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Postbox adds Things and OmniFocus support – http://www.tuaw.com/2010…
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The Onion mentions some crap about how I feel about the local news cycle that I'm vaguely aware of and express displeasure about in certain instances. With charts!
Nor have I been the type to buy into the widely-held view of destiny and I’ve mostly considered (the concept of) fate to be the refuge of the indecisive, the lazy, the fearful and the deluded. But that’s just my (not-very-popular) view. For many people, the traditional concept of destiny provides a level of comfort and if there’s one thing we fearful, lazy creatures like; it’s comfort.
In some ways, destiny is our (perceived) escape clause: life’s all predetermined anyway, so what’s the point of working hard, taking chances, getting uncomfortable and setting goals?
People talk about destiny all the time. Especially when they’re talking about big-picture life stuff. Or when they’re rationalising why something didn’t (or won’t) happen. “Don’t worry Darling; it’s not meant to be”. The term destiny has an almost romantic, mystical, feel-good kind of vibe about it. “That was always going to be her destiny” (as the orchestra comes to life in the background).
It seems that no matter what she did (thoughts, behaviours, reactions, decisions, plans, goals) her life, or part thereof, was predetermined by destiny. It was always going to unfold in a certain way. Despite her; not because of her. Apparently some unseen, cosmic force was firmly behind the steering wheel of her life. She didn’t really have to touch the controls because her life path (destiny) was pre-ordained and non-negotiable.
Am I the only person who considers this thinking to be a load of self-limiting, mumbo-jumbo crap? Am I missing something obvious? Why on earth would anyone buy into this? Oh, that’s right; it requires less effort and courage than the alternative.
In my opinion, one of the most destructive notions we embrace is the traditional concept of destiny. Why? Because it teaches us that our life, and what we might do, be, create and achieve in this life, is somehow beyond our control. Some people embrace this kind of thinking because it takes pressure off them to steer their ship, shape their own future, and be responsible for what they produce in their world.
Take a look at what conventional ‘wisdom’ teaches us about destiny:
De-sti-ny (noun):
1) The predetermined, usually inevitable or irresistible, course of events.
2) The inevitable or necessary fate to which a particular person or thing is destined; one’s lot.
3) A predetermined course of events considered as something beyond human power or control.
If the above dictionary definitions are to be accepted and believed then I may as well sit on the couch and let life happen to me, around me and despite me, because apparently, it’s all gonna eventuate in a particular way no matter what. It’s predetermined. Inevitable. We’re all just helpless passengers on destiny’s back.
I wish someone had shared this with me earlier; I wouldn’t have wasted so much time making those tough decisions, taking those chances, facing my fears, dealing with my destructive habits, overcoming those obstacles, going to university, working hard and busting my arse to create my best life.
To think that people actually believe this “preordained, inevitable and beyond human power” crap? Give me a bucket. I’ll create my own destiny, thanks.
What about you?
Craig Harper (B.Ex.Sci.) is a qualified exercise scientist, author, columnist, radio presenter, television host, motivational speaker and university lecturer. For the past 25 years he has been a leading presenter, educator, motivator and commentator in the areas of personal and professional development. You can visit Craig's blog at Motivational Speaker.FREE eBook – So… You’ve Decided to Get in Shape (Again) Craig's FREE eBook takes 20 – 30 minutes to read, and addresses the REAL getting-in-shape issues based on his 25 years of experience. To get Craig’s FREE eBook click here, weight loss books.
PreME
- sofarsoShawnJohn Gruber seems to have it on good authority that the missing iPad apps are missing because Apple couldn’t figure out how to keep them elegant in a large-screen environment, and that no ‘Dashboard view’ is in the works. I don’t doubt his sources, but I’m frankly very surprised.
Looking on the bright side, the absence of these core apps will pave the way for hundreds of developers to try innovating on their own to make a better version, knowing they’ll be vying for the attention of an entire iPad user base with no built-in calculator, weather, finance or timer app. There should be a lot of interesting innovation in the space (and yes, a lot of nickel and dime crap).
At the end of the day though, the problem persists: If Apple can’t come up with a suitable usability model for small ’subtask’ apps like peeking at stocks, responding to an instant message or performing a quick calculation then it’s unlikely that third-party developers will be able to, because the difficulty is inherent in a large-screen, completely modal interface.
