Tech Drought of the Week (9/30-10/6)

The streak is finally over. I scrounged through all of the circulars and couldn't find good prices on anything this week. Flash drive prices are up as are many of the accessories I highlighted in the past. Hopefully this doesn't continue and the stores are just holding out until Columbus Day next week.

Apple is doing well after it's last release despite the angry, early iPhone buyers' complaints. The new iPods are selling and the reduced-price iPhone is selling. Since both are flash-based, they're likely driving the prices up for all flash-base memory.

If you need to find a particular product this week, please use the Google Custom Search on the right navigation of this blog. Otherwise, hold out until next week.

New York's Only Team

"Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen."
-Michael Jordan

The Yankees closed off their season in winning fashion. The game was a relaxed one where traditionally a senior players gets to manage the game. This year, it was Jorge Posada taking Joe Torre's place. Mussina was the pitching coach and Jeter the bench coach. It represented much of what the 2nd half of the season was about... a hit parade, high scoring, great defense and dominant pitching. They were really in a deep hole during the first half, plagued with slumps and injuries. But a team made up of winners like Jeter, Posada, Rivera and Pettitte can will themselves into the post season.

By contrast, the opposite happened crosstown. The Mets were involved in the greatest final month collapse in MLB history. An overconfident and underskilled team lead by 7 games with 17 left. The lead was eventually reduced to 1, then tied and lost on the final day. The Mets season ended at the top of the first inning as they gave up 7 runs before even getting an AB.

I would've like to see a Subway Series this year, but after several quote where the Mets basically said they were so good that they tend to get complacent, I think that they deserve to get eliminated. That's not the attitude of a winner.

Congratulations to the Philadelphia Phillies! They had a great 2nd half like the Yankees. They did what the Yankees could not... came back from behind to win their division. They showed heart and deserve the division title.

Boulder Creek Steakhouse

Location: 134-15 20th Avenue, College Pt., NY
Cuisine: Steak
Phone: 718-961-2900
Website: www.bouldercreeksteakhouses.net
Prices: About $30 per person
Credit Cards: All major

Food: 9
Service: 8
Value: 8
Environment: 7

Visits: 10+

I eat at Boulder Creek about 1-2 times per year, usually for an occasion or if my family has out of town visitors. It's the only real steakhouse in the area aside from Peter Luger. They have a lot of variety on their menu so it's comfortable for non-steak eaters. The portions are always pretty large (except for maybe the Filet Mignon), so when I know I'm going here, I plan for it and make my other meals small. The table automatically gets fresh baked bread in the beginning. If you order a steak, you get a bowl of salad that's big enough for a small meal in itself and a side dish.

We all skipped the appetizers this time around, knowing that we had some dessert at home. I went for The Cowboy, which is a 20 oz ribeye steak. When I was younger, I would go for the Outlaw, a 30 oz porterhouse! I'm pretty sure I've had the 14 oz NY Strip before as well, but I was hungry this time, so the 20 oz was just right. I went with a Caesar's salad to start and had sauteed mushrooms on the side. The steak was cooked at medium heat and I covered it with the mushrooms. The meat was tender and tasty. I dipped a few pieces in their sauce just to try it, but had most of it plain. When a steak is good, it needs no sauces! The rest of the family enjoyed their choices as well since there were no leftovers. My dad went with a steak too. My Mom and sister shared a combo plate or ribs and fish. My aunt had the chicken.

The service has always been good at Boulder Creek. The wait staff was friendly and helpful. The one thing I never understood was... the first question they usually ask after seating their customers is, "have you been here before?" If the customer says yes, the waiter will say, "then you're familiar with how it all works" or something like that. In all the times I've eaten there, I didn't notice anything different about their procedure that would make it different than any other restaurant.

I gave a high rating for value because the portions were good and it's a little cheaper than other NY steakhouses without sacrificing quality. The environment is clean and spacious and they have plenty of plasma TVs to cover every local game.

Stargate Atlantis 401 (Adrift)

The cliffhanging Season 3 finale left off with Atlantis escaping into space, but not before a Replicator attack blasted the tower, injuring Dr. Elizabeth Weir. News outside of the show that mentioned Amanda Tapping (as Lt. Col. Samantha Carter) would move to Stargate Atlantis with the closing of Stargate SG-1, which suggests that Dr. Weir would be killed off sometime soon. Season 4 started out with excitement and remained that way for the full hour. Everytime a problem was solved, something else would arise to take its place. They had a commercial break at every mini-cliffhanger. The opening scene was especially well written as they paralleled the power depletion of Atlantis and the attempted revival of Dr. Weir. This episode had no "bad guys" in it, but the viewer totally forgets about that because it's all about repairing the city and Weir's fate. The race to repair Atlantis against natural forces gave this opener the feel of a finale. Dr. Weir's condition were reminiscent of Sunday. And it's not over yet. By the end of the episode, Atlantis was still drifting.

Trading Places

The Yankees came out with a free win after last night's clinch. They sent out their second unit to rest some of the superstars, and still came out on top. Phil Hughes pitched a great game and Johnny Damon continued his hot streak. The division title is still tough and I don't think the Yankees have their eye on it, but they move up a game anyway because the Sox lost.

