OK, after almost a month, I am back to blog here again. I have a multitude of topics to talk about, from the latest in "I hate Vista - save XP" stuff, to recent vacation memories, to hockey talk and the hate-on that Ottawans have for the Toronto Maple Leafs (I am a Leafs fan, so... be prepared).
So first - the whole Save XP campaign - this whole issue just stinks and really irks me. See, I was around back in the days of Windows 3.1, Windows 95, and Windows 98. Yes, I even had the "pleasure" of experiencing Windows ME. Then Windows XP came along.
I had a lovely talk with someone back in the 98 to XP conversion days, with someone who was absolutely convinced that Windows 98 was the next coming of Christ, and Windows XP was the Devil himself holding out shiny things that looked pretty but were completely worthless. I begged to differ. He denied my request and told me I was basically an idiot because a friend of his who was a computer technician told him that XP was a piece of crap (he is probably one of the people holding onto XP and involved in this Save XP thing that I mentioned above, now). I have been working with computers for many years, and while not an expert in all things Computer, I do have a slight inkling of what is going on. I was of the opinion that XP was a good next step in the evolution of the PC Operating System, and it appears that I was, in fact, correct.
Granted, there were issues with XP - hardware that didn't work properly, software that didn't work at all, etc. - but all-in-all, XP had a lot of features and abilities that Windows 98 simply did not possess. I jumped on the bandwagon right away and ran into many of these roadblocks, but eventually, they were resolved, and Windows XP SP2 is the de facto standard now and it runs like a charm!
So, enter Windows Vista to the picture. Look at that glitz and gloss and all of the pretty new features and security. But wait! It is slower than XP and it doesn't work right - there are hardware and software glitches. I guess a lot of people have forgotten how the same issues were prevalent in XP when it first came out, and they only see how it works fine now, not how it was when it was first released.
Here's my take on it: Vista is the next evolution in the Operating System for the PC. It works fine when configured properly, when used with the correct hardware and software, and yes, it is slower than XP in many ways, but it is also a much more powerful system, so requires more resources to run at it's peak. Windows 98 ran faster on my Pentium 266 MMX than XP did, but would I have gone back to it? Never in a million years. Why stay locked into something that doesn't have all of the newest and greatest features (3D gaming, full control over my computer, etc.)? And look at the way it worked once I put it on a dual-core system with 2 Gigs of RAM. Far better than it did on that P266 or even my P3 850 that is still running it today. The same goes for Vista, and as soon as I can backup everything I need on my current computer, I will be moving to Vista. XP has had it's time, and it was a good run, but it's over. It's old and antiquated and Vista is the next step. Get over it. Or, go back to Windows 98 and live in the past where everything was all roses and sunshine and the world was a wonderful place to text chat and play sidescrolling games. Yippee...
I could go on, but I don't feel like wasting my time. Vista will have lovers and haters just like XP, until one day, everyone again forgets and starts whining about Windows 7 or 8 or whatever the next advent is that replaces Vista completely. Maybe Vista will be the new Windows ME, and Windows 7 will be the next XP. But for now, I think Vista works just fine. My brother-in-law built his own system and installed Vista and has had no problems with it. 'Nuff said.
So, I recently went on vacation to Collingwood, Ontario, and I can say nothing bad about that trip except that it was cold. I have to say that I am glad my wife and I invested in a timeshare back when we did, because nothing beats staying at a timeshare for $200-odd dollars a week instead of the $500 for 3 days that some of the other people paid for their short vacations.
We went for my eldest daughter's dance competition (Bedazzled), and she did wonderfully while there, getting 3 high-golds and an emerald award - and first places in all of the dances she did. The dancing was very good, the competition fierce, and I think they all had a good time while there.
So, the place we stayed was the Club Intrawest at Blue Mountain. What a great place. Again, $200+ for the week and we had a two-bedroom apartment, basically, with an ensuite in the master bedroom with a soaker tub, and the girls had their own bedroom with twin beds, and a separate bathroom. The living room/dining room/kitchen area was huge, and we had a porch that let out to a small playground, was right next to the family hot tub (which we partook of on several occassions, despite the cold weather) and the gym room and games room. It was a little slice of heaven and a great way to spend a vacation - despite the very slow wireless access for the computer - but I won't get into that. It was a lovely time away and a good vacation for all of us, I believe.
Finally - the Leafs haters.
I was listening to one of our local radio stations a week or two ago, and they were talking about the lack of enthusiasm on the part of the local hockey team, the Ottawa Senators. It seems that whenever the Toronto Maple Leafs or the Montreal Canadiens are in town, their fans are as loud or louder than the Sens fans. And I agree, at a recent game that I attended, I was surrounded by Leafs fans (much to my delight and the dismay of my brother-in-law and his cousin, both Sens fans) who drowned out the Sens fans and helped spur on the Leafs to a 5-4 win (coming back from a 4-2 deficit in the second period).
So, the thinking of this particular radio jock was that Sens fans should threaten to spit in the food/drinks of the opposing team's fans if they cheered louder than the home team's fans. WTF??? Are you kidding me??? You would stoop to such a disgusting level just to lower the volume of the fans of a visiting team? How irresponsible and illogical can you be to suggest that to the public at large, some of whom may actually take your advice and do so!?!? Besides which, how DARE you presume to punish fans for their pride in their team.
Here's a better option - threaten to spit in the food/drinks of the fans who are NOT cheering for the home team! Seriously, if it's that important to them, shouldn't they be screaming and yelling and cheering on their team? And if they are not, why aren't they? Are the embarrassed? Or are they simply bandwagon fans, only cheering for the team because they are the home team, not because they truly like the team? Or what? Rather than lowering the volume in the place to something that Sens fans are comfortable with (I guess they have sensetive ears), maybe you should try raising the roof like the fans of your opposition tend to do that you hate so much. You don't like the noise? Then make more! PROVE that you are bigger fans by being louder, not by being stupid and disgusting.
I cheer for the Leafs because I like the Leafs, have always liked the Leafs and always will like the Leafs. I cheer for the Leafs, and anyone playing against the Sens. Why? Because Sens fans hate the Leafs so much for no particular reason other than the fact that they are the Leafs. I don't hate the Sens, I just choose to ally myself with the team that I like that the Sens fans all seem to hate. It's more the fans that I am against, as opposed to the Senators themselves. They are a good team - of that there is no doubt (well, OK, maybe this year they kinda tanked at the end of the season, and the post-season - OUCH! Out in 4 straight? *shudder*) - but their fans are so hardcore against the Leafs specifically, it just bothers me to even want them to do well at all.
Anyway, that's my rant.
Cheers!
Slyde
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