Last Updated 3/26/2001
Link of the "Week"
The word week is in quotation marks because I don't change it weekly. Only when I find a cool site. "Link of the week" just has a cool ring to it!
A very quirky site that satires nearly everything in our culture. I like that this particular flavor of humor is very thought provoking and even a bit cerebral.
Visit the Link of the Week Archive! Here you will find a list of the most popular locations I've included on this site. Archive
The Latest...
I appologize for being so neglectful of this site. My attention has been occupied by other issues that I'd rather not get into...I'm back!
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Just a quick note in regard to the Geneology page. There are a few minor mistakes!! I have not yet rectified them due to a jumble of goofs in my pedigree on the software that I use to compile those pages. Those pages (except for the intro. page) are generated by the application I employ to document my family tree. It saves me a ton of time as I only need to modify those pages once they are generated. Anyway, I promise to have it straightened out soon and will indicate so on this page!
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Amanda and I are currently in the process of buying a house. This will not be our last... only an investment. We plan to begin construction on our HOME in the next 2 to 3 years. Wish us luck.
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Congratulations to Our friends Bill and Cari who recently had their second child! A handsome boy named Will. When we saw them last, Cari looked great and Bill was his usual cool self. Only a couple weeks earlier Chad and Sheila Had beautiful baby girl they named Stefanie. They are all doing well and are in our prayers! In fact...now that I think about it... Bill owes me a Cigar. I got one from Chad but not Bill. Hey, any excuse for a Stogie.
My Frankenstein Monster
Well, I've finally gotten around to writing about it. My Frankenstein Monster! Of course this is a metaphor for my "other" PC. I built a computer out of a collection of spare parts and only two new components. I've run the Gamut here and found it to perform surprisingly well, considering the slow speed and "last week" technology. I've run Windows 95 and Linux Mandrake 6.5 and both worked well. Not surprising, I've found that the slow processor(233mhz)has been my only real "ball and chain". I've wanted to add a CD burner and the ones that I've considered all require a 400 mhz minimum. If I'm going to spend the money I want it to work at it's peak therefore I'm holding off for now.
I've since canned Windows 95 and Linux. Linux was just not as fun to mess with as thought it would be so now I boot up Windows 2000 Professional. Thanks to a close friend who was able to get me a copy from work I am learning a new OS. The reliability is wonderful. I have been unable to run some games but I don't do a lot of gaming anyway. Other than that I'm elated to have it. I've even thought to try about trying a new motherboard that Win 2000 is supposed to support rather well....Dual Processor. We'll see.
In the near future I plan to get a digital camcorder and will want a powerful machine to handle the editing. I've been considering going the AMD route. The new Thunderbird processor has gotten rave reviews for performance, benchmarks, and price. Asus makes a board which will support this processor and DDR memory. This combination was reported on TechTV to be wonderful. Get comparable performance to an Intel chip on a board supporting RAMBUS for a fraction the cost. I've been shopping online and found that I can get an AMD T-bird 1.2ghz for around $200, and an Asus A7M266 supporting DDR Memory for $185. I could add that to my existing system and get terrific performance. If I update the video to an ATI-All in wonder card, and add higher RPM drives I think I'd be smoking for a modest cost. We'll see!!Here is what I have now...
Motherboard - Astoria with Phoenix BIOS
Processor - Intel PentiumII 233Mhz
Memory - 96Mb SDRAM
Video - NVIDIA RIVA 128 4Mb
Sound - Ensiniq Audio PCI 4Mb
Hard Disk - Maxtor 6.3 Gb
Hard Disk - Seagate 4.3 Gb
Hard Disk - Seagate 2.3 Gb
Floppy - standard
Cd-Rom - Memorex 48x
Network Adapter - 3Com Etherlink III (3C509b)
Case - Generic 250w mid Tower
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Click on the WWF logo to visit their website.
Finally..The Rock..has come back..to Hartford!
What a night! The RAW events which follow the Pay-per-views are typically the best and Oct. 23rd was no exception. Although we were not Live on TV until 9:00pm, We got plenty of early entertainment. At about 7:45pm the wrestling began. First match was a couple of nobody tag teams which were pretty boring, but did get a few pops from the crowd. The next match was for the Hardcore Title...Steve Blackman vs. Gangrel. Not a bad match with some good moves in the ring and somne good pops. The best early card match was by far the last...Dudley Boyz vs. Just Joe and Funaki. The Dudleys controled the match from start to finish and were awesome. A lot of slams, power bombs, and even some high flying. All these matches were aired on the Saturday morning show. Their entrance pyrotechnics also very cool live. In fact all the pyrotechnics, particularly Y2J and Kane, were very loud. When we went live on TV the place exploded and was pedal to the metal the rest of the night. Even though RAW signs off at 11:00pm, the show went on until nearly 11:45. Lots of after show beer guzzling from Steve Austin, The Rock, and HHH. Worth the price? Yes! Worth the Hassle of ticket gathering? Yes! Great Entertainment!!
Click on "The Rock" to visit his website!.....Click on the "Brahma Bull" to enter your name for "chat"!
Boston
Red Sox
Is this the year? I, as well as millions of pathetic faithful Red Sox fans ask this every year. Time will tell. That's all I'll say for now.
Geek Speak Glossary!
Cube Farm - an office with a large floor of cubicles.
Prarie Doggin' - when cubicle workers pop their heads up to speak with their neighbor.
404 - one who was once refered to as a "space cadet" is now 404 for"file not found".
Ego Surf - when an individual searches the Web for references to his/her own name.
Mouse Gum- the sweatty gunk that accumulates on the mouse after long periods of use.
Bandwidth- aside from the most obvious definition, this also refers to the time and recources (or lack there of) required to accomplish something. Usually at work.
CyberWidow- what one becomes when their spouse spends too much time in front of the computer pounding on the keys, or pointing and clicking.
Newbie- simply refers to a new computer user, or new participant of online chats or games.
Spam- no longer refers only to the deliciously popular canned sandwich spread, now is the unendearing title given to Junk E-Mail.
Battle-Fax- weapon used in a war of words is raging over a fax machine.
uninstalled- fired from your job.
Tetrised-adjective describing a person who is very stressed out, or suffering from a cramped hand due to furious typing, pointing, and clicking.
Plug & Play-someone is plug & play when they are a temporary employee.
Do you know any Geek Speak, E-mail me with your suggestion!
For the latest information on computer technology and the internet check out 
on your local cable TV or satelite affiliate. Or visit their website at www.zdtv.com I'd particularly like to recommend two shows and their corresponding websites.
Call for help is a show geared towards novice users and is a call-in help show. Call, e-mail, video e-mail, or chat online to get your questions answered on air and online. It airs live weekdays at 7:00pm EST.
The Screen Savers is set up in much the same format, but deals with much more advanced problems and questions. Perfect for geeks who enjoy tinkering with their PC's and doing cool and interesting things with them. This show live weekdays at 9:00pm EST
Web Design and Authoring by Derek S. Crocker