Toys: Some half-broken mechanic tin toys

Thanks to mr foxman (the owner) - can you hear the piano?

Computer: Help wanted!

I'm writing this post on my old computer which was delivered to me five years ago(!). This might be a laughable fact to you but this ol' machine has served me well up to this point. I have been able to do all that I wanted to do with it - surfing the net, blogging, being my jukebox (with tons of music in it), showing me movies, e-mailing, being my typewriter, storing my images, working PhotoShop etc - but now it's full and slow and just plain old. I'm beginning to fear that it'll collapse one day, very soon, with a great amount of stuff in it that I haven't backed up. Sure I have an external memory of 250 GB but it contains mostly my movies that has pretty much filled that memory bank up....

...so it's finally time to invest in a new computer.

Being a very "non-tech" guy this is not a totally positive situation to be in. A number of questions arises as well as apprehensions. What is there to think about and what pits are there to fall into. I mean, maybe I won't keep this one for as long as the other but I would hate to make a stupid buy. So basically I have two questions that I'd like some help with:

1. What should I get? What numbers should i look for in the descriptions?
- I want to get as much as possible for the least amount of money possible. Strange isn't it? Seriously. I do. However, having made it this far with a five year old machine it's pretty clear I don't need a super-duper top-of-the-line computer. But it has to be much faster to work with and it has to have a much bigger memory. As far as I understand it there are three major things to watch for 1. The processor 2. The hard disc memory capacity 3. The internal memory. Am I right or are there, in your mind, much more to watch for in the ordinary computer? Are there any common traps to watch out for.

2. What should I think about when it comes to switching from the old to the new? Any tips?
- Should I move free programs like for instance FireFox from one computer to the other or should I download anew? Pros and cons?

If you have any good advice for me and some spare time I'd love to hear from you. Cheers!

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UPDATE:

Feng (promising blog by the way!) recommends me to go here for guidance and that I download all programs anew ;) to the new computer. Feng also point out that Vista is crap so I should stay with XP. Your pieces of advice are appreciated, Feng.

Mod*Mom loves the Hewlett Packard Touchsmart PC - hmm, looks great of course and it's probably worth every penny but I wasn't planning on paying 1.600 USD. I think, without having checked too much, that I can get a pretty good computer (excluding screen etc) for less than 1.000 USD and that's more like what I'm planning. So, Mod*Mom, thank you very much for the tip but I think I'll wait until next time.

mc fox said: "I think you better shave! That will solve at least some of your pc-problems. Mine slowed up alot while being badly shaved." I guess mc fox means I should get rid of useless rubbish in the computer releasing some power that way. It would probably work, as it is completely stuffed, but it is time to get a new one anyway - but thanks mc fox!

Anonymous thinks I should get "an OLPC for 100 bucks and sell your old PC on eBay (for more)." A creative suggestion! However, would I get more?! I'm not sure. ;D

Signature CDM says: "There are always discounts on Mac minis, such as these: http://lowendmac.com/deals/best-mac-mini-prices.html. I have one, and it works great. If you max it out with memory (http://macsales.com is recommended place for purchasing and information on how to) then it can run both Windows and Mac OS X. Hook it up to your TV and it works as an entertainment center as well with Front Row and accompanying remote for all your music and video needs."
Thanks for letting me know, CDM. I should of course have said that this time it'll be a PC - once more... Maybe next time ;)

Roar of Norway says his philosophy when it comes to buying computers is to spend as little money as possible on a machine that meets your current requirements - this enables you to save money for repairs or replacement if you're unlucky and have an accident. This sounds very sound, doesn't it? He also says that to reformat is very important. I guess he's right - I've heard it before but I never have done it ;) For him something like a laptop with 15 inch screen and 160 GB hard drive and extra external memory would do it. I have also thought about getting a laptop but I don't really have the use for the portability right now. However I would probably bring it with me on occasion and it would crave much less space - so I haven't written a laptop off completely... Thanks for your insight Roar!

To be continued with your advice!

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Christmas music: Santaphonic!

Without further ado let me present to you this year's production - Santaphonic! I hope you'll like it.
Merry Christmas and God Jul from Martin Klasch.

Sorry. No longer available.

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Christmas music: Reposting Santology from '06

Last year I had to ask myself how to follow such a well put-together and well received Christmas music mix as Santalicious was. Of course I didn't have the recipe for that but I still wanted to make one and I think it turned out fine.

The review in A Christmas Yuleblog said: "They are mixing it up nicely, balancing the old and the new, the instrumentals and the vocals."

