Meebo es una aplicación vía web en el cual puedes chatear simultáneamente con tus diferentes cuentas de mensajería instantánea como Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, myspace, etc.

Si en tu empresa tienen bloqueado los programas de mensajería instantánea no te preocupes  solo tienes que ir a la web de Meebo http://www.meebo.com y conectarte con tu cuenta de mensajería instantánea.

Puedes tener tu propio componente de chat “Meebo me” en tu pagina web, para eso solo tienes que crear  tu cuenta de meebo en http://www.meebo.com, y seguir los pasos que se te indicara al crear la cuenta.

Instalando “Meebo Notifier”, te permite conectarte directamente a la web de Meebo con tu cuenta de mensajería instantánea y no solo eso, “Meebo Notifier” también  te avisa de los correos que llegan a tu bandeja de entrada de tus cuentas que estes utilizando en ese momento.

A continuación veremos algunas características de Meebo.

• Ingresando a  la web de Meebo, http://www.meebo.com, con tu cuenta de mensajeria instantanea.

• Ingresando a Meebo mediante  el “Meebo Notifier”, lo bajamos el  de el link http://www.meebo.com/notifier/ y configuramos nuestra cuenta de mensajeria instantanea para conectarnos directamente a la web de Meebo

• Nos conectamos a Meebo.

• Dentro de Meebo creamos las demas cuentas que deseamos para conectarnos en ese momento.

Bueno eso esto todo cualquier consulta escribanme a soporteinformaticopc@gmail.com.

Melihat berbagai masalah yang terjadi di bumi yang tercinta ,misalkan, kemacetan total yang sering terjadi di Jakarta, jumlah penduduk yang membeludak, daratan tak lagi mampu menampung semua manusia di bumi, air bersih berkurang, polusi udara bertambah, terjadi wabah penyakit, sumpeknya perkotaan akibat permukiman kumuh dan lainnya. Ini tentu saja membuat kita gerah. Masalah ini seolah-olah takkan pernah terselesaikan. Membangun rumah-rumah susun hingga bertingkat puluhan lantai mungkin dapat menjadi solusi saat ini. Namun, sampai kapan? Kalau jumlah penduduk terus bertambah, bukan tidak mungkin , ruang kosong yang tersedia akan habis. Tidak ada lagi tempat untuk dibangun rumah. Kalau begitu, permukiman di atas laut mungkin akan menjadi solusi berikutnya. Akan tetapi, bayangkan apabila seluruh laut dipenuhi oleh rumah-rumah? Wah, laut bakal menjadi tempat penampungan sampah terbesar di dunia. Tidak ada lagi air yang bisa diminum. Barangkali kita harus pergi ke luar angkasa dan tinggal di sana. Tetapi ukuran bulan begitu kecil dan tidak cukup menampung seluruh penghuni buni. Apalagi tidak ada oksigen dan air di sana. Mars mungkin bisa jadi alternatif mengingat ada es di sana. Es ini mungkin menjadi sumber air. Tetapi perlu berapa waktu agar kita benar-benar bisa tinggal di Mars atau bulan tanpa masalah?

Menghadapi permasalahan ini, saya mencoba melihat virtual spaces sebagai alternatif baru. Seperti yang dikutip berikutnya:

“ …that the possibility of transferring or ‘downloading’ human consciousness to a computer is eagerly anticipated in the computer world. In such a’ post-biological world’ one could thus avoid death and the time and energy required for maintaining and reproducing human bodies.” (Newton and Helen Mayer Harrison, 1989).

Andaikan itu terjadi, bayangkan yang akan terjadi jika kesadaran manusia dipindahkan ke komputer dan meninggalkan tubuh manusia di luar. Kita akan hidup di virtual spaces. Di sana, kita bisa bebas membangun rumah di atas lahan (bits) yang tidak terbatas, tanpa harus mempertimbangkan strukturnya. Kita bisa membentuk rumah sehendak hati. Membangun rumah yang terbalik di langit pun bisa. Mau buat apartemen yang ratusan tingkatnya pun bisa.  Bahkan kita mengganti interior dapur dengan cepat. Tidak hanya itu, kita juga bisa membentuk tubuh sendiri.  Mau menjadi laki-laki atau perempuan, terserah kita. Mau memiliki tubuh binatang, pun biasa. Intinya, di dalam virtual spaces, kita bebas berkreasi sesuka kita termasuk lingkungannya,seperti kutipan berikutnya:

“Virtual worlds will offer myriad opportunities to encounter and engage objects and spaces in new and different ways and to occupy other bodies, other entities, others species.” (Karen A Franck, 1995)

Akan tetapi, hidup di virtual spaces sama dengan meninggalkan indera perasa, peraba,dan  penciuman. Oleh karena itu, di dunia virtual, kita dapat memakan apel dan meminum air. Tetapi kita takkan merasakan manisnya apel atau segarnya air. Di sana, kita dapat menjalin pertemanan, tetapi tidak dapat merasakan sentuhan orang lain. Bahkan kita dapat memiliki anak tanpa mengalami masa kehamilan. Ringkasnya, kita hidup di dunia yang dipenuhi oleh pengalaman visual (mungkin juga audio) seperti yang kita alami di dalam mimpi.

Secara pribadi, saya mengakui virtual spaces bukanlah alternatif yang baik. Bayangkan andai komputer mati karena suatu alasan, kita hidup di kegelapan. Jiwa kita sadar tetapi tidak dapat melihat atau merasakan apa-apa. Namun, jika teknologi memungkinkan itu terjadi, maka ini patut dipertimbangkan.

Reference

Franck, Karena A. 1995. Architects in Cyberspace: When I Enter Virtual Reality, What Body Will I leave Behind?.Cambridge: VCH Pubisher LTD.

Windows 7 tem muitas características novas, dos quais um recurso é o Windows XP Mode, que permite que você execute o Windows XP no Windows 7 no entanto, para usar modo Windows XP, você deve ter o 7 Professional ou Windows Ultimate e seu computador deve ter nível de hardware suporte a virtualização.

