Sin's Notebook

Why use GTalk (Identi.ca) if you have MSN (Twitter)?

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 11:33:31 +0100

It’s quite a while since Twitter was the only kid around. Nowadays, it has a whole slough of siblings on the micro-blogging market, like Jaiku, Plurk, Identi.ca and others. Also, I’m not sure if FriendFeed really belongs here, but I know it does compete with the others.

One of them, that I mentioned, is Identi.ca. What makes it interesting is that it is using the OpenMicroBlogging protocol. Not being too tech advanced myself, I do however notice this is the “XMPP of microblogging”. XMPP is an Instant Messaging protocol, which GoogleTalk and others are based on.
Basically both mean that you can have friends using other instant messaging or microblogging services that you can communicate with. Unlike people on ICQ who can’t talk with their mates on MSN Messenger, for instance.

Personally, I like Googletalk. No, check that, I really, really like Googletalk. It is clean, versatile and yes, cross platform. I have some friends over at Jabber, no problem adding them to the friends’ list. As a heavy user of Twitter, I would love the same possibilities for micro blogging. Simply put, the number one reason I am not really using Plurk, Jaiku, Pownce and FriendFeed is I can’t be arsed flitting like a madman between all the different services, trying to keep up.

There is one problem though for me, with GoogleTalk, and it’s a pretty big one too, in a way.
My tech savvy friends, well, pretty much everyone is using GTalk. Some Jabber, like I mentioned.
But my less techie, those of the so called “mainstream” demographic slot are not using GTalk. When they started using instant messaging, ICQ was already history, its reputation spammed down to smithereens. OK, I still use ICQ, even hanging on to my seven digit number. But there was one, already sitting on their computer’s desktop, MSN Messenger.
I’d say that an easy 90% of my “mainstream” friends are using MSN. And so are all their friends. They don’t see the point with trying GTalk, because.. well it is like MSN, right? And they are already using that one.
So, I use Pidgin, when at a PC, but can’t communicate with them when on the mobile, since I have no working MSN app on the mobile. Not for lack of trying, mind you.

And maybe that is what will happen, or rather not happen, with identi.ca as well? A good idea, but never reaching a larger audience?

Oh, better clarify that “larger audience”. Twitter is still the largest one of the micro-blogging tools, but not even that one is really a mainstream phenomena. Instant messaging, on the other hand has reached the “mainstream” audience. They stick to what they started with and have no real interest in using others or comparing feature lists, etc.
That last one is probably a techie thing. :)

Graf Tyrnau II: I’ve been working a bit with my com centre...

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:34:54 +0100

Graf Tyrnau II: I’ve been working a bit with my com centre slash work platform slash airship. Not really with the ship itself, but with rezzing scripts and sets of furnitures for when docking, etc. Also added sit scripts to the railing, so now I just need a passenger or two to test it while in flight. And across a sim border…

Of course everyone is entitled to their own perception (as well as opinion, yes). I hope that goes...

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 16:32:00 +0100

Of course everyone is entitled to their own perception (as well as opinion, yes). I hope that goes without saying. And I have no problem with the immersionist, or whatever they are called, that separate themselves and their avatars, claiming the avatar or metavatar, transhuman, whatever they want it to be called, to be a different person. Not sure if that includes personality. Anyway, definitely not a problem, have fun, go the whole. :o)
But bugger, sometimes it is really hard knowing how to address people that talk about themselves or their avatars in third person. Or mix, even.

“His keyboardmaster”..?
Hang on, so you are referring to him, which is your avatar in SL, and the master of the keyboard that controls the actions of him, that is your avatar, that master which is.. umm. you?
Colour me lazy, but “His keyboardmaster” is eighteen letters, counting in the space. “Me” is just two.

I felt like watching telly this evening. Youtube is a great saviour when you want to see something...

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 20:50:32 +0100

I felt like watching telly this evening. Youtube is a great saviour when you want to see something at least half- sensible, even if fragmented.
And undubbed.

Heatwave incoming

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 21:58:00 +0100

They said on the news today that we can expect a four weeks heatwave.

Right now I’m out on the balcony, quarter to ten in the evening, and it feels like the first time since this morning, that I can actually breathe.
Not to mention, be dry.

Think I have to make some simple plans and establish routines, to umm… cope with this. Like visits to the local minimall, which is partially air-conditioned.
I’m glad I gave up smoking a couple of years ago.

Hiatus for the blog

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:54:19 +0100

I posted in my sort of officially official blog that I’m putting it on hiatus for the time being.
Not really sure when or if I’ll revive it. This place sort of suits me better.
Being a complete Tumblr freak probably reinforces it.

Kisa Naumova (Kisa.tumblr.com) designed the basic theme here which fits nicely with the Web tab inworld. Which is what I like a lot, integration between in and outworlds. I have a Twitter feed there, a presentation and this one.
Check my profile next time you’re inworld. Maybe you’ll get a few ideas for your own profile. That web tab is an underused resource. :)

Back from vacation

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 11:19:09 +0100

Had some great days and great seafood up north, with the long missed sea breezes caressing.. or hitting.. your face.