What happened to the Mets? They have the best team in the National League, but their end of season collapse continued tonight as they lose and the Phillies win. They're now tied for first.

This final weekend should be interesting. Could the Yankees pull off a miracle takeover of the division? Will the Mets do their part and keep subway series hopes alive?

2008 Honda Accord Coupe

Honda answers the vastly upgraded Nissan Altima with a beefed up, restyled, 268 hp Accord. It still loses to the Altima in price per hp, but the extra money goes towards the nicer looking design and ironman Honda engineering. Every street racer knows that you can beat the crap out of a Honda engine and never blow it. The Accord actually looks somewhat similar to the Altima in that it's a false hatchback... it has the rounded rear of a typical hatchback, but only the trunk opens up like a coupe.

Transmission: The Accord V6 starts at $28,310 whether you go with manual or automatic transmission. Destination and handling adds $635.

Accessories: For accessories, I added all of the body kit items... front under spoiler ($369), rear under spoiler ($369), side spoiler ($549) and side molding ($209). This puts the price at $30,441.

I didn't add any interior accessories, so the final would stand at $30,441. That's about $5,000 more than the Altima. I've driven older versions of both cars and would have no problem paying the extra money. Hondas have better suspension, engines and overall quality. I gave the Altima high praise in July when compared to the 2007 Accord because of the hp differential. But now that the Accord powered up to the same level, I'm back on Honda's side. The car I built above looks great with the extra styling and still has plenty of room for more aftermarket parts.

Clinch! 13 in a Row!

The Yankees pulled it off in a heroic 2nd half to make it into their 13th post season in a row! It's a little unconventional this time because they got in through the wild card instead of winning the division. The division title race isn't over yet, but all the Red Sox need is 2 more games... so they'd have to go on a losing streak while the Yankees win all of theirs... probably not going to happen. At least they'll have a chance to play each other in the playoffs. Even though I hate the Red Sox, I want to see a Yanks/Sox series because it provides a true test.

This leads to something I don't get about Mets fans. They want the Yankees to lose and not make the playoffs. If they hate the Yankees so much, isn't it better to have them face off with the Mets in the World Series and root for the Mets to beat them? That way it would prove which team is really better... unless... they fear the Yankees! As a Yankees fan, I WANT them to face the rival Red Sox. I WANT to see a subway series so the Mets fans can quiet down and because it's all good for the city of NY.

Ten Random Chain Survey Questions for 2007-09-25

1. In the morning I... always get up early.
2. I like to sleep... 8 hours straight, but it rarely happens.
3. One thing I wish I had is... more time.
4. One thing I have that I wish I didn't is... lack of time.
5. My body... feels like Batman in the Knightfall series.
6. Something I want but I don't really need is... a 1968 GT-500 KR.
7. It makes me angry when... people don't work hard for their money.
8. Money is... essential, though it shouldn't be.
9. "I live for... this $h1t!" - Vin Diesel in XXX
10. Sometimes I feel... like breaking Batman's rules.

Family Guy: Star Wars

Family Guy started off its 5th season with what I thought was its greatest episode yet... a 1-hour Star Wars spoof! Every series needs a Star Wars episode. This one was so accurate that it had to be official (with George Lucas' cooperation). Many of the scenes looked rotoscoped because they had the same exact angles and movements of the movie. It's loyal to the original from the opening text in perspective to the closing credits. Here's how the cast was matched up:

Peter... Han Solo
Lois... Princess Leia
Stewie... Darth Vader
Brian... Chewbacca
Chris... Luke Skywalker
C-3PO... Quagmire
R2-D2... Cleveland
Herbert... Obi-Wan Kenobi

Related Links: Family Guy, Star Wars, Variety: "Family Guy" Meets "Star Wars"

Superman: Doomsday

As always... "the book was better." The comic book story spanned for about a year and involved more than one of DC Comics titles. All of this was compressed into a 90 minute cartoon. It just felt like it was in fast forward because I'm familiar with the original story. It was still a good movie though. They did a great job of capturing the feel of the original. It was nice to see a moving version of the powerful imagery from the comics, including the tattered cape in the rubble that was hauntingly similar to 9/11. The animation was great just like all of DC's superhero series. This one is one of the more violent ones as it's prominently labeled PG-13. There's no way to capture the character of Doomsday with a PG rating. The fight between Doomsday and Superman lasted several minutes and felt even longer. I thought that was a good translation from the 4-book slugfest. The resurrection was much faster in the movie though because the books split into 4 new characters before the actual return... no time for that in a 90 min movie! The movie was very moving and emotional, just like the original.

This is a must for any Superman and DC Comics fan. Watching it has inspired me to re-read the comics from the 90's!

