tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-108181272011-12-31T12:49:54.764-06:00The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.comBlogger1151100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-75920492488809273942011-12-02T17:35:00.001-06:002011-12-02T17:35:54.274-06:00

Preach on brother Carolla!

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-91217615180419023632011-04-10T15:54:00.001-05:002011-04-10T15:54:57.123-05:00

The Fates smiled upon me. I managed to replace a couple of long lost games this week; Security Station & Car Wars. Some of the regulars may recall a series of "microgames" that were published back in the late 70's early 80's. They were produced by startup gaming companies and sold in small hand sized cardboard or plastic boxes (sometimes ziplock bags) to keep the packaging costs down and sold

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-31259758324886231972011-04-09T13:25:00.000-05:002011-04-09T13:26:18.284-05:00

If I ever manage to have all of the free time I want and still maintain all the income I would need to do the things I would like with all that free time...THIS is one of the things I would do.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-64385677659319001892010-12-20T20:34:00.002-06:002010-12-20T20:39:31.800-06:00

If you liked Shaun of the Dead and HotFuzz you should put this on you list to see come February 2011.p.s. Yes, I know, things have been quite around here for a few months...will be trying to find time to do more in the new year.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-66769815799752388542010-06-23T17:19:00.001-05:002010-06-23T17:20:10.032-05:00

Damint! My new iPhone is already obsolete tech!

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-31183605563298739952010-06-16T21:36:00.001-05:002010-06-16T21:36:33.706-05:00

A rather addictive little puzzle game with a steampunk angle. Download the demo today. By Friday you'll want get the full version.Enjoy

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-19080452459331551742010-05-11T23:11:00.001-05:002010-05-11T23:11:44.655-05:00

The below was shamelessly swiped from an article linked HERE.For maximum blasphemy, start using mocons (Mohammed Icons) instead of smiley-faces:Mohammed (((:~{>Mohammed as a pirate (((P~{>Mohammed on a bad turban day ))):~{>Mohammed with sand in his eye (((;~{>Mohammed wearing sunglasses (((B~{>Mohammed with a lit bomb in his turban *-O)):~{>The devil mo ]:~{>Mohammed with a nuclear bomb in his

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-19993660916022638162010-04-10T14:29:00.000-05:002010-04-10T14:30:34.530-05:00

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-14988882530795812032010-01-24T10:52:00.001-06:002010-01-24T10:52:13.205-06:00

While I'd been aware of the Orion Spacecraft Project since watching the old COSMOS series, I never knew there was a proposed Battleship version until seeing this.Quoting from the source page:"The "piece de resistance" of the Orion development project was the Orion Battleship, a 10-story-tall spaceborne "doomsday" weapon that would carry more nuclear firepower than a nuclear submarine. Its

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-11574254508947930872009-11-28T12:47:00.001-06:002009-11-28T12:56:30.105-06:00

Memorable from many films (Breaker Morant a fine example) and a respected Shakespearean, I probably think of him most as ex-CIA spook Robert McCall in The Equalizer" from the mid to late 80's. Loved that show. Though he did make an appearance as a Technomage in the B5 spin-off show Crusade too.Click here for story.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-45444246025600689642009-10-04T14:45:00.000-05:002009-10-04T14:46:17.185-05:00

(from Cory Doctorow by way Will Wheaton by way of John Rogers )

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-63430693306509071982009-10-03T12:13:00.001-05:002009-10-03T12:13:57.732-05:00

50 years go on Oct 2nd 1959 a most amazing show debued on TV with the first episode of the Twilight Zone "Where Is Everybody?". For approximately 156 episodes until June of 1964 Rod Serling brought thought provoking Science Fiction to american TV screens, many of which (despite their age, and many years of re-run in syndication) are still entertaining and poignant today.Thank you Rod Serling!

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-58699621973728043562009-10-02T09:46:00.000-05:002009-10-02T09:49:32.217-05:00

Though often incorrectly attributed to Lincoln (actual author was William J. H. Boetcker) in the wild Fact-challenged environs populated by Internet Chain Letters, it doesn't lessen the truth of these 10 statements...especially these days:1. You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.2. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong3. You cannot help the poor man by

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-56396916786588196672009-09-11T00:12:00.001-05:002009-09-11T00:12:40.936-05:00

Yes, you read that right..."Internet speed and connectivity in Africa's largest economy are poor because of a bandwidth shortage. It is also expensive. Local news agency SAPA reported the 11-month-old pigeon, Winston, took one hour and eight minutes to fly the 80 km (50 miles) from Unlimited IT's offices near Pietermaritzburg to the coastal city of Durban with a data card was strapped to his leg

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-37077556241579865132009-08-05T17:52:00.001-05:002009-08-07T14:07:19.491-05:00

Well...I guess people better watch what they say about Obama's policies, your neighbors will report you to the Ministry of Truth.From the White House blog [Link HERE]:"There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-56476641670739013312009-07-27T22:16:00.001-05:002009-07-27T22:17:37.255-05:00

