UPDATE: The guy IS a pirate!

A few days ago I posted about some guy who messaged me asking about biometrics. I took some liberties with him and asked him if he was a pirate. As you read, hilarity ensued. Today he messaged me again.

achyut: Hello captian,after meting u i have read some books about pirate like return by julle varne,some Indian books also etc. now i am loving all pirate.

Land lubber no more, this guy is certifiable... er, certifiably a pirate.

Freeze's thumb

While we're all waiting for Freeze's revamp to be complete, here's a sneak preview of what WILL be back when bombz-away.com returns.

You'll have to wait to see what Freeze gave such an enthusiastic thumbs up to.

Is this guy a pirate?

Alright. Back when I worked in the biometrics industry, part of my job involved scouring the news to figure out industry trends and the like. As such I joined Yahoo! Groups: Biometrics and I quickly figured out one of the problems with the group. Maybe 50 per cent of the users were students (mostly from India) asking others to do their homework for them. Members would repeatedly post that this was not what the group was for and it got pretty tiring for everyone involved.

One of the biggest problems with these students was that they were persistent! Not only that but they were rude and their messages looked like they were from Bumper Stumpers. Très annoying.

So last night as I was working away posting my old entries, I get a message on Yahoo! Messenger from some stranger. Now I don't feel bad about doing this because I thought I was quite clear that I couldn't help him out. Here's the transcript. I'll bold the particularly funny parts for easy reading. Screen names have been changed.

achyut: Hello, I am a biometrics yahoo group member. Can we talk about fingerprints authentication?
sober: Possibly, what would you like to know?
achyut: I want to know how can i capture fingerprints using BioAPI or any other way?
sober: You have hardware?
achyut: yes..
achyut: Veridicom
achyut: and NitGen
achyut: i have both USB scanners with me.
sober: Then I can't really help you. Sorry. I was never in the technical side of things. Most group members would probably consider contacting us this way as being rude. I don't really care.. just a warning.
achyut: can u help me please?
achyut: i have to submit this project as my academic project..
sober: I guessed that from the moment you messaged me.
achyut: at my collge b4 30 april
achyut: ya
sober: Well, you have a little more than two months to figure it out. I hope it goes well.
achyut: yes... thanks...
sober: Hey let me ask you a question...
achyut: sure
sober: Are you a pirate?
achyut: i m a student...
achyut: i m not geting ur question... what does it mean by pirate?
achyut: i m doing this as my academic project
sober: Hmmm.
sober: Are you afraid of getting scurvy?
achyut: nop...
sober: Then you must eat a lot of limes?
achyut: y?
sober: Do you?
achyut: ya
achyut: i do
sober: I wouldn't be afraid of scurvy then either.
sober: Good for you!
achyut: Hey buddy, u didn't told me how can i capture fingerprints using BioAPI...!!
sober: Sorry, what?
achyut: i want to know how to capture fingerprints without using any SDK
sober: You told me that already.
sober: Do you like rum?
achyut: ya... but u didn't replied me about that...
achyut: ye
achyut: i've drunk it too...
sober: It's the best way to have it.
achyut: ya... but let's talk about fingerprints capturing now.
achyut: please
sober: I thought we had already.
achyut: nop
sober: Where are you from?
achyut: from India
sober: Ah India.. lovely place. I would like to visit it someday.
achyut: can u suggest me how can i use BioAPI in capturing fingerprints?
achyut: sure... u r most welcome
sober: Probably lots of shipwrecks and things from the East India Company.
achyut: ya.. but that's the past...
achyut: if u don't mind, should we come to the point?
sober: Yeah but you know what was on all of those ships?
achyut: what?
sober: You see.. it's not about the cash... it's about the booty!
achyut: yeah...
achyut: but what about my fingerprints questions?
achyut: will u please suggest me that?
sober: Which question was that then?
achyut: how to capture fingerprints?
sober: My memory ain't what it used to be.
achyut: without using any SDK?
sober: Old sea dog that I am.
achyut: oh ok...
sober: Oh speaking of questions never answered..
achyut: How can I capture fingerprints without using any kind of SDK?
sober: There it is again..
sober: Are you a pirate?
achyut: what's pirate? i don't know it's meaning
sober: Well you eat limes and drink rum... you're also into booty.
sober: You can't fool me you know.
achyut: ya i m not making u fool...
achyut: i am a student and right now i m doing my academic project on fingerprint authentication which i have to submit latest by 30th april
achyut: so please guide me how can i capture fingerprints without using any SDK
sober: Yes I know.. we've been through this already.
achyut: if possible, please explain me how can i use BioAPI for this purpose.
sober: But you still haven't told me if you're a pirate!
achyut: nop
sober: So... are you a pirate?
achyut: nop
sober: Hmmm... why not?
achyut: because i am a student of Masters of Computer Applications (MCA) at India
sober: But you DO like booty don't you?
achyut: i am having Veridicom USB fingerprint scanner and NitGen USB fingerprint scanner
achyut: y do u feel so?
sober: Don't you like booty?
achyut: y do u feel that i m like booty?
sober: I like booty. Actually I LOVE booty.
achyut: sorry, but i don't know the meaning of booty... please explain me what's that.
achyut: so, will u please guide me how can i capture fingerprints?
sober: Aye! Ye must be a land lubber!
achyut: using BioAPI?
achyut: if u don't mind, can u pass me on some sample codes for that?
sober: It's simple really. You just follow the MAP to the X.
achyut: i guess, u've planned to improve my English today...!!
achyut: how?
achyut: i m very new in this field of biometrics...
achyut: so please guide me from basics...
sober: So I seas!
achyut: yeah
sober: Alright listen.
achyut: ya.. please
sober: I'm trying to light the fire under you to get you into the love of the seas!
sober: And since I'm a pirate, I'm going to help.
sober: But I can't do your project for you... that's a ship you'll have to sail yourself!
achyut: ok
achyut: ya... but atleast u can guide me
achyut: like a compas
achyut: u can become my compas...!!
achyut: can't u?
sober: Like the sirens call I'll give you an "Ahoy matey! Land Ho!" and you'll find your way.
achyut: sure
sober: First. You need a MAP.
sober: When you have your MAP, you should see X.
achyut: k
achyut: then?
BUZZ!
sober: Then you follow your MAP.
sober: Patience ye land lubber! Buzz me again and I'll put you on ignore.
achyut: sorry!
sober: You must follow your path through every minutiae!
achyut: correct
sober: And there at the end of it all you'll find your booty!
achyut: ok...! so, that's the meaning of booty..!!!
sober: Aye!
achyut: but this is all about image processing... isn't it?
achyut: and i want to know how can i capture fingerprints using BioAPI
achyut: yes...
sober: Aye and I'm telling ya as best I can.
achyut: ok... even this'll be too much useful 2 me...
sober: Sometimes the way forwards is the way b ack.
sober: *back
achyut: correct...
achyut: ya i got
sober: Now have I lit the fire under you?
achyut: nop... it's already fired...
achyut: please suggest which language should i use for image processing?
sober: Arrrh! First you must follow the MAP to X!
achyut: yes... correct
sober: That is all I can tell you.
sober: Until you're there, my help will do you no good!
sober: Do you have a mentor?
sober: Or an advisor?
achyut: thank you for your help...
sober: Ask them how to use your MAP to follow the path to X to find the booty!
achyut: no sir, everything i have to on my own
sober: It is all about asking the right questions and listening to the answers!
achyut: right
sober: Then I have given you the right question: "How to use your MAP to follow the path to X to find the booty?"
sober: That is what you must ask the experts! And listen carefully to their answer.
achyut: i have to create a graph from the image file and then read the file... wherever i find the booty, i should store the node in the graph... i hope i m going on right way..
sober: Always listen carefully to answers to your questions.. otherwise there is no point to asking!
achyut: correct... i'll always remember ur advice
achyut: and right now i m asking to an expert!!!
sober: Flattery will get you nowhere. I'm trying to give you your SEA legs!
achyut: right...
sober: I've given you the question.. now you must find the answer, but not from me. This is your academic project remember.
sober: Find the booty!
achyut: ya... i promise u that i'll find the answer...
sober: Good! You want that booty right?
achyut: yeah
achyut: i m very eager to know about it...
sober: Then you're well on your way to being a pirate!
achyut: thank you for your appriciation
sober: Now go forth matey and get your booty by following your MAP to X!
sober: That is the KEY!
achyut: sure...
achyut: thank you for your kind co-operation. i'll surely find my booty with the key u've provided
sober: Aye I'm sure you will too!
achyut: but i hope, next time if i'll need any help, u'll let me contact u
achyut: can i add u in my yahoo msngr?
sober: I have no control over what you do laddie. If you contact me I may not reply, but that doesn't mean you can't contact me.
sober: Anyway laddie.. it is very late in this part of the world so I must get some shut eye.
sober: May the wind be always at your back!
achyut: i m not laddie.. i m a man
sober: Aye but just a laddie until you're a pirate.
sober: Good night to you!
achyut: k
achyut: for me it's morning now...
achyut: so Good morning to you!
sober: Thanks! Bye