Related Sites: Superman, Superman: Doomsday DVD

Neutrality is the Key

There must be balance in the world between good and evil because they define each other. Today was a typical day that represented this balance. While driving around, I came across an aggressive driver that tried to force a left turn while other cars were still coming straight from the opposite direction. I also ran into another drive on the same road who started out in the right lane and ended up making an illegal left. I gave out 2 birds and horned the two drivers in a span of less than 5 minutes (2 pts for evil). I dropped by the Apple Store to return a mouse. I didn't have a receipt, so from the cashier's perspective, I could have just taken an empty bag into the store and stole the product. But she trusted me and let me return it (1 pt for good). My next stop was the grocery store. The one I usually go to has a disorganized line system. I got on one line and one lady just quickly walked up right in front of me and took that register (3 pts for evil). A cashier opened a new line and called next. Both the lady next to me and I offered each other the spot (2 pts for good). I checked out the 8th Avenue street fair next and bought 4 empanadas at 2 for $5. The lady gave me 5 because one of them was smaller than average (3 pts for good). So the day ended up at 3 and 3 for neutrality. I gave out 3 birds and 3 smiles total since I consider myself a reflection of the world I live in.

Dragon Wars

The fantasy genre with knights and dragons was always of interest to me, so naturally I went to see Dragon Wars. The trailer was great and it was the first time a realistic Asian dragon was built for a live action movie. Because of schedule, we had a choice of Dragon Wars or Rush Hour 3. Rush Hour 3 was the safe bet because I heard it was the same routine as the first 2. Dragon Wars was a risk because we didn't hear much about it and it didn't have any known actors in the cast. We gambled with Dragon Wars and it turned out to be a mistake.

The storyline was rushed and packed into a 90 minute movie with a Swiss cheese plot. I'm going to go ahead and spoil the movie because you SHOULD NOT watch it! In a nutshell, this movie is about 2 giant snakes (proto-dragons), one of which has a chance to become a full-fledged dragon if he can fuse with a chosen girl with a dragon birthmark. Most of the movie follows the evil giant snake tearing apart the city, looking for the girl, Sarah Daniels (Amanda Brooks). Sarah was reincarnated from a girl with the same birthmark back in a fictional Ancient Korea and she is being "protected" by news reporter Ethan Kendrick (Jason Behr), who was reincarnated from Korea's greatest warrior.

The problems:

1) Why would an entire cast of Ancient Korean characters be reincarnated as Americans? The only reason I can think of is that they didn't want to make a movie featuring Asian actors, but liked the Korean legend for a storyline.

2) Jason Behr just didn't seem to fit the part. He looks more like a hippy than a news reporter... or great warrior.

3) Where was the good snake for the entire movie while the evil one was kicking the crap out of the US military and destroying everything in his path?

4) If the evil snake had no problems taking over the world on its own, why did it need to resurrect an full army of ancient warriors and mythical beasts?

5) Some of the mythical beasts of Ancient Korea were equipped with rocket launchers... yes, rocket launchers! Hmmm... should I bite off of Star Wars or Lord of the Rings? Ancient Korea? I'll go with giant lizards with rocket launchers... BRILLIANT!

6) The evil giant snake had several chances to kill Sarah in the movie, but hesitated unbelievably long for something to intervene. It's already cliche if that happens once, but several times?

7) Snakes are lightning fast, yet this giant snake was outrun by an SUV and a dated pizza delivery car.

8) Ethan & Sarah fall in love less than an hour after meeting... come on! OK... Sarah was pretty, but Ethan was butt ugly!

9) The giant snake was slithering around all over the place, and the police/FBI could only find one measly scale to study.

10) The title of the movie is Dragon Wars, but the abbreviation is "D-War" instead of "D-Wars."

11) No blood from sword slashes.

A Few Good Things:

1) The 3-D models of the creatures were great, especially when the good snake turned into a full-fledged dragon.

2) The lead female character was attractive.

3) The Korean legend was interesting and had potential to be a great movie.

So a bad script combined with bad direction and acting really killed this movie. What could've been a blockbuster became what should've been a TV movie. The Sci-Fi channel has many bad monster movies, but it also plays a lot of flicks that are better than Dragon Wars.

Go watch Rush Hour 3. You can't go wrong with the combination of Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. Even if the movie is bad, they will make you laugh.

Tech Deals of the Week (9/23-9/29)

The flash drive deals are more scarce than a few weeks ago, but that's better than non-existent.

PNY 4 GB Flash Drive for $34.98 @ CompUSA
The standard sale price is back for the 4 GB PNY.

PNY 8 GB Flash Drive for $74.98 @ CompUSA
This doesn't have the same price/GB ratio as the 4 GB model, but it's much more rare for this one to be on sale for less than $79.99.

Init Backpack for $14.99 @ Best Buy
This is the budget competitor of the Targus Groove backpack. Both typically go on sale for $14.99 or less. I never had a chance to see this one in person though. Like the Groove, it's one of those things you have to catch on the first day of the sale. It's for a 15.4" widescreen laptop.

2 PNY 2 GB SD Card for $37.99 @ Circuit City
The flash memory cards are usually slightly above $10/GB when on sale. So I'll feature them here when they hit $10/GB or lower. The $37.99 price applies when you buy a 2-pack of 2 GB. You can also get a single 4 GB SD card for $39.99.

