January 29, 2005
January 27, 2005
Icon mania
I don't know who designed the EDAS conference/journal paper review system, but whoever it was got a little carried away when designing the icons for the status legend. Check out the rejection icon!
January 18, 2005
New links
HOOOOOT new pictures sections: aquarium pictures and food pictures.
LCD
When it comes to electronics, one thing I especially like to do is to wait a few generations between upgrades. Part of this is laziness, another is ensuring that I get an enormous qualitative improvement in performance, ergonomics, form factor, etc., thereby eliminating the possibility of dissatisfaction. A few examples:
- 20 MHz Macintosh IIsi to
a 133 MHz Pentium-based PC to a 2.0 GHz Pentium 4-based machine.
- No camera whatsoever to a Kodak DC 240 (1.2 MP) to
a Canon A80 (4 MP).
- 20" Mitsubishi "student TV" to a 43" Toshiba HDTV Projection TV.
My latest upgrade:
- 21" Dell CRT (read: "500 pound behemoth") to a 19" NEC LCD.
And the best part of this? Original price: $529. But ... with :
- A $90 rebate from NEC.
- A $70 discount from amazon.com (future gift certificate)
- 20% off plus another $10 for "my trouble" due to two dead pixels that
I whined about to customer service for about 15 seconds.
- No tax, free shipping as usual.
The total? $253. I can live with that. :D
January 05, 2005
Kobe beef
Setting the mood for the arrival of Cabela's 2005 Big Game Hunter for the GameCube.
Toxic wasteland
(image capture via Motorola RAZR v3)
Bay Bakery & Cafe
2122 Shattuck Ave
Berkeley, CA
(510) 704-0128
If you're ever around the Shattuck Ave/Center St intersection in Berkeley, I highly recommend visiting this toxic wasteland at least once if for no other reason than to satisfy one's sick curiosity of visiting what is unquestionably the bottom of the pack in Berkeley in terms of food quality. Their pairing of donuts and pastries with greasy, cheap Chinese/Mexican/American food that's been sitting under heat lamps for hours/days is unmatched. Note: you may want to bring a friend and some smelling salts when visiting this place; the stench in this place is incredible and can easily overwhelm the casual visitor.
For more on this Shattuck Ave. legend, you might also be interested in this article from the Daily Cal which discusses, among other things, the infamous stench emanating from this place and the "$80,000 smog hok unit to vent odor and smoke" they were forced to install to reduce its effect on neighboring stores.