Now that I’ve taken the plunge on Fusion after using Parallels for about 1 year I feel that I can give a good review on the ups and downs of both packages. On the surface, it seems that both programs are too similar, in their looks and their feature set, to make a compelling argument for choosing one over the other. Parallels has had a head start in this niche. The options and integration features offered by Parallels Desktop reflect that. Even though VMWare is about 1 year behind, Fusion (despite some graphic flubbiness, which I’ll get to) takes said features and implements them the way they should have been in Parallels.
For those of you Parallels users out there (and I know “many” are reading this, ha) I’ll cut right to the chase. A dynamic disk image in Parallels takes quite a bit of time to compress, and most times doesn’t compress to the smallest size possible. In my experience, it took Parallels’ image tools, sometimes 10+ hours to full reduce the size of my dynamic virtual disk. As you all know, it will have to be compressed again because of Windows’ liberal use of disk geometry. This sucks for users, and is a colossal waste of time.
I just yesterday reduced the size of my Fusion image, converted from a Parallels image, and it took 25 minutes….from start to finish. It went from 28GB (max 30GB, with 13GB actual disk usage) to 13GB. All in a painless Fusion Tools process. I was up and running in no time. This is why you Parallels users should drop what you’re doing right now, and buy Fusion. Plain and simple. VMWare has a beta edition of their image conversion utility and worked flawlessly for me, which removes the concern that one would have when moving to a different application. Plus, Fusion starts and suspends faster, with less beachballing and system hiccups.
The only downside that I’ve noticed is that Fusion has an issue with Windows redraw when running Unity mode (called Convergence within Parallels) so that background Unity windows do not redraw their contents when dragged, until the mouse button is let go. This problem extends to the usage of Expose, so that the overlapped Unity windows have “impressions” of their counterpart windows when Expose is activated. I say, “Big Deal”. This will most likely be fixed in a patch, and besides being a little visually displeasing, it really doesn’t impact productivity to a great degree.
I’m totally happy with my switch to VMWare and I won’t be looking back to Parallels Desktop. I wish VMWare would post the differences in performance and the ease (and more importantly, speed) of virtual disk compression. These are vital metrics when making the leap. Too bad Sinbad didn’t chime in sooner about how much he loves Fusion on his Mac, because I would have taken the dive long before now.
Remember that guy that flew around the world a few times in goofy high-efficiency airplanes and balloons? Steve Fossett was his name. And I say was because I guess the guy died…but not really. According to Wikipedia, he was pronounced “legally dead” in November 2007 by his wife. Allegedly during a flight across a Nevada desert, he managed to get lost. Come on!
The state of Nevada has a surface area of 104,576 square miles (estimated through Google Earth). Earth has a surface area of 196,940,400 square miles (from Web search). Now how come this asshole could fly around the world, which is about 1,900 times larger than Nevada, yet he manages to go MIA when flying within the United States? I smell a scandal.
His wife declares he dead. He’s a multi-millionaire. No trace of him or his aircraft in the desert. Go ahead and put the pieces together. Most likely, him and his wife are sippin’ coconut drinks on some island right now, laughing all the way to the bank, not having to deal with the current bullshit this country is placing on our shoulders.
Steve Fossett, you’re my hero. Anyone who can become lost without a single trace deserves to be placed on Shouting Grounds.
I was re-reading some LegoRobot Comics and laughing my ass off, then I got to #57 and was confused. I went to wikipedia, then google images, then youtube and found this….
I’m just wondering if you guys are as confused as I am. The wikipedia article stated that after some threats he was put under a psychiatric program and medicated. It seems to me, for lack of any sensical response, that this guy is insane. Right?
The dragons comment is obviously the point of the LegoRobot episode, but seriously, how the fuck does a guy like this get a job writing in the first place.
If it’s all just one inside joke, it’s truly amazing.
