Twitter’s Mikeyy Virus
It was a matter of time, but Twitter now has a few viruses/worms targeting this popular service. The current incarnation is called “mikeyy,” and here are some articles about mikeyy.
Life
The Americana is an Eyeful
Right across the street from the Glendale Galleria is the new addition of The Americana at Brand. This place is kinda outdoor shopping, kinda residential area but all an interesting eyeful.
Shops are downstairs while condos and apartments are upstairs. The architecture is stunning, and there’s a trolley system and a Bellagio-like fountain that does a smaller scale water show.
Here are a few pictures.
And here’s a short video clip of the water show.
If you’re ever in the area, you need to stop by and take a look around.
Griffin Simplifi Dock – Useful!
Reduce desk clutter and combine a bunch of useful devices with the Griffin Simplifi Dock!
Vacation Blogging Brought to You By…
While on my recent Socal vacation, I didn’t have access to a computer for blogging. Instead I updated Pulpconnection using a combination of mobile devices and various Internet services. Here’s a rundown.
iPhone (and built-in camera). My iPhone 3G was the primary device for getting online. I used its okay internal camera for posted pictures.
AT&T 3G Network. I must say that the AT&T 3G network worked well in Socal. Very, very few dead spots or times when I dropped to EDGE speeds. Only at the LAX airport did I have some serious 3G network slowdowns. Other than that, I preferred the 3G network even over WiFi. The free WiFi access at hotels were slow and always required a web login to initiate your session and subsequent logins to keep your session going.
WordPress for iPhone. Since Pulpconnection is now powered by WordPress, I relied on the app, WordPress for iPhone, to make significant blog posts. Though significant is relative since tapping out a lengthy post on the iPhone’s virtual keyboard isn’t the easiest thing to do.
One thing I hope the WordPress team fixes is the image handling of this iPhone app. It seems all images are added to the end of blog posts and can’t be placed within paragraphs of a post. That and sometimes the app’s UI would mess up and not display the necessary navigation buttons at the top. So I’d be stranded, not able to save my post. Fortunately, when leaving the app and coming back in, the app is able to restore my draft.
Tweetie, Twitter (with Twitpic), and Twitter Tools for WordPress. For all shorter blog posts, I used a bunch of stuff. Tweetie is my primary Twitter client on the iPhone. Combined with Twitter Tools for WordPress, tweets can automatically be converted to blog posts. I used this nifty function quite a bit.
Brightkite. To update my Socal location, I used Brightkite. The iPhone’s GPS would find my coordinates which I would check in using the Brightkite service. Brightkite integrates with Twitter and tweets my current location. And with Twitter Tools running, even these location based tweets are converted to blog posts.
So there you have it, my arsenal for mobile blogging without a computer. I will say that it wasn’t the easiest thing to do, but it wasn’t so difficult to stop me. To make this a more ideal setup would be incorporating an ultra portable netbook with a keyboard and USB port to retrieve higher quality pictures from digital cameras. Ahem, Apple?
Damn Linksys Default
Dang, my iPhone continually gets confused with the abundance of the default “linksys” WiFi SSID. Out of the box, Linksys wireless equipment broadcasts on a “linksys” network, and a family member has a “linksys” wireless network which I frequently used.
However, if I ever use my iPhone near another “linksys” wireless network, my iPhone associates with that network which usually doesn’t work. Then I have to “forget this network” in the iPhone settings to restore 3G connectivity and reconnect to the Internet.
I guess I should change the WiFi network name for my relative so I don’t run into this problem…
Lots and Lots of Legos
No duh, but Legoland has lots and lots of Legos. Not just in the park, but Legos that you can buy and take home with you.
Looks like a candy store.
Star Wars themed Legos.
Vintage Lego people. I have the 1978 spaceman, both the white and red ones.
Had to pickup this Darth Vader Lego keychain.
Good Samaritan on the 405 South
While driving to San Diego on the 405 South, there was a stalled van in the middle lane of the busy freeway. The passengers were pushing the van, trying to get to the shoulder lane and out of the way of speeding cars. Very, very dangerous.
But this Good Samaritan driving an Albertsons big rig helped out by throwing a huge roadbock. He stopped traffic in three lanes of a major freeway so that the van could safely (and more quickly) get to the side out of harms way for both themselves and all other drivers.
