Haibane.info

Author: fledgling otaku

  • exploratory surgery

    Last week, I started up my trusty Thinkpad T42 and got the dreaded “fan error” message. The laptop performs a fan diagnostic at boot time, and if the fan doesn’t pass muster, it beeps twice and shuts down. You can’t even get to BIOS. The standard solution is to simply replace the fan; my warranty service doesn’t expire until next year so it only took a single phone call and the part was on its way. I decided to ask for the part and attempt to repair it myself on the theory that this would be faster than asking for a mail-in box to send the laptop to them for service.

    According to the parts sheet for the T4x series (MIGR-46474), the correct fan part type for my specific model (2373-M3U) was 26R7860. This morning, armed with some common sense and a few instructional videos, I took apart my Thinkpad for the first time. Here’s how it went:

    So, in the end I had to put everything back and admit defeat. I have a box from IBM arriving tomorrow for me to ship the laptop back to them. I decided that I’d take out my hard drive before sending the thinkpad in, as I’ve wanted to upgrade for a while now. It was ridiculously easy to remove the hard drive. I ordered a new one, with twice the capacity of my old drive (160 GB) but a slower rotational speed (5200 rpm). The low power consumption is the main appeal over competing products from Seagate or Samsung. I’ll dump the old drive in an external case and migrate my data onto a fresh install of Windows XP.

    I’m pretty happy about how easy it was to take my laptop apart and put it back together, wrong part follies and wasted time aside. Hopefully I’ll be back in action with a new fan, new drive, and clean OS fairly soon. It’s almost like getting a new one 🙂

  • EEE-envy

    Impressive – in just one quarter, Asus has sold over a third of a million EEE PCs:

    Asus EEE 2G Surf PC lush green (image from newegg.com)Taipei (Taiwan) – Asustek has managed to take their Eee little PC and turn it into big sales numbers. In the first quarter of sales, the Eee PC shipped 350,000 units, which is 50,000 more than industry experts’ predictions. The Eee PC will be available at Best Buy in U.S. in 2008, and also in Japan at the same time.

    Once the EEE enters the retail channel, I imagine that it’s going to wipe out the low-end of the PC market, especially when the Windows XP version and the new desktop version are released. Surprisingly, NewEgg has managed to keep the EEE in stock, probably because the EEE lineup has broadened to several price points. At the low end there is the $300 “Surf 2G” which has 512 MB RAM and a 2GB SSD (not to mention a choice of pastel colors). Above that is the $350 “Surf 4G” which takes you up to a 4GB SSD. Next is the “classic” EEE 4G at $400, with a webcam and a bigger battery, and above that the “8G” model with an 8GB SSD and 1GB RAM for $500. It’s also worth noting that you can’t upgrade the RAM unless you have a 4G Surf or better, and you can’t upgrade the SSD on any model except the 8G (because on the latter, the SSD is mounted in a mini-PCI slot rather than soldered directly to the motherboard). RAM upgrades used to void the warranty, but ASUS has since caved in that regard.

    I am seriously thinking about ordering an EEE this weekend. I have some overseas travel coming up and the advantages of the EEE over my regular Thinkpad, in terms of size, weight, and theft risk, are obvious. I’m not sure which one to spring for. The SSD size is not a concern, given that I can buy an 8GB SD card for $30 (after rebate). The bigger issue for me is eventually upgrading the RAM, because I probably will eventually put XP on it rather than stick with the Linux distro. That really means I need to choose between the 4G and the 4G Surf. Is it worth the extra $50 to have a webcam and bigger battery? Or even the extra $150 for the extra RAM and SSD on the 8G model? I’d welcome opinions from anyone on this.

  • Blockbuster Total Access


    Before moving to central Wisconsin, we were members of the Blockbuster Total Access program, which was superior to Netflix for the simple reason that instead of mailing in your movies, you could take them to any Blockbuster retail outlet and trade them in for a free movie rental. As you might imagine, that was great for us but not exactly the most profitable thing for them. With the familial constraints on our time that we have, we weren’t exactly abusing the system – I estimate we got about two or three rentals a month this way for free from the store.