After seeing Redscape’s review, I decided to give this movie its day in court…not a bad move. I’ve come to except and overlook Hayden Christenson’s driftwood-school of acting…it truly seems like he’s trying but in the end all you get is some pouting stares, which when coupled with his caterpiller-like eyebrows make him look like a two year-old trying to force out his first throne-dump. Sad really. Aside from that nonsense, and in spite of the acting, the movie was at the very least held my interest throughout. The most believable performance was turned in by Lena Olin, who played Hayden’s mum…Jessica Alba should probably just be bronzed in the nude and placed in a public square for youngin’s to ogle. I’m a Terrance Howard fan, but he wasn’t remarkable at all in this flick either. In fact, the only thing that made this movie watchable was the story…so if you’re down for a decent story and can live through 80 minutes of not-the-worst, but not great acting then I second Redscape’s recommendation for renting Awake.
Arousal Scale – Magic John Stone for Awake: Flacid
Author Arthur C. Clarke, whose science fiction and non-fiction works ranged from the script for “2001: A Space Odyssey” to an early proposal for communications satellites, has died at age 90, associates have said.
He died early Wednesday — Tuesday afternoon ET — at a hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where he had lived since the 1950s, Chase said.
His best-known works, such as “2001″ or the 1953 novel “Childhood’s End,” combined the hard science he learned studying physics and mathematics with insights into how future discoveries would change humanity.
Clarke and director Stanley Kubrick shared an Academy Award nomination for best adapted screenplay for “2001.” The film grew out of Clarke’s 1951 short story, “The Sentinel,” about an alien transmitter left on the moon that ceases broadcasting when humans arrive.
As a Royal Air Force officer during World War II, Clarke took part in the early development of radar. In a paper written for the radio journal “Wireless World” in 1945, he suggested that artificial satellites hovering in a fixed spot above Earth could be used to relay telecommunications signals across the globe.
He is widely credited with introducing the idea of the communications satellite, the first of which were launched in the early 1960s. But he never patented the idea, prompting a 1965 essay that he subtitled, “How I Lost a Billion Dollars in My Spare Time.”
Clarke was knighted in 1998. He wrote dozens of novels and collections of short stories and more than 30 nonfiction works during his career, and served as a television commentator during several of the Apollo moon missions.
Though humans have not returned to the moon since 1972, Clarke said he was confident that a “Golden Age” of space travel was just beginning.
Beyond 2001 and a few short stories I’ve never really delved into his works. Any fan of Science Fiction, however, knew Arthur C. Clarke by name and the tremendous contributions he made to the genre. I also never knew that “fun fact” about the role he played in the history of the communications satellite.
Ya Boi Redscape here with a new edition of Shotgun Theatre for our loyal and devoted masses (all 3 of you). I’m firing both barrels this time around with two reviews: There Will Be Blood and Awake. So without further ado…
Paul Thomas Andersons “There Will Be Blood” is at its heart a character study. And oh what a character it gives us in Daniel Day Lewis’s portrayal of Daniel Plainview, a pioneering oil driller and eventual tycoon. Anyone familiar with Lewis’s work behind the camera knows that his performances instantly command respect. His Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York still gives me shivers when I watch it. To say his performance this time around was astonishing would be downplaying it. I honestly can’t think of any other actor in today’s Hollywood that could have pulled it off. After seeing the film I can honestly say I’m in full support of his recent Oscar win.
One of the things I liked most about the movie was how it effectively captured the look and feel of the time. Rarely have I found myself so drawn in and transfixed by the settings of a film. The bulk of the action takes place in the American southwest during the early 20th century and Anderson effectively uses the quiet and desolate nature of the land to accentuate and lend power to the characters performances. The brutal nature and hardships of the mining and drilling are also captured and conveyed very well.
While we’re on the subject of Anderson it should be said his directing here is superb. He moves the film at a slow pace which allows the viewer to become fully engrossed in the richness and complexities of the characters. The first few minutes of the movie, during which there is no dialogue just action underscored by tense chords of music, are a perfect example of how well Anderson is in control of his craft.
Kudos also to the supporting cast, especially relative newcomer Paul Dano who turns in a particularly noteworthy performance as a corrupt and attention seeking preacher.
Overall I give the film top marks in nearly every category. A definite must see as well as must have for anyone’s collection.