Carrying on the nostalgia theme....Wired has an interesting article on "100 Things Your Kids May Never Know About". Basically a list of things that were a common part of our daily lives only a decade or two ago, that most kids coming up today may have no knowledge of, as if they never existed.A few notable entries on the list:Rotary dial televisions with no remote control. You know, the ones

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-82661627382012828472009-07-15T23:14:00.007-05:002009-07-27T22:18:07.256-05:00

Be warned...the following post may be completely lost on you unless you are an old school gamer geek, a GenXer from Pasadena Texas, or both.Reading through my fellow Pasadenian blogger Jar(Egg)head's site today it turns out he stumbled onto a website dedicated to many things "kitschy" and nostalgic from the 70s. (Site link here) As it happens their page on "Vintage Toy Stores" from around the

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-40619207957517091322009-05-25T09:50:00.002-05:002009-05-25T09:56:35.827-05:00

Probably nothing new to folks who are familiar with their history, but this is a nice article on on the way Hollywood used to show their support for the troops back in the day. How things have changed....Link HERE

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-47543033749228515342009-04-26T12:06:00.000-05:002009-04-26T12:07:47.068-05:00

Being the "book-o-philes" that myself and the madAngel are I found this quite cool. "...the Espresso Book Machine can print any of 500,000 titles while you wait"As much as I come to rely on e-books for reference material and research, and on audiobooks to keep current on my reading list with a very busy schedule, I still have a strong affinity for holding and reading from the printed page.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-34473130283428971282009-04-12T14:59:00.009-05:002009-04-12T15:14:03.036-05:00

I've owned only four console in my life. It all started off with the APF TV Fun model 402. I bought the game with my own money (which consisted of ALOT of rolled-up quarters, nickels and dimes) in about 1978. It was a TV Pong game for up to 4 players with a "lightgun" for games like skeet.  Skeet, for the uninitiated, consisted of a small white square that would appear at random locations at a

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-25759836621975200512009-04-11T13:09:00.005-05:002009-04-11T13:29:25.200-05:00

If you didn't know already the madAngel and I were married on Feb 22nd in the Stratosphere Hotel chapel in Las Vegas. We were joined by my Best Man (some of you will know him as Jar(egg)head of the blog Apathy Curve) and his wife along with the madAngel's parents and other family. We honeymooned for a week in Vegas, seeing the sights, taking in some shows, walking the Strip and making generous

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-65475021684379615282009-04-11T11:29:00.000-05:002009-04-11T11:30:10.647-05:00

Rick Deckard's Plager Katsumate Series-D Blaster (aka M2019) from the movie Blade Runner. The weapon of choice for retiring renegade replicant soldiers, assassins and half-naked strippers in a clear-plastic raincoats.Can be yours for a bid somewhere in the neighborhood of $100,000. Click [HERE]

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-4566552313579096182009-03-01T21:29:00.002-06:002009-03-01T21:29:49.238-06:00

Are Violent Video Games Adequately Preparing Children For The Apocalypse?Personally I think the paper & dice RPGs and Apocalyptic Sci-Fi of my youth provided much better preparation for the coming apocalypse than the *blip* *blip* *ka-pow* video games today's kids play. When the End of Days comes, these Generation Y Millennial kids are going to choke looking for "power-ups" and BFG-9000s while

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-23434522540468619312009-02-16T00:32:00.001-06:002009-02-16T00:32:19.071-06:00

The quote below says it all I think:"New York man Muzzammil Hassan founded pro-Islam station Bridges TV five years ago to combat the negative public image of Muslims. He is currently under arrest for beheading his wife."I suppose he didn't realize beheading your wife falls squarely in the NEGATIVE column here in the U.S. Click here for the story.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-74861618937888867402009-01-28T20:42:00.001-06:002009-01-28T20:42:57.598-06:00

...you decide. A news report from Austin tells of a "prank" where "hackers" got into one of the highway digital road signs and caused it to display the warning message "Zombies Ahead".Click here for full storyTxDOT quickly moved in to reset the message to the normal text, warning you about a 'Missing Elderly in Blue Buick Regal LIC # XXX-XXX'. Hmmm....mayhaps this 'missing elderly' is actually

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-56995249431557039492009-01-25T23:07:00.001-06:002009-01-25T23:07:37.918-06:00

And you just thought working on a Dvorak keyboard was hard!Link HERE(hat tip Frank R.)

