June 22, 2007

D&D Update:
Recently (12 June 2007), I received a bunch (4) D&D books in the mail: Complete Champion, Underdark, Dragon Magic and Sandstorm. Since receiving the books, I've been busy reading and reviewing the new material/rules covered in these books. Well, I've completed my reviews. Here's a brief synopsis of the material covered in these books:

* Complete Champion: Contains new Prestige Classes, A bunch of religious affiliations (see PHBII for rules on affiliations), new spells, maps, and additional material. I've fully adopted the rules/material in this book. In the house rules, I added some notes regarding the temple affiliations.
* Dragon Magic: This book contained a lot of material that was focused on Dragon's and player character associations with anything related to Dragons. Since our campaign isn't Dragon-centric, I wasn't able to incorporate a lot of the material into our campaign. I had to impose restrictions on the use of the dragonbound sub-races, the alternate class features, and the new Dragon Adept class.
* Underdark: This book contained several new races (Chitines, Deep Imaskari, Gloaming, Grimlock, Kuo-Toa, Slyth, and others), new feats, new prestige classes, two new types of magic, a lot of DM material, new monsters, encounters, maps, and information on the Underdark. This book will help if our group of adventurers decides to go underground.
* Sandstorm: This book is one of the 'environment' series. I thought I might need this one, so I picked up a copy. It contains new races (Asherati, Bhuka, Badlands Dwarves, Painted Elves, Scablands Half-Orcs), information on wastelands, new feats, alternate class features, touchstone sites, prestige classes, weapons and equipment, magic items, monsters, encounters, maps, and more.

After reviewing these new books, I had to update the house rules in order to incorporate this new material. I also noticed that some books were missing from my D&D books page, and I even found and corrected some omissions from the house rules. In addition to these new books, I also made other changes/corrections to the house rules. I updated the Champions of Valor listing, some materials from PHBII, normalized the 3.0 and 3.5 references, reorganized the books references) If you're a player in our campaign, be sure to check out the updated house rules. There's a lot of changes.
<https://www.robsworld.org/3ecampaign.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/dndbooks.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/3ehsrls.pdf>

Mac OS 10.4.10:
On the 20th of Jun, 2007, I updated my operating system. The upgrade from 10.4.9 to 10.4.10 was a minor update. It included updates for bluetooth headsets, updates for third party applications, USB improvements, audio updates, consolidated security updates, and other minor updates. This upgrade went painlessly, and it only took less than an hour to get everything installed, rebooted and back in business.

As a result of my OS update, the following pages have been updated. myfavs.html, feedback.html, mycomputer.html.
<http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305533>

Music collection:
Here's a list of some of the music I recently acquired. I've finished my cassette digitization project, and now I'm beginning to explore some new music web sites. With more time on my hands to discover new music, I'll likely start downloading more music from websites and newsgroups. This set of music comes from a bunch of different sources.

eMusic downloads:
* 2007 Pitchfork Music Sampler: (17 songs) A free download (for subscribers) from eMusic.com. This one features seventeen tracks from brave new artists spotlighted during the most recent Pitchfork Music Festival in Texas. I'll spend some time listening to the tracks on this download, and who knows? Maybe I'll find something I like.

These are just some of the items I added to my music collection during the month of June. Since returning from Japan in 2001, I've been starting to rediscover my appreciation for music. I really picked it up again in September of 2005. Since then I've been slowly adding, revising and updating my music collection. If you have a comment or a question regarding my music collection, please don't hesitate to send me an email.
<https://www.robsworld.org/mymusic/index.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/music.html>

Hot, Hot, Hot!
Record heat. It looks like it's going to be a long hot summer. On the 21st of Jun (the last day of spring), the temperature at our community (there's a little weather station a couple of blocks away) reached a scorching 102 degrees fahrenheit. The official temperature, out at the airport (where it's usually cooler), reached 97 degrees. That ties the all-time record for Denver. On the 22nd of Jun (the first day of summer), we set some records. The temperature at our community reached 104 degrees. Out at the airport, the official temperature reached 99 degrees. That's a new high temperature for Denver (on the 22nd of June). Like I said - It looks like it's going to be a long hot summer.

