Grooveshark v Pandora v Spotify v Slacker

Grooveshark

Grooveshark is the first of the free Internet radio websites. This one specializes in finding specific genres of music and making your own playlist of songs you like. I personally don't have much of a preference for it, as the genres for the music can be slightly vague, but the playlists work just fine, so it's all about preference.

Pandora

Pandora is probably the most known of any of the Internet radios, but it's aslo probably the weakest on a quality scale. It does excellent in suggesting music that you would most likely enjoy, but if you happen to not like a string of sounds, well tough luck, because you skipped too often and now you're stuck. It also does not have a playlist feature, so it's just random songs played on repeat, but in all honesty, it's only player that I plan on using, just because it happens to be the simplest and easiest to pick up.

Spotify

Spotify is Pandora's biggest rival, as t has had the most success of any of the competitors. It is the radio that downloads itself onto your computer for easy access when ever you need it. That's also the reason I don't like it. My computer's memory is awful, considering I seem to have had to download tons and tons of things that I just cannot be bothered to delete as of the past few months. Regardless, it works fine. You can have playlists and another interesting feature none of the others have, is that you can play the music offline, if you pay for the premium.

Slacker

Immediately, my first complaint was how long it takes for the site to load. It is practically ungodly slow. Nitpicking though. The site is set up nicely, where the genres are defined, and you can even find song titles and artists with just a simple search. It's quite effective. If there was anything I would try, it would be Slacker. The site even shows popular music, which seems to be the radios MO. While Grooveshark was for those that like the classics and out-of-the-box, Slacker seems to service to those popular and well known artists and songs. I have no sense of originality, so I like it because it's easier to find popular songs, which I like. Call me shallow; I am prepared.

My Experience with Google Maps v Yahoo Maps

Google, you lovely beast. I feel I just cannot get away from you. Anyway, my experience with Google maps is pretty simple. It's easy to mark where and how you get from Point A to Point B. It's hard to describe the process. I am horrendous with computers, so I was horribly flabbergasted at all the locations I had to look at, but after a few minutes of staring I gradually learned what to do. Think: a caveman discovering how light fire and not burn off their knuckle hair. Are there alternatives to Google Maps?

Yes. I chose Yahoo Maps. I cannot ever bear to look at it. It is so much harder to use and not nearly as interactive. I didn't realize it, but I was just having a fun time playing with Google Maps, but Yahoo is ugly to look at and I could barely figure it out. Cue me singeing my knuckle hair.

How Social Media Has Changed the World

Social media is defined as the way a website is used in circulating information between individuals or groups. There are tons of social media sites, all with some kind of purpose given to the public. Want to talk to a friend? Facebook. Want to see them and talk? Skype. Upload a funny song you wrote? YouTube. There are literally limitless amounts of social media on every site these days. And with more interaction between each of the sites, sharing information from one site or person is just as easy as clicking a button.

How has social media changed the world, though? It's just a way to talk to friends right? Kinda, but there is so much more. First: the world is closer than it has ever been. Different languages, customs, and information that used to be much more difficult to find, are just a click away. You can go on a random chatting site and casually talk to someone thousands of miles away from you. Two: You can find opinions and thoughts from just regular people easily. This very site is an example of that: All the things I've been writing could be read by anyone in the world, but I'm still just a regular guy with a not-very-good blog from Nowhere, West Virginia. My views wouldn't have any way of being heard. Even if nothing I say is the slightest bit important, at least I'm saying something and being out there, which is more than the thoughts I've said to myself and lost could account for.

Social media is not some holy gift from God, because it can be sued negatively in many ways, as well. Such as the obsession with pop culture and vices that would be harder to find. The human constitution can be weaker and more volatile by the exposure to these sorts of things. "I don't look like that, I don't talk like that, I can't do that" becomes more heard that actual things they are. The simple amazement of life are dulled in comparison to the affordability of what this person may be doing or saying. I've seen it, people begin focusing on what's wrong and the thoughts of others too heavily; it takes away their own sense of identity.

All in all, social media is a marvelous thing, even with its faults. The ways your mind and views can be stretched beyond what little things and little people may have influenced you is simply amazing. And I have to say that I wouldn't be the guy I am today without it. I always say, start with the best and never finish.

5 Interesting DIY Projects for Me and Only Me

Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll

These are fun activity to do with your family on a special occasion. The time to do them lasts 4 hours, so not something you should be doing everyday, unless you're getting paid. If you are, you better bake your ass off, little Mandy won't be going to college if you don't. The recipe isn't terribly complicated; I certainly seen worse, but it can get a little pricey, considering you have to get a lot of ingredients. I'm interested in this recipe because I love delicious things and this certainly looks it. I would probably do this for someone's birthday, because it's relatively easy, just time-consuming, and everyone likes sweets. (And I have a friend who's allergic to cinnamon and she would freak, it would be hilarious. She'll be laughing too once she gets off of her asthma pump)

Flying Paper Lanterns

I would do this project simply because I'm none to experienced with crafts and I've always found paper lanterns to be absolutely beautiful, especially on a starlit night. This is a project I would embark on only on special occasions, such as going away parties or graduations. I'd say this would be best done as a group project, as it takes time to do all the steps, but releasing a good number of these into the air, light blazing in the night, would be simply magical.