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-35616249891683037892009-01-25T11:07:00.001-06:002009-01-25T11:09:56.860-06:00

... pay close attention?Back in November I posted this article about the Monty Python's crews reaction to people putting their pirate clips of MP skits on YouTube.  In short, they started putting their own much better quality clips on YouTube for free...with links on where you could buy the DVD.End results?  Free Monty Python Videos on Youtube Lead to 23,000% DVD Sale Increase.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-70923251941337195812009-01-17T12:17:00.003-06:002009-01-17T15:49:01.081-06:00

Inauguration Day is only 3 full days away. In a attempt to be more in touch with my inner compassionate nature I suggest that on Inauguration Day we all spare a moment to think of those who are left less fortunate in the wake of this last election. Those of us with critical minds who spent the last election cycle reviewing the candidates, weighing the facts, pulling on relevant lessons and

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-33297852892398754222009-01-16T11:31:00.001-06:002009-01-16T11:32:43.383-06:00

Remember the old days of computer gaming when you didn't need fancy graphics cards that have their own RAM and didn't care what "chipset" it used, and you didn't need a 6-ton refrigeration unit pumping exotic chemicals through your PC case to keep it cool? A keyboard, a monochrome monitor of amber or green, and the ASCII character set were sufficient to keep you gaming for hours playing the

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-44476847971355332702009-01-11T23:28:00.004-06:002009-01-11T23:44:01.278-06:00

Following up from THIS early 2008 post on ApathCurve....The mad angel and I have been playing the new zombie Apocalypse (zombocalypse?) survival game called Left4Dead. I think the reviews have been favorable, my personal review is that it's great.I'm also happy to say that on her first real experience in fighting zombies, the mad angel has picked up the fine art of making Zombie-Brain-Salad with

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-78204514287618202632008-12-27T19:32:00.003-06:002008-12-27T19:52:48.063-06:00

"The human qualities that people valued and inculcated when she arrived had become mocked, despised, and repudiated by the time she died. The past really was a foreign country; and they did do things differently there." - The Quivering Upper Lip - The British character: from self-restraint to self-indulgence by Theodore DalrympleAn interesting article caught my attention recently, reflecting on

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-67157361837485167142008-12-27T19:25:00.004-06:002008-12-27T19:30:50.940-06:00

Fetish / Pinup model Bettie Page passed away on December 11th, 2008 at the age of 85.Her memorial page can be found HERE

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-18359375527113389822008-12-27T19:10:00.004-06:002008-12-28T13:44:19.162-06:00

As mentioned in my previous blogpost I recently spent a week in London on business the week before Christmas but I did manage to get in some site seeing and shopping. I stayed at the London Marriott County Hall which is an outstanding hotel that sits on the banks of the Thames just across from the Palace of Westminster, location of Big Ben and the British Houses of Parliament. It also sits

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-36783405511124512262008-12-24T11:57:00.003-06:002008-12-24T12:14:23.266-06:00

It's been a busy few weeks for the Madbuilder.   Getting ready for Christmas, completed a week long business trip to London to meet with some Sr. Management to discuss expanding our the role and responsibilities of our group within Shell, doing some site seeing while in London (pics will be in a follow-up blog post),  moving fully into my new role as Manager of the Programme Management Office,

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-49975519454010256912008-12-07T22:14:00.000-06:002008-12-07T22:15:09.779-06:00

An interesting project from the Orwell Trust."The Orwell Prize is delighted to announce that, to mark the 70th anniversary of the diaries, each diary entry will be published on this blog exactly seventy years after it was written, allowing you to follow Orwell’s recuperation in Morocco, his return to the UK, and his opinions on the descent of Europe into war in real time. The diaries end in 1942,

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-11861396965103800762008-12-07T19:06:00.003-06:002008-12-07T19:15:35.138-06:00

Well, the Nightmare-Before-Christmas-Tree is up in the Mad Builder household.  Behold it's 10-inch, black, silver and bright white LED glory. The much taller and more traditional tree will have to wait a couple of days before it gets setup.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-42816227104643062692008-12-07T16:44:00.003-06:002008-12-07T16:50:23.006-06:00

For the 5th time in 12 months the folks at www.websitesource.com (the folks that host my business domain & email as well as my mt-doom.net site & email) have managed to screw up their auto-billing system. Specifically yet again they have disabled my site for non-payment 4 days after they sent me an email confirming receipt of payment and debiting my bank account. Time to find another hosting

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-88026677021144036202008-12-07T14:49:00.004-06:002008-12-07T16:50:56.150-06:00

Playing catchup. We managed to make our annual trip to the Texas Renaissance Festival again this year.  The weekend theme was "The Barbarian Invasion".  We had originally planned to get a motel, go up on a Friday evening, go a-Renning all weekend and head back Sunday night. With everything going we weren't able to make the arrangements so we just did our 1 day jaunt. Still had great fun,

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-47327199398458623872008-11-19T21:35:00.001-06:002008-11-19T21:35:57.469-06:00

Those Monty Python chaps are putting their own clips on YouTube.Enjoy!

