Category: shiny stuff

is it just me?, listen up!, shiny stuff, well?, wtf?!

windows activation required

by  •  • 6 Comments

I have a problem with my PC… can you help?! (And if you say, “get a Mac”, you should “get a life”, because I have one.)

So I noticed my desktop background was gone the other day, and I also noticed a new notice from Windows Vista on the right side of the tool bar, where the process icons run. This new process is asking me to “activate” or “validate” Windows, and when I click on it, it warns me that my key is not valid, which is completely not true.

I bought this computer a couple of years ago, and I have no idea why all of a sudden, Windows Vista would decide that the key was no longer sufficient. If anyone has ran into this problem, can you share your solution?
PLEASE NOTE: Solutions should not include:

  • Buying a new key for Windows Vista: because I shouldn’t have to pay for something twice.
  • Contacting the manufacturer of the PC: because last time I contacted the manufacturer of my PC, they simply noted I was out of warranty and wanted $59 an hour to “solve my problem”; which I got a friend to fix for free.
  • “Revert to XP”: because the damn PC came with Vista on it, and except for constant issues with iTunes, I hadn’t had any issues with Vista up until now.

I have not put in my key (that is located on the side of the PC), because I am afraid that it will invalidate that key (I am using logic to come to this conclusion, because that key should be the one that is already on file on the PC, because, again, it was the version of Vista that came with the PC), and I don’t want to risk ruining my current, legitimately paid for key. I am wondering if this is some virus or some issue/update/problem that does have a fix out there that I am just not presently aware of.

Any help is much appreciated.

shiny stuff

shiny new things, and a potential problem with an “old” shiny thing

by  •  • 0 Comments

So this weekend, I got a Mac Book Pro. I really like it, but am frustrated, because I have had some issues trying to get my ipod, playlists, and song ratings onto the damn thing without having to manually update it and move each and every song (that would take FOREVER). Thanks to you fellow internet dwellers, I have been offered a few solutions, and will be trying one of them today (I couldn’t do it this weekend, because conveniently, our DSL was out ALL WEEKEND). I got a great deal on the thing, and I think that it will really serve me well in nursing school (even though it is WAY more computer than I need).

Now for the potential problem with an “old” shiny thing: I was playing my Xbox 360 last night, and during the game, the entire screen got red static all over it. I went to the dashboard/console menu, and it wasn’t there when I was on that screen, but going back to the game, it happened again. James was in the room, and he said it happened to him when he was playing a game the day before, so I am worried/wondering; is this the sign of an upcoming RRoD? I’ve had the Xbox for a little over a year and a half at this point. We bought the service plan through Best Buy, and I think that I am going to see if I can take it in and see if they will let me “upgrade” to an elite; which I have heard doesn’t get the RRoD. If anyone has experience with this particular screen issue, let me know, won’t you! I don’t want to be without the Xbox, or deal with this issue, but I know that RRoD is common, and doesn’t take much to fix (send it off, it comes back in a few weeks), so I guess it “could be worse”. Either way, I will keep my eye out for more “signs” of the pending RRoD apocalypse.

happenings, shiny stuff

guitar hero 5

by  •  • 2 Comments

So here’s the list of songs that will be included on the upcoming guitar hero release (GH 5): (I have conveniently bolded the ones that I am excited about)

