Author Archives: skierpage

About skierpage

As you might guess, my site is mine. My Schema.org info is at .

buying a new bicycle

Posted on 2013-05-05 by skierpage

After years of service, my Univega bike gave out. The gel seat (long since turned to solid foam) is disintegrating, the wheels can’t be trued any more, the crank grinds in the bottom bracket, the brakes squeal more than they … Continue reading →

Posted in design, eco | Leave a comment

software: TurboTax lameness

Posted on 2013-03-24 by skierpage

After a long break I bought TurboTax to do taxes. Intuit has had 20+ years to get this software right. Let’s see how they’re doing. Re-enter contact info I have to enter my name, address, and phone number to register … Continue reading →

Posted in software, web | Leave a comment

music: “Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll”

Posted on 2013-02-23 by skierpage

This documentary about Chuck Berry‘s 60th-birthday musical performance and tribute was surprisingly enjoyable, considering that I only ever want to hear four straight-up rock ‘n’ roll songs in a row. His songs all tend to chug along the same way, … Continue reading →

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music: Shutter falls, all in 3D, foreign movie, Peg!

Posted on 2013-01-07 by skierpage

I enjoy and admire Steely Dan’s Aja, but I don’t quite love it to pieces like Gaucho. Then an afternoon watching drummers on YouTube (Jo Jo Mayer’s stickwork, Buddy Rich’s impossible drum solo) took me to Bernard Purdie and two … Continue reading →

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a retrospective as Grand Theft Auto V nears

Posted on 2012-10-28 by skierpage

The approach of Grand Theft Auto V makes me reflect on the series. Highest and purest style: GTA: Vice City Ridiculously gargantuan sandbox: GTA: San Andreas[*] Best damn radio patter: GTA: Liberty City Stories (Dan Houser and Lazlow’s finest moments) … Continue reading →

Posted in art, videogames | Leave a comment

non-support: PayPal can’t help itself

Posted on 2012-08-25 by skierpage

Another day, another company that won’t let me tell them what’s wrong with their site. Same as it ever was. This time it’s PayPal. Their interface to Subscription payments is poor. Firstly, you can’t find it under Send money, or … Continue reading →

Posted in service, web | Leave a comment

cars: Fisker Karma, Hot Wheels brought to life

Posted on 2012-07-14 by skierpage

I saw a Fisker Karma on the street for the first time. The car is huge, and insanely distinctive. It swells and bulges all over the place, making a BMW 6-series look like a bland Hyundai. It’s a Hot Wheels … Continue reading →

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music: piracy is wrong, copyright matters

Posted on 2012-07-14 by skierpage

The Trichordist tore into an NPR columnist who admitted to having 11,000 songs but hardly paying for any of them. Now Free Software guru Richard M. Stallman wades in, and gets it wrong. I criticize him thusly (originally on Slashdot … Continue reading →

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software: misplaced Linux desktop angst, just make HTML5 great

Posted on 2012-06-29 by skierpage

Linux users and developers bemoan the few apps available for their desktop. Where are the app developers? is a typical lament. But every commercial next-gen platform going up against Apple/Android — BlackBerry X, Tizen, even Windows — has figured out … Continue reading →

Posted in open source, software, web | 1 Comment

cars: BMW i8 climbs down from greatness

Posted on 2012-06-15 by skierpage

The good news is some version of the BMW i8 will probably enter production. It’s still a looker, but the EfficientDynamics Vision concept was beyond belief, easily the greatest concept car so far this millennium. (Watch the designers talk about … Continue reading →

Posted in cars, design | 1 Comment