Considering that Apple’s been thinking about tablet devices for over a decade and has held beck because the prototypes didn’t meet Steve’s high bar, it’s extremely surprising to me that they’d launch without a real answer for such simple tasks. April 3rd notwithstanding, this is a problem that Apple will absolutely solve at some point. The only question is when.
Sure the wall-to-wall Winter Olympics left a lot of people wondering why they should give half-a-crap about ice dancing, but NBC has bounced back with its post-Olympic lineup.
Filed under: Ratings, Reality-Free
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Filed under: Motorsports, Videos
Continue reading Video: Sears Pointless LeMons crash puts another rollcage to the test
Video: Sears Pointless LeMons crash puts another rollcage to the test originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsUpdate: I’m reverting back to the old version. Unless they get their crap together, I don’t think I can press the upgrade button ever again. This business of changing the entire theming process every time you go up a tenth of a version is fscking stupid. And yes, I’m really that pissed about it.
I’m really disappointed with BuddyPress and Wordpress teams lately. The last two or three versions of WPMU and BuddyPress have been absolute nightmares to upgrade.
I said this earlier today:
Check this out.
An upgrade should, you know, make things better. It shouldn’t break things beyond recognition.
A little version control and testing before deployment would be nice, that’s all I’m saying.
If this crap keeps up for many more versions, I’m going to have to stop recommending WPMU+Buddypress to anyone.
And that sucks, since I like BP+WPMU, on the whole.
Stride has a new mystery flavor, wittily called "Mega Mystery," but don't tell anyone what it tastes like. If you do, Stride will find you and, in typical Stride fashion, beat the crap out of you. Fortunately, JWT has dropped the earlier alpine theme. Now, instead of a goat, a yodeling troop or German wrestlers, you will be greeted by a pack of ostriches jockeyed by Stride executives bursting through your drywall, searching your underwear drawer and pecking you in the man-boob. In other words, it's not just amusing—it's literally pants-on-head bizarre. But unlike some other oddvertising, it does manage to get a selling point in there. Threats of ostrich beatdowns haven't stopped the foolhardy from guessing the flavor. From gummy worms to apple-pineapple twist, there's a lot of speculation. I suppose no one will know for certain until the unlucky blogger who figures it out is hospitalized with ostrich wounds.
—Posted by Rebecca Cullers
Update: I’m reverting back to the old version. Unless they get their crap together, I don’t think I can press the upgrade button ever again. This business of changing the entire theming process every time you go up a tenth of a version is fscking stupid. And yes, I’m really that pissed about it.
I’m really disappointed with BuddyPress and Wordpress teams lately. The last two or three versions of WPMU and BuddyPress have been absolute nightmares to upgrade.
I said this earlier today:
Check this out.
An upgrade should, you know, make things better. It shouldn’t break things beyond recognition.
A little version control and testing before deployment would be nice, that’s all I’m saying.
If this crap keeps up for many more versions, I’m going to have to stop recommending WPMU+Buddypress to anyone.
And that sucks, since I like BP+WPMU, on the whole.
RT @Ileane: RT @rizzn: rizzn.com> Am I Going to Stop Recommending BP+WPMU? Possibly. http://bit.ly/bDYaCy
I’m really disappointed with BuddyPress and Wordpress teams lately. The last two or three versions of WPMU and BuddyPress have been absolute nightmares to upgrade.
I said this earlier today:
Check this out.
An upgrade should, you know, make things better. It shouldn’t break things beyond recognition.
A little version control and testing before deployment would be nice, that’s all I’m saying.
If this crap keeps up for many more versions, I’m going to have to stop recommending WPMU+Buddypress to anyone.
And that sucks, since I like BP+WPMU, on the whole.
There are plenty of times when you watch a video on YouTube and you want to save the video as a certain file type, so you can watch it on the go or just save it to watch on your computer or home DVD player. The market is saturated with pay video downloader software apps that do this easily. There are a few that do it for free but VDownloader does it for free and does it well!
There is a paid pro version of VDownloader that costs $16 today. But we have 20 pro licenses to give away to our readers. The paid version of this video downloader software lets you perform batch downloads and conversions. It also lets you use the application to convert video files already on your machine and much more. View the details below and continue reading to see how you can win one of these licenses.