  • 3 Doors Down – “Kryptonite”
  • A Perfect Circle – “Judith”
  • AFI – “Medicate”
  • Arctic Monkeys – “Brianstorm”
  • Attack! Attack! UK – “You and Me”
  • Band Of Horses – “Cigarettes, Wedding Bands”
  • Beastie Boys – “Gratitude”
  • Beck – “Gamma Ray”
  • Billy Idol – “Dancing with Myself”
  • Billy Squier – “Lonely is the Night”
  • Blink-182 – “The Rock Show”
  • Blur – “Song 2”
  • Bob Dylan – “All Along the Watchtower”
  • Bon Jovi – “You Give Love A Bad Name”
  • Brand New – “Sowing Season”
  • Bush – “Comedown”
  • Children Of Bodom – “Done With Everything, Die For Nothing”
  • Coldplay – “In My Place”
  • Darker My Love – “Blue Day”
  • Darkest Hour – “Demon(s)”
  • David Bowie – “Fame”
  • Deep Purple – “Woman From Tokyo (’99 Remix)”
  • Dire Straits – “Sultans of Swing”
  • Duran Duran – “Hungry Like The Wolf”
  • Eagles Of Death Metal – “Wannabe in L.A.”
  • Elliott Smith – “L.A.”
  • Elton John – “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting”
  • Face To Face – “Disconnected”
  • Garbage – “Only Happy When It Rains”
  • Gorillaz – “Feel Good Inc.”
  • Gov’t Mule – “Streamline Woman”
  • Grand Funk Railroad – “We’re an American Band”
  • Iggy Pop – “Lust For Life”
  • Iron Maiden – “2 Minutes to Midnight”
  • Jeff Beck – “Scatterbrain”
  • Jimmy Eat World – “Bleed American”
  • John Mellencamp – “Hurts So Good”
  • Johnny Cash – “Ring of Fire”
  • Kaiser Chiefs – “Never Miss a Beat”
  • King Crimson – “21st Century Schizoid Man”
  • Kings Of Leon – “Sex on Fire”
  • Kiss – “Shout it Out Loud”
  • Love and Rockets – “Mirror People”
  • Megadeth – “Sweating Bullets”
  • Mötley Crüe – “Looks That Kill”
  • Muse – “Plug in Baby”
  • My Morning Jacket – “One Big Holiday”
  • Nirvana – “Lithium”
  • Nirvana – “Smells Like Teen Spirit”
  • No Doubt – “Ex-Girlfriend”
  • Peter Frampton – “Do You Feel Like We Do (Live)”
  • Public Enemy Featuring Zakk Wylde – “Bring the Noise 20xx”
  • Queen & David Bowie – “Under Pressure”
  • Queens Of The Stone Age – “Make it With Chu”
  • Rammstein – “Du Hast”
  • Rose Hill Drive – “Sneak Out”
  • Rush – “The Spirit of Radio (Live, 2008)”
  • Santana – “No One To Depend On (Live)”
  • Scars On Broadway – “They Say”
  • Screaming Trees – “Nearly Lost You”
  • Smashing Pumpkins – “Bullet With Butterfly Wings”
  • Sonic Youth – “Incinerate”
  • Spacehog – “In the Meantime”
  • Stevie Wonder – “Superstition”
  • Sublime – “What I Got”
  • Sunny Day Real Estate – “Seven”
  • T. Rex – “20th Century Boy”
  • The Bronx – “Six Days a Week”
  • The Derek Trucks Band – “Younk Funk”
  • The Duke Spirit – “Send a Little Love Token”
  • The Killers – “All the Pretty Faces”
  • The Police – “So Lonely”
  • The Raconteurs – “Steady As She Goes”
  • The Rolling Stones – “Sympathy for the Devil”
  • The Sword – “Maiden, Mother & Crone”
  • The White Stripes – “Blue Orchid”
  • Thin Lizzy – “Jailbreak”
  • Thrice – “Deadbolt”
  • Tom Petty – “Runnin’ Down a Dream”
  • Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – “American Girl”
  • TV On The Radio – “Wolf Like Me”
  • Vampire Weekend – “A-Punk”
  • Weezer – “Why Bother?”
  • Wild Cherry – “Play That Funky Music”
  • Wolfmother – “Back Round”

What a list! As always, there is a bunch of shit I have never heard, but just the bolded ones indicate that this will be a fun edition. I better get to practicing, because I need to be crisp for when this baby is released in a couple of months!

flickr, friends, happenings, shiny stuff

get yer swimmies on!

by  •  • 3 Comments

While I wasn’t able to move heaven, I definitely moved a lot of earth to make the pool possible. The “easy set” pool has to be on level ground, and if you look at the picture, you can tell that it STILL isn’t on totally level ground:
guess what
However, it is REALLY close, so I am not going to worry about it anymore (next year, James and I agreed that someone else will be coming out to level the ground before we try to install the pool ourselves). I have a very sore back, and I just hope that this damn thing was worth all of the headache, blood, sweat, and tears that went into making it a reality. I am going to focus on enjoying it, and try not to dwell on the minor leaning thing.

