Week 7 - Rejection

You get three photos to choose from for this weeks Project 52 submission.

I don’t claim to be a fantastic photographer, but I’d like to think that I’m at least pretty good and occasionally take a shot worthy of selling at some point in my future.

Apparently, I still need a lot of work.

A few weeks ago I decided to join a reputable stock photo web site and see if there was any potential to make a few bucks to help support my hobby.

I uploaded a few samples and waited. I waited weeks before they were reviewed. Finally, about a week ago, they were reviewed… and rejected.

Granted, it was my mistake for uploaded three similar images. I don’t know why I did, but I did. Fair enough. I waited the specified time to upload three more samples and did so last night.

I got the rejected message this morning.

I realize I shouldn’t let it bother me. But it does. It does because I searched their web site and found similar photos to what I uploaded. No offence to those photographers, but if theirs got approved I see no reason why mine could not sit among them. Some of them left me scratching my head.

These were the last three that I uploaded. Are they excellent photos? I think they are. I’ve had people tell me they really like them.

Apparently, they’re not worthy. Are they my best work? I dunno. Isn’t that left to the eye of the beholder, or something like that?

They were kind enough to give me 7 days to stew review training materials, resources and articles provided before I can upload 3 more samples (for them to reject?)

*sigh*

I don’t know if I’ll bother. I think I’ll just stick with doing this entirely for the fun of it, and support my hobby when I can afford to do so.

Could it be?

As of last night, the status of my Batman: Arkham Asylum game order at BestBuy.ca changed to “In Stock”. However, the web site still indicates that the product is sold out. I checked it again this morning and the status is the same, but the game has yet to be shipped.

I’m having second thoughts about even keeping the game now. Maybe I can sell it for a bit more than I paid for it and buy the overpriced NHL 10. It’ll be factory sealed, after all, and it retails for $69.99. If I could get $55 for it I’d be happy. :)

Update Sept 17: it shipped this evening.
Update Sept 18: it arrived today.

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• BestBuy.ca = fail (scottpaterson.org)

BestBuy.ca = fail

On August 21st, I read that the new Batman: Arkham Asylum game for the Xbox360 was on sale at Best Buy and Future Shop for $38.83. That's an amazing price for a game that was to hit the shelves a few days later on August 25th.

BestBuy.ca offered free shipping on orders over $39, so I added a Xbox Live 1400 point card to my order and checked off the option to deliver the items separately if necessary.

I got the XBL points card on August 28th.

To date, I am still waiting for the game.

BestBuy.ca has been "Out of stock" or "Sold out" since August 25th. However, the stores continue to get it in stock.

I have sent TWO separate messages to their customer service by filling out the form on their web site, asking why the web store has yet to get any in stock.

To date, I have received ZERO replies. Although, I have received two automated messages informing me of the obvious -- that the item is out of stock.

At one point, I had considered canceling the order, but it seems that I can't even do that. I assume that's because it's part of a split-order, for which half has already been fulfilled with free shipping. I can't even change it to "Store pick-up".

This weekend, they put the game on sale AGAIN for $58.83, and online stock remained "Sold out" the entire time. (it still remains sold out as I type this)

I haven't been billed for the game, so as far as I'm concerned I'll wait until it has been fulfilled, but I'm gearing up to send their head off a snail mail complaint.

I can understand if it's difficult to get any in stock for the stores and the online store, but when the stores can get it in stock but not the online store... there's something wrong with that.

Open message to Scott Paterson (not myself)

You are using MY email address.

I've had scott.paterson@gmail.com for a long time, and Google treats scott.paterson@googlemail.com (which you are using) the same as my email address. In fact, Google also considers scottpaterson@gmail.com (@googlemail.com), s.cottpaterson@gmail.com (@googlemail.com) and any variation with a period anywhere in the name to be the same address.

As a result of this, your internet purchase receipts and account information is being sent to my email address. Whenever you create an account somewhere using scott.paterson@googlemail.com, I get the confirmation.

I wonder if this other Scott Paterson finds it at all strange that they never receive a receipt for their purchases?

How can they even read their email? If I visit googlemail.com, I can log in with my user id and password, and it's all my email that I can read. I know that googlemail.com is for UK based users only. Is this other Scott Paterson seeing a different account when they log in from within the U.K.?

