I just got back from the store and I purchased a set of Logitech Z-560 speakers. They’re absolutely amazing, the sound is so crisp and clear, and the bass is incredible. Not to mention the volume, at 400 watts I have to keep it turned down almost all the way to be bearable. The subwoofer is gigantic, and you can hear the difference. The first thing I popped in was En Vogue’ Never Gonna Get It to hear how it sounded with heavy vocal and bass, and also that song has some neat stereo stuff, and is very well produced. The result was everything I imagined it to be; I can’t express how having four channels of sound really makes a difference.

Right now I’m listening to Joshua Redman and Mark Turner on Leap of Faith. In the a cappella intro I could actually hear Turner’’s keys as he played. Since the song is a battle of sorts Turner and Redman are divided into the right and left channels, respectively. Listening to it closer than I really have before, I think Mark Turner really shines the brightest on this song.

Sometimes fact is stranger than fiction: Bride shoots truck thief hours before wedding. What’s funny is that he actually got away, albiet wounded and with a broken truck. I wouldn’t want to mess with this lady.

“Prolonged time playing video games could cause people to lose concentration, get angry easily and have trouble associating with others, a Japanese professor’s research has suggested.” – via Josh

How come I can never find any ethernet cable when I need it?

You may (or may not) have noticed some new widgets on the site. First, I’m working on the JazzQuotes system. Right now all it does is echo a random quote, but eventually as the database becomes more inclusive it’ll have more features, including being able to browse by author (jazzer) and the ability to submit your own favorite quote. Also there is work being done on the toy section of the site, and I’m coding out a little script that will show what I’m listening to on my computer right now.

I’ve found a very cool site: Keyboard Compare Applet for Dvorak and Qwerty Keyboards. The
Dvorak layout places the keys you most under the fingers best suited to use them.

Plugging the top 500 words from the english language into the applet came up with some interesting results: your fingers would have moved 72.09 meters if you used QWERTY, but only 42.44 meters with Dvorak. See the site for more details. If anyone is interested in switching and want’s some computer help feel free to contact me.

Celebrating America’s independence yesterday was excellent, from the fireworks to the food. The pictures came out pretty well too. Update: About 30 new pictures have been added, so check it out. Captions too.

I saw MIB II on the IMAX screen yesterday, and it was impressive. I don’t think the movie was quite as good as the first one, if anything it seemed to be a bit of a spoof on the first one. It was quite funny at times, it’s just the plot struggled sometimes. But the screen was amazing, and the company, as always, was great.

Yesterday I did nothing. Not a lazy day, not a restful day, a day where a video game completely took over my day. The game is called Black and White, and it’s not even that new, about a year and a half old. But anyway I just got it and once I started it I couldn’t put it down. This isn’t necesarily a testament to the game, that’s just how I always start games. Anyway, according to the game statistics, which are quite good, I’ve spent 16 hours on the game as of this morning. Sixteen hours! It’s a fun game, but it just feel wierd that Sunday was an entire day when I didn’t produce anything. Oh well, the only solution is to beat the game as soon as possible :).

Who knew that cleaning could be so nostalgiac? Every thing I pick up seems to make me think, whether it be computer magazines from the height of the dot-com boom to the piece of paper with a number on it that facilitated a certain prank on the last day of school. I’m a terrible packrat, and for the past four years I’ve been saving tons of schoolwork, assignments, handouts, absent notes, everything because of some misconcieved notion that somehow I might need it at some point in the future. The downside to this was of course when I did need something I had so much other stuff I had the hardest time finding the thing that I was looking for. The other thing that strikes me is all the stuff that I saved that hasn’t been used since. It has put me into a strange mood, but the cleaning must go on. I just hope I don’t throw away anything important.

Today is the first of what will be 12 designs over the next year, each themed for the month they’re released. Happy July! (a little early) Please leave any comments on this theme below.

Yesterday leaving DC I saw them pat-searching a man in a wheelchair with no legs and one arm. I’ve never felt so safe.

I can’t find time to write everyday, but there is almost always a new day in the photolog. Baltimore was a blast today, and the Orioles/Yankee game was one of the best I’ve ever seen, live or on TV. I hope that the teams in Houston can bring back the magic that they seem to have lost.

CNN has caught up with the the last post.