Good move truck 14033!
Anteaters Enjoy their Coffee
The Anteaters of UC Irvine, the Home of Eater Nation, like their coffee. A full fledged Starbucks store has infiltrated the campus taking the spot of the school’s outside cafe.
The school itself has gotten a facelift with major renovations of the exterior of the Student Center.
The inside of the Bookstore looks about the same though with lotta love for Team Edward.
And the UCI Medical Center by Disneyland also completed their new facility.
Slacking or Enjoying Life?
Took Thursday off to spend some extra family time even though we just came back from a SoCal vacation. In jest, a coworker said I was slacking via Twitter, but I replied I was merely enjoying life! What did I do on my day off?
Started the day off playing with Play Doh.
Then we headed out to Kahala Mall to dine at The Counter. No Daniel Dae Kim sighting, but the place was packed! Instead of waiting to dine in the kind-of-plain interior, we got take out. Our meal consisted of the signature Counter Burger and Taco Turkey along with Fifty-Fifty fries (regular and sweet). At the recommendation of @abaggy, we needed to try a milkshake too.
Total damage was around $30. Food was good, and I would go back but probably construct my own burger.
I managed to exchange my ultracompact USB power adapter that came with my iPhone 3G at the Apple Store. Then headed to Champs Sports to take advantage of the on-going Friends and Family sale. Sadly, I couldn’t find anything, wishing for the new Nike Air Max 2009+ (of which there’s some confusion about its release date).
The highlight of the day was meeting @NEENZ and @noe808 in real life. I’ve interacted with NEENZ online for some time, going back to her days with Truemors and now Alltop.com. We just never did meet in person. That changed today thanks to Twitter (and BriteKite) when I saw this tweet come in. We were both at Kahala Mall.
I managed to find the Chief Evangelist of Alltop sitting outside of Starbucks. We chatted for a bit about all kinds of stuff (blogging, business, finding time, family, etc) before NEENZ had to continue her social media consultation with @hazelnutcottage. Still though, it was a great chance encounter! (But dumb me forgot to take a picture)
So back to the title of this post, slacking or enjoying life? Definitely enjoying life!
Stylin’ to a Lakers Game
On the first day of our Southern California (Socal) vacation, I caught a Los Angeles Lakers basketball game. The Lakers played the Golden State Warriors, and I figured the game would be empty since the Warriors aren’t an NBA powerhouse. I was wrong. The attraction of Kobe, Pau, DFish, Odom, and Ariza brings the fans in!
But first, while in LA, the only way to go to a Lakers game is in style. Yes, we had limo service to and from the game thanks to Emilio.
Arriving at the Staples Center, the place was packed with people streaming in. There are shops and restaurants surrounding the area, adding to the overall buzz. The indoor fan store is huge with all kinds of Lakers gear including stuff for Jordan Farmar.
The pre-game video introduction is a production! Check out the introduction of the Lakers T.E.A.M.
During the game, there are all kinds of promotions and giveaways to keep fans excited and engaged. It was like being in a circus of nonstop entertainment.
Oh the game? The Lakers pulled out a victory after a close first half. The Warriors were really shooting well led by Monta Ellis and Kelenna Azubuike. I don’t know who Azubuike is, but you can’t leave him alone. He nailed open shots. In the second half, the Lakers defense picked up and slowed the Warriors game. Kobe had a quiet night with the entire team contributing. Pau Gasol had 21 points and 14 rebound ands Odom went for 16 and 12.
A fun NBA night where the game happens here!
Waikiki Bus Reserved Stall at the Airport
Don’t know when this happened since I’m not a frequent traveler, but the Honolulu International Airport now has reserved stalls for shuttle buses right outside of Arrivals. And I mean right outside, front and center where the primo pickup spots are.
The reserved stalls are marked off, and the security guard shoos away any waiting vehicles and even travelers waiting for their ride. I guess this move is to help out tourists at the expense of kamainas.
iPod Vending Machine in Glendale
So Hawaii isn’t the only state with iPod vending machines at Macys stores. Yeah, Macys Ala Moana and Kahala have theirs, and if you happen to be at the Macys in the Glendale Galleria, you’ll see this familiar site.
