all things me

Can’t believe it’s yet another new year. I’ve been very lazy in blogging lately but, frankly, there hasn’t been much to blog about. The autumn has gone by so fast.

I got Tomb Raider: Underworld for Christmas but my current computer has difficulty running it (I bet it’s the graphics card which is too old). My birthday is conveniently coming up so I thought I’d pamper myself to a new computer with Windows 7. (I just checked my blog; my current computer, Sullivan, is 4.5 years old!) I actually have quite a few games in store that I haven’t been able to play yet, e.g. Jericho and the newest Prince of Persia (haven’t tried it at all, but the minimum supported graphics card is newer than my current one).

Originally I was planning on getting a new computer once I knew the requirements for Alan Wake. Now that they’re not promising a PC version anymore, I can’t wait with the upgrade. If they end up making the game too demanding for my new PC, I’ll just have to get an Xbox 360 (which is the main platform for the game)

Maybe with the help of a new computer I can wait with my phone purchase a little longer, at least until they announce this year’s new models. I haven’t been able to decide between N900 and N97 so I’m hoping there’ll be a new phone about which I can make up my mind.

I baked a yummy big crumb coffee cake for Christmas. I made a filling from rhubarb and strawberries (drool) and as “dark brown sugar” I used muscovado which I happened to have in my cupboard. The cake seemed like a lot of work but I think most of that was because the muscovado was clumped up. I spent a long time trying to get the base of the crumb mixture (butter+sugar) smooth and ended up having it maybe too fluffy (sugar and butter will turn foamy after a while). It was very good after it had had time to set (i.e. the next day and after that). First I didn’t think so, but now I feel I could try it again some time (I just have to remember to de-clump the sugar) — after the last 8 pieces have gone from my freezer I had to freeze it, it would’ve been dangerous to keep it in the fridge…

Hello, my name is Angus. I’m an Aspire-ing entertainment centre. I enjoy FPSs, surfing, and occasionally wearing a skirt. I have a handsome brushed steel exterior and my innermost core is Phenomenal, if I may say so myself. I’m a bit of a softie (Win7 variety) but you better be on good terms with me since I never forget anything — everything’s stored in my gigantic memory and hard disk. (Technically, “giga” is too small a word to describe the disk, but I don’t want to brag.)

—

The first start-up was interesting — in addition to having a mild heart attack when the screen (my old one) wouldn’t work. I plugged out all extra peripherals, plugged in the mouse and the keyboard that came with the computer, and restarted a 2nd time. Thankfully, this time it worked!

I decided to go with Finnish Windows although I’m very comfortable with English. I may regret this later since it’s, of course, easier to look for info and help online when you know the English application names, menu options etc. During the first steps, one of the buttons was incorrectly labeled in French (Suivant, I suppose that’s “Next”). Tsk tsk. Who’s in charge of the localisations? It may’ve been Acer’s dialogue, actually, and not Windows. Having briefly visited Acer’s Finnish website, I think that’s exactly the case. The translation there is horrific.

There is a mysterious hidden compartment on top of the computer. It’s slightly bigger than a CD. I don’t know for what I’m supposed to use it but since I’m currently making a recovery DVD (requires 3), I may stash those in there. Luckily 3 DVDs were included in the package. (Sure, I have stacks of DVDs but it’s nice that they were considerate.)

Even the texts in this recovery disk program sound strange: “Tarkastamassa taustakuvaa”. Checking background image? Why would it do that? Maybe it’s supposed to mean “background checking image” (disk image). I have no idea.

This is a nicely silent computer. My previous ones (both Fujitsu Siemens) have been quite noisy. Possibly due to collected dust, and maybe even the power supply is to blame (Dad mentioned that my older computer (Simon) got better when they swapped the power supply. Good thing, too, that this is silent since I’m planning on keeping it on the desk instead of under.

(OK, I’m already regretting my language choice. Still, I’m convinced all the bad language is thanks to Acer, not Microsoft.)

Can’t decide whether I should start thinking about the migration right away or install Tomb Raider Underworld…

All work and no play makes Minna a dull girl…? I think I better check that TR:U installs properly since that’s the reason I got this machine. (Well, not exactly but it certainly accelerated the decision.)