Just realized I should have also included this link to the FAQ which has a bit more history and explanation of the guide contents.

There were actually four editions of the original guide, but since artists were dropped/added in each one, the early volumes are just as essential. Based on my cursory review of the site, it looks like there are a bunch of artists missing who appeared in the original book, perhaps because the reviews might seem, in retrospect, too dismissive... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:26 AM on August 14, 2002

Eight Mile Creek is an Australian restaurant in NYC that serves tasty kangaroo. I've had the appetizer portion that's grilled on skewers -- available in the bar area, if you want to sample that with your beer.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:08 PM on August 12, 2002

When I first moved to New York City in 1991, I remember being irritated at not being able to consistently find a good, relatively inexpensive cup of coffee -- the options were basically either an overpriced, tiny cappuccino at some West Village cafe or (blech) deli coffee. (I'm from Boston, where the reigning, near-ubiquitous coffee purveyor used to be Coffee Connection -- long since swallowed by Starbucks, of course, who also co-opted the Coffee Connection Frappuccino as their own.)... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 12:59 PM on August 1, 2002

I got sick and tired of people direct-linking to images on my site (wasting the web host's bandwidth, as others have noted), so I just created .htaccess files in the image directories whose contents were most often "borrowed." The .htaccess file simply consists of the following lines:

RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www\.)?mydomain.com/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule \.(gif|jpg)$... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:55 AM on July 31, 2002

walrus: What you need to do is:

1. First check to see if your web host has the mod_rewrite Apache module installed; if not, ask them to do so.

2. Copy the lines of code from my post above.

3. Save it as a plain text file called ".htaccess"

4. Make the following edits:

a) Line 3 - Change "mydomain.com" to your actual domain name.
b) Line... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:24 AM on July 31, 2002

There are some good tunes in there among the overplayed or simply awful. But I always seem to end up liking the the "other song" by most of these bands -- you know, the one that wasn't the massive hit?

So I'll take "World Where You Live" over "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House, "It's Different For Girls" over "Steppin' Out" by Joe Jackson, and so on.

Also: yes, "They Don't Know"... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:32 AM on July 22, 2002

When I was in college I worked at a video store with a rather large porn section, so I really, really enjoyed reading those stories. I definitely remember some of our, er... regulars, like the guy who would come in on our "rent two, get one free" day and, every time, would pick out two porn flicks and a Alfred Hitchcock movie. And he would never rent anything else.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 4:50 PM on July 19, 2002

The Adventures of Pete & Pete is being shown on Nickelodeon's new-ish channel for 'tweens, The N. I think it's only on digital cable and satellite systems, though.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 8:46 PM on July 17, 2002

I live a stone's throw from Times Square and have learned to simply weave around people, walk into the street, around vendors -- whatever I need to do to get away from the crush of humanity and onward. Just like driving, you need to learn to anticipate who's going to be a problem on the road (sidewalk) and plan accordingly.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 4:23 PM on July 16, 2002

I'm still kicking myself for having missed the east coast Burma shows earlier this year, so here's to hoping that they decide to do a few more gigs after the west coast dates.

Speaking of reunited post-punk bands... at least I'll get the chance to see Wire this fall.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 2:22 PM on July 12, 2002

This has been a hot topic of discussion on the NYCwireless mailing list as well. The general consensus seems to be, switch to an ISP that allows sharing, as there are at least a few out there (Bway.net, AceDSL, Speakeasy) that are completely fine with the practice.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:31 AM on July 9, 2002

I think so many web designers are so proud of all the little tricks they know, and all the browser-specific javascript code they rely on, that they almost don't WANT to welcome in a world where it's not necessary.

This just about summarizes the situation where I work. After a long hiatus from hands-on coding, I'm diving back into it for this intranet project where the client has specified that all their users will be on IE 5+ for PC only. Which means... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:00 PM on July 8, 2002

Ah, a Buffy-related link... hmm, why am I not surprised to find this posted by Nic? ;-)

Anyway, it looks like the authors of that paper cribbed a bit from this essay, in particular this bit about the ineffectiveness of traditional methods of warfare in the Buffy universe:

Despite the reason and planning of its formal methods, or even as a result of that mechanized approach, adult rationalism leads to a kind of suburban... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 6:36 PM on July 5, 2002

Yeah, I *loved* diagramming sentences in English class way back when. (Almost as satisfying as reducing algebraic equations!) This stuff still comes in handy when copy-editing or proofing a piece of writing -- when something reads a bit awkwardly, or just not quite right, it's almost always due to ungrammatical construction that can be broken down by identifying subject/object/verb/modifier, etc.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 7:52 AM on July 3, 2002

