The End...

Well it was a good run last year, but during this school year I've decided to head another direction. SpeakGood is officially dead.

Please check out my new site, www.college-computing.com. It is a computer blog/tutorial/review site geared towards the college student.

Thanks for all of your support.

Facebook as a news source

If you are a Facebook user, you definitely have to "appreciate" the fact that whatever happens on your profile qualifies as news and is treated as such.

Case in point, have you ever noticed the number of responses that occur when a relationship that was on Facebook ends? It can be rather overwhelming. Or when it's somebody's birthday, that's a sight to see. On my birthday for instance, I had over 70 people post on my wall for no other reason than to say the obvious.

I'm not saying that it is bad that Facebook is taking over the lives of millions of people throughout the world. But in the bigger picture it is getting to be more and more pathetic that this is how we gather news about our friends.

I'm sure everyone who reads this has "Facebook stalked" someone. We all do. We want to know if you're single, who your friends are, and what you say to other people. After all, Facebook is the all-knowing and all-powerful website on the Internet.

Nick triumphantly walked into our room after class today with a great idea. Someone who is a devout Christian or Liberal or Republican, etc. should change their profile to say they are Atheist or Communist. Or better yet, perhaps switch your gender preferences around. Give the experiment 48 hours or so to cycle through Facebook and gather your results. I bet you'll get some interesting posts on your wall.

My point is that Facebook is not and should not be the final tell all for everything that happens in someone's life. We survived forever without it; let's not let it become the sole source for everything news.

King of the World more than just a sports book

Hand me a sports themed book and I'm sold. I love pretty much every sports book I have ever read and I was ecstatic when I was assigned to read King of the World by David Remnick, a book that chronicles the life of boxing god Muhammad Ali.

King of the World surely didn't disappoint. In fact, it far exceeded my expectations. As the saying goes, never judge a book by its cover. I went into the book expecting a history of Ali; instead I got so much more.

Sure, the book covers boxing history. It covers the heavyweights that came before Ali and the situations surrounding them. Floyd Patterson, Sonny Liston, it's all there. The first half of the book is more dedicated to them than it is to Ali.

Ali's prestigious career is covered as well. However, what I was impressed with was the amount of Ali's background that was provided.

Muhammad Ali was a person you either loved or hated. He had an extremely controversial attitude and his conversion to Islam was even more so. What I really enjoyed about the book was the depictions of Ali's relationships: first with Malcolm X and then with Elijah Muhammed.

I may have learned more about Islam from this book than any where else. Not only that, I got to enjoy reading about the early history of Cassius Clay (Ali's birth name) and his road to heavyweight supremacy.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a fun and informative read.

The future of SpeakGood

Hello everyone!

If anyone has been keeping track, SpeakGood just crossed the 100 post mark last week. I'm proud to say that we've reached 100 posts because this blog is something that I value very much. Even writing four times a week, it still takes takes almost 6 months to end up at 100 posts.

With that said, I'm going to discuss the future of SpeakGood.

I'll be completely honest and say I'm not terribly happy with my writing as of late. It's just lacking something in my opinion. With that in mind I'm going to make a couple changes to how things are done around here.

For starters, I'm going to drop the amount of posts that I do a week. Four posts a week is tough, especially doing them back to back to back to back like I do. From now I'm I think I'm going to cut it down to two posts half a week apart.

It is my goal that reducing the amount of posts will allow me to put out some better, more interesting work. In addition, I will probably try to secure some other writers as well.

I'm done writing for this week. But, look for something to come out early next week. I'm excited about SpeakGood's new direction and I hope you are too.

XP on low cost laptops will hurt Microsoft in long run

Fans of Windows XP got a boost this week as Microsoft announced that the elder statesmen of their operating systems will live on as a part of low cost ultra mobile PCs.

I've read some places that Asus expects to sell more of their popular EeePC's with XP than with the Linux operating system that they originally offered with. Obviously, customers will still have a choice between both models.

Keeping Windows XP around can only hurt Microsoft. Basically, they've proven to the world that Vista is too resource needy to compete in the low end market. Instead, they want to push their "old" software onto new hardware just to compete with cheap Linux based computers.