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-49846248192370406222008-11-10T21:49:00.003-06:002008-11-10T22:26:58.191-06:00

Clarence JenkinsJan 6, 1927 - Nov 4, 2008My father passed away on the night of Nov 4th. He had been fighting lung cancer but it was still very unexpected that he would take such a rapid turn for the worse so quickly. Just the week before he had been saying that he was fine, though his voice on the phone sounded a little tired. Having fought and beat previous cancers we had planned a

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-25376725352361629722008-09-30T20:39:00.001-05:002008-09-30T20:39:35.736-05:00

From: Minister of the Treasury PaulsonSubject: REQUEST FOR URGENT CONFIDENTIAL BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPDear American:I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationshipwith a transfer of funds of great magnitude.I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My countryhas had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of800 billion dollars US. If you would

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-30220071719467374512008-09-19T10:18:00.002-05:002008-09-19T10:21:07.001-05:00

Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-7454478168089093512008-09-18T20:21:00.003-05:002008-09-18T20:23:46.749-05:00

Finally! Today we have power! Many thanks to Centerpoint and linemen from around the country that have converged on the Houston area to get the lights back on.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-83455670538607351632008-09-16T15:59:00.005-05:002008-09-16T17:42:10.463-05:00

If you're too young to get the reference in the title I'm not going to explain it too you.Anyways.... Thanks to Hurricane Ike there are approx 1.6 million people in Houston who still have no power, and I'm one of them. Fortunately, unlike a lot of other people in the Greater Houston area, we came through the storm with virtually no damage at all, save a 12ft long piece of gutter being ripped off

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-87131290112253410972008-09-12T18:37:00.001-05:002008-09-12T18:37:42.470-05:00

So the Obama campaign thinks it's funny the McCain can't use a computer and send email. They've even created a new campaign ad around it.Had they bothered to do a little research (or even done a fucking Google search) they'd discover that due to the harsh beatings he received at the hand of his Viet Cong captors "McCain's severe war injuries prevent him from combing his hair, typing on a keyboard

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-60639996783696024112008-09-07T14:35:00.005-05:002008-09-07T15:15:29.725-05:00

I did it.  I've been iPhoned...sucked deeper into the Apple collective less than a month after getting my new iMac.  My Samsung Blackjack became available for hardware upgrade under my cell phone contract a couple of days before leaving for DragonCon (meaning I could avoid paying the outrageous full purchase price for the phone) and I made the move.  I was lucky enough to find an AT&T store that

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-12185321469101427382008-09-07T13:26:00.004-05:002008-09-07T14:32:21.599-05:00

Welp, the mad angel and I made it back from DragonCon 2008. We had a blast, perhaps even better than last year. With the addition of the new hotel (the con now covers 4 hotels in downtown Atlanta) and the completion of the remodeling that had most of the Marriott close off last year the congestion was not nearly as bad as last year. Current unofficial rumor has the number of visitors at 40,000

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-15048314607769182812008-08-17T19:10:00.002-05:002008-08-17T19:24:29.818-05:00

It's that time of year again. At the end of the month (specifically from August 28th to September 2nd) the mad angel and I will be back in Atlanta for DragonCon. 429 confirmed guests and bands are confirmed for this year. The three main hotels have been booked up for months now and a 4th overflow hotel has been added. Expectations are they will beat the official 35,000 (unofficially ~45,000)

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-87576816191155178172008-08-17T18:46:00.002-05:002008-08-17T18:48:13.945-05:00

Some of you who only read the MadBuilder's Journals by email or RSS Feed may not have noticed, but I recently upgraded to Bloggers new format. I admit to being a bit paranoid and saving copies of my page template before letting the auto-covert do its business. I was pleasantly surprised that it didn't get honked up too badly in the process. If you haven't made the conversion yet, you should.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-91481819919584597562008-08-17T18:10:00.005-05:002008-08-17T18:32:17.464-05:00

Over the last week I dipped my toes back into Apple world. I briefly played around with the Mac G4 Cube back in 2000. The main draw at the time was it's heritage. Since my college days I was a big fan of the amazingly powerful (if commercially an amazing flop) NeXT Computer. The new G4 Cube was one of the first machines released by Apple with their new OS, heavily based on the NeXTStep OS.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-49615823006625215472008-07-27T11:30:00.002-05:002008-07-27T11:44:21.728-05:00

Today I rediscovered this Eagles song I had forgotten about. I find it makes a decent salve after reading the local news."Get Over It"Lyrics by Glenn Frey & Don HenleyI turn on the tube and what do I seeA whole lotta people cryin' "Don't blame me"They point their crooked littlefingers at everybody elseSpend all their time feelin' sorry for themselvesVictim of this, victim of thatYour momma's too

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-57598695311439704162008-07-21T23:43:00.003-05:002008-07-21T23:49:16.890-05:00

From a recent post on a blog I've started reading. The author, a 42 year old career Army officer on his fourth combat tour in Iraq."Dr. Mohammed, my brother in all of my efforts in his area, explained in a memorable way what freedom meant to an Iraqi after living under an authoritarian regime for 35 years.To an Iraqi, he explained, freedom meant doing whatever he wants without oppression. 'If