25-Pack TDK DVD+R for $4.99 @ Circuit City
This is a rare sale of DVD media. About 3-4 years ago, these packs use to fall around $0-2 with rebate offers. Those have disappeared in recent years and $4.99 is as close as it gets.

Ten Random Chain Survey Questions for 2007-09-20

1. How many keys are on your keychain? 12
2. What is the first thing you do when you get out of bed? work out
3. What are you thankful you're not doing right now? working
4. What is your favorite kind of candy? Kit Kat
5. What is your favorite fruit? cherries
6. Which ocean creature fascinates you most? Orcas because of their intelligence level. It's too bad we can't communicate with them to see what their thinking.
7. On a scale of 1-10; how religious are you? 6
8. What is your favorite thing about being sick? getting out of the office
9. What language would you like to master? Java
10. What is the cutest animal on Earth? pikachus

Sweeps 1.5

The Yankees just swept the Orioles and as an added bonus, the Jays swept the Red Sox! This makes up for the Yankees not sweeping the Red Sox last series and puts them within 1 1/2 games out of first place... the closest they've been all year! It's starting to look real again. There are 3 series and 10 games left. I can't believe the Yankees are still hanging in ther for the division. I thought for sure they were done when they only took 2 out of 3 from the Sox last weekend. Who would've guessed the Red Sox would help out by losing to the Blue Jays!

It doesn't look like A-Rod will get the 61 homers as he's stuck on 52 right now. But at least he will get the MVP award this year.

Ten Random Chain Survey Questions for 2007-09-19

1. What CD have you forgotten about and then recently remembered you love so much? Bloodsport soundtrack
2. If you die, do you ever worry that your penpal/online/long distance friends might never find out about it? They probably have Internet in the afterlife.
3. What kind of punctuation mark is your least favorite? more than one "!" at a time
4. What's your favorite eighties song? Eye of the Tiger
5. What actor/actress is so so sexy to you? Amanda Tapping, Bobbie Phillips, Erin Gray (in the 80's)



6. What's the strangest dream you've ever had? All of the ones I remember are strange because they mix characters from different stages of my life.
7. What's your least favorite month? September because it marks the beginning of school historically.
8. If you could change your birthday, when would it be? I guess I wouldn't... no month is perfect.
9. What was the last CD you listened to? Stargate Atlantis soundtrack
10. Who do you think would cry if they ever read your journal? This IS my journal and if anyone cries, I hope it's a result of too much laughing because I don't have anything depressing in here... right?

A Few Fries Short of a Happy Meal

Doesn't it suck when you're shopping at Buy.com or Amazon and your order is just short of the $25 free shipping promo? It happens to me all the time. I usually know what I want and put together the order in under a minute. It'll come out to something like $22 or $23. Then I spend hours looking for a third good bargain just to get it above $25. To make things more challenging, the third item has to be something I want and it has to be a good price. I bet they plan it that way. OK... back to shopping...

No Massacre, but Still a Series

The Yankees won 2 out of 3 against the Red Sox over the weekend to take the series and the season series. It's still not enough though. Because of the one loss, they only gained a game out of it. It was their chance to take 3 games with a sweep. They're definitely running out of time to win the division and can no longer control the fate of the Red Sox since Sunday was the last game of the season. As long as they can make it into the post-season via wildcard, things could still get interesting with a likely matchup with their Boston rivals. Beating the Red Sox in a short series would erase the crappy first half the Yankees had.

Sanctuary

Naturally, I was attracted to this series because it was put together by a bunch of crew members from the Stargate SG-1/Stargate Atlantis series and it stars Amanda Tapping. Sanctuary is also a technical marvel. It's the first fully digital HD series. Everything from start to finish was created using hard drives... no film... no tapes. Most of the scenes were green screened also.

If it wasn't for the 2 above reasons, I probably wouldn't even be interested. It's a sci-fi/monster series. Usually any movie that involves vampires and werewolves turns out to be stupid, but this one actually isn't. It does a great job of tying in actual science and mythology... which isn't a surprise... with the Stargate influence and all. The rendered work is pretty seamless with the exception of occasional lighting errors (from flashlights). Amanda Tapping really showcases her acting in this series as she plays Helen Magnus, a monster hunter/scientist. Like her role in Stargate SG-1 (Samantha Carter is a Lt. Col. & top astrophysicist), her character is a combination of strength and intelligence.

I downloaded all of the episodes (8 so far) in HD resolution for $17.50 and I think it's worth every penny. The first 4 episodes are available on YouTube for free.

Related Sites: Amanda Tapping, Sanctuary, Sanctuary Fans, YouTube

Tech Deals of the Week (9/16-9/22)

This week is much better than last. I was afraid there was going to be a drought all the way up to Black Friday! However, the flash memory prices have stayed up from last week. Like last week, the sale prices this week are $10/GB or higher... I didn't see anything lower.

TrendNET 54 Mbps 802.11g Router & Adapters for $9.99 @ CompUSA
The $1.99 & $2.99 sale prices were extremely rare for these items. So I'm still listing it at $9.99 as very cheap.

