Apple. Samsung. Motorola. HTC. Which will you get?

Hi all. Its an interesting time in technology for mobile devices as well as tablets. Device manufacturers look poised to find their way into consumers pockets as the holiday season approaches quite quick. A host of devices are set to come to you soon and one can only speculate which will be the best, but its more of a personal preference that will find its way into consumers pockets. Lets see what they are.

Like the 5?

The biggest hype getter as always is the iPhone 5 or the "new" iPhone as some (me) choose to call it. Apple being silent up until just this week; announces their event for September 12th. The ad would imply the 5 is upon us, but Apple usually chooses to release new iPods before the holidays. Rumors of an iPad mini always are floating around, so lets hope Apple releases 5 new products instead of making a horrible name choice for the prestigious iPhone. Whatever Apple announces, the iPhone will be on tap to make its grand entrance to put potential buyers minds at ease for the new phone.

Motorola hit the stage on the 5th of September to announce their new line of phones, which primarily are for the Verizon wireless network. Motorola looks ready to take a leap of upping their displays which have primarily been qHD that equates to sub par in my opinion. With other phones having SUPER AMOLED or Retina display, a qHD display looks like the screen on a phone from 2007. Moto announces the Droid RAZR MAXX HD, Motorola Droid RAZR HD, RAZR M all with global versions for customers. Motorola says that Jelly Bean will also be coming to these devices by the end of the year sometime which should make Moto devices a true competitor for the upgrader and new costumers wallets during the holiday season.

Samsung recently announced the Note 2, and riding the success of the Galaxy S III, Samsung will be looking to get consumers to join in on the fun. Apple looks to rain on the parade by trying to get the GS3 banned from sales as well as a host of other phones and tablets. The courts will have some tough decisions to make, but hopefully to keep the market innovative for all. Samsung will also be dropping a Galaxy Camera running Android which looks very nice. The Samsung Note 10.1 tablet should be catching consumers attention if looking for a multi tasking tool to do more things than the iPad out of the box. Sporting a S Pen will be great for people that aren't entirely sold on touchscreen functionality.

HTC has a September event planned off the heels of Apples event, rumors of a 5+ inch screen phone with red trim implying that it will be heading to Verizon sometime soon. Rumors of HTC being the designers for the next Nexus phone have been running about, but nothing concrete yet.

Hello Microsoft. Yes, Microsoft announces their new OS, Windows 8 coming to tablets and mobile phones soon. Microsoft has been dormant for years ith their innovation, but clearly have been working to gain market share in the tech world. The Surface being announced just a few short months ago looks interesting for the tech person in your life. Steve Ballmer says that the price of The Surface will be competitive, but no release date has been announced yet. Acer, and Sony are also tapped to run the Windows 8 OS with some very nice tablets coming to consumers. Nokia windows 8 phones are apparently heading our way too. Yesterday these new devices announced are generating a lot of talk in just a short time. This is good for Microsoft, Nokia, and the consumer, freshening up the stale market is really what we all need. 

Thank the heavens for my UK buddy, I almost forgot the Amazon event today. The Kindle is Amazons baby, and a new Kindle Fire is on the horizon. The bigger picture however is the rumors of an Amazon phone, which have peeked the interest of consumers. eReaders being a big market along with the Nook by Barnes and Noble could be a holiday sleeper that people over look.

So, what will you get? Maybe you wont get anything. As of right now I'm not looking for anything new, but who knows what tomorrow brings.

~Thanks for stopping by~

Luke

What Happened to Fun?

This was the best ever.

Remember 2007? I do. I made some awesome friends that year. Why? Maybe because of a little something maybe you've heard of it.....Call of Duty 4. Yea, I know right, the very thought of it would make any person drool. Remember how fun it was? Was, yea, not so much now. Besides the fact that the game is fastly approaching the 5 year mark, but hackers and what not have ruined the game that was, fun. 

Today fun is a loose, loose term. Somewhere along the way, fun was somehow replaced with crap, and crap being the community that came over to the Call of Duty series from Halo. Do they have the right? Yes. Did companies like Infinity ward and Treyarch see the potential that could be gained from this? Yes. Did Activision want to make more money? Yes. Did any of these companies care what they were doing to the fans. NO!

Year after year Call of Duty franchise series makes more and more money and breaks records upon records. While doing almost nothing different. They keep releasing the same game, and we keep buying it. "Not this year god damn it." You bought it, I bought it. We all buy it on the grounds that this one might capture that feel we got from Call of Duty 4 and relive the magic once again. Lets be honest though, it isn't going to. For that matter it really isn't even going to come close. We could argue and blame the community for the things they have done while playing the game. Blame them. You can't. The Call of Duty developers are the ones that put all that stuff in there to make them do the things they do. Please show me a man that can run around with a Barret .50 Cal sniper rifle and fire it with hardly any recoil, and I will produce to you the front door keys to the Bermuda Triangle, as well as the body of Jimmy Hoffa. It wont happen.

Modern Warfare 2. Quite horrible online play.

Fun, doesn't exist anymore, and I thought Battlefield 3 would be a breath of fresh air and be fun, but it isn't. Getting shot at the spawn, I will play call of duty if I want to be hosed that bad. Thats another beast entirely its own.