Furthermore, eventually consumers are going to realize that Linux offers as much, if not more, functionality than what XP does. XP itself is pretty basic, especially considering Microsoft will probably strip it down even more to meet the space demands that the small storage drives of these laptops require. And Linux's price of $0 fits the budget of almost everyone.

Linux is very resource friendly and is extremely functional out of the box. Many specialized distros have emerged to fit the needs of people who use laptops like the EeePC. Mark my words, once people see that it can be functional they will be willing to switch.

Until Microsoft acknowledges Vista as a flop (which will probably never happen) they will continue to lose ground to Linux and other alternative operating systems. Once they release Windows 7, I may have to eat my words, but until then the new computer fad will be to switch to Linux.

Microsoft's domination of the computer industry is on weak legs to say the least.

Why the Tigers slow start is not alarming

The Detroit Tigers were supposed to be the best. They were supposed to score thousands of runs. They were supposed to be unbeatable.

They are currently 0-6.

Granted the six losses are pretty ugly. Losing three to the Royals is disgraceful at best, but the White Sox are competitive.

They're playing like the Tigers that lost 119 games just a handful of years ago.

Fear not Tigers fans. It's only a rough patch. The wonderful thing about baseball is that it will all work itself out.

Take last year for example. The Tigers exploded onto the scene in the first half of the year just to falter in the second half. This year it's going to be the opposite.

By the second half of the year we should get relievers Fernando Rodney and Joel Zumaya back. Voila, the relief pitching is shored up.

As the weather gets warmer the bats will warm up. Problem solved.

I'll be honest. This first week has been rough. But I'm not worried.

Major tech companies out of touch with consumers

It is unfortunate how often the consumer gets the short end of the stick with technology companies. For example, Apple restricting the iPhone to AT&T's network only. Or companies that provide no Linux support whatsoever.

Add another to the list: Creative screws over smart customer who fixes terrible Vista drivers.

Apparently, it is okay that Creative disables advertised functions in their own sound cards. Heck, they even acknowledge that it's their right:

"If we choose to develop and provide host-based processing features with certain sound cards and not others, that is a business decision that only we have the right to make." -Phil O'Shaughnessy, Creative VP of Corporate Communications

From what I'm reading these functions should have been working in Vista even before Daniel_K started writing his own driver packages. What he was doing was simply providing the functions that they sound cards should have had out of the box.

Creative is claiming that he was taking money for unlocking functions that shouldn't have been unlocked. Daniel_K claims he was taking the donations to buy more hardware so he could write more drivers. Personally, I believe him.

The major problem with Creative and other large technology companies is that they think they have a right to do whatever they want and totally forget about the consumer. Creative wants you to buy a cheap sound card with limited features and then make you upgrade and spend more of your hard earned cash later.

That's just wrong. Good job Daniel_K, keep it up. I wish I was savvy enough to understand how to do stuff like you do.

On the other hand, Creative better learn that they're alienating their consumer base. If there's one awesome thing about the Internet, it is that it takes almost no time for a mini-uprising to happen. I can guarantee that I'm not the only frustrated blogger today.

Web standards and browsers

I'm a freelance web designer in my spare time so I was ecstatic that one of the assignments for my Computer Science class was to create a Web site. In a matter of hours I had the general layout and a day or so later the site was what I would call finished.

Well, or at least I thought it was.

I tested it in several different browsers. And by several different browsers I mean a ton. Firefox, Opera, Flock, Internet Explorer 7, Internet Explorer 8 Beta, Maxthon, Safari, and even Swiftweasel. Frankly, the site looked terrific in all of them.

Unfortunately, I still had to consider Internet Explorer 6. For some odd reason GVSU has chosen to not upgrade the lab computers to IE7.

IE6 simply tears the site apart. PNG transparency support is flawed, and for some reason I cannot seem to get the site to center itself.

The Internet is the exact same no matter which computer you access it from. On modern hardware there should be no reason for web designers to have to code around browsers. It is ridiculous how much grief designers go through trying to get pages to look the same across browsers and platforms.

Thankfully today's newest browsers are about the same. Microsoft finally decide to wise up and fix Internet Explorer.

