- Home
- Twitter
- Tumblr
- Stuff I listen to...
- Songkick
- My YouTube
David Thai
Awesome software developer coming soon.
Watch this space!
May be found in either Reading or London. Interested in tech, games, films and music.
Mainly on Twitter these days.
Or Facebook, if we know each other.
Sometimes I blog.
You can read here or go directly to
All the World's a Stage or From The Pit
-
Tweets
- People vilifying NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden as a traitor miss the point. He did the "wrong" thing, sure. But for the right reasons.Jun 18, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Because this is the Internet: Yes, Fire and Ice + Game of Thrones = A Song of Fire and Ice http://t.co/yhPj2apUsX #vidding #withintemptationJun 18, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Torchlight (http://t.co/ZNTJC7yhh9): I've got it already but if you don't it's FREE for 48 hours on @GOGcom! http://t.co/FiJrWocVRSJun 18, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- RT @GOGcom: Torchlight (http://t.co/sOdaH5ob3G), the hack-and-slash masterpiece, FREE for 48 hours on @GOGcom! https://t.co/LCGtkw5DBeJun 18, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- I realise I'm over a year late with this but I've just discovered this amazing #MassEffect tribute song "Reignite" :3 http://t.co/0j0GXwTcuI
- #nowplaying The Unforgiving by Within Temptation. May be catchiest ever WT album. May buy Q Sessions while I wait for new album @WTofficialJun 16, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- WT cover beats both Imagine Dragons' original and Lindsey Stirling cover ^.^ #np Within Temptation - Radioactive http://t.co/0JVTB0anndJun 16, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- My Top 3 #lastfm Artists: Vitamin String Quartet (18), Within Temptation (17) & Lacuna Coil (3) http://t.co/nEo47RvQPH
- RT @spark_scitech: Science & Technology section of @SparkNewspaper from @UniofReading has joined twitterJun 07, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Stop the US government from having unrestricted, unquestioned access to your online information. http://t.co/PBwPOqFafA via @Sum_Of_Us
- My Top 3 #lastfm Artists: Vitamin String Quartet (37), We Are the Fallen (30) & Barenaked Ladies (19) http://t.co/nEo47RvQPH
- "100 staffing days" to make BBC clock an accurate realtime clock? Really?! Am I missing something? http://t.co/adZYNVnPsd
- RT @BigFatGingerCat: @dafuloth @Er0_0 I highly rate SublimeText2. There are occasional registration reminders until you buy, yes.Jun 04, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- RT @DaveVoyles: @dafuloth @Er0_0 I use Sublime. Perhaps the best text editor yet (If that's all you need). TONS of plugins, but a project …Jun 04, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Jun 04, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Main text editor is Notepad++ (free/GPL) but anyone have personal experience of Sublime Text (unlimited evaluation, registration reminders)?Jun 04, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Glad @StaplesUK do customer service better than they do packing. Just got a call from them. Got a 10% refund. That's something, at least
- RT @lifehacker: Have a bunch of old CDs lying around? Turn them into an LED lamp: http://t.co/DtHlNNFEC7Jun 03, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
-
Posts
- I like fixing things...
A quick post about university, living with CFS, and fixing a WordPress login problem.
I’ll be honest, my university experience hasn’t been smooth. Especially not as of late, with a humongous CFS relapse that I think I might only just now be coming out of. Then again, last week I thought I’d gotten better but I was wrong. Being able to structure thoughts and write in coherent sentences is a good sign, however.
Maybe I should be making the best of every single minute of good functioning instead of writing this but dammit, I love to reflect and analyse. And I wish I had time to do it more often. I would love to try some philosophy classes.
Anyway, this will wake up my brain, right?
While it doesn’t mean I don’t want to*, I don’t often speak (much less publicly) of my condition and how it’s affecting me. I guess I’m just tough like that? xD
* I will happily spill my guts to any friend who asks me earnestly but I won’t spam!
On WordPress maintenance
While at university I’ve been involved with a number of student clubs and societies, albeit less in recent times due to the aforementioned CFS issues. Most recently, I volunteered on the student paper. I was one of the Science & Technology Editors and while I was there I brought the website back up and became the new Webmaster too.
Officially, I’ve retired from both roles but like it’s a rescued kitten [cue cute funny kitten GIFs], I still feel a degree of responsibility and protectiveness towards the website I brought back online. Thanks to automatic assaults by botnets on WordPress websites, I’ve had a number of loose ends to tie up.
I’m surprised that hack-storm still hasn’t blown over. Or at least, the web hosting company doesn’t think so because it’s still blocking access to the “wp-login.php” login page.