Now let’s take a look at the free downloadable application. It converts videos from YouTube, Daily Motion, Break, Veoh, Blip.tv and MySpace.com and can convert it into any format including just audio via MP3.
I downloaded the free 5.2MB version from VDownloader and installed it. It was quick and painless and it didn’t try to install any crap on my machine. I appreciate that.
The main user interface looks like this.
You can type the URL of your video into the box provided at the top of the screen or you can browse to the video like so…
Once you get to the video, just copy the URL from the URL bar at the top of your browser like so (make sure to highlight the entire URL).
Then VDownloader will see that you copied a video URL by itself. Then it grabs the URL from the clipboard and pastes it for you automatically like this:
Your next step is to decide which format you want the video saved as. You can select the output format (or leave it as is with the original file choice) as you can see from the above screenshot. Just hit the drop-down menu and select the format you want. I would run with AVI but if you want a file that will play on your PSP, iPod, iPhone or Windows Mobile devices (MPG), you will find options for all of them.
After making your selection and pasting your URL to the video file you are ready to start downloading and converting. Simply hit the download button next to the URL. There is a Download HD Videos checkbox below the URL box – keep this checked if you want the best possible quality download.
Once it retrieves the video information it will prompt you to input the path of where you want to save the newly converted video file.
Hit save and watch the magic begin.
After downloading the video, the conversion will begin (if you selected conversion. If you did not, you will be done).
Pretty nifty huh? Real easy to use and handy to keep in your toolkit.
Now for the contest. Simply leave a comment on this post as to why you want the video downloader software. Each comment counts as one vote. You can also tweet your reason for wanting the license – just include #MakeUseOfContest in the tweet and add @KarlGechlik to it so I can tally them up! The contest will run for 1 week (ends on 14′th of March).
Any questions or comments, let us know in the comments!
Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!
New on Twitter ? Now you can follow MakeUseOf on Twitter too.
Why do so many people think that reading a book or taking a class makes one spiritual? As a Shaman, I say it is not so. However, there are so many people who would disagree. They honestly believe that if they read a text in a book or study a scripture it makes them holy or spiritual. What a load of crap! Who makes up these foolish rules about spirit? I often hear that people who go to church every Sunday believe they are reaching God.
I like to use the word "Source" instead of "God." Source sounds better because it encompasses everything, and most of all, God is your Source. Source is creation -- the energy that all things come from, in terms of the basic understanding of evolution. To truly evolve, there must be an error, so that one learns from it and makes choices that lead to balance. So if you're just sitting and digesting information or listening to someone speak about Source, it's not enough.
Information that sits without being put to the test is wasted energy or knowledge. Plus, it gives you no proof of validity. No wonder why so many people in religion are "building their team." Or should I say, building their belief that they are right. It offers nothing in return. That's why nothing changes in those people who just listen, read or digest. They look like a bunch of bobbleheads bobbing all over the place, yet nothing is happening. To really walk a spiritual path, one must think for themselves like Christ or Buddha or Muhammad, among the many other great children of Source.
When you think independently and allow yourself to experience life through your thinking process, you allow Source to make a connection with you individually. This opens you to your own knowledge and path that can be shared and embraced by those who feel a resonance to it. You become a vessel for which the divine can pour into, and the effect can create great change in your life. When your cup is filled to the brim, there is nothing that Source can pour in. You become stale and stagnant, and after awhile, possibly even robotic. You become angry at other views instead of sharing and acknowledging the way Source delivers many messages through many vessels. The anger is fueled by your fear and the need to protect your belief. You really begin to think that by sharing your ideas, spirit will leave you or you will be tainted.
It's so silly to think that. If you believe what you believe, that is all fine and dandy. Then go out there and put it to use in your daily life, not just in your head. Find out if your information works to create love and harmony on the planet. However, if it doesn't, then get back to your drawing board and empty your cup and ask Source for another way to reach enlightenment or connect to Christ or whatever your supreme creator is called. It honestly doesn't matter; what does matter is that you evolve with Source. You're not here to be a bobblehead, so get out there and put your beliefs to the test, whether it's world peace or war and hate. What is better for us all, of course, is peace. So adjust to peace, because that's what Source really, truly wants.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Some very nice techno animation from Mike Winkelman, aka Beeple.