PNY GeForce FX 5200 256MB Video Card for $49.99 @ CompUSA
This is normally $80, so a $30 instant savings really makes it appealing. If you have an older system that you're looking to upgrade, this graphics card will improve you gaming needs and multi-monitor support.

Cooler Master 500-Watt Power Supply for $24.99 @ CompUSA
That's after a $35 instant savings & $20 mail-in rebate. This is a good buy because power supplies rarely get this low in price in stores. If you find yourself needing more power.

400 GB Western Digital Ext. Hard Drive for $49.99 @ Staples
That's $129.99 - $35 instant - $45 rebate. That would've been a great price for an internal drive... and this is external! This is one of those cases where I might buy the item and figure out what to do with it later.

Targus Mini USB Hub for $9.99 @ Office Depot
This is a 4-port USB powered hub that's good for low power USB devices and great for portability.

Tech Product Search

I just created a Google Custom Search for all of the stores that I shop in for tech products. These include New Egg, Directron, CompUSA, Best Buy, Circuit City, Staples and Office Depot. As you know from the weekly deals I pull from their circular, I shop in all of these regularly and have had positive experiences with them overall.

The custom search is on the right navigation column, just below the archive. Enjoy!

Subway Tales: Finger Lickin' Good

Generally, you're not supposed to eat on the subway. It's one of the many things that they started cracking down on last year. I think they need to crack down further because people are still doing it. This morning, I watched a middle-aged woman across from me chow down on a fried chicken thigh. She wasn't eating it discreetly either. She took monster bites as if she was in a KFC commercial. There's just no shame with some people. Don't they realize that they're putting on a show for the ten people sitting across? I feel bad for the ones sitting next to her. And who eats fried chicken for breakfast anyway!?

Related Links: KFC, Pace Press, Unidentified Flying Chickens

Ten Random Chain Survey Questions for 2007-09-13

1. What were you doing this morning at 8am? reading email
2. Are you any good at math? I'm a mentat... a human computer. All I see is math.
3. What were you doing last night? Watching Yankees vs. Jays
4. Where is your mom at? Caribbean
5. How many different beverages have you drank today? apple cider vinegar, distilled water, Red Bull, Lime Rain Gatorade
6. How many siblings do you have? 1
7. What is your favorite flavor of JELLO? green
8. Describe your key chain? can be easily converted into a weapon
9. What kind of winter coat do you have? none... I don't get cold
10. Can you tie a cherry stem with your tongue? no

British Bull vs. Swiss Bull

Luol Deng and Great Britain defeated Bulls teammate Thabo Sefolosha and Switzerland 74-41 in last night's European Championships. Both teams are battling for a spot in the 2012 Olympics. Ever Since Deng joined the British national team, he has single-handedly elevated the sport of basketball in England. Because he's playing at such a high level, I think this is going to carry over to the NBA season rather than him getting burned out. The same goes for Thabo. Even though he lost to GB, he got a chance to lead his team.

Just Djoking

During the US Open, we were treated to a couple of Novak Djokovic's player impressions. While being interviewed on the court, he did accurate imitations of Maria Sharapova and Rafael Nadal. Check out this locker room video for even more impressions:



Back when I wrote Serbian Sweep, I mentioned "Novak Djokovoic as Rafael Nadal." I meant that he was taking Nadal's place by playing against Federer. I had no idea he did impressions of Nadal!

Ten Random Chain Survey Questions for 2007-09-11

1. Who was your last text from? I only get text messages from servers... not people.
2. What is your current mood? Bored... why do you think this blog has more than 1 entry per day!
3. What color shirt are you wearing? navy blue
4. If you could go back in time and change something, would you? Sure. Computer programs are better when reworked and so are pieces of art. Life should be no different.
5. Something you do a lot? blog
6. If you could have one super power what would it be? Wolverine's healing factor
7. What do you usually order from starbucks? iced hazelnut
8. If you could have any last name in the world, what would it be? I'm pretty happy with my clan name of Arashikage.
9. Do you still watch kiddy movies or tv shows? Just Transformers... it's so stupid when I watch it now, but it brings back good memories.
10. Do you speak any other language? bad Mandarin, bad Hokkien, OK Elvish

Clockwork Apple: Melvin Constapino

Dynamically Tense Running Man

I run into Melvin almost every morning as he jogs the reverse of my walk to the subway station. Which street I see him on gives me an idea of what time it is... which tells me if I'm late or early. There are many morning joggers in the city, but Melvin stands out because of his unusual technique. Instead of relaxing and letting his body flow with the motion, he holds his breath and flexes every muscle in his body. His facial expression is one of pain and anguish. His back is as straight as a telephone pole. These characteristics can only be explained by the weighted rod he sticks up his butt for added resistance. When I see Melvin, I steer clear of his path because he could spontaneously combust at any moment! Sorry if that was gross, but that's what his facial expression tells me.