I got in it yesterday after it filled, to put the salt in, and it was very cool and nice, even though I didn’t actually “go for a swim”. It is only about 3 and a 1/2 feet deep, so it isn’t really enough to “swim” in, but it is surely enough for me to float in and drink a well deserved Mai Tai (which I am still trying to find my favorite recipe) or seven. I just hope that I can enjoy the fruits of all my back-breaking labor, and hopefully have a few friends over to share in the fun. Who’s in?

five song friday, music musings, music suggestion, shiny stuff

5SF: july 17

by  •  • 2 Comments

After losing a pair of Bose headphones to the apparent “inevitable” breaking of the damn things, I have been looking for headphones to listen to my music this morning. I have two pairs of in ear-phones currently (Bose in-ear Triport and the Shure sound isolating 210’s), and while I like them both for different reasons, I like having head band headphones because of my incredibly, weirdly sensitive ear canals. So, if you have any suggestions that would make my listening to music an amazing experience, let me know.

Alright, that’s enough about talking about listening to music… let’s actually listen to some!

La Roux – Bulletproof
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_717_laroux-bulletproof.mp3]
I resisted La Roux for quite a while before she clawed her way into my heart with that shrill-ass voice coupled with a velvety smooth beat. While, as I mentioned, the vocals are something to definitely, um, “get used to”, the music is not. This song is definitely one that begs to be blasted from every car stereo as you drive about in the summer heat, and promises to fill dance floors throughout the land. The uber-catchy quality of this song is what allowed me to give it chance after chance, and eventually get used to the vocals (which it may seem that I am harping on, but cannot stress enough, you will get used to); the music is too fucking good to let it get in the way. This is definitely a “song of the summer” for sure.

Peter Bjorn and John – It Don’t Move Me
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_717_peterbjornandjohn-itdontmoveme.mp3]
Another massive song from Peter Bjorn and John, It Don’t Move Me didn’t “move me” when I initially nabbed their follow up to the wildly successful Writer’s Block. The album is noticeably darker, and the beats are almost angrier; but underneath, the same attention to detail and high quality music is clearly present. This song definitely shares more similarity to the songs from Writer’s Block than much of the rest of Living Thing, but it shows a musical maturity that is not only welcome, but totally refreshing. It has made me pay closer attention to Living Thing, which has turned out to be a good thing; fantastic, well crafted songs like this, are what make listening to music one of my favorite past times.

Imogen Heap – First Train Home
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_717_imogenheap-firsttrainhome.mp3]
HELL FUCKING YES, Imogen Heap is BACK! WAAAAY back in 2005, Imogen released her stellar sophomore album, Speak For Yourself, and while I didn’t hear it until some time later, it completely blew me away with how amazing it is. The most amazing song on the album, Hide and Seek, made me fall deeply in love with Imogen’s unique voice, and the manner in which she creates music that is not only beautiful, but unique and interesting. The rest of the album resonated very well with me, and made me a huge fan of her sound, and had me waiting with baited breath for a follow up. Well, that follow up is just on the horizon; her new album Ellipse will be released the day before my birthday, August 25, 2009. This is the first, and quite fantastic, single from the new album, and it harnesses her trademark sound from Speak for Yourself. If this is an indicator of how fantastic Ellipse will surely be, I expect it to be amongst my top albums of this year.

Toby Madigan – I Need Somebody (I Can Talk To)
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_717_tobymadigan-ineedsomebody.mp3]
This is the little song that threw its lasso around my heart, pulled me in close, and comforted me like a warm blanket on a cold night. The tenderness of Toby’s vocals, coupled with the sweet folk-pop music makes for a beautiful ballad; one that only gets better with the super sweet sentiment of the lyrics. I should also say that there are several words that just make me happy when I hear them, especially in songs (for whatever reason, I don’t know…), and unfurled is one of them, and he uses it in the chorus; which obviously makes me happy. This is a sweet song with great sentiment, and highlights the surprising power in Toby’s vocals. It was a great random find.