Santology (96,2 MB)
Alternative download link (zSHARE).
Sorry. No longer available.

Password: martinklasch

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Christmas music: Reposting Santalicious from '05

A year passes so quickly. Have you noticed? Well, in 2005, as soon as I was able to pick up the first sounds of jingling bells, I knew I had to get started with the Christmas mix if there were to be any. Another thing was clear to me - I wanted that year's mix to be more personal than the year before. So I dove (dived) deeper into the sea which they call Christmas music. The result I came up with was simply Santalicious (72,8 MB).

Sorry. No longer available.

In its review A Christmas Yule Blog calls it "an awsome Christmas CD". Hm, maybe it is. I hope you will enjoy it.

Password: martinklasch

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Christmas music: Reposting Santafobic from '04

Have you had enough of Christmas already? No? Can I interest you in some more Christmas music? Yes?

Martin Klasch's Christmas mix CD Santafobic from 2004 is once again available (69,8 MB). The password is none other than martinklasch.

Alternative download link (EasyShare).

This was my first attempt on a Christmas music mix and personally I think it's a very nice one. However...no I won't say any more. Try it or if you want you can read a review of it in the Christmas music expert blog A Christmas Yuleblog.

I will of course quickly follow up this repost with Santalicious '05, Santology '06 and Xxxxxxxxxxx '07.

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Art: Moneygami

Moneygami
by Hasegawa Yosuke

Via phantomoftheradio of PCL LinkDump

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Game: Flashpiper

Play Flashpiper

Design: Record Factory Sleeves

Record Envelope - the little library of factory sleeves
Via phantomoftheradio of PCL LinkDump

Christmas music: Favorites available

Two of my all-time favorite christmas music records are available for download so why not check them out.



The Soulful Strings - The Magic Of Christmas
Can be found at A Christmas Yuleblog


Stereo Percussions de Noel - Herman Apple Ses Carillions Et Ses Percussions
Can be found at Falalalala

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Music: "...mit der Monotonie des Je-Je-Je..."

Uploaded by Uptoyourfacelads

IFA Wartburg (not the automobile manufacturer)

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Ad: Wartburg 1000 - der Wagen für Sie!

Christmas music & album covers: The Three Suns

To be honest I'm not much of a fan of instrumental group The three Suns, I think they are pretty boring to listen to, but oh boy did they have some great artwork on some of their albums!! Found at Ernie (Not Bert) - a great Christmas music blog!

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Picnic At Hanging Rock

If you haven't seen the Australian movie from 1975 by Peter Weir called Picnic At Hanging Rock I suggest you do that and at the same time I suggest you probably shouldn't read anymore of this post. There will be spoilers ahead. I mean it - REAL spoilers. If you have seen it and liked it you should perhaps think twice about continue reading as well. It might spoil something for you too. You have been warned!

If you are of the category that have seen it you might recall that the movie "tells the story of the mysterious disappearance of three schoolgirls and their teacher during a picnic at a geological formation known as Hanging Rock on Valentine's Day in 1900."

"The reason for their disappearance, whether by human, natural or supernatural agency, is never discovered, but their disappearance has a profound effect upon everybody in their community." - Quote from Wikipedia's article on the film. 

The screenplay is an adaption from Joan Lindsay's 1967 novel by the same name. 

What you might not know is that the story is NOT based on a true story. Even though it is sort of implied in the movie by it beginning with a text sign telling the basic story: "On Saturday 14th February 1900 a party of schoolgirls from Appleyard College picnicked at Hanging Rock near Mt. Macedon in the state of Victoria. During the afternoon several members of the party disappeared without a trace..."

Thus the director skillfully and with very small means manipulates his audience into thinking that OK, they have made up pretty much everything other than this but at least that much has really happened. When I first saw the movie I must have been around 10-12 years old and that which really got to me, besides the creepy mystery, was the fact that it had actually taken place.

According to Wikipedia's article on the book this manipulation of the audience was in line with the book an its author: "The novel is written in the form of a false document, implying that it is based on a true story and even begins and ends with a pseudo-historical prologue and epilogue, adding to the overall mystery-feel." "Lindsay has done little to dispel the myth that the story is based on truth, in many interviews either refusing to confirm it was entirely fiction, or hinting that parts of the book were fictitious, and others were not."

So, time for the second possible spoiler*: Joan Lindsay wrote another final chapter of the book where everything was supposedly "explained".

