Slightly North

<-- 9:53 PM MT -->
I am sick on New Year's Eve... how lame is that? I am bored as hell so I guess I will drone on and on about stuff that doesn't matter. Speaking of, it seems that you Trek'ies are going to have to travel back in time to be able to see the next episode of Star Trek: Voyager. It will air on 1/1/1900.

WOO!


<-- 2:10 PM MT -->
Well it just turned midnight in Moscow and no word of any ICBMs yet. China was quiet as well. Looks like a lot of the doomsday idiots were wrong. Of course, Jesus just might be on Pacific Time and has yet to come right at midnight.

Viva La Riots!


<-- 11:56 AM MT -->
I woke to NPR's All Things Considered, and they went live to correspondents all over the globe and everyone said there were no problems. Even the guy in Sydney. And Japan is doing fine as well, which is surprising because they didn't get off their asses about the Y2K bug until a little before I went to study there (Aug. 1998). But, then again, they don't really use computers a whole lot in Japan. I think it was either really bad information, or a hoax.

Personally I believe that if other cities WERE being plunged into chaotic looting, shooting and orgies, it'd be best not to report it. Amerikans are such retards generally that I think that what we do hear on the news is too much. The average Joe Sixpack can't handle it. Here's to an Orwellian "Ministry of Information!"


<-- 7:55 AM MT -->
It is almost 8am here. I am awake already. Why? I forgot to turn off my alarm. But maybe it is better that I am up already.

So what is going on... My radio was blasting something about Sydney Australia being in complete darkness. So I turn on CNN and... nothing. I turn on MSNBC and... nothing. Maybe it is a big hoax (and a really tasteless one) by the radio station. If it is a hoax, these "DJ's" need to be taken out to the street and publicly humiliated. I can't find jack on TV that says Sydney is in utter chaos right now. In fact, they just showed a reporter in front of the Sydney Opera House and all the lights were on and the streets were quiet.

Or maybe CNN and MSNBC are showing lies so that riots don't start over here. I would buy that since most (about 70%) of the people in north america are easily led idiots. So who knows. Our government sucks and would totally try to hide riots in Australia, but I don't think they would be able to get CNN and MSNBC to shut up too.

More later...

Found this on Ed's Weblog. It is the words that will be forbidden after the year turns to 2000. So make sure you don't look dumb by using any "passe" words. Or people will likely be telling you that "you are SO 1990's!"

Check it out here: Forbidden words 2000

Oh, I just noticed something too. Schlyer, you might want to change your new domain name since one of the Forbidden Words is "Neo anything..." :Þ

Yeah, I got my new mouse today. Corin7 is pissed too. I ordered mine on monday and got it today. He ordered his over 3 weeks ago and just received it 2 days ago. Sucks to be him.

Anyway, if you havn't heard about it yet, go to http://www.razerzone.com and check it out. It comes in two SKU's - 1000 dpi and 2000 dpi. Current PC mice are approximately 400 dpi. This means that the 1000 dpi Razer Boomslang is more than twice as fast and accurate, completely blowing away the competition. The 2000 dpi Razer Boomslang is designed for hardcore gamers who demand the very best from their rigs. I have one of the first edition (first 5,000 made) 2000 dpi models. It comes in a nifty metal box and all the docs are made to match the feel of the company. Now I just have to make it through the day so I can go home and hook the damn thing up.

Damn I am excited!

<-- 10:52 PM MT -->
Blood, sweat and tears. This is just about the best layout I have ever created. I am really happy with the way it came out. Although, the top image is somewhere around 46kb. But hey, once you load it once it is cached right?

So deal with it! :)


<-- 4:42 PM MT -->
Lookie at what http://listen.to/fantasies actually goes to...

Makes you wonder eh?

<-- 11:30 PM MT -->
This just in!

First look at this chart:


Now, this chart represents the stock prices over a 3 month period for ETYS (eToys, Inc.). The black circle and the red arrow represent the date of the preliminary injunction against etoy.com and the start of the protest against the toy retailer. The tinted blue area represent the projected "busiest ecommerce shopping period of the year."

