Hmm, yeah well

Now computer safety is a hot topic, especially since there those nice ads which imply or support certain believes concerning Mac and Windows PCs. Before I continue both Mac and Windows systems are PCs, Personal Computer is what PC stands which encompasses all computer systems that are such.
Now interestingly enough it was actually a Virus that attacked Macs that was the first Virus out there and that was because at that time in the market of the personal PCs the Mac OS was leading. A lead which Mac has lost for a long time, that is not because Windows is inherently better but because Windows had a better ad Campaign not to mention aimed at the right user group in the right manner. Mac has simply become more of a tool for a very specific purpose with which there is nothing wrong. But the Windows machine and most Linux machines can easily be upgraded while it is admittedly harder to find drivers that work well for some version of Linux. Also the Windows machine as the Linux machine are both more versatile for example you can custom build your own computer legally and install your old OS from the old machine on there and simply stop using the old set-up while a Mac has to be bought with the computer something that naturally makes it less attractive for the people that build computer systems. Then there are other past time activities for which Windows is most suitable such as gaming and the likes, now Macs are most useful for Graphic and Sound Design an area in which I might add Windows and Linux machines can not compete. But that means that the Mac is the most useful to people that simply want to do either of those things. In the other areas it is just as good as Windows or Linux, while Linux offers more flexibility to the advanced user but often is confusing to the beginner. Windows is fairly simple, offers versatility which allows it to be used for internet and other work related issues as good as the other two and also allows the user to play games which by now are a very important part of the industry. Macs simply are not better as a general statement but rather cater to the needs of a special group which needs something like that. But for other purposes that involve work All systems are equal now, a corporation is under those condition most likely to be the OS that comes it the cheapest and if the corporate IT people know that the best choice is an OS that allows upgrades to come from them because it will be cheaper then they only have Linux and Windows as choice and most people know Windows because it is on most computers sold why? Because they managed to become popular enough. Thus Windows is the logical choice. Now if Mac was the cheaper choice you can bet that Companies would start using Mac but as long as they have to buy entire systems with the OS it makes little or no sense to use Macs.
To the most contested issue of hacking/viruses and spam, Unix based systems (Linux and Mac) are known to be safer then Dos based (Windows), but it is also known that there is no such thing as a totally safe system Macs and Linux machines can be hacked but you have to remember that hackers and spammers go after the most common OS since that is what brings them the most information and Victims which either results in fun or money or even both. If say mac would have the greatest market share tomorrow within a month the internet would be swarming with Spam and Viruses for Mac and hackers would suddenly start taking an interest in Macs.
But since Macs are a small group they have remained fairly safe for the time being.
Thus saying Macs are safer because they are is not perse the entire answer but rather they are safer because they represent a minority and that means that Windows is actually protecting Macs by being the main target.

Blizzard let the cat out...

Now, before I begin I want to point out that the web went into a frenzy ever since Blizzard announced for the first time that they would make another game in the near future. Fans of the old-timers and long veterans Starcraft and Diablo of which both are still played and popular games hoped for either Starcraft 2 or Diablo 3 now Starcraft was the one with no successor and also the older one of the two games. Diablo 2 had been released in 2000 and was followed up with an expansion pack while Starcraft dates to 1998 Diablo 2 of course was already a successor to Diablo which had been released in 1996. Yet, Diablo 2 Lord of Destruction (the expansion pack to Diablo 2) was the last release that was Warcraft unrelated which means for essentially 7 years there was not an announced non-Warcraft. Now it looks as if Blizzard has already done some good work on kicking Starcraft 2 off but knowing Blizzard we can anticipate that the release will take another 2-3 years. The game is being announced with the tag line "Hell, its about time", this line has several
references one of them being the long Warcraft period through which Blizzard has just gone and hopefully it is a time that now has ended. Also it plays a role in the Cinematic video which by the way does justice once more to what Blizzard provides its fans with eye-candy and a great deal of in-game fun. Beyond that Blizzard does have the reputation to take always longer then they say they will for a game and of course for usually producing nearly or completely bug-free games as well as working closely with the players together. And of course also for great art work.

The official Starcraft2 resource website.

Education...