Also falling within the scope of "outsider music" is the sub-genre of weird and hilarious "song poem" recordings:

The ads in the back of magazines would say "Send us your poems or song lyrics and we'll get them recorded. Big money could be yours!," or some such come-on. What it turns out to be is that you pay them to put music to your words, then they send you a couple of copies of it on their label. And that's all they do.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 3:00 PM on July 1, 2002

I love how the bizarre covers are arranged by some semi-arbitrary theme, which happens to be exactly how I group my non-rock, thrift store/yard sale record finds. Though the "Wild Drums" category is missing a shot of the classic "Bagels and Bongos" cover.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 5:42 PM on June 23, 2002

ColdChef: Yeah, I love the Chopping Block theme music. I remember that coming up as one of the (only) examples of a good company theme song in a thread about that some time back.

Also, I second jonmc's recommendation of Shonen Knife -- with songs like "I Wanna Eat Choco Bars" and "Ice Cream City", how can you go wrong?
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:59 AM on June 18, 2002

I heard quite a lot of those phrases growing up as my mother was raised a devout Catholic, abhors swearing, yet has a bit of a temper -- botheration!

As a result, the curses that inevitably cross my lips when frustrated are the "blashphemous" ones, esp. Christ almighty!.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 5:47 PM on June 15, 2002

Sheesh, who cares if she has a "bad attitude" as long as she (presumably) got the work done. But anyone who posts anything from work expecting it to remain "anonymous" has a few things to learn.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:41 AM on May 23, 2002

I've had pretty good luck accessing files, too. And if the server is busy (esp. Friday afternoons -- no surprise there), then I just check back later.

Personally, I think ~$40 is a bargain for a membership given all the entertainment I've gotten out of that site.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:28 AM on May 23, 2002

I always thought the "boy" version of the Shirley Temple was called the Charlie McCarthy? At least that's what my brother and I always got when we went out to a fancy restaurant with my grandparents when we were little. Also -- ginger ale with grenadine.

As for the blue thing... Blue was always the most popular color when popsicles were handed out at my summer camp. For some weird reason they were root beer flavored. Still don't get that one.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:13 AM on May 9, 2002

using shockwave and flash for good and not evil

Ooh, this should be our new tag-line (I work at Funny Garbage). I'll have to forward your kind comments on my co-workers here.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 8:39 AM on May 2, 2002

The contact info must come from an old copy of the NetSol (VeriSign) database, since what they have up for my sites is outdated, from over a year ago before I switched registrars.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:25 AM on April 29, 2002

The crowd from 1995 has put in enough Internet time to be Internet senior citizens at this point. Of course we're burned out, jaded, and bitter.

I'm with you on the burned out part, at least. I started creating web sites in '94 and somewhere along the line got less and less interested in pursuing my personal web projects. Nowadays I'm more a browser than a creator. Most of my time goes into creating sites for clients as part of my day job. And it's... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:07 PM on March 27, 2002

Hey, I am from Mass, too — Acton, to be precise. "Tasteless decadence?" Puhleeze.

But yeah, Worcester and Lynn are shitholes. (Heh.)
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:13 AM on February 22, 2002

Oh wow, I absolutely love this series... am definitely torn about movie adaptation more due to tone than anything else. The books are definitely dark, anti-organized religion (I think I remember reading somewhere than Pullman thought of this trilogy as kind of an antidote to the transparently Christian Narnia series), and not really "uplifting" in the mass-market Hollywood sense.

It'll be interesting to see who ends up directing it...
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 6:15 PM on February 5, 2002

Based on the few times I've been in the Manhattan K-Mart, it seems that place mainly caters to the hordes of NYU students looking to outfit their dorm rooms. But the whole experience of being in there is just... ick. At least Target has more of a "cheap and disposable and fun!" vibe, as opposed to K-Mart's laughable attempts at faux-upscale "fashion" in the form of Jacklyn Smith sateen sweatsuits or whatever that junk is...
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 12:21 AM on January 22, 2002

According to DomainSurfer, there are 27,585 domains with the word "sucks" in them. Half the fun is seeing which of those were actually registered by the companies themselves.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 8:00 PM on January 21, 2002

Miguel: Thanks for the link to the Aztec Camera site -- lots of interesting things to peruse. But what, no Green Jacket Grey?
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:07 PM on January 1, 2002

Coincidentally, I dug out my old taped-from-PBS copy of the BBC TV adaptations the other night and re-watched Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Yes, the special effects are lame, and the obviousness of people-in-animal suits does make the whole suspension-of-disbelief thing a bit harder to sustain, BUT... Dawn Treader was still pretty charming as a low-budget affair.