Over this period, the protest against eToys, Inc has actually made them lose money. We can make a change in the world. Lets not give up now. I am sure the loss of that much money has made then think twice about what they are doing to the internet community by proceding with this absurd suit against a few artists.

So spread the word. Go to www.eviltoy.com and grab the protest image for your web site. Tell your friends and family not to shop at eToys. And remember, this is our internet.

<-- 7:21 PM MT -->
I was idly following links from site to site when one linked to the MicroSoft site. I noticed a link at the top saying A Brief History of Microsoft on the Web. So if you are interested as to how the 4th largest web site out there got started, read it.

There are even screen shots of the early site layouts. I really liked this one. It states that people with browsers that don't support images should follow another link. Man, that was only in '94. Look how far we have come in the last few years.

And talk about traffic:


"Web site traffic was climbing at a rate of about 10 percent per month. To give you an idea of what that means, the daily site traffic of 35,000 in mid-1996 has grown to 5.1 million visitors today."



Damn... this is one healthy ammount. Finally, I leave you with this final statment about the Microsoft site:


"What will the future of Microsoft on the Web look like? We have a few ideas on the subject. Check back in about 50, er, six years for a full report."

<-- 3:08 PM MT -->
One last update and I am off to the parent's house for holiday business.

Our newest hosted site, FreeStyle, have opened their doors. Here is what they have to say about themselves:


"A site for music fans to get news from one place with out being cluttered by teenyboppers like Britney Spears or the Backstreet Boys. Get rumors, news, and tour dates at one stop."


So give them a look-see!


<-- 2:52 PM MT -->
The message board system is now up and running. If you want to visit it you can at http://forums.slightlynorth.com.

Also, if you want me to add a new forum for discussions, and would like to moderate it, please email me.

<-- 8:52 AM MT -->
Phone companies are fun. I was supposed to get a call this morning before ICG came out to our office to figure out why our 512K frac T1 wasn't working. So they decided to call me AFTER the the tech was here and waiting. Then they tried to tell me he couldn't wait the 10 minutes it would take me to get there to let him in. Well, I simply told them that is he was too busy to wait then US West could come install the damn thing and ICG could just piss off. He didn't like that. So now I am in the office on my day off. Surfing the web for lack of anything better to do...

Quickly, if you have never visited Watch the World Die, go there NOW. KillCrazy just made one crazy update. Damn good stuff. I remember when I was hanging out with Delusion from r33t and I asked what the URL for WTWD was. He said he should kick me from IRC just for asking that question. I wonder what the story behind that is.

Ah well, WTWD is more brilliant then ever. So go THERE now.

<-- 11:17 PM MT -->
I was reading De/nnis this evening and saw that his site had been labled UNDERAPPRECIATED on Inferno's "Year in Review." So I wandered over and read all the controversy from this past year. And at the bottom I too am listed. So go check it out.

I feel so loved. :)


<-- 9:43 PM MT -->
I am changing my email addy. My damn MindSpring account is getting an average of 3 spam mails a day now. So it is time to stop using it. I can now be contacted at blatz@slightlynorth.com.

I ran into an old friend a few days ago. Actually she and I were dating about 5 years ago. Nothing noteworthy, but we had some good times together. She wants to get together tomorrow and "hang out." I am not quite sure what I think of that right now. My friend thinks her and I should "hook up" again. All I can think about is why we broke up in the first place. That and I don't know her anymore. It has been too long to know if she has changed or not.

Anyway, I broke my favorite pair of sunglasses today. The damn things were very expensive and I am so pissed right now. They were Smiths, the kinds that have the slide-out lenses. Now I have to drive down to the Cherry Creek Mall and get a new pair. This sucks.


<-- 6:52 PM MT -->


Vunde gurunam caranaravinde
Sandarsita svatma sukhavabodhe
Nihsreyase jangalikayamane
Sansara halahala moha santyai
Hala hala
Ahahu purusakaram sankha cakrasi
Ahahu purusakaram sankha cakrasi
Dharinam dharinam sahasra sirasam
Dharinam dharinam sahasra sirasam
Vande

Om Shanti, Om Shanti
Shanti shanti
Shantay Om


Sometimes nothing but Madonna will do...

