Joe McCraw

Why the Boxee Box Will Lose

2010-09-17T00:58:00.000-07:00

From: Team Boxee
To: "joemccraw@yahoo.com"
Sent: Wed, September 15, 2010 2:32:31 AM
Subject: Pre-Order the Boxee Box Now, Get It Before It Hits the Stores
/ / / PRE-ORDER NOW / / /
D-Link has signed up Amazon http://amzn.to/theboxeeboxbydlink (in the US) and Best Buy http://www.bestbuy.ca/boxee / Future Shop http://www.futureshop.ca/boxee (in Canada) as exclusive pre-order partners for the Boxee Box. As of this morning these sites are accepting pre-orders. People who pre-order through Amazon in the US will receive their Boxee Box before it goes on sale anywhere else.

If youâ€™re still deciding between running Boxee on your computer and getting a Boxee Box, hereâ€™s a few things to consider:

* it will have access to more HD content than its PC cousin
* no need for keyboard/mouse in the living room or running a 10ft cable to connect your laptop
* itâ€™s beautiful, though a bit pointy in parts : )

/ / / BOXEE BOX GOING INTERNATIONAL / / /
We have some good news for people who live in _______ (see list below)! D-Link has decided to go for an International launch rather than just release in the US.

Come this November the Boxee Box will be available in the following countries: the US, Canada, Australia and in Europe â€“ Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

As soon as we have news regarding other countries we will let you know.

Best,
Avner & Team Boxee

Here was my response:

I feel like a little feedback to this promotional email is required. I took the time to read it, please take the time to read my response.
Boxee is a great product, and if it's going to be a legitimate competitor to Apple and Google for set-top presence, you are going to need to work on your mass e-mails. This marketing your are sending out looks about as legitimate as most 419 scams I get in my spam folder.
For instance this e-mail contains:
a lack of a link to the original boxee webpage
shortened/malformed urls(which inevitably direct somewhere else which may or may not be legitimate)
characters which don't render properly via e-mail
an e-mail from a .tv address which are often poached by scammers to impersonate popular brands
the arbitrary use of / / /'s(for design reasons?)
not knowing which country I'm likely in(.com vs. .co.uk addresses)
the smiley face,
a claim that "People who pre-order through Amazon in the US will receive their Boxee Box before it goes on sale anywhere else."(which sounds suspect, as there are many conditional factors which could make such a claim false)
a lack of a full name for any sort of way to confirm that this was from someone at Boxee(not, I heard it from Avner).
This e-mail campaign just looks highly unprofessional overall, and frankly, lazy.

-Joe
PS And please include an unsubscribe link at the end of your e-mails in the future.
PPS If you are a 419 scammer from Nigeria, I bet your next campaign will be far more successful if you heed my advice.

I fucking hate Ice Cream Trucks

2010-08-30T17:20:00.000-07:00

Why is it that we don't pelt these ice cream trucks with rocks when they come into our neighborhoods?
These noise polluting, High-Fructose vending, traffic causing, blights on the community have no place in civilized society. What possible positive benefit can you see from having ice-cream trucks in your neighborhood?
Fatty doesn't even have to walk down to the corner store anymore to get a dose of sugar. You bring it to him in a fossil-fuel burning, annoyance machine that we all have to put up with.
If you run an Ice Cream Truck, You are an asshole.
Watch out for nails that may suddenly appear in your tires.

Carnitas Bliss

2010-08-29T20:00:00.000-07:00

The Ontological Argument for the Non-Existence of God

2010-08-19T13:25:00.000-07:00

In doing research for my upcoming book (The Authority of Faith), I've encountered innumerable lines of argumentation that attempt to rectify revelation with that of the world of reason. These claims of revelation, at every point to which they can be tested are demonstrably false. Some are so blatantly contradictory that they implode in their own incongruities.
One such argument, which I always have found to be particularly dubious was the line of argumentation used by St. Anselm in defending claims of god's existence. The Ontological Argument for the Existence of God, as it is known is a response to Anslem's inability to grasp with the incomprehensibility of how the wrold came to be. Through his astonishment of the spectacle of the natural world Anselm posits his claim about the nature of god.

