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The Complete First Season of Alias on DVD [614 replies]
HBO Makes The Best Television Series [1019 replies]
My Brand New 2003 Silver Echo Sedan [541 replies]
Family Guy May Return to Network TV [1750 replies]
Wireless Internet and No Laptop [1234 replies]
Spiderman 2 Trailer is Released [2690 replies]
Penguin Warehouse, Inc. [585 replies]
A Computer Scientist and Engineer Joke [311 replies]
Wil Wheaton Has a Weblog [511 replies]
Brad Pineau
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Posted by Brad Pineau on August 23rd, 2003 at 1:03 am AST [13069 views]
How come we are expected to leave a tip at restaurants, or tell the pizza delivery boy to keep the change? What makes waitresses, hair dressers, or bus boys so special that we need to give them a tip?Is it because they work in a profession that deals directly with customers, in which if they give you a good service, you leave them a tip to show your gratitude? Why? Isn't it their job to give you good service anyways? If I go in to Futureshop, and get great service from one of the sales associates, I'm not expected to leave them a tip... because they are just doing their job.
When I was younger, I worked at a convenience store. Everyday, I gave exceptional service to the customers. I always greeted them when they walked in the store, and said goodbye when they left... and I never received any tips (other than the occasional quarter that was left in the penny jar).
All that being said, I actually do leave tips for people. Even though I feel it's morally wrong, I do so, but only because it's the social norm, or the rare time that I do receive exceptional service and want to show my gratitude.
What does everyone else think? How do you feel about leaving tips? Is it right, is it wrong?
Posted by Brad Pineau on September 12th, 2003 at 6:33 pm AST [2839 views]
Ever since we got our new Echo, we've only been buying supreme gasoline. One of my girlfriend's friends swears that her car runs better because she uses supreme gasoline, and not the regular.
Is it worth paying extra for supreme gasoline? Can it really extend the life of your car?
Posted by Brad Pineau on October 10th, 2003 at 11:55 pm AST [8161 views]
This post is moreso directed to those to actually know what trackback is... for this who don't know, this is pretty good explaination of what it is and how it works (and it has pictures).
To sum it up - trackback gives you the ability to see when others are talking about you, and linking to you. However, this only works when the other user wants to use it. So if I wanted to let someone know I'm writing a post about one of their posts, I get their trackback URL for that post from their site, and then my weblog will ping their weblog when I create my post, and my newly created post will be added to their post's trackback list. Simple eh? =)
My weblog system currently does not support trackback. I have always considered building the support in, but I've never really felt like it was worth it. So I'm basically asking if it's worth it or not.
Should my weblog support trackback, or is it just one of those fancy pants features that no one really uses? Comments? Suggestions?
Posted by Brad Pineau on October 25th, 2003 at 1:54 pm AST [53679 views]
A couple of weeks ago, I ordered something from Half.com, and I choose for it to be shipped via the ground method (any faster method would have cost me at least $65 more).
Well, the item was shipped from Ohio, and I was given a USPS tracking number. A few days later, I checked the status of my tracking number, and it said the item was accepted and signed for in Michigan.
Three days ago, I got an email from Half.com saying my item has cleared customs, and I was given a CanadaPost tracking number.
Since I first received the tracking number by email, the status of my item has yet to be updated on the CanadaPost site. When I go to check the status, I get a message saying:
If your item was sent recently, the status may not yet be available. Please allow one business day and try again.
Three days later, and my CanadaPost tracking number still wont work. And when I check my USPS tracking number, it says my item is still in Michigan.
What is the point of tracking numbers if they aren't accurate? To me, a tracking number should tell you where your package is NOW, not where is was a few days ago.
Posted by Brad Pineau on November 30th, 2003 at 3:55 pm AST [6103 views]
I was over at Andrea's weblog, and noticed her post about Video Computer Games and she had an idea about having a classic gaming tournament.Her post got me thinking of a question... if you were to participate in a classic gaming tournament, what game would you kick ass at?
Me, I would be awesome at Mike Tyson's Punchout (NES), Joust (Atari 2800), or Tetris (Gameboy).
Posted by Brad Pineau on December 6th, 2003 at 11:10 pm AST [5459 views]
If two people are talking about Windows, chances are that they are making fun of it, or talking about how much it sucks and how much they hate Bill Gates and Microsoft. These days, it seems people hate Microsoft more than they hate spinach. It just blows my mind that so many people are on the anti-Microsoft band wagon... and I would like to know why.I was at a technology conference last year, called the CUTC. Almost all of the people there were all talking about how awesome Linux is, and how Windows sucks. I asked a few people why they hated Windows... and they all answered "It just sucks. Linux is the way of the future." And then I would ask if they ran Linux at home or at work, and they would say "No, I'm still using Windows." This is a very common trend - people seem to hate Windows, yet they use it all the time... and that makes me angry. If you don't like Windows, then you shouldn't use it. There are free alternatives out there, so you should stop complaining and start using something else.
