The week was Pure AwesomeSauce.

It was liberating, free. I was untied from most communication. No @ replies, no-one “liking” my statuses every few minutes. At one point I even found myself reading a newspaper at the coffee shop. Not bad.

I spent many solemn moments with myself, unable to contact the outside world [apart from the archaic SMS technology on my phone]. My mind would stop to ponder about the most unusual things [what is the meaning of life, why is the sky blue, is there a good recycled toilet-paper option?]. I was alone with myself, Just me and my thoughts.

But was my week more productive, was it “better” without twitter? I would have to say no. I quite enjoy my twitter friendships. The jokes, the long @reply trails, the informative articles and blogs. I love finding out whats happening on the other side of the world, as it happens.

Sure, I didnt wake up to a plethora of messages each morning [which was rather liberating]. But I also didn’t get to connect, love and grow with the people in my world like I normally do. In my view it can be fun to know what movie your boss just walked out of, and it certainly is great to follow your leader’s messages throughout the week and not just on a sunday.

Twitter adds value to my life. It’s the connection to my friends when I normally wouldn’t be able to connect.

Its the sauce on my steak. It’s the cheese in my cake. Its a little extra spice that makes existence extra-nice. Its the… well you get the idea.

Verdict: Im twitter-whipped [twipped?]

Oh, and here are some of the things I didn’t get to share with you over the last week:

- I said HELLO to a lady walking her dog outside our house. She ignored me. I said HELLO again, a little louder this time. She proceeded to turn her head way from me.

My imagination visualised me reversing over her pooch with my mitsubishi mirage. My logic kicked in and told me not to, however pleasing it may be.

- I found a new Jason Mraz album [Its not “new” per se, but it was to me] [itunes — tracks 13 to 26]

- I had several hundred philosophical thoughts worth sharing. I have since forgotten almost all of them.

- I rendered a video with media offline. it went live. snap. quality control?

- A dead man put out a movie. #zombie? #MJ

- #NoGlee #NoHouse = #SadAlex

- “thankfully we’ve only got lower limb injuries” — [news.com.au]

- The internet had a birthday

- I lost my “Blu ray virginity” to star-trek. it was FLIPPING AWESOME.

- I NEED one of these [immerz.com]

- I definatly DO NOT need to go bunjee jumping in Acapulco

1. “How would you like your hair cut today, sir?”. Is the one-word sentence “shorter” an acceptable answer? I would imagine most men would have no idea how to describe their desired hair style [or if they know their desired hairstyle]. Occasionally the hairdresser will produce a sheet of haistyles (modelled on people who have perfect bone structure). Dismayed by the pictures [“these wouldn’t look good on me”], I describe “shorter” using phrases like “not too short on top, short on the sides, can you thin it out?”
2. Clipper numbers. “Will a number 4 be OK?”. I don’t know. Its just a number. Am I supposed to know the answer to this? Furthermore, is it OK to request a size 4 and then discover that it needs to be a 3 later on in the haircut, is that offensive?
3. Side burns - Do i keep them or get rid of them? I mean, who thinks about their side-burns? Its not exactly something you ponder each day [Oh…look at his side-burns, I WISH that I had side-bruns like that!]
4. The paper-ring around the neck. It’s just a little too creepy, and that scraping noise it makes when it scratches your beard is INTOLERABLE. Like fingernails on a chalkboard. <sarcasm>Although the cape is über-stylish. I have to hold myself back from enquiring where I could purchase one.</sarcasm>
5. “How does this look?” the haridresser will enquire, while holding a mirror at the back of my head. This is the ONLY time I ever see the back of my head, I’m not even sure what it’s supposed to look like. I try to look at my hair but can only wonder where that extra-freckel came from. And before I know it the surreal moment is over and the mirror is whisked-away.
6. “What kind of product would you like in your hair?” — uhh.…pick one. I’m not going to use it again anyway. Do I LOOK like a man who uses product?
7. A new haircut never looks good. Ever. The dissatisfaction level with the end result is always high (but not high enough to complain). Its too short, too long, the sides arent just right. I decide that it will be OK, it will grow out soon anyway.
8. “Did you get a haircut?” friends enquire. No. I have a rare degenerative disease where my hair will shorten itself periodically.
9. Two weeks later my hair looks great. Always. This is part of  newtons-law.
10. Three weeks later I dont care.
11. Four weeks later people (those people) start making comments about the fact that I need a haircut.

There are support-groups for people like me, who are traumatised by the process of a bad-haircut. Would anyone like to join me?

Investigators claim to have recorded almost 100,000 instances of iiNet users making available online unauthorised copies of films and TV programs from the film studio’s catalogues, lawyers for the film industry said in court today…

“By making those films available in those…instances, iiNet customers invited any and every user of the freely available BitTorrent software program to download any and every part of those infringing copies,” the industry’s lawyers said in opening remarks.