Now, the fix was pretty straightforward and took maybe 15 minutes to implement. The host’s advice was just to rename wp-login.php to something else and alter a line in it. However, it broke the logging-out. I fixed that with help from Notepad++ and Find in Files, updating references to wp-login.php in the other PHP files. I was in a hurry and couldn’t find a list of dependencies anywhere in the documentation so I was liberal here rather than specifically focusing on the logout problem- who knows what other functionality relies on access to wp-login.php?
Anyway, problems solved. I am glad. Hurray!
Am I setting myself up for a career in technical support? Well, sure, I could do it but it wouldn’t be my first choice.
I like fixing things but I love solving problems. Technical support might be fun at first but soon I fear it would become routine and repetitive. Then I wouldn’t be solving anything - just applying and reapplying the same fixes again and again.
Hardiness and resilience
The way I see it, there’s a spectrum of “toughness” when it comes to personal dispositions. On one end is hardiness. The ultimate hardy types are just short of bulletproof. Nothing fazes them. Any problems they encounter barely register. The problems just bounce off them.
I can do a little hardy but really I see myself as being more the other kind of tough. All things considered, I think I’m actually pretty resilient. Any damage does register but my attitude is to “walk it off”. I’m resolute about achieving my goal. I persevere and I try to keep on going no matter what. I just won’t give up.
If you’ve seen the first Terminator film then think of the scene towards the end where The Terminator just keeps on going even after all the damage it’s sustained. Even reduced to its metal endoskeleton, it just keeps advancing,
[If I could find an animated GIF of that, it would go here]
It’s actually a better analogy than I realised. Like the defeated T-800, however much I struggled, I was beaten and I wasn’t going anywhere.
I think it’s a weakness and a strength. It probably comes from the Aspie in me. Digression: even though “Neuro-Typical” and “Autistic Spectrum Disorders” are often thought of as separate, imo they are really just two ends of the same spectrum… but that’s a post for another time.
- Thumbs Up for Eurovision 2013
So, I think I’ve whittled 39 entries down to a dozen favourites. This is a continuation of my original post.
Thumbs up to:
- Italy: Marco Mengoni - L’Essenziale - 7th. Sounds like an Italian version of Ronan Keating but whatever, it was good enough to make me check out the rest.
- United Kingdom: Bonnie Tyler - Believe In Me - 19th. With Bonnie Tyler, I’m not surprised we did better than last year (25th). It’s not Holding Out for a Hero but I’ll take her over Blue, even if they did rank 11th in 2011. Maybe she could think about bring back some of that 80’s sound?
- Germany: Cascada - Glorious - 21st. I listened to this entry next given my existing affinity for Cascada. Still liking Cascada. :)
- France: Amandine Bourgeois - L’Enfer Et Moi - 23rd. I would have ranked this a lot higher… The gothic feel of the music video was nice too. If France wants to go more in that direction with their next entry, I can recommend Markize
- Estonia: Birgit Õigemeel - Et Uus Saaks Alguse - 20th. Ahh… a nice slow ballad. It sounds like something you’d put in a Disney cartoon movie.
- Russia: Dina Garipova - What If - 5th. I think this is was a good entry and deserved to rank in the top ten. I think what sold it for me was the grander orchestral backing versus Estonia’s. Dina Garipova is a belter on this and that’s how I like my ballads. My knowledge of female ballad singers is not extensive but I’m thinking… Celine Dion?
- Hungary: ByeAlex - Kedvesem (Zoohacker Remix) - 10th. It’s a love song. I looked up the translated lyrics because I liked this song and wasn’t sure why. I think it’s because this song has got a sort of whimsical JoCo quality to it, which I like.
- Iceland: Eyþór Ingi Gunnlaugsson - Ég á Líf - 17th. Yay, a pianist! I do like a bit of Josh Groban so I can appreciate this and in content, this song is like You Raise Me Up. Both songs are about overcoming adversity.
- Norway: Margaret Berger - I Feed You My Love - 4th. Denmark won and while I’m not saying this should have won, I certainly like this is more. Definitely like it more than the 3rd ranked Ukrainian entry.
- Austria: Natália Kelly - Shine - 14th. Really? I’d would have put this in the top ten!
- Albania: Adrian Lulgjuraj & Bledar Sejko - Identitet - 15th. And just when I thought Eurovision 2013 was devoid of hard rock. Definitely top ten for me. And higher than Austria’s even.Being something different from all the rest, this is to ESC2013 what Lordi was to ESC2006
And the entries I haven’t mentioned? I don’t necessarily think they’re bad. They just don’t do anything for me. Denmark’s entry, the winning entry, was definitely not bad and I did like the flute and drums but I can definitely think of other entries that should have been closer contenders for the top spot than they were!