Sucking an Egg into a Bottle

This is cute little science experiment that is best done with children. I have a nephew and his mind would be absolutely blown at the sight of this sort of thing. I wouldn't be very interested in it on my own time, but if I had the time, and resources, to do this sort of thing with my nephew. It would be fantastic.

Scarecrow Mask

This is my kind of Halloween costume. I've always been attracted to the types of costumes on Halloween that are mostly just bland faces with holes. It's a bizarre and utterly devoid subgroup of Halloween. Never the less, I already have plans to make this my Halloween costume of next year. I'll be terrorizing the children even more than I already do.

Broken Glass Cupcakes

 

I think these cupcakes look absolutely phenominal. I love the sugar glass, the "blood", and the entire idea of them. These would be great for a Halloween party. I just have to work on getting invited to one first. If I were, I would be the weirdo that doesn't bring beer. I'd be casually carrying in a tray of these with my scarecrow mask. I can just imagine it now.

Tor and Darknet

Tor is a search browser that is impossible to track its route through the Internet. It takes random search, each different every time, to search for something. It works fine, but seems to take a little longer to search for anything, but that's the cost of having to do a brand new web crawl every time. I don't have much use of this product, since I'm not buying meth over the Internet, but if you are, you're more than welcome to try it out.

                                        

I may have used it as a joke, but Tor is often used in the use of "Darknet", basically illegal anonymous file sharing on the Internet, but it can be extended to so much more. Notably: The selling of illegal things on the Internet, such as guns, drugs, even organs, if you search hard enough. Think of it as the shady Chinese market place that has a front of being fish market. If I'm not making much sense, which I never do, it's kind of the black market of the Internet. Specifically, it's the Silk Road. Such a pleasant name too. Tor allows these sort of practices to avoid being tracked by things like the NSA, because obviously it's illegal. It works by using false web sites that avoid detection due to a low web count and a variety of other means. I barely understand it myself, but it's just the dark part of the Internet, the parts that aren't My Little Pony porn and anorexia blogs. Arguably; I'd say those are worse.

Feedly

Feedly is an Internet-based program which provides a hub for multiple news sites. It works by searching for a news site and putting the updates from that site onto a list, with other sites, for the user. It's a pretty interesting site that saves the effort of searching site after site for all the information you want. As well, it has multiple categories of news, such a food, politics, video games, etc... Another handy feature of these categories is that you can create different tabs of each of the news, if you don't the variety of different types of news to be next to each other.

It's easy to use and when you want to check the sites your reading on Feedly, it is just a click away, as there is a button to click right away to the site. It's easy and convenient, as long as you have the desire to read news. It doesn't show the entire article on first inspection, but that's not a problem if you are just using it as a window to your favorite news sites.

Facebook v Myspace v Google+

This is going to be completely one-sided. The only one of these social media sites I use is Facebook, but I plan on being completely unbiased in my reasoning. Let's start with the one I know the most about...

Facebook

Facebook is a social media site designed to have easy access among people, such as messaging, status, and likes. All of these create an environment of interactivity among people on the site. The site is good at it too, with a somewhat professional look with only small ads on the side, as opposed to some sites that have ads literally everywhere and a childish approach to profiles. That doesn't mean it is perfect, however, as it sometimes feels to invasive to someone's private information. As well, it's privacy policies can be somewhat lax, and with the constant stream of updates that Facebook seems to like going through, it messes up what can and cannot be seen by the public.

Myspace

Myspace, in my mind, was the definition of a bad social media site. Bogged down in ads, ugly to look at, slow processing speed, etc..., but after if fall from prestige, due to the rising of Facebook, Myspace seems to have fixed its act. At least partially. It's MO now seems to focus on music, mixing social media with Internet radio, which is at least ambitious. The ads are more discreet and the loading time is faster than it was at the height of its popularity. I don't have much use for the site, however, as no one I know wants a Myspace, so I have no use for it. I'd say the best use is for the radio portion, which works fine. Overall, I'd say it is the weakest in terms of socialization.

Google+

Oh, Google+, you try so hard that I can do nothing but respect you. I think the layout is slightly clunky, with side bars and pop-outs taking up far too much of the page. I wouldn't say this is the social media website to use when talking to people; it's the website you use when trying to share pictures, stories, or anything else. A massive complaint is how this service is forced on the common Youtuber. It was originally suggested for them, but now it's as if they were trying to force your hand toward signing up. Overall, I think it's probably the weakest in actual content, since I have always had difficulty with messaging and there's not much offered that you can't already get on Facebook.

