planetdan

Tuesday, November 26, 2002 :::

I don't know what's creepier: that this type of possibly-private information is being constantly captured, cataloged and analyzed by who-knows-who who-knows-where, or that people actually spend time trying to convince TiVo or Amazon.com that they are straight and intelligent. Either way it's a funny, interesting article:

What to Do When Your TiVo Thinks You're Gay
By JEFFREY ZASLOW
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Basil Iwanyk is not a neo-Nazi. Lukas Karlsson isn't a shadowy stalker. David S. Cohen is not Korean.

But all of them live with a machine that seems intent on giving them such labels. It's their TiVo, the digital videorecorder that records some programs it just assumes its owner will like, based on shows the viewer has chosen to record. A phone call the machine makes to TiVo, Inc., in San Jose, Calif., once a day provides key information. As these men learned, when TiVo thinks it has you pegged, there's just one way to change its "mind": outfox it.

Mr. Iwanyk, 32 years old, first suspected that his TiVo thought he was gay, since it inexplicably kept recording programs with gay themes. A film studio executive in Los Angeles and the self-described "straightest guy on earth," he tried to tame TiVo's gay fixation by recording war movies and other "guy stuff."

"The problem was, I overcompensated," he says. "It started giving me documentaries on Joseph Goebbels and Adolf Eichmann. It stopped thinking I was gay and decided I was a crazy guy reminiscing about the Third Reich."

A lot of gadgets and Web sites now feature "personalization technologies" that profile consumers by tracking what they watch, listen to or buy. The software, embedded in sites such as Amazon.com and CDNOW.com, then recommends other books, videos and music based on a customer's tastes.

If the headline link above no longer works, you can read the rest of the article here.

::: posted by dan at 5:46 PM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments

Saturday, November 23, 2002 :::

MP3 Goodness.
I've updated my junk section with brand new MP3s for you to download and fall in love with.

::: posted by dan at 1:20 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments

The Miller Five
In a fit of boredom, against my better judgement, and in coordination with my apparent lack of shame, I have made a shrine to my family's musical group – The Miller Five. It's not nearly as crazy or as interesting as I've made it seem, but you can check it out.

I apologize in advance for my hair.

::: posted by dan at 12:35 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments

Monday, November 18, 2002 :::

Mac users are freaks, yo.

Fetishists Really Love Their Macs

I recommend reading the entire article, but this excerpt was the most educational for me (especially the links):

The concept of objectum-sexuality appears to have originated with Eija-Riitta Eklöf-Berliner-Mauer, a Swedish woman who "married" herself to the Berlin Wall in 1979 (Berliner Maue is German for Berlin Wall). Eklöf-Berliner-Mauer started the Objectum-Sexuality chat group (age-restricted login required), where a number of like-minded individuals gather. There's a similar forum in German.

Objects people have become attracted to include toy trains, organs (the electronic kind), drilling rigs and various buildings. The most common expression is the love of cars. There's a FAQ for having sex with cars (the tailpipe is involved) and sites devoted to car porn.

::: posted by dan at 5:45 PM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments

Friday, November 15, 2002 :::

Holy Yikes
This scared the bejeezus out of me:
http://personalpages.tds.net/~dangie/dan/shockwave/sayit.swf

Make sure your sound is on.

::: posted by dan at 9:24 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments

Wednesday, November 13, 2002 :::

More Onion Funny
This week's Onion had some funny 'What Do You Think' quotes concerning the recent elections. Below are my two favorites:

In last Tuesday's midterm elections, Republicans retook the U.S. Senate, giving them control of both houses of Congress. What do you think?

"You know, they say people get the government they deserve, but I don't recall knife-raping any retarded nuns."
Jared Andruss, Shipping Clerk

"The American people have spoken. And they have said, 'Duhhh, I likes chockomut ice cream."
Rodney Garn, Systems Analyst

::: posted by dan at 11:10 PM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments

Friday, November 08, 2002 :::

For all you Showgirls fans out there...
I was reading a batch of this week's movie reviews when I came across one of the best Showgirls references I've ever heard. It's in regards to Rebecca Romijn-Stamos' performance in Brian DePalma's new Femme Fatale movie:

"Only about as sexy and dangerous as an actress in a role that reminds at every turn of Elizabeth Berkley's flopping dolphin-gasm."
– Walter Chaw, FILM FREAK CENTRAL

Nicely done. As for anyone who hasn't seen Showgirls, yer missin' out.

