(Current Song: Sleeping Beauty - Michael Giacchino (Alias OST)
Yawn. It's been a good month and a half since I last got a decent nights sleep. The routine is always similar - I'll either go to bed and spend hours trying to fall asleep, before finally falling into a fitfull, restless doze, or I'll fall asleep fairly quickly, and then wake constantly throughout the night.
It doesn't matter what I try - cutting out caffeine, all manner of herbal remedies, teas etc, a nightcap, anything, the process always ends up the same.
Frustrated with it, I finally visited the GP on Tuesday. I was pretty sure that this recent bout of Insomnia was down to the medication I've been taken, as it's listed as one of the side effects. It's had a big improvement on my mood, but I've had to weigh that up against barely sleeping. Eventually sleep won out - but at the same time, I was adamant I didn't want to take sleeping pills.
(Current Song: Mean Low Water - 65DaysofStatic)
The GP pretty much agreed, and stopped me taking the meds on the spot - apparently the one I'm on has more of a stimulating effect than most others, hence the Insomnia. I now need to wait for them to get out of my system for a week before moving onto the next alternative. This will be my second day without the meds, and I haven't noticed an improvement yet. I can only hope with a 4 day weekend coming up that the improvement comes soon, because I desperately need a good night's kip.
(Current Song: The Lair Part 2 - Danny Elfman (Batman Returns OST))
My mood has definitely been on the up - I've taken more enjoyment in doing things, I've been enjoying my interests (including Gaming, I finally cracked Ocarina of Time, and after completing Metal Gear Solid 2 I've finally started Metal Gear Solid 4) a lot more recently, but I've had practically no energy to do anything - going out, seeing people, anything like that.
So I have to apologise to my friends (especially Joe, who's been pretty resilient in asking me frequently to meet up, and been turned down at every attempt). I've wanted to get out and see you, I've wanted to visit the Moonlet gigs, I've wanted to be sociable. I just don't have the energy at the moment - I'm pretty much using all of it to get through the day (to the point where I've frequently fallen asleep when I've gotten home for an hour). I'll make it up to you all. Promise. I just need a few good lie ins first.
(Current Song: Carol of the Bells - August Turns Red)
I didn't want this post to turn into a diatribe against my lack of sleep. but it seems to have taken that turn. For those who've stuck with the self indulgent tripe, I talked a while ago about a driverless car being tested in America. Well, Volvo, not to be outdone, have been testing their own - in this case a self drive convoy (made up of 3 cars and a lorry), completing a 125 Mile journey through Spain.
The cars are wirelessly linked to a lead vehicle, driven by a professional driver. They then effectively mimic that lead vehicle, driving at around 52mph with about 6m separating each vehicle.
It's interesting (and exciting) stuff, and definitely could herald the possibility of driverless cars in the future. I can't wait.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-18248841
I'll leave it there for now. Take care all.
Thursday 31 May 2012
Friday 18 May 2012
Wow, whereya bin?
(Current Song: The Final Confrontation (Part 1) - Danny Elfman/Batman Returns)
Truth is, I've been busy, and yet not so much. Work has been incredibly hectic and busy the last few weeks as we approach the deadline for getting a brilliant new system in for one of our projects, so that's been taking up a lot of my time.
I'm shocked and appalled that it's well over a month ago that I last posted. Shocked and appalled.
Truth is, I've been busy, and yet not so much. Work has been incredibly hectic and busy the last few weeks as we approach the deadline for getting a brilliant new system in for one of our projects, so that's been taking up a lot of my time.
Outside of work, I haven't had a great deal of energy. I've been able to get out and do more recently (partly in line with my "experiences" declaration in my last post), and the Fluoxetine is definitely having an impact on my mood, where the Citalopram had kind of lost it's effectiveness. I've been in a much better mood the last 6 weeks, which is great, I'd forgotten how much I missed it.
But there's a side effect. I'm not sleeping as well. Insomnia is listed as one of the side effects, and it's certainly the case with me - frequently waking up, sleeping lightly and tossing and turning a lot. I've mitigated it a little with occasional naps(!) during the day when I need them, but it's not great, and a tad frustrating. I don't want to go back to the GP to get something extra to help me sleep, as I feel it's a bit of a slippery slope, so I'm trying a few different remedies. Herbal tea seems to work well, so I think I'll stick with that for the moment.