Now, this is basically the continuation of a response I gave to an article.
My point was how many of todays students actually want/need University/College education. I' am not saying need education for a job, what I mean is education that is logically needed to perform a job. Now we don't need the garbage man or cab driver with anything beyond a High School degree. It is not as if you wanted to argue with your garbage man, or with your cab driver.
We can admit that most people do not need so many degrees nor do we need for some professions degrees.
We now face an enormous inflation of educational degrees, an inflation that is caused by people thinking that they need degrees when they often are simply not necessary.
Now if say the people would do what they wanted and head straight there they would easily be able to do so in many cases without needing to go through University or College, it is not as if the education provided there does not offer something useful but in many cases it is also very harmful to the mind and of course to the wallet which often does not have the strength to support that strain forcing students to go into a specific profession into a profession they may only chose for the money and its compatibility with their degree. That is where problems then start people that then find that they are not happy in the chosen profession do not change for many reasons and this sadness will then be carried into their family lives this (if they have children) is likely to cause certain pain to children and of course that is entirely unnecessary for the simple reason that sometimes people want to do something specific like driving a boat, now more accurate would be saying captaining it. That does require certain specialized training but it does not require a degree of a university in some abstruse area the same counts for pilots or other specialized professions that require a BA or MA by job description but which are really unnecessary because that person wants to do something quite specific and if that person would then be trained in that specific direction which in this case would be shipping, ship design maybe, etc. things which a captain should know. Which make a captain a interdisciplinary but also insure that his/her knowledge is quite specific to the duties a captain has. The problem today is the over valuing of the university degree which quite honestly is not that great and in most cases not needed for many professions.

Those curious little things...

Now, many often say that I tend to be a bit judgmental or at least use nationalistic ideals very often to provoke. The reason I' am saying this is to warn you before you read on in this post since this could be considered a rant once more inspired by...what else could it be? Talking...
Now there are many little things that make Canada a curious country especially so since Canadians for some reason only compare themselves with the US. Not other countries the reason for that is that the US is the closest country to Canada and the loudest country. Of course that can be understood, now Canada is country which is besides another country that manages to use even more resources wastefully of course if that is your measuring stick then you are most of the time in a good light and if only in your own eyes that is enough since when other countries then tell you that you should change your ways you simply point south and have so pointed at the country that wastes even more then the your country does. Of course that is a very regional way of thinking a way which I may add is somewhat...well outdated. Since we have to consider that you can travel around the world within less then a day...presuming you have the money to do so of course. Now there seem to be some very interesting differences between European countries these days and North American countries. Now for example a little things would be the fact that the wire antenna on the car is still legal in North America while it has become illegal in most of Europe. Now of course the next thing would be the efficient engines which are completely computer controlled and for some reason the engines build in most cars in North America are not quite as efficient as the cars in Europe. Of course you can't perse blame the people exclusively in North America since Europeans did not do it any better until it got bad and until Europe was out of resources, land and air. Now of course you could suggest that other countries could learn from the mistakes made in Europe and that that way it would be possible to with some problems before they occur; problems that are known. Of course there is the limitations that government and certain other forces have imposed upon the advancement of energy efficiency in North America as well as some odd believes concerning certain ways of power production such as wind-power seems to be considered primitive by some people while it really one one of the most efficient ways off producing electrical power. Of course there is also the thinking or lack of information that stands in the way of more efficient means of producing energy and also conserving energy. Such as good heat insulation and many other things that are not used to the full extend in North America. Yet, of course there is then the contrast of certain other areas in which North America is one of the leading areas of expertise. It is not that North Americans are dumb or unable but rather that North Americans do not always see or if they see often do not realize that resources are actually limited and that eventually they will have to conserve of course North Americans also do not look at Europe for lessons concerning this specific issue since the Europeans have had to deal with these problems and had rivers which were entirely dead thanks to the industry waste that was being pumped into it. From that point on the Europeans had to learn and had to adjust but North Americans do not seem to wish nor think that they need advice on those issues, of course it is not a bad thing to turn to a someone with more experience.

The question...

