09/19/07
Conviction
This morning I felt and became convicted.
I was listening to CS Lewis' Mere Christianity and at the very end of the book, he's rattling off a list of sins (as an alternative to giving our lives over to Christ) and one of them (I won't say which for fear of embarassment) just struck me in the face. I almost stopped dead in my tracks as I was walking to work. I felt like God was talking through CS Lewis straight to me. As if to say "I know what you're thinking and you must stop." I literally had to play that section of the book over again because I thought I had made it up in my head.
I felt at once like a man who had been convicted of a crime, but then I realized my conviction need not be a totally negative thing. God had called me out on the carpet for something that I had done, and the conviction serves also as a turning point, not merely a condemnation. The conviction also strengthened by belief in God, and I think you can start to see the double meaning here as my convictions in Christ were strengthened by my conviction of my sin.
It was a strange moment, but I'm glad it happened.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Sunday Reflections : Capitulation
09/09/07
Sunday Reflections : Capitulation
Since this is not a word used in everyday english, let's pay a visit to Merriam Webster, shall we?
Main Entry: ca·pit·u·la·tion
Pronunciation: k&-"pi-ch&-'lA-sh&n
Function: noun
1 : a set of terms or articles constituting an agreement between governments
2 a : the act of surrendering or yielding b : the terms of surrender
It is this second definition that I would like to focus on. Capitulation is the point where all of your past mistakes and triumphs come into sharp focus. The point of surrender need not be a bad thing - the capitulation of Jesus Christ to sin was the start of the most glorious event in the history of mankind.
I have often wondered aloud about the power of capitulation. Stock Markets inevitable rally after sharp corrections. Stories of people's lives being turned around by a close call (whether it be due to conflict or illness) are many.
Our church's 4 year bible reading program is currently going through the first psalms. We are currently about at the point where David changes from a well respected and powerful prince-like official in Saul's Jewish kingdom and is suddenly exiled. In my reading, David is afraid during the transition - going from a person of power to a person in exile. But what strikes me is David's reawakening to God during his exile. He proclaims that God will not forget him, even in his grave.
Our pastor spoke last night that transition - change - is painful. And can I ever testify to that. Since December of last year at work we have feared for our jobs, at first from downsizing and now due to a pending acquisition of the company. I just really want that capitulation right now. I feel like someone who has not slept for days, nervous and frayed at the edges. And yet I maintain my commitment, my promise to God that I will not forget my faith as I look for the exit in all of this.
God Bless You All. Have a Great Week.
Sunday Reflections : Capitulation
Since this is not a word used in everyday english, let's pay a visit to Merriam Webster, shall we?
Main Entry: ca·pit·u·la·tion
Pronunciation: k&-"pi-ch&-'lA-sh&n
Function: noun
1 : a set of terms or articles constituting an agreement between governments
2 a : the act of surrendering or yielding b : the terms of surrender
It is this second definition that I would like to focus on. Capitulation is the point where all of your past mistakes and triumphs come into sharp focus. The point of surrender need not be a bad thing - the capitulation of Jesus Christ to sin was the start of the most glorious event in the history of mankind.
I have often wondered aloud about the power of capitulation. Stock Markets inevitable rally after sharp corrections. Stories of people's lives being turned around by a close call (whether it be due to conflict or illness) are many.
Our church's 4 year bible reading program is currently going through the first psalms. We are currently about at the point where David changes from a well respected and powerful prince-like official in Saul's Jewish kingdom and is suddenly exiled. In my reading, David is afraid during the transition - going from a person of power to a person in exile. But what strikes me is David's reawakening to God during his exile. He proclaims that God will not forget him, even in his grave.
Our pastor spoke last night that transition - change - is painful. And can I ever testify to that. Since December of last year at work we have feared for our jobs, at first from downsizing and now due to a pending acquisition of the company. I just really want that capitulation right now. I feel like someone who has not slept for days, nervous and frayed at the edges. And yet I maintain my commitment, my promise to God that I will not forget my faith as I look for the exit in all of this.
God Bless You All. Have a Great Week.
PS3 vs 360 - Sound
09/07/07
PS3 vs 360 - Sound
Probably the championship feature of the PS3 is that it is really really quiet!
The lack of fan noise is both welcome and a blessed change from the 360. What is it with MS and noisy consoles? My old XBox was horribly loud.
PS3 vs 360 - Sound
Probably the championship feature of the PS3 is that it is really really quiet!
The lack of fan noise is both welcome and a blessed change from the 360. What is it with MS and noisy consoles? My old XBox was horribly loud.
PS3 vs 360 - External Items
09/07/07
PS3 vs 360 - External Items
Media Cables
HDMI - So unless you've bought a 360 in the last month or so or you paid extra for the Elite, you probably don't have a 360 with an HDMI port. All PS3's of the 60 GB and higher variety have them. The HDMI cable is a big win for me for one simple reason : simplicity. I could care less about the nice picture, the great sound, blah, blah, blah. The fact of the matter for me is that HDMI is a clutter killer and I love that. Advantage PS3.
Out of the Box - I'm actually embarassed to even post this but all Sony provided out of the box was a Yellow/White/Red composite cable. What? Seriously? You're bragging on and on and on about your super duper TrueHD capable box and you give me this crap? Unless you bought a Core 360, you got both with your 360, a composite cable and a component cable with a handy dandy switch on the cable. Advantage 360 and shame on you Sony for trying to sell me a $50 HDMI cable at your store. I bought mine online for less than $10, thank you very much.
Cable quality - Well I never took the composite cables out of the box but they looked pretty standard and not all that generous in the length department. MS' media cable on the other hand, I think, is about 10' long and has a real nice sturdy feel to it. I have had some intermittent problems with my VGA cable, but I'm 90% sure that's due to a loose connection on the monitor and nothing to do with the cable. Advantage 360.
Power
(sigh) First I have to start with our much beloved 360 power brick. It's not that Sony doesn't have a power supply but it's in the box, not dangling from the rear of the console. I've never been especially happy with the power brick being deliberately stationed between two power cords that are too short to do the job. Advantage PS3, big time.
Turning on either console has fun little surprises in store. The 360 does a little whirly circle animation with a matching pattern around the power button on the box. The PS3 has a touch sensitive power button on the front of the console that is WAY cool. But let's face it, we all use our controllers to turn on our consoles. I think the PS3 might boot up a tiny bit faster than the 360, but it's really a Push.
Connections
The PS3 has this little ridge over the back of their box that actually makes the connections (power, HDMI, ethernet) slightly recessed. This makes it extremely difficult to install. Also, the ethernet port was so tight that I thought I had broken my console when I finally rammed the thing in there. I'm all in favor of tight ports, but this was a little bit too much. Also, the 360 has a nice satisfying lock "click" when you plug in the power supply. The PS3 has a standard PC power cable and you're never quite sure if you've gone far enough in, because where the plug changes shape is not fluch with the console port. No big deal, but a little worrisome. Advantage 360.
Hard Drive
My hard drive never comes off my 360 except at LAN's and in Sony's case it's internal, so that's that. The Sony drive is supposedly user-replaceable which I really like in concept but I'm not a big fan of opening closed end systems.
I'll post more about interface and gaming soon, but I just haven't had enough time to play with it yet to make a fair comparison.
PS3 vs 360 - External Items
Media Cables
HDMI - So unless you've bought a 360 in the last month or so or you paid extra for the Elite, you probably don't have a 360 with an HDMI port. All PS3's of the 60 GB and higher variety have them. The HDMI cable is a big win for me for one simple reason : simplicity. I could care less about the nice picture, the great sound, blah, blah, blah. The fact of the matter for me is that HDMI is a clutter killer and I love that. Advantage PS3.
Out of the Box - I'm actually embarassed to even post this but all Sony provided out of the box was a Yellow/White/Red composite cable. What? Seriously? You're bragging on and on and on about your super duper TrueHD capable box and you give me this crap? Unless you bought a Core 360, you got both with your 360, a composite cable and a component cable with a handy dandy switch on the cable. Advantage 360 and shame on you Sony for trying to sell me a $50 HDMI cable at your store. I bought mine online for less than $10, thank you very much.
Cable quality - Well I never took the composite cables out of the box but they looked pretty standard and not all that generous in the length department. MS' media cable on the other hand, I think, is about 10' long and has a real nice sturdy feel to it. I have had some intermittent problems with my VGA cable, but I'm 90% sure that's due to a loose connection on the monitor and nothing to do with the cable. Advantage 360.
Power
(sigh) First I have to start with our much beloved 360 power brick. It's not that Sony doesn't have a power supply but it's in the box, not dangling from the rear of the console. I've never been especially happy with the power brick being deliberately stationed between two power cords that are too short to do the job. Advantage PS3, big time.
Turning on either console has fun little surprises in store. The 360 does a little whirly circle animation with a matching pattern around the power button on the box. The PS3 has a touch sensitive power button on the front of the console that is WAY cool. But let's face it, we all use our controllers to turn on our consoles. I think the PS3 might boot up a tiny bit faster than the 360, but it's really a Push.
Connections
The PS3 has this little ridge over the back of their box that actually makes the connections (power, HDMI, ethernet) slightly recessed. This makes it extremely difficult to install. Also, the ethernet port was so tight that I thought I had broken my console when I finally rammed the thing in there. I'm all in favor of tight ports, but this was a little bit too much. Also, the 360 has a nice satisfying lock "click" when you plug in the power supply. The PS3 has a standard PC power cable and you're never quite sure if you've gone far enough in, because where the plug changes shape is not fluch with the console port. No big deal, but a little worrisome. Advantage 360.
Hard Drive
My hard drive never comes off my 360 except at LAN's and in Sony's case it's internal, so that's that. The Sony drive is supposedly user-replaceable which I really like in concept but I'm not a big fan of opening closed end systems.
I'll post more about interface and gaming soon, but I just haven't had enough time to play with it yet to make a fair comparison.
PS3 vs 360 - Controller
09/06/07
PS3 vs 360 - Controller
Alright having played with my PS3 for a couple of nights now, I think I can start to make some comparisons between the two systems.
First up is the controller.
No user replace-able batteries on the PS3 controller means you are tethered to the console during installation until the thing builds up enough juice to unhook. And the bundled USB cable is SHORT. This is supposed to be a living room device and you give me a USB cable that's like 6 feet long tops? Seriously? Although there is a weight tradeoff, I will take the 360's user replace-able and standard AA batteries. Advantage 360.
The PS3 controller is CRAZY light. You would think it was just a hollow toy if it didn't work (which it does). There is seriously nothing to this thing when you're holding it. I'm sure that the lack of rumble has a lot to do with the weight. Personally my 360 controller does feel a bit heavy at times and supposedly the chatpad is not exactly going to help with that. Advantage Sony.
No rumble on the PS3 controller. Personally, rumble is a bit too immersive for me so I always shut it off. Push.
PS button versus XBox360 guide button - this works almost exactly the same way. Push down to shut off the console. Tap during gameplay to get back to the dashboard/XMB. It's all very similar. Sony does not, however, have the little pull-out blade during gameplay that the 360 has (and I love). Advantage 360.
Which controller am I? MS handles this with a ring around the guide button so all you have to do is look down and it even shows you what quadrant you're in if you're playing split screen. Really cool. Sony's indicator is on the top of the controller (4 red LED's) so you actually have to turn it over to see which one you're hooked into. Advantage 360.
R1/R2/L1/L2 on PS3 vs triggers and bumpers on 360 - I haven't yet played a game that actually use the triggers yet but they feel really nice. First of all, Sony has finally bowed to peer pressure and put triggers on their controllers in place of the R2/L2 buttons. The feel is quite nice but it's not as thin as the 360's trigger and it's got a bit nicer of a feel to it. Gameplay will tell how good it really is, but I'll give the edge to Sony on this one.
Analog sticks. Here's one of the big differences and it's really hard to get used to. Sony's analog sticks have always been side by side. MS' sticks are offset. I would think during long gameplay sessions that Sony's sticks would hurt your hands but I haven't played anything for particularly long on my PS3 yet so it's a little hard to say that. The feel of the PS3 thumbsticks is quite nice - the texture is very tactile and "grippy". Push - I prefer Sony's feel but MS' location.
The 4 buttons - hard to say there's any real difference here. I guess I could give a slight edge to MS based on the fact that their buttons are raised in a slightly convex fashion while the PS3 buttons are pretty flat.
Start and Back/Select - These buttons are a bit wonky on the PS3. They have a nice soft feel to them, but they don't always respond unless you really mash them. Advantage 360.
Overall, I would have to say that MS got it right where it counted but Sony's feel is extremely nice. Advantage clearly goes to 360 overall for pure gaming but the lack of weight and nice tactile analog sticks and triggers on the PS3 make it a close call for me.
PS3 vs 360 - Controller
Alright having played with my PS3 for a couple of nights now, I think I can start to make some comparisons between the two systems.
First up is the controller.
No user replace-able batteries on the PS3 controller means you are tethered to the console during installation until the thing builds up enough juice to unhook. And the bundled USB cable is SHORT. This is supposed to be a living room device and you give me a USB cable that's like 6 feet long tops? Seriously? Although there is a weight tradeoff, I will take the 360's user replace-able and standard AA batteries. Advantage 360.
The PS3 controller is CRAZY light. You would think it was just a hollow toy if it didn't work (which it does). There is seriously nothing to this thing when you're holding it. I'm sure that the lack of rumble has a lot to do with the weight. Personally my 360 controller does feel a bit heavy at times and supposedly the chatpad is not exactly going to help with that. Advantage Sony.
No rumble on the PS3 controller. Personally, rumble is a bit too immersive for me so I always shut it off. Push.
PS button versus XBox360 guide button - this works almost exactly the same way. Push down to shut off the console. Tap during gameplay to get back to the dashboard/XMB. It's all very similar. Sony does not, however, have the little pull-out blade during gameplay that the 360 has (and I love). Advantage 360.
Which controller am I? MS handles this with a ring around the guide button so all you have to do is look down and it even shows you what quadrant you're in if you're playing split screen. Really cool. Sony's indicator is on the top of the controller (4 red LED's) so you actually have to turn it over to see which one you're hooked into. Advantage 360.
R1/R2/L1/L2 on PS3 vs triggers and bumpers on 360 - I haven't yet played a game that actually use the triggers yet but they feel really nice. First of all, Sony has finally bowed to peer pressure and put triggers on their controllers in place of the R2/L2 buttons. The feel is quite nice but it's not as thin as the 360's trigger and it's got a bit nicer of a feel to it. Gameplay will tell how good it really is, but I'll give the edge to Sony on this one.
Analog sticks. Here's one of the big differences and it's really hard to get used to. Sony's analog sticks have always been side by side. MS' sticks are offset. I would think during long gameplay sessions that Sony's sticks would hurt your hands but I haven't played anything for particularly long on my PS3 yet so it's a little hard to say that. The feel of the PS3 thumbsticks is quite nice - the texture is very tactile and "grippy". Push - I prefer Sony's feel but MS' location.
The 4 buttons - hard to say there's any real difference here. I guess I could give a slight edge to MS based on the fact that their buttons are raised in a slightly convex fashion while the PS3 buttons are pretty flat.
Start and Back/Select - These buttons are a bit wonky on the PS3. They have a nice soft feel to them, but they don't always respond unless you really mash them. Advantage 360.
Overall, I would have to say that MS got it right where it counted but Sony's feel is extremely nice. Advantage clearly goes to 360 overall for pure gaming but the lack of weight and nice tactile analog sticks and triggers on the PS3 make it a close call for me.
JRo goes to the Dark Side
09/04/07
JRo goes to the Dark Side
JRo goes to the Dark Side
So, my OMM brethren knew this day was coming, but at long last I have succumbed. I feel a little bit like Travis after putting down Lassie. But the deal was too good.
Hey JRo, what's in the bag?
You DIDN'T!!!
(shameful choked sob) I did...
and...and...we're in LOVE...
no, seriously...Sony was offering a $150 credit on purchases over $299. Was I honestly supposed to say no?!? I don't even give a crap about the games... $350 for a hybrid Blu-Ray player / streaming media client - sounds good to me!!!
Crossing Wires
09/02/07
Crossing Wires
I am not a very good electrician. I do, however, have a lot of experience running wires for various stereo components. Which is why this particular problem really irks me that I can't come up with a better solution.