(Current Song: Feudal Society - Shiro Sagisu (Bleach - Diamond Dust Rebellion OST)
I've managed to get out and see more people recently - a great film night with Paul, Kristian and a few others last Saturday, a pool evening with Ben and Elle a few weeks ago, The Avengers with Elle and Gareth, more meetups with the group, and a quick round of pitch and putt a few weeks ago with Elle, which was a good larf. The weather's not really been up for much recently though, and most of the good days seem to fall when I'm working, which is a bit crap. Still, I have a week off in June, maybe the weather'll improve for that.
Avengers Review
Speaking of the Avengers, if you haven't gone to see it yet but you're a fan of the genre, GO. It is absolutely fantastic. I was a bit concerned that with that many characters, it would struggle (despite the long run time), but Joss Whedon has masterfully directed, managing to get a good amount of story to all the heroes and villains, and making it well worth a watch. There's a lot of action, some great comedic moments (a lot of this coming from the Hulk), and some brilliant dialogue. Watching the heroes get the measure of each other as they try and work together was excellent.
Mark Ruffalo (Bruce Banner/Hulk) was a great choice as well, and played the character nicely. Gone was the somewhat mind numbing tragedy of the previous Hulk films, replaced with a more mature (if slightly unconfident) character who undoubtedly stole the show for me.
As always, Robert Downey Jr was great, I love the Iron Man films. And this has been one of the few 2 and a half hour films that I didn't find myself checking my watch during at all - the pacing was spot on.
So yeah, go see it before it's out of the cinema. Next up, The Dark Knight Rises ^_^
******
(Current Song: The Distant and Mechanised Glow of Easter European Dance Parties - 65DaysofStatic (The Destruction of Small Ideas))
My last post came from a conversation I had with Paul some time ago. He'd played The Game of Life with a few friends, and didn't win at the end. Why? Because he didn't end up with the most money. He'd had a lot of experiences during the game - Bungie Jumping, Hand Gliding etc, but since he spent money on them, he wasn't classed as the winner.
Which for me, seemed a bit off. You can't do anything with all that money if you make it to the end, and you may have lost out on some of the best experiences in life because you saved every single penny. I remembered it recently and it made me think about things in a bit of a new light, no doubt helped somewhat by my improved mood. I want to experience a lot more this Summer. And write about it here, probably.
(Current Song: This Cat is a Landmine - 65DaysofStatic (The Fall of Math))
Also to do somewhat with my improved mood, I've rediscovered my love of gaming recently. Portal 2 is what I'm finally working on now - having played through the Coop with Elle and having great fun - but before that it was Assassins Creed II.
Oh my. This was a series I'd looked at in the past, but skipped over for some reason. I avoided the first game due its unfavourable reviews, and picked up the second for a tenner. And what a ride it's been.
It's been a long time since I spent ages running around a game, investigating, playing around and trying new things. Free Running around the game, Running over rooftops and quietly assassinating guards kept me entertained for ages. Oh look! A new viewpoint. Hmmm...how could I find my way up there?
It's much longer than I thought it would be, but it's been well paced and is great fun. I spent literally hours just free running around the game, finding all the collectables. Each mission only worked out at 10 odd minutes, and there were plenty of checkpoints if it went wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and will be looking to play the others at some near point in the future.
I think I'll leave it there for now. Going to see Spamalot tonight at the Hall for Cornwall, which should be good fun.
Until next time!
Wednesday 4 April 2012
Declarations
Spending this week with Elle and my 'rents, up in Northumberland. So far it's been pretty relaxing, with some wildly varying weather - first day was really sunny and hot, the second was wet, yesterday SNOWED(!), and today's been sunny again, if not freezing cold.
We haven't done a great degree of stuff - spent a couple of days chilling out, went to the Metro Centre yesterday (big shopping centre), and went into a local town today and saw my Nan. It was originally supposed to be Newcastle, but the bus never turned up, so we ended up making the most of a wasted day.
Got lots of stuff yesterday - some jeans and a t-shirt, a few DVDs, and a few games. I almost ended up picking up a Playstation 3, thanks to the bargain prices at Game, but as they've temporarily revoked their 12 month preowned warranty while they sort the administration stuff out, I decided to hold off. Still planning on getting one soon though.
Also (thanks for the thought Paul, and sorry!) I bagged myself a PSP on eBay last week, which arrived this week. PSP, case, memory card and 14 games for under £100 - lots of RPGs included. Picked up 4 other games while I've been up here as well, pretty good haul for not a lot of money. Also bought FF7 and Chrono Cross through the Playstation Network, so I'm looking forward to getting my teeth into those.
