Role Reversal

I saw this at Slashdot.

Apparently the anti-competitive actions of the RIAA have finally upset people who have enough money to sue them. Lime Wire LLC has filed counter-petitions in the active lawsuit between the two organizations alleging anti-competitive practices. The claim alleges:

[RIAA's] goal was simple: to destroy any online music distribution service they did not own or control, or force such services to do business with them on exclusive and/or other anticompetitive terms so as to limit and ultimately control the distribution and pricing of digital music, all to the detriment of consumers. (Counterclaim, paragraph 26, page 18).


Here's the link to the Slashdot story.
Here's a link to a neat blog.
Here's the link to the answer and counter claim filed by Lime Wire LLC.

Why I don't carry a gun

Normally I'm a very calm person, just like the chef in the cingular commercial. I like to stay that way until I experience something beyond the pale.

Yesterday morning we were having a crisis at one of our clients offices. At about 08:30 they started experiencing network difficulties. At first it was just a few users that couldn't access their email, but it very quickly exploded into all users not being able to access any network resources. I tried to remote into their servers to fix the problem but found that everything on their network was inaccessible. I immediately drove to their location to begin troubleshooting the problem on site. With the help of my boss we soon eliminated everything but actual physical network problems. I ran around to check all the network devices and found them all to be in order except for two switches. Why couldn't I eliminate those two switches? Because they were in a closet with a locked f-ing door and nobody had a key to it. I called my boss and he said to call the building manager. I had one of the girls call him and try to convey the urgency of the situation - we had 3 floors and 4 locations COMPLETELY DOWN and we needed him up there YESTERDAY.

I waited next to the elevators for him. About 10 minutes later he finally drags his happy ass up there. I was getting very annoyed just because it took him so long to come, but what he said next made me irate. When I saw him in the elevator I started walking over to the closet while he took his sweet time. When we got to the closet door he said 'Looks like somebody had too much coffee this morning'. At this point, if I were carrying a gun, I would have shot that smug bastard right in his filthy sewer and let him bleed to death. Instead, I asked him if anyone had told him how urgent this was. He said *blah blah blah* and finally opened the door.

As we suspected, the two switches in the closet were without power. I quickly unplugged them from the failing UPS and plugged them into the wall. I asked the guy why the door was locked and why nobody had a key. He said that we weren't 'allowed' into that room whenever we wanted. I asked him if he really meant that we couldn't get into a room we were renting to service the equipment we owned, he said 'yes'. I held myself back from beating him to death with the failed UPS and told him that if it happens again I'd just kick the door in. He gave a 'humph' and left. I can't remember the last time I was so pissed at somebody. It's a good thing that client is moving at the end of the month and we're getting new proper server rooms.

World Series

Last weekend the 123dough.com team and I appeared at the NSA Regional World Series tournament held in Bridgeton (St. Louis), MO. We went 1 and 2 and were eliminated on Saturday.

Overall, it was a pretty embarassing weekend for the team on the ball diamond. We were scheduled to play at 8pm on Friday, so I had to leave work early to make it there on time. We started out hot, scoring 7 runs in the top of the first inning. We went on to lose that game by a few runs, but we were contenders throughout the game. The second game was scheduled for 11:15 Saturday morning. As luck would have it, the team we were supposed to play never showed up. That forfeit accounted for our only win. In the second game on Saturday we were beaten by two runs - and were eliminated from the tournament and any berth we might have received for the Super World Series in Vegas. The most embarassing part was that in the two games we lost we played teams that fielded only 9 players. Upsetting - but understandable because all of those teams were there because they had been tournament winners this year.

I finally found my swing at World. I missed hitting for the cycle on Friday by a home run. I went 4 for 4 hitting two triples, a double, and a single. I could've stretched one of the triples into a home run too. I went 2 for 3 on Saturday with two singles and a walk. So, I did pretty well considering I only made one out in eight plate appearances.

After we were eliminated we went out and partied in STL at the 'West Port Plaza'. We drank beer at Ozzie Smith's bar, watched college football and generally tried to forget about softball. I can't believe how obsessed they are out there with Don Denkinger and 'the call' in the 6th game of the 1985 MLB World Series. It's really sad to see them whine and pout about it 21 years later.

We had a good old time out there. The neatest thing I saw out there was Kevin Nealon walking by. He was walking out the door of some comedy club. I was the only one in our group (or on the street for that matter) to recognize him. I guess I was the only hardcore SNL fan.

Evolution of a Title Image

Sponsorship

Ladies and gentlemen, it is my privilege to announce that my first sponsorship deal has come to an end. AaronKCMO and NAPA Auto Parts have suspended relations based on mutually acceptable terms. As some of you may have noticed, the ads for the NAPA Fanniversary and the legal disclaimer have been removed from the main page of this blog. My contract was fulfilled with payment consisting of a NAPA thermal coffee mug and a NAPA Filters Fanniversary t-shirt.

All in all I'd have to say that I'm happy with my first corporate sponsorship. Everyone got what they wanted and I didn't feel like I was selling out. Even though the t-shirt is a 2XL, I feel like I reveived adequate payment for my services. I am now available to other sponsorship offers.

Favorite Winter Pasttime

The winter tennis session started this week. Last night I played with my Dad and a couple other guys in the first Wed. night session. It's nice to get back into it. Before last night I hadn't played in close to a month. August is usually a slow time in the tennis year because the leagues are over and the winter session hasn't started yet. August is slow unless you make the national tournament... anyway...

I have been playing 2 of every 3 Wednesdays with my Dad for the past 2 years. Even though he and I usually wipe the court with our opponents, it's nice to get out and play. I will also be playing 9 out of the next 18 Mondays. The Monday thing is more competitive and I only win about half the time. It's important to play people who are better than you, I'm lucky to have that on Monday. The USTA leagues will start up again soon too. I'm still rated 3.5 this year so maybe I can improve on last years performance.

Lately I have joined a pool (billiards) league. I was asked to play by some guys I work with. I've been out for a couple practice sessions and have found that practice is exactly what I need. Getting out and playing reminded me of why I quit playing before. That game can be very frustrating. That league meets on Tuesdays. I'm going to be busy busy this winter with unofficial bowling league on Sunday, tennis on Monday and Wednesday, and Pool on Tuesday. I guess that's the way I like it.