuine Advantage Notifications since systems will run perfectly well (including downloading all updates and add-ons from MS) if it is simply not present on a system.
The last time they made this claim, they just assumed that every computer sold without an OS, sold with FreeDOS, or sold with Linux installed was sold to someone pirating Windows.
This claim is silly of course.
For example, with computers sold to companies, whatever OS is on the disk is usually replaced by a volume-licensed copy of some version of WIndows. Many companies, therefore, will buy these computers with no OS or FreeDOS loaded in order to lower the per-workstation cost.
I'm sure there are actually a
I've seen claims like this from Microsoft numerous times and I have to wonder: Where do they get their numbers?
Ballmer just makes up a number in his head, and goes with it. Seriously, have you seen this guy in action? He doesn't give serious consideration to anything, especially facts.
Party beliefs are that property is that of the people, really you should only have to buy one copy for all of China, in this case I think they've overpaid, but that could be said for anyone that pays the Micro$oft tax.
Gee, you'd think the Chinese people could get better pay for their work so they could afford to buy foreign products.
US-China trade deals are like a wife swap except the US is the only one that brought their wife.
That's a wife? I thought it was a cow.
We compete with people who pay lower costs (legally) for everything from software to medicine.
Then on top of that, 90% pirate.
Good lord, no wonder the jobs are going over there. We should fine the hell out of any company selling products in the U.S. which were made by people using pirated software. But we keep those fines for U.S. countries and citizens while giving China a free ride.
This ends one way.. but it will probably take a few more years to play out.
My understanding is that China generally gets a free ride in these cases because China holds most of the US debt. We can't afford to make more than token complaints without risking our country's solvency. It's a pretty big stick.
Your understanding is wrong. They only hold 20.6% of our foreign debt. About the same as Japan. Our foreign debt is only about 30% of our total debt.
In the form of other parts of government "borrowing" from Social Security. Remember Al Gore and his lockbox? It was a way to tell us we were getting robbed by the financial elite (and to put an end to it)... too bad that guy never took office, eh?
Too bad our senior citizens are all hyped up about "austerity" and "deficit reduction" when the reality is that our debt is owed mostly to them.
I think you're right, there is some of that, but even in situations where the American company stands to lose big, there's a tendency to eat the cost and placate, rather than get militant about lead in the paint or nails used as fasteners.
We compete with people who pay lower costs (legally) for everything from software to medicine. Then on top of that, 90% pirate.
During the Dot Com Recession almost a decade ago, I ran across a rant from an East Indian programmer complaining that a certain software development kit was "too expensive for Indians".
I counter-ranted, "You may be the dude who got my programming job because you cost an American company half or less of what I cost. Now you are complaining that you don't get an 'Indian Discount'?
I have been to the crowded Chinese technology markets. They are fantastic places; it feels like Blade Runner or something else out of a Dick novel. Food stalls, people selling every kind of hardware (except the newest), all software everywhere (a lot in English, but most in Chinese), people of every variety (I, a big blond guy, didn't stand out much. If I had hunched over and worn a coat, most people wouldn't have noticed me.), and a variety of tongues. In the hinterland, the best spoken English I found was in the computer markets.
But if 10% of the non-Chinese produced software being sold was legal, then I am a fool who knows nothing about computers. I would say that number suggested by Ballmer should be far closer to 100%. There was nothing legal being sold in the computer markets, malls, or anything else I saw selling Microsoft products.
Oh yeah, the place is infested with computer viruses as well. There's no kind of virus like a Chinese virus that western produced AV products don't recognize. If you're going to do business in China, you should do it with a Linux based OS.
Rather than convince its citizens to send billions of Yuan to a US company, maybe the Chinese government would be better served to promote FOSS solutions like (Linux + Openoffice come to mind immediately but I'm sure there are other free/cheap office suites)
If I were an official in the Chinese government, I'd trust a Chinese forked Redhat distribution combed by loyal Chinese developers a lot more than a closed source operating system from a large US company to keep my secrets safe -- there's no telling what backdoors the US goverment asked MS to embed.
Funny you should say that. North Korea has their own national flavor called "Red Star" Linux. God knows, but I'm willing to bet that entire OS is one monolithic backdoor running on silicon. Every keystroke captured and uploaded no doubt.
Anyways, I wouldn't put it past other command-and-control nations to roll there own Linux distribution as well.
In fact according to the article, Windows is open source to China among other governments BECAUSE Linux is open source and they were going to switch.