Back home now, still half and half on vacation, sort of. Right now, I think I am pondering any future directions of my existence inworld. With a buggier viewer that gets worse for each release candidate, it feels like the options are becoming a bit limited.

But we’ll see how it turns out.
I mean, everything has turned out so far in the past. One way or another.

On Vacation

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 10:27:47 +0100

Between July 1st (2008-07-01 09:00 GMT/UTC) and July 18th (2008-07-18 18:00 GMT/UTC), I am travelling.
This means that my access to the Net is limited and sporadic at best, to basically non-existent at worst. Which includes mobile internet access, as well.

If you will send me an IM during this period, I will most likely never see it, as they will cap. You can drop me a notecard, and let us hope asset servers will not bungle that one up.

Have a nice June!

Tea time at Skies of Tomorrow: The chair and table, well,...

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 09:49:00 +0100

Tea time at Skies of Tomorrow: The chair and table, well, everything, is in fact linked to each other, and set to temp. So I rez, sit and when I get up, poof. Radio is intrasim scripted, lantern voice controlled, the small speaker on the radio displays my latest tweets (courtesy of Ordinal’s twitter badge), and so on.

Skies of Tomorrow: Preparing to take off

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 09:47:14 +0100

Skies of Tomorrow: Preparing to take off

At Home 3: My simple house has two floors, the upper one being...

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:20:12 +0100

At Home 3: My simple house has two floors, the upper one being my “private” area. It’s divided into a living/relax room and this one, a sort of working area. Standing by the work bench gives you a rather nice view out over the Caledon Firth.

At Home 2: My simple house has two floors, the upper one being...

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:20:10 +0100

At Home 2: My simple house has two floors, the upper one being my “private” area. It’s divided into a living/relax room, which is shown here and a sort of working area.

At Home 1: My simple house has two floors, the upper one being...

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:20:02 +0100

At Home 1: My simple house has two floors, the upper one being my “private” area. It’s divided into a living/relax room, which is shown here and a sort of working area.

My Life, My Wings

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 20:52:22 +0100

I am a mercenary, not a number in the ranks.
However, my loyalty is to the outfit, not the pay.

I crave not rank, recognition, nor medals.
I fly because I belong to the skies, not in pursuit of glory.

Sin “Biggles” Trenton

The Strong, Mighty & Snivelling Slave Lords of Gor.

Fri, 16 May 2008 14:16:00 +0100

Yesterday, I met yet another one inworld.
This encounter was a bit different, however, since after my taunting, and probably because I don’t look like being one bit into fantasy combat, we decided to have an impromptu duel.

Of course, I didn’t have the Gor combat system (though I know the Caledon Loch Avie system is based on it). But we had several others in common.
On his suggestion, we decided to go with a classical, C:SI.

Anyway, he was one of those classical, oversized, over-muscled (at least avatarwise), Conanish Mighty Slave Lords of Gor. That knows how to Dominate a real woman (we all know that real women actually want and need to be dominated, right?)

But, wow.
I’ve met many whiny types in various combat settings. In fact, that’s where you met most of them, crying foul or finding excuses, when beaten.
But the Mighty Lords of Gor must be in the top league.
They truly are a bunch of whiny, snivelling wussies, if you happen to spank them.

“I wasn’t prepared!”
Funny, the call RDY! is widely acknowledged in most other systems.
And he did use it . Maybe in Gor, it means “Can someone give me a cup of coffee, please?” or “Mum has left the room now.”

“I didn’t know you could do that!”
Well you do now, since I hit you with it.
Biggles friendly hint #68: When reading instructions, scroll down.
Biggles friendly hint #72: Practice.

“I’m not used to this system!”
We agreed to it, before we started. If you had any second thoughts, be adult enough to voice them before we start, kthxbai.

“My screen froze!”
Unless your on a mega, uber, multi comp with dual core, it happens to all of us. Live with it. The rest of us do.

No wonder they need hordes of submissive slave girls telling how mighty, strong and virile they are, since they are obviously unable to live up to it themselves.

And even less of a surprise they only stick to their own sims, lest they’d face any real challenges.

Augmentation vs Immersion: The debate that never was

Thu, 15 May 2008 18:23:19 +0100

Augmentation vs Immersion: The debate that never was

SL Viewer 1.20 RC6: I am experiencing weird “planes”...

Sat, 10 May 2008 19:47:25 +0100

SL Viewer 1.20 RC6: I am experiencing weird “planes” of textures shooting around the screen as I move. These appeared in an earlier RC as well. They do not always appear and tend to flicker occasionally. Am I the only one to have these?

Making Aviation History

Tue, 06 May 2008 09:03:37 +0100

Well, not what one may expect, I think.

It’s getting more and more borked for me, trying to do anything inworld, since a few viewer updates ago.
I can seldom fly, constant screen freezes, after about one hour, my PC’s virtual memory is “depleted”, and so on. There is no longer any joy in building or scripting, since 60% of the time in building seems to be about trying to beat the viewer into making something happening.

And since I don’t have one of those top end, yaya-cool comps, nor will be able to afford one for a long time, the prospect of things getting worse, with every blinged feature LL is adding, I’d say prospects are not looking good.