Apple Security Update:
Another security update released by Apple - Security update 2007-006. This time the update addresses two security concerns: A WebCore and WebKit patch. Apple's software update makes it easy to find out about, and implement these security updates. If you own a Mac, you can rest assured that any potential security concerns will be addressed in a timely and thorough manner. You can read more about the update at Apple's website. Keeping my Mac safe from malicious hackers and such.
<http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/security/>

June 16, 2007

Software favorites:
One of my favorite pieces of software recently released an update. GraphicConverter moves ever forward. One more steps towards perfection. Another product that's always getting better. When the new version 6.0 (non-beta) comes out, I'll have to pay for an upgrade. It's been quite a while since I paid for a GC update, but given the amount of added and improved features, it'll be well worth the price.

GraphicConverter released a new beta version (6.0b2), in the past few days. GraphicConverter is an image converter and editor. A fantastic piece of shareware that is well worth the price ($30.00). I use it to convert image formats into web standard formats, to create and edit image maps and other graphics. I've been singing GC's praises for many years now, and I'm not sure I would do without it. The best part about GC is it's author. Thorsten Lemke is completely committed to his customer base. Constantly and Continuously responding to customer recommendations and bug reports. GC is a dynamic, evolving, application. Always on the cutting edge, an absolute must in any web developers tool box. At a fraction of PhotoShop's cost, this photo editor puts a huge wrench in your toolbox.

Some of the new features provided in this beta update: Save for web function; Polygon selection tool added; Basic layer support added; Set gps coordinates from Google Earth; Go to photo position in Google Earth; New rulers added; Additional automator actions added; Additional layer frames added; kdc import; Open exr import; Some measure functions (line, rectangle, circle, mean) added to the measure tool; Selection of alpha channels (drag, copy, paste); Basic import of HD Photo (wdp) added; New browser sort options added (sort from position and sort from position hexadecimal); Paste into alpha channel added. The addition of several new layer functions puts GraphicConverter up there in the PhotoShop competitor category.
<http://www.lemkesoft.com/xd/public/content/index._cGlkPTE5Mw_.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/myfavs.html>

Music collection:
Here's a list of some of the music I recently acquired. I've finished my cassette digitization project, and now I'm beginning to explore some new music web sites. With more time on my hands to discover new music, I'll likely start downloading more music from websites and newsgroups. This set of music comes from a bunch of different sources.

iTunes free downloads:
* Ooh La - The Kooks: (single) From the album Inside In / Inside Out. This free single of the week contains some excellent acoustic guitar work and pleasing lyrics. Brit pop that pops with all the right rhythms.
* Jarhand - Immaculate Machine: (single) While listening to this free single (Jarhand), I was whisked back to the 'New Wave' of the 80's. I would draw vocal comparisons (with the female lead vocalist) to Martha Johnson (of Martha and the Muffins), and the bands sound to that of 'X'. Excellent guitar work, harmony, and lyrics. This band has a crispy alt-country blues feel, that I found very easy to tap my foot to. Listening to samples off 'Ones and Zeroes', convinced me that they're much more than your typical 'indie garage band'. I'm adding one of their albums to my download list.

Website downloads:
* Girl's Who Play Guitars - Maxïmo Park: (1 song) From the album 'Our Earthly Pleasures'. Here's a Rock'a'delic release from another british group. Sounding a little like the Jam, the music is a bit edgy, rakishly rockish. Good mix of synthesizers and electric guitar. Discovered/downloaded from 3hive.com.
* Detektivbyrån - Hemvägen EP: (3 songs) It's instrumental. Music from Sweden. Very dense musical mixture containing some interesting instruments, titillating twists and intricate loops. Accordions! Discovered/downloaded from 3hive.com.
* Willy Mason - If The Ocean Gets Rough: (5 songs) Alt-Country/Folk. Foot tapping, floor stomping, good old fashioned blues inspired music, colored by influences of Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan. Discovered using 3hive.com. Added an EP to my eMusic download list.
* The Winter Storms - Porcelain Empire: (4 songs) Dreamy, lush musical tracks accompanied by soaring lyrics that paint a picture with depth and devotion. Discovered by listening to an Indiefeed podcast.

