by admin | Nov 12, 2015 | Fun, Rant |
I’m Probably Not Going To Handle Artificial Intelligence Very Well…
A.I. (artificial intelligence) is going to be really hard for people like myself to deal with. And, the more life like in appearance the harder it will be. Honestly, the other day I did a voice search on my phone, it was something like, “OK, Google. Daisy Ridley nude scenes.” because, sadly, I’m a dude. Anyways, as the female voice responded, I actually said “thank you” when she was done speaking.
Now consider that’s just a programmed voice on a smart phone. Imagine being able to have casual conversations with them, it’s already starting to happen. Now, imagine that happening with dolls, teddy bears and other animated things. I have been brought to near tears over having to throw away old clothes I loved. I can’t imagine owning an electronic pet or someday maybe an actual android. People, including myself will defend them with their lives, I have no doubt. Seriously, if someone was threatening my cat, I would go all De Niro as Al Capone on them. “I want him dead! I want his family dead!” I wouldn’t care if that pet was a robot that looked like a dog or person that I had a personal relationship with.
I am excited for the future and I think the coming advancements in artificial intelligence will be incredible to see but they are no doubt going to change everything. Very soon, the things we see as science fiction are going to be reality. Mock me if you will but in the next hundred if humanity can survive that long republicans will be protesting marriage between androids, and androids and humans. It’s going to happen and it will be fascinating to see. Just hope I am around long enough to see it all.
by admin | Nov 10, 2015 | Fun, Rant, Review, Stuff I Did |
Supergirl Is Awesome!
I thought instead of a rant bashing stupid people that I’d take a break and talk about something I am really enjoying. It’s Supergirl, I am a fan. There are so many things about the show I love. There are a couple of things, I have mixed feelings about but all in all, I have loved every minute of the show. It’s fun, it’s not dark and Melissa Benoist as Supergirl is a breath of fresh air. In fact, I will go as far as to say that Supergirl is awesome!
A few months ago I saw an extended preview of the show that CBS put out and it interested me for a few reasons. First and foremost, it wasn’t dark. I am so sick of every superhero reincarnation having to be dark and gritty. It was fine with Batman, in fact, it was perfect for Batman. But, then the new Superman re-boot came along and I was really disappointed with it. To me, the movie came off as more Emo than dark. I didn’t hate the movie. But, dark superman just doesn’t’ work for me.
I am now 46 years old and my introduction to Superman was with the 70’s when I first saw the old TV’s series starring George Reeves as the caped wonder. But, then in my 7th year of life I saw Superman the Movie with Christopher Reeves and it truly made me believe a man could fly. Those movies became an iconic symbol of hope in my eyes. They were eye-poppingly colorful and so perfectly inspiring. To this day I can’t watch Superman I or II without wanting to be a better person and considering that when it comes to being a cynic I make Lewis Black look calm and even tempered, I think that says a lot.
So, I was ecstatic to see the Supergirl series on CBS was going to continue that tradition of positivity of hope. Well, at least when seeing the preview, I was hopeful. It looked like what I had been craving for. And, a couple of weeks ago when the first episode aired, it was pure joy. It was everything I had hoped for. I loved the cameos, with Helen Slater and Dean Cain I thought that was brilliantly fun. The cast is great and the story plays out with heart. This past week’s episode, “Flight or Flight” ended with a text between Clark Kent and Kara (Supergirl) and it was just so sweet without being too sappy or cheesy. The show isn’t perfect but the amount of fun it is, makes up for any flaws there may be.
Though, I can’t express enough Melissa Benoist really is the star of the show. Not just because she’s the title character but because of the way she plays her roles as Kara and Supergirl. I believe her as both and I just adore her. She’s vulnerable and strong and that’s the key to any great character. She nails it. When she does her shy almost snort laughing, I turn to mush. I am grown man and I think if I ever met Melissa Benoist, I’d react like Kara does when she thinks about Mehcad Brooks as Jimmy Olsen er… Sorry “James” Olsen.
My only problem and it’s not so much of a problem as it is a conflict I have within myself. It’s her skirt. Part of me is glad that they stayed with the traditional looking outfit. The shallow guy in me is literally thrilled. But, the male feminist in me feels that it’s a shame. If the character was truly created in today’s world there is no way she’d be created in a short skirt that can easily be looked up with every fly by. It’s not practical at all for doing battle in and it’s just kind of silly. So, for that I am torn. However, the character Kara that Melissa Benoist’s has created, I can totally see as actually liking the skirt. So, I don’t let it get to me. As I said, torn.
It’s hard to do a superhero show because you need to keep the fantasy going without losing the human moments and I think Supergirl does this so very well. At the time I am writing this, three episodes have aired and I can honestly say that with each new episode I find my interest in the show is still strong and still growing. And, I have to admit a lot of it is because Melissa Benoist as Supergirl is awesome!
by admin | Nov 4, 2015 | Information, Stuff I Did |
How To Install Windows 10…
I’ve had this little icon in my system tray for months now promising to notify me when I can install Windows 10. When it fist appeared I followed the quick instructions advising me to “click here” and get on the list. Days, weeks and then months went by and no change. It seems there’s a really long queue or maybe there was an error somewhere. In any case, I wanted to get Windows 10 installed. I was going to have to manually install it. I learned two things, trying to find the actual install file took me forever! But, actually installing it? It was the easiest install I’ve ever done. I’m writing this to save you some time if you want to get this installed yourself.