- Has Eurovision become better over the years?
Eurovision spawns listening parties, yearly rituals and full blown pilgrimages.
As for myself, I freely admit to not being the biggest Eurovision fan but I do try to stay in the loop with what happens, in passing anyway. For this year’s, I randomly picked a track from the Eurovision 2013 Grand Final playlist to listen to. It was Italy’s Marco Mengoni with his entry L’essenziale.
Well, for an Eurovision entry, it was better than I expected. So thanks to Italy’s entry, this year I’ve paid a lot more attention to Eurovision than I have in years.
I realise the following is a rather subjective question but… is it just me or has the standard of entries actually been particularly good this year? Or has it in fact been like this in the years before?
I was actually originally going to include a list of “Thumbs Up” in this post containing any good things I might have to say about particular ESC entries. I stopped myself when I realised I had more Thumbs Up to give than than I possessed fingers. And possibly toes as well. If you’re interested, it’s in its own post.
I ask because it’s been many years since I’ve paid as much attention to Eurovision as I have this year. I paid special attention to 2006’s where Finland’s Lordi won but they’re so not the usual run of the mill Eurovision entry.
It’s not that I have a complete aversion to pop music - I can happily listen to a lot of the radio-friendly rock/pop. I just have a limited appetite for the saccharine and in the past I’ve generally been put off by an excess of bubblegum-pop.
A slight exception is reserved for Dance music- which can be a little “sugary” sometimes - but that’s as far as I go.
Many - it could indeed be most, but I haven’t checked all the artists - of the entries seem to come from winners of their respective countries’ Idols (or other talent competition) reality TV shows. Why?! Of course some of them are actually not bad at all but surely they can cast their nets wider than that.
Imagine Dragons - Radioactive (by ImagineDragonsVEVO)
Here by way of the Lindsey Stirling cover.
Hahaha… I just find this catchier and I like the grungy(?) element. Imagine Dragons wins this Cover Comparison.
To my compromised cognitive state at this hour, this video is making me think of some dark cross between Pokémon and Avenue Q…That sounds like one freaky anime. (O_o)
Oh, and I think Darth Vader called, he wants his NOOOOO! back :p
- Random Thoughts: Focus
Problem: Experiencing a period of increased distractibility. Attention drifting to distant, or “exterior” sounds, like people talking downstairs.
Workaround: Institute a louder, closer source of sound that I can control. Got music playing and volume turned up.
Note: It seems rather hit and miss how various conditions are diagnosed because there’s so much overlap in diagnostic criteria of various neurodiverse states. It’s a wonder that anyone actually gets the right support they need. A very similar (or even identical) set of symptoms diagnosed one way warrants medication but diagnosed another way, the advice is to work on self-management.
I actually took an official diagnostic test for ADHD this week. I scored firmly in the middle of the “highly probable for ADHD” range of scores. However, all the issues I have (and have pretty much always had, but now outstripping my ability to cope with them, I think) with focus/ concentration/ attention/ organisation could also (perhaps additionally, rather than instead) be due to dyspraxia, aspergers and more recently ME.
*sigh*
Don’t wish me luck. Wish me ironclad focus. - Semi-private, sort-of rant
Maybe I just happen to be in a grumpy mood right now that casts certain things that I wouldn’t normally allow to bother me in a more crimson light.
I despise public rants like this actually. They’re ultimately a selfish exercise in self-indulgence that don’t really change anything- except maybe oneself if it helps to blow off steam. If something really bothers me that badly then I will go do something about it rather than ramble on a blog.
Maybe I it could just be that I have unreasonable expectations. I’m going to make a list of things that I think are reasonable to expect and hopefully I can identify anything which really is unreasonable.
- Kitchen
Bin: You fill it, you empty it. It should never be allowed to overflow. How can you tell? If that last item you put into it means the lid won’t close properly even with a bit of compression, that’s a good sign that the bin is full.
Sink: The strainer is there to ensure that the sink doesn’t get clogged up and require a visit from a plumber, the cost of which will come out of our deposits. But as the strainer collects gunk, it needs to be cleared so that dishwater can drain away…
- Unofficial Lodgers
In a previous house I got a talking-to from one of my housemates when I had someone stay over for over a couple of weeks. I concurred that it a reasonable complaint then, and so it’s no less valid a complaint for me myself to make now
Since joining us, a housemate has had their OH living with us. It was originally supposed to be for a short period of time, while they sorted out their accommodation issues. Fair enough, we thought. However, housemate’s OH is still with us.