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-78514308510491563692008-07-21T10:47:00.005-05:002008-07-21T16:04:46.176-05:00

Looks like more comic based movies on the horizon. Based strictly on the trailer, it looks like the dark alternative 1980's story The Watchmen will definitely be something to see. Click the smiley for the trailer.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-78888389457138713312008-07-21T10:05:00.003-05:002008-07-21T10:25:16.940-05:00

The mad angel and I took in a late showing of the new Batman film this weekend. We both agreed it is a definite must see. As neither of us have read the original comic I have no idea how the Dark Knight movie might compare for the comic book purists. But taking the movie on its own, it's outstanding. Ledger's does (or did) sadistic-crazy so well it's creepy. It will be a very tough job for anyone

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-51839033495581420132008-07-21T08:40:00.005-05:002008-07-21T09:11:49.372-05:00

Moving from Global Warming to CPU cooling.... The Danes have come up with cool new CPU cooling technology. Better than big metal heat-syncs, better than liquid cooling...it's a big liquid metal heat-sync with an electromagnetic pump. In other words instead of traditional coolant and a noisey fish-tank pump, it's a heat tower filled with liquid metal, circulated through the system via silent

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-8499187168393719582008-07-19T12:10:00.001-05:002008-07-19T15:59:01.316-05:00

...or maybe not."The American Physical Society, an organization representing nearly 50,000 physicists, has reversed its stance on climate change and is now proclaiming that many of its members disbelieve in human-induced global warming."Click [HERE] for full story.Someone should setup a web page to chronicle all of the scientists and scientific organizations that have come out to challenge the

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-82163817280264421242008-07-04T13:14:00.003-05:002008-07-04T13:17:54.535-05:00

Digital artist Dave Dries brings up some nostalgia with his rendered movie Arcade'84. Click the pic for his page. The movie is at the bottom of the page.I've wandered into the "Tilt" arcade in Memorial City Mall recently. There was a "Tilt" in our hometown mall in Pasadena back in the day that ate many many of my quarters....it's just not the same.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-17878083898923865152008-07-01T17:31:00.001-05:002008-07-01T17:33:15.227-05:00

"As gas prices pinch, support for energy exploration rises" - Pew Research Centerwell...fancy that...the price for gas goes up and suddenly sucking out that oil under ANWR, increasing exploration, and increasing production isn't such quite so Evil(tm) idea afterall.In one of the statistical summaries it is interesting to note the demographics of those that showed the greatest % of change.Support

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-9472595261457567002008-06-22T22:09:00.002-05:002008-06-22T22:13:42.477-05:00

I know this will come as welcome news to at least a couple of readers. James Burke's original PBS series Connections has finally been released on DVD. His later efforts have been available on DVD format for a few years now, but the original show (now called Connections 1) was only released on VHS in the late 80s and then went out of print.For those that don't know, James Burke was brilliant at

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-78831006206677647932008-06-06T14:41:00.004-05:002008-06-06T14:46:08.527-05:00

Earlier this week (2nd June) Islamist terrorist used a car bomb to blow up the Danish Embassy in Pakistan, apparently because a Danish magazine dared to publish one of the Muhammed cartoons. [Story HERE]Today, a Norwegian paper published the following cartoon in response.T-Shirt Translation :"I am Muhammed, no one dares to print me"

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-3723901145715326872008-05-31T23:29:00.002-05:002008-05-31T23:45:28.809-05:00

They're dropping like flies! Old Mr Bones has been busy this past week.Star Trek Composer Alexander Courage: dead at 88Comic Actor Harvey Korman: dead at 81Being honest, I'll miss Harvey Korman more that Alexander Courage. As I was growing up, Harvy Korman's dry style (especially when paired with Tim Conway or in a Mel Brooks movie) was a fucking laugh riot. Half the fun of watching the Carol

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-28650849037672443292008-05-31T23:26:00.001-05:002008-05-31T23:28:24.159-05:00

Probably like some of you I've been reading much in the press regarding the upcoming election, and all the talk in the media regarding what "The World thinks" or "What Europe thinks" about our candidates for the next president. If I hear one more of my fellow citizens go off about how "the president has made us hated in the world" or how "we need change to mend our relations with our allies", I

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-48191518049835646422008-05-25T23:51:00.004-05:002008-05-25T23:59:58.248-05:00

Haven't posted much about our work in Second Life lately. But one of our more recent creations was this reworking of the land in front of the rail station I rebuilt.A shaded park area making use of some new sculpted trees and a bridge section continuing the hint of ancient ruins that I've been putting through the other parts of the sim. People do seem to enjoy hanging out there. The Periwinkle

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-69038453706933129252008-05-25T23:33:00.001-05:002008-05-25T23:35:02.144-05:00

