1995: Windows 95 hits the streets around now

Windows 95 was the first major upgrade to PCs in four-to-five years and Microsoft’s latest attempt to make their clunky GUI more Mac-like…without paying for it. Many hack comedians and Doonsebury went for all the easy jokes on the software’s initial flaws too; may explain why Jay Leno was invited to the ceremony. Apple even took out a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal mocking the OS’s new ability to give file names more than eight characters; a rather arrogant move as I look back.

It gradually became a standard over the next couple years as it pushed out the more mediocre Windows 3.x that most business computers were running. I recall people still operating with 95 into the early Aughts since 98, XP and ME had worse reputations. Despite it being a standard, 95 was pretty flawed in my opinion. For example, when I was in exile, working for Nortel, the IT department had to hire a pair of temps to reboot or reinstall the OS on every new portable they received from Dell because mass imaging was a weakness.

Looking back though, did Windows 95 erode Apple’s market share further? Yes, but it wasn’t the exclusive cause. Apple had two other self-inflicted wounds at the time. The first was a bad run of poorly manufactured systems across the whole line: the PowerBook 5300 (a nightmare), Performa 52xx/53xx/62xx/63xx, the Color LaserPrinter and System 7.5.x interacted like crud on PowerPC Macs. Even Apple’s most diehard fans were having a crisis of faith given the terrible word-of-mouth circulating on the early Internet. The second was a marketing issue Jobs solved. Apple had too many models which weren’t terribly different from each other and it confused the casual computer shopper. So when the third generation PowerPC Macs made their debut in 1997, Jobs stripped their names down to just G3 and they only came in two models, a tower or a desktop, the end. Little did anyone know, the G3 was just the tip of the turnaround iceberg as Apple’s stock has been selling for as much as $500/share this week. If you held on to when it was about $20/share on the day Jobs took full control around 1998, your insane investment would be worth 700 times more or roughly $14,000/share; you’d really have 28 shares equal that due to the stock splits in 2000, 2005 and 2014.

How the tables have turned too. Microsoft used to be the behemoth the world was dependent on. Its OS ran over 90% of the desktop computers in operation. Now Microsoft is way smaller than Apple, more focused on its Xbox, offers services like IBM, does some cloud computing and tries to compete in the tablet space via its Surface.

If I could time travel back the 25 years, 1995 me would never believe what 2020 me would report about the future. Technology is often full of surprises. Oh yeah, and I’d make 1995 me hold tight on Apple stock, nothing wrong with my life getting the happy Back to the Future ending!

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In time for Taco Tuesdays!

They also come in corn as well. However, I would recommend not putting in the meat while it’s still sizzling and be reasonable with the guacamole and/or sour cream, you don’t want to suffocate. Silly photo courtesy of Pee Wee Herman’s Twitter feed.

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Why they’re the same, convention edition

It’s my rebuttal to all the Biden-Pelosi apologists. The Democrats have no fucking clue nor any concern about how much America is hurting. The Republicans only care about rich people and the Democrats…different rich people, often big tech billionaires who are only liberal on issues that cost money or personally affect them (gay rights namely). Believe me, you can see how quickly the DLC’s donors turn into Scrooge McDuck if the word unionize is mentioned.

Trust me, should Sen. Foot-in-Mouth get elected without a hitch, the riots will continue, cops will continue to murder people, CV-19’s death toll will keep rising at its current pace and the wealth gap will widen further. But hey, the oldest person in history to get the job (anyone over 70 should be an automatic disqualification) will restore this mythical dignity to the job while he gives Larry Summers another attempt to destroy the mortally wounded middle class.

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I hope the king doesn’t kill the messenger

Wizk!ds is another reason why I wish I could live another 20-30 years. Their painted/unpainted miniatures for D&D and other roleplaying games. Man, when I was much younger with more time to enjoy gaming, we didn’t have such a good choices. My friend Neal’s dry-erase battle board was the best Eighties technology had because minis were still made of lead, lacked much detail and (worse) variety to get anything close to resembling your character.

The king and herald with the dias and throne are two examples from the new Royal Court set I scored at Rogues Gallery. It comes with the usual cast you expect in addition to what you see here: queen, jester, prince, princess, a prime minister and various retainers.

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How BB-88 was really done

For Caturday, the special effects team for the last trilogy revealed how they made the new droid BB-88 move around.

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Overdue photo celebrating with the nephews!