Links:
 | Written on 3/6/2010 by Vlad Dolezal. Vlad writes Fun Life Development, a blog about making personal development fun. Check it out to discover ways to improve your life that don't feel like a hard job. Alternately, you can follow Vlad on twitter. | Photo Credit: flikr |
I have two unlimited service plans from Sprint for myself and my wife. We pay in excess of $200 per month and we’ve been Sprint customers for a decade. We are the high-value post-paid customers that Sprint has been bleeding for the past couple of years.
I discovered that T-Mobile offers the same service plan for two lines at $50 less per month. I opted to stay with Sprint and got the crap Palm Pre instead of churning to AT&T to get the iPhone. But I would be happy with the Nexus One from T-Mobile.
I’ve talked to several Sprint reps and they’ve got nothing to offer me of substance.
Observing their behavior is interesting from a customer service and retention standpoint. We’ll see how hard they work to keep me. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse should be matching T-Mobile’s pricing because Sprint is a “value carrier” and not competing with AT&T or Verizon, which are positioned as the premium carriers. Sprint hopes that WiMax will enable the company to compete with its network, but the advantage if it comes into being may be short-lived.
FoTW Here at the Reg we're no strangers to a bit of robust reader input. We get flamed by all sorts: dog lovers, vegans, Nigerian helicopter pioneers, members of the Parachute Regiment, Welshmen. Today, however, we have a first. An actual NASA engineer has joined this illustrious lineup to pour vitriol on our output.…
Are you looking forward to the carefree and sunny days of summer when the temperature drops to a balmy 80 or 90 degrees, just perfect for tossing around a frisbee, taking a walk with a loved one or just appreciating the sheer beauty and majesty of Mother Earth? Now you've got a perfect excuse to leave all that crap for the hippies and stay inside. Continue reading 'Futurama' is Coming Back This June! And Bender! And His Banjo! And Fry!
Filed under: Animation, Futurama, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free
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We can sit by and watch competitors steal our patented inventions, or we can do something about it. We've decided to do something about it. We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours.— Steve Jobs
Everyone in the tech industry knows the patent system is entirely broken. Other than a few sleazy actors like Intellectual Ventures there's an understanding in the innovative side of the tech business that you don't file aggressive patent lawsuits. You write a lot of patents, you file defensive lawsuits and countersuits, but in general you don't use your patent portfolio as a big club to try to destroy competitors. Apple's taking a big crap on that detente. It's pretty hard to love a company that is going to exploit the broken patent system to stifle innovation. Not that this is new misbehavior, see also Apple's 1988 look and feel lawsuits.
What's particularly galling is Jobs' language about "stealing". We'll know more when the patents are named, but I have to wonder. Does he think anyone else using a multitouch UI is stealing? Pinch-to-zoom? Seamless wifi/cellular networking? I wonder if Jobs called it "stealing" when Apple took the mouse and windowed GUI metaphors from Xerox?
Everyone is going nuts because we just sued HTC for violating several hundred of our patents, including our patent for the 12-box keypad (1-9 plus * and #) which we introduced on the iPhone and are now seeing copied everywhere, and our patent on the “audible tone to indicate an incoming call on a telephonic communication device,” which also is just showing up everywhere.
Naturally there’s a risk when you start suing people that people will view you as a kind of bully, but we’re trying to make clear that we are just attempting to defend our rights and protect the innovation and invention that we’ve spent years innovating on inside our incredibly innovative invention labs. Gizmodo says the patents we’ve got are “incredible!” and that HTC had no idea we were going to sue them. AllThingsD provides complete copies of court documents which I recommend you go read, from front to back, right away. TechCrunch says that the suit is actually an attack on Google and Android, which is true. It’s war, people.
Meanwhile someone really seems to have it in for Dr. Eric Schmidt these days and is dishing up loads of embarrassing crap about him, like this photo in which he looks, well, sort of not really human. And then someone else dug up an obscure Web post where a former employee calls Schmidt a “smug little prick.” You’d almost think that, I don’t know, some spurned ex-lover decided to get a little revenge or something.
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