1. If I am thinking of the Greatest Being Thinkable, then I can think of no being greater
1a. If it is false that I can think of no being greater, it is false I am thinking of the Greatest Being Thinkable
2. Being is greater than not being
3. If the being I am thinking of does not exist, then it is false that I can think of no being greater.
4. If the being I am thinking of does not exist, then it is false that I am thinking of the Greatest Being Thinkable
Conclusion: If I am thinking of the Greatest Being Thinkable, then I am thinking of a being that exists

Wikipedia

This line of reasoning is flawed for a number of reasons, although I think that his line of argumentation we can find a necessary conclusion which is contrary to the claimed intent of the argument.
#2 Existence is greater than non-existence.
This premise will be worth our focus. I would contend that this greatest being, with the powers, of omnipotence, universe creation, omniscience and omni-benevolence I think it would be an even greater miracle, an even more amazing force which is omnipotent, and can be the cause of the existence of the universe, and has the quality of non-existence. A god who possesses the quality of non-existence, yet had the power to create this universe, would be a more powerful god
A god who could create our universe, but didn't event require the quality of existence for this task is an even more marvelous, even more astounding feat to accomplish.
Regardless of the numerous ways in which the ontological argument fails, we can see the absurdity in every aspect of examination we choose to employ.
Edit: There is a reference to this line of reasoning made by Douglas Gasking in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. I'm not the first to come up with this...

ATT 3G Service Blows

2010-03-10T11:54:00.001-08:00

San Francisco's AT&T service is deplorable. Any time I call another iPhone, there is a greater than 50% chance the call will fail before the end of it. I lost a dozen calls on saturday morning trying to get ready for the Urban Iditarod.

Moving back to the Bay

2009-09-10T23:57:00.001-07:00

It's happening! Sweet!

My iPhone is Dyslexic-High of 79, Currently 97

2009-09-01T09:04:00.000-07:00

I was in Cambria, CA on Saturday, on a freakishly hot day.
Almost 20 degrees above the predicted High!

Youtube Links Blocked on Yahoo Instant Messenger?

2009-08-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

Today, I encountered a really strange quirk with Yahoo's messaging platform which doesn't allow you to send links to youtube.com. I tried inserting letters in front of the http, but it finally went through when I changed the url(via pwnYouTube).

Here is what was sent.

This is what was received.

Anyone else had this problem, or can explain what is going on?
Anyone know why they would do this?

Look Out, Breakfast and Lunch are Staring at you.

2009-08-10T10:25:00.000-07:00

WHOIS: Google.com

2009-04-29T13:22:00.000-07:00

Whois Server Version 2.0

Domain names in the .com and .net domains can now be registered
with many different competing registrars. Go to http://www.internic.net
for detailed information.

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.ZZZZZ.GET.LAID.AT.WWW.SWINGINGCOMMUNITY.COM
IP Address: 69.41.185.195
Registrar: TUCOWS INC.
Whois Server: whois.tucows.com
Referral URL: http://domainhelp.opensrs.net

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.ZZZZZ.DOWNLOAD.MOVIE.ONLINE.ZML2.COM
IP Address: 64.28.187.63
Registrar: DIRECTI INTERNET SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. D/B/A PUBLICDOMAINREGISTRY.COM
Whois Server: whois.PublicDomainRegistry.com
Referral URL: http://www.PublicDomainRegistry.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.ZOMBIED.AND.HACKED.BY.WWW.WEB-HACK.COM
IP Address: 217.107.217.167
Registrar: DOMAINCONTEXT, INC.
Whois Server: whois.domaincontext.com
Referral URL: http://www.domaincontext.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.ZNAET.PRODOMEN.COM
IP Address: 62.149.23.126
Registrar: DIRECTI INTERNET SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. D/B/A PUBLICDOMAINREGISTRY.COM
Whois Server: whois.PublicDomainRegistry.com
Referral URL: http://www.PublicDomainRegistry.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.WORDT.DOOR.VEEL.WHTERS.GEBRUIKT.SERVERTJE.NET
IP Address: 62.41.27.144
Registrar: KEY-SYSTEMS GMBH
Whois Server: whois.rrpproxy.net
Referral URL: http://www.key-systems.net