eMusic downloads:
* Paul Westerberg - Stereo: (13 songs) Former front man for the Replacements. The voice remains. The sound is more matured, less raucous, more refined. The sentiment is straight from the heart. This album was mixed/produced by Westerberg in his basement. I loved the replacements, and now I'm finally catching up on the post 'Replacements' music.
* Mason Jennings - Mason Jennings: (8 songs) Debut effort by a country rocker with the voice of Jack Johnson. Excellent folk-pop with acoustic instrumentals that complement, rather than drown out his voice. Discovered through eMusic recommendations.
* Action Time & Vision - The very best of Mark Perry and ATV (1977-1999): (20 songs) Mark Perry's been in a lot of bands over the years. A very early punk rock artist, he started Alternative TV back in '77, and didn't stop until 99! Great stuff. Rediscovered after listening to a compilation.
* Tom Robinson - Having It Both Ways: (11 songs) Former lead singer of 'The Humans', Tom Robinson is another one of those early Punk rockers who drove the scene forward. He dared to make music that was controversial in regards to his sexuality; and he paid for it. Shunned by many major labels. His voice and music remain powerful despite the controversy. Rediscovered after listening to a compilation.
* Richard Hawley - Late Night Final: (11 songs) Late night reminiscence of long lost loves. Dreamy, reflective and filled with passion. This alternative album is heavily influenced by folk, blues and acoustic instrumentals (Excellent guitar work). This artist shows a lot of potential. Discovered by listening to Pandora.com.
* New Roman Times - International Affairs: (9 songs) Popping, cruising, good use of synthesizers and catchy lyrics. Unpredictable beats and an 90's indie sounds. Discovered through eMusic recommendations.
* The Go Find - Miami: (9 songs) Groovin' electronic tunes laid down over lush poetic lyrics and catchy guitar rifts. Lay back and enjoy 'Miami'. Discovered on 3hive.com. After kicking around some sampled for a month or so, I downloaded the entire album through eMusic.
* Field Music - Write Your Own History: (9 songs) Lots of great percussion work and smart sharp grooves. Mix in some smooth vocals with catchy lyrics and you've got a recipe for summer time music with an optimistic outlook. I've been listening to Field Music since their 2005 debut.

These are just some of the items I added to my music collection during the month of May. Since returning from Japan in 2001, I've been starting to rediscover my appreciation for music. I really picked it up again in September of 2005. Since then I've been slowly adding, revising and updating my music collection. If you have a comment or a question regarding my music collection, please don't hesitate to send me an email.
<https://www.robsworld.org/mymusic/index.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/music.html>

My resume:
It's about that time. Time to update my resume. Despite an update back in 2006, I hadn't updated some of the information since I retired from the Air Force in 2005, so it was a little bit out of date. If you need a copy of my resume, or you're just curious, just send me an email and I'll forward the password. In the meantime, this password protection (combined with robot exclusion precautions) measure should prevent any unwarranted gawking, while alleviating any security concerns regarding the information on my unclassified resume. The resume itself can no longer be viewed or crawled without the appropriate password.

When I first posted the resume (back in 2004), it was very accessible and easy to download. Security and privacy concerns have since forced me to take some precautions regarding the posting of my resume. I've marked the resume, and the resume page, as off limits to web spiders, and I've encrypted the resume. In addition to posting the updated resume, I also updated the old 2004 resume. I changed it into a redirect of sorts.

Encrypted? That may sound scary, but I assure you it's not all that bad. The document is a pdf (Adobe's Portable Document Format), and thanks to the folks at Adobe, it can be password protected. If I haven't already provided you with the password, you'll have to contact me in order to obtain it. Sorry about the password/encryption, but it's the only way I could satisfy concerned parties, protect my privacy, and still provide an easy way for people to view/download my resume.
<https://www.robsworld.org/resume.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/resume2007.pdf>
<https://www.robsworld.org/resume2004.pdf>

Purchased some books:
The other day (2nd of June, 2007), I ordered some D&D books from Booksamillion.com. I purchased four books. After I submitted the order, it occurred to me that I should do a comparison with Amazon.com. Unfortunately, I didn't compare the prices until after the purchase. Here's the comparison:

After factoring in the shipping ($6.95), I realized that I would have saved $2.98 if I'd gone with Amazon. Well, it's something to consider. The only concern I have is where the books ship from, and how Amazon handles orders. Sometimes they sub out their order fulfillment, and I end up getting my order filled from several different sources. I don't like that. I'd prefer that all the items arrive at the same time, and that the order be filled by one source. Does this mean I'm giving up on Booksamillion? I don't think so, Amazon will have to do better if they want my business. Next time I'll do this kind of comparison before I submit my order. That much I'll grant them.
<https://www.robsworld.org/dndbooks.html>
<http://www.booksamillion.com>
<http://www.amazon.com>

Purchased some movies:
The other day (2nd of June, 2007), I ordered some movies from Deepdiscount.com. I purchased six movies. Deepdiscount was having a sale, and I figured I'd get a couple months worth of purchases out of the way. I ran a comparison with Bestprices.com before I submitted the order. Here's the results of that comparison:

Deepdiscount doesn't charge any shipping fee, and there's no taxes. So far, it's my go to for movies. The only time I go to other sources is when Deepdiscount doesn't have the selection I'm looking for. Bestprices always has the hard to find stuff, but their prices are a little higher than Deepdiscount.
<https://www.robsworld.org/movies.html>
<http://www.deepdiscount.com>
<http://www.bestprices.com>

GraphicConverter Troubleshooting:
One of my favorite applications is GraphicConverter (see my 'favorites' page). The other day (1st of June, 2007), the developer released a beta release. I've been a beta tester for his application for quite some time. It's not something I do on a full time basis, it's something I do to help out with the development of a favorite application. So, the other day I was working with the beta release, when I noticed a problem. I noticed a bug involving the appearance of the scroll bars (which bound an image being edited). Scroll bars were appearing whenever the image was resized. Even when the 100% window zoom preference was selected. I created some web pages which provide a more detailed description of the bug. I sent a report to the developer, and thought I'd share that report with anyone else who might be interested. Hopefully, the developer will be able to follow my bug report, and correct this minor annoyance.
<https://www.robsworld.org/iphoto/graphicconverter/index.html>
<http://www.lemkesoft.com/xd/public/content/index._cGlkPTE5Mw_.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/favorites.html>

My first 'Business Trip':
When I was in the military, I was sometimes sent on Temporary DutY (TDY) to a school or conference. In some branches, it's called TAD (Temporarily Assigned Duty). Now that I'm a civilian, it's called a 'Business Trip'. It sure seems strange to me - to call it a 'Business Trip', but I guess that's what it is. Anyway, I went on my first business trip this month (Jun '07). Northrop Grumman sent me to a technical exchange conference at the request of the government. I flew out to Fort George G. Meade to attend a week long development conference. I didn't go alone, I went with a bunch of military folks, and one other civilian (an Air Force employee). The business trip went fine, we attended round-table discussions, briefings, and went on some facility tours. We learned a lot, collaborated with peers, customers, and technical experts. The trip lasted a week (from 3 - 9 June), and I even had a chance to say hello to a bunch of old friends. My line of business is a rather small field of work, but I still saw five or six people from previous assignments (when I was still in the military). Fort Meade has changed quite a bit since I was last there - back in '98. When I wasn't attending the conference, I took the opportunity to see a movie (Knocked Up), have some fine eats (I had some Blue Crabs), and attend a party for a coworker. All in all, I had a very good time. It was a lot of long hours (I logged 112 hours in two weeks), but I think it was well worth it. I'd go again if asked.