Robert Asprin (1946-2008)From his website: "On May 22, 2008, Bob passed away quietly in his home in New Orleans, LA. He had been in good spirits and working on several new projects, and was set to be the Guest of Honor at a major science fiction convention that very weekend."Asprin was a listed guest at this years DragonCon I was hoping to see. Now, sadly, not to be.As someone else has already

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-28612267972970676992008-05-24T15:54:00.001-05:002008-05-24T15:54:24.831-05:00

Heh. Sad but true.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-33212829907610258412008-05-18T13:26:00.004-05:002008-05-18T13:46:09.782-05:00

Relating to the previous post on Abney Park...why the hell does a place like L.A. get something cool like this??! *grumbles*The Edison is a club / lounge in what was LA's first private power plan in 1901. A definite "must visit" for the mad angel and I when we next find ourselves out in L.A.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-43499621614733541932008-05-18T13:19:00.004-05:002008-05-18T13:24:01.312-05:00

Can't remember how it was I stumbled across this band. Probably googling something about "steampunk". Regardless.... They are highly recommended by myself and the mad angel. Pulled down some songs from their online store and have them on high rotation on my iPod. A band with a unique sound and a steampunk style. Described as "...from an era that never was, but one that we wish had been.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-52956925784582824822008-05-18T12:31:00.002-05:002008-05-18T12:41:20.626-05:00

Bouncing as I have from different MMORPGS over the years (EQ, DAoC, AC, AO, SWG) I've always had a spot in my gamer's heart for Anarchy Online. This first SciFi based MMORPG to be produced was release back in 2001 with a rough-and-buggy beta period. However it introduced a lot of new concepts to MMOs and eventually to me was (and in a number of was still is) very solid in game play mechanics vs

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-71351370781010060382008-03-18T22:29:00.003-05:002008-03-18T22:36:22.955-05:00

Sir Arthur C. Clarke - Dead at 91

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-10954646994262644022008-03-07T11:35:00.002-06:002008-03-07T12:08:58.411-06:00

The bombing of a Times Square NY US Military recruiting center was apparently the work of the anti-Military Left. Cheeky bastards even sent out letters with pics of the recruit center to NY Congressmen saying "Happy new Year! We did it!"In my opinion this should not, in retrospect, be a surprise. If you look at all the stories of attacks against recruiters and recruit stations that the

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-91151910492645446682008-02-22T00:54:00.004-06:002008-02-22T01:16:15.279-06:00

Just finished "The Children of Hurin", the latest release in the Tolkien history of Middle Earth. It's very good book IMHO. An expansion of a tale that is scattered across other works such as the tale "Of Turin Turambar" found in The Silmarillion, "The Lay of the Children or Hurin" found in The Lays of Beleriand, "Narn I Hin Hurin" in The Unfinished Tales and "Turambar and the Foaloke" within

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-28204913689859428212008-02-03T21:37:00.000-06:002008-02-03T21:45:32.487-06:00

[The below was shamelessly lifted from a forum the mad angel and I frequent.]Choose your favorite response:A) Please Mistress, don't make me go back into the exercise ball...B) My safeword is "cheese log".C) Careful with that paddle. Last time I ended up across the room. D) It's all fun and games until you have to poop out a pellet and there's no way out...E) What do you mean you lost the key in

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-74761392251899270902008-01-25T23:12:00.000-06:002008-01-25T23:27:07.479-06:00

Ok, perhaps the fact that I think this is kinda' cool makes me a geek. Oh well, so be it.Yes, it's a Stargate. A creative group of folks in SL have built these and are giving them away for free to people to setup on the land they own all around SL. When activated they form a gate network that can be used to travel from one place in SL to another. They've put alot of detail into these things, and

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-69737719232172706542008-01-25T14:56:00.000-06:002008-01-25T16:06:36.068-06:00

...not so good, eh?Known for having some of the most strict gun laws in the "free world", it appears the UK has a growing problem with gun crime. Gee...making guns illegal doesn't stop criminals committing crimes with guns? Fancy that."The spiralling problem with gun culture was highlighted by figures that show 28 firearms crimes are committed in England and Wales every day."P.S. As the mad

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-64499327365692188752008-01-25T12:02:00.001-06:002008-01-25T12:07:07.522-06:00

C'mon...you know you want one. It would look perfect in the corner of your rumpus room. Or maybe behind the bar, serving up Andorian Brandy.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-74996561751709320952008-01-23T21:09:00.000-06:002008-01-23T21:17:45.221-06:00

Ok...this one is for the beer drinkers in the audience. I don't even drink, but the thought of this makes me queazy.Bud Light Beer + Clams + Tomato[Hat Tip original source: Stjnky]

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-53948671817293681682008-01-17T21:49:00.000-06:002008-01-17T21:53:03.085-06:00

Ok...this one is for all the WoW players.Short little funny clip, possible instance of sneaky but clever Toyota viral marketing campaign.Click below to view the movie.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-32479065375787237212008-01-13T18:45:00.000-06:002008-01-13T19:43:59.676-06:00