Devido aos requisitos acima muitos usuários não serão capazes de desfrutar Windows XP Mode. Aqui está o VMLite alterative para o Windows XP Mode.

VMLite modo XP oferece funções similares, Microsoft Windows XP Mode, mas não exige virtualização de hardware. Ele permite que você execute o Windows XP ao mesmo tempo a partir do seu desktop rodando em um sistema operacional diferente do host.

Estilo: Sistema Operacional
Fabricante: Microsoft
Tamanho: 55.9 Mb
Formato: Rar
Idioma: Inglês

Muchas veces nos ha sucedido que después de muchos ruegos y llamadas, logramos realizar una gran entrevista que no podemos subir a Internet porque no sabemos como o en donde encontrar un sistema de Podcast flexible y gratuito para colgarlo en la web.

Pues, les cuento que después de tanto buscar, iVoox audioKiosko es uno de los mejores sistemas gratuitos de Podcast en Internet. Está operativa en beta desde mediados de Noviembre de 2008.

En resumidas cuentas, esta herramienta es una página para escuchar, una plataforma donde poder reproducir, descargar y compartir audios de todo tipo de temáticas (historia, deportes, humor, …), y géneros (programas de radio, podcasts, audiolibros, conferencias, …).

Este podcast es gratuito. Pero para evitar malos usos, actualmente tiene un límite de subida por día, pues no en un disco duro virtual donde intercambiar discografías musicales. Pero no te preocupes, porque dicho límite será más que suficiente para podcasts amateur: el equivalente aproximado de 2 horas diarias de emisión.

El funcionamiento de esta herramienta digital es muy sencilla, muy 2.0 y muy Youtube. Podcast y programas de radio organizados por categorías que puedes escuchar directamente en la página sin necesidad de ir a la fuente original.

Gracias a el podemos saber cuántas personas se han descargado nuestro Podcast, posibilita que haya un enlace a los blogs en los que escribimos y hay un sistema de votación que ayuda mucho a saber si lo grabado tiene o no resultados eficientes.

Una de sus principales características es que las personas que se suscriban lo podrán hacer por temáticas, en lugar de tener que hacerlo sobre los programas o podcasts completos. Por ejemplo, te interesa el periodismo, podrías suscribirte a todos los nuevos audios que vayan apareciendo de esta temática, independientemente de las fuentes que los generen. Pero por supuesto, si lo prefieres, también podrás seguir haciéndolo sobre los programas de radio o podcast completos.

Se eu fosse virtual

Flávio Nickel

Imagem copiada de http://smeira.blog.terra.com.br/

“Chegou o tempo em que ou você é alguém@onde.oque ou você não é ninguém”

Se pudesse ser uma coisa, uma outra coisa, eu queria ser um software, digital, virtual. Não seria muito exigente. Bastava ser virtual. Se eu assim fosse, eu dominaria as dimensões do tempo e do espaço e viajaria pelo planeta digital e me deliciaria congestionando o tráfego na Trafalgar Square. Literalmente passearia pelos sites literários e num dia de sol enviaria um e-mail a Castro Alves e num navio negreiro, navegaríamos por mares nunca dantes navegados em companhia de Camões e Robinson Crusoe. Também por e-mail, convidaria Helena e Capitu para ir à Espanha assistir a uma tourada e mais tarde, em casa de Almodóvar, descansaríamos numa cama para três. Nas terras da Rainha, pesquisaria na Enciclopédia e com pontualidade Britânica iria ao chá das cinco com Shakespeare e Sherlock. Convidaria Rimbaud para um bate papo na Gallerie La Fayette e numa sexta à tarde me conectaria com Belo Horizonte, aonde iria ao clube da esquina, tomar um café com bytes em companhia de Milton e Lô Borges.

Ah, se eu fosse virtual! Se eu fosse virtual, teria memória sem limites e poderia guardar tudo do passado e do presente. Então, me presentearia com um álbum dos Mutantes. Seria amigo de Vinícius, de Chico e de Janis Joplin. Com Lennon e McCartney, Pena Branca e Xavantinho, formaria uma banda larga inusitada e tocaríamos juntos em MP3.. Seria virtual, mas com sentimentos e, com Noel e Adoniram, choraria melosas canções de amor numa rádio digital. Mesclaria Pixinguinha e Marisa Monte em uníssono, cantando Rosa, em poesia não em prosa, para fazer alguém feliz. Se eu fosse virtual, Bach me ensinaria que na música, a nota codifica o som, e eu o explicaria que na informática, o bit codifica a ação. Se eu fosse virtual e cometesse crimes, Dostoievski seria meu advogado e meus castigos minimizados. Poderia até ser processado, mas por processadores, que me mandariam pra Alcatraz. Lá eu escreveria minhas memórias do cárcere e um postal eletrônico para Marco Polo. Planejaria uma fuga lá para o reino de Khan, a quem eu contaria de minhas andanças pelas terras do sem fim. Depois, criaria um portal de games para jogar Dama com as Camélias e enviaria flores virtuais para Madame Bovary. Digitalizaria o amor, para que minha musa não guardasse de mim apenas impressões digitais e fundaria com Gullar a Academia Brasileira de Bytes. Não seria um Highlander, mas seria imortal. Se eu fosse virtual, simularia o meu Taj Mahal, onde leria As mil e uma noites em uma só, deitado confortavelmente em minha rede. Iria ao Louvre e admiraria cada píxel da Mona Lisa. Materializaria-me junto ao túmulo de Salvador e o tiraria dali para meu alívio e para a persistência de sua memória. Gravaria em placas homenagens a Sebastião Salgado, Picasso e Caetano constatando que a Guernica é aqui. Aprenderia com Freud sobre Édipo e o Ego num site de psicologia e entenderia que quando os sonhos assumem forma concreta, surge a beleza. Seria menino e correria Brasil afora em busca de pica-paus amarelos ou de uirapurus cantantes. Pularia carniça nas pinceladas de Portinari em companhia de Bardi e me deixaria deslizar nas curvas generosas de Niemeyer. Imprimiria elogios de louvor á brasilidade de Macunaíma e Mário de Andrade me convidaria para um banquete antropofágico em casa de Tarsila, numa mensagem com a Muiraquitã em anexo.

Se eu fosse virtual, conversaria com Da Vinci em código e compilaria com Einstein o quântico dos contos . Instalaria-me com Clarice em uma rede e a ouviria explicar sobre como (d)escrever o amor. Entenderia grego, português, inglês e outras línguas porque armazenaria todas as línguas na memória. Entraria nos arquivos do FBI, do DOPS, do SNI e da CIA, de onde hackearia informações sigilosas e as compartilharia com Henfil e Betinho. Criaria uma comunidade alternativa no Orkut e Raul Seixas seria o síndico. Em uma página de poesia, jogaria conversa fora com Drummond, depois andaríamos por uma rua qualquer de Itabira, e no meio do caminho, nos assentaríamos em um banco de dados também qualquer para escrever às crianças. Se eu fosse virtual, programaria com Júlio Verne, dez voltas ao redor da Terra, à velocidade de um download, num Led Zeppelin amarelo. Buscaria no Google, um trabalho para Marx e trocaríamos informações sobre workgroups. Após o almoço, Newton me ofereceria uma maçã e eu o convidaria a ensinar física aos engenheiros da Apple por videoconferência. Se eu fosse virtual, ao envelhecer, não me preocuparia com a forma física e nem sofreria cirurgias plásticas ou lipoaspiração. No máximo, Ivo Pitangui me atenderia em uma clínica de upgrades e eu sendo velho, não morreria. Bastaria um update, um download, e eu me renovaria como a Fênix.Tudo isso seria possível se Deus, o criador, fosse programador e, se no ato de me criar, tivesse feito um software, não um escritor. Ah, se eu fosse virtual.

Registrado e publicado também em Anjos de Prata

Come and join me live at Ashbury Music Hall!

http://www.ashburymusichall.com/offerings/vocal-lessons-introduction

http://www.ashburymusichall.com/offerings/true-voice-course-audio

Namoro Virtual*

“Se um cara chamado Portões ficou rico vendendo janelas que vivem quebrando, acho que posso abrir minhas portas”

Tudo aconteceu num cybercafé. Ela era teen e amava um chat. Ele era hacker e estudava sistemas. Marcaram um encontro na Café com Bytes, uma mistura de café, boate e ponto de encontro dos usuários de computador. Ela foi de micro-saia, laptop vermelho e sapatos salto alto. Ele foi de walk-machine, óculos escuros, aro de tartaruga. Entrou, escaneou a área do bar e a localizou perto da máquina de refrigerante. Se reconheceram pelas fotos que exibiam na Internet. Cumprimentaram-se e ele viu que não precisava perguntar como ela era. Instalaram-se numa giratória e pediram um suco natural.

Tudo cooperava para o encontro e o ambiente era compatível. Falaram das imagens que criaram um do outro, do tempo e da nova configuração política mundial depois da guerra, mas tudo soava muito superficial. A verdade é que a conversa estava uma chatice. Nada a ver com o Chat onde sempre tinham assunto.Olhavam-se envergonhados e ficaram horas compartilhando o suco invisível que acabara há muito tempo. Até que ele sugeriu um programa diferente e ela aceitou.

Foram para o reservado, no nível de cima do bar. Havia pcs conectados em cabines individuais e o som ambiente tocava “Nunca te vi sempre te amei” da Broadband, o novo mp3 que era um record nos sites de download. Ele se assentou de frente pra um pc compaqto, enquanto ela alisava os cabelos com um pentium de lítio. Ela ligou o laptop, ele já estava on-line e conectaram-se. Virtualmente iniciaram o namoro teclando elogios, depois ele a convidou para visitá-lo em casa. Ela tinha duas opções; não e ficar no bar e sim, continuar. Preferiu a segunda opção e foram para o endereço dele.

Era uma casa muito grande mobiliada com muitos arquivos e algumas janelas sobrepostas, parecendo um office moderno. Na casa havia um cômodo especial. Era uma área de trabalho pequena, mas pintada em branco e azul tinha-se a impressão que era maior. Na sala ele ligou o DVD e colocou um disco no dispositivo. Era o filme “ICQ – Episodio I seek you”. Assentaram-se num banco de dados que ali havia e assistiam ao filme trocando carícias. Minutos depois ele disse que iria à despensa buscar algo para comer. Não achou o milho de pipoca, embora soubesse que havia armazenado mais que o suficiente. Optou por um chocolate em placas. Ela estava ainda na sentada, mas não parecia interessada no filme. Ele como que por efeito mágico tira do bolso um anel de cristal liquido, que ela recebe estupefata enquanto come o chocolate. Beijaram-se contidamente, mas ele sabia que as mulheres têm os mesmos códigos, apenas a combinação poderia ser diferente. Ela apertou a orelha dele e sussurrou algo sobre um local mais à vontade. Ele como em automático a arrastou para outro compartimento com um wallpaper amarelinho claro. Era seu gabinete. Ele abriu uma pasta, tirou uma proteção antivírus e assoviou. Carregando-a, a deitou na rede acoplada no cômodo e retirou o pesado boot que estava calçado. Amaram-se virtualmente. No ápice da conexão amorosa eles fizeram leituras dos próprios pensamentos através de um prolongado movimento de olho no olho. Amam-se novamente e toda a interação é reiniciada. Todos os sentidos são ativados pelo tato através das relações neurais. Isso traz às suas memórias uma sensação nada virtual. A ação sexual é realizada pela terceira vez, esta porém, numa webcama, que estava atrás de uma pesada porta serial. Dormem.