You might've guessed from the previous couple of paragraphs that my malaise of last week has pretty much passed, and I'm feeling like my old self again. 11 days on the new meds, and they're finally kicking in, and making me feel that much better. I feel better about life again ^_^
I've been thinking a little in the last few days as well. Life seems to be really samey recently, and it's felt like I've done almost nothing worthwhile for a longtime. Well, more to the point, Life is made up of experiences, and I haven't really been having any. I spend hours gaming, or playing some godawful game to grab the achievement points from it, or watching crap on the TV, and it leaves me feeling unfulfilled.
So I want to try and change that. Spend more time doing things at the weekend with Elle rather than us just relaxing at home. Avoid the godawful games, ignore my gamerscore, and play the ones I want to (case in point, I'm playing Ocarina of Time on the 3DS and thoroughly loving it). Possibly learn a new instrument or something. Make my life feel richer.
It's not the only thing I want to change. While there are a few friends I see pretty often, most of them have drifted away - some are constantly busy with work, some have moved onto other groups, and some...well, we weren't that close to begin with. The ones I can, I want to see more often. But I also want to try and expand my social circle if I can. I've made one or two new friends recently (Jodie, I be looking at you), but I'd like to make a few more.
Time will tell if I'll succeed, but I'd like to at least try.
So, ignore that Xbox gamerscore (and instead play through games I actually want to), make new friends, and make the next few years about more experiences if I can. I think I'll leave it at that for now, it's going to be hard work!
Until next time, ladies and gentlemen!
We haven't done a great degree of stuff - spent a couple of days chilling out, went to the Metro Centre yesterday (big shopping centre), and went into a local town today and saw my Nan. It was originally supposed to be Newcastle, but the bus never turned up, so we ended up making the most of a wasted day.
Got lots of stuff yesterday - some jeans and a t-shirt, a few DVDs, and a few games. I almost ended up picking up a Playstation 3, thanks to the bargain prices at Game, but as they've temporarily revoked their 12 month preowned warranty while they sort the administration stuff out, I decided to hold off. Still planning on getting one soon though.
Also (thanks for the thought Paul, and sorry!) I bagged myself a PSP on eBay last week, which arrived this week. PSP, case, memory card and 14 games for under £100 - lots of RPGs included. Picked up 4 other games while I've been up here as well, pretty good haul for not a lot of money. Also bought FF7 and Chrono Cross through the Playstation Network, so I'm looking forward to getting my teeth into those.
You might've guessed from the previous couple of paragraphs that my malaise of last week has pretty much passed, and I'm feeling like my old self again. 11 days on the new meds, and they're finally kicking in, and making me feel that much better. I feel better about life again ^_^
I've been thinking a little in the last few days as well. Life seems to be really samey recently, and it's felt like I've done almost nothing worthwhile for a longtime. Well, more to the point, Life is made up of experiences, and I haven't really been having any. I spend hours gaming, or playing some godawful game to grab the achievement points from it, or watching crap on the TV, and it leaves me feeling unfulfilled.
So I want to try and change that. Spend more time doing things at the weekend with Elle rather than us just relaxing at home. Avoid the godawful games, ignore my gamerscore, and play the ones I want to (case in point, I'm playing Ocarina of Time on the 3DS and thoroughly loving it). Possibly learn a new instrument or something. Make my life feel richer.
It's not the only thing I want to change. While there are a few friends I see pretty often, most of them have drifted away - some are constantly busy with work, some have moved onto other groups, and some...well, we weren't that close to begin with. The ones I can, I want to see more often. But I also want to try and expand my social circle if I can. I've made one or two new friends recently (Jodie, I be looking at you), but I'd like to make a few more.
Time will tell if I'll succeed, but I'd like to at least try.
So, ignore that Xbox gamerscore (and instead play through games I actually want to), make new friends, and make the next few years about more experiences if I can. I think I'll leave it at that for now, it's going to be hard work!
Until next time, ladies and gentlemen!
Friday 30 March 2012
Where's the Sun gone?
(Current Song: Protectors of the Earth - Two Steps from Hell)
What a difference a day makes, eh? Yesterday evening I spent time with El, her family and her two nieces, having a BBQ at her brothers house, and lapping up the sunshine. Today...well, it's cloudy, and colder. It's a shame, but I'm hoping the weather we've had in the last few days is the weather we'll get for at least some of the Summer - I want to spend a lot more of it at the Beach!
I'm still struggling, I'm liable to for a couple of weeks, but I'm working hard not to let it affect me too badly. It really isn't easy, but I think I'll get there.
