One thing for sure

Using the Verizon dongle (with the ensuing VZ Access Manager clusterfark in switching locations and messing up all my VPN configs) is enough of a pain in the arse while on vacation that I'm really looking forward to when tethering is live on the new iPhone OS. Of course, AT&T will find a way to screw it up - guaranteed. But so long as they price it under $60 per month it'll be a no-brainer.

Of course, the bastards there know that, and they'll charge $55 or something equally abusive.

Man things

This weekend my son turned seven. So we spent this afternoon hunting the majestic wild fish - much fun was had by all, much mud was flung and worn by all (we were working the flats by Kernwood on the ebbing tide), and the fish eluded our onslaught.

I didn't see anyone else having any luck, either, though. And I'd say that the cast/exploring the shore ratio for the two of us was particularly low. It was kind of funny - after each successful cast he'd want to try a different lure. Plus he was wondering why a foot-long Sluggo wouldn't work on his lightweight 7-foot fishing rod. Tough to explain. I will say that the shore looks a lot more solid at low tide than it actually is. If I ever go to work that spot again, I'll bring waders instead of lace-up Crocs.

At what age does David have to grow up some - and do I ever have to myself, too? I hope not.

They aren't taking my advice - duh...

I don't actually expect the folks at NASCAR to take anything resembling advice from me, but here's what they ought to do to fix sagging TV ratings and track attendance:

- Like I've said before, instead of the top 12 in the Chase, put the top 10 (or 12) plus anyone within a certain point threshold. I think 500 or 600 points is good. And/or any driver who's team has made every start and won at least one race. That would let pretty much any legit top 35 team that gets a win in, and leaves out the flukes like Talladega (where anything can happen). You might wind up with as many as 15 drivers in the Chase that way - not a big bump but at least folks know they're in reach.

- Re-seed the Chase back the way it was originally, but give bonus points for wins. It's not fair when a driver (like Gordon) goes into the chase with a huge points lead but then winds up re-seeded behind someone with a lot fewer points but more wins.

- As long as I'm on it, change the Top 35 rule to the Top 30. Having 13 slots open for the race will make qualifying a lot more interesting and really doesn't screw any contending team out of the show.

- Re-engineer the CoT to make the tires at least 2 inches wider. Wider tire=more grip=better racing. This is something I know is in the works, but it should be sped up.

- Adjust the aero properties to make being out in front a little less of an advantage.

- Pull back the splitter a couple of inches so you have fewer tire rips caused by splitter contact.

- Drop a couple of the 1.5 mile tracks (or at least some of the second races on them). Drop one of the Pocono races (they're boring). In exchange, add a couple more short-track races and put a second Darlington race back on the schedule. Maybe even Rockingham again. And put a little banking in at Loudon. Mile tracks are fun when you can run hot into a corner. Wouldn't mind seeing another road race besides Sonoma and Watkins Glen, too. It wouldn't kill anyone to turn right a little more often.

- I like the Homestead track, but I think Vegas would be a better place to wind up the season. Especially since they're having the awards banquet there now.

- Finally, change the rules to make the Nationwide Series a developmental circuit again. Limit the number of races that Cup regulars can race. Less Buschwhacking will mean more drivers on an even basis on Sunday.

Movie report

I didn't mention it before, but we saw Watchmen in Imax a few weeks back. Cool movie, very dark, worth the trip for Imax. Of course, I read the book about 25 years ago. Hated Silk Spectre's wig - it looked way too fake. Rorschach was, as reported by most critics, awesome. The ending change wasn't bad, considering that it would have been tough to create the monster, even with CGI - plus it would have forced a lot more backstory into an already long film.

Most recent Apple TV rental - Mamma Mia! (which was a blast). Jane and I really enjoyed it, David not quite so much but he liked the singing. Poor Pierce Brosnan. He gave it a game effort, and he really is a sorely underrated actor, but he sang like a strangled bison. Thankfully he remained close to on-key, but I've seen the list of people I can out-sing and it's a short one. I do believe his name is on it, though.

In general, we've become big Apple TV fans here. I don't even have a DVD player hooked up right now (not enough HD analog inputs on my sound system and I can't convert HDMI to Component) - the only ones we have that have been worth repeat watching have been ripped by me and uploaded to the Apple box. Everything else we watch is on-demand from either iTunes on the Apple box or Amazon via the TiVo.