Ele acorda preguiçosamente e num impulso analisa a cama à procura dela. Não encontra e rastreia o quarto. Ela se foi. Tomou algum caminho que ele não sabia qual. Escapou de sua rede enquanto ele hibernava. Tudo que compartilharam estava no passado, mas não seria esquecido como um papel na lixeira e nem ele queria deletar isso da memória.Tinha perdido-a e teria que reconquistá-la, mesmo sem saber qual foi seu erro. Ainda sonolento ele maquina uma forma de reconquistá-la. Talvez enviasse flores. Talvez a convidasse a ir ao sitio, lá ele tinha uma torre onde poderiam simular a estória de Rapunzel. Talvez se acendesse uma tela pro seu santo de proteção, Jesus poderia salvar a relação. Adormeceu novamente processando informações sobre como atraí-la.

 No mundo virtual é assim, após cada encontro é preciso reiniciar.

*Conto escolhido para tema de redação no vestibular 2005 da UEM – PR

 Texto publicado em http://favelacultural.blogspot.com/

Wow, this is one cool canine! The Zircon Puppy is December’s Birthday Pet, available for virtual code purchases in the Ganz eStore. So what’s the deal? The Zircon Puppy can be bought online (Ganz eStore) during December. It’s a very cute one, too! It comes with Zircon Sofa and eats Gemstone Dog Bone. Yum!

This high-end gadget available at Opulent Items for no less than $20,000 is a wall mirror with old-style picture frame that reveals a virtual butler as you call it, or when it has to announce messages.
It is an upscale computer server that connects to all electronic systems in your home, including the front gate, security cameras, back doors, garage doors, jacuzzi and the pool gate, to alert you as it detects changes in the environment. These changes can include cars leaving, guests arriving, or an opened gate.

You can hear the virtual butler through the speakers installed in the home, and see what it has to show right on the mirror. It is extremely useful for reminding appointments or other daily events, and the voice has an English accent by default, but you have the possibility to customize it.

The mirror measures 31 x 21 x 5 inches and requires professional home installation.

Posted by Sierra Monica

found @ www.ladiesgadgets.com

Como ya comenté en su momento Google presentó a todo el mundo su sistema operativo basado en internet para netbooks, y como también dije aquí va mi review del sistema operativo.

Instalación

Alguien se ha encargado de compilar el código fuente del sistema operativo (que podemos encontrarlo aquí) y montarlo sobre una máquina virtual, por lo tanto actualmente Google Chrome OS o Chromium OS puede encontrarse en formato de disco duro para máquina virtual. Este disco duro puede montarse sobre una máquina virtual creada con VMware o VirtualBox, yo personalmente he usado este último para hacer mis pruebas. Podemos descargar el torrent de aquí.

No voy a perder el tiempo con algo que ya está comentado en muchos sitios. Tan solo tenéis que buscar un poco por Google como montarlo todo para que empiece a andar el sistema.

Iniciando el sistema

Lo primero que me ha llamado la atención cuando he iniciado Chromium OS es la velocidad con la que lo hace. He configurado VirtualBox para asignarle a la máquina 2 núcleos de mi procesador y 1024MB de RAM, y la máquina arranca en aproximadamente 9 segundos mostrando la típica ventana de inicio de sesión. Para iniciar sesión tan simple como teclear una cuenta válida de Gmail.

¿Qué podemos encontrar dentro de Google Chrome OS?

La primera vez que iniciemos el sistema veremos solo y exclusivamente el navegador Chrome con tres pestañas abiertas, Google Calendar, Gmail y la típica página de Nueva Pestaña, las dos primeras con la sesión iniciada del usuario del sistema. Y este es el aspecto que tiene el sistema operativo.

Dado que principalmente todo el sistema operativo es un navegador web no se pueden comentar demasiadas cosas al respecto que no se hayan dicho ya de Google Chrome (navegador). Por lo tanto no voy a hablar de cómo usarlo ya que sería bastante absurdo el explicar ahora el uso de un navegador web.

En la parte superior izquierda del sistema operativo se aprecia el logo de Chrome en blanco que podríamos compararlo al menú inicio de Windows. Pero que nadie espere ver aquí un menú de aplicaciones nativas del sistema operativo tan solo son accesos directos a webs: Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo! Mail, Google Calendar, Google Reader, Google Docs, Youtube, PicasaWeb, Hulo, Lala, Pandora, Contacts, Calculator, To-do list (Google Calendar), Notepad (Google Docs), Books, Chess, Facebook y Twitter.

Como se puede observar están todos los aspectos de la informática del usuario doméstico presentes:

• Comunicación.
• Ofimática.
• Multimedia.
• Social.
• Ocio.
• Organización personal.
• Información.

Algunas aplicaciones se abren en las pestañas del navegador y otras se abren en un espacio reservado en la parte inferior derecha sin ocupar toda la ventana pudiendo minimizarlas.

Configurando el sistema

Tampoco esperéis encontrar terminales donde poder teclear comandos para hacer las típicas tareas de un Linux (Ubuntu en este caso) hasta el atajo Ctrl+Alt+Z que en circunstancias normales abre una terminal ha sido eliminado para no poder hacerlo. Ahora mismo lo único configurable del sistema se encuentra en la parte superior derecha, pulsando en la flechita que apunta hacia abajo se desplegará un menú que nos resultará familiar por ser casi el mismo que el navegador Chrome y en la opción Options.

Aquí encontraremos lo mismo que en las opciones de  configuración del navegador Chrome más una pestaña de configuración de Chromium OS.

Conclusiones

De momento con la versión que he usado poco más se puede hacer, aunque suficiente para un usuario doméstico. Google ha creado exactamente lo que dijo que crearía, todavía un poco verde pero se puede apreciar y ver exactamente que va a ser Chromium OS: un sistema operativo muy rápido y liviano con casi nada instalado en él, con todos sus programas y funciones accesibles a través de internet. Lo que nos lleva a su mayor poder y a su mayor defecto, el tener un sistema operativo mínimo pero obligarnos a tener acceso a internet para usarlo, porque ni siquiera podremos iniciarlo si no nos valida con una cuenta de Gmail.