I might be able to get a phone number for this guy from their latest account creation. Anyone in the U.K. feel like calling them and explaining this to them?

More Ford Escape Fun -- a GOOD experience this time

Not all bad this time, but since I've whined complained in the past, it's only fair to mention when the experience is a good one.

A little history....

Monday morning:

• Our 2008 Ford Escape started and ran rough. It felt like the transmission was slipping when pulling out of our parking spot. It had been very cold overnight, so I just assumed that might be why. Once it was warmed up, it seemed OK.

Tuesday morning:

• Another rough start. More of that "slipping" feeling. Again, warmed up, it seemed fine, although sometimes when accelerating from a stop or a slow roll, something didn't feel quite right.

Tuesday afternoon:

• After sitting for 9hrs in the underground parking at work -- where it's above freezing -- the truck started fine. While driving through the underground parking, I accelerated lightly and felt slippage, followed by a sudden grip of the transmission. This is probably what it would feel like if you were in neutral, revved the engine slightly and put it into drive. It made the tires chirp on the concrete. Not good.
• While driving up the ramp to exit the underground parking, the transmission slipped again. I almost didn't make it all the way up. Not good at all.
• It drove fine to my wife's work. I told her what happened. She called the dealership and was told the transmission guy went home already, but would be in at 7:30am Wednesday morning. She asked if he could take a look at it right away in the morning and they said he could.
  

Wednesday morning:

• After leaving the block heater plugged in all night, the truck started fine. I felt a little slippage when we went to Timmy's for coffee.
• We drove all the way to Orleans and arrived at the dealership at 7:30am and pulled into the service bay.
• Jim, the "Senior Service Advisor", helped us. We explained the problem. He checked with the transmission guy and was told that he had 3 or 4 cars to do today. It probably wouldn't get looked at today.
• We had a choice: if it was deemed not serious, he could schedule us in for tomorrow morning and we could take our truck home and back tomorrow. If it was a serious problem, they'd need to keep it.
• The good: Because we have an ESP (Extended Service Plan), they'd cover a loaner/rental!
• The bad: they had no loaner cars available, and the liklihood of getting us a rental was slim to none because of the never-ending OC Transpo strike in Ottawa. On top of that, Ford would only approve of FORD rentals -- they won't supply non-Ford rental cars to their customers. That would make it more difficult for Jim to find us a rental. WTF, Ford?
• Jim told us about some nasty stories he had heard from the other dealerships in the area -- customers irate that they couldn't get loaners or rentals while their vehicles were being serviced. Apparently the cops had to be called to get one customer leave.
• My wife said that she was told they could take a quick look and maybe take it for a spin if we brought it in first thing this morning. Jim seemed a little surprised, but went to talk with the transmission guy. He agreed to take a quick look.
• The first thing the mechanic asked was to start the engine and pop the hood. He checked the transmission fluid. It was dry. O_o He put his hand under the bumper and something dripped on his hand. We had a coolant leak. He asked me if I had noticed any puddles under the truck when parked. I said I hadn't. Had it been summer, I surely would have noticed, but with all the snow lately, I hadn't seen anything.
• The good: a coolant leak is a quicker repair, if the parts are available. The mechanic left and came back to tell us that they had the parts, and a guy who can do the repair immediately.
• More good: the entire repair would be covered by the ESP.
• Jim told us it would be a 2-3hr job, if the parts they had matched the truck. We could wait, or they could give us a shuttle ride to work or home. We decided to wait until they could do a more thorough check with the truck on the hoist.
• A ½ hour or so later, Jim came to the waiting area to give us an update. Parts are confirmed in stock, they match, and the problem was as suspected.
• An hour passed and Jim again gave us an update: repairs almost done. The mechanic would then take it for a spin to make sure the problem was fixed.
• Another ½ later Jim came to tell us our truck was ready. The paper work would take another 20 minutes, but we could leave and they would mail them to us.
  

2 hours after arriving at Jim Keay, we were on our way to work with a working truck.

Needless to say, we were very pleased with the service we received this morning. Granted a little luck was involved that the repair wasn't as serious, but we left feeling that Jim -- the Service Advisor -- and the first mechanic put in additional effort to get us on our way quickly. I don't know what we would have done otherwise. Hopefully that's how they treat all of their customers.

Thanks, and kudos to the guys at Jim Keay Ford Lincoln!