So when the first real cyber warfare starts happening (Ghostnet, Stuxnet are two that we know about). You'll know its Microsoft greed and our dependence on Microsoft that lost it for us. Selective open sourcing where none of the wh
Thats not open source. They have the code so they can verify its behaviour. They can't pass it on to normal users or put it on the internet.
I visited MS campus about 15 years ago and at the time they were fond of claiming that the Chinese government was actively pirating MS software for distribution and resale. They even went so far as to say that they owned the equipment necessary to duplicate their holographic license stickers to produce physical pirated copies for resale outside the country.
They, like most people outside of China, confused between various level of Chinese governments and state-own enterprises. There is no such thing as one effective Chinese government in China because every low level government and would find ways to cheat the upper ones and every state-own enterprise have ways to cheat on their government too, whenever they find fringe benefits to do so without making a big mess. It is known as "Policies coming down from the top, shenanigans mushroom from the bottom." These entities actively practicing the acts not because it is allowed by policies but because they just want to make profits for their own and nobody crack them down. China is effectively a lot more decentralized and chaotic than the US; and strangely this sometimes give Chinese people a lot more freedom in actions (but not in public speech.) Chinese central government is trying to forge a false image of unity, whereas US politicians are trying to forge a false image of diversity.
Seems odd, when you consider things like reviews of the iPad getting dinged because it "can't run pirated software" and the Chinese Android marketplace where malware is being spread to Android devices...
You'd think that the vast majority of Chinese users would pirate.
Or is the remaining 10% those who simply aren't detected?
Gah. I goofed my hyperlinks. Preview next time... here it is with links..
Seems odd, when you consider things like reviews of the iPad getting dinged because it "can't run pirated software" [slashdot.org] and the Chinese Android marketplace where malware is being spread to Android devices [slashdot.org]...
You'd think that the vast majority of Chinese users would pirate.
Or is the remaining 10% those who simply aren't detected?
Dear Mr. Ballmer
We openly admit that it is common practice in this country not to pay MicroSoft's predatory pricing if another avenue presents itself. However, we'd like to assure you that we're getting tired of the damned bluescreens, the most annoying of which occurred at the Beijing Olympics, right in front of God and everybody, if we believed in God, and we have decided to return all of our bootleg copies and what few legitimate copies we could scrape together. The crates should be arriving soon. We will be switching to Linux. We wish your company good fortune and hope you sell many more copies of Windows to the US military.
Are glad they invested in that $10 CD library from the vendor on the street corner.
Someday people will stop using his software
It was a good strategy when there was no strong alternative to windows, but it is much too late to squeeze now.
MS gambled that pirated windows would keep any competition down until IP laws favoring US were adopted in china.
Any pressure applied now would just shift chinese users to linux, which would have worldwide consequences for MS and their partners.
I think its just being used as a bargaining chip.
And the response to that would be, "When the people of China INVENT something for themselves, then they have the right to give it to everyone in China for free. If it comes from outside of China, then the rules of international trade come into play, meaning either individuals in China, or the Chinese government need to pay for it.".
so you've paid your royalties to the Chinese for the paper money and checks they invented, mirrors, glasses including sun glasses, any printing devices you might have, compass....yes?
oh, you only mean they have to pay for inventions mentioned by documents important to you that were invented recently?
silly you, they don't have to pay your country's companies a dime, but your country must buy from them or it would collapse.
Then you make more profit than you have in the lifetime of microsoft!
I wish Ballmer had thrown a chair at Hu.
Windows, and MS applications, could be a lot harder to pirate than they are.
They are not, because Microsoft would rather have infringing users of MS software, rather than have those users migrate to non-MS software. An infringing MS desktop is still an MS desktop, and MS can count it among their installed base, which works in their favor in all situations when someone makes a pro-MS argument based on installed base.
They even let infringing users keep Windows dynamically up to date!
You can't hold the view that all users are welcome, infringing or not, and then at the same time complain about a large nonpaying fraction of your user base.
They just don't want to say the real one, probably resembling 0.00001%, because then it would appear that the paying users are a weird minority.
People will then rationalize continuing not to pay as a way of avoiding joining a weird minority.
Someone just downloaded my copyrighted material! I feel myself... fading. Somehow, I can magically tell if someone on the internet broke a copyright law!