Top 10 IT-related Halloween Costumes

It's that time of year again, where the ghouls, goblins and geeks come out out to show their chops and expertise at everyone's favorite dress-up day: Halloween! (what do you mean this is a week late? It's gotta be Halloween somewhere). This is my Top 10 favorite (meaning not in any sort of subjective order) IT related Halloween costumes I could find in a simple point and click exercise throughout the Internet. Enjoy!

10

This darling little costume is of the ever "helpful" paper clip from Microsoft Word; everybody who has ever even touched Microsoft Word knows this annoying little bugger, but it's still a humorous and spot-on attempt at a recreation. 

9.

A neat costume of Norton Anti-virus that must have been an absolute pain to carry around for dear Annie here.

8.

It's a tiny-bit vague, but this costume is an 8-bit version of a human image by using makeup. 

7.

This an a classic: An older model computer that's festive for Halloween. (This entire post is making me feel like an old man)

6.

A family-costume of iPod products. (Which I can't decipher any differences in any one of them, if there are any differences)

5.

Two iPhones(?) which look startling like the real thing. 

4.

It's a robot. What more do you need?

3.

I have next to no idea what in the world this is, but it's certainly cool looking.

2.

Here's another one of those crazy things. I'm pretty sure this one is plotting world domination.

1.

This is the coolest to me. It's camera that can actually take pictures.

How Google has Revolutionized the World

Google is the leading search browser on the Internet, not that I even needed to divulge that information. Google as founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin which was worked on while they were were Ph. D students at Stanford. It was admitted as a provately held company on Sept. 4 1998, which you could say was the day it was officially founded. Google is more than a search browser though, it has developed many different software and applications. The browser is one of the leading information leading in the world, giving appropriate and most desired results at the click of a button. Wanting to watch a video about whales? Well, Youtube is the place to go and it uses the Google search engine. Needing a picture of a whale? Just Google it! Need to find an aquarium where you can look at whales? Google Maps is the answer. Need a document, e-mail service, and whatever else for your unsettling whale fetish? Well, you can find them all on Google.

The term "Googling" has now become a verb. No need to "search" for anything now. You Google it. Research before the influx of the Internet was tedious, having to search books upon books and libraries upon libraries looking for just a smidgen of information about a certain subject. Now you can find any information you may need almost instantly, with sources and professional opinions.

Google has changed how people view the world, with more social interaction available, with just information and stories from one culture to another, the world has gotten a little closer, whether that's a good or bad thing is really up to interpretation. All in all, Google provides many services which has enhanced the spread of information from one person to another. Books have slowly decreased due to the advent of the Internet, specifically Google searching, so the revolution is not perfect, but it is indeed growing, or maybe, it will just get bigger and bigger engulfing everything about the human existence.

Photoshop v PicMonkey v BeFunky v SumoPaint v Psykopaint

PicMonkey: PicMonkey is an image editor program that uses seasonal image modifying, as well as a typical photo manipulator. You can edit quite a bit of your photo without having to pay for a Royale, what the premium membership is called. The program is pretty expansive in a typical photo manipulation. You can add what looks like make-up, effects, and even speech bubbles. You can do anything with it. My only two complaints are in that finding the regular manipulation option is rather difficult, in it being overshadowed by the season, in this case, monster manipulations. As well, your ability to use anything on the monster manipulation is pretty much limited to changing the color of your skin. As well, if you REALLY want to get something out of the monster manipulator, Royale only costs about $3.00 a month, which certainly isn't bad if someone were to use it often.

BeFunky: No matter what I did while using it, I could not find anything that required a premium subscription to use any of the services. It is also very expansive, with fonts, colors, and ways to manipulate photos. The process is very simple, as well, with simply a point and a click you can manipulate the photos very easily, even for someone who can barely turn a computer on without destroying everything in sight. Another nice option is the use of easily making a Facebook cover, which is one of those things that can be slightly hard to make on other services. I would recommend it, even if everything is very basic and nothing too professional. Suggested for the casual editor.

.                                  

Sumo Paint is probably the most basic painting system, at least from a free application stand-point. The amount of basic options are staggering. The user has two major options, either submitting their own photo to edit or creating their own from scratch, but it seems pretty difficult to manipulate on an amateur level. Perhaps someone with a higher artistic credibility would be able to edit it better. I spent some time playing with it, but it may be far more complicated than I can handle. The folly in technological ignorance.

                                     

Psykopaint is certainly... the most interesting of the bunch. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it takes some getting used to. The gimmick of this site is using a template of a famous artist, such as Van Gogh or Monet and editing photos in a way similar to their artistic style. It's kind of hard to use without some experience, so I wouldn't suggest it to amateurs or casual editors. I'd say this service would only be useful to those who actively want to do something creative with their pictures, while not having the skills or resources to do it by themselves.

                                           

Photoshop was pretty much the best image editing process. No more words needed.