(Current Song: The Impossible Astronaut - Murray Gold (Doctor Who 6 OST))
I think I need to find myself a new hobby or two as well. I always felt I'd reach a stage where I wasn't enjoying gaming as much, and although I still play loads, I can see the hours gradually falling away into something else. I'm not sure what yet, but I've had thoughts that come the end of the year, I'll dramatically draw back the hours I put into gaming. Maybe I'll do some composition (I have some remix ideas I'd like to play around with), maybe I'll learn a new instrument or language or something.
I'm almost certain this generation of consoles will be my last, or at least the last I'll take a strong interest in. I can't afford the prices of most new games at the moment, something only set to get worse as higher budgets are without a doubt required for the next generation, and the publishers force ever higher prices to mitigate their losses to the second hand market. Renting and Second Hand are how I end up with most of my game time at the moment, only buying a new game every now again when it's a series I'm really interested in, a PC game, or something I'm sure to put a lot of hours into. Skyrim and Mass Effect 3 are excellent examples.
Speaking of Skyrim, if my mood improves when I return, I might restart. I've always fancied doing a Let's Play kind of thing at some point, and writing it with a degree of creative writing - first person perspective, using FRAPS to capture video, and probably Steam to capture Screenshots. I'll see how it pans out, but it's something to get my teeth into.
What else? Got a chance to catch up with Ben on Wednesday, played a few rounds of Pool with Elle and him, and had a couple of drinks. Much fun was had ^_^ Also caught up with Paul and Kristian on Monday - one or both sides always seem to be busy, so to find an hour or so when we're all free is a rarity. It's was nice to catch up and have a chuckle.
(Current Song: Day of the Moon - Murray Gold (Doctor Who 6 OST))
Really looking forward to November as well, having managed to bag a ticket to Final Fantasy: Distant Worlds in London. I was hoping to go last year, but the tickets sold out far too quickly, so to get one this year (on the 25th anniversary of FF, no less) is brilliant. Taking Joe and Jodie along with me, so it should be a good larf all round.
I think that's about it, for now at least. This pretty much covers the rest of the stuff I wanted to talk about last night. Not looking forward to the journey to Northumberland tomorrow, but it'll be nice once we get there, and Elle's sharing the driving with me, so it'll be less hellish than usual. It'll be good to get away from computers, troubleshooting and all that gumpf as well.
Till next time =)
What a difference a day makes, eh? Yesterday evening I spent time with El, her family and her two nieces, having a BBQ at her brothers house, and lapping up the sunshine. Today...well, it's cloudy, and colder. It's a shame, but I'm hoping the weather we've had in the last few days is the weather we'll get for at least some of the Summer - I want to spend a lot more of it at the Beach!
I'm still struggling, I'm liable to for a couple of weeks, but I'm working hard not to let it affect me too badly. It really isn't easy, but I think I'll get there.
(Current Song: The Impossible Astronaut - Murray Gold (Doctor Who 6 OST))
I think I need to find myself a new hobby or two as well. I always felt I'd reach a stage where I wasn't enjoying gaming as much, and although I still play loads, I can see the hours gradually falling away into something else. I'm not sure what yet, but I've had thoughts that come the end of the year, I'll dramatically draw back the hours I put into gaming. Maybe I'll do some composition (I have some remix ideas I'd like to play around with), maybe I'll learn a new instrument or language or something.
I'm almost certain this generation of consoles will be my last, or at least the last I'll take a strong interest in. I can't afford the prices of most new games at the moment, something only set to get worse as higher budgets are without a doubt required for the next generation, and the publishers force ever higher prices to mitigate their losses to the second hand market. Renting and Second Hand are how I end up with most of my game time at the moment, only buying a new game every now again when it's a series I'm really interested in, a PC game, or something I'm sure to put a lot of hours into. Skyrim and Mass Effect 3 are excellent examples.
Speaking of Skyrim, if my mood improves when I return, I might restart. I've always fancied doing a Let's Play kind of thing at some point, and writing it with a degree of creative writing - first person perspective, using FRAPS to capture video, and probably Steam to capture Screenshots. I'll see how it pans out, but it's something to get my teeth into.
What else? Got a chance to catch up with Ben on Wednesday, played a few rounds of Pool with Elle and him, and had a couple of drinks. Much fun was had ^_^ Also caught up with Paul and Kristian on Monday - one or both sides always seem to be busy, so to find an hour or so when we're all free is a rarity. It's was nice to catch up and have a chuckle.
(Current Song: Day of the Moon - Murray Gold (Doctor Who 6 OST))
Really looking forward to November as well, having managed to bag a ticket to Final Fantasy: Distant Worlds in London. I was hoping to go last year, but the tickets sold out far too quickly, so to get one this year (on the 25th anniversary of FF, no less) is brilliant. Taking Joe and Jodie along with me, so it should be a good larf all round.
