Entries for December, 2004
December 3rd, 2004
Radio iTunes!
Posted by MikeyMike at 02:39 PM on December 3, 2004.
Hey,
itunes is free, even if you don't (yet) have an iPod... What I discovered is that itunes also has a "radio" (streaming) component. Under International, there is a selection called
Japan-A-Radio (128 kbps Anime Music & Japanese Pop (Jpop / Anime)) They also have a 24kpbs lo-fi version! I know lots of you like Jpop, so... Just heard Utada on there.
Plus, iTunes Radio has a ton of other "stations" out there, so enjoy! I'll post more interesting channels as I find them.
And just a note: If you use both WMP and iTunes: Both protect their purchased files with copy protection, so they are worthless in the other format players!!
If you plan on getting an iPod, I would go with iTunes, they have over a million selections to choose from!!
Can you guys in other countries buy from Itunes? I heard that the Canadian iTunes store was delayed, while the "Benelux" stores have just opened... I'd love to be able to send iTunes store gift certificates!! =)
lol! (iRadio -
Santa Claus Is Coming to Town in "Engrish")
PS -
Playlist Magazine is Awesome!! Covers all aspects of "imusic" but not just iPods... PC and Mac, musicians, accessories, techniques and links... just what the 21st century music lover needs... look for it at magazine stands. The current issue has a Asian chick rocking out to her iPod! XD They even have an article about mp3 blogs...
IRadio: (Radio Japan
Can You Celebrate
oopps! Canadian iTunes just opened:
This launch marks the 14th country where Apple's iTunes Music Store has been made available. Apple has been operating the iTunes Music Store in the United States since 2003. Earlier this year, Apple launched the commercial music download service in the U.K., France and Germany. At the iPhoto photo rollout in October, Apple launched the EU iTunes Music Store, which added Austria, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
Cue called Canadian demand for the iTunes Music Store "overwhelming," and noted that Canadian version of the store features top Canadian artist exclusives. The store opens with more than 700,000 songs in its library, priced at CDN$0.99 per song, which represents a savings of about $0.15 per song over the U.S. store. The store also features approximately 9,000 audio books.
In comparison, the U.S. store has over a million songs in its online library with about the same amount of audio books available. Apple said the discrepancy has a lot do with label rights, but more songs will continually be added to all stores.
IRadio: (Radio Japan
Utada doing I Won't Last A Day Without You (English)
Currently listening to: Some jPop iRadio
Currently reading: Loving The Pod
Currently feeling: discovery
MSN Messenger beta (7.0)
Posted by MikeyMike at 09:28 PM on December 3, 2004.
Got this from Midori (Frances, Mumu, etc.)
MSN Messenger beta
Most fun is HANDWRITING!! And they got stealth mode now too! hehe and Winks!
Mike's MSN Space
What's new in the MSN Messenger Beta :
Winks: Express yourself with impact. Send animations with sound to really get some attention.
Nudge: Get the conversation going. Give your friends a Nudge.
Drag and Drop Backgrounds: See an image you like? Drag it to your MSN Messenger window to set it as your background.
Set Status Before Logon: See who's online before others know you've logged in by setting your status! Subsequent logons can start you up in stealth mode.
Message History: Pick up where you left off. Enable Message History to track and show your most recent conversations so you won’t be caught off guard.
Contact Cards: Your new online ID card. Easily share contact information and personalize with images and backgrounds.
Works Great with MSN Spaces: Preview a Space from Contact cards with a direct link to view photos, blogs and more. You can even see what music they are listening to. Every time a Space is updated, your Messenger contacts will “gleam” to notify you of the change.
Send Feedback: Tell us what you think. Send the MSN Messenger team feedback right from the MSN Messenger Help menu.
Update: eWeek Article
December 4th, 2004
Lovin from Hershey!
Posted by MikeyMike at 11:22 PM on December 4, 2004.
Looky what I got from
Hershey today!!
A very nice birthday card, magnetic butterflies, dried mango chips, nifty bookmark.... and a recording by
Hershey!! Wow! She sings so well, and it's nice to hear her voice.
She's already on my iPod!!
Thanks so much dear
Hershey!!
Currently listening to: Hershey's You Are My Song
Currently feeling: v. pleased
December 5th, 2004
Keeping an Eye on Santa
Posted by MikeyMike at 01:45 PM on December 5, 2004.
Very sad!
Gotta have a webcam on Santa, in case he's a perv...
Here's the story:
LONDON (Reuters) - A Santa Claus will have a Webcam in his grotto to overcome parents' concerns after a number of high-profile pedophile cases in Britain in the past few years. More 
Currently listening to: Ho! Ho! Ho!