<-- 10:57 PM MT -->
Well the server went down for an hour tonight. I don't really know why or how, but I do know that I fixed it. SoI am feeling like a web god right now. I am sure that will pass.

Anyway, now I can get back to installing the UBB system. That should be up by the weekend and ready for everyone to ignore it. I don't know why I am even setting it up, except that I bought the license and no longer use it. Wasted money i guess.

We have a new site opening here really soon. Another music related site. They call it Freestyle. More on that when they go live.

<-- 7:26 AM MT -->
So my alarm clock is pretty neat. It randomly picks a radio station each morning at 6:45am and plays it at mind numbing volumes to wake my tired ass up for work. This morning I awoke in a rage and just have to get it off my chest.

Those of you more hip kids who actually live in Denver might remember the best radio station this city ever had a few years back. It was called 92X and played "new" music. Well, the butt rock station known as KBPI didn't like how much they were losing listeners to this indy station so they bought it out, made it a rap station and changed their own format (The "new" BPI). Only they couldn't do it half as well as 92X.

Anyway, this mornning I awoke to them bashing on a guy, calling him an idiot and taking cheap shots at his wife because of his opinion. This guy named Cugar was stating that he was sick of Metalica. The "new" BPI had just played their "Top 1000 songs of the millennium" (again with the damn millennium crap) and I think Metalica held all 7 top spots, with 'Master of Puppets' coming in first. Now, this brings up 2 good points.

First, why the hell this Cugar guy would beleive a damn butt rock station would NOT pick a crappy band like Metalica for the TOP 7 SPOTS is beyond me. And second, why would they even bother bringing this up and bashing on the guy's wife and calling him gay? Get these idiots off the damn air and bring 92X back damnit. Not all of us have the luxury of being about to get KUCB. Grrr... Metalica sucks so damn bad.

<-- 8:08 PM MT -->
Made a "holiday" version of the title graphic tonight. Actually, I took the easy way out and just tinted everything either green or red. I am evil... well actually just lazy.

I think I am just about sick of things being the "official whatever of the new millennium." M&M's are the official candy for the new millennium. I guess that means all other candy is out of luck. But wait, Snickers is the official candybar of the new millennium. I guess they found a loophole.

So I now declair this site to be the official Slightly North of Tomorrow site for the new millennium. All you other Slightly North of Tomorrow sites out there can chew on that! And don't think of trying to take it away from me.


<-- 11:07 AM MT -->
Someone actually took the time to make a Win2K Flash site. It reminds me of that site that used DHTML to make you think you were loading MacOS. The Win2K site is all in flash though. Pretty good stuff.

Check it out HERE.

<-- 1:58 PM MT -->
Normally I would have put this in the comments, but I don't think anyone reads them but me.

The thing about Netscape is that as badly as it runs on a PC, it runs about a billion times WORSE on a Mac. Even Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, recommends IE over Netscape. Only MS-hating Mac retards refuse to use it, and there really isn't any point in bending over backwards to please retards.

I use a Mac, and have no problems whatsoever with this site in IE.


<-- 1:16 PM MT -->
Emial in my box today:

From: AllAdvantage.com [y2k@alladvantage.com]
To: blatz@mindspring.com
Subject: AllAdvantage.com Y2K Plans
Sent: Fri 12/17/99 12:38 AM

Dear Shawn McClung, GLZ-861
Member since November 1999

Y2K is nearly here! That means we can finally stop
guessing about what Y2K is going to do to the world's
computers - and get on with our lives. As a
precautionary measure, AllAdvantage.com is going to
disconnect its servers from the Internet and watch the
millennial date change from the sidelines.

We will be disconnected from 23:59 PST (GMT -0800) on
December 30 through 12:00 PST (GMT -0800) on January 1.

You will be UNABLE TO ACCRUE PAID SURFING TIME DURING
THIS 36-HOUR PERIOD.

We value your privacy and the security of your data, and
this temporary suspension of service is designed to
protect our community from any unanticipated effects from
the date changeover.

AllAdvantage.com wishes you, your friends, and family the
best in the coming New Year.

Best wishes,

Bill Trento
VP Advantage Community
AllAdvantage.com


I guess that would be the easy way out. Either that or their employees are refusing to sit in the office all night long to monitor the system. Either way it is pretty lame.


