Google Drive Now Available

For those who don't know about applications like Dropbox of Google Drive, you should read this article and consider getting one of the services. They are essentially the same at this point, giving users 5GB of free online storage (you can pay $4/month for an extra 20GB with Google Drive).

Both services allow you to have a regular folder on your computer that automatically syncs with anywhere the service is installed. So if you work on a laptop and a desktop, instead of using a USB key to transfer files and confusing different versions of a file you're working on, all you have to do is install Google Drive on both systems. Folders on both your laptop and desktop will automatically update and to have identical content. Unlike uploading to an FTP, Google Drive allows you to drag and drop files into a folder, which makes it a lot more user friendly than any upload toolbar.

Bryan Adams - Bell Centre, Montreal 2012

*Update: Unfortunately, YouTube just pulled ALL the Bryan Adams videos from its site, so the videos do not work.

Bryan Adams gave a fun and energetic performance at the Bell Centre in Montreal this week. He played all the hits that you would expect and to please the Montreal crowd, he sang "Here I Am" ("Je Suis Là" in French) in both French and English. The band hardly took any breaks and electrified the crowd with a simplistic, but entertaining, set up. The stage had a giant LCD screen that looked like it was 20 times the size of a cineplex screen and some basic lights and lasers. In keeping with the theme of simplicity, the giant screen played mostly black and white visuals until the end where there was some color.

Video Games: Foosball 2012 Playstation 3

I played a lot of foosball (aka soccer table, biardini) as a teenager and it seems that 3Division and Grip Games created a "realistic" PS3 video game version that can be played with either the controller or the PlayStation Move add-on. I know that pass renditions of virtual foosball games, like on iOS, were horrible but it could be interesting with the Playstation Move.

In addition to saving all the space that a real table takes up, the cost of a $60 video game is a lot cheaper than an $800 table.

Roger Federer On A Roll, Wins Indian Wells

Roger Federer has been on a roll since last year's US Open. He's won 39 of his last 41 matches (unfortunately both losses in Grand Slams) and won four of the last six tournaments he entered. His win at BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells, ties Nadal for the record at 19 Master 1000 titles. Federer also leads the South African Airways ATP Ranking Race to London which is no surprise given his recent victories.

Book: Rafa, Rafael Nadal's Autobiography

Here is my take on Rafael Nadal's autobiography "Rafa". Being a huge tennis fan, I found it interesting to read what went on in Nadal's head throughout his career up until the end of 2010. It's kind of funny for someone to have an autobiography when they're only 24. I guess someone in his entourage really wanted this project to go through and it did.

Fun Facts

• Rafa was born and raised in Manacor, Mallorca, a town of 40,000
• Rafa feels closer to Mallorcans compared to other Spaniards (he speaks Mallorqui, dialect of Catalan and incomprehensible to Spanish)
• Mallorca is the only place Rafa can be in peace, people leave him alone with the notion that everyone is equal. A quote from a book that describes the culture of Nadal's hometown well, "Dear Mallorcans", tells us, “Anyone who tries to raise their head above the rest will immediately have it chopped off.”  
• Nadal literally mean "Christmas" in Catalan 
• Rafa cut out running from training (says he runs enough in practice/matches) Wow! 
• Uncle Toni did not get paid for his time as a coach but he owns half of Rafa's father's company and takes half the profits without doing any work. 

Manacor on Google Maps

AWESOME FOOD Update: Cacao 70 New Menu (Montreal)

If you haven't seen my original post on Cacao 70, click here.

Cacao 70 recently changed it's menu. Prices are a bit higher but there are new items that we tried that were very good. They added a few dishes, like the Strawberry and Cheesecake Crepe seen below and my personal favorite, the Black and White Waffle. The cheesecake is softer than what I am used to but still tasty. The waffle is basically a pound cake in the shape of a waffle and with the addition of extra ice cream (used to be one scoop which wasn't enough) and crunchy chocolate wafer balls, it's the best you can get.

TEDTalk 2023: Prometheus (Film)

Here's an interesting TEDTalk that I just saw from 2023. That's right, the future.

New Scenes and Trailer for The Avengers

If you haven't seen the latest trailer for Marvel's Avengers Assemble, and you are somewhat of a comic book fan, than you should definitely click the video below. What's interesting to note is that the German version of the trailer has a few extra scenes not seen in the English version.

TEDx Talks: Jack Horner, Shape Shifting Dinosaurs

There is a cool TED Talk [see video at the end] by dino-guru Jack Horner about why we never find "small" dinosaurs. It seems that paleontologists often find "new" species of dinosaurs when in reality, they really find a juvenile dino of a species that has already been discovered. Horner claims that this is due, in part, to the ego of men and their claim to fame in discovering and naming a species. His hypothesis about why many "different" dinosaurs are really just one dinosaur at various stages of its life is pretty compelling.

FOOD: Seoul Chako (Montreal)

The rather new Korean BBQ place in Montreal is located at 1824 rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest. If you're not familiar with Korean BBQ's, the concept is based around cooking your own food on a grill. Seoul Chako's decor is nice and the restaurant is pretty spacious.

Kickstarter: Double Fine Adventure

For those who are unfamiliar with Kickstarter, here's how Wikipedia defines it:

Kickstarter is an online crowdfunding website for creative projects. Kickstarter has crowdfunded a diverse array of endeavors,^[1]ranging from indie film and music to journalism, solar energy technology and food-related projects.^[2]

Basically, this means that you, or anyone, can create a project on Kickstarter, and hope that everyday people from around the world will "back" up the project's development. The idea is that small amounts from a large "crowd" can generate sufficient funding, thus reducing the dependency on traditional investors (VC, banks...). Backers are usually compensated with the first production samples, a limited edition item or a behind the scenes look at development. Kickstarter takes 5% of projects that reach their fund raising goals (projects that don't reach their goal receive no money) and Amazon Payments takes an additional 3-5%.

LEGO Mini Figurines: Lord of the Rings and More

LEGO has long dominated the land with huge licenses for its iconic construction sets (scroll to see DC Universe, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, Toy Story and more). The latest and greatest upcoming LOTR theme is timed to coincide with the release of The Hobbit. Here are some cool images of some of the mini-figs, a must for all LOTR and LEGO fans!