DiveThon

[update]
Print is now available at deviantART.
...
Thought I might as well go for something original, unfortunately it doesn't really look all that good in the small size.
I'll see if I can iron out the wrinkles...
[update]
OK, so here it is. Unfortunately I had to redo the text, I liked the old one better but it lost readability in the small image so I had to compromise.
[update]
Sorry, Lee. The old one isn't coming back, seems it was a registered Walt Disney Pictures trademark-something or another. The Dive(flag inspired Py)thon (DiveThon for short) is the new logo for Fluffys various misadventures. The original photo was taken by me, of my revolver, in my hand, against my apartment wall. Think of it as an "original FluffysFailure".
[update]
Blogger is giving me a real hard time about the DiveThon. Sometimes the image is unavailable, sometimes you can see it but it has been mangled so bad that you cant read the text and so on. Had to redo the text again for the small image and publish the image on the blog (below), despite carefully following Bloggers instructions.

Apple world

I got an e-mail from Apple today. They asked if I would like to add my blog to "a new site called Apple Computer. Our intent is to bring Apple Computer bloggers closer together, and make a positive contribution to the Internet community".



I don't know, I kind of resent the idea of being labeled an "Apple Computer blogger", sounds kind of restricting not to mention biased. Although I couldn't help to feel a bit flattered by their interest in my humble blog, even though I'm pretty sure the e-mail was sent automatically by a search-bot.
"Homer: Nothing you say can diminish this honor".
Although I will respectfully decline your offer, I'm afraid.

Apart from joining their collection of articles you would have to add a Macintosh banner to your blog (available in three snappy colors). I will not affiliate my blog with either Macintosh or Microsoft. Even though I would know that my "journalistic integrity" was still intact, the casual observer might frown upon a "pro-Apple" banner. I like my iPod Shuffle, but I'm not going to promote Apples products in general just because they made an mp3-player that fit me like a glove.

I will endorse products by writing positive reviews, if it deserves it, not by adding commercials or banners to my blog. Anyways, any person or corporation can use any information on my blog, all I ask is that they acknowledge the author, commercial use must be approved by me in advance though (fat chance, but you might as well cover all bases). That said, I don't really see any advantage in joining Apples community. It would probably boost the number of visitors to my blog, but I like to think that I go more for quality then quantity.

Failed cultivation projects

Project goal;
End of world hunger
Definition of preferred result;
Self regenerating pasta sauce






Execution; Open can, cook in refrigerator for several months
Result; A possibly tasty failure of yet undetermined use
(testers wanted)


Project goal;
Development of biologic
hand grenade
Definition of preferred result;
Large government contract






Execution; Cut lemon in half, cook in refrigerator for several months, keep away from direct sunlight and
people you do not dislike
Result; Possible soup mix, discovery of a new smell "Stinky-Lemon" (pat. pending).

S-P-A-M

The less said the better.

Remington 870 Express Magnum - Updated

This is your basic 870 with synthetic stock and a matte black finish, it takes 12/76
(3 inch) shells and smaller.





There’s not much to say about the 870 that haven’t been said already, the system has been around for a very long time and has been praised for it’s reliability and function.

Interesting side note; these pictures were actually taken with my camera, believe it or not. Under near perfect conditions (natural sunlight, makeshift tripod, self timer) it can actually perform rather well.

Fact; "Over six million Remington 870s have been made, making it the best-selling shotgun of any type in history." - Modern Marvels, Police guns.


Field stripping the 870


Removal of the trigger group

The 870 can be shot while putting pressure on the forend to extract the spent shell as the weapon recoils. While this is possible with most systems, it’s usually not recommended. Engaging two clay pigeons in a single swing is not a problem once you get the hang of reloading in the recoil.

The 870 bolt (see picture) rides on top of the so called ”slide assembly” which has two steps that either engages or disengages the locking block against the barrel.