This isn’t a full tutorial. This is just here to get you to the tool you’ll need to download so that you can actually Windows 10.
First thing you need to do is go to this page and download the Media Creation Tool. Before you download the tool you need to decide on either the 32bit or the 64bit exe file. Chances are if you have a newer PC you’re going to need the 64 bit tool. But, if you don’t know, you can quickly check what version of the system you’re running now.
To find out if your computer is running a 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows in Windows 7 or Windows Vista, do the following: Open System by clicking the Start button , right-clicking Computer, and then clicking Properties. Under System, you can view the system type.
The link to the actual documentation from MS. Click Here.
Just getting to this point took me about a half-hour because most links and tutorial sites for some reason link to pages that want you to download this file GWXWebWindows.exe and all this file does is basically either install or open up the same app that’s been sitting in my system tray promising me the Windows 10 install that never came.
So I once I finally found the MediaCreationToolx64.exe file on the Media Creation Tool page all I pretty much had to do was double click and just answer the questions. It’s so easy and there’s only a couple of questions you need to answer.
When you open the exe file (below is what you’ll see). What this allowing you to do is either install Windows 10 right now on your PC but choosing the “Upgrade this PC now” and simply answering a few simple questions and this install does the rest. Literally it does most of the work. I sat there for about an hour or so while it just did it’s thing. The second option asks a few more questions but basically it allows you download the actual installation file or files so that they can be saved to an external drive and then be used to install Windows 10 on other PC’s. It’s all real simple. All you need to do is choose a couple of options.
After choosing the “upgrade this PC now” option the only thing you really need to be careful about is choosing whether you’re going to want a “Clean Install” or just an “Upgrade.” Basically, a clean install is going to delete everything on the drive you are installing windows on. Then it will install your new windows version. This means, any programs you’ve installed that are not part of the Windows 10 operating system will have to be reinstalled. Things like Photoshop and other programs you may have installed in the past will be gone. It also means any photos you have on the drive or videos will be deleted. So if you go this route, make sure to copy all that stuff to another drive or external drive before you proceed.
If you chose the upgrade option, it will basically, upgrade you to the new version of Windows but it doesn’t delete your files and programs. So, for example, when I did this last week, I upgraded and it took about an hour or so. When it was done, I opened up my browser and pretty much went on with my internet life. Photoshop, Sony Vegas Pro, my photos and videos were all intact.
Under the photo I will provide some links to more specific information.
How to Install Windows 10 on Your PC
How to get Windows 10 now: upgrade to Windows 10 today. Plus: how to fix flashing screen
(This link provides a short video and screen captures to show you what you’ll see along the way.)
by admin | Nov 2, 2015 | Politics, Rant, Stuff I Did |
Why I Won’t Be Watching Trump On SNL…
These are just a few of the reasons why I won’t be watching Trump on SNL this weekend. I am not big boycotting things. Just because someone has a different political view than myself is no reason for them to not host a show like Saturday Night Live. However, in the case of Donald Trump, It’s not about politics. It’s about his bigoted comments towards South American immigrants and the many inflammatory and derogatory statements he’s made towards women. There is no excuse for his bigotry, misogyny and ignorance, ever.
NBC has seemed, over the past couple of months, to be going out of it’s way to backtrack from the correct position they held when firing Trump from The Apprentice. I am not sure what has brought about this change but I have seen a more right leaning tendency the past few months. Even the Today Show aired this whole fake looking Town Hall meeting with Trump. He was thrown softball questions and then when he didn’t answer some of the questions, Matt Lauer just let it go and moved on to the next question most of the time. It was pathetic and I had to change the channel. I know the network has been tanking the past decade but this is not the way to get back the viewers.
Now Trump’s upcoming hosting duties on SNL is just a slap in the face. I wouldn’t be happy with most republicans hosting the show, I’m not going to lie. However, most of them haven’t outwardly reached the level of bigotry that Trump has. Note I said “most” not all. Most have managed to mask that bigotry behind their religion and political views. It’s still wrong, but I can almost tolerate that, I don’t like it but I accept it. What I can’t accept is an outright lies told at the expense of South American immigrants and his continued childish attacks on women. He’s statement on immigration was uncalled for, nonfactual and truly sickening. I also find the fact that NBC is now all too happy to let it go, absolutely disgusting.
The bigger problem with all of this is that many people on the left are going to watch the show. They are going to piss and moan this whole week about Trump hosting the show and then many are going to watch the SNL episode for the same reason they watch the Republican debates. Watching not because they want to hear the few issues one of them might accidentally mention, but because they are just waiting for those trainwreck moments. Those moments so cringe-worthy that they feel the need to go online, Tweet, post and rant about it on their blogs. This sad hypocrisy does more harm than good. It gives attention where it is not deserved.
The Trump SNL episode, because of this, is going to have epic ratings and it’s going to let NBC know that they were correct in having Trump hosting. If you have any self-respect, you won’t watch this show. I won’t be watching it. I won’t be live tweeting it and discussing it. I have enough respect for human beings to not watch it and that’s saying a lot because I don’t really even like people that much. But, I obviously respect them more than NBC and enough to not want to support Trump, NBC and SNL’s incredibly insensitive decision to have Trump host that show.
