Author: Kenward

Plot Keyword Oracle – Abulafia Random Generators

dice_public_domain.JPGI am obsessed with Random Generators, and have been for awhile. I like the idea that a program with some algorithms and data can create something (seemingly) new. Like the Postmodern Essay Generator or the Random Slashdot Story Generator or a Random Haiku Generator.
I’ve wanted to use generators as inspiration for writing and have found the Plot Keyword Oracle at Abulafia Random Generators. Albulafia is a wiki that allows you to pretty easily create random text generators. A lot of it is geared towards Role playing games (a la Dungeons and Dragons), but I lot of it will work as inspiration for writers of all kinds. For the Plot Keyword Oracle, Robert Donoghue extracted 32,000 keywords from the Internet Movie Database and the Plot Keyword Oracle presents you with 10 keywords randomly pulled from the list. For example in one run I got:

  1. Collection Agent
  2. Homing Device
  3. Wedding Industry
  4. Nuclear Winter
  5. Martin Luther King
  6. Pool Hustler
  7. Urban Planning
  8. Deputy Dawg
  9. Uncle Tom’s Cabin
  10. Dresden Germany

Wow! That would be one hell of a story!

How I fixed Kim’s iPod

I thought Kim‘s iPod was history. When she would turn it on, the disk would try to spin up, whir whir, but after 4 attempts, it displayed the sad iPod icon and then shut down. Bummer. It was long out of warrantee. None of Apple’s website troubleshooting steps worked. Based on the disk failure, I knew the disk was dead, but we could buy a new one online somewhere. BUT. BUT. Kim said c’mon, open it up and see what you can do? I thought, What can I do? Nothing, the disk is dead, I can’t give CPR to a dead disk, forget about it. Then she told me about some kid, a son of a friend of a friend, who would fix any iPod for $20. I scoffed. However what do I have to lose, it’s already not working, I can’t make it any worse.

Continue reading “How I fixed Kim’s iPod”

iPod Geek

100_5990.JPGI use my iPod all the time, and I am really pleased with Apple’s User Interface for the iPod, it’s simple and easy to use. However, “simple” and “easy to use” doesn’t satisfy the geek in me, so I have to tweak. Apple doesn’t give you too many options to tweak the iPod UI. You can change the items displayed on the main menu, you can display the time in the top line of the screen, but that’s about it. This geek wants more. So, why not entirely replace Apple’s firmware with something else, like Linux or Rockbox?

  • What can I say about Linux on your iPod? Not much, because I don’t delve too deeply. But I do like the ability to run lots of mini-applications, including games, on my iPod. I never did get iDoom going though. Pure geekiness, but not for me as I missed the usability of Apple’s UI. Download iPodLinux here. Don’t worry, you can switch back and forth between iPodLinux and Apple, just restart the iPod.
  • Rockbox is a little more usable but doesn’t have nearly as many apps as iPodLinux. What I like most about Rockbox is the ability to customize audio playback screen with your own format and graphics through WPS (b&w, color). Download from the Rockbox site or this alternate installer for Windows, Rockbox Installer X. Just like with iPodLinux, you can switch between Rockbox and Apple just by restarting the iPod.

Running these was fun, but day to day, I use the Apple firmware. Do I loose my geek cred? I dunno. There are so many little things that the Apple firmware does so effectively, it’s hard to give up, even if I can’t customize it as much as I’d like. Although maybe I’ll wanna Make something….

Ubuntu GNU/Linux

Screenshot.pngI’ve been using Ubuntu 6.06 for a little over a month now, and I have to say, “Wow!” I love it.

What is it? According to Ubuntu: Ubuntu offers you a complete Linux-based operating system, including all the major applications you need to play and work. With a strong focus on a desktop that Just Works, Ubuntu is a great choice for home or the office. The base system and all included software is free, and support is available from the community or by professional support providers.

By free, they mean free forever. It comes with OpenOffice and Firefox preinstalled. It was so easy to install. Easier then any version of Microsoft Windows. You can try it without even installing it, just boot from the CD and it runs a “live” version of Ubuntu.

Download the CD image here, or request a free CD here.

Installing additional (free) software is very easy, Ubuntu comes with “Add/Remove Applications” where you can just put a checkbox next to the programs you want (divided up into categories like “Games,” “Graphics, “Educational,” etc), and they are downloaded and installed automatically. Nice.

The whole Ubuntu user “experience” is smooth and logical.

Once you have it installed, check out this page for additional software Essentials.

Firefox doesn’t display images!

Arg, I’ve figured it out: in case anyone else runs into this. My problem was with Adblock Plus. The EasyList filter subscription included a “*” in the filter, filtering out ALL images. If your Firefox isn’t showing images and you have Adblock, look in Adblock Options for the “*” (solo). To fix it, disable that “*” filter by clicking the green Enabled ball. (A checkbox would be more logical, but whatever.) Other troubleshooting, try disabling Adblock and/or all extensions to see if that is the problem.

UPDATE (Feb 24, 2007): If you are using parental control software (Cybersitter for example) see rick752’s comment below, he says that Cybersitter (and maybe others) corrupt Adblock Plus filters, and suggests whitelisting adblockplus.org in the parental control software, see his comment for details.