I think that's about it, for now at least. This pretty much covers the rest of the stuff I wanted to talk about last night. Not looking forward to the journey to Northumberland tomorrow, but it'll be nice once we get there, and Elle's sharing the driving with me, so it'll be less hellish than usual. It'll be good to get away from computers, troubleshooting and all that gumpf as well.
Till next time =)
Thursday 29 March 2012
Flibble.
Woah, has it really been a month and a half since my last post? That's...disappointing to say the least. Life's been really hectic, but I was always intending to get on before now to post. Things just have a way of getting in the way, I guess.
To start with, the Muppets film was really good. It was a little on the predictable side, but the last half an hour or so was like one of the old episodes, done on stage, etc. Made me remember the old series', which were brilliant. I'm thinking of picking a couple up at some point (it's just a shame there's only been 3 released on DVD in the UK).
Elle and I also went to see The Hunger Games on Saturday evening in Truro, and followed it up with a meal at the Xen Noodle Bar. Both were pretty damn good - I'd heard of the Hunger Games before, but hadn't really shown an interest, and hadn't read the books. It turned out to be excellent - similar in some ways to Battle Royale, but with a greater emphasis on characterization, and set in a post war America (renamed Pan-Am). It's about 2 and a half hours long, but doesn't feel it - it flows really well, and has some good pacing. Might actually have to pick up the books at some point.
Xen Noodle Bar...well, for a start the food was pretty damned good (I had Lemon Chicken, Elle had Chicken Satay, and we shared a Thai Sweet Chilli Chicken and Sweet and Sour). No MSG, so the food was flavourful and not addictive. Service was excellent, very friendly and very fast, and the price was reasonably. Highly recommended if you like Japanese/Chinese cuisine.
On a more somber note, I've been struggling meds wise for a couple of weeks. To the ones who know me well, it's no secret I've been on antidepressants for a while (which I hate, but there you go). The one I was on just isn't working anymore, so I'm been moved onto another. All well and good, but while the old one is leaving my system, and the new one is entering it, I have a period of time where I feel overly depressed in comparison to the last few months. The last few days have been a real struggle, not just with home, but with work as well (it doesn't help my schedule's been packed to bursting).
I have a week of holiday coming up, so I'm hoping the time will allow the new meds to take effect, and I'll feel more like my old happy self when I return to work. Time will tell, especially with April looking to be incredibly busy work wise as well. Still, I'm learning tons, so I can't complain too much.
Game wise, I haven't been playing much. Again, those on my friends list will have noticed the occasional Skyrim screenshot - thanks to huge modding efforts on the PC, most of the bugs have been ironed out, and as a side effect the game looks absolutely astonishing. I've lost myself in it a bit, but not as much as I hoped I would, and Gaming in general has lost it's sheen. I think it's probably the problems with my meds and state of mind that are making me lose interest in my hobbies, but I don't know for sure. I think I'll find out in the next couple of weeks time.
Anyway, I'mma leave it there for now. I have other things I want to talk about, but I don't really have the energy to keep typing at the moment. Another time, perhaps?
To start with, the Muppets film was really good. It was a little on the predictable side, but the last half an hour or so was like one of the old episodes, done on stage, etc. Made me remember the old series', which were brilliant. I'm thinking of picking a couple up at some point (it's just a shame there's only been 3 released on DVD in the UK).
Elle and I also went to see The Hunger Games on Saturday evening in Truro, and followed it up with a meal at the Xen Noodle Bar. Both were pretty damn good - I'd heard of the Hunger Games before, but hadn't really shown an interest, and hadn't read the books. It turned out to be excellent - similar in some ways to Battle Royale, but with a greater emphasis on characterization, and set in a post war America (renamed Pan-Am). It's about 2 and a half hours long, but doesn't feel it - it flows really well, and has some good pacing. Might actually have to pick up the books at some point.
Xen Noodle Bar...well, for a start the food was pretty damned good (I had Lemon Chicken, Elle had Chicken Satay, and we shared a Thai Sweet Chilli Chicken and Sweet and Sour). No MSG, so the food was flavourful and not addictive. Service was excellent, very friendly and very fast, and the price was reasonably. Highly recommended if you like Japanese/Chinese cuisine.