I'd love to see a version with... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:38 PM on December 11, 2001

Ah memories! I found all my old posts to alt.music.alternative, then alt.music independent when that group was created to escape the absolutely unbearable volume of traffic about Pearl Jam and other mainstream bands.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 8:22 AM on December 11, 2001

sugarfish: I also posted to alt.food.peeps! Hahahaha...
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 2:46 PM on December 11, 2001

How do you recover from four days of no sleep? When the drug wears off, do you just collapse or something? Too weird.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:32 PM on December 3, 2001

Hmm, this sounds familiar... Ah yes, it was one of the subjects of an episode of L.A. Law.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 12:35 PM on November 29, 2001

From the article:

Many wireless networks allow amazingly easy access to unauthorized users, as some have discovered when their laptops suddenly connect to the Internet when they are in or near a building that has a wireless network.

No kidding. You don't even need something like AirSnort to piggyback on someone's wireless net access. A friend and I did one of the tests described in this article, just to see for ourselves if... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:58 AM on November 29, 2001

Apparently the Newton North high school administrators have never read Zinn's book A People's History of the United States.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:35 AM on November 20, 2001

Well, there's this chart from TheCounter.com.

Though it only reflects their user base, their stats indicate that as of this month 69% of visitors to sites using their counter are running Windows 98. Only 6% for Win95.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:29 AM on November 20, 2001

Aw, o2b beat me to it...
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:30 AM on November 20, 2001

Looks like some enterprising hacker figured out how to get rid of it anyway. Of course this only works if you're able to figure out how to get to a bash prompt on the box, but still...
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 7:12 AM on November 16, 2001

Heh, I actually own a bunch of those. What can I say? The thrift store near where I used to live in the Boston area was selling their records for 10 cents apiece (this was only about 5 years ago). Truly an invitation to buy horrendous records if there ever was one...
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 6:02 PM on November 10, 2001

Heck, get rid of your phone, not your high-speed access!

If you have a cell phone with free long distance, then pour the $20-$30 savings from not having a land-line into your broadband bill. I did that a few months ago and have no regrets. And I can justify maybe even upping my connection speed.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 9:44 AM on November 7, 2001

I was a die-hard PC user who switched to Mac about a year and a half ago. It was prompted by a job switch where everyone was pretty much all on Macs, and I found I liked the user interface better -- for example, it's definitely easier to close application windows with Apple-W than with Alt-F4.

Now that Mac OS X is out, I'm trying to see if I can switch miy web server, too. I'm comfortable with the command-line, since I've been creating/managing web sites on on... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 12:05 PM on November 3, 2001

internal: Almost perfect, just add some dill to that cream of tomato soup. Mmm. My high school used to serve this for lunch sometimes and it was always my favorite lunch food combo.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 10:41 AM on October 24, 2001

No wonder they included felt the need to include this:

Please note, this first offering of The New York Times Electronic Edition is best suited for users with high speed connections (Cable, DSL, LAN, TI, T3).

Because you'll need the bandwidth to suck down all those full-page ads!
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 7:30 PM on October 23, 2001

The one in Times Square is definitely enormous, but the couple of times I've been in there (on a weekend), it's never been so crowded that you can't find a relatively quiet corner (or row) to settle into.

The one thing that really bugs me are the ads that are onscreen all the time. I'd gladly pay an extra dollar or two per hour to not have to put up with that.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 6:02 PM on September 4, 2001

Hell's Kitchen is a devil chef? Boo. Guess my neighborhood isn't easily stereotype-able.

But Staten Island as a big question mark is pretty funny. Or just re-use the Jersey animation instead!
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 11:55 PM on June 29, 2001

Having hacked my own TiVo to add ethernet a couple of weeks ago, I gotta say that I am worried about the implications of this video encoding crack. I did my hack so I could get rid of my analog phone line (got the DSL and mobile phone, so...) and save some money. It would suck if they started to do things -- like blocking non-dialup access to their servers -- to cripple modified machines.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 5:10 PM on June 7, 2001

Regarding the crappy page design... I think the META tags on all of Fuji's pages say it all:

<META NAME="generator" CONTENT="Adobe GoLive 4">

WYSIWYG page layout tools. Feh.
posted to MetaFilter by nstop at 2:20 PM on March 7, 2000