On why I purchased another PlayStation 2

October 2, 2010
James Skemp

This afternoon I picked up a PlayStation 2 slim model from Best Buy. I've already got a fat PS2, from way back in 2004 (after a bit of research, it looks like January, and that I paid about $200 for it), that still works pretty darn good, although the controllers are a bit ... discouraging. My PlayStation 3 is also backwards compatible, so between the two I should be able to play my 52 PlayStation 2 (plus those I purchase in the future, as purchase I will) games for many years into the future.

September 28, 2010
James Skemp

Amazingly, although only in how fast time has gone by, my fifth year of Netflix has begun. This covers shipping with Netflix from September 26 2010 to approximately March 25 2011. See also the second half of year 4. MRNOS = Movie received and next one shipped The times 09/27/2010 (M) - MRNOS. 09/28/2010 (T) - Received and watched Iron Man 2 (2010), which I actually really liked, and am surprised I received so soon after release.

September 26, 2010
James Skemp

In a previous article, I had outlined classes in C# and PHP to handle iTunes Playlists to Xml outputs. Having let it sit on the back burner for long enough, I finally went back to the PHP class and finalized the constructor. I also added two functions for sorting. Below I have the current code for the class (a current version of the Track class for PHP will always be available elsewhere) and then an example implementation.

September 26, 2010
James Skemp

One of the things I always forget about when I'm using Microsoft Log Parser is that you can define your SQL query in a file and run it, instead of putting it in the command line. For example, the following will run whatever SQL is defined in strivinglife.robots.sql. logparser -i:w3c -o:xml file:strivinglife.robots.sql Where this comes in handy is for something like the Log Parser query I defined today, that parses IIS logs for requests to the robots.

September 25, 2010
James Skemp

The following is a review of Splat SPLAT-AC-3J Orange Auto Clean Cleaning Putty. The one thing I definitely don't want in my car is gunk stuck in vents and other tiny holes. The basics of the product is that is catches all the junk on the outer layer of the 'putty.' By rolling the product around you can move the outer layer in, giving yourself more surface to work with.

September 22, 2010
James Skemp

This article is primarily for personal reference. The Northwind sample database setup scripts can be download from the CodePlex project Northwind Community Edition. Sadly, that project is dead, but the original script can be found by going to Source Code, browsing the code, and checking in the Original Northwind Scripts directory. It contains both views and procedures, but there is Microsoft SQL Server Community Projects & Samples page. Sadly, the links on the official Express page no longer work for the sample databases.

September 16, 2010
James Skemp

The following is a review of The Grand Design, written by Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow. Who's the audience? While interesting, the lack of a defined audience makes this book an extremely difficult read. Having read A Brief History of Time I was looking for something with a similar feel to it. Instead the book starts out geared towards anyone with the desire to really read and understand it, then seems to leave most of that audience towards the wayside - seemingly right around when the science gets a little iffy - and then finishes geared back towards the larger audience.

September 12, 2010
James Skemp

The following is a review of Odin Sphere, for the Playstation 2. I really enjoyed the ads for Muramasa: The Demon Blade, since the game looked so very beautiful, and the game looked rather enjoyable. I bought it a few days after it came out and enjoyed it immensely. After some research I found that they had previously done this game, Odin Sphere, and thought it would be worth a play.

September 12, 2010
James Skemp

The following is a review of Nady Audio Stereo Headphones, model HP-03. I received a pair of these headphones in a bundle, and wasn't really expecting much. After sitting around for a couple of months (okay, more like a handful) I finally opened them up one day and plugged them in. Surprisingly, they work pretty dang good. I'm in no way a sound expert, but I dare say for the average (music) listener these will work perfectly fine.

September 8, 2010
James Skemp

I've recently begun reading up on PHP again. As I'm most fond of my iTunes Playlists to Xml application, I thought I'd work with that application's output - XML files with playlist data - as I continued to dig into PHP (instead of stopping now that I know enough to tweak existing code and create new functionality). Here's a basic Track object in C# and PHP. I'll of course be elaborating on these as time goes by (and already have code for the C# implementation).

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On why I purchased another PlayStation 2

Netflix shipping, for Madison WI - Year 5 (Part 1)

Extended iTunes Track class for PHP

The benefits of using a file for Log Parser SQL queries

Review: Splat SPLAT-AC-3J Orange Auto Clean Cleaning Putty

Northwind Community Edition download

Review: The Grand Design

Review: Odin Sphere

Review: Nady Audio Stereo Headphones (HP-03)

iTunes Track class in C# and PHP

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