Now I have been asked a question, in a conversation recently, I was asked...well actually all the guys in the guys at the table were asked "Why, we (guys) do not understand a simple but gentle rejection but rather need something overly direct that would be to brutal in some peoples eyes?"
Now why do we not understand those 'soft' 'friendly' rejections do not work is simple really they might be 'gentle' but while that is the case they do often cause a problem such as that the 'soft' rejection often causes the issue of the guy not sure of what is going in the girls mind. Now of course I would like to add that that most often holds true for women in general. Now back to the main issue when a woman tells a guy the 'soft' or 'gentle' rejection that means for the guy that he does not quite now what she means after having been bombarded with the media telling him that a girl means this or that by saying that or this. Now this combined with the fact that a guy most often has no clue or only a very limited understanding of what a girl wants, never mind means. Leads to the true confusion at which point the guy knows barely anything that would help him decode any of those secrets or understand what a 'soft' rejection means. Thus when he is being rejected in such a confusing manner he can only be confused. Thus I would suggest to avoid those confusing problems that women should simply use clear and not confusing language. Allowing the poor confused man to understand at least some of what woman are trying to tell them. Now of course you have to understand that this article is based on my own observations and not on research done in a clear and controlled environment. Thus it means that I can only write my own personal opinion and not anything else.

Food, OH! Glorious Food!

Yes, I stole that quote from the movie 'Demolition Man'.
Now the Grey whale population has been recovering over the last decades and seemed to be doing quite well. But during this winter the Grey Whales arriving in their breeding ground in Mexico seem to be malnourished. The scientist seem to be unable to explain the reason completely. What is known is that warm weather means less oxygen in the water and less oxygen means less food in the water. This means that the Grey whales would have a harder time to find food in sufficient amounts to still their hunger.
The current whale population is greater then ever recorded before and that means that more whales have to feed on less food.
This can be seen as a warning sign scientists warn since this could be simply the precursor to the entire Pacific food-chain and variety of species. How these changes will come and what the effect of those changes would be can only be speculated at this point yet it is certain that the change is likely to be drastic and is even more likely not to be confined to the Pacific alone.

Relevant Article:
Pacific whale decline 'a mystery' (BBC)

Interesting turn of events

Apple now had to admit that their Macbooks and Macbook Pros have seen some battery problems for which they offer a software patch and a free of charge battery exchange.
It would almost seem that since apple began to sell great numbers Ipods and Computer systems that the quality has declined to some degree since the production had to be increased to meet the new demand. These new sales records have bolstered Apple's stock and financial reserves, yet at the same time Apple suddenly seems to be haunted by legal problems and technical problems. Ipods suddenly seem less sturdy then their predecessors did and the computers seem to show the occasional issue as well.

Relevant Article:
Apple admits laptop battery issue (BBC)

International Cooperation in space...a dream?

The Russian space agency offered NASA to work together on the goal of creating a station on the moon. But while the Russians show a great interest and willingness in cooperation NASA does not. In fact NASA has denied the offer and does not seem to be interested in contemplating this issue any further. This is another event in a series of events which once more strain the relations between the US and Russia. The Anti-missile system was one of the major issue causing conflicts which by the Russian leadership was condemned as an expansionist strategy which would only insure MAD. Russia also threatened to stop supporting the agreement between Russia and the EU concerning the build down of conventional weaponry. The EU and NATO responded to that threat with great concern and strongly emphasized the gravity of the situation.
The US leadership responded only by saying that the anti-missile system was intended to protect allied countries against the Iranian threat. Further that these missiles would not pose any threat the security of Russia since they would be deployed in small number to only cover against the Iranian missiles and not against the hundreds of Russian Missiles which in great number could simply penetrate the Anti-missile shield.
Scientists turned to Star Trek for answers concerning certain issues of space travel since the health risk of traveling in space is tremendous the only solution is to insure that most or all of the radiation can not enter the spacecraft. For this the Deflector which serves in Star Trek that and some other purposes offered itself, and now scientists now look at ways in which the Deflector could be implemented.
At the same time scientists suddenly fear the miss-use and even in-humane use of the Robots that are being designed now and want to establish rights, laws and other protective measures for the Robots and humans involved before the Technology surpasses the legal framework once more.

The Wall is back...