Ear Force X3 Headset -- my review (or 2 cents)

I love gaming. I love gaming late at night. Unfortunately, this means that I can't play certain games and fully enjoy the experience without disturbing my family as they sleep.

I discovered that Turtle Beach makes wireless headsets to solve this problem. They allow you to listen to the audio of the game AND chat with friends at the same time. Up to now, my options were:

1. use the original Xbox headset and keep the game sound low
2. plug my stereo headphones into the stereo to listen to the game audio and not bother with voice chat
3. use both my stereo headphones and the Xbox headset at the same time (ever tried wearing two headsets at the same time?) :)

I picked up the Ear Force X3 after a few friend recommendations and reading glowing reviews on the web. I had high hopes for these, but I have to say that I am disappointed.

The sound is good and they're comfortable, but there is one thing about them that is making me seriously consider returning them: they are not compatible with the Rock Band guitars or the Xbox chatpad. You can't even use the adapter wire that came with Rock Band.

I thought that surely I must be doing something wrong. I visited the Turtle Beach web site and found this:

The wireless X3 and X4 model headsets use special connectors that draw power from the Xbox handheld controller's "puck" connection. This connection is used to power the X3/X4 chat level boost, which boosts the chat when game soundtracks get so loud that they might obscure the chat channel.

Because the Chatpad, Rock Band and Racing Wheel controllers do not provide these extra power connections, the X3 and X4 headsets are *not* compatible with these aftermarket controllers. There are no adapters available that will make them compatible.

The Guitar Hero controller has been reported to work with the X-series headsets.

So, not only can I not use it with the chatpad or the RB2 guitar, but I can't use it with the racing wheel either.

I may be able to live with not using it with the chatpad, or the racing wheel, but when I play Rock Band or Guitar Hero, I use the RB2 guitar. My main purpose for getting these was so I could talk and play RB2 or GHWT later at night. Without being able to talk, I may as well wear my old stereo headphones and put up with the inconvenience of the headphone wire extension. (and wear two headsets at the same time) :)

Trico Neoform wipers the clear winner!

I finally got around to dropping in at Partsource.ca to pick up some Trico NeoForm wiper blades to replace the old OE blades on my 2008 Ford Escape. They were $24.99 each, and the guy at Partsource says I've got a one year warranty on them from today, and if there are any problems to bring them back with my receipt and they'll give me a new set of blades at no charge. A store that honours the manufacturer warranty? That's also $5 cheaper per blade than what Ford charges for the OE Motormaster blades -- the only wiper blades that Ford sells for the 2008 Escape (see below)

Although I haven't yet tried them under normal driving conditions, a quick check after installing them indicated that they do indeed make complete contact with the windshield and wipe it clean. No gaps or streaks, unlike the Armor All wiper blades I had tried.

It might be a bit early to say they're great, but I'm fairly confident that they will live up to my expectations. Hell, even the plastic packaging was easy to open and didn't require scissors!

If you own a 2008 Ford Escape, this is what you want: Trico Neoform Blade, part # 16-2013

Thanks again to Joe for the heads up.

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Windshield wiper solution

It looks like I may have a solution to my windshield wiper dilemma, thanks to a guy named Joe.

Yesterday I received an email from Joe. He also owns a 2008 Ford Escape and had the exact same troubles that I did in finding windshield wipers for the truck. In fact, he also had the same problem with the Armor All EDGE Silicone Wiper Blades that we both purchased as replacements.

Fortunately, he found a possible solution. He came across my blog and was kind enough to share the info with me: Trico NeoForm blade (part #16-2013)

I had read about them in a forum as I was searching for wiper blades, but didn't know where I could find them. Joe found them at Parts Source and said they seem to work fine. What's even better is that they are $24.99 each, compared to Ford's one and only replacement wipers -- the same as what came with the truck -- that cost $30 each.

My wife returned the Armor All wiper blades to Canadian Tire this evening. The girl at the Customer Service counter mentioned that they've had quite a few returns of the Armor All wiper blades. Not surprising.

Oddly enough, there are now two good reviews and two bad reviews of these wipers on the Canadian Tire web site. One of the bad ones is mine.

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Stupid Drivers

The highway off-ramp that we take every morning has a large shoulder, and as the line of traffic slowly crawls along, people often drive on the shoulder. I don't know if they're just stupid and they they actually think it's a lane or what... but, at some point, it does get narrow and they eventually move back into the lane.