But it’s not that specifically which bothers me. And it’s not a matter of overcrowding at all, since our place can in theory house 5 people and they share a room anyway.
It actually wouldn’t bother me at all if it was official. This person has basically been freeloading off us. They haven’t been paying their share of the rent or utility bills. Rent is the big one but given that they share a room, I’d be ok with them not paying [rent/5] each and instead paying something like 1.5[rent/4] and the rest of us split the remainder between us.
This isn’t what I signed up for. That tenancy agreement we signed in July was between four of us.
- Lights
Maybe this one could be thought of as the least reasonable one? This is one is a true pet-peeve. It doesn’t really affect anyone any huge way but it really bugs me. There’s a bathroom next to mine that when a particular person uses it (I suspect it may be the freeloader, because this never used to a problem), they don’t switch the light off afterwards. Fair enough if it’s the hallway or something like that where there’ll be regular intermittent use… but this is the bathroom. In general, I wish people would switch off lights when they’re done with them.
I’ve got a big thing for harmony. I don’t think I’m the only one with these issues but I’m really not up for dealing with the massive disharmony and fallout that could ensue if I were to make a thing of it. And I’m not going to be here forever so I guess I don’t feel it’s worth the trouble to kick up a fuss.
Maybe the other thing is that I’m trying to pre-rationalise probably having to move back home to London after uni. I guess I want to be able to tell myself that on some level, being out here wasn’t so great after all so that I won’t feel so bad about having to move back home.
*sigh*
Perhaps I can go do something more constructive now, channelling that sense of frustration and annoyance that I’ve honed here. - Kitchen
- 5 Awesome Halloween Light Shows
Compared to us here in the UK, over in the US they’ve really got a knack for doing certain things bigger and larger scale. Halloween is one good example. Check out these amazing installations synchronised to music:
[Or watch the whole playlist here]
- Thriller (Michael Jackson) - KJ92508
The way the pumpkins light up to mark the path taken by the footsteps at the start of the song, it’s a nice touch hinting at the choreography to come.
If you’re a fan of LMFAO then chances are you’ve probably already seen this guy’s work. Kevin Judd of Riverside, California is pretty prolific when it comes to amazing light shows on the front of houses. So impressed were LMFAO with his light show, synchronised to Party Rock Anthem, that they approached him and had him do their lights for last year’s American Music Awards.
- Supermassive Black Hole (Muse) - soilhead13
For Rocky Horror fans there’s also one for The Time Warp by this user. It was tough to choose which one to feature.
- This is Halloween (Marilyn Manson) - KJ92508
Wasn’t kidding when I described this guy as prolific- another one from KJ92508 that I really like. His channel features probably the best examples of creative lighting on YouTube. I love this one featuring Marilyn Manson’s cover of “This is Halloween”.
Hope to continue to see more videos of his light shows. Apparently there was an issue with the HOA (Home Owners’ Association?) and he had to stop putting up light shows on his house.
- Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen) - OdessaWest
By the way, the numbering is actually rather arbitrary: if the numbering actually meant anything there’d be two or three tied first place with the rest tied second place. I really do think that the ones featured here are the best of the bunch. This one is good enough to be ranked joint first place.
- Monster Mash - jennstarr722
Nice song, nice colours…
Come Christmas time I’ll probably look at “Awesome Christmas Light Shows” because it was actually a YouTube video of amazing Christmas lights that led me to explore Halloween lights…
- Thriller (Michael Jackson) - KJ92508
- SciTech Editorial - Freshers Issue
So, a while back I promised you (or whoever reads my blog anyway) and myself that in an effort to keep my blog regularly updated, I’d put up articles and things that I write for Spark*, the student newspaper at my university The University of Reading. So this is me making a start on that. We used to have a “In Other News” column but I decided to re-purpose it into an Editorial. I feel it adds a personal touch to the section.
I also happen to be the Web Editor too so I heartily encourage you to go have a look at the website at www.sparknewspaper.co.uk, and if you want to read the latest issue, then that’s just gone up on Issuu - check out the Issuu page on the website or go straight to Issuu.
It’s your Science & Technology editor, David Thai here! Well, one of the two of us anyway. Regular readers will have noticed a change: we used to have a column of “other news” on this page. I’ve decided that we shouldn’t limit ourselves so beginning this first issue of 2012/2013, we’ll be using the space for an editorial instead.
This issue opens with Vinay’s in-depth interview with Ross Beale, one of the team behind the new social networking app Mixer. It’s a fascinating read. Will Mixer be the next big thing in social networking? Have a read and perhaps have a go, and let us know what you think!