My nephews and Anje got out of quarantine (self-imposed, you know how moronic Texas is) to join Jennifer and me to have dinner at Chuy’s (the one super far south). Man, I can’t wait for this frickin’ pandemic to end! The menu at Chuy’s is so stripped down, they’ve excluded the Elvis Platter! It’s frightening to see how much Wyatt and Cannon have grown. I’m wondering if the Emir of Qatar put them on a rack and stretched them into the lanky forms they share with their oldest brother Hunter. Oh, the Q on Wyatt’s baseball cap stands for the Qatar baseball team, not the Qanon batshit nonsense. Meanwhile, Cannon decided to do a “derp” face for the photo, I’m guessing Gen Z is recycling the same dumb crap previous generations have done, mine was the bunny ears. Great to have everybody together again!

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Today’s mood

This in a nutshell is why America is the most overrated country in History as CV-19 and the elections of shit-for-brains POTUSes (St. Reagan, Dubious Bush and Orange Foolius) have exposed its weaknesses, myths and vulnerabilities. Meanwhile, “dying, old” Europe is in much better shape if you don’t use The Economist‘s bullshit measuring sticks.

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Chocolate snow!!!

Not everything has been crappy for 2020, as per this story from The Guardian, a “happy” accident occurred in Switzerland. As cool as chocolate snow would be, I can’t recommend it around Austin due to the stifling hot weather we have. Switzerland was perfect given their Summers being about as warm as our brief Springs; this may change thanks to Climate Change. The snow also reminds of a great episode of Bob’s Burgers. If you follow that show like I do, then you will easily know what I’m referencing.

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Paris

Welcome to the first one seven installments I’m doing about my girlfriend Jennifer’s cats. Wait, you’re probably thinking, she has seven cats, oy vey! They’re not all hers, I think several belong to her daughter and her fiancé but they all live together in a little colony. Besides, the place spacious enough for everybody, there’s plenty of food and the numerous litter boxes are handled in a timely manner. So now to meet them…

First up, this is Paris. She’s the only long-haired cat in the community. She’s also very dainty as she prefers to spend the days lounging around on the couch, on a bed or in the cat tower. Paris tends to be left alone by the more rambunctious cats yet I have a feeling she doesn’t take any guff. When I visit, Paris is often happy to see me as she requests my lap to park into so I can pet/groom her long fur. Jennifer says Paris has a bias toward human males too. No, I think the kitty just knows who has an affinity for those who will treat her like the little queen she is. The one thing I have to resist with Paris? Holding like one does with a baby, a bad habit with my Isis and Agamemnon. Paris will squirm, squeal and scratch her way out of it.

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Dumb kid with LEGO stuck in his nose for two years

I suppose getting everyone’s beloved plastic building block stuck in a orifice is the new “swallowing a penny,” for small kids. Given that pennies are useless as most countries have wisely ditched them. Anyway, the details on this stupid child are here. If you look at the picture of what he finally blew out, it’s technically not a full-blown LEGO, it’s a mini figure’s hand. Why and how he took it apart and somehow snorted it up his nostril is a mystery best left alone. Let’s just hope the LEGO incident is the dumbest thing he does with his life and the remainder continues to be uneventful.

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The myth of Antifa

This is a nice counter cartoon mocking how the Trumpkins can only blame themselves when their racism and terrorist ties are brought to light. Allegedly, these morons are using the policies to slow/stop of the spread of CV-19 as the stick in the spokes messing with Kapitalism, ergo the dumb biker says Socialism is the answer. Well…in short, probably. A Unified, well-planned response is how the Europeans, Canadians and New Zealanders got it under control while the United States is still struggling. Take note of this, mostly the developed nations with Right Wing or worse governments, are screwing this up: US, Brazil, India and Russia. A crisis of this nature is something the “party of big ideas” has no damned clue on how to handle, besides everybody take a dosage of Vitamin Jesus.

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Rot in Hell…James “Big Jim” Thompson

Since the New York Times tends to have its “bipartisan” head up its ass, especially when it comes to crooked politicians outside of NY or DC, they wrote a rather glowing obit about the Republican Dictator of Illinois. To be fair, he was elected through cunning and Democratic self-sabotage via Old Man Daley (Gov. Walker wouldn’t kiss his corrupt ass in 1976), morons who only picked WASP surnames in the primary (LaRouchites sharing the Dem ticket in 1986) or wooing the North Kentucky vote; just walk around barefoot with a hound dog. Just remember, when a Democrat is in office a long time (FDR), that’s a dictator; when a Republican is (this asshole and Gov. Goodhair), they’re just popular.

Anyway, Thompson was a piece of shit in general.Here’s a list of his “accomplishments.”

