skipjack DOT info
Google Voice Transcriptions are great for a laugh
What I got emailed
hey it's me when you come in for money to cool goes to show give me a call bye
what she really said:
Posted at 01:34PM Jun 30, 2009 by skipjack in Tech | Comments[0]
The long slow death of commercial radio.
One of my favorite radio stations died on May 22, 2009 KWOD went off the air.
KWOD has been playing Alternative music for Sacramento since 1991. Those were the days before the term “Alternative” was actually coined by some supposed marketing genius somewhere. Then most people just called it Modern Rock and we played bands, like the Pixies, The Cure, Depeche Mode, The Smiths and The Clash.There have been many great years, like the explosion of the Grunge era and the creativity of the late 90’s. There have also been many passionate and talented people sitting behind the microphones at KWOD, turning you on to new artists and songs, playing your favorites of the years past and letting you know about what was going on with those bands and the people like you, who loved them.
That is why it is so difficult to tell you that, after 18 years, KWOD is coming to an end. The last few years have been very challenging for KWOD; as it has been for the world of Alternative music, and the radio stations that play it, in general. The severe downturn in the economy over the last year has affected many people and companies. I’m not telling you something that you don’t already know. But, perhaps you didn’t know that, while we are a radio station, we face the same circumstances as so many other organizations today… the challenge of running a business profitably. We have taken many steps over the last few years to improve things, but in the end they have not been enough. We’re proud of what KWOD has stood for over the years. And, we’ve had fun being part of it.
Some of you may want to blame this decision on some faceless corporation. While KWOD does have a parent company, it’s not how it came down. This was a local decision that was both difficult and personal. We had to finally admit that our best efforts, over a number of years, were not going to produce the results we needed.
So, on Friday, May 22nd at 9am…KWOD will be no more.
Your loyalty to the music, and to KWOD, is more appreciated than any of us can effectively express. So, we will leave it with a simple, genuine “Thank you”…
Curtiss Johnson
Program Director / KWOD
While what he says is true about the economy this year, the truth is most radio stations are having trouble making ends meet. There is a systemic flaw in the radio business model which is going to cause a slow strangulation of itself. I see radio dying out over the next 20 years, the generation born in the 1970's and early '80's being the last generation to get their music from the radio stations. People born after 1985 no longer look to radio to find music, using MTV and then the Internet in various forms.
Why would someone listen to a 1hour long broadcast that has 15-20 minutes of commercials, a mix of songs that they might not like, and someone talking over part of the song. When with an MP3 player they can mix their own music for the mood they are in right now, with no commercials, and no one talking over the music.
Most radio stations are going to start going backward in time, playing the oldies. There were 2 stations in the central valley that played Alternative music and both have shifted to an oldies format this year. KWOD is playing all nineties and 93.1 (which is now 92.1) is playing 70's and 80's music. Both will probably keep this format for 15-20 years. Then maybe switch to a talk format, but even a switch to talk radio is not going to save them. With 3G and 4G wireless and Internet streaming which people end up switching to hear news and music. This is great for cellular companies, not so great for everyone else. Some stations like 105.3 in the San Francisco Bay are trying new types of programming letting the users program music using programs like Jelli.net on Sunday nights. I don't if this can save 105.3 but at least they aren't throwing in the towel.
Posted at 10:27PM Jun 29, 2009 by skipjack in General | Comments[0]
A cure for AIDS/HIV
Someone has been cured of AIDS/HIV. Why isn't this bigger news. I know a bone marrow transplant isn't for everyone, but it's still a cure.
Posted at 05:35PM Jun 29, 2009 by skipjack in General | Comments[0]
Travel complaints
from the Grey Monk
I really cannot resist sharing this as widely as possible. It says everything you need to know about the Labour voting masses that now regularly travel and ruin everyone else's holiday ....
Thomas Cook Holiday complaints
(Survey by Thomas Cook and ABTA)
"I think it should be explained in the brochure that the local store does not sell proper biscuits like custard creams or ginger nuts."
"It's lazy of the local shopkeepers to close in the afternoons. I often needed to buy things during 'siesta' time - this should be banned."
"On my holiday to Goa in India , I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry. I don't like spicy food at all."
"We booked an excursion to a water park but no-one told us we had to bring our swimming costumes and towels."
A tourist at a top African game lodge overlooking a waterhole, who spotted a visibly aroused elephant, complained that the sight of this rampant beast ruined his honeymoon by making him feel "inadequate".
A woman threatened to call police after claiming that she'd been locked in by staff. When in fact, she had mistaken the "do not disturb" sign on the back of the door as a warning to remain in the room.
"The beach was too sandy."
"We found the sand was not like the sand in the brochure. Your brochure shows the sand as yellow but it was white."
A guest at a Novotel in Australia complained his soup was too thick and strong. He was inadvertently slurping the gravy at the time.
"Topless sunbathing on the beach should be banned. The holiday was ruined as my husband spent all day looking at other women."