Death to spammers!
Beginning on the 9th of June, 2007, a spammer launched a spew campaign with my email address in the spam's Reply-To: address field. As a result of his forgery, I received a auto-generated blow-back message. This server generated messages was sent to me in response to spam sent to some unsuspecting internet user. I warned the system administrator off of auto-responders, but I doubt that they'll listen. Hopefully, there won't be any measurable effects on my domain or its standing. I haven't been black listed yet, not that I know of anyway. Oh how I hate spammers!
<https://www.robsworld.org/forgery.html>

An ISP that cares?
<rave>Recently I received an email message from Anthony Edwards, a system administrator for a few different domains (Easynet UK, Sky Broadband, and others?). The email I received from Mr. Edwards, was sent in response to spam that I reported (through SpamCop) recently. Anthony wrote to thank me for reporting the spam sent through his network. This isn't the first time I've received an actual positive response from a spam report, but I report more than a thousand spam messages per month, and I almost never receive thanks, email, or any sort of reply from the ISPs where the spam originated. I was surprised, impressed and glad to see that someone still cares. Kudos to Anthony Edwards and the companies he works for. Thanks for helping to fight spam. System administrators like Anthony are our front line in the war against spam. If every ISP employed someone with Anthony's attitude, we'd have a lot less spam to sift through in the morning.</rave>

Deja-Vu:
With some recent interest in my article on Deja-Vu, I decided to update the page a little. A recent reader noticed a broken link (now repaired), and he'd read an article about the supposed source of dejavu. After reading that reference, I don't think they've got it right. The article referenced a study done using mice. The subjects in the studies I've read were 'humans' not mice. How would someone know when a mouse is having Deja-Vu? Sure they might observe some brain activity in a specific area of the mouse's brain, but they can't exactly ask the mouse; "Are you experiencing Deja-Vu right now?" This study (the one referenced in the Yahoo News article) seems flawed to me.
<https://www.robsworld.org/dejavu.html>

Thunderstorms in Colorado / Rainy Tuesday:
Just a few words regarding the weather this month. June in Colorado is a season of thunderstorms. Late afternoons are often lit up by lightning shows, peels of thunder, and great gouts of rain. That's exactly what happened on the 11th of June. A rip-roarin' thunderstorm that blew some leaves off the branches, flooded the gutters and washed away all the grime of the last week. As the heat of the day met a cold front, the opposing forces of nature took over. A wondrous show which lasted four or so hours. The rain is definitely welcome, but we need more than a few hours; and that's exactly what we got. On the 12th of June, we experienced an entire day of rain. My joints had been aching since the thunderstorm on the day before, and now the low pressure was firmly in place. It was raining when I got up, and it lasted all day. The roads were flooded in many places, and the creek beds were swollen. The rain was heavy at times, so much so, that I turned on the weather radio. The clouds got pretty close to the ground (we're over a mile up at our house), and there were some formations that threatened of tornados. Thankfully, nothing of the sort actually materialized. This is the sort of soaking we need at this time of year.

Fighting Spam:
<rant>Too good to be true. Back in November of 2006, I signed up for a new email service. A free 'Challenge Response' email address, where spammers have to pay money in order to send me email! I could actually make money off spammers - Imagine that! By publicly disclosing the associated email address (as of 21 Dec 2006), I was fairly certain that the email address would get scraped by spambots — and it did. By the end of April, 2007, I was receiving an average of 90 messages a month. As I indicated back in November of 2006...

Well, guess what? Too good to be true. That's the end result of this adventure. While I was under the impression that spammers couldn't use this email address without paying, the truth of the matter is - Spammers were able to send me their messages without paying anything. Boxbe collected all the spew sent my way, dumped it into a "Here's the crap you received" bin, and then sent me an email indicating that I had received email. I kept going back to this garbage heap on a regular basis, sifting through it, hoping I'd find a legitimate email. Hoping I might even find that a spammer would pay to have his messages white listed.

I was deluded. Boxbe didn't reject unpaid senders, they simply collected all the spew, while asking me to 'check it out' - 'see if you wanna keep any of it'. The challenge response messages sent to the spammers never reached the spammers. Those messages were likely sent to the 'From', 'Reply-To' or 'Return-Path' address listed on the spam. As I'm keenly aware, that address is usually (99.99999999% of the time) forged. In many cases, the address is that of an innocent victim. Someone that the spammer has targeted for reprisals, or it might be the email address of someone who's computer has been compromised by a spammer. In either case. The advertisers/spammers never saw the challenge response message. If they did, do you think that they would actually pay to send me email? I don't think so!.