Yes, the American forces have decided some weeks ago that it would be a good solution to build a wall straight across Baghdad. This wall then is intended to separate the waring parties in Baghdad and thus solve the issue of the conflict in the Iraqi Capital. This of course has spawned a series of violent outbreaks in Baghdad and several very strong protests. The US leadership however decided to continue on its course and hold steady on its chosen course.
The US Congress decided that the US forces should withdraw within a certain time frame shortly after all these events transpired. The Iraqi government protested that the US should not withdraw just yet since they represent the military presence in the Middle East. The Iranian government while all this occurs shows willingness to talk but also maintains a hard-line policy and which unsettles its neighbors and insures that the US leadership continue to consider Iran more as a threat then a potential Allie.
While a bit east North Korea admits how direly it needs the supplies given by the aid organizations, and China suddenly wants to have close ties with Taiwan after so many decades of tension. Japan while this is happening explains that it has no responsibility to compensate the 'pleasure women' which had wanted compensation from the Japanese government for the forced 'pleasure' they had to supply to the Japanese troops during World War 2. The reason why Japan does not have to pay is that the Chinese government accepted that no further claims could be made when the Japanese-Chinese diplomatic relations returned to a strained peace in 1976.
Finally in all these issues the war and or at least the wish to gain remains a very important issue and remains at the center stage. Or in some places it is even more the issue of not losing to much, or more then already has been lost. The war in Iraq or rather the US involvment has to end because simply the US economy can not sustain this war much longer especially now when it begins to cave-in.

Surreal Reality and Taxes

The time of the Tax Return is upon us once more, yet this time I actually had to do them myself...while attempting to understand what the Canadian Government wanted to know from me and how I could make them understand what I had made or not made over the last year. Well, I noticed a most interesting fact which shocked me a bit, this fact was that the organization of the Tax forms seemed to defy all logic and that it seemed to be designed to do nothing but to confuse the victim. This victim then would have to try to mule through the enormous amount of cross referencing that would seem more then unnecessary, further while trying to make sense of this most evil piece of confusion and illogic I further noticed that for some inexplicable reason all these lines in my specific case could be reduced to circa asking basic questions, thus questions that could more easily be answered and would not cause problems: How much have you made over the passed year? How much have you spend for education and similar? etc.
Yet, the sheet seems to be less designed for ease of use then for complicating the use, thus making it more difficult for the victim to claim any money for themselves and if they become to confused in the marsh of cross-reference then the victim might even have to pay extra since that is 'fair'. What does the victim get from paying those taxes? Well interestingly enough if a several corporations would take over the areas for which we pay the government then we suddenly would be likely to see improvement, now the reason for that would less be that the corporation would care about the victim or that the corporation simply is better then the government. No, the answer is far more simple, the corporation would try to keep the customer by not confusing them unnecessarily by simple stating how much is due, this would also mean that you would only pay on the services that the individual actually wishes to receive. For example as heartless as it may seem a married couple with double income but without children is illogically paying for services that they would never require such as schools. If this couple had the choice they could continue to do so but would not be forced to do so, now in the capitalistic system this would actually be something to be desired since logically if they have more money available they are also more likely to invest more and spend more.
Of course there is another interesting feature concerning taxes, something history professors and students like to point out with equal vigor which are the facts that many of the taxes today are a) not necessary Canada does have a very thick surplus today b) was promised to be a temporary obligation to make the war effort possible, yes the World War 2 war effort c) that historically people if percieve the governing body to be in such a place rightly that the government then is always right and that the person that would deny the government would automatically be thus in the wrong. If that is the case the people can not deny the government the payment of taxes.
Ultimately it is curious that taxes have become something so very accepted that the government has gained more and more power over the last hundred years, and not just in Canada but in many countries.
This is a form of tribute that we pay to the government for what? Protection? Good Roads? Payed Schooling? The main part of these taxes of course is absorbed by the monstrous bureaucracy which such a government creates, more then 40% of the Canadian population actually is employed by government. Now some of those people provide services for which people are paying anyhow such as the postal service.
Yet, there are things that could be significantly simplified if attempted to do so first of all of course taxes that were necessary during World War 2 for the war effort are more then unnecessary today and the government is responsible to cancel such taxes aka income tax. Now of course it has to be noted that the government of today does provide in some areas more services then it did before but it is not neccessary for any government to make money that is not the mandate of ANY government that is the mandate of a Corporation, which at least is honest on that aspect, but any government is only responsible to request money that is necessary to maintain services required by the public, and to expand services if necessary but not to make money beyond the needed.