On a more somber note, I've been struggling meds wise for a couple of weeks. To the ones who know me well, it's no secret I've been on antidepressants for a while (which I hate, but there you go). The one I was on just isn't working anymore, so I'm been moved onto another. All well and good, but while the old one is leaving my system, and the new one is entering it, I have a period of time where I feel overly depressed in comparison to the last few months. The last few days have been a real struggle, not just with home, but with work as well (it doesn't help my schedule's been packed to bursting).
I have a week of holiday coming up, so I'm hoping the time will allow the new meds to take effect, and I'll feel more like my old happy self when I return to work. Time will tell, especially with April looking to be incredibly busy work wise as well. Still, I'm learning tons, so I can't complain too much.
Game wise, I haven't been playing much. Again, those on my friends list will have noticed the occasional Skyrim screenshot - thanks to huge modding efforts on the PC, most of the bugs have been ironed out, and as a side effect the game looks absolutely astonishing. I've lost myself in it a bit, but not as much as I hoped I would, and Gaming in general has lost it's sheen. I think it's probably the problems with my meds and state of mind that are making me lose interest in my hobbies, but I don't know for sure. I think I'll find out in the next couple of weeks time.
Anyway, I'mma leave it there for now. I have other things I want to talk about, but I don't really have the energy to keep typing at the moment. Another time, perhaps?
Thursday 16 February 2012
Right? Not always...
Customer Service?
I've found myself browsing this site a lot - http://notalwaysright.com. Some of the stories seem more than a little farfetched, some are understandable, but the majority I can see happening (and are downright hilarious). If you work in retail, support or any other customer service role, I strongly urge you to check it out!
Wordpress Issues
The issue I mentioned on Tuesday for the local c turned out to be unsolvable by their web host (read: they didn't really want to help), so I gamely trooped in and took a look. Turns out it was related to an older Wordpress plugin, which contained an unwitting exploit. I've included a little info here - if you run a Wordpress site, or have seen this issue on another Wordpress site or blog, you might want to check these issues.
(Current Song:The Majestic Tale (of a Madman in a Box) - Murray Gold (Doctor Who Season 6 OST)
When using Google Chrome to view the site, you may get a warning message advising you that the site contains content from 31.184.242.102. This is a well known malware site.
It's javascript exploit, which means all of the files on the backend of your site that end with ".js" are likely to be infected. For the most part you have two options - do a fresh reinstall of the core Wordpress files, or download and edit the .js files, and reupload the result.
At the end of each of the files is a section of code which starts var_0x80d0= and contains a list of addresses such as x64, x6C and others. Delete this section of code.
Run through the following sites if you see the problem:
http://wordpress.org/support/topic/malware-detected-by-chrome
http://ocaoimh.ie/2008/06/08/did-your-wordpress-site-get-hacked/
And change all passwords on your Wordpress site at the end, just in case.
Once you're done with everything, use the site checker over at http://sitecheck.sucuri.net/scanner/. It's free, and will allow you to check your site over for any exploits, malware or otherwise.
It's an interesting problem, one that I've never seen before. I love dealing with problems I haven't seen before, they keep me interested.
(Current Song: Nothing can be Explained (Vocal Version) - Shiro Sagisu)
The week!
So, what else? The answer is, not a whole lot work wise. It's been pretty quiet what with half term kicking in, and so I'm looking forward to getting some time off next week.
After taking some time out from longer games (pretty recently I've put stints in to both Lost Odyssey and Mass Effect, both long, long games), I replayed one of my shorter titles to finish it up - Condemned: Criminal Origins.
It's one of the early titles for the 360 (coming out about 5 or 6 years ago now), and was made by the same studio that created F.E.A.R. - you can see the similarities between the two games. It's full of creepy moments, has a good detective story behind it, and plays pretty well, with a half decent melee system (something many games lack). I thoroughly enjoyed the replay (which is more than I can say for it's sequel, Bloodshot, which was pretty terrible, and took everything down a Scifi route). You can probably pick it up pretty cheaply, and it's well worth a look.
Weekend
Looking forward to the weekend. It's the first one Elle's had free for a while, now that her essay is done, so we get to spend some time together ^_^ plus, going with Elle and Paul to see the new Muppet's film on Saturday night, so it should be fun.
Finally, I'd like to direct you to the first ever Jaw Transplant using a 3D Printer to build the replacement - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16907104 - It's absolutely fantastic what technology is capable of now. A replacement joint could be custom built to a patient's skeleton, reducing healing time, weight, and time spent in the operation theatre. And although it's a long way off, it's probably not a stretch to imagine replacement organs being built the same way (if the Stem Cell debate is EVER fully settled), meaning less chance of rejection, less people needing to wait (and potentially pass away) for a replacement kidney, heart or other organ, etc.