    Others, however, went absolutely crazy and squeezed Blockbuster dry, including one man who got 200 movies a month. As a result, Blockbuster is hiking prices on Total Access and happily waving those extreme customers over to Netflix:

    The biggest change comes to the highest-tiered Total Access Premium plan, one which allows customers to have three movies out at a time and get unlimited in-store exchanges. That plan is going from $24.99 to a whopping $34.99 per month. [..]
    The fee hikes for the other rental tiers aren’t as dramatic, but are still substantial. Two-at-a-time, Total Access Premium customers will see the cost of their service go from $21.99 to $29.99 per month. Those with plans that allow limited in-store exchanges will see a $2.00 per month price hike.

    To be honest, I think it’s pretty reasonable to limit the in-store exchanges. This will be sufficient for the vast majority of customers, and still preserves the massive convenience advantage over Netflix. As you can see from the promotional banner above, you can get 3 movies out at a time with 5 in-store exchanges for $9.99 the first month. If it weren’t for the fact that the closest Blockbuster to me is an hour’s drive away, I’d still be with them instead of Netflix (though I have no complaints about my service with Netflix, I should note). Next year when we move to Madison I will probably re-evaluate things.

  • good ol’ rock, nothing beats rock

    Never doubt the wisdom of Homer Simpson. A genius, he, unappreciated by his peers, presciently revealed the ultimate secret winning strategy to winning rock-paper-scissors. He has been roundly mocked, but it is Homer who will have the last laugh:

    According to New Scientist magazine, the way to win is to start with scissors.

    Research shows that stone, also called rock, is the most popular of the three possible moves in the game.

    That means that your opponent is likely to choose paper, because they will expect to you to start the game with stone.

    By going with scissors, you achieve an early victory.

    Fools! little do they know that we know that they know that rock is the most popular, so by choosing scissors, they render themselves vulnerable to rock! Bwahaha!

  • Dell coupon codes

    As a Dell affiliate, I get periodic emails about new offers and discounts. If you’re in the market for a new laptop or desktop, this is a good time of year to take the plunge.

    Dell XPS deals

    Dell Inspiron coupon codes

    However, Dell’s new Latitude XT tablet PC seems like a pretty poor value. It’s priced over $1000 more than a comparable Lenovo ThinkPad X61, though it is thinner and has a cool capacitive touch screen.

  • 2010: A Hobbit Odyssey

    Long Live Smaug!

    Peter Jackson, Oscar-winning director of the Lord of the Rings movies, has signed a deal to produce two films based on JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit.

    The filmmaker had been in dispute with New Line Cinema over income generated by the first film in the Rings trilogy.

    “I’m very pleased that we’ve been able to put our differences behind us,” said Jackson. “We are delighted to continue our journey through Middle Earth.”

    A director for the films – prequels to the Rings movies – has yet to be named.

    The two Hobbit films will be filmed simultaneously, with their release planned for 2010 and 2011.

    Ian McKellen is also keen to reprise his role as Gandalf. Principal photography begins in 2009. OH MY FRAKKIN GOD!!!!!

    There’ already an official forum and blog up. I cant believe this. I mean. I was excited about LOTR and that blew me away, far beyond ANY of my expectations. And that was in spite of cramming the entire epic into a three-movie format. This, though – the entire tale of The Hobbit gets two entire films!

    OK, I would still prefer that Jackson be directing, but Jackson only directed about 1/4th of LOTR too (since they had multiple units filming around the clock). In some ways the producer has more power, though of course who knows what the dynamic will be in reality until the names are assembled. It’s clear that New Line and MGM want to tap into the pre-existing fandom to guarantee success, so I am not too worried about “creative interference”.

  • a good router day

    I’ve been rocking almost 300 kb/sec on utorrent since last night. It’s insane, and a bit giddy. I slurped down all of the a. f. k. fansub of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei in less than an hour (though the a.f.k. version only goes to episode 10. I grabbed episoe 11 from “Anonymous.” if someone has a better suggestion, let me know.)