US Open: Man in Black

Federer vs Djokovic was no disappointment. Naturally Federer won... and in straight sets. But like his other matches in this tournament, he gave his opponent a lot of hope. In the first set, it was a sure win for Djokovic, but Federer forced a tiebreak and deflected 5 match points. In the second set, the young Serbian had a 4 to 1 lead and Federer stayed calm and came back. The last set was all Federer as Djokovic choked on nervousness. So it was another straight set, yet exciting victory. That's 4 US Opens and 12 Grand Slams for the man in black. Even though Djokovic lost, he still had a good run at the tournament and a great year overall as he took over the 3rd seed. He's also proven that he can play with the metahumans Federer and Nadal. Congrats to both finalists!

Tech Deals of the Week (9/9-9/15)

It's a bit of a drought this week, but at least there are a couple of items. There were no good prices on flash drives this time around... most were over $10/GB. I wonder if this was affected by the new iPods.

Acer AL2216Wbd for $199.99 @ CompUSA
This is not the lowest price ever, but it's been a while since this one went on sale. For a more complete review, please see my June post. Staples has this one on sale for $229.90 this week, so $199,99 is still great... and it's a 22" monitor. I don't think you can get this kind of price anywhere else right now.

Logitech 2.1 Speakers for $19.99 @ CompUSA
This is a pretty good price if you just need some basic speakers.

50 & 51

OK... no slump at 49! A-Rod just hit #50 & #51 tonight! No Yankee has reached 50 since Mantle & Maris (both in 1961). There are 14 games left in the season, so if he hits one per night, that should give him 65. It's pretty hard to hit one per night, but if he plays like he did in April, it is possible!

The Yankees won tonight, which sets them up to complete a much needed sweep tomorrow afternoon.

US Open Days 12 & 13

I got busy and missed a bunch of matches, but just to recap... Justine Henin defeated Venus Williams to move on to the final. She is also the first to defeat both Willamses in the same tournament since Martina Hingis in 2001.

Novak Djokovic defeated David Ferrer in straight sets earlier today. It seems like Djokovic is the real deal and the Rogers Cup where he defeated Roddick, Nadal and Federer was not some fluke.

Rogerer Federer just defeated Nikolay Davydenko a few minutes ago and it was amazing. Davydenko got off to a good start, but Federer came right back. The second set was a one sided rout by Federer. Davydenko seemed like he was about to return the favor in the 3rd, but Federer surged back again to take the match in straight sets. This sets up a Rogers Cup rematch. Djokovic is climbing up in the standings. Federer seems invincible in this US Open. He gave some opponents hope, but then shut them down in the end. Even though it's not Federer vs Nadal, I'll settle for Federer vs Djokovic.

Justine Henin did an on-court impression of Roger Federer as she destroyed Svetlana Kuznetsova. Henin, like Federer just chased down every ball and had an answer for her opponent's every move.

Subway Tales: Art of Paper Reading

I had a very entertaining morning commute. The guy that sat across from me was having the hardest time reading his NY Post. On top of that, he was getting angry and cursing off too. He just couldn't get a grip of the paper. He had trouble turning the page for the longest time and once he did, the middle pages started slipping down. It was as if the newspaper gods just didn't want this guy to read. After about 10 minutes, he was set to go. What cracked me up further was the way he was reading... with crossed eyes!

Continued Ups & Downs

After sweeping the Sox, the Yankees cancelled that out by losing the Tamba Bay series. They then won 2 out of 3 in the very important (wild card) series with the Mariners. So based on my .667 plan, they're still behind by 2 more sweeps. Kansas City & Toronto are next. They need to win all 6 games before entering the final series against the Red Sox in mid-September.

There have also been several smaller ups & downs as well. During the losing stretch, Mussina temporarily lost his job in the rotation after a few bad outings. Viscaino is falling apart. Joba Chamberlain is still perfect and Mariano is his invincible self again. Matsui & Abreu are slumping, but A-Rod is on a homerun frenzy... 2 in one inning last night! The Maris record looks reachable again... if he doesn't get stuck on 49 or 60.

US Open Day 10

Double Classic

Venus Williams advanced after a great match with Jelena Jankovic. Jankovic took the first set, which was close. Venus came back and took the 2nd. The 3rd was also close and went to a tiebreak.

Roger Federer defeated Andy Roddick on straight sets, but it was hardly an easy sweep. The first two sets were extremely close and both went to toe-to-toe tiebreaks as well. I thought this was going to go 5 when I started watching, but Federer broke out in the 3rd set... a respectable loss for Roddick. Both players were great. Although he didn't win a set, I think this was the best Andy played Roger... until next time.

Last night's matches set up an exciting women's semi-final with Venus Williams vs. Justine Henin. Will Venus avenge her sister or will Henin get to knock off both Willamses? On the Men's side, Roger Federer will face Nikolay Davydenko in a less exciting match. Federer is undefeated against Davydenko... but I guess one never knows with tennis. So I'll still watch it!

Subway Tales: Emsemble Cast

There were a few scattered seats open in the car. At the next stop, 2 old ladies walked in along with a large young woman. The young woman squeezed her way into a spot that could've fit one (possibly both) of the old ladies. The old ladies walked to the other side of the train where there was one more open spot. The young man next to the open spot got up so that both old ladies could site together. While all this was happening, a crazy (or drunk) young woman was pacing back and forth across the length of the car, stopping often to do stretches and to smile into thin air.

