my observations on everything right and wrong with the world - starting with myself.
Thursday, April 28, 2005
so to please the internet voyeur in me...I've added a site counter to my little-traveled blog.
actually, I've added two - one is pretty commonly-used and the other is something I'm just trying out to see if it's better than the popular solution.
I'd have to say that the idea that your movements are being tracked is kind of scary, but at the same time, kind of cool as well.
scary...because there's no such thing as privacy anymore..."Enemy of the State", "the Bourne Identity", and "the Matrix" come to mind when I think of another higher organization controlling and watching your every movement.
cool...because I'm pretty damn nosy (I've googled everyone I know and myself several times) and even though I don't pimp out my blog like Wayne Brady chokin' a bitch (you'd have to be a fan of the Chappelle Show to get this), I'd still like my blog to get some sort of visibility by people I don't know.
so, read on, fellow visitor. thanks for stopping by and leaving a trail of traceability.
:)
actually, I've added two - one is pretty commonly-used and the other is something I'm just trying out to see if it's better than the popular solution.
I'd have to say that the idea that your movements are being tracked is kind of scary, but at the same time, kind of cool as well.
scary...because there's no such thing as privacy anymore..."Enemy of the State", "the Bourne Identity", and "the Matrix" come to mind when I think of another higher organization controlling and watching your every movement.
cool...because I'm pretty damn nosy (I've googled everyone I know and myself several times) and even though I don't pimp out my blog like Wayne Brady chokin' a bitch (you'd have to be a fan of the Chappelle Show to get this), I'd still like my blog to get some sort of visibility by people I don't know.
so, read on, fellow visitor. thanks for stopping by and leaving a trail of traceability.
:)
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
...speaking of google, this is an awesome, awesome game based on google's GIS (Graphical Information Search) engine.
you're presented with a montage of images, then you have twenty seconds to come up with the google keyword that was used for the GIS.
My top score is 229. I'm going to try and beat that score for the rest of the day.
;)
Grant Robinson : Guess-the-google launcher
you're presented with a montage of images, then you have twenty seconds to come up with the google keyword that was used for the GIS.
My top score is 229. I'm going to try and beat that score for the rest of the day.
;)
Grant Robinson : Guess-the-google launcher
making money using blogs?
so on the Blogger dashboard this morning, the sidebar has an ad indicating that I can make money from my blog by using Google AdSense.
I think this is hilarious.
why?
AdSense works by scanning the content of the blog text and creating ads based on keywords within the text. So, if I ranted about traffic, ads based on traffic, anger management, and Smith & Wesson pistols may appear. If I ranted about the Academy Awards, ads based on American Idol, Ryan Seacrest, and the latest boy-band may appear.
Unfortunately, this is my blog...with my opinions and my beliefs. I don't even know if anyone visits this blog and I couldn't care less if anyone did.
If you do visit this blog, I wouldn't want to subject you to advertising...because you're already suffering by reading my brain farts. If anything, reading my blog makes you dumber and will probably make you want to commit suicide, but that's fine though. I'm not calling the handful of readers of my blog dumb or stupid. However, I do think that it would be a disservice to those readers by subjecting them to what Google thinks they would be interested in after reading my blog.
if anything, they'd want to totally mess me up by turning their once intelligible thoughts into moronic ones.
but I can't rant against google. One of my good friends works for google, and google has led to countless hours of entertainment...it's funny how much you can find out about your neighbors by googling their addresses.
...and as great as it would be to make money off of my blog, I'd rather have my ideas make money instead of google's ads...mostly because I think google's founders are rich enough as it is...
edit: I just realized how stupid I am - the Academy Awards are for 'movies', the Grammy Awards are for 'music'. AdSense would be pretty stupid if my ranting about the Academy Awards leads to ads for American Idol, Ryan Seacrest, and boy-bands. who cares! it's all just a big popularity contest anyway.
I think this is hilarious.
why?
AdSense works by scanning the content of the blog text and creating ads based on keywords within the text. So, if I ranted about traffic, ads based on traffic, anger management, and Smith & Wesson pistols may appear. If I ranted about the Academy Awards, ads based on American Idol, Ryan Seacrest, and the latest boy-band may appear.
Unfortunately, this is my blog...with my opinions and my beliefs. I don't even know if anyone visits this blog and I couldn't care less if anyone did.