Back in April of 2007, I officially requested that my boxbe.com address/account be deleted. I indicated that I no longer wanted a BoxBe account/services. At the request of BoxBe's founder, I provided an explanation as to why I wanted out of Boxbe. Now, despite their assurances that I would be removed from their mailing list, and my Boxbe account/services terminated, I continue to receive Boxbe Account Summaries. My account is still active, despite their assurances.

Despite numerous attempts and email exchanges, they won't cancel my account, or stop sending me these account summaries. At this point, I find my only alternative is reporting. From this point on (as of 12 June 2007), I'm reporting their 'Account summary' emails as spam. I've tried to unsubscribe/cancel my account (in accordance with their terms), but they won't comply with my requests or honor their terms of agreement. It's unsolicited, unwanted, and unappreciated.</rant>

If you ever need any help figuring out a problem involving unsolicited email, or help hunting down a spammer, don't hesitate to ask for my help. I'm willing and eager to help. Just drop me an email. I'd put the email address here, but this email message is also posted online, where spammers could scrape the email off the web page. Damn those spammers!
<https://www.robsworld.org/index2.html#fightingspam>

D&D Books:
Recently (2 June, 2006), I purchased a bunch (four books) of new rule books for my favorite game. The latest acquisitions are:

* Underdark: A campaign accessory for the the Forgotten Realms campaign. Our campaign includes the lands of the Forgotten Realms.
* Dragon Magic: A supplement for players in our game. Contains numerous new races, classes, spells and feats.
* Sandstorm: A D&D Environment Series Supplement. Contains rules, classes, races, monsters, feats, spells - All focused around deserts and desolate places.
* Complete Champion: A rules supplement. A player's guide to divine heroes. Contains many new feats, classes, spells, rules, etc.

That's a lot of new books. I've barely cracked them open, and I'm sure it'll take some time to integrate them into our campaign. After I've had a chance to read through them, and complete a review, I'll update the house rules for our game. These new books offer many new options for the players in our game, and several new rules variants for me (the Dungeonmaster). Hopefully it won't take too long to complete the review. As a result of these additions, I updated my D&D books page. I also rearranged the order of the books in the 3.5 listing. If you're a player in our campaign, you can expect a few more tricks up my sleeve, and a few more challenges in the dark corridors ahead!
<https://www.robsworld.org/dndbooks.html>

Movie reviews index:
Back in November of 2006, I received a letter from an angry critic. Apparently, he wasn't happy with my movie reviews. While the text of the letter was an unprecedented, vicious attack, I was still able to benefit from the letter. As a result of that persons vile email, I constructed an alphabetical index of all* the movies I've reviewed. The index has been up and running for some time now, but recently (June of 2007), I discovered that many of the movies I'd reviewed weren't listed. Somehow, I had missed nearly 200 movies. Most of the reviews from 2005 were missing. I'd always thought that the index seemed thinner than it should have been. In any case, I discovered the omissions, and added the missing movies back into the index. If you're wondering whether I've seen and reviewed a movie, you should check out this page. While I haven't finished linking all the reviews yet, this should help you find a movie you're looking for.
* All the movies I've seen (since 2004), not include the following: Television episodes/series, concert videos, non-theatrical/ limited release videos, live performances (i.e. sports, comedic acts), bonus materials.
<https://www.robsworld.org/reviewsindex.html>
<https://www.robsworld.org/reviews.html>

D&D Update:
Here's a short update for the players and interested parties. We played D&D last night. It was the first time we've played since 19 May, 2007. We missed a session earlier this month (2 June), due to a lack of players (we need four players to run a session). After that meeting, I set about looking for some new players. I found one tentative player, and he showed up at last night's game. There's still one more opening, and I'll keep trying to fill it. If you know someone interested in playing D&D (in the Denver/Aurora area), feel free to mention my campaign to them.

We finally finished a protracted battle with a group of giant Dwarves, and the party is now ready to start exploring the interior of Firestorm peak. Updates from the session will be forthcoming, I just thought I'd give you a brief update. Our next meeting will be on the 14th of July. Yeah, that's a long way off, but Kim and I will be busy entertaining relatives on the 30th of June.
<https://www.robsworld.org/3ecampaign.html>