A día de hoy sigo leyendo en muchos blogs que Chrome OS ha sido una decepción o que se ha exagerado sus funcionalidades (vaporware), yo simplemente puedo responder que Google siempre ha dicho lo que había y nunca ha mentido, la decepción o vaporware ha sido generado por las mismas webs/blogs que dicen esto, atribuyéndole o generando espectativas que Google nunca pretendió.

Virtual Riot New Releases!!!!!!!!!!! Highly detailed Combat Stomper Boots (Sculpted with Resize Scripts!) Plus 12 Grungy National Flag T Shirts!! Come Check them out for yourself! Just Click The Following Link and Teleport to Virtual Riot! http://wp.me/pvWT2-ax Enjoy and Have a Great Weekend! – Bravo Nishi

!]Virtual Riot[! Combat Stomper Boots:

• Sculpted
• Resize Scripted

![Virtual Riot[! Grungy National Flag Tees:

• 12 different grungy national flag t shirts in total

More at Virtual Riot Mainstore! http://slurl.com/secondlife/Dark%20Tranquility/118/85/22

One qualifying campaign just finished, another one early picked its seeded teams the very next morning. Just a few days ago… 

History was written on wednesday evening, when Salpigidis’ goal for Greece, in Ukraine, left the hosts at home during next summer’s World Cup, which means that for the first time both home nations for an European Championship final tournament won’t have any official games to play for more than two and a half years. That’s a lot of waiting…

Inside Oporowska ground, in the city of Wroclaw, which started building its new stadium for EURO 2012, the local club Slask displays the symbolic ball of next European Championship tournament

Poland and Ukraine are co-hosting UEFA 2012 EURO yet both of them missed on representing Europe in South Africa. While Shevchenko and company were denied by Samaras’ through pass and Salpigidis cool finish, after an encouraging 0-0 in Athens, Poland experienced a shocking autumn, ended in tears and with Leo Beenhakker sent packing.

None of them have the opportunity to play in South Africa, where many other Europeans will know by then who will they face in the group stage preliminaries to get to Poland and Ukraine. The draw will take place on the 7th of February, in Warszawa, and then we can only make predictions, who will reach the 8 cities hosting the 2012 event. Where will Capello’s men play? In Ukraine’s Lvov, Kharkow, Kiew or Donetk, or across the border, in EU’s Poland?

Poland is an amazingly rich country in history and magnificent buildings, as famous Rynek square, in central Wroclaw, compared by locals with the cream of central piazzas of Europe. And truly so!

When Belgium and Holland co-hosted the European Championship in 2000, a premiere in terms of joint bids, both came after a World Cup presence in ‘98, in France, where they draw blank in the group stage. In 2008, when a second joint organising was accepted by UEFA, although Austria lined up after a free summer during the 2006 World Cup, Switzerland at least marched without defeat and goal conceded through its group in Germany.

So Poland and Ukraine can be perceived as lucky wild-card opportunists which otherwise would have find it very difficult to qualify for EURO. They can pick up the phone and ask England how it coped in the long wait for staging EURO 1996, after a US World Cup ‘94 campaign on the sidelines.

If Wroclaw was capable of hosting at roughly the same time both the volleyball and basketball EURO Championships, as depicted on this advertising board, than surely it can put a jolly good show for 2012...

The pressure of picking at the right time, in those crucial summer weeks, after more than 30 months of friendlies, just adds to the bigger expectations building up on the shoulders of the hosts nations. And with tradition against the organisers, Poland and Ukraine can’t think of a better outcome than to replenish their coffers after years of investing in infrastructure. It’s a long time since France managed to win the European Championship on home soil, in 1984, the only happy host after Spain’s and Italy’s triumphs in the 60es.

England and Holland found it harder in ‘96 and 2000, going out on penalty shootouts in the semifinal, Portugal lost to Greece not only in the group stage but also in the final, in 2004, and Switzerland finished last in its group while Austria with only one point, last time round. What more to expect then from two countries who comiserate each other for missing the chance to have at least 3 official games until 2012?

I found Poland shellshocked after a 3-0 defeat in Maribor, in early September, which indicated that its presence both at the World Cup, in 2006, and last year, in Austria, won’t be followed by one on African soil. That humiliation in Slovenia was taken very hard, the sixth biggest nation in European Union feeling that it should have fared much better against a 2 million alpine state renowned especially for its skiers.

Slask - Legia was the name of the game at a time when Poland was shocked by Beenhakker's men humiliation in Slovenia: 3-0.

Beenhakker was castigated and 90 minutes of pain in Maribor wiped out in many Polish eyes his excellent track record both in club football and international football, including the fine qualifying campaign taking the red and whites to another alpine nation, Austria. It was the very first presence for The White Eagles at EURO finals, campaign which helped the Poles climbing on its highest position in FIFA ranking, a lofty 16th. 

The defeat in Maribor came after another dissapointing result, a 1-1 home draw, in Chorzow, against Northern Ireland, at the beggining of autumn. But october was even worse, Poland losing 2-0 in Prague, with their eternal rivals, Czech Republic, and then again in Chorzow, 0-1 with Slovakia, which progressed to Africa due to that result. A second minute own goal on the shoulders of Gancarczyk. Could have been worse than that?

Another rivalry is among the south-western counties of Lesser Poland, boosting champion Wisla Krakow, and Lower Silesia, with WSK Slask Wroclaw

Scrutinizing the table, some might say that Poland scored more goals even then Slovenia, which ended at the World Cup. Prolific indeed but let’s not been fooled by the 12 punches administred to San Marino. The other only seven might tell the real story. More shockingly, the Poles ended with only 11 points from 10 games, a bitter pill after a previous campaign in which Beenhakker’s men outmuscled Ronaldo’s Portugal on top of group one, by one point: 28 in total out of 14 games.

So what went wrong in the space of just two years? Has the complacency of reaching Austria caught up with the squad? Nowadays, Poland is back on 56th position, almost as bad as its worst ever, some eleven years ago.

The second stand, displaying the huge tram, symbol of the city and Slask, saved the spectacle. Some fans, some lungs and a platable beer Piast!

And a glimpse of reality I encountered while watching from the stands a first division game in Polish league. At that time, three days after being poleaxed in Slovenia, Poland was still debating on to be or not to be with Dutchman Beenhakker at the helm. Oppinions were split but one thing was certain. Polish football was going in the wrong direction, exactly at a time of regeneration and build-up for a probably once in a lifetime event. The European caravan coming to town, precisely to Gdansk, the Baltic port, Warszawa, the capital city, Poznan, the multicultural location boosting the renowned local club Lech, with a record 14 national titles to its name, as Gornik Zabrze, and Wroclaw, the Lower Silesian regional capital.

Sorry to say though that the teams seemed confused by the wednesday result in WC qualifiers...

It was there, on Oporowska stadium, in the south west of Wroclaw, where hosts WKS Slask played Legia, the vicechampions from Warszawa, in the sixth round of Zdobywca Pucharu Ekstraklasy 2009-2010. Floodlights, very tight security measures, rock music blearing loud in anticipation of the saturday evening game, an empty improvised terrace stand behind a goal, due to an absolute absence of visiting fans and a whole second stand dancing to one tune. For Slask. Due to the nicely priced tickets, no more than 20 zloty for the aficionados, some 30 more for the better places. Still, as much as around 10 euros.

Functional, reliable, clean, cheap and not at all crowded, Tram 4 out of the some dozens crossing Wroclaw, takes you fast to Oporowska, while sightseeing imposing buildings on large boulevards

The atmosphere was promising, the media was in full batallion, including the 3 games per weekend broadcaster Canal Cyfra+, local dignitaries were taking there seats either in the covered first stand or in a concrete and glass building serving as dressing rooms as well, placed in one corner of the ground, and everything was gearing up to an evening of redemption. Of better football.

Hope seemed in the air. A huge electronic screen was projecting a multimedia production including a virtual tour of the to be build 40,000 arena on the outskirts of town, a bit further west, close to the airport. A sign of the times to come. Project Wroclaw 2012. The place looked sleek, the typical modern stadium with a certain design and distinguishing green chairs, the defining colour for Slask. A world away from this local stadium, a 8,300 seater with not so perfect transport links, anchored in a suburbia suffocated with block of flats but saved by a green and pleasant community local garden.

Advertising is the heartbeat of trading. For all the glitz of the huge board on the stadium's building facade, Seb Mila couldn't turn things around when coming on as a sub

Some years to build and hope, to pray and wait. Some years then to get to the next level. But what about the football? Will poleaxed Poland move forward, keeping pace with the construction of a whole infrastructure project? One answer was offered in the next 90 minutes.

It was a dreadful affair, a sedated game, without rythm, spark and fluency. Not even Sebastian Mila, coming on late into the game after an injury kept him on the sidelines, could help the state of affairs. Mila was, after all, a Polish international from the same squad lowering its standards while losing in the group stage.

Oporowska is a charming enough little ground but Wroclaw and Slask will clearly grow in stature when moving in the new EURO ground. The green will be preserved...

0-0 was at least a fair result. A perfect description of a top half of the table sour affair in the Polish league. You couldn’t ask for more from a forward player for host Slask, who decided very late in the game to roll and play dead in the penalty area, just after realised that he might get booked for clumsily bursting second in a challenge to the outcoming Legia goalie. The seconds weren’t apparently that precious for the forward. It was 0-0, in a true reflection of the game. Slask didn’t look at ease with its display, showing why has just one national title to its name, in the 70es, while Legia, managed by another former international, Jan Urban, looked a lesser team than the two times champion in this decade.

The soul of the evening party was that second stand sea of green, red and white, a big army of followers, dancing and chanting in one voice, a great chorus and coreography, displaying a huge banner with a bigger than natural size tram, Wroclaw’s symbol among many other fine ones. The tram was in the club’s and city’s colours but took Slask nowhere.

The locals are warm, lovely hosts, but just remember to pronounce its name Wroclaw and not Breslau, as German tourists identify the former Prussian and Habsburg fortress town

The banner run on top of the stand, from one end to another, in a fine procession, a ritual to cherish. Slask fans saved the evening, Slask fans promised that at least in terms of game excitement EURO 2012 is on good hands, now firmly building a fine arena which will be populated by enthusiasts like them.

It’s an absolutely new ball game, from the not so far ago dark days of bloody hooliganism and knife edged battles. Many were banned for years or even life from attending games and nobody else gets inside the grounds without ID identification and anything harmful in the pockets. That’s the new stance, that’s the policy, that’s the step forward. An Project 2012 can’t wait for its visitors. It will be a summer of football party but will Poland oblige?

Trouble is that Beenhakker was unceremoniously dispatched in october and former international Smuda was brought in, but will he revive the days when Poland was playing World Cup semifinals? The answer will be supplied with an ironic smile and with a reminder that his campaign got to a stuttering start, in Warszawa, against another sufferer finishing fifth in its group, Romania: 0-1. The friendly of the bulldozed ones. Poland 3-0 in Slovenia, Romania 5-0 in Serbia. Four days later was better, 1-0 against Canada but then, who’s Canada, will ask the pessimists.

Satisfaction guaranteed... The carnival atmosphere, with quality time, food and local drinks, was emphasised during the EURO Voleyball, when the games were screened live in the main square, from various Polish locations

May be Polish football needs indeed these free of official games years, to find again its feet, after a decade of terrible struggles against corruption, seeing the national football federation, PZPN, up to its throat in unsavoury cases involving many arrests. The tempest seems to have passed, the stands were cleaned of so called supporters, some simply knife carriers, and by Christmas time PZPN can only hope for better, at its 90th anniversary.  