The firing pin rests within the bolt and cannot move forward against the primer unless the locking block has been raised up against the barrels locking slot. Very handy. The locking mechanism of the 870 is very strong, as evident in MythBusters S03E06 ”Seasickness - Kill or Cure”. Long story short (see Shooters Forum for a short recap), they tried to ”banana peel” a shotgun barrel (870 Express) by obstructing the barrel.

At the end of the show they placed a steel spike inside the barrel and welded it shut in a final attempt to see if they could replicate the myth.

The system actually held up to this immense pressure and was locked tight as the cone was blown clear, or as Jamie Hyneman explained it ”[…]the gun contained the explosion”.

If you’re used to shooting over/under or side/side shotguns a pump might feel like a strange weapon to wield. The balance is similar to that of most automatic shotguns so if you’re used to shooting an automatic you’ll soon be right at home with the 870. The main advantage to pump action shotguns compared to automatics is that a pump shotgun will cycle all rounds and quickly clear any round that didn't discharge properly. The system is also cleaner since it doesn't use gas pressure to cycle the system which also makes a pump easier to strip and clean. Also, you can't get your finger slammed by a spring loaded bolt.

I bought the shotgun used and it actually came with a Bushnell Holosight.
Quite a fascinating little thing. It is pretty much a red dot sight with interchangeable reticles, mine came with a circle and a crosshair.



As you move the barrel sideways while looking through the sight you see the crosshair move sideways compared to the circle. When the crosshair centers in the the circle, the barrel is pointing straight forward. I managed to shoot quite well with this sight, although the reticle had a habit of getting lost against a bright sky. The sight also went through batteries at an alarming rate so I decided to get rid of the thing (I hate relying on batteries). This was a very early version of the Holosight, I would imagine that today's version has worked out the kinks of the old one.

Anyways, if you're looking for a pump action shotgun, you should consider the Remington 870. And if you feel that the standard model might be too simplistic for your taste, there is a wide selection of aftermarkets parts.

Failure imminent

Something is wrong with this tea light candle.
I’m not sure what – but something tells me I should probably not leave it unattended.

On a more technical note, after some initial tinkering, tuning and cursing my PC’s power supply is now diagnosed ”dying with no cause for optimism”. The damned thing doesn't seem to be able to supply the computer with enough (stable) voltage to function properly which sends the NVidia System Sentinel into a frenzy. The times when the computer actually booted up (at the second to third try) the Sentinel went ”denial of service” on me and posted so many warning windows that the computer eventually crumbled under the strain. My favourite warning so far is the 200:th Sentinel warning window which claims that there are not enough room to post another window. Gee, I wonder why? In retrospect I should've taken a screen dump of it, but the computer was barely functioning at all at this point.

Anyhow, thanks to Dan and ”Winter” I got a hold of a functioning power supply to confirm the prognosis of death for the old unit. That’s my old supply in the picture, dusty and dying. And yes, I voided it’s warranty.

On a related note,
Bender; ”[…]drive to Vegas, pick up some floozy-bots and void their warranties all night long! WOOOOOO!”

The new(er) power supply works like a charm, so I guess I’ll have to buy a new supply in the near future. I gave the old one a firm pat on it's shoulder and said; "Remember, 'fatal' and 'inoperable' are just words...Also you've failed me for the last time".

Public transportation can be such a drag

Last week my morning bus to the university stood still on the E4 for twenty minutes, spewing out diesel fumes while delaying passengers in the process. "Why?", might any thinking person ask him/herself.

Seems one fucktard missed her bus, which was dead on time for once I might ad, and apparently cried her eyes out to the travel host which contacted the bus. Where in lies the logic of delaying some 30+ passengers just because one moron can't use her watch? The damned thing was probably too over designed to be readable "But it looks really nice".

Eventually she got there, by means of a taxi. She told the ticket inspector that she needed to go to the southern parts of Sweden so she could receive the key to her new apartment. God forbid she would have had to take the next bus and call the landlord to say that she'll be a little late. No, let's delay the passengers that actually were at the bus stop in time. I would never let the bus wait for me if I would have missed it. I'd rather take it like a reasonable individual and either be a few minutes late for my appointment or take my car to the destination. If it were a long journey I'd probably drive an hour of two, park my car on a long term parking spot and get on the bus from there.
To use an old diving proverb; Stop, think, act.
I hence forth resteth the blame part in the fucktard, which due to her nature as a such will only partially be blamed as she does not master the concept of "people other then you", nay - most of the blame placeth squarely in the face of whatever administration or authority that decided to "Stop, wait, be an idiot".