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.VN
Registrar: ONLINENIC, INC.
Whois Server: whois.onlinenic.com
Referral URL: http://www.OnlineNIC.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.UY
Registrar: DIRECTI INTERNET SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. D/B/A PUBLICDOMAINREGISTRY.COM
Whois Server: whois.PublicDomainRegistry.com
Referral URL: http://www.PublicDomainRegistry.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.UA
Registrar: DIRECTI INTERNET SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. D/B/A PUBLICDOMAINREGISTRY.COM
Whois Server: whois.PublicDomainRegistry.com
Referral URL: http://www.PublicDomainRegistry.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.TW
Registrar: WEB COMMERCE COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED DBA WEBNIC.CC
Whois Server: whois.webnic.cc
Referral URL: http://www.webnic.cc

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.TR
Registrar: DIRECTI INTERNET SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. D/B/A PUBLICDOMAINREGISTRY.COM
Whois Server: whois.PublicDomainRegistry.com
Referral URL: http://www.PublicDomainRegistry.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.SUCKS.FIND.CRACKZ.WITH.SEARCH.GULLI.COM
IP Address: 80.190.192.24
Registrar: EPAG DOMAINSERVICES GMBH
Whois Server: whois.enterprice.net
Referral URL: http://www.enterprice.net

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.SPROSIUYANDEKSA.RU
Registrar: MELBOURNE IT, LTD. D/B/A INTERNET NAMES WORLDWIDE
Whois Server: whois.melbourneit.com
Referral URL: http://www.melbourneit.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.SERVES.PR0N.FOR.ALLIYAH.NET
IP Address: 84.255.209.69
Registrar: GODADDY.COM, INC.
Whois Server: whois.godaddy.com
Referral URL: http://registrar.godaddy.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.SA
Registrar: OMNIS NETWORK, LLC
Whois Server: whois.omnis.com
Referral URL: http://domains.omnis.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.PLZ.GIVE.A.PR8.TO.AUDIOTRACKER.NET
IP Address: 213.251.184.30
Registrar: OVH
Whois Server: whois.ovh.com
Referral URL: http://www.ovh.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.MX
Registrar: DIRECTI INTERNET SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. D/B/A PUBLICDOMAINREGISTRY.COM
Whois Server: whois.PublicDomainRegistry.com
Referral URL: http://www.PublicDomainRegistry.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.IS.NOT.HOSTED.BY.ACTIVEDOMAINDNS.NET
IP Address: 217.148.161.5
Registrar: ENOM, INC.
Whois Server: whois.enom.com
Referral URL: http://www.enom.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.IS.HOSTED.ON.PROFITHOSTING.NET
IP Address: 66.49.213.213
Registrar: NAME.COM LLC
Whois Server: whois.name.com
Referral URL: http://www.name.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.IS.APPROVED.BY.NUMEA.COM
IP Address: 213.228.0.43
Registrar: GANDI SAS
Whois Server: whois.gandi.net
Referral URL: http://www.gandi.net

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.HAS.LESS.FREE.PORN.IN.ITS.SEARCH.ENGINE.THAN.SECZY.COM
IP Address: 209 Registrar: TUCOWS INC.
Whois Server: whois.tucows.com
Referral URL: http://domainhelp.opensrs.net

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.DO
Registrar: GODADDY.COM, INC.
Whois Server: whois.godaddy.com
Referral URL: http://registrar.godaddy.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.COLLEGELEARNER.COM
IP Address: 72.14.207.99
IP Address: 64.233.187.99
IP Address: 64.233.167.99
Registrar: GODADDY.COM, INC.
Whois Server: whois.godaddy.com
Referral URL: http://registrar.godaddy.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.CO
Registrar: NAMESECURE.COM
Whois Server: whois.namesecure.com
Referral URL: http://www.namesecure.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.BR
Registrar: ENOM, INC.
Whois Server: whois.enom.com
Referral URL: http://www.enom.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
IP Address: 203.36.226.2
Registrar: TUCOWS INC.
Whois Server: whois.tucows.com
Referral URL: http://domainhelp.opensrs.net

