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I must buy this CD/DVD soon. I hope my neighborhood Target (do I have a neighborhood Target?) has it. I want the DVD, baby! Here's more info.

For those who are too lazy to hover over a link or read the title, I'm talking about Live's greatest hits, Awake, the Best of Live.

Screw Target. I bought it online directly from Live.

Hey, anyone out there got the magnetic iSight attachment thing-a-ma-jig for metal displays? I need that little stand - and none of the others.

The kit includes four multipurpose mounts: a magnetic mount for new Anodized Aluminum flat-panel displays, a flat-panel iMac mount, eMac and desktop mount, PowerBook and iBook mount, along with three FireWire cable adapters and one FireWire 6-6 pin, 1.8m cable.

I need only the magnetic mount. If anyone has it - because they bought the "iSight Accessory Kit" - and doesn't need the magnetic ones, let me know. I'm willing to work out a trade. Name your terms! 😀

Delicious Library: I've finally managed to register it and I've played with it for, oh, five whole minutes now. If you want a big review that includes far too much opinion on how much Mac users care about packaging (we do, but I know that already), check out John Siracusa's review.

And now, my initial thoughts:

• Pretty, but how do I change what kind of shelf I see?
• Where the hell are the contextual menus?
• No secondary sorting capabilities, like "artist, then release date"? Grrrr.
• Why show sorting options in "Recent Imports" and let me select other methods if I can't actually change it?
• No smart bookshelves? Oh no!
• Scanning with the iSight has proven… to be hit or miss.
• Amazon doesn't have as large a library as you might think they do.
• One guy keeps showing up in my "Borrowers" list in place of my sister. I get my mom, my dad, and this strange guy. Problem reading my Address Book database?
• Why not let me search Google images for replacement cover art or something? Some of Amazon's art is screwy.
• I want to set the size (with the slider) per bookshelf, not app-wide.
• It sure does look nice.
• Oh, there's the contextual menu: it's the action menu. Clue to Delicious: just make this the contextual menu too!
• I want a way to loan an item to someone who's not in the "Borrowers" list - in other words, to select an item, hit some kind of "Loan" button (or contextual menu item), and then be able to select an existing Borrower or to add one on the spot.

I'm sure I'll think of more later, which I may just post to the comments. I've brought in all of my PS2/GameCube games and of the 31, nine lack covers! That's a really high percentage.

Initial impressions, a good portion of which is due to Amazon's surprising suckiness: 5.5/10. Looks aren't everything.

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And with this, Gideon softworks goes on my shit list. Why's that? Well, they've pretty much ripped off Transmit (an FTP client like our own FTPeel), not only in application layout, functionality, and design, but in their toolbar icons as well!

Gideon softworks' front page includes the line "For with God nothing shall be impossible" (Luke 1:37). I suppose that includes blatant theft.

Towards the end of every year Titleist typically runs a promo: free personalized golf balls. They offer this only on their higher-tier balls, the $40-and-up/dozen set, which consists of two models: The Pro V1 and the Pro V1x. (See postscript.) MSRP is $56/dozen, but Dick's had them for $39.95 recently and I picked up three dozen with "ERIK J BARZESKI" stamped on the side in black ink. They arrived late last week and I proudly inspected the work: nice.

Today, the UPS man dropped off another three dozen. Woo hooo! The order must have been submitted twice or something, and I got six dozen personalized Titleist Pro V1x golf balls for $120.

I feel like I've won the lottery. So much so that I spent the extra $10 to buy Delicious Library so that I can give it a thorough try-out despite the fourteen billion roadblocks they've put in my way (see post earlier today).

P.S. Turns out I'm wrong. You can get free personalization on Titleist Pro V1, Pro V1x, NXT, NXT Tour, and DT SoLo models. So, have at it.

Carey and I made the trip to Pittsburgh after the Steelers game to catch R.E.M. at the AJ Palumbo Center. The opening act was Joseph Arthur, and he more than impressed me with his one-man act. It seems he's already had some success - the O.C. and Shrek 2 soundtracks. He'd start each song by playing a few chords, singing, or banging out some "percussion" on his guitar. Then he'd loop 'em and play his guitar, harmonica, and sing the song. It was tough to understand the words (usually is in a live event), but again: he seemed good. I'll look for his CDs the next time I'm walking around the mall: the iTMS doesn't have much at all.

R.E.M. came out after the intermission and played their normal looooong set. Michael Stipe is a seemignly tireless performer, rattling off 18 songs before the encore and another seven afterwards. The set was gorgeous - hanging bulbs illuminated in different colors, large metal light reflectors hung behind the stage, and I was, after all, in the fifth row. I could see beads of sweat trickling down Michael's (and Bill's, and Mike's) face. I've been to enough R.E.M. shows that it's tough for me to say much more than that: their typical awesome performance. I think they're one of the best acts around, bar none.

One puzzling thing, though: they didn't end the evening with "It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)," instead opting for a birthday wish and "Man on the Moon." I've never been to an R.E.M. concert that ended with anything but "End of the World."

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Question: What's the most you've ever paid for beer?

My Answer: Beer at the R.E.M. concert was $8. I've never paid more than $3 for a beer, and that was in a pub or a bar. No beer was purchased last night.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

So, Delicious Library came out today, and what do I get when attempting to "upgrade" from another application?