Rebekah – Be Your Own
[audio:http://www.duanemoody.com/audio/fsf_717_rebekah-beyourown.mp3]
I am going to go “old school” with you on this one. I discovered this song from an amazing little movie that most people have never even heard of: Kissing a Fool. I instantly loved this song when I heard it playing during a very pivotal scene in the movie, and it really stuck with me, as it really described what was happening on screen. I LOVE when filmmakers make use of music in good ways, and this was definitely one of those times. Well, this discovery was back in the days before disposable CD-Rs, and internet downloading by the masses, so I was unable to get this song for many years. However, a few years ago, my frequent visits to the used bin at Tower Records (oh how I miss the Tower that was here in Atlanta) uncovered Rebekah’s CD for a meager $1. To quote S Club 7, let’s bring it all back… so how did the song end up today’s 5SF? I randomly stumbled onto it again last night when I was uploading the previous four tracks, and I was reminded of just how much I love the lyrics, the sentiment, and pretty much everything about this song. My favorite line from Be Your Own is, “maybe just stop trying to be my man, and just be your own”. This great little song really hasn’t aged a day for me!!

Well, there’s your 5 for this Friday, what did you think? Please let me know, and as always, tell me what you are listening to! I really want to know!! Have a great weekend, and if you have advice on headphones, let me know. I am currently leaning heavily towards Sennheiser’s, if you have any specific model that you want to recommend.

all about me, home improvement, movie musings, shiny stuff

bow to blu

by  •  • 2 Comments

Basically, Blu Ray has re-invigorated my love of watching movies. I even upgraded Netflix to send us Blu Rays if they are available.

High Definition really is the icing on delicious cake. Now… to stop buying so many of these damn movies!!!

Seriously, though, that’s about all I got. I am STILL finishing up small things in the bathroom, and painting the other one, so pictures will eventually come. Other than that… not much; although, I did go work out yesterday, and hope to add that back into my life. Here’s hoping that I actually go again later in the week… mama’s fat!

is it just me?, mixed media, movie musings, shiny stuff, venting, well?, wtf?!

sony fail: let me count the ways

by  •  • 6 Comments

So I finally caved and bought a PS3. I was hoping there would be a price drop announced last week at E3, which is what I have been waiting for before I bought one, but there wasn’t even a hint of such a thing happening any time soon. Since the PS3 is only $100 more than a Blu Ray player, I felt it would make more sense to get the PS3, so that I could have both, and so I did.

After un-boxing the mammoth console, I got my first taste of what will surely be a long list of Sony FAIL. The PS3 has been, and continues to be touted as THE system for HD; and it continues to claim itself as a revolutionary system with the highest quality video for games and movies. Well, some of that is true… and some of it is not. First of all, I think that it is almost a slap in the face of the consumer to ask them to pay $400 for a machine that will revolutionize their HD experience, and box the motherfucker with composite cables; which any A/V geek knows does NOT have the capability of displaying HD! Additionally, the companion HDMI cable marketed and sold by Sony for the PS3 is $60. For shame, Sony; you expect me to shell out ANOTHER $60 just to get the HD quality you promised for $400? Assholes.

Luckily, I have an HDMI cord that I wasn’t ass raped for (ahem, I didn’t buy it at Best Buy), and I just used it to connect the PS3. Crisis averted… HD was mine; and you know what, it is impressive. We played a few Blu Ray movies, and they were impressively crisp. I really can tell the difference in standard DVDs being upscaled, and a true Blu Ray HD DVD. Again, very impressive, you break even, here Sony.

Now comes FAIL #2. I bought Little Big Planet, and Resident Evil 5 (RE5 was for James, and I figured, since the PS3 is new, why not get it for that system?!) because I wanted to have at least a couple of games for the PS3. LBP is really cute, but I noticed the graphics were a little rougher than I was expecting; after all, it is plugged into my TV through HDMI, so it should be just as amazing as the Blu Ray, right (ESPECIALLY on a title like LBP, which is exclusive to the PS3)? WRONG. Turns out, Sony doesn’t really have the goods to back up their claims. The best they can do is 720p on most games, and the two that I got both fall into this category. Even though I have the PS3 output set to 1080i, and my TV can display 1080i, it can only display these games at 720p (this is a known, but quiet, issue). I wish that I would have gotten RE5 for the Xbox, because even my Xbox 360 exceeds the PS3 by upscaling everything to 1080i, and I can bet the graphics would be a little better. FAIL FAIL FAIL. Sure, it is only a minor thing, but when you buy something that expensive that is supposed to be so “AWESOME11!!1!!”, then disappointment is pretty much the word that comes to mind when you think about the whole scenario. When it comes right down to it, Sony, you do not have the HD system that you claim to; at least, you aren’t letting us use it to its full potential, anyway.