The New iPod Family

Pretty close to my original mockup, huh? All of our questions about the recent rumors were answered today. It was really a matter of clearing up which device the iPhone's design would be applied to. So here's the breakdown:

Shuffle: The Shuffle is sticking around, but no design change. They just redid the colors and added a Project Red version. Though the Shuffle has no screen, it's still a good device for working out and for bringing a few Podcasts along.

Nano: The Nano went through a pretty radical redesign as it changed shape. The spyshots of the stubby Nano were accurate, but the actual colors are richer. The spyshots were pastel, but the actual resemble Chiclets. Storage capacity remained the same with an 8 GB maximum. The main attraction with this model is the larger screen made for video playback.

Classic: This was previously called the iPod Video. There was no design change, but the hard drive doubled in capacity to 160 GB.

Touch: The iPhone design ended up being a completely new product rather being applied to the Nano or Video. This model was as predicted... a phoneless iPhone. It has wi-fi which is actually faster (but less connected) than the iPhone's network. The price of the 16 GB model is not bad at $399. That's the price of 2 8 GB Nanos, but with all of the added features. I'm actually considering this model, but will play with it in the Apple Store first.

For more details and specs, please visit Apple's website.

US Open Day 9

Double Disappointment

Down goes another American... Serena Williams this time as she loses to her rival Justine Henin. It hasn't really been a rivalry this year... just a consistent butt kicking as she lost to the same opponent in the last 3 majors. This wasn't an upset as Henin is the 1st seed and the moist well-rounded player. It was just disappointing because I was routing for the American players. If Serena could whip herself into better shape, maybe next time she can return some of Henin's "lucky shots."

And Nadal lost in an upset to fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 6-7 (3), 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-2. Nadal has never made it that far in the US Open for some reason. It's definitely due to his knee injury this year though. Ferrer just seemed faster and Nadal wasn't getting to ball he normally returns.

Hopefully Venus can get past Jankovic. I would love to see a Henin/V.Williams semi-final. Both players are great combinations of power and speed. On the Men's side Federer vs. Roddick should be fun to watch. Andy has had more rest time, but does he have a new strategy for Federer?

Transformers: Decepticons Reviewed

In my Autobots Reloaded post, I mentioned that the Decepticons were well done and matched some previous incarnation. Some of that is worthy of digging up past memories in my head. So here it goes:

Blackout: The last incarnation of Blackout was actually a helicopter in Transformers: Energon. So that was an accurate translation.

Frenzy: Frenzy from G1 was a cassette, but in the movie is a boombox, which keeps the same theme and allows him to transform without shifting size. This was a good choice as well.

Scorponok: This one was a direct translation... scorpion to scorpion. Scorponok shrunk for the movie though! The original G1 character was a fortress. The movie version was probably about the size of a large car.

Barricade: Not many people remember Barricade. I actually had to look this up myself because he wasn't a G1 character. He first appeared as a micromaster race car in Dreamwave's comic book series. In Transformers: Energon, he became a missle truck. So a police car is a good mix of the two. And it's fitting that the Decepticons have a police car instead of the Autobots.

Megatron: Megatron was known mostly for his P38 mode, but since they understandably didn't want to deal with resizing in the movie, that couldn't be his alternate form. The G2 Megatron was a tank, but that would make him weaker than Starscream in the movie. In Machine Wars, he became an F-22 Raptor. And finally in the movie, an aggressive looking alien jet.

Starscream: F-15 to F-22 was a good modern translation for Starscream because the Raptor is the modern military replacement for the Eagle. Starscream was always a jet in every Transformers series.

Devastator: This translation didn't really match up. In G1, Devastator was a giant combiner made up of 6 Constructicons. But there's a better explanation for this. The tank in the movie was originally named Brawl, who was a combiner in G1 (the Combaticon tank who formed the left leg of Bruticus). The renaming probably had to do with image... "Devastator" sounds way better than "Brawl."

Bonecrusher: In G1, Bonecrusher was the constructicon that formed the left arm of Devastator. His alternate mode was a bolldozer though. Scavenger was the long-armed excavator. So Bonecrusher was a loose translation.

PS - Since I'm posting so many Transformers entries, I made a new label for it.

Eeeeeeeeeasing Back from Vacation

It's pretty interesting to see how much work time is wasted when an employee gets back from a long vacation. One would think that the returning employee should jump right into his/her work because there should be a huge backlog (if that employee is doing real work on a daily basis). However, that is not usually the case. Here's what happens in my office...

1) The returning employee comes in 30-60 minutes late.

2) Does he/she go straight to work... of course not! He/she will go around to all of his/her friends and talk about the vacation for 20-30 minutes (each friend).

3) Then it's back to the desk... to get started... NOT! Once back at his/her desk, it's time to call up some more friends.

4) By lunch time, no actual work is done yet... maybe just a few emails from the flooded inbox. So that leads to a "welcome back" lunch that goes over an hour for colleagues who want an in-depth review of the vacation.