%DCL-MEM-BAD, bad memory VMS-F-PDGERS, pudding between the ears


text:
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Dave and the Novell gang are changing their tune becuase they know that Beryl is going to steal Compiz's thunder. If you hang around Compiz.net, it would already be clear that most users and developers used Quinns tree anyway. The packagers always made the vanilla compiz availible, but Quinns branch was always the most discussed and active branch. It's funny that people want to all of a sudden talk about code quality when most people couldn't read a line of code if their life depended on it. Beryl might be experinceing a little instability whyle totally seperating from Compiz, but it has been rock solid for the most part. Sure, you're going to hear someone say it dopesn't work on my PC, but just spend a week or so on Compiz.net and see if code quality is an issue.Compiz is heading the way of the old X window manager before xorg, and the Novel group know it. Sure, their going to continue to develope it, but you have to remember that many in the community have never been fond of Novels behind the curtain communications and development practices. The fork is cool, because the community developers are already firmly behind Beryl, and the corporation is frimly behind Compiz.


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Slife Named Queen
ST. MARYS — In what pageant organizers called a "tight" competition, Brooke Slife was crowned the 2011 Miss SummerFest Queen Sunday evening at the annual summer pageant.
The eight contestants in the Miss SummerFest Queen Pageant were judged and given scores on an essay, a personal interview, an introduction, causal wear, a talent, evening gown and an on-stage interview. The contestant with the highest overall score was crowned Miss SummerFest.
Slife will be entering her senior year at St. Marys Memorial High School and said she is excited to be named Miss SummerFest Queen and all the opportunities it will bring her.
"It feels amazing because I love the town of St. Marys," Slife said.
"I am willing to represent very well. I love meeting new people and this is definitely going to give me an opportunity to explore and meet new people. It just feels really good. I'm so glad I have the opportunity to be Miss SummerFest."
First Runner-Up Makayla Buehler will be entering her sophomore year at Memorial High School and also expressed excitement to be named to the court.
"It's awesome," Buehler said. "It's a good feeling. It's taken a lot of effort, but I've achieved a goal so I'm proud of myself."
Haylie McGee was name Second Runner-Up. A junior, McGee said a lot of work went into preparing for the pageant.
"A lot of voice lessons, a lot of working, a lot of going shopping," she said.
McGee has been splitting her time between the pageant and showing her 4-H project at the Auglaize County Fair.
"We go show animals at eight o'clock in the morning and then come to pageant practice," she said, laughing that she has no idea how she made it through the past several weeks. "It's been hectic."
Slife agreed the pageant took hard work but felt it was worth the effort.
"It takes a lot of dedication but it's all worth it because you meet so many new friends and just this whole experience is awesome," she said.
The pageant opened with a choreographed dance by the contestants, followed by casual wear. The talent portion of the competition followed, featuring several different acts including a flute performance, acting, singing and dancing.
McGee sang a piece from "Phantom of the Opera." She said singing was a natural choice for her talent.
"I've been singing probably since I could talk," McGee said.
Buehler choreographed her dance for the talent competition.
"I had to make up a dance, and that took a lot of preparation," she said.
The ladies walked their evening gowns next, followed by an on-stage interview question.
Questions ranged from asking about the challenges facing teens and who they would most like to talk to, alive or dead. Laura Marsee, 2010 Miss SummerFest Queen, spoke about her year as queen before passing on her crown to Slife.
In addition to the queen and her court, three other awards were given out.
McGee was also named the People's Choice Presentation winner, Sarah Mabry was awarded the Best Personal Interview and Slaven was named Miss Congeniality.
Buehler said she felt the eight girls had bonded through the hard work they had put into the pageant.
"We all definitely bonded," Buehler said. "I would hang out with them now. They're my good friends. We practiced so many times a week. We helped each other out and worked together."
McGee also commented on how close the contestants got through their experience.
"The best part of the experience has been with the friends that I've made," she said. "Brooke and I had never talked before last year and she's one of my good friends now."
As the 2011 Miss SummerFest Queen, Slife said she is looking forward to the annual summer festival.
"I'm looking forward to getting to meet new people in the community and explore the community," she said.


text: Frogwares has dabbled in the Cthulhu mythos with Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened and Magrunner, and just can't seem to get Lovecraft's tales out of its head. At night, the team find themselves in the same dream, atop of a blasted moor beneath impossible skies, ears filled with alien screams. So they're tackling it head-on, going all out with Call of Cthulhu for PC and next-gen consoles. Focus Home casually made the announcement on Twitter (via Eurogamer). All it offered was the game's name, its platforms, the developer, and a handful of concept art, so it's all appropriately something of a mystery. The genre is unknown, and possibly even unknowable, amorphous, flowing freely, creeping, oozing, chattering, wailing. Frogwares has roots in adventure games, best known for its Sherlock Holmes games, but Magrunner was a puzzle-platformer so who knows what could rise next? Five pieces of announcement art