What makes no sense is that GVSU has not upgraded to IE7. And I believe the main reason is because of the BlackBoard software that the campus uses. We should get with the program and upgrade -- BlackBoard's terribly coded software should not stop us.

My Thought on the Stimulus Package

This past summer I worked on the line at Herman Miller. I earned enough to qualify for the $300 stimulus check. In general, I disagree with government activism; I find the government harms more than it helps in many cases. As a college student, though, I will not say no to free money. Nevertheless, the government will not send me a check this May so that I might help turn the economy around. My parents still claim me as a dependent, which disqualifies me to receive the check. Logic would say that my parents receive that $300 check, but when has the government followed logic? My parents will not receive an extra $300 for me because I am an adult. It would make sense that citizens between 18 and 22 would receive money to help the economy, because we generally need it most and are least responsible with it. This means that instead of saving it, we would spend it; which is what the government wants, more spending.

What happens when there is nothing

Do you ever watch the news when there has been nothing going on? They usually play up whatever does happen that day and then throw in some crappy feature story. It's tough to watch to be frank.

Today was that kind of day for SpeakGood. I swear, nothing caught my eye, there was no good news.

Instead, I'm going to treat you to a less crappy feature on how I choose what I write about on here. May Godspeed be with you as you embark on this journey.

Google is amazing. Most of my stories come from the iGoogle interface which I have tailored to show me several RSS feeds from the top news outlets in the country. Lately, my technology feed has been the most story laden, and I love writing about tech stuff.

Then comes the actually writing. The topic usually has to have some sort of an opinion for me to write about it. Very rarely do I ever post something just to post it - I'm going to let you know how I feel about it.

Surprisingly enough, most of my posts take less than 20 minutes to write. Even the extremely long ones only take a little longer timewise. I wish this was the case for every school paper I had to write. As it stands now I still haven't finished a history paper that I told myself to finish several nights ago.

Finally, the post is published. At this point, my beloved readers (that's you!) get to see my work in all of its glory. Shortly after I post I update my RSS feed so that the new post shows on my Facebook profile as well.

Whew... 10 minutes later and Thursday's post is done. Have a great weekend!

Letter discrimination is ridiculous

You know it happens.

If your last name starts with a letter at the end of the alphabet you know exactly what I'm talking about. Last in roll call, last in lines, last in almost everything just because of your last name.

I'll be honest, I was graced to have a last name that started with the letter E. Sure, it's not A, but its a lot closer to the front of the alphabet than X, Y, or Z are.

For the majority of my life I laughed at your end-of-the-alphabet last names. I was superior. I had the letter E on my side.

However, now I feel your pain.

GVSU decides that to be far they change the order of class scheduling so the first letter isn't necessarily first to schedule. In this case, next year's sophomores with last names that start with the letters A through E cannot schedule until the last day available.

I'm not used to such discrimination. I liked being first and I sure am having a hard time giving it up.

Now I'm the one being rediculed. Now I'm the one being picked last. Thanks to you letter discrimination, I've fallen from my pedestal and back among mere mortals.

Letter discrimination must be stopped. Or at least systems like Grand Valley's must be adopted earlier in life.

Maybe then I would be used to it.

A picture is worth a thousand words (and maybe an arrest?)

There is no denying that social networking Web sites like Facebook and MySpace are the most popular web hangouts of high school and college students alike. But what gets me is how dumb some of these students are.

It is astounding how many people post pictures of themselves drinking while underage. I know it happens, but that is not the surprising part. It's the logic (or lack there of) that drives someone to allow yourself to be photographed that baffles me. Furthermore, who in their right mind would post that on a public site like Facebook?

I had a friend in high school that was caught smoking marijuana because he let someone take a picture of him doing it. Long story short, the camera was lost and then found by a school administrator who found the pictures. To this day I have never understood his thought process -- why he would smoke marijuana to begin with or why he let a picture be taken.

It's kind of scary to think that our upcoming generation is not smart enough to realize that pictures can have these ramifications. Maybe we need to be taught some common sense.

As cheap as this sounds I always have felt that you could make a killing as a Facebook "rat". Basically the job would entail reporting underage drinking and saving the evidence to prove the case. I would never do it myself, but then again, someone probably will.