Where will the fun come from again? Sadly, I don't think there will be any online games that are fun anymore. Co-op games are a blast, but working around schedules to play with certain people lets the game sit on the shelf for awhile, then its back to Call of Duty, because there is nothing. I want to be happy, but all I feel is anger. If I'm not playing that, I'm playing something else that just doesn't hold my attention span. Remember my rant about Ghost Recon? That had the tools to be great, and not so great. If the game wasn't broken, there may have not been a problem.

The future of gaming may be done for me. As I am perhaps just getting too old to give it a thought. I look at my Xbox 360 and sigh, I want to have fun again, but I cant. Gaming has become ruined. People and the game companies just turn the cash cow into a bore. 

Blackops 2. The future never looked so bad.

What will Blackops 2 do? The multiplayer trailer was released and I was excited for the first watching of it, but then the second and third time got me thinking. Its the same game. The same damn game all over again. New maps, new guns, same game modes. Thats another thing too. Why cant people play objective type games the way they are supposed to be played. They don't help you half the time, I have many ideas for fixes for this, but will we see them? Nope. Will I still buy the next Call of Duty which is Blackops 2? Probably. Will I complain about it? Yup. I'm only human, and bored. Bring on NHL '13!!!!!

~Thanks for stopping by~

Luke

Hey Jellybean 4.1

Do you have an Android? Just a few short years ago I would have said you were dumb if ya did, but Google has made amazing strides to making the Android OS amazing to say the least. Better than iOS and the iPhone? Understatement.

He is cute no matter what.

I say better than the iPhone and if you take a look at it, you have to take that with a grain of salt, that's right, its only better than an iPhone on a low spectrum. High end Android devices such as the Samsung Galaxy SII, the Nexus, the SIII, and HTC One X blow the iPhone and the operating system out of the water. Sadly the Android tablets that are out cant hold a candle to the iPad, but aren't very far behind, and I don't want to start a comparison war either. At both ends both devices appeal to a certain individual, and I'm okay with that. Its about what you like as an end user. Anyone tries to steer you different is just a fanboy. Enough, lets talk about Jelly Bean for a second, and I mean a second.


I don't know what little tweak Google decided needed to be done to Ice Cream Sandwhich, but it was for the better. Google now is a SIRI like novelty, but what sets it different from SIRI is it doesn't sound like a speak and spell trying to posses and rob you of you're idiocy. There are a million sites that talk about what Jelly Bean can do, and why they love it. I'm not here to review it, I'm here just to say it is out and I like it, and liking it is an understatement honestly. JB is very smooth on the GNeX as I like to call it, which I wouldn't have thought could be smoother than ICS, but Google did a good job. Cards, Beam, to list a few coming in tow, will make users want JB soon for their device, and from experience I only feel for them because I have it. 


To defend Apple's iPhone a little. The iPhone is amazingly built, there is no doubting that. The retina display, and the shape are stellar. Until Apple realizes that the OS needs an overhaul, I fear Apple may lose in the end. Dont even get a bigger screen iPhone, and that's fine, but something must be done to you're OS and the way it is displayed. Truth.


~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

Ghost Recon Future Soldier Broken

I love video games, and I will defend them til the end. I remember when they were going up in price and I said "I wont pay that price!", every new generation system I said that, and I never held up to my claim. I've been through a lot of systems in my life time, the list is endless. Lately, I feel like I'm being played for a sap. 

Sixty Five dollars is a lot of money these days for a game that might get you 6+ hours of enjoyment. Some may say, "well, a book only last as long as it takes you to read it." Although that is true, you want more for $65, a book is far cheaper. Whatever the case might be, for what a system cost, and what the games cost you expect to have a good experience. good, great, amazing experiences is what I usually get from these gold nuggets of creativity. Usually. Currently a game has not only pushed me to write this blog, but has even had my best friend say enough is enough, and yank it out of his system and say hes done.

Ghost Recon Future Soldier, oh you wicked marvelous piece of garbage. First off, I was never a fan of the Ghost Recon series, I tried many and was just never my flavor. I have always been a fan of First person shooters (FPS) since I touched Zero Tolerance for Sega Genesis. This Ghost Recon came out at a good time. The summer game releases are stale and boring, so this game seemed good to try. Let me start off by saying the graphics are amazing. The fun I was having playing cooperatively with my friend was top notch, and seemed like something I really needed to experience as I was bored with the other typical gaming such as Call of Duty. The environment, the graphics, all of it were just breath taking. Until. Yes, until all the glitches kicked in, the textures not loading, the corrupted saves. 

New tactic: fight from underground.

Normally I can deal with this, because you either load a previous save or turn it off and turn it back on and the problem fixes itself. No, not this piece of garbage. Thats right, garbage. the game is broke. My buddy and I tried everything, loads, turn offs, everything. The problems just either stop for a minor amount of time and show back up, or they just get increasingly worse. In a mission, I snapped the neck of an invisible man, this was after I loaded the game back up from the ammo box that I got stuck on. Oh, and this was all while my friends character was running around with no arms. when the arms did appear he looked as though he was trying to pull a Goose and Maverick and fly his fake F-14 around. 