"...though it was removed before publication and not released until 1987, two years after Lindsay's death." "It has been argued by many critics that much of the power of the original book stems from the suggestion that it was a true story, and the fact that the mystery in the book was never resolved, and therefore it was a good decision by the author to remove this material." 

Summary of the added ending: 

"While walking past the hanging rock, the girls experience several incomprehensible phenomena. Driven giddy by some supernatural suggestion of the monolith, they throw their corsets over the cliff, though they never fall to the bottom and instead hang in space in an impossible fashion. The girls and Miss McCraw notice a mystical "hole in space". Marion, Miranda, and Miss McCraw transform into small creatures and crawl into a hole in the rock, which another boulder then covers, leaving Irma alone and clawing at the fallen rock."

Would you have wanted to know that beforehand?

"All that we see or seem Is but a dream within a dream"
- E.A Poe


* UPDATE:
lliam kindly wrote in the comments of this post: "I had the good fortune of growing up on Joan Lindsey's property "Mulberry Hill" during the 70's, my parents even escorted her to the set during the making of the movie. I also happen to know that she never wrote an alternate 'ending'. She never explained the mystery to anyone even though she received hundreds of requests every year to do so. The so called 'missing chapter' was fabricated after her death in order to cash in on the popularity of the film and novel. She was a great writer and a wonderful friend to my family and I. I'm glad you like 'Picnic' and please be comforted in the thought that the mystery is still un-explained."

As always - you decide what and who you want to believe....

Music: Merit Hemmingson & the Meritones

OK, it's time for a repost. I'll even use the words from last time:

Merit Hemmingson & the Meritones "at the Esquire Club" (or perhaps Discoteque dance a go go if this is not the name of a series of records. Does anyone know for sure?) was recorded live on the 1st of February 1966 and released in 1967. This was the first record Merit ever did and (perhaps) not the most interesting and personal but I definitely think it's worth listening to. I don't believe it has ever been reprinted so until it's released on CD (if ever) here we go:

UPDATE: You can find it at Spotify nowadays.

Download from Files-Upload.com
password: martinklasch

The link will be kept alive during a limited amount of time, perhaps only a week or two. You've been warned so don't come crying, OK?

If this gets you interested in Merit's music please visit Merit Hemmingsons own website.

Our thanks to Erik - the Fettfräsare number 1.

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Music: Who Is Harry Nilsson?

Well, as it is said in the trailer for documentary "Who Is Harry Nilsson? And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him?" - either people get it (who he is) right away or they have no idea.
It seems that everyone who do know who Harry Nilsson was will agree that: 1...he was an extremely talented singer and songwriter 2...he was an extremely complicated person "a big bunny with really sharp teeth".
While being a very productive and successful songwriter, both for himself and others, like the song "One" recorded by Three Dog Night, the two largest hits for Nilsson as a performing artist were not written by him. Those songs are the theme from the movie Midnight Cowboy "Everybody's Talkin'" and "Without You".
Nilsson lived a life that took a toll on his body - partying, drinking etc with friends like John Lennon, Ringo Starr and Keith Moon - and Nilsson sadly died in 1993 before the age of 53.

Here follows a collection of the YouTube movies that had a Nilsson connection and that I found worth putting together. There's the documentary trailer, a couple of versions of "Everybody's talkin'", "Without You", "One" with Three Dog Night, "Daddy's Song" - a song he did for The Monkeys, A documentary about some of Nilsson's recording session in five parts and some more... Enjoy!



A great blog: For the love of Harry
Nilsson's MySpace
The Harry Nilsson Web Pages

Harry Nilsson at Bedazzled!

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Art: Henrik Olsson

The art of Swedish artist Henrik Olsson. Finnish and Swedish landscapes and more through his eyes...
Via Canta Piriquito Canta

Animation: Who I Am And What I Want

The Glasgow-based artist David Shrigley co-directed and wrote this little animated film of seven minutes and forty-two seconds. It's well worth the time. I put in a few other Shrigley films in the playlist for your enjoyment too.



Links:
http://www.davidshrigley.com/
http://www.mudam.lu/shrigley/
animate!: David Shrigley biography
http://www.whoiamandwhatiwant.com/

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Vintage fashion: More bad ads from back in the day

The ad has been cropped.

If you dug this one you gotta dig these "bad" ads from Ebony Magazine, 1970-76. Thanks to The In Crowd who is getting real good at sharing. He's The Pimp.


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Album Covers: Matching Album Covers

Matching Album Covers

Via Stationsvakt

This is obviously not the first time this technique has been used. Check out the ones made by Christian Marclay.

...sort of related to: