Hmmcast #151 mp4

Passionate Star Trek fans, armed with Paramount Pictures blessing as long as no money is made, are continuing the adventures of Star Trek the Original Series (STOS).

Episode #3 of Star Trek New Voyages will debut on the internet August 23, 2007. For a limited time US residents can register for the contest (official sweepstakes rules) for a chance to watch the premiere and dine with Sulu, George Takei, the writers and director of the episode at the FINE ARTS THEATER in Beverly Hill.

You can find mirrors for the pilot, the first two episodes and some other goodies at the special downloads and episode downloads. A registered members only forum is also available to discuss Star Trek New Voyages which requires admin approval to access (mine took an hour or so to be approved).

As for the quality of the episodes, today’s Hmmcast gives a very brief teaser, so go download and check them out. It’s clear they’ve worked hard to preserve the feel of STOS. The acting is not really pro-quality but the sets and special effects are pretty faithful to STOS.

Hmmcast #150 mp4

Last week the big story in the virtual world of Second Life was a ban on all forms of gambling for “anything of value.” Today I needed only to look across the virtual street in world to find a casino still operating. When does the gambling ban really begin? How long before they start actually enforcing the ban?

The Linden dollar hasn’t yet been impacted, still hovering at an exchange rate of around L$265-270 - $1 USD.

Hmmcast #149 mp4

Ain’t the packaging a hassle sometimes? Especially on this particular weekday …

Hmmcast #148 mp4

Since we put together our pool it had been lousy weather pretty much every day until Tuesday and Wednesday. During that time the pool needed some serious “shock” and a new filter to get the water back into shape.

Hmmcast #147 mp4

The set musicians that cover the original 80s tunes do an admirable job in today’s new PS2 game Guitar Hero Encore Rock The 80s, which is certain to please those who love 80s tunes. Accept, Quiet Riot, Scorpions, Dio and many, many more. Show me the sign of victory!

Hmmcast #146 mp4

This morning I signed up for a free 30 day trial (credit card required) of the Yahoo Finance Market Tracker Real-Time Quotes and Screener service (Disclaimer: I own YaHOO stock). After 30 days if I decide to keep it the cost is around 13 bones a month. It’s a Java program that streams stock quotes and news to your desktop in real time when the market is active. The screener is a program that lets you pick stocks to follow and/or buy. It’s only for non-professional use which fits the friendly real money stock competition my wife and I have going.

Which by the way she let me sniff a little bit of victory on Friday, only to be erased by the results today. Bad news with my ATARi stock receiving a “we’re about to delist you notice” from NASDAQ because their financial results are late. Get them in, ATARi, playing Asteroids with NASDAQ is not using good Missile Command and guaranteeing a Tempest outside a teapot.

And then there is the Zarlink (NYSE: ZL) stock I bought Friday that is up a little today (+1.19%) with their plant flooded today:

With possibly the highest rainfalls hitting many parts of the UK during June and July since records began around 150 years ago, Zarlink’s analog foundry based in Swindon, UK, was evacuated on July 20 due to flooding…

My worst investment thus far has been in Restoration Hardware (NASDAQ: RSTO) that has been on a downward trend since I bought shares at $5.21 a week ago. This was my one and only analyst recommendation thus far. Going to hold on for awhile and hope RSTO turns it around. Today they were up 0.57%.

As of this writing overall Kara is up $10.00 on her $500 deposit and I’m up $7.45 on mine. She hasn’t sold any stock yet, while I’ve sold two stocks (BQI and GMO) both at a slight profit. Readers can follow along our nearly real-time competition progress on our shared Google Finance spreadsheet here.

Hmmcast #145 mp4

This Wii Pistol looks badass, I just had to order one from Penguin United. $22.81 USD after standard 1-3 day shipping. Peguin United is located in San Francisco, CA, USA. Yes, they take PayPal and they offer a tracking receipt.

Ordered on Sunday and arrived Wednesday. Check out the packaging:

No damage inside when opened in a surprisingly easy to open bubble wrap. Just used a razor blade down the top.

Wii Light Gun compatible games
The light gun fits snugly in your hand and the nunchuck controller plugs into the bottom of the game. So far the only game in our libary it works good with is Wii Play and games where you can remap the controls. Tried using it with Resident Evil but you can’t remap the keys. I’m thinking it might work good with Call of Duty but since we don’t own that game yet, we might try it out as a rental first.

I’m also looking to compile or find a link to a complete list of available PS3 games that support 1080p in case any readers have one handy.

Hmmcast #144 mp4

Hmmcast #143 mp4

Just as my first speeding ticket ever in the 22+ years of driving is falling off my record this month, I received a second speeding ticket coming into town last night. The circumstances to the case are a bit shaky, so I’m thinking about fighting this ticket. The first one was in Jackpot, Nevada and I didn’t feel I could defend that one successfully. The ticket cost is $142.

Readers who have personal experiences with fighting speeding tickets have any resources or advice to share? I’ve been poking around different search engine queries reading through what’s out there and would appreciate any firsthand experiences.

Hmmcast #141 mp4

Amazing the chemicals needed to keep a pool clean and the number of insects that land in the pool and can’t get out. Must be a rough life being an insect around a pool. Hey, there’s a pool.

(land on it)

Oh noooooooooo! My legs! I can’t …. get … out.

Swirling toward the pool strainer of death.

sssssssssssuck. Sucks to be them.