Happy2008, UHavePostCard!1! O Rly?

As I continue to enjoy my holidays (while reluctantly welcoming the coming year), it seems that spam, trojans and generally nasty baddies are lurking around and having some fun as well.

If you're one of the lucky/unlucky ones, an email containing a link to uhavepostcard.com with a subject like "New Year Ecard" should be in your inbox/spam folder right now.



Visiting the website seems to be fairly harmless for now, but following the site's instructions is not such a great idea. Especially not when the file they ask you to receive is the infamous Storm worm.

You may think you're safe as you may have heard that antivirus software has since been able to detect the Storm Worm, however, the Storm Worm is able to evolve and change its signature so it'll be some time before newer variants are detected. Which is what this executable happens to be.

Friends don't let friends get infected, so spread the word and stay vigilant.

See more here, here and here.

Howto: Be a real Jackass and Download Jackass 2.5 from BlockBuster (includes non-US workaround!)

By now, you should have heard that you could (legally) watch Jackass 2.5 in the comfort of your home. Just head over to the Jackass 2.5 site (before 2008!), show some ID and success! Paramount Pictures, buffering, Johnny Knoxville, pause, rinse and repeat. Or not.

Tired of the occasional stuttering and frequent pauses, the jackass side of me kicked into motion and came up with an ingenious scheme to download Jackass 2.5 so that I could actually watch it and not wait for it. After I tasted sweet success in this endeavor however, the better part of me came into play once again, which is why you're reading this guide right now.

Tools of the trade

First things first. Let's get ourselves prepared. You'll need to download and install the following tools/programs.

• Firefox 2.0 and above


• Video DownloadHelper (Firefox Extension)


• Microsoft SilverLight 1.0 (1.1 may not work)


• Hotspot Shield (only necessary if you're outside the US)


• Flashget Classic 1.73 (older versions will also work)

Note: Remember to uncheck the installation of the toolbar for Flashget.

Get me that Jackass!

Once you're sure you've got everything installed, it's time to get into action.

1. If you're outside the US, start HotSpot Shield. Next, right-click on its icon in your system tray and click on Connect. A browser window should popup and show Hotspot Shield connecting to its servers. When its icon looks like this , you're good to go.
   
   
   
   Note: HotSpot Shield has a server that seems to be mis-configured in some way. Specifically DNS lookups will fail so your browser will complain about being unable to find sites. If you can't visit any site after Hotspot Shield's icon turns green, simply disconnect and reconnect. Pray that you don't connect to the same server (1/7 probability, a bit lower than Russian Roulette) as these connections are made randomly. If you know how OpenVPN works, you can also edit the config to avoid this.
   


2. Next, run Firefox and clear out your cookies. This is to remove the evil jackass_geo_check cookie that you get when you first visited the Jackass site.
   
   


3. Surf down to the BlockBuster Jackass site in Firefox.


4. Surrender your email address to them or use temporaryinbox.com to get a disposable one. After confirming the email address, login (by entering your email address) to begin viewing Jackass 2.5.


5. Before it starts however, a short advertisement featuring a spinning globe will get in your way. Ignore it or you could watch it if you really want to. While this advert is playing, click on the arrow beside Download Helper icon (three colored spinning balls) and observe the dropdown menu carefully. You may need to wait a while, but an option called "jackass25_1000k_v1_feature_production.wmv" should appear.
   
   


6. When that option appears in the dropdown menu, click on it and save it as a text file.
   
   
   


7. Open up the text file you'd just saved and copy the mms link (Ctrl+c) inside of it. It should look similar to the one below.
   
   


8. Now close Hotspot Shield, run Flashget and add a new Flashget download by pressing F4 when the Flashget window appears. Flashget is pretty smart as it'll automatically detect the mms link you just copied (to your clipboard) and paste it into the URL box, so you'll just need to configure the rest of the options as seen below.
   
   


9. Begin your download by clicking ok.
   
   


10. Profit!

And here's the Duke Nukem Forever Trailer!