Arousal Scale – Redscape for There Will Be Blood: Platinum Dipped and Diamond Tipped
I have to say I didn’t like Awake at first and it wasn’t until about half an hour into the film that I really began to get into it. Looking back on it now I realize I was trying to make the movie, in my mind, into something it is not. I was looking for the film to be fairly black and white in it’s portrayal of events and wasn’t expecting the moral complexities it presented me with instead. With that said, let me also state if metaphysics isn’t you particular cup of tea it may be best if you stay away from this one.
On the surface the film is about a young man who has inherited both his late fathers vast wealth and responsibility. The rub is he’s got a bum ticker that could go at any moment. Add to this a sexy fiancé, a disapproving and controlling mother, and a heart surgeon who’s up to his elbows in malpractice suits and you have the makings of a fairly cleaver thriller. On a deeper level the movie deals with issues of betrayal, morality, and second chances. The twist in the plot is provided by a phenomenon known as Anesthesia Awareness. As you can probably guess the net result of this experience is being fully conscience, yet paralyzed during surgery. In this case heart transplant surgery. Not a fun time. The scenes involving the surgery were particularly terrifying. The rest of the movie involves a literal out of body experience as our protagonist races around the hospital and city trying to piece together clues and uncover an apparent plot against his life.
Now a few words on acting. Hayden Christensen, a.k.a. “Mannequin Skywalker”, turns in a fairly well performance, but he’s still plagued by a “woodenness” in his delivery at times. I still think he has what it takes to become a high caliber actor; I just think his technique needs some refining. Jessica Alba character was functional at best and it honestly felt like she phoned it in. Terrence Howard I’m convinced at this point could effortlessly play any role.
The real surprise for me however was how tender and touching the film turned out to be. It was almost as if midway through it transformed into a totally different movie.
Bottom line: Rent this movie or catch it on cable, not worth buying.
Arousal Scale – Redscape for Awake: Steamed Asparagus
Of course it’s successful, you stupid asshole! You and your evil, maniacal, and poisonous friends have made off with BILLIONS of dollars while over a MILLION people have lost their lives! That sounds just like the kind of success that would lift your manhood out of it’s cobwebbed liar and into the glory hole, aptly named “American Asses”! Seriously, fuck this scumbag and his friends
I would love, LOVE to hear this asshole explain his actions to a crowd of his peers. The fact that we are taking polls to determine if we are experiencing a recession right now is exactly our problem. We hear and digest so much bullshit we don’t even know who we are anymore. And fat fucks like Cheney are chuckling their cunts off all the way to their diamond encrusted yachts.
I am totally psyched about this TBA release by KORG. Korg managed to fit a software emulation of the popular patch synth MS-10, recently revived through a software plug-in bundle, onto a standard Nintendo DS. Being able to program a synth and sequence some beats, all using the tiny little DS would be a blast on the train to work. With people still composing music using the original Nintendo Entertainment System, the fact that you can chain up 8 DS’s together means that an “All DS music group/project” will no doubt be around the corner.
Eight DS’s would give a programmer a maximum of 16 synth voices and 32 drum tracks. That’s insanely more than your standard, dedicated chip artist out there would need to craft an opus. Check the specs and video from MESSE08.
From SonicState.com:
DS-10
World’s first music tool software created for the Nintendo DS
Two patchable dual-oscillator analog synth simulators:
Four-part drum machine that uses sounds created with the analog synth simulator
Six-track (analog synth x 2, drum machine x 4) /16-step sequencer
Delay, chorus, and flanger sound effects available from the mixing board
Three note-entry modes: touch-control screen, keyboard screen, matrix screen
Real-time sound control mode via touch-control screen
Exchange sounds and songs and play multiple units simultaneously through a wireless communications link
Update
I guess the sonic state video of the ds-10 was pulled…here’s another from youtube…
I debated for a few minutes as to whether or not to post this, but why the fuck not since we haven’t had a post in a few days. Need I say more? This is fucking ridiculous. And before you say it…I don’t care if they’re ‘giving people what they want’, CNN is supposed to be a world-class news organization, not a pandering shit hole like MTV. How about you do some investigative reporting into important things and try to get a larger message out there than showing that you have too many people on MySpace. Fuck you!
