Selling Out Yourself

The third day of classes didn't bring me any new classes, but I will go to CS 337 discussion on Tuesday and PHY 101L on Wednesday. One entrepreneur has taken it upon himself to create something he calls "myware," which basically allows you to collect data on yourself. If spyware can do it, why can't you do it in a controlled environment? I guess the more important question would be, why would you want to do this? Think of it this way, if you're in control of getting information on your online activities, you can sell it the companies that want it rather than them stealing it from you and your computer would be safe from spyware woes. I'm not saying that it would be an ideal world; spyware would still exist. However, if you collect the information yourself at least you know that it'll be benign and you can make some profit off of it. It would eliminate some privacy concerns associated with the necessity of cookies and the like. You could also use the information for your own personal viewing, though I don't know how that would help you out. I'm a little skeptical about how this program could protect you from having this stuff stolen, but I think it's still rather early in development. At least this way though, you'd be the one selling yourself out rather than your innately stupid computer.

BusinessWeek has an article breaking down the likely cost differential between the PowerPC chips and the new Core Duo chips for Apple for the new iMac, and I must say that I didn't know they had been so cutthroat in negotiating with IBM. My first thought is that if the new iMac cost as much as the one released in the fall though it cost a good amount less to build, they must have just made that fall release to milk their agreement with IBM, or set up the price to purposely be the same as the Intel-based one (to show that it's not pricey). It's smart, but still just a bit slimy. It's not all mischief for Apple though, one blogger discovered a patent filed by Apple that would allow a monitor to capture images of you as well as output to you (think futuristic videoconferencing). They may not make this device themselves anytime soon, but it's still a cool patent. Sorry for all the Apple news, but that's been the best stuff lately. One guy managed to get to a boot loader screen on an iMac for Windows Vista, and so it seems like the legion of Mac nerds is getting closer to the coveted dual boot we've all been salivating for. Lastly, if you miss the Commodore 64, check this out.

The biggest story to me today was the release of the actual trailer for Silent Hill because it is freaking awesome. It sounds a whole lot like the first video game in the franchise as far as the plot goes, and the style is spot-on. I hadn't seen this poster to the right before, but how creepy does it look?! IESB found out that Todd MacFarlane has Matt Damon or Leonardo DiCaprio in mind for the role of famed detective Elliot Ness in Torso. It may sound like a weird choice, but it may work out well for the persona he's going for. Bryce Dallas Howard (of The Village fame) is apparently in negotiations to play secondary love interest (to Peter Parker) Gwen Stacey in Spider-man 3. It would help for her to be a little blonder for the role, but I'm sure she'd do fine. Lastly, the Bond car for Casino Royale will be the Aston Martin DBS, which looks as sweet as you'd expect from a 007 car.

Before I conclude, I just have to plug this hilarious comic from Penny Arcade. If you have a minute, you should definitely check it out.

Now for some 3x Thursday action:

1. Describe the perfect vacation.
Vacation? What's a vacation? It's been so long since I've taken one I'm afraid I will actually forget! It has been about a year and half since my last one. I guess it would be a fun city (like London or New York City or Bombay) with some of my cousins and my brother. If it's a foreign country then it must have a good night life.

2. Describe the perfect meal from appetizer to dessert.
That's a tough one. I'd have to say some Shiner Boch bread (from Saltgrass) and olive oil for the appetizer, and maybe some pumpkin soup to boot. I wouldn't mind some samosas either. The main entree would have to be some combination of steak or intricately cooked chicken with some soft mashed potatoes on the side. The desert would have to have a lot of chocolate in it and make me want to cry out in jubilation of its taste.

3. Describe the perfect day.
Also a tough one. A perfect day would probably be pushing my body to its limits at the gym, getting all my work done, sleeping early, practicing guitar (and learning some new stuff), and approaching some girl (successfully) that I never had before. Oh, and I'd catch the Far West bus right on time.

Bonus Question: What *is* perfection, anyway?
Maybe it doesn't exist, but I consider them to be moments where you don't have any stress or worry, but just a relaxed and happy composure.