Then we join Frances McKean to consider the ethics and implications of transhumanism. It comes with a lovely piece of artwork from Hannah Tierman. While I myself don’t have so much as a tattoo, I find transhumanism a fascinating concept: I for one think the prospect of enhancing our abilities with science and technology is an exciting one. Deputy Editor Calum drew my attention to Lepht Anonym who I looked up immediately. On the Wellcome Trust’s blog about their Superhuman exhibition, they consider the cases of “the artist, the scholar and the zealot” (http://wp.me/pJJaZ-2NP) where our very own Professor Kevin Warwick is the scholar, the artist is Stelarc and Lepht Anonym is dubbed a zealot. Lepht performs surgery on herself in the kitchen and has placed magnets in her fingertips to allow her to detect electromagnetic fields. A visionary, or a madwoman? That seems to roughly cover the range of opinion on what she does to herself. I think it’s amazing. Maybe I’m just weird?
Well that’s all we have time for this issue. Thanks for reading and see you next issue!
- Gangnam Style: Top Parodies/Tributes/Remixes
When a viral hit or meme reaches a certain critical mass, anyone who wasn’t paying attention… well, you just gotta.
As is often the case when it comes to music viral hits from genres outside my usual mix, the first thing I usually look at is parody. Then any tributes/covers or remixes and then finally I’ll look at the original. I find it a good deconstruction of the meme and it helps me appreciate the original more: I come to understand it’s appeal and have some fun while I’m doing it.
In my top 3: North Korea’s Kim Jong-un tells it like it is in Key of Awesome #63, a pair of town guards from Skyrim show off their Gangnam Style and then a look at what might’ve happened if Psy was Klingon.- Key of Awesome #63: PSY - GANGNAM STYLE (강남스타일) PARODY! KIM JONG STYLE!
This one was the first one I saw. I love Key of Awesome’s parody videos. This is one of those that’s “funny because it’s true”. The truth itself isn’t funny but the showing up of a less than ideal state of affairs is. - Skyrim : Gangnam Style Dance by abexomotron1
This one I class as a tribute. And it may be my favourite of the ones I’ve seen. The song itself is unchanged but it’s an innovative use of a couple of guards from Skyrim. I should get around to playing that game at some point. Maybe when they release a GOTY edition that bundles DLC/expansions.
- KLINGON STYLE (Star Trek Parody of PSY - GANGNAM STYLE)
Finally, what is probably the best Gangnam Style inspired video I’ve seen on YouTube. This is amazing. You’ll just have to watch it yourself. There are lyrics in actual Klingon. Several popular characters from Star Trek make an appearance too.
Afterthought: It occurred to me that Psy/Gangnam Style is sort of this year’s LMFAO/Party Rock Anthem. Is everyone still shufflin’ or are they doing it Gangnam Style?
- Key of Awesome #63: PSY - GANGNAM STYLE (강남스타일) PARODY! KIM JONG STYLE!
- Queued Posts...
So, I’ve been incredibly busy with various stuff so I’ve not been on Tumblr in ages. Is it bad that having felt an urge to blog something, after completing the post I then have to queue for the end of next month because it’s a bit premature to talk about it right now?
Will get round to finishing this game when I have the time but in the meantime I’ve got the soundtrack on repeat, especially this track, and now I’m out of plays on Spotify. To Grooveshark!
I still haven’t seen it and I was wondering if I was missing anything…
He’s right. That movie was baaaad D:
- So, it's been a while...
Right, I haven’t blogged in months but I am still alive. I’ve just been more active in other places, like Twitter.
In terms of content, I’ll soon be posting up new articles on a (hopefully) regular basis - but more on that in a moment.
Anyway, how is everyone? I’ve been doing alright. I’ve been keeping quite busy actually. In the past few months I’ve been getting stuck in with student media at Reading University.
As of March I’ve been working on the radio station Junction11’s twice-weekly news show and for the past two shows I’ve even been able to read some of it. You can listen to Junction11 online on their website. And as of last month I’m one of the two new editors for the Science & Technology section of our Spark* newspaper - I finished editing our section yesterday for the next issue, out this Friday. It’s also likely that I’m also going to be the new Spark* Web Editor too because right now all we’ve got right now is the twitter account @SparkNewspaper - someone needs to get the Spark* website back up and running and keep it that way. It had to be me. Someone else might have gotten it wrong. ;).
And hopefully I can get more involved with RUON TV, our TV station… going to production meeting tomorrow to see what comes up.