To the checkpoint, here we couldn't walk up the stairs to get to the next part of the mission, where this terrifying vehicle was going to get us, which was also invisible and shot at us. Luckily by the good graces of guess work, we blew it up. Note, we loaded this part many times as well. when we finally got through that, all I can say is enemies shouldn't look like they are wearing Sears Roebuck blue jeans. the textures would never load. Loads, and loads later, we just gave up completely. Why? Especially being so close to the end. All we had to do is go to Moscow I think and should have been almost there. With reloading the games as many times as we did, we already wasted 3 hours. Sad. 

All in all, I hope others don't have this horrible luck. I'm sure other people haven't, but as much as you pay for games, they should be flawless for every user. I just searched and found a bug report form by the developer. I doubt they care, but maybe it will help them in the long run. It is just sad to say the least.

I have to take a stand in a personal war. It is personal to me for the simple fact that I love technology. Especially technology that is in the form of mobile devices, tablets, and personal computers. Not Windows, not OSX, personal computers, ya know, what makes it yours. Mac vs. PC is the most dumbest statement ever. PC is personal computer, which means my iMac is a PC. Fanboys drop dead on site nt that statement, and I'm glad. DIE! I hate all of you.

If I sound bitter, I am. This Apple vs. Android thing is driving me insane. Why? Because I stated it above, it is personal to me. It is my passion that I can no longer enjoy. Apple, Android and Samsung have ruined it for me. I no longer feel the love from all sides of the spectrum. I just want to get a flip phone and call it a day. I loved Apple devices until Apple stopped making Apple devices and started making the Apple brand.

The Apple brand is just the same thing they put out before, tweaked it a little bit and told you that you must buy it cuz you would be stupid if you didnt buy it. Android, and I am not trying to sound biased here, but they atleast still create. Apple decide that creating was a lost art they never felt the need to revisit. I have an Android phone for a reason, because I dont want to be like the 75 year old women next to me in line. Or the 13 year old girl that thinks she is better than everyone because her parent sdont want to pay attention to her, so its just easier to give her something to shut her up. I own an Apple iPad for a reason, becaus eit is the best tablet on the market. Didnt push the envelope on creativity much, but atleast it is still supreme. I own an iMac for the fact that I dont like to get malware and viruses or replace it once every year or 2, and yes that has been my experience with Microsoft OS's. NOT PC's. Get it right.

Here is where I stand, do I care if you like it or not? NOPE! Not for a god damn second. If I am reading a text message from my wife while you are standing next to me do not pull out your device and try to compare it to mine, for I will more than likely punch you in the fucking face. You know why I'm irrate? 3 times today I have heard someone compare their life to their phone. Its been an iPhone everytime.

I dabble on both sides oif the spectrum. DO NOT tell me I am being biased. I will chew you down about fifty pegs. End of story.

Luke

Apple to show nothing at WWDC except the NEW iPhone

Reinventing the phone......AGAIN!!!!

Is it already time for the new joke...I mean iPhone? This is what the wonderful web site that gave me the image would have you believe. Now before I get fanboyisms thrown my way. Wait, who am I kidding, no one shows up here so I can say whatever I want. Not that I care what anyone else opinions are, I will just lay it down the way I want.

June being right around the corner, Apple holds their yearly event known as WWDC (look it up), and the old routine was to unvail an iPhone, tell everone how its the next best thing that you must have, and expect you to go buy it. Then Verizon ruined that by pissing and moaning that they needed the iPhone and broke the AT&T exclusive death grip it had on the iPhone. Wait, Death grip? Anyone catch that? It wasnt even planned. The result was a change in announcment of the next device. Great history right? I was one of the Apple loylists who enjoyed the announcment of the next device, and I will partake in WWDC as well, but lets get real. You all want the next iPhone dont you? Thats right the next shinning beam of light to rain down on you, to make you feel like your somebody. I'm sorry, but the iPhone has become a mockery of itself and the company that represents it. Look it up if you dont believe me. Apple stood for being different and ya da ya da ya da, its like beating a dead horse, so I digress.

To beat this down a few pegs and its lucky it even gets a few pegs really. The above pictured device is the next iPhone. Thats right, its the iPhone 5...or 6, or is it the "NEW" iPhone? Hard to tell. I mean the iPad wasnt the iPad 3 or HD, it was the New iPad. Whatever! 9to5mac.com reports that this is the latest rumor piece of the next iPhone. Look at it in all of its glory. Isnt it sexy? Yea, if you said yes you are officially going to have to go get your eyes checked. This is ugo by all ugo terms. Even if this was parts from the next iPhone and that might just be a protective film on the back, the wonderous head phone jack at the bottom remains to be comical.

Be honest, would you say that is the next best thing? Probably not. I'm sure this is just another leaked mock up that likes to float around as of the last 3 years. Although I have been correct so far since I got in this game of iPhone/Android geekness, I could be wrong. this could be the next latest and greatest. If this is whats next, you wont see it this June for sure. Apple shouldn't leave the one year formula of device dropping anytime soon. Its what makes me respect them the most, aside from their computers. I would hope the iPhone 5x or 6b or iPhone LTE or.. whatever it is would be so amazing that you have to dip into the savings account no matter what it cost.