  • He ratcheted up the fights with Chicago, especially under Mayor Byrne. I recall one of their matches quite well.
  • Wasted taxpayer money on a full-staffed governor’s mansion despite only occupying it 25% of the time
  • Continued to charge IL for trips to Japan when the Mistubishi factory in Normal was a done deal.
  • Was a member of the 9/11 Commission and when you need to cover something up, namely Spurious George and Darth Cheney’s incompetence, he’s your flunky.
  • Always tried to curry favor with St. Reagan by cutting essential services in IL, namely putting the mentally ill on the street with bus tickets to Milwaukee. Nevermind he was probably very heartbroken when the Great Bullshitter didn’t pick him for veep.
  • His biggest legacy was keeping 30,000 state jobs vacant for years and tied up in court thanks to those positions requiring an unconstitutional loyalty oath to him.

When I was a kid, I really despised him and rightfully blamed him for why we left Springfield and moved to Houston in 1982. My father worked for IL’s Mental Health department (Computer Science division), a victim of St. Reagan and Thompson’s cuts; if my dad didn’t take the Houston gig, he would’ve been laid off alongside hundreds of others we knew. Thirty-eight years later, after that initial burst of homelessness caused by them, the problem continues to grow. “Big Jim” helped pave the way to make ‘Murica Great with his fiscal promiscuity.

Years later, I would indirectly like to thank him for making me leave IL the first and second time. He made it such an unlivable nightmare for college graduates and/or people capable of critical thinking. His terrible reign of error motivated me to live in Austin, which is like Chicago but with better weather, less traffic and fewer government officials openly on the take. Those who remain in IL, you have my condolences as “Big Jim,” initiated the brain drain transforming IL into three states: Chicago, the Academic City States and Northern Kentucky.

If there’s an afterlife and people like him are sent to Hell where they should be, it would only be fitting that his sentence is to have his mouth sewn to Reagan’s asshole to form a Republican Conservapede. Just enough room to add Newt and Bush the Elder though.

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Ren & Stimpy are returning too?

Comedy Central has decided to flog this dead horse in addition to Beavis & Butt-Head. With the latter, I don’t mind, dumbasses such as those two transcend any decade (e.g. Biff from Back to the Future could be their grandfather, really). Ren & Stimpy… it lost its focus when John Kricfalusi was fired and unlike others from the early Nineties, the show seemed to be a fad unlike The Simpsons.

Today, the documentary about Kricfalusi is being released. It’s not pretty. Happy Happy Joy Joy the Ren & Stimpy Story reveals how the guy was just a nightmare to work with plus he was a sexual predator, namely with young girls/women. In light of those allegations, which appear to be proven, Comedy Central should just not bother reviving the whacky/gross-out show even if the creator isn’t involved. I have a feeling, he still receives some money from the deal. Better to find a new property since the network is reluctant to gamble on a new idea.

Despite all the voices screaming for Kricfalusi’s blood, I find it hypocritical that no one stops playing Michael Jackson’s music. Every time one of his tunes is played, ASCAP and other collectors pay his estate. I would only be OK with this if every dime went to his victims and not the shitbags who own the rights.

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Bracing kids for the new “normal”

I‘m guessing it’s best to crush children’s souls now since working from home is going to be standard operating procedure until…forever given how long it will take to make a viable vaccine. You can also tell by the colored dots in the upper left of the windows you can place on the fabric screen are macOS details! Get the kids hooked on my platform!

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My first trip to The Yard

Cookie Monster

Jennifer took me to this new place at the Domain for my birthday called The Yard which gets its name from that milkshake song. According to to her, the people who founded this small chain won the competition on Shark Tank. It’s a bummer they took over the spot once occupied by the stationery store Papyrus but let’s face it, people have too many distractions to write nice letters anymore.

If you don’t know by the first photo, it’s a restaurant focused on gourmet shakes which are about $10 or a pop. You can keep the jar its served in for a little more. I obviously had the Cookie Monster sans insulin. The blue drizzle was a nice touch with all the Cookie Crisp cereal accompanying it. I could’ve done without the “cookie” which was mostly cookie dough; I don’t like to eat raw dough of anything.

Banana Split

Jennifer got the healthier choice and I plan to get it next time. She was smart to get her shake balanced out with actual fruit!

Cheesecake

Yes, our friend Shannon’s shake came with a small wedge of actual cheesecake so this one is like two desserts in one.

I forget to mention how these selections were as shakes or beverages. If you’re familiar with Dairy Queen’s Blizzards, these are what these gourmet delicacies are closest to because you’ll need at least 10 minutes for them to melt a bit or else you’ll need an iron lung to pull anything through a straw. Then comes the caloric intake, we had them count as our Saturday lunches.

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