This morning, I noticed the guy behind me (maybe ~60yrs old) was one of these stupid people. But he was different. This guy graduated at the top of the stupid class, with honours.

He started to pull up beside us on the shoulder. He then backed off a little. And then he pulled up alongside again, passed us, and drove beside the vehicle in front of us!

I laid on the horn.

He slowed down and pulled back in behind us.

We were stunned.

Now, let's pretend for a moment that the shoulder was actually a lane. There's a solid white line between our lane and his imaginary lane. I don't know how this guy got his licence, but when I took Driver's Ed, they taught me that a solid white line = DO NOT CROSS.

What the hell was this guy thinking? Big balls or big stupid?

Malware headache

Malware: Short for malicious software, a program or file that is designed to specifically damage or disrupt a system, such as a virus, worm, or a Trojan horse.

At some point on the weekend, my son installed malware on his PC. It seems to have come from one of those fake pop up "your infected" ads, advising the user that they need to install a virus scanner update or registry cleaner.

I run the free version of AVG Free Anti-virus on all our PCs and, for the most part, they've been protected well enough. This sucker got past it.

A few of the symptoms were:

• being redirected, at random, to other sites while surfing the web
• pop-ups advising you that there's a problem you need to address with an update
• general sluggishness of the PC

AVG did identify the trojan as the "Vundo.bz trojan" and attempted to clean it. Yet, after rebooting, it would reappear. I'd scan it again, clean it again, reboot... and it would be back every time.

After 4 hours of trying to clean it using AVG and manually deleting what didn't seem like it belonged, I did a search on one of the pop-ups. One that told me to install "Registry Defender".

I came across a forum posting where someone had a similar problem, and the suggestions were to install a freeware program called Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.

I gave it a try. Although it probably wasn't necessary, I decided to reboot into Safemode first before running it. It found 36 infected areas. Files and registry entries.

I let it do its thing and rebooted. Then I scanned it again. It found 4 more entries. Again, cleaned, rebooted. Another 4 found. Repeat. 2 more. Repeat. Clean. Reboot. Still clean.

Don't put all your trust in your anti-virus software.

Ford (Motorcraft) does NOT make winter wiper blades for the 2008 Ford Escape

I decided to see how the Armor All EDGE Silicone Wiper Blades performed for the snowy drive home. In one word: garbage.

I was a little surprised, considering there is one user review on the Canadian Tire web site that gave them a good rating. I suppose a different size for a different make and model of vehicle might be the difference.

While I was stuck in traffic on the highway, I called my wife and asked her if she could call our Ford Dealership and ask them if they had any winter blades for our 2008 Escape. If they did, I would remain on the highway and go buy some from them.

She called me back. According to the guy she spoke with, they don't make winter wiper blades for the 2008 Ford Escape. The only wiper blades they have for it are like the ones that came with it, for around $30 per blade.

I guess the Ford Parts and Service page is wrong. Listed under The Advantages of Motorcraft® Wiper Blades is "Components to fit every Ford, Lincoln vehicle". If there's tiny print anywhere on there that says "Except the 2008 Ford Escape", I couldn't find it.

I stopped for gas close to home and put the old OE blades back on the truck. They may not be the best at the moment, but they worked a hell of a lot better than the new Armor All ones.

When I got home, I had a closer look at the Armor All blades. These are a flex style blade. When I straightened them out, I could clearly see that the center, where the arm attaches, won't straighten out enough to make contact with a surface. It doesn't appear to be a defective blade, in this case, just a poor design.

So, two thumbs down: one to Armor All EDGE Silicon Wiper Blades and yet another for Ford. But, I will give a thumbs up to Scott Monty for taking notice of my original tweet on Twitter and not simply ignoring it. At least someone there is taking notice.

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Ranting at Ford -- again -- and crappy wiper blades

I had a terribly slow drive in to work this morning due to the snow coming down. My usual 20-30 minute drive turned into over 1½ hours.

Anyway, unless I had the heat cranked and directed at the windshield, the snow was building up on the wiper blades and then icing up. This didn't help to keep the visibility. I've been meaning to get winter wiper blades since last winter, and today I decided would be a good day to finally get around to that.