Hotmail, Safari, and Internet ethics

My opinion of the Internet is that it should be an open medium for sharing information. No one company should have dominance over the Internet, whether it be through browser software or through Web sites.

One of the major problems I've had while running Linux is that the "full" version of Windows Live Hotmail does not work correctly using the version of Firefox packaged with Ubuntu and other distros. Hotmail forces you to use it's "classic" version -- which is very flawed. Unfortunately, I sent out some badly formatted e-mails (they were rather important) because of this.

After searching the Internet for a while I ran across a solution involving modifying the browser headers that are sent to Hotmail. Essentially, I am tricking Hotmail to think I'm using a version of Firefox running under Windows. It's the only way I can reliably get Hotmail into its full featured mode.

I've read many posts that claim that it is Microsoft's right to shut out Linux users from using Hotmail. Perhaps it is, but I believe this goes against everything the Internet stands for. In no way should Microsoft be allowed to deny full features just because you're not using Windows. Web designers should not be able to create applications and Web sites that do not work in different browsers -- regardless of whether or not they are competition.

When I booted up into my XP partition the other day I was shocked to find out Apple had begun packaging Safari in with its iTunes updates. This is just as wrong as Hotmail not working in Linux without tricking the Web site.

It's unfortunate that iTunes updates are already 50+ MB, but then they want to throw in another huge file for the worthless piece of software that Apple calls a browser. Firefox has all the features that Safari has, is faster, and is a much smaller download file.

What gets me is that Apple is going to capitalize on people who don't understand computers. When these people go to update iTunes, they probably will download Safari without even realizing it. I have no problem with people using Safari, I just do not think they should be forced to use it (much like how Microsoft should not be allowed to bundle Internet Explorer with Windows).

The news that Safari 3.1 crashes on Windows XP does not help Apple out at all. Not only are they pushing software on users, the software crashes on the most popular Windows operating system.

The Internet is supposed to be OPEN. Companies like Microsoft and Apple must stop their monopolistic practices in regards to their policies governing the use of their products.

It's too bad the United States courts will not do anything to stop these companies. All we can hope for is that the European Union will.

How to make money blogging

Take this post with a grain of salt. We really make little money from this site so it's not like I'm a expert at the subject. However, when I was searching for this topic through Google, all I could find was recommendations from successful, money making bloggers. I personally think my views as a struggling part-time blogger are more relevant.

People start blogs for many different reasons. Some do it for love, some do it for money, and other reasons abound. I personally do it because it's fun and a great way to make sure my writing skills do not become rusty. Any money I make is a plus.

Before you start your blog, be prepared to have to work. SpeakGood is coming up on it's six month anniversary, and yet the largest number of viewers I've had in one day is 70 according to Google Analytics. On the plus side, it's way more than the five or so that we started out with.

Okay, now that you have heard my little spiel, here are some ways to earn some dough:

Pay-Per-Post Services- Pretty simple concept. You blog about certain things and companies pay you to do so. This has become quite popular as of late, however you will probably never see these types of posts on SpeakGood. Personally, I'm kind of against these types of posts because you do not know if the writer's opinion was influenced by his payment. I liken these posts to the infomercials that have supposed customers praising the product. All in all, if you're not opposed to these posts like I am, this is a pretty decent way to score some cash.

General Ads- These work best with niche blogs, blogs that have a specific topic (say Mayan art). Most of the ad providers automatically scan your site for keywords and show ads that fit your target audience. If your site is very general, the ads are not going to be as specific as you probably will need to get clicks. If you are successful at garnering clicks, this is a great way to earn money as clicks can be worth a dollar or more in some instances.

Referral Ads- Same concept as general ads, except that you're only paid if the viewer "converts" or buys the product the ad linked to. Often these have the highest payouts, but they also tend to be the toughest to get people to use. Once again though, a highly specialized site probably will show referral ads that pertain to your audience so you might get lucky.

Sell Dedicated Ad Space- I can only dream of being able to do this. If your blog is successful enough to sell dedicated space then I would say you've hit it big. Small blogs like SpeakGood simply do not draw enough traffic to interest individual advertisers, but if your blog has a big reader base this solution maybe for you. Very high payouts abound if you can utilize this option.