    I might as well grab Denno Coil too, on the basis of Don’s emphatic recommendation. (I see a sub by Ureshii which looks promising). I admit to being intrigued by Pete’s comment as well, even though he couldn’t bring himself to finish it. I’ve written on depressing anime before, and I’m not sanguine about the emotional investment involved, but I won’t ever forget what a great ride Haibane Renmei was and if a series can get me even half as high then I don’t mind hitting the ground later on. It’s worth it, in my calculus.

    Sadly, I can’t find any torrents for Moyashimon out there (any pointers, anyone?). Maybe I’ll look for Petite Princess Yucie, too, though I do have quite a to-watch list building up already.

  • Wavatars

    wavatarsShamus Young has released a new avatar plugin, called “Wavatars” (the W stands for “Whatever”). This plugin closely mirrors ScottSM’s WP_MonsterID plugin, with added optional support for Gravatars built-in (the plugin can be set to default to a Wavatar if no Gravatar is present). Whether you intend to use wavatars, monsterIDs, or the purely abstract geometric shapes really depends on the overall style and tone of your blog. I’m still using MonsterID over at Haibane.info (which has a much more relaxed, casual atmosphere) but I’ll adopt wavatars for this blog since it has a more didactic voice.

  • art stinks

    There are an infinite number of better puns I might make about this story, but I’d be violating my kawaii-safe rule in doing so. Via Art News Blog, artist Santiago Sierra has unveiled a new exhibition at the Lisson Gallery in London:

    21 ANTHROPOMETRIC MODULES MADE FROM HUMAN FAECES BY THE PEOPLE OF SULABH INTERNATIONAL, INDIA

    The work is made of 21 modules of human faeces, each measuring 215 x 75 x 20cm. […] Workers of the sanitary movement Sulabh International of India are mostly scavengers who, by birth, have to undertake the physically and psychologically painful task of collecting human faecal matter, being charged with the blames of a previous life of bad deeds.

    21 ANTHROPOMETRIC MODULES MADE FROM HUMAN FAECES BY THE PEOPLE OF SULABH INTERNATIONAL, INDIA

    It’s a striking work, each slab reminiscent of the Monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey (but of course, representing almost the exact opposite). ArtNewsBlog appreciates the installation on multiple levels:

    There’s a message that the artist wants to get across, which could be honorable or mocking, depending on which side of the fence you choose to sit. The optimist in me sees an artist highlighting the exploitation of a group of people that need a hand up. The cynic in me sees an artist doing something shocking for the sake of publicity (exploiting the media). The humorous me sees an artist shi$%ing on the floor of an upmarket art gallery and laughing at those that take it seriously (exploiting the gallery and public).

    I’m inclined to give Sierra the benefit of the doubt with respect to being merely a publicity seeker, though the PR aspect is undeniable. Still, as an artist, Sierra’s focus is on class issues. For example, another work of his, “Economical Study of the Skin of Caracans“, touches on a similar theme (details below the fold). At any rate, the art does at minimum force the viewer to wonder how such an enormous pile of shi% could be assembled, and the physical reality of it in front of the eyes attunes their mind to the plight and working conditions of these laborers at the bottom of the bottom of India’s society, a depth which we simply cannot fathom from our everyday experience alone.

    I confess that my ethnic heritage drives my interest in this art; I’ve been on a tear recently about Indian laborers working in Dubai at my political blog recently as well. This is the kind of art I like – simple, understated, and yet carrying a hefty social message, not overly preachy but relying on the innate compassion of the viewer to make the connection.

    (more…)

  • WP_Folksonomy

    ScottSM has written a folksonomy plugin for WordPress!

    * v0.21 12-15-2007:
    o Fixed overlap between tag add and comment add $_POST variables
    * v0.2 12-15-2007:
    o Added Control Panel
    o Added Subscribers Only and Authorize Tags options
    o Tracks submitted tags
    o Added Delete and Accept Tag actions
    * v0.1 12-14-2007:
    o A rough public tag adder

    I’ll be installing this on Haibane.info as soon as I get a chance. I need to modify my template for tags support first so it might take me a few days. However this is one plugin that I think is a real game-changer.

    Scott, I highly encourage you to submit this to the WordPress Weblog Tools Collection blog.