Smuda will be challenged to find quality recruits in Ekstraklasy, by the look of Slask and Legia scratching football in a 0-0 bore, especially now, when the league is flooded with more or less cheap imports from countries as far as Brazil. Smuda might rely on the foreign legion, with ramifications in England and generally in Anglo-Saxon leagues.   

With three rounds to go before winter break, the six times winner in this decade, Wisla Krakow, current back to back title holder, is once again up there, planning may be already for a better UEFA Champions League second qualifying round, after the nightmare of losing straightaway to lowly Levadia Tallin in late summer. But this is a problem in itself, the vacuum of quality in the present, just praying for better in the future. Be it 2010 or 12.

The Polish eagle has its place on Slask's crest. A proud history.

Wisla has 31 points with a game in hand and one win worth in front of aforementioned visitors Legia and multiple champions Ruch Chorzow, after 14 rounds, the “silver” and “bronze” places being tickets in earnest for UEFA Europa League. Not that there can be expected lenghtier campaigns.

There are 16 teams in the league, playing two of the second stage of the season rounds later this december. Slask is languishing in seventh, two places behind Lech Poznan, representing another host city in 2012 and boosting in Robert Lewandowski the top goalscorer in the league, with 9 to his credit, but one place in front of Gdynia Gdansk, the port city club awaiting its regeneration in the build up to a summer tournament.   

Next in line, Bulgaria to visit Poland, on the 3rd of March. It’s a new beggining for Smuda and his men, on the road to 2012. We are talking here of a national side with a wonderful pedigree some 30 years ago, when the red and whites were finishing third at World Cup, with the bronze medals shining proud, both in Federal Germany ”74 and Spain ‘82, achievements never grabbed for example by England since its ‘66 win. It’s the side graced by formidable Lato, with his record of 100 caps, and record goalscorer Lubanski, with 48 into his acount. But is the national side of actual capitan, Michal Zewlakow, with 93 caps, which has the difficult task of emulating somehow those glory days…

Wroclaw Catholic Cathedral, another symbol of the city with 112 bridges connecting the 12 islands formed by river Odra

Finally, as a notice, here are the call-ups for the latest squad, which played in november a 0-1 against Romania and 1-0 versus Canada… Kuszczak (Man Utd), Szczesny (Brentford) – GK; Brozek (Wisla), Gancarzyk (Lech), Glik (Piast), Kokoszka (Empoli – IT), Kowalkzyk (Dinamo Moscow – RUS), Rzezniczak (Legia), Sadlok (Ruch), Zewlakow (Olimpiacos – GRE; cpt) – DF; Blaszczykowski (Dortmund - GER), Dudka (Auxerre – FR), Gancarczyk (Slask), Guerreiro (AEK – GR), Kosowski (Apoel – CPR), Majewski (Nott’m Forest), Obraniak (Lille – FR), Peszko (Lech) , Rybus (Legia) – MF; Jelen (Auxerre – FR), Lewandowski (Lech), Malecki (Wisla). Among other seasoned internationals on stand by are goalie Boruc (Celtic), defenders Glowacki and Wasilewski (Anderlecht), midfielders Mariusz Lewandowski (Shakhtar) and Smolarek, plus forward Brozek.

Who will bring back the smiles to a rejuvenated Polish football stand?

EURO 2012 seems so unbearably far for Poland and Wroclaw. But may be it's a blessing in disguise, a chance to regroup and reemerge. The country will be 100% hospitable. What about its national squad?

Yup, Google’s long-awaited Chrome OS, a.k.a. Chromium OS is finally here for us to play with

Thanks to my wonderful friend, Nakoolt, I’ve managed to try it out on my desktop!! I used my old Windows XP machine and loaded the .vmdk file onto a VirtualBox machine. The thing worked like a charm, but was slow I’m gonna try it out on my desktop @ work tomorrow when I get some free time. THIS IS THE REAL DEAL!!

For more information and instructions that worked well for me, click here.

Meanwhile, enjoy the YouTube video Google posted on their official Chromium OS project page:

So there I was, late at night, drinking a beer and redecorating my room…..on YoVille. Yeah, I need a life. Ya think?

My virtual apartment is coming along. I managed to purchase a fabulous canopy bed for just under $700 (in YoCoins), and you should see the tiger print rug I got for under $300 YoCoins! It’s gorgeous!!

As I was decorating and budgeting, trying to work in a new couch that fit my budget, it dawned on me that I have completely gone mad. It also dawned on me that I think I know the reason these virtual games are so much fun. It’s because it allows us to live a lifestyle we wouldn’t normally have if we’re broke (like me) and scrambling to find gas money.

I know, I know….I’m sure you’re all sick and tired of hearing about how broke I am. I swear it won’t be for much longer as I have a “plan” that will make me rich, or at least capable of no longer fretting over the lack of gas money and that ever important crap we call food. And, what about clothes? HA! There’s nothing wrong with Mr. T wearing pants that make him look like he’s waiting for a flood. Nothing at all wrong with that. I got teased for the same thing when I was a kid. It made me stronger, which enabled me to beat the hell out of anyone who dared mention the word “flood”. Call me sensitive. I knew every inch of my principal’s office, and the smell of her perfume is etched into my memory – Roses, blech!

The only thing missing on YoVille is a car (or a crossover like I got for reals), but I’m afraid I don’t make enough money…err….YoCoins at the sweet factory were I work that would enable me to afford such a luxury anyway. Why don’t I make enough YoCoins working at the factory, you ask? I tend to burn whatever it is I bake because, believe it or not, I do have a life outside of my computer room. Don’t laugh. I know some of you find it hard to believe, but it’s true.