As promised yesterday, 3D Realms has given us a quick glimpse at what Duke Nukem Forever may look like, that is, if it ever appears on the market. It isn't much, but from the looks of it, Duke's been keeping fit all these years. Still, I'd prefer some shots of Duke kicking ass to a couple of aliens screaming at me.

I'm looking for some alien toilet to park my bricks. Who's first?



Download the HD version at FileShack or http://fusker.pl/duke.

Duke Nukem Forever Teaser Trailer Coming Tomorrow!

Shacknews is reporting that 3D Realms has confirmed on their official forums that a trailer for Duke Nukem Forever will be coming out tomorrow some time around noon Central time!

Tomorrow, Wednesday the 19th, around noon CST, we will release the first teaser trailer from Duke Nukem Forever. To tide you over until then, here is a screen shot taken from the teaser.

Download the high-res Duke shot at Shacknews.

[via Duke Nukem Forever Teaser Releasing Tomorrow; This is Real and We Are Not Shitting You @ Shacknews]

It's Bigfoot, Bro! (Pics)

What Bigfoot, bro?

Having just caught wind of a Bigfoot sighting in Northwest Pennsylvania (news reports put the location at RIDGWAY, Pa. er... Ridgeway, not sure why they shortened it... My bad, RIDGWAY is correct.), I set out to investigate this current internet phenomenon as stated by the IHT. (That's International Herald Tribune for those of you who don't read the news. Actually neither do I, not IHT anyway, but that's besides the point. :) )

So this so-called Bigfoot was caught on camera by a hunter named Rick Jacobs and was submitted to Bigfoot Research Organization for verification or whatever it is they do. :P (Not to nitpick with the news folks, but it is actually called Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization, not Bigfoot Research Organization. A simple Google search told me so. I've highlighted this fact because I'm not sure how a 4-word title became a 3-word title.)

And so my journey began...

Can't find pics, bro‽

To cut a way-too-long story short, I couldn't find the pictures they were talking about. No photos/images of supposed Bigfoot at all! There were tons of words and words and more words, but no graphics. That is sad, bro. Just sad.

There is hope, bro!

Of course that isn't totally true. I knew where the pictures of the Rick Jacobs Bigfoot, as it is known now (seems it's also called Ridgway Pa Bigfoot and Pennsylvania Bigfoot, but I think calling it after the discoverer is more appropriate. Heh, I like this one - Jacob's creature.), were located - at the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization website. Naturally it is swarmed with people and as expected their server isn't holding up too well.

But I (you) want to see those pics!!!

Bigfoot pics, bro‽

And so, I downloaded those photos from the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization website for you to examine in detail. Yeah, they aren't the puny resolution types, they're at 800x600 pixels. Ok, so that can't match the 16 billion pixel Last Supper, but the last time I checked, 16 billion pixels can't fit on your computer screen.

Word of warning, bro.

You're about to see Bigfoot in action! (Not as exciting as you think.) This Bigfoot has been named the

Rick Jacobs Bigfoot, Ridgway Pa Bigfoot, Pennsylvania Bigfoot or Jacob's creature.

Any other names, bro? Let me know, bro!

It's Bigfoot, bro!

Click on the last three images to be rewarded with a larger picture. Credit: Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization, taken by Rick Jacobs



Closeup of Rick Jacobs Bigfoot. Is Bigfoot bending over?



Evil glowing eyes of Bigfoot, or maybe it's just the err... effects of the night vision camera.



Attention, Bigfoot spotted us! Bigfoot spotted us! He is escaping!



Oops, false alarm. Bigfoot is just having a stretch.

What say you, bro?

Sasquatch? Bigfoot? Bear? Alien? Let me know, bro! (Err... gals welcome too. :) )

An update, bro.