AFACT accuses iiNet’s customers of using bittorrent traffic to “steal” copyrighted content, and proposes that iiNet should filter this traffic and disconnect users who file-share. This case is the first of its kind in Australia, and will set the legal precedent for cases in the future. If iiNet lose this one, then most Australian Bittorrent users will have to find a different solution.

Is it morally acceptable to filter internet traffic? As an internet user, you are not paying for access to “the internet”, you are paying for access to a global network of protocols and equipment. This equipment joins together to create the internet. When certain providers start blocking certain pieces of software and protocols, the integrity of the internet is challenged. Americans in particular have problems with the concept of network filtering, because it imposes on their institutional right to free-speech. (After all, isnt internet traffic only a means of transmitting information, regardless of protocol?)

NET NEUTRALITY [wikipedia] A neutral broadband network is one that is free of restrictions on content, sites, or platforms, on the kinds of equipment that may be attached, and on the modes of communication allowed, as well as one where communication is not unreasonably degraded by other communication streams.

Blocking bittorent is only a band-aid fix for a much larger problem (the equivelant of a government blocking white vans from driving on the roads, “because most drugs are transported in white vans, and stopping white vans from driving on our roads will eliminate the drug problem”).

No matter what happens, piracy will only continue to grow in popularity, there will always be new ways to share content. Most internet users will remember napster [wikipedia], and what happened to illegal file sharing when it was shut down? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. File sharing is more popular today that it has ever been, which leads us to ask, will shutting down bittorrent traffic stop file sharing?

I would have to say: no. There are always new technologies, new workarounds and legal loop-holes. Downloaders will always find a way to download. And yet we are posed with the question: Why will file sharing continue to grow regardless of bittorrent’s future?

Most people I know do not shoplift, do not steal cars and most certainly do not snatch-bags. Yet, many of my friends share files. The law is supposed to be a moral reflection of society, laws regarding file sharing are supposed to represent the morals of its end-users. But here we are, downloading entire Michael Jackson discographies and new release blockbusters with a single click. Many bittornent users would tell you that Paying $44 for a BluRay movie is ridiculous, and that the money-hungry corporations and stars should sell their works cheaper (I bet people wouldn’t bother downloading new-release movies if they were sold for $9.99 at the local Coles)

So on one hand we have money-hungry multi-billion dollar companies “defending their rights”, and on the other side the end users are defending their right to freedom-of-speech and network-neutrality. Downloaders are going to continue downloading music, movies and TV shows, because on a moral level they diagree with the law and do not believe it to be fair.

Will the legal system sell-out to corporations? After all, the legal system is supposed to serve the people, not the corporations. The Australian legal system ESPECIALLY does not serve hollywood or the RIAA.

Also worthy of  watching: The IT crowd: File sharing

This is all my personal opionion, I do not condone file sharing in any way.

I do condone questioning the status-quo.

Client: “i checked with a friend and they said there definitely IS a rainbow effect in photoshop, why did you tell us there wasn’t one?”

Client: “more fonts. use more fonts!”
Designer: “ummm… how many do you want?”
Client: “how many do you have?”

Client: “can you guys make it more like a power-point presentation, you know, with the sliding text stuff and all?”

Client: “We want a website that can play DVD quality video, but we don’t want to use streaming video and the load time must be zero.”

Designer: “That’s impossible. Everything has a load time. DVD quality runs about 100 megs a minute.”

Client: “We’ll take our business elsewhere…”

Client: “i want it tuesday”
it was monday.

That last one is my favourite.

[Kudos to Glenn for sharing the link // also check out mindscapefilms.com]

// FONTS //

Fonts are notorious for slowing down OSX. Font files become corrupt or cache files become invalid, which slows down everything on your system. Clearing out invalid fonts and the font cache will bring a noticable boost to system performance. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open up Font Book from your applications folder.
2. Make sure you are on the “all fonts” pane and then select all the fonts (cmd + a)*
3. Go to the File menu and select “Validate Fonts”. Font Book will now attempt to validate the font files installed on your system. When Font Book has finished validating fonts, you will notice “minor problems” and “serious problems”.
4. From the drop-down menu select “warnings” — The list now only contains fonts with problems
5. Tick the checkbox that says “select all fonts” then click “Remove Checked”. A dialogue box appears asking if you wish to proceed, click “remove”. You may need to enter an administrator password to continue.

[View with PicLens]

Cleaning the font cache // Cleaning out bad fonts is only fixing half the problem. OSX still has cache files referencing to those invalid fonts. We need to remove the font cache files and get OSX to rebuild them based off the valid fonts.

1. Download and install Font Finagler [3.9mb]. This is a free application.
2. Open font finagler, click OK when a dialogue appears warning you about disabled fonts.
3. Click “Inspect Font Cache Files”
4. Select all files that come up in the list, and click “Clean Font Cache Files”.
5. A dialogue appears stating that you will need to restart your computer immediately after the operation completes, click “Continue Cleaning”
6. Restart your computer

[View with PicLens]

// VERIFY PERMISSIONS //

Invalid file and folder permissions can be the cause of a slow computer. Repair disk permissions using the following steps:

1. Open Disk Utility from the applications folder
2. Ensure your startup disk is selected.
3. Press the “Repair Permissions” button.
4. Go grab a coffee, this can take a while.
5. When complete restart the computer.