After sitting down at my desk, I did a quick Google on "winter wiper blades 2008 ford escape" to get an idea of what's available. I had plans to walk over to the nearby Canadian Tire at lunch and pick some up.

Much to my dismay, I found message threads that seemed to indicate that such a thing does not exist, for the 2008 Ford Escape.

What the hell? No winter wiper blades for an SUV sold in Canada?

I continued to read more threads from people who said they even contacted Ford, and were told that they don't exist. In fact, aftermarket wiper blades in general are difficult to find.

One thread did indicate that there was a Trico brand winter blade available. I checked out their web site and found that Canadian Tire sells that brand, but not the particular "winter blade" required for my truck.

So, I hopped onto Twitter and post a quick rant:

"How is it possible that winter wiper blades don't exist for a 2008 Ford Escape, or any vehicle for that matter, sold in Canada? Hello? Snow?"

A few minutes later, I get a reply on Twitter:

@twister65 Let me see if I can get an answer for you.

I was puzzled. Who was this guy?

I clicked his name. "Head of social media at Ford..."

Interesting. Whoodathunkit. Ford is actually involved in social media and monitoring it? I sent him a quick thanks. We'll see what he can find out -- but I'm not holding my breath.

I walked over to Canadian Tire at lunch to see if they had anything. I looked up Ford Escape 2008 in their little wiper blade catalog. Out of the eight or so brands that they carry, there was ONE for a 2008 Ford Escape. One. Armor All EDGE Silicone Wiper Blades. $25 per blade. Ouch. Although they weren't specifically "winter" wiper blades, they did indicate that they were good for snow and sleet, etc.

What other choice did I have? None. One of the workers there asked me if I was in a hurry for them. He said that they were going to go on sale next week or the week after. He couldn't tell me how much they were going to sell for though. I thanked him, but said I couldn't wait.

So back to work I walked, in this crappy weather, and down into the underground parking to put them on. It was easy enough. They included 3 different adapters.

I hopped into the truck and turned on the wipers, then sprayed the windshield with windshield wash.

Streaks. Two large, unwiped, streaks. Right in the center of the driver and passenger side windshield. WTF?

I took them off and double-checked to make sure I had them installed correctly. Yep, they were. Turned on the wipers again. They cleaned the unwiped part off. Sprayed the windshield again. Streaks... again.

I'm hoping that there's some kind of settling while they press against my windshield up until I leave to go home. I kept the old wipers just in case. I really don't want to have to pull over on my way home to switch them back.

At $25 per blade, you can bet that they'll be going back if they don't work.

Waaaait a minute... who posted that last post?

I'd like to extend a warm welcome to my new guest contributor here on Katzenjammer -- the lovely and talented Misty! No, she isn't some kind of secret alter ego buried deep within my brain, she's real. ;)

Now you'll actually have something interesting to read instead of my usual rants about crappy car dealership service, waiting in line at Future Shop at midnight, or how to make microwave Kraft Dinner (the KD info is still the most popular post here)

Welcome Misty!

Sexiest Man Alive? Please.

Having been invited to guest-blog on Katzenjammer, I find myself faced with the formidable task of choosing a topic on which to write. Now that the bloom is off Obama and Britney hasn’t shaved anything in months, the obvious choices are gone. And so, esteemed readers of Scott’s blog, I have opted to write about what I feel is the most pressing issue of the day (if only to my own estrogen-coloured perspective): the naming of Hugh Jackman as People magazine’s sexiest man alive.

While I certainly wouldn’t boot the Aussie actor out of bed for eating crackers (or, more likely, vegemite), there’s a part of me that isn’t quite sold on him landing in People’s top spot. Realistically, I know he was chosen because he has a movie to promote (Baz Luhrmann’s Australia) and was probably the least likely of Hollywood’s hotties to turn down what industry insiders recognize as the “black cat” of tabloid titles (see footnote below); free press as the world’s sexiest man, after all, also means free press for an artsy, over-budgeted movie that appears to have all the audience appeal of a National Geographic special on sea cows. But even ignoring that glaring fact, Jackman just doesn’t feel like the right man for the job in this day and age. He’s just, well, too pretty.