December 6th, 2004
Snail Mail to Mutual Friends
Posted by MikeyMike at 04:46 PM on December 6, 2004.
I sent an email with my "Snail Mail" address using Tabulas mail to most all of my "Mutual Tabulas Friends". I didn't send to quite all because some I haven't talked to in a looong time and or maybe you are too young, or something like that. Don't want anyone (or their Mommies) getting the wrong idea, ya' know.
Just 'cause I emailed you, doesn't mean I expect you to send me a card, or for you to send me your mail address either... Only if you want to!!
Everyone know how to check their Tabulas email??
In your Control Panel:
click on Community
then click on E-Mail Friends (to send) or Message Center (to recieve)
You can then choose to "Contact all your Friends" or click on one or more individuals to send emails to...
Pretty handy, huh? Once again, you both have to be friends of each other for them to show up on the list...
Hope to see something in my mailbox soon! (The mail carrier has it easy witrh me most of the year!!)
Currently listening to: Carpenters' Please Mr. Postman
Currently feeling: home delivery
December 7th, 2004
iPods Espanol
Posted by MikeyMike at 09:26 PM on December 7, 2004.
iPod site in Spanish!! Si Gema and Lain??
iPod Noticias
And...
Canadian iTunes Opens
Currently listening to: David Bisbal on iPod
Currently feeling: Hola!
December 8th, 2004
Hershey Performing!
Posted by MikeyMike at 03:52 PM on December 8, 2004.
Here's a picture from
Hershey's recent performance singing Broadway show tunes!! Yea Shey
Currently listening to: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered
Currently reading: Rogers & Hart Songbook
December 12th, 2004
Gadget freek?
Posted by MikeyMike at 01:43 PM on December 12, 2004.
Like your techo toys? Try this blog:
Gizmodo.com
You can even RSS it to your My Yahoo!
Know about the stuff coming before it even arrives! Don't be like Mikey and have to wait for the
4th generation iPod!
Currently feeling: loving the toys
Phantom Movie out soon!!
Posted by MikeyMike at 05:30 PM on December 12, 2004.
Can't wait till the December 22 opening of
The Phantom of The Opera movie!
How many of you have seen it on stage?? I have, and even though it was only a National Tour production, it was still awesome! My big year to see
Lez Mis, Cats (with niecelet), and
Phantom in one season!
Currently listening to: Past the Point Of No Return
Currently reading: Phantom of The Opera
Currently feeling: swooning
December 14th, 2004
Pea Souper Fog!
Posted by MikeyMike at 02:57 AM on December 14, 2004.
This is the back parking lot at work. Can't see crap, right?!
Wow! It was a foggy as in those old English movies featuring London "Pea Souper" fog!! Good night for Werewolves!! (I locked my car doors)... So this is what
real fog is Shey!
Funny, the fog keeps it relatively warm as it traps the heat of the day, so it can't escape into the sky as quickly. Still this is something we have pretty often this time of year, in lieu of snow or something!!
Currently feeling: London calling
Hershey Sings!
Posted by MikeyMike at 03:28 AM on December 14, 2004.
You can hear our very own Ms.
Hershey singing right
Here!! =)
Doesn't she sound great?! The song she is singing is in Tagalog, most famously performed by Regine Velasquez. It has become a very popular wedding song in The Philippines. So maybe you can get Shey to sing it at your wedding?!
Currently listening to: Hershey Fernandez's Ikaw
Currently feeling: AWESOME!
December 15th, 2004
Putting Music in your Site
Posted by MikeyMike at 06:06 PM on December 15, 2004.
Saw this link in the Tabulas Forums...
Music on Your Site
Pretty cool! (Now I just have to do it) And btw, try not make the music play automatically! It drives me nuts when I'm already listening to music and something just starts going off!
Just a little player-type thingy like Midori has is just the ticket, I think....
This site has good information. But, does anyone have specific information for Tabulas? Which stuff works best??
Currently listening to: The Music of The Site
Currently feeling: chestnuts roasting
December 19th, 2004
Sanrio mega cute Christmas gift tags!
Posted by MikeyMike at 03:23 PM on December 19, 2004.
Got this link from
KAO-ANI! =)
These very cute taggies can be found
Here
So you don't have to go out to get a tag for Mikey's Christmas present!
(j/k)
But WAIT.... There's
More!!
Now you can count days till Santa...
Currently listening to: Elvis's Blue Christmas
Currently reading: T'was The Night Before Christmas
Currently feeling: fa la la la la la
The fox is in Microsoft's henhouse (and salivating)
Posted by MikeyMike at 07:21 PM on December 19, 2004.
