Tonight was Switchfoot live at Reds! Megan, Lisa, Matt, Matt, Dave and I went to their awesome show, good times! They have a really good live sound, and good stage presence too. We were right to the front left of the stage, so really close.

I was surprised at the number of new songs they played, but I think they had pretty good variety too. The last song they played was, of course, “Meant to Live”. The encore was “Dare You to Move”. The only thing I didn’t like about the show was the “encore wait”. I understand that an encore is important, gives the audience a definite idea of when the show is over, lets the band feel good. The wait this time was like 25 seconds – compare that with RHCP which was like 10 minutes! Why even leave the stage for 25 seconds?

Anyway, very good show! Jon Foreman (lead vocalist) is really good at communicating with the crowd, kept things interesting! If you get the chance, I’d recommend a Switchfoot show!

So I expect everyone heard about the CRTC’s decision yesterday to allow Al Jazeera’s content to be digitally distributed in Canada. That means that you can, eventually, watch Al Jazeera (also know as the CNN of the Arab world) in Canada legally (you can get it right now with illegal set-top boxes).

I don’t know about you, but I like the general decision. I think it’s good to allow the network to be distributed in Canada, as I am sure there are tons of people who want to watch it. What I do not like however, are the caveats that go along with broadcasting Al Jazeera. Basically, Canadian broadcasters have to keep an audio-visual recording of all Al Jazeera programming, and must also prohibit abusive comment from appearing on Canadian televisions – even if that means the broadcasters have to edit Al Jazeera programming.

Smells a lot like the American censorship we have come to know under Bush. What’s the point of having Al Jazeera in Canada if they are going to have to censor the beheadings? Okay I know that sounds crude, but you get my drift. If I know that broadcasters are editing Al Jazeera, how do I know they aren’t editing anything else? Where does it end? And even if it only is for Al Jazeera, isn’t that discriminatory? Doesn’t that infringe on free speech?

When it comes right down to it, the decision won’t change anything. People who get the top package on their satellite or digital cable will now magically have a censored Al Jazeera. And those people who really want to watch the channel will still get it illegally.

I wish the CRTC would spend their time doing something useful – like making it legal and easy for me to start my own radio station.

Okay there I said it. Congratulations on the glory to those with guts.

In other news, Megan and I went to Starbucks tonite (third coffee of the day for me). I asked for Caramel Machiatto and the guy tried to say they were out. Yeah, like I am gonna fall for that! It was very good 🙂

Went to dinner at East Side Mario’s in Sherwood Park with Megan tonight. Among other things, we chatted about the camping trip and wrote down some more details – so hopefully we can get that off the ground! Inge and Dickson…you should have come!

While we were there we saw Ryan from the trip last weekend, and chatted with him for a bit. Turned out Dave was having his birthday gathering there, so we waited around to see Matt and Lisa as well. It was like a camping trip reunion!

Anyway, I remain weak. Need more beer!

Very fun weekend out at Lisa’s cabin! The weather fortunately held off until today as well, which was good. On the drive home Megan and I stopped two or three times because the storm was just too bad to drive in. Alas, we made it home safely only to find out that West Edmonton Mall was evacuated due to flooding, the Quesnell (sp?) Bridge and Fox Drive were closed due to flooding and instability, people were canoing down 116th street and 75th avenue, and that a tornado had touched down just outside Morinville. Craziness!

I came home with about 30 mosquito bites, 1 burn from the campfire, and a lot less alcohol than when I left. Fortunately I also came home having met some great people 🙂

Can’t wait til next weekend now!

So tomorrow I am off to Lisa’s cabin with Megan and a large group of other people to celebrate Lisa’s birthday! It should be fun, hopefully I can remember some of it. Anyways, no posts until we get back on Sunday evening 🙂

Have a great weekend everyone!

Okay so I have this thing about purchasing electronics. I used to think it boiled down to me hating crap. However, after a little bit of thinking, I realized it is a little more complex than that. Usually, the more you spend, the better the product you are going to get (there are exceptions as you will see). More importantly, I think, is the reputation of the manufacturer you are buying your electronics from. And I don’t mean reputation in general, but for that specific type of device. So, getting on with it, I present some simple rules to follow when buying electronics:

