For the Fatherboard

My Zotax 9800 GTX came in today. When they said 14 inches long and an inch and a half thick, they were not kidding. It is by far the biggest single piece of computer hardware I have ever seen. The photo to the right includes an iron and an ipod for scale reference, but I fear that it is still insufficient to capture the magnitude of this thing. The card is the one on the bottom, sporting a gigantic fan like a piece of magnificant plummage (and no, the fan is not the reason for its majesty, for beneath it lies a full four inches of throbbing, glistening silicon), baring its golden pci-express fangs at the lesser appliances it has deemed offensive to its presence. The upside-down image you see is that of a cross between a Utah raptor and a hydralisk-a manifestation of the bestial nature of the gargantuan brick that it adorns. Mobo and case are due by the end of the week. I pray to Muad'dib that both will have the space and fortitude to accomodate this monster.

Srly, it's feckin' huge; can probably crush a newborn alive.

Oliver Stone does Dubya

Not sure if y'all have heard about this, but there's some quality hard-hitting non-partisan filmmaking going on. Looks like interesting stuff, though I'm not sure I can support yet another inevitable smearing of our beloved alma mater in Hollywood. Due out Oct. 17, according to the NY Daily News.

Scrabulous, Once Only for Losers, Now for No One

Facebook has shut down Scrabulous, the facebook scrabble app for those disturbed individuals who enjoyed playing the game with other players over the internet.

The fact that 500,000 per day played that really disturbs me. That is a ton of losers.

Bennigan's Out of Business

Much to Butters's dismay, Bennigan's is filing for chapter 7 bankruptcy protection. I liked the place, but the one by my house was perpetually dark and dirty and so I stopped going there, and it appears I wasn't alone.

The company has not yet released official comment, but workers are coming in to find closed restaurants.

Guinea Pigs in People Clothes

This one goes out to Lance.

Hockey Time

OK, so there is probably a very small percentage of the world thinking about hockey today (although with only baseball to watch, how can you not??). There have been a lot of off-season moves in the NHL, notably the Chicago Blackhawks landed Brian Campbell, the all star defense man they sorely needed. They also got some more solid goaltending in the way of Cristobal Huet. Both acquisitions seemed over priced, but you have to pay free agents a little something extra to get them to come to loser teams. Combined with the decline of perennial Western Conference playoff teams (Minnesota and Colorado), the Hawks have a real shot at making the playoffs with their two budding all-star forwards, Kane and Toews. I just hope they realize they can become legends in a big town and don't skip out in a couple years.

Amazing what progress can be once the stingy old coot owner dies. Same thing happened to the Toronto Maple Leafs a couple decades ago.

Dining in the Dark

All across the world a new trend in dining has emerged -- blind dining. Patrons dine in a pitch black room while waiters use military-grade night vision goggles to navigate the dining room. At some restaurants the waiters are even blind themselves. Supposedly the sensory deprivation heightens your sense of taste while dining and removes your social inhibitions improving conversation and the overall dining experience. Sounds pretty scary to me.

McCain Gaining

I left my faith the the American electorate back in Bush '04. I held the sliver of hope that the people might redeem themselves this time around, but it looks like the other 98% of me that remains cynical has some more support. McCain's been taking all these ridiculous potshots during Obamapalooza '08 Europe, and the last hit at the hospital visit (among others) seems to have hit home. Well, I suppose if McCain loves visiting troops in the hospital, he's gonna have a great time as prez, because there'll definitely be plenty more troops in the hospital to hang out with. I take some comfort in the fact that no matter who America chooses in the end, we'll get the president we deserve.