Basically, you're gonna' continue to be screwed as long as you keep running Internet Explorer (IE). They keep finding bugs and flaws, even after XP SP2 is installed (and the patch for that!).
And if you have a site that only works with IE, you are part of the problem. I know it's not easy to make everything cross-compatible. but for 2005, make Firefox compatibilty your priority, OK? Roy could use a little work on the editor here, for instance. It doesn't work like IE, does it??
If you need a little more convincing it's time to abandon the IE ship:
Firefox is a classic overnight success, many years in the making.
Published by the Mozilla Foundation, a nonprofit group supporting open-source software that draws upon the skills of hundreds of volunteer programmers, Firefox is a Web browser that is fast and filled with features that Microsoft's stodgy Internet Explorer lacks. Firefox installs in a snap, and it's free.
Firefox 1.0 was released on Nov. 9. Just over a month later, the foundation celebrated a remarkable milestone: 10 million downloads. Donations from Firefox's appreciative fans paid for a two-page advertisement in The New York Times on Thursday. More Here
I don't want to piss anyone off, or make them feel bad. I just know several people that have had their PCs trashed this way, and it's horrible for the average user. At the very least, turn off Active-X controls! That's where most of the uglies get control of your system. Firefox doesn't have Active-X, so that isn't a issue...
OK, I'll go take my medication now....
Currently listening to: Don't Cry for me PCtina....
Currently reading: Firefox Manual
Currently feeling: abandon ship!
December 21st, 2004
Snow Globe Time!
Posted by MikeyMike at 05:40 PM on December 21, 2004.
Yes, it's that time of year again!
Shake the snow globe and watch the mayhem!!
You can find it right
Here Enjoy! =)
If your are using Firefox, you might just see the green background. In that case, go to the Shockwave site and get the add in installed/updated
Here
See, I'm supporting Firefox! XD
Plus: From fellow SoCal Tabulista Karumi: Kawaii Games!
.
Currently listening to: Shake, Shake, Shake
Currently reading: Terror in Snow Globe Towne
Currently feeling: Oh My!
See the Grinch?!
Posted by MikeyMike at 11:53 PM on December 21, 2004.
The Grinch is at Scripps! Just saw 'm!
Currently listening to: You're A Mean One, Mr. grinch
Currently feeling: Cindy Lou Who
December 23rd, 2004
Welcome Christmas!
Posted by MikeyMike at 03:59 AM on December 23, 2004.
As sung by The Whos in Whoville: (all hold hands now!)
Welcome Christmas (Reprise)
Fah who for-aze!
Dah who dor-aze!
Welcome Christmas,
Come this way!
Fah who for-aze!
Dah who dor-aze!
Welcome Christmas,
Christmas Day.
Welcome, Welcome
Fah who rah-moose
Welcome, Welcome
Dah who dah-moose
Christmas day is in our grasp
So long as we have hands to clasp
Fah who for-aze!
Dah who dor-aze!
Welcome Christmas
Bring your cheer
Fah who for-aze!
Dah who dor-aze!
Welcome all Who's
Far and near
Welcome Christmas, fah who rah-moose
Welcome Christmas, dah who dah-moose
Christmas day will always be
Just so long as we have we
Fah who for-aze
Dah who dor-aze
Welcome Christmas
Bring your light
(Bridge (about 65 sec))
Welcome Christmas
Fah who rah-moose!
Welcome Christmas
Dah who dah-moose!
Welcome Christmas
While we stand
Heart to heart
And hand in hand
Fah who for-aze
Dah who dor-aze
Welcome welcome
Christmas
Christmas
Day!
Cindy Lou sez: Santy Claus - Why??
Here (Requires Real Player)
Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming!
IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!
And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?
It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"
And he puzzled three hours, `till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
"Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!"
And what happened then...?
Well...in Who-ville they say
That the Grinch's small heart
Grew three sizes that day!
And the minute his heart didn't feel quite so tight,
He whizzed with his load through the bright morning light
And he brought back the toys! And the food for the feast!
And he...
...HE HIMSELF...!
The Grinch carved the roast beast!
Kudos to
Absolute Grinch Site!!
.
Currently listening to: Welcome Christmas (Reprise)
Currently reading: How The Grinch Stole Christmas
Currently feeling: heart grows 3x!
House of Flying Daggers
Posted by MikeyMike at 05:29 AM on December 23, 2004.
Looks like another good one!
House of Flying Daggers Site
December 25th, 2004
God Jul! Hyvää Joulua! Froehliche Weihnachten! Feliz Navidad!