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.AU
Registrar: PLANETDOMAIN PTY LTD.
Whois Server: whois.planetdomain.com
Referral URL: http://www.planetdomain.com

Server Name: GOOGLE.COM.ACQUIRED.BY.CALITEC.NET
IP Address: 85.190.27.2
Registrar: ENOM, INC.
Whois Server: whois.enom.com
Referral URL: http://www.enom.com

Domain Name: GOOGLE.COM
Registrar: MARKMONITOR INC.
Whois Server: whois.markmonitor.com
Referral URL: http://www.markmonitor.com
Name Server: NS1.GOOGLE.COM
Name Server: NS2.GOOGLE.COM
Name Server: NS3.GOOGLE.COM
Name Server: NS4.GOOGLE.COM
Status: clientDeleteProhibited
Status: clientTransferProhibited
Status: clientUpdateProhibited
Status: serverDeleteProhibited
Status: serverTransferProhibited
Status: serverUpdateProhibited
Updated Date: 18-nov-2008
Creation Date: 15-sep-1997
Expiration Date: 14-sep-2011

>>> Last update of whois database: Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:20:01 UTC <<<

NOTICE: The expiration date displayed in this record is the date the
registrar's sponsorship of the domain name registration in the registry is
currently set to expire. This date does not necessarily reflect the expiration
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registrar. Users may consult the sponsoring registrar's Whois database to
view the registrar's reported date of expiration for this registration.

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The Registry database contains ONLY .COM, .NET, .EDU domains and
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Registrant:
Dns Admin
Google Inc.
Please contact contact-admin@google.com 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View CA 94043
US
dns-admin@google.com +1.6502530000 Fax: +1.6506188571

Domain Name: google.com

Registrar Name: Markmonitor.com
Registrar Whois: whois.markmonitor.com
Registrar Homepage: http://www.markmonitor.com

Administrative Contact:
DNS Admin
Google Inc.
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View CA 94043
US
dns-admin@google.com +1.6506234000 Fax: +1.6506188571
Technical Contact, Zone Contact:
DNS Admin
Google Inc.
2400 E. Bayshore Pkwy
Mountain View CA 94043
US
dns-admin@google.com +1.6503300100 Fax: +1.6506181499

Created on..............: 1997-09-15.
Expires on..............: 2011-09-13.
Record last updated on..: 2008-06-08.

Domain servers in listed order:

ns4.google.com
ns1.google.com
ns2.google.com
ns3.google.com

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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Domain Management
Online Trademark Protection
Online Channel Protection
AntiPhishing Solutions
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
--

Trip to the Southwest!

2009-02-16T11:06:00.000-08:00

Barack Obama Live Inauguration

2009-01-20T08:04:00.000-08:00

Watch live!

One Thing I Like About FoxNews, Class

2008-12-04T13:36:00.000-08:00

You can VOTE RIGHT NOW!!!!! Los Angeles County: Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk

2008-10-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

From LAVOTE.NET
Los Angeles County: Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk
Here is a list of all counties in California and where to find early voting information.
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_d.htm

Found a Video Posted online from an interesting session I recorded.

2008-10-06T19:04:00.001-07:00

Oh, how I love Wikileaks.

2008-10-01T08:51:00.000-07:00

Just wrote an article over on Intolerant Faith about an internal document from the Mormon church that outlines how they intend to influence the vote on Proposition 8.
The details are damning.

You Can't Always Trust Google Maps

2008-09-10T12:20:00.000-07:00

We've begun to rely far too much on google maps to find our ways about.
Logic first, google maps second...
I am surprised that so blatant a glitch would exist for one of the bigger hotels in San Francisco.

Herzog is my Hero-New Blog

2008-09-02T16:27:00.000-07:00

I'm starting a long term project about the filmmaker Werner Herzog.
I'll be chronicling my experiences watching films of his and exploring concepts that arise during the viewings. Please participate, and let me know what you think!
-Joe

The W Is Silent

2008-08-24T13:15:00.001-07:00

The W Is Silent

Quoted in the New York Times!