I feel like we are finally at a place where we should feel comfortable recognizing the less obvious sex symbols of our time without apology or explanation. Forget the life-sized blow-up dolls with more wattage in their smiles than their brains. I want to see the guys who read Wired, can restore my harddrive in a pinch, cook a mean lasagna, and probably had Puppy Chow thrown at them as children. Give me your nerds, geeks and thoughtful fanboys with comic-book collections and secret lives as virtual circus performers on Second Life. Capped teeth and cologne-ad bods are for the unimaginative!

So how about it, People? Would a little realism be so much to ask? Let me be the first to throw out the names of Michael Cera, Hugh Laurie and Kevin Smith for next year’s title. They may not start a flashbulb frenzy on the red carpet, but they can be every bit as sexy – if not more so – than the guys whose appeal lives and dies on their catalogue looks and ability to tear phonebooks in half. Like my good friend Judge Judy once said: Beauty fades, dumb is forever.

* FOOTNOTE: A pop cultural institution since 1985, People's "sexiest" title has gained a dubious reputation for bringing personal and professional plagues upon its winners. Since the award's inception, more than half its honourees have experienced post-win relationship meltdowns, career flame-outs, public backlash and ugly run-ins with the law. One of the genetically gifted men, 1988 cover boy John F. Kennedy Jr., died in a plane crash.

Midnight Line-up for Gears of War 2

Gears of War 2 for the Xbox 360 is due for release later today. Future Shop and Best Buy were holding midnight release sales for an hour to let gamers be the first to get their hands on the game.

I've never stood in line for the release of any game before. The only time I ever got in a line-up early for anything was Pink Floyd tickets way back in the 80's. Anyway, even though I didn't expect to have any trouble finding the game later today, I decided to go to Future Shop tonight just for kicks.

The doors were supposed to open at 11:59pm. I left home at around 11:20pm, and after hitting Timmy's for a coffee, I arrived at Future Shop at around 11:30pm. I didn't expect a long line-up since this wasn't like a new release of Halo, and I wasn't disappointed. I estimated that there were around 20 people waiting. They had a BBQ going with hotdogs and drinks in front of the store. No idea if they charged for them. They also had a chalk drawing of the Gears of War logo on the sidewalk. The few employees that stood outside all had Gears of War T-shirts on.

I sat in the warmth of my my truck, drank my coffee and had a smoke.

About 10 minutes later, I saw two other cars drive into the parking lot, so I decided it was time to get in line. If I counted correctly, I was 17th in line.

People talked mostly about the game, or its predecessor, Gears of War. I have never played the original game. Others talked about the Sens vs Flyers hockey game from earlier in the evening.

At around 11:50pm a cop car pulled into the parking lot slowly and drove past the front of the store watching us as they talked on their radio. A few people made jokes that they sent a lady cop to deal with large crowd of guys hanging around outside Future Shop after closing hours. Not quite sure why that was funny since she was the one with a gun. :)

She started to drive away and then came back and rolled down her window to speak with one of the employees. One of the guys in line said he saw someone staring out the window of a house that backed onto the parking lot. We figure they called the cops because it looked odd that 25 guys were hanging around outside Future Shop just before midnight. :)

She drove off, content that there were no shenanigans going on.

Just before midnight one of the employees told us all that if we had a pre-order, we could go straight to the customer service desk. A few minutes later, they started to let people in 5 at a time.

About 5 minutes later, some of the first people that were let in started to come out, with their purchases in hand. One of them made a comment that he had waited 2½ hours. I guess he expected more people. Sucker. :)

By 12:10am, I was in the store. The aisles were all blocked off with caution tape to keep people at the front of the store, where they had the display set up with the games, the "bonus" Gears of War figurines, along with Xbox Live Points cards, controllers, and other miscellaneous Xbox 360 hardware.

I picked up a game, the free figurine and headed to the cash.

I was back in my truck and on the way home by 12:15am. As I drove off, the last of those in line were on their way into the store.

I'm sure it wasn't as exciting as any bigger selling game, like Halo, but it was kinda cool. I don't know if I'd do it again, especially when stores like Best Buy are guaranteeing stock on the first day, or they'll give you a $20 gift card.

My curiosity has been satisfied.

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The sound of silence

Completely unrelated to the Simon and Garfunkel song...

On September 30, I registered our home and cell phone numbers on the National Do Not Call List (DNCL), as did millions of other Canadians. According to the rules, telemarketers had 31 days from registration to comply and stop harassing us (I could have sworn it was 30 days, but I noticed it was 31 as I was searching for other information).