Bodily organs are not personal property, they belong to the community, to be used for the collective good of all. Only a selfish egotist would deny other comrades the use of his organs when he/she has no need of it. You have no right to deny your organs to The People. In any case, once you are dead, would will unable to complain. Now lie back and breath deeply, it will all be over soon. And

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-40613286226534835392008-01-12T20:28:00.001-06:002008-01-12T21:02:37.820-06:00

Ezra Levant, publisher of the Western Standard, was hauled before the Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission in Calgary, Canada because of his publishing of the now famous Danish Muhammad cartoons.He was not permitted to bring anyone other than his lawyer and his my wife along. The "human rights officer" barred others from attending as observers, including other officers of the

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-2807484468263800812008-01-09T12:43:00.000-06:002008-01-09T12:52:07.067-06:00

I can't describe it...I won't even try...just roll tape.[Yes, it is work safe...unless your co-workers are Indian or other folks from the Indian Subcontinent and they have no sense of humor.]

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-57106305629874946062008-01-08T07:18:00.001-06:002008-01-08T10:14:55.042-06:00

Heh. Ok, maybe that's a bit overly sensationalized, :)To provide some context for my post for those that don't know my background: I've been working in the IS/IT industry for over 20 years. I was University educated as a Software Engineer back in the 90s and have programmed in Pascal, Basic, COBOL, FORTRAN, C, C++, Ada, Lisp, 6809 Assembler and VAX Assembler. For the last 12 years I've been

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-57527270997753862872008-01-02T16:41:00.000-06:002008-01-02T16:54:52.490-06:00

Happy New Year to all readers and visitors to the blog. I'll be back to my irregular rantings in future posts.Establishing what seems to be a New Year's tradition, the mad angel and I both came down with a nasty case of the flu and sinus infections again this Holiday Season, and we upgraded another computer. The mad angel felt that, after it's many years of faithful service, my computer should

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-28441832235379561152007-12-18T12:43:00.000-06:002007-12-18T12:46:41.846-06:00

My wishing and worries are apparently at an end. Peter Jackson, Newline Cinema and MGM have managed to come to agreement that has allowed Peter Jackson to declare that he will be producing The Hobbit. Story Here The plan is for the story to be told in two films coming out in 2010 & 2011. A choice I'm glad to hear about since it means they won't be trying to shoehorn the story into a single film.

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-20796187042907781742007-12-07T13:53:00.000-06:002007-12-07T13:56:27.290-06:00

I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with the TV show "Scrubs" (now in re-reuns). Its a funny, qwerky little show about hospital interns. For me, the best character on the show...the main reason for watching IMNSHO...is Dr. Cox. Dr. Cox is the senior attending physician at Sacred Heart Hospital and Residency Director for the hospital. He's sarcastic and narcissistic, with a cruel wit

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-47991407874518078862007-12-01T00:26:00.000-06:002007-12-01T01:06:08.588-06:00

"There was a time, not so very long ago, when the British Empire wouldhave quite calmly -- and ever-so-politely -- sent an entire regiment ofthe Queen's Army, embarked aboard a flotilla of Her Majesty's Ships, tohelp the Sudanese leaders see reason. That time, alas, is past."- JAR(EGG)HEADThis snipping in recent post by Jar(egg)head about the madness in Sudan reminded me ofa book by Arthur Conan

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-47454506140769949472007-11-25T15:01:00.000-06:002007-11-25T15:04:44.824-06:00

Ever wonder what gmail look like if it were a microsoft product? (shhhh! Just go along with me here....) Click below for a look at the "Gatesified" version.HERE

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-25021298907677255002007-09-06T00:30:00.000-05:002007-09-06T00:48:57.081-05:00

From a story in the Army Times it appears that a B-52 was transporting a set of Cruise Missiles to be decommissioned but forgot to remove the 5 to 150 kiloton yield nuclear warheads before transport. So the B-52 flew from Minot Air Force Base, N.D., to Barksdale Air Force Base, La. with the warhead tipped ACMs mounted under the bombers wings and apparently nobody knew there were nukes there

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-85511545568600004442007-09-05T13:15:00.000-05:002007-09-05T13:27:37.466-05:00

In my not so humble opinion there is only 1 true screen version of Hamlet, and after 11 years it is FINALLY available on DVD. I've always been a fan of Kenneth Branagh's Shakespeare films (Hamlet, Much Ado..., Henry V, Othello). He manages to bring the passion, humor, and excitement of Shakespeare play to film in a way nobody else comes close to. This film is beautiful (shot in 70mm) with

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-45579759711635525062007-09-05T01:45:00.000-05:002007-09-05T02:24:16.120-05:00

Read on...its not as long a Journal Entry as it looks. :)After years of aborted planning I finally made it to Dragon*Con this year in Atlanta. The Mad Angel of Periwinkle accompanied me on what was her first Con experience and we both had a blast. The Con was spread over 3 adjoining Hotels this year and attendance figures are being quoted to be in the 30,000 to 35,000 range. The crowds really