2008-07-26T23:01:00.001-07:00

I was excited to hear that I, Joe McCraw, was quoted in the New York Times recently about the shift in Barack Obama's position on filibustering the FISA bill. Here is the section that mentions my thoughts. I had quite a bit to say on the matter as you could imagine, but I think the article gets across our need for real political change on the ballot.

Joe McCraw, 27, a video engineer from San Carlos, Calif., who writes three liberal blogs, said Mr. Obama’s shift on the domestic spying measure was a watershed moment.

“This is the first time I’ve ever seen him lie to us, and it makes me feel disappointed,” Mr. McCraw said. “I thought he was going to stand up there, stand by his campaign promises like he said he would, and it turns out he’s another politician.”

Funny Article about Ironic Content theft

2008-07-08T18:49:00.001-07:00

I recently found a couple really ironic examples of copyright violations on the Christian fundamentalist Youtube clone GodTube. The site really is just stolen content with moderated users and comments. One GodTube user went as far as to steal someone elses video and lied, making a up a detailed story about how he was the one who had shot it.
The details are ridiculous
1. The godtube video is of an orangutan peeing into his own mouth.
2. The video is titled "Proof Man Does Not Come From Monkeys"
3. Orangutans, as you know, are Apes, not monkeys, and evolution doesn't make the claim that men "come from monkeys".
4. A simple search for "Monkey peeing in mouth" on google yields the same video posted over a year ago on youtube.
5. Remember, this is a video of an Orangutan, yet I know this guy used the search term "monkey," and would not be able to spell the word orangutan.
6. The user who ripped the video from youtube, fabricated a story about going to the zoo, "the one next to the shooting range, not the one behind the 7-11"
7. The name of the user who uploaded the video was, ironically, PiousPete

The full article with more info is on my blog Intolerant Faith or here, exactly:
http://intolerantfaith.blogspot.com/2008/07/godtube-ironic-plagiarisms.html

There is no earth.

2008-06-24T17:00:00.001-07:00

I was checking out the new version of Google Earth, and after poking around the world, I noticed a new feature that allows you to look at an interactive map of the universe. I searched around checked out the youtube integration, then decided to search for the 'earth', and it replied that there were "no results"!

Demo Reel Blog - McCraw Productions

2008-06-10T14:17:00.000-07:00

http://mccrawproductions.blogspot.com/
McCraw Productions
Check out some footage I shot in France and Italy!

Flowers In The South Of France - The funniest bloopers are right here

Intolerant Faith: My new Blog

2008-06-10T14:13:00.000-07:00

I just started a blog and I thought you might find some of the content interesting.
I'm taking a look at some of the instances in which, religion is used as justification for intolerance. Hence the name of the site, http://IntolerantFaith.com.
I hope to provide a thorough examination of these issues with comprehensive amalgam of links to credible sources.
Intolerant Faith
Keeping the Dogmatic on a leash

Should We Kill?

2008-05-28T15:55:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to my webpage on the Death Penalty.
I found some audio of the last words of some prison inmates who were being put to death in the United States, cut them together with some music, and some images to produce an eerie look at capitol punishment.
Should We Kill?
-Joe McCraw

Why Mass Unemployment? The book I co-authored

2008-05-28T15:43:00.000-07:00

The book I co-authored with Jack Stone is available now on Amazon.com
You can buy the book here:

Why Mass Unemployment?
May not be a light read, but may be a useful tool in a classroom setting.
Let me know if you use it in your curriculum!

General Information

2008-05-28T15:38:00.001-07:00

You can find general information about what I'm up to on my main web page
http://www.JoeMcCraw.com/ I have some of my videos online, contact info, my current resume, and some other older projects that I've worked on.
Joe McCraw

Kin Selection - My Final Thesis Online

2008-05-28T15:34:00.000-07:00

I converted my final senior thesis into a web page here:
http://www.kinselection.com/
Phenotypic Trait Group Selection
This page explains some of the problems with traditional notions of Natural selection, providing insight into the Nature vs. Nurture debate.
Take a look!

Here are various links my stuff online

2008-01-05T15:44:00.000-08:00

Hey. It's me, Joe McCraw, just lodging another bump on the information superhighway.
You can see what web pages I'm checking out on my del.icio.us page!
http://del.icio.us/mediatedthought
link