Now that the BFRO site is up (at least for me), the black object you see in the last three pictures is a black plate and a mineral block. Just in case anyone was hoping for some fancy UFO or something else. :)

The area in the foreground was baited with a deer attractant mix and a mineral lick block. In the first image (the one with the bear cubs) the mineral lick block can be seen sitting on a large black plastic plate. One of the bear cubs is apparently licking or sniffing the mineral block. In the two subsequent images the black plate is turned over and leaning against the mineral block. - from Jacobs Photos - Pennsylvania, 9/16/2007 @ BFRO

And you can join in the discussion over at BFRO's dedicated Jacobs Photos - Pennsylvania forum. There are polls, image enhancements/analysis and plenty of talk going on there. More than enough to make it into a subject you can get a degree in. :)

More iPhone Ads and Meet the SPARTANS trailer!

Apple just released 3 more iPhone ads in addition to the 3 commercials that I posted earlier. It continues along the same theme about how the iPhone helps in the users' everyday lives. But I bet you're more interested in Kristin Sloan (or her official website) or the play, My First Time (may not be work safe).

Bryce “Delay”

Kristin “The Winger”

Ken “My Show”

---

Meet the SPARTANS!!!

Despite what others are saying, I would like to see how this all plays out. Just cause I like mindless/brainless movies every once in a while.

[via Meet The Spartans Trailer @ The Movie Blog]

No, Mister Master Baiter, You're Not Allowed to Fly

Sometimes I think Southwest Airlines just wants publicity, whether it's positive or negative. After causing a public outcry in You're Too Sexy to Fly! and it's sequel, You're Too Sexy to Fly! Part 2, Southwest Airlines returns with a new one in its franchise.

This time, it involves a man instead of a woman and it's becoming (more) ridiculous. At least in the short-lived You're Too Sexy to Fly! series there was some room for debate, since the women were slightly under-dressed (for conservative folks anyway).

But this guy, Joe Winiecki, was singled out due to the shirt he was wearing. He had three choices - change his shirt, turn it inside out or skip the flight. Eventually he opted to swap his shirt as he didn't want to miss work.

What was wrong with the shirt? Was it showing too much? Perhaps some obscenity? Nope. All that fuss over two words - "Master Baiter" - which was printed on his fictional fishing shop T-shirt. If you say "Master Baiter" really fast, you'll get another interpretation which could be construed as offensive, but that's really your fault. After all, Meet the Parents and Meet the Fockers were rated PG-13 and no one was upset.


My curious mind decided to try googling for the Master Baiter T-shirt and I think this is it. The evil Master Baiter shirt. Potential fliers heed the warning. No Master Baiters allowed.

All Hail TechnoViking! - The Most Pointless Video You'll See Today

(The ending features possibly Not Work Safe language. But then again why are you watching this at work? I'm quite sure your work is a million times more entertaining than this.)

(Inaccurate and wildly distorted) Description:

This guy is like the Pied Piper of drugged up ecstasy e-tards. Remember, Technoviking does not dance to the music, the music dances to Technoviking!

Do not ask me how this video got over 1,000,000 views in less than a day. And no, the million isn't a typo. Seriously how does a clip showing a half clothed muscle man writhing to some techno music garner so much interest?

Well if you're wondering the same thing, here are some things I found out about the video. First, it came from an event called F**kParade, which is more of a demonstration than a parade. This is obvious at the end of the video but what the hell is the F**kParade? I'll let Wikipedia fill you in. (I have no problem with the uncensored version of the name, but some people do so there you go.)

Second, probably everyone who saw this was German. Yeah, I know you're not German and neither am I but that only makes the 2 of us. How else can you account for the absurd number of views?

Third, there isn't really a point to the video - hence the most pointless video you'll see today. At first, I thought it was going to lead somewhere but that somewhere turned out to be nowhere. Unless you count nowhere as a somewhere.

Now that I'm done, can I have 5 minutes of my life back please?

Your Pictures on Flickr - Private or Public?

So you're a hardcore Flickr addict who can't wait to upload more photos of yourself dancing, singing or perhaps simply flashing the V sign for the camera. Ever wondered if your photos could be used by someone else without your knowledge? Say a large multi-million dollar company, especially photos with a Creative Commons License?

