Current Mood: Borg-like

I got my new phone (Motorola Rival) and decided (naturally) that I didn’t like the stock ringtones, so installed the Motorola Phone Tools in order to take care of that.

The first problem I had was that the software said it didn’t support my operating system.  I thought the problem might be that I’m using a 64-bit version of Windows 7, so I installed the software on my 32-bit Win7 installation on my laptop…same problem.

I eventually found this page that explained I should download the 64-bit drivers from here.  Installed it, the phone was detected by Windows properly…problem solved, right?

WRONG (and you knew it from this posting’s title).

I was able to get into Motorola’s software, but when trying to use the Melody Editor to upload the MP3 file I wanted to use as a ringtone, it indicated that I needed a codec, and that I could pay Motorola for it.  Screw that, I said, and downloaded the Lame MP3 encoder.  No difference.

I eventually found this page that explained that I had to edit a registry key (HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Drivers32\msacm.l3acm=C:\Windows\System32\l3codecp.acm) in order to point the OS to use a slightly different codec file than the default one (which is usually l3codeca.acm).  After a reboot, it…still didn’t work.

Then I remembered that since since the Motorola Phone Tools was running as a 32-bit app and I was using a 64-bit operating system, I had to edit the 32-bit registry and have it point to the 32-bit Windows System folder, so the regkey I really had to edit was HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Drivers32\msacm.l3acm=C:\Windows\SysWOW64\l3codecp.acm.  After a reboot, the software was no longer complaining about a missing codec.

Oh, but it doesn’t end there…

I uploaded my MP3 file via the Melody Editor, but it put the file into my MP3 folder, so I could only play it as a song…it didn’t appear in my ringtones folder.  What’s worse, there didn’t seem to be a ringtones folder, but online sources said there should be one.

I eventually found this page, which reminded me that Telus sucks.  They’ve crippled the phone to disallow custom ringtones; you have to buy ringtones from them.  However, further down the page there were instructions on using a freeware program called P2KCommander to connect to the phone and access all the hidden folders, including /a/brew/mod/my_ringers, where the ringtones are stored!

The program isn’t exactly user friendly, but once I figured it out and uploaded the file, I could see my Mp3 in the ringtones list!

Elapsed time:  4 hours

Current Mood: Happy

As expected, the PCS Wireless manager didn’t call me on Monday. I found his e-mail on their web site and left him a nastygram stating that I’d be contacting Telus to explain why a customer who always pays their bill on time, barely uses their system and rarely complains (the best kind of customer for service providers) is moving to another provider when my contract is up in a few weeks.

Got a call today from his employee, not him, saying that they tracked down my phone. Given that I had stated that I wanted a new phone or credit towards an iPhone, I was less than enthused. I think she picked up on that, as she called me back a bit later to tell me they were going to replace my phone with a Motorola Rival.

Pro: Slideout QWERTY keyboard
Con: No flash for the camera
Everything else is about the same: 2 MP camera, voice control, Bluetooth. Guess it’ll keep me going until the iPhone 4G comes out.

Current Mood: Angry

My cell phone was sent to the factory in early November.  6 weeks ago I called PCS Wireless (my local Telus whozzawhatsis) and left a message…no callback.  I did it again the next week…same, and the week after.  Finally, I went down there and asked where my fscking phone was, since the temp phone I have now doesn’t even have Bluetooth and the handsfree ban is in play.

The guy said he’d find out where the phone was and get back to me.  Nothing.  I went back 2 weeks later and asked again.  The lady said she’d have her manager call me the next morning.  Nothing.  I went in Friday evening and basically said give me my phone, a new phone, or credit toward an iPhone.  The manager will call me back on Monday.  I don’t have high hopes.

The phone’s still under warranty.  Given that it’s had to be sent to the factory 4 times already, each time for weeks on end, I think I’ll invoke replacement anyway.  I went online and found that lots of people were having the reboot issue.  Even if the phone comes back, the problem will return within 9 months…it’ll be a ticking time bomb.

My contract is up in March, I think.  Telus has the least expensive iPhone plan, so it’d be nice if they gave me credit toward one of those and I don’t have to go somewhere else.  Maybe one of the competitors will match it…they can’t have worse service than this, right?  Right?

Current Mood: Playful

I started making this up in my head on Sunday, but had to concentrate on driving.

Sung to U2’s Sunday Bloody Sunday:

I can’t believe it snowed today,
Oh, I can’t even drive,
Please make it go away.