The company, thus far, is deliciously oh-for-two. Some day, perhaps I'll be able to try the actual product! In the meantime I'm trying to cope with the ineptitude of the Delicious web developer(s).

The Steelers beat another undefeated team this week, their interstate "rivals" the Philadelphia Eagles. I say "rivals" because the two teams rarely meet.

Ben Roethlisberger had another great day. The Steeler defense had another great day, holding the Eagles to only 23 yards rushing and 111 yards of total offense. The Eagles average around 370 yards of offense per game, but it was the Steeler rushing attack - 252 yards - and a tempered, considerate passing game (183 yards) that put the Eagles down for the count and early.

Once again the offensive and defensive lines dominated the line of scrimmage, and the Steeler time of possession (nearly 42 minutes) again greatly overshadowed that of the opponents. TO was silenced (and a few Steelers mimicked the Eagles celebration). People say it every game: you don't want to see TO dance, keep him out of the end zone. The Steelers kept every Eagle out of the end zone today.

I'll write more tomorrow. I'm on my way to Pittsburgh to see R.E.M.

P.S. Very classy when, after reaching the Eagles 8-yard line with 2:30 left, the Steelers kneeled instead of going for a TD or field goal.

Update: I don't have much more to add. The score, the stats, the record (the Steelers are the only team in the NFL to ever beat unbeaten opponents in two straight weeks past week six), the record (7-1, the "-1" coming with Tommy Maddox as the starter)… they speak for themselves.

Going to the R.E.M. concert tonight. Given their recent "Bush sucks" tour, I'm hoping the rhetoric is kept to a minimum, but I've always respected R.E.M. for voicing their political concerns while keeping their personal lives relatively to themselves. It's well known that front man Michael Stipe is, uhh, of "alternate" sexual orientations, but they make great music and are my favorite band. While others use Stipe as a reason to dislike R.E.M., I really couldn't care less. Others use their political voice as a reason to dislike R.E.M., but I see that as "a good thing™."

Unfortunately, their last album, Around The Sun, was pretty lame: they're getting entirely too far into the land of froo froo music. They need a solid drummer, and one who can push them to having a bit of a harder edge. Even their first albums, soft by modern standards, featured more of a driving drumline than current songs.

R.E.M. has never been a singles band, and I admire them for that. However, as a fan, some catchy tunes now and then would be nice. "Bad Day" was good. A few songs from Reveal were good. Up was okay… I just don't know.

I do know that R.E.M. puts on a good show. They're usually on stage for nearly three hours, play a good mix of old and new songs, and are not too far into the tour that it should be boring or old hat. They give their all and it comes across. Carey and I will be in the fifth row, so it should be quite incredible.

Question: Why do so many women get boob jobs?

My Answer: One of two reasons: to feel better about themselves, or to make others feel better about them (i.e. to impress men). I don't particularly feel that either is a healthy mindset, but I'm also a realist, and one who appreciates confidence. If spending $8,000 on a boob job lands you a better career (see yesterday's QotD), then they pay for themselves.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

Question: If you were to name the greatest sexual advantage that women have over men, what would it be?

My Answer: Their lack of a "refractory period." If we're just talking about gender, I'd probably say their disposition for cooking. Just kidding! Carey never cooks! 🙂 Okay, seriously now, women sure can use their gender for promotions, favors, free drinks, and more. I'm not saying it's bad, just that it is an advantage. More power to 'em!

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

I ran the 10.3.6 update and everything seems to be working nicely, except for one silly thing... what's up with my copy of Safari? Not sure what to make of the contextual menu I see now… other than to suggest that I'm missing some localized strings. I've run both the Software Update update and the full 10.3.6 update to no avail. My permissions are fine. Dum dee doo… I doubt this is a widespread issue, but it's certainly one I'll be looking to fix.

Question: Should someone who began life as a man be allowed to compete in sports as a woman?

My Answer: I vote no. I don't think that a person undergoing such an operation should have to give up much at all, but the privilege of competing against natural women (for lack of a better phrase) is one of them. Men, or people born as men, are typically stronger, have better hand-eye coordination, etc. Here's a shot of the individual responsible for this question, Mianne Bagger.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

The Aztek is no longer being produced. No big deal: I love mine, it runs great, and I'll have it for years. I've taken the rear seats out so many times, thrown golf, shooting, fishing, and travelling equipment and goodies in it so many times, and travelled about nearly 50,000 miles since purchasing it in August 2001.

Pontiac's ad campaign touted the Aztek as the "most versatile vehicle on the planet" and to speak to those that own an Aztek, the slogan fits perfectly. Did you know that the Aztek took home the JD Power and Associates "APEAL" award in 2001? The APEAL study rates how happy the owners are with their purchase and how thoughtful an automotive design is. The Aztek rated high for powertrain, sound system and interior comfort features. This truck rewarded those that were taken in by its quirky, non-conformist look.

Style was a big knock against the Aztek, but it's one of the reasons I bought it. The Aztek is pure form follows function. Bash it all you want (though you're encouraged not to): until you've tried it, and used it, you can't appreciate it. And heck, if you're gonna bash the Aztek for its looks, I don't wanna hear how much you think the Element and many of today's cars are so much better. Besides, the Aztek is a working man's Rendezvous. And a working man's SRV that gets over 30 MPG at that.

Read a tad more at the autoblog. Personally, I'm fine seeing the car move out of production. It merely guarantees that I'll have one of the more unique automobiles on the road for the next few years.