If you do visit this blog, I wouldn't want to subject you to advertising...because you're already suffering by reading my brain farts. If anything, reading my blog makes you dumber and will probably make you want to commit suicide, but that's fine though. I'm not calling the handful of readers of my blog dumb or stupid. However, I do think that it would be a disservice to those readers by subjecting them to what Google thinks they would be interested in after reading my blog.
if anything, they'd want to totally mess me up by turning their once intelligible thoughts into moronic ones.
but I can't rant against google. One of my good friends works for google, and google has led to countless hours of entertainment...it's funny how much you can find out about your neighbors by googling their addresses.
...and as great as it would be to make money off of my blog, I'd rather have my ideas make money instead of google's ads...mostly because I think google's founders are rich enough as it is...
edit: I just realized how stupid I am - the Academy Awards are for 'movies', the Grammy Awards are for 'music'. AdSense would be pretty stupid if my ranting about the Academy Awards leads to ads for American Idol, Ryan Seacrest, and boy-bands. who cares! it's all just a big popularity contest anyway.
Friday, April 22, 2005
stupid carpool lane violators!
I'm sick of sitting in traffic on the 405 freeway every day and watching time and time again the countless cars with only ONE person in them cruising down the carpool lane during rush hour traffic.
Signs are clearly posted stating that the carpool lane is only for vehicles with two or more passengers (on the 91, it's three or more passengers), and if signs aren't enough, there are even more signs clearly indicating that carpool lane violations are subject to a minimum $271 fine...no other moving violation explicitly indicates the monetary cost of the crime.
The way I see it, if the CHP actually caught all of the carpool lane violators, the state of California would become richer than the Sultan of Brunei. Unfortunately, the CHP rarely monitors the carpool lane for violators.
My suggestions?
1. Put a water-filled moat between the freeway and the carpool lane. Allow people to ride their kayaks in the moat.
2. Instead of a double yellow line, implement concertina wire...more coils of concertina wire during rush hour...
3. Only convertibles can go in the carpool lane, and tops have to be down to ensure that passenger quantity visibility is clear.
4. Station snipers every mile on the freeway to shoot vehicle tracking sensors on carpool lane violators...so the CHP can track them down.
5. Entrance and exit to the carpool lane is only possible through manned posts...and at the entrance post, you are issued a voucher which must be returned to the exit post. Vehicles that attempt to enter without at least two people in the car will be rerouted to Rossmoor, CA, where they'll spend the next seven hours attempting to get out. Vehicles which attempt to exit without a voucher are consumed on-the-spot by a vehicle-crushing machine.
needless to say, I highly doubt that my suggestions will be implemented. I highly doubt that anyone else cares, but if you see a white mazda on the freeway with fumes coming out of the driver's head, that's me...and I just saw a carpool lane violator.
I'm sick of sitting in traffic on the 405 freeway every day and watching time and time again the countless cars with only ONE person in them cruising down the carpool lane during rush hour traffic.
Signs are clearly posted stating that the carpool lane is only for vehicles with two or more passengers (on the 91, it's three or more passengers), and if signs aren't enough, there are even more signs clearly indicating that carpool lane violations are subject to a minimum $271 fine...no other moving violation explicitly indicates the monetary cost of the crime.
The way I see it, if the CHP actually caught all of the carpool lane violators, the state of California would become richer than the Sultan of Brunei. Unfortunately, the CHP rarely monitors the carpool lane for violators.
My suggestions?
1. Put a water-filled moat between the freeway and the carpool lane. Allow people to ride their kayaks in the moat.
2. Instead of a double yellow line, implement concertina wire...more coils of concertina wire during rush hour...
3. Only convertibles can go in the carpool lane, and tops have to be down to ensure that passenger quantity visibility is clear.
4. Station snipers every mile on the freeway to shoot vehicle tracking sensors on carpool lane violators...so the CHP can track them down.
5. Entrance and exit to the carpool lane is only possible through manned posts...and at the entrance post, you are issued a voucher which must be returned to the exit post. Vehicles that attempt to enter without at least two people in the car will be rerouted to Rossmoor, CA, where they'll spend the next seven hours attempting to get out. Vehicles which attempt to exit without a voucher are consumed on-the-spot by a vehicle-crushing machine.
needless to say, I highly doubt that my suggestions will be implemented. I highly doubt that anyone else cares, but if you see a white mazda on the freeway with fumes coming out of the driver's head, that's me...and I just saw a carpool lane violator.