Needless to say, I am a bit disappointed. I will be making sure I keep a close eye on games that I get for the PS3, because if I can get a better version of the same game for the Xbox 360, Xbox will win this battle every time. Also, as of writing this, my Xbox 360 is only hooked to my TV through component cables, and the games look better than the 2 PS3 ones I have tried. Sure, there are some out there that will do 1080, but I am just shocked that PS3 doesn’t upscale ALL games like the Xbox does; especially when they claim the PS3 is so much better than the Xbox 360 (which, judging by the two titles I have, certainly isn’t true game wise).

As far as I am concerned, while I am glad I got the PS3, I can’t believe how much fine print, and blatant trickery Sony has instituted into their “AMAZING!!! SYSTEM!!1!11!!!!”. Seriously, Sony, you need to really get over yourself and stop the quick slight of hand, which I am sure has made customers other than myself more than a bit peeved as well. This leaves Sony with a score of negative one; let’s hope that time will allow them to break even, and make this consumer happier with his VERY extravagant and expensive purchase.

UPDATE: HOW COULD I FORGET THE LACK OF SUPPORT FOR PS2 GAMES?? Epic fail continues…

movie musings, shiny stuff

ladies and gentlemen…

by  •  • 0 Comments

The Moody/Robinson household now has Blu Ray.

Rejoice.

UPDATE: I decided making a Blu Ray specific page was silly, because I will most likely get a lot of them; so I will just put a BR next to the title in the DVD library if it is a Blu Ray disc that I own (this will also be done for HD DVDs with the exception that HD DVDs will obviously have a red HD next to them, and not a BR.). I am also considering getting rid of the regular version of the movies I replace on DVD; I need to make room (I probably won’t though, as I still have regular DVD players in the house)!!

listen up!, mixed media, shiny stuff

use a blackberry and hate the internet browser?

by  •  • 8 Comments

Then this post is for YOU!

I was informed that there is an alternative to the “slow as dial-up” browser that I have been using for almost two years on my Blackberry Curve; Opera Mini. I downloaded it, and INSTANTLY, I was getting the internet speed I have been paying for, but never getting all of this time.

If you have a Blackberry, you MUST get Opera Mini; I can tell you that this means I will actually use the internet on my Blackberry for more than just checking traffic and google now!!!!

Thanks Opera Mini!

happenings, mixed media, music musings, shiny stuff

ipod in the muthafucking car… finally

by  •  • 6 Comments

After having several crappy FM tuners, and basically giving up the dream of being able to play my ipod in my car with decent sound, I have, ladies and gentlemen, WON the battle.

From the time I got my first ipod MANY years ago, I have always loved having my entire music library at my fingertips; in fact, I am rarely without one of my many ipods. The damn things are so handy. If I didn’t have to use iTunes to update them, they would be perfect; but that is a different post for a different day. In my old car, I had a tape player, so I used the cassette adapter with much success, but I was forced to bid it farewell when I upgraded to my fancy new Acura; leading to much dismay and disappointment when said FM tuners turned out to be complete and utter shit.

Cut to last week, when I finally decided to take the plunge, give up XM, and get the iSimple installed. I bought the kit, and set up an appointment, and started to say my bittersweet farewell to XM, all the while convincing myself that I wouldn’t miss it anyway. It was like turning my back on a child, so as to make them hate me, so they would leave for their own good. But here’s the kicker, I WAS MISINFORMED.

What is that you say? Someone working at Best Buy gave me blatant misinformation, which is no more useful than a off handed guess?! Say it isn’t so! Well, ladies and gents, it is true; the iSimple allows you to keep XM, and adds the ipod functionality; which is controlled through the radio, and displays the name of the track and artist information right there in your factory radio display!!! I honestly would have bought this thing YEARS ago if I would have known, but because of some dumb half-wit that worked in the audio section of Best Buy and touted themselves as an audio “expert”, I have written off this product for all of this time.

Shame. For real shame.

Now, I have the power to use my ipod in my car with crystal clear sound, sweetly coming from my speakers. Needless to say, I LOVE this feature, and even though iSimple’s interface is a bit wonky and hard to get used to, I am just pleased as punch that I have something that I have wanted for years back in my life.

Hear me Best Buy; I win this round. I WIN.