Christos Kalantzis’ Blog

Parts

So the EFI-X website has lots of  parts to choose from.  I have settled for the following:

• Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R
• Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.40GHz)
• Radeon HD 3870 Video Card
• 2x2GB 800Mhz RAM
• LG DVD Burner (SATA)
• 2X500GB Hitachi HD (SATA)
• Cooler Mater 550W Power Supply
• Cooler Master Case

I hadn’t assembled a computer in a while, and it was fun to get my “hands dirty” again.

I got the hardware from  various sources.  At the time I purchased them, Amazon, Fry’s and NewEgg where my friends.  Look around for the best deals.

Next Step….Installing Mac OSX.

I have decided to upgrade my iMac to a Mac Pro. However, have you seen the price of those things? Can you say Apple Tax? Too bad you can’t build your own unless you want to go the hackintosh route and deal with hacking the kernel and updates that you cannot apply. Until now!

EFI-X is a German company that developed a chip thatplugs into your motherboard and duplicates the EFI hardware instruction set. So once it’s installed all you need to do is install using a retail copy of OS-X. I do mean retail. Not advocating piracy here. Just a little EULA breakage.

On their website they list a bunch of supported hardware. As long as you choose the parts they support, your golden. So follow my next few postings as I choose my hardware and build a homebrew Mac Pro.

Have you seen the latest Apple add? Actually you saw it the first time. It’s the same add over and over again.
I, personnaly, have gotten a little tired of that theme. All they are, are pot shots at Microsoft. Why not tell me what you can do, instead of spreading lies (and i mean outright lies) about your competition? Funny that one of their selling points is that you can run Windows!
The adds no longer are aimed at getting new users, but to make fan-boys chuckle.
By the way Apple, a PC also runs Linux. Latest numbers show that there are more world-wide Linux users than Mac users.
So tell me what you can do for me and how much it will cost to switch to you (hardware and software), instead of just spreading FUD. It’s getting a little old.

American Republicans, criticize Canadian Socialized medical system, calling it inefficient and slow.  As a Canadian living in the U.S.A., I can confirm that this is not true!

As an employed computer professional in Silicon Valley, I am fully insured with one of the best rated HMOs in the state of California.  So I figured, its about time I go visit the doctor. I chose from the list of approved doctors of my HMO.  When I called earlier this week, I was told the next available appointment was in November, 5 months away!

In Canada, I can visit ANY doctor I want, and can get an appointment for a physical within a couple of weeks.  This begs the question; Why do Americans keep on knocking Canadian Socialized medicine?

The answer is simple.  HMOs have the politicians in their pockets, and health care is a multi-billion dollar industry, which won’t go away easy.

I miss Canada. Until winter rolls around, then not so much.

Memorial day weekend brings many things to Americans. For most it is the beginning of summer. For others its a big cock-out, or block party. For me, its an opportunity to fly home and visit my old stomping grounds.

So how does Montreal look to me after 4 months of being away? Well I left in January, so its a lot greener. Shopping, confirmed to me that Canadians are getting hosed! (exchange rate is $0.99 as of this writing) The news is filled with a renewed effort of separating Quebec, and treating non-francophones as second class citizens. Basically, its more of the same!

However, its home and I miss it

So they released the SDK this week. That was inevitable, and very important to pickup the sluggish sales of the iPhone. New third-party software will empower developers to create much needed new apps for this new platform, which is way behind Windows Mobile or even Symbian in third-party apps. Most will probably be junk, but I would love to see an ebook reader and universal Instant Messenger and even Truphone to make a VOIP client for it.

However, for me the real news, and what could really propel iPhone sales, is the announcement that it will be Exchange compatible. Once again, being more compatible with the company Apple loves taking pot shots at, makes it even more appealing to the masses and will help its bottom line.

Seems that Microsoft is behind the reason of Apple’s success over and over again. In 1997 Microsoft bailed Apple out of potential bankruptcy. Then the iPod didn’t really take off until they made iTunes for Windows. Even today, most iPod users are Windows users.

Then they switched from Power CPUs to Intel. This speared rumors of being able to run Windows on a Mac. Well the rumors were not only true, Apple created the software to make it happen and even supported it. Macs flew off the shelves.

Now they will support Microsoft’s Exchange, and it will undoubtedly skyrocket sales of the iPhone as corporations will buy them up by the truck-load. Once again its Microsoft compatibility to the rescue!

Now don’t get me wrong, I love Apple products, and with the announcement of the SDK and Exchange compatibility, I might trade in my N95 for an iPhone this summer. I even bought a brand new Macbook Pro. However, I hate the constant hate coming from Apple fan-boys towards Microsoft.

So lets all thank Microsoft, because without them and the platforms they have built, Apple products wouldn’t be as popular and good as they are today.

Thank you Microsoft!