I have seen the future of content delivery, and shiny discs are not it.

Addendum/Correction/Post Padding

First, the correction: Right Guard is no longer a P&G product - they divested it when they bought Gillette. I'd forgotten.

Now, to add in a theme of mine (and annoy my folks - heh), as those of you who read this blog are aware, I'm a motorsports fan. In particular, I like NASCAR (the other stuff I'll watch but it's the stock cars I'm into). Unlike most, though, I have drivers I like but no loyal-to-the-end favorite - and I also have no loyalty to their brands, either. So you won't see me walking around in a DuPont jacket (like my son does) or wearing a Mountain Dew AMP hat (like Junior Nation does).

But I do have a couple of drivers I like more than the other. In particular, I've always liked Tony Stewart - he's got a temper, he's kind of a schlubby-looking guy, and he'll drive the wheels off anything he gets into. Drives really old-school. But his old team was sponsored by a company that annoys me (Home Depot) and his owner was a sanctimonious born-again douchebag (Gibbs Racing). Then Tony left to form his own team, picked a number that was a tribute to one of the all-time great drivers (14), and all seemed lined up to finally embrace a driver's team. But then he wound up with Office Depot and Old Spice as his primary sponsors. Well, Office Depot is so far behind Staples it's a joke (I do all my business at Staples - and Office Depot just pulled out of my region for the second time in a decade), and Old Spice is a P&G brand. So much for the #14 t-shirt - neither of those are brands I would want to promote!

Still root for Smoke on the racetrack, though.

Not to mention that by explaining all this I've padded my April post count to a whopping three. Yow!

In the news

P&G profits are down... at least part of that is because of us, so I'm proud.

More seriously with that thought - we don't boycott them entirely (even though that's my wife's ex-employer) but ever since she got her notice almost a year ago we've generally tried to buy the alternative/generic product in any category where we'd otherwise be buying a P&G product. What's amazing is just how many product categories they are in - it's really tough to avoid their brands.

The biggest thing for us was replacing Tide, Cascade, and Bounty paper towels with the Costco-branded alternatives. Even if P&G manufactures those for Costco (which I don't believe they do), they should make less money that way. On the other hand, I'm still using Right Guard and Gillette shaving cream. One does not grow a full beard for that sort of principle!

I know better than to think that we actually make any difference at all like that. But it's the gesture more than the reality that matters sometimes. I still haven't bought a Boston Herald since they ran the picture on the cover of a dying Victoria Snelgrove in 2004. I didn't read it often and they really don't care about my avoidance, but it matters to me and that's all that counts.

First real sign of spring

I went to the MIT Flea yesterday. That's when spring really starts. Everything else is just a warmup.

Hardware hackology

The major afternoon project - I went out and upgraded my Time Capsule to take a 1TB drive.

Cost of a Time Capsule: $299

Cost of a 1TB Time Capsule: $499

Cost of a 1TB WD Caviar Green drive: $110

Leftover 500GB Caviar Blue (what was in my Time Capsule before surgery): Useful.

It was pretty easy - You do need to peel off the rubber bumper on the bottom first, but there will be enough glue left over to easily stick it back on. Then there's a host of small Philips screws to remove, and the drive swap itself is quick. There is a temperature sensor you will have to re-place, and standoffs mounted to the lower drive chassis that need to be removed and moved to the new drive. But with the Caviar Green in place, operating temperature seems significantly lower, and the box is quieter as well.

And the point is?

So Microsoft's agency (Crispin Porter) is now directly going after Apple. Great. Don't you think they could have found something better for "Lauren, who is a real person" (but is also an actress and has a union card)?

The flip side is that there's plenty of areas Apple doesn't compete well in - and the low point of the market definitely is one of those areas. Though the HP she picked is a turd. In her defense, she comes across well and is cute. She lives in the netherworld of "not cool enough for Macs, but cool enough to have a VW", and that's a good-sized market.

She is an actress, after all - I agree with the Infoworld Cringely (as opposed to the "classic" one) and think it'd be fun to check up on her in a couple of months.

Just to reinforce my smug

I was off by a week, but the iPhone software 3.0 announcement was pretty much right on track with my earlier comments. Neener.