Sponsor Me!
I'll be doing 2 things on Saturday, 1 of which is pure fun for no good reason, and the other is pure fun for a good cause. Wanna sponsor me for the good cause?
I'll be bowling on the team "Bowling for Guatemala". Any money we raise goes to "The Caravan of Hope", a non-profit initiative (organized by a church) in response to a series of devastating earthquakes in El Salvador. 3 school buses are purchased with the proceeds, filled with a variety of donated medical equipment, school supplies, computers and other supplies, and is driven (by volunteers) ot Guatemala and donated (bus and all!) to the communities there!
Before and after that I'll be playing Halo at Simon Racciopa's "Halothon" lan party, where there will be 7 xboxen, several video projectors, tvs, food, and fun. That requires no sponsorship.
Last night I was invited to a "Preview Screening" of a new Book Television show called "ScrAtch", which is about the "indy" scene. Not Indiana Jones -- independent media. Ian Daffern (the director/producer) was there, and we had chicken wings, and beer. Why was I invited? Because I'm in the show's opening credits (well, my computer screen is), and I'm (personally) in the 'bumper' after the 2nd commercial. A bumper is the little blip of video that leads you back into the show after a commercial. It was cool to see my room and me on a TV show 
Ian did a great job and this pilot episode is something to be proud of.
I got an email from my friend Sacha yesterday. He is the most graphically inclined person I've ever met, and he has a BenQ 17" monitor - and he loves it to death.
Here's a little list of requirements I've put together for purchasing my LCD monitor:
Must have: no ghosting, preferably sub-25ms response time, replacement if dead pixels are present
Should have: dvi input (digital), 700:1 contrast ratio (500 is ok)
Note: a dead pixel is a single dot on your screen that remains black even when the screen is on.
Dead Pixel Policies on LCD Monitors:
* Lite On, Phillips and Hitachi. All three have a zero tolerance to dead pixels but Phillips doesn't count unlit pixels as dead.
* HP will only replace a monitor with there are 4 scattered faulty pixels or 3 clustered.
* LG will replace a monitor if there are 2 within a 10cm circle.
* NEX-NEC will replace 3 lit, 3 unlit or 6 color.
* Samsung could try harder. Six dead pixels allowed on a 15", or nine on a 17", are too many.
* Sony will replace if on a 15" panel there is 2 lit, 2 unlit or 4 dead. On 17" panels Sony will replace if there are 3 lit, 3 unlit or 7 dead.
* Viewsonic will replace if on a 15" panel there is 2 lit, 2 unlit or 4 dead. On 17" panels Viewsonic will replace if there are 3 lit, 3 unlit or 7 dead.
Saving Grace
Futureshop/staples/bestbuy in-house warranties against dead pixels!! SO BUY THEIR IN-HOUSE WARRANTY!
For a brief moment I contemplated getting two cheaper 17 inch LCDs instead of a single 19 because the 17s tend to have faster response times... but I think that'd be a bit too crazy. If I can find the Samsungn 193p for a decent price, I'll get it. Otherwise the BenQ FP951. Of course, I did have a dream last night where I said "screw LCDs altogether" and I bought an Epson Digital Projector instead (same price as a 19 inch LCD monitor now!!). Thing is - I can't really picture myself programming on a 300 inch screen, you know??
$1199 - Epson PowerLite S1, 800x600, 500:1, 1400 lumens, remote, 2 year, 33DB, 4:3/16:9, 30-300" image
Good 19" LCDs:
$1099 - Samsung 193P 19, silver, 800:1,250cd,20ms**,1280x1024, 3year, analog/digital
$849 - BenQ FPT951 19, black, 700:1, 250cd,25ms,1280x1024, 3year, analog/digital
$697 - Samsung 193s, black, 700:1, 250, 25ms, 1280x1024,3year, analog
$859 - Samsung 192N 19, silver, 500/700:1,250cd,25ms,1280x1024,3year, analog
Good 17" LCDs:
$799 - Samsung 172X 17, 500:1, 250cd, 12ms, flawless for gaming, analog/digital
$575 - BenQ FP767-12 17" LCD, 12ms (Black or Silver), analog***
$629 - BenQ FP767-16, 500:1, 300cd, 16ms, adrenalinevault says ok for gaming, analog
$597 - Viewsonic VE700 17, 450:1, 260cd, 16ms (typ), analog ***
$499 - NEC LCD1715-R 17 REFURB, 400:1, 250cd, 16ms (futureshop), analog
$579 - Samsung 172N, 450:1, 250cd, 25ms, analog
$659 - NEC LCD1715-R 17, 400:1, 250cd, 16ms (futureshop), analog
Crappy but Cheap 15 " LCD:
$499 - Samsung 152N, 350:1, 250cd, 25ms, analog
May 30th, 2004 - 08:34
How about…..just fixing your old monitor…and waiting til you’re flush with moolah before buying from your wish list.Ummm,but that’s me lol.
May 31st, 2004 - 08:47
I agree with dad! Unless fixing the old monitor turns out to be financially prohibitive. Especially since Future Shop charges 28(ish) percent interest!! Unless you get it paid off in that first year, of course.
May 31st, 2004 - 11:50
I wouldn’t even know where to go to fix the monitor. There’s nowhere within walking distance of my place, and I don’t have a car, and the monitor weighs about 70lbs. Plus, it is an old monitor. It’d been on its last legs before I left. Sometimes the green would turn off and it’d be all purple. Sometimes the blue would turn off and I’d have a bloody display. Now it doesn’t turn on at all. That leads me to believe that somehow the CRT is screwed. A new 19inch CRT of this quality is in the neighbourhood of $400. Now, lets pretend you were buying something and you could choose between something that “would do” for $X or something that would be perfect for $Y. I’m inclined to believe you would save up a little extra and go for $Y, because as you always say, Dad, “There’s no point in doing something unless you’re going to do it right.” — Right?
May 31st, 2004 - 13:37
I would buy two 17″, and you know why.
Could you please return me email, I sent you 5 emails, different addresses, no reply from you.
June 1st, 2004 - 10:20
i was more referring to taking pride in anything that you do and not doing a half assed job on anything.The tools you use to do the job relate to income and whereas i would have liked the rolls royce of anything ,practicality destined it to be between a rolls and a volkswagen and often as not something second hand or that was thrown away which i could fix and use.Doing your best with what you have is different from having the best.