I'll leave it there for now, I think. Have a good weekend all!
I've found myself browsing this site a lot - http://notalwaysright.com. Some of the stories seem more than a little farfetched, some are understandable, but the majority I can see happening (and are downright hilarious). If you work in retail, support or any other customer service role, I strongly urge you to check it out!
Wordpress Issues
The issue I mentioned on Tuesday for the local c turned out to be unsolvable by their web host (read: they didn't really want to help), so I gamely trooped in and took a look. Turns out it was related to an older Wordpress plugin, which contained an unwitting exploit. I've included a little info here - if you run a Wordpress site, or have seen this issue on another Wordpress site or blog, you might want to check these issues.
(Current Song:The Majestic Tale (of a Madman in a Box) - Murray Gold (Doctor Who Season 6 OST)
When using Google Chrome to view the site, you may get a warning message advising you that the site contains content from 31.184.242.102. This is a well known malware site.
It's javascript exploit, which means all of the files on the backend of your site that end with ".js" are likely to be infected. For the most part you have two options - do a fresh reinstall of the core Wordpress files, or download and edit the .js files, and reupload the result.
At the end of each of the files is a section of code which starts var_0x80d0= and contains a list of addresses such as x64, x6C and others. Delete this section of code.
Run through the following sites if you see the problem:
http://wordpress.org/support/topic/malware-detected-by-chrome
http://ocaoimh.ie/2008/06/08/did-your-wordpress-site-get-hacked/
And change all passwords on your Wordpress site at the end, just in case.
Once you're done with everything, use the site checker over at http://sitecheck.sucuri.net/scanner/. It's free, and will allow you to check your site over for any exploits, malware or otherwise.
It's an interesting problem, one that I've never seen before. I love dealing with problems I haven't seen before, they keep me interested.
(Current Song: Nothing can be Explained (Vocal Version) - Shiro Sagisu)
The week!
So, what else? The answer is, not a whole lot work wise. It's been pretty quiet what with half term kicking in, and so I'm looking forward to getting some time off next week.
After taking some time out from longer games (pretty recently I've put stints in to both Lost Odyssey and Mass Effect, both long, long games), I replayed one of my shorter titles to finish it up - Condemned: Criminal Origins.
It's one of the early titles for the 360 (coming out about 5 or 6 years ago now), and was made by the same studio that created F.E.A.R. - you can see the similarities between the two games. It's full of creepy moments, has a good detective story behind it, and plays pretty well, with a half decent melee system (something many games lack). I thoroughly enjoyed the replay (which is more than I can say for it's sequel, Bloodshot, which was pretty terrible, and took everything down a Scifi route). You can probably pick it up pretty cheaply, and it's well worth a look.
Weekend
Looking forward to the weekend. It's the first one Elle's had free for a while, now that her essay is done, so we get to spend some time together ^_^ plus, going with Elle and Paul to see the new Muppet's film on Saturday night, so it should be fun.
Finally, I'd like to direct you to the first ever Jaw Transplant using a 3D Printer to build the replacement - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16907104 - It's absolutely fantastic what technology is capable of now. A replacement joint could be custom built to a patient's skeleton, reducing healing time, weight, and time spent in the operation theatre. And although it's a long way off, it's probably not a stretch to imagine replacement organs being built the same way (if the Stem Cell debate is EVER fully settled), meaning less chance of rejection, less people needing to wait (and potentially pass away) for a replacement kidney, heart or other organ, etc.
I'll leave it there for now, I think. Have a good weekend all!
Tuesday 14 February 2012
Improvements
Man, I've been really up and down the last few weeks. Everytime I seem to improve mood wise, something else hits me and I'm right back down again. I'm fighting it, but damn is it hard.
Hopefully I'm back on an upward swing now though. Often when I'm struggling like this I tend to close myself off, and I keep forgetting those around me can really help out. So thanks to all who've helped with the recent funk, especially Elle. I really appreciate it.
(Current song: Zombies Ate My Neighbours (Panic of the Undead) - NoppZ, OCRemix)
So, where to start with this update? I guess with work so far. Today seems to have been mostly about Malware, and related. A colleague brought in their work laptop (which was infected). Once the infection was cleared up, the BSOD's starting kicking in - looks like the hard drive might be shot. It's a shame, but not a game breaker, everything was backed up, and the laptop IS around 5 years old, so a good age. We'll see if I can fix it, otherwise it's a transplant or replacement time.
