Change of Name

Sorry for changing my URL. I felt like the old one "erics-life-blog" was lame and un-Eric, haha. So, after a long deliberation, I decided on HumanGPS. As cheesy as it may be, I feel like it's more "Eric-like" and descriptive of my personality. Not to mention it's probably more creative and easier to remember too.

Anyways...my apologies with bothering everyone with another blog to follow/update...this URL is for good.

September 26, 1981

As most of you know, Friday was my birthday. I decided to look up stuff that happened on my birthday, cause, why not? Here's some things that were interesting to me:

Events

1508 - Sir Francis Drake circumnavigates the globe.
1789 - Thomas Jefferson is appointed the first United States Secretary of State, John Jay is appointed the first Chief Justice of the United States, Samuel Osgood is appointed the first United States Postmaster General, and Edmund Randolph is appointed the first United States Attorney General.
1908 - Ed Reulbach becomes the first and only pitcher to throw two shutouts in one day against the Brooklyn Dodgers.
1914 - The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is established by the Federal Trade Commission Act.
1973 - Concorde makes its first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic in record-breaking time.
1981 - Baseball: Nolan Ryan sets a Major League record by throwing his fifth no-hitter. (The exact day of my birth!)

Births

1774 - Johnny Appleseed, American environmentalist (d. 1847)
1888 - T. S. Eliot, American-born British writer and poet, Nobel laureate (d. 1965)
1914 - Jack LaLanne, American fitness, exercise and nutritional expert
1948 - Olivia Newton-John, English-born Australian singer and actress
1966 - Jillian Barberie, Canadian actress and television hostess
1968 - James Caviezel, American actor
1976 - Michael Ballack, German footballer
1981 - Serena Williams, American tennis player (The exact day of my birth!)
1981 - Christina Milian, American actress and singer (The exact day of my birth!)

Deaths

1902 - Levi Strauss, American clothing manufacturer (b. 1829)
2006 - Byron Nelson, American golfer (b. 1912)
2008 - Paul Newman, American actor (b. 1925)

Android & the G1

Yesterday T-Mobile released the "G1", which is the first cell phone to be based on Google's new mobile operating system, Android. Now, some people seem to think, or would like to think, that this is finally an iPhone "killer". But a quick look will show that the G1 has hardly stepped on the iPhone's toes, let alone killed it.

Now, I obviously haven't actually seen one in person yet, but here are my first impressions:

Pros:

Touch screen
Real internet
Wifi capable
Slide out keyboard
Runs Android OS, which is open source so anyone can develop any kind of application
3 megapixel camera
Cut & Paste
MMS

Cons:

Cost - $179 (You'll see why this is expensive in a minute)
Only 1 GB of memory???
No Exchange support
Only plays DRM free music (and no iTunes support)
Slide out keyboard (more moving parts, higher likelihood of breaking)
Does not support standard headphone jack
Looks tacky, IMO
Somewhat bulky
No native video player
Open source potentially creates compatibility issues with applications

Now, being an iPhone user myself, I'm glad to see some competition, as hopefully this will make Apple develop some new features. BUT, the more I find out about the G1, the more it seems to be just a souped-up phone, and not an actual smart phone. Compared to an iPhone, or even a Blackberry, the G1 is greatly lacking, IMO. Especially when you consider the business world. With no Exchange support this phone won't even get in the door for the corporate world. However, to their credit, they touted the G1 to be more of a consumer device than a business device.

In summary, if you're looking for a potentially cool and fun toy, then go for it, get the G1. But if you're looking for a true smart phone, and a more practical solution to every day tasks, go with the iPhone (or at least a Blackberry).

Even MS uses Macs

Since we're on the topic of Miscrosft's commercials, (I meant to post this a couple of days ago, but I forgot) it turns out that not only did they copy Apple's ad campaign, but they used Macs in the process. You would figure they would use their own in-house software, but apparently they don't even like it! I guess it makes sense though. I mean, if you're going to copy someone, why hold anything back? Haha. Anyways...here's the link: Microsoft Uses Macs

Oh Windows...

I've heard that being copied is the best form of flattery. If that's true, then Windows must really think Apple is the bomb! They already tried to copy the iPod with the Zune, and now they have made a near blatant copy borrowed from Apple's "Get a Mac" commercials. Come on Microsoft. You're telling me with all of those BILLIONS of dollars you can't find someone that has an original idea? Microsoft's "newest" commercial is shown below.

Just when you think you've seen it all...

One of the dumbest things I've seen in awhile...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3560377

Unbelievable. I love the old quote from the coach though!

"...coach Marvin Lewis -- who dislikes Johnson's attention-getting stunts -- referred to the receiver as "Ocho Psycho."

I love it. "Ocho Psycho". Now that's funny!

Dancing

This is hilarious. I will give you $10 if you can watch this and not smile. You can learn more about this guy at: Where the hell is Matt.com


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

The Cubicle

I heard on NPR yesterday that it was supposedly the 40th anniversary of the "Action Office", or what eventually evolved into the modern day cubicle. The Action Office was invented by Robert Propst, who worked for Herman Miller, a manufacturer of office and home furniture based in Zeeland, MI. (See map.) The first prototype was made in 1965, and three years later in 1968 they began production.

Ironically, Robert Propst's intention for the Action Office was to make a more user-friendly and inviting office atmosphere, and was actually not very efficient at using space. However, changes over time led to smaller cubicles that utilized space in a better fashion, eventually leading to what we now have today.

So next time you find yourself admiring the blue/grey tones of your cube, remember to send your thanks to good ol' Michigan for another great invention. :)


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Hiccups

I've had them literally almost all day today. It's to the point where they almost hurt. How annoying.

iPhone

I got the new iPhone on Saturday. It's pretty dope. They come in black or white. I got the white one. I'm not racist though. The black looks pretty slick too, but something was calling my name about the white one. I wish everyone I know had one.
The bottom image is an actual screen-capture of my home screen.