But anyway, on to content. Whenever I write an article for Spark*, I’ll also post it on my blog :)
Nokia ringtone during concert of classical music: How to react when a mobile goes off and interrupts your performance
(Found this via BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16688007)
- Really need to use Wikipedia today?
Calm down dear, it’s only Javascript!
As you’ll discover, if you didn’t know already, Wikipedia is staging a 24 hour blackout which began 0500 UTC today.
So much has been made of the Wikipedia blackout… but what if you really need to use it? In case you don’t know how to get Wikipedia back because you didn’t follow the link to “Learn more” then basically you should know that it’s not the end of the world if you urgently need access to Wikipedia today. The pages are all still there, they just appear with an overlay on top of them thanks to Javascript.
So fear not, because Wikipedia have made it very simple to get the normal site back because the SOPA blackout works by Javascript so you can get Wikipedia back by disabling Javascript or adding this line to AdBlock:
http://meta.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:BannerLoader&banner=blackout*
Most if not all of the sites participating in the blackout are probably doing it with Javascript (e.g. I know that the http://sopastrike.com/ blackout is), so disabling it will also bring back those sites.
I think this has been a great idea. It’s like the Internet’s equivalent of peaceful protest versus the more hands on hacktivism of Anonymous (akin those who protest by smashing windows and burning cars, etc.). Having said that, I’m half expecting to hear about various cyber attacks in the next few days against organisations supporting SOPA/PIPA. Whether that’s a good or bad thing is for another post/debate.
I still haven’t seen the Series 2 finale of Sherlock. I think maybe subconsciously I’m trying to shorten the time I have to wait for Series 3. If I left it long enough then the previous two episodes would no longer be fresh in my mind so I’d have to watch Series 2 right from the beginning.
But if I did that then I may as well start right from the beginning from 1x01 and have a Sherlock Marathon! Oh woe is me! >:p
And while I’m at it, I’ll probably want to go back and rewatch Luther too.
<Mini-rant incoming…>
Speaking of a Sherlock marathon, the Sherlock - Series 1 and 2 Box Set is available to pre-order on Amazon… but I think I’ll wait for the Series 1, 2 and 3 Box Set.
Is it just me or does anyone else find it just a little annoying how for a second series and series thereafter they’ll release a standalone series box set (like Sherlock - Series 2 on DVD, also available to pre-order) and also a combined box set of all the series to date? It makes me want to wait until the show has stopped running and then get a combined all-series box set because it’s cheaper that way.
foobar2000: A better audio player
Yesterday I switched to foobar2000 and found it to be my favourite audio player. It has everything I want from an audio player: it’s light on system resources, can scrobble to Last.fm and supports media keys so I can easily play/pause/skip without needing to activate foobar2000. The UI is easy to customise to your preferences and there are various components that you can add for extra functionality. One of the components I’ve added is the lyrics component. I’ve changed the layout so that the lyrics window is docked into the main window rather floating separately.
I don’t use iTunes or WMP because all I want is to listen to my music. I don’t need all the extras. There are specific things I dislike about those two but I won’t go into it here.
For a long time, I’ve used Winamp for playing music. However, I started noticing how it was not lightweight and would slow, freeze and/or crash if I left it running. This in turn would slow down my system. This I did not like.
I looked at what I already had installed and started using VLC instead. VLC is one of my favourite programs. No more worrying about having the right codec. Highly recommended and you should try it if you haven’t already.
Anyway, VLC is much lighter than Winamp and does what I need it to do. Only down side is that it doesn’t support the media keys on my keyboard - its global hotkey settings literally will not let me bind the media keys. The only way to get it to kind of work is if I install mk2mp and even then it only works if the VLC window is active- which sort of defeats the point of using the media keys.
I did also look at Media Player Classic, which does support media keys but doesn’t scrobble. Personally, the Last.fm support is more important to me than media keys support, so VLC, it was.
But I have foobar2000 now and I’m not going back.
Screenshot was taken while foobar2000 was in use. I was listening to Tapping the Vein who are one the many bands I adore. Female fronted gothic metal, yay. Go have a listen on Grooveshark or find the band on Amazon.
[Image: 6-piece blue colored background with a Siamese cat with blue eyes. Text reads: “Top text:Socialize with friends for a few hours Bottom text: In bed in agonizing pain for three days”]
urgh… gpoy
- I want to cuddle...
…a large wolf :/
Originally posted on my Facebook but I suspect there may be others who’ve experienced a similar predicament so I’m sharing my story here! :)
The desire to lie in bed cuddling big cuddly toy increases proportionally to how worn-down I’m feeling.