<-- 2:27 AM MT -->
Wow what a wild ride. In the last 48 hours this site has had over 600 page views. Not because of the design. Not because of the creative writing. It was because of a link from another site regarding a damn alien dancing to a disco song. I want to be excited and proud that my site could generate that kind of traffic, but I am not. I want to be known for what I am and what I stand for, not some stupid link to another's work. Another reason you will not see nude women or nasty degrading acts around here. So once the traffic from that site settles down a bit I will feel better.

Today (er... yesterday now I guess) I worked on the TechnoSpeed site with the company's owner. We made some small progress but it was in the right direction. There is a "person" who keeps telling him that the site looks like crap and she could do it better, but either of us have yet to see her even attempt to do it. People who talk big and then fail to deliver are interesting to watch. Very interesting indeed.

One last thought and then I am going to bed. I actually got an email from a very angry person regarding my site. He stated that I was discriminating against him by not making this site compatable in NetScape on an iMac. First of all, I do not own an iMac so I have no idea if it would actually display this site wierd or not. Also, I do not have Netscape because I beleive it to be a second rate product. Razz me all you want for that comment, but a product that doesn't support even 60% of the standards that another does is not worth my time. This is my site, when you start your own site you can make it look however you want. You can make it look better in NetScape then IE if you want. But do not go postal on me because MY SITE does not look good on YOUR computer.

Anyway, enough of that. I guess what it comes down to is this: I am not going to redo my entire site because .01% of my viewers are unhappy. Call me stingy, but that is that way it goes.

<-- 7:39 PM MT -->
The culmination of a highly secret project between moo.nothing and slightly north will be coming to you later in the next week or so. It's going to revolutionize the world, so please, stay tuned...

Already specially selected professionals are being chosen to participate in this exciting project. A full press release will be issued in the coming week to announce this amazing product.


<-- 12:12 AM MT -->
I just woke up. I couldn't stand it anymore and took a 5 hour nap. So now I am getting up at midnight. Hey, I am on vacation so I guess it works out. I have been looking at a lot of these weblog sites and I think I have realized the differances between the weblog and e/n communities.

It really reminds me of red and white wines. They both are made with the same end result, yet using unique techniques. On the weblog side of things it seems the writing is a bit more creative, yet the site designs are more basic. However, e/n sites seem to rich in design and yet more basic in writing styles. Both have their good points and their bad. I won't go into them, but looking around you should be able to figure it out on your own.

So then I took a critical look at what I do here. Sometimes I feel like writing something creative and sometimes I feel like writing something like this here. Maybe I am a hybred of the two styles. It looks that way to me, but on no account of being on purpose.

Regardless, I enjoy sites of the e/n AND weblog styles. So look for more links to weblog sites along with the regular dose of e/n links. Also, a few of the sites I have listed under the e/n list seem to better fit in the weblog list, so I will be moving those too. Funny though, in the end it is still the same thing.

<-- 4:16 PM MT -->
I was just sent a rather funny link from an old friend. Actually, from my *gulp* UO days. *waves hi to Atrius*

Anyway, I can't stop laughing... so check it out:

Japanese Game Title Generator


<-- 3:30 PM MT -->
I forgot to go to sleep last night. Right now I think I am going on hour 31 with no sleep. Not like I can even estimate it right now. I have Jimmy Eat World's "Static Prevails" album turned up just as loud as my Cambridge SoundWorks Digital 4-point speakers will go without starting to crackle. It is pretty damn loud. I feel like I am at a live show. I think all my muscles are vibrating. It might just be the music, but then again I am insane with sleep deprivation right now.

So I was added to the Linkwatcher site (notice new button at top of page). I just found out today when I was looking through my handy referer list. I mentioned this to someone and was told that "e/n" is the teenage version of the "weblog" community. Hey, I am 23 and wish I was a teenager again (ahhh... a life with no bills again... how nice would that be).

So I guess I am now a prat of the weblog/e/n/creative community. Go figure. :)

Really though, I never thought this site would attract so much attention. Maybe I am being vain in saying so, but I am glad that I can create something that people are intrested in. For the last 5 years I have been fixing things (read: computer hardware tech) and have been feeling the need to create something.