Bush's only weapon

"Tecknar-Olles" depiction of Bush's continuing insanity as published on the local newspaper Norra Västerbotten's homepage.

iTunes, sound quality and piracy - updates

I bought Brand New Sin's album Tequila from iTunes today. I hadn't heard any of the songs before I downloaded it, but I like Brand New Sin and assumed that they've stayed their previous course, music wise. The album was alright I suppose, although I haven't really gotten in to it yet.

Some moron acting on iTunes behalf decided to save some precious megabytes by converting the album into AAC 128kbit/s. I couldn't even make it through one song on the Shuffle with my Sennheiser HD 215, it sounded like crap. The left/right balance was all screwed up, the bass seems to "leak" into the background creating a dulled/muffled sound. In summation; grainy and headache inducing. There is some debate as to the quality of the 128kbit/s AAC, some claim it is comparable to 192kbit/s mp3, but in this case either the AAC 128kbit/s sucks or someone screwed up while ripping the CD. All I know is that the sound quality and dynamics was shot to hell and quite frankly is a pain to listen to.

[update]
It seems iTunes wasn't the only culprit in the "Tequila" affair.
Yes, the 128 AAC bitrate is too low but as I listened to a higher bitrate copy of the album the dynamics still sounded screwed up - at least I think so. It sounds just like someone crossed the left/right channel, or like one of those cheesy 3D equalizer modes. This applies mostly to the instruments, the singing still sounds OK. I'm not sure what kind of "sound" they were aiming for, but I don't like it.
[/update]

Viable options for me right now is probably to download a pirate (here's a link in reference to the previous one) copy of the CD since I've already payed for it. Shoplifting is kind of extreme, even though certain propaganda proclaim piracy comparable to shoplifting. Let me explain why that is a rather poor analogy.
A product (CD,DVD, tape...) needs to be produced i.e. made from materials, electronic information are not made of physical particles (well...) i.e. no reproduction cost (worth mentioning anyways). That means that while piracy is arguably "not a very nice thing to do" it does NOT represent a loss for any retailer, just a reduced income.
Let's compare shoplifting to piracy in a practical example. Say that you shoplift a CD, you naughty person you. The expense for the music shop you just fleeced is the cost for the shop to buy the CD and the loss of income should it have been sold. Say instead that you've downloaded the album. This would in comparison mean that the shop has a reduced income of one sold CD, BUT the CD hasn't gone away. It is still there and can be sold to someone else. Naturally if everyone downloaded their music illegally there would be serious repercussions for the music industry, but my point is that piracy is not comparable to shoplifting, no matter what your TV tells you.

Alter egos

Rejected pseudonyms, pre FluffysFailure (pat. rejected);

Esky Moe
The lovable loser with a heart of ice.
Patron saint of dislocated shoulders and frozen car door locks.




TrenchFootJr.
Novice shoe salesman with a flare for the dramatic.
The largely unknown bass drum player for ABBA.



Deacon Structor
The unholy destroyer of several things of general nature.
Tax evasion, fraud and religion - all rolled into one.



EvilMcViel
An unholy chunk of zombie-viel, bent on world something-or-another.
Eater of eaters, stroker of highly sensitive egos.




DinaresPhoerenSick
The neurotic master of all misspelled words and socially awkward situations.
Patron saint of all causes unknown to man.



Fluffy the frail
The Humpty Dumpty of most things labeled
"Dry clean only".
Patron saint of all flammable liquor.



******** ** ******
[Censored by popular demand]
Patron saint of bootleg VHS tapes.

"First we send americans to their deaths for your lie, Mr Bush. Now we're sending them to their deaths for your ego"