Lestat de Lioncourt used to curl up with his mastiffs for warmth and comfort but a cuddly toy is going to be the closest I’ll ever get to curling up with a wolf.
My brief search this morning has led me to discover the following:- Wolves are a rarity in the world of cuddly toys. Particularly compared to the obscenely common teddy bear.
- In the entire world - or at least, the world as represented by the Internet - there is apparently only one wolf toy (of the larger variety) on sale.
- This is the “Lge Lying Wolf by Hansa Toys” from http://www.lincrafts.com/wolf.htm - It is a “truly realistic animal” according its Amazon listing and it’s a whole metre length of Canis lupus plushie.
- Cuddly toys can be far more expensive than I could ever have imagined. This one costs £300. Yes, you read correctly: Three Hundred Pounds Sterling.
- The Serotonin Experiment: Epilogue
For the full story behind this, see this.
November-Present
Things have got pretty bad. Towards the end of November I was seeing the GP repeatedly, trying to get him to give me something to stop me being so debilitatingly tired all the time.
The only thing he was willing to offer was to increase my dose of sertraline from 50mg to 100mg- because I found that the 50mg dose seemed to stop me getting headaches as much or as often, so maybe increasing the dose might help in other ways.
I repeat, while it may be an antidepressant I was not taking it because I was depressed, but rather I was taking it because it seemed to help with my headaches- which is one of the symptoms of my ME. Something is better than nothing, I figured, so I agreed to the increased dosage.
As I went through this new packet, I didn’t find that I was getting any additional improvement from the increased dosage.
So I’d take one pill a day but sometimes I’d miss a day but as I’d still have boosted serotonin levels in my system, I could just top up the next day and carry on as normal. Thus, it would be one tablet a day or at least one every other day. No big deal.
But as my condition seemed to take a turn for the worst, there would be more and days that I’d lose to sleeping because I’d be so tired and that was all I could do. This eventually led me to missing more than one day at time. It was at this point I realised that this was not working. Because on the second day without sertraline, I got the mother of all headaches.
It occurred to me that I was locking myself into a drug that provided minimal benefit which if I ever stopped taking, there would be a small bit of hell to pay. If I was benefiting more substantially, then it would be a different story. I’ve concluded that I would rather risk the occasional headache without sertraline than the guaranteed mega headache if I were on it and discontinued it.
I think I’ll see how things go without sertraline. Going onto 100mg tablets was counter-productive. If occasional headaches become a problem, I’ll consider taking a low dose as a prophylactic but otherwise I think the SSRI angle is a dead end.
Damn.
What I’d really like is for the doctor to let me try something else. Screw the “official guidelines”. Given that there’s no cure for ME/CFS anyway, lets forget about the diagnosis for a moment and focus on alleviating the actual symptoms. What I’d like is to be able to take something to fight off the constant tiredness and need to sleep.
- Will get round to finishing this game when I have the time but in the meantime I’ve got the soundtrack on repeat, especially this track, and now I’m out of plays on Spotify. To Grooveshark!
(No streaming audio available)0 plays
-
Recent Tracks
- Sinéad by Within Temptation
- Where Is the Edge by Within Temptation
- Iron by Within Temptation
- Fire and Ice by Within Temptation
- Faster by Within Temptation
- In the Middle of the Night by Within Temptation
- Shot in the Dark by Within Temptation
- Bitter Sweet Symphony by The Verve
- Swamped by Lacuna Coil
- Surrender (Dark Techno mix by TL5) by Chiasm
Lacuna CoilThe Birthday MassacreWithin TemptationTapping the VeinEmilie AutumnMichael McCannLullacryNightwishSonata ArcticaSireniaEnigmaLinkin ParkPlaceboKornPoets of the FallHIMGarbageBon JoviNine Inch NailsMuseSarah McLachlanEvanescenceThe Cardigansnervous_testpilotDarling ViolettaGregorianDragonForceL'Âme ImmortelleLeaves' EyesAperture Science Psychoacoustics LaboratoryTristaniaMurray GoldCollideLunaticaDelainLindsey StirlingDidoThe QuireboysThe RasmusStratovarius坂本龍一Helen Jane LongGreen DayAll About EveLifeformed3 Doors DownTheatre of TragedyLifehouseJace EverettDaft Punk- 136 plays