Chall may have seen in the news the other day that former Rep. Geraldine Ferraro enlightened the country with a terribly original thought…that Barack Obama was only a viable candidate for the Democratic nomination because he’s a black man.
from CNN.com: Ferraro said, “If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman, he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept.”
My initial thought was to just ignore this stupid bitch since she’s just a money-grubbing lobbyist now who happens to be pushing for Hillary Clinton. While I support Obama in the coming election, personally it’s not because he’s black. I know there are more than a few people who are only supporting him because of the color of his skin and not because of the issues…that’s our society. But I’m pretty sure the other potential Democratic nominee has something similar working for her. Hello? How many people do you think are supporting Hillary just because she’s a woman, assface? Reread what the scag said about Obama, “if he was a woman, he would not be in this position.” WTF? Isn’t that what got your candidate in this position? That and having been married to the last good president?
Like I said, I would have just let her be. But then today, CNN posts this article where the living nut-sack claims “they’re attacking me because I’m white.” Holy shit. So now, Obama’s only a candidate because he’s black, and you’re the enemy because you’re white and you pointed out that he’s not? Her continued stupidity spawned this article.
Hey sack-face, since you’re all about making generalizations allow me to bring my guns to bear. I’ll generalize that you are only supporting Hillary because she’s a Democratic candidate…nothing tough there. How about I generalize that you’re only supporting her because she’s a woman? Am I a sexist now? Or would you be a sexist if you called me a sexist? Depends on who says it first…and loudest, right? I’ll go one step further and say that you’re supporting Hillary because she’s trying to achieve what you only dreamed of back in your hayday, and failed to partially achieve in ’84 when Mondale chose you as his running mate when you guys got rump-racked by Ronny Ray-gun. I also see that you failed to get back into congress after that reach. Let’s go a little deeper…in a debate with then Vice-P George H.W., you leveled this nugget when the question of your experience in politics came up in comparison to H.Dub’s:
There’s not only what is on your paper resume that makes you qualified to run for or to hold office. It’s how you approach problems and what your values are. I think if one is taking a look at my career they’ll see that I level with the people; that I approach problems analytically; that I am able to assess the various facts with reference to a problem, and I can make the hard decisions.
Some big words in there, i.e. qualified, values, level, analytically… What are you showing about your values by trying to shoehorn your candidate into nomination by saying her opponent is only viable because of the color of his skin? Try stripping all of the issues, experience, values, history from the candidates and leave them with two things: sex and skin color. Then run your election and see who gets picked. Tell you what, at least a third of the country has already done that…guaranteed. Yet, Obama’s ahead in the votes, and unless it really hits the fan he should secure the nomination for the general election. My guess is a majority of the people that only see in monochrome and are judging balls v. ovaries are not siding with your candidate, along with the rest of the populous that are able to form a rational thought and choose a candidate to nominate for themselves.
In summation: unless you want to compare stances on issues, just shut the fuck up. Don’t start some racial shit and then claim that everyone else is racist when they react. I’ve had enough of politics that are driven by racism, religion and political greed. Try to pin your fucking mouth so that the population can actually focus on what these candidates stand for instead of what they stand as.
And as always, thanks to wikipedia for the fact-checking.
I received the obligatory ad email from VMWare today, having test drove their latest emulation software for Mac (Fusion), and within this advertisement was a this photo and caption:
I’m wondering what Mac software evangelist has been holding on on buying Fusion for lack of Sinbad’s take.
Welcome assholes! This will be the first in Shouting Ground’s exclusive rapid-fire review segment entitled “Shotgun Theater”. It’s open to reviews of anything you please, just organized into a common format. For Shotgun posts, keep your reviews to a single paragraph (1 para, but go as long as you have the wind for)…and like I said, blast anything from movies to trailers, software, games, consoles, politicians, soda, music, hooters, anything. Shotgun Theater is an attempt to bring to written form the format of the “coming revulsions” episode of a Thousand Cuts. I’m also going to resurrect the extremely popular “Arousal Scale”, to be attached to each shotgun blast.
Today I’ll be firing three rounds straight from the hip…covering Michael Clayton, Gone Baby Gone, and Death Sentence. I’ll throw up a warning if I get into any spoiler material so’s I don’t ruin the movie if you haven’t seen it.