Old content

I'm going to post a few selected posts from my old blog.

Why?

I don't know.

I dated them January 24, 2005 to keep them seperate from the new content.

WTF is this?

Picture of the snow thang from earlier.





We later chatted with the neighbour who made it who told us what it was supposed to be. I won't say until later.

Check ya.

Miscellany...

Blogger has changed the way comments work so now anyone can include their name/URL in a comment. Much better Blogger, thanks for coming.

I would also like to apologise to the citizens of Hamilton for a comment I made on the weekend. I can't remember exactly what I said but basically it was a complaint about the 0-degree weather and no snow on the ground. The very next day we got dumped on with a foot of snow. Our neighbour even made a snow... uh, creature. I thought it was an owl and Freeze thought it was a dick and, you know, I could see it. I'll post some pics later and you guys can tell me what you think it is.

Last I was reading in bed and I heard a noise. What was it? Well that damn mouse that's been pestering Freeze... it was on my desk! Quick as a fat cat I jumped out of bed and tried to corner the stupid thing. Actually it wasn't like that at all. I stalked and hunted the thing. It was after my pizza crusts in a tupperware container. I sneaked over to my desk and opened the lid slightly so the mouse could get inside. Once it did I would pounce and close the lid. That was my plan anyway. The stupid mouse tried to get in ever corner of the container except the one that it could have fit through. Hmm... stupid, smart, or lucky... that is the question. You should have seen the thing exploring my desk. At one point it was rappelling down some speaker wire! It was freaky to see. It got scared though and climbed back up the cord. What I didn't get was that it was so scared of falling off that cord and then when it got back to the top it just jumped to the floor. Weird little creature. Anyway.. I failed to catch the dil thing and it went under my bed. I didn't see it again so I did all I could do. I went back to bed and spooned with my lacrosse stick.

This site will soon be listed on Blogs Canada, a pseudo-governmental site catering to Canadian blogs. Check them out.

North Korea vs Iraq

North Korea also recently announced that they have nuclear weapons. They've long been hinting at it but never have they come out and said it.

I'm just curious why the US favours multilateral talks with North Korea when they have WMDs and they went to war in Iraq because they claimed Iraq had WMDs.

Makes my head spin that the Bushies claim the US had no other choice in Iraq.

Maybe the CIA knew Iraq had no WMD (or the means to deliver them) and that the Iraqi army wouldn't be much of a threat. On the other hand, North Korea has nukes and possibly missles with a long enough range to hit the States. Better to fight someone who can't fight back right? Makes sense.