Apple lost me (mobile wise) when they stopped pushing the envelope and started pushing the product. Love my iPads, and I love my iMac, but I cant justify the same phone over and over again being worth my money, when Android offers much more options. I will however continue to be intrigued, excited, and of course very critical.

~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

Semester has ended

The semester has ended. Duh, that's what the title said right? Overall my semester was filled with the joy of learning new and exciting things on my path to get my degree. The problem i have with that, is I feel there should have been more.

I enjoyed my professors this semester, some more than others, but I felt I'm talking away on half assed information. This night class I took was only one day a week and I felt like the information was shoved down my throat. Learning the things I did from her were great, but not at all fulfilling. Two of my favorite professors were always there when you needed them. Might I add without attitudes, Tim and Karl always were there to lend a hand when needed and I like to feel that even though I am needy, that I can get that extra 1 on 1 help if I desire. 

I don't know where the next semester is taking me, but I do hope that I can just get this over with, get back to working again, and have what I feel will be like a normal life. It would be nice to have something to talk about with my wife, except for what a video game did wrong to me, or the latest hack for my phone. Lets face it in all honesty, wives are good listeners, but trust me, they really don't care about man stuff that much. Luckily my wife is the best listener there is, or I would be doomed.

~Thanks for Stopping By~

Luke

Todays Goodbye

                     Esther V. Goodale


http://obits.syracuse.com/obituaries/syracuse/obituary.aspx?n=esther-v-goodale&pid=157651663

As I would never be the type of guy to stand in front of a crowd of people or show emotion, today we say goodbye to our beloved Esther. You were a great girl to all you knew, and made us laugh on a regular basis. Today is the day we bring closure to this story and see you off to another place. We all love you Esther. Everyone in our household misses you coming over for Lasagna and watching Flyers games with us, even if you did stare at Facebook most of the time. Be good chica. There will never be another like you. XOXO.


~LUKE~

iPhone 5 announced?

Almost June 2012. It is that time again or WWDC and the Apple event is already surrounded by rumors of the new iPhone being announced. What can we see from Apple this time around? iPhone 5 or is it iPhone 6? New line of iMacs with retina display? Let the rumor mill power up, and light our fires.

June, Apples grand daddy event called WWDC is upon us here soon, and already the WSJ and Washington Post are saying that the iPhone 5 will have a 4" screen. Apple not being known for changing their aesthetic over the past 5 iPhone's' screen size, should really start thinking about possibly going to a bigger screen. Android devices have pushed these boundaries of 4, 4.3, 4.5, 4.7, 5 inch screens with huge fanfare. Myself included, love having a bigger screen, and couldn't imagine going back to Apples 3.5" screen.

For Apple to gain back some of the people they have lost to Android, they need to make the iPhone 5 (or 6). I cant say what an Apple 4" screen would do for me, but I'm sure it would be impressive. Apple's polished (dull) UI is eye candy for the soul, but lacks creativity. Sure you can jailbreak the device (maybe), but when is enough actually enough? Apple needs to come to the table soon with this next device being well, "WOW!" iPhone 5 or 6 will happen regardless, but the look is as always, an Apple secret. Rest assured, Apple is a very secretive company and we will not know what it looks like until it is announced, if it is announced. WWDC last year didn't do anything impressive in ways of the next iPhone, and I dont see this year being much of the same.

Final prediction, there isn't going to be an announcement yet for a new iPhone. iOS 6 will be announced for sure, but I feel the iPhone 5 (6) rumors are just the usual Riff Raff. I've been spot on for the last few years, as my buddy and I usually partake in the keynotes. In my honest opinion, Apple Will have to step up the game before the fanboyisms start to wear off and they get sick of looking at the same crap for the last few years.

~Thanks for stopping by~

Luke

Goodbye Esther Goodale

She brightened our days, made us laugh with her quirkiness, and said some off the wall things that just made us all shake our heads and say "wow!" Esther was a ray of light in my step brothers life that will never be replaced. Esther lost her battle from injuries she received in a car crash and left us to be with her mother. There are no words for me to express for her family as well as Adam for their lose. All I can say is Esther, your suffering is over and you can be at peace. We will all see you again someday and you will make us all laugh uncontrollably as well as make us shake our heads and say "wow!" Keep smiling girly. It was a privileged to have you in my life.

~MISS YOU~
Luke

If anyone hasn't seen this:
http://obits.syracuse.com/obituaries/syracuse/obituary.aspx?n=esther-v-goodale&pid=157651663

Samsung Galaxy S3

Samsung announced the Galaxy SIII the other day and to my excitement.....well, there wasn't any for me. This is very unfortunate, but it is what it is.

So, what did Samsung drop on us? A few new cores made it s way into the plastic body. Quad-Core phone with a full GB of RAM.  This is the part that really got me flustered, Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 720 x 1280 pixels, 4.8 inches (~306 ppi pixel density). Although nothing to shake a stick it at per Se, but really? The Samsung Galaxy SII totes a  Super AMOLED Plus capacitive touchscreen,  480 x 800 pixels, 4.3 inches (~217 ppi pixel density). Some might say that really isn't great compared to the SIII, but there is also a difference in screen size as well. I'd hate to be a over zealous, but I will have to wait for this phone to come out and look at it with my own eyes to make the true judgement.

