boxee media center

I'm sure many of you have heard of boxee, if not you should check out their website(link). A little background on the project. It's a social media entertainment system that is on Apple TV, Linux (there's a repository specifically for Ubuntu but you can download packages for other distros), OS X, and Windows. The project is a fork of the pretty popular XBMC system. The system integrates nicely with Twitter and will tweet what you're listening to or what you're watching. This feature can be disabled very easily, in your boxee account online. You can also have it tweet your rating of a song/movie. It also integrates with podcasts, NPR, Hulu, with the OS X version there's Netflix, and Last.FM just to name a few of the features.

My boxee rig
This essentially was my computer from college

• AMD Athlon 64 3000+ (1.8Ghz) Venice core
  
• 1 Gb dual channel DDR 400
• Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe motherboard
• ATI x800XT video card connected to a Sony 53" rear projection TV with a DVI cable
  
• Using on-board sound, I'll probably use my Audigy 2 when I get around to setting it up. connected to a Sony 5.1 receiver by SPDIF.
  
• Trendnet PCI wireless 802.11g network card
• Stripped RAID 160 Gb (2 Seagate Barracudas using SATA)
• 500 Gb SATA drive
• 1 Tb SATA drive (new purchase)
• Windows XP Pro
• Wireless keyboard with trackball. It's something awesome that I picked up on a for sale/trade forum that I post to regularly. It uses IR so it's line of sight only.
  
• DVD+/-R DL 16x internal.
  

Areas to change-
Get more RAM, get a dual-core processor.

My thoughts

It's an awesome project but there are a few things that I hope that they add to it. What I found to be very interesting is that the developers are using a system called GetSatisfaction to crowd source their changes to the project. A user can post a problem or feature request such as a shuffle -play all feature and other users can vote on it to show that the community of users is interested in this feature. A few things that I'd like to see besides the shuffle -play all feature is

• Netflix instant playback in Windows,
• file mangement within the program,
  
• pod cast downloader type functionality-ability to subscribe
  
• Have the weather gadget be much larger

Upcoming Concerts

I'm kind of a concert junkie so here are some of the concerts that I'm thinking about going to. I've seen a few of these bands before: Andrew Bird, Death Cab for Cutie, Nine Inch Nails, and Guster x2)

April

• GASLIGHT ANTHEM, HEARTLESS BASTARDS Bottom Lounge, 4/3, 8 PM, 18+.
• ANDREW BIRD Civic Opera House, 4/10, 8 PM, on sale Sat 1/17, 10 AM.
• DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE / Cold War Kids / Ra Ra Riot at Aragon – Friday, 4/17 39.50
• Thu Apr 30 - Guster @ Marquette University - Milwaukee, WI (link)

May

• Sat May 16 - Keane @ Aragon Ballroom - Chicago, IL
• Fri May 29 - Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction @ Charter One Pavilion @ Northerly Island - Chicago, IL
• May 29th -The Doves @ the Vic

June

• Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood United Center Chicago, IL Wed, 06/17/09
• VAST Beat Kitchen, 5/16, 6:30 and 10:30 PM, early show is 17+, two show pass on sale.

Aug

• Thu Aug 20 - Rise Against, Enter Shikari, The Subways, The Prodigy, Pendulum, Mando Diao, Fm4 Frequency Festival @ Greenpark St.Polten - Dixon, IL (Link)
• Lollapalooza - rumored line up includes Jane's Addiction, Depeche Mode, The Beastie Boys (Link)
  

Sept

• Sat Sep 12 - U2 @ Soldier Field Stadium - Chicago, IL (Ticketmaster)

Musings on life after college

Like many of my peers, after finishing college I searched for and found gainful employment. I feel that there are pluses and minuses to that but more on that later.

Social life

Something I struggled with is meeting different people outside of work with different interests. There are things that can help you with that, one that I found pretty helpful is meetup.com. There you can find people that share hobbies with you. There I found groups like wine tasting clubs, scrabble and euker clubs, and ultimate frisbee groups. Also since I'm into running, I found out about a running group and a nearby running store. The idea is go to where people of similar interests will go and you'll find out if there's anything going on. The library notice board is usually a good resource. Groups like Toastmasters will post when they meet.

Reach out to your friend's circle. Maybe a friend of a friend or relative lives in the area you have moved to or are moving to. Yea, it could be awkward. Then again, think about the alternative.

One of the more noticeable differences I've noticed is that-yea, sure you can go out every night of the work week but you need to be able "ring the bell". For those unfamiliar with the phrase, you need to be functional the day after while at work, that is not hungover with bloodshot eyes.

Work Ethic
I've heard over and over from mentors that during first couple of years of your career you need to prove yourself very early on. This way you've got a reputation of being a high performer. Not only does that help you with advancement, it also helps you keep the job you have.

Looking to the future
If you get the opportunity to learn more about something at work, take it. Don't even hesitate! There is a lot of info out there to indicating a graying workforce and there is a lot of opportunity for high performers that want to learn.

Business Week's B-school articles give the impression that you should wait around 5 years after college to start your MBA coursework so that you have lots of real-life business experience. The friends that I have that went to do their MBA directly after undergrad definitely had a harder time to find a job than those without an MBA. This could be because of the state of the economy or more likely an MBA over-qualifies you for entry level position but you are still under-qualified for positions that require a few years more experience.

I hope that helps you with your transition from college to the working world. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Running goals

I am a pretty avid runner. During my peak running I run probably 50 miles a week. I really got into running last year after I graduated from college and discovered that I really needed a way to stay fit because I have a desk job. It's turned into an obsession for me. If I skip a run, I feel like crap just like most avid runners.

Here are some goals I came up with for the year with the races I'm planning on running at this point:

• Shamrock Shuffle (8k)-40:00 minutes.
  
• Illinois Marathon(Half Marathon) - I'd like to PR with a 1:50
• Chicago Half Marathon -1:45
  
• Oakbrook Half Marathon -1:40 (last year 1:55)
  
• either Milwaukee or Chicago 4:15 (last year 5:05)

To accomplish my goals, I am following the Higdon Intermediate I plan (link). The Higdon plans are the 'go to' plans for many marathon runners. I'm also going to be doing yoga once a week. Runner's World talks about the health benefits and the cross-training benefits for runners all the time (link). I'm going to be doing speed work once a week.They're tough but they're very helpful in getting better as a runner. I'll be doing two work outs on Monday (running at work 5mi and the Dick Pond fun run 5 mi) and two work outs on Wednesday (yoga at work and speedwork). Needless to say my Tuesday and Thursday runs will be light ones.

Things that I'm worried about

• Shin splints-they flaired up last year and I had a scare earlier this year when running outside.
• IT band issues-My IT bands are ridiculously tight so I'm hoping yoga can help me out with that.
• Ultimate frisbee-I started playing ultimate again on Sundays, so I'm hoping I don't hurt myself like so many of my friends have done before.

Return to Blogging

I used to blog while in college, but I stopped (about 3 years ago) because I couldn't keep up all my commitments (Fraternity life, work, classes, and extra-curricular activities) and blog. So blogging fell by the wayside.