::: posted by dan at 11:35 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments



Tuesday, November 26, 2002 ::: I don't know what's creepier: that this type of possibly-private information is being constantly captured, cataloged and analyzed by who-knows-who who-knows-where, or that people actually spend time trying to convince TiVo or Amazon.com that they are straight and intelligent. Either way it's a funny, interesting article: What to Do When Your TiVo Thinks You're Gay By JEFFREY ZASLOW Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Basil Iwanyk is not a neo-Nazi. Lukas Karlsson isn't a shadowy stalker. David S. Cohen is not Korean. But all of them live with a machine that seems intent on giving them such labels. It's their TiVo, the digital videorecorder that records some programs it just assumes its owner will like, based on shows the viewer has chosen to record. A phone call the machine makes to TiVo, Inc., in San Jose, Calif., once a day provides key information. As these men learned, when TiVo thinks it has you pegged, there's just one way to change its "mind": outfox it. Mr. Iwanyk, 32 years old, first suspected that his TiVo thought he was gay, since it inexplicably kept recording programs with gay themes. A film studio executive in Los Angeles and the self-described "straightest guy on earth," he tried to tame TiVo's gay fixation by recording war movies and other "guy stuff." "The problem was, I overcompensated," he says. "It started giving me documentaries on Joseph Goebbels and Adolf Eichmann. It stopped thinking I was gay and decided I was a crazy guy reminiscing about the Third Reich." A lot of gadgets and Web sites now feature "personalization technologies" that profile consumers by tracking what they watch, listen to or buy. The software, embedded in sites such as Amazon.com and CDNOW.com, then recommends other books, videos and music based on a customer's tastes. If the headline link above no longer works, you can read the rest of the article here. ::: posted by dan at 5:46 PM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments Saturday, November 23, 2002 ::: MP3 Goodness. I've updated my junk section with brand new MP3s for you to download and fall in love with. ::: posted by dan at 1:20 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments The Miller Five In a fit of boredom, against my better judgement, and in coordination with my apparent lack of shame, I have made a shrine to my family's musical group – The Miller Five. It's not nearly as crazy or as interesting as I've made it seem, but you can check it out. I apologize in advance for my hair. ::: posted by dan at 12:35 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments Monday, November 18, 2002 ::: Mac users are freaks, yo. Fetishists Really Love Their Macs I recommend reading the entire article, but this excerpt was the most educational for me (especially the links): The concept of objectum-sexuality appears to have originated with Eija-Riitta Eklöf-Berliner-Mauer, a Swedish woman who "married" herself to the Berlin Wall in 1979 (Berliner Maue is German for Berlin Wall). Eklöf-Berliner-Mauer started the Objectum-Sexuality chat group (age-restricted login required), where a number of like-minded individuals gather. There's a similar forum in German. Objects people have become attracted to include toy trains, organs (the electronic kind), drilling rigs and various buildings. The most common expression is the love of cars. There's a FAQ for having sex with cars (the tailpipe is involved) and sites devoted to car porn. ::: posted by dan at 5:45 PM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments Friday, November 15, 2002 ::: Holy Yikes This scared the bejeezus out of me: http://personalpages.tds.net/~dangie/dan/shockwave/sayit.swf Make sure your sound is on. ::: posted by dan at 9:24 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments Wednesday, November 13, 2002 ::: More Onion Funny This week's Onion had some funny 'What Do You Think' quotes concerning the recent elections. Below are my two favorites: In last Tuesday's midterm elections, Republicans retook the U.S. Senate, giving them control of both houses of Congress. What do you think? "You know, they say people get the government they deserve, but I don't recall knife-raping any retarded nuns." Jared Andruss, Shipping Clerk "The American people have spoken. And they have said, 'Duhhh, I likes chockomut ice cream." Rodney Garn, Systems Analyst ::: posted by dan at 11:10 PM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments Friday, November 08, 2002 ::: For all you Showgirls fans out there... I was reading a batch of this week's movie reviews when I came across one of the best Showgirls references I've ever heard. It's in regards to Rebecca Romijn-Stamos' performance in Brian DePalma's new Femme Fatale movie: "Only about as sexy and dangerous as an actress in a role that reminds at every turn of Elizabeth Berkley's flopping dolphin-gasm." – Walter Chaw, FILM FREAK CENTRAL Nicely done. As for anyone who hasn't seen Showgirls, yer missin' out. ::: posted by dan at 11:35 AM :: [ link ] :: (0) comments	reviews music movies books sections planetdan home planetdan blog dan's pics fun junk my atom/rss feed recently Vote Lombard! Final Destination: Death by Homeownership Happy Halloween! Animated Friday (Pets: A Two Parter Edition)! All Swine Flu-ed Out Animated Friday (Pets: A Two Parter Edition)! C.S.I. B.S.! Autographed! 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