Incidentally, anyone know who won the Iraqi elections? Sistani - who?

Justice is served

Yahoo! Sports - NHL - Heatley gets probation for teammate's death: "ATLANTA (AP) -- Atlanta Thrashers star Dany Heatley was sentenced Friday to three years of probation and must give 150 speeches about the dangers of speeding after pleading guilty in the death of teammate Dan Snyder in a car accident."

I know this was from LAST week but I just had to comment on it.

Talking about the incident, many people said the book should be thrown at Heatley and they mused that he'll get away with a slap on the wrist because he's a celebrity. I'm sure some of those people are now muttering their "I told you so"s.

They couldn't be more wrong.

On September 29, 2003, Dany Heatley made a error in judgement. He sped. His car crashed. His best friend, Dan Snyder, died after spending a few days in a coma. Heatley was seriously injured but he has since recovered. Well.... physically.

Heatley will never forget the day his error in judgement cost his best friend's life. He wasn't drunk, he was stupid. You can also bet he won't have to think twice the next time he's behind the wheel.

"Yeah, but he only got away with it because of his celebrity. Joe Blow would be in jail by now."

Well if you really call losing his best friend "getting away with it," I guess you're as right as you are insensitive.

But what is better for the public good? Do you lock up a budding superstar, one of a handful of players tipped as a future ambassador of hockey? Or, do you let him travel the country telling everyone about how one childish mistake will haunt him for the rest of his life.

One of the conditions of his parole is that Heatley must give 150 speeches to young people about the dangers of speeding. I'm not sure that was necessary.

Heatley would have given the speeches anyway.

Drawing the battle lines

In this age of information, we have the capability of reading news articles from around the world. Doing so can sometimes give us a much clearer picture of what is really going on. Its not to say that these foreign papers don't have their own agendas, but that those agendas are quite different from domestic news organizations'. Basically, watching CNN doesn't give you the full picture.

Here's a couple items from the past few weeks:

This article in the Slate brings up a CIA report done by the National Intelligence Council (a right-wing thinktank) which illustrates the declining power of the United States. The report goes on to predict that by 2020, the United States will no longer be the main power broker on the international scene. The US will "probably" still be the single most powerful country, but other countries will have made great gains. The likely usurpers are China, India, Brazil and Indonesia. Read the article for more about what countries like China are up to these days. This report wasn't some "thought experiment" ... there was no "if monkeys fly out my butt and make a spelling mistake on a news release..." ... The seeds were sown long ago.

This next article published in the India Daily announces a formal alliance between Russia and China aimed to curb the expanding American and European military as well as economic global influences. This means trade deals, energy deals, and a defense pact. Why was this published in an Indian paper? Because it looks as though India and Brazil will be invited to join the alliance.

So the CIA says these countries will emerge as key global players, and the countries say they are working with each other to build a strong economic and military base to curb American expansion. Lets not forget all these countries have the bomb.

On my old blog I wrote that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq reminded me of late-1930s Germany. No one really cared when Austria was enveloped into Greater Germany just like no one really cared when the US went into Afghanistan. Both were just sort of expected to happen and few complained when it did. Then Hitler campaigned to "rescue" the Sudeten Germans in Czechoslovakia. This started to piss people off but appeasement won out and no one did anything, even when the causes for Hitler's war turned out to be faked! The backlash for the Iraq war should be obvious to anyone who reads the news. Oh and where are those WMDs?

Figuring that the third time was a charm, Nazi Germany went after Poland. France and England had given Poland guarantees for protection and as we all know, shit hit the fan.

Now for Iran. Considering all the rhetoric from Bush's state of the union speech, it seems clear the US in intent on taking out Iran next.

Time for another article. The Middle East Newsline (not sure what this is) reports that Iran and Russia have a defense alliance! Meanwhile, Russia also announced plans to launch Iranian spy satellites.

This is real folks. The stage is set. The players are lining up. For now its Cold War II but give it a few years, maybe the heat will turn up.

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