Author Archives: specialk

Great quotes every geek should know

One thing that every geek can do is quote their favorite geek-culture media, whether it’s movies, books, television, theater or music. The GeekDads have tried to compile a list of such quotes for your enjoyment. This list is certainly not definitive. Indeed, it’s only the beginning! Feel free to add your own (clean) ones in the comments below.

  1. “Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony.” — Dennis the Peasant, Monty Python and the Holy Grail
  2. “Three rings for the Elven kings under the sky, seven for the Dwarf lords in their halls of stone, nine for the mortal men doomed to die, one for the Dark Lord on his dark throne, in the land of Mordor where the shadows lie. One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them, one ring the bring them all, and in the darkness bind them. In the land of Mordor where the shadows lie.” –LOTR
  3. “I’m sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that.” – HAL, 2001: A Space Odyssey
  4. “Spock. This child is about to wipe out every living thing on Earth. Now, what do you suggest we do….spank it?” — Dr. McCoy, Star Trek: The Motion Picture
  5. “With great power there must also come — great responsibility.”  – Amazing Fantasy #15 (August 1962)
  6. “If you can’t take a little bloody nose, maybe you oughtta go back home and crawl under your bed. It’s not safe out here. It’s wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross; but it’s not for the timid.” — Q, Star Trek: The Next Generation “Q Who?”
  7. “Five card stud, nothing wild. And the sky’s the limit” — Captain Jean Luc Picard, uttering the last line of the series, Star Trek: The Next Generation “All Good Things…”
  8. “If you think that by threatening me you can get me to do what you want… Well, that’s where you’re right. But – and I am only saying that because I care – there’s a lot of decaffeinated brands on the market that are just as tasty as the real thing.” – Chris Knight, Real Genius
  9. “We’re all very different people. We’re not Watusi. We’re not Spartans. We’re Americans, with a capital ‘A’, huh? You know what that means? Do ya? That means that our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world. We are the wretched refuse. We’re the underdog.” – John Winger, Stripes
  10. “If I’m not back in five minutes, just wait longer.” – Ace Ventura, Ace ventura, Pet Detective
  11. “I’m going to give you a little advice. There’s a force in the universe that makes things happen. And all you have to do is get in touch with it, stop thinking, let things happen, and be the ball.” – Ty Webb, Caddyshack
  12. WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE INCONVENIENCE – God (Douglas Adams), So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
  13. “Some days, you just can’t get rid of a bomb!” – Adam West, Batman & Robin
  14. “Bill, strange things are afoot at the Circle K.” – Ted, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure
  15. “Invention, my dear friends, is 93% perspiration, 6% electricity, 4% evaporation, and 2% butterscotch ripple.” – Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
  16. “Didja ever look at a dollar bill, man? There’s some spooky shit goin’ on there. And it’s green too.” – Slater, Dazed and Confused
  17. “Alright, alright alright.” – Wooderson, Dazed and Confused
  18. “Heya, Tom’, it’s Bob from the office down the hall. Good to see you, buddy; how’ve you been? Things have been alright for me except that I’m a zombie now. I really wish you’d let us in.” Jonothan Coulton, Re: Your Brains
  19. “Never argue with the data.” – Sheen, Jimmy Neutron
  20. “Oooh right, it’s actually quite a funny story once you get past all the tragic elements and the over-riding sense of doom.” – Duckman (Jason Alexander)
  21. “Fantastic!” – The Doctor (Christopher Eccleston), Doctor Who
  22. “I must not fear. / Fear is the mind-killer. / Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. / I will face my fear. / I will permit it to pass over me and through me. / And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. / Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. / Only I will remain.” – Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear, Dune
  23. “This is the way society functions. Aren’t you a part of society?” – Kramer, Seinfeld
  24. “Okay. You people sit tight, hold the fort and keep the home fires burning. And if we’re not back by dawn… call the president.” – Jack Burton, Big Trouble in Little China
  25. “No matter where you go, there you are. ” – Buckaroo Banzai, Buckaroo Banzai Across the Eighth Dimension
  26. “Do you know of the Klingon proverb that tells us revenge is a dish that is best served cold? It is very cold in space.” -Khan, ST:TWOK
  27. “Ray, if someone asks you if you’re a god, you say YES!” – Winston, Ghostbusters
  28. “Greetings, programs!” -Flynn, TRON
  29. “I guess you picked the wrong god-damned rec room to break into, didn’t you?!” -Burt, Tremors
  30. “I find your lack of faith disturbing.” -Darth Vader, Star Wars
  31. “Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no substitute for a good blaster at your side, kid.” -Han Solo, Star Wars
  32. “Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back
  33. “It’s a moral imperative.” – Chris Knight, Real Genuis
  34. “Talk with your mouth full / bite the hand that feeds you / bite off more than you can chew / dare to be stupid” – Weird AL “dare to be stupid.”
  35. “Well, let’s say this Twinkie represents the normal amount of psychokinetic energy in the New York area. Based on this morning’s reading, it would be a Twinkie thirty-five feet long, weighing approximately six hundred pounds.” – Egon, Ghostbusters
  36. “This episode was BADLY written!” -Gwen, Galaxy Quest
  37. “Worst. Episode. Ever.” – Comic Book Guy, The Simpsons
  38. “Goonies never say die.” -Mike, The Goonies
  39. “Nothing shocks me–I’m a scientist.” – Indiana Jones, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
  40. “Bright light! Bright light!” – Gremlins
  41. “The Road goes ever on and on/Down from the door where it began/Now far ahead the Road has gone/And I must follow, if I can/Pursuing it with eager feet/Until it joins some larger way/Where many paths and errands meet/And whither then? I cannot say.” – J.R.R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings
  42. “Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together… mass hysteria!” – Dr. Peter Venkman, Ghostbusters
  43. “If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?” – Albert Einstein
  44. “Wait a minute, Doc. Ah… Are you telling me you built a time machine… out of a DeLorean?” – Marty McFly, Back to the Future
  45. “Don’t call me a mindless philosopher, you overweight blob of grease!” – C3PO, Star Wars
  46. “I’d just as soon kiss a wookiee!” – Princess Leia, The Empire Strikes Back
  47. “But one thing’s sure: Inspector Clay is dead, murdered, and somebody’s responsible.” – Detective, Plan 9 from Outer Space
  48. “I know kung fu.” – Neo, The Matrix
  49. “This is your receipt for your husband… and this is my receipt for your receipt.” – Officer, Brazil
  50. “Your soul-suckin’ days are over, amigo!” – Elvis, Bubba Ho-Tep
  51. “I don’t believe there’s a power in the ‘verse that can stop Kaylee from being cheerful. Sometimes you just wanna duct-tape her mouth and dump her in the hold for a month.” – Malcolm Reynolds, Firefly (episode: “Serenity” (pilot))
  52. “Would you say I have a plethora of piñatas?” – El Guapo, ¡Three Amigos!
  53. “Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line!” Vizzini, The Princess Bride
  54. “There is no Earthly way of knowing… which direction we are going. There is no knowing where we’re rowing, or which way the river’s flowing. Is it raining? Is it snowing? Is a hurricane a’blowing? Not a speck of light is showing so the danger much be growing. Are the fires of hell a’glowing? Is the grisley reaper mowing? YES! The danger must be growing for the rowers keep on rowing AND THEY’RE CERTAINLY NOT SHOWING ANY SIGNS THAT THEY ARE SLOWING!!” – Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
  55. “Time…to die.” – Roy Batty, Blade Runner
  56. “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds” J. Robert Oppenheimer
  57. “Check, please.” – Lone Starr & Barf, Spaceballs
  58. “So say we all.” – Battlestar Galactica
  59. “After very careful consideration, sir, I’ve come to the conclusion that your new defense system sucks.” – General Beringer, WarGames.
  60. “I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar.” – Wash, Serenity
  61. “No matter what you hear in there, no matter how cruelly I beg you, no matter how terribly I may scream, do not open this door or you will undo everything I have worked for.” – Young Frankenstein
  62. “Ahh, a bear in his natural habitat: a Studebaker.” Fozzie, The Muppet Movie
  63. “He’s dead, Jim.” McCoy, ST:TOS
  64. “Who’s gonna turn down a Junior Mint? It’s chocolate, it’s peppermint – it’s delicious!” – Kramer, Seinfeld
  65. “Bring out your dead.” Monty Python and the Holy Grail
  66. “My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die!” -Inigo, The Princess Bride
  67. “Why a duck? Why-a no chicken?” – Chico Marx, Cocoanuts
  68. “Redrum.” Danny, The Shining
  69. “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows.” – announcer, The Shadow radio drama
  70. “We’re going to need a bigger boat.” – Chief Brody, Jaws
  71. “Oooh, ahhh, that’s how it always starts. Then later there’s running and screaming.” – Ian Malcolm, The Lost World: Jurassic Park
  72. “Greetings, my friend. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future.” Criswell, Plan 9 from Outer Space
  73. “Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here! This is the War Room!” – President Merkin Muffley, Dr. Strangelove
  74. “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for.” – Obi-Wan, Star Wars
  75. “Take your stinking paws off me, you damn dirty ape!” – Taylor, Planet of the Apes
  76. “You maniacs! You blew it up! Oh, damn you! Damn you all to hell!” – Taylor, Planet of the Apes
  77. “Klaatu barada nikto.” The Day the Earth Stood Still
  78. “Monsters from the Id.” – Doc Ostrow, Forbidden Planet
  79. “ET phone home.” – ET
  80. “What… is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?” – Bridgekeeper, Monty Python and the Holy Grail
  81. “We thought you was a toad!” – Delmar, O Brother Where Art Thou?
  82. “Face it tiger, you just hit the jackpot!”–Mary Jane, Spider-Man.
  83. “You don’t have to be a gun.”-Hogarth, The Iron Giant.
  84. “Danger Will Robinson! Danger!” – Robbie the Robot, Lost in Space
  85. “Yeah, well. The Dude abides.” – The Dude, The Big Lebowski
  86. “All things serve the beam.” various instances, The Dark Tower series
  87. “You can’t fool me! There ain’t no Sanity Clause!” – Chico Marx, A Night at the Opera
  88. “Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love – they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.” – Harry Lime, The Third Man
  89. “And I said, I don’t care if they lay me off either, because I told, I told Bill that if they move my desk one more time, then, then I’m, I’m quitting, I’m going to quit. And, and I told Don too, because they’ve moved my desk four times already this year, and I used to be over by the window, and I could see the squirrels, and they were married, but then, they switched from the Swingline to the Boston stapler, but I kept my Swingline stapler because it didn’t bind up as much, and I kept the staples for the Swingline stapler and it’s not okay because if they take my stapler then I’ll set the building on fire…” – Milton Waddams, Office Space
  90. “Michael, I did nothing. I did absolutely nothing, and it was everything that I thought it could be.” – Peter Gibbons, Office Space
  91. “Now I have a machine gun. Ho ho ho.” – John McClane (in writing), Die Hard
  92. “Gimme some sugar, baby.” – Ash, Army of Darkness
  93. “Well hello Mister Fancypants. Well, I’ve got news for you pal, you ain’t leadin’ but two things, right now: Jack and sh*t… and Jack left town.” – Ash, Army of Darkness
  94. “Kneel before Zod.” – Zod, Superman II
  95. “Shall we play a game?” – Joshua, WarGames
  96. “Daddy would have gotten us Uzis.” – Samantha, Night of the Comet
  97. “It’s 106 miles to Chicago, we’ve got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark and we’re wearing sunglasses.” “Hit it!” – Elwood, The Blues Brothers
  98. “Make it so” / “Engage” – Captain Picard, Star Trek: The Next Generation
  99. “Ya Ta!” – Hiro Nakamura, Heroes
  100. “End Of Line” – The MCP, TRON

Top Chef Masters: The Emperor is still the Emperor, and the Child is still a Child

One of the classic tales of fiction is Hans Christian Anderson’s The Emperor Has No Clothes.

One day two rogues arrived in town, claiming to be gifted weavers.  They convinced the Emperor that they could weave the most wonderful cloth, which had a magical property.  The clothes were only visible to those who were completely pure in heart and spirit.

The Emperor was impressed and ordered the weavers to begin work immediately.  The rogues, who had a deep understanding of human nature, began to feign work on empty looms. 

Minister after minister went to view the new clothes and all came back exhorting the beauty of the cloth on the looms even though none of them could see a thing.

Finally a grand procession was planned for the Emperor to display his new finery.  The Emperor went to view his clothes and was shocked to see absolutely nothing, but he pretended to admire the fabulous cloth, inspect the clothes with awe, and, after disrobing, go through the motions of carefully putting on a suit of the new garments.

Under a royal canopy the Emperor appeared to the admiring throng of his people – – all of whom cheered and clapped because they all knew the rogue weavers’ tale and did not want to be seen as less than pure of heart.

But, the bubble burst when an innocent child loudly exclaimed, for the whole kingdom to hear, that the Emperor had nothing on at all.  He had no clothes.

Now the moral of the story is that there are sycophants in a room, and that we should be willing to point out when there is a lie.

But in the Sandman, by Neil Gaiman, I am reminded of another point of view:

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes. But the half-wit remains a half-wit, and the emperor remains an emperor.

In the episode titled Trick in a Box, the master chef’s are asked to cook a meal for a bunch of aspiring chef’s in cooking school.

And so the aspiring chef’s, feel that they should criticize these legendary cooks … They act as if they have the right to an opinion.  Except what they should be doing is using that opportunity to touch greatness and learn from greatness and shut the fuck up about the quality of the food.

Watching these children make comments is painful. And so maybe the food wasn’t perfect, but the Emperor, the master chef, is still Emperor, and the aspiring chef is still the aspiring chef that critiqued the master chef’s food on television.

Top Chef Masters: The difference between the great and not so great

In a recent Top Chef Masters episode I got to see the difference between a great food critic and an amateur.

Anito Lo was asked to create a dish with the theme illusion. Her dish was a masterpiece of thought and execution. A key element of the dish was a steak tartare sauce whose purpose was to be poured into a bowl.

image 

In the regular Top Chef, where newbies compete, Gail Simmons is one of the better food critics whose opinions are usually thoughtful and insightful.

But little did I realize the gap between her and the great critics. Presented with this dish, Gail complains it lacks salt. Then the incomparably greater critic, James Oseland, turns to her and says:

Well I poured the steak tartare sauce into the bowl, and it was perfectly salted.

I suppose that’s the way one food critic tells another food critic:

Dude, have you ever eaten food before?

Gail, after having been educated on how to eat her food, proceeds to give the seemingly unsalted dish 4.5 stars. 

Top Chef Masters: Hector vs Achilles in front of the walls of Troy

Top Chef, a Bravo TV, reality program pits aspiring chefs against each other in a month long competition where they are asked to, on their feet, create great food week after week after week.

The team that brought us top chef, decided to do a spin on the show, where they would bring in great chef’s and ask them to compete in the same format.

In many ways, the creators of Top Chef, looked at gladiator matches of yesteryear, and realized that we all want to watch the greatest go head to head. We all want to see Hector fight Achilles in front of the walls of troy.  And yet the reality is that in our modern world, that never happens. hector would be a general, and so would achilles, and they would never be allowed to risk their lives in man-to-man combat.

Top Chef Masters creates that delicious competitive battle, where the stakes are infinitely lower, but still real. These are after all, great chefs, who want to do great cooking.

In one episode, they take the chef’s and have them compete in a speed competition where they have to prep food. For all of them, the last time they prepped food was at least decade ago, and for Roy Yamaguchi it may have been more than two decades ago.

What’s amazing to watch is how these great, great, great Chef’s are forced to do something as elementary as create a great dish on the fly, and to see them struggle. Not because they can’t create a great dish, but because the last time they did it on their own was years ago. Watching Jonathan Waxman, a man whose efforts years ago helped create the foodie culture that produced top chef, struggle with how to use a pressure cooker was delightful because it reminded me of how all leaders rely on some kind of support staff.

It’s an interesting statement about life in general. As we promote people to positions of leadership, their ability to do the simple basic tasks, under time pressure, begins to evaporate. So Rick Moonen, can’t finish a quick fire, but then turns it around and creates a masterpiece, because he is still a great, great chef.

It is very rare that you see great men compete mano-a-mano in their chosen profession. Top Chef Masters is a great bit of television.

Perhaps Nokia has chosen not to die

Nokia’s irrelevance in the smartphone market, their inability to deliver a usable UI for their new touch screen gadget, and their ongoing inability to create an application ecosystem around the single most popular OS in the cell phone market has made me wonder if they are headed into oblivion.

Or at the very least, whether their role in life is to be displaced by a Chinese or Taiwanese cell phone manufacturer who figures out how to make really cheap and really reliable devices for the masses who just want to make a phone call.

But perhaps they’re not dead yet:

Microsoft Corp said it will announce an alliance with Nokia on Wednesday, likely unveiling plans to make the software company’s Office suite of applications available on devices made by the world’s top cellphone manufacturer.

http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE57A60P20090812?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews

In spite of the efforts of Google and in spite of the claims by the Mac phone boys, Office is the single most important set of applications for smart phones. The fact that Windows Mobile has the only workable implementation continues to make it a contender.

This can only help both MS and Nokia.

Drunken sailors and web ui design.

So it’s really cool that we can use dynamic web technologies to have user interfaces that allow for maximum configurability…

BUT THAT’S NOT GOOD UI DESIGN.

Just because you mr. web designer decided that I need to be able to click and remove every UI element (so that I find myself trying to figure out how I lost the all important panel) doesn’t mean you should.

Building UI elements and forcing me, the VERY BAD UI DESIGNER to figure this out is an abrogation of your responsibility.

Yech. I feel better.

Apple has learned nothing and neither have their fan boys

Over the last 30+ years, what has become apparent is that it’s all about the applications and not about the hardware.

In the 1980’s Apple pissed away it’s lead because it never knew how to court developers the way MSFT did.

And in the cell phone market, Apple has shown how to make a market for applications, and MSFT intends to demonstrate that they know how to make money for application developers and how to treat application developers.

http://www.businessinsider.com/reality-check-most-people-dont-care-about-how-apple-treats-developers-2009-7

The good news for Apple is that the reasons this backlash exists are completely meaningless to most normal people. That doesn’t make it right. But it should not affect peoples’ purchasing habits or their enjoyment of the iPhone’s standard features.


So it goes.

20 years ago the importance of applications was lost on Apple. More importantly the importance of a rich development community, and apparently 20 years later, the lesson is still lost.

I am not Lance

So after watching Lance go up and down the mountains, I decided to hop up on my bike and go up Old La Honda.

So here’s a picture of the beginning of the ride up:

And here’s a picture of me at the end:

And it took me about 40 minutes to go up 3.29 mile climb that had an elevation gain of 1000 feet. 

And after that climb I was looking to the nearest place to stop and breathe.

Couple of fun facts about the ride. So I was like the fattest guy going up Old La Honda. When I finally hit the corner of Foothill and Page Mill I noticed a whole bunch of folks who were bigger than me.

So I felt a little bit better when all those freaky skinny guys blew past me, saying the always friendly: On your left…

Fun with Nokia SportsTracker

So I’ve been using Nokia SportsTracker to map my workouts. I’ve been trying to lose weight and improve my overall fitness.

So here’s what’s fun, about 1 year ago I was running 3.79 miles at an 11 min 30 second pace:

Lap time Total time Lap distance Avg.pace

Whereas on Wednesday I ran 4 miles at a 10 minute and change pace:

Lap time Total time Lap distance Avg.pace

What was really cool was the 9 min 11 sec pace I ran the fourth lap!

Basically I went from running at about a 5 mile an hour pace to 6 mile an hour pace over a slightly longer distance!

Yes, I am bragging.