The sweet factory is where I’m forced to work because that’s all the game offers. It’s like living in a kingdom where they tell you where you will work and give you, as pay, the honor of living in their kingdom and a few crude coins. The YoCoins I do manage to make, when I’m not burning my cookies to a crisp, goes right into more household items. Unfortunately, and because I tend to burn things, the YoCoins come in slowly and all I can do is lust over someone else’s things (much like real life). I hate not having what so and so has {whine whine}!

Then, a terrible thing happened! Mr. Sober, who very rarely sets foot in his virtual apartment, decided it was time to decorate his. This occurred while we were talking on the phone and text messaging each other on facebook (we do both, we’re multitaskers!). He did it in secret too. Every now and then all I heard was breathing on the phone and his replies to my texts were coming in sporadically, if at all, and sometimes those were down to one word responses. Something was awry and he wasn’t telling me. At one point, I texted “I know you’re up to no good. What are you doing?” He just giggled, and in the background I could hear his fingers clicking his mouse like a mad man. Once in awhile he would ask me a question like, “How do I move what I have in my inventory into my room?” or “How do I remove furniture from a room?” HA!!! I knew what he was doing. I asked him if he was decorating and all I got was him breathing, heavily, as if he was running the quarter mile (poor him is old and little things tucker him out, haha!).

Finally, he told me to go into his bedroom and have a look-see. Now, people, if you read my post on how I feel about going into a man’s virtual bedroom, y’all know this request would make me a wee bit uncomfortable. I didn’t know what I might find in there (lucky for me I know, because I tried, that there’s no winky winky allowed in this game…phew!) and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. I tried playing it off by telling him I was currently busy sending YoVille gifts to my neighbor’s, but he wasn’t having any of that. “Go into my bedroom!” he whined. Oh, good LORD! ALRIGHT! I’m going into your bedroom now! I entered his bedroom and, to my surprise, found it to be decorated real nice. I was impressed. It was a complete opposite of his living room, which is bare and cold looking. He even had a wall sconce candle holder above his bed! Huh. It was nice and I was green with envy. “Where did you get the candle holder?” I texted him. He didn’t reply, so I asked him on the phone. Again he stayed quiet. I asked again, and this time he said, “Ohhh, you like that, huh?” then he giggled. At this point I considered hanging up on him because he was being a turd. But, instead, I persisted because I wanted to know and I knew he would never tell me if he’d been hung up on (see sweetness, I do know you.) My futile attempts appeared to be ignored “Where did you get that candle holder?!!”

See, the thing is, because Mr. Sober so rarely plays this game, seeing that he had a wall sconce came as a big surprise to me. Suddenly, I felt as if he was living a double life, and that I wasn’t included in on his virtual one. Not only that, but his having something so cool (and not me, who deserves it more, teehee) made me jealous. I get jealous like a big baby, I admit….there are issues, but that’s not the point. The point is, he had this wall sconce and I wanted it! If he could tell me where he got it, I could go find one for myself, an even bigger one, and maybe more than one, so there!! But he wasn’t telling! Argh!!! He was so lucky he wasn’t within strangling distance from me.

Finally, after I asked him why he was being so secretive about the damn sconce and whining at the perfect pitch, and the one that grates his last nerve, he confessed. Someone gifted it to him. Well well well!! Nobody has gifted me a wall sconce! Again, I am a big baby and oh so jealous!

After that night, I decided I wanted to copy him (cause I’m a copy cat like that) and I went “shopping” for things to create a nice ambiance of my own for my virtual bedroom. That’s how I discovered the canopy bed, and the rug. I soon ran out of YoCoins, but that was okay. I made peace with myself over it. Everything’s cool. If I’m patient, like in life, I will get what I want. Right? Please humor me by agreeing.

I’ve since managed to save enough YoCoins to allow me a new fridge and possibly a big screen television. I’m still on the hunt for the wall sconce, but I’m hopeful I’ll find it. I have a secret of my own, that I am NOT sharing with Mr. Sober since he likes to be so secretive himself (hmph!), that will get me pretty much anything I want on the game. It’s not a cheat, it’s legitimate, but I can’t use this secret until I’ve saved more than I have now. What I should do with the YoCoins I’ve managed to save is hire myself a baker, since I can’t bake to save my damn life.

You know…..I should write the creators of the game and request a car and hired help. I’d never leave the freaking house if I had those conveniences all tucked into my computer. Heck, why not suggest they connect to a real supermarket so’s I can order my groceries while playing the game? Dang! What a fantastic idea!!! I’m brilliant!

Goodness, I need a life!

We all know Facebook, or atleast heard from it. You love it or you hate it. I am completly addicted to Facebook. Its the first thing I check in the morning, before I get out of bed, and its the last thing I see before I go to bed. My life consists of updating my status, writing on people’s wall, and replying to wall posts. Its probalely about 80% worth of my social network. Conclusion: I couldn’t live without it.

My personal Facebook page

Recently I red an article on RealWire about a new version of the popular Facebook application: GetThemIn. This application consists of a virtual bar, where you can buy your “Facebook Friend” a real drink. The friend will receive a voucher code, and can pick up a drink at a local liquor store. At the moment this application is only available for the UK Facebook users.

Jay Feeney, Founder of GetThemIn explains: “Virtual gifts have proven to be hugely popular on Facebook and we’ve taken this one step further with the GetThemIn application. People can now buy their friends virtual gifts that can easily be exchanged for the real thing. With a GetThemIn participating store within ten minutes of most people in the UK, it’s a really innovative yet simple way of marking a special occasion with a drink between friends,”

Promotion Video of GetThemIn

Personally, I am concerned about the ethical reasons behind this. Is it a smart thing to make a virtual Facebook bar, a real case senario? If you want to buy somebody a drink, why not just go to a bar, and actually meet the person and buy them a drink? Atlest then you are sure, the person is above 18. The whole point of buying somebody a drink, is to sociolise (in real life then).

Maybe in a few months, we can buy pets through Facebook. Who knows?

Source: http://francisanderson.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/get-them-in.png

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