Obviously, the most important thing to do is to draw visitors to your site. Without visitors, you will make no money whatsoever. Submit your best works to Digg or other similar sites, spread the word around your campus or workplace, or even stand outside on the sidewalk handing out flyers. Each new reader is another potential ad click - which means more money for you.

Also, be sure to keep up a posting routine. I usually post to SpeakGood Monday through Thursday each week in order to keep my readers. Be sure to run a spell check as well.

If all else fails and you simply cannot make any money, look at it this way: You're surely going to become a much better writer if you blog!

Learn some computer stuff (or else find a geeky friend)

I'm probably what most people would consider a geek. I love video games, computers, and all technology in general, and I am extremely excited for the upcoming release of Ubuntu next month. But what comes with the territory and is most useful to others is that I know my way around a computer.

Tonight I spent a good part of two hours troubleshooting some problems with my friend's Vista laptop. Although I was unable to solve her problem (it looks like Service Pack 1 screwed up her user profile), I was reminded how much somewhere like Best Buy's Geek Squad would have charged to do the same troubleshooting that I was.

Did you know that Geek Squard charges $99 to back up a measly 9.4 GB of data? That is ridiculous. I've reinstalled my operating system three times this year and backed my data up by myself each time. Moving almost 20 GB to my iPod took less than a minute of my time. If I had to pay for that I would be fuming.

When my hard drive died earlier this year I had to take it to Best Buy to get it replaced because Acer's support told me to take it there. To say the least I was not looking forward to the trip. I had a feeling I would get an inordinate number of questions from someone who probably knew less about computers than I do. (I'll be honest and say I'm proud of my computer smarts).

I arrived at Best Buy only to be told I would need my receipt for my laptop. Unfortunately, I had no receipt and I had paid in cash so there was no credit card to look up in the computer. No problem, I knew my computer was registered with Acer and that I could look up the purchase date online. I tell my "agent" this and he proceeds to search for the Acer website.

A minute or so goes by and he returns telling me he cannot find it. Frustrated, I proceed to go behind the Geek Squad desk and find it myself.

I cannot be so unhappy because I got a free hard drive that was much larger than my original one. However, the other things people were dishing out money for were laughable. The guy behind me needed to reinstall sound drivers. It's a 5 minute fix tops, but I'm sure Geek Squad charged him $50 or more. Unbelievable.

Moral of the story: Find a geeky friend or learn some stuff yourself. You'd be amazed how much time and money you could save by just learning a little more about computers.

As for my friends computer, I will be backing up her data in minutes and doing a system restore to fix what Service Pack 1 screwed up.

Ageless wonders amaze me

I do not want to proliferate SpeakGood with the boring details of my uninteresting life, but a few recent events have led me to one conclusion: Chris Chelios and Julio Franco are not human.

There is no way possible. Chelios is 46 years old and is still going strong for the Detroit Red Wings. Franco is 49, and though he is a free agent, he is still an active player in the MLB.

What led me to this conclusion? Let's just say the current shape that I'm in leads me to believe after 18 the body just cannot take physical activity.

I'm not a superstar athlete and I never was. I'm average height, and I probably could afford to drop 10-20 pounds (but it seems everyone can these days). I've played baseball since I was in second grade and that includes the last four years in which I played high school ball.

Frankly, I've been brought to my knees by stuff that is so far from what Chelios and Franco endure every day at the age of 45+. For instance, today all I've done is help coach a baseball team for two hours (including extensive throwing) and then play pick-up half court basketball for two hours. And I feel like I'm about to die.

The fact that Chelios and Franco are still in one piece astonishes me. I give them major kudos for being the successful athletes that they are.

Dice-K gets start in Japan

Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka will be the opening day starter for the Boston Red Sox when they take Oakland Athletic's in their season opener in Japan.

Dice-K starting is a wonderful thing for MLB and it's image overseas. Obviously, baseball is a huge thing in Japan, but allowing Matsuzaka to start the first game played their this season is awesome. Major League Baseball is getting the publicity that the NFL only dreams about when it goes overseas.