For all the camera people out there, this phone might be the most impressive so far. Though it has basically the same camera as the GSII, the front camera on the SIII is where push comes to shove for many reasons. Yes, 1.9 MP, 720p@30fps. Not only is the front camera very good on a spec sheet, but the true feature that Samsung mentioned in the unwrapping of the GSIII, that the camera sees you. It knows when you are looking at it and will wake up without you, the user doing an extra what? Button click maybe. Wouldn't want to hurt yourself, but either way. The phone is going to come in a very pathetic blue, and of course white. Who would not want a white phone? ME! Lets think out of the box people. Orange, mango, some other colors besides Black, Blue, and White. Whatever the case might be, I will still carry my AT&T Samsung Galaxy SII. The phone has not done me wrong yet, and I'm still yet to see something better in my opinion.

~Thanks for Stopping By~
Luke

iPhone 5 and iOS 6?

http://modmyi.com/content/7555-apple-says-wwdc-2012-already-sold-out.html

How About Them Flyers?

Well, I can breath easier now. The Flyers have eliminated the Penguins in the first round of the 2012 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. Just would to express how happy I am. That's all. ~Thanks for Stopping By~ Luke

Well, now who wouldnt just love this. Flyers love

http://www.zoowithroy.com/2010/11/definition-of-claude-giroux.html

GO FLYERS!!!!!!!

Apple time

Its April, although the rumors started months ago, Apple's next iPhone is on the way? Is it? Is it really? It was like clock work after the 2007, 3G, 3GS, 4. The announcements were guaranteed in June at the WWDC event and we would see the phone soon after. AT&T exclusivity coming to end would change that. Verizon receiving the iPhone in Feb. 2011 threw a wrench into the space time continuum and change the market. Sprint now joined in this race to gain more customers makes all the rumors and "leaked" pictures become frivolous. 

"Apple with a revolutionary product coming this way in 8 months" For some reason I just don't believe they can do anything to "WOW" consumers anymore. Not with the same phone coming out year after year and slapping an S on it saying its the latest and greatest. Time will tell. Apple has a track record for making great products, but has the competition gotten the upper hand on Apple? It will be interesting to see. I just don't think they will change their esthetic anytime soon. 

~Thanks for stopping by~

Luke

Semester

Semester is almost done, and I have so much to do. Time is of the essence.....when I get around to it. My wife and I are moving to a new condo. Packing and money savings are a blast. Now I have final project to concentrate on. Its very stressful, but when is enough really enough?

I'm 33, I have grown up stuff to do. I'm not a fresh out of high school kid. I digress; hope everyone is well. 


~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

 

Ice Cream Sandwhich

ICS on my galaxy s2, "officially unofficial" is the best way to explain it. I grabbed the leaked ROM of ICS for my phone today and installed it(seeing how AT&T is dragging on the push of it officially.) I read all the warning signs of it unrooting my device, so I was shocked when a lot of the things I have known to love were gone. (Titanium Backup, AdFree etc.) So far so good, but was it worth it?

Ice Cream Sandwhich is very crisp, and very responsive. Minimal lag is where I feel it shines though. The multi-tasking I was expecting to be a hiccup, but it came through and response very well. Losing the things I really liked with the root access was a bummer, but it was made up in the polished design of the UI. Lacking the on-screen touch buttons for home and back was also a disappointment, but ultimately can live without.

All in all, I like what has been done with the Android 4.0.x OS, but I think a lot of people are going to be disappointed when they find out that ICS on their phone isnt going to look like a Galaxy Nexus as Samsung would have you believe. 

If you are an AT&T customer and have a Samsung Galaxy S2 and want to get ICS a little early, head over to galaxys2root.com and the fine folks that have helped me with my transition to the Android world coming from Apple will help with video tutorials and a comments section from other peoples experience.

~Thanks for Stopping By~
Luke

The wallet of life (continued)

Upset with my weight lately. I have decided to lay off the garbage food, and eat more fruits and such. Finally decided to break down and get on that treadmill that I use to hang all my wife's Coach purses on. But oh hang on, I have to work on some homework. Done, now to that treadmill. Nope not yet, now a friend wants to play Battlefield 3. Now I have to go get the wife from work. Must stop at the grocery store. *SIGH* No time for the treadmill today. I WILL DO IT TOMORROW!!!!!!

Doesn't that always seem like the way though. You want so badly to do something, especially when it is for the better. To help me lose some weight I must get on this treadmill. Before hand to loosen up a little bit, I stretched, did some push ups. I followed that up by doing some situps. I felt good. Time to get on that treadmill. Started out with a mild walk, feeling good. Turned the speed up a bit, getting into a jog. I am so out of shape its pathetic. But I feel good, I'm doing something, making the first step is the hardest isnt it? Phew! I'm going, I'm getting back into it. One lap down, onto the next...............I look down, and I see something black, No time, gotta keep going, bu this black thing is driving me insane.What the hell is that? The more I focus on it, the more it becomes clearer. IT IS MY GODDAMN MISSING WALLET!!!! Pull the cord on the treadmill, reach down, sure as shit. Its the wallet I thought that was lost forever. $7 still sitting in it (not sure if I mentioned that before). Happy? YES! Nobody wants to break in another wallet. 