It seems that Alison Chang found that out the hard way when Virgin Mobile used her picture in their ad without telling her in advance. Alison's photo was taken by her youth counsellor, who posted it on his Flickr page. As you may have noticed, the ad isn't very flattering (Dump your pen friend) and has caused Alison Chang and her family much distress.

Depending on the type of Creative Commons License, the rights of a certain piece of work could range from very little to the full blown rights that everyone is familiar with. What does this mean for Alison Chang and her family?

I am not a lawyer (IANAL), but it looks like it boils down to the type of license that was chosen for that particular photo. In this case, the photo in question has a license that allows usage under the following conditions:

Attribution. You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work).

For any reuse or distribution, you must make clear to others the license terms of this work. The best way to do this is with a link to this web page.
Any of the above conditions can be waived if you get permission from the copyright holder.
Nothing in this license impairs or restricts the author's moral rights.

And this is what the family is banking on in this law suit. They claim the photographer was not mentioned by name which is true to an extent. Although the ad doesn't contain the name of the photographer, it does have a link to his Flickr page at the bottom. I guess this is going to be a tough one to call.

If you want to read about what others are saying on Flickr, see the links below.

[Link: Virgin Mobile advertising campaign using Flickr photos at Flickr]
[Link: Dump Your Pen Friend ad photo and discussion at Flickr]
[Image: Alison for peace at Flickr]
[Source: The Sydney Morning Herald]

On another note, isn't it ironic that this story pops up on the International Day of Peace? People are going around promoting peace and harmony while someone is suing over an ad that features them flashing the peace sign. Things are definitely not going well for this year's Peace Day.

God: How Dare You Sue Me!

Have you read Nebraska state senator sues God? No? Well if you did, you would have known that a state senator is going up against God by filing a lawsuit against the Almighty. Sure this isn't about his personal feud with God, it's about making a point against frivolous suits. However based on Man's history with God, God probably won't be too pleased about being sued.

According to Scott Adams (yes, the Scott Adams who authors Dilbert comics), in Suing God (a hilarious post by the way), God would opt for a public defender instead of jumping into the trial. But is that the only thing God will do? Maybe he has other things up his sleeve.

How about death from above? Plan A: Send in a meteorite as a friendly warning. Add in a mystery illness just for good measure. Can't be too specific, must leave humans puzzled. Wait for response.

If you see the guy who's suing God, please tell him to stop, I don't even want to know what Plan B is.

Halo 3 Ending Leaked!

Somehow someone managed to get his hands on some Halo 3 ending video. He said and I quote

I managed to scam these out of the guy that was selling h3 on ebay early.... All I can say is... wow, What a way to end a trilogy, sent shivers down my spine

Whether this is true or not, no one can confirm it at the moment. But if you see the YouTube link below go poof, I guess you got your answer. So watch it while it lasts. Even though it may be fake.

Edit: By the way, the poster (Enraged Toaster) setup a rapidshare link for you to download the Halo3 ending video in 3gp format.
Edit2: He has another link in wmv format.

And if any of the links go down, you could try tk Video Search (based on Google Custom Search).

[Youtube Video of Halo 3 Ending] This link has become private.

But here's an alternate link: Halo 3 ending at Youtube (may contain spoilers)

Edit: You may also want to check out Halo 3 wallpapers here.

[Source: Halo3 Forum (may not be work safe)]

High School Musical Scandal Pic is Real!

The last time in Scandals and scandals, it was revealed that Vanessa Hudgens had produced some full-body self portraits with her camera. And recently the pics have emerged from their hiding and out into the big bad internet. Of course, at that point those pics could have been photoshopped.

However, it seems that the photos bouncing around on the internet are the real deal. Her rep has confirmed the legitimacy of the photos to several sources (shouldn't they be denying?).

And where are those pictures I speak of? As for the juicy pics, you can easily find them online. Really? You need a hint? Try Perez Hilton (Not work safe. Edit: It doesn't seem to be there anymore. But the links below should suffice.).