How low…
How low can the temperature go?
How low, how low,
Tonight, the ice will form,
Tonight…

Slippy, slidey, under all our feet,
Cars losing control across the street.
But I won’t join those stupid duds,
I went and got some,
Went and got some tires with studs.

Sunday, snowy Sunday…
Sunday, snowy Sunday…
Sunday, snowy Sunday…

And the sleet has just begun,
Many off the road, some more just spun.
Why can’t people drive for crap?
Moving slowly, surely, painfully,
Mind the gap.

Sunday, snowy Sunday…
Sunday, snowy Sunday…

How low…
How low can the temperature go?
How low, how low,
Tonight, the ice will form,
Tonight…tonight…

Sunday, snowy Sunday…
Sunday, snowy Sunday…

Scrape ice from your windshield,
Scrape the ice away.
Oh, scrape the ice away,
Oh, scrape the ice away,
(Sunday, snowy Sunday)
Oh, scrape away that damn ice!
(Sunday, snowy Sunday)

Sunday, snowy Sunday (Sunday, snowy Sunday)…
Sunday, snowy Sunday (Sunday, snowy Sunday)…

And I’m sure that it won’t stay,
When it warms up everything will turn to slush.
And today kids make snowmen,
Enjoy them now, a puddle they’ll be then.

(Sunday, snowy Sunday)

I can’t believe I made this song,
This waste of time, it is just wrong.

Sunday, snowy Sunday…
Sunday, snowy Sunday…

Current Mood: Borg-like

I think you should use AVG instead of Norton’s bloatware, but these guides are great for your non-tech-savvy friends and family:

http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/guide-scary-internet-stuff

Current Mood: Confused

A few months back I was going to take the kids to see the new Harry Potter movie.  When my ex-wife found out, she registered her displeasure and it finally came down to me agreeing that if the kids had nightmares I would get a phone call to talk them down from it.

I read that particular HP book, and except for near the end it was actually less scary than the previous few of the series…it was PG when the previous few were PG-13.  There were no nightmares.

A few weeks ago Geoffrey told me he had watched the first part of The Dark Knight at a friend’s house and his mum got mad.  I, too, was unhappy to hear that, as that movie is too dark for a 7-year-old, IMO.

So, it seems that PG movies are okay and PG-13 are not.  But wait! Here are a list of PG-13 movies I would let my kids watch:

Ever After
Fantastic Four
Goldeneye
Pirates of the Caribbean
Spiderman
Stardust
Star Trek
X-Men

How can those movies be counted in the same list as 1408, The Dark Knight, and The Ring? The ratings system is just nuts.

Current Mood: Bored

Another plasma blast went over Gareth’s head.  He hunkered down further into the hollow of the fallen tree.  Where the hell was Beatty?

Then there was a flurry of footfalls and Gareth’s partner’s slim form dived down next to him.  He had in his hands…

“Oh my God,” Gareth muttered.

Beatty’s eyes were locked on the round transparent sphere as he fiddled with the controls on the base.  “Yeah, it’s the antimatter drive,” he said, matter-of-factly.  “The Wells is damaged beyond repair, but the drive’s magnetic bottle is still intact.”

Gareth shook his head.  “Naw, man, naw…”

Beatty reached out and grabbed Gareth by his collar.  The man’s eyes put tempered steel to shame, Gareth thought.  “Nothing else we have has even made a mark on the enemy ship,” he said.

With the flip of a switch, the antimatter drive started to emit a keening wail.  Beatty continued, “The date is June 30, 1908 AD, and that river back there?  It’s called the Tunguska.  We have history on our side, Gareth.  Those bastards don’t have a chance.”

Current Mood: Playful

Geoffrey and Emily were playing with the blow-up hammers they got at the PNE.

Geoffrey: Emily’s hammer is bigger than mine.

Me: But do you know how to use it?

Geoffrey: Yeah.

Me: Okay then.

Current Mood: Playful

The other night I had a dream that I was hired to be a dealer for a high-stakes poker game in some guy’s garage.

Later, I agreed to a poker hand with a rich guy for lots of money, but instead of cards we used comics from my collection.  I’m happy to report that my quads of the same issue of Cherry Poptart (NSFW) beat a full house of 2 different classic issues of Incredible Hulk.

So I get from this that I’d better finish indexing my comics so I can make some money from them, and I miss playing poker.

Current Mood: Bored

The Sandman comic books introduced the idea of the library of unwritten books. Here is an excerpt from one of those books:

The old man’s eyes glistened with the promise of tears as he finished his story.

“A woman like that comes along but once in a lifetime. I would have given her anything she asked of me. In the end I did…I gave her her freedom.”