Posted by MikeyMike at 12:41 AM on December 25, 2004.
Track Santa Here
You can Watch Santa's ride
Here
Merry Christmas! Joyeux Noël! Buone Natale!
Merry Christmas and happy 2005 everyone!
Thanks for the cards and wishes. Some are still in transit, it seems, but that's OK. Nice to spread out the pleasures, says I.... So nice to get something from afar, and to be able to reach out to you also!
The Legend of St. Nicholas
The legend of Santa Claus can be traced back hundreds of years to a monk named St. Nicholas. It is believed that Nicholas was born sometime around 280 A.D. in Patara, near Myra in modern-day Turkey. Much admired for his piety and kindness, St. Nicholas became the subject of many legends. It is said that he gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. One of the best known of the St. Nicholas stories is that he saved three poor sisters from being sold into slavery or prostitution by their father by providing them with a dowry so that they could be married. Over the course of many years, Nicholas's popularity spread and he became known as the protector of children and sailors. His feast day is celebrated on the anniversary of his death, December 6. This was traditionally considered a lucky day to make large purchases or to get married. By the Renaissance, St. Nicholas was the most popular saint in Europe. Even after the Protestant Reformation, when the veneration of saints began to be discouraged, St. Nicholas maintained a positive reputation, especially in Holland.
Here for more:
The History of Christmas
.
Currently listening to: Oh Tanenbaum!
Currently reading: The Night Before Christmas
Currently feeling: Feliz Navidad!
Singing Christmas eCard from Pavali!
Posted by MikeyMike at 08:50 AM on December 25, 2004.
Wow! All the great holiday stuff I've recieved this year already! Thank you all. And now this!! Pavali sent me a personalized singing ecard from
http://instasong.com/
I sure hope that she won't mind me posting the link because it sounds great!!
Pavali song! What wonderful friends I have -truely apprieciate everything that I've recieved... Really touched!
Currently listening to: Pavali's Merry Christmas Mike
Currently feeling: fantastic!
December 27th, 2004
Corpses Piled on Asian Coasts After Tsunami Kills 23,200
Posted by MikeyMike at 04:16 PM on December 27, 2004.
This is really sad!! Especially as I know that some of you all must be affected by this very personally...
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Rescuers scoured the sea for missing tourists and fishermen in Asia Monday and fears of disease grew as emergency services struggled with rotting bodies from a devastating tsunami that killed more than 23,200 people.
The disaster spared no one. Western tourists were killed sunbathing on beaches, poor villagers drowned in homes by the sea and fishermen died in flimsy boats. The 21-year-old grandson of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej was killed on a jet-ski.
More
The tsunami had echoes of another apocalyptic seismic event that originated in Indonesia when the island volcano of
Krakatoa erupted in 1883 causing a tsunami that killed 36,000 people.
The Pacific has had a
warning system for some time. In fact, they tried to warn other countries, but they don't have a system in place.
Currently feeling: sad
December 28th, 2004
Jet Li Survives Tsunami
Posted by MikeyMike at 04:52 PM on December 28, 2004.
Update: My
Christian Children's Fund sponsered child is in Jakarta, so she and her family should be OK. CCF (they help children of all faiths) is appealing for emergency donations to help sponsered children and in fact, all children in the affected regions. They have one of the highest ratios of what you give to what gets distributed to those in need. So, please consider this organization if you can contribute...
Update: Everything you wanna' know about the Asian earthquake
Here including where to contribute to relief efforts...
We where just talking about him a few days ago...
E! News
by Josh Grossberg
Dec 28, 2004, 11:25 AM PT
Jet Li just got through playing Hero on the big screen. Now, he's one for real.
The international action star managed to save his daughter--and himself--from the deadly tsunami that wreaked havoc on southern Asia and parts of Africa over the weekend, leaving more than 52,000 dead.
Li and his daughter were vacationing in a resort in the Maldives when the 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck near Sumatra early Sunday. The temblor generated waves up to 40 feet high which swamped coastal areas in nearly a dozen countries, including Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia and as far away as Somalia and Tanzania.
According to Hong Kong's Apple Daily newspaper, which quoted an unnamed friend of Li's, the martial artist and his daughter were in their hotel lobby when a wall of water surged into the building. Li was dinged by a piece of floating furniture and sustained an foot injury, accor
ding to the Ming Pao Daily News, but managed to scoop up his daughter and escape relatively unharmed. After reaching higher ground, he was able to call his agent and let him know they were all right. More
Video grab shows a tidal wave in Penang after tsunami waves hit southern Asia on Sunday in this amateur video footage taken December 26, 2004. [Reuters]