Myself, I'm a Windows user, and I love it. Sure, there are security holes and constant updates, but I truely believe that Windows XP is the best operating system. I've used about every operating system out there... MS-DOS, all the Windows versions, OS/2 Warp and Merlin, and various flavors of Unix and Linux. For personal computing, Windows is by far the best one of the bunch. I'll totally agree that for servers, Linux would be the first choice, but for the home PC, it's all about Windows. Now, I will agree that Mac computers can make good home computers as well, but I think they are a bit too pricey to compare to PCs.
And for those of you who think that Bill Gates is the devil... think about this... Where would we be without Microsoft? When Bill Gates first released Windows, he revolutionized home computing. Windows made it so the average Joe could use a computer without having to know DOS commands. I'll agree that along the way, there have been many bugs in the Windows operatring systems (we are all familiar with the blue "screen of death"), but an operating system is one of the most complex peices of technology humans have ever created... and all you programmers out there know that software can never ever be 100% bug free. Sure, Linux is a more secure operating system, but it has lots and lots of bugs too, and it's not very user friendly. You just don't hear about Linux bugs as much because no one would ever bash open source software...
My main point is this... Windows is a fantastic operating system. If you disagree, that's fine, but I hope you have good reasons. I just hate it when people trash Windows without even really knowing why. It seems that everyone is just jumping on the anti-Windows band wagon because it's the cool thing to do, they think open source software is the why of the future.
Posted by Brad Pineau on January 18th, 2004 at 4:51 am AST [12150 views]
You all remember the show Whose Line is it Anyway? Boy was it ever a good show. I'm talking about ABC's Primetime version, by the way... London's version was good too, but the American version with Ryan Stiles, Colin Mochery, Wayne Brady, Brad Sherwood, and Greg Proops was the best of the best of primetime television!So what the hell happened to it? I don't remember ever hearing it was cancelled. Heck, it was even nominated for an Emmy... so why would they cancel the damn thing? Does anyone know anything about this?
If you check out the ABC site, you'll see that they stopped updating it last September. It's a shame that this show isn't on anymore... I just loved it. Even if they showed reruns, I'd be happy.
Posted by Brad Pineau on February 22nd, 2004 at 1:25 am AST [11023 views]
Today, I spent the evening with some co-workers playing the WWII-based board game, Axis & Allies. It was my first time playing the game, and I've got to say that my first impressions are all positive. It's an excellent strategy board game, but it does take quite a bit of time to play.A different war-based board game that I am used to playing is Risk. Risk is a very similar board game, based on world domination. After having played both games, I'm left with the question - which is better, Risk or Axis & Allies.
I think it all really depends on what level of strategy you want in a game. I find that Risk strategies are more straight forward, and can change throughout the game... whereas in Axis & Allies, you need to be careful with your strategy, as each turn is so much more important. The biggest difference between the two games would be the units... Risk has land armies, whereas Axis & Allies have land, air, and water units.
After playing both games, I think I have to say that Risk is the better board game. However, I could be biased because I've played Risk much more than I have played Axis & Allies. What game do you think is best?
Posted by Brad Pineau on March 23rd, 2004 at 6:25 pm AST [40942 views]
I got home from work today... and checked my mail, as I do everyday. There was a big letter addressed to my fiance, Zoe. (The last name on the label was actually spelled Milnere, and Zoe's last name is Milner). So I gave the letter to Zoe, she opened it, and it was from Primus.So, the letter contained 11 pages worth of long distance phone calls, totalling up to over $200, all billed in Zoe's name. We were both like, WTF!?! We don't even have long distance with Primus! (ours is thru Eastlink)
So Zoe called Primus, and keyed in our phone number into the automated system. It told her that our number is not on file. So then she called back and got a hold of an operator, and Zoe tried to explain the situtation. Of course, she was passed around from operator to operator. They kepr telling her "You signed up for it"... and Zoe's was like "I didn't make these calls!"
So anyways, they finally tried to confirm Zoe's demographic information, and it turned out they had a number on file that wasn't even our number. Zoe was like "That's not my number" and they were like "Oh really? Ok. Well, disregard the bill then." And that was that... Zoe hung up and all of a sudden we didn't owe over $200 anymore.
Long story short, Primus was going to screw us out of a lot of money. If the bill had of been like $20 or something, we totally would have paid without thinking. Makes me wonder how many other people this has happened to, and how much money they have scammed out of people!