- 136 plays
- 133 plays
- 111 plays
- 109 plays
- 109 plays
- 108 plays
- 108 plays
- 102 plays
- 98 plays
- 96 plays
- 93 plays
- 91 plays
- 89 plays
- 88 plays
- 87 plays
- 86 plays
- 84 plays
- 83 plays
- 81 plays
- 80 plays
- 79 plays
- 79 plays
- 77 plays
- 76 plays
- 74 plays
- 71 plays
- 71 plays
- 71 plays
- 69 plays
- 69 plays
- 68 plays
- 68 plays
- 67 plays
- 67 plays
- 67 plays
- 67 plays
- 66 plays
- 66 plays
- 66 plays
- 65 plays
- 63 plays
- 63 plays
- 63 plays
- 62 plays
- 62 plays
- 62 plays
- 62 plays
- 62 plays
-
Attending
- London, UK
- Knebworth, UK
- Southampton, UK
- Prestatyn, UK
- London, UK
-
UploadsFeb 07, 12" data-title="Laura London ("Imaginarium" Cabaret by Area 51) @ SFX Weekender 3"> Feb 07, 12" data-title="No poi, just dancers ("Imaginarium" Cabaret by Area 51) @ SFX Weekender 3"> Feb 07, 12" data-title="Globot - Illuminatus Stageshow ("Imaginarium" Cabaret by Area 51) @ SFX Weekender 3"> Feb 07, 12" data-title="Fire Dancing / Poi ("Imaginarium" Cabaret by Area 51) @ SFX Weekender 3"> Feb 07, 12" data-title="Fire Poi ("Imaginarium" Cabaret by Area 51) @ SFX Weekender 3"> Jun 12, 11" data-title="Re: Your Brains - Jonathan Coulton"> Jun 12, 11" data-title="Jonathan Coulton: The Portal Songs - Want You Gone / Still Alive"> Jun 12, 11" data-title="Mr. Fancy Pants - Jonathan Coulton at Union Chapel, London (11/6/2011)"> Jun 12, 11" data-title="Code Monkey - Jonathan Coulton at Union Chapel 11th June 2011"> Jun 12, 11" data-title="Paul and Storm - Nun Fight"> Mar 29, 11" data-title="The Misery - Sonata Arctica (Sub89, Reading)"> Nov 20, 10" data-title="Soldier - Bitter Ruin (12-Nov-2010)"> Nov 20, 10" data-title="Beware - Bitter Ruin (12-Nov-2010)"> Oct 24, 10" data-title="When A Dead Man Walks - Lacuna Coil (The Borderline, London)"> Oct 24, 10" data-title="Within Me (Acoustic) - Lacuna Coil (The Borderline, London)"> Oct 24, 10" data-title="Swamped - Lacuna Coil (The Borderline, London)"> Oct 24, 10" data-title="Second to None - The Mariana Hollow"> Oct 24, 10" data-title="Come Undone - The Mariana Hollow"> Oct 24, 10" data-title="The Rapture - Tainted Grace"> Sep 25, 10" data-title="Smoke Fairies - Frozen Heart (Camden Dingwalls, 21/09/2010)"> May 25, 10" data-title="The Vice - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 25, 10" data-title="Soldier - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 25, 10" data-title="The Dancing Dolls of Porcelain - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 25, 10" data-title="Relief - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 25, 10" data-title="Deficiency of You - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 24, 10" data-title="Trust - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 24, 10" data-title="Soundproof Box - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 24, 10" data-title="I'm Going To Be A Murderer - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 24, 10" data-title="Chewing Gum - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 24, 10" data-title="Beware - Bitter Ruin (Album Launch Party 21/05/2010)"> May 10, 10" data-title="Jace Everett - Angel Loves The Devil Outta Me"> May 10, 10" data-title="Jace Everett - Your Man"> May 10, 10" data-title="Jace Everett - Bad Things (True Blood Theme)"> May 09, 10" data-title="Alyssa Bonagura - Heavy On My Mind"> May 09, 10" data-title="Alyssa Bonagura - Snow Falls Down Like London"> Apr 27, 10" data-title="Amanda Palmer & Jason Webley - Electric Blanket"> Apr 27, 10" data-title="Amanda Palmer & Jason Webley - Electric Blanket (in the style of the Sex Pistols)"> Apr 27, 10" data-title="Amanda Palmer - Gaga, Palmer, Madonna"> Apr 26, 10" data-title="Jason Webley - Ways to Love"> Mar 31, 10" data-title="Froya's Theme"> Mar 30, 10" data-title="Elegy - Leaves' Eyes"> Mar 30, 10" data-title="Emilie Autumn Reads From "The Asylum For Wayward Victorian Girls""> Mar 29, 10" data-title="Bury Me Alive - We Are The Fallen"> Mar 25, 10" data-title="Like a Prayer - We Are The Fallen">