~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

Easter eggs in plain sight

I am going to put videos on this blog, in hopes to get a chuckle out of a few of you followers. Some will get it. And some wont. Enjoy.

Im guilty, but I've learned my lesson

Smartphone crimes. You know the ones I speak of. If you don't let me break it down for you. Oh, but before I forget
*DISCLAIMER: I used to be totally guilty of being a phone nerd so just amuse me*

iPhone vs. Android. 
Being from both sides of the fence, I feel I am the port authority on this. And if you buy that I will sell you another one. iPhone3g-iPhone4. Great devices. Id say before the 4, the iPhone was just a great device. Thanks to the hype that was created by Apple for the 4, the iPhone became the Coach and Prada of  mobile devices. Now the iPhone is a status symbol for people. I have heard the words "Your nobody if you don't have an iPhone" come out of somebodies mouth. That right there is when I decided to be a nobody.  Trying multiple android devices it took me awhile to learn the android game. There are high end Android devices and low end devices. if you dont have a high end one, they are shit phones. If you have a high end one they are the best thing going. 

The Galaxy Note. Thing is huge. 5" screen is nasty, but is it practical? Could be, depends on what you like to do. That said. I was pointed to a YouTube video of the Note vs. the iPhone 4S by a good friend of mine. Obviously this video was made by Samsung and the women operating the iPhone was an actress playing dumb about her iPhone, so there is a huge biased there. Its the comments from the people that watched the video that drove me through the roof as always. I must stay away from the comments section. BUT. I. CANT.

Blame it on trolling if you will, but some of the comments I swear has led me to this and I want you to take full warning when I say this because it is the truth. YOUR PHONE DOES NOT IN ANYWAY DEFINE YOU AS A PERSON. IT IS NOT A STATUS SYMBOL ANYMORE. All caps. Yea, I went there. Why did I go there, simple. When the iPhone was expensive, not many people had it. Thats fine, and I'm glad Apple lowered the price, its good for competition, where the Samsungs and the HTC's have upped their game, and I like that, but people are taking this shit way to serious now. Throwing Specs around and blah blah blah, I can do this and it does this. WHO CARES! Does it work for you? And be honest, do you get what you, YOU, want it to do. Than thats all that matters. 

Pissing matches over computer specs, Ham vs. Turkey. White over Wheat. Chevy vs. Ford. Android vs. Apple. Who cares. Just be you and like what you like because you like it. I used to think I was the greatest thing walking when I had an iPhone because it was newer, it was rare, and I knew a lot of things about it. (I had help). Now its a bigger dick game that I will not get involved in. if you wanna see the video or gander at the comments heres the link--->  http://youtu.be/l2gjn12QS9I

~Thanks for Stopping By~
Luke

Who am I and what has happened to me?

I wonder who I am and what I have become over the years. What happened to me I will never know. Maybe I never had it to begin with. Am I lazy? Sometimes. But what has happened to me since being laid off almost 2.5 years ago is unknown.

I go to class everyday, I know my way around a smartphone like it is nobodies business. Specs, brands, what they can and cant do. I know my way around a computer pretty good, and the programs that come with them. I know that doesn't seem like a big deal because a lot of people know how to do that, but seriously, I cant tell you how many people I have to help out weekly with this stuff. Some get it and some don't. Maybe that is the category I fit in.

My internal struggle right now and my whole University run at an Associates is where the current problem resides. Name the class, and I will have a problem. I get what we are doing in class and I understand what I'm doing....(UNTIL)....I get home and I'm dumb. Its like I never learned anything. Right now in my Advanced web servers class, I'm fine. Until I get to my iMac and start to do the assignments. Fucking Lost!!! I coded the required task by the professor, (YIPPI). The .php logic that makes the page do its next step. NOPE! Isny going to happen, not on this shift. Completely dumb. Logic. Simple as it may seem, it really isnt for me right now. To watch people do it fast like it was the simplest thing I have ever seen depresses me so much cuz I should be that good. Why cant I do this stuff like everyone else?

I must have been dropped on my head or something when I was a baby. I have never felt smart, and I know I'm struggling with retaining information. This is the story throughout my whole life, and I wish I knew why.
~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

There really arent any friends in this game

Today I had a good learning experience in class involving 3 classmates. 2 of them I worked with earlier this semester on presentations and 1 I became friends with last semester in my web servers class. The 2 I speak of enjoyed my work and the things I brought to the presentation, so I felt I made an impact and earned acceptance for future presentations. Sadly, this wasn't the case.

Before today's presentation with another group of people I went to the lab the submit the powerpoint to the teacher electronically. I remembered that I had to print out a slides page for the professor and could not for the life of me remember how to do it. Seeing the other 2 (I will keep calling them that BTW) I said "Hey, can you tell me how to print off the slides  page?" The 2 just looked at me and looked the other way instantly. I thought it weird at the time, but I could already tell what was going on. Seeing how we weren't working together this time it was like a every group for themselves attitude. Whatever the case may be, on to the next situation.