5) Some work gets done during the afternoon, but the returning employee leaves 30-40 minutes early because he/she is tired from the vacation (and over-socializing).

That's a lot of employee hours! And in numbers 2-4, it's not only the returning employee, but everyone one else that socialized with him/her.

Transformers: Game Intro.

This is the introduction in the new Transformers video game. The models look just like the ones from the movie. Peter Cullen still does the voice of Optimus Prime... and this time they got the original Megatron voice too. I wanted to post the intro here because it provides some back story to the movie. It also does Megatron's alternate form more justice. In the movie, Megatron transformed back and forth several times, but didn't stay in his alien jet mode too long. This short flick lets you see all of the details of the jet mode. Enjoy!

US Open Day 8

Roddick was the last American standing in the men's tournament after the day. He defeated Tomas Berdych 7-6 (6), 2-0. They went toe-to-toe in the first set and Roddick won the tiebreak. I was watching this from outside while washing my car, looking inside periodically. Andy got off to a good start in the second set, then it was over the next time I glanced in. It turned out that Berdych threw in the towel due to a breathing problem. Roddick hit the practice courts right after the match. He has to stay warm and sharp for the next round... Roger Federer.

While Andy had a comfortable path to the next round, James Blake had the exact opposite as he lost a thrilling marathon to Tommy Haas 4-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-0, 7-6 (4). I started watching this one just before leaving for a friend's Labor Day party. We watched the match for the duration of the party. And the guests started to leave before the tiebreak began.

Federer gave Lopez some hope in the first set, but never looked worried as he won the next 3 straight. I didn't think there was anything noteworthy here. Federer was expected to win and he did. So this sets up a rematch of last year's final with Roddick.

US Open Day 7

I mentioned the Blake match yesterday, but never wrote about the result. It's because I fell asleep. It was a pretty exciting match too... I was just too tired. He ended up defeating Koubek 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-1... past 1am this morning. I fell asleep during the 3rd set tiebreak. At that point, it still looked like it could go either way. After reading the news, Blake seemed to turn it on and dominate the 4th. I think his previous marathon with Fabrice Santoro helped prepare him for the win over Koubek.

Nadal advanced by defeating Tsonga 7-6(3), 6-2, 6-1. Despite his knee pains, he looked like he was 100%... especially in the last two sets. The first set was an adjustment period because it was the first time these two players have met. Like his fellow metahuman Federer, Nadal is a quick learner. I hope he can stay healthy because I'd love to see a Federer vs. Nadal match in the US Open.

The Williams sisters both advanced today. Serena defeated Marion Bartoli and Venus ended Ana Ivanovic's run. Both sisters seem to play really well during the US Open.

US hopes are still alive at home court with Andy Roddick, James Blake, Venus Williams and Serena Williams!

Tech Deals of the Week (9/2-9/8)

PNY 8 GB Flash Drive for $69.99 @ CompUSA
If you've missed the previous 4 GB deals, now's your chance to make up for it and more. This is the first time an 8 GB flash drive has dropped below $10/GB. The previous sale price was $79.99. PNY drives have the U3 software and are built with durable cases.

Microsoft Compact Optical Mouse for $9.99 @ Office Depot
This is the same as the week of 8/12.

Sandisk 4 GB Cruzer Micro Drive for $29.99 @ Office Depot
This is the best price/GB flash buy of the week. The last time we saw this price was over a month ago.

PNY 4 GB Flash Drive for $34.99 @ CompUSA
It's not as good as the Sandisk 4 GB one, but still a good price if you can't get to Office Depot. CompUSA also has the 2 GB model for $17.99.

Belkin Surge Protector for $9.99 @ Office Depot
This surge protector has 6 rotating outlets. It's great for all of those power bricks.

TrendNET 54 Mbps 802.11g Router & Adapters for $1.99 @ CompUSA
SUN & MON ONLY - I didn't think it could get lower than $2.99!

US Open Day 6

Andy Roddick made short work of Thomas Johansson, beating him 6-3, 6-2, 6-0 with 19 aces. This is the Roddick that we all know. He had some disappointing early exits in the previous tournaments, but is playing well so far in the US Open.

Roger Federer had some early trouble against the giant John Isner, but then turned it on after losing the first set to win the next three. Isner at 6'9" looks huge on TV and he covers so much space with his wingspan. He can become very effective if he develops his muscle tone. Federer was like a robot. He didn't play well in the first set, then he just adapted and then dominated. But that's why he's the champ!

Maria Sharapova was upset by teenage Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4, 1-6, 6-2. She double-faulted 12 times! So she still has a mental complex with her serve. She has to find some way to overcome this. She would be really dominant if she didn't double-fault so often. That's the end of the fashion show and rapid fire cameras for this tournament.

There was nothing on TV and I was waiting for the James Blake match. I was happy to stumble upon the very close and exciting match between Vaidisova and Peer. It consisted of 2 close sets, a third that went to tiebreak and a tiebreak down to the wire. Peer had 3 chances to take the match, but Vaidisova blew a few aces to extend the match. Peer ended up winning the marathon on the 4th match point.