Comics look gorgeous on the Galaxy Tabs!
I’ve fallen behind on updating recently, so why not post an update?
For starters, my original Samsung Galaxy Tab finally got it’s long awaited upgrade to Android 2.3. Even though this’ll be the last software update for it, and it’s still not Honeycomb (Android 3.0), I’m still glad to have it. On the other hand, was it worth the long wait? My opinion would be… not really. While there are some welcome changes in Android 2.3 from 2.2, like how quickly the notification menu slides open and the additional sound effects that accompany on-screen actions, for some reason I think that scrolling between screens is a lot jerkier now. Likewise, the updates don’t seem hugely better than what was seen in 2.2. Aside from that, my Galaxy Tab 10.1 recently received an upgrade from Android 3.1 to 3.2, and I can’t tell the difference, though I think they’re just minor fixes instead of enhancements.
Also, after spending so much time w/ Batman: Arkham City, my interest in American comics has been piqued again for the first time in years (not since elementary school). I’ve downloaded an app called Comixology that let’s you buy comics from DC and Marvel, and it’s pretty nice so far. I’ve went ahead and bought a random issue of Batman and X-men just b/c I like the art in them, and I have to say, while they like good on a 7″ screen, they look gorgeous on a 10.1″ screen – love the artwork! However, my gripes that I’ve had w/ American comic books since I was a kid still remains – a lack of consistency (I hate how they keep changing up the artists w/ each issue), the prices aren’t cheap when buying more than an issue or two (even @ $2.99 or $3.99 a pop, it can get expensive very quickly), and it always feels like you’re only paying for ten pages worth of content. 
Fun and entertainment aside, I feel like I’ve fallen into a rut lately. I haven’t worked on any of my personal projects in about a month now, and I’m not sure why… eh, I blame it on the end of the year blues. And let’s not even begin to mention my Chinese studies (or lack thereof)… So, hopefully I’ll be able to snap out of it once January rolls around.
Now let’s switch gears: my OS. Within the past two months I’ve switched from Ubuntu 11.10 to Linux Mint 11, and then back to Ubuntu. I figured I would tough it out w/o having a dual-monitor set-up, but just recently I was able to get both of them to work – after deleting the xorg.conf file, I then set it up again using nvidia’s set-up program, and afterwards deleted the monitors.xml file – problem solved. However, the notification messages still keep showing up on the secondary monitor, so now I never see them…
Which brings me to my next thought: I might switch to Linux Mint 12. Thing is, I tried using the classic Gnome desktop option (not Gnome Shell), and as far as I can tell, it behaves the same as the old Gnome 2.2 desktop, which I much prefer to either Gnome Shell or Unity. Likewise, I even installed my RSS feed reader program on a Fedora VM, and it installed just fine, so I should be able to make the switch w/o having to update any of my programs (b/c I have the blues you see…). So I’ll probably do that this coming weekend, and then I’ll stick w/ it. I’ll give Ubuntu 12.04 a try when it comes out next year, but at this point, I’m not sure if I’ll switch back – for whatever reason, the class Gnome desktop in Ubuntu seems to be a bit broken (at least on my install).
Finally, I’ve ordered some more jazz albums, one of which is a Horace Silver release from… 1999! Yes, though he’s now known as the “Hard bop Grandpop,” Mr. Silver can still swing like no other. In fact, I’m amazed at just how well Jazz Has a Sense of Humor is, b/c it could easily be one of his releases from the mid-60s (very much a compliment!). About the only thing that feels really different about it is that Silver seems to take more of a backseat so his other bandmates can jam; there aren’t really any of the funky solos you’d expect to hear from him.
Til next time.