So its been a year since Vista made its debut and the verdict is not positive. Complaints are rampant about software not being compatible, hardware not working and usage not as it was before.

I am a Mac user, however I have dabbled with Vista over the last year and have had extensive experience with XP since its release in 2001. Although I prefer Leopard, I must admit that Vista is pretty slick. I fail to see what the complaints are all about. Its a more secure OS and they made it a lot more usable than it was before, with features like Desktop Search.

So why all the fuss? There are complaints that old hardware doesn’t work. Since when is it an OS manufacturer’s responsibility to make sure every piece of hardware on the planet works on your OS? The OS’ API was out a year before it was released. So why didn’t the manufacturer of the hardware not make a Vista driver? I think the blame should go to them not Microsoft.

Another complaint is the fact that not all software works. Software compatibility is a privilege not a right! Steve Jobs taught us that when he went from OS9 to OSX. Software developers have been given guidelines on how to program correctly for the new multi-user versions of Windows since Windows 2000! How is it Microsoft’s fault when software developers make half-assed software that doesn’t follow the OS’s guidelines? Actually, the only blame I could put on Microsoft is that they didn’t force software developers to follow their OS’s guidelines sooner.

The most ridiculous complaint is the one about UAC (User Access Control). Microsoft finally put in place a mechanism to force users to run as limited users. Only when software requires system access will it request access from an administrative user. What is wrong with that? Mac OSX has had that for a very long time! You can’t install anything that requires system access without OSX asking you for an administrative username and password. The complaint? “I can’t do anything without UAC always popping up.” Ahh! The problem once again is related to the latter issue about half-assed software that tries to access system resources instead of following Windows software development guidelines.

That is my two cents.

I am in San Jose! I made it baby!

I accepted an offer last week and packed up everything and flew out. It was all very short notice, however, I managed to do it. The real issue was getting the TN Visa. Being Canadian it usually isn’t a big deal. Flash your degree, your employment letter and the deed is done. My case is a little different. I am married to an American and that is a huge red flag. So I had to have all kinds of papers ready to prove that I have no intention to stay in the USA beyond the life of the visa. I had a cover story ready as well as every document under the sky.

Well the day finally came on the 31st of Jan and the wife and I got to the border. I requested an TN Visa and was taken to the side. They asked for my letter, and my degree. I was going over my story in my head and when the border guard came back with my passport, it had the i94 attached to it, and he was escorting me to the cashier to pay for the visa. Thats it!

So I am in San Jose now. My stuff will follow. The car I haven’t decided what to do with yet. Anyone know of a service where people drive your car to a destination? I like my car and want to keep it.

So this has has been moving story. Not as eventful as I thought it would be. It went really fast, faster than I would like, however its done. I now live in San Jose California. The Green Card will soon be on its way as well. All is well that ends well.

Now if you will all excuse me, I need to go get a burger and buy a pickup truck.

Papers have been filed and received with US immigration.  I am even flying out west tomorrow to meet with 2 potential employers.  On top of that I have a third I am in negotiations with here.  Not mentionning this to toot my own horn, just to confirm that there is plenty of work out there.

The weather is getting colder, here in Montreal.  However its not bothering me as much as it did in previous years.

I have decided not to move my stuff out until the Green Card process is complete.  Since I am staying with my in-laws, I don’t need to unecessarily pay for storage.  The next step is to put the condo up for sale.

In my constant attempt to prove that I can do it just as good as others, I have decided to sell the condo on my own.  How hard can it be? (Hope those don’t become my “famoust last words”!)  Keep an eye out for the listing.

Thats it for this installment.  I will check in again when I accept a job offer.  Then we can explore the wonderful world of TN Visas!

Cheers!

The paper-work is all ready.  Along with an I-130, we are also filing an I-129F.  The first is for the Green Card, the second is for a K-3 Visa.  In case the Green Card takes a long time to process, the K-3 will allow me to stay in the US for up to 2 years.  Once there, I can apply for a work permit, and start working.

There is also the fact that, being a Canadian, I can get a job in the US and work with a TN-Visa. Thank you NAFTA!  However, that is temporary and you have to make sure, during the TN Visa interview process not to mention intent on immigrating to the US.  Ideally my company will allow me to work remotely, and I can just go there (Canadians can stay in the US for up to 6 months) and “work from home”. Decisions…decisions!

Road Trip!

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I have decided what to do with my car.  Califonia DMV requires all automobiles with under 7500 miles to pass California Emmission standards.  My car (2007 Nissan Versa) has just under that, however, if I drive it there, as I plan on doing, it will surely go over that mileage and I will be able to put California plates on it.  Now the only thing I have to decide is what to put on my vanity plates.  BTW, according to Nissan Canada, all canadian Nissan automobiles do not meet California emmision standards.

Thats it for now.