(Current Song: Memoria - Nobuo Uematsu (FF9 Soundtrack)
Turns out the malware infection came about last night, when she visited a local charity's website. Low and behold, said website is infected with something nasty themselves. Hopefully it'll be resolved soon (they're in the process of sorting it with the webhost, and I've offered help if they need it) but until then, access to said site's probably not a good idea. Cue the all staff e-mail!
(Current Song: Dog Days Are Over - Florence and the Machine)
Let's see, what else? Oh! Elle finished her essay over the weekend (an epic writing several weekends in the process), so this weekend'll be the first one we've had together properly for a while. Looking forward to it, especially with a week off next week too. Some much needed unwinding and relaxation time, bring it on!
I finally conquered one of my gaming achievements over the weekend as well. I said a little while ago I had a few game related things I wanted to get done in 2012, and while I haven't gotten to many of them, I can cross off the Treasure Trove achievement of Lost Odyssey, which means I've finally finished the game proper. T'is a good feeling.
(Current Song: Martha's Quest (Murray Gold, Doctor Who Series 3 OST)
On a slightly downer note, I'll be keeping a close eye on the results of the inspections of Apple's (and it's supplier, Foxconn) factories in China. For those who don't know anything about it, take a look http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17015824. Apple aren't the only company to be dealing with Foxconn and the other suppliers named in the report, but they are the one most frequently named (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are among the others). It's only recently this has been coming to light, and unfortunately it's taken several suicides to get the issue raised. It's pretty shocking.
And RIP Whitney Houston. I remember her voice being a regular thing in our house when I was younger (Dad is a massive Soul and Motown fan), and I'm aware she was due for a comeback soon. It's sad to see that she's passed so far before her time, fallen once again down the route of drug addiction.
(Current Song: Kara Remembers - Bear McCreary, Battlestar Galactica OST 4)
I think I'll leave it there for now. I want to post more, but as always, duty calls. Best wishes ladies and gentlemen!
Hopefully I'm back on an upward swing now though. Often when I'm struggling like this I tend to close myself off, and I keep forgetting those around me can really help out. So thanks to all who've helped with the recent funk, especially Elle. I really appreciate it.
(Current song: Zombies Ate My Neighbours (Panic of the Undead) - NoppZ, OCRemix)
So, where to start with this update? I guess with work so far. Today seems to have been mostly about Malware, and related. A colleague brought in their work laptop (which was infected). Once the infection was cleared up, the BSOD's starting kicking in - looks like the hard drive might be shot. It's a shame, but not a game breaker, everything was backed up, and the laptop IS around 5 years old, so a good age. We'll see if I can fix it, otherwise it's a transplant or replacement time.
(Current Song: Memoria - Nobuo Uematsu (FF9 Soundtrack)
Turns out the malware infection came about last night, when she visited a local charity's website. Low and behold, said website is infected with something nasty themselves. Hopefully it'll be resolved soon (they're in the process of sorting it with the webhost, and I've offered help if they need it) but until then, access to said site's probably not a good idea. Cue the all staff e-mail!
(Current Song: Dog Days Are Over - Florence and the Machine)
Let's see, what else? Oh! Elle finished her essay over the weekend (an epic writing several weekends in the process), so this weekend'll be the first one we've had together properly for a while. Looking forward to it, especially with a week off next week too. Some much needed unwinding and relaxation time, bring it on!
I finally conquered one of my gaming achievements over the weekend as well. I said a little while ago I had a few game related things I wanted to get done in 2012, and while I haven't gotten to many of them, I can cross off the Treasure Trove achievement of Lost Odyssey, which means I've finally finished the game proper. T'is a good feeling.
(Current Song: Martha's Quest (Murray Gold, Doctor Who Series 3 OST)
On a slightly downer note, I'll be keeping a close eye on the results of the inspections of Apple's (and it's supplier, Foxconn) factories in China. For those who don't know anything about it, take a look http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17015824. Apple aren't the only company to be dealing with Foxconn and the other suppliers named in the report, but they are the one most frequently named (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are among the others). It's only recently this has been coming to light, and unfortunately it's taken several suicides to get the issue raised. It's pretty shocking.
And RIP Whitney Houston. I remember her voice being a regular thing in our house when I was younger (Dad is a massive Soul and Motown fan), and I'm aware she was due for a comeback soon. It's sad to see that she's passed so far before her time, fallen once again down the route of drug addiction.
(Current Song: Kara Remembers - Bear McCreary, Battlestar Galactica OST 4)
I think I'll leave it there for now. I want to post more, but as always, duty calls. Best wishes ladies and gentlemen!
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