I am not fed up with SL, on the contrary. But I am getting fed up with spending 90% of the time trying to open doors, walk across a room, turn around, etc.

So, in order to prepare for the day I can no longer log in, I am thinking of getting as many pics as possible from inworld, of my planes, friends, etc. Pity I can’t use Windlight, but maybe I drop by an internet cafe, there is one in town which is more of a gaming centre, so their machines are more upscale.

I will have a shot at the latest Nicholaz viewer, hoping for the best. It has helped in the past with earlier versions.

From the Faith Department: NODaLUCoPW.FSM

Thu, 01 May 2008 13:00:00 +0100

Apart from being an atheist, I am also a member of the Disuntied Church of FSM.

This is the inofficial name, but since there is no official name for this congregation, the other inofficial name is “Newly Old Discordant and Largely Untied Church of Pastafaris W. Flying Spaghetti Monster”, usually abbrevated NODaLUCoPW.FSM. Some other abbrevations have been used as well, for instance, SKÅLDINFAN being quite popular for a short while. The suggested abbrevation PIZZAHUT never seemed to catch on, however.

The members of the Disuntied Church of FSM are Pastafarians, members of the global Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. However, they also have clear elements of Discordianism added to their worship.

The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster provides a reasonable theory of how the Flying Spaghetti Monster is our Creator and through theoretical evidence, similar to those used by advocates of the Christian theory of “Intelligent Design”, shows that the Church has just a viable claim to authority as the “Intelligent Design” movement.

Unfortunately, the element of Discordianism tends to disenable all kinds of logical reasoning in this particular sect, which is evident in both the abbrevation(s) and the name of the congregation itself. The “W.” in the name is not a fixed word, but is expected by the members to be decided on what it stands for. Suggested examples by Church Youngers are: Worshipping, Wondering, , Waiting, Whistling, Walking, or What’s for lunch? That the word starts with a W is not a requirement, but wholly optional. One of the conFounded Fathers personally favoured “Äppelmust”, because it was such a nice word.

But even if having Discordant influences they are very happy and loving people and no human being has ever been killed in the name of this peace-loving religion.

A central concept, apart from acknowledging the possibility that the Flying Spaghetti Monster is actually the Creator of the universe, is an individual’s pursue for enlightenment. A Disuntied Church member refers to this as Wattment, not enlightenment. To discover something previous unknown to the person or to find a correlation that defies a scientific explanation, but still makes sense (like the correlation between global warming and lack of pirates) are considered gaining Wattment, or Watt, for short.

The official census of membership as of January 2007 was 418 members.
However, 1 of them may be unaware of being a member, since he was quite drunk at the time he joined and 414 are the conFounded Father Henrik’s imaginary friends.

Popular expressions of the congregation are:

Pastafaris disuntie!
We who are about to draw squirrels, salute you in a jovial manner.
RAmen! (General Church of FSM)

To become a member of the Disuntied Church of FSM is quite easy. In fact, some members (conFounded Father Sin and Imaginary friend #273) claim on Wednesdays that everyone alive and in possession of either a finger, a toe, a tongue or a nose (attached being optional. Possession of either is also optional, in fact) is a member, whether aware of the fact or not. To become an explicit member one has to open a door, as a symbol of inititiation, walk through it, close it behind and state “Well, that was it, then.” If unable to walk through doors, assistance or any other symbolic gesture, like turning the page in a book or take a nap are equally valid alternatives.

For more information about the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster: http://www.venganza.org/

You can also check up the entry about it in Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Spaghetti_Monster

Discordianism (Wikipedia entry): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discordianism

Other Links of Possible Interest:

Russell’s teapot, the great philosopher’s analogy about scepticism: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell%27s_teapot

Faceborked Initiate Deletion

Thu, 01 May 2008 11:14:37 +0100

Facebook is simply one of the biggest things when it comes to the “Web 2.0”, which unlike the old web 1.0, which was mainly about information, is supposed to be about social interaction and networking.
Millions have signed up for a Facebook account, and a majority of my non-Slovak friends as well.

And me too, only you will not find me with my real name there, but as Sin Trenton, my “nom de clavier”*, so to speak.
For which I am actually getting more and more thankful that I used, when signing up.

I can’t say I’ve been using Facebook extensively, the constant requests from friends to install small applications with “Rate your best friends”, “Chase zombies”, “Which moviestar are you like?”, “Send a digital beer to all your friends” and whatnots are just annoying.

And do you really want to put out all your data about yourself, like that? Even if you think you are protecting yourself by clicking that only your friends can see it.

Here are two articles about FB, one from The Guardian and a video plus article from BBC Technology.

The Guardian: With friends like these..
BBC (article): Identity ‘at risk’ on Facebook
BBC (video): BBC exposes Facebook flaw

If you have an account and want to truly delete all data, you need to check this page. Simply deactivating your account is of no use, since Facebook keeps all data about you (and may have logged your surfing behaviour for a while as well. You give them the right to, when you agree to the Terms of Service).

Antisocial: How do I delete my Facebook account?

* “nom de clavier”, keyboard name instead of pen name. A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author or their publishers to conceal their identity.