Anyway, by my calculations, today is the day they stop! Our home should no longer receive annoying calls from telemarketers, with a few exceptions.

"Registered charities are still allowed to call for donations, and certain other organizations-such as companies conducting polls or surveys, political parties, and newspapers looking for subscriptions-can also continue to contact you. As well, if you’ve done business with a company in the last 18 months, that company is considered to have a relationship with you and is allowed to call."

I'm really not sure how many companies they'll actually punish for not complying. You need their company name or phone number to file a complaint, which means you'll more or less have to go along with the call to get that information, if their number isn't displayed on your call display box, before tearing them a new one. It's much easier and quicker just to hang up on them, which I suspect is what most people will do unless the calls are frequent.

I have a feeling that many have already stopped calling. For almost a week, we were getting daily canned messages on our answering machine from HBC Credit Services or hang-up calls and they've suddenly stopped. It's unusual to get home after work and see a ZERO on our answering machine, yet that is how it has been.

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When "free" isn't really free

Harmonix finally announced the list of 20 "free" tracks for Rock Band 2, slated for November 4th.

• The 88 - "Sons and Daughters"
• Authority Zero - "No Regrets"
• Between the Buried and Me - "Prequel To The Sequel"
• The Cab - "Bounce"
• The Chevelles - "Get It On"
• The Cocktail Slippers - "Give It To Me"
• Dealership - "Database Corrupted"
• Endeverafter - "I Wanna Be Your Man"
• The Ghost Hounds - "Ashes To Fire"
• Hollywood Undead - "Young"
• Kutless - "The Feeling"
• The Len Price 3 - "If I Ain't Got You"
• Lesley Roy - "I'm Gone, I'm Going"
• Opiate for the Masses - "Burn You Down"
• Semi-Precious Weapons - "Magnetic Baby"
• Shaimus - "Like a Fool"
• Thenewno2" - Crazy Tuesday"
• Tickle Me Pink - "The Time Is Wrong"
• Underoath - "Desperate Times, Desperate Measures"
• X Japan - "I.V."
  

The Rock Band forums are abuzz, but mostly negative.

I searched YouTube for each title to have a listen, and I'm a little disappointed. Quite frankly, most of the songs that they've included in the "free" track pack are crap. Many in the forum are of the same opinion. They appear to be indie bands -- not that there's anything wrong with that. In fact, most of the original indie content that came with the game is fun to play and I've been introduced to bands I probably wouldn't heard otherwise. I'm all for it, but come one, at least give us some GOOD indie content worth playing or listening to.

There are some who seem to be pleased with the list, and some of those people are slamming those who are expressing their dislike about the songs.

"It's free, what do you expect?" is the most common response. Let's get something straight here. Although Harmonix marketed them as "free", they aren't. We paid for those 20 songs when we bought the game. I don't recall reading anything about it being "for a limited time" or for early buyers. It was promoted as including "20 free downloadable songs" at a later date, therefore the price we paid for the game included those songs. End of story. Had they released the game without the promise of free content, and then at a later date said "Hey, we're gonna give you guys 20 free songs!", then you could argue "hey, it's free, what do you expect". Alas, that is not the case.

At least one person speculates that this list of 20 songs was not the original list that they intended to give away. They said that they believe Harmonix decided to sell that content at $2 per song and give away the songs they knew they couldn't sell. Again, it's speculation, but it does seem to make some $en$e.

Now we wait for November 4th to see exactly how this track pack will be distributed. I'm really hoping that they allow us to pick and choose which ones we want from the list, but I fear that it's going to be an all or nothing deal. It would suck royally if we have to accept the entire 20 songs just for a few, because that would mean more undesirable content appearing on the game's "Mystery Set lists" while playing the game. There's nothing worse than having to play a song you don't like among three or four songs that you do like.

There is a small silver lining to all of this. There was at least one song that I found rather catchy: Lesley Roy, "I'm Gone, I'm Going". She reminds me of a cross between Paramore and Kelly Clarkson. Although I'm mostly a rocker type of guy, I do like the occasional pop song. :) I know that my daughter is going to love singing along with it in Rock Band.