1. The higher the price, the higher the quality!
   Ever wonder why a Linksys network card is $35 and a Cicero network card is only $15? The answer is really simple – the Cicero card is absolute crap and that’s why it costs less. Less effort was spent on the design, manufacturing, and testing of the product, and hence it costs less. In the general case, I believe this rule is true. Exceptions come in specific situations, like notebook computers for example. You might think that because Apple notebooks cost so much, the quality will be higher, when in fact, Apple is quite notorious for having to replace notebooks due to problems with their screens and keyboards.
   Generally, the higher the price, the higher the quality.
2. “Consumer” editions of products by respected parent companies are good
   When purchasing your electronics, it is often useful to know who owns the company that makes the product you are interested in. For example, Linksys is owned by Cisco, arguably the most well-respected network device manufacturer in the world. Cisco really does power the Internet. As a result, a Linksys card is more likely to be a better purchase than a card made by a manufacturer that doesn’t have the backing of a parent company like Cisco. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule too. I would definitely steer clear of Aiwa devices, even though they are owned by Sony. Aiwa devices are not designed, manufactured, or tested in places even remotely resembling the places Sony branded devices are, thus their quality is generally quite a bit lower.
   Generally, products with respected parent companies are a safe buy.
3. Ignore salespeople
   If you are browsing for electronics at your local store, ignore the salespeople. Chances are, they know as much about the device you are interested in as you do. They will usually recommend something that will help their commission or which costs more before they will actually put some thought into what will work best for you. Of course, this rule is a really large blanket, but I think it generally applies.
   Generally, salespeople cannot be trusted.
4. Do your homework!
   Okay okay, I realize this rule sounds funny coming from me, but it’s very important! Before you run out and buy an electronic device, do some research about the products available that match your need. Learn about the differences between each one, and about the reputation of each product. This is also an important rule to follow if you choose to ignore the above rule – asking a pointed question about two products features will make it clear if the salesperson is a dumbass or if he or she knows what you’re talking about.
   Always do your homework first.
5. Get to know the companies!
   If you pay attention to the news, trade magazines, and other sources of information, you will learn quite a bit about the different electronics manufacturers. One of the most important rules to follow is to know the reputation of the different companies in general. If there is nothing else to distinguish your decision, you can always determine which company is best at a particular product, service or offering.
   Know company reputations in addition to the reputations of their products.
6. Always go with the “defining” product or company
   Even though there are many companies that make the same products, there is usually a distinguished leader for a specific product. Thinking of a UPS? Then get an APC branded one. Thinking of a sound card? Then go with a Creative branded one. Of course, there are some cases where two are probably equally as good, like video cards where you could go with ATI or Nvidia. Another is printers, where you could take your pick from HP, Epson, Canon, or Lexmark. The rule is still important however, as it rules out “Grandma Lee’s Printers”. Perhaps an important exception is found when looking at a product market more specifically. Thinking of an MP3 player? You might be tempted to say go with an iPod, and I’d say good choice. However, there are at least three other players with comparable or better features but which all have tremendously better battery life than the iPod.
   Generally, the defining brand is the best bet. After all, they do define the market!

In today’s high-tech world (bet you never heard that before) we buy electronics all the time. I hope you will find this simple guide useful in your future purchases. If you buy crap, you’ll get crap. If you spend a little more upfront and get a well-respected product by a well-known and trusted company, you’ll be better off in the long run.

Do you have another rule you follow? Any other companies you would avoid or recommend?

I made some changes to my site today! As you might have noticed, the dynamic menu at the top is now gone and in its place are just normal links. Also, the bar that was always at the bottom of the screen is now gone (good idea at the time).

More importantly, my site now loads correctly in Firefox, which I have been using more and more lately. If you have a comment on the changes, let me know. No let me rephrase that. If you have a constructive comment, let me know 😉

Oh, I also launched my postink! site yesterday, so check it out!

I dunno about you, but I feel that my vote mattered in the election we had last month. I don’t mean that just because I voted Liberal, but because I voted period. I know I have had discussions with some of you about which party you voted for, but we’ve always been able to agree that no matter who you chose, your vote mattered. Considering that the turnout for this election was one of the worst in years, I think everyone’s vote mattered even more this time.

Having said that, take a moment to read Martin’s post on this topic. It seems the local newspaper in Inuvik feels that his Green Party vote was a waste. Maybe the reason voter turnout was so low is that people have forgotten how important democracy is. Anyway, read his letter and let him know what you think!

At long last I have secured mastermaq@gmail.com! All it took was $3.75 on eBay. I was waiting around for Jeanie to get her invites, but I am skeptical that Google is offering new invites to users anymore. Thanks Jeanie for offering anyways!

At first glance, the pages are uncluttered and load very fast. I will write my own review a la Jeanie later.