It is very important that American sports leagues get ample recognition outside of the United States. We are world leaders in just about every sport (except, of course, for soccer) and we need to set positive examples.

Personally, I cannot wait to catch some of this game. The fans are going to be going nuts no matter how Dice-K does. It will definitely be a lot of fun to watch.

The great gas price quandary

Ok, sorry to screw up my publishing schedule. But here is Thursday's post on Friday.
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Anyone else sick of these ridiculous gas prices? Yeah, I though so.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say a couple of things that really have no scientific backing. These are only my opinions -- take them or leave them.

First off, the economy must get it through its thick head there is not an oil shortage. All this artificial supply and demand is killing consumers. There is enough oil to last a long time, even at our current consumption rates.

Second, the media must stop emphasizing the gas price hike. They continuous coverage is only making it worse. I'm a journalism major and even I think the media is horrid. By talking about gas at $4 per gallon, it is only going to reach that point.

Third, the United States must open some protected areas to oil exploration (read Alaska). There is enough oil up there to last a long time. PETA can take a seat and shut up.

Fourth, alternative sources of energy must be made economical soon. Until the alternatives cost the same or less as fossil fuels there will be no initiative to change.

There is no reason for gas to be $3.46 a gallon. These four ideas should make the price drop back to correct levels (i.e. $1.75 per gallon).

Why abstinence only education is no longer an option

My home town is extremely conservative. Thus, it was a huge step when our high school began offering a health class last year. My concern? The only mention of sex education within the pages of the massive textbook was a small paragraph teaching abstinence only.

As I have been later told, this was the only way the school board would approve such as class. However, regardless of my or your feelings on the subject, it is becoming increasingly apparent that abstinence-based sex education is failing.

A study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 1 in 4 girls aged 14-19 has a sexually transmitted disease.

It has always been my opinion that without proper education teens will make mistakes -- though I am not endorsing premarital sex. But, supression leads to oppression in my opinion.

The problem is that sex is a taboo topic in today's world. Many people do not want to talk about sex at all. It is this kind of attitude that is causing many questions to go unanswered. Like the story says, many teenage girls are almost afraid to discuss STDs with their doctor and are even less likely to be tested for them.

Instead of constantly pushing abstinence into the minds of today's younger generations, why not spend some time discussing the potential problems that result in having sex and spend time discussing why it might be better to wait. Perhaps that will convince teenagers that sex may not be such a great idea.

Teenagers will listen to logic, trust me. They will not, however, respond to people constantly drilling something they should not do into their head.

NFL free agency leaves me scratching head

It is always fun to see just how much many players can get through free agency in the NFL. Every year there is someone like Asante Samuel who is worth the nearly $60 million contract he signed.

But then there is always the head scratchers:

Tatum Bell, RB, Detroit Lions, 1 year @ $1.6 million - Why in the world Bell would want to come back to the Lions is beyond me. He sat the majority of the year and wasn't really effective when he was in anyway. Without Mike Martz the Lions may run more, but Bell will be unlikely to carry over the success he had in Denver -- especially behind Detroit's porous offensive line.

Trent Green, QB, St. Louis Rams, 3 years @ 8.9 million - Green will make a good backup quarterback to Marc Bulger in St. Louis, but is he really worth almost $9 million over 3 years? Green is injury prone and old. Seems to me St. Louis could have spent the money improving other positions because Green probably isn't a much better option than other backup quarterbacks.

T.J. Duckett and Julius Jones, RBs, Seattle Seahawks, 5 years @ $14 million and 4 years @ ~$12 million, respectively - Shaun Alexander is washed up, and I blame the Madden Curse. Regardless, I doubt Duckett is worth half of his contract. Jones was good for a while but has been stuck behind Marion Barber in Dallas for the last couple of years. Duckett was pretty worthless in Detroit last year, so I have to wonder how he managed to convince the Seahawks that he was worthy of a 5 year deal. However, these deals do have the potential to help Seattle's anemic running game.

Time will only tell if these moves make sense for the teams involved. Until then, I'm labeling these as the boneheaded acquisitions of the 2008 offseason.