A hacker’s machine
A little timeline here (without many dates, cause I can’t remember them):
2005: Apple announces it will be moving the Macintosh over to Intel-based motherboards. Geeks all over the place ask if they can run Windows on them too: Apple says it won’t intentionally block the ability, but won’t support it either.
Later 2005: We discover that Intel Macs don’t use a BIOS to start up their operating system, but something called EFI. Since all versions of Windows use a BIOS, this is a terrible incompatibility, making Windows on a Mac seem unlikely.
2006: Apple releases Intel Macs.
March 2006: Hackers are able to cajole, trick, and otherwise force Windows XP to boot without a BIOS. It doesn’t run great, but it runs. Other excited hackers start working on the “runs great” part.
April 2006: Apple, seeing that it’s about to run out of time on its little 10.5 surprise, says, “oh okay, we were gonna wait ’til later, but look. Here’s Boot Camp. Go ahead and install Windows. It’s beta software, so don’t expect much.” It runs great.
One machine that runs OS X, XP, Linux, BSD, and/or a half-dozen other OSes on command? I’m suddenly a little more interested in a shiny-new Intel Mac…
Fact-checking
I just found an entry on Star Trek: TNG from “TeeVeePedia, the Internet TV Encyclopedia”.
Highlights:
“Star Trek: The Next Generation is set more than 100 years in the future from the original series, when […] the toupee technology employed by the original series’ Capt. James T. Kirk has been banned following the Hairpiece Wars of the late 23rd century.”
“Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton): An instant hit among fans, the character of young genius Wesley Crusher became so popular that Wheaton was forced to leave the show in its third season, after producers could not meet his skyrocketing salary demands.”
“Guinan: Whoopi Goldberg portrayed the Enterprise’s bartender, the last surviving member of a race that went extinct after being devoured by their own enormous, sentient hats.”
TCon 23 report
Some cool things about Technicon 23:
Giving rattrap his combined holiday present for the next several years.
Playing the WoW board game with jsciv, meiran, and candidevoltaire; then buying a copy.
A copy of The Heroic Trio from kittykatya.
Opening the wrong door and accidentally joining this year’s Vile Skit.
Being practically the only character in vileone‘s LARP that was exactly what he said he was: no more, no less.
Friday dinner seated between Dwight, raininva, and Christy.
Friday night panels that went Most Excellently. (Some details soon in a filtered post, heh heh.)
A Vile Script that forced me to wrestle with rainbowsaber. (Oh, shucks.)
Helping southernsinger perform “The Dragon & The Lady” for Holly Lisle.
Late Saturday dinner and great conversation with meiran.
Thanks to trenn, chown -R us:us yourbase.
Frequent backrubby morale- and energy-boosts from shrewlet.
Two boxes full of new reading material from the Auction.
Cool artwork from kittenchan and ranchonmars.
It’s my 20th Technicon.
—–
Some less-cool things about Technicon 23:
It’s my 20th Technicon.
Not enough time to be in Whose Con Is It?
Long drives from and to Norfolk.
Not enough quality time with many friends.
My lousy Simon Cowell imitation.
A body that gave out too early on Saturday night. (For once, stomach issues rather than exhaustion.)
Our air mattress developing a hole.
Not enough time for after-con dinner in Blacksburg. (But a good one with Bert & Meche in Salem.)
—–
I’d call TCon 23 a success, for my part. Well done, nius, and thanks for the good weekend!
Fandom Transit Authority
I have arrived in Blacksburg for Technicon.
At 7:00 pm last night, I left Little Creek Station in the care of Security Officer KayLee (who’s going to be pretty durn cheesed at raininva and me when we return). Norfolk to Blacksburg is a 5-hour trip, or thereabouts… I got in at 4:30 am. Long story.
I should be throughly loopy by tonight. This may make my panel presentations quite interesting.
That elusive… SPARK!
Getting ready for Technicon! Trying to make sure that outfits are washed, promised digital gifts are completed, and other ducks are in a row. Last night I picked up something I need for one of the panels… heh heh heh.
While I chase my tail, here’s Optimus Prime as a real truck.
I’m pretending I don’t have to leave for work
It’s web video linkage thingy time!
“Cap-tain… Jean-Luc Pi-card… U-S-S… Ent-er-prise!”
How does the average WoW player feel about Murlocs? Approximately how Gimli felt about orcs. Now, here’s a complete Flash Murloc RPG to give you the fish-man perspective.
And Samorost, where I don’t know what’s going on yet ’cause I haven’t played enough. Cool looking, though.