Michael Clayton
Going into MC, I didn’t know what to expect since none of the trailers or commercials showed anything that could hint to the thrust of the movie except for George Clooney running through and/or looking around a forest, and yelling at Tilda Swinton “Do I look like I’m negotiating?!” Without going into too much detail, the movie unfolds much like a John Grisham movie, i.e. The Firm or The Rainmaker. If you like legal dramas, you’ll be very pleased. If you like great acting by more than one person, you’ll be extremely pleased. Tom Wilkinson is fantastic, George Clooney is pretty great, but while Tilda Swinton was above average (guess that’s not saying much these days given the median quality of acting…i.e. dogshit) I don’t think she gave an Oscar-worthy performance. She made her character believable, but she didn’t pop off the screen like Tom Wilkinson did. That being said, I can’t remember who she was measured against for Best Supporting…nor if I had seen any of their films. The pace of the movie is again, similar to a John Grisham film…but shouldn’t put you in a coma. Arousal Scale – Magic John Stone for Michael Clayton: Vlasic
Gone Baby Gone
WTF you say? Ben Affleck’s directing a movie? Sure to be an abortion right…given his recent stringy mess of diarrhea. Ah…lest we forget he and Matt Damon wrote an Oscar-winning screenplay for Good Will Hunting. So maybe while he doesn’t seem able to choose great acting roles for himself, he might just know something about making fucking movies. MJS says “Shit yeah he does”. Gone Baby Gone is a great goddamn movie. Not only are great performances turned in by Casey Affleck, Ed Harris and Morgan Freeman, but Michelle Monaghan is pretty decent as the female lead (the only reason I point this out is I still have a bad taste in my mouth from Rachel Bilson’s worthlessness in Jumper)…she actually plays a believable role as a person with a brain and beating heart, contributing to the motion of the film instead of simply providing aim for an erstwhile boner. You might remember her from Mission: Impossible 3, but you might not. She’s some creepy amalgamation of several actresses, including Katie Holmes (how do you think she got the part opposite the Cruise Missle?). Anyways, fuck her…back to the movie. The Elder Affleck is able to make this movie different by changing the pacing of the plot from a normal movie, just when you think it should be nearly ending, you find out its not…and you’re kept guessing. Great first effort. Arousal Scale – Magic John Stone for Gone Baby Gone: Stone Cold
Death Sentence
Released around the same time as The Brave One, both movies slipped into the big shitter of cinema quickly after being released. However, having seen The Brave One, I had to see this for comparison…with fingers crossed that the director wouldn’t try to get the Bacon to flash his cock for the eighteenth time. Enough with the dick talk… While this movie was a serviceable thriller, I can’t help but feel depressed after watching it…JT would love it. I will say that it did avoid some of the pitfalls of the Brave One, i.e. unexplainable stupidity by law enforcement. I won’t say anything more about that. And while DS did have its share of gruesome killing, I’ve seen it all before…and by much more convincing people than the Bacon. That being said, the Bacon did do a good job of portraying a normal guy that was thrust into the situation of the movie, including some of the hesitation I think a normal person would have in some of the situations. And in closing, John Goodman looked bad in this movie…like John Candy during Wagons East bad. Have a rice cake or two, old buddy. Arousal Scale – Magic John Stone for Death Sentence: Hobbled
Here’s one for all you lovers of secret government funded research projects that seek to turn the American citizens into heavy sweating, foul breath, pedophile, nymphomaniac, homosexuals.
“Moreover, for many decades now, rumors of proposals to manipulate the sexual orientation of the targeted individuals, were for the first time substantiated by the admission of US warfare research program. One proposal theorized that remote inducement of artificial homosexual tendencies as well as the possibility of developing pedophile, nymphomaniac and other abnormal compulsive behaviors with the remote control of dedicated part of the nervous system and of the genitalia, in association with repeated “downloads” of vivid dreams, systematic disruption of sleep patternREM periods over months and years. Supposedly, remote stimuli could also be frequently broadcasted with visual sequences to achieve a Pavlovian conditioning purpose.”