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• Rock Band 2's Twenty Free DLC Tracks Are... [Harmonix]
• Twenty free Rock Band 2 tracks listed, dated for early November

Careless use of email

I've had a Hotmail account since way before Microsoft bought them. In that time, I have occasionally let it go inactive and then reactivated it. To be honest, I don't use it very much. But I like to keep it because... it's mine. :)

For the last two or three years someone else is also making use of it -- in a way.

They've been using it to make purchases. They've been giving out the email address to their friends. They've been signing up for online games, and newsletters.

How do I know this?

Because I get all of their order confirmations via email. I get all their personal email from friends. I get all the "account activation" emails for the online games and newsletters that they sign up for.

I don't think they're making a small spelling mistake when typing it out, I think they truly believe that the email address they are typing is their email address!

For a while it was fun to read their personal "hey, how ya doin'?" emails from their friends, but it has actually become quite annoying because I seem to get twice the amount of spam, as they sign themselves up for god knows what, using my email address.

Today, I replied to two of their personal emails, thanking the sender for their concern about my well being, but also advising them that they have the wrong person. I tried that before about two years ago, but it didn't seem to work. This time, I got an apology reply from one of the senders, so I replied to it again, and asked them to advise the person whom they think I am, that they're giving out the wrong email address. Maybe it'll work this time.

You would think that something like this might be a once-in-a-lifetime occurance right?

Wrong.

About two weeks ago I received an order confirmation from Hmv.co.uk thanking me for my order of two DVDs, but this time it was sent to my GMAIL account. Yes, I have another email account that someone thinks is their's. I know it's a different person because this one lives in the U.K., while the other lived in the U.S. I also received further emails from HMV after each DVD was shipped. I'm hoping that this one was just a typo, like not typing two T's in their last name or something.

Seriously, though, what's wrong with people? Why aren't they taking more care of typing their email address? What if these retail accounts have their credit card information stored in them? I honestly don't know if they do, but it would be very easy for me to find out.

Newegg comes to Canada! Or did they?

A little while ago, Newegg announced that they were going to have a Canadian web site. Computer nerds like myself all signed up for notification of when this would happen.

On Wednesday I received an email from Newegg.ca announcing that their Canadian web site went live.

I took a quick peek at some of their grand opening specials and they weren't too bad. I also monitored a thread on a forum that I regularly read. Most of the comments about it weren't too positive. It seems that many of Newegg.ca's prices weren't as good as other online retailers, like Ncix.com, where I usually order my hard-to-find parts.

Then someone noticed that Newegg.ca uses UPS for shipping. In fact, UPS is the only shipping option for Canadian customers. As a Canadian, if you've ever ordered anything from the U.S. and had it shipped UPS, you know why that's a bad thing. Aside from customs/duty fees, you generally get it up the bunghole by the brokerage fee that UPS charges.

Seeing as how Newegg doesn't appear to have any kind of Canadian-based store or warehouse, I decided to send them an email asking where they ship their Canadian orders from.

Here is their reply:

========== Original Message ==========

From: Newegg Customer Service <>
Subject: RE: Newegg.ca - >(Mail #021020081912488)* (LTK436050495X)
Reference number: LTK436050495X Please use this ticket number in any correspondence with Newegg.ca.
Subject: Newegg.ca - >(Mail #021020081912488)*

Dear Customer,

Thank you for contacting Newegg.

Unfortunately the item will be shipping from warehouse in the U.S., at this time we don't have locations in Canada.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please visit our FAQs page. If you still need assistance, please feel free to email me directly and I will be happy to assist you.

Thank you,

Jacqueline Ruiz

========================================

Does anyone know how they'll be able to ship their products from the U.S. to their Canadian customers without the customers getting the 'ol brokerage screw?

It'll be interesting to see what happens.

Laptop battery woes on Vista

If you've got a laptop running Vista and it seems that your laptop battery never seems to hold a charge between the times that you use it, don't blame the battery -- blame Vista!

The default action for the SHUTDOWN menu option on Windows Vista is, believe it or not, SLEEP. Sleep makes the laptop boot up quicker when you turn it on, and that's what Microsoft says people want. The side effect is that Vista continues to draw a minimal amount of power from the battery while it is in Sleep mode. If you don't use your laptop very often, expect the battery to be dead or very low on power when you turn it on days later.

I first noticed this on our home laptop and have confirmed it in at least one of our test laptops at work.

Here's an explanation and here's a step-by-step guide to changing them, if you're not familiar with where they're located.