Prof. said we had to pick our own groups for the next presentation. I went to the 2 and asked if they wanted to group up? I just got a look and a ummmm from both of them. Seeing where this was going to go I went to the 1 from last semester and asked him. Now, the background with this 1. We became friends and talked through texts here and there last semester and this semester because we are taking similar courses, so somewhat of a friendship we had going. His reply was I have some people already, the 2 went to him and said we need one more, 1 of the 2 motioned for me to come over to the group. In the time it took me to grab my coat and binder and walk over to them, I was told by the 1 that they were full. I see a trend going on here. I said to him, "you mean in the 4 seconds it took me to walk over here you filled it already? "OK!"

I'm not crying by any means, I assembled a group and we will do fine I'm sure, but the people that were buddy with me, also turned on me. Thats when I seen how this class, or degree program is going for that matter. It is a competition to these people, but it shouldn't be. We aren't competing for a job. We are there to get degrees. These fucking geeks are really concerned with someone doing better than them. Who cares? You want to do well, I get that, everyone wants to do well. But to pull some shit like that makes me think that I should be more like I have always been in my life. Fuck everybody else, worry about me and don't worry about being kind to the next guy. This class is a joke as is, but it just got a lot more interesting.

~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

The wallet of life

How much of your life is your wallet? Pretty much all of it really if you think about it. Social Security Card, license, Gamestop rewards card, Wegmans card, Tops card. The hours of my haircut girl, My bank card, my insurance cards, my student ID....on and on and on.

Well, kiss all those things goodbye, because my wallet is gone. It really is an inconvenience. Now I have to get all these things replaced. This day is just lovely, and it makes me wonder why the hell everything has to be in our wallets. I'm going to spend $25 for the student ID to be replaced, and who knows about the license. I can live without the rest for they don't cost anything to get replaced, but its the principal of the thing.

Not knowing where it went is the most frustrating part though. Did I drop it? If I did someone would of found it, so it feels like I've been robbed, and that's what really makes my blood boil. Keep the whopping $7 I had in there, but the rest is personal. I just got that wallet only like 3 years ago, so it was just getting to the shape I like. I cant bear the thought of starting over again. UGH! 

My card has been canceled, but I just cant bring myself to give up. I'm in high hopes I will get a phone call or something and I will magically have my wallet back. Too much of your life is in your wallet. Way too much as far as I'm concerned. NFC needs to become a massive reality and Google wallet will be the only currency left. As for the other things, those need to be programmed into a chip in your head. Makes life easier ya know.

~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke 

Coffee

Coffee, it is the wonder drug of America is it not? I love coffee. Black, Cream, No sugar, a little sugar, it doesn't matter. I NEED COFFEE TO GET ME GOING IN THE MORNING!!! Sorry, but it is exciting. Yes coffee is exciting. The only problem with coffee now is that it does not keep me awake anymore.

This morning after finishing a travel mug of Folgers Black Silk, which is a very dark roast made from my Keurig K-Cups; I found myself passing out in my first class. Isn't Coffee supposed to be the pep to get ya going in the morning? Coffee isn't supposed to make you start getting sleepy. Maybe coffee has been such a big part of my life and drinking it since I was literally 6 or 7 I have grown to be immune to the effects of coffee. Maybe somehow this immunity has caused me to have a reverse effect and it makes me tired. I have drank coffee at 10pm and fall asleep instantly.

Whatever the case may be. I need my coffee in the morning and while I'm doing some homework. That said I say raise a cup of your finest. Today coffee I salute you. For making social experiences more tolerable, for making me happy, for just being there in my time of need. You coffee have never let me down, and I will never not drink you.

~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

Only my wife

Today is my wife's birthday. That's right. The old girl is 37. And of course, because she has the most amazing luck in the world, she is sick. Only my wife.

~Thanks for stopping by~
Luke

ign.com is pathetic

I'm just confused as to why ign.com can only give good game reviews to Call of Duty, Battlefield, Skyrim, or Batman? Seriously, these are all good games yes, but why is it when a game that isnt hyped to the floor boards comes across the review desk it gets shit from them.

Just finished the Darkness II. The game was great. I loved the first one so much. I played that game all the way through 3 times and I could still do it today. Its a little off the norm compared to some games and thats what sets it apart from all the other games on the market. And The Darkness II did the same thing with some added effects to make the game look like the comic book which is where the game is inspired from. Although I wasn't a fan of the comic book look, the game was still great. I really enjoyed it and I'm going to start working on the Vendettas in the game next.

ign.com loves to get meticulously crucial with these kind of games and it pisses me off. Does the story deliver and keep you interested? Yes. Was there lots of shooting and gore that got you excited every time you ripped a person in half with the darkness? Fuck yes!!! So y u ruin the game ign.com with your dumb review. If the game is good and makes you want to play the story more than once it should at least get a 9. Unlike Call of Duty where I could give a shit about the story after its been played, but alas, they keep giving these games 9 to 9.5's.

So today The Darkness II, I salute you for being a good game, although short, you kept me occupied and happy for 7 hours. Now on to the vendettas which will give me more enjoyment.

