Mini Rant

My hp6910p continues to underperform or perform just as expected. There is no surprise on the upside only on the downside. I got myself a Kingston SDHC 8 GB card, and just as expected, it won't read it. So no surprise here as the reader only says SD. On another unrelated note, one of the keys on the keyboard just gone bonkers. So when I type, a letter just won't show up like it's supposed to be. I have to press it in a special way. It doesn't sound like a big deal but it actually is. It gets really annoying. On the other hand, my Linux cheapo hardware continues to surprise me on the upside. My super cheapo SOHOUSB reader/writer just reads the 8GB without any problem. And yes, the reader just says SD no HC there but it just swallows the card in whole and gives me an icon on the desktop that says 8.0 GB Media. It just works.

hp Compaq 6910p

The notebook is chugging along pretty nicely.  The pointing blue nipple thing fell off already even though I am not known as a rough nipple player ... but I can always put it back, though it isn't like secured anymore.  On the other hand, my century old Thinkpad's red nipple is still firmly, snugly and securely erected in between keys like the first day I got it.  Note, hp calls it a "pointing stick," how inappropriate to refer a thingy this length a stick?

hp Compaq 6910p

Is it an hp or is it a Compaq? Does it even matter? hp perhaps is really into this hard plastic kind of thing. On the upper right hand on the display, it says Compaq 6910p. But it's an hp. Can they just do a bit better on branding? Is it too much to ask?

I have an aging IBM Thinkpad r51, the display is still bright enough if I want it to. On the other hand, this hp never seems to give me the kind of brightness I want, no matter if I am running it on tethered power or battery. I want it to be so bright that I need to wear sunglasses. Alas, the screen is kind of lame. I like it to be my decision whether to have brightness or long battery life. UPDATE: I suppose I did cajole some brightness by pressing the fn-f11 key. Unfortunately, this combination also toggles Firefox's full-screen, it can get a bit confusing. The lack of visual clue while adjusting brightness and contrast doesn't help.

And this notebook is definitely not a laptop. It has a few vents right underneath on the bottom. So it's not really a good idea to put it on your lap. But I do it anyway. It's winter time and I can use some heat on my lap. I am going to use it in bed right on the comforter sort of to block all the vents, even the ones on the side, see if it will blow up.

So far Windows Vista is just what I've expected. Some minor annoyances, here and there, but nothing really major.

UPDATE:
Try hold down fn key and press f10 or actually f11, it brightens up the display.

UPDATE 5/1/2009:
It's been like this for the past few months. The battery, or could it be something else, even at 100%, but the LCD would just quickly goes black no warning or anything, maybe in 10 or 15 minutes after unplugged from power. It's just horrible. I won't recommend people buying this at all, if you get it for free then sure. Otherwise forget about it.

UPDATE 7/2/09:
The e key on the keyboard fell off, put it back, it doesn't quite respond like the rest. Very annoying.

 UPDATE 3/2010
The thing was smoking, literally.  I unplugged the machine and hoped it didn't explode.  Got somebody to change the motherboard all together.  Now it has bee running fine for a month or so.

hp notebook and sushi

My new HP (hard plastic) notebook. This little puppy runs Vista Business. So far I have experienced some minor annoyances. My good old Canon G3 doesn't have a driver for Vista. Windows sometimes doesn't wake up nicely, the screen stays off until the third time I press the power button. I want it to wake up the first time I press the power button not turning it off and back on, a total of three times hitting the power button. I notice there is sometimes left over Windows element on the screen. It didn't happen until a couple days ago, about two or three weeks into my usage. Maybe doing a power down would clear it. I don't normally turn off a notebook.

This was from a midtown sushi joint. I didn't order this, my friend from work did. It's a lunch special sushi set. The eel sushi was just unbelievably oversize, maybe that's what made it a special. I think Chiyoda is one of the better sushi joints I ever have, especially for a lunch and take-out restaurant. From the lunch menu, $9.50 for regular sushi set, and $12 for a bento box (mackerel, sashimi, california roll, salad). And I think they have the best chirashi, both in presentation and in quality.