"We bought 'Ray-Ban' sunglasses for five Euros (£3.50) from a street trader, only to find out they were fake."
"No-one told us there would be fish in the sea. The children were startled."
"It took us nine hours to fly home from Jamaica to England it only took the Americans three hours to get home."
"I compared the size of our one-bedroom apartment to our friends' three-bedroom apartment and ours was significantly smaller."
"The brochure stated: 'No hairdressers at the accommodation' We're trainee hairdressers - will we be OK staying here?"
"There are too many Spanish people. The receptionist speaks Spanish. The food is Spanish. Too many foreigners."
"We had to queue outside with no air conditioning."
"It is your duty as a tour operator to advise us of noisy or unruly guests before we travel."
"I was bitten by a mosquito - no-one said they could bite."
"My fiancé and I booked a twin-bedded room but we were placed in a double-bedded room. We now hold you responsible for the fact that I find myself pregnant. This would not have happened if you had put us in the room that we booked."
As I said .....
Posted at 08:53AM Jun 29, 2009 by skipjack in Things that make me laugh | Comments[0]
Gmail Kung Fu - Using an address aliasPrint
Using an address aliasPrint
Gmail doesn't offer traditional aliases, but you can receive messages sent to your.username+any.alias-AT-gmail-DOT-com. For example, messages sent to jane.doe+notes-AT-gmail-DOT-com are delivered to jane.doe-AT-gmail-DOT-com.
You can set up filters to automatically direct these messages to Trash, apply a label or star, skip the inbox, or forward to another email account.
So you could set up emails for websites that won't let you read anything unless you login. Just create gmailname+sendtospam-AT-gmail-DOT-com then create a filter that anything sent to gmailname+sendtospam-AT-gmail-DOT-com gets dumped to the Spam folder.
Posted at 11:58AM Jun 26, 2009 by skipjack in Tech |
The Politics Test
| You are a Social Liberal (75% permissive) and an... Economic Moderate (41% permissive) You are best described as a:
Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test |
Posted at 07:55PM Jun 25, 2009 by skipjack in Politics |
Mathematician and physicist
A mathematician and a physicist were asked the following question: Suppose you walked by a burning house and saw a hydrant and a hose not connected to the hydrant. What would you do?
P: I would attach the hose to the hydrant, turn on the water, and put out the fire.
M: I would attach the hose to the hydrant, turn on the water, and put out the fire.
Then they were asked this question: Suppose you walked by a house and saw a hose connected to a hydrant. What would you do?
P: I would keep walking, as there is no problem to solve.
M: I would disconnect the hose from the hydrant and set the house on fire, reducing the problem to a previously solved form.
Posted at 09:52AM Jun 24, 2009 by skipjack in Things that make me laugh |
Happiness
If there were in the world today any large number of people who desired their own happiness more than they desired the unhappiness of others, we could have paradise in a few years.
- Bertrand Russell
Posted at 09:52AM Jun 24, 2009 by skipjack in quotes |
John Hodgman at Radio & TV Correspondents’ Dinner
Posted at 09:31PM Jun 22, 2009 by skipjack in Politics |
My geek score
Created by OnePlusYou - Free Dating Site
Posted at 08:45PM Jun 21, 2009 by skipjack in Things that make me laugh |
CQ CQ KI6ZTY
I have received an Technician Amateur class radio license. I am now KI6TZY to those whose voices drift among the ether. All I need now is to buy me a radio.
Posted at 12:53PM Jun 04, 2009 by skipjack in General |
Eccentricity is not madness
Eccentricity is not, as dull people would have us believe, a form of madness. It is often a kind of innocent pride, and the man of genius and the aristocrat are frequently regarded as eccentrics because genius and aristocrat are entirely unafraid of and uninfluenced by the opinions and vagaries of the crowd.
- Edith Sitwell
Posted at 06:38PM May 30, 2009 by skipjack in quotes |
Lighttpd and bugzilla
installing bugzilla on lighttpd isn't covered so here is the 4 steps you need to do it.
1- Install bugzilla in the http server root.
2- Enable mod_cgi server module:
-------------
/etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf
server.modules += ("mod_cgi")
-------------
3- Add the following lines to the /etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf
-------------
/etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf
$HTTP["url"] =~ "^/bugzilla/.*" {
# disable directory listings
dir-listing.activate = "disable"
# only allow cgi's in this directory
cgi.assign = ( ".cgi" => "" )
index-file.names = ( "index.cgi" )
}
-------------
4- restart lighttpd ...
Posted at 01:51PM May 29, 2009 by skipjack in Tech |
Politics and TV
When the politicians complain that TV turns the proceedings into a circus, it should be made clear that the circus was already there, and that TV has merely demonstrated that not all the performers are well trained.
- Edward R. Murrow
Posted at 11:30AM May 22, 2009 by skipjack in quotes | Comments[2]
What is real?
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away".
Philip K. Dick (1928-1982)
Posted at 11:14PM May 17, 2009 by skipjack in quotes | Comments[1]