What I'm wondering now is who got the pics and how they managed to pry these "private" pics away from her.

Edit: You won't believe how many people can't spell "Hudgens" properly.
Edit2: Supposedly someone uploaded it to img.photobucket.com/albums/v469/genstarchild/vanessa.jpg, but it's now a private album. Update: Actually it turns out there's a typo in the url that people are searching for. As for what it is, this Google group thread should tell you (Not work safe).
Edit3: Some more pictures at Crazy days and nights (Not work safe). (Edit: Page is deleted.)

Edit: For those searching for the supposed sex video starring Vanessa Hudgens, titled "Open Me First", it's a joke by satirical site (possibly Not work safe). You can see that from the fine print at the very end of the page and from the other headlines. But some sites got fooled anyway.

Edit: Finally, some other (big) site has caught on, after I first noticed this a few days ago. And they're credited as the "source" (at least by Google). Tough luck for me.

Oh and by the way, hello to ufck users. Mind telling me what you guys are looking at/for? Just curious, since I don't have an account.

[Source: TMZ]

Oops, Mystery Girl Identified in CNN article

Over at CNN, they have an article about how to write your resumes so that you don't annoy your prospective employers. The article lists fairly common sense stuff that people tend to forget while they're looking for a job. The 10 points seem mundane until you hit the last one.

Basically, it tells you to look the part, or be professional looking. And includes an anecdote about someone being rejected at an advertising firm because her email name was "weird2themax".

By itself it is quite harmless. However when you do a Google search for "weird2themax", that's when you realize that maybe including the email name wasn't such a good idea. You see, there are only a couple of results for "weird2themax" and in one of them, specifically at Barnes & Nobles, a reviewer's name is fully listed for a review she did.

And surprise, surprise, she has the same email name as the CNN article. So Linsey Sanders, if you're reading this, I wish you luck in your job search. I guess you don't need me to tell you to use another more "professional-sounding" email address for your resume.

I don't know about you, but I doubt their intention was to expose the real name behind the email alias.

Edit: Welcome reddit users! Thanks to reddit user dannykeithjames for linking to this post.

Is This Lootie?

Who is Lootie?

Do I need to tell you? Really? Ok, during Hurricane Katrina, some guy was photographed taking a case of beer, while wading in knee-deep water. You can see his glee in grabbing free beer in the AP photo on the left.

So? What's up?

Well he became (in)famous and everyone's been photoshopping his image and trying to look for him. Heck they even made a game based on Lootie. And they finally found him after a long and exhausting search. But I must say, he looks quite different without his hair.

[Pic: AP photo]

When Wasps Attack!

While Geetanjali Nagpal (Gitanjali Nagpal) is facing the consequences of taking drugs in India, over in Sigiriya, Sri Lanka, wasps are attacking tourists at a world renowned site, regarded as one of the wonders of the world.

Over 100 people were stung at the rock fortress which is well-known for the ancient and beautiful frescoes (murals) of (get this ->) bare-chested women (no wonder the crowd!). Turns out the wasps are nearly as (in)famous, though not as popular (one can imagine why!).

If you wonder why they aren't spraying stuff, here's why.

The authorities say that they are reluctant to fumigate or smoke out the insects, for fear of damaging the ancient frescoes and its most famous exhibit, three women known as the Sigiriya maidens.

[Source: BBC News]
[Photo from AFP]

Making a 6 Figure Profit on Ebay

A story making the rounds on the internet now is how someone managed to make $500,000 by buying some beer on ebay.

Of course this isn't ordinary beer, it's an ancient Allsopp's Arctic Ale, brewed in 1852. It also had a handwritten note from early 1900s.

Unfortunately, the original seller made a mistake on the spelling and missed a 'p' which caused it to become listed as 'allsop' and hence no one legitimately looking for it could find it (since they searched for 'allsop').

Someone else, however, is about to get lucky. He nets the beer for a low price of $304. This buyer, Dan Woodul, decides to auction it off on ebay and got a really high ending price of $500k.