<-- 3:31 PM MT -->
From etoys-sucks.com:


On September 10, 1999, eToys, Inc. decided that they wanted to associate another buzz term with its brand. They obviously felt that being termed a 'reverse domain name hijacker' would boost their Christmas season sales. On this day, eToys brought a lawsuit against etoy (no 's') for its ownership and use of the etoy.com domain name. They charge that "the antisocial, obscene, and offensive images associated with defendants' use of the mark 'etoy,' both on the Internet and elsewhere, have tarnished the ETOYS® mark and the eToys brand name..." While this is extremely humorous, this is only the beginning...


So the bottom line is that eToys Inc didn't like what a group of people were doing. Armed with high priced lawyers, non internet savvy judges, and a bunch of technology buzz words the sought to get eToy.com shut down. California courts denied eToy representitives a request to be able to teleconfrence to the hearning. eToy is from Europe. Why would the court deny this request?

The result? The California Judge declared in favor of the big guy and stated that eToy would be fined PER DAY until eToy.com was shut down. Needless to say, it was down that very day. Although the server is still up (HERE), the domain of eToy.com is no longer available on the internet.

So where does this go now? eToy and its supporters are gearing up for something big. Already a boycott against eToys has been called (this site supports that boycott 100%) and eToys stock is actually dropping durring the heaviest ecommerce period in history. Already eToys parody sites are popping up (Here is a good one) and more are sure to follow.

If this injunction is to stand against eToy, then what is next? Maybe a company will show up in a few years with a name similar to my site's name and try to shut me down. If eToys is to win today, it will give anything like this in the future more ground to stand on. The internet is about expression. It is OUR digital playground. Corporations like eToys are the big bullies trying to take our candy. Trying to turn our playground into parking lots and strip malls. We need to show them that they will not survive as an internet company when they pull this kind of crap. We need to stand up against them and let our voices be heard.

Should you want more information on this topic (and I urge you to learn all you can about it) then you can visit the eToys boycott center at eviltoy.com. They have a good listing of related articles, sites who support the boycott, and contact address should you wish to voice your opinion directly to eToys.


<-- 2:21 AM MT -->
So I taught myself some DHTML today. Actually, I looked at the source code for other DHTML controls and figured it out. Who needs expensive books when you can just go to hundreds of other sites and learn from them. So now I have put in some nifty DHTML based on a script I found. I like it...

Also, I want to announce that Slightlynorth.com is now an official supporter of eToy. More on that tomorrow. Or today seeing as how it is already tomorrow...

<-- 1:34 AM MT -->
You find some very very odd things at this time of the morning. In fact, I would like to share. Check out this movie I found:



Click the image to start the movie (MPEG encoded)

<-- 9:18 PM MT -->
I have been asked by Phester to mention to my readers a contest they are holding. Now, I don't normally make other site's announcements, but Phester is just too damn cool. Anyway, it is a Quake3:Arena tournament. Now, just by reading the contest rules (you can see them HERE) it looks like you have to compete using the latest DEMO version of Q3A. Which markes me off since I deleted the demo when I got the full version. Ah well, those of you who don't have Q3A yet, this would be a good time to try for a free copy. That's right, the grand prize is a copy of the retail version of Q3A and a Phester.org tee-shirt.

So go CHECK IT OUT RIGHT NOW!

The catch? You must sign up as an employee of phester.org, not that that is a bad thing :)

I hope this was "RAD" (hehehe Inside Joke)

<-- 1:57 PM MT -->
We are now linking to Moo.nothing. Give them a look-see!

Also, Our link to Frus was wrong. And all this time I just thought she was trying to be funny again by putting up wierd stuff. So that is all happy and fixed again. Sorry if anyone actually saw the trash that it was linked to at first.

<-- 10:10 PM MT -->
All my life, your time hasn't meant a thing. And I have to say I think that's beautiful. There is nothing between you and me. It wouldn't be anything to me if you want it to. Someone left the lights on, and the sun is going down. In this town we shall pass another year. I know you'd never leave me here. I can hear it from miles away. Today it may appear he has nothing to say. It may appear that he chooses to be clear. It feels like a sunday, the morning took over and left me. I know what you feel when you're by yourself. There's no one, nothing.