Here's the deal. I have a HD digital cable box and a Tivo. I love Tivo because I can record shows and keep them forever on my computer, something the cable companies will never allow you to do. My point is to establish why I don't just get the cable company's HD DVR box.
Anyways.
The problem is with audio. I run audio from the cable box to the TV and I can watch HDTV with sound, but I can't record any digital cable channels on the Tivo. So I run the audio cables from the cable box to the Tivo. Great, now I am watching HDTV in silence. I wish like all hell that the second pair of audio out connectors on the cable box actually worked, but alas they do not.
My solution is rather backwards. I ran audio cables from each of the sources on the TV (Tivo and cable box) to a 4 way AV splitter and then ran the OUT to the Tivo box with the cable's audio running into the Tivo. In this case, the Tivo basically functions as a passthrough for the cable box's audio and the splitter lets me listen to either source while viewing it.
I still don't get exactly why it works though. If the in's and out's on the splitter are labelled correctly then I shouldn't get any sound on either input, but I think they're "in" and "out" can be reversed as I did it.
Am I missing something? Is there a better way?
Corrected Crossing Wires
So it sounded good, right?
"My solution is rather backwards. I ran audio cables from each of the sources on the TV (Tivo and cable box) to a 4 way AV splitter and then ran the OUT to the Tivo box with the cable's audio running into the Tivo. In this case, the Tivo basically functions as a passthrough for the cable box's audio and the splitter lets me listen to either source while viewing it."
Yah, not so much. It turns out that the Tivo is not a good pass through and it also delays the signal slightly as it caches it.
So here's the real solution and this makes even less sense than what I came up with before, but again it works :
from out cable box to out 4 way switch
from tivo out to tv s-video 1 in (the only one that is somewhat straightforward)
from tivo in to switch #2 in
from switch #3 in to tv component #1 in
did ya follow all that? good, cuz I have no frigging idea why that works, so maybe you can explain it to me.
I also figured out how to run both at the same time by pushing in both of the buttons at the same time, effectively creating a powered split instead of a switch.
Crossing Wires
I am not a very good electrician. I do, however, have a lot of experience running wires for various stereo components. Which is why this particular problem really irks me that I can't come up with a better solution.
Here's the deal. I have a HD digital cable box and a Tivo. I love Tivo because I can record shows and keep them forever on my computer, something the cable companies will never allow you to do. My point is to establish why I don't just get the cable company's HD DVR box.
Anyways.
The problem is with audio. I run audio from the cable box to the TV and I can watch HDTV with sound, but I can't record any digital cable channels on the Tivo. So I run the audio cables from the cable box to the Tivo. Great, now I am watching HDTV in silence. I wish like all hell that the second pair of audio out connectors on the cable box actually worked, but alas they do not.
My solution is rather backwards. I ran audio cables from each of the sources on the TV (Tivo and cable box) to a 4 way AV splitter and then ran the OUT to the Tivo box with the cable's audio running into the Tivo. In this case, the Tivo basically functions as a passthrough for the cable box's audio and the splitter lets me listen to either source while viewing it.
I still don't get exactly why it works though. If the in's and out's on the splitter are labelled correctly then I shouldn't get any sound on either input, but I think they're "in" and "out" can be reversed as I did it.
Am I missing something? Is there a better way?
Corrected Crossing Wires
So it sounded good, right?
"My solution is rather backwards. I ran audio cables from each of the sources on the TV (Tivo and cable box) to a 4 way AV splitter and then ran the OUT to the Tivo box with the cable's audio running into the Tivo. In this case, the Tivo basically functions as a passthrough for the cable box's audio and the splitter lets me listen to either source while viewing it."
Yah, not so much. It turns out that the Tivo is not a good pass through and it also delays the signal slightly as it caches it.
So here's the real solution and this makes even less sense than what I came up with before, but again it works :
from out cable box to out 4 way switch
from tivo out to tv s-video 1 in (the only one that is somewhat straightforward)
from tivo in to switch #2 in
from switch #3 in to tv component #1 in
did ya follow all that? good, cuz I have no frigging idea why that works, so maybe you can explain it to me.
I also figured out how to run both at the same time by pushing in both of the buttons at the same time, effectively creating a powered split instead of a switch.
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