[View with PicLens]

// UNINSTALL ANTIVIRUS AND FIREWALL PRODUCTS//

So, when you were using a PC you were told that the would would end if you didn’t have a firewall +antivirus application installed. While this is the case with windows, this is NOT the case with OSX. There is only a handful of viruses for mac, and apple is pretty good with software updates and patches.

Products like Norton System utilities or Antivirus do little more than take up hard drive space and hog CPU power. The best thing to do is uninstall these applications.

// GOOD HOUSEKEEPING //

Here are some more tips that will help keep your mac running smoothly

1. Remove old and unused applications
2. Perform a full system update.
3. Ensure you are running OSX 10.5 Leopard. If not, go buy it. $129 @ the apple store. Also keep in mind that Snowleopard  is going to be released soon, and it boasts to be more stable and much faster than Leopard, so it will definitely be worth the $29 upgrade price.
4. Remove unused user accounts
5. Remove unused Language Packs (using ONYX)
6. Keep the desktop clean (many people I talk to say that this helps and I agree)
7. Empty the trash regularly.
8. Turn off unused Bluetooth and Wifi devices (this can be done from within system preferences)
9. Disable unused animations (eg the Dock reflection, taskbar transperancy, dock “genie” effect) from within system preferences
10. Turn off unnecessary dashboard widgets.
11. Keep at least 10% of your startup disk space free.
12. Remove unwanted startup items (from system preferences > accounts > login items)
13. Reformat. Nothing beats a good old clean out, backup, erase and format. You will be surprised how much difference it makes and you will thank yourself for taking the time and effort to do it.

And there you have it, 15 ways to speed up OSX. Please leave me your feedback, and any other suggestions you have!

ENFJ (Extraversion, iNtuition, Feeling, Judgment)

You are warm, empathetic, responsive, and responsible. You are highly attuned to the emotions, needs, and motivations of others. You find potential in everyone, and want to help others fulfill their potential. You may act as a catalyst for individual and group growth. You are loyal, and are responsive to praise and criticism. You are sociable, facilitate others in a group, and provide inspiring leadership.

Famous people with your same ENFJ personality include: Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, Dick Van Dyke, Diane Sawyer, Peyton Manning, Pete Sampras, Johnny Depp, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

My workmates complain that I move files, or worse, delete them. I dont deny it, often my response is “well it wasnt in the right place!”

My old blog frustrated me. Not the blog itself, but just the fact that it was so “off-to-the-side-and-out-of-sight”. It was just another part of my online personality: twitter, facebook, mobileme, tumblr and wordpress.

That blog has died my friends.

I now have an integrated “lifestream” feed on my blog page [okay, so all this hype for a lifestream panel]. I used to use tumblr to share links to cool pages, twitter to share witty remarks + inisghtful thoughts and facebook to share photos [and status updates with not-so-web-savvy friends].

Now when i find a useful link, I post it here. Attach a small caption explaining my opinion, and press share. Twitter and facebook are updated, and my friends can also take a moment to peruse my latest twitter feed, other useful links + posts and my photos.

No more having 4 different services to serve the same purpose. It is all coming together here. Its not quite finished yet, but almost.

You can expect to find more links, more news, more images, more tips, here. Along with more of me. More organised.

More OCD compatible.

For example, I want to upgrade to the latest relase of the iPhone software, but because I have a beta software version installed, itunes will not update the software without going into DFU mode and manually updating the software.

1. Turn phone off (if the phone is already off, there is no need to turn it on then off again).
2. Have your trusty iPhone USB cable plugged into your computer and close-by for easy reach. Don’t plug it in yet.
3. Hold down the home button (the round one) — Don’t let go!
4. After a few seconds of holding the home button, insert the iPhone USB cable. Don’t let go of the home button during this entire process.

After 10–15 seconds you should see the iphone screen turn purple/black with a picture of a USB cable + itunes logo (First generation iphones will display an exclamation point). From here, itunes will launch, alert you to an iphone detected in restore mode, follow the prompts to restore and wa-la! Brand new iPhone (well, at least on the inside).

[View with PicLens]

(Also, what do you think of the new autumn theme?)

Yes, you CAN believe your eyes. Coldplay have released their newest album leftrightleftrightleft for free on their website. Below is the press release from coldplay.com

Good morning. The free download of Coldplay’s new live album, LeftRightLeftRightLeft, is now available here on Coldplay.com. Click here to download your free copy.

Today is also the day of the band’s first North American tour date, in West Palm Beach, where the first copies of the LRLRL CD will be given away.
The CD will then be handed out to all fans at every remaining Coldplay live show in 2009 (apart from Festival shows). The free download will also be available from Coldplay.com until the band play their final 2009 show.
We hope you like it.
Anchorman

So, without further ado, go to this page, punch in your email address and hit download. Its 54mb of audio-goodness purely for your enjoyment!