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-15351797081593360212007-08-07T15:50:00.000-05:002007-08-07T16:25:59.296-05:00

Now I grew up in the 70's and 80's so I certainly had my fair share of TV watching. But it also means I did alot of the other stuff kids used to do with most of their time; going outside, playing games (the sort that required interaction with other human beings), reading, etc. So with that context I was reading an article in Time magazine about those cursed Baby Einstein and other such

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-30943440097503168702007-08-06T16:26:00.000-05:002007-08-06T16:30:31.373-05:00

Some historical revisionists over the past few decades has tried to change the record and context of why the bombs were dropped and what the "true" impacts were. However, the deeper historians delve into the records and recollections of the period the more it reinforces to original pre-Deconstructionist historical record. Truman made the decision to drop the bomb based on the intelligence, the

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-76498563880062083122007-08-06T13:21:00.000-05:002007-08-06T13:25:24.509-05:00

Hmmm.... Maybe there is a reason the Congressional Approval Rating is polling in the single digits now.From the Wall Street Journal:"The House of Representatives almost turned into the Fight Club Thursday night, when Democrats ruled that a GOP motion had failed even though, when the gavel fell, the electronic score board showed it winning 215-213 along with the word FINAL. The presiding officer,

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-83150871961388167682007-08-01T00:13:00.000-05:002007-08-01T01:15:34.378-05:00

Folks, you just can't make up silliness like this. Straight from the People's Republic of Berkeley. As part of an assignment in a computer programming class the students are to write a program that plays checkers. However...not exactly the checkers game that you or I probably remember. A kinder', more sensitive and inclusive game of checkers devoid of oppressive misogynistic imagery.Quoting

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-46894328496618960852007-07-31T11:44:00.000-05:002007-07-31T11:48:12.409-05:00

RIAA sues Sgt. Nicholas Paternoster for infringing copyrights on six songs by using the peer-to-peer file-sharing program Kazaa to distribute the songs online. RIAA submits into evidence screenshots of more than 4,600 files from Paternoster’s personal computer, including hundreds of apparently pornographic pictures and movies unrelated to the case.Sgt. Paternoster decides to fight back and files

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-25253380829673966132007-07-29T23:15:00.000-05:002007-07-30T00:18:07.457-05:00

I frequently come up with things to post & share here that I never get around to actually posting to this blog. I even pop open NOTEPAD at work (or more frequently now days, Google Notebook, "scribble" a few notes and paste a couple of links when an idea hits me. Then it seems a week or so flies by and I decide it's not really timely enough to post anymore.But of all the World Events, Cool New

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-1167874926557087262007-01-03T19:30:00.000-06:002007-01-03T19:42:06.566-06:00

The mad angel and I ushred in the new year by both coming down with a nasty case of the flu and sinus infections. The mad angel, being the overachiver she is, decided to take on bronchitis as well. Even so we had a very nice Christmas and New Years vacation together before the onset of the plague.For Christmas the mad angel bought me a most excellent digital camera. The 10.3 Megapixel Sony

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-1161791041254280022006-10-25T10:42:00.000-05:002006-10-25T10:44:01.266-05:00

An extended version of an upcoming article to be published in National Review magazine by writer and embedded reporter Michael Fumento on the modern war correspondence. An important set of observations in light of the fact that what most people know about the war comes to them directly or indirectly through the prism of the main stream media."The sad truth is that the mainstream media have no

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-1161274720743612052006-10-19T10:51:00.000-05:002006-10-19T11:18:41.636-05:00

Yeah...that was my reaction when I first read that too. But it's true. It seems that Reuters now has a link off their site for their Second Life presence.http://secondlife.reuters.com/In a bit of media-on-media action, Yahoo new has a story about it here. Very interesting stuff.The down side? A huge influx of new free-account visitors that pushed SL to over a 1 million users (with undoubtedly

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-1161271275203181772006-10-19T10:01:00.000-05:002006-10-19T10:40:14.066-05:00

A good recommendation from the Joint Economic Committee regarding taxation and virtual economies. In short, don't do it! (Click here) It's always refreshing to see someone in government actually "gets it."As someone who is not just a player in Second Life, but also a virtual land owner and beginning virtual entrepreneur, I welcome this recommendation from the JEC and hope lawmakers will give

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10818127.post-1157757711764385102006-09-08T17:59:00.000-05:002006-09-08T18:23:07.316-05:00

I stumbled across this very short tale by author Dan Simmons hidden away in one of his bloglike posts to reader's on his personal website. It's not a huge work, and unless he publishes it somewhere officially it will probably disappear in the huge void of the internet. But for me it was one of those stories one runs across every now and then that will give you pause. Pause to ponder your life and

The Mad Builder of Periwinklehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12901328359915013714noreply@blogger.com1