~Thanks for Stopping by~
Luke

Android Kitty ftw

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Oh Twitter

With Facebook becoming the biggest snooze fest ever I decided to start a new twitter account earlier last year. Out of this new journey I made some new friends. I met a local women who is a web designer which has been helpful with some of my homework. In turn her husband is a huge Philadelphia Flyers fan, just like this guy here. Made some friends from the UK. One of them named Jamie, I play Xbox and have convos about tech and web design. In this mayhem, I have followed and gotten followers back. Not a popularity contest by any means, but all the same fun. So I say to you twitter, Today I salute you. Thanks for chewing up all my free time, weather it be on the toilet, or slacking off in class. Thanks for making the parts of my day that are somewhat boring have a purpose.

~Thanks for stopping by~

Luke

The college experience being taught by the Google

HTML, PHP, slides, web design. This is all I have done since the semester has started back up. I understand getting a degree in CIS isn't supposed to be all fun and games, but it seems like the first 2 weeks has been nothing but work work work, and no end in sight. I enjoy learning new things that I may someday pursue a career in (I doubt it) but with lectures lasting an hour long with no actual hands on time until class is about to end seems a little absurd. Now when I am at home doing work and I am stuck I either email my professor and sometimes get a reply or consult the Google as my one professor likes to call it. Sadly, this is the truth. Professors stand up there and talk and then turn you loose. With little time left in labs, the professor finds himself/herself running around trying to get to everyone, which usual is a complete failure. I have respect for my professors, but don't they see what they are doing is completely backwards or broken? I would think more hands on time students would benefit the greatest from what they are being taught. I do also understand the professor would be stopping a lot more because you are going to have that one student who just doesn't get it, but please professors, everything you are rambling on about will have left my ears and flown out the window before you can finish your sentence. 

What does one do when the moment comes and I cannot remember what the professor has said? Like everyone else in this world. Consult a search engine. I learned more this week off of my questions to a forum or a similar question asked by someone else who also hasn't retained anything they heard, because they need to have the hands on experience to grasp the full concept of what is going to happen if they link the .php page to their .html page with bad if statements. 

The forums that the Google kicks back to you are probably being answered by the professors themselves. Don't doubt it for a second.

Thanks for stopping by
Luke

Is it Strange to visit someone you've never met.

2007 was a wonderful time. Yea, 2007 was the time of Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare. Not only was the story great, but playing online opened a new door for people, I myself made some friends along the way. This is where I am stumped right now. Let me give you some brief history for my first Blog. While playing this addicting competitive game we know and love, I ran into a gentleman running all over the map like a maniac. The map was wet work, known for its dark and raining environment, making it hard to hear the enemy coming behind you. The enemy being another playing on the end of an I.P. address and a controller. This particular game however, Lets just say my k/d was suffering. which I also knew nothing about k/d at the time was being disintegrated by a gamer tag at the time known as PushDatWeight. Now known as Betty Crock3r (that I'll save for another time). After being destroyed by this clown, he began to talk to me and added me to his friends list. We started playing so much that we swapped phone numbers to set up play times. Insane? but FUN!!! This gamer relationship became a friendship that has gone up until this very day. Whom I am texting with as I write this. Texts, Phone calls, Skypes, FaceTimes, pictures, Videos have been shared between us for 4.5 years now. The funny thing is we have never met each other, and that's where the question as well as the title comes into play. Is is Strange though? Seriously.

After this 4.5 year relationship I am finally going to meet this clown that I have been able to compare as a very close friend. 4.5 years. That's a long time to have a friendship and not actually have a face to face meeting with the person. He knows a lot about me, I know a lot about him and we have never met. Michigan from New york isn't a bad drive either, but this whole situation has me confused at the same time. What if we meet and cant stand each other? Not too mention that we both have egos the size of California. Either way though I am happy to call this guy a friend. he has steered me in a direction in my life that I may not have ever gone before. He has shown me what is better technology than what I had before. Like when I had a Blackberry, he explained why the iPhone was better. I got an iPhone. He showed me the benefits of OSX opposed to Windows. I have an iMac. Which all of these cards falling into place peeked my interest into knowing what makes all this stuff work. I have always loved technology, but being married young and a high school drop out hasnt made life easy to just sit down and play with this stuff like I do now. I am now pursuing a degree in Computer Information Systems. Taking me out of my Blue Collar environment to a tech world has been exciting to say the least. Always loving tech, and now being able to play with it everyday is great, And all of this may have never happened if he didnt get in my head and say that there is better out there and lets make it do what you want it to do. Jailbreaking was where the tech wheels started grinding. The process of doing something illegal at the time and pirating apps was so fascinating. And lets not get confused with this 45 second jailbreaking bullshit, I mean the gritty stuff, when Cydia was just a raindrop in the community. Keith pushed me to this, made me learn and want more out of my tech life. Yes, 4.5 years without meeting the person that made me want to strive for more. 

All I can say is that meeting him finally is going to be interesting, and hopefully will be the start of a yearly thing. Who knows, maybe we will kill each other in a blaze of glory, maybe we will just play Call of Duty, maybe we will become even better friends then we already are. Either way I'm looking forward to it. Wish me luck, and have a good day. You deserve it.


~This is my first official blog~ 
Thanks for stopping by,
Luke