As expected, the bid is fake. The bidder, 'v00d004sc0re', made the bid for fun and even called up Dan to tell him about it.

However, Dan has received 6 figure offers for the bottle even though he has no intentions of selling it. He would rather it go to charity. That's one nice and lucky dude.

Edit: If you're feeling lucky, you may want to check out Auction Intelligence. It provides a free search tool to find typos such as those that occurred in the story.

[Link: Original auction ($304)]
[Link: 2nd auction ($500k)]
[Source: Tulsa]

Mythical Chupacabra Found?

More weird stuff is happening in Texas (what are they doing down there?). The last one was a giant 200 yard spider web made by social spiders. Now a hunter claims to have found the mythical chupacabra. If you're going, "What?", welcome to the club.

Canion and some of her neighbors discovered the 40-pound bodies of three of the animals over four days in July outside her ranch in Cuero, 80 miles southeast of San Antonio. Canion said she saved the head of the one she found so she can get to get to the bottom of its ancestry through DNA testing and then mount it for posterity.

In case you are not a walking encyclopedia, here's an explanation of Chupacabra.

Chupacabra means "goat sucker" in Spanish, and it is said to have originated in Latin America, specifically Puerto Rico and Mexico.

And no, this isn't the first finding. Many people claimed to have found it before. But none were the Chupacabra. This probably won't be the last time that the Chupacabra gets discovered.

[Source: Comcast News]

iPhone finally unlocked!

While you were busy downloading the World in Conflict demo, Engadget reported that the team at iPhoneSIMfree.com (site is slow now due to digg effect and Engadget) contacted them to release proof of their claim that they have cracked the iPhone SIM lock system.

Most things tested by Engadget seem to be working fine, with the notable exception of Visual voicemail, as it is a AT&T network-specific feature. Other interesting points to note include the quick (only a few minutes needed) and painless procedure and protection against phone restores and future upgrades (untested).

Unfortunately, the unlocking technique is not being released for free. As they state in their site,

SALES:
Individual per unit licenses will be available starting next week. We are currently opening up our mail for bulk purchase enquiries of 500 licenses and above. Interested parties please Contact Us.

By the way, Engadget has an unlocked iPhone in their possession! Can I have one? :)

[More at Engadget, including an image gallery and videos of unlocked iPhone]

Update: Another company at iphoneunlocking.com has offered a software-only unlock solution costing $25 - $50, with discounts for users who have already signed up. But hang on, George Hotz (part of the original and yet another unlocking team) at his blog has said that they hope to be able to find a software unlock. Seeing that he has released his hardware and software unlock solution for free, this may be your best chance at a free unlocker. At the moment, he has an auction on Ebay for the iPhone that he unlocked in a Youtube video.

[More at Macworld]

Typhoid Mary - The Most Dangerous Woman in America

Who was she?
She was Mary Mallon, aka "Typhoid Mary", as she was the first person in the US found to be a healthy carrier of typhoid fever. PBS Nova had a show about her on Aug 21.

So? Why is she so (in)famous?
Typhoid fever is spread through contaminated food or water. And, Mary worked as a cook for a living, so that's a double whammy. Investigators traced the infection to her and had her quarantined for a few years. But she didn't believe them since she was in good health and was a strong believer in fate. After she was released (due to sympathy from the new health commissioner), she secretly went back to cooking (duh, she's a cook). And the next round of infections began, which led to her being quarantined again.

How many people actually died?
You would think that due to her notoriety, surely tons of people would have been infected and succumbed to the infection. Like most (sensationalized) news, however, only 33 were infected and only 3 didn't make it. I'm not saying that those people weren't important, but she wasn't the only healthy carrier at that time, in fact, there were 50 of them.

Did she really carry typhoid bacteria?
Mary never believed she had the bacteria on her and even engaged a private lab to do testing. Supposedly, the results came back negative for typhoid bacteria. But in an autopsy, the bacteria was eventually found on her.

Find out more about Typhoid Mary at Nova, Snopes and Wikipedia.