Beware The SHOCKING iPod Earbuds

In an article posted by Macworld http://www.macworld.com/article/140674/2009/05/ipod_shocker.html they are reporting a new warning published by Apple about the dangers of being zapped by your earbuds attached to your iPod. Apparently this problem extends to ANY earbuds attached to ANY electronic device, but I don't think Apple really cares about those.
>.>

Pirates Now Rule in Sweden, Thanks to Lawyers

According to http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/04/17/2041208&from=rss The Pirate Party in Sweden is now one of the top three ruling parties in the country. It looks like a lawsuit against link aggregator website, ThePirateBay.org has inspired a flood of new members to join the Pirate Party resulting
in their new position among the list of seven parties. Apparently, this political party is fighting to keep information on the web free and available to everyone.

This is definitely something to get behind. Maybe the U.S. needs a Pirate Party. Hey, Pirate Tea Parties!

>.>

Final Fantasy XI New Expansions

Kotaku reported FFXI will be getting 3 new expansions: http://kotaku.com/5170483/final-fantasy-xi-getting-three-more-expansion-scenarios
The first expansion, titled "A Crystalline Prophecy: Ode of Life Bestowing," was released with more information about two more coming expansions available here:
http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/addon/
I had no idea there was this much activity.

Square Enix Announces Security Token for FFXI

In a move to help users protect their gil, Square Enix has announced a digital security token is now available which generates a continually randomized password that is designed to keep hackers from getting their dirty paws on users hard earned gil and gear.
from: http://kotaku.com/5168308/protect-your-gil-with-the-final-fantasy-xi-security-token

Hollywood Redeemed?

Just when I started to get over Hollywood and it's far left, socialist bias a story about another conservative beauty like the epic Ms. Angie Harmon surfaces.
Now I just want to know if she's a gamer. >.>

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,511470,00.html

Hackers From Far East At It Again!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7970471.stm

Obama's Court Jester on Cable?

Please help hatch my dragon egg

So there is a website for collecting and raising these digital dragons and they asked me to join them. So here is my first egg:

It needs lots of love and affection (i.e. clicks from you) in order to hatch and grow. Please click on my eggs and hatchlings to help them grow.

I'll post more eggs as I get them here and you can return to see their progress when ever you like.

Thanks for your help.

A Few Apple Faithful Acknowledge 25th Anniversary – Just Not Steve Jobs

The BBC has an interesting article about the 25th anniversary of the Macintosh. It was 25 years ago that Steve Jobs unveiled the ground breaking Macintosh computer. The first personal computer built from the ground up to allow the user to "point and click" instead of memorizing and typing hundreds or thousands of text commands just to make a copy or create a new document.
It is interesting to note that Apple's commander in chief, Steve Jobs, intentionally avoids reminiscing, preferring to keep focused on moving forward and bringing out new innovations.
I am still a big fan of the Mac. In fact, in my personal life, the only use I've found for Windows is playing video games that don't run on the Mac OS. So, I've gone as far as installing Windows 7 on my Intel iMac under Virtual Box as a test and I was pretty impressed. I think Microsoft is finally catching up to Apple with their operating system.
Hey, it only took them 25 years.

My Playonline Profile

So, this is a link to the PlayOnline profile of my Elvaan, Red Mage on Alexander server, playing FFXI Online. 

The game has been around since at least 2002 when it was originally released in Japan as the first MMO on PS2!

In typical Final Fantasy tradition, the game is known for it's extreme difficulty and high requirements to make significant progress in the game. Fortunately, the rewards are worthwhile and Square Enix has toned the difficulty down significantly since it was released over five years ago.  

FFXI Online also has the distinction of being the only game to be crossplatform from, not just one, but two consoles - namely PS2 and Xbox 360 - and Windows PCs. Unfortunately, there is no native Mac OSX version, but it runs great on your Mac using Bootcamp to run Windows or under certain virtualization apps.

FFXI is also optimized to run on a 56k modem connection and a PS2 so it has very low system and network requirements.

Today, FFXI Online has been released in Japan, North America and Europe, officially on three different platforms and even has support for playing under WINE on linux.

The fact that you can also play every possible character job class on one character is also a very attractive feature. 

Square Enix has also implemented one of the most aggressive anti cheat and RMT programs I've ever seen in the online game world. They are very vocal about their stance against cheaters and others who spoil the game environment for dedicated players releasing regular reports which detail their latest actions against violators. It is not uncommon to login and see a new announcement that several thousand paying accounts were banned for illicit activities. The fact that Square Enix is willing to give up a paying customer to protect the integrity of their game says a lot about their concern for delivering a quality gaming experience.

Anyone looking for a challenging MMO with very low barrier to entry I highly suggest a look at Final Fantasy XI Online.

Help Design the Latest FFXI Merchandise

Okay, fellow adventurers.  Now is our chance to let Square Enix really know what we want.  They are asking for our input to tell them what kind of new merchandise we want to see.  I know my kids want a moogle hat for their birthday.  I wonder what else we can choose…

Let Square Enix know your thoughts by clicking here.

See you again! ^^

~pitlord