You are the theme for the day.

<-- 3:49 PM MT -->
I haven't been able to put Quake 3 Arena down since I bought it this weekend. I wanted to keep our faithful readers up to date on my gaming thoughts so I decided to put up a little essay on the whole Quake 3 Arena vs. Unreal Tournament debate. Blah.

Those who are interested can check it out by clicking the link on the left called Get Railed or by clicking HERE.

<-- 11:29 PM MT -->
I was going to write something about life. Something deep and meaningful. I have been lacking in written creativity this last week and was going to make it up tonight. But I got to thinking, and I think we all know what that leads to. I remember a friend telling me something about nothing being new under the sun. I am not doing anything new, I am mearly finding a new way to do it. So this is an interesting thought. All the music I listen to is the same thing. Mearly unique pitches of the same note put to a beat. My daily life is the same thing. Mearly the same routine with the same people in the same locations.

This is my life. This is your life. This is their life. Think about that.

You know, someone actually emailed me and asked if the girl in the graphic at the top of this page has a next "pic" in sequence where she raises her head and you can see her "boobs." She is NOT there for you to oggle. She is there because she portrays my total loss of faith in people. To the point where you don't care how you look, how you act, or what people think of you. She is my grief. She is my frustration.

I am not Stile. I have some class.


<-- 1:11 PM MT -->
I got this emailed to me this morning:

Y2KSound.wav (132kb)



Pretty funny stuff. I think that is Krusty the Clown saying "aww crap!" at the end.


<-- 11:04 AM MT -->
Corin7 (the long lost one) sent me this link in email at work today. I thought it was just another boring game site till the java kicked in. Talk about a good use of effect.

Check it out right now: BeatDown 2000

<-- 10:32 PM MT -->
Well as you can see we have ::another:: new logo. I made this one today and I think I like it a lot more. It is more "artsy" if you will, and that is what i was going for. yay.

Also, I have added a few new links to the e/n section. I have also removed 2 links from the e/n section. So, now everything should be updated and happy again. Brain Damage's link should go to their new domain, and Dissolve's link should go to their new site hosted by Brain Damage.

One last thing, I want to give some love to tba and to HalfBaked for the idea to exploit the fact that the acronym for our name is SNoT. So we will see (should anyone actually use our button) if it brings in more "hits." Not that I really care either way, but it is nice to feel loved. :)


<-- 9:17 PM MT -->
At 6 am, dawn cracks.
When the clock says 12 pm, it's lunch.
8 pm. Let the show begin.
It's 10 pm, do you know where your children are?
After midnight...

For as long as the hours of the clock are rooted in habit, tradition and custom, time is on our side. But when the lunch hour passes us by and the eight o'clock show is broadcast twenty four hours a day, when our dawn has already been cracked for us by stock market traders in another time zone, we have slipped out of step with time and fallen into its deadly stream.

Time without the magic of special hours (at 5pm you can relax, the work day is over) is time without a human face.

Standing outside closed doors, waiting in line for the next show, the rustle of keys associated with a certain dusk hour. These are the moments when time is ours for the making and life is, once again, a matter of ebb and flow.

<-- 10:40 PM MT -->
So Brain Damage finally moved over to their own domain name. Way to go guys, you deserve it. I will update their link in a few moments.

Also, I have (finally) come up with a kick ass design for my friend's site. He runs a small aftermarket car part business. Want a sneak peek? I know you do...

Check it out here and then let me know what you think on the little comment thingy.


<-- 9:57 AM MT -->
I really wish I lived in Toronto. Just once I would like to visit the hockey hall of fame. But until then I have to settle for news and pictures. Actually, here is a good one:

Also this quote when someone asked him his dreams now:

Asked what his dream was now that his playing days were through, Gretzky gave a laugh and said: “That I can come back and play again, like I did when I was 20.”


So, all you people in Toronto better know how much I envy you, eh?

<-- 10:38 PM MT -->
Welcome back. I do hope you learned something new during our outage.

We are back though! Onward with the insanity! You can expect to revisit 3 of Kurtz25's essays in the next week. Also, we have a few other sites coming online soon. So stay tuned.